Staff line removal is a crucial pre-processing step in Optical Music Recognition. In this paper we propose a novel approach for staff line removal, based on Generative Adversarial Networks. We convert staff line images into patches and feed them into a U-Net, used as Generator. The Generator intends to produce staff-less images at the output. Then the Discriminator does binary classification and differentiates between the generated fake staff-less image and real ground truth staff less image. For training, we use a Loss function which is a weighted combination of L2 loss and Adversarial loss. L2 loss minimizes the difference between real and fake staff-less image. Adversarial loss helps to retrieve more high quality textures in generated images. Thus our architecture supports solutions which are closer to ground truth and it reflects in our results. For evaluation we consider the ICDAR/GREC 2013 staff removal database. Our method achieves superior performance in comparison to other conventional approaches on the same dataset.


We fabricated GalnP/GaAs Schottky-collector triple barrier resonant tunneling diodes (TBRTDs), and evaluated a differential series parasitic resistance towards a series resistance reduction for high frequency self-oscillation on the basis of negative differential resistance. By employing a Pd/GaAs Schottky junction as the collector electrode, the series resistance reduction was carried out as compared with PdGe ohmic-collector TBRTDs fabricated with the same wafer.


In July 2014, Australia abolished the Australian carbon pricing mechanism introduced in 2011. In comparison, the EU emissions trading scheme has been up and running since 2005 despite critical challenges at various junctures. What explains the quick unravelling of the former and the sustainability of the latter? The reasons may be three fold. First, the multiplicity of preferences among Australian veto players, coupled a partisan climate politics, has made climate policy inherently unstable. In the EU, on the other hand, a less divisive climate politics set the stage for an inter-temporally stable climate policy. These led to a divergence in interest groups' feedback to the introduction of the respective climate policies. While Australian partisan climate politics incentivised businesses to fight back, a less partisan politics in the EU sent a unified message for businesses to adapt. Finally, Australia's climate policy lacked effective adhesion and flexibility mechanisms to prosper in an uncertain political future.


Standardize the strategy to increase to the international trade the way change have the important function.The Chinese business enterprise in orientation standardizes basic mode in strategy contain standard follow the strategy,standard usher in the strategy,standard the public strategy and cooperate to form alliance the strategy and participate the standard establishment strategy etc..According to standardize the international trade of the strategy increase the way the change path choice is:To standardize strategy conduct and actions the international trade increases the way changes of put forth effort to order;International standard in adoption with advanced standard in abroad;Fight the international standard establishment power;Participate the related the argument in WTO to reply abroad technique trade barrier;The push practices the standard attestation approves system;Enhance to standardize strategy information system developments;Train specialized talented person in internationalization.


Low‐flow frequency analysis techniques are robust only where the flow record is relatively long and the flow regime is known to be stationary over time. If applied to short‐period flow records. low‐flow frequency analysis can give poor or misleading results. This paper examines the effectiveness of data‐transfer methods for improving the characterisation of low‐flow frequency relationships for gauged sites with flow records of less than fifteen years.


The study examinethe socioeconomic characteristics of maize producers in the Savannah region of Northern Nigeria. Stratified and purposive sampling techniques were used to select locations and respondents respectively. Primary data were collected from 480 smallholder maize farmers across the three agro-ecological zones of Northern Nigeria.The results of the socioeconomic analysis indicate that majority of the maize farmers were male (94.8%), married (93.3%), cooperative membership (68.8%), informal education (33.1%), access to credit (63.1%) and extension contact (74.2%) in the study area.The study recommends the need for strengthening farmers' capacity for efficient utilization of material and labour inputs.


Learning is a continuous process that does not come to an end when one leaves school or university. In case of virtual organisations, it is important that the personnel from different local entities that are linked together shares the same knowledge, at the same level, and updates the knowledge consistently and permanently. The paper presents a cooperative distributed learning system and shows how the faciliti es provided by the system make it well fitted for continuos learning in virtual organisations. The architecture of the system is a multi-agent one, human and artificial agents collaborating together to achieve the learning task. The development of the system was triggered by the necessities of training both developers and users of high-performance computing in the framework of the CoLaborator project. A case study in this domain is presented to highlight the facilities of the environment.


The formation process and microwave dielectric properties of the Mg2V2O7 ceramics were investigated. The MgV2O6 phase that was formed at around 450°C interacted with remnant MgO above 590°C to form a homogeneous monoclinic Mg2V2O7 phase. Finally, this monoclinic Mg2V2O7 phase was changed to a triclinic Mg2V2O7 phase for the specimen fired at 800°C. Sintering at 950°C for more than 5 h produced high-density triclinic Mg2V2O7 ceramics. In particular, the Mg2V2O7 ceramics sintered at 950°C for 10 h exhibited the good microwave dielectric properties of ɛr=10.5, Q×f=58 275 GHz, and τf=−26.9 ppm/°C.


A homogeneous-mixing population model for HIV transmission, which incorporates an anti-HIV preventive vaccine, is studied qualitatively. The local and global stability analysis of the associated equilibria of the model reveals that the model can have multiple stable equilibria simultaneously. The epidemiological consequence of this (bistability) phenomenon is that the disease may still persist in the community even when the classical requirement of the basic reproductive number of infection (0) being less than unity is satisfied. It is shown that under specific conditions, the community-wide eradication of HIV is feasible if 0 < ∗ ,w here ∗ is some threshold quantity less than unity. Furthermore, for the bistability case (which occurs when ∗ < 0 < 1), it is shown that HIV eradication is dependent on the initial sizes of the subpopulations of the model. 2000 Mathematics Subject Classification: 92B05, 37C75.


Breast reconstruction with deep inferior epigastric perforator flap (DIEP flap) is an optimal technique for massive tissue defect after breast cancer surgeries. Venous congestion is one of the main complications and the probable reasons include thrombus, lack of ramus communicans across the midline or between deep and superficial system, improper choice of anastomotic vein, et al. Clinical examination is the main method, and other auxiliary tests can also be used. Preoperative vascular evaluation is of great importance. The venous superdrainage is current preventive measure for congestion.

Key words:
Mammaplasty; Inferior epigastric artery, skin flap; Vein, congestion


In order to interpret energy degrading during freeze-drying, exergy balance analysis on the differential control volume in dried layer was conducted, and a mathematical model of exergy loss for the primary drying was proposed. Taken bovine muscle for example, the influence of operation conditions, such as surface temperature of the material being dried, chamber pressure and thickness of slab, was analyzed based on the drying dynamic model and the exergy loss model. The results indicate that the exergy loss reduces with the chamber pressure rising during the primary drying period; the exergy loss reduces when the surface temperature decreases or when the thickness of slab is reduced. The exergy loss in the primary drying period plays important part in quantity during the whole freeze-drying period. In addition, the exergy loss in the secondary drying period will not increase sharply while the surface temperature arises. For shortening drying time period and reducing exergy loss during drying, an optimal surface temperature in different drying periods is obtained respectively.


Background: Polysomnography (PSG) is currently the standard diagnostic procedure for sleep apnoea. This study evaluates the diagnostic accuracy of a portable recording device, ApneaLink (AL; ResMed, Poway, CA, USA) for detection of sleep apnoea in comparisons against PSG.


LTE and LTE-A have dominated as a 4G enabler protocol, adopted by the majority of the network providers worldwide. The efficient performance of an LTE network relies on the selected frequency within an operating band that the cell operates, by taking into account all the potential factors that can affect it. Since cognitive radio is targeting towards the maximization of spectrum utilization, it is crucial that it is adopted in the spectrum allocation process. In this work, we propose an efficient scheme for cell planning by employing spectrum sensing techniques. By exploiting spectral information collected by several sensing devices, we appropriately select the center frequency inside the operating band, towards maximizing the quality of the end user experience. Our algorithms are implemented for the downlink channel, considering a variety of configurations and topologies. Finally, our implemented mechanism is evaluated in the real world deployment of the NITOS Future Internet facility, using commercial LTE enabled femto cells and UEs, while USRP sensing devices are employed for high quality spectral information provisioning.


The invention discloses a mortar base plate carrying tool. The carrying tool comprises a base plate fixing bracket and a carrying support, wherein the base plate fixing bracket comprises a base plate table board and a support frame; the base plate table board is fixed at the top of the carrying support via the support frame and is matched with a mortar base plate; the carrying support comprises unifying frames on the left and right sides and transverse braces; an adjusting screw rod for adjusting the opening and closing angles of the unifying frames on the two sides is arranged at the joint of the unifying frames on the two sides; the unifying frames on the two sides are positioned and connected by the transverse braces. The carrying tool has a reasonable structure, is simple and convenient to operate and simple to maintain, and is safe and reliable.


survivors, seemingly endorsing their defensive strategy. Chapter 3 vividly describes the industry's war efforts, covering its desperate attempts to boost capacity while at the same time adopting prefabrication, welding and standard designs. Government control of the industry was absolute, and on the whole beneficial, for it was public money which paid for retooling for welding. Chapter 4 deals with the war's aftermath, a period eerily reminiscent of post-1918 namely, initial boom times associated with managerial caution and backwardness. The shipbuilders, however, were soon to be rudely awakened: as Chapter 5 recounts, beginning in 1956 Japan grasped the title of top shipbuilding nation from Britain and a host of emulators soon followed in her wake. An alarmed British government responded by commissioning one inquiry after another, all aimed at restoring the industry's fortunes, but by the 1960s the tide had definitely turned against British shipbuilding. The next two chapters reveal the thinking of the participants industrialists, civil servants and consultants during the 1960s and 1970s, a period characterised by increasingly expensive government bail-outs. The turn of events, though, cruelly neutralised all these initiatives, and the remorseless pressure of foreign competition succeeded in transforming British shipbuilding into a pale shadow of itself by the time it was nationalised in 1977. The final two chapters take us through the death throes of the nationalised corporation, considering its dismemberment and abandonment by a Thatcher government impatient with industrial "dinosaurs." The epilogue speaks volumes: injust thirty years Britain went from being the chief shipbuilder to having no volume merchant shipbuilding capacity, and all this despite spending a king's ransom in public subsidies. Its rump privatised shipbuilding industry, largely confined to constructing warships, is essentially a ward of the state. This book accomplishes its stated aims of describing how the state was increasingly invoked to overcome the industry's maladies and why that intervention ultimately proved to be of no avail. It is remarkably free of factual errors (although not entirely devoid of them, witness the misspelling of Tyne shipbuilder Readhead and Norwegian shipowner Wilhelmsen) and carefully avoids heaping blame on scapegoats. All in all, it is a welcome addition to the literature.


ABSTRACT Foliar fertilization can be recommended to treat boron (B) deficiency in coffee and cotton. Considering that B foliar fertilizers with polyol-boron complexes can affect B uptake and mobility differently within the plant, and coffee and cotton have different cuticles and stomata density, a differential response would be expected. We aimed to study the foliar application of boric acid combined with sorbitol on B uptake and translocation in cotton and coffee. Green-house grown plants received B as boric acid and [...]


A Wilkinson power divider with an open-circuited stub and extra-transmission lines between two output ports is presented. Compared with the modified Wilkinson power divider presented by Horst, the proposed power divider has the advantages of less occupation area on a printed circuit board and simple layout, where the isolation resistor, one open-circuited stub and extra-transmission lines are constants. The experimental circuit shows good agreement with theoretical simulation.


The surfactants cesium, tetramethylammonium, tetraethylammonium, tetrapropylammonium and tetrabutylammonium dodecyl sulfates (CsDS, TMADS, TEADS, TPADS, and TBADS) have been synthesized by ion-exchange. The critical micellization concentration in the absence of added salt (cmc) has been determined at 10, 25, and 40 °C using the electrical conductivity method. The cmc was found to decrease in the sequence CsDS > TMADS > TEADS > TPADS > TBADS. The value of the cmc depends very little on temperature, going through a shallow minimum around 25 °C for most surfactants investigated. The micelle aggregation numbers have been determined using the time-resolved fluorescence quenching method, with the pyrene/dodecylpyridinium chloride as fluorescent probe/quencher pair, at various surfactant concentrations and, in the case of TMADS, in the presence of tetramethylammonium chloride. The micelle ionization degree α0 at the cmc has been determined from the electrical conductivity data and the values of the aggregation n...


Dear Editor and Reviewers: Thank you for your letter and for the reviewers' comments concerning our manuscript # hess-2014-350 entitled "Prediction of extreme floods based on CMIP5 climate models: a case study in the Beijiang River basin, South China". Those comments are all valuable and very helpful for revising and improving our paper, as well as the important guiding significance to our researches. We have studied comments carefully and have made correction which we hope meet with approval. Revised portion are marked in red in the paper. The main corrections in the paper and the responds to the reviewer's comments are as flowing: Responds to the comments:


Greetings SIGIR Members! I am pleased to be writing my first letter as SIGIR Chair, serving with Ryen White (Vice Chair), Carsten Eickhoff (Treasurer), and Laura Dietz (Secretary), under the patient guidance of Ben Carterette (Past Chair). I would like to sincerely thank the previous committee: in addition to Ben, Tetsuya Sakai (Vice Chair), Claudia Hauff (Secretary), Min Zhang (Treasurer), and Diane Kelly (Past Chair) for the many initiatives they accomplished during their tenure. Their term started with SIGIR in Paris, in a record 42-degree heat, followed by an extremely challenging and unexpected shift to online conferences due to the global COVID pandemic. In addition to providing guidance to conference organizers, and funding for student travel and other programs, they initiated the SIGIR Academy to recognize sustained contributions to the field (thank you to Ryen White, Hannah Bast, and Gianluca Demartini), the Early Career Researchers Award (thank you to Johanne Trippas), and the DEI checklist (thank you to Bárbara Poblete, Hussein Suleman and Suzan Verberne). Finally, their term welcomed the creation of a new conference (SIGIR-AP) which will be held in November/December in the Asia-Pacific, with a steering committee chaired by Alistair Moffat and Yiqun Liu. These programs represent big improvements to the recognition and representation in the SIGIR community.


Three-stage amplifier is used for ECG measurements which require conversion of differential input to single-ended output. Circuit may be useful in biological telemetry for amplification of signals from specimen-implanted sensors.


Two families of carboxylic acid derivatives of the herbicides atrazine and simazine were synthesized for use as haptens in the development of immunoassays. One family was made by using monosubstituted (alkylamino) cyanuric chlorides and a variety of ω-amino acids, giving spacers of varying lengths attached to one secondary amino group. The second family resulted from the replacement of the 2-chloro group of atrazine or simazine with 3-mercaptopropanoic acid (...)


As society evolves and changes, so does the education system
within it. Educators, and in particular teachers, are constantly
looking for more effective ways to develop children's knowledge,
understandings, attitudes and skills. The changing needs of society,
as well as changes in educational philosophy, have led to the
development of "new" curriculums and guidelines in the mathematics
area, -as well as in other educational areas. One important, and
complex, aspect of these documents, and of current teaching and
learning practices, is the issue of assessment.
A number of factors relating to the issue of assessment are
considered in this study. These factors include the aims of
assessment, what to assess and when, the use of the most appropriate
and effective methods of assessment and consideration
of the role that assessment plays in the context of the complete
mathematics program in view of the current changes in educational
philosophy and practice.
The Australian perspective on mathematics assessment is
examined and some of the recently occurring changes in assessment and
reporting practices are outlined briefly.
In a case study on assessment and reporting practices, a series
of questions on assessment are given to eight teachers from one
school. These questions aim to determine the essential components of
their assessment practices and the role that assessment plays in
their classroom mathematics program. Some of the results of the
investigation are then compared with associated research on
assessment.


Objective:To evaluate the effect of different scaling and polishing methods on the roughness of human enamel surface.Methods:24 enamel blocks were prepared by cutting crowns of six extracted central incisors horizontally and longitudinally through the center of labial surfaces.Each block was embedded in self-curing resin with the labial surface being exposed,followed by polishing the exposed enamel surfaces.All specimens were randomly divided into 8 groups:Group A:no treatment(as control).Group B:ultrasonic scaling.Group C:polishing with prophylaxis paste after ultrasonic scaling.Group D:polishing with toothpaste after ultrasonic scaling.Group E:sandblast polishing after ultrasonic scaling.Group F:sandblasting.Group G:polishing with prophylaxis paste after sandblasting.Group H:polishing with toothpaste after sandblasting.Finally,the surface roughness of each treated enamel surface was tested using a profilometer,followed by observing under SEM.Results:Ultrasonic scaling led to remarkably increase in roughness,but the succedent polishing decreased the roughness significantly,and the polishing efficacy of toothpaste was better than Nupro and sandblasting.Sandblasting also produced a rough surface,and the succedent polishing with Nupro made the surface rougher.Conclusion:Ultrasonic scaling creates pits on enamel surface and increases its roughness,which should be followed by polishing.Polishing materials and methods affect the final roughness significantly.No polishing is needed after sandblasting.


Bill Poole's career in the Federal Reserve System spans two decades separated by a quarter of a century. From 1964 to 1974 Bill was an economist on the staff of the Board's Division of Research and Statistics. He then left to join the economics faculty at Brown University, where he stayed for nearly twenty-five years. Bill rejoined the Fed in 1998 as president of the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis, so he is now approaching the completion of his second decade in the System.


In this article, a posteriori error analysis of a finite volume element method based on the nonconforming element for the two-dimensional Stokes equations is investigated. An explicit residual-based computable error indicators are presented and analyzed in . 1 H


On the base of protecting both cultural heritage and environment,this article emphasizes that the government must play leading role in the sustainable tourism development.How and where the government plays this role is illustrated in this article.


Background Meniscal ramp lesions have gained much prominence in recent years due to a significant increase in their diagnosis and their important biomechanical involvement in the knee. A new proposed classification of these lesions has recently been published. Purpose To evaluate the reproducibility of the new classification of meniscal ramp lesions recently published using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). Material and Methods A total of 249 post-traumatic knee MRI studies were evaluated by three musculoskeletal radiologists independently. Patients with an anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) tear on MRI in addition to a recent history of trauma to the knee for <12 months were included in the study, for a total of 95. We carried out an inter-observer concordance study to analyze whether the new classification is reproducible to detect meniscal ramp lesions and to classify them into their different types. Results Among our study cohort of 95 patients, we found 47 (49.5%) ramp lesions. In the inter-observer study, we obtained a good concordance (k = 0.733) in the detection of these lesions and an excellent one (k = 0.843) when the type of lesion is described. Conclusion This study demonstrates that the new classification of meniscal ramp lesions has good reproducibility on MRI.


The COVID-19 pandemic is a new challenge for the implementation of stunting intervention in Indonesia. Therefore, monitoring the stunting program implementation during a pandemic is crucial to achieving the target of stunting reduction. This research aims to examine the pandemic's impacts on the implementation of specific and sensitive programs, especially posyandu, iron supplementation, PMT, and Sustainable Food Program(SFG). Method, qualitative research uses a Case-Study with 17 informants selected by purposive sampling, including the stakeholders and program's target in the working area of Tempel 2 Health Center.  Data in the form of interview transcripts and other documents were collected using in-depth interviews and documentation studies in November-December 2021 and were analyzed in 3 stages: reduction, presentation, and conclusion. Result, the COVID-19 pandemic has affected specific nutrition interventions, especially in the planning, implementation, and scope of activities. It relates to social difficulties and concerns over the spread of COVID-19. In the implementation of SFG program, the pandemic does not have a significant impact. It can be interpreted that COVID-19 pandemic affects several aspect of the stunting program's implementation. This study suggests the stakelhoders and communities to optimize the implementation of stunting intervention so it can run sustainably to reduce stunting prevalences.


The purpose of the following study is to demonstrate that employer branding is an effective tool in acquiring talents. The starting point to considerations is the analysis of terminology used in literature. Next, the strategy of employer branding is shown as the component of two complementary and long-term action plans. The first one is concerned with the improvement of talented workers' management system, and the latter deals with popularization of the execution of organization's best practices. What is emphasized in this study, is the importance of these two actions' consistency, which conditions acquiring talents as a long-term perspective.


Five kinds of native amino acids,such as L-Glu,Gly,L-Asp,L-Asn,L-Cys,have been successfully separated and determined by capillary electrophoresis coupled with direct UV detection.Using 30 mmol/L borate-10 mmol/L phosphate solution as the carrier buffer,3%(V/V) methanol as an organic modifier,0.5 mmol/L cetyltrimethyl ammonium bromide as electro-osmosis flow modifier,and adjusting the pH at 9.5,baseline separation of above amino acids is achieved in 4 minutes.The relative standard derivations of the migration times and peak areas about each amino acids are less than 0.3% and 3.5%,respectively.The limit of detection are in the range of 0.3~1.2 mg/L.At the same time,the mechanism of UV absorption detection of the amino acids is investigated in detail.The simple and rapid method has been applied to the quantitative measurement of compound amino acid injection.The recovery rate of the four amino acid are 97.8 %~102.7%.


Let $q$ be a nonzero scalar. The quantized Weyl algebra $\cal{A}_{1}^{q} (F) $ is a noncommutative ring generated by variables $x,y$ such that $yx=qxy+1$. We study factorization in $\cal{A}_{1}^{q}(F)$ and consider irreducible and prime elements. We classify irreducible quadratic forms and identify two important classes. A result on Ore extensions is needed to describe prime quadratic forms.
Suppose $R$ is a Noetherian domain and $(\sigma ,\delta)$ is a quasi-derivation of $R$ such that $\sigma $ is an automorphism. There is an induced quasi-derivation on the classical quotient ring $Q$ of $R$. Let $f=t^2-v$ be normal in $R[ t;\sigma ,\delta ] $ where $v\in R$. We show $f$ is prime if and only if $f$ is irreducible in $Q[t;\sigma ,\delta ] $. We apply this result to quantized Weyl algebras.
It is well-known that the principal ideal generated by $u=(q-1)xy+1$ is completely prime if $q\neq 1$. Thus $u$ is a prime polynomial. We prove all primes are scalar multiples of $u$ if $q$ is not a root of unity. Conditions are provided for (i) a single variable polynomial to be prime if $q$ is an arbitrary root of unity and (ii) a quadratic form to be prime when $q=-1$.


The purpose of this paper is to discuss the relationships that exist between birds and the mule deer (Odqcoileus he&onus). From July, 1947, until January, 19.50, I had the good fortune to live with a population of migratory deer in the central 6ierra Nevada of California between Yosemite National Park and the Sonora Pass Road. This population, wintering on Jawbone Ridge, is known as the Jawbone herd. Most of the field observations mentioned were made within the yearly range of this group of deer. For critical reading of the manuscript I am indebted to S. B. Benson, A. S. Leopold, and A. H. Miller. The work was conducted under the auspices of Piftman-Robertson Project 28-R. INFLUENCES OF bEER ON BIRDS


The modeling of time sequence to the year-on-year and month-on-month housing price index in thirty-five large and middle-sized cities of China is intended to make a complete and comprehensive prediction to the housing price index with the proper predictive model.It is shown in the research that the housing price index of China is predictable and most of them is attributed to the simple AR model and ARMA model with the higher prediction precision,and the adoption of the network model of multi radial basis function(RBF)is beneficial to the great improvement on the prediction precision.


Synthetic aperture radiometer is a new instrumental technology for passive microwave remote sensing. It has the advantage that the antenna aperture needed for a two-dimensional image is very much thinned such that its weight and volume are all reduced for easy folding and deploying during launch and in space. Different image retrieval algorithms have been developed together with different sensors. In this paper, a general image retrieval algorithm is presented. It is not limited for an equal spaced visibility function sampling and Fourier transformation. The baselines may be placed in three dimensions and arbitrarily orientated. This algorithm is useful for testing a new configuration of base line design. A design case is presented in the paper, which employs base lines in both x, y and z dimensions of the satellite platform and combined with mechanical scan. The distributions of the sampling points of the visibility function are given in the u, v plane. It is shown that although the distribution is not uniform, the retrieval algorithm works well. Retrieved results of simulated original images using the algorithm are presented.


The diffusing capacity of carbon monoxide (DL,CO) and its value normalized to alveolar volume (DL,CO/VA) are usually estimated with the single breath method at total lung capacity (TLC). Severely ill patients and small children are not able to deliver a satisfactory vital capacity (VC) or hold their breath for 10 s at TLC. The aim of this study was to develop a rebreathing procedure in which diffusing capacity can be determined during spontaneous tidal breathing. The conventional rebreathing method during hyperventilation was modified so that rebreathing volume and gas concentrations were kept constant by CO2 absorption and O2 supplementation. In adult healthy volunteers and in patients who were able to perform both tests, the diffusion indices obtained with this rebreathing method during resting ventilation were compared with those obtained by the single breath method. Predicted (reference) values for rebreathing DL,CO and DL,CO/VA for children were determined.


In the 50's of the XIX century Peter Lavrovskyi (1827–1886), a prominent Slavic philologist and educator, published a number of works on the ancient Russian (Proto-East Slavic) language and its dialects. Among these studies, which have retained their scientific significance to our time, the book «On the language of northern Russian chronicles» (1852) should be mentioned, in which P. Lavrovskyi, basing on ancient East Slavic manuscripts, studied in detail the nature, origin and history of reduced vowels [ъ], [ь] on the East Slavic territory. Ancient manuscripts were a priority source for the study of the reduced for P. Lavrovskyi: chronicles, deeds, treaties, acts. At the same time, the scientist used the material of his contemporary Slavic languages, primarily East Slavic, as an auxiliary source

Key words: P. Lavrovskyi, ancient manuscripts, chronicles, reduced vowels, decline of the reduced vowels, the Common Slavonic language, the Old Russian language, the Eastern Slavonic languages.


Theoretical considerations pertaining to the electrodeposition of aluminum and aluminum alloys from alkylbenzene-HBr electrolytes are reviewed. Applications of the aluminum plating process have been reviewed with special emphasis on aluminum alloys plating, thicker coatings realization by pulse plating and barrel plating or ordinary and aircraft fasteners


Since the 1950s, racial segregation in the United States has been on the decline. Rates of decline, however, vary across the metropolitan areas throughout the country. Researchers demonstrate a clear relationship between racial residential segregation and the degree of political fragmentation in the area. Moreover, residential segregation has been identified as one of the strongest correlates to upward mobility rates. Therefore, understanding the relationship between segregation and fragmentation is particularly relevant to Forsyth County, NC, which has some of the lowest upward mobility rates in the entire US. This study seeks to address the following questions, using insights from an earlier nationwide study, focused specifically on Winston-Salem – the county seat of Forsyth County, NC: How have these rates been impacted by the changing levels of political fragmentation there? As the number of municipalities increase, does segregation worsen? What are ways in which fragmentation affects segregation? We find that increasing levels of fragmentation decreases the rate of segregations decline. The number of municipalities in a metro area is positively and significantly related to the segregation between blacks and whites in the area. One possible mechanism by which this occurs is through the sorting of households base on certain preferences, though some households face stronger constraints relative to the other, leading to the two groups becoming more segregated over time. A discussion of the findings and policy implications are offered.


ABSTRACT Ganoderma boninense is the dominant fungal pathogen of basal stem rot (BSR) disease on Elaeis guineensis. We sequenced the nuclear genome of mycelia using both Illumina and Pacific Biosciences platforms for assembly of scaffolds. The draft genome comprised 79.24 Mb, 495 scaffolds, and 26,226 predicted coding sequences.


In the past the clinical application of dietary measures to the control of anemia has been largely empiric, and the pendulum has swung uncertainly from one extreme to another until laboratory workers attacked this problem from the standpoint of the experimentally induced anemia. As a matter of fact the exact composition of foodstuffs was not studied in this country until the beginning of the present century. With reference to the particular question of the value of liver (or its derivatives) in the treatment of anemia, the entire development is less than a decade old and its clinical application dates back about one half of that period. In 1920, Whipple and his co-workers 1 established an unusual potency for liver in the regeneration of blood in standard anemia animals. Their further experiments 2 confirmed this original observation, extending its scope to include severe anemia of long duration. They concluded that "beef


The exploitation potential research of unutilized land is the guarantee of sustainable use of regional land resources,which is also the guarantee of the basic requirements of dynamic balance of cultivated land.Through assessment about various kinds of investigation data and sample survey data,we can identify that Helingeer county have unused exploitation potential,Base on the analysis of forecast investment benefit,we can conclude that Helingeer county can increase arable land area of 7758.81hm2,obtain pure income 453.89million yuan during the project period,in addition the payback period is 5.2years,by land development the effective arable land of Helingeer county will increase,the utilization rate of land will enhance the land quality will optimize,the degree of intensive utilization of land will increase.


No one was surprised earlier this year when President Clinton's Council of Economic Advisers cited the telecommunications industry as a leading driver of economic growth in the United States. A 1999 report published by the council [1] suggests that the industry has created 200,000 jobs over the past ten years. Our own research indicates that it generated more than $1 .7 trillion in market capitalization over the past twenty years, for a compound annual growth rate of 13 percent (Exhibit 1). This far outstrips the rate for the economy as a whole. To understand more fully the origins of this growth and the nature of the challenges and opportunities facing the industry, McKinsey created a financial database of public telecom companies and analyzed the value flows it reveals. We have also looked at other measures of telecom value, such as cellular value per POP (that is, the population area covered by any single cellular license). Our study indicates that while long-established companies and their traditional product lines have done well, new ones have done even better: more than half of the value created in the industry since the 1984 breakup of AT&T has come from companies not spawned by the old Bell monopoly. Ten years ago, before the boom in data traffic and the rise of the Internet redefined the industry, Cisco Systems, for example, wasn't even considered a telecom company, and its products were known only to technology professionals. By 1998, Cisco had attained the second-highest valuation of all the telecom companies in North America. It is not only the manufacture of Internet routers and switches that has extended the borders of the telecom industry and supercharged its growth. Internet service providers (ISPs), led by America Online (AOL)--with a net worth of $125 billion by July 1999--didn't even exist in the late 1980s. Service-outsourcing companies are a further new development, which promises to continue the transformation of telecommunications in the decade to come. The telecom industry comprises seven distinct segments: local, long-distance, and mobile service, as well as the provision of equipment, Internet access, video, and functional services. Together, these segments created more than $1.5 trillion in value between 1988 and 1998 (Exhibit 2). Much of the total return telecom companies provided their shareholders came not from actual revenues and earnings but from increased expectations of future revenues and earnings (Exhibit 3, on the next page). Local In the local-service (or local-exchange) market the Baby Bells, spun off from AT&T in 1984, compete with newer entrants: the so-called CLECs--that is, competitive (as opposed to incumbent) local-exchange carriers. The oldest of them, Teleport Communications Group, has existed for about ten years, but the CLECs as a whole have made significant inroads only recently. Their high potential has long been clear to the stock market, however, which values them collectively at $75 billion, even though they account for only 3 percent of local revenues. At the same time, the market has continued to reward the Baby Bells, which have created $336 billion in market capitalization over the past decade. The fortunes of the Baby Bells and the CLECs on Wall Street reflect the respectable rate of growth in their market, as well as strong corporate demand for new data lines. Moreover, the Baby Bells are making more money under the current regulatory regime of price caps than they did under the preceding one, which limited them to a given rate of return. Yet they may find the going tougher when the CLECs become large enough to take a bigger bite out of their revenues. As for the CLECs themselves, they could become victims of their own success if too many new companies are drawn to their market segment and force a shakeout. Long distance AT&T, the long-distance and overall telecommunications revenue leader, isn't always highly rated by analysts. …


The paper studied hot-extrusion technique of the charcoal made from the scrap wood through orthogonally designed experiments,and analysed that various factors affect the indexes of charcoal quality and capability.The testing results indicate the best technical parameters of hot extrusion processing of the charcoal.The charcoal quality and capability are improved evidently when these parameters are used in production.


Considering a class of networked control systems with time delays and unknown interferences,the fault detection is carried out when the output delays are present.By increasing sampling frequency in controller and equally dividing the sampling period of the sensor,the time delays can be approximate to several times the sampling frequence of the controller.On this basis,the robust H∞ fault observer is constructed based on discrete switching systems,and a linear matrix inquality gives the stability condition of this observer.The fault detection threshold is selected with solving the minimization problem involving a linear matrix inequality constraint.In this way,the robustness and sensitivity of fault detection is enhanced.An illustrative example is given to demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed method.


This paper addresses the problem of error correction of AIS messages by using the a priori knowledge of some information in the messages. Indeed, the AIS recommendation sets a unique value or a range of values for certain fields in the messages. Moreover, the physics can limit the range of fields, such as the speed of the vessel or its position (given the position of the receiver). The repetition of the messages gives also some information. Indeed, the evolution of the ship position is limited between messages and the ship ID is known. The constrained demodulation algorithm presented in this article is an evolution of the constrained Viterbi algorithm (C-VA). It is based on a modified Viterbi algorithm that allows the constraints to be considered in order to correct transmission errors by using some new registers in the state variables. The constraints can be either a single value or a range of values for the message fields. Simulation results illustrate the algorithm performance in terms of bit error rate and packet error rate. The performance of the proposed algorithm is 2 dB better than that obtained with the receiver without constraints.


A novel close approximation of a layer surrounding the scatterer which does not reflect outgoing waves is proposed. The layer consists of cells. Inside each cell, the scattered field is expended in terms of waves propagating from the sides of the cell, except the outer one. The realizability and appropriateness of the construction are checked by solving the scattering from circular and square conducting cylinders. The approach has the advantage of simplicity and provides sufficiently accurate results in a wide range of frequencies. © 2003 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Microwave Opt Technol Lett 37: 444–447, 2003; Published online in Wiley InterScience (www.interscience.wiley.com). DOI 10.1002/mop.10944


Abstract The 2016 cohort of first-year engineering undergraduates, arranged in groups of about 20, consisted of eight groups with at least one-third females, five groups with one or two females and sixteen male-only groups. The groups had a common timetable for all lectures, workshops, tutorials and laboratories for eight core units. The hypothesis was groups with a higher proportion of females would enable female students to self-select small groups of gender parity or majority for teamwork activities in classrooms. Furthermore, these small groups would be microenvironments supportive of female verbal participation and engagement whilst minimising discrimination. Qualitative and quantitative data collection from classroom observations preceded quantitative data collection using a survey instrument and student and learning analytics data. Whilst acknowledging the limitations of the research and complexity of interacting factors, including those from pre-university that were outside the scope of the research, the strategy of group allocation piloted in 2016 did create microenvironments of gender parity or majority. Classroom observations indicate female students engaged. Further research to investigate the disparity of threat to challenge ratios reported by male and female students is recommended.


Using a database containing 2409 recordings of nonconformances, this article proposes a pbenomenological classification that aims to describe the nonconformances as they immediately appear to the people who experience them before any explicative attempt. The research shows that nonconformances are inseparable from the people who live them as experiences of unfilled expectations. Accordingly, four main categories are identified: availability, integrity, tolerances, and performances. The purpose of this classification is twofold: 1) to group the nonconformances under the same concepts according to their similarities, making it possible to quantify and to systemize the knowledge on nonconformances: and 2) to provide an ontology on which further etiological methods can be conducted.


The invention discloses a vehicle-mounted satellite communication sky servo and front-end system, which comprises an antenna system, a servo system and a communication front-end system, wherein, the antenna system comprises an antenna array (1), an antenna mounting reflecting plate (2), an electric bridge (3) and a power divider (4); the servo system comprises an orientation transmission mechanism, a pitching transmission mechanism, a servo controller and a navigation system; the communication front-end system comprises a power amplifier, a low-noise amplifier, a filter and a frequency converter; and the communication front-end system is connected with the communications terminal through a slip ring. The vehicle-mounted satellite communication sky servo and front-end system provided by the invention has the advantages of short catching time, high tracking and response speed, high tracking accuracy, independent tracking and communication, convenience in use, simple structure, good stability and low system cost, and dispenses with catching again in case of false tracking; and the eight-unit forming array antenna is adopted, so the antenna field gain is greatly improved and the communication quality is improved too.


Criticizing the various science education standards as a dense thicket of undifferentiated content is easy to do, and I would say mostly warranted. Although critique is easy, and critics are plentiful, the usual response is to create yet another damned list of facts—when what is needed desperately is a clear map with directions to navigate the thicket. Interpreting the standards through learning progressions may be the way to attain that clear map. The piece by Smith, Wiser, Anderson, and Krajcik (this issue) could prove to be a seminally important piece on learning progressions, a concept that has garnered recent attention. Smith et al. provide guidance not only for assessment but also for instructional design and implementation, and do so far beyond the particular example of matter and the atomic-molecular theory that they used to build their argument. Asany fanofbackwarddesignwouldargue, starting fromasetof research-based, progressive learning performances, then seeing what content it takes to get there, simply makes sense as a process. A learning progression, as the name implies, takes an idea (matter and the atomic-molecular theory) and answers, through the literature on student learning, what makes the most sense to expect as a testable learning outcome from a child at the K through 2 level. It then revisits those outcomes as prior knowledge and asks the same question for Grades 3 through 5, and then Grades 6 through8.Learningperformances treat conceptsdevelopmentally, asa seriesof sucCOMMENTARIES 111


The SQUID is a highly sensitive device employed for non-destructive measurement of magnetic fields, with a host of applications in both biophysics and materials technology. It is composed of a cooled superconductive metal ring separated by a thin insulating barrier of non-superconducting metal, forming a Josephson junction. Electron tunnelling through the junction can allow for the measurement of electromagnetic field fluctuations as minute as 10 Tesla, or one femto-Tesla – some 10 times less than the earth's natural magnetic field. An rf-SQUID is essentially a Josephson junction with tunable current and energy.


Background: The integration of a quantitative assessment of dyspnea in nursing records (NR) allows adjusting nursing care delivery to each patient's needs. Objectives: To compare NR and the self-assessment of dyspnea intensity using the Numerical Rating Scale (NRS) in patients with advanced progressive chronic disease and palliative care needs who were admitted to internal medicine wards. Methodology: A quantitative study was conducted using a cross-sectional, descriptive, and observational approach. The NRS was applied to assess dyspnea intensity. Seventy-seven NR were selected using a non-random, purposive sampling technique. Results: Nurses diagnosed dyspnea at rest and/or functional dyspnea correctly without using a dyspnea assessment tool. Not all patients diagnosed with dyspnea had nursing care plans. In addition, the specific nursing interventions do not consider all dimensions of total dyspnea. Conclusion: Quantitative NR allow for a more accurate identification, monitoring, and management of dyspnea. A more systematic approach to dyspnea in patients with palliative care needs is required.


A particular instance of system-level synthesis, designing small computers using off-the-shelf components, is discussed. M1 is the synthesis tool in Micon, an integrated collection of tools for rapid prototyping of small computer systems. M1 uses components in a library to build a design that satisfies high-level specifications. Input to M1 consists of requirements on functionality (processor name and speed, amount of memory, and number of serial ports) and constraints (maximum board area and power dissipation). Output from M1 consists of a complete list of parts and a netlist indicating interconnections between the parts. M1 uses a knowledge-based approach to design with a unique architecture that is based on a general and flexible hierarchical design model and supports automated knowledge acquisition. M1 has been successfully used to generate several designs based on four microprocessor families; knowledge of these designs was acquired by an automated knowledge acquisition tool.<<ETX>>


Student satisfaction is an important means of assessing the institution's capacity in meeting the students' learning needs. The degree of student's satisfaction with their educational experience is an important dimension in the assessment of institutional effectiveness. Understanding students' perceptions and satisfaction is important in efforts to enrich the students' learning experiences. This study aimed at identifying the student's socio-demographic factors that influenced satisfaction with the nursing training among the final year nursing students in Kenya Medical Training College. This was a mixed method design where both quantitative and qualitative data was collected using the following; a self-administered questionnaire comprising of both closed and open ended questions and a Likert's rating scale which scored the levels of satisfaction on various themes. Data was collected from final year nursing students in the six selected campuses. Quantitative data was analyzed using Statistical Package for Social Scientists (SPSS) program version 20.0. Chi-square tests were used to test relationships between perceived level of satisfaction and the selected independent variables. The results showed that gender of student did not influence students overall satisfaction. However, students who had positive college experience were satisfied with overall teaching and learning process. Student's information sources regarding the nursing career had a significant association with their satisfaction with teaching and learning process.


The disclosed invention is a current measuring apparatus, comprising: a power source such as a plug connector for connection to a power supply wiring; device such as a receptacle connector for providing electrical conduction to the electrical device; and a power supply connector connector means connected in series between a coil; and a measurement circuit for measuring the voltage drop across the coil. In particular, the coil is a coil of the power signal filter. The present invention also discloses a supply voltage using a current measuring device consumer product, and a network adapter.


In this paper, sports video images are taken as the main research object, with the video processing technology, to design and perform a set of methods including video controlling, panorama synthesis, static background suppression, moving object tracking and quantification functions for the sports analysis system. Aiming at the video sequence with relatively static background, this paper also proposes a video moving object segmentation algorithm based on cellular neural network, to complete the program design and development based on MATLAB experimental software platform, and to further improve traditional algorithm by analyzing the experimental results. Finally, the experimental results show that the algorithm shows performance advantage in segmentation performance and application.


Objective:The application of extraoral implants for retention and supporting of bone-anchored auricular prostheses.Method:3extraoral implants were inserted in each side of auricular defect area.The structure of rigid bar and clip was used for retention of two auricular defect.Result:6implants in two sides have excellent osseointegration after5years observation.The patient has high levels of satisfaction with this form of rehabilita-tion.Conclusion:Bone-anchored auricular prostheses are the most favorable way for total auricular defects.


Background: Despite considerable progress in management over the recent years, coronary artery disease (CAD) remains the leading cause of death. Objectives: to assess the different types of arrhythmias in patients with ischemic heart diseases in Taif city. Methods: A retrospective study was done on 529 patients from Taif, Saudi Arabia aged 30 to >75 years, of both genders and who had CAD, through the review of medical records of cardiac patients in AL Hada armed forces hospital. A checklist was used that included demographic features and risk factors for ischemic heart disease, symptoms of heart failure, medications that patients who had CAD used and types of arrhythmias. Results: All patients had a type of arrhythmia during their hospital stay. The main types of arrhythmias were AF (26.8 %), conduction disturbance (38.2%) and first-degree heart block (9.1 %). Patients who had STEMI with symptoms of heart failure and arrhythmias had a significantly higher percentage for the need of DC shock compared to other patients. Patients with UA who developed low EF were shown to be significant as regards arrhythmias rather than normal EF. The number of affected vessels had no effect on the development of arrhythmias during the acute stage. The development of arrhythmia that required DC shock was more common in STEMI patients especially those who developed heart failure symptoms. Conclusion: The need of assessment of heart failure symptoms and EF in patients with UA is essential to determine the need for implantable device insertion. Also, early administration of b-blocker decreases the risk of development of arrhythmia during an acute ischemic event. Key words: arrhythmias, patients, ischemic, heart, disease, Taif


The root-lesion nematodes Pratylenchus spp. have a wide geographic distribution and a large number of host plants. These migratory endoparasites are found associated with sugarcane around the world causing diseases that induce permanent losses in productivity. Although this genus has ordinarily been reported in low-producing sugarcane areas in northeastern Brazil, studies of the species occurrence are few and restricted to a very low number of sites and samples. This study aimed to morphologically and morphometrically characterize Pratylenchus species from different sugarcane regions of Pernambuco state, where composite samples of soil and roots were collected on 30 farms from three sugarcane mills. The external morphological characters of the nematode body from different populations had a diagnostic value compatible with those obtained in the literature, showing the dominance of P. zeae (87%) in the region. Atypical populations of the genus Pratylenchus were also found.


ment of tuberculosis of enclosed cavities by the injection of oxygen. Since then several observers8 9 have reported cases in which this method of treatment was used. I wish to present two cases of tuberculous peritonitis in which oxygen was introduced into the peritoneal space, and also to record the apparently beneficial results from the use of oxygen administered subcutaneously in cases of pulmonary tuberculosis.


This paper presents a statistical core thermal design methodology for generating the limit departure from nucleate boiling ratio (DNBR) and is used in assessing the best-estimate thermal margin in a reactor core. This new methodology adopts a modified Latin hypercube sampling method. In this method, the independencies of the input variables are verified through a correlation coefficient test for statistical treatment of their uncertainties. Next the DNBR response distribution is determined through a goodness-of-fit test. Finally, a limit DNBR with a one-sided 95% probability and a confidence level of 0.95 is estimated. This methodology is simpler than the conventional statistical method using the response surface and Monte Carlo simulation technique, but it maintains the same level of confidence in the limit DNBR result. From this study, it is deduced that the proposed methodology is useful for design application.


Strandings of baleen whales are uncommon in Patagonia, Argentina. We report on a stranding of an individual sei whale Balaenoptera borealis on the east coast of San Antonio (40°43.5′ S, 64°55.8′ W), Río Negro province, Argentina. It was the eighth reported stranding of this species along the Argentinean coastline. The stomach content of the whale was dominated by crustaceans. Three parasite species were also recovered, namely Ogmogaster antarcticus (Trematoda), Anisakis simplex (Nematoda) and Tetrabothrius affinis (Cestoda). This was the first record of a host carrying the latter two species in the South-West Atlantic Ocean.


Let F 1,…, F n be homogeneous polynomials of positive degrees in the polynomial algebra A[T] = A[T 0,…, T n ] graded by arbitrary positive integral weights for the indeterminates such that D: = A[T]/(F 1,…, F n ) is a complete intersection of relative dimension 1 over the commutative noetherian ring A. Then Proj D is an affine scheme over A and its algebra B: = Γ(Proj D) of global sections is finite and stably free. A formula for the discriminant d B|A = Discr(F 1,…, F n ) of B over A is given generalizing the well-known formula for the discriminant of an A-algebra of type A[X]/(G), where G is a monic polynomial in one variable. The formula is a special case of a result on discriminants for A-bilinear forms on B derived from linear forms B → A. The general formula uses the description of the linear forms on B with the help of a duality theory for D and the theory of resultants.


Measurements of the rate of dry deposition (direct reaction of gas molecules with the underlying surface) of SO/sub 2/ have been made both in the field and in the laboratory using two techniques. One technique involves the release of the radioactive tracer /sup 35/SO/sub 2/ above the surface to be studied. In the other the concentration gradient of the gas above the surface is measured. The gradient method is more convenient for field measurement since it does not result in Radioactive contamination, but it can be used only over extensive uniform surfaces and may not be sensitive enough to estimate small deposition velocities. Measurements of deposition velocities for SO/sub 2/ to grass, soil and water surfaces give mean values a little below 1 cm/s. Similar values can be found by considering the sulphur balance of the atmosphere over Great Britain or Western Europe. The significance of this removal rate in the global balance of sulphur in the atmosphere is discussed. The gradient method is also applicable to the study of dry deposition of ozone, nitrogen oxides and other trace gases. Measurements with ozone show that soil and vegetation remove the gas from the atmosphere at a rate similar to thatmore » for SO/sub 2/.« less


The invention relates to a power supply device for a transformer substation, which comprises two transformers (1,2) and two ATS switches (3,4), wherein ATS switches are connected with sections of alternating current buses (5,6) respectively; each section of the alternating current bus is connected with an alternating current feeder module, a charging module, an intelligent lighting feeder module and the like; and each charging module is connected with the same alternating current bus (7), and the alternating current buses are connected with two sets of the direct current feeder modules, two sets of inversion power modules, two sets of DC-DC modules and one set of accumulators (8) respectively. The power supply device has the advantages that: all the switches are intelligently modularized and integrated in a chassis; a switch programming control hardware platform is established and modules are integrated into the network through network communication technology, so the power switch for the transformer substation has the functions of activating preset programs and completing programmed operation besides the conventional manual control, remote control and protective control according to related information triggering conditions.


AbstractExperimental and archaeological examples of counterflaking damage are presented and discussed. It is argued that the non-random occurrence of this type of damage is indicative of different blade-making techniques. The pattern of counterflaking noted for archaeological prismatic blades is convincing evidence that pre-Columbian, Mesoamerican knappers held cores with their feet rather than with vises.


A settlement is the built environment that essentially has a close relationship as a place to live and carry out activities for a group of individuals. The Settlement of Kauman Yogyakarta is a unique and distinctive residential area with a long history of approximately 250 years. It is one of the settlements that have a soul that connects the past, present, and future. Through various cultural, political, power, and social events, from the periods of Dutch colonialism, Japanese colonialism, and the independence revolution to the government of the Republic of Indonesia, the Settlement of Kauman Yogyakarta has a special historical value in the life of the Indonesian people. There is continuity and change in the form of physical and non-physical settlements. Furthermore, from its early development to the present day, the Yogyakarta Kauman settlement has become a unique and distinctive form of settlement in the middle of the city of Yogyakarta. The type of this study was qualitative research, by describing the data, analyzing the phenomena, and presenting the results descriptively. the qualitative-descriptive analysis method aimed to describe the continuity and changes that occurred visually in the research object. Settlement structures as research objects that show continuity are represented in the orientation of the settlement area, settlement layout, building hierarchy, materials and interior layout. Based on the results of the analysis and findings in the field, the physical form of the Settlement of Kauman Yogyakarta is in a condition of continuity.


To the Editors

Weight gain is a well-known and unwanted adverse effect of antipsychotic medication in people with schizophrenia associated with numerous metabolic disorders. Interestingly, findings from several studies as early as the 1950s1,2 have shown weight gain to be associated with symptom improvement. This has brought forth the concept of the "metabolic threshold," which states that metabolic abnormalities have some role in the clinical efficacy of antipsychotics.3

A recent review examined 15 studies on the association between weight gain and clinical improvement.4 Although most studies reported an association, a key limitation identified was the absence of truly clinically significant improvement such as remission.5 Furthermore, 2 studies, which explored symptom dimensions individually, found the most significant associations with changes in general psychopathology, rather than key symptom constructs of schizophrenia, namely, positive and negative symptoms.6,7 Finally, publication bias was possible—14 of the 15 reviewed studies reported a positive association between weight gain and symptomatic improvement. In this study, we examined the relationship between clinically significant weight gain and symptomatic remission in individuals with first-episode schizophrenia. In line with evidence from previous research, we hypothesized that weight gain would be associated with remission.

Participants were recruited from a naturalistic study on first-episode psychosis conducted at the Institute of Mental Health, Singapore. Inclusion criteria were the following: a Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fourth Edition, diagnosis of schizophrenia, schizophreniform disorder, or schizoaffective disorder; experiencing their first psychotic episode; and, having less than 4 weeks of antipsychotic treatment prior to study entry. Height and weight were measured at recruitment and at a 3-month follow-up. Antipsychotic prescription information was obtained at 3 months and doses were converted into total daily chlorpromazine equivalents.8 Diagnosis was ascertained using the Structured Clinical Interview for Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fourth Edition, Text Revision, and psychopathology was rated on the Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS). Remission status was defined at 3 months using the proposed criteria by Andreasen et al.5 Clinically significant weight gain was defined as a 7% or more increase from baseline to 3 months. Descriptive statistics compared baseline and follow-up characteristics of remitters and nonremitters. Statistical analyses were performed using the χ2 test for categorical variables, the Student t test for normally distributed continuous variables, and the Mann-Whitney U test for nonnormally distributed continuous variables. The χ2 test was also used to calculate the odds ratio and confidence interval of weight gain compared with remission. The formula by Leucht et al9 was used to calculate the relative (percentage) change in PANSS from baseline to 3 months; this included the total score and the scores for positive symptom, negative symptom, and general pathophysiology subscales. Spearman ρ was used to examine correlation between change in PANSS scores and weight gain.

Thirty-one participants were included in this study; 21 (67.7%) achieved symptomatic remission at 3 months. There were no significant differences in demographics, baseline symptom severity, and treatment between nonremitters and remitters (Table (Table1).1). Weight gain was not significantly different between nonremitters and remitters (5.3% vs 8.9%, respectively; P = 0.291); furthermore, the presence of clinically significant weight gain was not significantly associated with remission (odds ratio, 2.12; confidence interval, 0.43–10.52). Weight gain was inversely correlated with change in general psychopathology subscale (r = −0.363, P = 0.044), and change in total PANSS score (r = −0.419, P = 0.019), but not with positive (r = −0.261, P = 0.157) and negative (r = 0.251, p = 0.197) subscales.

TABLE 1

Characteristics of Study Sample


"The article is devoted to such a little-known figure of Russian symbolism as Dmitrij Oleron-Glushkov (1884-1918) – a revolutionist, a poet and a translator. His interest to the "la poésie du Parnasse" to some extent continues the traditions established by V.Brusov and therefore should be considered in the context of the literary polemics of the Silver Age."


Research at a small campus of a university can be challenging with undergraduate science majors who have only completed one year of biology and chemistry and who leave the campus after their second year. There are time issues in regards to both the instructor and the student's schedule, and the knowledge of the student requires that the student works with a mentor instead of alone. The purpose of the research described in this article was to investigate, with an undergraduate, the structural and nonstructural properties of drugs through a study of the research literature. Examination of 31 drugs provided the initial structural characteristics to be investigated. Further literature research of 5000 drugs emphasized the importance of the nonstructural characteristics of drugs. This article describes the structural and nonstructural characteristics and explains their significance in drug research.


The invention relates to a bypass valve for a downstream a hydraulic aggregate cooler, comprising a valve housing (2) with connection openings (8, 12, 18) for connection with the hydraulic unit on the one hand and the cooler on the other hand, a valve disposed in the valve housing closure member (22) having a bypass includes, or in the closed position opens a the closure element (22) urging the valve spring (32), and thermosensitive means which temperature of the hydraulic fluid located at a below a predetermined threshold temperature (about 80 ° C) cause opening of the closure element (22). According to the invention it is provided that the heat-sensitive means by the valve spring (32) themselves are formed, which is formed for this purpose from a memory metal alloy with a lying at the threshold temperature transition point such that it is powerless below this threshold temperature and opening of the closure element (22) to allow, under the effect of hydraulic fluid pressure. In this way, different thermosensitive means, such as a temperature-controlled actuator omitted.


Chromosomal abnormalities such as aneuploidy have been shown to be responsible for causing spontaneous abortion. Genetic evaluation of abortions is currently underperformed. Screening for aneuploidy in the products of conception can help determine the etiology. We designed a high‐throughput ligation‐dependent probe amplification (HLPA) assay to examine aneuploidy of 24 chromosomes in miscarriage tissues and aimed to validate the performance of this technique.


For evaluation of the parameters of the theoretical forms of the gamma lines on the basis of its comparison with experimental data, the method of maximum probability was used. The comparison procedure rnade it possible with a minimum number of iterations to superpose automatically the theoretical form of the lines with the experimental and to determine the lifetimes of the corresponding levels. (tr-auth)


an analysis on the present situation and common mistakes in sports learning was prosecuted in this paper as an attempt to classify sports learning structure and build a psychological model for different learning steps in relation with theory of behavior association learning and cognitive learning.


Type specimens representing some of the binomina proposed by Dallas, Distant, Walker and Westwood for Pentatomini from the Americas were examined for generic placement. These names are listed and synonymy or generic misplacement noted where recognized. The following new combinations are proposed: Acrosternum grave (Walker) from Nezara; Acrosternum montivagum (Distant) from Chlorochroa; Acrosternum scutel latum (Distant) from Nezara; Acrosternum sparnium (Dallas) from Nezara; Banasa parvula (Dallas) from Thyanta; Chloropepla luteipennis (Westwood) from Loxa; Rio politulus (Distant) from Holcostethus; Tibilis fulvicornis (Walker) from Brachystethus; and Tibilis piceola (Walker) from Brachystethus. The following new synonymy was recognized: Acrosternum montivagum (Distant) Nezara majuscula Distant; Chloropepla vigens (Stal) = Dichelops pulchricornis (Walker); Euschistus integer Stal = Trichopepla dubia Distant; Mayrinia curvidens (Mayr) = Dichelops mutabilis (Walker); Mormidea cubrosa (Dallas) = Mormidea punctifer (Walker); Oebalus poecilus (Dallas) = Mormidea prominula Dallas; Pharypia generosa Stal = Arocera nigropicta (Walker); Placocoris viridus Mayr = Mentisa smaragdina Walker; Thyanta antiguensis (Westwood) = Crato urbicus Distant; Thyanta Stal = Crato Distant. The generic placement of Padeaus bovillus Distant is incorrect and that of Pellaea pan amensis (Distant) is suspect, but new combinations are not proposed for these species. A lectotype and paralectotype(s) are designated where synonymy involves syntypes. The types of most species described by Westwood, Dallas, Walker and Distant have been reexamined previously and the generic placement of the species has been changed as necessary to correct errors in assignment or to reflect refinement in classification. This has not been done recently, or at least the results have not been published, for many pentatomids from the Americas and consequently some applicable material has been missed in generic revisions. There follows a list of some of the names proposed by the above authors Acknowledgments: I am indebted beyond repayment to Dr. W. R. Dolling for his


Listening to children all of us want to, but few really succeed. The question is what listening skills do adults need in order to hear what the child wants and needs us to know? We should engage in a true twoway communication effort. In her research Kiili (1999) discovered that children feel that adults are not really interested in what children have to say. They are mainly interested in the subjects school, homework, bullying and health. Listening to the child, however, will not only mean knowledge for adults about the child, but also translating the knowledge of the child into words, so that the adult can provide the help necessary. The adult knows so much better where and how to get help, but the child knows what help it needs.


This paper discusses about effects of learning shape refinements in a proposed learning shape generation method for deep learning of sketched pictorial symbols. In the proposed method sketchy shapes similar to base shapes are generated from a small set of base shapes. Then the generated learning shapes are iteratively refined based on shape features. The shape features are learned using a deep learning method. In this paper the effects of the refinements are discussed in terms of shape classification accuracy and a statistical test. Human computer interfaces using diverse sketchy shapes, with free stroke-number and stroke-order, will be able to be constructed with machine learning of the generated shapes.


Coastal erosion in Thailand becomes more dangerous nowadays, especially in the Upper Gulf of Thailand, where is the mudflat. Some kinds of mitigation structures face the subsidence problem because of the lack of the strength capacity of the muddy ground. Therefore, not every type of protection structure can be constructed on this clay. Only the construction that transfers its weight directly and deeply into the ground can initiate in this muddy area. In Khun Samut China village located in Samut Prakan province, the villagers applied the piles with the partial wall on the water surface, as called "partial breakwater", to protect their land. This kind of structure is an appropriate alternative and has a higher potential for muddy coast protection. However, the effectiveness of the partial breakwater was studied only from the influence of the wave characteristics. The impact of the appearance of the structure is not yet proved. This study aims to investigate the relationship between the physical attributes of the breakwater and the transmission ability of waves through it. The experiment was conducted by varying the depth of the partial breakwater and measuring wave height before and after it hit the structure. After that, the transmission coefficient was calculated. Besides, the influence distance after the structure was considered. The results showed that the more structure depth is, the less wave transmission coefficient becomes. In conclusion, the inverse variation is the tread of the relationship between these two parameters. The results of the study will be usefully revealed to support the design of the mitigation structure for the erosion problem of muddy coast in the future


Abstract This research is to cross-cultural study in the socialization of local-wisdom for creative food package by 3 aims 1) Study and compare between Japanese and Thai culture in direction and process of the wisdom knowledge transferring. 2) To develop the local wisdom for creative food package transformative special program in the curriculum. 3) To explore the creativity in high school level students: grade 10 from 4 schools: 4 parts of Thailand sampling. The research has based on mixed methodology started with qualitative and following by quantitative method. And the one-group experimental process has been used.          The result has shown the contents of local Thai and Japan wisdom and the process of food packaging, which they were similarity and differentiation in both aspects: details and procedures. Details: The geographical data has shown the differentiation in ethnology and climate. Therefore Thai and Japanese, both are having their own culture and tradition which obviously dissimilar. There are perfectly formed cultures and preservation wisdoms especially for food packaging in each community. Besides, there are varieties of natural raw material for wrapping and containing. Procedures: Thai focus on the direction of dictations, stories and formulas while Japanese mostly focus on special inquiries, state situations by self-learnings. The researcher has synthesized the creative learning development of food packaging in world-class school's curriculum by the analysis of both countries. The solution of those synthesis become the multi-disciplinary program of 3 subjects: History, Professional Area & Technology and English. The program contain 24 hours and continuing-study in 4 days. The program has brought to the experimental stage of this research which were actioned in Grade 11 of 4 schools in 4 parts of Thailand. The evaluation from pre-posttests in students from 4 schools showed the upper level of wisdom knowledge and skills. The attitude test was positive. The performance test evaluation obviously showed the higher level in creativity from new food-package of each prototypes. Therefore, the creative learning development of local-wisdom food packaging synthesized by the Thai-Japanese Cross-Cultural Study can absolutely establish Thai student mindset of food packaging creativity in Thailand's World-Class Secondary School. Keywords : wisdom transformation, packaging, creativity


Turkey is a multi-ethnic and multi-denominational country with a republican tradition based on a constitution underlining the values of equality, freedom, and secularism. However, Turkey faces various problems such as the right to be different, and the lack of equal access to education. In this regard, Turkey has a very intricate history with regard to the culture of tolerance. The Ottoman millet system praised the act of tolerance during the heydays of the Ottoman Empire, while the nationalist rhetoric promoted a homogeneous nation based on Sunni-Muslim-Turkish elements.


. The sensitivity of tropical glaciers to paleoclimatic conditions that prevailed during the Antarctic cold reversal (ACR, ca. 14.5-12.9 ka) has been the subject of a wide debate. In 2014 a paper suggested that tropical glaciers responded very sensitively to the changing climate during the ACR (Jomelli et al. , 2014). In this study, we reexamine the conclusions from this study by recalculating previous chronologies based on 226 10 Be and 14 3 He ages respectively, and using the most up-to date production rates for these cosmogenic nuclides in the Tropical Andes. 53 moraines from 25 glaciers were selected from the previous analysis provided by Jomelli et al (2014) located in Colombia, Peru and Bolivia. We then focused on two distinct calculations. First we considered the oldest moraine and its uncertainty for every glacier representing the preserved evidence of the maximum glacier extents during the last deglaciation period, and binned the results into 5 distinct periods encompassing the Antarctic cold reversal and Younger Dryas (YD) chronozones: pre-ACR, ACR, ACR-YD, YD and post-YD respectively. Results revealed a predominance of pre-ACR and ACR ages, accounting for 60% of the glaciers. Second we counted the number of moraines per glacier according to the different groups. 21 moraines (40%) of the selected glaciers belong to the pre-ACR-ACR chronozones while 3 moraines only (5%) were dated to the YD and YD-Holocene groups. The rest was assigned mostly to the Holocene. These results suggest that moraine records are a very good proxy to document the ACR signal in the Tropical Andes. seleccionados corresponden con las cronozonas pre-ACR y ACR mientras que solo tres morrenas (5%) fueron datadas en los grupos YD y YD-Holoceno. El resto fue asignado principalmente al Holoceno. Estos resultados sugieren que las morrenas son un proxy muy bueno para analizar la señal de ACR en los Andes Tropicales.


This paper is concerned with experimental investigations carried out to study the ultimate load behaviour of I-beam to box-column connections stiffened externally. Eight specimens were tested to failure under monotonically increasing load. Different types of stiffener (i.e. external T-stiffeners and angle stiffeners and internal continuity plate stiffeners) were considered in the studies. The connections in all cases were made by butt welding. Ultimate loadcarrying capacity and load-deflection characteristics of these specimens obtained experimentally are compared with the corresponding results obtained by using a non- linear finite element model. Comparisons are also made between the results for different types of stiffener. Different modes of failure for these specimens were observed. T-stiffeners are found to be the most efficient form (A)


The pulse response of an optically excited vertical-cavity surface-emitting laser is optimized by shaping the pump pulse. The temporal phase and amplitude of the excitation are adjusted by a learning loop with live spectrotemporal monitoring of excitation and emission pulses using a streak camera. The genetic algorithm of the loop is inspired by the optimization occurring in evolution in biology. The pulse response is such decreased from 4.8to2ps. Emission intensity shows strong correlation with the pulse delay and also improves by 63%.


Abstract : During the twelve months ending October 31, 1965, there were 122 fatal general aviation accidents in the Western Region in which the Regional Flight Surgeon's office was notified and the wreckage was located within one week. Autopsies were obtained in 86 pilots and blood alcohol determinations were obtained on 83 of these. No accidents were found to be definitely due to medical conditions but a psychiatric problem is the probable cause of one. In addition, 25 wore corrective lenses and 20 had other recorded physical defects. Drugs were found on three but were not found to be a causal factor; possibly significant barbiturate levels were found in two accidents. Blood ethyl alcohol levels > 30 mg % were found in 17 (20.5%); five had levels greater than 250 mg %. The relationships of experience, occupation, local reputation and time of day to alcohol involvement are discussed. Carbon monoxide, agricultural chemicals, and fatigue are among other causes found for fatal accidents. The role of medical conditions, alcohol and posticides are discussed for the few non-fatal accidents that were medically investigated. The development of human factors accident investigation is briefly discussed. Increased aviation safety is possible with improved community and medical actions and increased medical participation in Unclassified Report. (Author)


The elasticity of minerals under high pressure-temperature conditions is crucial for constraining mantle composition. This perspective highlights recent advances in experimental and theoretical work in determining the elasticity of minerals to resolve the origin of low-velocity layers and the seismic anisotropy in the top lower mantle


Abstract Background Adenoma and Polyp Detection Rates (ADR and PDR) are advocated as general performance measures for screening and clinical colonoscopy, but their evidence is largely derived from screening data. This study compares PDRs in colonoscopy for screening versus clinical indications. Methods Consecutive patients at two Norwegian centers were examined by eight endoscopists either for colonoscopy screening in a randomized colonoscopy screening trial (Nordic-European Initiative on Colorectal Cancer, NordICC) or for clinical indications during the same time period (January 2013 to December 2014). PDR-5 mm, defined as the proportion of colonoscopies with detection of at least one polyp with diameter ≥ 5 mm, was measured prospectively. We fitted multivariable logistic regression models and calculated the adjusted odds ratios (OR) to evaluate factors for differences in PDR-5 mm between screening and clinical colonoscopies. Results The study included 2939 clinical and 771 screening colonoscopies. The PDR-5 mm was 26 % and 31 %, respectively (P = 0.005). Among sex, age, cecum intubation, bowel cleansing, and endoscopist, only the latter explained the higher PDR-5 mm in screening compared to routine colonoscopy. In the fully adjusted logistic regression model, the detection of polyps ≥ 5 mm was not associated with indication for colonoscopy. The OR for polyp detection in screening vs. routine colonoscopy was 1.04; 95 % confidence interval 0.85 – 1.27. Conclusion In this study, the differences in PDR-5 mm between clinical and screening colonoscopies could be explained by the endoscopist. Accordingly, PDR-5 mm benchmarks may be similar for clinical and screening colonoscopy.


While supplemental methionine (Met) is widely used within the swine industry, data are limited regarding the effect of Met sources on carcass cutability and meat quality. The objective was to determine the effects of DL-methionine (DLM, 99%), L-methionine (LM, 99%), or calcium salt of DL-methionine hydroxyanalogue (MHA-Ca, 84%) in finishing pig diets on carcass characteristics and meat quality. Pigs (n = 240) were allocated to 60 single-sex pens. For the final 7 wk of the finisher phase, pigs (BW= 79.9 ± 0.80 kg) were fed diets containing DLM, LM, or MHA-Ca, with the supplemental methionine source providing 25% of the sulfur amino acid requirement. One pig per pen was slaughtered, and left sides of carcasses were fabricated into subprimal cuts to determine carcass-cutting yields. Loin quality including proximate composition and shear force was measured. Data were analyzed using the MIXED procedure of SAS. Hot carcass weight was not different (P= 0.34) between treatments (DLM 103.0 kg; LM 104.5 kg; MHA-Ca 101.5kg), moreover loin eye area was not different (P= 0.98) between treatments (DLM 52.49 cm²; LM 52.65 cm²; MHA-Ca 52.81 cm²). Boneless carcass cutting yield was not different (P = 0.56) between treatments (DLM 54.82 kg; LM 54.97 kg; MHA-Ca 54.52 kg). Loin pH was not different (P = 0.24) between treatments (DLM 5.48; LM 5.45; MHA-Ca 5.45). However, drip loss tended to be reduced (P = 0.11) by the DLM treatment (5.58%) compared with LM (7.03%) and MHA-Ca (6.68%) treatments. Shear force was not different (P = 0.85) between treatments (DLM 3.06 kg; LM 3.03 kg; MHA-Ca 3.10 kg). However, cook loss tended to be reduced (P = 0.06) by the DLM treatment (16.20%) compared with LM (18.18%) and MHA-Ca (18.50%) treatments. These data suggest that only minimal differences in carcass cutability and meat quality can be attributed to methionine sources in finishing pig diets.


Steering is the collection of components, linkages etc which allow a vessel (ship, boat) or vehicle (car, motorcycle, and bicycle) to follow the desired course. The basic aim of steering is to ensure that the wheels are pointing in the desired directions. This is generally achieved by a series of linkages, rods, pivots and gears. Many modern cars use rack and pinion steering mechanism, where the steering wheel turns the pinion gear; the pinion moves the rack, which is linear gear that meshes with the pinion, converting circular motion into linear motion along the transverse axis of the car. With the optional Active Steering mode, Steering wheel will offer proactive assistance on every bend and will react flexibly to the current driving situation. At low speeds, such as in the town or when parking, steering becomes more direct. Turning the steering wheel ever so slightly is enough to carry out the tightest maneuvers and park more easily. At high speeds, the required angle increases and the steering becomes more indirect. Now you can control the wheels more precisely with more turns of the steering wheel, and driving stability improves noticeably. The result is improved road holding and a confident steering sensation even at high speeds.


Background: Several studies have shown that species of the genus Hyptis, have promising antimicrobial and antifungal effects. Objectives: Identify of chemical constituents of essential oil from leaves of Hyptis martiusii and evaluate its effect against bacterial strains by direct and gaseous contact. Materials and Methods: Essential oil was extracted from leaves of Hyptis martiusii Benth using hydro-distillation, and its composition was determined using gas chromatography–mass spectrometry (GC-MS). Chemical analysis showed that there was a predominance of sesquiterpenes. The leaf essential oil was screened for its minimal inhibitory concentration and modulatory effect of aminoglycoside by the direct (MIC) and gaseous (MID) micro-dilution assays for various pathogenic microorganisms. The essential oil remarkably inhibited the growth of all of the tested bacteria (MIC < 512 μg/mL) except S. aureus (SA358) multidrug resistant (MRSA) by direct contact. Results: Twenty-four compounds representing 92.13% of the essential oil of leaves were characterized; δ -3-carene (6.88%), 1, 8-cineole (7.01%), trans-caryophyllene (9.21%), Cariophyllene oxide (7.47%) and bicyclogermacrene (10.61%) were found as the major components. Modulatory aminoglycoside effect, by direct contact, was showed antagonistic relationship with antimicrobial activity. The gaseous component of the oil inhibited the bacterial growth of all of the tested bacteria in 50% and 25% of oil concentration and demonstrated synergistic interactions can be attributed to the constituting the oil compounds. Conclusions: These results show that this oil influences the activity of the antibiotic and may be used as an adjuvant in the antibiotic therapy of respiratory tract bacterial pathogens.


r. We find all polynomials f, g, h over a field K such that g and h are linear and f(g(x)) = h(f(x)). We also solve the same problem for rational functions f, g, h, in case the field K is algebraically closed.


4 , based on the average velocity and lobe wavelength). The freestream turbulence level on the high velocity stream was augmented from 0.6% to 9.5% using a passive grid while the low velocity stream turbulence level remained constant at 1.5%. In addition to the experimental measurements a computational study was performed with the same inlet conditions for the two contrasting turbulence cases. The primary effect of adding a turbulence-generating grid to the high velocity stream of the mixer was that the upstream boundary layer remained attached in the diffusing portion of the mixer lobe geometry to a greater extent than for the low turbulence case. This was due to two factors: decreased boundary layer thickness with the addition of the grid and increased boundary layer mixing with the heightened freestream turbulence. The result was a larger difference in velocities at the interface of the two flows, a feature conducive to more rapid mixing of the two streams. The shear layer in the low velocity lobe of the mixer did not show a significant effect of the elevated freestream turbulence in the region where measurements were taken. The companion computational study, using a steady Reynolds Averaged Navier Stokes solver with an RNG k-e turbulence model, achieved a high degree of similarity with the experimental results. Other turbulence models did not fare as well in this study. The implication is that the proper use of current computational methods can predict the effect of elevated freestream turbulence on lobed mixer performance reasonably well.


In the third and final feature in our series where practitioners describe their own experience in introducing myopia control techniques into practice, Craig McArthur focuses on communication


Plasmas in which there is a threshold for a dominant reaction to take place (such as recombination or attachment) will have particle distributions that evolve as the reaction progresses. The form of the Boltzmann collision term in such a context will cause the distribution to drift from its initial form, and so cause for example temperature fluctuations in the plasma if the distribution is originally Maxwellian. This behaviour will impact on the relevant reaction rates in a feedback loop that is missing from simple chemical kinetic descriptions since the plasma cannot be considered to be isothermal, as is the case in the latter approach. In this article we present a simple kinetic model that captures these essential features, showing how cumulative differences in the instantaneous species levels can arise over the purely chemical kinetic description, with implications for process yields and efficiencies.


Neurological rehabilitation can improve function, reduce symptoms, and improve the well-being of the patient suffering from diseases, injury, or disorders of the nervous system. A variety of techniques or methods are used for neurological rehabilitation, from physical and speech therapies to advanced robotbased treatments. Applied psychophysiology offers an alternative for patients to improve their neurological deficits; neuro and biofeedback can be applied in the clinical settings to facilitate cognitive and motor functions, or to be used as adjunct intervention for symptoms and conditions associated to neuropathology such as seizures, depression, or autonomic dysfunction.


Ruth Milkman's four decades of scholarship stands as an important exception to rising pessimism in the social sciences, as evidenced throughout her new collection of writings, On Gender, Labor, and Inequality, despite the clear moral commitment she brings to her scholarship, and the obvious inequities that remain between men and women in the workplace. As a result, readers are treated to a story of halting progress for women in the workforce, a march punctuated by setbacks, false starts, and abandonment by purported allies. But the broad story throughout these chapters is one of advancement. It is a fascinating and timely set of articles.Jake Rosenfeld reviews On Gender, Labor, and Inequality by Ruth Milkman.


The general program and the main topics of 29th International Geographical Congress (IGC) are introduced in this article. From various topics of the Congress, the author generalizes key development trends in the international geographical community today. These may be of elicitation and useful for reference to Chinese geographers.


The psychometric credit-scoring technology takes variables from the test and its meta-data. The scoring model is calibrated against a base model from the region, trained on data from similar countries. The model is then trained over time on local borrower data as the product is rolled out, to improve its predictive power further.


The red seaweed G. vermiculophylla is rich in polyunsaturated fatty acids with 20 carbon atoms, mainly arachidonic acid (AA) and eicosapentaenoic acid, which are precursors of prostaglandins (PGs). The present study aimed to elucidate the capability of the seaweed in releasing PGs using acetone powder as the crude enzyme. Crude enzyme was prepared using cold acetone. The crude enzyme was incubated with AA at different concentrations (0.1– 4 mg). For determination of PG contents, 5 µL of sample as the test solution corresponding to 0.2 g wet mass of the seaweed was injected into the HPLC. For mass spectrometer analysis, an HPLC system connected with mass spectrometer was used. Results of the study showed that t he released PGs from incubation of acetone powder and AA analyzed by HPLC consisted of PGE 2 , 15-keto-PGE 2 , 15-hydroperoxy-PGE 2 , PGA 2 , and AA while PGs detected by LC-MS were PGF 2α , PGE 2 , 15-keto-PGE 2 , 15-hydroperoxy-PGE 2 , and PGA 2 . The capability of the red algae in producing PGs was affected by available oxygen, aspirin, a cyclooxygenase inhibitor, and AA concentration. The crude enzyme of the red alga (250 mg) was capable to produce 1.63 µg and 1.32 µg of PG 2 and 15-keto-PGE 2 from incubation with 0.25 mg of AA. This method could be the one way to provide PGs in vitro to fulfill demands of PGs in the pharmaceutical industry.