Objective: Oxidation is a normal process in many biological metabolisms in living beings, but in this technology era radiation, pollution, irregular life style, and unhealthy diet leads to excessive oxidation resulting in imbalance between antioxidants and free radicals in body called oxidative stress, which may result in cardiac problems, diabetes, and carcinogenic diseases. Therefore, exploration of natural antioxidants in flora and fauna is becoming important. In this motive a phytochemical study was taken up on various parts of Pterocarpus santalinus L.f. plant belonging to Leguminosae family to check the presence of antioxidant activity (AA).
Methods: The leaves, flowers, fruits, and roots of this plant were extracted with six different organic solvents from polar to non-polar. To estimate the AA of these extracts, four types of antioxidant tests were done on them, namely, α, α – Diphenyl – β – Picryl - Hydrazyl free radical scavenging activity (DPPH RSA) assay, relative reducing power (RRP) assay, Ferric thiocyanate (FTC) assay, and β - carotene bleaching assay with Butylated Hydroxy Toluene (BHT) as synthetic standard.
Results: In extraction, Me extracts showed highest yields. Qualitative phytochemical screening has revealed many bioactive components in the Me and Et extracts of plant parts majorly. In DPPH RSA assay, Me extracts of leaves showed RSA activity almost equal to reference standard. In RRP assay, Me floral extracts showed AA higher than standard. FTC and β – Carotene assays showed that Me sample extracts possess good AA than BHT. In FTC assay, lower absorption values specify high AA, whereas in β – Carotene assay, high absorption values indicate high AA of the sample extracts.
Conclusion: Among six solvents methanol showed highest extraction efficiency and also revealed highest number of phytochemicals in its extracts. These four AA assays revealed that the methanol extracts of all plant parts, that is., leaves, roots, fruits, and flowers possess better AA compared other solvent extracts.


The connection between the *–Lie algebra of the renormalized higher powers of white noise (RHPWN) and the centreless Virasoro (or Witt)-Zamolodchikov-w ∞ *–Lie algebra of conformal field theory, as well as the associated Fock space construction, have recently been established (L. Accardi and A. Boukas, Infin. Dimens. Anal. Quantum Probab. Relat. Top. 9 (2006), pp. 353–360; L. Accardi and A. Boukas, Int. J. Math. Comput. Sci. 1 (2006), pp. 315–342; L. Accardi and A. Boukas, (2008) J. Phys. A Math. Theor., 41, pp. 1–12; L. Accardi and A. Boukas, Comm. Stoch. Anal. 1 (2007), pp. 57–69; L. Accardi and A. Boukas, Rep. Math. Phys. 61 (2008), pp. 1–11. Available at http://arxiv.org/hep-th/0610302). In this paper, we describe a method for looking for a special class of central extensions of the RHPWN and w ∞ *–Lie algebras called 'analytic', i.e. central extensions where the defining cocycles can be written as formal power series of the indices of the RHPWN and w ∞ generators. Our method is also applied to the well-known Virasoro central extension of the Witt algebra.


Emulation of brain‐like signal processing with thin‐film devices can lay the foundation for building artificially intelligent learning circuitry in future. Encompassing higher functionalities into single artificial neural elements will allow the development of robust neuromorphic circuitry emulating biological adaptation mechanisms with drastically lesser neural elements, mitigating strict process challenges and high circuit density requirements necessary to match the computational complexity of the human brain. Here, 2D transition metal di‐chalcogenide (MoS2) neuristors are designed to mimic intracellular ion endocytosis–exocytosis dynamics/neurotransmitter‐release in chemical synapses using three approaches: (i) electronic‐mode: a defect modulation approach where the traps at the semiconductor–dielectric interface are perturbed; (ii) ionotronic‐mode: where electronic responses are modulated via ionic gating; and (iii) photoactive‐mode: harnessing persistent photoconductivity or trap‐assisted slow recombination mechanisms. Exploiting a novel multigated architecture incorporating electrical and optical biases, this incarnation not only addresses different charge‐trapping probabilities to finely modulate the synaptic weights, but also amalgamates neuromodulation schemes to achieve "plasticity of plasticity–metaplasticity" via dynamic control of Hebbian spike‐time dependent plasticity and homeostatic regulation. Coexistence of such multiple forms of synaptic plasticity increases the efficacy of memory storage and processing capacity of artificial neuristors, enabling design of highly efficient novel neural architectures.


In this paper, I will describe a computer vision-based musical performance system that uses morphological assessments to provide control data. Using shape analysis allows the system to provide qualitative descriptors of the scene being captured while ensuring its use in a wide variety of different settings. This system was implemented under Max/MSP/Jitter, augmented with a number of external objects. (1)


The aim of this study was to investigate central corneal thickness values prior to and five years after ablation of the central cornea using 193 nm UV radiation. Thirty eight eyes of 38 subjects were analysed in a prospective study. Central corneal thickness measurements were carried out prior to and 60 months after corneal stromal photoablation under a 160 µm flap with the Summit Excimed SVS plus excimer laser (Summit Technology, Inc. Walthan, MA). Mean intended ablation depth was 55±20 µm. Central corneal thickness measurements were carried out with the DGH 2000 AP ultrasonic pachymeter (DGH Technology, Inc., San Diego, USA). Consecutive central corneal thickness readings were made until three consecutive measurements were within 5 mm of each other. The mean of these three consecutive readings was used as the value of central corneal thickness in this study. Preoperative mean central corneal thickness was 556±55 µm; five years later it was 513.41 µm (p<0.001). The difference between the "theoretical" postablative corneal thickness values and the "real" corneal thickness values observed 60 months after stromal photoablation was also significant (p<0.001). Five years after central corneal stromal photoablation using 193 nm UV radiation there was a disparity between the programmed postoperative residual corneal thickness and the corneal thickness obtained by ultrasound pachymetry. Further research is neccesary in order to identify possible unexpected values of corneal thickness after a paracentral corneal stromal photoablation has been carried out.


During the development of multicriteria decision systems, the aggregation fuzzy information sources should be considered. Aggregation operators are the key technique that solve this problem. By assign 0.5 to the generalized triangular norm identity, the harmonic triangular norm operators and strict harmonic triangular norm operators is defined. The properties of the aggregation operators is discussed. We prove the continuous harmonic triangular norm operator does not exist. The operators when the information sources have weights are also given. Four type detail (strict) harmonic triangular norm operators are given. Finally, two measures associated with the operators are defined, one is marginal measure and the other is sensitive measure. Based on the measure, the relationships of those operators and classical operators are evaluated and compared. The result shows that the operators offer a new method to aggregation of fuzzy information sources in fuzzy environments


Afroz Taj examines the text of Saghar Nizami's play Anarkali and compares it to the earlier play of the same name by Imtiyaz Ali Taj. He describes how Saghar's play engages Imtiyaz Ali Taj's text while reworking the Anarkali legend in light of the utopian project of the young Indian republic. A close reading of Saghar's text reveals several linguistic devices metaphorizing Indian linguistic and cultural diversity. After Independence and Partition in 1947, there was a new blossoming of Urdu dramatic literature in both Pakistan and India. The divergent development of these two national literatures is beyond the scope of this article, but in each country Urdu dramatists encountered different opportunities. In Pakistan, Syed Imtiyaz Ali Taj دیس سایتها


Planning and execution of development schemes in Himalayan terrain is always challenging because of inbuilt fragile nature of mountain ecosystem. Landslide hazard zonation (LHZ) mapping on meso-scale (1: 5000-10,000) may guide planners to choose suitable locations for urbanization and expansion in hills. In present work, scope of regional scale LHZ mapping technique has been increased to accommodate more detailed aspects of inherent causative factors responsible for slope instability. This technique also incorporates effects of external causative factors such as seismicity and rainfall as correction ratings. This technique has been effectively applied to prepare a LHZ map on meso-scale in Nainital area. It will be useful for town planners to plan civil constructions in relatively safe zones. In addition, environmentally unstable slopes can be given adequate attention by planning suitable control measures.


Recent investigations have shown a reduction of secondary losses in compressor cascades using a bulb like modification of the profile at the endwall. This paper is focussed on experimental work in comparison of 5 different endwall modifications at a compressor cascade. The cascade is modified near the endwall with a bulb, a medium and a large fillet. The fillet configurations are modified by an axial blunt cut-off at the leading edge. The investigations have been carried out at a profile developed from a hub section of the Dresden Low Speed Research Compressor (LSRC) blade, a compressor profile with a nominal turning of 18 deg. A datum configuration and the 5 other configurations were tested at the Low Speed Cascade Windtunnel (LSCW). For the bulb configuration, an intensified horse shoe vortex was suspected and observed counterrotating to the passage vortex with an influence on its propagation. The interaction of the passage vortex and the suction side profile boundary layer is influenced. The superposition of both is minimized and the losses developing from this effect are significant lower. For the fillet and blunt-fillet configurations, a fillet vortex develops and was observed co-rotating to the passage vortex with an influence on the mentioned interaction as well. Blunt leading edges produce additional losses but the superposition of the growing vortices may reduce the overall losses. The cases show a reduction in losses of 1.9% for 3 deg incidence and a range of 1.2% rise to 1.9% reduction in dependence of the incidence. This equals a reduction of the isolated secondary losses up to 28% with respect to the reference profile. Detailed results of the experiments are presented for the reference and all modified cascades.Copyright © 2004 by ASME


Flexible tube 20 includes an entrance-side fixed end and the outlet-side fixing part and the elastic deformation section 23 is provided therebetween. The elastically deformable portion 23 is provided with a convex arc part (42). In the convex arc portion 42, and three unit 41 which are spaced at regular intervals in the circumferential direction of the installation is provided with a smaller radius of curvature than the circumference S in contact with the portion 41 forming the deformation center. Along the circumference direction, and the concave arc portion formed between the convex arc portion 42, the concave arc portion and a concave curve in each of the outer side. When the elastic deformation part 23 is contracted or expanded, each of the convex arc portion 42 is elastically deformed in the circumferential direction is a concave arc portion elastically deformed in the circumferential direction.


Abstract There is an inherent conflict between the political marketing model of humans and pioneering theories in electoral behavior research. While political marketing logic implies an issue-based and highly volatile voting behavior, voting theories conventionally assume that positional issues have little effect on how individuals vote, and so parties have little incentive to develop issue-based electoral strategies. However, few people would challenge the role that marketing now plays in the modern campaign process. How can we reconcile these theories? This paper revisits the role and impact of positional issues on voting behavior by testing whether specific issues affect different subgroups of voters as contended by the 'issue-public' theory. The results show that previous models underestimate issue voting. Once measurement accuracy is improved and the salience-based heterogeneity of issue effects is taken into consideration, positional issues have non-negligible effects on individual vote choice. Furthermore, salience-based heterogeneity is shown to explain better the variation in issue voting than heterogeneity based on political sophistication.


Dialectical unity based on practice by man and nature is the essence of Marxist human nature concept. It mainly includes that man should start from practice and, by dialectical thinking, grasp the relations between man and nature, the relation between natural ecological system and social system is a dialectical unity, and man should make efforts in keeping ecological equilibrium so as to promote the harmonious development of society and nature. Inspiration we can draw from these ideas of Marx' is that in order to construct ecological civilization it is essential to raise the ecological civilization it is essential to raise the ecological civiliaation awareness of the governments at all levels and the whole people, to do things in keeping with objective law and adhere to the principle of integrating economic benefit, social benefit and ecological benefit in economic construction.


To set up the financial ombudsman service company is a relatively mature third-party financial consumption disputes resolving mechanism in the world. The paper analyzes and studies the operating mode of financial consumer dispute processing mechanism of the financial ombudsman service companies in Britain, Singapore and China's Taiwan area. And on the basis of learning from the international experience, the paper puts forward some suggestions on building the third-party financial consumer dispute processing mechanism.


This paper suggests a research agenda for online social reference using the Socio-Technical Interaction Network (STIN) framework [21]. It addresses the need for more research on social reference, which refers to online question asking and answering services that are provided by communities of volunteers on QA 2) reference research, as it signifies a group collaborative efforts to answer questions instead of the traditional dyadic question negotiation. The proposed research agenda draws from social informatics and suggests questions that address both the social and technological factors at work on Q&A sites.


Objective To investigate the ways to improve the disinfection quality with analysis the detection materials of Shenzhen hospitals and clinics in 2006.Methods 791 hospitals or clinics were inspected and evaluated according to technical standard for disinfection,hygiene standard of hospital disinfection and hospital sewage by Shenzhen CDC and other six districts CDC.Results Except for hands of doctor or nurser had a lowest arerage eligible rate of 91.62%,ultraviolet radiation average eligible rate of 92.55%,other six value items all had eligible rate above 95%,including 98.75% of disinfector.With 21 373 detection samples,the total average eligible rate was 96.05%.Conclusion The disinfection quality is high in Shenzhen hospitals and clinics in 2006.Hands of doctor or nurser have the lowest eligible rate of 91.62%,which needs to be improved.


A combination of Edman sequence analysis and mass spectrometry identified the major proteins of the young human lens as αA, αB, βA1, βA3, βA4, βB1, βB2, βB3, γS, γC, and γD-crystallins and mapped their positions on two-dimensional electrophoretic gels. The primary structures of human βA1, βA3, βA4, and βB3-crystallin subunits were predicted by determining cDNA sequences. Mass spectrometric analyses of each intact protein as well as the peptides from trypsin-digested proteins confirmed the predicted amino acid sequences and detected a partially degraded form of βA3/A1 missing either 22 or 4 amino acid residues from its N-terminal extension. These studies were a prerequisite for future studies to determine how human lens proteins are altered during aging and cataract formation.


PURPOSE: A voice command processing apparatus and a method thereof are provided to increase recognition rate of a voice command without a voice command input process by linking a similar command and the voice command and to supply a similar command list similar to the voice command. CONSTITUTION: A storing unit(10) stores a voice command table. A voice command input unit(20) receives a voice command from a user. A voice command recognizing unit(30) recognizes the voice command based on the voice command table. If the voice command recognizing unit recognizes the voice command as an abnormal voice command, a voice command processing unit(40) supplies a similar command to the voice command and updates the voice command table. [Reference numerals] (10) Storing unit; (20) Voice command input unit; (30) Voice command recognizing unit; (40) Voice command processing unit; (50) Display unit; (60) Key input unit


Asynchronous, specifically QDI circuits are known to exhibit high resilience against faults affecting the timing. At the same time, their event based operation principle makes them susceptible to glitches. While synchronous circuits obtain high resilience through temporal masking that is established through the sampling of data by flip flops, asynchronous designs, by trying to be flexible about the phases of data validity, often have lower masking capabilities. Consequently, previous work has proposed to narrow down the windows in which data changes are accepted, in order to improve the temporal masking in QDI designs.In this paper we study the natural resilience of different QDI templates in more detail and quantitatively determine the windows of vulnerability through extensive fault injection experiments in simulation. To this end we propose a novel way of visualizing and analyzing the sensitivity windows that aids in identifying the key dependencies and vulnerabilities. In addition we introduce and evaluate two low-cost extensions for the pipeline registers which allow either to stall the operation in case a glitch creates an illegal symbol, or to prevent the creation of an illegal symbol in the first place.


Copenhagen Mosaic Congregation in Laederstraede 5 In June 1945 a photo reporter from the Danish illustrated magazine Billed Bladet visited the synagogue in Laederstraede 5 in the old city centre of Copenhagen. The Laederstraede Synagogue was founded by Moses Koch Levy (See Rambam 18/2009) in 1845 and was used until 1955, with the exception of the period between October 1943 and May 1945, when most of the Danish Jews were in exile in Sweden. These unique photographs, most of which were published in 1945, are now published with the kind permission of the Scanpix photographic bureau. They show interesting scenes from a service in the little family synagogue on the second floor of an 18th century townhouse in Copenhagen. The Minjan had returned from their exile in Sweden, and members of the great Synagogue of Copenhagen in Krystalgade were attending the Shul until the Krystalgade Synagogue reopened in June 1945. The great Synagogue had been vandalized by the Nazis during the German occupation of Denmark. Three of the congregants seen on the photographs, which reporter A.E. Andersen took in 1945, are still with us. Bjorn Bamberger of Long Island and Helene Meyer of Copenhagen, who are both descendants of Moses Levy, the founder of the synagogue, tell us about this extraordinary service in 1945, and parts of the article in the Billed Bladet is also cited.


Improving both quality and quantity of food available is a pressing need especially when one eighth of the world's population consumes less energy than is required for maintenance and is exposed to contaminated food, both of which lead to greater susceptibility to diseases. The Pakistani population depends heavily on milk for nutritional needs and 10% of household income is spent on milk. This commodity requires continuous monitoring and care from its site of production by smallholder dairy producers through to urban consumers along tradition milk marketing chains. Feed ingredients used as concentrate feed to enhance milk production are often contaminated with mycotoxins, which, after ingestion, are transferred into milk. Aflatoxins can contribute to the causation of liver cancers, immune system disorders, and growth-related issues in children. Moreover, deaths in both humans and animals have also been reported after ingestion of aflatoxin-contaminated food. Studies have shown contamination of food and feed ingredients with mycotoxins, especially aflatoxins. This review places the dairy industry into context, summarizes how milk and milk products are contaminated with aflatoxins, and discusses the present legislative regulation of milk quality implemented in Pakistan. There is a need to eliminate fungus-susceptible animal feed ingredients, which are the source of mycotoxins so prevalent in the milk marketed to the consumer in Pakistan.


Objective To screen gene mutations of hypophosphatasia patients and enrich the gene mutation database,based on which we can confirm patients'clinical diagnosis and explore its pathogenesis.Methods We extracted genomic DNA from the patients'peripheral venous blood.Genomic DNA sequence of alkaline phosphatase liver/bone/kidney (ALPL)gene was obtained from UCSC and the primers of gene coding region were designed with Primer Premier 5.0.Then we amplified all the exons and performed sequence ananlysis to screen the mutations.Results We found a heterozygotic mutation c.1366GA (p.G456R)in exon 12 of ALPL gene in the proband,and his mother also harbored the same mutation.Conclusion The p.G456R mutation was genetic pathogeny of clinical hypophosphatasia penotypes in this family.


A structured Web-based search was performed to identify online educational programs on the optimal use of antibiotics in children. Identified Web sites of interest were classified using predefined quality criteria for educational Web resources. Of 10 Web sites identified, only 2 met all the quality criteria: APUA and Getsmart.


Social media has become an inevitable part of individuals' social and business lives. Its benefits come with various negative consequences. One major concern is the prevalence of detrimental online behavior on social media, such as online harassment and cyberbullying. In this study, we aim to address the computational challenges associated with harassment detection in social media by developing a machine-learning framework with three distinguishing characteristics. (1) It uses minimal supervision in the form of expert-provided key phrases that are indicative of bullying or non-bullying. (2) It detects harassment with an ensemble of two learners that co-train one another; One learner examines the language content in the message, and the other learner considers the social structure. (3) It incorporates distributed word and graph-node representations by training nonlinear deep models. The model is trained by optimizing an objective function that balances a co-training loss with a weak-supervision loss. We evaluate the effectiveness of our approach using post-hoc, crowdsourced annotation of Twitter data, finding that our deep ensembles outperform previous non-deep methods for weakly supervised harassment detection. We also evaluate on a new benchmark to measure the sensitivity of the detectors to language describing particular social groups.


The 13C NMR of ethylenic carbon atoms in the methylene‐interrupted cis double bonds as found in polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs), their precursors and analogs was studied. The chemical shifts of unsaturated carbon atoms are strongly dependent on a combination of electric field effects from the head group, steric hindrance and the presence of other double bonds. A full set of shift parameters were determined based on a reference value given by a long aliphatic alkene (cis‐6‐dodecene at 129.99 ppm) and various functionalities (double bond, ester, aldehyde, acetal, hydroxyl methyl, etc.) with one, two and three double bonds. Application of shift parameters to polyfunctionalized polyenes, high PUFAs and new analogs of arachidonic acids shows that the method is a convenient way to predict the chemical shift of all ethylenic carbon atoms. © 1997 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.


Abstract

 This paper aims to ground the research paradigm of public engagement within the field of landscape and heritage. Both the European Landscape Convention and the Faro Convention, major international agreements that shape both these dimensions, stress the need to reinforce the democratic nature of projects. This participation needs to go beyond informing stakeholders and formal hearings, and community values and ideas should be included in the planning process. This entails addressing the complexities of stakeholder deliberation and the solution of thorny problems. The present study examines in detail four case studies from the Netherlands, Slovenia and Denmark, in which public participation was crucial in different stages of the project development. The methodologies employed, as well as the effect that such engagement had on the general results, will be highlighted. Finally, the discussion of results will evaluate the findings through the lens of deliberative democracy within territorial planning.


The modelling of transport in international trade theory: the modelling of transport - a special case? the "iceberg" approach (Samuelson-Mundell model) transport as a separate sector which modelling is to be chosen conclusions appendix - the iceberg assumption for linear demand relationships. Transport in traditional trade theory: the basic model partial equilibrium analysis general equilibrium analysis modifications when transport is a separate sector the impacts of transport policy and technological change conclusions appendix - welfare analysis for different transport capital intensities. Transport in new trade theories: new trade theories and transport modelling Neo-Heckscher-Ohlin theories monopolistic competition oligopoly and international transport cost multinationals transport as a separate sector conclusions. Transport in economic geography: integrating trade and location theory - economic geography location rent central place gravity circularity local external economies monopolistic competition models of economic geography conclusions. Foreign trade and spatial preferences: altruism and spatial discounting spatial discounting and transport in partial equilibrium spatial discounting and transport in general equilibrium empirical analysis of the transport and spatial discounting distance-trade-off conclusions appendix - questionnaire. Foreign trade and transport cost internalization: model structure data simulations sensitivity analysis conclusions appendix - transport intensity of foreign trade to and from Austria. Conclusions.


Studies have shown that German students and scientists face massive problems in the efficient acquisition and effective utilisation of information relevant for their work. This can be ascribed to a deficiency in the users' ability to identify appropriate sources of information and to develop successful search strategies. What would help the user would be a system supporting problem-oriented approaches (by adapting to the user's context) and making its suggestions transparent to the user. Thus the user can not only resolve search problems but also improve his or her capabilities in acquisition and utilisation of information. Below the idea for a new assistance system for literature research—called BibTutor—is described. BibTutor combines the idea of problem-orientation and transparency in providing availability, interactivity, and adaptivity. Considering systems for literature research as tools, a system featuring these properties would be more than a tool, namely a kind of assistant. 1 Motivation and goals of the BibTutor system Although humans could not cope with most of their everyday work without using powerful computer systems as tools, often the full capabilities of such tools cannot be exploited just because their users do not know how to use them efficiently depending on their current needs. In particular, depending on a problem context, the user might fail to solve the problem with the given tool, though in general appropriate usage of the tool would lead to the desired solution. A very prominent example illustrating this fact is how systems for searching in large information pools are used. Even with a quite simple architecture, it is possible to use search tools very efficiently in case proper queries are posed to the system. Which kind of queries suits best depends on the problem context. Unfortunately, most users tend to posing queries in such a way that either too many or too few results—or maybe just not the desired results—are returned by the system. Thus a lack of user expertise causes a


The existence and uniqueness of the positive solution for the generalized Lotka-Volterra competition model for several competing species △u^i+u^i(α-g(u^2,…,u^N))=0 in Ω,u^i=0 on δΩfor i=1,…,N were investigated.The techniques used in this paper are elliptic theory,upper-lower solutions, maximum principles and spectrum estimates. The arguments also rely on some detailed properties for the solution of logistic equations.


The invention relates to a table tennis ball serving device, which is obviously characterized by serving all-around spinning ball or plain ball and controlling ball serving speed and rotation direction by modern embedded computer technology to accurately simulate rear ball service scene. The device comprises the following mechanisms: a ball storing and supplying mechanism and a ball throwing and spinning mechanism, wherein the ball storing and supplying mechanism mainly comprises a ball storing cylinder, a rotating disc, a motor and a ball supply tube; and the ball throwing and spinning mechanism mainly comprises a throwing tube, an impeller, a fan, a rotating cylinder, a motor, a friction ring, a suspension frame, a spring, a regulating shaft, a bevel gear and a step motor. The table tennis ball serving device has another characteristic that: the ball serving action of a player is displayed on a liquid crystal screen at each time of ball serving so as to indicate the motion mode of a table tennis ball to be served and better realize the randomization of a ball serving mode. In addition, the table tennis ball serving device has a modular structure, so that the structure of the ball serving device can be increased and reduced according to different user needs to realize the serialization of products.


ABSTRACT. Notes are given on the biology and life history of the new species, Aetherastis grandisalba Heppner, 2021, damaging bark of cinnamon trees (Cinnamomum cassia) in Vietnam, along with morphological characteristics of the immature stages of this new lepidopteran pest.


A tri-band symmetrically truncated modified square slot antenna with enhanced gain integrated with a triple-band rectifier for low-power RF energy harvesting applications is presented in this paper. The antenna triple bands of 1.9 GHz, 3.1 GHz, and 6.4 GHz are obtained by coupling the slot with an optimized microstrip feed line length of 37 mm. To enhance the realized gain, a full copper patch reflector size greater than the antenna size is positioned in the bottom of the antenna at a distance of $\lambda/4$. where $^{\prime}\lambda^{\prime}$ is free space wavelength at the lowest frequency of 1.9 GHz. A single diode series-configuration-based triple-band rectifier along with an impedance matching network is designed at the aforementioned similar frequencies of the antenna. The designed prototypes are fabricated, measured the essential parameters, and compared with the simulation results. The measurement results show that the enhanced gains of the antenna are 4.8 dB, 6.7 dB, and 8.9 dB obtained at the corresponding frequencies, and the rectenna peak conversion efficiency reached 27% at an optimized values of 1 KΩ load resistance and −5 dBm input power. The proposed triple-band rectenna is found to be suitable for low-power RF energy harvesting and wireless power transfer applications.


Aikhenvald claims I take for granted 'large genetic groupings Greenbergian fashion' (p. 143) by repeating Kaufman's (i990, I994) hypothesized larger groupings, inconsistent with my principles for investigating genetic relationships (cf. Campbell 1997: chapters 7 and 8). She apparently missed my warning: 'Most of these [Kaufman's macro]groupings are definitely not to be taken as anything more than hypotheses for further testing' (Campbell 1997: I72). I would have been remiss not to mention them in a survey of classifications of South American languages. Though I chose Kaufman's classification as the most reliable, I did not follow it slavishly; I brought in others' work where differences were relevant.


According to the characteristics and application requirement of aerial camera optical system,a coating method with extinction and good corrosion resistance was established based on permeation type epoxy seal primer,epoxy primer and black flat paint. The selection requirements of primer and surface lacquer,and film's performance were studied. The coating process flow and specifications were introduced. An anticorrosive extinction coating was obtained with exterior coating thickness of 230 μm,inner coating thickness of 30 μm and reflectance less than 5.42%. The coating passed 96 h of neutral salt spray and damp heat tests; it is suitable for use in coating production of aerial camera optical system.


It is assumed that the nonthermal radio continua in the terrestrial and Jovian magnetospheres result from conversion of observed upper hybrid waves into o mode waves. The only favorable conversion mechanism for the escaping terrestrial continuum is coalescence with low-frequency waves, and the most favorable waves are ion-cyclotron waves, which should be generated under conditions similar to those required for generation of upper hybrid waves. It is suggested that the Jovian continuum is in a steady state in which the conversion process is balanced by the inverse process, and it is shown that the implied steady state level is reasonably consistent with observations. To account for the observed spectrum of the Jovian continuum requires that the plasma pressure should be approximately constant over a range ne ≈ 10²m−3 to 105m−3. It is suggested that the terrestrial continuum may escape in bubbles of radiation enclosed by plasma downstream from the magnetotail.


In this paper, we show our current work on CorbaScript: a new object-oriented scripting language dedicated to CORBA. It allows any user to develop their activities by simply, interactively and dynamically accessing objects available on the CORBA bus. Therefore the user is completely free to operate, administrate, conngure, connect, create and delete distributed objects on the CORBA bus. The CorbaScript runtime acquires dynamically the stubs of the object types encountered during navigating in and using CORBA objects. Object invocations are performed via the DII generic stub and are checked with type information extracted from the Interface Repository. In addition, IDL interfaces can be implemented using CorbaScript classes: requests are intercepted and decoded with the DSI generic skeleton. WHY A SCRIPTING LANGUAGE FOR CORBA? Currently the design and deployment of services on CORBA OMG96] GGM97] are entirely based on a "static" approach, where the interactions between client and server programs are set at compilation time: clients contain the stubs for a limited number of CORBA object types that will be invoked at execution time. We consider this approach inappropriate for supporting large scale general services with components that should adapt to changes in data and infrastructure. With the static approach, when a service evolves, the server programs must be updated and redeployed and more importantly the multitude of client programs spread among users must be changed. As CORBA is a complex bus to use, these changes require the help of specialized developers. This makes it diicult to reasonably use CORBA on evolving general services applications.


A total of 20 polymorphic microsatellite loci of the Japanese endangered bagrid catfish, Pseudobagrus ichikawai, are reported. The number of alleles per locus, observed heterozygosity and expected heterozygosity ranged from 2 to 10 (4.8 on average), from 0.03 to 0.82 (0.54), and from 0.05 to 0.81 (0.56), respectively. The microsatellite loci will be useful for studying population structure, genetic diversity and mating systems of P. ichikawai, as well as related species.


Radon transforms allow to represent n-dimensional objects by all their possible (n-1)-dimensional integrals. They find broad usage in a variety of image processing topics, covering pattern recognition and tomographic imaging. Potentially the most frequently used version is the 2D Radon transform which is commonly computed by means of the ray tracing procedure (Siddon, Joseph etc.).1 The problem comes down to a method of approximating a line integral through a 2D pixelized image. For higher dimensions, however, this problem becomes more and more complex and typically involves a substantial amount of case differentiation, making it particularly ill-suited for use in massively parallelized computation (e.g. on GPUs). Additionally, implementation effort is substantial and quite error-prone. Here, we propose a simple strategy to compute the (n-1)-dimensional integrals in a generalized manner by reducing the sampling problem to a single matrix multiplication. We further present OpenCL implementations for n=2 and n=3, making use of hardware interpolation methods on texture memory of GPU devices to provide a fast computation of the transform.


Few issues divide leaders and policy-makers as much as abortion, which regularly sparks heated political, religious and philosophical debates. Numerous states choose to prohibit or criminalize abor ...


We introduce endogenous participation in an economy with labor and financial market frictions. Agents can choose to be workers or entrepreneurs or not to participate in any market. We examine how the transition rates between these three options are affected by productivity shocks (business cycle conditions) and by changes in the level of market frictions (cross-country institutional quality variations).


A set of Co-CoO metal evaporated tapes were prepared with various O/sub 2/ flow rates. Recording tests determined the optimum flow rate and a second set of tapes were prepared at that flow rate with thickness from 33 nm to 103 nm. For thinner tapes the recording carrier to noise ratio is increased while the optimum recording current reduced. Remanence coercivity at 2 ns is about 30% higher than at 100 s and is independent of the thickness. Thermal stability is excellent down to the thinnest tape where KV/kT is still 170.


The existing metadiscourse studies on the comparison of English and Chinese language are relatively few, especially on spoken discourse. The present study examines the use of personal metadiscourse in English and Chinese commencement speeches based on Ädel's reflexive model of metadiscourse and its adaption. The corpus for this study comprises 60 commencement speeches – 30 Chinese and 30 English – delivered in prestigious American and Chinese universities respectively. This study investigates (1) The similarities and differences in the use of personal metadiscourse in English and Chinese commencement speeches; (2) the possible reasons behind these similarities and differences. Qualitative and quantitative analysis indicates that American speeches feature markedly more personal metadiscourse than Chinese speeches. Textual analysis further reveals some similarities and differences in the discourse functions of personal metadiscourse between two sets of texts due to genre characteristics and social-cultural differences. The findings of this study provide some insight into the classification of Chinese metadiscourse and the awareness of cross-cultural communication.


Wellbores in the upper vertical section of cluster wells are typically positioned close together, resulting in a high possibility of wellbore collision accidents. In the drilling process, accurately determining the distance and bearing of the casings of adjacent production wells is key to controlling the wellbore trajectory to avoid collision accidents. In this study, a method is proposed that uses a high-intensity magnet to magnetize a close-range casing and subsequently measures the axial forces on the magnet to determine the casing distance and positioning. Based on the theoretical analysis of the magnet's force, the boundary finite element method is used to numerically analyze the influence of the casing position on the magnet. The force on the magnet decreases exponentially with the increase in casing distance and decreases nonlinearly and rapidly as the angle increases. A method to determine the position of a casing by analyzing the forces on two adjacent magnets is proposed. Based on the fitting of the simulation results, a mathematical model that calculates the casing distance and azimuth is established. A simple experimental device was designed to verify the reliability of the numerical simulations and casing ranging and positioning of the models. The maximal calculation error of the casing distance is determined at 5 mm, and the angle error is less than 2°. Moreover, the actual measured distance is less than 1 m. The angle between the axes of the high-intensity magnets has an important influence on the distance measurement range. The following steps are suggested to improve the detection range of the casing: Improve the remanence of the high-intensity magnet; extend the length of the force arm of the force measuring mechanism; apply a high-resolution torque sensor; and set a smaller angle between the axes of the high-intensity magnets. The proposed method can achieve high-efficiency measurements and calculations of the casing distance and bearing based on a simple measurement structure and low-cost manufacturing. It also has the potential to be applied to multiple short-range casing ranging and positioning scenarios.


An efficient revising method was proposed to revise the display images of a Light Emission Diode(LED) captured by a color CCD camera.Firstly,the uniform standard white board was used to revise the vignetting phenomenon caused by a curved surface of color CCD camera in the manufacturing process.Then,on the basis of the distribution regularity of the lighting distribution curve of the LED,the deviation of LED itself caused by the camera position was revised also.The revising theory and revising process were described.Finally,relative data and conclusion were given.It shows that the uniform mean-square deviations of red,green and blue primaries have been decreased from 4.0% to 1.48%,3.1% to 1.36%,and 3.5% to 1.39%,respectively,after revising.It is shown that this method is an efficient one.It not only eliminates the vignetting phenomenon caused by the curved surface of the camera itself,but also removes the deviation caused by the capturing angle of the CCD camera.The experimental results meet the requirements of image revising basically.


We report a homeotropic liquid-crystal device which has two metastable states when an electric field is applied. The behaviors of these two metastable states are similar to the bistable twist nematic device. We control this device electrically in the rising period to switch it from the homeotropic state toward either the twist or homogeneous state. It not only behaves as a conventional homeotropic cell but also provides another twist structure for further applications. The back-flow effect in the rising period plays an important role in the switching mechanism. The experimental results are described in this letter.


Three ribonucleosides responsible for cytokinin activity in Euglena gracilis var Bacillaris tRNA have been isolated and identified as 6-(3-methyl-2-butenylamino)-9-beta-D-ribofuranosylpurine, 6-(4-hydroxy-3-methyl-cis-2-butenylamino)-9-beta-D-ribofuranosylpurine, and 6-(4-hydroxy-3-methyl-2-butenylamino)-2-methylthio-9-beta-D-ribofuranosylpurine. The structures of these compounds were assigned on the basis of their chromatographic properties and ultraviolet and mass spectra which were identical with those of the corresponding synthetic compounds. The elution profiles of cytokinin bioassay activity and of 35S radioactivity suggest the presence of a trace amount of 6-(3-methyl-2-butenylamino)-2-methylthio-9-beta-D-ribofuranosylpurine.


This article aims to explore new ways to improve dictionary skills for language learners by promoting the use of active dictionary rubrics. It also tries to get a deeper understanding on how students perceive dictionaries before and after this type of training in dictionary use. To this end, a total of 75 students participated in the study and answered a questionnaire on dictionary use previous to the experiment. A second questionnaire was delivered after the instruction period to compare the users' perception of dictionary affordances. A mixed-method approach is used to collect quantitative and qualitative data via both questionnaires. This study reports on students' dictionary content awareness and how this awareness may increase by creating a habit in dictionary use routines. Keywords: dictionary use, dictionary users, dictionary rubrics, English Language Teaching (ELT), dictionary skills, online dictionaries, dictionary consultation, writing skills, learners' dictionaries, dictionary use training


The treatment paradigm for patients who experience sudden, devastating cardiac arrest continues to evolve toward more precise and personalized care with findings from ongoing clinical trials.


Dynamic and static analysis have been proceeded for gravity piers of railway bridges with different spans of 32 meter simple supported concrete beams under the braking force. The analysis shows that although braking force processes the character of an impulsive loading, the maximum forces distributed on piers and abutments, given by two different analysis, are almost the same. This provides the basis to calculate the braking force exerting on piers and abutments by using simple static analysis.


With a decrease in tuberculosis, tuberculosis of the small intestine has become a rare disease recently. We report a case of small bowel tuberculosis causing intestinal perforation during chemotherapy for pulmonary tuberculosis. A 51-year-old man received examination for lower abdominal pain and was found to have active ulcer due to Mycobacterium Tuberculosis just under the Bauhim valve in the ileocecal region. Pulmonary tuberculosis was also noted. Tuberculostatic chemotherapy was started, when the lower abdominal pain was intensified. With a diagnosis of generalized peritonitis, an emergency operation was perfomed. Upon laparotomy, a perforation in the small intestine about 60cm from the terminal ileum was present and generalized peritonitis with transudation of intestinal juice was confirmed. In addition small miliary-sized tubercles were sporadically present on the visceral peritonium. A part of the ileum by 80cm and the ileocecal region were resected. Postoperative course was unevenful. The patient was transferred to another hospital for treatment of tuberculosis. These complications occur uncommonly, but we should be so careful for treatment of Mycobacterium tuberculosis by entertaining these complications.


Introduction: The objective of this study was to investigate the effects of lead on concentration and motility of spermatozoa recovered from epididymis and testes in mature male offspring whose mothers were exposed to different doses and concentrations of lead acetate during gestation period. Materials and Methods : Seventy two healthy mature female mice were divided into three major groups according to the number of injections involving 1, 2 and 3 injections. Each major group was subdivided into four minor groups according to the concentration dose of (0, 25, 50 and 100) mg/Kg of lead acetate. Sperm concentration, percentage of motility and grade of activity were microscopically examined and statistically analyzed. Results : A significant reduction in the sperm functions were seen in relation to an increased in the number of injections and/or concentration of lead acetate dose as compared with the control groups. Conclusion : The toxic effects of lead acetate may interfere with spermatogenesis and metabolism of spermatozoa. KEYWORDS : Lead acetate, Spermatozoa, Sperm motility, Epididymis, Testis.


What effect does religiosity have on adolescent deviance? Past research suggests that adolescent religiosity serves a role in predicting youth deviant behavior. However, does the extent of one's religiosity and the different types of religious behavior affect all types of deviance the same or do these variables differ? And is the effect that religiosity has on deviant behavior in juveniles the same across all denominations? This thesis seeks to explore these questions by utilizing the National Study of Youth and Religion, Wave 1. Data were analyzed using binary logistic regression modeling and linear regression (OLS), to support the author's hypothesis that those with higher reported levels of religiosity correlate with lower levels of generalized deviance. It also explores the association between different denominations and the effects this has on the outcome variables. In the end, the results show that although higher levels of religiosity overall relate to lower levels of deviance, there is not enough support to conclude the effect that religiosity has across different denominations in regards to deviance in adolescents. Peer effects show that those who view themselves as more popular are more likely to engage in deviant behavior and that the differences in religiosity affects individual acts of deviance to a larger extent than a general deviance scale. These results and discussion of outcomes support further research into the context of religiosity and deviance.


The paper refers to a tolerant control method which is reconfigurable to micro-satellites when they are out of order. The integrated approach to the design of thruster control reconfigurable fault-tolerant control system is proposed. The scheme includes a control effectiveness factor and a reconfigurable fault-tolerant controller. The fault detection, diagnosis and controller reconfiguration are carried out using the control effectiveness factor based on the information from a two-stage Kalman filter. By using the two-stage Kalman filter and digital controller, the nonlinear plant will be discretized. We present sufficient conditions under which a discrete-time controller that input-to-state stabilizes an approximate discrete-time model of a nonlinear plant with disturbances. The result shows the method enables us to solve the system faults and meet the requirement when there is a fault in the micro-satellites attitude control system.


The AlO/sub x/ insulating barrier in MTJ was fabricated and analyzed by utilizing a natural oxidation and surface plasmon resonance spectroscope (SPRS) technique. The basic structure of MTJ was Ta/CoFe/AlO/sub x/:natural oxidation/NiFe/Ta. SPRS was used to investigate optimum thickness and dielectric properties of the AlO/sub x/ layers. The SPRS results exhibited changes in the oxidation state of the barrier, depending on the oxidation time. Natural oxidation depth and speed were calculated by comparing SPRS simulation results with experimental ones. It was also found that 8 /spl Aring/ of Al layer is the optimum thickness when MTJ was formed using natural oxidation method.


In a study recently published in Science, Magnon et al. show that both the sympathetic and parasympathetic components of the autonomic nervous system play an integral part in the development and dissemination of prostate cancer (PCa). Inhibition of the sympathetic nervous system (SNS) and disruption of the adrenergic receptors, specifically Ardβ2, resulted in the prevention of primary PCa tumor development in mice. The authors found that inhibition of the SNS is only successful in preventing murine tumor development if completed early enough, and the parasympathetic nervous system (PNS) predominates in later stages of PCa. Inhibition of the PNS by way of the cholinergic receptor, muscarinic 1 (Chrm1), caused mice to develop less metastases to the pelvic lymph nodes, intestines, and bones. A PCa progression scheme has been outlined where initial tumor engraftment is controlled by the SNS but then becomes less prominent than the PNS, which promotes metastasis. The investigators showed the dependence of the autonomic nervous system on development of PCa and present opportunities for prevention; further studies are needed to confirm these results in humans.


ABSTRACT This article reconsiders the US Lebanon policy in the wake of the Lebanese-Israeli Agreement of May 17, 1983. After failing to convince Syrian President Hafiz al-Assad to accept the Lebanon-Israel May 17 Agreement and withdraw from Lebanon, US policymakers adopted a confrontational approach with Damascus. The American-Syrian duel over Lebanon escalated in the summer of 1983 and ended with Assad's victory. The United States disengaged from Beirut, thus paving the way for Syrian control. I use untapped archival sources pertaining to the mission of Robert C. McFarlane, Ronald Reagan's envoy to the Middle East, to shed a new light on these events.


The present work deals with the densification, decomposition and phase analysis of zircon flour in presence of different additives sintered at three different temperature of 15000 C, 1550 0C and 16000 C for a soaking period of 2hours. The study has been done for five different batches, prepared with four different additives – alumina, iron oxide, magnesium oxide, and titanium oxide and fifth batch is without additive. Additives were used at 1 wt% level. Zircon sand and the additives were mixed, pressed and sintered.
The sintered samples were then characterized for the physical properties like, bulk density, apparent porosity, water absorption and shrinkage. Results reveal that the additives used are beneficial for sintering of zircon showing better properties then the reference sample without additives. Phase analysis showed decomposition of zircon and formation of zirconia at high temperature and the phase intensity of zirconia is found to be increased with increasing temperature.


The utility model relates to a circuit board preventing moulding-die glue-overflow, which is suitable for semiconductor capsulation. The circuit board preventing moulding-die glue-overflow is provided with an upper surface, a lower surface and at least one window, wherein, the lower surface is used for placing a wafer. The circuit board comprises a circle levee, the circle levee is positioned on the upper surface, surrounds the window, and is formed by the circuit board in integration. The circuit board preventing moulding-die glue-overflow comprises a plurality of connecting cushions, which are positioned in the circle levee of the upper surface. The circuit board preventing moulding-die glue-overflow comprises a plurality of welding cushions, which are positioned out of the circle levee of the upper surface. The circuit board preventing moulding-die glue-overflow comprises a plurality of conducting wires, which are connected with the corresponding welding cushions and the connecting cushions. The circuit board preventing moulding-die glue-overflow also comprises a layer of welding preventing films which are formed on the upper surface of the circuit board. The circle levee of the utility model has the function that no insulating glue is overflowed on the occasion of die moulding, and the phenomenon that the welding cushions of the circuit board are polluted is avoided. Therefore, the circuit board of the utility model has the effects that the circuit board is not easy to pollute on the occasion of die moulding and glue sealing, and the yield rate of planting balls is further improved.


Newborn rats were malnourished by combining 18 rats with one nursing mother. Controls were kept in normal size litters. At weaning,21 days(d), the rats were studied or fed normally until 60d. The rats were anesthetized and atelectasis produced by airway occlusion after oxygen breathing. With the thorax open static deflation air pressure volume(PV) curves from 30cm H2O maximum pressure were done or saline PV curves from 10cm H20. At 17,21,40 and 60d, 106 control PV curves were obtained. 35 malnourished rats were studied at 21d and 15 rats at 60d. At 21 and 60d the control body wts. were 44.9gm and 281gm and the malnourished rats 27.4 and 200gm.Deflation air PV curves expressed in percent of maximal lung volume(%MVL) were similar in normal and malnourished rats at 21 and 60d. The malnourished 21d rats did have a significant increase in maximal lung volume at 30cm H2O per gm of dry lung wt (LV/gm) compared to 17 and 21d controls. This indicates more distensible lung units or larger alveoli, but after 40d of normal feeding the LV/gm lung wt was the same as controls. In contrast the deflation saline PV curves expressed as %MVL showed a left shift (less recoil pressure) in malnourished rats at both 21 and 60d. The saline curves suggest that malnourished rats at both 21 and 60d have an increased LV/gm dry lung wt. We conclude that severe malnourishment during growth results in an increased alveolar volume to tissue ratio at maximal lung inflation. The saline PV curves suggest that malnutrition causes connective tissue changes which may persist into adulthood.


-1 and priming treatments were 0.0, 0.5 and 1.0 M NaCl. Shoot dry weight (SDW), shoot length (SL), leaves number (LN), leaf area (LA), chlorophyll (Chl) and ion leakage (IL) were measured. Effects of salinity and seed priming on shoot dry weight, shoot length, leaves number, leaf area, chlorophyll and ion leakage were significant (P < 0.01). Increasing salinity up to 12 dS.m -1 negatively influenced all traits except ion leakage and the amount of reduction for the mentioned traits were 75.67, 52.25, 25, 69.97 and 21.17%, respectively, compared to the control. In the case of ion leakage, it was 3.03 times of control. Seed priming compensated the negative effects of salinity on the traits and all of them positively responded to seed priming. Based on these results seed priming with NaCl may be considered as a reliable procedure to increase the maize salinity tolerance.


Consider a coloring of the n-dimensional Boolean cube with c=2/sup s/ colors in such a way that every k-dimensional subcube is equicolored, i.e. each color occurs the same number of times. The author shows that for such a coloring one necessarily has (k-1)/n>or= theta /sub c/=(c/2-1)/(c-1). This resolves the 'bit extraction' or 't-resilient functions' problem (also a special case of the privacy amplification problem) in many cases, such as c-1/n, proving that XOR type colorings are optimal, and always resolves this question to within c/4 in determining the optimal value of k (for any fixed n and c). He also studies the problem of finding almost equicolored colorings when (k-1)/n< theta /sub c/, and of classifying all optimal colorings.<<ETX>>


Use of at least one antiseptic agent combined with a carrier in PARTICULATE comprising at least one of a liposome preparation, a preparation of microspheres, a preparation of nanoparticles, a preparation of PARTICULATE Porous Great or prepared molecules with polymeric coating co pulsed laser, in the manufacture of a pharmaceutical preparation for the prevention or treatment of inflammations in the interior of the human body or ani- bad, wherein the interior consists of those parts of body confined by skin, excluding the ear, the areas of the outer skin and the cavities ranging from the mouth through the gastrointestinal tract to the excretory organs and from the nose to the lungs.


Linux tracing tools are used to record the events running in the background on the system. But these tools lack to analyze the log data. In the field of Artificial Intelligence Cohort Intelligence (CI) is recently proposed technique, which works on the principle of selflearning within a cohort. This paper presents an approach to optimize the performance of the system by tracing the system, then extract the information from trace data and pass it to cohort intelligence algorithm. The output of cohort intelligence algorithm shows, how the load of the system should be balanced to optimize the performance.


Abstract: A piston is a component of reciprocating engines. The purpose of piston is to transfer force from expanding gas in the cylinder to the crankshaft via a piston rod and a connecting rod. It is one of the most complex components of an automobile. In This project we are describes the Thermal analysis by using finite element method (FEM). The specifications used for designing the piston belong to four stroke single cylinder engine of piston. Modeling of piston are done using SOLID EDGE v20. static structural, Thermal and fatigue analysis is performed by using ANSYS WORKBENCH 2022 R1. The parameters used for the simulation are operating gas pressure, material properties of piston. The results predict the maximum stress and strain on pistons using FEA. The best material is selectedbased on static structural, thermal and fatigue analysis. The analysis results are used to optimize piston geometry of best two Materials.


Nowadays, air conditioning systems are commonly found in homes and in public enclosed spaces to create a comfortable environment [1]. Air conditioning has developed to be an integrated industry including environment, energy, machinery, electronics, and automatic control technology, so that its several major trends of development would be health, environmental protection, energy saving, intelligence and diversity. Air conditioning is not only a name of the product, but by using the ideas and methods of air conditioning to create comfort and natural living environment while at the same time reduce the ravages of nature and achieve the real sense harmony of human and nature to maximum extent [2].Air conditioning system is a control system that have complex interactions between physical variables and is too nonlinear. Conventional design methods require the development of a mathematical model of the control system and then use of this model to construct the controller that is described by the differential equations. Mathematical model is an abstraction and cannot perfectly represent all possible dynamics of any physical process. Even if a relatively accurate model of a dynamic system can be developed, it is often too complex to use for development of controller, especially for many conventional design procedures as they require restrictive assumptions for the plant, e.g. linearity. As opposed to conventional control design, fuzzy logic control focus on gaining an intuitive understanding of how to best control the process or plant [3].


This article uses the notion of frugality as an analytical category for the food habits and lifestyles of French rural working-class families in the second half of the nineteenth century. Based on the analysis of family monographs by Le Play and his collaborators, this article demonstrates that the frugality of these families' daily diet is less a reflection of their poverty than an active factor in their savings behavior aimed at preserving their income and securing the family's future. Their efforts to increase their savings had a precise goal—to enable them to leave their industrial employment to become farmers, and more generally, to leave their working-class condition to live an agricultural life. To that end, families economized on their meals by widely resorting to consuming home-grown produce and making their own food—for provisions, they tried to bypass market networks, or poached, and scrupulously avoided the expense of eating out. Using the notion of frugality, this article demonstrates that food provides a key to interpreting the differentiation of lifestyles and consumption within the rural working class.


Over the next 30 years, Canada will be experiencing accelerated aging of its population. The proportion of persons over 65 years of age will rise from the current 13 per cent to 22 per cent in 2031, owing mainly to the arrival of the baby boomers in this age group. In comparison, in most European countries, this increase in the proportion of seniors has been spread over a period of 50 to 60 years. This demographic transformation of Canadian society will impact deeply on all aspects of personal, social, and national life. Consequently, it is imperative that research on aging be given priority in health research. The mission of the Institute of Aging, one of the 13 institutes of the Canadian Institutes of Health Research, is to advance knowledge in the field of aging, in order to improve the health and quality of life of aging Canadians. Created in 2001, the Institute supports biomedical and clinical research, research on health policy and services, and research about the sociocultural aspects of health. The Institute's mission highlights the necessity of using research evidence to shape policy and services. This submission is therefore aimed at informing the work of the Commission on the Future of Health Care in Canada by identifying recent research data, particularly evidence from research done in Canada by the scientists in the institute's community.


Previously we observed that prolonged exposure to propofol anesthesia causes caspase‐3‐ and calpain‐mediated neuronal death in the developing brain. The present study examines the effects of propofol anesthesia on the expression of tumor necrosis factor‐α (TNFα), pro‐nerve growth factor (NGF), and their receptors in the cortex and the thalamus. We also investigated how propofol influences the expression of Akt and X‐linked inhibitor of apoptosis (XIAP) expression, proteins that promote prosurvival pathways. Seven‐day‐old rats (P7) were exposed to propofol anesthesia lasting 2, 4, or 6 hr and killed 0, 4, 16, or 24 hr after anesthesia termination. The relative levels of mRNA and protein expression were estimated by RT‐PCR and Western blot analysis, respectively. The treatments caused marked activation of TNFα and its receptor TNFR‐1 and pro‐NGF and p75NTR receptor expression. In parallel with the induction of these prodeath signals, we established that propofol anesthesia promotes increased expression of the prosurvival molecules pAkt and XIAP during the 24‐hr postanesthesia period. These results show that different brain structures respond to propofol anesthesia with a time‐ and duration of exposure‐dependent increase in proapoptotic signaling and with concomitant increases in activities of prosurvival proteins. We hypothesized that the fine balance between these opposing processes sustains homeostasis in the immature rat brain and prevents unnecessary damage after exposure to an injurious stimulus. The existence of this highly regulated process provides a time frame for potential therapeutic intervention directed toward suppressing the deleterious component of propofol anesthesia. © 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.


The focal point of mathematics education research is to comprehend how students develop and consolidate their abstract mathematical knowledge. As goal of this research, the focus was on exploring the processes that sixth-grade students used to construct mathematical concepts linked to the coordinate system. In this study, a group of eight students was selected for research purposes. Video recordings were used to collect data through observations. The Abstraction in Context (AiC) framework was utilized to analyze the students' processes that took place within the Scratch environment. The research findings suggested that the grade six students successfully constructed most of the anticipated knowledge components, consolidated their previous knowledge related to the zero concept, and began to develop new ones. Specifically, the students were able to construct the concept of zero as a number that is neither positive nor negative, as well as comprehend the X and Y axes.


Bubbles or foam in working fluids greatly influence the dynamic performance of oil hydraulic systems and may cause major trouble because of bulk modulus change, cavitation and aeration inception, degradation of lubrication, noise generation, oil temperature rise and deterioration of oil quality. One of the authors has developed a newly device for bubble elimination capable of eliminating bubbles and of decreasing dissolved gases. This paper documents a performance evaluation of air removal and a performance reduction of oil temperature rise to remove entrained air from the working fluid in the oil hydraulic system by use of the in-line bubble elimination device. The influence of bubbles increasing the temperature of oil and the effects of the bubble eliminetion device are studied through experiments. From the test results, the bubble elimination device has proved to be effective in keeping the oil temperature low in the oil hydraulic system.


During the last decade, the Magdalena River drainage basin has witnessed an increase in erosion rates of 34%, from 550 t km-2 y-1 before 2000 to 710 t km-2 y-1 for the 2000-2010 yr-period, and the average sediment load for the whole basin increased in 44 Mt y-1 for the same period. Sediment yield spatial analysis indicated that 78% of the catchment is under strong erosional conditions due to the clearance of more than 60% of the natural forest between 1980 and 2010. Sediment load simulation by using the BQART, a robust model that combines climatic, morphometric, hydrological, lithologic and human induced variables, and explains 86% of the sediment load variability, indicated that 9% of the combined sediment load during the last three decades was due to deforestation; about 160 Mt have been produced by forest clearance between 2000 and 2010. The trends in economic indicators show that agriculture was the main cause of land-use change and, consequently, of forest loss within the basin. Soil deterioration and increasing trends in erosion require capacity building in environmental governance in addition to climate change mitigation policies.


Five compounds including quercetin (AC01), asparagine (AC02), sucrose (AC03), β-sitosterol-3-O-β-D-glucopyranoside (AC04) and β-sitosterol (AC05) were isolated from the methanol extract of Asparagus cochinchinensis (Lour.) Merr. tuber collected in Ba Ria–Vung Tau Province of Vietnam. Their structures were elucidated by NMR (1D and 2D-NMR). Quercetin (AC01) was subjected to the assay for antioxidant and anticancer activities. The 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) free radical scavenging assay was employed for determining the antioxidant activity, while sulforhodamine B (SRB) method was applied for evaluating the anticancer activity against four selected human cancer cell lines. Quercetin had strong antioxidant activity with IC50 = 14.52 ± 2.12 µg/ml (as compared to standard vitamin C with IC50 = 10.49 ± 2.00 µg/ml). Meanwhile, quercetin (AC01) exhibited strong cytotoxicity against the HeLa, human cervical cancer cell line with IC50 = 5.78 ± 0.36 µg/ml, followed by lung cancer cell line (NCI–H460), lung cancer cell line with IC50 = 12.57 ± 1.19 µg/ml and liver cancer cell line (Hep-G2) liver cancer cell line with IC50 = 20.58 ± 0.85 µg/ml. The anticancer activity of quercetin against breast cancer cell line (MCF-7), breast cancer cell line was recorded with IC50 = 31.04 ± 3.14 µg/ml.

 Key words: Asparagus cochinchinensis, 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH), sulforhodamine B (SRB), human cervical cancer cell line (HeLa), lung cancer cell line (NCI-H460), breast cancer cell line (MCF-7), liver cancer cell line (Hep-G2).


Based on the investigation and study for consultation industry in Nanjing 10 years of development features and trend,it analyzes the advantage of the existing problems in the consulting industry development,and puts forward the Nanjing consulting future development of countermeasures.


Background: Nosocomial infections in PICU vary from 6–26%. Causative pathogens isolated depend upon patient disease, exposure to invasive and non-invasive procedures, and body-system affected.
Objectives: To determine frequency of nosocomial infections, organisms involved, sites affected and clinical outcome in pediatric patients.
Methods: It is a retrospective cross-sectional study on pediatric patients who acquired infections after 48 hours of admission in PICU at King Abdulaziz Medical City during 2012. Data was collected from medical, laboratory records.
Results: 22 (3%) patients acquired nosocomial infections in 684 admissions during year 2012, out of which 12 were female and 10 were male patients. The common incidence was found in first year of age (10 patients). There were a total of 57 events in these patients; respiratory infections were the commonest (24) followed by urinary infections (19). Most common organism involved was Klebsiella (16) followed by Candida (13).
Most common pathogens isolated from respiratory infections were Klebsiella pneumoniae (6) and Pseudomonas aeruginosa (5), while Klebsiella (6) and Candida (5) were found in urinary tract infections. The common organisms causing septicemia included Candida (4) and Klebsiella pneumoniae (4).
In initial 10 days of admission at PICU, 10 patients acquired the infection (median 14 days). Acquisition of nosocomial infections prolonged hospitalization (median 49.5 days).
Conclusion: Nosocomial infections were caused by Klebsiella and Candida. These pathogens mainly caused respiratory, urinary and hematogenous infections, respectively. They have prolonged hospitalization. There is an extensive need for further studies to identify risk factors and review empiric management.


The rhizosphere contains many microorganisms that can promote plant growth and protect the root system against infection by pathogens. Fungi of Trichoderma sp. are included in this group. The aim of this study was to evaluate efficiency of the inoculation of Trichoderma in agronomic performance of cowpea under field conditions, in the savanna in Gurupi, Tocantins, in harvests 2013/2014 to 2014/2015. The treatments consisted in seed treatment, with and without inoculation with Trichoderma asperellum UFT 201 with minimum concentration of viable conidia of 2x109 L-1, at a dose of 20 g kg-1 of seed. Biomass evaluations were made on efficiency, initial and final stands and survival in the use of Trichoderma in the stand maintaining and productivity. The results indicated that the ability of bio-protection and plant growth promotion were of great importance for the biomass production, the stand maintaining and cowpea productivity. In both harvests, survival was superior in the plants treated with Trichoderma, 23.0 and 13.2%, respectively, and yields were 9.5% higher compared to control for the two harvests. In general, the inoculation of Trichoderma provided the best results in the biomass variables analyzed for the two crops with higher productivity.


Abstract Weber's compass is the emblematic instrument of measurement in the field of scientific psychology that emerged during the 19th century. After presenting the vital early work of Weber and the research conducted by his successors, we shall show that Binet was extremely interested in the issues associated with esthesiometry. His experimental research was to show that when we measure an individual's tactile sensitivity, we are in fact performing an exercise in psychology since the decision "one point" or "two points" is in essence a problem of interpretation. He was to emphasize the existence of individual differences which are due, in particular, to the different approaches and interpretations of subjects when they are asked to perform a task requiring them to distinguish between two points applied to certain parts of the body. Thus it is evident that the role of cognition (interpretation, imagination, and selective judgement) is considerable in esthesiometry. Through his highly detailed analysis of esthesiometry, Binet thus anticipated the modern methods of tactile discrimination based on Signal Detection Theory (SDT) which make it possible to distinguish, in the responses, between what is due to the ability to transcode the sensory information and what is due to the processes responsible for interpreting this information.


The spread of HIV had been on the increase over the past years. The approach adopted in redu cing the spread of the virus has not been effective in curbing the disease. The approach has been more ofpost contaminationmeasures of mapping the reported cases of the virus in the hospital. There is need for apre contaminationmeasure of preventin g the contamination of the disease. GIS technology was applied in mapping the geographic location of persons likely to contaminate the virus by their activities. The location of the following Spot (Brothel, street, Home -based, Bar/Night club/ Casino based,Hotel/lodge, Massage parlour, Hostel/campus -based, trailer (truck) stop, Escort (call girl/mobile) and others) were identified vis -‡-vis the target persons (Female Sexual Workers (FSW), Male Sexual Workers (MSW) and Injected Drug Users (IDU)) that visit t he Spot. Sample questionnaire was designed for each of the target person and used to create a database. The result of the query performed shows that Onitsha zone 1 and Awka zone 1 has the highest number of FSWs. This may be attributed to the activities aro und the Spot. No information was obtained for MSW and few Spot were identified where IDU visit in Onitsha and Awka.


Abstracts. Peas is the best-known annual legume forage crop. Creation of a new variety of seed peas Nemchinovsky 50 is a breeding approach to solve the problem of vegetable protein and the production of high-quality feed with a high protein content in grain and in concentrated feed with a high content of essential amino acids (lysine, tryptophan). The analysis of long-term data showed that under various agrometeorological conditions of environmental testing, the variety was characterized by resistance to lodging and major diseases, good productivity in comparison with the previously bred variety Nemchinovsky 100. The increase in yield was facilitated by its high productivity (laying of fertile nodes), the number of seeds in a pod (4-5 pieces), the mass of 1000 seeds is at the level of 180-190 g with a protein content in the grain about 26-28%.


This study investigated the preparation method and adsorption efficiency of porous adsorbents prepared from banana peels (BP) waste. The BP waste was acquired from banana fried chip factories in Sukhothai province. Chemical activation by sulfuric acid was used to activate the raw material, followed by carbonization at 500 °C. The activated BP adsorbent has been characterized by energy dispersive X-ray spectrometer (EDXRF), N2 adsorption-desorption isotherms (BET), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and zeta potential measurements. The analysis of chemical properties showed that it mainly contained 70.39 % K matter. The specific surface area of the BP sample reached 215.05 m2/g under acid activation and thermal treatment. The SEM images showed the morphologies of the BP adsorbent before and after activation. There was a significant change in the morphology and in the dried BP and activated BP. The pHPZC value of the activated BP obtained under optimal conditions was 4.13. Adsorption of indigo carmine (IC) onto porous activated BP at different initial IC concentrations (10 - 100 mg/L) and contact times (30 - 120 min) was investigated using batch experiments (0.1 g/50 mL). At an optimum contact time of 60 min, maximum adsorption capacity was determined at 56.18 mg/g. The Freundlich isotherm model with a high correlation coefficient was used to describe multilayer adsorption. The kinetic study fit well with a pseudo second-order kinetic model that represented chemisorption. The negative deltaG° value of –14.64 kJ/mol indicated that adsorption of IC onto the BP adsorbent was spontaneous in nature at 305.15 K.
HIGHLIGHTS

Increase the value of the biomass resources was produced form banana peels as high surface area adsorbent
The qmaxfor indigo carmine (IC) adsorption was 56.18 mg/g under optimized conditions
The adsorption of the IC follows the Freundlich model and pseudo-second order kinetic model
Negative deltaG° value indicated the possibility of IC adsorption process

GRAPHICAL ABSTRACT


The present study aims to identify effects due to convection heat transfer in a microtube enclosure. Different Reynolds numbers for different types of convection flow of a water-Al2O3 nanofluid in a circular tube subjected to a constant wall temperature was numerically analyzed. The single-phase model was employed to simulate the nanofluid convection, taking into account constant thermophysical properties. Simulations have been carried out for the volumetric fraction of alumina nanoparticles, = 0–4%. It is found that heat transfer flux for nanofluids is greater than that of the base liquid. Heat transfer enhancement is increasing with the particle volume concentration and Reynolds number. A study on wall shear stress was attempted, too.


Urban sprawl is a growth pattern causing much interest and concern and, in consequence, has been a topic of growing interest to a wide body of researchers from many different disciplinary backgrounds. The past 15 years has seen a veritable flourish of intensive empirical case studies devoted to various aspects of this phenomenon and coming from an increasing variety of countries. In an effort to understand the latest currents in empirical research on urban sprawl, the author conducted a thorough review of case studies since 1996, seeking to highlight new findings among the various themes addressed in the research. They revealed a great number of case studies on urban sprawl emerging from China, many case studies devoted to measuring urban sprawl, as well as throwing into question the widely held assumption that sprawl is always driven by population and economic growth.


According to the shortage of common curve matching algorithms which can't process rotation and scaling,a curve matching method of Freeman Chain Code(FCC) is proposed. An inflection point detection algorithm based on the accumulative of FCC and chain code difference is designed. Calculating the start point and the direction of the curves,the inflection point sequence which doesn't change with rotation and scaling is obtained. The curves are matched by the length and the angle of the inflection point sequence. This method isn't suffered with rotation and scaling,it has small computation and is easy to realize. The simulation experimental results show that the algorithm is effective and reasonable.


Oxide semiconductor‐based complementary inverter technology is one of the crucial topics to advance oxide device technology to the next stage of development. However, the absence of high‐performance p‐channel oxide thin‐film transistor (TFT) hinders the development of oxide‐complementary inverter circuit. Tin monoxide (SnO) is a promising oxide semiconductor to develop not only p‐channel but also ambipolar oxide TFTs. However, the understanding of device operation mode in SnO‐TFT is still insufficient to control the TFT operation modes and to further improve the device performance. The origin of switching mechanism behind the different operation modes in SnO‐TFT is clarified by performing back‐channel defect engineering. It is found that back‐channel subgap defects that involve deep donor‐like and deep acceptor‐like states control the device operation modes of SnO‐TFT. High‐density defects remove the ambipolarity from SnO‐TFT and make the device to only operate in p‐channel mode. ALD‐Al2O3 passivation effectively reduces these defects and produces good ambipolar SnO‐TFTs with p‐channel mobility of ≈1.2 cm2 V−1 s−1 and n‐channel mobility of ≈0.03 cm2 V−1 s−1, respectively. The complementary‐like inverter is fabricated using two identical ambipolar SnO‐TFTs and exhibits the voltage gain of 64.1 ± 12.0 and 48.8 ± 6.8 for the first and third quadrants, respectively.


Recent financial crises seem to have led to the broad consensus that developing countries should steer clear of exchange rate regimes that lie anywhere between the two extremes or lcorner solutionsr of credibly fixed or flexible arrangements. But is this a reasonable position to adopt? Would developing countries be well advised to follow this policy recommendation? Should developing countries opt only for the corner solutions? Did the crisis-hit South-east Asian countries (Indonesia, Malaysia, Thialand and Philippines), make a mistake in effectively pegging to the US dollar rather than in pegging per se? Did pegging to the US dollar constitute a sub-optimal peg? If it did, what would have been the optimum peg? This paper attempts to provide answers to the preceding questions. The paper also conjectures more broadly about monetary policy in developing countries. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.


A preliminary study of hydrological effects of litters layer and soil layer was carried out in five kinds of natural forest stands in mountain of SongShan.The result showed that: The litter total storage capacity was about 3.68 t.hm-2-27.90 t.hm-2,order: Populus davidiana pure forest Pinus tabuliformis pure forest Acer elegantulum pure forest Quercus mongolica pure forest Ulmus d avidiana Planch pure forest,the maximum water holding capacity ranged from 17.11 t.hm-2to 89.14t.hm-2,order: Pinus tabuliformis pure forest Populus davidiana pure forest Acer elegantulum pure forest Quercus mongolica pure forest Ulmus davidiana Planch pure forest.The modified interception amount of Populus davidiana pure forest was the strongest to54.41 t.hm-2,Ulmus davidiana Planch pure forest was the worst to 12.00 t.hm-2;Without decomposition litter in 8h,and semi-decomposition litter reached saturation in 6h,Water holding capacity and soaking time of without decomposition litter and semi-decomposition litter both had visible logarithmic relationship,R 0.95;in first half-hour,the absorption rate is the largest,the rate was obviously slowed down after 4h,the relationship of absorption rate and immersion time was power function,R 0.97;The average of soil bulk density ranged from 1.14 g.cm-3 to 1.59 g.cm-3,total soil porosity was about 27.75%-33.92%;The soil water-holding capacity of Ulmus d avidiana Planch pure forest was the most powerful to 37.27 t.hm-2,and Populus davidiana pure forest was the worst to 23.27t.hm-2,infiltration rate and infiltration fit time was power function,R 0.95.


Measurements of the 23Na nuclear magnetic resonance spectra in samples of sodium beta alumina are interpreted in terms of sodium diffusion and water absorption. Intense motional narrowing is observed below room temperature consistent with the low activation energy for diffusion. The 23Na spectra from finely powdered material show effects, similar to those observed in zeolites, due to absorbed water. The quadrupole interaction decreases markedly with increasing water content indicating the penetration of water into the beta alumina structure on a molecular scale.


Few parliamentary measures in modem times generated as much contemporary concern as the Great Reform Bill of 1832, a phenomenon historians have naturally attempted to explain in some detail. Designed primarily to correct perceived abuses and inequities in England's electoral system, the bill provoked intense debate over the future course reform appeared to chart. Opponents viewed the bill's probable impact as an unqualified disaster, while proponents saw it as nothing less than political salvation. After 1832, disagreements over the act's effects were just as vehement and varied, leaving historians the task of separating the rhetoric from the reality of English politics in the first half of the nineteenth century. Two of the most pressing questions in recent years have been how reform politicized the electorate and how it affected behavior at the polls. The interpretation that currently dominates minimizes the impact of reform. An analysis of Shrewsbury politics between 1819 and 1841, however, indicates that reform redefined both political discourse and political behavior. Agitation for reform blended local and national political concerns; the electorate responded by closing partisan ranks. Once behind party banners, Shrewsbury's voters rarely defected. Shrewsbury's experience further suggests that even in England's broadly participatory unreformed political system, one already familiar with parties and issues, the Great Reform Bill of 1832 transformed the rhetoric and reality of political life.


The invention provides a method and a system for cooperatively tracking a target by an unmanned aerial vehicle cluster. The method comprises the following steps of: establishing a wireless communication network for the cooperatively operated unmanned aerial vehicle cluster, and detecting a tracked target by utilizing an onboard sensor; when an optional unmanned aerial vehicle in the unmanned aerial vehicle cluster detects the target, processing detection data of the optional unmanned aerial vehicle, and broadcasting processing information to the other unmanned aerial vehicles; acquiring relative distances and relative angles among each unmanned aerial vehicle, the tracked target and the rest unmanned aerial vehicles in the unmanned aerial vehicle cluster according to the processing information by each unmanned aerial vehicle in the other unmanned aerial vehicles; constructing an environmental space potential field by each unmanned aerial vehicle in the other unmanned aerial vehicles according to the relative distances and the relative angles among each unmanned aerial vehicle, the tracked target and the rest unmanned aerial vehicles in the unmanned aerial vehicle cluster by each unmanned aerial vehicle in the other unmanned aerial vehicles, and calculating a resultant force of the potential field; and when the resultant force of the potential field is smaller than a safety threshold, controlling the corresponding unmanned aerial vehicle to track the tracked target. According to the method provided by the embodiment of the invention, sensor information is shared by utilizing the unmanned aerial vehicle cluster, and the high efficiency and the instantaneity of the cooperative target tracking are guaranteed.


1 Jimi Hendrix, People, Hell, and Angels (New York: Legacy, 2013), CD-Rom. 2 In addition to this version, in 2012, the Dublin Ithys Press published a special edition of two hundred copies, of which twenty-six are lettered quartos ($1,500); 170 are numbered double-elephant sextos ($500); and four are hors commerce. Italian, Greek, and Danish editions have also been published—see James Joyce, I Gatti di Copenhagen (Milan: Giunti Editore, 2012), ΟΙ ΓΑΤΕΣ ΤΗΣ ΚΟΠΕΓΧΑΓΗΣ (Athens: Psichogios Publications, 2012), and "Københavnerkatte" (Copenhagen: Gyldendal, 2012). 3 Joyce, The Cat and the Devil, illus. Richard Erdoes (Eau Clare, Wis.: E. M. Hale, 1967). 4 See Alison Flood, "James Joyce's Children's Story The Cats of Copenhagen Gets its First Publication," The Guardian (9 February 2012), <www.guardian. co.uk/books/2012/feb/09/james-joyce-childrens-story-cats-copenhagen>. The quotations here are from an interview Flood conducted with Anastasia Herbert and representatives of the Ithys Press. 5 "James Joyce Children's Book Sparks Feud," BBC News (10 February 2012), <www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-16982445>. The quotations are from an interview conducted by BBC News with Herbert. 6 See Terence Killeen, "Joyce's Children's Story Published in Dublin to Dismay in Zürich," The Irish Times (8 February 2012), 1. Further references to the text will be cited parenthetically in the text. 7 See Esther B. Fein, "A Lost Work by James Joyce Fuels Scholarly Debate," The New York Times (14 October 1992), <www.nytimes.com/books/00/01/09/ specials/joyce-lost.html>. 8 Patricia Hutchins, Ezra Pound's Kensington: An Exploration, 1885-1913 (Chicago: Henry Regnery, 1965), p. 18.


This paper describes the development of several machine translation systems for the 2009 WMT shared task evaluation. We only consider the translation between French and English. We describe a statistical system based on the Moses decoder and a statistical post-editing system using SYSTRAN's rule-based system. We also investigated techniques to automatically extract additional bilingual texts from comparable corpora.


Objectives: This study was conducted to assess the outcome of the use of the Accent method of voice therapy as an initial approach for patients with benign vocal fold lesions. Patients and Methods: This experimental prospective study was conducted on 30 patients (10 females and 20 males), aged 18 - 60 years (mean age: 40.6) with benign vocal fold lesions. Auditory perceptual analysis, videolaryngoscopic examination of the larynx, acoustic analysis and Voice handicap index (VHI) were performed for all patients before and after voice therapy. Results: Auditory perceptual assessment and voice handicap index (VHI) done for patients with benign vocal fold lesions before and after voice therapy revealed significant improvement ( p value 0.003 : p value 0.000 respectively). The acoustic parameters for the different group of benign vocal fold lesions pre-therapy in comparison to the acoustic values post voice therapy revealed significant improvement in the fundamental frequency ( p value >0.001 ). Videostroboscopic examination revealed complete recovery in 6 cases of vocal fold nodules, mild improvement of 5 cases of vocal fold polyp with complete cure of one case. There was mild improvement of all cases of vocal fold cysts, contact granuloma and Reinke's edema without complete cure except for complete cure of two cases of Reinke's edema. Conclusion: The Accent method of voice therapy may lead to an improvement in the perceived voice quality in some patients with benign vocal fold lesions, and this could make surgical intervention unnecessary.