ion of the Interaction Properties of an Information System for Achieving Target Platform Independence Jana Lewerenz1, Srinath Srinivasa1 Abstract Large information systems catering to di erent kinds of users increasingly have to interface with di erent kinds of target platforms and applications. Since the capabilities of each of these target platforms and applications are likely to be very varied, the interaction semantics of the information system also needs to be redesigned for each case. However, from the point of view of the information system, each interaction serves a speci c purpose determined by the functional speci cation of the information system. Hence redesigning interactive behavior for each target platform or application amounts to a redundant design activity. In this paper, we address this problem by explicitly specifying semantics of the di erent kinds of interaction that the information system carries out with its environment. This speci cation is done using an abstract syntax which can then be translated to di erent target platforms for implementing the interface.


Based on more advantages of the parallel mechanism with less degree of freedom,this paper presents a new kind of three-degree-of-freedom planar parallel mechanism,introduces this mechanism's composition,induces the direct and the inverse solution formulas of this parallel mechanism's kinematics,analyzes and solves this parallel mechanism's related problems such as the singularity,workspace,passive joint and so on,and gives the Jacobian matrix.The solution results indicate that the positive and reverse solution equation of this parallel mechanism's kinematics is characterized by the explicit expression,being easy to realize the real-time control,and being able to satisfy the practical application in engineering.


In Shapotou, northeast of the Tengger Desert in China, Formica cunicularia Lat. proliferated after mobile sand dune stabilization by artificial revegetation. In the present paper, the anthill properties of F. cunicularia after sand stabilization were systematically investigated along a chronosequence. The soil properties and soil seed banks in the anthill and adjacent soils without anthills were also examined. The results showed that the revegetation age, landform, and their interactions significantly affected the anthill density, anthill coverage, and soil turnover capacity of F. cunicularia. The longer the dunes were stabilized, the more ant nests proliferated in the dunes. More nests were located in the hollow and windward slopes than in the dune top and leeward slopes. Soil organic matter, total and available N, P, and K, electrical conductivity, as well as soil water content were all significantly higher in the nests than in the adjacent soils without anthills. The soil seed bank in the anthill was much greater than in the adjacent soil for both moss- and algal-crusted soils. The current research suggested that the occurrence of F. cunicularia after mobile sand dune stabilization greatly influenced both soil properties and soil seed bank.


Modulator pulse quality can be defined as achieving the best flatness for most of the top of the pulse. Top flatness within 0.1% over 3 µs has been recorded using the unique solid-state pulsed power modulator technology developed by ScandiNova Systems AB. Additionally, the flat top of the pulse does not have ripple, which is common for the traditional PFN-type of pulsed systems.


The report is a manual of administrative guidelines designed to assist the program manager in administering a state inspection program. The manual includes practical guidelines covering the areas of organization, staffing, legal management, station licensing and supervision, inspector training and licensing, public relations, data management, and program coordination. The guidelines are generally applicable to all types of motor vehicle inspection programs and focus in on the most frequently used type of system, the state-licensed system of inspection. The manual includes an analysis of the problem and recommendations based on summaries of vehicle inspection program procedures received through the mail from 39 states, telephone interviews with 26 states which use the state-licensed system, and visits to 5 states which were carefully selected to properly represent the different types of state-licensed systems. The recommended guidelines are specifically developed to attack the weaknesses identified and reflect procedures already in use by some of the states or suggested in the literature. The contents of this manual provide the program administrator with an easily usable guide to aid in the identification of problem areas and to improve the quality of inspection services provided.


A study was made to determine the characteristic response of D flip-flop digital logic units used as mixing devices for telemetry applications. The D flip-flop is shown to perform the mixing operation under a variety of input frequency conditions. The output signal is a rectangular wave whose long term average frequency is the desired difference frequency. The output signal contains frequency jitter which is a function of the relationship between the two input frequencies. The seriousness of the jitter depends on the application.


The rise of modern science and indeed the characterization of the same modern age has often been related to the formulation of the principle of inertia. From this epistemic perspective, Galileo should also have been the author of this principle at the roots of the mechanist conception of Nature. From the historical point of view, Galileos authorship and authority was evocated by Newton, and then all the historical reconstructions were done on the basis of the presupposition of a continuous, linear and progressive evolution of modern science by means of anachronistic reinterpretation of the previous history in Newtonian terms. The trial by Alexandre Koyre to refute the attribution of the principle of inertia to Galileo was not complete and defective, partially reproducing the same misunderstanding of Galileo in Newtonian terms. The deconstruction of this fallacious historical reconstruction here presented points out how Galileo did not accept the persistence of rest and did never consider matter as inert and uniform rectilinear motion on an indefinite plane as a free natural motion but rather as a constrained motion. This conclusion forces us to give a new, more complex, insight of the rise of modern science, which in Galileo appears to be not yet related to the formulation of the inertia principle and to a correspondent mechanist conception of Nature.


What could we do, with willing laborers and hearts open to God's calling? Pastor Joe Sutton speaks powerful words of Scripture to inspire leaders to fulfill God's mission for their lives. With prayer and a willingness to work, we can do the miraculous.


Research activities are generally observed and evaluated through the prism of their production and financial elements or team composition. In addition to standardized management indicators and bibliometrics, the French National Research Institute for Sustainable Development (IRD) has been building new indicators for the last ten years, based on the annual regulatory declarations of the Institute's researchers. Different quality management tools allow the evolution of the different interfaces. This source of data, more ''open'' and more ''useful'' through its integration into the Institute's information system, is adapted to the needs of the multi-year management of research at the IRD. The aim is twofold: (1) to make progress in the evaluation of research and in the mastery of information by all actors, (2) to enlighten as many actors as possible via more efficient digital circuits and tools. The purpose of this article is to explain how the IRD is changing the entire production chain and the indicators of researchers' activities to better map scientific activities.


A novel synthesis method under green philosophy for the preparation of some magnetite-based catalysts (MBCs) is presented. The synthesis was carried out in aqueous media (i.e., absence of organic solvents) at room temperature with recovery of excess reactants. Terephthalic acid (H2BDC) was used to drive the synthesis route towards magnetite. Accordingly, bare magnetite (Fe3O4) and some hybrid magnetite-carbon composites were prepared (Fe3O4-G, Fe3O4-GO, and Fe3O4-AC). Graphene (G), graphene oxide (GO), and activated carbon (AC) were used as starting carbon materials. The recovered H2BDC and the as-synthetized MBCs were fully characterized by XRD, FTIR, Raman spectroscopy, XPS, SQUID magnetometry, TGA-DTA-MS, elemental analysis, and N2-adsorption-desorption isotherms. The recovered H2BDC was of purity high enough to be reused in the synthesis of MBCs. All the catalysts obtained presented the typical crystalline phase of magnetite nanoparticles, moderate surface area (63–337 m2 g−1), and magnetic properties that allowed their easy separation from aqueous media by an external magnet (magnetization saturation = 25–80 emu g−1). The MBCs were tested in catalytic wet peroxide oxidation (CWPO) of an aqueous solution of metoprolol tartrate (MTP) under simulated solar radiation. The Fe3O4-AC materials showed the best catalytic performance among the prepared MBCs, with MTP and total organic carbon (TOC) removals higher than 90% and 20%, respectively, after 3 h of treatment. This catalyst was fairly successfully reused in nine consecutive runs, though minor loss of activity was observed, likely due to the accumulation of organic compounds on the porous structure of the activated carbon and/or partial oxidation of surface Fe2+ sites.


previous conference. Discussion of colonial problems showed little advance from the constructive proposals of the Mont Tremblant Conference, and the report of this discussion in the volume indicates little hope for a progressive solution to the problems of dependent peoples, and is not indicative of the significant advance made at the San Francisco Conference. The whole Conference discussed the postwar treatment of Japan, and there was less evidence of national differences on this subject than on others, like the colonial problem. There was general agreement that Japan should be totally disarmed and policed for an indefinite period. On treatment of the Emperor, the Imperial institution, and the Zaibatsu, or big industrial combines, differences of opinion clearly cut across national lines, indicating the difficulties in formulating policy which have since been apparent in fixing the final surrender terms. Most of the reported discussions show clearly that the representatives present realized the necessity for development of healthy economies in the Far East as a requisite to peace and the fact that future security cannot be achieved easily, but demands continuous and coordinated effort of all nations. The report of this conference is well worth study in revealing the nature and scope of postwar Far Eastern problems and the special interests of the nations around the Pacific. The Institute is to be commended for making available this summary so soon after the Conference and at a time when Far Eastern problems are bound to command more and more attention.


Radiation monitoring and measurement are important for radiation safety. Such monitoring and measurement must be carried out in order to investigate workplace conditions and individual exposures, to ensure that radiological conditions in the workplace are acceptable, safe, and satisfactory, and to keep records of radiation monitoring over a long period of time in accordance with regulations or as good practice. However, radiation monitoring instruments and system are expensive. A cost-effective radiation monitoring system using Geiger Muller (GM) radiation detector was developed. A high voltage generation circuit and data acquisition were implemented using LabVIEW software. The cost-effective radiation monitoring system is easy to use, and it can detect radiation, analyzed and record the data in a personal computer. This newly developed system is simple and can provide the radiation dose data for further analysis. An experiment was conducted to compare and calibrate the collected data at the Secondary Standard Dosimetry Laboratory (SSDL). The result shows that the new developed GM detector provides good correlation between counts per minute (cpm) and dosage units, which is good characteristic of a radiation counting system


Let K be a locally compact hypergroup. In this paper, among other results we give a sufficient condition for the inclusion LΦ1w (K) * LΦ2w (K) ⊆ LΦ1w (K) to hold. Also, as an application, we provide a new sufficient condition for the weighted Orlicz space LΦw (K) to be a convolution Banach algebra.


Lacustrine groundwater discharge (LGD) can play an important role for lake water balances and lake water quality. However, quantifying LGD and their spatial patterns is challenging as pronounced spatial variability is paired with a large spatial extent of the aquifer–lake interface and factors controlling LGD patterns are not well understood. We used intensive field measurements including 520 vertical temperature profiles in the near shore area, sediment temperature measurements with a fibre-optic cable along 6 transects from shoreline to shoreline and radon measurements of lake water samples to identify LGD patterns at a lake in north eastern Germany. Sediment characteristics, topographic indices and gradients of the groundwater flow field were considered as potential controls of small scale and large scale LGD patterns. The results revealed that LGD was concentrated in the near shore area with stronger rates and higher variability in the northern part of the lake. LGD generally decreased with distance to shore and offshore LGD was insignificant except for some local hotspots of LGD on steep steps towards the lake bottom. Large scale groundwater inflow patterns were correlated with topography and the groundwater flow field whereas small scale patterns correlated with grainsize distributions of the lake sediment. Regression models using external controls as explanatory variables had limited power to predict LGD rates, but results encourage the use of topographic indices and sediment heterogeneities as an aid for targeted experimental designs.


This article evaluates, under historical perspective, some lacks in Brazil's defense policy, that are central to understand the continuity of a framework characterized by the military participation and the civil absence in the elaboration and implementation process of Defense policy, incompatible with a democratic governance context. Despite some initiatives towards to regulate the armed forces limits, according their essential functions and missions, like the creation of the Defense Ministry and the publication of the National Defense Strategy, it prevails a situation of institutional fragility and public power vacuum that are conducive for the military actuation.


LOW ATTRITION rates and better than average academic results are just two of the positive outomes of Nottingham School of Nursing's pre-registration course for people with dependants.


In this paper, we present an algorithm for automatically discovering similar pages. Unlike common keyword based search engines, our similarity comparison is based on the entire textual content of the pages. We are unaware of the existence of such content based similarity detection mechanisms for the Web which are accessible to the common user. Our algorithm, FSC, exploits temporal locality of content without being dependant on absolute position within a page, making it difficult to bypass.


It is well‐known that the disposal of municipal solid waste in landfills has adverse effects on the environment and human health. Restoration of closed landfills is essential to compensate for disturbances in the ecosystem, minimize negative impact on the environment, and ensure safety in further use. It was hypothesized that specific plant succession knowledge can present nature‐based solutions to restore and rehabilitate degraded ecosystems at municipal solid waste landfills. The goal of the 8‐year study was to identify restoration strategies based on vegetation succession. For the vegetation survey, we recorded the vegetation over the period 2007–2015. The study was carried out on the surface of the landfill site. We also used four mathematical models to analyze the increase of plant species over time. During the study period, 195 vascular plant species were recorded. There was a progressive change in plant communities and an increase in biodiversity. What is more, the growth prediction models show that the diversity of plant species over time at the landfill site has an increasing tendency, which has beneficial implications for landfill restoration. During the vegetation survey period, there was no evidence to suggest that the landfill site had a significant impact on the biotic composition of the environment. We can conclude that the health status of plants occurring in the landfill was good. Plants both contributed to and indicated the health of the landfill site and were found to be a convenient and natural component of landfill restoration.


OBJECTIVE:Polysaccharides in Urtica fissa E. Pritz. was extracted and purified.METHODS:The purified polysaccharides is determined by colourimetry with sulfuric acid phenol as colourimetric reagent.RESULTS CONCLUSION:The content of polysaccharides in purified extracts is 65.3%.


To shift freight transport from road to other eco-friendly transport modes is one prior goal of the European Union. Synchromodality as promising approach combines elements from different transport concepts and aims to create a flexible transport network, to sustainably use available transport resources and optimize transport processes. Since the transport sector is highly responsible for emission problems and other negative externalities, the need for promoting modal shift is evident. Synchromodality is a logistics concept, which strives to increase the share of rail and inland waterway transport. Switching between rail, inland waterway and road transport is carried out in near real-time. This is possible since shippers book their transport service "mode free", i.e. the transport mode is not specified in advance. The transporter is therefore able to bundle the flows of goods from different customers and optimize their carriage. Close cooperation between all actors along the transport chain allows transporting goods in a flexible and resource-efficient way. The port of Rotterdam and the European Container Terminals (ECT) started some pilot projects. The most famous one is the implementation of the synchromodality network between Rotterdam, Moerdijk and Tilburg. Even though synchromodality is a promising new concept, the applicability of this concept starting from landlocked Europe to the sea has not been investigated successfully yet. In order to prove the applicability of synchromodality in the hinterland in Central Europe, key enablers (similar to key success factors) of existing pilots of synchromodality have to be identified.


Two types of flexible terahertz metamaterials were fabricated on polyethylene naphthalate (PEN) substrates. The unit cell of one type consists of two identical split-ring resonators (SRRs) that are arranged face-to-face (i.e., FlexMetaF); the unit cell of the other type has nothing different but is arranged back-to-back (i.e., FlexMetaB). FlexMetaF and FlexMetaB illustrate the similar transmission dips under zero strain because the excitation of fundamental inductive–capacitive (LC) resonance is mainly dependent on the geometric structure of individual SRR. However, if a gradually variant strain is applied to bend FlexMetaF and FlexMetaB, the new resonant peaks appear: in the case of FlexMetaF, the peaks are located at the lower frequencies; in the case of FlexMetaB, the peaks appear at the frequencies adjacent to the LC resonance. The origin and evolution of strain-induced resonances are studied. The origin is ascribed to the detuning effect and the different responses to strain from FlexMetaF and FlexMetaB are associated with the coupling effect. These findings may improve the understanding on flexible terahertz metamaterials and benefit their applications in flexible or curved devices.


ABSTRACT This paper is concerned with the global dissipativity of fuzzy cellular neural networks with inertial term and proportional delays. Based on Lyapunov functionals and linear matrix inequality approach, new sufficient conditions are derived to ensure the global dissipativity and global exponential dissipativity of the suggested system. Moreover, the globally exponential attractive sets and positive invariant sets are also presented here. Finally, two numerical examples with its simulations are proposed to illustrate the effectiveness of the obtained results.


Regularization and related approaches to integrating and interpolating visual information may be formulated as special cases of the finite-element method (FEM), which is the standard engineering tool for dynamic analysis. By using the more general FEM formulation, I show that many of the surface-analysis problems that occur in vision have closed-form solutions. These solutions are obtained by posing the problem in terms of the eigenvectors (free-vibration modes) of the system of equations, which together form a unique, multiscale orthonormal basis set.


Murine CD4 (cid:1) CD25 (cid:1) T regulatory (Treg) cells were cocultured with CD4 (cid:1) CD25 (cid:2) Th cells and APCs or purified B cells and stimulated by anti-CD3 mAb. Replacement of APCs by B cells did not significantly affect the suppression of CD4 (cid:1) CD25 (cid:2) Th cells. When IL-4 was added to separate cell populations, this cytokine promoted CD4 (cid:1) CD25 (cid:2) Th and CD4 (cid:1) CD25 (cid:1) Treg cell proliferation, whereas the suppressive competence of CD4 (cid:1) CD25 (cid:1) Treg cells was preserved. Conversely, IL-4 added to coculture of APCs, CD4 (cid:1) CD25 (cid:2) Th cells, and CD4 (cid:1) CD25 (cid:1) Treg cells inhibited the suppression of CD4 (cid:1) CD25 (cid:2) Th cells by favoring their survival through the induction of Bcl-2 expression. At variance, suppression was not affected by addition of IL-13, although this cytokine shares with IL-4 a receptor chain. When naive CD4 (cid:1) CD25 (cid:2) Th cells were replaced by Th1 and Th2 cells, cell proliferation of both subsets was equally suppressed, but suppression was less pronounced compared with that of CD4 (cid:1) CD25 (cid:2) Th cells. IL-4 production by Th2 cells was also inhibited. These results indicate that although CD4 (cid:1) CD25 (cid:1) Treg cells inhibit IL-4 production, the addition of IL-4 counteracts CD4 (cid:1) CD25 (cid:1) Treg cell-mediated suppression by promoting CD4 (cid:1) CD25 (cid:2) Th cell survival and


Experimental studies on the respiration,feeding,growth and energy budget of pacific abaloneHaliotis discus hannai Ino) indicate that its oxygen consumption rate was correlated withshell length ,body weight,temperature and alternate change of day and night .The relation-ships of oxygen consumption rate with shell length and body weight were all power function.The oxygen consumption between 16 o' clock and 4 o' clock(night time) was higher than 4o' clock to 1 6 o' clock( day time),with a peak at 18一20 o' clock.At same temperature,thedaily feeding rate of abalone and its body weight showed a relationship of power function .Thedaily relative feeding rate was increased with temperature .The rates of daily relative feedingand growth were decreased with increasing shell length and body weight .The total conversingefficiency of abalone on kelp(La minaria japonica) was 53 .0%at 14一20 0C . The energycontents of abalone flesh ,kelp and abalone' s dry feces were 1 9 .2,8 .57 and 7 .23kJ g-',re-spectively .At 14一2 0 0C,among the assimilation energy by abalone,the feces accounted for34 .6一48 .6%,the metabolism by abalone self about 22 .0一38 .2%,and about 5 .6一28 .2%was used to accumulation for the flesh of body.


The longitudinal wave velocity and attenuation and shear wave velocity for machinable aluminosilicate glass‐ceramic (MACOR) samples were measured as functions of frequency and temperature with the pulse‐echo method. Frequencies of 5–30 MHz were used in the temperature range of 100–300 K. The velocity differences between 100 and 300 K were about 1% for longitudinal waves and 3% for shear waves. The monotonic decrease in the longitudinal attenuation coefficient between 100 and 300 K was approximately 50%. The longitudinal wave attenuation coefficient increases linearly with frequency and nonlinearly with decreasing temperature. This contrasts with the longitudinal and shear wave velocities, both of which decrease with increasing temperature. These data were used to calculate the elastic moduli, Poisson's ratio, and Lame parameters for the material. These results are interpreted in terms of thermal stress cracking and microstructure‐related absorption.


Cross-sections and maps constructed from seismic, core, log and biostratigraphic data from the giant Tengiz and Korolev fields of Kazakhstan indicate many important aspects of the geologic framework for these Carboniferous isolated platform carbonates. Timing of Platform Growth - The upbuilding of the platforms may have begun in the Tournaisian and was accentuated greatly during Early Visean time. Subsequent deposition further added to the relief of the platform margins.


All human rights covenants recognises the rights of the child as an entity, entitled to the basic fundamental human rights, but the guarantee and enforcement of the rights are subject to regional understanding of what it means and what constitutes an abuse. In Nigeria for example, corporal punishment of the child in school, at home and as sanctions for children in conflict with the law, are rarely considered as a human rights issue, but viewed more as enforcement of cultural and moral values, necessary for maintenance of law and order, and the moral upbringing of the child in the society. My work will produce evidence justifying the above stated position, through reference to the relevant legal frameworks like, The Nigerian federal Constitution, the penal code, regional law of the states, The Sharia Law practices, current newspapers and amnesty report amongst other Non Governmental organisation(NGO) reports on the situation in Nigeria. Also, it will examine the human rights implications of corporal punishment, using the relevant international and regional instruments available like convention on the rights of the child, European convention of human rights and African charter on declaration of human, civil and political rights. Finally, it will highlight some of the Claw back provisions in the African charter normally use to justify the practice as being in accordance with the law, efforts of political lobby groups and NGO working on change of the law to conform with International standards, like commission on the rights of the child will be acknowledged, relevant recommendations will be made and conclusion drawn from the discussion.


This article describes the training program implemented by the Transportation Management Center (TMC) Training Center at Cal Poly San Luis Obispo which includes a full-scale, real-time simulator facility. The article discusses the TMC Master Plan, designed to lay out goals and objectives which stress statewide uniformity and consistency within TMCs.


More than 5000 doctors have signed a petition asking the US Congress to lift a 20 year ban preventing the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) from conducting research into gun violence.

"Scientific data have saved lives from motor vehicle accidents, sudden infant death syndrome, lead poisoning, and countless other threats to people's health," the petition notes, yet the government has remained wilfully ignorant about the epidemiology of gun violence since 1996, when the Dickey Amendment stipulated that "none of the funds made available for injury prevention and control at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention may be used to advocate or promote gun control."

The ban grew out of a seminal 1993 research paper, published in the New England Journal of Medicine , which measured gun ownership as a risk factor for homicide in the home.1 The article received widespread media …


A unique system for simultaneously dyeing and texturing polyester/viscose blended yarn is reported. Dyeing and texturing were accomplished by pad-thermosol and alkali shock treatment. A single bath was used, containing a mixture of disperse and reactive dye, along with dimethyloldihydroxyethyleneurea and an acid catalyst. Dye fixation and texturing were achieved by baking the treated yarn on a Scragg Mini bulk machine using a heater temperature of 210°C for 2.5-5 seconds; however, higher color yields and wash fastness were obtained by post-alkali shock treatment. The results of continuous dyeing and texturing also show a very uniform coloring and high color yield as compared to that obtained by the cross-dyeing involving high temperature dyeing followed by pad-alkali shock treatment of textured yarns. The crimp rigidity and the tensile properties of simultaneously dyed and textured yarns were also not affected in any way, because the dyeing step was incorporated with texturing.


Pinker, S. (1999). Words and rules: The ingredients of language. New York: Basic Books. Ullman, M. T. (2001). A neurocognitive perspective on language: The declarative/procedural model. Nature Reviews Neuroscience, 2, 717–726. Ullman, M. T., Izvorski, R., Love, T., Yee, E., Swinney, D., & Hickok, G. (in press). Neural correlates of lexicon and grammar: Evidence from the production, reading, and judgment of inflection in aphasia. Brain and Language.


The InterSense 2006 conference provides an opportunity for researchers from computer science, engineering and mathematical backgrounds to disseminate and exchange knowledge in the rapidly emerging field of future heterogeneous supernetworks where ad hoc and sensor wireless networks will be integrated into wired and/or wireless fixed infrastructure.The integration of ad hoc and sensor networks with the Internet and wireless infrastructure networks increase the network capacity, coverage area and application domain. In the future interconnection framework for wireless sensor and ad hoc networks, internetworking is not simply a way to transport information from and to remote hosts. The foreseen degree of integration reaches the upper levels of the stack, where one network will offer services to others (including communication services). In the "sensors to wideband" integrated heterogeneous architecture, even sensor networks component may be heterogeneous, consisting of sensors with varied functionalities and capabilities. This architecture may include an ad hoc network of actors, capable of monitoring the sensor network deployment and acting to increase the network utility. In the emerging area of ubiquitous computing, networked small embedded devices with sensing capabilities will play a key role. Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) shows a great potential for identification of static and mobile objects and poses numerous questions regarding their implementation, capability, performance, reliability and integration with other technologies. The conference covers physical, data link, network and transport layers, as well as application, security, simulation and power management issues in integrated and heterogeneous networks, including sensor, local area, satellite, vehicular, personal, and mobile ad hoc networks.This proceedings features 27 papers that are presented at the conference. In addition, a keynote speech is presented by Afonso Ferreira, the Scientific Officer for Information and Communication Technologies at the COST Office, in Brussels. The conference is jointly sponsored by Create-net, ICST and EU (IST-FET).


Organization of the genome in eukaryotes has long been a mystery, and while we have furthered our knowledge in recent years, there is still much that remains unknown. We are particularly interested in the function of one of the histone variants of H2A, H2A.Z. Its presence in a gene promoter can coincide with especially high or low levels of transcription. The mechanism by which this occurs and why it occurs is unknown. Here, we seek to understand whether the presence of the variant at several genes is helpful in the context of oxidative stress. We found no transcriptional upregulation or downregulation effect due to deletion of HTZ1, the gene encoding the histone variant H2A.Z, leading us to believe that the variant is not very influential at the three oxidative stress response genes we tested: CYC1, FLR1, or GTT2. However, although our results did not reveal a large role for H2A.Z in expression of these genes, they did reveal other key insights into the oxidative stress response in yeast.


Canine mesenchymal stem cells (cMSCs) are gaining popularity in the veterinary field as a regenerative therapy. But, their limited culture lifespan makes it an obstacle for preclinical investigation and therapeutic use. In this study, primary canine adipose tissue‐derived MSCs (PCAT‐MSCs) were isolated from adipose tissue and were transfected with the SV40‐T retrovirus resulting in a life‐extended immortalized canine adipose tissue‐derived MSCs (ICAT‐MSCs). A comparison was made through the characterization of both PCAT‐MSCs and ICAT‐MSCs. Both showed a fibroblastic morphology; ICAT‐MSCs showed a higher potential of colony formation compared with PCAT‐MSCs and a reduced population doubling time; stem cell markers SOX2 and NANOG were expressed in both cell lines; karyotyping analysis showed no abnormalities in both PCAT‐MSCs and ICAT‐MSCs; both cell lines were CD90+, CD44 +, and CD45 −; both generated chondrogenic pellet; in osteogenic differentiation both showed upregulation of Osterix, a master transcriptome of osteogenesis, but in PCAT‐MSCs, an upregulation of SOX2 was also observed. In conclusion, ICAT‐MSCs showed similar characteristics with PCAT‐MSCs, thus established as an easy to access platform for studies on better understanding about cMSCs nature.


When the windshield became the only border between us, things became strange. And the girl with the hair became outrageous. I was trapped in the passenger seat, unable to move, the spotlight of her gaze fixed me into stillness. We'd come to this late night sweet shop to get a dessert. We were on our way back from a party to my friend Sheena's house out in a suburb of Bangalore, India. The shop looked more like a garage or a lower opening to a building than a place of business. A roll-top tin door curled open, exposing the dim interior of the shop. Sheena had parked in a dirt yard with a tree in the middle of it. The girl came to Sheena's window. Just a girl and a few of her friends. I was relieved she went to Sheena's side, not mine. "Got any change?" Sheena asked, glancing in my direction. I only had a 100-rupee note. That was too much, she told me, then said something to the girl in Hindi. "I'll be right back!" she'd said over her shoulder as she popped out of the car. My eyes followed after her, but the muted street light over the opening made it hard to see inside. I could make out the figures a few men and women sitting on stools in casual postures, thin backs slouching forward, rounding spines.


In this article the information about supercritical fluid regeneration cycles was summarized and analyzed, advantages and disadvantages were shown. The possibility of combining and possible ways of energy cost reducing were investigated


The education model of enterprise-university-research cooperation is a basic trend of reform and development in school running pattern of higher vocational education.The paper analyzes the limitations of the traditional cooperationand put forward the integration pattern.It aims to establish an entity through teaching contents,the curriculum system,management mode and construction of teaching staff and other reforms to achieve the overall quality of vocational college students,innovation and sustainable development capacity,and the formation of profit center.


It is widly accepeted that overeating of palatable foods can have powerful effects on brain reward systems. However, it is still debated whether their excessive intake can produce symptoms of dependence such as those seen in drug addiction. There is increasing evidence of neurobiological and clinical underpinnings of obesity and and drug addiction, and although there are still relevant differences between the two disorders, the food addiction phenothype seems to have an important role in obesity and Binge Eating Disorder (BED). To consider a food addiction framework for patients with BED and, at least, for some obese individuals, may contribute to new pharmacological interventions as well as behavioral therapies aiming the long-term control of overeating. © 2014 Sociedade Portuguesa de Endocrinologia, Diabetes e Metabolismo. Published by Elsevier España, S.L.U. This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license


Models for pattern discrimination can be applied successfully to simple orientation discrimination tasks. However, the mechanisms underlying long-range spatial effects, such as the tilt illusion, are not well understood. The magnitude of the tilt illusion and its sensitivity to the polarity of the inducers were measured by means of tests with varying orientation bandwidths. The orientation tuning bandwidth of the primary-level filters, whose peak frequency is 1.7 cycles deg−1, was estimated in a 2AFC orientation-discrimination task. The luminance distribution of the stimulus was jointly normal. First, the orientation bandwidth of a single elongated test stimulus was increased by reducing its length-to-width ratio from 7.5:1 to 1.5:1. The orientation discrimination performance rapidly decreased after the ratio became less than 3.5:1, which is in good agreement with the estimates of the shape of the filters (Wilson, 1986 Vision Research 26 453 – 469). These optimally shaped stimuli were used as inducers in the tilt illusion experiment. Six 20° tilted inducers were added around the test stimulus at the radial distance of 1.25 deg. When the length-to-width ratio of the test stimulus was varied as in the first experiment, the magnitude of the tilt illusion increased after the ratio was less than 3.5:1. However, the precision of the orientation discrimination when compared to the first experiment did not change. Changing the polarity of the inducers did not affect the illusion. The results suggest that the tilt effects of the inducers are not mediated by the primary-level filters. Rather, strengthening of the tilt illusion as the orientation bandwidth of the test stimulus increases suggests that long-range interactions between second-order orientation mechanisms might underlie the described phenomena.


Abstract A spatially replicated study of Argentine stem weevil Listronotus bonariensis (Kuschel) population dynamics was carried out in six dryland Canterbury, South Island ryegrass Lolium perenne L./white clover Trifolium repens L. pastures over three seasons between 1994 and 1997. The aims were to provide information on the weevil's population dynamics in dryland environments and to determine population regulatory mechanisms. In dryland Canterbury pastures, L. bonariensis adults and larvae exhibit phenology similar to that reported elsewhere in New Zealand. Population density was generally low, probably reflecting the loss of endophyte-free ryegrass tillers as the pasture aged. Density-dependence relationships were found in both halves of the life cycle: 1) between densities of overwintered adults in spring and those of the next generation in summer; and 2) densities of adults over winter, from the summer peak to those remaining the following spring. Endophyte-free tiller density also played a part in determining summer adult abundance. Partitioning the first relationship into two components, spring (overwintered) adults to first generation summer larvae, and from those larvae to peak summer adults, showed density dependence in both, but an endophyte-free tiller effect only in the first. In all cases, endophyte-free tiller densities provided more significant contributions to predictive relationships for weevil densities than did total tiller densities, suggesting that weevil abundance is partly determined by the endophyte-free tiller resource in dryland habitats.


Because passenger seat is one of the most important parts in the determination of passengers' satisfaction for train, it is absolutely important to design the passenger seat so that train passengers can satisfy. So, in the seat design it is necessary to consider passengers' characteristics, requirements, and dissatisfactions. However, passengers' dissatisfactions for the seat of Mugunghwa-ho train have been often raised through various routes. It is necessary to resolve their dissatisfactions to provide comfortable trip to passengers. So, we designed a new seat of Mugunghwa-ho train that resolved passengers' dissatisfactions. Our focusing design parts were the seat pan and the backrest of passenger seat. We investigated passengers' dissatisfactions for the seat of Mugunghwa-ho train through various methods and the human factors design guidelines through literature survey. We designed a new seat on the basis of investigated results. For newly designed seat, we evaluated comfort and sensible satisfaction in comparison with the existing seat. An experimental method and subjective methods were used in this evaluation. In all aspects, the new seat was superior to the existing.


Abstract. Precipitation over East Asia (EA) simulated in six experiments using the Met Office Unified Model (MetUM) is compared with observations and ERA-Interim reanalysis. These simulations are performed at resolutions of 200–40 km and with both atmosphere-only and air-sea coupled configurations. EA precipitation in MetUM is systematically overestimated, especially over southeastern EA and the Tibetan Plateau. Moisture sources for simulated and observed regional EA precipitation are traced using the Water Accounting Model-2layers (WAM-2layers) – a moisture tracking model that traces moisture sources using a combination of evaporation, atmospheric moisture and circulation. Biases in moisture sources are linked to biases in precipitation. For southeastern EA, positive precipitation biases are linked to errors in mid-latitude sources rather than tropical ocean sources. Increasing resolution reduces precipitation biases over the Tibetan Plateau. From the perspective of moisture source, this reduction comes from reduced remote moisture source that is blocked by the better representations of topography at higher resolution. Including coupling does not necessarily improve EA precipitation, however, coupling alters moisture sources. Because the effect of coupling on moisture source varies on location and sign, the collective impact on EA precipitation may not be noticeable. By using WAM-2layers, these changes in moisture sources can be attributed to changes in SST, circulation and associated evaporation. WAM-2layers can be a useful tool to identify model biases that cause biases in regional precipitation.


Address for correspondence Sooyeon Suh, PhD Department of Psychology, Sungshin Women's University, 2 Bomun-ro 34da-gil, Seongbuk-gu, Seoul 02844, Korea Tel: +82-2-920-7215 Fax: +82-2-920-2040 E-mail: email@example.com Objectives: Sleep misperception is the underestimation of perceived total sleep time compared to actual total sleep time. It is observed in approximately 50% of patients with insomnia. Insomnia patients with sleep misperception report significantly higher depression than those without sleep misperception. Depression is one of the most consistent risk factors for predicting insomnia. Therefore, this study attempted to confirm the mediating effect of depression in exacerbating insomnia. Methods: This study included 77 male and female aged 18–40 years who met diagnostic criteria for insomnia disorder based on the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fifth Edition. Depression and insomnia severity were measured using self-report questionnaires, and actigraphy data were collected for 1 week. The sleep misperception index was calculated using the sleep diary and actigraphy. Results: The Pearson correlation analysis was performed to examine the relationships between sleep misperception, insomnia, and depression. Sleep misperception was positively associated with depression (r=0.399, p<0.01). There was also a significant positive correlation between depression and insomnia severity (r=0.591, p<0.01). However, there was no significant correlation between sleep misperception and insomnia severity (r=0.210, p=0.07). Depression was found to have a full mediating effect on the relationship between sleep disturbance and severity of insomnia (n=77, B=6.1688, 95% confidence interval=2.9960, 10.4562). Conclusions: This study verified the mediating effect of depression on the relationship between sleep misperception and insomnia severity. The results highlight the importance of considering depression and sleep misperception in insomnia treatment. J Sleep Med 2020;17(2):159-166


Fully homomorphic encryption allows users to use the computing resources of cloud servers for the computation of encrypted data without worrying about data leakage. The fully homomorphic encryption approach has problems with excessive noise and the expansion of the ciphertext dimension after the homomorphic evaluation. The key switching technology effectively solves the problem of the ciphertext dimension expansion. The generated evaluation key is a masked secret key that must be shared between the data owner and the computational entity, so the security must be guaranteed. In the RLWE-based FHE scheme, the efficiency improvement of the key switching depends on the circular security assumption, meaning the security needs to be improved. To solve the above problems, we select the secret key from the noise distribution with variable parameters so that the evaluation key and the initial noise of the encryption scheme are smaller. Specifically, the secret key is replaced after each homomorphic evaluation to ensure the security. We use the "modulus scaling" method to control the noise generated by itself, rather than the BitDecomp technology, which is complex when applied to polynomials. Finally, we combine the packing technology that relies on the polynomial CRT (Chinese remainder theorem) to design a batch-leveled fully homomorphic encryption scheme. We analyze the scheme's noise, security proof, and specific security parameters. Compared with the FV12 scheme, our scheme is more secure. Compared with the MB18 scheme, our evaluation key size is smaller.


The article describes the results of the study on the optimal gas combustion modes, aimed at obtaining the maximum temperature in smelting cast iron. The results of researches on features of gas combustion when smelting cast iron in gas cupola furnaces have been described. These results are essential for expansion of the natural gas use in the foundry since natural gas is environmentally friendlier than coke. It has been experimentally proved that a process with a certain lack of air, i.e. with α = 0.98, was the optimum for obtaining the maximum temperature.


OF DOCTORAL DISSERTATION AALTO UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY P.O. BOX 11000, FI-00076 AALTO http://www.aalto.fi/ Author Nicklas Beijar Name of the dissertation Distributed Resource Discovery: Architectures and Applications in Mobile Networks Manuscript submitted 10.3.2010 Manuscript revised 27.9.2010 Date of the defense 10.12.2010 Monograph Article dissertation (summary + original articles) Faculty Faculty of Electronics, Communications and Automation Department Department of Communications and Networking Field of Research Networking Opponent(s) Professor Frank Fitzek (Aalborg University, Denmark) Supervisor Professor Raimo Kantola (Aalto University)


Section I: The Tinbergen Tradition Section II: the Variety of Experience Section III: Model Products and Model Usage Section IV: The Interaction Process and Institutional Arrangements Section V: Empirical models and Policy Making


The purpose of this research was to document the extent to which Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB)–accredited business schools have implemented strategies to improve students' ability to achieve program learning objectives. Assessment of academic programs is increasingly important at AACSB schools. Compliance with changing accreditation requirements and continuous improvement necessitated revision of assessment methods and modification of programs. Deans at 91 AACSB schools participated in this research. Communication skills were the most-assessed competency. Mandating increased coverage of specific skills or topics across the curriculum was the most frequent change made as a result of assessment. Further studies will be needed to track this dynamic activity.


SUMMARYAclinical auditofwardpracticefordiagnosingandtreating urinary tractinfection wascarriedout to assesstheimpactonclinicalpracticefouryearsafterpublicatonofaworkingprotocol. Datawerecollectedfromallmedical,surgical,gynaecologyandgeriatricwards in 25 hospitals in Northern Ireland. All wards made use ofurinary dipsticksfor wardtesting, as recommended by the protocol. However many negative samples were stillforwardedforlaboratoryanalysis. Thepotentialfinancialsavingswhichwould resultfromn effective wardscreening were not being realised andthe publication appearedto haveminimal impact on clinical practice. Advice on an imnproved diagnostic protocol forurinary tract infectionmay not havebeendisseminated to thenursingstaffwhoseroleWvISpivotal in the screeningprocess.INTRODUCTIONUrinary tract infections are amongthe mostcommon infections.' They accountfor morethan seven million doctor visits and necessitate or complicate more than one millionhospital admissions in the United States annually.2


© Copyright 2013. The author, Benjamin Hamby, assigns to Paideusis the right of first publication and educational and non-profit institutions a non-exclusive license to use this document for personal use and in courses of instruction provided that the article is used in full and this copyright statement is reproduced. Any other usage is prohibited without the express permission of the author.  Libri ad Nauseam: The Critical Thinking Textbook Glut


Abstract A non-linear finite element (NLFE) model was developed to predict the flexural response of concrete beams, strengthened with near surface-mounted (NSM) carbon fiber-reinforced polymer (CFRP) strips. The model was employed for predicting the influence of a wider spectrum of key parameters, concrete compressive strength (25–55 MPa), NSM FRP strips number (2–4) or spacing (20–35 mm), bond length (100–450 mm), FRP type (carbon, glass, and basalt) and loading pattern (four-point, three-point, and distributed load), upon the performance of these beams. The results showed a clear improvement in the performance of the CFRP-strengthened concrete beams when made at a higher-strength class of concrete. Using a higher number of NSM FRP strips of the same cross-sectional area contributed to enhancing the mechanical performance noticeably. Moreover, the model developed was capable of capturing the negative impact of using a lower spacing for a constant number of NSM CFRP strips. The impact of the FRP strips' type varied upon the mechanical property predicted and the strength grade of concrete used in the casting of the beams. The load resistance of NSM FRP-strengthened specimens was the highest under three-point load configuration, followed, in sequence, by distributed and four-point loads, respectively.


This article aims explain the influence of the principal's transformational leadership and information about the transformational leadership styles used by the principal. Besides that the writer also explained the factors. The methodology used to arrange this article is Systematic Literature Review (SLR). First, researcher find relevant theories, and then make a conclusion about it, then analyzing, and finally make a new information based researcher analyzing. The result of this article are based on the analysis of researchers in general show the magnitude of the influence of principals transformational leadership and four factors towards transformational leadership.


Due to its dominance in FPGA area and delay, the interconnect circuit is traditionally designed and optimized in full customized fashion, which can be extremely time consuming. In this paper, we propose an automated transistor-level sizing optimization method for the widely-used General Routing Matrix FPGA interconnect circuits with the following three features: (1) an area model that takes into account the commonly used diffusion sharing, transistor folding and inputs sharing techniques in order to have an accurate area predication; (2) an accurate and effective non-linear delay model that treats the wire within a circuit and the wire between interconnect circuits separately; (3) a multi-thread acceleration method and the Minimum-Final-Delay algorithm to speed-up the simulation. The global optimization cost is measured by the product of the interconnect circuit area and the representative path delay based on our proposed models. The cost reduces 10.9%, when we use 65nm CMOS process chip for evaluation. The simulation time for different transistor sizing combinations is improved by 9X and 15X when 10 and 50 threads are used, respectively, faster than single-thread. Compared with the manual design method, our proposed optimization approach explores a larger design space and reduces the optimization time from months to hours.


A modular circuit breaker 10 comprises a terminal 46 supply cage 48 accessible from the connecting side face 51, and at least one conductive pin 22A extending perpendicular to the rear face 16 to be plugged in a remote clip 24A a distributor. 22A spindle is at the potential of the terminal 46, and is housed inside a recess in the rear face 16 of the housing. It is isolated from the outside by a bridge of an electrically insulating material, which extends in the alignment of the pin 22A to allow insertion of the clip 24A when embrochage.Applications: double feeder breakers cable and splitter.


The local climatic changes of the Gonghe Basin were studied,and the source data are the average annual temperature and annual precipitation from 1961 to 2007,recorded in two weather stations of the Gonghe Basin,Qinghai Province.The main findings were that:(1)the average annual temperature increased with the speed of 0.38℃/10 a,and the warming mainly occurred in winter,which is the most significant in 1987;(2)the annual precipitation increased as well,with the speed of 1.9 mm/10 a.Although the annual precipitation increased slightly,it cannot balance the effects of climatic warming on ground evaporation,and then the water resource in the Gonghe Basin will reduce in some degrees.


Immunological and molecular techniques based on DNA have been used for microorganism detection due to their sensitivity, specificity and speed. However, when the identification of bacteria with zero tolerance is required (eg. Pantoea stewartii), molecular and immunological techniques do not oer a 100% reliability. The objective of this study was to combine the ELISA and PCR techniques in order to complement their advantages and eciently detect bacteria directly on seeds. A maize seed sample imported from the USA and with a high probability of being infected with Pantoea stewartii, and this was verified with ELISA, was used in this study. Having confirmed the presence of the bacterium, it was isolated and identified with microscopical, biochemical, physiological, tobacco hypersensibility, pathogenicity and PCR amplification of rDNA 16S tests. The immuno-PCR technique was then optimised (primer annealing temperature, antibody concentration, incubation temperature and microtube branding). The study showed that it is possible to amplify the DNA of P. stewartii directly from maize seeds, with an annealing temperature of 62 and 65 C, incubation times of 1-3 hours, antibody concentrations of 5:200 and 10:200 and Fisher and Axigen microtubes. The adaptation and optimisation of the immuno-PCR technique is important as it may aid in the reduction of the risk


Global competition have made companies optimize your costs, including inventory
costs. In the oil & gas industry, the current scenario of profits reduction forces the reduction
of costs and optimization of resources. In this context, the supply chain management is
fundamental for process optimization and the reduction of acquisition and storage costs.
However, the management of spare parts inventory is still a challenge due to the complexity
of the issue, which deals with erratic and intermittent demand items. Thus, the current work
presents a study of the inventory magement of turbomachinery spare parts of an oil & gas
company workshop. An exploratory research was carried out about the problem and real data
were collected in order to elaborate a discrete simulation model to indicate better policies and
methods of workshop inventory management. Alternative scenarios were experimented
through simulation and significant improvement of service levels was achieved through the
use of Croston and SES forecasting methods. It can be concluded that these forecasting
methods can increase the availability of equipments without increasing inventory costs.


The invention relates to a method of displaying an ultrasound image on a display device, generated at the with an ultrasonic probe image signals in the investigation of a subject with ultrasound and transmitted to a data processing device and the image signals are illustrated by the data processing means as an ultrasonic image on a display device. To provide such a method which is facilitated by an operator viewing of the ultrasound image, it is proposed that detected by an orientation detecting means a change in the orientation of the display device in the room and the data processing device is a relevant change in orientation signal is provided and the orientation of the ultrasound image on the display means of the data processing device in response to the change of the orientation of the display means is changed in space. Moreover, the invention relates to a device for performing the method.


A compact Nd-YAG laser (OSADA YAG LASER) was employed in surgical treatments of oral lesions in twelve cases.The treatments were extirpations of hemangiomas (3 cases), excision of lymphangioma (1 case), extirpation of cyst (1 case), resections of oral malignancies (6 cases) and mucosal incisions in surgical orthspedics (1 case).The equipment was small-sized and improved on the handpiece in comparison with those heretofore in use.Two types of heads (non-contact type and contact type) were provided for the handpiece.The non-contact heads, which have a lens in the tip, showed high ability as a coagulator. It enabled perfect control of hazardous bleeding during the excision of cavernous hemangiomas.On the irradiated surface, a dense layer of heat degeneration covered by carbon deposit was observed.The contact heads with a sharp-pointed quartz tip at the end showed high performance as a scalpel.The sense of touch resembled that of a electrosurgical unit.The cut margin was sharp and clean with minimal heat degeneration and little carbon deposit.In the partial glossectomy, it was free from uncomfortable muscle contracture or bleeding. The sutured wound of which margin cut with the contact head healed in ordinary manner.No delays of healing or rupture of the wound were observed.The microscopic finding on the cut margin also manifestatcd the characteristic difference in mode of action between the both types.It was recognized that the compact Nd-YAG laser with two head types (contact type and non-contact type) is very useful for oral surgery.


The author compares the two Chinese visions of "The Ode of West Wind" from the relevant level of idea,content and style,discussing the gain and lose of each vision,analyzing some problems in poem translation,such as the mistanslation and Creative Treason


' N othing is less applicable to the conduct of life than mathematical reasoning', wrote Mme de Staël (1813, I, 177). In her view, a person whose education has been primarily mathematical is accustomed to clarity and lucidity, and so cannot cope with the murky choices of everyday life. 'That which is most important for our conduct in life is to understand our fellow creatures', she insists, but the mathematician cannot do this: his training has made him deficient in sympathy and intolerant of difference. He seeks the certainty of mathematical demonstration in all aspects of life, but 'primitive truths, those which are seized by feeling and genius, are not susceptible of demonstration' (De Staël 1813, I, 178). Mme de Staël's pessimistic assessment of the effects on the character of an education in which mathematics is dominant was to be echoed many times during the nineteenth century by British writers impatient with the traditional and patrician respect for mathematics in the curriculum and in wider culture. But in the context of emerging Romantic models of the proper relationship of feeling to thinking, critiques of mathematics' unbalancing effect on the mental faculties became especially powerful. In contrast to classicizing eighteenth-century psychological models, which typically advocated subordinating feeling to reason, Romantic-era writers often argued that emotion and rationality should be seen as two equally important parts of a single process. In aesthetics, in criticism of all kinds of art, and in psychological writing, the complete union of thought and emotion was increasingly represented as a mark of genius; but even for non-geniuses, the natural state of the healthy mind was thought to be characterized by thinking and feeling interacting as equals. As the highly influential German Romantic philosopher Friedrich Schlegel put it in his lectures on the Philosophy of life: 'thought and feeling stand reciprocally in need of each other. As thought gains new life and animation from the rich feeling, [. . .] even so the feelings are not unfrequently first awakened, and very often strengthened and elevated, by the lofty flight of thought' (Schlegel 1847, 374). It is hardly too much to say that a new ideal of selfhood was generated by this model in which thinking and feeling invigorated and intensified one another. Along with this new ideal, new models of outstanding humanity were generated to celebrate those whose balance seemed much more finely tuned than normal, and equally, new pathologies were produced to classify individuals in whom the thinking and feeling faculties failed to balance or to unite. In a cultural climate that admired emotional thought and thoughtful emotion, branches of knowledge which appeared to emphasize reason almost to the exclusion of feeling provoked considerable anxiety.


The tunability of halogen–hydride interactions was investigated by examining various substituents in the halogen donor as well as in the halogen acceptor units. For this purpose, we performed a systematic study on a series of dimeric complexes modelled as RX···HMY. The properties of these halogen–hydride interactions are modulated by variation of R (Cl, CN), X (Cl, Br, I), M (Be, Mg, Zn), and Y (H, CH3, C6H5) groups. It is found that some substituents have dramatic effects on the strength of the halogen–hydride bonds, leading to interactions that can be up to 100% stronger. The results indicate that the withdrawing effect of the R group and the electronegativity of the metal are the most influential factors that can change the interaction strength. Accordingly, among 54 studied complexes, the strongest interactions have been observed in the complexes in which M = Mg. Furthermore, we note that the redistribution of the electron charge due to the complex formation leads to decrease in the s-character of the X-orbital, which is in line with Bent's rule. For the complexes analysed here, various relationships between energetic and natural bond orbital parameters have been presented. Our results, allow the prediction of halogen–hydride interaction using different substituents, in order to tune and optimise ligand–protein interactions in the search for drug candidates.


In the present paper, crystallization behavior and glass forming ability (GFA) of Cu64Zr36 bulk metallic glass (BMG) were studied based on the crystal phase competition. Electrical resistivity and X‐ray diffraction results indicate that Cu64Zr36 glass underwent a two‐stage crystallization process, during which Cu10Zr7 and Cu51Zr14 crystals precipitate at first and then there are only Cu10Zr7 and Cu8Zr3 phases at the end of the second stage. Intriguingly, it was found that it is the competing phase Cu10Zr7 that weakens GFA of the Cu64Zr36 alloy, because the Cu10Zr7 precipitate is fully restrained in the cast rod when substituting Zr with 7.5at%Ti and thereby its diameter with fully amorphous structure is enlarged from 1 mm to 2 mm.


Introduction Diagnosis of tumours and treatment decisions for patients including breast cancer patients are based on determination of immunohistochemistry biomarkers. The accurate assessment of hormone receptor status in breast cancer and the correct classification of lymphomas is essential for appropriate patient care. The immunohistochemistry (IHC) Quality Assurance Program (QAP) includes a number of modules: diagnostic, lymphoma markers, breast markers, bright-field HER2 ISH and technical. Other countries have similar quality assurance programs. 1,2 Methods The IHC modules consist of a number of technical exercises per year with assessment of different biomarkers. The technical module evaluates different biomarkers across a range of antibodies that would be important for diagnosis of tumours. The diagnostic module allows participants to select a panel of antibodies to obtain a correct diagnosis mimicking real patient samples. The breast markers module evaluates oestrogen receptor, progesterone receptor and HER2 with a separate component for bright-field HER2 ISH testing. An audit of patient results is also performed for the breast biomarkers. The lymphoma module is used to assess markers used for classification and diagnosis of both Hodgkin's disease and non-Hodgkin's lymphoma. Slides are sent to participants comprising either tissue microarray blocks or composite blocks from different tissues. Homogeneity and stability testing are performed on the sections and every 20th section is stained to ensure representative tissue. Antigenic site stability is also evaluated. Slides are stained by the participating laboratory and returned for evaluation by a committee of scientists and a pathologist. Each slide is evaluated independently and an average score is returned. Each slide is scored from 0 to 5. The assessment criteria used are: • intensity of true positivity is of reasonable strength • absence of background staining (good signal to noise ratio) • sensitivity – all target tissues labelled • localisation – only target antigenic sites labelled • chromogen character – crisp and distinct • counterstain quality – complementary not obscuring • absence of artifacts • adequacy of controls – sufficiently sensitive. A score A control slide is also assessed as satisfactory, borderline or unsatisfactory. Results Participants' results vary depending on the module being assessed and there has generally been an improvement of results over time, however deficiencies are still noticed for some biomarkers. Results of some of the modules will be presented. Discussion Immunohistochemistry is used to diagnose patients' tumours and to determine patient treatment. Poor quality IHC will therefore have a significant impact on patient outcome. It is therefore essential that the results generated by the laboratory are accurate. External QAP forms an essential part of laboratory assessment. Participants frequently comment that the supplied material from the QAP is different to their in-house samples and that because the in-house controls worked the results are correct. This statement does not recognise the difference between Quality Control and Quality Assurance. The in-house controls, even if placed on the same slide, are Quality Controls and indicate that the antibody and the detection system are working. They do not indicate whether the result obtained is in fact correct and accurate. This is well recognised in clinical pathology where a method is validated against a reference method to determine accuracy and then QC is run internally to ensure that the reagents and instruments are working. In many cases for immunohistochemistry the controls selected are inappropriate, excessively large, show fixation variation or only reflect one level of staining. Conclusion High quality IHC results are essential to enable treating clinicians to optimise therapy for patients. The introduction and expansion of a specific quality assurance module for immunohistochemistry has enabled an ongoing assessment of the performance of biomarkers in Australia, New Zealand and South-East Asia. Despite the extraction of large amounts of information in regards to the methodology used for staining, it is usually not possible to identify one specific method that results in optimal staining although sample methods with high marks are reported. Optimisation of retrieval for a wide range of sensitivities is considered to be the important factor in achieving satisfactory results. The development of the program has resulted in an improvement in the staining quality for a number of biomarkers. Comments in this report were prepared for and on behalf of the RCPA QAP.


In a streamer initiated pre-discharge channel in H2 the axial and radial electron density distributions were measured at different times of the channel development. It was found that at any point in the channel where the electron density reaches ≅ 2 - 1017 cm-3 an immediate thermalisation of the plasma at this point takes place in a time of ≅ 10 nsec. Due to the inhomogeneous radial and axial electron density distribution in a streamer initiated discharge channel the thermalisation begins at first in a constricted region of the channel. The further development of the electron density and temperature distributions in the thermalized channel was studied by means of spectroscopic plasma diagnostic methods in channels initiated by different overvoltages. These experiments have shown that the inhomogeneous axial electron density distribution is equalized after a time of ≅ 100 nsec. The maximum electron density of ≅ 1 - 2 - 1018 cm-3 is reached in the channel axis immediately after the thermalisation of the channel whereas the temperature increases during the time of the highest energy input to the maximum of ≅ 5 - 6 • 104 °K


The article deals with the grounding of the development of fail-safe electric energy supply systems in industrial factories. The assessment basis consists of the probable parameters of equipment fail-safe work. They include the distribution law of non-failure operation time, except for average parameters, showing equipment work and indicators which characterize its failures. It is the law that makes it possible to establish the adequate level of probability of equipment reliability due to which the system works without failures. To perform the same functions in production, process machines and different types (models) of equipment can be used. Naturally, they have different productivity, power loading, reliability, cost, and supply of spare parts; they require operating personnel of different qualification levels, etc. Machine and equipment application should meet the requirements of correlation and cooperation with allied equipment; being relatively inexpensive, it should have a relevant reliability level. Reasonability of ensuring of a necessary system reliability should be based on financial calculations taking into account technical specifications and equipment reliability characteristics.


We examine the relationship between promotion activities and sanitation decisions in the context of a program in the Mekong Delta that encouraged households to switch from fishpond latrines to septic tanks. Before and after the campaign, we surveyed households and promoters. Economic variables were important determinants of septic tank adoption, but whether or not the decision was woman-led and familiarity with the promoter were strongly predictive as well. Controlling for the pre-existing household decision-making structure, women were more likely to lead the sanitation decision if a promoter spoke to them rather than a male householder. Our household-based findings on the importance of promoters were supported by a supplementary analysis of sales. We found that promoters who were older, trained, and educated were more successful in selling septic tanks. Taken together, these findings highlight the importance of gender equity and trust in the promoter for encouraging last-mile households to invest in new health technologies.


Background : The availability of obesity specific quality of life measurement tool is limited. The Malay version of Impact of Weight on Quality of Life-Lite is an obesity specific quality of life questionnaire which has been translated for use in Malaysia. The aim of this study is to evaluate the validity and reliability of this tool to measure quality of life among different body mass index (BMI) groups. Methods : One hundred and twenty subjects with different BMI categories attending an outpatient government clinic participated in this study. The translated Malay version of IWQOL-Lite was used for assessment. The validity of this questionnaire was examined using content validity, criterion validity and construct validity. Reliability analyses used in this study were internal consistencies and test-retest reliability. Results : The Malay version of IWQOL-Lite showed good psychometric properties whereby the content validity was sufficient as measured by expert panels. The mean score of all IWQOL-Lite domains were able to discriminate between different BMI groups. Good internal consistency was demonstrated by Cronbach alpha of 0.936. Test-retest reliability ranged from 0.828 to 0.932. The physical function score (IWQOL-Lite) correlated positively with Physical Component Summary of Short Form-36 questionnaire. Exploratory factor analysis found that the questions loaded on five domains. Conclusion : The results suggest that the Malay version of IWQOL-Lite is a valid and reliable tool to measure quality of life among obese and overweight subjects in Malaysia.


Extravasation is the process by which any liquid (fluid or drug) accidentally leaks into the surrounding tissue. In terms of cancer therapy, extravasation refers to the inadvertent infiltration of chemotherapy into the subcutaneous or subdermal tissues surrounding the intravenous or intra-arterial administration site. Extravasated drugs are classified according to their potential for causing damage as 'vesicant', 'irritant' and 'nonvesicant' (Table 1). Some vesicant drugs are further classified into two groups: DNA binding and non-DNA binding. Allwood et al. (2002) divided the drugs into vesicants, exfoliants, irritants, inflammitants and neutrals.


Abstract. Southern California's transporation system was subjected to speculative manipulation from the time of the railroads, through the period of the electric interurban trolleys and the rise of the automobile up until the energy crisis of the 1970s. The dominant underlying force in each period is shown to have been combinations of developer‐speculators and local politicians. These groups, motivated by a desire for rapid development for speculative reasons, were able to exercise effective control over the provision of major infrastructural improimnents The argument is made that such control, and the developmental pattern resulting from it, can never be in the public interest.