A sustainable revenue collection system is a critical prerequisite for the success of fiscal decentralization in Kenya. In order to fulfill their constitutional mandates, county governments' draw their resources from equitable share of national revenue, conditional grants and own source revenue. Without revenue the government cannot run their activities well as well staying viable in the long run. The guiding objective was to establish the effect of financial forecasting on sustainable revenue collection in County Government of Nandi. The study was guided by model building approach. This study was guided by descriptive survey research design and targeted Nandi county employees responsible for planning and revenue collection in the department of Finance and Economic Planning. Accessible population was 237 employees comprising of 12 from county treasury, 16 planning and budgeting officers, 8 sub county revenue officers, 10 Kapsabet municipality revenue officers, 36 Sub County and ward administrators, 12 accountants and 143 revenue collectors. Sample size of 151 respondents was calculated using Krejcie and Morgan formulae. Pilot study was carried out in Uasin Gishu County to enable validity and reliability of research instruments to be determined. The data was analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistics using Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS). The mean, mode, standard deviation and variance were used in descriptive statistics. The findings were presented using frequency tables. Multiple regression was used to explore the effect of independent variables on dependent variable. The analyzed data was presented in form of tables. The study results revealed that established that financial forecasting has a positive and significant effect on sustainable revenue collection (β2=0.315, p=0.000). The study concluded that financial forecasting has a positive and significant effect on sustainable revenue collection. The study recommends that having systematic financial forecasting will ensure the county set achievable revenue targets and prepare more realistic estimates. 1.0 Introduction Kenya's new Constitution envisages far-reaching changes to the way that government operates and relates to its citizens, with a view to making it more fair, efficient, transparent and accountable (Hope, 2015). Devolution as envisaged in the Constitution of ARTICLE INFO Received 18 th February, 2021 Received in Revised Form 24 th


The effects of phlorizin and phIoretin on amino acid reabsorption were studid using clearaiace techniques in dogs. At endogenous plasma aniiilo acid concentrations no effects were demonstrable. At elevated amino acid levels phIorizin depressed the reabsorption of L-aspartic acid arid L-lysine. Phloretin depressed the reabsorptioi~ of L-aspartic acid but had a slight erlharacirig effect on that of L-lysine. No definite effects were observed on 1,-alanine or glycine reabsorption. These results are not predictable from the observatioris of other workers that in the in vitro rat kidney cortex phlorizin increases amino acid coilcentrating ability while phloretin depresses it. Our results are not, however, incoinpatible with the in vitro observations since it is theoretically possibIe for an agent to enhance the concentrating ability of kidney cortex, arid either depress or increase t~tbular reabsorption, dependitig on whether the predominant site of action is on the luminal or basal side of the proxinnal tubular cells.


The effect of antioxidant supplementation on exercise performance has not been clearly defined in trained or un-trained individuals. The purpose of this investigation was to test the effects of quercetin-resveratrol combination on plasma anti-inflammatory response and exercise performance in untrained men. After baseline cycling performance testing, the subjects (n=8) were supplemented daily with 500gr quercetin and 500 gr resveratrol for 21 days. The complete blood counts, creatinine kinase (CK), lactate dehydrogenase (LDH), aspartate aminotransferase (AST), alanine aminotransferase (ALT), interleukin-6 (IL-6), Neutrophil gelatinase-associated lipocalin (NGAL) and exercise performance parameters were evaluated at baseline, after 21 days of supplementation and 15 days after the end of the study. The maximal aerobic power (POmax) was increased (19%) in the post-supplementation period compare to baseline and washout period. In the post-supplementation period, the time trial score (TTscore), maximal and average speed significantly increased in the 10 km time trial cycling test compare to the baseline level. Importantly, in response to supplementation, the serum IL-6 and N-GAL levels were upregulated post-supplementation and these levels returned to baseline levels at the end of the washout period. These results suggest that dieatary combination of quercetin and resveretrol may act as a potential tool for enhancing exercise performance by regulation IL-6, NGAL level in untrained men.


Noting that business incubation (BI) receives substantial attention in the entrepreneurship literature as programs that help entrepreneurs overcome business start-up and growth challenges, this paper investigates the relevance and challenges confronting the BIs in the context of South Africa. Mixed methods were utilized in this study; essentially interviews and questionnaires were used to collect data. Using the graduation rates and satisfaction (benefit) of the incubatees as a proxy for the relevance of BIs, the results indicated that, 55.1% of those survivalist entrepreneurs who enrolled in incubation programs benefited from attending the incubation program, whilst 44.9% indicated that they did not benefit from attending the program. Furthermore, lack of funding was found to be the major challenge confronting BIs. Other less significant challenges include lack of support from stakeholders, and uncommitted clients. The implication of these results are that just like their clients, BIs face a number of challenges which threaten their longterm survival, the quality and quantity of service that they render.


The invention relates to a sealing method of an electric power steering controller. The sealing method of the electric power steering controller involves a base, a shell, a plastic framework, a circuit board, sealing rings and some connecting components. With the sealing method, the electric power steering controller can be comprehensively sealed in a waterproof mode, and meanwhile the cooling problem of the controller is solved. The sealing method is mainly designed on the basis of 360-degree closed sealing gaskets and the interface sealing rings. The 360-degree closed sealing gaskets are placed on the joint between the base and the plastic framework and the joint between the shell and the plastic framework, and the interface sealing rings are placed on external interfaces.


Corning's ULE® is an ultra-low expansion glass used for machine tool blocks to astronomical mirrors. Its primary alternative is a glass ceramic. In many applications, ion beam milling is used for final surface figuring. Ion milling removes material at an atomic level and is typically a slow, expensive process. Experiments have determined the upper limits of removal rate for ion beam milling during optical figuring. The goal was to increase the power density of the ion beam during figuring to achieve higher removal rates with no negative effects on surface properties. Testing shows that the removal rate on ULE® is about 50% higher than on glass ceramics under the same conditions. With an increase in material removal rate, both ULE® and the glass ceramic show an increase in surface roughness. Average birefringence of both materials increases slightly after milling; however the level of birefringence in the glass ceramic is seven times larger than for ULE®. Therefore using higher ion milling power densities, the surface figuring of ULE® can be accelerated to produce shorter processing times without adverse effects on surface properties. This can help lower the cost for manufacture of ULE® optics.


We propose a hybridized plasmonic surface lattice resonance perovskite laser on the Ag nanoparticle array. The hybridization of plasmonic SLR and photonic waveguide mode dramatically improves the light-matter interaction. Via the experimental analysis, the high spontaneous emission factor can be obtained and shows the great potential in laser application.


The present invention discloses a Chinese medicine in treating colitis. Said medicine is made up of 23 Chinese medicinal materials of astragalus root, halloysite, lonicera flower, raw dragon bone, raw oyster shell, amber and others. Its therapeutic effect is obvious, and its total effective rate is 100%.


In this paper we describe a system to project virtual characters that shall live with us in the same environment. In order to project the characters' visual representations onto room surfaces we use a controllable projector.


The Royal Danish Navy frigate Peder Skram successfully passed her sea trials on March 15–19, 1966, and has been in operation for about nine months, with an accumulated gas turbine operation of 490 hr at the end of December 1966. The frigate has twin-screw CODOG propulsion machinery consisting of a 22,000-shp jet-engine-fed power turbine and a 2400-shp two-stroke diesel engine. These two alternative prime movers drive the propeller shafts with controllable-pitch propellers through a common reduction gear including freewheeling clutches. The control system is described, embracing the governor system, the maneuvering system, and the instrumentation and safety systems. Operational experience at sea, including parts of the trials, is described, as well as experience gained by the Royal Danish Navy, including the voyage made by the frigate to the United States in October–December 1966.Copyright © 1967 by ASME


Inguinal hernia is more common in premature male babies. Using General Anesthesia (GA) for the repair operation may cause apnea in them. Caudal anesthesia on the other hand provides effective anesthesia and analgesia without the complication of GA. Here we discuss different methods of anesthesia in inguinal herniorrhaphy and their merits and downfalls.


The invention relates to a circuit which detects voltage signals and outputs, latches and unlatches detection results. The technical problem to be solved is that the circuit with the characteristics of reliable operation, anti-interference and lower cost is provided. The technical proposal is that: a latch used for detecting voltage dips, a voltage to be detected J4 and a voltage reference circuit are respectively accessed to 'plus' and 'minus' input ends of a voltage comparator ICIA, the 'minus' input end of the voltage comparator ICIA is also accessed with an unlatching circuit and a latching circuit at the same time; an output end of the voltage comparator ICIA outputs the detection results; a control end of the latching circuit is communicated with the output end of the voltage comparator ICIA; the latching circuit also drives a latching output circuit to output latching results.


Objective: To observe the curative effect of PDLLA/β-TCP porosity micropipe carrying Levofloxacin Pulvis to the chronic osteomyelitis in rabbits. Methods: Chronic osteomyelitis models were established by bacteria implantation. In 20 rabbits with chronic osteomyelitis, the defects were filled with porosity micropipes which were carrying Levofloxacin pulvis. After two weeks, a series of examinations were made, including pathologic examination, X-ray and CT scan. Results: Fifteen animals were succeeded in duplicating model of chronic osteomyelitis, and only 12 rabbits survived. After the treatment of the porosity micropipe carrying Levofloxacin Pulvis, 11 rabbits were cured. Conclusion: Porosity micropipe carrying Levofloxacin Pulvis is effective for the treatment of chronic osteomyelitis in rabbits.


asian americans an interpretive history by chan pdf download, the columbia guide to asian american history on jstor, amazon com asian americans an interpretive history, asian americans a interpretive history stufey de, sucheng chan author of asian americans, asian americans a interpretive history dealog de, thu 08 mar 2018 18 33 00 gmtgmt our mission el presidio, asian americans a interpretive history elcash de, asian americans an interpretive history by chan geclan de, asian americans an interpretive history immigrant heritage, asian americans an interpretive history chan sucheng, the asian americans an interpretive history by sucheng, sucheng chan wikipedia, asian americans an interpretive history immigrant, asian americans an interpretive history sucheng chan, history of asian americans wikipedia, sucheng chan essays, asian americans a interpretive history peterh de, asian americans an interpretive history by chan xcomic de, asian americans an interpretive history twaynes immigrant, the model minority image asian nation asian american, asian americans an interpretive history sucheng chan, chronology of asian american history university of illinois, amazon com sucheng chan books biography blog, asian americans an interpretive history immigrant, asian americans an interpretive history twaynes immigrant, asian americans an interpretive history twayne s, 0805784373 asian americans an interpretive history, asian americans an interpretive history by chan sczweb de, the first asian americans asian nation asian american, asia amerika wikipedia bahasa indonesia ensiklopedia bebas, asian americans an interpretive history by sucheng chan, asian americans a interpretive history pdf download, asian americans an interpretive history immigrant, asian americans a interpretive history pdf download, asian americans a interpretive history luftop de, asian americans an interpretive history by sucheng chan, asian americans a demographic portrait princeton, asian americans an interpretive history series twayne, asian americans an interpretive history ebook 1991, asian americans an interpretive history immigrant, 9780805784374 asian americans an interpretive history


Papilionoideae is the most diverse subfamily of Leguminosae, representing approximately 39 % of its species. Although it is particularly species rich and diverse in the Caatinga, the main phytophysiognomy of the semiarid Northeast Region of Brazil, little is known about the pollen morphology of the species that occur there. This study analyzes and describes the pollen morphology of the 27 species of Papilionoideae endemic to the Caatinga. Pollen grains were acetolyzed, mounted on permanent slides, measured, described and photomicrographed using light and scanning electron microscopy (LM and SEM, respectively). The main variable morphological features were pollen grain size, shape, amb, apertural type and exine ornamentation under LM (microreticulate, reticulate, psilate or finely scabrate) and SEM (microreticulate, reticulate, rugulate, granulate, fossulate and perforate). High intergeneric morphological heterogeneity was observed while morphological variation within each genus was subtle. Nonetheless, size, endoaperture shape, fastigium presence/absence and exine ornamentation were found to be important characteristics for the identification of some species.


The authors examine the opening stages of the psychoanalytic process from a Lacanian perspective through the concept of logical time. We outline three key moments in Lacan's theory that elucidate the stakes of the entry into analysis. First, the subjective rectification points to the necessity of indicating the patient's own involvement in the complaint. Second, we discuss how the perspective of the Symbolic entails a double movement of retroaction and anticipation in transference. Finally, the emergence of the supposed subject of knowing is presented. These points are illustrated with the autobiographical account of Marie Cardinal's analysis.


Using the all-or-nothing thinking error as an example, this paper addresses the learning and use by coachees of thinking skills to identify performance-interfering thoughts (PITS) and then re-appraise them into more helpful and goal-focused performance-enhancing thoughts (PETS). A brief practical example is provided.


Objective:To optimize the molding technology of Xiaoer Baibu Zhike granule.Method: Investigated the affect of different excipients on the formability,hygroscopicity and critical relative humidity.Grading methods of synthesizing multiple guidelines were applied to optimizing excipients and composition of prescription for Xiaoer Baibu Zhike granule,selecting the dosage of stevioside,measuring the critical relative humidity.Result: The optimum composition of prescription consisted of 4 portions of extract powder,3 portions of lactose and 3 portions of soluble starch,the dosage of stevioside was 0.8%,the critical relative humidity was 56%.Conclusion: The molding technology was reasonable:good formability,high solubility and not liable to moisture absorption.


This study did a survey on the level of anxiety on a mathematics subject of 1274 first semester undergraduates in Universiti Malaysia Perlis (UniMAP) using the established instrument of Abbreviated Mathematics Anxiety Rating Scale (A-MARS) that was adjusted to fit with the Malaysia education environment. Due to this adjustment, reliability test was initially conducted. This was to make sure that the quality of the instrument is not affected and as expected, it shows a good reliability level. Then, this study proceeds with the main objective, which were to study the anxiety level of mathematics among the respondents of engineering programs based on some of their demographic nature (gender, race, and higher entrance qualification). Overall, the results indicated that the anxiety level of the respondents was moderate. In specific, male respondents have the same anxiety level in mathematics as female respondents. In terms of race, Malay shows the highest level of anxiety, followed by Chinese, Others, and Indi...


Abstract The present study aimed at assessing the reproductive health status of Sugali women of the Rayalaseema region in Andhra Pradesh. About 200 women in the age range of 15-45 years were interviewed regarding age at menarche, age at marriage, age at first conception, menstrual problems, fertility and mortality levels, prevalence of diseases and women's perception towards health in a cross-sectional design. Illiteracy was documented to an extent of sixty-five percent. Thirty-six percent of the subjects opined that their self-reported health was fair or poor. Illiterate women were 1.27 times at risk of developing menstrual irregularity than educated women. Simultaneously, the risk increased to 1.85 times when the spouse was illiterate too. Similar results were obtained with menstrual problems and abortions. In conclusion, it is inferred that Sugali women are subjected to significant reproductive health risks mediated by socio-economic conditions.


The NCEP‐NCAR reanalysis, NCEP Climate Forecast System Reanalysis (CFSR), 40-yr ECMWF ReAnalysis (ERA-40), and interim ECMWF Re-Analysis (ERA-Interim) products are evaluated with sounding observations from anenhanced radiosondenetworkavailable every 6 h during the Tibetan PlateauExperiment (TIPEX) conducted from 10 May to 9 August 1998. This study uses more than 3000 high-quality, independent rawinsondes at 11 stations (which were not assimilated in any of the reanalyses), which represents the first time thatsuchacomprehensiveevaluationisperformedtoassessthequalityofthesefourmostwidelyusedreanalysis products over this region, which is highest in the world and crucial to the global climate and weather. Averaging over the entire three-month period, it is found that each reanalysis dataset produces mean values of temperature and horizontal winds consistent with the verifying soundings (indicating relatively small mean bias);however,thereareconsiderabledifferences(biases)inthemeanrelativehumidity.Onaverage,exceptfor temperature at higher levels, both newer-generation reanalyses (CFSR and ERA-Interim) have smaller rootmean-square (RMS) error and bias than their predecessors (NCEP‐NCAR and ERA-40). With some exceptions, the RMS errors of all variables for both CFSR and ERA-Interim(verifying with soundings) are similar in magnitudetotheRMSdifferencebetweenthesetworeanalyses, allofwhichareapproximatelytwiceas largeas the corresponding observation errors. It is also found that there are strong diurnal variations in bothRMS error and mean bias that differ greatly among different reanalyses and at different pressure levels.


Differential absorption radiometers (DARs) using uncooled detectors are introduced as a simple method for low-cost remote sensing of chemical vapors for domestic security. A DAR consisting of a pair of uncooled LiTaO3 pyroelectric detectors integrated with bandpass filters selected to detect methanol, a simulant of many hazardous vapors, was demonstrated. At a signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) 5, the measured detection limit for methanol was 0.014 atm cm. This corresponds to a detection limit of 5.70×10–4 atm cm (31.5 mg m–2) for dimethyl methylphosphonate (DMMP). For comparison, a DAR consisting of a pair of cryogenically cooled HgCdTe (MCT) detectors was also tested. The detector-limited noise equivalent temperature differential (NETD) of the MCT detectors was measured to be 0.38 mK, whereas for the pyroelectric detector it was 115 mK. Despite the much lower detector noise, the MCT-based DAR provided a detection limit of only 0.005 atm cm for methanol, corresponding to 2.04×10–4 atm cm (11.25 mg m–2) for DMMP. The relatively poor sensitivity of the MCT-based DAR was shown to be limited by small temperature gradients of 15 mK across the noncoincident fields of view of the detectors in the DAR and by environmental fluctuations, which contributed a total NETD = 37 mK.


In oilfield tank wagons, there is a truck-mounted bulk vehicle reconstructed from a common truck. Though the vehicle reaches certain safety performance, it has some hidden troubles, such as the troubles in the reconstructed truck-mounted tank and unsafety status of the reconstructed bulk vehicle. Thus strict management is performed on the truck-mounted bulk vehicle ,first good truck is selected for the reconstruction with proper refitting, and then the driver with reach experience and strong safety consciousness. In addition, fire-fighting requirements are strictly carried out , good preventive measures are taken and loading the ground tank should be consistent with safety regulations.


Normal development and maturation of the brain are affected by hypoxia. The white matter peripheral to the lateral ventricles, called periventricular white matter (PWM), is selectively vulnerable to hypoxic damage in premature infants. PWM damage (PWMD) contributes significantly to neonatal mortality and long‐term neurodevelopmental deficits such as cerebral palsy, impaired vision, hearing impairments and mental retardation. This study investigated the hypoxic damage to the PWM in the neonatal brain and the potential of melatonin in ameliorating the damage. PWM of 1‐day old rats was examined at 3 hours to 7days after hypoxic exposure. Vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF), nitric oxide (NO), glutathione (GSH) and malondialdehyde (MDA) content in the PWM was examined following the hypoxic exposure. VEGF, NO and MDA concentration was increased whereas that of GSH was reduced in the PWM after the hypoxic exposure. Along with the above, degenerating axons, apoptotic and necrotic cells and vacuolation of capillary endothelial cells was observed. The neighbouring ependymal and choroid plexus in the lateral ventricles also appeared to undergo structural alteration. Increased vascular permeability in the PWM of hypoxic rats was evidenced by the leakage of rhodamine isothiocyanate (RhIC) which was taken up by the amoeboid microglial cells. Hypoxic rats treated with melatonin showed decreased VEGF, NO and MDA concentration, increased GSH content and reduced RhIC leakage in the PWM. The ultrastructure of axons, endothelial, ependymal and choroid plexus cells appeared relatively normal in the hypoxic animals treated with melatonin. The results of this study suggest that melatonin has the potential to protect the developing white matter against hypoxic damage and its protective effect was possibly due to its antioxidant properties.


Taking TsVP transgenic maize as material,we identified the survival rate as well as repeated drought survival rate after repeated drought stress.Some indexes had been picked for drought resistance identification,and the indexes included plant height,root shoot ratio,relative water content,chlorophyll concentration,MDA content,relative electric conductivity and the output.Throught variance analysis,gray correlation degree analysis,drought degree of membership was calculated and the results displayed that the correlation coefficient was that plant heightRECroot shoot ratioMDA contentRWCChl content,degree of membership was TsVP5TsVP6Y478,when P value0.05.The survival rate was influenced by variety and times of treatment with significant difference,Chl content was the supplementary index while the other items were primary indexes,drought resistance among all varities were TsVP5TsVP6Y478.


In this paper, we discuss classical FIR second order Volterra model limitations and we propose a more general modified second order Volterra model which permits us to palliate the classical Volterra limitations, and a method to analyse it by using the Wigner-Ville bispectrum.


Future internet will not only comprise computers and computing things but also everything else. IoT is one of the emerging technologies. This chapter explores different kinds of temperature and humidity sensors, their specifications, usefulness, and prospective applications. Arduino boards are also explained in detail. This chapter explores the working principle and applications of different types of humidity sensors. The chapter contains the specification of common temperature and humidity sensors, pinout diagram, and schematic of the interconnection of sensors with Arduino Uno microcontroller. Working and interfacing of the ESP8266 wifi module are also explained. The chapter also provides the architecture and code examples of Android app for sensor data view and manipulation.


Objective To investigate the change in the serum level of neuron specific enolase (NSE) and its clinical significance in the patients with cerebrocranial injury. Methods The serum levels of NSE were determined in 86 patients with cerebrocranial injury. The relationship of serum NSE level with the severity of cerebrocranial injury and the prognosis was analyzed. Results The serum level of NSE was significantly higher in the patients with cerebrocranial injury than that in the control group (P0.05). The serum NSE level was significantly higher in the patients with severe cerebrocranial injury than that in the patients with mild and moderate cerebrocranial injuries (P0.05). The serum NSE level was significantly higher in the patients with poor prognoses than that in the patients with good prognoses (P0.05). Conclusion The serum NSE level is positively related with the severity of cerebrocranial injury and may serve as an important index of predicting the prognosis in patients with cerebrocranial injury.


The GATT and the regulation of trade barriers: regime dynamics and functions by Jock A. Finlayson and Mark W. Zacher Since the Second World War complex and changing sets of norms and rules have governed trade relations among most countries. They have largely originated from a unique and accidental international organization, the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT). We have labeled these norms, rules, and decision-making mechanisms the GATT regime or global trade barriers regime. The importance that GATT members have attached to certain norms has shaped the regime's procedural mechanisms, rules, and implementation of rules. Classifying those norms as sovereignty or interdependence norms, we posit that the strength or autonomy of the regime can be established by analyzing the prominence of the interdependence norms in the issue area. We close by exploring some of the functions of the regime in international trade and political relations. The international organization of Third World debt by Charles Lipson Third World debt grew very rapidly in the 1970s. Many states, faced with sharply higher costs for energy and manufactured imports, borrowed aggressively in unregulated offshore capital markets. But what constrains sovereign states to repay this debt to commercial banks? Creditors do not turn to their home states to enforce payment; rather, the supervision of sovereign debt is largely a function of commercial banking arrangements, especially lenders' syndicates, and the International Monetary Fund's conditional lending. This political structure, which involves unified private sanctions, has ensured that no state defaults unless it is insolvent or is willing to accept a radical rupture in its international commercial relationships. When the problem is insolvency, creditors routinely convene ad hoc conferences. In conjunction with an IMFapproved stabilization program, creditors can renegotiate debt-service schedules and provide new financing if necessary. These arrangements are distinctive among international economic regimes because they rely on nonstate actors as the primary source of rules, norms, and procedures. h t t p s : / / d o i . o r g / 1 0 . 1 0 1 7 / S 0 0 2 0 8 1 8 3 0 0 0 3 4 2 2 6 D o w n l o a d e d f r o m h t t p s : / / w w w . c a m b r i d g e . o r g / c o r e . I P a d d r e s s : 2 0 7 . 2 4 1 . 2 3 1 . 8 2 , o n 0 2 M a y 2 0 1 9 a t 2 0 : 2 4 : 5 6 , s u b j e c t t o t h e C a m b r i d g e C o r e t e r m s o f u s e , a v a i l a b l e a t h t t p s : / / w w w . c a m b r i d g e . o r g / c o r e / t e r m s . Recent trends in UN human rights activity: description and polemic by Jack Donnelly How have UN human rights goals and priorities evolved in the 1970s? The moderate compromise represented by the International Bill of Rights, as completed by the Covenants in 1966, has been undone in the seventies. A point-by-point examination of the major principles enunciated in General Assembly resolution 32/130 of 16 December 1977, which codified the trends of the decade and stands as the authoritative statement of the UN's strategic goals and priorities in the field of human rights, shows that the earlier moderation has been replaced by a one-sided, politicized, and often cynical approach. This development in UN doctrine merits polemical criticism. Canada's role in the international uranium cartel by Larry R. Stewart In early 1972 Canada participated in an international uranium cartel designed to control the world price and supply of uranium through a complex scheme of pricefixing and bid-rigging. This study focuses on Canada's role in the formation and operation of that cartel, the domestic political reaction when its existence was discovered, and the implications of this for Canadian-American relations. Domestic economic considerations were a major factor that led to a break with traditional Canadian foreign policy. Related to this are the close corporate connections between the Canadian and American uranium industry and the enormous impact of American domestic policies on Canada. The uranium case also offers support to the theory that transnational relations and other multinational processes threaten democratic control of foreign policy. h t t p s : / / d o i . o r g / 1 0 . 1 0 1 7 / S 0 0 2 0 8 1 8 3 0 0 0 3 4 2 2 6 D o w n l o a d e d f r o m h t t p s : / / w w w . c a m b r i d g e . o r g / c o r e . I P a d d r e s s : 2 0 7 . 2 4 1 . 2 3 1 . 8 2 , o n 0 2 M a y 2 0 1 9 a t 2 0 : 2 4 : 5 6 , s u b j e c t t o t h e C a m b r i d g e C o r e t e r m s o f u s e , a v a i l a b l e a t h t t p s : / / w w w . c a m b r i d g e . o r g / c o r e / t e r m s .


We develop algorithms for the compact representation of the 1- and 2-dimensional tries that are used for Internet packet classification. Our compact representations are experimentally compared with competing compact representations for 1- and multi-dimensional packet classifiers and found to simultaneously reduce the number of memory accesses required for a lookup as well as the memory required to store the classifier.


Reductions in greenhouse gas emissions are essential to reducing the rate and scale of anthropogenic climate change to levels that can sustain the planet's biosphere. A carbon tax is a policy measure that is designed to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by increasing the prices of the highest carbon-polluting goods and services in an economy, thus encouraging substitution towards resultant relatively cheaper and less-polluting goods where possible. When Australia introduced such a tax in 2012, there was a fear that it could threaten the resources boom, considered the engine of Australian economic growth in recent years. By employing a computable general equilibrium model and an environmentally-extended Social Accounting Matrix, this paper demonstrates the effects of a carbon tax on the resources sector. The modelled results show that, in a flexible exchange rate regime, all resources within the sector will be affected negatively but to different degrees. The brown coal sector will be the hardest hit, with a 25.74 per cent decrease in output, 52.94 per cent decrease in employment and 89.37 per cent decrease in profitability. However, other resources in the sector would be only mildly affected. From the point of view of sustainability, the most significant results are that, under the carbon tax, the resources sector contributes considerably to the carbon emission reduction target of Australia. Given that brown coal accounts for only a small portion of the resources sector, it is reasonable to suggest that a carbon tax would not significantly affect the overall performance of the sector.


Abstract This research had been conducted in the use of avocado seed powder (Persea americana Mill) as an adsorbent to reduce peroxide and free fatty acids of the used cooking oil. The aim of  this research was to determine the best activator of avocado seed powder as an adsorbent to reduce peroxide and free fatty acids of the used cooking oil. This research used the variation of activators, consist of  hydrochloric acid (HCl), citric acid (C6H8O7), sodium chloride (NaCl) and sodium hydrogen phosphate (Na2HPO4) solutions. The result showed that the best activator of avocado seed powder by HCl which gave the highest free fatty acid reduction was 0,26%. Meanwhile, the best activator of avocado seed powder by C6H8O7 which gave the highest peroxide value reduction was 1,8 Meq/Kg . These results had qualified as the maximum limits of SNI cooking oil were 0.3% for the concentration of free fatty acids and 2 Meg/kg for the peroxide value of cooking oil. Keywords: adsorbent, avocado seed powder, used cooking oil


Fashion design is the art of the application of design and aesthetics or natural beauty to clothing and accessories. The old myth has told that a young Salmon finds a Polka Dot dress floating in the Connecticut River. The young Salmon dressed it and becomes excited about all the Trash in the River where she found a sofa floating and hops onto it. On the other hand young Salmon dreamed about becoming Human. Polka Dot pattern are somewhat a signature of the fashion designers houses. Polka Dot is a pattern consisting of an array of circles with same size of different. Heart motifs are the most common used concept for the valentines theme displays heart structures which have been highlighted with lighting. The most obvious is that when taking inspiration from similar mediums, there's a fine line between ―inspired by‖ and ―copied‖. Designers themselves are very involved in choosing what appears for their searches in order to promote their presentations and shopping locations. The designers came from different centuries; different countries and many different walks of life, but they all had one thing in common: the nature is the beloved and respect in all of its wonder and significance. Nature is therefore the garden planets and the sea creatures have been a good source of inspiration. However the term ―Polka Dot‖ had been embedded and established in our minds and has been a part of our fashion vocabulary. The Polka Dots trend has been an integral part in the fashion industry. Most of the fashion during this era showed sleek silhouettes, emphasis on the waistline and a woman's curves. The dots were usually dainty or small in size and would be found in black, navy blue, or red articles of clothing as it's at sea fish or Begonia plant leaves. The present research is focusing on Polka Dots history, Polka Dots pattern, and its glamorous fashion designs as well as some designs inspired by that motive.


Virtual system methodology (VSM) tries to extend system inquiring processes beyond the scope of soft systems methodology, and thus make it applicable to the whirling dynamics of social complexity. At the core of VSM is the process of virtual semiosis, the use of various signs and sign structures while making sense of the emergent behavior of a complex dynamic system as a whole. VSM applies virtual logic and operates with virtual meanings when exploring human systems. Various practical aspects of this kind of exploration are discussed, with a special accent on how to work with social self-organization.


In this work, we report on the observation of Nd_1Ba_6Cu_3O_10,5 (Nd163) phase of the NdBaCuO system in melt-textured Nd123 bulk samples grown from a mixture of Nd123 and Nd210 phase powders. The observation was performed with polarized light optical microscopy and scanning electron microscopy–energy dispersive x-ray analyses. Images of the identified phase crystals show an aspect quite different from Nd422 crystals. Unexpectedly, Nd163 was individuated, even in "pure" Nd123 samples. Moreover, after long exposure to air, Nd163 disappeared completely in samples synthesized from powders containing Nd210. Thermogravimetry analyses of powders show that the stability of this phase in air is limited to temperatures higher than 900 °C, so Nd163 is unstable and highly reactive at room temperature. Moreover, an explanation of the observation of Nd163 in Nd210 free samples, based on the spontaneous formation of Nd163 phase in a Nd123 melt, is proposed.


o-Xylene-4-sulfonic acid prepared by sulfonation of o-Xylene at 100°C was purified.3-Sulfonic acid was synthesized by reduction, Gattermann reaction, chlorination and hydrolysis from 3-nitro-o-Xylene.The melting points of 3-and 4-sulfonic acid-S-benzyl-thiuronium salts prepared by usual method, were 147°C and 210.5°C, respectively.The melting points of their mixture in various proportion were determined. The eutectic point was 137.6°C and eutectic mixture was consisted of about 10% of 3-acid and 902/s of 4-acid.The ratios on the yields of 3- and 4-acids obtained by sulfonation of o-Xylene with conc.sulfuricacid were determined by use of melting point curve.The yield of 3-acid depended on the temp.and was not accelerated by catalyser.I studied on the equilibrium of 3-acid k1⇔k2 4-acid, as 3-acid can be transformed by heating in the mixture of sulfuricacid and a small amount of water.When barium 3-sulfonate (0.001 mol) in 3 cc.of sulfuricacid (d: 1.656) was heatedbetween 80 and 100°C, a reversible first order reaction kt=t (k1+k2) =lnXe/(Xe-X) was done and the following results were obtained:The activation energies of k1 and k2 were 30 kcal/mol., respectively.Log k was proportional to the acidity function (Ho) and the tangent was about 0.68, wbe the same reaction was done at 100° by change of sulfuricacid concentration.


In this paper we use finite element simulations to determine the influence of two key design parameters on the thermomechanical stress and the stress interplay in copper-filled TSV arrays. The two parameters are the via's pitch-to-diameter ratio and thickness-to-radius (aspect) ratio. Our analytical results has suggested that the in-plane stress interplay becomes insignificant when the TSV pitch is at least five times of the via's radius. This criterion will be numerically verified in this paper. This work also suggests that it would be inadequate to approximate the thermomechanical stress into a simplified 2D models even for a small H/D ratio (which resembles a think, 2D-like structure).


The impact of the terrorist attacks on US foreign aid programmes and resource allocations is likely to be far-reaching. Budgets are likely to increase, although the State Department's plans in this area might be tempered by deteriorating fiscal conditions. Meanwhile, the orientation of aid programmes is likely to revert to a more security-based focus. Aid conditionalities prominent in the 1990s are already giving way to considerations of what assistance potential recipients can afford in the war on terrorism.


Purpose:The aim of this study was to examine the effects of selective laser trabeculoplasty (SLT) treatment on habitual intraocular pressure (IOP) fluctuations in patients with normal-tension glaucoma (NTG) using a SENSIMED Triggerfish contact lens sensor (CLS). Materials and Methods:Ten patients diagnosed with NTG were enrolled in this study. All patients underwent SLT treatment. Habitual 24-hour IOP fluctuations were recorded before and after SLT. The IOP fluctuations were divided into diurnal periods and nocturnal periods and compared before and after SLT. Changes in corneal thickness and curvature were measured before and after the CLS use with anterior segment optical coherence tomography. Results:The mean IOP was 13.5±2.5 mm Hg before SLT. The mean IOP at 1, 2, and 3 months after SLT was significantly decreased to 10.1±2.3 mm Hg (P=0.002), 11.2±2.7 mm Hg (P=0.0059), and 11.3±2.4 mm Hg (P=0.018), respectively. The range of IOP fluctuations over 24 hours was not significantly changed between before and after SLT treatment (P=0.77). Although the range of IOP fluctuations during the diurnal periods was not significantly changed between before and after SLT treatment (P=0.92), the range of IOP fluctuations during the nocturnal periods significantly decreased from 290±86 mVEq before SLT to 199±31 mVEq after SLT treatment (P=0.014). With respect to corneal changes, the steeper meridian decreased significantly after the CLS use (P=0.016), although other parameters showed no significant difference between before and after the CLS use. Conclusions:SLT treatment was shown to significantly lower IOP and decrease IOP fluctuations during the nocturnal periods in NTG patients. These effects might be important to prevent the progression of NTG.


Vaccum assisted closure (VAC) therapy is a novel method of wound healing using topical negative pressure across the wound bed and containing all exudate within a sealed system. We report the use of VAC therapy to control pain and exudate of a malignant wound.


Political language is the language used by political bodies to exchange political information in political activities.To spread political information effectively,the political body tries to make use of some means of rhetoric.The research is about the rhetorical characteristics of the Chinese-English translation of the report at the 17th Congress.The translation of political language should pay attention to the linguistic rhetoric to realize a political rhetoric so as to indicate the cultural "soft power" of the strength of the country.


[1] P.M. Chaikin and T.C. Lubensky, Principles of condensed matter physics, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, 1995. [2] D.C. Wallace, Thermodynamics of Crystals, John Wiley and Sons, New York, NY, 1972. [3] G.A. Maugin, Continuum Mechanics of Electromagnetic Solids, North-Holland, Amsterdam, 1988. [4] D.C. Wallace, Statistical Physics of Crystals and Liquids, World Scientific, Singapore, 2003. [5] J.D. Clayton, Nonlinear Mechanics of Crystals, Springer, Dordrecht, 2011. [6] J.D. Clayton, Differential Geometry and Kinematics of Continua, World Scientific, Singapore, 2014.


The biosynthesis of silver nanoparticles (Ag NPs) could play a significant role in the development of commercial antimicrobials. Herein, the biosynthesis of Ag NPs was studied using the edible mushroom Pleurotus floridanus, and following its formation, spectrophotometry was used to detect the best mushroom content, pH, temperature, and silver concentration. After that, the morphology was described via transmission electron microscopy (TEM), and nanoscale-size particles were found ranging from 11 to 13 nm. The best conditions of Ag content and pH were found at 1.0 mM and 11.0, respectively. In addition, the best mushroom extract concentration was found at 30 g/L. According to XRD analysis, the crystal structure of the formed amorphous Ag NPs is cubic with a space group of fm-3m and a space group number of 225. After that, the function groups at the surface of the prepared Ag NPs were studied via FTIR analysis, which indicated the presence of C=O, C-H, and O-H groups. These groups could indicate the presence of mushroom traces in the Ag NPs, which was confirmed via the amorphous characteristics of Ag NPs from the XRD analysis. The prepared Ag NPs have a high impact against different microorganisms, which could be attributed to the ability of Ag NPs to penetrate the cell bacterial wall.


A plurality of sensors and a digital adaptive tuning filter bank are used in extracting a desired emitted signal embedded in a noisy environment. By monitoring noise statistics of the sensor signals, the digital adaptive tuning filter bank automatically adjusts its upper (to eliminate strong tonals) and lower (to eliminate background noise) thresholds to obtain a discovery frequency band. The filter bank is designed by examining the discovery band across the sensors and over a predefined period of time. The method described significantly reduces the possibilities of matching self-noise transients (unwanted signals) and thus minimizes the false alarm rate in emitted signal recognition.


In this paper, we prose ultrafast components for an all-optical digital processing such as logic gates, demultiplexers and analogue-to-digital converters. They are based on Kerr nonlinearity in single-mode fiber interferometric configurations. The potential for an extremely high-bit- rate processing is due to a femtosecond response time of Kerr effect in silica optical fibers. Optical schemes of the proposed devices are presented, and their functional capabilities are discussed.


Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a chronic bio-behavioural
disorder of childhood which can continue into adolescence and adulthood. Hyperactivity,
impulsivity, and/or inattention are the distinguishing behaviour characteristics of this
disorder. Learning problems, poor peer relations and low self-esteem are also frequently
encountered. The American Academy of Paediatrics has provided clinical practice
guidelines on the assessment and diagnosis of school aged children with ADHD.
Paediatric dentists must be familiar with the disorder in order to make the necessary
modifications in the dental treatment plan. Appointment scheduling and nonpharmacological
techniques like "time outs," positive reinforcement and tell-show-do
should be given special consideration during behaviour management. This article
presents an overview of the clinical manifestations of ADHD and management of these
children in dental office.


For autonomous agents (children, animals or robots), exploratory learning is essential as it allows them to take advantage of their past experiences in order to improve their reactions in any situation similar to a situation already experimented. We have already exposed in Blanchard and Canamero (2005) how a robot can learn which situations it should memorize and try to reach, but we expose here architectures allowing the robot to take initiatives and explore new situations by itself. However, exploring is a risky behavior and we propose to moderate this behavior using novelty and context based on observations of animals' behaviors. After having implemented and tested these architectures, we present a very interesting emergent behavior which is low-level imitation modulated by context.


This paper presents design procedure for efficient design of IIR digital filters with critical monotonic amplitude characteristic (CMAC). Design methodology is based on traditional approach i.e. synthesizing the filter transfer function in s-domain and utilizing appropriate conformal mapping to produce z-domain transfer function. Only hardware, fixed-point, implementation is considered. Presented procedure covers design flow from system level to the register transfer level (RTL) modeling and simulation. As an example, highly selective, notch, filter is designed. Obtained simulation results confirmed proper functionality of the designed filter.


Phonological theory has long been guided by the assumption that the representational elements consist of a limited inventory of distinctive features. Ostensibly, this assumption is motivated by the limited range of contrasts observed in sound systems. For example, segments are standardly categorised, for purposes of phonological analysis, as either [+nasal] or [-nasal]; further phonetic details (e.g. the precise area of the velopharyngeal port) are excluded from the representational inventory. The theory thus excludes unattested sound systems in which, for example, unnasalised, slightly nasalised, moderately nasalised, and heavily nasalised vowels all behave as separate phonemes.


The use of semiconductor-oxide Schottky barriers as electrodes in photoelectrochemical cells has been investigated. The conducting oxide has the function of protecting the semiconductor surface from corrosion and of driving the electrochemical reaction. Since the oxide layer is only a few hundred A thick, the ohmic resistance of this layer is low and nearly 90% of the incoming light is transmitted through it. Regenerative photoelectrochemical cells based on n-Si-SnO2 junctions have shown solar efficiencies around 4%. Further improvements will require the addition of a catalyst to the oxide surface in order to increase the speed of the electrochemical reaction.


This paper considers the problem of delay-dependent stability conditions for a class of nonlinear T-S fuzzy systems with time-varying delay. Based on lyapuonv-krasovskii functional and utilizing linear matrix inequality (LMI) approach, sufficient conditions are present to guarantee the closed-loop system to be robust stable. And then we check H∞ performance of this system. Finally, a numerical example is provided to show the effectiveness of my method.


Type V collagen represents a minor constituent of the StrUCtUrally related collagen proteins. Although initially identified as a component of human chorionic and amnionic membranes' and adult skin,' it has now been found to be nearly ubiquitous in almost all connective tissue, including bone. The molecular structure of type V collagen also remains controversial. Some tissues, notably the amnionic /chorionic membrane, contained only two alpha-chain size components with an apparent molecular structure of [al(V)],a2(V); yet other tissues, especially the placentae, contained a third alpha chain, a3(V). When the third chain was present, its structure was suggested as either or both [~ l (V) ]~a2(V) and a heterotrimer of [al(V)][a2(V)][a3(V)]?


Against the background of the rapid economic development of China and great improvement of people's living standards, it is quite natural for the teachers to care for their psychological health. Here we put forward an assessing scale to psychological health: pleasant work, tolerance, self-approval and enjoying life.


Many manufacturing processes like the thermoforming of plastic materials, plastic injection moulding or the production of carbon composites require moulds that are usually produced by a milling process. This mould production is highly material and cost intensive. Current rapid prototyping procedures need special support constructions that generally cannot be reused or recycled. Moreover, the fabrication of these support constructions is a very time consuming process. Therefore, this procedure is disadvantageous both for economical and environmental reasons.


Researchers conducted a dual-site pilot experiment evaluating the impact of an open textbook on graduate social work students in research methods courses. Students using the commercial and open textbook demonstrated equivalent final grades and test scores. The open resource was more likely to be used on a weekly basis by students and was described as straightforward and easy to access. Among students who extensively used the open textbook, it was associated with improved attitudes towards research methods. The impact of open textbooks on student use, perceptions, and access varied by hybrid and in-person course format. These results validate the work of social work educators creating, sharing, and implementing open educational resources as way to address the barriers to access and engagement with social work knowledge.


Additive manufacturing (AM) has the potential to change the way products are made, packaged, and marketed to consumers. Because of its ability to create complex geometries with customizable material properties, this technology has gotten a lot of attention from both academia and industry. AM has aided the development of the maker movement by democratizing design and manufacturing. In recent years, generative methods have risen in popularity across a wide range of technical fields. Using artificial intelligence software, they can elaborate and recommend a series of realistic solutions for a design problem to a human user. This paper describes the overall design of a UAV (Unmanned Air Vehicle) frame, followed by an analysis of the frame using the FUSION 360 programme. Choosing the right material and structure to meet the system's rigidity and strength requirements.


Introduction: Post infectious glomerulonephritis (PIGN) is one of the common paediatric kidney disease in developing countries. This study was undertaken to describe the common clinical features, biochemical findings and complications in children with PIGN. Materials and Methods: This was a retrospective descriptive study in which 30 patients admitted with a diagnosis of PIGN at Tribhuvan University Teaching Hospital (TUTH) in a six month period (July 2014 to Dec 2014) were included. Hospital medical records were reviewed for the data collection. Results: Out of 30 patients, 24 (80%) were between 5 to 15 years of age (mean age of 11.5±3.3) with male to female ratio of 2.3:1. Pedal oedema and hypertension were the clinical features seen in 29 (97%) and 28 (93%) patients respectively. Hypocomplementemia was found in 29 (97%) patients. Recent past history of sore throat seen in 10 (33%) patients and skin lesions in 12 (40%). The complications noted were congestive cardiac failure in 5 (17%) patients, rapidly proliferative glomerulonephritis in 3 (10%) and encephalopathy in 1(3%). Conclusion: The most important clinical and biochemical profile observed in nepalese children with PIGN are the hypertension, pedal edema and hypocomplementemia. J Nepal Paediatr Soc 2014;34(3):221-224 DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.3126/jnps.v34i3.10707


Objective To discuss the clinical effects of the combination of magnetic resonance diffusion-weighted imaging(DWI) and LAVA technology in diagnosis of hepatic space-occupying lesions.Methods One hundred and fifty cases are selected randomly from patients who were treated for various hepatic space-occupying lesions in our hospital from November 2009 to December 2011 and are divided into three groups: WI(Group A),LAVA technology(Group B) and combined DWI with LAVA technology(Group C).Through a retrospective analysis of the 150 patients' clinical information of nuclear magnetic resonance examination,comparisons of hepatic space-occupying lesions between three groups are made in the aspects of detectable rate,diagnosis rate and diagnosis accuracy rate.At the meantime,another comparison of hepatic hemangioma,hepatic cyst and liver cancer are necessary to be drawn between three groups in apparent diffusion coefficient(ADC) value.Then,the results of two comparisons stated mentioned hereinbefore need to be analyzed using statistic methods.Results The diagnosis rate and the diagnosis accuracy rate of hepatic space-occupying lesions in Group C are 64.5% and 95.9% respectively,from which we can see that the clinical effect of Group C is obviously better than that of other two groups.In addition,the average ADC value of hepatic cyst in Group C reaches to 3.315±0.298 when b is equal to 800s/mm2,which shows an apparently higher ADC value of hepatic cyst than that of other diseases.All the results stated hereinbefore are obtained under the condition that P is less than 0.05.Conclusion DWI combined with LAVA technology can improve the accuracy rate for diagnosis of hepatic space-occupying lesions,which is of great significance in clinical applications.


An embedding theorem for functions belonging to Sobolev space is proved. These functions are defined on a cylinder side surface over a bounded domain   Rn .


El Tepopote hill is located in the west extreme of the Trans-Mexican Volcanic Belt and the confl uence of the physio- graphic regions of the Canyons, Central Basins and Mountainous-Pacifi c slopes, at western Guadalajara, Jalisco. Oak-pine forest is the dominant vegetation type and the fl oristic list of the area includes 76 families, 214 genera and 370 species, with numerous endemisms, novelties for the region, and new species for the science. The diversity of its fl ora is higher than those at the La Prima- vera Flora and Fauna Protected Area and El Nixticuil-San Esteban-El Diente Hidrologic Protected Area, with which maintains high fl oristic and geologic similarities. The state of conservation of El Tepopote is discussed, based on environmental indexes derived from the fl oristic studies.


Based on annual mean air temperature data of recent 50 years at 2 weather stations in Urumqi,the methods of linear trend,accumulated variance,Mann- Kendall test are employed to study the decadal changes and the jumping of the air temperature in Urumqi,and trend- fitting and correlation analysis are adopted to study the relations betw een annual mean air temperature and urbanization. Based on the research w orking above,w e concluded that( 1) In recent 50 years,the annual mean air temperature in Urumqi region have been ascending slow ly,the temperature of urban is higher than the suburban,the rate of urban station temperature w as 0. 2 ℃ /10a,suburban station 0. 245 ℃ / 10a,the total rate of w arming 0. 225℃ /10a;( 2) M- K method detect the temperature mutation in 2000 in Urumqi;( 4) The population,GDP,total social fixed asset investment,the area of buildings completed,energy consumption and the annual mean temperature in Urumqi have significant correlations,w hich show s there is relationship betw een urbanization and the annual mean temperature.


The changes to the Act on Spatial Planning and Development introduced in 2015 were aimed at rationalizing the local spatial policy. Previously there was no legal regulation clearly defining how much the municipality area could devote to development.This resulted in the designation of newer construction sites, often without examining the real needs and development opportunities. As a result, this condition has led to the phenomenon of uncontrolled urbanization, dispersion of development and increase of costs of construction of technical and social infrastructure.New legal regulations have impact on municipal spatial policies on the one hand, which creates opportunities for planning for further development in line with the principles of spatial order and sustainable development, on the other hand, threaten to hamper the further development of the municipality.The purpose of the article is to present own research on the impact of introduced changes in the regulations on local spatial policy. In the work an analysis of the real needs and development opportunities of the Rzgow commune was conducted, then its results were compared with the local spatial conditions in the context of new legal regulations.


This article presents the recent macroeconomic dynamics and the main mid-run perspectives for the Romanian economy, taking into account the analysis of the European Commission published within the Spring Macroeconomic Report (2015).


The use of videos is a routine practice in Science and Technology Education. Teachers and students use videos available on various platforms or produce specific videos for educational purposes. In this article we present the concept of modes of address from the viewer's paradigm, by discussing research results and analyzing the construction of the address of some audiovisual productions. Our goal is to highlight the importance of address in pedagogical practices with audiovisual productions. We argue, therefore, that the consideration of address is a decisive factor in the adequate reception of videos and, consequently, in the success of educational actions that use them.


Foals are capable of immune activation after a three-dose immunization series with a multivalent vaccine started at 90 days of age, despite the presence of maternal antibodies. Authors' addresses: Department of Clinical Sciences (Davis, Bryan) and Diagnostic Medicine Pathobiology (Wilkerson), College of Veterinary Medicine, Department of Statistics (Bello), Kansas State University, Manhattan, KS 66506; Pfizer (Zoetis) Animal Health, Global Headquarters, 100 Campus Drive, Florham Park, NJ 07932 (Hankins); e-mail: firstname.lastname@example.com. *Corresponding and presenting author. © 2013 AAEP.


The purpose of this study was to investigate teacher practices of enabling factors in the implementation of technology-assisted PBL, in Tatweer schools in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. This study also explored how the International Society for Technology in Education (ISTE) National Education Technology Standards for Teachers (NETS.T) were used in Tatweer classrooms and for what purposes technology was used to support PBL in the Tatweer schools. Using a constructivist framework, a convergent parallel mixed-methods design was used. The survey included closed and open-ended items, which was sent to 1073 male and female Tatweer teachers in 30 schools. Of the 710 responses received, 640 were valid, resulting in a 60% return rate. Factorial MANOVA results indicated that gender and school level were statistically significant at p < .05, while other teacher characteristics (degree types, educational degree, years of teaching experience, and content area), including their interaction, were not. ANOVA results indicated that gender effects on PBL practices were statistically significant on both teacher roles (F (1,403) = 17.77, partial ƞ 2 = .042, p < .05) and learning environment (F (1, 403) = 10.83, partial ƞ 2 = 026, p < .001). A means comparison indicated that males had better technologyassisted PBL practices on both variables. ANOVA and post hoc test results found that high schools used technology-assisted PBL better than elementary schools, and intermediate schools performed better than elementary schools. No significant difference was found between technology-assisted PBL practices in high schools and intermediate schools within the school system. Descriptive analysis results for research question two indicated that Tatweer school teacher technology uses were aligned with ISTE NETS.T, though there was very little use of technology in PBL. Though 177 units of information were found for the seven open-ended questions, little was related to the research questions, so Grounded Theory was used to find 19 overall themes. Findings indicated several casual conditions for the lack of technology-assisted PBL, including technology access, classroom design, space, and facilities, ministry/district support, and teacher preparation. Action strategies included providing needed technology, offering technology training, providing training in new instructional methods, creating a more flexible curriculum, and adopting advanced teaching methods and authentic assessment. Recommendations for Tatweer schools included a better learning environment, greater professional technology access, and school system support. Recommendations for future studies included conducting a similar study on other schools and a further examination of Grounded Theory findings. ENABLING FACTORS AND TEACHER PRACTICES IN USING TECHNOLOGYASSISTED PROJECT-BASED LEARNING IN TATWEER SCHOOLS IN JEDDAH, SAUDI ARABI


Background and aims We completed a retrospective analysis of patients with genotype 3 hepatitis C virus (HCV) undergoing therapy in four UK centres with large populations of patients from the Indian subcontinent. Materials and methods Notes on all patients treated with pegylated interferon and ribavirin were reviewed and factors that influenced the response were examined. Results Six hundred and four patients with genotype 3 HCV were studied, of whom 299 were Asians. Median age was 43 years, 65% were men and 24% had cirrhosis. Overall, 457 (76%) patients achieved sustained virological response (SVR). By multivariable analysis it was found that ethnicity was not associated with an impaired response but age, cirrhosis and diabetes were significantly associated with a reduced SVR, the likelihood of a response was reduced by 25% per 10-year increment in age, by 59% among individuals with cirrhosis and by 62% among individuals with diabetes mellitus. Most patients who did not achieve an SVR relapsed (15%) rather than failing to achieve an end of treatment response. Conclusion The response to antiviral therapy in genotype 3 HCV is not affected by South Asian (vs. Caucasian) ethnicity, but age, cirrhosis and diabetes reduce the response. Treatment failure most often is due to relapse.


Description Autosimilarity curves, standardization of spatial extent, dissimilarity indexes that overweight rare species, phylogenetic and functional (pairwise and multisample) dissimilarity indexes and nestedness for phylogenetic, functional and other diversity metrics. This should be a complement to available packages, particularly 'vegan'.


As well known, wildfire emits carbon into atmosphere for 1.7 to 4.1GtC/yr in entire earth (IPCC, Mack et al. 1996, Andreae et al. 2001). This is not negligible amount, corresponding to one quarter to one half of anthropogenic greenhouse gas emission. Thus, accurate wild fire detection is important in estimation of the impact of wild fire and in disaster management. In fact, accuracy of wild fire detection algorithm was remarkably improved by MOD14 algorithm (Giglio et al. 2003). However, we still have many false alarm and omission errors in boreal forest. One of the reasons is mixture of reflection and emission in burning area in short wavelength infrared. Thus, considerations of a variable for stochastic test and of choice of candidate of fire pixels are very important. At first, authors modified MOD14 algorithm to improve sensitivity using 2-dimensional stochastic test (Nakau et al. 2008). This algorithm detects about 15% more hotspots. Secondary, we propose an algorithm to detect wild fire using estimated radiation by wild fire. As a result of these improvement, these two improved algorithms detected 16% and 67% more hotspots in 408 MODIS imagery covering Alaska in 2004. Precise validation including in Africa using ASTER imagery will be presented in the presentation.


Rare-earth magnet discs are main component of the flocs separator. In this paper, a new method is introduced using Mathematica software tool to design rare-earth magnetic discs. The procedure is given using the tool to set the parameters,to get optimum result. Lastly, the use of Ansys software was introduced in detail for simulating the rare-earth magnet discs.


We are concerned with the problem of computing L((p). REMARK. Let G be a compact Lie group acting on X as a group of holomorphic diffeomorphisms and cp e G. The problem in this case has been solved by Atiyah and Singer, see [2]. Also in the case cp has isolated fixed points, the problem was solved in the nondegenerate case (see §2 for definition) by Atiyah and Bott in [1] and by Toledo and Tong ii>[6] and [7] in the degenerate case.


Agnès Varda's Vagabond (1985) begins and frequently returns to images of the French landscape, and it constructs an allegory that binds the stories and images of its main character, the nation, and the land. At the heart of this and Varda's subsequent films is an engagement with the significance of the land as a fragile part of an ecosystem, a gendered space, and a powerful symbol of the nation and its patrimony. Rather than view the landscape as an unbreakable link between the nation and the national past preserved in nature, she frames the natural world as a modern phenomenon in a state of ruin and develops an aesthetic of the landscape attuned to this condition. In Vagabond and her later digital documentaries Varda imagines her relationship to the land and history as a process of gleaning from the vibrant possibilities left behind after the process of modernization has run its course.


Above all, the republican regime that governed first England, and then the entirety of the British Isles in the 1650s viewed itself as 'godly'. This was a concept with deep roots in English puritan...


Objective: To examine the safety and efficacy of intraarterial treatment (IAT) for acute ischemic stroke (AIS) due to cervical artery dissection (CAD) compared to non-CAD mechanism.
Background: The safety and efficacy of IAT for AIS due to CAD (carotid and vertebral) has not been studied in a controlled trial.
Methods: We studied consecutive admissions with AIS who received IAT between 1/2010 - 4/2015 and compared outcomes for patients with AIS who presented with CAD mechanism vs. other causes. Outcomes included functional independence (Modified Rankin Score ≤ 2 within 90-days), symptomatic intracerebral hemorrhage (sICH), in-hospital mortality, and procedural complications. Outcomes were univariately analyzed with Chi-square tests. Co-primary outcomes of functional independence and sICH were analyzed with multivariate logistic regression.
Results: Of 3,671 patients with AIS, 445 patients received IAT and comprise our study population: 24 with CAD (5[percnt]: 18 carotid, 6 vertebral) and 421 with another cause. Unadjusted outcomes were similar by AIS cause of CAD vs. other: functional independence, 63[percnt] v. 54[percnt], p=0.42; sICH: 4[percnt] v. 6[percnt], p>0.99; mortality, 17[percnt] v. 16[percnt], p>0.99; procedural complications, 13[percnt] v. 4[percnt], p=0.09. Patients with CAD were younger (median age: 52 vs. 70, p < 0.001) with less severe stroke (median NIHSS: 13 vs. 18, p=0.03) than those with another cause of AIS. After adjustment for NIHSS and age, the odds of achieving functional independence (OR: 0.58 [0.19-1.78], p=0.34) and sICH (OR: 0.57 [0.07-4.66], p=0.60) were not significantly different in patients with CAD vs. other mechanism.
Conclusions: Intraarterial treatment appears to be as safe and effective when used in patients with ischemic stroke due to CAD as in AIS patients with other causes. Following the major advances in IAT for AIS in the general population, IAT should be considered in patients with AIS due to a CAD. Disclosure: Dr. Jensen has nothing to disclose. Dr. Salottolo has nothing to disclose. Dr. McCarthy has nothing to disclose. Dr. Loy has nothing to disclose. Dr. Frei has received personal compensation for activities with Microvention, Covidien, Stryker, Siemens, and Penumbra as a consultant. Dr. Wagner has received personal compensation for activities with Genentech, Inc., as a speakers bureau member. Dr. Whaley has received personal compensation for activities with Clinical Data Management/Neurobase and Genentech. Dr. Bar-Or has nothing to disclose.


Objective To investigate the clinical value of serum cardiac troponin Ⅰ(cTNⅠ) in diagnosis of cardiac injury in neonatal hypoxic ischemic encephalopathy(HIE).Methods 20 healthy newborns were selected as the control group.58 patients with HIE were divided into mild group(n=20),medium group(n=19) and the severe group(n=19),respectively.The level of cTNⅠ was detected by immunofluorescence.Results Serum levels of cTNⅠ in experimental group were obviously higher than that of the control group;There were significant difference between any two groups(P0.01);Three cases with heart failure in the severe HIE died,the serum levels of cTNⅠ were 8.13ng/ml,8.08ng/ml,11.26ng/ml,respectively.Conclusion It has important reference value in diagnosis and prognosis of HIE with heart failure to detect cTNⅠ.


Structural, elastic constants and anisotropy of the potential superhard orthorhombic structure boron carbonitride beta-BC(2)N under hydrostatic pressure up to 100 GPa have been studied using density functional theory within the local density approximation (LDA) as well as the generalized gradient approximation (GGA) for exchange and correlation. The results are in excellent agreement with available experimental data and other theoretical results. Changes of lattice constants, the cell volume, elastic constants, and elastic anisotropy of beta-BC(2)N under hydrostatic loading are examined, and the bulk modulus B(0) and its pressure derivative B'(0) are fitted from the volume-pressure relation. It is concluded that beta-BC(2)N is a brittle and hard material in nature up to 100 GPa and is next to diamond in hardness. An analysis for the calculated elastic constant has been made to reveal the mechanical stability of beta-BC(2)N up to 100 GPa. (C) 2010 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.


The concentrations of long-lived in-situ produced cosmogenic nuclides (10Be, 21Ne, 26Al) in quartz obtained from a very recent (~200 a; based on 14C data on organic material) terrace of the Swakop River in Namibia are nearly constant throughout a 322 cm-long depth profile. These findings corroborate earlier hypotheses postulating a homogeneous distribution of these nuclides in freshly deposited river terrace sediments. An averaged nuclide concentration is a crucial and generally assumed prerequisite for the determination of numerical ages of old sediments.


Background: The effect of covid pandemic has left a vacuum effecting every field of life, with lots of
question, especially on group meeting that including teaching at all levels. The impact of web-based
assessment practices on the performance of undergraduate medical students is not widely studied. The
modern digital global world provides e-assessment, contributing a crucial role and has powerful effects on
student learning and their outcomes. 1–3 Designed e-assessments may even provide a scale to measure the
progress and the effects on the outcome of institutions, including a tool to target the attention of students to
focus on the learning outcomes. As e-learning includes various modes of communication both visual and
audio in different formats i.e, animation, visual streaming; it motivates many e-learning processes, as it can
be done in or out of the classroom, and has been proved an open-source web-based learning management
system (LMS), managing the tools required for collaboration, communication, evaluation, and assessment
for higher education. Online quizzes are methods for graded assessment that offers students an opportunity
to gauge their level of performance on a topic including feedback to the faculty to make necessary changes
in the ongoing curriculum.
Materials and Methods: 100 First-year medical students were registered and the dates for assessment
and conducting of survey before and after was fixed. Thirty MCQ and SEQ from various sections of human
physiology were preloaded on the Microsoft team's portal, from the topics covered during pandemic live on
net and the students used their devices to answer the questions within the stipulated time. The results were
automatically loaded at the end of the assessment. Pre- and post-test survey were conducted to investigate
the significance of the E-assessment.
Results: The students responded that the e-assessment was easy to assess, unique as they received
immediate feedback, customized, and flex


Extensive investigations of partial discharge (pd) pulse winding response characteristics have revealed considerable physical insight into the mechanics of pulse transfer from within the windings to the externally accessable points of measurement. Based on the IEC charge measuring method, pd-pulse response profiles were investigated on both, layer- and disc-type transformers of different original size (25 MVA, 40 MVA and 1100 MVA) by means of internal pd-pulse injections at geometrically and electrically differing sites. The winding design and the pd-source locations influence significantly the externally measurable pd-magnitude and pulse form. By no means and by neither broad band (BB) or narrow band (NB) method of detection is it possible to correlate externally measured apparent charge values with the dissipated charge at the pd-source location. NB and BB instruments are equally applicable, with some preference to NB for pd-measurements on power transformers.


The article analyzes the effectiveness of scientific and technical developments in obtaining biologically pure products in agriculture, identifies aspects of improving the effectiveness of scientific and technical developments in the agricultural sector used in obtaining agricultural products in organic farming, in particular, the specifics of the development agricultural machines and tools for organic agriculture, the conditions that the developed equipment must satisfy are determined. The analysis of factors contributing to the increase in the cost of work on the creation of a single technical tool for the conditions of organic farming was carried out. The proportions that have developed at the present time in the structure of R&D performed in the agricultural engineering industry are also considered. It is concluded that insufficient attention is paid to the work on the creation of a strategic scientific and technical reserve, inertia of R&D subjects and organizational and staff structures of the sectoral research institutes of agricultural engineering. The necessity of creating organizational forms of integration of science and production, which allow for a clear and quick passage of ideas from their inception to widespread use in practice, the widespread use of new progressive forms of organization of scientific activity is considered. Measures are proposed to improve the systematic organization of R&D management. The necessity of introducing documents on the procedure for conducting joint work on the creation of new types of agricultural machinery, carried out by subordinate research and technological organizations, is shown. A significant place in the article is given to the directions and results of the work of Kazan State Agrarian University in the field of R&D and its contribution to the scientific support of the agro-industrial complex of the Republic of Tatarstan and the Russian Federation. The currently used forms of R&D integration are considered from the point of view of the completeness of coverage of all potential performers, especially the academic and university sectors of science. Ways are proposed to expand the communication systems for scientific and technical cooperation through the widespread use of forms of interdepartmental cooperation, using progressive developments in the field of scientific and technical developments of Russian research institutes and educational institutions. Recommendations are proposed to increase the amount of funding for work on creating a strategic scientific and technical reserve in agricultural machinery and the implementation of a certain economic management mechanism. It is concluded that there are all the necessary prerequisites for a decisive transition to fundamentally new technologies, machines and tools in organic agricultural production, a significant improvement in the organization of work on their creation and implementation, which will dramatically accelerate the pace of scientific and technological progress in the industry.


The unmeasured interstellar magnetic field strength is an essential parameter for models of the heliosphere moving relative to the Local Interstellar Cloud (LIC) that surrounds it. Here we use recent measurements of the differential energy spectra of energetic neutral hydrogen (ENH) combined with Voyager 1 (V1) measurements of energetic particles to calculate the total pressure and its 1-0 limit in the inner heliosheath, the region between the termination shock at ∼90 AU and the heliopause that V1 presumably crossed at 122 AU. Balancing pressure across the heliopause, we find the magnetic pressure in the outer heliosheath at ∼ 135 AU where V1 is currently located. From this magnetic pressure we find an extraordinarily large magnetic field strength of 0.84 ± 0.08 nT compared to the 0.464 ± 0.009 nT field strength currently measured by V1. We conclude that V1 is currently not measuring the interstellar field, but rather the solar magnetic field. Voyager 1 is thus not in interstellar space but still inside a new, unanticipated, and most unusual region of heliosphere that it entered in late August 2012. We recalculate total pressures in the ordinary heliosheath (∼90 - 122 AU), in the new, co-called cold inner heliosheath (122 - 145 AU), in the outer heliosheath and in the unperturbed LIC. Pressure balance again requires that all these pressures must be equal. Constrained by the requirement of pressure equality between all regions and minimum reduced χ2 fits to the ENH spectrum and the differential intensities of particles measured by V1 in the ordinary, co-called hot heliosheath, we find the common pressure to be (3.45 ± 0.39)x10-12 dyne-cm-2. The magnetic field strength in the outer heliosheath is calculated to be 0.90 ± 0.089 nT, and in the unperturbed LIC it is 0.86 ± 0.11 nT. To achieve common pressure for all regions imposes firm limits on the LIC neutral hydrogen density, n(HI) = 0.10 ± 0.02 cm-3. Pressure balance between the LIC and the hot cloud surrounding it places firm limit on the proton density in the unperturbed LIC, n(HIl) = 0.036 ± 0.012 cm-3.


In one step, the well known chiral auxiliary, Oppolzer's camphor sultam, is turned into the new generation camphor sulfonyl hydrazine (CaSH II) organocatalyst. With the primary hydrazine functionality external to the tricyclic structure, CaSH II is active towards ketone substrates in asymmetric Diels–Alder reactions. The iminium intermediate of the catalytic cycle was isolated. When it was put back into the solution reaction system, the same level of yield and stereoselectivity was observed. Based on these observations, we argue that organocatlyst is actually an in situ chiral auxiliary.


Liquid fuel combustion can be greatly enhanced by disintegrating the liquid fuel into droplets, an effect achieved by various configurations. A number of experiments carried out in the seventies showed that combustion of droplet arrays and sprays do not form individual flames. Moreover, the rate of burning in spray combustion greatly deviates from that of the single combustion rate. Such observations naturally challenge its applicability to spray combustion. A number of mathematical models were developed to evaluate 'group combustion' and the related 'group evaporation' phenomena. This study investigates the similarity and difference of these models and their applicability to spray combustion. Future work that should be carried out in this area is indicated.


Wireless Mesh Network (WMN) has recently attracted much attention. Most of the routing protocols over ad hoc on demand networks are based on the status of the Connection, either its forward or backward connections. These kind of existing link based ad hoc networks are not capable of adapting the run time changes (dynamic changes) such as traffic load, low energy, delay and delivery time to reach the static or dynamic change destination, thus though gives shortest path, these shortest path may not be an optimum path to deliver the packets to the destination. Optimized path can only be received when quality of connections within the network is detected on the dynamical continuous basis instead of discrete time manner. Thus, for receiving optimized routes create ad hoc routing as an insufficient path optimization problem.


articles: A corpus-based study (Peter Lang, 2022) is a recently published corpus-based work that sets out to assess the occurrence and purpose of stance markers in research articles focused on the field of tourism. In academic writing, the concept of 'stance' is typically concerned with the author's perspective or viewpoint on a particular topic. This includes the author's ideas, attitudes


Currently, industrial sectors are transforming their business processes into e-services and component-based architectures to build flexible, robust, and scalable systems, and reduce integration-related maintenance and development costs. Robotics is yet another promising and fast-growing industry that deals with the creation of machines that operate in an autonomous fashion and serve for various applications including space exploration, weaponry, laboratory research, and manufacturing. It is in space exploration that the most common type of robots is the planetary rover which moves across the surface of a planet and conducts a thorough geological study of the celestial surface. This type of rover system is still ad-hoc in that it incorporates its software into its core hardware making the whole system cohesive, tightly-coupled, more susceptible to shortcomings, less flexible, hard to be scaled and maintained, and impossible to be adapted to other purposes. This paper proposes a service-oriented architecture for space exploration robotic rover systems made out of loosely-coupled and distributed web services. The proposed architecture consists of three elementary tiers: the client tier that corresponds to the actual rover; the server tier that corresponds to the web services; and the middleware tier that corresponds to an Enterprise Service Bus which promotes interoperability between the interconnected entities. The niche of this architecture is that rover's software components are decoupled and isolated from the rover's body and possibly deployed at a distant location. A service-oriented architecture promotes integrate-ability, scalability, reusability, maintainability, and interoperability for client-to-server communication.


Objective(s): Icotinib exerts a good anti-tumor efficacy on non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC), while Icotinib resistance has become an important limiting factor in the clinical application. Studies have certified that a great quantity of microRNAs are involved in the development of cancer. The aim of present study is to investigate whether miR-202-3p reduces Icotinib resistance in lung carcinoma A549/Ico cells. Materials and Methods: Icotinib-resistant A549/Ico cells was established in the previous stage. The levels of miR-202-3p in A549 and A549/Ico cells were detected by qRT-PCR. The IC50 of A549 and A549/Ico cells were detected by MTT assay. The mRNA and protein levels of ADP-Ribosylation Factor-like 5A (ARL5A), the functional target of miR-202-3p, as well as the multi-drug resistant (MDR) related genes glutathione s transferase π (GST-π), Multi Drug Resistance 1 (MDR1), multidrug resistanceassociated protein 1 (MRP1) and breast cancer resistance protein (BCRP) were measured by qRT-PCR and western blot. Results: miR-202-3p was observably down-regulated in A549/Ico cells. Transfection of A549/Ico cells with miR-202-3p reversed the Icotinib resistance and increased cell apoptosis. The levels of ARL5A, GST-π, MDR1, MRP1 and BCRP were significantly down-regulated following the upregulation of miR-202-3p in A549/Ico cells. Conclusion: Our study demonstrated that miR-202-3p transfection reduced Icotinib resistance in A549/Ico cells, which could be by its downstream target ARL5A and MDR-related genes. These findings suggest that miR-202-3p may function as a novel therapeutic candidate in patients with MDR lung cancer.


Six species of earthworms from an arable soil were analysed for residues of aldrin, dieldrin, DDT and γ-BHC. The ratios between the concentrations of γ-BHC, aldrin + dieldrin and p,p′-DDT + p,p′-DDE in the earthworms and in the soil (concentration factors) were similar but the residue concentrations were consistently higher in the smaller more shallow-living species Allolobophora caliginosa, A. chlorotica and A. rosea than in the larger deeper-living species Lumbricus terrestris, A. longa and Octolasion cyaneum.

In arable field plots, dieldrin residues in A. longa and A. chlorotica increased with increasing concentrations in the soil but the concentration factors decreased. The concentrations of residues in earthworms (W) appear to be related to those in the soil (S) by an equation of the form W = aSb where a and b are constants, the latter being about 0.79 for a wide range of residue data embracing the uptake of aldrin-dieldrin, DDT components, and γ-BHC by earthworms.


Bismuth substituted rare-earth iron garnet (Bi:RIG) films were prepared on (111) gadolinium gallium garnet (GGG) and glass substrates b laser ablation using the ArF excimer laser. Crystal structure of the garnet phase was obtained above the substrate temperature of about 500° C on GGG substrate without postdeposition annealing and on glass substrate with postdeposition rapid thermal annealing. Films with the easy magnetization axis normal to the film plane were obtained for Bi:DyIG and Ga- or Al-substituted Bi-YIG on GGG substrate. The Faraday hyster- esis loops and the magnetic domain were observed. On the other hand, the easy magnetization axis normal to the film plane was obtained for Bi:DyIG films on the glass substrate with postdeposition rapid thermal annealing.


Objectives. To describe the exposure experiences of South African mesothelioma cases, with emphasis on the contribution made to the caseload by different fibre types, the proportion of subjects with no recall of asbestos exposure and only environmental contact, and the importance of putative causes other than asbestos. Design. A multicentred case-control study. Subjects and setting. 123 patients with mesothelioma interviewed by trained interviewers in study centres established in Johannesburg, Kimberley, Pretoria, Bloemfontein, Cape To~ and Port Elizabeth.


On the background of arsenic events for data accuracy and reproducibility on the use of graphite furnace atomic absorption spectrometry in the detection analysis,the impact of graphite furnace atomic absorption analysis to quality control and the affecting factors on the course of the experimental determination are discussed.The control during pre-treament,sample preparation method,experimental conditions,standard curves and sample determination are to be explored and overviewed.


This study was conducted to determine the perceptions that the veterinarians in South Africa have to acupuncture and homoeopathy regarding the role that they have to play in veterinary medicine.


I present a Bayesian forecasting model particularly suited for multiparty systems. The method I develop systematically combines (i) information from a Multinomial logit regression model fitted on historical data and (ii) estimates of current party support produced by a Dynamic Linear Model for multinomial observations. I apply the method to the Norwegian multiparty system, and assess the performance of the model on past elections. As of present, the model is ready to be updated as the Norwegian parliamentary elections of 2013 draws closer. The current forecast for the upcoming election is that the four opposition parties will obtain a majority in parliament with a probability of 0.775.


This brief considers prescribed-time synchronization of stochastic complex networks via a high-gain function. Different from fixed-time synchronization, the high-gain function is considered in the coupling term of the stochastic complex networks, which enables the stochastic complex networks to achieve the prescribed-time synchronization in a predetermined time rather than relying on the design of system parameters. Moreover, a synchronization criterion is provided. Besides, we can get that the coupling term with the high-gain function is bounded. Finally, two examples with numerical simulations are provided.


This study aims to assess transmission dynamics of typhoid and simulate effects of treatment, isolation and vaccination in reducing the burden of typhoid fever in Ibadan metropolis, Nigeria. Secondary data of the Integrated Disease Surveillance Response on reported typhoid fever cases for 2010 to 2017 period in Ibadan South-East Local Government Area, Oyo State, Nigeria were used to achieve the set-out objectives. The study adapted the Susceptible-Infected-Carrier-Recovered (SIIcR) model to simulate effects of the three preventive and control strategies on typhoid fever transmission. Typhoid fever cases were most rampant among the age groups 20 to 40 years (29.0% infected) and > 40 years (35% asymptomatic carriers and 45.0% death) and the least in age group 0 to 28 days (0.22% infected and no death case). A decreasing trend in typhoid fever cases (56 cases per year) was observed which was attributed to improved functional health facilities and their effective utilization. Significant seasonal variation in typhoid infections was found with the highest reported cases at the start of wet (April) and dry (November) seasons. The SIIcR model simulations suggested likelihood of typhoid fever epidemic within two weeks in the community if no prevention and intervention measures were put in place. Major reduction in the carriers' population significantly reduced the number of infected class and suggested disease-free population within a season of typhoid epidemic (100 days). Model simulations suggested that vaccination and isolation significantly reduced the effect of infected and asymptomatic carrier populations at p<0.05 on the transmission dynamics of typhoid fever.


Geographical Indications (GIs) are increasingly important instruments of agricultural and food regulations and are growing as contentious issues in trade negotiations and disputes. GIs can improve welfare but they can also be a protectionist instrument. The EU has the most GIs in the world, but they are concentrated in the south of the EU. Even excluding wine, there are seven times more food GIs per capita in the southern EU Member States than in other EU Member States. This note discusses several factors which may explain the geographic concentration of GIs in the south of the EU.


As Mads Walther-Hansen makes clear, we regularly make use of cognitive metaphors when appraising sound quality. For example, nonauditory descriptors such as warm, cold, and rough might be used to describe auditory parameters, such as when assessing loudspeakers. Equally, we measure such assessments of sound quality against an ideal that, so we are told, is grounded in past sensory-motor experience. However, as Walther-Hansen argues, this explanation is problematic when viewed in light of evolving audio technologies because the cognitive structures behind value- and sense-making are themselves evolving hand-in-hand with those technologies. His focus, therefore, is on the processes of structural coupling that take place between imagined cognitive ideals of sound quality and ever-changing external factors. Walther-Hansen's thesis is that, in order to explain this process, language should be viewed as a fundamental part of cognitive processing rather than merely being controlled by it.


It is conjectured that, in current times, the contest between Economical Blocks could lead to a convergent process between Economy and Ethics, showing similarities to that one leading to the disappearance of Slavery in past centuries. At that times, the economical need for the "wage paid work" found a definite support in the parallel ethical fight against the Slavery. Nowadays, the needs for economical growth of the financial blocks in the World, then, can require the enhancing of the social development in the new countries to be incorporated in such blocks. We want to underline the relevance of the development of econophysics agent models for simulating (and also stimulating!) the identified convergence processes, in order to help the world path to deviate from chaos in the coming future.


Purpose: This study aimed to analyze the trends in nursing research on sexuality in Korea and to provide guidance to the future research in sexual health. Method: Total 163 published articles in Korea from 2000 to 2007 year were reviewed using a structured analysis form which consists of the domains of nursing journal, research designs, research purpose, research subjects, and the key words. Result: Of those articles, 25.8% was published in J. of Korean Academy of Women Health Nursing and 13.5% in J. of Korean Academy of Community Health Nursing. In terms of the research design, quantitative research methods were commonly used in 88.4% of them which only 6.1% used qualitative methods. The nursing process on purpose were classified assessment(86.3%), nursing intervention(11.3%), and nursing evaluation(2.5%); Most of subjects were early adults(35.3%), adolescents(27.9%), and adults(25.6%); The most frequently reported key words were classified into socio-psychological domain(33.5%), cognitive domain(25.6%), clinical domain(12.6%). Conclusion: Research on sexuality in nursing have been continued. The major key words were founded in socio-psychological and cognitive domains. It is recommended that more various subjects, research methodology, and various key words be investigated.


To the Editor: We read with interest the observational study by Roodbeen et al evaluating clinical, histopathological, and oncological outcomes of 767 patients undergoing transanal total mesorectal excision (taTME) in 6 centers between 2011 and 2018. As stated by the authors, their study was prompted by the recent Norwegian data reporting increased rates of local recurrence (LR) with unconventional patterns after taTME. Although we appreciate the work behind the study, we feel that we would be contributing to the external validity of the core message by adding the following comments: