The study of the neural mechanisms underlying visual attention has been bound up with the study of oculomotor control for almost as long as both have been investigated scientifically. Before the 1970s, most knowledge about the neural mechanisms of visual attention and oculomotor control was derived from lesion studies in animals and from clinical case reports. The phenomenon of contralateral inattention following posterior parietal lobe injury in humans was well documented, but it did not seem possible to approach the study of the neural substrates of visual attention directly, given the technological limitations of the time. However, in the early 1970s, several laboratories began the study of the activity of single neurons in monkeys that were alert and performing learned behavioral tasks, including tasks involving voluntary eye movements and involving shifts of visual attention. A group at Johns Hopkins proposed that 43 oculomotor control and shifts of Visual attention some neurons in posterior parietal cortex participated in the initiation and control of visually-guided saccadic eye movements and visual pursuit movements, while another group argued that all neural activity in the posterior parietal lobe was related to visual attention rather than oculomotor control, and that only the frontal eye field, located in prefrontal association cortex, participated in active oculomotor control. From this difference of interpretation grew more than thirty years of active investigation and discussion that has involved many different laboratories as they worked toward further understanding of the neural circuitry underlying visual attention and oculomotor control. Neurophysiological, neuroanatomical, and functional imaging studies have led to the present concept of cortico-cortical networks which incorporate nodes that play a role in both oculomotor and visual attention functions. In fact, recent research results suggest that the functions of visual attention and oculomotor control may be inextricably linked with one another perhaps two sides of the same coin. The present paper is intended to be a brief historical overview of the development of some of the current concepts of the interaction between the neural mechanisms of attention and those of oculomotor control.


This work presents a robust background calibration scheme for switched-capacitor (SC) pipelined analog-to-digital converters. A SC multiplying digital-to-analog converter (MDAC) is usually linearized by high-gain capacitive feedback. Its conversion gain can be measured by splitting the input sampling capacitor and injecting a random sequence into the signal path. The magnitude of the random sequence can be extracted later in the digital domain. The use of input-dependent generation of the random sequence can eliminate the extra signal range requirement and also save calibration time. Furthermore, the use of random choppers to scramble the signal can ensure that all necessary calibration data can be collected within a given time regardless of input conditions, resulting in a more robust ADC.


The floating structure of pontoon type is expected to be used for an artificial base. Assuming that its floating structure is constructed of plate structural system, we have studied on added mass yielded from elastic behavior of the plate. It is considered naturally that added mass is dependent on mode shape of vibration, for the analysis of the added mass, special knowledge of fluid dynamics is required. Therefore, a proposal of simple calculation method is significant. This paper aims to propose the simple equation for calculation of added mass. In order to develop it, we carried out modal experiment by floating elastic plate model. The distribution characteristic of added mass was grasped through that experiment. By applying those characteristics, the simple equation for calculation of added mass became successful in the proposal. The validity of the obtained simple equation was examined by comparison with present experimental results and other results.Copyright © 2003 by ASME


Epidemiological and pathological evidence has demonstrated that adverse in utero environment,such as protein restriction,hypercholesterolemia,diabetes and smoking,can increase the risk of vascular disease in the offspring.In utero,the placenta and fetus are exposed to the metabolic,antioxidant and pro-inflammatory and anti-inflammatory signals from the mother and likely to make specific responses,which may lead to permanent changes either in DNA methylation or chromatin modification or both,and these changes,in turn,may result in increased atherosclerosis susceptibility in adulthood.In this review,we briefly summarize the possible signals crossing the placental barrier and discuss the molecular mechanisms of epigenetic programming in the developing fetus that may lead to increased athero-susceptibility of the vessel wall.


The conventional diffusion methods require considerable time to perform a test, so there has been an increasing interest to develop methods which would accelerate testing procedures. One approach is to increase the concentration of the chloride solution, but it may lead to non-Fickian behaviour of the chloride fl ux due to signifi cant thermodynamic non-ideality of the system and problems with the meaning of the diffusion coeffi cient (1). Another commonly utilized approach is to apply an external electric fi eld (potential difference) to speed up the movement of ions, and consequently to shorten the whole procedure (2,3). However, this approach introduces the electric potential as a new factor in the description of the system, which leads to more complicated modelling and mathematics / numerics involved.


This paper presents a circuit to control laser diodes implementing modulator and power control circuits on the same chip. The modulator is an ECL-input compatible modulator designed to work with data rates of more than 622MBitls. The modulator's output current is variable up to 40mApp. The power control regulator has a closed loop bandwidth of less than 100Hz. The regulator is implemented using a voltage integrator followed by an output stage capable of supplying a laser diode current of up to 120mA. The regulator combines a current division technique employing MOS transistors with a current conveyor based time constant enhancement technique. The output stage that supplies the laser diode's current includes a high input to output ratio current mirror implemented using an area efficient topology. Simulations indicate that the presented current division technique and time constant enhancement technique should be viable to implement even larger time constants than the one presented in this paper. The chip is fabricated in a 2¿m BiCMOS process.


Objective
To compare the differences of optic nerve head (ONH) parameters and the thickness of circumpapillary retinal nerve fiber layer (CP-RNFL) between acute Vogt-Koyanagi-Harada syndrome (VKH) and acute central serous chorioretinopathy (CSC) patients.

Methods
Retrospective clinical case control analysis. This study included 38 eyes of 20 acute VKH patients (VKH group) and 37 eyes of 37 acute CSC patients (CSC group). Seventy five eyes of 57 normal healthy subjects, matching patients with age and gender, were collected as control group. The disc RPE angle, the thickness of average CP-RNFL, the nasal, superior, temporal and inferior quadrant CP-RNFL thickness, and ONH parameters including optic disc area, cup area, rim area, C/D area ratio, linear CD ratio (CDR), vertical CDR were measured by 3D-OCT. Analysis of variance was performed for comparison among three groups. Minimum significant difference t test was performed for comparison between two groups.

Results
The differences of ONH parameters between VKH group and CSC group: 29 eyes of VKH group appeared retinal detachment next to disc, only 12 eyes appeared in CSC group. Twenty one eyes of VKH group appeared optic disc hyperemia while none in CSC group. The three groups' disc RPE angles were (138.62±11.96)°, (154.09±5.85)° and (153.41±5.77)°. VKH group were significantly smaller than CSC group (t=-2.05, P=0.00) and control group (t=-1.68, P=0.00), while there was no significant difference between CSC group and control group (t=-1.88, P=0.72). The optic cup area and rim area were significantly bigger in VKH group than in CSC group (t=4.61, 2.71; P=0.00, 0.01), and the thickness of mean CP-RNFL, all quadrants of CP-RNFL were significantly thicker in VKH group than in CSC group (t=6.25, 4.40, 3.53, 5.48, 2.69; P=0.00, 0.00, 0.00, 0.00, 0.01).

Conclusion
Compared with the acute CSC, VKH patients are likely to appear retinal detachment next to disc, their disc RPE angles are smaller, their optic cup area and rim area are bigger, and their CP-RNFL thickness are thicker.

Key words:
Uveomeningoencephalitic syndrome; Central serous chorioretinopathy; Optic disk; Nerve fibers; Tomography, optical coherence


This dissertation focuses on two issues in retirement planning. The first issue, annuitization problem, provides insight on how interest rates may affect annuitization decisions for retirees under an all-or-nothing framework. The second issue, ruin probability, studies the probability for a retired individual who might run out of money, under a fixed consumption strategy before the end of his/her life under stochastic hazard rates. These two financial problems have been very important in personal finance for both retirees and financial advisors throughout the world, especially in the developed countries as the baby boom generation nears retirement. They are the direct results of both longevity risk and demise of Defined Benefit (DB) pension plans. The existing literature of the annuitization problem, such as Richard (1975), concludes that it is always optimal to annuitize with no bequest motives under a constant interest rate. To see the effect of stochastic interest rates on the annuitization decisions under a constrained consumption strategy without bequest motives,


Background and purpose: Hypertrophic obstructive cardiomyopathy (HOCM) is a global genetic myocardial disease. In clinical practice, an indicator that could be used to identify suitable patients for percutaneous transluminal septal myocardial ablation (PTSMA) and assess their long-term prognosis is important for cardiologists. HOCM patients undergoing PTSMA, poor long-term prognosis has been associated with higher left ventricular outflow tract gradient (LVOTG) and interventricular septal thickness (IVST). In this retrospective, multicenter study, we aimed to investigate the association between TG (TG = IVS thickness × LVOT gradient) index and acute- or long-term outcomes of HOCM patients after PTSMA and further investigate the interaction effects of LVOTG and IVST. Methods: The study design is based on four tertiary centers from Mid-China, and a total of 284 HOCM patients (132 males, average age 54.80 ± 11.98 years) were treated with PTSMA. A new clinic index (TG = IVS thickness × LVOT gradient) was designed. Both 30-day major cardiovascular adverse events and all-cause mortality of the HOCM patients were analyzed. Cox proportional hazards regression model adjusting for potential risk factors was applied to explore the hazard ratio (HR) for all-cause mortality. Results: Total alcohol injection volume was 2.201 ± 1.025 mL. LVOTG and IVST were reduced to 40.11 ± 24.44 mmHg and 17.68 ± 4.07 mm at the last clinical check-up, respectively. Patients with low IVST (≤20 mm) or low TG index (≤1,683) had a higher rate of PTSMA-contributable complications and a higher need for a permanent pacemaker. Within the 903 patient-years follow-up, a total of 21 (9.8%) deaths occurred. The number of deaths per 100 patient-years was 0.65 and 4.06 in the high versus low TG index groups. The 8-year OS rate was 48.95% (95% CI = 39.07%–57.75%) versus 82.63% (95% CI = 74.99%–86.66%) in the high versus low TG groups, respectively (log-rank P < 0.001). The patients with both high LVOTG (>82 mmHg) and high IVST had the highest risk of all-cause mortality (HR: 18.63 vs low LVOTG, 95% CI = 1.09–319.15). Conclusions: The 8-year OS rate was markedly higher in patients with a low TG index (≤1,683) (48.95%) versus in patients with a high TG index (>1,683 group) (82.63%). The TG index could be a useful tool in the evaluation of HOCM patients for suitability for PTSMA.


Constructing a natural language dictionary and/or a grammar for computational use is a farreaching project, requiring very important human and material resources. Generalisation of the lexical approaches in natural language modelling confers an essential role to the dictionary in every system for automatic natural language processing. More and more information, which was traditionally encoded by grammar rules (syntax), enters the dictionary. Thus, specific linguistic knowledge is encapsulated into lexical structures, while the syntax only encodes generic rules, conceptual restrictions, which get instantiated through specific lexical elements. Modern linguistic theories, such as Lexical-Functional Grammar (LFG), Categorial Grammars (CG), Head-driven Phrase Structure Grammar (HPSG) or Lexicalized Tree Adjoining Grammar (LTAG), emphasise the essential contribution of the lexical specifications to defining and representing the grammatical restrictions.


PURPOSE: To obtain a formatting characteristic in a manufacture job requiring sequence subordinate set up time by using a similar distance assignment with respect to a bagman problem. CONSTITUTION: This device is provided with a leading job 118b, intermediate jobs 118b to 118i and a final job 118h, and the intermediate jobs consist of sequences belonging to two different pairs of jobs and formed by connecting the pairs of jobs in series. Then the set of all the pairs of jobs are decided and a pair value being the monotone function of the number of common parts is assigned to each of the pairs of jobs. Then the pair values are totalized to decide a sequence value to decide a maximum sequence, thereby obtaining the job sequence of the parts exchange of nearly optimum frequency within a proper period of calculating time. COPYRIGHT: (C)1991,JPO


In this paper, we propose a new distributed optimization method that computes a Lasso estimator for logistic regression in the case when two parties have explanatory variables corresponding to distinct attributes. An existing protocol using the alternating direction method of multipliers (ADMM) for linear regression can be applied to logistic regression. However, this protocol needs an underlying iterative method such as the gradient method. We show that the proposed protocol using the generalized Bregman ADMM, which removes the necessity to use the underlying iterative method, requires lower computational and communication complexity.


The movement to improve the quality of teaching and learning in higher education has gained increasing importance over the last several years. Policies and programs aimed at enhancing instruction are becoming commonplace as post-secondary institutions strive to provide a high quality educational experience for students. The impact of different teaching improvement practices varies ,and decision-mak ers in universities and colleges need to know where best to place their efforts and resources. The experienced judgement of teaching im provement practitioners can assist others in making these decisions. This study examines the results of surveys of key instructional development role players at universities and colleges in the United States and in Canada and compares the responses of the two respon dent groups. Respondents rated the potential of 36 practices to im prove teaching at their respective institutions. Analysis revealed _patterns of agreement and disagreement within and between the U.S. and Canadian respondent groups. The leadership of deans and de partment heads and employment policies and practices were seen as having the greatest potential to improve teaching. Respondents had the least confidence that summative evaluation of teaching would improve instruction.


AIM To investigate the effects of exotic PTEN on the apoptosis and expression of bcl 2 gene in human brain glioma SHG 44 cells and to probe into the mechanism thatPTEN gene inhibits the proliferation of the tumor cells. METHODS Human glioma SHG 44 cells were transfected with a plasmid vector containing PTEN gene in vitro , and then positive cell clones were selected and amplified. The expression of PTEN gene was examined by in situ hybridization and immunohistochemistry methods. To detect the apoptosis, examinations of transfected cells were performed by transmission electronic microscope, flow cytometry and nucleus DNA agarose gel electrophoresis. The expression of bcl 2 was also detected by immunofluorescent methods. RESULTS SHG 44 cells stably transfected with PTEN gene were obtained by selection, and expression of PTEN gene was able to be detected. Apoptosis body and changes of ultrastructure, including the concentration, side accumulation of the nuclear chromatin and the fragmentation of the nuclear, were detected by transmission electron microscope. Cell cycle detected by flow cytometry showed that the percentage of cells increased in G1 and decreased in S phase. One visible apoptosis peak (15.9%) prior to the peak of G1 also was found by FCM. The characteristic DNA ladder was found in the agarose gel electrophoresis of the nucleus DNA of transfected cells. The expression of bcl 2 gene was down regulated in SHG 44 cells. CONCLUSION PTEN gene SHG 44 cells can induce apoptosis and down regulation of expression of bcl 2 gene in SHG 44 cells, which may be one of the reasons that PTEN gene inhibits the proliferation of human tumor cells.


KS Bridge is supported by funding from a Biotechnology
and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC)
Doctorate Training Award. TV Sharp's research group is
funded by the BBSRC (BB/I007571/1 and BB/J010901/1)
and Cancer Research UK (C8932/A12733)


We report on efforts to automatically interpret rem otely sensed radar and multispectral imagery using machin elearned classifiers. Specifically we utilize Suppo rt Vector Machine (SVM) learning techniques for L-band SAR, EO-1/ALI, and MODIS Imagery. We share our qualitative and quantitative results thus far and d iscuss challenges experienced.


Critical infrastructures such as oil and gas pipelines, the electric power grid, and railways, rely on the proper operation of supervisory control and data acquisition (SCADA) systems. The trend to interconnect SCADA system devices using networking technologies, however, has introduced additional entry points for malicious software, often via the Internet. In an attempt to manage the new risks, security personnel are incorporating network isolation and standard information technology practices (e.g., firewalls and access control lists). These boundary protection mechanisms attempt to create gaps between systems in order to logically or physically isolate the SCADA network, making it inaccessible by untrusted actors. However, physical or logical isolation does not necessarily imply a closed system. Untrusted actors can still gain access and control over a SCADA system, despite network security, through exploiting alternate pathways that are not evaluated for proper trust control. These nontraditional, indirect access points are overlooked as ingress paths that can result in system compromise. This paper introduces the concept of extending the security parameter to incorporate the nontraditional access points that are often ignored. Coupled with traditional network security postures, identifying and managing these nontraditional attack entry points can create a more robust, secure environment for critical infrastructures. Permission to make digital or hard copies of all or part of this work for personal or classroom use is granted without fee provided that copies are not made or distributed for profit or commercial advantage and that copies bear this notice and the full citation on the first page. To copy otherwise, to republish, to post on servers or to redistribute to lists, requires prior specific permission and/or a fee. CSIIRW '11, October 12-14, Oak Ridge, Tennessee, USA Copyright c ©2011 ACM 978-1-4503-0945-5 ISBN ...$5.00.


In this paper, a configurable many-core hardware/software architecture is proposed to efficiently execute the widely known and commonly used K-means clustering algorithm. A prototype was designed and implemented on a Xilinx Zynq-7000 All Programmable SoC. A single core configured with the slowest configuration achieves a 10× speed-up compared to the software only solution. The system is fully scalable and capable of achieving much higher speed-ups by increasing its parallelism.


In this paper, the methods of information protection in bio systems are studied. The paper considers the use of intelligent tools in information security systems and the use of adaptive information security systems. Several articles on the field of information protection in bio systems are analyzed. Disadvantages and advantages of neural network technologies in modern information security systems are described. The characteristics of bio systems and the specificity of DNA, the main features of the DNA code that provide information security and functional stability of bio systems data protection structure. Application of intelligent tools to create a comprehensive adaptive protection of IT systems based on biosimilar.


As part of the National Reform Agenda, COAG agreed to benchmark and report on the regulatory burden across all levels of government, with the aim of identifying unnecessary compliance costs, enhancing regulatory consistency across jurisdictions and reducing regulatory duplication and overlap. The Commission report, Performance Benchmarking of Australian and New Zealand Business Regulation: Food Safety, part of a series of reports requested by COAG, presents indicators of regulatory burdens associated with food safety regulatory regimes across Australian jurisdictions and New Zealand. Historically, food regulations have been enacted by state and territory governments leading to significant differences in food regulations among the jurisdictions. Over the last three decades, there has been a series of reforms aimed at unifying the food regulatory system. Additionally, the Australia New Zealand Food Standards (ANZFS) Code was established in 1995. Areas which result in differences in regulatory burdens across jurisdictions, include: • some regulatory requirements in excess of national standards • slow progress in developing national standards under the ANZFS Code for primary production and processing • inconsistencies across jurisdictions on the assessment of risks of particular foods • inconsistencies across Australian local councils and across New Zealand territorial authorities in the fees charged, intensity of inspection and auditing, and level of transparency • processes for registering and specifying maximum residue limits of chemicals, which are more streamlined and timely in New Zealand than in Australia • higher costs and regulatory duplication for Australian food exporters compared to the regulation of New Zealand food exporters.


For a biologically inspired mechanical system consisting of multiple segments, its natural oscillation is defined as a periodic body movement pattern conforming to the dynamics inherent to the body-environment interaction, leading to an effective locomotion of the system. In the literature, a central pattern generator based controller has been designed to approximately achieve entrainment to a natural oscillation. This paper further refines the previous result by proposing a controller that achieves exact entrainment, as well as a rigorous stability analysis which leads to a complete solution to the problem of entrainment to natural oscillation.


A three-dimensional transient Eulerian model of two-phase flow is set up to simulate the velocity fields and dust diffusion on heading face of diversion tunnel. The momentum equation includes the drag,virtual mass and lift forces.The ventilation is modeled based on the modified high Reynolds number k-e equations and response function.Heading face of the diversion tunnel of Xin Tangfang power station on Nanting River is used as a case.The flow framework of forced ventilation on heading face is analyzed.The effect of eddies and wall roughness on dust diffusion is studied.The concentration distribution of dust on the wall varying with time is revealed.According to the result of numerical simulation,several vortexes are distributed nearby the heading face of the diversion tunnel under condition of forced ventilation.The concentration of dust gradually decreases from vortex center to surrounding space.Compared with smooth wall,rough wall has great influence on dust detention.The result of numerical simulation agrees with that of experiment by Shinsuke Nakayama ventilation model.


A 19-month-old previously healthy male with a history of milk protein allergy presented to the emergency department with a 2-day history of penile and scrotal swelling. Two days prior to presentation, he was in the care of an uncle, and when his mother arrived home from work, she noticed he was in pain when sitting down. The mother reported his bottom was red and then noticed swelling of his penis and scrotum. This was initially attributed to a diaper rash and was treated at home with an over-the-counter zinc oxide ointment. The following day, the infant was left in the care of the mother's boyfriend, who continued to notice worsening penile and scrotal edema. When the mother again returned home from work this day, she took him to the emergency department. On arrival to the emergency department, he was noted to have slight periorbital swelling, remarkable swelling and erythema of the penis and scrotum, and excoriation marks on the scrotum. The scrotum was diffusely tender to palpation. On review of systems, the child had some congestion and cough, as well as 3 to 4 days of nonbloody, nonbilious emesis that had ended about 4 days prior to presentation. He also had a nosebleed 4 days prior to presentation. In the emergency department, he was treated for an allergic reaction with methylprednisolone, ranitidine, and diphenhydramine and discharged home. The family then presented to a second emergency department the same day for a second opinion. At this time, he had a scrotal ultrasound, which did not show any evidence of testicular torsion. There was concern that the swelling and erythema could have been caused by a nonaccidental scalding injury, or application of a rubber band to the genitalia. With the concern for potential child abuse, a skeletal survey was ordered, law enforcement was contacted, and then the patient was admitted to the hospital for further evaluation.


Roach (Rutilus rutilus) were irradiated with a single dose of ultraviolet B (UVB) radiation (0.4 J/cm2) in order to study the effects of UVB on the nonspecific immune defense mechanisms of fish. Neutrophils and macrophages were isolated from the head kidney of fish on days 1–14 postirradiation. Both random and directed migration of neutrophils, studied by migration under agarose assay, were suppressed on day 1 after UVB irradiation. The respiratory burst of phorbol 12‐myristate 13‐acetatestimulated neutrophils and macrophages was also suppressed at days 1 and 2 after UVB irradiation. The suppression of migration and respiratory burst were restored or the responses were even enhanced later, but on the other hand spontaneous cytotoxicity of neutrophils toward 51chromium‐labeled K562 target cells stayed suppressed throughout the 14 day follow‐up. This study indicates that UVB radiation has the potential to suppress the functioning of phagocytes and to compromise the immune system of fish.


Large rotor systems are commonly supported on hydrodynamic journal bearings and the dynamic behavior of such rotors is significantly influenced by the bearing characteristics. The major factors in the design and operation of such rotor systems are critical speeds, response due to residual unbalance and stability against self-excited vibration. In this paper a study of the various design criteria is made. Results are presented for unbalance response, dissipation coefficient, maximum transmitted force, stress amplitudes and fatigue life in the case of an industrial electric motor rotor supported on partial journal bearings using the transfer matrix method


Chapter 3 presents a close reading of the 2018 film Love, Simon and contrasts it with its source material, Becky Albertalli's young adult novel Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda. The comparative reading of the film with its original source material in the young adult novel makes clear not only just how much dignity has become an anchoring theme in pop cultural representations of LGBTQ+ life but also how the term's meaning commonly emerges as a recurrent claim that gays, lesbians, bisexuals, transgender, and queer people are "just like you" or just like the straight majority despite what is conceptualized only as a relatively insignificant and highly personal individualistic trait: sexuality. Reading through the lens of Black queer studies, this chapter reveals how the film markets itself as progressive with its multicultural casting but falls victim to bolstering white supremacy with its single-issue queer politics. Consequently, the exclusionary force of dignity becomes immediately evident, for it is always privileging certain raced, classed, and gendered ways of living that conform to heteronormative and neoliberal assumptions.


In Qinghai province,development and utilization of solar energy resources potential is enormous.According to the Qaidam basin "Million Kilowatts of Qinghai province level photo voltaic power base development planning,Qinghai province to 2010,with a total installed capacity of photovoltaic energy will reach 20 million kilowatts,2020 vision installed capacity than 750 million kilowatts,with a total installed capacity of vision in 2030 to 20 million kilowatts.However,Qinghai photovoltaic energy is also facing difficulties,such as photovoltaic station scheduling techniques,economic problems must be solved properly.Based on Qinghai photovoltaic station access network scheduling model,with the intention of working out corresponding Qinghai province power grid photovoltaic power station and the safe and stable operation and provide helpful guidance.


The object of this article is considering of optimization and combining existing methods of teaching at technical universities the discipline «rhetoric» using computer technology. The author describes how it works when some elements of context method and elements of educational project method are combined. It is offered to use computer as instrument of cognition in the process of assimilating the discipline «rhetoric».


A bstract. The e ects of the propagation of particles which have a nite life-tim e and an according broad distribution in theirm assspectrum are discussed in thecontextofa transport descriptions.In the rstpartsom e exam ple casesofm esonic m odesin nuclearm atterat nite densitiesand tem peraturesare presented.These equilibrium calculationsillustrate thedynam icalrange ofspectraldistributionsto be adequately covered by non-equilibrium description of the dynam icsoftwo nucleicolliding at high energies. The second part addresses the problem oftransport descriptions which properly account for the dam ping width ofthe particles. A system atic and generalgradientapproxim ation ispresented in the form ofdiagram m atic rules which perm it to derive a self-consistent transport schem e from the K adano {Baym equation. The schem e isconserving and therm odynam ically consistentprovided the self-energies are obtained within the -derivable two-particle irreducible (2PI)m ethod ofBaym . The m erits,the lim itationsand partialcuresofthe lim itationsofthistransportschem e are discussed in detail.


A group H of (conformal/anticonformal) automorphisms of a closed Riemann surface S of genus g ≥ 2 is said of Schottky type if there is a Schottky uniformization of S for which it lifts. We observe that H is of Schottky type if and only if it leaves invariant a collection of pairwise disjoint simple loops which disconnect S into genus zero surfaces. Moreover, in the case that H is a cyclic group (either generated by a conformal or an anticonformal automorphism) we provide a simple to check necessary and sufficient condition in order for it to be of Schottky type.


Background

Dedifferentiated fat (DFAT) cells have been studied as a potential tool for various aspects of tissue engineering. However, the understanding of DFAT cells is mainly derived from studies of inguinal subcutaneous or visceral white adipose tissues rather than human bone marrow (BM). Here, we focused on DFAT cells dedifferentiated from bone marrow adipocytes.
Methods

A plate ceiling culture method and light microscope were used to observe the morphological changes in bone marrow adipocytes. RT-qPCR analysis, immunofluorescence and immunocytochemistry were used to compare gene and protein expression before and after the adipogenic and osteogenic differentiation of BM-DFAT cells and mesenchymal stem cells from bone marrow (BM-MSCs). CCK8 assays and annexin V-PI staining were used to assess the effect of BM-DFAT cells on the proliferation and chemoresistance of leukaemic cells.
Results

We found that bone marrow adipocytes can dedifferentiate into fibroblast-like multipotent cells, and BM-DFAT cells exhibited similar a morphology, immunophenotype, multipotent gene expression, proliferation ability and osteogenic differentiation in comparison with BM-MSCs. Interestingly, BM-DFAT cells possessed a higher potential for adipogenic differentiation than BM-MSCs, since they expressed a lower level of Pref-1, an inhibitor of adipogenesis. Meanwhile, our results revealed the significantly enhanced proliferation of leukaemic cell lines in the BM-DFAT cell group compared with that in the BM-MSC group. However, the effects of BM-DFAT cells were not as obvious as those of BM-MSCs on the chemoresistance of leukaemic cells.
Conclusions

This is the first study to illustrate the properties of BM-DFAT cells. We determined that BM-DFAT cells may be a useful cell source to study the role of bone marrow adipocytes and might be utilized for clinical applications in regenerative medicine.


The purpose of this study was to compare the effect of 8 weeks specific corrective exercise in water and land on the angle of kyphosis and some pulmonary indices in kyphotic students. Thirty males with increased normal thoracic kyphosis (kyphosis ≥40 degrees, 20.70 ±0.705 years old, height 175.5 ±6.19 cm, weight 64.19 ±8.23 kg) were selected and randomly divided in two groups(n=15): group(1) (corrective exercise in water) and group(2) (corrective exercise in land). The angle of kyphosis measured by using a flexible ruler as a non-invasive and reliable method. Pulmonary indices such as: force vital capacity (FVC), forced expiratory volume in one second (FEV1) and maximal voluntary ventilation (MVV) measured by digital spirometer. The repeated measure test was used to compare the differences between the pre and post-test in both groups. All statistical analyses were performed using SPSS statistical software version 18 and the significance level was set on 0.05.In land group and in water group the degree of kyphosis, FVC, FEV1 and MVV improved significantly (p≤0.05). Finally, between two groups were not observed any significant difference in degree of kyphosis and pulmonary indices (FVC, FEV1, MVV) (p≥0/05).According to the results; we can suggest the performance of both corrective exercises in land and water for kyphotic persons.


A synthesis that draws on two common approaches to PLCs produces a more coherent way to tap the power of teacher teams to improve curriculum, instruction, and assessment.


The Ashmolean Museum has recently acquired a fragmentary, but none the less attractive Attic cup. The interior is decorated in the white-ground technique, but the artist has used red-figure on the exterior. The internal and external decoration do not differ merely in technique, however, but also in mood: the central tondo bears a cool, restrained scene of a girl pouring a libation, whereas outside we have a mildly drunken rout—a komos. The interior (Plate XVIIa) is mostly white. There is a broad black band around the edge, at some distance in from which is a dilute brown line which circumscribes the tondo itself. This is decorated with a scene of a girl standing between two altars, over one of which she pours a libation. She faces towards the left and much of her body is seen in three-quarter view. Unfortunately her face is damaged, but enough remains to show that it was once pretty and appealing. On her head she wears a broad cloth band through which her back-hair emerges in a kind of chignon. She wears earrings. A himation edged in red is thrown loosely over her left shoulder and hangs down to well below her knees. Beneath, she wears a flimsy chiton which is pulled revealingly tight over her right breast and is buttoned at the elbow. Bracelets in the form of snakes adorn her wrists, and in her right hand she holds an oinochoe. This last, in common with the bracelets, buttons and earrings, is rendered plastically (i.e. is in relief), and was perhaps originally gilded. To her left, a rod or sceptre leans independently, while on either side can be seen parts of two altars, which, if identical, consisted of two plain, swelling mouldings, somewhat archaic in character, above a row of ovolos, and beneath on the sides, a metope between two dark strips. Some preliminary sketch is visible. Much of the detailed drawing is done in relief line, reinforced around the edges of the garment and on the altar with applied red. Dilute paint is used for the hair, the hem of the chiton and the decoration immediately above it, and for the triglyphs (if that is what they are) of the altars.


Cell type‐specific transcriptional regulation is generally believed to be mediated by sequence‐specific transcription factors that are specifically present in the corresponding cells. The interaction of the lymphoid‐specific Oct2 transcription factor has been thought to be responsible for the B cell‐specific activity of octamer‐containing promoter and enhancer elements. Here we show that physiological concentrations of Oct2 do not suffice to generate octamer‐dependent promoter activity in non‐B cell lines. Furthermore, we have tested the activity of octamer‐dependent promoter and enhancer elements in B cell lines that lack the endogenous Oct2 protein. Our results demonstrate that in these Oct2‐deficient B cells the ubiquitous endogenous Oct1 protein is able to stimulate octamer‐containing promoters to a level comparable with that of normal Oct2‐positive B cells. However, reporter constructs bearing the octamer motif in a distal enhancer position are not stimulated by the Oct1 protein, but do require the presence of Oct2. The B cell‐specific octamer‐dependent promoter activity mediated by Oct1 correlates with the presence of a novel B cell‐specific octamer‐binding complex containing the Oct1 protein. From these results we conclude that B cells contain two different activities: one that interacts with both Oct1 and Oct2 and mediates promoter proximal activity of the octamer motif and a second that specifically interacts with Oct2 to confer function from a remote enhancer position.


Critical-size defects in bones do not heal spontaneously and usually require the use of grafts. Unfortunately, grafts have several limitations. To improve bone formation, many clinicians now use bone morphogenetic proteins (BMP), particularly in spinal fusion, fracture healing, and in critical-size defect regeneration. However, multiple side effects of BMP treatment have been uncovered including increased incidence of cancer. Thus, there is great interest in alternatives that allow for safe and effective bone regeneration. Here we show the ability of thrombopoietin (TPO), the main megakaryocyte growth factor, to heal critical-size femoral defects rodents. 5mm or 4mm segmental defects were created in the femur of Long Evans rats or C57BL/6 mice, respectively. The defects were filled with a novel bioabsorbable scaffold which was loaded with recombinant human TPO, BMP-2, or saline, and held stable by a retrograde 1.6 mm intramedullary Kirschner wire (rats) or 23G needle (mice). Xrays were taken every 3 weeks in rats and weekly in mice. Animal were sacrificed at 15 weeks, at which time micro-computed tomography (μCT) and histological analyses were performed. The results observed in mice and rats were similar. The saline control group did not show bridging callus at any time. Both the BMP-2 and TPO groups healed the defect, although bridging callus was evident at earlier times in the BMP-2 groups. However, the TPO groups showed a much more remodeled and physiologic contour on both Xray and μCT. μCT and histological analysis confirms that compared to BMP-2, TPO-treated specimens have a thicker cortex but smaller diameter and smoother contour. TPO appears to restore the original bone contour by stimulating osteoblastogenesis, allowing for periosteal bridging and stabilization to occur, while simultaneously stimulating osteoclast formation. Thus, TPO may serve as a novel bone healing agent.


Biological risk assessment - and editorial overview of some key policy and implementation issues public perception of biotechnology risk assessment and contained use of genetically modified micro-organisms (GMMs) safety in the contained use and the environmental release of transgenic crop plants environmental release of genetically modified rhizobia and mycorrhizas microbial pesticides - safety considerations safety in the contained use and release of transgenic animals and recombinant proteins safety aspects of aquatic biotechnology safety considerations in biotechnology safety considerations in biotreatment operations.


Now existing access control scheme has the strong dependence to trusty third party in cloud.With regard to this problem,this paper proposes an access control scheme based on attribute.It designs an access control model in cloud,constructs an access control policy which adopts the way of Attribute-based Encryption(ABE) tree,and presents a method of user revocation and policy updates.Security analysis indicates that the scheme has the features of collusion-resistance,data confidentiality and backward and forward secrecy.


In recent constructions, the consumption of ceramic materials is increasing day by day in the form of tiles, sanitary fittings, electrical insulators etc. However, large quantities of ceramic materials change into wastage during processing, transporting and fixing due to its brittle nature. Therefore, using these wastes in concrete production could be an effective measure in maintaining the environment as well as the properties of concrete. The experimental study in this research deals with the investigation of the possibility of using waste ceramic in concrete. Mechanical properties (such as compressive strength and tensile strength) of concrete containing ceramic as coarse aggregates with the replacement of natural aggregate were determined. It was found that strength decreases gradually with the increase of the proportion of ceramic aggregates in concrete, and hence, waste ceramics as replacement of natural aggregates can be mixed up to a certain portion in concrete.


BACKGROUND
The purpose of this study was to determine the incidence and identify clinical predictors for the need for tracheostomy after cervical spinal cord injury (CSCI).

METHODS
The National Trauma Databank version 7.0 (2002-2006) was used to identify all patients who sustained a CSCI. Patients with severe traumatic brain injury (TBI) were excluded. Demographics, clinical data, and outcomes were abstracted. Patients requiring tracheostomy were compared with those who did not require tracheostomy. Logistic regression analysis was used to identify independent predictors for the need of tracheostomy.

RESULTS
There were 5,265 eligible patients. Of these, 1,082 (20.6%) required tracheostomy and 4,174 (79.4%) did not. The majority patients were men and blunt trauma predominated. Patients requiring tracheostomy had a higher Injury Severity Score (ISS) (33.5±17.7 vs. 24.4±16.2, p<0.001) and required intubation more frequently on scene and Emergency Department (ED) (4.2 vs. 1.4%, p<0.001 and 31.1 vs. 7.9%, p<0.001, respectively). Patients requiring tracheostomy had higher rates of complete CSCI at C1-C4 (18.2 vs. 8.4%, p<0.001) and C5-C7 levels (37.8 vs. 16.9%, p<0.001). Patients requiring tracheostomy had more ventilation days, longer intensive care unit and hospital lengths of stay, but lower mortality. Intubation on scene or ED, complete CSCI at C1-C4 or C5-C7 levels, ISS≥16, facial fracture, and thoracic trauma were identified as independent predictors for the need of tracheostomy.

CONCLUSION
After CSCI, a fifth of patients will require tracheostomy. Intubation on scene or ED, complete CSCI at C1-C4 or C5-C7 levels, ISS≥16, facial fracture, and thoracic trauma were independently associated with the need for tracheostomy.


The works of a Moravian poet of the Czech National Revival Aleš Balcárek (1840–1862) often depict the patron saint of Bohemia St Wenceslas. Balcárek asks St Wenceslas for help as the protector of the homeland and the nation. In 1862, the poet died of serious injuries sustained after he fell off the Horse Gate at Wenceslas Square. His tragic death was symbolically preceded by his exclamation: 'Saint Wenceslas, intercede for us!' The circumstances of his death give rise to many speculations about the real cause of the accident, because the student Balcárek had been monitored by the secret police for his patriotic stance. Balcárek's patriotic motivation, embodied in the symbol of St Wenceslas, presumably dates back to his studies in Olomouc, where the Cathedral of St Wenceslas is located. Reminiscences of St Wenceslas also emerge in connection with Balcárek's membership in Blaník, a student association in Prague (and the legend of St Wenceslas, who, accompanied by his knights, will come to the aid of the nation when it suffers most). The young man joined the Hlahol choir and learnt to sing in it the old Bohemian hymn 'Saint Wenceslas!'; he became a skilled reciter who, under the influence of the scenery, often ended his performance with the exclamation: 'Saint Wenceslas, do not let us and our descendants perish!' In 1862, the funeral procession of the prematurely deceased talented hope of Moravian poetry symbolically passed by the old statue of St Wenceslas, situated in the middle of Wenceslas Square. The poem Můj zpěv [My Song], an excerpt from which is included in the text of the article, is the poet's artistic and ideological legacy spanning centuries.


| Decree No. 9,175 of October 18, 2017 brought considerable and necessary changes to the text of the Organ Donation Law, with a view to speeding up and ensuring that procedures are carried out with full success, taking into account that the Brazil is in a privileged position in the list of countries that perform the most transplants in the world. For this reason, this study aims to verify the effectiveness of the agility of organ donation in front of the new Brazilian legislation. The integrative review was used as a methodology, with a search in the VHL, SciELO and LILACS databases, which led to the selection of 10 articles that analyzed led to the creation of three thematic categories: Nursing Conduct versus Probable Donor; Factors that lead to donation or not of organs and The Effectiveness of New Legislation in Streamlining Organ Donation. It was concluded that there is a clear need for more detailed verification to the competent organs, to provide data regarding the effectiveness of organ donation and to increase the number of publications informing and assisting the health professional in minimizing queues and improving quality of life of those who long for a chance of transplantation.


To study the customer perception of Bright Auto Plast Pvt Ltd. The study is confined to the automobile companies only. The sample size is chosen as 30. Convenience Sampling is used, and descriptive research is adopted. This study is mainly carried on to find the customer satisfaction level of Bright Auto Plast Pvt Ltd. The major factors that lead to customer satisfaction are the product, pricing, quality, and service. The study has found that the existing system in Bright Auto Plast is not adequate and can be modified accordingly to make it effective. Keywords-customer perception, business environment, product exposure, customer satisfaction manufacturers, retailers.


Photoacoustic devices, light irradiation section for irradiating light to the test and, with the receiver that converts the acoustic waves generated from the subject into an electrical signal, a and a processing unit that acquires image data by using the electric signals, the display control and a. The processing section, by using the electrical signal, the acquired the first image data for one by the image forming process of the first, and using the electrical signal, an image generating method and the image generation of the other second of the first It acquires image data of the second by the method. The display control section, wherein the image value of the difference image data between the image data and the second image data for a predetermined numerical value range is set as My in area the difference area, and distinguish the difference area and the other area and it displays the image data to the display unit.


The optoelectronic and photocatalytic properties of a number of semiconductor materials, including halide perovskites, have recently been found to be facet-dependent. While methylammonium lead iodide (CH3NH3PbI3) perovskite—an important material for energy applications—has shown facet-dependent electronic properties as well, most studies on CH3NH3PbI3 perovskite were performed on rhombo-dodecahedral (or rhombic) single crystals with the (2 0 0) and (1 1 2) facets exposed. In contrast, less is known about the electronic properties, including mixed conductivity behavior and possible in-plane anisotropy, of the (0 0 2) facet. Thus, we report a facile method for the growth of cuboid crystals of CH3NH3PbI3 perovskite with the (0 0 2) and (1 1 0) facets exposed. Two-terminal devices fabricated on the (0 0 2) facet demonstrate significantly improved charge transport and optoelectronic characteristics compared to those on the (2 0 0) facet of typical rhombic crystals, including: reduced ion migration, low dark current, and temporally-stable high photocurrents. These desirable characteristics of cuboid crystals are linked to their favorable growth conditions and preferred facet orientations. Our results provide a guidance for utilizing facets and crystal growth to achieve more efficient in-plane halide perovskite devices.


This paper presents the main trends in contraceptive use in North America from the sixties to the eighties focusing on Canadas geographic and cultural regions. The authors examine the changing contraceptive behavior of young at the beginning of their marital life and the recourse to sterilization at ever younger ages. (SUMMARY IN ENG) (EXCERPT)


This text examines the role of the State in advancing towards sustainable solutions for improving society. The author expands conventional views concerning the state and proposes looking beyond the traditional moulds, such as the omnipotent state, the overburdened state, or the minimal state. The book proposes new areas for development thinking to encourage innovation for the reform of the state. Topics addressed include: the role of social capital and culture in development; community participation in implementing public policies and programmes; and the characteristics of efficient public social management. The first section of the book is mainly devoted to general considerations about the state, whereas the second part reflects on key areas for rethinking with regard to the state of a specific continent, namely Latin America.


Small spheroidal particles suspended in a sheared viscous liquid are sometimes observed to take up slowly preferred orientations, relative to the motion of the undisturbed liquid, which are independent of the initial conditions of release. These obsevations cannot be accounted for by the solution, obtained by Jeffery (1922), of the linearized Navier-Stokes equations. It is shown in this paper that the effect of the inertia of the liquid is to alter slowly the orbit of the particle in accordance with Jeffery's hypothesis that the particle ultimately moves in such a way that the dissipation of energy is a minimum, but that this effect is orders of magnitude too small to account for any of the experimental observations. It is suggested that non-Newtonian properties of the liquid account for the observations. It is shown that the rate of orientation of a particle would then be independent of its size, and this prediction is verified experimentally. Other experimental evidence in support of this suggestion is also described. Some remarks are also made about the possible effect of collisions between the particles when more than one particle is present.


We investigate two registration methods for ultrasound image relying on the intensity-based similarity measure. In the first method intensity information is given by feature points which have been extracted by using Harris corner detector. The registration similarity measure is then defined as a cost-function - error cost function. In the latter method we use the same cost-function, but the uniqueness control and region correspondence are not uniform with the first method. Given this similarity measure, parametric ultrasound image registration is stated as a minimization issue. We even exploit the polynomial technique to transform the whole image dataset and estimate the sum of square error in the first measure. The result indicates that the two methods are robust and of the order of our requirements, but the latter measure outperforms the first one.


In order to find a new feed resource,some corn stalks were degraded by mixed enzymes and then co-fermentation was carried on these solid media.The results showed that the lignocellulose in stalks was evidently degraded 15 days later.More specifically,the content of lignin was reduced from 16.8% to 7.3%,and the initial content of cellulose was 27.2% while 13.4% was left after fermentation.As for hemicellulose,the figure was changed from 39.0% to 16.1%.Simultaneously,the content of protein and reducing sugar was increased 341% and 77%,respectively.All results showed that the nutrients of corn stalks were obviously increased and the corn stalks could be used as an important source of animal feed.


In this paper we proposed a cooperative spectrum sharing protocol with two-way decode-and-forward (DF) relaying. Specifically, two primary users A and B communicate with each other with the assistant of the secondary user S. The secondary user uses a fraction of power to forward the primary signals by acting as a DF relay. As a reward, the secondary user can gain spectrum access by using the remaining power to transmit its own signal. We study the optimization of power allocation such that the secondary transmission rate is maximized, while both of the primary users can achieve their target rates. Numerical simulation and comparisons are presented to illustrate the performance of the proposed spectrum sharing protocol, and both primary and secondary users can benefit from the proposed spectrum sharing protocol.


This article discusses the application of the structural guidance model for Mualaf (converts to Islam) in Banda Aceh, Indonesia, and the importance of strengthening education in Islamic values. The study was conducted using a qualitative research method with an analytical knife approach based on the pattern of Da'wah Fardiyah (interpersonal Da'wah). The findings revealed that the development of Mualaf in Banda Aceh is carried out by the Government of Banda Aceh, Islamic Shari'a service, Baitul Mal, and the Ministry of Religion (externally), while the internal guidance assistance is carried out by the Formula, which has now changed its name to the association for the study of the Persatuan Mualaf Aceh Sejahtera (PMAS). This study is important for promoting education in Islamic values and providing guidance and support for Mualaf in their journey towards becoming strong Moslems.


DOI: 10.14254/2071789X.2019/12-4/2 ABSTRACT. Dynamic development of the financial system has an increasing impact on the state and development of both national economies and the world economy. This problem is especially acute in developing countries and is predetermined by their economic, social and political development. It also requires constant evaluation and control over the level of their economic development in terms of financialization. Within the framework of the European Neighborhood Policy, the EU cooperates with the countries of the region to deepen and strengthen the relations and helps to increase the stability and sustainability of its Eastern neighbors. Ukraine, Moldova, and Georgia today are currently Associated Eastern Partnership members. Using the panel data for these countries over the period of 2007–2017, the relationship between economic growth and indicators of financialization of the economies was determined. To this end, a fixed-effect regression model, the statistical adequacy of which was confirmed by many indicators (significance levels, Rsquared coefficients, the Breusch-Pagan test), is also used. It was determined that employment, exports of goods and services, added value created in the industrial sector, the ratio of bank capital and reserves to total assets, the share of М1 monetary aggregate in GDP, deposit rate, and Gini index had a positive influence on economic growth of the countries in question.


Morphine is a strong opiate analgesic recommended as first-line treatment and gold standard to relieve moderate to severe pain or cancer-related pain which is untreatable with mild analgesic. This study was aimed to examine the use of morphine at Palliative and Pain Free Installation in Dr. Soetomo Teaching Hospital Surabaya. This study looked at the daily dose and frequency, the effect of morphine and other analgesics on patient's quality of life, and actual drug related problems. Stage III or IV breast cancer patient were included in this study. The retrospective study was done between March 1st – November 1st 2014. Questionnaire, followed by interview were carried out to explore the use of morphine for their pain. Medical records of all patient were looked up for additional data. Sampling was done by time limited sampling method. Results from this research showed that morphine dosing highly individualized to each patient. In addition, after administration morphine, patient's quality of life is increase. This is evidenced by : morphine decreasing the intensity of pain experienced by patient, improving patient's ability to move, increasing patient's quality of sleep and decreasing patient dependency level with others. Actual drug related problems that identified were breakthrough pain (80%), noncompliance (40%), ineffective dose (20%), sedation (100%), constipation (40%), nausea and vomiting (20%),and vertigo (10%).


This thesis introduces a method of converting CD to MP3 and storing it to U-disk on the DVD system.This design makes use of the play of the DVD system to get PCM information from CD,converting it to MP3 with the DVD HW decoder,and transmitting it to the U-disk with USB interface.


Observations are reported indicating that CO2 laser radiation induces the appearance of strong primary fluorescence in the tissues surrounding the incidence zone of the beam. The characteristics of this emission were studied by means of cytofluorometric techniques on rat muscles and compared with the fluorescence obtained by a heating procedure or by storage of tissue slices.


(IV), b.p. 136•K/3mm, ƒÀ-hydroxy-ƒ¿, ƒ¿, ƒÀ-trimethyl-ƒÂ-valerolactone (V), b.p. 145-147•K/3mm, and ƒ¿-n-butyl-ƒÀ-hydroxy-ƒÀ-methyl-ƒÂ-valerolactone (VI),5) b.p. 151-155•K/ lmm. The latter three are new compounds which were prepared by the method almost similar to that for II, and their structures were confirmed by microanalyse and infrared spectra. Each of the six homologs did not show activity as a


Microwave Imager Combined Active and Passive (MICAP), which is a package of active and passive microwave instruments including L/C/K-band radiometers and L-band scatterometer, has been approved to be taken onbord the Chinese Ocean Salinity Mission. The L-band one-dimensional synthetic aperture radiometer (L-Rad) is the key part of MICAP to measure sea surface salinity (SSS). Since radio frequency interference (RFI) is reported as a serious threat to L-band radiometry, the RFI detection and mitigation techniques must be carefully designed before launch. However, these techniques need to be developed based on the knowledge of how RFI affects complex correlation, visibility function, and reconstructed brightness temperature. This paper presents a time-domain signal modeling method for the simulation of interferometric measurement under RFI's presences, and a simulation system for L-Rad is established accordingly. Several RFI cases are simulated with different RFI types, parameters, and positions; and the RFI characteristics upon L-Rad's measurement are discussed. The proposed simulation system will be further dedicated to the design of RFI processing strategy onboard MICAP.


1. I NTRODUCT I ON For many years biologists have been interested in the frequently observed phenomenon that a large number of species can continue to occur within a relatively small area for a long time. It is only during the last ten years that werkers from other disciplines have also been actively engaged in this question, which has been much to the benefit of the developed theories. GRUBB (1977) very recently wrote a comprehensive review on the mechanisms that may cause species-richness in plant communities, so we can confine oursel ves to the following very simple scheme. In trying to explain how species can coexist two main groups of suppositions can be distinguished : (1) suppositions associated with a heterogeneous environment, and (2) those based on a homogeneous environment. For the heterogeneous environment a distinction can be made between theories which consider: species that cannot grow in each other's micro-habitat, and species that can grow in each other's micro-habitat but, nevertheless exclude each other because each species has the greatest competitive ability in its own micro-habitat. In essence these "mixtures" consist of many micro-monocultures, therefore the term "apparent coexistence" is preferred here. This type of coexistence has attracted much attention already (see HARPER 1961; THOMAS & DALE 1976; HICKMAN 1977; GRUBB 1977; WERNER & PLATT 1977). For the homogeneous environment, some functional niche differentiation in the sense of ELTON (1927) must be supposed to occur. In thi~ case the theories depend on species being limited by : one or more factors in different periods, and/or different factors simultaneously. In this sort of environment mixtures are involved in which "true coexistence" may occur. Within the scope of this paper, we shall only treat this functional niche differentiation within a homogeneous environment. In our opinion an ecological stabilizing mechanism must underly the natural species-richness, which makes that an incidental decrease of the population density is followed up by an increase in reproductive rate. It is very unlikely that species-richness is maintained by accidental events, like climatic fluctuations, which cause changes in the competitive relations between the populations. In experimental research on niche differentiation it may be very


The PC device was exposed to the short wave ultraviolet radiation of wave engths 1849 and 2537. The results show that the detectivity and tesponsivity of the device are improved dramatically.


In recent years, printed wiring board (PWB) is used in most of electronic products, such as office automation apparatus and home electronics. As these electronic products become smaller in size and higher in function, it has been required for the packaging density of PWB to be improved. So, it is necessary that the hole is made small in drilling and that the pattern is made fine on a circuit. Specially, the small diameter drilling in PWB is one of the important processes in forming circuit, because the drilled hole quality is required for improving the reliability of through-hole plating. Consequently, in order to develop the reliability of smaller diameter drilling in PWB, it was needed to establish a new method to grasp the relation between the drilled hole quality and cutting condition. So, the picture processing method was applied to observe the internal damage by using transmitted light through GFRP. An attention was paid to the relation between the internal damage and surface roughness of the hole, and the relation between the drilled hole quality and internal damage at various drilling conditions was examined. The drilled hole quality has been made clear by this method.


Abstract The activity of pyruvate carboxylase in rat liver mitochondria was estimated by measuring the 14CO2 incorporation in the presence of pyruvate, adenosine triphosphate, magnesium, and inorganic phosphate. Malate, fumarate, and citrate were shown to be the main radioactive products. When glutamate was added to the system, radioactive aspartate was also formed. Oxalacetate accumulated in only minute amounts; it could not be trapped by enzymatic reactions outside the mitochondria. The amount of radioactive products was decreased by addition of creatine, and nearly abolished by glucose, when these were used as phosphoryl acceptors. About 40% of the incorporated 14CO2 in malate and aspartate was found in carbon 1 of these compounds, demonstrating that a high degree of randomization of the label had occurred. Pyruvate carboxylation was inhibited by ADP. The inhibition could be overcome by addition of inorganic phosphate which removed ADP by oxidative phosphorylation. Excess ATP did not relieve the inhibition. Addition of caprylate to the system caused a strong inhibition of pyruvate decarboxylation and promoted the formation of radioactive malate and fumarate, whereas the accumulation of the other radioactive compounds was decreased. The data, together with previous information, indicate that phosphoenolpyruvate is synthesized from pyruvate by a pathway involving pyruvate carboxylation and formation of aspartate and malate inside the mitochondria, diffusion of these compounds into the cytosol, and their conversion to phosphoenolpyruvate via oxalacetate. The regulation of this pathway is discussed and a hypothesis as to how fatty acids could control gluconeogenesis is outlined.


Android handset market took a battering in March when an unknown group of hackers took around 50 Android apps, infected them with the DroidDream malware, and then uploaded them online for handset users to download. DroidDream malware is capable of rooting the smartphone, harvesting data, and/or opening a backdoor on the device. The malware also attempts to record IMEI and IMSI numbers, which are used to identify mobile phones, and upload the data to an external website. The Information Security Forum (ISF) suggests that around 260,000 Android handset users were affected by the DroidDream infection. The article discusses how alert people are to the security dangers of the smartphone app.


Gut microbiota in the gastrointestinal tract plays an essential role in health and diseases through the regulation of immune homeostasis. There is growing evidence that dysbiosis of gut microbiota has been associated with a variety of neuropsychi-atric disorders including major depressive disorder (MDD). 1 Furthermore, microbe-derived compounds such as short-chain fatty acids, tryptophan metabolites, D-amino acids, and bile acids might play a role in the pathological conditions of psychi-atric disorders via the gut – microbiota – brain axis. 1 Bile acids are a large family of molecules that have a steroidal structure. Primary bile acids such as cholic acid and chenodeoxycholic acid are synthesized in the liver from choles-terol, and secondary bile acids such as deoxycholic acid and lithocholic acid are prepared by bacterial actions in the intestine. Bile acids are known to be a major regulator of the gut microbiota. Altered levels of bile acids by dysbiosis of gut microbiota are associated with systemic in fl ammation. Collectively, it is suggested that the bile acid – gut – microbiota axis plays a role in health and diseases through the regulation of the immune system. 2 In this issue, Sun et al . 3 reported the analysis of gut microbiota and blood levels of bile acids in fi rst-episode, medication-free patients with MDD ( n = 31), and age- and sex-matched healthy controls ( n = 29). The alpha-diversity (for microbiome diversity) and beta-diversity (similarity or dissimilarity) were signi fi cantly different between the two groups. LEfSe (Linear discriminant analysis effect the Bacteroides , Ruminococcus , Clostridum , Barnesiella , and enriched the controls, the the patients MDD. Blood levels (23-nordeoxycholic in


42 Differences in perspective and motivation between scientists and managers are well known (e.g., Huenneke 1995; Bradshaw and Borchers 2000; Wilson and Lantz 2000), and may cause each to not consider the context, needs, and constraints of the other. For example, natural resource scientists may not fully understand the philosophical and legal basis, or policies, that are used to manage wilderness, nor the impacts their activities may cause to a wide range of social and experiential values in wilderness (Underwood 1995). Commenting on these problems, Franklin (1987) suggested that "scientists can be arrogant and cryptic in their relations with managers and ... some may feel that research gives them a license to do whatever they please." Similarly, wilderness managers may Peter Landres Judy Alderson David J. Parsons


A new coding scheme for the distributed source coding problem for general discrete memoryless sources is presented. The scheme involves a two-layered coding strategy, the first layer code is of constant finite block-length whereas the second layer contains codes of block-length approaching infinity. It is argued that small block-length codes preserve correlations between sources more efficiently, while suffering rate-loss in a point-to-point compression perspective. Consequently, there is a sweet-spot for the length of the code. An achievable rate-distortion region is characterized using single-letter distributions. It is shown that this region strictly contains previous known achievable rate-distortion regions for the distributed source coding problem.


By taking the Von Karman type of random crack monoclinic media as an example,a series of cross-hole seismic records were simulated,which described the background P-wave velocity,fracture azimuth,fracture density with the standard deviation of a continuous change,and the correlation coefficients were used to study the model of cross-hole seismic records of the linear correlation,imaging degree. The results show that the random monoclinic medium forward modeling can be used to a certain extent to approximate the cross-hole time-lapse seismic,with the increasing of standard deviation,correlation coefficient subsequently reduces,the corresponding linear correlation of seismic records,imaging degree decrease with it.


A new process of oxidation of cycloalkanone acetals under the action of in situ generated performic acid has been found. The main products of the reaction are α, ω-dicarboxylic acids obtained with the yield up to 77% depending on the size of acetals ring. The process has been explored and optimized on the example of the dodecanedioic acid synthesis (a valuable industrial product).


In the last twenty years, the development of modern information and communication technologies, as well as the enlarging of their use have created enormous expectations and possibilities on school teaching. Related to the Environmental Education, the use of modern information and communication technologies represents an advance, since the integration of information technology and multimedia allows the sensitive and knowledge of different environments and their specific problems, by the view of students, as far as they can be. Through of the conception of Environmental Education linked to the complexity pedagogy, this article looked for argue the potentiality of work with principles of Environmental Education on support digital, using images, texts and sounds, implemented by hypermedia, no sequential technology, which information are accessed in associative way.


Offering a new perspective on global trade relations during the Age of Exploration, "Portugal, Jesuits, and Japan" explores the relationships between Portuguese merchants, Jesuits, and the Japanese during the nanban period (1543-1614). Created to accompany an exhibit of the same name at the McMullen Museum of Art, this catalogue is richly illustrated with full-page images of Japanese art and artifacts of the period, from porcelain objects to furniture and weaponry. Victoria Weston has assembled a collection of eight essays by internationally renowned scholars from a variety of fields, which when taken as a whole create a comprehensive study of international relations during the period on a political, cultural, and spiritual level. The texts reflect upon a broad range of topics, from commercial contacts between shoguns and Iberian governments to close readings of the cultural implications of images depicted in nanban art. This volume explores the interactions between these three discrete groups through historical research, and the technological, political, and theological influence the West had upon the East and vice versa.


The adoption of blockchain technology (BCT) in a supply chain holds great potential for textile industries by executing transactions among stakeholders in a most reliable and verifiable way. Textile industries in emerging economies, like Pakistan, confront severe economic pressures and uncertain environment and strive to achieve sustainable supply chain excellence through blockchain implementation. This study is an initiative to analyze the key barriers in adopting BCT-related practices within the textile industry. This study conducts an extensive review of the literature using fuzzy Delphi approach for finalizing the barriers and applied fuzzy analytical hierarchy process (AHP) for prioritizing the barriers under uncertain environment. Based on the extensive review of the literature and panel discussions with experts, a total of five main barriers and 21 sub-barriers were categorized and ranked. The results and findings prioritize technological and system-related barriers (TSB) first, and human resources and R&D (HRB) barriers second among the other barrier dimensions. This paper highlights the need for an inclusive understanding of the various technological, environmental, and socio-economic perspectives to create blockchain applications that work for the textile sector. This study's key findings and policy guidelines can assist concerned stakeholders in making strategic decisions for adopting BCT within the textile supply chain. The managerial implications are provided for the industrial decision-makers and policymakers aiming to integrate BCT into the supply chain processes. Presently, there exists no research in the context of Pakistan that highlights the challenges faced during the adoption of BCT in the supply chain. For this purpose, an approach in the form of an integrated model based on fuzzy set theory is developed. Finally, the robustness of the proposed model is checked through sensitivity analysis.


A new flowing liquid Li limiter (FLiLi) based on the concept of a thin flowing film has been successfully designed and tested in the EAST device in 2014. A bright Li radiative mantle at the plasma edge was observed during discharges using FLiLi, resulting from passive Li injection and transport in the scrape-off layer (SOL) plasma. Li particle efflux from the FLiLi surface into the plasma was estimated at  >5  ×  1020 atom s−1, due to surface evaporation and sputtering, and accompanied with a few small Li droplets ~1 mm diameter that were ejected from FLiLi. The Li efflux from FLiLi was ionized by the SOL plasma and formed a Li radiation band that originated from the FLiLi surface, and then spread toroidally by SOL plasma flow. The Li radiative mantle appeared to partly isolate the plasma from the wall, reducing impurity release from the wall materials, and possibly leading to a modest improvement in confinement. In addition, strong Li radiation reduced the particle and heat fluxes impacting onto the divertor plate, with certain similarities to heat flux reduction and detachment onset via low-Z impurity injection.


In this paper; we propose a filter-and-refine string join algorithm. While the filtering phase can rapidly prune away strings that are not joinable, the refinement phase employs a comprehensive algorithm to remove the remaining false alarms. The efficiency of the proposed scheme lies in the use of the precedence count matrix (PCM) for computing the edit distance between two sequences. With PCM, the complexity of sequence comparison is a constant time. We also evaluated the proposed sequence join algorithm, and our study shows that it outperforms the known techniques.


We present an algorithm for the simultaneous measurement of a pulse time-of-arrival (TOA) and dispersion measure (DM) from folded wideband pulsar data. We extend the prescription from Taylor's 1992 work to accommodate a general two-dimensional template "portrait," the alignment of which can be used to measure a pulse phase and DM. We show that there is a dedispersion reference frequency that removes the covariance between these two quantities and note that the recovered pulse profile scaling amplitudes can provide useful information. We experiment with pulse modeling by using a Gaussian-component scheme that allows for independent component evolution with frequency, a "fiducial component," and the inclusion of scattering. We showcase the algorithm using our publicly available code on three years of wideband data from the bright millisecond pulsar J1824−2452A (M28A) from the Green Bank Telescope, and a suite of Monte Carlo analyses validates the algorithm. By using a simple model portrait of M28A, we obtain DM trends comparable to those measured by more standard methods, with improved TOA and DM precisions by factors of a few. Measurements from our algorithm will yield precisions at least as good as those from traditional techniques, but is prone to fewer systematic effects and is without ad hoc parameters. A broad application of this new method for dispersion measure tracking with modern large-bandwidth observing systems should improve the timing residuals for pulsar timing array experiments, such as the North American Nanohertz Observatory for Gravitational Waves.


A fundamental question underlying the literature on partial identification is: what can we learn about parameters that are relevant for policy but not necessarily point-identified by the exogenous variation we observe? This paper provides an answer in terms of sharp, closed-form characterizations and bounds for the latent index selection model, which defines a large class of policy-relevant treatment effects via its marginal treatment effect (MTE) function [Heckman and Vytlacil (1999,2005), Vytlacil (2002)]. The sharp bounds use the full content of identified marginal distributions, and closed-form expressions rely on the theory of stochastic orders. The proposed methods also make it possible to sharply incorporate new auxiliary assumptions on distributions into the latent index selection framework. Empirically, I apply the methods to study the effects of Medicaid on emergency room utilization in the Oregon Health Insurance Experiment, showing that the predictions from extrapolations based on a distribution assumption (rank similarity) differ substantively and consistently from existing extrapolations based on a parametric mean assumption (linearity). This underscores the value of utilizing the model's full empirical content.


Philip Ethington's ambitious paper rightly emphasizes the inextricable connection of time and space, making the point that without a sense of space, historians cannot understand their key concern of time. Yet he underplays the importance of experience and more importantly his framing of issues freezes time in space. He emphasizes time and being, but history's concern is being in time, doing in time. The challenge of what he offers is how to give it narrative force and enrich its spatial connections, with one possibility being Actor – Network Theory.


The note establishes a new weak mean ergodic theorem (Theorem A) for 1-cocycles associated to weakly mixing representations of amenable groups.


Objective This research was designed to analyze the epidemiological characteristics of syphilis in Pingxiang city, study the corresponding changes in Pingxiang city, evaluate the incidence factors for syphilis, in order to provide scientific basis for future prevention and control. Methods The syphilis outbreak database for Pingxiang city from 2004 to 2012 was established using Excel software, and the epidemiological characteristics were analyzed. Results From 2004 to 2012, 8913 cases of syphilis were reported in Pingxiang city. The reported incidence rate rose from 20.68/lakh in 2004 to 71.71/lakh in 2012, and the incidence rate showed an upward trend. The average annual incidence growth rate for syphilis was 16.82%, while the phase one and phase two syphilis showed a downward trend. The increase in incidence growth rate was mainly due to recessive latent syphilis, which showed an average annual incidence growth rate of 59.43%. The composition of latent syphilis increased year by year, and male were slightly outnumbered by female. The male to female ratio was 1: 1.14. Most reported cases were among age group of 30 to 39-year-olds. Major infection crowds were housekeeping and housework population, unemployed and farmers. Conclusion According to the epidemiological characteristics of syphilis in Pingxiang city, effective interventions should be taken to control syphilis.


Most secure solutions like cryptography are software based and they are designed to mainly deal with the outside attacks for traditional networks, but such soft security is hard to be implemented in wireless sensor networks to counter the inside attacks from internal malicious nodes. To address this issue, reputation has been introduced to tackle the inside malicious nodes. Reputation is essentially a stimulating mechanism for nodes' cooperation and is employed to detect node misbehaviors and improve the trust-worthiness between individual nodes. Among the reputation models, binomial distribution based reputation has many advantages such as light weight and ease of implementation in resource-constraint sensor nodes, and accordingly researchers have proposed many insightful related methods. However, some of them either directly use the modelling results, apply the models through simple modifications, or only use the required components while ignoring the others as an integral part of the whole model, this topic still lacks a comprehensive and systematical review. Thus the motivation of this study is to provide a thorough survey concerning each detailed functional components of binomial distribution based reputation for wireless sensor networks. In addition, based on the survey results, we also argue some open research problems and suggest the directions that are worth future efforts. We believe that this study is helpful to better understanding the reputation modeling mechanism and its components for wireless sensor networks, and can further attract more related future studies.

http://itiis.org/digital-library/manuscript/file/25025/TIIS Vol 15, No 10-17.pdf


In the case of Huai'an city,this paper examines urban spatial expansion and external morphology evolution.GIS approaches are used to analyze and data sources from remote sensing images and urban built-up area status map.There are some findings as follows: first,urban spatial expansion is characterized by phase and anisotropy.Before the year of 1965,urban space grows slowly,mainly expanding to north and northwest direction.From the year of 1979 to 1995,the urban space grows by high-speed,and the dominant direction turns to the northwest and southwest.Since the year of 1995,urban space grows faster than before and the dominant expanding orientation is east and southeast.Second,Urban spatial expansion model can be summarized as three types,including the type of slow expansion by wing,the type of circle progressive expanding and the type of rapid expansion by wing.Third,the paper calculates the compact index,fractal dimension and shape index,finding that the urban spatial form of Huai'an city is relatively stable.Moreover,the urban form changes from star shape to block shape,and obvious tends to round.Last,the study also finds that the characteristics of stage and anisotropy have significant effects on the evolution of urban external morphology.


Any investigations on the subject of atmospheric absorption are of such importance in the study of meteorology, that we have deemed it advisable to present a preliminary notice of certain results obtained by us, without waiting to present a more detailed account which will be communicated at a future date. From 1874, when one of us commenced photographing the spectrum in the above region, till more than a year ago, the extremely various manners in which the absorptions took place caused considerable perplexity as to their origin, and it was only after we had completed our paper on the absorption of certain liquids, that a clue to the phenomena was apparently found. Since that time we have carefully watched the spectrum in relation to atmospheric moisture, and we think that more than a year's observations in London, when taken in connexion with a month's work, at an altitude of 8,500 feet on the Riffel, justify the conclusions we now lay before the Society. A study of the map of the infra-red region of the solar spectrum, and more especially a new and much more complete one, which is being prepared for presentation to the Royal Society by one of us, shows that the spectrum in this part is traversed by absorption lines of varying intensity. Besides these linear absorptions, photographs taken on days of different atmospheric conditions, show banded absorptions superposed over them. These latter are step by step absorptions increasing in intensity as they approach the limit of the spectrum at the least refrangible end. In the annexed diagram, fig. 4 shows the general appearance of this region up to λ 10,000 on a fairly dry day : the banded absorption is small, taking, place principally between λ 9420 and λ 9800 : a trace of absorption is also visible between λ 8330 and λ 9420. On a cold day, with a north-easterly wind blowing, and also at a high altitude on a dry day, these absorptions nearly if not quite disappear. If we examine photographs taken when the air is nearly saturated with moisture (in some form or another) we have a spectrum like fig. 1. Except with very prolonged exposure no trace of a spectrum below λ 8330 can be photographed. Fig. 2 shows the absorption bands, where there is a difference of about 3° between the wet and dry bulb, the latter standing at about 50°. It will be noticed that the spectrum extends to the limit of about λ 9420, when total absorption steps in and blocks out the rest of the spectrum. Fig. 3 shows the spectrum where the difference between the wet and the dry bulb is about 6°. Figs. 5 and 6 show the absorption of thicknesses of 1 foot and 3 inches of water respectively, where the source of light gives a continuous spectrum ; ⅛ inch water merely shows the absorption bands below 9420. It will be seen that there is an accurate coincidence between these " water bands" and the absorption bands seen in the solar spectrum, and hence we cannot but assume that there is a connexion one with the other. In fact, on a dry day it is only necessary to place varying thicknesses of water before the slit of the spectroscope and to photograph the solar spectrum through them, in order to reproduce the phenomena observed on days in which there is more or less moisture present in the atmosphere. It is quite easy to deduce the moisture present in atmosphere at certain temperatures by a study of the photographs. There does appear a difference, however, in the intensity of the banded absorptions in hot weather and in cold about up to 50°. In the former they are less marked when the degree of saturation and the length of atmosphere traversed are the same as in the latter.


We consider the complex eigenvalues of the induced spherical Ginibre ensemble with symplectic symmetry and establish the local universality of these point processes along the real axis. We derive scaling limits of all correlation functions at regular points both in the strong and weak non-unitary regimes as well as at the origin having spectral singularity. A key ingredient of our proof is a derivation of a differential equation satisfied by the correlation kernels of the associated Pfaffian point processes, thereby allowing us to perform asymptotic analysis.


In 3D face recognition systems, 3D facial shape information plays an important role. Various shape representations have been proposed in the literature. The most popular techniques are based on point clouds, surface normals, facial profiles, and statistical analysis of depth images. The contribution of the presented work can be divided into two parts. In the first part, we have developed face classifiers which uses these popular techniques. A comprehensive comparison of these representation methods are given using 3D RMA dataset. Experimental results show the linear discriminant analysisbased representation of depth images and point cloud representations are the best ones. In the second part of the paper, two different multiple-classifier architectures are developed which fuse individual shape-based face recognizers in a parallel and a serial fashion at the decision level. It is shown that a significant performance improvement is possible when using rank-based decision fusion in ensemble methods.


Infertility is a distressing condition affecting 60-80 million couples all over the world. Infertility can be due to male factor, female factor or a combination of both of them. The male factor accounts for 40-50% of infertility and affects approximately 7% of all men. This paper covers the various etiologies attributing to male infertility, assessment of male factor and treatment options made available through years of research. The modifiable risk factors like obesity, smoking, alcohol intake and cell phone use should be looked for and addressed. Environmental factors like ionising radiations, pesticides and heavy metals should be avoided. The correctable causes should be identified. Antioxidants help in reducing oxidative stress and improving semen parameters. Surgical retrieval of sperms is an important technique in males with azoospermia and severe oligo asthenospermia.


Under an Administrative Consent Order between a Group of PRPs (the Group) and the United States Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA), the Group was required to install a pump and treat system to mitigate ongoing chemical discharges to a stream. The site, comprised of approximately 8 acres located largely within the flood plain of a local tributary to the Chesapeake Bay, was used as a solvent recovery facility from the 1960s through the 1980s. The facility managed large numbers of drums and tanks for the storage and processing of solvents. Solvents were released to the subsurface and site studies show they leached into the soil, ground-water, and stream sediments resulting in three roughly co-equal sources of mass contribution to surface water in the


A maxillary canine and premolar showed a 3.0- to 4.0-mm-deep and 3.0- to 4.0-mm-wide recession defect with 2.0- to 3.0-mm zone of attached gingiva. The denuded root surfaces were covered with nonkeratinized alveolar mucosa in a slightly modified bridge flap technique. The coronal displacement of a nonkeratinized alveolar mucosal flap onto a bed of collagenous gingival connective tissue resulted in the development of keratinized epithelium in the previously nonkeratinized mucosa. This was caused by the inductive stimuli of the underlying tissue and observed in the 6-month specimen. The alveolar mucosa displayed its transformed epithelial structural pattern only in segments, achieving full differentiation of its basal complex over a 10-year period, as demonstrated clinically and histologically.


This article offers a re-evaluation of the traditional road safety assumptions as to the causes of death and injury in accidents, namely, the use of mobile and cellular phones and exceeding the speed limit. Instead, the author insists that carelessness, lack of judgment, and inattention are more dangerous factors. Cited is a 2006 survey that utilized video monitoring of 70 research participants driving their cars and engaging in various driving behaviors. As a majority of driving behavior is conducted in the preconscious mind, the highest risk situations are those where the driver takes his or her eyes away from the roadway. The author contends that given the constraints, the highest risk behaviors include reaching, leaning, manipulating controls, eating or drinking, conversing, external distractions, manipulating audio controls, phone related, and smoking (in descending order of severity). Keywords: Driver distraction; Language: en


Using two-dimensional radiation hydrodynamic simulations, we investigate origin of the ultra fast outflows (UFOs) that are often observed in luminous active galactic nuclei (AGNs). We found that the radiation force due to the spectral lines generates strong winds (line-driven disk winds) that are launched from the inner region of accretion disks (~30 Schwarzschild radii). A wide range of black hole masses ($M_{\rm BH}$) and Eddington ratios ($\varepsilon$) was investigated to study conditions for causing the line-driven winds. For $M_{\rm BH} = 10^6-10^9 M_\odot$ and $\varepsilon = 0.1-0.7$, funnel-shaped disk winds appear, in which dense matter is accelerated outward with an opening angle of 70-80 deg and with 10% of the light speed. If we observe the wind along its direction, the velocity, the column density, and the ionization state are consistent with those of the observed UFOs. As long as the obscuration by the torus does not affect the observations of X-ray bands, the UFOs could be statistically observed in about 13-28% of the luminous AGNs, which is not inconsistent with the observed ratio (~40%). We also found that the results are insensitive to the X-ray luminosity and the density of the disk surface. Thus, we can conclude that the UFOs could exist in any luminous AGNs, such as narrow-line Seyfert 1s (NLS1s) and quasars with $\varepsilon > 0.1$, in which fast line-driven winds are associated.


An erbium-ytterbium co-doped phosphate glass waveguide amplifier, fabricated by two-step ion-exchange, is presented. The performance of the amplifiers are investigated in viewpoints of net gain, pump power, and noise figure. The waveguide has propagation loss of 0.7 ㏈/㎝ including insertion loss at 1.304 ㎛. At a signal wavelength of 1.534 ㎛, a high net gain of 12.8 ㏈ and low noise figure of less than 3.9 ㏈ are archived in a 4 cm long waveguide when injected by 140 ㎽ of LD pump at 0.98 ㎛ in single pass configuration.


Percutaneous vertebroplasty is a common clinical procedure to treat vertebral compression fractures and osteoporotic vertebral bodies. However, this operation technique is accompanied by different complications due to lack of knowledge about the complicated behaviour of bone cement within the human body. To contribute to a better understanding of the processes that take place inside the body during a vertebroplasty, a detailed model of the thermomechanical behaviour of acrylic bone cement has been developed. All important effects are covered, that influence the behaviour of acrylic bone cement during the injection in a human vertebral body. Implemented in the opensource CFD‐code OpenFOAM®, first results show that this comprehensive simulation of the minimal invasive injection is capable to accurately predict the cement distribution and temperature field of acrylic bone cement inside the vertebral body. (© 2012 Wiley‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)


In the wake of the global financial crisis of 2008, commentators and scholars are aware of liquidity providers' important roles in preventing another catastrophic systemic risk in the financial industry. Sophisticated Institutional Lenders ("SILs"), functioning as liquidity gatekeepers, can guard and control the gate through which credit flows into debtors' business operation, and later on, flows out through the gate when the credit has served its purpose. That is to say, a lender-gatekeeper is able to decide ex ante whether the inflow of credit is allowable, and monitor ex post whether misconduct or other unlawful activity is active to jeopardize the smooth outflow of credit and its accompanying interest gains. The author believes that potential fraudulent activity and illegal misconduct can be better detected and deterred if a set of duties to blow the whistle, and to take corrective action, is imposed on SILs. Part I of this paper will explore the existing legal terminologies, and propose an operational definition of SILs. That definition will be used to develop a set of gatekeeper duties. Part II will explore classical and modern gatekeeper theory, and make out a case for why it is justifiable and desirable to allocate gatekeeper roles to SILs. Finally, Part III will develop an outline of the essential contents of SILs' gatekeeper duties, and propose the general means of ensuring their compliance with those duties.