The author of the article reviews the proceedings of a scientific conference held in 2018 by the Association of Literary Museums at the Union of Museums of Russia (with the participation of the V. I. Dahl State Museum of History of Russian literature). The conference proceedings are considered as an important step made by Russian Literary museums toward defining the venues for their further development, as well as an attempt to coordinate intellectual contributions by the employees involved in practical museum work and museum researchers. The author stresses the unanimity of the proceeding's contributors in their approach to the history of literary museums, to the determination of the specific features of their fund's collections and the principles of their acquisition. Going beyond traditional museographic descriptions is analyzed in the discussion of methods and forms of a museum's interpretation of the biography and work of the writer, presentation of the author's texts by means of museum expositions and in museum educational programs. It is important to raise the question of the role of museums in the dynamics of the modern literary process and artistic culture. The author analyzes the concepts of literary heritage, both its material and intangible parts, which the contributors to the proceedings regard as a resource for further development and exploration of new formats for presentation and intercommunication with the museum audience. It is shown that overcoming the local institutional experience is a necessary stage in the development of literary museums. The Association of Literary museums can play a positive role in such development, in particular, by coordinating research.


Objective Milk production is one of the most desirable traits in livestock. Recently, the toll-like receptor (TLR) has been identified as a candidate gene for milk traits in cows. So far, there is no information concerning the contribution of this gene in milk traits in sheep. This study was designed to investigate the TLR 4 gene polymorphisms in Barki ewes in Egypt and then correlate that with milk traits in order to identify potential single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) for these traits in sheep. Methods A part of the ovine TLR 4 gene was amplified in Barki ewes, to identify the SNPs. Consequently; Barki ewes were genotyped using polymerase chain reaction-single strand conformation polymorphism protocol. These genotypes were correlated with milk traits, which were the daily milk yield (DMY), protein percentage (PP), fat percentage (FP), lactose percentage, and total solid percentage (TSP). Results Age and parity of the ewe had a significant effect (p<0.05 or p<0.01) on DMY, FP, and TSP. The direct sequencing identified a missense mutation located in the coding sequence of the gene (rs592076818; c.1710C>A) and was predicted to change the amino acid sequence of the resulted protein (p.Asn570Lys). The association analyses suggested a significant effect (p<0.05) of the TLR genotype on the FP and PP, while the DMY tended to be influenced as well (p = 0.07). Interestingly, the presence of the G allele tended to increase the DMY (+40.5 g/d) and significantly (p<0.05 or p<0.01) decreased the FP (−1.11%), PP (−1.21%), and TSP (−7.98%). Conclusion The results of this study suggested the toll-like receptor 4 (TLR4) as a candidate gene to improve milk traits in sheep worldwide, which will enhance the ability to understand the genetic architecture of genes underlying SNPs that affect such traits.


THE folloWing are two cases of epithelial implantation cyst oni the iris wh-ich have come under my care and upon which I have operated. The first case has already been reported for me in its earlier stages by i\Ir. R. C. Davenport in the St. Bartholomew's Reports, 1924, Vol. LVII. p. 141. It may now be considered to be complete and so is worth reporting fully. On May 17, 1922, a house surgeon wearing concave glasses was playing fives when the ball came back and broke the spectacle glass into his right eye. He was at once admitted into the hospital and I saw him the same evening. There was a clean linear wound through the whole thickness of the cornea extending completely from one side to the other, from about 10 o'clock to 4 o'clock and cutting across the middle of the cornea. The anterior chamber had already partly reformed, there was no prolapse of the iris, the pupil was circular, the lens had escaped damage and it was clear that no operative procedure was desirable. Next morning the fundus was clearly seen and was normal, the eye was soft and on the front of the iris at about 4 o'clock at the site at which the cyst afterwards formed, was a small greyish white, rather woolly-looking mass. Examination both by X-rays and by the giant magnet gave a negative result, and transillumination of the globe produced no information. The eye quickly healed and soon was nearly white. Sixteen days later the small mass on the front of the iris, already referred to, was smaller but was still clearly visible. A fortnight later a few very fine keratic deposits were present and the small mass on the iris could no longer be seen. From this time the eye gradually settled down, the acuity witlh myopic correction became a complete 6/6, but the eye was still for many weeks a little softer than the other one and was inclined to flush rather easily on examination. I many times expressed the feeling that there must be something, perhaps of the nature of some impalpable dirt carried in at the time of the accident that was irritating the eye and that was responsible for the softness, slight as it was, and the tendencv to flush. Ten months later the patient himself noticed a change in the eye. At the inner end of the wound behind the nasal end of the scar was a small spherical pearly cyst, and lying across it with its 496


The impacts of the gate length and width of the transistors on the single event upset (SEU) hardness of static random access memory (SRAM) cells has been investigated by SPICE simulations, biased on a partially depleted (PD) silicon-on-insulator (SOI) CMOS technology. The results show that increasing the gate width can dramatically enhance the linear energy transfer (LET) threshold of SEU, as compared with increasing the gate length. A new parameter, unit gate area LET threshold, is introduced for characterizing the change in efficiency of improving the SEU resistance with increasing the gate length and width of the transistors in a cell. The effect of decoupling capacitors on cell SEU LET threshold is also presented by making a comparison with that of the transistors with increased gate lengths.


Abstract The massive flood of numbers in ongoing large-scale periodic economic and social surveys commonly leaves little time for anything but a cursory examination of the quality of the data, and few techniques exist for giving an overview of data activity. At the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, a graphical and query-based solution to these problems has recently been adopted for data review in the Current Employment Statistics survey. Chief among the motivations for creating the new system were: (1) Reduce or eliminate the arduous paper review of thousands of sample reports by review analysts; (2) allow the review analysts a more global view of sample activity and at the same time make outlier detection less of a strain; and (3) present global views of estimates over time and among groups of subestimates. The specific graphics approaches used in the new system were designed to quickly portray both time series and cross-sectional aspects of the data, as these are both critical elements in the review proc...


Summary The superposition of the flexural instability of the plane form of a cantilever wing in its own plane, over that of the torsional elastic equilibrium, gives rise to a special phenomenon of mixed instability which has been translated analytically by Prof. C. Minelli into the problem of determining the first positive characteristic value of a certain system of two ordinary, linear and homogeneous equations, in two unknown functions, with given limiting conditions. The methods of calculation, both analytical and numerical, for the solution of this problem are described. The results confirm the intuitive inferences according to which, other conditions being equal, the backward displacement of the elastic axis worsens conditions by lowering the critical speed.


Peer production is a newly emergencing mode of knowledge production, which is quite different from the traditional knowledge production. Peer producers couldnpsilat get any payment for their participation normally. Baidupedia is a typical and popular Chinese peer production project, and all the Baidupedia users are peer producers of Baidupedia project. In current research, using open-ended interview, we explored the participating motivations of 10 Baidupedia kernal users and 65 Baidupedia ordinary users respectively, then we investigated the general characteristics of Baidupedia userspsila participating motivations. As a result, Baidupedia kernal userspsila participating motivations were different from those of Baidupedia ordinary userspsila. And Baidupedia userspsila participating motivations were diverse, including motivations of use-value, need to know, interest, reciprocity, intercourse, competence, money and status, and the most outstanding one was the use-value motivation.


In ultrarelativistic heavy ion collisions, the multiplicity of multistrange baryons per participating nucleon increases with centrality in a different fashion for different systems and energies. At RHIC, for copper+copper (CuCu) collisions the increase is much steeper than for gold-gold (AuAu) collisions. We show that this system size dependence is due to a core-corona effect: the relative importance of the corona as compared to the core (thermalized matter) contribution varies and the contribution of a corona nucleon to the multiplicity differs from that of a core nucleon. {phi} mesons follow--as all hadrons--the same trend, but the difference between core and corona multiplicity is relatively small, and therefore the CuCu and AuAu results are quite similar. This simple geometrical explanation makes also a strong case in favor of the validity of Glauber geometry in the peripheral regions of ultrarelativistic heavy ion collisions, which is crucial for understanding the early evolution of the system.


The goal of a robust cyberinfrastructure (CI) ecosystem is to catalyse discovery and innovation. Tapis does this through offering a sustainable production-quality set of API services to support modern science and engineering research, which increasingly span geographically distributed data centers, instruments, experimental facilities, and a network of national and regional CI. Leveraging frameworks, such as Tapis, enables researchers to accomplish computational and data-intensive research in a secure, scalable, and reproducible way and allows them to focus on their research instead of the technology needed to accomplish it. This project aims to enable the integration of the Google Cloud Platform (GCP) and CloudyCluster resources into Tapis-supported science gateways to provide on-demand scaling needed by computational workflows. The new functionality uses Tapis event-driven Abaco Actors and CloudyCluster to create an elastic distributed cloud computing system on demand. This integration allows researchers and science gateways to augment cloud resources on top of existing local and national computing resources.


This article reveals in detail the specifics of the manifestation of aggression, physical and moral negative impact on children in the school environment, the concept of "bullying" is described in detail and explained. The main world achievements in the field of combating this phenomenon are considered. The structures and features of preventive and anti-bullying programs created in different countries of the world from the 80s of the 20th century to the present are analyzed. The article also provides a short list of authors of scientific works that reveal the problem of bullying and violence among schoolchildren. The main factors that have a positive effect on the stabilization and elimination of bullying in the training team are considered. The necessity of preparing a future teacher is shown.


Location of esterases and nerve arrangement is studied in Singhiatrema longifurca and Paradistomoides orientalis. Both the trematodes possess a pair of cerebral ganglia connected by cerebral commissure. From here three pairs of nerves proceed to anterior and posterior sides. Anterior pairs, interconnected by transverse commissures and connectives innervate the oral sucker and the anterior tip. Of the posterior pairs, ventrolaterals are well developed in both. In S. longifurca nervous organization is highly complicated with many branches. P. orientalis also sends a number of branches to various organs. Both parasites possess many presumptive neuro-secretory and sensory cells. Various degrees of esterase activity in both worms is located in excretory vesicle and ducts, suckers, genital pore, gonads, oviducts and eggs.


This article is a comprehensive literature review of the research regarding reentry women for 1980 to 1990, with recommendations for counseling and research. The article is divided into the following sections: (a) reentry trends; (b) general characteristics; (c) reasons for reentry; (d) personality; (e) role, values, and family; (f) satisfaction in the student role; (g) career choice; (h) reentry women after graduation; (i) research limitations; (j) research recommendations; and (k) conclusion. Research replications were found to be very limited and restricted to four areas: (a) reasons for reentry, (b) personality, (c) family variables, and (d) career choice.


Received: 12 Jun 2018 Received in revised: 19 Sep 2018 Accepted: 21 Sep 2018 Published online: 17 Dec 2018 DOI: 10.32526/ennrj.17.2.2019.14 This paper focuses on the spatial and temporal aspects of rising sea levels and sandy beach erosion in Thailand. The major scientific challenge tackled in this paper was to distinguish the relevance and contribution of sea level rise (including storms) to beach erosion. The Simulator of Climate Change Risks and Adaptation Initiatives (SimCLIM) and its' impact model (CoastCLIM) with two representative concentration pathway (RCP) scenarios (RCP2.6 and RCP8.5) was utilized to forecast changes in sea level and shoreline between the years 1940-2100. Input parameters underlying the modified Brunn Rule were applied (e.g., coastal and storm characteristics). Moreover, sand loss and forced people migration were estimated using fundamental equations. The sea level is predicted to rise by 147.90 cm and the coastline will be eroded around 517.09 m by 2100, compared to levels in 1995. This level of erosion could lead to a decrease of the coastal sandy area by about 2.69 km and a population of 873 people, over the same period. In scientific terms, this paper quantifies the contribution and relevance of sea-level rise (SLR) to sandy beach erosion compared to other factors, including ad-hoc short-term impacts from stochastic storminess. The results also showed that 8.02 and 23.26 percent of erosion was attributed to storms and sea-level rise, respectively. Nevertheless, limited multi-century data of residual movement in Thailand could create uncertainties in distinguishing relative contributions. These results could be beneficial to national-scale data and the adaptation planning processes in Thailand.


Abstract : Significant discoveries were made concerning the role of symmetry in dynamical systems, work on the dynamics of low-dimensional dynamical systems (one and two dimensional real and complex systems), and progress in the use of symbolic computation tools for the study of dynamical systems. The development of the visualization tool and interface for studying dynamical systems, kaos, was partially funded through MSI. Research in interacting particle systems increased as they are attractive models useful in a wide variety of situations in physics, biology, and image processing. One of the great breakthroughs in the subject in the past five years was R. Durrett's development of methods for treating large classes of these models if one is willing to assume that the range of interaction is large or that the particles are moving at a fast rate. These assumptions are satisfied in many biological and physical systems and provide a reliable guide to the qualitative features of other systems, as well. Very significant work was done in the area of polytopes, generalized discriminants, and resultants. They established a conjecture of Baues arising in the geometry of loop spaces in homotopy theory. Research and development was done on Macaulay which has become one of the major computer algebra systems for computations in algebraic geometry and commutative algebra. The system is in use world-wide. MSI-funded research ranged from the development of new, underlying theoretical mathematics to the actual implementation of the program. Automatic techniques were developed to generate differential equations that model physical systems. The work uses symbolic computation to generate the equations and ties together symbolic and numerical methods to make the equations easier to solve.


In this paper we derive the distribution of elementary divisors and the canonical form of random symmetric matrices with independent entries distributed according to the Haar measure on $\mathbb{Z}_p$ for odd primes $p$. As an example of an application, we give an alternative proof for the result of Bhargava, Cremona, Fisher, Jones, and Keating on the probability that a random quadratic form over $\mathbb{Z}_p$ has a non-trivial zero.


Consideration is given to the following problem. Preprocess n moving points in a plane, such that the Euclidean minimum spanning tree of these points at a given time t can be reported efficiently. In the result, if the moving points are in k-motion, after an O(kn/sup 4/ log n) time preprocessing step and using O(m) space to store the preprocessing result, the Euclidean minimum spanning tree at t can be reported in O(n) time, where m denotes the number of changes of the Euclidean minimum spanning tree of these points from time t=0 to time t= infinity . >


We demonstrated a new injection scheme using a single pulsed quadrupole magnet (PQM) with no pulsed local bump at the Photon Factory Advanced Ring (PF-AR) in High Energy Accelerator Research Organization (KEK). The scheme employs the basic property of a quadrupole magnet, that the field at the center is zero, and nonzero elsewhere. The amplitude of coherent betatron oscillation of the injected beam is effectively reduced by the PQM; then, the injected beam is captured into the ring without largely affecting the already stored beam. In order to investigate the performance of the scheme with a real beam, we built the PQM providing a higher field gradient over 3 T=m and a shorter pulse width of 2:4 s, which is twice the revolution period of the PF-AR. After the field measurements confirmed the PQM specifications, we installed it into the ring. Then, we conducted the experiment using a real beam and consequently succeeded in storing the beam current of more than 60 mA at the PF-AR. This is the first successful beam injection using a single PQM in electron storage rings.


In recent years, Artificial Intelligence (AI) algorithms have been proven to outperform traditional statistical methods in terms of predictivity, especially when a large amount of data was available. Nevertheless, the "black box" nature of AI models is often a limit for a reliable application in high-stakes fields like diagnostic techniques, autonomous guide, etc. Recent works have shown that an adequate level of interpretability could enforce the more general concept of model trustworthiness [1]. The basic idea of this paper is to exploit the human prior knowledge of the features' importance for a specific task, in order to coherently aid the phase of the model's fitting. This sort of "weighted" AI is obtained by extending the empirical loss with a regularization term encouraging the importance of the features to follow predetermined constraints. This procedure relies on local methods for the feature importance computation, e.g. LRP, LIME, etc. that are the link between the model weights to be optimized and the user-defined constraints on feature importance. In the fairness area, promising experimental results have been obtained for the Adult dataset. Many other possible applications of this model agnostic theoretical framework are described.


The green development of circulation industry is essentially a harmonious development between economic growth in circulation industry and resource conservation,friendly environment as well as human health and safety.With reference to relative theory of green development,based on expert interviews and questionnaire surveys,this study employs Delphi method and AHP(Analytic Hierarchy Process) to determine the index system for evaluating the green development status in circulation industry.It adopts the comprehensive evaluation method to conduct an empirical analysis on the retailing industry and logistics industry in Changsha and draws a conclusion that the green development of circulation industry in Changsha is high above the average level and the green degree varies obviously in different circulation enterprises.Accordingly,this study puts forward the suggestions on regulations and standards,economy,technology,talents,culture,etc.for an improvement in green development of circulation industry in the test area of resource-conserving and environment-friendly society.


Biological treatment is usually effective for the mineralization of only one half of the organic carbon present in retort waters. Microbial growth is supported primarily by polar organic constituents, especially fatty acids. Explanations for the limitation to biooxidation are proposed, and several physicochemical treatment methods including sorption and chemical oxidation were evaluated for their abilities to complement or enhance biooxidation. The use of spent shale or powdered activated carbon (PAC) effected preferential sorption of the less polar, biorefractory organic compounds from retort water. The concurrent application of these sorbents with biooxidation, however, did not promote a synergistic removal. The construction and application of a pilot-scale adiabatic stainless steel and beaded-glass steam stripper for removal of ammonia, hydrogen sulfide, and carbon dioxide from oil shale process wastewaters is discussed; emphasis is placed on the benefits steam stripping would accord biooxidation. Ultraviolet radiation had no significant effect on the biorefractory organic solutes in retort water. Extensive ozonation structurally altered 14 percent of the recalcitrant dissolved organic carbon (DOC) and thereby promoted enhanced microbial mineralization. Ozonation mediated by ultraviolet radiation had a synergistic effect. More than 41 percent of the DOC, however, remained refractory to successive treatments by primary biooxidation, exhaustive chemical oxidation,more » and secondary biotreatment. Potent chemical oxidants apparently were incapable of effecting sufficient structural alteration of the biorefractory compounds to encourage renewed biooxidation. This implies that oxidative enzyme systems also may be incapable of promoting further alteration or mineralization of these recalcitrant solutes. Physicochemical methods that complement biotreatment may be required to upgrade oil shale wastewaters for reuse or codisposal.« less


Abstract : The authors discuss changes in the geostrategic environment over tne past several years that have created new challenges and opportunities for U.S. participation in various coalitions. Although similarities exist between new coalition operations and large scale military operations, many factors have a stronger influence in a coalition situation, including differences in culture and language, terminology, military doctrine, equipment, capabilities and command organization. The activity of nonmilitary and nongovernmental actors in coalition operations is also considered. The authors conclude that analyzing the obstacles, and preparing, planning, and training to address those obstacles, will mitigate their effects on coalition operations. In addition, developing common operating principles and institutionalizing coalition training will improve the likelihood of success.


Most bridge failures occur due to the development of scour holes around the abutment and pier. Therefore, accurate prediction of abutment scour depth is critical for designing and maintaining bridges to ensure their safety and longevity. Traditional methods for predicting abutment scour depth, such as empirical formulas and physical models, have accuracy, applicability, and cost limitations. Machine learning (ML), on the other hand, has the potential to overcome these limitations by leveraging large amounts of data and identifying complex patterns and relationships that are difficult to detect using traditional methods. ML models can be trained on various data sources, including field measurements, laboratory experiments, and numerical simulations, to predict abutment scour depth accurately. Therefore, the present study aims to develop a novel-tuned Custom ensemble ML model for predicting abutment scour depth in clear-water conditions. The proposed Custom ensemble model outperforms the ML models used to predict non-dimensional scour depth at abutments with an accuracy of 95.93%.


High dielectric polymer nanocomposites are promising candidates for energy storage applications. The main criteria of focus are high dielectric breakdown strength, high dielectric constant and low dielectric loss. In this study, we investigate the effect of the addition of TiO2 particles to PVDF matrix on the dielectric constant, breakdown and energy density of the system. The dispersion of the particles is qualified by scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The morphology of the composites is characterized by polarized light microscopy, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and differential scanning calorimetry (DSC). The dielectric properties are measured by a Novocontrol system with an Alpha analyzer. Finally, the breakdown measurements are carried out by a QuadTech hipot tester.Copyright © 2010 by ASME


With the network into people's work and life,it profoundly affects and changes the traditional structure and pattern of political participation in contemporary era.The network is expanding political participation.It is not only the strength of achieving the technical people's democracy,but also contains the value of political participation in their own aspirations.It is a unity of instrumental value and purpose value.As a focus of the value in China and western culture and ideology political practice,the value of justice guides the political participation of the network.But in the justice of political participation value,network's generation and good political operation is the precondition,interests and needs is the motivation and extensive practice is the realization ways.


In addition to anatase and rutile, pseudobrookite and small amounts of hematite were identified by x-ray diffraction studies of a commercial leucoxene concentrate from the Quilon beach sand deposit.


The article discusses the main features of mechanical, chemical, thermal, and electrical processes occurring in the contact zones of the surfaces of contact connections of electrical devices. The parameters determining the value of power losses and power consumption in low voltage switching equipment are analyzed. The main features of the characteristics of the topology and technical condition in the operating conditions of the equipment of shop low-voltage industrial power supply networks are shown. A comparative analysis of the technical characteristics of automatic circuit breakers. Using catalog data, the dependences of active power losses in circuit breakers on rated currents are established. Algorithms have been developed and the obtained dependencies have been modeled using approximating functions. The standard deviation of the compiled approximating functions is calculated. Analytical expressions of the dynamics of power losses per pole in the studied machines of some companies of the function of the rated current are presented. The graphical dependencies of the investigated parameters of low-voltage equipment are presented. The developed models are recommended to be used to increase the reliability of the assessment and refinement of the amount of active power and electricity losses in low-voltage electrical networks of industrial power supply systems.


By fourth grade, over half of students write so poorly that their writing skills are not adequate for meeting classroom demands (Persky, Daane, & Jin, 2003). Poor writing skills place these children academically at risk, not only during the early elementary years but in secondary school as well. During the middle and high school years, writing is the primary means by which students demonstrate their knowledge (Graham, 2005). It is used to gather, remember, and share content information. Furthermore, it is an effective tool for exploring and thinking about ideas (Bangert-Drowns, Hurley, & Wilkinson, 2004). Writing is especially difficult for students with behavioral difficulties (Tindal & Crawford, 2002). Nelson, Benner, Lane, and Smith (2004) found that from kindergarten through Grade 12, students with emotional or behavioral disorders (E/BD) scored well below average on a standardized test of writing ability. Given the importance of writing to school success, this places these students at a considerable disadvantage in the educational system (Graham, 2006). It is especially important that children with or at risk for E/BD receive sound instruction in writing early on, before their writing problems become more intractable. Research indicates that waiting until later grades to address literacy problems that are evident in the primary grades is not a successful strategy (Slavin, Karweit, & Madden, 1989). Learning to write is a complex process that depends on mastering a variety of processes and skills (Graham, 2006), including how to plan compositions and regulate writing behavior. One approach that has been used successfully to teach both good and poor writers such processes is Self-Regulated Strategy Development (SRSD; Harris & Graham, 1996, 1999). With SRSD, students are taught strategies for processes that include planning as well as the knowledge and self-regulatory procedures (goal setting, self-monitoring, self-instructions, and self-reinforcement) needed to apply the target strategies, better understand the writing task, and regulate their writing behavior. In addition, this approach enhances students' motivation for writing by making students' writing gains visible, connecting these gains to using the knowledge and strategies they are learning, and emphasizing the importance of effort as a key factor in learning to write well. In this article, we describe how SRSD instruction was modified to teach planning and self-regulatory strategies for writing a story to second-grade students who were at risk for behavioral difficulties and who also had co-occurring writing deficits. This instruction occurred within the context of a positive behavioral support (PBS) model.


A preliminary investigation of a small clustering of stars superimposed on the globule Lynds 810 is reported. The six brightest stars appear to be foreground objects unrelated to the dark cloud. However, at least one and possibly several early-type stars are embedded in the globule as evidenced by reflection nebulae. The distance of Lynds 810 is estimated to be 1.5 to 2 kpc. Key words: interstellar matter - globules - reflection nebulae


To detect the DoS in networks by applying association rules mining techniques, we propose that association rules and frequent itemsets can be employed to find DoS pattern in packet streams which describe traffic and user behaviors. The method extracts information from the log analysis of submitted packets using the algorithm which depends on the definition of the intrusion. Large itemsets were extracted to represent the super facts to build the association analysis for the intrusion. Network data files were analysed for experiments. The analysis and experimental results are encouraging with better performance as packet frequency number increases.


Aim:  We evaluated the performance of serum creatinine based equations to estimate glomerular filtration rate (GFR) in South Asian healthy renal donors.


Novel carbon paste ion selective electrodes based on the 1,4-bis(6-bromohexyloxy)benzene (BHOB) ionophore were constructed in order to determine the Hg(II) ion concentration. Multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) and nanosilica modifiers were used for improving the response characteristics of mercury carbon paste sensors. MWCNTs have good conductivity which helps the transduction of the signal in carbon paste electrodes. These potentiometric sensors respond to Hg(II) ions in wide linear concentration ranges of 1 × 10−1 to 1.0 × 10−7 and 1.0 × 10−1 to 1.8 × 10−8 mol L−1 with Nernstian slopes of 28.75 ± 0.46 and 29.92 ± 0.15 mV decade−1 of Hg(II) ions and detection limits of 1 × 10−7 and 1.8 × 10−8 mol L−1 for the MWCNT-CPE (electrode V) and MWCNT/nanosilica-CPE (electrode VII), respectively. The electrodes were pH independent within the ranges of 3.0–7.5 and 2.5–8.5, with a fast response time of about 7 and 4 s, and can be used for at least 110 and 145 days without any considerable divergence in the potentials of electrode (V) and electrode (VII), respectively. The proposed sensors thus allowed a sensitive, selective, simple, low-cost, and stable electrochemical response to Hg(II) ions in the presence of a large number of alkali, alkaline earth, transition and heavy metal ions. Such abilities promote new opportunities for determining Hg(II) ions in a wide range of real samples. The results obtained were compared with those obtained using inductively coupled plasma atomic emission spectrometry (ICP-AES).


The objectives of this paper are: (1) to clarify the state of Nigeria's reproductive health policies and laws; (2) to examine whether these laws hinder or encourage family planning; and (3) to use this knowledge to propose an agenda for action for the 21st century. The article analyses the scope of laws regulating fertility choice in Nigeria and the impact of such laws on women's autonomy under the constitution and criminal law. The paper concludes with the notion that Nigerian fertility control laws have harmed, rather than encouraged, population control in the country, and the criminalization of abortion is in conflict with the constitutional rights of women. (Afr I Rep rod Health 1 998;2 (2) :82—95) KEY WORDs: Population control, family planning, law, contraception, abortion


The selectivity of gillnets is usually estimated "indirectly" from comparisons of catches by two or more mesh sizes, assuming that the selectivity curves for all meshes have the same shape and amplitude. We estimated selectivity "directly" by fishing marked walleye (Stizostedion vitreum vitreum) with gillnets of (3.81–11.43-cm) mesh. The selectivity curves were bimodal but each could be resolved into two unimodal components representing fish caught by wedging and tangling, respectively. We fitted the selectivity of each mesh to a pair of Pearson's Type I curves. As the mesh size increased, amplitude of the selectivity curves increased rapidly and tangling occurred over a progressively narrower range of (fish girth)/(mesh perimeter) ratio. Our estimates agreed with data from four out of seven other gillnetting studies, indicating a wider applicability but also a need to consider additional variables or to standardize fishing methods. Because the assumption of equal amplitudes is not realistic, the indirect...


Fruit, leaf, fruit stalk, and rhizome of Typha angustifolia, which is abundantly available in Thailand, were investigated for antimicrobial activities. The results showed that fruit ethanolic extract had high activity against Staphylococcus aureus and Bacillus subtilis similar to the fruit stalk and rhizome extracts whereas the lowest antibacterial activities was found in the leaf extract. Only rhizome extract had antifungal activity against Candida albicans. The fruit extract was chosen for furthur study because of its antibacterial action, ease of collecting, and preparation before usage. This fruit ethanolic extract was semi-purified by partition with petroleum ether, chloroform and ethylacetate, respectively and subsequently tested for antimicrobial activities by disc diffusion against S. aureus, Staphylococcus epidermidis, Sarcina lutea, Streptococcus faecalis, Streptococcus pneumoniae, Micrococcus flavus, Bacillus cereus, Bacillus pumillus, B. subtilis, Shigella somnei, Proteus mirabilis, Proteus valgalis, Alcaligenes fecalis, Serratia marcescens, Salmonella paratyphi A, Salmonella typhi, Escherechia coli, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, and Saccharomyces cerevisiae. The inhibitory zone against gram-positive bacteria was broader in all partitioned fractions than in gram-negative bacteria and yeast. Furthermore, none of the fractions were able to prevent the development of S. marcescens, P. aeruginosa, or E. coli. The inhibition zone of the ethyl acetate fraction was larger than that of chloroform and petroleum ether. In comparison to the other fractions, the chloroform fraction demonstrated the broadest inhibition zone against B. subtilis. Based on the bioautography investigation, it was reasonable to conclude that there were at least five antibacterial chemicals against B. subtilis. Therefore, fruit of T. angustifolia has the potential for use in the discovery of new antibacterial agents.


E d to ia l The emerging environmental problems associated with triclosan, which are highlighted in the series of four papers presented in this issue of Integrated Environmental Assessment and Management are the latest examples from a long list of substances whose use has led to unanticipated environmental consequences. Other examples include dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane (DDT), polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), methyl tertiary-butyl ether (MTBE), tributyltin (TBT), ethinylestradiol and diclofenac, to name but a few. At least in part, the unexpected collateral effects associated with the use of these substances has occurred because of the tendency to focus on solving a particular problem; in the case of triclosan, its antimicrobial properties were employed in personal care products and a wide range of medical equipment and procedures. Alas, tackling only one facet (the need for certain safe and sterile environments in the case of triclosan) of broader environmental issues has been shown to collide with the reality of interconnected complex biological, chemical, and ecological systems, that need to be assessed often under conditions of substantial uncertainty. Science will never yield all that we might want to know when environmental problems need to be addressed and decisions about chemical risks are made. Hence those who are inclined to take actions with great certitude are clashing more and more often with others who seek a more precautionary approach to decisionmaking, a conflict which ultimately becomes paralyzing. Discussions about scientific discoveries and advancements have an unprecedented intensity and dynamic these days. We see a plethora of electronic and print media using science to advocate fundamentally opposite political agendas and perspectives. These exchanges are published by laypersons, pop culture personalities, scientists from seemingly disparate disciplines, and a vast array of stakeholder organizations. Novel scientific findings and theories increasingly receive short and intense bursts of scrutiny and evaluation against a background of implicit and explicit societal expectations, often with scant appreciation of the underlying science and engineering challenges. The dissemination of new scientific evidence is faster, more comprehensive, and more commercial than ever before. The release of information on new advances in scientific research is just as likely to appear first in popular news media (including newsletters, Web sites, Internet communities, and blogs) as in peer-reviewed scientific journals. The result of this hyperactivity in recent years is a growing estrangement between the scientific community, business, government, and the general public. This might be explained partly by recent scientific scandals that were dissected in the popular media, by economic and social issues that are perceived as more pressing, and by the increasing complexity of scientific findings. However, the widening gap is at least to a good part also the result of a fundamental misconception. Science is viewed in the public eye and often also by business and government as truth set in stone, rather than a series of milestones along a continuum of inquiry by scientists. Hence,


S>The problem of handling and storage of radioactive waste is discussed. The treatment of wastes by evaporation, fixation in solids precipitation ion exchange, and calcination is described. Ultimate disposal methods such as salt cavities deep wells and ocean burial are described. (W.L.H.)


Introduction: The History of Science in the Netherlands 1. Science and Mathematics 2. Science and Medicine 3. Science and Philosophy 4. Science and Technology 5. The Instruments of Science 6. Science and Belief 7. The Historiography of Science: A Bibliography 8. Science in Secondary Schools 9. Dutch Science Abroad 10. Science in the Former Dutch Colonies Biographies General Bibliography


Almost all countries in the region endured upheaval in 2013. Despite unsettled times the biggest research players continued to prioritize science and discovery and push for breakthroughs across the disciplines. Article count (AC): 1,920 Fractional count (FC): 785 Weighted fractional count (WFC): 696


As an emerging urban public transport mode, responsive feeder transit system is flexible and can offer door-to-door services between new districts at margins with low urban transit coverage and trunk bus station. In this study, a joint optimization of running route and scheduling for responsive feeder transit under mixed demand (i.e., reservation and real-time demands) of the time-dependent road network was investigated. A two-stage optimization method was designed together with considering the mixed demands. At the first stage, the initial running route and scheduling were determined according to all reservation demands. At the second stage, the running route and scheduling were continuously optimized based on the real-time demands. The real-time demand responsive strategy, which is built up by using quantitative batch treatment rather than immediate treatment and dynamic route updating strategy for global optimization, were designed by utilizing the submission order of real-time demands. A joint optimization model of running route and scheduling was constructed based on the quantitative batch decision points in the time-dependent road network together with combination of the actual road network. In this model, the minimum total system cost was used, which is composed of the vehicle running costs and passengers' traveling time costs with constraints including vehicle capacity, passengers' time window, and vehicle running time. A solving algorithm based on the adaptive genetic algorithm was designed by considering the characteristics of the joint optimization model.


Total disc arthroplasty (TDA) can be used to replace a degenerated intervertebral disc in the spine. There are different designs of TDAs, but one of the most common is a ball-and-socket combination. Contact between the bearing surfaces of such designs can result in high frictional torque, which can then result in wear and implant loosening. This study was designed to determine the effects of change in design factors, such as dimensions and material combinations, on friction and wear of ball-and-socket TDAs. Friction tests were carried out on generic models with ball radii 10, 12, 14 and 16 mm. Three material combinations were investigated; metal-on-metal, metal-on-polymer and for the first time polymer-on-metal. Wear tests were performed on metal-on-polymer Charite® TDAs and generic metal-on-metal models to compare the wear rate under the same conditions. Friction test results showed that polymer-on-metal TDAs create less friction than metal-on-polymer and metal-on-metal TDAs. Wear test results showed that under the same conditions, metal-on-metal TDAs create 23 times less wear debris than metal-on-polymer. The results were in agreement with studies on total hip arthroplasty (THA). The results of this work suggest possible alternatives for future TDA designs.


In order to achieve pickup and placement of high-speed light load in industrial production, three degree of freedom Delta robot is designed to meet this requirement. In this paper, we take Delta manipulator as the research object, analyze the mechanical structure and establish kinematics model of Delta manipulator. We establish the corresponding mathematical model on the basis of the simplified kinematic model, and then obtain the kinematics inverse algorithm. In order to improve the motion characteristics of Delta manipulator, lame curves is used to smooth the right angles of transitions ,thus establishing the overall shape of the trajectory in Cartesian space. The position, velocity and acceleration of the one-dimensional curve are obtained through the high order polynomial motion characteristics. Through the simulation of virtual prototype ADAMS and MATLAB, the mechanical residual vibration parameters of the Delta robot are obtained, and the optimized trajectory has good performance by comparison.


Requirements for and potientality of computer based training systems are presented. The problems of passing knowledge to another person are outlined and the expectations of learners in connection with visual navigation are emphasized. Some aspects of change in training made possible by use of hypermedia systems and the resulting benefits are presented


Abstract : The influence of initial temperature (T(o) = 195K and T(o) = 295K) on the limits of detonability of gaseous detonations was investigated for mixtures of CH4 - O2, H2 - O2, and H2 - air at one atmosphere initial pressure in long tubes of 4, 6, 10, 16 and 26 mm inner diameter, respectively, by use of a rotating drum camera. Two experimental designs are described to measure these limits at low initial temperatures. The regime of fuel gas concentrations for stable detonations becomes somewhat narrower at lower initial temperatures. The influence of the initial temperature on the critical tube diameter is estimated. Furthermore, the applicability of the Chapman-Jouguet theory is discussed in relation to shock wave configurations, i.e. the Mach triple configuration. The essential arguments for the existence of the limits of detonability are discussed. Finally, a new method to estimate the limits of detonability with a very simple experimental arrangement is described. By this method experiments concerning the stability of a detonation and its initiation process are linked together.


Surface reactions occurring at solid-water interfaces in calcium mineral-ligands systems have been studied. Both hydrous apatite and fluorite surfaces show clear amphoteric properties. An ion excha ...


Sorrel (Hibiscuss sabdariffa) is a tropical annual herb of the family Malvaceace believed to have originated from tropical Africa but now cultivated in many parts of the world. Sorrel seeds have little food or industrial uses in Nigeria at the moment. Sorrel seeds are moderate to good sources of protein with an amino acid composition similar to soybean, but contain several toxic factors and have a highly acidic taste. Several processing methods have been employed to reduce these factors and increase the utilization of the seed by poultry but yet with some limitations. The composition of sorrel seed (nutrients and antinutritional factors), common processing methods, and the results of some poultry feeding trials were reviewed.


The present invention discloses a digital suction motor, comprising a motor housing and a stator assembly and a rotor assembly disposed within the motor housing, the front end cover provided at the front end of the motor housing, the fan is attached to the outside of the front end cap components. The motor housing is fixed in a cylindrical shroud. The upper end of the shroud is fixedly connected with the inside of the lid front end, an outer surface of the shroud is formed with spaced baffles. The inner wall of the motor housing and baffle cooperate to form the flow duct between the guide vanes. A stator assembly and a rotor assembly fixedly mounted in the interior of the shroud. The digital suction motor can effectively prevent moisture and dust inhalation on the interior of the motor, the motor even prolonged use can effectively extend the life and operational efficiency.


The structure of a market is determined by the number of active firms in it. Over time, this number is affected by the exit of existing firms, called incumbents, and entries of new firms, called entrant. In this paper, we considered a market governed by the Cobb-Douglas utility function such that the demand function is isoelastic. Each firm is assumed to produce a single homogenous product under a constant unit cost. Furthermore, firms are assumed to be boundedly rational in adjusting their outputs at each period. A firm is considered to exit the market if its output is negative. In this paper, the market is assumed to have zero barrier-to-entry. Therefore, the exiting firm can reenter the market if its output is positive again, and new firms can enter the market easily. Based on these assumptions and rules, a mathematical model was developed and numerical simulations were run using Matlab. By setting certain values for the parameters in the model, initial numerical simulations showed that in the long run...


Two-beam interferometry enables information coding in the shape/orientation and contrast/intensity modulation of the fringes. There exists an abundant literature on decoding the interferogram phase whereas there are only a few studies dealing with the second type carrier decoding. This paper is focused on the two-beam interferogram intensity modulation analysis using temporal phase shifting. The influences of most important experimental errors are studied using computer simulations and laboratory works. Null and finite-fringe detection modes are compared. Phase-shift histograms and their lattice-site representations are investigated to aid the experimental error identification.


The article analyses the key motivations of Czech-speaking soldiers of the Austro-Hungarian army at the beginning of the Great War, finding an important connection between their masculine identity and contemporary gender discourse. While loyalty of Czech soldiers to the Empire is often questioned, it is obvious that many of them were loyal to the image of war as a masculine enterprise: they considered the wartime society divided into the gendered spaces of war (the "front") and peace (the "home"). By deliberately submitting themselves to the social pressure of collective behavior, and relying on the brevity of war, they hoped that it would bring them all the social capital attached to the hegemonic discourse of masculinity : status, power, access to resources and women. Although this motivation was usually not put in the foreground, their personal accounts make it clear it has played an important role in making them to follow the mobilization orders in July and August 1914.


Objective To investigate the effect of standardized management with clinical nursing pathway(CNP) on clinical nursing quality of patients with diabetes.Methods Six-hundred patients with type 2 diabetes were randomly divided into the experimental group and the control group,each with 300 cases.The experimental group received standardized management with CNP while the control group received traditional nursing.Satisfaction of patients and families,self-care behaviors,as well as days and expense of hospitalization were compared between two groups.Results The satisfaction rate of patients and families was 96.72% in the experimental group and 81.28% in the control group,and the difference was statistically significant (x2 =2.12,P < 0.05).The days and expense of hospitalization was (10.42 ± 1.28) d and ¥ (4 221.43 ± 216.56) in the experimental group,(13.17 ± 2.33) d and ¥ (5 506.52 ± 496.18) in the control group,and the differences were statistically significant (t =6.73,16.11,respectively ;P < 0.01).The score of overall dietary,specific dietary,exercise,blood glucose monitoring,foot care and smoking in self care behaviors was (6.11 ± 0.78),(6.23 ± 0.57),(6.11 ± 0.78),(5.90 ± 0.86),(6.23 ± 0.54),(5.98 ± 0.75) in the experimental group,(5.22 ± 1.33),(5.29 ±0.83),(5.62 ± 1.04),(5.41 ± 1.11),(5.15 ± 1.48),(5.46 ± 1.37)in the control group,and the differences was statistically significant (t =3.90,5.78,2.66,2.76,3.50,2.56,respectively;P < 0.05).Conclusions Standardized management with CNP can enhance the sense of participation and improve the quality of clinical,nursing for patients with diabetes.

Key words:
Clinical pathway;  Nursing;  Diabetes mellitus,type 2;  Self care behavior;  Satisfaction


A observation was conducted in the institution "Programa del Sol", that is dedicated to handle problems of addiction, and is proposed a project to implement in the process of untying it. The proposed objective is to promote sobriety acquired during treatment. The methodology used was observation in the institution and interview referent people. The expected results are to achieve a reaffirmation of the accomplishments during its passage through the program and integrate a future vision. The proposed intervention is divided into four modules. First module includes two meetings taking place in the opening of the workshop. Second module, consisting of four meetings, and is focused to achieve an approach to the issues raised. Third module consists of three meetings, and aims to enable build a vital project. Fourth module consists of a meeting, and is aimed at closing and workshop evaluation.


Wireless network mapping is the process of displaying quality and performance information related to wireless access points over a relational map. As business systems utilising wireless technologies demand sufficient coverage and performance of their networks under all conditions, it is important to continue to study new methods to monitor wireless networks to detect emerging deficiencies to reduce negative business impacts. The project aims to develop a system that utilises client infrastructure to capture and forward wireless network quality with global positioning system (GPS) coordinates for use in open cut mining activities.

Whilst commercial Wi-Fi mapping software exists, some use information from the access points (AP) to estimate the coverage and other quality factors. Whilst this can be live information it cannot provide suitable information about the network as seen by clients on the network. Others methods employ a technique known as war-driving that can map GPS and Wi-Fi data at a client level but only producing a snap shot in time. This project is developing software allowing clients on a wireless network to report Wi-Fi and GPS information back to a centrally located server for live analysis and reporting.

The project employed researching existing techniques and coding for gathering GPS telemetry and Wi-Fi data including data storage methods. Research provided access to code and methods that have been tested and critiqued. The system has been conceptualised and alternative programming languages and database programs compared. A trial system has been designed and tested to retrieve available Wi-Fi information with GPS telemetry, storing the data in a local database to be installed on existing computing hardware on mining vehicles. A remote/central database has been developed and tested in conjunction with the client application to receive the information buffered on the network clients.


Humans locate and track objects and other humans in their surroundings using audio, vision, or a combination of the two sensory modalities. A common strategy for humans searching for others in an indoor environment is to rely on a sound's Direction of Arrival (DoA), as well as their knowledge of whether a room was previously occupied. In this paper, a similar search behavior is implemented on a mobile robot for the purpose of tracking other humans. To produce this search behavior, we develop an algorithm that performs probabilistic inference of human presence in a specific map region using two sensory cues: DoA of sound and a vision-based estimate of human proximity. A key characteristic of this approach is that the robot can navigate towards a human irrespective of whether the sound signal is continuous, sporadic, or absent altogether. We deploy the proposed search behavior on a robot and evaluate its efficacy at finding a target person across multiple rooms, considering varying levels of human sound (e.g., calling out occasionally, once, or not at all). Our experimental findings indicate that while audio signals are not vital in localizing the target person, they greatly reduce the search time.


Torn Apart is a curation and visualization of publicly available data concerning ICE, CBP facilities, and usages. Also lists of allied and pro-immigrant facilities.


Addressing maternal and child undernutrition is one of the strategic objectives and a priority area agenda for the National Nutrition Program of Ethiopia. We estimated the burden of maternal and child undernutrition in two rural communities (Halaba & Zeway) of Ethiopia and compared outcomes with regional/national reports as well as explored their associations with factors such as gender, socioeconomic‐demographic factors and access‐utilization of health services. In a cross‐sectional study between March and June 2013, we used interviewer administered questionnaire to collect data from mothers in addition to various anthropometric measurements from both mothers and their <5yrs of age children in rural communities of Halaba, south Ethiopia, and Zeway, Oromiya region (n=630 mother‐child pairs, total). Findings showed that maternal undernutrition (% BMI<18.5) ranged from moderate (14%, Zeway) to high (22%, Halaba). We also found alarming levels of stunting and underweight (54% stunting, 36% underweight, in Halaba) and (42% stunting, 21% underweight, in Zeway) among children. Up to 95% of Halaba and 85% of Zeway mothers reported consumption patterns that were 'same as usual' or 'less than usual' during their most recent pregnancy compared to times of none‐pregnancy/lactation. Up 61% also reported abstaining from consumption of certain nutritious foods for cultural reasons. Factors such as gender and socio‐economic‐demographic structure of the household, including imbalance of power, physiological density, household size and dietary habits during pregnancy showed significant associations with maternal and child undernutrition (p<0.05), warranting further investigation. The observed levels of child and maternal undernutrition, particularly in Halaba areas were unexpected and of serious concern, given that a national nutrition program administered by the government has been in place for some time. This baseline study provides insights to policy and decision makers to revise and/or strengthen the nutrition programs designed to target vulnerable segments of the population in these regions.


Scouring is the first stage of wool processing and is essential for determining the quality of fiber. Traditional aqueous scouring is a method that emulsifies and removes contaminants (such as wool grease, suint, and dirt) from the fiber surface; however, it promotes wool felting and is energy and water intensive. This study has shown that modification of the traditional wool scouring line by introducing an ultrasonic device could be a viable alternative for the wool scouring industry. A standard six-bath wool scouring line was retrofitted with two ultrasonic panels working at 80 kHz in bath 2. Scouring was carried out in three modes: conventional mode without the transport rake, ultrasonic mode without the transport rake, and conventional mode with the transport rake. Fiber samples after scouring were measured for color index, residual grease content, and residual ash content. Ultrasonic scouring was found to improve removal of grease and ash from the wool fiber. Modifications were proposed for the design of an industrial scouring line including the addition of fiber transport and dunking rollers and number of baths for the installation.


In this paper, the initial-value problem for integral-differential equation of the hyperbolic type in a Hilbert space H is considered. The unique solvability of this problem is established. The stability estimates for the solution of this problem are obtained. The difference scheme approximately solving this problem is presented. The stability estimates for the solution of this difference scheme are obtained. In applications, the stability estimates for the solutions of the nonlocal boundary problem for one-dimensional integral-differential equation of the hyperbolic type with two dependent limits and of the local boundary problem for multidimensional integral-differential equation of the hyperbolic type with two dependent limits are obtained. The difference schemes for solving these two problems are presented. The stability estimates for the solutions of these difference schemes are obtained.


The use of the CO2 laser has recently been seriously suggested as a modality of treatment for Ti glottic cancer (Strong and Jako, 1972; Strong, 1975 a and b; Jako et al, 1975; Jako and Polanyi, 1977). Proponents of this form of management suggest that radiotherapy is too invasive a treatment and that radiotherapists are guilty ofapolicy of overkill'(Vaughan, 1980). The aim of this paper is to provide arguments against this proposition. Most centres consider that for Ti glottic carcinoma, radiotherapy is the treatment of choice, giving a high cure rate and a low incidence of morbidity (Shaw, 1979; StellandMaran, 1979; Paparella and Shumrick, 1980). This paper highlights the cure rate in Ti glottic tumours treated with radiation therapy, the rate of radionecrosis of the larynx in these early tumours, and also the recurrence rates. The natural history of both radionecrosis and recurrence is also examined. In modern radiotherapy, an optimum dose rate exists at which the possibility of recurrence is kept to a minimum, whilst the level of major complications is acceptable (Harwood and Tiere, 1979; Shukovsky, 1970; Stewart and Jackson, 1975; Stewart et al, 1975). Following irradiation of all glottic carcinoma, necrosis of the larynx requiring laryngectomy is a well-known complication (Stell and Dalby, 1974). The current policy of the Christie Hospital and Holt Radium Institute, Manchester, is to give the maximum tolerable dose to obtain the highest possible cure rate, but to keep the incidence of radiation necrosis to an absolute minimum (Hunter and Palmer, 1980). It will be shown that the rate of radionecrosis is very low following irradiation of Ti glottic carcinoma. Arguments will be presented to show this does not amount to what has been emotively described as 'overkill' and also to show that to embark on a novel form of treatment for this malignant condition is unjustifiable.


Using mitochondrial free energy delivery rate as a temperature analog, we examine the 'spontaneous symmetry breaking' of the group associated with the error minimization coding scheme related to protein folding, and characterize the phase transition that drives the collapse of normal folding to pathological amyloid production. Similarly, groupoids prove central to the study of analogous, often highly punctuated, 'ground state' failures in far more complex biological processes, adopting Maturana's perspective on the central role of cognition throughout the living state.


Background: Usefulness of echocardiogram-associated markers for prediction of the response of the patients with cardiomyopathy to Cardiac Resynchronization Therapy (CRT) is under debate. Method: In a cross sectional retrospective design, we analyzed data from 69 cardiomyopathy patients (mean age = 57.59 ± 11.17 years, 69.6% male) with New-York-Heart-Association class ≥ III, left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) ≤ 35%, and QRS duration > 120 ms who underwent CRT. Transthoracic echocardiography and tissue Doppler imaging were performed before CRT and transthoracic echocardiography was repeated after CRT. More than 5% increase in the LVEF within 48 hours post CRT was considered as acute response. Results: After CRT, 36 (52.2%) patients were acute responders. Before CRT, responders had a remarkably higher frequency of diabetes mellitus (36.1% vs.15.2%, p = 0.048), lower left ventricular end systolic volume (125.82 ± 179.73 vs. 179.73 ± 77.51 ml, p = 0.002) and end diastolic volume (165.03 ± 67.09 vs. 236.06 ± 93.24 ml, p < 0.001) compared to none responders. Other echocardiography characteristics were not significantly different. In multivariable analysis, left ventricular end systolic volume remained the sole independent predictor of acute response. A cut-off of 135 ml for left ventricular end systolic volume had a good sensitivity (67.65%) and specificity (72.73%) to distinguish responders from non-responders. Conclusion: More than half of the cardiomyopathy patients had improvement ≥ 5% in LVEF within 48 hours after CRT. No relationship was found between formerly defined pre-CRT echocardiographic dyssynchrony markers and acute response. Left ventricular end systolic volume was the sole independent predictor of acute response and a threshold of 135 ml could discriminate acute responders to CRT.


An investigation into the ability of different spatial filters to reduce the amount of crosstalk in a surface electromyography measurement was conducted. A simulation model was implemented to compare the performance of four spatial filters under dynamic muscle contractions. Two parameters of a dynamic muscle contraction, namely muscle shortening and varying contraction force, were evaluated separately. The normal double differential filter resulted in the best crosstalk rejection for varying contraction force simulations, while the double differential filter performed best when incorporating muscle shortening. It is furthermore suggested that crosstalk is influenced more by muscle shortening than by changes in the contraction force.


Abstract Variation in infants' home environment is implicated in their cognitive and psycho‐social development. The pandemic has intensified variations in home environments through exacerbating socioeconomic inequalities, and increasing psychological stressors for some families. This study investigates the effects of parental (predominantly maternal) mental health, enriching activities and screen use on 280 24‐ to 52‐month‐olds' executive functions, internalising and externalising problems, and pro‐social behaviour; with socioeconomic status and social support as contextual factors. Our results indicate that aspects of the home environment are differentially associated with children's cognitive and psycho‐social development. Parents who experienced sustained mental distress during the pandemic tended to report higher child externalising and internalising problems, and executive function difficulties at follow‐up. Children who spent more time engaged in enriching activities with their parents showed stronger executive functions and social competence six months later. Screen use levels during the first year of the pandemic were not associated with outcomes. To mitigate the risk of persistent negative effects for this 'pandemic generation' of infants, our study highlights the importance of supporting parents' mental health. As our results demonstrate the impact of social support on mental health, investing in support services and interventions promoting building support networks are likely to be beneficial.


The effects of relative humidity, pressure, and gases on the larval form of the nematode Terranova decipiens are described. Viability was proportional to the moisture condition, but at any one mois...


This paper deals with the analysis of brain functional network using fMRI data. It recapitulates the concept of decomposable connectivity graph. Graphs are a usual tool to represent complex systems behavior, although edge strength estimation issues have not yet received a universally adopted solution. In the framework of linear Gaussian instantaneous exchanges, the well known partial correlation is usually introduced. However its estimation remains a challenge for highly connected or dense systems. Here, we propose to combine a wavelet decomposition and a graphical Gaussian model approach relying on decomposable graphs. This is shown to improve the estimations of brain function networks in the presence of long range dependence; the results are compared to those obtained with classical partial correlation estimators.


Body color is an economic trait of Apostichopus japonicus with growing concern. Among the other color variants (green and purple), rare sea cucumbers with completely white body color is greatly appealing to the consumers. In this study, comparative transcriptome analysis of body wall from body-color segregated progenies produced by cross of albino sea cucumber bmodstock was performed using RNA-Seq technology in order to profile dynamic characteristics of genome-wide gene expression. Over 4.78 and 4.87 million clean reads were generated from the segregated and albino juveniles crossed by albino parent sea cucumbers. Totally 20,319 assembled unigenes with the average 959.83 bp in length were obtained, including the annotated 7,152. Compared with white juvenile sea cucumbers, 271 genes were validated to be significantly differentially expressed in the body wall of segregated samples. Forty-two differentially expressed genes (DEGs) including 31 upregulated and 11 downregulated were identified presenting 5 and more fold expression changes, 18 of which were involved in growth and development, immunity and respiration. "Cell and cell part", "Cellular process" and "Binding" were the most DEG-enriched GO terms in "Cell component", "Biological process" and "Molecular function", respectively. DEGs were significantly enriched in immunity-related KEGG pathways, such as "Phagosome", "Staphylococcus aureus infection", "Complement and coagulation cascades", and "Vibrio cholerae infection". These results provided abundant candidate genes and pathways to further reveal differences in growth and immunity between segregated and white progenies crossed from albino A. japonicus, for cultivating genetically stable white strain of this commercially important species. (C) 2020 Friends Science Publishers


Information fusion is becoming state-of-the-art methodology for performance assessment of engineering assets. Efficiently and smartly combining multi-source information and relevant models from the interested object, more accurate and reliable diagnostic and prognostic results regarding the object can be achieved, which are especially significant for the condition-based maintenance and prognostics and health management applications. Ensemble learning, as a typical machine learning and decision fusion method, has long been applied in the pattern recognition field and demonstrated promising performance. However, scarce applications of ensemble learning have been found for remaining useful life (RUL) predictions. RUL prediction based on ensemble learning by merging multi-piece information and dynamically updating is proposed in this paper. Specifically, multiple base learners are trained to work as one RUL estimator and weighted averaging with dynamically updated weights upon the latest condition monitoring information is employed to aggregate these RULs to form the final RUL. Rolling element bearing degradation experimental data is used to verify and validate the effectiveness of the proposed method.


This paper presents a state-of-the-art review on heat sinks configurations used in flow boiling to cool electronic components. Two phase cooling methods and in this case using them in channels have disadvantages including complexities in flow field and instabities. The major role of designs of flow boiling heat sinks is to mitigate or delay these instabilities to reach stable and high performance cooling from heat transfer and pressure drop point of views. First, these instabilities in heat sinks with two phase coolants and phenomena leading to them are briefed. Then studies on presenting modifications and new designs of flow boiling heat sinks are reviewed. Description for five instabilities, three modifications and five heat sink configuration are addressed. It shows the highest cooling performance belongs to manifold microchannel and the piranha pin fin microstructure heat sinks.


TwitterStand is a novel way to track the news cycle by allowing people to view and browse the news with a map query interface. TF-IDF scores for each document that is linked to by a tweet (also termed twanchor [22] when the document is a news article) are calculated after they enter the system and pass initial classification filters. These scores are used to cluster similar tweets. Clusters must contain tweets from reputable sources in order for the clusters to form. These reputable sources are known as seeders as they essentially seed a cluster. Seeders have become an integral part of the TwitterStand architecture. An optimal system monitors the set of seeders in order to find newsworthy tweets quickly.
 This paper proposes methods to improve the current list of seeders by augmenting the pool with previously undiscovered users while routinely eliminating those that do not bring any value. We consider a successful seeder one who is timely in the reporting of large newsworthy events. An analysis of the current seeders precedes a proposed approach and serves as the basis for quantifying future seeder churn. A qualitative analysis based on that approach is conducted in an effort to quantitatively evaluate the process.


Geostatistical methods were applied to study the spatial patterns of Plutella xylostella L. larvae in the field,and semivariogram curve models were established in two directions of north\|south and west\|east.The results showed that the semivariogram of P. xylostella larvae could be described by spherical models in the cauliflower field and early cabbage field,which indicated that their spatial patterns were aggregated.The spatial range of larvae of this species varied from 0.65~1 59 m and 2.47~5 98 m,and spatial discontinuity varied from 0 8779~0 9999 and 0 8621~0 9142,in the cauliflower field and early cabbage field respectively.


Study Design. A prospective study using magnetic resonance imaging on a consecutive cohort of patients with cervical vertigo. Objective. To quantitatively investigate the cerebral blood flow (CBF) changes associated with cervical vertigo by using 3-dimensional pseudocontinuous arterial spin labeling. Summary of Background Data. Previous studies reported blood flow velocity reduction in posterior circulation during vertigo. However, the detailed information of CBF related to cervical vertigo has not been provided. Methods. A total of 33 patients with cervical vertigo and 14 healthy volunteers were recruited in this study. Three-dimensional pseudocontinuous arterial spin labeling was performed on each subject to evaluate the CBF before and after the cervical hyperextension-hyperflexion movement tests, which was used to induce cervical vertigo. Repeated-measures analysis of variance was conducted to assess the effect of subjects and tests. Results. There were time effects of CBF in the territory of bilateral superior cerebellar artery, bilateral posterior cerebral artery, bilateral middle cerebral artery, and right anterior cerebral artery, but no group effect was observed. The analysis of CBF revealed a significant main effect of tests (P = 0.024) and participants (P = 0.038) in the dorsal pons. Conclusion. Cervical vertigo onset may be related to CBF reduction in the dorsal pons, which sequentially evokes the vestibular nuclei. Level of Evidence: 2


Highly efficient illumination energy saving technology as a DSM technology measure can play an important role of reducing peak load,bettering load character and improving power supply reliability. Based on the research of the investigation on Highly efficient illumination energy saving technology in Wuxi areas the article analyzes the cost effective from the power company,customers and society aspects. The analysis provides the principle accordance and technique guidance for Wuxi green illumination projects.


research dissertation submitted to the Department of Horticulture in the Faculty of Agriculture in partial fulfillment of the requirement for the award of degree of masters in Research methods of Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology
2016


Here the variables x, y, t are non-negative, and the functions f(x, 0), 4(x, y) and #1(x, y) are assumed to be known. The main result (Theorem 1) is that under certain hypotheses on f(x, 0), 4(x, y) and yG(x, y) there exists a continuous solution f(x, t), valid for x, t_ 0, which is non-negative, analytic in t for each x, and integrable in x for each f. Another hypothesis guarantees uniqueness. A special form of equation (1), with 1 0, was treated from a practical point of view in [3]. More recently an existence theorem has been proved by Morgenstern [4], which applies to a general class of equations including the case ImO of equation (1). The method of proof used in the present paper applies not only to equation (1) but also to certain other equations of the form


Since man's rationale is limited, so in the legislative process, we should turn our attention always from the results of legislation to attention on "procedural rationale." But just because of this, the legislative process is inherently limited. So we should draw a footline of value for the "procedural rationale" by devising a constitutional and governmental democratic procedure so as to protect the basic human rights and freedom.


The Artificial Accommodation System is a micro mechatronic system which will be implanted into the capsular bag to replace the human crystalline lens. Depending on the patients' actual need for accommodation, the system autonomously adapts the refractive power of its integrated optical element in a way that the projection on the patients' retina results in a sharp image. As the Artificial Accommodation System is an active implant, its subsystems have to be supplied with electrical energy. Therefore an inductive power supply system will be developed which is able to autonomously power the Artificial Accommodation System over a period of 24h and can be recharged wirelessly. This Paper describes the design process of the coils needed for inductively transferring power to the implant. It can be shown that by means of optimization it is possible to transfer 50 mW of power to the interior of the Artificial Accommodation System.


The purpose of the present study was to evaluate the speech recognition ability and degree of listening effort for older adults in noisy and reverberating environments.


The flower guide covers 110 flowers and two fruits of the principle, cute alpine wildflowers. Each photo is 1.75 by 1.5 inches [4.5 by 4 cm] and shows an individual flower or flowerhead. They are arranged by colour from purple through pink, red, yellow, orange to white and green. As the photos are close up there is little portrayal of the leaves or the general shape of the plant. The text has the English and scientific names, the plant's height and its distribution. While this guide does not have the depth of information of a full book on flowers, it is very compact and light. It will be most useful for visitors and backpackers. The gemstone guide covers about two dozen rocks with most pictures about 5 to 10 cm square. These often show the uncut and cut stones ready to be mounted. The text is necessarily brief and gives only limited information on where to find these gems. Given the limited space I was surprised to read some of the information [origin of the word crystal or ecosytem restoration] as it seemed superfluous. I would have preferred more details on how to find these interesting items. Again this mini guide will be valuable to hikers.


Abnormal changes were detected in EEG in patients with high risk of ischemic stroke (higher level than in the population). These changes show the disturbances in forming mechanisms of functional condition of cerebrum during the calm wakeful period. Changes were represented by: the registration of EEG IV- type (the E.A. Zhirmunsky type) which was characterized by disorganization of alpha activity and of slow waves; the instability of pattern during the record of background activity; the paroxysmal activity in form of flashes of the bilateral synchronized waves; the strengthening of low-frequency and high-amplitude β-activity. Revealed changes in EEG show the presence of initial disturbed cerebral circulation and can be recommended as predictors of these disturbances.


Issues and implications of electricity rates based on marginal costs of production and distribution were the topic of a series of hearings and public meetings held by the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power before its Electric Rate Structure Committee. This paper presents testimony and discussion from these meetings on these topics: Cost of Service; Allocation of Costs to Class of Customer; and Design and Form of Rates. Prices, which act as indicators to the consumer, can be related to depletion of resources to give the consumer an opportunity to determine what he is willing to pay. The problem is to set a rate structure in which prices reflect costs. Pricing should be relative to electricity output and distribution, should reflect the coincident load demand, and be forward-looking to give the customer a choice. Topics discussed include allocations of the difference between total costs and total revenues, the principle of reallocation when a consumer does not respond to rate changes, and various designs for setting rates. (DCK)


The synthetic flavonol 3',4'‐dihydroxyflavonol (DiOHF) reduces myocardial ischaemia/reperfusion (I/R) injury however the mechanism of DiOHF‐induced cardioprotection remains to be elucidated. We tested the hypothesis that the DiOHF‐induced cardioprotection results from selectively inhibiting injurious kinases without affecting protective kinases. Langendorff‐perfused rat hearts were subjected to 20 min global ischaemia followed by 30 min reperfusion in the presence of DiOHF (10 µM) or its vehicle (0.5% dimethyl sulfoxide). Hearts treated with DiOHF showed improved post‐ischaemic cardiac function and lower lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) release compared to its vehicle. DiOHF treatment significantly reduced I/R‐induced increased phosphorylation of c‐Jun N‐terminal kinases (JNK), measured by Western blot, while I/R‐activated phosphorylation of p38 mitogen‐activated protein kinase, extracellular signal‐regulated kinases (ERK) 1/2 and signal transducer and activator of transcription 3 were not affected. In addition, the phosphorylation of the multifunctional enzyme, Ca2+/calmodulin‐dependent kinase II (CaMKII) was elevated in I/R and was reduced by DiOHF. These data suggest that DiOHF‐induced cardioprotection against I/R injury is mediated by inhibiting the phosphorylation of the injurious kinases JNK and CaMKII without affecting protective kinases.


There have been a lot of researches about aging. Our study suggests a new research method using RTEL (Regulator of Telomere Elongation Helicase). Telomere is the region of repetitive DNA sequence at the end of chromosomes used as a buffer during the DNA replication. We made four sets (each set includes 3 mammals whose lifespan is almost similar) which have different lifespan range, and compared the RTEL DNA sequence among 4 sets in order to analyze how RTEL DNA sequence influence lifespan and aging. All of these studies were proved by Apriori, Decision Tree, SVM. Through this process, we found that the tendency of amino acid expression in each set is generally similar, but there are some amino acids which differentiate each other. Furthermore, we can support this research to Cancer since Telomere is receiving attention for main factor for finding the solution of cancer. Our research would be widely used as background knowledge for the research of Cancer and contribute to finding the relations between telomere and aging, lifespan in mammals.


ABStRACt The present study was carried out to determine the effects of the inclusion of a spore-forming probiotic ( Bacillus subtilis ) in laying Japanese quail diets as an alternative to growth-promoting antibiotics to help produce healthy eggs and meat. This experiment was conducted as a completely randomized design with three treatments (control, 0.05% bacitracin methylene disalicylate (BMD), or 0.1% Bacillus subtilis ) of five replicates of 11 quails each. Feed intake and egg production were recorded daily on cage basis. Body weight was determined at the beginning and end of the trial (36 and 42 weeks). At the end of the experiment (42 weeks), antibodies against Newcastle disease and avian influenza, egg components, Haugh units, eggshell quality and breaking strength, blood parameters, cecal microbial population, villus length, and crypt depth were measured. The dietary inclusion of Bacillus subtilis and BMD significantly (p≤0.05) increased egg production and egg weight; however, eggshell thickness and breaking strength, Haugh units, and eggshell percentages were not affected. The dietary addition of both products significantly (p≤0.05) decreased plasma cholesterol levels and increased LDL levels, as well as antibody levels against Newcastle disease and avian influenza (p≤0.01). In birds fed


The Scientific World was a popular science journal in 1930's,the major media of spreading science and technology in modern China.The Scientific World played an important role in the history of spreading science and technology because of broad range content,new materials,and a variety of genres.This article discusses the developmental process of the scientific world,its purpose and content characteristics,and reveals the journal's active role in spreading modern science and technology,and promoting national scientific literacy.


Once upon a time there was a lovely lady, lithe as Diana, beautiful as Venus, ready of wit and word as Scheherazade, the versatile and voluble storyteller of the Arabian Nights, the pride of her family and the life of her friends. But a strange sickness crept upon her. Her long, lustrous locks became scant and dry, as those on the pate of old Father Time. She grew bulky as Bacchus, listless, languid and laboured in thought and speech, as though enchanted by some evil genius. Medicine and magic alike failed. But a vision was vouchsafed to the priests in the temple of lEsculapius. So they sacrificed a lamb at the new moon and the full, and at each waxing and waning quarter, and of every lamb the lady ate her portion. Before one half-year had rolled around she was restored, transformed again to the veri-similitude of a goddess, her abundant tresses black and glossy as the raven's wing, her face smooth as the damask rose, her foot fleet as Atalanta's, her lips like Cupid's bow, while mirth flowedrippling from her silver tongue. But there was one essential condition of enduring well-being, she must eat weekly of the votive lamb. Morbid relapse was the certain penalty of forgetfulness or neglect, I hope the title of my lectures has not misled you to expect only fairy tales. Truth is stranger than fiction, even in medicine. We find in its history much that is passing strange; so surprising as to be really romantic-as improbable as anything in the Arabian Nights Entertainment. It is from this point of view I propose to treat three medical subjects in my course of University lectures. Perhaps the romance impresses. me the more because so many "hidden mysteries" of my student days are now an "open book." I have watched the wonderful transformation. Most of the facts to be presented have been discovered and recorded during my own medical career. The inexplicable has been explained. Most intimate and even causal relations have been established between organs, processes, and complaints apparently unrelated. The whole complexion of medicine has changed. The sweet lady (Miss Res Medica) who fascinated us forty years ago has much improved with age. She is wiser and better informed. When asked the reason why, she answers far less often "Why? Because." She is more capable, her arms are stronger, her fingers defter; more energetic, more prompt and sure in action; and is altogether a more


Based on the theory model of ecological footprint,the ecological footprints of Shihezi are analyzed and evaluated according to the data of the statistical yearbooks.Results show that the ecological footprint per capita is 2.477327 hm2 and the ecological carrying capacity per capita is 1.500542 hm2 in 2008,the ecological deficit per capita is 0.976785 hm2.The high ecological deficit shows that the human load had already gone beyond the regional bio-capacity.The area is in a weak un-sustainable status.


In this paper, we discuss in more detail some of the results on the statistics of the trace of the Frobenius endomorphism associated to cyclic p-fold covers of the projective line that were presented in [1]. We also show new findings regarding statistics associated to such curves where we fix the number of zeros in some of the factors of the equation in the affine model.


Used seven different aldehyde besides salicylaldehyde, respectively, reacted with the amino acid in the ethanol ratio of 1:1 has prepared seven Schiff base;then used 2(2(4-chlorobenzeneyl) methyl)tin and 2(4-on cyanoacrylate benzylidene)2 chloride tin reacted with above seven Schiff base in anhydrous ethanol, has prepared a series of new organo tin (IV) Schiff base complexes . The synthesis process was used the new technology of microwave and all the compounds were characterized.


Ultra-sensitive TFBAR (Thin Film Bulk Acoustic Wave Resonator) mass sensors can be used for the detection of dangerous substances. The chemically-sensitive part of such a sensor consists in a thin film of gold (Au) which covers the sensing area of the TFBAR and on top of which a layer of specific antibodies is deposited. TFBAR is a volume acoustic wave resonator that works in longitudinal vibration mode (thickness extension) and hence its resonance frequency is determined by the inverse of the piezoelectric layer thickness and directly proportional to the material dielectric constant. This paper presents the design and implementation of an electronic system based on a differential approach for measuring the chemical contamination-induced frequency deviation of a TFBAR sensor based on homodyne mixing of the output signals of two Pierce oscillators: a sensing one and a reference one.


In this work we introduce the Thinking Cap, a wearable system designed to resemble the Sorting Hat from Harry Potter, fitted with a commercially available Electroencephalography (EEG) headset and a Bluetooth speaker. The Thinking Cap can inform the user about their brain activity in real-time via a speaker. We designed and conducted a study with 48 elementary and middle schoolers to investigate the influence of a BCI device and perceived magic on the development of growth mindset in children. Our results suggest that interacting with the Thinking Cap has a positive impact on children's mindset, which was expressed through their communicated beliefs and task-based behaviors.


Relevance: The study of immunological and molecular genetic characteristics of leukemia in children and the influence of biological features of the tumor population of acute B-cell lymphoblastic leukemia (B-ALL) on the effectiveness of therapy is particularly relevant for the Republic of Kazakhstan.
The study aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of modern program chemotherapy in children depending on the biological characteristics of B-cell leukemias.
Methods: The study analyzed the data of 154 children aged six months to 15 years with primary B-ALL on inpatient treatment at the Scientific Center of Pediatrics and Pediatric Surgery JSC (Almaty, the Republic of Kazakhstan) in 2016-2018. When determining events, we were guided by the criteria of the protocols of the ALL-BFM group.
Results: The age groups most exposed to B-ALL were 3-7 years old (43.5%), reflecting the so-called infant peak. In the clinical picture of this type of ALL, intoxication syndrome accompanying the period of manifestation was present in 75.3% of patients. The clinical polymorphism of the debut period determined the most diverse list of diagnoses of "masks." Damage to organs and systems, in the form of liver failure, was detected in 41 (26.6%) children, with the development of respiratory failure in 12 (7.8%), cardiovascular failure in 5 patients (3.2%), acute kidney injury in 3 (1.9%), CNS damage in 5 (3.2%) patients. With B-ALL, the distribution of immunological variants was determined as follows: B1 – 9 (5.8%), B2 – 123 (79.8%), B3 – 18 (11,7%), B4 – 4 (2,6%) and leukemia of B-cell lymphoma was noted in one (0.6%) patient. From the group of quantitative anomalies, hyperploidy was detected in 12 (7.8%) cases. Among qualitative anomalies, t(12;21) (p13;q22) was determined in 6 (3.9%) patients and was a favorable prognostic factor (remission was recorded). Trisomy of chromosome 21 with Down syndrome in 3 (1.9%) patients with combined anomalies (isochromosome 7, trisomy 4, 6, 15, 17, translocation t(9; 22)(q34;q11) was detected in 1.3%. Translocations t(1;19)(q23;p13.3) in 5.8% and del 9-chromosome defect in 3.2% of cases.
Conclusion: The response to therapy and long-term prognosis are largely determined by biological factors such as cytogenetic features of the tumor, sensitivity to prednisone, as well as the degree of aggressiveness, which manifests itself in the form of pronounced symptoms of lymphoproliferation and hyperleukocytosis. The research has shown the high efficiency of modern ALL-BFM program therapy in children.


Five stereoisomeric analogues, 2-6, of FK-156 (1), an immunostimulating microbial metabolite, have been synthesized and screened for immunostimulating activity. The results indicate that the D-configuration of glutamic acid and L-configuration of diaminopimelic acid at the site combining with other amino acids are essential, while the configurations of lactic acid and alanine are of little importance for the biological activity of the FK-156 series.


Abstract Increase in very old individuals is observed in all developed countries around the world. The number of centenarians has also been rising, requiring the investigation of the characteristics of these exceptionally long-lived individuals as well as their experience of life at age 100. In the present study, we present findings from the first nation-wide Swiss centenarian study SWISS100. Given the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, we conducted a telephone study with centenarians and a family member as proxy informant, using a mixed-methods approach to investigate specific characteristics, their life circumstances and their experience during the pandemic. Recruitment was conducted with the help of the national address registry. A total of 64 centenarians and 62 family members participated, leading to data for 119 centenarians. Centenarians were on average 102 years old, with a range of 100 to 108 years. In line with higher survival rates in females, 76% were women and 24% were men. Most centenarians had received basic education and had completed an apprenticeship. Concerning their residence, 43% lived in private homes and 57% lived in institutions. Of those living in private, half lived alone, one fourth lived with their spouse and one fourth lived with a child. The majority was widowed. Over 80% had children. Although over 70% of the centenarians reported health restrictions, 60% reported good to excellent subjective health. Over 90% of the sample were aware of COVID-19. Despite substantial COVID-19-related restrictions, life-satisfaction was high. Overall, Swiss centenarians show health-related vulnerability but also psychological resilience.