oE, a secondary sigmafactor ofBacillus subtilis, was foundtoincrease 5-to10-fold whencultures were shifted from37to48°C. Western blot(immunoblot) analyses, inwhichmonoclonal antibodies specific forthe sigB operonproducts RsbV,RsbW,andcrB were usedtoprobe extracts fromwild-type andmutantB.subtilis strains, revealed thatallthree proteins increased coordinately after heatshockandthatthis increase was dependent on rhowever, atleast seven additional proteins werepresent after thetemperature shift inthewild-type strain butabsent inthesigBnullmutant. Thus,although cr'isnotrequired fortheexpression ofessential heatshock genes,itisactivated byheatshock toelevate its own synthesis andpossibly thesynthesis ofseveral other heat-inducible proteins. a3 isa minorabundance sigmafactor ofBacillus subtilis thatisfoundassociated withtheRNA polymerase from vegetatively growingbacteria butwhichdisappears fromthe extractable RNA polymerase population bythesecond hour


Abstract This paper explores the role of knowledge visualization in facilitating decision-making in cultural heritage management. The paper addresses the issue in the specific context of stećci - the tombstones from medieval Bosnia inscribed on the UNESCO world heritage list. Grounded in the distant reading paradigm, the paper introduces a series of visualizations of spatial, temporal, architectural, iconographical, epigraphical, and impact analyses of stećci data. Together, these visualizations should enable decision-makers to gain an enhanced understanding and knowledge of this important cultural heritage. In turn, this should help them make better decisions regarding their protection and promotion.


Summary form only given. Irradiation of MOS structures under a negative gate-bias results in trapped positive charge at both the Al-SiO/sub 2/ and Si-SiO/sub 2/ interfaces. It is shown that the trapped charge at the Si-SiO/sub 2/ interface can be converted to interface states in a manner consistent with trapped hole models. This finding is significant because it appears to contradict other models which implicate H/sup +/ ions (in contrast to holes) as being primarily responsible for radiation-induced interface state generation. It is also demonstrated that trapped positive charge at the Al-SiO/sub 2/ interface can play a role in the interface state formation. >


This paper analyzes different scales atmospheric circulation characters during the extremely heavy rain occurred in July 21,1998 in Wuhan, and points out that the lasting development of meridional circulation in middle and high latitude Europe Asia area, abnormally enduring south of west Pacific subtropical high and its non uniform changes,the eastward moving of short wave's damming at middle level and the strong meso β scale vortex system accompanying the torrent rain are the typical characters of atmospheric circulation in this heavy rain event. The dynamic and thermodynamic structure of the convective clouds and the strong vortexes, which resulted directly in the heavy rain, are also analyzed in the paper.


Objective The pathogenic causes of community-acquired pneumonia (CAP) were investigated.The relation between length of stay (LOS) in hospital and CURB-65 scoring system were observed.Methods IgM antibodies of mycoplasma pneumoniae and chlamydia pneumoniae were detected by ELISA kit of Euroimmun company for all CAP patients. Sputum,blood or pleural effusion was cultured when necessary. The LOS between low-risk group and intermediate-risk group was compared according to CURB-65 scoring system. Results Of 186 patients with etiological evaluation,70(37.6%) patients had an identifiable etiology,35(18.8%) had positive outcome from sputum cultured. Only 1 (0.5%) case of bacterial infection was identified by pleural effusion culture,while all data from blood culture were negative. Atypical pathogens were detected from 39 (21%) patients,in which 22 (18%) were mycoplasma pneumoniae,18(9.7%) were chlamydia pneumoniae. 14.3% of all patients had mixed infection. According to CURB-65 scoring system,the LOS between low-risk group and intermediate-risk group had no statistical defference.Conclusion The positive rate of pathogens detection is low,while mycoplasma pneumoniae and chlamydia pneumoniae plays important roles in CAP. Mixed infection should not be neglected. The low risk patients have a tendency of longer LOS.


The features of management of intergovernmental relations in domestic and foreign practice, and provided on the basis of the analysis recommendations to address important gaps in the distribution of intergovernmental transfers, typical for Ukraine at the present stage of its development


In image processing, contrast enhancement is an important area as it improves the quality of an image. This paper presents different contrast enhancement techniques for brain tumor detection using MRI and assesses their performance on the basis of factors like tumor size, area and volume calculations. The proposed methodology was applied on datasets of different patients and the subsequent results were evaluated. The results facilitated in gauging overall performance of the tumor detection process. Statistical measures like Dice Similarity Coefficient, Jaccard Similarity Index and Structural Similarity Index are used to compute the accuracy of contrast enhancement techniques. After detecting tumor in 2-Dimensional (2D) slices, 3-Dimensional (3D) reconstruction was performed to anticipate type of tumor along with 5 year survival rate by looking at its shape in 3D. The work is expected to aid in the treatment of the disease in a better way.


The aim of this study is to evaluate the collaborative innovation ability of collaborative innovation network of universities. We adopt the theory of collaborative innovation network to clarify the connotation of collaborative innovation ability of collaborative innovation network of universities. And then, construct the evaluation index system of collaborative innovation ability from the input and output, subject coordination and environment construction. With the aim to determine the index weight, we introduced the entropy theory. Finally, 12 collaborative innovation centers in Hubei Province are selected as examples, and the entropy weight fuzzy matter element model and Euclid approach degree are combined to evaluate the collaborative ability. The results suggest that the centers of colleges and universities have higher overall collaborative innovation ability than the others. Our findings indicate that the synergistic innovation ability of university collaborative center needs to be promoted from three aspects: input-output, main subject and environment construction, so as to integrate the multi-resources and realize the maximum output from knowledge to technology and from technology to economy. Keywords—colleges and universities; collaborative innovation network; collaborative innovation ability; evaluation index system; fuzzy matter element


SUMMARY Angioplastic Procedures in the treatment of Peripheral Arterial Disease in the legs of limb amputation. Diabetic Arteriopaty is a different disease, for its mali- gnant evolution, and requires a multidisciplinary combined approach. Therapy of peripheral arteriopaty in the limbs aims to stop the pain, heal ulcers, give the patient standing, mobility and better quality of life and life expectancy. The choice between surgery, with above the knee bypass, and endovascular angioplasty, is nowadays more fre - quently for the latter, thanks to the reduced invasiveness and techniques and materials increasing evolution. PTA, in addition to low-profile balloons, provides medica - ted and cutting balloons. Stents, expecially drug-eluting, have improved long-term results, but not enough to re - commend their standard use below the knee. Taking a careful Protocol of Diagnosis and Treatment, we have obtained very satisfactory results, even in this diffi- cult disease.


Objective:To study the effects of application of "5S management" on nursing quality of Stomatology department.Methods:We applied the principle of "5S management" to improve the management on employees,instruments and environment,we evaluated work situation regularly as well as improved it continuously.Results:The qualified rates of emergent materials,sterilization,the use and preservation of expensive instruments,the preparation of dental instruments and materials,as well as patients satisfaction rate were significantly improved after applying "5S management".Conclusion:Application of "5S management" in Stomatology department can improve nursing management quality,working efficiency and section image.


This is an analysis of a disproportionate development logic in the modern-day supply chains (from manufacturers to consumers) illustrated by the nation-wide retail chains in Russia. We studied the Mercadona chain as an example of a successful practice of strategic alliances in Spain. Our research allowed us to work out the possible modernization for the logistics chain through settling between the consumers', trade's and manufacturers' interest. We propose a cutting-edge approach based on establishing strategic alliances between the food producers and manufacturers, and the nation-wide retail chains. Keywordsstrategic alliances, nation-wide retail chains, supply chains, food producers.


Rates of bacterial sulfate reduction are calculated from the accumulation of reduced sulfur compounds in coastal sediments. The method is found to underestimate the in situ metabolism 10‐fold because it neglects diffusional losses of produced sulfide. In relation to this result, the quantitative connection between the pyrite, HCl‐extractable iron, and organic carbon contents of the sediments and the intensity of sulfate reduction are disussed. A comparison is made between colony counts of sulfate‐reducing bacteria and the rate of sulfate reduction in coastal sediments. The number of bacteria is roughly proportional to their measured rate of metabolism both when different sediment types and different depths are compared. The colony counts, however, seem to underestimate the true numbers of sulfate reducers by 1000‐fold or more.


Musical works form an integral part of subject matter entitled to copyright protection. The protection of rights in a musical work is crucial not only to the original creators of the work, but also to entities who may have been assigned the rights to these. Royalty and remuneration, being driving factors for such enterprises, these corporations seek to protect their work effectively against misuse and misappropriation — the increasing litigation in the arena being witness to the same.


This paper first deals with the systematic structure of a virtual enterprise. At the same time, an information system infrastructure is given to describe the information communication among cooperative partners in a virtual enterprise. Then, a generative methodology is proposed for the effective design of a product/project-oriented virtual enterprise. This methodology is distinguished into three stages, that is, identification of business process, information modeling, and process planning & partner selection. Finally, detailed analysis is focused on information modeling of product/project features and partners' behavior & performance, to couple product/project requirements with partners' core competencies.


In the aim to deal with how to construct intelligent information system of an assembly line in a network-based collaborative manufacturing environment, we present firstly the basic functions which includes: to make electronic cards for assembly process, to control quality online, to record history data and to communicate with remote database management system. A network-based architecture of an assembly information system, the Unified Modelling Language (UML) is used to model the information system of an intelligent assembly line. Use case diagram, class diagram, states diagram, sequence diagram, interaction diagram and activity diagram have been constructed for an information system of an assembly line. The UML models can be used to indicate to designers and engineers of the information system how to work efficiently, and to make operators use the information system easily. The modelling method is applied to a real assembly line of an automotive transmission company in China.


Models of motion perception propose that eye movement estimates are integrated into middle
temporal cortex (MT+) as a mechanism that disambiguates world motion from retinal motion
induced by ego movement. Little is known about the relationship between eye movement
signals in this area and cortical oscillations, a phenomenon linked to perceptual and motor
processing. Magnetoencephalography was used to examine the significance of oscillations in
this area during pursuit. Results from Experiment 1 suggest low-frequency suppression in
MT+ reflects eye position during sinusoidal tracking. A control study (Experiment 2)
examining activity in response to retinal slip suggests this was not due to pursuit error when
the stimulus changed direction. Experiment 3 examined oscillations during pursuit at various
head-centred eye eccentricities. No difference was found in the magnitude of activity as a
function of eye position during pursuit, suggesting modulations in these rhythms was related
to another aspect of the eye movement. Experiment 4 found no specific effects of eye
velocity on alpha or beta, but there was a consistent effect of eye speed on beta activity.
Additionally, there was no such effect found between alpha and eye speed, suggesting some
functional distinction in the role of these rhythms in pursuit behaviour. In Chapter 4, two
experiments examined cortical changes during pursuit (Experiment 5) and retinal motion
adaptation (Experiment 6), and the subsequent motion aftereffect. Beta suppression in MT+
during oculomotor adaptation was a significant predictor of the motion aftereffect duration,
perhaps indicating that beta changes index the efficacy with which the visual motion system
is able to recalibrate itself in the presence of a stationary stimulus following adaptation.
Taken together, these results suggest a role for beta suppression in MT+ during pursuit,
which seems to reflect the processing of extraretinal signals for oculomotor control and the
estimation of head-centred motion.


SUMMARY 31 cases of ocular toxoplasmosis were seen at the Ophthalmology Clinic, Uniuersiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, Kuala Lumpur during a one-and-a-half year period. All these cases were diagnosed as congenital ocular toxoplasmosis. As this condition appears not to be uncommon in. Malaysia, greater effort should be made towards its prevention especz'ally amongpregnant women.


Regional wind power forecasting deals with the prediction of the aggregated power output of wind farms located within a defined region. By architecture, regional forecasting models are classed by three approaches. In these approaches, the cascaded approach is a most practical method although the method has a larger prediction error. This paper provides a systematic review of all these regional forecasting approaches and ultimately proposes an advanced cascaded method to improve forecasting precision. The method use root mean square error as evaluation criteria to adjust every prediction of signal wind farm in a region. The simulation results show the effectiveness of the advanced cascaded method.


Water is becoming an increasingly valuable commodity, with population growth demanding more and more amounts of this limited resource. Increased efforts are directed toward recycling and remediation, as well as desalination of the large quantities of seawater available. Dr. Bertwin Langenecker was a pioneer in utilizing hydrodynamic cavitation in a variety of applications that would remove dissolved solids from water and other liquids. His combination of intense cavitation using a rotor-stator combination, as well as simultaneously adding an adsorbent, demonstrated impressive results in desalination and waste water remediation. In this presentation, a description will be given of Dr. Langenecker's technology as well as a sampling of some of his most impressive results. Speculations as to why this approach works as well as it does will be presented.


In the final volume of his Constructive Theology, V.-M. Kärkkäinen presents his eschatology and ecclesiology. The approach is grounded in a Trinitarian theology, which explains the interaction of Father, Son, and Holy Spirit as the reason for hope in a new creation. The plausibility of this hope Kärkkäinen explores in light of cosmological scenarios and in comparison with Jewish, Islamic, Buddhist, and Hindu perspectives. Interreligious comparison of sociological models also serves as the starting point for Kärkkäinen's ecclesiological inquiry. He argues that the church not only has a mission but is mission in its very nature and in ecumenical engagement.


Abstract The aim of the study was to investigate the potential beneficial effects of exogenous application of methyl jasmonate (MeJa) and phenylurea cytokinin (4PU-30) on zucchini (Cucurbita pepo L.) cotyledons subjected to high temperature (HT) and combined HT plus excess copper (Cu2+) stress. Compared to HT stressed zucchini cotyledons, exposure to excess Cu2+ prior to HT treatment inhibited the growth, decreased superoxide dismutase (SOD), glutathione peroxidase (GPx) and glutathione reductase (GR) activities, increased glutathione-Stransferase (GST) and peroxidase (Px) total activities, and induced new enzyme isoforms (GST4, GST8, and Px4). The effect of MeJa on the double-stressed plants was to increase SOD, GPx and Px total activities and stimulate the activity of GST8, GST9, GST10, SOD5, Px3 and Px8 isoenzymes. In addition to SOD, GPx and Px, 4PU-30 increased GST total activity, up-regulated Px1 and GR1, and had a higher stimulatory effect on SOD5, Px3, GPx3, GST9 and GST10 activities. Copper, 4PU-30 and MeJa treatments changed the abundance and pattern (MeJa) of soluble zucchini polypeptides in a specific manner. MeJa and especially 4PU-30 applied alone, or in combination, stimulated the growth of later HT-treated cotyledons. 4PU-30 counteracted better than MeJa in the HT+heavy metal-caused inhibition of the growth. The data indicated that both MeJa and 4PU- 30 may protect the zucchini plants from high temperature and combined high temperature plus excess copper stress, but 4PU-30 was more effective; the protective effect was related to the changes in the gene expression, total antioxidant enzyme activities and the activity of individual isoforms of the enzymes.


Purpose: The long-term experience of using osseointegrated implants for prosthetic rehabilitation of the edentulous patients shows that high success rates can be predictably achieved. Primary implant stability has been identified to be a prerequisite to achieve osseointegration. In this study, we set up the amount of removed bone so that it differed on implant installation site for each group. The influence of each initial stability on secondary stability and osseointegration was compared with time lapse using resonance frequency analysis and histomorphometric analysis. Materials and methods: A total 27 US (Osstem, Korea) implants were placed in the mandibular edentulous area of 3 beagle dogs. The implant site was prepared by the conventional technique with drills, and three experimental groups were divided into under-drilling group, normal-drilling group and over-drilling group. The Implant Stability Quotient (ISQ) was measured at intervals of immediately, 4, 8, 12 weeks after placement using mentor RFA. After the animals were sacrificed, histomorphometric evaluation was executed for measuring BIC and BD. Results: 1) The under-drilled group showed most high ISQ value for whole experiment period. 2) Bone-to-implant-contact(BIC) showed the tendency to be increased gradually as the experiment period passed except the 8 weeks of the normal group. 3) The under-drilled group showed most high bone density(BD) level for whole experiment period, and it was expressed the aspect to be increased gradually according to an experiment period passage in the average of all group. 4) Resonance frequency analysis and histomorphometric analysis are presumed by generally proportional. Conclusions: As this research result, it seems that there are some correlation between resonance frequency analysis and histomorphometric analysis. As are accomplished osseointegration stably so that more superior at the region which the overpressure comes to add, it will be applicable method in clinical field.


"The May 4th New Cultural Movement" was an important turning point in the 20th century of China. It can be said that henceforth everything happened in China is originated from it in some respects. The scholars in that time though paid attention to science, democracy and new moral, they didn't establish the basis of systemic philosophical ontology, epistemology and ethics. The philosophic foundation of modernity lies in taking man's liberty essence as the center, and taking humanitarianism and respecting human right as the supreme human ontology; understanding the real human nature and the limitations of man's understanding ability as the premise. It really recognizes the truth and value multi-element, stresses the epistemology that anyone should not take himself as the embodiment of the truth; really recognizes the individual principle of spirit, firmly opposes taking man as means and tools and advocates universal love and tolerance but does not incite hatred. All the above perhaps can remedy the insufficiency of the scholars in the period of "The May 4th Movement".


Environmental chemistry is a vital part of ecotoxicology studies conducted in mesocosms. Quantification of exposure can be particularly challenging for biodegradable surfactants in once-through stream mesocosms like the Procter & Gamble Experimental Stream Facility (ESF). In the fall of 1991, a study was conducted with the anionic surfactant C12-alkyl sulfate (C12-AS). Analysis of chemical feed tank concentrates indicated that the in-stream concentrations should be very close to the nominal concentrations (26, 78, 233, 700, 2, 100 μg/L). However, measured concentrations were lower than expected. The concentrations at the head of the streams were 4 to 23% below nominal concentrations and there was an additional 14 to 33% decline in head to tail C12-AS concentrations. Total residence time in the streams is about 4.3 min. Because analytical losses had been minimized using individual sample recovery factors, it was concluded that these losses were due to rapid C12-AS biodegradation. The results of this analytical program are used to define the in-stream C12-AS concentrations to express subsequent community- and ecosystem-level no-observed-effect concentrations. In addition, the environmental chemistry program described will serve as the model for future programs in support of surfactant ecotoxicology studies conducted at the ESF.


A study was conducted at the Federal Aviation Administration's Jacksonville en route air traffic control center to identify factors that contribute to airspace complexity. Direct (verbal reports) and indirect (multidimensional scaling) procedures were used to identify potential factors. A list of candidate factors was created by combining the data from the direct and indirect knowledge exploration methods. Important complexity factors were identified by determining their simple and multiple correlations with overall sector complexity as judged by a group of Traffic Management Unit personnel (flow controllers). A final list of 16 complexity factors was developed and is suggested as a reference for future research in the area. An evaluation of the knowledge extraction techniques indicated that, although little unique information was generated by the indirect procedure, it was useful for the identification of complexity factors when combined with data from direct sources. Further research to validate the ide...


A method for the determination of chloroform, acetic acid, acetic ether in isosorbide dinitrate by GC was established. Use PEG-20M(4m x2mm) column, the initial temperature was kept 3 rain at 50℃, and then raised to 180℃ at the rate of 10℃/min and kept 5 min, raised to 280℃ at the same rate and kept 10 min. FID detector, the injection port and detector temperature were 320℃ , N_2 as cartier gas, the flow rate was 50 mL/min, the flow rate of hydrogen and air were 30 ml/min, 400 mL/min respectively. The linear responses ranged from 0.0005~0.003 mg/mL(r= O.9994) of chloroform, 0.005~0.03 mg/mL (r= 0.9999) of acetic ether and 0.005-0.03 mg/mL (r = 0.9997) of acetic acid respectively , the recovery of chloroform, acetic ether, and acetic acid were 100.3% ,100.5% and 98.7% respectively.


To determine whether bag‐mask ventilation between induction of anaesthesia and tracheal intubation in children with post‐tonsillectomy bleeding reduces the incidence of hypoxaemia and difficult direct laryngoscopy without increasing perioperative respiratory complications.


Psycho-oncological interventions can reduce distress by activating individual resources and enhancing coping skills. Since medical cancer treatment is performed increasingly in outpatient settings, there is a growing need for evidence-based and brief interventions to be integrated seamlessly into these treatment procedures. The aim of the present pilot study is to examine the feasibility of brief interventions to cope with illness in this area.
 A single center quasi-experimental design was developed in oncological outpatients at the University Medical Center Ulm, Germany, including N = 60 individuals with cancer undergoing chemotherapy or immunotherapy. The intervention group (IG) consisted of N = 40 participants. These were assigned to either cognitive behavioral interventions (CBI) or hypnotherapeutic interventions (HTI). The interventions each comprised three individual one-hour sessions. In addition, a waiting control group (WCG of N = 20) was set up, receiving care-as-usual. Primary outcomes were feasibility measures such as recruitment rates, participant retention rates, and complete data rates. Clinical results were discussed for the feasibility of a comprehensive efficacy study.
 The recruitment and completion rates illustrate demand and acceptance of the offer. Of the 208 individuals with cancer offered to participate in the study, 77 were interested in enrolling. This rate of 37% roughly corresponds to the use of psycho-oncological services in general. 17 individuals (22%) withdraw from participation before the intervention began due to severe deterioration in their disease. Once started, all 40 individuals of the IG (100%) completed the intervention, and 17 individuals of the WCG (85%) completed the accompanying questionnaires. Tentative results on clinical outcomes indicate that brief interventions on resource activation could have lasting effects on well-being and stress management.
 With this feasibility study, we aimed to explore the potential of brief interventions such as hypnotherapeutic and cognitive-behavioral approaches in psycho-oncology as an integral part of oncology day care. Even with a small number of participants results seem to indicate that the study design and brief interventions such as those presented can offer a low-threshold service that can be seamlessly integrated into oncological therapy. Given the promising results of this pilot study, we propose a full RCT on the effectiveness of such a brief intervention program.
 https://www.drks.de, German Trials Register (DRKS00019095).


In 1908, Charles Mantoux, a French doctor perfected a test for the diagnosis of tuberculosis contact (latent tuberculosis). This study reviews the history of this technique, which is closely linked to the symbolism and mythology of an illness that at one time was known as the white plague.


Soluble reduced nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide oxidase activity in extracts of Bacillus subtilis spores was stimulated by the addition of not only flavine mononucleotide (FMN) or flavine adenine dinucleotide (FAD) but also alpha-alpha'-dipyridyl or o-phenanthroline. These chelating agents showed stronger effect on the enzyme from spores than on that from vegetative cells. Activity stimulated by alpha-alpha'-dipyridyl or o-phenanthroline was inhibited by atabrine or dipicolinic acid, whereas FMN or FAD stimulation was inhibited only by atabrine.


The invention discloses a method for cleaning a dilute phosphoric acid tank. The method comprises the following steps: (1) draining dilute acid in the dilute phosphoric acid tank; (2) opening the cover plate at the top of the dilute phosphoric acid tank, and cooling the empty dilute phosphoric acid tank for about 3 to 4 days until the temperature is about 30 DEG C; (3) after the dilute phosphoric acid tank is cooled for 3 to 4 days, injecting cleaning water of more than 80 DEG C into the dilute phosphoric acid tank until the cleaning water level is above the gypsum attached on the inner wall of the dilute phosphoric acid tank, and standing for 4 to 5 days; (4) delivering the P2O5-contaniing cleaning water in the dilute phosphoric acid tank to an extraction tank for recovery through a gypsum pump; and (5) recovering P2O5 in phosphogypsum and finishing cleaning. The method prevents environmental pollution due to failure of recovering P2O5 in phosphogypsum, reduces the cleaning workload and reduces potential safety hazards in the cleaning process.


The culture of Korean-Japanese children has been inter-textually connected with each other. Particularly, the imagination of contemporary Animation between Korea and Japan has a common background. The world of Animation contains many cultural contents as like Myth, Play, and Game. Animation is not only a visual media representing mythical imagination but also creates an off-line play and game. Children's Culture governs the rest of adulthood, so the play and game of childhood becomes the important theme to study. and are the play and game in the off-line and simultaneously the on-line animation TV program. has a mythical imagination containing oriental symbols as like blue dragon, white tiger, fire-bird, and black turtle. The world of Game is competing and mimic in operating methods. leads children's culture with on-line animation and off-line card game. TV animation is a story for Yu-gi to play magic and wizard. In this animation, Egyptian Myth is a main motif. However, off-line card game uses much more mythical ideas of world myth. Recently, Hollywood's movie has the same root of Japanese animation. The world of Animation is basically mythical and creates game and play. and are children's movies for human to transform for the purpose of fighting evils. The culture of Korean children is no more creative than subjective to Japanese culture. The Korean traditional Play and Game are disappearing in Korean educational systems. The study of culture is focused on adulthood and Hanryu(寒流), so we must begin to study children's culture and Myth and Game and Play. This study can contribute to reveal the relations between Myth and children's Game, and the relations between Myth and children's Play. The simultaneous study of Japanese Animation and Korean Animation can also contribute to study the oriental imaginary world and East-Asian children's culture. In this article, Trans-Culture is the Key term to understand the comtemporary common cultural meaning in Korean and Japanese children's culture. Three critical terms are used to develop the trans-cultural theory with inter-textuality, self-reflexivity, and simulation. Play and Game are the cultural productive dynamics to understand trans-culture.


Brominated azo dyes (BADs) have been identified as predominant indoor brominated pollutants in daycare dust, thus their potential health risk to children is of concern. However, the toxicities of BADs remain elusive. In this study, the toxicokinetics of two predominant BADs, Disperse Blue 373 (DB373) and Disperse Violet 93 (DV93), and their suspect metabolite 2-bromo-4,6-dinitroaniline (BDNA) were investigated in embryos of zebrafish (Danio rerio). The bioconcentration factor of DV93 at 120 hpf is 6.2-fold lower than DB373. Nontarget analysis revealed distinct metabolism routes between DB373 and DV93 by reducing nitro groups to nitroso (DB373) or amine (DV93), despite their similar structures. NAD(P)H quinone oxidoreductase 1 (NQO1) and pyruvate dehydrogenase were predicted as the enzymes responsible for the reduction of DB373 and DV93 by correlating time courses of metabolites and enzyme development. Further in vitro recombinant enzyme and in vivo inhibitor results validated NQO1 as the enzyme specifically reducing DB373 by NQO1, but not DV93. Global proteome profiling revealed that expressions of proteins from 'apoptosis induced DNA fragmentation' pathway were significantly upregulated by all three BADs, supporting the bioactivation of BADs to mutagenic aromatic amines. This study discovered the bioactivation of BADs via distinct eukaryotic enzymes, implying their potential health risks.


In respect of the principle of comprehensive utilization of water resources,the paper analyzes the influence of non-steady flow due to the hydropower project′s daily regulation on the downstream channel of a dam,on basis of which,and by taking the daily average flow and daily minimum flow discharge from the hydropower project as statistic samples,a qualitative and quantitative evaluation system for analyzing the influence of the hydroelectric project′s daily regulation on the downstream channel of the dam,and a graphic illustration for the influence of non-steady flow are put forward.The system,which is clear on principle,and easy to use,can objectively make an evaluation on hydroelectric projects′ influence on channels,determine the related water levels,and make a sound evaluation on daily regulation′s operation conditions.


Accurate bus travel speed prediction can lead to improved urban mobility by enabling passengers to reliably plan their trips in advance and traffic administrators to manage the bus operations more effectively. However, the increasing complexity of public transportation networks pose a significant challenge to existing prediction methods as the bus operations are affected by numerous factors such as varying traffic conditions, tight bus operation schedules, wideranging travel demands, frequent accelerations/decelerations at bus stops, delays at intersections, etc. This paper aims to achieve accurate bus speed prediction by identifying important intrinsic and extrinsic features that impact the bus speed, and their significance in specific situations. We propose to jointly incorporate multiple feature components that provide discriminating information to train the prediction model by exploring the spatial correlation, temporal correlation, as well as contextual information (e.g. road characteristics and weather conditions). In particular, we introduce an attribute-driven attention network model to integrate the feature components, which considers the heterogeneous influence of different feature components on bus speed and dynamically assigns weights to the learned latent features based on specific traffic situations. Extensive experiments using real bus travel data involving 42 bus services show that our proposed method outperforms six well-known methods.


The difficulty of minimizing ground current effects and the problems caused by offset voltages in the development of dc analog computers is presented. A conventional grounding system is discussed and a ground isolation system is disclosed as a means of greatly reducing the existing differences in chopper references.


Erythropoiesis is a complex multistep process by which erythrocytes are produced. C‐type lectin‐like receptor 2 (CLEC‐2) is a podoplanin (PDPN) receptor almost exclusively expressed on the surface of platelets and megakaryocytes. Deletion of megakaryocyte/platelet CLEC‐2 was reported to cause anemia along with thrombocytopenia in mice. PDPN‐expressing stromal cells in the bone marrow (BM) were also reported to facilitate megakaryocyte expansion and maturation depending on the CLEC‐2/PDPN interaction.


Method oxidative demercaptanization of hydrocarbon feedstock in the presence of a heterogeneous catalyst comprising an organic compound supported on a solid carrier, characterized in that as a heterogeneous oxidation catalyst is a catalyst comprising 5-10 wt.% 3,5 di-t-butyl o-benzoquinone, supported on alumina, the process is carried out at a temperature of 25-50 ° C and the catalyst was regenerated in air stream of oxygen at a temperature of 25 ° C.


A leading practitioner of conceptual art, Mel Bochner (b. 1940) was one of the first artists in the 1960s to reintroduce language into the visual field. Despite their significance, these contributions remain unexplored in art historical scholarship. This fascinating book provides for the first time an overview of Bochner's language-based works from the past forty years, including previously unpublished images and projects. Long preoccupied by language and its influence on vision and perception, Bochner has shifted recently from a more analytical use of language to an exploration of the way in which colour diverts a text from its duty to convey meaning. As a result, language becomes a tool in Bochner's interrogation into how an object, be it a painting, sculpture, mathematical equation, or a complete replacement of the 'object' with language itself, can function as a work of art.


The NianBaDu Town is one of the famous historical and cultural towns named by Zhejiang Provincial Govcrnment for the first batch. It lies in the most southwest of the province and at the juncture of three provinces which are Zhejiang, Fujian and Jiangxi. The site of town is also a key link for transportation from the western Zhejiang to Fujian Province. Meanwhile, the town had been acting as a very important role for military affairs and trade down the ages. Officials and soldiers settled down and merchants gathered there resulted in its increased population. The large quantity of migration formed its unique conglomerate culture. Taking the general social culture of such migration as the point of departure, the essay emphatically studied from the view of cultural anthropological theory on such migration and harmony of the culture, and its primary course to further form a new type of conglomerate culture. Thereby the essay tried to explore and reveal such a regular pattern of regional culture.


Objective To identify the putative CpG-N ODNs in adenovisus 2 DNA (Adv2 DNA) and Adv5 DNA by comparing the sequence difference among Adv2, 5, 12 DNA and E. coli (EC) DNA. Methods Sequences of Adv2, 5, 12 DNA and EC DNA were obtained from the Entrez Nucleotides database at NCBI. The specific CpG motifs of Adv2 DNA and Adv5 DNA were identified after above sequences were analyzed and compared by softwares such as DNATools, BioEdit, and so on. All the 12-ODNs with specific CpG motif core were searched from Adv2 DNA and Adv5 DNA. Results 19 specific CpG motifs were ascertained and 504 12-ODNs were detected in Adv2 DNA end Adv5 DNA. Conclusion 504 12-ODNs were putative CpG-N ODNs in Adv2 DNA and Adv5 DNA.


Developing and designing of instructional video case is the base for case instruction.Real and credible video instructional cases are offered to teachers and students for class practices and study situation,students and teachers joined to analysis education,connotation of the instructional theory.It has positive significance for improving results of instruction and stimulating the creativity of students by video instructional cases application.


s (All abstracts included even those who did not attend) Kevin R. Arrigo Department of Geophysics, Stanford University Iron fertilization of the Southern Ocean: Regional Simulation and Analysis of -sequestration in the Ross Sea C A modified version of the dynamic 3-dimensional mesoscale Coupled Ice, Atmosphere, and Ocean model (CIAO) of the Ross Sea ecosystem has been used to simulate the impact of environmental perturbations upon primary production and biogenic CO2 uptake. The Ross Sea supports two taxonomically, and spatially distinct phytoplankton populations; the haptophyte Phaeocystis antarctica and diatoms. Nutrient utilization ratios predict that P. antarctica and diatoms will be driven to nitrate and phosphate limitation, respectively. Model and field data have confirmed that the Ross Sea is iron limited with only two-thirds of the macronutrients consumed by the phytoplankton by the end of the growing season. In this study, the CIAO model was improved to simulate a third macronutrient (phosphate), dissolved organic carbon, air-sea gas exchange, and the carbonate system. This enabled us to effectively model pCO2 and subsequently oceanic CO2 uptake via gas exchange, allowing investigations into the affect of alleviating iron limitation on both pCO2 and nutrient drawdown. New Additions First, cycling of Fe is treated very simply in the current version of CIAO, with a single bio available Fe pool that is augmented from melting sea ice and mixing of Fe-rich deep waters to the surface. Therefore, we will implement a more complex Fe cycle in CIAO by adding state variables for ligand bound and unbound Fe(II) and Fe(III), as well as the processes of photoreduction, scavenging, and redox reactions (described more thoroughly below). Second, the effectiveness of a Fe-fertilization strategy to sequester carbon depends upon the degree and depth of remineralization within the water column. We will test a number of models of particle flux and remineralization in the Ross Sea and implement these within the framework of CIAO. Models will be tested/developed using high temporal resolution estimates of surface primary production, weekly to monthly resolution sediment trap data from surface (<200 m), intermediate (500 m), and deep waters (1000 m), and vertical profiles of POC, TDIC, DOC, and O2 collected over a number of annual cycles. Finally, large-scale biogeochemical GCMs suggest that nitrification (oxidation of ammonium to nitrate) and denitrification in waters where sinking organic carbon from Fe-stimulated phytoplankton blooms is decomposed can be a significant source of N2O to the atmosphere. In some cases, the radiative heating resulting from the liberation of this potent greenhouse gas can more than offset the impact of a decrease in atmospheric CO2 resulting from Fe-fertilization. More importantly, model results suggest that the impact of Fe-fertilization on N2O emissions is greater when the fertilization is carried over small temporal and spatial scales [Jin and Gruber 2003]. Unfortunately, the resolution of these models precluded evaluation of this effect for fertilized patches smaller than 1 × 10 km,


As technologies develops, our needs can be increase and also it can be change.The invention of new medical equipment's in health care services can help both the patients and the doctors in several ways. In this paper an advanced ubiquitous echograph system is proposed, in such a way that, doctor can diagnoses the patient without seeing them face-to-face in hospital. Patient's having medical devices with advanced features (i.e., readings/outputs of device can be downloaded and transferred to pc) can send the test details to corresponding doctor of hospital, via wireless network. That is patient needs to consult the doctor, in hospital, only when an emergency situation arises. The recent technological innovations make this concept more realistic that is helpful in increasing the easiness of doctor's consulting duties and also decreases the maintenance cost of hospital. Some devices like AccuChek and glucose level checking device are used here to demonstrate my work, since almost all the echograph devices are expensive. A new prototype is embedded into HIS: a Fingerprint Matching System. By using this system, doctor's identification can be done easily, even if their fingers are altered. Since doctors can diagnose patients, even if they are not available in hospital, a valuable recognition system is needed to make ensure that doctor is authentic or not. So the fingerprint matcher is developed in such a way that it can detect any type of altered fingerprint and can matches altered ones to their respective unaltered fingerprint. This proposed paper is even applicable for telemedicine. Index Terms:Fingerprints, obfuscation, alteration, ridge pattern, minutiae distribution,echograph, Hospital Information System (HIS), ubiquitous computing


The study determines the impact of derivative trading on real economic activity of India. Quarterly time series data for the period from 2000 (2) to 2016 (1) was sourced from RBI Hand book of Indian Economy. Result from the decomposition analysis and impulse response function provide support that derivatives markets do not have a significant impact on the level of real economic activity for the Indian economy. Further it is found that Interest rate exposure is not the most important factor promoting derivatives trading, and therefore there is little empirical evidence that derivatives have any significant impact on the effectiveness of monetary policy itself. The fact that derivatives markets do not have any definitive impact on the macro economy means that derivatives should not be seen as a threat to macroeconomic stability or systemic stability


The primary goals of this research were to evaluate the impact of diet supplemented with 25-hydroxyvitamin D3 (Hy・D®) on sow's body condition and reproduction performance. A total of sixteen multiparous sows [(Landrace × Yorkshire), average parity = 3.79 ± 0.32] and their litters were randomly allotted to 2 treatments to give 8 replicates per treatment. Diet treatments were randomized to receive a non-active (ND) or active 25-hydroxyvitamin D3 (AD) diet (0.36 mg cholecalciferol/g) during pregnancy. The results of this experiment were observed at the gestation of d 58 75, d 76 95, d 96 110, and d 111 115. A cornsoybean meal-based diet was formulated to meet or exceed the nutrient requirements recommended by NRC (2012). Results indicated that the sows' farrowing duration was shortened (4.71, 5.38 h), and the average number of mummified fetuses decreased significantly (p < 0.05) in AD treatment compared with ND treatment (0.1, 0.5) while birth weight was significantly (p < 0.05) improved (1.44, 1.18 kg). There were no significant effects on body weight, backfat thickness, and fecal score during the gestation of sows in different phases (p > 0.05). And the total birth, stillbirth, live birth, and survival rates of the litter did not change (p > 0.05). The results of this study suggest that the farrowing duration of sow pigs will be shortened and the number of mummies will be decreased while their litters' body weight may be improved, if fed active 25-hydroxyvitamin D3 (0.36 mg/g) during pregnancy phase.


The overall rate of hip and knee replacements fell by 14% and 24% respectively across all the European countries studied while some nations kept the disruption to a minimum. Germany, for example, only reduced its hip and knee replacement rates by 7% and 11% in 2020 compared with 2019, found the Health at a Glance: Europe 20221 report by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) and European Commission.


This practical article helps you ensure that you've selected the best materials and conditions for your PUA coldbox coremaking process.


Classification and clustering techniques in data mining are useful for a wide variety of real time applications dealing with large amount of data. Some of the applications of data mining are text classification, selective marketing, medical diagnosis, intrusion detection systems. Intrusion detection system are software system for identifying the deviations from the normal behavior and usage of the system. They detect attacks using the data mining techniques classification and clustering algorithms. In this report, I discuss approaches based on classification techniques like naive bayesian classifiers, neural networks and WINNOW based algorithm. Approaches based on clustering techniques like hierarchical and density based clustering have been discussed to emphasize the use of clustering techniques in intrusion detection.


Based on the results of random point process, a new method of calculating the slamming response of marine vehicles is presented. The new method is established without employing the assumption that a slamming impulse is equivalent to the resultant of the slamming pressure. By using both the new and old methods, the slamming moment response of a containership in four different sea conditions are calculated. The results show that the new method is not only reasonable but also feasible in practical use.


The characterization of frequency stability in the time domain and frequency domain are briefly defined and their relationships explained. Techniques for making precise measurements of frequency fluctuations in oscillators, multipliers, dividers, amplifiers, and other components are discussed. Particular attention is given to methods of calibration which permit accuracies of 1 dB or better to be achieved when measuring in the frequency domain. Common pitfalls to avoid are also covered, and efficient time-domain techniques are explained.


Renal sinus lipomatosis is a rare entity where there is abnormal proliferation of sinus fat. Fat proliferation can also occur in perinephric and periureteric regions. It is a benign condition which does not give rise to symptoms or any renal impairment. However, severe form of this condition, i.e. renal replacement lipomatosis, leads to atrophy of renal parenchyma, thereby leading to impairment of renal functions. Here, we report a case of renal sinus lipomatosis in a transplanted kidney, which is even rarer and has been reported in less than 10 previously reported cases in the English literature.


p-Nitrobenzyl 7-oxo-1-azabicyclo[3.2.0]hept-2-ene-2-carboxylate (1) participated in Diels–Alder and 1,3-dipolar cycloaddition reactions, yielding a range of novel polycyclic azetidinone structures. The two 8-oxo-1-azatricyclo [4.2.0.02,4]octane-2-carboxylates (21) and (24) were prepared, and their cyclopropane stereochemistries assigned using nuclear Overhauser difference spectroscopy. Sodium (1′RS,2SR,4RS,6RS,7SR)-7-(1-hydroxyethyl)-8-oxo-l-azatricyclo[22.214.171.124.2,4]octane-2-carboxylate (37) was synthesised from compound (1)via p-nitrobenzyl (1′RS,5RS,6SR)-6-[1-(p-nitrobenzyloxycarbonyloxy)ethyl]-7-oxo-1-azabicyclo[3.2.0]hept-2-ene-2-carboxylate (32).


The invention provides a novel water flooding layer logging evaluation method applying a three parameters self-consistent iterative algorithm. The method comprises the following steps: confirming the logging identifying standard of the water flooding levels according to the relationship of the known water flooding levels and the logging response, preliminarily distinguishing the water flooding level of the evaluation layer according to the standard, then valuing a water out flow rate according to the water flooding level, taking the water out flow rate, the water saturation and the mixture formation water resistivity as iterative variable, taking two statistics relationship of the water saturation and the water out flow rate, and the mixture formation water resistivity and the water out flow rate as iterative computation relations, taking the permissible deviation of the two front and back times of calculating water content as the iterative control conditions to carry out the iterative computation, and confirming the parameters of water content, mixture formation water resistivity and the water saturation of the target layer and the final water flooding level according to the final calculating result of the iterative computations.


We examine factors that affect the impact of co-promotion coupons on consumers' usage intention. Using schema theory, we suggest that consumers may evaluate co-promotion coupons in the context of a given usage situation, e.g., Thanksgiving dinner. We propose that the effectiveness of a co-promotion will be a function of two aspects of the promoted product categories: 1) centrality, which refers to importance; and 2) distinctiveness, which refers to uniqueness. We predict an interaction effect such that when centrality of one of the co-promotion partners is low, higher distinctiveness will enhance usage intentions. Support for our predictions is found in an experimental study that manipulates centrality and distinctiveness.


PRISMA is a resource-oriented publish/subscribe middleware for WSN, which the main goals are to provide: (i) programming abstraction through the use of REpresentational State Transfer (REST) interfaces, (ii) services, encompassing asynchronous communication, resource discovery and topology control, (iii) runtime support through the creation, configuration, and execution of new applications in WSN, and (iv) QoS mechanisms to meet applications constraints. This paper describes PRISMA architecture, its implementation in the Arduino platform, and a preliminary evaluation.


In this paper, we propose a new concept of rigidity, named weak rigidity, using distance and subtended-angle constraints. The classical rigidity of formation is used in the field of distance-based formation control as a fundamental tool to guarantee a locally unique formation shape with given inter-agent distances. We assume that there are some angle constraints in addition to the existing distance constraints. Then the formation could result in a rigid formation shape even if it is not rigid in the viewpoint of classical rigidity. Weak rigidity distinguishes whether the formation with additional angle constraints can maintain its shape. Relation between classical rigidity and weak rigidity is addressed and used to derive some useful results.


Stable and neutral polybithiophene (PbT) thin layers with well-defined morphology and a high degree of smoothness have been prepared by electropolymerization of 2,2′-bithiophene. This semiconducting contact layer on an ITO anode improves remarkably hole injection between ITO and the naphthyl-substituted benzidine derivative (NPB) hole-transport layer. Vapor-deposited NPB/Alq3 bilayer devices with the incorporated injection layer show a sharp reduction of the operating voltage (about 4 V), as well as an enhanced luminous efficiency and luminance, compared to the NPB/Alq3 structure without a PbT layer. It is demonstrated that the use of an electropolymerization step in the production of vapor-deposited small molecular OLEDs is an alternative approach to improve the performance of OLEDs.


In vegetable production, especially in mustard, farmers in Indonesia are still using manual technology to maintain. With the technological advances of this century, known for a term of 4.0 that spawned the industrial revolution IoT (Internet of Things) as a solution to facilitate the work of farmers in the cultivation of plants. One form IOT use in agriculture is the Smart irrigation system with automatic sprinklers. This study aims to determine the effect of watering conventional models, sprinkle manual and automatic sprinkler-based microcontroller, and IOT (Internet of Things) on the growth, yield and quality pakcoy mustard plant (Brassica chinensis L). The experiments were conducted using a randomized block design (RAK) is simple with the treatment as a group. The factor used is the watering models with three levels with the hype that is watering, watering sprinkler watering the manual and automatic sprinkler-based microcontroller and IoT (Internet of Things). Each treatment was replicated eight times, and each test contains four plants. parameters measured were plant height, leaf number, leaf area, root length, plant fresh weight, dry weight of plant, texture, chlorophyll and carotenoids, total dissolved solids, vitamin C and water content. This study shows that there is no real consequence effect treatment watering models on all parameters observed. This means that the use of controlled sprinkle with IoT is not much different from the conventional way. The selection of a good sprinkler able to provide water evenly distribution of the mustard plant and IoT (Internet of Things) serves as the sprinkler controller.


A drainage channel system is constructed from one-piece plastics channel liner sections 2. Each section 2 defines a pipe portion 4 and upstanding projections 6 which terminate in a common horizontal plane. The projections 6 are sized and spaced such that conventional concrete reinforcing mesh 60 may be installed. Internal shaping (50, figs. 8 and 9) may be employed to induce swirl in the drainage water and thereby facilitate the channel's self-cleaning tendencies. Crack inducer boards 30 are fitted around the channel liner section 2 in order to encourage the concrete slab surrounding the channel liner section 2 to crack at controlled intervals. Steel bar formed into hoops (22, fig 1) act as crack-stopping members. These are supported on longitudinal bars (24, fig 1). The liner 2 is installed in a trench, with the reinforcing mesh 60. The trench is then back-filled with concrete. After curing, the tops of the projections 6 are opened by cutting out their closed-off tops.


Ultraviolet (UV) irradiation can damage the lens and over the lifetime of the individual contributes to the development of age-related cataract. Cataracts occur in all species, becoming evident by the average age of 65 years in humans, 6 years in dogs, and 15 years in horses (C. M. H. Colitz, personal observation). Cataracts are characterized by protein aggregation, tissue hydration, phase separation of molecular components, breakdown of cell membranes, and changes in cytoskeletal structure. Because humans require exceptional vision for work and leisure-related activities, cataracts in this species receive the most attention in the literature. Like humans, domestic animals are also living longer due to better medical care. Thus, cataracts are now commonly seen by veterinarians and veterinary ophthalmologists. This article briefly reviews normal lens physiology, the mechanisms by which UV irradiation cause protein and DNA damage, and the means by which the lens attempts to protect itself from such damage.


Finite element analysis and model experiments of mechanical behavior on the cross steel frame node were performed under the design load combination,the development processes of strain,stress and deformation were described,and the comparison of the test and the finite element analysis was carried out.On the base of them,some suggestions about designing,manufacturing,hoisting and monitoring of the cross steel frame node are proposed.


Mass Spectrometry-based phosphoproteomics tools are critical to understand the structure and dynamics of signalling that engages and migrates through the entire proteome. Approaches such as affinity purification followed by Mass Spectrometry (MS) have been used to elucidate relevant biological questions in health and disease. Thousands of proteins interact via physical and chemical association. Certain proteins can covalently modify other proteins post-translationally. These post-translational modifications (PTMs) ultimately give rise to the emergent functions of cells in sequence, space and time.
Understanding the functions of phosphorylated proteins thus requires one to study proteomes as linked-systems rather than collections of individual protein molecules.
The interacting proteome or protein-network knowledge has recently received much attention, as networksystems (signalling pathways) are effective snapshots in time of the proteome as a whole. MS approaches are clearly essential, in spite of the difficulties of some low abundance proteins (e.g some kinases).


An integrated monocrystalline silicon tactile-array sensor is introduced,having 100 taticle-units.Chip's dimensions: 25*#mm×25*#mm,thickness is less than 10*#mm.Having been combined with CMOS and simiconductor planar technology and by using MEMS technology, points that are force-sensitive to the objects that they contact are made in each tactile-unit;test and record is completed by computer.


Europe and the United Kingdom (UK) are at the forefront of Asset Management for water utilities. This is primarily due to the fact of privatization of water utilities in the UK. The UK is currently in the third generation of the Asset Management procedures and has well defined methods for identifying and managing assets. In the United Kingdom (UK), large scale Asset Management has been practiced for approximately 20 years when computer modeling and pipe inspection techniques allowed the current performance and impact of potential improvements to water or sewerage networks to be evaluated for whole systems. As the industry understanding of the asset base has grown in the UK, so has the variety and application of risk based techniques to aid investment decisions on rehabilitation and replacement decisions. Asset Management and associated risk based techniques are now considered to be standard business practice for utility infrastructure owners and engineers and are well entrenched in the utility infrastructure culture. In the UK, Asset Management practices have contributed to significant savings in capital expenditure through the efficient identification of far more selective work programs, and moreover, have resulted in a savings in operational cost, a consequence of which staff levels have dropped by some 25% over a decade. Several asset management techniques employing risk elements are within the toolkit of most UK water companies and which help to inform decision support for investment prioritization of critical or vulnerable water supply assets such as trunk mains, protection against raw water contamination, dam safety, environmental protection, capital maintenance and plant reliability and selection. In the United States (US), it is a different story. There are a number of forms that Asset Management takes in the US including SSES Programs, Infiltration / Reduction Programs, Capital Improvement Programs and CMOM, flow monitoring, SCADA Systems, etc., but very few public utility infrastructure owners have a true Asset Management Program in place. Furthermore, Risk Assessment as used in the UK is now only beginning to be understood and used in the US. The Risk Assessment in the US is done in terms of Criticality of the system components and the effects it will have on the users and public in general should the component of the system go off line. In the US, Risk Assessment is generally not used for investment decisions when it comes to Capital Improvement Programs, but is beginning to be used in the Operations and Maintenance


The current method to derive livestock diets is to optimize cost performance subject to animal performance and resulting nutritional requirements via a linear programming model. In contrast, we examine the livestock diet formulation problem as a multi-criteria decision model with the criteria being cost performance, feed efficiency, and environmental compliance costs. We find that there are many situations where farm financial situations are improved by feeding products with higher costs per unit of protein but lower phosphorus levels.


With the aid of BPM(Bonded-particle model),the discrete element models of SiC ceramics matrix and carbon fiber were set up and calibrated separately by the discrete element method(DEM).The bilinear cohesive law of interface element damage in interlayer and on matrix/fiber interface was characterized using displacement-softening contact models,and then calibrated by DCB test(Double cantilever beam virtual test) and microbond test,respectively.Plastic deformation,crac-king growth situation and dynamic processes of interface debonding were observed in these simulation tests.The results show that the displacement-softening contact model could characterize interfacial damage process nicely,and discrete element method could simulate dynamic damage process for more complex composite materials admirably.


Background: A small part of our body, Heel is bearing the entire body weight and also helping in transfers. For this function to be carried out without any difficulty or discomfort, it demands multiple factors to be in proper alignment, good strength, coordinated and to be fit enough with all its properties. Under uneven conditions it may undergo suffering. Ten percent of these people experiencing pain under the heel (plantar heel pain) are approaching or else referred to physiotherapy clinics. Injections, insoles, heel pads, strapping and surgery have been common forms of treatment given. With the wide intervention options available for treating this condition, there is always a doubt in finding out the best. The absolute and relative effectiveness of these interventions are not understood clearly in individuals with heel pain. Objective: The aim of this prospective study was to compare Acetic Acid Iontophoroesis (AAI) treatment with that of Ultrasound therapy along with high heel usage (USHH) on heel pain and functional outcomes.


The adhered mortars in recycled aggregates (RA) may lower the performance of the concrete, by for instance reducing its strength and durability, and by cracking. In the present study, the effect of nylon fiber (NF) on the permeability as well as on the mechanical properties of concrete incorporating 100% RA was experimentally investigated. Concrete was produced by adding 0, 0.6 and 1.2 kg/m3 of NF and then cured in water for a predetermined period. Measurements of compressive and split tensile strengths, ultrasonic pulse velocity and total charge passed through concrete were carried out, and the corresponding test results were compared to those of concrete incorporating crushed stone aggregate (CA). In addition, the microstructures of 28-day concretes were examined by using the FE-SEM technique. The test results indicated that recycled coarse aggregate concrete (RAC) showed a lower performance than crushed stone aggregate concrete (CAC) because of the adhered mortars in RA. However, it was obvious that the addition of NF in RAC mixes was much more effective in enhancing the performance of the concretes due to the crack bridging effect from NF. In particular, a high content of NF (1.2 kg/m3) led to a beneficial effect on concrete properties compared to a low content of NF (0.6 kg/m3) with respect to mechanical properties and permeability, especially for RAC mixes.


Archives have a role as a memory center, as a source of information, and as an indispensable monitoring tool in every organization. This study aims to determine the effectiveness of archive management at the Office of the Education Quality Assurance Agency/Lembaga Penjaminan Mutu Pendidikan (LPMP) of South Sulawesi Province. To achieve this goal, the researchers set 5 (five) informants with the type of research and the approach used was descriptive qualitative. The data collection used was through observation, interview, and documentation techniques. The results showed that the Archives Management at the Office of the Education Quality Assurance Institution/Lembaga Penjaminan Mutu Pendidikan (LPMP) of South Sulawesi Province, was in the effective category, in terms of several indicators of archive management, namely the creation of archives where archives can be created both externally and internally, archive storage is carried out manually using a numbering system and is also carried out digitally, archive maintenance where archives are placed in archival cabinets and archive shrinkage. The results of this study are expected to be used as reference material at the Provincial level institutions because previous research has focused on Regency level institutions


Gut dysbiosis is generally associated with type 2 diabetes mellitus. However, the effect of habitual dietary intake on gut dysbiosis in Japanese patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus has not yet been explicated. This study investigated whether alteration of the gut microbiota was influenced by dietary intake of sucrose in Japanese patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus.


Eskom Transmission Division (ETD) is being forced to rethink its business development strategies, in order to deal with rapid technological, capital and social changes. As a result, there is a high need for contract managers to learn to procure goods and services effectively and efficiently. Subsequently, the capabilities and skills of buyers, and in particular contract managers, need to reflect Eskom's challenges faced in delivering on South Africa's developmental needs for affordable electrification. Because of the complex nature of contract management, it is required that a detailed and carefully written contract management framework that defines the commercial supplier relationship, contract management aspects of the results and the desired behaviour of the contracting parties, be established beforehand. Therefore, there needs to be greater emphasis on structuring and delivering of procurement training in the future, as contract managers will need to have skills to be able to work within a cross functional team, be strategic thinkers, and manage supplier base and relationships. A variety of methods can be used to implement training and they range from formal education, coaching, on job training and intemet training. The ETD senior managers need to monitor the performance of the contract managers wants the training methods have been introduced to identify the gaps. The aim is for this contract management framework to provide intangible elements of quality cost to enable contract managers to perform strategic sourcing in order to be innovative in their decision making. The contract management framework will focus on identifying and discussing strategic ideas that will enhance and improve the effectiveness of contract management at ETD. Contract managers need to be trained to enhance and update their skills. The training should focuses on: • Total cost of ownership in selecting the suppliers rather than concentrating on price only, • Reducing their supplier base and building strategic relationship with their suppliers, • Formation of formal cross functional teams, • Formation and management of supplier relationships, A Proposed Contract Management Framework for Eskom Transmission Division (ETD) By Thembisile Khomo


In plant-insect interaction experiments, a clip cage is frequently used to isolate insects or other small pests on a leaf. Clip cage effects on the physiology of the leaf could possibly confound experimental results. Our objective was to quantitate the effects of an insect clip cage of the type typically used for small pests such as whiteflies (Bemisia sp.), aphids (Aphis sp.) and mites (Urticae sp.) on the photosynthetic traits of cotton (Gossypium hirsutum L. cv. Coker 100A-glandless) and muskmelon (Cucumis melo L. cv. Imperial 45) leaves. Clip cages that enclosed 11.3 cm 2 of both the abaxial and adaxial sides of a leaf were attached to young fully expanded leaves. For the leaf tissue within the clip cage, incident radiation was decreased and leaf temperature was increased. After 24 h, chlorophyll content of tissue within the clip cage was significantly increased compared with noncaged-control samples taken from the opposite half of the same leaf. Three days after clip cages were attached to leaves, compared with controls, the tissue within the cage had a lower light-saturated, steady-state CO 2 exchange rate (CER) and leaf soluble protein content. The cage effect on CER and soluble protein could be explained, at least in part, by decreased light-saturated initial Rubisco activity for leaf tissue within the clip cage. We conclude that the clip cages caused physiological and biochemical alterations of leaves that could alter insect nutrition. Thus, it is suggested that clip cage effects on leaf physiology and microenvironment must be considered when interpreting results of plant-insect interaction experiments.


This report concerns itself with the radial magnetic gradient of the Bevatron, a weak-focusing proton synchrotron. The effects of pole-tip configuration, eddy currents, and residual field upon the radial extent of useable magnetic field are discu.ssed. Analytical treatments are given of the perturbing field required to change the radial gradient at any point, the field distribution resulting from an excited pair of windings, and the current distribution required to yield a given field distribution. Three methods of exciting pole-face winding are discussed comparatively.


During the transition between administrations and the first few months of the Obama presidency, there has been a lot of talk — in Washington think tanks, universities and the foreign policy blogosphere — about how democracy assistance policy will be different in the new administration. The assumption for many was that the Bush administration had, if not started democracy assistance policies, then taken them to a new level of intensity which would be scaled back by a less ideological and more multilateral Obama presidency.


With MapGIS6.6 as the platform,the management information system for conversion of cropland to forest at the county level(CFMIS) is developed.Based on the policies,management regulations and workflow of the project for conversion of cropland to forest at the county level,ten major management modules are developed in CFMIS,which are the plan,design,card,checking,cashing,policy,inquity and statistics,graphic compiling,data exchange and system setting.In CFMIS,multilayer system framework,subassembly design idea,flow operation disposal and arrangement development method are adopted.Moreover,flowing module planning,formatting card management,free inquity and statistics,and strict authorization control are also considered.With the CFMIS,project management efficiency at county level can be improved effectively.Furthermore,scientific references can be provided for the decision makers.


The effectiveness of a new design of glass eel, Anguilla anguilla (L.), fishing trap was tested in the Ebro River delta fishery (Eastern Mediterranean, Spain). The modified fishing trap incorporated a by-catch reduction device (BRD) to increase trap selectivity and minimise by-catch of non-targeted fish, without affecting glass eel captures. The BRD is inexpensive and easy to implement, consisting of a cylinder covered with a rigid square-mesh of 2.0–2.4 mm knot-to-knot, which is easily fitted to the fishing trap entrance. Testing of the BRD was made by paired comparisons between captures of targeted and non-targeted fish species from both conventional and BRD-modified traps. The use of a BRD in the glass eel traps resulted in a 68.9% reduction in the number of captured non-targeted fish specimens, while it did not reduce glass eel yields. The BRD implementation was fully effective for all species and individuals with sizes >40 mm total length, with the exception of the black-striped pipefish, Syngnathus abaster Risso. These results support the implementation of the BRD in glass eel fisheries along the Eastern coast of the Iberian Peninsula where these fishing traps are used.


Primary biliary cirrhosis is a condition in which cholestasis in the intrahepatic biliary system leads to destruction, fibrosis and finally cirrhosis. The etiology is as yet unknown. Patients with this disease are usually women, aged between 50 and 55 years and suffering from itching and fatigue. Slightly elevated markers of cholestasis and transaminases, antimitochondrial antibody positivity (especially to M2) and liver biopsy are essential for the diagnosis. Antimitochondrial antibody-M2 is positive in 95% of patients with primary biliary cirrhosis and negative in only 5%. Liver biopsy is mandatory for the diagnosis of patients negative for antimitochondrial antibody-M2. We decribe the case of a female patient with slightly elevated liver function tests and negative antimitochondrial antibody M2, who was diagnosed as primary biliary cirrhosis on the basis of liver biopsy results, which emphasises the importance of this test in diagnosis


The objective of this study was to determine changing on some agronomic properties of local pea population collected from Turkiye in the ecological conditions of Samsun. The materials for this study consisted of landraces of the common pea collected from different districts of Samsun and had been brought from the Department of Plant Genetic Resources at the Aegean Agricultural Research Institute. Seeds of collected 40 samples were sown in November 2004 in experimental areas of campus of Ondokuz Mayıs University. To establish general situation of pea population, frequency distributions of some agronomic properties were established by using all observation values from each samples. It was observed that seed yield of a plant varied between 5.3-30 g. The largest groups with % 26.08 was plants that having yields between 14-16 g. One hundred seed weight in the study population varied between 10.26 -36.36 g. The seed weight of % 2.17 of population was between 35.838.9 g and this highest group in the populations. Pods per plants varied between 7-87 in this population. It was determined that these population can be used in cultivar improvement program and breeding studies for both fresh consumption and forage and in hybridization programme aimed at improvement some properties of registered varieties.


Improved pain control in children can be achieved with patient-controlled analgesia pumps, continuous opioid infusions, continuous epidural infusions, and topical analgesic agents. Patient-controlled analgesia pumps now permit children as young as 7 years and, in selected cases, as young as 5 years, to adjust their pain medications to their individual needs through this computer-programmed device. A continuous infusion of opioids, primarily morphine, provides excellent pain relief to younger children and those otherwise unable to use a patient-controlled analgesia pump. These infusions maintain a steady level of pain relief and eliminate oversedation immediately after an intravenous dose and inadequate pain relief before the next injection. Epidural analgesia has proved to be a safe adjunctive measure to decrease general anesthetic requirements and provide postoperative pain relief for children undergoing a wide range of major surgical procedures. Catheters can be placed in the epidural space by the caudal (sacral), lumbar, or thoracic routes after the initiation of general anesthesia, to provide excellent postoperative pain relief with less of the sedating and respiratory depressant effects of systemic narcotics. Long-acting local anesthetics such as bupivacaine hydrochloride with or without concomitant opioids can be used in concentrations low enough to minimize motor dysfunction and yet provide effective pain relief. Topical anesthetics such as EMLA (a eutectic mixture of prilocaine hydrochloride and lidocaine) are effective through intact skin and can greatly diminish the pain associated with painful procedures commonly done on children, such as venipunctures, intravenous cannulation, and spinal taps. Although used extensively in Europe, EMLA has just recently received approval by the Food and Drug Administration and is now available in the United States. Chronic or recurrent pain in children (such as headaches and abdominal pain) is often managed by a multidisciplinary approach combining physical therapy, transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation, relaxation, biofeedback, life-style alterations, stress management, supportive counseling, and the judicious use of medications. Neuropathic pain syndromes, including phantom limb pain and reflex sympathetic dystrophy, can be disabling and are often refractory to standard orthopedic treatments. Reflex sympathetic dystrophy, most common in female adolescent athletes, involves a pattern of intense pain to touch and sympathetically mediated hypoperfusion in an area of earlier injury. Physical and psychological therapy may be helpful along with low doses of tricyclic antidepressants that have shown particular efficacy in treating certain types of neuropathic pain in adults. When these measures prove ineffective, sympathetic nerve blocks can be done to provide pain relief, often with long-lasting results. With the many new, safe, and effective methods to provide pain relief to children, it has become easier in the past few years to make children more comfortable during and after necessary medical procedures. Neuropathic pain syndromes continue to provide an important challenge to health care professionals and will most likely be a major topic of pain research for years to come. CONSTANCE S. HOUCK, MD CHARLES BERDE, MD, PhD Boston, Massachusetts


In this paper, two model reference adaptive control strategy including MIT rule and Lyapunov rule are used to design iterative learning controllers for a chemical-reactor system with uncertain parameters, initial output resetting error and input disturbance. The learning controller compensates for the unknown parameters, uncertainties, and nonlinearity using adaptation law which updates control parameters. It is shown that the internal signals remain bounded if we use a Lyapunov base algorithm, but the algorithm via MIT rule can!t guarantee the stability of system in all conditions. The output tracking error will converge to a profile which can be tuned by design parameters and the convergence speed is improved if the adaptation gain is large. The proposed control algorithm was simulated using MATLAB / Simulink software package to validate the performance of designed algorithm.


Wood and wood-based materials are widely used in the construction industry in the world. The sustainable and renewable nature of wood is seen as an important advantage in contrast to non-renewable resources such as aluminum, steel, concrete, and plastic. In order to protect the advantages of wood and eliminate / reduce its disadvantages, plywood, particle board, fiber board, LVL, CLT, wood plastic composites etc. such as new wood-based engineering products are produced. Plywoods are widely used in automotive, construction, furniture, and many industries. In our country, plywoods are produced using tropical species as well as native tree species. In this study, density, water absorption, thickness swelling, bending resistance, elasticity of modulus in bending and shear strength values of plywood made of beech, okoume and ozigo wood species are investigated. Comparison of plywood produced from tropical species with beech has been made. It has been determined that beech plywood has higher density than okoume and ozigo plywood. It has been determined that beech plywood has higher density than okoume and ozigo plywood. It has been observed that there is a linear relationship between the bending strength, elasticity modulus and shear strength values of beech plywood and their full dry density.


This paper presents the design, manufacture and characterization results of two optical interference filters to be used in the Lightning Imager (LI) optical head on the Meteosat Third Generation (MTG) mission. The first optical filter is a Solar Rejection Window (SRW) to limit the solar thermal radiation absorbed by the optical head while the second optical filter is a Narrow Band Filter (NBF) intended to only pass the lightning discharge emission wavelengths. Each filter has its own distinctive design considerations and manufacturing challenges. The SRW must pass wavelengths from the 760 to 780 nm spectral range and reject (block) wavelengths from the ultraviolet (UV) to the mid-wave infrared (MWIR) and up to 16.3° angle of incidence (AOI) and over a large temperature range (as when exposed to direct sunlight). The NBF is designed to pass only the oxygen emission triplet, centered around the 777.6 nm (vacuum) wavelength and rejecting other wavelengths. Considering the AOI of the light and the temperature excursion, the center wavelength (CWL) uniformity has to be better than 0.04% peak-to-valley (PV) over the 114 mm diameter clear aperture, which is a formidable challenge. We achieved a coating thickness uniformity less than ±0.01% PV, exceeding the prescribed specification. Post-deposition annealing was carried out to tune the bandpass to within pico-meters (pm) of the target CWL value while maintaining the desired CWL uniformity. To ensure that both the SRW and NBF filter meet the desired optical and physical specifications, a comprehensive series of optical and physical characterization tests, along with durability tests, were carried out on each deposition batch.


This report describes a bilateral EURAMET supplementary comparison on Rockwell hardness scales of two national metrology institutes of Italy and Turkey, INRiM and UME, respectively. The pilot laboratory is INRiM in the comparison where three sets of hardness reference blocks for the Rockwell hardness scales of HRA, HRBW and HRC were used. Each set of blocks consists of four hardness reference blocks for HRA and HRBW and five blocks for HRC hardness scales. The comparison was realized as planned in the Technical Protocol with some delay. The measurement results and uncertainty assessments declared by INRiM and UME are in consistency with each other. Main text To reach the main text of this paper, click on Final Report. Note that this text is that which appears in Appendix B of the BIPM key comparison database kcdb.bipm.org/. The final report has been peer-reviewed and approved for publication by the CCM, according to the provisions of the CIPM Mutual Recognition Arrangement (CIPM MRA).


Information for non-cyanide copper plating processes,including nickel pre-plating,acidic copper pre-plating,copper immersion,pyrophosphate copper plating,HEDP(1-hydroxyethylidene-1,1-diphosphonic acid) bath copper plating,ethylenediamine bath copper plating,EDTA bath copper plating,cuprous ions bath copper plating and citrate/tartrate bath copper plating,were introduced,and characteristics of the above processes were stated.Problems need to be considered and solved in citrate/tartrate bath copper plating were also proposed.


Artificial intelligence presents an optimized alternative by performing problem-solving knowledge and problem-solving processes under specific conditions. This makes it possible to creatively examine various design alternatives under conditions that satisfy the functional requirements of the building. In this study, in order to develop architectural design automation technology using artificial intelligence, the characteristics of an architectural drawings, that is, the architectural elements and the composition of spaces expressed in the drawings, were learned, recognized, and inferred through deep learning. The biggest problem in applying deep learning in the field of architectural design is that the amount of publicly disclosed data is absolutely insufficient and that the publicly disclosed data also haves a wide variety of forms. Using the technology proposed in this study, it is possible to quickly and easily create labeling images of drawings, so it is expected that a large amount of data sets that can be used for deep learning for the automatic recommendation of architectural design or automatic 3D modeling can be obtained. This will be the basis for architectural design technology using artificial intelligence in the future, as it can propose an architectural plan that meets specific circumstances or requirements.


Supply chains, always, face increased uncertainty in demand. For that reason, inventory control presents a critical issue of supply chain management. Controlling inventories with proper policies can enhance customer service levels, smooth production plans, and reduce operation costs. In this paper, a framework is suggested for evaluating and comparing different types of inventory control policies. Four distinct inventory control policies are discussed and modeled. Different types of measures are used to evaluate the performance of the supply chains which implement these inventory control policies; performance measures used are; fill rate, as an example of desired measures (to be increased), and inventory level, as an example of undesired measures (to be decreased). A framework for evaluating and comparing the overall performance of the inventory policy is developed and applied. A discrete event simulation with ARENA simulation package is used for developing a simplified supply chain model consists of two echelons, with one supplier that prepares and supplies raw materials to a production/inventory system, which has two different inventories, one for supplied raw materials, and the other for finished products. A numerical example is provided to illustrate the applicability of the developed framework. The applied numerical example clarified the ability of the evaluation framework to deal with different types of inventory control policies, and different practice scenarios.


Abstract : Equations for the evaluation of the concentration dependence of the coefficient of viscosity and the surface tension of the 3-component water-ethanol-n-butanol system at 10-80C were derived and the values compared with experimental data. The mean deviation of the calculated values from the empirical data did not exceed 5 percent. (Author)


A short while ago, a valued customer came into our shop in Santa Fe to have her pet Green-winged Macaw's wings trimmed. She told me a frightening story. It seems she had been to visit a local veterinarian to request the same grooming service. While spreading her well-behaved macaw's wing for the simple task, he had advised her, "If I merely clip your pet's flight feathers, they will grow out again shortly and it will cost you to have her redipped. I would recommend pulling out the flight feathers instead. That will effectively ground her." Fortunately, our customer, who also owns a Yellow-naped Amazon, a Blue-fronted Amazon and an African Gray Parrot, was intelligent enough to realize the unsoundness of this advice and replied with a firm "no". Yet, it was with frustration that I added this tale to my growing list of parrot grooming misdemeanors. The field of psittacine grooming is strewn with strong opinions, hazards and practices which border on the inhumane. Take the common wing trim, for instance. In many cases, a baby bird still in the midst of its hand-feeding stage is clipped by the breeder or pet shop prior to sending it off with a new owner. Or, the instant a young fledgling takes off on its first wobbly crash flight out of the holding tub, the owner will rush to get the scissors and clip flight feathers for the baby's "safety." Stop a moment and think what this means. A fledgling psittacine is denied his full wingspan during the earliest developmental stage of his normal bird behavior. Why, I have known ten-, twelve- or fifte e n-year-old parrots which have never flown. Needless to say, they have not learned the more important lessons of landing, either! Ever wonder why your hookbill pet walks everywhere? Wonder why he leans forward with "begging wings" to be picked up from only eight inches away? Wonder why you cannot get him off that out-of-reach perch or down from the tree he has climbed into? He's terrified, that's why. Look to his fledgling training and you will likely discover the answers. Early wing clip. No training. Psittacine fledglings left with their full wing span will quickly learn control. Especially important are the weeks prior to weaning when baby fat is lost and an immense wing span to body mass ratio results. Full muscular development has not taken place; that comes with normal flight activity.


Abstract
Background: Hypertension is an important public health problem, which is prevalent and asymptomatic, with modifiable and
preventable risk factors. Afghanistan is suffering from double burden of diseases including communicable and noncommunicable
diseases (NCDs). The present study aimed at identifying hypertension and determining its factors among the adult population in
city of Kandahar in Afghanistan.
Methods: This cross- sectional study was conducted using WHO STEPwise tool, a WHO standardized tool for risk factors of (NCDs)
in urban locality, in city of Kandahar during October and November 2015. The study used a random sample of 1165 adults aged 25
to 70 years. Data were collected using a structured questionnaire for assessing noncommunicable diseases and their risk factors.
Fasting venous blood samples were collected to assess the lipid profile and fasting blood sugar. Anthropometric measurements of
the participants were also taken. Data were analyzed using SPSS Version 20.
Results: Out of all respondents, 597 (51.2%) were females and 568 (48.8%) were males, with a mean age of 38.3 � 11.2 years. Around
two thirds of the participants (73.2%) were illiterate, 9.7% smokers, and 16.3% mouth snuff users. Of the respondents, 60% consumed
fruits 3 days or less than a week and 60% consumed vegetables more than 3 days per week. Moreover, almost 6% of the respondents
practiced vigorous physical activity and 21.3% reported doing moderate physical activity, and one third (32.2%) of the respondents
had high blood pressure. The results of multivariate analysis revealed that the independent risk factors associated with hypertension
were age, gender, education status, highbodymassindex, central obesity, andphysical inactivity with respect to reclining hours
per day.
Conclusions: One third of the adult population in the urban setting of Kandahar is suffering from hypertension. Thus, it is highly
recommended to focus on interventions to prevent and control noncommunicable diseases.


In many provinces of Mekong delta, excessive groundwater extraction has resulted in many serious groundwater-related problems. To solve problems relevant to increasing water demand as well as other negative influence of groundwater depletion, an exigent question was raised whether at what time in future is the limits to local groundwater use reached? Hence, there is a need to know groundwater use (GWU) pattern and distribution in the study area for future groundwater management. In this study, firstly, the study used socio-economic data of Tra Vinh Province to classify groups of gross domestic product (GDP) per capita, potential of water resources and population distributed in each district in order to design and conduct the socio-economic survey and to explore information relevant to GWU for each purpose. Secondly, the data set of 419 survey questionnaires per 9 surveyed communes were analysed by SPSS tool to estimate ratio of household using groundwater (RHHUG) for each purpose as well as average pumping rate (APR) per household for domestic use and per ha for agriculture use, respectively. Thirdly, the APRs were extended to propose the total GWU pattern and distribution during 2007-2016 by using socioeconomic data of the province and expand to spatial distribution by using correlation with land surface temperature (LST) which was estimated from Landsat 8 images. Besides, the groundwater flow model of the study area was developed to verify the estimated amount of groundwater pumping (pattern and distribution) in the period. The study found that the GWU of Tra Vinh Province in dry season of 2016 was 346,279 m3/d in which two coastal districts occupied more than 50 percentages, i.e., about 188,551 m3/d. RHHUG increased from 1.5 to 2 times during the period of 2007 to 2016 in this area. LST distribution performed a good correlation (adj-R2 = 0.646) with GWU distribution in Tra Cu district. Results of groundwater modelling also showed that the discharge from aquifer (mainly pumping) was always higher than the recharge to aquifer.


In field trials of six years (2009-14) the influence of weather parameters on groundnut (The varieties: TMV-2, JL-24, K-134 and C-2) under varied sowing environments (July as normal sowing and August as late sowing months) was studied at Bengaluru, Karnataka in alfisols. Rainy days (RD), bright sun shine hours (BSS), total pan evaporation (EVP. in mm), growing degree days (GDD) and rainfall, the cumulative of all measured during crop period were found to influence significantly the growth and yield of ground nut in alfisols across the genotypes. Whereas, potential evapo-transpiration (PET) and length of growing period (LGP) during the cropping period did not show such significant influence. For achieving maximum yield, the optimum value of annual rainfall from the fitted quadratic curves, was found to be 650 mm. BSS, pan evaporation and GDD during the cropping period showed negative correlation with pod yield. Among the 11 multiple linear regression models established, model III was found to be the most reliable in judging the yield potential of groundnut in alfisols of southern Karnataka (Pod yield in kg/ha = -3058.24**+ 6.55 (RD) -2.01 ** (SSH) + 3.98* (GDD) -6.25 (evaporation in mm) + 8.01** (PET) -21.98** (LGP) + 3.38 ** (LAD) with R2 value of 0.86**. Model IV and XI were effective in predicting the yield (R2 =0.86**& 0.60**, respectively), however of the second order.


This paper documents evidence that financial constraints increase firms' toxic emissions given that firms actively trade off abatement costs against potential legal liabilities. Exploring three quasi-natural experiments in which firms' financial resources are likely exogenously affected, we find that relaxing financial constraints reduces U.S. public firms' toxic releases. The effects of financial constraints on toxic releases are amplified when regulatory enforcement and external monitoring weaken. Overall, our evidence highlights the real effects of financial constraints in the form of environmental pollution, which is a costly negative externality imposed on society and public health.