In the field of pattern recognition and machine learning, many problems are involved in the tasks of dimensionality reduction and then classification. In this paper, we develop an efficient dimensionality reduction method named MiniRisk Supervised Discrimiant Projection (MRSDP), which extracts effective low-dimensional features for classification purpose. The proposed method utilizes discriminant information to guide the procedure of extracting intrinsic low-dimensional features and provides a linear projection matrix. Since MRSDP is based on minimax risk criterion, it can minimize the maximal probability of misclassification in the common borders of different classes of data by contracting within-class scatter and maximizing between-class scatter. The advantage of our method is borne out by comparison with other widely used methods. In the experiments on Yale face database and ORL face database, our method achieves constantly superior performance than those competing methods.


This design project is a high-rise building at the Wetstraat of Brussels which embedded in the existing city context. This site is one of the main focus points of the new Master plan in Brussels for the European Quarter designed by Christian de Potzamparc. In this small-scale neighborhood, a 220,000 m2 extra space for the European Union should be designed which is a big challenge. This building should represent the new European Union momentum and will get a symbolic meaning.


Detailed experimental results are presented for three types of constricted double-heterojunction (CDH) AlGaAs laser diodes. The dynamic properties (pulsed and RF modulation, noise response, and linearity characteristics) of these devices are given for the first time. Performance in analog and digital signal transmission systems is also described for the most useful types of such devices: the standard CDH [1], [2] and the high-power CDH large optical cavity (LOC) [3], [4]. With the latter, an order-of-magnitude increase in modulated power capability over standard devices has been achieved (40-mW peak power into 0.2 NA, 50-μm core graded-index fiber). Finally, we present a detailed experimental analysis of self-oscillation phenomena in a variant type of CDH structure (CDH-AMC) (asymmetric mode confinement) [5]. These observations, although uncommon in CDH and CDH-LOC devices, provide new experimental insight on the nature of self-pulsating laser diodes.


Translucency is a very important factor for obtaining an esthetic porcelain laminate veneer crown. This translucency is greatly affected by the opacity of the masking porcelain layer, but there is no objective criterion to evaluate the opacity. In general, opacity is well evaluated by hiding power. Therefore, hiding power of masking porcelain was calculated in this study using the ASTM (American Society for Testing and Materials) method.The reflectance value of each masking porcelain sample containing 5, 10, 15, 20, 25, or 30% opacity of pink, white, yellow, and blue were measured with white and black backing, and hiding power was calculated using its scattering coefficients. Hiding power increased in proportion to the opacity and ranged from 100 to 1, 400 for any shade. Color difference dE between white and black backing increased rapidly under the 25% opacity.It was concluded that (1) the opacity could be analyzed as hiding power and (2) hiding power under 20% opacity is very effective on visibility.


The need to plan for the future is critical to the overall health of any organization. However, planning is often biased by the opinions of a select group of individuals who may not possess the knowledge and/or empirical data to formulate a plan that could address the most critical current and future concerns and issues facing the agency/institution. Most educational planning is designed for the short term (i.e., semesters, academic year) and involves establishing specific policies and procedures, often having little to do with vital targets that could be made operational for the medium and long range futures of the institution/agency. Strategic planning on the other hand, is designed to aid decision makers in making important changes based on strategically driven decisions (Goodstein, Nolan, & Pfeiffer, 1992). That is, in order to make strategic decisions, a strategic plan must be in place. Therefore, strategic planning is "the process by which the guiding members of an organization envision its future and develop the necessary procedures and operations to achieve that future" (Goodstein, et.al., 1992, p. 3).


The meaning of the crime of illegal intrusion into of another person's residence should be defined correctly.Recidence has such characteristics as essentical daily life facilities, relative isolation,the lodging of daily life and food for others. Starting from the considernation of Chinese cultural ideas, criminal modest characteristic, social reality and so on, we should establish "no trial without complaint" in the crime of illegal intrusion into another person's residence.


A 76-year-old man presented for a routine health evaluation. He reported no symptoms and the cardiovascular physical examination was within normal limits. He takes amlodipine for hypertension. He was referred for a cardiology evaluation after the following ECG was performed.

Please turn the page to read the diagnosis.

The ECG in Figure 1 shows 2 dissociated and independent atrial rhythms, a condition called atrial dissociation. An amplified view of the same ECG is shown in Figure 2, where the 2 rhythms are evident: one is a normal sinus rhythm (green arrows in lead II rhythm strip) at 60 beats/min with a QRS axis of +50 and a PR interval of 140 ms. The other is a rapid atrial rhythm (RAR) with a low-voltage P wave (red arrows in lead V1 rhythm strip) with a constant interval …


The diagnosis of Alzheimer's disease (AD) is sometimes difficult for nonspecialists, resulting in misdiagnosis. A missed diagnosis can lead to improper management and poor outcomes. Moreover, nonspecialists lack a simple diagnostic model with high accuracy for AD diagnosis.


Abstract : The report characterizes VHF data channels over path distances of interest to Army tactical communicators. On-the-air tests were conducted over several non line-of-sight paths varying from 6.7 to 14.4 miles (10.8 - 23.2 km) in length. The digital transmission rates were 1.2 and 19.2 kilobits per second (kBPS). During several of the 1.2 kBPS tests, a 11.5 kHz tone was transmitted concurrently. A complete bit-by-bit history of the received digital transmissions was recorded on magnetic tape. The bits in error were determined from a knowledge of the transmitted signal. The report depicts error group distributions and bit error rate variations with path distance. A detailed examination of the variation in bit error rate during two occurrences of signal perturbation is made.


The algorithm of linear-algebraic cryptanalysis of Rijndael-like cipher is proposed. The approach connected with the allocation of round differentials is considered. The description and justification of the algorithm are fulfilled, the requirements are formulated, the general model is described. The parameters for increasing the speed algorithm are specified.


Product quantization-based approaches are effective to encode high-dimensional data points for approximate nearest neighbor search. The space is decomposed into a Cartesian product of low-dimensional subspaces, each of which generates a sub codebook. Data points are encoded as compact binary codes using these sub codebooks, and the distance between two data points can be approximated efficiently from their codes by the precomputed lookup tables. Traditionally, to encode a subvector of a data point in a subspace, only one sub codeword in the corresponding sub codebook is selected, which may impose strict restrictions on the search accuracy. In this paper, we propose a novel approach, named optimized cartesian K-means (ock-means), to better encode the data points for more accurate approximate nearest neighbor search. In ock-means, multiple sub codewords are used to encode the subvector of a data point in a subspace. Each sub codeword stems from different sub codebooks in each subspace, which are optimally generated with regards to the minimization of the distortion errors. The high-dimensional data point is then encoded as the concatenation of the indices of multiple sub codewords from all the subspaces. This can provide more flexibility and lower distortion errors than traditional methods. Experimental results on the standard real-life data sets demonstrate the superiority over state-of-the-art approaches for approximate nearest neighbor search.


Harvested wood products (HWPs) are a class of products that are recognized for their potential to mitigate climate warming: the absorption of CO2, which is necessary to the growth of their biomass feedstock, temporarily reduces the amount of CO2 present in the Earth's atmosphere, effectively mitigating global warming. This study decided to look into the effect of changing two important parameters associated with HWPs: the rotation period of the biomass used for their raw material (effectively, the rate of CO2 absorption), and the length of their lifetime (effectively, the amount of time the captured carbon is stored within them in the form of embodied carbon). For this purpose, a carbon accounting calculator, Quantis' Biogenic Carbon Footprint Calculator for Harvested Wood Products (BCFC-HWP), was employed. The Biogenic Global Warming Potential (GWPbio) metric, which was used by the BCFC-HWP to describe the climate impact of a wooden product's embodied carbon, was analyzed for its evolution with respect to the two identified parameters. The results showed that while GWPbio followed a consistent decrease with respect to the product lifetime parameter, it showed a non-consistently evolving trend with respect to biomass rotation period i.e. first decreasing then increasing. This made the confrontation of both parameters' effect complex mathematically, such that no clear-cut conclusions on the relative benefits of changing one parameter versus the other were made. Nonetheless, a valuable resolution was made based on the observations regarding the evolution of GWPbio with respect to the lifetime of an HWP: the results indicated that extending the lifetime of an HWP is an advantageous strategy in decreasing the climate effect of the considered product.


Aim:To evaluate Beclin 1 protein expression and its clinicopathological significance in esophageal squamous cell carcinoma tissue.Methods:A total of 50 cases of esophageal squamous cell carcinoma tissue and 30 cases of corresponding normal esophageal tissue were collected to detect the expression of Beclin 1 protein by immunohistochemistry,and the relationship between the expression of Beclin 1 and the clinicopathological factors of esophageal squamous cell carcinoma tissue was statistically analyzed.Results:The positive expression rate of Beclin 1 in 30 cases of esophageal squamous cell carcinoma tissue was 30%(9/30),lower than that of 100% in the 30 cases of corresponding normal esophageal tissue(χ2=19.050,P0.001). Beclin 1 expression was significantly related with lymph node metastasis and clinical stage of esophageal squamous cell carcinoma tissue(χ2 was 13.286,4.836,P0.05).Conclusion:Beclin 1 is related with the occurrence and development of esophageal squamous cell carcinoma.


In order to deeply reveal the characteristics of Indian dress,from the classic colthing sari,it explored Indian dress culture,displayed the characteristics in religion,decoration,colour,art and practicability.


In-Situ Resource Utilization (ISRU) is a key enabler for the expansion of space activities beyond low Earth orbit. While early ISRU developments have focused primarily on mission consumables, the last decade has seen an exponential increase in research on ISRU for manufacturing. In particular, it has been shown that many resources available in space can be successfully utilised with various Additive Manufacturing (AM) techniques. In the Advanced Concepts Team (ACT) at the European Space Agency, novel ideas are being studied in the field of space architecture and infrastructure. This paper give an overview of early concept feasibility studies conducted in the ACT, in conjunction with European research partners, related to in-situ manufacturing of habitats using local resources and various automated manufacturing technologies. The projects investigate growing biocomposite materials in space, AM of regolith-ceramic functionally graded materials, fabrication of fibrereinforced geopolymer for radiation protection applications and basalt-fibre coreless winding process of a shell structure.


Because of successful steam stimulation of wells in the Midway-Sunset Field surrounding water-short Taft, Calif., effluent is a valuable item. Shell Oil Co. offered to buy the water from the city's sewage disposal plant. The oil company offered $5,000 down and $2,500 per year for the effluent, estimated by some sources to average about 400,000 bbl a day. Though the water would require further purification, modern methods are able to bring it up to high standards, actually making it potable. At the time of Shell's offer, the city was selling the water for irrigation purposes for a token $750 a year. The Shell offer quickly raised the question of who actually has jurisdiction over the water. Because of the apparent conflicting interest between the West Kern County Water District and the city of Taft, the problem turned out to be complex. It looks now as if the trial will not be called before summer and that it could last as long as a month and half. Shell Oil Co. has withdrawn its offer because of the drawnout nature of the negotiations.


Amanda's DilemmaRecently, my undergraduate writing students were composing research projects. I asked them to consider topics they found compelling; I wanted them to make educated arguments about issues that mattered. In the midst of this, Amanda came to my office for her one-on-one conference. Visibly upset, she said, "I want to change my topic."In previous conferences, Amanda argued passionately about lowering the drinking age. She listed reasons a drinking age of 21 made no sense when 18-year-olds were legal adults in other respects. Then she tried to find support for her opinion. She scoured library resources, interviewed campus officials, and talked with peers. Amanda was stymied in finding valid sources."After all this research," she noted, "all I find is evidence that raising the drinking age reduced alcohol-related problems. There's no support for my argument. I don't even believe that the drinking age should be lowered anymore."I asked, "So what now? If you've changed your mind, why don't you-instead of changing your topic-just change your argument?"Amanda sat in silence for a moment: "You mean I'm allowed to do that?"The Fog Is a DogWhen I was a high school English teacher, my AP literature students read T. S. Eliot's The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock. Students were intrigued by Eliot's description of fog. We discussed questions such as, What kind of animal behaves the way the fog behaves in this poem? What imagery does Eliot use? What is in the text?One of my students, Jason, contended, "It's a dog." A few others agreed. Discussion became debate: cats versus dogs."OK," I instructed, "homework: gather information, construct arguments, and come back with support for your claims."The next day, discussion resumed. The text itself and research on Eliot offered enough evidence to make a convincing case that the fog in Prufrock is, metaphorically, a cat. Jason remained skeptical, stating, "I hate cats."The Case for Critical ReflectionAlthough I changed student names, these anecdotes are representative of a few exchanges every semester. The teacher-poet Taylor Mali documents a similar conversation in a poem in which an eighth grader changes her mind after sources "all argue in favor of what [she] thought [she] was against" (22).I believe that students' responses, as opposite as they seem, denote a need for critical reflection. Used to being told what to think, Amanda complied, but Jason balked. Jason's reluctance to change was an act of rebellion. Amanda's reluctance to change was an act of obedience. Neither response was productive.John Dewey posits that critical reflection allows us to question ideas and consider information to make logical assumptions; it connects thought to deed and is grounded in warranted assumptions discovered through inquiry, suspended judgment, and the discomfort of cognitive dissonance. Making clear discernments of reason, and being able to adapt one's thinking accordingly, is essential given the barrage of information from a vast range of (credible and incredible) twenty-first-century sources.Paulo Freire asserts that we can transform the world through reflection that leads us to action. In the student-teacher relationship, critical or dialogic reflection means helping students learn "how to name the world" on their own terms; in this relationship, teachers exhibit "authentic authority" that allows a classroom community to "transform reality" (178-79). This is counter to authoritarianism, which imposes ideas and interpretations. A goal of critical pedagogy is to move individuals toward independence. Critical reflection, as opposed to critical thinking, delegates authority to students because it not only asks them to consider facts and logic but it also encourages them to question whose facts and logic are represented, for what purposes, and to what effects.Critical reflection can empower students to resist notions of compliance and rebellion to which they are accustomed. …


The thermoacoustic effect can be applied to produce powerful and reasonably efficient heat engines including heat pumps and refrigerator. This paper focuses on the design of an inexpensive tabletop thermoacoustic refrigerator for demonstration of the thermoacoustic effect. This thermoacoustic system has been built and tested. Experiental results show that temperature difference of more than 10℃ can be achieved after running for several minutes. It is clearly shown that the thermoacoustic refrigeration is very effective.


Present protection mechanisms in operating Systems are usually dedicated to provide reliability within the operating system. This paper presents a design that can be used to solve basic information protection problems by means of the operating system as well. It is based on a uniform system structuring unit, called a subsystem, and allows rather fine grain protection strategies to be reallzed. Further differences to other approaches lie in the notion of subject used and in the very detailed form privileges can be granted. The paper introduces the basic concepts, sketches on some implementation aspects and discusses the consequences of the approach. The ideas are currently implemented as part of the OSKAR operating system project.


This study aims to determine the relationship between self-leadership behaviors and job satisfaction levels of Sports-Sports Training Specialists working in Provincial Directorates of Youth and Sports. The research population consists of 230 Sports-Sports Training Specialists working in the Provincial Directorates of Youth and Sports in the Eastern Anatolia Region. "Personal Information Form", "Self-Leadership Questionnaire-SLQ" and "Job Satisfaction Scale" were used for data collection. 72.2% of the participants are male, 73.4% have an undergraduate degree and 64.6% are working in their institution on a contractual basis. There is a significant difference in favor of women between gender and the self-talk sub-dimension of the self-leadership scale. There was a significant difference between the working positions and the total score of the self-leadership scale and the sub-dimension of self-cueing in favor of permanent employees. There was a statistically significant difference between the job satisfaction scale and the sports training specialists having poor economic status. No positive relationship was found between self-leadership and job satisfaction. It has been concluded that female sports-sports training specialists are more focused on self-talk than males and this has an effect on self-leadership levels, but gender does not affect their job satisfaction levels. Permanent staff experts motivate themselves better and have a better sense of self-leadership than contracted experts. It has been determined that compared to their senior colleagues, newcomers to the profession are in an effort to reveal their self-leadership behaviors more in order to prove themselves in their institutions and to be successful.


Shoe-last is foundation and vital mold in the foot wear industry. This paper narrate how to develop clamp for shoe-last making.


Juniperus drupacea is a naturally grown tree in the forest on the Taurus Mountains and fruit of the tree is processed into pekmez to cure some illness by villagers. In present study, some chemical and sensory properties of both traditional pekmez and laboratory scale produced ones, which were processed by using different clarification (physical and chemical) and concentration (under vacuum and atmospheric pressure) methods, were compared to determine the most appropriate processing method. According to the analyzed quality parameters, the pekmez processed by addition ash water into the chemically clarified extract and then concentrated under atmospheric pressure was more acceptable.


Objective To evaluate the feasibility and the efficacy of medical diagnosis expert system,combined with preoperative magnetic resonance cholangiopancrcatography(MRCP),in predicting common bile duct(CBD) stones.Methods The clinical data of 286 cases of cholecystolithiasis and cholecystitis admitted to our hospital during Jan 2009 to May 2009 were analysed prospectively.These cases were divided randomly into the control group(n=143) and the research group(n=143).The control group underwent routine MRCP before cholecystectomy,while the research group was screened by medical diagnosis expert system which had been established based on artificial neural network technique and proved to be stable.MRCP was performed in every patient of the research group when the screening result was positive.Then,the positive rate of MRCP,the mean hospitalization time and the average expenditure between this two groups were compared.Results CBD positive rate was 16.78%(24/143) of the control group,while the research group was 16.08%(23/143).The positive rate of MRCP of the research group was 95.24%(20/21),significantly higher than 14.69%(21/143)of the control group(P0.01).The mean hospitalization time of research group(8.83±3.59 d) was significantly shorter than that of the control group(10.10±3.66 d)(P0.01).The average expenditure of the research group was(11 175.80±7 972.33) Yuan,evidently lower than(13 332.08±9 884.04) Yuan of the control group(P0.05).Conclusions The medical diagnosis expert system has a remarkable performance in predicting CBD stones.It can be used routinely to select the appropriate cases to undergo MRCP,which could obviously reduce the hospitalization costs and shorten the hospitalization time.


The permeating use of English promotes a contact language among people from multicultural backgrounds called English as a Lingua Franca (ELF). Pre-service English teachers going to the teaching practice thus need to be aware of ELF trends to engage with their students in the classroom. This study seeks to explore the ELF awareness of the pre-service English teachers in assessing the students' speaking assessment. Twenty pre-service teachers from three geographically different universities were recruited. They were asked to establish the speaking rubrics assessment based on the given video and were invited to Forum Group Discussion (FGD) for their underlying reasons for scoring. The results indicated that University A developed ELF awareness as they demonstrated open-mindedness, tolerance, less value on errors, and emphasis on intelligibility both personally and professionally. Meanwhile, Universities B and C openly state that Native speakers' English is the only proper English, and any other use beyond it is a defect. The discussion suggests that the different geographical locations may cause different exposures to speakers of English. The study suggests that pre-service English teachers actively explore the ongoing trend in English Language Teaching with the Faculty of Education to provide continuous support in the process.


The current outbreak of the Desert Locust has affected much of eastern Africa and has reached as far as Pakistan and India in Asia, generating significant agricultural losses in a region that is already highly unstable economically, politically, and in terms of food security for its human populations (FAO, 2020). Desert Locust outbreaks require a combination of weather, soil and vegetation conditions that favour the reproduction and aggregation of otherwise solitary individuals (Despland et al., 2000) (Figure 1a). When those conditions appear, locusts aggregate, multiply in large numbers and migrate long distances, turning into a plague and devastating crops on their way.


Poorly differentiated/undifferentiated thyroid carcinoma represents a very severe type of malignancy with limited therapeutically resources. Fortunately, the diagnosis is very rare in general population; however, delayed presentation to a health care system might aggravate the evolution and during COVID-19 pandemic it was suggested an exacerbation of this phenomenon. This is a case report of a 56-year old lady diagnosed with poorly differentiated – undifferentiated thyroid carcinoma according to fine needle aspiration – based cytological exam. Despite having progressive large, neck mass with bone pain, asthenia, weight loss, and dysphagia since last months, she delayed the medical examination because of social anxiety amid COVID-19 pandemics. Poorly differentiated carcinoma still represents a sector of endocrinology with poor survival. Controversies around endocrine practice amid pandemic are still ongoing topics.


Three separate experiments were conducted with orchardgrass (Dactylis glomerata L.), quackgrass (Agropyron repens L.), and reed canarygrass (Phalaris arundinacea L.) to determine the timing and rate effects of N fertilization for forage production on organic soils in northern Minnesota. Nine N treatments, using 0, 168 and 336 kg N/ha, were applied in single or split (up to four) applications during the growing season. Dry matter (DM) production and crude protein content of the forage were determined in a four-clipping management program. With N fertilization total DM production for the 2-yr study was increased, on the average, by 104, 37, and 121% for orchardgrass, quackgrass, and reed canarygrass. Total production of all three grasses was significantly increased up to the 336 kg N/ha application. On the control areas (0 N) quackgrass produced an average of 61 and 82% more total forage than orchardgrass and reed canarygrass. Split applications of fertilizer N during the growing season had relatively littl...


An increasing number of parents are seeking biomedical interventions for their children on the autism spectrum. Various theories on biomedical treatments exist. Making the decision to explore biomedical interventions more difficult are the unique differences among individuals, the cost involved for evaluations, testing, and treatments, the lack of knowledgeable professionals to consult, and the relatively small amount of easily accessible and understandable research and information available to review.


Monitoring drivers' emotions is the key aspect of designing advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS) in intelligent vehicles. To ensure safety and track the possibility of vehicles' road accidents, emotional monitoring will play a key role in justifying the mental status of the driver while driving the vehicle. However, the pose variations, illumination conditions, and occlusions are the factors that affect the detection of driver emotions from proper monitoring. To overcome these challenges, two novel approaches using machine learning methods and deep neural networks are proposed to monitor various drivers' expressions in different pose variations, illuminations, and occlusions. We obtained the remarkable accuracy of 93.41%, 83.68%, 98.47%, and 98.18% for CK+, FER 2013, KDEF, and KMU-FED datasets, respectively, for the first approach and improved accuracy of 96.15%, 84.58%, 99.18%, and 99.09% for CK+, FER 2013, KDEF, and KMU-FED datasets respectively in the second approach, compared to the existing state-of-the-art methods.


S elf-medication is an important health-related concept. Thomas and Noyce showed that selftreatment of common ailments with nonprescription medicines is almost universal. It is currently accepted that self-care and responsible self-medication can be beneficial for patients and health systems. However, it is also recognized that self-medication must be accompanied by appropriate health information. These ideas are elaborated in a 1994 document from the European Commission, which stressed that community pharmacies have a key responsibility in providing information to the public about nonprescription products and the circumstances under which a physician should be consulted. This function of pharmacists is substantiated by their central role in the distribution of medicines, along with their availability to patients (there are


The transition from subsistence to commercial production poses uncertainty and risks that require putting in place adaptive systems. Such systems are imperative for agricultural production where weather and food markets are always changing. Disregarding risk factors has a cumulative negative impact on the intended outcomes. The marginality of smallholder farmers' operational environment renders them limited to strive without government interventions. Research has proven that smallholder farmers face numerous challenges in vegetable value chains. The study sought to identify and characterise smallholder growers risk factors when producing for this value chain. A sequential mixed-method research design was adopted, and data collected from fifty-eight growers from three producer groups in the Manzini and Hhohho regions. Discriminant analysis validated the heterogeneity of respondents using the experience on risk factors. The growers were significantly affected by market and production risks. The clustered growers had a high probability of losses in the value of the harvest whereas the private growers had a high probability of yield changes. Fruit size and postharvest handling contributed to changes in the value of the harvest. An improved cold chain system could enable symmetry in the harvest scheduling and grade information as well as prompt payments. Interventions toward enabling access and use of quality farm inputs would curb yield variations. Future research could quantify yield losses at each stage of postharvest handling toward informing the risk management strategy.


W hereas the psychological construct and pathophysiological basis of craving for alcohol, a major risk for relapse in alcoholism, has been intensively evaluated in recent years, no measurable biological correlate exists. Neurobiological and psychological similarities between craving and appetite are well established since both are known to be influenced by the mesolimbic brain reward system and its endorphinergic inputs. Recently, leptin, the protein product of the obesity gene, was proposed to be a signal responsible for linking adipose stores with hypothalamic centers regulating energy homeostasis and body weight. In addition, leptin has been shown to alter the gene expression of corticotropin-releasing hormone and pro-opiomelanocortin in the hypothalamus, suggesting a role both in regulating the stress hormone axis and possibly in the endorphinergic modulation of the reward system. Leptin mutually interacts with other neuroendocrine systems involved in the regulation of appetite such as NPY (neuropeptide Y) or the newly discovered hypothalamic peptide CART (cocaineand amphetamineregulated transcript). To prove the hypothesis that leptin is also associated with alcohol craving, we observed craving challenged by alcohol withdrawal and assessed plasma leptin levels (radioimmunoassay) in a consecutive sample of 20 subjects with alcohol dependency 1 and 14 days after onset of withdrawal and in 16 healthy volunteers. To control for mutual interactions of plasma leptin and pituitary-adrenocortical hormone secretion, which is regularly enhanced during withdrawal, plasma cortisol (radioimmunoassay) was also determined. Patients with alcohol dependency and without psychiatric comorbidity were diagnosed according to international classifications (DSM-IV criteria). Mean (SD) age was 43 (10.6) years; weight, 65 (9.1) kg; and body mass index (BMI) (calculated as weight in kilograms divided by the square of height in meters), 20.65 (3.10). Controls did not differ significantly in these data. Normally distributed data were tested for significance using Pearson product moment correlation coefficients, partial correlation coefficients, and t tests for group comparisons. In accordance with prior studies, leptin was highly correlated (r=0.79, P!.001) with the BMI. In subjects with alcohol dependency, leptin levels as well as the leptin-BMI ratio decreased significantly (P!.03) between day 1 and 14 but were significantly elevated at day 14 compared with controls (P!.03). At the onset of withdrawal, self-rated craving for alcohol on a visual analog scale correlated with the leptin-BMI ratio (r=0.68, P!.04). Dichotomization of the patient sample by the common median of BMI revealed an even stronger correlation of leptin plasma level and craving in patients with a BMI lower than 20.56 (r=0.85, P!.005; n=10). During therapy, craving decreased significantly without being related to leptin at day 14, pointing not to a simple relation but to a more complex interaction of leptin with other regulatory systems. Plasma cortisol was positively correlated with clinically assessed withdrawal (Clinical Institute Withdrawal Assessment for Alcohol questionnaire) but without any relation to leptin, leptin-BMI ratio, or craving, suggesting that elevated plasma leptin was independent from withdrawal-induced activation of the pituitaryadrenocortical axis (Figure). This is also confirmed by calculation of the partial correlation of craving with the leptin-BMI ratio controlling for cortisol (r=0.54, P!.02). According to prior results, no association between liver damage ("-glutamyltransferase, aspartate transaminase, alanine transaminase) and leptin levels was seen. Fulton et al recently showed that the rewarding effect of lateral hypothalamic electrical stimulation in rats was attenuated by intracerebroventricular infusion of leptin. In line with their assumptions, our results may also reflect a comparative process underlying behavioral al60


Understanding the biological and biochemical soil properties, as well as its enzymatic activity is important in designing an efficient alternative to demonstrate desired modifications in the soil. Such modifications are related to crop systems, cultivation practices or other human activities. The objective of this study was to evaluate the diversity of some microorganisms ( Bacillus, Pseudomonas, Trichoderma and Fusarium ) and enzymatic activity in soil from soybean crops with different yields. Soil sampling was determined according to the productivity yields of the property, which were divided into high, medium, and low yield. Microorganisms were evaluated by counting populations of fungi and bacteria through serial dilutions of total bacteria, Bacillus, Pseudomonas, Trichoderma and Fusarium . The b-glucosidase, acid phosphatase and arylsulphatase activities were determined by spectrophotometry after one hour of incubation at 37 oC, with the specific substrate p-nitrophenol-b-D-glucopyranoside, p-nitrophenol-phosphate and p-nitrophenyl sulphate, respectively, for each studied enzyme. Urease was determined by the ammonium release method, after incubating the soil with urea for two hours, at 37 oC. Soil samples from the high-yield plot had higher concentrations of Bacillus and total bacteria. The low-yield soil showed a higher level of colonies of the genus Fusarium. The studied enzyme activities (b-glycosidase, arylsulphatase and urea) were found at lower values in soil samples from the high-yield field and differed statistically from the low-yield field. However, in the rhizosphere samples, these enzymes had a higher activity in the high-yield field. In view of these results, it is possible that the yield of soybean plants influences the number of microorganisms and the enzymatic activity of the soil microbiota. Key words: Bacillus , p-nitrophenol-b-D-glucopyranoside, Pseudomonas, Trichoderma and Fusarium


The SEU and latchup rate of a satellite subsystem containing 384 Harris HM-6508 RAMs was observed over a 2 year period. The satellite was in a low polar orbit. A total of 47 single SEUs, 9 double, 1 triple and 1 quadruple events were observed; the multiple events were 19% of the total. No latchup was observed. The error rate was 7.6 × 10-2 SEUs/chip-year and an upper limit was found of the ratio of latchups/SEUs of 1.7 × 10-2. The observed SEU rate was consistent with predictions based upon laboratory test, using the Lawrence Berkeley Laboratory 88" cyclotron.


Remote Field Eddy Current Testing is an important method of testing defects in metal pipeline.In order to improve the defects-testing success rate,we should know the character of Eddy Current in pipeline,a two-dimensional finite element model about pipeline testing with eddy current was modeled in this paper,and the characters of signal amplitude and signal phase at the short field and the remote field in different directions were analyzed illustratively with illustrations.It indicates that: in the axes direction,the signal amplitude attenuates quickly with index in the Remote Field,and slowly in the Short Field;the phase changes little.In the radial direction,the amplitude of Short Field attenuates quickly in the pipe,has a peak in the material of pipe,and changes little out of the pipe;the amplitude of Remote Field also has a peak in the material of pipe,but the value is lower compared to that of Remote Field,while the others changes are little;the phase changes severely in the material of pipe,while smoothly in other areas.It is important for the actual testing jobs.


T he crayfish is one of the most interesting living creatures that can be studied in high school biology. It not only has a variety of fascinating habits, but it is very easily observed and maintained in the laboratory. All of our crayfish are brought in by students. When school begins every September, we ask each class to collect some crayfish from ponds and streams around their homes. Within two or three days we have a supply for the rest of the year. From 10-20 living crayfish usually serve our purposes for one year. Of course, some are kept the year round. The crayfish are kept in ten gallon aquaria, sometimes as many as five to a tank, but many times only one to a tank, depending on how they are to be used. Our crayfish used for dissection are still ordered from a biological supply company because we do not want to deplete the crayfish population in our area. At times, wide-mouth one gallon jugs have been used quite successfully if a crayfish is to be isolated. If a female is carrying eggs or young, a glass-bottom aquarium tank is used with the tank set up on legs so it can be observed from the bottom. A mirror placed under the tank allows an excellent ventral view of the crayfish. There are some habits of the crayfish that can be observed at any time by a class. Crayfish movement can be observed easily, and the students can see the order in which the walking legs are moved. Certain legs can be removed to test the effect of lost appendages. We usually remove one to three legs from four or five different animals. The results are usually surprising to the student. The crayfish are startled so they will use the swift backward movement caused by curling the abdomen quickly. The uropods can be removed and the test made again. These dismembered creatures are kept so the students can observe regeneration. It is best to isolate them, but they can be kept in the same tank if plenty of food is available. A hungry crayfish is cannibalistic. Regeneration experiments should be done early in the year; it will sometimes take weeks or months to observe successful regeneration. Regeneration will occur only when molting takes place. The molting process only takes a few minutes and it is mostly by chance that students are able to observe it. We have only observed molting twice in the last three years. The crayfish will arch the cephalothorax and abdomen slightly. A split will develop between these two body segments and suddenly the animal will flip the abdomen as if to swim backwards. It slips out of the old exoskeleton and does not split the cephalothorax or abdomen as might be expected. The exoskeleton is whole and completely undamaged. The old exoskeleton must be removed at once if it is to be examined or the crayfish in the tank will devour it. This examination is most rewarding for the students; they are usually amazed at the eyes and stomach parts found in the discard. The freshly molted crayfish that we observed were lighter than normal color with some black bands on the carapace and sides of the abdomen. Within a few hours the normal color will return. If different colored gravel is placed in the tank, the color of the crayfish can be made to change dramatically over a period of a few weeks. This type of experiment is easily done and color changes can


-The study was undertaken to determine food habits and the prevalence of obesity among adult traders (25-65 years) in Umuahia Main Market, Umuahia Abia State, Nigeria. Data for this report was obtained from a cross-sectional survey of 120 traders. A structured questionnaire was used to elicit information on socioeconomic characteristics and dietary pattern. Information on anthropometry was also determined using standard methods. Body Mass Index (BMI) and waist-hip-ratio were calculated. Data obtained from the study were subjected to statistical analysis, using statistical package for social sciences (SpSS) version 17. The results of the different variables collected revealed that majority of the respondents 48(40.0%) were within the ages of 25-35 years. Information on educational status showed that the highest educational qualification attained by majority (65.8%) was secondary school. Food habit profile of the respondent shows that breakfast was the most skipped meal (31.7%) followed by lunch (24.2%). Pastries, carbonated drinks, alcohol and fruits were consumed daily by 32(26.7%), 12(10%), 13 (10.8%) and 53 (44.2%) respectively and about 1/4 th (25.8%) of the respondents patronizes food vendor. BMI result showed that 29.2% of the respondents were obsessed, (out of which 37 were female and 8 males), 26.8% of the females were overweight, 18.3% had normal body weight and 2.8% were underweight. The result of waist-Hip-ratio (WHR) on figure 2 shows that 30% of the respondents had abdominal obesity out of which 29 were females and 7 males. The high prevalence of obesity and underweight found in this study underscores the need for effective nutrition education among the adult traders.


Water-weakening effect is one of the most important factors inducing large deformation and stability problems of shale strata in the Huangjiazhai Tunnel. The influence of water on shale with various water contents and its mechanism still needs more study. In this paper, the X-ray diffraction and water absorption test were first conducted to determine the influence of mineral components on water-rock interaction. Then, a series of rock mechanical tests, including uniaxial compressive test, Brazilian disk test, and triaxial compressive test, were carried out on shale under dried condition, wetted condition with various water contents, and saturated condition. For the uniaxial compression, tension, and triaxial compression, the softening coefficient could reach 0.38, 0.63, and 0.52, respectively. Based on the macroscale experiments, a numerical case study of tunnel excavation was investigated to evaluate the water effect. Finally, with the aid of scanning electron microscope and failure morphology, the mechanism of water-weakening effect on shale was discussed from microscopic and macroscopic perspectives. The thickness of the double layer increases with the increase of water immersion time. This paper provides a set of useful data for reference in construction in shale strata, and a methodology to evaluate water-weakening effect through laboratory and numerical modelling approaches.


We present a remarkably simple derivation of an exact time-local master equation describing the dynamics of quantum states in harmonic traps subject to arbitrary fluctuating forces. The relation between our master equation and known master equations of irreversible harmonic oscillator dynamics are established. Motivated by recent experiments, we focus on decoherence and in particular on the precise decoherence dynamics of a superposition of wave packets. We determine the decaying purity resulting from the time evolution based on our master equation and study its connection to experimentally accessible observables. Finally, we discuss the heating of the system subjected to arbitrary Gaussian noise.


High-quality films were produced by coevaporation and cosputtering of Y, Cu, and BaF/sub 2/ followed by an ex-situ anneal. The Y/sub 1/Ba/sub 2/Cu/sub 3/O/sub 7-x/ films produced had microwave surface resistances as low as 1/10 that of Cu at 77 K and 10 GHz. This process is especially useful for producing uniform films over areas larger than 1 in/sup 2/ and is compatible with lift-off or traditional etch patterning processes for fabrication of microwave devices. More than 100 films have been deposited on


Knowledge of partial discharges (PDs) is important to diagnose and predict the health of insulation. Using a well established and experimentally verified model of PD for ellipsoidal voids (Niemeyer and Gutfleisch [1995]), it has been shown that a part of the underlying dynamics of the PD process can be explained by using the principles of chaos mathematics. This paper further indicates the possible use of chaos mathematics for the recognition and distinction between PD faults. Chaos refers to a state where the predictive abilities of a systems' future are lost and the system is rendered aperiodic. It has been shown that the PD phenomenon is rendered chaotic due to presence of memory effects and timelags. The analysis of PD using deterministic chaos comprises of the study of the basic system dynamics of the PD phenomenon. This involves the construction of the PD attractor in state-space and its quantification by means of dynamic qualifiers using chaos algorithms. The evolution of the PD system is studied using time series as well as state-space graphs and chaotic attractors have been determined for ellipsoidal voids in epoxy. A dynamic qualifier called the Lyapunov exponent, which describes dynamic behavior of the attractor qualitatively as well as quantitatively, has been evaluated for the above two cases. To the knowledge of the authors, this is the first attempt to show chaos mathematics as a promising way of analyzing PDs and recognizing PD faults.


Current commercial elbow braces have a straight hinge that does not account for the native carrying angle of the elbow. The objective of this study was to determine the effectiveness of a custom-designed hinged elbow orthosis (HEO) with variable valgus angulations in stabilizing a lateral collateral ligament (LCL) deficient elbow. Eight cadaveric upper extremities were mounted in an elbow motion simulator in the abducted varus gravity-loaded position. The specimens were examined before and after simulated LCL injury and then with the addition of the custom-designed HEO with 0°, 10°, and 20° of valgus angulation. Kinematic data were recorded using an electromagnetic tracking system. The LCL injured state with or without the brace resulted in significant increases in varus angulation of the elbow compared to the intact state in both pronation and supination ( P < 0.05). There were no significant differences in varus-valgus angulation or ulnohumeral rotation between any of the brace angles and the LCL injured state with the forearm pronated and supinated. The custom-designed HEO did not provide any additional stability to the LCL injured elbow. The varus arm position should be avoided during the rehabilitation of an LCL injured elbow even when an HEO is used.


The establishment of a competitive market requires different government policies in states dominated by public property from the approach taken in countries with economies based on private ownership.


In order to improve the road performances of base course made of large stone porous asphalt mixture(LSPM),MAC(multigrade asphalt cement) modified asphalt was used in LSPM,the performances of matrix aphalt,MAC modified asphalt and SBS modified asphalt were compared,the material composition design,construction technology and the road performances of MAC modified LSPM,such as high-temperature stability,anti-fatigue property,permeability and anti-reflective crack property,were studied,and test roads were constructed. Test result shows that the porosity of LSPM is between 13% and 18%,its asphalt membrane is thicker than 12 μm,its modulous is between 400 and 600 MPa,the rut depth of test road opening to traffic for two years is between 4 and 8 mm. Obviously,MAC modified LSPM has better road performances. 4 tabs,2 figs,16 refs.


Objective:The elevation of the percentage of regulatory CD4+CD25+ T lymphocytes (Treg) has been recently described during septic shock. The objective of the present study was to investigate whether this increased percentage was due to Treg proliferation. Design:Observational study. Setting:Adult intensive care units in a university hospital. Subjects:Patients with septic shock (n = 54) and healthy individuals (n = 30). Interventions:None. Measurements and Main Results:In patients, we first confirmed the increased percentage of Treg among CD4+ lymphocytes in comparison with healthy individuals. Surprisingly, regarding absolute counting, we demonstrated that both T CD4+ lineages (CD25+ and CD25−) were diminished immediately after the onset of shock. Then, whereas Treg returned rapidly to healthy donors values, CD4+CD25− T lymphocytes remained dramatically reduced. Finally, Foxp3 (Treg-related gene) messenger RNA quantification enabled us to definitively rule out a lack of proliferation since it was not increased during shock. Conclusion:The increased percentage of Treg after shock is due not to their proliferation but to a decrease in CD4+CD25− T lymphocyte number. We hypothesize that it might be due to a resistance of Treg to apoptosis processes occurring during septic shock.


This work presents an efficient method based on a modified fuzzy PI control with parallel fuzzy PD control for automatic generation control (AGC) of a two-area power system. This describes the control schemes required to operate the two-area power system in the steady state. The model of a two-area power system is established using the equations describing dynamic behaviour of a two-area power system and control schemes in Matlab-Simulink program respectively. The performances of different controllers for variable inputs are compared for the same two area power system. The dynamic response of the load frequency control problem are studied using MATLAB simulink software. The results indicate that the proposed Fuzzy logic controller exhibits better performance.


In this paper a new low power flip-flop called Double-edge triggered Modified Hybrid Latch FlipFlop (DMHLFF) has been proposed and compared to previous flip-flops. DMHLFF is a low power, low area, and fast flip-flop. Power consumption is reduced by avoiding unnecessary internal node transition. Power consumption in clock tree is also reduced by decreasing the frequency of clock to half of the clock frequency in single edge triggered flipflop for the same throughput. These capabilities are obtained by modifying the structure of conventional Hybrid Latch Flip-Flop without any penalty in area. Reducing the number of transistor in stack leads to having less delay and thus higher operational speed compared to others flip-flops Keyword : low power, Edge-triggered flip-flop, node transition, LFSR.


Zhoushan Dialect's appellation system among kinship is a linguistic reflection of Zhoushan's kinship system and local culture.On the basis of the field survey on Zhoushan Dialect's appellation system,the paper makes a detailed analysis from the aspects of clan kinship(including the direct clan and associated clan),affiliated kinship and affinal kinship,and summarizes the general characteristics of Zhoushan Dialect's appellation,that is,Zhoushan Dialect's appellation system among kinship reflects the order between seniors and juniors,the distinguish between interpersonal relationship,and difference between male and female.


Abstract Neurovascular compression syndromes are compression of cranial nerves by blood vessels leading to troublesome symptoms. They mostly occur due to a single vessel loop compression. Here, we report two rare cases with simultaneous fifth and eighth nerve compression by anterior inferior cerebellar artery and superior cerebellar artery loops together.


Objective-To evaluatea history of remoteheadinjury asa riskfactor for subsequent dementia duetoAlzheimer's disease. participants ofa communitybasedlongitudinal studyofagingin northManhattan without evidence ofsignificant cognitive impairment wereinterrogated forahistory ofheadinjury ontwo occasions atentryintothestudy. The exminngphysician soughta history of headinjury withlossofconciousness. Independently, a riskfactor interviewer inquired abouta history ofheadinjury withlossofconsiousness oramnesia, the duration ofanylossofconsiousness, and thedateoftheheadinjury. Patients were followed up withstandardised annual evaluations foruptofiveyearstodeterminethefirst occurrence ofdementia. Results-Over thecourseofthestudy incident dementia duetoprobable orpossible Alzheimer's disease wasdiagnosed in39patients. Coxproportional hazards modelling showedthatahistory ofhead injury withlossofconsiousness reported tothephysician wasassociated withearlier onsetofdementia duetoAlzheimer's disease (relative risk(RR)= 4*1,95% confidence interval (95%CI)1-3-12.7). headinjury withlossofconsiousness or amnesiareported totheriskfactor interviewerwas notsignificantly associated withearlier onsetofAlzheimer's disease overall (RR2*0, 95%CI0.7-6.2), butthose whoreported lossofconsiousness exceed


Geospatial technologies are evolving from centralized Geospatial Information System to web-based Geospatial Information Service.In traditional Geospatial Information System,the classification and aggregation of functions imply the categorization of end users.However,in distributed Geospatial Information Service,the categorization of end users determines the classification of services and their mapping to the user's groups.Based on service oriented architecture,this paper analyzes and proposes a service-oriented categorization of user's groups and its correspondent aggregation of services in Geospatial Information Service platform.This categorization and aggregation provides a theoretical foundation for designing Geospatial Information Service Platform and efficient organization and integration of geospatial information service resources.


The ability of circulating leucocytes of non-immunized, cultured sockeye salmon to phagocytize bacteria in the blood stream was examined using two techniques; cannulation of the dorsal aorta (for the injection of bacteria and for blood sampling) and intracardiac injection. With the first technique no phagocytosis was observed in the peripheral blood but there was a rapid uptake of bacteria that was particularly impressive in the kidney. Some phagocytosis in the blood stream, mostly by polymorphonuclear leucocytes, was demonstrated using the second technique but there was the possibility that these phagocytes had actually drained from the renal portal system following caudal blood sampling. The results so far confirm the observations of others that phagocytosis in the peripheral blood of salmonids is insignificant or non-existent.


Data provided by Internet of Things (IoT) are time series and have some specific characteristics that must be considered with regard to storage and management. IoT data is very likely to be stored in NoSQL system databases where there are some particular engine and compaction strategies to manage time series data. In this article, two of these strategies found in the open source Cassandra database system are described, analyzed and compared. The configuration of these strategies is not trivial and may be very time consuming. To provide indicators, the strategy with the best time performance had its main parameter tested along 14 different values and results are shown, related to both response time and storage space needed. The results may help users to configure their IoT NoSQL databases in an efficient setup, may help designers to improve database compaction strategies or encourage the community to set new default values for the compaction strategies.


The development of a progestational response in the glandular epithelium of the cat uterus was studied using electron microscopy and special glycogen staining techniques. In ovariectomized and adrenalectomized animals, the epithelial cells were low cuboidal and lacked an active secretory apparatus. Estradiol treatment induced hypertrophy and the formation of secretory cells which contained numerous profiles of RER, an enlarged Golgi apparatus and apical electron-opaque secretory granules. The chronic administration of progesterone to estradiol-primed animals resulted in antagonism of estradiol-induced cytodifferentiation and the development of a progestational response in the glandular epithelium. After 1 day of estradiol plus progesterone treatment fewer secretory granules were observed, the RER was constricted, and the Golgi apparatus appeared less active; after 2 days, very few secretory granules were observed. Coincident with this antiestrogenic action, progesterone induced additional hypertrophy and the differentiation of cytoplasmic organelles associated with glycogen synthesis. Glycogen deposition occurred between days 2 and 4 of estradiol-plus-progesterone treatment. Numerous polyribosomes and circular profiles of membrane appeared to be associated with glycogen deposition. These membranes frequently had glycogen around their perimeter, and sometimes they were found embedded in large glycogen deposits. With continued progesterone treatment, glycogen processing occurred. The RER became extremely dilated, and a few halo granules were observed. Both the dilated RER and the halo granules appeared to be surrounding glycogen, and glycogen was frequently found bound by membrane as well as within the electron-lucent portion of the halo granule. As glycogen processing continued, the glycogen deposits began to disappear, and some cells appeared to die. The remainder differentiated into shorter residual cells which, after 10–14 days, contained numerous halo granules and constricted RER. The chronic administration of progesterone to nonprimed ovariectomized and adrenalectomized animals resulted in a cytodifferentiation sequence similar to that in the estradiol-primed animals, except that the response was delayed and was not as uniform between cells from the same animal. Thus, within each epithelial cell of the endometrial glands of the cat, the principal responses induced by progesterone in both estradiol-primed and nonprimed animals were the synthesis, deposition, and eventual disappearance of glycogen.


The increasing demand and electric energy consumption, by both economic and social society, in addition to the worldwide politics for the implementation of generation systems employing renewable sources, has been determinant factors of the expansion of wind farms in different countries. Given that, scarcely the wind measurement data needed are available to consolidate the basic and fundamental requirements, particularly over Brazil, it is proposed, developed and a methodology is applied, for the assessment of wind energy potential over the country for a year. The required data for the mapping and assessment of wind energy potential, during the year 2011 were produced, for every hour, throughout the mesoscale model WRF (Weather Research and Forecasting) forecasting. The general conclusion of the performed analysis has been the characterization of some region of the country, located nearby the shoreline of the Northeast and South of the county, as remarkable locals favorable for the installation of wind farms. However, it has been also pointed out that there are several other areas, scattered over the country, which can be suitable places with great energy potentiality.


Signalized intersection has the vital importance in the traffic analysis of both arterial and urban roads. Traffic movement from through, right turning, left turning directions meet at a particular junction. These are the areas, which may give rise to conflict or congestion. The capacity of the intersection may vary due to the factors such as lane width, approach grade, categories of vehicle and road users or driving behaviors. The proper planning, design, operation, and management of urban road street network depends upon capacity of the intersection. Saturation Flow rate is one of the important parameter which may affect the capacity of any signalized intersection. It is necessary to design the signal cycle timing as per the required saturated flow of traffic. It is one of the important parameter which is considered while designing of signalized Intersection. Different researchers have given different definitions of saturation flow rate. As per the highway capacity manual saturation flow rate is the equivalent hourly rate at which vehicle can traverse a path in vehicle per hour of green time assuming green signal is provided for 100 % of time. Heterogeneous traffic flow should be considered while determining the saturation flow rate. This paper attempts to study the methodologies used at various locations for determining the saturation flow rate considering varying traffic parameters. It is also tried to identify the suitable methodology for determination of saturated flow rate and related important parameters. Based on the graphical analysis it can be stated that the parameters like headway, PCU, lane width, traffic composition, start -up lost time and Flow plays the important role for determination of saturation flow.


SuperKEKB phase I commissioning finished in 2016, according to the results of RF gun and laser system operation, some improvements are under doing for achieving more stable laser system. Neodymium laser system is decided to be used for SuperKEKB phase II commissioning. Meanwhile, another RF gun is built for electron generation. In order to realize reliable and continuous laser operation for RF gun, a backup Neodymium solid state laser system will be built recently. Spatial filter will be adopted for getting high laser beam quality. On the other hand, Ytterbium laser system will be used in SuperKEKB phase III. Ethanol cooling system is under designing to generate high laser output energy with good laser beam quality to remove thermal effect under high repetition rate.


There is a popular idea that hard water has a bad effect on animals in some general indefinite way. It is thought that the coat of horses and cattle is made rougher, and that the animals do not "do as well" if forced continually to drink hard water. This belief is particularly prevalent among poultry raisers. Veterinary literature contains numerous allusions to the deleterious effect of hard water, some of which have been quoted in connection with previous papers on concretions.


A significant use of plants and their products as herbal medicine is the traditionally important mode of treatment all over the world. The present work is aimed to evaluate the therapeutic potential of Erythrina indica leaves extracts. The crude extract of Erythrina indica leaves was evaluated for antimicrobial, antioxidant and phytochemical analysis against ear pathogens. E. indica crude extracts showed moderate antimicrobial activities. The Minimum inhibitory concentration 3.12 mg/ml of methanol extract was found effective against S. epidermidis and H. influenzae. The fungitoxic effects of the methanol extract on the mycelial growth of test fungi was determined which is found above 600 μg/ml. Antioxidant activity of methanol extract of Erythrina indica leaves was found lower than ascorbic acid by DPPH free radical scavenging activity. The phytochemical screening for MeOH extract of E. indica revealed the presence of phenols, flavonoids, glycosides, alkaloids, steroids and tannins. This study supports the use of Erythrina indica in herbal medicine and as a base for the development of new drugs and phytomedicine in rationale for its use in treatment of ear diseases.


The discovery of the essential ribonuclease RNase J1, involved in global mRNA decay in Bacillus subtilis, has paved the way for studies on the turnover pathways of specific RNAs in this organism. Here we report an effect of RNase J1 depletion on both the maturation and degradation of the hbs mRNA, encoding the B. subtilis orthologue of the histone‐like protein HU. The major hbs transcript observed in wild‐type cells is generated by the blocking of 5′‐to‐3′ exonuclease activity of RNase J1 by ribosomes initiating translation of this mRNA. Increasing the strength of the Shine–Dalgarno (SD) sequence leads to greater accumulation of this species, while weakening of the SD leads to its disappearance. The 5′‐to‐3′ exonuclease activity of RNase J1 is also required for the turnover of the hbs mRNA, specifically the 3′ half of the transcript. For both the maturation and degradation reactions, RNase J1 access to the mRNA requires prior endonucleolytic cleavage.


Sorption properties of materials based on sodium liquid glass modified by polyvinyl alcohol and polyvinylpyrrolidone on regarding to different acid-base indicators were investigated. The effect of the nature of metal and polymer modifier (polyvinyl alcohol and polyvinylpyrrolidone) on the amount of active centers and specific active surface area of such material was determined. Moisture absorption of modified and not modified silicate materials was founded. The effect of Ni-containing polymer-silicate materials on the speed of curing of compositions based on unsaturated polyester resins was determined. words:


In order to assess index weighted value scientifically, the matter element were introduced into the fuzzy weighted values to set up matter element model based on fuzzy weight. In this way, the model not only holds the merit of classical matter element, but also overcomes its limitations in practice. Referring to Chinese lakes eutrophication standard, the eutrophication degree of lake is divided into 6 grades in this paper. Five indexes, namely Chl-a, TP, TN, CODMn and SD, are selected as evaluation indexes. The model was applied to evaluate the eutrophication of Shengzhong reservoir and the results is in line with the actual It showed that are The fourth upper-mesotrophic(IV) in Shengzhong reservoir, while the eutrophication of Dashiqiao is most serious. The proposed method is proved to be reasonable and reliable, and can be used in comprehensive evaluation problems of lakes eutrophication. Finally, we analyze the causes of eutrophication in Shengzhong reservoir and put forward the control measure.


In order to develop a safe and effective gene therapy for cancer, more powerful therapeutic genes must be selected and a gene transduction methodology needs to be devised that minimizes the total dose of vector required. We investigated the combination effect of 5‐fluorouracil (5‐FU), a first‐choice drug for the treatment of colorectal cancer and adenovirus‐mediated transfer of caspase‐8 in DLD‐1 colon cancer cells.


The aim of this study was to analyze physicochemical parameters  and  total  microbial indicators  of river water  in Tapung Kiri river. Water samples were taken from  4 sampling sites in  July  2013.  The results showed that the range of  TDS,  turbidity,  electrical conductivity,  and nitrate in  the  water samples  were  9-21 mg/L, 3.89-41.1 NTU, 17.72-42.0 µs/cm,  and  0.112-0.508 mg/L, respectively which  were  below of  the threshold value. Temperature, pH, DO,  and  phosphate content range  were  27-29oC,  4.75-6.30,  3.36-3.96 mg/L, and 0.089-0.235 mg/L at the threshold value based on PP No 82 2001. The level of Coliform  and  E. coli  contamination in  the  water samples were  0.4-18×10 3 CFU/mL and 0.1-4×10 3 CFU/mL.  The level of total bacteria contamination was found in all samples ranged from  0.43-4.6×10 4 MPN/mL, while the fungi  contamination was  0.1-0.3×10 3 CFU/mL.


In recent years, extensive use has been made on the use of renewable energy sources in all applications for power-output or heat-thermal power. One of the promising applications is the use of hydrogen as a fuel and/or enhancing the performance of the internal combustion engine.
We have seen the use of natural gas and LPG, but not yet the use of hydrogen where for various reasons has not been applied in our area. Almost all automakers have addressed the issue in various applications. In this dissertation an attempt will be made to use hydrogen in an SI engine (in the thermodynamics lab) and to examine its performance in relation to the supplied hydrogen flow.
Initially: (a) Tests will be carried out to extract the behavior of the engine with conventional fuels; (b) Hydrogen injection tests will be conducted by a commercially available hydrogen cylinder (99.99%) and the whole engine behavior will be examined with various gas flows in relation to the behavior of the engine. Finally, a comparison will be made on the energy and economic performance of the existing state of affairs with the use of hydrogen and at what rate this will be feasible.


In the design of model reference adaptive control (MRAC) schemes, adaptive laws have been developed based on Lyapunov stability theory. Over the past few decades, it has been a common practice to use quadratic Lyapunov functions (QLF). In contrast to such development, using a new nonquadratic Lyapunov function (NQLF), this paper presents new adaptive laws for the MRAC. These new laws have the same advantage of assurance of stability of the overall system, as the earlier adaptive laws developed using the QLF. Over and above, they have an additional advantage of improved performance: in fact, the use of NQLF improved the system output error signal converging to zero. Finally, this paper also presents simulation results supporting the arguments.


The Australian Ocean Data Network (AODN) is a rapidly growing distributed data network
bringing together marine data collections from Commonwealth Agencies, Universities, State
Governments, national programs and private industry. These data are made publicly available
through the AODN portal (http://portal.aodn.org.au), an open source information infrastructure
itself downloadable from https://github.com/aodn/aodn-portal. Increasingly, the data collections
are multi-disciplinary requiring access to multiple layers of information from different sources.


The present invention provides an antibaterial functional material which sufficiently exerts an antibacterial function of conductive zinc oxide. The antibaterial functional material is formed through sintering an inorganic adhesive which comprises zinc oxide particles that are doped with Al and/or Ga on a substrate surface. Sodium metasilicate is preferably used as the inorganic adhesive. More preferably, the zinc oxide which is doped with Ga is dispersed in water and is added into the sodium metasilicate solution for being mixed for preparing an injection solution. Furthermore the injection solution is injected on the substrate. After drying, the substrate is heated to 150-170 DEG C for being sintered.


Phyllodes tumor is a group of tumors with spesific histopathologic features. The characteristic feature is a double layered epithelial component arranged in clefts surrounded by an overgrowing hypercellular mesenchymal components typically organized in leaf-like structures. Adjunctions subclassifications as benign, borderline or malignant must be used when diagnosing a phyllodes tumor. The subclassifications differences were based on its histological characteristics and had been used to predict the biologic behaviour of the tumor. There are difficulties in diagnosing phyllodes tumor due to morphological resemblance with fibroadenomas and problems related to various stromal and glandular epithelium variations. Method. This is a descriptive study. Twenty-five slides and paraffin block from phyllodes tumor patients available at Departement of Anatomical Pathology Medical Faculty University of Sumatera Utara and Haji Adam Malik Hospital Medan were included in this study. The patients characteristics and histopathological features were evaluated using the hematoxilin-eosin slides. Results. A total of 25 women were diagnosed with phyllodes tumor during the study period. Their ages ranged from 20 to 59 years and 60% of them are over than 40 years. Histologic classification revealed 92% benign, 8% borderline and no malignant tumors. Majority benign and all borderline phyllodes tumors exhibit an enhanced intracanalicular growth pattern with leaf-like projections into dilated lumens. Majority of the tumors also exhibit myxoid degeneration. Conclusions. Histologic classification revealed benign tumors found in majority patients. Several histologic features such as an enhanced intracanalicular growth pattern and myxoid degeneration found in majority case. Keywords— Phyllodes tumor, clinical features, histopathologic features, grade, stromal variations.


1. Eleven strains of typical Aspergillus species were irradiated with ultraviolet rays. The authors obtained the Albino type mutants from 8 of them, i.e. A. nidulans, A. oryzae, A. tamarii, and A. wentii.2. From A. candidus no color mutants were obtained. The green or bluish species never produce black mutants and from the black species no green or bluish mutant.3. Color mutants of conidial heads obtained from each strain were classified into 8 types: i.e. Black, Brown, Cinnamon, Buff, Albino, Yellow, Yellowish Green, and Green.4. The mutants obtained were classified also from the characteristics other than the color of conidial heads, that is from the size of conidial heads, the pigment on the reverse of colonies, and the appearance of mycelia.5. The sclerotia producing mutant has been prevalently obtained from A. tamarii and A. ochraceus.6. The correlations were discussed between the classification of Aspergillus species and the tendencies of colorations of their color mutants.


Abstract In this paper we explore learning-based predictive cruise control and the impact of this technology on increasing fuel efficiency for commercial trucks. Traditional cruise control is wasteful when maintaining a constant velocity over rolling hills. Predictive cruise control (PCC) is able to look ahead at future road conditions and solve for a cost-effective course of action. Model- based controllers have been implemented in this field but cannot accommodate many complexities of a dynamic environment which includes changing road and vehicle conditions. In this work, we focus on incorporating a learner into an already successful model- based predictive cruise controller in order to improve its performance. We explore back propagating neural networks to predict future errors then take actions to prevent said errors from occurring. The results show that this approach improves the model based PCC by up to 60% under certain conditions. In addition, we explore the benefits of classifier ensembles to further improve the gains due to intelligent cruise control.


2. What is restorative justice/practice? 2.1 Why should 'restorative approaches' be limited to addressing harm? 2.2 Defining harm 2.3 The difference between harm and conflict/disputes 2.4 Practical differences between mediation and restorative justice/practice 2.5 Complex cases: where the blame is shared 2.6 Why confusing restorative justice/practice and mediation can cause harm 2.7 Confusing restorative conversations with conflict-resolution techniques 2.8 Confusing restorative approaches and 'pro-active' processes


Training and instruction are playing a more and more important role in the ILO's technical cooperation programmes. This book is a welcome reference tool on different training approaches. Adult education faces the challenges of renewal, not only in developing countries but also in industrialised countries. The author states that instructional patterns exercised widely in school teaching and applied in adult education are the main reason for existing crises.


Nowadays, in the complicated electromagnetic environment, the complex interferences, including the narrowband interferences (NBIs) and wideband interferences (WBIs), may severely affect the imaging quality of synthetic aperture radar (SAR) systems. Most traditional methods can only tackle with one kind of isolated interferences, NBIs or WBIs. In this paper, we first strictly derive the low-rank property of both NBIs and WBIs and then employ the robust principal component analysis (RPCA) to simultaneously suppress them. Unlike the traditional methods, the proposed method is capable to tackle with complicated interferences, not only the isolated NBIs or WBIs. The real X-band SAR data is provided to demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed method.


The 1984 withdrawal of U.S. contributions to UNESCO has thrust the issue of who controls the creation of information, and who therefore has audience access and to what effect before the public. While the debate there centres around the reporting of news, the underlying issues are broader. In their broad form they are manifest in the educational sphere. Just as news is organized for consumption by a very few very large corporations and disseminated to the rest of the world, so educational materials are created consistent with the business interests of only a slightly larger group of firms based primarily in the United States. The focus of the first section of the present article is upon the business practices which account for the bias which is manufactured into educational materials by the dominance of the learning materials market by a few, large (foreign based) multinationals operating in Canada. However, the arguments put forward are germane to all countries concerned with the cultural function of education. The focus of the latter sections is


The invention discloses aqueous ultraviolet-cured gravure gloss oil, which is prepared from the following raw materials in parts by weight: 60-90 parts of aqueous UV (Ultraviolet) resin, 2-8 parts of aqueous ultraviolet initiator, 3-8 parts of water, 8-15 parts of alcohol, 3-5 parts of a water and fog resistant auxiliary, 0.1-1 part of a defoaming agent, and 0.1-1 part of a leveling agent. The invention provides the aqueous ultraviolet-cured gravure gloss oil with the advantages of both aqueous gloss oil and UV gloss oil and the characteristics of low energy consumption, rapid curing reaction and low VOC (Volatile Organic Compounds) emission.


The research of new control methods that have low negative effects represent an alternative aiming to limit disadvantages of chemical control of pests. This study aimed to test the effect of 11 aqueous plant extracts belonging to four species (Santolina africana, Juniperus thurifera, Artemisia herba-alba and Pituranthos scoparius), on the larvae of the aphid Aphis craccivora installed on the leaves of Robinia pseudoacacia under laboratory conditions. The insecticidal effect of aqueous extracts on the mortality of aphids was evaluated by the introduction of acacia leaflet into an extract and infestation of them by 10 larvae of the aphid. Later, a counting of dead larvae after 3, 6, 12 and 24 h was performed. In addition, we investigated the effect of the aqueous extracts on the orientation of the aphids by putting the latter in a position of choice between six leaflets, each treated with a different extract. In addition, a phytochemical screening was carried out to detect the presence of saponins and polyphenols in the extracts studied. Through our study, the extract obtained from S. africana at a concentration of 15% was the most effective with a mortality rate higher than 80% after 24 h of artificial infestation. As for the effect of the four extracts on the orientation of the cowpea aphid, they did not attract the larvae massively. Regarding phytochemical screening, differences in the chemical composition of the analyzed extracts were observed. These differences may explain in part the variation of aphicidal effects of tested plant extracts.


Abstract Background New predictive biomarkers for cetuximab-resistance for patients with RAS wild-type colorectal liver metastases (CRLM). Methods 216 patients with initially unresectable liver-limited RAS wild-type CRLM were identified from previous clinical studies. Among these patients, 103 patients received chemotherapy (mFOLFOX6 or FOLFIRI) plus cetuximab, and 113 received chemotherapy alone as first-line treatment. Next-generation sequencing of primary tumors was done for single nucleotide polymorphism according to custom panel. The patients receiving cetuximab-based chemotherapy were divided into two groups: one group was cetuximab-resistant group and the other group was cetuximab-sensitive group. Potential predictive biomarkers were determined by "random forest" machine learning. Results Ten potential predictive genes, namely RET, PTPN11, FLT3, AKT1, ACTN4, ERBB4, FGFR3, MDC1, CUL9, and ZNF462, were identified. In the cohort of cetuximab-based chemotherapy, patients with all-wild-type genes had markedly improved median progression-free survival (12.0 vs. 4.0 months, P  Conclusions Ten new predictive mutations help to refine the selection of RAS and BRAF wild-type metastatic colorectal cancer patients candidates for anti-EGFRs. Legal entity responsible for the study Zhongshan Hospital. Funding The National Natural Science Foundation of China. Disclosure All authors have declared no conflicts of interest.


Objective:To explore the clinical value of bone metabolic markers osteocalcin (BGP) and deoxypyridinoline (DPD) in multiple myeloma (MM).Method:Serum BGP、Ca、P、AKP and urine deoxypyridinoline/creatinine(DPD/Cr)were measured in 12 newly diagnosed and post treated MM patients and in sex age matched controls.Result:Serum level of BGP in the patients before treatment was much lower than in controls(P 0.01 ),and the serum BGP was slightly elevated after treatment(P 0.05 ).The urine DPD/Cr level was dramatically higher in newly diagnosed patients than in controls(P 0.001 ),and the urine DPD/Cr level was significantly decreased after treatment(P 0.001 )than that before treatment.The serum Ca、P and AKP concentrations were same between MM patients and controls(P 0.05 ).Conclusion:BGP and DPD could be considered as sensitive markers in reflecting bone lesions in MM,and DPD might be used to predict therapeutic response.


Hawking radiation and Bekenstein-Hawking entropy are the two robust predictions of a yet unknown quantum theory of gravity. Any theory which fails to reproduce these predictions is certainly incorrect. While several approaches lead to Bekenstein-Hawking entropy, they all lead to different sub-leading corrections. In this article, we ask a question that is relevant for any approach: Using simple techniques, can we know whether an approach contains quantum or semi-classical degrees of freedom? Using naive dimensional analysis, we show that the semi-classical black-hole entropy has the same dimensional dependence as the gravity action. Among others, this provides a plausible explanation for the connection between Einstein's equations and thermodynamic equation of state, and that the quantum corrections should have a different scaling behavior.


Customers demand and manufacturers strive for increasingly higher product reliability. Statistics plays a key role in achieving this. Necip Doganaksoy, William Q. Meeker and Gerald J. Hahn explain how


A HEMT-compatible power lateral field effect rectifier (L-FER) is reported and fabricated using the CF4 plasma treatment on a GaN-on-Si wafer. The power rectifier features a Schottky-gate-controlled two-dimensional electron gas (2DEG) channel between the cathode and anode. By tying up the Schottky gate and anode together, the forward turn-on voltage (VF, ON) of the rectifier is determined by the threshold voltage of the channel instead of the Schottky barrier. The L-FER with a drift length of 15 μm features a VF, ON of 0.78 V at a current density of 100 A/cm2. This device also exhibits a reverse breakdown voltage (BV) of 460 V at a current level of 1mA/mm and a specific on-resistance (RON, sp) of 2.3 mΩ·cm2, yielding a figure-of-merit (BV2/RON, sp) of 92 MW/cm2. The high temperature characteristics of the L-FER are also investigated. The measurement results show a robust high temperature operation up to 250 °C. The excellent device performances, together with the lateral device structure and process compatibility with AlGaN/GaN HEMT, provide a low-cost solution for GaN power integrated circuits. (© 2009 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)


The study of the behaviour of different nodes is a remarkable achievement in the wireless sensor networks. Wireless sensor network are hierarchical clustered. Cluster based routing protocols are proven to be energy efficient when compared to other routing protocols. Most of the cluster based routing protocols, especially low energy adaptive clustering hierarchy (LEACH) protocol, follows dynamic, distributed and randomized (DDR) algorithm for clustering. Since there is a lot of randomness present in the cluster process, number of cluster heads generated varies highly from the optimal count. In proposed work, some assumptions are made like a part of sensor nodes used for additional energy. This additional energy is varied in accordance to operation of network. An Advance LEACH MAC protocols can be designed for heterogeneous network. Result demonstrates that the efficiency is improved in comparison of traditional leach process.


Our laboratory is interested in intramuscular injection of plasmid DNA as a method of eliciting immune responses. This requires large-scale preparation of plasmid DNA because 4–8 mg of plasmid DNA can be required for a single experiment. Several techniques are available for large-scale preparation of plasmid DNA, including ion-exchange resin and CsCl gradient centrifugation (1,2). We have been purifying plasmid DNA using CsCl gradient centrifugation and have found that an additional centrifugation step, during removal of CsCl, increases the DNA yield at least twofold. Following the protocol established by Maniatis et al. (2), we purified the plasmid DNA on CsCl gradients, extracted the ethidium bromide (EtdBr) with isoamyl alcohol and removed the CsCl by adding 3 vol of H2O (to dilute the CsCl) and 2 vol of 100% ethanol (to precipitate the DNA) as described. While this will precipitate some of the plasmid DNA, we have found that a significant proportion of it is retained in the supernatant. We added 2 vol of 70% ethanol to the decanted supernatant to determine whether we could recover any of the residual plasmid DNA. By spectrophotometric analysis, we observed that we had isolated an additional 17 mg of plasmid DNA with a high level of purity (Table 1). To determine if the material was similar to the plasmid DNA isolated in the first precipitation, we subjected both plasmid DNAs to restriction enzyme digestion and analysis by gel electrophoresis. As shown in Figure 1, cutting the vector pcDNA-IL-12p40 with BglII and XhoI (Promega, Madison, WI, USA) generated an expected band of approximately 1.9 kb from both the first and second precipitations of plasmid DNA (lanes 2 and 4, respectively). In addition, uncut plasmid DNA from both precipitations generated similar bands after gel electrophoresis (lanes 1 and 3, respectively). We have also performed this procedure with another vector (pcDNA3; Invitrogen, San Diego, CA, USA) and obtained similar results; 5 mg were recovered in the first precipitation and 11 mg were recovered in the second precipitation. We next determined whether


Developing sunny sports plays an important role in improving the physical and mental health of students,is a measure to strengthen physical education in universities during new period. The educational idea of winter sports and the goal of winter sports teaching have a leading function to develop winter sunny sports in universities. Developing winter sunny sports in universities should pay attention to combine the goal of sunny sports with the goal of physical education,grasp the construction of campus' s sports facilities of hardware and physical culture of software,deal well with the relationship between sunny sports and sports in universities,and need to establish a long- effect mechanism,make a long- term strategic developing plan, and provide protection from the laws,regulations and management and other different aspects.


Throughout the manufacturing process of bioprosthetic heart valves the most vigorous quality control techniques have to be employed to ensure the required standards of durability. During development valves are subjected to 'Accelerated Fatigue Testing' which simulates many years of use. High speed photography was used to examine the performance and changing condition of the valves under test.


Calculations of the critical sizes of cubic arrays of interacting fissionable units are compared with critical experiments. The units are of two types: vessels containing 5 liters of an aqueous solution of highly enriched uranium, and cylinders of highly enriched uranium metal. The arrays are surrounded by various thicknesses of hydrogenous reflectors. Agreement between calculation and experiment is reasonably good. The similarity of the results obtained with the widely differing types of units invites confidence in general applications of the method of calculation. Tables are presented for computing critical and safe sizes of cubic arrays of 8, 27, 64, or 125 identical units as a function of the albedo of the reflector surrounding the array and of the reactivity of an individual unit.


: A semi-symmetric vestige of an RNA apparatus with stereochemically controlled ribozyme capabilities is embedded and functions as the site of peptide bond formation within all contemporary ribosomes, a finding that is in line with Lahav and Leiserowitz earlier discoveries on stereochemically controlled chemical reactions. As the structure of this semi-symmetrical self-folded RNA entity is almost fully conserved in all known ribosomes, it seems to be resilient to evolution, thus hinting at its pre-biotic origin and hence, suggested by us, to be the protoribosome. Recent studies, described shortly below, demonstrated peptide bond formation by the laboratory-designed protoribosomes, which supports the notion that a pre-biotic bonding entity is still functioning in all contemporary ribosomes.


The invention discloses a theft-proof motorcycle igniter based on GPS technology. The theft-proof motorcycle igniter based on the GPS technology comprises an ignition control system, an MCU control module, a GPS communication module and a GSM communication module, wherein the MCU control module is used for controlling the work of each module and is connected with the ignition control system; the GPS communication module is used for receiving and processing GPS satellite signals; the GSM communication module is connected with the MCU control module for realizing wireless communication between the MCU control module and a mobile phone of a user or a monitoring center. The theft-proof motorcycle igniter based on the GPS technology has advantages that a theft-proof function is added to a traditional igniter, so that the security problem of the motorcycle is solved, and the theft-proof motorcycle igniter based on the GPS technology further plays roles of monitoring the traveling track and speed at real time and so on; the problem that a thief is easy to find the traditional igniter on the motorcycle is solved, the thief cannot find the igniter through combining a burglar alarm with the igniter, even if the thief finds the igniter, the thief is difficult to start the motorcycle, so that the motorcycle stealing difficulty is increased.


Crystal lattice parameters of mixtures of the normal alkanes n-C23H48 and n-C25H52 have been determined by X-ray powder diffractometry. The c-axis length increases nearly monotonically with increasing C25H52 content, a and b are larger for the mixtures than for the pure substances with maximum values at 15% n-C25H52. The small but significant increases in a of 0.6% and b of 0.9% have not been previously reported.


Deep learning based medical data segmentation methods can provide excellent results already. However, these results are obtained mostly thanks to the large training data sets. Obtaining the sufficient amount of correct annotations might be problematic in the medical field. This paper describes the problem of training medical segmentation models with limited annotations and proposes solutions to address the issue. We compare the baseline segmentation model group with two other model groups. These groups use different means to battle the lack of data problem. First group is pretrained in unsupervised manner and the second one uses human interaction in form of guidance clicks. We train 14 models for each group on subsets with varying number of patients. Segmentation model trained on small number of patients has better results when pretrained in unsupervised manner on the whole trainig set with 70 patients. Better results are obtained with the interactive method, where training on only two patients reaches Dice score 0.929 whereas the preitrained model reaches 0.830 and the baseline model only 0.749.


This paper describes an all-electrostatic electron-beam column which uses conventional electrode assemblies, resulting in a system which is very much smaller than a magnetic lens column. Computer modeling of the electron-optical performance of the column has shown that the concept has promise as a lithography tool. Beam broadening due to electron-electron interactions and aberrations of the final accelerating lens are both small enough to give a resolution which matches that of present-day magnetic columns.


The field experiment was conducted during kharif season 2013 and 2014 at C S Azad University of Agriculture and Technology, Kanpur, Uttar Pradesh to assess the performance of four rice establishment techniques and four weed control measures on weed dynamics, weed control efficiency, productivity and profitability of rice. Weed dynamics were higher in direct seeded rice (DSR) as compared to transplanted rice (TPR). The highest total weed density (214-282 plants/m2) and total weed biomass (40.5-52.2 g/m2) were recorded in DSR while the lowest in TPR. The efficacy of Sesbania brown manuring was significantly higher in both DSR and TPR. Compared with the weedy plots, two hand weeding at 20 DAS/DAT and 45 DAS/DAT followed by Bispyribac sodium 25 g/ha + (Chlorimuron + metsulfuron) 4 g/ha followed by one hand weeding at 45 DAS/DAT provided significant weed control. In both seasons, weed control efficacy was better in DSR and TPR. Across the weed control measures, the mean weed control efficiency ranged from 59.8 -98.6% and 64.2-98.5% at 30 DAS and maturity stage, respectively. TPR produced the maximum rice grain yields. On an average of both years, weed control treatments produced 21 to 43% higher rice grain yield than the weedy plots.


In this paper, a small CPW-fed modified Sierpinski gasket monopole antenna operating with three bands for IEEE802.11 WLAN applications has been proposed and a constructed prototype has been implemented and tested. Measurement results indicate that the designed compact antenna, only 14 mm height and 26 mm width, can provided good bandwidth characteristics. At 2.45 GHz, 5.2 GHz and 5.8 GHz, the monopole antenna can provide about 20%, 8% and 7% bandwidth. The radiation patterns of the antenna at 2.4 GHz, 5.2 GHz and 5.8 GHz are fit for WLAN applications.


Objective  WHO recommends artemisinin suppository formulations as pre‐referral treatment for children who are unable to take oral medication and cannot rapidly reach a facility for parenteral treatment. We investigated factors influencing caretakers' adherence to referral advice following pre‐referral treatment of their children with rectal artesunate suppositories.


A centrifugal partition chromatography (CPC) was applied to separate and purify flavonoids from the extract of Pterocarpus santalinus. Three flavonoids, taxifolin (21 mg), dihydrokaempferol (18 mg), and naringenin (16 mg) were successfully separated from 500 mg of ethyl acetate fraction of P. santalinus using centrifugal partition chromatography with a two-phase solvent system composed of n-hexane-ethyl acetate-methanol-water (4:5:4:5, v/v) in single CPC run. Eryodictyol (8 mg) and quercetin (5 mg) were further purified by HPLC. The purities of the isolated compounds were determined to be over 90% by HPLC analysis and their structures were elucidated by 1 H NMR, 13 C NMR, and ESI-MS.