This study aimed to develop and validate the Evaluator Competencies Assessment Tool (ECAT) Cultural Competencies Subscale, which measures cultural competence among evaluators. By addressing the scarcity of validated tools in this area, the study offers professionals a valuable resource to assess their strengths and areas for improvement. The subscale comprises 11 items rated on a seven-point Likert scale, derived from the American Evaluation Association (AEA) Evaluator Competencies. Validation involved a survey of 116 AEA members, employing multiple validity procedures. The subscale demonstrated excellent internal consistency (α=.96) and significant correlation with the Cultural Competence of Program Evaluators scale, confirming its convergent validity. However, the subscale's structural validity yielded mixed results, indicating the need for further exploration. Moreover, the demographic analysis highlighted underrepresentation of Asian and younger members. Overall, the ECAT Cultural Competencies Subscale shows promise for assessing cultural competency, but refinement of its factor structure and additional research are needed.


ZnO films dispersed with Ag‐nanocrystals (Ag‐NC/ZnO) were fabricated by the molecular precursor method. Electrical and optical properties of the films and their application in the GaInN‐based blue LEDs were studied through the observations of photoluminescence (PL) spectra and analytical simulations. Although the enhancement of the blue LED emission could not be observed, the PL spectra exhibited additional emission peaks in the yellow spectral region. Judging from their spectral shape, near‐band‐edge emissions were found to be replicated by the local surface plasmon resonances.


The transformation of the Empressas apostolicas (1739), a manuscript history of the Jesuits' missions in Lower California written by the novo-Hispanic Jesuit Miguel Venegas, into the Noticia de la California (1757), a thoroughly revised version of Venegas's original prepared by the Spanish Jesuit Andres Marcos Burriel, provides a case study in how the enactment of the Jesuit ascetic ideal exercised on the Spanish-American mission frontier was closely linked to Enlightenment natural history and ethnography. Through an analysis of both works, as well as Burriel's correspondence with his Jesuit confreres in New Spain, this article aims to demonstrate the underlying tension in eighteenth-century Jesuit writing between traditional, providential narratives and the skeptical, scientific discourse of secular natural histories. Burriel's work, which was widely translated and disseminated throughout Europe, aimed to bridge these two discourses by employing the Society's apostolic-ascetic vocation and global missionary network in the service of natural histories that would appeal to a secular reading public and inform Spanish colonial administration.


This study discusses the features of the transition from the traditional assessment system to the criteria-based assessment in schools of Kazakhstan. The use of criterion assessment in schools in Kazakhstan contributes to the crowding out of traditional methods of assessment and leads to a new vision of the methods and technologies of the system for evaluating educational achievements. In connection with the modernization of Kazakhstan's education, significant changes are occurring in the control and assessment activities of Kazakhstan schools, its goals, content, and technologies are changing. The problem of assessment activity is one of the most urgent problems both in pedagogical theory and in pedagogical practice. This study presents the results of empirical studies and the features of the transition to a new criteria-based assessment system for Kazakhstan. According to the results of the study, the problem of the need for professional training of future primary school teachers for the criteria-based assessment system was revealed. Results also showed that there are difficulties of applying criteria-based assessment in the practice of primary school teachers. The question of what professional knowledge, skills, and abilities an elementary school teacher must possess to successfully perform the monitoring and evaluation function was investigated. Particular attention is paid to the study of the influence of criteria-based assessment on learning motivation in primary school.


The low degradability and durability of plastics are a double-edged sword: they enable plastics to have versatile applications in the use phase, but pose environmental challenges at the end-of-life of...


A 74-year-old man presented with presyncope and non-sustained monomorphic ventricular tachycardia in the setting of acute coronary syndrome. On coronary angiogram, a calcified myocardial scar was revealed, which was later identified as the ventricular tachycardia focus via electrophysiological study.


Based on the analysis of the traffic congestion essential,authors considered that the trip was a kind of gaming process of demand that derived from other activities,and according to the game theory of evolutionary dynamic,authors analyzed the trip under non-elastic demand and elastic demand conditions respectively.Analysis shows that the game can converge to a unique Nash equilibrium under an admissible dynamic with respect to congestion game and if reasonable variable price scheme based on the evolutionary dynamic was introduced so that the unique Nash equilibrium could reach an efficient statement and optimization of society choice behavior of driving was realized.This variable price scheme really incarnates the quality of traffic congestion pricing in contrast to the price scheme based on marginal cost.


www.xilinx.com 1 © Copyright 2011 Xilinx, Inc. XILINX, the Xilinx logo, Virtex, Spartan, ISE, and other designated brands included herein are trademarks of Xilinx in the United States and other countries. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners. Xilinx® FPGAs offer up to two million logic cells currently, and they continue to expand. Hierarchical design is becoming more popular with designs of this complexity because it allows users to preserve completed portions of the design, deliver complex IP place-and-route results, and develop multiple blocks in parallel. These methods can lead to fewer design runs, reduced verification time, and more consistent timing closure, resulting in reduced time to market.


The specifications and requirements for water level control in clothes washers and dishwashers have become more demanding, requiring a more thorough assessment of all the variables and characteristics involved.


We compute the difference in the renormalization of flavor singlet and nonsinglet fermion bilinear operators, to two loops in perturbation theory. Our results are applicable to a rather wide class of lattice actions with Symanzik improved gluons, stout links and clover fermions, including the Twisted Mass and SLiNC actions.
A more detailed presentation of our results, along with relevant references, will appear in a forthcoming publication.


Tuquan Basin, located in the mid-south of Daxinganling region, covered by volcanic rocks, was recognized as a new area for oil and gas exploration by the program of fundamental geological survey for energy resources. This basin will promisingly achieve a breakthrough for oil and gas exploration in new Jurassic horizons and areas in the periphery of Songliao Basin. Based on the analysis of geological background and sedimentary characters about the source rocks, the designing ideas of the TC1 and TD1 drill holes and the discovery of crude oil are expounded. Moreover, the paper also discusses the prototype restoration of basin, assessment of source rocks, exploration methods in volcanic rock-covered areas,as well as the analysis of ultralow porosity and permeability reservoir related to the unconventional tight oil.


The state of the Azov and Black Seas environment and the sustainable development in coastal countries and the other states of the Azov and Black Sea Basin, still facing threats and requires new approaches to their environmental policies. In the article sources of contamination and eutrophication of sea environment are investigated. Results of program implementation in the Azov and Black seas region are generalized. Steps of improvement of ecological safety system for the region are determined.


Elastic impedance coefficient (EC) is defined by the ratio of AI and EI. Our study shows that EC of non-vertical incidence is quite similar to Vs/Vp. Rock physics analysis and forward modeling results based on both ultra sonic measurements and well logging data indicate that, EC is also a potential tool for lithology discrimination and gas saturation estimation. EC is easier inverted from prestack angle gather data, and has been successfully applied to detect tight gas sands in a Triassic clastic sedimentary basin of southwest China.


This paper presents a method of setting the number of paths in Monte-Carlo simulation for large-scale MIMO antennas, in which random variables are generated using a linear combination of stationary and uncorrelated random numbers. The proposed method gives a Monte-Carlo simulation in a more realistic propagation environment with a predetermined number of paths.


The 4-1BB (a TNFR superfamily member) is an inducible costimulatory molecule that can exert regulatory effects on T cells independently of CD28 stimulation. The in vitro expression of 4-1BB (CD137) is induced following activation of T cells with various stimuli, including anti-TCR mAbs, lectins, and a combination of PMA and ionomycin. To delineate further the physio-logical role of 4-1BB in immunity, mice deficient in this receptor were generated. These mutant mice developed normally, and were viable and fertile. Humoral responses to vesicular stomatitis virus were comparable with those seen in wild-type mice, whereas the IgG2a and IgG3 isotype responses to keyhole limpet hemocyanin were somewhat reduced in the mutant mice. The 4-1BB-deficient mice demonstrated enhanced T cell proliferation in response to mitogens or anti-CD3 even in the environment of reduced ability to secrete growth-supporting cytokines (IL-2 and IL-4). Although T cells from 4-1BB-deficient mice showed enhanced proliferation, the T cell immune responses of these animals, such as cytokine production and CTL activity, were diminished. In addition, 4-1BB deletion appears to play a role in the regulation of myeloid progenitor cell growth, leading to an increase in these precursor cells in peripheral blood, bone marrow, and spleen. The Journal of Immunology, 2002, 168: 5483–5490. two optimum activation: gene. ES cell line E13TG2a was transfected with the linearized plasmid DNA and selected for G418 and ganciclovir resistance, as previously described (18). Genomic DNA from individual selected clones was digested with Sac I and hybridized with a 1.2-kb Sac I/ Xba I fragment external to the targeting vector to screen for homologous recombination, as previously described (19). A DNA restric- tion fragment of 5.5 kb corresponded to the wild-type allele, whereas a new 6.7-kb fragment resulted from the targeted allele. Four targeted clones were obtained from the 50 G418 and ganciclovir-resistant ES cell colonies. The targeted ES cells were microinjected into 3- to 5-day-old C57BL/6 blas- tocysts and transferred to the uterine horn of pseudopregnant C57BL/6 mice. Eight male and seven female chimeras were obtained. We tested for transmission of the mutated allele by mating the chimeras with (C57BL/ 6 (cid:6) DBA/2)F 1 mice. Two males and one female showed germline trans- mission of the targeted allele. Homozygous 4-1BB-deficient mice (4-1BB (cid:4) / ) were bred with C57BL/6 or BALB/c mice for at least seven generations to obtain 4-1BB (cid:4) / (cid:4) mice on the C57BL/6 or BALB/c background. The genotypes of the offspring were determined by Southern blot analysis of DNA obtained from tail biopsies.


'Mountain Lion' is a large-fruited, freshmarket hybrid tomato (Solanum lycopersicum L.) developed by crossing NC 1CS · NC 2rinEC. It is resistant to verticillium wilt (Verticillium dahliae Kleb) (race 1), fusarium wilt [Fusarium oxysporum f.sp. lycopersici (Sacc.) Snyd. Hans.] (races 1, 2), and Tomato spotted wilt virus (TSWV). It combines the rin and crimson genes, which improve the shelf life and lycopene content of the tomato fruit, respectively.


As an attempt to reduce the high attrition rate among its new students,
Open University Malaysia (OUM) has been encouraging learners to
use e-learning technology and digital learning materials for their studies
and interaction with the university's academic staff. This paper reports
the findings of a study that examined new learners' experiences at
OUM in using e-learning technology and digital learning materials. The
study was based on 438 usable questionnaires completed by a random
sample of new learners. The constructs used include perceived
usefulness, perceived ease of use, computer self-efficacy and anxiety.
The study found that new learners at OUM were generally receptive
towards e-learning technology and digital learning materials. Usage of
mobile devices for downloading study materials such as HTML
modules, i-Lectures and i-Radio learning segments ranged from high
for laptops and mobile phones to moderate for MP3 and MP4 players
to low for tablet computers. There is no significant difference in elearning
technology usage between older and younger cohorts. An
interesting finding of the study was that perceived usefulness was the
only significant factor influencing the use of technology while other
factors including attitude were not. Finally, the study found that there
are significant barriers to e-learning usage, principal among them are
technology and academic support, time, and accessibility. [ABSTRACT BY AUTHORS]


Every educational institute feels proud when its admission closes with expected number of students. The prospective student enters the campus with lots of hopes, dreams and expectations. When their expectations are not met or if they undergo for critical circumstances and makes them drop from their registered program. Predicting undergraduate student dropouts are a major challenge in educational system due to the multidimensionality of data. This paper focuses on dimensionality reduction of multi-behavioral attributes of a 150 students with 51 attribute to identify the factor that affects the early dropout. The dataset dimensionality is reduced through Principal Component Analysis by obtaining the Eigenvalues and Eigenvectors from the covariance matrix by transforming the original attribute into new set attribute without losing the information. Visualization is done with a help of R package factoextra and FactoMineR. The further dataset can be used for classification. The discovery of concealed knowledge can be used for better academic planning and early prediction of student dropout.


This paper has used the method of quantitative analysis,compiled data included by CNKI and the data on personal Information protection of libraries.In addition,this paper has compiled and analyzed the date of published on literature,journals and authors distribution,subject matter,and other aspects of the data.In order to show the actuality that is about personal Information of libraries status of the field of published papers.And sum up the features of published papers to provide a reference for the further research on related content.


Increasing the amount of information in the educational process requires the development of new pedagogical approaches in teaching. Therefore, we propose for use in education a new method in the form of a pedagogical physiological dominant, which combines the use of pedagogical methods based on the physiological mechanisms of the brain. The analysis of A. A. Ukhtomsky's teaching about the dominant showed that mirror neurons function actively only with a pronounced dominant. Mirror neurons and the principle of their work is aimed at achieving a naturally useful result of the activity of the animal and human body, which is determined by the degree of severity of the dominant. The paper shows a new property of dominant formation, which was not studied by Academician A. A. Ukhtomsky, which is that the dominant can be formed or strengthened as a result of the work of mirror neurons


The catalytic dehydrogenation reaction of tail chlorine by Pd was studied using a fixed-bed reactor at low temperature from 30 to 100°C. Different catalyst supports such as SiO2 and Al2O3 were applied to prepare Pd catalysts by the incipient-wetness impregnation method. And the catalysts were characterized by XRD, FTIR, XPS, SEM, and N2 adsorption-desorption. The catalyst Pd loading on both SiO2 and Al2O3 had a catalytic effect on the dehydrogenation reaction, but the carrier Al2O3 was more superior. The hydrogen conversion and selectivity of hydrogen-oxygen reaction increased first and then decreased with Pd loading amount and temperature by using Pd/Al2O3 as catalysts, but the influence of temperature was limited when it was higher than 60°C. The hydrogen conversion was 97.38% and selectivity of hydrogen-oxygen reaction was 79% when the reaction temperature was at 60°C with 1 wt.% Pd/Al2O3.


Carbon monoxide oxidation is a useful reaction for the abatement of exhaust gases from combustion processes. Although metallic nanoparticles deposited on a metal oxide support have shown promise as catalysts for this process, resolving the structure and composition of these materials under reaction conditions remains a challenge, hindering efforts to design better catalysts. Toward that end, Emiel Hensen and coworkers report a multipronged approach they use to determine the optimum catalytic conditions for palladium nanoclusters on ceria (CeO2) during CO oxidation (DOI: 10.1021/ jacs.7b13624). To identify the most stable structure for the nanoclusters, the researchers use a combination of computational techniques that includes a genetic algorithm which mimics natural selection to develop the "fittest" solution. This approach suggests that the most efficient CO oxidation takes place when the palladium nanoclusters are oxidized, which results in weaker CO adsorption and allows CO to more easily form CO2 using oxygen supplied by CeO2. Microkinetics simulations modeling atomic interactions on the nanocluster surface show much higher CO oxidation activity for oxidized palladium compared to metallic palladium clusters. The researchers anticipate that this strategy to resolve the structure and composition of supported nanoparticle catalysts during reactions could become a standard tool in developing and evaluating new catalysts. Christen Brownlee


Following earlier room-temperature studies, gaseous mixtures of methyl cyclobutyl ketone (MCK) diluted in argon have been photolyzed at temperatures up to 205°C. Experiments have been carried out at a variety of pressures (up to ca. 2 atm) at wavelengths of 313 nm (steady state conditions) and 308 nm (pulsed photolysis). The results are consistent with a mechanism dominated by radical-radical reactions involving acetyl, methyl, and cyclobutyl radicals. Acetyl radical processes predominate at lower temperatures while methyl radical reactions are more important at high temperatures.

The results are interpreted via kinetic modelling of a mechanism in which a key role is played by the acetyl radical decomposition reaction

Values for k3 have been obtained and its temperature and pressure dependence are fitted by RRKM theory and a weak-collisional activation model to yield

This high-pressure limiting Arrhenius equation is consistent with other studies in the same temperature range, but is difficult to reconcile with higher temperature investigations.


Objective: To observe the influence of learning on vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) and Fms-like tyrosine-1 (Flk-1) expressions in the boundary zone of cerebral infarction region of rats after unilateral local cerebral infarction. Method: After the models of right middle cerebral artery occlusion (MCAO) were established with electric coagulation, the models of SD rats were randomly divided into learning environment stimulation group (LE) and control group (standard environment stimulation group, SE). The expressions of VEGF and Flk-1 in the boundary zone of cerebral infarction region were measured at the 1(superscript st) d, 3(superscript rd) d, 7(superscript th) d, 14(superscript th) d and 28(superscript th) d after operation. Result: After MCAO operation, degeneration and necrosis of neurons in the infarction region were found both in LE group and SE group. The expression of VEGF and Flk-1 around the infarct regions in LE group were significantly higher than those in SE group at all time points. Conclusion: Learning environment stimulation can promote the upregulation of expressions of VEGF and Flk-1, and accelerate the micreovessel proliferation and brain injury recovery in rats after unilateral local cerebral infarction.


Effects of common plastic film,biodegradable film,liquid film and straw mulching on tilth soil temperature and maize emergence were observed under planting pattern of ridge and ditch.Two-year results showed that common plastic film and biodegradable film mulching could improve significantly the soil temperature.The average temperature in 5~25 cm tilth soil under common plastic film and biodegradable film mulching were 2.51℃~3.77℃ and 1.30℃~2.19℃,respectively, which is higher than that of the uncovered ground.The difference between the liquid mulching and control is very little with the warming value of 0.13℃~0.56℃.Straw mulching could reduce soil temperature,and the tilth soil temperature were 1.25℃~2.19℃ which is lower than that of the control.Maize emergence were promoted 2 d and 1 d earlier under common plastic film and biodegradable film mulching,respectively,but was delayed 1d under straw mulching,and showed no difference under liquid film mulching as compared with the control.


For al-Urmaw ī , the soul is an essence that governs the parts of our body to move both naturally and voluntarily. Cognitive actions in the body is also by means of the soul. This essence is the same in each of us. Every one of us necessarily knows he or she is one person. This is what referred as 'I' or 'you'. al-Urmaw ī argues that the thing that consists of the soul and body must be one single living being. If not, then it would be necessary to talk about two separate substances that do not have any relation between them. According to al-Urmaw ī , the reasoning soul ( al-nasf conception must precede the assent and syllogism and each of these is either necessary or acquired. Acquired knowledge is also derived from the necessary knowledge as a result of intellectual effort. Otherwise, there will be either infinite regression or vicious circle. As Sir ā judd ī n al-Urmaw ī 's also holds the idea that, al- ' ā rif al-mutanazzih (a knowledgeable purified person) who mature himself with meditation and purification ( riy āḍ ah ), can reach knowledge as well through inspiration and unveiling ( ilhām and kashf ). This particular ' ā rif has a bright rank and higher degree that is unique to them, which also is free and isolated from bodily interests, bonds and situations. Over and above, this happens before the ultimate disconnection between the body and the soul.


Biomineralized structures and tissues are composites, containing a biologically produced organic matrix and nano- or microscale amorphous or crystalline minerals. Two main examples of organic matrices – the amino-polysaccharide chitin and the asymmetric protein collagen – are presented and discussed as the basic structural modules and organo-templates for calcium and silica biomineralization in nature. Both serve as templates, providing preferential sites for nucleation and controlling the location and orientation of mineral phases. Here, for the first time, chitin and collagen are analysed from evolutionary, structural, and functional points of view with respect to their templating properties in calcification and silicification phenomena, using both in vivo and in vitro data. It is proposed that these biopolymers be characterized as fundamental templates in biomineralization, inasmuch as they are very ancient from an evolutionary point of view, common to many species and biological systems with a global distribution. The two polymers also exhibit very similar hierarchical structural organizations, in spite of the possible alternatives they provide in chemical nature and origin. In addition, the phenomenon of multi-phase mineralization – where two minerals, amorphous and crystalline CaCO3, form from one biomolecule, chitin – is also described, analysed, and discussed for the first time.


AIM: To investigate the relatio ns hip between nitric oxide (NO) and early ischemic brain damage induced by photoch emistry and the effect of gypenosides (Gyp) on the damage. METHODS: The effects of Gyp and oxidized hemoglobin (OHb) on ischemic brain tissure areas, TBARS and H 2O contents, superoxide dismutase (SOD) activity and NO leve l were observed on the rat middle cerebral artery occlusion (MCAO) model induced by photochemistry. RESULTS: The middle cerebral artery occlusio n for 6 h caused obvious ischemic brain damage, increased the areas of ischemic brain and the contents of H 2O and TBARS, and decreased SOD activity and NO lev el (all P 0.05 ). These effects can be exacerbated seriously by OHb, but reversed by Gyp. CONCLUSION: The decrease of early c erebral NO level is an important factor to lead to ischemic brain damage. Gyp de creases ischemic brain damage by increasing early cerebral NO level and has a pr ophylactic protective effect on cerebral ischemic damage.


Forecasting firms' earnings has long been an interest of market participants and academics. Traditional forecasting studies in a multivariate time series setting do not take into account that the timing of data release for a specific time period of observation is often spread over several days or weeks. This paper focuses on the separation of announcement timing or data release and the use of econometric real-time methods, which we refer to as an updated vector autoregression (VAR) forecast, to predict data that have yet to be released. In comparison to standard time series forecasting, we show that the updated forecasts will be more accurate the higher the correlation coefficients among the standard VAR innovations are. Forecasting with the sequential release of information has not been studied in the VAR framework, and our approach to the six Canadian banks shows its value. By using the updated VAR forecast, we find that the relative efficiency gain is 33% in the one-step-ahead forecast compared to the ordinary VAR forecast, and 7% compared to professional consensus forecasts. Thought experiments suggest that if banks' order of information release were to change, forecast errors could be substantially reduced. These experiments emphasize that evaluating the release ordering is crucial in determining forecast accuracy.


This paper describes the use of holographic interferometry and electronic recording to study the movements of an embryo in an intact incubating egg. New results are presented.


With the shift in high-performance computing (HPC) towards energy efficient hardware architectures such as accelerators (NVIDIA GPUs) and embedded systems (ARM processors), arose the need to adapt existing performance analysis tools to these new systems. We present EZTrace - a performance analysis framework for parallel applications. EZTrace relies on several core components, in particular on a mechanism for instrumenting functions, a lightweight tool for recording events, and a generic interface for writing traces. To support EZTrace on energy efficient GPC systems, we developed a CUDA module and ported EZTrace to ARM processors. The evaluation on a suite of the standard computation kernels show that EZTrace allows to analyze HPC applications executing on such systems with the low performance overhead.


The Pyspatiotemporalgeom library is a pure-python library implementing spatial data types, spatiotemporal data types for moving regions, and operations to create and analyze those types. The library is available on the Python Package Index (PyPI) and has been downloaded over 18,000 times since its release. In this paper, we demonstrate mechanisms to create random spatial data and perform operations over them. We then show how to create moving regions from existing data, and demonstrate aggregate operations over moving regions.


Abstract
 This chapter discusses the economic importance, geographical distribution, host range, damage symptoms, biology and life cycle, interactions with other nematodes and pathogens, recommended integrated management, and management optimization of root-knot nematodes (Meloidogyne spp.) infesting vegetables in Florida, USA. Future research and outlook are also mentioned.


Anna Pinkevich - PhD, Associate Professor, Department of Conflictology, the Institute of Philosophy, Saint-Petersburg State University. Address: 5 Mendeleevskaya line, St. Petersburg, 199034, Russian Federation. E-mail: pinckevich. a@yandex. ruIn addition to the existing lines of social tension, there are new lines which are currently forming in contemporary Russia and permeating the entire society. This topic is promising for the further development of the conflict theory, the analysis of the determinants and stages of conflict development and conflict management. It also has an applied value with regard to anticipating social conflicts and developing policies that prevent them. By measuring social tension early in its development we acquire empirical material in a relatively stable environment without the need to interfere in the conflict and thus avoiding the potential impact this may have on the data. The European Social Survey (ESS) provides a good opportunity for research into social tension both in specific countries and from a comparative perspective as well. This article explores social tension in Russia using ESS data. The author discusses various indicators of social tension which are drawn from the questionnaire of the 4 th ESS round conducted in 2008. She then applies these indicators to evaluate the degree of social tension in Russia and its distribution among various social groups. The cases of several other сountries are introduced for comparative purposes. The article concludes with a discussion of the possibilities that ESS offers to researchers of social tension, and shortcomings in the questionnaire which limit the scope of such inquiry.


Abstract Section 195 of the Constitution sets out the principles and values governing public administration. These include transparency, responsiveness, accountability and the efficient, economic and effective use of resources. Public officials who fail to conduct themselves in accordance with these principles will not be able to discharge their constitutional obligations in relation to the protection, promotion and fulfilment of the rights in the Bill of Rights. A public administration that conducts itself in accordance with the principles set out in s 195 of the Constitution will have the necessary building blocks in place to enable it to discharge its obligations. For this reason, we should use s 195 as a way to hold our public officials to account and to advance our constitutional rights.


In this paper we describe the Large Margin Vector Quantization algorithm (LMVQ), which uses gradient ascent to maximise the margin of a radial basis function classifier. We present a derivation of the algorithm, which proceeds from an estimate of the class-conditional
probability densities. We show that the key behaviour of Kohonen's well-known LVQ2 and LVQ3 algorithms emerge as natural consequences of our formulation. We compare the performance of LMVQ with that of Kohonen's LVQ algorithms on an artificial classification problem and several well known benchmark classification tasks. We find that the classifiers produced by LMVQ attain a level of accuracy that compares well with those obtained via LVQ1, LVQ2 and LVQ3, with reduced storage complexity. We indicate future directions of enquiry based on the large margin approach to Learning Vector Quantization.


NOTE: This article appeared under the headline "Good News About Leukemia" in the Sunday, January 4, 1970 edition
 of The San Francisco Chronicle.


Ransomware has been a rising threat in the past few years. By analyzing the number of systems that are infected by ransomware and the amount of ransom paid by the user, the damage done to an IT infrastructure is measured. There are many deployment methods in which the ransomware get into the system. These are similar to malware and ransomware is a form of malware whose central behavior is to prevent legitimate users from accessing the resources when needed. This paper discusses the static and dynamic techniques that can be used to detect and prevent a ransomware attack.


It is estimated that the present fish production for inland waters is about 2.2 million tons, whereas the projected potential is ahout 4.5 million tons. Human Resource Development, especially training of fish farmers thus assume a significance to fulfill the demand. The Central Institute of Fishenes Education. Mumbai is organizing a numher of training programs for fish farmers to upgrade their knowledge and impart skills at the psycho-motor level. Two such training programs of a fortnight duration attended by 24 trainees was evaluated to know the extent to which the objectives of the trainees and of the training institution were met with and also the modifications required in content and treatment to make such experiential learning more effective.


The article presents aspects of using the adapted gene pool of economically valuable wood species of the VNIISPK arboretum to improve the environment, increase the potential of resource indicators, and create comfortable living conditions for people. The genetic collection of the arboretum, which includes 329 species, forms and varieties, representing 17 orders, 31 families and 57 genera, has enormous potential and fulfills a number of important tasks: scientific, educational, environmental, aesthetic and recreational.


Objective To study the treatment of pigmented skin diseases with the technology of facial photorejuvenation.Methods 92 cases of facial pigmented skin diseases were treated with multi-photon therapeutic apparatus IPL Queen Premium and clinical observation.Results47 patients with freckles,efficiency 95.7%;22 cases of post-acne pigmentation,efficiency 95.5%;11 cases of chloasma,efficiency 18.2%;12 cases of seborrheic keratosis,efficiency 58.3%.Conclusion Photorejuvenation technique is suitable for treatment of freckles,and post-acne pigmentation.


Objective: To evaluate the efficacy and security of atorvastatin combination with ezetimibe in patients with acute coronary syndrome(ACS).Methods: A total of 79 patients with ACS were randomized to receive atorvastatin(20 mg/d) and ezetimibe(10 mg/d,combination group,n=41) or atorvastatin(20 mg/d) alone(atorvastatin group,n=38).Levels of lipids of two groups were detected as well as ALT and CK after two weeks therapy.The cardiovascular events and related side-effects were observed during two weeks of the treatment.Results: Compared to baseline,the levels of total cholesterol,triglyceride and low density lipoprotein-cholesterol were reduced after two weeks in two groups.The levels of cholesterol in combination group were significantly reduced than those in atorvastatin group(P0.05).The incidence of cardiovascular events(recurrence of angina pectoris and acute myocardial infarction) in combination group was lower than that in atorvastatin group(P0.05).Conclusion: The combined atorvastatin and ezetimibe therapy early after ACS had good security,and was superior to atorvastatin alone on reducing the levels of cholesterol and the incidence of cardiovascular events.


The manuscript under review focuses on key intervention of prevention and treatment of HIV infection in high prevalence settings. Publication of this manuscript can emphasize for health practitioners and policy makers the importance of ensuring and protecting client autonomy in decision making process during scaling up of HIV testing. The authors are commended for their efforts in collecting and processing the data and efforts for been objective when presented the findings. The data was well-processed, analyzed and presented, and the manuscript was clearly written.


Pancreatic cancer (PC) is one of the most aggressive gastrointestinal cancers. Only curative resection gives a chance for long-term survival which is still unacceptably low. Optimizing of adjuvant for PC treatment is timely in modern oncology. The aim of the sudy is combined analysis of TS and hENT1 intratumoral expression influence on overall survival (OS) in patients with PC treated with gemcitabine+tegafur (GemTeg) in adjuvant setting. 62 R0-resected patients with I-II UICC stage of PC were involved in the retrospective study. All patietns were adjuvantly treated with GemTeg (6 x 28-day cycles). Diagnosis was verified histologically as ductal adenocarcinoma. Afterwards TS and hENT1 expression was investigated immunohistochemically. Statistical calculation was performed by means of Chi square, exact Fisher, Kaplan-Meyer tests and Cox's analysis. Median follow-up was 34 months. OS benefit was evaluated in comparison to cohort of patients with both low hENT1 and TS expression by univariate analysis. OS in cohorts of patients with high hENT1, high TS and combination of high hENT1 and TS was markedly higher (р=0.053; р=0.03 and р<0.001 respectively). In multivariate Cox's analysis for stratified cohorts HR was 4.65 (СI: 2.12–10.21), 4.82 (СI: 2.13–10.91) та 23,14 (СI: 2.73–195.88) respectively. High intratumoral expression of hENT1 and TS may independently improve OS in PC patients treated with GemTeg in adjuvant setting. Patietns with combination high hENT1 and TS expression benefitted mostly according to GemTeg adjuvant therapy.


Purpose. The article is focused on the empirical properties of the high-frequency data of 20 selected stocks from the Warsaw Stock Exchange (in particular the ones listed on WIG 20).The intraday data from at least more than 1 year were analysed. In particular, correlation between returns and durations were checked. Methodology. Also, the heterogeneous autoregressive model for realized volatility (HAR) was analysed and an attempt to construct the UHF-GARCH model was taken. The HAR model is a linear model and the UHF-GARCH is based on a certain adjustment of physical durations. Then, the standard ARMA-GARCH approach can be considered. Moreover, the hypothesis of Diamond and Verrecchia predicting a negative correlation between price changes and the time passed between transactions was checked. The analysis was done in R statistical software. Findings. The presented research can serve as an introduction to some further (and more thorough and narrow) researches. Except a direct presentation of outcomes from the study of the selected stocks from the Warsaw Stock Exchange, the paper contains quite an extensive literature review on high-frequency data.


Abstract : This research developed the quasi-static and dynamic equipment and protocols for tests of both very-high-strength concrete (VHSC) and high-strength high-ductility concrete (HSHDC) to predict blast performance. VHSC was developed for high compressive strength (greater than 200 MPa). Using VHSC as the baseline material, HSHDC was developed and exhibits comparable compressive strength (greater than 150 MPa) and high tensile ductility (greater than 3 percent tensile strain). This research investigated quasi-static material properties including compression, tension, and flexure (third-point and pressure loadings). Additionally, dynamic blast load simulator (shock tube) tests were performed on simply supported one-way panels in flexure. Subsequently, the material response in flexure was predicted using the Wall Analysis Code (WAC). Although VHSC has a higher peak flexural strength capacity, HSHDC exhibits higher ductility through multiple parallel micro-cracks transverse to loading. The equipment and test protocols proved to be successful in providing ways to test scaled concrete specimens quasi-statically and dynamically.


We present an extension of the ergodic, mixing and Bernoulli levels of the ergodic hierarchy in dynamical systems, the information geometric ergodic hierarchy, making use of statistical models on curved manifolds in the context of information geometry. We discuss the 2×2 Gaussian Orthogonal Ensembles (GOE) within a 2D correlated model. For values of the correlation coefficient vanishingly small, we find that GOE belong to the information geometric (IG) mixing level having a maximum negative value of scalar curvature. Moreover, we propose a measure of distinguishability for the family of distributions of the 2D correlated model that results to be an upper bound of the IG correlation.We present an extension of the ergodic, mixing and Bernoulli levels of the ergodic hierarchy in dynamical systems, the information geometric ergodic hierarchy, making use of statistical models on curved manifolds in the context of information geometry. We discuss the 2×2 Gaussian Orthogonal Ensembles (GOE) within a 2D correlated model. For values of the correlation coefficient vanishingly small, we find that GOE belong to the information geometric (IG) mixing level having a maximum negative value of scalar curvature. Moreover, we propose a measure of distinguishability for the family of distributions of the 2D correlated model that results to be an upper bound of the IG correlation.


This thesis is focused on study of charge transport in semiconducting radiation detectors. Theoretical calculations of current waveforms based on continuity equation and drift-diffusion equation are done. Useful approximations of current waveforms for detector with shallow electron trap are discussed. Monte Carlo simulation of the current waveforms is proposed and applied to fit experimental current waveforms measured using laser-induced transient current technique and for evaluation of charge transport parameters of the detector such as electric field profile, trapping and detrapping time of traps, drift mobility and other parameters. Detectors prepared from semi-insulating GaAs and CdZnTe single crystals are tested using electrical, spectroscopic and optical characterization techniques.


Direct vs computer-assisted image-based measurements of the second-to-fourth digit ratio (2D:4D), a widely studied assumed negative correlate of prenatal testosterone, were compared in a sample of 96 men. Both methods yielded comparable associations of 2D:4D with a range of sexually differentiated personality measures, including the Big Five, aggression, hypermasculinity, and self-esteem (partly additionally assessed with implicit tasks and peer-ratings complementing the self-report measures). Directly ascertained 2D:4D was significantly less precisely measurable and significantly higher than 2D:4D ascertained from images by the same observers. In particular, measurement method impacted fingers differentially: directly measured index vs ring fingers were 1% vs 2% shorter, thereby yielding higher 2D:4D than when measured from images. Finger differences in fingertip size have been hypothesized to account for such discrepancies. However, fingertip size is unrelated to 2D:4D. Alternatively, diminished finger extensibility in supinated hand position (when taking direct measurements), as compared with finger extensibility in pronated hand position (when taking palmar-view hand images), might account for these observations. For anatomical reasons, this effect should be stronger for ring fingers than for index fingers and moreover should increase with age. The present data supported this novel hypothesis for explaining measurement-dependent differences in 2D:4D.


Mode polarization and energy spectra for the lattice modes of poly(p-phenylene vinylene) are obtained by inelastic-incoherent-neutron-scattering methods. Experiments were performed on stretch-oriented, highly crystalline films with time-of-flight and filter-analyzer spectrometers. By measuring all-hydrogen and vinylene-deuterated samples, we show that almost all of the observed modes can be attributed to phenylene motions. The low-energy features in the vibrational density of states consist of a longitudinal 2.5-meV mode assigned to a damped translational motion along the chain axis, a 7-meV phenyl ring in-phase librational mode (transverse with respect to the chain axis), and strong bands at 15 and 25 meV showing mixed polarization, the latter also displaying negative frequency shift with increasing temperature. Higher-frequency modes are in excellent agreement with published infrared and Raman studies, as well as with the results of our vibrational analysis based on the semiempirical AM1 method.


The statistical and characteristic features of the polarized fluorescence spectra from cancer, normal and benign human breast tissues are studied through wavelet transform and singular value decomposition. The discrete wavelets enabled one to isolate high and low frequency spectral fluctuations, which revealed substantial randomization in the cancerous tissues, not present in the normal cases. In particular, the fluctuations fitted well with a Gaussian distribution for the cancerous tissues in the perpendicular component. One finds non-Gaussian behavior for normal and benign tissues' spectral variations. The study of the difference of intensities in parallel and perpendicular channels, which is free from the diffusive component, revealed weak fluorescence activity in the 630nm domain, for the cancerous tissues. This may be ascribable to porphyrin emission. The role of both scatterers and fluorophores in the observed minor intensity peak for the cancer case is experimentally confirmed through tissue-phantom experiments. Continuous Morlet wavelet also highlighted this domain for the cancerous tissue fluorescence spectra. Correlation in the spectral fluctuation is further studied in different tissue types through singular value decomposition. Apart from identifying different domains of spectral activity for diseased and non-diseased tissues, we found random matrix support for the spectral fluctuations. The small eigenvalues of the perpendicular polarized fluorescence spectra of cancerous tissues fitted remarkably well with random matrix prediction for Gaussian random variables, confirming our observations about spectral fluctuations in the wavelet domain.


OBJECTIVE To explore the clinical manifestations,incidence of complications,clinical laboratory examination,and imaging characteristics of children with Mycoplasmapneumonia so as to guide the clinical diagnosis and medication.METHODS Totally 190children with Mycoplasmapneumonia,who were treated in the Huzhou Central Hospital from Jan 2011 to Jan 2012,were enrolled in the study,then the clinical manifestations and pulmonary complications as well as the data of the clinical laboratory examination and imaging examination were retrospectively analyzed.RESULTS Among the 190children with Mycoplasmapneumonia,the incidence of fever was 92.63%, the dry cough 86.84%,the rough breath sounds of two lungs 58.94%;the complication of digestive system damage occurred in 49cases with the incidence rate of 25.79%.The clinical laboratory examination showed that the incidence of the elevated level of high-sensitivity C-reactive protein was 51.05%,the incidence of the elevated level of alanine aminotransferase 22.11%;while the imaging examination indicated that there were 81(42.63%)cases of unilateral patchy shadows and 49(25.79%)cases of rough lung texture.CONCLUSIONThe fever and irritating cough are the predominant clinical symptoms of the children with Mycoplasma pneumonia;the sign of thickening of lungs breath sounds is quite common and usually involves the digestive system;the imaging examination can provide significant evidence to confirm the Mycoplasmapneumonia.


For the Heisenberg model of ferromagnets, in particular, both the ground state and the lowest excited states can be obtained exactly and this makes it possible to define spin wave operators rigorously. Interactions among the spin waves become appreciable when one goes to higher excited states, but a model of independent spin waves is still a good approximation to discuss various properties.). 2 ) Furthern1ore, there are many other problems in solid state physics where we encounter Hamiltonians which are mathematically equivalent to that for spin waves, such as the tight-binding approximation for nondegenerate atomic orbitals.


Objective: To know about the adherence to antiretroviral treatment according to three indirect methods. To relate the results to the patient's virologic status, determined by his/her viral load (VL). Method: The chosen indirect methods were: computer records of administration obtained from the pharmacy department (presenting the indicators ADHmid3 and ADHmid, for the temporary analysis of the process), questionnaire (SMAQ) and clinical judgement (CJ). ADHmid3 was established as a standard method, by evaluating the sensitivity and specificity of the others versus this one. Undetectable VL was associated with complying patient. Results: 361 patients were included. The level of adherence according to the indicators was of: ADHmid3 = 70.7%, ADHmidt = 68.5%, SMAQ = 63.0%, CJ = 94.1%, VL = 81.4%. Statistically significant differences were found among all the indicators, except between ADHmid3 and ADHmidt. Conclusion: The results of the ADHmid3 temporary adherence indicator, are the closest ones to the patient's virologic status. Due to that fact, this could be considered a useful tool in pharmaceutical interventions on adherence


Including 97 maps, this travel guide to the Czech and Slovak Republics covers: hotels and hostels, where to eat, and entertainment options. It also features a practical language section.


From ZymeQuest Inc., Beverly, Massachusetts 01915, USA. Departments of Cellular and Molecular Medicine and Odontology, University of Copenhagen, DK-2200 Copenhagen N, Denmark. Department of Chemistry, University of New Hampshire, Durham, NH 03824. Division of Hematology and Transfusion Medicine and Department of Laboratory Medicine, Lund University and University Hospital Blood Center, SE-22185, Lund, Sweden. Department of Pathology, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center and Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02215, USA. Architecture et Fonction des Macromolécules Biologiques, UMR6098, CNRS, Universités Aix-Marseille I & II, Case 932, 13288 Marseille Cedex 9, France.


The following two tables are a tabulated list of the diseases of the ear met with at the Ear Dispensary, 6 Cambridge Street, Lothian lioad, during the two years July 1878 to end of June 1880. They give the names usually applied to the chief features observed in each case; of course, other symptoms and complications, giving rise to the deafness or other complaint, were met with, and had to be treated accordingly. In dispensary work, where many patients have to be seen and treated in a limited space of time, the notes taken are sometimes so imperfect that it is somewhat difficult to arrange them under their respective heads; still the undernoted are the leading features of the several diseases for the two years. I have also appended a list of the decennial ages of the patients so far as recorded. I take this opportunity of thanking for much valuable help in the work of the Dispensary, Drs More Eeid and Oliver, and Mr John F. Thomson, third year's student of medicine, as well as Mr Gregor for aiding us in keeping the books and writing out the prescriptions.


PURPOSE: A method for manufacturing Gyrophora esculenta wine and the wine thereby are provided to give the wine functionality of natural products such as Gyrophora esculenta, Sasamorpha purpurascens var. borealis NAKAI, or pine needles and to enjoy the functional wine. CONSTITUTION: A method for manufacturing Gyrophora esculenta wine comprises the steps of: dipping Gyrophora esculenta with respect to 100 parts by weight of spirit to prepare a Gyrophora esculenta extract; mixing 100 parts by weight of the Gyrophora esculenta extract, 80-120 parts by weight of white soft sugar, 5-15 parts by weight of nuruk (fermentation starter), and 120-170 parts by weight of water and fermenting the mixture to prepare a Gyrophora esculenta fermentation liquid (S100); washing and dipping rice in water and steaming the rice to prepare hard-boiled rice (S200); mixing 100 parts by weight the hard-boiled rice, 5-15 parts by weight of nuruk, 0.001-0.5 parts by weight of yeast, and 130-170 parts by weight of water and fermenting the mixture in a container to obtain a fermented liquid (S300); mixing 100 parts by weight of water mixed in the fermented liquid and 10-30 parts by weight of the Gyrophora esculenta fermentation liquid and fermenting the mixture to prepare a secondary fermented liquid (S400); and fermenting the secondary fermented liquid (S500). [Reference numerals] (S100) Step of preparing fermentation enzyme; (S200) Step of steaming; (S300) Step of primarily fermenting; (S400) Step of secondarily fermenting; (S500) Step of filtering


An implicit high-level control language was designed and implemented for describing and controlling the path to be executed by the FMC Autonomous Vehicle. This language is an interpreted command language and runs on a Sun workstation. It takes a list of points describing the robot's global path in either Universal Tansverse Mercator (UTM) or geodetic (latitude, longitude) coordinates. First, the input is interpreted into descriptions of vehicle direction, a sequence of bounded path segments, and advice for road following and other such actions. Then, local sensor data is fused with this global path description and finally translated into mobility commands for vehicle control.


Abstract This article assesses the substantive and varied contributions of Richard B. Lee of the University of Toronto to hunter-gatherer studies, anthropology, ethnoarchaeology, the study of Ju/'hoansi and San peoples, and indigenous peoples' studies. Over a period of nearly 5 decades, Lee has made a number of important theoretical contributions, including providing insights that led to the development of the concept of the original affluent society, egalitarianism, work, and the contributions of women to subsistence and decision-making in small-scale societies. A founder with Irven DeVore of the Harvard Kalahari Research Group, Lee helped train a whole series of students, many of whom have made significant contributions in their own right. Through a series of visits to the Dobe Ju/'hoansi of Botswana and, more recently, the Nyae Nyae Ju/'hoansi of Namibia, Lee engaged in interdisciplinary research that ranged from cultural ecology to medical anthropology and from kinship studies to the importance and variation in concepts surrounding indigeneity. His insights on the diversity present in hunting and gathering societies and social change over time and space have been central to the Kalahari Debate. Some of his most recent work has shed light on HIV/AIDS, leadership, and community-based development.


A survey of serum tocopherol levels of 125 subjects, staff and patients, at an Ottawa hospital was conducted. The mean serum tocopherol level for all subjects was 1.29 ± 0.34 mg/100 ml with a range of 0.70 to 2.5 mg/100 ml. No significant differences were observed between mean serum tocopherol levels of patients and staff members, smokers and nonsmokers, and men and women. Serum tocopherol levels of subjects 25 years old and younger were significantly lower than those over 25 years of age. No values were found in the deficiency range below 0.5 mg/100 ml.


The lung of somatic nuclear transfer cattle was observed by optical microscopy and HE staining techniques in this paper.The basic structure of the lungs of the somatic nuclear transfer cattle was similar with the basic structure of the lung of the natural breeding cattle,including the bronchi,the bronchioles,terminal bronchiole,respiratory bronchioles and alveolar duct,the alveolar sacs and alveolar.But the structure of somatic cell cloned cattle lung was faintly,the wrinkle of the bronchiole was disappear,the main structure of its mucosal was the cubic epithelial.The alveolar was in a half-full capacity,and the alveolar space was small,the alveolar septal was thicker than normal cattle with containing collagen and elastic fibers.The cell structure of alveolar was unclear,and alveolar was full of contents because of disease.


The properties of a bloodmeal-induced trypanolysin from the midgut of the tsetse, G. m. morsitans was studied in vitro. The semi-purified trypanolysin from twice-fed tsetse had the highest trypanolysin activity against bloodstream trypanosomes followed by those once-fed and the unfed flies. Serum found to display trypanolysin activity. The trypanolysin had no trypsin activity nor even affected by the enzyme. In addition, trypanolysin was not affected by protease inhibitors such as soy bean trypsin inhibitor (STI), N-a-p-Tosyl-L-lysine chromethyl ketone (TLCK), phenylmethyl sulphonyl fluoride (PMSF), diisopropyl fluoro-phosphate (DFP) and tosylamide-2-phenylethyl chloromethyl ketone (TPCK). However, the activity was completely inhibited by diethyl pyrocarbonate (DEPC) and partially by aprotinin. The induction of trypanolysin activity by bloodmeal increased gradually reaching a peak at 72-120 h after the bloodmeal, and then decreased rapidly, with only 25% of the peak activity remaining after 192 h. The trypanolysin was inactivated during storage at 27°C and 4°C after 15 and 32 days, respectively. Similarly, heating the midguts trypanolysin to 60 80°C led to loss of activity. On the other hand, 50°C was found to be the optimum temperature for trypanolysin activity. The activity was also unstable by freeze-thaw at 80°C, -70°C, -20°C and 0°C after 33, 41, 55 and 63 days, respectively. Trypanolysin caused lyses of bloodstream-form T. b. brucei, while the procyclic trypanosomes were unaffected. The highest trypanolysin activity in different tsetse species was found with Glossina longipennis, followed by Glossina pallidipes, Glossina morsitans centralis, Glossina fuscipes fuscipes and G. m. morsitans. When the midgut homogenate was separated by anionexchange chromatography, the trypanolysin activity was recovered in the bound fraction. These results suggest that the midgut trypanolysin plays an important role in the establishment of trypanosome infections in tsetse.


Combining with the specific engineering practice,made research on the building seismic isolation design.By using finite element program ETABS analysed and contrasted the dynamic time-related characteristics before and after seismic isolation design,and checked the force and deformation of rubber bearings under seldomly occurred earthquake,to draw some useful conclusions.


In this paper, the exceptional rainfall in the rainy season of 1999/2000 is compared with low rainfall amounts of previous rainy season in the Central Namib Desert. Weekly rain and fog precipitation are set in relation to species diversity and diversity of growth forms which were monitored on 35 permanent sites over 4 successive years (1997-2000) along three coast to inland transects using a nested plot design with different plot sizes (1 m2, 10 m2, 100 m2, 1000 m2). Species response to rainfall was not homogenous but varied with respect to vegetation zone and coastal distance. Whereas near the coast no relationship between species diversity and rainfall amount was found, east of the major fog zone and with increasing distance to the coast rainfall correlated with species richness emphasising the steep climatic gradient evident in this desert. The influence of fog and rain is discussed separately for the different vegetation zones.


Background The morphological examination of macular disease is very important information for the early diagnosis.Spectral domain optical coherence tomography (SD-OCT) is a gold criteria in the diagnosis of macular diseases,but its clinical application is limited in the eyes with refractive medium opacity.The resolution ratio of conventional B-scan sonography is unsatisfactory.20 MHz B-scan sonography may be a new approach to maculopathy. Objective This study was to evaluate the clinical value of 20 MHz B-scan ultrasound by comparing morphological changes of different maculopathies observed by 20 MHz ultrasound and spectral-domain OCT.Methods A prospective study was designed.51 eyes of 51 patients with macular diseases who were determined by Tianjin Medical University Eye Center were enrolled in this study.Spectral-domain OCT was used to image the macular area,and then the 20 MHz B-scan ultrasound was used to examine the same eye to assess the value of 20 MHz B-scan ultrasound diagnosis.The macular diseases were typed according to the OCT manifestation.The characteristics of 20 MHz ultrasound for the same maculopathy were analyzed.All the patients subscribe the informed consent before the study. Results In 10 eyes with macular hole determined by spectral-domain OCT,shallow dome-shaped lesion with central hollow was exhibited on the ultrasound image.The macular edema,retinal neuroepithelium layer detachment and retinoschisis were found in 16 eyes,6 eyes and 4 eyes by spectral-domain OCT,but the 20 M Hz B-Scan ultrasound presented with the focal belt-shaped elevation with non-echo zone below.In contrast,in 15 eyes of retinal pigment epithelium detachment in OCT,spectral-domain OCT showed stronger and thicker belt-shaped echo.Conclusions 20 MHz B-scan ultrasound has certain value in the diagnosis and differentiation for several common maculopathies.Although it is not accurate as OCT in recognizing diseases,it could play an important role in refractive media opacity eye.

Key words:
B-scan ultrasound/20 MHz;  Optical coherence tomography/spectral domain;  Maculopathy; Medical imaging


Summary.  KOGENATE® Bayer (rFVIII‐FS) with Bio‐Set® is designed to prevent patient contact with exposed needles during recombinant factor VIII reconstitution. This postmarketing surveillance study evaluated patient satisfaction before and after switching to the new Bio‐Set reconstitution method. Male children and adults with haemophilia A were enrolled from nine European countries. A preference questionnaire was administered to patients after Bio‐Set training and at the end of the observation period (≥20 exposure days or 3 months). Physician assessments of patient compliance and satisfaction were conducted at the end of the observation period. Patients (N = 306) received a mean ± SD of 28 ± 23 infusions of rFVIII‐FS with Bio‐Set. A majority of patients (82%) preferred the Bio‐Set method, with domain scores for ease of use, safety from needlesticks, and speed of reconstitution being highest after training and at the end of the observation period. The Bio‐Set method received higher mean scores than previous reconstitution methods for worry/safety and ease/confidence domains at both time points. Physician‐reported patient compliance with the Bio‐Set method was similar or greater compared with the previous method for 94% of the patients, with physicians reporting that 92% of the patients were satisfied or very satisfied with Bio‐Set. Thirteen adverse events (AEs) occurred in nine patients, and five serious AEs occurred in five patients; none was related to rFVIII‐FS. No de novo or recurrent inhibitor development was observed during the observation period. rFVIII‐FS with Bio‐Set was well tolerated and well accepted by haemophilia A patients, which may improve treatment compliance.


In this paper, we provide non-averaged and transient performance guarantees for recently developed, tube-based robust economic model predictive control (MPC) schemes. In particular, we consider both tube-based MPC schemes with and without terminal conditions. We show that the closed-loop performance obtained by applying such MPC schemes is approximately optimal when evaluated both on finite and infinite time horizons. These performance bounds are similar to those derived previously for nominal economic MPC.


Thank you very much for reading the secret life of pronouns what our words say about us. As you may know, people have search hundreds times for their chosen readings like this the secret life of pronouns what our words say about us, but end up in malicious downloads. Rather than reading a good book with a cup of tea in the afternoon, instead they juggled with some malicious bugs inside their computer.


The study aimed to establish the process flow and to determine the costs, productivity, and the return of investment (ROI)  It also sought to quantify the  environmental impact on soil nutrition and utilization, ambient temperature, and rainwater conservation, and also the problems encountered in the development and establishment of the Backyard Bio-integrated  Farming Model (BBFM). BBFM greatly considered the sound process flow in developing and establishing an ecological interaction of the components for maximum maximization of the available resource that can be found both land, air and water. The following that highly considered in the process were  the site selection, plan, design and layout, inputs, fish, crops, poultry and livestock establishment, production, caring and feeding practice, harvesting and marketing. BBFM  increased the amount of soil nutrients and lowered down the surrounding temperature. Furthermore, this farming model was quite productive for it utilized and conserved the natural resources particularly the volume of soil and water. Thus it saved a lot of money. The IBF was a good source of additional income and a mean of living for food self sufficiency.  This study was feasible for an entrepreneurial venture. A proposed package of technology for an Integrated  Biosystem Farming that has a farmers-based application is hereby recommended for wide dissemination and adoption


Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder is a psychiatric and behavioral disorder marked by chronic inattention and/or hyperactivity-impulsivity that interferes with functioning or development. This disorder is caused by many dysfunctions in the brain especially in the prefrontal cortex. To date, numerous studies have attempted to unravel the biological pathways behind ADHD. Many environmental risk factors have been identified including lead exposure and prenatal alcohol and tobacco exposure. Specific mutations in genes affecting dopamine and norepinephrine release are also under investigation. Moreover, around three thousand papers have been published showing that ADHD is due to an abnormal dopamine and norepinephrine neurotransmitters secretion in the prefrontal cortex (PFC). This paper aims to provide an updated review of the biological causes of ADHD with an unprecedented focus on different cellular pathways involving catecholamine secretion in the prefrontal cortex. A well rounded and comprehensive review of the etiology of ADHD would prevent its misdiagnosis by health professionals and consequently restrict its malpractice by the use of unnecessary treatments and medications. The ADHD controversy still remains: a disorder or a fraud?


Unpublished report on the design of public innovation agencies produced for the Inter-American Development Bank's Division of Competitiveness, Technology, and Innovation. Contributed to the IDB's report available here: https://publications.iadb.org/bitstream/handle/11319/8569/Agencias-latinoamericanas-de-fomento-de-la-innovacion-y-el-emprendimiento-caracteristicas-y-retos-futuros.PDF


Our research project 'Many-voiced Heritage. Multiperspectivity in Heritage Education. (2016-2018)' aims to stimulate a sustainable cooperation between formal education and institutions of heritage education. The following research question was our starting-point: How can we use cultural heritage as a bridge to facilitate multiperspectivity in (secondary) teacher education and in heritage organizations? Multiperspectivity as a concept expressing the willingness to take someone else's viewpoint is used as the connecting element between history education and heritage education. Cultural heritage is a powerful instrument for multiperspectivity as different perspectives can play a role. Even the perspectives of forgotten social or ethnic-cultural groups can be discussed and so superdiversity gets accounted for. In this case multiperspectivity points to a threefold approach. Heritage education can become many-voiced in sources (multiperspectivity in terms of content). The project stimulates sustainable cooperation between formal secondary education and secondary teacher education and institutions of heritage education (organizational multiperspectivity). By using a mix of qualitative and quantative research methods we're deploying a third way of multiperspectivity (methodological multiperspectivity). So far we have designed a theoretical frame for multiperspectivity in heritage education with a focus on ethnic-cultural diversity. We have been searching for existing sets for heritage education both in Flanders and abroad. These sets have been analyzed and valued through the lens of the theoretical framework. Subsequently we have been designing three new sets for heritage education that match the conditions of the theoretical frame (multiperspectivity in terms of content). Three independent design teams with representatives from different domains (teachers from secondary schools, students and teacher educators from secondary teacher education, heritage educators, representatives of ethnic-cultural minority groups) are responsible for the lay-out (organizational multiperspectivity). The sets will be designed in different iterations according to the principles of Universal Design for Learning and Design-based Research (methodological multiperspectivity). The sets for heritage education will be tested in several groups, for valorization. The main concern is that the notions of multiperspecitivity and heritage education that will stem from this project will actually be adopted in the daily practice of institutions of heritage education and formal education.


Relativistic QFTs are in general defined by a collection of effective actions, describing the dynamics of quantum fields at different energy scales. The consequent natural idea of a space of theories is still a rather imprecise notion, since a detailed knowledge or a classification of QFTs is out of reach. In two dimensions the situation is in a better shape: in this context CFTs are under control in many instances, and we know sequences of rational theories emerging as end-points of RG flows. The present thesis explores the behaviour of sequences of rational two-dimensional CFTs when the central charge approaches its supremum. After a review of various notions useful to study limit theories, like the concept of averaged fields and the construction of continuous orbifolds, we analyse in detail the limit of sequences of N=2 supersymmetric CFTs that are connected by RG flows. The limit is not unique, since with extended Virasoro symmetry one can choose different scalings for the labels of the spectrum in the limit. We construct explicitly two c=3 CFTs emerging as the large level limit of minimal models, and we identify both of them: one is the N=2 CFT of two uncompactified free real bosons and two free real fermions, the other is its continuous orbifold by U(1). We compare spectrum, torus partition function, correlators and boundary conditions. The neatest interpretation of this result is given by studying the realisation of N=2 minimal models as gauged WZW models: taking the two different limits amounts to zooming into two different regions of the target-space geometry. At the end we speculate about possible extensions and generalisations.


This paper describes the application of Principal Component Analysis (PCA) for fault detection and diagnosis (FDD) in a real plant. PCA is a linear dimensionality reduction technique. In order to diagnosis the faults, the PCA approach includes one PCA model for each system behavior, i.e., a PCA model for normal operation conditions and a PCA model for each faulty situation. Data set is generated in closed loop. The method of fault detection and diagnosis is based on the definition of threshold minimum. These are calculated by the Q statistics and levels of significance. The PCA models outputs (in this case the Q statistics) are compared with theirs thresholds minimum, with and without faults. The only one that does not violate it threshold says us the actual system situation, i.e., identify the fault. Finally, this technique is applied to a two tanks system, and can be demonstrated that it is possible to detect and identify faults.


The phosphorus release (anaerobic) and phosphorus uptake (anoxic) capacity of one denitrifying phosphorus-accumulating bacterial strain, identified as Acinetobacter by 16S rRNA sequence, and the influence of electron acceptors (NO3 and NO2) were explored. Batch experiments with different environmental factors including pH. The types and levels of electron acceptors were performed. The results showed that anaerobic phosphorus release was greater in neutral and alkaline environments. Both nitrate and nitrite can act as electron acceptors to enable anoxic phosphorus uptake. In addition, the phosphorus uptake in the nitrate system was relatively higher than in the nitrite system in a neutralalkaline environment (pH = 7 and 9), the average percentage of phosphorus uptake in the nitrate system reached 15.0 mg/L. For nitrite, the uptake percentage slowly increased with the increase of pH, from 9.5 mg/L (pH = 3) to 14.3 mg/L (pH = 7 and 9). The optimal stoichiometric concentration of electron acceptors and pH for phosphate removal in nitrate and nitrite systems appeared at ρ(nitrate) = 30 mg L, pH = 9, and ρ(nitrite) = 5 mg L, pH = 7, respectively. Our results indicated that Acinetobacter N-8 had a strong capacity for denitrifying phosphorusaccumulation and the utilization of oxygen, nitrate, and nitrite as electron acceptors, but the efficiency is significantly impacted by environmental pH.


(25/12/2018) Statistical modelling of the frequency and severity of road accidents Under-reporting of traffic accidents is a well-discussed subject in traffic safety and it is well-known that the degree of under-reporting of traffic accidents is quite high in many countries. Nevertheless, very little literature has been made to investigate what causes the high degree of under-reporting. The problem of under-reporting is not unique for traffic accidents as severe under-reporting is a challenge in many other fields of incident reporting. In other incidents fields with intended or unintended harm, research has investigated the behavioural reasons for why people choose to report an incident to the authorities. These kinds of studies have never been conducted within the field of transport. Furthermore, in other fields of incident reporting literature has documented that distrust to the police or to other authorities has an influence on the reporting rate. Even though a few studies have focused on the service quality within the police none have looked at the service quality specific for the handling of traffic accidents.The objective of this Ph.D. thesis is to investigate the extent of under-reporting of traffic accidents in Denmark and trace the under-reporting systematically. As something new and innovative this project also explores the behavioural reasons for under-reporting by investigating the barriers associated with the intention to report a bicycle incident in Denmark. Furthermore, the service quality within the police for the handling of traffic accident reporting is investigated by an expert management tool.Initially models were built by using existing traffic accident data collected by the police and emergency rooms in Denmark. The data registered by the police was collected on traffic accidents occurred on Danish roads in the period between 2002 and 2008. The emergency room data were collected at three hospitals located at Funen in the period between 2002 and 2009. Furthermore, two largescale questionnaires were developed and administered. The first questionnaire was administered among bicyclist in Denmark and investigates the behavioural reasons for reporting traffic accidents. The second questionnaire was administered to stakeholders in the transportation field and was made to detect strengths, threats and opportunities for reporting traffic accidents within the police. This Ph.D. study contributes significantly to the literature about underreporting. The following innovative findings are presented:


Introduction 1. Early Origins of the 'ASEAN way': The struggle for respect and sovereignty 2. Post-War Origins of the 'ASEAN way': From estrangement and conflict to regional reconciliation and accommodation 3. ZOPFAN and the ASEAN Regional Forum: The extramural dimension of ASEAN's struggle for security and recognition 4. The Cambodia Conflict and the 'ASEAN way': The struggle for a pristine interpretation of principles 5. China's Relations with ASEAN: Challenging or reinforcing the 'ASEAN way'? 6. The U.S. Challenge to the 'ASEAN way' 7. The Concept of Flexible Engagement and the Practice of Enhanced Interaction: Intramural challenges to the 'ASEAN way' 8. ASEAN's Diplomatic and Security Culture after the Hanoi Summit: Has 'old' thinking been dominating 'new' practices? Conclusion: On the prospects of ASEAN's diplomatic and security culture