Abstract Background The population aged ≥65 is important because of the higher mortality rate and a riskier clinical course of COVID-19 in this patient group. This study aimed to examine the epidemiological characteristics, clinical conditions and factors affecting the clinical status of patients over 65 with COVID-19 in the Bingol province. Methods Study was conducted between March and December 2020 in the Bingol province using the data of 3,521 patients over age 65 who were positive for SARS-CoV-2 as per RT-PCR results. The study commenced after obtaining necessary institutional permissions and the ethics committee approval. In the study, independent variables were age, gender, presence of chronic diseases whereas dependent variables were mortality status, presence of pneumonia. Chi-square test and binominal logistic regression analysis were used for statistical analysis. In all evaluations, p < 0.05 was considered significant. Results The median age of the patients participating in the study was 72(65-102) and the case fatality rate was 2%. The mortality rates were significantly higher in patients aged between 75-84 and those aged >85 as well as patients who had a chronic disease, diabetes and ischemic heart disease compared to the other groups (p < 0.05). According to the regression analysis, mortality rate was 2.6-fold higher in males than in females and 24.3-fold higher in patients with pneumonia than in those without pneumonia (p < 0.05). Conclusions Among the patients in the study group, mortality rate was found to be higher in males, those in the advanced age group and those with pneumonia and chronic diseases. Therefore, if possible, patients with these characteristics should be followed more closely in a hospital setting during the pandemic. Key messages Mortality rates are higher in patients with COVID-19 who have a chronic disease, diabetes or ischemic heart disease. Age, gender and presence of pneumonia are among the important factors in the course of COVID-19.


A brief glance at any pharmacological book or treatise on therapeutics will reveal that there are actually only a handful of -drugs which have been advocated for the relief of pain. All of these have been in clinical use for many years, and their usefulness in thie treatment of pain in general, or for the treatment of a specific condition, has been accepted as colmmon knowledge and medical teaching. Unfortunately, the dinician too often prescribes an analgesic and, without any further follow-up, assumes tha;t the patient had relief of pain. Because this was the medication advocated for this condition, the expected response must have occurred. If the patient does not respond in the accepted manner, he is considered to be a psychoneurotic with magnification of his symptoms. Of course, the drug is never at fault. Occasionally the converse occurs, particularly when new analgesic agents are used and an over-zealous investigator may have primed the patient about the anticipated benefit. Although the patient may not have noted any particular alleviation of the pain, he feels that since the doctor is making all efforts to help him, it would be discouraging to give a negative report. The patient, always respectful of the physician and somewhat overwhelmed by the unusual attention, invariably claims to be improved. The problem is at once apparent. A study of analgesic agents is meaningless unless one considers the symptom of pain as it is manifested by the individual patient. We cannot, at the present, divorce the complaint from the patient as a whole. Pain is a subjective symptom. Recent work has emphasized the pain threshold and reactivity of the patient,2' 4, particularly alterations in facial expressions resulting from application of a known stimulus such as intense heat or inflated balloons. These methods are very import-


Antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) are promising therapeutic alternatives to conventional antibiotics for the treatment of drug-resistant bacterial infections. However, the application of AMPs is limited because of moderate antimicrobial activity, high toxicity and high manufacturing costs. Conformation, net charge and amphipathicity are considered key factors in AMPs. In order to generate short AMPs with enhanced therapeutic efficacy, six peptides were designed based on the active motifs of natural AMPs followed by evaluating their biological activity, stability and cytotoxicity. Brevinin-OSd, OSe and OSf exhibited broad-spectrum antibacterial effects, especially OSf, which presented the highest therapeutic index for the tested bacteria. Also, these peptides displayed good stability. The results from CLSM, SEM and TEM studies, indicated that brevinin-OS, OSd, OSe and OSf possessed rapid bactericidal ability by disturbing membrane permeability and causing release of cytoplasm. In addition, OSd, OSe and OSf dramatically decreased the mortality of MRSA acutely-infected waxworms. Taken together, these data suggested that a balance between positive charge, degrees of α-helicity and hydrophobicity, is necessary for maintaining antimicrobial activity, and these data successfully contributed to the design of short AMPs with significant bactericidal activity and cell selectivity.


It is well known that the derivative of a solid spherical harmonic of degree те is a solid spherical harmonic of degree те + 1. Using the algorithm by L.Cunningham [1] we succeed to expand the derivative's coefficients as linear combinations of the original function's coefficients. It seems to be the best expression for the gradient of the gravitational potential of any celestial body represented by the Laplace series in spherical harmonics. Generalization to higher derivatives is done. Similar procedure is performed with solid spherical harmonics, regular at the origin.


We describe the current applicability and ongoing potential of novel robots inspired by plants, specifically by tendrils and vines. These robots are capable of "growing" into unpredictable environments, and adhering their bodies to key environmental features in order to provide stability and leverage. Potential operations include exploration (medicine, planetary science, archaeology, disaster relief) and novel materials handling (grappling, bundling, tying).


Build-up welding technology can be used to manufacture composite metal parts and repair worn alloy-steel spare parts. Service life and production efficiency can be improved. The paper introduces repairing technology and method of hydraulic press in detail.


Parainfluenza type 3 virus (PI3V) is a primary agent of Bovine Shipping Fever worldwide. The activity of the virus was accessed through a sero-survey using the haemagglutination inhibition (HI) test. Out of 656 cattle sampled from Adamawa, Bauchi, Taraba and Borno States, 51.37% were seropositive. The reciprocal of HI titres ranged between 21 and 212. The geometric mean HI titres ranged from 106 in Borno State to 686 in Adamawa State. The  implication of these findings to the possible occurance of shipping fever along cattle routes is discussed.


wherein R1 to R4, which may be the same or different, are selected from the group consisting of H, alkyl of 1 to 5 carbon atoms, NO2, halogen, -COOH, or -NH2; wherein R5, R6, R7, R8 which may be the same or differ ent are selected from the group consisting of H, alkyl of 1 to 5 carbon atoms and halogen; wherein n is an integer of 0 to 5 m is an integer of 1 to 10 p is an integer of 0 to 1 a is an integer of 0 to 1 b is an integer of 1 to 10, wherein if a is 1 then b is 1, and wherein the moiety


HAMMERSMITH HOSPITAL, DEPARTMENT OF OBSTETRICS AND GYNAECOLOGY, 1966 This report is presented in similar form to previous annual reports and conforms to the recommendations of the Council of the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists. The total deliveries in 1966 amounted to 2,259 which is only 7 more than in 1962. There were no maternal deaths and the perinatal mortality rate was 31.0. The hospital deals with a number of cases of severe rhesus iso-immunization referred from other centres. The stillbirth rate falls from 17.2 to 14.0 if seven stillbirths in transferred cases are not included. The Caesarean section rate was 6.6 per cent and the forceps rate 8.2 per cent. There were only 9 flying squad calls due to the fact that about 90 per cent of all confinements in the area take place in hospital. The incidence of anaemia (Hb. less than 11 .O g.) was 33 per cent. The majority showed simple iron deficiency, but due to the increasing proportion of coloured women in the area the incidence of thalassaemia and haemoglobinopathy is increasing. Four cases of eclampsia occurred without fetal loss. The policy of routine chest X-ray is being reviewed as no cases of active and unsuspected pulmonary tuberculosis were revealed in this way. There appears to be a striking increase in gonorrhoea amongst the people served by the hospital, and the need for vigilance is stressed. It is interesting to note that 10 out of the 22 cases of contracted pelvis and disproportion had an elective Caesarean section without trial of labour. Amongst the neonatal infections were 2 cases of gonococcal ophthalmia, a disease rarely seen until fairly recently. There is a summary of the various gynaecological operations performed. The total number of new patients was 2,574, and the total number of operations amounted to 1,195. There were three deaths, two due to carcinomatosis and one from cardiac failure.


A study of creative personalities was carried out. A creative personality is the personality that discovers something new, unexplored, and unknown, and makes influence on a wide social-cultural context. Resulting from this study it was found out that a creative personality is characterized by a positive childhood experience, transcommunicational attitude to the world. A creative personality is a suorce of wisdom and inspiration for other.


Efficient short sea shipping is vital for trade and industry in Northern Europe. About 90% of the volume of goods exported or imported to Sweden is transported by ships in at least one part of the transport chain. It is therefore important to find cost-effective solutions for shipping in order to improve the global availability of goods in Northern Europe and to reduce the environmental impact caused by the transport industry. The purpose of this paper is to develop a container shipping concept – the Short Sea Shuttle Concept. The concept involves transportation of containers between a number of ports and a hub port with functional inland connections, fixed schedules, and high reliability and departure frequency. High punctuality is an essential factor for the shuttles, as it allows a transfer of more time-sensitive cargo to sea, which currently is transported by other modes.


Several mathematics investigations using recurrence relations, transformations of trigonometric functions, and graphs of implicit functions are illustrated with the FluidMath software


What is the problem and what is known about it so far? A growing proportion of Americans are older than 65 years of age and are at risk for functional decline. Decline may be due to health problems that lead to less independence in carrying out daily activities. High-quality medical care might help to prevent or postpone the functional decline that often accompanies aging. Pharmacologic care, the use of medications to treat health problems, is an important part of the care for older adults. However, little is known about the quality of pharmacologic care for older adults. Why did the researchers do this particular study? To evaluate the quality of pharmacologic care provided to patients older than 65 years of age who were at risk for functional decline. Who was studied? 372 patients enrolled in 1 of 2 managed care organizations and whose interviews indicated a risk for functional decline or death. All patients were 65 years of age or older, spoke English, and lived in the community rather than in a nursing home or other institution. How was the study done? The researchers used quality indicators developed for the Assessing Care of Vulnerable Elders (ACOVE) project. Forty-three quality indicators addressed 4 aspects of pharmacologic care. First, did patients receive medications that were indicated for their medical conditions? Second, did patients receive medications that were likely to do more harm than good? Third, did patients receive appropriate education about their medications and was there appropriate documentation about these medications and communication with other doctors? Fourth, did patients receive appropriate monitoring while using the medications? The researchers reviewed patients' medical records and interviewed patients or their caregivers to obtain information about each of the quality indicators relevant to each patient. They then examined how often and in what types of situations care met the quality standards. What did the researchers find? Prescriptions for inappropriate medications (medications that were more likely to do harm than good) were infrequently given. Most quality problems related to failure to prescribe indicated medications; failure to monitor medications; and failure to provide medication along with proper documentation, education, and coordination with patients' other physicians. What were the limitations of the study? The results might not apply to other care settings. The study relied heavily on medical records, but these were not available or were incomplete for some patients. What are the implications of the study? Quality improvement efforts for older patients should focus on issues related to receipt of indicated medications, monitoring, patient education, and communications to patients' other doctors.


This study tests whether there is evidence of mean reversion in unemployment rates using the recently developed unit root test of Kapetanios et al. (2003). In this framework, the null hypothesis of a unit root process is tested against the alternative of a globally stationary exponential smooth transition autoregressive process. Applying the test to monthly data for Australia, Canada, Finland, Sweden and the USA, it is concluded that unemployment hysteresis finds less support when non-linearities are allowed for compared to the benchmark of using a standard Augmented Dickey–Fuller test.


The number of leaves on an onion plant, which is an important element of the yield, is related to the bulb diameter and weight. In order to estimate the number of leaves of an onion plant based on the accumulated temperature, we compared several calcu lation methods. The fitness of the estimation formula for a specific calculation method was verified by examining different variables: sowing date, cropping type, and method of phosphoric acid fertilization (broadcast or locally applied). As a result, the accuracy of the estimation method using the daily average temperature was lower than the triangle method and the average temperature method with a base temperature of 3.5°C or 5.0°C. In addition, when the base temperature to calculate the effective temperature was set for the accumulated temperature method or triangle method, a base temperature of 5.0°C was more accurate than that of 3.5°C. Therefore, our results indicate that the formula of the average temperature method with the base temperature set to 5.0°C is highly correlated with the effective temperature and number of leaves, and the prediction estimation error is small. In different cropping types, the average temperature method with a base temperature of 5.0°C was the most accurate. Based on our results, the estimation formula with the highest estimation accuracy is the average temperature method with a base tempera ture of 5.0°C. However, further examination is required involving other varieties and regions, but the coefficient of the estimated formula suggests that onion plants develop 1.5 leaves per accumulated temperature above 5.0°C of 100°C ・ day.


In standard optical fibers, combined effects of dispersion and nonlinearity can generate critical effects of localization of energy, which are potentially harmful for the transmission of data. Using the nonlinear Schrödinger equation as the universal transmission model, we establish the existence of ultrashort light pulses, in the form of breathers on top of the continuous-wave (CW) background, and of structural discontinuities (SDCs), in the form of jumps of the breathers' phase and group velocities (i.e., the SDC is a variety of an optical shock). We produce exact analytical solutions, which demonstrate that, passing the SDC point, the breathers are converted into rogue waves (RWs), which is a potentially penalizing nonlinear effect in optical telecommunications. On the other hand, numerical simulations demonstrate that the modulational instability of the underlying CW effectively replaces the abrupt transition by a smooth one, and makes the breathers and RWs strongly unstable close to the SDC point. This dynamical scenario, which may be effectively controlled by a frequency shift of the optical signal from the CW background, opens a way to mitigate the strong nonlinear effects. On the other hand, we also consider possibilities to stabilize the RWs, for their possible use in other settings.


Until recently, entrepreneurship was associated primarily with major contours of business. With the growing accent on economic development, the term has assumed a more expanded connotation to include all efforts directed to push economic frontiers. Seen in this context, experiments to generate additional income for the rural poor must fall within the ambit of efforts to develop entre preneurship in the countryside. This paper deals with one such experiment by a non-government organisation in one of the states in India.


This study is to investigate the effects of general English class instructional pedagogy through movies on college students' cognitive and affective satisfaction. For the purposes of the study, conventional pedagogy(language-driven) and film pedagogy(content-driven) were employed with 146 college students enrolled in the Movie English Liberal Arts class at K university in Seoul. To find out the pure causal effects of conventional and film pedagogy on students' cognitive and affective satisfaction, other confounding co-variants were included in the research model and statistically controlled. The AMOS software was applied to analyze structural relationships based on participants' questionnaire data. The main research findings are as follows: first, conventional pedagogy and film pedagogy had statistically significant effects on students' cognitive satisfaction; second, conventional pedagogy and film pedagogy had statistically significant effects on students' affective satisfaction; third, in both cognitive and affective satisfaction, film pedagogy had larger standardized path coefficients than conventional pedagogy. These results suggest that, first, in terms of its role as an instructional method, Movie English helped students improve not only English knowledge but also confidence. Second, to teach English through movies, film pedagogy integrated with conventional pedagogy is necessary. Finally, pedagogical implications and future studies are discussed.


A dissertation submitted to the Faculty of Science & Agriculture in fulfillment
of the requirements for the degree
MASTER OF SCIENCE
SCIENCE in the
Department of Computer Science
University of Zululand, 2005


In the early modern times,the short-lived and splendent expansion of Spain and Portugal like a flash in the pan.It's very difficult to analyze the reasons for their complex.But we can find some roots from the rise and decline course of the Spain and Portugal's commercial economy.The expansion of the Spain and Portugal's commercial economy is the expansion of feudalism combined capitalism.Its character belongs to monopolized commercial economy and national mercantile system commercial economy.And its industrial foundation is very fragile.This decided their expansion's brevity.


Summary of condition of saltmarsh patches in which "sensitive" species are found 32 Table 11. Summary of condition of saltmarsh patches in which invasive/exotic Juncus acutus was found, 2006 ......32 Table 12. Comparison of cover of saltmarsh between West et al. (1985), West et al. (2004), and this survey 34 LIST OF FIGURES Figure 1. Map of the Parramatta River-Sydney Harbour, including estuary sub-units (NSW Maritime, 2004) 12 Figure 2. Geomorphic zones in the Parramatta River/Sydney Harbour (Mesley 2003) 13 Figure 3a. Saltmarsh of the Parramatta River-Sydney Harbour, Harbour Entrance, 2005 20


Among various groups of primary school pupils there is a
special group of pupils requiring teachers´ special attentions.
These pupils are specific for their dual exceptionality, which
is the manifestation of the mathematics gift combined with the
specific learning or behavioural disability. Pupils who are
gifted and at the same time suffer from the learning disability
are able to perform extremely well, but their performance is
hampered by their disability. The process of their
identification is demanding for the teacher, because their
disability is very often compensated by the pupils themselves,
or they are able to disguise it. The text presents abilities
and handicaps of gifted pupils with specific learning disorders
(SLD), some characteristics of a pupil gifted in mathematics
with the reading disorder and work samples of the gifted pupil
in mathematics with the concurrent dyslexia and dysgraphia.


Amorphous selenium (a-Se) is a high gain, low dark current, large area compatible photoconductor that has received significant attention towards the development of UV and X-ray detectors for medical imaging. Indirect detectors utilizing a-Se often feature blue emitting scintillators due to the high attenuation coefficient of a-Se in that region. However, emission tails from the scintillators often fall out of the conversion range of a-Se, and scintillators with emission peaks outside the absorption of Se cannot be utilized. In order to improve the sensitivity and gain in a-Se indirect detectors, we propose doping a-Se with tellurium as a function of depth, where tail emission will be absorbed by the lower bandgap aSe/Te after primary absorption in the initial Se layer. In addition, we employ a lateral device structure to avoid any absorption at short wavelengths from a transparent electrode or blocking layer. In this work, we present the first steps towards fabricating these devices. Studies of charge transport in doped a-Se/Te devices are performed using the transient photocurrent time-of-flight technique. We report hole and electron mobilities for a-Se1-xTex (x = 0, 0.01, 0.05, 0.10) as a function of applied voltage, along with band gaps and comparisons to previous studies. Fabrication of lateral devices, with and without optical slits, is demonstrated and discussed.


Services of general economic interest (SGEI) are of great importance in all the Member States of the European Union. Their significance has been established in Articles 16 and 86 of the EC Treaty. The Altmark judgement of the European Court of Justice (ECJ) of July 2003 marked a new stage in the issue of compensation for SGEI. The ECJ held that compensation does not constitute State aid if the following conditions are met: the recipient undertaking must actually have public service obligations to discharge and the obligations must be clearly defined; the parameters on the basis of which the compensation is calculated must be established in advance in an objective and transparent manner; the compensation does not exceed what is necessary to cover the costs incurred in the discharge of public service obligations; where the undertaking which is to discharge public service obligations is not chosen pursuant to a public procurement procedure, the level of compensation needed must be determined on the basis of an analysis of the costs which a typical undertaking, well run and adequately provided with means of transport so as to be able to meet the necessary public service requirements, would have incurred in discharging those obligations. These four conditions leave much room for interpretation by the Member States. With regard to the last condition it seems that the ECJ promotes the use of a public procurement procedure when discharging an undertaking with SGEI. It nevertheless leaves the option to use a calculation of the costs which a typical undertaking would have incurred in discharging the public service obligations. The problem here is that the ECJ does not explain what kind of undertaking should be regarded as a "typical one" and which parameters should be used in the analysis of the costs. Making use of a public procurement procedure will give the Member States more certainty that the compensation they have granted will not be regarded as State aid. By promoting the use of public procurement procedures when discharging an undertaking with the provision of SGEI, the ECJ limits the freedom of the Member States to organise their SGEI. On the other hand, the Altmark judgement gives more freedom to the Member States to define their SGEI. In the Enirisorse case and the Danske Busvognmaend case the Altmark conditions were applied.


Drawing upon the data from a case study, this article examines the benefits and problematic issues when an English tutoring program, designed for...


Equipment is described for measurement of Young's and shear modulus on the same identical polymer sample, by a free-vibration method. Strain gauges are used as sensors in an automatic recorder. Young's modulus and damping, shear modulus and damping and Poisson's ratio are reported over a range of temperature for polypropylene, Nylon 66 and poly (methylmethacrylate). It is found that Poisson's ratio shows a dip in the glass transition region and that values greater than the infinitesimal strain limit of 0.5 are obtained in the rubbery region.


Abstract As a valuable and powerful platform technology, yeast surface display (YSD) has been widely used in various biotechnological fields, but little in agricultural applications. Xylanase can be used as an elicitor in the plant–pathogen interaction system and induce corn defence response. In this study, the YSD technology was used to express the xylanase protein family from Setosphaeria turcica, which is a novel strategy for plant protection. First, five genes encoding xylanase were selected from the S. turcica genome database. The conserved domains of these genes were analyzed, which revealed that these genes were highly conserved. Here, we selected two of the five genes and expressed them by a prokaryotic expression system, but the two xylanase genes were expressed in inclusion bodies and showed no activity. To make them available in the application, we successfully constructed them in a YSD system. The products were detected for enzyme activities and the activities of two xylanases were 16.72 and 19.12 U/mL, respectively. We finally proved that the yeast-displaying xylanase was an efficient strategy to induce corn defence response, as four defence genes in corn, PR-1, PR-4, SOD and CAT were induced after treatment with the yeast displaying xylanases.


Objective To evaluate the quality of life in benign prostatic hyperplasia(BPH)men presenting with lower urinary tract symptoms(LUTS).Methods A total of 88 men with symptomatic BPH(mean age,68 years)were investigated using the International Prostate Symptom Score(IPSS),Inter- national Index of Erectile Function-5(IIEF-5),Brief Sexual Function Inventory(BSFI),BPH impact index (BII),self-administered questionnaires of anxiety and depression of aging.And a measurement of urinary flow rate,total prostatic volume and serum testosterone were collected.Regression analysis was used to evalu- ate the correlation among the determined variables.Reslts There was statistically significant correlation between age and sexual symptom scores for erection(r=-0.552,P=0.000),IIEF-5 scores(r= -0.567,P=0.000),and IPSS(r=0.213,P=0.047).However,there was no association between age and BII.Furthermore,there was statistically significant correlation between IPSS and sexual symptom scores for erection and overall satisfaction(r=-0.332,P=0.002 and r=-0.302,P=0.005).The BII in- creased with increasing IPSS(r=0.420,P=0.000)and increasing depression score(r=0.426,P= 0.002).But there was no correlation between serum testosterone,peak urinary flow rate,total prostatic vol- ume and BII(P>0.05).Conclusions The study confirmed that the impact of LUTS on daily activity, sexual function and psychology can lead to decline in quality of life in BPH patients.Before treatment of BPH.special attention should be raid to the psychology and quality of life in elderly patients.


We investigated the fabrication process of a nanostructure with alumina insulator layer and nanoscale Cu paths punching through an alumina layer inserted between magnetic multilayers. Ion-beam–assisted oxidation was applied to an AlCu layer, where ion beams with three kinds of noble gases of different mass, Ne, Ar and Xe, were compared. The heavy gas overcame the trade-off between the increasing purity of nanoscale Cu paths and the decreasing oxygen defects of the alumina. It is considered that the high mobility of surface atoms in the AlCu layer brought about by the heavy-gas ion beam promotes segregation of alumina and Cu.


Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) and its more aggressive form, non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) are entities that are becoming more and more interesting to the medical community in general. The increased prevalence of diabetes, obesity, hypertension and hypertriglyceridemia are considered to be important causes for NAFLD. The prognosis of simple NAFLD is generally benign. But fibrosis, ballooning of the hepatocytes, inflammation and Mallory bodies are indicators of progression to cirrhosis. Although liver biopsy is currently the gold standard for diagnosis, there is a need for developing less invasive methods, and hence there is no effective medical therapy available for NAFLD. A better understanding of the pathogenesis and natural history of NASH will help identify the subset of patients at risk of progressing to advanced liver disease.


A zinc coordination polymer with V-shaped ligands, [LZn(npa)]n (L1 = bis(4-(2'-methylimidazol)phenyl)sulfone, H2npa = 4-nitrophthalic acid) has been synthesized under solvothermal conditions. The structure has been determined by single-crystal X-ray diffraction analysis and characterized by IR spectra, and elemental analyses. In crystal adjacent [Zn2(npa)2] units linked by four bridging ligands L1 form 2D layers, which are entangled between each other giving inclined interpenetration with the angle of 52.9°, thus resulting in a complicated 3D unique network. Moreover, luminescent properties of the title compound have been investigated. DOI: 10.1134/S1063774519070265


Wireless access to the Internet requires that information integrity be preserved while transmitting data over the radio channel. Automatic repeat request (ARQ) schemes and transport control protocol (TCP) are often used as error-control techniques at the link layer and at the transport layer, respectively. In this paper, we study the interactions between an ARQ protocol and TCP when the last hop of the connection path is wireless. Link layer retransmissions are used to hide losses over the wireless link to TCP and to avoid that TCP interprets these losses as signs of network congestion. By adapting the protocol parameter setting at the link and transport layers to the time-varying characteristics of the wireless channel, we obtain a reliable communication link in spite of disadvantageous radio channel conditions. The number of retransmissions of the ARQ scheme and the TCP segment size can be set to proper values that, given certain propagation conditions, enable the desired quality of service (QoS) at the transport layer. In order to derive the protocol parameter setting fulfilling the QoS requirements, we develop detailed models of the ARQ protocol and TCP by using standard Markovian techniques. Through these models, the impact of the link layer functions on the TCP performance is evaluated in the presence of different wireless environments.


L∝Wα is a correlation that holds for galaxies with disks stabilized by rotation, between the intrinsic luminosity L of the galaxy in optical or near-infrared bands and the rate of rotation W. History In 1922, Ernst Opik determined a distance to the Andromeda galaxy using the virial theorem [1]. A self-gravitating system will obey the law M=kW2R/G where M is the mass, W , with units of speed is a characterization of the motions in the body, dominated by rotation in the case of a disk galaxy, R is a measure of the linear size, G is the universal gravitational constant, and k is a dimensionless constant of order unity that depends on the geometry of the system. The line-of-sight component of velocities are observable from measurements of the Doppler shift on the width of emission or absorption lines, and deprojected values can be inferred from models. The dimension can be separated into an observable angular part θ and the distance d , R∝θd. Opik took a dependence of the mass M∝(M/L)ℓd2. Here M/L is the mass-to-light ratio and was assumed to have a value of typical stellar systems. The intrinsic luminosity L∝ℓd2 depends on the observed brightness ℓ and distance d. Opik used observed information about W , θ , and ℓ and assumptions about M/L and the geometry of the system to calculate a distance d=450 kiloparsecs. It is generally said that the astronomical community became convinced that galaxies are distinct from our Milky Way in 1925 with Edwin Hubble's observations of Cepheid variables in the Andromeda galaxy which gave a distance of 285 kiloparsecs. The modern value is 780 kiloparsecs. Opik's measurement was earlier and closer to the correct value, although Hubble had the greater influence. The virial theorem continued to be used to determine distances into the 1970s with what was usually called the "indicative mass" method. It was stripped down to the form L∝W2R. Tully and Fisher [2] suggested the use of two alternatives L∝Wα L∝Rβ These alternatives reduce the number of variables from 3 to 2 and allow departures from the virial theorem. The first form has the attraction that only one parameter depends on distance. This equation became known as the Tully-Fisher relation.


Generalization from limited samples, usually studied under the umbrella of metalearning, equips learning techniques with the ability to adapt quickly in dynamical environments and proves to be an essential aspect of lifelong learning. In this paper, we introduce the Deep Subspace Networks (DSN), a deep learning paradigm that learns embeddings from limited supervision. In contrast to previous studies, the embedding in DSN deems samples of a given class to form an affine subspace. We will empirically show that such modelling leads to robustness against perturbations (outliers and noises) and yields competitive results on the task of supervised fewshot classification.


In this paper, we propose an experimental approach for determining the internal electric field for exposure evaluation of wireless power transfer (WPT) systems by using measured magnetic near-field data. Two WPT systems are fabricated and used in the measurements: one without ferrite tiles, and the other with ferrite tiles and a metal plate. The amplitude and phase of the magnetic near field in the vicinity of the WPT systems are then measured by using in-house magnetic-field probes and a near-field measurement system. Numerical dosimetry of human exposure is performed using the measured near field as an incident field in the impedance method to derive the internal electric field strength inside numerical human models. Validation of the proposed approach has been demonstrated by comparing measurement results with those obtained from numerical simulations. Additionally, the coupling factor, which represents the relationship between the incident magnetic field and the induced electric field in the human body, at different distances is derived for realistic exposure scenarios.


Graph theory is a well-established mathematical concept that is widely used in numerous applications such as in biology, chemistry and network analysis. The advancement in the theory of graph has led to the development of a concept called autocatalytic set. In this paper, a mathematical modeling technique namely graph-based dynamic modeling of palm oil refining process is introduced. The system parameters are identified in detail in the beginning of the paper. The parameters involved are the chemical compounds used or produced during the refining process. These identified parameters are then modeled as the vertices and edges of the graph. The dynamicity of the system is then simulated and analyzed. The system is simulated using MATLAB software programing. The two final products produced by the refining process agreed with results obtained from other published methods. Hence, the effectiveness and simplicity of the model are established.


The secondary hydration of high fly ash content concrete is slow at the early period and then the velocity of it gradually increase.Activator can enhance remarkably the activity of fly ash and accelerate secondary hydration reaction of high fly ash content concrete.The investigations show that high fly ash content concrete can satisfy the need of projects by using activator,water deducing admixture and controlling water binder ratio. 〔


The aim of the study was to compare the movement predisposition in the reflection of player functions in elite football players. The research team consisted of 49 probands dividend in to five game functions on the central defenders, full backs, central midfielders, wing midfielder and striker aged 17 to 36 years. Testing took place before the 2018/2019 season and we compared the values of the explosive force of three types of jump and isokinetic force of the lower limbs. There were three types of jump with free hands (CMJFA), jump with out arm (CMJ) and squat jump (SQJ). For isokinetic forces we compared the dominant and non-dominant limbs of the probands. We used the following machines: Kistler B8611A 400 Hz (KISTLER Instrumente AG, Switzerland) with BioWare 4.0.0 and MatlabR2013 software, Cyclone Humac Norm (Cybex NORM®, Humac, CA). We did not find any signifiant differences between the posts. However, it can not be said that there are no differences between player posts. The results of the explosive force show us, we found the highest average value in the CMJFA jump for the attackers. The highest median the CMJ has been measured by full backs and the highest average value is also observed for full backs in the last type of SQJ jump. The highest mean value for the isokinetic force of the knee extensions groups dominant but also in the non-dominant limb is found for central defenders. Central defenders also have the highest median for the isokinetic force of the flexor knee group of the non-dominant limb, and the isokinetic force of the flexor knee of the dominant limb has the highest median measured in the attackers.


Flavonoid and coumarin compounds produced by plants supported the growth of polychlorinated biphenyl (PCB)-degrading bacteria, and the bacteria retained their PCB-degrading properties. Root leachates and washings from mulberry trees also supported the growth of a PCB-degrading bacterium. These results indicate that chemicals released by some plant roots may serve as cometabolites for PCB-degrading bacteria. Identification of the right plant species and development of appropriate cultivation practices promises to lead to an ecologically sound means to achieve sustained in situ degradation of PCBs at contaminated terrestrial sites.


An experimental study was carried out to investigate the effects of the mean net stress and suction history on the initial shear stiffness, G0, of a compacted clayey silt. Isotropic tests were performed using two suction-controlled devices, a triaxial cell and a resonant column torsional shear (RCTS) cell, so as to investigate the volumetric behaviour of this material. As for saturated soils, one can expect to find a strong correlation among stress history, volumetric state, and G0. Initial shear stiffness was measured almost continuously along various isotropic stress paths, including compressions and drying–wetting single stages or cycles, by using the RCTS cell. The collected data demonstrate a strong dependency of G0 on mean net stress (p – ua) and suction (ua – uw). Cycles of suction, in particular increasing suction beyond the past maximum value, induce significant accumulation of irreversible strains and increase of stiffness, confirming that G0 is not univocally related to the stress state (p – ua...


Background and Aim: In aortic root surgery, Bentall procedure has been considered the procedure of choice. Valve sparing root-replacement (VSRR) techniques have gained popularity, avoiding prosthetis-related complications. However, long-term data to support this tendency are still lacking, and most of the studies included emergency procedures, that could influence the outcome. The primary end-point was survival. Secondary end-point was freedom from Major Adverse Events (MAEs), including death, aortic-valve reoperation, major haemorrhage, cerebrovascular events, aortic valve regurgitation (or dysfunction)>moderate. Methods: Data of patients who underwent Bentall operation and VSRR from 1990 to 2017 in our centre were analysed. Emergency operations were excluded. Aortic valve stenosis were excluded from Bentall group. Results: 130 patients underwent Bentall operation (29 biological and 101 mechanical conduits). 98 patients underwent elective VSRR (64 reimplantation and 34 remodeling techniques). Among baseline and operative data, in Bentall group were more bicuspid valves p < 0.001, previous cardiac operations p = 0.04, lesser preoperative AF p = 0.05 and mean X-clamp time p = 0.001. Mean follow up duration was 158 and 76 months in Bentall and VSRR groups. Univariate analysis for long-term mortality: Age (HR 1.07, 95%IC 1.04–1.11) Univariate analysis for MAEs: Age (HR1.05, 95%IC 1.02–1.07), VSRR (HR 1.8, 95%IC 1.09–3.11) Multivariate analysis for MAEs: Age (HR 1.04, 95%IC 1.02–1.07), VSRR (HR 1.7, 95%IC 1.016–2.91) Conclusions: Comparable long-term survival after Bentall operation and VSRR. Bentall operation seemed to offer better protection against MAEs than VSRR. VSRR procedures are technically demanding, and necessitate of a longer learning curve than the easily reproducible Bentall operation.


This paper has described the features, classification usability , the operation principle and structure of high pressure airless spray, and indicated the notes for application of high pressure airless spray and trouble eliminatings.


Increasing numbers of studies have demonstrated that circulating tumor cells (CTCs) undergo a phenotypic change termed epithelial‐mesenchymal transition (EMT), and researchers have proposed that EMT might provide CTCs with increased potential to survive in the different microenvironments encountered during metastasis through various ways, such as by increasing cell survival and early colonization. However, the exact role of EMT in CTCs remains unclear.


A new technique for preparation of the Si3N4/WSi2 ceramic composite has been developed in this paper. The microstructure of this material during each step of preparation has been investigated using the XRD, SEM, EDX and pore size tester. The results show that the phase WSi2 forms at its original place during the pre-sintering process. Nitridization leads to the transformation of the Si phase into the Si3N4 and the WSi2 phase. The thermo-pressing sintering results in the transformation of the α-Si3N4 phase into the β-Si3N4 phase, and the system consists of β-Si3N4, WSi2 and a small amount of W5Si3. The mechanical strength increases with increasing temperature, and reaches 988.3 MPa at 1200℃.


Let $\mathcal{H}_{n}$ be the set of the trees having a perfect matching with $n$ vertices. The ordering of the trees in $\mathcal{H}_{n}$ according to their minimal Estrada indices is investigated. We obtain the trees with the smallest and the second smallest Estrada indices among $\mathcal{H}_{n}$ with $n\geq 6$.


Software developers are not necessarily security specialists, security patterns provide developers with the knowledge of security specialists. Although security patterns are reusable and include security knowledge, it is possible to inappropriately apply a security pattern or that a properly applied pattern does not mitigate threats and vulnerabilities. Herein we propose a method to validate security pattern applications. Our method provides extended security patterns, which include requirement- and design-level patterns as well as a new model testing process using these patterns. Developers specify the threats and vulnerabilities in the target system during an early stage of development, and then our method validates whether the security patterns are properly applied and assesses whether these vulnerabilities are resolved.


The case in which the observations are a sample from a normal population is considered in detail. The tests investigated are summarized in Table 1. These tests are found to be very efficient for small samples (see Table 4, power efficiency is defined in section 3). An investigation of several extremely non-normal populations using the values of Da obtained for normality indicates that the significance level of the range-midrange test is not very sensitive to the requirement of normality for small samples (see Table 6). Also the tests of Table 1 can be applied without computation through the use of an easily constructed graph (see section 4). These properties suggest that the range-midrange test is preferable to the Student t-test and the analogue of the Student t-test using the sample range (see [1] and [2]) whenever the sample size is sufficiently small. Use of the range-midrange test for the case of normality was proposed by E. S. Pearson in [3], where properties of the test were experimentally investigated for the normal and certain non-normal populations. In Part II several significance tests for the mean are developed which have a specified significance level for the case of a sample from a normal population but wvhose significance level is bounded near the specified value under very general conditions, one of which is that the observations are from continuous symmetrical populations. Some of these tests are range-midrange tests. Table 2 contains a summary of the tests and their properties (xi = ith largest observation, i = 1, * * , n; conditions (D) are given in section 7).


Field trials were conducted during winterseason of 2010 and 2011 to evaluate a total of 111 (52+59) sunflower genotypesfor phosphorus(P) acquisition in Vertisols having low status of available phosphorus(9.8 kg/ha). During the study the best genotypes were selected based on the following parameters: shoot drymatter yield, seed yield/plant, shoot P content, seed P content and total P removal. In the first year 22 best performing genotypes out of 52 were selected while, 20 genotypes were selected out of 59 in second year (2011-12). Genotype CMS-42-B had recorded highest P removal (1.71g/plant) followed by KBSH-44 (1.62 g/plant) > 150-R (1.41 g/plant) >ARM-239-B (1.33 g/plant) > GMU-389 (1.31 g/plant) > KBSH-1 (1.30 g/plant) in first year. The phosphorus acquisition in sunflower genotypes depended on theirshoot drymatter,seed yield and their P contents. During 2011-12, the highest P removal was recorded in GMU-38 (2.2 g/plant) followed by GMU-128, KBSH-1, KBSH-44, GMU-3, GMU-5, DRSH-1, GMU-116 and CMS-42-B in descending order. It was noticed that genotype CMS-42-B wasfound best in acquiring P in both the years of study with 51% of its uptake was partitioned into seeds in 2010-11 and 52.3% in 2011-12. Though, CMS-42-B had removed lower amounts of total phosphorus (1.68 g/plant), it showed high internal distribution of acquired phosphorus towards seed (52.3%) in comparison to genotypes GMU-38, GMU-5 and KBSH-1.


body iron. Blood. 2003;101(9):3359–3364. [10] Cho JI, Basnyat B, Jeong C, et al. Ethnically Tibetan women in Nepal with low hemoglobin concentration have better reproductive outcomes. Evol Med Public Health. 2017;2017(1):82–96. [11] Norma T ecnica de Salud N8 134 para el manejo terap eutico y preventivo de la anemia en ni~ nos, adolescentes, mujeres gestantes y pu erperas RM 250-2017-MINSA. [12] Agrawal S, Berggren KL, Marks E, Fox JH. Impact of high iron intake on cognition and neurodegeneration in humans and in animal models: a systematic review. Nutr Rev. 2017;75(6):456–470.


Performance evaluation is the key area in every era of research and it is influenced through a lot of factors well. As far as the performance of employees is concerned, employee's personality is the crucial component for organizations success because it influences the performance of employees. This paper investigates the impact of personality traits (Neuroticism, Extraversion, Openness, Agreeableness and Conscientiousness) on employee performance which is measured through quality work, discipline and attention, cooperation among colleagues, responsibility for results and initiative. This study collected data through semi-structured interview which was transcribed for further analysis. The sample includes 12 respondents from the financial and non-financial sector. The respondents were approached through convenient sampling method. QSR Nvivo-10 software was used for data analysis in this study. The study concludes that the big five personality traits have significant impact on the performance of the employees whereas Extraversion, Openness, Agreeableness and Conscientiousness have positive and significant impact on employee performance.


Abstract Surface profile images have been recorded from high-Tc superconducting YBa2Cu4O8 using high-resolution transmission electron microscopy. The surface regions are found to be relatively more stable than those of YBa2Cu3O7. The stability of the double CuO chains in the vicinity of a crystal surface was found to depend on whether or not they were parallel or perpendicular to the surface in question. Possible mechanisms of the formation of both surface structures and near-surface defects are discussed.


The blog world is a representative online society. To understand the nature of the blog world, there have been many research efforts on analyzing information diffusion and blog-ger activities. The independent cascade model is appropriate to explain information diffusion in the blog world. For the model to be employed, the blog world should be represented as a form of a network. For accurate analysis, it is crucial to assign a diffusion probability to each edge between a pair of bloggers in the blog network. In this paper, we propose a novel method to assign a diffusion probability to an edge for a pair of bloggers that reflects well the phenomenon of actual information diffusion between them. We verify the superiority of our approach by performing extensive experiments with real-world blog data.


Women entrepreneurs, mainly as a result of culture, have been found to have traits different from their male counterparts and yet they grapple with similar business issues including the need to continuously change and innovate. It is quite striking that very little is known about women entrepreneurs and support which they get from their families, especially those in emerging economies like Russia. Nowadays in the academic community, in the international development field and in the business press – there is a growing body of information about women business owners and their enterprises, as well as an increasing amount of focus on entrepreneurship as a phenomenon itself. However, there remains a certain gap in data on the intersection of all three: gender, entrepreneurship and family support.
 Thus the purpose of the study is to fill in this gap, investigate deeper into the ways how relatives can back up female entrepreneurs, paying special attention to different kinds of support women get from their spouses, as well as from the parents (the types of support are classified into emotional, financial and knowledge ones in the paper), how they correlate, analysing case studies in the Russian emerging market and taking into consideration its conditions.


The electromagnetic bandgap (EBG) structure, which is widely used in the microwave and millimeter‐wave fields, is a kind of photonic crystal. An EBG structure with bow‐tie cells having different tapered forms is presented in this paper. Furthermore, the EBG structure is optimized by using an improved particle swarm optimization algorithm. The optimal results show that the optimized EBG structure with bow‐tie cells has a good stop‐band performance and large relative bandwidth. The passband ripples of the EBG structure are very small and basically symmetrical. The frequency characteristic of the optimized EBG structure is found to be excellent. © 2012 Institute of Electrical Engineers of Japan. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Inc.


Abstract : This program represents part of a continuing study, in progress since 1976, of the elementary processes important in combustion, flame and ignition phenomena. In the course of pursuing this research we have developed significantly new experimental techniques for studying atom and radical reactions and new theoretical models for those processes. We have, in addition, extended our efforts to include ionic processes and the effects of solvents on both radical and ionic reactions. (Author)


The Housing Act of 1954 marked a historic turn in housing policy and federal-city relations. The act replaced public housing with commercially oriented urban renewal. It also served to redefine urban liberalism. Before 1954, New Deal class divisions characterized debates about the role of the federal government in the cities; after 1954, a new, powerful alliance of mayors and business groups-led by the Eisenhower administration-created consensus around urban redevelopment policies. The change in the trajectory of policy and politics is explained in this article by a model that emphasizes the importance of state institutions, interest groups, and ideas.


The Advanced methods of the comparative estimation to efficiency to activity enterprise in composition of the group and apart functionning, which allows system to install quantitative and qualitative relationship between separate element of efficiency to activity, excludes presence of the subjective opinion expert and realizes the comparison with the most high result, reached in real market competition of the whole collections compared object.


Reproductive patterns of Cape hake off the Cape of Good Hope are described. Females of both species tend to mature at a greater length and age than their male counterparts, 50-per-cent maturity being achieved at some 470–480 mm and 360–380 mm (∼ 4.8 and ∼ 3.8 years) respectively. For both species, females undoubtedly and males probably shed all sexual products at each spawning, but there is evidence from the long spawning season of serial spawning or of spawning of different batches offish at different times. It is concluded that Cape hakes in the study area spawn in a double wave, the first wave in November/December sustained by both species and the second one in February/March mainly by Merluccius paradoxus. Females dominate the sex ratios by 1,5: 1 and 1,7: 1 for M. capensis and M. paradoxus respectively. In mature, larger fish, the dominance is even greater, particularly so in M. paradoxus, of which species males were scarce. The rate of instantaneous natural mortality M was calculated from age at mat...


Purpose
This study aims to present development of genetic algorithm (GA)-based framework aimed at minimizing data center cooling energy consumption by optimizing the cooling set-points while ensuring that thermal management criteria are satisfied.

Design/methodology/approach
Three key components of the developed framework include an artificial neural network-based model for rapid temperature prediction (Athavale et al., 2018a, 2019), a thermodynamic model for cooling energy estimation and GA-based optimization process. The static optimization framework informs the IT load distribution and cooling set-points in the data center room to simultaneously minimize cooling power consumption while maximizing IT load. The dynamic framework aims to minimize cooling power consumption in the data center during operation by determining most energy-efficient set-points for the cooling infrastructure while preventing temperature overshoots.

Findings
Results from static optimization framework indicate that among the three levels (room, rack and row) of IT load distribution granularity, Rack-level distribution consumes the least cooling power. A test case of 7.5 h implementing dynamic optimization demonstrated a reduction in cooling energy consumption between 21%–50% depending on current operation of data center.

Research limitations/implications
The temperature prediction model used being data-driven, is specific to the lab configuration considered in this study and cannot be directly applied to other scenarios. However, the overall framework can be generalized.

Practical implications
The developed framework can be implemented in data centers to optimize operation of cooling infrastructure and reduce energy consumption.

Originality/value
This paper presents a holistic framework for improving energy efficiency of data centers which is of critical value given the high (and increasing) energy consumption by these facilities.


In recent years, numerous studies have been performed on the use of a nuclear power source for an early lunar base. These studies have shown that not only is using nuclear power feasible, but that it is also the best option for a reliable, long‐lived, compact power source. There are, however, several issues that need to be resolved concerning the radiation field created by the use of a reactor. These issues include such concerns as dose received by the astronauts, possible lunar soil activation, and the shutdown and disposal of the reactor. Using the MOHTR core concept developed at Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) as a baseline, this paper will describe the latest studies performed on these issues, and will resolve some of the more prevalent concerns regarding the use of a nuclear reactor for a lunar base.


ABSTRACT Information assurance, data security, and co rresponding issues are traditionally presentedin Systems Analysis and Design textbooks as non-functional requirements. Systems analysts canenforce secure design and code as one of the esse ntial goals of systems analysis and design by usingthe Reference Monitor concept as a means of requirements and design specification. Theapplication of the Reference Monitor during the ea rly stages of systems requirements specificationvia the Use Case emphasizes that information assurance is a critical functional requirement. INTRODUCTION Failure to incorporate security into systems requirements is a concern dating back at leasta quarter of a century (Schell, Downey & Popek, 1973, Pipkin, 2000). Compounding this oversightis the lack of attention paid to security in textbooks and the exclusion of security as a functionalrequirement (Haworth, 2002, Trimmer, Parker & Schou, 2007). The lack of ubiquitous system security requireme nts yields the 'penetrate and patch' strategyfor secure code maintenance. This strategy, in addition to being costly to enforce and a source ofvulnerabilities, may compromise an organizati on's system resources and corresponding operationswhen considered from an Information Assurance (IA) perspective (Schou, Trimmer & Parker,2005). The pervasive use of data by those both intern al and external to an organization has led toInformation Systems (IS) becoming a component of the organization's communicationsinfrastructure, much as the fax and the telephone were before the broad adoption of personalcomputers at all levels of organizations. Once the telephone became an integral component oforganizations, certain functions became dependent upon it, such as the ability to quickly place orreceive orders from someone not physically located at the organization. Fax machines extended this,as they enabled orders to vendors and from cust omers to contain considerable detail about multipleitems that may have been more difficult to clearly communicate via verbal telephonecommunications.


At Wageningen Economic Research, we have conducted two studies, one in 2016 and one in 2017 to explore consumer acceptance of insects (more details on the method can be found at the end of this factsheet). In 2016, an online survey was conducted to gain insight into which determinants underlie the acceptance of a range of insectbased products including insects as food and insects as feed. In 2017, we continued to look at insects as food or feed and also conducted a short online experiment to test the effect of an emotional or a cognitive message on the acceptance of insect consumption.


The purpose of this paper is to define wireless communications system and their conditions which make 1∼10 Mega bit per second (Mbps) data transmission for vehicles by using one unique common analysis among several telecommunication systems. There are several wireless communication systems available such as 3G or UMTS (Universal Mobile Telecommunications System), DSRC (Dedicated Short Range Communication), and WiMAX (Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access). There is new DSRC technology such as IEEE802.11p, so called WAVE (Wireless Access in Vehicle Environment) under development. In order to develop multi-media transmission for vehicles, more than few Mega bit per second data rate is required. In order to make communication type and conditions among different type of architectures among 3G, WAVE, and WiMAX, authors define one unique analysis based on marketing requirements conditions with Erlang formula comparing with wireless physical conditions. It is the first time to analysis among potential different types of wireless communication systems and provides appropriate cell design guide line to support real-time high speed wireless communication for vehicles.


Based on the findings of the papers (KC Ho et al., 2005a, 2005b), the 'Technometric' model of technological change of textile and clothing (T & C) industry and the key constituents of industrial policy which affects the technological development in the industry adopted by Italy, the USA and HKSAR have been developed. In the present paper, we attempt to measure the technological change of the industry in Hong Kong from 1974 to 2003 with the enhanced 'Technometric' model and compare the results measured with the change of government industrial policy from 1973 to 2003.


The proposal that VAT should be less for on sales than for off sales alcohol might help stem the UK trend towards off sales purchasing.1 Although difficult to prove, drinking in licensed premises may be safer than drinking at home, because higher prices tend to reduce total …


Congratulations to Durban market for introducing the 'cash deposit device'. The first of its kind in a South African market, this enables buyers to deposit cash directly into their accounts at the market at any time. The device interfaces with the market's real-time electronic trading system, eliminating the need for a cashier. This must surely promote better efficiency and accuracy.


The influence of the size and excitement formation of the logging tools on the acoustic field of well boreholes is studied. The pulses in the signal generated by the tools with larger radius are separated, beneficial to the interpretation of logging data. The dual unit excitement improves waveforms.


Objective To investigate the myocardial protective effects of trimetazidine(TMZ) and its mechanism of action by researching the drug's influence on myocardial energy metabolism after adriamycin(ADM) chemotherapy in a nude mouse breast cancer model. Methods Nude mice(n=27) with breast cancer were randomly divided into three groups:group A(control group) received saline(10 ml/kg) injections into the abdominal cavity,and groups B and C received ADM injections(2.5 ml/kg) into the abdominal cavity twice a week for 4 weeks. From the third week,group C was given TMZ by gavage 20 mg/(kg·d),once a day for 14 days; groups A and B received the same amounts of saline at the same times. Mice were anesthetized on the second day after the last administration.At three time points(before gavage,T1;before anesthesia,T2;30 min afer anesthesia,T3),blood(0.2 ml) and myocardial tissue specimens were taken from mice in all three groups.Serum levels of cTnI and activity of myocardial mitochondrial long-chain 3-ketoacyl coenzyme A thiolase(3-KAT) were measured by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay(ELISA).Levels of adenosine triphosphate(ATP) and adenosine diphosphate(ADP) in myocardial tissue were determined by high performance liquid chromatography(HPLC). Results ① At T1,serum cTnI level was higher in groups B and C than in group A(P0.05),but there was no significant difference between groups B and C(P0.05).At T2 and T3,the cTnI level was significantly lower in group C than in group B(P0.05).Serum cTnI level in group A did not vary significantly across all three time points(P0.05).In group B,in contrast,serum cTnI level was higher at T3 than at T1 and T2(P0.05).In group C,the cTnI level was significantly higher at T1 than at T2 or T3,and T2 was significantly lower than at T1 and T3(P0.05).② ATP and ADP levels were significantly different among the three groups(P0.05);these levels were higher in group C than in group B(P0.05).③ 3-KAT levels were significantly different among the three groups(P0.05);the level was lower in group C than in group B(P0.05). Conclusion Trimetazidine protects against myocardial injury induced by ADM chemotherapy in a nude mouse breast cancer model.It exerts these protective effects by improving myocardial energy metabolism,inhibiting myocardial mitochondrial 3-KAT activity and improving ATP and ADP levels in myocardial tissue.


Objective To identify the protective effect in rat myocardial mitochondria with simvastatin following myocardial ischemia and reperfusion injury by comparative proteomics.Methods Sprague-Dawley rats were randomized to receive either simvastatin(n=14)or saline(n=14)before myocardial ischemia and reperfusion.After reperfusion,six rats from each group were used to calculate the infarction ratio by Evans blue and triphenyltetrazolium chloride(TTC)staining.Total proteins extracted from the mitochondria were applied to the two-dimensional gel electrophoresis.The differentially expressed protein spots were evaluated by a software.Then they were subjected to in-gel digestion,and analyzed by thematrix-assisted laser desorptionionization time-of-flightmass spectrometry(MALDI-TOF-MS).Results The ratio of the infarct size and the risk area(ischemia area + infarct area)was 29.4%±8.4% in the simvastatin group and 57.7%±6.5% in controls(P 0.0001).The ratio of the infarct size and the left ventricular myocardia was 15.9%±5.6% in the simvastatin group and 29.0%±8.9% in controls(P=0.012).Nineteen differentially expressed protein spots were observed,and nine of them were analyzed by MALDI-TOF-MS.Four proteins including trifunctional enzyme subunit alpha(mitochondrial precursor),electron-transferring-flavoprotein dehydrogenase,actin alpha(cardiac muscle 1)and cytochrome c oxidase subunit 5A(mitochondrial precursor)were up-regulated and five proteins including L-lactate dehydrogenase B chain,isocitrate dehydrogenase [NAD] subunit alpha(mitochondrial precursor),alpha crystallin B chain,inner membrane protein(mitochondrial)and similar to actin(cytoplasmic 2)exhibited down-regulation in the simvastatin group compared to the controls.Conclusions The infarct size of the myocardium in the simvastatin group was significantly reduced as compared to the controls.Several mitochondrial proteins concerning respiratory chain and energy metabolism in the simvastatin group were identified by proteomic analysis,which may probably illuminate the protective mechanism of simvastatin during ischemia and reperfusion injury.


Recent years have seen a renewal of interest in the problem of the place of origin of antibodies. Lymphocytes (Enrich and Harris, '42; White and Dougherty, '46), plasma cells (Bj@rneboe, Gormsen and Lindquist, '47) and the developmental stages of plasma cells (Fagraeus, '48) have been said to be associated with antibodies or antibody production. The reticulo-endothelial system in general (Sabin, '39) certainly seems to play a part in the production of these substances. The present paper deals with the growth of the spleen, an organ which is part of the reticulo-endothelial system and which is therefore probably associated with antibody production. This study correlates the changes in weight of the spleen with the age of the chicken from hatching to adult. The only comparable study previously made was done on the rat. Most of the research with other animals has compared the weight of the spleen with the total weight of the body of the animal regardless of age. The correlation of spleen weight with body weight has been studied in the rat by Jackson ( '13)' Donaldson ( '24)' Reinhardt ( '43) and Webster, Liljegren and Zimmer ( '47). Reinhardt found that the spleen increased in the growing animal until about 100 days of age at which time the spleen attained its maximum size. Beyond 100 days a slight decrease in the


Based on the magnetic field configuration of the Chinese First Quasi-axisymmetric Stellarator (CFQS) device, three types of orbits such as the passing orbit, blocked trapped orbit, and localized trapped orbit are simulated using the Boris algorithm. Also, the orbital topology, orbit transition, and loss characteristics of these particles under different initial conditions are studied in this paper. It is found that there exists a transition from blocked trapped orbits to localized trapped orbits due to small continuous helical ripples. This phenomenon is analyzed as follows: we define the angle between the particle drift velocity (v→D) and the radial direction (ρ^) as β. If the blocked-localized transition appears in the region where β>90○, the localized particles will return to the blocked particles and be constrained. However, if the blocked-localized transition happens in the region where β 90○, the localized particles will return to the blocked particles and be constrained. However, if the blocked-localized transition happens in the region where β<90○, localized particles will drift out of the last closed flux surface and be lost. The simulation results show ...


We consider a joint detection approach for cancellation of co-channel interference in time-division multiple access (TDMA) mobile communications systems like GSM/EDGE (enhanced data rates for GSM evolution). Concepts from reduced-state equalization of frequency-selective multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) channels are applied together with prefiltering. A novel efficient prefilter computation algorithm is presented. Simulation results demonstrate the high performance of the proposed receiver for GSM/EDGE applications.


During a floristic survey of Melastomataceae carried out in Delfinopolis and Capitolio, Minas Gerais State, Brazil, a new species of Fritzschia was found. Fritzschia furnensis has stems peeling in thin, woody flakes, petiole 2–10 mm long, large leaf blades (23–38 × 10–29 mm) and an indumentum of glandular trichomes on the branches, petioles, leaves, bracteoles, pedicels, hypanthia, and sepals. The new species is regarded as endangered (EN) due to a restricted distribution, small populations and the destruction of its habitat.


In view of the current initial rainwater pollution and governance issues,the runoff pollution source and characteristics of urban initial rainwater were analyzed,the application status of current initial rainwater pollution control technology was elaborated,the advantages and disadvantages of various treatment methods of early-stage rainfall were compared,the new way to intercept collection,centralized treatment of early-stage rainfall was put forward and discussed,and a new district in Hefei City initial rainwater management instance was adopted to further verify the feasibility of this method in practical application,which will provide a new direction for the urban new district initial rainwater management technology research.


Aramco oil company adopt all oil-based completion fluid and ZENITH electrical submersible pump(ESP)completion in KHRS block.Oil-based drilling fluid has some features,such as low density,good unctuosity,helpful to the transportation of drilling pressure and torque in horizontal section,reducing the reservoir damage etc.The ESP can realize variable actuating speed and real-time downhole monitoring,and improve production.The paper summarized the operation procedure of completion in Aramco KHRS block according to continuous several wells operation,analyzed the running characteristic and notice of Zenith ESP.


Abstract : The performance of an incoherent real-time optical correlator with respect to residual tilt and scale misalignment is discussed. The correlator uses CCD video data input streams and produces a real-time output in the form of a standard television video frame. The interlaced fields of the inputs and outputs are discussed and their proper use is described. (Author).


The paper is concerned with the relationship between economic growth and financial intermediation, in particular stock market development, in post-liberalization India. It identifies three possible relationships: (a) the relationship between growth of manufacturing and growth of the stock market; (b) the relationship between growth of the stock market and growth of traditional financial intermediaries like banks; (c) the relationship between the growth of the primary stock market and that of the secondary stock market. These three relationships are empirically tested using Indian data. While the growth of turnover in the stock market is found to be positively correlated with the change in the growth of manufacturing and the growth of sales of new shares is found to positively affect the secondary market, evidence on the relationship between sales of new shares and traditional banking activities is mixed. The primary stock market is found to crowd out bank deposits, but crowd in bank credit.


A particular decision is good or bad is not apparent from one occasion. A good decision will benefit in the long run, while a bad decision will lead to a loss in the long run. In this paper the systematic approach to good decision making may be summarized in the form of the five steps in decision making.


Abstract 56-year-old male with metastatic papillary thyroid cancer who underwent total thyroidectomy in 8/2014, and I-131 ablation in 9/2014, with post-operative pathology revealing multifocal, bilateral papillary thyroid cancer with extrathyroidal extension with surgical resection margins uninvolved. There were positive lymphovascular spread and multiple central compartments and bilateral neck nodes metastases with extranodal extension. Subsequent thyrogen stimulated whole-body scan in 2/2016 showed no areas of uptake.However, in 12/2016 he was found to have right supraclavicular lymph nodes positive for recurrence which was resected and given another 168 mCi I-131 and 33 treatments of XRT to R shoulder.A repeat PET in 7/2019 showed persistent hyper metabolic lesion in C7, multiple hyper metabolic nodules throughout the R lung, and a new 1.1 cm left Hilar lymph node suggesting disease progression. Biopsy of the C7 lesion confirmed dedifferentiated papillary thyroid cancer and demonstrated the presence of an NTRK mutation.This time he was given lenvatinib 24 mg daily for 4 weeks, followed by 200 mCi I-131. Post-treatment whole body scan showed good uptake in all lesions, except the C7 lesion which was treated with external radiation. DiscussionWhile cure is achieved in most cases of differentiated thyroid cancer, a minority of cases demonstrate disease progression. Loss of response to I-131, very low serum thyroglobulin levels despite known disease, and high PET avidity provide clinical evidence of dedifferentiation, confirmed with tissue sampling.If feasible targeted systemic therapy remains the best tolerated treatment option.While several studies demonstrate an increase in iodine avidity in approximately 50-60% of patients with dedifferentiated thyroid cancer that were treated with tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKI), (cite alan Ho's 2013 NEJM article, and the 2015 debrafenib study Rothenberg SM et al, clin cancer res 2015), selumetanib remains unavailable for clinical use and dabrafenib may only be beneficial in cases with known BRAF V600E mutations. Moreover, it is unknown whether a planned short course of TKI therapy would potentially induce resistance to future TKI therapy.Therefore, lenvatinib, which inhibits activity of at least 6[VM1] different tyrosine kinase enzymes important in thyroid cancer was chosen rather than entrectanib, which was reserved for use if the need arises. This patient demonstrated excellent response to I-131 therapy with lenvatinib pretreatment.A number of formal studies of various TKIs for thyroid cancer re-differentiation are currently underway. (cite Brown SR, Hall A, et al BMC cancer 2019; and also cite the CIII trial with cabozatanib)Conclusion This case represents the emerging paradigm for the ability of TKI therapy to redifferentiate advanced thyroid cancer and allow for re-treatment with I-131 targeted therapy.


Abstract : By numerically modeling pelagic sedimentation as a diffusive process, we study sedimentation effects in terms of stochastic parameters including seafloor RMS height, abyssal hill spacing, and slope distribution. Understanding gained allows the construction of inverse problems to obtain information about sediment distribution and basement morphology from multibeam bathymetric data. Using maximum likelihood estimation to compare slope distribution functions calculated from data to those from filtered model topographies, we estimate average sediment thickness L, basement RMS height H, and a measure of sediment mobility kappa. We invert for these parameters for 3-29 Ma seafloor from the western flank of the Mid-Atlantic Ridge (MAR) near 25 degree S, 2-45 Ma seafloor from the western flank of the MAR near 26 deg S, and 2-40 Ma seafloor from the eastern flank of the MAR near 25 deg S, and 1-38 Ma seafloor from the western flank of the MAR near 35 deg S. Variations in L allow us to constrain sediment rain rate and the corrosivity of bottom waters to calcite since the Oligocene. We hypothesize that sediment rain rates during the early and middle Miocene averaged only 10-50 % of more recent rates. Variations in H suggest correlation between tectonic setting and topographic variability. A narrow range of kappa describes intrahill sedimentation patterns.


Objective: In this article three aspects of prevention/management will be available at a glance to nursing staff - the key personnel who manage this difficult area in aged care. Setting: The acute hospital environment. Primary argument: Delirium is a syndrome characterised by a sudden onset, over hours or days, impaired attention that fluctuates, together with altered consciousness and impaired cognition (ASGM 2005). Delirium is well reported to be already present for older people (10% 24%) (Inouye 1998) on admission to hospital and develops in many more (up to 61%) (Gustafson; Berggren; Brannstrom et al 1998). Research has reported a multifaceted approach to reduce and manage the incidence of delirium in acute care, but do acute care staff have access to a brief overview of the information they can refer to, to prevent a crisis? Upon review, many of the non pharmacological strategies to manage delirium are similar to those which prevent delirium. Conclusion: Delirium is under recognised and often poorly managed. This paper suggests preventing and managing delirium is achievable through a consistent, systematic, multifaceted team approach.


We examine empirically how an organization that deliberately enhances interpersonal trust to become a significant organizational phenomenon, is different from a similar organization without explicit trust enhancement policies. The point of departure is relational signalling theory, which says that trust is a function of consistently giving off signals that indicate credible concern, to potential trustors. A matched pair of two consulting organizations, with different trust policies but otherwise similar characteristics, were studied intensively, using survey research, participant observation and half-open interviewing, focused on the generation of trust and the handling of trouble when trust was threatened or destroyed. A higher stage of trust can be reached by an inter-related set of policies: promoting a relationship-oriented culture, facilitation of unambiguous signalling, consistent induction training, creating opportunities for meeting informally, and the day-to-day management of competencies. Such policies are in principle independent of recognized contextual contingencies. Copyright (c) Blackwell Publishing Ltd 2008.


Objective: In patients with a small aortic root undergoing aortic valve replacement, the Freedom SOLO bioprosthesis may be the ideal prosthesis due to its stentless design and supraannular implantation. This study investigated if the stentless Freedom SOLO has an advantage when compared with a stented bioprosthesis in patients with a small aortic root. Methods: From April 2005 to July 2014, 269 consecutive patients underwent aortic valve replacement with either a Freedom SOLO (n=76) or Mitroflow (n=193) bioprosthesis size 19mm or 21mm. This retrospective comparison study presents clinical and echocardiographic followup data. Results: Operative outcome and survival were similar. At 7 years, cumulative incidence of aortic valve reoperation and structural valve deterioration favor the Freedom SOLO (0% vs 7.1%, P=0.03 and 0% vs 4.5%, P=0.08, respectively). Additionally, the postoperative peak and mean valvular gradients favor the Freedom SOLO (21±9mmHg vs 32±12mmHg and 12±5mmHg vs 19±8mmHg, both P=<0.001, respectively). During mid-term follow-up this hemodynamic advantage continued in favor of the Freedom SOLO. Also prosthesis-patient mismatch occurred less frequently in the Freedom SOLO (28% vs 52%, P=0.001). There were no differences in prosthetic valve endocarditis, thromboembolic or bleeding events. Conclusions: The stentless Freedom SOLO has several significant advantages for aortic valve replacement in patients with a small aortic root in comparison with a stented Mitroflow bioprosthesis. The Freedom SOLO shows superior hemodynamic performance with significantly lower valvular gradients that remained stable during mid-term follow-up. Additionally significantly fewer prosthesis-patient mismatch occurred and the Freedom SOLO showed superior durability. ULTRAMINI ABSTRACT This single-center retrospective study investigated if the stentless Freedom SOLO bioprosthesis has an advantage when compared with a stented Mitroflow bioprosthesis in 269 patients with a small aortic root. The Freedom SOLO shows superior hemodynamic performance, fewer prosthesis-patient mismatch and superior durability during mid-term follow-up. INTRODUCTION In patients with a small aortic root undergoing aortic valve replacement (AVR), operative mortality is increased [1]. Additionally, there is an increased risk for prosthesis-patient mismatch which is undesirable as it is associated with decreased hemodynamic function, less regression of left ventricular mass, more cardiac events and worse survival [2]. Surgical aortic annulus dilatation is an option, but this extends operation time and requires an experienced surgeon [3,4]. Patients with a small aortic root may profit from the implantation of a stentless bioprostheses since its design provides a larger effective orifice area. This leads to less prosthesis-patient mismatch, lower valvular gradients and better postoperative outcomes [5]. The Freedom SOLO (Sorin, Saluggia, Italy) is a stentless bioprosthesis with an excellent hemodynamic profile and crossclamp times that are equal to stented bioprostheses [6]. Its stentless design and supra-annular implantation technique offers the largest possible effective orifice area. This study investigates if the stentless Freedom SOLO has advantages over a stented bioprosthesis in patients with a small aortic root. We hypothesize that in patients with a small aortic root the hemodynamic performance of the Freedom SOLO is better than that of a stented bioprosthesis. MATERIAL AND METHODS Study population Between June 2005 and July 2014, 269 consecutive patients underwent AVR with either a stentless Freedom SOLO or a stented Mitroflow (Sorin, Saluggia, Italy) with a size 19mm or 21mm prosthesis. Both manufacturers' 19mm and 21mm sizers are comparable in diameter. The Mitroflow prostheses were implanted supra-annular. All operations were performed at the Academic Medical Center in Amsterdam, The Netherlands. The choice of prosthesis was based on surgeon's preference and made in consultation with the patient. Baseline patient characteristics, operative details and in-hospital complications were collected from the Academic Medical Center database. On January 6, 2015, information on vital status was obtained from the Dutch national population registry (Statistics Netherlands, Voorburg, The Netherlands). Follow-up data and echocardiographic results were collected retrospectively, during visits to the referring cardiology centers. Patients were censored at time of last contact. The Society of Thoracic Surgeons Adult Cardiac Surgery Database Data Specifications, version 2.81, was used for definitions of baseline characteristics and postoperative outcome [7]. Mortality was defined as 30-day and in-hospital mortality combined. Preoperative renal failure was defined as a calculated creatinine clearance <50ml/min using the Cockcroft-Gault formula [8]. For definitions of structural valve deterioration, nonstructural dysfunction, embolism, bleeding event, endocarditis and aortic valve reoperation, the guidelines for reporting mortality and morbidity after cardiac valve interventions were used [9]. Prosthesis-patient mismatch was defined as an indexed effective orifice area <0.85cm/m[2], measured with transthoracic echocardiography within 2 years postoperatively. Up to 2010, all patients received oral anticoagulation therapy for 3 months postoperatively followed by lifelong acetylsalicylate 100 mg daily. From 2010, all patients received only lifelong antiplatelet therapy with acetylsalicylate 100 mg daily unless otherwise indicated by concomitant morbidities. Statistical analysis Data are expressed as means ± standard deviations, medians with interquartiles or as numbers and percentiles as appropriate. Differences in baseline characteristics, operative details and outcomes were tested for significance by unpaired t-test, Mann-Whitney U test, Fisher's exact test and χ (for trends) as appropriate. Survival, prosthetic valve endocarditis, thromboembolism and bleeding events were analyzed using the Kaplan-Meier method. The log-rank test was used to test for differences. Aortic valve reoperation and structural valve deterioration were analyzed using cumulative incidence function using a competing risk analysis [10]. For aortic valve reoperation 'death' was considered a competing risk. For structural valve deterioration both 'death' and 'aortic valve reoperation' were considered a competing risk. Gray's log-rank test was used to test for differences between the groups in the competing risk analysis. Logistic regression analysis was used to identify if choice of prosthesis was a risk factor for prosthesispatient mismatch, considering age, gender and body mass index as variables. The longitudinal follow-up of echocardiographic results were analyzed using a mixed effects model. Statistical analyses were performed using SPSS, version 21 (IBM Corp., Armonk, NY, USA). The cumulative incidence function analysis and the mixed effects model were performed using R (R Foundation for Statistical Computing, Vienna, Austria). A P-value of <0.05 was considered statistically significant.


Optimization (under the direction of Dr. John Baugh). Engineering optimization problems are known to be difficult to solve using mathematical programming techniques because of large search spaces, complex objective and constraint functions, and, in many cases, their combinatorial nature. Simulated annealing is a well known heuristic optimization technique that has been used to solve a number of problems in discrete, non-differential, and combinatorial optimization and hence is suitable for solving such engineering optimization problems. However, computationally intensive problems are frequently encountered in the field of engineering optimization, in which case the use of simulated annealing can be prohibitively time consuming. The objective of this thesis is to develop an object oriented framework that implements a distributed simulated annealing algorithm, which can be easily extended to solve computationally intensive engineering optimization problems. A distributed simulated an-nealing algorithm (DSA Algorithm) was developed and incorporated into a distributed simulated annealing framework called the DSA Framework. The framework defines interfaces , through which optimization problems can be modeled, utilizing a distributed computing framework, Vitri, to engage multiple desktop computers in a collective effort to solve problems. The framework was used to solve a 40 variable knapsack problem as a benchmark problem to analyze the performance of the algorithm. The framework was also used to optimize support locations in a piping system subject to seismic loads. The DSA framework proves to be an efficient, fairly scalable tool that shows consistent reduction in execution time with increasing number of servers, thus proving to be a valuable tool in solving computationally intensive engineering optimization problems. guidance and suggestions during the course of my Masters education. I would like to thank my colleagues Emily, Sunil and Parthee for their constant support and for being my family home away from home. I would also like to thank my roommates Vishal, Alok, Gaurav and Girish for all the fun times and friendship. Last but not the least I express my deep gratitude to my parents for moulding me into the person I am today with their constant love and support.


BACKGROUND
We evaluated particulate matter in combined induced sputum (IS) and oxidation in exhaled breath condensate (EBC) to test whether underlying inflammatory changes are present in asymptomatic welders.

METHODS
Thirty welders from the Israel Defense Forces exposed to aluminum/iron (Group 1) or to cadmium/chromium/iron/lead/nickel (Group 2, N = 16) and 27 non-exposed administrators were studied. IS was recovered, particle size distribution, hydrogen peroxide and pH were measured, and exhaled breath condensate was collected.

RESULTS
Group 2 had a higher % neutrophils than all other participants (P = 0.0001) and a higher % particles >2 microm in diameter (P = 0.0017). Percent particles and years of exposure highly correlated (P = 0.051). All welders EBC samples had higher concentrations of hydrogen peroxide than controls (P = 0.0001). pH was lower only for Group 2 (P = 0.0001).

CONCLUSIONS
Combined IS and EBC measurements detect underlying inflammation in airways of asymptomatic welders. It emerged that airway inflammation is present in asymptomatic welders, and that the particle burden, inflammatory cells, and level of oxidative stress are a function of the type and the duration of welding. Am. J. Ind. Med. 51:503-511, 2008.


Improving the simulation of the Pre-monsoon squall events is important as such events routinely result in strong gusty wind, hails, rain and significant loss of life and property over Bang ladesh, Indian eastern, northeastern region and neighborhood. Performance of the mesoscale models is sensitive to the physical parameterizatio ns schemes. This study deals the improvement of numerical simulation of sq uall events during pre- monsoon season through parameterizations. Advanced Research Weather Research and Forecasting model (WRF ARW) is used to improve the simulation of squall events. Several sensitivity ex periments were conducted with different combinations of cloud microphysics s chemes (MPSs) (namely; Lin, WSM3, WSM6 and Milbrandt), planetary boundary layer (PBL) schemes (namely; YSU, MYJ and ACM2) and cumulus (CU) parameterization schemes (namely; Kain-Fritsch, Betts-Miller-Janji c, Grell- Devenyi and no-cumulus), to examine the root mean square errors (RMSE) of rainfall, wind speed at 10 m and forecast time. In particular, the combination of Milbrandt and WSM6 microphysics scheme with Yonsei University (YSU) PBL scheme and no CU scheme provides optimal combination of physical parameterization schemes in simulation of the squall events.


Abstract Tinnitus is highly prevalent among military Veterans. Severe tinnitus can be associated with negative impacts on daily life. Veterans with severe tinnitus may also have greater difficulties in functional roles, including work. However, few studies have explicitly explored this relationship. Traumatic brain injury (TBI), also prevalent among Veterans, is associated with tinnitus and can additionally impair work functioning. This quantitative investigation used a population-based survey to assess the relationship between tinnitus severity, measured using the Tinnitus Functional Index (TFI), and the impact of tinnitus on work, measured using a composite score from the Tinnitus History Questionnaire, among a stratified random sample of VA healthcare-using Veterans diagnosed with tinnitus, with and without comorbid TBI. Analyses were weighted to account for sampling design and Veteran non-response; multiple imputation was used to account for missing data. Results indicated that for every 1-point increase in TFI score, there was an average 8% increase in the odds of reporting a high level of impact on work functioning (OR: 1.08; 95% CI: 1.06, 1.11). Veterans with a comorbid TBI diagnosis, compared with those without, were more likely to have high tinnitus-related impact on work functioning (OR: 2.69, 95% CI: 1.85, 3.91), but the relationship between tinnitus severity and the impact of tinnitus on work functioning did not differ by TBI status. These data can help researchers and clinicians understand complex symptoms experienced by Veterans with tinnitus, with and without TBI, supporting the improved provision of clinical services to these patients.


This paper calculates the material capital Stock and the human capital Stock in China since 1978,and analyzes the dynamic relationship among human capital,material capital and economic growth in China.By using the model econometric methods,the vector auto-regression model,the long-term equilibrium and short-term equilibrium model are established.The result indicates that there is long-term equilibrium among human capital,Material Capital and GOP.


Simple Summary Brown marmorated stink bug (BMSB) is a significant threat to the production of tree fruit, corn and soybean, and some vegetable crops in much of the USA and abroad. Its feeding causes injury that reduces crop quality and yield. BMSB invades crop fields from adjoining habitats, where it also feeds and develops on a broad range of wild and cultivated plants. Thus, it is considered a perimeter-driven threat, and research on management tactics to reduce insecticide applications against it has focused on intervention at crop edges. Woodlands often border one or more edges of crop fields in the Mid-Atlantic, USA, and are considered a main source of BMSB invasion, although tree fruit orchards in this region are typically also bordered along other edges by other habitats, including other tree fruit blocks and field crops. The effect of woodlands and other habitats bordering orchards on BMSB captures in pheromone traps and crop injury at harvest has not been compared. A two-year study in Mid-Atlantic fruit orchards confirmed that BMSB captures and fruit injury were often highest at edges bordering woodlands, but that other border habitats also contributed significantly to captures and injury in some instances. Abstract The invasive Halyomorpha halys invades crop fields from various bordering habitats, and its feeding on crops has caused significant economic losses. Thus, H. halys is considered a perimeter-driven threat, and research on alternative management tactics against it has focused on intervention at crop edges. Woodlands adjacent to crop fields contain many hosts of H. halys and are therefore considered "riskiest" in terms of pest pressure and crop injury. However, tree fruit orchards in the Mid-Atlantic, USA, are often bordered on one or more sides by woodlands and other habitats, including other tree fruit blocks, and field crops. Monitoring H. halys using pheromone traps has most often focused on the crop–woodland interface, but the relative effects of woodlands and other habitats bordering orchards on pest pressure and crop injury have not been examined. A two-year study comparing seasonal captures of H. halys and fruit injury among different habitats bordering commercial apple and peach orchards in the Mid-Atlantic revealed that while woodland borders often posed the greatest risk, other border habitats also contributed significantly to captures and injury in numerous instances. The relevance of these findings to refining and optimizing perimeter-based monitoring and management approaches for H. halys is discussed.