The Cellular Automata(CA) model for the problem by applying the CAtheory and a min-cut partitioning algorithm based on the model for bisecting weighted hypergraph are proposed.In the model,the vertex of hypergraph can be considered as the cell,the vertices of adjacent hypergraph are denoted by the CA-neighborhoods and each cell's state represents the partitioning which the corresponded vertex belongs to.Furthermore,the two-dimensional auxiliary array is designed for counting the vertices of each hypergraph in different partitions.The rapid method of calculating the cell's gain and the cut's size are proposed to avoid traversing each vertex of hypergraph.Experimental results show that the algorithm not only can find the better partitioning of weighted hypergraph than the move-based method and graph parti-tioning algorithm,but also can reduce the time complexity and the space complexity.


Objective To constitute the technique of real-time fluorenscent quantitative PCR for early diagnosis infection of human cytomegalovirus in atherosclerosis.Methods FQ-PCR was used to quantify HCMV-DNA of 89 AS serums defined as grade 2~4 in clinic.And ELISA was used to test anti-HCMV.Results If 80 copies/ml was regarded as the standerd,the positive rate of 89 AS serums HCMV-DNA was 74.2%.The positive rate of anti-CMV was 39.3%.Contrast to normal control group(the positive rate is 12%),it had significant difference(P0.05).Conclusion As early and major method in clinic,the technique of real-time fluorenscent quantitative PCR is found for detecting IE gene of human cytomegalovirus in atherosclerosis.


Numerous methods exist for quantifying body composition and body fat mass in companion animals. In a clinical setting, the most widely accepted and practical method of body condition evaluation is condition scoring using visual assessment and palpation (1). All such systems attempt to partition a body composition continuum into a finite number of categories. Currently, 3 main systems exist, all of which use similar visual and palpable characteristics, but which differ by the number of integer categories within the scoring system (e.g., 5 points, 6 points, and 9 points) (2–8). The most widely accepted system is the 9-integer scale system, which has previously been shown to correlate well with body fat mass determined by dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA) (2–4). To aid decision making, a series of animal silhouettes are also provided that illustrate the visual characteristics for a typical (e.g., Labrador morphology) dog and cat. Scores determined by different operators have also been shown to correlate well (2–4), although a degree of expertise is required, rendering this system less accessible to untrained pet owners. S.H.A.P.E (Size, Health And Physical Evaluation) is a new algorithm-based system that uses similar visual and palpable characteristics as existing scoring systems (see http://www.petslimmers.com/shape.htm). A series of questions are followed that direct the operator to examine the animal in a sequential fashion. The questions instruct the operator to perform examinations that will determine the presence and amount of subcutaneous fat (over the ribcage and spine, etc.), and the amount of abdominal fat (by determining the presence and degree of abdominal tuck). Ultimately, 1 of 7 categories of body condition is chosen, each of which is assigned an alphabetical character from A (underweight) to G (obese). Letters were chosen for this new system to avoid confusion with current body condition score systems. This approach is designed to minimize interoperator variability and expertise required, allowing owners to evaluate their animals in the home and consult the veterinarian accordingly. The aim of the current study was to assess the performance of the algorithm system in predicting body composition in dogs and cats, and to acquire preliminary data on how the system performed in the hands of both experienced and inexperienced operators.


Abstract To identify the associations between different genotypes of TLR9 -1486T/C (rs187084) with gastric cancer patients and reveal their relation to Helicobacter pylori virulence genes (cagA, sodB, hsp60 and vacA). Patients with gastric cancer were recruited to our study, diagnosed both endoscopically and histopathologically. H. pylori were isolated from gastric samples by culture and PCR amplification of the glmM gene. Virulence genes cagA, sodB, hsp60, and vacA were detected by multiplex PCR. Blood samples were used for genotyping of TLR9 -1486T/C (rs187084) by PCR-RFLP. Out of 132 patients with gastric cancer, 106 (80.3%) were positive for H. pylori. A similar number of healthy participants was recruited as controls. The prevalence of cagA, sodB, hsp60, and vacA genes among H. pylori was 90.6%, 70.8%, 83.0%, and 95.3%, respectively. The vacA gene alleles had a prevalence of 95.3% for vacAs1/s2, 52.8% for vacAm1, and 42.5% for vacAm2. The CC genotype of TLR9 -1486T/C had a significantly higher frequency in gastric cancer patients when compared to healthy participants (p = 0.045). Furthermore, the CC genotype demonstrated a significant association with H. pylori strains carrying sodB, hsp60, and vacAm1 virulence genes (p = 0.021, p = 0.049, and p = 0.048 respectively). Patients with CC genotype of TLR9 -1486T/C (rs187084) might be at higher risk for the development of gastric cancer, and its co-existence with H. pylori strains carrying sodB, hsp60, or vacAm1 virulence genes might have a synergistic effect in the development of gastric cancer. Further studies on a wider scale are recommended.


This report summarizes the major results of a 120 mm caliber Double Pulse Motor (DPM) development and testing program conducted at Co. Bayern-Chemie/Protac, Germany. The design of the rocket motor was kept relatively simple in order to be able to concentrate efforts on DPM testing and the functional proof of critical motor components such as Pulse Separation Device (PSD), internal thermal insulation of the Pulse 1 motor, and nozzle-throat material. A test series of two singleand four double-pulse test-firings was conducted with pulse separation times of 1 s and 30 s, and motor soak-temperatures ranging from ° 30...C to +65...C. All conducted test firings have been successful, without any failure, and highly repeatable in terms of motor and component performance. The PSD with consumable Aluminum burst-diaphragm did not only satisfy the requirement of being a hotgas pressure seal during pulse 1 operation, but also worked reliably during pulse 2 pressurization and subsequent diaphragm burst. Most importantly, the consumption of the open Aluminum diaphragm by the pulse 2 hot gases did not lead to the formation of ejecta. Also, the pulse 1 insulation and nozzle throat material were found to withstand the first thermal loading of pulse 1, the intermediate cool-down phase, and the second thermal loading during pulse 2 operation.


Selection of a wavelet for a given signal such that the error of the discrete wavelet representation up to a given scale is minimized is investigated. Lower and upper bounds are derived for the error of the Jth resolution f/sub j/ of f with respect to f itself when the Fourier spectrum of f is mostly concentrated in -2/sup j/ pi , 2/sup j/ pi . The lower and upper bounds only differ from each other by a positive constant multiple. Based on the error bounds, the cost function is chosen as the upper bound with quadratic-form of unknown coefficients. The optimal coefficients of the Daubechies wavelets are formulated as solutions of certain quadratic equations which depend on the signal and J. Optimal wavelets for the signal-independent case are considered.<<ETX>>


Greenland Halibut (Reinhardtius hippoglossoides) is a large circumpolar, right-eyed flounder that supports several international fisheries. Age estimates for this stock have customarily been obtained by counting annuli on the surface of whole otoliths but a matched pair comparison indicated that ages estimated from whole and thin-sectioned otoliths were the same up until age 9 (∼60 cm), after which whole otoliths underestimated the true age of the fish by up to 60% and 18 years. Bomb radiocarbon analyses on otolith cores from thin sections were similar to expectations based on the Greenland Halibut reference chronology, indicating that on average, thin sections gave an accurate age for fish in the 57–108 cm TL range. Growth curves estimated using thin-sectioned otoliths indicated that Greenland Halibut in this region are slower growing and longer lived than was previously thought. A comparison of growth parameters with other populations of Greenland Halibut showed that although the Pacific and Arctic are faster-growing, the stock off the East Coast of Canada is longer lived. This study represents the first age validation study for this stock in the Northwest Atlantic. Since the fishable portion of the population is largely <60 cm, it is possible that these results may not change the current perception of stock status. However, the increased longevity and reduced growth rates will undoubtedly affect other biological parameters and further work should be done to incorporate the new ageing knowledge into the Management Strategy Evaluation for this stock. Crown Copyright © 2016 Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.


Background We present a multi-locus phylogenetic analysis of the shallow water (high intertidal) barnacle genus Chthamalus, focusing on member species in the western hemisphere. Understanding the phylogeny of this group improves interpretation of classical ecological work on competition, distributional changes associated with climate change, and the morphological evolution of complex cirripede phenotypes. Methodology and Findings We use traditional and Bayesian phylogenetic and 'deep coalescent' approaches to identify a phylogeny that supports the monophyly of the mostly American 'fissus group' of Chthamalus, but that also supports a need for taxonomic revision of Chthamalus and Microeuraphia. Two deep phylogeographic breaks were also found within the range of two tropical American taxa (C. angustitergum and C. southwardorum) as well. Conclusions Our data, which include two novel gene regions for phylogenetic analysis of cirripedes, suggest that much more evaluation of the morphological evolutionary history and taxonomy of Chthamalid barnacles is necessary. These data and associated analyses also indicate that the radiation of species in the late Pliocene and Pleistocene was very rapid, and may provide new insights toward speciation via transient allopatry or ecological barriers.


Endometriosis-associated massive haemorrhagic ascites is rare and poses a diagnostic challenge to the gynaecologist due to its resemblance to malignancies, especially ovarian malignancy. We report a 31-year-old nulligravida with progressive abdominal swelling, worsening dysmenorrhea, weight loss and a family history of ovarian tumour. Pelvic ultrasonography and Computed Tomography scans suggested an ovarian mass suspected to be an ovarian malignancy. Exploratory laparotomy revealed massive haemorrhagic ascites (8.6 litre) and multiple nodular masses on the anterior abdominal wall, omentum, bowel and pelvic organs, which were biopsied and confirmed on histopathology to be endometriosis. She had drainage of ascites and hormonal suppression using progestogen (Medroxyprogesterone acetate) with no recurrence in 15 months. Endometriosis should be considered in young, nulligravid women with dysmenorrhea, weight loss and ascites.


Background Astrocyte endfoot processes are believed to cover all micro-vessels in the brain cortex and may play a significant role in fluid and substance transport into and out of the brain parenchyma. Detailed fluid mechanical models of diffusive and advective transport in the brain are promising tools to investigate theories of transport. Methods We derive theoretical estimates of astrocyte endfoot sheath permeability for advective and diffusive transport and its variation in microvascular networks from mouse brain cortex. The networks are based on recently published experimental data and generated endfoot patterns are based on Voronoi tessellations of the perivascular surface. We estimate corrections for projection errors in previously published data. Results We provide structural-functional relationships between vessel radius and resistance that can be directly used in flow and transport simulations. We estimate endfoot sheath filtration coefficients in the range Lp = 0.2 × 10−10 m Pa−1 s−1 to 2.7 × 10−10 m Pa−1 s−1, diffusion membrane coefficients in the range CM = 0.5 × 103 m−1 to 6 × 103 m−1, and gap area fractions in the range 0.2 % to 0.6 %. Conclusions The astrocyte endfoot sheath surrounding microvessels forms a secondary barrier to extra-cellular transport, separating the extra-cellular space of the parenchyma and the perivascular space outside the endothelial layer. The filtration and membrane diffusion coefficients of the endfoot sheath are estimated to be an order of magnitude lower than the extra-cellular matrix while being two orders of magnitude higher than the vessel wall.


Increa8ed knowledge of the composition of tlsh populations in Okla!Ioma, Jakee aDd wider publlc acceptaDce of the use of flab polsons baa fO&tend DeW and varied techniques in flahel'J maDSlement. Recent procedures involvinl the 1l8e of rotenone, a chemical toxic to t1sh, have included 1) umpltDl of 1lm1ted areu in large lakes tor Inventol'J purposes; 2) complete fJab eradication In ponds and small lakes; S) selective k11l of gizzard shad and carp In lakes up to 6,000 acres; and 4) partial removal of the fiab population In 1ake8 under 400 acree.


This is a very good book. It looks at organizational change in procurement practices within various departments of the US Government. The author is well placed to do so having spent five years working on reform in the federal government taking a position in the Clinton White House to that end. Before this period, he was and—is now again—a senior faculty member of the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University. It is an excellent book also because it is a rare example of a longitudinally focused treatment of organizational change. My one quibble is about the oft-repeated assertion that the organization change literature is basically built around the notion that 'resistance to change' is the single most important issue to address and reflects little interest in other more political issues as a basis for explanation. Anyone familiar with the work of Burns, Wildavsky or Pettigrew and many others will know that this is misplaced. Is it inevitable that authors must erect so easily dismissible 'straw men'? With that point out of the way what I found so useful about the book is its careful development of ideas for a new theoretical perspective looking to fields such as the study of innovation and of 'social movements'. He considers a range of ideas and is able to relate them to practical measures as well as to theory development. In particular, I thought his use of the idea of 'frame resonance' is very appealing albeit he would have gained from reading Howard Gardner's book 'Changing Minds' and his concept of 'resonance'. The idea is that changing minds is a precursor to change itself because the 'change vanguard' have only ideas with which to work. In turn this arises out of his identification with the work of Rogers on diffusion of innovation. Finally the observations of the relative importance and impact of leaders, local leaders and 'most respected co-workers at different stages of the change process is of real value to those seeking to construct change programmes. By looking at individuals in terms of the innovation adoption paradigm, he certainly adds to our understanding. I think he devotes too little focus to the organization of change programmes Journal of Change Management Vol. 5, No. 4, 497–498, December 2005


The role of matter enhanced resonant neutrino oscillations in reviving a stalled shock in a type-II supernova through delayed neutrino heating is investigated. The extent of neutrino heating is estimated for the allowed possibility of complete flavour conversion self-consistently with the changes in nuclear equilibrium. The average internal energy per nucleon is substantially increased indicating the possiblty of a robust explosion.


Recent production of a new radar-based global DEM by the TanDEM-X space mission has opened new options for geomorphometric analysis across multiple scales providing 0.4 arc second spatial resolution. However, the accuracy and suitability of this data has not been evaluated in such an extensive manner as for the widely exploited SRTM data. We present a validation of the vertical accuracy of TanDEM-X DEM product and evaluation of its suitability for landform classification in a forested karst area. The Geomorphons method was used for the automated landform classification focused on identification of dolines for which polygons of dolines mapped by expert-driven approach were used for validation. Airborne lidar data in the form of DSM and DTM were used as the reference dataset for validation of the DEM. The results show that the vertical RMSE of the TanDEM-X data is 3.42 m with respect to lidar DSM and 9.64 m with respect to lidar DTM. The identification of dolines by the geomorphon approach achieved 73 % with TanDEM-X, lower than for the lidar DTM (85 %).


I would like to comment on the article by Willy et al. in the January issue of Vox Sanguinis [2000;78:19–27]. I congratulate Dr. Willy and his team on their study which proves that leukocyte depletion of blood products prevents the accumulation of bioactive substances derived from polymorphonuclear leukocytes (PMNs) – in this case, human neutrophil elastase (HNE). In the Discussion, Willy et al. raise some questions and make suggestions on the importance of their findings for clinical practice. A recent publication by our group in Chest [1999;116:1233–1239] might provide some answers. We showed that intraoperative transfusion of buffy-coat-reduced red cell units contributes to the systemic inflammatory response found in cardiac surgery patients. We found that patients receiving buffy-coat-reduced red cells intraoperatively had a significantly more pronounced IL-6 response than patients who did not receive blood transfusions. Furthermore, we showed that intraoperative buffy-coat-reduced red cell transfusion directly changes plasma concentrations of inflammatory mediators. Bactericidal permeability increasing protein (BPI) originating from the azurophilic granules of neutrophils was measured in routinely used buffy-coat-reduced red cells and found to be increased with storage time, indicating PMN disintegration. In plasma, BPI is released after activation of PMNs and was previously shown to be increased in the early phase after cardiac surgery. Patients receiving buffy-coatreduced red cells intraoperatively had significantly higher BPI plasma levels than controls, and part of the difference was explained by direct infusion with the red cell units. In addition, we showed that patients receiving buffy-coat-reduced red cells intraoperatively had a more complicated postoperative course than their controls. In answer to Dr. Willy's statement that the abundant presence of HNE in buffy-coat-reduced red cells might have pathophysiologic significance, we showed that among classic risk factors for complications after cardiac surgery (e.g. age, sex), the intraoperative transfusion of buffy-coat-reduced red cells was the most important independent variable associated with worse postoperative performance. Although the direct link between buffy-coat-reduced red cell transfusion and increased postoperative morbidity has yet to be established, our data strongly suggest that the BPI, and probably also other leukocyte release products, found in buffy-coat-reduced red cells are involved. I fully agree with Willy et al. that further improvements in the processing of blood products should not only be focused on the prestorage elimination of viable leukocytes but, probably even more importantly, on prestorage elimination of leukocyte release products.


In the civil war literature, while conflict exposure has been shown to increase altruism, this altruism is usually predicted to be biased towards ingroup members. In this paper, we take a new appro ...


The weak points in History of Ming Dynasty in the Dianben edition were mostly caused by limited source material or imprudent oversight.This thesis tracks down the original documents which are the basis of History of Ming Dynasty,and finds out some flaws or points to contribute references for further research on History of Ming Dynasty.


Esophagogastric junction (EGJ) competence is the fundamental defense against reflux making it of great clinical significance. However, characterizing EGJ competence with conventional manometric methodologies has been confounded by its anatomic and physiological complexity. Recent technological advances in miniaturization and electronics have led to the development of a novel device that may overcome these challenges.


The invention provides compounds of formula (I), as described herein, or pharmaceutically acceptable salts thereof, as well as pharmaceutical compositions comprising the compounds, and synthetic methods and intermediates that are useful for preparing the compounds. The compounds of formula (I) are useful as anti-viral agents and/or as anti-cancer agents.


Volume ! A multidisciplinary journal dedicated to the study of popular music Volume ! La revue des musiques populaires is published quarterly by Editions Melanie Seteun, founded in 2002. It is devoted to the pluridisciplinary study of popular music and combines methodological approaches and French theory with those of cultural and popular music studies. For the inauguration of the site, the journal offers six issues in full text on open access, and a number of indexes ordered by keyword, arti...


The iatrogenic multifetation has been the most principal complication to threaten the maternal and offspring health in infertile treatment.The major complications of born from multiple pregnancy included premature birth,low birth weight,sequelae of systema nervosum.The maternal complications followed by multifetation were gestational period diabetes,eclampsism,hemorrhoea of pregnancy and puerperium.The mild ovarian stimulation,elective single embryo transfer,multiple pregnancy reduction were regarded as the important method to prevent iatrogenic multiple pregnancy.


Random telegraph switching (RTS) noise showing a slow decay in the switching rate at cryogenic temperatures which leads to the eventual extinction of the discrete noise fluctuations has been observed in the drain-source current (IDS) of small area (<0.05 μm2) Si n-channel metal-oxide-semiconductor field-effect transistors. The RTS noise was characterized by current fluctuations between two discrete current levels spaced ΔIDS apart with relative fluctuation amplitude ΔIDS/IDS from 2% to 76%, depending on the device, over a finite interval of gate bias. In all devices showing RTS, the average switching rate gradually diminished to zero over a time of 1 to 2 h at 15 K while maintaining the nearly constant fluctuation amplitude so that the RTS eventually ceased with IDS staying in its lower current state. This decay in the switching rate may be due to a metastable oxygen vacancy defect that gradually repairs itself after repeated capture and emission of charge, deactivating the trap defect. Once gone, RTS noise did not reappear in any subsequent measurements of a given device even after bias and temperature cycling, suggesting a mechanism to deactivate at least some forms of RTS through a "cryogenic anneal."Random telegraph switching (RTS) noise showing a slow decay in the switching rate at cryogenic temperatures which leads to the eventual extinction of the discrete noise fluctuations has been observed in the drain-source current (IDS) of small area (<0.05 μm2) Si n-channel metal-oxide-semiconductor field-effect transistors. The RTS noise was characterized by current fluctuations between two discrete current levels spaced ΔIDS apart with relative fluctuation amplitude ΔIDS/IDS from 2% to 76%, depending on the device, over a finite interval of gate bias. In all devices showing RTS, the average switching rate gradually diminished to zero over a time of 1 to 2 h at 15 K while maintaining the nearly constant fluctuation amplitude so that the RTS eventually ceased with IDS staying in its lower current state. This decay in the switching rate may be due to a metastable oxygen vacancy defect that gradually repairs itself after repeated capture and emission of charge, deactivating the trap defect. Once gone, RTS noi...


The fact that the human nose, as a rule, is not situated in the centre of the face, I have never seen stated in any medical journal, or any text-book on ophthalmology that has come under my notice. The importance of this fact to the oculist can scarcely be overestimated, when considered in connection with the adjustment of spectacles for correcting errors of refraction. This fact may have been stated before, but if so, it is strange that it has not been incorporated into every text-book on ophthalmology which deals with the errors of refraction. Every one of these works insists strenuously on the necessity of adjusting glasses accurately to the face, so that the optical centre of lenses shall stand exactly in front of the centre of the pupils, unless for certain reasons the lenses are decentred to get a prismatic effect. In measuring the face for the adjustment


M. Y. L. Ip et al., (see ibid., vol.SE-9, p.135-43, 1983) solved the index selection problem for a relational database by reducing it to a classical knapsack problem and then applying an approximation algorithm. It is shown that this reduction process does not work in general by providing a counterexample, and its practical significance is discussed. It turns out that the main idea of Ip et al. need not be discarded. In particular, the approximation algorithm used can be adapted fairly easily to take care of the problems which were raised by the counterexample. In spite of its simplicity, this modification can lead to a reduced number of indices, which is rather attractive from a practical point of view. >


News story in Argentine newspaper Clarin discussing the lead poisoning among residents of Abra Pampa. One study reported that 81% of the children there have lead in their bodies. Studies done in 1974, 1980, and 1984 all showed elevated levels of lead in residents' blood.


Goal. To determine the characteristics of the level of sex hormones in the blood plasma in women with genital prolapse urinary incontinence. Material and methods. The study was conducted on the basis of the Surgical Training Building of the Azerbaijan Medical University from December 2017 to May 2021. Questionnaires for socio-demographic/clinical data PFDI-20 and PFIQ-7 to detect genital prolapse and urinary incontinence were applied to 144 patients of reproductive age. All patients were divided into three groups: I a - main group, prospective analysis of 50 women aged 25 to 50 years with prolapse of the anterior vaginal wall and urinary incontinence; I b is the main group, which will include women with relapses after surgical interventions for this pathology in the amount of 59 (retrospective material); II - comparative group: practically healthy women without genital prolapse and urinary incontinence, who had a history of 3 or more births (35 women). A hormonal background study was conducted in 50 women with signs of PG (the main group) aged 25 to 50 years (average age -39.7 ± 7.3 years). The levels of testosterone, estradiol, progesterone, Anti-Muller hormone and cortisol in the blood serum were determined. Determination of the level of hormones in blood plasma was carried out on the immunoanalyzer Miсroplate reader RD-2100C (PRC). Results. It was found that the level of estradiol in the examined women varied between 31.1 – 84.6 nmol/L. In 13 patients of the main Ia group, the level of estradiol varied from 31.3 to 44.8 nmol/L. In 14 patients, estradiol was in the range of 47.3 – 53.8 nmol/L, in 16 patients the estradiol level varied between 57.6 – 64.6 nmol/L, in 4 patients the estradiol index was in the range of 65.8 – 71.0 nmol/L and in 3 patients in the range of 76.3 – 84.6 nmol/L. Conclusions. The average levels of estradiol, progesterone and testosterone in patients of reproductive age with genital prolapse and urinary incontinence did not differ significantly. The Anti-Muller hormone index differs in patients with genital prolapse and urinary incontinence from compared with the control (U =613.0, p≤0.001). The quantitative value of Anti-Muller hormone is significantly reduced and is within the range that is typical for women during menopause. The cortisol index is statistically significantly different in patients with genital prolapse and urinary incontinence from healthy women.(U =690,0, p≤0,001)


Benzimidazole derivatives belong to a crucial structural design that is seen in many pharmaceutically and biologically interesting molecules. Benzimidazole have shown potential for application in a variety of pharmacological targets. They have been intensively used in medicinal chemistry as drugs such as antihistaminic, antiulcerative, antihelmentic, antipsychotic etc. The preparation and investigation of nitrogen heterocycles is one of our main projects. We have already developed some procedures to gain access to diverse structures of benzimidazoles. It has been reported that 2-(Substituted pyridynyl) benzimidazole possess anti-inflammatory activity. At the same time alkyl or aryl substitution at second position of benzimidazole is not yet reported, which may possess same activity as that of benzimidazole substituted with pyridynyl. The series of new 2-(Substituted alkyl and aryl pyridynyl) benzimidazole derivatives have been prepared. In this case, corresponding eight ortho phenylene diamine derivatives were prepared and these results prompted us to extend this methodology for a similar synthesis of benzimidazole derivatives. Compounds 1, 7 and 8 were exclusively isolated and characterized with other five derivatives and tested for anti-inflammatory activity. Anti-inflammatory activity evaluated by using carrageenan induced rat paw edema method because heterocyclic nucleus and substitution at 2-position of the benzimidazole were reported to be associated with potent antiinflammatory activity. Carrageenan induced rat paw edema is the most widely used, primary test to screen inflammation which measures the ability of the compounds to reduce local edema induced in the rat paw by carrageenan. Therefore it was thought that preparing such derivatives as 2-substituted benzimidazoles would probably result in compounds of having high biological activity like anti-inflammatory with low toxicity toward many diseases. Most of the obtained compounds exhibit anti-inflammatory activity, especially compound 1, 7 and 8 showed significant activity when compared with that of ibuprofen used as standard drug. Further development of benzimidazole derivatives should make these molecules significantly accessible to permit their widespread use in medicinal synthesis and for pharmacological screening.


Six-hundred-fifty-one citizens were stopped in public places and tested for prompted recall of physical characteristics of a young woman to whom they had spoken for approximately 15 s, 2 min earlier. Recall differed as a function of the two targets used on five of eight characteristics, but no significant differences were found for either target as a function of the gender or age group of the witnesses. Young adults (18-29 years of age) in general were superior to middle-aged adults (30-44), who in turn were superior to older adults (45-65). Women were significantly more accurate than men in accuracy of recall for weight, and for characteristics judged to be more important than less important for person memory. Male and female witnesses were equally confident in their recall performance. Young and middle-aged groups were significantly more confident in recall than the oldest group. Significant correlations were found between confidence and accuracy of recall for men and for women, and for each age group. Women made significantly longer duration estimates of the encounters with the targets than did men. Men overestimated the duration by a 2:1 ratio, and women overestimated by a 3:1 ratio. No significant correlations were found between accuracy of duration estimates and confidence in reports. The results were interpreted in terms of their forensic importance.


The method involves applying a laser pulse to a surface of a ceramic thermal barrier layer i.e. zirconia layer (16), overlying a substrate (10), and searching for an image representative of an area of possible separation between the ceramic layer and the substrate. A detected image is analyzed. An absorption layer (22) and a containment layer (24) are applied to the surface of the barrier layer. The image is visualized optically in the form of a spot visible at the surface of the barrier layer.


Background: Research on the relationship between motivation, and dieting and exercise self-efficacy, and weight loss has produced inconsistent findings. Thus, this study aims to explore and clarify the relationship between these constructs.  Method: This study evaluated 429 participants who were part of a larger RCT. Participants were randomized into three groups of progressive, increasing intensity: workbook only, computer intervention and computer intervention plus staff. Weight and height were collected at baseline, 6 months and 12 months. Average initial body mass index (BMI) was 35.36. Participants also completed the Dieting Readiness Questionnaire, the Eating Habits Confidence Survey and the Exercise Confidence Survey at baseline. We hypothesized that motivation and self-efficacy would predict change in BMI regardless of group assignment. Results: Factor analyses confirmed that each survey examined a unitary construct, yet Pearson's product moment correlations found no significant relationship between change in BMI and motivation and self-efficacy surveys. Mean difference for change in BMI was significant for the highest intensity intervention group ( M = -1.19, SE = .17) when compared to the lowest ( M = -.37, SD = 2.44), F (2,426) = 3.79, p = .02). The majority of this overall change difference was further isolated to the first half of the study, F (2,426) = 6.91, p = .001. Conclusion : Findings suggest initial motivation is less related to weight loss than is clinical support. It is unclear how self-efficacy fluctuated throughout the study; further evaluation may be necessary to utilize motivation and self-efficacy to enhance weight loss.


Along with the computer and the network technology development,the closed circuit television monitoring system was already substituted by the computer network.In contrast to the C/S pattern,the B/S pattern demonstrated its own unique superiority,and gradually occupied the majority of market share in the video frequency supervisory system development.The B/S pattern of Video Monitoring System used the browser and the computer network technology,realizing in WAN the multiusers at the same time real-time video frequency monitoring,using the system's strict jurisdiction establishment,enable the different status users to have the different access control jurisdiction This system had a higher representation and usability regards as simplification system maintenance and the customer operation.


Software used in embedded systems is subject to strict timing and space constraints. The growing software complexity creates an urgent need for fast program execution under the constraint of very limited code size. However, even modern compilers produce code whose quality often is far away from the optimum. The PROPAN system is a postpass optimization framework that enables high-quality machine-dependent postpass optimizers to be generated from a concise hardware specification. The postpass approach allows to enhance the code quality of existing compilers and offers a smooth integration into existing development tool chains. In this article we present an adaptation of the modulo scheduling software pipelining algorithm to the postpass level. The implementation is fully retargetable and has been incorporated in the PROPAN system. The differences of postpass modulo scheduling compared to the standard version of the algorithm are outlined. Experimental results conducted on the Philips TriMedia TM1000 processor demonstrate that modulo scheduling can be applied at the postpass level and allows to achieve a significant code speedup with moderate code size increase.


Protective immunity towards a lethal dose of 10(4) living ADJ-PC-5 cells can be induced in 56% of BALB/c mice by treating them with 10(7) irradiated cells. This protection can be modulated by pretreatment of animals with lower numbers of irradiated tumour cells. Repeated injections of 10(1) cells before immunization and challenge with tumour cells lead to tumours in only 16% of the animals, whereas repeated injections of 10(5) cells shift the tumour incidence to 78%. The enhanced tumour incidence is paralleled by suppression of T-cell cytotoxicity which can be transferred by spleen cells into 100 r-irradiated BALB/c mice. The possible significance of induction of specific immunosuppression during the initial stages of tumour growth is discussed. It is stressed that this suppression becomes effective at a dose 10(3) times lower than that which could induce protective immunity.


Treasury's War: The Unleashing of a New Era of Financial Warfare By Juan Zarate New York: PublicAffairs, 2013 512 pages $29.99 [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] In Treasury's War, Juan Zarate, a former Assistant Secretary of the Treasury for Terrorist Financing and Financial Crime and federal prosecutor, earnestly presents an insider's view of the US Treasury's response to the terrorist attacks of 9/11. In all, this book is an important, enjoyable and often contradictory history vital to understanding the contemporary US practice of financial-based power projection, and the Treasury's new role in national security. The author begins with a brief introduction to the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC), which is "the US government's primary tool for going after the assets of enemy regimes" domiciled within Washington's jurisdiction, as well as prohibiting American citizens, banks, or businesses from transacting with Specially Designated Nationals, (individuals, businesses, groups or entities) sanctioned by law. North Korea, Cuba and Iran were all subject to lawful economic sanctions, administered by Treasury prior to 9/11. Mr. Zarate's "Treasury tale" begins after 9/11 with three lawyers, Treasury General Counsel David Aufhauser, his Deputy George Wolfe and Chief Adviser Bill Fox, crafting the contours of what would become Executive Order 13224, authorizing Treasury to designate administratively the financial enablers of terrorism and, more importantly, those associated with them. Zarate, a Senior Advisor to the Undersecretary of the Treasury for Enforcement, ran the Executive Office for Terrorist Financing and Financial Crimes, which was combined with the Treasury Office of Intelligence and Analysis, making him the first Assistant Secretary for Terrorist Financing and Financial Crimes. With the stage set, the book's second half details Treasury's warfare. Directed by Executive Order 13224 and armed with section 311 of the Patriot Act (2001), Treasury began administratively designating enablers and associates of sanctioned entities in 2005. Weighing the risk of becoming an "associate" and losing access to US markets, many banks and insurance companies cut off relationships with sanctioned entities isolating them from the global financial system. Outside US legal authority or enforcement, designated entities were frozen out of global markets by international actions in what Zarate termed a "virtuous cycle of self-isolation." By all accounts, it was highly successful. From there, Treasury was off to the races designating Iranian persons, banks and shipping companies, Lebanese banks, Al Qaeda, Al Shaabab and Taliban financiers, and Russian criminal networks, among others. Along the way, the Treasury became the center of gravity for US financial-based power projection and the de-facto, but explicit, system administrator for global finance. …


This paper considers the use of Kalman filter in the problem of position estimation in ship positioning control. The estimator includes a Kalman filter. The approach was developed for the application to the dynamic ship positioning control problem.


As a result of their extraordinarily large experience with the roentgen diagnosis and surgical treatment of disorders of the lacrimal drainage system, the authors have summed up their material in a small volume, richly illustrated with films and explanatory drawings showing quite clearly the great variety of pathologic conditions which may be encountered. The text in German is written concisely, and makes a worthy contribution to ophthalmologic and roentgenologic literature.


Abstract The navigation correction method proposed in Testud et al. (referred to as the THL method) systematically identifies uncertainties in the aircraft Inertial Navigation System and errors in the radar-pointing angles by analyzing the radar returns from a flat and stationary earth surface. This paper extends the THL study to address 1) error characteristics on the radar display, 2) sensitivity of the dual-Doppler analyses to navigation errors, 3) fine-tuning the navigation corrections for individual flight legs, and 4) identifying navigation corrections over a flat and nonstationary earth surface (e.g., ocean). The results show that the errors in each of the parameters affect the dual-Doppler wind analyses and the first-order derivatives in different manners. The tilt error is the most difficult parameter to determine and has the greatest impact on the dual-Doppler analysis. The extended THL method can further reduce the drift, ground speed, and tilt errors in all flight legs over land by analyzing t...


We present the band of T O and the and bands of DT O that have been analysed for the first time using high-resolution infrared spectra of tritiated water vapour. The spectrum for T O has been recorded from a custom-built light-pipe cell at room temperature using a Bruker 125HR Fourier-transform spectrometer at a resolution of . For the DT O species, an optimised version of the optical cell with 10 times larger maximum activity with regard to previous studies has been employed. For the band of T O, we report 206 new experimental line positions in the range from 4415 to . In the range of 4780– , 356 new experimental line positions of the DT O have been assigned for the band and 161 line positions for the band. The analysis agrees with previous observations showing a systematic shift of the individual line positions compared to the variationally calculated line positions from the Tomsk database. This shift is depending on the rotational quantum number . For each band, the assigned lines were used to determine the spectroscopic constants of the A-reduced Watson-type Hamiltonian. GRAPHICAL ABSTRACT


AbstractA 24–33-m-deep cross excavation of a metro interchange station in Shanghai soft clay has been constructed and monitored for 2 years. The excavation area was 9,000  m2 and supported by diaph...


General stability curves are given in this article by means of which the transient stability during fault may be determined for any metropolitan type system. The results are obtained as the permissible fault duration in terms of certain indexes of the system and fault. For a given fault only three readings, taken on a d-c. calculating board, are required, the solution being obtained without the necessity of investigating the electromechanical oscillations.


Innovative remote sensing techniques through the adoption of satellite earth observations for disaster risk management and mitigations have been achieved in recent years. Interferometric synthetic aperture radar (InSAR) techniques have been extensively utilized for land applications such as terrain deformation analysis during the occurrence of natural hazards. This paper presents an approach for the creation of a damage proxy map (DPM) after the 2020 Taal Volcano eruption based on coherent change detection technique. The mean and standard deviation of coherence difference were used to define a threshold that successfully generated the DPM. The DPM was qualitatively validated through field investigation and showed a substantial agreement with 89% overall accuracy. This study confirms that InSAR technique applied to Sentinel-1 data is a valuable tool for mapping damaged areas.


This project is part of a research effort to design a hydrogen plant and its interface with a nuclear reactor. This project developed a dynamic modeling, simulation and optimization environment for nuclear hydrogen production systems. A hybrid discrete/continuous model captures both the continuous dynamics of the nuclear plant, the hydrogen plant, and their interface, along with discrete events such as major upsets. This hybrid model makes us of accurate thermodynamic sub-models for the description of phase and reaction equilibria in the thermochemical reactor. Use of the detailed thermodynamic models will allow researchers to examine the process in detail and have confidence in the accurary of the property package they use.


Explicit expressions of the 3D velocity field in terms of the conserved quantities of ideal fluid thermocline theory, namely the Bernoulli function, density, and potential vorticity, are generalised in this paper to a compressible ocean with a realistic nonlinear equation of state. The most general such expression is the 'inactive wind' solution, an exact nonlinear solution of the inviscid compressible Navier–Stokes equation that satisfies the continuity equation as a consequence of Ertel's potential vorticity theorem. However, due to the non-uniqueness of the choice of the Bernoulli function, such expressions are not unique and primarily differ in the magnitude of their vertical velocity component. Due to the thermobaric nonlinearity of the equation of state, the expression for the 3D velocity field of a compressible ocean is found to resemble its ideal fluid counterpart only if constructed using the available form of the Bernoulli function, the Bernoulli equivalent of Lorenz's available potential energy (APE). APE theory also naturally defines a quasi-material, approximately neutral density variable known as the Lorenz reference density. This density variable, in turn, defines a potential vorticity variable that is minimally affected by thermobaric production, thus providing all the necessary tools for extending most results of ideal fluid thermocline theory to a compressible ocean.


Cancer of the larynx in North America is the commonest form of cancer of the head and neck region. In our own institution it accounts for one-quarter of all head and neck cancers. The purpose of this article is to review the management of this condition with particular emphasis on the relative roles of radiation and surgery.


We prove that the ensemble of random Generalized Low-Density (GLD) lattices can attain the Poltyrev limit for an alphabet size increasing polylogarithmically with the lattice dimension. Our main theorem imposes no constraints on the normalized minimum distance of the code associated to the lattice ensemble, any asymptotically good code is suitable. This is a great improvement with respect to the first theorem on Poltyrev goodness of GLD lattices (2015). Our new bound is based on a new method referred to as the buckets approach where we employ the asymptotics of the restricted compositions of the Hamming weight. The new bound has applications in many coding areas beyond the specific lattice ensemble considered in this paper.


This article reports on a case study of a college class for pre-service teachers on the US–Mexico border in which students participated in in-depth discussion around mathematical problems every day. This pedagogical approach promotes the socialization of students into and through the specialized discourse of mathematics. The focus of this paper is on the experience of transfronterizo students in that course. Transfronterizos are Mexican residents who periodically cross the border to attend school. For these students, whose educational background in Mexico allowed them to develop proficiency in elementary mathematical discourse in Spanish, their socialization experience includes ways in which they draw on language, and other social and learning experiences in Mexico. The focus of this paper is an assignment called Thinking Logs, a genre that required the use of mathematical discourse for teaching. Drawing on data gathered from participant observation of the course, interviews, analysis of study session discourse, and genre analysis, I highlight agentive ways that each participant used in their own socialization process. I show how participants improvised writing of models, asked for clarification in the first language, and even resisted the discourse. Students who resisted the demands might incur negative effects. Furthermore, I argue that the role of the guidance from an expert (such as a professor) is imperative in a socialization process, and I offer implications for ways that teachers can guide second language writers to develop mathematics discourse.


objective Comprehend the rate of vitamin D supplementation in little infants and the source of parents' knowledge about vitamin D supplementation, to guide our work of the popularization education on the vitamin D. Methods A total of 684 little infants who came to child health care clinic were surveyed, to investigate the current status of vitamin D supplementation in little infants and the source of the parents' knowledge about vitamin D supplementation. Results The usage rate of vitamin D for these little infants was 20.18 %, and among them the knowledge source of 63.77 % of parents was from doctors, 31.16 % was from family or friends, 5.07 % was from other channels. Conclusions The vitamin D supplement adding rate in little infants in Anyang territory is quite low, the importance of adding vitamin D is need to be further popularized.


Colorado. In the museum profession we hear every day of the need for work that is based on community initiatives. Yet how many of us have the opportunity to fill the unique help wanted ad above? Many museum staff who spend their time in more traditional museum jobs, such as education and exhibits, are now being asked to work within the community. Some museums, however, are beginning to hire staff exclusively to build new community initiatives, to be responsible for developing new relationships and audiences, and to facilitate and customize existing museum resources to the goals of the communities the museum serves. We have found that working in this type of position within a museum requires particular skills and personality traits. This new work is a full-time job requiring as much internal coordination as external coordination. While fictional, this want ad reflects some of the challenges of this new movement for museum professionals who find themselves responsible for community collaboration work. This article is a reflection by two community liaisons who work at the Denver Museum of Nature and Science. The liaison positions exist within the Community Science Department, which was assigned to bridge the gap into Colorado communities. We work with a variety of groups that stretch the definition of community in intensive collaborations 2 0 ~ (,) ::l Q w ::;; ::l w <ll ::l ::;; ... 0 ...I < 2 a: ::l 0 ..,


Background and Objectives Despite effective combination antiretroviral therapy (cART), adolescents with perinatally acquired HIV (PHIV) exhibit cognitive impairment, of which structural changes could be the underlying pathophysiological mechanism. Prior MRI studies found lower brain volumes, more white matter (WM) hyperintensities (WMH) volume, lower WM integrity, and in flow (CBF). status, as the large portion PHIV been adopted. Adoption associated with malnutrition and neglect which in turn may have affected brain development. We investigated the long-term effects of PHIV on the brain, while minimizing the confounding effect of adoption status. Methods We determined whole brain gray matter (GM) and WM volume with 3D T1-weighted scans; total WMH volume with fluid-attenuated inversion recovery (FLAIR); CBF in the following regions of interest (ROIs): WM, GM and subcortical GM with arterial spin labeling (ASL); and whole brain WM microstructural markers: fractional anisotropy (FA), mean diffusivity (MD), axial diffusivity (AD), radial diffusivity (RD) with diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) in cART treated PHIV adolescents visiting our outpatient clinic in Amsterdam and controls matched for age, sex, ethnic origin, socio-economic status, and adoption status. We assessed differences in neuroimaging parameters between PHIV adolescents and controls using linear regression models adjusted for age and sex and applied multiple comparisons correction. and higher demyelination, respectively.


Abstract : NETDEN is an interactive, network design, graphics simulation which displays one of five network designs for a set of user specified sites superimposed on an outline of the contiguous United States. The available designs are Minimum Mileage Star, Minimum Spanning Tree, Minimum Mileage Fixed Hub(s) Star, Minimum Mileage Ring, and Arbitrary Network. NETDEN is written in Fortran 4 and uses the U. S. Military Academy's Graphics Compatibility System graphics software. This document provides both an overview of NETDEN's capability as well as detailed user information. (Author)


Abstract
By the first of November 2013 there will be a new legislation introduced in the European Union
to improve road safety, which is being developed by the United Nations Economic Commission
fo ...


This note considers a problem of simultaneous selection of a subset of N projects and determination of an optimal sequence to implement these projects so as to maximize the net present value of the total return. We first establish an optimal sequence of all projects which does not depend on the particular subset of selected projects and then propose an efficient polynomial dynamic programming method for solving the problem.


Three decades of steady economic growth has contributed to a reduction in the mass poverty and frequent bouts of starvation that plagued much of post-war developing Asia-Pacific. Agriculture production played a key role in generating a pattern of rural development and growth that improved food availability and triggered virtuous cycles of poverty reduction. But poverty has evolved in ways that leaves many vulnerable to hunger, and our understanding of what it means to be hungry in Asia-Pacific has also advanced thanks to new knowledge. In Asia-Pacific, the poor, and the far larger numbers of those who are near-poor or vulnerable to poverty, suffer transitory bouts of under-nutrition that accumulate and have serious long-term consequences. Those in rural areas, and particularly those in the remote or disaster prone regions of South Asia, remain especially vulnerable to periodic bouts of severe hunger. Female headed households, and girls in general, may go hungry even in households with sufficient food supplies. Socially excluded groups may suffer from chronic poverty and hunger even in otherwise prosperous regions. Especially in South Asia, large numbers of households regularly have insufficient access to essential micro-nutrients, with devastating effects on productivity and human development. This evolving nexus of poverty and hunger in Asia-Pacific is less related to agriculture development than it was some three decades ago. Moreover, this new nexus of poverty-hunger issues is not well captured in food production reporting systems or in household surveys. Better information is needed to track progress in combating the evolving nexus of poverty and hunger issues that confront Asia-Pacific today. 1 Prepared for the International Conference on Agriculture Statistics (ICAS III), Cancun, Q. R. Mexico, November 2-4, 2004. 2 The authors are, respectively, Principal Poverty Reduction Specialist, Director (retired) and Staff Consultant of the RSPR Division of the Asian Development Bank, Manila. The views expressed in this paper are those of the authors and do not necessarily represent the views of the Asian Development Bank.


Raman microprobe spectroscopy measurements show, that in contrast to Er-idiffusion, Er-exchange process leads to significant change of the lattice vibration spectrum of LiNbO3. Therefore, our data allow to assume that the drastic suppression of parasitic upconversion in the Er-exchanged LiNbO3 are caused by multiphonon nonradiative decay of the 2(4F9/2) state, providing fast nonradiative energy transfer to the 4G11/2 and (4F7/2+4I13/2) states. (© 2004 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)


Routine screening for distress is internationally recommended as a necessary standard for good cancer care, given its high prevalence and negative consequences on quality of life. The objective of the current study was to contribute to the Italian validation of the Distress Thermometer (DT) to determine whether the single item DT compared favorably with referent criterion measures.


Influence of nozzle size and the jet flow dynamic pressure at nozzel exit under simulative flight condition on test bench thrust value of pulse detonation engine was studied.Variation law of test bench resistance along with diversification simulative flight condition was analyzed.It showed that the filling velocity and resistance of PDE increasing with nozzle size and flow dynamic pressure at nozzel exit,and resistance increasing linearly with flow dynamic pressure.Thus test bench thrust increased with nozzle size in the range from 78 to 105 mm.


Cloud computing have high interest from companies .since ,its inception With its services delivery model, cloud computing add technical and strategic business value to companies. This paper presents a systematic literature review to explore the current key issues related to cloud computing adoption.


Original scientific paper The authors present the results of experimental and developing work regarding Magnetic Aided Roller Burnishing (MARB) process and apparatus using permanent magnet that operates by surface finishing, deburring and by the strain hardening effect. Additionally, the paper demonstrates the benefit of using the apparatus with permanent magnet against using the apparatus with electro magnet. Finite Element Method (FEM) modelling software system was used in support of the experimental results.


Using supercritical water oxidation process to treat RDX wastewater,the influences of reaction temperature,time and pressure on the treatment effect were discussed.The results of the test showed that: under the condition of oxygen-excess,RDX wastewater treatment was mainly affected by the temperature,and the influence of reaction pressure and reaction time was the second.When the reaction temperature was 600 ℃,the reaction pressure was 28 MPa,the reaction time was over 120 s,the removal rate of CODCr of wastewater was as high as 99.8%?


The vitrification building houses the regulated process operations carried out remotely behind shielding barrier walls. It also provides control facilities for the process and power operations. Due to the special remote features and handling of nuclear waste in the vitrification building, special attention was given to the structural design. Structural design took into consideration the following influences: (1) radioactive shielding; (2) remotability and tolerance control; (3) constructibility and functional operation; (4) decontaminability; and (5) structural strength and stability.


Introduction PART I: STOP THE PRESSES Byte Flight Us and Them Newspapers Are No Longer News PART II: THE DIGITAL TIPPING POINT Generation Download Generation Upload On Demand Everything eBooks and the Revolution that Didn't Happen PART III: SAYING GOODBYE TO THE BOOK Writers in a Digital Future Readers in a Digital Future Will Books Disappear? Afterword Acknowledgements Notes


ABSTRACT There is a paradox within United States immigration policy. Immigration policy separates families while also promising family unity. We address this paradox by arguing that state actors use "family" as a state-granted status. The state perceives some households as families and grants them benefits, while forcing other households to live as legal strangers. Individuals may form familial relationships, but the privileges and status of family are controlled by state actors and institutions. When state actors separate low-wage immigrant worker families, the state's family-status-granting power keeps these workers and their families in a state of "deportability"-a legally ambiguous limbo-satiating business interests and securing a captive low-wage workforce. Lacking legal legitimacy, but financially and socially tied to their families and communities in the U.S., these immigrants have few options but to accept off-the-radar work and to raise their children while living as "outlaws."


Friction stir spot welding (FSSW) is a solid state joining process derived from the linear friction stir welding as an alternative method for the single-point joining processes. Three tool rotational speeds of (535, 980, 1325rpm) and two types of tool-pin geometry (straight cylindrical and triangular) were used to fabricate the FSSW joints of similar AA2024-T3 aluminum alloy sheets with 2mm thickness. This study was aimed to investigate the effects of pin geometry and tool rotational speeds on the lap shear strength and microstructural characteristics of friction stir spot welds. In addition to that, temperature distribution during FSSW, using both tool-pin shapes at the best rotational speed, was evaluated by two thermocouples K-type which were positioned at two different locations within welded area. Three dimensional non-linear numerical models using ANSYS program were built to simulate the temperature distribution. Tensile-shear test results showed that the weld strength was improved in all FSSWed joints by changing the tool pin profile from cylindrical to triangular. Scanning electron microscopy of the failed specimens observed that the pin geometry influence fracture mode under tensile shear loading. Microscopic examinations revealed that grain size in the stir zone increased with increasing rotational speed in the welds made by the cylindrical pin. While, conversely, was occurring in the other welds fabricated by the triangular pin. Temperature distribution obtained from the experimental and numerical model results was directly affected by the pin geometry during the welding process. Index Term-Friction stir spot welding, AA2024-T3 aluminum alloy, Pin geometry, Temperature distribution, ANSYS, Fracture


The paper presents results of preliminary studies on the usefulness of DNA mini-barcodes for the phylogenetic inference within Pentatomidae. Mini-barcodes for six Polish shieldbug species representing three pentatomid subfamilies (Asopinae, Pen- tatominae, Podopinae) have been obtained from the museum specimens (collected be- tween 1994-2004). These mini-barcodes were then analysed for generating phylogenetic trees, using the neighbor joining (NJ), minimum evolution (ME), maximum parsimony MP), and UPGMS methods, as well as the Bayesian inference (BI). A squashbug, Coreus marginatus (Coreidae) was treated as an outgroup species in all analyses. Our findings suggest that DNA mini-barcodes can be employed not only for species identification, but may also be used for the phylogenetic inferences.


"Vom Erkennen des Erkannten": Musi kalische Analyse und Editionsphilologie. Edited by Friedericke Weissmann, Thomas Ahrend, and Heinz von Loesch. Wiesbaden, Leipzig, and Paris: Breitkopf und Hartel, 2007. [568 pages. ISBN 978-3-7651-0361-2. $77.95] This collection of forty-six essays, entitled "Vom Erkennen des Erkannten": Musikalische Analyse und Editionsphilologie is dedicated to Christian Martin Schmidt as a Festschrift. Its content stems from a musicological symposium of the same name, organized by Katharina Steinbeck and held at the Charlottenburg campus of the Technische Universitat Berlin on 9 and 10 November 2007, the occasion of Schmidt's sixty-fifth birthday. It "unites--according to the central research focus of Christian Martin Schmidt ... texts on musical editions and analysis. The spectrum of themes, arising from the question, 'what is a score?', discusses editorial problems of Medieval Russian Church music, from works of Bach, Mendelssohn, Brahms, Schonberg and many others [u. v. a. , i.e., "und viele andere"] to the question of editions of electroacoustic music" (back cover). Al though this volume is intended for a German-speaking readership, four essays (by Rem brandt Wolpert, James Webster, Allen Forte, and Robert Pascall) are in English. The opening interview with Robert Chailly, moreover, is also written in English. The title of the volume, Vom Erkennen des Erkannten, ["on the recognition of the recognizable"] "serves as a current paraphrase of [August Boeckh's] definition of philological understanding as a recognition of the production of the human spirit, i.e., the recognizable" and examines "the reciprocal relationship between the learning process on the analyst's part and the process of accumulating knowledge of the work under examination" (p.14). The essays in the volume, therefore, treat the relationship between musicology/ musical analysis (broadly defined) and historical-critical "Urtext" editions. As with most Festschriften, a complete catalogue of Christian Martin-Schmidt's publications (6 books, 98 articles, 13 dictionary entries, 9 score commentaries, 11 recording commentaries, 17 program note entries, 22 book reviews and, of course, 34 critical editions of music) is included in the back. It is unfortunate that references to Heinrich Schenker's writings on editorial practice, especially his essay "Weg mit den Phrasierungsbogen" from Das Meisterwerk in der Musik, are nowhere to be found in this volume, for Schenker was an early advocate of the Urtext edition based on the composer's manuscripts and with a minimum of editorial intervention and, in that sense, a founder of modern editorial practice. Of the forty-six essays in the Festschrift (which was published before the symposium in order that it be ready for presentation to Prof. Schmidt), only thirteen were presented at the symposium. The others (with the exception of a paper by Hiromi Hoshino on Mendelssohn's F major violin sonata that was presented but not included in the Festschrift) were apparently prepared especially for publication and were not presented at the conference. In terms of its production values, the book is very well constructed and laid out. The spacing and typeface is easy to read and the musical examples are engraved with a remarkable consistency. Where historical editions are used, or where manuscript sources are cited, these examples are photographed at a high resolution that is clear and easy to read. Although no editorial groupings of essays is indicated, the contributions tend to fall into two broad categories: sixteen of the essays are discussions of methodological, analytical, or philosophical topics concerning edition philology, and the remaining thirty are studies of the works of individual composers placed roughly chronologically. Of this latter group, two essays each are devoted to J. S. Bach, Handel, Mozart, Schonberg, and Ligeti; five to Mendelssohn; three to Brahms; and one each to Haydn, Beethoven, Schumann, Bruckner, Sousa, Glazunov, Varese, Honegger, Hanns Eisler, and Paul Dessau. …


The invention discloses a partially reduced GO (graphene oxide) fluorescence resonance energy transfer nano-probe and a preparation method thereof. According to the partially reduced GO fluorescence resonance energy transfer nano-probe, partially reduced GO is prepared through room-temperature controlled reduction of GO in an alkaline solution. The preparation method has the advantages of environmental protection, convenience and rapidness in operation, good repeatability and the like; the prepared partially reduced GO nano-probe has a larger sp2 hybridization area, less surface defects and good dispersibility and stability; the fluorescence quenching efficiency of the prepared partially reduced GO on fluorescent molecular modified single-strained DNA (deoxyribonucleic acid) is greatly improved, the quenching speed of the prepared partially reduced GO on fluorescent molecular modified single-strained DNA is greatly increased, and the partially reduced GO fluorescence resonance energy transfer nano-probe is a more ideal fluorescence resonance energy transfer nano-probe.


This paper presents a fault-tolerant control method for four-wheel independently driven (4WID) electric vehicles. 4WID electric vehicle is one of the promising architectures for electric vehicles in the future. While such a vehicle architecture greatly increases the flexibility for vehicle control, it also demands more on system reliability, safety, and fault tolerance due to the increased number of actuators and subsystems. An active fault tolerant control approach for 4WID electric vehicle is developed to accommodate the fault of in-wheel motor and motor driver pairs. Based on an in-wheel motor/motor driver fault detection mechanism, a control-allocation based vehicle control system is designed to accommodate the in-wheel motor/motor driver fault by automatically allocating the control effort among other healthy wheels. Simulations using a high-fidelity CarSim® full-vehicle model show the effectiveness of the proposed fault-tolerant control approach.Copyright © 2010 by ASME


Therese Cruciano is an economist with the Individual Returns Analysis Section., This article was prepared under the direction of Jeff Hartzok, Chief. O f the 120.4 million individual income tax returns filed for 1996, more than 75 percent showed an income tax liability. The average tax rate on these taxable returns was 15.2 percent, 0.5 percentage points higher than for the previous year and the highest level reported since 1982. The average adjusted gross income was $47,750, an increase of $2,849 from 1995. The average total income tax was $7,239, an increase of $646 from 1995. Total income tax for 1996 increased 11.9 percent to $658.2 billion, exceeding the growth rate of total adjusted gross income less deficit (AGI), which increased 8.3 percent to $4,341.9 billion. For 1996, for the first time, the top 5 percent of taxpayers reported more than 30 percent of the total AGI and paid nearly 51 percent of the total income tax. An AGI of at least $101,141 placed an individual in the top 5 percent of taxpayers with positive AGI for 1996. Returns in the top 1 percent of tax filers (reporting an AGI of at least $227,546) reported 16.0 percent of total AGI and 32.3 percent of total income tax for 1996. For 1996, the shares of total income tax for returns with the top 1 percent and top 5 percent of tax filers ranked by size of income each increased 2.0 percentage points. This article discusses the individual income tax rates and tax shares and the computation of "total income tax" for Tax Year 1996. To put this discussion into perspective, the appendices to the article provide explanations of selected terms used for the article and describe the income tax structure, certain tax law changes, income and tax concepts (the "1979 Income Concept," "modified" taxable income, and marginal tax rates), the computation of "alternative minimum taxable income," and the data sources and limitations.


Our country current social security policy and legal retirement age make the profit and loss of personal pension very difference, and pauperize the retired senility. By measuring, the current social security policy is the main factors causing these bad results. Reducing the substituting rate of the pension properly while retiring, and raising the annual growth rate of pension is reasonable choice to adjust present policy.


Vibrations exist to certain extent in running hydroelectric generators, which have been causing troubles to quite a number of hydropower plants. Vibrations have been quite obvious in the No.3 unit of Tianshengqiao-I hydropower plant. Although some important measures have been taken such as counterweight added to the generator rotors, the vibrations still exceed standard. By means of dilated general overhaul of the said hydrogenerator unit, some measures have been taken such as the filling of the air interstice, the adjustments of the circular degree of rotors and the unit axis, as well as the filling of the second air-gap of the hydrogenerator unit etc, the vibrations of different running parts have so far met the professional standards and the technical specifications.


The goal of this research was to identify remote climatic impacts of global irrigation. From the start of the 20th century, the global area equipped for irrigation grew several-fold to encompass 1.8% of the global land area by the year 2015. Recently, climate models have begun to yield a picture of the resultant global impacts on historical climate. Local effects on surface water and energy budgets are profound and robust, but the impacts on precipitation, particularly those far from irrigated regions, are model-dependent and uncertain, and their governing mechanisms generally have not been analyzed in depth. The authors performed historical climate experiments with a GFDL Earth system model, with and without modification to account for global irrigation. Results show that the enhancement of Sahel precipitation by irrigation in the Middle East and the Indian subcontinent is approximately equal and opposite to the reduction of precipitation induced by the combination of all previously considered natural and anthropogenic factors. Interestingly, the enhancement mechanism does not involve increased transport of moisture from the irrigated regions to the region of precipitation enhancement. Rather, the irrigation-induced increase of moist static energy, upon transport to the Sahel, destabilizes the atmosphere, causing an increase of precipitation, which is then amplified by positive feedbacks. Remote irrigation may have reduced the intensity of drought and famine in the 1970s-1980s, which appear to have been associated with anomalous ocean-surface temperatures Future water availability in the Sahel may be affected by such factors as the depletion of groundwater resources in the Indian subcontinent and the pace of rehabilitation of irrigation infrastructure in the Middle East that was damaged by the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant.


Review of "Hacking Exposed: Web Applications, 2nd edition by Joel Scambray, Mike Shema, and Caleb Sima," McGraw-Hill Osborne Media, 2006, $49.99, ISBN: 0072262990.


Three antigens similar in tissue distribution can be identified on rat thymocytes; the Thy‐1.1 antigen, a rat specific xenoantigen, and a rat‐mouse cross‐reacting xenoantigen. To determine if these three antigens were on the same molecule their behavior in detergent‐solubilized extracts from thymocytes was studied. Membrane fragments containing Thy‐1.1 activity were prepared by a rapid method involving the use of Tween‐40 detergent, and were solubilized in deoxycholate. The 150 000 × g supernatant from this extract contained aproximately 50 % of the original Thy‐1.1 and xenoantigen activity. The supernatant was chromatographed on Sephadex G‐200, and subjected to zone sedimentation on sucrose gradients in H2O and 2H2O to determine the hydrodynamic properties of the antigens. The three antigens migrated in identical fashion in all cases, and behaved as a molecule of 28 000 daltons molecular weight. When the antigenically active fraction, recovered after chromatography on Sephadex G‐200, was passed through an immunoabsorbent consisting of rabbit antibody to one of the xenoantigens, all three antigens were equally depleted compared with passage through a control column.


are the site of advanced arteriosclerosis or atherosclerosis. The coronary arteries differ from most other arteries of the human body, both functionally and anatomically; in particular, they have a distinct intimal layer, which contains longitudinal smooth muscle fibers and which thickens progressively throughout life, beginning almost from the time of birth. Arteriosclerosis occurs earlier and more extensively than in most other vessels of the body, differing from the process elsewhere only in the great frequency of calcification and in the almost invariable vascularization of the sclerotic intima. Probably most of these intimal vessels arise from the vasa vasorum, although some undoubtedly penetrate from the arterial lumen. Coronary artery sclerosis and stenosis is of greatest extent and severity in the first 2 to 3 cm. of each of the three major extramural trunks. In the great majority of hearts bearing myocardial infarets, at least two major trunks show reduction of the cross-sectional area of their lumina by an estimated two thirds to three fourths or more. By careful routine pathologic study (not


In the glass production process, the refining process where bubbles in glass melts are removed is very important to produce high quality glasses. The refining process is considered to be controlled by the redox reaction of a refining agent. Sodium sulfate is commonly used as a refining agent . The oxygen potential in glass melts is important in the analysis of the reaction of Na2SO4. Recently, it became possible to measure oxygen potential in glass melts directly by using ZrO2 sensor. Schaeffer et al used ZrO2 sensor to measure the variation of oxygen potential with time during refining process of silicate glass melts. [1] In this paper, the possibility to use ZrO2 sensor in the measurement of oxygen potential in Na2SO4-containing Na2O-B2O3-Al2O3 melts were investigated in order to clarify the thermodynamic behavior of sulfur.


Introduction: Physiotherapy, speech and language therapy intervention (PSALTI) reduces cough symptoms in patients with refractory chronic cough. We investigated the patients9 opinions and perspectives of the treatment and its acceptability. Methods: Participants who had undergone 4 weekly 1 to 1 sessions in the PSALTI RCT were asked to complete a paper survey anonymously on their opinions of the treatment at their 3month follow up. Count data was expressed as frequencies and percentages of the total number of responses. Results: Of the 22 participants who completed their 3month follow up, 16 participants completed the survey. The majority of participants reported a decrease in their cough frequency (81%, n=13)), cough intensity (63%, n=10) and their embarrassment felt due to their cough (50%, n=7). The majority of participants also reported an improvement in sleep (63%, n=10) and their ability to control their cough post treatment (63%, n=10). The treatment components of PSALTI that participants felt were most helpful were the laryngeal hygiene and hydration/cough distraction techniques sipping water (n=15), sucking sweets (n=12), hard swallow technique (n=11) and breathing exercises (n=9). The majority of participants felt within the RCT, the session lengths (87%, n=13), frequency (93%, n=13) and total number (100%, n=15) were 9just right9. When asked if the sessions could have been completed within a group rather than 1 to 1 79% reported 9no.9 Conclusion: These results give the first insight into the patients9 perspective of PSALTI and are very useful to consider when designing further studies and considering implementation into patient care.


The developing trend of contradiction among the people at the present stage bears new different changes and new obvious characters.Especially,to the correctly handling contradictions among the people and defending society harmony,studying and grasping the trend accurately has very important practical and immediate significance.The article thinks that current contradiction among the people displays five aspect essential features: the nonantagonistic character doesn't change,but conflict's degree strengthen obviously;stronger needs for livelihoodthan for political right,but value contradiction gradually protruding;contradiction conflicts group-rization,individual cases expanding to contradictions involving large groups of people;complicated diversification of contradiction,but obvious contradictions between the officials and the people;much room for growth of contradictions among the people,unemployment problem and labour and capital contradiction will become the new increase pole gradually.


The main objective of this research is to introduce a revolutionary new design called Query Oriented Designing (QOD ) for real-time performance of Financial Applications. The research explains the high-level database designing and partitioning to achieve real-time system performance regardless of database growth. Systems designed in this new method can withstand future database growth to provide the same system response time throughout its lifespan regardless of the database size. QOD is just the opposite of other older database designing concepts such as Relational Database Design. Many researches conducted in the field of system performance improvement have pointed out that joining tables in the relational design slows down the query performance and therefore they suggest denormalized design to certain extent to improve the system performance. The idea of QOD was born after thinking deeper into these denormalization methods. The details of QOD challenges a lot of proven concepts of Relational Database Design. QOD is anti to easy system maintenance, the price it has to pay to provide fast system response time. The research explains the steps involved in designing a database using this QOD method. The research also lists the drawbacks in this new method and the trade off it can offer. Finally the research concludes by recommending this new method for time critical systems after taking into considerations various aspects of the difficult system maintenance associated with this new method. The justification given is that, it is 3 worthwhile to achieve faster speed in computer systems by spending a one time investment for hard disk and programming. QOD requires huge one time investment in hard disk and programming, however it can provide long term benefits of providing results in real-time speed which can amortize the initial investment cost in a short time period.


Growth, differentiation, and reproduction in higher plants proceed normally if the essential elements are acquired (64). In land plants the sites of utilization of nutrients are often remote from those of absorption and synthesis. Thus, translocation must link the initial entry of an element with its final consump tion to ensure that life processes occur in a regulated and orderly manner. Infection by phytopathogenic microorganisms frequently disturbs these reg ulated events at the organ, tissue, and cellular levels. The abnormal translocation and accumulation of inorganic solutes, referred to here as ions, was revealed some time ago in diseased tissues and organs (67, 82, 96, 101). Recent advances in microchemistry and electron micros copy, in combination with techniques of specimen preparation and ion detec tion, have revealed in detail features of ion localization in infected cells at the ultrastructural level. The present article aims to describe our past and current knowledge of ion localization near infection sites, especially at sites of encounter between host cells and pathogens. Emphasis is given in this chapter to ion movement in diseased cells, localization of specific ions during resis tant responses of host cells and ion effects on growth and differentiation of pathogens. Readers are referred to the following reviews for the physiological


In this paper, we propose a novel approach for Cross-Lingual Question Answering (CLQA). In the proposed method, the statistical machine translation (SMT) is deeply incorporated into the question answering process, instead of using it as the pre-processing of the mono-lingual QA process as in the previous work. The proposed method can be considered as exploiting the SMT-based passage retrieval for CLQA task. We applied our method to the English-toJapanese CLQA system and evaluated the performance by using NTCIR CLQA 1 and 2 test collections. The result showed that the proposed method outperformed the previous pre-translation approach.


I N THE COURSE of another study it became necessary to measure the resistance of blood,' a value essential for determining interfacial potentials in blood sys- tems. A thorough study of the electrical conductivity characteristics of normal human blood was undertaken.' The electrical conductivity in various pathologic conditions3 and during clotting and clot retraction4 was also investigated. In 1897, Stewartand others8' showed that the red cell is an almost perfect nonconductor of direct current. Later studies showed that the resistance of blood was proportional to the concentration of the erythrocytes,'#{176}"7 and this property was utilized by Stewart" and Wilson'8 for the formulation of tables which made possible the determination of the hematocrit and the mean cell volume from the resistance values. Subsequent investigations by Moore and Roaf,'9 Fricke,20'2 Cole, 2325 Achard 6 and Endres'7 further delineated the electrophysical characteris- tics of the red cell. Fricke and Curtis'8 showed that only the surface layer of the erythrocyte is nonconducting, giving rise to its resistivity, while the interior had a conductivity of approximately one-half that of plasma. It has also been shown'9 that while the red cell does not conduct direct current, it acts as a dielectric at sufficiently high frequency. In measurements of blood conductivity with low frequency AC bridges, varia- tions in conductivity with time have been observed, and workers have been unable to agree on a "true value" of the blood conductance. Some workers have attributed these changes to the effects of coagulation,3034 but others were unable to confirm these findings.35'36with certain designs of conductivity cells, blood resistance was observed to increase due to extrusion of serum during clot retraction.32' 35 Blood


Laser range-gated viewing experiments in the eye-safe spectral region are conducted where a semiconductor based laser illuminator is associated with a corresponding image detector able to operate in high frequency and high sensitivity shutter mode. After experimental validations of the camera developed for accumulation operation, a high power semiconductor based illuminator has been designed and realized. This technology can be used to develop efficient, compact and high average power SWIR illuminators. In a first step, images of different scenes were recorded in a test tunnel and the results are compared to those recorded simultaneously with a solid state based laser illuminator working in flash mode. Both results are similar in terms of image intensity whereas semiconductor based recordings exhibits lower speckle noise and better homogeneity. In a second step, outdoor experiments were conducted during daylight conditions like full sunshine and cloudy weather and also in night conditions. No significant image degradation is measured even with longer integration time. These results underline the potential of SWIR accumulation mode for outdoor and long range active imaging applications.


Do you enjoy reading books? Reading is one of the unique activities that only humans do, and we have not been doing it for that long! People have been practicing spoken communication using a language system with grammatical rules for at least 100,000 years. We have been building tools for even longer, with the first stone tools dating back about 2.5 million years [1]. But we have been reading and writing only for a few thousand years! Writing was invented in Southern Mesopotamia, or present-day Iraq, by the Babylonians around 5,400 years ago (Figures 1 and 2) [2]. Back then, only a few people could read and write. Nowadays, these skills are taught in schools and are accessible to a lot of us. However, there are still many people in the world – children and adults alike – who never had the chance to learn to read and write. Not knowing how to read Do you enjoy reading books? Reading is one of the unique activities that only humans do, and we have not been doing it for that long! Humans have talked to each other using a language system with grammatical rules for at least 100,000 years, but we have been reading and writing only for a few thousand years! What happens in our brain when we read? Our brain has developed a region that is specialized in knowing what written words look like. It closely works together with other parts of the brain that help us understand words and to speak. Importantly, as we learn to read, this region will become trained in recognizing word shapes used in whatever language we train it with. or write is called illiteracy. Today, about 1 in every 10 people on our planet cannot read or write. That means nearly 800 million of us are illiterate! What happens in our brain when we learn to read? The Wordbox iN our braiN About a third of our brain is specialized in analyzing things that we see. This part of the brain is also known as the visual system. This system is based in the cortex, the folded surface of the brain. Areas of the visual system lie in occipital cortex (red in Figure 3) and parts of temporal (yellow) and parietal (green) cortices. Other parts of the brain help us understand and produce language (to speak). These parts are located mostly in the …


the educational analysis of the body. Finally, in the third, we recommend some actions to include the body in the formative processes and we give some suggestions of literature about body and education.


The EBR-2 is now in its 13th year of operation. During that period more than 2400 subassemblies have been cleaned of sodium without a serious incident of any kind by a two-step process developed at Argonne. Sodium cleaning and decontamination of other reactor components has been performed only on the relatively few occasions in which a repair or replacement has been required. A summary of the EBR-2 experience will be presented. A new facility will be described for the improved cleaning and maintenance of sodium-wetted primary components.


was being fought over the vexed question of spontaneous generation. But by 1713, all the necessary ideas were there; Cogrossi and Vallisnieri had linked transmission of contagious disease to Leeuwenhoek's animalcules. They had been helped by developments in neighbouring fields in Italy during the latter half of the seventeenth century. As Belloni has pointed out, there is indeed a straight line of development to be discerned from Harvey's Omne animal ex ovo, through Francesco Redi's elegant refutation of the theory of spontaneous generation and his definitive formulation of the concept of parasitism in 1687, with the simultaneous microscopical observations of Leeuwenhoek, to the final, all-important link in the chain, the real turning-point to which Cogrossi refers at length in his first letter to Vallisnieri: the evidence, presented also in 1687, for the causal role played by acarus in scabies, by two Italians belonging to Redi's circle. In the Pensieri, Cogrossi gave a detailed description of the progress of the epizootic, noting that the measures taken due to "the splendid vigilance of our most diligent magistracy" had managed for a while to contain the outbreak in isolated foci of infection, but that at the time of writing it was out of control and spreading mercilessly in all directions. He helpfully appended a useful maxim which suggested that increasingly cynical attitudes were beginning to overtake the pious confidence in divine guidance of earlier centuries: "Do not fail to make use of divine measures as if human ones were lacking, and of human ones as if divine ones


The study analyses the role of services in modern and less-developed economies. It shows the different meanings of the value, definition and classification of service activities found in economic literature. It discusses the relation between service production growth and economic development observing the role of these activities in the dynamics of economic restructuring. Further, it also examines the differences between private and public sector service restructuring and the consequences of internationalization of services. It concludes that economic restructuring also caused by changes in the nature of goods and services has important regional effects.


Through-the-Wall Imaging is emerging as an affordable sensor technology supporting a variety of applications, such as surveillance and reconnaissance, emergency rescue, and firefighting. Motivated by the desire to understand the underlying phenomenology and performance bounds associated with imaging targets behind walls, several through-the-wall imaging experiments were conducted at the Center for Advanced Communications (CAC), Villanova University. These experiments aimed at supporting resolution, polarization, and localization of indoor targets and objects behind walls, and provided valuable dual-polarized synthetic aperture data measurements of indoor scenes of different complexity and population. In this paper, we present full-polarization imaging results, for a setting of calibrated reflectors behind a typical exterior grade wall. These imaging results provide polarimetric scene characterization and are shown to be in good agreement with the ground truth.


: After different practical approaches performed, encryption of images being sent is a necessity to ensure the security before the compression of image. But how to design an image encryption and after that image compression algorithms so that the compression image does not become a hectic issue. This work surveys the various encryption-then-compression (ETC) system of image, which considers both the lossless and the lossy compression mechanisms. In the proposed system, the image encryption scheme will be operated by using AES algorithm which provides ample of security to the images or other data files as well. And with the AES, arithmetic approach is more efficient for better compression of encrypted images. In terms of compression efficiency, it is somewhat inconvenient as Huffman algorithm based approach is not so suitable, as it provides very less compression ratio, than the advanced lossless/lossy coders of image as inputs, which take intrinsic or unencrypted images.


This article presents issues surrounding the concept of national cinema as a form of existence/resistance and articulates the spatial dimension that limits the consumption of cultural objects, because they do not have free trade capacity. National identities continue to press the cinema, participating in the production of the representation that triggers inclusion or exclusion mechanisms within a geographical area, reflecting on the cultural production and on the arts by considering the observation of the immediate data from the embarrassments and limitations of the reality thought and their real capacity to produce films. The limitations are, for example, different training and expertise levels, as well as unequal financing capacity and circulation capacity. These elements redound to markedly different aesthetic products.


Purpose – The passion of Canadians for ice hockey is well documented; however, university teams in Canada are routinely ignored by consumers and the media. The authors' goal was to better understand the context in which Ontario university hockey struggles and to address the theoretical question of how best to examine and evaluate the problems of sport‐specific organizations. Using the Value Dynamics Framework (VDF), the purpose of this paper was to examine whether or not this framework fits well with the realities facing not‐for‐profit OUA hockey teams, and if not, to create a framework specific to these teams.Design/methodology/approach – Semi‐structured in‐depth interviews were conducted with 15 of the 19 (77 percent) OUA hockey coaches during the 2010/2011 hockey season. The interview guide was drawn from the VDF elements and enabled the researchers to understand not‐for‐profit organizational assets, including physical, financial, employee/supplier, customer, and organizational.Findings – This paper of...


Background: Managing medications is a complex responsibility of family caregivers caring for end-of-life patients. This study characterizes caregivers with and without formal/informal support managing medications for patients who receive end-of-life care at home. Aim: To explore factors related to caregivers' support with managing medications for end-of-life home hospice patients. Design: A convenience-sampled, cross-sectional telephone survey. Setting/participants: Computer-assisted telephone interviews were administered to 120 caregivers managing medications, who were referred by five Chicago-based home hospice services. We measured caregivers' additional formal (paid) and informal (unpaid) support with managing medications, and caregiver/patient socio-demographic, relational, and health characteristics. Results: While 47 (39%) had no additional support with managing medications, 27 (22.5%) had formal support, 37 (31%) informal, and 9 (7.5%) both. Seven caregivers (19%) with formal and 13 (31%) with informal support reported disagreements concerning treatment plans. Caregivers lacking formal support tended to be racial/ethnic minorities, live with the patient in their home, or report greater emotional burden. Caregivers with formal support tended to report higher education/income, lower mutuality, or care for a patient with over 6 months' hospice enrollment. Caregivers lacking informal support tended to be spousal caregivers, live with the patient, or have experience caring for another dying person. Conclusion: Our study suggests that high proportions of caregivers may not have support managing medications for patients receiving hospice care at home. More research should examine whether the observed variations in obtaining support indicate disparities or unmet needs among caregivers. Disagreement about treatment with formal/informal support also warrants further investigation.