Recent statistics reported in the Digest of Education Statistics (2010, Table 303) show that more women than men earned doctoral degrees. Notably, as shown in the 2008-09 study, of the 67,716 degrees earned, 32,279 were by males and 35,437 were by females. Additionally, of the total degrees males earned there were 17,094 by Whites, 1,484 by Blacks, 1,092 by Hispanics, and 1,770 by Asian/Pacific Islanders. For females there were 22,554 by Whites, 2,950 by Blacks, 1,448 by Hispanics, and 2,105 by Asian/Pacific Islanders. This higher number of doctoral degrees earned by women suggests that they are credentialed for an almost equal number of faculty positions available in academe. An examination of Table 249 (Digest of Education Statistics, 2008) did not reveal a near equal number of males and females in those faculty positions. On the contrary, Table 249 shows that for year 2007 there were 703,463 faculty positions divided among six professorial categories (Professor - often referred to as Full Professor, Associate Professor, Assistant Professor, Instructor, Lecturer, and Other). Overwhelmingly, males (409,115) outpaced females (294,348) in these faculty positions. For the highest faculty rank (Professor - which is associated with a higher salary and access to information that may not be made available to lower ranked faculty), male faculty (127,488) outnumbered their female (45,907) counterparts. A further examination of these statistics shows that of the total (540,460) positions held by White faculty, there were 108,404 males and 39,463 female Professors. Of the total (37,930) Black faculty positions, 3,646 were held by males and 2,193 by female Professors. There were 24,975 total faculty positions held by Hispanics; ofthat number 2,874 were held by males and 1 ,254 by female Professors. There was a total of 53 ,66 1 Asian/Pacific Islanders faculty; ofthat number 1 0,01 8 were held by males and 2,22 1 by female Professors. This lower number of females at the highest ranked level indicates that they are not as privileged in academe as males. This becomes even more disturbing in recognizing that non- White females are a small fraction (total 5,668) of this professorial pool. Authors of articles in this special issue of The Negro Educational Review (NER) questioned why so few non- White females have been promoted and tenured in academe. Guest Editors Dr. Deirdre Cobb-Roberts and Dr. Vonzell Agosto and NER co-managing editor Dr. Shirley Biggs have labored diligently to give voice to issues related to the dismally low numbers of these women in the academy and the challenges they face in their quest to earn tenure and promotion to the highest academic rank. In addition, they direct attention to instances of the many exemplary scholarly and service contributions they make as members of the academy. Dr. Deirdre Cobb-Roberts is an associate professor in the Department of Psychological and Social Foundations at the University of South Florida. Her research focuses on the history of American higher education, teacher preparation, and the role of social justice in culturally responsive and responsible pedagogy. She has co-edited a book and published articles related to this research in the History of Education Quarterly, American Educational Research Journal, Journal of Teacher Education, International Journal of Educational Policy, Research and Practice, and Educational Considerations. Dr. Vonzell Agosto is an assistant professor in the Department of Educational Leadership and Policy Studies at the University of South Florida. Her research focuses on curriculum, pedagogy, and the leadership preparation toward anti-oppressive education. She has presented her research at major conferences including the American Education Research Association, University Council for Educational Administration, Bergamo, and the Critical Race Studies in Education Conference. Dr. Agosto has published in journals such as the Journal of Negro Education, Teacher Education & Practice, and various handbooks. …


Even though Salvia is one of the most known genera of the Lamiaceae family, some traditionally used Salvia species are still now less investigated. To that end, the present study aims to evaluate the chemical profile and the potential bioactivities of extracts and related fractions obtained from the endemic sage Salvia haematodes L. by applying a traditional extraction method such as Soxhlet apparatus (SHS) and the rapid solid–liquid dynamic extraction (RSLDE) by Naviglio extractor® (SHN), considered among the "green techniques" operating at room temperature and with minimum solvent employment and minimum energy. Acetylcholinesterase (AChE) and butyrylcholinesterase (BChE) inhibitory activity was measured by a modified Ellman's method. The antioxidant activity was investigated by using 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH), 2,2′-azino-bis (3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulfonic acid) (ABTS), ferric reducing ability power (FRAP), and β-carotene bleaching tests. The SHN methanol fraction resulted the most active in all assays in particular in inhibiting lipid peroxidation with IC50 of 1.7 and 1.6 μg/mL, respectively, after 30 and 60 min of incubation. The SHN n-hexane fraction exhibited a selective activity against AChE with half-maximal inhibitory concentration (IC50) of 22.9 μg/mL, while the SHS n-hexane extract was more active against BChE (IC50 of 30.9 μg/mL). Based on these results, these fractions were subjected to further bio-fractionation by Medium Pressure Liquid Chromatography (MPLC) and the relative obtained fractions were investigated for their AChE and BChE inhibitory activity. A comparative analysis with bio-activity and chemical profile was performed. The observed biological effects provided us with a good starting point for further studies on S. haematodes extracts and fractions such as agents beneficial for the treatment of AD.


Lichen myxedematosus (papular mucinosus) is a relatively uncommon disease. Since Dalton presented the first American case of lichen myxedematosus at the Dermatological Conference of the Mississippi Valley and Central States Dermatological Association on Feb. 9, 1941, 1 a few additional cases were reported in the American literature. 2,3 In the European literature one encounters but rarely studies on lichen myxedematosus. 4-7 Hence, the report of an additional case of lichen myxedematosus observed by us in the summer of 1957 is deemed worthy of publication. Report of Case A 55-year-old white widow whose occupation was that of office cleaning developed a skin eruption on the dorsa of the hands and wrists in the fall of 1956. The eruption then spread to involve the skin of the forearms, arms, thighs, knees, and sternum. The affected regions then became coarse, rough, thickened, and red. She complained of persistent


The study proposed an electronic journal retrieval model to be used to improve the retrieval efficiency of e-journals. To do this, firstly, we reviewed the literature on users` information behavior and on ERM (Electronic Resource Management) systems. Secondly, we conducted an e-mail survey of 96 participants (professors and graduate students) to find out about their information behavior on how to access, use and evaluate electronic resources as well as scientific information. Thirdly, we administered case studies on two ERMSs, Ex Libris` Verde and Innovative`s Millennium. The proposed model will be operated within ERM systems and it enables to the supply of both system- and user-based services by combining taxonomy-based ERM systems with tag folksonomy. The model is unique in that it includes not only the automatic tagging functions that can be performed using log files but also the tag management functions including grouping similar or related tags.


Thanks to its duration and boldness, the post-war reconstruction of Mostar, BosniaHerzegovina, will ultimately assume a prominent place in the professional literature alongside Beirut's Solidere project and Warsaw's historic core replication but whether or not the final assessment of its success will be flattering is difficult to surmise. Though extraordinary for its scope, complexity, and symbolism, the efforts that revitalised Mostar's 16 century district in architectural terms were rarely synchronised with parallel rehabilitation programs in the political and social domains. The result is a lop-sided recovery in which a city regained its landmarks most notably a facsimile reconstruction of the renowned Old Bridge without regaining the public institutions that would provide income and reduce communal vulnerability. Making matters worse, only 30% of today's Mostarians lived in the city prior to the conflict. How might the foreign funds that poured into Mostar have been better spent? According to which priorities were the funds expended? Though large flows of free foreign capital entered the city in the decade following the end of hostilities (1995-2004), lack of coordination and control resulted in reconstruction marred by arbitrariness, superficiality, and minimal capacity upgrade.


Diacetyl and 2,3-pentanedione are important constituents of beer sensory properties. A new GC/MS method for diacetyl and 2,3-pentanedione content determination was developed. This method was applied for the determination of diacetyl and 2,3-pentanedione contents during beer fermentation (primary fermentation and maturation). Primary fermentations were carried out at different temperatures (8°C and 14°C). Primary fermentation temperature had a great influence on diacetyl and 2,3-pentanedione formation and reduction. Formation and reduction rates increased with the primary fermentation temperature increasment. Diacetyl and 2,3-pentanedione contents also increased with the corn grits increasment. Fermentations were carried out with Saccharomyces cerevisiae pure culture, specially prepared for each fermentation. This GC/MS method for diacetyl and 2,3-pentanedione determination was valuable for analysing the influence of wort composition or fermentation conditions such as primary fermentation temperature on their formation and reduction.


Lee Seok-Hee and Kang Myoung-Gu (2013) A study on simultaneous centralized and decentralized growth. International Journal of Urban Sciences, 17(1), pp. 56–70. http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/12265934.2013.766503 The authors want to acknowledge the correct presentation of their names as: Seokhee LEE and Myounggu KANG. The authors also want to acknowledge Myounggu KANG as the corresponding author. Email: firstname.lastname@example.com


The stereoselective synthesis of optically active cyclopropylsilanes from various allyl‐ and vinylsilanes with functionalized diazoesters was achieved in excellent yields (up to 99 %) and diastereo‐ (up to >99 : 1 d.r.) and enantioselectivities (up to 99 % ee) in the presence of Ru(II)‐Pheox catalysts. Among a series of Ru(II)‐Pheox catalysts, p‐MeO−Ru(II)‐Pheox was determined to be the best catalyst for cyclopropanation reactions of diazoesters with various allylsilanes. Also, methyl(diazoacetoxy)acetate afforded in significantly enhanced yields, diastereoselectivities, and enantioselectivities. The cyclopropanation reactions with vinylsilanes with methyl (diazoacetoxy)acetate proceeded with excellent diastereoselectivities (>99 : 1 d.r.). Moreover, cyclopropylsilane derivatives could be successfully transformed into beneficial building blocks for the synthesis of bioactive compounds, including an anti‐HIV drug and Imatinib‐7.


Hyptis suaveolens is one of the aromatic plants credited for substantial medicinal values in the tropics with three chemotypes previously reported in Nigeria. This study provided biological and chemical evidence for a new chemotype of Hyptis suaveolens in Lagos. Hydrodistillation of the dried leaves of the plant produced volatile oil with a yield of 0.31% and subsequent analyses by GC-MS identified 28 volatile compounds that accounted for 99.1% of the total oil composition. Although the oil was monoterpenoid dominated and has comparable levels of sabinene (25.8 vs. 13.2-30.1%), a-thujene (1.1 vs. 0.9-1.2%), and 4-terpineol (8.4-9.8 vs. 11.4%), it elicited a moderate level of "-pinene (4.7 vs. 1.8-13.6), higher levels of $-pinene (9.7 vs. 0-4.4%), limonene (2.3 vs. 0-0.8%), 1,8-cineole (4.8 vs. 0-1.2%), (-terpinene (9.3 vs. 1.6-4.2%) and terpinolene (8.4 vs. 5.6-6.3) and the presence of new compounds: aromadendrene (0.3%), camphor (0.3%), germacrene B (0.4%) and himachalol (0.1%) when compared with the previous chemotypes. In vitro, the oil was found by agar diffusion assay to elicit antibacterial activity against E. coli ATCC25922, and S. aureus ATCC25923 and antifungal activity with C. albicans showing higher sensitivity (MFC = 53.3 :L/mL) and Aspergillus niger and Trichophyton rubrum displaying moderate to low sensitivity. Biological effect of the oil at sub-MIC on E. coli ATCC25922 was characterized by dose-dependent loss of outer membrane proteins. These findings provide evidence for a new chemotype of Hyptis suaveolens in Nigeria.


The purpose of this research is to describe a strategy to improve quality inpatient services at the Bulang Health Center  Bulang District. This study uses descriptive research method with qualitative approach. This collection process is carried out by means of observation of interview and documentation. Interviews was conducted with Doctor, nurses, and patients in Bulang District. This research analyzed method analysis of Stranght, Weakness, Opportunity, Threat (SWOT) paying attention to internal and external factors. Based  results the study using the SWOT analysis  the strategies used by Bulang Community Health Center improve the quality of inpatient services are: (A) StrengthOpportunity SO Strategy namely Improving the quality inpatient services  Improving the quality and supply of medicines available also improving work same between employees. (B) strength-threat,  Increasing collaboration between the Bulang Health Center and the community. (C) Weakness-Oppportunity WO Strategy, which is to to make quality human resources in accordance  their profession also repair facilities infrastructure to repair the quality of services at the Puskesmas. (D) Weakness-Threat WT Strategy, Improving, accordance with their fields  order to provide good quality services to community  Bulang District. Based on these results, hoped Bulang Health Center will improve the quality of services, especially in inpatient services.


Objective: To investigate the clinical therapeutic effects of orally taken minocycline combined with externally used Derma light on severe acne vulgaris,and to provide theoretic foundations for clinical treatment. Method: 80 patients meeting the criteria were selected and randomly divided into observation group and control group,40 patients in each group. The control group orally took minocycline,while the observation group orally took minocycline in combination with externally used Derma light,and the clinical therapeutic effects were compared 8 weeks after the therapies.Result: 8 weeks after the therapies,the total effective rate of the observation group was 97.50%,significantly higher than that of the control group( 80.00%),and the difference was statistically significant( P0.05). Before the treatment,the GAGS scores in the patients of the two groups were similar,and the difference was statistically insignificant( P0.05); after the treatments,the GAGS scores in the patients of both groups were decreased when compared with those before the treatments,and the differences were statistically significant( P0.05),but the GAGS scores in patients of the observation group were decreased more significantly( P0.05). During the treatment,2 patients of the observation group suffered from mild flushing,itching and desquamation in the facial skin after redblue light-struck,and the symptoms were relieved in 1 week after symptomatic treatments. No adverse reaction occurred in the control group. All the patients were followed up for 3 months,2 patients of the observation group relapsed( 5.00%),while 8 patients of the control group relapsed( 20.00%),and the difference was statistically significant( P0.05). Conclusion: Orally taken minocycline combined with externally used Derma light in treatment of severe acne vulgaris has positive clinical therapeutic effects,It is safe and reliable,has low recurrence rate,and consequently is worthy of clinical application.


This is a statement by Andrei Bugrov at the meeting of January 30, 2001 concerning the Country Assistance Strategy for Indonesia.


Pheromone was collected from the air surrounding cultured boll weevils, Anthonomus grandis Boheman, as they fed on flower buds from seven cotton genotypes, Gossypium hirsutum L., grown in two field environments. An effluvial method was used to collect the pheromone, and capillary column gas chromatography was used to quantify it. Significantly more pheromone was collected when boll weevils fed on flower buds from some glanded genotypes than when they fed on flower buds from glandless genotypes (i.e., genotypes without epidermal glands containing terpenoid aldehydes). Boll weevils feeding on flower buds of some glanded genotypes produced significantly more pheromone than those boll weevils feeding on flower buds of other glanded genotypes depending upon the environment where the cotton was grown. The amounts and ratios of the four pheromone components also were affected by genotype and the environment where they were grown. These results suggest that boll weevil pheromone quantity and quality is dynamic in time and space depending upon host-plant genotype, environment, and insect age.


In microsimulation models, the behaviours of agents as intelligent objects are modeled through various behavioral
modeling techniques, which give rise to uncertainties in the modeling workflow and predicted outputs. ILUTE (Integrated
Land Use Transportation Environment model) is an agent-object-based microsimulation model system designed to
simulate different activities in a city, in which many agents (persons, families, households, firms, etc.) intelligently and/
or randomly act and interact in a complex way. A 150,000 (150K) synthetic base year (1986) household sample of
the Greater Toronto and Hamilton Area (GTHA) population is used as the starting point for undertaking twenty-year
historical simulations (1986-2006). In order to analyze the uncertainty associated with stochastic behaviours in the
ILUTE model system, a 1000 independent runs using different initial random number seeds are generated and tested
through parallel programming and using high performance cloud computing (HPC). In this paper, the behaviour of
the demographic updating module is tested by examining the variability and the distribution of its outputs including
births, deaths, families, and households across simulation runs. The test results show that all the simulated outputs'
distributions are generally normally, or very close to normally, distributed. In general, ILUTE can simulate demographic
 updating process with considerable reliability and confidence.


We summarize the issues and concerns voiced by the ACAT conference attendees regarding their experiences using the C++ programming language and attendant methodologies.


Overview: food consumption and growth in crustaceans amino acids and proteins oxygen consumption protein turnover. Effect of dietary protein on growth and protein turnover in juvenile shrimp "Litopenaeus vannamei": introduction material and methods results discussion. Effect of dietary protein source on amino acide profiles of juvenile shrimp: introduction methodology discussion. Effect of ration level on food consumption, growth and protein synthesis in the shore crab "Carcinus maenas": introduction material and methods results discussion. Effect of hypoxia on tissue-specific post-prandial changes in protein synthesis rates in the shore crab "Carcinus maenas": introduction material and methods results discussion. Protein metabolism, protein turnover and amino acid metabolism in European lobster "Homarus gammarus": introduction material and methods results discussion. General discussion: diet formulation, growth and protein metabolism of crustaceans is there a low turnover in decapod crustacean? the case of tropical shrimps and lobsters protein synthesis and environmental stress methodology further areas of research.


The experiment was aimed to describe the growth performance of the second generation (G2) of domesticated blue swimmer crab, Portunus pelagicus. The crablet stage was cultivated in three different outdoor rearing conditions: a) each crablet was placed individually in 250 ml-plastic (plastic-cup), b) crablets were reared in an 8 m2 concrete tank with shelters (concrete), and c) crablet reared in the 90-t concrete tank with sandy bottom (sandy-bottom). The crab was fed a commercial prawn diet, and the growth and survival rate (SR) were recorded. The result showed that the final weight (W) and carapace width (CW) in all treatments were significantly different (P>0.05), where the highest in sandy-bottom followed by concrete and plastic-cup. However, there was no significant difference (P>0.05) in the W and CW between the female and male crabs from concrete and plastic-cup systems. Still, males grew significantly higher than females (P<0.05) in sandy-bottom. Meanwhile, the SR varied between rearing conditions. The highest SR was recorded in plastic-cup (97%), in contrast to 52% and 32% for concrete and sandy-bottom, respectively. In addition, a part of the female crab from the sandy-bottom population could have reached the mature stage at the end of the experiment.


Rotator cuff tears are debilitating injuries that affect patients' ability to perform activities of daily living in a painfree environment. Historically, these injuries were repaired with open approaches that resulted in generally satisfactory outcomes; however, with advances in digital optical technology, arthroscopic rotator cuff repair has gained significant popularity and prominence over the traditional methods of open and miniopen cuff repair.


The sample size included 360 molars from 283 participants with a total of 180 molars involved with furcation clinically and 180 without. The inclusion criteria involved records of patients in the age range 35-76 years, diagnosed with generalized periodontitis, Stage II to IV, Grade B and C, and existing periapical radiographs/dental panoramic radiographs. The periodontal charts (Hamp's classification) and radiographs were used to evaluate furcation on the buccal and lingual sites of first and second mandibular molars.


e22509 Background: Genomic instability is a typical characteristic of the majority of cancers. Early non-invasive detection of cancer is the most effective way of improving the success of treatment and prognosis at present. Traditional tumor screening methods have limitations in terms of selection methods, sensitivity, specificity, cost, and comfortability. Furthermore, although traditional tumor screening is useful for common cancers, there is no available screening test for rare cancers. Here we developed a novel method for cancer detection with Low-Pass Whole Genome Sequencing (WGS) of cell-free DNA (cfDNA). Methods: The cfDNA samples from 52 healthy donors were first used to establish a blacklist of bins. Then the baseline was established to calculate the chromosomal instability score (CINscore). We optimized the parameters of our model using the following discovery datasets: healthy controls (n = 50), breast invasive carcinoma (BRCA) (n = 44), ovarian serous cystadenocarcinoma (OV) (n = 25), colon adenocarcinoma/rectum adenocarcinoma esophageal carcinoma (COREAD) (n = 52), hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) (n = 43), Gastric adenocarcinoma (GAC) (n = 31); pancreatic adenocarcinoma (PAC) (n = 38), non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) (n = 45). Results: We further evaluated the performance of our method using the confirmation datasets of healthy controls (n = 30), BRCA (n = 20), prostate adenocarcinoma (PRAD) (n = 6), OV (n = 7), head and Neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSC) (n = 10), Uterine Corpus Endometrial Carcinoma (UCEC) (n = 6), cervical squamous cell carcinoma and endocervical adenocarcinoma (CESC) (n = 5), COREAD (n = 75), HCC (n = 50), GAC (n = 31), cholangiocarcinoma (CHOL) (n = 8), PAC (n = 10), NSCLC (n = 98), esophageal carcinoma (ESCA) (n = 10), and nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NAC) (n = 4). Overall, the area under the curve (AUC) for pan-cancer is 88.7%, and for BRCA, COREAD, HCC, NSCLC, and GAC are 91.7%, 90.0%, 94.5%, 83.4%, and 88.6%, respectively. Moreover, our approach achieved good performance on the the early stage samples of pan-cancer (AUC = 84.3%) as well as COREAD (AUC = 89.3%) and NSCLC (AUC = 79.0%). Conclusions: Collectively, we show that the CINscore inferred from low-pass WGS could be applied in early non-invasive detection of different cancers with high accuracy. Our approach may aid the improvement of the cancer diagnosis.


In this paper, we would focus on submitting a new decision fusion method based on multiple sensors' behaviors applying to target detection and identification in a network of distributed sensors. Each sensor has its own reliability, error rate and output data. Hence, in a processing and decision-making center in which target data are received from different sensors and sources, correctness and speed of final decision-making depend on data fusion method. The extraction, modeling and weighing of long-time and temporary behavior functions of each data source and using precise and fast decision making/fusion method are the main purpose of this article. After the introduction, we try to consider the data fusion method in decision level, such as voting schemes, rank based method and Bayesian inference. Hence, in a distributed target detection and identification system, we explain the specific and the functional features model of each source using long-time and temporary behavior functions. So we introduce the behavior based method as a new decision fusion method based on long-time and temporary behaviors of local decision makers. Therefore, we will observe that the behavior based method results, which pointed both to the temporal and the long time behaviors of the input decision makings, are very much nearer to reality and its correctness in target identification is much higher than the other methods. Examples are given corresponding to the target detection and identification systems to compare the new method with the other methods are shown that the behavior based method has its own exclusive capability in target detection, identification and producing final decision without ambiguity.


This paper shows that strategies in, and reliance on the payments system as well as special liquidity-supplying tools provided by the central bank are important indicators of distress of individual banks. We conclude that central banks can benefit from using high-frequency data on liquidity demand to obtain a better picture of the financial health of individual participants of the financial system. For the particular case of Canada, using unique features of the payments system and information from the liquidity facilities we find that the willingness-to-pay for liquidity during the financial crisis stayed at low levels throughout the Canadian financial system and that there was no increase in counterparty risk. A key lesson of our analysis is that transactions-level data can be be valuable in determining the appropriate response of regulators and central banks to a financial crisis.


The last decade has seen an increase in the amount of high throughput data available to researchers. While this has allowed scientists to explore various hypotheses and research questions, it has also highlighted the importance of data integration to facilitate knowledge extraction and discovery. Although many strategies have been developed over the last few years, integrating data whilst generating an interpretable embedding still remains challenging due to difficulty in regularisation, especially when using deep generative models. Thus, we introduce a framework called Regularised Multi-View Variational Autoencoder (RMV-VAE) to integrate different omics data types whilst allowing researchers to obtain more biologically meaningful embeddings.


In this paper,the basic concepts of TRL evaluation method are briefly introduced.United States Defence Acquisition Project is taken as an example to analyse TRL evaluation organization hierarchy in foreign countries,and the general process of TRL assessment is summarized.Then the entropy theory is used to evaluate the TRL level of the research and development process of complex equipment technical,and applied to an aircraft manufacturing example based on theoretical research.


Time was, negotiation—at least in the professional sphere—was understood as a zero-sum process in which buyers and sellers, or plaintiffs and defendants, would stake out extreme opening positions, haggle relentlessly, and compromise somewhere in the middle in order to reach a grudging agreement. Howard Raiffa famously labeled this the "negotiation dance."...


An R&D program has started in Italy on an accelerator driven system for nuclear waste transmutation. The large flux of spallation neutrons from a high current CW proton linac accelerator is intended to drive a subcritical system to transmute nuclear waste, while producing energy. Our specific task is to develop, together with the national industry, a design of the high energy part of the proton accelerator, along with prototype development for its most critical components. In this paper we report the present design status, that follows from the design proposed at Linac'96 and revised at PAC'97. A 1.6 GeV linac, operated at 25 mA, allows to reach 40 MW of beam power. A beam power upgrade is achievable using additional couplers per cavity.


One of the main responsibilities of a GP is to identify individuals at increased risk of disease and offer tailored chronic disease prevention, including lifestyle modification, disease screening, or preventive treatment. One way to identify these individuals is through chronic disease risk assessment, which uses patient demographics and lifestyle information, family history, and physiological markers of disease. Risk algorithm calculators provide a systematic strategy to identify those people who are likely to be at high risk of cardiovascular disease. One such risk assessment protocol is the QRISK2 risk calculator, which is used in a primary care context to determine an adult patient's likelihood of developing cardiovascular disease (CVD) (Collins & Altman, 2012). The QRISK2 (just like its predecessor: the QRISK1) was designed by the QRESEARCH organisation at the University of Nottingham. Specifically, it is an algorithm that generates an estimate of a patient's 10-year risk of developing CVD. It was developed and validated with the use of large general practice databases in the United Kingdom, using 3 000 000 patients with 17 500 000 person-years of observation. QRISK1 includes traditional risk factors, such as age, sex, systolic blood pressure, smoking status, and the ratio of total serum cholesterol to high-density lipoprotein as well as body mass index, family history of CVD, post-code (indicative of socio-economic status), and use of antihypertensive medication. QRISK2 is the newer multivariable risk score that not only contains all the metrics from QRISK1, but also includes ethnicity and medical comorbidities associated with CVD, such as diabetes mellitus type 2, hypertension, rheumatoid arthritis, renal disease, and atrial fibrillation (Walter, 2014). When any given patient's risk of a cardiovascular event in the decade following the consultation is found to be greater than 10% by QRISK2, a discussion should ensue, between the physician and the patient, concerning CVD and the protective measures that could be taken (National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE), 2014). It is thus important that people are given the opportunity to have a cardiovascular risk assessment, and that those patients with a high enough QRISK2 score are sufficiently informed regarding treatment options for primary prevention of CVD, for example, lipid modification therapy in the form of a statin. Crucially, however, since QRISK2 was developed, migraine, and particularly migraine with aura, has been identified as a risk factor for CVD. The overall prevalence of migraine is high, affecting 7.6% of men and 18.3% of women in England (Steiner et al., 2003). Roughly one third of migraine sufferers experience a concomitant aura – cortical depolarisation and oligaemia slightly less than the threshold of ischaemia. In other words, the sufferer experiences a disruption in the blood flow to the brain, which does not meet the ischaemic threshold criteria of a transient ischaemic attack. This disruption of blood flow manifests itself clinically as a transient motor or sensory neurological disturbance lasting less than an hour (Charles & Baca, 2013). Although the pathophysiology of migraine remains poorly understood, in light of the above sequelae, the association of migraine and CVD risk – particularly stroke – seems physiologically consistent. As such most of the proposed mechanisms for the pathogenesis of migraine (i.e. endovascular dysfunction and thrombogenic tendency) are also implicated in the development of other CVD events, and thus the presence of the former may be viewed as a marker for the increased risk of the latter. The BMJ Nurses' Health Study II, one of the largest prospective cohort studies on health in over 100 000 young woman aged 25–42 years, gives us the best evidence we have to date for the risk of CVD in women with migraine; it confirmed that the association between migraine and CVD has a substantial effect on public health. Compared with controls, migraine significantly increased the relative risk of any vascular event and that of cardiovascular mortality by approximately 50%. The risk of stroke had a hazard ratio of 1.5 (confidence interval (CI) 95% 1.2–1.9), myocardial infarction 1.4 (CI 95% 1.2–1.6), and angina 1.7 (CI 95% 1.3–2.3). Associations were similar across different subgroups of women, including age, smoking status, undergoing hormone replacement therapy or use of the contraceptive pill (Kurth et al., 2016). In light of this evidence, which links migraine with aura to CVD, the question of whether migraine with aura should be included in the calculation of the QRISK2 score becomes pertinent. Unlike diabetes mellitus, chronic kidney disease, and rheumatoid arthritis, there is no option in the QRISK2 calculator to include migraine with aura, so how should we adjust the QRISK2 score to factor migraine with aura into our risk algorithm. And does it make a difference? For example, Mrs J, a 56-year-old normotensive female with no comorbidities, but a cholesterol ratio of 5.6, will have a QRISK2 score of 5% (i.e. significantly below the treatment threshold for statins). However, if she has a migraine with aura, by how much do we adjust her QRISK2 result for


This thesis presents a new modelling and stability analysis for ac microgrids equipped with primary control. A complete model in the reference frame dq0 is presented for grid connected operation. A fixed point algorithm is proposed to find the equilibrium point. This method is compared to a Newton's algorithm over the conventional phasor model. An homotopy method is proposed for the analysis of islanded microgrids. Simulations in Matlab/Simulink demonstrate the applicability of the proposed methods using a variant of the CIGRE low voltage test system.


Food waste processor macerated the organic waste which was produced by families or restaurants,and dispose of it into the sewage system using water as a transport medium in order to cut off the source of odor.Results indicated that the effluent was slightly acidic after broken,and the range of pH was 4.91~6.90;after installing the food waste processor,the TSS,COD,NH3—N,TN and BOD of effluent of per capita per day had shown a upward trend,increment followed by 10.91 g,54.83 g,54.49 mg,850 mg,22.02 g.While content of phosphorus keeping stabling;food waste macerate made it feasible that transferred stress of food waste disposal from the landfill to sewage treatment plant,however,the long-term effect of sewage treatment plants where are collected amount of organic waste should be discussed further.


Anhydrous hydrogen fluoride (HF) and HF combined with a small amount of boron trifluoride(BF3) desulphurized high-sulphur coal in the presence of hydrocarbons without H2 in mild reaction conditions. HF removed mainly sulphidic and oxidized sulphur. HF/BF3 decreased thiophenic sulphur as well as sulphidic and oxidized sulphur although the extent of desulphurization was almost the same as that with HF alone.


The presentation gives information about several activities of BAM on the issue of fire engulfment tests of onboard gas storage systems.


River restoration activities are challenging for the native vegetation and the colonization process. The development of invasive alien plant species (IAS) as well as the development of the pioneer vegetation cover and seed bank were observed in one year prior to construction of a new river bed and within the first two years after construction, along the downstream section of the river Traisen in Austria. One year after completion of the new river channel, the occurrence of IAS above ground decreased while the occurrence of target species increased. Furthermore, no seeds of IAS were detected in the new river bed as a result of proper management of soil movement. Despite the positive impact on the abundance of IAS, the restoration project of the river Traisen shows that the fact that such a restoration activity is a disturbance event must be taken into consideration already during the planning process. Supporting the competitiveness of native plant species is an important tool for reducing the danger of establishment of invasive alien species.


Summary. Human platelets were preincubated with Fab fiagments derived from two types of platelet antibodies: (1) antibody to whole platelet membranes, and (2) antibody to the major platelet membrane glycoprotein. Subsequently platelet aggregation and release of [14C]serotonin in response to adenosine diphosphate (ADP), adrenaline, thrombin, and collagen were evaluated. Following incubation with the anti‐membrane antibody, significant inhibition of both aggregation and serotonin release was observed. The pattern of inhibition of ADP‐ and thrombin‐induced aggregation and release differed from the inhibition noted after the addition of adrenaline or collagen. Treatment of platelets with the anti‐membrane glycoprotein antibody had no effect on subsequent aggregation induced by ADP, adrenaline, thrombin or collagen.


In this paper, the feasibility of simultaneous electrochemical detection of glucose and non-esterified fatty acids (NEFA) is investigated using enzyme-based biosensors. The detection of glucose is based on ferrocene-Nafion-glucose oxidase (Fc-Nafion-GOx) modified screen-printed electrodes (SPEs). Solutions of Fc-Nafion-GOx were drop casted on SPEs and dried at room temperature allowing immobilisation of GOx entrapped in Nafion polymer with Fc. The detection of NEFA is based on bi-enzyme electrodes fabricated by the layer-by-layer technique applied onto SPEs using multilayers of poly(dimethyldiallyammonium chloride) polymer, multi-walled carbon nanotube composite films, and two enzymes: acyl-CoA synthetase and acyl-CoA oxidase. Oleoyl coenzyme A lithium salt (OACoA) and oleic acid (OA) were used as NEFA of interests because they are two of the most employed markers in clinical tests. Preliminary results demonstrated that enzyme electrodes showed linear response within the physiological concentration range of glucose and OA in human blood plasma as 5 and 1.2 mM, respectively. These results indicate a promising multi-biosensor platform for rapid one-step determination of glucose and NEFA simultaneously. This could lead the way toward the fabrication of glucose-NEFA biosensors, which can be important in diabetes management and early diagnosis.


Electrification and fast recharge of buses for public transportation in urban areas involve a high reliability of installed storage and recharge systems. Performed mission profiles stress the system with a relatively high mileage and repeated acceleration and braking cycles. Authors have simulated and designed different storage and recharge technologies that have been installed and tested on a fleet of revamped electric minibus. In this work, attention is focused on design and simulation of a bus equipped with high-power lithium batteries. Proposed storage is recharged by a fast station fed by a flywheel system. In this work authors describe the proposed solution and its advantages. The description of the whole activity is performed with a particular attention to implementation and to experimental results of activities performed at ENEA laboratories of Roma Casaccia (Italy).


Pigeon Fancier's Lung (PFL) is a form of Hypersensitivity Pneumonitis where lung pathology occurs due to an immune reaction to repeated inhalation of large amounts of feather-derived and droppings-derived dust [1]. The 1μm dust particles penetrate the lower respiratory tract, initiating characteristic granulomatous inflammation in distal airways and alveoli. The particles, which carry pigeon antigens, cause irritation, and likely contain microbial components, both of which enhance immunogenicity.


The invention discloses a packaging bottle for medical alcohol cotton balls. The packaging bottle comprises a bottle body, a bottle cap and tweezers. The tweezers comprise a handle part and clamping parts. A storage cavity used for storing the alcohol cotton balls and a supporting plate capable of sliding in the storage cavity in a reciprocating mode are arranged in the bottle body, and the supporting plate is provided with a tubular boss protruding towards the bottle opening. An inner screw hole is formed in the center of the bottle cap. A sealing cover is arranged in the inner screw hole, outer threads matched with the inner screw hole are arranged on the peripheral wall of the sealing cover, the bottom end surface of the sealing cover is connected to the top end surface of the tubular boss in a pressing mode, the sealing cover and the tubular boss form a sealed accommodation cavity in an enclosure mode, and the tweezers are placed in the accommodation cavity. According to the packaging bottle, the tweezers can be prevented from being polluted by external environment.


A field experiment was conducted during 2005-07 at Pali, Rajasthan to study the effects of intercrop row ratio and nitrogen on sorghum [Sorghum bicolor (L.) Moench] + greengram [(Phaseolus radiata (L.) Wilczek)] intercropping system. The highest grain yield of sorghum was obtained with sole sorghum, followed by sorghum + greengram in 2:1 row ratio at 50 kg N/ha, with same row ratio at 75 kg N/ha and sorghum + greengram in 3:1 row ratio at 75 kg N/ha. The intercrop yield was highest under sole stand, followed by sorghum + greengram in 1:1 row ratio. Nitrogen uptake was maximum (81.1 kg/ha) under sorghum + greengram with 2:1 row ratio at 50 kg N/ha and (78.3 kg/ha) with same row ratio at 75 kg N/ha compared with the 62.2 kg N/ha under sole sorghum and 55.5 kg/ha under sole greengram. Intercropping of sorghum with greengram in 2:1 row ratio at 50 kg N/ha recorded the highest land equivalent ratio (1.32), price equivalent ratio (1.23), relative crowding co-efficient (10.99), net returns (Rs 14 857/ha) and benefit: cost ratio (2.64).


This paper proposes to apply the 3D sound IP phone service to online meetings, and evaluate its effect on QoE by experiment. From the results, the authors show that online meetings with 3D IP phone services are effective for improving " presence ", and even when QoS degrades, online meetings with the 3D IP phone service are effective in improving QoE.


Background: Depression and anxiety are among the most common mental disorders before and after surgery. Aromatherapy is a treatment that has grown substantially in recent years in comparison with other complementary and alternative medicines (CAM) to relieve anxiety.

Objectives: This study investigated the effect of inhaling lavender essence on the physiological and psychological status of patients who are candidates for coronary artery bypass graft (CABG) surgery.

Methods: This randomized clinical trial was performed on 60 patients who were undergoing CABG surgery at the hospitals of Artesh Jomhory Eslami (AJA) University of Medical Sciences in Iran. Patients who met specific inclusion criteria were selected and randomly allocated into two groups: a control group that inhaled room air and an experimental group that inhaled from a piece of cotton impregnated with two drops of lavender essence. This intervention was done on the morning of surgery. To evaluate these measures, a Depression Anxiety Stress Scale (DASS) questionnaire was filled out by the patient before and after the intervention. The data collected were analyzed using descriptive and analytic statistics.

Results: After the intervention, the study results showed statistically significant differences between the two study groups in heart rate (mean = 78.83, P = 0.02) and anxiety level (mean = 6.63, P = 0.02). However, the differences between the two groups were not significant regarding stress level (mean = 8.63, P = 0.55) and other physiological variables.

Conclusions: Inhalation aromatherapy is an effective method for reducing the heart rate and the level of anxiety in patients before CABG surgery. Given that the physiological and psychological health of patients are important responsibilities for nurses, aromatherapy can be considered a safe and effective relaxation method before invasive interventions. Learning this method is recommended for students and nurses.


To the Editor: We have analyzed clinical features in 40 cases of inherited epidermolysis bullosa (EB) admitted to Dermatology wards of Central Hospital, Tripoli between 1981 and 1992. An attempt was made to classify these cases on the basis of the clinical criteria suggested in the report of the SubCommittee on Diagnosis and Classification of the American National Epidermolysis Builosa Registry 1991 [1]. Al! the patients were Libian nationals, 28 males and 12 females from 37 families. The age at first presentation ranged between 1 day and 25 years. while the age at onset of the disease ranged from birth to 17 years. None of the parents of the patients suffered from EB but siblings of 19 patients had a history of EB. Consanguinity in the parents was recorded in all but 4 cases. By analyzing the clinical features, family history and routine histopathologic findings, we could classify our cases of EB into the following subtypes. (Table 1) Three patients died in early infancy (between 3 and 45 days of age) (Table 2), while 2 patients with severe presentation of RDEB-gravis, 1 with JEBgravis and 2 with RDEB-mitis were seen only once in early infancy. Up to date follow-up was possible in 19 patients only. The oldest surviving patient with RDEB-gravis is now 27 years old. The most common type of EB in this study was


This article aims to explain how the Colombian state addresses coca demands andmobilizations: negotiating and then defaulting --the noncompliance cycle. Despite howapparently counterproductive it is, the cycle is persistent and, perhaps the main formof the state's response to those mobilizations. I argue that part of the noncompliancecycle is due to the nature of the coalitions that support the drug war in Colombia.Furthermore, these coalitions, typically long, range from global to purely local, so theycan charge peasants with prohibitive costs without being affected by the new policies.In addition, these have not always been smoothly articulated to the country's greaterwaged global war, the war against subversion. Both circumstances generate permanentblockages, instabilities, and problems of collective action.


. The article is devoted the experimental studies of deformation and temperature parameters of rolling the pipe steel on the rolling mill 5000 PJSC "MMK". Knowledge of the regularities of the change in the surface temperature of work piece during hot rolling under the conditions of thermo mechanical deformation processes is of great theoretical and practical importance. The temperature conditions determine the energy and force parameters of rolling, as well as the mechanical properties and microstructure of the finished products. The experimental rolling was carried out in two stages: roughing at 6 passes at a temperature of 1050-900 ° C and finishing at 18-20 passes at a temperature below the start of the phase transformation of 900 ° C. The finishing rolling has been carried out in a two-phase region at the stage of polymorphic transformation in the steel. Significant differences in the nature of temperature changes at different stages of rolling are revealed. and practical importance. Temperature conditions determine the energy-power parameters of rolling, as well as mechanical properties and microstructure of the finished product.


Aim To explore the effects of Naoxintong on the plaques formation of abdominal aorta and C-reactive protein(CRP) in hypercholesterolemic rabbits. Methods 36 male New Zealand White rabbits were equally divided into 3 groups at randomly: balloon injury + high lipid diet(model group),balloon injury + high lipid diet + Naoxintong(Naoxintong group),balloon injury + high lipid diet + simvastatin(simvastatin group).They were all fed for 16 weeks.The CRP concentrations were detected by enzyme-link-immunosorbent assay,and the histopathological changes of the aortas were detected at the end of the study. Results Compared with 0 week,serum total cholesterol(TC),low-density lipoprotein cholesterol(LDLC) and triglyceride(TG) of three groups were higher in the 8th week and 16th week(P0.01),high-density lipoprotein cholesterol(HDLC) was higher in Naoxintong group and simvastatin group(P0.05);Compared with model group,there were significant difference in TC,LDLC,HDLC of Naoxintong group.Compared with 0 week,the levels of CRP were significantly increased in three groups(P0.01),and at the end of the study,the CRP levels were significantly decreased in Naoxintong group and simvastatin group compared with model group(P0.01).Compared with Naoxintong group,plaques thickness of model group was significantly different(P0.01). Conclusion Naoxintong decreased the plasma cholesterol and CRP concentrations and resisted the inflammatory function,which may inhibit the formation of plaques of abdominal aortas in cholesterolemic rabbit.


According to the complexity of organization structure and authorization management in learningflow system, using RBAC technology, a new access control model was put forward which organized users with hierarchical groups as centre and authorized users with role as intermediary. Practice showed that this model could meet the flexible requirements of teaching organization and user management, decrease the complexity of authorization management, enhance the flexibility and security of permission configuration.


Information Systems are important because they produce information and help make decisions so that their intelligence and abilities can be the same as humans. the writer wants to design an Information System in the Correctional Institution which is a coaching institution for prisoners but the system used is still a Manual, especially for visiting Section where this system still has many obstacles, so the writer wants to research and assist officers by making a JAVA application about the information system for visiting prisoner in Prison class IIA of Bengkulu which aims to save time and find out information from guest visits to prisoners so that they consider to data collection. This information system is designed using a JAVA application with MySQL database in XAMPP, the application program used is Net Beans which is a container in making various programs where net beans IDE is also Open Source and this system uses a method that describes what data the existence and explanation of a picture or incident regarding guest visits to prisoners in Prison Class IIA of Bengkulu. The result of this research is an integrated information system with Prison Class IIA of Bengkulu, involving the Admin and Employees to input the data that has been obtained which will be processed by the system and produce a Prisoner Data Report and Guest Data Report.


An electronic device comprising two image capturing unit, consider switching between the two image capturing said flash unit. When switching between the two image capturing unit is automatically switch between the light source moves. When using the first image capturing unit for capturing, moving a first light source used in a flash. When switching from the first to the second image capturing unit capturing an image by photographing unit, a second moving light source used in a flash. When using both the first and second image capturing means for capturing, moving the first and second light sources are used in a flash.


To pass on immaterial effort concrete by mixing different degrees of fine total and bond with utilized foundry sand and Pozzocrete to decrease trade and sullying issues in light of utilized foundry sand and Pozzocrete. Pozzocrete P60 is a dealt with worth guaranteed fly slag, researched for its utilization as an inadequate swap for bond in cement (1:1.48:3.21). The usage of Pozzocrete P60 as bond substitution material in cement or as included substance in strong shows different focal points from sensible, explicit and ordinary perspectives. The creative use of utilized foundry sand in solid plans as a fine total substitution material was endeavored as a decision rather than standard cement. This paper demonstrates the results of the solid of blend proportion1:1.48:3.21 in which security is for the most part supplanted with PozzocreteP60 as 10% by weight of bond, and fine hard and fast isn't completely supplanted with utilized foundry sand as 10%, 30% and half by weight of fine total. Five courses of action of blend degrees were made. First (A0) were standard blend (without Pozzocrete and utilized foundry) sand with ordinary fine total (sand) and coarse total and the second (B0) blend contained 10% Pozzocrete P60obtained from DIRK India Private Limited, Nasik, Maharashtra state. Different blends (B1, B2, and B3) contained Pozzocrete P60 (10%) despite foundry sand (10%, 30%and half) solely got from ferrous and non-ferrous metal hurling associations. The compressive quality and water support has been gotten with halfway superseding of Pozzocrete P60 with bond and foundry sand with fine total. Test outcomes demonstrate the augmentation in the quality properties of cement and decreasing water assimilation of cement up to 10% overriding of security with Pozzocrete plus30% supplanting of fine total with utilized foundry sand for quality at 7, 14 and 28 days. Moreover it might be used in non-essential parts with the low range compressive quality where quality isn't required and negligible exertion brief structure is prepared.


In order to understand the controlling of intensively faulted zones on the hydrocarbon migration and accumulation,the Wangfu depression was selected as a case study.Based on the lateral and vertical characteristics of intensively faulted zones,the intensively faulted zones were classified into four types in the Fuyang oil layer of Wangfu depression,including graben-antithetic fault terrace,graben-antithetic-consequent fault terrace,graben-horst-antithetic fault terrace and graben-horst-consequent fault terrace.Through analyzing evidences of Fuyang oil layer in intensively faulted zones,the effect of intensively faulted zones on hydrocarbon migration and accumulation were discussed.The results show that the intensively faulted zones have transverse sealing and lateral fluid conduction function in secondary migration,and influence oil-gas accumulation.While the strike of the intensively faulted zone nearly parallels the dip direction of formation,the horst and antithetic on both sides of it are favorable part to collect oil.While the strike of the intensively faulted zone nearly plumbs the dip direction of formation,the horst and antithetic on the side that is near the depression center are propitious to catch oil.The crossovers of the intensively faulted zones are avail for oil accumulation.


This present study is intended to discuss the Cenk Blonk leather puppet performance "Wayang Kulit Cenk Blonk (abbreviated to WKCB) within the popular cultural context. If viewed from the perspective of cultural studies, this present study is concerned with a new reality and phenomenon in the Balinese puppetry art. The Balinese leather puppet performance, which does not refer to the source book of the shadow play story " pakem pewayangan " and the puppetry norm " Dharma Pewayangan ", is preferred by many people. This present study analyzes the form, factor, and meaning of the WKCB performance with the popular cultural context using the theory of popular culture, the theory of deconstruction, and theory of discourse. The qualitative interpretative method was used. The data were obtained through observation, in-depth interview, and documentary study. The data were analyzed using the descriptive, qualitative and interpretative method of analysis. The data were presented starting from the basic data, data presentation, data analysis and conclusion. The result of the study shows (1) the WKCB was performed as part of the promotional activity; (2) the WKCB was performed as part of the socialization activity; (3) the WKCB was performed as part of the commemoration of anniversaries. Second , the factors contributing to the WKCB performance within the popular cultural context included: creativity, art sustainability, the practice for the supporting artists, the modern cultural impact, the advance in technology, and the market demand. The meanings of the WKCB performance within the popular cultural context included: the aesthetic meaning, the social meaning, the welfare meaning, the amusing meaning, the political meaning, the conservation meaning, and the image meaning. The novelty shows that the WKCB performance within the popular cultural context presents the elements of popular works, popular discourses, the change in presentation, the change in the performing apparatus, and the freedom in receiving messages from those who have it performed to be transmitted to viewers.


Crosstalk Transfer Logic (XTL) is a digital-signal interface that uses directional couplers to form parallel lines within a circuit board. An advantage of the XTL is that it provides a multi-drop and high-speed system that is a one-to-many connection that can be used as a memory bus. To evaluate the signal integrity of an XTL to be applied to a DRAM bus, a test chip and boards were developed. We describe the design of the bus and report the results of its evaluation in this paper. The test chip was designed using a 0.15-/spl mu/m CMOS process and it had a controllable offset of the hysteresis receiver. A folding coupler was applied to the motherboard to condense the wiring and to reduce the noise from adjacent signals. The mother-board had only two coupler layers, with a four-byte data width, and it was capable of having eight modules mounted on the bits. The experimental results showed that the WRITE and READ operation reached speeds of at least 500 Mbps when eight modules were mounted on the bus.


Purpose: To investigate the learning curve and its characteristics in our initial experiences with robotic-assisted laparoscopic radical prostatectomy (RLRP) with a new da Vinci-S surgical system. Materials and Methods: Through inspection of the patients who underwent RLRP by a single urologic surgeon from July 2007 to May 2008, the variables related to surgery were evaluated prospectively. Results: RLRP was performed in 50 patients. The patients' mean age (range) was 63 years (50-73 years), and 11 patients had a history of previous abdominal surgery. The mean total operation time was 281.6 min (190-455 min). The mean set-up time was 18.6 min (14-30 min), and the mean console time was 219.8 min (150-400 min). The mean estimated blood loss (EBL) was 375.7ml (200-800 ml). The overall margin-positive rate was 26% (13/50); it was 11.9% (5/42) for pT2 tumors and 100% (8/8) for pT3 tumors. Minor complications occurred in 5 patients. All complications were treated effectively with only conservative management. The total operation time, set-up time, console time, and EBL significantly decreased as the number of patients treated grew (Spearman's rank correlation, p<0.05; Rho=−0.49, −0.35, −0.54, −0.75, respectively). The mean total operation time, set-up time, console time, and EBL were significantly decreased in the last 35 patients who needed no transfusion (p<0.05). Conclusions: The use of robotic surgery allowed the surgeon to complete the learning curve in a relatively short time period, with low perioperative complication rates and potentially good oncologic results, as indicated by the acceptable positive surgical margin in the patients with pathologically organ-confined disease. (Korean J Urol 2009;50:140-147) 󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏


Wayfinding Design for Randomly Developed Areas: The Beltline Case Study proposes a wayfinding signage program for the new public transit project in Atlanta known as the Beltline. This program unites the Beltline with other transit options within Atlanta, such as MARTA, to form a comprehensive transit system. This program will be known as The Atlanta Unified Transit Program. My proposed signage program includes map kiosks, information posts and signs promoting the various levels of transit offered in Atlanta as well as information about the areas surrounded by public transit. The signage examples created for my thesis are prototypes that could later be applied to any location within the area serviced by public transit. INDEX WORDS: Atlanta, Beltline, Public transit, Visual communication, Signs and symbol, Signage, Wayfinding, Information design WAYFINDING DESIGN FOR RANDOMLY DEVELOPED AREAS: THE BELTLINE CASE STUDY


The induction of DNA damage in cells heated at hyperthermic (43–48°C) temperatures was determined by alkaline filter elution and alkaline sucrose gradient‐sedimentation analysis of cell DNA denatured at pH 13.0. A class of DNA lesion which converted to strand breaks during denaturation of DNA at pH 13.0 was produced randomly throughout the cell DNA at temperatures as low as 43°C. Induction of this lesion occurred with a T0 of 90 and 10 min at 45 and 48°C, respectively. We estimate that these pH 13.0–detectable DNA lesions are produced in the cell DNA with a frequency of approximately 75 and 660 per min of heating at 45 and 48°C, respectively. Since the lesions were quantitatively converted to DNA strand breaks at pH 13.0 with a half‐time of 30 min, or less, we suggest that these pH 13.0–detectable DNA lesions are heat‐induced, abasic DNA sites. The induction of these lesions does not appear to be directly involved in the initial heat‐induced inhibition of DNA synthesis. The presence of these lesions cannot be excluded as an explanation for the long‐term inhibition of replicon initiated in heated cells.


Objective
To review the clinical characteristics of left ventricular pseudo-aneurysm (LVPA) in China mainland.

Methods
The China National Knowledge Infrastructure (CNKI), Wanfang Data, VIP information and PubMed database were searched to extract information on clinical profile, diagnostic imaging, treatment and outcome of patients with LVPA from January 1986 to April 2012.

Results
Clinical data of 77 patients with LVPAs (including 5 coexistent with true aneurysm) were extracted from 65 articles. There were 56 males (72.7%) and 11 females (27.3%) with a median age of 48 years old (range 5 to 82). The most common etiology was myocardial infarction (40, 51.9%). Breathlessness/dyspnea (44.6%), chest discomfort (41.9%) and chest pain (41.9%) were the most frequently reported symptoms, but asymptomatic patients accounted for 10.8% of all. 86.4% of the patients had electrocardiographic abnormalities, most of which were nonspecific ST segment changes. No event of thromboembolism was reported. Transthoracic echocardiography was the most commonly used diagnostic imaging test, followed by angiography with which no complication was reported. 19 cases of pseudo-aneurysms (24.7%) were reported to rupture and 15 patients(19.5%)died, mostly of cardiac tamponade and sudden death.

Conclusions
LVPA is a rare and life-threatening disorder. It lacks of specific clinical manifestations distinguishable from coronary disease or heart failure. Emergency surgery is warranted once it is identified.

Key words:
Heart aneurysm; Heart ventricles; Retrospective studies


Drs Offergeld and Burger stress the present high safety of blood components and plasma products. This is not disputed in our paper. We acknowledged that 'the preparation, purification and viral inactivation procedures employed in the production of derivatives of pooled human plasma may render the difference between the safety of paid and unpaid donors for plasma products irrelevant' [1]. Mr Bult cites a statement about the safety of plasma products by EMEA, a statement however, that continues with: 'The question of whether or not non-remuneration is important for the safety of blood and blood components for transfusion is a separate issue outside the scope of this document.' [2] An assessment on the reasons why unpaid donors are safer than paid ones was not the scope of our review, the reader is referred to other papers such as one by Sanchez which found that donors attracted by cash were 60% more likely to have a risk for transfusion-transmissible infections [3]. As for the methodology of our paper, it was never intended as a meta-analysis, and the raw data were not pooled. A similar analysis could address whether tomatoes over time are relatively more expensive than potatoes, without adressing price mechanisms and different currencies within comparisons. We merely question a statement by the European Commission [4], apparently supported by Mr Bult, that the difference in risk between paid donors and unpaid donors is an issue of the past only [4]. This statement occurred in the light of a draft Directive on blood components, the safety of which is related to the window period, and also the infectious disease incidence among the donors [5]. We can only conclude that the relative risks in the published literature do not support that statement. Offergeld and Burger cite a recent review as an example of paid donors with a lower infectious disease marker rate [6]. However, comparisons presented by Strauss were earlier criticized by Fiedler as being of flawed methodology [7]. In response, Strauss later presents additional information. Unfortunately the comments by Fiedler in 1995 were not taken into account by Strauss in his 2001 paper [6]. The reported paid cytapheresis donors donated about five times more often per year, i.e. the incidence in paid donors would be five times higher than suggested from the presentation of the data [6]. In our paper, we addressed the limitations of the data sets, and by review one cannot escape the impression that the difference between unpaid and paid donors may have been larger if bias could have been controlled for. Given the limitations of other data sets, it seems fair to include Srauss's findings in our assessment. Bult's vision on arthropod-borne viruses (such as West Nile Virus) as compared to blood-borne viruses (such as Hepatitis C Virus) is interesting. Blood-borne infections by definition are predominantly transmitted by blood–blood contact, and such viruses are more frequent among drug users [8]. Indeed, an increased incidence among drug users is not likely for agents that are predominantly transmitted by other routes, such as vCJD. It remains to be seen what the predominant routes of infection are for emerging small DNA viruses [9,10]. Bult refers to tables from WHO, reporting 0–5 AIDS cases associated with transfusion pro annum in the Netherlands [11]. These data have some caveats, mentioned in the same table [11]. They represent HIV infections in the past, and although indeed all blood and plasma donors in the Netherlands are non-remunerated, not all plasma products transfused in the past were from Dutch donors [12]. Questioned by Offergeld and Burger about the remuneration of donors in relation to the German NAT data, we may refer to Legler mentioning 52 DM in the methods, and comments by Roth [13,14]. Roth takes into account that the German unpaid donors may have been more often donors from rural areas with lower incidence rates, and the possibility of geographical bias was addressed in our paper. As stated by Offergeld and Burger, a nationwide surveillance of relevant infections has been established in Germany. It would not be too difficult to compare the infectious disease marker rates of the blood collection centres in the city areas for both the paid and unpaid blood donors, or reimbursing vs. non-reimbursing systems. A detailed epidemiological analysis of the German data is indeed welcomed, the independence of which can easily be adressed by publication in a peer-reviewed international scientific journal.


Background: Studies prove that epidural analgesia is superior to other modes of labour analgesia. However the rising concerns of side effects has overshadowed its merits. Objectives: Study A: To compare the cases of assisted vaginal delivery and matched controls of spontaneous vaginal delivery and to study its association with mode of analgesia. Study B: To compare the cases of caesarean section delivery and matched controls of Spontaneous vaginal delivery and to study its association with mode of analgesia. Methodology: A case-control study on 122 parturients was conducted. Two study groups were considered: cases were assisted vaginal deliveries in group A and caesarean section in group B while controls were spontaneous vaginal deliveries in both groups. The exposure factor is epidural analgesia and the unexposed received systemic opioid. The associations of other parameters such as maternal age, BMI, height, gestational age, intra-partum complications with mode of delivery were also evaluated. Results: Significant association was found between short stature, epidural analgesia and assisted vaginal deliveries. No association was found with caesarean section. Conclusion: Compared to systemic analgesia, the risk of having assisted vaginal delivery with epidural analgesia is nearly 4 times than spontaneous vaginal delivery with epidural analgesia


Intraocular lenses (IOLs) are widely used in cataract surgery. There is a variety of IOLs depending on lens material, optical and mechanical design. Evaluation of the visual performance obtainable with intraocular lenses is important for objective comparison between IOL models. Indeed, the visual performance of implanted lenses has a deep impact on the life of the subjects, having medical, social and economical consequences. The purpose of the present paper is twofold: first, we propose an experimental setup, consisting of an actuated opto-electro-mechanical eye capable of simulating different refractive and optical conditions. Second, we suggest to employ some well-known image quality assessment tools for evaluating the visual performance of different IOLs (or of the same IOL in different conditions) based on the comparison between the original image and that produced by the artificial eye equipped with the IOL. The objective and repeatable results obtained, are in accordance with subjective evaluation (a time-consuming procedure employed in previous works).


The objective of this study was to evaluate the prostate specific antigen (PSA) density (PSAD) (the quotient of PSA and prostate volume) compared with the percent free PSA (%fPSA) in different total PSA (tPSA) ranges from 2 ng/mL to 20 ng/mL. Possible cut‐off levels depending on the tPSA should be established.


ABSTRACT Because of budgetary constraints, human service organizations frequently expect consultants to recommend methods to enhance staff performance that require little or no additional funding. The current study utilized a multiple baseline across settings design to evaluate and compare the effects of a single intervention and a packaged intervention including graphic feedback and goal setting on approximately 200 direct care staff as a group, to improve the data collection procedure at a residential treatment facility. The single intervention showed some improvement, whereas the packaged intervention yielded substantial improvements and was maintained.


In software reliability engineering, reliability models have been in focus for years, while less attention has been given to usage models, which are necessary for usage based testing. The state hierarchy usage model is designed to capture the complex and dynamic usage behaviour for large real-time software systems, for example telecommunication systems. It provides a practical approach to usage modelling in software reliability engineering. In this paper the model is elaborated in detail and methods for its derivation are presented. Furthermore transformation of the state hierarchy model into a discrete-time Markov chain is shown, thus showing that Markov theory can be applied on the model for analysis purpose. IV IV. A Dynamic Usage Modelling Approach to Software Reliability Engineering


The high-shear rotary ultrafiltration (UF) system uses membrane rotation to provide the turbulence required to minimize concentration polarization and flux decline. The high-shear UF system was effective in concentrating oily wastes from about 5% to as high as 65%. The decoupling of turbulence promotion from feed pressurization/recirculation by rotating the membrane was the primary reason for the improvement in performance over that observed with conventional UF systems. Transitional and gel layer oil concentrations (20% and 50--59%, respectively) were higher than values reported in the literature. Permeate flux was dependent on the temperature and rotational speed. Flux increased by about 45% when the temperature was increased from 43 to 60 C. A larger decrease in waste viscosity, over that predicted for water alone, and increased oil droplet diffusivity were hypothesized as reasons for the stronger than expected flux-temperature relationship. The flux-rotational speed ({omega}) relationship was described by J = f({omega}){sup 0.90}; however, the gel layer exhibited stability with increasing {omega}. The ceramic membrane was superior to the polymeric membrane in regards to permeate flux and quality as well as cleaning and durability.


The extraction of vanadium(III, IV, V) with 0.01–0.1 mol dm−3 acetylacetone in such nonpolar organic solvents as heptane, benzene, and chloroform has been investigated at pH 1–7 under a nitrogen atmosphere. The extraction constant, the partition coefficient, and the stability constant for the vanadium(III) and vanadium(IV) chelate were determined. Vanadium(V) was found to have been extracted as the vanadium(IV) chelate with reduction.


In cognitive radio networks (CRNs), dynamic spectrum access has been demonstrated as an effective way to improve the spectrum utilization. Spectrum holes can be exploited not only in certain time slots or frequency bands, but also at particular locations. In relay assisted CRNs, one relay at a certain location can help to identify and provide different spectrum holes over multiple channels. In this paper, a multi-dimensional combinatorial optimization problem is formulated for joint relay selection and channel allocation. We propose a weighted bipartite graph model and a minimum weighted assignment approach to efficiently get the optimal solution of the considered problem. Simulation results show that by applying this approach, spectrum efficiency, relay selection diversity and power efficiency can be improved simultaneously for the cognitive users. Besides, only the statistical channel state information is needed and the allocation results can be computed efficiently by using the proposed approach.


This paper presents a novel mitigation technique to reduce the effects of geomagnetically induced currents (GICs) on high-voltage power systems. The method consists of connecting switching devices at the neutral grounding connection point of transformer banks. Only one transformer bank needs to be grounded through a switch to reduce GIC in a two-terminal system. For multiterminal systems, n-1 switches are necessary and the operation is independent from each other. The switching frequency and the duty cycle are selected from a tradeoff between the effectiveness of the method and the detection of fault currents. Transient simulations on a two-bus 230/500 kV system show that the proposed switching at the neutral successfully mitigates the GIC. This proposed technique opens the door to a new family of GIC mitigation methods.


Animal cells are both encapsulated and subdivided by lipid bilayer membranes. Beyond just acting as boundaries, these membranes' shapes influence the function of cells and their compartments. Physically, membranes are two-dimensional fluids with complex elastic behavior, which makes it impossible, for all but a few simple cases, to predict membrane shapes analytically. Instead, the shape and behavior of biological membranes can be determined by simulations. However, the setup and use of such simulations require a significant programming background. The availability of open-source and user-friendly packages for simulating biological membranes needs improvement.Here, we present flippy, an open-source package for simulating lipid membrane shapes, their interaction with proteins or external particles, and the effect of external forces. Our goal is to provide a tool that is easy to use without sacrificing performance or versatility. flippy is an implementation of a dynamically triangulated membrane. We use a precise yet fast algorithm for calculating the geometric properties of membranes and can also account for local spontaneous curvature, a feature not all discretizations allow. Finally, in flippy we can also include regions of purely elastic (non-fluid) membranes and thus explore various shapes encountered in living systems.


SYNOPEX Inc. is aiming to pursue green growth as an eco-friendly company that focuses on the water and IT industries. In regards to water the company has 22 years experience in manufacturing water treatment filters, in particular micro depth cartridge filters, and was the first Korean company to use melt-blown technology. the company established the Advanced Membrane Analysis & Process Research Center for new advanced membrane R&D, making improvements based on membrane analysis technologies obtained through academic-industrial cooperation with Korea University. The role of this center is selecting optimum membranes and providing consulting for water treatment plants (WTP), wastewater treatment plants (WWTP), water reuse plants (WRP) and seawater reverse osmosis plants (SWRO) with the aim of being a certified agency for Korean and International membranes in the future. Currently, the company is focusing on mobile and stationary water purification system (WPS), water reuse treatment and fluoride removal treatment system.


The antenna configuration studied is part of Tandem-L project, a proposal for interferometric radar mission to monitor the Earth. It consists of a large deployable reflector antenna in offset configuration with a digitized feed. The high crosspolar level due to the reflector geometry must be compensated to fulfil the requirements of fully polarimetric applications. Synthetic Aperture (SAR) calibration methods known until now are not able to reduce the crosspolar component of the radiation pattern of single offset reflector antennas. A reduction of the antenna crosspolar level must be performed in the antenna design stage. This paper shows the characterization and combination of two different techniques to reduce the crosspolar level of a large deployable single offset parabolic reflector.


[Objective] To investigate the effects of municipal sewage sludge on urease activity in different types of soil in the Yangtze River Delta region and to provide important scientific reference for safe agricultural use of municipal sewage sludge and environmental protection.[Method] By indoor culture experiments,the urease activity in four different types of soil in the Yangtze River Delta region was determined after fertilization of two kinds of municipal sewage sludge.[Result] Throughout the culture period,the urease activity had different variation trends and values in different types of soil fertilized different kinds of municipal sewage sludge.In general,compared with the early culture(15 d),the urease activity of most of treated soil was increased at different degrees in the late culture(105 d).Changes of urease activity were related to properties of soil and sludge.[Conclusion] Throughout the culture period,compared with the control soil,the urease activity of soil treated by municipal sewage sludge was increased at varying degrees.


The purpose of the paper is to establish the stress state on the piece triangular profile of the corrugated, submissive under the influence of an equally spread pressure. The results of the analysis make an estimative model for experimental approach of the behaviour of corrugated metallic diaphragms, also allowing the comparison of the results obtained by modelling, using the finite elements method with the experimental ones.


There has been disagreement over whether the expenditures made by the mine operator to comply with the Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act of 1977 are characterized as capital or deductible expenses. An examination of expenditures made by mine operators during the life of a mine illustrates the dichotomy between deductible and capital expenditures in which special rules may override general capitalization rules to allow the mine operator to deduct a capital expenditure. This makes some expenditures difficult to categorize. Citing case law, the author treats expenditures for exploration and mining permits, performance bonds, and liability insurance. A new provision, section 468, allowing the current deduction for future reclamation and closing costs removed the uncertainty created by prior case law.


0. Terena, an Amerindian language of Brazil, shows two types of stress which have a contrastive function.1 Normally, words in certain syntactic constructions will have stress placed on their second or third syllables (this will be called "secondary stress"), and in other syntactic constructions, they will have stress placed on a syllable preceding that bearing secondary stress, that is, on their first or second syllables (this will be called "primary stress"). Primary and secondary stress often serve to distinguish segmentally identical but structurally and semantically different surface constructions, and thus play a contrastive role. In some instances, these two stress types are placed on the same syllable of a word, a situation which potentially would lead to loss of the contrast between


AbstractWe evaluated sepsis in the neonatal unit at Johannesburg Hospital including the time of onset, clinical features, outcome of the treatment of patients, pathogens isolated, and antimicrobial sensitivity to provide site-specific guidelinesfor empiric antibiotic therapy. This was a retrospective study conducted in the neonatal unit of the Johannesburg Hospital between 1 July 2002 and 30 June 2003. All neonates with growth on blood cultures were included. Demographic, clinical, laboratory and microbiological data were reviewed. Of a total of l03 infants with l40 positive blood cultures, eight isolates were most likely to be contaminants. There were thus 132 significant isolates in 96 patients: five presented with early onset sepsis(EOS) and 91 withlate onset sepsis (LOS). Gram-negative bacilli werethe predominant isolatesin EOS and coagulL-negative staphylococci(CoNS)the predominantisolates(63)in LOS (40/63 considered significant, CoNS were not speciated as Staphylococcus epidermidis). Theremaining is...


SummaryPatterns of distribution of 14C-sucrose were determined in egg plant (Solanum melongena L.) cv. Arka Shirish at the vegetative, flowering and fruit development stages. 5 μCi of 14C-sucrose was fed to the fifth leaf from the top at each growth stage and the plants were harvested, 48 h after feeding or at later stages, and the distribution of l4C-sucrose determined. Results indicated bidirectional transport of assimilates to both apical and basal portions of the stem. Within 48 h 14C moved to all the plant parts; roots, stem and leaves appeared to be strong sinks until the fruit began to develop. In plants fed at the fruit development stage, the fruit below the fed leaf were a major sink, although considerable activity was traced in other plant parts also. Only at later stages of crop growth did the fruit become a strong sink. Even at the fruit development stage, about 5-8% of the activity was still found in the roots and no retranslocation to fruit was observed.


Aim. To conduct a comparison of IHD risk prediction with the SCORE, PROCAM andFraminghamscores, as novel developed models of IHD risk in cohort of the railroad workers. Material and methods. Totally, 106 patients included — workers of locomotive crews, who had been under medical observation during 2006-2015 years with regular scheduled physician observations, incl. preflight, in-depth investigation during in-patient cardiological hospitalization. IHD diagnosis was set if documentarily confirmed signs of coronary ischemia of myocard were found, or coronary atherosclerosis (by angiography, MDCT). Individual total vascular risk was estimated by SCORE, PROCAM, Framingham scores and IHD prediction models developed with the principal components approach (PCA), probabilistic neural networks (PNN), Decision Trees based upon a complex of parameters (including body mass, low density lipoproteids, triglycerids, pulse BP, etc.). Quality of the models was assessed via the parameters of sensitivity, specificity, mean absolute prediction bias, square under ROC-curve (AUC). Results. Dispersion to the categories of low, moderate and high by SCORE, PROCAM andFraminghamwas controversial. In IHD group with low risk by these scores, cardiovascular events (myocardial infarction and/or coronary surgery) happened in 51,9%, 5,56% and 42,6%, respectively. AUCs for SCORE, PROCAM andFraminghamin "IHD" subclass were 0,72, 0,65 and 0,69, resp., but for subclass "Myocardial infarction" — just 0,34, 0,42 and 0,32. AUC for PNN on "IHD" was 0,55, "Myocardial infarction" — 0,60. Mean absolute prediction bias for high IHD risk by SCORE, PROCAM and PNN was 0,88, 0,56, 0,46, resp. Conclusion. SCORE, PROCAM andFraminghamscores are inconsistent for the assessed IHD risk category and are not sufficiently precise for prediction of myocardial infarction in cohort of adult men, workers on railroad, that reduces applicability of the scores. Novel developed model of PNN shows the prediction bias lower in models with added parameters as pulse pressure, platelets, triglycerides, myocardial mass index and other).


Abstract Fumonisin B 1 (FB 1 ) is an amphipathic toxinproduced by the pathogenic fungus Fusarium verticil-lioides which causes stem, root and ear rot in maize (Zeamays L.). In this work, we studied the action of FB 1 onthe plasma membrane H + -ATPase (EC 22.214.171.124) fromgerminating maize embryos, and on the fluidity and lipidperoxidation of these membranes. In maize embryos thetoxin at 40 lM inhibited root elongation by 50% and at30 lM decreased medium acidification by about 80%.Irrespective of the presence and absence of FB 1 , the H + -ATPase in plasma membrane vesicles exhibited non-hyperbolic saturation kinetics by ATPH-Mg, with Hillnumber of 0.67. Initial velocity studies revealed that FB 1 is a total uncompetitive inhibitor of this enzyme with aninhibition constant value of 17.5±1 lM. Thus FB 1 de-creased V max and increased the apparent affinity of theenzyme for ATP-Mg to the same extent. Although FB 1 increased the fluidity at the hydrophobic region of themembrane, no correlation was found with its effect onenzyme activity, since both effects showed different FB


Process and equipment recommendations are made to reduce coil rejection because of slivers in continuously cast slabs at Atlas Stainless Steels.


Aimed at generating minimum test cases,heuristic genetic algorithm based on the dynamic solution space is presented.According the changes of the solution space,heuristic operator is added to genetic algorithm,which makes the generation of the test case with the local optimal coverage in current environment more efficient.The experimental results show that HGA not only decreases the test cases obviously but also iterates very quickly,with the full coverage of the pair-wise combinations of the parameters.


The Regional Aquifer-System Analysis (RASA) Program of the U.S. Geological Survey was initiated in 1978 and was completed in 1995. The purpose of this program was to define the regional geohydrology and establish a framework of background information on geology, hydrology, and geochemistry of the Nation`s important aquifer systems. Twenty-five of the Nation`s major aquifer systems were studied under this program. This bibliography lists 1,105 reports that result from various studies of the program. The list of reports for each study follows a brief description of that study.


About 8% of children and adolescents suffer from depression and 11% of adolescents have a depressive disorder by the age of 18 years according to the National Co-morbidity Survey-Adolescent Supplement. This study has been conducted to estimate the prevalence of depression among adolescents studying in public schools in Noida in order to find out a relationship if any with different socio-economic and demographic factors. Cross-sectional study using simple screening instruments along with anthropometric measurements for detecting symptoms of depression in adolescents, two psychological instruments i.e. PRIME-MD PHQ-9 and perceived stress scale were used. Information on socio-demographic factors, activities undertaken to avoid depression and methods to relieve depression were collected using semi-structured questionnaires. Statistical analysis was done with Chi-square test using SPSS 17. Prevalence of depression was observed to be 38% among the study subjects in the age groups of 16 and 18 years. Males (35%) were found less depressed as compared to the females (41.8%). Association of frequency of going out for outing, extracurricular activities and type of activities and depression were statistically significant. Highest prevalence of depression was seen in obese (48.7%) study subjects. A statistically significant association was found between BMI and depression (P<0.003). Majority of study subjects (36.6%) had consulted their parents, while 33% of study subjects had consulted their friends. Majority of study subjects (64.4%) listen to music to relieve depression which was statistically significant (P<0.001). The study highlights the common but ignored problem of depression in adolescence. The teachers and parents should be made aware of this problem with the help of school counselors so that the depressed adolescent can be identified early and helped rather than suffer silently.


A technique for the construction of a dynamic model of the frequency converter based on the voltage inverter is described. The constructed models are to be applied for analytical synthesis of stabilization system of a converter output voltage.


It was the followers of the Safavid order who put their spiritual leader (pir or morshed-e kamel) on the throne of Iran. Despite the order's crucial role hardly anything is known about its organization and its ritual. That the or¬ der and its leaders played an important role in the new Safavid state is clear from the fact that the only function that was added to the array of religious offices was that of the khalifeh al-kholafa, the administrative head of the order. A second new religious office, that of the molla-bashi, signaling the victory of Imamite Shi'ism over Sufism, was added only around 1705. The creation of the former function, the subject of this study, was the result of the changed role of the spiritual leader of the Safavid order, who had become shah of Iran in 1501. The only other study discussing this official's function was published 36 years ago' and focused on the conflict between the shah/ morshed and the khalifeh al-kholafa, Hoseinqoli Rumli, in 1576. However, as important as that conflict may have been, (and I disagree with Savory's analysis thereof), there is much more to be said about the development of the function of khalifeh al-kholafa and the Safavid Sufi order that was in his charge. This function existed from the beginning till the end of the Safavid regime, though with the fading of the Qezelbash rallying call and the rise of Imamite Shi'ite orthopraxis both the Safavid Sufi order and its administra¬ tive head gradually lost influence and importance, finally to disappear com¬ pletely In view of the mobilizing role of religious groups in Iran in general and of the Safavid order in particular it is of interest to have a more detailed view and better understanding than has hitherto been available of the func¬ tion of the khalifeh al-kholafa.


Six-wheel drive (6WD) articulated dump truck has ex cellent passing ability and high productivity, but its stability should be improved. A dynamic model of 6W D articulated vehicle with 3 degree-of-freedom (DOF) is established. With the control variables of yaw velocity and side-slip angle at mass center of f ont body, a feedfoward-feedback control system is desig n d by linear quadratic regulator (LQR) theory base d on direct yaw-moment control (DYC) method. A simula tion with a step input of articulated angle is conducted, and the result shows that the value of s ide-slip angle at mass center, yaw velocity and lat eral acceleration all drop after control, and the contro l system is effective to improve the vehicle stabil ity. The weight coefficients are regulated to analyze their influence on control effect, and the result indicat es hat it is necessary to regulate them to reach the optimum of both energy and error of control.


The first terminal (1) switching device for switching the current between the second terminal (2) includes a first semiconductor switch (M) in series connection with the second semiconductor switch (J) including a cascode circuit having. The two semiconductor switches (M, J) are connected to each other by a common point (13). The first semiconductor switch (M) is controlled by the first control input in accordance with the voltage between the first control input and the first terminal (1). The second semiconductor switch (J) is controlled by a second control input (4) according to the voltage between the second control input (4) and the common point (13). Finally, the control circuit has an identifiable capacitance (C) is connected between at least one of the second and the control input terminal (2).


Today the Greek diaspora is located mainly in English-speaking countries in both northern and southern hemispheres. The Greek Orthodox Church is a central institution of this diaspora, at all parochial and diocesan levels, and also on the world scale with its patriarchates, especially the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople. In the face of a rapid anarchic growth of independent communities at the beginning of the 20th century, the Ecumenical Patriarchate established two strong archdioceses, one in New York and another in Sydney. In Europe in the 1960s, while the number of migrants was on the rise particularly in Germany and England, seven autonomous metropolitan units, located in different capitals, were created by the Ecumenical Patriarchate. Africa has its own patriarch of Alexandria, with 13 metropolites heading Churches which are more and more Africanized. The Orthodox Church, which was already the core institution for the Christians during the Ottoman Empire, has maintained its Byzantine structures through the centuries. A repressive environment has anchored Orthodoxy deep within Greek identity. With its strong bureaucratic structure at the diocese-archdiocese level, Orthodoxy has a layered confederal organization of self-governed parishes on the one hand and autonomous or autocephalous Churches on the other. It usually compromises with the democratic spirit of the communities, but can be challenged by them. These community structures are another main component of the Greek identity coming from a pre-Christian stratum, the ancient city-state. These two models of political organization continue to compete within the diaspora even though the first model is now predominant.


Background The relationship between long‐term cardiovascular health (CVH) patterns and elevated CRP (C‐reactive protein) in late middle age has yet to be investigated. We aimed to assess this relationship. Methods and Results Individual CVH components were measured in 4405 Black and White men and women (aged 18–30 years at baseline) in the CARDIA (Coronary Artery Risk Development in Young Adults) study at 8 examinations over 25 years. CRP was measured at 4 examinations (years 7, 15, 20, and 25). Latent class modeling was used to identify individuals with similar trajectories in CVH from young adulthood to middle age. Multivariable Poisson regression models were used to assess the association between race‐specific CVH trajectories and prevalence of elevated CRP levels (>3.0 mg/L) after 25 years of follow‐up. Five distinct CVH trajectories were identified for each race. Lower and decreasing trajectories had higher prevalence of elevated CRP relative to the highest trajectory. Prevalence ratios for elevated CRP in lowest trajectory groups at year 25 were 2.58 (95% CI, 1.89–3.51) and 7.20 (95% CI, 5.09–10.18) among Black and White people, respectively. Prevalence ratios for chronically elevated CRP (elevated CRP at 3 or more of the examinations) in the lowest trajectory groups were 8.37 (95% CI, 4.37–16.00) and 15.89 (95% CI, 9.01–28.02) among Black and White people, respectively. Conclusions Lower and decreasing CVH trajectories are associated with higher prevalence of elevated CRP during the transition from young adulthood to middle age.