New copper(Ⅱ) complex of the pentaaza non-macrocyclic ligand 1-(2-aminoethyl)-3-(N-{2-aminoethyl}aminomethyl)-1,3-diazacyclohexane (2) and a dinuclear copper(Ⅱ) compex of the bis(macrocyclic) ligand 3, in which two 1,5,8,10,12,15-hexaazabicyclo[220.127.116.11]heptadecane subunits are linked together by an ethylene chain through the uncoordinated nitrogen (N10) atoms, have been prepared selectively by the reaction of the metal ion, 1,4,8-triazaoctane, ethylenediamine, and formaldehyde. The dinuclear complex [Cu2(3)]4+ has been also prepared by the reaction of [Cu(2)]2+ with ethylenediamine and formaldehyde. The reaction products largely depend on the molar ratio of the reactants employed. The mononuclear complex or each macrocyclic subunit of the dinuclear complex contains one 1,3-diazacyclohexane ring and has a square-planar geometry with a 5-6-5 or 5-6-5-6 chelate ring sequence. In acidic solution, the copper(Ⅱ) complex of 2 dissociates more slowly than those of other related non-cyclic polyamines.


Defects in articular cartilage and subchondral bone can be caused by trauma, cancer, or other arthropathies. Fresh or delayed-fresh osteochondral allograft transplantation (OCA) is a technique used to repair (osteo)chondral defects. The procedure involves taking a core of the injured cartilage and underlying bone from the patient and replacing it with a size-matched transplant of mature hyaline cartilage and subchondral bone from a cadaver donor. The aim of our report was to evaluate the efficacy and safety of OCA for the treatment of (osteo)chondral defects, compared to other surgical management. One randomised controlled trial was identified, which investigated OCA to treat ankle defects. In addition, one case series investigating ankle defects, included for the assessment of safety only, and four case series investigating knee defects were identified. No relevant evidence was identified for other joints. The overall quality of the included evidence was low or very low for the reported outcomes. The current evidence is not sufficient to prove that OCA for the knee and other joints, for the treatment of osteochondral defects, is more effective and equally safe than other surgical procedures. Furthermore, the prospective single-arm studies had insufficient power to demonstrate treatment efficacy. The inclusion of OCA in the Austrian hospital benefit catalogue is therefore not recommended.


In recent years has been a steady increase in geoenvironmental engineering projects that deal with some kind of contaminant, leading to changes and enhancement in the site characterization techniques. One of the major concerns is the soil and water contamination caused by the waste disposal. In situ testing methods often provides good information about sites affected by groundwater contamination problem where stratigraphical, geotechnical, hydrogeological and other environmental informations are required on a specific and/or screening basis. Geophysical techniques is a good way to get some information required in a good site characterization program. This paper presents and compares results obtained by characterization programs carried out in a deactivated waste landfill and in the actual sanitary landfill areas, in Ribeirao Preto region, State of Sao Paulo, Brazil. In the first site domestic waste were inappropriate disposed in an area constituted by porous soils overlapping sandstones of Botucatu Formation. The actual sanitary landfill operates according to technical rules in a favorable area, composed by clayey residual soil from basalts of the Serra Geral Formation. The site characterization program included geoelectrical sounding and profiling surveys. The results showed that integrating this geophysical techniques and elaborating a rational planning it is possible to assess the volume of waste, flow path and evaluate the environmental impact caused by the waste disposal.


Mobile ad hoc network (MANET) is a network that consists of several nodes that connect without using a permanent infrastructure. Each node in MANET moves inside and outside of the network freely and randomly. The free and random movements of nodes may cause the topology of the network to change constantly. Therefore, the task of finding routes between nodes is a big challenge. Routing protocols in MANET can be divided into three categories, namely, proactive, reactive and hybrid routing protocols. Hybrid routing protocols such as the zone routing protocol (ZRP) combines the advantages of both proactive and reactive routing protocols by dividing the network area into many overlapping zones. Data transmission to nodes within the zone is done using a proactive routing mechanism, while data transmission to nodes outside the zone is done using a reactive routing mechanism. The zone radius in ZRP determines how much proactive and reactive routing is used, and therefore plays a key role in determining the performance of the network. In this paper, the performance of the ZRP routing protocol is evaluated using the NS2.33 network simulator. The focus of the research is to evaluate the ZRP performance concerning the network size and density to identify an optimum ZRP zone size that will provide good performance. The performance is evaluated by using four performance metrics which are normalized routing load, average end-to-end delay, throughput, and packet delivery fraction. The results show that ZRP produces the best performance when the zone radius size is equal to two hops.


In this paper, I consider historical and ethnographic evidence to explain how 'sacred soil' becomes an intelligible and palpable reality in Kadavu, Fiji. I begin by describing the fundamental Fijian cultural division between lotu (Methodism, or Christianity more broadly) and vanua (people and land), and argue that these entities are fruitfully considered as Bourdieuan fields whose competition is culturally generative. Examining historians' well-known work on precolonial land alienation and colonial land tenure codification in Fiji, I note that Methodist missionaries helped add to indigenous Fijians' senses that their land was diminishing or even disappearing. In addition, I examine data from recent fieldwork in Kadavu, particularly discourse about soil's and land's importance and descriptions of a Methodist ritual called the masu sema ('chain prayer') in which soil's investiture with mana (efficaciousness) is particularly apparent. Having shown how 'sacred soil' becomes both an intelligible and palpable reality, I then argue that we should consider the creative force of friction between lotu and vanua in indigenous Fijian social life generally. 'In Fiji all things go in pairs,' an informant once told A.M. Hocart, 'or the sharks will bite' (Hocart 1952:57). This division into pairs or sides is a fundamental organizing principle of many Fijian rituals, and less formal events as well. Yet despite the prominence of diagrammatic icons of duality in Fijian public life, many ethnographers have failed to note the productiveness of friction between two of the most salient institutions in Fijian society, lotu and vanua. Lotu is the verb meaning 'worship' and noun generally meaning 'Christianity.' Vanua is the richly polysemous word meaning both 'place' and 'land' in several senses (from microscopic to macroscopic levels), and also 'people,' specifically a group of people united under a chief. In the word 'lotu,' we see the conjunction of religious action and its institutionalization; in the word 'vanua' we see the conjunction of geographic and social locations. In this paper, I examine the ways that tensions or frictions between lotu and vanua are an important factor in soil becoming considered sacred in present-day Fiji. Soil becomes a potent sign, able to mean and do different things; one of the things it does is to stand apart as 'a break in the homogeneity of space' which 'is symbolized by an opening... from one


Present situation and Development of mixed forest in shanxi was analyzed in the paper.The types of mixed forest was summarized.The problems existed in mixed forest constructing and study,and countermeasures and thinkings to develop mixedforest in future were put forward.


A structure for easy open containers, by operation of a pull tab, can be essentially of a score line defining the tear panel opening, an end of the tab is adapted to press on the tear panel spaced from the score line a position covered by the tear panel in only a small portion is left open in the open state. The other end of the pull tab may be lifted to open the tear panel to the initial position directly next to the end wall. In the tear panel is moved to its open position and the pull tab to retain the tear panel connected to the end wall. In order to ensure a particularly exact initial tear through the tearing process of the 3:00 position of the score line, forming a bump on a tab that extends below.


Cholesteatomas, although rare, were described as early as 1829 by Cruveilhier, 1 who called them "pearl tumors." Even before this date, LePrestre had probably reported them under the name of tumeur adipociriforme. In 1838, Johannes Muller discovered their laminated structure and named them cholesteatomas. Furthermore, he noted the capsule, saw the polygonal cells without nuclei, called attention to the absence of blood vessels within the tumor and compared them to the horny growths in the skin. Virchow studied them in 1855. He disagreed with Muller in the belief that cholesterin was essential in the tumor and suggested a return to the name of "pearl tumor." Bostroem, 2 in his report in 1897, probably contributed more to the knowledge of these tumors than any one investigator. ETIOLOGY AND INCIDENCE Cholesteatomas may be: (1) primary (true tumors) or (2) secondary tumors, which are presumably the result of pre-existing suppuration. The latter condition


DRUG RESEARCHCAMBRIDGE, MASSACHUSETTS-- The Swiss drug giant Novartis, based in Basel, intends to set up a $250 million research facility here that will guide its overall R&D efforts--a move that has sent shock waves rippling through the company's home turf. Novartis's move is the latest blow to homegrown European drug research and reflects the company's efforts to keep U.S. competitors in its sights.


The weak radiative decays of 1/2/sup +/ baryons are studied in a quark model as arising through single-quark spectator and nonspectator quark transitions. These decays seem to occur predominantly through nonspectator processes, where the quarks may interact through the exchange of colored gauge bosons. We compare the decay-amplitude sum rules in left x left and left x right current-current interaction pictures.


Hydroplaning occurs when vehicles drive in rainy days. It is analyzed that the wheel forces with the water, furthermore, the conception of critical thickness of water film is brought forward, and the formula for calculating the critical thickness of water film on the pavement is derivative based on momentum theorem. Finally, the values of critical thickness of water film for different driving speeds are given, and it is proved that the formula is reliable by contrasting with the values from other experiential formula. The result affords calculating method for the control of safety problem of driving on road surface in rainy days.


Promoting cultural development was emphasized in the sixth plenary session of the 17th Central Committee of the Communist Party of China(CPC).Morality construction is the core and an important part of cultural development.The main viewpoints on morality construction in current academic area can be divided into three groups: the first group focuses on revival of Chinese traditional morality,the second emphasizes on compliance with the laws of nature,the third focuses on ideological indoctrination.All of the viewpoints are problematic in theory;hence they are hardly effective in practice.Improving the morality construction should aim at preservation of human dignity,comply with the universal reason,purport to reasonable expectations,and take a variety of hierarchy and forms.


Data are presented on the stabilization of AlAs‐GaAs heterostructures against atmospheric (destructive) hydrolysis using the native oxide that can be formed (N2+H2O, 400 °C, 3 h) on the AlAs layer. The ∼0.1‐μm‐thick native oxide formed from the AlAs layer is shown to be stable with aging (∼100 days), while unoxidized samples degrade through the AlAs (0.1 μm) down into the GaAs as deep as ∼1 μm. Relative to oxides formed (∼25 °C) on AlAs (or AlxGa1−xAs, x ≳ 0.7) under atmospheric conditions (hydrolysis), oxides formed (via N2 +H2O) at higher temperatures (≳400 °C) are much more stable and seal the underlying crystal (e.g., GaAs).


Secret sharing schemes create an effective method to safeguard a secret by dividing it among several participants. By using hash functions and the herding hashes technique, we first set up a (t + 1, n) threshold scheme that is perfect and ideal and then extend it to schemes for any general access structure. The schemes can be further set up as proactive or verifiable if necessary. The setup and recovery of the secret are efficient because of the fast calculation of the hash function. The proposed scheme is flexible because of the use of existing hash functions. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.


Greg and Chloe come to see you about reorganising their business affairs. Chloe is about to become the director of a private equity company and is concerned about her personal liability.


We explore 'governance' in relation to five meanings of 'open': (1) by exploring co-determination under German law (Mitbestimmung) and by analysing the method of design thinking with its emphasis on empathy to the user experience, we investigate 'open' as more democratically shared power, information and responsibility ; (2) in using the genealogical method of historical investigation we express 'open' as exposing something that is covered; (3) by initiating this discussion with the academic community, we invite frank 'open' discussion; (4) in not positing a final thesis, we leave the conclusion unsettled and 'open' for further debate and analysis; (5) yet, we do hope this discussion will lead to new approaches to governance, thereby establishing or 'opening' 'co-designed open governance' as a new enterprise.


Construction is synonym with noise and vibration effect. By overexposed to very high sound level for considerable lengths of time, may result in pathological side-effects. Construction workers significantly experienced higher noise level within longer period of time compared to public. Surprisingly, eventhough immense pressure level of noise were found within vast development inside Nusajaya, there was no research has been carried out. Therefore, this project report attempted to determine construction worker's perceptions and awareness level of noise within the area. A total of 4 selected construction projects sites with 40 construction workers (10 from each sites) were selected. Besides, the construction projects noise exposure level (LAeq) were also monitored for 8 hours by using Sound Level Meter (SLM). Although the majority of surveyed workers perceived noise as a problem and their workplace was noisy, measured noise levels were significantly found below the Factory and Machinery (Noise Exposure Regulation) 1989 permissible exposure limit (PEL). It was concluded that the workers noise perception was at the average level while their awareness was at low level.


Self cleaning surfaces and coatings are more and more frequently finding their way towards everyday applications. This poster reviews our progress made on an aqueous CSD method used for the deposition of photocatalytically active TiO2 thin films. Dip-coating out of a solution was applied to deposit thin films on glass substrates.
Starting from titanium(IV)butoxide we achieved a stable titanium precursor solution by forming titanium-peroxo compounds by reaction between titanium(IV)butoxide and hydrogenperoxide. According to several observations during the synthesis procedure a possible reaction mechanism was proposed. Confirmation of these possible occurring reactions was acquired via thermal analysis, UV-Vis and infrared spectroscopy. A more thorough knowledge of the chemistry behind this synthesis process allowed us to achieve a better control over several solution parameters, such as stability and viscosity.
We realized the deposition of anatase TiO2 films with good transparency in the visual light region and excellent abrasion resistance. Decomposition of organic polluents was confirmed by the breakdown of ethanol.
This low-carbon containing synthesis method offers promising opportunities towards the manufacturing of transparent, photocatalytic coatings and allows for further research towards a low temperature synthesis route for TiO2 materials


A high performance thin layer chromatographic method has been reported for estimation of losartan potassium with hydrochlorothiazide in combination. The analytes were resolved on precoated silica gel 60 F254 TLC plates prewashed with methanol using solvent system composition of chloroform: Methanol : Ethyl acetate (4:2:2 v/v/v) with 15 min time of saturation. The analytes were tracked down at 255 nm. The components were resolved with retention factor of losartan potassium (0.59 ± 1.98) and hydrochlorothiazide (0.83 ± 1.95). The method assured linearity in the concentration range of 600-1000 ng/spot for losartan potassium and 300-500 ng/spot for hydrochlorothiazide, respectively. Accuracy of method was assessed and found upto 100 % ± <2. The method assured high degree of precision. The robustness was confirmed by deliberately varying the parameters like composition of mobile phase, mobile phase volume, detection wavelength, chamber saturation time.


This Thesis is brought to you for free and open access. It has been accepted for inclusion in Dissertations and Theses by an authorized administrator of PDXScholar. For more information, please contact firstname.lastname@example.com. Recommended Citation DeGagne, Julia Lynn, "Acid-Base Equilibria in Organic-Solvent/Water Mixtures and Their Relevance to Gas/Particle Partitioning in the Atmosphere and in Tobacco Smoke" (2016). Dissertations and Theses. Paper 2733.


The increasing life annuity under stochastic interest rate is studied. The authors established a model for the accumulation function of the force of interest with Gauss process,and obtained the general expression of all order moments of present value.Especially when the Ornstein-Uhlenbeck process is applied to establish a model for the cumulative function of the force of interest,with death distribution following the exponential distribution and De Moivre distribution,we obtained the concrete expression of all the order moments.


The preparation of the niobium bronzes of formula Na /sub 1-x/ Sr /sub x/ NbO/sub 3/ has been carried out in sealed nickel tubes at 1300/sup 0/C. Four phases, whose structures are closely related to that of perovskite, have been characterized as x increases : an orthorhombic phase derived from NaNbO/sub 3/ (0 less than or equal to x less than or equal to 0.02), a monoclinic phase (0.03 less than or equal to x less than or equal to 0.06), a phase of rhombohedral symmetry (0.07 less than or equal to x less than or equal to 0.10) and, finally, a tetragonal phase (0.15 less than or equal to x less than or equal to 0.60).


PURPOSE: A polyimide is provided to ensure a low dielectric constant, a low dielectric loss tangent and low water absorptivity as a high molecular weight material. CONSTITUTION: A polyimide has a structural unit represented by the formula (1), wherein -(O-X-O)- is a structure of the formula (2) or the formula (3), -(Y-O)- is an arrangement of one kind of structure of the formula (4) or a random arrangement of at least two kinds of structures of the formula (4), each of a and b is an integer of 0 to 100, provided that at least one of a and b is not 0, and Ar represents a tetravalent aromatic group selected from the group consisting of a monocyclic aromatic group, a condensed polycyclic aromatic group and a non-condensed polycyclic aromatic group having a structure in which monocyclic aromatic groups are connected to each other directly or through a connecting group.


In two dyadic studies (a short-term longitudinal study and a daily experience study), we demonstrate that people high in sexual communal strength (i.e., those motivated to meet a romantic partner's sexual needs) have partners who are more satisfied with and committed to their relationships. In Study 1, people higher in sexual communal strength had partners who felt more satisfied and committed to the relationship both at that time and 3 weeks later. In Study 2, the partners of people high in sexual communal strength perceived their partners as more responsive to their needs during sex, and this was one reason why they reported feeling more satisfied and committed in the relationship. Implications for theories of communal motivation and approaches to sexuality in romantic relationships are discussed.


Filariasis is a common tropical disease caused by the infection of filarial nematode, Wachareria. bancroffci or Bmda sraiayl » Infective larvae of B* mlavj are transmitted to humans by the bite of certain Manaoniat and Anopheles mosquitoes is southern India, Sri Lanka, southern China# and South-East Asian countries*^. bancrofti widely distributed in the tropics and subtropics, and in the Pacific islands is transmitted by Culex end Aedes mosquitoes* Adult worms mature in. lymphatics and lymph nodes* Microfilariae (larvae of filarial worms) of Jf* Bancroft! are found in the blood chiefly at night (nocturnal periodicity) • B.malav! are usually nocturnelly periodic but may be semiperiodlc. v/hile humans are the only vertebrate hosts for jtf* bancrofti. cats, monkeys and other animals may harbour B. raalavi■


We design, develop, and experimentally validate a complete integrated software/hardware platform for airborne cognitive networking in both indoor and outdoor environments. We first present the concept of all-spectrum cognitive networking and describe a distributed algorithm for maximizing network spectral efficiency by jointly optimizing channel access code-waveforms and routes in a multi-hop network. We then discuss system design parameters and implementation details for setting up a software-defined radio (SDR) testbed that enables reconfigurability at the physical (PHY), medium-access control (MAC), and network (NET) layers of the network protocol stack, either by a user or by means of autonomous decisions. Our algorithmic developments toward spectrally-efficient cognitive networking are software optimized on heterogeneous multi-core general-purpose processor-based SDR architectures by leveraging the design of a novel software-radio framework that offers self-optimization and real-time adaptation capabilities at the PHY, MAC, and NET layers of the network protocol stack. We verify our system design approach in a large-scale testbed deployment of ten terrestrial and one airborne SDR platforms at the Stockbridge Controllable Contested Environment at the Air Force Research Laboratory, Rome, NY, USA. Proof-of-concept experimental results from both indoor and outdoor testbed deployments show that the proposed system can be used to build all-spectrum cognitive networks that withstand intentional interference at PHY and NET layers and can cognitively coexist with non-cross-layer optimized networks.


Xylopia aromatica is a native species from Brazil's "Cerrado", recommended for restoration ecology and also as a medicine. Its seeds have embryos with morphophysiological dormancy, making nursery propagation difficult. The objective of this study was to verify the efficiency of X-ray and tetrazolium tests for evaluating the viability of three seed lots, stored for different periods. All seeds were X-rayed (13 kV, 350 seconds) and samples used for tetrazolium and germination tests. In the tetrazolium test, seeds were submitted to six treatments at two temperatures (25 and 30 °C) with imbibition in distilled water and immersion in three concentrations of tetrazolium solution (0.5, 0.75 and 1%) at the two imbibition temperatures. Seeds for the germination test were placed for imbibition in distilled water and a 500 ppm Promalin ® (6-Benzyladenine + GA 4 + GA 7 ) solution and later sown in sterilized sand. The embryo could not be observed with the X-ray test. However, those seeds observed with an undamaged endosperm did not differ in the percentages of seeds with firm and stained endosperms observed in the tetrazolium test for all the lots. The tetrazolium test is efficient for evaluating seed viability, principally if imbibed at 30 °C and immersed in a 0.5% solution at 30 °C.


The public sector in UAE is the focus of this paper. Applying the concept of job satisfaction to examine its effect on employees' affective organizational commitment. The data was collected from 452 officers from 7 sectors in the ministry of interior in UAE and analysed using structural equation modelling via SmartPLS 3.0. The result showed that job satisfaction has a positive impact on affective organizational commitment. The proposed model explained 11.4% of the variance in employees' affective organizational commitment.


Job satisfaction's role as an antecedent to union participation has often been proposed as a negative relationship, but empirical support is lacking. To clarify boundary conditions of this relationship, we turn to the exit-voice tradeoff and the attraction-selection-attrition framework. We suggest a negative job satisfaction–union participation relationship exists only among workers lacking fit with their colleagues ("person-workgroup fit"). We employed a distance-based measure of person-workgroup fit to analyze data from 777 workers across three unions (90 percent public sector) located in a large Midwestern city. Results indicate fit's moderating role—relatively high fit workers participate in union activities irrespective of their job satisfaction, but workers with relatively low fit participate more when dissatisfied with their jobs. Our findings inform theory on antecedents of union participation and the strategic choices unions face in organizing and reinvigorating lay activism.


Effects of heat temperature and cooling rate on microstructure and mechanical properties of two type X80 steels used for bend pipe have been studied by means of Gleeble-3500 heat simulator.The results show that the heat temperature and cooling rate have a great effect on tension strength.As the temperature and cooling rate increase,the strength of two steels increases.However,the heat temperature and cooling rate have little effect on low temperature impact toughness.When the temperature is higher than 960 ℃,and the cooling rate is higher than 15 ℃/s,the mechanical properties of two type steel can reach the property requirements of X80 steel.These results will provide a reference with development of X80 heat-bending bends.


Despite claims to the contrary, the evolutionary origin of teeth has not been definitely established. The classical 'outside in' theory stating that teeth derive from odontodes that invaded the oral cavity in conjunction with the origin of jaws has been challenged by an alternative, 'inside out', hypothesis suggesting that teeth evolved from pharyngeal denticles, as endodermal derivatives, prior to the origin of jaws. We propose a third scenario, a revised 'outside in' hypothesis (Huysseune et al., 2009). Our hypothesis is consistent with the current data and avoids speculations about convergent tooth evolution. We suggest that teeth may indeed have arisen before the origin of jaws, a pillar of the 'inside out' hypothesis, but not from the endodermally lined posterior pharynx. Rather, teeth would have been the result of competent, odontode-forming ectoderm invading the oropharyngeal cavity through the mouth as well as through the gill slits, interacting with neural-crest derived mesenchyme. Arguments in support of this hypothesis are: (i) the observation that pharyngeal teeth are present only in species known to possess gill slits, and disappear from the pharyngeal region in early tetrapods concomitant with the closure of gill slits; (ii) the assumption that endoderm alone, together with neural crest, cannot form teeth; (iii) observations on pharyngeal tooth and gill slit formation in extant species; (iv) the observation that the dental lamina (sensu Reif, 1982) is not a prerequisite for tooth formation; (v) evidence that patterning does not distinguish pharyngeal from skin denticles, and (vi) the observation on zebrafish mutants affected in the dermal skeleton. This 'modified outside in' hypothesis can be tested both on paleontological data (it predicts a correlation of the presence of pharyngeal teeth and of gill slits), and on developmental data in extant species (it predicts the necessity of an ectodermal signal to make [pharyngeal] teeth).


Large grain elevators are major sources of truck traffic in many areas. Shuttle trains, a recent railroad innovation, have further concentrated truck deliveries at larger elevators. These facilities—which have not been analyzed in previous trip generation studies—pose issues such as large truck access and pavement design. In this paper, elevator trip generation equations are estimated from detailed facility, land use, and highway traffic data in North Dakota. A trip attraction equation is used to explain the effects of elevator storage capacity and side track capacity on elevator throughput. Elevators are classified on the basis of track capacity as shuttle train, unit train, and multicar. Shuttle-train elevators typically consign 110-car trains, while unit-train elevators consign 50- to 100-car trains. The analysis shows that large shuttle-train elevators may generate 35,000 to 40,000 loaded and empty truck trips per year. A large unit-train elevator may generate 20,000 annual trips. The trucks are usually a mixture of combination five-axle and single-unit trucks. On average, each truck generates 1.04 equivalent single-axle loads on flexible pavements. Thus, a large facility may generate much of the traffic load experienced by pavements in the area. Moreover, truck deliveries to elevators exhibit seasonal variation. Approximately 15% of the annual volume is delivered during the peak month. Thus, a large shuttle facility may generate 225 trucks per day during the peak harvest month.


Background: Chronic hepatitis B is a major global healthcare problem. Immunization is the most effective way to prevent transmission of hepatitis B virus (HBV) and, hence, the development of acute and chronic hepatitis B. Sero-protection after vaccination, defined as anti hepatitis B surface antibody
(anti-HBS) ≥ 10mIU/mL, is achieved in over 95% of all vaccinated children. Objective: The aim of the work is to detect the long-term immunogenicity of the vaccine in children
after five and ten years of vaccination, also to test for anamnestic reaction to determine whether or not a booster dose is needed. Methods: This study included 200 healthy children. Before being included in the study children were screened for the presence of HBV infection. The children were divided into two groups according to age (each group contains 100 children). Their data are included. Group `A` included 53 males and 47 females, around 6 years old, all children were vaccinated 5 years ago. Group `B` included 27 males and 73 females, around 11 years old. All children vaccinated 10years ago. HBsAb titre was tested in their blood, booster dose of the vaccine was given to children whose HBsAb was Key words: HBV, HB Vaccination, child immunity


The collision process of the two piece units of a jack-up platform is simulated using the nonlinear dynamic finite element method. The penalty method contact algorithm is used for the state nonlinear problem during the collision process. The influence of various factors on the collision results is analyzed, including collision velocity, collision angle and friction coefficient. The calculation results show that the maximum von Mises stress appears at the interface between the two piece units of the split jack-up platform, under small collision velocity; while the collision velocity becomes bigger, the maximum von Mises stress appears at the connections of brace pipe to the platform leg and down part of the jack-up platform; Under the same collision velocity, the maximum von Mises stress and collision force increase linearly with collision angle with the increasing extent becoming bigger and bigger, and reach the maximum value when the collision angle equals 90°; The influence of friction could be neglected when the collision angle is vertical; though the influence increases gradually with the decrease of collision angle, it has little effect on collision results as a whole.


Nonionic surfactant adsorption layers on colloidal silica are investigated by applying 2H-NMR on selectively deuterated dodecyl penta(ethylene oxide), C12E5. Local molecular order and timescales of surfactant motional modes in surface aggregates are compared to different types of bulk aggregates, such as micelles, and aggregates in lamellar and hexagonal phases. Surface aggregates show an isotropically averaged lorentzian line shape with relaxation rates R2 of the order of several kHz, indicating a slow motion correlation time of τ=≈ μs. Possible mechanisms of isotropic averaging in surface aggregates are discussed. Relative order parameter profiles Srel are obtained for surface and different bulk aggregates from quadrupolar splittings and 2H-relaxation, respectively. An increase of Srel with increasing distance of the 2H label position from the headgroup was found for all bulk aggregate types, with the slope depending on aggregate curvature. Comparison of the results for surface aggregates to these profiles gives an indication of their curvature. The results are consistent with the formation of large anisotropic surface aggregates, with adsorption leading to motions slowed down compared to bulk micelles, and isotropic averaging achieved by exchange and/or dynamic micelle reformation processes.


A novel polyaniline-based composite cation-exchange material has been synthesized by a sol–gel method and characterized by standard analytical techniques such as thermogravimetry/differential thermal analysis, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, and transmission electron microscopy, revealing the composite nature of the material with uniform surface morphology and the formation of particles of sizes ranging from 30 to 50 nm. The ion-exchange capacity of the composite synthesized at pH 1.0 was found to be 1.4 mequiv g–1 for the Na+ ion along with thermal stability. Partition coefficient studies showed its selectivity for toxic metal ions (PbII, HgII and CoII) among different metal ions in dimethyl sulfoxide solutions. Quantitative separations were quite sharp, and recovery was quantitative and reproducible from water samples by using columns of this exchanger. The conducting behavior and antimicrobial activity of the material was also investigated. The ...


The biblical terms in Deut. 28.42 and in Isa. 18.1 were never satisfactorily defined. A thorough analysis of ancient Egyptian texts, classical literature, Aramaic and rabbinic sources, post-biblical texts and archaeological material suggests that in the Pentateuch means beetle and Isaiah's phrase can be translated 'land of the winged beetle', that is, Egypt. Moreover, the Egyptian beetle metaphorically could represent a (sacred) boat and in Christian commentary, crucified Jesus. Though viewed as abominable, the beetle was used as a potent drug in eastern Mediterranean communities down to the middle ages. Influence of time-honoured Egyptian culture left a distinct mark on the contiguous communities. Small wonder that the Bible, even talmudic literature, incorporated some of its tastes.


A unique selection of antelope bitterbrush (Purshia tridentata [Pursh] DC) recently became the first accession of this valuable western shrub species to be released for commercial seed collection and production. Chosen for its productivity, palatability, winter leafiness, cover value, and seedling vigor, 'Lassen' antelope bitterbrush is a useful shrub for wildlife and livestock ranges, conservation plantings, and reclamation projects on adapted sites in the Intermountain and Pacific Northwest regions.


The basic principle and mathematical model of shift-share method was presented.The paper has made analyses and comparison of the economic development from 1998 to 2004 of the nine cities in the Pearl River Delta by using the shift-share method,extracting their advantage and disadvantage information in the industrial structure and competitive power.Then the influ- ence of the existing industrial structures on the economic growth of the individual city was further analyzed.Based on the results.we classify all regions in the Pearl River Delta into four different development types.Finally,some proposals were put forward for readjusting the regionˊS industrial structures in terms of practical conditions.


Culture is characteristic phenomenon of mankind society, it not only is a social life-style, but also a spiritual value system. Culture can develop or not, and continuously bring forth new ideas, this involves the overall progression of the whole of society, marks the ability of existence and development of a country, a nation or an area.


The paper expounded acquisition, processing and application of data about traffic census under the condition of analysing the purpose, contents, characteristic and developing trend, and in the light of practice of Chang Ping Expressway in Ji Ling Province.


With the alarming global health crisis and pandemic, the entire medical industry and every human in this world are desperately looking for new technologies and solutions to monitor and contain the spread of this COVID-19 virus through early detection of its presence among infected patients. The early diagnosis of COVID-19 is hence critical for prevention and limiting this pandemic before it engulfs the humanity. With early diagnosis, the patient may be suggested for self-isolation (or) quarantine under medical supervision. Early detection of COVID-19 can save the patient and minimize the risk of falling prey to CoviD-19. Machine learning, a subset field of Artificial Intelligence can provide a viable solution for early diagnosis of disease and facilitate continuous monitoring of infected patients. AI based approaches can provide a view of the degree of disease severity. In general, Artificial intelligence (AI) could be a better technique for quantitative evaluation of the disease to obtain fruitful results. This paper throws light on the emerging need for AI powered solutions to foster early diagnosis of COVID-19 and suggest an ML based health monitoring framework for diagnosis of infected patients.


Diffusible iodine‐based contrast‐enhanced computed tomography (DiceCT) is a process in which the radiopacity of soft‐tissues is enhanced by binding them to a dense molecule (in this case, Lugol's iodine) so that they can be viewed using x‐ray‐based visualization. Although DiceCT has previously been used to examine masticatory muscle fiber architecture, including in some lemurs, for the first time we have applied this technique to a large enough interspecific sample size to evaluate the functional adaptations of these muscles in three‐dimensional space. We performed this analysis on 5 lemurids (Hapalemur, Lemur, Varecia,and two species of Eulemur) and three other strepsirrhines (Propithecus, Daubentonia,and Otolemur) as increasingly distant phylogenetic brackets. While our analysis confirms the findings of previous studies based on traditional gross dissection (i.e., more folivorous species have relatively shorter fascicle lengths and higher PCSA than do frugivorous taxa, giving them relatively higher bite force though lower linear gape abilities) these new analyses reveal more about the arrangement of these muscles. Namely, this approach shows, for the first time, 1) how these muscles are angled in three dimensional space ‐ a necessary step to fully resolving the effects of pennation in these complex muscles, 2) that the jaw adductor muscles, in near occlusion, are curved and in a state of gross compression ‐ thus changing our understanding of the force potential of these muscles in this state, and 3) the detailed gross and fascicular morphology of these muscles, particularly the deep muscles, in greater detail than can be accomplished using traditional methods. While these advantages improve our understanding of the function of these muscles, the technique is still extremely expensive in both material costs and scan time and the data collection is very time consuming. While these disadvantages currently preclude the application of this approach to large enough samples to explore broad functional questions across multiple lineages, if the costs in time and materials can be reduced, this three‐dimensional visualization approach (or cheaper/easier approaches that can accomplish the same level of analysis) has the potential to yield new insights into the evolution of the functional anatomy of soft‐tissues in three‐dimensions.


Abstract: The stress and deformation of rock-fill dam with asphalt concrete core wall founded on deep overburden is calculated and analyzed by Duncan E-ν model and double-yield-surface model through three-dimensional finite element method. The stress and deformation of dams in water storage period is compared by the two models, the results show that the deformation distribution of dam core via two different models are coincide one another. The horizontal displacement and vertical displacement of rock-fill dam with asphalt concrete core wall by double-yield-surface model is smaller than which by Duncan E-ν model in the period of water storage. Furthermore, the horizontal displacement and vertical displacement by double-yield-surface model, which are close to the practical test data through the deformation via two models are in good agreement. The analysis of core-wall stress via double-yield-surface model is more reasonable than the Duncan E-ν model. The analysis result of resisting hydraulic fracturing of core dams by DuncanE-ν model is coincide which of core dams by double-yield-surface model.


There are two commonly acknowledged, albeit conflicting predictions on the effect of banks' market power on firms' access to credit. The structure-performance hypothesis asserts that more market power leads to lower supply at higher prices. In contrast, the information-based hypothesis asserts that more market power increases bank lending to informationally opaque borrowers. In "Bank Competition and Access to Finance: International Evidence," Beck, Demirguii-Kunt, and Maksimovic (2004, this issue of JMCB) (henceforth BDM) investigate which hypothesis survives empirical scrutiny. This is a research question that will never disappoint, as the results will be important no matter which hypothesis prevails in the end. It is not the first time the question has been addressed in the literature, but BDM have made the most comprehensive study on this issue. Policymakers in developing countries no longer have to rely mostly on results from the U.S. banking market when they formulate policies for their emerging banking markets. They can now learn a lesson from the experience of more than 6000 companies in 74 countries. BDM's results suggest that in more concentrated banking markets (high market power), firms face higher financing obstacles. BDM interpret this finding as evidence in support of the structure-performance hypothesis and emphasize the negative effects of bank market power. In my comments, I would like to reinterpret these results, emphasizing the positive effects of market power, and express some concerns about the method of the paper.


We study the evolution of the nonlinear O(N) σ model in an expanding universein the large-N approximation, where one can solve exactly for the scaling field distribution, incorporating the full nonlinear dynamics. This provides a valuable analytic approximation for theories ofcosmic global monopoles (N=3), global texture (N=4), and «nontopological texture» (N>4). The analytic results are compared with those from numerical simulations, with good agreement. The probability distribution for mass fluctuations in the linear regime is positively skewed, providing a distinctive test for the theory


The problem of protecting the power supply of separate units of a mobile robot is quite similar to the problems of protecting the electrical mains. In one case we have to re-distribute the electrical energy due to lack of stability in its consumption, in another case we have to re-distribute the energy due to uneven load on separate units of mobile robots. It is impossible to predict, when this load on separate units will change. That is why, it is necessary to use the power quality control system. The article examines the possibility of controlling the quality of the electrical power when it is transmitted pulsewise.


In a recent paper in this journal, Butler and Van Peek (1990) advocated analyzing patterns of electoral change in the USA with the swing statistic—the average change in the share of the vote won by two parties contesting successive elections. The generality of their case was countered by Rose (1991), who showed that most liberal democracies do not have two-party systems; thus the swing statistic, which involves comparing the performance of two parties only, conceals more than it reveals of the pattern of electoral change in most situations. His preference was for the separate study of the "ups and downs" of each party. In a riposte to Rose, Gibson (1992) argued for the superiority of swing over the single party measures. His case was built on a curious argument, however. On the basis of goodness-of-fit statistics, he showed that a combination of independent variables relating to the characteristics of constituencies in Greater London predicted variations in swing better than they predicted variations in the performance of individual parties. Such analyses in no way indicate the superiority of swing as a measure of electoral change, however; they merely demonstrate that swing is more closely correlated to some independent variables than is another measure of change. Gibson's argument is a case of a spurious correlation.


Autonomous systems have high potential in many application domains. However, most discussions seem to take place with respect to autonomous road vehicles. The automotive industry promised substantial progress in this field but many predictions have not come true. Companies have stepped back and corrected their predictions. However, autonomous behavior is obviously not limited to road vehicles. Various kinds of systems can benefit from autonomous behavior in various domains such as health and pharmaceutics, energy, manufacturing, farming, mining, and so on. We thus take a broader perspective on autonomous systems design and discuss benefits, challenges, and risks in various application domains.


TTF-carboxylic acid 2 exhibits gelling ability for hexane and cyclohexane to form an orange fibrous material and shows solvatochromism both in solution and in the fiber formation to produce a reddish-purple fibrous material from acetonitrile. Moreover, the corresponding ester 1 forms yellow fibers from acetonitrile. However, the tetrabutylammonium salt 3 produces fine microcrystals without gel or fiber formation.


A company based in New York City has been dumping their toxic chemicals into rivers for years now. Eventually the river water has spread its way into the ground water contaminating land near the river. Near the river is a graveyard with over 200 bodies. The chemicas from the groundwater have made their way into the dead bodies and have brought them back to life only this time as blood thirsty ZOMBIES! You(The player) are supposed to make it from Day 1 the ,outbreak day, in New York city to a rumored safer place wear the outbreak has not reached yet. The main point of the game is to stay alive for as long as you can and kill some zombies along the way.


ABSTRACT Institutional mergers in higher education allow colleges and universities to expand programs and services while potentially cutting costs through resource sharing. Library mergers or affiliations can bring opportunities for innovation, but can also pose threats to limited resources. This article describes the strategic planning process for the merger between the libraries of Penn State University's Harrisburg and Schuylkill campuses. Librarians from both campuses took part in decisions regarding the new organizational structure and various procedural changes. The article examines the implications of the merger on the collections and services of the two libraries and looks at ways the libraries can work together to support the merged curriculum.


Background Problem-based learning (PBL) relies heavily on case structure for their success. To make more meaningful cases, faculty introduced a "case node" that requires students to make a group decision on the action they will take at a given point in the case. The purpose of this study was to determine whether case nodes enhance PBL discussions. Methods Two PBL cases were designed with and without a node. In 2011, 2012, and 2015, first-year medical students were assigned one PBL case with a node and one without a node. In total, 26 groups processed cases with a node while 27 groups processed the same cases without the node. All sessions were audio recorded and analyzed to determine the length and quality of discussions. Results Groups with a node, regardless of case (M = 25.62, SD = 12.25) spent significantly more time in discussion on the node topic than those without a node (M = 16.54, SD = 10.33, p=.005, d = .80). Groups with a node, regardless of case (M = 14.38, SD = 8.04) expressed an opinion significantly more frequently than those without a node (M = 6.07, SD = 5.80, p < .001, d = 1.19). Conclusions Case nodes increased both the length and depth of discussion on a topic and may be an effective way to enhance case-based instruction.


1. Lujan-Hernandez J, Chin MS, Perry DJ, et al. Increasing fat graft retention in irradiated tissue after preconditioning with external volume expansion. Plast Reconstr Surg. 2020;145:103–112. 2. Lancerotto L, Chin MS, Freniere B, et al. Mechanisms of action of external volume expansion devices. Plast Reconstr Surg. 2013;132:569–578. 3. Chin MS, Lujan-Hernandez J, Babchenko O, et al. External volume expansion in irradiated tissue: Effects on the recipient site. Plast Reconstr Surg. 2016;137:799e–807e. 4. Uda H, Sugawara Y, Sarukawa S, Sunaga A. Brava and autologous fat grafting for breast reconstruction after cancer surgery. Plast Reconstr Surg. 2014;133:203–213. 5. Kosowski TR, Rigotti G, Khouri RK. Tissue-engineered autologous breast regeneration with Brava-assisted fat grafting. Clin Plast Surg. 2015;42:325–337, viii. 6. Khouri RK, Rigotti G, Khouri RK Jr, et al. Tissue-engineered breast reconstruction with Brava-assisted fat grafting: A 7-year, 488-patient, multicenter experience. Plast Reconstr Surg. 2015;135:643–658. 7. Giatsidis G, Cheng L, Facchin F, et al. Moderate-intensity intermittent external volume expansion optimizes the soft-tissue response in a murine model. Plast Reconstr Surg. 2017;139:882–890. 8. Giatsidis G, Cheng L, Haddad A, et al. Noninvasive induction of angiogenesis in tissues by external suction: Sequential optimization for use in reconstructive surgery. Angiogenesis 2018;21:61–78.


This study investigated gender discrimination and coping mechanisms of black female managers in four rural secondary schools in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa using a case study. The overall aim of this study was to identify the extent of gender discrimination toward black female managers and to explore the gender order and gender regime that existed within the four schooling environments. This study also sought to explore the coping mechanisms that black female managers employed in the day-to-day execution of their duties and the effects that their experiences of gender discrimination had on their personal and professional lives. Men play an active role in shaping women's identities and controlling their behaviour. It is important to understand how men negotiate their identity since they are active players in the construction of female identities. For this reason, this study incorporated both female and male voices since they both construct gender. Observations, face-to-face and focus group interviews with the school principals, deputy principals, departmental heads, educators and school governing body members were used to collect data. The findings revealed that the male educators subjected female managers to stereotyping, in the sense that they placed them in nurturing, submissive roles, whilst they viewed themselves as being more dominant and assertive. The male educators executed duties that were associated with power and status, while the female educators were tasked with lower status duties. The cultural acceptance of Zulu male dominance seemed to be entrenched in all four school environments. The study also found that female managers were subjected to explicit gender based violence by male educators. The male educators displayed violent attitudes and behaviours toward female managers in an array of ways when they faced humiliation or felt that their manhood was threatened. The female managers were also subjected to sexual advances, requests for sexual favours, and verbal and physical maltreatment of a sexual nature. The female managers used solidarity, empowerment and assertiveness to cope with stereotyping. They drew on their maternal instincts and mechanisms of acceptance to cope with the sexual division of labour. They adopted the customary behaviour of respect (ukuhlonipha) to cope with discrimination relating to traditional beliefs. The coping mechanisms they used to deal with physical abuse and sexual harassment were acceptance, resignation and deeming this type of behaviour as common in all institutions. Based on the findings of this study, the researcher proposes that to combat gender discrimination against female educators; it is important for members of the community to be sensitised about the crucial role that female educators play in education. This will help parents, as governors of the school, to work in harmony with female school managers, without discrimination along gender lines, towards effective teaching and learning. The female educators in turn should also become actively involved in community activities to demonstrate their commitment, abilities and competence in leadership and management to all stakeholders and the broader community. There is a necessity to review unfair gender cultural practices and their dynamics to ensure that women are not disadvantaged in the workplace. However, it is also important to recognise that not all men or women are the same. While this study found that mainly male educators were the orchestrators of gender-based discrimination and violence, masculinity and femininity should not be seen as polar ends of a spectrum. It is necessary for gender identity to be formed in the dialogue between men and women. Interventions need to involve men and women to change attitudes and behaviours that would significantly decrease gender-based discrimination and incidents of gender-based violence.


The aim of this Independent project was to explore practitioner's perceptions on the subject of risky play.

This was a small-scale piece of action research, exploring how two preschool pack away settings support and facilitate risky play and gained an insight into how practitioners perceive and deliver this on a daily basis.

The literature review revealed that although risky play is well researched and beneficial to children, legislation currently does not state the importance of such play (DfE, 2017).

A qualitative approach was used to gain a greater understanding of practitioner's perspectives, thoughts and feelings on the subject of risky play. The use of two focus groups facilitated discussion with a view to making improvements within one setting.

The data analysis proved interesting with varying answers and opinions, which could be linked back to the literature. The conclusions drawn were not as originally anticipated but proved that it is the practitioners themselves their values and beliefs, that influence the degree of risk in which they allow children to engage.


A new dead time compensation method for a pulsewidth modulation (PWM) inverter is proposed. In the PWM inverter, voltage distortion due to the dead time effects produces fifth and seventh harmonics in the phase currents of the stationary reference frame, and a sixth harmonic in the d- and q-axis currents of the synchronous reference frame, respectively. In this paper, the sixth harmonic of the integrator output of the synchronous d-axis proportional-integral (PI) current regulator is used to compensate the output voltage distortion due to the dead time effects, since the integrator output has ripple corresponding to six times the stator fundamental frequency. The proposed method can be easily implemented by feedforwardly adding compensation voltages to the output reference voltage of the synchronous PI current regulator. The proposed method, therefore, has some significant advantages such as simple implementation without additional hardware, easy mathematical computation, no offline experimental measurements, and application in both the steady state and the transient state. The validity of the proposed compensation algorithm is shown through several experiments.


The aim of the work was to justify the algorithm of outpatient drug therapy in patients with COVID-19, based on the principle of «Multi-hit» Approach. The algorithm is based on the published results of clinical studies and observations, authors' own practical experience in the use and management of more than 4 thousand patients diagnosed with COVID-19 of varying severity during the 2020 pandemic. The article substantiates a complex algorithm for the treatment of outpatients with COVID-19, which includes etiotropic, pathogenetic, and symptomatic components of therapy with different mechanisms of action. The described approach is the 1st stage (outpatient) of a complex algorithm for managing patients with COVID-19. It has been successfully implemented in the system of outpatient care for patients with novel coronavirus infections in several leading medical institutions in Russia. The authors believe that the developed algorithm for providing outpatient drug therapy for COVID-19, based on the principle of multiple exposure, may be useful in real clinical practice of managing patients with coronavirus infection.


Nitrogen dioxide (NO2) is a highly photochemically reactive gas, has a lifetime of only a few hours, and at high concentrations it is harmful to human beings. Therefore, it is important to monitor NO2 with high-precision, time-resolved instruments. To this end, a Pandora spectrometer has been installed on the roof of the laboratory building of the Aerospace Information Research Institute of the Chinese Academy of Sciences in the Olympic Park, Beijing, China. The concentrations of trace gases (including NO2, HCHO, O3) measured with Pandora are made available through the open-access Pandora data 20 base (https://data.pandonia-global-network.org/Beijing-RADI/Pandora171s1/). In this paper, an overview is presented of the Pandora NO2 data collected during the first year of operation, i.e., from August, 2021, to July, 2022. The data show that NO2 concentrations were high in the winter and low in the summer, with diurnal cycle where the concentrations reach a minimum during day time. The concentrations were significantly lower during the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing, showing the effectiveness of the emission control measures during that period. The Pandora observations show that during northerly 25 winds clean air is transported to Beijing with low NO2 concentrations, whereas during southerly winds pollution from surrounding areas is transported to Beijing and NO2 concentrations are high. The contribution of tropospheric NO2 to the total NO2 VCD varies significantly on daily to seasonal time scales, i.e., close to 50% in autumn and winter, and close to 70% in spring and autumn. The comparison of Pandora-measured surface concentrations with collocated in situ measurements using a Thermo Scientific 42i-TL Analyzer shows that the Pandora data are low and that the relationship 30 between Pandora-derived surface concentrations and in situ measurements are different for low and high NO2 concentrations. Explanations for these differences are offered in terms of measurement techniques and physical (transport) phenomena. The use of Pandora total and tropospheric NO2 vertical column densities (VCDs) for validation of collocated TROPOMI data, resampled to 100×100 m2, shows that although on average the TROPOMI VCDs are slightly lower, they are well within the https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-2023-177 Preprint. Discussion started: 5 September 2023 c © Author(s) 2023. CC BY 4.0 License.


Background: We have discovered a new pathway for angiogenesis mediated by endothelial cell (EC) nicotinic acetylcholine receptors (nAChR). Stimulation of these receptors induces EC proliferation, migration, tube formation in vitro, tumor angiogenesis and plaque neovascularization in vivo. To date, the mechanisms of EC nAChR-mediated angiogenesis and its signal transduction pathway is largely unknown. In this study we examined the contribution of genes encoding different nAChR isoforms, as well as downstream components, in nicotine-induced EC angiogenesis in vitro. Methods: Total RNA and protein from HMVECs was subjected to RT-PCR and Western blotting analysis. EC migration and cell proliferation were assessed by standard wounding, BrdU assay. Results: We detected mRNA transcripts for multiple nAChR subunits. Subunit expression was confirmed by Western blotting. To determine the role of different isoforms as functional nACh receptors, we used siRNA technology to suppress the expression of each receptor subunit. Knockdown of each nAChR subunit partially or fully abolished nicotine-induced migration. Immunohistochemistry of HMVEC revealed b-catenin was more clearly localized to the cytoplasm and nucleus after nicotine exposure. Activation of 7 nAChR induced dephosphorylation of the tumor suppressor gene moesin. Moesin dephosphorylation was required for nicotine induced cell migration. Furthermore, knockdown of moesin gene expression with siRNA induced spontaneous EC migration and tube formation on matrigel. Conclusions: ECs express several nAChR subunits that contribute to EC migration and proliferation. The Wnt/b-catenin pathway is involved in nAChR-mediated endothelial cell proliferation, survival and migration.


In modern social life,people have greater nervousness and pressure than ever,which are threatening their physical and mental health.Therefore,the relation between pressure and health is more and more concerned and stressed.


The study was carried out in the Hushe Valley, CKNP region, Pakistan, during summer 2012. Sampling was performed along altitudinal gradients in rangelands of CKNP area Hushe. Five quadrats were laid on each of line transects (25m) in four dimensions at 5 meters' intervals, on alternate sides of transect line. Biomass productivity and carrying capacity were estimated by using 1-m² quadrats (N=20 by site; total N = 60). The average standing biomass and carrying capacity was 48 Kg ha -1 and 55.67 ha -1 AU -1 5 mo -1 respectively. Furthermore, cumulative standing biomass of shrub, grass and forb at each altitudinal gradient of upper, mid and lower was estimated at18, 60 and 66 Kg ha -1 , respectively. The carrying capacity for the forb category was 16 months'ha -1 AU -1 /5 months -1 at the lower elevation, whereas at mid elevation the carrying capacity for the shrub category was 23 ha - 1AU -1 5 mo -1 . The assessment of soil organic matter at each site was highest (1.5%) at the high elevation, while P (27.9 mgkg 1 ) and K (260 mgkg1) concentrations were highest at mid elevation. The study highlighted low production which also vary along altitudinal gradient. This is an alarming situation for the livestock farmers and wild ungulates under present and predicted climate change scenarios. Therefore, the results of the study would be beneficial for the policy makers and managers in the planning of rangeland of CKNP.


The effect of paraffin oil on the thermooxidative stability of thermoplastic elastomers based on PP and oil-extended ethylene-propylene-diene elastomer (EPDM) was studied by isothermal thermogravimetry (TGA). Two- and three-component model blends involving various combinations of thermoplastic elastomers (PP-oil, EPDM-oil, PP-EPDM-oil) were also investigated. For the purpose of comparison, PP blends with rubbers of different nature (SKN-40) were studied. Based on the data obtained, it was concluded that, at T ≥ 280°C, not only does the oil show intensive degradation with the formation of volatile products, but it also participates in thermal structurization along with PP and EPDM. Using atomic force microscopy, the morphology of thermoplastic elastomers before and after TGA tests was investigated. It was shown that, upon heat treatment, a multilayer structure is formed near the polymer surface. It was suggested that this structure hinders oxygen diffusion into the polymer bulk and thus can prevent the major part of the thermoplastic elastomer from thermooxidative degradation.


Online teaching is a trend that has been increasing after the covid pandemic,Now it has been a part of learning in which educators and students feeling more convenient. At higher level many distance and open universities launched online courses for busy students who have not time even for scheduled contact programes, these online courses are quite beneficial for them. Online courses/ classes can often be more cost-effective than traditional classes and can be done at a pace the student is comfortable with. Although there are so many advantages of online teaching but at a distance the online teaching raises ethical issues also particularly to the distance context. The situation is more complex when teacher and student are unknown to each other, usually it happens in distance teaching-learning programs and u-tube classes where never happens any face to face interactions. Online teaching supports complex discourses and multiple relationships, they cross physical, cultural and linguistic boundaries. This paper will discuss on the major ethical issues related to teaching and learning. Ethical issues i.e. incompetency in digital teaching, Plagiarism in preparing digital content, Maintaining discipline in virtual learning, lack of motivation/ reinforcement, Unstructured and inappropriate content, teachers dress code all these issues are related to educator .On other side students also face problems related to ethics as equity and diversity, surveillance and consent, assessment of learning outcomes etc..


The aim in producing this collection of enrichment and extension activities for able children is to inspire more children to study science, to encourage scientific literacy, to foster creativity and to stimulate informed debate about the direction that science needs to take in our complex society. The activities in the Applying Science section cover topics such as: Living on Mars, Intergalactic weight loss, Beyond mauveine, Water witching, MANIAC 2, an arresting collection of titles that lures the reader to investigate further.


A data model helps developers think deeply about a database and cope with large size and complexity. However, given their high level of abstraction, data models can be difficult to construct and prone to errors. This article provides a checklist of some mistakes you should be sure to avoid, thereby improving the quality of your data models.


We have observed terahertz (THz) radiation from higher-order two-dimensional (2D) plasmon modes in GaAs/AlGaAs single quantum wells by time-resolved THz emission spectroscopy. Up to fifth-order plasmon modes are clearly resolved and the observed mode frequencies are in excellent agreement with theory. Relaxation times of the 2D plasmon modes are found to be almost independent of the plasmon wave vector accessible in the present experiment.


This paper presents a comparative study on performance of conventional PI controller and fuzzy controller on three phase, three wire voltage source inverter based shunt active filter that is used to compensate the harmonics currents drawn by non-linear loads in distribution systems. Hysteresis PWM method is used to generate the pulses to the switches used in active filter. The compensation is based on PLL method of fundamental current extraction. The nonlinear load taken into account is a three phase diode bridge rectifier.


Objective:The aim of this study was to investigate the blood lead levels of children after introducing lead-free gasoline in Beijing.Methods:The blood lead levels of 1?360 children,who were out-patients suspected lead poisoning and aged from 2 to 6 years, were determined by Anodic Stripping Voltametry(ASV), and 616 from infants school were in control group. Results:258 children (13.1%) were found to be suffering from lead poisoning (≥10 μg/dl, 1 μg/dl=0.0483 μmol/L). The blood lead levels of children from infants school and children care out-patient department were (4.93±3.3)μg/dl, (6.62±4.57)μg/dl respectively, and significant difference was observed between the two groups(P0.001). Conclusions: Blood lead levels of children in Beijing and the prevalence of lead poisoning were both relatively declined. Blood lead levels were lower in children from infants' school than from children care out-patient department.


This letter proposes a simple and practical way to improve the efficiency of an adaptive-energy-storage (AES) full bridge converter. Since the turns ratio of coupled inductor is 1 in the conventional AES converter, the leading-leg and lagging-leg have the same peak current. By modifying turns ratio of coupled inductor, part of leading-leg current can be steered to the lagging-leg; thus, the peak current of lagging-leg is higher than that of leading-leg and a wider range of zero-voltage switching (ZVS) operation is obtained. In the improved AES converter with modified turns ratio, the energy from primary side can be transferred to the secondary side during freewheeling interval. Both the current ripple of filter inductor and the voltage stress of rectifier diode are reduced. Compared with the conventional AES converter, the improved converter can obtain a wider ZVS range, lower current ripple, and higher conversion efficiency. The detailed theory analysis and experimental results are presented in this letter.


Hemi splenectomy or partial splenectomy may appear as an opportunity for a splenic injury, to prevent further infections. Such preserved spleens are functional. Splenic conservation necessitates a transversal sub costal incision for an easy surgical treatment without splenic mobilisation.


Application of power system stabilizers (PSS) is currently the most effective and economical way to suppress low-frequency oscillations. The principle of PSS suppressing low-frequency oscillation is to compensate the lag phase of the excitation system and provide positive damping to the system. Generally, the greater the gain of PSS, the greater the positive damping provided. However, according to the engineering experience, the gain of PSS cannot be increased indefinitely. When it is increased to a certain extent, the excitation voltage will occur a continuous oscillation. In this paper, an analysis method of excitation oscillation mode is proposed based on minimum characteristic loci. The solution equations of excitation mode oscillation frequency and PSS critical gain are given.


Abstract Objective: To determine the size of reduction inhomocysteine concentrations produced by dietarysupplementation with folic acid and with vitaminsB›12 or B›6. Design: Meta›analysis of randomised controlled trialsthat assessed the effects of folic acid basedsupplements on blood homocysteine concentrations.Multivariate regression analysis was used to determinethe effects on homocysteine concentrations ofdifferent doses of folic acid and of the addition ofvitamin B›12 or B›6. Subjects: Individual data on 1114 people included in12 trials. Findings: The proportional and absolute reductionsin blood homocysteine produced by folic acidsupplements were greater at higher pretreatmentblood homocysteine concentrations (P<0.001) and atlower pretreatment blood folate concentrations(P<0.001). After standardisation to pretreatmentblood concentrations of homocysteine of 12 imol/land of folate of 12 nmol/l (approximate averageconcentrations for Western populations), dietary folicacid reduced blood homocysteine concentrations by25% (95% confidence interval 23% to 28%; P<0.001),with similar effects in the range of 0.5›5 mg folic aciddaily. Vitamin B›12 (mean 0.5 mg daily) produced anadditional 7% (3% to 10%) reduction in bloodhomocysteine. Vitamin B›6 (mean 16.5 mg daily) didnot have a significant additional effect.


Wide complex tachycardia (WCT) is common. The precise diagnosis of the WCT is frequently unknown prior to embarking on an inva sive catheter ablation procedure. This knowledge may impact pro cedure planning. It is not infrequent that some patients with WCT have implantable cardiac devices. Herein, we describe a case of a patient with a left bundle branch block (LBBB) tachycardia, where the precise diagnosis was obtained prior to the invasive electrophys iology study using pacing maneuvers with the patient's implanted pacemaker. An 88- year- old female with a recent transcatheter aortic valve a dual- chamber pacemaker a cedure bundle branch (LBBB). pa tient recurrent complex tachycardia rogation


Abstract When one studies the TDLB standards, it is difficult to find any element — at least at Level 4 — which is not a statement of what competent, professional teaching entails, but there is a lot, in our view, which is missing. The standards fail to account for much of what teachers do and, more importantly, why they do it — the what and how of the thinking process, often called 'reflective practice', which underlies apparent pragmatism. Our concern is that the current NCVQ model of competence on which the TDLB standards are based is too inflexible to accommodate the dimension of this reflective professional process.


This study investigates developmental patterns in the ability of Greek foreign language learners to make offers. Drawing data from role-plays and retrospective verbal reports it attempts to explore the initial offer strategies and the degree of insistence that learners of three different proficiency levels (lower intermediate, intermediate and advanced) employ when performing offers in different social situations. The results suggest that, although there is a great deal of grammatical and pragma-linguistic development in regard to both initial offer strategies and syntactic modification devices, this does not guarantee concomitant levels of socio-pragmatic development (cf. Bardovi-Harlig 1999).


The P‐Selectin Gene Polymorphism Val168Met. Aims: Ventricular fibrillation (VF) in the setting of acute myocardial infarction (AMI) is the leading cause of sudden cardiac death (SCD). Family history of SCD is described as risk factor for primary VF during acute AMI. Genetic factors may be associated with primary VF. We examined polymorphisms in genes related to the activation and adhesion of blood platelets in patients with and without VF in the setting of AMI and among healthy controls.


The utility model discloses a milling-bean pickled coffee machine, in particular relates to a machine which the milling coffee bean and the pickling coffee are connected together. The milling-bean pickled coffee machine is provided with a base body, the base body comprises a bottom portion, a ring potion, a front-cylinder portion and a back-cylinder portion, wherein, a heating loop and a pipeline are arranged at the bottom portion, an electric power source is provided outside the bottom portion, the ring potion is connected to a back side of the bottom portion, a water chamber is separated with an electric panel room by a clapboard, a coffee maker is arranged at the bottom portion, a pickled chamber is arranged in the front-cylinder portion, a mouth of the pickled chamber is sealed by a wane of a water drain valve, the water passes from an inlet branch which is additionally connected to the heating pipe line, and is guided up into an upwards side of the pickled chamber to drip down, a pair of air ejector fans is located on the pickled chamber, the back-cylinder portion is divided into a main motor chamber and a milling-bean chamber by an internal plate, the main motor chamber is connected with the milling-bean chamber. The utility model is applied for ordinary family using and is used in the place at which little pickled coffee is provided.


In kidney transplantation cases, borderline change (BL) can lead to a progressive course. However, factors related to outcome and the progress of BL are not well defined. In this study, we focused specifically on interstitial inflammation as a factor influencing outcome after diagnosis of BL.


Attitude determination of space target from an inverse synthetic aperture radar (ISAR) image sequence is an important but difficult task, because of the complex electromagnetic scattering characteristics of the target. To autonomously estimate the attitude of the space target from the ISAR image sequence, this letter introduces the key point feature extraction network (KPEN), and proposes a novel method for attitude determination via the key point feature extraction. The geometric relationship between the target attitude parameters and the key point feature is established through range-Doppler (RD) projection matrix. With the help of the key point extraction network, key point feature is extracted from ISAR image. Then the target attitude and its component size are autonomously recovered through key point feature by solving a nonlinear optimization. Extensive experiments show the effectiveness and superiority of the proposal.


Predictions were drawn from path-goal leadership theory about three task dimension moderators of the relationship between instrumental leadership and subordinate supervision satisfaction. These pre...


The present invention has good migration resistance, and other formability, for electronic components liquid resin composition is also excellent in reliability and thereby there is provided an electronic component device which is sealed, (the A) Epoxy resin, (B) a room temperature liquid and equivalents 200 or more cyclic acid anhydride anhydride acid, an electronic component for a liquid resin composition containing (C) a coupling agent.


This article advances the argument that republicanism, both in its pre‐modern and modern character, has always been a substantial but unrecognised part of the Australian political tradition. Republicanism is already within the mainstreams of political discourse, but its presence has not yet been identified. Instead, 'the republicans' have been seen as a political sect and set up in opposition to the dominant political culture of constitutional monarchy. Thus, Prime Minister Keating, as a 'republican', is construed to be against — rather than already within — the dominant political culture. The argument in this article is that republicanism has always had a pervasive presence within Australian political discourse and that to separate it as 'other' misapprehends the republican tradition.


A survey on engineering students' attitude toward intellectual property (IP) education has been conducted in several China's universities, revealing the need for more effective teaching and learning methods. To improve the students' IP awareness and the capability of innovative learning, a small module of patent and circuit design case study has been included in an engineering course, namely, radio-frequency integrated circuit (IC) design, which is offered to senior undergraduate or postgraduate students in a top engineering university in China. Along with the instruction of the RFIC design techniques, the concepts of the IP for the ICs are presented, followed by the analysis of innovative circuits to explore potential legal issues. The feedback of the students suggests that the curriculum is considerably helpful to enrich the knowledge of engineering students in both the design technique and IP awareness.


The Thomas-Fermi approximation is implemented in two coupled n-type δ-doped quantum wells in Si. An analytical expression for the Hartree-Fock potential is obtained in order to compute the subband level structure. The longitudinal and transverse levels are obtained as a function of the impurity density and the interlayer distance. The exchange-correlation effects are analyzed from an impurity density of 8×1012to6.5×1013cm−2. The transport calculations are based on a formula for the mobility, which allows us to discern the optimum distance between wells for maximum mobility.


Objective The volatile components of normal rapeseed and mildew rapeseed have been identified and classified by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry(GC-MS) technology.Methods The headspace solid phase microextraction(HS-SPME) technology has been used to extract volatile components in rapeseed,and the headspace solid phase microextraction head,extraction temperature,extraction time and the analytic conditions were optimized.Finally,gas chromatography-mass spectrometry(GC-MS) technology was used for the determination of volatile components in rapeseed and mildew rapeseed.Results The optimized conditions of HS-SPME were extraction fiber of 30/50 μm DVB/CAR/PDMS,extraction temperature of 60 ℃,extraction time of 60 min,and desorption time of 3 min,respectively.Under the optimal experimental conditions,the original samples and the mildew samples could be distinguished by SPME-GC-MS.The results showed that volatile compounds in rapeseed were aldehydes,alcohols,ketones,hydrocarbons,some acid ester compounds,and heterocycle group,in which alkane was the most group.3-symplectic ketone,acetophenone,benzene acetaldehyde,phenylethyl alcohol,and alkane compounds such as nonadecane and heneicosane were only detected in the mildew rapeseed.Conclusion This method can better distinguish the normal rapeseed and mildew rapeseed.


Purpose. This study was conducted to provide basic data for decrease campus life stress investigated survey on the socio-demographic characteristic and campus life stress of the dental hygiene students. Methods. The research subjects are the total 220 and it was analyzed with structured questionnaires. The collected data was analyzed by IBM SPSS ver. 20.0, a statistical program (IBM Co., Armonk, NY, USA) for the frequency and percentage, ANOVA, Regression. The result is as following Results. The campus life stress was statistically significant differences by in case of poor family reason (


The photophysics of a series of peptides carrying naphthalene and protoporphyrin IX, covalently bound to e-amino groups of lysine residues were investigated in methanol solution by steadystate and time-resolved fluorescence experiments, as well as by transient absorption spectra. The general formula of the series is Boc-Leu-Leu-Lys-(Ala) n -Leu-Leu-Lys-OtBu, where Leu=L-leucine, Lys=L-lysine, Ala=L-alanine, and n=0-4. Quenching of excited naphthalene takes place by electronic energy transfer and proceeds on a time scale of 3-8 ns. A minor and slower (45 ns) fluorescence decay was also measured, which was ascribed to exciplex quenching since it does not depend on the interchromophoric distances. IR spectra in methanol solution indicate that intramolecularly H-bonded conformations form, and circular dichroism data in both methanol and water-methanol mixtures suggest the presence of variable amounts of α-helix structure, depending on the chain length. The probability distribution of center-to-center distances of chain-linked donor-acceptor pairs was calculated by a rotational isomeric states model, in which rotation around each bond in the chromophore linkages is restricted to a few highly populated, low-energy isomeric states. By using the calculated distributions and applying a Forster type mechanism, the kinetics of the energy transfer were satisfactorily reproduced for all the compounds investigated only when the mutual orientations of the chromophores were also taken into account because interconversion among conformational substates of probe linkages is slow on the time scale of the transfer process


Steam turbines are critical components of thermal power stations for generation of electricity. Erosion- corrosion results from the synergistic action of mechanical erosion and electrochemical corrosion anis a common deterioration mechanism. High-purity steam with low cary-over and the application of corrosion-resistant alloys will prevent corrosion or minimize damage.


A content analysis of a range of services provided by freight forwarders in road transport. The functions of freight forwarding companies. Classified operations complex forwarding services


Abstract Contemporary tendencies in shaping river valleys in cities constitute a clash and overlap of numerous aspects of contemporary urban planning. The range and diversity of interventions depict the whole array of new urban landscapes, the superior quality of which is constituted by the ecological aspect. Growing climatic changes, as well as limits of the natural environment within urban structures, pose special requirements for urban sections of river valleys. Urban strategies and projects proposed for these sections must face problems related to water resources management, and at the same time, they need to be activators of the new quality of the city in the context of its competitiveness. This paper focuses on two fundamental tendencies in designing river valleys in cities: anti-flood control, and increasing the share of the natural environment in the urban structure.


Counterterrorism efforts in the United States focus largely on a combination of offensive actions against terrorists abroad and defense of the U.S. homeland and U.S. and allied interests worldwide. This paper provides a framework for conceiving another necessary component of the struggle, the influence component. Classic deterrence is but one influence among many. This paper recommends approaching the issue as a "system problem" in which the many different components of terrorist organizations are considered and appropriate influences applied accordingly. The influences discussed range from various forms of coercion to the competition of ideas.


Tungsten disulfide (WS2) is a transition metal dichalcogenide that differs from other 2D materials such as graphene owing to its distinctive semiconducting nature and tunable band gap. In this study, we have reported the structural, electrical, physical, and mechanical properties of exfoliated WS2 flakes and used them as the functional layer of a rewritable bipolar memory device. We demonstrate this concept by sandwiching few-layered WS2 flakes between two silver (Ag) electrodes on a flexible and transparent PET substrate. The entire device fabrication was carried out through all-printing technology such as reverse offset printing for patterning bottom electrodes, electrohydrodynamic (EHD) atomization for depositing functional thin film and EHD patterning for depositing the top electrode respectively. The memory device was further encapsulated with an atomically thin layer of aluminum oxide (Al2O3), deposited through a spatial atmospheric atomic layer deposition system to protect it against a humid environment. Remarkable resistive switching results were obtained, such as nonvolatile bipolar behavior, a high switching ratio (∼103), a long retention time (∼105 s), high endurance (1500 voltage sweeps), a low operating voltage (∼2 V), low current compliance (50 μA), mechanical robustness (1500 cycles) and unique repeatability at ambient conditions. Ag/WS2/Ag-based memory devices offer a new possibility for integration in flexible electronic devices.


The invention relates to a mineral fertilizer of iron mine tailings comprising conducting magnetization treatment to the processed granule fertilizers after uniformly mixing the calcined grinding iron mine tailings with phosphate fertilizer and potassium fertilizer according to the weight parts of 60-70 parts, 20-30 parts and 5-15 parts, wherein the residual magnetism is 10 -10 MT. The mineral fertilizer contains the medium trace, trace and rare earth nutritive elements for the growth of crops, furthermore can improve the soil and promote the rootage, split and resistance to drought of the crops. The yield-increasing effect to the wheat, rice and corn is more than or equal to 10%.


ABSTRACT Low temperatures, short growing seasons, and strong winds, which constrain the abundance and activity of insect pollinators, characterize alpine ecosystems. In northern hemisphere alpine environments, the reproductive output of several insect-pollinated plants has been reported to be pollen-limited. Using a supplemental hand-pollination experiment, we assessed the magnitude of pollen limitation (PL) in the obligate outcrossing insect-pollinated shrub Chuquiraga oppositifolia in the lower alpine scrub vegetation belt in the central Chilean Andes. We also assessed spatial variation in its reproductive success by comparing seed production among three additional sites. Hand-pollination resulted in a two- to three-fold increase in seed output above natural levels, thus demonstrating PL in this species. Nevertheless, percentage seed output remained low, increasing from 2.0 to 5.7%. Seed weight was reduced by 15% in hand-pollinated plants. Seed output was also low in the three additional sites, but did not differ among them, suggesting that low seed output is a spatially widespread phenomenon in this species. Our results, together with previous research, suggest that both pollinator visitation and abiotic resources (soil nutrients) constrain the reproductive output of this shrub. Longer-term research should unravel potential future vegetative and reproductive costs of current-year enhanced reproductive output and determine if PL is a recurrent phenomenon in the Chilean Andes.


High energy ball mill tests under the condition of the ball material mass ratio 13:1 and the rotate speed 400 r/min have been employed to investigate the process of mechanical alloying (MA) of Ta and Cr powder mixed in the mole ratio of 1:2.The microstructure evolution process and phase composition were explained useing scanning electron microscope (SEM) and X-ray diffraction (XRD). The results show that, the milled 20h powder existed in Ta (Cr) supersaturated solid solution and amorphous after 40h. Although the hours were spent on ball milling reached to 50h, Laves phase TaCr2 had not been made during the process.


The early childhood teacher is expected to be able to to do his/her best in educating ealy age children if he/she has high adversity quotient, This research aimed to explore the influence of adversity intelegence and achievement motivation to early childhood teacher performance. There are 94 respondents participated in this study, age 20 – 40 years old. The data were collected using three instruments, thoseare Adversity Respons Profile (ARP) Quick Take, Achievement Motivation scale and performance scale. Data was analyzed by two ways anova, dummy linier regression and independent t-test.This research concludes that adversity quotient and motivation influence the performance, but ethnic is only moderaor variables. there is no difference in AQ between Java and Maduresse, but there is a difference on motivation score between Java and Maduresse.


BACKGROUND
Immune recovery following allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (allo-HSCT) decisively influences the occurrence of opportunistic infections, one of the leading causes of death among this group of patients. Yet, today, there are no laboratory parameters mirroring immune function sufficiently. Torque teno virus (TTV) has already proven itself as a functional immune marker in other settings.

AIMS
In this analysis, we investigated whether monitoring of TTV-DNA load in whole blood is able to provide additional information on the capacity of the immune system to control cytomegalovirus (CMV) replication in allo-HSCT recipients.

METHODS
Whole blood samples from 59 patients were collected upon allo-HSCT (between Day -7 and +10), on Day +14, +21, +28, +56, +90, and +365 post-transplant. TTV-DNA loads and other relevant clinical information were correlated with the risk of CMV infections or reactivations, defined by evidence of viral replication in blood.

RESULTS
CMV serostatus of the recipient and a TTV load below 1000 copies/mL upon allo-HSCT were significantly associated with an increased incidence of CMV infection or reactivation.

CONCLUSIONS
Quantification of TTV load in the early phase of allo-HSCT procedure could provide additional information in order to identify patients at risk for CMV infection or reactivation.


reviewer agrees with Erickson's thesis that there is a strong continuity between van Gogh's Dutch Reformed Christianity and his "modernism," his "Christian spirituality" and his "artistic vision." However, a strong historical argument can be made that the Reformed Christianity that nourished van Gogh's spiritual vision was already the product of a synthesis with modernity. Therefore, the question remains, what of van Gogh's paintings?


A new analysis of multibeam swath bathymetry data reveals evidence of large submarine slope failures in southern Douglas Channel, British Columbia. Specifically, two rotational submarine slides (A and B) formed by the failure of scallop-shaped blocks derived from the eastern margin of the fiord wall are identified. Slide A has an estimated minimum volume of 32 000 000 m and Slide B of 31 000 000 m. The toes of the failures are buried by a thick cover of mud deposited from suspension, as are the edges of the slide masses, suggesting that the failures occurred during early to mid-Holocene time, i.e. 5000 to 10 000 years BP. Although the causes of the failures are not known at this time, their close proximity to an apparently active fault presents the possibility that they may have been triggered by ground motion or surface rupture of the fault during past earthquake events. Additional geological research is required to better delineate the age of the submarine failures, their triggers, and their mechanisms of emplacement. Nested failures, retrogressive and incipient slide blocks, and steep slopes are characteristic of the southeastern margin of Douglas Channel and present conditions conducive to future submarine failures. Each of the newly identified slide volumes exceed that of the 25 000 000 m slope failure that took place on 27 April 1975 along the inner slope of Kitimat Arm to the northwest of Douglas Channel. This latter failure generated a tsunami with a maximum recorded wave height of 8.2 m and damaged a First Nations village on the opposite side of the inlet. A fine-scale numerical model using high-resolution seafloor topography and detailed slide-volume characteristics has been initiated to better assess the generation, propagation, and along-channel impacts of tsunami waves that may have resulted from the Douglas Channel slope failures. The findings will provide important information needed to manage the potential impacts of any future event and to support the safe and sustainable development of the region.


A number of organo-selenium compounds have been planned and synthesized for pharmacological properties. A novel selena-diazole derivative compound[ 4', 4"(4, 5, 6, 7Tetrahydro[1, 2, 3-] Selenadiazolo [4, 5e] Pyridine-4, 6-Diyl) Bis (Benzene-1, 3-Diol)] (SeD) was previously synthesized, identified.The main objective of the current study is the study of some of its pharmacological effects; include hematological profile, T and B lymphocytes count, effects on prothrombin time; also, SeD activity on thyroid hormone. Two groups of Wister female Rats, Control group (NS) and the second Test (SeD) group received a daily dose of 50 mg/Kg BW for one month. Complete Blood cell count; Deferential Lymphocytes count; Serum Thyroid hormones were evaluated; also, vitro Prothrombin Time (PT) international normalized ratio (INR) and activated partial thromboplastin time (a PTT) were estimated. The results indicate that a significantly increase in WBC and Lymphocytes%. While Granulocytes and blood platelets count were significantly decreased. a PTT and INR values were important differences with the heparin group (H). Total Lymphocytes, T cells and B cells of (SeD) greatly enhanced than control. TSH increased significantly, while T3 and T4 serum concentrations were significantly decline than control. It can be concluded that SeD can increased WBC and lymphocytes cells. SeD at low concentrations decreased were showed significant decline a PTT and PT-INR than Heparin treated group. Also, SeD has stimulating effects on TSH and inhibited T4 and T3 thyroid hormones.


An imaging channeled spectrograph (ICS) consists of a Fabry-Perot bandpass filter followed by a wide slit imaging grating spectrograph. This unique configuration combines the 2-D monochromatic imaging of a Fabry-Perot system with the high resolution and comprehensive wavelength coverage of a grating spectrograph. The ICS produces a series of simultaneous, high resolution, nonoverlapping, 2-D monochromatic images uniformly distributed over a large spectral range. This paper describes the ICS optical properties in general and calculates the optical performance of an ICS designed for the proposed NRL spectrocoronagraph.