Internet traffic behavior has been resistant to modeling. The reasons derive from the Internet's evolution as a composition of independently developed and deployed protocols, technologies and core applications. Moreover, this evolution has experienced no equilibrium thus far. A common complaint about traffic measurement studies is that they do not sustain relevance in an environment where the traffic, technology and topology change faster than we can measure them. Moreover, the proliferation of media and protocols make the acquisition of traffic data almost prohibitively complicated and costly, and finally, the time required to analyze and validate data means that most research efforts are obsolete by the time the findings are published. Thus, far from having an analytic handle on the Internet, we lack the ability even to measure traffic at a granularity that would enable infrastructure-level research. As a result, while the core of the Internet continues its rapid evolution, measurement and modeling of it progress at a leisurely pace. However, both active and passive measurements of the Internet do occur, as do analyses of the routing and IP addressing system.


We analyze the spectral efficiency of a 1-bit quantized multiple-input multiple-output channel with oversampling in time, where 1-bit quantization could become a key component to achieve the energy efficiency that is required for future communication systems. Applying adapted signaling schemes and appropriate power allocation algorithms, we derive lower bounds on the spectral efficiency based on results for the single-input single-output case. We show the potential gain compared to previous results without oversampling.


T HE need to maintain accurate relative orientation between spacecraft is critical in many satellite formation missions. For instance, in interferometry application, the relative orientation between spacecraft in a formation is required to be maintained precisely during formation maneuvers. In interspacecraft laser communication operation, the participating spacecraft are also required to maintain accurate relative attitude throughout the communication process. This control problem, commonly referred to as attitude synchronization in the literature, has attracted much research attention. Various solutions have been proposed and these can be broadly classified according to the advocated techniques: leader– follower [1–4], virtual structure [5,6], behavior-based [7–11], and graph-theoretical approach [12–15]. In particular, the graph-theoretical approach has been actively studied for cooperative control of multi-agent system using limited local interaction [16,17] and was adopted for attitude synchronization problem in [12–15]. In the above-cited decentralized attitude synchronization results, except [14,15], it is assumed that the interspacecraft communication links are undirected (i.e. bidirectional). However, in practice, the interspacecraft communication topology may be restricted to be directed, such as in unidirectional satellite laser communication system. The control problem of attitude synchronization under directed communication topology is more challenging as compared with the case with undirected communication topology. This issue was studied in [14] but the proposed control law requires derivative of the angular velocity, which may introduce additional noise into the system. Furthermore, the attitude-tracking performance analysis in [14] is applicable only to the casewhere the directed graph can be simplified to a graph with only one node. This constraint on communication topology is relaxed in [15], which uses modified Rodriguez parameters and Euler– Lagrange system to describe the satellite attitude dynamics. However,modifiedRodriguez parameters contain singularity and are thus not suitable for the development of globally stabilizing control algorithms. This Note proposes a decentralized adaptive sliding-mode control lawwhich regulates attitude and angular velocity errors of individual spacecraft with respect to reference commands and minimizes relative attitude and angular velocity errors between spacecraft. Thus, the proposed control law ensures that each spacecraft attains desired time-varying attitude and angular velocity while maintaining attitude synchronization with other spacecraft in the formation even in the presence of model uncertainties and external disturbances. Moreover, the design is applicable to general communication topology and is not restricted to ring topology or undirected communication topology. In the following section, unit quaternion representation will be introduced into the satellite attitude control problem and algebraic graph theory will be applied to describe general directed communication topology.


A complete description of 4-by-4 matrices , with scalar 2-by-2 diagonal blocks, for which the numerical range is the convex hull of two non-concentric ellipses is given. This result is obtained by reduction to the leading special case in which also is a scalar multiple of the identity. In particular cases when in addition is real or pure imaginary, the results take an especially simple form. An application to reciprocal matrices is provided.


The internet and social media are now very advanced and sophisticated, not only facilitating daily activities but also being able to make money and create several new jobs that are currently in great demand, namely celebrity programs. The object of research in this study is the celebrity Monika Chai. This research was conducted to determine the effect of Physical Attractiveness, Social Unattractiveness and Attitude Homophily on Parasocial Interaction and Credibility and the effect of Parasocial Interaction and Credibility on Purchase Intention on Monika Chai's Instagram followers in Medan, Indonesia. The approach used in this research is a quantitative approach with a causal-comparative research method. The data collection technique used was to distribute questionnaires through the snowball sampling technique (non- probability sampling method) with a Likert scale based on 5 points. This research was conducted on 100 respondents with male and female characteristics, aged 18- 60 years, domiciled in Medan, and have followed Monika Chai's Instagram account for at least the last 3 months. The results of the analysis of the Structural Equation Model (SEM) using AMOS version 22.0 software show that the Credibility variable has no significant effect on the Purchase Intention variable, the Parasocial Interaction variable has a significant effect on the Purchase Intention variable, the Physical Attractiveness variable has no significant effect on the Parasocial Interaction variable, the Social Unattractiveness has no significant effect on the Parasocial Interaction variable, Attitude Homophily variable has no significant effect on the Parasocial Interaction variable, Physical Attractiveness has no significant effect on the Credibility variable, Attitude Homophily has a significant effect on the Credibility variable, and Social Unattractiveness has no significant effect on the Credibility variable.


-1 ) in batch experiments under environmentally related conditions. The degradation of MC-RR was fully completed within 5 days after a lag period of 2 days. The MC-RR degradation by AMRI-03 strain occurred in a medium containing nitrogen and phosphorus, indicating that this could likely occur along with other organic compounds found in the environment. Therefore, the coexistence of such bacteria with MCs in the same environment can contribute to the self-purification of the ecosystem from such potent toxins.


To increase the compactness of the embarked actuators, asynchronous machines are usually preferred. Adjusting of PI controller coefficients is one of the most important parts in vector control of asynchronous machines. Experimental method is more popular to calculate this parameters, but it is difficult and don't give us the optimum point. In this paper we introduce an intelligent PI controller to adjust motor's speed at its desired reference point using vector control laws. Particles Swarm Optimization (PSO) algorithm is a simple and powerful method to adjusting this parameters. Simulation results indicate that the selected method is good with high accuracy.


In this paper an analysis of the determinants of attractiveness of the Formula One is attempted. Therefore the concept of competitive balance will be explained and applied. The principal item of this analysis will be the result that there is an optimal level of competitive balance which maximizes the attractiveness. This concept will be applied through an empirical analysis of the determinants of the German Formula One number of TV viewers. It is shown that the influence of competitive balance is not totally clear. A too high level of competitive balance seems to be as detrimental as a too low level of competitive balance.


With the rapid popularization of Internet, e-commerce development penetrates all areas of economic life, the survey shows that internet entrepreneur are mostly younger age groups, thar makes e-commerce training courses in universities seem extra significant. But e-commerce training courses have a series of problems. This paper discussed it from three aspects in order to optimize e-commerce training curriculum, meet the demand on job skills and increase student employment weights purposes.


United States. He is correspondingly derisive about the Welfare State and Socialism, which he sees as breeding dependency, weakness and a lack of initiative. In the American society the ambitious hardworking and successful middle class people are seen as those who pay an unfair share in taxes, are forced or pressurized through welfare and other programmes to care for the lazy and unsuccessful lower class. The politicians looking for personal gain and votes from the majority lower class pass hand-out legislation instead of inducing the lower


Given the large‐scale adoption and deployment of mobile phones by health services and frontline health workers (FHW), we aimed to review and synthesise the evidence on the feasibility and effectiveness of mobile‐based services for healthcare delivery.


INTRODUCTION: We are experiencing a fundamental change in the way our target groups interact with information online, moving from passive consumption to more active creation of content, for example social video and social networks. This means a great potential in reaching more people in a cost-effective way which in the end will result in greater impact. METHODS: The Swedish Agency for Health Technology Assessment and Assessment of Social Services (SBU), have developed an easy way to produce and disseminate our results through social video and social networks. SBU has a special social media editorial committee for communication via social media, which includes participants from different departments. The editorial committee discusses on a weekly basis the issues to be raised on the agency's Twitter and LinkedIn accounts. SBU works actively with social video as a message channel. During the past year several videos have been published with various themes (1 - 3). All of the members of the social media committee have attendend a short training course in order to be able to produce and publish social videos. For shorter production, we make ourselves with iPhones and editing with iMovie or Adobe Premiere Pro. For more extensive videos we produce together with a production agency. RESULTS: The number of followers on Twitter have increased from 500 in December 2015, to 1,400 in December 2016. Our followers are for example professors, doctors, nurses, physiotherapists, journalists, politicians, and opinion makers from patient organizations. In our latest recruitment processes we have been experiencing significant number of qualified candidates, who found the link to our website through social media networks like Facebook and LinkedIn. CONCLUSIONS: Social media should be at the heart of digital transformation as it crosses boundaries: you will have a broader impact and it has a great potential in reaching your target groups in a cost-effective way.


This paper examines how increases in renewable generation interact with market-based environmental regulations to affect the emissions of both regulated and unregulated pollutants. Using a simple analytical model, I first demonstrate that, when combined with a cap-and-trade program, expansions in renewable generation have the potential to cause an undesirable outcome—they can increase emissions of unregulated pollutants. To explore whether this unintended increase in unregulated pollution could occur in practice, I look back at a NOX cap-and-trade program that was in place in the eastern United States from 2009 through 2014—the EPA's Clean Air Interstate Rule. Using hourly generation and emissions data, I estimate how unregulated emissions of CO2 and SO2 would have been affected by adding new wind turbines and solar panels in the presence of a binding cap on NOX. I show that, once the interaction with the NOX cap is taken into consideration, renewable capacity additions would have offset much less CO2 than was previously thought. Moreover, I find that the renewable additions would have increased SO2 emissions.


In chapter 4 we discuss a number of popular DC-DC voltage regulation architectures, each responding to specific requirements demanded by the application at hand. Valley Control architecture in buck controllers utilizing external power MOSFETs is discussed first. Then an example of a fully Monolithic Buck converter is discussed. The Active Clamp, a device capable of fast transfer of energy from input to output is also covered. Battery charging is touched on briefly in this chapter. And finally the hot and contemporary topic of Digital Control of power conversion and management is discussed.


issues such as the development of modern medicine (using primarily British historical material) and its rise to pre-eminence in the health care division of labour, as well as the role of hospitals, the public health movement, personal health reforms and laboratory medicine. The result of this extremely broad coverage of issues in a single chapter is a somewhat meandering discussion, with some repetition of evidence and arguments. The remainder of the text co~ ~rs several other major substantive issues such as bureaucratisation and corporate rationalisation in the health care system, the mechanisms which determine access to


This paper describes a low power reconfigurable processor for Reed Solomon (RS) Codec. The Reed Solomon Processor targets handheld devices that use emerging communication standards such as WiMAX and DVB-H. Different design approaches and optimization techniques have been applied in order to enhance the processor throughput and reduce its energy consumption. The throughput achieved is up to 200 Mbps and 92 Mbps for the encoder and decoder respectively. Associated dynamic energy consumption is in the range of 0.34 to 1.17μϋ demonstrating a design suitable for present and future handheld devices.


Effect of BZ modification and heat treatment on microstructure and mechanical properties of white cast iron with low chromium was studied in this paper.It has been found that the impact toughness value of white cast iron with low chromium as cast condition can reach 6.9 J·cm-2;after 950℃×8h annealing,the hardness of it can reach HRC20.2;the value of impact toughness of white cast iron with low chromium can reach 10.1 J·cm-2 when it is tempered(150℃×30min)after being heated to 920℃×4h and water quenched.This kind of white cast iron with low chromium can be vast used on agricultural machine territory.


An energy management tool in a form of a contour chart of building automation system (BAS) data was presented to assist a healthcare building in monitoring the air-conditioning and mechanical ventilation (ACMV) energy performance. The contour charts were interpreted using a diagnostic guide based on a qualitative model-based fault detection and diagnosis (FDD) method. Rule-based technique was applied on zone temperature data in order to extract the estimated air handling unit (AHU) fan-extended-hours. The AHUs' estimated fan-extended-hours and zone temperature averages represented the measured BAS faults. An eQuest energy model incorporating the faults was calibrated to an energy consumption of 5,757,600 kWh/year with mean bias error (MBE) = 2.83% and coefficient of variation (root mean squared error) CV(RMSE) = 1.82%. Using the calibrated model, building energy performance simulation (BEPS) indicated a conservative potential saving of 400,200 kWh/year (6.95%) by simulating fault-free BAS zone temperature control and fan shutdown.


Background & Objective: Despite their very wide geographical distribution in the Mediterranean region, most Leishmania infantum strains belong to zymodeme MON-1. As different Leishmania species are known to cause different clinical symptoms and may require different treatment protocols, therefore this study was done to identify and characterize the leishmania agents causing visceral, Leishmaniasis (VL) in humans, reservoirs and vectors in the north-west of Iran by Isoenzyme analyses. Materials & Methods: In this descriptive and cross sectional study, The samples collected from 12 VL confirmed patients (bone marrow aspirates), 26 dogs (spleen and hepatic aspirates) and more than 100 sand flies from northwest of Iran between 2005 and 2006. All aspirated material from human, canine and sandflies demostrated growth of Leishmania parasite in NNN and αMEM media. The above species compared with WHO reference strains, Leishmania (Leishmania) donovani (DD8), L (L) infantum (IPT-1), L (L) tropica (K-27), and L(L) major (5-ASKH), using thin layer starch gel electrophoresis. The enzymes investigated in this study were ALAT, ASAT, SOD, ES,NH, MPI, GPI, MDH, 6PGD, PGM, PEPD, and PDK. Results: In this study L.infuntum. MON-1 was the only zymodeme present in all samples of dogs and human sandflies. Conclusion: We concluded that the visceral Leishmania (VL) focus in northwest of Iran is evidently Mediterranean type, which extends from Portugal and Morocco to Pakistan and the Central Asia and domestic doges act as the reservoir host in northwest of Iran, where the complete life cycle of zymodeme MON-1 has been identified.


This article uses an exponential smoothing method to forecast the time series of temporary sales of an opencast rock and raw materials mine. Six models of foresight were developed: three seasonal additive models (with linear, exponential and fading trend) and three seasonal multiplicative models (with linear, exponential and fading trend). The exponential smoothing method can be used for current enterprise management, not just mining. This method can be used to make relevant decisions based on the verified forecasts. It is designed for short-term forecasting-even several times during the day based on current changing data. This method is a useful tool for forecasting time series for not only sales. It can be used to forecast inventory, receivables, etc. However, despite the great progress in predictive methods of the future, which is particularly aided by computer technics, the forecast of the Economist is fraught with greater or lesser errors, and it is therefore necessary to verify developed models. The quality of the forecast should be determined by its relevance, which is determined by means of ex post errors (expired forecast errors). Furthermore, the quality should also be monitored and the forecasts should be corrected if necessary. To develop forecasts in the six models mentioned, the STATISTICA program, which provides a transparent and quite rapid forecasting of the use of the exponential smoothing method in twelve possible variants. STATISTICA also allows to verify the developed model by drawing an adjustment chart of this model with actual time series, verifying ex post errors, and creating a histogram of the rest of the model. This article also carried out verifications of the models developed by designating the errors of expired forecasts (ex post errors), as well as verification, on the basis of the histogram, whether the rest of the developed models have a normal distribution. For this purpose the Shapiro-Wilk test was used.


-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------2 Introduction--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------4 Introducing systemic reflexivity---------------------------------------------------------------------5 Building the foundations of systemic reflexivity through developing CMM theory----11 The relationship of appreciative inquiry to systemic reflexivity-----------------------------25 Discussion-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------34 Conclusion-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------36 References-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------39


The lack of proper services offered by the government of Canberra as well as poor quality of the services is discussed. The urgent need for massive public sector reform is highlighted.


The use of bioinformatics tools require different sequence formats at various instances. Every tool uses specific set of formats for processing. Sequence in one format is often required in another format. Thus, there is a need for sequence format conversion. A number of such tools are available in the public domain. Here, we describe BIOFFORC as a file format converter. The tool is developed with a graphical user interface in PERL. Availability http://www.winningpath.com/biofforc/


Background: Characteristics of ES cells are controlled by gene regulatory networks, and ETV4 and -5 participate in the network. Results: Proliferation, induction of ectodermal marker genes, and expression of stem cell-related genes were impaired in Etv4/5 double KO ES cells. Conclusion: ETV4 and -5 crucially define properties of ES cells. Significance: Gene regulatory networks are dysregulated in the double KO ES cells. The pluripotency and self-renewal capacity of embryonic stem (ES) cells is regulated by several transcription factors. Here, we show that the ETS-related transcription factors Etv4 and Etv5 (Etv4/5) are specifically expressed in undifferentiated ES cells, and suppression of Oct3/4 results in down-regulation of Etv4/5. Simultaneous deletion of Etv4 and Etv5 (Etv4/5 double knock-out (dKO)) in ES cells resulted in a flat, epithelial cell-like appearance, whereas the morphology changed into compact colonies in a 2i medium (containing two inhibitors for GSK3 and MEK/ERK). Expression levels of self-renewal marker genes, including Oct3/4 and Nanog, were similar between wild-type and dKO ES cells, whereas proliferation of Etv4/5 dKO ES cells was decreased with overexpression of cyclin-dependent kinase inhibitors (p16/p19, p15, and p57). A differentiation assay revealed that the embryoid bodies derived from Etv4/5 dKO ES cells were smaller than the control, and expression of ectoderm marker genes, including Fgf5, Sox1, and Pax3, was not induced in dKO-derived embryoid bodies. Microarray analysis demonstrated that stem cell-related genes, including Tcf15, Gbx2, Lrh1, Zic3, and Baf60c, were significantly repressed in Etv4/5 dKO ES cells. The artificial expression of Etv4 and/or Etv5 in Etv4/5 dKO ES cells induced re-expression of Tcf15 and Gbx2. These results indicate that Etv4 and Etv5, potentially through regulation of Gbx2 and Tcf15, are involved in the ES cell proliferation and induction of differentiation-associated genes in ES cells.


1. The mechanical resistance of the human forearm has been measured during imposed sinusoidal flexion‐extension movements of the elbow joint.


1 Jeremy Grantham, "The Race of Our Lives Revisited" August 2018, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change's October 2018 Report, the Fourth National Climate Assessment, and "The Global Risks Report 2019" from the World Economic Forum. 2 A couple years ago, we wrote about the prospects for strong returns in the climate change sector (Lucas White and Jeremy Grantham, "The Good Thing About Climate Change: Opportunities", August 2017). The climate change sector, as we define it, is comprised of companies focused on mitigating greenhouse gas emissions or helping the world adapt to the consequences of climate change. Examples of relevant industries include: solar, wind, batteries & storage, electric grid, energy efficiency, agriculture, and water. In addition, we consider some less obvious propositions for instance, fish farming and energy-efficient air conditioning. 3 DNV GL, a leading Norwegian energy consulting firm. Introduction Hurricanes, typhoons, droughts, wildfires, and other extreme weather events are causing record damage. Increasingly, climate change is impacting the economy and our daily lives and has come into focus as an existential threat to the world as we know it.1 We are rapidly approaching a time when the world will be forced to act aggressively in an attempt to overcome decades of inaction. As return-oriented investors, we see this effort providing the backdrop for decades of secular growth in the climate change sector, along with the potential for strong returns.2


In geodetic surveying, input data from two coordinates are needed to compute rigid transformations. A common solution is a least-squares algorithm based on a Gauss–Markov model, called iterative closest point (ICP). However, the error in the ICP algorithm only exists in target coordinates, and the algorithm does not consider the source model's error. A total least-squares (TLS) algorithm based on an errors-in-variables (EIV) model is proposed to solve this problem. Previous total least-squares ICP algorithms used a Euler angle parameterization method, which is easily affected by a gimbal lock problem. Lie algebra is more suitable than the Euler angle for interpolation during an iterative optimization process. In this paper, Lie algebra is used to parameterize the rotation matrix, and we re-derive the TLS algorithm based on a GHM (Gauss–Helmert model) using Lie algebra. We present two TLS-ICP models based on Lie algebra. Our method is more robust than previous TLS algorithms, and it suits all kinds of transformation matrices.


To promote the prosperous and sustainable development of eco-tourism, the paper illustrates how to make good use of landscape poems, which has a close relationship with eco-tourism.


Abstract In this article, several scholars of nationalism discuss the potential for the COVID‐19 pandemic to impact the development of nationalism and world politics. To structure the discussion, the contributors respond to three questions: (1) how should we understand the relationship between nationalism and COVID‐19; (2) will COVID‐19 fuel ethnic and nationalist conflict; and (3) will COVID‐19 reinforce or erode the nation‐state in the long run? The contributors formulated their responses to these questions near to the outset of the pandemic, amid intense uncertainty. This made it acutely difficult, if not impossible, to make predictions. Nevertheless, it was felt that a historically and theoretically informed discussion would shed light on the types of political processes that could be triggered by the COVID‐19 pandemic. In doing so, the aim is to help orient researchers and policy‐makers as they grapple with what has rapidly become the most urgent issue of our times.


Particle-reinforced metal matrix composites exhibit a strengthening effect due to the particle size-dependent length scale that arises from the strain gradient, and thus from the geometrically necessary dislocations between the particles and matrix that result from their CTE(Coefficient of Thermal Expansion) and elastic-plastic mismatches. In this study, the influence of the size-dependent length scale on the particle-matrix interface failure and ductile failure in the matrix was examined using finite-element punch zone modeling whereby an augmented strength was assigned around the particle. The failure behavior was observed by a parametric study, while varying the interface failure properties such as the interface strength and debonding energy with different particle sizes and volume fractions. It is shown that the two failure modes (interface failure and ductile failure in the matrix) interact with each other and are closely related to the particle size-dependent length scale; in other words, the composite with the smaller particles, which is surrounded by a denser dislocation than that with the larger particles, retards the initiation and growth of the interface and matrix failures, and also leads to a smaller amount of decrease in the flow stress during failure. † Corresponding Author, email@example.com C 2014 The Korean Society of Mechanical Engineers


Left‐handed double‐helical Z‐RNA has been studied using the ribohexanucleotide pentaphosphate r(CpGpCpGpCpG). One‐dimensional proton nmr experiments were used to probe the structural details of the left‐handed helix in concentrated sodium perchlorate solution. In 1M NaClO4 the RNA adopts the normal A‐form double helix, and in 6M NaClO4 it is nearly all in the Z form. In 4M NaClO4 it exists as nearly equal parts of A form and Z form. Resonances corresponding to both A and Z form appear in the nmr spectrum, indicating that the duplex exchanges slowly between forms. Spin–spin coupling constants between protons in the ribose rings were used to determine the sugar‐pucker conformations of the individual nucleotides. Quantitative nuclear Overhauser experiments were used to determine proton–proton distances within the nucleoside, and from these distances values for the glycosidic torsion angle were determined. The results show that the cytidines adopt C2′,‐endo sugar puckers (S type) with pseudo‐rotation phase values (P) of ∼ 165°. The bases are in the anti conformation, with χ values of ∼ − 140°. The internal guanosines adopt C3′,‐endo sugar puckers (N type) with P ∼ 18°, while the 3′‐terminal guanosine ribose exists in an equilibrium between S‐ and N‐type conformations. All three guanosine bases adopt the syn conformation, with χ ∼ 70°. The results indicate that the solution structure of Z‐RNA is very similar to that of Z‐DNA.


The interaction of an unpolarized electron beam with a counterpropagating ultraintense linearly polarized laser pulse is investigated in the quantum radiation-dominated regime. We employ a semiclassical Monte Carlo method to describe spin-resolved electron dynamics, photon emissions and polarization, and pair production. Abundant high-energy linearly polarized gamma photons are generated intermediately during this interaction via nonlinear Compton scattering, with an average polarization degree of more than 50%, which further interacting with the laser fields produce electron-positron pairs due to nonlinear Breit-Wheeler process. The photon polarization is shown to significantly affect the pair yield by a factor beyond 10%. The considered signature of the photon polarization in the pair's yield can be experimentally identified in a prospective two-stage setup. Moreover, the signature can serve also for the polarimetry of high-energy high-flux gamma photons with a resolution well below 1% with currently achievable laser facilities.


Responsibilities are an important component of teamwork in multi-agent systems. In this paper, we present a formal model of responsibilities based on beliefs and goals . Our approach focuses on two central features of responsibilities: persistence and dependency. We define a special form of persistence that obligates agents to keep trying an action until it is done, but allows the caveat that they might delegate the task. Dependency means that the responsibilit y was assigned by a delegating agent who wants it done. We model this dependency through a requirement to maintain mutual belief on the status of the goal, as well as the need by the superior, and the achievability by the subordinate. Thu s agents with responsibilities are guaranteed to inform thei r superiors when they are about to fail, allowing others to tak e over, which provides robustness. Finally, we treat joint re sponsibilities among multiple agents as a mutual agreement to keep each other informed of their individual abilities to achieve the goal. These definitions provide a semantics for responsibilities in multi-agent systems, and can be used to design correct specifications of agent behavior, and justif y decisions such as when to act, wait, or communicate within a team.


1. IntroductionWriting is considered as the most difficult skill for language learners because they need to have a certain amount of L2 background knowledge about the rhetorical organizations, appropriate language use or specific lexicon with which they want to communicate to their readers. Beside, writing is one of the most important skills in learning a foreign language the nature of which has become clearer nowadays. It involves the development of an idea, the capture of mental representations of knowledge, and of experience with subjects (Casanave & Hubbard, 1992).In fact, the field of second language writing is an area affecting the lives of many people at institutions around the world where they must submit high quality written work in a language they did not learn as native speakers. However, measuring writing ability, especially writing ability in a second language (L2), is never an easy task. Considering the role of writing in higher education, the writing ability of L2 writers is very likely to be evaluated in large-scale tests to make decisions as to their preparedness for postsecondary study. In order to be able to write effectively one should have sufficient knowledge of what to write and how to organize the language. Nunan (2001) considers that being able to produce a piece of writing which is coherent, fluent and extended is the most difficult thing to do in language. Writing is a special skill that even native speakers may not master it.2. Review of the related literature2.1. The definition of the taskIn teaching, it is an activity which is designed to help achieve a particular learning goal. A number of dimensions of tasks influence their use in language teaching. These include:Goals - the kind of goals teachers and learners identify for a task procedures - the operations or procedures learners use to complete a taskOrder - the location of a task within a sequence of other tasks pacing - the amount of time that is spent on a taskProduct - the outcome or outcomes students produce, such as a set of questions, an essay, or a summary as the outcome of a reading taskLearning strategy - the kind of strategy a student uses when completing a taskAssessment - how success on the task will be determined participation - whether the task is completed individually, with a partner, or with a group of other learnersThe concept of task is central to many theories of classroom teaching and learning, and the school curriculum is sometimes described as a collection of tasks. From this viewpoint, school work is defined by a core of basic tasks that recur across different subjects in the curriculum. The teacher's choice of tasks determines learning goals, how learning is to take place, and how the results of learning will be demonstrated. In second language teaching, the use of a variety of different kinds of tasks is said to make teaching more communicative (see communicative approach) since it provides a purpose for a classroom activity which goes beyond the practice of language for its own sake (Richards & Schmidt, 2010).2.2. Independent writing taskIndependent writing tasks are believed to offer a more valid demonstration of underlying writing ability in comparison to indirect writing assessment (e.g., multiple choice items) as they elicit actual writing performance rather than working on morphological and syntactic aspects of the target language (Camp, 1993) similar to what is expected in most of the indirect methods. Nevertheless, independent tasks have been criticized by many researchers (Gebril & Plakans, 2009; Plakans, 2008; Gebril, 2006; Weigle, 2002, 2004; Cho, 2003; Cumming, Kantor, Powers, Santos, & Taylor, 2000; Leki & Carson, 1997; Hamp-Lyons & Kroll,1996). Given this criticism, integrated tasks have been regarded as an alternative component in writing tests.2.3. Integrated writing taskIntegrated writing tasks put forward an authentic measure for the writing skill (Cumming et al. …


Idempotent nonlinear filters may be viewed as extensions of the class of (non-realizable) ideal linear filters, and one of their characteristic features is that they reduce any input sequence {x k } to a root after one pass. This paper explores some new constructions of idempotent nonlinear filters, using ideas from algebraic category theory, which provides a natural basis for considering cascade filter structures. In addition , this paper also examines some related filter classes, including some extensions of the class of gentle filters considered previously by Haavisto, Gabbouj and Neuvo, and some extensions of the idea of invo-lutory matrices to nonlinear filters.


We study general features of the excitation spectrum of a system of one-dimensional chiral spinless fermions with short-range interactions. We show that the nature of the elementary excitations of such a system depends strongly on the nonlinearity of the underlying dispersion of the fermions. In the case of quadratic nonlinearity, the low-momentum excitations are essentially fermionic quasiparticles and quasiholes, whereas the high-momentum ones are classical harmonic waves and solitons. In the case of cubic nonlinearity, the nature of the elementary excitations does not depend on momentum and is determined by the strength of the interactions. At a certain critical value of the interaction strength the excitation spectrum changes qualitatively, pointing to a dynamic phase transition in the system.


In classroom teaching of College English,with the design of diversified cultural tasks,students could participate in tasks,such as collecting,thinking,assessing and using cultural knowledge.They could be trained with their cultural awareness and be improved in their ability of cross-cultural communication.


This paper develops a particle swarm optimisation (PSO) algorithm for the multi stage supply chain network problem associated with the fixed charges. In many distribution problems, the transportation cost consists of fixed costs, that are independent of the quantities transported and variable costs, which are proportional to the quantities transported. The objective of this paper is to select the optimum set of suppliers, plants, distribution centres (DCs) to be opened and determine the quantities to be supplied to satisfy the customer demand with minimum total distribution cost. The problem chosen goes beyond the traditional mathematical programming and it becomes a non-polynomial (NP) hard while considering the fixed costs. The performance of PSO is compared in terms of total distribution cost with spanning tree-based genetic algorithm (st-GA), improved Prufer number encoding-based genetic algorithm (IPEGA) and with LINGO. Computational results showed that the proposed PSO is capable of producing good quality solutions.


"I find that it is very difficult in situations where I see there is aggressive therapy being given, but it may not be in the patient's best interest. I struggle with this. The patient is going along with it, but I do wonder if it is in their best interest. Sometimes, it seems to me that it is not to be. And that is really tough."


High power line communication (HPLC) has become a basic communication method in the courts of smart grid areas. Some special electrical equipment in these power grid areas may cause electromagnetic interference, which will undermine the stability of HPLC, and lead the acquisition equipment in the smart grid to miss out or lose control. Consequently, the power supply quality and grid safety will be affected. This kind of influence is temporary, random, and self-recoverable, and it is difficult to be identified and eliminated through on-site inspection. In this paper, the HPLC network topology records of the courts are analyzed, the HPLC timing sequence topology is fitted, and user information and electricity consumption information are correlated. Machine learning and optimization are carried out on the data of the courts by using the association rule learning and decision tree algorithm. It is found that the machine learning method based on the HPLC timing sequence topology can effectively realize the electromagnetic interference positioning of the power grid in the courts, and help the on-site operation and maintenance personnel to conduct troubleshooting.


The resistance of ten pumpkin varieties to Cucumber Mosaic Virus(CMV) and Meloidogyne incognita were studied in field by natural infection and artificial inoculation respectively.The materials No.1 to 8 were high sensitive to CMV and showed as dwarfed plant,yellow leaves,short and small taproot,few lateral roots.The No.9(Changqingteng) and No.10(Cucurbita ficifolia) showed CMV resistant.And the Cucurbita ficifolia had strong CMV resistance which reached the high level.But all the pumpkin varieties were high sensitve to Meloidogyne incognita,and their disease indicies reached the 5th grade.


You know the feeling: You're working longer and harder--like a tax accountant whose busy season never ends. But at the close of the day, tasks are left undone because you didn't get to them or because you're waiting for somebody else to finish his or her part in the workflow. Accountants, auditors, and finance executives may feel this way for several good reasons. New standards and regulations, technological advances, and expanded duties are changing the profession and adding complexity and challenges. But even though CPAs may be increasingly busy, there are ways for them to avoid being swamped. Amy West, CPA, CGMA, is the CFO of not-for-profit AHRC NYC, which provides critical services to people with developmental disabilities and their families in New York City. In a business environment where the CFO's role is expanding, West oversees traditional finance, insurance, entitlements, contract negotiations, and procurement. She also is head of AHRC NYC's real property department. This includes responsibility for 170 facilities throughout the five boroughs of New York City. AHRC NYC owns about 100 of the facilities, including the organization's headquarters. That means West also serves as a landlord. She negotiates leases, manages commercial tenants, and performs other duties to ensure the not-for-profit manages its space effectively. This is a huge responsibility on top of her numerous other duties, but being organized and planning carefully help her stay on top of her tasks. "The more you plan, I think, the better you are equipped to deal with the unexpected," she said. "Planning helps you deal with the unknown." Effective and productive professionals find ways to tackle the challenges posed in a business environment that seems increasingly busy. Meanwhile, industrial-organizational psychologists and leadership coaches offer strategies for how to be more productive and less stressed. WHY BUSY SEASON SEEMS TO HAVE NO END Researchers believe the trove of information assembled by humans doubled about every 25 years at the end of World War II. Today, thanks to technology, it doubles about every 13 months, and the sharing and digitization of information continues to increase the pace. "This pace of change is the problem," said Alan Watkins, a physician and neuroscientist who is CEO of Complete Coherence, a leadership consultancy near London. To get a grasp on the changes, he said, "we need to work at a higher level of sophistication." Sophisticated tools can make the job easier, but they can also become a problem. Constant connectedness to digital devices hasn't led to higher productivity, according to Scott Eblin, a former executive turned leadership coach and author of Overworked and Overwhelmed: The Mindfulness Alternative. U.S. labor productivity growth slowed in the mid-2000s and in the past five years has been the lowest on record, research by the Federal Reserve suggests. The average working professional receives about 200 email messages per day, each often arriving with a ding that conveys more urgency than most messages deserve. Add to that instant messages, text messages, phone calls, meetings, and inquiries from colleagues sticking their heads through the open door. Workers are interrupted on average every three minutes. Research shows it takes about 20 minutes to refocus, Eblin said. "We can compensate for interruptions by working faster, but that comes at a price," said Erin Eatough, an industrial-organizational psychologist and assistant psychology professor at the City University of New York's Baruch College. "We're feeling like we're putting in more effort during the day, which I think is what's leading to a lot of these feelings of being overwhelmed but still not feeling like we're getting more done than maybe we have in the past." HOW TO IMPROVE PRODUCTIVITY West said three main distractions threaten to derail her on the job, but she has strategies for dealing with each one: * Email. …


To study the nutritional and post harvest management of tuberose cv. Double an experiment was conducted in the Department of Horticulture, Chandra Shekhar Azad University of Agriculture & Technology, Kanpur during 2002-03 and 2003-04. For nutritional study ten foliar spray of urea (l, 2, 3 and 4g/litre), amlnonium dihydrogen orthophosphate (1, 2 and 4 gllitre) and tripotassiuITI citrate (l and 2g1litre) \vere done at fortnightly intervals startjng from one ITIonth after planting. Fol iar spray of urea 3g1litre, ammonium dihydrogen orthophosphate 2gJlitre and tripotassiuITI citrate 2g1litre proved optimum and beneficial for in1proved vegetative growth (number of leaves~ width of leaves and height of plant), flowering (duration of flowering, length of spike; nUlnber of florets and spikes/clump) and bulb production (number of bulbs, weight of bulb and bulblets and bulb yield). Interactive effect was found to be non signi ficant for all the parameters except N X P for number of spikes per clump. Furthermore, out of the different preservatives and their combination tried} 8-HQS 400 ppm + sucrose 50/0 was found beneficial for increasing spike length, water absorption and spike 1 ife of cut tuberose. ~: {l31;ftJJ~ (wdA!;qe ~'iISf(futt ~O) ~\J1I~ tl~" -q 41~cfil4 ~ \3{qfG"ilq(I'i1 wr~ I


Quantum mechanical calculations have been performed to study the fragmentation dynamics of the Ar–NH3 van der Waals complex excited in the ν2 (''umbrella'') vibrational level with v2=1. Vibrational predissociation has been investigated for different initial quasibound states, corresponding to excitation in the stretching or bending van der Waals levels or in the tunneling motion of the NH3 umbrella inversion, for both ortho and para varieties of NH3, and for three values of the total angular momentum J and its projection Ω onto the intermolecular axis, (J,Ω)=(0,0), (1,0), and (1,±1). The calculations were performed for two different intermolecular potential energy surfaces, one determined ab initio by Bulski et al. [J. Chem. Phys. 94, 491 (1991)], and the other where the ab initio potential has been scaled to fit spectroscopic data of Ar–NH3, proposed by van Bladel et al. [J. Phys. Chem. 95, 5414 (1991)]. The lifetime obtained from the ab initio potential lies within the limits set by experiment for the l...


To the Editor. —Spontaneous dissection of the internal carotid artery is becoming the subject of more and more clinical reports. 1 As yet, there appears to be no consensus concerning the prognosis of these lesions or the most appropriate course of management (eg, medical, surgical, nonintervention). 2 In his recent article in theArchives, Bogousslavsky and coworkers 3 have painted a rather gloomy clinical picture in association with these lesions, but, based on the material presented in their article, several questions arise. We are told that all cases included in this report suffered occlusions of the cervical internal carotid artery as determined by angiography. This criterion for inclusion is somewhat surprising given the general view that carotid occlusion is found in a minority of patients suffering spontaneous dissection of the internal carotid artery. 4 Also surprising is the high figure cited for distal embolic intracranial branch occlusion (seven of 19


It is widely agreed that computer networks need to become more resilient to a range of challenges that can seriously impact their normal operation. Challenges include malicious attacks, misconfigurations, accidental faults and operational overloads. As part of an overall strategy for network resilience, a crucial requirement is the identification of challenges in real-time, followed by the application of appropriate remedial action. In this paper, we motivate and describe a novel solution that enables the progressive multi-stage deployment of resilience strategies, based on incomplete challenge and context information. Policies are used to orchestrate the interactions between various resilience mechanisms, which incrementally identify the nature of a challenge and deploy appropriate remediation mechanisms. We demonstrate the benefits of this approach via simulation of a resource starvation attack on an Internet Service Provider infrastructure. By initially using lightweight detection and then progressively applying more heavyweight analysis, a key contribution of our work is the ability to mitigate a challenge as early as possible and rapidly detect its root cause. The approach we propose in this paper has the flexibility, reproducibility and extensibility needed to assist in the identification and remediation of various network challenges in the future.


Soil temperature is one component that influences plant growth and microbial activities. This research was conducted in the great giant plantation, in the various locations with a different stage of the plant. The results show soil temperature in bare land and 1 month after planting give highest soil temperature than other because the soil not shaded by the plant canopy. Peak drought occurs in October 2015, with the highest soil temperature, reached 54.5°C on the soil surface. With irrigation can decrease soil temperature until 14%


The catalytic performance for acetone with loaded manganese oxide on microporous structure of ZSM-5 molecular sieve was examined. It used the ZSM-5 zeolite with silica to alumina mass ratio of 300 as a carrier, dipping solution to preparation of manganese oxide catalysts after activation. The catalytic effect with the manganese supported on the zirconia was compared. It investigated the impact of the active ingredient on the zeolite carrier, calcination temperature and calcination time. The best preparation conditions of catalysts and a higher removal rate was gotten. The catalyst is in amorphous Mn203 active center, which exhibits the ratio of zirconia support higher catalytic activity in the zeolite.


A common sign of old age is a weakening of recent memory and an increased power to recall events of the distant past. When I heard, for the first time of the "LennoxGastaut" syndrome during the Symposium on Epilepsy at the World Congress of Neurology and Neurological Surgery held in New York, 1969, I was reminded of the time 31 years ago when the distinctive features of the slow (approximately 2 per second) spike and wave and its clinical correlates were first described. Lennox in his great treatise, Epilepsy and Related Disorders (1960), refers on page 156 to the important differences between the type of epilepsy that is associated with 3 per second spike and wave discharges and the type associated with 2 per second spike and wave discharges, and he gave a reference to the original article describing these differences (Gibbs et al. 1939). The term "slow wave and spike" seemed a simple and natural descriptive term to apply to this pattern (Figs. 1 and 2). However, Lennox always sought to distinguish not merely different electrographic patterns but different types of epilepsy. My wife and I of course concurred. Lennox once quoted a Chinese proverb "Three people of one mind and yellow earth turns to gold". We were truly of one mind and we thought, despite protests from both electroencephalographers and clinicians, that we could distinguish different forms of underlying disorder using, in combination, all the means of identification available, biochemical, electroencephalographic and clinical.


Typical semantic segmentation methods do not recognize unknown pixels during the test or deployment stage. This capability is critical for open-world environment applications where unseen objects appear all the time. Recently, to solve those limitations, Open Set Semantic Segmentation (OSSS) was introduced. This task aims to produce known and unknown pixels semantic segments. However, due to its recent introduction, few works are found in the literature, and consequently, few datasets are publicly available. This work carried out a comparative study between the existing OSSS methods on a new synthetic dataset of images and the well-known PASCAL VOC 2012 dataset. The compared methods include SoftMax-T, OpenMax-based, and OpenIPCS. The results are encouraging and show some of the advantages and main limitations of each technique. However, in general, they demonstrate that the problem of OSSS remains open and demands further research aiming at real applications, such as autonomous driving and robotics.


The Internet topology has witnessed significant changes ove r the years with the rise and fall of several Internet Service Prov iders (ISP). In this paper, we propose a new economic model that can aid in understanding the evolution of the Internet topology and provide insight into why certain ISPs fail and others succeed. O ur economic model is motivated by the Cournot model for characterizing oligopolistic markets. We model the Internet topo l gy as a conglomeration of Cournot markets across different geogr aphic regions comprising of regional markets within each geograp hic region and transit markets across geographic regions. By anal yzing the Nash equilibrium of the overall system, we character ize a simple relationship between the Nash price, demand, the num ber of ISPs and fraction of traffic exchange across regions. Our e conomic model is powerful enough to provide a simplified charac terization of the aggregate evolution of the Internet topology within and across geographic regions without the need for capturin g individual variations across each ISP. Based on this model, we sh ow evidence that existing bandwidth pricing trends are in stri king contrast with the expected Nash equilibrium behavior thereby r sulting in the rise and fall of ISPs. We also corroborate the model bas ed on analyzing Internet topology evolution from 2002 to 2008.


It is a truism about revolutions that their most important effect is quite often the opposite of what was intended. The Russian revolution of 1917 set out to destroy the state. Instead, it resulted in one of the most oppressive and invasive governments ever. The French revolution also set out in 1789 to destroy the establishment and its symbols, including hospitals, doctors, and medical schools. Instead, in a few years the revolution set the stage for one of the most enlightened periods of medical advance known up to the time and made Paris the center of the medical world during the first half of the 19th century. In this dynamic process, the surgical and medical faculties were merged, hospitals became the focus of medical research and teaching, and, most important, there was an explosive growth of pathological anatomic knowledge. This in turn made possible the science of clinical diagnosis, and


The effects of different phosphorus(P)doses in the nutrient solution on growth,yield and quality of Chinese flowering cabbage(Brassica parachinensis)were investigated.The results showed that compared with normal phosphorus(1 mmol/L H2PO4-)treatment,root applied H2PO4-from 3 to 7 mmol/L produced significantly stunted growth and yield,and addition with 5 and 7 mmol/L H2PO4-resulted in increased root to shoot ratios.Both anthocyanin in flower stalk epidermis and soluble sugar concentration increased while nitrate concentration decreased with the increasing H2PO4-from 1 to 7 mmol/L in nutrient solution.


Propose a novel decomposition‐based model employing the total generalized variation (TGV) and the nuclear norm, which can be used in compressed sensing‐based dynamic MR reconstructions.


PURPOSE
To develop a fast secondary MU calculation tool for an integrated MR-Linac, an emerging technology for delivering image-guided on-line adaptive therapy.

METHODS
A software tool was developed to implement a modified Clarkson integration algorithm for point-dose calculation, considering the dosimtric effect of a magnetic field. A research planning system, considering the presence of a perpendicular 1.5 T magnetic field, was used to extract the beam data (e.g., depth doses and beam profiles) required for the MU calculation in homogeneous phantom of 60×60×40 cm3 for a prototype of MR-Linac integrating a 1.5 T MR scanner with 6MV photon beams. These dosimetric data may be replaced with those to be collected during the commissioning measurement of the MR-Linac.

RESULTS
The presence of the magnetic field resulted in noticeable changes including (1) shifts in beam profiles for small fields (< 2×2 cm2), and (2) changes in central-axis doses when one of field edges is < 2 cm away from the central axis. For example, the maximum change in central-axis dose was up to 8% for one of the field borders with a distance away from the central axis of <1 cm. These changes are relevant for the MU calculation particularly for IMRT and VMAT, where most of segments are small. These magnetic field affected beam profiles and depth doses were included in the software tool. The MU calculations from the software tool for selective representative plans were found to agree with those from the research planning system within 10%.

CONCLUSION
The presence of a perpendicular magnetic field results in noticeable changes in beam profiles and depth doses for small fields. These changes are included in the secondary MU calc33 u3 lation to be used as a redundancy check for an integrated MR-Linac.


Background COVID-19 pandemic has a high impact on the health of pregnant women and healthcare providers worldwide. Objective This study aims to assess midwives' knowledge and preparedness in providing maternity care during COVID-19 pandemic. Methods A cross-sectional analytical hospital-based study that included 116 midwives, who were working in labor ward, was conducted in the Dodoma region of Tanzania from March to June 2021. The Chi-square test and Fisher's exact test were used to assess the association between the categorical variables. The predictors of midwives' knowledge and preparedness were determined using binary logistic regression analysis. Statistical analysis was performed using SPSS version 23.0; p < .05 was considered to be significant. Results Of the midwives studied, 63 (54.3%) had adequate knowledge about COVID-19 and only 30 (25.9%) were adequately prepared on provision of maternal care. Having diploma/bachelor level of education (AOR  =  2.62, 95%CI  =  1.08–6.36, p  =  .033), being trained on COVID-19 (AOR  =  3.65, 95%CI  =  1.11–12.00, p  =  .033) and working in urban health facilities (AOR = 3.65, 95%CI  =  1.17–13.98, p  =  .002) were the significant determinants of midwives' knowledge on COVID-19. Working at a health center (AOR  =  0.19, 95%CI  =  0.03–1.32. p  =  .033), being trained on COVID-19 (AOR  =  0.04, 95%CI  =  0.01–0.14, p  =  .000 and having adequate knowledge on COVID-19 (AOR  =  0.20, 95%CI  =  0.03–1.32, p  =  .032) were determinants of midwives' preparedness on provision of maternal care. Conclusion Knowledge and preparedness in the provision of maternity care during the COVID-19 pandemic were low. Emphasis should be put on training midwives on IPC when providing maternity care. This may help in preventing the spread of infectious diseases including COVID-19 as we observed in the present study.


Source of the Nile Fish farm (SON) is located in northern Lake Victoria close to the headwaters of the River Nile. The proprietors of the farm have established a collaborative agreement with the National Fisheries Resources Research Institute (NaFIRRI) to undertake quarterly environment monitoring surveys of the fish cage site at Bugungu in the Napoleon Gulf. This activity is a mandatory requirement of the National Environment Management Authority (NEMA) of Uganda. Therefore NAFIRRI undertakes monitoring surveys once every quarter covering selected physical‐chemical parameters including water column depth, water transparency, water column temperature, dissolved oxygen, pH, conductivity and nutrient status; algal, zooplankton, macro‐benthos and fish communities. While the first quarter survey of 2013 (January‐March) was missed out due to late decision, the second quarter monitoring survey was dully undertaken in May 2013 and a technical report was compiled and submitted to the client. The present report covers the third quarter survey (July‐September) undertaken in September 2013. Results/observations made are presented in this technical report along with a scientific interpretation and discussion of the results with reference to possible impacts of the cage facilities to the water environment quality and selected aquatic biota.


The platelet P2Y12 receptor plays a critical role in sustaining ADP-mediated platelet aggregation. Drawbacks of the thienopyridine clopidogrel, a prodrug of an irreversible P2Y12 antagonist, include the need for two-step metabolism to its active form and partial hydrolysis to its inactive metabolite. Both contribute to high variability in the degree of platelet inhibition and the irreversibility of binding complicates both acute and planned invasive treatments when rapid offset of antiplatelet activity is desired. Novel P2Y12 antagonists include the thienopyridine prasugrel and the selective, direct, reversible antagonists cangrelor (iv) and AZD6140 (oral). Prasugrel, also an irreversible antagonist, requires only one-step metabolism to active form and achieves greater inhibition of platelet aggregation (IPA) than clopidogrel. Recently published data indicate that this translates into improved efficacy. Like clopidogrel, prasugrel relies on new platelet generation for offset of effect. The direct reversible antagonists bind directly to the receptor, and the degree of IPA closely follows plasma drug concentrations. In addition to permitting more rapid offset of effect and greater and more consistent IPA than clopidogrel, direct reversible antagonists may exert additional beneficial effects via blockade of P2Y12 in vascular smooth muscle cells. Reversible antagonists also appear to exhibit a wider therapeutic window, showing reduced bleeding time prolongation per given degree of antithrombotic effect in experimental models. Ongoing large-scale Phase 3 clinical trials are examining cangrelor in patients with acute coronary syndromes (ACS) also undergoing percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) and AZD6140 in ACS patients being treated with medical therapy, PCI, or coronary artery bypass grafting.


A device for fixing an image formed by electrostatic adhesion of toner particles on a copy sheet, wherein such copy sheet is passed between a pair of fixing rollers consisting of a fixing roller and a follower roller, the fixing roller having an offset preventing oil fed to its surface and being heated as required. The fixing roller and the follower roller each include a base material layer made of silicone rubber which is not caused to swell by the offset preventing oil and is swellable thereby. The fixing roller further include a thin surface layer formed on the outer surface of the base material layer and made of silicone rubber which has affinity with a silicone oil. The offset preventing oil may be a fluoroalkyl radical containing silicone oil or a mixture of such oil with an alkylpolysiloxane oil.


In this paper, we point out an unsolved problem in the constructing procedures of the proof in theorem 1 of (Sing Kiong Nguang, 2000) and also to inappropriate conditions C2) and C3). A counterexample is given which satisfies the settings of the paper (Sing Kiong Nguang, 2000) to illustrate the error of C2). For a second-order nonlinear time-delay system, we give a solving method for the unsolved problem which can obtain the local asymptotical stability of the system. A simulation example is also given to show the feasibility and efficiency of the method


Based on the error analysis theory,the paper aims to throw some light on the empirical study of misuse of articles and prepositions with copus approach.By analyzing the typical patterns of misuse of articles and prepositions characterized by Chinese graduate students,a conclusion is drawn which will contribute to the English language teaching in China.


Novel doubly branched apio dideoxynucleosides were synthesized starting from 1,3-dihydroxyacetone using an ozonolysis and Grignard addition as key steps, and evaluated for anti-hepatitis C virus (HCV) activity. The adenine derivative 24 showed significant anti-HCV activity, indicating that the branches at the 4′,5′-position of the apiosyl ring led to favorable interaction with HCV polymerase.


At Theaetetus 187b, Socrates' interlocutor Theaetetus offers a definition of knowledge as true belief. Since Socrates has already argued that Theaetetus' first definition of knowledge as perception is inadequate, the discussion has moved away from perceptual accounts of knowledge to the relationship between beliefs or judgments and knowledge. Even though Theaetetus' definition of knowledge as true belief is not immediately refuted, Socrates instead proposes that he and Theaetetus investigate the possibility of false judgments. That is, Socrates proposes that they investigate how it is possible for someone to believe things which are false. This project, then, is concerned with this stretch of the Theaetetus; Plato's investigation into the possibility of false judgments. One of the most important questions that arise when reading this passage is why the discussion into the possibility of false judgments is brought up at all. In this dissertation I shall argue, contrary to some scholars, that the discussion of false belief in the Theaetetus has a distinct purpose, namely, to refute Protagoras' suggestion that false beliefs are impossible. Plato is, throughout this passage, genuinely bothered by the problem of falsehood and seeks to find a satisfactory resolution. He seeks to find a resolution so that he may, contrary to Protagoras, show that false judgments are possible. In the course of defending this claim, I shall investigate the two primary impediments to accounting for falsity. These first two puzzles argue that false beliefs cannot occur if certain assumptions are made. After investigating these two puzzles, I shall outline and interpret Plato's three proposed solutions to these two puzzles. As I shall argue, while Plato's attempt to overcome the difficulties of the two puzzles fails, he is genuinely bothered by the problem of falsehood. Various reasons have been offered by commentators for the failure of Plato's account. While this is the case, I shall argue that what makes false belief unaccountable for Plato at this juncture of his career are certain assumptions about the mind's relationship between its judgments and the objects of its judgments.


Inelastic x‐ray scattering spectroscopy measurements on hcp single crystal solid He with q∥c axis and q=0.45, 0.97, and 1.24 a.u. are presented. The crystals were grown in situ under a pressure of 600 bar at 5–7 K within a Be hollow cylinder. By subtracting a measurement on the empty Be cylinder, pure solid He spectra are obtained and discussed in terms both of the hcp He band structure and of excitonic excitation. The existence of an exciton at 21.8 eV above the 1s core level could unambiguously be settled. Clear evidence is found that the bottom of the conduction band is at 27 eV.


Sleep is vital for health and wellbeing across the lifecourse. Ethnic differences have been observed with regards to the prevalence and predictors of self-reported sleep problems. An understanding of sleep experiences with ageing and across ethnicities is required to better support older people. Open-ended interviews were conducted with 23 people living in Aotearoa/New Zealand aged 61–92 years (12 Māori and 11 non-Māori) concerning current sleep status, changes over their lifecourse and personal strategies for supporting good sleep. Participants typically expressed satisfaction with current sleep (usually pertaining to duration) or feelings that sleep was compromised (usually pertaining to waking function). Comparisons to a socially perceived 'ideal' sleep were common, with sleep transitions presented as a gradual and accepted part of ageing. Participants resisted medicalising sleep disruptions in older age. While participants were aware of ways to enhance their sleep, many acknowledged engaging in practices that undermined it. Unique insights from some Māori participants indicated that sleep disruptions were not so readily pathologised compared to Western views and that sleeplessness could provide opportunity for cultural or spiritual connection. Common narratives underpinning the themes were: 'You don't need as much sleep when you're older', 'Sleep just fits in' and 'Having the time of my life'. Findings provide personal experiences and cultural interpretations relating to sleep and ageing. This provides the foundation for future participatory research to co-design sleep health messages which are meaningful for ageing well across ethnicities.


A compact Kähler manifold with quasi-negative holomorphic sectional curvature must have ample canonical bundle. This was conjectured by Wu-Yau and is recently proved by the continuity method. In this note, we will give an alternative proof of this result by using the Kähler-Ricci flow.


A manufacturing method of a needle-shaped bristle having a short taper length and a toothbrush made by the same method are provided to obtain bristles which have a taper length of less than 6mm and to make thickness of the ends of the bristles even. Polyester resin (which is not PTT resin but is a polyester resin) and PTT resin are mixed in a ratio of 90-40:10-60 to form bristles. A bundle of bristles are cut. Taper treatment of the bundle of cut bristles is made by digesting cut bristles in a general taper processing chemical selected among caustic soda solution and sulphuric acid solution. Preliminary digestion of a bristle bundle is made by using a liquid material that penetrates into a space portion between bristle bundles before the bristle bundle is digested in a chemical.


The reasons of the medical disputes were complicated.The most important is the doctor who takes the leading status in the medical service.In the paper,the measures to construct harmonious doctor-patient relations were proposed.


The mutual intersection of three plate boundaries, so-called triple junctions, have long been recognized as crucial boundaries for unraveling the spatiotemporal motion of tectonic plates. Yet, the dynamic and tectonic processes ruling their migration remain enigmatic. At the Rodrigues triple junction, the Southwest Indian Ridge lengthens northeastward in response to the unsteady linearity of the Southeast Indian Ridge–Central Indian Ridge dueling ridge system. This mechanism is episodically compensated by the southeastward propagation of the Central Indian Ridge and alternating stages of recession and progression of the Southeast Indian Ridge. This has led to an apparent length constancy of the first Southeast Indian Ridge segment over the last ca. 8 Ma. These multiple ridge propagation episodes, from northwest, southwest, and southeast, result in a net northeastward migration of the Rodrigues triple junction. Here, we suggest that its migration since ca. 8 Ma is a consequence of short-term readjustments of its plate boundaries induced by transitory motion changes of the Capricorn plate, driven by episodic push forces exerted from ephemeral captures of the Amsterdam–St. Paul plume tail by the Southeast Indian Ridge at the southeastern part of the Capricorn plate (77.3°E–78.6°E).


The classification,composition and characteristics of pteridophyte flora in Zhongpo National Forest Park have been researched.The result shows that there are 85 species belonging to 53 genera and 28 families.Of the pteridophyte,Dryopteridaceae,Polypodiaceae,Pteridaceae and Thelypteridaceae are the dominant families,while Pteris,Dryopteris,Polystichum and Selaginella are the dominant genera.Most of the families belong to cosmopolitan or pantropic distribution types,and most of the genera belong to pantropical or tropic Asia types,while most of the species belong to East Asia type and represented to the features of subtropics.Main ferns in Zhongpo National Forest Park are autochthonism or saxicolous.As to the genetic relationship,it is most closely related to Guizhou's.There are 6.2 species per square kilometer in Zhongpo National Forest Park,which is the second highest area in the nine similar-latitude natural reservations,only less than Xishan Natural Reservation's.In Zhongpo National Forest Park,there are two national key protective ferns Cibotium barometz and Alsophila spinulosa and seven ferns of endemic to China.The discovery of Alsophila spinulosa is valuable to further study their evolution.


Inactivation of α‐chymotrypsin in aqueous solutions of alcohols and diols proceeds both reversibly and irreversibly. Reversible loss of the specific enzyme activity results from conformational changes (unfolding) of the enzyme detected by fluorescence spectroscopy. Multipoint covalent attachment to the matrix of polyacryl‐amide gel by copolymerization method stabilizes α‐chymotrypsin from denaturation by alcohols, the stabilizing effect increasing with the number of bonds between the protein and the support. Immobilization protects the enzyme also from irreversible inactivation by organic solvents resulting from bimolecular aggregation and autolysis.


Unwarping of varying continuous speech patterns with neural arrays is studied. These curved arrays are designed to solve the nonlinear time-alignment problem. We apply the self-organization algorithm to drive and stretch these flexible arrays in a 2-D plane to fit the speech patterns. These arrays plus their stretching parameters constitute a set of time-scaled reference templates. With these templates, the matching between unknown speech patterns and templates can be evaluated accurately. Two perception energies are devised to count the matching credits. One energy counts the time precedent relationships among the patterns. The other energy counts the matched features without considering the precedent relationships. A speech system which can recognize finite Chinese words is developed based on the proposed approach.


The work described here shows that multi-barrier tunnelling structures have features that suggest that they should be seriously considered for use as power sources in the range 300 GHz to 2 THz. Current MBE techniques can achieve the requirements for uniformity in electron energy within a quantum well on both small and large distance scales. The most important remaining problem in MBE growth seems to be short term fluctuations in the growth rates. Now that the time scale of this major problem has been identified there is a reasonable prospect of identifying its cause and eliminating the problem.


In this article(1), the authors reviewed an interesting topic of which all Radiologists and Surgeons need to be aware. The pathology of the condition was well reviewed as well as the clinical presentation and the management in the four cases presented.


The present invention relates to a foundation stones and a cut portion connecting structure, the configuration is fixed and one end is inserted into the hole formed in the cut portion inclined at a predetermined inclination angle, the other end being formed at the ring of the ring-shaped, outer surface has threads the plurality of first fixing projections are formed; and one end is fixedly inserted into and perforation holes formed on the foundation stones that are spaced apart from the cut portion, the other end being formed at the ring of the annular outer surface is to be threaded is formed a plurality of second fixing protrusion; and, both ends of the connection hole is formed, the ball female thread is engaged with the threads formed in the fixing projection in the center is formed in a distributed frame coupled to the fixing projection; and, the first fixed protrusion a first rope connected to the interconnect through a tie ring of the ring and the second fixing protrusion; and, a year which is formed at one end of the distributed frame is coupled to the first fixing projection At one end of the distributed frame is coupled to the said second fixing projection, a second connecting rope to a connection hole formed in the other end of the balancing frame to be coupled to the connection hole and, the other first fixing projection interconnected through the knot as characterized in that the a,; coupled to the connection hole and the other a second fixing protrusion is formed a third connecting ropes that interconnect through the knot of connection holes formed at the other end of the distributed frame A plurality of first fixing projections provided in the cut portion are connected to each other through a distribution frame and a second connecting rope, and a plurality of second fixed protrusion installed in the foundation stones connected to each other through a distribution frame and a third connecting rope, so Since the first fixing projection and a second fixing protrusion structure are connected to each other through a first connecting rope is connected, and any of foundation stones are widely without force is no longer concentrated dispersion of any one part at any shaking reader by external action stable foundation stones It can not have the effect that can significantly improve the durability and safety of construction Kiel. Also, not only it is possible to connect parts of foundation stones and cut ganpyeonhi through the knot of the connecting ropes of carbon fiber material in preparation for the method of connection through the foundation stones and welding of the cut parts of the binding material in the conventional reducing the work time required, connecting the rope even when exposed to water, the corrosion protection can keep the rigid bond portion foundation stones cut and there is an effect that can greatly improve the durability and safety of the further construction.


Abstract With Initial Operating Capability (IOC) declared by the US Marine Corps and US Air Force, increasing production and delivery rates, and impressive performances in recent exercises, the F-35 programme and the fifth-generation capability that it represents look to have turned a corner. As the capability moves towards Full Operating Capability (FOC), the debate, so long focused on costs, delays and technical issues, should now begin to be framed in new terms. André Adamson and Matthew Snyder analyse some of the stakes involved as the capability increasingly acts as a driver for fifth-generation transformation, and to consider some of the implications for air forces that have committed to the programme and, perhaps more significantly, for those that have not.


An account is given of a new instrument for measuring horizontal air velocities up to 3 ft. a second. This instrument has been produced for the Committee on the Control of Atmospheric Conditions in Hot and Deep Mines, particularly for use in such mines where the physiological aspect of ventilation is important. The air velocity is measured by measuring the torsion necessary to keep a vane vertical in the air current, the vane being suspended by means of the wire to which the torsion is applied.


Semantically determining similarities and differences between data from multiple data sources plays an important role in the process of data integration. The similarities and differences identify the degree of relationships and are used for constructing the integrated data model. In structured data such as object-oriented database, their data models reveal only structure-based semantics without other additional semantics. This paper proposes an approach to integrate two object-oriented data models based on the integration of ontologies that describe their semantics. The ontology for an object model describes semantics based on the model structure and additional semantics, i.e. class and attribute semantics, and synonym and hypernym lists. The ontologies are analysed to devise an integrated data model that will be used to facilitate query on the integrated data.


More than half of India's arable land is susceptible to drought, making the country's agriculture perpetually insecure. Crop productivity and agricultural investment are both negatively impacted by the monsoon's poor performance. Literature states that the existing statistical and numerical procedures often fail to meet the present requirements and strategies for recognizing the important input data for designing efficient rainfall and crop yield forecasting models. In this research, Adaptive Moment Optimization (AMO) based Long Short-term Memory Neural Networks (LSTM-NN) are developed for accurate seasonal rainfall forecasting. The AMO is used to find the relevant features for rainfall prediction and LSTM is used to predict the rainfall. The AMO has a higher learning rate and selects the relevant features that help to progress the performance of the model. The investigational outcomes demonstrated that the proposed strategy accomplished nearly 95% of accuracy in all cases.


The contact force between pantograph and contact wire is an important factor to estimate the performance of current collection of electric railways. However, the frequency range of measuring the contact force by the conventional method is not sufficient for this purpose. To measure the contact force accurately, it is required to precisely evaluate the inertia force of panhead. However, large errors occur in the inertia force in the high frequency region when measured by the existing method. This paper proposes a new method to measure the contact force, which can evaluate the inertia force of panhead precisely even in high frequency region by using the measurements of acceleration at plural points on the panhead. The results of theoretical calculation and excitation test of a pantograph can show that this method is effective for accurate measurement.


upon him, as ready to justify Gentiles who do the unwritten law of the heart as he is to justify Jews who keep the written law.' All men have exactly the same need of salvation, and God's purpose in Christ is a purpose of grace for all the needy without distinction. The apostle, unlike the Jewish theology of his time,2 found this catholic teaching in the Old Testament. In the promise that was made to Abraham he recognized an outlook upon unrestricted grace.3 In the rabbinical theology the Gentile world is excluded from God's plan, and absolutely deserted by him. In the thought of Paul, the gospel was preached to Abraham. Universal salvation was promised, and it was to be appropriated by faith. This is the twofold thought of Paul's most doctrinal epistle, and constitutes what he calls his gospel.4 Not only in the Old Testament but also in his own commission did Paul find proof of the truth that God's purpose of grace is universal in its sweep. He was sent to all the Gentiles without exception, to proclaim to all alike a free salvation.5 But further, Paul's very conception of the character of God, and his deepest thought regarding Christ, logically involve the same universality. God is one, and therefore has one method of dealing with Jews and Gentiles.6 God is impartial in himself, and hence judges all men according to the purpose of the heart.7 Presence or absence of any external condition does not enter at all into the account.8 God is also a God of love even toward


The present invention relates to a lifting hook (1) that can be used to lift loads using lifting gear, comprising a hook-shaped part (3) which hooks onto the load that is to be lifted and a chain length reducer (5) secured to the hook, the said reducer (5) comprising, on the one hand, an orifice (17) the dimensions of which allow the links of the chain (7) to pass through and then allow one (13) of the said links to be locked in position when the said chain (3) is taut and, on the other hand, means (21) for partially closing off the orifice (17) which are hinged so that they can be released manually simply by pressing them so as to allow the length of the chain (7) to be adjusted, notable in that the reducer (5) comprises a closure finger (10) that closes off the hook-shaped part (3) to prevent the load from becoming unhooked, and in that the closing-off means (21) comprise self-locking means (24) which hold the closure finger (10) in the locked position on the part (3) of the hook as long as the closing-off means (21) are disengaged from the orifice (17) and have not yet been returned to a position in which they bear against the external face (23).


For some reason I always thought of Six Apart as Franz Ferdinand.

And for the ultimate crossover here's a Franz cover of Serge Gainsbourg

https://youtu.be/G_zCprdV5M8


high-altitude bulk method is first assembled on the ground puts up bracket,and then use a crane net work Architecture pieces of sub-parts or sub-blocks of the design of the air lift to the position in the bracket assembled on the approach.It is suitable for construction of hollow spheres in a small space node,node or bolts bolt ball grid connected.


Disclosed is a chloroprene rubber adhesive composition having excellent adhesiveness and heat resistance which does not diffuse formaldehyde. Specifically disclosed is a chloroprene rubber adhesive composition containing a chloroprene rubber, a novolac type phenol resin and an organic solvent wherein 1-100 parts by mass of the novolac type phenol resin is contained per 100 parts by mass of the chloroprene rubber. Preferably, this chloroprene rubber adhesive composition further contains at least one substance selected from the group consisting of antioxidants, metal oxides, metal salts and mixtures of them.


The invention discloses a method for generating stepped frequency signals based on the combination of direct digital synthesis (DDS) and a ping-pong phase locked loop. DDS has the advantages of high narrowband application performance and capability of easily realizing extremely small frequency step, and the phase locked loop has the advantages of easily realizing broadband application and ensuring high comprehensive performance particularly in broadband great-step application. In the method, advantage complementarity between the DDS and the phase locked loop is utilized, a ping-pong phase locked loop is formed by combining two identical phase locked loops and a microwave single-pole double-throw switch, frequency synthesis is performed by combining the DDS and the ping-pong phase locked loop, the DDS is used for synthesizing narrowband small-step signals, the ping-pong phase locked loop is used for synthesizing broadband great-step signals, and the broadband great-step signal and the narrowband small-step signals are combined together in a frequency shifting way, thereby generating broadband radar stepped frequency signals with low phase noise, low stray, small step and frequency agility. Therefore, tactical and technical indexes of a radar frequency synthesizer are greatly increased, and qualitative leaps in technical indexes of the radar stepped frequency signals are achieved.


In Visual Dialog, an agent has to parse temporal context in the dialog history and spatial context in the image to hold a meaningful dialog with humans. For example, to answer "what is the man on her left wearing?" the agent needs to (1) analyze the temporal context in the dialog history to infer who is being referred to as "her," (2) parse the image to attend "her," and (3) uncover the spatial context to shift the attention to "her left" and check the apparel of the man. In this article, we use a dialog network to memorize the temporal context and an attention processor to parse the spatial context. Since the question and the image are usually very complex, which makes it difficult for the question to be grounded with a single glimpse, the attention processor attends to the image multiple times to better collect visual information. In the Visual Dialog task, the generative decoder (G) is trained under the word-by-word paradigm, which suffers from the lack of sentence-level training. We propose to reinforce G at the sentence level using the discriminative model (D), which aims to select the right answer from a few candidates, to ameliorate the problem. Experimental results on the VisDial dataset demonstrate the effectiveness of our approach.


Rationale: Muscle pain can be elicited by any irritation of the nociceptors in the muscle or central sensitization in the central nervous system. The most frequently described muscle pain syndromes are myofascial pain syndrome and fibromyalgia syndrome. Myofascial pain syndrome has a more localized manifestation, the trigger points. Objective: If there is a correlation between the clinical findings, the ultrasound examination and the thermal pattern of trigger points exist. Material and method: The presence of trigger points can be identified by using clinical criteria. An ultrasound examination was performed to evaluate the trigger point dimensions. The ultrasound showed an ellipsoidal hypoechogenic area in the muscle. A thermography of the low back region was performed in order to observe the thermal pattern of the area. Results: Trigger points are represented by a higher temperature area surrounded by a cooler area, probably caused by a deficit in the blood flow around those points. Discussion: Infrared thermography could be a great asset for the monitoring of neuromusculoskeletal disorders and their dynamics, as well as an important aid for the initial diagnosis of conditions associated with tissue temperature alterations.


Cross-border mobility in the EU remains low. This paper looks at how differences in pension systems distort mobility. The authors distinguish between two ways in which national public pension systems can distort intra-EU movements of workers. First, each national pension system may display an inherent mobility bias. Second, mobility distortions may arise from differences between national pension systems. The conceptual framework presented in this paper can help to cut through the complexity of the issue in order to detect any systematic mobility bias.


Gaucher's disease is a rare autosomal recessive disease that belongs to the group of sphingolipidoses. This pathology is caused by a lysosomal enzyme glucocerebrosidase deficiency, which leads to its substrate, glucosylceramide, accumulation in macrophages, and leads to damage to the nervous system, parenchymal organs, and the hematopoietic system. The litera-ture reported isolated cases of vision organ damages such as oculomotor function disorders and violations of the structure of the vitreous, retina, cornea, choroid, and conjunctiva. During diagnosis, these clinical symptoms may cause interpretation and, possibly, substitution therapy evaluating difficulties. Retinal changes in Gaucher's disease are poorly understood, but they are an important symptom of this disease, which dynamically visualizes and evaluates the substrate deposition in the preretinal and intraretinal layers. The effectiveness of replacement therapy based on the presence of retinal lesions remains controversial. Herein, presented the description of a clinical case of a 10-year-old boy with ocular manifestations of Gaucher's disease, a rare orphan disease. The comprehensive ophthalmological examination results revealed preretinal changes in whitish foci in the paramacular zone, microstructural changes in the central retina according to optical coherence tomography, and moder-ate changes in retinal functions according to electroretinogram, as well as visual field defects and decreased light sensitivity. The revealed changes indicate a violation of metabolic processes in the retinal layers of the eye, which leads to retinal foci (gosher) formation. Noninvasive visualization of these deposits helps assess the disease course and the substitution therapy effectiveness. The management of patients with Gaucher's disease requires an interdisciplinary approach with the mandatory involvement of an ophthalmologist.


Incubation of trinitrophenylated hemocyanin (TNP‐KLH)‐primed spleen cells with microgram amounts of 2,4‐dinitrophenyl (DNP) or 2,4,6‐trinitrophenyl (TNP) conjugates of pneumococcal polysaccharide type 3 (SIII) for as little as 5 min at 4 °C results in a specific "block" of the 19 S and 7 S adoptive memory response to TNP‐KLH. This hapten‐SIII‐induced block of anti‐hapten memory B cell responsiveness seems to be an example of specific receptor blockade. The block is specific and can be prevented by simultaneous incubation of the primed cells with hapten‐protein conjugates which presumably compete with the hapten‐polysaccharide for attachment to the B cell surface via anti‐hapten Ig receptors. Removal via capping of these Ig receptors by exposure of TNP‐KLH‐primed memory cells to rabbit anti‐mouse Fab serum for 45 min at 37 °C renders these cells refractory to the blocking effect of hapten‐SIII. Once the hapten‐SIII has attached to the memory cells, these blocked cells can be "rescued" (i.e. returned to a state of responsiveness) by incubating these cells with either mouse anti‐SIII at 37 °C or rabbit anti‐DNP serum at 4 °C. Since a papain digest of the IgG fraction of rabbit anti‐DNP did not rescue the cells while the intact IgG did, a capping off of the TNP‐SIII was proposed as the mechanism for this return to responsiveness of the hitherto blocked cells. A rescue was not seen by treatment of recipient mice with such B cell mitogens as dextran sulfate, endotoxin or purified protein derivative of tuberculin.


Concrete mixing pile,which has been widely applied in engineering,is a new technique disposing soft soil base. The practices prove that the key of concrete mixing pile quality control lies in scientific construction organization,strict operation regulations,excellent pile and construction techniques and test detection.


We examined the extent to which organizational culture norms differ across industries as well as organizations. We investigated the effects of two industry characteristics, growth rate and research...


Solutions to the Schrödinger equation can be used to predict the electronic structure of molecules and materials and therefore infer their complex physical and chemical properties. Variational Quantum Monte Carlo (VMC) is a technique that can be used to solve the weak form of the Schrödinger equation. Applying VMC to systems with N electrons involves evaluating the determinant of an N by N matrix. The evaluation of this determinant scales as $O(N^{3})$ and is the main computational cost in the VMC process. In this work, we investigate an alternative VMC technique based on the Vandermonde determinant. The Vandermonde determinant is a product of pairwise differences and so evaluating it scales as $O(N^{2})$. Therefore, this approach reduces the computational cost by a factor of N. The Vandermonde determinant was implemented in PyTorch and the performance was assessed in approximating the ground state energy of various quantum systems against existing techniques. The performance is evaluated in a variety of systems, starting with the one-dimensional particle in a box, and then considering more complicated atomic systems with multiple particles. The Vandermonde determinant was also implemented in PauliNet, a deep-learning architecture for VMC. The new method is shown to be computationally efficient, and results in a speed-up as large as 5X. In these cases, the new ansatz obtains a reasonable approximation for wavefunctions of atomic systems, but does not reach the accuracy of the Hartree-Fock method that relies on the Slater determinant. It is observed that while the use of neural networks in VMC can result in highly accurate solutions, further work is necessary to determine an appropriate balance between computational time and accuracy.


Some novel operator norms for the convolution and Hankel operators of time-invariant, linear systems are introduced. Using these norms, new controller design problems arise which will require modifications to the previous H/sup 2/ approach, where a trace operator was used in the performance index. The results suggest that the lambda /sub max/ and d/sub max/ operators are more appropriate if the intention is actually to limit the amplitude variations of the controlled variables rather than minimize mean square error.<<ETX>>


. Let M be a von Neumann algebra and let A be a nonzero positive element of M . By σ A ( T ) and r A ( T ) we denote the A -spectrum and the A -spectral radius of T ∈ M A , respectively. In this paper, we show that σ ( PT P, P M P ) ⊆ σ A ( T ). Sufficient conditions for the equality σ A ( T ) = σ ( PT P, P M P ) to be true are presented. Also, we show that σ A ( T ) is finite for any T ∈ M A if and only if A is in the socle of M . Next , we consider the rela-tionship between elements S and T ∈ M A that satisfy one of the following two conditions: (1) σ A ( SX ) = σ A ( T X ) for all X ∈ M A , (2) r A ( SX ) = r A ( T X ) for all X ∈ M A . Finally, a Gleason-Kahane-˙Zelazko's theorem for the A -spectrum is derived.