Corn is the first-ranged arable crop in Croatia and it occupies near one third of total arable land (near 0.5 mill. ha). By soil management practice including adequate fertilization and by growing more tolerant hybrids to less favourable soils are possible to increase corn yields. Planosol is generally the most spread soil in Croatia. It is a soil of low natural fertility characterizing adverse physical and chemical properties. Cambisol is more suitable for intensive corn growing and it prevailing in the eastern part of country.
Ten corn hybrids were grown on two soils of different chemical properties (planosol: pH in 1n KCl = 4.27; humus = 1.82%; AL-method = 10.3 mg P2O5 and 20.1 mg K2O/100 g of soil; eutric cambisol: pH in 1n KCl = 6.50; humus = 4.09%; AL-method = 27.9 mg P2O5 and 22.2 mg K2O/100 g of soil). The field experiments were conducted in spring 1993 by split-plot method in four replicates. Fertilization was designated as the factor A (experimental plot 352 m2) with treatments as a follows: a1) control (180 kg N + 100 kg P2O5 + 125 kg K2O/ha) and a2) control + additional fertilization before sowing with 800 kg/ha NPK 8:26:26 (incorporation in soil until 15 cm of depth by soil tillage treatments). Corn hybrids were designated as a factor B (experimental plot 7.7m2). Corn was sown manually (3 seed with 50 cm spacing) in term of 27 April 1993. At early growth (3-4 leaves stage) was reduced number of plants by plucking (two plants in 50 cm spacing = 57 144 plants/ha). Corn grain yields were calculated on 14% moisture and 90% of theoretical plant density basis.
Ear-leaf was taken for chemical analysis at beginning of the silking stage (in middle July). Mean sample contained about 25 leaves. Plant samples were digested by dry-ashing procedure for P and K determination, while N was determined by Kjeldahl procedure.
Soil properties have been considerable factors of corn yield. For example, mean yield on planosol was 6.74 t/ha and it is for 21% lower in comparison wit yield on cambisol (8.52** t/ha). As affected by additional fertilization grain yield increased only on planosol (control 6.47 t/ha; additional fertilization 7.01** t/ha). Grain yields of individual corn hybrids were from 6.57 t/ha to 10.12 t/ha. Three hybrids (OsSK644, OsSK552 and Bc6661) yielded over 9 t/ha (mean 9.76 t/ha), two hybrids yielded less than 8 t/ha (OsSK262 and OsSK218: mean 7.15 t/ha), while yields of remaining five hybrids (OsSK377, OsSK382, OsSK456, OsSK502 and OsSK553) were from 8.04 and 8.60 t/ha (mean 8.33 t/ha).
Ear-leaf N and K status at silking stage were in close connection with soil properties (3.05 and 3.24**%N, 2.05 and 1.55** %K, for planosol and cambisol, respectively), while ear-leaf P status were similar (0.29 and 0.31% P, respectively).
In general, there were found very significant differences among corn hybrids in ear-leaf nutritional status as follows: from 3.08 to 3.38% N, from 0.276 to 0.321% P and from 1.58 to 2.00% K. In general low connection was found between yields and N, P and K status of corn probably due to adequate supplies with these nutrients.


Carbon dioxide is a greenhouse gas with a major impact on global climate change. One of the options for reducing CO2 emissions is post combustion CO2 capture from power plant flue gases. The main challenge for this process is the reduction of energy requirement for solvent regeneration. In order to reduce the costs of the absorption/desorption process, new tailored solvents for that process are needed. LTD operates a gas- fired pilot plant (column diameters 0.125 m, absorber packing height 4.25 m, flue gas flow 30-100 kg/h, CO2 partial pressure 35-110 mbar) in which such new solvents were studied in the frame of the EU project CESAR. To obtain a baseline for testing the new solvents, first systematic studies were carried out with MEA in that plant with two different structured packings: Sulzer Mellapak 250.Y and BX 500. The most important process parameters CO2 removal rate ΨCO2, fluid dynamic load and solvent flow rate were systematically varied. Besides MEA, two new solvents were studied in the pilot plant. It is shown that a direct comparison of results for different solvents obtained in such pilot plant experiments is not trivial. The comparison of only a few operating points for the new solvents with seemingly corresponding results for MEA can lead to wrong conclusions, since for each solvent an optimisation of the operating conditions is necessary. Only systematical studies allow a meaningful comparison. The technique that was used in the present work for this purpose was measuring data sets at constant CO2 removal rate of 90% (by adjustment of the regeneration energy in the desorber) and systematically varying the solvent flow rate. A minimal energy requirement for the given removal rate is found from these studies. Only the optima for different solvents should be compared. By this procedure, solvents were identified that show a clear improvement in regeneration energy requirement when compared to MEA.


The search for the underlying mechanism through which insulin regulates glucose uptake into peripheral tissues has unveiled a highly intricate network of molecules that function in concert to elicit the redistribution or 'translocation' of the glucose transporter isoform GLUT4 from intracellular membranes to the cell surface. Following recent technological advances within this field, this review aims to bring together the key molecular players that are thought to be involved in GLUT4 translocation and will attempt to address the spatial relationship between the signalling and trafficking components of this event. We will also explore the degree to which components of the insulin signalling and GLUT4 trafficking machinery may serve as potential targets for the development of orally available insulin mimics for the treatment of diabetes mellitus.


Lake Kuri]skoe (77.05 km2, maximum depth 316m; 104m above sea level) is an oligetrophic caldera Iake on the southern Kamchatka Peninsula, Russian Far East. The littoral zone js devoid of macrovegetation. During a hydrobiological study in 1994-1998, 43 taxa of oligochaetes were found, 26 of them identified to the species level. The littoral zone was inhabited mostly by the Enchytraeidae, Lumbricillus pagenstecheri (Ratzel, 1869), L, arenarius (Michaelsen, 1889>, Mesenchytraeus huril Healy and Timm, 2eOO, imrionina charlottensts Coates, 1980, and M klaskisharum Coates, 1983. Propappus ar}tynchetus Sokolskaya, 1972 and Hdplotaxis gordioides (Hartmann, 1821) were also sometimes abundant. Naidinae included a large form of IVctis com-


Silent thyroiditis is a transient form of hyperthyroidism characterized by a painless, nontender thyroid gland, elevated blood levels of thyroxine (T4) and triiodothyronine (T3), a low radioactive technesium uptake, and spontaneously resolving hyperthyroidism.We report a case of silent thyroiditis after head and neck surgery. Total laryngectomy and right hemithyroidectomy was performed on a 67-year old man with a diagnosis of recurrent laryngeal carcinoma. After this surgery, the patient had symptoms of thyrotoxicosis: hypertension, hyperglycemia, palpitation, tremor and weight loss. Silent thyroiditis was diagnosed on the basis of both the clinical course and the laboratory data: low uptake of radioactive technesium, and elevated blood levels of T3 and T4. We treated him with β-blocker and insulin. The symptoms disappeared within one month after the operation. This case suggests that silent thyroiditis can be a post-operative complication of head and neck surgery.


The authors investigate the adaptive and destructive reactions of tree plants in response to oil pollution of the environment. The article states the decrease of vitality of the investigated plants according to a suite of metrics on cellular, organ, organism and population levels of the biosystem organization. Vegetative organs size reduction, asymmetry and necrotic damage of leaf blades, reduction of water saturation and increase of ash-content of dry material of tree leaves are revealed. The authors highlight the deterioration of the buffer system of the leaves protoplast as the cells that are the most sensitive to changes in the internal and external environment of plants organs.
Premature defoliation and colour change of tree crowns are the signs of organism aging which is the consequence of contamination, free radical processes. Based on the set of vitality parameters the tree species are placed in the row in accordance with the decrease of their stability: walnut → common sea buckthorn→ drooping birch → big-leaf linden → Norway maple→ little-leaved linden → ordinary horse chestnut.
The Norway maple, big-leaf linden, little-leaved linden, ordinary horse chestnut should be used in the phytoindicative studies of technologically transformed ecosystems. In the oil-polluted environment the destructive processes in the organisms of these species dominate over the adaptive ones. It is proved by the presence of pests and tree plants diseases caused by them. The protective mechanisms of the above mentioned plants, depleted in long-term stresses are unable to counter parasites, therefore the species cannot perform an environment-cultivative function effectively.
Walnut, drooping birch, common sea buckthorn are well adapted to stressful conditions of growth and are recommended for the amenity planting at the oil-contaminated areas in order to reclaim them. These tree species have such adaptive features as relative stability of the buffer system of assimilation organs cells, low level of necrosis, protection against metals and other pollutants.


The amount of foreign bodies that gains access to the Gastrointestinal Tract (GIT) on yearly basis is in millions. These are done by the two main routes to the tract, i. e the mouth and the anus. Ingestion of foreign bodies may be harmless but sometimes death in the region of 1000 – 3000 yearly may also happen. The vast majority of ingested foreign bodies into the GIT pass through the tract without significant incidence. Affected individuals may be going about with their normal daily activities without any form of bodily interruption. Up to 20 % of cases however will need some form of therapeutic intervention. 80 % of cases of ingestion of foreign bodies into the GIT have been shown to occur in children. Anal insertion of foreign bodies into the GIT on the other hand occurs most often in the adult age group. Foreign bodies in the GIT may also be seen in the psychiatric patients, inmates, chronic alcoholics, drug abusers, the elderly patients with poor fitting dentures as well as the mentally retarded individuals. While ingestion of foreign bodies into the GIT may be accidental (especially in children), or experimental (anal insertion by adults), it may be purely intentional as in smugglers of illicit drugs, jewels and other valuables so as to evade detection by the security.


Iraq is suffering from water scarcity, and future predictions indicate that it could get worse due to changing climate. Arguably, climate change is one of the greatest challenges onfronting this re ...


Nonthermal plasma technologies offer an innovative approach to the problem of decomposing various volatile organic compounds (VOCs). We focussed on dc capillary tube discharge plasma reactors to study the decomposition/destruction efficiency for toluene, EGM, trichloroethane, and trichloroethylene at 50 to 2300 ppm level in dry air. The effects of gas flow rate, VOC concentration, and reactor operating conditions on the decomposition and analysis of reactant conversion for each VOC were investigated. The results show that VOC destruction efficiency is as high as 90% even under a short residence time (3.8 ms) with a destruction energy efficiency of up to 9.5 g (VOC)/kWh. Laboratory-scale plasma technology was successfully demonstrated towards the application of VOC control in the semiconductor clean room environments.


This paper discusses the conception and feature of physics ideas and points out the importance in physics teaching. A few views on how to cultivate modern college students' physics ideas are then proposed.


Nagybecskerek was the capital of Torontal county. In the view of population Nagybecskerek – in 1910 – was the second city after Nagykikinda in Torontal county. The data on the population of Nagybecskerek in the past are hidden in the documents of various contents, because censuses were not. The first census was conducted soon after withdrawal of the Turks, in 1717. Before and under the rule of Ottoman Turks the Serbian population immigrated here. After the Turks withdrew, in the 18th century, the Spanish, German and Hungarian population settled in. In the 19th century the most important ethnical groups were the Hungarians, the Serbs and the Germans. The second part of the 19th century brought the town new developing benefits. New industrial firms and handicraft stores were opened in every part of the town. Late 19th and early 20th century was progressive period for Nagybecskerek.


There was an increase in conducting customer satisfaction surveys by many service industries (Danaher and Haddrell, 1996). Increased research into customer satisfaction has been influenced dramatically by the variety of measurement scales used in customer satisfaction instruments tests (Devlin et al., 1993). Customer satisfaction is defined generally as the feelings or judgments of the customer towards products or services after they have been used (Jamal and Naser, 2003). Customer satisfaction in service industries has been approached differently by equity theory, attribution theory, the confirmation and disconfirmation paradigm, and satisfaction as


tersebut. Dari hasil analisa proses bisnis maka dalam penelitian ini akan menganalisa dan membuat perencanaan teknologi. Hasil dari penelitian ini akan memberikan analisa kebutuhan sistem yang diperlukan saat ini, serta penggambaran analisa sistem sesuai dengan prioritas kebutuhan pada proses bisnis saat Bisnis Abstract The library is one of the most important units in a given field of a college education. The establishment of colleges have rules which should have a library. The library at STMIK STIKOM Bali has been utilizing some technology in the existing business processes. The problems that exist today where perpustakana does not yet have a website's information systems are used to provide information about books and scientific works as well as the activities of the existing diperpustakaan. The process happens in activity in the library with a process manual still, problems often occur in terms of perekapan data and book search. See some of these problems then this research needs to be done for a library development strategy planning method using EA. in previous studies has been outlining business analysis that occurs in the process the existing library in STIKOM Bali. With the problems of the current situation where there are multiple business processes that are not yet using the system in the registration process or decision makers that there diperpustaakn. From the results of the analysis of business processes in the study will analyze and make planning technology. The results of this research will provide the necessary system needs analysis currently, as well as the depiction analysis system in accordance with the priority needs of today's business processes


(1) 1. General Comments This manuscript outlines an attempt to attribute the rise in ground surface temperature in Bangkok as a result of both global climate change and urbanization. This is potentially a valuable contribution to the climate science community because it suggests that it may be possible to gain information on past climates from urban environments, which have traditionally been avoided in subsurface heat flow studies. However, there are several questions that should be answered to establish that the coupling between ground surface temperatures and surface air temperatures in the


Adrienne LeBas. From Protest to Parties: Party-Building and Democratization in Africa. New York: Oxford University Press, 2011. xiv + 300 pp. Figures. Tables. Acknowledgments. Bibliography. Index. $99.00. Cloth.In the 1990s Africa adopted multiparty democracy. Yet even a casual observation would show that in some countries opposition parties are strong while in others they are weak and fragmented, even countries that exhibit similar institutions and electoral rules. In From Protest to Parties Adrienne LeBas attempts to unravel this puzzle by means of a comparative study of Kenya, Zimbabwe, and Zambia.LeBas notes that in Zimbabwe and Zambia the main opposition parties are relatively strong, while in Kenya the opposition is fragmented. In explaining this state of affairs, she considers ethnicity and authoritarianism as central variables. This way of visualizing democracy and party politics in Africa is indeed not new. (See, for example, Sebastian Elischer's "Do African Parties Contribute to Democracy? Some Findings from Kenya, Ghana and Nigeria" [Afrika Spectrum 43 (2) :175-201 (2008)]. Tackling the puzzle, LeBas presents two main arguments. First, she maintains that where authoritarian states relied on alliances with corporate actors, particularly organized labor, as was the case in Zambia and Zimbabwe, they unintentionally armed their opponents with structures and resources that could later be used to mobilize large constituencies and exert an effective challenge to the state. "In countries like Zimbabwe and Zambia," LeBas states, . . opposition parties were able to draw upon cross-ethnic mobilising structures provided by labour. In contrast, in countries like Kenya, authoritarian states relied on patronage and networks of ethnic brokerage in order to rule ... and opposition parties were prone to fragmentation along ethnic lines" (246). While this reasoning is in may ways convincing, it fails to account for a situation in which ethnicity-based conflict is almost absent but opposition parties are weak. In Tanzania, for example, about 120 tribes exist, but ethnicity has not been a divisive force, partly owing to a successful national-building project championed by the late Mwalimu Julius Kambarage Nyerere. And yet opposition parties in Tanzania are still relatively weak.LeBas's second argument is that opposition parties are more successful when they pursue strategies intended to intensify political polarization- that is, strategies that distance those parties from the incumbents. LeBas finds this strategy paradoxical since it sometimes leads to violence. This is partly true. In Zanzibar, for example, the main opposition party, the Civic United Front (CUF), applied such a strategy against the ruling party Chama Cha Mapinduzi. The result has been twofold: the CUF has been strong, but at the same time the country has remained politically unstable. …


Deviations of market exit legislation value choice in China's private schools are characterized by emphasizing slowness rather than speed,claiming it should be sketchy rather than detailed,emphasizing public law but underestimating private law,emphasizing substance but under-estimating procedure.In order to correct these deviations,it is necessary to emphasize the timeliness,enhance the operability,strengthen private-law attribute,and improve the procedure character of private schools market exit legislation.


AbstractNatural wetlands contribute a significant proportion of the total source of methane (CH4) to the troposphere. Latitudinal differences in the global CH4 flux exist principally because of the...


This paper extends methods for nonlinear regression analysis that have developed for the analysis of clustered data. Its novelty lies in its dual incorporation of random cluster effects and structural error in the measurement of the explanatory variables. Moments up to second order are assumed to have been specified for the latter to enable a generalized estimating equations approach to be used for fitting and testing nonlinear models linking response to these explanatory variables and random effects. Taylor expansion methods are used, and a difficulty with earlier approaches overcome. Finally we describe an application of this methodology to indicate how it can be used. That application concerns the degree of association of hospital admissions for acute respiratory health problems and air pollution.


The situation here addressed is modelled as a bi-level programming problem with multiple objectives in the upper level and a single objective in the lower level.
In this problem, a company (hereafter the leader) distribute a commodity over a selected subset of customers; while a manufacturer (hereafter the follower) will fabricate the commodities demanded by the selected customers. The leader has two objectives: the maximization of the profit gained by the distribution process and the minimization of CO2 emissions. The latter is important due to the regulations imposed by the government. It is clear that exists a compromise between both objectives, since the maximization of profit will attempt to include as much customers for being served as possible. Then, largest routes will be needed causing more CO2 emissions.
For analyzing the problem, the single-commodity case is studied first. Under this assumption, the problem can be reduced into a single-level one. Hence, a tabu search algorithm for solving the aforementioned case is proposed. The tabu search is designed for solving two single-level simplifications of the problem: a monoobjective problem and the bi-objective one. After that, the multi-commodity bi-level case is studied and the respective adaptation of the tabu search is made. Then, a co-evolutionary algorithm is designed for obtaining good quality bi-level feasible solutions.
The co-evolutionary approach is related with having two separated populations, one for each leader's objective. Then, the solutions will evolve in each population and an interchange of information is made through the process. In other words, a swap between the best solutions from both populations in each generation is conducted. By doing this, the algorithm intends to find efficient solutions. The evolution performed in each population is done through a Biased Random Keys Genetic Algorithm( BRKGA).
Furthermore, a path relinking algorithm is adapted in order to find the Pareto frontier for the bi-level bi-objective multi-commodity problem, in which the no dominated solutions of the tabu search and the co-evolutionary algorithms are used to initialize this procedure. Numerical experimentation showed the efficiency of the proposed methods for finding good quality solutions (for the mono-objective case) and for reaching a good approximation of the Pareto front (for the bi-objective cases) in reasonable computational time.


This plenary will introduce a class of control problems where the feedback loop is closed over unreliable communication links. The motivation for such problems comes from growing industrial applications that demand remote control of objects over Internet-type or wireless networks where links are prone to failure. Depending on the availability of acknowledgment (ACK) signals, two different types of networking protocols can be considered in these problems: TCP (Transmission Control Protocol) and UDP(User Datagram Protocol). Under the TCP structure, ACK signals are transmitted, whereas in the UDP structure no ACK packets are present. One objective in these control problems is to mean-square stabilize the system while minimizing a performance criterion, when the information flow between the controller and the plant is disrupted due to link failures or packet losses. The talk will present necessary and sufficient conditions for mean-square stabilizability of LTI (linear time-invariant) systems in such configurations, as well as sufficient conditions for the existence of stabilizing optimal controllers. It will also elaborate on a characterization of such controllers. Finally, extensions to other types of network-control problems will be discussed, such as the class of problems where there are restrictions on the frequency of usage of communication links.


Objective:To evaluate the effects of Lizhuwei Sanlian combined lansoprazole on Helicobacter pylori(Hp) associated peptic ulcer in patients.Method:61 patients with Hp associated peptic ulcer were randomly divided into Lizhuwei Sanlian combined lansoprazole group(group A) and lansoprazole group(group B).Group A: colloidal bismuth subcitrate 110mg four times a day plus tinidazole 500mg twice a day,clotrimazde 250mg twice a day and lansoprazole 30mg once a day for one week;Group B: lansoprazole 30mg once a day and amoxicillin 500mg three times a day plus metronidazole 200mg three times a day for two weeks;followed by lansoprazole for forth week.The eradication of Hp and healing of ulcer were assessed by 14C breath test and electronic endoscopy 4 weeks after discontinuation of medicines.Results:Hp eradication rate(96.7%) in group A were significantly higher than those in group B(83.9%)(P0.05).Ulcer healing rate(90.0%) and the total effective rate(96.7%) in group A were slightly higher than those in group B(83.9%;90.3%),and bellyache and symptoms were more relieved in group A than those in group B,but which was not statistically significant(P0.05).There were no obvious adverse effects in group A and group B.Conclusion:Lizhuwei Sanlian combined lansoprazole can effectively eradicate Hp,treat ulcer and relieve symptoms in peptic ulcer patients with no obvious adverse effects.


Content based image retrieval (CBIR) models become popular for retrieving images connected to the query image (QI) from massive dataset. Feature extraction process in CBIR plays a vital role as it affects the system's performance. This paper is focused on the design of deep learning (DL) model for feature extraction based CBIR model. The presented model utilizes a ResNet50 with co-occurrence matrix (RCM) model for CBIR. Here, the ResNet50 model is applied for feature extraction of the QI. Then, the extracted features are placed in the feature repository as a feature vector. The RCM model computes the feature vector for every input image and compares it with the features present in the repository. Then, the images with maximum resemblance will be retrieved from the dataset. In addition, the resemblance between the feature vectors is determined by the use of co-occurrence matrix subtraction process. Besides, structural similarity (SSIM) measure is applied for the validation of the similarity among the images. A comprehensive results analysis takes place by the use of Corel 10K dataset. The experimental outcome indicated the superiority of the RCM model with respect to precision, recall and SSIM.


Let R be a ring, Z its center, U a nonzero left ideal, and D:R → R a derivation. We show that if R is semiprime with suitably-restricted additive torsion, then R must contain nonzero central ideals if one of the following holds: (i) [x, [x, D(x)]] ∊ Z for all x ∊ U; (ii) for a fixed positive integer n, [xn, D(x)] ∊ Z for all x ∊ U


This research aims to delve into the mediating role of IT capabilities in the relationship between artificial intelligence and competitive advantage during the COVID-19 pandemic. The study was conducted on a sample of 224 individuals from e-commerce enterprises in Jordan. Smart PLS3 was employed to examine the information gathered to inform the research goal. The result of this study confirmed that the adoption of IT capabilities plays a mediator role between artificial intelligence and competitive advantage. The results of the study have implications for decision-makers as well as the current literature. Companies that adopted IT capabilities and artificial intelligence grasp the benefits of successfully overcoming the COVID-19 Pandemic challenges.


Physiological hand tremor has a clear peak between 6 and 12 Hz, which has been attributed to both neural and resonant causes. A reduction in tremor frequency produced by adding an inertial mass to the limb has usually been taken as a method to identify the resonant component. However, adding mass to a limb also inevitably increases the muscular force required to maintain the limb's position against gravity, so ambiguous results have been reported. Here we measure hand tremor at different levels of gravitational field strength using a human centrifuge, thereby increasing the required muscular force to preserve limb position without changing the limb's inertia. By comparing the effect of added mass (inertia + force) versus solely added force upon hand acceleration, we conclude that tremor frequency can be almost completely explained by a resonant mechanical system.


metallocene catalyst and a methylaluminoxane cocatalyst system. The materials were characterized using nuclear magnetic spectroscopy and fourier transform infrared spectroscopy.To identify suitable reaction conditions for terpolymerization, we studied the effects of catalyst content, cocatalyst/catalyst molar ratio, polymerization time, and polymerization temperature. As the catalyst content increased, the catalytic activity and the molecular weight of the terpolymers increased. The catalytic activity sharply increased but little change was observed after a polymerization time of 30 min. The increase in the cocatalyst/catalyst molar ratio resulted in a decrease in the molecular weight of the terpolymers and an increase in the catalytic activity to some degree. The catalytic activity increased with increasing polymerization temperature, while the molecular weight of the terpolymers decreased.요 약:rac-Et(Ind)


This paper describes wearable interfaces for augmenting human memory, i.e., providing users with functions for archiving, transporting, exchanging, and retrieving their experiences by employing real world objects as memory storage, in everyday life. A user conceptually encloses his/her experiences gathered through his/her sense organs into real world objects by simply touching the objects. He/she can also disclose and experience for himself/herself the augmented memories stored in an object by the same operation. This paper presents the following two wearable modules/interfaces for augmenting human memory: the "Ubiquitous Memories" and the "I'm Here!" The Ubiquitous Memories provides users with the functions for associating augmented memories with real world objects. The "I'm Here!" retrieves the last recorded augmented memory which contains the target object indicated by the user by automatically and continuously detecting objects held by the user. We believe that the above modules can be integrated into a memory albuming system.


It has been recognized that the socalled hemophilic bacilli, of which the Pfeiffer bacillus is a type, require the presence of two substances to permit growth in a nutrient medium. These have been designated as the X and V factors by Thjotta and Avery;1 both may be found in blood and plant tissues. In their studies on bacterial nutrition Thjotta and Avery have adequately reviewed the literature concerning earlier recognition of the role of growth accessory substances. The work of these investigators has been essentially confirmed by Rivers and Poole 2 and by Kollath,3 who also have reviewed the literature with regard to growth requirements of the Pfeiffer bacillus.


Introduction. The assessment of the financial activity of the bank is multifaceted systemic, one link of which is the analysis and assessment of borrowers' creditworthiness based on their credit rating. Receiving a borrower's credit rating (bank) is an indispensable condition for attracting funds on the interbank capital market. The future orientation of these borrowed funds may be different, they can be directed to various investment projects (programs), to facilitate the development of small and medium-sized businesses, to improve and support the activity of the borrower's bank in the market of services for corporate and private clients, etc. Purpose. The purpose and objectives of the study is to create a calculation tool for a scientifically-based determination of the optimum values of financial performance indicators of the bank, which characterize its creditworthiness in the long term, in order to improve its position in the ranking of the group of competitive banks. Methods. Methods used in the article: theoretical analysis and synthesis of the test material, social and qualitative research methods, analytical- statistical method. Results. Achievement of the determined target values of the optimal (rational) financial indicators of the activity of « Bank №1 » is not an instant matter. In the event that the owners of banking business, management and analytical service of Bank 1 will use the proposed theoretical and methodological effective tools for evaluating, analyzing and optimizing their financial performance indicators that characterize the credit rating of their bank, they will be able to assess the state of the bank and determine the benchmarks its financial development and accordingly implement an effective system of financial development management of the bank. Originality. The paper describes the methodology for calculating and analyzing financial indicators that affect the bank's creditworthiness based on the use of a plurality of financial indicators to illustrate a new approach to such analysis and evaluation that is proposed for use in solving the problem of determining the bank's creditworthiness. Conclusion. The use of the proposed theoretical and methodological tool for evaluating, analyzing and optimizing the indicators of its financial activities that characterize the bank's credit rating will provide an opportunity to assess the state of the bank and determine the guidelines for its financial development, and accordingly implement an effective management system and implement preventive measures to prevent the deterioration of the financial situation.


A multi-stack exhaust system has been developed for use in laboratory buildings. The multi-stack system activates different stacks and uses a variable speed drive (VSD) to change the fan speed when the laboratory exhaust airflow changes. This system satisfies safety requirements and uses less fan power than a conventional system. The typical fan power savings is 40% or higher, depending on the flow usage profile and the exhaust system duct design characteristics. This paper presents the system models and optimization procedures for the design of a multi-stack system.Copyright © 2002 by ASME


1Canada's Michael Smith Genome Sciences Centre, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. 2University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. 3Simon Fraser University, Burnaby, British Columbia, Canada. *e-mail: email@example.com Tumors from individuals with cancer are frequently genetically profiled for information about the driving forces behind the disease. We present the CancerMine resource, a text-mined and routinely updated database of drivers, oncogenes and tumor suppressors in different types of cancer. All data are available online (http://bionlp.bcgsc.ca/cancermine) and downloadable under a Creative Commons Zero license for ease of use. To interpret the somatic events present in a patient sample, it is necessary to know which genes have important roles in the development of the corresponding cancer type. This normally requires substantial literature review. We have developed a text-mining approach that identifies mentions of genes as drivers, oncogenes or tumor suppressors. This approach is used to create a resource that will be kept up-to-date with monthly releases and is amenable for data analysis pipelines. We also provide an online tool, based on these data, for identifying cancer genes from a gene list and interactive plots of cancer-type clustering, which are helpful for understanding the somatic landscapes of cancer. Oncogenes are genes that (in either their normal or aberrated form) promote the development of cancer, whereas tumor suppressors act against carcinogenesis. "Drivers" refers to genes that are important in cancer development and can be either oncogenes or tumor suppressors. Some genes (for example, NOTCH1) have been identified as oncogenes in one type of cancer and as tumor suppressors in another type1. Furthermore, many genes are important in only certain types of cancer and are probably irrelevant in others. The type of cancer provides important context when one is interpreting the relevance of somatic aberrations in a patient sample. Different methods exist to identify potential cancer-related genes, including statistical analysis of mutation frequency in large genomic cohorts2 and in vitro studies of gene knockdown3. Several resources have been built to catalog the roles of genes in cancer. The Cancer Gene Census (CGC)4 uses data from the Catalogue of Somatic Mutations in Cancer (COSMIC) to list known oncogenes and tumor suppressors. The Network of Cancer Genes5 builds upon the CGC and integrates a wide variety of additional contextual data, such as the frequency of mutations. IntOGen6 uses data from largescale sequencing projects (for example, the Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA)) to collate the importance of cancer genes. ONGene7 and TSGene8 list oncogenes and tumor suppressors but do not associate them with specific cancer types. The Clinical Interpretation of Variants in Cancer (CIViC) database curates clinically relevant variants and contains a set of genes that are relevant for different types of cancer9. All manually curated databases face the overwhelming curation burden of expert curator time and costs necessary to stay up-todate. Text-mined databases offer an automated approach that can provide high-quality results with regular updates. To enable this approach, we built on previous text-mining approaches for extracting gene–disease relations10,11. We extracted titles, abstracts and available full-text articles from PubMed, PubMed Central Open Access (PMCOA) subsets and PubMed Central Author Manuscript Collection (PMCAMC). We then identified sentences that mentioned a gene name, a cancer type and keywords suggestive of a gene playing a role in cancer (Supplementary Table 1). We manually annotated the drivers, oncogenes and tumor suppressors discussed in 1,500 sentences (Supplementary Table 2; three annotators, with mean inter-annotator agreement F1 score of 0.77). These sentences were from throughout the papers and could relate to a new result or a previous result. An example of a sentence describing two oncogene associations is, "KRAS is a known oncogene in lung cancer and pancreatic cancer." More examples can be found in Supplementary Table 3. An individual sentence could contain zero, one or many drivers, oncogenes and tumor suppressor genes associated with different types of cancer. We trained a Kindred relation classifier12 that learns the characteristics of these sentences by building a logistic regression classifier on word frequencies and semantic features. The classifier was then able to predict the pairs of genes and cancer types with their associated roles (driver, oncogene, or tumor suppressor) from a given sentence. A knowledge base that contains a high number of incorrect associations would quickly lose users and be unusable for other analyses. Therefore, we controlled the precision-recall trade-off by applying a high threshold on classifier scores to reduce the number of false positives with the accepted increase in false negatives (Fig. 1a and Supplementary Table 4; error analysis in Supplementary Table 5). This gave an average precision of 85.6% and recall of 29.4% across the three gene role types. We are most interested in wellestablished drivers, oncogenes and tumor suppressors, which will be mentioned in many papers—first in the discovery paper(s), and then in other papers. Even with a low recall of 29.4%, the redundancy in the literature means that the association needs to be mentioned in only seven papers for a >90% chance of being identified. Important cancer gene associations are identified in hundreds of papers by CancerMine. However, users should be aware that this method cannot provide an exhaustive list of all known cancer–gene associations. The classifier was applied to the remaining corpora to identify 38,106 sentences containing 6,843 mentions of drivers, 26,909 mentions of oncogenes and 14,460 mentions of tumor suppressors. By aggregating the results, we found 4,038 genes linked to 425 cancer types as drivers, oncogenes or tumor suppressors, with the highest number of associations in well-established cancer genes (for example, TP53, MYC and KRAS) (Fig. 1b). Of the cancer gene associations, 26.6% are discussed in more than one paper. The resulting knowledge base incorporates information from 28,334 papers. CancerMine: a literature-mined resource for drivers, oncogenes and tumor suppressors in cancer


Henry's law states that at constant temperature, the solubility of a gas in a liquid is directly proportional to the pressure of the gas above the liquid. The Bubble Stripping Method involves applying Henry's law to determine the concentration of dissolved hydrogen, H2, in ground water. This paper describes the method's role in achieving restoration of sites that are polluted with chlorinated solvents. Theory and sample calculations are presented, which may be of use to general chemistry lecturers who want to illustrate how a basic chemical principle can find application in the increasingly important field of environmental science.


Objective
To investigate the effects of exercise and dietary intervention on mild and moderate non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) in submariners during prolonged voyage.

Methods
Twenty-two submariners diagnosed to have mild or moderate NAFLD by ultrasonography from supply ship crew of the 26th escort vessel deployed in the Gulf of Aden were selected as research subjects. Exercise and dietary intervention was implemented during the prolonged escort mission for 8 months. Changes in ultrasonographic imaging, body weight, body fat rate, body mass index (BMI) and liver function were closely observed before deployment, and 4 and 8 months after prolonged deployment.

Results
After exercise and dietary intervention such indexes as body weight, body fat rate, BMI, alanine aminotransferase (ALT) and aspartate aminotransferase (AST) all decreased significantly, when detections were made during the mid stage (4 months) and end stage (8 months), and statistical differences could be seen when comparisons were made(P<0.05). Morphology by ultrasonography indicated that 22 cases of NALFD all improved significantly, with an improvement rate of 100%.

Conclusions
During prolonged deployment at sea, proper exercise and dietary intervention could produce good effects on the submariners with NAFLD, and help to improve the health status of submariners.

Key words:
Prolonged voyage; Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease; Intervention; Exercise; Diet


The Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP) in southeast New Mexico has been studied as a transuranic waste repository for the past 23 years. During this time, an extensive site characterization, design, construction, and experimental program was completed, which provided in depth understanding of the dominant processes that are most likely to influence the containment of radionuclides for 10,000 years. Nearly 1,500 parameters were developed using information gathered from this program and were input to numerical models for WIPP Compliance Certification Application (CCA) Performance Assessment (PA) calculations. The CCA probability models require input parameters that are defined by a statistical distribution. Developing parameters begins with the assignment of an appropriate distribution type, which is dependent on the type, magnitude, and volume of data or information available. Parameter development may require interpretation or statistical analysis of raw data, combining raw data with literature values, scaling laboratory or field data to fit code grid mesh sizes, or other transformations. Documentation of parameter development is designed to answer two questions: What source information was used to develop this parameter? and Why was this particular data set/information used? Therefore, complete documentation requires integrating information from code sponsors, parameter task leaders, performance assessment analysts, and experimental principal investigators. This paper, Part 2 of 2 parts, contains a discussion of the WIPP CCA PA Parameter Tracking System, document traceability and retrievability, and lessons learned from related audits and reviews.


. The cloud tourism experience platform uses big data and virtual technology to construct a virtual tourism environment. It can change the marketing model of tourism companies and the consumption model of tourists. Based on big data analysis, this article explains the operation strategy of the cloud travel platform from three aspects: the acquisition and analysis of the multi-dimensional data information of the cloud travel platform, the construction of the platform experience quality feedback information data, and the design of the cloud travel platform service function. The platform can improve the effectiveness of the virtual system in terms of interactivity, control, vividness, information quality and display. The cloud tourism platform can create a theme image of tourist attractions, help users achieve the goal of traveling everywhere without leaving home and realize a dynamic two-way cycle between cloud tourism and on-site tourism, thereby further promoting the development of the tourism industry.


: The development model of environmental law research paradigm does not follow the trajectory of traditional law theory, but gradually matures with the socialization, globalization, international, comprehensive and highly scientific development of environmental problems.Based on the new theoretical paradigm of environmental law, this paper makes a preliminary exploration and construction in the modernization and transformation of environmental governance, so as to reconstruct the basic content and legal framework of environmental law theory paradigm.In general, the environmental law research should continuously deepen its theoretical connotation in the social law paradigm.In short, the research methodology of environmental law is returned to the field of pedagogy, in order to strengthen the social practice effect of the localization research of environmental law in China, and focus on guiding the solution of the environmental protection problems faced in the practice of environmental law.


Abstract A yield stress is added to Taylor's (1952, Proc. Royal Soc. A, 211, 225-239) model of a microscopic organism with a wavy cylindrical tail swimming through a viscous fluid. Viscoplastic slender-body theory is employed for the task, generalising existing results for Bingham fluid to the Herschel–Bulkley constitutive model. Numerical solutions are provided over a range of the two key parameters of the problem: the wave amplitude relative to the wavelength, and a Bingham number which describes the strength of the yield stress. Numerical solutions are supplemented with discussions of various limits of the problem in which analytical progress is possible. If the wave amplitude is sufficiently small, the yield stress of the material inevitably dominates the flow; the resulting 'plastic locomotion' results in swimming speeds that depend strongly on the swimming gait, and can, in some cases, even be negative. Conversely, when the yield stress is large, swimming becomes possible at the wave speed, with the swimmer sliding or burrowing along its centreline with a relatively high efficiency.


A methodology for calculating the capacity of a military communications system for the planning and combat application of a military communications system is presented. The methodology differs from the known ones taking into account the use of digital channels (networks), the ease of use, which makes it possible to use it for staff calculations in military control bodies (communication control points). The calculations take into account the typical speeds necessary to ensure the high-quality operation of the types of communication (services). An example of the calculation of the capacity for an individual communication node is given. The proposed methodology can be used for research and evaluation of both units and directions of military communications. Together with the methods for evaluating other characteristics of the military communications system, the methodology can be used to comprehensively assess the quality (effectiveness) of the military communications system as a whole.


Purpose: Several studies have examined the association between polyunsaturated fatty acids and prostate cancer risk. We evaluated the evidence on the association between the essential polyunsaturated fatty acid, known as -linolenic acid, and the risk of prostate cancer in humans. Materials and Methods: We comprehensively reviewed published studies on the association between -linolenic acid and the risk of prostate cancer using MEDLINE. Results: A number of studies have shown a positive association between dietary, plasma or red blood cell levels of -linolenic acid and prostate cancer. Other studies have demonstrated either no association or a negative association. The limitations of these studies include the assumption that dietary or plasma -linolenic acid levels are positively associated with prostate tissue -linolenic acid levels, and measurement errors of dietary, plasma and red blood cell -linolenic acid levels. Conclusions: More research is needed in this area before it can be concluded that there is an association between -linolenic acid and prostate cancer. Little is known about the etiology of prostate cancer, despite its prominence as the second leading cause of cancer mortality in men.1 Genetic and exogenous factors are important in prostate cancer development but the specific causes remain poorly understood.2 As with many other cancers, studies of migrant populations suggest that environmental factors, including diet, have a major role in the development of prostate cancer.3 In 1975 Armstrong and Doll hypothesized that there was an association between dietary fat and death from prostate cancer.4 Since then, many studies have examined this association. However, the evidence is controversial and conflicting.5– 8 Some of these studies have suggested a positive association between fat consumption and prostate cancer,5, 6 while others have not found support for such an association.7, 8 Most of the available evidence on the influence of dietary fat on prostate cancer comes from observational studies rather than intervention studies. Weaknesses of the observational studies are related to confounding parameters and bias such as selection and classification of patients. In addition, studies of human prostate cancer have revealed that it is an extremely heterogeneous disease in terms of grade, genetics, DNA ploidy, oncogene expression and other factors.9 The body of animal data relevant to understanding carcinogenesis in the human prostate is also limited, possibly due to the substantial variation in the anatomy, biochemistry and pathology of the prostate gland between mammals.3 Several studies have examined the association between polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) and prostate cancer risk. In this regard, the studies on the PUFA known as -linolenic acid (ALA) and the risk of prostate cancer are of particular interest. We comprehensively reviewed published studies using a MEDLINE based search on the association between ALA and the risk of prostate cancer. LINOLEIC ACID AND -LINOLENIC ACID


This article is devoted to the analysis of Church role in environmental activities directions of environmental activities of religious organizations. The author demonstrates by the example of Christian churches the involvement of religious organizations in the protection of the environment.


Sub-millimeter crack is detected with a dedicated fiber optic strain cable, a 1 m spatial resolution (w) distributed Brillouin sensor (DBS) and an advanced signal processing technique.


The Bohai Sea borders northeastern China's most populous and highest economic value coastal areas where several megacities are located. Critical infrastructure facilities exist or are under construction, including a nuclear power plant and super port facilities. Large reserves of oil have been discovered and a number of offshore oil platforms have been built. The extent of development along coastal areas requires a better assessment of potential tsunami risks. Although tsunamis do not pose as much of a threat as earthquakes in this region, locally destructive tsunamis have been generated in the past and future events could have significant impacts on coastal populations and China's economy, particularly because most of the development has taken place in low-lying regions, including river deltas. The present study examines the geotectonics of the Bohai basin region, the impact of past historical events, and the potential for local tsunami generation from a variety of direct and collateral source mechanisms triggered by intra plate earthquakes. More specifically, the present study examines: a)major active faults bounding the Bohai Basin; b) the resulting crustal deformation patterns of tectonic structures that have resulted in catastrophic earthquakes in recent years; c) the basin-wide extension - with local inversion - extending into the Bohai Sea that generated tsunamigenic earthquakes in 1888 and 1969; and d) deformational future seismic events with the potential to generate local tsunamis directly or by collateral mechanisms of folding, en-echelon bookshelf failures, or from destabilization/dissociation of structural accumulations of gas hydrate deposits within the basin's thick sedimentary stratigraphic layers.


The use of filters is discussed for cases in which it is desirable to harden the spectrum of the incident neutrons on specimens of high cross section. It is shown that significant improvements can be made in the surface-to-center (and peak-to-average) power production ratios. This technique results in an im proved temperature distribution in the fuel specimen that is more prototypical of the temperature profiles expected in the fast reactor fuels. A demonstration of this technique is discussed in which an 0.875-inch diameter mixed oxide fuel containing 17% Pu02 produced 18 kW/ft in a thermal reactor core after elimination of essentially all thermal neutrons.


Under tide stress,vertical groundwater flow between aquifer and aquiclude is described based on rock mechanics and groundwater dynamics theory,the amplitude ratio and phase shift are presented for pore pressure generated from tidal force and tidal height under vertical flow.Combined with Hsieh′s theory(1987),formulas for calculating amplitude ratio and phase shift for water-level and tide-height is derived under condition of vertical and radial flow.The formulaes are applied to identify the main factors affecting water-level amplitude and phase by comparing their values under M2 and O1 tide stress.


Food crop and horticulture sub-sector, during the next 10-15 years, has still
played significant roles in the agriculture development of Baucau District , which is
indicated by higher contribution to GDP structure.
The agriculture development in Baucau District has encountered quite severe
challenges, among others, lack of resources (capital, HR, and land), decreasing land
quality. Meanwhile, competences in global market competition requiring efficient
implemented agricultural activities and agricultural products with competitive price and
quality, are needed.
In encountering such various challenges, the Baucau District as �agent of
development� should implement a strategic planning in implementing individual
development including food crops and horticultures. The resulting plan is a harmonious
integration of internal weaknesses and strengths with threats and opportunities produced
by external environment that the food crop and horticulture sub-sectors encounter.
The opportunities that that the food crop and horticulture sub-sectors encounter in
Baucau District involve the government policy in terms of the Decree No.18/2008 date
19 June 2008, increased grain basic price, agricultural product potentials, rice-only-based
eating pattern, the use of agricultural machineries (tractor, thresher). Meanwhile the
threats faced are farmers� limited access to market, lack of mastery in site-specific
technology (seeds and fertilizer). On the other side, other strengths potentially benefited
from the opportunities and used to overcome the threats, among others, involve various
groups based on project assistance in measuring agricultural seeds, farmer contacts as
innovators that are well running. Optimization programs on abandoned and semiabandoned
which is presently less implemented, at least, are able to replace the lands
undergoing shifted function. Human resources viewed from, both quality and quantity
aspects, are quite sufficient, coupled with regular improvement programs on officers�
competence and officers� transporting facilities. While internal weaknesses, among
others, are lack quality of natural resources and human capital, limited budget, limited
facilities and inadequate infrastructure, system of project decreasing officers� motivation,
decreased quality of land and less-optimal function of land.
Based on the analysis of shared strategic environment through the use of SWOT
matrix, the strategic issues in agricultural development in Baucau District were
identified. By using the litmus test, the most strategic issued in the agricultural
development of food crop and horticulture in Baucau District involve agri-businessoriented
agricultural development, and integrated farming optimization, site-specific
technology development, and farmer group empowerment. Due to some limitations found
in Baucau District , the most strategic issues to solve are the two first issues.
The policy alternative offered as the strategy to address the market-oriented
agricultural development involve the improvement and agricultural production programs,
improvement in officers� competences to perform agri-business-oriented farming
supervision, the provision of market information service. The strategies to address
optimization farming issue concern with the improvement productivity and production of
rice, maize, and soybeans, group empowerment established by the earlier projects, and
agricultural product marketing.


'Tendral' is a winter melon noted for its relatively long storage life but few postharvest studies have been done, despite of its relatively high commercial value on Christmas in Portugal and Spain. The objective of this work is to study the postharvest behaviour on traditional storage hanged in netted bags and included on straw in a fresh and dark room and refrigerated conditions at 12 oC and ca. 70% relative humidity. The results pointed out that storage period, weight loss, rheological and colour parameters are highly correlated. Quality criteria were mainly storage period dependent.


The present invention includes a laser beam irradiation device, and relates to a research method, As a certain portion of the two scanning areas overlap when using a laser scanner to move to a different scan area at a particular scan area of skin with a laser beam a specific location for skin treatment by so as to prevent the overlapping irradiation, applying the method of continuously changing the shape of the laser pulse while the position at which the laser beam is irradiated by the laser scanner in the scanning area of skin movement, as to oscillate the laser scanner as in the prior art or it relates to a laser irradiation apparatus and irradiation method for skin treatment that can solve the problem occurring in the method for adjusting the reflection angle of the road reflection mirror within the scanner randomly. Laser skin treatment, the treatment device, a laser scanner, the irradiation, pulse, pulse width, pulse power, pulse interval


Using monotonicity theory, we investigate the continuous dependence on parameters for the discrete BVPs, which can be written in a form of a nonlinear system.


Dictation is an important part in TEM4 Examination while it is also a headache for most students.With an analysis of different language techniques and the list of error types occurred during the dictation process,this article stressed that different teaching strategies should be adopted to help students strengthen various kind of language skills in order to improve their performance in dictation.


The optimum wavelength region of the remote fire surveillance system which operate with radiation from the fire is investigated.Then, it is said that 4.4-4.8 uμ region which is the emission band of carbon dioxide in the flame is favorable to detect the fire, because of better atmospheric transmission and reduced interference from background radiation.


This address was given at the inauguration of the Center for the Study of Consecrated Life at Catholic Theological Union on February 12, 2015. It looks back at the conditions that led to the founding of different religious institutes throughout history, and then turns to the present. The current challenges include living in a postsecular society, dealing with pluralism, and looking to the new "peripheral" situations a postsecular, pluralist, and globalized world are creating. It closes with a vision of the church that will be needed to sustain religious institutes in this changing world.


Skillfully executed, instructional design can result in effective and efficient means to meet learning goals. However, more powerful learning experiences seem to go beyond effectiveness, efficiency, appeal, and even predetermined goals. This study sought to identify the key features of instructional design, to determine the nature of powerful learning experiences, and to explore how the two might relate. A survey of experts and a series of interviews with adult learners revealed overlap in some areas, for example, in the perceived importance of active engagement in authentic situations, and clear differences in others, most significantly the importance placed by learners on continual face-to-face personal interaction with a mentor/expert teacher. Speculations are offered on what similar results from additional studies might imply with regard to design actions and choices, and questions for further research are posed.


Abstract The Kepler Mission successfully launched March 6, 2009, beginning its 3.5-year mission to determine the frequency of Earth-size planets in the habitable zones of late-type stars. The brightnesses of over 100,000 stars are currently being monitored for transit events with an expected differential photometric precision of 20 ppm at V=12 for a 6.5-hour transit. The same targets will be observed continuously over the mission duration in order to broaden the detection space to orbital periods comparable to that of Earth. This paper provides an overview of the selection and prioritization criteria used to choose the stars that Kepler is observing from the > 4.5 million objects in the 100 square degree field of view. The characteristics of the Kepler targets are described as well as the implications for detectability of planets in the habitable zone smaller than 2R⊕.


Customer satisfaction is an emotional reaction or an overall attitude towards the service/ product providers considering the difference between what customers expect and what they actually received at the time of fulfilment of their corresponding requirements. However, it is very difficult to assess the level of such satisfaction. This report analysed several factors which directly influence on customer satisfaction such as facilities, service quality, value for money, store location and so on. The quantitative research has been conducted to assess satisfaction. Based on the survey results, recommendations are also provided to improve the level of customer expectations along with desired satisfaction. In this The Bottle-O shop wants to launch their services in New Zealand and for this reason respective organization must have to focus on customer satisfaction issue, so they could be able to manage all kinds of activities properly


Disclosed is a lead frame having a plurality of connection portions for electrical conductors and a plurality of contacts and at least two outer current bars, in addition to the connection socket having a lead frame, in particular such a connection socket associated with the system for power transmission from a plurality of solar modules (solar cell module) having. A To devise a small lead frame as possible space occupied, at least one connection for electrical conductors between the outer current bars (34a, b) (32a~e) is provided. Thus, the lead frame has a compact physical shape. In the prior art to crosslink the distance between the predetermined contact gap is based the present invention on the finding that the lead frame is used to produce a strip conductor having a different geometry as a punching parts It offers the possibility. Further, a connection socket having such a leadframe, systems and are described for power transmission using such connection socket. .Field


Postapartheid South Africa is going through a period in its history where excessively high levels of crime are being experienced. This "bull-run" in crime is of great concern to citizens as well as those societal systems that have to ensure safety and security. There is also concern about the impact of crime on the core socialisation unit in society, namely the family. The increased potential of being exposed to crime and being traumatized in the process has led to serious concern about the ability of the family to continue with its role as primary socialisation institution. This concern has prompted the author to conduct research on the impact of crime on family well-being. One objective of this research is to establish a correlation between exposure to crime and various social functioning aspects of family life. A second objective is to determine if exposure to crime would be a significant indicator of dysfunction in family life. The argument in this case is to determine a causal link between the independent variable of exposure to crime and the dependent variable of family social functioning.


We studied the potential of a fiber-based sensor using the Tunable Wavelength Coherent Optical Time Domain Reflectometry (TW-COTDR) technique to monitor the distributed strain profile inside a tunnel shotcrete, with and without yieldable concrete wedges. Design of the measuring system and on-site test are reported. We demonstrated ability and performances of optical fiber sensing cable through several weeks monitoring in shotcrete. Results are shown to be comparable to those provided by the reference vibrating wire extensometers and distributed measurements will be of major interest for advanced understanding of performances and limitation of shotcrete mechanical behavior.


The interaction mechanism and mode of cysteine dipeptide(Cys-Cys) with DNA were studied by cyclic voltammetry and viscosity method.The results showed that the peak current of Cys-Cys decreased and the peak potential shifted negatively with increasing the concentration of DNA;the concentration of Na~+ had obvious influence on the peak current of Cys-Cys-DNA and the relative viscosity of DNA had no obvious change.It could be concluded that the interaction between Cys-Cys and DNA was mainly in electrostatic binding mode.The binding constant was 4.923×10~3L/mol and binding ratio was 1:1 calculated by cyclic voltammetry.


Introduction: Different types of tests present a great part of the academic life, and the tests themselves are extremely stressful situations for most students. The question of strategies used for coping with anxiety in testing situations is raised by the anxiety experienced by students and the levels of their self-esteem during tests. Aim of the paper: The aim of the paper is to take into consideration language anxiety, self-esteem and social and demographic variables as predictors of active use of strategies for coping with the testing situation. Material and methodology: This research included 338 students from five faculties/colleges, with an average age of 21.82±2.561, who were administered the following scales: Rosenberg's Self-esteem Scale, the Coping with the Testing Situation Scale and Foreign Language Classroom Anxiety Scale. Results: The Subscale for Language Anxiety during Testing has the highest reversed predictive value (beta=-0.43, p<0.001) of coping strategies for the testing situation; older respondents have less expressed ability of coping with the testing (beta=-0.23, p<0.001), and the higher the level of fear from negative evaluation (beta=0.21, p<0.001), the more the respondents are coping with the testing situation. Conclusion: The higher the testing anxiety, the less will the students use coping strategies, and the older students cope less with stressful testing situations, but the greater the presence of a more expressed fear of inefficiency, the more will the respondents cope with the testing situation through various strategies.


The protective effects of green tea polyphenols on nitrogen oxide (NOx)-induced sister chromatid exchange (SCE) in cultured cells were studied. (-)Epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG) and (+)catechin (CT), the major polyphenol constituents of green tea, were found to reduce the frequency of SCE induced by NOx. NO releaser (NOR4)-released NO and NaNO2 were used as NOx. Significantly fewer SCEs were induced by 30 μM NOR4 and NaNO2 after the treatment of cells with 0.1 μM EGCG or 0.5 μM CT. NOx (NO, NO2-) is a potent environmental pollutant owing to its carcinogenic properties. Therefore these experimental results indicate the protective effects of green tea against NOx-type carcinogens.


Insulin-like Growth Factor-1 (IGF-1) is important in growth and development of animals. This study demonstrated the effects of dietary IGF-1 supplementation to sow udder morphometry, which impacts sow mothering ability. Twenty gilts bred in two batches were assigned to control or treatment diet (supplemented with exogenous IGF-1 at 50 g/50 kg of feeds) from day 1 of gestation to day 30 of lactation. Sow udder morphometric traits like teat diameter (DIA), teat length (LEN), same row adjacent teat distance (SAM), opposite row adjacent teat distance (OPR) and teat tip to floor distance (FLO) were measured from each sow during pre-breeding, post-breeding and post-farrowing stages. Strong relationship between LEN and DIA was observed during the post-breeding and post-farrowing. A higher (P ≤ 0.01) IgG concentration was seen in sows given IGF-1 supplementation, indicating a positive effect of IGF-1 on colostrum quality. Moreover, data obtained on the average litter weaning weight, ADG, and diarrhea incidence in piglets were different (P ≤ 0.01) between control and treatment groups, where piglets nursed by treated sows demonstrated better performance. Results of this study showed that dietary supplementation of IGF-1 improved sow mothering ability, which positively affected suckling pig performance.


This document presents a technique for the generation of Sparse Inverse Preconditioners based on the near field coupling matrices of Method of Moments simulations where the geometry has been partitioned in terms of regions. A distance parameter is used to determine the sparsity pattern of the preconditioner. The rows of the preconditioner are computed in groups at a time, according to the number of unknowns contained in each region of the geometry. Two filtering thresholds allow considering only the coupling terms with a significant weight for a faster generation of the preconditioner and storing only the most significant preconditioner coefficients in order to decrease the memory required. The generation of the preconditioner involves the computation of as many independent linear least square problems as the number of regions in which the geometry is partitioned, resulting in very good scalability properties regarding its parallelization.


Cluster Frontline Demonstration (CFLD) is a unique approach to demonstrate the production potential of newly released technologies on the farmers' fields. The Krishi Vigyan Kendra, LAM, Guntur had conducted the Cluster Frontline Demonstration (CFLDs) on oilseeds during 2016 to 2019. The KVK had organized 150CFLDs on Groundnut (Arachis hypogaea) in fivevillagesviz.,Yazilli, Danduvaaripaalem, Pachala Thaatiparru, Kaskarru and Karlapalem of Guntur district. To get the adequate size of the sample, 150 CFLDs beneficiary farmers were selected as the sample for the present study.Highest average yield of 40.25 q/ha was recorded in groundnut variety Kadiri 7 Bold, while the lowest average yield was 22.5 q/ha (Kadiri 6) with 12.9 and 12.4 percent increase in yield respectively. Extension gap were observed as 3.9, 4.6 and 3.6 in Kadiri 6, Kadiri 7 bold and Kadiri Haritandra. Technology index ranges from 9.75 to 19.6 in demonstrated groundnut varieties in CFLD programme. There was a significant increase in area from 25 to 230 ha (increased up to 205 %), 10 to 110 ha (increased up to 100 %), 30 to 190 ha (increased up to 160 %) area in Kadiri 6, Kadiri 7 bold and Kadiri Haritandra groundnut varieties respectively. Impact on adoption (per cent change) is prominent in case of Kadiri 6 (820 %), Kadiri Haritandra (533.3%) and Kadiri 7 bold (90.9 %) because of their yield potential, crop management practices fallowed by the farmers suggested by kvk scientists through CFLD. maximum (48.6%) number of respondents highly satisfied with the services rendered through CFLDThe Local variety of groundnut varietyTAG-24 was replaced by improved varieties developed by ANGRAU, Andhra Pradesh such as Kadiri-6, Kadiri 7 bold and Kadiri Harithandra'. Thus, it can be inferred that CFLDs is an effective extension intervention to demonstrate the production potential of improved technologies in Groundnut on farmers' field. Therefore, it is recommended that the extension agencies engaged in transfer and application of agricultural technologies on farmer's field.


iii Dedication This thesis is dedicated to my family and especially my wife, My-Hanh, who convinced me to follow my heart and pursue a higher education in something that I have always loved. iv Acknowledgement I would like to acknowledge my three mentors. Without their invaluable support I would not have been able to complete my studies and finish my thesis at the University of New Orleans. First, I would like to thank Dr. Allan Millett, my thesis advisor and chair of the MA committee, for his constant encouragement and support. His guidance throughout the writing process and advice on avenues of research helped create a balanced study. Second, I would like to thank Dr. Connie Atkinson for challenging me during my second year of graduate school by asking me on what I truly wanted to do and providing blunt criticism that helped develop a reason for writing this paper. Third, I am indebted to Dr. James Mokihber for accepting me into the program and seeing me through its completion. Through the countless times I was called away for military training and changes in topics, he kept me on the correct path to complete my education. It would be remiss of me if I failed to acknowledge the professors of the History Department whose lectures enlarged my understanding and helped my appreciate how to use historical knowledge to benefit society: Dr. Günter Bischof who was the first history professor I took a class with over 10 years ago, Dr. Michael Mizell-Nelson, who showed me that public history is all around us and needs to be illuminated for others to appreciate what impact it has today, and Dr. Gerald Bodet, who saw the potential in me and never gave up on making sure that I understood the meaning of what a historian truly is. I would like to thank Paula Fortier who took the time during her PhD candidacy to advise on how to form an argument. A retired Navy chief, she knew how difficult it is for military veterans to express their thoughts in written communications. v Finally, I would like to thank my loving wife, My-Hanh, who allowed me the time to focus on my research and never impeded the endless amount of time dedicated to completing my journey as a historian. Though there were times when it seemed an incomplete project beyond my capability, she continued to support …


To solve the problem of high installation and maintenance cost of continuous emission monitoring system(CEMS) for flue gas pollutants from coal-fired power plants,a soft-sensing technology is proposed for prediction of the SO2 emission.The specific way is to firstly build up a model using BP neural network,then configure and optimize the link weights and threshold value of BP network using genetic algorithm,and finally establish a new soft-sensing model.Predicted results based on the new soft-sensing model were compared with actual measurements.Results show that the new model has a high prediction accuracy and stability,which may be used to predict SO2 emission from coal-fired power plants.


The ruling party should represent the fundamental interests of overwhelming majority of people in China,with its sound systems and mechanism,by the choice of orientation to represent and synthesize their interests,as weel as the politics employed and the political acculturation,in order to realize the importance thought of "The Represents".


In recent years, the China-South Korea and China-Australian bilateral trades are growing steadily. However, they also confront challenges of trade competitions. Based on the study of the development and current situation of China-South Korea and China-Australian bilateral trades, this paper analyzes the commodity structures. The results show that, the growing bilateral trades, import and export commodity structure constantly adjusting, and then on the prospect of China-South Korea, Sino-Australian bilateral trades further development, and have positive significance to make correct foreign trade policy.


Partially hydrolyzed ethylene/vinyl acetate copolymers (EVALVA) were modified by covalent binding of a heparin-complexing poly(amido-amine) (N 2 LL). The physicochemical characterisation of the starting and modified materials was carried out through thermal analysis, dynamic mechanical thermal analysis, mechanical tensile test, contact angle, potentiometric measurements, water uptake and FT-IR spectroscopic measurements. The behaviour of this material in both the dry and the wet state was stressed, evidencing the different orientation of the chemical groups, which are buried or exposed according to whether its nature is hydrophilic or hydrophobic. The material was heparinised, and the presence of heparin was revealed by energy dispersive X-ray analysis (EDAX) and FT-IR.


Abstract 101 Background: We have recently reported that mutations in isocitrate dehydrogenase 1 (IDH1) and 2 (IDH2) genes are present in ~16% of younger adults [ Methods: The molecular analyses were performed on pre-treatment bone marrow (BM) or blood specimens from 732 pts with AML aged ≥60 yrs treated on one of two AMSLG trials [AML HD98B (n=306), AMLSG 06-04 (n=426)]. Mutational screening of exon 4 of both IDH1 and IDH2 was performed by a combination of denaturing high performance liquid chromatography and direct sequencing. Pts were also analyzed for the presence of FLT3-ITD, FLT3-TKD and NPM1 mutations. The treatment on each AMLSG trial incorporated a double induction and intensive consolidation therapy; in the AML HD98B trial pts were randomized for ATRA as adjunct to chemotherapy, whereas in the AMLSG 06-04 trial ATRA was given to all pts, and they were randomized for the administration of valproic acid. Results: A total of 163 IDH mutations were found in 732 (22%) pts. All but one IDH mutation clustered to the previously reported mutational hot spots: IDH1R132 (n=54), IDH2R140 (n=92), IDH2R172 (n=16); one case had both IDH1 and IDH2R172 mutation, and in one case a novel IDH2I170T mutation in addition to a IDH2R172 mutation was detected. IDH mutations were associated with higher platelet counts (P Conclusions: The overall incidence of IDH mutations in elderly is higher than in younger AML pts. This is mainly attributed to the increased frequency of IDH2R140 mutations (10%) in elderly compared to younger AML pts (~6%). Treatment with ATRA as adjunct to intensive chemotherapy appears to be beneficial in NPM1 mutated NK-AML with IDH2R140 mutation or with IDH1/2 wildtype. Disclosures: Greil:Cephalon: Research Funding.


On the basis of researching PACO development of Shaoyang City,this paper analyses the features,successful experiences,the problem and strategy of different stages of PACO development,such as the deficiency of operating regulations,the controlling problem of VIP,capital and departments,representing the strategy from publicizing to leading,from regulating to promoting,and establishing special protecting policy.


B-doped diamond films were synthesized by microwave plasma chemical vapor deposition using a mixture of methane (0.5% or 1.2%) and diborane (B_2H_6) below 50 ppm on either Si substrates or undoped diamond films that had been synthesized using 0.5% or 1.2% methane. The surface morphologies of the synthesized films were observed by Secondary Electron Microscopy, and the infrared absorption and Raman spectra were measured. It was found that when diborane concentration was low, B-doped films preferred (111) facets. On the other hand, high diborane concentrations resulted in a deposition of needle-like material that was identified as graphite by x-ray diffraction.


An anthracene based fluorescent probe, integrated with thiophene moiety, exhibited selective and sensitive detection of chromium (III) ions over other metal ions. Its synthesis was achieved by simple mixing of two commercially available compounds, 2-aminoanthracene, and 2-thiophenecarboxaldehyde, in onestep without the needed complex purification process. The probe molecule ( ANT-Th ) offered exceptional features such as "turn-on" fluorescence response, low detection limit (0.4 μM), and fast response time (<1 min) via C=N bond hydrolysis. Also, a simple test paper system was developed for the rapid detection of chromium (III) ions with the naked eye.


Aims:  This study was conducted to test the hypothesis that the bacterial strains possessing 1‐aminocyclopropane‐1‐carboxylic acid (ACC)‐deaminase activity may also promote growth of inoculated plants and could increase nodulation in legumes upon co‐inoculation with rhizobia.


The photo-acoustic spectra of p-GaSe were obtained below room temperature by using a ZnO transducer as a detector. Two peaks at 2.098 and 2.059 eV were observed at 99K. The energy and temperature variation of the 2.098 eV peak are well interpreted in terms of a free exciton annihilation. The peak at 2.059 eV is due to transitions from the donor level to the valence band.


Now a days data mining plays significant role in business development process such as the mining user decision, mining web information's to gain feedback on product or service, and use an organization's competitors. In enormous competitive economic conditions, it is necessary to analyze the aspects of an element that affects the characteristics of the competition and their competitiveness. Competitiveness assessment always uses customer feedback about expectations and higher estimates and source information from the Internet and other sources. The author provides an official explanation of the Extraction of competitions described in his respective work. Finally, this article offers the importance of mining operations competing with difficulties and favorable promotions. Index Terms – Competitor Mining, Firm analysis, Electronic commerce, Data mining, Web mining, Information Search and Retrieval.


Environment" has become one of the hot topic for discussion these days among most sections of the society. World over, great stress is being laid on a variety of environmental issues such as (i) Conservation and management, (ii) Pollution - effects of pollution on health of human being and other organisms, (iii) Solutions and remedies for pollution which are discussed and debated world over. India is the only country in the world where environment has been enshrined in the Constitution. Art. 48 (A) of our Constitution envisages protection, preservation and proper management of the natural wealth by every citizen. The environmental impact of mining includes erosion, formation of sinkholes, loss of biodiversity, and contamination of soil, groundwater and surface water by chemicals from mining processes. Mining companies in some countries are required to follow environmental and reha- bilitation codes, ensuring the area mined is returned to close to its original state. Some mining methods may have significant environmental and public health effects. Erosion of exposed hillsides, mine dumps, tailings dams and resultant siltation of drainages, creeks and rivers can significantly impact the surrounding areas. In areas of wilderness mining may cause destruction and disturbance of ecosystems and habi- tats, and in areas of farming it may disturb or destroy productive grazing and croplands. In urbanized environments mining may produce noise pollution, dust pollution and visual pollution. In this paper, an attempt has been made to highlight pertinent environmental issues concerning adverse environmental impact of mining.


The purpose of this study is to evaluate the combined effects of xylitol and low concentrations of fluoride on the promotion of remineralization of human enamel. Demineralized enamel blocks were immersed in remineralizing solutions containing 10% xylitol and various concentrations of fluoride (0-1.2ppm). The remineralizing solution containing xylitol and fluoride was found to promote remineralization between 14 and 15 degrees of saturation with respect to fluoroapatite. Although both fluoride and xylitol are thought to promote remineralization, from this study, it can be suggested that for effective remineralization, the degree of saturation with respect to fluoroapatite should also be considered.


A planetary mass scale and a system of composition codes are presented for describing the geophysical characteristics of exoplanets and Solar System planets, dwarf planets, and spherical moons. The composition classes characterize the rock, ice, and gas properties of planetary bodies. The planetary mass scale includes five mass classes with upper and lower mass limits derived from recent studies of the exoplanet mass radius and mass density relationships and the physical characteristics of planets, dwarf planets, and spherical moons in the Solar System. The combined mass and composition codes provide a geophysical classification that allows for comparison of the global mass and composition characteristics of exoplanets with the Solar System's planets, dwarf planets, and spherical moons. The system is flexible and can be combined with additional codes characterizing other physical, dynamical, or biological characteristics of planets.


This paper explores economic and technological changes and the evolution of labor markets in sending and receiving countries, with an emphasis on developments in a major emigration country, Mexico, and the impacts of migrants from Mexico and Latin America on the labor markets of Canada and the US. There are four major conclusions. Firstly, while immigrant workers are important in many industries, occupations, and areas, no major US industry or occupation is dependent on foreign-born or Mexican-born workers. Secondly, Mexican-born workers tend to be near the low end, often filling jobs that would be eliminated or modified by technology if wages rose. Thirdly, the short- and long-run effects of trade and investment on migration may be very different, producing a migration hump in the short-term that may increase migration flows before they decline. Finally, current demographic changes in Mexico's labor market can lead to a near-term decline in the volume of unauthorized migration to the United States even if emigration probabilities continue to rise moderately. Mexico, the US, and Canada are on the path toward closer economic integration that could soon reduce permanent or settler migration, even as temporary or sojourner migration increases for business and other purposes. The reduction in emigration pressure in Mexico may be noticeable sooner than is commonly realized for demographic and economic reasons. The policy challenge is to do no harm, to avoid policies that produce unintended negative consequences or that prolong Mexican-US unauthorized migration during the transition.


With the expansion of digital scholarship, alternative metrics have emerged as a useful way to measure the impact of scholarly outputs beyond traditional citation counts. LSE Research Online has recently added an altmetrics tool to display the ways in which LSE research is being used in this broader social landscape. Lucy Ayre provides further background on why this addition is beneficial for the Library and the wider scholarly community.


Breast cancer is the most common type of cancer and the second most common cause of death by cancer for women. Early diagnosis of a malignant tumor in the breast can dramatically increase survivability. Therefore, the clarity and accuracy of a detection scheme is crucial to improve the survival rate of breast cancer. Near-Infrared Diffuse Optical Imaging and Spectroscopy (NIR-DOIS) is an imaging methodology under development which has the potential to clearly and accurately assess the malignancy of a suspicious lesion. Tumor malignancy corresponds to certain physiological parameters, namely oxygen saturation and hemoglobin concentration. NIR-DOIS is capable of measuring these parameters, providing a functional measurement of multiple physiological parameters with potential molecular sensitivity. When compared with other imaging modalities, NIR-DOIS has the advantage of being a low cost, non-invasive, real-time diagnostic. This imaging technique can be accomplished using fiber optic cables which are arrayed in a hand-held sensor head that is placed against the skin of the patient. The nearinfrared light shines from the source fiber into the tissue and the reflected light is collected by the detector fibers. Source and detector fibers are connected to a tissue oximetry device that synchronizes the light illumination and the data collection, allowing it to interpret physiological parameters such as oxygen saturation and hemoglobin concentration from optical measurements. In order to reconstruct the embedded tissue heterogeneities such as breast tumors, it is necessary to collect multiple data sets with a matrix of sources and detectors. However, the fact that the existing tissue oximetry system has limited sources and detectors prevents the reconstruction of the tissue heterogeneities with high accuracy. In order to improve the imaging capability of the existing tissue oximetry system, it is necessary to develop an imaging head with a condensed distribution of source and detector channels, and an optical switching unit that can rapidly sweep through all these source and detector channels. The hypothesis of this project is that the optical switch will be an effective means to accurately detect oximetry data using NIR-DOIS. The research project includes completing a prototype optical switch, programming the necessary motor control functions to integrate the switch with a computer, and testing the device to determine baseline performance and potential clinical efficacy. Performance


Subject. This article discusses the strengthening of Russia's position as a major exporter of agricultural products.
Objectives. The article aims to determine the role of the production of mineral fertilizers in the development of the agricultural sector of Russia and strengthening the country's competitiveness in the world market.
Methods. For the study, we used the methods of strategic analysis.
Results. The article finds that the production of mineral fertilizers is susceptible to digitalization processes, which make it possible to create additional competitive advantages. The development of the mineral fertilizer market is influenced by fluctuations in grain prices.
Relevance. The results of the study can be used when designing comprehensive programmes for the development of agriculture in the regions of Russia.


There are many unbroken words in the Stone Inscription in Wei, Jin and South & North Dynasty. Meanwhile,a lot of unbroken words have many writing forms. It contributes to the study of the history of Chinese words. The paper tryes to describe and analyze the phenomenon of non-standardized variant forms of unbroken words of the stone inscription in Wei, Jin and South & North Dynasty, and hopes to demonstrate the use and law of some unbroken words in it.


: We present for the first time measurements of the optical gain in a semiconductor laser using a 20 MHz resolution optical spectrum analyzer. The high resolution allows for accurate gain measurements close to the lasing threshold. This is demonstrated by gain measurements on a bulk InGaAsP 1.5  m Fabry-Perot laser. Combined with direct measurement of transparency carrier density values, parameters were determined for characterizing the gain at a range of wavelengths and temperatures. The necessity of the use of a logarithmic gain model is shown.


Abstract : Since the conclusion of World War II, the United States has maintained a substantial part of its military force in Europe. This presence results in large measure from the United States' participation in the multi-lateral mutual defense pact entitled The North Atlantic Treaty Organization, or NATO. Because the United States has a historic disdain for military involvement with other countries unless there is a direct and overt threat to our national security, our participation in NATO produces periodic criticism and pressure for reduction or withdrawal. The present domestic economic situation and the debate over how our scarce resources should be allocated, coupled with concern over foreign military involvement; is generating renewed questions as to our correct role in the defense of Western Europe; renewed concern that our allies bear their fair share of the cost; and more frequent calls for reduced involvement. This study seeks to identify th actual costs associated with maintaining NATO as a credible instrument of free-world strength. It is an attempt to go beyond a simple analysis of the monetary contribution of member nations, and examine elements of the economic, social, military and political contributions. The goal of the study is to draw conclusions regarding the total content of the burden of maintaining the alliance and how, and by whom, that burden is shared.


Fetal health must be carefully monitored during pregnancy to detect early fetal cardiac diseases, and provide appropriate treatment. Technological development allows a monitoring during pregnancy using the non-invasive fetal electrocardiogram (ECG). Noninvasive fetal ECG is a method not only to detect fetal heart rate, but also to analyze the morphology of fetal ECG, which is now limited to analysis of the invasive ECG during delivery. However, the noninvasive fetal ECG recorded from the mother's abdomen is contaminated with several noise sources among which the maternal ECG is the most prominent.In the present study, the problem of noninvasive fetal ECG extraction is tackled using multi-modality. Beside ECG signal, this approach benefits from the Phonocardiogram (PCG) signal as another signal modality, which can provide complementary information about the fetal ECG.A general method for quasi-periodic signal analysis and modeling is first described and its application to ECG denoising and fetal ECG extraction is explained. Considering the difficulties caused by the synchronization of the two modalities, the event detection in the quasi-periodic signals is also studied which can be specified to the detection of the R-peaks in the ECG signal.The method considers both clinical and signal processing aspects of the application on ECG and PCG signals. These signals are introduced and their characteristics are explained. Then, using PCG signal as the reference, the Gaussian process modeling is employed to provide the possibility of flexible models as nonlinear estimations. The method also tries to facilitate the practical implementation of the device by using the less possible number of channels and also by using only 1-bit reference signal.The method is tested on synthetic data and also on real data that is recorded to provide a synchronous multi-modal data set.Since a standard agreement for the acquisition of these modalities is not yet taken into much consideration, the factors which influence the signals in recording procedure are introduced and their difficulties and effects are investigated.The results show that the multi-modal approach is efficient in the detection of R-peaks and so in the extraction of fetal heart rate, and it also provides the results about the morphology of fetal ECG.


ABSTRACT Field vane shear strength, su(v) is presented for seven Japanese soft marine clays with the plasticity index, Ip ranging from 20 to 120. The value of su(v) was compared with that obtained from unconfined compression tests which is a standard for determining the shear strength of cohesive soils for design use in Japan. Several researchers have reported that the vane shear strength normalized with the consolidation yield pressure, su(v)/pc′ is dependent on Ip. However, the su(v)/pc′ values obtained from the present study were generally constant with Ip' with values ranging from 0.25 to 0.35. Bjerrum's correction factor, μ is commonly used to determine the shear strength for stability analysis from the vane shear strength. The shear strength modified by this method, however, was found to be considerably conservative for Japanese marine clay, when compared with the unconfined compressive strength that has been proved to provide an appropriate shear strength for practical use in Japan.