In the flow method development, zone penetration studies are usually
 conducted as a part of initial screening phase. A lack of an appropriate
 tool can keep these studies on the level of rough estimations. The developed
 LabVIEW virtual instrument (VI) which processes peak signals and calculates
 the overlapping area and fundamental peak-related parameters was used for
 calculations in experiments that are modelling sample and reagent plug
 interaction within liquid conduits. The reliability of the predictions was
 initially confirmed on the artificial data set based on thirty-six files
 covering all the different types of cases that can be foreseen. In the
 continuation, volumes of model solutions, propelling flow rate, and coil
 length in the sequential injection analysis system, were varied by following
 Box-Behnken response surface design. In three examples, it is demonstrated
 how the VI can help us plan further experiments in the range which ensures
 efficient zone overlapping, economic exploitation of reagent plug and
 adequate dispersion. The application of the VI is not limited just to
 flow-based chemistry, it can also be useful in spectroscopy and
 chromatography. To utilize the graphical user interface, it is not necessary
 to have the LabVIEW program installed.


Backgrounds: Propolis is a resinous substance of vegetable origin with bactericidal, bacteriostatic, fungicidal and antibiotic actions. In the institution is used as raw material for the production of the 15 % alcoholic solution. Objectives: the objective of this research is the introduction of a new line of pharmaceutical product in CIBHO's productions: the 5% propolis tinctures. Methods: Technological proposed process is based on a modification of Pichansky ́s alcoholic extraction method, there consists of three alcoholic successive extractions, with intermediates temperature controlled conditions filtrations processes and steps of separation of pollutants waxes, standardization, filling, labeled and packing of the final product. Results: The operation procedures were designed and a creative work session was carried out employing work group methods to determine the possible trade name and product ́s label, taken account legal documents referred to industrial property and denominative marks OCPI registered. Finally, three experimental lots were prepared and they were evaluated according to quality specifications recounted in the National Form 2010. Both inspection and assaying processes, as well as continuous improvement and customer feedback guaranteed an excellence product that is commercialized through Correo Científico Médico ISSN 1560-4381 2012; 16(3) Supl 1 the network of pharmacies belonging to the Farmox Company. Conclusions: Questionnaires realized by the last one, reflected that the antiparasitic properties constituted the pharmacological action of major social impact.


Abstract The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of phosphatidylserine (PS) on cognition and cortical activity after mental stress. After familiarization, 16 healthy subjects completed cognitive tasks after induced stress in a test–re-test design (T1 and T2). Directly after T1, subjects were assigned double-blind to either PS or placebo groups followed by T2 after 42 days. At T1 and T2, cortical activity was measured at baseline and immediately after stress with cognitive tasks using electro-encephalography (EEG). EEG was recorded at 17 electrode positions and fast Fourier transforms (FFT) determined power at Theta, Alpha-1, Alpha-2, Beta-1 and Beta-2. Statistics were calculated using ANOVA (group × trial × time). The main finding of the study was that chronic supplementation of phosphatidylserine significantly decreases Beta-1 power in right hemispheric frontal brain regions (F8; P < 0.05) before and after induced stress. The results for Beta-1 power in the PS group were connected to a more relaxed state compared to the controls.


A new family of gradient temporal-difference learning algorithms have recently been introduced by Sutton, Maei and others in which function approximation is much more straightforward. In this paper, we introduce the GQ(λ) algorithm which can be seen as extension of that work to a more general setting including eligibility traces and off-policy learning of temporally abstract predictions. These extensions bring us closer to the ultimate goal of this work—the development of a universal prediction learning algorithm suitable for learning experientially grounded knowledge of the world. Eligibility traces are essential to this goal because they bridge the temporal gaps in cause and effect when experience is processed at a temporally fine resolution. Temporally abstract predictions are also essential as the means for representing abstract, higher-level knowledge about courses of action, or options. GQ(λ) can be thought of as an extension of Q-learning. We extend existing convergence results for policy evaluation to this setting and carry out a forward-view/backwardview analysis to derive and prove the validity of the new algorithm. Introduction One of the main challenges in artificial intelligence (AI) is to connect the low-level experience to high-level representations (grounded world knowledge). Low-level experience refers to rich signals received back and forth between the agent and the world. Recent theoretical developments in temporal-difference learning combined with mathematical ideas developed for temporally abstract options, known as intra-option learning, can be used to address this challenge (Sutton, 2009). Intra-option learning (Sutton, Precup, and Singh, 1998) is seen as a potential method for temporalabstraction in reinforcement learning. Intra-option learning is a type of off-policy learning. Off-policy learning refers to learning about a target policy while following another policy, known as behavior policy. Offpolicy learning arises in Q-learning where the target policy is a greedy optimal policy while the behavior policy is exploratory. It is also needed for intra-option learning. Intra-option methods look inside options and allow AI agent to learn about multiple different options simultaneously from a single stream of received data. Option refers to a temporally course of actions with a termination condition. Options are ubiquitous in our everyday life. For example, to go for hiking, we need to consider and evaluate multiple options such as transportation options to the hiking trail. Each option includes a course of primitive actions and only is excited in particular states. The main feature of intra-option learning is its ability to predict the consequences of each option policy without executing it while data is received from a different policy. Temporal difference (TD) methods in reinforcement learning are considered as powerful techniques for prediction problems. In this paper, we consider predictions always in the form of answers to the questions. Questions are like "If of follow this trail, would I see a creek?" The answers to such questions are in the form of a single scalar (value function) that tells us about the expected future consequences given the current state. In general, due to the large number of states, it is not feasible to compute the exact value of each state entry. One of the key features of TD methods is their ability to generalize predictions to states that may not have visited; this is known as function approximation. Recently, Sutton et al. (2009b) and Maei et al. (2009) introduced a new family of gradient TD methods in which function approximation is much more straightforward than conventional methods. Prior to their work, the existing classical TD algorithms (e.g.; TD(λ) and Q-learning) with function approximation could become unstable and diverge (Baird, 1995; Tsitsiklis and Van Roy, 1997). In this paper, we extend their work to a more general setting that includes off-policy learning of temporally abstract predictions and eligibility traces. Temporally abstract predictions are essential for representing higher-level knowledge about the course of actions, or options (Sutton et al., 1998). Eligibility traces bridge between the temporal gaps when experience is processes at a temporally fine resolution. In this paper, we introduce the GQ(λ) algorithm that can be thought of as an extension to Q-learning (Watkins and Dayan, 1989); one of the most popular off-policy learning algorithms in reinforcement learning. Our algorithm incorporates gradient-descent ideas originally developed by Sutton et al. (2009a,b), for option conditional predictions with varying eligibility traces. We extend existing convergence results for policy evaluation to this setting and carry forward-view/backwardview analysis and prove the validity of the new algorithm. The organization of the paper is as follows: First, we describe the problem setting and define our notations. Then we introduce the GQ(λ) algorithm and describe how to use it. In the next sections we provide derivation of the algorithm and carry out analytical analysis on the equivalence of TD forward-view/backward-view. We finish the paper with convergence proof and conclusion section. Notation and background We consider the problem of policy evaluation in finite state-action Markov Decision Process (MDP). Under standard conditions, however, our results can be extended to MDPs with infinite state–action pairs. We use a standard reinforcement learning (RL) framework. In this setting, data is obtained from a continually evolving MDP with states st ∈ S, actions at ∈ A, and rewards rt ∈ <, for t = 1, 2, . . ., with each state and reward as a function of the preceding state and action. Actions are chosen according to the behavior policy b, which is assumed fixed and exciting, b(s, a) > 0,∀s, a. We consider the transition probabilities between state– action pairs, and for simplicity we assume there is a finite number N of state–action pairs. Suppose the agent find itself at time t in a state– action pair st, at. The agent likes its answer at that time to tell something about the future sequence st+1, at+1, . . . , st+k if actions from t + 1 on were taken according to the option until it terminated at time t+k. The option policy is denoted π : S × A → [0, 1] and whose termination condition is denoted β : S → [0, 1]. The answer is always in the form of a single number, and of course we have to be more specific about what we are trying to predict. There are two common cases: 1) we are trying to predict the outcome of the option; we want to know about the expected value of some function of the state at the time the option terminates. We call this function the outcome target function, and denote it z : S → <, 2) we are trying to predict the transient; that is, what happens during the option rather than its end. The most common thing to predict about the transient is the total or discounted reward during the option. We denote the reward function r : S ×A → <. Finally, the answer could conceivably be a mixture of both a transient and an outcome. Here we will present the algorithm for answering questions with both an outcome part z and a transient part r, with the two added together. In the common place where one wants only one of the two, the other is set to zero. Now we can start to state the goal of learning more precisely. In particular, we would like our answer to be equal to the expected value of the outcome target function at termination plus the cumulative sum of the transient reward function along the way: Q(st, at) (1) ≡ E [ rt+1 + γrt+2 + · · ·+ γrt+k + zt+k | π, β ] , where γ ∈ (0, 1] is discount factor and Q(s, a) denotes action value function that evaluates policy π given state-action pair s, a. To simplify the notation, from now on, we drop the superscript π on action values. In many problems the number of state-action pairs is large and therefore it is not feasible to compute the action values for each state-action entry. Therefore, we need to approximate the action values through generalization techniques. Here, we use linear function approximation; that is, the answer to a question is always formed linearly as Qθ(s, a) = θ>φ(s, a) ≈ Q(s, a) for all s ∈ S and a ∈ A, where θ ∈ < is a learned weight vector and φ(s, a) ∈ < indicates a state–action feature vector. The goal is to learn parameter vector θ through a learning method such as TD learning. The above (1) describes the target in a Monte Carlo sense, but of course we want to include the possibility of temporal-difference learning; one of the widely used techniques in reinforcement learning. To do this, we provide an eligibility-trace function λ : S → [0, 1] as described in Sutton and Barto (1998). We let eligibilitytrace function, λ, to vary over different states. In the next section, first we introduce GQ(λ); a general temporal-difference learning algorithm that is stable under off-policy training, and show how to use it. Then in later sections we provide the derivation of the algorithm and convergence proof. The GQ(λ) algorithm In this section we introduce the GQ(λ) algorithm for off-policy learning about the outcomes and transients of options, in other words, intra-option GQ(λ) for learning the answer to a question chosen from a wide (possibly universal) class of option-conditional predictive questions. To specify the question one provides four functions: π and β, for the option, and z and r, for the target functions. To specify how the answers will be formed one provides their functional form (here in linear form), the feature vectors φ(s, a) for all state–action pairs, and the eligibility-trace function λ. The discount factor γ can be taken to be 1, and thus ignored; the same effect as discounting can be achieved through the choice of β. Now, we specify the GQ(λ) algorithm as follows: The weight vector θ ∈ < is initialized arbitrarily. The secondary weight vector w ∈ < is init


AbstractAn in-vivo screening test utilizing isolated rat intestinal segments has been used successfully in comparing absorption of low aqueous soluble drugs administered in the form of aqueous suspensions. The results of attempting to manipulate the absorption of these drugs by reducing the particle size either through milling or by using the drug in the form of a melt or coprecipitate is discussed. Attention is also given to the reliability, precision and accuracy of such a method.


By means of column and thin-layer chromatography, the author investigated tit presence of various carotenoids in stems of 3 species of the Sphagnum genus. Apocarotenals (β-apo-2', β-apo-10' -carotenal and apo-12' -violaxanthal) and the following carotenoids were found: α-, β-, ;-carotene, β-cryptoxantin, lutein, lutein epoxide, zeaxanthin, adonixanthin, antheroxanthin, rhodoxanthin, rubixanthin, neoxanthin, vio-laxanthin and mutatoxanthin. The total content of carotenoids ranged from 11.954 to 41.579 mg•g -1 dry weight.


Since the XIX century women in the Anglican tradition has taken a leading role not only in the traditional role of mothers and wives, but in the active government of the Church. Moreover, now women priests are almost a rule in the Anglican Churches instead women bishops are on the rise also in the Church of England. This paper provides an overview of the position of women in the Anglican perspective, especially in the Church of England


SUMMARY A total of 18 colonies of Polistes foederatus (Kohl) (Hymenoptera Vespidae) were observed in the laboratory throughout a seasonal cycle. Adults and brood were subjected to the following nocturnal temperature: group A (females 5 °C, brood 5 °C), group B (females 5 °C, brood 25 °C), group C (females 25 °C, brood 5°C) and group D (females 25 °C, brood 25 °C). During the day all the groups were kept at the same temperature (25 °C). Thus we obtained the effect of high and low nocturnal temperatures on adults and brood. Temperature did not seem to influence colony productivity, neither in females remaining with nor separated from the brood at night, but did affect (as was expected) the speed of larval and pupal development. High nocturnal temperatures and the absence of strong thermal variations apparently favour the survival of male eggs. Exposure of the nurses to varying nocturnal temperatures did not influence the production of females «workers» and «non-workers». Under laboratory conditions, low tem...


Lightning in the solar nebula is considered to be one of the probable sources for producing the chondrules that are found in meteorites. Gamma‐ray bursts (GRBs) provide a large flux of γ‐rays that Compton scatter and create a charge separation in the gas because the electrons are displaced from the positive ions. The electric field easily exceeds the breakdown value off ≈ 1 V m−1 over distances of order 0.1 AU. The energy in a giant lightning discharge exceeds a terrestrial lightning flash by a factor of ∼ 1012. The predicted post‐burst emission of γ‐rays from a burst lasts for days and is more probable than the GRB because the radiation is beamed into a larger solid angle. The total amount of chondrules produced is in reasonable agreement with the observations of meteorites. Furthermore in the case of GRBs most chondrules were produced in a few major melting events by nearby GRBs and lightning occurred at effectively the same time over the whole nebula, and provide accurate time markers to the formation ...


In this study, the structural, dielectric and piezoelectric properties of Pb[(Ni/sub 1/3/Nb/sub 2/3/)/sub x/ - (Mn/sub 1/3/Nb/sub 2/3/)/sub 0.09-x/ (Zr/sub 0.505/Ti/sub 0.495/)/sub 0.91/]O/sub 3/ (x = 0, 0.01, 0.02, 0.03, 0.04, 0.05) system ceramics were investigated to develop the composition for piezoelectric transformers. All the specimens were sintered at 1250/spl deg/C and their physical properties were measured, and the results are as follows; With increasing PNN substitution for PMN-PZT system, the dielectric constant was increased and the electro-mechanical coupling factor (kp) was increased to 0.62 at 5 mol% while the mechanical quality factor (Qm) decreased.


The role bacteria play in transferring organic carbon to other trophic levels in aquatic ecosystems depends on the efficiency with which they convert dissolved organic (/sup 14/C)-labelled carbon into bacterial biomass and on the ability of consumers to graze bacteria. The authors have measured the conversion efficiency for bacteria growing on macrophyte-derived dissolved organic carbon and estimated the amount of bacterial production removed by grazing. Bacteria converted this DOC into new tissue with an efficiency of 53%, substantially higher than the apparent conversion efficiency of macrophyte-derived particulate organic carbon or other types of DOC. Two estimates of grazing indicate that the decline in bacterial numbers after the bloom was probably due to grazing by flagellates. These results show the significance of the bacterial link between DOC and other trophic levels.


The introductory part of the article is dedicated to Milovan Gavazzi, to the ethnology he was promoting and to its meaning and importance for the ethnology oftoday. The occurrence ofstadel, a particular wedding honoured attendant, in the Croatian heritage could not be overlooked in the scientific opus ofM. Gavazzi. After a short survey of his contribution to the research of the origin of the stadel, as well as to the latest research in the early nineties, the article is introducing the elements of the Bunjevci wedding customs which might have been formed according to certain indicators in contact with the Balkan Romance speaking population. More though research of each particular element may bring more light to the origins of at least one part of the cultural heritage of all the Bunjevci branches, as well as to the processes of their ethnogenesis.


In this article the author studies a new witness (Vaticanus gr. 1825) of Hesiod's Theogony that has been overlooked by recent editors of Hesiod's poems. It is a reliable testimony that should be preferred over one of its apographa, Laurentianus Conv. Soppr. 15, frequently quoted in West's edition.


BOADICEA, implemented in the CanRisk tool (www.canrisk.org) can be used to calculate future breast cancer risk using data on cancer family history, genetics (rare high- or moderate-risk pathogenic variants; polygenic scores (PGS)), questionnaire-based risk factors and mammographic density (MD) measured using the BI-RADS classification. The BI-RADS categorization requires manual reading which is not feasible at population level. Moreover, BI-RADS captures MD in 4 categories, whereas continuous measures are stronger risk predictors. Here, BOADICEA was extended to incorporate continuous breast density measured by the fully automated Volpara and STRATUS software, working on raw and processed images, respectively. We used data from the KARMA prospective screening cohort (60,276 participants; 1,167 incident breast cancers). The associations between Volpara or STRATUS density measurements and incident breast cancer risk were estimated in a randomly selected training subset consisting of two-thirds of the full dataset. For this, we calculated density residuals after regressing on participant's age at mammography. Hazard ratios (HR) for the normalized residuals were calculated using a Cox proportional hazards model, adjusting for family history, BMI and all risk factors included in BOADICEA. Multiple Imputation by Chained Equations (MICE) was used to impute missing data. The remaining one-third of the KARMA cohort was used to assess the performance of BOADICEA in predicting 5-year risks, after including the estimated Volpara and STRATUS associations.Under the best fitting multivariable model including PGS, the HRs per SD of residual STRATUS density were estimated to be 1.67 (95%CI: 1.44-1.93) and 1.38 (95%CI: 1.26-1.51) for pre- and post-menopausal women, respectively. The HR estimates per SD of residual Volpara density were 1.38 (95%CI: 1.19-1.59) and 1.39 (95%CI: 1.27-1.52) for pre- and post-menopausal women, respectively. After incorporating these associations in BOADICEA, there was a marked improvement in the model discriminatory ability in the test dataset, compared to using the BI-RADS classification. The largest increase in AUC was observed for STRATUS residual density, with a 3% increase compared to using BI-RADS vs a 1.6% increase in AUC when using Volpara residual density. These increases were consistent across BOADICEA models considering different combinations of risk factors, including PGS.Including continuous breast density in BOADICEA can lead to improved breast cancer risk stratification and could allow for automated measures of MD to be more readily deployed in breast cancer risk prediction. Additional prospective studies are required to further validate the findings. The models will be implemented in the CanRisk tool.
 Citation Format: Lorenzo Ficorella, Mikael Eriksson, Kamila Czene, Goska Leslie, Xin Yang, Tim J. Carver, Douglas F. Easton, Per F. Hall, Antonis C. Antoniou. Incorporating continuous mammographic density into the BOADICEA breast cancer risk prediction model. [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the American Association for Cancer Research Annual Meeting 2023; Part 1 (Regular and Invited Abstracts); 2023 Apr 14-19; Orlando, FL. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2023;83(7_Suppl):Abstract nr 4174.


: This study was carried out in the water intake unit of a marine aquarium established in Konyaaltı, Antalya Bay, between 2018-2019. The facility was built in 2012. Located perpendicular to the shore, extending up to 300 m in the sea and up to a depth of 23 m, this unit acts as an artificial reef in the sea. In this study, species were determined by non-abrasive underwater observation and photographing, and the living creatures in that area were identified without being killed. During the observations, Nile Soft-shelled Tortle ( Trionyx triunguis ), which is a freshwater turtle and can survive in the sea, Loggerhead Seaturtle ( Caretta caretta ) and Green Seaturtle ( Chelonia mydas ) from sea turtles were observed. In this study, it is one of the marine ringed worms, known as bearded Fire worm ( Hermodice carunculata ) and calcareous tubeworm ( Serpula vermicularis ); Orenge vented sponge (Spirastrella cunctatrix


can imagine few honors greater than a facing page to Douglas Engelbart's; he is one of the great men of our century and I love him dearly. Like Doug I have had a unified vision, of which today's popular attainments are only centerless shadows of the edge. But I have till now had little basis for conversation with the computer mainstream. Coining words has hardly helped (e.g., hyper-text, hypermedia, transclusion). Let me begin again, for few have understood. After college, wishing to work alone as rogue philosopher and film-maker, I was troubled about distribution for self-publishing and how to manage notes and threads for many projects. Then I took a computer course. Philosophically, I saw that the computer was a clockwork of arbitrary abstractions designable any which way; cinematically, I saw it would become the theater of all media turned interactive. These two angles fused into a stereo perspective pointing far beyond. What would be the best underlying abstractions for this ultimate union and generalization of literature and movies? Personally, I wanted a system for massively parallel creative work and study; more grandly, I sought to design the rightful literature and art canvas of the future, creating a technical, legal and commercial basis for a worldwide populist and participatory electronic literature of freely weaving screen transmedia—republishable and quotable without restriction—to the betterment of human understanding and freedom of expression and access [2]. What better dream at 23? And still a good idea. By the end of 1960 I had a design paradigm centering around deep intercomparison. The resulting system design (called since 1967 " Xanadu " TM) has always been a unified scalable concept, both for personal work environments Figure 1. Deep Inter-comparison Viewing— Transclusion through Zipper Lists: Zipper lists are a data structure and viewing method for multithreaded items. Figure 1a shows item A's logical existence in three contexts. The user would view this as 1b's equivalent zipper lists, with equality-bands indicating item A's transclusion (virtual presence) in the three contexts side-by-side. A item A virtually in three places (transclusion) A A A Book Smith Thurs.


This study investigates whether and how customer concentration in supply chains affects suppliers' incentive to engage in real earnings management. Building on the recent debate over the collaboration hypothesis and the rent extraction hypothesis, we show that with concentrated major customers, suppliers are more likely to engage in real earnings management, resulting in higher current and future profitability. Further analysis reveals that capital markets may unravel the positive effect of real earnings management on supplier profitability: stock return is significantly negative for suppliers who take more real earnings management as a result of customer concentration. Our results are robust to alternative measures of customer concentration and real earnings management and to the instrumental variable approach. Collectively, our empirical evidence supports the rent extraction hypothesis, suggesting that the positive association between customer concentration and supplier profitability may partially be driven by real earnings management.


Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is a heterogenous chronic disorder causing hypoxemia,
excessive daytime sleepiness, non-refreshing sleep, nocturia, morning headache, irritability, and
memory loss. Cardiovascular disease, cognitive impairment, metabolic disorders, and depression
are its long-term consequences. The difficulty in treating patients is due to poor compliance, failure
to obtain the desired outcome, and complication arising from the multimodality treatment. Direct
targeted therapy may overcome these issues. Identification of its phenotypes improves understanding
of the disease mechanism, the risk for adverse effects, and predicting response to targeted therapy.
Phenotyping of OSA allows treating patients according to their inherent disease and not based
on a "one size fits all" method, which may not be applicable for all patients. This approach may improve
patients' compliance with treatment, minimize the associated morbidities, and consequently
improve their quality of life.


Using simultaneous photoplethysmogram (PPG) and pulse transducer signals from the same finger, a high correlation (Mean: 98.6, STD: 1) is obtained between the AC part of the PPG and estimated volume changes (after normalization). These results point to the fact that in the resting fingertip, PPG signal variations are only due to volume changes and that blood density does not change thus has no contribution.


Capacitor motors (CRMs) are widely used to drive industrial equipment and home electric appliances. Recently, reduction of the vibration and noise of CRMs has become increasingly important from the standpoint of environmental improvement. However, electromagnetic vibration of CRMs under load has not been sufficiently analyzed. The present paper theoretically and experimentally discusses the causes and characteristics of CRM electromagnetic vibration under load. The primary conclusions are as follows: (1) The general formula for the dominant electromagnetic vibration caused by electromagnetic force waves was derived, including the influences not only of a backward magnetic field but also of magnetic saturation. (2) The dominant electromagnetic vibration of CRMs is theoretically attributed to three types of electromagnetic force waves. Two types of electromagnetic force wave are generated by the interaction of two forward magnetic fluxes, such as those of a three‐phase squirrel‐cage induction motor, and the other type of electromagnetic force wave is generated under the influence of a backward magnetic flux. (3) The characteristics of the dominant electromagnetic vibration depending on the load and the running capacitance are subdivided theoretically and experimentally into three types based on the characteristics of the electromagnetic force wave and the equivalent circuit current. (4) The influences of magnetic saturation in dominant electromagnetic vibration have been verified experimentally and their causes have been clarified theoretically in relation to electromagnetic force waves. © 2005 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Electr Eng Jpn, 153(4): 68–76, 2005; Published online in Wiley InterScience (www.interscience.wiley.com). DOI 10.1002/eej.20129


The Chinese ancient hanyong(涵泳)focuses on establishing the esthetic relations between the receiver and the text,it requests the receiver to look over the text personally and to comprehend the text thoroughly.The close reading of western new criticism emphasizes the independent sufficiency of the text,it requests the receiver to grasp the text scientifically and to explain the text through the speech analysis.Hanyong and close reading emphasize that the receiver should read the text repeatedly and carefully superficially they are extremely similar,but actually have intrinsic differences.


BiFeO3 (BFO) films were prepared by nebulized spray pyrolysis technique on a single crystal LaAlO3 (001) substrate at ∼300 °C and annealing in oxygen at ∼550 °C for 1 h. In all films BFO is the majority phase having a rhombohedrally distorted structure with R3m symmetry and lattice parameters are a=3.96 A and α=89.7°. Atomic force microscopy reveals smooth and dense surface morphology. Despite the G-type antiferromagnetic spin structure of BFO the present BFO show well-defined M-H loops and unexpected ferromagnetism as evidenced by large saturation magnetization, ∼125 emu/cc. The origin of anomalous ferromagnetism in the present films has been traced to the presence of nanometric Fe2O3 embedded in the BFO matrix.


Aim at direction of oil circuit of hydraulic pump computer aided test system,take integration design to installation of electromagnetic relief valve and cartridge uni-directional valve,mostly,design the size,oil way hole,material,accuracy parameter.Decrease pipeline link in the hydraulic pump test system,improve integration degree,easy to system maintenance and management.


This paper deals with a new fabricated equipment to investigate a possibility of noncontact power feeding under a high speed relative motion with. First, we designed magnetic resonant type transmitting and receiving antennas and confirmed the transmission efficiency of paired antennas. Moreover, we clarified the effects of adjacent transmitting antennas on transmission efficiency from both static experiment and calculation with equivalent circuit. In the paper, we have demonstrated that the transmitting efficiency does not fall down even when the rotor having eight transmission antennas rotates up to a peripheral velocity of 72 km/h.


This research explores the forms of politeness strategies in utterances of Otto Hasibuan in Judge Session of Mirna's case. The research method of this research uses descriptive qualitative method. The subject of the research is Otto Hasibuan's utterances in Judge Session of Mirna's case. Furthermore, this research uses the Otto Hasibuan's utterances containing politeness strategies. In collecting the data, the researcher uses noting and transcribing technique. Then, the data analyzing of this research are categorizing, data classifying, and data analyzing. The researcher watched the Judge Session, wrote down the script, translated the script, identified the Otto's utterances, classified the script based on the forms of politeness strategies, then analyzed the data. In analyzing the data, it shows that the politeness forms used by Otto Hasibuan have ten typical speech acts: warning, asking (for permission), questioning, requesting, suggesting, agreeing, informing, criticizing, respecting, and thanking , which are categorized into five maxims: tact maxim, agreement maxims, opinion-reticence maxim, approbation maxim , and obligation maxim .


Records the 1914 expedition of Kingdon-Ward, the famed plant-collector and explorer, along the eastern branch of Burma's great Irrawaddy River. A classic travel and botany account, told in the author's inimitable style, with much vivid description of both the populace and flora of this still remote region. This book records the 1914 expedition of Kingdon-Ward, the famed plant-collector and explorer, along the eastern branch of the Burma's great Irrawaddy River. A classic travel and botany account, told in the author's inimitable style, with much vivid


Objective
To investigate the expression and activity of thyroid stimulating hormone receptor (TSHR) in human microvascular endothelial cells(HMEC-1).

Methods
Culture HMEC-1 cells in vitro and detected TSHR mRNA by reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction(RT-PCR). The cells were seeded on the six-well plate and divided into blank control group, low dose group, middle dose group and high dose group.The blank control group was cultured with basal medium without thyroid stimulating hormone(TSH). The low dose group, middle dose group and high dose group were given 0.10 U/L, 1.00 U/L, 10.00 U/L TSH intervention, respectively, and after 24 h, the intracellular cyclic adenosine monophosphate(cAMP) content was measured by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) to study whether TSHR on HMEC-1 was active.Significant test was analysed by one-way anova, and LSD-t was used on amparion among groups.

Results
RT-PCR results showed that HMEC-1 expressed TSHR mRNA.ELISA results showed that the expression of cAMP increased in HMEC-1 stimulated by TSH, there was significant difference between low dose group and blank control group [(5.23±0.86)mmol/L, (1.77±0.25)mmol/L, t=3.47, P<0.01], and this effect was dose-dependent (F=92.36, P<0.01).

Conclusion
TSHR is present in HMEC-1, and the receptor may interact specifically with TSH.

Key words:
Receptors, thyrotropin; Microvessels; Endothelial cells


Background: The purpose of this study was to investigate (1) the association among anthropometric measurements, cardiopulmonary fitness, liver enzymes and inflammatory markers including vaspin levels among male adolescents, and (2) the effects of a 12 week aerobic exercise training on insulin resistance, liver enzymes and inflammatory markers including vaspin levels among obese male adolescents were also studied. Methods: We compared anthropometric and metabolic parameters between thirty obese (BMI ≧ 25) and fifteen lean (BMI < 23) male high school students (17.0 ± 0.1 y). Obese male subjects were randomly assigned to either exercise intervention group (OIG, n = 18) or control group (OCG, n = 12). OIG participated in aerobic exercise (5 days/wk) for 12 weeks, while the OCG participated only in regular physical education class. Results: Partial correlation coefficient analysis showed no association between vaspin levels and metabolic parameters including insulin resistance. However, vaspin levels have significantly correlated with intima-media thickness (IMT). Parameters which were significantly associated with insulin resistance were gamma- glutamyltransferase (GGT) and VO2max, while adiponectin levels showed significant association with VO2max and fasting insulin levels. Twelve weeks of exercise training significantly improved insulin resistance with concurrent improvement in adiponectin and GGT without affecting the vaspin levels. Conclusion: Our findings suggest that 12 week of aerobic exercise training significantly improved insulin resistance and metabolic parameters. However, it did not affecting the plasma vaspin levels.


Evidence supporting the implementation of novel surgical devices is unstandardized, despite recommendations for assessing novel innovations. This study aimed to determine the proportion of novel implantable devices used in gastrointestinal surgery that are supported by evidence from RCTs.


This paper considers a rate-based congestion control framework which makes use of traffic estimation and feedback information for dynamic access regulation in high-speed network interconnection. A Markovian fluid-flow model is used to characterize the rate-based control mechanism. The approximate analysis provides a manageable tool for dimensioning the network and control parameters. Simulation results are used as a frame of reference for assessing the accuracy of the approximate analysis.


ii Chapter 1: Introduction 1 Chapter 2: The Question Concerning Heidegger's Ethics 20 Premodern Ethics 29 The Fragmentary Ethos of the Enlightenment 52 The Question of Heidegger's Ethics 69 Chapter 3: Heidegger's Destruction of Modern Moral Philosophy 78 Heidegger's "Violent" Interpretation of Aristotle's Ethics 83 Critiques of Heidegger's Supposed Radical Individualism 108 Critiques of Heidegger's Supposed Nihilism 129 Concluding Remarks on the Supposed Moral Bankruptcy of Heidegger's 'Ethics' ......144 Chapter 4: How Heidegger's Vision of Ethics Hears the Callings of an Ethos 147 Heidegger's Anti-Individualism 156 Authentic Historicity and Ethical Relativism 179 Authenticity as a Call for an Ethical Transformation 205 Chapter 5: Heidegger's Ethics is First Philosophy 210 Heidegger's Rejection of the Is-Ought Distinction 219 The Virtues of Heidegger's Post-Humanist Ethics 228 Critical Assessment of Heidegger's Ethics 242 References 248


Abstract : We have successfully Ag-photodoped As2S3 using photographic Ag derived from evaporated AgBr. The use of evaporated AgBr has resulted in a 1000-fold increase in speed. We have shown that evaporated AgBr has very high sensitivity in the deep UV (50 microJ/sq cm at 2600 Angstroms), at soft x-ray wavelengths (5 microJ/sq cm at 7 Angstrom) and confirmed the previously observed e-beam sensitivity of 10 to the minus 9th power coulombs/sq cm. We have shown the feasibility of using evaporated AgBr as the photon sensitive layer of a multi-year photoresist system for sub-micron lithography. (Author)


We investigate the optical transmission of a tilted plane Fabry–Perot cavity leading to spatial cavity ringdown, the exponentially decaying intensity output present along the transverse spatial coordinate. Primary features of the spatial cavity ringdown are theoretically predicted from the spectral and spatial cavity transfer function which is derived analytically on the combined basis of ray optics and diffraction theory applied to an ideal diffraction lossless cavity of one transverse dimension. Spatial frequency filtration by a narrow Lorentzian-shaped cavity resonance is shown to play key roles on the spatial aspects of transmitted beam profiles. Our theoretical formulation is further extended to the case of wedged plane Fabry–Perot cavities. The experimental observation of spatial cavity ringdown signals exhibits an excellent agreement with the theoretical prediction.


To improve the flow rate of well is of importance to in-situ leaching of uranium in low permeable deposits.Some methods of enhancing the flow rate of well are presented by analyzing the cha-racteristics of low permeable uranium deposits and the factors influencing the flow rate of well.By(using) these methods,the flow rate of well in No.3 deposit of Yining Uranium Mine almost increases by a factor of two,and that of well in a deposit,Yunnan,increases by a factor of five.


As with any collection of essays, one can always question why certain topics have not been included. This work is no exception: for example, one might have expected something on fisheries or ship building, both important industries in which fortunes have been made and lost and factories left derelict. The various essays illustrate that this region has not benefited from economic growth or new investment in the twentieth century. Slow growth-rates forced many to leave because they could not find work in the region. Ken Cruikshank's paper on the Intercolonial Railway describes in detail how freight rates worked against the region, at the same time benefiting shippers in central Canada. Marilyn Gerriets, in her interesting paper on the Nova Scotia coal industry, points out that Nova Scotia-produced coal was cheaper in American port cities than in Nova Scotia. Gerriets argues that a government policy which was pro-ownership rather than pro-consumer, assisted in this price discrepancy. One of the strongest papers in the entire collection is Ernest R. Forbes's ' 'Cutting the Pie into Smaller Pieces: Matching Grants and Relief in the Maritime Provinces During the 1930s." As Forbes points out, "The Maritimes in the 1930s was for many a grim place to live." He describes how the three provincial governments were slow to adopt social programmes and tried to avoid responsibility for such programmes. The gap between the "comfortables" and the poor was not seen as an important issue for the societal and ruling elite. However, he goes on to point out that much of the reason for this distressing picture was the policy of the federal government. That government, in an effort to be fair to all provinces, produced a system of matching grants. Such a policy would have been acceptable if all the provinces had had the same wealth; however, the Maritimes could not raise the funds to pay their share. From 1930 to 1939 the Maritimes only received 3.3 per cent ($463,677,018) of the aid paid out by Ottawa. In 1935 in six provinces the average amount of relief paid out from January to May by the three levels of government was $6.18, in the Maritimes it was $2.84. As Forbes illustrates, the federal government, because of the matching grant formula, became an agent in the development of regional disparity in the Maritimes. This material is important when one tries to come to grips with the current economic issues in the region. Inadequate public policy, as many of these papers illustrate, lies at the bottom of the region's economic plight. The editor does an acceptable job of pulling the papers together in his rather brief introduction, which is an integral part of the work. However, it is unfortunate that Inwood did not include any of the discussion from the 1990 Halifax conference, for many of the papers contain controversial material, and it would have been helpful to see how others reacted to the views put forth by the authors.


Faced with increasingly severe pressure on water resources, virtual water and virtual water trade theory provide a feasible solution to improve global water use efficiency for agricultural product and to alleviate the pressure on water resources in water-scarce countries or regions. However, virtual water strategy has not been considered in domestic inter-regional agriculture products trade of China. In this research, we will create scenarios, from two aspects of economy and the allocation and utilization of water resources, to study the impact of virtual water strategy on domestic inter-regional agriculture products trade of China. Two kinds of scenarios will be created. One kind of scenarios does not consider the virtual water strategy, which only consider the economic revenue - net social revenue maximization scenario. The other kind of scenarios considers the virtual water strategy - water resource balance scenario. And we will research the impact of virtual water strategy will be made on domestic interregional agriculture productions trade of China. The result shows that virtual water strategy could make advantage impact on the allocation and utilization of water resources by domestic inter-regional agriculture products trade of China. But domestic inter-regional agricultural products virtual water trade of China considered the virtual water strategy would cause great negative impact on net social revenue.


The small molecule Quinacrine (QC, a derivative of 9‐aminoacridine), an anti‐malaria drug, displays activity against cancer cell lines and can simultaneously suppress nuclear factor‐κB (NF‐κB) and activate p53 signaling. In this study, we investigated the anticancer mechanism underlying these drug activities in breast cancer cell lines. QC caused a dose‐dependent decrease of both anchorage dependent and independent growth of breast cancer cells (MCF‐7 and MDA‐MB‐231) without affecting normal breast epithelial cells (MCF‐10A), as evident from clonogenic cell survival, [3‐(4,5‐dimethylthiazol‐2yl‐)‐2,5‐diphenyl tetrazolium bromide] viability, wound healing and soft agar growth. QC activated the proapoptotic marker Bax, PARP cleavage, p53 and its downstream target, p21 (Cip1/Waf1) and downregulated the antiapoptotic marker Bcl‐xL and relative luciferase activity of NF‐κB in MCF‐7 cells. Results of DAPI nuclear staining and FACS analysis show that QC increased apoptosis in a dose‐dependent manner. QC caused apoptosis by increasing the cell population in S‐phase and simultaneously decreasing the G1 and G2/M populations. A dose‐dependent increase of DNA damage as measured by the comet assay was seen in MCF‐7 cells after exposure to QC. With regards to the mechanism of DNA damage, we found that QC inhibited topoisomerase activity in MCF‐7 cells by increasing the unwinding of supercoiled DNA. Collectively, the results demonstrate that QC has efficient anticancer potential against breast cancer cells via not only an induction of p53 and p21 but also an induction of S phase arrest, DNA damage and inhibition of topoisomerase activity.


We introduce a framework based on Wirtinger calculus for nonlinear complex-valued signal processing such that all computations can be directly carried out in the complex domain. The two main approaches for performing independent component analysis, maximum likelihood, and maximization of non-Gaussianity-which are intimately related to each other-are studied using this framework. The main update rules for the two approaches are derived, their properties and density matching strategies are discussed along with numerical examples to highlight their relationships.


The female narrator in Sara Levi's most recent novel, Vida y peripecias de una buena hija de familia, faces a triple struggle: budget, family, and writing in order to rebuild a world fallen apart with the bringing out of her first novel: Dos mujeres (1990). Disinherited by her father, who was appalled to find out her daughter was a lesbian, the writer must face an uneven battle with her powerful family in order to survive. In exile, she rewrites/translates and publishes her novel, which succeeds in America. Writing allows her to overcome the guilt of abandoning her children, the family breakdown, and poverty, after being part of a wealthy Jewish family. Writing and self-reinvention walk along these "events."


Flowever successful, phylogenetic systematics or cladistics has not yet found a comfortable home within one or another of the currently espoused metatheories of biology. What relevant metatheories are there? Darwinism, neodarwinism, neutralism. panbiogeography, macromutationism, sociobiology, punctuationism, non-equilibrium thermodynamicalism, hierarchicalism, structuralism, and perhaps other candidates come to mind. All candidates offer models, sometimes competing sometimes complementary, of the evolutionary process. With all models cladistics is at odds to one degree or another. Some cladists renounce, or are accused ofrenouncing, evolutionary models in general. Yet cladistics is seen by one or another advocate of a metatheory as contributory to, consistent with, or deducible from the theory as if, within the embrace of the theory, cladistics has its roots and proper place of rest after all. Contributing to the plenitude of these possibilities and conflicts is the historical fact that cladistics, as a discovery procedure, has achieved an identity-one not always held in high esteem, and one about which there is still controversy. Contributing also is the historical fact that cladistics has been preoccupied not with species-level taxa but rather with higher taxa. In its preoccupation cladistics has developed relatively free from entangling controversies about evolutionary models, most of which impinge upon systematics at the species level or at sub-specific levels. Heretofore the species problem, and all that comes with it, has not been a major concern of cladistics. Impetus grows for consideration of the species problem (Ghiselin, l9B7; cracraft, l9B9; Mishler and Budd, l9B9). What has cladistics to offer to this eternal issue? An answer depends upon one's view of cladistics. My view stems from the perception that Hennig's original contributions to systematic theory are the notions of monophyly, polyphyly, and particularly paraphyly. If cladistics has something to offer to the species problem, then the initial question is whether these notions apply to species and, if so, in what way. Everyone could agree that, with further study, a taxon once recognized as a species might be found to be complex-to be in reality a monophyletic, polyphyletic, or paraphyletic assemblage of taxa previously unrecognized, for example Rana pipiens (Hillis, 1988). In this sense everyone could agree that the notions apply to speciis, b,_,t this application might seem trivial. If so, a non-trivial application ultimately would involve the definition of the species category-the species problem. An early review ofthe species problem concluded that "ofdefinitions ofspecies there are as many as there are naturalists'2 (Tremaux, I865; cf. Nelson, I 989); since then there have been more attempts to solve the problem by making more definitions. Recent arguments are that (l ) for science, definitions themselves are ultimately irrelevant, and (2) no universal definition is possible in view of the different sorts of species that are known, e.g. sexual, asexual, hybrid, etc.


This guide supports the Roving Librarian poster session. The Past, Present and Future tabs below refer to roving at Point Loma Nazarene University Ryan Library. Providing a definition and context for the concept


The purpose of this research is to study how the marketing strategy of PT.JNE Express Patumbak Branch was developed and how the marketing strategy of PT.JNE Express Patumbak Branch was implemented. This research is a descriptive field study with a deductive model, conducted through structured and unstructured interviews. In addition to collecting data through observation, data management is carried out through methods of organization, organization, and analysis. This research is a quantitative research. Based on the results of a survey conducted by PT.JNE Express Patumbak Branch on products, prices, locations, promotions, people, physical assets, and strategic processes. The product strategy is assisted by the availability of flexible products such as Yes, Normal, and Economic Status (OK) that are tailored to customer needs. JNE Express has 14 products and services, with prices based on quantity and quality. Packages of socialization, expansion of partnerships, franchising, promotion of law and order training, online advertising and internet marketing, strategies for community empowerment programs (HR for employees), and employee benefits in materials and information. Have a good communication, writing, and information strategy physically, as well as a good process strategy, good communication channels, and good technology-oriented services.
Keywords: marketing strategy, internet marketing, JNE


Type VIII collagen is a short‐chain collagen that is present in increased amounts in atherosclerotic lesions. Although the physiological function of this matrix protein is unclear, recent data suggest an important role in tissue remodeling. Type VIII collagen in the atherosclerotic lesion is mainly derived from smooth muscle cells. We now show that macrophages in the atherosclerotic vessel wall and monocytes in adjacent mural thrombi also express type VIII collagen. We demonstrated this using a novel combined fluorescence technique that simultaneously stains, within the same tissue section, specific RNAs by in situ hybridization and proteins by indirect immunofluorescence. In culture, human monocyte/macrophages expressed type VIII collagen at all time points from1 h to 3 wk after isolation. Western blotting and immunoprecipitation also revealed secretion of type VIII collagen into the medium of 14‐day‐old macrophages. Because this is the first report of secretion of a collagen by macrophages, we tested the effect of lipopolysaccharide (LPS) and interferon γ, substances that stimulate macrophages to secrete lytic enzymes, on macrophage expression of type VIII collagen. LPS and interferon γ decreased expression of type VIII collagen. By contrast, secretion of matrix metalloproteinase 1 (MMP 1) was increased, indicating a switch from a collagen‐producing to a degradative phenotype. Double in situ hybridization studies of expression of type VIII collagen and MMP 1 in human coronary arteries showed that in regions important for plaque stability, the ratio of MMP 1 RNA to macrophage type VIII collagen RNA varies widely, indicating that the transition from one phenotype to the other that we observed in vitro may also occur in vivo.—Weitkamp, B., Cullen, P., Plenz, G., Robenek, H., Rauterberg, J. Human macrophages synthesize type VIII collagen in vitro and in the atherosclerotic plaque. FASEB J. 13, 1445–1457 (1999)


Because of their composition the pseudocereals amarant, buckwheat and quinoa will play a role as an interesting source of food material. The pseudocereals oats harvested in 1993 are investigated for their mineral composition, with respect to potassium, calcium, magnesium and trace elements. Oats belong to the tribe Aveneae and seemed to be more suitable for the comparison with pseudocereals than the tribe Hordeae. Concerning the whole mineral content pseudocereals show clearly higher mineral concentrations than oats. Especially the contents of potassium and magnesium are found much higher in amarant, buckwheat and quinoa than in oats. The lowest of calcium was found in buckwheat. Except of zinc, higher contents of trace elements were generally detected in oats than in buckwheat. The contents of manganese, iron, zinc, nickel and copper are nearly the same in quinoa and oats. Only the iron content of amarant is distinctly higher than that of the other pseudocereals and that of coats. Apart from these comparisons between the different species, effects of varieties and agricultural treatments are discussed.


Significance
 This goal was implicitly a response to the previous three decades of foreign relations under ousted former President Omar al-Bashir, when Sudan struggled under international sanctions, isolation and fluctuating foreign policy fortunes.

 Impacts
 Contrasting foreign policy orientations among political factions may be a source of tension within the power-sharing government.
 Contradictory agreements with other countries will be a liability.
 Foreign investment inflows will remain muted, at least until economic and political uncertainty fades.


In this paper, we present a hybrid coupled FxNLMS feedforward and integral-derivative feedback controller to realize precision positioning and microvibration isolation with a Stewart platform. It is challenging to develop an effective multi-input-multi-output (MIMO) controller for the multi-dimensional positioning and vibration isolation integrated system (PVIIS). Strut nonuniformity may lead to accuracy loss with decoupled control approach. To address this issue, we study the coupled feedforward control approach based on adaptive FxNLMS algorithm. The proposed controller is a MIMO controller whose non-diagonal elements of the transfer function matrix represent the cross-coupling dynamics- the strut nonuniformity can be compensated by those elements. The whole elements in transfer function matrix of the proposed controller are characterized by FIR models. The coefficients of the FIR-based controller are updated by normalized-least-mean-squares (NLMS) algorithm in real-time. To enhance the vibration isolation ability ofthe PVIIS, a integral-derivative feedback controller is further incorporated. Experimental studies show that the positioning accuracies of the coupled feedforward controller are much better than those of the decoupled. With the proposed hybrid controller, the relative positioning errors can maintain under 1.90% even if the PVIIS undergoes the narrow-band and wide-band vibration disturbances.


This research investigates influence of Perceived Organizational Support (POS), organizational commitment (OC), and Organizational Citizenship Behavior (OCB) on employee performance in case at SMA N 5 Bukittinggi. The data obtained through questionnaire. The data were drawn from all 70 teacher at SMA N 5 Bukittinggi. Then the data analyzed by using SPSS 16. In this research there are three variables, those are independent variable which are POS, OC, and OCB. The dependent variable is employee performance. The findings indicated that POS doesn't has significant influence to employee performance and the OC and OCB has significant influence on employee performance of teacher at SMA N 5 Bukittinggi.
Keywords: Perceived Organizational Support (POS, Organizational Commitment (OC), Organizational Citizenship Behavior (OCB), Employee Performance.


Progressive thinking in software design for the last several years has centered on the use of design patterns. As object oriented technologies slowly but surely begin to permeate Automatic Test System (ATS) software, developers are confronted with architectural issues that may be unique to object-oriented designs. Design patterns offer a guideline for implementing robust architectures using proven techniques. This paper presents four well-known design patterns within the context of ATS software implementations. Although ATS software designs are most often fundamentally process oriented, it is indeed possible to use object oriented techniques both for design modeling and implementation.


The authors of the article focus their attention on the question of spirituality as an existential attitude of a person to the sacred mystery of be- ing. The ambivalence of the realm of the sacred is that being transcendental at the same time in the act of Epiphany it manifests itself in a variety of symbolic forms of personal experience. It is argued that spirituality par excellence is transpersonal experience, which communicates the personali- ty with the secret of the sacred as incomprehensible, not intellectually, but through existential involvement. In this intuitive experience of spiritual inspiration, the inexpressible truth of things beyond "facts" and "texts" is revealed to man. Transpersonal experience is constitutive in the process of a person's formation, his humanization. The transcendence of the individual takes place in it, which presupposes a constant movement of self- improvement and self-overcoming, expansion of consciousness. This can be called spiritual initiation through a gradual moral transformation of the personality through symbolic death and resurrection, the purpose of which is the realization of existential fullness and the achievement of happi- ness-bliss. Historical forms of spiritual initiation are analyzed, such as the ancient mysteries and the Christian sacrament of the Eucharist. Particu- lar attention is paid to the analysis of the Platonic understanding of inspiration-madness. It is noted that in the depths of modern secular culture, which is a consequence of the nihilistic attitude towards "disenchanting the world" and moral relativism, nostalgia for the sacred is inevitably born. Heidegger's teaching states that the roots of modern world disengagement, nihilism, and the oblivion of the sacred truth of being should be sought in the very history of being, that is, in objective "ontohistory". At the same time, it depends on the will of man whether he wants to abandon his nihilistic and cynical utilitarian-pragmatic attitude of worldview, and change the mode of existence to a useless "essential" attitude to reality. Nos- talgia for the fullness of life, for a holistic picture of the world, on one hand, and the soulless technocratic and objective nature of modern civiliza- tion, dominated by alienation and impersonality, on another hand, should be a turning point on the way to the main event of ontohistory – the re- venge of the sacred and the return of the "last god".


This study aims to offer a guide of how the agricultural future markets function, and through its knowledge, to be able to use in a precise and effective way for wheat importing. The following topics were analyzed: History of future markets and its formation, organization of future markets, what is coverage and how to use it, what are the options and how to use it, who participate in the market, what is the compensation chamber, what is the base, what is a guarantee deposit, examples are given on how to use future markets when using coverage.


Scale invariant theories which contain maximal rank gauge field strengths (of D indices in D dimensions) are studied. The integration of the equations of motion of these gauge fields leads to the s.s.b. of scale invariance. The cases in study are: i) the spontaneous generation of r − 1 potentials in particle mechanics in a theory that contains only r − 2 potentials in the scale invariant phase, ii) mass generation in scalar field theories, iii) generation of non trivial dilaton potentials in generally covariant theories, iv) spontaneous generation of confining behavior in gauge theories. The possible origin of these models is discussed.


The Australian almond industry desires to improve storage of harvested almonds awaiting processing. The present work quantified some storage-related physical properties of almonds. The sample used in the study was Nonpareil almonds with a kernel moisture content of 4.5% d.b. The mass composition of the sample was 55% hull, 32% kernel and 13% shell. Tests showed that the bulk stored in-shell almonds had only 41% of the volume of in-hull almonds and 45% of the mass. Thus removing hulls before storage would result in saving both storage and subsequent transportation costs. Tests simulating various storage heights of almonds showed that a 10 m storage height of almonds increased the bulk density of in-hull almonds from 320 to 355 kg/m3, of in-shell almonds (hull removed) from 356 to 378 kg/m3, and kernels (hull and shell removed) from 604 to 649 kg/m3. A 10 m storage height of almonds reduced the porosity of in-hull almonds from 67% to 64%, of in-shell almonds from 58% to 55%, and of the kernel from 48% to 44%. Observation showed that the change in bulk density and porosity occurred in an exponential manner with fitted curves that provided R2 between 0.97 and 0.99.
Keywords: almond, storage, bulk density, true density, porosity, kernel, in-hull, in-shell
DOI: 10.3965/j.ijabe.20140705.013

Citation: Zheng D. K., Fielke J. M. Some physical properties of Australian Nonpareil almonds related to bulk storage. Int J Agric & Biol Eng, 2014; 7(5): 116-122.


A possible frequency‐pitch code is one wherein the timing information reflected in the structure of period histograms is information utilized by higher auditory centers in pitch perception. To test this model, period histograms were calculated from the discharges of guinea pig auditory single units in response to two‐tone stimulation, the histograms being synchronized to various combination‐tone frequencies. The list of combination‐tone frequencies at which phase‐locking occurs was compared with the list of those combination tones audible to human listeners. It was found that the response of auditory single units to two‐tone stimulation is synchronous to all combination‐tone frequencies through at least third order. There is no correlation between the combination‐tone frequencies at which phase‐locking is observed and the combination‐tone frequencies that are audible. Thus, if the temporal information reflected in phase‐locked period histograms were utilized in the perception of pitch, certain summation t...


The federal government is creating independnet reporting agencies to collect data about medical errors. AHRQ is seekng public comment on proposed rules.


Abstract: Fungi are cosmopolitan organisms that inhabit almost all ecological niches of the earth and have the ability to utilise various substrates as a consequence of diversity of their biological and biochemical evolution. Fungi, during their development, follow different metabolic pathways that led to production of numerous intermediate and/or end-product compounds called as secondary metabolites. Fungi, filamentous forms, produce a diverse array of secondary metabolites that are small molecules, and not necessary for normal growth or development. Secondary metabolites have a tremendous impact on society; some are exploited for their antibiotic and pharmaceutical activities, others are involved in disease interactions with plants or animals. Most fungal secondary metabolites are synthesised from only a few key precursors in pathways that comprise a relatively small number of reactions and which branch off from primary metabolism at a limited number of points. However, the roles of secondary metabolites in the fungi that produce them are still more or less a mystery.


Objectives : This study was performed to investigate the inhibitory effects of Cheongshimyeonja-tang water extracts(CSYJ) on high fat diet-induced obesity and hyperlipidemia in C57BL/6J mice. Methods : The experimental animals were divided into four groups; normal diet-fed control(ND), high fat diet-fed control(HFD), HFD+CSYJ 150 mg/kg(CSYJ 150), and HFD+CSYJ 300 mg/kg(CSYJ 300). Obesity with hyperlipidemia was induced by feeding high fat diet(40%), and CSYJ was administrated orally into mice every day for 5 weeks. The effect of CSYJ on the serological parameters for Obesity with hyperlipidemia was evaluated. Results : CSYJ-treated groups revealed significantly reduced body weight and feed intake, as well as


On 4 June 1987, the New Zealand Parliament passed the New Zealand Nuclear Free Zone, Disarmament and Arms Control Act by 39 votes to 29. The legislation marked the culmination of a decades-long effort by a disparate group of peace and environmental activists to prevent nuclear weapons from entering New Zealand's territory. More than 30 years later, the law remains in force, it has bipartisan support and it is frequently touted as a key symbol of New Zealand's national identity.


Present work reports the maximum size record of Pterois miles for Turkish Seas with some additional biological information. The greatest individual of P. miles was caught off Çökertme Bight, Bodrum (Southern Aegean Sea) at 10 m depth with a spear gun on 15 July 2021. Captured individual of devil firefish was 34.0 cm in total length and 707.55 g in total weight. Specimen was male with a gonad weight of 13.6 g and it was determined to be 6 years old. A prey fish Chromis chromis were detected in the stomach in definable visible condition. Total length and weight of the mentioned individual are the greatest for the Turkish Seas among the reported studies up to date.


The recent work of Bevir and Rhodes has added momentum to a debate about the role of ideas in political science. This article aims to contribute to the debate by critically analysing a range of (interacting) narratives of local government change under Conservative and New Labour governments. It has a particular, but not exclusive, focus on normative academic commentaries, as these do not represent simply description and interpretation, but a purposeful expression of agency and a deliberate effort to impact upon their object of analysis. I argue that recognising narratives as attempts to impact upon the process and outcomes of change raises issues of power, interest and capacity, and highlights underdeveloped aspects of Bevir and Rhodes' interpretive approach.


The purpose of this fairly nontechnical introduction to uncertainty management is to identify various forms of uncertainty, and to survey methods for managing some of these uncertainties. Our emphasis is on topics that may not be familiar to software engineers or, to a lesser extent, to knowledge engineers. These topics include Bayesian estimation, fuzziness, time Petri nets, rough sets, belief and evidence, and possibility theory. Uncertainty management has been studied in the contexts of information systems and of arti cial intelligence. We attempt to present a balanced view of the contributions from both areas.


According Luciano Berio, in musical listening it is possible to find two elements: the intermediation between sound and image and the manifestation of an otherwise inaccessible and sacred space. But how to justify such intermediation and how to articulate such a manifestation? The notion that can help to elaborate an attempt to answer these questions is that of form, to which Berio dedicated some theoretical essays in the late 1950s and early 1960s, then returning to the subject in the course of subsequent reworkings. Starting from a reconstruction of the meaning of this term in Berio's writings, I will go back to the sources that inspired the composer's reflection (in particular Paul Klee's theoretical writings) and highlight the relationship between sound and image in the experience of a mysterious space opened by music.


Although the scorpion's tail is used as an extremity for hunting, defense, and digging, it is not a modified leg or arm, but an entire body section that has evolved in favor of high mobility. Scorpions have been extremely successful with this strategy for over 400 million years. Rather than being an appendage, the scorpion tail (also called the metasoma) is composed of body segments. The metasoma contains muscles and nerves, as do limbs, but also the terminal portion of the intestines. There are five segments, with the notorious stinger in the fifth segment and the anus in the fourth one. Even though scorpions are one of the best-studied arthropods, little is known of the functional and constructional aspects of their tails. That has changed thanks to an elegant study by Alice Günther, Manfred Drack, Lionel Monod, and Christian Wirkner [1]. Using micro-computed tomography (μCT) and three-dimensional (3D) reconstruction, they presented the first visualization of the connections between metasomal segments. They simulated the movements of the metasomal segments using modern animation software and then tested the movements using 3D prints (Figure 1). After surveying many scorpions representing 16 species, Günther et al. chose to investigate the laboratory-bred adult female Mesobuthus cf. gibbosus in detail. This species has a tail typical of most scorpions. Detailed μCT scans were performed using an X-ray microscope. The first four metasomal segments were described as open frustums (truncated cones) with notches for muscle attachments. The tail is much more flexible and moveable than other body parts. This is facilitated by the hitherto undescribed joint between the last body segment and the first metasomal segment, as well as similar joints between the first four metasomal segments. This newly described articulation has an extensive range of motion in the dorsoventral direction typical of hinge joints, with the additional ability to twist. Functionally, the joint of scorpion tails resembles a hinge joint with two contact surfaces, as one


This community service took place in Rimba Soping Village, Padangsidimpuan District Angkola Julu, Padangsidimpuan City. The implementation method used is counseling methods, and training or mentoring. The approach method used is: a) Counseling about the application of the benefits of fruit and vegetables b) Training and mentoring of Balakka fruit processing. Based on the results of the Community Partnership Program (PKM) activities that have been implemented, conclusions can be drawn, namely:
1) Very positive results are obtained from the partners during the activities
2) The transfer of knowledge and information to partners in an effort to use balakka fruit
3) There is added value (value added) from Balakka fruit
4) The high motivation of KWT Rotama in Balakka fruit innovation
5) Reducing capital constraints in starting a business by utilizing available natural products.


We present a novel mathematical programming model to address a team-oriented worker assignment problem, called the team formation and worker assignment problem (TFWAP). The model establishes a multi-skilled team with high group cohesion to meet cell operational requirements. To this end, we developed a two-stage decision methodology based on an adaptive large neighbourhood search (ALNS) method as a solution approach. The first stage was a team formation problem that maximised workers' skills. The second stage was a worker assignment problem that minimised the total inventory level and variations in the average cell worker's idle time. The performance of the two-stage ALNS method was assessed on ten cell formation benchmarks selected from the literature. The computational results show that the two-stage ALNS method could provide a solution equivalent to the exact method based on the heuristic-based brute force search (HBBFS) for small instances in the team formation stage. Moreover, the two-stage ALNS method outperformed the non-dominated sorting genetic algorithm-II (NSGA-II)-based single-stage decision methodology on all ten cell formation benchmarks in the worker assignment stage. Finally, the two-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) test highlighted the impact of the cell-cohesion requirement on performance when forming a team in a cell.


This book presents an extensive review of the optical- and laser-based techniques that are available for quality control and process monitoring in the industrial production environment. The physical principles of each technique are explained in simple terms, and their applicability to specific industrial needs is discussed on the basis of wide hands-on experience. A large number of practical applications to in-process industrial sensing and metrology are described, and more than onethousand references are included. Topics include on-line surface inspection, 3-D imaging, nondestructive testing, fiber-optic sensors, robot guidance, as well as spectroscopic and light-scattering process analyzers.


~~ metal-metal to ligand charge-transfer transition 'm.m.1.c.t. '[d,* - o(n*)], where d,, arises from the antisymmetric combination of the two platinum dZ2 orbitals and o(n*) from the symmetric combination of n* orbitals of the two L ligands. All the complexes show luminescence in both the solid state and in solution. Both 1 and 2 display ,m.l.c.t. emission in solution at room temperature. The solid-state emission of 1 and both the solid-state and fluid-state emission of 3 are assigned to the 3m.m.l.c.t. 3[(d,*)(o(n*)}] state. The crystal structure of 2 shows an intermolecular n--15 interaction between two L ligands as evidenced by the intermolecular ligand plane separation of 3.35 A. The solid-state emission of 2 is suggested to arise from a n-n: excimeric interaction of the L ligands. The crystal structure of 3 shows discrete [Pt,L2(p-dppm)12 + units with an intramolecular Pt-Pt separation of 3.2703 A. Square-planar d8 transition-metal complexes are known to exhibit metal-metal bonding interaction in the solid state. ' Such interaction between molecules stacked within a chain leads to anisotropic and characteristic spectral properties. Luminescent platinum(1r) complexes such as [Pt(a-diimine)X,] (X = halide or cyanide) and [Pt(a-diimine),12 + have revealed a remarkable variety of low-energy excited states. 24 As suggested by Miskowski and co-workers and other^,^ these include the a-diimine intraligand states of both the monomer (n-n:*) and 'excimer' o*(n:) - o(n*), and oligomer metalmetal to ligand charge-transfer d,,(dzz) --, o(n*) m.m.1.c.t. and monomer ligand-field (1.f.) states. Although this class of adiimine platinum(r1) complexes have intriguing photophysical properties, most often they are not good emitters or even nonemissive in the fluid state. Since square-planar d8 complexes are unstable with respect to a D,, di~tortion,~ this is likely to facilitate non-radiative decay.6 In the course of finding new luminescent metal complexes with co-ordinative unsaturated excited states in solution, we studied complexes of the type [PtL(X)] where L denotes o-C-deprotonated 6-phenyl-2,2'bipyridine. There are several reasons for choosing this system: (1) the ligand shows a strong preference for planar geometry and can therefore be expected to discourage the D,, distortion which promotes radiationless decay; (2) the extended n: system within the ligand and the strong o-donating power of the deprotonated carbon donor would increase the energy difference between the metal-centred d-d state and the metalto-ligand charge-transfer (m.1.c.t.) states. [Cyclometallated platinum(1r) complexes are known to have low-lying m.1.c.t. states with useful photochemical and photophysical properties ']; (3) the ability to vary the X group affords the possibility of having a series of related complexes with tunable photophysical properties. Herein we describe the photophysical properties of platinum(r1) complexes derived from [PtL(X)]. The complex [Pt,L,(p-dppm)12 -+ [dppm = bis(dipheny1phosphino)methane] features an interesting model for study of the absorption and emission properties of cyclometallated platinum(r1) complexes.


The Republic of Turkey in the year of 2015 has gone through the period of critical transformation of its foreign and domestic policies. The main reason for this transformation is the inability of the Justice and Development Party to reach its goals to draft the new constitution and vest the president of the country with new powers. Nevertheless, the authors believe that there are also historic and demographic reasons for this transformation that have been developing for several decades. The basis of this transformation is the destructive foreign policy course pursued by the ruling elites aimed at fomenting crises inside and outside Turkey. The most tangible signs of that are the resumption of hostilities between the Turkish army and PKK and also regular shillings of the positions of Syrian Kurds by Turkish artillery. According to the authorities of Turkey such policy is likely to force the Turkish society and foreign partners to make concessions and give the Justice and Development Party the right to reform the country in its own way. However, such policy also increases the possibility that some internal and external actors will try to make everything possible to overthrow the ruling regime one way or another.


The features of the formation and growth of intermetallic compounds in the production of functionally graded layered steel-aluminum compositions by the arc surfacing process have been revealed. The influence of the intermediate aluminum layer formed by the arc surfacing process on the diffusion zone formation mechanism has been shown.


This paper reviews the form of the Louis Bachelier model for the modern option contract. This enables basic model properties to be analysed and the model's key elements to be defined being the intrinsic value and the instability or option risk premium. Further the paper reviews the option contract value, vis-a-vis the option contract premium or price, and based on this defines certain rational expectations propositions to demonstrate its operation. The purpose is to provide the groundwork for applying this form of option model to other financial questions, briefly addressed in this paper.


Teacher preparation programs have recognized their obligation to provide solutions for the dilemmas their teachers face once in the inclusive educational environment. The changing demands required by both general and special education teachers at the K-12 level are being addressed. One of these solutions is to provide access to technological innovations that help teachers meet the needs of a diverse population, complete the job quickly and efficiently, and have the ability to integrate bets practices into the interface design and lesson content. The study described in this paper was designed to contribute to the field's knowledge of the use of technology to support modifications for students with learning disabilities (LD) and behavioral and/or emotional disorders (EBD) in the general education curriculum. The process and outcomes of 30 teachers in a Special Education Master degree program using a template design system to modify lessons for LD and EBD students in a general curricular subject of science or language art was examined for efficiency, effectiveness, and appeal. Each teacher was instructed in the use of a Web-editing program (Microsoft Front Page) and Teaching-Not-Teaching (T-N-T), a Web-based lesson template. Results indicated the use of a Web-based lesson template increased the potential for special education teachers to effectively support the inclusion of students with LD and/or EBD in the general education curriculum. (Contains 18 references and 6


Waste products problems are the waste of resources and environmental pollution problems that are caused or may be caused by the discarded products in latter consumption phase.They relate to the consumer's behavior of discarding waste products arbitrarily,the producer's production behavior whose products are produced using a lot of resources with the potential possibility of pollution, and the absence of relevant regulations,the improper disposal methods of waste products.However,the fundamental reasons lie in the contradictions between the unlimited growth of product demand for resources,the waste products' potential possibility of pollution and the limited natural resources(that is,the scarcity of natural resources and limited self-purification ability of environment). It has become the key contradiction between human's unlimited demands and nature's limited supply.Simply using "Terminal Control" can not fundamentally solve waste products problems.Against the increasingly serious problems of waste products,the term "Extended Producer Responsibility" was firstly used and defined by Lindhqvist who worked for Lund University in 1988.In 1991,the first EPR regime was established in German Packaging Ordinance,which applied to the packaging EPR regime is a new regime that is recently established by some western developed countries to eliminate environmental impact of waste products such as waste electrical products,waste motor vehicles,and waste packaging and so on.It is created to handle the increasingly serious problems of waste products.Hence,based on the resources demand of products and the potential possibility of pollution,EPR regime requires that producers(including manufacturers and importers) should assume extended producer responsibility of waste product problems.In order to find a "second source" of natural resources,it is required that producers should recover and recycle waste products.In order to establish a "second approach" for pollution control of waste products,it is required that producers should prevent pollution from source and recycle waste products.The balance between the resources demand and the resources supply should be maintained.The waste product emissions mustn't exceed the environmental carrying capacity.Actually it is a series of legal regulations to mitigate the pressure of resources scarcity by creating "artificial ecosystem" and achieving "artificial ecological balance".


This paper concerns identification of uncontrolled or closed loop nonlinear systems using a set of trajectories that are generated by the system in a domain of attraction. The objective is to ensure that the trajectories of the identified systems are close to the trajectories of the real system, as quantified by an error bound that is prescribed a priori. A majority of existing methods for nonlinear system identification rely on techniques such as neural networks, autoregressive moving averages, and spectral decomposition that do not provide systematic approaches to meet pre-defined error bounds. The developed method is based on Carleman linearization-based lifting of the nonlinear system to an infinite dimensional linear system. The linear system is then truncated to a suitable order, computed based on the prescribed error bound, and parameters of the truncated linear system are estimated from data. The effectiveness of the technique is demonstrated by identifying an approximation of the Van der Pol oscillator from data within a prescribed error bound.


Research objective: comparative analysis of distant thermography, Doppler ultrasound and pupillary reactions in patients with primary open-angle glaucoma at various stages of the disease with compensated intraocular pressure. Materials. 129 patients (216 eyes) with diagnosis of POAG at various stages ofthe disease (the main group) have been examined. Intraocular pressure has been normalized with medications, or with medications + laser surgery. The control group has consisted of patients with initial and immature cataract of similar age and sex (30 patients — 52 eyes). All patients have experienced thermal, Doppler study, and a study of pupil response to light. Results. It has been revealed that the temperature ofthe open optic fissure in patients with POAG correlated with hemodynamics in the central retinal artery and short posterior ciliary arteries. It has been also noted the reduction of pupillary reaction in the progression of glaucoma optic neuropathy. Conclusion. Data of distant thermography, Doppler ultrasound and video recording of pupillary reaction are different with various stages of glaucoma process. The investigation allows to use these methods for monitoring of patients with primary open-angle glaucoma


This paper discribes the developmen t of a slip ring of large diameter and many functions.The properties of creative design in gen eral layout,appearance,design and culation,material selection,process technology of the slip ring are discu ssed. Key words:Slip ring of large diameter and many f unction;Slip ring of medium frequen cy signal;Slip ring of pulse signal;Slip ring o f power supply;Slip ring of ordinary singal


(8) tests. Phosphogluconic acid was identified by enzyme assay with 6-phosphogluconic acid dehy-drogenase. Dihydroxyacetone phosphate was identified by its characteristic color in a modified carbazole reac- tion (9). For a more detailed description of the methods used, see Bartlett (9-12).


Abstract The aim of this paper is to represent the dynamics, as well as the coupling, of a gas network through a DAE system, with the intention to model the optimisation of the same network as a LQ game with disturbances. The DAE system is formed by the two Kirchhoff Laws and a discretised hyperbolic model which represents the gas transients in the pipeline. We consider a complex network, i.e. a network with loops and nonpipe elements with some of them being controllable. To conclude, the whole modelling process is illustrated by a simple example network.


Abstract We have adapted a cornmercially available tissue processing cessing material, HistoGel™, for the routine processing of stereotactic brain needle biopsies and transsphenoidal pituitary gland specimens. Both of these specimen types often result in very scant tissue fragments available for diagnosis, even if they are processed in a tissue tea bag or lens paper envelope. Pituitary specimens are often a cloudy suspension in saline that defy macroscopic identification. HistoGel™ is a firm, pink gel at room temperature and a viscous liquid when heated. Needle biopsy cores can be placed in a bubble of viscous HistoGel™ on a flat surface or in a disposable tissue mold, allowed to solidify, and then processed routinely in a plastic cassette. Liquid-based specimens are centrifuged, the pellet layer resuspended in HistoGel™ in a disposable tissue nlold until solid, and then routinely processed. The extra handling, time, and effort that this preparation requires are far outweighed by the remarkable increase in the amount of tissue available for diagnostic evaluation with these irreplaceable diagnostic samples. This application demonstrates the potential that this tissue processing medium has for many diagnostic and research specimens (The J Histotechnol 30:131, 2007). Submitted March 1, 2007; accepted with revisions March 29, 2007.


The paper deals with the optimum design prob- lem posed by George Rozvany: find the lightest fully stressed truss transmitting a given concentrated force to two supports forming a line parallel to the force. One of the supports is a hinge while the second one is a roller. The feasible domain is a square domain over the line link- ing the supports. The problem thus formulated belongs to the class of the three force problem, till now unsolved in general. In the problem stated here two of the three forces are mutually orthogonal. The family of solutions to this problem is parameterized by the coordinates of the point of the force application, hence is a two-parameter family. This seemingly simple problem generates a vast family of extremely interesting solutions, some of them being known, some being only partly resolved, while others turn out to be surprising and not resolved till now. The present paper delivers exact solutions to the optimum designs correspond- ing to the force position being a sufficiently big distance to the line linking the supports. The kinematic and static approaches are used, both leading to the same exact results. Other solutions are constructed numerically by the adaptive ground structure method.


This paper proposed a berth allocation optimization model for random arrival outbound container in container terminals.The optimization model considers the interaction between the layout of allocated containers and trailer traveling routes.The objective function of optimization model minimizes the total travel distance of the trailers with ship berth as decision variable.Based on optimization model,a modified genetic algorithm with heuristic search is developed. Finally,the proposed model and algorithm was simulated and tested through a case study.According to the Comparative analysis of the results of the optimization model and the traditional berth allocation "first come,first served" method,the total trailer traveling distance is shortened by 11.51% when using the optimization model.The results show that reasonable berth allocation and container location assignment can be obtained by using the model and algorithm.Implementing this model will have dramatic impact on container terminal performance and operating costs.The results also prove that the model and algorithm are feasible and effective.


Introduction On 18 July 1998 a treaty was adopted at a diplomatic conference in Rome to create for the first time a permanent international criminal court (ICC).3 This has been on the international agenda since the horrors of the First World War. The UN recognised the need for such a court following the Nuremberg trials of Nazi war criminals before the temporary International Military Tribunal. The end of the Cold War opened the way for the dream to become a reality and momentum for the establishment of the court gathered pace in the face of the tragedies in Rwanda and the former Yugoslavia. The signing of the final treaty was surrounded by controversy and amounted to the most important diplomatic defeat for the USA since it became the world's sole superpower. In the 50 years since the Nuremberg trials, genocide, crimes against humanity and serious war crimes have been committed in many parts of the world. The perpetrators usually escaped justice because there was no court able and willing to hold them accountable. It is hoped that the ICC will provide a universal framework to end such impunity and deter future atrocities. It would offer redress to victims where national courts could not do so and break the cycle of violence, by offering justice as an alternative to revenge. The ICC should also prove to be a tool for reconciliation, by replacing the stigma of collective guilt with the catharsis of individual accountability." In order to achieve these goals it will need to be independent, effective and fair." Some are concerned that the terms of the treaty, combined with the political context in which the ICC must function, mean that the future court cannot succeed in its mission. This article will seek to evaluate the terms of the treaty to see how far these fears are justified.


Mumbai High North field discovered in 1974 has been on production since 1976. The upper part of LIII carbonate sequence comprising of A1, A2-I to A2-VII, B, C & D sub layers form the main reservoir. Water injection commenced in the field in 1984. Being on continuous production for last 32 years, the field is in mature stage of its producing life. The oil production rate from the field was of the order of 130000-bopd during 1982 to 1989. During early and mid nineties the field had entered a crucial decline phase and production level dropped to about 63000-bopd by Dec.1993 due to rise in GOR, injection water break through and closure of some high GOR and high water cut wells. Currently the field is producing about 80000 bopd.The need to adopt advanced drilling and completion technology has been driven by the need for intervention less long term improved well productivity. Complexity of flow and potential gas/water production reduced the sustained productivity from horizontal wells which have no proper annular isolations. Multilateral wells were drilled to improve economics and increase recovery from L-III reservoir. Simple in construction and easy to apply, the Swell packers' technology has been used in Mumbai High effectively to complete multilateral wells with GOC. Swell packers were run on blank and perforated pipe, spaced out across individual zones. These completions has resulted in producing wells with normal GOR and sustained long term productivity. This has resulted in better reservoir management, enhanced production deliverability, and a positive impact on overall North field performance. The oil recovery from Mumbai High North L-III reservoirs has till date been of the order of 22%. It is estimated that with continued adoption of these advanced drilling and completion technologies will help in improving recovery of Mumbai High North field to 32%.


This thesis explores what remains an under-studied aspect of Samuel Johnson's profile as a person and writer – his attitude to social improvement. Confronting past and current critical opinion and adhering closely to Johnson's various writings, the thesis aims to establish the reasons for the failure to identify Johnson's relationship to social concerns during his lifetime. The study also considers the influence of particular moral philosophies on Johnson's approach to social improvement, such as those of Hugo Grotius, Richard Cumberland, Francis Bacon and John Locke. A range of sources include Johnson's essays in the Rambler, Idler and Adventurer, his various reviews in the Literary Magazine and the Gentleman's Magazine, his Diary of his travels in the Midlands and the Tour of the Highlands with Boswell, as well as various texts he wrote for others who were also concerned with social improvement. When Johnson protests against the institutions of his day he seeks to alleviate a tangible evil, such as the wretchedness of prostitutes, the agonies of imprisoned debtors and the destitution suffered by their families and the terrors of those condemned to death, often for some trivial offence. The profiles of Robert Dossie, Robert Chambers, William Chambers and John Gwynne together with those of Saunders Welch and William Dodd are discussed in the context of their interests in agriculture, architecture and the law, respectively. Placing those eighteenth-century figures at the centre of historical enquiry furnishes a richer dimension to the analysis of Johnson's mode of thinking which allows us to respond to his works in a multi-faceted way. The interpretive framework of the thesis is cross-disciplinary and applies ii perspectives from social and cultural history, legal history, architectural history and, of course, English literature. This allows Johnson's writings to be read against the peculiarities of their historical milieu and reveal Johnson in a new light – as an advocate of social improvement for human betterment.