Introduction and Objective Allogenic islet transplantation is an important therapeutic approach for the treatment of Type 1 Diabetes (T1D). However, graft rejection initiated and perpetuated by pathogenic T effector (Teff) cells presents a major barrier. One approach that has proven successful for promoting graft tolerance is shifting the T cell balance away from the induction of pathogenic Teff cells and towards the generation of protective T regulatory (Treg) cells. PD-1/PD-L1 immune checkpoint pathway plays an important role in the Teff and Treg balance with demonstrated clinical efficacy in cancer immunotherapy. The goal of this study was to assess the immunoregulatory function of PDL1 in controlling the rejection of allogeneic islets grafts. Materials and Methods A DNA construct encoding the extracellular portion of PD-L1 protein fused to a modified form of core streptavidin was generated. The chimeric SA-PDL1 protein was produced in insect cells, purified using immunoaffinity columns, and characterized for structure. The function of SA-PDL1 was assessed in vitro for the conversion of Teff into Treg cells, and its capacity to suppress Teff proliferation in response to allogeneic stimulation. For in vivo studies, BALB/c islets were modified with biotin followed by engineering with SA-PDL1 protein (~200 ng/1000 islets). Engineered islets (~500 islets/transplant) were then transplanted under the kidney capsule of streptozotocin-induced diabetic C57BL/6 mice under transient cover of rapamycin (0.2 mg/kg) administered daily for 15 days starting the day of transplantation. Groups with unmodified pancreatic islets and rapamycin treatment or SA-PDL1-engineered islets without rapamycin treatment served as controls. Results and Discussion SA-PDL1 was successfully expressed and purified. In vitro, the protein enhanced TGF-beta-induced conversion of Teff into Treg cells and effectively suppressed the proliferation of Teff cells in response to alloantigen stimulation. In vivo, SA-PDL1-engineered BALB/c islet grafts, with concurrent rapamycin treatment, remained functional for over a 100-day observation period. In marked contrast, unmodified islets, under the same rapamycin regimen, were acutely rejected within 20 days. SA-PDL1-engineered islets without rapamycin showed prolonged survival, although all grafts were eventually rejected within 40 days. Conclusion These results provide strong proof-of-efficacy and feasibility for the use of SA-PDL1 protein as an immunomodulator to promote allogeneic islet graft survival in the absence of continued immunosuppression. This study was funded in part by NIH (grants R21EB020107, R21AI113348, 185 R56AI121281, and F30AR069472).


In this paper we show that the kinetic findings lead logically to the most probable mechanism of the reaction. We use the experimental data to evaluate the kinetic parameters in the proposed mechanism and show that the resulting rate and integral expressions produce model results in close agreement with the experimental results


Postmenopausal bleeding (PMB) is bleeding from the vagina that occurs after a woman has stopped having regular menstrual periods due to menopause. Diagnostic tools in postmenopausal women with abnormal uterine bleeding are TVS, SIS, hysteroscopy and biopsy for histopathological examination.To compare diagnostic accuracy of saline infusion sonography with hysteroscopy in detecting intracavitary abnormalities in postmenopausal women with abnormal uterine bleeding. This prospective observational comparative study was conducted at Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Benha University Hospitals on 50 female patients complaining of PMB. All patients were subjected to full history taking, examination, transvaginal ultrasonography and routine preoperative investigations. In operation room under general anesthesia, patients were undergoing SIS then hysteroscopy. Biopsy was taken and sent for histopathological examination. Most commonly encountered endometrial lesions were hyperplasia (52%), myoma (16%), polyp (12%) and atrophy (12%). Diagnostic accuracy of hysteroscopy in detection of submucosal myoma was better than SIS and TVS with respect to pathological diagnosis. There was an agreement between SIS and hysteroscopy in the diagnosis of polypoid lesions of uterine cavity with sensitivity and specificity of 100%, being more accurate than TVS. The diagnostic accuracy of SIS in the detection of endometrial hyperplasia was better than hysteroscopy and better than TVS with respect to pathological diagnosis.Hysteroscopy has the highest diagnostic accuracy for diagnosing endometrial pathology. SIS may be used as the primary method for the detection of uterine abnormalities among postmenopausal women with abnormal uterine bleeding.


This Perspective describes the ways in which the 2010 New START agreement (which is set to expire in 2021) supports U.S. military objectives. It also examines the current debate over a possible five-year extension of the treaty. The author concludes that the United States should agree now to extend New START to gain the time to negotiate a new agreement that addresses a broader range of nuclear delivery systems and China's growing capabilities.


A stilbenoid , natural phenol, called resveratrol (3, 5, 4′ -trihydroxy-trans-stilbene), is a phytoalexin produced by a number of plants in reaction to injury by pathogens like bacteria or fungi. As a member of the viniferin family of polyphenols, resveratrol is one of the most well-known and extensively researched substances. Free radical-induced oxidative stress is a key component in the pathogenesis of atherosclerosis, neoplasia


The behavior of seven different mature male pronghorns (Anti-locapra americana) was studied for 102.6 hours during the rut season of 1966 on the National Bison Range in Montana. the bucks were in non-overlapping territories of Viq to Vs square miles. a buck on his territory displayed aggressive behavior to males that looked toward him or exposed the sides of their bodies to him. the bucks defended their areas against yearling bucks in all 131 interactions, and against other adult bucks in 69 of 73 similar encounters.


This essay presents a small case study that traces the history of American Jewish scholarship in search of its language and its place in the American world before 1945. Instead of dealing with the scholarship of languages, the author focuses on two languages of Jewish scholarship that emerged during the nineteenth century, that had and still have, albeit in different degrees, a deep impact on modern Jewish Studies. The author does not elaborate on theories of multilinguism, but rather explores the process of transformation that took place when Jewish emigration to the United States in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries led to the transplantation of Wissenshaft des Judentums into a totally different cultural and linguistic context.


The seasonal change of the color,the contents of pigments and mineral elements in spathe of cut flower anthurium,as well as the temperature under the sunshade shed in Danzhou area were investigated,during June to December,on account of the spathe color turning green seasonally when the anthurium was cultivated in the open air in Hainan Island.The relationship between temperature,the accumulation of mineral elements and the "green ear" of anthurium spathe was discussed.The result showed that the spathe color turned green from October and recovered in December.The anthocyanin content began to decrease from July,and then increased after October under the effect of lower average temperature.While the chlorophyll accumulation increased after August,and decreased from November.After August,more nitrogen element in the spathe was benefit for the accumulation of chlorophyll.And the content of potassium element increased from October,which was in favor of the anthocyanin accumulation.Based on that,the "green ear" of anthurium spathe would be inhibited by temperature reduction,reducing nitrogen and phosphorus application,increasing potassium and calcium application in practical production from July.


This paper presents Lamé bulk mode square resonators fabricated in a novel silicon-on-insulator technology, MicraGEM-Si. Structures are formed by patterning two wafers with several etched depths and wafer bonding them to create the released movable resonator structures. Two distinct anchoring architectures are studied: one with suspension beams at the nodal corner points, and the other with a central anchoring support. The center support architecture can be suitable for realizing high-performance gyroscopes. Resonators with different support sizes are fabricated and characterized. Fabricated devices were measured to operate at a resonance frequency of ~18 MHz and quality factors as high as ~42 000 in atmospheric pressure, which to the best of our knowledge is the highest reported to date at such an ambient pressure, and ~871 000 in 100-mtorr vacuum, corresponding to a <inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$\text{f}\cdot \text{Q}$ </tex-math></inline-formula> product of <inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$\sim 1.6\times 10^{13}$ </tex-math></inline-formula>. [2016-0112]


I. The dispersive role of mite phoresy, which has merely been presumed, is presented in the light of modern theories of migration with the aim of its characterization behaviourally, ecologically and physiologically.


The relative concentration of administrative litigation is the product of the innovation of our country judicial practice in recent years,which objectively exists in administrative litigation. The practice proves that its existence helps achieve the organic unity of "political effects,legal effects,social effects". In view of this new system in the judicial system,this paper makes a theoretical analysis from the three aspects othe system value, justice value and procedure value,in order to point out the theoretical value of this system and to provide theoretical material for legislation.


Dr. Curtis L. Mendelson is the eponym for Mendelson syndrome, which is better known today as "pulmonary aspiration syndrome." He originally wrote that, "The clue to etiology of the liquid aspiration syndrome was apparent when I inadvertently inhaled gastric fluid following an evening of relative intemperance." More than 60 years later, the optimal anesthetic technique to avoid this complication during the induction of general anesthesia is still debated. Virtually all aspects of anesthetic induction have been investigated, such as whether to induce anesthesia with patients in the lateral, head-up, or head-down position, or whether to use volatile or IV medications during the induction. Based primarily on clinical experience, some techniques have become so widespread that they are now considered "standard of care." During a standard anesthetic induction, anesthesiologists commonly avoid cricoid pressure, administer preinduction anxiolytics, and perform mask ventilation. The concept of using a special anesthetic induction procedure for patients at risk for aspiration began to take shape in 1951 after the introduction of succinylcholine. Currently, most clinicians would agree that a neuromuscular blocking drug with a fast onset time and short duration of action is preferred during induction of anesthesia in patients at risk for aspiration, because this would eliminate the need for mask ventilation and potential stomach insufflation. A decade after the first use of succinylcholine, in 1961, Sellick described cricoid pressure as a maneuver to decrease aspiration during the induction of anesthesia. This has also gained widespread acceptance as a valuable technique to reduce stomach insufflation and regurgitation of gastric contents. These and other concepts were integrated by Stept and Safar into the first written description of a rapid sequence induction and intubation (RSII). Their protocol included preoxygenation, a semisitting position, precurarization, a fixed dose of thiopental, cricoid pressure, succinylcholine, and the avoidance of mask ventilation. Although newer medications may now be used, this sequence has been relatively unchanged over the past 40 years. Despite the widespread acceptance of Stept and Safar's concept, there remains little clinical evidence supporting the various components of the RSII. Even cricoid pressure, which has become a cornerstone of RSII, lacks clinical evidence supporting its use. For example, several recent studies have shown that cricoid pressure may decrease the lower esophageal sphincter tone and may frequently fail to compress the esophagus. There is also evidence that the use of cricoid pressure may increase the difficulty of mask ventilation or placement of a laryngeal mask airway. Because there is no definitive evidence supporting the components of an RSII, many clinicians feel comfortable altering the classic RSII. This has given rise to the term "modified RSII." For example, many clinicians will use sedatives before bringing the patient into the operating room or will "test" their ability to oxygenate the patient's lungs via bag mask ventilation before administering a neuromuscular blocking agent despite the perceived increased risk of aspiration. Unfortunately, neither a standard definition of a "classic" RSII nor a classification of the different types of "modified" RSII exists. This makes it difficult to communicate and conduct clinical research in this area. In this issue of Anesthesia & Analgesia, Ehrenfeld et al. present the results of a national cross-sectional survey conducted to study the current techniques used to induce anesthesia in adult patients at risk for aspiration. The goal was to better define what anesthesiologists consider a "modified" RSII and explore the reasons a modified technique is used. The study population consisted of attending and resident anesthesiologists at 131 hospitals in the United States that contain an anesthesiology residency program accredited by the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education. Each institution received the same number of questionnaires irrespective of the size of their residency programs, and no incentives were used to enhance survey completion rates. No data from private practice anesthesiologists, certified registered nurse anesthetists, or anesthesia assistants were collected. They received responses from 44% of institutions, and responding institutions returned an average of 84% of surveys. Their definition of a "classic" RSII was derived from previous surveys of anesthesia practice and consisted of From the Department of Anesthesiology, Division of Critical Care, University of Michigan Cardiovascular Center, Ann Arbor, Michigan.


The last fifty years have seen significant progress in the field of nuclear astrophysics, the study of nuclear reactions in stars and other cosmic phenomena. In the past several years, it has become possible to explore energies in the stellar energy range with a new device, the recoil mass separator. The St. George recoil mass separator currently under construction at the University of Notre Dame is poised to explore helium burning in stars, and later on to investigate hydrogen burning. Indiana University South Bend is working on a mass detector to be installed on the terminal end of St. George. In order to find the timing resolution required by the mass detector to give acceptable precision, a C++ program has been written to simulate fusion reactions at St. George. It has yielded results that will be compared against data collected during testing and the actual experimentation.


To the difficulties in collecting rotor's unbalance signal caused by poor environment of rotor 's field balancing test. A signal processing circuit to acquire rotor unbalance signals from the strong noise based on the principle of cross-correlation is designed, according to that the frequency of the rotor speed and the frequency of vibration acceleration caused by rotor imbalance of the rotating body of equipment is the same. After analyzing and processing the vibration acceleration and rotational speed signal, used cross-correlation operations to verify 5 kg of check rotor field dynamic balancing test. The experiment results show that the rotational speed is in the range of 500 r/min to 1800 r/min, the maximum amplitude error is less than 0.347 g and the maximum phase error is less than 5°. Therefore, we think it can meet the typical rotor field dynamic balancing test of rotating body equipment.


This thesis puts forward the issue that syndrome differentiation must take pathogenesis as the core.And this thesis expound its five strengths:①In keeping with the perpetual motion viewpoint of TCM;②According with the thinking logicality of TCM syndrome differentiation;③Giving full play to human subjective initiative activeness;④Contributing to comfirming syndrome guiding the clinical treatment definitely;⑤In favor of difficult and complicated diseases' syndrome differentiation.


Molecular dynamics simulations reveal that ignition temperature depends on grain size and grain boundary structure in combustible Ni/Al nanolaminates.Molecular dynamics simulations reveal that igni...


The conformational properties in DMSO of two head‐to‐tail cyclic analogues of kallidin ([Lys0]‐bradykinin, KL) as well as those of the corresponding linear peptides were studied by NMR and molecular dynamics (MD) simulations. The modifications in the sequence were introduced at position 6, resulting in the four peptides, [Tyr6]‐KL (YKL), [Trp6]‐KL (WKL), cyclo‐([Tyr6]‐KL) (YCKL) and cyclo‐([Trp6]‐KL) (WCKL).


The PAIR (Precision Approach Interferometer Radar) system accurately measures the position of aircraft in the airfield approach sector. A ground-based interrogator transmits a conventional SSR code. Aircraft transponder replies are received by an azimuth and elevation interferometer and the angular position measured to high accuracy. Range is measured from the go-and-return time. Aircraft identity is obtained from the SSR IDENT code. Ground reflections are reduced by means of a null in the vertical pattern of the elevation interferometer. Fruit and garbling effects are removed in the signal processing. The aircraft positional information is processed in a mini-computer and presented to the operator on a bright graphical display, and automatic conflict detection can be provided. Applications of the system are ATC terminal area control, MLS and ILS monitoring and ground controlled approach.


This book offers a guide for practitioners, researchers, and educators for the understanding and application of scientifically based evaluations that are both rigorous and flexible. The book covers seven major evaluation models and the author, a highly experienced academic and consultant evaluator, bridges the gap between theory and practice by illustrating the various approaches in simple language. The book explores the research evidence behind the utility of each model, shows how each approach looks in practice, and explains why it works for one situation and not another. Academically, the author is rooted in both education and public administration, areas that often share evaluation and needs assessment courses.


This study focuses on the investigation of in)plane shear properties of glass/epoxy laminated composite plates by using V)notched rail shear test fixture. V)notched shear test, described in ASTM Standard D 7078, incorporates the attractive features of Iosipescu and two)rail shear tests. The effects of the material orientation and notch angle of V)notched rail shear specimens on in)plane shear properties are investigated.


ABSTRACT BackgroundChronic energy deficiency (CED) in pregnancy has been widely known to have a negative impact on the mother and the fetus it contains. The most prominent negative impact is the increased risk of maternal and infant deaths during childbirth. CED in pregnant women can be caused by an imbalance of nutritional intake and infectious diseases. The aim of this research is to know and analyze the correlation between family socioeconomic factors (age, education, occupation, income, number of family members, family support), food consumption pattern (food type, food quantity, feeding frequency, food prohibition) and history of infectious diseases CED events in pregnant women. Research methodsThe type of research used is observational analytic research with cross sectional design. Sampling in total sampling with a sample size of 72 respondents. The instrument used is questionnaire and 24 hour food recall format. Data analysis was done in three stages: univariate analysis, bivariate analysis with chi square analysis method, multivariate analysis with multiple logistic regression analysis method. ResultsThe results of the study based on bivariate analysis showed that the variables associated with CED occurrence in pregnant women were education with p = 0,001 (p <0,05), job with p value = 0,000 (p <0,05), income with p value = 0,000 (P <0,05), p = 0,000 (p <0,05), p = 0,000 (p <0,05), food consumption with p = 0,000 (p <0,05) , 05), and feeding frequency with value p = 0,008 (p <0,05). Multivariate analysis showed that variables associated with CED occurrence in pregnant women were job variable with p value = 0,026. ConclusionThere is a significant correlation between family socioeconomic factors (education, occupation, income, family support) and food consumption pattern (type of food, amount of food consumption and frequency of eating) with CED occurrence in pregnant women. Simultaneously then there is one variable that has a significant relationship with CED occurrence in pregnant women that is work.


Between 1419 and 1477, the Burgundian dukes Philip the Good (r. 1419–67) and Charles the Bold (r. 1467–77) presided over the most dynamic and rapidly expanding realm in Europe. As their political ambitions grew with each new territorial acquisition so did the complexity of their lavish court ceremonies (Fig. 1). Elaborate pageants were staged to enhance ducal magnificence or to publicize a ducal project. Certainly the most famous of these was the Feast of the Pheasant held in Lille in 1454 to promote Philip's proposed crusade to liberate Constantinople.


A newly installed core charge exchange recombination spectroscopy (CXRS) diagnostic at ASDEX Upgrade (AUG) enables the evaluation of the core poloidal rotation (upol) through the inboard-outboard asymmetry of the toroidal rotation with an accuracy of 0.5 to 1 km s−1. Using this technique, the total plasma flow has been measured in Ohmic L-mode plasmas across the transition from the linear to saturated ohmic confinement (LOC–SOC) regimes. The core poloidal rotation of the plasma around mid-radius is found to be always in the ion diamagnetic direction, in disagreement with neoclassical (NC) predictions. The edge rotation is found to be electron-directed and consistent with NC codes. This measurement provides as well the missing ingredient to evaluate the core E→×B→ velocity (uE→×B→) from data only, which can then be compared to measurements of the perpendicular velocity of the turbulent fluctuations (u⊥) to gain information on the turbulent phase velocity (vph). The non neoclassical upol from CXRS leads to good agreement between uE→×B→ and u⊥ indicating that vph is small and at similar values as found with gyrokinetic simulations. Moreover, the data shows a shift of vph in the ion-diamagnetic direction at the edge after the transition from LOC to SOC consistent with a change in the dominant turbulence regime. The upgrade of the core CXRS system provides as well a deeper insight into the intrinsic rotation. This paper shows that the reversal of the core toroidal rotation occurs clearly after the LOC–SOC transition and concomitant with the peaking of the electron density.


This project was concerned with characterizing the changes in coal macromolecular structure, that are of significance for liquefaction pretreatments of coal. The macromolecular structure of the insoluble portion of coal is difficult to characterize. Techniques that do so indirectly (based upon, for example, NMR and FTIR characterizations of atomic linkages) are not particularly sensitive for this purpose. Techniques that characterize the elastic structure (such as solvent swelling) are much more sensitive to subtle changes in the network structure. It is for this reason that we focused upon these techniques. The overall objective involved identifying pretreatments that reduce the crosslinking (physical or chemical) of the network structure, and thus lead to materials that can be handled to a greater extent by traditional liquid-phase processing techniques. These techniques tend to be inherently more efficient at producing desirable products. This report is divided into seven chapters. Chapter II summarizes the main experimental approaches used throughout the project, and summarizes the main findings on the Argonne Premium coal samples. Chapter III considers synergistic effects of solvent pairs. It is divided into two subsections. The first is concerned with mixtures of CS{sub 2} with electron donor solvents. The second subsection is concerned with aromatic hydrocarbonmore » - alcohol or hydrocarbon - alcohol mixtures, as might be of interest for preliquefaction delivery of catalysts into bituminous coals. Chapter IV deals with questions of how oxidation might influence the results that are obtained. Chapter V briefly details what conclusions may be drawn concerning the elastic behavior of coals, and the effects of thermal treatments on this behavior. Chapter VI is concerned with theories to describe the action of solvents that are capable of dissociating non-covalent crosslinks. Finally, Chapter VII discusses the practical implications of the study.« less


This paper presents an analysis of resonant faults and their transient responses on half-wavelength lines. This type of transmission line has been studied for many years in countries that need alternatives for bulk power transmission over very long distances. An important issue for this technology is the occurrence of critical faults, which produce peculiar behavior in the main electrical entities and can jeopardize line insulation and compromise system stability. Here, the main factors influencing the severity of faults are analyzed: the type of fault and fault location. This paper shows that faults involving positive and negative sequences are the most critical when applied at specific regions and produce high voltage and power with a high rate of rise. The necessity for a mitigation method that removes this severe resonant fault condition until the operation of a protection system is discussed, and such a method is established. A method using two spark gaps with a new and improved location criterion is proposed, tested and evaluated, providing promising results for controlling voltage and power at terminal substations. Digital simulations are performed with PSCAD/EMTDC.


ABSTRACT RESEARCH OBJECTIVE: The aim of the paper is to show that the concept of diversity has much more implications for schools and education than commonly assumed. THE RESEARCH PROBLEM AND METHODOLOGY: Based on an evaluation research study (formative and summative) involving 20 schools at the elementary and secondary level, which have undergone a federal process of professional development findings are presented, which indicate that we need to be more strategic in terms of our research practices and dissemination when it comes to diversity . THE PROCESS OF ARGUMENTATION The paper introduces the concept of a critical theory of professional development in education, which includes the conceptual history approach and post structural points of view. The findings of an evaluation research study are then analysed. The exploration of the connections between diversity discourses and the challenges of the daily organisational and pedagogical routines completes the analysis. RESEARCH RESULTS: For the results show that diversity management is becoming more and more of an issue. Further crucial points seem to be media relations and the competition between schools. CONCLUSIONS, INNOVATION AND RECOMMENDATIONS: Strengthening the competence of everybody involved and enabling transfer of knowledge is the key. Instead research tends to confront players with what they don't know and can't handle, often classifying their working approaches in an offensive way rather then supporting them by acknowledging their expertise in first place. The approach of a Critical Professional Development in Education could be the key


In this study, the classification of the most common benign lesions, cysts and hemangiomas in liver was achieved using magnetic resonance (MR) images. T1 venous phase of 68 liver MR images were used for the classification, including 28 cysts and 40 hemangiomas MR images. Liver segmentation was done by expert radiologists using MR images. Then automatic windowing was applied to images to reduce the negative impact on the process of image-free areas of tissue information. The obtained images were normalized and thresholded using histogram equalization. The average, standard deviation and distortion values of the image feature matrix obtained by applying wavelet transform (WT) and complex valued wavelet transform (CVWT) onto the thresholded images were calculated. Artificial neural network (ANN) ,extreme learning machine (ELM), cyst and hemangiomas classification were achieved using these features as inputs. As a result of this study,50% accuracy at the data applied CVWT, 70,5% accuracy at the data applied WT were obtained in ANN. Average processing time is 4.61 seconds. When examined the ELM application results, it can be seen that there are 55, 8% accuracy at the data applied CVWT and 62, 5% accuracy at the data applied WT. Also, the average processing time is 0,016 seconds this time. Although the classification results seem low, classification accuracy rates will increase with the development studies considering advantage of ELM processing time.


Aluminium nitride(AlN) powder was prepared by carbon thermal reduction method and aluminum powder direct-reduction method as well as microwave heating using aluminum hydroxide and acetylene black as aluminum source and carbon source.The results show that the pure AlN powder with good dispersivity can be obtained only by heating at 1 300℃for 1 hour when the new technique is used.Moreover,activation energy calculation result shows that the activation energy can reduce 3/4 in the process of the new technique comparing with the general carbon thermal reduction reaction.


We present a measurement of the branching fraction for the Cabibbo- and color-suppressed B 0 → Χ c1 π 0 decay based on a data sample of 657 X 10 6 BB events collected at the Y(4S) resonance with the Belle detector at the KEKB asymmetric-energy e + e - collider. We observe a signal of 40 ± 9 events with a significance of 4.7cr including systematic uncertainties. The measured branching fraction is B(B 0 → Χ c1 π 0 ) = (1.12 ± 0.25(stat) ± 0.12(syst.)) X 10 -5 .


The National E-Governance Action Plan since approved by the Government seeks to lay the foundation and provide the impetus for long term growth of egovernance within the country. The Plan seeks to create the right governance and institutional mechanism, set up the core infrastructure and policies, and implement a number of Mission Mode Projects at the Centre, State and integrated service levels


Creativity is a complex and contested notion but is now widely recognised as a feature of learning across the curriculum. This article explores how primary geography teaching can be enriched by creative practice. It goes beyond simply suggesting imaginative ways to devise geography lessons, to outline a pedagogy which places children at the heart of learning. In doing so, it shifts attention away from the transmission of knowledge towards the process of learning. The failure of government reports to make the connection between geography and creativity, and the need for greater recognition of how creativity promotes learning through enjoyment, health and emotional well-being are highlighted.


The solid complex Tb(III)-bathophenanthroline (Bphen) was synthesized and characterized by elemental analysis, IR spectra, and thermalanalysis. The formation of binary and ternary complexes of Tb(III) with N-acetylamino acids (N-acetylaspartic acid, N-acetylhistidine, and N-acetylhistamine), and Bphen or anthracene-9-carboxylic acid (9-ANCA) has been studied potentiometrically at (25.0 ± 0.1) °C and an ionic strength of I = 0.1 mol·dm–3. The results obtained confirmed the recognition of the investigated N-acetylamino acids by the luminescent probes used at the molecular level. The formation of binary and ternary complexes of Tb(III) with nucleotides guanosine 5′-monophosphate (5′-GMP), adenosine 5′-monophosphate (5′-AMP), cytidine 5′-monophosphate (5′-CMP), or N-acetylamino acids (N-acetylaspartic acid, N-acetylhistidine, and N-acetylhistamine) has been studied potentiometrically. Confirmation of the formation of the ternary systems of the type Tb(III)-Bphen-N-acetylamino acids or Tb(III)-9-ANCA-N-acetyla...


Observational studies of collimation in jets in active galactic nuclei (AGN) are a key to understanding their formation and acceleration processes. We have performed an automated search for jet shape breaks in a sample of 367 AGN using VLBA data at 2 cm and 22 cm. This search has found ten nearby jets at redshifts z<0.07 with a transition from a parabolic to conical shape, while the full sample is dominated by distant AGN with a typical z=1. The ten AGN are UGC 00773, NGC 1052, 3C111, 3C120, TXS 0815-094, Mrk180, PKS 1514+00, NGC 6251, 3C371, and BL Lac. We conclude that the geometry transition may be a common effect in AGN jets. It can be observed only when sufficient linear resolution is obtained. Supplementing these results with previously reported shape breaks in the nearby AGN 1H 0323+342 and M87, we estimate that the break typically occurs at a distance of $10^5$-$10^6$ gravitational radii from the nucleus. We suggest that the jet shape transition happens when the bulk plasma kinetic energy flux becomes equal to the Poynting energy flux, while the ambient medium pressure is assumed to be governed by Bondi accretion. Our model predictions on the jet acceleration and properties of the break point are found to be supported observationally.


The primary factor contributing to the profitability of a platinum mine and its associated concentrator is the time taken from the first hoist of material from underground to the first batch of concentrate shipped. To minimize the time it would take to produce concentrate without stopping because of a lack of feed material a project was undertaken to integrate the mining model with a concentrator production schedule () in the most capital-effective manner. A secondary goal was to ensure detailed stockpiling requirements, as the concentrator is in an area where 'visual pollution' is to be avoided. To achieve this a dynamic stockpile model was created utilizing the mine production schedule resolved into a daily production figure. Four different concentrator development models were then proposed. The difference between the mine production and concentrator consumption was integrated over the life of the mine to provide the accumulated stockpile tonnages for both Merensky and UG2 ores. The stockpile levels were never allowed to fall below zero to prevent a situation where the concentrator was operational without feed material,. When a development option was selected, the standard metallurgical performance calculations were used to derive a concentrate production schedule, that was then used as a basis for commercial concentrate sale negotiations.


Objective To analyse the prevalent characteristic of hepatitis B in Guangzhou region population and its apocalypse to the preventive work.Methods HBV mark were examined by using ELISA method and the results were analyzed statistically in the three groups of particulor poputation in Guangzhou region.Results The HBsAg positive rate in population of Guangzhou region presented a descent trend year by year.The HBsAg positive rate in the young generation was more lower than that in the elderly.But the proportion of lack of HBV immunity in young children reached to 48.90%.Conclusion The immunity response to hepatitis B vaccine should be monitored in young children,make it play role in preventive work of HBV.


Iron is essential to all forms of life as it is involved in a number of vital functions. However, due to toxicity issues at higher concentrations iron must be maintained in cells within an appropriate range. Gram negative bacteria rely on the Ferric Uptake Regulator (Fur) protein to help maintain the proper balance. In the current study we aimed to identify the amino acids critical for Fur function in Klebsiella oxytoca. We used an in silico analysis to identify eight residues for the project: His86, His87, His88, Asp89, His90, Cys96, His118 and His125. Site‐directed mutagenesis of the fur gene changed the histidine, cysteine and aspartic acid residues to alanine, serine and asparagine residues respectively (His86Ala, His87Ala, His88Ala, Asp89Asn, His90Ala, Cys96Ser, His118Ala, His125Ala). The effects of these mutations were observed both in vivo and in vitro. The mutational effects were studied in vivo with β‐galactosidase assays in which the cell strain used had the lacZ gene under the control of a fur promoter. Three mutants (His88Ala, His90Ala and Cys96Ser) showed significantly decreased Fur activity levels in comparison to the wild type (WT) protein and thus these proteins were purified for further studies. The purified WT and three mutant proteins ability to bind its target DNA was assessed in vitro with electrophoretic mobility shift assays (EMSAs). Evaluation and comparison of WT and mutant protein's secondary structure was carried out with circular dichroism spectroscopy. Results of the project suggest that residues His88, His90 and Cys96 are crucial for Fur activity in Klebsiella oxytoca.


The main purpose of this paper is to describe and understand how learners and their interlocutors manage to communicate meaning through the use of communication strategies (CSs). Drawing on the collaborative theory of communication, CS episodes are identified and examined to describe how learners and their interlocutors co-construct meaning. The data analyzed in this study was collected at the University of Santiago through a task-based experiment, which was both audio and video recorded. Thirty-two subjects were paired on four different dyad conditions: four dyads of intermediate learners, four dyads of advanced students, four dyads of intermediate learners interacting with native speakers and, finally, four dyads of advanced students in interaction with native speakers. For the CS identification process three different sources of evidence were used: problem indicators, native language base line and retrospective interviews. The results obtained show different kinds of communication grounding techniques. In some cases CSs are accepted by the addressees (acknowledgments, displays and demonstrations, initiation of a relevant next contribution and continued attention) while in some others the initial CS uttered by the learner is not accepted and has to be followed by a negotiation of meaning process. The conclusions reached are mainly based on a qualitative analysis.


This collection offers contemporary criticism and analysis of the French philosopher, Gilles Deleuze. It contains 18 essays by established scholars from the fields of philosophy, literary criticism, feminist theory, politics and sociology, and includes an essay by Deleuze himself. The contributors are from a wide variety of fields, which indicates the extent to which Deleuze's work can, and will, affect theory beyond the discipline of philosophy.


This paper aims to enrich the understanding and modelling strategies for cryptocurrency markets by investigating major cryptocurrencies' returns determinants and forecast their returns. To handle model uncertainty when modelling cryptocurrencies, we conduct model selection for an autoregressive distributed lag (ARDL) model using several popular penalized least squares estimators to explain the cryptocurrencies' returns. We further introduce a novel model averaging approach or the shrinkage Mallows model averaging (SMMA) estimator for forecasting. First, we find that the returns for most cryptocurrencies are sensitive to volatilities from major financial markets. The returns are also prone to the changes in gold prices and the Forex market's current and lagged information. Then, when forecasting cryptocurrencies' returns, we further find that an ARDL(p,q) model estimated by the SMMA estimator outperforms the competing estimators and models out-of-sample.


Housing (10) for receiving at least a fuel cell stack (24) having a housing portion (14) which is designed such that it can receive the fuel cell stack (24) at least partially, - wherein tensioning means (28) are provided through which the fuel cell stack (24) via at least one opening (30) of the housing section can be clamped (14) - wherein the tensioning means (28) comprise a clamping body (26) which is in the opening (30) for bracing the fuel cell stack (24) is used, - wherein the clamping body (26) via a force of at least one elastic member (20) against the fuel cell stack (24) can be tensioned, - wherein the power of the outside of the housing portion (14) attached to at least one elastic member (20) via a pressure element (22) on the clamping body (26) can be applied and - wherein the pressure member outside of the housing on the housing portion (14) is mounted via at least one screw connection comprising at least one elastic element.


Mercury is a metal present in natural sources and its concentration have been allocated by human activities, posing impacts in environmental matrices and organisms. In this study, we highlight the panorama of Hg researches in Brazilian biomes in the scientific literature published between 1991 and 2018. Although the appreciated attention to the mercury researches in Amazon context, there has not been an assessment of Hg research within other Brazilian biomes. With this in mind, we searched for articles in the periodic database the Thomson's ISI Web of Science database and observed an oscillated trend of the number of publications throughout this period. The low percentage of papers performed in Pantanal (8%), Caatinga (4%), Atlantic Rainforest (4%), Pampa (3%) and Cerrado (0.36%) was contrasted to majority academic works performed in Amazon regions (83%), indicating the asymmetrical geographical distribution in Hg researches. The five top keywords of research topics were mercury, Amazon, Brazil, river, Brazilian and fish. The top authors formed 19 different clusters, with different research directions and strengths. Our data shows that Hg studies have been geographically biased. The lack of Hg studies on other Brazilian biomes may mask the extent and intensity of the impacts related to the Hg mobilization in these areas. Concerning Hg concentration is context-dependent, we emphasize the need for investment in Hg research in different tropical biomes in order to overcome spatial bias of Hg knowledge, particularly with organisms from different environmental matrices.


The purpose of this research is to get an overview of the implementation of basketball-based shooting learning on the students, to produce basketball shooting learning model, and to develop conceptual model and procedural model of shooting set shoot learning, jump shoot and basketball shoot layup and also to know effectiveness of efficient model. This research and development use Research & Development (R & D) development method from Borg and Gall. Group trials were conducted on second semester students who took basic basketball courses consisting of 4 classes totaling 120 people, 60 treatment groups and 60 as control groups with eight (8) meetings. The effectiveness test of the learning model uses shooting skill set shoot skill instruments, jump shoot and basketball shoot layup using portofolio (process assessment). Analysis of research data using t test with a significance level of 0.05. Data analysis for shoot shooting set obtained an average value of pretest 50.43 and posttest 75.57 t-count ratio and t-table -188.500 <1.67065, while the jump shoot obtained the average value of pretest 57.55 and posttest 82 , 85 t-count comparisons and t-tables -89,235 <1,67065 and for shoot layups, the average pretest score is 48,02 and posttest 73,17 t-count ratio and t-table -167,667 <1,67065, significance (2-tailed) 0.000 with a significance level of 0.05 then of the three H0 rejected. Based on the data analysis, it can be said that the set shoot, jump shoot and drill layup-based learning models for students are developed, effective and can improve the results of basketball shooting learning.

Keywords: Effectiveness, Shooting Basketball Model, Based of Drill


Satellite images are often insufficient to provide reliable estimates of forest parameters in complex Mediterranean areas, where the spectral response of vegetation is influenced by several interacting factors. In the current work spatial analysis and Geostatistics are used to produce additional information which can supplement that derived from remotely sensed data. In particular, an approach based on kriging was applied in a study area in Tuscany (Central Italy) to estimate forest composition and structure, and the same was done with a fuzzy classification procedure using bitemporal Landsat‐TM images. Since the two methods produced per‐pixel estimates of error variance, their outputs could be integrated by means of an optimal merging methodology. The results of the experiments, evaluated by statistical comparison to independent ground references, showed that both methods provided good estimates of forest composition and structure at stand level. Furthermore, the information derived from the two sources was partly nonredundant and could be efficiently merged to improve the estimation accuracy for both forest parameters.


This paper investigates the problematic nature of ambulance paramedics' wellbeing and applies the conceptualizations and theoretical perspective of public value (PV) to understand and potentially improve their experience. It synthesizes previous discourse from public accounting and public management and applies it to NHS ambulance services which have been prominent in the response to the Covid-19 pandemic but are currently under-researched in public management literature. The authors suggest a future interdisciplinary research agenda. © 2021 Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group.


I believe in an alchemy of time. That a certain combination of words, a length of inaction, a discomposed room, or with some such cipher, I believe we we can make time.


Only a few thermal properties of dairy products have been published probably for two reasons. Dairy products have been produced for hundreds of years by processes which developed from the accumulation of practice, all without knowledge of the thermal properties. Also, with the advent of more sophisticated machines, the machine designer, faced with a need for thermal data, secured as adequate data as was needed, as quickly as possible, and then filed that data away as proprietary information and did not publish it. Only recently have a few researchers worked in this area and published their results. The invitation to discuss thermal properties of dairy products was accepted with some trepidation since I thought it probable that the known thermal properties could be written on 3" × 5" file card. But, with minimal reluctance, I agreed to explore some of the problems of thermal properties: density, specific heat, thermal conductivity, and thermal diffusivity. Density is weight of the material per unit volume. Specific heat is the amount of heat needed to change one weight unit by one degree temperature difference. Thermal conductivity is the measure of the amount of heat which can pass through a material of unit area per unit time per degree temperature difference per unit thickness. Thermal diffusivity is a measure of how rapidly heat moves through a material. Dairy processing until very recently could not have been classed as a science. Chemists and microbiologists probably have given us our greatest advances in dairy food quality, and almost all of this advance has occurred since Appert in 1804 and Pasteur in 1864. The last


the next day. Patients with Klippel–Feil syndrome have a potential airway problem with severe limitation of neck movement as a result of fusion of cervical vertebrae, and atlantooccipital abnormalities, spinal canal stenosis and scoliosis (4) and patients with Chiari type I malformation are at considerable risk of respiratory depression (5). Anesthesiologists should be aware of the possibility of difficulty in airway management. Evaluation for rib and vertebral anomalies and for upper airway defects and cardiac and renal function are recommended (3). Farid et al. (6) described multiple anesthetic challenges in a patient with Klippel–Feil syndrome undergoing cardiac surgery and they recommended awake intubation using a fiberoptic bronchoscope. Burns et al. reported the anesthetic management of a patient with Klippel–Feil syndrome and congenital hydrocephalus, undergoing Cesarean section. They performed awake nasal intubation using a fiberoptic bronchoscope (7). Fiberoptic tracheal intubation or use of a laryngeal mask were suggested as the techniques of choice (4). We were faced with a dilemma for use of fiberoptic intubation, because of which the patient had dystonic movements on the upper part of the body and tongue, which would make awake intubation with the fiberoptic bronchoscope difficult. The decision was made to induce anesthesia and intubate the patient using direct laryngoscopy under remifentanil infusion. First attempt at intubation of trachea was successful even though he had a Mallampati score of 4 with restricted neck mobility. We avoided using muscle relaxants and used a shortacting-opioid, remifentanil instead and expected a rapid return of spontaneous ventilation if intubation had failed. Administration of remifentanil in combination with propofol provided good conditions for tracheal intubation. Farid et al. decided to intubate the patient with Klippel–Feil syndrome and Chiari I malformation using direct laringoscopy based on the patient's previous anesthetic history. They were not successful even if the patient had no airway problem in previous anesthetics (6). Sakai et al. (8) describe anesthesia for a child with Klippel–Feil syndrome complicated by severe scoliosis. Despite easily ventilation with LMA, they encountered difficulty in intubation through LMA as a result of distorted airway. Chiari type I and Klippel–Feil syndrome encompasses an large constellation of clinical features that affect most organs. Anesthesiologis should expect to face challenges. Fiberoptic bronchoscope should always be available in the anesthesia unit. Ozlem S. Cakmakkaya* Guner Kaya* Fatis Altintas* Mefkur Bakan* Abdullah Yildirim† *Department of Anaesthesiology, †Department of Plastic, Reconstructive and Aesthetic Surgery, Cerrahpasa Medical School, University of Istanbul, Istanbul, Turkey (email: email@example.com; email@example.com)


ABSTRACT The paper describes two analytical models for predicting the magnet/airgap flux density distribution in radial-field machines having permanent magnets mounted adjacent to the airgap. The models differ in that inter-pole leakage is neglected in the first and accounted for in the second. However, amongst other things, both allow the determination of the spread of magnet working points due to flux focusing. Furthermore, it is shown that for machines in which the magnets are mounted on an inner hub an optimal magnet thickness exists for which the magnetic loading in the airgap is a maximum.


Presenters include Holly Clark, a Google-certified teacher; Beverly Young, an assessment expert from the CSU Chancellor's Office; and teachers who are using technology in the classroom. Hands-on workshops will also be offered on topics such as iPads in the classroom and social media. A beginner session is available for those wishing to learn how to use various devices.


The regional welfare distribution in the European Union between 1993 and 1998 is examined, using several complementary methodologies. The results obtained show a reduction in regional welfare disparities over the period analysed. It is worth noting, in this respect, however, that regional productivity differences prove to be the main determinant behind observed welfare inequality in the European context. Moreover, there has also been a decline in regional bipolarization over the six-year contemplated, while the degree of observed intradistributional mobility is relatively low. The empirical evidence presented, nevertheless, reveals the importance of variables such as the national component, the spatial location, the regional productive structure or the percentage of GDP devoted to investment or to R&D expenditure, in accounting for the dynamics of the distribution under analysis.


Merit function with higher efficiency is helpful for lens design, especially in hybrid imaging system. Although different merit functions have been proposed in recent years, for example, Fisher information, Hilbert space angle, mean square error (MSE) based on optical transfer function, intermediate or restored image, structure similarity, correlation or statistical properties from point spread function (PSF). But it is still an unanswered question that which merit function is best for optimization in hybrid imaging system. So, a novel approach which is based on finite impulse response of hybrid imaging system is proposed. And several merit functions, blur MSE, PSF similarity, modulation transfer function (MTF) area and volume are evaluated by present method. The results show that performance of merit function is not only affected by noise, sampling ratio. But the effect of restoration filter should be also considered. Finally, compare with PSF similarity, blur MTF in area and volume; blur MSE provide much stable results in hybrid imaging system, which means it could be an optimized merit function in hybrid imaging system.


We propose Hybrid Transactional Replication (HTR), a novel replication scheme for highly dependable services. It combines two schemes: a transaction is executed either optimistically by only one service replica in the deferred update mode (DU), or deterministically by all replicas in the state machine mode (SM); the choice is made by an oracle. The DU mode allows for parallelism and thus takes advantage of multicore hardware. In contrast to DU, the SM mode guarantees abort-free execution, so it is suitable for irrevocable operations and transactions generating high contention. For expressiveness, transactions can be discarded or retried on demand. We prove that the higher flexibility of the scheme does not come at the cost of weaker guarantees for clients: HTR satisfies strong consistency guarantees akin to those provided by other popular transactional replication schemes such as Deferred Update Replication. We developed HTR-enabled Paxos STM, an object-based distributed transactional memory system, and evaluated it thoroughly under various workloads. We show the benefits of using a novel oracle that relies on machine learning techniques for automatic adaptation to changing conditions. The ML-based oracle, based on algorithms for the multi-armed bandit problem, provides up to 50 percent improvement in throughput when compared to the system running with DU-only or SM-only oracles.


NOX is important contemporary archifechure studio in the Netherlands.They involved with architecture,video,Jnstallation,mogazine etc,so as to explore the new form of architecture in information age.This article discusses their conception and the current works.


• Quality resources should be made available in various formats; with interaction alerts incorporated into clinical software • When no (or incomplete) information is retrieved, it should be clear whether a specific issue is not addressed or there is lack of scientific evidence available • CMs resources should be reassessed regularly for quality, using robust evaluation tools.


The essay deals with Orwell's authorial role in Nineteen Eighty-Four and the errors that he deliberately inserted in the novel. In particular, the pattern of dates and the general distribution of weekdays in the novel are tackled.


According to the theory of due process,the rights of relative persons that a procedure entitles are proportionate to interests involved and the results of the procedure. Thus,the acceptance procedure of our bankruptcy case doesn't agree with the principle of due process, because it don't give a chance to the relative persons taking part in the procedure which results in many serious effects on the debtors and creditors.Additionally, in the procedure which has only limited space and time reviewing the importantly substantial elements is unrealistic.


This paper proposes a methodology for evaluating the impact of loss reduction on DG investment decisions. In this methodology, new analytical expressions are first proposed to quickly capture the optimal power factor of each DG unit to maximize loss reduction. The decision for the optimal location, size and number of DG units is then obtained through a benefit-cost analysis over a given planning horizon. Here, the total benefit includes energy sales and additional benefits, namely loss reduction, network upgrade deferral and emission reduction. The total cost is a sum of capital, operation and maintenance costs. The methodology has been applied to a 69-bus test distribution system. The results show that the additional benefits including loss reduction are imperative. Inclusion of these in the analysis would result in faster DG investment recovery.


Abstract Background Biomarkers to predict the severity of lung damage due to COVID-19 are urgently needed to inform management and treatment decisions. Our objective was to investigate the predictive value of host proteins for worsening respiratory failure in one of the by COVID-19 most affected and diverse patient populations in the US. Methods We performed a prospective single-center cross-sectional study of 34 adult patients admitted to Montefiore Medical Center in the Bronx, New York, for respiratory symptoms due to PCR-confirmed COVID-19. Exclusion criteria were age < 21, history of prior SARS-CoV-2 infection, and/or underlying severe chronic lung diseases requiring home O2 and/or high dose steroids. We stratified and compared patients by whether they developed worsening respiratory failure, necessitating transfer to the intensive care unit (ICU) during their hospital stay. Using a custom Luminex Assay, we measured hospital admission serum concentrations of 8 host proteins, representing respiratory-associated epithelial (RAGE, SP-D, CC16), endothelial (Ang-2, vWF), and immune pathways (S100A12, ICAM-1, VCAM-1). Results Except for race and WHO COVID-19 scores, demographics, co-morbidities, symptoms, and symptom duration were not statistically significantly different between patients requiring transfer to the ICU (n=15) and non-ICU patients (n=19). Higher log-transformed levels for 5/8 proteins (S100A12, ICAM-1, Ang-2, RAGE, SP-D) showed significant or marginally significant increased cause-specific hazard for ICU transfer (n=15). Estimated cumulative incidence functions further showed a significantly or near significantly increased risk for ICU transfer for patients with above the median values of S100A12 or ICAM-1 (p=0.013), Ang-2 (p=0.056) or RAGE (p=0.077), respectively (Figure 1). Host proteins predicting need for ICU transfer did not correlate strongly with other clinical laboratory markers for COVID-19 severity (CRP, LDH, D-Dimer, Fibrinogen, Ferritin). Figure 1. Patients with above median levels of host protein markers S100A12, ICAM-1, Ang-2, and RAGE have a significantly or near significantly increased risk for severe respiratory failure requiring transfer to the ICU. Comparison of estimated cumulative incidence at 7 days post admission for host protein markers above and below median levels for (A) S10012 (median 96,675 pg/ml); (B) ICAM-1 (median (1,192,277 pg/ml); (C) Ang-2 (median 3463 pg/ml); (D) RAGE (median 6356 pg/ml); and (E) SP-D (median 11,832 pg/ml). Conclusion These results suggest that host proteins have additional predictive value for the severity of COVID-19-associated lung damage at time of presentation to the hospital. Disclosures Inessa Gendlina, Nothing to disclose


This paper reexamines ambiguous comparatives of a kind made famous in Rullmann's (1995) dissertation, e.g. The helicopter was flying less high than a plane can fly. There is some disagreement in the semantic literature regarding whether the ambiguity is limited to less or also shows up in more-comparatives. Accordingly, the analyses suggested differ substantially, ranging from structural to pragmatic. My primary goal is to provide a more solid empirical basis for building semantic theories of the phenomenon. I report the results from a series of questionnaire studies that show (i) that the difference between more- and less-comparatives is not clear cut, and (ii) that we need to make more fine-grained distinctions among less-comparatives. I propose an analysis in terms of plural predication that captures the major effects found in the studies, and I begin to approach the more subtle data points.


Use: medicine, surgery, forensic medicine. The inventive instrument is a forceps, at the outer end which is deposited third millimeter incisions, and in the working ends have foot-guides, inwardly directed tweezer at a right angle, which caps are made of polyvinyl chloride. Technical result: increase in the accuracy of measurement of the normal and diseased circumference of hollow bodies, with the further computation of their diameter, operability. 2 ill.


The experiment was conducted to investigate the effect of cyclic high temperatures on the Zn2+ concentration and metallothionein content in pancreas,liver and duodenum of broiler chickens.One hundred and twenty 32-day-old Arbor Acres male broilers were randomly allotted to 3 groups(normal-temperature group,paired-feeding group and high-temperature group) with 4 replicates in each group and 10 birds in each replicate.The broilers in the normal-temperature group and paired-feeding group were maintained in a controlled environment temperature at 23 ℃,and the paired-feeding group were matched the diet intake of broilers in high-temperature group at the previous day of the experiment.The broilers in the high-temperature group were housed in a controlled environment temperature with daily cyclic high temperature(23 ℃-33 ℃-23 ℃),and drinked ad libitum.The results showed as follows: after 4 and 8 d cyclic high temperatures,the Zn2+ concentration in plasma,liver,pancreas and duodenum of broilers was significantly decreased(P0.05),and the mRNA expression level of metallothionein gene in pancreas was significantly increased(P0.05).After 4 d cyclic high temperatures,the metallothionein content and its mRNA expression level in liver and duodenum of broilers were significantly decreased(P0.05),after 8 d cyclic high temperatures,they became the normol levels,but the metallothionein content in pancreas was significantly decreased(P0.05);there was no significant differences in the Zn2+ concentration and metallothionein content,and the mRNA expression level of metallothionein gene between the normal-temperature group and paired-feeding group(P0.05).In conclusion,cyclic high temperatures significantly decreases the Zn2+ concentration and metallothionein content in liver,pancreas and duodenum of broilers,which is independent of the decreasing of food intake induced by cyclic high temperatures,and the changing trend of metallothionein content is similar with that of zinc concentration in liver,pancreas and duodenum of broilers.


The more widespread the quality VoIP solutions are getting, the more users utilize these services – without even noticing it. High QoS requirements necessitate adequate Operations and Maintenance (OAM) support, as well as a fault management system specialized for VoIP services. Our current study describes a complex fault management system customized for VoIP s er vice providers. This system covers the functions of detecting and processing of alarms, moreover, it features a unique root cause analysis subsystem, also. The solution integrates the classic passive, rule based event processing approach with a method operating by active, fault localizing checks. The appropriate elementary checks are scheduled by an approach novel in the Fault Management field: Petri nets. On one hand the eye-catching nature of this solution makes root cause analysis steps easy to understand, and on the other hand it is fast, due to the simultaneous submission of active checks.


Abstract The issue of heteroscedasticity and its adverse impact on the estimation of a linear regression model has been extensively discussed in the available literature. Some adaptive estimators have also been proposed in the context of weighted least squares (WLS) to address the issue. Estimation of linear regression model becomes more challenging when the issue of heteroscedasticity is bundled together with the presence of outliers. In the present article, we use a relatively latest approach that is the least squares ratio method to estimate a linear regression model in the presence of heteroscedasticity and outliers. We propose an adaptive version of this technique while taking advantage of some existing adaptive estimators to fix the issue of unknown heteroscedasticity. A Monte Carlo evidence has been presented for the performance of the stated estimator varying degree of heteroscedasticity and number of outliers.


Local authority involvement in economic matters has become widespread since the early 1970s. Recent developments in the pattern of local economic activity have been the increasing use of section 137 of the Local Government Act 1972 to fund local programmes, the spread of local authority involvement from the Assisted Areas to the more prosperous regions, and the increasing interest shown by the smaller shire districts, often in rural areas. The portfolio of possible interventions has also changed, bringing a new diversity to the practice of local economic development. Whereas central government has in the past eschewed the temptation to exercise close controls over these activities, the new diversity of local economic initiatives presents it with new dilemmas. It can no longer be assumed that such initiatives will be supportive of central government's spatial or sectoral policies. This vacuum in central-local relations is unlikely to remain, and renewed pressures to grant specific economic development powers to local authorities can be expected. If these claims are accepted, central government will be drawn inexorably into local economic affairs by the need to develop the capacity of local authorities to intervene effectively in pursuit of economic and employment goals.


Background:Previous study demonstrated that increase of interstitial cells of Cajal in antral myenteric nerve plexus (ICCs-MY) is involved in the modulatory effect of long-term,long pulse gastric electrical stimulation(GES) on gastric slow wave.Aims:To investigate the effect of long pulse GES with different time course on number and ultrastructure of antral ICCs-MY in rats for studying the possible mechanism of GES in modulating gastric slow wave.Methods:GES model was established in Wistar rats.The model rats were divided into three groups:GES1 group,GES2 group and control group. Optimal GES parameters were selected to entrain gastric slow wave in GES1 and GES2 groups.Rats in GES1 group were given GES once,and those in GES2 group were given GES daily for 20 days;rats in control group did not receive GES. Then all the rats were sacrificed,and the antral tissues were prepared and examined by transmission electron microscopy. Results:Number of antral ICCs-MY in GES2 group was significantly higher than that in GES1 group and control group, while no significant difference was seen between the latter two groups.Cytoplasmic mitochondria and ribosomes were more abundant in GES1 and GES2 groups than in control group.Direct connection between ICCs processes and surrounding smooth muscle cells(SMCs) could be visualized in GES1 group,tight connection was visualized between ICCs and SMCs in GES2 group,and no obvious connection was seen between ICCs and SMCs in control group.Conclusions:Changes of number and ultrastructure of antral ICCs-MY might be involved in the modulation of gastric slow wave by long-term,long pulse GES.


We want to respond to Bell and Harvey-Dodds' comments on the safety of methadone in pregnancy, specifically regarding postnatal development.1 Concerns are increasing about nystagmus and delayed visual development in infants born to drug misusing mothers,2 3 and we have shown alteration in visual evoked potentials in newborn infants exposed to methadone …


The paper describes a computer network of an integrated navigation system on board the ship using NMEA 2000 standard, which is primarily designed to provide twoway communication between the ship's navigational equipment such as radar, GPS receiver, AIS, Gyro compass etc. NMEA 2000 is based on CAN which is standardised by ISO. ISO 11898 specifi es physical and datalink layer of serial communication technology called Controller Area Network that supports distributed real-time control and multiplexing. This paper presents a comparison of the NMEA 2000, which is based on CAN, with popular Ethernet protocol, which is currently used as a basic protocol in the LAN. The physical, datalink and application levels of the NMEA 2000 computer network are described. Finally, the marine electronic equipment of modern ship which is integrated in navigational system using NMEA 2000 is shown. NMEA 2000 standard became international standard under IEC.


The salts [X][W(CR)(CO)2(η5-C2B9H9Me2)](X = NEt4, R = C6H4Me-2 or C6H3Me2-2,6; X = PPh4, R = C6H3Me2-2,6) have been prepared, and used to synthesise a variety of compounds containing heteronuclear metal–metal bonds. Thus treatment of [NEt4][W(CR)(CO)2(η5-C2B9H9Me2)] with [AuCl(PPh3)] in thf (tetrahydrofuran), in the presence of KPF6, affords the dimetal compounds [AuW(µ-CR)(CO)2(PPh3)(η5-C2B9H9Me2)]. The reaction between [Pt(cod)2](cod = cyclo-octa-1,5-diene) and [PPh4][W(CC6H3Me2-2,6)(CO)2(η5-C2B9H9Me2)] affords the salt [PPh4][PtW(µ-CC6H3Me2-2,6)(CO)2(cod)(η5-C2B9H9Me2)]. The latter with [AuCl(PPh3)] in thf, in the presence of TIPF6, yields the trimetal compound [AuPtW(µ-CC6H3Me2-2,6)(CO)2(PPh3)(cod)(η5-C2B9H9Me2)]. Treatment of [NEt4][W(CR)(CO)2(η5-C2B9H9Me2)](R = C6H4Me-2) with [Fe3(CO)12] in thf affords a mixture of the compounds [NEt4][FeW(µ-CR)(CO)5(η5-C2B9H9Me2)], [NEt4][FeW{µ-CH(R)}(µ-σ:η5-C2B9H8Me2)(µ-CO)(CO)5], and [NEt4][Fe2W(µ3-CR)(µ3-σ:σ′:η5-C2B9H7Me2)(CO)8]. A similar reaction with [NEt4][W(CC6H3Me2-2,6)(CO)2(η5-C2B9H9Me2)] gives [NEt4][FeW(µ-CC6H3Me2-2,6)(CO)5(η5-C2B9H9Me2)] as the only iron–tungsten compound. The structure of the latter has been established by X-ray diffraction. The Fe–W bond [2.600(1)A] is spanned by the CC6H3Me2-2,6 group [µ-C–Fe 1.891(5) and µ-C–W 1.976(6)A]. The iron atom is ligated by three essentially orthogonal CO groups. The tungsten atom is co-ordinated by the pentagonal face of the nido-icosahedral fragment C2B9H9Me2, and by two CO groups, one of which semi-bridges the metal–metal bond [W–C–O 165.4(6)°]. The reaction between [PPh4][W(CR)(CO)2(η5-C2B9H9Me2)](R = C6H3Me2-2,6) and [Ru(CO)(NCMe)2(η-C5H5)][BF4] in CH2Cl2 gives the dimetal compound [RuW(µ-CR)(CO)3(η-C5H5)(η5-C2B9H9Me2)] which has an exopolyhedral B–H⇀Ru three-centre bond. The n.m.r. spectra (1H, 13C-{1H}, 11B-{1H}, and 31P-{1H}) of the new compounds are discussed in relation to their structures.


The invention discloses a high-speed punching hydraulic circuit of a hydraulic punching machine. The high-speed punching hydraulic circuit comprises an oil cylinder, a high-voltage circuit, a low-voltage circuit, a change valve, a high-voltage pump used for supplying oil to the high-voltage circuit and a low-voltage pump used for supplying oil to the low-voltage circuit; the change valve is used for changing directions of an upper cavity of the oil cylinder, a pipeline formed after the high-voltage circuit and the low-voltage circuit are converged, and a return pipeline; a low-voltage energy accumulator, a one-way valve and a low-voltage unloading valve are arranged on the low-voltage circuit; a lower cavity of the oil cylinder is connected with the low-voltage circuit; a high-voltage unloading valve, a one-way valve, a high-voltage energy accumulator and a directly-operated type balanced normally open logic valve are arranged on the high-voltage circuit; an oil discharge outlet of the logic valve is connected with the upper cavity of the oil cylinder, and a pressure guide hole of the logic valve is connected with the lower cavity of the oil cylinder; and an oil outlet of the high-voltage unloading valve is connected with the low-voltage circuit. According to the high-speed punching hydraulic circuit of the hydraulic punching machine, the opening and the closing of the logic valve are controlled through pressure change of the upper and lower cavities of the oil cylinder, so that the connection of the high-voltage circuit is controlled, and automatic connection and disconnection of pressure oil from the high-voltage circuit to the low-voltage circuit can be implemented.


In this study, two annular ring microstrip patch antenna designs with four and eight rectangular slots in ground planes are presented. Antenna structures of interest are intended for GSM-1800 usage. Simulation results for scattering parameters, radiation patterns and maximum gain values are provided. Fractional bandwidths of antennas with four and eight slots are 9.47% and 17.70%, respectively. Maximum gain values are found as 9.78 dBi and 6.12 dBi, respectively. In view of resonant frequencies, bandwidths and gain values, both antennas are suitable for GSM-1800 usage while the results for radiation patterns shows that the antenna with eight slots is more suitable for this application.


Summary Aim The aim of this study was to evaluate the effects of the sphingosine analogue, FTY720 (Fingolimod), on the outcomes of myocardial ischaemia/reperfusion (I/R) injury. Methods Two concentrations of FTY720 (1 or 2.5 μM) were administered either prior to (PreFTY), or following (PostFTY) 20 minutes' global (GI) or 35 minutes' regional ischaemia (RI) in the isolated, perfused, working rat heart. Functional recovery during reperfusion was assessed following both models of ischaemia, while infarct size (IFS) was determined following RI. Results FTY720 at 1 μM exerted no effect on functional recovery, while 2.5 μM significantly impaired aortic output (AO) recovery when administered prior to GI (% recovery: control: 33.88 ± 6.12% vs PreFTY: 0%, n = 6–10; p < 0.001), as well as before and after RI (% recovery: control: 27.86 ± 13.22% vs PreFTY: 0.62%; p < 0.05; and PostFTY: 2.08%; p = 0.0585, n = 6). FTY720 at 1 μM administered during reperfusion reduced IFS [% of area at risk (AAR): control: 39.89 ± 3.93% vs PostFTY: 26.56 ± 4.32%, n = 6–8; p < 0.05), while 2.5 μM FTY720 reduced IFS irrespective of the time of administration (% of AAR: control: 39.89 ± 3.93% vs PreFTY: 29.97 ± 1.03%; and PostFTY: 30.45 ± 2.16%, n = 6; p < 0.05). Conclusion FTY720 exerted divergent outcomes on function and tissue survival depending on the concentration administered, as well as the timing of administration.


This paper considers several integrated production, inventory, and batch delivery scheduling problems on a single machine with due date assignment and two competing agents, each of which seeks to optimize its own performance. All the jobs of the first agent have a common due date, which is a decision variable to be determined by the decision maker, whereas the due dates of the jobs of the second agent are exogenously given. The jobs of the same agent are processed sequentially in batches and the batch processing time is equal to the total processing time of the jobs in the batch, where the batch size can be either bounded or unbounded. A batch is available only when all the jobs in it are completed. An available batch is delivered to its agent immediately, and the cost per batch delivery is fixed and independent of the number of jobs in the batch. Finished jobs are kept in inventory, if necessary, incurring an additional holding cost. The first agent wishes to find a job sequence, a common due date, and a dispatch date for each of its jobs that jointly minimize the total cost comprising the earliness, weighted number of tardy jobs, job holding, due date assignment, and batch delivery costs, while the second agent seeks to minimize one of the following criteria plus the batch delivery cost: the maximum value of a regular scheduling criterion, total completion time, and weighted number of tardy jobs. The overall objective is to minimize the objective value of the first agent, subject to the objective value of the second agent not exceeding a given threshold. For each of the problems considered, we study its computational complexity and develop exact and/or approximation solution algorithms.


Introduction: The skin damage caused by UVB (290 to 320 nm) and UVA (320 to 400 nm) in sunlight has lengthy been renowned; therefore efficient sunscreen formulas are necessary. Bemotrizinol, an organic sunscreen agent, is a broad-spectrum UV absorber since it has two absorption peaks at 310 and 340 nm. Titanium dioxide acts as an inorganic sunscreen agent by reflecting light. Combination of these sunscreen agents can enhance the effectiveness of sunscreen products which has been usually measured in form of sun protection factor (SPF); however, other factors such as formulas may also affect this efficacy. This study aimed to investigate effect of cream formulas on SPF values of sunscreen creams containing bemotrizinol and titanium dioxide as the actives. Materials and methods: Sunscreen creams containing cosmetic acceptable ingredients and sunscreen agents in the legislated concentrations were formulated and prepared by an emulsification process. Three cream formulas were selected for investigation. The studied concentrations of bemotrizinol were 6%, 8%, and 10% while those of titanium dioxide were 12% and 16%. The obtained creams were observed for color and texture. The SPF values of all samples were in vitro evaluated by a SPF-analyzer using spectral transmittance measurement technique. In order to uncover relation between formulations and SPF, viscosity values of the representative sunscreen creams prepared from different formulations were measured by a Brookfield viscometer. The pH values of these representatives were determined by a pH meter. Results: All obtained sunscreen creams were white and had desirable texture. Their SPF values were varied from 26.53±3.23 to 49.22±7.03. Surprisingly, the SPF values were not straightforwardly depended on sunscreen agent concentrations or cream formulas. The reasons were unclear; however, it was found that the viscosity values of the sunscreen cream representatives were directly related to the measured SPF values. It could be due to spreading and adhesiveness properties of the creams. The pH values of these representatives were in the range of 6.29±0.26 to 7.78±0.06, implying the studied creams to be safe for skin application. Conclusion: The physical characteristics, especially viscosity, of the sunscreen creams were the crucial parameters influencing on their SPF values. Keywords : Bemotrizinol, SPF, Sunscreen cream, Titanium dioxide *Corresponding author: Tel. 074-288842, Fax 074-428148, E-mail: email@example.com


Computer generation of holograms is a technique used to obtain a specific laser intensity distribution in far field starting from a desired image. In the process of hologram computing, the phase information must be considered. In this study we will present our code which ensures a fast link between the CCD camera (which records real macroscopic scenes), computer (where holograms are generated) and the spatial light modulator (where the holograms are displayed) to obtain on a screen a holographic displayed movie in real time. The aim of this work was to build interactive holographic systems. The challenge was not only to develop such a code, which can work for a suite of images taken by the CCD, but also to process them in a way that the delay of resulting reconstruction is unperceivable for human eye. For the veracity of the method we will present both simulation and experimental results.


A tunnel barrier consisting of two materials with different dielectric constant is demonstrated to show that improved programming and/or erasing performance is obtained compared to conventional oxide layers. It is also shown that charge trapping is not a showstopper for the application of such stacks in floating gate nonvolatile memory devices.


Slope failures along the deeply incised river valleys are common throughout the prairies. These failures typically take the form of deep-seated, translational landslides that move predominately on either weak bentonite layers or pre-sheared Cretaceous shale bedrock layers. One of these landslides is at Borden Bridge, which is located on Highway No. 16 approximately 50 km west of Saskatoon. This paper presents a numerical evaluation of the potential role of the river level and the corresponding pore-water pressures within the clay shale on the rate of movement of the east bank of the Borden Bridge. Pore-water pressures and rates of movement modeled in the parametric analyses will be compared to those measured in the field. Though this work is preliminary, it will provide information regarding the role of river level fluctuations, the corresponding pore-water pressure response on the pre-sheared slide plane and the observed rate of movement of the Borden Bridge landslide.


Microgrids (MGs) are emerging as a new paradigm for the integration of Distributed Generation (DG) assets. These novel grid structures present significant benefits to the Electric Power System. One of the most important benefits is the reliability improvement due to the capacity of islanded standalone operation. Nevertheless, this stand-alone operation can bring some problems related to frequency control, especially in MGs with many DG units connected through power electronics interfaces. In this case, the frequency control capacity and hence the stability margins are drastically reduced. This paper presents the design and implementation of a proton exchange membrane fuel cell integrated with supercapacitor energy storage and its control strategy for the frequency control of ac-MGs.


Abstract: CAGMS (Certificate and Attestation Management system) is an easy-to-use management system where any organization or individual can issue or receive digitally verifiable certificate for any type of documents / awards / rewards etc. with ease of complexity of system and technology. The system uses modern techs and high-interactive API which makes fit for all sort of organization


There are many Malicious programs disbursing on Face book every single day. Within the recent occasions, online hackers have thought about recognition within the third-party application platform additionally to deployment of Malicious programs. Programs that present appropriate method of online hackers to spread Malicious content on Face book however, little is known concerning highlights of Malicious programs and just how they function. Our goal ought to be to create a comprehensive application evaluator of face book the very first tool that will depend on recognition of Malicious programs on Face book. To develop rigorous application evaluator of face book we utilize information that's collected by way of observation of posting conduct of Face book apps that are seen across numerous face book clients. This can be frequently possibly initial comprehensive study which has dedicated to Malicious Face book programs that concentrate on quantifying additionally to knowledge of Malicious programs making these particulars in to a effective recognition method. For structuring of rigorous application evaluator of face book, we utilize data within the security application within Facebook that examines profiles of Facebook clients.


The major problem of this study is inhumanity. The objective of this study is to analyze the trilogy novel of The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins based on the structural elements and analyze this novel based on the Sociological Study. The researcher employs descriptive qualitative method. The researcher uses two data sources is primary and secondary data. The primary data source is about the novels itself. Then, the secondary data sources are books about sociological, references from internet about The Hunger Games trilogy novel. The analysis references about inhumanity theory, and other sources, which are have relations. The technique of data collection is descriptive technique and the method of data collection is library research. Based on the analysis, the researcher gets some conclusion. The study shows that there are character and characterization, setting, plot and theme. The result from this research showed that there is inhumanity viewed from sociological aproach. Inhumanity consists of physical, psychology and Deprivation, within The Hunger Games Trilogy novel there are physical inhumanity appears such as the killing field in the battle field where a lot of people (tributes) dies because they want to free and win the game. The inhumanity through psychology attack also appears, when Katnis the major character must make decision between helping, surviving her friend and sacrifice herself like (changing Prim position, killing the boy of other district after he kills Rue, choosing to die together with Peeta rather killing him). Inhumanity deprivation also appears when the capitol (President Snow) tries to kill Katniss, he tries to take all of Katniss friend especially people who is close with her. Based on sociological approach it can be found that all of kind of inhumanity action physically, psychologically and deprivation coming from the influence of old America tradition. Where its like the continuation of old America where the structure of American society consists of rich, middle and poor. Based on economy aspect, where people who live in capitol can live luxurious and do whatever they want, or event watching the game while drinking and laughing.


Final study reports are the culmination of years of intensive labor in the drug development process. Many different styles and presentations are available to sponsors of these activities. The organization, design, formatting, and personnel involved during and after the final study report is written contribute to its clarity and understanding by the regulatory reviewer. This paper illustrates specifically some details which should be considered for the development of a report writing program as well as the extensive quality assurance oversight which is required.


Aims/background: Green illumination is commonly used to image vessels of the retina and conjunctiva. The purpose was to derive the best optical set‐up for imaging vessels of the conjunctiva.


The paper analyzes debt and equity capital market instruments with respect to their suitability for family firms. It highlights and evaluates different aspects in the decision process of family firms regarding the use of capital market financing. The results are based on a qualitative analysis of semi-structured, in-depth interviews with capital market experts as well as representatives of family firms. We find that the owner family takes or at least strongly influences the final decision regarding the firm's financing structure. Still, the CFO's expert knowledge and his experience with previous capital market transactions have a positive effect on the use of public debt and equity capital market instruments. The results show that family firms decide to go public in order to finance growth, to convert shares into cash or to increase public awareness of the company. The reasons for the use of public debt instruments include growth financing, diversification of sources of capital and reduction of dependency on bank loans as well as increase of long-term financial stability and raise of capital for liquidity purposes.


The stage of adolescence is known to involve a lot of changes; these are concentrated in different areas from physical to psychological and emotional according to the sub-steps that they face. Health education for adolescents is a problem for public attention and a challenge for the performance of nursing, mainly due to the fact that adolescence is a stage of life marked by intense physical, emotional and great sociocultural transformations that They last from puberty to adult life. Age-appropriate accompaniment by trained professionals is the key to reducing risk factors for the stage and for children to feel confident about themselves and the way they are going to face them. The objective of this brief review is to analyze the best available scientific evidence in relation to health education regarding changes in early adolescence, taught by nursing to improve the adolescent's coping with these changes. The methodology recommended for Clinical Practice based on evidence was used as a methodology, initially a prognostic type clinical question was posed and the objectives according to this were raised, based on which a set of descriptors was identified from the that the search for scientific evidence was made in different scientific databases.iptors was identified from which it was made the search for scientific evidence in different scientific databases.


There are several factors, responsible for rural - urban migration, influence the migrant's migration status. The main objective of this paper to discuss the influence of migration factors on the determination of migration status of the rural - urban migrants'. As a case study, this study purposively selected the largest slum of Bangladesh according to single criterion - high concentration of rural - urban migrants. A total of 263 face to face interviews and 5 FGDs were conducted. Respondents, who are household heads o f the migrant families, were chosen randomly and interviewed using both open ended and close ended questionnaires and for data analyses, respondents were categorized into two divisions - temporary and permanent migrants. Multivariate analyses show that both push and pull factors influence the migration status of migrants', however, social factors, except occupation at rural origin, do not have any considerable influences.


Objective
To investigate the quality of life and influencing factors of functional dyspepsia(FD) in different subtypes.

Methods
Two hundred and ten patients with FD were divided into postprandial distress syndrome(PDS) , epigastric pain syndrome (EPS) and overlapping(PDS+ EPS). SF-36 quality of life questionnaire(SF-36), Hamilton depression scale(HAMD), Hamilton anxiety scale(HAMA), the Eysenck's Personality Questionnaire(EPQ) and the life event scale (LES) were used in the three groups.

Results
①There was no significant difference in physiological function(PF)or role physical (RP)among the three groups; the body pain(BP), general health(GH), vitality(VT), social function(SF), role Emotional(RE), mental health(MH), physical component summary(PCS)and mental component summary(MCS) in patients with PDS+ EPS were lower than those of patients with PDS or EPS. The VT and MH, PDS were higher than those of EPS. There was no significant difference among the rest of the dimension between PDS and EPS. ②PCS and MCS in three subtypes, the influencing factors were Somatic anxiety factor. In the PCS, the influencing factor was PDS with sleep disturbance factor. In the MCS, the influencing factors were PDS with Sleep disturbance factor and L, EPS with sleep disturbance factor and E, PDS + EPS with N.

Conclusions
There are significant differences in the quality of life among the three subtypes of FD patients. Different psychological intervention and treatment should be taken according to different subtypes of patients, in order to cure disease and improve their quality of lives.

Key words:
Functional dyspepsia; Subtypes; Quality of life; Influencing factors


The author contends that a previous Risk Analysis article overemphasized the pitfalls of incorporating redundancy into designs. Relevant aspects of that article are reviewed and commented upon, then the potentials and pitfalls of redundancy in systems and procedures are more broadly discussed. To provide a solid foundation for that discussion, some definitions for systems risk analysis terminology are presented. It is shown that pairs and larger sets of related failures (the physical causes of shortfalls in redundancy effectiveness) can be divided into two types: (1) cascading/induced failures and (2) common‐external‐cause failures. Each type has its own physical characteristics and implications for mathematical modeling. Service experience with large‐commercial‐airplane jet‐engine propulsion systems is used to illustrate the two types of related failures. Finally, an overview is provided of event‐sequence analysis, an alternative approach to systems risk analysis. When the possibility of related failures of mutually‐redundant system elements must be accounted for, event‐sequence analysis can usually do that better than fault‐tree analysis.


Now that universities have shifted their priorities to those of the 'cash nexus', they increasingly articulate their accomplishments and validate their existence in business terms for a globally competitive academic market. But corporatizing trends and the use of bibliometric tools that rank publication and quantify scholarity impact a redefinition and reconceptualization of what it means to be a scholar as an instrument of the corporate regime. Judith Butler's notion of normalizing categories is the lens through which this article examines European and United Kingdom corporatizing strategies such as the Bologna Process and Research Assessment Exercise. Key to the discussion is a critique of bibliometric accountability mechanisms that privilege quantification and promote academic materialism. These devices become normative, and, thus, the definition of scholarity to which academics default.


.. we must restructure our military for the new challenges of the Information Age, and not just downsize an already overtaxed contingency force. "1 -General John J. Sheehan, US Marine Corps THE PUBLICATION of US Army Field Manual (FM) 100-6, Information Operations, in August 1, coupled with the current and impending changes in the information age-based military, requires that the US Army examine how to conduct warfare and contingency operations today and in the future rt. This article looks at incorporating information operations (10) at the tactical level and increasing the role of Public Affairs (PA) on the contemporary multidimensional battlespace. Lessons learned from the November 1998 Division Advanced Warfighting Experiment (DAWE) as well as current operational missions in Bosnia and Kuwait provide platforms to embody IO as an integral force multiplier. In fact, numerous IO articles and concept papers are being integrated into military planning and support many of the observations recorded from recent IO experiences and the doctrinal philosophies found in FM 100-6. The DAWE Experience The DAWE held last fall at Fort flood, Texas, was an example of employing 10 at the tactical level. One ofthe DAWE's six experimental imperatives outlined by the US Army Training and Doctrine Command (TRA) was "does the division have the ability to plan, coordinate and execute information operations?"2 To implement this, the 4th Infantry Division and Experimental Force ( EXFOR) established an If) cell similar to the type outlined in FM 100-6.3 One major change was the overall cell director. During the DAWE "ramp-ups," the assistant division commander for support (ADC-S) replaced the chief of staff as the IO director due to availability, staff synchronization, higher/subordinate headquarters coordination and the priority that the EXFOR assigned to the task of maturing IO at the division. This adjustment allowed a focus of stovepipe organizations, many of which, up to that point, did not normally engage in continuous staff planning, coordination and execution of 10. FM 46-1, Public Affairs Operations, states that "Public Affairs fulfills the Army's obligation to keep the American people and the Army informed, and helps to establish the conditions that lead to confidence in America's Army and its readiness to conduct operations in peacetime, conflict and war."4 The PA mission will not fundamentally change in the digital division. However, with digital technologies and 10, the PA section's focus will be PA planning, media facilitation, global information environment (GIE) acquisition/analysis, information campaigns and IO coordination. Due to the austere size of PA sections at the tactical and operational levels, combined with an increasing staff-support responsibility, the "traditional" product-driven PA functions, such as newsletter production, external releases and photo journalist duties must be handled by PA augmentation units. Normally, field units are augmented by several PA detachments (PADs) or mobile PA detachments (MPADs) depending on the force's size and mission.5 Operation Desert Thunder Tensions increased in the Southwest Asia area of operations in the latter part of 1997. This escalated in early February 1998 and, as consequence, compelled the deployment of a coalition/joint task force (C/JTF) consisting of Army, Air Force, Navy and Marine forces, as well as allied countries to Kuwait. Operation Desert Thunder's mission was to deter Iraqi aggression toward Kuwait, assure other Gulf allies of our interest in regional stability and, if necessary, defend Kuwait. The C/JTF formed an IO cell, born out of the Deep Operations and Information Warfare cells. This was the command's initial attempt at implementing FM 100-6 IO-based principles at the theater level. Similar to other experiences, some difficulty arose in bringing FM 100-6 IO guidelines into the diverse coalition and joint information functions. …