Thyrotropin-releasing hormone, a hypothalamic tripeptide, has become a useful pharmacologic tool in clinical medicine. Evidence supporting a role for thyrotropin-releasing hormone as a physiologic regulator of thyroid-stimulating hormone (thyrotropin) but not prolactin secretion is reviewed. Data from animal studies employing thyrotroplnand prolactin-secreting cells that demonstrate that thyrotropin-releasing hormone elevates the concentration of calcium Ion free in the cell cytoplasm are presented. These observations are consistent with the hypothesis that calcium ion couples stimulation by thyrotropin-releasing hormone to secretion of thyrotropin and prolactin. A molecular mechanism for thyrotropin-releasing hormone-induced elevation of cytoplasmic free calcium concentration and hormone secretion is proposed. The clinical utillty of the thyrotropin-releasing hormone stimulation test in endocrine disorders is discussed. It is recommended that the thyrotropin-releasing hormone stimulation test be used to aid in the diagnosis of hyperthyroidism when other tests show equivocal results, to determine the adequacy of thyroid hormone suppression therapy, to distinguish the two forms of thyrotropin-induced hyperthyroidism, and to assess pituitary reserve of thyrotropin and prolactin.


This article reviews the current state of business ethics in Brazil. It reviews the cultural context, along with trends in sustainability, governance, and the future.

Keywords:

Catholicism;
emerging markets;
inequality;
environment;
governance


ABSTRACT This article presents an example of developing tourism curriculum content in regional cooperation to support the growth and competitiveness of international tourism in the Central Baltic Area. The whole area should be developed as a common tourism destination, but lack of suitable skills and availability of skilled workforce hinders the development. The necessary skills and knowledge were identified by considering the context and potential applications of skills and knowledge. The data were collected in Latvia and Finland by interviewing the tourism stakeholders (n = 76). The analysis resulted in five categories of skills and knowledge: product and experience development, multi-channel sales and marketing communication, multi-sectorality and cooperation, managing business operations, cultural awareness and internationalization. It can be concluded that the stakeholders identified mostly operational level skills and knowledge required by the SMEs. They did not deem important the skills and knowledge at the strategic level to facilitate management and development of destinations.


This volume includes 90 of Pirandello's most significant and representative works, spanning all the stages of an oeuvre that took in symbolism, realism and surrealism. Also included in this edition are works by painters who had an influence on the young artist.


The purpose of this research is to know if the three factor triggers of Displaced Commercial Risk (DCR) have affect partially to the decision of costumer to remain as the costumer of sharia bank. The method used is quantitative methods through questionnaire using likert scale by multiple linear regression analysis with reliability test and validity, classic assumption test, and hypothesis test.. The sample used is 100 sharia bank's costumer who comply the criteria sample assigned. simultaneously rate of return, bank's operational, and profit sharing expectation significantly affect to the decision of costumer, and partially the rate of return and bank's operational significantly affect to the decision of costume r, but partially the expectation of profit sharing not significantly affects to the decision of costumer.


The Era of American Intervention The American Relationship with Iran Iran: The Rise of the Shah Jimmy Carter and the Fall of the Shah Nicaragua: The Rise of Somoza Somoza and the Carter Presidency Ronald Reagan and the Contras Money Money Money Losing Stature in the Philippines The CIA and the NSC The New World Order Index


This paper presents the preliminary design of the integrated stimulator and telemetry subsystems for a vestibular prosthesis to restore balance function. The work is part of the European project CLONS. The stimulator is designed to provide biphasic current pulses at specified amplitude, duration and rate to stimulate the semicircular canals in the vestibular system. Power and data transfer is provided by an inductive-coupled telemetry.


Pinna surface temperatures of Lepus californicus were examined radiographically before and after forced exercise (e.g., running at about 6 km/h for 6 min) in an outdoor enclosure. Air temperatures were from −1.6 to +19.4°C, and radiant sky temperatures were from —27 to +22°C. In resting animals, average pinna surface temperature was only 0.3 to 2.5°C above air temperature, and pinna arteries were not evident radiographically. Immediately after exercise, average pinna temperature was often near 30°C and pinna arteries were evident, indicating vasodilation. Cooling of the pinnae to resting temperatures after exercise generally took 15 to 25 min. Calculations indicate that the pinnae can dissipate most of the excess metabolic heat generated during the exercise examined, and it is suggested that the role of the pinnae as dissipators of exercise-induced heat loads should be considered as a factor in the evolution of pinna size.


In order to recover the navigation along the whole water line of the Hongshui River,several problems affecting the navigation development in the Hongshui River were fully analyzed in this paper,including water level convergence of the hydropower stations in the Hongshui River,navigation obstruction by lock and dam,dimensions of ship facility and the influence of unsteady flow discharged from the hydropower station on the downstream area.Then the measures and advises such as optimal scheduling,association management,combined transportation of water and land,general improvement and navigation protection by law were proposed,and the specific measures such as strengthening the coordination of Longtan ship lift construction,reconstructing the Yantan ship lift,rebuilding the middle channel of the Dahua lock,optimizing the reservoir regulation and balancing the discharge from the dams were also provided.


Large-area silicon nanowire arrays are prepared successfully with mixed AgNO3 and HF solution by EMD method at normal temperature and pressure. It has been proved the best equality of silicon nanowires can be obtained at the concentration ratio of 0.02 mol/l: 5mol/l for AgNO3 and HF and 1h reaction time. The influence of nano metal particles on the growth, the wire diameter, the distribution and the array of silicon nanowires are analyzed. Experimental results show the distribution and wire diameter of silicon nanowires can be controlled effectively by nano metal particles deposited on silicon wafers, and the equality of silicon nanowires with nano Au particles are better than those with nano Pt particles. The reaction mechanism of preparing large-area silicon nanowire arrays is analyzed as the result of the deoxidization of Ag+ and the removal of the oxidized Si solution by reacting with HF.


Although there is an increasing recognition of the positive role that creative industries play in innovation and growth, there is little evidence on the spatial dimension of this impact. An ongoing NESTA project employs economic geography techniques to address this gap, with the aim of improving our understanding of the mechanisms through which creative industries contribute to regional innovative performance, and to inform the development of policies to support these linkages. This interim report presents the results of the first stage of this research. The authors map the presence of creative firms across Britain as a first step towards establishing their impact on regional innovation at a second stage of the project. The mapping effort is informed by the influential concept of 'industrial clusters'.


A lot of data on the web are usually embedded in the semi-structured pages. In order to automatically process the content embedded in Web pages, extracting data from them and making it available to computer applications remains a complex and urgent task. Most of current approaches use a single classifier to extract web data, but relying on a single classifier is not sufficient and different classifier has different performance for a problem. In this paper, we combine multiple classifiers to extract web data. Firstly, we identify the main data regions of web pages, and construct feature sets of text nodes in the regions. Secondly, we choose three kinds of base classifiers and then use the voting method to integrate results of each classifier. Finally, we combine integration results with heuristic rules to get the final extraction results. The experiment results show that our approach outperforms the baseline approaches.


Filter glass for eye protection from glass blowing work can be prepared by doping elements that absorb the visible and infrared light. In the commercial filter glass studies, cobalt oxide and rare earth are usually used to dope in filter glass. In our experiment, the filter glass was made of clear glass that has a composition as glass lens then doped with CoO 0.02 , 0.04, 0.15%wt and Pr 2 O 3 0.5, 0.8, 1.2, 2.4, 3.6, 4.8 %wt respectively.  The resulting glass was characterized using UV/Vis spectrophotometer. It showed that the glass can absorb vis and IR light in the range of 250-2500 nm similarly to  the commercial filter glass. Moreover, it was found that doping CoO 0.15 %wt and Pr 2 O 3 4.8 %wt can reduce the transmittance to 10.7% at wavelength of 594 nm and 59.3% at wavelength of 1620 nm. These results shown that the filter glass can be developed as protection equipment for glass blowing.


Abstract.  Body temperatures and kinematics are measured for male Centris pallida bees engaged in a variety of flight behaviours (hovering, patrolling, pursuit) at a nest aggregation site in the Sonoran Desert. The aim of the study is to test for evidence of thermoregulatory variation in convective heat loss and metabolic heat production and to assess the mechanisms of acceleration and forward flight in field conditions. Patrolling males have slightly (1–3 °C) cooler body temperatures than hoverers, despite similar wingbeat frequencies and larger body masses, suggesting that convective heat loss is likely to be greater during patrolling flight than during hovering. Comparisons of thorax and head temperature as a function of air temperature (Ta) indicate that C. pallida males are thermoregulating the head by increasing heat transfer from the thorax to the head at cool Ta. During patrolling flight and hovering, wingbeat frequency significantly decreases as Ta increases, indicating that variation in metabolic heat production contributes to thermal stability during these behaviours, as has been previously demonstrated for this species during flight in a metabolic chamber. However, wingbeat frequency during brief (1–2 s) pursuits is significantly higher than during other flight behaviours and independent of Ta. Unlike most other hovering insects, C. pallida males hover with extremely inclined stroke plane angles and nearly horizontal body angles, suggesting that its ability to vary flight speed depends on changes in wingbeat frequency and other kinematic mechanisms that are not yet described.


A scheme is developed by which multiway microprogram jumps may be made to any of 2n next possible microinstructions as a function of any selection of n > 1 logically independent tests. An efficient method of binding microinstructions to memory locations allows this to be done at very low cost, both in terms of speed and hardware.
 Independent simultaneous tests are a necessity if horizontally microcodable machines are to continue to get wider, since algorithms presumably have fixed operations/tests ratios. This scheme will give parallelizers for such machines maximum flexibility in rearranging flow control.


McDonald observations of the nebular phase of the outburst of Nova Cygni 1975 are analyzed to measure the abundances of several heavy elements. A new analytical procedure is used to derive the electron density and temperature from the emission line intensities of (O III), (Ne III), and He I observed between days 40 and 120. These physical conditions are used to derive the abundances. We find that Fe has approximately a solar abundance, whereas C, N, O, and Ne are enhanced by factors approx.20 to 100. The enhanced abundance of neon was theoretically unexpected.The derived physical conditions and line intensities are compared with predictions of an equilibrium photoionization model. The model successfully predicts the intensities of He I, (O III), and (Ne III); but it underestimates the strength of (Ne V) and (Fe VII), which may originate in a mechanically heated ''subcoronal'' line region.


Mary Margaret Capraro Robert Capraro Texas A & M University This paper illustrates the value of applying the law of parsimony to canonical correlation analysis (CCA) solutions. The primary purpose of parsimony is that the more parsimonious the solution, the more replicable the model will be. The ultimate goal is to estimate an equal or reasonable amount of variance with the smallest variable set possible. A real-world data set is used that is composed of 287 sixth-grade students who were administered a geometry content knowledge test with three levels and a spatial visualization test as criterion variables, and a mathematics attitude survey with six subscales as predictor variables. Three different deletion methods are delineated in the paper that will assist the researcher in deleting predictor or criterion variables to obtain a more parsimonious canonical solution.


Because information transmission between monitoring site and monitoring center is required in the building structure strain monitoring system, in order to solve this problem, a remote distributed strain monitoring network system based on TCP and UDP is proposed in this paper. The system mentioned in this paper improves the measurement accuracy and measurement speed, which is easy to expand and modify, thus achieving for stable and reliable communications, security, flexibility and high efficiency in the remote monitoring system.


This article explores the visual representation of gossip, rumourmongering, storytelling, and other analogues of oral exchange in mid twentieth-century small-town American visual narrative. I herein examine two key visual artists of the interwar period – photographer Ben Shahn and painter Norman Rockwell – and their place within the small-town narrative form, as well as Life magazine and its institutional small-town preoccupations. Considering Shahn's photographic work conducted as part of the Farm Security Administration to Rockwell's culturally dominant scenes of idyllic small-town life, I argue that both emphasize gossip's narratability despite their drastically different provenance. Opposing Shahn's scenes of Depression-era poverty with Rockwell's homogeneous vignettes of rural life, it will be concluded that gossip and oral exchange remained a vital narrative constituent for artists of the small town during the mid-twentieth century, and that its narrative significance cannot be overstated.


The structure of 6-oxo-3α,5-cycloandrostan-17-yl p-bromobenzoate, C26H31O3Br (3), was solved by the heavy-atom method from Weissenberg film data and refined to R 0·17 (1643 observed reflections). The structure of 6-oxo-3β,5-cycloandrostan-17-yl acetate, C21H30O3(4), was solved by direct-phasing methods from diffractometer data and refined to R 0·10 (1888 observed reflections). Crystal data: (3), monoclinic, space group P21, a= 6·45(1), b= 28·69(2), c= 6·690(4)A, β= 109·97(10)°, Z= 2; (4), orthorhombic, space group P212121, a= 7·423(1), b= 11·184(1), c= 22·110(1)A. Both compounds possess the normal steroidal nucleus for rings B, C, and D. The introduction of the C(3)–C(5) bond into the steroidal nucleus changes greatly the general shape of ring A and the two different orientations of the hydrogen at C(3) considerably affect the geometry of the two molecules in the region of the A and B rings. The valency angles at C(5) are distored in both molecules to accommodate the strain of the 3,5-cyclization. The u.v. spectra of the two parent compounds [(1) and (2)] indicate a greater amount of conjugative overlap between the cyclopropane ring and the carbonyl group for (1) than for (2). The spectral differences could not be attributed to a difference in the torsion angle O(1)–C(6)–C(5)–C(3) since these were found to be the same in (3) and (4). They may, however, be due to decreased p character for the C(3)–C(5) bond in compound (4) as the valency angle, C(3)–C(5)–C(6) increases from 114 in (3) to 130° in (4).


The objectives of the study were: (i) to study the learning strategies of Secondary school students, (ii) to study differences in the learning strategies of secondary school studentsof different streams of study (iii) to study the relationship between learning strategies and academic achievement of secondary school students. 1167 secondary school students of Punjab were administered Motivational Strategies for Learning Questionnaire (Pintrich et al, 1991).  The results show that significant differences have not been found between high and low achievers as well as between science, commerce and arts school students on the rehearsal, elaboration, organization, critical thinking and meta-cognitive of self-regulation of learning strategies. The interaction effect of stream of study and academic achievement was  found to be significant on elaboration, critical thinking and meta cognitive self-regulation. Only the interaction effect of achievement and streams was significant. High and low achievers of arts subjects as well as science and arts students  of high achievement were found to be significant.


This unit is an overview of how GIS are being developed to run within the Internet and Worldwide Web, as well as within private intranets. Included is a discussion of strategies for developing GIS functionality within client-server networks. The overview discusses the rationale behind these strategies, but does not provide programming solutions. Nor does it address the details of designing a user interface for a Web GIS application.


In this paper,the hydroxyl radical e1iminating activities of flavonoid extracted from Cucumis sativus Linn.,by 70 % alcohol was studied.The salicylic acid method were used to determine the effect of removing free radicals of·OH by flavonoids in the Cucumis sativus Linn..The results show that the flavonoids can significantly remove free raclicals of·OH.The eliminaing ratio of free raclicals o(f·OH)is 63.95 %.


The present invention, the first light emitting device by the right groove (Home) a right sheet support portion and the second light emission to form a rib (Rib) (11a) for position sensing integrally attached to about the width of the paper detection device and method of the ink jet printer and a feed roller for feeding and forming a left side paper end detection rib (rib) for mounting the element integral with the one side of the tip paper-feeding unit, the printing paper supplied from the paper feeding unit, a sheet fed by the rotation of the feeding roller and a carrier that reciprocates to the printing on the printing paper, is mounted to the carrier and the left side of the second light signal with the right groove (Home) which is output from the light-emitting element mounted on the paper end detecting rib (rib) 12a) for the configuration from the first light-emitting device mounting a position detecting rib (rib) for a photo sensor for detecting a light signal which is applied, to contamination in the ink jet printer is generated in the back surface of the printed printing paper It has the effect of removing the cause.


Abandoned mines can pose a major environmental hazard. At the beginning of the 21st century, significant steps were taken all around the world in order to protect these historically valuable complexes, and the mining heritage was recognized as a potential for the development of alternative tourism. This exploration covers mines in the Kopaonik Mountain area. Mining on this mountain began in ancient times. It has developed throughout history, and today only one mine is active. Three abandoned (Gvozdac, Suvo Rudište and Raičeva Gora) and one active mine (Belo Brdo-Zaplanina) are the subject of research. The basic aim of the research is twofold. The estimation of geo-tourist values was performed using the Geosite Assessment Model (GAM), and the ecological status assessment WAS performed according to the standard model based on negative and positive values. Based on the applied methods, it was concluded that mines (geosites) have a high level of natural characteristics, and that differences between geosites are evident in tourist values. The reason for this is insufficient tourist affirmation and the insufficient availability of tourist infrastructure. With the ecological status, positive values were observed on the geosites, which also differ from one (Raičeva Gora) to 15 points (Gvozdac). In the end, the results obtained are of great scientific importance, and their direct application is in the development of the Tourism Development Strategy in the Kopaonik area.


high schools and private schools. Another inaccuracy regards the discussion of Hirohito's war responsibility. Hirano hints that this became a virtually taboo topic in Japan (p. 246), but in fact truth is much more complex than what is suggested by this facile statement, which overlooks the fact that numerous individuals in Japan have explored throughout the postwar years the topic of Hirohito's war responsibility. For example, Masaki Hiroshi, a lawyer, argued in 1946 that in order for Japan to take responsibility for its aggression and atrocities, it was essential to overthrow the emperor system. As to stylistic matters, the author often uses fi gures and tables throughout the volume, but this reviewer fi nds many of them rather ineffective, con fusing, and even distracting. For example, it is doubtful that the fi gures such as 1.1 (The Authoritarian-democratic Continuum) and 1.3 (Relations between Multiple Frameworks) will help readers understand the concepts they are intended to express, as these fi gures are mere boxes and arrows, and common sense is all that is required for readers to be able to imagine the fi gures for themselves without studying theories of international relations. Likewise, tables such as 5.1, 5.2, 7.1, 7.3, and 7.4 are distracting, as each of them is inserted into the middle of an unfi nished sentence. Those who are interested in a universal model of the relationship between history education and international affairs may fi nd the book stimulating, but it is unlikely to help readers gain much substantial knowledge about the U.S. occupation of Japan, postwar Japanese society, nationalism in East Asia, or the efforts of concerned individuals to promote historical reconciliation in the region.


The late of water‐Joss from tropical African centipedes (Rhysida nuda and Ethmostigmus trigonopodus) and millipedes (Oxydesmus platycercus and Ophistreptus sp.) is proportional to the saturation deficiency of the atmosphere. These animals therefore resemble forms from temperate and desert regions in this aspect of their physiology. Their nocturnal habits are probably related to their high rate of transpiration. The endogenous 24‐hour rhythm shows a slight retardation in constant light and an acceleration in darkness. The probable function of this is to synchronize it with diurnal environmental changes. The West African scorpion, Pandinus imperator, has a 'critical temperature' considerably lower than those of desert species and comparable with that of the Italian Euscorpius germanus.


The invention discloses a method for establishing an urban landscape water body ecological system. The method comprises the following steps: improving a water body substrate; planting submerged plants by using a method that upright posts are adopted to mark areas, so as to establish an underwater frost; planting layered emergent aquatic plants; putting zooplankton (daphnia magna) so as to improve the transparency of the water body; putting aquatic organisms such as fishes, shrimps and shells, so as to complete the water body ecological system; maintaining and managing the ecological system. Through the adoption of the method, the quality of the water body can be remarkably improved, the transparency can be greater than 2.0m, the quality can meet the III-type water quality standard for a long time, black, smell and dirty water bodies with blue-green algae can be thoroughly eliminated, and the water body is always kept clear completely.


Objective To investigate the clinicopathological features, and mutations of NRAS, KRAS, BRAF and MAP2K1 genes in extranodal Rosai–Dorfman disease (RDD). Methods The clinic opathological features of 27 patients with extranodal RDD were retrospectively analyzed, and the NRAS, KRAS, BRAF and MAP2K1 genes mutation were detected by Sanger sequencing. Results The male to female ratio was 1.7:1. The average age was 46.9 years. There were skin lesions in 12 cases (44.4%) and head and neck lesions in 8 cases (29.6%). Microscopically, those patients with skin RDD had lesions characterized by clear and dark intervals and obvious emperipolesis, while in other parts, the background was more complex. About 21.1% (4/19) had mutations, including 3 mutations in NRAS 2 exon and 1 mutation in KRAS 2 exon. Two of the three NRAS mutations were located in the skin, accounting for 20% (2/10) of skin RDD. Conclusion Extranodal RDD was more common in males than in females, and might occur in all ages, with a greater incidence in skin, head, and neck. Besides the obvious microscopic characteristics in those with skin RDD, the background of other parts was complex and easily missed or misdiagnosed. Some RDD with gene mutations, mainly in NRAS 2 exon, especially in skin RDD, support partial RDD is a clonal disease.


Genetic factor and environmental agent affect balance of food ingest and energy wasting is a major causation of simple obesity.Thrifty genotype was generated in relation to susceptibility to reserve surplus energy in human evolution.We cannot reconstruct thrifty genotypes we already owned,but we can interfere in ingestion and movement in order to prevent and treat obesity.


The paper presents the basic design of a low- THz TWT consisting of a helically arranged groove-guide driven by a hollow beam. The beam interacts with the wave in a periodic sequence of gaps. The small signal gain is estimated and spurious mode excitation is investigated. First simulation results are shown.


Environmental pollution caused by used engine oil has been on the increase as a result of accidental or deliberate discharge of the oil. Used engine oil is relatively recalcitrant to biodegradation due to the high concentrations of metals from the wear and tear of engine parts. Several physical and chemical methods were employed for the remediation of used engine oil-contaminated soil, but bioremediation remains the most economical especially in remediating polluted soils. Therefore, this work aimed to isolate and screen efficient used engine oil-degrading bacteria from serval automobile workshops located at Gadau town, Itas Gadau, Bauchi state, Nigeria. Soil samples were collected from three different locations and were used to isolate, and screen used engine oil-degrading bacteria. The best degrader was Pseudomonas sp. with 82% degradation of 1% (v/v) of used engine oil after 5 days of aerobic incubation. The result further indicated that degradation occurs best at 1% (v/v) and no degradation was recorded at 3% (v/v) of used engine oil. Pseudomonas sp. can be employed in the field remediation of used engine oil-contaminated soil.


Gasification efficiency is an important factor that determines the actual technical operation as well as the economic viability of using a gasifier system for energy production. In this study, the ...


Background and Aim: Exclusive breastfeeding is very important for an infant's growth and development. Self-efficacy is a modifiable psychological variable in sustained breastfeeding that is defined as a mother's confidence in her perceived ability about successful exclusive breastfeeding. Self- efficacy beliefs function as an important set of human motivation , affect , and action which operate on action through motivation, cognitive and affective intervention process. Teaching strategies, based on Bandera's self-efficacy theory and adult learning principles were incorporated in this research's design. regarding the importance of education in increasing breastfeeding self-efficacy and exclusive breastfeeding, the current study was conducted in order to compare of the effectiveness of two educational methods, i.e., "Hands on" and" Hands off" on breastfeeding self-efficacy in primiparous mothers.
Materials and Methods: In the present clinical trial, 136 nursing mothers were randomly assigned to one of the three groups. Participants in the experimental groups received one of the structured one-on-one educational sessions (i.e., hands off or hands on) within the first two hours of giving birth. Mothers in control group received usual postpartum care. Follow-up assessments were conducted one, four, and eight weeks after the birth. Data collection was done through interview forms, examination and observation, checklist of breastfeeding status, breastfeeding self-efficacy and daily-feeding form.
Results: Women who were educated through hands-off technique reported higher self-efficacy exclusive breastfeeding than those receiving hands-on education or usual postpartum care at all measurement points after the intervention.
Conclusion: The hands-off education possibly is a better technique than hands-on technique .


Purpose: Kilovoltage cone‐beam CT(CBCT) is becoming an increasingly important clinical tool for image‐guidedradiation therapy. Current CBCTimaging procedures acquire data from hundreds of angular views, during which considerable amount of radiationdose is deposited in the patient body. This raises patient safety concerns as CBCT is often used for frequent image acquisitions.Dose reduction can be achieved in part by acquiring data collected from a considerably reduced number of views. In this work, we develop a total‐variation‐minimization‐based image reconstruction algorithm (TV algorithm) to reconstructimages for situations when only a fraction of full‐scan CBCT data is acquired in radiation therapy.Materials and methods: The TV algorithm seeks among all the image candidates satisfying a given data‐fidelity tolerance the one with minimum total variation. Projection onto convex sets (POCS) and gradient‐descent techniques were used in the algorithm to achieve this goal. To test the algorithm, we acquired 856‐view CBCT data of a home‐built phantom with the on‐board imaging (OBI) system mounted on a Trilogy linear accelerator (Varian Medical Systems, Palo Alto, CA). We then extracted 32‐, 62‐, and 96‐view data for reconstruction using TV and other analytical and iterative algorithms. Results: Among all the tested reconstruction algorithms, the reconstructed images using TV algorithm is least contaminated with artifacts caused by insufficient angular sampling, and the low‐contrast object in the phantom is most distinguishable from background in TV reconstructed images.Conclusion: The proposed TV algorithm produces more accurate reconstruction images than other algorithms in the tested cases where only a fraction of the full dataset is used. The TV algorithm may be potentially useful in reducing radiationdose in CBCTimage‐guidedradiation therapy.


Summary

Sampson (1976, 1978) has considered applications of the standard symmetric multivariate normal (SSMN) distribution and the estimation of its equi-correlation coefficient, ρ. Tests for ρ are considered here. The likelihood ratio test suffers from several theoretical and practical shortcomings. We propose the locally most powerful (LMP) test which is globally (one-sided) unbiased, very simple to compute and is based on the best natural unbiased estimator of ρ. Exact null and non-null distributions of the test statistic are presented and percentage points are given. Statistical curvature (Efron, 1975) indicates that its performance improves with mk (sample size × dimension) while exact power computations show that even for reasonably small values of mk the performance is quite encouraging. Recalling Brown's (1971) cautions we establish by local comparison with the LMP similar test for ρ in the SMN (Rao, 1973) distribution, that here the additional information on the mean and variance is quite worthwhile.


Starting in the late 20 th century, we are seeing increased interest in obtaining energy from renewable sources. One of those sources is wind energy and its use. Increased interest in offshore wind farms in Poland is caused by the introduction of numerous restrictions on the construction of terrestrial power plants. The purpose of this article is to assess the operational risk of offshore wind farms from the point of view of their ability to be covered by insurance. The article discusses the principles of their functioning, the accompanying natural hazards as well as the general conditions of their coverage by indicating the subject of insurance, the scope of insurance and the sum insured. General conditions of operation of offshore wind farms were discussed.


Indigenous ethnic languages variety studies are highly needed in Brazil given the benefits that they can provide not only to linguistics but also to indigenous school education. Because there are many steps to be followed, in order to make possible a contact with indigenous variety, first it is necessary to build a knowledge of the indigenous language to accomplish such task. My assumption is that the indigenous language acquired as the first language (L1) will influence the learning of a second language (L2). Accordingly, I present a brief study of the Xerente Akwe language and the influences it brings to Portuguese in order to present the Xerente Akwe Portuguese Variety. The Xerente Akwe language belongs to the Macro Je stock and to the Je family. Its 3,500 speakers live in two areas within the state of Tocantins, Brazil. Data were collected for 20 years by many researches and use quantitative and qualitative methods. My main objective is to contribute to indigenous sociolinguistics and to indigenous school education.


Input impedance, current distribution, and radiation pattern for a small broadband flare antenna are numerically analyzed by an improved finite-difference-time-domain (FD-TD) method. This method is best suited for treating the curvilinear metal boundaries. The selected small flare antennas with appropriate shapes and a size of about 9 cm show a good broadband performance. The results also show that the input impedance is between 150-450 Omega in a wide-frequency range, and that the radiation patterns are similar for the frequencies in the 5-12 GHz range.<<ETX>>


Continuous deodorization of malodorous sulfur compounds by Thiobaillus neapolitanusts R-10 immobilized onto a polypropylene pellet was studied using a column reactor at 30C. The maximum amounts of immobilized cells was 5.3 gall polypropylene with 5×7.5mm in pellet size, and the amounts of immobilized cells in the higher part of the column was as twice as in the lower part. The optimum pH and temperature for removal of dimethyl sulfide were 6.0 and 30C, respectively. When 5-20 /l of hydrogen sulfide and methylmercaptan were employed 98% of removal efficiency were achieved. In contrast, lower concentrations of dimethyl sulfide and dimethyldisulfide should be supplied to meet satisfactory deodorization efficiency. The immobilized cell column was successfully operated for the deodorization of mixture of sulfur compounds over 15 days without significant loss of initial activity achieving high efficiency. Key Words Deodorization, m삽odorous sulfur compounds, Thiobacillus neapolitunus R-10


Oils and fats are integral part of human di et and to match the demands of ever increasing population, there is a continuous search for new edible oils . In the present study, root barks of Vallaris solanacea were examined. As the plant has root and the root bark of Vallaris solanacea found to contai n fine oil in 40% yield. The various physico - chemical properties of the extract also revealed the presence of fixed oil from root bark of Vallaris solanacea. The results of gas chromatographic analysis indicate that oil is rich in unsaturated fatty acids l ike oleic, linole nic and polyunsaturated fatty acid like arachidonic acid which are the essential requirement of human diet. The oil also contains saturated fatty acids like caprylic acid, capric acid, lauric acid, palmitic acid and erucic acid and is prov en to be non - toxic on animal experimentation's (rat). Since the oil is present in good yield, is non - toxic and contains essential fatty acids so has to promise to be used as an alternate source of edible oil.


A finite element (FE) formulation is presented for a direct approach to model elastoplastic deformation in slender bodies using the special Cosserat rod theory. The direct theory has additional plastic strain and hardening variables, which are functions of just the rod's arc‐length, to account for plastic deformation of the rod. Furthermore, the theory assumes the existence of an effective yield function in terms of stress resultants, that is, force and moment in the cross‐section and cross‐section averaged hardening parameters. Accordingly, one does not have to resort to the three‐dimensional theory of elastoplasticity during any step of the finite element formulation. A return map algorithm is presented in order to update the plastic variables, stress resultants and also to obtain the consistent elastoplastic moduli of the rod. The presented FE formulation is used to study snap‐through buckling in a semicircular arch subjected to an in‐plane transverse load at its midsection. The effect of various elastoplastic parameters as well as pretwisting of the arch on its load–displacement curve are presented.


Objectives  To help resolve Ireland's ongoing struggle to provide adequate numbers of physicians engaged in direct patient care, a modification in tax policy is proposed. The number of licensed practitioners entering the country is low and the proportion of Ireland's own domestic medical graduates who establish practices in other jurisdictions appears to be growing. The resulting manpower shortage has exacerbated the healthcare crisis in Ireland. Against this background, a variation on Ireland's existing income tax code is proposed to address the problem.


Diabetes one among the various life style disorders [1], has a pandemic existence in today's world. It affects the population, irrespective of the age, sex, religion, etc. A survey work done in Canada recently found that 75% people with diabetes used herbal supplements, vitamins etc [2]. Overall the research indicates that people suffering from diabetes, are using herbal medicines in the form of a single herb or a polyherbal preparation, besides the prescribed medicine. These herbal formulations are considered to function as a nutritive supplement, nervine tonic or hypolipdemic agent [3]. Even though these herbal supplements are claimed to be free from side effects but needs to be approved by FDA. However, these herbs have their own pharmacological actions with the prescribed antidiabetic drug, which may be synergistic or antagonistic to the same. In the existing system, it is very difficult to control such concomitant usage of medicines of various types, as they are available for over the counter sale. Hence, an earnest attempt has been made here to review and analyze the positive as well as negative role of herbs and its modalities when they are used along with the contemporary medicine.


The unit cell of one-dimensional phononic crystal was reduced to a spring-mass structure with limited number of degrees of freedom.The lattice vibrations were investigated in agreement with the dual variables system,and the dispersion relation was obtained by the symplectic mathematical method.Furthermore,the eigenfrequency was given by using the Wittrick-Williams algorithm,thus the band gap was obtained.Comparing the results calculated by the present method with those by the traditional lumped-mass method,it is obvious that there is a good agreement.However,the former is capable of improving the calculation accuracy and computational efficiency,and more importantly,is of better convergence.


Objectives To explore factors that influenced the health resource allocation and utilisation before and after COVID-19, and subsequently offer sensible recommendations for advancing the scientific distribution of health resources. Design A longitudinal survey using 2017–2020 data, which were collected for analysis. Setting The study was conducted based on data collected from the Health Commission of Guangdong Province's website. Outcome measures Eight health resource indicators and four health resource utilisation indicators were included in the factor analysis. Four indices were calculated to measure the inequality in health resource allocation and utilisation. We analysed factors for the inequality indices using the recentred influence function index ordinary least squares decomposition method. Results The health resource inequality indices peaked in 2020 (Gini coefficient (Gini): 0.578, Absolute Gini coefficient (AGini): 1.136, Concentration Index (CI): 0.417, Absolute CI (ACI): 0.821), whereas the health resource utilisation inequality indices declined year by year, thus reaching their lowest point in that same year. The majority of inequality indices in the annual change of health resource allocation were at their lowest in 2020 (Gini: −1.672, AGini: 0.046, CI: −0.189, ACI: 0.005), while the use of health resources declined dramatically, showing a negative growth trend. The inequality indices of health resource allocation and utilisation in 2020 were affected by a number of variables, including the COVID-19 level, (p<0.05), while the proportion of expenditure on public health was the most significant one. Conclusions Guangdong Province's health resource allocation and utilisation were still concentrated in economically developed regions from 2017 to 2020. The health resource allocation inequality indices increased, especially under COVID-19, but the health resource utilisation inequality indices decreased. Measures should be taken to adjust the health resource allocation scientifically, which will fulfil the changing needs and the use of resources more efficiently. One effective measure is reasonably increasing the proportion of expenditure on public health.


In this paper, we address the use of the extrinsic information generated by each component decoder in an iterative decoding process. The algorithm proposed by Bahl et al. (1974) and the soft-output Viterbi algorithm (SOVA) are considered as component decoders. Numerical results for a classical rate-1/2 turbo code transmitted over a memoryless additive white Gaussian noise (AWGN) channel are provided. The performance analysis of the considered schemes leads to interesting remarks about the nature of iterative decoding processes.


1. KCl‐induced contractions in aortic rings of spontaneously hypertensive rats (SHR) and two normotensive strains, Sprague‐Dawley (SD) and Wistar‐Kyoto (WKY) rats, were studied.


This thesis examines the immigration and integration of Haitians in Quebec society. First, a historical background of this process is presented. Second, there is a discussion of how education is strongly linked to the Haitian's particular status in Quebec. This status is subject to the political climate and commitment of the Quebec government to establish French culture as the dominant one. Finally, different interviews with Haitian respondents and participants are introduced. The findings of the cases studied suggest that some of the Haitians who arrived here in the 1960s (first wave) became "upwardly mobile' and benefited from unprecedented opportunities in Quebec. Unlike the first wave, the second and succeeding waves of Haitian immigration arrived in Quebec in a different political and socioeconomic context. Because many of these individuals had little education, they went to work mainly in factories. However, many of those who were well-educated failed to secure a job despite their education. This situation forced the latter into unemployment and underemployment. Starting with the assumption that education and employment are the main variables for achieving immigrant integration, this thesis seeks to understand these two different contexts of Haitian immigration and their effect on the integration process of these individuals in Quebec society.


Metallic sulphide oxidation has been associated to the generation of acid mine drainage, one of the most import environmental issues in the mining industry. Bioleaching can be applied to accelerate sulphide oxidation, ceasing these impacts. This work sought to study the biooxidation of a complex nickel-iron sulphide (pentlandite and pyrrhotite) using acidophile iron-oxidizing bacteria. The effects of pH and solids concentration on the extraction of nickel were evaluated. A high nickel extraction (around 60%) can be achieved confirming the feasibility of nickel sulphide bioleaching. The pH has a negligible effect on nickel extraction being pH 2.0 the best value. Nickel dissolution can be achieved at high solid percentages since gaseous transfer in the system is not strongly affected. It is suggested therefore that sulphide dissolution under these conditions is limited by the availability of carbon dioxide in the leaching system, which controls bacterial growth.


Localized microfluidic flow control using a 1×4 linear array of Fresnel type GHz ultrasonic transducers is presented. The planar fabrication process and the decoupling of fluidics from the electrical interconnects side of the aluminum nitride based transducer enable easier integration of GHz transducers and fluidics in a distributed manner. The streaming vortices generated by the high frequency focused sonic waves from the Fresnel transducers perturb the laminar nature of the microfluidic flow in the channel. By electronically controlling the on and off times of the RF signal inputs to the Fresnel transducers, fluidic steaming was localized. Further, the changes in the path of polystyrene microbeads in water that were pumped into the microchannel indicate changes in the fluidic forces acting on them due to acoustic streaming and change in the flow velocity.


By electrically segmenting an InP ridge laser and series-connecting the segments, we have created the first highly scalable bipolar cascade lasers. We report room-temperature continuous-wave operation of 12-stage lasers with a record 390% differential efficiency and 2.8-mA threshold, as well as three-stage lasers with 50-/spl Omega/ input impedance and 118% efficiency.


Background:  Indian data from controlled drug trials on the use of meloxicam (a new preferential COX-2 inhibitor) and other non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) in arthritis is sparse.

Aim:  To evaluate the clinical efficacy and safety of meloxicam.

Patients and methods:  One hundred and twenty-one patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and 133 patients with osteoarthritis (OA) knees were randomized into two different multicentric, double-blind, drug trials of four-weeks duration each. Meloxicam 7.5 mg (OA study) and 15 mg (RA study) was compared to diclofenac 100 mg and piroxicam 20 mg in daily dosages, respectively. Strict eligibility criteria ensured active symptomatic disease. Standard ACR efficacy measures of pain and function (including validated Indian versions of HAQ & WOMAC) were used. Protocol-driven evaluations were carried out throughout the study. An intent-to-treat efficacy analysis (significance at P < 0.05) was carried out to test the hypothesis of equal efficacy between meloxicam and comparator.

Results:  (i) There were no significant differences between meloxicam and piroxicam in the RA study. (ii) While joint count for pain/tenderness was improved (P   0.05) as a rescue analgesic.

Conclusions:  When compared to piroxicam and diclofenac, meloxicam has equal clinical efficacy and a better safety profile. Multicentric control drug trials are feasible in our population.


Waterwtable measurements taken at a 0.81 ha research plot in the Claiborne aquifer recharge area over a three·year period from 1989 to 1991 are reported. Analysis indicates the rate of total applied water can be used to accurately predict whether aquifer recharge is taking place. Simulations of rootwzone percolation and aquifer recharge using the GLEAMS-FEST model predict the temporal trends of obsetved data, but do not provide good estimates of absolute values.


ABSTRACT: The performance of most plasma generators using electric arcs is determined by the design of the electrodes. While the cathode design is the dominant factor in determining the limitations in torch operating current and power level as well as life between maintenance, the anode design dominates the functional performance for most torches, i.e. the heat and momentum transfer to the materials to be processed. Plasma torch electrodes are conveniently divided into the following categories: (1) thermionic cathode, (2) non‐thermionic (cold) cathode, (3) anode with arc axis and flow perpendicular to the surface, and (4) anode with the arc axis and the flow parallel to the surface. All possible combinations are encountered in commercially available torches. In this review, the performance characteristics of each of these electrode types are discussed.


thrill could be felt most distinctly over the apex and left nipple; and a loud systolic murmur was audible, most intense over the same region; it could also be heard at the inferior angle of the left scapula. The thrill was synchronous with the ventricular systole, and varied in intensity as the patient was excited or the contrary. As regards thle treatment of the above and such kindred cases of cardiac disease, Dr. MIoore remarked that the relief of the secondary cornllications, when present, such as pnleumonia, pleurisy, hepatic and renal congestion, with ascites or general dropsy, demanded our promlpt attention. In this case, nature may be said to have come to our relief by establishing abscesses in different regions, by which means the dropsy, to a great extent, was removed. For the removal of hepatic and renal congestion, hie generally advocated thc exhibition of aperients and diuretics in combinatonviz., a mercurial witlh squill or digitalis; and, to relieve the pulmonary engoigement, dry-cupping or the application of blisters. By these meastures, coupled wiith the avoidance of mental excitement, you w ill often be able to restore cases apparently moribund, although such t iatment w ill not materially affect the 5;ource of the disease. In the alhox c c s-, as the . is of our patient did not admit of active derivatives of any kind, we exhibited more stimulatillg dinretics, at iodide of potassiuim in combination with bark, and decoction of scoparium with s.pirits of jusniper. Ile bad wvine, beef-tea, and a clberal regirrmen ; and, -hess sigxns of pleusritis evinced themselves, he was blistered over the affected rse'ion.


Aim: To evaluate the local impact of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic on breast cancer (BC) care, with particular attention to the economical and psychological consequences of the possible delay of new diagnoses and treatments. Methods: Three years' activity (from 2019 to 2021) has been compared. The number of BCs diagnosed from the total amount of mammographic and ultrasound (US) examinations performed in women aged more than 40 years old has been considered. A Pearson's chi-squared test was performed to verify differences between results. Statistical significance was set at P ≤ 0.01. Results: A statistically significant difference was found in the number of BC diagnosed between screening and ambulatory care patients in both the 2019–2020 (χ2 = 24.93, P < 0.01) and 2019–2021 (χ2 = 29.93, P < 0.01) comparisons. No statistically significant difference was found in the data recorded between 2020 and 2021 (χ2 = 2.35, P > 0.01). By evaluating the specific age groups for each year, a statistically significant difference (P < 0.01) was found in the number of BC diagnosed in screening patients aged 50–69 years old in both 2019–2020 and 2019–2021 comparisons. The percentages of early BC diagnosed in 2019, 2020, and 2021 were 80.9%, 91.7%, and 89.8%, respectively. The adherence rates to screening in 2019, 2020, and 2021 were 67.5%, 45.2%, and 56.9%, respectively. Conclusions: Results showed a reduction of new diagnoses in the screening range during the pandemic in comparison with the previous period. The high percentage of early BC would seem to have prevented worsening outcomes. Nevertheless, women who have not undergone screening could present a more advanced stage disease in the following years. Consequently, the evaluation of possible solutions to guarantee an essential level of care with the purpose to avoid worsening patients' outcomes and the increase in healthcare costs is mandatory.


Inthis paper, we studythepower-factor correction problemwithshuntactive power filter (APF)tocompensate the harmonicsand reactive power due to nonlinear loadand switching devices. Sincethecurrentreference commandsare periodical anddrastically vary withtime, a current-cycle iterative learning control isadoptedtoachieve thecurrenttracking objective. Fuzzyrules totunethelearning gains are alsodevised, which act to increaserobustness and improvetracking performance oftheiterative learning controller. Theproposed approachcan providegood tracking accuracy and fast convergence. The experimental results show thatwiththe proposed fuzzyiterative learning controller, reducedTHD in source currents and highpower factor are established. Fast dynamical responsetostepchangeinloadisalsoobserved.


Maritime transport is one of the leading sources of air pollution in port and coastal cities. A significant contribution to air pollution caused by the activities related to maritime traffic refers to traffic of cruise ships, which regularly consume considerable amounts of fuel in ports due to increased demand for electricity. The combustion of these fuels results in emissions containing relatively high concentration of sulfur and nitrogen oxides, as well as carbon dioxide. In the form of fine particulate matter (PM2.5) they contaminate the environment and become dangerous to the health of living beings. With the increase in the traffic of cruise ships the amount of ship emissions is also increasing and thus the contribution to air pollution is becoming highly important. This paper analyzes the impact of cruise ships on the air quality in the city of Dubrovnik, according to data from measuring station Žarkovica.


EuGa2, orthorhombic, Imma (no. 74), a = 4.6459(3) A, b = 7.6255(5) A, c = 7.6379(3) A, V= 270.6 A, Ζ = 4, Rgl(F) = 0 .017, wRiet(F) = 0 .023, T= 2 9 3 K . Source of material A series of samples with nominal compositions EuxGaioo-;c (27 < x < 40) was prepared by melting of elemental components in a high frequency furnace (open carbon crucible; argon atmosphere; europium, 99.9 %, Lamprecht, additionally distilled; Ga, 99.9999 %, Chempur). For homogenization, the samples were wrapped in Mo foil, sealed into argon filled (400 mbar) silica tubes, annealed for 500 h at 600 °C and finally quenched in cold water. Single crystals with metallic luster were extracted from the compact alloy with nominal composition Eu33Ga67Experimental details The unit cell parameters were obtained from least-square refinement or 35 reflections taken from powder patterns (Guinier Huber G670 camera, CuK«i radiation, Λ = 1.54056 A) using germanium (a = 5.657906 A) as internal standard. Table 2. Atomic coordinates and displacement parameters (in A). Discussion Europium digallide was initially found to have the hexagonal structure of the AIB2 type [1,2]. Further investigations showed the orthorhombic structure of the KHg2 type [3,4]. The phase with the crystal structure of the AIB2 type was explained either to be a high-temperature modification [3] or to be stabilized by impurities [4], The present investigation confirmed the orthorhombic crystal structure of the KHg2 type reported earlier from X-ray powder data [3,4]. Our investigations showed that the phase with the KHg2 atomic arrangement is formed only at stoichiometric ratio of the components (1:2). Slight deviations from the ideal composition (Eu28-3oGa72-7o) lead to the formation of the phase with AIB2 structure [5]. The four-bonded gallium atoms in the crystal structure of EuGa2 form slightlv puckered hexagonal nets with Ga—Ga distances of 2.653(1) A and 2.6921(6) A. The distance between the nets is slightly longer 2.811(1) A. The europium atoms have coordination number 16 with 12 Ga and 4 Eu neighbors. The Eu—Ga distances cover a narrow range of 3.1474(6) A 3.4547(6) A. Rare earth digallides adopt predominately the AIB2 type of structure at ambient conditions [6]. Beside the reported phase, only TmGa2 and LuGa2 crystallize with KHg2 type [7]. As unique representative of this series, YbGa2 adopts the hexagonal Caln2 structure type at ambient conditions [1,8]. Table 1. Data collection and handling.


The MOM controversy continues with many prevailing opinions as to the causes of failure in contemporary designs. There has been a great deal of focus on breakdown in fluid-film lubrication with respect to cup positioning and edge wear at its rim. However there has been very little discussion on the problems of 3rd body abrasion. In only one study was there a description of unusually large abrasive marks on retrieved femoral heads (McKee Farrar MOM), revealing 100 μm wide scratches, attributed to circulating particles fractured during impingement episodes. With contemporary MOM devices, there is the potential for abrasion by particulates of CoCr, PMMA and Ti6Al4V. However it has been difficult to formulate a coherent simulator model for 3rd-body abrasive wear, given the unpredictable nature of impingement damage releasing abrasive particles into the patient's hip joint. Thus this study sought to identify if metal or cement particulates were capable of creating 100 μm wide scratches as seen on retrieved MOM...


Polythiophenes are a popular class of organic conducting polymers, known for their environmental stability, conductivity [1], fluorescence and electroluminescent properties [2]. Conducting polymers, such as polythiophenes, have enormous potential in both static and dynamic applications, ranging from field-effect transistors and diodes to chemical sensors [3]. Many applications require the use of conducting polymers in the solid phase, which presents a painful trade off between high and low density deposition. High density deposition allows for easier charge injection as well as greater overall charge density, luminescence and conductivity. Unfortunately, inter-molecular interactions between uninsulated conducting polymers in the solid phase result in imprecise band gap control (mainly due to π-π stacking), crosstalk between threads, and quenching (lower florescent and electroluminescent quantum yield). While low density deposition can often alleviate these problems, it is often impractical. By inhibiting undesired inter-molecular interactions, insulated conducting polymers offer a solution; ideally, allowing for high density deposition with better band gap control and little/no loss in quantum yield [4]. In this study, we seek to develop an intramolecular bi-thiophene rotaxane with minimal degradation of the conductive, fluorescent and electroluminescent properties of bi-thiophene. The intramolecular bi-thiophene rotaxane must also be suitable for polymerization and use in the solid phase.


A novel approach to estimating the detailed shape of arbitrary extended objects jointly with their kinematics in the absence of a priori information is presented. The proposed shape model represents the tightest enclosing bound of the object projected into the ego motion plane as a polygon with an unknown number of vertices. Probabilistic inference techniques are employed to overcome various sources of uncertainty by rigorously estimating the joint distribution over the object shape and kinematic states, rather than estimating these variables directly. Simulation and experimental results are presented for objects with complex shapes tracked from an autonomous vehicle research platform. In addition to providing a richer set of information for higher level reasoning about extended objects (e.g. about object type, or occupied space), the results demonstrate that detailed shape estimates enable efficient use of sensor information by way of explicit surface-based sensor models; this efficient use of sensor information improves observability of latent object states, thereby improving tracking precision.


Molecular dynamics (MD) simulations of RDX is carried out using the ReaxFF force field supplied with the Large‐scale Atomic/Molecular Massively Parallel Simulator (LAMMPS). Validation of ReaxFF to model RDX is carried out by extracting the (i) crystal unit cell parameters, (ii) bulk modulus and (iii) thermal expansion coefficient and comparing with reported values from both experiments and simulations.


Location-based mobile services/applications are becoming more and more popular both on the web and in the mobile phones, according to research firm Gartner. The demand for accurate maps is rapi ...


NAV2500 is the next generation GPS/WAAS receiver from Accord. Based on the enhanced Soft-Correlator, the receiver is designed around a single high performance fixed point general purpose Digital Signal Processor (DSP) from Analog Devices and a standard Radio Frequency down converter. The receiver features increased availability of the GPS solution by means of improved speed of signal acquisition and reacquisition along with enhanced signal tracking sensitivity. The 12 channel GPS/WAAS correlator and the navigation module are both realized using a single DSP to offer the performance demanded by ION GPS 2000, 19-22 September 2000, Salt Lake City, UT 3 a whole new generation of hand held, wireless computing, automotive and timing applications. The receiver can be configured to track SBAS signals. This generation of receivers feature better TTFF performance and much lower power consumption characteristics over the NAV2300 from Accord. NAV2500 employs a configurable in-built softdemodulator to decode MSK DGPS signals from Beacons. The receiver can also be used as an accurate timing reference, which can be utilized in a variety of synchronization applications. The software Numerically Controlled Oscillator (NCO) in the receiver which is synchronized with the GPS epoch can be programmed to generate frequencies ranging from 100Hz to 10MHz. The timing unit of the receiver is driven by an inexpensive crystal.


Let us know how access to this document benefits you. Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarworks.umt.edu/etd Part of the Community Health and Preventive Medicine Commons, Health and Medical Administration Commons, Health Information Technology Commons, Musculoskeletal System Commons, Other Medicine and Health Sciences Commons, Sports Management Commons, Sports Medicine Commons, and the Sports Sciences Commons


Introduction : Topical application of capsaicine (extract of hot red chili pepper) reduces the size of nasal polyps and prevents after the surgery nasal polyps regrowth. Mechanism involved is due to depletion of sensory neurons and dorsal sensory root ganglia from their neuropeptide content and cauterization of posterior nasal nerves reduces statistically significant the endoscopic recurrence of nasal polyposis (p=0.016). We presumed that both mechanisms in reducing polyps and their recurrence is the same we tried to explain these events using the published experience and theories from other authors, known immunology events, our tots and c1inical experience. Material : Over 100 articles published in recent fifteen years regarding : Immunology, structure, cell and metabolic products of nasal polyp. Immunology, physiology, and pathophysiology of immunocompetent cells, nerve injuries and reparation. Rcsults : Cascade of immunological events which has proof in findings published by authors worldwide. Conclusion : Constitutional or acquired impair of production of different neurotransmitters in the nerve endings induces impaired immunological function of different immunocompetent cells resulting in polyp formation after inflamation with both bacteria and fungi and allergic sensitization. Remodeling and reinnervation can normalize the neurotransmitter content and restore normal immunological function. Experimental and clinical trials should be pointed and carried out to elucidate and confirm our theory.


Introducing new technology is the way to transform the education tools: To recognise that a land information system (LIS) serves to a several different professional bodies; To harmonise the definitions of the terminology of the industry; To evolve a standarisation of the industry terminology; To recognise that to achieve the above we need to reform: the education systems accordingly.


Purpose One of the drawbacks of cemented total hip arthroplasty (THA) is aseptic loosening after long period, major reason for which is bioinertness of PMMA bone cement. To improve longevity of THA, interface bioactive bone cement (IBBC) technique which is characterized with smearing hydroxyapatite (HA) granules just before cementation has been used in our institute. Objective Smooth-surfaced triple-tapered Titanium-alloy stem (T) and Exeter stem (E) have been used consecutively in the different period. Objective of the present study was thoroughly comparing two stems clinically and radiologically. Method The present study includes 38 hips of T and 40 hips of E. Mean postoperative follow up period was 7.7 years for T and 6.2 years for E. Radiolucent line (RL) was determined as clear line with sclerotic demarcation and cancellisation as without it. Results Pre- and postoperative evaluation using Merle d9Aubigne score were 8.1 (2.2, 2.2, 3.7) and 16.0 (6.0, 5.2, 4.8) points for T and, 8.1 (2.2, 2.2, 3.7) and 16.4 (6.0, 5.6, 4.8) for E, respectively. Postoperative cementing grade using Barrack9s classification was classified as A for 30 hips in T and 39 hips in E, and as B for 8 hips in T and 9 hips in E. Neither osteolysis nor loosening was observed in both groups. No RL at bone-cement interface, focal osteolysisa, cement fracture was observed. Cortical hypertrophy (CH) was observed in 7 hips of T and 5 hips of E (NS). Cortical hypertrophy (CH) localized beyond stem tip was observed in all hips of T (Figure 1) and in 1 hips of E (Figure 2) (p Conclusion The present study revealed excellent medium-term result was obtained using both stems fixed with IBBC technique. CH was observed more distally in T compared with E.


Nowadays, customer orders with high product variety in small quantities are often received and requested for timely delivery. However, the order-picking process is a labour-intensive and costly activity to handle those small orders separately. In such cases, small orders are often grouped into batches so that two or more orders can be served at once to increase the picking efficiency and thus reduce the travel distance. In this paper, an order-picking operations system (OPOS) is proposed to assist the formulation of an order-picking plan and batch-handling sequence. The study integrates a mathematical model and fuzzy logic technique to divide the receiving orders into batches and prioritise the batch-handling sequence for picking, respectively. Through the proposed system, the order-picking process can be managed as batches with common picking locations to minimise the travel distance, and the batch-picking sequence can be determined as well. To demonstrate the use of the system, a case study in a third-party logistics warehouse is presented, and the result shows that both the order-picking activity and labour utilisation can be better organised.


Abstract A new quantum-mechanical scheme is proposed for estimations of dispersion interactions and transfer matrix elements of electronic excitations. The key step in the implementation of the scheme is the use of singular value decomposition for matrices of the two-electron operator responsible for interactions between two molecules. Thus obtained decomposition contains only few leading terms having asymptotics of conventional multipole terms. It turns out that the first of these terms (quasi-monopole term), usually ignored by conventional approaches, may give a marked contribution to the transfer amplitudes. Within this technique some calculations on π-systems of aromatic molecules and fullerenes are performed.


The article deals with one of the oldest manuscripts containing a significant part of the theological chapters of Kallistos Angelikoudes, one of the most important hesychast authors of the late Byzantine period. Codex Vatopedinus gr. 610 was written in the late 14th c. It contains a great amount of quotations excerpted from Patristic literature. In the second part of the codex, one can find the chapters of Kallistos Angelikoudes; these 92 chapters were retrieved from a greater collection containing now about 200 chapters. The article discusses the content of the Vatopedi manuscript, pointing out to the use of many Patristic fragments included there in different works by Kallistos Angelikoudes. This may shed light on the origin and purpose of the manuscript. A further study of the history of the text of these chapters allows us to assess the place of the Vatopedi codex in the manuscript tradition of Kallistos Angelikoudes' literary legacy. The Church Slavonic translation of this collection of Angelikoudes' chapters made by Paisius Velichkovsky in the 1770—1790s reproduces many peculiarities of the Greek text contained in the Vatopedi manuscript and was presumably based on a copy of that codex.


We present Submillimeter Array (SMA) observations of the HCN\,(3--2) and HCO$^+$\,(3--2) molecular lines toward the W3(H$_2$O) and W3(OH) star-forming complexes. Infall and outflow motions in the W3(H$_2$O) have been characterized by observing HCN and HCO$^+$ transitions. High-velocity blue/red-shifted emission, tracing the outflow, show multiple knots, which might originate in episodic and precessing outflows. `Blue-peaked' line profiles indicate that gas is infalling onto the W3(H$_2$O) dust core. The measured large mass accretion rate, 2.3$\times$10$^{-3}$~M$_{\odot}$~yr$^{-1}$, together with the small free-fall time scale, 5$\times$10$^{3}$~yr, suggest W3(H$_2$O) is in an early evolutionary stage of the process of formation of high-mass stars. For the W3(OH), a two-layer model fit to the HCN and HCO$^+$ spectral lines and Spizter/IRAC images support that the W3(OH) H{\sc ii} region is expanding and interacting with the ambient gas, with the shocked neutral gas being expanding with an expansion timescale of 6.4$\times$10$^{3}$~yr. The observations suggest different kinematical timescales and dynamical states for the W3(H$_2$O) and W3(OH).


Description logics (DLs) are knowledge representation formalisms with well-understood model-theoretic semantics and computational properties. The DL SHIQ(D) provides the logical underpinning for the family of Semantic Web ontology languages. Metadata management applications, such as the Semantic Web, often require reasoning with large quantities of assertional information; however, existing algorithms for DL reasoning have been optimized mainly for efficient terminological reasoning. Although techniques for terminological reasoning can be used for assertional reasoning as well, they often do not exhibit good performance in practice. Deductive databases are knowledge representation systems specifically designed to efficiently reason with large data sets. To see if deductive database techniques can be used to optimize assertional reasoning in DLs, we studied the relationship between the two formalisms. Our main result is a novel algorithm that reduces a SHIQ(D) knowledge base KB to a disjunctive datalog program DD(KB) such that KB and DD(KB) entail the same set of ground facts. In this way, we allow DL reasoning to be performed in DD(KB) using known, optimized algorithms. The reduction algorithm is based on several novel results. In particular, we developed a resolution-based algorithm for deciding satisfiability of SHIQ knowledge bases. Furthermore, to enable representation of concrete data, such as strings or integers, we developed a general approach for reasoning with concrete domains in the framework of resolution, and we use it to extend our algorithms to SHIQ(D). For unary coding of numbers, these algorithms run in exponential time, and are thus worst-case optimal. These results allowed us to derive tighter data complexity bounds. Namely, assuming that the size of the assertional knowledge dominates the size of the terminological knowledge, the reduction algorithm runs in nondeterministic polynomial time; furthermore, if disjunctions are not used, it runs in deterministic polynomial time. Finally, we extended these algorithms in several ways. First, we showed that socalled DL-safe rules can be combined with disjunctive programs obtained by the reduction to increase the expressivity of the logic, without affecting decidability. Second, we derived an algorithm for answering conjunctive queries. Third, we extended the algorithms to support metamodeling. To estimate the practicability of our algorithms, we implemented KAON2—a new DL reasoning system. Our experiments show a performance increase in query answering over existing DL systems of one or more orders of magnitude.


I on beam sources hare been pla/ing a crud at rol e to meet the requi rements of testi ng plasma fadng components in fusion environment, which demands a conceptually high and technically sound setup. One of such ion source is plasma focus (PF), which is mainly an ingenious source of X-rays, neutrons, energetic ions and electrons [1, 2]. The suitability of produdng various types of beams and solely depends upon the type of filling gas makes this da/ice an extremely versatile machine Moreover, this ion source produces a wider broad band of energy for a very short durdion having high fluence of ions Of course there are many successful machines in worldwide among them in India like PF device (Delhi University) [3], plasma gun (IPR, Ahmadabad) [4] or mini-accelerator (BARC) [5]. The PF device which has been used in this present experimental work at Centre of Plasma PhysicsI nstitutefor Plasma Research (CPP-I PR), I ndia is a 2.2 kJ Mather type da/ice [6], which was designed in collaboration with Bhabha Atomic Research Centre; Mumbai. In order to run thi s devi ce successful ly we need to understand the basi c pri nd pi e and worki ng procedures of some of major components This chapter is devoted to the description of different subsystems of our PF device and electrical diagnostics which are used to visualize discharge dynamics The photograph of CPP-I PR PF device with different subsystems is shown in Fig. 2.1. The various subsystems, which are related with PF device, are described hereafter.


Abstract : Scale model ceramic pressure housing assemblies have been designed, fabricated, and pressure-cycled 2,000 times to the 9,000-psi external design pressure without failure. The Model 1 cylinder, fabricated from 99.5-percent alumina ceramic, is 9 inches long and has an inside diameter of 5.624 inches and an outside diameter of 6.00 inches. The Model 2 cylinder, fabricated from 94-percent alumina ceramic, is the same as Model 1 in length and inside diameter, but its outside diameter is 6.037 inches. Each housing assembly was either a single cylinder or two cylinders of the same model joined together. The single cylinder housing assembly consisted of a cylinder and two titanium spherical end closures with a 5.624-inch inside diameter and a 0.136-inch thickness, that provided radial support for the ends of the cylinder. The two-cylinder assemblies were radially supported and joined together by a titanium T-ring in the center, and by titanium spherical end closures at either end od the lengthened cylinder. Fretting of the bearing surfaces on the ends of ceramic cylinders was eliminated by fitting the ends of the cylinders with U-shaped titanium rings held in place by epoxy adhesive. The weight-to-displacement ratio of the pressure housing assembly was 0.57.


Local baroclinic instability is studied in a two-layer quasi-geostrophic model. Variable meridional bottom slope controls the local supercriticality of a uniform zonal flow. Solutions are found by matching pressure, velocity, and upper-layer vorticity across longitudes where the bottom slope changes abruptly so as to destabilize the flow in a central interval of limited zonal extent. In contrast to previous results from heuristic models, an infinite number of modes exist for arbitrarily short intervals. For long intervals, modal growth rates and frequencies approach the numerical and WKB results for the most unstable mode. For intervals of length comparable to and smaller than the wavelengths of unstable waves in the homogeneous problem, the WKB results lose accuracy. The modes retain large growth rates (about half maximum) for intervals as short as the internal deformation radius. Evidently, the deformation radius and not the homogeneous instability determines the fundamental scale for local instability. Maximum amplitudes occur near the downstream edge of the unstable interval. Lower-layer amplitudes decay downstream more rapidly than upper-layer amplitudes. For short intervals, the instability couples motions with widely disparate horizontal scales in the upper and lower layers. Heat flux is more strictly confined than amplitude. Growth rates increase linearly with weak supercriticality.


Abstract : Despite it's extensive use, low tensile strength has been recognized as one of the major drawbacks of concrete. Although one has learned to avoid exposing concrete structures to adverse static tensile loads, these structures cannot be shielded from short duration dynamic tensile loads. Such loads originate from sources such as impact from missiles and projectiles, wind gusts, earthquakes and machine vibrations. In addition, modern computer-aided analysis and use of concrete for special structures such as reactor containment vessels, missile storage silos and fall-out shelters, has led to a growing interest in the cracking behavior of concrete. Experimental results indicate that the fracture strength and cracking behavior of concrete are affected by the rate of loading. To accurately predict the structural response under impact conditions, the knowledge of behavior of concrete at high rates of loading is essential. Using a two degree of freedom model guidelines were developed for designing an impact test setup, thus enabling one to conduct impact tests free of adverse inertial effects. Based on these guidelines, the author has developed an instrumented modified Charpy impact testing system. This experimental test setup was used to obtain basic information such as load-deflection relationship, fracture toughness, crack velocity (measured using 'Krak Gages'), and load- strain history during an impact fracture event of plain concrete and SFRC. Keywords: Charpy tests, Cracks, Concrete, Constitutive modeling, Damage, Dynamic, Experiments, Fiber composite, Fiber reinforced concrete, Flexural fracture, Fracture mechanics, Impact, Instrumented testing, Microcracks.


Environment planning is an organic part of national economy and society development and is concrete arragement of environmental decision on time and space,its aim is guiding people to carry out each kind of environmental protection activity,takes the lest investment to get the best environment benifit and promotes sustainable development of environment,economy and society.Environment planning bears to research and solve environmental problem and task on the entirety,strategy and over-all planning and plays an important role for smoothly implementing of sustainable development strategy.Through investigation and analysis of Xinjiang environment planning-progranming and enforcement present situation,the article finds out the existing problems and raises suggestion and countermeasures.


Cross-border tax disputes are usually channelled through the "mutual agreement procedure", an informal negotiation between the tax authorities of the states involved. Arbitration has been suggested as an alternative, and is starting to be instituted. Arbitration will probably be a good "stick" against over-long mutual agreements, but it also seems to exhibit "carrot" features, such as finality, independence and greater taxpayer support. This article describes the developments and analyses the options that countries face. In the Australian context, the transfer pricing litigation environment and the FIN 48 accounting standard are considered, and the author calls on the Australian government to invite submissions on the prospect of arbitration clauses in Australia's tax treaties.


A recent IAB workshop on the gender wage gap in Europe stressed the importance of the workplace and the firm in explaining gender inequalities. The workshop presentations showed that linked employer-employee data of all types can help analysts and policy makers understand the mechanisms which lie behind these inequalities, giving insights that cannot be obtained from traditional surveys of individuals and households.


Facing the frequent natural disasters in recent years,the establishment of a social early warning system is imperative,and the media warning,as part of the system,plays an increasingly significant role.This article is a case study of the TV reports for 2010 Southwest drought,which,viewed from the media warning perspective,provides an overlook of the status quo of TV warning news.Based on the result,we search for the causes of the absence of television warning news as well as proper reporting strategies for TV warning news in order to reduce or avoid loss from disasters.


An aerobic benzene-degrading heterotrophic nitrifying strain Pseudomonas sp.BN5 was isolated from the well domesticated microbes. Growth and nitrification characteristics were investigated with the benzene as the sole carbon and energy source and the NH+4-N as nitrogen source under aerobic condition. It was demonstrated that the favorite C/N ratio, temperature and speed of Pseudomonas sp.BN5 was 10, 30°C and 180rpm, respectively. About 70.86% of ammonium and 100% of benzene was removed after 72 h of incubation at initial benzene and ammonium concentration of 52.37mg/L and 16.13mg/L, respectively. Only trace accumulation of nitrate was observed during the process.


Research purposes:The research is done on the application of CFG pile in ballastless track integrated experimental section of Suining-Chongqing Railway for the purpose of learning more about CFG pile design and design. Research results:The strength of pile body can be designed to 5 MPa for CFG pile composite foundation and the beating capacity of CFG pile composite foundation is between 220 and 250 kPa in general,which can satisfy the design requirement.The one-month's post-construction subsidence of CFG pile composite foundation of embankment is becoming stable and stable with subsidence volume of 10~25 mm in general.


To get visual notion of the expression degree of cranium base Jugular foramen and condition of temporomandibular Joints 1800 patients of all ages were investigated with the method of computer tomography. General predominance of the jugular foramen size combined with decrease of the bone tissue volume from the side of adjacent wall of the tympanic cavity and joint pit was marked. Further, in patients with asymmetric construction of the jugular foramen features characterizing atypical construction or position of the low jaw heads were noticed. As a result, it was ascertained that asymmetry of the Jugular foramen is of a spread character and often accompanied with the arthrosis of the temporomandibular joints occurrence.


Asymmetric construction of α-carbolinones with easily available starting materials has recently attracted considerable attention from synthesis community, and the development of effective catalysis for this target is in great demand. Here, a bifunctional Brønsted base-catalyzed asymmetric [3+3] cyclization of indolin-2-imines and α,β-unsaturated N-acylated succinimides was developed by using the strategy of non-covalent bonding catalysis. With this organocatalytic protocol, a variety of tetrahydro-α-carbolinones bearing different substituents were synthesized with up to 99% yield and up to 96:4 er.


properly, 'aspirations' is sadly deficient for our (and even its) purposes in ignoring the environmental necessities and responsibilities that are corollary to them. To deal with the shortcomings of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights in defining the concept of security, we must turn to the World Charter for Nature, which reminds us that 'nature shall be respected and its essential processes ... not ... impaired' (Article 1 ), that 'living resources shall not be utilized in excess of their natural


Mesoporous molecular sieves KIT-1 and microporous molecular sieve HY as carrier loading active components Ce,Ni,Co were made for adsorption separation experiment of sulfur in diesel. The type of thiophenic sulfur in diesel fuel were determined separately by gas chromatography with a sulfur chemiluminescence detector( GC-SCD). Results showed that diesel fuel contained mainly BT and DBT,BT accounted for 51. 15% of total content and DBT accounted for 48. 85% of total content,the Ce / HY-KIT-1 adsorbent adsorption effect is best.


This paper incorporates the Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB) in studying the consumers' behavior in the context of organic cosmetic products. Our conceptual framework incorporates three distinct constructs of consumer beliefs that antecedent to the attitude: environmental consciousness, health consciousness, and appearance consciousness. Additional construct – price consciousness is hypothesized to moderates the effects attitude and subjective norm on purchase intention, respectively. Online survey was conducted for data collection and a total of 263 consumers in Malaysia have supported this survey. The results indicate that environmental consciousness has no effect on attitude toward organic cosmetic products, while health and appearance consciousness show positive effects. Nevertheless, price consciousness that acts as a moderator does not show any moderating effect. The theoretical and managerial implications of the results as well as the future research recommendations are discussed.


Objective To investigate the correlation between human leukocyte antigen(HLA) gene polymorphisms and hemolytic disease of the newborn( HDN). Methods Polymerase chain reaction-sequence specific oligonucleotide(PCR-SSO) was used to genotype HLA-A/B/C/DRB1/DQB1 among 117 HDN patients and 112 non-hemolytic disease of newborn( NHDN) patients. The gene frequencies and the disease relative risk( RR) were analyzed in the two groups. Results The gene frequencies of HLA-DQB1*03∶ 01 and HLA-DRB1*12∶ 02 in HDN group were significantly higher than in NHDN group(P 0. 05),and the RR were 1. 721 and 2. 598. The extended haplotype frequency A*11∶ 01-B*13∶ 01-C*03∶ 04-DRB1*12 ∶ 02-DQB1*03 ∶ 01 was significantly higher in HDN group( P 0. 05). The haplotype frequency of DRB1*12∶ 02-DQB1*03∶ 01 was also significantly higher in HDN group(P 0. 05). The total bilirubin of HDN patients who had DRB1*12∶ 02 or DQB1*03 ∶ 01 alleles were significantly higher in NHDN patients( P = 0). Conclusion The HLADQB1*03∶ 01 and HLA-DRB1*12∶ 02 alleles are positively correlated with the incidence of HDN,which maybe the susceptibility genes for HDN.


The bending properties of composite materials are often characterized with simply supported beams under concentrated loads. The results from such tests are commonly based on homogeneous beam equations. For laminated materials, however, these formulas must be modified to account for the stacking sequence of the individual plies. The horizontal shear test with a short-beam specimen in three-point bending appears suitable as a general method of evaluation for the shear properties in fiber-reinforced composites because of its simplicity. In the experimental part of this work, the shear strength of unidirectional-glass-fiber-reinforced epoxy resin composites was determined in different fiber directions with the short-beam three-point-bending test. Also, the elastic constants and flexural properties of the same materials were determined from bending experiments carried out on specimens in the 0, 15, 30, 45, 60, 75, and 90° fiber directions with high span–thickness ratios. © 2004 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 93: 63–74, 2004


The applicability of NiSi<inf>2</inf>as an interconnect material was investigated using narrow (5 µm- × 2600-µm) lines. 2500-Å-thick silicide lines were thermally oxidized to form a passivation layer of SiO<inf>2</inf>for the next metallization level. Isolation of more than 50 V for 2200-Å SiO<inf>2</inf>is achieved. The interconnect resistivity following the oxidation is 1.2-1.4 Ω. The maximum current capability of the lines was found to be > 5 × 106A/cm2and their stability under prolonged high current densities was demonstrated. We propose a scheme to increase the local metallization-level density using NiSi<inf>2</inf>as an interconnect.


Turbulence modeling in human-in-the-loop simulation is important to assessing aircraft handling qualities and pilot performance and to provide additional realism for pilot training. In the simulation community, the Dryden turbulence spectra is a popular choice for modeling the linear turbulent gusts because its rational form is efficiently reproduced by passing white noise through linear filters. The MIL-F-8785 gust gradients similarly use additional linear filters to model the gradient of the turbulent gust over the wing, and it represents the gust gradients as perturbations to the air-relative rotational rates. The Cockpit Motion Facility at NASA Langley Research Center (LaRC) models continuous random turbulence using the Dryden one-dimensional spectra and MIL-F-8785 gust gradient. The facility recently reviewed and updated its verification of these models as part of an initiative to improve motion cueing under turbulence. This exercise introduced improved methods for verifying the turbulence models and led to rediscovery of model assumptions that informed improvements to implementation.


The study examined impacts of different releasing time of warning with an intersection collision warning system (ICWS) on driver behavior. Forty five participants drove a simulated vehicle through five driving scenes containing seven different unexpected collision events with different releasing time of warning and no warning (control) group was presented to counter balanced with the collision event types. Comparing with no warning group, speed trends had significant differences under different releasing time of warning conditions in this study. The results also indicated that releasing ICWS warnings could reduce driving speed to a hazard event so that drivers would adjust speed more appropriately to respond to collision situation. Considering the time of application of violent deceleration for different releasing time of warning, 3.0 s to 4.0 s before a collision occurred might be a proper time to provide warning. In terms of distance to conflict point with maximum deceleration, different releasing time of warning showed statistically different, which suggested that drivers would reserve more space to clear impending collision with earlier warning. Additionally, with the time of warning released earlier, the time of the maximum deceleration rate appeared earlier. Better designs of effective warning when driving at critical intersections could be derived from these results.


Our previous studies demonstrated that 17β-estradiol (E2) rapidly induces the interaction of estrogen receptor α (ERα) with the adapter protein Shc, the translocation of ERα to the cell membrane, and the formation of dynamic membrane structures in MCF-7 breast cancer cells. The present study examined how E2 causes ERα to translocate to the region of the plasma membrane and focused on mechanisms whereby Shc and the insulin-like growth factor-1 receptor (IGF-1R) mediate this process. Shc physically interacts with IGF-1R in the plasma membrane, and E2 activates IGF-1R. We reasoned that ERα, when bound to Shc, would be directed to the region of the plasma membrane by the same processes, causing membrane translocation of Shc. We confirmed that E2 rapidly induced IGF-1R phosphorylation and demonstrated that E2 induced formation of a ternary protein complex among Shc, ERα, and IGF-1R. Knock down of Shc with a specific small inhibitory RNA decreased the association of ERα with IGF-1R by 87%, suggesting that Shc is a crucial molecule in the formation of this ternary complex. Confocal microscopy studies provided further confirmation of the functional roles of Shc and the IGF-1R in the translocation of ERα to the region of the membrane. Down-regulation of Shc, ERα, or IGF-1R with specific small inhibitory RNAs all blocked E2-induced mitogen-activated protein kinase phosphorylation. Together, our results demonstrate that Shc and IGF-1R serve as key elements in the translocation of ERα to the cell membrane and in the facilitation of ERα-mediated rapid E2 action.


Competing interests: The authors have no competing interest. Funding: VKC is funded by the Wellcome Trust (080237). In addition, this work was also supported by the NIHR Cambridge Biomedical Research Centre. Ethical approval: Not required. Guarantor: DJH. Contributorship: DJH wrote the letter which was edited by VKC. EE developed laboratory methods to detect weakly bound TSH complexes. Acknowledgements: We would like to thank Peter Barker for providing thyroid hormone assays.


Poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) nanocomposites containing (methacryloxy)propyl polyhedral oligomeric silsesquioxane (methacryl-POSS) were prepared by bulk-polymerization process. The structures of the products were characterized by FTIR, solid-state NMR, TEM, XRD, DSC, TGA, XPS and UV-Vis spectra. The hybrid materials were found to be largely homogeneous. DSC and TGA results indicate that the thermal properties of PMMA nanocomposites are significantly improved. The glass transition temperature (Tg) and thermal decomposition temperature (Tdec) of the nanocomposites increased by 58 and 110°C, respectively. The bulk hybrid material maintains excellent optical transparency in visible region.


The agrarian sector of the Ukrainian economy is characterized by a number of problems in agriculture, rural development and rural areas. Problems in the agrarian sphere arose both against the background of the peculiarities and specifics of the industry, and against the background of political, economic and social changes in the country. The purpose of the article is to summarize the theoretical approaches to the formation of small-scale regional agro-industrial clusters as a basis for sustainable rural development and to propose the creation of agro-industrial infrastructure management to enhance the development of small business as an integrated form of cluster association. The article is devoted to the problem of formation of regional small-scale agro-industrial clusters as a basis for stable development of the agrarian sector of the economy. It is proposed as an integration form of cluster integration to create agro-industrial infrastructure management, which operates on the basis of logistical coordination and provides maximum synergistic effect and harmonization of economic interests of participants of economic processes in the cluster. The model of interaction of participants of regional agro-industrial cluster of small form of economic activity in modern economic conditions is developed and its role in activation of small business development in agrarian economy of the region is substantiated. It has been found out that agro-industrial infrastructure management, as part of a cluster, must consist of a set of elements of the defining and supporting systems that are combined by material flows. In turn, the defining system has four interrelated element groups (processing, transportation, warehousing and marketing) and the support system has four interrelated element groups (regulatory, financial, logistical and personnel support). The types of small farms in rural areas, which are the basis for the formation of regional agro-industrial clusters of small farms, are presented, namely: small agricultural enterprises, farms, personal peasant farms, households, sole proprietors, agricultural cooperatives. The formation of small-scale agro-industrial clusters as an effective mechanism for solving socio-economic problems in rural areas contributes to employment and enhances the competitiveness of agro-industrial production.


The present special issue examines the promise and risks of translating behavioral research insights into public and business policy using a stakeholder perspective. In this editorial we identify four groups of stakeholders, the general population, the public and private sectors as well as the scientific community. We sketch the threats and opportunities of behavioral policy for each in general terms to serve as the backdrop for the articles in the issue, which we briefly summarize.