This paper attempts to sketch an initial and very provisional account of a
workable notion of historical literacy. It draws briefly on some philosophical
considerations suggested by ¾ among others ¾ the work of Bevir,
Collingwood, Lorenz, Oakeshott and Rusen in order to decide what might be
usefully included in such a notion. More substantially, it employs recent
empirical research to suggest what an account of historical literacy might
need to address. At the very least any useful account ought to pay attention
to two components: first, students' ideas about the discipline of history;
second, their orientation towards the past (the kind of past they can access,
and its relationship to the present and future). Research connecting these
two components of historical literacy has only recently begun, although
Rusen's theoretical approach to historical consciousness has inspired
investigation of the second component for some time in parts of Europe. It
is argued that a major project for history education must be the development
of usable historical frameworks of the past that are not 'party histories', but
allow students to assimilate new events and processes, whether in the past
or the future, and are themselves adaptable in the face of recalcitrant new
material. Key tools here will be adequately sophisticated ideas about
historical accounts, together with closely related concepts such as significance,
interpretation and change.


It will be presented the principles behind the use of the Standard Model Effective Field Theory as a consistent method to parametrize New Physics. The concepts of Matching and Power Counting are covered and a Covariant Derivative Expansion introduced to the construction of the operators set coming from the particular integrated UV model. The technique is applied in examples including the SM with a new Scalar Triplet and for different sectors of the 3-3-1 model in the presence of Heavy Leptons. Finally, the Wilson coefficient for a dimension-6 operator generated from the integration of a heavy J-quark is then compared with the measurements of the oblique Y parameter.


The three main goals of the study were to describe the development of English spelling skills in Spanish-English bilingual children, to identify factors that might explain high levels of transfer from Spanish spelling to English spelling, and to determine what relationships might exist between English spelling and English reading ability, in particular for Spanish-speaking English language learners (ELLs). The investigators formulated these goals as three main research questions:


Humans have limited cognitive resources to process the nearly limitless information available in the environment. Endogenous, or 'top‐down', selective attention to basic visual features such as color or motion is a common strategy for biasing resources in favor of the most relevant information sources in a given context. Opposing this top‐down separation of features is a 'bottom‐up' tendency to integrate, or bind, the various features that constitute objects. We pitted these two processes against each other in an electrophysiological experiment to test if top‐down selective attention can overcome constitutive binding processes. Our results demonstrate that bottom‐up binding processes can dominate top‐down feature‐based attention even when explicitly detrimental to task performance.


Abdominal scintiscans performed after the injection of autologous phagocytes labelled with 99mTc‐stannous colloid particles provide an accurate assessment of the extent of disease in active inflammatory bowel disease. To study the correlation between phagocyte accumulation and histological indices of the degree of inflammation within bowel wall, the distribution of radiolabel within five freshly resected specimens of ileum and one of colon was assessed in five patients with active Crohn's disease. Each patient was injected with autologous 99mTc‐labelled phagocytes prior to surgery. Multiple tissue samples (blocks) were taken along the length of the fresh resected specimen of bowel. The radioactive count of each block was obtained and they were then studied independently by two histopathologists who graded 12 histological features according to predefined criteria. High counts correlated with ulceration and submucosal mononuclear aggregates (P < 0.05). Very low counts were obtained in mesentery and non‐ulcerated bowel. This study confirms the selective accumulation of 99mTc‐labelled phagocytes within areas of ulcerated bowel in patients with active Crohn's disease.


PURPOSE: A solar light electricity generating device and a manufacturing method thereof are provided to insulate a side of a light absorbing unit by a barrier film and prevent leaked currents by a side of the light absorbing unit, thereby reducing leaked currents. CONSTITUTION: A first rear electrode(200) is arranged on a support substrate(100). A light absorbing unit(310) is arranged on the first rear electrode. A high resistance buffer is arranged on the light absorbing layer. A barrier film(333) is expanded from the high resistance buffer and is formed on a side of the light absorbing unit.


Chainstopper is a hydroxyl group or an ester to form an ester bond with a carboxyl group at the south generates the esterification reaction between at least one polyfunctional alcohol and at least one polyfunctional carboxylic acid is disclosed using the agent. Polyfunctional carboxylic dicarboxylic acids of carbon number 9 to 18, aliphatic acid, dimerization, and (or) trimer fatty acid, or comprising mixtures thereof, provided that dimerization and trimerization fatty acid is a polyfunctional carboxylic acid Total amount of not more than 80% by weight. Chain terminator may sanil acid having a carbon number of 14 or more monofunctional alcohols or monocarboxylic. Kinematic viscosity at 100 ℃ of the ester compound is 30 to 1000 cSt, preferably 30 to 200 cSt. Complex ester "as is" useful or transmission oil, hydraulic fluids, four-stroke institutions oil, additives in the fuel additives, compressor oils, greases, chain oils, and metal processing and metal rolled response supplies and (or) base fluid and (or) is useful as a thickener. 1, a general-purpose gear oil formulation comprising one or more kinds of the ester compound is also a part of the present invention. Complex ester, a polyfunctional alcohol, a polyfunctional carboxylic acid, a chain terminator, esterification, kinematic viscosity, gear oil


New records of Darevskia alpina from the vicinities of Zemo Bachiani Village in South Ossetia are presented and discussed: D. brauneri from the place of the confluence of the Luhunistskale River into the Rion River in Georgia and vicinities of Ertso Lake in South Ossetia, D. pontica from the vicinities of Slavyansk-na-Kubani, Timashevsk, Novotitarovskaya Village, Poltavskaya Village and Burakovsky Village in Krasnodar Region, D. portschinskii nigrita from the vicinities of Kizilkilisa Village in Georgia, D. praticola from the vicinities of Tskhinval, Acrisheu Village, Malaya Gufta Village, Hetagurova Village and the southern slope of the Zonkar Ridge in South Ossetia. Information on an attempt to introduce D. pontica into the territory of Rostov-on-Don is provided.


Background —It has been reported that tumor necrosis factor- a (TNF- a ) is expressed in the heart with viral myocarditis and that its expression aggravates the condition. The pathophysiological effects of TNF- a on viral myocarditis, however, have not been fully elucidated. Methods and Results —To investigate the role of TNF- a in the progression of viral myocarditis, we used TNF- a gene–deficient mice (TNF- a 2 / 2 ) and induced acute myocarditis by infection with encephalomyocarditis virus (EMCV). The survival rate of TNF- a 2 / 2 mice after EMCV infection was significantly lower than that of TNF- a 1 / 1 mice (0% versus 67% on day 14). Injection of recombinant human TNF- a (0.2 to 4.0 m g/mouse IV) improved the survival of TNF- a 2 / 2 mice in a dose-dependent manner, indicating that TNF- a is essential for protection against viral myocarditis. The levels of viral titer and viral genomic RNA of EMCV in the myocardium were significantly higher in TNF- a 2 / 2 than in TNF- a 1 / 1 mice. Histopathological examination showed that the inflammatory changes of the myocardium were less marked in TNF- a 2 / 2 than in TNF- a 1 / 1 mice. Immunohistochemical analysis revealed that the levels of immunoreactivity of intercellular adhesion molecule-1 and vascular cell adhesion molecule-1 in the myocardium were decreased in TNF- a 2 / 2 mice compared with TNF- a 1 / 1 mice. Conclusions —These observations suggested that TNF- a is necessary for adhesion molecule expression and to recruit leukocytes to inflammatory sites, and thus, the lack of this cytokine resulted in failure of elimination of infectious agents. We concluded that TNF- a plays a protective role in the acute stage of viral myocarditis. ( Circulation . 2001;103:743-749.) vector was constructed from a 7-kb DNA fragment isolated from a 129 mouse l FIXII genomic library. The Hin cII- Hin dIII fragment containing exon 3 and part of exon 4 was replaced with a neomycin- resistant gene cassette. This targeting vector was introduced into TT2 ES cells by electroporation. Resistant clones were screened, and homologous recombination events were confirmed by Southern blotting analysis. Three clones were injected into 8-cell–stage C57BL/6J embryos, which were transferred into the uteri of pseu-dopregnant ICR females. Chimeric mice derived from 1 clone transmitted the mutation to offspring. TNF- a 1 / 2 heterozygotes were backcrossed with C57BL/6J mice, and the F8 generation was used for preparation of TNF- a 2 / 2 homozygotes. The H2 haplotype of homozygotes was determined to be H2b. C57BL/6J mice obtained from Japan SLC (Shizuoka, Japan) were used as wild-type controls (TNF- a 1 / 1 ). analyzed by the Kaplan-Meier method. Comparisons between 2 groups were performed by Student's t test, and those among 3 groups were performed by 1-way ANOVA. Histopathological scores were examined by the Mann-Whitney test. StatView 4.5 and Super ANOVA software were used for statistical analyses on a Power Macintosh G3 (Apple Computer). Results were considered statisti- cally significant at a value of P , 0.05.


AbstractThis paper presents the sensitivity and uncertainty analysis of a mathematical model for greenhouse gas emission (GHG) and energy consumption assessment in wastewater treatment plants. A sensitivity analysis was carried out (using two different methods) to determine which model factors have the greatest effect on the predicted values of the GHG production. Further, an uncertainty analysis was carried out to quantify the uncertainty of the key model outputs, such as carbon dioxide production from activated sludge treatment. The results show that influent fractionation factors, which characterize influent composition, have an important role on direct and indirect GHGs production and emission. Moreover, model factors related to the aerobic biomass growth show a relevant influence on GHGs in terms of emission from off-site power generation (mCO2eq,PG). Further, model factors related to the autotrophic biomass growth were found to strongly interact with other factors especially in modeling mCO2eq,PG. F...


What is 'fake news'? Undoubtedly, the phenomenon has become one of the defining characteristics of our recent past – in 2016 Oxford Dictionaries defined 'post-truth' to be its 'word of the year'. But what might its significance be 100 years from now, and how 'new' is 'fake news'? This article reflects on propaganda in the twentieth and twenty-first centuries to argue that we now face the 'perfect storm': the speed, scope and scale of modern communications, complicated by the uncertain status of social media as neither platform nor publisher and the hidden algorithms used to control the information we see; the building frustration of those who feel disempowered by elites; the desire of some to destabilize the entire social and political system through psychological warfare campaigns and by creating a situation where all views are of equal value regardless of the evidential base; where psychological warriors can operate under the radar in the largely unregulated 'wild west' of the internet. But what is genuinely new about this situation, and how might history help us to find appropriate solutions to 'fake news' within a liberal democracy?


Let $\lambda_{max}$ be a shifted maximal real eigenvalue of a random $N\times N$ matrix with independent $N(0,1)$ entries (the `real Ginibre matrix') in the $N\to\infty$ limit. It was shown by Poplavskyi, Tribe, Zaboronski \cite{PZT} that the limiting distribution of the maximal real eigenvalue has $s\to-\infty$ asymptotics $$\mathbb{P} [ \lambda_{max} < s ] = {\rm e}^{\frac{1}{2\sqrt{2\pi}} \zeta(\frac32)s + \mathcal{O}(1)},$$ where $\zeta$ is the Riemann zeta-function. This limiting distribution was expressed by Baik, Bothner \cite{BB18} in terms of the solution $q(x)$ of a certain Zakharov-Shabat inverse scattering problem, and the asymptotics was extended to the form $$\mathbb{P} [ \lambda_{max} < s ] = {\rm e}^{\frac{1}{2\sqrt{2\pi}}\zeta(\frac32)t} c(1+_\mathcal{O}(1)),\ s\to-\infty.$$ We show that $q(x)$ is a smooth function, which behaves as $\frac{1}{x}$ as $x\to-\infty.$ Second, we show that the error term in the asymptotics is subexponential, i.e. smaller that ${\rm e}^{-C|s|}$ for any $C.$ Third, we identify the constant $c$ as a conserved quantity of a certain fast decaying solution $u(x,t)$ of the Korteweg-de Vries equation. This, in principle, gives a way to determine $c$ via the known long-time $t\to+\infty$ asymptotics of $u(x,t).$ We also conjecture a representation for the $c$ in terms of an integral of the Hastings-MacLeod solution of Painleve II equation.


Department of Basic Medical Sciences, College of Osteopathic Medicine of the Pacific, Western University of Health Sciences, Pomona, CA 91766, USA *Corresponding author Nissar A. Darmani, PhD Department of Basic Medical Sciences College of Osteopathic Medicine of the Pacific Western University of Health Sciences 309 East Second Street Pomona, CA 91766, USA Tel. 1 909 469 5654 Fax: 1 909 469 5577 E-mail: firstname.lastname@example.com


Although there is no cure for asthma,appropriate management often results in the achievement of control.Education should be an integral part of all interactions between health care professionals and patients.The asthma education program should provide specific information,training,and advice about diagnosis,prevention and treatment of asthma.Most education must be personalized and given to the person in a number of steps.Group education should also be used as an important supplementary means.


How to create high-performance true three-dimensional spatial index for the complicated geological scene to ensure the effective storage management and dispatching of the TB-class mass complicated geological scene data is one of the key technical issues of the 3DGIS, which needs to be resolved urgently. The inefficient space division and the high rate of index node overlap problems will appear in the continuous nonhomogeneous geological space by using the existing three-dimensional R-tree series spatial indexes. They cannot effectively deal with large-scale complicated geological scene data. In order to resolve these problems, the amount of data evaluating techniques of geology solid and multi-levels indices techniques are the introduction of three-dimensional spatial index. Used three-dimensional space division technology based on the amount of data evaluating technology of geology solid, combined with three-dimensional spatial clustering, spatial scan sorting, fast convex hull algorithm and CSR-Tree packing construction techniques, the multi-level mixed three-dimensional spatial index can be constructed dynamically. It advances the query efficiency by using the topological relationships between the geology solids, realizes the complex geological data management and efficient dispatching, and affords new ideas and new method for the continuous nonhomogeneous three-dimensional space.


Brazilian agriculture has achieved high production levels in recent years. In contrast, agricultural production in Africa is low, but it shows great potential. This paper discusses the agricultural profiles of the main regions of Africa as well as the agribusiness partnership established between Africa and Brazil. This research is based on descriptive analysis of data collected in official agencies, such as FAO, the World Bank, the United Nations, and the Africa–Brazil Institute. This study points collaborative projects currently active in the agribusiness partnership between Africa and Brazil. Several active collaborative projects are located in Western and Eastern Africa, which are problematic and unstable regions. We argue that Brazil can help African development through a sharp focus on both elementary and emancipatory projects. Thus, attention to Middle Africa should focus on political and conflict instabilities, since these problems might prevent a collaborative partnership with the Brazilian agribusiness sector. The main limitation of this study is that it is based on vague data obtained in official agencies. Another limitation is the absence of details about the active projects. This paper is an important contribution to the literature regarding food security, political instability, and economic development in Africa. It suggests the need for a better alignment between political and private efforts focused on the alleviation of urgent problems.


The surfing performance of two shortboard fin types with surface features were compared to a standard (control) fin with a smooth surface using dynamic computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulations. The fins with surface features included designs with a partially grooved and serrated surface (CR), and humpback whale-inspired fins with tubercles and other features (RW). Surfboard roll, pitch and yaw during cutback maneuvers were simulated based on field data from surfers of intermediate, expert and professional (WCT) skill level surfing on ocean waves. Sustained resultant forces relative to the rider direction were significantly different between fin types, and lowest for RW at WCT-level rotations. CFD results also revealed RW's ability to dampen effects of turbulent flow. RW fins were always the last to stall during a turn, and always exhibited the most gradual stall. CR fins had significantly lower pre-turn drag, and the highest mean resultant forces during the turn. Overall, CR fins appear best for forward acceleration and hold on the wave, while RW fins appear best for maneuverability and stability.


AlInN film was grown on n-type GaAs (100) substrate by using reactive magnetron co-sputtering technique at 100 °C. The structural analysis revealed polycrystalline nature of the film with its preferred orientation along (002) plane. The band gap of AlInN was estimated to be 3.39 eV from UV–vis reflectance measurements. In order to fabricate AlInN based metal–semiconductor–metal (MSM) photodetector, platinum (Pt) metal contacts were deposited on the film through RF sputtering. The Pt/AlInN/Pt/GaAs MSM photodetector displayed good responsivity under 365 nm UV light. The current–voltage characteristics of the fabricated photodetector showed significant increase in current upon exposure to 365 nm UV light. The current gain for the MSM photodetector under 365 nm UV light at 5 V bias was recorded to be 29.4 whereas the sensitivity of the photodetector was noted to be 2.9 × 103. The response and recovery time were estimated to be 0.70 and 0.72 s respectively. The fabricated device exhibited excellent stability in ON/OFF switching conditions.


Objective: The aim of the present study was to find out the common co-morbid conditions associated with type 2 diabetes mellitus. Methods: A descriptive, cross sectional study was conducted from January 2016 to June 2016 among 300 patients attending at Medicine outpatient department of the Community Based Medical College Hospital and Endocrine outpatient department of the Mymensingh Medical College Hospital after obtaining requisite consent from the patients. Data were collected through the interviewing of the patients. The collected data were entered into the computer and analyzed by using SPSS (version 20.1) to know the common co-morbid conditions associated with type 2 diabetes mellitus. The study was approved by the institutional ethical committee. Results: In a pool of 300 type 2 diabetics, Most of the patients (57.3%) belonged to the middle age group 41-60 years. More than half of the respondents were female (n=223, 74.3%). Among 300 cases, 188 patients had shown association with different co-morbid conditions. Female patients (77%) suffered from more co-morbid conditions than male patients (23%). Hypertension was the most commonly associated disease (65.42%) with DM. Conclusion: Most of the diabetic patients have co-morbid conditions. Hypertension was the most commonly associated disease with DM.


In neutron star mergers, neutron excess nuclei and the r-process are important factors governing the production of heavier nuclear systems. An evaluation of fluorine nuclei suggests that the heaviest Z = 9 nucleus will have mass 43 with filling of the 2p1/2 neutron shell. A = 30 – 43 fluorine isotopes have limited experimental half-life data, but the model predicts beta decay half-lives in the range of 0.550 – 2.12 ms. Based on comparisons to lighter Z = 20 and 26 systems, these results likely overestimate the half-lives of A = 30 – 43 neutron excess fluorine nuclei.


The stability of PGI2 in human whole blood (WB) , platelet- rich plasma (PRP) and platelet-poor plasma (PPP) was studied. Following incubation of PGI2(60nM) in the three media, it was found that the half life (t 1/2) of PGI2 (as measured) by the rate of loss of PGI2 equivalents causing platelet inhibition in the supernatant of the incubates) was longer in PPP ᶓ PRP (t 1/2 49±4 ᶓ 42.5±5 min respectively, n=10). On investigation this was found to be largely due to the pH difference observed between PPPᶓPRP (both pH 7.8±1) and WB (pH 7.4±1). Addition of NaHCO3 to raise the pH of WB to 7.8 prolonged the stability of PGI2 with a th of 35±4 min and addition of HC1 to lower the pH of PPP to 7.4 shortened the th to 18.5±4 min. However, incubation of PGI2 in either Hanks buffer or washed red blood cells (WRBC) at pH 7.8 did not increase PG2 stability. Since addition of a mixed population of white blood cells (7xl06cells/ml in PBS pH 7.8) to PPP (pH7.8) did not alter the rate of loss of PGI2 activity and there was found to be no significant uptake (<15%) of 3H PGI2 in WRBC, the possibility of PGI2 conversion to a more stable and platelet-active metabolite such as 6-oxo-PGE2 in plasma was studied by extraction and TLC of the PPP and WB incubates. 3H PGI 2 was found to be converted to % 6-oxo-PGF2 in both WB (pH7.4) and PPP (pH 7.8) with no other detectable metabolites in three different solvent systems. Treatment of the incubates prior to extraction and TLC with NaBH4 (which by reducing free keto groups can distinguish between PGI2 and 6-oxo-PGF1α) showed that 10-20% of the added 3H PGI2 in PPP (pH 7.8) was unchanged even after 120 mins incubation while virtually all the added 3H PGI2 in WB (pH7.4) was converted to 3H 6-oxo-PGFlaby 50 min with a time course (% PGI2 60nM; 1/2 WB-14 min, PPP-35min) similar to the loss of PGI2 activity in WB and PPP on bioassay. We conclude that the prolonged platelet inhibitory activity following incubation of PGI2 in plasma compared to that in whole blood is due to unchanged PGI2 and not the formation of a 6-oxo-PGE1, like substance as suggested by Borda and Gimeno in Prostaglandins 19 pp 899 (1979).


It only takes a few minutes to have your patient fill out the SNOT 22 questionnaires. This can establish if the degree to which the patient is having sino-nasal symptoms. Then, after your therapy, have the patient fill this out again. It is surprising that with only a very small number of such tests, you end up with a recognized evaluation that can answer whether this method is worth continuing or not. Or you can set your own measurement of symptoms. In every hospital there is a chart on the wall: How much pain do you have today? The measurements go from 1 to 10. This indicates to the doctor and nurse, if the patient symptoms are improving or not [1-4].


Anion retention is important in highly weathered soils that contain large amounts of iron and aluminium oxides with surfaces of variable charge. Sorption mechanisms retard anionic solute transfer through these soils. We determined the retardation factor for nitrate in highly weathered Ferralsols from New Caledonia from dynamic experiments using a transient‐flow method, and we evaluated the effect of soil solution concentration and organic matter content. A simple method with sectionable tubes was used to determine the nitrate isotherm during non‐steady‐state water flow under unsaturated conditions. The topsoil retarded the movement of nitrate, and the sorption followed a linear isotherm. In subsoils, retardation factors were larger and increased from 1.15 to 2.05 at soil pH as the NO3–‐N concentration of the input solution decreased from 71.43 to 0.35 mm, indicative of a non‐linear isotherm. Positive surface charge sites were considered to be of two types: one with strong affinity for nitrate at small concentrations and one with weak affinity for adsorption of nitrate at larger concentrations. This type of isotherm with high‐ and low‐energy sites is similar to those found for oxyanions and heavy metals. The related anion exchange capacity was larger than that usually observed in soils of variable charge. Not all exchange sites were detected with our method, and some sites were obviously not available for nitrate retention.


T he Coda distributed file system is a state-of-the-art experimental file system developed in the group of M. Satyanarayanan at Carnegie Mellon University (CMU). Numerous people contributed to Coda, which now incorporates many features not found in other systems 1. Mobile Computing: • disconnected operation for mobile clients • reintegration of data from disconnected clients • bandwidth adaptation 2. Failure Resilience: • read/write replication servers • resolution of server/server conflicts • handles network failures which partition the servers • handles disconnection of client's client 3. Performance and scalability: • client-side persistent caching of files, directories and attributes for high performance • write-back caching 4. Security: • Kerberos-like authentication * access control lists (ACLs) 5. Well defined semantics of sharing 6. Freely available source code Distributed File Systems A distributed file system stores files on one or more computers called servers and makes them accessible to other computers called clients, where they appear as normal .-. since it can disable all clients from accessing crucial information. The Coda project has paid attention to many of these issues and implemented them as a research prototype. Coda was originally implemented on Mach 2.6 and has recently been ported to Linux, NetBSD and FreeBSD. Michael Callahan ported a large portion of Coda to Windows 95, and we are studying Windows NT to understand the feasibility of porting Coda to NT Currently, our efforts are on ports and on making the system more robust. A few new features arc being implemented (write-back caching and cells for cxample), and in several areas, components of Coda are being reorganized. We have already received very generous help from users on the Net, and we hope that this will continue. Perhaps Coda can become a popular, widely used and freely available distributed file system. If Coda is running on a client, which we shall take to be a Linux workstation, typing m o u n t will show a file system-of type " Coda''-mounted under /coda. All the files, which any of the servers may provide to the client, are available under this directory, and all clients see the same name space. A client connects to " Coda " and not to individual servers, which come into play invisibly. This is quite different from mounting NFS file systems which is done on a per server, per export basis. In the most common Windows systems (Novell and Microsoft's CIFS) as …


The prevailing opinion on the relevant time of assessment of the effectiveness of GTCs in individual proceedings is based on the time of conclusion of the contract, without differentiating between "regular" agreements and continuing obligations. However, this starting point is not suitable for continuing obligations due to their special characteristics because it neglects the permanent responsibility of the user for his GTC. The relevant point in time for the assessment must therefore also be the present, because the parties have subjected themselves to a system of revolving rights and obligations characterized by future imponderabilities. A static assessment is basically alien to this system, so that a dynamic control is more appropriate.


The main approach to deal with regressor endogeneity is instrumental variable estimator (IVE), where an instrumental variable (IV) m is required to be uncorrelated to the regression model error term u (COR(m,u)=0) and correlated to the endogenous regressor. If COR(m,u)≠0 is likely, then m gets discarded. But even when COR(m,u)≠0, often one has a good idea on the sign of COR(m,u). This article shows how to make use of the sign information on COR(m,u) to obtain an one‐sided bound on the endogenous regressor coefficient, calling m a 'generalized instrument' or 'generalized instrumental variable (GIV)'. If there are two GIV's m1 and m2, then a two‐sided bound or an improved one‐sided bound can be obtained. Our approach is simple, needing only IVE; no non‐parametrics, nor any 'tuning constants'. Specifically, the usual IVE is carried out, and the only necessary modification is that the estimate for the endogenous regressor coefficient is interpreted as a lower/upper bound depending on the prior notion on the sign of COR(m,u) and some estimable moment. A real data application is done to Korean household data with two or more children to illustrate our approach for the issue of child quantity–quality trade‐off.


A critical attitude toward treatment modalities and scientific progress is a widely established aspect of health sciences education. A similar critical approach to own (professional) behavior and development, referred to as reflection, remains a difficult item to integrate in health sciences education and practice. The concept of reflection can be traced to the ancient Greek era and over the years key authors have related reflection to the development of a society, professional development as reflective practitioners, experiential learning, learning strategies, and lifelong learning. Reflection has been extensively discussed in literature and is increasingly considered as an essential attribute for healthcare professionals. As a result, the ability to reflect is an important objective in many health sciences curricula and professional standards. Opposed to this growing consensus about the benefits of reflection on professional experience, is the lack of understanding on the best approach to teach and assess this concept. The article by Smith and Trede departed from this discrepancy to contribute to the debate about assessment of reflection in physiotherapy. Assessment is important as it identifies whether learning objectives have been met, whether educational methods were efficient and provides feedback to direct the learning process in students/professionals. Based on literature review, this unclear situation was confirmed in the domain of physiotherapy, as no realistic assessment tools for reflection were identified. Multiple confounding factors contribute to this unsatisfying situation. First, reflection has become an ill-defined concept with many definitions. In his work, Schön differentiated between ongoing reflection during a situation linked to immediate behavior (reflection in action) and reflection that looks back on an event to acquire insights in support of future practice (reflection on action). This latter type of reflection is most frequently addressed and could be defined as a metacognitive process, retrospective to a situation and characterized by awareness of self and the situation; critical analysis and understanding of self and the situation; and development of new perspectives to inform future actions. To avoid any misunderstanding, it is important to inform all stakeholders (educators, students, professionals, assessors, etc.) about the used definition and derived standards of good and inadequate reflections. As discussed by Smith and Trede, the subjective nature of reflection is another major confounding factor for assessment. In response, Bourner has suggested, in line with the approach to critical thinking, to focus assessment of reflection on its process rather than its subjective content. In other words, it was proposed to direct evaluation on how one reflects instead of about what. Consequently, assessment instruments should be addressing the ability of a student/professional to adequately look back on experiences, to critically analyze experiences and incorporate findings into future actions. Training and assessment could focus on these elements accordingly, e.g. how to maintain a broad perspective in a situation, how to ask critical questions to analyze experiences or to identify learning goals. Learning how to reflect, however, is a one sided approach to develop the ability to reflect. Hence reflection should be taught in an educational pathway. Initially students and/or professionals should be trained in the process of reflection, based on the three elements of the reflection process: awareness, analysis, and future action. Further on, focus should gradually shift toward the content of reflection and its unique meaning for the development of the reflecting person. To categorize content, the concept of single-, double-, and triple loop learning, based on the work of Argyris could be introduced. Single loop learning is targeting action and instrumental problem solving (Am I doing things right?). Double loop learning is focused on the understanding and mechanisms behind actions and solutions (Am I doing the right things?) and triple loop learning is on an even deeper level as it considers also the context and its influence on the understandings and mechanisms uncovered by double loop learning (How do I decide what is right?). Correspondence to: Sebastiaan Koole, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Department of Dentistry, Ghent University, De Pintelaan 185, 1P8, 9000 Ghent, Belgium. Email: firstname.lastname@example.com


Abstract This essay offers an original interpretation and defense of the doctrine of flux, as it is presented in Plato's Theaetetus. The methodology of the paper's analysis is in the style of rational reconstruction, and it is highly analytic in scope, in the sense that I will focus on the text itself, and only on certain parts of it too, while ignoring the rest of Plato's extensive corpus, and without worrying about whether, how, and to what extent the interpretation of the view coheres well with the other elements of the secret doctrine view discussed in the dialogue, as well. In the first part of the essay, I'll offer my interpretation of the doctrine. Then, in the second part of the essay, I'll examine two potential criticisms of the doctrine, including Socrates's infamous linguistic paradox, and show how my interpretation of Heraclitean flux metaphysics is able to circumvent both.


This article is devoted to the theoretical grounds and development of a methodical framework for teaching spoken communication in foreign languages to students of universities of linguistics based on authentic assignments to authentic text materials. It is hypothesized, that the student's spoken skills in a foreign language are established based on authentic materials and a system of exercises to the same, which imitate an authentic communication environment during the learning process.


We consider the task of faithfully simulating a distributed quantum measurement and function computation, and demonstrate a new achievable rate-region. For this, we develop the technique of randomly generating algebraic structured POVMs. To overcome the challenges caused by algebraic construction, we develop (i) a Pruning Trace inequality which is a tighter version of the known operator Markov inequality and (ii) a covering lemma which does not require the operator Chernoff inequality and hence applicable to pairwise-independent codewords. We demonstrate rate gains for this problem over traditional coding schemes and provide a multi-party distributed faithful simulation and function computation protocol.


A comprehensive outreach program for providing student services to college athletes is described. Sponsored by the Center for Counseling and Student Development, the program attends to the developmental needs of student-athletes. Services include academic monitoring, consultation, workshops, and personal counseling. Benefits and suggestions for implementation of the program are addressed.


This submission seeks to respond to the terms of reference raised by Parliamentary Joint Committee on Intelligence and Security in its Review of the Mandatory Data Retention Regime prescribed by Part 5-1A of the Telecommunications (Interception and Access) Act 1979 (CTH) ('TIA Act'). As scholars working at the intersection of law and technology, we are somewhat comforted to see the review of the Data Retention Regime, led by the Joint Committee and mandated by legislation, as we believe that reform in this area is important for Australia. In this submission, we draw upon some of the research conducted by Technologies and Rule of Law stream researchers to make suggestions on how we think the current data retention regime should be reformed. We also seek to provide comparisons with the recent developments in other jurisdictions. In 2015, the Australian Government amended the Telecommunications (Interception and Access) Act 1979 (Cth) ('TIA Act') to introduce a statutory obligation for telecommunication and internet service providers ('carriers/CSPs/ISPs') to retain a specific dataset of metadata relating to their subscribers for a period of two years. This data retention scheme was the culmination of rumour and inuendo surrounding a proposed scheme beginning in 2010. Data retention schemes have been part of five different inquiries, four of which questioned the necessity of a data retention scheme and the types of data proposed to be retained and one review which recommended a data retention scheme. The Amendment made specific data which once would have fallen under the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth) retainable for a period of two years.


ABSTRACT The topology of the energy-saving single-phase full-bridge resonant-pole soft-switching inverter is proposed to improve the power conversion efficiency of the single-phase full-bridge inverter. The auxiliary circuit is connected with the bridge arm of the inverter and contains only one auxiliary switch and a few passive devices, which is conducive to reducing the hardware cost of the auxiliary circuit and simplifying the control of the auxiliary circuit, so as to improve the reliability and practicability of the inverter. During the operating process of the inverter, the main switch and the auxiliary switch can achieve soft-switching by using the auxiliary circuit, and the energy-saving operation of the inverter can be realised by reducing the switching loss. In this paper, the operating process of the circuit and the realisation condition of the soft-switching are analysed. The experimental results on a single-phase prototype with the rated power of 3 kW show that the switching device can achieve soft-switching, and the efficiency of the prototype at the rated power reaches 98.6%, which lays a theoretical and technical foundation for the further research and development of a new practical high-performance single-phase full-bridge soft-switching inverter.


Plunging or cervical ranula is a rare phenomenon that represents mucous extravasation pseudocyst arising from the sublingual gland herniating through the mylohyoid muscle. The mucous dissects the tissue planes inferiorly and usually manifests as a swelling in the submental or submandibular regions. Surgical management of plunging ranula is the first-choice therapy. There are variable surgical treatments for plunging ranula, including simple excision, marsupialization, and e xcision of the ranula and sublingual gland via an intraoral or cervical approach. Despite these treatments, many patients have experienced recurrence, and sometimes larger lesions have occurred. Sclerotherapy is a potentially curative procedure that may be used as a primary treatment choice for plunging ranula before considering surgery. A case of plunging ranula is reported. Treatment consisted of the total removal of the sublingual gland and the plunging ranula by the cervical approach.


Omura's whale ( Balaenoptera omurai ), described in 2003, is a putatively rare rorqual species known mostly from waters in the lower latitudes of the Indo-Pacific. A small (5.68 m) baleen whale that stranded near Exmouth on the northwestern coast of Australia in March 2015 was initially thought to be a small Omura's whale (although unknown for the area) or a Bryde's whale ( B. brydei ). Morphological assessment showed the whale had a strongly falcate, steeply angled dorsal fin characteristic of Omura's whale and a slightly prominent single median ridge but was smaller in size than was typical for Omura's whale. Phylogenetic analysis of mitochondrial control region sequences from the whale against other reference baleen species showed our specimen nested within sequences from Omura's whale with high bootstrap support and was clearly separate from sequences of Bryde's whale, thus confirming the limited morphological identification of the specimen as Omura's whale. The carcass was in good condition with no obvious signs of trauma, and assessment revealed the animal was recently deceased. Lack of decomposition and no injury suggested it was likely to have been alive at the time of stranding and to have been occupying inshore waters prior to being washed ashore. Confirmation of an Omura's whale in Western Australian waters extends knowledge of its distribution southwards in the eastern Indian Ocean, suggesting further survey in these waters may provide more information on this poorly known species.


The article describes the importance of the modern logistics to the traditional manufacturing industry and trading business and how the E-commerce relays on the modern logistics system.At the same time,the typical characteristics of the modern logistics system are also introduced.Furthermore,the primary thought of the planning,implementation and the operation of the modern logistics infrastructure of China is also discussed above the macro level.How the B to C and B to B business model of the E-commerce connecting to the postal logistics and the third party logistics respectively is stressed.The E-commerce websites develop their customer resources and optimize their business processes by using the CRM and Pre-distribution approach with the support of the modern logistics network so as to shorten the distribution time and best satisfy the clients' expectation for goods delivery is probed as well.


Abstract : Mechanical Engineering department of Southern University, Baton Rouge received a grant in the amount of $93,250.00 from United States Air Force for the purchase of an impact testing equipment and accessories. This was in response to a proposal for the project titled, Enhancing DoD Related Research Through Acquisition of Impact Testing Equipment. The total amount shown above was used to purchase and install an Instron Dynatup Impact Testing Equipment and accessories. This a model 8250Hv Drop Impact Test Instrument with Pneumatic Assist which is used in impact tests and research involving composite materials and other engineering materials. While two research projects have already been completed on this equipment, many more are current or pending. The undergraduate student research assistants who completed their works' will be presenting their results at the March meeting of the American Society of Engineering Educators. These projects would not have been completed without the provision of these equipment. Two faculty members, two research fellows, and three undergraduate students were trained on the use and operation of this important equipment and thus have acquired very valuable professional mechanical skill thereby enhancing their technical ability and professional development.


Rangelands are typically those areas used by people to graze their livestock, converting plants into products of use to humans, like meat, milk, blood, leather and wool (Brown 2001). In ecological terms, there is no one habitat type for which the term rangelands applies; instead, these areas are typically classified as grassland, savanna or scrublands, or some combination of these. In fact, livestock can be grazed in any type of ecosystem where there is sufficient accessible food and may include dry forests, coniferous forests, broadleaf riparian forests, deserts (Chapter 9) and even agricultural lands after crops have been harvested. Around 40% of the earth's land surface supports the world's grazing domestic animals. An estimated 200 million people are pastoralists tending cattle, sheep or goats (Brown 2008), and with increasing demand for animal products in human diets, the number of livestock is expected to grow substantially. Additionally, a large number of wild animals that also graze or browse share these rangelands. Millions of wild ungulates, such as Tibetan antelope, guar, guanacos, bison, antelope, elk and zebra uneasily share the plant resources with cattle, camels, yaks, sheep and goats. To wild animals, these are not rangelands, but their grassland homes. This book addresses the opportunity to conserve wildlife in places where people manage livestock and to safeguard these places as wild rangelands.


Dynamic mode decomposition (DMD) is a data-driven technique widely used to analyze and model fluid problems including transonic buffet flows. Despite its strengths, DMD is known to suffer from sensitivities to the selected settings and the characteristics of the employed data. In this work, we closely examine the aforementioned sensitivities, identify possible pitfalls, and provide best practices to robustly perform DMD on a flow exhibiting transonic shock buffet. Specifically, we assess various DMD variants and test their sensitivity to the POD rank truncation and the sampling rate. A critical enabler to our analysis is a new presentation of the DMD algorithm as a modular framework consisting of five distinct steps. The tests also highlight the existing dangers of aliasing, when the sampling rate is too low. Finally, a list of practical recommendations and guidelines on how to accurately and robustly perform DMD on a transonic buffet flow is provided.


The crystal structure of andrographolide (8) was determined and the absoluted configuration at C-14, which was previously undecided, was established as R. Reexamination of the constituents of Andrographis paniculata NEES resulted in the isolation of three new diterpenoids of ent-labdane type, and rographanin, andropanoside, and 14-deoxy-12-methoxy-andrographolide, together with three known compounds, 14-deoxyandrographolide (4), neoandrographolide (5) and andrographolide (8). The structures of the new diterpenoids were determined to be 1, 2, and 3 on the basis of spectral and chemical evidence.


WT5"BZ]General purpose CFD codes belong to a kind of accumulation of knowledge in researching fluid mechanics and precious wealth left behind by forerunners, which should be cherished and sufficienty exploited. The Fluent cade is a commercial software with good universality. It can be used not only for engineering design, but also for scientific research. The paper gives a brief introduction to the Fluent cade. The use of the code was illustrated by the analysis of the Couette flow between two consentric spheres, for which the stable family of the Taylor vortices and their bifurcation process were computed. [WT5HZ]


Animal Husbandry Assistant The Orlando Science Center Orlando FL us Job Opportunity to join the most exciting museum in Orlando! The Orlando Science Center Apply by emailing resume to : email@example.com OSC's Guiding Principles Act with the highest integrity. Commitment to excellence. Embr


Both cellular cholesterol metabolism imbalance and apoptosis are related to the development of atherosclerosis. To investigate the relationship between the cellular cholesterol metabolism and apoptosis, the porcine aortic smooth muscle cells were cultured with medium 199 containing 15 mg/L oxidized low density lipoprotein (Ox LDL) for 72 h , the ratio of cellular cholesteryl ester to total cholesterol increased from 26 2% to 64 1%, and Ox LDL induced accumulation of cellular cholesteryl ester in a concentration dependent manner in the cells. It indicated that the vascular smooth muscle cells had transformed to foam cells. In addition, cells incubated with oxidized low density lipoprotein had characteristic of apoptosis, as determined by fluorescence microscope, laser scanning confocal microscope and flow cytometry. From this findings, it was speculated that the induction of apoptosis may be related to the raise of the ratio of cellular cholesteryl ester to total cholesterol besides oxidation of low density lipoprotein in vascular smooth muscle cells.


Alumina (Al2O3) particles reinforced copper matrix surface composites were fabricated on the bronze substrate using the vacuum infiltration casting technique. Three cases were obtained in the vacuum infiltration casting technique: no infiltration, partial infiltration and full infiltration (the thickness of preforms do not exceed 3.5 mm). The reason of no infiltration is that the vacuum degree is not enough so that the force acting on the liquid metal is lower than the resistance due to the surface tension. Partial infiltration is because of somewhat lower vacuum degree and pouring temperature. Full desired infiltration is on account of suitable infiltration casting conditions, such as vacuum degree, pouring temperature, grain size and preheating temperature of the preform. The most important factor of affecting formation of surface composites is the vacuum degree, then pouring temperature and particle size.The infiltration mechanism was discussed on the bases of different processing conditions. The surface composite up to 3.5 mm in thickness with uniformly distributed Al2O3 particles could be fabricated via the vacuum infiltration casting technique.


The syndrome description of the Traditional Chinese Medicine(TCM) is complicated,how to carry on the distinction diagnosis well for sick syndrome,is always the clinical medical worker′s priority target.The naive bayesian classification method of the data mining technology applying to the diagnosis recognition of the syndrome in TCM is a good attempt.In order to improve the efficiency of the classification,in the classified characteristic choice,the genetic algorithm is used to carry on the optimization for the original characteristic.When the naive bayesian classification method carries on the classified recognition to the syndrome in TCM and with the genetic algorithm improvement,the following processes have been experienced:First,abstract reasonably distinction diagnosis process and establish the mathematical model;Next,use the naive bayesian classification method of the data mining technology to the model solution;Third,consider the large number of characters,the genetic algorithm is utilized to carry on the characteristic optimization;Finally,ROC curve assessment method is used commonly in medicine to analyze and compare the efficiency of classified recognition around improvement.


PurposeThe purpose of this study was to explore the heritability of ocular dominance in a classic twin study. DesignA classical twin study. MethodsTwins aged 7 to 19 years enrolled from the Guangzhou Twin Registry received comprehensive eye examinations. Ocular dominance was assessed by the "hole-in-the-card test" by trained optometrists. Zygosity of the participants was confirmed by genotyping in all same-sex twin pairs. The pairwise concordance rate was calculated as the main outcome. ResultsAfter excluding 110 children with anisometropia of 2.0 diopters or greater and 24 children with alternating ocular dominance, a total of 941 twin pairs were identified in the analysis, including 596 monozygotic and 345 dizygotic pairs. Right-eye dominance was present in 59.3% of twins with available data. The pairwise concordance rate was 0.529 and 0.530 in monozygotic and dizygotic twin pairs, respectively (P > 0.5). The tetrachoric correlation was 0.043 and 0.035, respectively. When comparing the young twins and their parents, no significant difference in the percentage of offspring with left-eye dominance was found between right × right parent mating group and non–right × right parent mating groups. ConclusionsGenetic factors may not be involved in ocular dominance in Chinese teens and children.


In a multistage manufacturing process, extensive amounts of observational data are obtained by the measurement of product quality features, process variables, and material properties. These data have temporal and spatial relationships and may have a non-linear data structure. It is a challenging task to model the variation and its propagation using these data and then use the model for feedforward control purposes. This article proposes a methodology for feedforward control that is based on a piecewise linear model. An engineering-driven reconfiguration method for piecewise linear regression trees is proposed. The model complexity is further reduced by merging the leaf nodes with the constraint of the control accuracy requirement. A case study on a multistage wafer manufacturing process is conducted to illustrate the procedure and effectiveness of the proposed method.


Accessibility to health services is a major development problem facing sub-Saharan African countries. The prevalence of poverty and unemployment is a major hindrance to making health services accessible to the population especially the poor. Many development theories have been on how to make basic services affordable and accessible to the poor. The World Development Report 2004 focuses on making services work for the poor. The government of Ghana introduced nationwide National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS) with the aim of providing health insurance and making health services accessible and affordable to the average Ghanaian. The 'cash and carry system' that existed before the introduction of the National Health Insurance Scheme made health services quite inaccessible to the poor. The 'cash and carry system' compelled patients to pay for the cost of health services before they were given the desired medication. The poor resorted to self-medication with its accompanied complications and problems. The overall objective of the study was to assess the contribution of the NHIS to health care delivery in the country and examine the sustainability challenges of the scheme. The study revealed that the NHIS has assisted in increasing Out-Patients-Department (OPD) attendance, reduction of self medication and made health services more assessable to the poor. It was however, observed that for a sustainable national health insurance scheme to be achieved, issues such as maintaining and expanding the client base, regular payment of the services providers and ensuring the requisite institutional capacity should be given the deserved attention. Keywords: Affordable, Cape Coast, Ghana, Health Insurance, premium, sustainable


Purpose To compare three different approaches to measuring mobility performance when evaluating the visually impaired. Methods 488 participants, including 192 glaucoma, 112 age-related macular degeneration, 91 diabetic retinopathy and 93 healthy volunteers, completed the Assessment of Disability Related to Vision (ADREV) mobility course. The performance of participants on the mobility course was evaluated by noting errors made and time required for completion. Errors noted and time taken were compared using multivariate logistic regression to determine which measurement better differentiated patients with visual disease from healthy volunteers. Multivariate logistic regression was also used to evaluate the combined metric of ADREV errors divided by time to determine its ability to discriminate participants with visual disease from healthy volunteers. Results Errors noted and time taken while ambulating through the standardised mobility course shared a weak but statistically significant association (Pearson's r=0.36, p<0.05). After controlling for demographic and medical comorbidities, logistic regression analysis revealed that errors noted were better at discriminating individuals with visual disease from healthy volunteers (OR 2.8–4.9, 95% CI 1.5 to 10.3) compared with the time taken for mobility course completion (OR 1.1, 95% CI 1.0 to 1.2). These findings were consistent across all comparisons between healthy volunteers and participants with each type of visual impairment. Finally, the combined metric of ADREV errors divided by time was far more predictive of visual disease compared with either time taken or errors noted during mobility testing (OR 11.0–17.7, 95% CI 3.6 to 77.1). Conclusions A validated scoring system based on errors is more effective when assessing visual disability during mobility testing than recording the time taken for course completion. The combined metric of ADREV errors noted divided by time taken was most predictive of all the methods used to evaluate visual disability during mobility testing.


In order to clarify the effects of material properties and polishing conditions on the tribological phenomena between wafer and polishing pad during chemical mechanical polishing, analytical studies are carried out by utilizing a coupled fluid-structural analysis in this paper. A developed nonlinear structural Analytical model is applied to the analysis, and the distributions of the contact stress and the fluid pressure are compared. It is confirmed that contact stress and fluid pressure distributions change with Young's modulus if the height variation of the wafer topography is relatively larger than the deformation of the polishing pad. Poisson's ratio and the down force exerted on the wafer carrier also have a slight effect on the tribological phenomena. However, the effect on material removal is expected to be small when the attractive force caused by fluid pressure is relatively small compared with the down force.


Optical disks of the future may operate on a two dimensional (2D) signal, in which case the complexity cost of a non-linear equalizer would be high. Non-linearity in the 2D optical read channel must be handled so as to achieve near optimal performance. The paper presents a transform domain non-linear equalizer that provides reduced complexity costs over a range of practical equalizer parameters. The important feature of the proposed equalizer architecture is the way in which one dimensional transforms are used.


Both total and methylmercury accumulation were investigated in fish and invertebrates in the North Fork of the Holston River below a currently inactive chloralkali plant to quantify the extent of contamination, to determine what proportion of the variance in mercury concentration in fish can be explained by mercury concentration in water, sediment, benthic invertebrates, and to determine what proportion of mercury concentration in benthic invertebrates can be explained by mercury concentration in water and sediment. Fish species (rock bass (Ambloplites rupestris) and hog sucker (Hypentelium nigricans)) and benthic invertebrates were collected from stations above and below the plant, and axial muscle (fish) or whole animal (invertebrates) was analyzed for total mercury by flameless atomic absorption and for methylmercury by gas chromatography. The relation of total mercury concentration to fish weight and factors affecting mercury concentration in fish and invertebrates were examined through regression analysis. Total mercury concentration in fish and benthic invertebrates decreased with distance below the plant. Significant linear regressions of total mercury concentration on fish weight were observed for some, but not all, samples examined. Mercury in the methyl form comprised 91.7% of total mercury in fish analyzed, while approximately 50% of the mercury in invertebrates was methylmercury.


Lithostratigraphy and tectonics are the major metallogenic parameters in the development of mineralization within the Katangan Basin formations. The structural and lithostratigraphic concept of the Neoproterozoic formations of the Dipeta group can be explained by applying a qualitative method, unfortunately very laborious, to explain this sequentiality of mineralization in the bearing rocks. The Kabulungu deposit is located more or less 25 km south-west of the town of Kolwezi. This litostragraphic and petrographic study shows a special horizontal zonation: shales silicified dolomitic rocks, breaching shales, dolomitic rocks and conglomerate shales. This spatial zonation is in symbiosis with a structure that seems to be monoclinal, locally, notwithstanding the gap in R.4.2.
Kabulungu is a brecciated formation with only one major preferential direction of N36 ° E break, this direction being from East to West on the anticline of the same name. The southern flank of the anticline was pushed over the northern flank along the east-west fault affecting the core of the anticline. The tectonic style for the Kabulungu region differs from other sectors only in the extent of the extrusiveness within the Kansuki fault bounded by the north and south lip. The advance of the said fault would have been put in place by an extravase mechanism of subsurface. Finally, the variation of direction following each break zone proves that the terrain of Kabulungu is unstable. The mineralization was deposited in the highly altered zones and in the referential lithological formations.


The kinetics of the reaction of molecular iodine with preoxidized Type 304 stainless steel was studied by mass spectrometric and gravimetric techniques. The temperature range was 438 to 803 K, and the iodine partial pressures in the 1-atm total pressure water vapor-hydrogen gas ranged from 1.33 to 133 Pa. Examination of the reacted surface by electronic spectroscopies showed localized attack in the form of highly fractured crystalline deposits that contained significant iodine concentrations. The mass spectrometric results revealed no HI in the gas despite favorable thermodynamics for formation of this species. The gravimetric results showed an initial rapid increase in weight followed by a slow, long-term weight change that did not appear to approach saturation. The saturation iodine concentration on the surface due to the initial deposition process was greatest at 573 K. The kinetics of the initial uptake was analyzed by a first-order kinetics model. The characteristic times of attainment of saturation were on the order of 1 h and showed a very small activation energy.


Nonlinear analysis of static integral stability of mast structure under wind load is done for a tall antenna mast in integral-lift-base construction.Based on the nonlinear equilibrium equations,the software ANSYS has been used to analyze the structure.First of all to find up-bound of numerical solution about mast buckling load by an eigenvalue method,and then to take the solution as a given load for analysis of nonlinear buckling.When arriving to the load in loading step by step,a critical coefficient of nonlinear buckling,that is to say the safety factor for the integral-lift-base construction,is found.Meanwhile,the post-buckling behavior is known.


There is evidence that alternans of repolarization, i.e. a beat to beat alternation in the action potential duration (APD), is a precursor to ventricular fibrillation. Electrical restitution is considered important in predicting the onset of alternans in cardiac myocytes. Restitution predicts action potential duration (APD) based on the preceding diastolic interval (DI). Determining how much restitution contributes to alternans is not possible with existing methods. We used mathematical models and control of DI using a novel pacing protocol to quantify DI dependent contribution to alternans. Using the canine ventricular model (CVM), we paced at one end of the simulated tissue and found the DI dependent contribution as a rate of increase in the amplitude of alternans as a function of tissue length. Through manipulation of different ionic currents, we compared the new method with standard and dynamic restitution to quantify the contribution of different ionic currents towards DI independent and dependent components. When the L‐type calcium current was altered, we found non‐conformal changes between standard restitution and our method at a controlled DI value of 30 msec. These results suggest that the new method allows for unmasking of features of mechanisms of alternans not seen with current methods.


Although most elderly adults are able to live independently, taking care of an older family member is a concern of an estimated 5 million people each day. This article provides an overview of the impact of caregiving on families, discusses health policies that have led to limitations in formal support services, and identifies resources available to assist professionals and caregiving families. A Ithough most elderly people appear healthy and are able to live independently, almost 85% of the 25.5 million elders in America suffer from at least one chronic disease (Dychtwald, 1986). Based on results from the 1982 National Long-Term Care Survey conducted by the Bureau of the Census for the Department of Health and Human Resources, an estimated 2 million elderly people need help with one or more activities of daily living (ADL; e.g., bathing, dressing, eating) and 2.4 million elderly persons receive unpaid help with one or more instrumental activities of daily living (IADL; e.g., housework, errands, money management) (Stone, Cafferata, & Sangl, 1987). As age increases, the need for assistance with ADLs and IADLs also increases.


We present two scale invariant models of inflation in which the addition of quadratic in curvature terms in the usual Einstein-Hilbert action, in the context of Palatini formulation of gravity, manages to reduce the value of the tensor-to-scalar ratio. In both models the Planck scale is dynamically generated via the vacuum expectation value of the scalar fields.


. The study aims to determine the features peculiar to localisation of the "Resident Evil" game series and to prove the importance of adequate localisation for the promotion of a gaming product. The paper presents the main components of localisation and identifies its types and features, sheds light on the con-cepts of media text, translation and pragmatic adaptation. In addition, the paper analyses localisation of the plot components of two games from the "Resident Evil" series in the Russian market. Scientific no velty of the study lies in taking a diachronic approach to considering the features and analysing trends in localisation of video games of the series. As a result, the researchers have identified and characterised the main features of localisation of this series in the Russian market and have proved that high - quality localisation contributes to a successful reception of a product by the target audience.


Distribution of opiate receptors imaged with "1Cdiprenorphine in the human brain. (A), PET; (B), MRI; (C), coregistered images. The concentration of opiate receptors is maximal in the thalamus and is also high in the anterior parts of the cingulate cortex and in the periaqueductal grey matter in the brain stem. S W G DERBYSHIRE MRC Cyclotron Unit, Hammersmith Hospital, London, UK A K P JONES Rheumatic Disease Centre, Hope Hospital, Salford, UK


With the development of higher education information construction,the number of various kinds of IT devices and applications increase,so its security issues have become the focus of everyone's attention. In order to maintain the IT information system security and convenient management,we must set up the security reference point which meets the safety requirements to strengthen and implement the safety requirements. This article is based on the research and analysis of security baseline management and according to the requirements of the relevant information system security level protection system to establish standardized configuration and security baseline for business system in campus network and develop the verification tools for security baseline examination. The application of securi-ty baseline in the campus network information security construction creates a campus network security baseline construction work precedent,improves the efficiency and level of campus network security management,achieves the automation of safety assessment at the technical level,and improves the construction of the campus network security management system. It has certain guiding significance for the construction of the campus network information security.


The countries of Central and Eastern Europe have not been immune to the appeal of the agency model, and this approach to public governance has now been widely diffused among these countries. These reforms, like all others, must be institutionalized to be effective and the autonomy created by agencies may require subsequent reforms. This introductory article describes the agency approach within the contest of Central and Eastern Europe, and discusses the political and administrative consequences of these reforms.


1 Parviz L. Sadigh, MB ChB Seng-Feng Jeng, MD E-Da Hospital I-Shou University Kaohsiung, Taiwan Sir: A plastic surgeons we often find ourselves operating on all parts of the human body. Indeed, it is this variation, unparalleled among the other surgical specialties, that stands Plastic Surgery out and makes for such a fascinating and captivating choice of career. It is important to remember, however, that with this privilege to operate on a variety of parts and reconstruct a myriad of functional deformities comes also a responsibility to our patients to detect those pathologies that can affect a variety of parts and cause a myriad of deformities. Indeed, through our exposure to such a variety of wounds and lesions, many pathologies, some common others rare, will present to us but many may go undetected if our basic medical acumen does not stay sharp, focused, and up to date. When presented with a complex contused scalp laceration caused by an episode of acute blunt trauma in an otherwise healthy middle-aged man, we made plans for a routine wash out and debridement under general anesthesia (Fig. 1). The patient denied any previous scalp lesions, and this was confirmed by his wife and children. On debridement, it soon became apparent that the lesion represented more than simply an area of contused soft tissue. This suspicion was fueled by the atypical, fibrotic nature of the lesion, and as such frozen sections were sent. These revealed a high-grade angiosarcoma, and after appropriate patient counseling, a radical debridement followed, which necessitated reconstruction with a free anterolateral thigh flap. Unfortunately, the tumor soon recurred (Fig. 2) and a palliative approach had to be adopted. When, in July 1977, Bob Marley sought medical attention to an unhealing wound on his great toe that he thought he had sustained playing football, he was found to have an ulcerated subungal melanoma. He refused amputation of the toe because of his Rastafarian beliefs and continued to produce music and tour the world. The cancer, however, metastasized and resulted in his untimely death in May 1981. Clearly, malignant lesions can often present "in disguise," especially when associated with trauma.1,2 More-


Abstract The systematic proselytisation of Catholic children institutionalised under the New Poor Law of 1834 was felt by the Catholic community as a very serious grievance. The legislation was framed so as to make the ministrations of the state church an integral part of the workhouse regime, while providing safeguards for the religious rights of non-Anglicans, both adults and children, through a conscience clause which however was not envisaged as applicable to children perceived as having no meaningful family connections. Loose wording allowed locally elected poor law bodies to frustrate the intentions of Parliament, and nullify all efforts of relatives and others to secure appropriate religious upbringing for Catholic children. The problem was particularly acute in the London area. Earlier lobbying initiatives came to nothing, but a fresh campaign begun in 1859, waged with the participation of Catholics at all levels of society, and persisting in the face of repeated setbacks, succeeded in 1868 in bringing about a change in the law, whereby procedures were established to enable the transfer of all poor law children of proven Catholic background to voluntary institutions under Catholic management, with funding for their maintenance paid from the poor rates.


Misregulation of transcription elongation is proposed to cause MLL leukemias (Bitoun et al., 2007b; Yokoyama et al., 2010). In this chapter, we discuss the previously identified direct interaction between AF4 and AF9, protein components of the super elongation complex (SEC) that promotes transcriptional elongation. Further, two AF4 mimetic peptides designed to inhibit the AF4-AF9 interaction are described. Treatment with the AF4 mimetic peptide, Peptide FMR2 Wild Type (PFWT) has been shown to decreases the viability of MLL leukemia cells (Palermo et al., 2008; Srinivasan et al., 2004a). Based on these results, we hypothesized that treatment with a modified AF4 mimetic peptide SPK111 would improve the survival of mice, xenografted with MLL leukemia cell lines. In vitro treatment of MLL leukemia cell lines with SPK111 showed that it effectively inhibits its growth. However, this efficacy could not be replicated in mice xenografted with MLL leukemias. The absence of the peptide in the circulating serum a few hours after subcutaneous injection was determined using ELISA suggesting decreased serum availability to be the cause of its in vivo ineffectiveness. Further, SPK111 does not significantly affect normal hematopoiesis in C57BL/6 mice, and preincubation of MLL leukemic cells with SPK111 inhibits the establishment of leukemic xenografts.


To explore crustal structures using seismic records of earthquakes, we proposed a new seismic reflection imaging method based on reverse time migration (RTM) without source information. In the proposed RTM method using multiple reflections between surface and subsurface boundaries, we correlate forward- and backward-extrapolated wavefields of the same observation records from all receivers at once. We implemented acoustic RTM based on a scalar wave equation and elastic RTM based on a velocity-stress formulation for wavefield modelling. Furthermore, we adopted scalar and vector potential formulations in elastic RTM to obtain separate P- and S-wave reflection images. In our study, numerical simulations with a regional crustal structure model were conducted to compare combinations among the synthetic data by acoustic or elastic wave modelling, observation conditions, and RTM formulations. We demonstrated the validity of the proposed method with idealised dense observations and confirmed a limitation due to quasi-realistic sparse observations. Artefacts due to the mixture of P- and S-waves in the acoustic RTM images from elastic synthetic data were attenuated by elastic RTM, which addresses the proper illumination of P- and S-wave reflections.


Palladium(II) complexes catalyse the amide-directed displacement of an aryl-Si group and its replacement by an electrophilic alkene at ambient temperature, analogous to an oxidative Heck reaction. A palladacyclic intermediate is involved, and the reaction enables substitution to occur specifically in the electron-poor ring of benzanilides. The procedure described provides a formal link between directed lithiation and the Heck reaction.


The rate of oxygen consumption by germinating seeds is considered to be one of the promising parameters for monitoring the seed status and a candidate for predicting germination and seed vigor. Nowadays, the single seed oxygen consumption patterns can be measured on a big scale and at a detailed time resolution using a Q2 machine. However, interpretation of the data in terms of functioning of internal oxygen transport and overall seed properties is still hard, due to the lack of knowledge on and the complexity of these properties and processes. Modeling may be of great help in understanding the relation between germination and the oxygen consumption pattern of a seed. In this thesis a model for the single seed oxygen consumption inside a closed test tube is proposed, relating the measured oxygen concentration to the size of the active mitochondrial population. The analytical solution of this model is used for calibration of the experimental data and all calibrated results are analyzed. From this analysis an attempt is made to distinguish between germinating and non germinating seeds in order to determine which seed properties cause slow/fast germination. Based on this model a method introducing the seed and test tube volume is proposed in order to predict the observations when the sizes of these volumes change.


Many storage cache allocation methods use the miss ratio curve (MRC) to improve cache efficiency. However, they have focused only on single-tier cache architectures and require the whole MRC as input for cache management, while modern datacenters embrace hierarchical caching architectures to maximize resource utilization. Generating the MRC for multitier caches – we call it the miss ratio function – is far more challenging due to different eviction policies and capacities in each cache tier. We introduce eMRC, a multi-dimensional miss ratio approximation technique, to enable efficient MRC generation for multi-tier caching. Our approach uses a novel multi-dimensional performance cliff removal method and convex hull approximation technique to efficiently generate a multi-dimensional MRC without cliffs using a small number of sampling points. To demonstrate the benefits of eMRC, we designed ORCA, a multi-tier cache management framework that orchestrates caches residing in different hierarchies through eMRC and provides efficient multi-tier cache configurations to cloud tenants with diverse service level objectives. We evaluate the performance of our eMRC approximation technique and ORCA with real-world datacenter traces.


On the hilly and sloppy terrain. It is required to cut grasses hushes with a machine which is able to negotiate well on inclined surfaces. A rotary grass hush cutter was developed to suit these requirements The machine used a 3 hp petrol start kerosene run engine and V belt to drive a blad rotating in a horizontal plane The developed machine performed well in lawns and fields having slopes upto 100% and grass hush thickness of 2 cm thickness and height J 5 m However bigger wheels were needed to support the chasis for coping up with the undulations of more than 30 cm depth and hikes.


This article reads David Treuer's 2016 novel Prudence as Indigenous war fiction. Prudence collapses the distinctions between battle- and home-front, between past and present, between right and wrong. This collapse allows for an exploration of violence and war and its role in establishing and maintaining nationhood. Examining the role of Indigenous bodies within this context extends the cultural and political implications of war fiction beyond a mere critique of war in its immidiacy; instead it elaborates on the continuities of colonial violence within a global context, questioning the singularity of war and detailing the realities of Indigenous life within northern America.


Survival and growth of naturally occurring or inoculated bacteria were studied in refrigerated (5°C), vacuum-packaged ground pork irradiated at 100 krad (1kGy). Numbers of naturally occurring mesophiles, psycbrotrophs and anaerobes or facultative anaerobes were reduced (P 0.05) due to irradiation and was unaffected by phosphates.


The difficulties experienced in connection with cable-ends when testing at high voltages in air are dealt with; and the reason for the preliminary sparking at the lead sheath and its tendency thereby to produce spark-over is explained. Various methods in normal use of overcoming this disadvantage are noted and are described in the figures. In particular, a suggestion is put forward for the use of semi-conducting material, as a temporary method of attaining greatly improved results for ordinary routine testing work. Comparative results are given both in tables and in curves, showing the advantages obtained by using semi-conducting carbon paper applied in various ways on or over the surface of the cable insulation.Theoretical lines-of-force diagrams are shown to explain these results and in what manner they are produced, and these are supported to some extent by practical measurements. Fusing-current tests are given for various samples of the material, and in view of these a possibility of the more permanent use of the principle is suggested in connection with the installation of insulators and bushings, etc.


The two recent UK Supreme Court decisions on penalty clauses attracted a great deal of attention in both the English and international legal press. This is understandable given the fact that the UK Supreme Court introduced a new test that made the law on penalties simpler and less controversial than it had been in the past. These decisions are remarkable given that Lord Dunedin's old and controversial penalty test seems to have been abandoned. It is no longer necessary to assess whether the agreed amount is a genuine pre-estimate of the loss but it must be determined whether the clause is out of all proportion to any legitimate interest of the innocent party. These two decisions made it clear that freedom of contract has become more important with regard to the control of penalty clauses under UK law. If it had been the Dutch Supreme Court that had to decide on the legal issues of both cases, Dutch legal doctrine would not have regarded the outcomes of both cases as remarkable. This is due to the fact that Dutch law takes a different approach to the definition of a penalty clause and to the legal consequences of unfair penalty or liquidated damages clauses. Before discussing both cases from a Dutch perspective, I will provide a brief overview of the Dutch law on penalty clauses.


With robots increasingly assuming social roles (e.g., assistants, companions), anthropomorphism (i.e., the cognition that an entity possesses human characteristics) plays a prominent role in human–robot interactions (HRI). However, current conceptualizations of anthropomorphism in HRI have not adequately distinguished between precursors, consequences, and dimensions of anthropomorphism. Building and elaborating on previous research, we conceptualize anthropomorphism as a form of human cognition, which centers upon the attribution of human mental capacities to a robot. Accordingly, perceptions related to a robot's shape and movement are potential precursors of anthropomorphism, while attributions of personality and moral value to a robot are potential consequences of anthropomorphism. Arguing that multidimensional conceptualizations best reflect the conceptual facets of anthropomorphism, we propose, based on Wellman's (1990) Theory-of-Mind (ToM) framework, that anthropomorphism in HRI consists of attributing thinking, feeling, perceiving, desiring, and choosing to a robot. We conclude by discussing applications of our conceptualization in HRI research.


A series of heterocyclic derivatives was synthesized using (3‐benzoyl‐4,5‐dioxo‐2‐phenyl‐pyrrolidin‐1‐yl)acetic acid ethyl ester 1 as starting material. Treatment of 1 with 1 N NaOH or hydrazine hydrate afford the corresponding acid 2 and acid hydrazides 4 and 5, which were reacted with several reagents to produce some new peptido hetero‐organic derivatives 6–12. The pharmacological screening showed that many of these newly synthesized compounds have good anti‐inflammatory and analgesic activities comparable to diclofenac potassium and valdecoxib as reference drugs.


Signal processing is the analysis, interpretation and manipulation of a stream of information from a remote source. This article discusses a simple form of signal processing--the vehicle speed sensor. This article describes how the VSS on heavy trucks works, how it communicates with the electronic control module (ECM), and how the ECM converts the initial analog signal to a digital value that can be stored in binary format. In the future, there will be a decline in the use of dedicated VSS since speed measurement capability is already built into most new ECMs. More smart sensors will be used, in which the analog to digital conversion takes place inside the sensor and the binary values are broadcast to the ECM on a communication bus. This will save processing power in the ECM.


The European Union is developing a common asylum system. The goal is to create certain minimum standards regulating the reception and procedures regarding asylum seekers and refugees. The Dublin II Regulation is one of the legal instruments created in this process. It determines which state is responsible for any particular asylum seeker and for their asylum application. The member state that allows an asylum seeker to enter the EU is responsible to determine their claim, no matter if the entrance is legal or not. This puts an extra burden on states with external borders, since they receive the majority of those seeking asylum. Italy is one of those states. Its location makes it attractive to migrants and asylum seekers trying to enter Europe from the Northern part of Africa. Specifically the Italian island Lampedusa regularly receives migrants and asylum seekers from Libya, coming in small vessels over the seas. To receive asylum seekers is costly. The states with external borders have to carry the majority of this cost. In practice this has lead to that EU strengthens its external borders, and thereby makes it more unreachable for the asylum seekers. There is a right in International law to seek asylum while in a state, but no right to obtain it, neither is there any right to enter the state to be able to seek asylum. However, when the EU consolidates its borders, the possibility for refugees to enter the state to apply for asylum is diminished. What is important to know, is whether states with external borders live up to the regional standards and international human rights law when it comes to their refugee politics, or if there are practices of avoiding and even opposing their human rights responsibilities. The focus of this thesis is on Italy and its relation with Libya when it comes to refugees and asylum seekers trying to reach Europe. The purpose is to know whether Italy lives up to regional standards and international human rights law concerning their refugee politics in relation to Libya. The focus is on the principle of non-refoulement as well as on the Italian policy of detention of asylum seekers. The conclusion is that Italy seems to be more interested in getting rid of the asylum seekers, than actually protecting their human rights. There are several evidences of practice by Italy that contradict their human rights obligations. Even though Italy might live up to regional regulations, these regulations sometimes seem to be in conflict with their overall international human rights obligations. The assessment is that Italy tends to avoid its international human rights obligations by externalizing its responsibility to protect refugees to Libya, a state well know for its dark human rights record.


In this article, school self-evaluation as a driving force of organizational learning is scrutinized. The self-evaluation process of three Flemish secondary schools is analysed. The results of intensive case studies are compared with the schools' interpretation of a self-evaluation tool about their organizational learning culture. The study indicates that schools have difficulty in translating the data of a self-evaluation process into adequate recommendations. School administrators have a reflex of mediating organizational problems with more of the same. A longitudinal analysis of the schools' actions based on the self-evaluation process indicates that 12 months after the self-evaluation the schools were unable to realize fundamental changes.


The COMBINE Project analyses opportunities and problems provided by the Traffic Management System (TMS) when using the moving block signalling system for railway operation. The site chosen for verification is the Breda triangle in the Dutch part of the high-speed line Paris-Brussels-Amsterdam. Currently, there are no applications of moving block on main-line railways, apart from several test installations.


PurposeThis study aims to evaluate if soya consumption can compromise or positively influence the effects of the Mediterranean diet (MD).Design/methodology/approachA full literature review has been conducted as part of a proposal of a new point of view on the consumption of soya and its derivatives in areas where until a few decades ago this type of food did not exist at all.FindingsThere does not seem to be any contraindications for soy systematic use, therefore, excluding historical-geographical reasons, soya could be included in an MD without altering the benefits associated with it.Practical implicationsSoya is not advised as a typical food in the MD, but promoting its use could probably contribute to increase the variety of the diet and likely consolidates the positive health benefits characteristic of MD.Originality/valueTo the best of the authors' knowledge, this review is one of the first to evaluate soybean consumption within the MD.


We studied optical absorption of polarons in p-conjugated oligomers and polymers using the photoinduced absorption technique as well as chemical doping spectra from the literature. We find that the photon energy of the polaron low-energy transition obeys a relationship that depends only on the oligomer-length in a wide class of unsubstituted and substituted oligomer solutions and films. Based on this observation, we show that polarons in polymer films can be either confined as in oligomers or quite delocalized, depending on the individual p-conjugated semiconductor. In high mobility polymer films polarons may be delocalized over several chains.


We present an analysis of the magnetic field distribution in the Abrikosov lattice of high-$\kappa$ superconductors with singlet pairing in the case where the critical field is mainly determined by the Pauli limit and the superfluid currents partly come from the paramagnetic interaction of electron spins with the local magnetic field. The derivation is performed in the frame of the generalized Clem variational method which is valid not too close to the critical field and furthermore with the Abrikosov type theory in the vicinity of it. The found vortex lattice form factor increases with increasing field and then falls down at approach of the upper critical field where the superconducting state is suppressed.


Orthobiologics are helping surgeons to manipulate healing and reduce delayed unions and nonunions. Surgeons are no longer limited to harvesting the iliac crest to obtain osteoconductive, osteoinductive, and osteogenic materials for grafting purposes. Synthetic substitutes have evolved that have nearly unlimited volume, no associated harvest site morbidity, and may even eclipse the healing capabilities of autogenous grafts. Mesenchymal stem cells, available both by bone marrow aspirate harvest and by commercially available allografts, provide adjuncts to facilitate bone healing in foot and ankle surgery.


Nyquist pulses, which are defined as responses of a Nyquist filter, can be used in time-division multiplexing transmission which can simultaneously achieve ultrahigh data rate and spectral efficiency. Generally, the methods of Nyquist pulse generation are based on optical Nyquist filters, optical parametric amplifier effect and electro-optical (EO) modulation. In this paper, we focus on the method of EO modulation. Traditionally the limitation of this method is the complex structure and driven signal synchronization between multiple EO modulators when cascaded EO modulators or special modulator structures are using to generate Nyquist pulses. To address this issue, we proposed a novel setup in which only one EO intensity modulator and an electrical arbitrary waveform generator (AWG) are employed. With this method, it is required less on devices. Furthermore, duty cycles of the ideal Nyquist pulses generated by this new method can be changed by using different tones number to drive the EO modulator. The duty cycles of Nyquist pulses we generated can set at 21%, 16% and 12.5% at the repetition of 2.5 GHz by programming the tones number at 2, 3 and 4 on the AWG. The narrowest pulse full width at half maximum is 50.2 ps, which the measured bandwidth is 22.5 GHz by the optical spectrum analyzer, are generated using only one EO intensity modulator with lower bandwidth down to 10 GHz. This method has a potential benefit to reduce the duty cycle further if we use a modulator with bandwidth more than 10 GHz.


Glass samples have been synthesized from sulfide and tellurite glasses. General chemical compositions are Ge0.25Ga0.10S0.65, Ge0.25Ga0.05As0.05S0.65, (TeO2)-(PbCl2)1-x with x equals 0.4 to 0.6 and (TeO2x-(ZnO)1-x with x equals 0.75 to 0.80. Samples doped with 500 to 12000 ppm rare earth in weight were also prepared. Sulfide glasses were made from pure components using a reactive atmosphere, which lead to glasses with a low OH content. Rare earth doped glasses are homogeneous when RE concentration is less than 3000 ppm. Heterogeneous inclusions arise beyond 1000 ppm RE when doping is made with chloride or oxide. Absorption and fluorescence measurements have been made. A YAG:Nd laser was used for excitation. The evolution of the fluorescence lifetime shown that the emission from the Pr3+ 1G4 level at 1.3 micrometers shows some concentration quenching above 1000 ppm Pr3+. The color and the optical quality of the tellurite glasses depend on crucible materials. Colorless samples are obtained with gold crucible while various colorations or defects are observed with Pt, SiO2 and Al2O3. Rare earth doping result in visible defects or inhomogeneities when concentration is larger than 1000 ppm. The chemical composition and the optical absorption of doped and undoped samples was examined. Fluorescence intensity of Pr and Dy is smaller in these HMO glasses than in the sulfide glasses, this results from higher phonon energy and higher OH concentration. Further development is required for future applications.


The interaction between Urban Heat Island (UHI) and Urban Pollution Island (UPI) is relevant for urban studies as well as for health studies. Both phenomena have not been widely studied in Greater Mexico City (GMC). Therefore, we study the interaction between UHI and UPI in GMC where urban and rural areas are not well defined. Also, long-range transport of pollution affects GMC pollution concentration. We used 5-year data (2015–2019) from weather stations to measure the Air UHI (AUHI) and Landsat 8 data to assess the Surface UHI (SUHI). The Urban Pollution (UP) has been assessed with Particulate Matter PM 10 and PM 2.5 concentrations measured near the surface by air quality monitoring stations, the Aerosol Optical Depth has been used as a measure of UP. During the dry season (February–May), at night (20:00–07:59 h LT), a positive correlation (statistically significant) between the UHI and UP has been found (r = 0.39) for the UPI defined with PM 2.5 between the urban and rural stations. Whereas a significant correlation (r = 0.50) has been found between UPI defined with PM 10 between the urban and rural station during the autumn.


By studying the transmission line state parameter monitoring and the new power-supply method based on conductor-current draw-out power source,this essay introduces the monitoring and transmission of state parameters of the insulator leakage current,the conductor temperature,ambient temperature,relative humidity,conductor tension.It is verified in relevant tests that this technology helps achieve accurate and effective remote monitoring of transmission line state parameters as well as data transmission.


Controlled potential electrolysis and electrochemical relaxation techniques have been used to investigate the mechanism of oxidation of chromium(II) at mercury electrodes in the presence of chloride, bromide, and iodide. It is shown that the major path for the oxidation is through a bridged activated complex of the type Hg---X--Cr.

Kinetic parameters have been determined for the bromide-dependent path and the halide-independent path. Equations have been derived to predict from kinetic data the product distribution between two competing reactions.

It is suggested that the activated complex is formed with halide adsorbed on the electrode surface.

The limitations of chronopotentiometry at hanging mercury drop electrodes have been investigated and corrections are given for spherical diffusion effects at times greater than 0.1 sec. It is demonstrated that reverse current chronopotentiometry under these conditions is a qualitatively unreliable technique.