Since the β-diketone compounds such as dibenzoylmethane can greatly raise the heat stabilizing efficiency of zinc-based heat stabilizers on the initial discoloration of PVC,they have become the key component of non-toxic high-performance zinc-based heat stabilizers.But,β-diketones can cause PVC plastics containing fillers reddened.This problem has severely limits the scope of application of β-diketones,and affected the extension of the environment-friendly zinc-based heat stabilizers.In this paper,the reason and solution method for the reddening phenomenon of filled PVC plastics containing β-diketones were discussed.It was shown:(1)the reason why filled PVC plastics containing β-diketones reddened was that the fillers contained Fe3+ and Fe3+ could formed red complexes with β-diketones;(2)the reddening phenomenon of filled PVC containing β-diketones could be effectively reduced by modifying the β-diketones with a special chemical approach.


The invention discloses a high-pressure common-rail electronic control oil injector, which comprises a high-pressure oil inlet end, a control plunger, an oil needle, a needle valve body sealing seat surface and an injection hole, wherein the high-pressure oil inlet end is connected with a common-rail pipe by an oil pipe; an accommodating cavity is formed between the control plunger and the needlevalve body sealing seat surface; the lower part of the oil needle is sandwiched between an oil needle spring and the needle valve body sealing seat surface; the accommodating cavity is communicated with a control cavity by a fuel channel and an oil inlet small hole; the control cavity is communicated with a transition cavity of a control valve by an oil outlet small hole; the transition cavity isconnected with an oil return pipe of the oil injector; an electromagnetic valve spring pushes a ball valve into the oil outlet small hole in the seat surface by an armature; an electromagnetic valve coil is arranged above the armature; a needle valve body is arranged on the lower part of the high-pressure common-rail electronic control oil injector; the lower part of the oil needle is clamped on the needle valve body; and external contact surfaces of the needle valve body and the oil needle are inclined relative to a vertical direction. The high-pressure common-rail electronic control oil injector can stably control oil injection with small quantity and achieve excellent effects of saving energy, reducing emission and reducing an engine noise.


Differences in the immunosuppressive activity of Tamm–Horsfall protein and uromodulin claimed by many investigators are controversial. They have been ascribed to variations in the carbohydrate moiety.


This paper presents an original undergraduate experiment which use capabilities of the PC sound device for observation and data acquisition. We study the rapid changing electromagnetic (EM) phenomena in the undergraduate physics laboratory. These phenomena are often encountered in the standard electro dynamical experiments like as electromagnetic induction and oscillation in LC circuit. The comparison of theoretical study within experimental output shows that the usage of PC sound card as digital oscilloscope is suitable in the undergraduate laboratory. For this purpose, an experiment that analyzes Faraday's law of electromagnetic induction using PC sound cards as digital oscilloscope was described. Then we apply the computer sound card to measure damped electromagnetic oscillation in the LC circuit. By using this measurement technique we were able to visualize theoretical expectation and to extract some of the parameter values from the recorded data. Moreover, combining the theoretical description of the problem with an appropriate laboratory experiment and computational procedures gives students a clearer view of the physical problem as a whole. © 2010 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Comput Appl Eng Educ 21: 158–163, 2013


Abstract This essay offers ecocritical discussions of Iraqi flora and fauna under the 2003 invasion of Iraq from the point of view of both American and Iraqi novelists. The purpose of this paper is to examine how the American Kevin Powers's in The Yellow Birds (2012) and Iraqi Sinan Antoon's in The Book of Collateral Damage (2019) extend their moral mission of the 2003 invasion of Iraq which moves beyond the human species to include flora and fauna in light of ecocriticism. More specifically, the paper attempts to expose the outrageous things reflected by Antoon and Powers that the US invasion has done to flora and fauna which are officially ignored. It also examines the proper employment of different forms of symbolism and techniques to strengthen their ecological conservation values. The study concludes that despite the selected writers' different experiences of colonialism, they similarly stand in creating eco-consciousness that comes from their understanding that the costs of war are not only measured by the loss of humans, but also by the devastation of flora and fauna to institutionalize a strong oppositional stance towards the war in Iraq. Key words : Ecocriticism , Biocentric Vsion , Eco-justice Perspective , Environmental Ethics , Human and Nonhuman Relationship , Los of Biodiversity , Sustainability .


Oleksandr Sushko is the director of the Center for Peace, Conversion, and Foreign Policy of Ukraine.The returns of Ukraine's parliamentary elections of 31 March 2002 turned out to be too contradictory to provide grounds for final conclusions as regards the success or failure of the democratic transformation in Ukraine. In fact, the elections became only a stage of the nonuniform political process, in which modernization and democratization coexist with archaic, post-Soviet tendencies. The election campaign revealed serious deviations from standards of transparent democratic process. Yet, in general, the election results were successful because the democratic forces effectively improved their positions in parliament, although they fell short of an absolute majority of seats.The elections demonstrated a serious expansion of the electoral basis of the reformist forces, as well as decreasing support of past favorites, the Communists. In addition, they delineated a distinct, new pattern among the political forces, a sort of three-party system instead of the former divide between the uncoordinated democrats opposed by the Communists. During the election period, the main contenders in Ukraine's political arena were the "centrist" nomenklatura-oligarchic parties incorporated in the For Integral Ukraine (FIU) bloc, on one hand, and the broad spectrum of reformers united around the person of ex-prime minister Victor Yushchenko in the Our Ukraine bloc, on the other. Allied with the FIU in most cases is the Social-Democratic Party of Ukraine (united) (SDPUu)--the only one of the propresidential parties that, along with the FIU, managed to overcome the 4 percent vote hurdle to get into parliament. The Yulia Tymoshenko bloc and the Socialist Party of Oleksandr Moroz can contribute to Our Ukraine's efforts to establish an opposition to President Leonid Kuchma and the Kinakh government. These two forces unexpectedly overcame the 4 percent hurdle quite successfully. The Communists have become the third independent element. Alone their numbers are not sufficient to be of crucial importance. But the total number of opposition MPs, including Communists, is now 219 (48.5 percent of parliament). 1 This is likely to determine the effectiveness of the Supreme Rada's activities, at least during the first year of its work.Election ReturnsSince 1998, Ukraine has had a mixed electoral system. Under the Law of Ukraine on Election of People's Deputies, 225 (half) of 450 deputies are elected according to the results of the vote in the national multimandate constituency, with a 4 percent hurdle applied. The remaining 225 deputies are elected in single-mandate constituencies. The elections demonstrated that the major political forces in the multimandate and single-mandate constituencies could differ significantly.According to the final returns that were disclosed by the Central Election Committee on 15 April, six parties and blocs had overcome the 4 percent hurdle (see table 1). They thus form the basic configuration of the parliament, which will consist of six major caucuses. In addition, the caucuses will also include MPs elected in single-mandate constituencies who were supported by relevant blocs (parties). It is here that the differences emerge. For instance, in the Communist Party there are seven members of parliament from single-mandate constituencies, so the Communist Party caucus had sixty-six persons (seven plus the initial fifty-nine from the party list). 2 That is nearly half of what the Communists had in the previous parliament.The Our Ukraine bloc won in forty-eight districts. It had 118 seats, but in at least one of the constituencies the vote has already been declared invalid. 3 The Socialist Party of Ukraine won in three constituencies; in one of them the vote has been declared invalid, so the Socialists will have twenty-two seats. 4 The Yulia Tymoshenko bloc could add two single-mandate district deputies to twenty-two MPs elected on the party list. …


A new class of highly sensitive silicon photodetectors is based on the internal discrete amplification mechanism developed by Amplification Technologies, Inc. The key parameters of the novel photodetectors are high speed and ultra low excess noise at high levels of gain. The photodetectors work both * in the photon counting mode and * for analog proportional detection of few-photon light pulses. Performance parameters of these solid-state devices are comparable to those of vacuum PMTs, and even exceed them for some applications. The main parameters of the photodetectors in photon counting mode are the following: * short rise-fall time of one-electron pulse - less than 400 ps * high count speed - up to 500 MHz (in time gating mode) * timing resolution - 200 ps * fine one-electron pulse height distribution due to low (less than 1.05) excess noise factor


Adolescents and young adults (AYA) with acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) represent a unique patient population with specific characteristics and needs. Growing evidences suggest that pediatric‐inspired approaches improve the outcome in AYA. These results prompted the design of a pediatric AIEOP‐BFM ALL 2000‐based regimen ‐ the GIMEMA LAL‐1308 protocol ‐ for newly diagnosed AYA (range 18‐35 years) with Philadelphia negative (Ph‐) ALL. The protocol included minimal residual disease (MRD) analysis at two different time‐points (TP), that is, at the end of induction IA and consolidation IB, and a modulation in post‐consolidation intensity according to MRD. Seventy‐six patients were eligible between September 2010 and October 2014. The regimen was well tolerated, with 2.7% induction deaths and no deaths in the post‐consolidation phase. The complete response (CR) rate was 92%; the 48‐month overall survival (OS) and disease‐free survival (DFS) were 60.3% and 60.4%. Both OS and DFS were significantly better in T‐ALL than B‐ALL. A molecular MRD <10−3 at TP1 was associated with a significantly better OS and DFS (77% vs 39% and 71.9% vs 34.4%, respectively);similar results were documented at TP2 (OS and DFS 74.5% vs 30.6% and 71.5% vs 25.7%, respectively). The LAL‐1308 results were compared to those from similar historic AYA populations undergoing the two previous GIMEMA LAL‐2000 and LAL‐0904 protocols. Both OS and DFS improved significantly compared to the two previous protocols. These results indicate that this pediatric‐inspired and MRD‐oriented protocol is feasible and effective for Ph‐ AYA ALL patients, and underline the prognostic value of MRD determinations at specific TPs.


The invention relates to an aluminum electrolytic capacitor electrolyte and a preparation method thereof, wherein the electrolyte is prepared from the following raw materials in percentage by weight: 70% of glycol, 1.5% of ammonium dihydrogen phosphate, 8% of ammonium pentaborate, 14% of ammonium adipate, 4.5% of breakdown voltage enhancing agent, 1% of phosphorous acid and 1% of deionized water. The preparation method comprises the following steps: taking and adding 70kg of glycol and 1kg of deionized water into a container, uniformly stirring, and heating to 110 DEG C; weighing 4.5kg of breakdown voltage increasing agent, 1.5kg of ammonium dihydrogen phosphate, 1kg of phosphorous acid, 8kg of ammonium pentaborate and 14kg of ammonium adipate by using a scale, and then, sequentially adding the materials into the container and stirring; and keeping the mixture at the constant temperature of 110 DEG C for 30 minutes, naturally cooling the mixture to the room temperature, and then discharging. The invention has the advantages of enhancing the breakdown voltage of the electrolyte, improving the capacity of repairing aluminum foil oxidation films by oxygen ions of the electrolyte, reducing generation of water and precipitation of hydrogen gas in the working process, and obviously improving the service performance of the aluminum electrolytic capacitor.


An instrument has been developed, called the Formation Microscanner Tool (FMS)l, which acquires two dimensional, high resolution imagery of microresistivity variations around the wall of a borehole [l]. The imaging capability arises through the use of an array of electrodes distributed at 0.1 inch increments azimuthally on a conducting pad which is applied against the borehole wall. As the instrument is pulled uphole, this array is sampled at a uniform temporal rate corresponding to a 0.1 inch vertical sampling increment. This presentation will provide an overview of this microresistivity array measurement, including examples from rock formations having fine-scale heterogeneity. Further, a signal processing problem will be discussed that arises because the instrument typically moves with nonconstant velocity due to sonde mass, cable elasticity and pad frictional drag, in which case constant temporal sampling provides nonuniform spatial sampling. Instrument position estimates are obtained from downhole accelerometer measurements using a timevarying Kalman filter based on a dynamical model with multiple, nonharmonic resonant modes. The position estimates obtained from this algorithm are used to resample the acquired 2D data onto a uniform spatial grid. References 1. M.P. Ekstrom, C.A. Dahan, M.Y. Chen, P.M. Lloyd and D. J. Rossi, Formation Imaging with Microelectrical Scanning Arrays, The Log Analyst, Vol. 28, No. 3, May 1987. Mark of Schlumberger


The Agriculture Council has approved a revision of the International Plant Protection Convention (IPPC) to strengthen its role in setting international standards. Council also decided that the European Union should become a party to the IPPC in its own right, alongside the 25 EU Member States. Both decisions recognise the growing importance of the IPPC in the international trading system. The World Trade Organisation (WTO) recognises the right of WTO members to impose restrictions on imports if these are needed to protect their agriculture from plant diseases or pests. This right is set out in the WTO's Agreement on Sanitary and Phytosanitary measures (SPS Agreement), which also calls on the IPPC to provide international standards to help ensure WTO members develop a harmonised approach and do not use such measures as unjustified barriers to trade. The revised Convention formalises the IPPC's Secretariat and establishes a governing body, the "Commission on Phytosanitary Measures", for the setting of International Standards for Phytosanitary Measures. These will be recognised under the SPS Agreement. The standard–setting process in the IPPC emphasises participation, consultation and technical competence. The new rules explicitly foresee the participation of bodies such as the EU. The IPPC is a multilateral Treaty created under the auspices of the UN's Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO). The Convention was adopted by the FAO in 1951 and has bee revised twice before (in 1979 and in 1997). At present 56 out of the 127 member countries of the Convention have accepted the text of the latest revision. Two thirds of member countries need to accept the new rules for them to enter into force. This is expected to happen in the next two to three years. EU membership of the IPPC will allow Europe to have a greater impact in developing international plant health and plant protection rules. It will also reinforce the credibility of the EU's own rules in this area and ensure they are in line with international standards.


This study seeks to attempt to shed light on how to process and engineer the texts and grammar of the Arabic language on the computer, and encode them using a set of technologies and software present in the digital content.  As the Arabic language is a natural, mathematical and etymological language par excellence, this research aims in the end to obtain an automated educational method to make it easier for every learner to acquire Arabic linguistic structures through modern scientific schemes.
Therefore, we chose the topic: "The role of automated processing in teaching the grammatical rules of the Arabic language - a study on the Arabic writing system - trying to answer the following forms: What are the mechanisms and mechanisms that depend on it in processing Arabic grammar automatically? We follow the descriptive-analytical approach.  The research aimed to achieve a set of results, the most important of which is: The Arabic language is a mathematical language par excellence, whose rules can be reduced and shortened and programmed in the computer to facilitate the method of its acquisition.


(February 1, 2008)The requirement that the laws of physicsmust be invariant underpoint-dependenttransformationsof the units of length, time, and mass is used as a selection principle while studying differentgeneric effective theories of gravity. Thereof theories with non-minimal coupling of the dilaton bothto the curvature and to the Lagrangian of the matter fields seem to represent the most viablelow-energy [and low-curvature] description of gravity. Consequently, the cosmological singularityproblem is treated within the context of string cosmology with non-minimal coupling of the dilatonto a barotropic gas of solitonic p-brane. The results obtained are to be interpreted on the groundsof Weyl-integrable geometry. The implications of these results for the Mach's principle are brieflydiscussed.98.80.Cq, 04.50.+h, 11.25.SqI. INTRODUCTION


Background & aims: All around the world, underground water resources are a major part of supplying drinking water due to high quality, easy access, low cost and no need for complicated treatment. On the other hand, lack of proper management can transfer chemical pollutants through industrial and agricultural effluents. In this study, the chemical quality of rural drinking water supplies in Neyshabour city was investigated. Methods: In this study, 83 wells which were used to supply drinking water of rural area of Neyshabour city were selected through census. Samples were sent to laboratory and tested using standard methods. Data were analyzed using SPSS 19 and AquaChem 2012 software. Results: The results of the SAR index showed that out of 83 studied wells, 58 wells are poor, 21 wells are moderate and only four wells are in good situation. According to the corrosion and scaling indices, water in most of the studied wells was classified as corrosive. Considering the standards of drinking water in Iran, the concentrations of nitrite, nitrate and TDS in studied supplies were acceptable. The Cl- and Na+ ions concentration of 14 wells increase concerns about the saline taste of drinking water. The main forms of alkalinity in studied wells were carbonate and bicarbonate and the water hardness is mainly temporary due to the probable presence of calcium and magnesium ions. Conclusion: Due to the important role of underground resources in country, continuous evaluation should be considered to prevent them from chemical polluting. It seems that land use monitoring and applying chemical fertilizers in proper distance from water resources in order to maintain the quality is essential.


The noise and vibration have been evaluated by using the finite element model in the vehicle developing stage. The sound pressure of the vehicle compartment is predicted by the acoustic cavity model coupled with the body structure. In general, the structural model has been focused to study in the improvement of the noise. It is not easy to treat the structural model, instead the acoustic cavity model is relatively simple and aids in root cause analysis of vibro-acoustic issues. Therefore, the acoustic transfer function of the cavity is more efficient for finding out the main contribution parts of the vehicle booming noise. And examples about the run-up booming noise demonstrate the validity of the AFT analysis for improving the vibro-acoustic sensitivity.


Wessex Water Services Ltd, one of the 10 regional water and sewerage companies in England and Wales, has consistently delivered industry leading levels of service to customers and the environment. It relies not only on dedicated staff but notably on the billions of pounds worth of assets under its ownership to continue to provide such service. In 2006 Wessex Water embarked on a journey to develop and demonstrate excellence in Asset Management throughout every part of the business involved in managing assets. This paper describes the approach, the journey and the challenges faced by the company after it made a conscious decision to increase its asset management maturity. To help it on its journey the company used BSI PAS55 as a roadmap for increasing its asset management maturity and in 2008, when it first received certification, was the first water company to do so. (4 pages)


Despite the importance of attribution theories of leadership for cross-cultural management, the international business literature has not addressed issues related to the attributions leaders are likely to make for subordinate behavior in cross-national contexts. This paper provides an empirical test of a functional attributional model of leadership in three countries, viz., India, France, and the U.S.A. Drawing from Triandis' (1975) notion of isomorphic attributions, and attributional complexity theory, we identify attributional accuracy of managers as the fundamental component of the model in a cross- national context. This model focuses on key constructs such as leader attributions and their accuracy, leader behaviors that follow their attributions, mediating variables such as subordinate satisfaction, and outcome variables such as leadership perceptions. The process model is tested using hierarchical regressions of both direct effects and mediating effects. The model and its test use the same implicit ...


The course of audiology is both important and difficult to the undergraduate education of otolaryngology.Through a series of reforms in teaching contents and methods of audiology,the students'effect of study were greatlyimproved,and thus these reforms were generally appreciated by both teachers and students. In conclusion, the act of theteaching reform not only advanced the students' learning enthusiasm and gumption, but also helps the development andexercise in their clinical thinking ability.


Development of effective therapeutics for brain disorders is challenging, in particular, the blood-brain barrier (BBB) severely limits access of the therapeutics into the brain parenchyma. Traumatic brain injury (TBI) may lead to transient BBB permeability that affords a unique opportunity for therapeutic delivery via intravenous administration ranging from macromolecules to nanoparticles (NP) for developing precision therapeutics. In this regard, we address critical gaps in understanding the range/size of therapeutics, delivery window(s), and moreover the potential impact of biological factors for optimal delivery parameters. Here we show, for the first time, to the best of our knowledge, that 24 h post-focal TBI female mice exhibit a heightened macromolecular tracer and NP accumulation compared to male mice, indicating sex-dependent differences in BBB permeability. Furthermore, we report for the first time the potential to deliver NP-based therapeutics within 3 d after focal injury in both female and male mice. The delineation of injury-induced BBB permeability with respect to sex and temporal profile is essential to more accurately tailor time-dependent precision and personalized nanotherapeutics.


Elemental solids are categorized into four classes based on the occupation of Wyckoff positions (WPs), to investigated their ionicities. In class I of elemental solids with only one WP occupied, such as diamond, the ionicities of all bonds are zero. In the other three classes of elemental solids with multiple equivalent or inequivalent WPs occupied, charge transfer can exist between atoms occupying different WPs, and hence have an ionic character. We identify some previously unrecognized elemental solids with partial ionicities using the method of Bader charge analysis. Especially, charge transfer in a boron-rich phase (ε-B) is comparable with that in oxides.


Pregnancies complicated by chronic hypertension are at increased risk of adverse pregnancy outcomes. To assess whether planned early delivery might prevent some of these adverse outcomes, we studied maternal and neonatal outcomes of pregnancy in women with chronic hypertension, including gestational‐age‐specific outcomes.


Prophet's hadith has an important role in Islamic teaching. Therefore, a Muslim community, in Islamic medieval century, tried to use hadith to legitimize their group existence and interest, even though they had to fabricate hadith for it. Hadith fabrication, at the beginning, happened because of political problems during Ali bin Abi Thalid order era. In its progression, the appearance of those political hadiths is to give one thing with another to the groups that politically and theologically have extreme opinions.


In this publication authors have evaluated seaports performance in Ukraine as part of transport infrastructure. It is highlighted that in modern conditions development of seaports as multifunctional entities capable of performing intermodal transportation, has a strategic impact on the country and might increase its competitiveness at international level. Peculiarities of port industry development in modern economic conditions and main problematic issues are defined, among which: low congestion of port facilities; irregular mechanism of public-private partnership; loss of transit flows by seaports; low level of digitalization in the area of transport and logistics activities; insufficient level of technical, technological and environmental safety in seaports. Strategic priorities of port industry development are substantiated, considering foreign experience and modern requirements of the world community.


The article describes the questions of the False Dmitri II origin, and his support from the Polish-Lithuanian environment. Based on the documents from the State Archives of Sweden (Riksarkivet) (discovered by the author), the correspondence of King Sigismund III with chancellor L. Gembitski, and the letters of the Royal Secretary JakubZadzik, we reconstructed the political intrigue, which led to the death of the second False Dmitri. The author believes that the confrontation between the two contenders for the Russin crown Sigismund III and False Dmitry II contributed, that the Polish-Lithuanian intervention in to the Muscovite state did not achieve their desired goals


use
a low-alloy FeC alloy with tribological properties
for the renewal of a cylinder liner made of gray cast iron, an aluminum material
or a ceramic material for an engine block for a
Internal combustion engine, wherein the low-alloy FeC alloy means
Arc wire spraying is applied.


This paper presents a new and efficient approach for capacitor placement in transmission systems that determine the optimal locations and number of capacitor with an objective of improving the voltage profile and reduction in power loss. The solution methodology has two parts: in part one determine the number and size of capacitor and in part two a new hybrid algorithm is used to estimate the optimal bus of capacitors at the optimal size and number at part one. This algorithm is PSO and HBMO hybrid. The main advantage of the proposed method is that it faster than other methods. The proposed method is applied to 14-bus IEEE Transmission system. The solutions obtained by the proposed method are compared with PSO method. The proposed method has outperformed the other methods in terms of the quality of solution (Convergence speed and size of the objective function).


John Clarke presents the theme of this volume by asking why we might speak of "imagined economies". It is, he answers, "to interrupt the apparent ubiquity of economies", to provide a moment for "a pause for thought". In this chapter, I explore the role that imagination plays in the creation and maintenance of a money system. Money is important to the existence and functioning of an economy.1 Money, too, seems ubiquitous and naturally-occurring, so I want to pause and consider why it is that we might have money and what exactly it is doing. Different objects have served as money, or tokens of money, in different societies. Today, the main form of money (from an economic perspective, if not from a


In connection with the reform of regulatory framework for construction sector of the Republic of Kazakhstan, the development of seismic zoning maps poses an urgent problem. The article presents a set of seismic microzoning maps of Almaty, developed on a new methodological basis for Kazakhstan, and provides explanatory materials on the development, understanding and use. Calculation of background seismic hazard was carried out in accordance with the basic provisions of Eurocode 8. Seismic microzoning included the implementation of two main tasks - the assessment of background seismicity and taking into account influence of soil conditions. Based on the analysis results, a set of maps have been arranged. When taking into account the influence of engineering and geological conditions, Russian and Kazakh works were used. The main maps ready for use in regulatory documents are provided. Analysis of capacities of the sediments of same age in different blocks made it possible to understand the dynamics of tectonic regime of the city territory. In the process of neotectonic activation, almost all previously existing tectonic disturbances were improved. In the contemporary relief of the urban area, most faults are not expressed.


The purpose of this letter report is to identify documents that record batch, daily, or selected monthly separations processes operating information at the Hanford Site for the years 1944-1972. The information found in these documents is needed to develop the source terms necessary to make dose estimates. The documents have been identified, located, declassified if necessary, evaluated, and made available to the HEDR Project in general, the HEDR Task 03 (Source Terms) in particular, and the public. Complete bibliographic citations and some sample pages from the Hanford separations processes documents are included.


Abstract Family caregivers of individuals living with Alzheimer's disease or related dementias (ADRDs) are exposed to unique stressors that put them at risk for depression and suicidal ideation. To date, little is known about contextual factors surrounding suicidal ideation among ADRD family caregivers. We investigated individual caregiver characteristics (gender, age, relationship to care-recipient, history of depression and anxiety) and daily environmental stressors (behavioral symptoms of dementias; BSDs) associated with daily suicidal ideation using a micro-longitudinal design and ecological momentary assessment methods. Data were collected from a national sample of family caregivers (N=51) who completed daily diaries over 21 days (n=911). Suicidal ideation was endorsed on forty-seven days (5.16%) during the sampling period, with 11 participants (22%) endorsing suicidal ideation at least once. Suicidal ideation did not differ based on the caregiver's age and relationship to the care-recipient (spouse or child). Participants with a history of mild depression and anxiety endorsed more days with suicidal ideation. Finally, family caregivers were more likely to endorse suicidal ideation on a day when more than one type of BSD was reported (OR = 1.25, 95% CI: 1.04-1.50, p = 0.018) and when BSDs were perceived as more bothersome than average (OR = 1.12, 95% CI: 1.05-1.19, p < 0.001). In this investigation, we identified descriptive and predictive factors that will inform the development of targeted interventions for ADRD caregivers at high risk of suicidal ideation.


Wildlife trafficking is a complex conservation issue that threatens thousands of species around the world and, in turn, negatively affects biodiversity and human well-being. It occurs in varied social-ecological contexts; includes numerous and diverse actors along the source-transit-destination trade chain, who are involved in illicit and often covert human behaviors driven by interacting social, economic, cultural, and political factors; and involves numerous stakeholders comprising multiple sectors and disciplines. Such wicked problems can be difficult to define and usually lack simple, clear solutions. Systems thinking is a way to understand and address complex issues such as wildlife trafficking and requires multisectoral, cross-disciplinary collaboration to comprehensively understand today's increasingly complex problems and develop holistic and novel solutions. We review methods utilized to date to combat wildlife trafficking and discuss their strengths and limitations. Next, we describe the continuum of cross-disciplinarity and present two frameworks for understanding complex environmental issues, including the illegal trade in wildlife, that can facilitate collaboration across sectors and disciplines. The Open Standards for the Practice of Conservation provides guidance and tools for defining complex social-ecological systems and identifying strategic points of intervention. One Health focuses on the nexus of human, wildlife, and environmental health, and can provide a framework to address concerns around human-wildlife interactions, including those associated with the illegal wildlife trade. Finally, we provide recommendations for expanding these and similar frameworks to better support communication, learning, and collaboration in cross-disciplinary efforts aimed at addressing international wildlife trafficking and its intersections with other complex, global conservation issues.


Electrophysiological measures of expectancy violation processing by the brain, such as the P300 component of the event-related potential, have provided insight into the way in which humans with varying amounts of musical experience maintain representations of musical information, in particular tonal representations. Bischoff Renninger and colleagues (2006) seek to extend this work by examining the P300 in the context of the very interesting topic of cross-cultural music perception, using Western listeners who either have or have not undergone training in Javanese music. Their study highlights the myriad issues and complexities of experimental design and analysis that must be addressed if one is to conduct an ethologically compelling and interpretable study of musical context representations using brain responses as dependent measures.


This chapter discusses the compatibility of the goals and objectives of the prospective donor family and the charitable organization and the ways in which the implementation of a deferred charitable giving program can advance those goals. The role of the family counselor in helping to defne and prioritize these goals and objectives is discussed.


Summary Objective The association of impulsiveness with personality traits in a sample of patients with anxiety disorders is relevant to un- derstand its meaning within the several psychopathological dimensions of per- sonality and clinical syndromes. The aim of the study was to describe within anxiety disorders several psy- chopathological features according to Millon's dimensional model evaluat- ing possible correlations with different (or partially convergent) models of impulsiveness as reflected by Clonin- ger's Temperamental and Character Inventory with special attention to the Novelty Seeking dimension, and by Barratt's classical Impulsiveness con- struct, explored through the Barratt


AFRICAN AMERICAN STUDENT PERCEPTION OF PERSISTENCE IN ENGINEERING AT A PREDOMINANTLY WHITE INSTITUTION Sean T. Bennett Laurence Moneta This study examines African American student perceptions of persistence in engineering. The research design is methodologically qualitative using a purposefully selected population of engineering students. Semi-structured interviews were designed to develop an in-depth understanding of what completion of the engineering degree means to African American engineering students. This research seeks insight into the linkages between African American student perceptions of persistence as it relates to both the academic and social culture of the engineering department. Vincent Tinto's model of Institutional Departure (1975, 1987) is one of the most commonly cited models of persistence in higher education (Braxton, Milem, Sullivan, 2000). Tinto's model was leveraged in this study to understand perceptions obtained through student interviews. Tinto suggests that exploration of student goal commitment and perceptions of institutional commitment are key to understanding student persistence. Results of this study suggest that African American students have perceptions about the university that may influence the decision to persist in engineering. Ultimately, this study may prove useful to researchers and administrators interested in improving access and success for African American engineering students. v


We demonstrate in experiment an efficient cw four-wave mixing scheme with maximal intensity conversion efficiency up to 73% in a double-Λ system of hot rubidium atoms. Relevant theoretical analysis shows that this high conversion efficiency benefits greatly from the constructive interference between two four-wave mixing channels, characterized by two different space-dependent phases.


1. Migration, Transfers and Economic Decision Making among Agricultural Households: an Introduction Benjamin Davis, Gero Carletto and Paul C. Winters 2. The Impact of Conditional Cash Transfers on Consumption and Investment in Nicaragua John A. Maluccio 3. Conditional Cash Transfers and Agricultural Production: Lessons from the Oportunidades Experience in Mexico Jessica Erin Todd, Paul C. Winters and Tom Hertz 4. Does Migration Make Rural Households More Productive? Evidence from Mexico J. Edward Taylor and Alejandro Lopez-Feldman 5. Moving Forward, Looking Back: the Impact of Migration and Remittances on Assets, Consumption, and Credit Constraints in the Rural Philippines Agnes Quisumbing and Scott McNiven 6. Seasonal Migration and Agricultural Production in Vietnam Alan de Brauw 7. The Vanishing Farms? The Impact of International Migration on Albanian Family Farming Juna Miluka, Gero Carletto, Benjamin Davis and Alberto Zezza 8. Agricultural Land Use and Asset Accumulation in Migrant Households: the Case of El Salvador Amy Lynne Damon


Abstract. Nitrate leaching was measured over the eight drainage seasons spanning the nine years from 1990–1998 on the 157‐year old Broadbalk Experiment at Rothamsted, UK. The weather pattern of two dry, three wet and three dry years was the dominant factor controlling nitrogen (N) loss. Both the concentration of nitrate in the drainage waters and the amount of N leached increased with the amount of N applied, mostly because of long‐term, differential increases in soil organic matter and mineralization. On average, losses of N by leaching were 30 kg ha−1yr−1 when no more than the optimum N application was applied and were typical of amounts leached from arable land in the UK. Losses increased significantly in both amounts and as the percentage of N applied for supra‐optimal applications of N and from autumn‐applied farmyard manure (FYM). Extra spring‐applied fertilizer was very effective at increasing yields on plots given FYM in the autumn but at the expense of leaching losses three times those from optimum fertilizer N applications. Losses increased after potatoes because they left significant amounts of mineral N in the soil, and decreased after forage maize because it used applied N more effectively. Losses measured 120 years ago from identical treatments were 74% greater than current losses because of today's larger yields and more efficient varieties and management practices. Average concentrations of nitrate in drainage waters did not exceed the EU limit of 11.3 mg NO3‐N l−1 until supra‐optimal amounts of N fertilizer (>150–200 kg ha−1yr−1) were applied in spring or FYM was applied in autumn. However some drainage waters from all plots, even those that have not received fertilizer for >150 years, exceeded the limit when rain followed a dry summer and autumn. Nitrate leaching into waters will remain a problem for profitable arable farming in the drier parts of Eastern England and Europe despite increased N use efficiency.


Abstract This work is focused on determining the capability of production equipment in Volkswagen Slovakia, a.s. during the moulding of a car door. There were taken 150 samples from the moulding process that followed each other. Values were recorded on a Wenzel RAplus 1625 measuring machine. Subsequently, process stability was verified. It showed that measured values had a stable average value, and the process did not show irregularities in the diagrams of the X card and s card. After verification of stability, the values of Cm and Cmk were calculated, which exceeded the minimum requirement of 1.66 and 1.67, and the requirements for the capability of production equipment have thereby been met.


This paper presents a comprehensive study conducted to optimize the mechanical properties for a laser-melting-deposition fabricated TC31 (Ti-Al-Sn-Zr-Mo-Nb-W-Si) alloy, which is a newly developed high-temperature alloy used in the aerospace industry. The results showed that the laser melting deposition (LMD)-built sample exhibited columnar structures with very fine α-laths inside. Annealing and solution treatment resulted in an α+β lamellar structure consisting of α-laths and β-films, of which thicknesses depended on the temperature. Solution treatment and subsequent aging did not significantly change the lamellar structure. However, aging at 650 °C led to the formation of nanoscale α precipitates within the remaining β, while aging at 750 °C resulted in coarse α precipitates. The solution-treated samples exhibited the best combination of strength and ductility at room temperature, ultimate tensile strength of 1047 MPa, and elongation of 13.0%, which is superior to the wrought TC31 counterparts. The sample after solution treatment at 980 °C and subsequent aging at 650 °C obtained an attractive combination of strength and ductility both at room temperature and high temperature due to the synergistic effect of the soft α + β lamellar structure and hard fine α precipitates. These findings provide valuable information on developments of LMD-built TC31 alloy for aerospace applications and shed light on AM of other titanium alloys with desirable high-temperature properties.


In this paper, for the first time we have studied theoretically the effect of exchange-correlation holes around electrons in GaAlAs/GaAs/GaAlAs nanostructure on the temperature-dependent dynamic dielectric function of two-dimensional electron gas by employing random phase, STLS and Hubbard approximations. Also, we have investigated another interesting system which is coupled quantum wells structure. To make a good comparison and show the effect of local field, the numerical results have been compared with those obtained within RPA which considers long-range interactions and ignores exchange-correlation effects completely. We found that taking into account the exchange-correlation effects changes considerably the values of dynamic dielectric function at low electron densities at finite temperatures.


There are many pharmaceutical formulations available in semisolid form such as cream, ointment, paste, gel, and suppository. The qualitative and quantitative estimation of the semisolid formulation can be carried out using sophisticated instruments/techniques. Sample preparation is an important step to extract the main ingredient which needs to be analyzed in a medium suitable for a specific analytical technique/instrument. Sample preparation can directly affect the final result of analysis and thus sample preparation for the semisolid formulation is challenging. Extraction techniques used to carry out the extraction from semisolid formulation are Liquid–Liquid Extraction, Solid-Phase Extraction, Supercritical Fluid Extraction, Liquid-Phase Microextraction Techniques, Pressurized Fluid Extraction/Accelerated Solvent Extraction, Microwave Assisted Extraction, Pressurized Hot Water Extraction or superheated water extraction, Ultrasound-Assisted Extraction, Matrix solid-phase dispersion, QuEChERs, Solid-Phase Microextraction, Stir Bar Sorptive Extraction, Microextraction in Packed Syringe. A brief introduction along with the principle and application of all techniques is explained to demonstrate the application of specific extraction technique for specific semisolid sample preparation.


IN VIEW of the recent interest in analyzing and explaining Calder6n's use of honor,' it seems appropriate to examine Hartzenbusch's refundicidn of Calder6n's El Medico de su honra2 and especially his characterization of Gutierre. Whether one believes that Calder6n presents an accurate picture of the seventeenth century life, expresses contempt for his society's veneration of the pundonor, expresses admiration for the man who adheres to principle, or merely attempts to shed light on the human predicament, one finds Hartzenbusch's version quite at variance with the original. Cyril A. Jones in "Spanish Honor as Historical Phenomenon, Convention and Artistic Motive" states that Calder6n uses honor as a dramatic convention which "at once distorts and formalizes the reality from which it springs."3 For the nineteenthcentury audience Hartzenbusch also utilizes honor as a dramatic convention, but feels obligated to heighten the guilt of the persons who contribute to Gutierre's dishonor. In the same article Professor Jones also states that if we treat "Calder6n's attitude to honour .. . as representing 'the demands made on the individual by the conventions of the society of which he is a member,' there is no essential inconsistency in seeing Calder6n as at the same time disapproving of it when it conflicts with the higherChristian or human-demands, and yet in certain circumstances, and applied with prudence, considering it as something superior to mere self-interest" (pp. 37-38). The attitude that honor is superior to personal desire will be found missing in Hartzenbusch's refundicidn where one feels that Gutierre's zealousness toward his honor spr gs entirely from self-interest and vanity. In Calder6n's play Gutierre loves his wife Mencia and agonizes over the indications that she has had a part in offending his honor. When he must make a decision between honor and love, he verbally attacks the harshness of the pundonor and threatens to rebel against its oppressiveness. But, since to him honor takes precedence over love, he finally accepts the necessity to kill Mencia. Even so, he pens her a note, at once tender and harsh. From this moment, Gutierre does not vacillate in his conception of his duty. His acts are harsh but straightforward. His words are tinged with sorrow but without shame or self-consciousness. He tells the cirujano that he must bleed Mencia until she dies. On posing hypothetical questions to the King, Gutierre's revelation that he found Mencia writing a letter to Enrique justifies Gutierre's actions not only in the opinion of the King but also with Gutierre's fellow citizens. Hence, when the King orders Leonor to marry Gutierre, the latter feels compelled to warn her that her life too must be sacrificed for his honor if the necessity arises. She does not recoil at the prospect; on the contrary, she accepts the ro'e that her King and her honor impose and which her love has long desired. The overt action of Hartzenbusch's re-


Pakistan faces a great challenge in trying to meet the health needs of its 22 million children under 5 years old and 60 million under age 16. A substantial portion of health sector and international donor resources are devoted to child survival activities. Since the means to meet this challenge must be crafted in Pakistan the Journal of the Pakistan Medical Association has produced two special issues that highlight child health research. This research has been produced by a research network created by the Applied Diarrheal Disease Research (ADDR) Project of Harvard University and represents Pakistans most comprehensive research efforts in the areas of childhood diarrhea pneumonia and malnutrition to date. The journal issue introduced by this editorial focuses on research work into diarrhea and inappropriate prescribing practices. Articles report on evaluations of national diarrhea training units; use on locally available culturally acceptable low-cost foods and fluids to improve household management of diarrhea; and inappropriate prescribing practices. The ADDR project has also sought to strengthen the institutional and technical base for applied child health research within Pakistan by supporting 41 studies in 17 institutions. Researchers received training and ongoing technical support. While the project was successful in strengthening child survival research efforts in stimulating the interest of young scientists and in promoting a dialogue between researchers and policy-makers the project failed to address career advancement issues or to create sustainable professional incentives for researchers. Research needs must be met by increased investment by medical colleges the government and international donors.


The problem of so-called racial tracking is well documented through decades of research, and it was addressed most recently in a policy brief released less than three months ago by the Education and the Public Interest Center at the University of Colorado at Boulder and the Education Policy Research Unit at Arizona State University. The brief, "Universal Access to a Quality Education: Research and Recommendations for the Elimination of Curricular Stratification," offers a way forward for school districts wanting to heed the OCR concerns and engage in meaningful reform of their tracking practices.


In our paper we use the Hiroshima test case to determine best practices for landslide detection, and we use these same approaches to successfully detect landslides at 4 other test sites. This includes using large pre-event data stacks, combined data from ascending and descending tracks, and a DEM mask to remove areas unlikely to experience landslides. Furthermore, we do not claim that our best strategies are method invariant. In fact, we discuss a variety of scenarios where our strategies may need to be adjusted in Section 5.3.


Serum Ca, Ca corrected by albumin, Na, creatinine, uric acid, total protein, albumin, cholesterol, GOT and GPT as well as age, sex and duration of hospitalization were used as factors to analyze influence on the outcome of disease of the elderly admitted to Katsuragi Hospital. Over a period of 3 years, 158 patients were discharged with improvement, but 432 died of various diseases of old age such as cerebrovascular disease, cancer and infection. Among these factors, the most important factor threatening the the survival of these patients was hypocalcemia, followed by high serum creatinine, in addition to advanced age and prolonged hospitalization, while other factors had relatively minor influence. Serum calcium thus appears to be quite important as the index to predict the outcome of the diseases of the elderly, probably reflecting the level of nutritional intake of calcium and vitamin D.


Superconductor–ferromagnet–superconductor (SFS) Josephson junctions are known to exhibit a transition between π and 0 states. In this letter, we find the π–0 phase diagram of an SFS junction depending on the transparency of an intermediate insulating layer (I). We show that, in general, the Josephson critical current is nonzero at the π–0 transition temperature. Contributions to the current from the two spin channels nearly compensate each other, and the first harmonic of the Josephson current as a function of phase difference is suppressed. However, higher harmonics give a nonzero contribution to the supercurrent. © 2001 MAIK "Nauka/Interperiodica".


Objective It is to reduce the time of preparation of natural polymer porous scaffolds by adjusting the processing condition of freeze-drying. Methods The freezed polymer solution was sublimated in a vacuum container above the freezing point temperature of the solvent and the feasibility of this process was evaluated by investigating the pore structure and appearance of polymer porous scaffolds.Results The porous scaffolds of chitosan, collagen and gelatin were fabricated. The scaffolds possess a uniformly interconnected pore structure and can be used for the research of tissue engineering.Conclusion The natural polymer porous scaffolds can be prepared by vacuum drying at the temperature above freezing point of the solvent, and the processing time of scaffolds can be reduced obviously. It can be consumed much less energy than former freezing-drying process. The porous scaffolds fabricated by this method could crack and collapse sometimes, so the process still requires improving further.;


To reveal the development of the depositional environment in the Great Australian Bight, regional and high-resolution 3D-seismic interpretation and palynological evidence from well data was integrated with tectonic plate- and paleo topographical-reconstructions. Results from that work explain the drainage patterns and changes in the sedimentary evolution. A maximum transgression at the Cenomanian–Turonian boundary causes the deposition of the expected main source rock interval at the base of the Tiger mega-sequence. This is supported by Integrated Ocean Drilling Program wells (2017), asphalite strandings and dredge samples from the basin. A relative sea-level drop in the mid-Turonian initiates a forced regression and sand deposition in more distal parts of the basin. As a third mega-sequence the Hammerhead Formation progrades into the basin, depositing several thousand metres of deltaic sandstones and lagoonal shales. Our source to sink model based on our gross depositional environment maps could explain the presence of source rocks and reservoir intervals within this frontier exploration basin.


Based on the construction practice of the foundation of soft bed in Linchang thruway, it expounds the construction technology and principle of vibration-rush method. And it concludes some of successful experience during the design and construction.


This paper proposes a joint acquisition strategy of Global Navigation Satellite Systems (GNSS) satellites to reduce the number of correlations required in the acquisition process. The proposed method generates a local satellite signal replica, which contains the sum of two or more satellite codes, and performs a grid search with this augmented local replica. The grid is then analyzed with a test statistic function, resulting in a delay/Doppler grid with as many maxima as satellites present in the local replica. Then, maxima are identified using an extra correlation per possible satellite. The computational reduction benefits and the associated performance have been identified. Closed form expressions for both the detection and the false alarm probabilities have been found and validated by Monte Carlo simulations for GPS L1 C/A and Galileo E1 signals. An implementation scheme is also presented.


Cerebral sagittal sinus thrombosis is a very rare condition and presents as diagnostic challenge due to its varied presentations. Most common signs and symptoms are headache, blurring of vision, diplopia, and papilledema. Pregnancy and puerperium constitute one of its rare etiological factors. A high index of clinical suspicion of the disease is important when a pregnant female presents with stroke like symptoms of headache, hemiparesis, diplopia, and seizures in the early stages of pregnancy because early neuroimaging can clinch the diagnosis. Management with adequate dosage of anticoagulants can be life-saving and can prevent severe visual loss. Here, we report and discuss the presentation and management of a case of cerebral superior sagittal sinus thrombosis presenting as diplopia in a young primigravid in the first trimester of pregnancy.


Process capability indices, Cp and Cpk, relate the variability of a process to its specifications. Cp and Cpk are typically used to establish whether the process is capable of producing a product or service that will stay within these specifications; th..


The "globalized" capitalist world of the twenty-first century is universally but unevenly pervaded by reification. Reification here, as throughout the Western Marxist tradition, refers to the processes by which sodai relationships and activities are objectified and, most importantly, instrumentalized and refashioned after the needs of capital. To understand what is meant by this concept, one needs to try to think outside of capital for a minute—not necessarily back in time, but of anything that is not organized principally around commodity production. Jameson usefully draws the distinction as between "traditional" activity, in which "the value of the activity is immanent to it, and qualitatively distinct from other ends or values articulated in other forms of human work or play," and activity in a sodety diaracterized by the "universal commodification of labor power," in which


Presented at the Sixteenth Annual Meeting of the International College of Angiology, Montreal, Canada, September 4-7, 1974. From the Departments of Surgery and Radiology, Montefiore Hospital and Medical Center, Albert Einstein College of Medicine, New York, N.Y. and Englewood Hospital, Englewood, N.J. The concept of revascularizing the lower extremities via the small vessels of the leg, that is, the anterior and posterior tibial arteries and the peroneal artery, is relatively new. In 1963, Dale' presented a favorable experience with 19 cases. Since that time, several groups2, 4-6 have reported the efficacy of small vessel bypass for limb salvage. Arterial grafting below the knee is not a &dquo;no man's land&dquo;. However, one must be aware of the difficulties and complications associated with these operations. In fact, the complications and failures associated with small vessel bypasses have undoubtedly precluded its general acceptance by vascular surgeons. We have reviewed our experience with small vessel bypasses in order to delineate the factors that might result in improving graft patency rates and limb salvage. Optimal patient selection is required as well as exquisite technique in performing these long and tedious operations.


Background: Surgical nutrition is a critical part of surgery that many surgeons overlook or undervalue. No previous studies are present to fill the gap of knowledge in Saudi Arabia about nutritional screening awareness and support among surgeons. Objectives: to measure the knowledge and awareness of nutritional screening and support among surgeons in Makkah province, and to define their approach toward its implementation. Methods: a cross-sectional study was done and surgeons of all specialties at King Abdulaziz University Hospital, Jeddah city, Saudi Arabia were included. Study instrument: a predesigned questionnaire was sent to the targeted participants. The questionnaire included items to collect data about surgeons' gender, specialty, position, work duration, institution, screening of nutritional status of their hospitalized patients, patients screened for malnutrition, system used in nutrition screening, participation in meetings on clinical nutrition, calculation of daily energy requirement and practice in nutritional support. Ethical considerations: ethical approval was obtained from the research ethics committee of King Abdul-Aziz University. Results: Only 25.4% of the participants were screening all patients for their nutritional status; 39.8% were screening only those who appear undernourished by inspection and 50.8% were using multiple methods to determine the nutritional risk. 61% did not participate in meetings on clinical nutrition, 14.4% participated in more than 2 yearly meetings, and 39.8% started nutritional support in apatient with a high nutrition risk 10-14 days prior to the operation. Most of them (58.5%) did not calculate daily energy requirement and consult a dietitian; 59.3% mentioned that they give postoperative nutritional support if the patient will not be able to fulfill his/her nutritional needs by oral food intake. 34.7% did not prescribe nutritional support products to patients when discharged if given nutritional support during hospital stay and 33.1% ceased oral intake of solid food in a patient who will be undergoing a major abdominal operation at midnight before the operation day. 30.5% cease the oral intake of clear fluids in a patient who will be undergoing a major abdominal operation at midnight before the operation day and 38.1% give standard nutritional support to patients at nutritional risk who will undergo a major abdominal operation for cancer. Females and surgeons who participated in more than 2 meetings on clinical nutrition in a year had a significant higher percentage of those who were screening the nutritional status of their hospitalized patients. Conclusion: Our findings indicated that the nutritional knowledge levels of surgeons in the field of clinical nutrition was not satisfactory. To improve nutritional care in hospitals, effective nutrition training and ongoing education for all staff must be prioritized. Keywords: awareness, nutritional, screening, support, surgeons, Saudi Arabia


Purpose
Supplier selection for capital procurement is a major strategic decision for any automobile company. The decision determines the success of the company and must be taken systematically with the utmost transparency. The purpose of this paper is to construct capital procurement decision-making model to optimize supplier selection in the Indian automobile industry.

Design/methodology/approach
To achieve the stated objective, a combined approach of fuzzy theory and AHP-DEMATEL is applied. Evaluation parameters are identified through an extensive literature review and criteria validation has been introduced through a Fuzzy Delphi method by using fuzzy linguistic scales to handle the vagueness of information. AHP is employed to find the priority weight of criteria, although an inter-relationship map among criteria is not possible through AHP alone since it considers all criteria as independent. To overcome this, DEMATEL is used to establish cause-effect relationships among criteria.

Findings
The results show that the total cost of ownership (TOC) is the first weighted criterion in supplier selection for capital procurement, followed by manufacturing flexibility and maintainability, then conformity with requirement. The cause-effect model shows that supplier profile, TOC, service support and conformity with requirement are in the cause group and are considered to be the most critical factors in selecting the supplier.

Originality/value
The study's outcome can help the automobile industry to optimize their selection process in selecting their suppliers for capital procurement; the proposed model can provide guidelines and direction in this regard.


The decarbonization of the economy and the increasing integration of renewable energy sources into the generation mix are bringing new challenges, requiring novel technological solutions in the topic of smart grids, which include smart transformers and energy storage systems. Additionally, power quality is a vital concern for the future smart grids; therefore, the continuous development of power electronics solutions to overcome power quality problems is of the utmost importance. In this context, this article proposes a novel three-phase multiobjective unified power quality conditioner (MO-UPQC), considering interfaces for solar PV panels and for energy storage in batteries. The MO-UPQC is capable of compensating power quality problems in the voltages (at the load side) and in the currents (at the power grid side), while it enables injecting power into the grid (from the PV panels or batteries) or charging the batteries (from the PV panels or from the grid). Experimental results were obtained with a three-phase four-wire laboratory prototype, demonstrating the feasibility and the large range of applications of the proposed MO-UPQC.


At the end of June 1987, Junior Education Minister, Angela Rumbold, backed by Ian Carpenter on behalf of the Local Education Authorities' Science Advisers Group and supported by an impressive array of 16 'National bodies', promulgated what seemed then to be a national policy for science education. The preferred science course in secondary schools would be 'balanced science', containing elements of physics, chemistry and biology, and leading to a double GCSE award.


Objective To evaluate the clinical feature of patients with perimembranous ventricular septal and the safe ty and efficacy of transcatheter closure of PVS in patients.Methods Between Mar 2009 and Mar 2012,16 patients(7 men and 9 women) aged 15-56(13.5±8.6) years underwent attempted transcatheter PVS closure.The diameter of PVS measured by echoeardiography were 2-13(3.6±2.5)mm before intervention.ion.All patients were treated witll Amplatzer PVS occluder device or homemade double-disc PVS occluder through the percutaneous procedure under fluoroscopy and transthoracic eehocardiography.All the patients were reexamined 24 h,1,3,6 and 1 2 months after the operation.Results A total of 16 patients were all successful in transcatheter.None pterygium was recurrence and no complication happened.No residual shunt was found by the transthoracic eehocardiography after the procedure in all patients.The cardiac function improved after the intervention in all patients.A complete left bundle branch block happened in 1 months after operation and disappeared in 3 months after operation.Conclusion Transcatheter closure of secundunl PVS is all efficient and safe method for aged patients.


A two-dimensional separation platform of capillary isoelectric focusing (cief)-capillary zone electrophoresis(cze) for proteins was constructed by a microdialysis hollow fiber interface. the interface provided ease of fabrication, speed of mass delivering and convenience of column switching. chrome c was selected to demonstrate the 2d separation system's feasibility and resolving performance. the 2d separation system was found to greatly increase the resolving power and overall peak capacity over those obtained for either dimension alone.


An introduction to Data Science and Machine Learning is attempted in the context of this diploma thesis. The purpose of the study made was to observe, through different data sets, the behavior of the popular K-Means algorithm by using various technologies, such as the Python and Apache Spark.


To the Editor.— This is in reference to the article entitled "Importance of Heterosexual Activity in the Transmission of Hepatitis B and Non-A, Non-B Hepatitis" by Alter et al. 1 The authors state that it may be that we are missing explanation of heterosexual transmission of diseases such as hepatitis and acquired immunodeficiency syndrome. In the final paragraph, the authors write as follows: "A clue to the possible source of their infection may come from the examination of persons with low socioeconomic level who acquire hepatitis B and NANB [non-A, non-B] hepatitis. Such examination may identify unrecognized modes of transmission for these viruses or may identify life-styles, behaviors, or habits that result in persons becoming infected with these viruses." There is a type of heterosexual behavior involving sexual blood exposure that is more common in persons of lower socioeconomic level ( not confined to them, however). It is intercourse during menstruation


In the Original Investigation titled "Association Between Ambient Air Pollution and Birth Weight by Maternal Individualand Neighborhood-Level Stressors,"1 published October 25, 2022, there was a numeric error in the Abstract Results. The mean age given as 22.18 should have been 28.18. In addition, the mean (SD) age for the population of pregnant women was not reported in the Results. The parenthetical phrase "(mean [SD] age, 28.18 [5.92] years)" was added to the Results. This article has been corrected.1


Abstract The COVID-19 pandemic has increased public awareness of the extent to which the economy relies on a low-wage workforce. Many of those lower-waged occupations that have been recognised as essential in the emergency are heavily dependent on migrant workers. We explore the implications of the COVID-19 pandemic for future immigration policies and provide an example using data for the UK. We suggest that there are three key considerations for governments in this context. First, whether the management of emergencies themselves requires a certain type of immigration policy. Second, whether the experience of the current pandemic brings to light new information about the 'value' of certain types of immigration. Finally, whether immigration is the right response to pandemic-driven increases in labour demand.


The tourism is one of new developing industries in China. There is a bigger gap between China and Developed Countries, though it is developing faster. The same time , the tourism has great potential and good future in China.


For a two-stage collimation system, the betatron phase advance between the primary and secondary stages is usually set to maximise the absorption of secondary particles outscattered from the primary. Another constraint is the contribution to the ring impedance of the collimation system, which can be decreased through an optimized insertion optics, featuring large values of the beta functions. In this article we report on first studies of such an optics for the CERN Large Hadron Collider (LHC). In addition to a gain in impedance, we show that the cleaning efficiency can be improved thanks to the large beta functions, even though the phase advance is not set at the theoretical optimum.


Although spiders in general are polyphagous, indiscriminate feeding is not advantageous because prey vary enormously in quality due to toxicity or nutrient deficiency. Active prey selection serves to find the optimal compromise between three ''nutritional goals'': maximize energy intake, balance nutrient composition of the body, and minimize toxin consumption. Consumption of toxic prey is reduced by more or less specific induced aversions, probably associated with both prey taste and behavior. Spiders' ability to avoid toxic prey seems limited because aversions are short-lasting and some toxic prey do not induce an aversion. Such prey may be lethal. Toxic prey in a mixed diet may inhibit feeding on and utilization of good prey. Induced tolerance to toxic prey may be possible, however. Nutritional balance may be obtained through consumption of high-quality prey or through mixing of prey types. It is argued that nutrient balance is more important than maximization of energy intake for fitness. Foraging decisions influence individual fitness in a variety of ways. Choice of foraging habitat (patch) has been recognized as being of primary importance through its effect on feeding rates, with derived benefits to growth (size) and reproduction (Riechert 1981; Morse & Stephens 1996). Once in a feeding patch, the spider is confronted with an array of potential prey species. Prey selection is the consumption of prey relative to the composition of prey available in the spider's microhabitat. So defined, selectivity has two aspects (cf. Pastorok 1981; Sih & Moore 1990): 1) passive selection or capture success, and 2) active selection (''choice''), i.e., acceptance/rejection of the prey. Both are clearly important for determining the diet composition in the field. The capture success reflects the co-evolutionary balance between prey and predator in a broad sense (Malcolm 1992) and is largely outside the individual spider's control. Active selection reflects the spider's decisions (choices) whether positive (acceptance) or negative (rejection). Spiders are selective if they choose differentially between the prey species according to their preferences. Such preferences by individuals may change over short time spans and, contrary to expectations, they are not necessarily related in a simple way to the nutritional value of the prey (see later). Active and passive selection can be distinguished if prey is presented with and without possibilities for escape (Onkonbury & Formanowicz 1997; Lang & Gsodl unpubl. data). This review is concerned only with active selection or ''prey choice,'' and in our own experiments we have confined spiders and prey to small containers. Additionally, I have largely neglected the phenomenon of size selectivity and focus on choice between prey species. Finally, my treatment is biased towards wolf spiders (Lycosidae) and money spiders (Linyphiidae). These two families account for most of the species and individuals of spiders found in agricultural fields of Northern and Central Europe (Sunderland 1987; Nyffeler & Benz 1988a, b; Toft 1989), and most of the studies reviewed were completed with the specified goal of analyzing potentially important trophic links of the agroecosystem. The experimental prey types were likewise selected to represent the most important prey groups as revealed by studies of European cereal fields, i.e., Collembola, Diptera and aphids (Nyffeler & Benz 1988a, b; Sunderland et al. 1986, 1987; Alderweireldt 1994). Food contains three main components: energy, nutrients, and toxins. Viewed in isolation, feeding behavior should aim at the following three ''nutritional goals'': maximize energy intake, balance body nutrient composition, and minimize toxin consumption. They cannot all be realized at the same time. Prey choice is expected to achieve the optimal compromise that maximizes the fitness of the spider. As spiders are generalist predators, we might a priori expect that energy gain would be maximized by accepting all kinds of prey, 302 THE JOURNAL OF ARACHNOLOGY i.e., by being non-selective. In line with this, the broad polyphagy of spiders is considered to follow from the prevailing sit-and-wait strategy and a temporally varying food supply (Riechert & Luczak 1982; Riechert & Harp 1987). In the notion of polyphagy it is usually understood that most kinds of potential prey are of approximately equal value to the predator and may substitute each other in the predator's diet (cf. Slansky & Scriber 1985; Waldbauer & Friedman 1991; Wise 1993). Rejection of toxic, dangerous or difficult prey (Riechert & Luczak 1982; Nentwig 1987) as well as novel (unfamiliar) prey (Turnbull 1960; Riechert & Luczak 1982) has, however, been recognized. Prey selection aimed at obtaining a specific composition of amino acids was indicated by Greenstone (1979); but, generally, nutrient balance is considered to be achieved through a mixed diet (Riechert & Harp 1987; Uetz et al. 1992). In conclusion, though the existence of active choice has been acknowledged, most reviews have considered it to be of limited importance. The questions raised here are: 1) Does active prey choice improve fitness? 2) What mechanisms influence prey choice? 3) Are the three nutritional goals equally important? 4) Do the answers to these questions confirm the inferior role of active selection for spider nutrition?


Plants grow just about everywhere on Earth, and are able to adapt to extreme conditions ranging from drought to disease. Spaceflight, however, exposes plants to stresses not found anywhere on their home planet.


In competitive sports, it is very important to have both physical and psychological capacity. Especially when it is a close match with the opponent, the player's ability to adapt and adjust is often the key factor affecting the victory or defeat. In recent years, the concept and theory of " resilience" have been put forward in the field of psychology, and the core concept of mental resilience is to describe the ability of individuals to adapt and adjust. This paper will present the definition and measurement of resilience and the findings of past empirical studies. In the end, this paper illustrates the possible effects of mental resilience on athletes' cognition, emotion and behavior in competitive sports in order to provide some Suggestions for future research and application of mental resilience in sports


Research objective: To point out the details of government aid directed, among others, to catering enterprises in the form of anti-crisis shields and financial shields and to try to assess their effectiveness by analysing the financial result for 2020 on the example of the selected enterprises.
Methodology: The study was conducted in the form of a literature review and a case study. The study was conducted in the two selected Polish restaurants, which differed in size, location and customer specification. The study included an analysis of financial documents.
Main Findings: The study results presented in this paper confirm that governmental aid was needed, although it was disproportionate. The question is whether it was always sufficient to stabilise the situation in a catering company, in an industry so badly affected by pandemic restrictions, during the COVID-19 crisis remains questionable.
Application of the study: The study finding is applicable in practical analysis and evaluation of the support provided by the government to catering entrepreneurs facing a pandemic in 2020.
Originality of the study: The paper combines theoretical and practical approaches to the subject of thesupport provided to entrepreneurs within the instruments of anti-crisis shields.


The rapid progress of archaeological research and discovery in Italy has made it difficult to appreciate the importance and interest of many of the results. Full reports of the more recent excavations are seldom available and many of the provisional accounts have appeared in publications not easily accessible to the English scholar. These notes attempt to call attention to some of the more important discoveries of the classical period and to indicate the sources from which further information may be drawn. The area covered is Rome and Latium, the Sabina and Samnium, Picenum, Umbria, the Ager Gallicus and north-east Italy, including Istria. It is hoped later to publish a second article covering the other provinces of Italy. While the greater number of the excavations and studies belong to the period since 1935, a few of earlier date have been included. Within these limits I have attempted to note all the more important discoveries. Less extensive finds or those about which little information is available have been omitted, as a full list is published in the Archäologischer Anzeiger of the German Archaeological Institute and elsewhere.


The control of metallization layers' integrity gain more importance increasing the total number of metallization layers. Therefore, an electrical measurement procedure has to separate defectless test structure elements from faulty test structure elements. To decrease the number of test procedures and test equipment, this binary decision will be made parallel to the functional test of product chips using the same digital test system to measure test structure elements too. In addition, the geometrical arrangement of the test structure layout elements will also be transformed to binary description. As a result of this, novel algorithms will now enable the direct comparison of both binary data sets to extract test structure faults like opens and shorts as well as process specific defect parameters.


The Operational Observatory of the Catalan Sea (OOCS) recently created
by the Operational Oceanography Group at CEAB-CSIC is presented. The OOCS aims
at performing observations of the marine environment in the Catalan Sea and beyond,
assessing, modelling and forecasting the hydrodynamic and biogeochemical
processes of the region. Some of the biogeochemical variables available in the models
and forecast are phytoplankton, zooplankton and nutrients. Although OOCS is
expected to be fully operational in 2011, some of its services are already available to
the public through a dedicated webpage http://www.ceab.csic.es/~simob/.


Laboratory Automation has changed dramatically the operation of clinical laboratories, pharmaceutical research, and other laboratory-based operations, by accelerating their processes and increasing their analytical capacity. Increasing demands and challenges are however breaking the paradigms of traditional laboratory automation. New automation systems have to cope with the needs of sophisticated research processes that require high flexibility to accommodate the changing nature of R&D operations.


The principles and sorts of rogowski coils are analyzed and expatiation. The possible research of the technology about rogowski coils is presented.


Objectives This study aimed to analyse the effect of a portfolio with three activities fostering students' reflection, self-efficacy and teaching of communication skills and professionalism. Methods A cross-sectional study was applied with a sample of third- and fourth-year medical students in one Portuguese and three Brazilian universities. A three-activity portfolio (course evaluation and learning, self-efficacy activity and free reflective writing) was used during a two-month course on communication skills and professionalism. The 69 students enrolled in the course were invited to complete the three-activity portfolio via Likert-type questionnaires, open-ended questions and narrative. Content and lexical analysis and the Reflection Evaluation for Learners' Enhanced Competencies Tool (REFLECT) were used for assessing the qualitative data. The questionnaires were evaluated using principal components analysis and Cronbach's α. Pearson's correlation was applied to portfolio activities. Results Of the 69 participants, 85.5% completed at least one activity. Reflecting on what they learned in the communication module, the students did not mention professionalism themes. In the self-efficacy activity on communication, 25% of the fragments were related to professionalism themes. There was a negative correlation between students' self-efficacy and the REFLECT rubric score (r(19)=−0.744; p< 0.0001). Conclusions Teachers must consider the activity's influence on the reflections when assessing the portfolio. This model of a three-activity portfolio provided diverse ways of encouraging and assessing reflections, supporting teaching improvement and adaptation, evaluating students' self-efficacy and showing that students' higher reflective capacity may promote feelings of low effectiveness.


Rise of the Beet: Irrigation, Labour, and Agricultural Intensification in the California Beet Sugar Industry, 1850-1903 In California, the climate is characterised by long cycles of extreme drought and flooding. As a result, most agriculture in California requires extensive infrastructure for moving and containing water to keep crops wet enough in times of drought and dry enough in times of flooding. Unfortunately, large scale irrigation projects are incredibly costly to construct and maintain, and can involve a complex web of water rights laws. In the 19th century, farmers found a new solution: sugar beet farming. Sugar beets were a profitable crop that could be grown without significant irrigation, making them ideal for the more arid regions of California. However, as irrigation works expanded, farmers realised that sugar beets could be even more profitable if they were better watered. Throughout the second half of the 19th century, irrigation and sugar beets experienced a parallel expansion. The expanding industry and the expanding desire for profits required a large, cheap labour force. Increasingly, sugar beet growers relied on poorly paid immigrant labour. Ultimately, the industry's growth and attendant labour practices culminated in the 1903 Oxnard Strike, in which Mexican and Japanese farm workers crossed ethnic lines and led a strike that threatened the sugar beet crop. In this paper I will demonstrate that a relationship between agricultural intensification, irrigation, and labour in the context of sugar beets, lead to the 1903 Oxnard Strike, providing an alternative perspective for an issue which has, until now, been understood primarily in the context of global economics and racial coalition politics. The Irrigation Transformation


This article describes the entry to the new wharves at Pasajes Harbour. This access route provides a means of entry of vehicles to the wharves, passing over the railway lines, and over the main N-1 national Madrid to Irun highway. The efficiency of this arrangement will be highly appreciated by the users of the harbour, and by foreign tourists, since Pasajes is close to the Irun-Behobia frontier.
But the main purpose of this article is to describe the method of prestressing of one of the bridges involved in this project. It is one of the first applications of this system in Spain, though it is likely to become very widely used, due to its general efficiency. This project was inaugurated by the Minister of Public Works on March 28, 1966.


BARNES, A. M. and KABTMAN, L. Control of plague vectors on diurnal rodents in the Sierra Nevada of California by use of insecticide bait-boxes, 347 BARWELL, C. F., see FREEMAN, M. A. R. BENTLEY, E. W. and GREAVES, J. H. Some properties of fluoracetamide as a rodenticide, 125 BERNSTEIN, A. Laboratory investigations of a carrier of multiple phage types of Salmonella paratyphi B, 201 BESTWICK, T. S. L., see KENDALL, E. J. C. BLOWERS, R. and CREW, BERYL. Ventilation of operating theatres, 427 BOKKENHEUSER, V. and RICHARDSON, N. J. Salmonellae and shigellae in a group of rural South African Bantu school children, 109 BUCKLAND, F. E. Detection of bacterial antigens by means of sensitized guinea-pig ileum, 29X BURROWS, T. M., see THORNE, H. V. BYNOE, M. L., see HITCHCOCK, GRISELDA


The objective of the present study was the demonstration of the capability of a novel optical measurement technique to characterize the mixing of solids in a laboratory-scale fluidized bed at fluidized-bed combustion temperatures. This report contains: (1) description of the measurement technique; (2) results of minimum fluidization velocity measurements as functions of temperature and particle size; (3) experimental mixing results in terms of two parameters defined for the purpose of solids mixing characterization; and (4) comparison of experimental data with the results obtained from a simple one-dimensional dispersion model. The technical basis for the experimental study was the recent development of an optical diagnostic technique which allows one to distinguish a burning particle from inert particles at an arbitrarily chosen location in the interior of a high-temperature fluidized bed. In the present application of this technique, continuous radiometric records were obtained simultaneously from optical probes placed at two locations in a fluidized bed, 15 cm in diameter. The basic concept was a correlation of arrival times and frequencies, registered by the probes, of fuel particles, injected at various distances from the probes. A general conclusion from both the experimental and modelling results is that at fluidization velocities exceeding about 2.3more » U/sub mf/ the fuel and the inert bed particles are well mixed. It is also concluded that the solids dispersion coefficients for larger fluidized bed combustors should be as high as, or higher than, those reported in the present study. 24 refs., 6 figs., 10 tabs.« less


Indonesia is a country located in the presence of three large tectonic plates like the Indo-Australian, Eurasian and Pacific plates. The path of plate movement approaching or steering away each other leads to high volcanic and earthquakes activity. As a proof of the active path of this plate movement can be seen from the series of active volcanoes lies from the island of Sumatra, Java, Nusa Tenggara into Papua. The impact of active volcano activity will be felt in the densely populated area where the island of Java became one of the islands with the largest residential area in Indonesia. This impact needs to be anticipated with an integrated high-tech technology and volcanic disaster mitigation system. One of the most active volcanoes in the island of Java is Merapi mount which is experienced the last major eruption peak on October 26th, 2010. This volcanic eruption is effusive eruption type where magmatic gas pressure in the crater is not too strong and magma eruption is just flowing out past the slopes of the Merapi mount area. However, magmatic gas pressure and magma volume still result in deformation changes that have a direct impact on residential areas throughout the Merapi mount area. Therefore, this research performs deformation calculation using DInSAR (Differential Interferometry Synthetic Aperture Radar) method on Sentinel 1 SAR and ALOS PALSAR 1 satellite images between 2005-2015 acquisition year. Then the deformation patterns obtained from the DInSAR method will be spatially correlated with residential areas throughout the Merapi mount area. Residential areas were obtained through supervised classification process from Landsat 5 and 8-satellite imagery in the 2005-2015 acquisition year. The reason of observation year selection is based on pre and post eruption concept to get pattern of Merapi's mountain body change through deformation analysis. The result of the combination of deformation pattern and residential area changes was further analysed to obtain spatial correlation. The value of this spatial correlation will be an indicator of how's far the deformation changes due to volcanic activity will have an effect on the residential areas in the Merapi mount area. The output of this research is a map of Merapi mount deformation (due to volcanic activity) impacts on the residential area. The results are expected to contribute to the volcanic disaster mitigation system and the development of residential area plans in Merapi mount area.


To establish and perfect cell culture technique of endometrial epithelial cell(EnEpC)in dairy cows,primary cell was isolated and cultured by tissue cultivation that combined with enzymolysis of collagenase.The endometrial epithelial cell was purified from primary culture cells by different time digestion of trypsase,and EnEpC was identified by immunohistochemical detection of cytokeratin expression.The results demonstrated that flagstone-like epithelial cell was obtained by the adoptive method,and cytokeratin expression was positive in the cells.The purified cells could be subcultured about 10 times,and cells from generation 2 to 8 maintained stably biological characteristics of morphology and proliferation state that were found in primary culture cells.


Many monitoring projects in North America, Central Asia and Australasia have shown that convective conditions often lead to the highest short-term ground-level concentrations around elevated point sources. Numerous water tank simulations (e.g. Deardorff & Willis, 1988; Hibberd, 1992), wind tunnel measurements (Meroney & elbourne, 1992) and numerical simulations (e.g. Henn & Sykes, 1992) have confirmed the broad nature of convective dispersion in idealized situations.


Phylogenetic trees have numerous applications across biology, including comparative genomics and microbial ecology, in particular in accounting for shared evolutionary ancestry and thus nonindependence of data in comparative studies. Owing to continuing methodological and technological advancements, phylogenies are being generated and published at an accelerating rate, with increasingly comprehensive taxonomic coverage. However, despite the existence of community resources for archiving phylogenies (TreeBASE), most phylogenies remain difficult to reuse. The predominant reasons include that they are often not shared online in a way that allows easy discovery and machine consumption, and important metadata regarding their underlying data and method of construction can be difficult to find.


Recent work4 has shown that polynuclear metal carbonyl compounds with a metal-metal backbone can generally be reduced to anions in which the formal 18-electron electronic configuration is exceeded. This redox property arises because there is a relatively accessible LUMO in the neutral species that is centered on the metal cluster ba~kbone.~ A detailed study of the radical anions can provide important information on the electronic structure of the polynuclear carbonyl as well as the feasibility of using these species in synthetic and catalytic reactions. We have reported ESR6,7 and electrochemical studies8 of the redox properties of the dinuclear acetylene-bridged compounds (RC2R')Co2(CO),. These studies led to the discove#9 of electron-transfer chain-catalyzed (ETC) nucleophilic substitution in organo transition metal clusters. One of the factors that determines the efficiency of the ETC reactions with the acetylene compounds is the importance of the alternative reaction mode to nucleophilic substitution of the radical anions-namely, fragmentation of the radical anions to produce the mononuclear organocobalt radicals (RC2R')Co(CO)3,L,. This new class of radical is produced as summarized in Scheme Iq8 When L = CO, only the fragmentation process leads to net reaction. However, since E3 > E, in this case, monocobalt radicals formed near the electrode are immediately reduced and an overall 2-electron process is observed. However, when L is a phosphine, phosphite, or arsine, both E2 and E3 are more negative than El and good yields of the monocobalt radicals and the substituted dicobalt clusters are obtained. In this paper, we report a variety of ESR experiments designed to characterize these monocobalt radicals and to deduce their electronic and molecular structures.


INTRODUCTION
We report the case of a patient operated on for penetrating keratoplasty with a corneal graft with radial keratotomy.

CASE REPORT
A 27-year-old man underwent penetrating keratoplasty for keratoconus. Graft incisions of radial keratotomy were discovered the day after surgery. Corneal graft examination and endothelial cell density were carried out postoperatively.

CONCLUSION
This case shows the potential problem of corneal graft assessment before transplantation. An examination of the donor's cornea before its removal with a portable slit lamp could make graft quality evaluation safer.


ing in an additional medicament series. We have not tried to validate the relationship between ketoconazole cream and sodium sulfite sensitivity by use testing. From our data, it can be concluded that the majority of patients sensitized to sodium sulfite have no known previous contact with ketoconazole cream or sodium-sulfite-containing topical preparations. The clinical relevance of the positive reactions to sodium sulfite remains to be established. Contact Dermatitis 1992: 27: 345


Objective: The objective of this study is to obtain and characterize thermostable alkaline phosphatase from plant seeds than produced prior from bacterial and animal sources. Methodology and Results: Alkaline phosphatase was isolated and purified from plant seedlings by a streamline method without the use of proteolytic and lipolytic enzymes, butanol, or heavy metals. The study features are the use of a mild nonionic detergent, precipitated with acetone, maintained at low temperature to remove impurity, and the use of ion exchange columns to concentrate the alkaline phosphatase. The enzyme preparation revealed a major phosphatase band of 72 kDa and two minor activity bands. A variety of stability and activity profiles were determined for the purified seedling alkaline phosphatase: pH, temperature, surfactant and effect of UV light. Conclusion and application: The enzyme partially dephosphorylated linearized pUC18 plasmid despite being an alkaline phosphatase and showed potential application as a substitute for alkaline phosphatase from other sources.


"We're not pessimistic about growth," remarks Robert D. Anding, president of Essochem Europe, a regional arm of Exxon Chemical, at its headquarters just outside Brussels. To substantiate his claim, he points to a number of developments aimed at ensuring that the Exxon unit maintains its strong competitive edge in the 1980's. One is the purchase last year of National Distillers & Chemicals' low-density polyethylene operations at nearby Antwerp. Another is expansion of Essochem's olefins capacity in Europe. Moreover, many of the items Essochem sells are specialties for which growth prospects look bright and profit margins are attractive. With the acquisition of the 560 million lb-per-year LDPE operations from National Distillers' subsidiary, USI Europe, Essochem essentially doubled its production capability for the polymer in a single stroke. The company's own 528 million lb-per-year unit at Meerhout, some 40 miles from Antwerp, started up in 1977. "At the time we decided on the USI acquisition, most of ...