We apply the Monotone Comparative Statics method and the First Order (Mirrlees) Approach to the continuous-type, three-tier agency model with hidden information and collusion a la Tirole (1986,1992), thereby providing a framework that can address the issues treated in the existing literature (e.g. Kofman and Lawarree 1993) in a much simpler fashion. We characterize the nature of equilibrium contract that can be implemented under the possibility of collusion between the supervisor and the agent, and then obtain a general comparison result on the two-tier vs. three-tier organization structures. Next, we introduce the recent behavioral contract theory idea, "shading" (Hart and Moore (2008)) into the model. By combining the two ideas, i.e., collusion and shading, we can not only enrich the existing collusion model, including a new result on the choice of Collusion-proof vs. Equilibrium Collusion regimes, but also give a micro foundation to ex-post haggling costs, addressed by Transaction Cost Economics (e.g. Coase (1937) and Williamson (1975)). This will contribute to a deep understanding of resource allocation and decision process in inside hierarchical organization.


Many studies, surveys recognizes the overall performance of Open Source Software compare to proprietary products in term of innovation, total cost ownership, stability, community involvement ... many factors that makes Open Source Software a viable project and movement. The purpose of this thesis is to analyse the customer perception of OSS only from SME and SMI in order to understand this low level of market share.


A new high-luminosity Electron Ion Collider (EIC) is under design at Brookhaven National Laboratory (BNL). Stable operation of the electron beam at average current of 2.5 A within 1100 bunches with a 7 mm bunch length is one of the challenging tasks in achieving an electron-proton luminosity of 1033-1034 cm-2 sec-1 range. Beam induced heating, short-range and long-range wakefield analysis is discussed for some of the vacuum components of the electron storage ring (ESR), the hadron storage ring (HSR) and the rapid cycling synchrotron (RCS) and as well as the impact of the collective effects on the beam stability.


Native tallgrass prairies were once considered to be the dominant pre-settlement vegetation type in the eastern third of the Great Plains, but are now designated as America's most endangered ecosystem due to conversion to agricultural land. Prairie mounds are unique soil features still present in remnant native tallgrass prairies across the United States. The main objective was to determine the effects of soil moisture regime (i.e., aquic and udic), mound position, (i.e., mound summit, backslope, toeslope, inter-mound), soil depth (i.e., 10-cm intervals from 0 to 90 cm), and their interactions on soil physical, chemical, and hydraulic properties in a mounded native tallgrass prairie in the Ozark Highlands region of northwest Arkansas. The secondary objective was to evaluate the effects of soil depth (i.e., 10, 20, 30, and 50 cm), mound position (i.e., mound summit and inter-mound), soil moisture regime (i.e., udic and aquic), and their interactions over time and to quantify the effects of soil moisture regime (i.e., udic and aquic), mound position (i.e., mound summit and inter-mound), sample date, and their interactions on prairie vegetation. Soil samples were collected in mid-April 2017, volumetric water content measurements were collected continuously from April 2017 – June 2018, and vegetation was sampled in June and August 2017 and in May and August 2018. Soil clay concentrations in the mound summits roughly doubled from 0-90 cm while the clay concentrations in the backslope, toeslope, and inter-mound increased by three to six times from 0-90 cm. The maximum soil volumetric water content for selected rainfall events was approximately 2.5 times greater at the 10-cm depth in the aquic inter-mound compared to the udic mound at 30 cm. Total aboveground dry matter was numerically largest (8489 kg ha) at the aquic summit in August 2018 and numerically smallest (1280 kg ha) at the aquic inter-mound in May 2018. The results of this study provide insight regarding soil nutrient contents and water dynamics of prairie mounds and inter-mound areas, which are important for plant growth. Results clearly demonstrate that prairie restoration/management activities need to account for mound topography and differing soil moisture regimes to be most successful. Acknowledgements I would like to thank the members of my Thesis Committee, Dr. Kristofor R. Brye, Dr. David M. Miller, Dr. Lisa S. Wood, and Dr. Edward E. Gbur for providing guidance throughout my research and the preparation of this thesis. I would like to thank Dr. Kristofor R. Brye for his guidance throughout my graduate career. I am thankful for the professional development opportunities Dr. Brye has provided over the last two years. I appreciate Dr. Brye's commitment to teaching me how to conduct research and report my findings scientifically. I would like to thank Dr. David M. Miller for inspiring me to pursue soil science. After completing Introductory Soils, I knew I wanted to specialize in soil science. I thank Dr. Miller for answering questions and providing insight throughout my research. I would like to thank Dr. Lisa S. Wood for providing me the opportunity to serve as a Teaching Assistant throughout graduate school and serving as a mentor throughout my academic career. The advice and encouragement provided by Dr. Wood contributed to my success


Increased use of fly ash is expected from the standpoint of the effective use of natural resources and measures against alkali-silica reaction. However, it is difficult to adequately control the air content of fly ash concrete, as unburnt carbon contained in fly ash adsorbs the air-entraining admixture, posing a risk of reducing the resistance of concrete to frost damage. In this study, a prefoam-type air-entraining admixture of a whipped cream consistency, which is less prone to the effect of unburnt carbon, was used to entrain fine air bubbles into concrete, in an attempt to enhance its resistance to frost damage. The prefoam-type air-entraining admixture was found to be capable of reducing the spacing factor of fly ash concrete and thus effective against freezing and thawing action.


Bartholin gland cysts and abscesses are real issues in women of every age, being a high risk condition for patients when symptoms occur. The study was performed on a group of 120 patients who had Bartholin cyst or abscess. About 81.66% patients has presented pain of high intensity, with extension to the entire vulvar area, 16.66% of the patients dyspareunia and senzation of local pressure, and only 1.66% patients vulvo-vaginal pressure sensation and pain only at deep palpation of the area. After marsupialization, only 3.33% patients had recurrence of the cyst or abscess and were submitted to a second and successful session. In the present study, the post-marsupialization recurrence rate of the Bartholin gland cyst or abscess was lower, without major complications. The Bartholin cysts or abscess approach by marsupialization can be used as an effective management with low rates of recurrence, or other complications, without involving hospital admission.


Abstract Starch hydrolyzing enzymes, amylases, are important commercial enzymes used in several productive areas. A current tendency is to find amylases with high catalytic activity at 20-40°C, to generate products that work well at low temperatures, such as detergents, and for energy saving resources in industrial processes. In this work, an α-glucosidase secreted by the cold-adapted yeast Dioszegia fristingensis was purified and biochemically characterized. The effect of physicochemical parameters on the enzyme activity was evaluated. According to our results, the amylolytic enzyme secreted by D. fristingensis is a monomeric α-glucosidase of about 30 kDa that displayed the highest activity at 37-40°C and at pH 5.5-6.5,in the presence of 10 mM CaCl2. The enzyme exhibited a Michaelis-Menten kinetics with Km and kcat of 1.3 g/L and15 min-1, respectively.


This paper describes the results of long-duration testing of a temperature-swing adsorption compressor that has application in the International Space Station (ISS) and future spacecraft for closing the air revitalization loop. The air revitalization system of the ISS operates in an open loop mode and relies on the resupply of oxygen and other consumables from Earth for the life support of astronauts. A compressor is required for delivering the carbon dioxide from a removal assembly to a reduction unit to recover oxygen and thereby closing the air-loop. The TSAC is a solid-state compressor that has the capability to remove CO2 from a low-pressure source, and subsequently store, compress, and deliver at a higher pressure as required by a processor. The TSAC is an ideal interface device for CO2 removal and reduction units in the air revitalization loop of a spacecraft for oxygen recovery. The TSAC was developed and its operation was successfully verified in integration tests with the flight-like Carbon Dioxide Removal Assembly (CDRA) at Marshall Space Flight Center prior to the long-duration tests. Long-duration tests reveal the impacts of repeated thermal cycling on the compressor components and the adsorbent material.


BM123-64 block cipher, which was proposed by Minh, N.H. and Bac, D.T. in 2014, was designed for high speed communication applications factors. It was constructed in hybrid controlled substitution–permutation network (CSPN) models with two types of basic controlled elements (CE) in distinctive designs. This cipher is based on switchable data-dependent operations (SDDO) and covers dependent-operations suitable for efficient primitive approaches for cipher constructions that can generate key schedule in a simple way. The BM123-64 cipher has advantages including high applicability, flexibility, and portability with different algorithm selection for various application targets with internet of things (IoT) as well as secure protection against common types of attacks, for instance, differential attacks and linear attacks. However, in this paper, we propose methods to possibly exploit the BM123-64 structure using related-key attacks. We have constructed a high probability related-key differential characteristics (DCs) on a full eight rounds of BM123-64 cipher. The related-key amplified boomerang attack is then proposed on all three different cases of operation-specific designs with effective results in complexity of data and time consumptions. This study can be considered as the first cryptographic results on BM123-64 cipher.


Purpose – In this paper the authors seek to develop a measure that can identify those customers who might best be described as rebate prone, and to link rebate proneness to behavioral usage of rebate offers, intentions to use rebate offers in the future, attitudes towards using rebates as a way to try new products, and finally, the tendency to complete the rebate transaction.Design/methodology – In study 1, college students enrolled in marketing classes at two large state universities were asked to complete a brief online survey regarding their attitudes towards rebates as a promotional tool as well as shopping behaviors and attitudes towards shopping. Study 2 replicated study 1 using a mall intercept approach.Findings – Confirmatory factor analyses of the measure of rebate proneness demonstrated substantial psychometric validity and yielded acceptable levels of internal consistency. In both studies, rebate proneness was significantly and positively related to behavioral, intentional and attitudinal appro...


The current epoch of accelerated cosmic expansion is postulated to be driven by dark energy, which in the standard model takes the form of a cosmological constant with equation of state parameter w = − 1. We propose an innovative perspective over the nature of dark energy by drawing a parallel with inflation, which we assume to be driven by a single scalar field, the inflaton. The inflaton was not a cosmological constant, as indicated by the fact that inflation ended and by the Planck satellite's constraint of n s (cid:54) = 1 at 8 σ confidence. Therefore, it is interesting to verify whether its equation of state parameter was measurably different from -1. We analyze this question for a class of single-field slow-roll inflationary models, where the hierarchy of Hubble slow-roll parameters is truncated at different orders. Based on the latest Planck and BICEP2/Keck data, we obtain a 68% upper bound of 1+ w < 0 . 0014 for the three-parameter model, which gives the best description to the data. This provides a cautionary tale for drawing conclusions about the nature of today's dark energy based upon the non-detection of a deviation from w = − 1 with current and upcoming cosmological surveys.


This paper discusses low-k/copper integration schemes which has been in production in the 90 nm node, have been developed in the 65 nm node, and should be taken in the 45 nm node. While our baseline 65 nm BEOL process has been developed by extension and simple shrinkage of our PECVD SiCOH integration which has been in production in the 90 nm node with our SiCOH film having k=3.0, the 65 nm SiCOH integration has two other options to go to extend to lower capacitance. One is to add porosity to become ultra low-k (ULK). The other is to stay with low-k SiCOH, which is modified to have a "lower-k". The effective k- value attained with the lower-k (k=2.8) SiCOH processed in the "Direct CMP" scheme is very close to that with an ULK (k=2.5) SiCOH film built with the "Hard Mask Retention" scheme. This paper first describes consideration of these two damascene schemes, whose comparison leads to the conclusion that the lower-k SiCOH integration can have more advantages in terms of process simplicity and extendibility of our 90 nm scheme under certain assumptions. Then describing the k=2.8 SiCOH film development and its successful integration, damascene schemes for 45nm nodes are discussed based on our learning from development of the lower-k 65nm scheme. Capability of modern dry etchers to define the finer patterns, non-uniformity of CMP, and susceptibility to plasma and mechanical strength and adhesion of ULK are discussed as factors to hamper the applicability of ULK.


Background:Lumbar disk surgery requires precise determination of the desired vertebral space to allow the neurosurgeon to incise and dissect the correct space. The aim of this study was to assess the accuracy of marker placement by magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) in determining the incision site in lumbar disk surgeries. Materials and Methods:A total of 26 patients who were candidates for lumbar disk surgeries were studied. An oil nifedipine capsule was placed on the skin of the patient on any place on the vertebral line. Then, a T2-weighted sagittal MRI was performed in the prone position. The distance between the herniation site and the oil capsule density was calculated by an MRI software, and then it was measured on the vertebral line to place the marker. Thereafter, a transient tattoo pen was used to place the marker to guide the neurosurgeon to the herniation site. The neurosurgeon reported the correctness of the placed marker after observing the pathologic site during the operation. Results:The mean age of the 26 patients was 50.4±14.2 years. Of the study patients, 12 (46.2%) were male and 14 (53.8%) were female. Postoperative follow-up of the patients revealed that in 25 patients (96.2%), the placed marker was correct. Conclusions:This study revealed that marker placement by MRI is a precise technique for the determination of the incision site in lumbar disk surgeries. This method may replace the conventional methods for surgical site determination in lumbar disk surgeries because it provides a safe and exact technique.


ICI Plastics set up their own measurement system to measure their "In Full On Time" philosophy. This is now a combination of manual and automatic recording. Over the three years customer service has been monitored, performance has improved as a result of being able to identify the cause of low service levels.


Segmentation is the most frequently used subroutine in clustering, indexing, summarization, anomaly detection, and classiflcation of time series. Although in many real-life applications a lot of variables must be simultaneously monitored, most of the segmentation algorithms are used for the analysis of only one time-variant variable. Hence, this paper proposes Principal Component Analysis (PCA) based algorithms that are able to detect: (i) changes in the mean; (ii) changes in the variance; and (iii) changes in the correlation structure among several variables. The segments obtained by bottom-up segmentation algorithms are hierarchically clustered using a PCA similarity factor. The whole approach is applied to the monitoring of the industrial production of high-density polyethylene.


In item response theory (IRT) simulation research, it is often necessary to use one software package for data generation and a second software package to conduct the IRT analysis. Because this can substantially slow down the simulation process, it is sometimes offered as a justification for using very few replications. This article provides researchers with simple Disk Operating System code that can be used through SAS to automate the process of data generation, analysis, and organization. By using these techniques, IRT simulation researchers can use a robust enough number of replications to be better able to generalize their findings.


A microscopic Faraday effect apparatus is described by means of which the fine structure of the domain configurations in thin Permalloy films has been observed. The direction of the magnetization in cross‐tie domain walls and other domain configurations has been deduced from their light, dark, or gray appearance and known polarizer angles. Faraday effect hysteresis loops are presented in support of a proposal that domain walls at 45° to the easy direction represent an intermediate demagnetized state in films having a high degree of uniaxial anisotropy.


This study investigates the relationship between inward foreign direct investment (FDI) and private sector external financing over the last decade with regard to 61 developing countries, 30 of them enjoying "investment" ratings and the remainder having "non – investment" ratings. Our analysis employing fixed effect two stage least squares (FE-2SLS) technique with simultaneousequation for panel data show that increasing private sector external financing negatively affects FDI between 1999 and 2010. Yet, private sector external financing is not directly affected by FDI. There is not a statistically significant relationship. Over the last decade, the private sector in developing countries has fulfilled its external financing demands without being greatly affected by any changes in FDI. These two findings verify the increasing credibility of developing countries, regardless of having non – investment credit rating.


BBUILDINg INfORMaTION MODELINg CONTINUES TO BE a BUzz wORD IN ThE INDUSTRy. But how are engineers and architects implementing and using this developing technology? And what benefits does it deliver to the document preparation process and to the project itself? To answer these questions, let's take a brief look at the document process itself and how it has evolved. The building consultant team, composed of architects and engineers, typically strives to produce complete contract documents, which usually take the form of two-dimensional paper documents. On typical projects each consultant produces their own set of documents associated with their respective trade. The contract documents reflect the design and engineering plus the results of an extensive coordination process between consultants. The design team strives to provide economically efficient designs within the project constraints and fully coordinated amongst all the consultants. The coordination process takes place continuously via an exchange of preliminary documents between consultants, culminating in a final package that hopefully reflects and considers the final design of all the team members. Complex projects such as hospitals, stadiums, concert halls, and major high-rise towers require significant effort in coordination to achieve the project goals. A poorly coordinated project results when consultant coordination efforts are not kept up to date with the final design or engineering conclusions of the entire consultant team. Until recently the dominant software used by architects and engineers in the development of project documents for building structures was AutoCAD. Although AutoCAD has a variety of three-dimensional drawing tools, it has been used primarily as a 2D drawing device. As such, AutoCAD has greatly expedited the process of drawing production and significantly improved the accuracy of drawings over hand methods, which are basically extinct at this time. However, AutoCAD documents have their limitations, primarily in that they are not "intelligent" documents. Intelligent documents store information about the building systems and/or components. For example, a beam as drawn on a 2D AutoCAD document would be symbolized as a single line. The beam size information would be shown in text adjacent to the drawn line. Internally, within the computer memory, no information about the beam is known or compiled. In contrast, an intelligent document can also present 2D drawings and can show the beam as a single line, with the beam size information adjacent to the drawn line. However, this is where the similarities end. The intelligent document internally saves the structural information associated with the drawn beam—the beam size, length, weight, and other relevant information including all the 3D properties. As a result a full 3D picture can be created, if desired. Consequently, an intelligent drawing of the structural, building system, and architectural components would have the ability to draw the full 3D representation of the building. In addition, since the actual geometric properties are available, areas where building components clash can be picked up by the software. Intelligent documents have the ability to provide material quantity data for the project. Relative to the structural components, the project tonnage, piece count, and material types can be tracked continuously through the document preparation phase, thereby aiding the budgeting process. The combined integration of the full architectural, building system, and structural components into one BIM database for the project is typically not being done for most projects at this time. Although a valuable feature, most consultant teams involved with conventional building types have not developed the knowledge and sophistication to implement this feature on such a global scale.


Indonesia as a legal state, the presence of law in a country aims to guarantee life to protect the interests of citizens. In the Indonesian government system there are several branches of power, namely the legislative, executive and judiciary branches, the judicial power branches are the Supreme Court and the Constitutional Court. The Constitutional Court's authority is contained in Article 24 C paragraph (1) and (2) adjudicating at the first and last level whose decision is final to review the Law on the Constitution. Marriage agreement is a form of agreement that regulates assets in marriage and others. A marriage agreement is also an agreement which can affect other regulations. So with the regulation of the marriage agreement in Article 29 paragraph (1) prior to the lawsuit for judicial review to the Constitutional Court stating that the marriage agreement was made at the time, and before the marriage took place, this is what prevents many married couples from different citizens who previously were not have a marriage agreement while their interests require a marriage agreement. The decision analysis can be concluded that the Urgency of the marriage agreement in its decision No.69 / PUU-XIII / 2015 states that the importance of the marriage agreement is related to the position of shared property so that there is a separation of husband's assets with the wife's assets both regarding their respective belongings and the assets that belong to each other obtained during the marriage known as joint property. Whereas the assets obtained before their marriage period together are known as inheritance or personal property obtained after the marriage period which is usually referred to as acquisition assets. Due to the legal marriage agreement before MK Decision Number 69 / PUU-XIII / 2015, Indonesian citizens who carry out marriages mixed and does not make a marriage agreement, the Indonesian citizen may not have immovable property in the form of ownership or building rights.


Objective. To optimize an algorithm for the management of children and adolescents with parameningeal tumors based on a comprehensive assessment of diagnostic and therapeutic efficacy in this type of tumors. Patients and methods. The article presents a retrospective study and prospective evaluation of follow-up of 249 patients who underwent surgical treatment in the Dmitry Rogachev National Medical Research Center of Pediatric Hematology, Oncology and Immunology and in the Russian Children's Clinical Hospital (Pirogov Russian National Research Medical University) from January 2003 to September 2021. The study included 139 patients with juvenile nasopharyngeal angiofibroma, 82 patients with fibro-osseous lesions, and 28 patients with parameningeal rhabdomyosarcoma. The follow-up period was at least 1 calendar month. Results. A comparative analysis of the efficacy of preliminary diagnosis of parameningeal tumors depending on the nosology was described; analysis of patient safety during the intra- and postoperative periods, postoperative adaptation, surgical radicality and survival analysis according to the surgical treatment method was performed; algorithm for the management of patients with parameningeal tumors was described. Conclusion. It is advisable to introduce the algorithm developed by the authors into routine clinical practice to optimize medical care for children and adolescents with parameningeal tumors. Key words: children, tumors, parameningeal site, surgical interventions, juvenile angiofibroma, juvenile ossifying fibroma, rhabdomyosarcoma


The chirp signal, which is of large time bandwidth product, is widely used in the current radar systems. However, high dynamic biases are brought into the radar ranging when the signal is used in the hypersonic target tracking, due to the distance-Doppler coupling. In view of the situation, this letter proposes an unbiased tracking algorithm which can eliminate the influence of high dynamic biases at the same time of target tracking.


Figure 1. Preoperative imaging. A) Axial computed tomography (CT) of the chest. White arrow shows a nodular shadow in the upper lobe of the left lung. B) CT of the thoracic spine. Pathological fracture is evident at T6. C) Preoperative sagittal T2-weighted magnetic resonance imaging. Epidural abscess is seen compressing the spinal cord. A B C CLINICAL CORRESPONDENCE SPINE SURGERY AND RELATED RESEARCH


We consider the effectiveness of various turbulence models in flows with a strong rotational component. To evaluate the models, we implement them into a one-dimensional test code and make comparisons with experimental data for swirling flow in a cylinder. The K - {epsilon} type turbulence models do poorly in predicting the experimental results. However, we find that the incorporation of a Reynolds stress evolution equation gives good agreement with the experimentally measured mean flow. Modeling the pressure-strain correlation tensor correctly is the key for obtaining good results. A combination of Launder`s basic model together with Yakhot`s dissipation rate equation {sup 3} works best in predicting both the mean flow and the turbulence intensity.


Cultivation of cyanobacterium Arthrospira sp. has been developed in many countries for the production of proteins, pigments and other compounds. Outdoor mass cultures are often affected by biological contamination, drastically reducing productivity as far as bringing death. This study evaluates the control of Branchionus sp. and Amoeba sp. with two chemical compounds: urea (U) and ammonium bicarbonate (AB), in laboratory conditions and outdoor mass culture of Arthrospira sp. The lethal concentration 100 (LC100) at 24 h for Branchionus sp. and Amoeba sp. determined was of 60-80 mg L -1 (U) and 100-150 mg L -1 (AB). The average effective inhibition concentration for 50% of the population (IC50) in Arthrospira sp., after 72 h, was 80 mg L -1 (U) and 150 mg L -1 (AB). The application of doses of 60 mg L -1 (U) or 100 mg L -1 (AB) in the outdoor mass culture of this contaminated microalga, completely inhibited grazing and did not affect the growth of Arthrospira sp. but rather promoted rapid recovery of algal density at levels prior to infestation. These compounds provided an economical and effective control of predators in cultures of Arthrospira sp.


Abstract: The phencyclidine (PCP) derivative, [3H]N‐[1‐(2‐benzo[b]thiophenyl)cyclohexyl]piperidine ([3H]BTCP), was used to label in vivo the dopamine uptake complex in mouse brain. The striatum accumulated the highest level of total and specific binding. Drugs which bind to the dopamine uptake site inhibited [3H]BTCP binding on an order similar to their in vitro affinities for the high‐affinity [3H]BTCP site. Drugs which label selectively other monoamine uptake complexes, PCP, or σ recognition sites were ineffective at doses up to 40 mg/kg. PCP bound to and dissociated from the dopamine uptake complex very rapidly. N‐[1‐(2‐Thienyl)cyclohexyl]piperidine (TCP) and (+)‐5‐methyl‐10,11‐dihydro‐5H‐dibenzo[a,d]cyclohepten‐5,10‐imine maleate (MK‐801) had no effect at any time or at any dose. These results imply that the pharmacological effects of PCP are due to its simultaneous interaction with the dopamine uptake complex and the PCP receptor. Conversely, TCP and MK‐801, which have the same behavioral properties as PCP, exert their action only through the interaction with the PCP receptor.


DSI74, (right) pF74. (top row) cingulum and fornix tracts, (bottom row) 3 fiber crossing region where the callosal fibers, corticospinal tract and superior longitudinal fasciculus intersect. Compressed Sensing based Diffusion Spectrum Imaging (CS-DSI) tractography Namgyun Lee, Bryce Wilkins, and Manbir Singh Radiology and Biomedical Engineering, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA, United States


There are several approaches for valuing the real estate property. Numerous models of asset"s value enhancement have been developed by academicians to answer the dynamic changes in real estate industry. Some of the changes may restrict the real estate development from progressing or vice versa. Without challenging the existing models of real estate valuation offered in the academic literatures, authors in contrast support the notions that those changes can be turned into superior opportunities from the perspective of postmodern marketing. Based on empirical experiences dealing with States Owned Assets property, the authors deem Expense Leveraged Value Indexes (ELVI) of real estate valuation is the most appropriate to use because the enhancement of both the values of tangible and intangible capabilities of a property is built within the model. The intangibility part of ELVI is integrated marketing communication in which this paper will offer the marketing model of a brand community formation to be considered. The model of ELVI will be discussed in the first part of paper followed by


A quantitative measure of convergence to effective ergodicity, Thirumalai-Mountain (TM) metric, is applied to Metropolis and Glauber single spin flip dynamics. In computing this measure, finite lattice ensemble averages are obtained using the exact solution for one dimensional Ising model, where as, the time averages are computed with Monte Carlo simulations. The time evolution of effective ergodic convergence of Ising magnetization is monitored. By this approach, diffusion regimes of the effective ergodic convergence of magnetization are identified for different lattice sizes, non-zero temperature and non-zero external field values. Results show that caution should be taken using TM metric at system parameters that give rise to strong correlations.


Studies have shown cell鄄 free microRNA (miRNA) circulating in the serum and plasma with specific expression in cancer, indicating the potential of using miRNAs as biomarkers for cancer diagnosis and therapy. This study was to investigate whether plasma miRNA鄄 21 (miR鄄 21) can be used as a biomarker for the early detection of non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) and to explore its association with clinicopathologic features and sensitivity to platinum鄄 based chemotherapy. We used real鄄 time RT鄄 PCR to investigate the expression of miR鄄 21 in the plasma of 63 NSCLC patients and 30 healthy controls and correlated the findings with early diagnosis, pathologic parameters, and treatment. Thirty鄄 five patients (stages IIIB and IV) were evaluable for chemotherapeutic responses: 11 had partial response (PR); 24 had stable and progressive disease (SD+ PD). Plasma miR鄄 21 was significantly higher in NSCLC patients than in age鄄 and sex鄄 matched controls (P < 0.001). miR鄄 21 was related to TNM stage (P < 0.001), but not related to age, sex, smoking status, histological classification, lymph node status, and metastasis (all P > 0.05). This marker yielded a receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve area of 0.775 (95% CI: 0.681-0.868) with 76.2% sensitivity and 70.0% specificity. Importantly, miR鄄 21 plasma levels in PR samples were several folds lower than that in SD plus PD samples (P = 0.049), and were close to that in healthy controls (P = 0.130). Plasma miR鄄 21 can serve as a circulating tumor biomarker for the early diagnosis of NSCLC and is related to the sensitivity to platinum鄄 base chemotherapy. Lung cancer, one of the most common malignant tumors, is a serious disease threatening human life and health. Of the pathologic types of lung cancer, nonsmall cell lung cancer (NSCLC) is the most prevalent (80%). The lack of effective early diagnostic and treatment methods are the main causes of high mortality in patients with lung cancer, with the 5year survival rate at 15% to 20%. MicroRNA (miRNA) is a class of 20 to 25 nt long noncoding RNA found. miRNA genes are transcribed in the nucleus to primary transcripts (primiRNA) [1]. After digestion by Drosha, precursor miRNA (premiRNA) is then formed and is transported to the cytoplasm and digested by Dicer to produce mature miRNA [2,3] , which regulates gene expression mainly through its partially complementary to 3'untranslated region (3爷UTR) of target mRNA [4]. Among their functional roles, miRNAs regulate …


Various mechanisms can lead to thrombosis in nephrotic syndrome, including increased coagulability, loss of coagulation regulatory proteins through the urine, decrease of fibrinolytic proteins, and platelet activation. Complicating thrombosis is present in about 25% of adult nephrotic syndrome cases [1]. It is particularly common in membranous nephropathy, followed by membranoproliferative glomerulonephritis and minimal change nephrotic syndrome (MCNS) [1]. Thrombi tend to occur in deep and renal veins, and reports of thrombosis in ovarian veins are rare. Here we report our experience with a case of MCNS complicated by ovarian vein thrombosis.


Dodson, E. 0. (Dept. Biology, Univ. Ottawa, Ottawa, Ont. KIN6N5). 1971. The Kingdoms of Organisms. Syst. Zool. 20:265-281.-Traditionally, all organisms have been assigned to the Plant and Animal Kingdoms. Higher members of these assemblages differ so clearly in so many ways that no confusion arises even in thaose cases in which members of one kingdom show some characteristic of the other, for example, insectivorous plants, or cellulose producing tunicates. Among primitive organisms, especially among flagellates and fungi, however, application of the ordinary criteria for differentiation of plants and animals leads only to confusion. Most biologists have ignored this problem, but for over a century a few have tried to resolve it by erecting additional kingdoms for these primitive organisms. While such systems have expressed a widespread professional malaise, they have not achieved general acceptance because of logical diffictulties of these systems and the relative unfamiliarity of the key groups to most biologists. Recently, however, it has been shown that the bacteria and blue-green algae (procaryotes) contrast with all higher organisms (eucaryotes) so sharply in an extensive airay of nuclear and cytoplasmic characteristics that the procaryotes must be regarded as a separate kingdom of life, the Kingdom Mychota. The major cytoplasmic organelles of eucaryotes, i.e., chloroplasts, flagella and other 9 + 2 organelles, and mitochondria, are all missing from procaryotes. A long series of observations, culminating in exact biochemical comparisons, indicates that these organelles oliginated as intracellular symbionts. Thus, the eucaryotes arose from a large, amoeboid, anaerobic procaryote given to ingestion of smaller procaryotes, some of which becaiue established as intracellular symbionts. Aerobic symbionts were integrated into the host as mitochondria, while flagellate procaryotes with the 9 + 2 structure became flagella and a whole series of other 9 + 2 organelles. Mitosis and meiosis then evolved, and the eucaryote cell was complete. There is a nexus of relationships among the eucaryotes which makes it infeasible to separate the problematical groups of primitive eucaryotes into a kingdom apart. Thus, the present paper supports a basic taxonomy of three kingdoms Mychota, Animalia, and Plantae. The intergrades between the latter two are treated not as defects of the classification but rather as the inevitable result of common ancestry and separation by a process of evolution.


Objective: This is an investigative study to evaluate a new companion diagnostic platform, allele specific multiplex sequencing (ASMS). Detection of Braf p.V600E from solid tumors is used as the test model with the following objectives: 1) whether ASMS can detect Braf p.V600E/K mutations from a variety of solid tumors, 2) whether ASMS can detect all Braf p.V600E from samples that were positive for Braf V600E by SNaPshot or Ion Torrent, and 3) whether ASMS can detect Braf p.V600E among samples that were reported negative by SNaPshot or Ion Torrent. Methods: ASMS is a novel modification (US Patent 6197510) of traditional Sanger sequencing, with Lower Limit of Detection (LLOD) of 20 GE (Genome Equivalent) and 0.001% sensitivity. We compared ASMS to clinical samples previously tested either by SNaPshot or Ion Torrent methods. Results: We analyzed 83 DNA extracts from FFPE samples (41 tested by SNaPshot and 42 tested by Ion Torrent). There was a total of thirty-seven samples positive for Braf p.V600E (16 by Ion Torrent; 21 by SNaPshot), and all of these samples tested positive by ASMS for Braf p.V600E. Out of the 46 negatives for Braf p.V600E (20 by SNaPshot; 26 by Ion Torrent samples), ASMS detected Braf p.V600E positive results in 10 of the SNaPshot and in 18 of the Ion Torrent negative samples. ASMS could detect both Braf p.V600E and the wild-type Braf p.V600 simultaneously with 40 pg of FFPE DNA extracts. Conclusions: ASMS assay detected all Braf p.V600E positives from different types of solid tumors that previously tested positive by SNaPshot or Ion Torrent. Further, ASMS was able to detect Braf p.V600E among samples that were reported negative by SNaPshot or Ion Torrent.


Abstract Students' self-enhancing beliefs about their own driving behaviors were examined as functions of the desirability, controllability, and verifiability of particular actions. The participants were 48 Dutch university students. They completed a computer-administered questionnaire in which desirability, controllability, and verifiability of particular actions were systematically manipulated. They rated the likelihood of a particular action both for themselves and for the average Dutch driver. The results partially supported the hypotheses that the participants would (a) rate undesirable actions as more probable under conditions of low verifiability and low controllability and (b) consider other people more likely than they to engage in undesirable actions. One unexpected finding was that the participants deemed undesirable actions more probable when controllability was high rather than low.


Library renovations are often immense and complex projects. Planning Optimal Library Spaces: Principles, Processes, and Practices aims to unpack the logistics and considerations that go into a succ...


Objective To study the significance of apoptosis signal pathway in traumatic deep vein throm- bosis.Methods 150 rats were divided into control(group A)and model groups.The model group were divid- ed into 7 groups according to biological states:the post-traumatic instant(group B),the initial period of thrombosis(group C),the crest-time of thrombosis(group D),no thrombosis at the crest-time(group H), thrombi resolution(group E),no thrombi resolution(group F)and no thrombosis(group G).To incise the femoral vein in corresponding time,to adopt to Trizol one-step method for total RNA extraction of femoral vein. After applying Genechip Rat genome 4302.0 genechips to detect the RNAs expressions,the genes related to ap- optosis signal pathway were selected through genechip data analysis.Results The key genes related to apoptosis signal pathway of RIP1,PI3K,Akt/PKB,PKA,Cn,Calpain,IAP,CASP7 and P53 showed down regulation, which controlled the cell cycle and quantity of the vascular endothelial cell.Conclusion Apoptosis signal path- way may be one of the most important pathway to control the biological states of thrombi.


should a variant in the same gene be found, it would greatly strengthen the argument about its disease-causing role. GOLIATH, a variant of DAVID syndrome? Caroline Hasselmann1,2, Mark Samuels2,3, Guy Van Vliet2,4 1CHU Tours, France, 2Endocrinology Service and Research Center, CHU Ste-Justine, Montreal, Departments of Medicine3 and Pediatrics4, Université de Montréal, Montréal H3T1C5, Québec, Canada


Aims Behavioural and Psychological Symptoms of Dementia (BPSD) include a range of neuropsychiatric disturbances such as agitation, aggression, depression, and psychotic symptoms. These common symptoms can impact patients' functioning and quality of life. Antipsychotic medication can be prescribed to alleviate some symptoms, but this comes with significant risks including cerebrovascular events and increased mortality. We aimed to review antipsychotic prescribing of the Harrogate Older Adult Community Mental Health Team (CMHT); to measure compliance with NICE guidance and local policy and thus improve the prescribing and monitoring process. Methods Using electronic patient records, we identified all patients under the care of the CMHT with a diagnosis of dementia currently receiving antipsychotic treatment; a total of 55 patients. A random sample of 24 patients were reviewed; their records were hand searched for relevant information. The standards measured were derived from the NICE Guideline (NG97) June 2018: 'Dementia: assessment, management and support for people living with dementia and their carers' as well as local trust guidance. Results All 24 patients were receiving antipsychotics for severe distress or aggression. 88% of patients had an assessment of sources of distress before treatment was started, but only 42% had a non-pharmacological intervention before antipsychotic treatment was started. Once antipsychotic treatment had started this increased to 58%. For some patients, the reason for not receiving a non-pharmacological intervention was due to urgency of treatment or being on a waiting list for occupational therapy, but for most the reason was not explicitly documented. For 63%, there was evidence of a discussion of the risks of treatment with the patient, carer or family member. 63% had initial baseline blood tests and 54% had a baseline ECG. Of the patients who did not have initial monitoring, a suitable reason was given for just over 60%. Only 33% of patients who had antipsychotic treatment for over 12 weeks had a trial of discontinuation or dose reduction. Less than 22% of patients had physical health monitoring at one year of treatment. Conclusion There were shortfalls in several areas including the offer of non-pharmacological interventions, regular review of the ongoing need for antipsychotics, and physical health monitoring. Introduction of a checklist before antipsychotics are prescribed is recommended, to include discussion of risks and benefits, non-pharmacological interventions, and initial monitoring. Also recommended is a system to identify when monitoring and review of antipsychotics are due.


Objectives: The aim of the study was to describe mesothelioma occurrence in Wisconsin from 1997 to 2013 by usual industry and occupation (I&O), including occupations generally considered low risk. Methods: Population-based rates and standardized incidence and mortality ratios were calculated. Two case–control analyses were designed to compare mesothelioma incidence and mortality in specific I&O groups with occurrence of (1) brain and central nervous system cancers and (2) other causes of death, using logistic regression. Results: Mesothelioma incidence and mortality were elevated in Wisconsin (SIRadj = 1.20 [1.13 to 1.28]; SMRadj = 1.30 [1.22 to 1.38]). Certain industry (construction, manufacturing) and occupation (construction and extraction) groups were associated with increased odds of mesothelioma, with some evidence of increased risk among teachers. Conclusions: Forty years after the Occupational and Safety Health Act, mesothelioma incidence and mortality remain elevated in Wisconsin, with increased risk continuing for certain I&O groups.


Sisal fibers(SF)are pretreated by different techniques such as alkali treatment,thermal treatment, alkali-thermal treatment, thermal-alkali treatment, acetylation,cyanoethylation,KMnO_4treatment,TDI treatment and coupling agents treatment.SF is smashed and unsaturated,polyester/sisal fiber composites are made through compression molding.Wear-resistance are investigated and the effects the fiber content are analyzed. The results show that when SF content is 30% the wear resistance of composites treated by chemical methods is better than those treated by physical methods.Especially,TDI treated SF/IU composite indicates the best wear resisteance,which is improved by 68.77%.The wear-resistance of composites improves with SF content increasing.


Computer simulation models are regarded as important tools to address concerns about the environmental impact of agricultural activities and have increasingly been used to complement field research. The CERES-Maize and CROPGRO-Soybean, two of the main crop growth models incorporated into the Decision Support System for Agrotechnology Transfer (DSSAT), were developed to simulate the effects of environmental conditions, different management strategies, and genetics on crop growth and development. These models currently do not have an option for calculating erosion and phosphorus (P) dynamics. In this study, the Modified Universal Soil Loss Equation (MUSLE) and sediment-bound P model were incorporated into CERES-Maize and CROPGRO-Soybean models. The evapotranspiration component of the CERES-Maize model was also evaluated to test the ability of the model to simulate the effects of shelterbelts on com transpiration. Two years of sap flow data collected from corn plants in a sheltered (3H) and unsheltered (25H) areas in a field near Ogden, Iowa, were used for model testing. Results showed that the CERES-Maize model simulated daily plant transpiration well in both sheltered and unsheltered areas with RMSE of 0.53 mm d"1 (3H) and 0.75 mm (25H) in 2001, and 0.85 mm d"1 (3H) and 0.59 mm d"1 (25H) in 2002. Average coefficient of determination (r2) for 2001 and 2002 was 0.90 and 0.73, respectively, indicating good correlation between simulated and observed transpiration. After erosion and sediment-bound P subroutines were incorporated into CERES-Maize and CROPGRO-Soybean, the models were calibrated and tested using five years of data collected from two field sites in a watershed in Tama County, Iowa. Results showed that generally both models tended to over or underpredict daily sediment and sediment bound P losses from


In this study, it is found that when employees perceive that they are similar to an organization based upon ethical values, three things occur. These type of employees are attracted to the organization, they engage in less unethical behavior when on the job, and are less likely to turnover. In sum, this means that organizations stand to gain when demonstrating and championing ethical behavior. It's not merely a ruse for publicity, or to avoid the harsh ramifications associated with being caught. Instead, ethical organizations benefit via the type of job applicants they attract, as well as employee behavior while on the job.The system of moral and ethical beliefs that guides the values, behaviors, and decisions of a business organization and the individuals within that organization is known as business ethics.


This article views culture as collective identities from an interpretative, sense-making perspective. It analyses religion-based cross-cultural conflict through the example of two ethnographic studies of multicultural high-tech organizations undergoing change. Specifically, it looks at professional identity and the practice of religion among a diverse group of highly qualified technical employees. The aim is to show when and how difference in religious practice creates cross-cultural conflict. The examples given will be from various nationalities (German, Indian, Iranian) and from various religious practices (Christian, Hindu, Muslim). Based on these findings, a model of how to assess cross-cultural conflict from an interpretative perspective is developed. This article makes two contributions to cross-cultural conflict management. First, it gives an account of how transnational professional identities, external and organizational culture, religious practice and conflict are linked in two specific high-tech work environments. Second, it proposes a model of how to assess cross-cultural conflict in cultural complexity from an emic perspective.


The shear strength during shock loading of materials is of the utmost importance as it can be used to inform on resistance to ballistic attack. As such a number of techniques have been developed to determine this parameter. One method to do achieve this is the use of stress gauges mounted such that they are sensitive to the longitudinal and lateral components of stress, with shear strength being the difference between the two. A major advantage of this technique is that it places the gauge within the material flow, and as such it is possible to infer materials deformation mechanisms by observing how shear strength changes with time. However, it should also be realised that this technique is invasive as it requires the sample be sectioned such that the stress gauge can be placed in location. This paper will therefore discuss results generated using this technique in a range of materials, and situations where the conditions of stress are known precisely. Results in a range of materials are discussed, placin...


The problem in this is result of learning research biology classes VII MTsN Talaok are still low. It's solution is application of type cooperative learning model Round Robin and handout. The research purposed to know the effect of the application of type cooperative learning model Round Robin and handouts to result learning students of IPA class VII MTsN Talaok. The kind of research is Experiment. The research design used Randomized Control Group Posttest Only Design. This population of research are students of MTsN Talaok specially of VII classes IPA. Sampling by using purposive sampling technique. Experiment class is VII.4 class and control class is VII.6 class. The instrument used objective form with four option. Based on the data obtained average results of experiment class learning is 77.48, and the control class is 70.17. From analysis t-tes obtained t (1.72)> t table (1.67). It is concluded that learning Cooperative learning model type Round Robin and handout can improve learning result biology classes VII MTsN Talaok academic 2013/2014 years.


Inspired by experimental psychological findings suggesting that function words play a special role in word learning, we make a simple modification to an Adaptor Grammar based Bayesian word segmentation model to allow it to learn sequences of monosyllabic "function words" at the beginnings and endings of collocations of (possibly multi-syllabic) words. This modification improves unsupervised word segmentation on the standard BernsteinRatner (1987) corpus of child-directed English by more than 4% token f-score compared to a model identical except that it does not special-case "function words", setting a new state-of-the-art of 92.4% token f-score. Our function word model assumes that function words appear at the left periphery, and while this is true of languages such as English, it is not true universally. We show that a learner can use Bayesian model selection to determine the location of function words in their language, even though the input to the model only consists of unsegmented sequences of phones. Thus our computational models support the hypothesis that function words play a special role in word learning.


One of the effective methods for transferring thermal energy with large heat flux is liquid-vapour phase change process is called boiling. The aim of this research is to enhance nucleate pool boiling heat transfer by delaying critical heat flux (CHF). For this we have used Al2O3 and CuO (average size less than 100nm) nanofluid to study the effect on pool boiling heat transfer and its effect on critical heat flux enhancement using horizontal test wires of Ni-Cr immersed in nanofluid with different volume concentration. The result shows the evidence of enhancement of critical heat flux to a significant level.


The spirit of human rights has been transmitted consciously and unconsciously from one generation to another, carrying the scars of its tumultuous past. Today, invoking the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights, adopted by the General Assembly in 1948, one may think of human rights as universal, inalienable and indivisible, as rights shared equally by everyone regardless of sex, race, nationality and economic background. Yet conflicting political traditions across the centuries have elaborated different visions of human rights rooted in past social struggles. That historical legacy and current conflicting meanings of human rights are, despite the admirable efforts of the architects of the declaration, all reflected in the structure and the substance of this important UN document. Using the main keys developed in the declaration, this article engages six core controversies over human rights that have shaped human rights debate and scholarship. It also draws on the historical record in order to identify and to clarify several misconceptions that persist both within and outside the human rights community today. René Cassin, one of the main drafters of the universal declaration, classified the central tenets of human rights by comparing them to the portico of a temple. Drawing on the battle cry of the French revolution, Cassin identified the four pillars of the declaration as: 'dignity, liberty, equality, and brotherhood'. The 27 articles of the declaration were divided among these four pillars. The pillar supported the roof of the portico (articles 28–30), which stipulated the conditions in which the rights of individuals could be realized within society and the state. Each of the pillars represents a major historical milestone. The first pillar covered in the first two articles of the declaration stands for human dignity shared by all individuals regardless of their religion, creed, ethnicity, religion, or sex; the second, specified in articles 3–19 of the declaration, invokes the first generation of civil liberties and other liberal rights fought for during the Enlightenment; the third, delineated in articles 20–26, addresses the second generation of rights, i.e. those related to political, social and economic equity and championed during the industrial revolution; the fourth (articles 27–28) focuses on the third generation of rights associated with communal and national solidarity, as advocated during the late 19th century and early 20th century and throughout the postcolonial era. In a sense, the sequence of the articles corresponds to the historical appearance of successive generations and visions of universal rights.1 Yet throughout history, the human rights projects reflected in the declaration – whether liberal, socialist, or 'third world' in origin – generated internal contradictions concerning both how to promote human rights and who should be endowed with equal human rights. For instance, while the modern nation-state was originally justified by claims that it would promote human rights, the subsequent prevalence of realpolitik and particularism inspired 19th and 20th century efforts to embody universalism in the form of a succession of


UC Irvine Previously Published Works Title Arms Control Negotiations in the Middle East: The Issue of Sequencing Permalink https://escholarship.org/uc/item/1mx44988 Journal Peace and Change: a journal of peace research, 20(3) ISSN 0149-0508 Author Solingen, Etel Publication Date 1995-07-01 DOI 10.1111/j.1468-0130.1995.tb00239.x License https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ 4.0 Peer reviewed


The objective of this study was to observe the clinical efficacy and adverse effect of pemetrexed combined with oxaliplatin to treat elderly patients or patients(70 years old) ineligible with late-stage non-small cell lung cancer.Thirty-two patients with advanced NSCLC were recruited in this study.They had recurrence after receiving at least one or two regimens of platinum-based chemotherapy.Pemetrexed (500 mg/m2,iv drip,d1) combined with oxaliplatin(100 mg/m2,iv drip,d1) was given every 3 weeks as a cycle until disease progression with total 4-6 cycle.The clinical outcome and adverse reaction were observed every 2 weeks,and the patients were followed up.Among the 32 patients,0 patients got complete response(0),5 partial response (15.6%),7 stable disease (21.9%),and 12 progressive disease (62.5%).The total response rate (CR+PR) was 15.6% and disease control rate including tumor response and stable disease was 37.5%.All the patients were followed up for 1-22 months,three patients were still alive utill January 2009.The follow-up ratio was 100%.The average survival time was 7.5 months (2-20 months),median overall survival period was 8 months and one year progression-free survival rate was 21.9%.The main toxicities were hemoglobin reduction in neutropenia(25.0%),neutropenic fever(18.8%),thrombocytopenia(15.6%),alopecia(18.8%),nausea(25.0%),vomiting(21.8%) and diarrhea(18.8%).The combination regimen of pemetrexed and oxaliplatin in the treatment of elderly patients or patients ineligible with late-stage non-small cell lung cancer has a good efficacy,slight adverse effect and could be well-tolerated.


Simple analytical model for description of THz time-domain spectroscopy data was found investigating high-frequency characteristics of semi-insulating substrate with thin conductive layer. Developed method was validated on commercial AlGaN/GaN high electron mobility transistor structures and supported by dc Hall measurements of two-dimensional electron gas density and mobility at temperature range of 80-300 K.


Bernhard Lämmle studied medicine in Basel and Fribourg. He completed his residency in internal medicine and subsequently haematology at the University hospital in Basel, where François Duckert, who had a central role in the discoveries of coagulation factors VII, X and XIII and in thrombolytic therapy, was his mentor. As a young consultant and father of four children he moved to the Scripps Research Institute in La Jolla, California, where in the lab of John Griffin he studied the contact phase of coagulation in detail. This early love of the contact phase (1) he shares with Toshiyuki Miyata, who described factor XII Washington (2) and later contributed importantly to ADAMTS13 research (3). After two years, the Lämmle family moved back to Basel and one year later to Bern, where Bernhard became senior consultant. In 1989 he was appointed director of the Central Haematology Laboratory and professor of haematology at the University of Bern. Some years before the Slovenian biochemist, Miha Furlan had arrived in Bern, where he worked on fibrinogen and on FVIIIrelated protein / von Willebrand factor. Soon they teamed up brining excellent protein biochemistry and clinical excellence together resulting in an outstanding basic and clinical research. The discovery of the von Willebrand factor-cleaving protease, now denoted as ADAMTS13, the identification of the link between a severe deficiency of this von Willebrand factorcleaving protease and the clinical picture of thrombotic thrombocytopenic purpura (TTP) as well as the description of the first TTP case with a severe autoantibody mediated ADAMTS13 deficiency were the highlights of this work (4). During the past 16 years since the first description of the von Willebrand factorcleaving protease simultaneously by the groups of Furlan & Lämmle in Bern (5) and Tsai in New York (6) our knowledge on the von Willebrand factor-cleaving protease / ADAMTS13 has greatly increased. However, it is the rule in science that a problem is never solved without creating a number of new questions. Thus, research in this exciting field is bound to go on.


A three-dimensional (3D) digital image correlation (DIC) method is presented for measuring the deformations of vinyl chloride-coated metal (VCM) multilayer sheets and their composites. The calculations and the principle of strain and deformation measurements using the DIC method are described. A VCM multilayer sheet consists of a substrate [steel plate cold commercial (SPCC) and steel plate cold elongation (SPCE)] and a clad (a VCM film). The corresponding deformations of VCM deep-drawing multilayer sheets (SPCE as a substrate and a VCM film as a clad), VCM nondeep-drawing multilayer sheets (SPCC as a substrate and a VCM film as a clad), nondeep-drawing substrates (SPCC), deep-drawing substrates (SPCE) and clads (VCM films) were captured along the x- and y-directions in uniaxial tension experiments and using the DIC method. The maximal measured strains along the x-direction for the VCM deep-drawing multilayer sheets, VCM nondeep-drawing multilayer sheets, nondeep-drawing substrates, deep-drawing substrates and clads were, respectively, 637.835%, 132.210%, 31.688.632%, 107.102%, and 118.937%. The maximal measured strains along the [Formula: see text]-direction were 739.028%, −11.174%, −9.678%, −13.273% and 12.120%, respectively. These data show that the mechanical properties of VCM multilayer sheets are better than those of their substrates and clads. The effectiveness and accuracy of the presented DIC method for VCM multilayer sheet measurements were confirmed in a series of experiments.


Objective: To evaluate the role of computed tomography in image guided fine needle aspiration biopsy (FNAB). Material and methods: Descriptive-retrospective study. Thirty procedures were included in 28 patients between aged 30-90 years old, with intracavitary tumors. Results: The biopsies were adequate in 80% for diagnosis with 100% of specifity for malignancy and 83% sensibility. Conclusions: Computed tomography guided biopsy is a useful in minimal invasive procedures. The fine needle aspiration biopsy allows distinction between neoplastic and no neoplastic lesions. It aides in giving prompt directed treatment with decreased costs and hospitalization, it has minimum complication rate and high diagnostic accuracy.


Introduction. E-smoking is a new phenomenon, not only because of the opportunity for limiting or abandoning smoking, but also because it may become an introduction to traditional smoking, especially by young people, and addiction to nicotine. At the moment it is impossible to assess the advantages of e-smoking and the risk of undesirable effects, or even the toxic influence on the oral cavity tissues, due to the complexity of the phenomenon and the very few accurate clinical and laboratory studies. Aim. The aim of the study was the impact of electronic cigarette (EC) liquids on human gingival cell (HGF-1) viability in an in vitro study. Material and methods. Commercially available EC liquids with 11 and 24 mg/mL nicotine contents and different flavours were tested. Cytotoxicity on HGF-1 was evaluated after 24 and 48 h of exposure to EC liquids in concentrations of 0.1 and 1%. Results. Among all the tested EC liquids only Mint-flavoured ones have a harmful effect on HGF-1 cells in a time-dependent manner. No statistically significant difference was found between EC liquids with 11 and 24 mg/mL nicotine contents. Conclusions. Our data indicated that flavour additives in EC liquids may exert biological effects on oral cells.


Enterprise WLANs need to support a wide spectrum of services and functionalities. This includes authentication, authorisation and accounting, policy management, dynamic channel reconfigurations, mobility and interference management, and load balancing. Vendor solutions that address these problems are proprietary, and closed source, leading to vendor lockin. They restrict flexibility for the network operator. This thesis explores the introduction of programmability into the enterprise WLAN, demonstrated through a prototype system named Odin, with the goal of empowering the network operator, and to make enterprise WLANs extensible. Through Odin, we provide a set of abstractions and interfaces using which different enterprise WLAN services can be implemented as network applications. Odin is based on a software defined networking (SDN) approach, wherein the WLAN is orchestrated through centralised control, as dictated by a set of network applications. Odin's SDN framework also takes into account the unique challenges of WLANs. For instance, clients in the IEEE 802.11 protocol make access point association choices entirely on the basis of local decisions. To this end, Odin builds on a light virtual access point abstraction that takes control of the client's association decisions, and greatly simplifies client management. Additionally, Odin's architecture does not expect any hardware or software modifications on the 802.11 client, and its design supports WPA2 Enterprise. Experimental evaluations conducted within an enterprise WLAN setting demonstrate Odin's feasibility.


We have developed a low-cost, robust, multifoil-filtered spectrometer to provide absolute measurements of low-Z impurity concentrations in the Madison Symmetric Torus reversed-field pinch. The spectrometer utilizes an array of six thin-film coated soft x-ray diodes. Each multilayered coating is specifically tailored to isolate the K-shell emission lines of H- and He-like oxygen, carbon, and aluminum. With calibrations obtained via a synchrotron source, absolute measurements of photon flux have been made. We address the technical aspects of this diagnostic and present impurity data from both standard and high-confinement plasma discharges.


Objective To evaluate the mental intervention to improve negative emotion and quality of life of elder women with stress urinary incontinence.Methods A total of 88 cases of older women with stress urinary incontinence were divided randomly into test group and control group,two groups were given symptomatic treatment and routine care,the test group was also given specific mental intervention.The mental state and quality of life were evaluated by GDS,SAS,I-QOL Results After a period of one month,there was significant difference between the scores of the two groups (both P < 0.05),the negative emotion and quality of life of test group were improved markedly.Conclusions The targeted mental intervention can improve the patient s ' negative emotions,elevate quality of life and promote patients'quality of life.

Key words:
Stress urinary incontinence; Mental intervention; Negative emotion; Quality of life; Elder women


Analyses the types and characters of the local architecture in the south of Shaanxi Province.Unscrambles the producing process and forming reason from the view of sociology.Uncovers the information existed in buildings.Spreads research method and scope to provide theoretical and practical foundations for the reconstruction and creation of architectural culture.


Bimodal mesoporous carbon nitride is synthesized using Triton X-100 as a template and melamine and glutaraldehyde as precursors through polymerization and carbonization. The structures and surface chemical properties of carbon nitrides are characterized and compared by nitrogen adsorption isotherms, TG, FT-IR spectra and SEM images. The results show that the mesopore sizes in the carbon nitride are centered at 3.8 nm and 10–40 nm. The pyrolysis and decomposition of the polymer to form the condensation cross-linking ring structures takes place at 350–700 °C. The nitrogen atom in the carbon nitride exists in C–N and N–H states. As a Candida rugosalipase immobilization support, the mesoporous carbon nitride displays a higher amount of immobilization and improves the thermal stability of Candida rugosalipase, which still displays higher catalytic activity after 4 runs.


OBJECTIVE To separate and determine two constituents (metronidazole,chloramphenicol) in Mian spirits Ⅱ.METHODS RP-HPLC was used.Hydrocortisone was used as internal standard.Chromatographic conditions included:Nova-PakC 18 column (3.9 mm×150 mm,4 μm) and mobile phase consisting of methanol-acetonitrile-water(30∶20∶50);detective wavelength was UV 261 nm.RESULTS The calibration curves were linear in the range of 9.60 -48.00 μg·ml -1 for metronidazole 9.89 - 49.44 μg·ml -1 for chloramplenicol.The average recovery is 100.8% , RSD = 1.63% for metronidazole;The average recovery is 100.2% , RSD = 0.90% for chloramphenicol.CONCLUSION The method is simple,rapid,accurate and suitable for the usual quality control of Mian spirits Ⅱ.


The clinical examination of the MRCP was fast approaching. We had scoured the hospital for clinical signs, and almost every patient had kindly allowed us to listen on and prod at them in our well rehearsed, near choreographed examination routine. Would I still be able to execute the routine in a semi-autonomic …


Heparan sulfate (HS) is one of glycosaminoglycan (GAG) and is composed of GlcA–GlcNAc repeating disaccharide units, which are sulfated by several sulfotransferases. Sulfation structure of HS results in various patterns and can facilitate binding to each morphogen and growth factor, such as BMPs, Wnts, FGFs, and EGFs, and regulate the associated signaling pathways. It was previously revealed that HS and its sulfation are required for maintenance and differentiation of mouse embryonic stem (ES) cells through FGF4, BMP4, and Wnt signaling. However, most of the functions of HS sulfation patterns are still unknown. In this mini-review, we describe and discuss the functions of HS, including its sulfation pattern in pluripotent stem cells.


Evaluation of particle dynamics at the nano‐ and microscale poses a challenge to the development of novel velocimetry techniques. Established optical methods implement external or internal calibrations of the emission profiles by varying the particle velocity and are limited to specific experimental conditions. The proposed multiemission particle velocimetry approach aims to introduce a new concept for a luminescent probe, which guarantees accurate velocity measurements at the microscale, independent of the particle concentration or experimental setup, and without need for calibration. The simplicity of these analyses relies on the intrinsic luminescence dynamics of core–shell upconverting nanoparticles. Upon excitation with a focused near‐infrared pulsed laser, the nanoparticle emits photons at different wavelengths. The time interval between emissions from different excited states is independent of the local environment or particle velocity. The velocity of the particles is calculated by measuring the distance between the maxima of two different emissions and dividing it by the known difference in luminescence lifetimes. This method is demonstrated using simple digital imaging of nanoparticles flowing in 75–150 µm diameter capillaries. Using this novel approach typically results in a relative standard deviation of the experimental velocities of 5% or lower without any calibration.


The invention relates to safety, namely to a remote device and the contactless detection of the presence of a low voltage and is designed to prevent the personnel working on the availability of voltage up to 1000 V in electrical. Individual proximity switch pointer voltage up to 1000 V, comprising an antenna, a control unit and signaling: a microcontroller, whose output is connected to the input of the display unit, power supply, whose output is connected to second inputs of the comparator, a microcontroller, and display unit. For the control and signaling unit flexible antenna to ¼ of its length is made in the form of a "concertina" and ending flexible antenna rigidly fixed on the middle finger of the dielectric gloves with the outer side thereof and responsively its form through the amplifier to the first input of the comparator, and the display unit is further provided with vibrator, wherein the control unit and the alarm is attached to the insulating gloves in the wrist area of the strap covering the hand. The utility model enables a reliable indication of the individual remote-contact detection to specify the presence of low (up to 1000) in electrical voltage. 1. n-ly f.; 2 ill.


Tuberculosis (TB) kills about 3 million people per year worldwide. Furthermore, TB is an infectious disease associated with HIV patients, and there is a rise in multidrug‐resistant TB (MDR‐TB) cases around the world. There is a need for new anti‐TB agents. The study evaluated the antimycobacterial activity of nine plants used in Mexican traditional medicine to treat tuberculosis and other respiratory diseases. Nasturtium officinale showed the best activity (MIC = 100 µg/mL) against the sensitive Mycobacterium tuberculosis. The following plants were active also but at 200 µg/mL: Citrus sinensis, Citrus aurantifolia, Foeniculum vulgare, Larrea tridentata, Musa acuminata and Olea europaea. Contrary to the above data, activity against drug‐resistant variants of M. tuberculosis was more evident, e.g. N. officinale was the most potent (MIC ≤ 100 µg/mL) against the four mono‐resistant variants tested; F. vulgare and O. europaea were active against all the resistant variants (MICs ≤ 100 µg/mL). The most susceptible variant was the isoniazid resistant, being inhibited by C. aurantifolia, C. sinensis and O. europaea (MIC = 25 µg/mL). These data point to the importance of biological testing of extracts against drug‐resistant M. tuberculosis isolates, and the bioguided assay of these extracts for the identification of lead compounds against MDR‐TB isolates. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.


The criminal law consists of the rules of substantive law and the rules of procedural law. The substantive law defines the offenses that are contrary to the law, namely the crimes and the penalties necessary for them. Whereas the procedural law defines the procedures that must be followed from the crime accomplishments up till the issuance of the criminal rule and its execution. The importance of this research lies in the significance of the criminal law itself, because this law aims at protecting the interests of society, whether these interests are public interests relating to the entity of the state and society as a whole or special interests relating to the rights and freedoms of individuals. The problem of the research is represented in the manner designated by the integration of the criminal legal procedure rule. The purpose of the research is represented in demonstrating how the criminal integration for the procedural criminal rule is designated Therefore, this research will be divided into an introduction and two sections. The first section is devoted to demonstrate the integration of criminal procedures through the public prosecution. As this will be done through demonstrating the concept of such public prosecution, separating or combining both authorities, accusation and investigating, then stating the extent of the integration for criminal procedures by means of prosecution. While the second section will be devoted to the integration of criminal proceedings through external judicial representation through manifesting the reasons for external judicial representation, the legal basis for such assignment, as well as its subject matter, conditions and procedures. We come to the end of this research by a conclusion of the most important results and proposals.


BACKGROUND
Very few instruments to integrate knowledge, attitude and practice into dementia care as a holistic perspective were available to the Chinese.

METHOD
This article documented the development of a 30-item self-administered Chinese instrument of knowledge, attitude and preventive practice on dementia care and reported the results of psychometric testing among 1500 Chinese in Macao Special Administrative Region (SAR), including 234 primary health professionals, 272 staff working at day-care centers and nursing homes, 586 high school students and 408 community-dwelling older people. The Chinese instrument was developed through literature review and committee review. The psychometric methods were used to evaluate the reliability and validity of the Chinese instrument as measures of knowledge, attitude and preventive practice on dementia care for the Chinese.

RESULTS
The preliminary results indicated that the Content Validity Index of the Chinese instrument was .973 and Cronbach's alpha coefficient of the Chinese instrument was .842, among which Knowledge subscale, Attitude subscale and Preventive Practice subscale were .749, .633 and .845 respectively. The means and standard deviation were 65.13 ± 24.56 for Knowledge subscale, 74.76 ± 8.37 for Attitude subscale, 73.22 ± 14.05 for Preventative Practice subscale, and 70.99 ± 11.27 for the Chinese instrument.

CONCLUSION
The 30-item self-administered Chinese instrument of knowledge, attitude and preventive practice on dementia care had satisfied the psychometric evaluation well enough to warrant further use, and could also have particular implications for other Chinese populations all over the world.


In the paper, the effects of current frequency on the electromagnetic sheet metal forming process are investigated using an efficient finite element model, which couples analysis of circuit, electromagnetic, and mechanical equations. Based on the initial electrical and structural parameters of the system, the model calculates the pulsed current flowing through the coil, the consequent magnetic force acting on the metal sheet, and finally the generated sheet deformation. The effects of current frequency on the maximum displacement in axial direction of the sheet are analyzed for two sheets by changing the capacitance of capacitor bank, while keeping the stored energy constant. The results show that there exist two optimum frequencies that produce relatively large sheet deformation and the optimum frequencies are related with the thickness of the sheet.


Hyperspectral images are a useful source to retrieve estimations of vegetation parameters like leaf area index (LAI) and aboveground biomass (AGB). These estimations are more reliable when using image objects rather than individual pixels as spatial units. Object-based image analysis groups neigbouring pixels based on spectral similarity. Two issues to be considered then are: 1) how similar the pixels should be, and 2) which spectral bands should be included for object definition


Desdemona is a sophisticated demonstration, simulation, training and research facility specified by TNO Human Factors and developed by AMST Systemtechnik. The Desdemona concept adds a sustainable G-load to the conventional Stewart platform motion, without the angular accelerations encountered in centrifuges during the G-onset. This is accomplished by having the aviator sitting in a fully gimballed cockpit with four cascaded degrees of freedom (360 degrees of yaw, pitch and roll rotation, and 2m heave), placed on a longitudinal track (8m) which is rotated around the vertical axis, adding two synergistic degrees of freedom. Rotation of the track allows centrifugation up to 3g. Realistic environment with state-of-the-art visuals and aircraft specific instruments is available in the cockpit. Proper combination of the 6 DOF makes Desdemona a dynamic flight simulator. For research purposes it may serve to differentiate on issues as low cost vs. high end simulation, and also help to define the essential countermeasures to simulator sickness.


Abstract The restoration of normal posture is an important aspect of stroke physiotherapy, because normal activity is thought essential for effective function. However, there is little evidence to support (or refute) this belief. To test this, suitable measurement tools are needed. They need to be reliable, valid, sensitive, and suitable for all settings applicable to a wide range of stroke severity. A systematic review of methods to measure posture was undertaken to identify suitable measurement tools. CINAHL, Medline and Embase databases were searched for measurement tools which measured posture and could be used in clinical settings with stroke patients. Four groups of tools were identified: (i) ordinal scales; (ii) goniometry; (iii) devices to measure the distance between bony points; and (iv) miscellaneous others. All had some information about their psychometric properties, but few had been rigorously tested. None fulfilled all the assessment criteria. Therefore, future studies will attempt to devise a measurement tool which does meet all required criteria.


DS Dominator, a green cotyledon field pea (Pisum sativum L.) cultivar, was released in 2000 by Agriprogress Inc., Morden, Manitoba. DS Dominator has a semileafless leaf type, powdery mildew resistance, good lodging resistance, medium sized, round seeds, and good yielding ability. DS Dominator is adapted to the field pea-growing region of western Canada. Key words: Field pea, Pisum sativum L., cultivar description, powdery mildew resistance


This study examined pubertal maturation, pubertal timing and outcomes, and the relationship of puberty and sexual identity developmental milestones among 507 lesbian, gay, and bisexual youth. The onset of menarche and spermarche occurred at the mean ages of 12.05 and 12.46, respectively. There was no statistically significant difference in perceived timing of puberty by sex compared to peers. Males were more likely to react positively to the perception that the timing of puberty was earlier than their peers. Earlier menarche was associated with increased externalizing problems, but earlier spermarche was not related to internalizing or externalizing problems. Age of spermarche was associated with the ages of sexual identity milestones in males but not in females.


Online computer conferences used to assist distance learning courses often fail because the moderator-usually the instructor responsible for the conference-is not properly trained in techniques that build a community of learners. It has often been assumed that the skills required to create a vibrant classroom discussion translate easily to an online forum. This has rarely been the case. This study utilized the qualitative methods of grounded theory and narrative research to explore how a moderator, after .undergoing training, would affect students in one of three segregated computer conferences supporting an online course. The training was based on both the academic literature on educational computer conference moderation and situational examples taken from the experiences of online moderators. The students' experiences with the trained moderator were compared with those students in the other two computer conferences without a trained moderator. The data analyzed were comprised of the messages collected from the three computer conferences, selected interviews, extensive journals written by the researcher, and an online survey. The study also considered the problems and pressures stemming from unclear policies for constructing an online course in an environment of overlapping departmental mandates. These mandates resulted in more emphasis being given to putting courses online than the choice of the most appropriate pedagogy. The results indicated that a trained moderator had a positive effect on computer conferences as community of support and warmth was built, while another group, without such a moderators, constructed a community based on group dissent. No community of any sort was found in the third group. (Contains 32 references.) (Author/AEF) Reproductions supplied by EDRS are the best that can be made from the original document. The Effects Of Trained Moderation In Online Asynchronous Distance Learning David Winograd State University of New York College at Potsdam Abstract Online computer conferences used to assist distance learning courses often fail because the moderator usually the instructor responsible for the conferenceis not properly trained in techniques that build a community of learners. It has often been assumed that the skills required to create a vibrant classroom discussion translated easily to an online forum. This has been rarely the case. This study utilized the qualitative methods of grounded theory and narrative research to explore how a moderator, after undergoing training, would affect students in one of three segregated computer conferences supporting an online course. The training was based on both the academic literature on educational computer conference moderation and situational examples taken from the experiences of online moderators. The students' experiences with the trained moderator were compared with those students in the other two computer conferences without a trained moderator. The data analyzed were comprised of the messages collected from the three computer conferences, selected interviews, extensive journals written by the researcher, and an online survey.Online computer conferences used to assist distance learning courses often fail because the moderator usually the instructor responsible for the conferenceis not properly trained in techniques that build a community of learners. It has often been assumed that the skills required to create a vibrant classroom discussion translated easily to an online forum. This has been rarely the case. This study utilized the qualitative methods of grounded theory and narrative research to explore how a moderator, after undergoing training, would affect students in one of three segregated computer conferences supporting an online course. The training was based on both the academic literature on educational computer conference moderation and situational examples taken from the experiences of online moderators. The students' experiences with the trained moderator were compared with those students in the other two computer conferences without a trained moderator. The data analyzed were comprised of the messages collected from the three computer conferences, selected interviews, extensive journals written by the researcher, and an online survey. The study also considered the problems and pressures stemming from unclear policies for constructing an online course in an environment of overlapping departmental mandates. These mandates resulted in more emphasis being given to putting courses online than the choice of the most appropriate pedagogy. The results indicated that a trained moderator had a positive effect on computer conferences as a community of support and warmth was built; while another group, without such a moderator, constructed a community based on group dissent. No community of any sort was found in the third group. Overview of the Problem The rush to get online can find teachers in the position of having an excellent command of classroom pedagogy but without a full complement of the skills needed to make the most of the technologies and conventions of online distance learning. It is not unusual for there to be no clear policy to educate teachers in this regard. Frequently asynchronous Internet courses contain a computer conference wherein the class can communicate with each other. A computer conference is used as an online equivalent of classroom discussion, a place where students can participate in collaborative work and carry on other activities. Historically, the moderating of such conferences have been the responsibility of the teacher or assigned to a student to manage (Murphy, Cifuentes, Yakimovicz, Segur, Mahoney, & Kodali, 1996). An incorrect but frequently made assumption is that the ability to lead an exhilarating classroom discussion translates well to leading an online discussion. A common occurrence in computer conferencing is that the teacher poses a few questions to the group, and no one responds. Often, the conference becomes unused to the bewilderment of the teacher. Managing interaction in a distance learning environment requires different skills than in a traditional classroom (Inman & Kerwin, 1999). It is widely assumed that students will use an online conferencing system just because it is available. This is not the case. The Apple Classroom of Tomorrow study put computers in schools for ten years as an exploratory experiment. Researchers believed that merely having technology available would increase learning. They were disappointed to find that it did not. Instead, they found that technology, by itself, does nothing. Rather than being a panacea, technology should be regarded as nothing more than a tool that has the potential to enhance innovative thinking (Sandholtz, Ringstaff, & Dwyer, 1997). It is the same with Internet based instruction. Students often experience isolation due to the lack of the usual social aspects of a classroom (Ahern, 1995). The immediacy of interactions between instructor and student as well as among students is diminished because asynchronous communication can take days or even weeks between the time a question is asked or a point is made, and the student receiving feedback. This time lag can leave students feeling ignored (Eastmond, 1995). Attrition in distance learning courses is higher than their face-to-face counterparts, sometimes much higher (Carr, 2000; Cheng, kr) Lehman, & Armstrong, 1991; Jewett, 1997; Noble, 1998). Studies report that completion rates of students in traditional face-to-face classes can be as high as 60% greater than online classes. This determined that the use of trained moderators did alleviate a number of these problems. U.S. DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION Of fice of Educational Research and Improvement EDUCATIONAL RESOURCES INFORMATION PERMISSION TO REPRODUCE AND CENTER (ERIC) DISSEMINATE THIS MATERIAL HAS This document has been reproduced as received from the person or organization BEEN GRANTED BY originating it. 0 Minor changes have heen made to improve reproduction quality. M. Simonson 462 TO THE EDUCATIONAL RESOURCES INFORMATION CENTER (ERIC) 1 2 Points of view or opinions stated in this document do not necessarily represent official OERI position or policy. Intent of the Study The intent of the study was to explore how the use of a trained moderator affected both the students and instructor of an Internet based distance learning class. The moderator underwent training based on academic literature on educational computer conference moderation and examples taken from the experiences of online


pital knowing that he has consented to have surgery involving the organ which provides for the continuation of his life, will usually present serious problems, perhaps many times more serious than those relating to less dramatic surgery. He may have already adjusted to the idea of death in a more realistic way than other patients who are anticipating another type of surgery have done. Catholic patients are given last rites before a mitral valvulotomy. Regardless of how much experience the nurse may have, her fears concerning the heart, ingrained from childhood, make her somewhat apprehensive whenever she approaches her beginning experience with one of these patients.


Guidelines for plotting a variety of colors and patterns using GSMAP and GSDRAW digital cartographic programs have been developed. These color and pattern variations can be used to fill polygons (areas) on maps, charts, or diagrams. Batch processing file for plotting a sample color/pattern palette on a Hewlett Packard 7585B 8-pen plotter using GSDRAW software are provided on the disk. The detailed instructions, batch processing files, and variables used to construct the palette will provide the user ready access to 99 fill patterns, and aid in designing other useful combinations. 2 refs., 2 figs.


Introduction BASHH, GMC, RCP and FSRH provide guidance stating that a chaperone should be offered for intimate examinations and the name of the chaperone should be documented. Record keeping is often found to be suboptimal in litigation. Our proformas have prompts for both offer and name of chaperone. Aim/objectives To audit our documentation of chaperone offer (including name) for intimate examinations. Methods 20% case notes for new episodes seen by doctors May–July 2014 were randomly selected and reviewed. Gender of doctor and patient were recorded. Results 208 case notes were examined. 114 patients were examined (61 not examined; 33 inadequate documentation). 96/114 (84.2%) had the offer of a chaperone documented; 18 (15.8%) did not. Of the 96 where the chaperone was documented as offered, 89 (93%) had the chaperone's name documented; 7 (7%) did not. In 64 cases, doctor and patient were the same gender, and in 50 cases they were opposite gender – chaperone offer was documented in 87.5% and 80% respectively (p = 0.278, student's 2 tailed t-test). Discussion Chaperones for intimate examinations reassure and protect both doctors and patients. With the GMC dealing with just under 30 allegations in 2014 recording of this is potentially pivotal. Despite prompts, only 78% had both offer and name documented. It was concerning that in 33 cases it was not clear as to whether or not an examination had occurred. The results ran counter to expectations with offer of a chaperone higher when patient and doctor were the same gender although this was non-significant.


Abstract The authors examine two instances in which public relations efforts undertaken in behalf of foreign governments became the subject of public attention or controversy, finding in each case that the news image of the client government worsened. Comparing their results with other research that has identified more positive public relations outcomes, they conclude that public awareness of the manipulative efforts distinguished these cases and contributed to the observed effects.


Concerns that antiarrhythmic agents may cause more harm than good in many patients were raised last year when the Cardiac Arrhythmia Suppression Trial


A novel high-power rectifier using the BSIT (Bipolar mode Static Induction Transistor) operation has been demonstrated. In order to improve the reverse blocking capability of this diode, an ion implanted P-type channel structure is introduced. Device simulations have revealed that, as the tradeoff relationships between reverse blocking voltage, forward voltage drop, and reverse recovery time are considered, there exists an optimum set of the channel dosage and the channel width.


In negotiating the relationship between different benefit subjects,NBA League starts from the handling of the relationship between the labor and the capital,between the players and between the team bosses.Before the match,the distribution is contract distribution.During the match,the limitation is between the player,the team and the labor and the capital.Distribution means include withdrawal limit,sales right control,NBA draft selection,transfer system etc.After match penalty include of salary trusted and luxury tax.Penalty return means the giving back of the trusted payment,the luxury tax and the remaining funds.The purpose is to realize the prescribed allocation ratio.


Purified and semipurified diets yielding good growth and survival of lobsters (Homarus americanus) have been developed. Growth of animals fed the semipurified diet for 18 months at 20±1°C indicates that market size (.5 kg) could be attained within 2.5 years. The semipurified diet contains 53% (dry weight) protein using casein, shrimp meal, gluten, and egg white as different protein sources. Substitution of these particular sources of protein with soy protein, shrimp protein, a soy protein-shrimp meal combination, or bacterial cell protein caused significant reductions in growth.

Similar growth can be achieved when the protein level of the semipurified diet is reduced to 30.5%. It appears that if specific protein and energy requirements are met, diets containing low protein levels can be nutritionally adequate for optimal growth, thereby increasing the possibility of cost-effective diets for intensive lobster culture.