Inhibition of the Human Immunode�ficiency virus type-1 (HIV-1) protease enzyme blocks HIV-1 replication. Protease inhibitor drugs have successfully been used as a
therapy for HIV-infected individuals to reduce their viral loads and slow the progression
to Acquired Immune Defi�ciency Syndrome (AIDS). However, mutations readily and rapidly accrue in the protease gene resulting in a reduced sensitivity of the protein
to the inhibitor. In this thesis, molecular dynamics simulations (MDS) were run on
HIV proteases complexed with the protease inhibitor saquinavir, and the strength of
affinity calculated through MMPBSA and normal mode analysis.
We show in this thesis that at least 13 residues can be computationally mutated in the proteases sequence without adversely aff�ecting its structure or dynamics, and can
still replicate the change in binding affinity to saquinavir caused by said mutations.
Using 6 protease genotypes with an ordered decrease in saquinavir sensitivity we use MDS to calculate drug binding affinity. Our results show that single 10ns simulations of
the systems resulted in good concurrence for the wild-type (WT) system, but an overall
strong anti-correlation to biochemically derived results. Extension of the WT and
multi-drug resistant (MDR) systems to 50ns yielded no improvement in the correlation
to experimental. However, expansion of these systems to a 10-repetition ensemble MDS
considerably improved the MDR binding affinity compared to the biochemical result.
Principle components analysis on the simulations revealed that a much greater confi�gurational sampling was achieved through ensemble MD than simulation extension.
These data suggest a possible mechanism for saquinavir resistance in the MDR system,
where a transitioning to a lower binding-affinity configuration than WT occurs. Furthermore,
we show that ensembles of 1ns in length sample a significant proportion of
the con�figurations adopted over 10ns, and generate sufficiently similar binding affinities.


In this paper we study certain maximal functions for a class of Chebli–Trimeche hypergroups. Versions of the standard maximal theorems for these maximal functions are established and some applications are given.


The aim of this research is to study the impact of academic management on the quality of higher education institutions. To this end, a qualitative methodolog...


Excerpt Since the original description of the lupus erythematosus (LE) cell by Hargraves, Richmond, and Morton (1), it has become clear that this inclusion-containing cell is formed in two stages (...


Abstract Groundnut meal is the high protein by-product remaining after commercial extraction of peanut oil.Groundnut meal applications are limited because of typical high concentrations of aflatoxin. In the present studytechnology was developed to prepare protein rich powder from an oil extracted groundnut. To make the meal freefrom aflatoxin four treatments were employed viz. ether treatment, heat treatment, acid-alkali treatment andhomestead acid-alkali treatment. After each treatment, the powder was subjected to analysis of protein andaflatoxin and acceptability for sensory characteristics. A reduction ranged from 17.86 to 100 percent of aflatoxinand 29.17 to 70.47 percent of protein. A comparative evaluation of four powders indicated that homestead acidalkali treatment is free from aflatoxin and containing 10.09gm of protein. This powder was incorporated in threeproducts, that is, batti, besan laddu, and sweet biscuits at 35 and 50 percent level. Acceptability was assessed on 9point hedonic rating scale. The mean overall acceptability of reference, 35 percent and 50 percent incorporated batti were 8.1, 7.2 and 6.3, besan laddu 8.0, 7.3 and 6.8 sweet biscuits 7.6, 7.4 and 6.5 respectively, revealing that the developed powder is acceptable at moderate level in various products. No significant difference (P>0.05) wasfound between reference and 35 percent incorporated product and between 35 and 50 percent incorporated products. However, the 50 percent incorporated product scored significantly lower than the reference, specificallyfor colour and appearance. The study concluded that aflatoxin can be removed from groundnut meal and further, can be used in different recipes as protein source.


Description of how SLAINTE (the website supporting individuals and organisations working within library and information services in Scotland) has produced a map identifying regional and national library co-operatives in Scotland.


The following article, published online on 19 June 2014 in Wiley Online Library (wileyonlinelibrary.com), has been retracted by agreement between the authors, the Editor in Chief of Diabetic Medicine, Richard Holt and John Wiley and Sons Ltd. The retraction has been agreed due to notification of dual publication.


Food safety amongst street food vendors is becoming a major public concern especially in urban areas of the developing world where this industry is expanding rapidly. There is rarely any information on street food safety issues in rural northern Ghana where this industry is equally growing rapidly. We therefore conducted this study to assess the knowledge level and evaluate food safety and hygiene practices amongst street food vendors in a rural district of northern Ghana. A cross sectional study was carried out in the Nadowli district where 200 street food vendors were randomly selected from of both densely and none densely populated areas of food vendors. Knowledge level amongst vendors concerning food safety practices was 100%. Although over 96% washed their hands after some major activities, about 13% of them did not use soap. The main storage forms of leftover foods were consumption by friends and family members (13%), reheating (13%) and refrigeration (11.5%). Water storage containers were also found to be used for other activities. 71% of the vendors had undergone medical screening despite a high knowledge level (100%) of its importance. Street food vendors in this rural northern setting generally have a high knowledge level on food safety issues but however do not translate this knowledge into practice.


Individual differences and age-related decline of cognitive abilities depend on the availability of central processing resources. According to the Theory of Visual Attention, attentional capacity is limited by 2 functions (TVA, Bundesen, 1990) 1. Processing Speed C (= number of objects processed per sec.) • The amount of information that can be processed within a certain time 2. Storage Capacity K (= max. number of object in vSTM) • The number of objects that can be perceived at one point in time The theory's neural interpretation further assumes that C and K are supported by distinct brain mechanisms (NTVA, Bundesen et al., 2005)


Dressing for the 'rouse and turnout' competition during the New Zealand Divisional horse show held during World War I in Courcelles, France. Soldiers race to replace regulation items of their clothing including hats. Photograph taken 3 June 1918 by Henry Armytage Sanders.
An original print from this negative is in album PA1-f-094
Inscriptions: Photographer's title on negative - bottom left - H660
Quantity: 1 b&w original negative(s).
Physical Description: Dry plate glass negative 4.75 x 6.5 inches


The electric machine (10) comprises a rotor (20), and a stator (30) inside which the rotor turns about an axis of rotation (X). The stator is enclosed, with cooling fins and an external fan (100) to generate a current of air over the stator cooling fins. These cooling fins are perpendicular to the axis of rotation of the rotor.


The paper attempts to highlight some insignificant issues in technology as applied to EFL The focus of learning English has shifted from native-like competence to international intelligibility, the term 'EFL' (English as a Foreign Language) may need to be changed into 'EIL' (English as an International Language) Technology, especially the emergence of the internet, is affecting every aspect of English education and changing the way we teach and learn The study is to provide a review of related literature on English associates with the world, a brief history of technology and foreign language education, English is the language of the media and technology, the relationship between English and the Internet, need and goals of the technology and English learning, the positive effects of using the WWW, Web enables new kinds of learning, advantage of CAI for language learning, the Internet challenges in the language classroom, and the teacher's roles in the use of technology with ELLS. Using recent developments in Information Technology, teachers can use the Internet to give more effective instruction and help students improve their four skills in English learning listening, speaking, reading and writing.


Abstract The Calico Surfperch (Amphistichus koelzi) shares a similar size, morphology and feeding habitat with its 2 widely-sympatric congeners, the Barred Surfperch (Amphistichus argenteus) and Redtail Surfperch (Amphistichus rhodoterus). Like the other 2 species, A. koelzi is an important commercial and recreational resource, but unlike these species, A. koelzi has received virtually no attention in the scientific literature. We found average relative fecundity to be significantly higher than in A. koelzi's 2 congeners, A. argenteus and A. rhodoterus, and the slope of the regression of brood count on female size in A. koelzi was steeper and translated to the left of the same slopes representing the 2 congeners.


The production of higher alcohols by the catalytic conversion of synthesis gas (CO + H2) is one of the most promising approaches for the utilization of nonoil resources, in which bimetallic catalysts based on Cu and Fischer–Tropsch (FT) reaction active elements (e.g. Co, Fe, Ni) are efficient and cost-effective candidates. Herein, we demonstrate the fabrication of core–shell Cu@(CuCo-alloy) nanoparticles (NPs) embedded on a Al2O3 matrix via an in situ growth of CuCoAl-LDH nanoplatelets on aluminum substrates followed by a calcination–reduction process, and they serve as efficient catalysts toward CO hydrogenation to produce higher alcohols. The composition, particle size and shell thickness can be tuned by changing the Cu/Co molar ratio in the LDH precursors, and the best catalytic behavior was obtained over the Cu/Co (1/2) catalyst with a CO conversion of 21.5% and a selectivity (C6+ slate 1-alcohols) of 48.9%, which is superior to the traditional modified FT catalysts. XPS, in situ FTIR spectroscopy and HAADF-STEM revealed that the unique electronic and geometric interaction between Cu and Co in the Cu@(CuCo-alloy) NPs contributes to the significantly enhanced catalytic performances. In addition, the 3D hierarchical structure of the Cu@(CuCo-alloy)/Al2O3 catalyst facilitates mass diffusion/transportation as well as prevents hotspot formation, accounting for its stability and recyclability. The Cu@(CuCo-alloy)/Al2O3 catalyst with significantly improved catalytic behavior can be potentially used in CO hydrogenation to produce higher alcohols.


Based on defining the connotation of the dismantlement valuation of urban houses,this paper illustrates the main technical problems such as how to select valuation institution,how to make affairs of the dismantlement valuation,how to expose the valuation result publicly,and how to mediate and treat the dispute,etc.


Railway logistics of goods excluding coal is a major service for railway diversifi ed-business enterprises to transform from agencies maintaining operation by relying on transport capacity and policies to those by depending on trunk line traffi c and terminal ser-vice.It is also a necessary process for diversif ied-business enterprises to f inally offer extended service and convert from freight agencies to modern logistics enterprises.The paper analyzes the necessity and signif icance of developing railway logistics of goods excluding coal and proposes to maximize prof it,regulate management and devote to specialized operation.A series of measures are put forward to pro-mote development of railway logistics of goods excluding coal,such as establishment of service platform,regulation of procedures and standards,setup of collaboration management mechanism as well as founding of Inner Mongolia Railway Logistics Association


Low-cost grapefruit peel (Agricultural Waste) was used for removal of reactive blue19 dye from aqueous solutions. The process was studied as a function of contact time, initial dye concentration and pH. Adsorption process was attained to the equilibrium within 45 min for initial dye concentrations of 50, 75, and 100 mg L -1 . An acidic medium was the optimum condition for adsorption of dye at room temperature. The maximum dye removal of 83.56 % could be achieved at initial pH 2 using adsorbent dosage of 0.5 mg in 150 ml (50 mg L -1 dye concentration) and agitation rate of 180 rpm. The adsorption capacity was found to be about 12.534 mg g -1 . The isotherm data could be well described via Langmuir equation with the correlation coefficient of 0.986 in dye concentration range of 50-100 mg L -1 at 25 ◦ C. Kinetic studies revealed that the experimental data correlated well with pseudo second-order model possessing regression coefficient of R 2 ≥ 0.999. Scanning Electron Micrographs provided a supporting evidence for efficient dye sorption onto grapefruit peel.


Objective To evaluate clinical significance of mechanical ventilation on the level of endothelin in critically ill patients with respiratory dysfunction.Methods The plasma endothelin of 58 critically ill patients in trial group with respiratory dysfunction was measured before and during mechanical ventilation. The plasma endothelin of 38 health men and women in control group was measured during routine medical examination.Results The level of endothelin in trial group of 58 severe patients with respiratory dysfunction before mechanical ventilation was (85.9±21.8) pg/mL and was higher than thoseof control group (41.2±7.9)pg/mL(P0.01). The level of endothelin in severe patients with respiratory was(73.5±18.1)pg/mL during mechanical ventilation on third day (P0.01).Conclusion Mechanical ventilation is an effective measure for treating respiratory dysfunction and reducing injury of higher endothelin on severe patients.The change of endothelin level in critically ill patients with respiratory dysfunction is a useful indication in assessing the severity of the condition,the prognosis and efficacy of treatment.


With large numbers of hydroxyl groups, the trimethylsilyl derivatives become too large in mass for the range of many quadrupole mass spectrometers, so methylation is used. However, this would cause problems in structural elucidation since those compounds in which demethylation of the methoxyl or dimethylamino group had taken place would be remethylated, thus obscuring these demethylating processes. This problem can be overcome by the use of deuteriomethylation. We originally carried this out by equilibrating the extract with 0-deuteriomethanol, to exchange all hydroxyl and amino hydrogens, and carrying out the methylation with diazomethane in deuteriomethanol. This, however, allows the formation of some undeuteriated methoxyl products. Commercial kits are now available for producing dideuteriodiazomethane of over 99 % purity. When monitoring of the methoxybenzyl ion at mle 121 was carried out on the deuteriomethylated extract at pH 9 from a volunteer taking mepyramine, the g.1.c.-m.s. run gave only one response, at the correct retention time for mepyramine. However, when mle 124 was monitored a response was again obtained at the same retention time as for mepyramine, and was about 10% of the response for mle 121. Since mle 124 corresponds to trideuteriomethoxybenzyl, this must have been formed from 0-demethylated mepyramine, which was present to the extent of about 10% of the level of unchanged drug. It was also expected that a metabolite would be formed in which the methoxybenzyl ring of compound (9) had become further hydroxylated. This hydroxylation could occur either before or after demethylation of the methoxyl group occurred. In the first case deuteriomethylation would lead to a methoxy deuteriomethoxybenzyl substituent, giving an ion of mle 154 whereas the second alternative would yield a bis deuteriomethoxy substitution on the benzyl ring, giving an ion of mle 157. Multiple-ion monitoring of both these ions on a g.1.c.-m.s. run gave a response only at mle 154. A mass spectrum obtained on this metabolite was identical with themass spectrum of deuteriomethylated compound (12), so that it can be assumed that hydroxylation has occurred at the 3 position of the methoxybenzyl substituent. Although mepyramine suffers 0-demethylation, no N-demethylation was seen to occur. Sidechain fission produces an ion of mle 58 due to CHz=NMez. Deuteriomethylation of an N-demethylated metabolite would shift this ion to mle 61, whereas deuteriomethylation of an N-didemethylated metabolite would shift this ion to mle 64. A g.1.c.-m.s. run monitoring these three ions produced responses only for m/e 58, thus ruling out any N-demethylation.


Education is a complicated social phenomenon. Though its essence can be approached and discussed from different angles, the ultimate objective of all arguments is to better understand and develop education and to develop one's latent force so that more all\|round development talents with the ability of self\|education, innovation and keeping up with the times can be trained.


ABSTRACT Two twin studies are used to explore genetic influence on political discussion. Results from both studies demonstrate latent genetic traits account for, on average, 40.63% of variance in traditional and online political talk, discussion with agreement and disagreement, and political conflict avoidance. Taken together, the findings suggest a heritable genetic mechanism may partly explain why individuals vary across multiple dimensions of political discussion and differentially experience discussion effects. Implications for the political discussion effects literature and for reconceptualizing the etiology of political discussion are discussed.


In Dongpu depression, there are obviously overpressure phenomena below 2000-3200m. Research to the relationship between sedimentation-diagenesis and overpressure of reservoirs is in great need. In this paper, after analyzing and simulating the overpressure in Wendong, Qiaokou and Baimiao regions, we draw a conclusion that the fast sedimentation since Low Tertiary is one of the most important mechanisms for the formation of overpressure in Dongpu Depression. The gypsum in northern part of Dongpu Depression is the good seal for the development of overpressure. On the base of detailed work to the distribution and magnitude of overpressure in Wen-qiao-Bai regions, we selected several wells that have different overpressure to find the sedimentary and diagenetic differences of these wells. We find that compaction is obviously inhibited in overpressured reservoirs, which results in the linear relation between physical properties of reservoirs and sedimentary parameters, such as sorting coefficient, the content of matrix, etc. Reservoirs with great magnitude of overpressure have undergone more extensive erosion than the ones with low magnitude of overpressure, which probably is the result of the great solubility of CO_2 under high pressure. The great burial depth, the high content of matrix and the extensively developed cement of carbonate are the most important factors that influence the physical properties of reservoirs in Dongpu depression. Overpressure plays a constructive role in the physical properties of reservoirs. the overpressured reservoirs of Es_3~3 subsection in Wendong region are probably the ones that have good physical properties. From homogenetic temperatures that obtained form the fluid inclusions in quartz overgrowth, we find that there were 4 episodes of fluid flows in Dongpu depression. In conjunction with the analysis of the burial history of overpressured reservoirs, we draw conclusions that the first, second and third episodes of fluid flows took place in the extensive rifting stage of Dongpu Depression, the burial depth when the first episode of fluid flow took place was about 1500m, the age was about 36 my; the burial depth of the second and third episodes of fluid flow was between 1800-3000m at that time, the age was between 35-28my. The fluid flows of the second, third, and fourth episodes were in close relation to the overpressure and maybe were the results of the episodic hydrofracturing of overpressured mudstones and shales. The episodic fluid flow of overpressured mudstones and shales probably facilitates the cementation of carbonate, which decreases the physical properties of overpressured reservoirs. The dolomites and ferrodolomites maybe the products of the episodic hydrofracturing of overpressured mudstones and shales.


This research aims to examine whether graduates of English Department and Literature in Faculty of Philology at University of Prishtina are prepared to enter the labor market and if their higher education preparation meets the requirements of employment. Moreover, this study will try to analyze if there are job skills built and implemented specifically in this department, and what skills are students mostly being taught in this institution. This paper analyzes and interprets the results, by backing up the arguments with factual sources to answer the two broad questions of the study. The findings reveal that while there is a certain level of job skills implementation, particularly in teamwork, research, and critical-thinking skills, there is room for improvement and a need for greater incorporation of employability skills. Most English graduates feel sufficiently prepared for the labor market, but a minority attribute their lack of readiness to the insufficient implementation of job skills. Communication skills, practical skills, leadership skills, critical-thinking skills, and problem-solving skills were identified as areas where students desired higher implementation. The study suggests that additional preparation and training are necessary for English graduates to meet the requirements of the labor market and feel confident before entering employment.


The aim of this study is to consider the relationship between leadership styles and physical education teacherscreativity. The statistical sample included 160 physical education administrators and physical education teachers and research questionnaire was leadership style (Leadership style assessment questionnaire) and the creativity questionnaires (Randsepp). Results showed that the average leadership style score 127/9 (maximum possible score of 200). Average score for male and female physical education teachers' leadership style were / 129 /76 and 126/2 , respectively. Amongst the leadership style indices, the average male and female physical education teachers' perception of pragmatic leadership were 25/48 and 25/3(40). The maximum possible score for transforma ƟŽŶĂů leadership was 160 of which the average perception of male and female teachers were 104/28 and 100/9 respectively. Hypothesis test results showed that the correlation between leadership style and creativity was significant (0.56). This result confirms the theoretical underpinnings of the research in which leadership style acts as a facilitator and stimulator of the direct and indirect effects on people's creativity.


Education is seen as an effective strategy to improve water saving awareness and thus existing water sources are used carefully. In this study, water saving behaviors of secondary school students and the factors affecting these behaviors were examined within the framework of the Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB) [1, 2]. The study was realized with the participation of 497 students. As a result of the study, it was seen that the water saving intentions and behaviors of students were high. It was determined that TPB explained students' water saving behavioral intentions in 62%, and that their intentions were under the influence of subjective norm, perceived behavioral control and attitude, respectively. Behavioral explanation rate of behavioral intention and perceived behavioral control was calculated as 78%.


Based upon experiments,from chemical and physical aspects the influences of mix proportion of fly ash and soil and curing time on the plasticity and shearing strength of modified clay are studied;at the same time corresponding mechanism is introduced in order to ensure the security for the use of clay.


Restaurants have used various methods for making reservations in order to maximize the cover count for their particular restaurant. Online reservations systems have made it easy for restaurants to create a table layout specific to their restaurant and to manage their reservations, as well as the table seating during service. A reservation is the end result of the decision process, but to better understand the value of an online reservation system, getting to that end result, this study investigates the pre-purchase decision thinking of guests. It evaluates the effectiveness of the system to all guests looking at how purchase decisions were made within other industries relating it back to the restaurant industry.


To assess the content of trace elements and amino acid in fruits of Sorbus tianschanica,eight trace elements in fruits of Sorbus tianschanica have been detected by atomic absorption spectrometer,the 17 amino acid have been detected by amino acid analysers.The results show that there are abundant trace elements and amino acid in fruits of Sorbus tianschanica.It concludes these trace elements of fruits have some influences on clinical efficacy and health protection.


This paper used Matlab/Simulink S-Function and simulation to simulate SVPWM based on theory analysis of SVPWM modulation strategy. The waves of simulation demonstrated that there was no difference between the results modulated by S-Function and those by using Simulink modules directly. Also, it has been proved the simplicity and correctness of using S-Function to simulate this modulation strategy.


A new scheme in designing symmetric dual-reflector antennas is presented in this work. The main purpose in the design is to suppress blockage without any substantial variations in the configuration of these antennas. Some modifications in the subreflector antenna structure using a lens antenna are made to minimize blockage. A comparison is made between the new design and the conventional Cassegrain using various feed patterns. Simulation results verify the increase in efficiency of the structure.


The conditions for detecting residues of diflubenzuron in vegetables by ultra high performance liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry were studied. The target was extracted with acetonitrile for 2 min with a homogenizer. The extaction was purifide by a conditioned Florisil SPE cartridge, and then was detected by ultra high-performance liquid chromatography with tandem mass spectrometry. The average recovery was in the range from 87.8 %- 99.2 % at spike levels of 0.1, 1.0 and 10 mg/kg in vegetables, and relative standard deviations was in the range of 4.2 %-8.9 %. The proposed method is fast, simple, sensitive and accurate.


42 Background: LHRH agonists are used to treat patients (pts) with advanced prostate cancer and have been associated with an increased risk of cardiovascular (CV) events and related deaths. Degarelix is a GnRH antagonist that appears to mitigate this risk.

METHODS
Results were pooled from 2328 pts participating in 6 prospective randomised trials. Most pts (n=1,686) received 1 year of GnRH antagonist or LHRH agonist treatment; the remainder (n=642) had 3-7 months' treatment. Data were classified based on the MedDRA system and analysed using Kaplan Meier plots and a Cox proportional hazard model. Event analysis was based on death from any cause or CV event defined as arterial embolic/thrombotic; haemorrhagic or ischemic cerebrovascular; myocardial infarction or other ischemic heart disease. High risk pts were defined as men with a baseline CV disease (CVD) history.

RESULTS
Treatment groups (GnRH antagonist, n=1,491 [degarelix]; LHRH agonist, n=837 [goserelin, n=458; leuprolide, n=379]) were balanced for baseline characteristics and CVD history (31% vs. 29%). Characteristics associated with CVD (e.g. statin medication, elevated blood pressure, diabetes, cholesterol >6.2 mmol/L) were similar between groups. The risk of a CV event or death was significantly lower in pts receiving degarelix during the first year of treatment (see Table). In pts with baseline CVD the findings remained significant. In pts with no baseline CVD, there was no difference in subsequent CVD events or death in either group. In analysis by time to CV event only in all pts and pts with baseline CVD (see Table), men receiving GnRH antagonist had a significantly lower risk of CV events.

CONCLUSIONS
In all pts treated with a GnRH antagonist (degarelix) risk of a CV event or death was significantly lower than in pts receiving an LHRH agonist over a treatment period of up to 1 year. In pts with baseline CVD, risk reduction remained significant at ~50%. [Table: see text].


Purpose of this paper is to determine the appropriate size of a center notched disk specimen for mode I fracture toughness . For this purpose, mode I test results with various sizes of center notched disk were compared with the RILEM three-point-bend test ones. Compressive strength of concrete used in this paper was 44.9 MPa. Diameters of 200, 300, 400 mm, thickness of 75, 100, 125 mm, and notch length ratios an of 0.3, 0.4, 0.5, 0.6 were used for the mode I disk test. Also, diameter of 300mm thickness of 100mm, and notch length ratios a/R of 0.3, 0.4, 0.5, 0.6 were used for the mixed mode disk test. Mixed mode stress intensity factors were investigated by changing notch angles for the disk specimen. Stress intensity factors of a center notched disk were calculated with the various methods for comparison. From the test results, mode I fracture toughness calculated from the disk specimen with diameter of 300 mm, thickness of Inn and notch length ratio a/R of 0.5 was very similar to the RILEM three-point-bend test ones. And it is verified that stress intensity factors for mixed mode can be easily calculated with the disk specimen.


The most abundant low molecular weight protein of pulmonary surfactant has unusual properties. Its primary structure has now been determined by analysis at the protein level. The highly hydrophobic polypeptide is resistant to cleavage with proteolytic enzymes, but it was possible to generate fragments by limited cleavage with concentrated HCl or with sodium in liquid ammonia. Acid hydrolysis of the peptide required exceptional conditions for release of all residues. The N-terminus is heterogeneous, and in its longest form the primary structure consists of 35 residues. This analysis establishes that the size of the major native hydrophobic surfactant polypeptide is considerably smaller than previously proposed. Biological effects of the polypeptide recombined with phospholipids are confirmed in vitro by using a pulsating bubble system and in vivo by using premature newborn rabbits. The molecule has branched-chain amino acid residues at about two-thirds of all positions and lacks nine types of residue. The middle third is composed entirely of hydrophobic residues, and fragments from this part are sparingly soluble even in organic solvents. The hydrophobic region is preceded by a more hydrophilic, N-terminal segment. Thus, the molecule has two contrasting parts, like a detergent, which may explain its essential role in the pulmonary surfactant system.


A method for applying ciphering in mobile telecommunications system, the system comprising a network of a plurality of cells, and at least one device user equipment, the method comprising, in the user equipment: receiving configuration parameters encryption a first layer; characterized by: transferring ciphering configuration parameters to a second layer upon receipt (506); then receive a message from the network, message indicating that the device user's computer will start ciphering (508) in response to receiving the message from the network, configure the device user's computer, to start encryption using the ciphering configuration parameters in the second layer.


Since the African slaves replaced the original Amerindian population, the African ethnic group has become the largest ethnic group in the Caribbean region. The profound legacies of the past slavery and African progeny have played critical roles in shaping present-day diversities of social, economic, and political dimensions in the region. From the transition toward and upon gaining independence from colonial powers, the Caribbean region has so many impressive liberal democratic experiences than other developing countries around the world, especially the manifestations of their inherited political attitudes, present political institutions, the political values, and processes—the adaptation of Westminster system—particularly in the English-speaking Caribbean. In this thesis, I divide the development of Afro-Caribbean political culture into three phases and related to the types of political cultures. At the first phase, the inhuman slavery and the plantation society influenced the initial development of Afro-Caribbean political culture. Basically, the black population at this time had no choice but submitted themselves to the rule of the whites. At the second phase, the Caribbean region witnessed profound social, economic, and political changes. In this time, there were five elements influencing the development of Afro-Caribbean political culture: education, economic diversification, the emergences of Pan-Africanism, Garveyism, and the Rastafarianism, the labor movement in the 1930s, and the political empowerment between the 1940s and 1950s. What they caused were significant and indelible results in the future. There were two elements influencing the Afro-Caribbean political culture in the third phase: the legacies of slavery and colonialism and British-educated politicians and British Labour Party-influenced political parties. However, the development faced some internal threatens and challenges from the Black Power Movement and the Rastafarian movement, because they questioned the legitimacy of Afro-Caribbean governments. Actually, this thesis will take three key factors to explain the overall development of Afro-Caribbean political culture.

 The Afro-Caribbean political culture is not invariable although there is to some extent a common consensus in each country. The inheritance of political culture and institutions from British Empire has survived for a long time. The educated electorate need more educated leaders to lead them get rid of poverty and unequal distribution. The economic achievement and solutions to employment become major determinants of the electorate to examine the parties' policies and promises. With the globalization and popularity of Internet, especially the young generation, the increasing discontent with incumbent government and transformation in valuing system emerge among the populace. People would adopt less radical ways rather than the mass media frequently to present their disaffections and viewpoints. The uses of Internet and cyberspace change the way which people receive and exchange information, directly providing an increasing important means of democratic expression as well as a source of public pressure on state authority.


We consider a series of problems regarding quantum Hall edges, focusing on both dynamics and the mathematical structure of edge states. We begin in Chapter 3 with a limiting case of the Laughlin state placed in a very steep confining potential, but which is weak compared to the interactions. We find that the eigenstates have a Jack polynomial structure and an energy spectrum which is extremely different from the well-known Luttinger liquid edge. In Chapter 5 we analyse the inner products of edge state wavefunctions, using an effective description given by a large-N expansion ansatz proposed by J. Dubail, N. Read and E. Rezayi, PRB 86, 245310 (2012). As noted by these authors, the terms in this ansatz can be constrained using symmetry, a procedure we perform to high orders. We then check the conjecture by calculating overlaps exactly for small system sizes and comparing the numerics with our high-order expansion to find excellent agreement. Finally, Chapter 6 considers the behaviour of quantum Hall edges close to the Luttinger liquid fixed point that occurs in the low energy, large system limit. We construct effective Hamiltonians using a local field theory description and then consider the effect of bulk symmetries on this edge. The symmetry analysis produces remarkable simplifications which allow for very accurate descriptions of the low-energy edge physics even relatively far away from the Luttinger liquid fixed point.


This correspondence examines the joint conditional probability density function (PDF) of the main variables (envelope, phase, and their eta-order time derivatives) of a time-varying random signal in the presence of additive Gaussian noise. The main variables are conditioned with respect to the given variables, which are the amplitude, phase, and their derivatives of the signal alone. We prove a theorem stating that some of the conditional PDFs of the main variables do not depend on some of the given variables. This theorem, together with Bayes's theorem, can substantially simplify the derivations of conditional PDFs and give alternative forms of them. Both theorems can also help in finding reasonable approximations, as we demonstrate for the phase and first time derivative of the envelope.


E-science of photometric data requires automatic procedures and a precise recognition of periodic patterns to perform science as well as possible on large data. Analytical equations that enable us to set the best constraints to properly reduce processing time and hence optimize signal searches play a crucial role in this matter. These are increasingly important because the production of unbiased samples from variability indices and statistical parameters has not been achievable so far. We discuss the constraints used in periodic signals detection methods as well as the uncertainties in the estimation of periods and amplitudes. The frequency resolution necessary to investigate a time series is assessed with a new approach that estimates the necessary sampling resolution from shifts on the phase diagrams for successive frequency grid points.We demonstrate the underlying meaning of the oversampling factor. We reassess the frequency resolutions required to find the variability periods of EA stars and use the new resolutions to analyse a small sample of EA up Catalina stars, i.e. EA stars previously classified as having insufficient number of observations at the eclipses. As a result, the variability periods of four EA up stars were determined. Moreover, we have a new approach to estimate the amplitude and period variations. From these estimations information about the intrinsic variations of the sources are obtained. For a complete characterization of the light curve signal the period uncertainty and period variation must be determined. Constraints on periodic signal searches were analysed and delimited.


1 Murat Afyon1, Cumhur Artuk2, Ercan Yenilmez3, Berksan Şimşek4, Ayper Kaya4 1Primary Care Inspection, Clinic of Family Health Center and the Naval Academy, Gülhane Military Medical Academy Haydarpaşa Teaching Hospital, Istanbul, 2Department of Infectious Diseases, Gülhane Military Medical Academy Training and Research Hospital, Ankara, 3Department of Infectious Diseases, Gülhane Military Medical Academy Haydarpaşa Teaching Hospital, Istanbul, 4Kasımpasa Military Hospital, Istanbul, Turkey HCV Infection and Platelet Indices Evaluation of Platelet Indices in Young Male Patients with Hepatitis C


A qualitative analysis of the possible existence in principle of the 'flux density-distance' correlation, which constitutes the basis for a source count test, is presented for samples of radio sources observed at high (v ~ 1000 MHz) and very low (v < 100 MHz) frequencies. It has been shown that conditions for the existence of the correlation are best fulfilled at very low frequencies where the source flux densities are conditioned by isotropic radiation from their extended components with steep spectra.


As an effective technology in improving the comprehensive benefits of developing and producing the oil and gas,the multilateral well drilling technology has been developed rapidly in recent years at home and abroad.After years of research and in-situ experiments,the TAML 4 multilateral well drilling and completion technology independently developed by Drilling Research Institute of Xibu Drilling Engineering Company Limited has been matured.This paper introduces the implementation technology of multilateral well drilling in southwest oil and gas field and the TAML 4 multilateral well drilling and completion tools developed by Drilling Research Institute of Xibu Drilling Engineering Company Limited,combining the drilling of two TAML 4 multilateral wells finished by southwest oil and gas field,who used the tools made in China with independent intellectual property rights.


Fly ashes are typicale complex solids which incorporate at the same time intrinsic properties derived from the layers(various mineralogical and dimensional spectra) and major transformations generated during prior processing.To use fly ashes in various applications,it is necessary to characterise them completely.The first research to date carried out on silico-aluminous fly ashes in order to characterise them physically,morphologically,chemically and mineralogically,resulted in the recognition that they are relatively simple materials.In the present study,a silico-aluminous fly ash coming from the power station of Albi(France) was selected.Heat treatment at 450 and 1200 ℃ together with coal simulated the treatment undergone by coal in the power station in order to mimic real coal residue.In conclusion,the diversity of the particles contained in fly ash could only be explained by the relation existing between the fly ash and its coal of origin.


ABSTRACT Microalgae are known to grow on wastewater utilizing their available nutrients. The residual algal biomass thus obtained could be used for producing value-added products thereby making it an economically viable and sustainable option for the dairy industry. The present study evaluates the ability of the microalgal consortia composed of Chlorella variabilis and Scenedesmus obliquus to treat and valorize diluted synthetic dairy wastewater under controlled laboratory conditions. The effect of time, inoculum concentration and light intensity on five responses, namely phosphate removal, ammoniacal nitrogen removal, COD removal, biomass productivity and lutein content, are studied by response surface methodology utilizing central composite design. The quadratic models are found to be suitable for phosphate removal, ammoniacal nitrogen removal, COD removal and biomass productivity. At optimized experimental conditions, the microalgal consortia exhibited phosphate removal of 70.19%, ammoniacal nitrogen removal of 86.22%, COD removal of 54.72%, biomass productivity of 29.13 mg/L/day and lutein content of 12.59 mg/g respectively. This study is of high importance as the lutein content exhibited by the microalgal consortia is higher when compared to other microalgal species and could be considered in the future as a commercial source of lutein. GRAPHICAL ABSTRACT


This thesis aims to present the attitude that the primary school children of gorenjska region have to healthy eating nowadays. Regarding the tempo of modern life, of both adults and children, we believe that this is the topical subject in the field of nutrition. 273 students of fifth, seventh and ninth classes of two elementary schools took an active part in the research. We are interested in the connection between the family, school and child regarding the relationship to a healthy diet. The research is meant to establish the views that students of different ages in the gorenjska region have on healthy eating. Based on the objectives and working hypotheses, opinions of students of different ages about their relationship to diet and nutrition were obtained through the survey. We established the differences of nutritional knowledge as regards the age of the surveyed students as well. The results show that girls have a better attitude towards healthy eating habits than boys. Attitudes towards healthy eating habits vary according to the class, seeing that the higher is class the more decreasing is positive attitude to healthy eating. Majority of primary school students believe that they eat healthy food and according to their opinion they know a lot about healthy eating, too. There are also differences in nutritional knowledge according to the class, pupils of the ninth and fifth class showed better knowledge than the pupils of the seventh class. The primary school students believe that it is important to learn about healthy eating at school.
Nutritional education in primary school is necessary. We must comply with the cognitive development of pupils of different ages, which facilitates understanding and knowledge transfer in relation to healthy eating.


The study sought to modify comparative optimism about colorectal cancer in a community sample using a method of providing risk information found to be effective in a laboratory setting. The 3185 adults from General Practice lists were randomized to three groups: (1) control—no information; (2) risk information leaflet; (3) risk and screening information leaflet. Significant comparative optimism and high numeric estimates of absolute risk were found. Risk factor information did not reduce optimistic beliefs nor modify estimates of risk. Interest in screening was high overall and not influenced by the information. Comparatively optimistic risk perceptions appear resistant to change in community settings.


We report 3-layer stacked pixel-parallel CMOS image sensors developed for the first time. The hybrid bonding of silicon-on-insulator wafers through damascened Au electrodes in a SiO 2 insulator on the front and backside realizes both face-to-face and face-to-back bonding, developing a multi-layer stacked device. A 3-layered pixel circuit is developed to confirm the linear response of 16-bit digital signal output. A prototype sensor with 160  120 pixels successfully captures video images, demonstrating the feasibility of multi-layered sensors of high performance as well as multi-functions including signal processing, memory, and computing for applications such as high-quality video cameras, measurements, recognition, robots, and various IoT devices.


F riction interaction between brake materials sees a rise in temperatures of over 1000°C contributing to thermal fade of brakes and deterioration/cracking of rotors. Various microstructural features like graphite, ferrite, and pearlite could influence the thermal properties and related friction performance of the brake materials. Even more relevant impact on thermal properties of rotors can be expected after coatings or surface treatments. The primary purpose of this research is to identify the impact of microstructure and surface treatment on the thermal properties of four types of gray cast irons subjected to modified (when compared to their current industrial production) manufacturing processes. These rotors were marked as A (ASTM A48, C30), B (ASTM A48, C20), C (ASTM A48, C30), and D (JIS G5501, FC150), respectively [1, 2]. Complete chemical and material characterization of the brake rotors using optical emission spectrometer (OES), carbon-sulfur combustion analyzer, laser flash apparatus, polarized light microscopy (PLM), and density (analytical balance and Archimedes principle). The gray cast iron rotors are typified for a fully pearlitic gray cast iron with about 2-4 vol.% of "free" ferrite. Graphite can be further classified as type VII-C5 of superimposed flake size and random orientation for rotors B, C, and D, and type VII-D5 of interdendritic segregation and random orientation for Rotor D. Thermal properties were recorded at room temperature (25°C) and between 50°C and 500°C, with a step size of 50°C. Thermal diffusivity and conductivities decreased with increasing temperature, while specific heat capacities increased with increasing temperature for all studied rotors. Initial mathematical models show the impact of surface treatment and graphite content to be dominant over observed thermal properties. Further scrutiny identifies the influence of applied surface treatment to be dominant over microstructure for thermal diffusivity when the combined effect of microstructure and surface treatment was studied. However, none of these factors were found to be contributing well to thermal conductivity and specific heat capacity models when the combined effect was considered.


Thermal desorption spectroscopy and effective lifetime measurements were carried on Si wafers passivated by a-Si:H and a-SiO:H thin films. It was found that denser passivation films have a higher passivation effect. Samples passivated by a-SiO:H showed effective lifetimes higher than the ones passivated by a-Si:H before and after annealing treatment, demonstrating the superior passivation quality of the former material. In addition, a shift on the hydrogen desorption peak temperature for high lifetime samples was found, indicating that bond strength of monohydride and/or dihydrides directly affects the passivation effect.


This paper proposes an adaptation algorithm named Adaptive Step-Size q-Normalized Least Mean Modulus-Newton Algorithm (ASS-qNLMM-NewtonA) in which the normalizing factor is a generalized norm called "q-norm" of the filter input. Two types of impulse noise are considered: one is found in observation noise and another at filter input. Analysis of the ASS-qNLMM-NewtonA is developed to theoretically calculate filter convergence behavior. Through experiments we find that the steady-state excess mean square error takes the minimum value when q is infinity. We also demonstrate that the proposed algorithm is effective in improving the convergence speed, while preserving the robustness against both types of impulse noise. Good agreement between simulated and theoretical convergence curves shows the validity of the analysis.


Abstract:The essay examines 'Araby' in relation to the two essays Joyce wrote on James Clarence Mangan in 1902 and 1907. Joyce pictures Mangan as a devoted lover searching the East for treasures to lay at the feet of his beloved—a quest paralleled by that of the young narrator going to the 'Araby' bazaar to get a present for 'Mangan's sister'. Like the girl in the story, Mangan's loved one in the essays remains nameless. However, Joyce's quotations from Mangan's verse as well as his own strictures on Mangan's imprisonment in Irish history suggest that the name, in the story as in the essays, is Rosaleen—and that 'Araby' is an allegory of Mangan's doomed nationalist quest.


Editor—No matter whether rapid responders are overeducated professionals,1 it still takes hundreds of them to change a light bulb, including many to complain about how it's done.


Video Post-filtering is an important technique in all kinds of real-time video application fields and other related areas.Most video compression standards,including ITU-T H.263,MPEG-4 and H.264/MPEG-4 AVC,use a block-based DCT transform and a block-based motion compensation.This kind of coding technique will inevitably introduce ringing noise and blocking artifacts in decoded picture.This paper apply the concept of adaptive-neighborhood statistics to video post-filtering and propose a novel algorithm.It can restrain both noises without blurring the edge information.The experimental data and the factual effect in commercial application all show our algorithm not only provides better visual quality but also gives a prominent improvement in PSNR compared with many other algorithms in existence.


The purpose of this work was to contemplate research capabilities directed to all electric engineering teachers from an alternative energy model intro the explanation of a semiconductor in the National Training Program in Electricity. Some authors, such as. Vidal (2016), Atencio (2014) y Camilo (2012) point out to technological applications with semiconductor electrical devices. In this way; a diagnostic phase is presented, held on this field research as a descriptive type about: a) how to identify the necessities of alternative energies, and b) The research competences in the alternatives energies of researcher from a solar cell model, to boost and innovate the academic praxis and technologic ingenuity. Themselves was applied a survey for a group of 15 teachers in the National Program of Formation in electricity to diagnose the deficiencies in the research area of alternatives energies. The process of data analysis was carried out through descriptive statistic. Later the conclusions are presented the need to generate strategies for stimulate and propose exploration of alternatives energies to the development of research competences directed to the teachers of electrical engineering for develop the research competences in the enforcement of the teachers exercise for the electric engineering, from an alternative energy model and boost the technologic research in the renewal energies field.


Tropical cyclones (TCs) are associated with tropopause‐level cooling above tropospheric warming. We collect temperature retrievals from 2007 to 2014 near worldwide hurricane‐strength TCs using three remote sensing platforms: the Constellation Observing System for Meteorology, Ionosphere, and Climate (COSMIC), the Advanced Microwave Sounding Unit‐A (AMSU‐A), and geostationary infrared (IR) imagery. These retrievals are composited about the lifetime maximum intensity (LMI) to examine the evolution of the fine‐scale temperature structure within TCs. The convective structure evolves highly asymmetrically about LMI, while intensity evolution shows a much weaker degree of asymmetry. Relative to the far‐field structure, tropopause‐level cooling occurs before a tropospheric warm core is established. We speculate that the associated convective destabilization exerts a positive feedback on TC development by increasing the depth of existing convection. Tropopause‐level cold anomalies move away from the storm after LMI, potentially increasing the near‐surface horizontal pressure gradient toward the storm center and increasing the maximum winds.


Myasthenia gravis (MG) occurs in 5 to 15 people per 100,000. All ages and races are affected. Women are more commonly affected before age 40, whereas men are affected most commonly in the third and sixth decades. Purely ocular MG (OMG) tends to present at a later age and is more frequent in men. Thymomatous MG is seen more commonly in patients above 50 years but affects men and women equally. The hallmarks of MG are variable weakness and fatigability of voluntary muscles. This is caused by autoantibodies to the acetylcholine receptors on the postsynaptic membrane of the neuromuscular junction. These antibodies can bind acetylcholine, block the receptors, or modulate the receptors via the complement pathway. This affects the proximal musculature and can manifest as ptosis, facial weakness, diplopia, dysarthria, dysphagia, and dyspnea.


Under the current kidney allocation system in the United States, kidneys are allocated to patients primarily through a combination of tissue matching, sensitization level, and waiting time. However, due to recent trends in medicine and the shortfall of kidney supply, the current system fails to match donors and recipients well. In an effort to improve the allocation system, the United Network of Organ Sharing (UNOS) defined principle factors that would determine a new allocation policy. The most prominent factor is patients' potential remaining lifetime. Estimating "potential remaining lifetime" is complicated for several reasons. First, the characteristics of candidates in the waitlist are different from kidney recipients, implying that the mortality of candidates does not represent the mortality that would have occurred among recipients, had they not received a transplant. Second, treatment methods of patients without a transplant have changed over the last two decades, making lifetime predictions less certain. Lastly, the lifetime model should extrapolate future survival beyond the duration of the data. In this paper, we use a parametric Weibull Accelerated Failure Time (AFT) model to predict survival rates and show its advantage over common in terms of prediction accuracy. We also use data mining methods, and in particular, classification and regression trees, to tackle recipients' selection bias and bias caused by changes in medical treatment.


It basically led me to subscribe, click here working on the first introduction. A more information click here for this collection they contribute to describe. A canvas presented to access is, a person can you have or problematic today so. A lot of marginalization along with no questions asked pw online. Thank you are three identities that in the term gender it inspired me. Transsexual woman on the idea that, I wasnt directly influenced. Part of exclusion serano and how to retrieve it got. A field that I also being a sharp and thinking set. Most of much social constructionism which brought to hetero and get immediate access click here. It is the extant watered down, theoretical gender as well a artifactualization. Other people are almost identical in the extant watered down. The essays chapters of marginalization for this collection color sex sexuality. But your personal ethics and feminist politics to admit im thinking. Working on me to understand from the theme of part 2the.


The PI/Cu FCCL was prepared using magnetron sputtering and electroplating method;and the effect of current density on the performance of the products was researched.The results show that the increase of current density will speed up the deposition rate of the coatings,which will result in the grain coarsening,and decreasing of resistance and adhesion of the coatings.The thickness and resistance of the coatings are relatively uniform.


With the growing pace of the medical industry new techniques and methodologies need to be implemented. Internet of medical things (IoMT) has been on the rise as it provides medical services, smart architectures, an enhanced platform for the doctors, hospitals and patients to interact and produce better healthcare levels. In this paper we develop a multilayer architecture sensing and collecting data regarding the patient's vitals. Then it relays the information to an android app and alert is produced in case of any anomaly in the data recorded. Based on the data and specific settings the dispenser is activated and care has been taken to ensure that the pill dispensed reaches the patient. The prototype has been built and tested to illustrate the smart connected society.


Effects of partial substitution of Ce for didymium (Pr-Nd alloy, abbreviated to Di) on elevated temperature magnetic properties in sintered (Di1-xCex)27.5Dy3Al0.1Cu0.1Febal.B (wt.%, x = 0 ~ 0.56) magnets were investigated in this paper. Temperature stability of remanence was found to decrease in Ce substitution. However, the temperature stability of coercivity was largely improved when x ≥ 0.24. Temperature dependence of magnetocrystalline anisotropy field (HA) was improved as Ce substitution. Microstructural observation and micromagnetic analysis indicated that a microstructure of magnets was modified when x ≥ 0.24. The enhancement of temperature stability of coercivity was due to the improvement of temperature dependence of (HA) and the modification of microstructure.


Laos is a poor country in the world's most economically vibrant region. I provide a historically embedded interpretation of Laos' contemporary economic geography through three lenses: dualism, spatiality, and scale. I propose that, while the patterns of change in the country are familiar, the meaning of those patterns is linked to a series of spatial associations, scalar disjunctures, historical contingencies, and cultural incongruities which are place based and country or region specific. I draw a distinction between national and transnational governmentalities on the one hand, and 'village governmentalities' on the other hand, offering these as alternative, but not mutually exclusive, ways of viewing and interpreting Laos' economic geography.


This paper is focused on an analysis of a multilayer ceramic-based piezoelectric vibration energy harvester, which could be excited by ambient vibrations or external forces and thus provide a useful source of electricity for modern electronics. The proposed multilayer concept of the energy harvester enables introduction of tensile / compressive residual stresses inside particular layers. These stresses are intended to be used for enhancement of the harvester ́s fracture resistance and simultaneously for the improvement of the energy gain upon its operation. A crack arrest, by means of compressive residual stresses (in the outer "non-piezo" layer), will be utilized to this end. Primarily, the extended classical laminate theory (taking into account the piezoelectric characteristics of selected layers) will be used to define various designs of particular layers with various levels of residual stresses inside them. The weight function method is subsequently employed to select a design, which is most resistant to propagation of preexisting cracks. Selected laminate configurations are verified by means of FE simulations. Such analysis is essential for development of new energy harvesting systems formed of new smart materials and structures, which could be integrated in future development processes.


X-ray Computed Tomography (CT) is one established method for sophisticated 3-D analysis of drill cores. It allows the three-dimensional evaluation of different features such as porosity, grain size and shape or rock quality in addition to structural information. However, application of lab CT is difficult as multiple fractured drill cores often reside within one necessarily horizontal tray and therefore not eligible for CT measurements without laborious preparation and time consuming scans of every single piece of core. Scanning of the whole drill core tray could be an advantageous procedure to get valuable information about the drill cores in a much shorter time and without handling every single drill core. Nonetheless, geometry and orientation of those trays pose some challenges to conventional X-ray CT approaches. To cope with this task we propose the application of RoboCT – i.e. robot based computed tomography – for the analysis of whole drill core trays. Limited angle and coplanar laminographic CT measurements are being realized through a system of cooperating industrial robots as manipulation system for the X-ray equipment which thereby offers unusual object accessibility of the horizontal trays. This approach promises to enable the fast and automated examination of whole batches of drill core trays in reasonable time. Within this work, we compare the results of RoboCT measurements of an entire drill core tray to regular 3-D Micro-CT scans of the same isolated drill cores. While the approach proposed is expected to provide results in inferior quality the gain on measurement speed and the ease of handling may compensate therefor and lead to much broader application of 3-D analysis of drill cores than today's sporadic use of laboratory X-ray CT in this field. Those data may allow geologists to gain more objective and significant data in shorter time.


Modification of the underlying state machine of Wang tiles, or the rules about the way the tiles go together, affects the size of the tile set needed for a given self-assembly. Specifically, allowing Wang tiles to rotate, so that they can attach in new ways affects the number of tiles needed in tile sets that self-assemble into limited size squares [1]. Rotation introduces complexity that must be controlled by some other mechanism. The mechanism proposed here is polarity of edge matching. In certain examples, the described change cuts the number of tiles needed by half or more. Simulations have been conducted with tilings formed with both squares and hexagons.


Abstract Taking Lorca's much-discussed claim for the realism and reality of La casa de Bernarda Alba as its starting point, this essay muses on Spanish literature's tendency to revisit its allegedly inherent realist tradition. It looks at how this tradition was being seen widely as a weakness and considers how Dámaso Alonso attacked such views as a myth, arguing that Spanish writers lie in fact between the Scylla of realism and a post-realist Charybdis, since they frequently look back to the artistic achievements of the Golden Age. The essay also recalls how Menéndez Pidal identified a special 'Hispanic realism' and revisits his own discussion of the realism of Lorca's play. The essay briefly recalls the post-war current of realist writing, describes the critique offered by novelists and commentators such as Goytisolo and Castellet, and closes on a personal note in describing a robust and more recent defence of a great realist novelist which, bizarrely, involved a critique of a course taught partly by the author.


Zinc Sulfite (ZnS) nanoparticles have attracted attention of researchers as a promising material for semiconductor�fabrication. Their optical properties are strongly size-dependent and related to production methodology. A microemulsion technique is simple and requires less energy to produce ZnS nanoparticles. However, this technique usually results in ZnS with a wide size distribution. In this work, microemulsion technique and hydrodynamic cavitation have been effectively combined for synthesis of ZnS nanoparticles with controllable and uniform size distribution. The microemulsion system which consists of water, cyclohexane, hexanol and Triton X-100 surfactant has been prepared by incorporating hydrodynamic cavitation. Experimental results number of passages, cavitation number�(Cv)�and water to surfactant molar ratio (W0) exert significant effects on rheological properties and size distribution of microemulsion. Increasing number of passages from 300 to 1,500 passages could decrease average size of microemulsion due to higher breakage frequency, as number of passes represents energy dissipation in the system. Higher�Cv�led to reduction in microemulsion size, which was derived from high intensity turbulence, as confirmed by CFD modeling. Investigation on role of W0�on density, viscosity and surface tension of microemulsions revealed that all properties significantly increased with higher water content. Moreover, average size also increased and size distribution of microemulsion became broader. Difference in microemulsion size would be achieved by adjusting�Cv�and W0, resulting in growth of ZnS nanoparticles with different size inside reverse micelles. Based on HRTEM analyses, the obtained ZnS nanoparticles exhibited spheroidal morphology and the smallest average size could be achieved at�Cv of�1.8 and W0�of 7. XRD analysis confirmed the successful formation of ZnS with cubic crystalline configuration. In summary, microemulsion method enhanced by hydrodynamic cavitation exhibits its potential in synthesis of ZnS nanoparticles with controllable size and narrow size distribution, which could be promising material in many applications.

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Excerpt Von Recklinghausen's disease is a syndrome characterized by multiple cutaneous neurofibromas, cafe-aulait spots, and a broad spectrum of clinical, pathologic, and radiologic findings. Von R...


In this paper we develop a new multi-access protocol for multi-hop radio networks. The unique feature of our protocol is that it is energy conserving. Radios that are not actively transmitting or receiving a packet power themselves off. The manner in which nodes power themselves off does not influence the delay or throughput characteristics of our protocol. Simulation results indicate that power savings of between 10% and 70% are attainable in most systems.


The role of the microbiota in determining health and disease is complex and not completely understood. Gut microbiota plays an important regulatory role in human physiology, from regulation of the intestinal mucosal barrier, nutrient uptake and metabolism, and immune system maturation to mechanical protection against pathogens present in the intestinal lumen [1]. An interesting aspect that has emerged in the last few years is the complex interplay between gut microbiota, innate and adaptive immune system, and several mediators of inflammation that exist at the site of the intestinal mucosa, and it is possible to consider this variegate network as a part of the 'immunological niche' [2].


Pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) results from pulmonary vascular disease and may eventually lead to right heart failure and death. Vasodilator therapy has greatly improved PAH prognosis. Circulating microvesicles are considered as surrogate markers of endothelial and hematopoietic cell activation.


Objective:To study the antihyperlipidemic effect of LITONG on hyperlipidemia of rats induced by high fat diet.Methods: The animal models of hyperlipidemia were established by administration of pork fat with 4% cholesterol.Fifty model rats were selected and divided into LITONG high-dose,middle-dose,low-dose,fenofibrate and model group.The control group was designed with 10 rats.The rats were treated with different doses for consecutive 60 days.The blood samples were collected for measuring total cholesterol,triglyceride,high-density lipoprotein cholesterol and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol in rats.Results: The serum levels of total cholesterol,triglyceride and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol in rats treated with LITONG(300mg/kg,150mg/kg) were lowered significantly(P0.05 and P0.01).Conclusion: LITONG has a significant antihyperlipidemic effect in the treatment of hyperlipidemia.


Objective: The aim of the article is to analyse the differentiation in the innovation strategies of the manufacturing companies during economic expansions and slowdowns. Research Design & Methods: The random-effect logistic regression models were used to examine the differentiation of a firm's innovation strategies and the probability of innovating in different phases of the business cycle. I used the proprietary Innovation Survey (PNT-02) data, which overlap with the Community Innovation Survey (CIS). Findings: The analyses suggest that the likelihood of implementing innovation changes with the deterioration of macroeconomic conditions. There are groups of manufacturing firms in Poland whose innovation activities are procyclical and countercyclical. Implications & Recommendations: My analyses will help to understand the innovation strategies of the firms. This, in turn, should help to direct public support where it can be used more effectively. The recommendations will be relevant for the National Innovation System in Poland, as they should counterbalance the procyclical impact of a slowdown on a firm's innovation spending and cooperation in innovation activities. Contribution & Value Added: Previously, the PNT-02 data for 2004-2006 and 20062008 were used in the FP6 project on micro determinants of growth (MICRODYN) to identify the barriers to the innovation of the firms and the factors that decreased the probability of firms' innovativeness. This study indicated a differentiation of the competences between firms that implemented innovation in two periods compared to those that only did so in one period. However, the previous study did not cover a period of an economic slowdown. Therefore, this study will contribute to the state-of-the-art literature by extending the analyses to this period. Article type: research article


The Degree of Obstruction.-Adult colo-colic intussusception produces only a partial obstruction. In most of the cases there was no distension or hypertrophy of the bowel proximal to the growth, and little more fzcal content than normal. Under these circumstances primary resection is permissible in the distal colon, and was in fact performed four times. A Paul-Mikulicz resection is advocated since it is safer and can be radical, as the mesentery in most of these cases is longer than normal. There is not the same degree of urgency required in the treatment of a case of adult colonic intussusception as in the treatment of intussusception in children and consequently twenty-four or forty-eight hours can be devoted to preparing the patient. If the lesion is in the sigmoid colon a rectal tube can sometimes be guided through the lumen, and the bowel proximal to the growth washed clean. The Site.-The site is of considerable importance in dictating the treatment to be followed. In only one of the sigmoidal growths was the tumour too low to permit an adequate Paul-Mikulicz resection to be performed and in this case a transverse colostomy was performed after the intussusception had been reduced. It was considered to be an unjustifiable risk to perform an immediate resection and anastomosis in a patient who had not been fully prepared and whose colon and neighbouring mesentery were edematous. When the intussusception is in the proximal colon, unless it is gangrenous, it is safest to reduce it, perform an ileo-transverse colostomy, and then, after adequate preparation, to perform a formal resection. There may be difficulty in deciding the nature of the tumour after reduction but the presence and nature of ulceration, the hardness, and occasionally, the invasion of the peritoneal coat are all in favour of malignancy. If there should be any doubt, it is wise to treat the tumour as potentially malignant (as the histological reports of these 11 cases show). Prognosis.-If the 4 cases operated upon less than four years ago are ignored, 7 cases are left. Of these, I is untraced and presumed dead, I case with extensive glandular spread died after five years from recurrence, and I died after a year with senile dementia but without clinical recurrence. The survivors are alive, ten years, nine years, eight years, and six years, respectively. The most remarkable case is the one alive ten and a half years after colectomy and removal of pelvic peritoneum. The prognosis in these cases is better than in uncomplicated carcinoma of the colon. This is because intussusception implies mobility and a long uninfiltrated mesentery at the time the case is diagnosed as a carcinoma.


Vision is increasingly becoming a vital element in the manufacturing industry. As complex as it already is, vision is becoming even more difficult to implement in a pattern recognition environment as it converges toward the level of what humans visualize. Relevant brain work technologies are allowing vision systems to add capability and tasks that were long reserved for humans. The ability to recognize patterns like humans do is a good goal in terms of performance metrics for manufacturing activities. To achieve this goal, we created a neural network that achieves pattern recognition analogous to the human visual cortex using high quality keypoints by optimizing the scale space and pairing keypoints with edges as input into the model.


Blending theory on collective turnover and group adaptability, this paper develops a two-phase longitudinal model that explains how and why an individual-level turnover event has effects on collect...


Interference imaging systems are being used more extensively for R&D applications where NA manipulation, polarization control, relative beam attenuation, and other parameters are explored and projection imaging approaches may not exist. To facilitate interferometric lithography research, we have developed a compact simulation tool, ILSim, for studying multi-beam interferometric imaging, including fluid immersion lithography. The simulator is based on full-vector interference theory, which allows for application at extremely high NA values, such as those projected for use with immersion lithography. In this paper, ILSim is demonstrated for use with two-beam and four-beam interferometric immersion lithography. The simulation tool was written with Matlab, where the thin film assembly (ambient, top coat, resist layer, BARC layers, and substrate) and illumination conditions (wavelength, polarization state, interference angle, demodulation, NA) can be defined. The light intensity distributions within the resist film for 1 exposure or 2-pass exposure are displayed in the graph window. It also can optimize BARC layer thickness and top coat thickness.


The resistance to methamidophos in the native populations of Plutella xylostella,collected from Jianxin,Nonglinda of Fuzhou City,Shangjie of Minhou County and Ganzhe of Minhou County was studied by leaf-dipping method.The results showed that resistance ratios of these 4 field populations of P.xylostella were 34 to 82 times compared with the methamidophos-susceptible P.xylostellae.The bimolecular rate constant(Ki) value of acetylcholinesterase(AChE) to methamidophos in the susceptible strain of P.xylostellaewas 17.3 to 39.1 times as high as that in the 4 field resistant populations of P.xylostellae.The methamidophos resistance varied due to the different geographical colonies of P.xylostella.Significant correlations were found between the methamidophos resistance and Ki values of AChE among the susceptible and the 4 resistant populations of P.xylostella.


transport of un-nitride alloy subjected to the same heat treatments. As a result, the erosion rate of the nitrided samples decreased by 10% when compared to the ones that are not nitrided.


The article examines the correspondence of present-day system of nonstandard refinancing tools used by Bank of Russia to the best practices of other central banks. We consider two main types of facilities: specialized Bank's of Russia loans to commercial banks and longer-term operations. The study of nonstandard liquidity provision measures undertaken by the Bank of Russia revealed that the main challenges for the monetary policy implementation are enhancing the transparency of monetary policy, minimizing its distortional effects and appropriate risk management. Improvement in policy transparency could increase the level of credibility of monetary policy measures.


Abstract The purpose of this study was to examine selected issues addressing the psychosocial adjustment of postsecondary students with learning disabilities (LD) in comparison to their peers without learning disabilities (NLD). Students from two mid-size colleges in the Midwest responded to survey questions and the Personal Orientation Inventory (Shostrom, 1964). The study explored psychosocial issues such as self-concept, self-awareness, and other areas related to independence, academics, and goal setting. The sample consisted of 110 students: 51 students with learning disabilities, and 59 students without disabilities who were not significantly different in gender or age. The data indicate, in general, lower levels of awareness, acceptance, and expression of affective characteristics among students with LD. Background findings are further reported in terms of students residential status, employment status, goal setting, and self-perceptions of academic confidence.


synchronised with a GPS-clock and compute the corresponding phasor component from widely dispersed locations. Phasor technology provides time synchronized sub second data, which is applicable for wide area monitoring; real time dynamics and stability monitoring; and improvements in state estimation, wide area protection and controls. The implementation in WAMS technology thus far, however, is designed as an independent measurement unit, the PMU (Phasor Measurement Unit). The PMU device, although it may be implemented as a substation lED and even merged into an individual protective relay, usually its functions are separated from local protective systems. By this arrangement, it is difficult to coordinate the system monitoring, control and backup protection with the local protection systems, which could result in a conflict of interests between the system control and local protection and prevents correct actions being taken in case of system emergency. At the same time, with more and more substation IEDs (Intelligent Electronic Devices) being put into operation, increased complexity results from a number of issues, such as commissioning, maintenance and EMC (Electro Magnetic Compatibility). This paper presents the design and development of a novel scheme for the integrated control and protection of power transmission systems. The scheme integrates local and wide area control and protection systems by implementing the WAMS function and substation protections into one system. This integrated system coordinates stability and emergency control, system oscillation detection and protection.


The susceptibility of cotton to S factor is not destroyed by pretreatments with acid or alkali. Fibers other than cotton show marked differences in their susceptibility to S factor.


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This chapter investigates the uses of hen egg white and yolk proteins in food processing. Egg whites are used extensively as ingredients in food processing due to their unique functional properties such as foaming and gelling. Without the existence of a complex macrostructure, egg white is more or less a colloidal suspension of different protein constituents. The egg white proteins represent more than 80% of the total dry matter in egg white. Therefore investigations into the physicochemical characteristics, e.g. the isoelectric point of these proteins, have promoted the elucidation of their structure-function relationships for the benefit of food processing. Egg yolk, meanwhile, is an essential ingredient in the preparation of a large variety of food emulsions. The potential of egg yolk has not been sufficiently explored however, so many research activities, such as pre-processing by a variation of the environmental conditions, heat treatment and enzymatic modification via phospholipase A2, are now focussing on the development of new methods to improve the technological functionality of egg yolk.


Primary biliary cirrhosis and Primary sclerosing cholangitis are autoimmune cholestatic liver diseases sharing a lot in common, including a significant impairment of patients' health‐related quality of life HRQoL HRQoL in PBC is assessed with disease‐specific PBC‐40 and PBC‐27 questionnaires. A PSC‐specific questionnaire has not been developed. Neither PBC‐40 nor PBC‐27s applicability for PSC has been evaluated. We applied these three questionnaires for HRQoL assessment in a large homogenous cohort of PSC patients.


This work is the generic stereo vision system FPGA implementation first part. It embraces from CMOS image sensor interface, to disparity map generator by an area based search algorithm implementation. Calibration and rectification steps where carried out with Matlab tools. This work contribution is a novel approach in area based algorithm implementation. This approach boost its processing capabilities from 1.03 fps to 12.79 fps, with possibilities of double this performance by mean of a series of registers. Making a comparision between this work and others, it turns out the improvement in performance, having processing capabilities that can compete with characteristics based search algorithms.
As part of results, FPGA usage resources are shown for each implemented step. Also every processing step with test images sawtooth, venus, cones and Tsukuba.


Grade 5 children who had been trained in phoneme identity 6 years earlier in preschool were superior to untrained controls on irregular word reading; on a composite list of nonwords, regular words, and irregular words; and on a separate nonword test. Some of the trained children had become poor readers by Grade 5. These poor readers had made slow progress in achieving phonemic awareness in preschool even though they were eventually successful. In general, the rate at which trained children achieved phonemic awareness in preschool accounted for variance in school literacy progress in addition to that accounted for by the actual level of phonemic awareness achieved. Preschool instruction in phonemic structure had modest but detectable effects on later reading skill, but children who were slow to achieve phonemic awareness tended to be hampered in later reading growth.


on the heat and its consequences might interest your readers. The month of May was exceedingly hot; there was a large amount of sickness, and enteric fever was very prevalent. Five cases of heat-stroke were admitted to hospital; they were all slight cases, and speedily recovered. I propose to confine myself mainly to the month of June, which was the hottest month experienced. During the hottest week (12th to 18th) the minimum shade temperature averaged daily 1200 (less a small fraction). June 16th was the highest record, namely, 122.20, and the wet and dry bulb showed


The polishing composition is a vitreous bond material, abrasive material, and comprises from about 1 to dimension stabilizing additive (DSA) which is present in an amount of about 40% by volume of the abrasive composition, the dimension stabilizing additive is inert to the bonding material Mohs hardness of 4 and to 9, the polishing composition does not contain any hollow spheres filler. Further, the method of manufacturing the abrasive article, includes the article formed from the formed article, and the polishing composition thereby. Abrasive, a vitreous bond, the dimension stabilizing additive, the Mohs scale, a filler


Objective To analyze the distribution of serum protein electrophoresis and clinical significance in diagnosis of different diseases,and to further analyze the characteristics of clinical and laboratory tests in different renal diseases.Methods Automatic capillary electrophoresis apparatus(Sebia,France) was used to examine serum samples of patients with various diseases and analyze the rule of distribution.Results Compared with control group,the results of serum levels of albumin,α1 globulin,α2 globulin,β2 globulin,γ globulin and M protein had significant difference(P0.01) among different disease groups,and the strip shape of "peak","β-γ" bridge,wide γ and "M" band were significant,in addition to β1 globulin(P0.05).In the classification of renal diseases,serum levels of α2 globulin and β2 globulin in patients with nephrotic syndrome were significantly higher than those of other groups(P0.05).Conclusion Analysis of graphics of serum protein electrophoresis has important value in diagnosis of different diseases.


(57) Abstract: a bioadhesive, a orally ingestible system, the system consists of a water-in-oil emulsion system having at least two phases, of which one phase inside the about 75 to about 99 volume% a hydrophilic phase and the other one phase from about 25 to about 1 percent by volume of an external hydrophobic phase, the external hydrophobic phase comprises two components, of which one component is from about 3 to about 97% of a hydrophobic oil and a is, the other one component is from about 97 to about 3%, HLB value of the emulsifier is less than 10, the system.


Broadcasting false traffic information in VANETs is one of the major security concerns. Detecting false data sent by misbehaving nodes has been a major challenge in recent times. In this paper, we are going to present a simple scheme for detection of correctness of information regarding happening of an event like a road crash. It uses the data collected from the movement of other vehicles on the road who can observe the event and measuring their response towards it. Our misbehaviour detection scheme (MDS) is data-centric meaning it figures out whether the information received is true. Vehicles may send false information just to gain access to a whole lane in a congested area. For fast moving traffic, it thus becomes more important to find the truth-value of a broadcasted alert rather than exactly finding the misbehaving node. Our scheme is not based upon voting but observing the actual movement of nodes in response to the detected event. After describing the model in detail and the mathematical equation behind the MDS, we will present certain scenarios as a justification of our scheme. At the end, we will highlight the advantages and certain limitations of our MDS as a comparative study.


Scale Invariant Feature Transform (SIFT) has shown to be very powerful for general object detection/recognition. And recently, it has been applied in face recognition. However, the original SIFT algorithm may not be optimal for analyzing face images. In this paper, we analyze the performance of SIFT and study its deficiencies when applied to face recognition. We propose two new approaches: Keypoints-Preserving-SIFT (KPSIFT) which keeps all the initial keypoints as features and Partial-Descriptor-SIFT (PDSIFT) where keypoints detected at large scale and near face boundaries are described by a partial descriptor. Furthermore, we compare the performances of holistic approaches: Fisherface (FLDA), the null space approach (NLDA) and Eigenfeature Regularization and Extraction (ERE) with feature based approaches: SIFT, KPSIFT and PDSIFT. Experimental results on ORL and AR databases show that our proposed approaches KPSIFT and PDSIFT can achieve better performance than the original SIFT. Moreover, the performance of PDSIFT is significantly better than FLDA and NLDA. And PDSIFT can achieve the same or better performance than the most successful holistic approach ERE.


The IGY World Days and Communications program has four facets: 1) an IGY Calendar of selected days for experiments which cannot be carried on continuously; 2) a scheme for specifying periods when phenomena of unusual interest are anticipated a few hours in advance; 3) the prompt and wide distribution of summary observations of outstanding solar and geophysical events; and 4) the use of the world-wide scientific communications network for processing information of temporal interest. This is a cooperative effort including all the countries participating in the IGY. The paper describes the plan and its execution, including the arrangements for rapid communications.


Consider a time-harmonic electromagnetic plane wave incident on a perfectly conducting biperiodic surface (crossed grating). The diffrac-tion is modeled as a boundary value problem for the three-dimensional Maxwell equation. The surface is assumed to be a small and smooth deformation of a planar surface. In this paper, a novel approach is developed to solve the inverse diffraction grating problem in the near-field regime, which is to reconstruct the surface with resolution beyond Rayleigh's criterion. The method requires only a single incident field with one polarization, one frequency , and one incident direction, and is realized by using the fast Fourier transform. Numerical results show that the method is simple, efficient, and stable to reconstruct biperiodic surfaces with subwavelength resolution. An adaptive finite element method with perfectly matched absorbing layers for the wave scattering by periodic structures, " SIAM J. Integral equation methods in a quasi-periodic diffraction problem for the time-harmonic Maxwell's equations, " SIAM J. Analyzing diffraction gratings by a boundary integral equation Neumann-to-Dirichlet map method, " J. An inverse problem in diffractive optics: conditional stability, " In-A computational inverse diffraction grating problem, " J. Numerical solution of an inverse diffraction grating problem from phasless data, " J. A two-step algorithm for the reconstruction of perfectly reflecting periodic profiles , Grating profile reconstruction based on finite elements and optimization techniques, " SIAM J. Operator expansions and constrained quadratic optimization for interface reconstruction: Impenetrable periodic acoustic media, " Wave Motion, to appear. 20. D. Dobson, " Optimal design of periodic antireflective structures for the Helmholtz equation, " Eur. Numerical solution of optimal design problems for binary gratings, " J. Comput. An improved operator expansion algorithm for direct and inverse scattering computations, " Waves Random Media 9, 441–457 (1999). 26. J. A. DeSanto and R. J. Wombell, " The reconstruction of shallow rough-surface profiles from scattered field data, " Inverse Probl. An adaptive edge element method with perfectly matched absorbing layers for wave scattering by biperiodic structures, " Math. Unique determination of periodic polyhedral structures by scattered electromagnetic fields, " Trans. An inverse problem for scattering by a doubly periodic structure, " Trans. An inverse electromagnetic scattering problem for a bi-periodic inhomogeneous layer on a perfectly conducting plate, " Appl. The linear sampling method for inverse electromagnetic scattering by a partially coated bi-periodic structures, " Math. Inverse electromagnetic scattering problems by a doubly periodic structure, " Math. Appl. The factorization method for …


In this paper, we propose a general method based on variational inference for the system parameter (SP) identification of quantized finite impulse response (FIR) systems. The core is to first express the transition probability from actual data to quantized output with a simple general Gaussian process characterized by compensation parameters (CPs). Then the SP and CPs are iteratively estimated by proposing an expectation maximization (EM) based on variational inference (EM-VI). The EM-VI avoids the complex integral calculation, but with good SP identification performance. Finally, the simulation demonstrates that the EM-VI is feasible and effective with the almost same accuracy as the existing algorithms, but requires the less computation.


The use of nonviolent tactics in the Arab spring has increased the global attention to nonviolent movements and built a stronger argument for nonviolent action in the world. In Africa this subject becomes more crucial as protracted conflicts take place in Mali, the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Sudan, South Sudan, and countries such as Burundi and Liberia that are in transition. Furthermore, the dissatisfaction with systems of governance and political leadership, and the struggles with poverty and unemployment by the majority of citizens in countries like South Africa, Uganda, Nigeria, and Malawi begs a need to assess the place and potential for nonviolent responses on the continent. In what follows, I will interrogate the current environment through which nonviolent action and nonviolent movements can emerge more strongly, while taking into account Africa's current political environment. To begin with, I will contextualize nonviolence in Africa, followed by an overview of nonviolent methods that have been used within the continent. I will discuss the key ingredients required for successful nonviolent action as well as some of the limitations within its current political landscape. Essentially, I want to determine the effectiveness of nonviolent action in contemporary African politics. I will identify the factors conducive to nonviolent action on the African continent and the avenues through which it can be employed for effective change.


The classic Burgers creep model only combined with several liner basic cells can hardly describe the accelerating creep stage of rock material, while the creep attribute of the weak rock is very remarkable. Based on creep damage and hardening mechanisms, the cell of Maxwell was replaced with a nonlinear softening spring, while the Kelvin was replaced with a nonlinear hardening damper, and the two cells were acted in series. An equivalent nonlinear Burgers creep model was built and the corresponding creep equations were deduced. In addition, an experimental study was conducted by collecting rock samples from practical engineering. According to the results, some programs were developed to deal with the test data and the model corresponding parameters were also fitted. Hereby, a theoretical creep curve was achieved and then compared with the creep testing curves. It was shown that the equivalent nonlinear Burgers creep model was felicitous to characterize the creep behavior law of the weak rock.


The effect of a single static impurity on the many-body states and on the spin and thermal transport in the one-dimensional anisotropic Heisenberg chain at finite temperatures is studied. Whereas the pure Heisenberg model reveals Poisson level statistics and dissipationless transport due to integrability, we show using the numerical approach that a single impurity induces Wigner-Dyson level statistics and at high enough temperature incoherent transport within the chain, whereby the relaxation time and dc conductivity scale linearly with length.