I read with interest the article by Poupart et al.1 It reports the efficacy and tolerability of first-line immunotherapy in 136 patients with neuromyelitis optica spectrum disorder (NMOSD) with antibodies (Abs) against aquaporin-4 (AQP4, AQP4-Abs) or myelin oligodendrocyte (MOG, MOG-Abs).


Many mixtures of granular materials tend to segregate when tumbled in a rotating horizontal cylinder, with the different components separating into bands of relatively pure single concentration along the rotational axis. The use of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) to study concentration variations within a mixture of different sized spheres segregated in this manner indicates a more complicated structure within the bulk than can be observed or even inferred from surface measurements. Moreover, when the rotation speed is reduced and the homogeneous mixed state appears to be restored on the surface, the MRI data reveals that the radially segregated state persists. {copyright} {ital 1996} {ital The American Physical Society}


of the strong influence of the EU on the first two G20 summits, thanks to the personal intervention of President Nicolas Sarkozy of France and British Prime Minister Gordon Brown. But this influence fell away in later G20 meetings, as Kirton's chapter 10 also confirms. The final chapter, chapter 16, also by Larionova, is the most original in the volume, as it develops a methodology for comparing the EU and G8 in graphic form. The comparison depends heavily on the analysis of EU and G8 documents, which may often record what the two institutions wanted to happen rather than what did happen. Nevertheless, it provides an important step towards an objective system of comparison and assessment.


Combined therapy with carfilzomib, bendamustine, and dexamethasone was evaluated in this multicenter phase 1/2 trial conducted within the European Myeloma Network (EMN09 trial).


We consider a collection system where collectors move around gathering information generated by data producers. In such a system, data may remain uncollected when the number of collectors is insufficient to cover the whole population of producers. Motivated by the observation that node encounters are sufficient to build a connected relationship graph, we propose to take advantage of the inherent interactions among nodes and transform some producers into delegates. With such an approach, collectors only need to meet delegates that, in turn, are responsible for gathering data from a subset of standard producers. We achieve this goal through two contributions. First, we investigate several delegation strategies based on the relative importance of nodes in their social interactions (i.e., the node centrality). Second, by considering a prediction strategy that estimates the likelihood of two nodes meeting each other, we investigate how the delegation strategies perform on predicted traces. We evaluate the delegation strategies both in terms of coverage and size of the delegation existing real mobility data sets. We observe that delegation strategies that rely on localized information perform as well as the ones that consider a complete view of the topology.


The target of process mining is to automatically extract process models from event logs related to actual business process executions. One of the most important fields concerned is control flow mining, i.e., ordering of activities. However, the presence of complicated constructs, such as duplicate tasks, invisible tasks and non-free-choice structures, hinders us from correctly discovering the relations between activities. Therefore, an improved simulated annealing approach is proposed in this paper to tackle these problems. To verify the performance, experiments are conducted in the process minig framework. The result is expressed in terms of Petri net.


There are two main problems concerning *-anti-automorphisms of von Neumann algebras, namely their existence and their description. In the present paper we shall deal with the latter question. It turns out that anti-automorphisms are closely associated with conjugations, a conjugation being a conjugate linear isometry of a Hubert space onto itself whose square is the identity. This is not surprising, as such maps induce most of the important anti-isomorphisms of von Neumann algebras, cf. [1], We shall characterize two classes of antiautomorphisms, namely those of order two leaving the center of the von Neumann algebra elementwise fixed, and the so-called inner antiautomorphisms, both characterizations being in terms of conjugations. In the process of doing so we shall make heavy use of Jordan and real operator algebra theory, as developed in [8], [9], and [10]. The second section is devoted to this theory; we shall generalize some of the results in [8] and [9], and in particular classify all weakly closed self-ad joint real abelian operator algebras. We refer the reader to [1] for terminology and results concerning von Neumann algebras. If & is a family of operators on a Hubert space we denote by &8A the set of self-adjoint operators in ^. We say & is self-adjoint if A* e & whenever Ae^l & is a selfadjoint real operator algebra if <% is a self-adjoint family of operators which form an algebra over the real numbers. By a JW-algebra we shall mean a weakly closed real linear family of self-adjoint operators closed under squaring. By a real ^-isomorphism of one self-adjoint


This article proposes a systematic approach to evaluating the performance of national statistical systems. Its starting point are the so‐called Fundamental Principles of Official Statistics, which were adopted by the United Nations some time ago. The aim is to translate the principles into operational terms and concrete questions about 'how we are measuring up'.


dyspncea and tachycardia on mild exertion and also acclimatize slowly if at all. For such persons these heightsare contraindicated. It is interestingto note that, whilst Australia through protractedgeological quiescence has lost what snow-clad ranges she ever possessed,she presents the holiday-maker and the pulmonary patient with a goodly choice of sites with the altitudes eulogized by ProfessorRoget, The therapeuticvalue of thesehas so far not been adequatelyconsidered.


PURPOSE: To describe a new orbital implant, with an original shape, the surgical technique adapted for its implantation and preliminary results. METHODS: The authors describe the surgical technique performed in 22 patients, either as primary or secondary implants. The patients were evaluated in a prospective way to cosmesis (degree of upper lid sulcus and enophthalmos), implant mobility, volume and centralization. Follow-up ranged from 3 to 15 months (average 1 year).  RESULTS: A good cosmetic result without cases of severe upper lid sulcus or enophthalmos and a good prosthesis mobility were observed. There was no implant infection, migration or extrusion. CONCLUSIONS: We conclude that the clinical results with the new implant can be compared to the usual coupled ones, but a multicentric study, with longer follow-up is necessary, for a better evaluation of its potential complications.


The G-protein complex is a cytoplasmic on-off molecular switch that is set by plasma membrane receptors that activate upon binding of its cognate extracellular agonist. In animals, the default setting is the "off" resting state, while in plants, the default state is constitutively "on" but repressed by a plasma membrane receptor-like protein. De-repression appears to involve specific phosphorylation of key elements of the G-protein complex and possibly target proteins that are positioned downstream of this complex. To address this possibility, we quantified protein abundance and phosphorylation state in wild type and G-protein deficient Arabidopsis roots in the unstimulated resting state. A total of 3,246 phosphorylated and 8,141 non-modified protein groups were identified. We found that 428 phosphorylation sites decreased and 509 sites increased in abundance in the G-protein


The problem of finding music on the Internet is getting increasingly complicated: there is a constantly growing amount of music offered online as well as the number of online music providers, each of them offering the music in a different navigation scheme. In this work we propose a scheme of searching music content that integrates over multiple sources allowing individual search terms by using background knowledge in the form of an ontology. Users can use a richer vocabulary in the search, by using terms other than music genres, styles, artists, releases and song names. When using a richer vocabulary, for example, users can type in Guitar and get the music genre Rockas a result. That helps in bridging the semantic gap between the user's natural way of expressing her preferences and the way the music is offered. We have built a prototype music search system using this scheme and evaluated it by conducting user tests. The results indicate that it enhances the direct search.


We prove that the free energy of an arbitrary monomer-dimer system is analytic in the density and temperature for nonzero density, and hence that the system has no phase transition. This result can also be used to locate the z =e 2sh roots of the Heisenberg ferromagnet or antiferromagnet at high temperature.


Development is a process of change towards better conditions through planned efforts aimed at improving the welfare of the people by involving supporting elements, namely human resources, natural resources and technology. The three elements must synergize well so that inequality does not occur as a result of the development process both in terms of economic, social and environmental.  The approach used in this study is a qualitative approach, with an exploratory method. Locke, Spriduso and Silferman put forward: ―qualitative research is interpretative research. As such, the biases, values and judgment of the researches become stated explicitly in the research report. Such openness is considered to be useful and positive.  Based on the perspective of Meter and Horn theory (1975) which states that implementation will be the most successful where only small changes are needed and a consensus of high goals, broadly speaking, the implementation of GPP policy in South Kalimantan has not been optimal because the small changes needed have not been achieved, while the consensus goals have not been achieved properly


In 1699, translating from Greek a text by Maxim the Peloponnesian, Antim Ivireanul uses a word that, at first glance, coincides with a neologism attested in Romanian no sooner than the end of the 19th century, as a French loan: copt, –ă, 'Locuitor [...] al Egiptului, descinzând din vechile secte creștine ale Euticheenilor' [Inhabitant (...) of Egypt, descending from the ancient Chris- tian sects of the Euticheens]. In order to answer the question in the title, the author had to conduct a semantic analysis of the corresponding word in the Greek source-text, i.e. κoπται (and also its etymology), since, for the period when Maxim the Peloponnesian writes, the Greek lexicography indicates only the existence of the ancient form κoπτης (pl. κoπται), derivative of the verb κoπ(τω) –της 'to cut, to strike'. The study leads towards an affirmative answer, and might also cast a new light on the language dynamics of the post-byzantine era.


This work concerns how ytterbium affects the ferroelectric characteristics of sol-gel Yb doped lead zirconate (PYZ) and lead zirconate titanate (PYZT) thin films and ceramics. Lead zirconate Pb(0.9) )-Yb0.01 Zr (0.09 (PYZ) and lead zirconate titanate Pb0.9-Yb0.01-Zr0.045-Ti0.045 (PYZT) doping with ytterbium thin films were prepared on a glass substrate using a sol-gel doctor blade coating technique at low temperature. The structure of the synthesized thin films and ceramic nanocrystals was examined using X-ray diffraction (XRD), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), and electron diffraction (ED). PYZ and PYZT ceramics had 11.8 nm and 30.65 nm respectively, whereas PYZ and PYZT thin films featured nanocrystals that were, respectively, 17.5 nm and 13.87 nm in size. Particle size was determined to be entirely consistent across the TEM and XRD data. Dielectric investigations showed that the dielectric constant was dropping for ceramic samples as compared to thin film samples. According to hysteresis loop estimates, the energy-storage density and efficiency for thin films and ceramics were average approximately 39.35 J cm−3 and 66.02 percent for (PYZ) and 71.33 J cm−3 and 70.91 percent for (PYZT), respectively. The results showed that the ferroelectric, dielectric, and structural properties of materials affected the ytterbium content. (PYZ) and (PYZT) thin films and ceramics may have a prospective use in energy storage devices.


This research is aimed to look at the correlation between risks and expected returns as measured by Beta values of Barclays Plc and J. Sainsbury Plc both listed on the London Stock Exchange using FSTE 100 index market share price index. The Beta values were empirically analyzed, assessed and compared with the use regression analysis. The result of the findings revealed the Beta values of 0.66 and 1.68 for Sainsbury and Barclays Plc respectively with a correlation of 31.03%. This connote that Sainsbury Plc Beta values is less than one (β<1), therefore the stock price is less volatile than the greater market as a whole. While Barclays, however, had a Beta value, which is greater than one (β>1), this is regarded as aggressive shares and tends to exhibit augmented return movements compared to the index. The study also showed that the Barclays required rate of return (26.56%) is higher than that of Sainsbury Plc (10.72%) and that the Capital Asset Pricing Model (CAPM) still stands as a model that is widely used for valuation of a company's investment and therefore recommended for the calculation of cost of capital as a tool for investment appraisal.


1.1 The guidelines within the Academic Staff Handbook provide that, by 30 June each year, and linked to the appraisal process, the basic workload for each member of staff should be determined for the year ahead, with final adjustment to take account of unavoidable and/or unforeseen developments, made in the following September where necessary, always providing that such adjustment is not unreasonable and has followed discussion with the individual lecturer.


The surgical route to the mastoid antrum is examined in its historical perspective. The contributions of an anatomist, Jacob Henle; a 19th century surgeon, MacEwen; and two 20th century surgeons, Jordan and Day, are discussed as examples of the many scientists and physicians who have contributed to the present state of the art in mastoid surgery.


From validation studies, it was possible to estimate a measurement uncertainty of several elements such as Al, Ba, Ca, Cu, Cr, Cd, Fe, Mg, Mn, Ni and K in water samples from Guarapiranga Dam. These elements were analyzed by optical emission spectrometry with inductively coupled plasma (ICP-OES). The value of relative estimated uncertainties were between 3% and 15%. The greatest uncertainty contributions were analytical curve, and the recovery method, which were related with elements concentrations and the equipment response. Water samples analyzed were compared with CONAMA Resolution #357/2005.


Frequent strategic change in industries with long research and development as well as implementation timelines can negatively impact organizational performance, since products may never reach their...


The prevalence of obesity (BMI ≥ 30 kg m−2) has reached epidemic proportions in recent decades. According to the World Health Organization (2016), 650 million people can be considered obese. Obesity is a global health concern as it increases the risk of developing cardiometabolic diseases, cancer and cognitive disorders. In addition, obese adults are more prone to developing insulin resistance, leading to hyperglycaemia and type II diabetes mellitus (T2D). Both acute and chronic hyperglycaemia are associated with cognitive dysfunction resulting from cerebral glucose hypometabolism and a reduction in cerebral blood flow (CBF) (Walsh et al. 2021a). Proper regulation of CBF is critical for supporting brain function via the delivery of oxygen and energy substrates and the disposal of metabolic waste products. Moreover, circulating levels of brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) are reduced in adults with impaired glucose tolerance (Walsh et al. 2021a). BDNF is a key regulator of synaptic plasticity and important for the survival and maturation of neurons in the nervous system (Miranda et al. 2019). Given the harmful effects of hyperglycaemia on brain metabolism and cognitive function, it is important to seek therapeutic interventions that can increase glucose tolerance in obese adults. Previous studies have shown that a low-carbohydrate, high-fat, ketogenic diet is an effective approach for lowering blood glucose levels in humans and improving cognitive abilities in animal models (Hernandez et al. 2018). A ketogenic diet results in increased fat oxidation and stimulates the production of the ketone bodies β-hydroxybutyrate (βHB) and acetoacetate by liver mitochondria. These ketone bodies can bypass neuronal glycolysis to meet brain energy demands under conditions of limited glucose availability (Hernandez et al. 2018). However, due to the restrictive nature of a ketogenic diet, compliance is often poor. An alternative nutritional approach is the intake of ketone esters (KE), which induces a safe, rapid and transient increase in the concentration of circulating ketone bodies without the need of adhering to a specific diet. The glucose-lowering potential of exogenous ketosis has been demonstrated in humans (Walsh et al. 2021b) and is at least partly attributed to decreased availability of l-alanine for gluconeogenesis. In addition, ketone bodies have been shown to serve as an alternative fuel in brain cells with compromised glucose metabolism, to induce neuroprotective effects, and even to improve cognitive function in patients with T2D (Jensen et al. 2020). Interestingly, infusion of βHB increases CBF in humans and upregulates the concentration of BDNF in neurons. However, these effects have all been observed under acute ketosis. Therefore, the potential beneficial effects of longer term, intermittent elevation of ketone bodies on brain metabolism and function in obese adults are unclear. Accordingly, the recent article by Walsh et al. (2021a) published in The Journal of Physiology aimed to investigate the effects of short-term (14 days) KE supplementation in a cross-over design on CBF, circulating BDNF and cognitive function in obese adults. Subjects (n = 14) consumed 12 g of ketone monoester prior to breakfast, lunch and dinner. Apart from the intake of KE (∼175 kcal/day), food intake was standardized throughout the study period and matched between both experimental conditions. CBF, BDNF and cognitive performance were measured before and after the intervention period in the fasted state, thus under normal physiological ketone body concentrations (e.g. <0.5 mM).


We present measurements of the magnetic susceptibility, he at capacity and electrical resistivity of Pu1−xLuxPd3, with x=0, 0.1, 0.2, 0.5, 0.8 and 1. PuPd 3 is an antiferromagnetic heavy fermion compound with TN = 24 K. With increasing Lu doping, both the Kondo and RKKY interaction strengths fall, as judged by the Sommerfel d coefficientγ and Néel temperatureTN. Fits to a crystal field model of the resistivity also support these conclusions. The paramagnetic effective moment μeff increases with Lu dilution, indicating a decrease in the Kondo screening. In the highly dilute limit, μeff approaches the value predicted by intermediate coupling calculations. In conjunction with an observ ed Schottky peak at ∼60 K in the magnetic heat capacity, corresponding to a crystal field spl itting of ∼12 meV, a mean-field intermediate coupling model with nearest neighbour intera ctions has been developed.


With the fast growing technology, it is a great need to get to know about our surrounding weather parameters (temperature, humidity, atmospheric pressure, gas and light intensity) for better development of living community. A complete weather report can easily access the rarest and the farthest information at one's own fingertips. It is based on IoT (Internet of Things), which is an emerging field in which all the devices are connected to a channel and collect the data to gather a complete information through a personnel devices. It is generally used to view the weather parameters with the help of unique API key for a particular user. Wi-Fi module, temperature, pressure, humidity, gas, and light intensity sensors are interfaced with the Arduino. The user is prompted to provide the API key of channel. ESP8266-01 reads the key and sends it to the Arduino. If the key is matched, then the data transmission can be carried out between the channel and the microcontroller. The module is connected to the Wi-Fi through some AT Commands.


Agricultural labourers constitute the most marginalized and the poorest section in the char areas constantly facing the threat of flood and erosion. But with low income and meager assets, the poor labour households have to adapt to the extreme climate shocks under more constrained conditions. They are the most floating class and found to be the most depressed section in these areas. They are also found in irregular employment. Labour displacement is yet another important problem in these areas. Labour is surplus in the char farms not because their service is essential but as there is not enough scope for employment due to instability of the chars and also due to large family size of the labour households.


A fundamental goal in evolutionary biology is to understand the genetic architecture of adaptive traits and its evolutionary relevance. Using whole-genome data of 3,958 Darwin's finches on the Galápagos Island of Daphne Major we identify six loci of large effect that explain 46% of the variation in beak size of Geospiza fortis, a key ecological trait. Allele frequency changes across 30 years at these loci affected beak morphology in two ways. An abrupt change in beak size occurred in Geospiza fortis as a result of natural selection associated with a drought, and a more gradual change occurred in G. scandens as a result of introgressive hybridization. This study demonstrates how large effect loci are a major contributor to the genetic architecture of rapid diversification during adaptive radiations. One Sentence Summary Allele frequency change at six loci of large effect causes evolutionary change in key ecological traits.


Abstract This study examined the effects of adding four different amounts (0%: control, 4%: M-4, 8%: M-8, 12%: M-12) of button mushroom ( Agaricus bisporous ) powder on the quality characteristics of cookies. The bulk density and pH of the dough, and firmness, color, spread factor, consumer acceptability of cookies, and total phenol compound content and free radical scavenging activity of mushro om powder and cookies were measured. While the bulk density and pH of the dough as well as spread factor of the cookies significantly decreased, the firmness, L values and total phenol compound contents and free radical scavenging activity of the cookies significantly increased with increasing mushroom powder content(p<.05). The consumer acceptability scores for the button mushroom cookie groups ranked significantly(p<.05) higher than those of the control group in general acceptability, appearance, flavor, color, taste, and texture. This study suggests that button mush room powder is a good ingredie nt for increasing the acceptability and functionality of cookies.


This paper describes reliability of a capacitive humidity sensor based on the moisture sensitivity of polyimide. The sensor consists of a simple polyimide capacitor structure fabricated directly on Si substrate which is used as a lower electrode. Polyimide layer was coated with spinner by the thickness of about 1.2 . m, and then a comb-shaped upper Au electrode was attached on it, which was about 10 nm in thickness. Moreover, another type of polyimide layer was formed on the top surface as a protective one. In order to improve the sensitivity and stability characteristics, the mixing of two different kinds of polyimide resin was considered. As a function of the polyimide mixing ratio, the sensitivity for humidity variation and the durability for high temperature and high humidity conditions were studied. Characteristics of the sensor such as sensitivity, linearity, hysteresis, response time and durability were evaluated. The durability has been examined in various extreme environment such as high temperature, high humidity, temperature cycles and wetting cycles with dew. Long-term stability was typically less than 50 RH.


Since CO2 is easily soluble in water, when the concentration of CO2 in the atmosphere rises, that in seawater also rises. This causes the surface ocean acidification, which may alter the chemical and biological activities in the surface ocean. Therefore, it is important to know the temporal and spatial changes in CO2 concentration in the surface ocean. However, seawater CO2 concentration has large regional and seasonal variations mainly because of biological activities. In this study, we proposed an effective measure of the seawater CO2 concentration from the relationship between [DIC + kDO] and water temperature. A strong linear correlation was found for this relationship using seawater data off Tomakomai and in Osaka Bay, Japan. Furthermore, we confirmed that correction with salinity improves this correlation, because salinity is known to have a good correlation with alkalinity, which directly affects DIC. It is expected that this measure can also be applicable to judge the possibility of unexpected leakage of CO2 stored in the sub-seabed geological formation.


THE authors of this engaged and engaging account of the return migration of 12 individuals to a community after prolonged confinement make an important move when they infuse a policy debate with the experiences of former psychiatric inpatients. Researchers and clinician-administrators now seem to be asking with increasing frequency for the views of service recipients or users; however, one is less sanguine about how well we listen to or act on those views. Mental health policy debates and decision making have for some time been informed by individual stories and experiences, but these have been largely conveyed by and from the perspective of outspokenly disappointed family members and consumer activists. Davidson and colleagues take us a significant step further by providing information from a more representative, albeit small, constituency. As importantly, they listen. In a research environment tyrannized by large samples assembled to quench the thirst for causal modeling and statistical analysis, this paper reminds us that validity deserves as much respect as reliability, that understanding does not necessarily involve regression coefficients and chi squares.


A vision calibration technique based on two states of static and motion was proposed for a vision-based automated guided vehicle. Firstly, intrinsic parameters, radial distortion parameters and external parameters were estimated using planar template in static scene, and then union model of correcting distortions was designed for three individual image distortion models. Finally, rotation and translation parameters between corrected image and automated guided vehicle coordinate system can be calibrated in two motion cases. Experimental results show that the technique has the features of good flexibility and high precision.


This study explores the academic self-efficacy and School-Image among higher secondary school students, on a sample of 652 XIth standard students drawn from Kerala, adopting proportionate stratified random sampling. The data was collected using Academic Self-Efficacy Scale and SchoolImage Scale. Significant difference exist in School-Image of secondary school students based on gender of the student, locale of school, type of management of school, and the subject being studied at higher secondary level. Girls, rural school students and aided school students have higher image of their school, compared to boys, urban school students and government school students. Nevertheless, gender, locale and subject of study do not make significant difference in the academic self-efficacy belief of students. Academic Self-efficacy is higher among aided school students than government school students. One eighth of secondary school students' academic self-efficacy is attributable to school image. Academic focus of the school, its involvement with parents and community, and leadership of the school significantly determine students' self-efficacy belief. Innovations and Researches in Education Vol. 2(1) January 2012 52 Influence of School-Image on Academic Self-Efficacy Belief Secondary education is to empower students to become independent, self-regulated learners. When students graduate from high school and go on to college or enter the workforce, society expects a sense of personal agency for effectively and responsibly managing their behaviour and acting on the world in which they live. Individuals who proactively and efficiently manage their lives to achieve selfset goals are self-regulated learners. Self-regulated individuals feel empowered because of their adaptive self-motivational beliefs, particularly their perceptions of personal capability. Ordinary practices of school must contribute to the ingredients crucial to a student's sense of self-ingredients such as efficacy, agency, confidence and purpose (Bruner, 1996). Educational practices should be gauged not only by the skills and knowledge they impart for present use but also by what they do to students' beliefs about their capabilities (Bandura, 1986). Self-efficacy beliefs influence task-choice, effort, persistence, resilience, and achievement (Bandura, 1997; Schunk, 1995). Compared with students who doubt their learning capabilities, those who feel efficacious for learning participates more readily, work harder, persist longer when they encounter difficulties. Self-esteem and self-efficacy are central to the sustained success of any individual. They combine to formulate a powerful vaccine against distress, depression, helplessness, dependency, and irrational cognition. They are the key to optimism, positive behaviour change and the achievement of goals. Selfefficacy's broad application across domains of behaviour has accounted for its popularity in contemporary motivation research (Graham & Weiner, 1996). Correlates of selfefficacy include attributions, goal setting, modelling, problem solving, reward contingencies, selfregulation and strategy training. Academic Self-Efficacy From Social Cognitive Theory perspective (Bandura, 1986), one's behaviour is constantly under reciprocal influence from cognitive (and other personal factors such as motivation) and environmental influences. Principle of reciprocal determinism explains that (a) personal factors in the form of cognition, affect, and biological events, (b) behaviour, and (c) environmental influences create interactions that result in a "triadic reciprocality." From an instructional perspective, students' academic performances (behavioural factors) are influenced by how learners themselves are affected (cognitive factors) by instructional strategies (environmental factors). Self-efficacy is a multidimensional construct that varies according to the domain of demands (Zimmerman, 2000), and therefore must be evaluated at a level that is specific to the domain (Bandura, 1986; Pajares, 1996). Thus in academic settings, one measures Academic Self-efficacy rather than generalized self-efficacy. Academic self-efficacy refers to students' confidence in their ability to carry out such academic tasks, as preparing for exams and writing term exams (Zajacova, Lynch and Espenshade, 2005). 36 studies conducted between 1977 and 1988 on the relationship between self-efficacy, accounting consistently for approximately 14 percent of the variance in academic performance (Multon et al., 1991). Another line of research investigates the sources from where the efficacy beliefs stem. Bandura (1986) identifies four main sources of self-efficacy beliefs viz., mastery experience, vicarious experience, social persuasions, and physiological indices as well as major indicants within each source. Although a number of these have been explored and verified, future investigations might seek to identify sources of academic self-efficacy information other than those typically used viz. aptitude, ability, previous achievement to trace the genesis and development of self-efficacy beliefs as well as determine how perceptions of efficacy mediate the influence of these sources on self-regulatory strategies, on other constructs, and on subsequent performances. Innovations and Researches in Education Vol. 2(1) January 2012 53 Studies show that boys than girls have better self-efficacy perceptions (Phillips and Zimmerman, 1990; Wigfield, Eccles, & Pintrich, 1996; Santiago & Einarson, 1998 and Ku, 2002). And, African American students had higher expectations for success than Caucasian children (Graham, 1994); island students reported lower academic self-efficacy than the mainland students (Yamauchi and Green, 1997). These studies, which indicate to the emphasized effect of cultures and local influences on academic ability perceptions, necessitate more examination of Academic Self-efficacy based on gender, locale and cultural factors. School-Image Present study investigates influence of vicarious experience from School-Image on Academic Self-efficacy. Dissatisfaction and disillusionment with the public school system are not passing fads, the public is clamouring for results; they want to see good and effective schools. Classroom environment variables of involvement, knowledge, professional skills, and higher order thinking skills explained 32 percent of the variance in academic self-efficacy (Byer, 2001). These factors are the components of the broader concept, School-Image. Successful schools embody both effectiveness and 'goodness' and therefore, "educators who care about the fate of all children must define goodness before they worry about effectiveness" (Glickman, 1987). Renihan and Renihan (1988) used two dimensions pastoral concerns (nurturing effective relationship, respect, openness) and cosmetic concerns (promoting school success in the community, attending to appearances) to describe five School-Image types, viz., synergistic schools highly effective both pastorally and cosmetically; candy store schools high emphasis on appearances, little attention to relationships; disaffected schools low emphasis both pastorally and cosmetically; monastic schools low emphasis on appearances, high emphasis on relationships; and, survivor schools mediocre in both dimensions. School-Image is "the sum of subjective opinions about the quality of the learning and social environment ..., the collective 'feeling' developed by the various publics as a result of their observations and experiences of the school". Objective of the study Present study explores the academic self-efficacy and School-Image to find out what aspects of School-Image affect self-efficacy beliefs of higher secondary school students of Kerala. Sample of the Study The study is conducted on 652 XIth standard students drawn from Kerala, adopting proportionate stratified random sampling technique. Measures The data was collected using Academic Self-Efficacy Scale and School-Image Scale. Academic Self-efficacy Scale prepared and standardized for higher secondary school students based on the Self-efficacy theory of Albert Bandura (1977) builds on the idea that the efficacy of the higher school students in each of the dimensions of academic work would contribute to the overall academic self-efficacy. Construct validity was assured through the expert judgments of the face validity and inclusion of representative items from all dimensions of the construct (Learning process, Reading, Comprehension, Memory, Curricular Activities, Time Management, Teacher Student relationship, Peer Relationship, Utilization of resources, Goal Orientation, Adjustment and Examination) to obtain sampling validity. Test-retest coefficient of correlation was 0.85 (N=30) indicating stability of score over time. Split-half reliability is 0.90 (N=370). Concurrent validity with the criterion 'General Self-efficacy scale' (Matthias & Ralf Schwarzer; 1979] is 0.43 (N=58). Major components of School-Image (Renihan & Renihan, 1998) effective relationship with parents and community, successful appearance of the school, effective leadership; factors of school effectiveness safe and orderly climate, expectation of minimum mastery by all the students, clear Innovations and Researches in Education Vol. 2(1) January 2012 54 academic goals, evidence of collegiality (Rutter et al., 1979) that come in tune approximately with Bolender's (1997) seven components of School-Image Leadership, School Vision, School climate, Involvement with parents and local community, Academic focus, Collegiality of staff members and physical environment are reflected in the School-Image scale. Test retest reliability (r=0.76, N=31), split-half reliability (r=0.90, N=370) and Internal consistency (Cronbach Alpha=0.90, N=370) were very high. Content validity was assured by expert judgment and including maximum items from all of the sub domains of the construct. Concurrent


After China joins the World Trade Organization(WTO), the foreign banks and other foreign finance institution will set their branches in Xi'an, which will bring great chance for the development of finance in Xi'an. But, at the same time, it will also bring some impacts on our finance. Our finance institution will lose a part of markets and excellent employees. They will have their some profits gained by foreign finance institution and are more affected by the fluctuation in the international markets. Our finance institution in Xi'an should spend 3-5 years on revolution in order to meet with the challenge after our country join WTO.


Based on empirical temperature rules, the influence of the concrete element geometry on early-age thermal crack formation can be assessed in terms of the maximum temperature rise and the maximum temperature difference between element core and surface. The authors use numerical simulation to show that the massivity, defined as the ratio between the volume of the concrete element and the surface, is not a general quantitative parameter. A new parameter is introduced--the equivalent thickness--defined for a separable heat flow area of the concrete element. Numerical simulation suggests that the equivalent thickness enables a good quantitative comparison between different element shapes. The accuracy of the temperature rules is obtained quickly using linear elastic stress calculations.


Abstract Angiotensin II mediates exercise-induced hypertension (EIH), which adversely impacts future cardiovascular health. There is paucity of data on the association between EIH and angiotensin II in well-trained middle-aged marathoners. Therefore, we investigated the renin-angiotensin-aldosterone-system and total nitric oxide activity in middle-aged marathoners with EIH. Seventy middle-aged marathoners were divided into 3 groups: normal blood pressure ([NBPG] [n = 21]), EIH group ([EIHG] [n = 35]), and complex hypertension group ([CHG] [n = 14]). We defined NBPG as resting systolic BP/diastolic BP (SBP/DBP) of ≤140/90 mm Hg and maximal exercise SBP of ≤210 mm Hg, EIHG as resting SBP/DBP ≤140/90 mm Hg and maximal exercise SBP of ≥210 mm Hg, and CHG as resting SBP/DBP ≥140/90 mm Hg and maximal exercise SBP of ≥210 mm Hg. Renin-angiotensin-aldosterone-system and NO levels were measured before and 30 minutes after the graded exercise test. Renin level was elevated while angiotensin level was reduced after 30 minutes of graded exercise test. There was no change in angiotensin I and angiotensin converting enzyme levels. Comparing the groups, renin level was only elevated in the CHG during recovery, while aldosterone level was higher than the baseline level in the recovery phase in all groups. Angiotensin I level remained unchanged in all groups. Angiotensin II level reduced significantly in the NBPG group but remained at the baseline in the EIHG and CHG groups. NO level was unchanged in the NBPG group but reduced in the EIHG and CHG groups after exercise. At 3 minutes of recovery, SBP was the highest in the NBPG group, followed by the EIHG and CHG groups (P < .05). In conclusion, angiotensin II activity and reduced NO level are associated with EIH in middle-aged long-distance runners. Angiotensin II inhibitors may; therefore, be the more appropriate antihypertensive medication for runners with EIH.


New Zealand, as in many other countries, the adoption of Keynesian goals and techniques of economic policy over the last decades has led to the emergence of the balance of payments as the most important constraint on the growth rate of national output1. The purpose of this paper is to estimate the order of magnitude of New Zealand's balance of payments problem as it appears in relation to the country's external trade, size and economic structure, and to call attention to one possible line of solution based on this quantification: the introduction of freer, but not completely free, trade with Australia. From the point of view of long-term development the problem can be stated in the following words. New Zealand has an economy with a given population and level of income. Population is increasing at about 2 per cent per year.We wish income per head to rise at a rate which will ensure a reasonable utilisation of the labour force, of the country's potential to accumulate and to attract capital and of the opportunities provided by worldwide technical progress; by implication such a rate will have to compare not too unfavourably with the achievements of other countries. This economy requires a certain volume of imports in order to be able to function and to grow at the postulated rate. The question is: will it be able to generate enough foreign exchange


We have developed the apparatus that can measure the three-dimensional distribution of microwave electric field intensity in electron cyclotron resonance (ECR) plasmas to investigate production and control of ECR plasmas. The relationship between the plasma properties of ECR plasmas and the microwave electric field intensity in plasmas is studied. We have confirmed that the pattern of the radial distribution of the ion saturation current at the electrode is the same as that of the microwave electric field intensity at the ECR zone. If the distribution of microwave electric field intensity at the ECR zone is uniform, the distribution of plasma density on the electrode becomes uniform, even if the distribution of microwave electric field intensity of the other zone is not uniform. Therefore, in order to obtain the optimum distribution of plasma density on the electrode, the distribution of microwave electric field intensity at the ECR zone must be controlled.


A patient with dysthyroid eye disease presented with unilateral lid retraction secondary to a contralateral ptosis. While others have reported similar findings in various underlying disease processes, to the best of our knowledge this is the first case in the literature with dysthyroid ophthalmopathy, and the first where the results of surgical management are presented. The importance of testing for secondary lid retraction by manual elevation of the ptotic partner is stressed.


This study aims to evaluate focal angiogenesis of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) before and after microwave ablation (MWA) by real-time gray-scale contrast-enhanced ultrasound (CEUS). One month before and after MWA, biopsy was performed in all 90 HCC patients. Immunohistochemistry was used to detect vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) expression and calculate microvessel density (MVD). CEUS was performed to assess tumor size. Tumor peak intensity (t PI), rise time of peak intensity (RT), tumor time to peak (t TTP), and parenchyma time to peak (p TTP) was recorded to determine its correlation with VEGF expression and MVD. There were 106 lesions detected by CEUS and MWA were successfully performed with CEUS as guidance. No serious complications were detected during the procedure. After 1-year follow-up, complete remission (CR) was found in 74.4% patients, partial remission was observed in 21.1% patients and the rest 4.4% were in stable condition. In the mean time, immunohistochemistry detected high VEGF expression and MVD in tumor tissues. In CR group, t RT, t TTP, t PI and tumor and liver parenchyma peak intensity difference (t-p PI) were significantly lower than that of non-CR group (P < 0.05). The t TTP was negatively correlated with VEGF expression with significance (r = -0.352, P = 0.03); however, there were no correlation between t RT, p TTP, t PI, t-p TTP and MVD, VEGF expression (P > 0.05); MVD and VEGF expression level was positively correlated with significance (r = 0.532, P = 0.005). CEUS can show angiogenesis in HCC before and after treatment. The negative correlation between t-p PI and VEGF expression and MVD might be a non-invasive, reliable and efficient indicator for angiogenesis detection.


"Literal Synergy",here refers to an artistic way of writing in classic Chinese poetry,which uses two complementary sentences that delivers a reinforced effect.Du Fu,regarded as the perfect poet,guides later generation with his artistic casting of work.With some "Literal Synergy" examples,we are discovering how wonderful his it works.


Case report: A 45-year-old woman had a stuporous mentality. Her computed tomographic (CT) angiography revealed a rupture of the posterior cerebral artery aneurysm. Hunt-Hess grade was 4 points and Fisher grade was 3 points. A clipping of the aneurysm was performed and proceeded to external ventricular drainage for hydrocephalus after 6 days. But, a new hemorrhage was detected several times via a follow-up brain CT. Various blood tests were conducted to evaluate the bleeding tendency, and the GT was diagnosed with PFA-200. The ventriculoperitoneal shunt was performed after the platelets transfusion, and she was discharged without other complications.


This study examines the dynamic stability regions of damped columns on a Winkler foundation that are subjected to sub-tangentially distributed follower forces. A nondimensionalized equation of motion for the column subjected to linearly distributed follower forces is firstly derived based on the extended Hamilton's principle. A finite element procedure, using Hermitian interpolation functions, is employed to develop the mass matrix, Rayleigh damping matrix, Winkler foundation matrix, elastic and geometric stiffness matrices due to distributed axial forces, and a load correction stiffness matrix to account for sub-tangential follower forces. Subsequently, a time history analysis using the Newmark-β method and an evaluation method for the flutter and divergence loads of the nonconservative system are presented. Finally, the dynamic stability characteristics of the nonconservative system that display the jumping phenomenon in the second flutter load are explored through a parametric study. In particular, how the stable and unstable regions of the undamped and damped Leipholz columns translate with changes in the Winkler foundation stiffness is demonstrated and discussed.


Pavement damage is the main factor affecting road performance. Pavement cracking, a common type of road damage, is a key challenge in road maintenance. In order to achieve an accurate crack classification, segmentation, and geometric parameter calculation, this paper proposes a method based on a deep convolutional neural network fusion model for pavement crack identification, which combines the advantages of the multitarget single-shot multibox detector (SSD) convolutional neural network model and the U-Net model. First, the crack classification and detection model is applied to classify the cracks and obtain the detection confidence. Next, the crack segmentation network is applied to accurately segment the pavement cracks. By improving the feature extraction structure and optimizing the hyperparameters of the model, pavement crack classification and segmentation accuracy were improved. Finally, the length and width (for linear cracks) and the area (for alligator cracks) are calculated according to the segmentation results. Test results show that the recognition accuracy of the pavement crack identification method for transverse, longitudinal, and alligator cracks is 86.8%, 87.6%, and 85.5%, respectively. It is demonstrated that the proposed method can provide the category information for pavement cracks as well as the accurate positioning and geometric parameter information, which can be used directly for evaluating the pavement condition.


Abstract Thin copper foils were irradiated with 650 keV electrons at 10 K in a high-voltage electron microscope (HVEM) to doses φ in the range 2 × 1023 electrons/m2 ≲ φ ≲ 2 × 1025 electrons/m2 and then annealed in situ up to room temperature and outside the HVEM between room temperature and 470 K. During irradiation visible defect clusters were formed only at φ ≳ 2.5 × 1024 electrons/m2. At smaller doses defect clusters became visible after annealing at 50 K. Between 50 K and 120 K further clusters, mainly dislocation loops on {111} planes, appeared. Above 120 K, particularly between 160 K and 300 K, some of the dislocation loops became glissile. They glided out of the specimens or agglomerated to larger clusters of frequently complex shapes. As a consequence, between 160 K and 300 K the cluster density decreased strongly, whereas the mean cluster size increased monotonously through the entire range of annealing temperatures covered. Contrast analyses between 180 K and 400 K revealed that the great majori...


The present invention is for a vehicle, relates in particular impact absorbing member for a motor vehicle, the member has a body made of thermoplastic polymer material, provided in the main body, a plurality of metal reinforcing cords substantially parallel to extended production process comprising an elongated reinforcing structure comprising a plurality of positioning members arranged between code to be held substantially mutually parallel metal reinforcing cords before and during the manufacturing process. Positioning member, regardless of the forces occurring in the manufacturing process, serves to ensure the correct position of the code before, during and manufacturing processes of the manufacturing process.


The nature of the incoming ion beam is known to affect the sampling efficiency in orthogonal extraction time-of-flight mass spectrometry (OE-TOFMS). In the present work, laser ablation of a layered material (a Zn-coated steel) was performed under identical excitation conditions, and the generated ions were analyzed by OE-TOFMS. Using the same extraction parameters, a clear element-dependent shift in the flight times was observed. The shift only occurred at the interface of the layered sample. An explanation based on the different ablation rates and effective extraction field in the laser plume is presented.


An adaptive algorithm is developed for the simultaneous filtration of discrete and continuous parameters (delay and amplitude) of noise-type signals that are constructed on M-sequences being complex determinate Mapkovian chains with two values. Based on the algorithm, a structure of the receiving device for a fast search of noise-type signals is synthesized.


Until recently none of the numerous papers on the distribution of quadratic and higher power residues was concerned with questions of the following sort: Let k and m be positive integers. According to a theorem of Brauer (1), for every sufficiently large prime p there exist m consecutive positive integers r, r + 1 , . . . , r + m — 1, each of which is a kth power residue of p. Let r(k, m, p) denote the least such r.


This study monitors the effect of salt stress induced by a NaCl solution (0 – deionized water, 50, 100, 200, 300 mmol/L) in lettuce (Lactuca sativa L. cv. Orion), New Zealand spinach (Tetragonia tetragonoides (Pall) Kuntze) and common purslane (Portulaca oleracea L. cv. Green Purslane) over the course of 50 days. The diverse reactions of these monitored species to salt stress are well apparent from the results. Lettuce proved as the most sensitive to salt stress, showing a significant reduction of dry weight, where even lower concentrations of salt affected membrane stability through increased electrolyte leakage value and an imbalance in the content of Na+ and K+, observed in the form of lower ratios of K+/Na+. In case of T. tetragonoides, lower salt concentrations positively affected growth and this species appears to particularly accumulate sodium. In case of P. oleracea no significant reduction of dry weight took place with the increasing concentration of NaCl and a naturally high content of potassium contributed to maintaining a favourable ratio of K+/Na+ even at higher salt concentrations, which is one of the prerequisites of salt-stress tolerance.


Gluten is a complex water-insoluble proteins (gliadin and glutenin) derived from wheat, rye, and barley. Among the gluten-related disorders, the celiac disease, allergy to wheat, and sensitivity to non-celiac gluten can be mentioned. On the three disorders, the treatment includes the exclusion of gluten from the diet (Resende et al., 2017). Reports show a growing interest of Brazilians for gluten-free products. Among all functional, natural, or healthy-profile food categories, gluten-free products have the highest growth forecast in the country until 2022, with an estimated increase in sales between 35% and 40% per year (Época, 2018). Gluten-free breads (GFB) is an option for consumers with some gluten-related disorders, because it is part of daily eating habits. The development of a balanced GFB enriched with nutrients is an excellent option to avoid other diseases linked to the lack of bread in the diet. This is associated with the fact that, individuals afflicted with gluten-related disease, often present low absorption of nutrients and/or available products do not contain the necessary nutrients in the quality or quantity required to maintain a balanced diet (Alencar et al., 2012).


Abstract : The type II like superconducting transition has been observed in the regular lattice of interconnected In grains in the opal template. Effectively this matenal is nanosize wire mesh made from type I superconductor. With the decrease of the cross-section of In component in the metal-dielectric nanocomposite the increase of the critical magnetic field was observed. The observed relation between the critical field and the effective thickness of In nanostructures correlates wfth the observed flattening of the R (T) dependence.


It has long been realized that much of the stonework recovered from sites in southern Mesopotamia must have been imported, either as finished artefacts or as raw lumps which were then fashioned locally. The rare outcrops of stone which occur in the alluvium, principally around Uruk and Ur, are restricted to limestone and its light-coloured derivatives (calcite, gypsum, etc.). These were exploited extensively for sculpture, vessels and other relatively small objects throughout the third millennium and beyond, forming the staple medium for the bulk of the Mesopotamian stoneworking industry. Along with these materials, however, a not insignificant proportion of the stonework found on early Babylonian sites consists of dark igneous and metamorphic stones, of which the nearest sources are the mountains and plateaux which border Mesopotamia to the north-west, north and east, extending across the Gulf into Oman. Notable categories which illustrate this phenomenon are the numerous vessels deposited in private graves of the Jemdet Nasr to Early Dynastic II periods, the elaborately decorated "steatite" vessels of the mid-third millennium, and the royal statuary of the Sargonids and their successors.


There are a multitude of traffic analysis tools and methods available to practitioners to aid them in the performance of traffic operations analyses for a corridor study. Which methodology or tool should you use for the traffic analysis aspects of your corridor study? Careful consideration should be given to this decision. In many cases, the analyst will choose a single methodology or tool. However, this approach introduces a certain degree of risk that the selected methodology or tool may not be the most appropriate to use. In addition, a single methodology or approach leaves the analyst without a system of "checks and balances" that allows verification of analysis results or would assist in identifying analysis errors. This paper presents a staged approach to conducting the operational analyses of a freeway corridor study using multiple methodologies. A case study employing three distinct stages of analysis is presented. Each stage utilized a unique methodology, increasing in level of detail with each subsequent stage. Stage 1 - Planning Level Analyses Stage 2 - Macroscopic Analyses Stage 3 - Microscopic Simulation Analyses The three-staged approach was applied twice during the case study: once to determine the need for improvements (Phase 1) and again to develop the recommended plan for the case study (Phase 2). The increase in level of detail with each subsequent analysis stage was consistent with the staged approach to concept development that was used in the corridor study. As concepts were developed and refined to a greater level of detail, the operational analyses were conducted to provide a greater level of detail.


The purpose of this paper is to explain the categorization phenomena in terms of various conceptualization processes, independently suggested within the framework of cognitive semantics. In order to characterize the categorization phenomena among the interrelated meanings of English verb 'break', several conceptualization processes are examined: categorization process, the selection of cognitive domain, domain shift, the imposition of profile, profile shift, active zone/profile discrepancy, active zone shift, etc. With reference to the cognitive processing, the following processes are found to be at work. First, the systematic relationships among the various meanings of a lexical item are obtained by applying the profile shift to the same conceptual base. The relationships between transitive verbs and corresponding intransitive verbs are remarkable examples of the profile shift. Second, semantic extension from the concrete meaning to the abstract meaning results from the domain shift.


The pharmacokinetic analysis of an oral sustained‐release preparation of diclofenac sodium has been investigated using multi‐segment absorption models in which it has been assumed that the gastrointestinal tract can be divided into several segments in each of which the drug has its own lag‐time and absorption rate constants.


The waste generated at healthcare facilities has two distinct categories: hazardous and non-hazardous waste. 10- 15% of the total waste generated at hospitals is hazardous which is termed as clinical waste. This review article has reported and reviewed the practices of clinical waste management in Pakistan's major cities. Researches demonstrated that about 1.35 Kg / bed waste has been produced by the tertiary health care facilities in Pakistan. Studies for review process are selected through an iterative process. More than 100 research articles, National legislations, international protocols and newspaper reports are consulted and reviewed to extract the data of interest. Clinical waste management in Pakistan is the responsibility of the individual health care facility producing it under Hospital Waste Management Rules, 2005. Due to lack of proper checks and weak implementation of legislations many gaps have been identified in this review article like lack of segregation, inappropriate vehicles for transportation, poor storage and no advanced pollution control treatment strategies. Most of the hospitals lack documented waste management plan. Staff was mostly untrained and under educated. International standards for safe hazardous waste disposal are not being followed resulting in spread of diseases like hepatitis and AIDS. Cases of poor recycling and reuse of used clinical instruments is also documented. However, the condition is much satisfactory in big cities. There is an understanding to focus on the proper implementation of clinical waste management rules with strict checks. Establishment of incineration facility at major hospitals with proper maintenance, safe transportation to secure landfills and utilization of proper SOPs are suggested improvements towards safe management of clinical waste.


Abstract 2117

Sickle cell disease (SCD) is characterized by episodes of vaso-occlusive crisis and chronic inflammation. At present, there is no FDA-approved plasma expander with antioxidant properties for the management of acute vaso-occlusive episodes in SCD. We propose a strategy involving a supra perfusion fluid or a combination of a supra perfusion fluid incorporating an antioxidant that will alleviate oxidative stress and vaso-occlusive complications in SCD. HexaPEGylated albumin (P5K6-Alb or PEG-Alb) was generated by extension arm facilitated (EAF) PEGylation using PEG-5K maleimide. PEG-Alb-T12 was prepared using EAF chemistry with 12 Tempol molecules. Sickle (S+S-Antilles) mice were top-loaded with either 4% PEG-Alb or PEG-Alb-T12 at 10% of mouse blood volume. We used sickle mice and BOLD (Blood Oxygen Level Dependent) MRI imaging of the brain to visualize changes in blood oxygenation. In another series of experiments sickle mice were subjected to 16 hr of hypoxia (8% O2, 0.5% CO2, balance N2) followed by 4 hr of re-oxygenation at ambient air; these mice were top-loaded at 10% of mouse blood volume with either 4% PEG-Alb or PEG-Alb-T12 at the onset of re-oxygenation. Both of these compounds are low viscosity fluids following administration of 4% compound at 10% blood volume. Hemodynamic properties were monitored by videomicroscopy of the cremaster. C57BL mice were used as controls.

We found that S+S-Antilles mice had elevated levels of deoxyhemoglobin (deoxyHb) in brain as previously reported. Although we hypothesized that anti-oxidant Tempol groups would increase the efficacy of PEG-albumin, we found that either PEG-Alb-T12 or PEG-Alb without Tempol reduced deoxyHb levels to those found in normal C57BL mice. In a separate set of experiments, hypoxia-reoxygenation in sickle mice caused a marked 5-fold increase in leukocyte adhesion and 7.2-fold increase in transendothelial leukocyte emigration (each P <0.0001) that was accompanied by a significant decline in red cell velocity, wall shear rate and volumetric flow ( P <0.05–0.023) in the venules of the cremaster muscle microcirculation. We found that top-loading either PEG-Alb-T12 or PEG-Alb without Tempol at the onset of reoxygenation ameliorated leukocyte adhesion and emigration, and markedly improved hemodynamic parameters almost to the control values.

In conclusion, in SCD, the presence of deoxyHb increases polymer formation and the risk of vaso-occlusion; both PEG-Alb-T12 and PEG-Alb markedly reduced deoxyHb levels. We have previously demonstrated an inverse correlation between perfusion and deoxyHb levels in these mice (Kennan et al. Mag Res in Med, 2004). These results are consistent on a macroscopic scale with the intravital studies that show increased flow following amelioration of the inflammatory effects of reoxygenation by either PEG-Alb-T12 or PEG-Alb. The observed amelioration of inflammation and increased blood oxygenation may, at least partly, be attributed to the reported tonic release of nitric oxide via increased wall shear stress and mechanotransduction (Tsai et al. 2011), and to oxidant scavenging. Taken together, these studies demonstrate the marked efficacy of both of these agents in reducing inflammation and increasing blood oxygenation and flow, all of which characterize SCD and contribute to its pathology.

Disclosures: No relevant conflicts of interest to declare.


We reported the comparative effect of 1,3-bis(9H-carbazol-9-yl) benzene (mCP) and 1,3,5-tris(N-phenylbenzimidazole-2-yl)benzene (TPBI) hosts on the PL characteristics of 2-phenyl-4′-carbazole-9H-thioxanthen-9-one-10,10-dioxide (TXO-PhCz). Strong interaction between TXO-PhCz and TPBI can be observed, leading to the lower singlet–triplet energy gap of 8.8 meV and non-monotonic increase of ΦTotle, ΦD, and ΦP with temperature. OLEDs based on TXO-PhCz:TPBI films afford a maximum current efficiency of 71.9 cd A−1, a maximum power efficiency of 45.2 lm W−1, and a maximum EQE of 23.2%.


Water conservancy project scheduling is an extension to the classic resource-constrained project scheduling problem (RCPSP). It is limited by special time constraints called "forbidden time windows" during which certain activities cannot be executed. To address this issue, a specific RCPSP model is proposed, and an approach is designated for it which incorporates both a priority rule-based heuristic algorithm to obtain an acceptable solution, and a hybrid genetic algorithm to further improve the quality of the solution. In the genetic algorithm, we introduce a new crossover operator for the forbidden time window and adopt double justification and elitism strategies. Finally, we conduct simulated experiments on a project scheduling problem library to compare the proposed algorithm with other priority-rule based heuristics, and the results demonstrate the superiority of our algorithm.


Significance: C–H activation is used extensively in organic synthesis to convert carbon–hydrogen bonds into carbon–carbon and carbon–heteroatom bonds (see Review below). Although sitespecific C–H activation can be achieved by the use of a covalently attached directing group, this strategy has limitations, as this group not only precludes remote C–H activation, but also frequently requires subsequent modification.


Rehabilitation cenlresarc establishedin orderto caterfor the social, ecolWmic,physical.psychological, counselling, medical. educational and vocational needsofpeople with handicapping conditions. In an auempt to make such centr,es realise the purpose for which they were established, a number of personnelare recruited. Suchpersonnelincludemedicaldoctors, nurses. specialeducators, guidance counsellors. teachers, and rehabilitation counsellors among others. Each of these professionalhas certain preparation to make and diverse'duties to perform in the rehabilitation centres. However, the focus of this paper is limited to the necessary preparation a rehabililation colmsellor should make before, during and after the eswbalishmenlofrehabilitation centres and specific duties to perform in orderto makethe primaryintentionofrehabilitationcentresaUainable.Recommendationsweremade Oil how the handicapped, parents. government and non-government organizations could provide enabling environmentforboth the rehabilitation counsellorsandthe rehabilitation Cl.'nlre as a whole.


The title salt, [NH3CH2CH2NH2]+·I−, has an array structure based on strong intermolecular N—H⋯N hydrogen bonding formed between the ammonium and amine groups of adjacent cations. This interaction gives a helical chain of cations that runs parallel to the b axis. The four remaining NH group H atoms all form hydrogen bonds to the iodide anion, and these iodide anions lie in channels parallel to the cation–cation chains.


In this work, an h-adaptive modified element-free Galerkin (MEFG) method is investigated. The proposed error estimator is based on a recovery by equilibrium of nodal patches where a recovered stress field is obtained by a moving least square approximation. The procedure generates a smooth recovered stress field that is not only more accurate then the approximate solution but also free of spurious oscillations, normally seen in EFG methods at regions with high gradient stresses or discontinuities.


Abstract:Beginning with an overview of the late-Victorian theory of degeneration, this article aims, first, to explore how the belligerent climate of the first half of the twentieth century gradually dismantled the late nineteenth-century belief that mental disorders were genetically transmissible from parents to the offspring. In this frame, the role played by psychoanalysis was central. The latter in fact proved that the ever-growing number of cases of mental pathologies among combatants and civilians during the two World Wars was not the result of a pandemic, but the tragic outcome of the mind-shattering impact of the conflicts. With this historical panorama in mind, I will delve into two post-World-War-II literary works, Samuel Beckett's Endgame and Wilfred R. Bion's The Dawn of Oblivion, to concentrate on the issues of 'change'–thought of as a process through which an individual conforms to the environment and hopefully evolve–and 'human degeneration'. Engaged in a kind of long-distance dialogue about the end of the world, Beckett and Bion depict decaying universes doomed to failure, whose inhabitants are unable not only to survive the inflexible conditions imposed by modern warfare, but also to implement beneficial changes for their existence. What emerges from these two works is a deep terror that Beckett and Bion shared of 'tomorrow', conceived by both as the brink of the abyss.


The hydrous title complex [systematic name: (1,1-dimethylbiguanide-κ2N2,N4)(2-oxidobenzoato-κ2O,O′)copper(II) trihydrate], [Cu(C7H4O3)(C4H11N5)]·3H2O, was synthesized electrolytically from an ethanolic solution of metformin hydrochloride, acetylsalicylic acid, Pepto-Bismol and a copper sacrificial anode. Diffraction data were collected at 0.56 A resolution, allowing the accurate determination of H-atom positions in the neutral metformin ligand. Both imine groups in metformin have very similar N=C bond lengths, 1.2978 (17) and 1.3033 (17) A, and the salicylate dianion behaves as a chelating ligand. The coordination sphere of the copper(II) cation deviates marginally from a square-planar arrangement. In the crystal, short Cu⋯Cu separations of 3.5476 (3) A are observed, along with classical hydrogen-bonding interactions.


Background: Technology has become a fundamental part of our daily life. It has been delivered to our fingertips since the first smartphone arrived in market. In this regard, Cariogram has been developed to bring caries prevention to the fingertips. This particular caries assessment method was selected for the study as it is considered one of the most reliable models as per reports. Methods: A questionnaire-based survey was carried out among 90 school going children in the age group of 7-10-years in North Bengaluru, Karnataka. A cariogram model was used to create caries risk profiles of 45-males and 45-females. The caries risk profiles generated by the cariogram software were observed amongst different genders and age groups. Results: The results obtained showed that children aged 10-years had comparatively less chance to avoid new caries as compared to age groups 7, 8, and 9 years. On comparison between male and female subjects, females had more chances of avoiding new caries as compared to males, even though they did not have a significant difference in their oral hygiene practices, dietary practices, and socioeconomic background. Conclusion: The Cariogram program is functional and has certain benefits such as providing recommendations for preventive care and motivating the patient with its presentation in the form of pie-chart, viewing the multifactorial caries risk assessment instead of single variables.


Microblogs play an important role for Online Reputation Management. Companies and organizations in general have an increasing interest in obtaining the last minute information about which are the emerging topics that concern their reputation. In this paper, we present a new technique to cluster a collection of tweets emitted within a short time span about a specific entity. Our approach relies on transfer learning by contextualizing a target collection of tweets with a large set of unlabeled "background" tweets that help improving the clustering of the target collection. We include background tweets together with target tweets in a TwitterLDA process, and we set the total number of clusters. In practice, this means that the system can adapt to find the right number of clusters for the target data, overcoming one of the limitations of using LDA-based approaches (the need of establishing a priori the number of clusters). Our experiments using RepLab 2012 data show that using the background collection gives a 20% improvement over a direct application of TwitterLDA using only the target collection. Our data also confirms that the approach can effectively predict the right number of target clusters in a way that is robust with respect to the total number of clusters established a priori.


The article contains brief comparative analysis of two simultaneous internal conflicts with international importance. These conflicts are compared by key parameters: prerequisites, main parties, international assistance and conflict settlement.


BACKGROUND/AIMS
We investigated the clinicopathological findings and outcome after surgery for hepatocellular carcinoma in patients without hepatitis B or C virus infection.

METHODOLOGY
Among 562 patients who underwent curative resection for hepatocellular carcinoma, the sera from 97 patients (B group) were positive for hepatitis B surface antigen alone, sera from 355 patients (C group) were positive for anti-hepatitis C virus antibody alone and sera from 104 patients (NBNC group) were negative for both hepatitis B surface antigen and anti-hepatitis C virus antibody. We compared the clinicopathological findings and postoperative outcomes in the 3 groups.

RESULTS
The prevalence of diabetes mellitus, hypertension, hyperlipidemia and alcohol abuse were higher in the NBNC group than in the other groups. The prevalence of obesity was higher in the NBNC group than in the B group. Non-alcoholic steatohepatitis was detected in 16 NBNC patients. The tumor- free survival rate was higher in the NBNC group than in the C group.

CONCLUSIONS
Obesity, diabetes mellitus, hypertension, hyperlipidemia, alcohol abuse and non-alcoholic steatohepatitis were the possible risk factors for hepatocellular carcinoma in the NBNC group. The patients in the NBNC group are expected to show a better outcome as compared to patients in the C group.


In Dhaka the capital city of Bangladesh, most of the short trips are making on foot but the pedestrians are facing many problems while using the walkways. Recent years there have been initiatives in city corporation areas in Bangladesh to create more livable communities where walking are encouraged and accepted as a legitimate form of transportation and for smart city. In Dhaka city walking is encouraging day by day but the condition of the pedestrian way is fair and poor in all over the part of the city. The aim of this study is to assess the walkability of the footpaths in Dhanmondi area of Dhaka and to evaluate the perception of pedestrians regarding the Sidewalk Condition Index (SCI). A questionnaire survey among 150 pedestrian users was conducted to assess the pedestrian's perception of the existing pedestrian way conditions. The overall pedestrian satisfaction level was 3.20 out of 5 scales and that means less than moderate satisfaction. SCI is a numerical indicator that rates the pedestrian surface condition. The SCI index was calculated in Dhanmondi residential area footpath and majority pedestrian way was fair in condition.


Pangxidong deposit is one of the typical altered cataclastic rock type Ag(Au) deposit in the Northwest Guangdong province. It is controled by fracture in the contact zone between Precambrian system and Lower Palaeozoic migmatitic gneiss and Yanshanian granite. Ore bodies occur absolutely in fractural zone as veins, lens. Researches on the deposit indicate that spatial location of ore bodies is obviously controled by change of the ore-controling fraclure's morphology and occurrance. Intersection or merge of several fractares causes generally ore bodies enlarging or thickening. Distribution of ore bodies is related to particular tectonites and their zonation within the fractural zone.


In research, there has been a difficulty in distinguishing which components that makes a treatment successful. Many factors influence the treatment outcome and depending on the approach the results will be different. This study's objective is to investigate specific and common factors as well as criminogenic needs, to achieve an understanding how the relational perspective affects youth in treatment. The purpose of the study is to research which value treatment relationships and therapeutic alliances are given in therapeutic research and the importance of relationships within the area of criminogenic needs. This study is a literature review combined with a concept analysis, with the objective to answer the stated purpose and research questions. The results of the study showed that common factors and criminogenic needs differ, where as common factors elevated the importance of relationships for a successful treatment, criminogenic needs focused on risk factors to achieve a successful outcome.


The text mining method of massive network based on correlation mining was research on.With the rapid development of computer and network technology,the text rendering of network grew fast,the traditional network-based text mining method extracted feature from text to achieve text mining,but with the rapid growth in the amount of information,the traditional methods cannot meet the need of development.So a text mining method of massive network based on correlation mining was proposed,the feature was extracted with mass text to finish initial classification and characteristics identification,and then the method of mining correlation between the characteristics of the various texts correlation was used to do calculate the coefficient of correlation,according to the coefficient of correlation,the text was divided into several types,so the correlation can reflect the relationship between the characteristics of the text well.Finally,a team of random words were used to test the ability of the algorithm,and the result shows that the algorithm can adapt to massive text excavation well with good application value.


By now, new legislation requires every haulier in the UK carrying dangerous goods to employ a Dangerous Goods Safety Adviser (DGSA) or use the services of a qualified DGSA consultant. The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) estimates that somewhere between 5500 and 11,500 hauliers should have complied with the objective by the time when it came into force, 1 January 2000. However, only just over 2200 DGSA certificates have been issued by the Scottish Qualifications Agency (SQA), the examining body responsible for marking the papers. This article reports visits to two hauliers, to see how they are handling the new regulations, and reports an interview with an HSE spokesman to find out what happens to hauliers who break the DGSA law. 20% of the business of Haulagelink in Teesport involves the transport of chemicals, including corrosive and flammable chemicals. Its managing director did the DGSA course in April 1999 and passed all three exam papers first time. According to the SQA, pass rates are between 50% and 70%. David Fox Transport of Middlesbrough carries hazardous loads in about 5% of its trips, and was awaiting its test results at the time of writing. HSE inspectors take spot checks on hauliers, and can take action if there is no DGSA; the worst penalty is an unlimited fine and two years in prison.


ABSTRACT The Plutonium Management and Disposition Agreement between the United States and Russia makes arrangements for the disposal of 34 metric tons of excess weapon-grade plutonium. Under this agreement Russia plans to dispose of its excess stocks by processing the plutonium into fuel for fast breeder reactors. To meet the disposition requirements this fuel would be burned while the fast reactors are run as burners, i.e., without a natural uranium blanket that can be used to breed plutonium surrounding the core. This article discusses the potential application of antineutrino monitoring to the verification of the presence of a breeding blanket. It is found that a 36 kg antineutrino detector, exploiting coherent elastic neutrino-nucleus scattering and made of silicon could determine the presence of a breeding blanket at a liquid sodium cooled fast reactor at the 95 percent confidence level within 90 days.


A pharmaceutical composition with the effects of hypnosis, anti-depression and anti-anxiety, and preparation thereof. The bulk drugs of the pharmaceutical composition are: 6 to 40 parts by weight of Rhizoma Chuanxiong and 10 to 40 parts by weight of Rhizoma Pinelliae which are taken as monarch drugs; and 3 to 20 parts by weight of Fructus Gardeniae or 1 to 15 parts by weight of Rhizoma Coptidis which are taken as ministerial drugs. The pharmaceutical composition can be prepared into any of common oral dosage forms. On the basis of the monarch drugs and the ministerial drugs, the different adjuvant drugs or guide drugs can be added into the said composition according to the individual differences, so as to play the better efficacy. The pharmaceutical composition can be used for the treatment of insomnia, depression, anxiety, headache and palpitation.


The analysis of bored piles, or drilled shafts, at the service limit state is important when foundation settlements are critical to the operation of a structure. The t–z method is a widely used soil–structure interaction model for the analysis of drilled shaft settlement. In current practice, nominal values of soil stiffness and strength parameters are used to determine settlement based upon the t–z method. However, the nominal values can vary from one designer to another, making the results somewhat inconsistent. By considering reliability-based design principles, probabilistic relationships can be incorporated into the settlement analysis of the drilled shaft, and thus design uncertainty can be quantified. Following this approach, load and resistance factor design (LRFD) procedures may be utilised and resistance factors established for use in design. Using a t–z model and the Monte Carlo simulation process, probability distributions are determined for drilled shaft capacity at the service limit state. R...


Human Development Index (HDI) is used to measure overall performance where Indonesia's HDI is ranked 110 out of 187 countries with an index value of 0.684 in 2015. Consumption of animal protein has a relationship with life expectancy and quality of life which determines by the HDI performance. The paper describes on perspective development of animal protein source from livestock in Indonesia. The production development of animal protein source in overall (meat, eggs, and milk) had a positive growth during the period of 1994-2015 with the range of 1-6%/year, except that for buffalo meat production that decreased by 1.77%/year. The animal protein availability of meat was dominated by broiler production, followed by beef, mutton and others. The broiler meat production has the highest growth rate of 6.67%/year. Meanwhile, the animal protein source of non-meat production was dominated by eggs and milk production that its growth rate were 5.98 and 4.29%/year, respectively. In the same period, the meat production share was dominated by poultry meat, the rest derived from large ruminant, small ruminant, and other meat sources. Egg and milk production share also increased significantly during the period and share availability of beef production was less than 25% where its consumer participation was decreased. This indicates that beef is not a primary consumption for the majority people of Indonesia. Development program is needed to encourage an increase of the protein source from poultry meat, large ruminants, small ruminants, and milk.


The purpose of this thesis was to investigate, in a series of four experiments, the factors that are important for the control and prediction of the voluntary food intake of growing pigs fed poor quality foods. The aim of Experiments 1 and 2 was to provide a severe test of two current conceptual frameworks available for the understanding and prediction of food intake. Framework 1 assumes that intake will be that which allows genetic performance to be achieved. If this is not achieved then it is assumed to be because there is a constraint to food intake (e.g. the bulk content of the food) operating. Framework 2 sees intake as being a consequence of a process of optimisation, such that biological efficiency (rate of net energy ingested per litre of oxygen consumed) is maximised. The experiments tested areas where the frameworks differed in their predictions of intake on poor quality foods. Experiment 1 tested the effect of ambient temperature on the intake of foods of differing bulk content, Experiment 2 tested the effect of a period of reduced growth on the subsequent intake of foods of differing bulk content. The results of both experiments were in closer agreement with the predictions of Framework 1. It was concluded that the results provided no evidence that the idea that intake on poor quality foods in young growing pigs is constrained by gut capacity should be rejected. Experiment 3 investigated the effect of giving foods of differing bulk content on the short term feeding behaviour (STFB) of growing pigs. It was expected that differences in bulk content between the foods would result in different levels of intake that would be reflected as differences in STFB. Three hypotheses were developed based on ideas about the way in which a physical constraint to intake might operate. HI; there would be less diurnal variation in feeding on high bulk foods that limit intake. H2; feeding patterns on bulky foods would be less flexible than those on a control food when feeding time is limited by reducing time of access to the feeder. H3; when the composition of the food offered is changed intake and hence STFB will be rapidly altered to suit the new food. The results of the experiment were in agreement with H2 and H3. Pigs fed higher bulk foods did not maintain intake or performance when time of access to the feeder was reduced, this was mainly due to the absence of any adaptive change in STFB. In agreement with H3, when the composition of the food offered was changed there was a rapid change in STFB so that it became appropriate to the new food. These results are in agreement with the idea that intake on bulky foods is physically constrained. Contrary to expectation, a higher bulk content had no significant effect on the diurnal intake pattern of pigs given 24 hours access to food, the reason for this remains unclear. The final experiment investigated the effect of degree of maturity on the capacity to consume food bulk. This was done by feeding a constraining food (a food high in bulk that was intended to limit the growth of the pigs to which it was fed) at one of three different degrees of maturity (12, 36 or 108kg). The aim of this final experiment was to determine how capacity for bulk (bulk units/ kg day) changed with increasing maturity and to determine if the hypothesis that the capacity to consume food bulk is proportional to liveweight can be extended for use in pigs greater than 45kg. The idea that constrained food intake is proportional to liveweight did not hold for pigs that were greater than 40kg, as the scaled capacity for bulk -was not constant but decreased with an increase in liveweight beyond 40 kg. The relationship between liveweight (W, kg) and the absolute capacity for bulk (Cap, kg water holding capacity/day) was accurately described by the quadratic function Cap = (0.230.W) (0.000476.W2). A change in food type to one with a higher bulk content may have important consequences for both intake and performance. Initially intake and performance will be reduced. Over time, as the animal becomes adapted to the new food, intake will increase until an equilibrium intake appropriate to that food is reached. Current models that predict intake over time assume that the animal is always fully adapted to the food that it is on. A model was developed with the aim of predicting intake and performance during the adaptation period to a new food. The model is based upon the assumption that that an animal has a desired rate of intake (DFI) which is determined by the requirements for protein and lipid deposition and maintenance. DFI may not be met if a bulk constraint to intake exists. Where a bulk constraint operates intake is calculated as the constrained intake (CFI) which is a function of the animals capacity to consume food bulk and the bulk content of the food. The time taken to adapt to a new food is assumed to depend on the difference in bulk content between the first and second food. The initial capacity to consume food bulk is related to the bulk content of the current food. Thereafter, capacity will increase over time to a maximum. The rate at which capacity is increased is assumed to be the same for all pigs regardless of the type of food being fed, and the increase in capacity over time is assumed to be linear. The magnitude and direction of response of the model is in close agreement with relevant observed data, the underlying theoretical assumptions of the model are concluded to be reasonable. Taken together the results of the work completed in this thesis show that the idea that food intake on high bulk foods is constrained by the capacity of the gastrointestinal tract in relation to the bulk content of the food can account for observed food intakes on high bulk foods. Physical constraints to food intake are thus concluded to be important for the control and prediction of food intake on poor quality (high bulk) foods. Food intake prediction models that are based on this assumption will therefore have a good theoretical basis and should provide an accurate description of change in intake over time.


Sub-surface hydrophilisation and an increase in effective k is known as damage to a highly porous ultra-low k (ULK) film when removing a metal layer from this ULK film by Chemical Mechanical Polishing (CMP). The degree of ULK hydrophilisation is linked to the amount and depth of scratches formed on the dielectric during polishing. To be able to trace key factors that could lead to a higher resistance against scratches, we looked into the root cause of scratch formation and how it relates to the type of overlaying metal film that we remove during the CMP step. Our work shows that the ULK scratch formation during CMP is linked to the formation of large metal-containing particles in the slurry on the pad. We were able to evidence and separate those particles and characterized them as silica-metal agglomerates. Those "harder" agglomerates are more detrimental to the ULK surface - i.e. more and deeper scratches are formed - when clearing Ta-based metal layers from the ULK film.


In this paper, classification task is performed by FRSVM. It is variant of FSVM and MFSVM. Fuzzy rough set takes care of sensitiveness of noisy samples and handles impreciseness. The membership function is developed as function of cener and radius of each class in feature space. It plays an important role towards sampling the decision surface. The training samples are either linear or nonlinear separable. In nonlinear training samples, input space is mapped into high dimensional feature space to compute separating surface. The different input points make unique contributions to decision surface. The performance of the classifier is assessed in terms of the number of support vectors. The effect of variability in prediction and generalization of FRSVM is examined with respect to values of C. It effectively resolves imbalance and overlapping class problems, normalizes to unseen data and relaxes dependency between features and labels. Experimental results on both synthetic and real datasets support that FRSVM achieves superior performance in reducing outliers' effects than existing SVMs.


A new entomopathogenic nematode, Steinernema huense sp. n., belonging to the carpocapsae group, was recovered in Bach Ma National Park (Thua Thien Hue province) Vietnam. Steinernema huense sp. n. infective juveniles are characterised by short body length of 527 (444-571) μm, distance from anterior end to excretory pore of 43 (38-46) μm, anterior end to end of pharynx of 116 (103-129) μm; tail length of 50 (43-56) μm, D% = 37 (34-39) and E% = 85 (79-93), H% = 44 (39-52) and in having six ridges (i.e., seven lines) in the lateral field. For first generation males, the diagnostic characters include the spicule length of 67 (60-72) μm; D% = 48 (41-61); SW% = 195 (168-238) and GS% = 76 (68-81). Both generations possess a minute filamentous mucron, which can be rudimentary in the first generation, and 23 genital papillae. Spicules are finely curved, brownish and slender with a prominent rostrum. First generation females have a non-protruding, symmetrical vulva, with double flapped epiptygma. The tail of mature females is obese with a short conical tip (peg) lacking minute protuberances, and post-anal swelling not developed. The new species is further characterised by sequences of ITS and D2-D3 regions of the ribosomal DNA. According to molecular data, the symbiotic bacterium of S. huense sp. n. is closely related to Xenorhabdus stockiae.


Background. In cases of surgery for hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), postoperative intrahepatic recurrence is the main obstacle to long‐term survival of patients. The association between perioperative transfusion and recurrence‐free survival was studied in 126 patients with HCC who underwent hepatic resection between 1985 and 1990 and in whom complete follow‐up information was available until 1992.


Aerosol optical depth (AOD) measurements at Chisinau site within the frame of the Aerosol Robotic Network program are analyzed. Diurnal variations of hourly averages of percentage departures of AOD τa and Angstrom exponent α440-870 from daily mean values are examined on yearly and seasonal basis. Diurnal variation of hourly averages of τa (at λ=500 nm) and α440-870 computed on multiyear basis consists of 9.8% (Δτa~0.022) and 4.2% (Δα440-870~0.06), respectively. Diurnal cycle of percentage departures for τa and α440-870, averaged on seasonal basis, ranges from 8.4% (in summer) to 13% (in fall) for τa and for α440-870 it ranges from 3.5% (in summer) to 12.8% (in winter). Local sources of aerosol emissions and synoptic processes are responsible for diurnal variability of aerosol optical characteristics. The effect of long distance transport of smoke upon this cycle was shown.


I have received more than one letter drawing my attention to the Holy Father's statement to the major religious superiors of Italy, reported in Acta Apostolicae Sedis for 29th December 1966, implying, if I am not mistaken, that there is a contradiction between my article 'Monastic Aggiomamento' in the January issue of THE DOWNSIDE REVIEW and this statement. Since others may think the same without writing, I may perhaps be allowed to say that, after careful analysis of this statement, I think it provides essential support to what I have written. The Holy Father refers to two decrees of the Council (I quote from a printed translation kindly sent me): (I) Perfectae caritatis, n. 15 (A.A.S., p. 1181 [I], § I): He says 'Our times have seen a certain rediscovery of the proper value of the monastic state in itself without the priesthood, and the Council has ratified the possibility of such a monastic state'. The foundation of such communities was precisely the suggestion made by the late Archabbot of Beuron quoted in my article, and he asks 'Is there anyone who feels himself, or will feel himself in the future, called by God to undertake this work?' It might indeed be the principal answer to the problem of monastic renewal. (2) Presbyterorum ordinis, n, 13 (Ibid. § 2): He says 'it certainly was not the Council's intention to deny the raison d'erre of a monk's priesthood exercised almost exclusively in the celebration of Mass'. But does this differ greatly from what Dom Jean Leclercq says in Monastic Studies III (p, 84) quoted by me, namely 'a progressive reduction in the number of priests in conformity with the needs of the community and the special vocation ofcertain individuals?' Even though this raises difficulties in some districts where there is a scarcity of secular or active religious priests to supply in a parish when need arises, it has the explicit approval of the Holy Father. Yours sincerely,


Abstract This study examines how variation in production is perceived and then (re)interpreted by listeners, thus providing the link between phonetic variation and sound change. We investigate whether listeners can detect the nasal leak that may accompany utterance-initial voiced stops in Spanish, and reinterpret it as a nasal segment. Such reinterpretation may account for a number of sound patterns involving emergent nasals adjacent to voiced stops in oral contexts. Oral pressure, nasal/oral airflow, and audio were recorded for utterance-initial /b d p t/ produced by 10 Spanish speakers. Tokens showing different degrees of nasal leak (nasal C, maximum, medium, and no nasal leak) were placed intervocalically, where both /C/ and /NC/ may occur. The stimuli were presented to Spanish listeners for identification as /VNCV/ or /V(C)CV/. Identification results indicate a higher number of VNCV responses with incremental changes in nasal leak in voiced but not voiceless stimuli. Reaction time analysis showed shorter latencies to nasal identification for larger velum leak stimuli. The results suggest that listeners can `hear' the nasal leak and fail to relate it to voicing initiation, interpreting a nasal segment. Thus a gesture aimed at facilitating voicing initiation may be interpreted as a new target goal.