England and France provide a striking contrast in one hundred years between 1689 and 1789. At the outset of their rivalry, England was the weaker state according to traditional indicators of power such as population and size of the economy. However, with the exception of the American Independence War, France lost every major war in this period. England`s financial power played a major role in the surprising outcome. Historians called this achievement of England as "the financial revolution". This article aims to analyse this phenomenon, examining the quantitative studies over the sovereign borrowing of the two nations and comparing their different debt policies. A comparison with France serves to highlight the peculiarities of England and to find out the conditions of "the financial revolution". First, in contrast to France which relied more and more on a variety of short-term and life-contingent borrowings, in England, the funded debt(almost exclusively perpetual rents) held a fairly 85% share of the government debt. So England didn`t need to redeem any of its debt, and the rate of interest could be lower on borrowing. Second, the partisan politics had an important role in building an trust among public creditors as much as the constitutional regimes of England. The party politics gave not only consistency and coherence to debt policy but also the political voice to the merchants, businessmen and financiers(the so-called "moneyed interest") Third, English financial system was transformed by the development of a organized capital market in London. This new market endowed her government bonds with liquidity, negotiability, and alienability.


This review reveals a conflict between the theories oriented to the spectator and context, and the theories focused on the text. There are, in fact, two approaches to evaluate the emotional effects provoked by films: the cultural studies approach, which is based on pragmatics and gender oriented theories, and focuses on the social and subjective conditions through which cinema is experienced, and the approach of structural semiotics and cognitive theory, which focuses on the way a film text tries to direct the spectator"s emotional experience. In the middle of these two approaches, the psychoanalytical theory conceives the filmic experience as a simulation of daily life.


The pH, conductivity and the concentration of 15 selected elements were measured in the water extracts of five coal fly ash samples collected from Savannah River Site (SRS) and one from South Carolina Electric and Gas (SCE & G) power plant. This work was intended to study the differences in the physico-chemical properties of SRS fly ash samples relative to those of a reference sample (SCE & G) and to make fly ash-amended composts for agricultural use. similar analyses were also performed in water extracts of a commercial organic manure, 'Gotta Grow', that was composted with one of the fly ash samples (SRS 484-D) in different proportions. Our results show that fly ash samples used in this study differ considerably in pH, conductivity, and elemental composition and that transitic, n metals appear to bind more tightly on smaller particles than on larger ones. The elementally rich manure, 'Gotta Grow', is not suitable to study the effects of fly ash on the elemental release from fly ashamended composts, Low grade or home-made organic composts are being investigated as possible choice for making fly ash-amended composts.


A technique is presented for the automatic acoustic detection of beaked whale (family Ziphidae) foraging echolocation clicks. The technique currently employs a three‐stage process. The first stage is an acoustic detection screener that uses a submillisecond detection window. The second stage analyzes for click frequency modulation characteristic of two species of beaked whale (Mesoplodon densirostris and Ziphius cavirostris). The third stage performs temporal filtering to reduce false positives using information such as individual beaked whale interclick interval characteristics. Results from nine test files (90 min of data from US Navy instrumented test ranges AUTEC and SCORE) show good performance on eight of the nine test files. The ninth test file (short finned pilot whale) exhibited 930 (assumed) incorrect calls out of 9893 screener detections (9.4%). Over 70 000 min of data from the US Navy Pacific Missile Range Facility were also processed with third stage detections ranging from 3423 to 84 240 bea...


The local structure of liquid water plays a key role in determining the anomalous properties of water. We run all-atom simulations for three microscopic water models, and use multiple order parameters to analyse the local structure of water. We identify three types of local structures. In addition to the well known low-density-liquid and high-density-liquid structures, the newly identified third type possesses an ultra high density and overcoordinated H-bonds. The existence of this third type decreases the rate of transition from the high-density-structure to low-density-structure and increases the rate of the reverse one, leading to the enhancement of the high-density-structure stability.


We present an effective classical theory for the soft modes of a high temperature non-Abelian plasma. This theory is formulated in local Hamiltonian form, and is well suited for numerical non-perturbative studies of the real-time dynamics. It includes the short-range dynamics in the hard thermal loop approximation, with appropriate corrections which take care of the cutoff effects in a gauge-invariant way. By using this theory for lattice calculations, one should be able to compute the rate of anomalous baryon number violation, thus solving a recent controversy. ∗Laboratoire de la Direction des Sciences de la Matière du Commissariat à l'Energie Atomique Motivated by several physical problems — chiefly among them, the calculation of the rate of hot anomalous baryon number violation [1] — there is currently a large interest in the non-perturbative real-time dynamics of soft fields in hot gauge theories. The non-perturbative phenomena are generally associated with long wavelength (λ >∼ 1/g T ) quasistatic (ω <∼ g T ) magnetic field configurations, the only ones which are not screened at the scale gT by collective phenomena. (T denotes the temperature, assumed to be large enough for the coupling constant g(T ) to be small: g ≪ 1.) Since Euclidean lattice gauge theory, which is the standard non-perturbative tool, is not well-suited for real-time calculations, much effort has been spent on numerical simulations of the classical Yang-Mills theory [2, 3, 4]. The justification for the classical approximation is that the relevant soft modes have large thermal occupation numbers and should therefore exhibit a classical behaviour. However, it has been recently recognized [5, 6] that the high-temperature baryon violation rate Γ could be sensitive to the hard thermal modes (with momenta ∼ T ), for which the classical description is not appropriate (recall, e.g., the Rayleigh-Jeans ultraviolet divergence). The hard modes cause the damping of the soft field configurations, an effect which is predicted to reduce Γ by a factor of g as compared with its classical estimate. In order to verify this prediction, and eventually compute Γ, one has to treat properly the hard, quantum, modes. Since the latter are perturbative, they can be explicitly integrated over to yield an effective theory for the soft modes, to be eventually used in classical numerical simulations. The effective theory obtained by integrating out the hard modes to leading order in g involves non-local corrections to the soft fields propagators and vertices, known as "hard thermal loops" (HTL) [7, 8, 9]. They encompass the damping phenomena alluded to before. It has been already proposed in Ref. [10] to use the HTL effective theory as a classical lattice theory for computing Γ (see also Refs. [6, 11]), but this raised some technical problems which remained unsolved up to now. The first problem refers to the gauge-


Again on the cuckoo (Plautus, Asin. 923) and the erotic sphere. With a new analysis based on ancient and modern parallels, the authors reinforce the erotic interpretation of the Plautine words at etiam cubat cuculus which they have previously proposed.


In this paper, different methods of parametric design based on UG and database is analyzed and characteristics of all sorts of parametric design process is discovered. All the works provide a reference for the different level operators who try to find suitable parametric design approach when they design different object.


Human papillomavirus (HPV) infections are the main cause of cervical and oropharyngeal cancer. As prophylactic vaccines have no curative effect, an efficient therapy would be highly desired. Most therapeutic vaccine candidates target only a small subset of HPV regulatory proteins, namely E6 and E7, and are therefore restricted in breadth of their immune response. However, research has suggested E1 and E2 as promising targets to fight HPV+ cancer. Here, we report the design of adenoviral vectors efficiently expressing HPV16 E1 and E2 in addition to transformation-deficient E6 and E7. Vaccination elicited vigorous CD4+ and CD8+ T-cell responses against all encoded HPV16 proteins in outbred mice and against E1 and E7 in C57BL/6 mice. Therapeutic vaccination of C3 tumor-bearing mice lead to significantly reduced tumor growth and enhanced survival for both small and established tumors. Tumor biopsies revealed increased numbers of tumor-infiltrating CD8+ T cells in treated mice. Cisplatin enhanced the effect of therapeutic vaccination, accompanied by enhanced infiltration of dendritic cells into the tumor. CD8+ T cells were identified as effector cells in T-cell depletion assays, seemingly under regulation by FoxP3+CD4+ regulatory T cells. Finally, therapeutic vaccination with Ad-Ii-E1E2E6E7 exhibited significantly enhanced survival compared to vaccination with two peptides each harboring a known E6/E7 epitope. We hypothesize that this difference could be due to the induction of additional T-cell responses against E1. These results support use of this novel vaccine candidate targeting an extended set of antigens (Ad-Ii-E1E2E6E7), in combination with cisplatin, as an advanced strategy to combat HPV+ cancers.


A case of complete Ganser syndrome resolved after one week, but was immediately followed by a major depressive episode. The two disorders had a common cause, which is best encapsulated in a psychodynamic formulation.


Background: School lunch programme provided by government of India at free of cost, its components use in the clinical settings are well defined, the present study aims at assessing the parent's awareness regarding school lunch programme (SLP). Objectives 1. To assess the awareness of parents regarding school lunch programme. 2. To assess the awareness of parents regarding school lunch programme. Method: A study was used to assess the awareness of parents regarding SLP at Bagadpur, Uttar Pradesh. Data was collected from 80 samples using convenient sampling technique by structured questionnaire. The collected data was analysed using descriptive and inferential statistics and presents in the form of tables and figures. Result: 1.25% parents have adequate level of awareness, 73.75% have moderate level of awareness and 25.00% have inadequate level of awareness. Conclusion: There was no statistically significant association between sociodemographic variables of the respondents with their level of awareness.


The invention discloses a two-station slitting machine. A spindle system comprises a slitting station spindle system and a tool changing station spindle system; the slitting station spindle system comprises an upper spindle I, a lower spindle I and a slitting station gear transmission system; the tool changing station spindle system comprises an upper spindle II, a lower spindle II and a tool changing station gear transmission system; and when a circular cutter arranged by the upper spindle I and the lower spindle I works, the upper spindle II and the lower spindle II which are arranged at the other side of a spindle bracket II can be used for carrying out installation of the other circular cutter. The two-station slitting machine has reasonable structure, low production cost, short tool changing time and high production efficiency.


Objective To evaluate the accuracy of Root ZX and ProPex root apex locators in detecting vertical root fractures.Methods Root ZX and ProPex were used to measure the lengths of root canal in teeth with vertical root frac-ture.The actual length of root canal was measured after the teeth were pulled out.The lengths measured by two kinds of root apex locators were compared with actual canal length.Results Root ZX and ProPex could detect the vertical root fracture.The lengths measured by two kinds of root apex locators were shorter than that of primary canal(P0.001).And there was no statistically significant difference between the group of root apex locators and group of actual length(P0.05).Conclusion The root apex locator is very helpful in diagnosing vertical root fracture.


Introduction: Although the advantages of intraoperative imaging in intra-axial tumors are well documented, their role in skull base surgery is not clarified yet. Here, we used an integrated hybrid operating room equipped with a flat panel arm for intraoperative angiography, interventional procedures, and CT acquisition for skull base tumor procedures and describe our initial experience with 19 procedures. Methods: A flat panel system, integrating a pivoting C-arc intraoperative CT (Philips Allura FD20), a surgical microscope (Zeiss Pentero), and infrared-based neuronavigation (Brainlab VectorVision II) was used. Intraoperative 3D angiography and same-session interventional procedures were also possible. Acquisition of images was performed pre-, peri-, or postoperatively. Results: Nineteen surgeries were performed on 15 patients from February 2008 to September 2012: 7 meningiomas (2 foramen magnum, 1 pontocerebellar, 1 sellar, 1 petrosigmoid, 1 jugular foramen, 1 petroclival), 9 chordomas and chondrosarcomas (6 of the clivus, 2 petrous, 1 petroclival), 1 foramen jugular schwannoma, 1 suprasellar teratoma, and 1 petrous breast cancer metastasis. Neuronavigation was used in 12 surgeries. An intraoperative CT was done and correlated to navigation in 5 patients (1 meningioma and 4 chordomas/chondrosarcomas) for resection control in 7 cases, and anatomical orientation in 2 cases. Intraoperative CT imaging was categorized as useful in all patients who had intraoperative CT (9/19, 47%) by helping surgical decisions (change or confirmation of surgical plan). Associated interventional procedures (one immediate preoperative tumor embolization and one endovascular obliteration of an associated dural arteriovenous fistula) were done in two patients. Conclusion: Perioperative CT imaging and navigation can be successfully integrated in skull base procedures without significantly disrupting the surgical workflow. The main advantages of this setting are real-time anatomic orientation and resection control when needed. Moreover, the possibility of one-session pre- or postoperative CT imaging, vascular imaging, or associated interventional procedures can further optimize surgical workflow. Overall, we judge that an integrated interventional suite and perioperative CT imaging increase the comfort of the surgeon in many procedures, although intraoperative CT was not always judged necessary. Whether integrated perioperative imaging increases resection rates or avoids complications needs to be assessed in further studies with more patients.


Resource extraction from the ocean comes with ecosystem-wide risks, including threats to its biota such as the habitat forming corals that support elevated biomass and biodiversity. Despite catastrophic incidents like the Deepwater Horizon oil spill (DWHOS) disaster that occurred in 2010, offshore oil and gas drilling continues to occur around the world. Previous work investigating the toxicity of oil and the chemical dispersant used in an attempt to mitigate the effects of the DWHOS revealed that the dispersant elicits a stronger, negative physiological response than oil alone. However, little is known regarding the specific ways in which these anthropogenic pollutants impact organisms at the cellular level. To investigate the impacts of each pollutant and their synergistic effects on corals, we analyzed the transcriptional responses of the deep-sea octocorals Callogorgia delta and Paramuricea type B3 following 12 h of exposure to oil, dispersant, and mixtures of oil and dispersant. Analyses revealed that the highest levels of significant differential gene expression were found among the treatments containing dispersant, which corresponds to the significant effects observed in physiological experiments. Functional analyses of annotated transcripts further suggest both species- and colony-specific responses to the exposures, likely due to underlying cellular and physiological differences. However, some commonalities were observed among the responses to chemical stress across treatments and species, including immune and cellular stress responses, altered energy metabolism, and oxidative stress, elucidating how corals respond to chemical pollutants. As resource extraction is an ongoing threat, this study demonstrates the importance of considering the varied and diverse responses of biota to anthropogenic disturbances and the implications of introducing chemicals into vulnerable ecosystems like those associated with deep-sea corals.


The stator-less wind-driven electric generator has two wind wheels respectively installed to rotor shaft of internal and external coils and shaft barrel of permanent magnet rotor. Wind drives two wheels to rotate, which respectively drive the rotor shaft and shaft barrel to rotate in different directions, so the magnetic force lines of permanent magnet are cut by internal and external coils, so generating electricity efficiently.


A jacket (2) for a load-bearing, lengthy body (3), wherein the jacket (2) is comprised of a plurality of braid elements (12) which, when braided, enclose at least a portion of the lengthy body (3), and wherein the braid element (12) is comprised of a braided ribbon. A method of forming the jacket (2) is also described.


Both operating conditions and lubrication key problems about the spindle in the high speed machine tool were analyzed.One kind of fog lubrication system suiting to its spindle was designed.For the system,driven by the compressed air,the lubricating oil formed oil fog with the satiation states,and then was injected to the bearing surface to form the lubrication oil film and achieve the aim of lubrication.This fog lubrication system has many advantages such as better lubricating effects,lower consumption of lubricating oil,better heat emission capacity,lower cost,easier to maintenance and manage and the limit speed of rolling bearing can be improved significantly.


The engineering design of an integrated target assembly of IFMIF lithium target was performed in IFMIF/EVEDA project for a high intensity neutron source. In the evaluation of the design, a thermos-structural analysis of was evaluated by ABAQUS code, and the modeling region was a part of the target assembly which was from the inlet nozzle to the outlet pipe. The material of the target assembly including the back plate was F82H steel. In the thermal-structural analysis, the normal operations and start/stop or abnormal operations were evaluated at 250 or 300 °C operation of Li flow in inlet pipe. The result showed that the temperature of the target assembly was evaluated to be still lower than the Li boiling point of 344 °C under a vacuum pressure of 10 Pa. In a temperature constant operation, the calculated stresses and displacements were small enough for thermal soundness of the target assembly in steady states. In a transient cooling process from 300 °C to 20 °C through 250 °C, the maximum Mises stress was found to be 372MPa, which was lower than the yield stress at 300 °C.


Segmentation and measurement of cardiac chambers is critical in cardiac ultrasound but is laborious and poorly reproducible. Neural networks can assist, but supervised approaches require the same laborious manual annotations. We built a pipeline for self-supervised (no manual labels) segmentation combining computer vision, clinical domain knowledge, and deep learning. We trained on 450 echocardiograms (93,000 images) and tested on 8,393 echocardiograms (4,476,266 images; mean 61 years, 51% female), using the resulting segmentations to calculate biometrics. We also tested against external images from an additional 10,030 patients with available manual tracings of the left ventricle. r2 between clinically measured and pipeline-predicted measurements were similar to reported inter-clinician variation and comparable to supervised learning across several different measurements (r2 0.56-0.84). Average accuracy for detecting abnormal chamber size and function was 0.85 (range 0.71-0.97) compared to clinical measurements. A subset of test echocardiograms (n=553) had corresponding cardiac MRIs, where MRI is the gold standard. Correlation between pipeline and MRI measurements was similar to that between clinical echocardiogram and MRI. Finally, the pipeline accurately segments the left ventricle with an average Dice score of 0.89 (95% CI [0.89]) in the external, manually labeled dataset. Our results demonstrate a manual-label free, clinically valid, and highly scalable method for segmentation from ultrasound, a noisy but globally important imaging modality.


The purpose of this paper is to describe a new way of educating elites. This is based upon the double double culture the students benefit: generalist and specialist (mechanical for instance) master level diploma and at least two years abroad. This program concerns the five French Ecoles Centrale and six top universities in Brazil.


The veto power is the authority to prevent or delay the enactment of legislation passed by the legislature when the president have an objection to the bill passed by the legislature. This presidential veto power is originated from the Federal Constitution of United States. The Constitution of Korea gives the president the power to veto according to Article 53. In case that the president exercises the power of veto over a bill, the national assembly overrides the veto by a two-thirds majority. Then it becomes law without the President's signature. Otherwise, the bill fails to become law. The type of veto that the president exercises in korea is only a direct veto, whereas the U.S president exercises veto in two ways including a pocket veto. The presidential veto power in korean constitution was originated from 1948 constitution and is prescribed in the present constitution. Though the veto power is prescribed the President authority by the korean constitution, the president has not exercised this authority frequently. But there is high probability that the power of veto will be exercised more often than the past by the president for a variety of political or legal reasons. So it is necessary that we put together the constitutional issues on the presidential veto power and make clear ambiguities with regard to it. If the president does not approve, he or she must return the bill, unsigned, within fifteen days, excluding the first day, to the national assembly in which it originated. The president can withdraw the veto which he or she exercised any time until the national assembly overrides the veto. The national assembly could not impeach the president for the abuse of the veto power. Lastly, the national assembly could not file the adjudication on jurisdiction disputes to the Constitutional court for the reason that the president exercised the veto on the bill.


Due to unconventional reservoir have natural weak discontinuities such as natural fractures and bedding planes, the hydraulic fracture has complicated fracture network morphology. Therefore, the traditional fracturing design method and the numerical simulation method of fracture propagation were restricted in the unconventional reservoir. In this paper, the application of the extended finite element method(XFEM), discrete element method(DEM), and displacement discontinuity method(DDM) in the simulation of hydraulic fracturing are discussed, as well as their advantages and disadvantages. It is indicated that XFEM and DEM have strong advantage in small scale mechanism analysis, while DDM has the superiority in the simulation of actual fracturing process in homogeneous formation. Finally, we draw the conclusion that combining two or more numerical simulation methods to simulate the fracture propagation of unconventional reservoirs will be a promising direction. Keywords-unconventional reservoirs; hydraulic propagation; extended finite element method; discrete element method; displacement discontinuity method


A new educational trajectory of IT Bachelor's degree earning on the basis of professional education is discussed. The practical terms of the continuous multi-level model to receive a Bachelor's degree are formulated and their experimental realization under conditions of the university complex «college – higher educational institutions» are demonstrated. The
important role of employers' participation in planning and implementation of educational training programs is established.


BACKGROUND
Thoracotomy is associated with severe postoperative pain. Effective management of acute pain after thoracotomy may reduce complications and chronic pain. Epidural analgesia (EPI) is considered the gold standard for postthoracotomy analgesia; however, it is associated with complications and limitations. Emerging evidence suggests that an intercostal nerve block (ICB) has a low risk of severe complications. Anesthetists will benefit from a review that assesses the advantages and disadvantages associated with ICB and EPI in thoracotomy.

OBJECTIVES
This meta-analysis aimed to evaluate the analgesic efficacy and adverse effects of ICB and EPI for pain treatment after thoracotomy.

STUDY DESIGN
Systematic review.

METHODS
This study was registered in the International Prospective Register of Systematic Reviews (CRD42021255127). Relevant studies were searched for in PubMed, Embase, Cochrane, and Ovid databases. Primary (postoperative pain at rest and during cough) and secondary (nausea and vomiting, morphine consumption, and length of hospital stay) outcomes were analyzed. The standard mean difference for continuous variables and the risk ratio for dichotomous variables were calculated.

RESULTS
Nine randomized controlled studies with a total of 498 patients who underwent thoracotomy were included. The results of the meta-analysis demonstrated no statistically significant differences between the 2 methods in terms of the Visual Analog Scale scores for pain at 6-8, 12-15, 24-25, and 48-50 hours at rest and at 24 hours during coughing after surgery. There were no significant differences in nausea and vomiting, morphine consumption, or length of hospital stay between the ICB and EPI groups.

LIMITATIONS
The number of included studies was small, and the quality of evidence was low.

CONCLUSIONS
ICB may be as effective as EPI for pain relief after thoracotomy.


The use of technology especially the Internet in language teaching and learning has become more popular nowadays since it is more interesting and effective. Nowadays, since almost every person has at least a gadget connected to the Internet, the teaching learning is possible to be carried out outside the classroom in the way of autonomous learning. Language learners are likely to look to computers and the Internet for resources of learning. By applying the Internet as the type of learning, students are exposed to optimize the use their gadget connected to the Internet. This type of learning was also applied for Binus pre-university students learning English Smart Program in GSLC (Guided Self Learning Class). Based on the background, this paper aims to explain what GSLC is and describe how Facebook as the Internet social media can be used for supporting GSLC. There are many advantages the students and the lecturer get from using this media in GSLC. From result of the questionnaire, FB is affective to support them in learning.  In conclusion, Facebook can be used to support the GSLC activities.


Coherent detection is always used in coded cooperation system,but it needs accurate channel estimation,which increases the system complexity.A differential modulation scheme with non-coherent detection is presented.Bit Error Ratio(BER) expression of cooperation and non-cooperation in the differential coded cooperation system are investigated.With a CRC method implemented at the destination,the performance can be improved under the asymmetric uplink channel conditions.Simulation results show that full diversity is provided with cooperation,and the system performance is improved by 0.2~1.2 dB when the uplink channel SNR of the source is better than that of the cooperation user.


Mitochondria are organelles that are most sensitive to the action of stressors on any cell of the entire organism and exposure to chemicals which can cause its dysfunction and cell death in general. Especially sensitive to adverse conditions are liver mitochondria, where the processes of biotransformation of endogenous and exogenous metabolites are formed, not only in the liver, but also in other organs and tissues. Mitochondrial dysfunction can cause instant hepatic cytolysis and steatosis. Therefore, early detection of mitochondrial toxicity is important during preclinical studies of new pharmacological agents, as this will help avoid remote negative effects. The biologically active feed additive Humilid, a complex of humic acids known for their antidiarrheal, analgesic, immune-stimulating, and antimicrobial properties; shows a corrective effect on the activity of the lysosomal cathepsin; enhances the positive effect of hematopoiesis on hemoglobin and its quality indicators consisting of red blood cells; and activates the synthesis and accumulation of fibronectin expression that takes part in the formation of immunological protection of animals. The objective of our experiment was to determine the effect of complex biologically active feed additives based on humic substances on the biochemical indicators of the liver mitochondrial antioxidant system of Mongolian gerbils ( Meriones unguiculatus Milne-Edwards, 1867). The experiment was conducted on mature (6 months) Mongolian gerbils. The data obtained showing the influence of the biologically active feed additives Humilid, alone or in combination with ascorbate and Eco-impulse Animal, on the antioxidant defense system of liver mitochondria of gerbils are presented in this article. The proven antioxidant effect of humic substances in the mitochondrial fraction of the liver which inhibits the accumulation of oxidized products in the cells is shown, confirmed by the decrease in the number of TBA-active products, catalase activation, and an increase in the concentration of cytochrome C. Also, an increase in the amount of cytochrome C, which is a direct participant in the mitochondrial respiratory chain and provides efficient electron transport, indicates the acceleration of energy supply processes. The functional activity of mitochondria was accompanied by increased activity of aspartate aminotransferase involved in the shuttle of malate-aspartate transport of electrons through the mitochondrial membrane. The results obtained indicate the positive reaction of gerbil liver mitochondria under the influence of the biologically active feed additives of humic substance.


S OF THE XVlth ESAO CONGRESS-BRUSSELS, 13-15 September 1989 IMPLICATIONS OF SECONDARY LEFT VENTRICULAR (LV) FLOWS FOR PERFORMANCE OF MITRAL VALVE SUBSTITUTES J,E,Malcolm, D,E,M,Taylor & Joan S.Whamond Royal College of Surgeons, LONDON, UK. Pulse duplicators usually have an axisymmetric LV analogue and smooth internal surface, while the LV cavity is asymmetric, with nonuniform dynamics and a ridged endocardial surface, The possibility of LV dynamic anatomy affecting secondary flows has been investigated using high speed endoscopic cinephotography and flow vector determination in 18 anaesthetised dogs, The LV oscillates between a diastolic triaxial ellipsoid and systolic uniaxial conoid contour; . while the trabeculae and papillary muscles vary in both depth and inclination to the,flow axis, Associated with the anatomical variations, 3 secondary flow systems have been identifiedl a) a diastolic retrovalvular toroidal vortex; bl a continuous swirling vortex in the transverse plane, c) a family of contrarotating diastolic circumchordal vortices All three are concerned with normal mitral valve dynami~s and have the characteristics necessary for fluid logic elements helping to control cardiac pumping. All 3 would be affected by or interact with both mechanical and biological mitral valve substitutes. Failure to develop or maintain (al and/or (cl could affect occluder motion and flow stability, while (bl could impose a tortional stress on the occluder of tilting disc or bil.aflet mechanical heart valve substitutes, MECHANICS OF THE LEAKAGE FLOW THROUGH PROSTHETIC HEART VALVES Josef KOhler; Peter Guntermann Aerodynamisches Institut, Techn. University, D-5l00 Aachen, FRG The aim of the investigation was to determine for prosthetic heart valves the dependence of the leakage flow on the form of the leakage gap, on the properties of the fluid and on the test conditions. The leakage flow through 4 valve prostheses of size 27 and of different type has been measured for pig blood, synthetic particle suspensions and Newtonion fluids of different viscosity depending on the pressure difference. In a water table with gap models scaled 200/1 flow pattern have been taken for different leakage-gap geometries and Reynolds-Numbers. For a non overlapping disc, the separation of the jet starts in the centre of the gap channel. The leakage flow is only a bit smaller if the jet enters a liquid volume than in case of an air volume which lIay be used under some in vitro test conditions. An excentric position of the valve disc causes a higher leakage flow than a centric one. The dependance of the pressure difference across a non overlapping closed valve on the volume flow can be described mathematically as sum of three terms, representing entrance drag, wall friction, and jet dissipation with good agreement to the measurement reSUlts.


Petroleum exploration in the Forest City Basin Province began in 1860 with drilling in Miami County, Kans., and discovery of oil near Paola. The first discovery larger than 1 MMBOE was in 1882, also in Miami County, Kans. (Paola-Rantoul field). More than 10,000 wells have been drilled in the province, and 21 fields larger than 1 MMBOE have been discovered. Discovered resources as of the end of 1990 total more than 100 MMBO and over 15 BCFG. Among the largest fields in the province are PaolaRantoul field (more than 41 MMBO), in Franklin, Johnson, and Miami Counties, Kansas; and Falls City field (more than 5 MMBO), in Richardson County, Nebraska


Although recently outdoor education has become an important component of the school curricula in Australia, extended programs in residential settings are still comparatively rare. Where such programs have been in existence, their raison d'etre is underpinned by anecdotal evidence rather than systematic evaluation or empirically established statements of effectiveness (Gray, Patterson and Linke, 1993a). This research is a longitudinal study examining the impact of an Extended Stay Outdoor Education School Program (ESOESP) upon adolescent participants. Primarily the study analyses program impact, both immediate and residual, upon the perceived changes in identified variables of participants. Data was gathered and analysed using both quantitative and qualitative methodologies. Many researchers are of the belief that the two methodologies compliment one another and thereby strengthen the total evaluation model (for example Hanna, 1992a; Henderson, 1993; Klint and Priest, 1988). A unique Australian school (Timbertop) was used as the basis of a case study in the research. Timbertop is Geelong Grammar School's outdoor education campus where an ESOESP lasting for a full academic year is conducted. This residential program is co-educational catering for both females and males in Year 9. The subjects (n=409) came from two consecutive school populations, viz the 1993 cohort (n=201) and the 1994 cohort (n=208). Three quantitative instruments, the Real Me Questionnaire (RMQ), the School Life Questionnaire (SLQ) and the Parent Questionnaire (PQ) were designed specifically for this study to assess program effectiveness. Moreover, the instrumentation evaluated perceived changes in participants' attitudes, values and behaviours during and after exposure to an ESOESP along with differential gender outcomes. Using a quasi-experimental design, students were administered pre-tests and tracked at regular intervals for up to two academic


AIM
Study plasmid characteristics of S. enteritidis strains in patients and features of epidemi- ology of the infection in regions with incomplete supply of population with local poultry produc- tion.

MATERIALS AND METHODS
Plasmid analysis of microbe strains isolated from 382 patients and 8 samples of products was carried out, and significance of plasmid types in population morbidity was evaluated. Identification of salmonella was carried out by conventional methods, plasmid 41 specter - by Kado C.I. and Liu S.T (1981) method.

RESULTS
98.4% of strains contained virulence plasmid p38, and 80.1% of strains also had small plasmids. Sakhalin strains were divided into 16 plasmid types (D=0.794), and strains from Jewish AO - 10 (D=0.834). Uniformity of strains in patients during infection outbreaks and in transmission factors was detected.

CONCLUSION
Features of salmonellosis in. the studied subjects of Russian Federation are determined by higher risk of import of products containing salmonella. Monitoring based on plasmid analysis is an effective base for epidemiologic control.


1 Founder populations of plants are usually small and may become extinct due to many factors including inbreeding and low pollen transfer besides stochastic factors. This positive relationship between population size and individual fitness is taken as evidence of an Allee effect. Very few studies have quantitatively compared the influence of self‐incompatibility systems and S‐allele counts on the magnitude of observed Allee effects for different population sizes and seed and pollen dispersal distances. 2 This paper uses a stochastic, spatially explicit, individual‐based cellular automaton model to simulate the dynamics of newly established plant populations with sporophytic or gametophytic self‐incompatibility (SI) alleles and compares these to a null (Mendelian) population. Parameters varied in model simulation are the S‐allele count, the initial population size, and the pollen and seed dispersal distances. These parameters were studied over a wide range to assess their relative impact on population viability compared to the null case in order to model the effect of self‐incompatibility on population fitness. 3 The results indicate that Allee effects are enhanced and growth rates are slowed in newly established populations of species with S‐alleles relative to Mendelian populations, leading to enhanced extinction risk. They also show the importance of the relationship between pollen and seed dispersal ranges on the fitness of the population. Populations with sporophytic self‐incompatibility were more extinction‐prone than those with gametophytic SI, and the latter more so than Mendelian populations when all other factors were held constant. 4 Synthesis. Overall, the simulation results indicate that Allee effects in small populations are enhanced in plants with S‐alleles. Even in relatively large populations, S‐allele count controls the strength of observed Allee effects. A high S‐allele count is able to compensate for lower initial population size. Pollen and seed dispersal ranges had a similarly strong effect on the viability of populations with S‐alleles. These effects are stronger in populations with sporophytic self‐incompatibility than in those with gametophytic SI. Simulation results also indicate that S‐alleles were not lost to genetic drift over time, in contrast with some earlier studies of S‐allele systems displaying Allee effects.


4 cases of inadvertent puncture of the common carotid artery following unsuccessful puncture of the internal jugular vein leading to a massive cervical hematoma are described. In all cases, acute upper airway obstruction required immediate intubation.


Methods: This paper provides a simple experimental setup and a mathematical formulation for simultaneous determination of ratios of the live/dead and adherent/non-adherent bacteria based on impedance changes. This method is especially useful in case of colored samples where traditional optical methods fail. The usefulness of our method is demonstrated by analyzing the effect of single-walled carbon nanotubes bearing various functional groups exerted on Staphylococcus aureus bacteria.


Smartphones have become the most important commodity for today's digitalized society. Besides direct interpersonal communication, their most used features are third-party applications (apps). Apps for monitoring health parameters (health apps) are extremely popular, and their users are part of the Quantified Self movement. Little knowledge is available on how health apps are perceived by a female target audience, the Quantified Woman. We conducted a study among Austrian females of reproductive age (n = 150) to analyze prevalence, perceived benefits, and readiness for health app use. In the cross-sectional online German survey, nearly all participants used these apps (98.0%), predominantly for monitoring physical activity and female health (both 31.3%). For the latter, participants used a large variety of different apps for monitoring contraception and menstruation. Perceived benefits and readiness of health app use were only of medium range. Our study assessed aspects of health app use in an understudied segment of the general population. From a Public Health perspective, the Quantified Woman could be empowered by health data collection by enabling her to take active control over how her health graphs develop. We suggest assuring data security and privacy for sensitive female health data collected by health apps.


Wireless Sensor Network (WSN) consists of large number of sensor nodes that are capable of communication, computation and sensing. Inherent limitations of WSN include limited storage, processing and transmission power. As compared to other network topologies, WSN has less communication Protocols mainly Zigbee/IEEE 802.15.4. IEEE 802.15.4 is a new standard, uniquely designed for low rate Wireless Personal Area Network (LR-WPAN), which is developed for applications that demand low throughput. IEEE 802.15.4 was designed for short range, low power, low complexity, low rate and low cost wireless network which provides two way wireless communication technology. For the analysis purpose, we have considered AODV as the Adhoc-routing protocol. Simulation has been carried out by using Qualnet Simulator 6.1. In this paper, we proposed a mobility control scheme and the impact of mobility over the performance of WSN is seen. In this paper, we have designed two scenarios, one is used with Random waypoint Mobility and the other is used by Mobility with Flag. Results of both the mobility schemes are compared to find out which mobility scheme gives overall best services. This paper provides the performance evaluation of quality of service parameters such as total packets received, received throughput, average end to end delay, average jitter and energy consumption as the performance metrics.


ABSTRACT Social network monitoring consists of monitoring changes in networks with the aim of detecting significant ones and attempting to identify assignable cause(s) contributing to the occurrence of a change. This paper proposes a method that helps to overcome some of the weaknesses of the existing methods. A Poisson regression model for the probability of the number of communications between network members as a function of vertex attributes is constructed. Multivariate exponentially weighted moving average (MEWMA) and multivariate cumulative sum (MCUSUM) control charts are used to monitor the network formation process. The results indicate more efficient performance for the MEWMA chart in identifying significant changes.


Objective: To investigate the relationship between antisperm antibody(AsAb) and infertility men with prostatitis,and to provide some clue for clinic.Methods: Antisperm antibodies for infertile men with chronic prostatitis(n=80,group A) and fertile men with chronic prostatitis(n=50,group B) as control were respectively detected by the ELISA method.Results: The antisperm antibody was(126.25±45.47) U/ml in group A and(41.25±14.20) U/ml in group B,and the positive rate was 46.3% and 12.0% respectively,and there were significantly differences between two groups(all P 0.05).Conclusion: Infertile men with chronic prostatitis can be relate to sperm autoimmunity,ELISA method is a highly sensitive and easy experiment method,which can explore the cause of unknown infertility and provide the guidance of clinical treatment and prognosis.


The utility model discloses a vibratory feeding device which is used for an automatic weighting device. The vibratory feeding device comprises a trough, a vibrating mechanism and a flow dividing mechanism. The vibrating mechanism is arranged at the bottom of the trough and used for driving the trough to convey materials in a vibrating mode, and the flow dividing mechanism is arranged on a discharge port of the trough and comprises at least one partition plate so that the discharge port can be partitioned into at least two discharge through ports. According to the vibratory feeding device, because the flow dividing mechanism is arranged on the discharge port and partitions the discharge port into the multiple discharge through ports, resistance to inertia falling of the materials is increased, fast feeding can be achieved in the whole feeding process, and efficiency and accuracy are improved.


Cham-cham is an indigenous, chhana-based sweetmeat popular in eastern part of India. It is produced from cow milk chhana. Promising development and expansion in the market of chamcham is expected in the coming future with the organized production of this product at commercial scale. This project was undertaken with the major objective of standardized technology development for cham-cham production. The extent of variation in physicochemical, textural and sensory properties of market samples of cham-cham was estimated and the attributes that govern much of variation in sensory scores of this product were identified using quantitative descriptive analysis and principal component analysis. In the production of cham-cham, slight variations in the processing parameters such as powdered sugar (PS) addition, cooking syrup concentration (CSC), cooking time (CT) and soaking syrup concentration (SSC) can affect the quality significantly. Hence, the processing parameters were standardized using response surface methodology (RSM) and their effect on texture, microstructure, physicochemical and sensory attributes of cham-cham were studied. The solution having maximum desirability of 0.824, corresponding to 5% PS, 80 °Brix CSC, 30 min CT and 60 °Brix SSC, was selected as optimized condition for cham-cham preparation. Scanning electron microscopy study effectively described the changes occurred in protein and fat phase of cham-cham during cooking. Moisture sorption study of cham-cham was carried out at three temperatures i.e. 5°C, 25°C, and 40°C to obtain sorption isotherms. BET, Modified Mizrahi and Henderson model gave best fit. Density of sorbed water, number of adsorbed monolayers, per cent bound water, surface area of adsorbent and porosity were calculated. The net isosteric heat and enthalpy–entropy compensation theory was also measured. Shelf life study of cham-cham was performed in cardboard box, polyethylene/nylon pouch for vacuum packaging, 12μ polyethylene teraphthalate (PET) /12μ metalized polyethylene teraphthalate (MPET) /50μ low density polyethylene (LDPE) laminate pouches and tin cans. Physico-chemical, textural, sensory and microbial changes were estimated. At 30oC, shelf life of cham-cham was 7 days in all three packaging materials. At 5oC, cham-cham was acceptable upto 14, 21 and 35 days in cardboard box, vacuum packaging and laminate pouch, respectively. In cans, cham-cham was found acceptable against physicochemical and microbial changes upto 35 days. In consumer study it was found that maximum consumer (50%) rated as "very good", 25% consumers rated "good" and 17% rated "excellent" degree of liking. About 86% of the consumers were ready to buy the cham-cham even at the prices higher than that of market.


The utility model relates to an end cooling air duct of a rotary kiln, which is composed of an air duct outer wall, a cylinder wall, a bayonet iron and a partition board. The utility model is characterized in that a channel (6) is arranged between the partition board and the bayonet iron. With the utility model, when the cooling air enters one air duct, the cooling air can flow to the right and the left adjacent air ducts along the circumferential direction of the cylinder wall to form direction flow so as to improve cooling effect.


Apparatus for determining the position of a working surface of a working disc of a double-side processing machine, in particular a double side grinding apparatus, wherein the double-side processing machine comprises two working wheels which form a working gap for double-sided machining of flat workpieces between mutually facing work surfaces, and one of which is driven in rotation at least, the apparatus comprising a comprises optical measuring device with a radiation source, an optical detector device and an evaluation device which are adapted to be disposed outside of the working gap, characterized in that - that the apparatus comprises a beam delivery device which is adapted to be at least partially introduced into the working gap, wherein the beam guiding device has an outlet opening located at introduced into the working gap radiation guide means in the machining gap generated by the radiation source optical radiation and wherein the beam guiding device the optical radiation from the radiation source is initially substantially performs starting parallel to the working surfaces in the working gap, deflects at a measurement location via at least one deflection surface on a work surface, reflected from the work surface receives radiation, and again carries out the working gap out to the optical detector means, wherein the evaluation device is adapted to determine the position of the work surface based on a detection result of said detecting means, and - that the beam guiding device has a fluid supply is connected to a fluid supply, with the at least one of passed from the optical radiation after leaving the outlet opening of the beam guiding device in the working gap range is flushable.


The new approaches to global history established during the last two decades have stimulated interest in the wanderings of medieval ascetics, missionaries, and pilgrims differing quite substantially from the traditional ecclesiastical history, which has been mainly focused on monastic ideals, evangelization, and piety. Discussing the individual experiences of the Buddhist monk Ennin (9th c.), the Sufi dervish ʿAlī al-Hudjwīrī (11th c.), and the Franciscan missionary William of Rubruck (13th c.), the article explores to what extent and in which manner pious men who went abroad could become agents of cross-cultural interactions and transcultural entanglements in the Middle Ages.


1,2,3 Department of Electronics and Communication Engineering 1,2 Hasmukh Goswami College of Engineering 3 Indus Institute of Technology& Engineering Ahmadabad, India Abstract— In the real world noise is often presented in the signal. Noise in the image is inserted during the process of image acquisition or the transmission process of image. Many parameters or factors like light levels and sensor temperature are there which are responsible the for the amount of noise present in the image. Acquiring clear images in underwater environments is an important issue in ocean engineering. Generally underwater images are affected by severe blur and haze caused by light that is reflected from surface and scattered by water particles and color change due to varying degrees of light attenuation for different wavelengths. So there is contrast losses and color deviation in images. In general underwater images are polluted by noises like Gaussian, and Speckle noise. So it is necessary that to denoise the image before further process. There are different filters to denoise the image like Gaussian Filter,Mean Filter, Weiner Filter and Curvelet Transform can be used. After that Fusion is performed of best filtering method and curvelet transform using Simple Average and Average using CVT. Performance can be calculated on the basis of parameter like PSNR (peak signal-to-noise ratio)& MSE (mean square error),MAE (Mean Absolute Error), Correlation. MATLAB is used for implementation of coding and to calculate the output parameter.


The average life of a building in Tokyo is six years. The average life of a building in the United States is thirty-one years. Buildings are typically replaced for reasons other than the building itself including high operational costs, increased density requirements, or new programmatic needs. Building structures are typically designed so efficiently that little or no upward expansion can be made without a change in the existing structure. Limited resources, climate change and new technology direct changes in design thinking and yet designers still structurally design for present conditions with little thought for resiliency or adaptability.


Differential Evolution DE is a class of powerful evolutionary algorithms for global numerical optimisation. Using the mechanisms of complementarities that exist in nature, opposition-based learning has been successfully used to generate opposite number to enhance the search ability of DE. In this paper with the opposite concept for the scheme of DE, a completely new scheme of DE is proposed. Based on the formal analysis of traditional DE and the concept of duality borrowed from mathematics, Dual of DE is derived. Then the Dual of DE has been tested on 18 commonly used benchmark problems and the results obtained were compared to those of the traditional DE. Experimental results show that the Dual of DE can serve as a good complementary scheme for the traditional DE in most of the considered problems. Thus it can be an alternative in solving real-world optimisation problems.


The number and intensity of natural disasters is growing every year, with 394 major events affecting over 268 million people worldwide in the past decade. Twenty transitional shelters were identified in 11 different locations worldwide. The objective was to identify which strategy for post-disaster reconstruction is the most appropriated between the uses of local or global materials. To compare the different transitional shelters, their environmental, economic, and mechanical/technical performances were assessed. For environmental and economic assessment life cycle cost and life cycle assessment were used. For the mechanical/technical assessment the relation between hazard zones and their performance was assessed for earthquake, wind loads and flood. Sustainability was assessed through a benchmark system that combined the results from those three categories. The results show that shelters with high technical performance can be achieved under low price/low environmental impact per functional unit whatever the type of material used. Life cycle assessment, sustainable construction, transitional shelters, post-disaster


To improve the spatial resolution of space charge distribution using thermal measurements, an accurate profile of the temperature in the sample is needed. The measurement of both sample surface temperature profile and space charge induced signal is a first crucial step for this knowledge. The described setup allows both measurements simultaneously and gives good signal-to-noise ratios.


The electric power quality is affected by many factors like harmonic contamination, voltage instability, sag and swell due to the non-linear loads such as adjustable speed drives, switching of loads etc. The UPQC is an effective custom power device for the enhancement of power quality due to its quick response and high reliability. The UPQC can compensate these power quality problems. The control strategy used here are based on ANN controller of the UPQC with back propagation learning algorithm.An algorithm is also proposed to minimize the overall VA rating of UPQC which comparatively brings down the manufacturing cost. The harmonics are also reduced using the controller.The control strategy are modeled here using MATLAB / SIMULINK.


Vehicle painting typically consumes the largest amount of energy in an automotive assembly plant. Effective reduction of energy usage in paint shops will lead to significant savings. Substantial effort has been devoted to reducing energy usage in paint shops through renovating the painting process and equipment. In this paper, we introduce a case study at an automotive paint shop to show that the energy consumption can be reduced significantly through production system design. Specifically, by selecting the appropriate repair capacity, the number of repainted jobs can be reduced, and less material and energy will be consumed. In addition, less atmospheric emissions would be generated during the painting process. Such a technique does not need to invent new chemicals, new painting processes or new control systems in painting booths and ovens. It provides an alternative way for energy and emission reduction to achieve energy-efficient and environmentally friendly manufacturing.


This paper describes the design multibeam or dual-band antennas using just a single metasurface (MTS) aperture. An example of multi-beam antenna is presented, it is based on a superposition of modulation patterns, and presents a multi-source feeding scheme. The elements of the objective surface impedance tensor are derived in closed-form, and numerical results based on the Method of Moments are presented for validation.


The investigating results are given for the influence of the annealing at the temperature of the MAX-phase formation in the Ti‒Al‒C system on the MAX/TiC composite's structure and phase constitution, the composite had been prepared by means of the free self-propagating high-temperature synthesis (sHs) compression. The dependence was established between the delay time before the load application under the free sHscompression and the structural parameters of the resulting materials. It was shown that the heat treatment at 1350 °C provides the TiC fraction reducing in the resulting material, the changing of the carbide fraction varying directly proportional to its initial degree of dispersion. Ill. 5. Ref. 11.


Not only does the South African Navy have a proud history, but it is constantly occupied with the building of a highly efficient, modern naval power. The origin and development of the South African Navy since 1912 to the present day is discussed and special attention is given to the facts and occurrences that merit emphasis from either a historical or military point of view.


Robot vision often needs to execute different tasks simultaneously using different camera motions. Conventional robot vision allocates its resources, a camera and computing machinery, to the multiple vision tasks by directing its attention serially to different tasks. A framework that accomplishes these tasks by cooperation of independent agents, called multiple vision agents, with their own cameras and computing power is presented. A system with four cameras moving independently of each other has been developed. Each agent analyzes the image data and controls the eye motion, such as fixation to a moving target, fixation to a static target for vision-guided navigation, or monitoring a wide area to find obstacles. The various visual functions are assigned to the agents to accomplish the task in the dynamically changing real world.<<ETX>>


Introduction: Drug dependence and abuse as a social problem, and mental health. Therefore, the first task should be to institutionalize the principles of healthy living in children's education and is responsible for starting a family.
Objective: To examine the relationship between parenting practices on adolescent addiction would be biased. What style of parenting that adolescent attitudes toward parenting practices and adolescent drug addiction, the trend is back.
Methods: The population of this research is Ayvanghrb city high school students. Using cluster sampling, 100 students were selected as sample. Data collected in the survey questionnaire was Schafer family orientation questionnaire and Dhkordian addiction.
Data analysis: Data analysis using descriptive statistics of mean, standard deviation and Pearson correlation and inferential statistics were performed using the t test for independent groups.
Results: Data analysis showed that between parenting styles and trends with significance level alpha Addiction / 05. There is a significant relationship. The results showed that parenting styles are authoritarian, permissive and loose correlation with the tendency to addiction in adolescents. Results of the survey results are consistent with a 1997 Paykvt 2000, 1388 Gharehdaghi.


Objective: Work processes, workers, and work instruments have potential danger likely leading to emergency condition such as fire; therefore an emergency response system is required to prevent and to control the fire. The objective of research was to find out the implementation of emergency response system as the attempt of preventing and controlling fire in PKU Muhammadiyah Surakarta Hospital.
Method: This research was conducted using descriptive method giving a description on the implementation of emergency response system against fire. The data of fire emergency response system was collected through field observation, interview with the workers and library study. The data obtained was then discussed by comparing it and the regulation and standard related to fire emergency response system.
Result: The attempt of preventing and controlling fire in PKU Muhammadiyah Surakarta Hospital included emergency condition policy, recommendation and facility provision to deal with disaster, emergency response team, and emergency response procedure.
Conclusion: The implementation of fire emergency response system in PKU Muhammadiyah Surakarta Hospital had been consistent with the legislation. It was recommended that the internal audit be held on emergency response system periodically. It was also recommended that the supervision, correction, evaluation roles, and emergency response system be improved.
Keywords: Emergency Response System, Fire Prevention and Management


Most people interested in the topic of this volume will know by now what sets the Belgian constitutional challenge to the European arrest warrant ('EAW') apart from the multiple other challenges in other jurisdictions. In its judgment in Advocaten voor de Wereld, the Belgian Constitutional Court had done the one thing that is as remarkable as it is common: it actually put before the European Court of Justice the question of the legality of the EU Framework Decision on the European Arrest Warrant ('EAW Framework Decision'). The fact that the Belgian Constitutional Court did this can be explained by several characteristics of Belgian Constitutional law. I will expand on these aspects of Belgian law as they may be explained by the 'open character' of the Belgian Constitution on the one hand and, on the other hand, the 'ambitious creativity' of the Belgian Constitutional Court that applies it. In this context, a remarkable type of interaction between European law and national constitutional law has become possible. The legal challenge of the European arrest warrant before the Belgian Constitutional Court displays that interaction in all its richness, yet it also prompts new questions. Is there indeed a 'perfect fit' between Belgian and European legal safeguards regarding different aspects of the surrender of individuals following an EAW, or do crucial elements get lost in translation? What is the potential scope of the 'legal avenue', used for the first time in Advocaten voor de Wereld, to challenge the legal instrument of the framework decision because of its alleged 'weakening of Belgian democracy'? Before attempting to tackle these issues, it is necessary to make some general remarks on the place of EC and EU law within the Belgian constitutional system.


"Liberal Democracy" is a common term in political theory, and it is used as if it had a commonly accepted referent, with both normative and descriptive content. This is certainly the case in democr ...


This research was an outcome of the researcher's teaching experience and self-reflection on her pedagogy. The researcher is a primary Music and Italian teacher, and sees the teaching of Music and Languages as an essential means of providing proactive interdisciplinary opportunity in a crowded curriculum. The research investigated whether other teachers of primary Italian considered the Orff-Schulwerk approach to be a positive pedagogical tool for the teaching of Italian to upper primary students.


The dissimilar steel friction weldings on the exhaust valve of a certain type of diesel engine were studied. The hardness,microstructure and tensile strength of the welded joints were studied. The straightening technology of exhaust valve were improved. The results show that the microhardness of the welded joint, heat affected zone and matrix is inconsistent. The microstructure of the welded joint is martensite after friction welding. The microhardness becomes same and the microstructure of the welded joint turns into tempered sorbite after ageing.The mechanical property of the welded joint can meet the technological requirement of exhaust valve. The straightening technology of ageing after straightening is feasible.


The canonical view of a mammalian (usually shown as human) bone resorbing cell is that of a giant macrophage-like cell (osteoclast) that dissolves bone minerals and digests bone matrix proteins. The cells' presence and activity is easily recognised based on three distinct morphological features: (i) multinuclearity, (ii) a multiply folded apical cell membrane (ruffled border), and (iii) deep lacunae (Howship's lacunae) that the cells eroded into the bone surface. Mononucleated osteoclasts without these features are considered to be inactive precursors. We challenge the view that bone resorbing cells must be multinucleated giant cells, based on our comparative studies on the teleost skeleton, on what is currently known - but often disregarded - about mononucleated mammalian osteoclasts, and on what is know about osteocytic osteolysis.


Necropsy examination was conducted on two adult female Wistar rats, aging 16 and 18 months that were presented with a history of a gradually increasing mass in their lower abdominal region. Gross examination revealed firm, hard, localized, well-encapsulated masses in the inguinal pair of the mammary glands. Microscopically, the acinar structures were surrounded by distinct interlobular and intralobular connective tissues. Acini were of varying shapes and sizes and irregularly placed among the fibrous stroma. The histological pattern and the nature of the tumour in older female rats were sufficient to confirm the diagnosis as mammary fibroadenomas.


We present the results of a study comparing the relative benefits of three command selection techniques that merge command selection and direct manipulation: one twohanded technique, Toolglass [2], and two one-handed techniques, control menus [15] and FlowMenu [6]. Our results show that control menus and FlowMenu are significantly faster than Toolglass. Further analysis suggests that merging command selection and direct manipulation is the key factor in the performance of all three techniques.


Heap leaching of gold/silver and copper ores are carried out under unsaturated flow conditions. While the
mechanics of unsaturated flow through porous media is well understood, the large diameter particles
typically present in heap leach operations present special challenges. The unsaturated flow characterisation
of these materials is one such challenge. This paper will review unsaturated flow observations in heap leach
materials under laboratory and field conditions. Specific attention will be paid to characterising the
parameters for unsaturated flow through coarse heap leach materials and its impact on the subsequent
modelling of unsaturated flow. Flow conditions during closure will also be evaluated as the drain down rate
of heap leach facilities is dependent on the heap material characteristics.
Recent observations and evaluations of the unsaturated behaviour of materials removed from dynamic (on
off pad) heap leach operations for placement in spent ore disposal areas will be presented. These materials
must be sufficiently dry to provide the shear strength and trafficability required for stacking conveyors
typically used in the spent ore disposal area. A range of geotechnical and unsaturated flow evaluations can
be used to evaluate the material behaviour.
It is concluded that 21st century designers of heap leach facilities must include full consideration of the
unsaturated behaviour of the heap leach materials, both as it relates to flow and strength of such materials.
Recommendations are made for the integrated development of heap leach projects incorporating
unsaturated material considerations.


There is an old Chinese curse which states, "I curse you--may I you live in an important age." Indeed, we do live in an important age, saturated with many forms and intensities of conflict. While conflicts of value are slow to erupt between individuals and institutions in a stable society, they are prevalent in times of rapid change. In our age of dynamic change it is imperative that the manager understand the source of; and various strategies for dealing with, conflict which inevitably occurs in organizations. Typical of this conflict is the breakdown of communication between management and labor; between a commander and his troops; or between a secretary and her supervisor. Even more common, perhaps, is the overt and often hostile dysfunctional competition that erupts between work centers, peers, or social groups vying for scarce resources or attention.


Prolactin (PRL) secretion and the endocrine control of fertility in women is reviewed and compared with data reported by others. The data suggest indirectly that endogenous estrogens physiologically affect PRL secretion in women. The studies concur that physiological concentrations of PRL are required for the production of progesterone by granulosa cells in vitro. The data also suggest that hyperprolactinemia affect other endocrine mechanisms controlling fertility in women.


Over the past few years, we have witnessed a considerable diffusion of data-driven visual odometry (VO) approaches as viable alternatives to standard geometric-based strategies. Their success is mainly related to the improved robustness to image nonideal conditions (e.g., blur, high or low contrast, texture-poor scenarios). However, most of the data-driven State-of-the-Art (SotA) approaches do not provide any kind of information about the uncertainty of their estimates, which is crucial to effectively integrate them into robotic navigation systems. Inspired by this considerations, we propose uncertainty-aware VO (UA-VO), a novel deep neural network (DNN) architecture that computes relative pose predictions by processing sequence of images and, at the same time, provides uncertainty measures about those estimations. The confidence measure computed by UA-VO considers both epistemic and aleatoric uncertainties and accounts for heteroscedasticity, i.e., it is sample-dependent. We assess the benefits of UA-VO with different typology of experiments on three publicly available datasets and on a brand new set of sequences, we gathered to extend the evaluation.


A method and a system for multimode DC offset compensation are provided to determine residual DC as a signal offset error by tracking the signal offset error. A signal sample selection process is performed to select a number of signal samples for generating a feedback signal. An average producing process is performed to average the number of signal samples(508). An accumulating process is performed to accumulate the determined average for generating the feedback signal in order to attenuate a signal offset(510). The signal samples are samples of WCDMA signals. The selected number of the signal samples is based on a signal offset error. The selected number of the signal samples is one of at least two numbers.


RUNX1 (previously termed AML1) is a frequent target of human leukaemia‐associated gene aberrations, and it encodes the DNA‐binding subunit of the Core‐Binding Factor transcription factor complex. RUNX1 expression is essential for the initiation of definitive haematopoiesis, for steady‐state thrombopoiesis, and for normal lymphocytes development. Recent studies revealed that protein arginine methyltransferase 1 (PRMT1), which accounts for the majority of the type I PRMT activity in cells, methylates two arginine residues in RUNX1 (R206 and R210), and these modifications inhibit corepressor‐binding to RUNX1 thereby enhancing its transcriptional activity. In order to elucidate the biological significance of these methylations, we established novel knock‐in mouse lines with non‐methylable, double arginine‐to‐lysine (RTAMR‐to‐KTAMK) mutations in RUNX1. Homozygous Runx1KTAMK/KTAMK mice are born alive and appear normal during adulthood. However, Runx1KTAMK/KTAMK mice showed a reduction in CD3+ T lymphoid cells and a decrease in CD4+ T cells in peripheral lymphoid organs, in comparison to their wild‐type littermates, leading to a reduction in the CD4+ to CD8+ T‐cell ratio. These findings suggest that arginine‐methylation of RUNX1 in the RTAMR‐motif is dispensable for the development of definitive haematopoiesis and for steady‐state platelet production, however this modification affects the role of RUNX1 in the maintenance of the peripheral CD4+ T‐cell population.


The Graphical Method Presented here can be used to determine the 24 - hour average indoor temperature and indoor temperature swing of a direct-gain house if the indoor air temperature is allowed to swing freely in responses to the daily insolation input and varying outdoor temperature. No mechanical cooling, heating or venting of the living space is assumed to take place.


The temperature dependence of magnetoconductance fluctuations in narrow mesoscopic silicon inversion layers (length 4.3 \ensuremath{\mu}m, width 0.14 and 0.43 \ensuremath{\mu}m) has been studied. The magnitude and magnetic correlation length of the fluctuations was measured in the temperature range T=0.2--4.2 K and for magnetic fields up to 3 T. Weak-localization experiments were performed for an independent determination of the inelastic diffusion length ${L}_{\mathrm{in}}$. When ${L}_{\mathrm{in}}$ exceeds the channel width W [quasi-one-dimensional (quasi-1D)] the experimental temperature dependence of the fluctuation amplitude and magnetic correlation length is very well described by the theory for universal conductance fluctuations of Lee and Stone. In case ${L}_{\mathrm{in}l\mathrm{W}}$ (quasi-2D) a good agreement with this theory is found for the temperature dependence of the fluctuation amplitude.


Under a proposed law to require increased use of gasohol, states would have received a third less in federal highway funds, since gasohol and other alternative fuels are currently tax exempt. They would have lost $3.5 billion this year and more than $4 billion in 1992. Even under current law, the Highway Trust Fund loses $500 million a year because of the exemption. The author opposes the exemption on grounds that the extra revenue is needed to provide the additional capacity needed to handle a projected 50% increase in travel over the next 12 years.


This article draws upon extensive primary research involving substantive documentary analysis of United Nations (UN) reports and New Zealand (NZ) debates over the last 20 years, and interviews with senior Māori professionals, to consider the role of international human rights standards and processes in the challenge to Māori imprisonment. It shows that over-representation is carefully managed by the NZ state in four ways: (i) a perpetual representation of Māori as the offenders; (ii) the selective endorsement of rights, such that discriminatory criminal justice operations are normalised; (iii) a pervasive human rights ritualism within UN reporting processes; and (iv) the legitimisation of imprisonment and inequalities through the international rights system. Notwithstanding these problems, Māori remain alive to the potential of challenging imprisonment through engagement with international rights frameworks. They indicate the need for a tripartite approach of reforms, decolonising acts and abolitionist strategies in doing so.


The supervision of negotiable securities issue,the first strobe of the stock market,will directly affect the development and stability of the negotiable securities trading market.It will also affect the efficiency of resources allocation of the entire stock market.Therefore,it is necessary to conduct the research on the validity of the supervision of present negotiable securities issue.In this paper,the author makes analysis of the need for the supervision of negotiable securities issue with the theory of economics and law.


Binary semiconductor one-dimensional photonic crystals with periodically arranged embedded quantum wells demonstrate optical properties akin to those of resonant hyperbolic metamaterials. Such structures possess a hyperbolic dispersion of their optical eigenmodes in a specified spectral range. Strong spectral selectivity and tunability of transmittance of the embedded quantum wells allow manipulating by optical properties of the whole structure. We demonstrate by modelling the possibility of the control of the trajectory and the group velocity of the spatially localized optical pulse propagating in the proposed structure by an external bias through its effect upon the exciton radiative properties.


To elucidate the molecular mechanism of pharmacological action of local anesthetics, we studied membrane actions of tetracaine, bupivacaine, lidocaine, prilocaine and procaine. Fluorescence polarization of n -(9-anthroyloxy)stearic acid ( n -AS) was used to examine the effects of these local anesthetics on differential rotational mobility of different positions of the number of synaptosomal plasma membrane vesicle (SPMV) phospholipid carbon atoms. The four membrane components differed with respect to 3, 6, 9 and 16-(9-anthroyloxy)stearic acid (3-AS, 6-AS, 9-AS and 16-AP) probes, indicating that differences in the membrane fluidity might be present. Degrees of the rotational mobility of 3-AS, 6-AS, 9-AS and 16-AP were different depending on depth of hydrocarbon interior. In a dose-dependent manner, tetracaine, bupivacaine, lidocaine, prilocaine and procaine decreased anisotropy of 3-AS, 6-AS, 9-AS and 16-AP in the hydrocarbon interior of the SPMV. These results indicate that local anesthetics have significant disordering effects on hydrocarbon interior of the SPMV, thus affecting the transport of Na and K in nerve membranes and leading to anesthetic action.


By analyzing the status of physics teaching in higher vocational schools,presented the physical integration of theoretical courses and experimental classes in order to experiment as a platform for professional needed in the form of physical knowledge to experiment revealed itself,and to change the traditional physics teaching methods,so that provide better service for the professional teaching.The practices to prove that the teaching reform can greatly enhance students interesting in learning and hands-on ability to obtain good teaching results.


As a proletarian revolutionist,Ren Bishi paid much attention to the team foundation of political and ideological cadres,and he emphasized the importance of assigning competent cadres and frequent examination and supervision.The author of this article thinks that his theory bears great significance to improve the ideological and political work nowadays.


The planning of the soil use has been turned out to be a very important activity in the agricultural and socioeconomic development, because the inadequate use and without planning of the lands it causes low yield of the crops. This work aimed the morphometric characterizatiwon of the Ribeirao do Veado watershed - Piratininga (SP), tributary of the Rio Batalha, seeking the planning of conservation practices of the soil in the area, through geoprocessing. The watershed with 1776 ha, is located in the geographical coordinates 22 o 23' 32" to 22 o 26' 17" of latitude S and 49 o 09' 45" of longitude W Gr. It was used as cartographic base the Map of Brazil (IBGE, 1973), in scale 1:50000. The dimension variables analyzed were: larger length (C), area (A) and perimeter (P) of the watershed and the for the relief were: medium altitude (Hm), altimetric width (Ha), medium steepness (H), form factor (Ff), relief reason (Rr) and drainage density (Dd), measured through the System of Geographical Information - Idrisi Java. The results showed that the medium steepness allowed classifying the relief as wavy, probably, due to the substratum that has high permeability with larger rain water infiltration and superficial drainage of the water, conserving the soil. The form factor (0.38) and the drainage density (1.66 km km ²) allowed to conclude that probably the watershed is not subject the flood, once the relief presents high influence on the hydrological factors. Therefore, the knowledge of the area hydrology and relief is of fundamental importance in the decision taking of planning actions and administration in the future preservation.


Abstract Dibenzyl-3′-O-[(6-azido-2,3,6-trideoxy-4,5-di-O-benzyl) hexanoyl] thymidine 5′-yl phosphate 8a was prepared. Catalytic hydrogenolysis removed only the benzyl esters and reduced the azido group. When the benzyl ethers were replaced by p-phenylbenzyl or allyl ethers, their deprotection also failed.


Travel-related health risks are of concern to all members of the healthcare community—both as business and recreational travelers ourselves and as professionals charged with caring for our patients who travel abroad. Many of our patients will come to us for necessary vaccinations, pre-travel checkups and prescription renewals before they embark on their journeys. These visits provide a good opportunity to offer guidance, advice and important medical information that can guard health and support a carefree vacation. Part 1 of this three-part series presented a discussion of the occurrence and prevention of noninfectious health risks that occur due to travel-related injury as well as from complications from underlying health problems. Part 2 of this series now looks at emerging mosquito-borne infectious illnesses, specifically chikungunya fever (endemic in areas of tropical Africa, India and Southeast Asia) and dengue fever (originating in the South Pacific, Asia, Caribbean, Mexico, South and Central America and Africa). Although considered "tropical" illness, travelers visiting many other parts of the world, including Europe and even parts of the United States, have been infected with these illnesses by the bite of infected mosquitos. It is important for all healthcare professionals to be familiar with the methods of prevention as well as the diagnosis and treatment of these illnesses.


I present a bijection on integer partitions that leads to recursive expressions, closed formulae and generating functions for the cardinality of certain sets of partitions of a positive integer $n$. The bijection leads also to a product on partitions that is associative with a natural grading thus defining a free associative algebra on the set of integer partitions. As an outcome of the computations, certain sets of integers appear that I call difference sets and the product of the integers in a difference set is an invariant for a family of sets of partitions. The main combinatorial objects used in these constructions are the central hooks of the Ferrers diagrams of partitions.


The basis of hypoxia‐induced lung inflammation is not understood. To address this understanding, we considered the role of the endothelial (EC) platelet and leukocyte receptor, von Willebrand factor (vWf). We exposed mice (Swiss Webster) to room air, or 12% O2 for 24 hours. Then, we anesthetized the mice (ketamine: 3ml/kg and xylazine: 1ml/kg, i.p.), opened the chest, injected intra‐cardiac heparin and covered the lungs with chilled buffer (4°C). Through a pulmonary artery cannula we cleared blood in lung vessels by buffer infusion. Then, we infused chilled collagenase (1000 units/ml) and trypsin (3ml), and collected the effluent through a left atrial cannula. After filtering the sample, we treated it with paraformaldehyde (4%) and Triton X‐100 (0.1%). Then, using Alexa 488‐conjugated, specific and non‐specific mAbs (1μg/100 μl) we stained the samples respectively, to detect vWf and to rule out non‐specific ligation. Specific Alexa fluorescence (normalized units) as detected by flow cytometry on 5×104 cells/lung, defined EC. In animals exposed to normoxia, EC fluorescence was 4.2±0.3 units/103 cells (mean±SD; n=3). By contrast, in hypoxia EC fluorescence increased >5 times baseline to 21.2±3.5 units/103cells (n=3, p<0.05). Our findings indicate that hypoxia activated vWf expression in lung EC. In hypoxia, vWf‐induced EC signaling might underlie lung inflammation (Support: HL54157, HL36024).


he article by Margaret Clark' recommends that a moratorium be placed on xenotransplantation reT search. Her call for a moratorium is predicated on an assemblage of factors, most notably, the degrees to which this research poses serious risks to the health of patients and the public, assails natural barriers between species, and is being conducted by scientists who believe that they alone should assess the risks of xenotransplantation and determine when clinical trials will begin. Clark also argues that xenotransplants denigrate and misuse animals and add to the injustice of health care systems. Xenotransplant technologies should be held at bay until the public can learn about, debate, and evaluate this assembly of issues, then possibly sanction their further development. Conceptually and ethically, Clark's argument is that the harms and offenses of xenotransplantation clearly outweigh any conceivable benefits. For Clark, its primary benefit is that the shortages of human allograft transplants, which "are considerably below demand," might be eased.2 My commentary will reverse Clark's perspective. I will indicate why the harms and offenses of xenotransplantation she sets forth are greatly overdrawn, why its foreseeable benefits are greater than she depicts, and why no moratorium is justifiable. Due to required brevity, I will not address all of the issues Clark assembles or highlight the strong sections of her article.


This thesis is about evaluating differences between electrical properties of closely spaced, supposedly identical, transistors (matched pairs) in integrated circuits (IC's). Electrical properties of transistors in IC's generally exhibit relatively large spreads due to variations of production equipment. Such spreads limit the attainable performances of IC's and deteriorate the precision by which certain (analogue) signal processing algorithms can be realised. Closely spaced identical transistors in one IC however, are fabricated simultaneously and under practically identical conditions, which results is substantially smaller differences (mismatch) of electrical performances. This attribute, usually indicated with the term 'matching', is used in many IC's to realise better performances. The remaining mismatches between transistors of matched pairs are generally of a stochastic nature and are hence indicated with the term mismatch fluctuations. By measuring and characterising populations of matched pairs, mismatch fluctuations can be quantified and evaluated. The observed effects are generally attributable to fluctuations of microscopic transistor construction elements such as doping atoms, edge roughness and grain boundaries. Besides these stochastic effects, so-called systematic mismatch effects are frequently encountered in practice. These are caused by the fact that transistors of a matched pair cannot always be realised or used identically. This thesis discusses the required microelectronic test structures and measurement capabilities for correctly analysing and evaluating mismatch effects. The discussed examples demonstrate that mismatch studies can provide valuable insights into the, not always equally well chosen, microscopic architecture of transistors. The discussed techniques and insights are used to optimise IC technologies and lead to better electronic performances and higher product yields.


The global fleet of 48,525 merchant ships is responsible for 90% of world trade, making the shipping industry invaluable in today's globalised world. On average 1,000 of these ships reach the end-of-life and are recycled annually. Close to 80% of these vessels are disposed of on the coasts of India, Bangladesh and Pakistan. Ship recycling in itself is a sustainable and necessary practice because of the large quantities of steel that can be recovered and the lack of an adequate alternative. However, the ship recycling in South Asia has proven to be incredibly harmful when it comes to environment, health and safety (EHS) standards. Recycling ships in a sustainable way has proven to be a challenge, which regulation has been unable to solve. This thesis explores the role of private sector stakeholders and their involvement in improving the ship recycling industry in the region. This study aims to describe the industry as it is today, and asks how ship-owners, cargo-owners and capital investors are able to use their influence to ensure more stringent EHS standards. Taking an inductive approach, using stakeholder theory and data gathering from stakeholder interviews, each stakeholder's role in the industry was explored and their potential to influence explained. Finding that cooperation between stakeholders was crucial for improvement in the recycling industry with ship-owners as leaders of change, as well as the need for a global regulatory framework. The capacity capabilities of South Asia are irreplaceable, however the current standards cannot continue to be tolerated. Working on verification of shipyards in the region for more stringent EHS standards must become a priority to the shipping industry, and stakeholders could be the key to ensure this change. (Less)


Historically Confucian harmonious idea is important in integrating cultural difference among different groups,leading to a harmonious relationship.Its basic idea is reflected in ideas aiming at harmonious relation between man and man such as "respecting etiquette and befriending the benevolent","harmonious with differences",and "the golden mean with calmness";while ideas such as "social estate system","difference between the old and the young","each in his proper place","knowing one's place","clear division of labor integrating people","just division leading to harmony","befriending and loving people",and "benefiting and educating people" reflect the specific ideas concerning the integration of cultural difference among different groups.


Objective To eliminate interference and determine the multicomponents simultaneously, their collinearties were more serious by orthogonal function partial least squares (OF PLS) among the the multicomponents. Methods The method was applied to simultaneous determination of all the components in the compound salicylic acid tincture Ⅱ. At the same time, the method was compared with PLS. Results The average recovery and the relative standard deviation of salicylic acid, benzoic acid and rivanolum attained by OF PLS and by PLS were 100 2%, 1 6%;100 1%,0 37%;100 1%,0 96% and 99 4%, 2 0%;100 9%,1 2%;99 8%,1 5% respectively. Conclusions OF PLS is better than the PLS method.


This experiment optimization of process conditions of rapid cooking mungbean,single factor test showed that the soaking time,soaking temperature,cooking time and cooking temperature on the rehydration of greater impact,and the style of drying on the structure and maintain morphology of rapid cooking mungbean of significantly impact;by response surface methodology regression analysis,the optimal processing conditions of rapid cooking mungbean: 0.5% NaHCO3 soaking solution for soaking 4 h under 42 ℃,and pressure cooking 40min under 100 ℃,drained,heated air drying the first 30~40 min,placed in sealed containers 24 h,and then microwave drying moisture content of 4~6 min to 5%~7%,rehydration time of 5~12 min.


This paper describes the construction of a writing course in English; with the purpose of exploring the fit between current approaches to the teaching of languages and writing on the one hand; and on the other; the necessary considerations of students; teachers and the institution; all of which comprise a specific context for the course. The course was established in the spring semester of 1995; as part of the general English program in the Center for Foreign Language Teaching (Centro de Ensenanza de Lenguas Extranjeras); of the UNAM. The background for the establishment of the course is presented; followed by a discussion of the theoretical and methodological underpinnings of the course design. Implications for the English program as a whole are discussed. Some students ' quotes; a few of the many compiled over five semesters; are included in the text; as they are to a certain degree representative of the general response of the students and offer an essential perspective for the project. Reflections and areas for investigation that have arisen as a result of the course; and a vision for its future; conclude the article.


a s the United States makes significant investments in systems and technologies designed to transform the healthcare industry, the capabilities to assimilate these massive changes must also be built. Fortune 500 businesses have long understood that these large investments have a much better chance of realizing their expected return if the companies attend to the human side of the equation, that is, ensure that the skills, rewards, talent management processes, and organizational culture are aligned with the intended changes. This alignment is achieved when leadership best practices are adopted, cultivating the necessary competencies to inspire and manage in a challenging and changing environment. However, this type of leadership is often lacking in the midst of radical change. In fact, more than half of large‐scale changes have historically failed to deliver on their promised return on investment (Kotter 1995). Unless healthcare leaders are adequately and pervasively prepared to guide their organizations through this change, many potentially transformational elements of healthcare reform will most decidedly fail. Ann McAlearney's study of the establishment, organization, content, process, evaluation, and evolution of executive leadership development (ELD) programs in U.S. healthcare systems provides a timely and informative overview. The widespread adoption of ELD programs since 2003 and the general perception of their value certainly seem to be promising signs that healthcare executive leadership is moving toward adopting best practices. The study offers sound rationale with respect to establishing an ELD program, including the importance of aligning such programs with the mission and strategic goals of the organization, their contribution to effective succession planning, and the importance of systems that evaluate the impact of ELD programs on leadership behavior and overall organizational performance (i.e., employee and patient satisfaction, employee retention, quality improvement, and cost reduction). The widespread use of executive coaches reported in the study is also promising; this strategy is consistent with best practices used in other industries and represents an effective means of promoting individualized development. The only caveat is that coaching needs to be based on defined behavioral competencies that drive exceptional performance. Some of the study findings, however, seem less promising. For example, when asked about their approach to creating ELD program content, the most common responses were to "ask participants for their ideas" and "poll their executives." While these techniques can help align learning with organizational priorities, they fail to take into account the leadership competencies required to deliver exceptional performance at different levels of management across the professions and that serve as the foundation for competency‐based learning and assessment (Calhoun et al. 2008, 2009).


Acoustic power transfer is a wireless power transfer technology that enables to supply sensors placed behind metal walls by using acoustic waves generated by piezoelectric transducers positioned on both sides of the wall. The state of the art reports that high levels of powers, up to hundreds of watts, can be transmitted but at the cost of high input voltage levels, making the control electronics complicated, low-efficient and even hazardous. In this paper, we study and validate experimentally the use a piezoelectric stack to generate the acoustic waves to transmit high power levels with low actuation voltages. By using a stack of four piezoelectric disks, the transmitted power is multiplied by 5 compared to a single disk for the same excitation voltage, and the power density is multiplied by 2, reaching 8.2 mW/V2/cm3.