We propose an iterative graphical data visualisation algorithm for optimal model selection. The algorithm is implemented on three domain-partitioning techniques - decision trees, neural networks and support vector machines. Each model is trained and tested on the Pima Indians and Bupa Liver Disorders datasets with the performance being assessed in a multi-step process. Firstly, the conventional ROC curves and the Youden Indexare applied to determine the optimal model then sequential moving differences involving the fitted parameters - true and false positives - are extracted and their respective probability density estimations are used to track their variability using the proposed algorithm. The algorithm allows the use of data-dependent density bandwidths as tuning parameters in determining class separation across applications. Our results suggest that this novel approach yields robust predictions and minimizes data obscurity and over-fitting. The algorithm's simple mechanics which derive from the standard confusion matrix and built-ingraphical data visualisationand adaptive bandwidth featuresmake it multidisciplinary compliant and easily comprehensible to non-specialists. The paper's main outcomes are two-fold. Firstly, it combines the power of domain partitioning techniques on Bayesian foundations with graphical data visualisation to provide a dynamic, discernible and comprehensible information representation. Secondly, it demonstrates that by converting mathematical formulation into visual objects, multi-disciplinary teams can jointly enhance the knowledge of concepts and positively contribute towards global consistency in the data-based characterisation of various phenomena across disciplines.


14519 Background: The treatment of unresectable liver confined metastatic disease from colorectal cancer is a challenging issue. Although locoregional treatments such as HAI claim the advantage of delivering higher doses of anticancer agents directly into the affected organ, the evidence for benefit in terms of overall survival (OS) is conflicting. We aimed to quantitatively summarize the results so far described in randomized trials comparing HAI to systemic chemotherapy. Methods: To date, ten randomized controlled trials (RCT) have been published, for a total of 1,277 patients enrolled. Seven RCT (n=1,098) enrolling at least 50 patients per arm (the minimum sample size required to achieve a type II error lower than 20%) were considered for OS meta-analysis, which was based on the inverse of variance method. For tumor response rates, hazard ratios (HR) and their 95% confidence intervals (CI) were obtained from raw data; for OS, HR and CI were obtained from reported Cox model survival analyses or were cal...


A new mixed-boundary model reduction technique is presented for nonlinear forced response analysis of mistuned bladed disks with shroud friction contacts. In contrast to conventional fixed- or free...


An automatic obstacle avoidance robot platform is mainly used for robots to automatically avoid obstacles, belongs to the technical field of robot control, and comprises ultrasonic ranging sensors (1), a movable trolley (2) and a control main board (3). The ultrasonic ranging sensors (1) are installed on the periphery of the movable trolley (2), and the detecting direction of each ultrasonic ranging sensor can be adjusted to adapt to different operating environments. The control main board (3) is installed on a frame of the movable trolley (2), and a color liquid crystal display module (5), a bluetooth communication module (4) and a communication and power interface (6) are installed on the control main board (3). The automatic obstacle avoidance robot platform is high in systematic integration, reliable in performance, compact in structure, low in cost, modularized, and easy to maintain and expand.


Objective:To develop an HPLC method to determinate the proportion of orientin,isoorientin,vitexin,isovitexin,isorhamnetin-3-O-β-D-glucoside,tricin of different parts in Livistona chinensis from different origins.Method:The separation was performed on an Agilent TC-C18(4.6 mm×250 mm,5 μm) with a gradient elution(0-25 min,B:33%→45%;25-40 min,B:45%→80%;40-45 min,B:80%→95%;45-50 min,B:95%→95%) composed of methanol(B) and 0.05% acetic acid(A).The column temperature was set at 30 ℃ with flow rate of 0.8 mL·min-1.The detective wavelength was set at 340 nm.Results:The calibration curve was linear over the concentration of 8.59-550.0 μg·mL-1 for orientin(r=0.9997);9.37-600.0 μg·mL-1 for isoorientin(r=0.9999);8.59-550.0 μg·mL-1for vitexin(r=0.9998);8.59-550.0 μg·mL-1 for isovitexin(r=0.9995);7.81-500.0 μg·mL-1 for isorhamnetin-3-O-β-D-glucoside(r=0.9999);8.59-550.0 μg·mL-1 for tricin(r=0.9999).The average recovery of six components were 102.9%,102.3%,93.3%,95.8%,101.7%,99.2% and the RSDs were 4.6%,2.3%,2.1%,2.7%,1.8% and 2.5%,respectively.Conclusion:The method is reproducible,and can be used for the quality control of Livistona chinensis.The yields of the six components in different parts of different origins exhibite significant differences.


This paper presents a synthetic aperture radar (SAR) system and processing algorithm for automotive applications using a short range vehicle-mounted Frequency Modulation Continuous Wave (FMCW) radar. Aiming at real-time high resolution vehicle-borne SAR imaging, the algorithm combines the advantages of the high accurate focusing of the wavenumber domain algorithms with high precision motion compensation by utilizing only the knowledge of the vehicle's velocity and angular velocity. We present measurement results collected during various driving tests with an experimental 79GHz synthetic aperture radar. The results indicate that the proposed method could produce SAR imagery of high resolution (0.0825 m0.0825 m) with detection range of 16m in real time, which is suitable for automotive applications.


We have been accustomed to regard chronic dyspeptics as, like the poor, always with us. The enrichments of modern surgery, however, enable us to restore many of them to health, by establishing an alternative route for the gastric contents, providing free exit in stasis, physiological rest when necessary for healing, and early neutralisation in hyperacidity. In conjunction with various medical men, I have performed sixty or seventy operations for diseases of the stomach, and have formed some general impressions from them :?


Carbon-fiber-reinforced-polymer (CFRP) composites represent the future for advanced lightweight aerospace structures. However, reliable and cost-effective techniques for structural health monitoring (SHM) are needed. Modal and vibration-based analysis, when combined with validated finite element (FE) models, can provide a key tool for SHM. Finite element models, however, can easily give spurious and misleading results if not finely tuned and validated. These problems are amplified in complex structures with numerous joints and interfaces. A small series of all-composite test pieces emulating wings from a lightweight all-composite Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) have been developed to support damage detection and SHM research. Each wing comprises two CFRP prepreg and Nomex honeycomb co-cured skins and two CFRP prepreg spars bonded together in a secondary process using a structural adhesive to form the complete wings. The first of the set is fully healthy while the rest have damage in the form of disbonds built into the main spar-skin bondline. Detailed FE models were created of the four structural components and the assembled structure. Each wing component piece was subjected to modal characterization via vibration testing using a shaker and scanning laser Doppler vibrometer before assembly. These results were then used to correlate the FE model on a component-basis, through fitting and optimization of polynomial meta-models. Assembling and testing the full wing provided subsequent data that was used to validate the numerical model of the entire structure, assembled from the correlated component models. The correlation process led to the following average percent improvement between experimental and FE frequencies of the first 20 modes for each piece: top skin 10.98%, bottom skin 45.62%, main spar 25.56%, aft spar 10.79%. The assembled wing model with no further correlation showed an improvement of 32.60%.


Resale price maintenance (RPM) continues to be a contentious topic, both in economics and in antitrust. During the 1980s economists derived new efficiency motivations for RPM while the Supreme Court reaffirmed the decades-old per se ban on its use and Congress threatened to extend that ban. In the 1990s, after several years of federal inactivity during the Reagan Administration, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has once again begun bringing RPM cases.' While economists have proposed a number of different efficiency explanations for RPM, such theorizing has been performed largely without the help of businesses that actually use RPM. With little practical evidence, such hypotheses have been subject to substantial criticism. Of course, since RPM has been per se illegal, businesses may be reluctant to admit that they are engaged in the practice, which would appear to be a necessary condition for generating an efficiency defense. This article seeks to find out why businesses may believe that they benefit from RPM. It does so by examining which efficiency rationales were advanced by firms during a critical time for RPM in the United States, 1915 to 1917. These rationales, drawn largely from previously unexplored materials, are then examined in the light of current economic theory. There are two basic sources for these rationales. The first is three hearings on RPM held in 1915, 1916, and 1917 in the U.S. House of Representatives on a bill to legalize certain forms of RPM. The second is the transcript of seven days of hearings the FTC held in 1917 to discuss efficiency motivations for RPM. Section II explains several economic theories that have been posited for RPM and briefly discusses the critiques of these theories that have arisen in the legal and economic communities. Section III examines federal RPM case law prior to 1918 and posits efficiency rationales from section II to match the products involved in the case law. Section III also discusses the uncertainty in the case law during the period 1908 to 1917 and the concepts behind the various judicial decisions. Section IV presents the efficiency arguments made during this period of legal uncertainty


The stronger position of the victim has led to new dynamics within the criminal justice process, such as the victim's statement of impact and alternative forms of dispute resolution such as victim-offender mediation. Within such a dynamic, the response from the offender becomes even more important. Ideal narratives of restorative justice refer to personal relevations brought on by the appeal on a human level, emotional admissions of guilt and tearful apologies. But many questions surround the topic of the emotional response of the offender, such as: could an offender have an obligation to feel guilty? Could there be further consequences to not providing the correct emotional response? To what extent can we be certain that an emotional response, whether that be guilt feelings, shame or otherwise, is sincere? Does it even matter whether or not the offender's apology is sincere?


In this work, inspired by secret sharing schemes, we introduce a privacy-preserving approach for network consensus, by which all nodes in a network can reach an agreement on their states without exposing the individual state to neighbors. With the privacy degree defined for the agents, the proposed method makes the network resistant to the collusion of any given number of neighbors, and protects the consensus procedure from communication eavesdropping. Unlike existing works, the proposed privacy-preserving algorithm is resilient to node failures. When a node fails, the method offers the possibility of rebuilding the lost node via the information kept in its neighbors, even though none of the neighbors knows the exact state of the failing node. Moreover, it is shown that the proposed method can achieve consensus and average consensus almost surely, when the agents have arbitrary privacy degrees and a common privacy degree, respectively. To illustrate the theory, two numerical examples are presented.


vi Chapter 1: INTRODUCTION 1 Chapter 2: MATERIALS AND METHODS 10 Chapter 3: RESULTS AND DISCUSSION 36 Chapter 4: REFERENCES 78


Clayton et al. published a study of oral and vulval lichen planus (LP) and its association with the use of angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitors, beta-blockers and nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs). We have extended this study to vulval lichen sclerosus (LS). LS is another interface dermatosis with a prominent lymphocytic infiltrate, which can show clinical and immunological overlap with LP. There is increasing evidence that LS involves autoimmune mechanisms. We conducted a retrospective study in patients with vulval LS. The study was approved by the Central Oxford Research Ethics Committee, and all participants gave informed consent (COREC numbers CO3.081 and CO2.290). The patient group consisted of 200 adult women of northern European origin who attended the Churchill Hospital, Oxford, with vulval LS, between October 2004 and April 2006. They had a mean age of 63.04 years (range 26 –85). The vulval LS had been diagnosed clinically and confirmed histologically in 140 patients. In the remaining 60, biopsy was either contraindicated or refused. The control population consisted of 974 unselected women had a mean age of 67 years (range 34 –99) recruited from the community through general practices. Compared with normal controls, patients with vulval LS were more likely to be on NSAIDs, but less likely to be on ACE Inhibitors and beta-blockers. There were differences with regard to usage of beta-blockers (4% vs. 10%, P < 0.01) and ACE inhibitors (3% vs. 12%, P = 0.001) (Table 1). LS is characterized by an inflammatory infiltrate of T cells into the dermis and epidermis, while the mechanism of action of ACE inhibitors includes a decrease in inflammatory cell infiltrate. In this study, we found an inverse association between vulval LS and ACE inhibitors. We therefore believe that ACE inhibitors may diminish the LS inflammatory process, and protect patients from developing the disease. We also found an inverse association between patients with vulval LS and beta-blockers. The possible mechanism of action of beta-blockers relies on blocking cyclic AMP levels, resulting in upregulation of keratinocyte proliferation, and reduced differentiation and increased motility of lymphocytes, which may influence the clinical expression of patients with LS patients. There was no difference between patients and controls in the number taking NSAIDs (5% vs. 4%, P = 0.51). In conclusion, this report represents the first study on drug usage in patients with vulval LS. We found an inverse relationship between the presence of vulval LS and use of beta-blockers and ACE inhibitors. Larger studies are warranted to elucidate the relationship between the disease process and medication use.


Abstract Background Third coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) vaccine doses are broadly recommended, but immunogenicity data remain limited, particularly in older adults. Methods We measured circulating antibodies against the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) spike protein receptor-binding domain, ACE2 displacement, and virus neutralization against ancestral and omicron (BA.1) strains from prevaccine up to 1 month following the third dose, in 151 adults aged 24–98 years who received COVID-19 mRNA vaccines. Results Following 2 vaccine doses, humoral immunity was weaker, less functional, and less durable in older adults, where a higher number of chronic health conditions was a key correlate of weaker responses and poorer durability. One month after the third dose, antibody concentrations and function exceeded post–second-dose levels, and responses in older adults were comparable in magnitude to those in younger adults at this time. Humoral responses against omicron were universally weaker than against the ancestral strain after both the second and third doses. Nevertheless, after 3 doses, anti-omicron responses in older adults reached equivalence to those in younger adults. One month after 3 vaccine doses, the number of chronic health conditions, but not age, was the strongest consistent correlate of weaker humoral responses. Conclusions Results underscore the immune benefits of third COVID-19 vaccine doses, particularly in older adults.


In recent years it has become abundantly clear that close interactions between stroma, inflammatory cells, and tumor cells all contribute to the development and progression of cancer [1–3]. In lymphoma, much work has been done to demonstrate the importance of the immune signature in follicular lymphoma (FL), Hodgkin lymphoma (HL), and diffuse large B-cell lymphoma that is contributed by non-neoplastic cells [4–8]. Indeed, analysis of individual cellular constituents in the microenvironment such as tumor associated macrophages (TAMs) has potential prognostic importance in lymphomas such as FL and HL [7–9]. In this issue of Leukemia and Lymphoma, Zhang and colleagues [10] focus on microenvironmental factors in peripheral T-cell lymphoma, not otherwise specified (PTCL NOS). In an immunohistochemical assessment of 38 cases, expression of TAMs and vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) was associated with high International Prognostic Index (IPI), bone marrow involvement, and overall survival. Patients whose biopsies showed 450 TAMs/ high-power field and expression of VEGF had shorter survival compared to patients who lacked those features. VEGF expression maintained its association with outcome on multivariate analysis. This interesting observation deserves further investigation in order to better understand the complex biologic mechanisms at play. With regard to TAMs, recent models provide insight into the effects they might have at a specific tumor site. Macrophages are capable of a certain degree of plasticity and may exert differing effects on cancer. In the model of M1 and M2 polarization of macrophages, M1 type macrophages represent classically activated macrophages capable of killing intracellular microorganisms and tumor cells. These cells produce high levels of interleukin 12 (IL12), IL23, and toxic intermediates such as reactive oxygen intermediates and nitric oxide. M2 type macrophages, induced by cytokines such as IL4, IL13, immune complexes, and Toll-like receptor (TLR) ligands, produce immunosuppressive T-helper cell 2 (Th2) type cytokines such as IL10 and transforming growth factor b (TGFb) promoting tumor growth/progression [11,12]. It is these M2 polarized cells that the TAMs in PTCL NOS may represent. Indeed, preliminary studies characterize M2 type TAMs as CD68þ cells which preferentially co-express CD163, CD204 (macrophage scavenger receptors), and the colony stimulating factor M-CSF [13,14]. This, together with evidence that these cells can express the B7-H4 immunoregulatory molecule, and that its intensity correlated with the presence of regulatory T-cells [15], provides a possible mechanism for the immunosuppressive microenvironment in T-cell lymphoma. Niino et al. recently evaluated M2 macrophages as a prognostic marker in another subcategory of T-cell lymphoma, angioimmunoblastic T cell lymphoma (AITL) [14]. The results of their investigations, together with the current work by Zhang and colleagues [10], further suggest that TAMs have biological and prognostic significance in T-cell lymphomas.


Fe70Ni30 powder was used as solvent-catalyst after sieved to 140/170、170/200、200/230、230/270、270/325 and 325/400 mesh.Using the above catalysts,high quality diamond were synthesized at about 5.3 GPa and 1 350 ℃ in JHY-Ⅲ cubic apparatus.Firstly,we observed the size and the micro-topography of solvent-catalyst powder by Nanoscope IIIa type atomic force microscope(AFM) and OXFORD MS-500 type Mossbauer spectroscope,and it was confirmed that solvent-catalyst powder we used was not oxidized though the size of particles were finer than 400 mesh.Secondly,the relationship between the diamond size and the solvent-catalyst size was concluded by comparing diamond′s peak value granularity synthesized with different sized Fe70Ni30 powder.The result showed that 230/270 mesh solvent-catalyst was suitable for coarse diamond synthesis,and the more different from this granularity,the finer the diamond synthesized.In the end,we confirmed this regulation again through synthesis test using Ni70Mn25Co5 powder.


The ratcheting effect greatly challenges the design of piping components. With the assistance of the quasi-three point bending apparatus, ratcheting and the ratcheting boundary of pressurized straight Z2CND18.12N stainless steel pipe under bending loading and vertical displacement control were studied experimentally. The characteristics of progressive inelastic deformation in axial and hoop directions of the Z2CND18.12N stainless steel pipes were investigated. The experiment results show that the ratcheting strain occurs mainly in the hoop direction while there is less ratcheting strain in the axial direction. The
characteristics of the bending ratcheting behavior of the pressure pipes were derived and compared under load control and displacement control, respectively. The results show that the cyclic bending loading and the internal pressure affect the ratcheting behavior of the pressurized straight pipe significantly under load control. In the meantime, the ratcheting characteristics are also highly associated with the cyclic displacement and the internal pressure under displacement control. All these factors affect not only the saturation of the ratcheting strain but the ratcheting strain rate. A series of multi-step bending ratcheting experiments were conducted under both control modes. It was found that the hardening effect of Z2CND18.12N stainless steel pipe under previous cyclic loadings no matter with high or low displacement amplitudes is significant, and the prior loading histories greatly retard the ratcheting strain and its rate under subsequent loadings. Finally, the ratcheting boundaries of the pressurized straight Z2CND18.12N stainless steel pipe were determined and compared based on KTA/ASME, RCC-MR and the experimental results.


I am writing this to assist researchers in training and experienced researchers in understanding ways to view oral history as a social justice project. This paper will illuminate the importance of oral history in terms of enriching the knowledge base of qualitative research methods as well. Oral history provides us with an avenue of thick description, analysis, and interpretation of people's lives through probing the past in order to understand the present .The postmodern appreciation of the study of people and their stories, those stories from persons generally on the outside or periphery of society, offer a unique opportunity to view and conduct oral history as a social justice project. Key Words: Oral history, Social Justice, and Qualitative Research


Many applications require high tolerance parts with localized hardened areas. There are many conventional ways to harden these parts, such as flame hardening, carborizing, nitriding, and batch furnace hardening. All of these methods have drawbacks. In many applications, laser heat treating can reduce part cost and increase quality. Because of the high energy density associated with laser heat treating, many distortional problems are eliminated and, in many cases, less expensive materials can be used.A machine tool spindle was being manufactured out of 1018 steel and carborized to provide a hardened surface for mounting collets and chucks. Post heat treat grinding was required because of dimensional changes associated with the hardening and distortion caused by uneven heating and cooling rates. The part was redesigned to utilize 1045 steel and laser hardening of selected wear areas. The part cost was reduced and quality increased.This paper will discuss the advantages and disadvantages of laser hardening. Also discussed will be the various considerations in the selection of materials, overall part cost and the process design. Two specific examples of production laser heat treated parts are given as well as discussion relating to the criteria used for the justification of each.Many applications require high tolerance parts with localized hardened areas. There are many conventional ways to harden these parts, such as flame hardening, carborizing, nitriding, and batch furnace hardening. All of these methods have drawbacks. In many applications, laser heat treating can reduce part cost and increase quality. Because of the high energy density associated with laser heat treating, many distortional problems are eliminated and, in many cases, less expensive materials can be used.A machine tool spindle was being manufactured out of 1018 steel and carborized to provide a hardened surface for mounting collets and chucks. Post heat treat grinding was required because of dimensional changes associated with the hardening and distortion caused by uneven heating and cooling rates. The part was redesigned to utilize 1045 steel and laser hardening of selected wear areas. The part cost was reduced and quality increased.This paper will discuss the advantages and disadvantages of laser hardening. ...


Agriculture remains the principal component of economic development in most African countries. Consequently, it is absurd to think of development without an adequate agricultural policy as it is the case today. An adequate strategy of agricultural development in Zaire necessitates the analysis of the causes of current agrarian crisis and. in particular, the understanding of how the additional agricultural output generated by the peasant community is monopolized by the commercial bourgeoisie. Expansion of the agricultural prodL:ction (not only cash crops but also food production) should bring economical gains both to the state. the commercial bourgeoisie and to the peasants. Nevertheless. the state and the commercial bourgeoisie do not dare to see this fact. Furthermore. agriculture in Sub-Saharan Africa presents many common features and faces similar difficulties. The analysis of the Zairian agriculture constitutes, then, a case study.


Carbonate reservoirs on the eastern flank of the Oxfordian-Kimmeridgian intrashelf basin in offshore Abu Dhabi had received little attention until commercial oil accumulations in structural traps were discovered in the late 1980s and early 1990s. In order to clarify the geometric and chronostratigraphic relationships of the Oxfordian-Kimmeridgian reservoirs, a multidisciplinary study (seismic, lithobiofacies, geochemistry, strontium isotope dating, and well-log data) was used to develop a sequence stratigraphic model.
 After deposition of the Callovian upper Araej Formation, a differentiated carbonate platform was established in the early Oxfordian in offshore and western onshore Abu Dhabi. Tectonic subsidence coupled with sea-level fluctuations controlled the geometry, deposition, and distribution of the lithofacies. These ranged from organic-rich, limy mudstones in the basinal area, to porous and permeable bioclastic packstones, grainstones, and dolomites in shallow waters on the eastern flank of the intrashelf basin. The upper Kimmeridgian Arab-D Member of the Arab Formation overlies the basinal deposits.
 Three third-order Depositional Sequences were identified in the offshore area. They are named according to their contained Maximum Flooding Surface; a fourth sequence is an intermediate unnamed Depositional Wedge. Depositional Sequence Jurassic 50 is of Oxfordian age and was deposited during transgressive and highstand periods. The lower Kimmeridgian Depositional Sequence Jurassic 60 is a well-defined lowstand system tract overlain by short-lived transgressive and highstand system tracts. Overlying Depositional Sequence Jurassic 60 is the Depositional Wedge. Finally, Depositional Sequence Jurassic 70 consists of transgressive and highstand system tracts developed on an undifferentiated platform that had localized depressions in the west. The best reservoir developments are in highstand bioclastic packstones and grainstones below the type-1 sequence boundaries that cap Depositional Sequences Jurassic 50 and Jurassic 60. The reservoir units have porosities greater than 20 percent and permeabilities of more than 1,000 milliDarcies. The basinal facies of Depositional Sequence Jurassic 50 have the best source-rock potential in the intrashelf basin.


Objective To observe the effects of Ketangte 2 on experimental diabetes in mice.Methods Adrenalin and streptozocin(STZ) were used to induce hyperglycemia mice model and diabetic mice model respectively.The mice were divided into five groups randomly:model group,glibenclamide control group,high-,middium-,low-dosage Ketangte 2 groups.The administration lasted consecutive 15 days.The blank control group and model group were treated with the same volume of saline.After treatment,the levels of blood sugar were measured in hyperglycemia mice induced by adrenalin,and the fasting blood-glucose,2-hour blood-glucose,insulin levels in diabetic mice induced by STZ were determined.Meanwhile the histopathological changes of pancreas were observed under light microscope.Results For STZ-induced diabetic mice,the hypoglycemic effect of Ketangte 2 was obvious(P 0.01,compared to the model group).For the adrenalin-induced hyperglycemia mice,Ketangte 2 can relieve hyperglycemic reaction(P 0.05 or 0.01,compared to the model group).Histological examination showed that pancreatic island number in pancreas in Ketangte 2 groups was increased when compared with the model group.Conlusion The results suggest that Ketangte 2 can decrease blood sugar,protect the islet βcells from damage induced by STZ.The mechanism of reducing blood sugar is probably associated with the increase of the insulin secretion.


In the late spring of 2019, the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME) made a major change in the Common Program Requirements, eliminating core faculty time for teaching, administration, and assessment. To mitigate the impact of this, the Family Medicine Residency Committee


Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to draw lessons for developing community‐university partnerships from experiences in promoting coastal education for sustainable development (ESD).Design/methodology/approach – Qualitative data collected from two coastal community outreach projects were analyzed.Findings – The outreach projects improved the relationship between university and community members. It is important to conduct interviews at the early stages of the projects to understand the needs of the community and set project outcomes to meet community‐defined priorities. The most effective means for promoting an ESD program based upon community‐university partnerships is to reach out to and network with local individuals who have been active in community projects and embed the program concept into the activities of those individuals. Mediators who link the academic community with the local community are helpful in promoting the partnerships, and university students were found to be successful mediators...


Time-scale domain is a more natural setting for the analysis and design of state estimation and control systems, given the multi-scale character of physicochemical processes. In this paper we present a multi-scale approach in modeling processes and employ these models in deriving a model-predictive controller design framework with significant advantages over traditional time-domain or frequency-domain design methods


Sylburg in reading deiSi/s for MS. arjSrjs, but the ordinary meaning of daSrjs is ' invisible,' and the fact that it is used in this sense immediately below makes it impossible to understand it here of one ' who has no form or comeliness.' On the other hand such a one would be naturally regarded as d̂ Siys, and if there is something offensive in the expression as used of Christ, this is explained by reading Si) ikrjXvOev for the unmeaning &uXrjXv6ev, since 817 has the effect of putting the preceding word in inverted commas. [Perhaps 8e iXyjXvBev. C. plays on the word deiSiys, which he first uses in the sense of ' ugly' (not uncommon in late Greek), and then in its philosophic sense of ' invisible.' I. B.]


Interferon-β-1b therapy started at CIS continued to alleviate risk of clinically definite MS and inhibit cognitive decline after 8 years.

Clinically isolated syndrome (CIS) is the first clinical event suggestive of multiple sclerosis (MS). Early treatment is advocated in MS since active demyelination and axonal damage are most extensive in the early stages.1 Beyond the threshold of compensation, neuronal loss causes irreversible functional disability. Moreover, over 80% of CIS cases with MS-consistent brain lesions at presentation will eventually convert to clinically definite MS (CDMS) in the natural history.2

Edan and colleagues reported the 8-year results of interferon-β-1b (IFNB-1b) therapy in CIS patients with two or more asymptomatic T2-hyperintense brain lesions (the BENEFIT study). …


These notes contain the extended abstracts of talks given at the meeting on 'noncommutative geometry' in September 2004. The range of topics includes index theory, algebraic and topological K-theory, cyclic homology, quantum groups, spectral triples, the Baum-Connes conjecture as well as number theory, dynamical systems and mathematical physics. Mathematics Subject Classification (2000): 11F, 19D, 19K, 22D, 46L, 59B2X, 81T. Introduction by the Organisers Noncommutative geometry applies ideas from geometry to mathematical structures determined by noncommuting variables. Within mathematics, it is a highly interdisciplinary subject drawing ideas and methods from many areas of mathematics and physics. Natural questions involving noncommuting variables arise in abundance in many parts of mathematics and quantum mathematical physics. On the basis of ideas and methods from algebraic topology and Riemannian geometry, as well as from the theory of operator algebras and from homological algebra, an extensive machinery has been developed which permits the formulation and investigation of the geometric properties of noncommutative structures. Areas of intense research in recent years are related to topics such as index theory, K-theory, cyclic homology, quantum groups and Hopf algebras, the Novikovand Baum-Connes conjectures as well as to the study of specific questions in other fields such as number theory, modular forms, topological dynamical systems, renormalization theory, theoretical high-energy physics and string theory. The meeting was attended by 45 participants, including a fair number of young mathematicians but also many of the leading experts in the field. The exchange of ideas was very lively and quite a few significant new results were presented in the 2350 Oberwolfach Report 45/2004 talks, which covered many of the aspects of noncommutatve geometry mentioned above. Nichtkommutative Geometrie 2351 Workshop: Nichtkommutative Geometrie


The invention provides a wearable plantar pressure detection apparatus comprising an insole. The wearable plantar pressure detection apparatus is characterized by comprising a pressure sensor module, a central processing control module, a wireless communication module, an upper computer, a gyroscope, an accelerometer and a signal reminder module. The wearable plantar pressure detection apparatus is capable of conveniently detecting plantar pressure no matter when people walk or stay still with no location limitations and allows on-the-foot real-time detection of plantar pressure.


The paper introduced the working principle,the circuit design and program the compilation of electric tube expander based on the MSP430F149.This powerful microcontroller MSP430F149 accurately and automatically controlled and managed the working process of the machine by using the signal acquisition and processing,and computer software controlling technology.It is proved in the practice operation that the electric circuit of this instrument is simple,the performance is stable,and the application in wide.


A method of making a paste electrode lead-acid, comprising the steps of type: filling a current collector with an active material paste-like to obtain a filled electrode when the current collector passes under a filler that It includes a hopper for containing the paste-like active material; and pressing an electrode surface of the electrode filled during transfer electrode filled before the paste-like electrode filled active material to harden, wherein: the pressing step comprises: a first pressing step in which press intensively a first area of the electrode surface located on one side in a width direction that is perpendicular to a transfer direction in which the filled electrode and a perpendicular direction perpendicular to the electrode surface is transferred; a second pressing step in which intensively press a second area of the electrode surface at the other side in the width direction; and a third pressing step in which the first pressed and second areas of the electrode surface over the entire width of the filled electrode, wherein: each of the first to third pressing steps are performed at least one time; and the pressing step ends with the third pressing step.


Estimates of Cloud Droplet Number Concentration over global oceans for the calendar year 2008 derived from MODIS Cloud Product Collections 5.1 and 6. Observations are from the MODIS instrument flown on NASA's Aqua satellite.


We study the phenomena that arise in the transverse structure of an electromagnetic field impinging on a linear Fabry-Perot cavity with an oscillating end mirror. We find quantum correlations among transverse modes, which can be considered as a signature of their entanglement.


We are attempting to determine why cattle generally avoid leafy spurge and why goats appear to graze it more readily than sheep in southeast Idaho. In contrast to goats, cattle and sheep are more likely to develop an aversive response to leafy spurge the first time that leafy spurge enters their rumen. Blood cortisol levels are elevated in sheep when spurge is first placed in their rumen. This suggests that sheep experience physiological stress with their first ruminal exposure to leafy spurge. However, when sheep are pre-exposed to leafy spurge (i.e., when leafy spurge is placed in their rumen on several days before a test for aversion) they do not exhibit an aversive response from leafy spurge at a later time. In conjunction, blood cortisol levels don't tend to elevate at a later leafy spurge exposure when sheep are pre-exposed to leafy spurge. These findings may partially explain why sheep seem to require an adjustment period before they will begin grazing significant amounts of leafy spurge.


The manufacture of printed electronics by roll-to-roll printing machine requires more accurate register performance than conventional media printing technology. Moreover, high drying temperature and long drying time to sinter the inks can induce the substantial changes in the length of the substrate and consequently register errors. Among the roll-to-roll printing methods, the gravure one, despite its relatively fast productivity and fine-line printing capacity, has difficulty in achieving the required register specifications for printed electronics because of the dependence of the register control on web dynamics. This study proposes a roll-to-roll gravure-offset printing equipment, including the register measurement system designed to enhance register performance and the related register control method for the application of printed electronics. Each cylinder constituting the printing unit is driven independently by an individual servomotor. Moreover, the printing patterns of the plate cylinder can move in the axial direction by position control, as well as in the web transport direction by a phase shift of the plate cylinder, without affecting the dynamics of the web. The time difference between the measurement and the actual control action is considered and modeled. The register measurement system, including selections of sensors and marks is also proposed to consider the effect of the time difference. The simulation results and the experiments of the register control are shown to verify the effect of the time difference on the control performances. It is found that a proper estimation of time difference should be obtained in order to guarantee more accurate and stable control performances.


This article takes the reconsideration of the disciplinary system of comparative education from ontology,epistemology,methodology and axiology of the comparative education research.It concludes that comparative education is the comparison research of the nation-state education.


Statistical analysis methods have always played an important role in oceanic and meteorological research. Due to the lack of observation methods, insufficient data samples, and the statistical prediction performance was not satisfactory in the early years. With the development of satellite observation, computing capabilities, and artificial intelligence algorithms, statistical prediction technology has ushered in a new period of development. Since the 20th century, many new methods have emerged, providing new ideas for ocean prediction. This paper reviews the development for statistical methods in ocean prediction, summarizes the representative prediction methods, and casting the prospects in the development of ocean statistical prediction.


[Objective] To better control original microorganism quantity in segmenting beef and improve beef safety,prolong quality guarantee period.[Method] The decontaminating effects of chlorine dioxide,hot water,steam,and alcohol on the surface of table board,conveyor belt and workers' hands were investigated.[Result] The results showed that cleaning after working and 200 mg/kg chlorine dioxide treatments reduced aerobic plate count and coliform on the surface of table board and conveyor belt(P0.05).Scraping during working,immersion in hot water after working also reduced aerobic plate count on the surface of table board(P0.05).[Conclusion] The measures significantly reduce bacterias in beef slaughtering but can't reach enterprise standard.


Objective:To evaluate the function of microencapsulated liver cell in vivo and in vitro,and to investigate the treatment effect of transplantation of microencapsulated hepatocyte on acute liver failure(ALF)in rats.Methods:The isolated hepatocytes were encapsulated by the alginate method.The concentrations of albumin in the culturing supernatant of microencapsulated and bare hepatocytes were measured respectively.ALF rats were divided into three groups.Normal saline was injected into peritoneal cavity of ALF rats(groupⅠ).Free hepatocytes were transplantated into peritoneal cavity of ALF rats(group Ⅱ).Encapsulated hepatocytes were transplantated into peritoneal cavity of ALF rats(group Ⅲ).Survival rate,ALT,AST,ALB,TB,and PT were observed.Results:The microencapsulated hepatocytes could secrete albumin similar to that of bare hepatocytes.There were significant differences in survival rate among group Ⅰ,group Ⅱ and group Ⅲ(P0.05).On the 1st and 2nd days after transplantation,there were significant differences in the level of ALT,AST,ALB,TB,and PT among group Ⅰ,group Ⅱ and group Ⅲ(P0.05).Five days after transplantation,there were significant differences in the level of ALT,AST,ALB,TB,and PT between group Ⅱ and group Ⅲ(P0.05).Conclusion:APA microencapsulated hepatocytes could maintain biological functions in vivo and in vitro.APA microencapsulated hepatocyte transplantation can increase the survival rate of ALF rats,and improve the liver biochemical function.


It provides excellent shut-down function at home can be imparted to the entire electrode structure, a non-aqueous electrolyte battery, and a power storage component. According to the present invention, a current collector having at least a resin layer on one surface of the electrically conductive substrate, the resin layer is a thermosetting resin in the base material, made of a thermoplastic resin contains the conductive agent is dispersed, (the average thickness of the conductive agent ) / (with a value of 0.5 to 3 in average thickness) of the thermoplastic resin, the conductive agent, the values of the vol% of (a conductive agent) / (the conductive agent + the thermoplastic resin) to be in 10 to 50% It is blended, the thermoplastic resin ratio of 10 to 65 percent, the current collector is provided.


The reconstruction of the super-resolution image based on neural networks(NN) is proposed to resolve the problem of image low spatial resolution because of the limitation of imaging devices.An error back-propagation(BP) algorithm is used to learn and train sample images in order to combine the redundancy information of low spatial resolution images sequences.Learning samples are acquired according to the image observation model.Vector mapping is established to speed up the convergence of NN.Simulation and generalization tests are carried on the well-trained NN respectively,and the reconstruction results with higher spatial resolution images verify the effectiveness and validity of BPNN based on vector mapping in the reconstruction of the super-resolution image.


This paper discusses stimulus-response in Japanese conversation and its relation to Japanese culture. It focuses on how Japanese linguistic features in stimulus used in conversation request correspond to culture, called as wakimae. Hence, the understanding of the wakimae surrounding the stimulus will bring the proper responses. By using the qualitative method, this research uses 30 video-taped Japanese talk shows as data. The analysis covers the lexical/morphosyntactic/prosodic features and cultural context/norms/values that are used in the form of request as the stimulus. As the result, two types of stimulus are found. They are (i) syntactically finished utterances and (ii) syntactically unfinished utterances. In syntactically finished utterances, we find five types of request pattern for information: (i) Qword type, (ii) declarative form, (iii) polar type with question particle ka marker, (iv) polar type with final particle ne marker and (v) tag-question type. In syntactically unfinished utterances, there are four types of request pattern for information: (i) unfinished utterances marked by topic particle wa, (ii) unfinished utterances marked by nominative particle ga, (iii) unfinished utterances marked by conjuctive form, (iv) unfinished utterances marked by quotative particle tte. These characteristics of stimulus are not only ruled by speaker"s intention but also by cultural values. These cultural values become an important consideration for a speaker when choosing utterances both stimulus and response. Therefore, the notion of wakimae can explain the utterance choice from the perspective of cultural context.


Summary This study involves a search for ultrastructural characteristics and for the presence of oncogenic viruses in neoplasms induced in X/Gf mice by urethan, by X-irradiation, or by a combination of both agents. The ultrastructural features of mammary carcinomas and thymic lymphomas of the lymphoblastic type are described. Mammary tumors were characterized by closely adjacent cells, frequently connected by desmosomes, by hypertropic surface microvilli that extended into the lumen of acini, and by a great variation in size and shape of nuclei. Mitochondria varied in number, shape, and size from cell to cell in microscopic sections of the same tumor. Nuclei of bizarre shape showed deep invaginations of the nuclear envelope. Characteristic mammary tumor virus type A and B particles were noted in 2 of 18 carcinomas investigated. Lymphoblastic thymic lymphomas were characterized by vastly distended cytoplasm with numerous mitochondria, by an abundance of ribosomes and polysomes, and by single and multiple projections of the nuclear envelope embracing portions of the cytoplasm. Dense bodies were frequently noted in cytoplasm and in mitochondria. Type A virus particles were observed in 1 of 19 thymic lymphomas. It is inferred that the type A virus particles in one thymic lymphoma and the mammary tumor virus in two mammary tumors were present in a latent state in these X/Gf mice before they were subjected to treatments. Most recent serological tests revealed that a small percentage of X/Gf mice are susceptible to mammary tumor virus, confirming the electron microscopic observations. The deep and extensive invaginations of the nuclear membranes, hypertrophic microvilli in mammary carcinoma cells and extensive single and multiple projections of the nuclear membranes of thymic lymphoma cells may be indicative of participation of the membrane systems of target cells in neoplastic transformation.


Reflective activities, in some cases quite extensive teaching material about reflection's role in adult learning, have been used within distance taught courses at the Open University UK for more than a decade [6]. Some of these courses have focused on professional development in adult learning and encouraged reflection within the frameworks created by theorists of adult learning [2]. Others have integrated reflective activities into courses in introductory maths and science courses, in order to foster greater awareness of how best to learn within these disciplines, and of their connection with the day to day world of the student [3].

This article reviews experience in three Open University courses, notably a recent course - T293 Communicating Technology - a second level 30 credit point course (equivalent to approximately 300 hours study) in the Undergraduate Programme of the Open University. All three courses include material about reflection and are designed to emphasise the process of the student's own learning. Reflective activities are linked with the assessment process and the importance of the role of tutors in feeding back and responding to the content of student reflections is emphasised. There are particular challenges to encouraging reflection for students studying at a distance, though T293 students are networked and also attend tutorials and a residential school. The invitation to reflect as a specific activity in study is something many students find difficult. How effectively do students engage in reflection when required to do so in these circumstances, and what response to their reflections do their tutors make?


The prevalence of autistic spectrum disorder (ASD) in children in UK is ∼1 in 100. There is emerging evidence that dysregulation of the immune system may be an underlying cause of ASD. The CARRA registry from the USA reported a frequency of 0.3% co-morbidity of autism in children with JIA. There is a paucity of data from the UK reporting this association.

 The department's database of all patients that attended the local paediatric rheumatology clinic was reviewed over a 12-month period from April 2018 to April 2019. Diagnoses were grouped broadly into inflammatory (JIA, systemic disease, non-JIA uveitis) and non-inflammatory (mechanical, bone and collagen disorder and other). Those with a co-morbidity of autism were also identified within inflammatory and non-inflammatory groups.

 There were 196 individual patients within the cohort of paediatric rheumatology patients seen in Bradford in April 2018 to April 2019. These were subcategorised into JIA (N = 79,40%), mechanical (N = 56, 29%), systemic rheumatological disease (N = 31, 16%), bone and collagen disorders (N = 12, 6%), other non-inflammatory diagnoses (N = 11, 6%), non-JIA associated uveitis (N = 7, 3%). This cohort was divided into 117 patients with inflammatory paediatric rheumatological conditions and 79 patients with non-inflammatory causes for joint pain. Nine children (see Table 1) had a co-morbidity of autism, of which 6 children had an inflammatory diagnosis and 3 a non-inflammatory cause for joint pain. The prevalence of autism in our cohort of children with paediatric rheumatological disease was 5%, which is higher than expected from a UK prevalence of autism of 1%.
 P16 Table 1: Patients with Autism in Paediatric Rheumatology cohort. Diagnosis Age Age at presentation to paediatric rheumatology Gender Inflammatory/ Non-inflammatory Oligo JIA 5y 4y Male Inflammatory Oligo JIA 11y 10y Female Inflammatory Oligo JIA 13y 7y Female Inflammatory Ext- oligo JIA 18y 8y Male Inflammatory Ext- oligo JIA 14y 7y Male Inflammatory CTD 15y 2y Female Inflammatory Hypermobility 16y 16y Male Non-inflammatory Mechanical 14y 14y Female Non-inflammatory Mechanical 11y 11y Female Non-inflammatory

 In this cohort of paediatric rheumatology patients there was a higher prevalence of autism than the UK average. Two of these patients were diagnosed with autism after presenting to our service. This association is compatible with the emerging recognition of dysregulation of the immune system as a potential underlying cause of ASD. It is important to consider the co-morbidity of autism in children presenting to paediatric rheumatology clinic and potentially paediatric rheumatological conditions in children already diagnosed with autism, where there may be a delay in their presentation due to communication difficulties. There is the need for a larger UK study to review this association further.

 The authors declare no conflicts of interest.


SUMMARY

This case illustrates some of the difficulties which arise in the determination of climatic trends using long observation series composed of several components from diffrerent sites. Only in a very few cases can a long climatological series be regarded as being truly homogenous.


A Sputter monitoring system using continuous-wave cavity ring-down spectroscopy (cw-CRDS) was built for both lifetime assessment and contamination effects in Hall thrusters. First, we have performed proof of measurements of sputtered manganese atoms from manganese-iron alloy plate. The measurement strategy is based upon detection of manganese atoms via an absorption line from ground state at a wavelength of 403.076 nm. The hyperfine structure of the manganese spectrum can be observed owing to honeycomb structure mount as a velocity-filter. The number density estimated by CRDS is reasonable as comparison with simple estimates. These results validate the estimation of the erosion rate by CRDS. Next, we apply this system for erosion atoms from the acceleration channel wall (stainless steel 316) in an anode layer type Hall thruster. The path-integrated number density is 8.2  1.5 10 m at discharge voltage of 150 V and argon mass flow rate of 70 sccm. The number density is proportional to the discharge voltage, as expected. The number density and mass-loss have a relatively linear dependence. These results show the validity of the erosion sensor for Hall thruster lifetime estimation.


Method for detection of defects of the thin film transistor (TFT) on the thin film transistor liquid crystal display (TFT-LCD) panel, the method comprising: applying a bias stress to the TFT disposed on the panel 10; And detecting a change in electrical characteristics of the TFT. Change in the electrical characteristics of the TFT may be detected using the voltage imaging optical system (imaging optical system voltage) or electron beams. While the bias stress is applied to the temperature of the panel 10 it may vary. Changes in the electrical properties of which are optionally detected throughout the array of the TFT. A thin film transistor liquid crystal display, a defect, charge trapping, and the threshold voltage, the bias stress, VIOS.


The Jews' arrival to the archipelago began acquainted since the 13th to the 20th century, although, much earlier, history shows the Jews traffic in the Southeast Asian region had been eventuated. In this study, Jew accommodates several meanings, religion – Judaism and the adherents – Jewish or Jewish descendants. Practically, the beliefs' differences are arduously accepted by a few Indonesians. Various stereotypes are imposed on this community as a form of othering. Moreover, radical ideological propaganda encompassing antisemitism incitement is presented conditionally. The absence of legal acknowledgment has impacted on limiting Jews' precious wiggle room enforcing their religious freedom. As a further consequence, they will prefer to conceal their identity for hindering friction nor dispute with the oppositions. Misleading perceptions about Jews and Israel implicitly politicized identities. Aware of the rising negative sentiments, this paper provides an overview of the Jewish existence in Indonesia, from the historical journey, recognition, and prejudice to identity politics. Analysis of legislation and actual reality is carried out to find out the urgency of recognizing Jews' identity. At the end, Indonesia endures the essential duty to fulfil religious freedom and nurture its diversity for peace.


Article history: Received: July 9, 2018 Received in revised format: July 9, 2018 Accepted: September 4, 2018 Available online: September 4, 2018 This paper aims to provide a fuzzy framework for aligning human resources strategies with business strategies at The University of Applied Science and Technology. This research is an applied research based on the purpose and the research time horizon is cross sectional. In this research, 15 experts are identified using snowball method. The necessary data are gathered based on 3 questionnaires including Delphi questionnaire, human resources (HR) and business strategic questionnaire. The results show that some couples of HR strategies were aligned with business strategies. Then "if-then" rules are described in FuzzyTech software and the study determines which business strategies must be aligned with human resources strategies using the analysis. The paper ends by providing some suggestions based on 16 possible scenarios. © 2018 by the authors; licensee Growing Science, Canada


Fires on offshore installations can produce large quantities of smoke. Although it is important to know the fire behavior and its effects on the structures it is equally important to know the smoke behavior in and around the platform. High levels of smoke can affect the safety of the personnel. This work describes a comparison of a Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) model with field experiments conducted on a North Sea Platform. The purpose of the work is to use CFD to assess the smoke behavior on offshore platforms. To validate the model for such studies, a series of experiments were performed during which small amounts ({approximately}0.5 kg/s) of synthetic smoke were released at given locations on the platform. The resulting plume concentration was measured at four points around the platform-n using optical densitometers. During the experiments the wind field at different locations around the platform was also measured. The results of this validation indicate that simulation tools can be used to predict global smoke movement and concentrations in complex offshore structures to within the required accuracies. On average, the predicted wind flow is to within a factor of 2 of the measured values and in some areas to within 50%.more » The predicted concentrations are to within a factor of two of the measured values except one point where the predictions were an order of magnitude less than the measurements.« less


Geographic associations of duplex soils, like the Estcourt form, and plinthic soils, like the Avalon and Westleigh forms, such as are found in the Eastern Free State, are recognised worldwide. These soils share redox morphology. In duplex soils, the redox morphology is dominated by a contrast in clay content between the A or E horizon and the B horizon, indicating that degradation of silicate clay minerals dominates. In plinthic soils, mottling due to redistributed Fe-Mn dominates. Both features can be the result of ferrolysis. In order to research this relationship, an Estcourt profile with degrading peds was sampled and analysed. Undisturbed peds of the B- horizon were subdivided for analysis, together with disturbed samples of the A, E and C horizons. The spatial variation of the colours, Fe, Mn, clay content and mineralogy in the profile indicates that both ferrolysis and redistribution of Fe-Mn are active during short periods of reduction in the E and interpedal pores of the B horizon. Degradation of the silicate clay minerals results in ped degradation visible as rounded ped tops and grey material interfingering the B horizon. In this landscape, in soils of the Avalon and Westleigh forms, degraded peds are also present in the lower soft plinthic B horizons and underlying material with the degree of ped degradation visibly associated with the degree of redistribution of Fe-Mn in mottles and nodules. In this landscape, a transitional horizon with properties of both plinthic and degrading structured B horizons covers large areas. This indicates that plinthic and/or E horizons can develop from structured horizons under the current climate.


GaN metal–oxide–semiconductor field-effect transistors (MOSFETs) with a tetraethylorthosilicate (TEOS) SiO2 insulator were developed and evaluated using an AlGaN/GaN HFET structure as the source and drain regions. Operation up to a gate voltage of 10 V was realized at a low gate leakage current. A new method of measuring the mobility of a MOSFET was developed to prevent the effect of hysteresis, in which a relay was used to switch between current measurement and capacitance measurement at the same gate voltage. The maximum field-effect mobility is approximately 45 cm2 V-1 s-1 at an interface state density of 1.02 ×1013 cm-2 eV-1.


This work deeply analyzed the relative importance of the neutron transfer channels and inelastic surface vibrations of colliding nuclei in the sub-barrier fusion enhancement of various heavy ion systems using an energy dependent Woods–Saxon potential (EDWSP) model in conjunction with a one-dimensional Wong formula and the coupled channel formulation using the code CCFULL. The multi-phonon vibrational states of colliding nuclei and the nucleon transfer channels are found to be dominant internal degrees of freedom. The coupling between the relative motion of reactants and these relevant channels produces anomalously large sub-barrier fusion enhancement over the expectations of the one-dimensional barrier penetration model. In some cases, the influence of neutron transfer dominates over the couplings to low lying surface vibrational states of collision partners. Furthermore, the effects of coupling to inelastic surface excitations and the impact of neutron transfer channels with positive ground state Q-values are imitated due to energy dependence in the Woods–Saxon potential. In the EDWSP model calculations, a wide range for the diffuseness parameter, which is much larger than the value extracted from the elastic scattering data, is needed to account for the observed fusion enhancement in the close vicinity of the Coulomb barrier.


In this paper, the effect of cohesive laws on the finite element analysis of crack propagation using cohesive elements is investigated through three-point bending and double cantilever beam problems. The cohesive elements are implemented into ABAQUS/Standard user subroutines(UEL), and the shape of cohesive law is varied by changing parameters in polynomial functions of cohesive traction-separation relations. In particular, crack propagation behaviors are studied by comparing load-displacement curves of the analysis models which have different shapes of cohesive laws with the same values of fracture energy and cohesive strength. Furthermore, the influence of the element size on crack propagation is discussed in this study.


On Thursday 28 January, members and friends of the Botanical Society and Friends of the Durban Botanic Gardens were treated to an 'armchair' botanical and scenic tour of some of the spectacular and unique places of South Africa. Chris Dalzell, Curator of the Durban Botanic Gardens, has travelled all over the world in the course of his career, but says he has been nowhere as beautiful as this country, with its wealth of botanical and geographic diversity.


Under the chromatographic point of view, the physico-chemical properties of a supercritical fluid are intermediate to those of the gases and liquids. Many times they approach the best features of each one, as for example, the solubilization power of liquids and low viscosity of gases. The thermodynamic definitions and main physico-chemical features of a supercritical fluid will be presented in this article. The use of supercritical fluids in analytical chemistry has been extremely modest in Brazil, even considering the enormous potential of their applications, and their use in several techniques, such as chromatography (SFC) and supercritical fluid extration (SFE). This article series is intended to discuss the historical evolution, instrumentation features and potential and limitations of the supercritical fluid use in analytical chemistry. A special focus will be centered on chromatography and extration techniques using supercritical fluids.


The article deals with the practice of the revival of the traditional social institution of Altai people, zaisanat, or council of the heads of tribes (seoks). In the Altai Republic the restored zaisanat has already been working for twenty years. However, there are hot discussions about its being necessary and effective in the modern system of administration. Those who criticize this social institution argue that it is an anachronism and it cannot meet the requirements of the present social and political life. Supporters of zaisanat, in their turn, insist that we can solve the actual ethnic problems only if the authority of tribal elite and the principles of traditional administration would be rehabilitated. The authors analyze the reasons proposed by both the opponents and the adherents of zaisanat and conclude that this social institution is necessary to consolidate the Altaian society. Moreover, they claim that zaisanat should be included into the system of the state administration of the Altai Republic as zaisanat is an important form of the self-affirmation of the ethnic consciousness of Altai people.


The Property Masterclass will equip you with the fundamentals you need to put in place to ensure you can get the best property lease for your business.


Abstract. The industrial competition requires companies to produce high-quality products, but the phenomenon is that companies still produce products that do not meet specifications and are returned by customers. This is the basis for conducting research aimed at analyzing the implementation of quality control, knowing the main defects of the product, and making improvements to reduce or eliminate problems during the production process using the Six Sigma approach with steps: Define, Measure, Analyze, Improve and Control. The research sample is the result of the final product inspection in April - September 2019. The results of the study indicate that the implementation of Quality control has been carried out but not maximally, with the root causes of the main defects being method, material, and machine. CTO in this research are: foreign body contamination, leak packaging, product temperature exceeds the standard, over drip, and thick fat. After improving, there was an increase in sigma level from 3.48 (performance baseline) to 3.83. Control is carried out to maintain consistency of corrective actions by regular briefings to operators, increasing GMP training, 5S, and product knowledge, standardizing SOP changes, adding necessary tools, and controlling preventive maintenance implementation. Keywords: Quality control, six sigma, wagyu, defect product, DMAIC


concerned with issues of power and representation in academic scholar? ship. In their works, they have attempted to address and break down some of the existing hierarchies and power dynamics in social science research, creat? ing new possibilities for research in the academy while building on the works of others who have attempted to do the same. As global discourse on democracy and the democratization of peoples, systems, and processes expands, contributors to this special issue attempt to extend this discourse to the realm of academia and the "ivory tower." In so doing, they not only try to link the idea of democracy to research and scholarship, but also attempt to problematize commonly used no? tions of democracy and democratic practices through a deeper analysis of their own studies. Is it possible to authentically bridge the gap between the community and the academy? Can we truly engage with community in the creation of new knowledge? On the one hand, by using Participatory Action Research (PAR) as a methodology, ideology, and a commitment, these scholars grapple with creating authentic, trusting, and mutually beneficial ties with the community. On the other hand, they continue the ongoing struggle to find space, recognition, and legitimacy for this type of scholarship within the academy. By sharing their works, this issue will attempt to address the possibilities and constraints for activist scholarship. At the heart of Participatory Action Research is a deliberate attempt to include the "investigated" in the process of investigation itself. It starts with the notion that given the proper tools, the people most affected by a problem are not only capable of better understanding their realities, but are also the best equipped to address their struggles. It further asserts that through a constant process of dialogue and reflec? tion, any group of people can devise relevant and appropriate actions as solutions to their problems. This process involves "coming to terms with the roots of your oppression as you come into your subjecthood" (Freire, 2000: 31) and subsequently


Light- and elevated-temperature-induced degradation (LeTID) in p-type multicrystalline silicon has a severe impact on the effective minority carrier lifetime of silicon and remains a crucial challenge for solar cell manufacturers. The precise cause of the degradation is yet to be confirmed; however, several approaches have been presented to reduce the extent of degradation. This paper presents insights on the impact of thermal budgets and cooling rates during post-firing illuminated anneals and their role in changing the lifetime and mitigating LeTID for thermal processes between 350 and 500 °C. We demonstrate that the thermal budget of these processes plays a crucial role in LeTID suppression and that the cooling rate only plays a role during short treatment durations (≤1 min). For the parameter space studied, we show that annealing for an appropriate time and temperature can both enhance the minority carrier lifetime and completely suppress the LeTID, with the injection-dependent Shockley–Read–Hall lifetime analysis indicating that the recombination activity of the LeTID defects in the bulk has been eliminated. Finally, this paper demonstrates a process that results in a stable lifetime after 800 h of conventional light-soaking at 75 °C.


To the Editor:

Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is a heterogeneous condition (1). The identification of COPD phenotypes may allow stratified treatment approaches that modulate discrete disease mechanisms. Peripheral blood eosinophilia is both a common and repeatable finding in COPD (2). In addition, the presence of a blood/sputum eosinophilia is associated with a significant proportion of COPD exacerbations (3, 4) and a favorable response to systemic steroids (5). However, the role of blood eosinophils in stratifying treatment response to inhaled corticosteroid/long-acting β-agonist combinations is poorly understood.

The FORWARD (Foster 48-Week Trial to Reduce Exacerbations in COPD) study was a randomized, double-blind, parallel group trial that compared 48 weeks of treatment with extrafine beclomethasone dipropionate plus formoterol fumarate (BDP/FF), 100/6 μg pressurized metered-dose inhaler, two inhalations twice a day, versus FF 12 μg pressurized metered-dose inhaler, one inhalation twice a day, in patients with severe COPD with a history of exacerbations (clinical trial registered with www.clinicaltrials.gov [NCT 00929851]). The results of the study have been reported (6) and showed a significant reduction in exacerbation rate (28%) and improvement in lung function with BDP/FF compared with FF treatment.

Here we evaluate the hypothesis that these treatment differences differ according to the baseline blood eosinophil count by performing a post hoc analysis on the FORWARD study data.

Methods
The median (quartile 1; quartile 3) baseline blood eosinophil count was 181.6 (110.4; 279.8), and the distribution of counts is shown in Figure E1 in the online supplement. The patients (n = 1,184) were stratified into quartile groups on the basis of the baseline eosinophil count. The clinical characteristics of the study population across the quartiles of baseline blood eosinophils are reported in Table E1. The following endpoints were analyzed: COPD exacerbation rate over the course of 48 weeks, using a negative binomial model for adjusted exacerbation rates, Kaplan-Meier analysis, and Cox proportional hazard model for time to first exacerbation event; change from baseline in predose morning FEV1 at 48 weeks, using a linear mixed model for repeated measurements; and change from baseline in St. George's Respiratory Questionnaire total score at 48 weeks, using an analysis of covariance model. Further details of the models are provided in the online supplement. Additional analyses using percentage eosinophil count thresholds and considering absolute counts as a continuous variable were also performed. A predictive model (see online supplement for details) for future COPD exacerbation rate was estimated, accounting for a variety of baseline factors that may influence exacerbations (7). The effect of baseline blood eosinophil count on adverse events, and in particular pneumonia, was also evaluated.


During the 20th century, pensions in developed countries were generally payable from a statutory retirement age which provided a norm for retirement behaviour and a threshold dividing older from younger age groups. Governments, by setting fixed starting dates for work and retirement, created a standardised life cycle with clearly delineated and uniform boundaries between education, work and retirement stages. Over the last 30 years or so, retirement behaviour has diverged from official norms and moved towards earlier retirement, although pressures for later retirement are now increasing as concerns over pension finance provoke calls for older workers to remain economically active. Weaker retirement norms have prompted speculation that working practices may be evolving from a Fordist life cycle with fixed stages to post-Fordist life courses with fluid and variable personal experiences. This paper assesses current trends, asking whether they do indicate major changes in the life cycle, and considers the flexibility of retirement, paying particular attention to the influence of government and employers. Several ways in which retirement could develop are identified, but few of them remove the constraints on retirees: truly flexible retirement will not occur spontaneously and will require explicit policies to safeguard retirement choices.


Traditional diplomacy is an important dimension of Chinese diplomacy under the leadership of the CPC.In the past nine decades,with firmly grasping of the three historical trends,namely peace and development,economic globalization, and democratization of international politics,the CPC leads the Chinese traditional diplomacy from passive and simplified one to proactive and comprehensive one.Meanwhile,the CPC always focuses on peaceful diplomacy, open diplomacy,and independent diplomacy that derive from the above three historical trends respectively.Besides that,the CPC attaches great importance to the balance between physical interests and universal values,including balance between national interests and human being interests,and between big powers and periphery diplomacy,which emphasize on physical interests,and developing world diplomacy and multilateral diplomacy,which emphasize on universal values.The evolution of Chinese traditional diplomacy pushes itself from one success to another,and lays firm foundations for its future development as well.


The Aluminium-magnesium or 5xxx alloys in sheet form have been considered for some time to be the most appropriate choice for vehicle structures as they offer attractive combinations of formability, strength, weldability and corrosion resistance.


Office of Science, Dept. of Energy for their financial support through Grant Nos. DE-FG02-96ER41006 and DE-SC0014448. The work is also supported by DOE contract Nos. DE-AC05-00OR22725, DE-FG02-96ER40983, DE-AC05-06OR23100, DE-FG02-96ER40978, DE-FG05-88ER40407, DEFC03-03NA00143, Polish Ministry of Science Grant No. N N202 1033 33 and Foundation for Polish Science.


On her arrival in Dunedin Mackay began writing a column for the Otago Witness on a range of subjects: literature, social and political issues, current events, cultural matters. The range of her essays included temperance, suffrage, penal reform, anti-vivisection, and employment reform as well as literary matters. In Christchurch she was made the 'lady editor' of the Canterbury Times, was the New Zealand correspondent for the British journal Time and Tide, and contributed to publications Jus Suffragi Common Cause Votes for Woman. Her interest in women's issues, especially the contemporary cause of women's suffrage (New Zealand women gained the vote in 1890) was reflected in her membership of the Women's Christian Temperance Union and the National Council of Women, and expressed in the pieces she wrote for the journal White Ribbon. Her Celtic background was expressed in her advocacy for Home Rule for both Scotland and Ireland, and she was a leading member of the Society for Self-Determination for Ireland. Much of her poetry was first published in newspapers – the Dunedin Outlook, the Auckland Star, the Lyttleton Times, Christchurch papers the Press, Star and Sun, the Sydney Bulletin and Bookfellow, London journals such as Celtic Monthly, the Lyceum, the Spectator. Her first collection of poems, The Spirit of the Rangatira and other ballads, was published in 1889. In the introduction she wrote what could be seen as a cautious manifesto of settler literature, hoping that 'at least a few [of her poems] have a flavour of


Abstract : Computational fluid dynamics solutions have been performed to evaluate flowfield separation effects resulting from the firing of a divert thruster on a biconic endoatmospheric interceptor. Comparisons are made with cold jet wind tunnel data in order to validate the prediction model which is then applied to hot jet flight conditions at a higher Mach number and momentum flux ratio. Scaling of the wind tunnel results to flight based on momentum flux ratio implies the existence of a large separated region onto the interceptor fore cone. Simulation results for the hot jet, however, showed no separation onto the fore cone. The reasons for these differences are primarily attributed to the higher freestream Mach number and lower specific heat ratio in the hot jet case. Other issues concerning the scaling of cold jet wind tunnel results to flight are also discussed.


We analyze deterministic message identification via channels with non-discrete additive white noise and with a noiseless feedback link under both average power and peak power constraints. The identification task is part of Post Shannon Theory. The consideration of communication systems beyond Shannon's approach is useful in order to increase the efficiency of information transmission for certain applications. We propose a coding scheme that first generates infinite common randomness between the sender and the receiver. If the channel has a positive message transmission feedback capacity, for given error thresholds and sufficiently large blocklength this common randomness is then used to construct arbitrarily large deterministic identification codes. In particular, the deterministic identification feedback capacity is infinite regardless of the scaling (exponential, doubly exponential, etc.) chosen for the capacity definition. Clearly, if randomized encoding is allowed in addition to the use of feedback, these results continue to hold.


The national intangible cultural heritage, Xiling mountain chants, have been spreaded for hundreds of years and unfailing, in the multiethnic area of Xiling Snow Mountain of Sichuan, where Han folk, Tibetan folk and Qiang tribe people lived, showed strong vitality. Xiling mountain chants are integrated multi-ethnic cultural characteristics of Han, Tibetan and Qiang nationalities, both eclecticism and self-contained, embodied unique artistic charm.This article will analyze the music features of the multiethnic Xiling mountain chants from the angle of the Anthropology of Music, as well as discuss the music style and art characteristics, and reveal the unique music art culture of the Xiling mountain chants.


In a previous contribution, we illustrated the potential of a cryostream for micro-XRF analysis on Daphnia magna close to its native state [1]. Daphnia magna is a model organism to investigate the effect of chemical contamination, including metals such as Zn, on ecosystem health. Although the frozen (hydrated) state of the sample can induce considerable self-absorption effects for the low energy fluorescent lines (e.g. Ca-Kα), these effects were of minor importance for higher Z elements for this particular sample [2].


Silicon Drift Detectors (SDDs) and Silicon PhotoMultipliers (SiPMs) are two silicon based photo-detector technologies for scintillator readout with applications in medical imaging, nuclear physics, space research and others. These devices provide compact scintillator readout solutions for spectroscopy, imaging and timing measurements. Goal of this work, is to make a comparison between these two photo-detector technologies, in particular for gamma-ray spectroscopy measurements. SDDs are characterized by very high quantum efficiency (> 80%) with no multiplication which helps to keep the statistical contribution to the energy resolution close to Poisson limit but, at the same time, makes the system very sensitive to readout electronics noise. SiPM devices on the other hand, have a very high multiplication gain (105-106) which makes the electronics noise contribution almost negligible, with only the dark count rate contribution which can be reduced with moderate cooling. However, they are characterized by lower Photo Detection Efficiency (PDE) ~30-40% and statistical spread of the multiplication gain. In order to compare the spectroscopy performances of the two photo-detectors, we evaluate the energy resolution achievable with them using a large Lanthanum Bromide scintillator. Expected energy resolution with 1" LaBr3:Ce and its sensitivity to various parameters of SDDs and SiPMs are evaluated to analyze the photo-detector performances. With SDD arrays of 2 nA/cm2 leakage current technology, an energy resolution of 3.0% has already been measured at -20 °C with Cs-137 source at a shaper peaking time of 6 μs. In this work, we measure an energy resolution of 4.9% with a SiPM tile readout by an RC filter (300 ns time constant) and a temperature of around 36 °C. These results are then used to validate the theoretical energy resolution estimates and to generalize the comparison of these two readout technologies.


The n-dimensional umbilical submanifolds in a Riemannian manifold of quasi constant curvature are discussed.Two theorems on the above submanifolds are obtained.


In 1979, Ceperley proposed acoustic amplification in a traveling wave heat engine [1]. This proposal was verified by Biwa et al. in 2011[2], whose results indicated that the maximum gain of the traveling wave thermoacoustic heat engine is asymptotic to the temperature ratio when there is no phase change. Meanwhile, Raspet et al. performed numerical calculations for a wet-walled regenerator[3]. They found that in comparison to a thermoacoustic heat engine with a dry regenerator, the critical temperature at which self-induced oscillation occurs is lower and the acoustic power amplification is higher in a thermoacoustic heat engine using a wet regenerator. Ueda et al. investigated experimental verification of the reduction in critical temperature ratio[4]. However, the acoustic power amplification of a wet regenerator has yet to be experimentally verified. In this study, we measured the acoustic power amplification gain of a wet regenerator and compared it with that of dry regenerator. Figure 1 shows the schematic of our experimental apparatus in this study. The apparatus was consists of ducts and a unit which made of an ambient heat exchanger, a hot heat exchanger, and a regenerator. Loudspeakers were installed on each end of the apparatus. In the experiment, the ambient heat exchanger was set at TR=307 K and the hot heat exchanger at TH=332 K, and the temperature of each heat exchanger was measured with a thermocouple. To satisfy the same conditions as in the Ceperley's proposal, the acoustic field was regulated to make a traveling wave phase at the downstream end of the unit by adjusting the phase and voltage of the loudspeakers. Three pressure transducers were attached to each duct at the upstream and downstream ends, and the acoustic field was calculated by the two-sensor method[5,6] from the measured complex pressure amplitude. The gain G of an acoustic power W was measured for both a dry and a wet regenerator. G was found by the following equation using the acoustic power at the upstream end of the unit Win, and acoustic power at the downstream end of the unit Wout.


OBJECTIVE:To master the status quo of geographical indications(GIs)registration of traditional Chinese medicine(TCM)in China,and to provide reference for intellectual property rights protection of TCM and the improvement of GIs system.METHODS:The information about GIs protection of TCM issued by SAIC,SQIA and Ministry of Agriculture were collected through the websites.RESULTS:There were 108 kinds of TCM protected with GIs,including 381 products and 458 GIs,30 provinces and autonomous regions until the end of 2010.Nonfood TCM tended to the protection of special laws;64 kinds of TCM were protected with special laws and trademark laws of model.CONCLUSION:A certain amount of TCM products have already applied the GIs protection,but further work is needed;Quality inspection-trademark model is commonly used double protection model.


The large amount of data on enzyme structures obtained to date allow us to discuss general regularities in the formation of catalytic centres of enzymes. Approaches based on a comparison of structures in large data arrays made it possible to reveal a number of non-obvious regularities and to elicit principles of the design of catalytic centres.


Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to comparatively study a synchronous reluctance machine (SynRM) and a permanent magnet assisted synchronous reluctance machine (PMASynRM) as alternatives of the interior permanent magnet synchronous machine (IPMSM), and to investigate the performance and conclude both advantages and disadvantages. Design/methodology/approach – A unified mathematical model is established for the IPMSM, SynRM and PMASynRM. Then finite element method (FEM) is used to compare the electromagnetic performance. Permeability-frozen method is utilized to distinguish basic electromagnetic torque and reluctance torque. Findings – The PMASynRM can improve the power factor of the SynRM, overcome the drawback of the IPMSM in the high-speed flux-weakening region and is more proper to operate over a wide speed region. The SynRM is mechanically robust for lacking of the permanent magnets, and the PMASynRM can keep similar rotor stress as the SynRM by optimizing the magnets. Assembly of the SynRM is t...


In recent years, power management and power reduction have become critical issues in portable systems that are designed for real-time use. In this paper, we study the problem of statically allocating a set of independent real-time tasks to a system consisting of heterogeneous processing elements, each enabled with discrete Dynamic Voltage Scaling. The goal is to minimize the overall energy dissipation of the system without violating the real-time requirements of the tasks. The problem is first formulated as an extended Generalized Assignment Problem. A linearization heuristic (LR-heuristic) is then extended to solve the problem. An analysis of the upper bound on the number of tasks that the heuristic may fail to allocate is also presented. Our experiments show that when the average utilization of the system is high, the LR-heuristic achieves 15% off the optimal energy dissipation for small size problems, while the performance of a classic greedy heuristic is around 90% off the optimal. A relative performance improvement of up-to 40% over the classic greedy heuristic is also observed for large size problems. Finally, an analytical performance comparison between the LR-heuristic and the greedy heuristic is presented.


The main purposes of this study are to explore the components of customer's impression of bed-and-breakfasts (BB 2. the "owner's service" factor is the most valued one among the whole eight factors of the BB 3. the result of repurchase intention measurement reflects the fact that the repurchase frequency in BB 4. the visitors of today's characteristic BB 5. the correlation coefficient between overall attitude of "suite space" factor and repurchase intention is the highest; 6. the "suite space" factor is the most significant predictive variable which possesses more than 66% of the total 37.5% explained variance. According to the results of this study, this paper proposes suggestions for running and planning B&Bs.


Increased muscle sympathetic nerve activity (MSNA) indicates an adverse outcome in heart failure. Decreased baroreflex modulation of MSNA is a well‐known feature of the disease. The determinability of cardiovagal baroreflex sensitivity (BRS) in heart failure is low, however, the determinability of sympathetic BRS is not known.


This paper discusses how design thinking was used in a one-semester education course at the University of Calgary with secondary school prospective teachers of different disciplinary backgrounds and high school subject specializations.  It presents some key characteristics of design thinking and their relationship to creativity and students' learning.  It shares ways in which a sample of the student teachers engaged in design thinking, which stimulated their creativity and resulted in new thinking that included the development of classroom instructional strategies and products to support creativity in students' learning of mathematics and science.


China is a multi-ethnic nation with rich and diverse culture traditions. State-wide standardized textbooks, however, take little into account the local ethnic minority cultures; thus limiting the opportunities of preserving the unique ethnic traditions through education. On the other hand, property of information technology requires information technology teaching to combine knowledge with local culture. Curriculum resource can bridge the gap between textbook knowledge and ethnic minority cultures. In this paper, we discuss the relation between ethnic minority cultures and education of information technology in China. In particular, we propose ideas on development of effective curriculum resources website based on ethnic minority cultures for use by teachers, and on reform of classroom teaching in order to incorporate ethnic minority cultures into education of information technology.


The modes of thought in Chinese Buddhism and Indian Buddhism refer to the structures of understanding, the modes and methods of thinking about problems and theories of explanation on the part of the Buddhist scholars in China and in India; this belongs to the deeper and higher-level contents of Buddhist culture. To study and compare the Chinese Buddhist and Indian Buddhist modes of thought will help us to understand the framework of response with which the Buddhist scholars of the two countries and cultures respond to external stimuli, and how they approach the task of processing intellectual information. It will help us to comprehend better the specific forms of the intuitive thought, analytical thought, and the thinking in images on the part of the Buddhist scholars of the two countries, as well as their mental and psychological structure and their national character—even the psychological structure and national characteristics of the common Buddhist in the two countries and cultures. This would be sign...


The invention discloses a data input method and a device, comprising the steps of: obtaining characters input into an input method program object selection window, and determining data information relevant to the input characters according to a mapping relation, words in a database and the input characters; the mapping relation is the corresponding relationship of the words in the database, and the data information; the data information is displayed in the object selection window and is input. By using the data input method and the device of the invention, the user can input the characters after selecting according to the displayed data information such as multimedia, etc., thus leading the user to carry out diversified data information input during the use process of the character input.


Sustainability of agriculture is one of the main directions of development of the industry, which today has a high relevance due to the fact that the industry itself, on the one hand, uses land as the main resource, on the other hand, there is a significant amount of waste in the production of agricultural products, which worsen the environment. Accordingly, the relevance of the topic under consideration is determined by the need to solve the problem of finding a balance between the need to intensify the level of agricultural production and the preservation of environmental well-being. The purpose of the work is to consider the problematic aspects of the development of "sustainable" agriculture in modern economic realities and identify ways to solve certain problems. In the course of the research, the works of various specialists in the field under consideration were analyzed, on the basis of which a review of the author's positions regarding the problem under consideration was conducted.
According to the results of the study, the following conclusion was made: the direction analysis of the sustainable agriculture development showed that in modern conditions it is necessary to focus on a set of indicators that will assess the level of decline in environmental well-being in a particular region and determine the directions of reducing the harmful impact of agriculture on the environment.
However, taking into account the complex nature of agricultural systems and multidimensional sustainability issues, a single change in agriculture (for example, the introduction of a new technology or a new policy) can lead to multiple cascading impacts on three aspects of sustainability, and therefore some of the performance indicators may improve and others may worsen. Thus, understanding the compromises and synergies between indicators is crucial for policy makers when developing strategies aimed at ensuring sustainability.


This study examined gender differences in preschoolers' self-regulatory levels through multiple measures, including teacher ratings, teacher surveys, individual tasks, and group tasks. Results showed that most teachers responded that girls display higher levels of self-regulation than boys in both their interviews and on their surveys. However, there were no significant gender differences on the individual assessment. There were also very few significant gender differences on the group tasks, though those that were uncovered appear to be explained by group composition. Findings and implications are discussed, especially in terms of context and academic shifts in determining gender differences in self-regulation.


Energy Performance Building Directive (EPBD) ask the Member of States to develop a mandatory energy labelling scheme for new and existing buildings, which should include a label rating of the energy efficiency of the building and a list of recommended energy saving measures. The label will provide prospective buyers and tenants of a building with correct information about the energy performance of the building to compare with other options. However, some countries use only one or a limited number of weather zones. In a country like Norway, with significant variations in weather conditions between locations, this is likely to cause a deviation when comparing with the reality. This study aims to present the implication of using only one weather zone in Norway. The method used is based on the comparison of three types of weather files. The first one is used in the labelling system, which is a typical year, while the others are typical reference years from the local site from different providers. The results show significant differences in energy consumption, savings and labelling ratings when applying files with local weather data instead of the official weather data file used in Norway.