Poorly cohesive (PC) gastric cancer (GC) is extremely aggressive in progression, and there is an urgent need to identify the molecular pathways involved. We hypothesized the essential role of the RhoA–YAP axis in these mechanisms. The present observational multicenter retrospective study included 133 patients with PC GC treated at two dedicated European surgical centers between 2004 and 2014. YAP nuclear localization was measured by immunohistochemical (IHC) analysis of tissue biopsies. The complete absence of nuclear reactivity was coded as negative expression; we considered "any positive" as low nuclear expression (>0% but <10% of cells) and high nuclear expression (≥10% of cells). Women represented about half of the present series (52%), and the median age was 64 years (p25–p75 range: 53–75). Neoadjuvant and adjuvant treatments were administered to 10% and 54% of the cases, respectively. Extended systemic lymphadenectomy (D2) was the most common (54%). In nearly all cases, the number of retrieved nodes was ≥15, i.e., adequate for tumor staging (94%). An R0 resection was achieved in 80% of the cases. Most patients were pathological T stage 3 and 4 (pT3/pT4 = 79.0%) and pathological N stage 2, 3a, and 3b (pN2/pN3a/pN3b = 47.0%) at the pathological examination. Twenty patients (15%) presented distant metastases. Five-year overall survival (OS) was significantly higher (p = 0.029) in patients with negative YAP (46%, 95% CI 31.1–60.0%) than in the other patients (27%, 17.5–38.1%). Moreover, when controlling for sex, age, pT, pN, and percentage of signet ring cells in the multivariable analysis, YAP expression was a significant predictor of OS (HR 2.03, 95% CI: 1.18–3.51, p = 0.011). Our results provide new insights into the role of the YAP signaling cascade, as its activation was associated with a worse prognosis in PC GC.


a mature larvae about 12-18 inches in the soil. In the spring, the larvae move up to within 1 to 2 inches of the soil surface and pupate. From the middle to the end of May, adults begin to emerge. Peak fly emergence occurs between the first and third week of June. Adult flies emerge for the next four to six weeks, mate and deposit eggs around the base of sugarbeet plants. Eggs hatch in about three days and the new larvae move downward to feed (scar) the tap root and lateral roots. Larval SBRM will feed on the beet through July and August.


A wind tunnel investigation was conducted to determine the performance of a 4000-pound-thrust axial-flow turbojet engine with a high flow compressor. Pressure altitudes included 5000 to 40000 feet with ram pressure ratios from 1.00 to 1.82. Altitudes included 20000 to 40000 feet and ram pressure ratios from 1.09 to 1.75. A comparison is made between engine performance with high flow and low flow compressors.


Experimental results from the COMPASS-C tokamak reveal a sharp threshold in amplitude above which externally applied static resonant magnetic perturbations (RMPs) induce stationary magnetic islands. Such islands (in particular, m=2, n=1 islands) give rise to a significant degradation in energy and particle confinement, suppression of the sawtooth oscillation and a large change in the impurity ion toroidal velocity. The observed threshold for inducing stationary (2,1) islands is consistent with a phenomenological resistive MHD model which takes into account plasma rotation (including poloidal flow damping) and externally applied resonant fields. Broadly similar results are found for applied fields other than m=2, n=1. Other results from RMP experiments are also discussed, such as the stabilization of rotating MHD activity, stimulated disruptions and extensions to the disruptive density limit. Finally, the likely effect of field errors on large tokamaks is briefly examined in the light of the COMPASS-C results


The inter-laboratory validation study on 5 cytotoxicity assays conducted by JSAAE has been described in the preceding articles (see Validation Articles I VI in this issue). Presented here are precise data and the protocols on the MTT assay with two cell lines, HeLa S3 (SC) and SQ-5. Hand-plotted dose-response curves provided unexpected information otherwise difficult to assume from calculated ED50 values and accompanying outputs from the logistic analysis program, LAP-JSAAE. The characteristics of data files from 18 laboratories were visualized together with all the log(ED50) values. Variations on negative controls in the assay revealed technical competence characteristics of each laboratory. Generally low OD590 values have been obtained in the present MTT assay but high inter-laboratory reproducibility was observed with both cell lines. These results will supplement our understanding on the MTT assay carried out in the large-scale inter-laboratory validation.


A novel molecular connectivity index (superscript m)G based on the adjacency matrix is derived in this paper. The index is easy to calculate, and has good discrimination between isomeric benzene halides and esters. (superscript m)G is used to study benzene halides and esters, the water solubility S(superscript w) and the partition coefficients K(superscript ow). The result shows that the water solubility and n-octanol/water partition coefficients are correlated with molecular connectivity index. Molecular connectivity indices method has been used to established correlation equations. The estimated value are well fitted with observed.


See note 1 of the article: "This paper was written by four authors as a multi-vocal collaborative exercise that resulted from our experience as members of the jury of the ethnographic film screening that the Portuguese Anthropological Association (APA) organised in 2016. However, given the conference regulations, which establishes a maximum of three authors per paper, we have collectively decided to provide one name - that of the corresponding author. The de facto authors of this paper are: Humberto Martins (email@example.com, UTAD/CETRAD), Ricardo Seica Salgado (email@example.com, CRIA-UMinho), Raquel Schefer (email@example.com, Sorbonne Nouvelle – Paris 3) and Sofia Sampaio. We hope that, in the near future, the conference organisation may find a way to fully acknowledge this kind of collaborative work."


Multi-component injection moulding has gained enormous importance over the last fifteen years. This is due to development of more sophisticated products and to the constant endeavours to cut costs. One new trend - the combination and integration of well-known processes to a new process - has become more and more important for some years and it still continues to flourish as recent developments are showing. The combination of sandwich-injection moulding and injection-compression moulding is an example for such a process combination. Conventional sandwich injection moulding enables the production of multilayer parts with a skin-core-skin structure. By coupling different materials properties of products can be set in one step systematically. A trend towards thin-walled parts can be observed in the injection-moulding sector. Injection-compression moulding offers the opportunity to produce such parts with improved mechanical properties. The combined process - sandwich injection-compression moulding - was investigated at IKV. It is divided into a three-step injection phase and a subsequent compression phase. The result is a thin-walled, sprueless, sealed, sandwich part. The combination offers an attractive means of producing sandwich constructions that exploit the advantages of the two single-processes. The results of a comparison of sandwich injection moulding and sandwich injection-compression moulding are discussed in this paper.


Musical theater integrated into the curriculum for students with visual impairments is a unique and powerful vehicle for learning. The very essence of musical theater showcases storytelling through dialogue, as well as depicting emotion in music, dance, and human interaction. Through the use of musical theater, students with visual impairments can read a script or lyrics from a song, listen to music that conveys emotion, interact with classmates in role-playing activities, and learn from a unique and creative point of view. Using this multisensory approach for instruction creates a learning environment that connects students with each other and generates understanding and functional skill building through their interactions with the material. VSA, the international organization on arts and disability (previously known as Very Special Arts), affirms that the arts are often utilized to help students with disabilities improve their academic performance because of the engaging and interactive nature of artistic material (2008). Literacy lessons that incorporate musical theater components can give students with visual impairments imaginative ways of interpreting stories through a combination of visual, tactual, auditory, and kinesthetic channels to convey meaning. When incorporated with storytelling, movement, and functional skills, musical theater seamlessly integrates academic requirements with many of the concepts from the expanded core curriculum (ECC). Whether attending a live production or watching a movie musical in the classroom, students can learn about storytelling and character development through comical character interchange, rousing chorus numbers, or the swell of emotion from a song. Although watching musical theater in the school setting creates opportunities to teach both academic and functional skills, attending a live theatrical production can also reinforce an additional combination of skills in as many as seven of the nine areas of the ECC (including social interaction, orientation and mobility, sensory efficiency, and recreation and leisure skills). ECC skills that "must be planned and deliberately taught" can be part of learning about attending the theater (Sapp & Hatlen, 2010, p. 340). Furthermore, classroom discussion about attending live theater also allows students the opportunity to learn about something they might not otherwise have been exposed to. CREATING LESSONS IN MUSICAL THEATER An ideal way to introduce a class to musical theater is to incorporate fundamental elements of music, song, and theatrical terminology as a component of a literacy lesson. Selecting books written specifically about the theater for the lesson is one such way to acquaint students with some of these fundamentals. Harriet Ziefert's Lights on Broadway: A Theatrical Tour from A to Z (2009) is written for a young audience, yet the content is appropriate for all ages because of its concise theatrical anecdotes and information from Broadway's theater professionals. Part of the visual appreciation of a performance is seeing actors moving on stage to illustrate a point. In order to better explain to students with visual impairments how or why actors move onstage, lessons illustrating movement terms like upstage or stage left should be included in the unit. Putting such theatrical terms into practice by asking students to physically move upstage or stage left is a way to modify an academic-based lesson of reading and writing into one that also includes elements of the ECC. Introducing students to the importance of song in musical theater can unlock an entirely new way for teachers and students to engage in academic subjects. Students learn that music and song serve an important element in storytelling: They immediately set the tone of a character's feelings and the mood of a scene in a way that lighting or words alone cannot do. Students with visual impairments, therefore, learn that it is important that they pay attention to the songs and incidental music when watching musicals. …


Two methodologies used in aircraft system developments are Model-Based Safety Analysis (MBSA), which assesses the safety risk associated with design in later stages, and Model-Based Systems Engineering (MBSE), a process that creates the domain models to help design a system. With the continuous growing use of both methodologies, it is inevitable that they will become linked to improve the design process from many aspects. This review identifies and proposes potential links for the integration of MBSA and MBSE by using the V-model of MBSA, thereby resulting in more effective design processes and reduced development costs. The paper addresses a general interpretation of the topic and supplementary case studies within the industry regarding both methodologies. Some benefits of the link between MBSA and MBSE include: utilisation of a wider range of analysis tools, automated communication of important definitions, consistency between both ends, and a potential improvement in confidence regarding design. As this is a preliminary proposal regarding the best approach for using MBSA in combination with MBSE, further research should be performed into the areas of formalized language, defining systems requirements for the usage of this approach, and relationships with the existing regulations and compliance needs. Deux methodes utilisees dans le developpement des avions sont l'Analyse de securite basee sur des modeles (ASBM), qui evalue les risques de securite associes avec la conceptualisation d'etapes anterieures, et l'Ingenierie des systemes basee sur des modeles (ISBM), un processus qui cree des modeles de domaine pour concevoir un systeme. Avec l'utilisation croissante des deux methodes, il est inevitable qu'elles seront liees pour ameliorer le processus de conceptualisation de plusieurs aspects. Cette revue identifie et propose des liens potentiels qui pourraient integrer l'ASBM et l'ISBM, en utilisant le model-V de MBSA, resultant ainsi en des processus de conceptualisation plus efficaces et des couts de developpement reduits. L'article adresse une interpretation generale du sujet et des etudes de cas supplementaires dans l'industrie qui concernent les deux methodes de developpement. Certains des avantages du lien entre ASBM et ISBM incluent: l'utilisation d'une grande gamme d'outils d'analyse, la communication automatisee de de nitions importantes de conceptualisation, la coherence entre les deux extremites, et une confiance amelioree dans la conceptualisation. Comme ceci est une proposition preliminaire concernant la meilleure approche pour combiner l'ASBM et l'ISBM, de plus amples recherches devraient etre menees dans les domaines du langage formel, les exigences des systemes pour utiliser cette approche, les relations avec les reglements actuels et les exigences pour la conformite.


In the spring of 2009 using steel-fibre-reinforced concrete (SFRC) technology, Twintec Industrial Flooring completed a suspended ground floor slab for main contractor Bowmer & Kirkland Construction for a new Tesco import and distribution facility in Teesport.


We first consider conventional multi-channel systems with fixed-power variable-rate transmission of independent data streams as a function of channel variations. In these conventional systems, no data is transmitted through the sub-channels whose received signal strength is below a certain cutoff threshold. We then propose new hybrid adaptive modulation and diversity schemes for multi-channel transmission systems. The proposed hybrid schemes attempt to increase the overall spectral efficiency by (i) transmitting redundant information symbols through the deeply faded sub-channels that are not to be used in conventional multi-channel systems and then (ii) diversity combining these replicas at the receiver end. We evaluate the performance of the newly proposed hybrid schemes and compare their spectral efficiency with that of (i) the conventional scheme and (ii) a benchmark scheme which maximizes the overall spectral efficiency but is too complex for practical implementation. We show using some selected numerical examples that the proposed hybrid schemes offer spectral efficiency very close to that of the optimal scheme with much reduced complexity.


Because social networks are an important aspect of the lived realities of those who participate in them, this study examined the way racial identity was signified, indicated, or displayed on social networks. A survey was distributed to 347 college students from a medium sized Midwestern university to assess ways in which participants depicted their racial identity on social media. The study looked at the use of photos, textual communication, concealment of racial identity, and interactions with race related content to assess how participants projected racial identity on social networks. Results suggested that racial identity is not intentionally projected on social networks, and participants do not attempt to hide or filter out their racial identities on social networks. Despite the finding that participants tended not to intentionally project racial identity, non-Caucasian participants used photos, text, and interactions to convey racial identity more than Caucasian participants. Findings suggesting that participants expect their racial identities are assumed through photos and visual appearance (i.e., skin color, appearance, and/or faces). Furthermore, participants expect that their racial identities can be inferred from written discussions, bios, and/or text; interests, interactions, and/or "friends" or network connections; as well as from heritage, culture, nationality, and/or holidays. In addition, culture and nationality affected the way African and African American respondents interacted with race-related content on social networks. Implications of the findings are also provided. RACIAL IDENTITIES ON SOCIAL MEDIA 6 Chapter One: Introduction Social media can become a battleground for conflicts over political and social concerns. In the current political climate, issues surrounding race and racial identity have come to the forefront. Since race has tied into many of the sociopolitical debates on social networks in the past three years, it is important to research and understand race on social networks. The purpose of this study is to better understand how race is perceived, negotiated, and conveyed on social media. There are many complex issues to be investigated regarding race and social networks, however, it is important to first look at the way race is projected on social networks to give context to additional questions about race on social media that are to be explored in future research. This topic is important for three reasons. First, mass consumption of social networking sites is a relatively new phenomenon and has changed the way we communicate, making interactions on social networks important research frontiers. Second, the way society defines race is problematic, and this injudicious definition carries over into conversations on social media. Lastly, the sociopolitical climate has created heated debates about race on social networks. Beginning with the first reason, social media has shown remarkable growth as a major form of communication around the world. Social media is used in many ways; individuals and businesses can make pages to display photos, distribute information about themselves, and post a microblog for their followers to read. These networks are also used for a broad spectrum of communication activities relating to personality and identity. Social networking cites have grown in popularity and are becoming an important tool of communication. According to Boyd (2007) social networking sites are used as a RACIAL IDENTITIES ON SOCIAL MEDIA 7 form of mainstream socialization that can equate to offline public spaces. Online social networks provide space for the kinds of interactions that used to take place in physical public spaces such as coffee shops, the barbers, or practically any location accessible to people to meet. Boyd explains that since social networks provide a place for individuals to meet and communicate, in the same way they might in physical locations, they are themselves a form of a public space. Brock (2009) finds social media to be a meeting place for people of color to discuss black identity. Brock explains that social media helps society understand race differently because the medium lacks all the physical signifiers of face-to-face communication. Like traditional public spaces, social networks facilitate the communication and interactions that shape identities and world views. Therefore, mass consumption of social networks is one of many reasons racial identity projection on social networks is an important topic for communication research. Due to individuals' reliance on visual perception in defining race, people of color have started to rely on social media as a space to explore racial identity. Next, it is important to understand the way problematic definitions of race carry over into conversations on social networks. The history of race in America provides an important background to understand the complex dynamic of racial identity on social networks. The meaning and classification of racial groups has changed dramatically over time and will presumably continue to evolve. According to DiAnglo (2012) the concept of race is used as a classification system for human beings. Racial categorization has led to a hierarchy within the classification system, making Caucasians the dominant group. Racial categories change over time as society decides to ascribe racial identity to others differently than they had in the past. Social network communication offers an opportunity RACIAL IDENTITIES ON SOCIAL MEDIA 8 to study race, and other socially constructed identity categories, on computer mediated communication mediums. This is particularly important today because race is often treated as if it is a visual aspect of identity that is "set" at birth, when in reality racial identities are subject to change as society determines who is a part of what racial group and the hierarchies of racial groups. Racial identity in America is a difficult topic to understand. Asante, Sekimoto, & Brown (2016) explain that race, in particular, blackness, is more than outside appearance. They claim that racial identity is constructed through symbols, language, culture, and group experiences. Therefore, racial identity is not about skin color. Condry (2015) expressed a similar concern that much of society assumes that race is conveyed though visual perception. Condry notes that it is difficult to define exact racial boundaries. It is therefore important to understand race as a socially constructed idea when it comes to exploring racial identity in an online medium. Because social networks are a relatively new method of communication, few studies have been conducted to evaluate the impact of race on social media. In one of these studies, Chan (2017) interviewed college students to better understand how interactions on social networks about race shaped their racial identities. Chan reported that racial information from social networks influences identities of those who use the networks by connecting them to other group members, encouraging pride in their racial identity, and by partaking or not partaking in direct or indirect discussion about race. Using the Theory of Symbolic Interactionism, Chan's findings indicated that racial identities are influenced by communication on social media. RACIAL IDENTITIES ON SOCIAL MEDIA 9 In another study that assessed the utility of social media for exploration of racial identity, Florini (2013) explained how Twitter provides a space for people of color to connect with one another and share experiences. For example, Florini explained the phenomena of "black Twitter." According to Florini, Twitter users are able to express racial identity through the microblogging service. Florini explained that linguistic performances through vocabulary, grammar, and textual cues on social networks is one of the ways that social network users can perform their racial identities. The use of linguistic performance in an online environment is an example of racial identity for both individuals and the group to be conveyed through text. The phenomenon of "black Twitter," has created important meeting spaces in the current sociopolitical context for people of color. Recent events in the United States have contributed to discussions about race on social networking sites. Arguments over the President of the United States (POTUS) rhetoric, the Black Lives Matter movement, immigration policy, and changes to DACA policy are just a few examples involving racial discourse that take place on social media. There is a need to understand how racial identity functions on social networks where discussions surrounding race take place. This study does not aim to understand current events, but rather create a starting point for racial identity to be understood on popular social networks. Lastly, offline events affect communication on social networks, and as a result, the current sociopolitical climate has contributed to heated debates about race on social networks. For example, Bryne (2008) used content analysis to examine posts on Asian Avenue, BlackPlanet, and MiGente blogging websites about heritage and identity. She explained that current day events affect communication on the internet, and reflect norms, RACIAL IDENTITIES ON SOCIAL MEDIA 10 structures, and knowledge learned offline. Bryne's findings suggested that online mediums such as social networks will base their understanding of race on offline discourses and understandings. Online mediums can affect how race is perceived, but anyone using a social network will likely have perceptions of racial identities based on face-to-face interactions. Similar to Bryne, Parker and Song (2006) claimed that online exchanges can have consequences to offline life. Parker and Song used the blogging websites www.barficulture.com and www.britishbornchinese.org.uk to connect with users and editors for interviews; they also conducted a content analysis of blog


In the present scenario the concept of sustainable manufacturing are being adopted by the industries for avoiding environmental hazards and excessive costs of manufacturing. A number of manufacturing key factors such as lean concepts, eco-design, product design, product recovery and process design are available to achieve sustainability. This paper presents an empirical study for evaluating the key factors of sustainable manufacturing in Indian automobile industries using Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP). AHP provides a structural solution for complex decision problems. In this study, a survey methodology has been adopted which used academia and industry. The relative importance of the factors for sustainability is determined through brainstorming sessions and the factors' rating in three case industries has been found out on the basis of survey. Finally the rank analysis of the case industries has been determined.


The synaptic organization of the motor trigeminal nucleus in adult rats treated neonatally with 6‐hydroxydopamine (6‐OHDA) was investigated quantitatively and compared with control nuclei. No statistically significant change was detected in the distribution of axon terminals in the neuropil, and the total number of axosomatic contacts per unit length of membrane was identical in the control and 6‐OHDA‐treated groups. However, 6‐OHDA treatment causes a significant redistribution of the four morphologically distinct bouton populations forming axosomatic contacts with trigeminal motoneurons. Terminals containing lucent axoplasm and spherical synaptic vesicles have been identified as norepinephrine neuron terminals (Card et al.: J. Comp. Neurol. 250:469‐484, '86). These and terminals with lucent axoplasm and pleomorphic vesicles are increased in number whereas terminals with dense axoplasm and either spherical or pleomorphic synaptic vesicles are decreased in number in the 6‐OHDA‐treated brains compared to controls.


Right sided heart involvement in infective endocarditis in non drug addicts is rare.We report a case of isolated pulmonary valve endocarditis in a non drug addict male.


Many of standard classification algorithms usually assume that the training examples are evenly distributed among different classes. However, unbalanced data sets often appear in many applications. As a simple, effective categorization method, kNN is widely used, but it suffers from biased data sets, too. In developing the Prototype of Internet Information Security for Shanghai Council of Information and Security, we detect that when training data set is biased, almost all test documents of some rare categories are classified into common ones. To alleviate such a misfortune, we propose a novel concept, critical point (CP), and adapt traditional kNN by integrating CP's approximate value, LB or UB, training number with decision rules. Exhaustive experiments illustrate that the adapted kNN achieves significant classification performance improvement on biased corpora.


The aim of this paper is two--fold. We first strongly improve our previous main result Theorem 3.1 in Arxiv 1702.00918v3 12Feb2018 ("Brill-Noether loci of rank two vector bundles on a general $\nu$-gonal curve"), concerning classification of irreducible components of the Brill--Noether locus parametrizing rank 2 semistable vector bundles of suitable degrees $d$, with at least $d-2g+4$ independent global sections, on a general $\nu$--gonal curve $C$ of genus $g$. We then uses this classification to study several properties of the Hilbert scheme of suitable surface scrolls in projective space, which turn out to be special and stable.


The primary features of the Vertical Launching System (VLS) planned for initial installation aboard the CG 47 Class (beginning with the CG-52) and for retrofitting into the DD 963 Class Ships are described in detail. Although modular in construction, the magazine sizes planned replace, with 61 missile cells and an integral strikedown system, the 44 missile MK26 Mod 1 Guided Missile Launching System. The modular concept of the launcher design and the certified round concept, utilizing a sealed canister to protect the missile from weapon station to launch, are described. Design features and development of both the gas management system and the strikedown system are discussed.

The engineering development tests which have successfully demonstrated the ability of the launcher to withstand the ignition pressure pulse and absorb the heat of an accidental restrained firing are included as well as those tests which demonstrated performance of the radome after "flythrough" of the exhaust plume.

A major advantage of the Vertical Launching System is its ability to engage simultaneously air, surface, and underwater targets. Demonstration tests confirming this capability through vertical launches of the STANDARD, HARPOON, TOMAHAWK, and a modified ASROC missiles are discussed. Two unique test facilities built to minimize development costs are described - one is used to launch and catch the missile intact, providing post test examination and re-use, and the other duplicates the ship's deck and launcher as well as roll and pitch motion to develop the strikedown equipment and to train the crew.

Finally, performance and reliability comparisons are drawn between the Vertical Launching System and current rail-type launchers.


Wireless power transfer (WPT) and mobile edge computing (MEC) are two prospective technologies to enhance the computing power and endurance of mobile devices. Integrating unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) into wireless powered MEC system, the energy collection efficiency can be effectively improved with the short-distance line-of-sight path power transfer. However, WPT is susceptible to the 'double near-far' effect. Therefore, in this study, the authors study power optimisation in UAV-assisted wireless powered cooperative MEC system, which utilises the user cooperation to make the mobile device which is closer to the UAV acting as a relay for offloading. They aim to minimise the total transmission energy of the UAV through the joint power optimisation while satisfying the delay and size of the computational task. Simulation results demonstrate the performance of the proposed scheme.


To the Editor, The high demand for COVID19 vaccines, combined with a significant lack of supply, leaves smaller and developing countries behind in mass immunization. This prompts the question whether administering a single vaccine dose in SARSCoV2 seropositive individuals could be a method for rationing available vaccine doses. We report results from a prospective study on Macedonian healthcare workers who received two doses of the Pfizer/BioNTech BNT162b2 mRNA vaccine, comparing antibody titres and frequency of side effects after vaccine administration between individuals who were SARSCoV2 seropositive (SeroPOS group) and seronegative (SeroNEG group) prior to immunization. The study included 226 participants recruited through convenience sampling, of whom 41 were SeroPOS (73.17% female; mean age 43 years, SD: 10.571), and 185 were SeroNEG (68.11% female, mean age 46 years, SD: 10.523). Baseline patients' characteristics are provided in the Supplementary Appendix (Table S1). Blood samples were collected 18– 21 days after the first vaccine dose and 25– 28 days after the second dose. Baseline antibody levels were obtained from patient records. All participants gave blood samples after the first dose and filed a questionnaire for side effects, and 189 participants (83.63%) returned for assessment four weeks after the second dose. Serological testing was performed using the commercially available quantitative CLIA antiSARSCoV2 RBD kit (Snibe, Shenzhen, China),1 which targets the S1 subunit of the viral spike protein. More details on methods are available in the Supplementary Appendix. AntiSARSCoV2 RBD IgG antibody levels after the first dose of BNT162b2 were on average 11.7times higher in SeroPOS individuals (mean: 923.40 AU/ml, SD: 948.119, range 15.04– 5034.70) compared to SeroNEG individuals (mean: 79.06 AU/ml, SD: 253.243, range 0.912– 1867.30; Wilcoxon ranksum test, p < 2e16, Figure 1A). After the second dose, antiSARSCoV2 RBD IgG antibody levels were still higher in SeroPOS individuals (mean: 602.59 AU/ml, SD: 511.545, range 25.41– 1986.00) compared to SeroNEG individuals (mean: 375.567 AU/ml, SD: 437.088, range 9.617– 3704.40; Wilcoxon ranksum test, p = 0.006, Figure 1B). SeroNEG individuals had on average a 5.35fold increase in antiSARSCoV2 RBD IgG antibody levels after the second dose (Wilcoxon signedrank test, p < 2e16, Figure 1B), whereas SeroPOS individuals had no benefit of increased antibody levels after the second dose (Wilcoxon signedrank test, p = 0.529, Figure 1B). SeroPOS individuals had higher antibody levels after the first dose than SeroNEG individuals after the second dose (Wilcoxon ranksum test, p = 0.0039, Figure 1B). Exploratory analysis of the influence of sex and age on antibody response showed that older age had a reducing effect on antibody levels after the first and second vaccine dose (Supplementary Appendix, Table S2). The vast majority of the study participants reported at least one side effect after the first dose (91.15%, Figure 1C), mostly minor local pain (69.47%). A higher proportion of study participants reported at least one side effect after the second dose (97.35%, Figure 1D), again mostly minor local pain (53.97%). Our findings are in line with previous reports of higher antibody levels in SeroPOS individuals after a single dose of BNT162b2 compared to SeroNEG individuals25 and support the hypothesis that a single dose of BNT162b2 in SARSCoV2 seropositive individuals might provide sufficient humoral immunity towards SARSCoV2. These findings should be validated in a clinical trial setting as soon as possible, due to direct implications for public health policy in developing countries with limited access to vaccines. Future investigations should incorporate analyses of the cellular immunity and take into consideration the duration of the immune response, which have not been evaluated in this study. The more rational use of vaccines could accelerate the attainment of collective immunity at reduced costs.


We have investigated the effects of oxygen plasma treatment on the UV detection properties of ultrathin (∼20-nm-thick) ZnO epitaxial films. Highly epitaxial ZnO films grown on sapphire were exposed to oxygen-radical-rich, inductively coupled plasma, and then their UV detection properties were characterized at 325 nm wavelength using a photoconductor structure. The oxygen plasma treatment is found to dramatically enhance the UV detection properties of ZnO, reducing the decay time constant (to below 50 μs) and increasing the on/off ratio of photocurrent (to over 1000) with high UV responsivity (1–10 A/W). This result, in conjunction with the microstructural and electrical characterization results, indicates that the plasma treatment efficiently suppresses the chemisorption sites (primarily the oxygen deficiency sites) on surface and also the oxygen vacancies in ZnO, therefore results in major reduction of the chemisorption effects and the dark current, respectively.


Distribution and nature of quaternary forms and formations over the Grand Luberon. During the year 2002, the Grand Luberon was subject to a study partly based on the cartography of quaternary forms and superficial deposits, but also on the potentiality of research within the scope of a pluridisciplinary work starting with geomorphology and archaeology. This study has brought to the fore the singularity of the sedimentary array inherited from the Grand Luberon, and also allowed to select several sectors where research actions are prioritary.


The purpose of this paper is two-fold: to measure national R&D elasticity of renewable energy and to identify various factors that enhance the national R&D effects on renewable energy. The R&D elasticity of renewable energy for each country and year is empirically estimated from the input demand function of renewable energy theoretically derived from the production function. The national R&D elasticity of renewable energy is estimated using data from 33 OECD countries between 1996-2012. We find that various determinants such as trade openness, Gross Domestic Production (GDP), energy source and portfolio significantly affect the national R&D elasticity of renewable energy. Regression analysis on the relationship between the national R&D elasticity of renewable energy and its determinants are new to the literature, and yield implications for establishing an effective strategy for renewable energy.


Objective To study the relationship between the mechanism of stress fracture and the changes of the morphology of tibia and calf muscle and biochemistry indices of creatine kinase (CK) and malondialdehyde (MDA) of muscle and serum during the stress fracture of rabbits. Methods The thirtysix male rabbits were divided into six groups to run and jump. Controlling to the training schedule, the rabbits were killed after they finished the training task on the 7th, 14th, 21st, 28th and 35th day. The pathological changes of tibias were observed under the light microscopy. The pathological changes of muscles were examined under the light microscopy and electron microscopy, and the biochemistry indices of MDA and CK in muscle and serum were measured. Results After the model rabbits were trained for 1, 2, 3and 4 weeks, there was significant difference (P < 0. 05) in serum and muscle CK and MDA between the experiment group and the control group. After training for 5 weeks, there was no significant difference ( P > 0.05 ) in serum and muscle CK and serum MDA between the experiment group and the control group.Conclusion The muscles' protective ability is decreased to the bones and the generation of stress fracture is inducd when the muscles were tired or injured. The progression of stress fracture is a physiological process that the osteoclast' absorbability excesses the osteoblast' osteogenesis.

Key words:
Stress fracture;  Fatigue;  Tibia;  Gastrocnemius muscle;  Creatine kinase


The importance which the art of words had acquired in Athenian democracy prompted Plato to take an interest in and write about rhetoric. All the work of Plato is characterized by his opposition to the Sophists, depicted as charlatans purveying the illusion of being able to educate all men. In the Gorgias Plato denies rhetoric the status of techne for two reasons, one epistemological and the other moral. The question of "true rhetoric", which is only hinted at in the Gorgias, is developed in the Phaedrus. Plato's reflections on speeches of advice and praise are closely bound up with his ethical and political convictions. In the Gorgias the Sophist described the rhetor in the act of advising citizens on questions concerning the management of the polis, such as the construction of arsenals, walls and ports, or the deployment of troops and the occupation of targets during military operations.Keywords: Athenian democracy; Gorgias; Phaedrus; Plato's reflections; sophists; traditional rhetoric


The aim of the study was to evaluate information management as key strategic tools to enhance marginal field operations in Niger Delta. Using literature review and case study of marginal fields operating in the region. The significant values of information are examined, against the background of barriers to marginal oil field development. Specifically the inability to develop some of the fields is traced to information asymmetry in oil and gas operations and the inability of the system to manage and use existing information. Understanding the strategic roles of information will assist stakeholders in establishing its usefulness as a tool for leveraging on competitive advantages in order to improve the bottom line. Some recommendations are made as what should have been done to improve marginal field operations among which are: Educate communities about oil companies' obligations and the Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR) should develop and launch a web based portal that advertises available geo-data on a block by block basis.


Nullity is a legal situation that is occurred because of disregarding of legal terms of credibility and legitimacy of legal acts, and it has retrogressive effect which is referable against all parties even good faith parties. Doing this rule, in commercial bargains, is a strict unjust issue. Because of the importance of commercial contracts, and necessity of protect third parties, legislators decrease the vulnerabilities and the scope of nullity in these contracts, and encourage parties to make contracts in which no hearing of nullity is claimable.  Although in some cases the silence of legislator could cause to enforce general rules, nullity of commercial firms, especially financial corporations, as they are dealing with third parties, is important.  Nullity, in Iran legal system, has two types: Absolute and relative, which their defining and interpreting would gain this general result that in Iran commercial Code regarding the rules of relative void provided obligatory.


Low pay, high house prices and a small rental sector mean that the housing market in the UK has many inherent risks. Few households have enough savings to cover their housing costs for more than a month if they lost their job. Growing numbers of households rely on the safety net to prevent them becoming homeless if they fall on tough times. Successive governments have made changes to the housing safety net so that it now provides less support to fewer people.
Mindful of these trends, Shelter commissioned the University of St Andrews to assess the gaps in the UK's current housing safety net. The research estimates the number of households falling through the net or at risk of falling through, the characteristics of those at risk and the main risk factors leading people to fall through the net.


The research is aimed to detemine the management of Alokasi Dana Desa (ADD) in Mare Subdistrict Bone Regency. which include: planning, implementation, administration, reporting, dan accountability. The population of this research were all Village Government and its apparatus and accountability report of APBDes Mare Subdistrict Bone Regency a number of 17 villages. The sample of the study was chosen by purposive sampling with the criteria: (1) the village receiving the highest ADD, (2) the village receiving the lowest ADD, (3) the village located in the capital city of Mare Subdistrict, (4) the nearest village of the capital city of Mare Subdistrict, and (5) the farthest village from the capital city of Mare Subdistrict. Based on the criteria, five villages were chosen: Batu Gading Village, Data Village, Mario Village, Lappa Upang Village, and Kadai Village. The data were collected by questionnaire and documentation. The data obtained were analyzed using descriptive-comparative method with percentage of crude index agreement (indeks kesesuaian kasar/IKK). The results of this research suggest that the management of ADD which includes: planning, implementation, administration, reporting, and accountability with 63 indicators in Mare Subdistrict Bone Regency has been in accordance with Peraturan Menteri Dalam Negeri Nomor 113 Tahun 2014 tentang Pengelolaan Keuangan Desa.


ABSTRACTThis paper focuses on undergraduate students taking Calculus course in a BEd degree programme offered at Great Zimbabwe University. The paper analyses student conceptions and misconceptions on the graph of surfaces. The results indicated that students conceptualise better through use of visuals and also that technology plays a key role in enhancing better understanding of calculus concepts.Keywords: Visualisation, technology and surfacesINTRODUCTION:Students have interacted with drawing graphs of functions as early as primary level. Graphs sometimes are very easy to conceptualise the characteristics of a model in problem solving than explanations. Practices in mathematics problem solving are often based on verbal representations that make use of logical connectives in sequential reasoning. Recent research in mathematics teaching (Diezmann, 1997) however has advocated the use diagrammatic explanation to assist comprehension. In this study the researcher explores students' conceptions and misconceptions on the graphs of surfaces by undergraduate students taking the course of Calculus of several variables. The objective of the research is to reinforce students 'conceptions of graphs on single variable Calculus , transferring such concepts to the graphs of surfaces. For example in single variable Calculus students were able to draw the sketch of y=sinx , being able evaluate its domain and range. Are students going to use the same analytic methods for the graph of z=sinxy ? What properties are preserved by such functions in space geometry? However the main question is: what conceptions and misconceptions of the graphs of surfaces do students develop in a course which emphasises visualization , uses of technology, and deemphasises symbolic manipulation?THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK:Stewart J.(1999) asserted that the primary aim of Calculus instruction is the emphasis on understanding concepts. In fact the impetus for the current Calculus reform movement came from the Tulane Conference in 1986, which formulated as their first recommendation : focus on conceptual understanding. He also went on to emphasise that the most important way to foster conceptual understanding is through the problems we assign. In this study the researcher also used the Cognitive Dissonance theory (L.Festinger,1957) and Cognitive Flexibility theory (R.Spiro et al,1990). Dissonance theory applies to all situations involving attitude formation and change. It is especially relevant to decision -making and problem -solving. When there is an inconsistency between attitudes (dissonance) something must change to eliminate the dissonance. This theory shall be useful to students when constructing graphs of functions in space . Some properties of functions of single variable are going to be inconsistent with functions of several variables, for example, the criteria for evaluating critical points. Flexibility theory is especially formulated to support the use of interactive technology. Its main principle is that learning activities must provide multiple representations of content. This will be applied when Computer Algebra Systems (Mathematica) is going to be used to draw graphs and level curves of functions of several variables. Students should then associate functions with their graphs and level curves creating a chain of symbolic representation, plane representation and space representation.VISUALIZATION: Is a picture worth a thousand words? It seems so ,as historical accounts of scientific discovery and invention have shown that visualisation is a powerful cognitive tool (Rieber,1995). The term visualisation is familiar to us from common usage and fundamentally means "to form and manipulate a mental image". In everyday life visualisation is essential to problem solving and spatial reasoning as it enables people to use concrete means to grapple with abstract images. The process of visualisation involves the formation of images, with paper and pencil or even mentally , to investigate , discover and understand concepts ,facts and ideas. …


Abstract. In 19th National Congress, President Xi Jinping put forward: strengthen ideological and moral construction, the people have faith, the state has power, and the nation has hope. "Home is the smallest country, the country is tens of millions." While the family tradition construction is the basis for building a harmonious society to realize the Chinese dream, we should vigorously uphold outstanding culture, strengthen the construction of family traditions.


Approximately 50% of mixed C_4 hydrocarbons produced during FCC process is butene,which is a good feedstock to produce ethylene and propylene,especially propylene.The performances of LXH-I catalyst were investigated in a fixed-bed apparatus during the cracking reaction of the mixed C_4 to ethylene and propylene.The results show that butene can be converted to ethylene and propylene with high selectivity.Simultaneously,a certain amount of C~+_5 is also formed.The conversion of butane,and the yields of ethylene and propylene drop with time during the early stage of reaction,then maintain constant basically.The stable conversion of butene,and the yields of ethylene and propylene are around 58%,13% and 40% respectively.It is also shown that the cracking reactions of butene to ethylene and propylene may proceed via the mechanism of first dimerization then cracking.


A new Annonaceous acetogenin, xymarginatin (1), was isolated from the twigs of Xyliopia emarginata Mart. (Annonaceae) by bioactivity-directed fractionation using lethality to brine shrimp. The compound 1 represents a linear C-35 Annonaceous acetogenin, lacking either tetrahydrofuran (THF) or epoxide rings, bearing a keto group at C-10, and possessing two cis-double bonds separated by two methylenes units. The structure of 1 was elucidated by 1H and 13C-NMR, COSY, HMBC, HMQC and HRMS. The ability to inhibit the mitochondrial respiratory chain of Xymarginatin (1) was tested in a rat liver mitochondrial oxygen uptake assay, with IC50 value of 1720 nM; Rotenone as a positive control gave IC50 34.8 nM. The toxicity of compound 1 against Artemia salina Leach gave LC50 of 127 μg/mL.


Focuses on the market prospect and situation analysis of the Honeycomb paper Industry of China and points out the problems in honeycomb paper manufacturer equipment, molding equipment,craftwork and services.


Although energy market reforms in Australia have assisted in the growth in cogeneration, to date there has not been a significant increase in cogeneration's market share. In the longer term, increased electricity prices associated with declining excess capacity (assuming continued strong growth in electricity demand), refinements of existing energy regulation, together with the introduction of initiatives encouraging the use of renewable cogeneration, are likely to enhance the position of cogeneration in the electricity generation sector in Australia.


ABSTRACT l-Ascorbic acid (AsA) plays an important role in the rheological properties of bread dough and as an improver. Addition of AsA and iron, as heavy metal ions, affected the rheological properties, especially hardness of flour-water dough prepared under aerobic conditions. Addition of both AsA and iron increased the hardness of regular flour-water dough as compared with control dough; using oxygen-saturated water further increased the dough hardness. Dough mixed with AsA under nitrogen gas showed significantly decreased dough hardness when compared with dough mixed with AsA under air. The improved effect of AsA on dough hardness may be due to oxygen radicals generated during AsA oxidation. The effect of the superoxide anion radical (O2-) on dough hardness was examined by using both O2- scavenging and O2- generating systems. In an O2- generating system (xanthine and xanthine oxidase), dough hardness increased. In an O2- scavenging system (superoxide dismutase and catalase), dough hardness was similar...


The objectives of this study are to determine the level of conformity between Current Issued Reports (CIRs) and Integrated Report (IR) elements of the Amman Stocks Exchange (ASE) listed companies, as well as to determine whether the investigated corporate characteristics (size, age, quality assurance (QA), earning per share (EPS), industry type, foreign ownership (FO)) of these companies have any impact on the conformability of CIRs. It is worth mentioning that (QA), and (EPS), have never been examined by looking at its association with corporate disclosures, and IR in particular. Based on adoption of the IR framework and using the method of content analysis, corporate annual reports and other stand-alone reports of 82 companies in 2017 and 2018 within the financial, industrial, and services sectors, were chosen for this study. The findings of the study provide an answer to the research question and show that sectors vary in their levels of conformity. It reveals that the service sector shows the lowest conformability compared to other sectors, whereas the financial firms conform 65%, followed by the industrial sector. It also finds a positive association between CIRs conformability and variables of size, age of company and quality assurance. However, EPS, FO and type of industry were found to have no impact on the conformability of CIRs to the IR framework. This study has contributed to IR research, which, as a field, has previously received very little recognition among scholars in Jordan. Moreover, IR still does not exist in Jordan's business practices.


The paper studies the deep cryogenic treatment process of YT15 carbide insert by orthogonal experiment method,and analyses the effects of various cryogenic treatment process parameters on mechanical properties,and observes microstructure before and after deep cryogenic treatment by the SEM.The results show that the effect of soaking temperature on the properties of inserts is the first factor,the cooling rate and the tempering temperature are secondary and tertiary.Deep cryogenic treatment improves the multi-type martensite transformation of Co.Therefore deep cryogenic treatment increases hardness and enhances wear resistance of the carbide insert.


ABSTRACT The authors examined self-regulation of mathematics homework behavior (i.e., mathematics homework management). The participants consisted of 796 eighth-grade students (46 classes) in China. Multilevel results showed that mathematics homework management was positively associated with value belief at the class and individual level. At the individual level, students' management in mathematics homework was positively related to affective attitude, expectancy belief, learning-oriented reasons, homework interest, parent education, teacher feedback, adult-oriented reasons, and value belief. Meanwhile, students' management in mathematics homework was negatively related to time spent on television. Our findings were discussed in the context of related theoretical frameworks (e.g., self-regulation and expectancy value) as well as previous findings pertaining to homework.


This article studies the impact of initial (circa 2009) socioeconomic conditions on post-Great Recession economic development/recovery. The units observed are 145 single-county metropolitan statistical areas in the lower 48 American states. Principal components analysis is used to construct a four-dimensional index representing economic development/recovery over 2009 to 2016. Variables in five categories—education/human capital, general socioeconomic/demographic conditions, industrial structure, public policy, and regional variables—are used to explain variation in the economic development index. The estimates indicated that approximately two thirds of the variation in post-recession economic development can be explained using only initial conditions.


Publisher Summary Electromagnetic Interference ["EMI"] describes the phenomenon that results from allowing conducted and radiated electrical signals to reach destinations where their presence is undesirable. There are basically two purposes for providing EMI shielding in military enclosures. The first is to prevent external EMI sources from penetrating a sensitive environment containing electronic equipment, which is susceptible to the presence of EMI. The second purpose for shielding is to prevent electromagnetic signals generated by equipment within the facility from being transmitted or conducted in sufficient magnitude to be received by sensitive receiving and signal recovery systems. Shielding Effectiveness ["SE"] is dependent on a number of parameters, including electromagnetic frequency, the intrinsic electrical properties of the shielding material, and the number and configuration of discontinuities in the shielding material—such as access doors, hatches, panel joints, piping, conduits, and ventilation duct penetrations. Propagation of EMI might be via radiation and/or conduction, and the required SE must be provided for the total system, including all discontinuities and attachments.


The distance atmospheric moisture travels is fundamental to Earth's hydrologic cycle, governing how much evaporation is exported versus precipitated locally. The present‐day tropical Atlantic is one region that exports much locally evaporated moisture away, leading to more saline surface waters in the Atlantic compared to the Indo‐Pacific at similar latitudes. Here we use a state‐of‐the‐art global climate model equipped with numerical water tracers to show that over half of the atmospheric freshwater exported from the Atlantic originates as evaporation in the northern Atlantic subtropics, primarily between 10°N and 20°N, and is transported across Central America via prevailing easterlies into the equatorial Pacific. We find enhanced moisture export from the Atlantic to Pacific with warming is due to greater distances between moisture source and sink regions, which increases moisture export from the Atlantic at the expense of local precipitation. Distance traveled increases due to longer moisture residence times, not simply Clausius‐Clapeyron scaling.


We are dealing here with non-Maxwellian electron distributions in laser plasmas of density lower than the so-called critical density, that is where the laser beam penetrates the plasma and the inverse bremsstrahlung heating disturbs the electron distribution from its Maxwellian situation. When inverse bremsstrahlung and the competing thermalization through electron-electron collisions are the dominant processes in the plasma. We are considering now the temperature diagnostic based on the ratio of the resonance to the satellite lines. We are now investigating how this line intensity ratio is affected by a non-Maxwellian character of the plasma, and we will show preliminary results obtained for plasmas at low densities. We are working on other aspects of non-Maxwellian plasmas, such as ionic populations, but we present here only the issues which lead to discussions and interactions at this workshop. 14 refs., 2 figs.


Background: Supra glottic airway devices (SGAD) is integral to airway management during general anesthesia. PLMA, a second-generation SGAD with a gastric channel and an efficient seal, is an alternative for the COETT, which is the gold standard for securing the airway.SGAD has the advantage of lesser hemodynamic changes during insertion and removal. This study aimed to compare the hemodynamic and ventilatory changes between PLMA and the endotracheal tube (ETT).Methods: Prospective randomized study, conducted at Yenepoya medical college hospital on 90 patients undergoing elective laparoscopic surgeries under general Anaesthesia. The patients were divided into groups; group p=45 patients (PMLA) and E=45 patients (COETT). Heart rate (HR), systolic blood pressure (SBP), diastolic blood pressure (DBP), mean arterial pressure (MAP), peripheral oxygen saturation (SpO2) and end-tidal carbon dioxide (EtCO2) were documented at baseline, at 1, 3, 5 and 8 minutes after placement of airway device. Results: Differences in vital parameters at baseline were statistically insignificant. HR, SBP, DBP and MAP were significantly higher in group E compared to group P at 1st, 3rd, 5th and 8 min after the insertion of the airway device. There was no statistically significant difference in SpO2 and EtCO2. Post-extubation laryngopharyngeal morbidity was noted in 5 patients with ETT compared to 1 patient with PMLA.Conclusions: PLMA provides better hemodynamic stability at insertion when compared to ETT. Both PLMA and ETT provide good oxygenation and ventilation during elective laparoscopic surgeries. Insertion at first attempt was more successful with PLMA when compared to ETT.


This paper will describe an evaluation flow for crosstalk analysis, repair and prevention using PrimeTime-SI and Mars-Xtalk. Results of the initial evaluation runs will be presented. The shortcomings of the flow will also be presented with suggestions for improvements.


Purpose
This study aims to examine how international small and medium-sized enterprises (ISMEs) improve adaptive marketing capabilities (AMCs) through exploration, exploitation and ambidexterity (EEA) and thereby increase exporting performance. In addition, the present study attempts to examine conditions under which EEA can more effectively improve AMCs.

Design/methodology/approach
The theoretical model was tested by using survey data collected from 119 ISMEs based in the U.S. Partial least squares structural equation modeling was deployed to analyze the data.

Findings
The results show that exploration increases ISMEs' performance through improving AMCs while ambidexterity reduces ISMEs' performance through weakening AMCs. However, the negative influence of ambidexterity on AMCs attenuates in a dissimilar host country where ISMEs can conveniently learn new information. Finally, when ISMEs pursue exploitation in an either similar or dissimilar host country, their AMCs do not improve.

Research limitations/implications
We provide empirical evidence of SMEs increasing AMCs and firm performance via EEA within the context of exporting. However, we did not collect objective financial performance of ISMEs.

Practical implications
Our findings provide guidance for ISMEs' marketing managers to build AMCs by learning something new. Moreover, the findings help ISMEs effectively identify and select the most appropriate international marketing strategy depending on the similarity between host and home countries.

Originality/value
Our findings contribute to the literature by explicating how ISMEs can heighten marketing capability to build competitive advantages in global markets through exploration. However, ISMEs should be cautious when pursuing ambidexterity, which may weaken AMCs and finally decrease firm performance. In addition, we identify external factors that influence effectiveness of EEA in building AMCs. By doing so, the findings help ISMEs understand how to increase AMCs so as to improve competencies in fast-changing global markets.


This is a study of the concept of idealization in terms of the structuralist view of scientific theories. In the structuralist literature, the notion of idealization has been commonly analyzed as a sort of model construction. A short overview of this is provided in the first part of the paper. The main aim of the paper is however to provide a reconstruction of Leszek Nowak's account of idealization as a relation between structures. Other attempts at providing such an analysis are examined and compared. It will be shown that the present account amounts to considerable advantages. After a presentation of Nowak's syntactic approach and its main problems, I will try to reconstruct his analysis in structuralist terms. Although intuitively well motivated, Nowak's approach has some philosophical drawbacks associated to its essentialism, its syntacticism, and its counterfactual character. Our structuralist reconstruction will overcome these difficulties.


The invention discloses a building energy consumption monitoring system, which can realize the unified storage, analysis and display of energy consumption data of state organ office buildings and large public buildings. The system comprises measurement instruments, an acquisition device, a system master station and a communication network, wherein the measurement instruments are used for measuring the real-time energy consumption data of each piece of user equipment; the acquisition device is in communication connection with the measurement instruments, acquires the real-time energy consumption data from each measurement instrument, and uploads the acquired real-time energy consumption data to the system master station; the system master station receives the real-time data uploaded by the acquisition device, and performs unified processing and storage; and the communication network is used for finishing data transmission between the system master station and the acquisition device. The system provides an important technical support for the completion of various systems such as energy efficiency evaluation, energy consumption standards, energy consumption counting, energy source auditing, energy efficiency publishing, energy consumption rating, energy-saving services and the like required by the state, and has a forcible demonstration function in the whole energy saving and emission reduction work.


Afghanistan, a landlocked state in Central Asia, has had a long experience with external forces attempting to establish a foothold in the country. It has, however, always managed somehow to survive such designs and retain its independence, although at times only in a nominal sense. Afghanistan was one of the few Asian states which retained some measure of independence even at that time when the tide of Western colonialism was at its height. Its remote geographical location, which throughout its history, has handicapped its economic growth at the same time enabled it to keep both British colonialism and Czarist power at arm's length. The Afghans, therefore, are old and experienced hands at dealing with the East and the West and at the same time safeguarding their independence. This long tradition and valued experience of the Afghans should be borne in mind when examining the present situation of the country.


Objective: To investigate the value of mitral annular displacement(MAD) by tissue mitral annular displacement(TMAD) in evaluating cardiac injury caused by thoracic radiotherapy.Methods: Receive chest radiotherapy radiation field of cardiac involvement patients with a total of 42 cases collected in tumor hospital Radiation Oncology.LVEF,conventional echocardiography and MAD were conducted before radiotherapy,half and full radiotherapy.Results:LVEF had no significant difference after radiotherapy.Each MAD measuring value after radiotherapy all had significant difference(P0.05).Conclusion:MAD can be more sensitive to retlect the impact of radiation therapy on left ventricular systolic function,and the TMAD technology is expected to become an evaluation of cardiac systolic function.


Ganglioside GM3 is known as an inhibition factor of cell differentiation and proliferation via inhibition of epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) phosphorylation. Our previous study showed that the exogenous ganglioside GM3 reduced the meiotic maturation of porcine oocytes and induced apoptosis at 44 h of in vitro maturation (IVM). However, the role of ganglioside GM3 in the relationship between EGFR signaling and apoptosis during porcine oocyte maturation has not yet been studied. First, porcine cumulus-oocyte complexes (COCs) were cultured in the NCSU-23 medium with exogenous ganglioside GM3 according to maturation periods (non-treated, only IVM I: 0 - 22 h, only IVM II: 22 - 44 h and IVM I & II: 0 - 44 h). We confirmed that the proportion of germinal vesicle breakdown (GVBD) increased significantly in the IVM I treated group than in the control group. We also confirmed that the meiotic maturation until M II stage and polar body formation decreased significantly in the only IVM I treated group. Cumulus cell expansion and mRNA levels of the expansion-related factors ( HAS2, TNFAIP6 and PTX3 ) decreased significantly in the IVM I treated group than in the control group. Protein levels of EGFR, p-EGFR, ERK1/2, and p-ERK1/2 decreased significantly in the GM3-treated groups, during the IVM I period. In addition, cellular apoptosis, determined using TUNEL assay, and protein levels of Cleaved caspase 3, were increased significantly in the GM3-treated COCs during the IVM I period. Based on these results, ganglioside GM3 exposure of porcine COCs during the IVM I period reduced meiotic maturation and cumulus cell expansion via inhibition of EGFR activity in pigs.


While survival rates for localized melanoma are above 98%, metastatic melanoma proves to be an extraordinarily dreadful disease because of its notoriously poor prognosis resulting in less than 15% survival within 5 years. This is due to the fact that the disease is highly resistant to standard cancer therapies. With approximately 40% of melanoma patients progressing to brain metastasis, a greater understanding of the pathways mediating melanoma cell invasion into the brain must be achieved. In this study, a potentially key target often deregulated in melanoma and other cancers, CyclinDependent Kinase 5 (CDK5), will be interrogated for its implications in metastatic melanoma cell invasion into the brain. Despite the observed deregulation of CDK5 in various cancers as well as human metastatic melanoma cell lines, there is currently minimal effort in defining its role in brain metastatic melanoma. This study approaches this problem in an innovative way by exploring Neurotrophin Receptors (NTR) signaling pathways involving CDK5. Specifically, activated Neurotrophin Receptors induce EGR1, thus transcribing p35 and activating its obligate partner CDK5. Considering CDK5 is implicated in a variety of cellular processes such as survival and invasion, this pathway supports our central hypotheses that activation of CDK5 through Neurotrophin (NT) signaling is vital in melanoma cell invasion into the brain. In order to test this hypotheses, a transwell invasion assay utilizing human melanoma cells was used in order to mimic melanoma metastasis into a brain micro-environment in vitro. In order to implicate CDK5 in this study, neurotrophin induced invasion of human metastatic melanoma cells with wild-type expression of CDK5 were compared to cells with drug inhibited CDK5 as well as lentivirally transduced CDK5 knockout cells. Upon NT stimulation, metastatic melanoma cells containing active CDK5/p35 demonstrated a higher propensity to invade into the brain micro-environment. Moreover, simultaneous stimulation of metastatic P a g e  | 2 melanoma cells by multiple members of the neurotrophin family were shown to synergistically enhance invasion ability into a brain micro-environment when compared to stimulation by a single type of neurotrophin. Acknowledgements A major thank you goes out to all members of the Letterio Lab at the Case Comprehensive Cancer Center who helped me pursue this thesis. In particular, I would like to acknowledge Dr. Seunghwan Lim, Ph.D., and Dr. Tej Pareek, Ph.D. P a g e  | 3 Table of


The invention relates to a clamp assembly for an electrical device (10) having a connection region (11) having a plurality of terminal poles (12), each terminal pole (12) a clamping unit (13, 13a, 13b) by means of which an electrical conductor (14) is electrically connected. The invention is characterized in that the connection zone (11) in modular plates (15) is formed.


The invention discloses a reciprocating intermittent motion mechanism comprising a support, a motor, an eccentric shaft, connecting sheets, rocking bars and swing arms; the motor is fixed in the support; the eccentric shaft is sleeved on an output shaft of the motor; the connecting sheets comprise a left connecting sheet and a right connecting sheet; the rocking bars comprise a left rocking bar and a right rocking bar; the swing arms comprise a left swing arm and a right swing arm; the left and right connecting sheets are respectively sleeved on the eccentric shaft; the left rocking bar is fixed on one side of the support, one end of the left rocking bar is connected with the left connecting sheet, and the other end is connected with the left swing arm; the right rocking bar is fixed on the other side of the support, one end of the right rocking bar is connected with the right connecting sheet, and the other end is connected with the right swing arm. The reciprocating intermittent motion mechanism only needs one motor, and is simple in structure, thus saving cost.


Based on the teaching practice of elective course-Chemistry Social Development,how to select the content of the course and how to stimulate learning interest and optimize the teaching mode were discussed.It should be noted that there were many effective ways to improve the teaching quality,such as comprehensive application of a variety of teaching methods,grasping the depth and breadth of the course content,and special lectures.


"family power" was initially sparked, in large part, by Blood and Wolfe's Husbands and Wives (1960) and their elaboration of a "resource theory of family power." Subsequent efforts by family scholars, and other social scientists, have involved testing and retesting this resource theory model, and derivative models, as well as elaborating the theoretical and methodological issues in family power research.


Land information systems general aspects of land deliniation and documentation historical development of structure and function cadastral and land registration in Europe land registration in British influenced countries benefits of cadastral and land registration for development of rural and urban areas further benefits of cadastral and land registration feasibility studies for establishing or improving cadastral and land registraion cadastral surveying adjudication registration special problems organization, automation and education progressive systems - ways of simplification.


Background: Labor pain is a physiological process caused by uterine contractions that cause cervical dilation and thinning and uterine ischemia due to myometrial artery contraction. Physiological events during delivery can sometimes cause trauma to the mother because the pain she experiences and anxiety during delivery can have an impact on the mother and the fetus if not treated immediately. One of the non-pharmacological ways to reduce labor pain is rose aromatherapy. Aromatherapy is a therapeutic therapy that involves the use of fragrances derived from essential oils. The linalol content in roses can stimulate the secretion of the hormone enkefalin which can stabilize the nervous system so that it can have a calming effect on anyone who breathes it.Methods: This study was to determine the effect of rose aromatherapy on labor pain stage I. This study is a quantitative study using the One Group Pre-Test-Posttest design using experimental methods. The sample in this study were mothers who had stage I labor pain with a sample size of 15 respondents. This sample was taken using the total sampling method and the measuring instrument used was the Numeric Rating Scale (NRS).Results: The results showed that 12 respondents (80%) experienced severe pain before being given rose aromatherapy, while 11 respondents (73.3%) experienced moderate pain after being given rose aromatherapy. The statistical test used in this study was the Wilcoxon test and obtained a significant value of p value = 0.001 (p> 0.05), meaning that there was a significant difference in the first stage labor pain before and after being given rose aromatherapy.
Conclusion: There is an effect of rose aromatherapy on first stage labor pain at Sekayu Regional Hospital in 2020.


Thirty-three cases of hypertensive cerebellar hemorrhage were involved in this survey, with the bleeding volume over 10 ml. All of them were given external ventricular drainage and then taken continuous monitoring of intracranial pressure (ICP) after admission. Within 7-24 h after the onset, they all underwent trepanation and drainage under local anesthesia. In the same period, another 33 cases of cerebellar hemorrhage patients were collected as the control, who met the inclusion criteria and were treated with conventional posterior fossa decompressive craniotomy. As results, the total efficiency of the drilling group was 81.82% (27/33), which was much better than the control group (63.64%, 21/33). However, there was no statistical significance between 2 groups (χ 2 = 2.750, P = 0.097). doi: 10.3969/j.issn.1672-6731.2014.06.014


The focus of this research is concern about Egypt's policy during the reign of Gamal Abdul Naseer (1952-1962 BC). this research aims to explain 1) Explaining Gamal Abdul Naseer policy in Egpyt. 2) Describing the impact of Gamal Abdul Naseer policy on the development of Egypt. The research choose qualitative method by using descriptive analysis on sociological politic approach as a subject which concentrates on power, government, and authority toward its citizens. The result demonstrated Nasser's urge in order to improve the politic and economic sector in Egypt during his regime. Nasser initiated a system which supported the growth of political development and fiscal cooperation for improving Egypt as a nation. Nasser started the guided democracy system in Egypt. While in economic sector, Nasser's goal was to develop industrialization as a solution of Egypt economic problems.


This paper focuses on the task scheduling problem on the basis of task interaction graph(TIG) under heterogeneous computing environments.An algorithm of task scheduling in heterogeneous computing environments is presented by taking advantage of relaxation labeling,which is good at handling a broad range of constraints according to neighbor nodes' attributes.The task nodes are considered as objects,and processing cells are regarded as the labels to be allocated to the objects.According to the possible relationships among objects,uncorrelated processing cells are gradually removed,therefore,those with better computing and communication capacity can be chosen.Experimental results show that it can efficiently distribute resource,improve computing speed and reduce the executing time,and the match results are close to the optimal mapping obtained from exhaustive search algorithm.


AbstractBuilding information modeling (BIM) has been widely accepted in the industry and extensively used in supporting many construction tasks. In the government sector, the USDOT Federal Highway ...


In a nuclear system, each nucleon is subject to nuclear forces exerted by the others, and the structure of states provides evidence of the nature of the interactions. On the other hand, the nuclear wave function is a measure of the probability of a particular geometry. As such, it provides an illustrative picture of the geometric structures inside the nucleus. Knowledge of the geometries of nuclear matter in specific quantum states helps understand nuclear structure and interactions, provides theoretical validation and allows prediction of experimental results. This thesis has its focus on the geometries of two and four identical particle systems, in particular, those resulting from the short-range attractive nature of nuclear interactions. For two-particle systems coupled to an arbitrary angular momentum, distinct spatial and angular configurations are found regularly related to the quantum numbers, which is explained analytically. Application to the Borromean halo nucleus 6He with first the interaction and then the pairing interaction shows the coexistence of the di-neutron and the cigar-like configurations, with a predominance of the former over the latter. As for four-particle systems, 8He is studied as a prototype. The expression of the angular probability density is derived analytically for a general 0+ state. Configurations in terms of relative angles where the angular probability density peaks fall into two categories of geometries with specific symmetries, which can be considered as the generalization of the geometries of a two-particle system to those of a four-particle system.


The deoximation kinetics of some oximes was studied by using cetyltrimethylammonium dichromate (CTADC) in dichloromethane in the presence of acetic acid and a cationic surfactant. The rate of reaction is highly sensitive to the change in [CTADC], [oxime], [acid], [surfactant], polarity of the solvents, and reaction temperature. The reaction is found to be catalyzed by acid with an appreciable uncatalytic rate. The reaction is first order with respect to substrate. With increase in CTADC concentration, rate of the reaction increases with a fractional order dependency with respect to oxidant. Consistent to the observation, a mechanism has been proposed in which the substrate forms a complex with CTADC in the rate determining step followed by decomposition with a fast process to yield corresponding carbonyl compounds. The structure of the substituents has also a significant effect on the rate constant. © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Int J Chem Kinet 43: 482–488, 2011


1. Human Capital Formation and Growth, Wendy Dobson and Muhammad Umar Boodoo 2. The Skills of 'Tigers', Emmanuel Jimenez and Elizabeth M. King 3. Investment in Human Capital Accumulation and Growth, Been-Lon Chen 4. Human Capital in Japan's Demographic Transition, Naohiro Yashiro 5. Higher Education Financing and Inequality, Bruce Chapman 6. The Changing Demand for Human Capital at China's New Stage of Development, Cai Fang and Du Yang 7. Human Capital and Indonesia's Economic Development, Umbu Reku Raya and Daniel Suryadarma 8. Human Capital Development and Economic Growth in Malaysia and Thailand, Emmanuel Jimenez, Vy T. Nguyen and Harry Anthony Patrinos 9. Knowledge Diffusion Through Good Knowledge Governance, Thomas Menkhoff and Hans-Dieter Evers 10. The Quest for Foreign Skills, Kang Qing Zhang, Evelyn Chan, Charles Labrecque, Heather Kincaide and Mikhail Iturralde 11. Regional Cooperation in Education, Josef T. Yap


Abstract : The objective of the current research is to demonstrate that a 30KW-400Hz precision gen set, equipped with a VATN (variable area turbine nozzles) turbocharger, can comply with DoD gen set transient specifications. Heretofore poor turbocharger transient response (turbo lag) caused the turbocharged, DED gen set to lose frequency beyond acceptable DoD limits during an instantaneous change in load from 0 to full load. Engine operating conditions were calculated using a computer math model. The turbocharger, with controller, was installed on a four cylinder diesel engine and tested at the engine manufacturer's (White Engine Co.) facility. Fuel consumption data was used to further refine the engine math model. Calculations confirmed at least a 9% fuel savings for the 30KW-400Hz gen set. From the effort of this contract, it can be concluded that a DED precision gen set equipped with a VATN turbocharger can comply with DoD transient requirements.


Several approaches to signal quality monitoring in optical networks are introduced. In the section 2, conventional digital techniques (bit interleaved parity, digital wrapper and others) and relatively new approach (pseudo BER estimation using variable decision circuit) are shown. In the section 3, novel approaches using analog parameters (statistical method using histogram evaluation, optical SNR or other parameters monitor with spectrum measurement and pilot tone technique with sub-carrier multiplexing) are presented.

Keywords:

bit interleaved parity;
digital wrapper;
variable decision level;
statistical method;
amplitude histogram;
optical SNR;
spectrum measurement;
pilot tone;
sub-carrier multiplexing


It has been over a decade since I first team-taught the Asian American women's course at UCLA. I was still a student, as were many of the other members of the team. Together we struggled to obtain materials that were nonexistent, develop an analysis where there previously was none, and perform as leaders even though we had not done so before. This was in 1973, three years after the first Asian women's seminar was conducted at the University of California at Berkeley, and one year after the first one had been offered at UCLA. Since then, there have been a number of Asian American women's classes taught, mostly in the western region of the United States. In the meantime, I had obtained my doctorate, and upon graduation reflected on the fact that this course had been the most meaningful class in which I had participated; thus, I continue to teach the Asian American women's course at UCLA. In the twelve years that have passed, Asian women's studies has matured, along with those teaching it. The history of this course is a case study in the conflict inherent in the struggle to change entrenched social roles.


Introduction. Anemia syndrome is a common disease that reduces the quality and life expectancy of cancer patients. Prevention, timely diagnosis and effective treatment of anemia are statistically significantly associated with a favorable clinical outcome of the treatment of patients, and also contributes to better tolerability of anticancer therapy.Aim. Evaluation of the effectiveness of oral iron preparations and parenteral use of erythropoietin-alpha in patients with breast cancer and colorectal cancer, iron deficiency anemia or severe iron deficiency, immediate and long-term results of treatment, as well as the quality of life of patients with breast cancer and colorectal cancer.Materials and methods. A retrospective analysis of the material from the Blokhin National Medical Research Center of Oncology, involved 133 patients (validation group 68 people, control group – 65 people), patients with breast cancer or colorectal cancer, suffering from anemia. Depending on the form of anemia, patients were prescribed therapy – oral iron preparations with epoetin alfa in combination or in monotherapy. The effectiveness of therapy was assessed by the rate of blood hemoglobin. Analysis and statistical processing of results using IBM SPSS Statistics 26.0. Survival analysis was carried out using the Kaplan- Meier method. Descriptive statistics methods are used to analyze socio-demographic and traditional patients.Results. With a median follow-up of 61.2 months, the exclusion groups did not have significant differences in overall survival (p > 0.05). However, the group of patients with IDA who received therapy to correct the anemic syndrome and the group with FDA without adequate therapy had a greater significance in terms of 5-year OS (93.5 and 69.6%, respectively; p = 0.02). There were also no significant values for the 5-year DFS indicator (p > 0.05). However, the groups of patients with IDA who received and did not receive therapy to correct anemia probably made a big difference in terms of 5-year DFS (90.3 and 63.9%, respectively; p = 0.025). The group of patients with IDA treated with anemia to correct anemic syndrome clearly differed from the group of patients with FAD without therapy to correct anemia in terms of 5-year OS (90.3 and 43.6%, respectively; p < 0.001).Conclusions. Carrying out antianemic therapy can significantly increase the 5-year relapse-free survival in patients with iron deficiency anemia (90.3 and 63.9%, with and without therapy, respectively; p = 0.025).


675. [A. 6. a.] Partial Fractions associated with Quadratic Factors. In illustration of the article on this subject in the Gazette, No. 156, p. 10, I give the extraction of the elements corresponding to the factor 7 of the function 2V77Z, where, in descending powers of a;, 7 = 2 + 1-2, 2 = 1-1 + 3, 2V=24 -102 -95+296 -90 -147+79 -70+23. To leave the work typical, I have refrained from accidental simplifications; in particular, powers of 2 have been allowed to accumulate. The sign ~ is used to denote equivalence for the purpose of the problem ; two expressions connected by this sign are in fact asymptotically equivalent near both roots of the function Y. Since the second power of Y is to be retained, we must multiply N and Z* by the fourth power of the coefficient of x in Y in order to be sure that fractions are not introduced in the preliminary divisions by Y.


Plants take up nitrogen principally in the form of nitrate and ammonium; however, evidence is growing that they can also utilize organic nitrogen in the form of amino acids and soluble proteins. We are conducting research to determine whether wheat grown in soil fertilized with organic N utilizes more organic N directly than wheat grown with inorganic N. We are also testing for differences in uptake of amino acids between pre 1930s varieties and modern varieties of wheat to determine whether this trait has been selected for or against by breeding under high inorganic N input. Preliminary results show both wheat varieties Arco and Madsen take up 14C labeled glycine under sterile conditions. Further experiments to determine the role of microbial competition are underway. Selecting varieties well adapted to competing for organic N could be an important means of maximizing productivity in organic and low input agricultural systems as plants gain more effective access to a wider pool of available nutrients in any given time.


The θ-D control technology was adopted for studying suboptimal control problem of nonlinear dynamics of guided bombs(GB).An approximate solution was attempted by considering perturbations to the cost function.By introducing an instrumental variable θ,co-state λ was expanded as a power series in term of θ.The HJB equation was then reduced to a set of recursive algebraic equations.In the paper,the θ-D controller was designed after the nonlinear mathematical dynamics had been modeled considering gliding GB.The simulation result shows that the θ-D controller is effective,which provides a new idea for nonlinear design of guided munitions' guidance and control system.


With tropical deforestation and forest degradation now accounting for about 15 percent of global CO2 emissions, there has been renewed e!ort in recent years to include policies for "reducing emissions from deforestation and degradation plus related pro-forest activities" (REDD+) in programs designed to combat climate change. "e driving force behind REDD+ has been the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). REDD+ was #rst o$cially proposed at the UNFCCC Conference of Parties (COP) in Montreal in 2005. At the 2010 COP meeting in Cancun, REDD+ was o$cially accepted as an important tool.


Background: India was always focused for "undernutrition" and poverty with poor health status. Recently, India is undergoing a greater transition phase in nutrition. Obesity can be noted as the initial wave of a defined group of non-communicable diseases called "New World Syndrome," generating a huge socioeconomic and public health burden in low and middle income countries
Aim: To study the factors contributing to the increased waist circumference among the study population
Materials and Methods: About 1000 samples were selected using stratified and simple random sampling technique. Waist circumference and hip circumference were measured for the subjects using appropriate methods. Interview schedule was used to collect the details. Food frequency questionnaire was used to collect the food consumption pattern. The obtained details were coded and subjected to statistical analysis. The required data were correlated.
Results and Discussion: Our study clearly showed the lower intake of wheat, ragi, oats, and barley. The lower intake of above mentioned cereals has an effect of increased waist circumference among the study group with the correlation value of -0.231, -0.103,-0.189 and -0. 137 and it is also statistically significant (p<0.001). Chocolates, sweets and carbonated beverages are positively associated with increased waist circumference (p<0.001). Physical inactivity and eating energy dense food during watching television become reasons for increased BMI and waist circumference in our study. a strong significant positive correlation was observed between the BMI and waist circumference (0.679, P<0.001), Hip Circumference (0.795, P<0.001) and waist to hip ration (0.168, P<0.001).
Conclusion In order to prevent diabetes and cardiovascular diseases, waist circumference must be normal. Thus it is essential to consume fiber and antioxidant rich foods and avoid consuming sugar loaded foods and other empty calorie foods.


This paper presents a study of the performance of an AURORA-based distributed speech recognition system over IEEE 802.11 wireless networks. The recognition features are vector quantized, packetized and sent over a simulated 802.11b network with interfering traffic. At the receiver, error concealment, VQ decoding and recognition are performed. We investigate the influence of the feature encoder, of the packetizer and of packet losses on a speaker-independent phoneme recognizer for continuous speech. The recognition system, based on hidden Markov model, is tested using a number of Gaussian mixture densities ranging from 1 to 32. We adopt the TIMIT database, ideal for evaluating phone recognizers. Network scenarios at various degrees of congestion were considered, as well as different settings of the MAC-layer standard error recovery scheme. The resulting matrix of phone recognition rates describes the performance of a 802.11 DSR system for a wide range of conditions, contributing to the understanding of DSR over 802.11 as well as to the design of advanced wireless DSR techniques.


Australian Orthopaedic Association ost-operative care and rehabilitation are integral parts of P successful joint replacement surgery. Rehabilitation, whether as an inpatient or an outpatient, is necessary for regaining strength, a good range of motion, and a normal gait. As part of the pre-operative routine, patients are told what to expect after their surgery in terms of pain, mobility and hospital care. They are also prepared for inpatient or outpatient rehabilitation.


This paper reports the results of a micro finance lab experiment that seeks first to replicate the difference in loan repayment rates between groups composed of high vs. low risk borrowers, and then to test a mechanism we propose to make micro finance work better for high risk borrowers. The mechanism involves revenue sharing among members of a borrowing group, above and beyond usual repayment bailouts that successful members can choose to make on behalf of unsuccessful members. Revenue sharing makes repayment of the total group loan optimal under more business outcome states, and thus increases the expected benefit of repaying the current loan to qualify for future ones. We compare loan repayment rates between high and low risk borrowing groups, with and without the option of entering into binding ex ante agreements to revenue share. For high risk borrowers, we further test the effect of allowing them to renege on revenue sharing agreements once individual business outcomes are known. We are able to capture the result that loan repayment rates are lower for higher risk borrowers than for lower risk borrowers. We also find that introducing the option of binding revenue sharing agreements modestly but significantly increases loan repayment rates. Most of this gain is lost, however, when successful individuals can renege on commitments to revenue share after learning individual business outcomes.


The generation process and temporal evolution of negative oxygen ions in a atmospheric plasma are numerically simulated in this paper. The results show that there exists a knee point in the attenuation process of negative oxygen ions, followed by a long time stationary phase. The density of negative oxygen ions in the stationary phase has a linear relation with the initial electron number density. Moisture content has a large effect on the temporal evolution of negative oxygen ions.