A pharmaceutical formulation of a mouth spray liquid, comprising: one or more cannabinoids, a solvent, a cosolvent and a water content of less than 4%; wherein the total amount of solvent and cosolvent present in the formulation is greater than 55% w / w of the formulation, the formulation is absent of a self-emulsifying agent and / or a fluorinated propellant and one or more cannabinoids are present in the formulation in an amount greater than 10 mg / ml, and wherein the formulation is packed for delivery through a pump action through a mechanical to a surface of the oral mucosa and pump the formulation has a viscosity such that when sprayed through the pump the formulation has a particle size median aerodynamic between 20 to 40 microns.


Abstract Background When emicizumab is dosed according to label, clinicians are obligated to discard or overdose medication due to discrepancies between calculated dose and vial content. The aim of this study was to compose a cost-efficient emicizumab maintenance dosing regimen using Monte Carlo simulation based on vial size, patient-friendly intervals, and patient characteristics, while striving for similar plasma concentrations as observed in clinical trials. Methods Monte Carlo simulations were used to investigate alternative dosing regimens in patients weighing 3 to 150 kg. Simulated regimens were targeted to achieve median emicizumab plasma concentrations at a steady state (C av,ss) of 40 to 60 (90% range: 25–95) µg/mL. The cost-efficiency of the alternative dosing regimen was calculated in mg and costs saved per patient per year. Results The developed alternative dosing regimen achieved similar emicizumab C av,ss levels compared with the registered dosing regimen with a median deviation of less than 2 µg/mL in 78% of the body-weight categories. A dose of 60 mg every 3 weeks was advised for children weighing 12 to 16 kg, while adults weighing 76 to 85 kg can receive 120 mg emicizumab every week. Compared with the registered weekly dosing of 1.5 mg/kg, alternative dosing saved €35,434 per year in children weighing between 12 and 16 kg. For patients weighing 76 to 85 kg, the median saving was €29,529 (range: €0–€59,057). Conclusion This alternative maintenance dosing scheme—applicable in patients with hemophilia A receiving emicizumab prophylaxis—reduces financial costs, avoids medication spillage, and is patient-friendly without loss of efficacy.


There are many parallels between the development of Latin America and Sub-Saharan Africa. Recent literature on this is reviewed. It is argued in the paper that the key to long-term development is the shift from inward (import substitution) to outward (export-oriented) growth. This shift involves both tariff reduction and significant investment in infrastructure and human capital accumulation. Given that much of Latin America (historically) and Sub-Saharan Africa (currently) has depended or depends on trade taxes for revenue, an outward orientation poses a significant fiscal problem, which makes it extremely difficult to switch to an export-oriented growth path. East Asian experience points to the importance of broad-based agricultural growth in making the fiscal transition.


Objective To analyze the reason of necrosis for pedunculated skin flaps repaired after floor of the mouth defect repair.Methods 56 cases of pedunclated-flaps restoring the floor of the mouth from 1996 to 2001 were reviewed, and pedunclated-flap repair was performed after operation in 11 cases suffering from malignant tumors in the floor of the mouth, and 5 kinds of pedunculated flaps were compared.Results Five kinds of pedunculated flaps were used to reconstruct the floor of the mouth defects. Its successful sequence was as following: forehead flap, pectoralis major myocutaneous flap, sternocleidomastoid flaps,trapezius myocutaneous flaps, and subhyoid flap.Conclusions Causes of those flaps necrosis might relate to furnishing blood with supplied-flaps region and structure of anatomy in received-flaps region, also it is related to operater's skill.So the reason of repair failure of skin flaps with pedicle needs comprehensive analysis.


"Making predictions is hard, especially about the future" observed Yogi Berra. Making predictions about the behavior of a highly complex system-of-systems with poorly understood emergent behavior, such as the National Airspace System (NAS), is all the more so.


This paper makes statistical analysis on the scientific papers published by the librarians of Jilin Province Library from 2000 to 2009 for these aspects: time distribution,core authors,papers of core periodicals,cited papers and so on,and then puts forward some suggestions on solving the problems existing in the scientific research of Jilin Province Library.


Large industrial plastic blow molding mechanism of relative to other large container goods in terms of forming method has strong advantages. Compared with the large roll forming,large blow molding are fast molding,plastic raw materials in the process of blow molding processing by stretching after high intensity,design objects for blow molding,200 L plastic products of large clamping mechanism of hollow blow molding machine. In view of mold swelling phenomenon in hollow blow molding,the mold moving and locking mechanism was optimized; the key size of the mould opening and closing mechanism was used in the calculation. Completed the overall design of the mold opening and closing mechanism. The finite element analysis was carried out on the clamping mechanism in Solidworks software,getting the results of stress and strain;the results of the analysis were studied,and the next step of optimization were presented.


The asymptotic stability of linear neutral differential system with double time delays is investigated.The characteristic equation of the system is given,and according to related lemmas,the tentative sufficient condition of Hurwitz-stability of the system is gotten.By the method of constructing matrices,the simple delay-independent Hurwitz-stability criteria are derived in terms of the spectral radius of modulus matrices.The conclusions are drawn based on the spectral radius of modulus matrices which makes the validation easier.


Hydrogenated microcrystalline silicon (μc‐Si:H) deposited by VHF plasma‐enhanced chemical vapor deposition has recently been proven to be fully stable, with respect to light‐induced degradation, when adequately used in p‐i‐n solar cells. Stable solar cells efficiencies of 7.7% have been obtained with single‐junction cells, using ''midgap'' microcrystalline i‐layers, having an optical gap of around 1 eV. In the present paper, the electronic transport properties of such microcrystalline layers are determined, by the steady‐state photocarrier grating method (SSPG) and steady‐state photoconductivity measurements, in a coplanar configuration. The conditions for the validity of the procedure for determining the ambipolar diffusion length, Lamb, from SSPG measurements (as previously theoretically derived in the context of amorphous silicon) are carefully re‐examined and found to hold in these μc‐Si:H layers, taking certain additional precautions. Otherwise, e.g., the prevalence of the ''lifetime'' regime (as opp...


The screening of carotid and/or ileo-femoral subclinical atherosclerosis using vascular ultrasound could be a cost-effective tool in the reclassification of cardiovascular risk in primary cardiovascular prevention. But until today we don't have evidence indicating which atherosclerotic load indicator variable (such as plaque area, number of atherosclerotic plaques or affected territories) has the most predictive power for future cardiovascular events.

 a. Evaluate the prevalence of carotid and ileo-femoral subclinical atherosclerosis (SubAth). b. Evaluate the predictive power of each atherosclerotic load indicator variable for cardiovascular events (CVE). c. to compare those methods with Framingham Score for prediction of CVE.

 We retrospectively evaluated patients from our registry called CARFARE (CARDIOMETABOLIC RISK FACTORS REGISTRY) conducted in the context of a cardiovascular primary prevention program (n=6108). In this analysis we included only those patients who completed a follow up ≥24 months from the first vascular evaluation. Exclusion criteria: <40 or >65 years old, BMI>40 kg/m2, previous cardiovascular and/or cerebrovascular event, chronic stable angina. We used Framingham score for the cardiovascular risk assessment. We evaluated the following atherosclerotic load variables using high resolution vascular ultrasonography (Mannheim Consensus): carotid plaques area (AR-C), ileo-femoral plaques area (AR-IF), and total (carotid+ileo-femoral, AR-TOT), number of affected territories (N-TER). Primary composite endpoints (P-CVE): myocardial infarction, stroke, hospitalization due to angina or acute heart failure. For prediction power analysis we used ROC curves and logistic regressions (unadjusted and adjusted by age, sex, BMI, major cardiovascular risk factors and treatment).

 We included 1431 patients (55.0±9.78 y.o., 38% women, follow-up period of 789±23 days). The total P-CVE rate was 3.77% during this period (54 events). The overall prevalence of atherosclerosis in this population was 60.7%. The AUC of the ROC curves for P-CVE prediction was 0.648, for Framingham 0.706, for AR-C 0.726, for AR-IF 0.746, for AR-TOT and 0.79 for N-TER (graph). The AUC of AR-TOT and N-TER were significantly higher than the AUC of the Framingham score (p=0.017 and p=0.0004, respectively) for prediction of P-CVE. The dichotomization criteria according to ROC were: AR-C>5.80 mm2, AR-IF>23.0 mm2, AR-TOT>43.9 mm2, and N-TER>1. In the logistic regressions adjusted for prediction of P-CVE the OR were: Framingham 1.05 (95% CI: 1.02–1.07), AR-C 4.00 (95% CI: 1.89–8.47), AR-IF 4.01 (95% CI: 2.02–8.32), AR-TOT 4.35 (95% CI: 2.13- 8.91) and N-TER 6.95 (95% CI: 3.05–15.8).
 Comparison of ROC curves for CVE

 The carotid/ileo-femoral SubAth scan was a more potent predictor of cardiovascular events than the Framingham score, particularly those variables that indicate extension of multiterritorial affection like AR-TOT or N-TER.


The leaves of the 12 species of Acrotriche (Epacridaceae) have been examined anatomically from a systematic standpoint. It has been possible to distinguish between the species on the basis of leaf characteristics alone. These distinctions have been outlined in the form of a key to the species, and discussed fully in individual specific descriptions. The most valuable diagnostic characters are: presence or absence of papillose differentiation; shape of the leaf; shape of the sheath of fibres supporting the vascular bundle; presence or absence of a parenchymatous sheath around the bundles; and the presence or absence of calcium oxalate crystals and large fat globules. The specific delimitations based on the leaf anatomy agree with the morphological boundaries.


Abhik Chaudhuri's book offers a comprehensive yet synthetic overview of the Internet-of-Things (IoT). Very easy to read, the book helps readers unfamiliar with the topic to make sense of wireless sensor networks and their technical risks, governance issues, and commercial value. There are plenty of examples of IoT applications—from health and retail to energy and mobility. The book also includes interviews with—or contribution made by—leading business and policy experts. Being that IoT is such an applied area, the pragmatic approach taken by the author in surveying the IoT ecosystem creates a fruitful bridge between science, business, and public service. The book is divided into three main sections. Section one, "Of Things," presents the origin of the concept, and the IoT architecture, touching on ethical and philosophical issues associated with algorithmic transparency. IoT is defined as a network of interconnected computing devices with unique Internet Protocol addresses, which continuously generate, exchange, and consume contextual data to sense the environment. The IoT architecture includes sensors, actuators, adigital communicationnetwork(e.g., Internet;BLE;6LoWPAN; Zigbee; LoRaWAN), some edge and/or cloud computing for data analysis and storage, and some decision-support applications. The Industrial IoT—or Industry4.0—and the IoTMiddlewarearchitecture are further explained in the book with considerations about information security and algorithmic accountability. Chapter three presents ethical and philosophical issues emerging from the interactions between humans. In section two, "For Things," chapter four offers a comprehensive view of real-world applications and commercial IoT products. This chapter helps readers assess the level of innovativeness and added value generated by IoT. Examples of IoT applications discussed come from the healthcare, retail, smart home appliances, connected


The present disclosure relates to a microfluidic flow analyzer for pathological detection. Microfluidic flow analyzer includes a plurality of buffers channels, sample channel, the central channel, a plurality of excitation light channel and a plurality of received optical channels. A plurality of excitation light channel and a plurality of received optical channels are arranged at a predetermined angle to the central channel. A plurality of excitation light channels excites cells in the sample solution flowing through the central channel. Cells excited generates one or more optical signals. One or more optical signals are received by the plurality of received optical channels. Microfluidic flow analyzer comprises one or more of the plurality of detectors arranged in each of a plurality of received optical channels for detecting one of the optical signal. Optical signal to be detected is sent to the arithmetic unit for pathological detection.


The oral thrush happens when a yeast disease creates within the mouth and on the tongue causing rich white knocks on the tongue, inward cheeks, gums, tonsils, marginally dying, torment, trouble gulping, irritability. A 35 years old female patient visited the hospital complaining of breathlessness, cough, fever the patient was treated with azithromycin -500mg PO once daily, co-trimoxazole -160mg+800mg, paracetamol -500mg PO (Per Os: by mouth, orally) t.d.s. (ter die sumendum three times a day) for ten days. After ten days of using azithromycin and co-trimoxazole, she developed severe oral thrush-white bumps, ulcers-involving bleeding, severe itching, difficulty swallowing. She completely left taking solid food because of severe itching and pain and she loses weight. As per our best knowledge, this was the first report, azithromycin and Co-trimoxazole induced oral thrush and it indicates that it should be considered as a possible side effect of azithromycin and Co-trimoxazole.


REQUEST FOR BIBLIOGRAPHICAL GUIDANCE In order to complete A Descriptive Catalogue of the Literary Manuscripts of Joseph Conrad, I am eager to locate the following items which have not been located by Conrad's previous bibliographers: "Author's Note," The Arrow of Gold, TS, 4pp. No date. "Autobiographical Sketch," AMS, 3 pp. 1900. "The Censorship of Plays," AMS, 12 pp.,ca. 1907 "II Conde," AMS, 56 pp. No Date. "The Lagoon," TS, 18 pp. No Date. "The Loss of the Dalgonar," two TS, each 3 pp. No Date. "My Best Story and Why I Think So," AMS, 4 pp. No Date. One Day More, TS inscribed as "Acting Text," 5 pp. No Date. "The Planter of Malata," TS, 104 pp. No Date. "Prince Roman," TS, 41 pp. No Date. "Preliminary Pages," The Secret Agent: A Drama, TS. No Date. "Stephen Crane," TS, 33 pp. No Date. "Author's Note," Under Western Eyes, TS 4 pp. No Date Suspense, fragments of the author.'s corrected typescripted broken into odd lots and sold at the Richard Curie auction, 172 pp. Ca. 1924. "Author's Note," Under Western Eyes, TS, 4 pp. Ca.1919. "The Unlighted Coast," TS, 17 pp. No Date. "The Warrior's Soul," TS, 30 pp. with 2 pp. of AMS. No Date. I would also appreciate knowing of the location of any other Conrad manuscripts or typescripts not reported in Gordan Lindstrand's survey of the items published in Conradiana in 1969-1970.


The purpose of the article is to characterize computer games as a component of culture and a subject of cultural research. The methodology involves distraction from the technological aspects of the genesis and implementation of computer games and is determined mainly by the humanitarian guidelines for the phenomenon under study. Thus, the methodological principles are based on the cultural research concept of computer games as a value of modern culture. The scientific novelty is that for the first time in Ukrainian cultural research the need to study computer games as a component of culture is actualized. Conclusions. The article highlights the need for cultural research of computer games as a full and equal component of culture. Attention is paid to the scale of the computer games spread, their importance for culture and the individual, as well as the impact on various spheres of human life. Conclusions. It is emphasized that the issue of the creation and functioning of computer games in modern society is an inexhaustible source for further research, including in cultural research. Computer games are a wide "field" for the application of the latest IT developments, philosophical ideas, and artistic innovations. Therefore, this issue will remain in the focus of research not only for cultural scientists but also for philosophers, educators and psychologists, sociologists, economists, and jurists, given the pace and scale of the information spread and communication technologies, and most importantly their complexity.


In recent years there has been a growing concern about climate change and Korea will be under the compulsory reduction duty of greenhouse gas after 2013. Accordingly, more efforts to reduce energy consumption are required than ever before. In particular, it is necessary to implement energy saving urban spatial structure strategies. The purpose of this study is to develop a model which can simulate dynamic changes of energy consumption according to changes of the urban spatial structure. This study attempts to construct the conceptual model which shows the complex interaction among four sectors such as population?economics, land use, transportation and energy consumption sector. To develop the energy consumption model, system dynamics approach was used. The model was applied to Seoul city to testify the operational validity and to compare the energy saving effects according to 3 different scenarios. The result of computer simulation shows that total energy consumption changes dynamically until 2020 according to the changes in land use and traffic volume which are caused by changes from the population and employment. Simulation result of three scenarios shows that high density development in the commercial zone and mixed use development in the residential zone can reduce energy consumption. In addition, the current regulations on greenbelt should be maintained to maximize energy saving effects of high density and mixed use development.


Methods are discussed for forecasting, in a few seconds on a personal computer with a 486 processor, equivalent circuits and S-parameters of a GaAs FET from a physical specification. By inverting the algorithms, similarly fast simulators can be devised to fit equivalent circuits to measured S-parameters, in the process yielding information on the FET's material and structural dimensions. The practical value of such simulators is illustrated by FETs designed and implemented to have a noise figure and associated gain at 12 GHz comparable with commercial pseudomorphic HEMTs. © 1993 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.


A planar antenna consisting of four bent arms on a thin dielectric substrate is investigated. The arms are located symmetrically with respect to the coordinate origin, and each is made of a circularly polarized (CP) metaline that shows a negative propagation phase constant at the design frequency (2.45 GHz). The antenna height is extremely small: approximately 0.03 wavelength. By changing the feed point, the antenna can be made to radiate a CP wave in each of the four orthogonal directions of the azimuth plane. The VSWR is less than 2. Mutual coupling between the four arms is small (less than −30 dB).


An array of treatment options enables many patients with multiple sclerosis to live with good functionality and quality of life.


The integration of competency and systems and subsystems of performance management is necessary for a business wishing to improve its overall performance. A single system of performance management leads to effectiveness and there is evidence supporting this notion. Competence-based integration vertical and horizontal alignments are covered in this chapter. Vertical and horizontal alignments impacts business outcomes. A newer model of system alignment introduces what is specific for integrating competency within a business; the "V" shape integrative alignment model is thoroughly discussed along with its impact on organizational processes, systems, and subsystems.


We report here for the first time that the numerous 'superfluous' virgin queens in colonies of Melipona stingless bees are not all killed by their sister workers. 'Excessive' production of gynes is a typical feature of reproductive behaviour in Melipona. Until now the view prevailed that surplus Melipona gynes, not needed for supersedure or for swarming, are all killed by the workers. Aggressive worker behaviour towards gynes is very common in Melipona. Very few gynes have a chance to participate in queen replacement or in colony division through swarming, since colony mortality is low and swarming and queen supersedure are rare events. Therefore, the fact that numerous virgin queens are produced daily requires further investigation. We studied the acceptance of a virgin queen, followed by the nuptial flight, in colonies which had been experimentally dequeened. The nuptial flight was just a few minutes, taking from two minutes and 30 seconds to eight minutes. Subsequently, we studied the behaviour of gynes in colonies with laying queens. We did this by closely observing the behaviour of nest-departing bees and by using a device that intercepted non-accepted gynes as they departed from the nest. We established that 57% of the experimentally marked gynes left the nest alive. This observation contradicts the currently held view concerning the destiny of virgin queens in Melipona. We discuss the implications of the finding that non-accepted gynes leave the nest in order to escape from worker aggression. It is hypothesised that 'chasing' sister gynes out of the nest is a strategy whereby workers improve their own inclusive fitness.


Since the discovery of Peano's plane filling curve, we have known many irregular curves as von Koch curve [5], Pélya curve [11] and Lévy cu rv e [6 ]. In recent years, these curves have found to be related to Mandelbrot's Fractal theory and studied by m any authors. They have shown that these curves can be defined as limits of sequences of broken lines generated by a kind of transformation. In fact, such an idea has already given in [9] by E. H. Moore. A sequence of complex numbers a= {an }" fo e Ci" generates a broken line L(a) in the comprex plane whose turning points {z"}+,,f , are given by


A browser is considered to be a functional window to the Internet. It is interface software that serves as a communication medium between the users and the Internet. Sophisticated attack patterns and design flaws in browsers pose serious threats to user security, privacy, and integrity. Recent advancements have shown that browser User Interface (UI) design flaws catalyze the vulnerability exploitation. This paper sheds light on the design flaws in Graphical User Interface (GUI) components of browsers that are exploited by the attackers to trick users to perform rogue operations. In most of the cases, the user is unaware of the attack that results in stealth operations. Thus, user ignorance plays a critical role in successful exploitation of the design flaws. Basically, spoofing and clickjacking attacks aim at tampering with and manipulating the functional operations of various browser GUI controls. Apart from this, such attacks exploit the user ignorance to a great extent because users are not able to differentiate between the real GUI object and vice versa. Successful GUI attacks depend a lot on the user awareness about the browser controls and their integrity. It is a major concern because exploitation of GUI design flaws can severely impact the user trust thereby resulting in the loss of integrity. This paper discusses design flaws in browsers related to GUI components and how they are exploited by tricking the user. HTTP Authentication Dialog Spoofing Many browsers require HTTP-based authentication in which users have to provide a set of credentials to access the resources. In general, if a resource is protected, the server sends a particular HTTP response to the browser based on which the browser initiates a dialog authentication process. It is one of the main characteristics of browsers to handle HTTP authentication. Every single HTTP authentication process has a realm value associated with it. In general, the realm value is a string that shows the domain name on which resource is protected. The realm value also provides a user supplied string for identity purposes. A user can check the domain name and provide his credentials to gain access to the server. However, recent vulnerabilities have shown the fact that it is possible to manipulate the authentication dialog box. Users are unable to differentiate among the origins of authentication dialog. A dialog box may look real and authentic but it can be spoofed. This type of flaw in browsers results in the stealing of user credentials without users being aware of the reality. For example: Internet Explorer and Google Chrome inherit this design flaw. A serious design flaw in Google Chrome [3],[4] is that an authentication dialog can be completely spoofed and users are not able to distinguish the difference. A spoofed authentication dialog box is presented as in Figure 1. Figure 1: Spoofed authentication dialog box in Google Chrome


The ranks of women in the workforce jumped by more than 24 percentage points between 1955 and 1999. Credit labor-saving devices at home (such as the dishwasher), the birth-control pill and the preference by some men to marry a woman who works outside the home.


In this paper, we investigate the face sum divisor cordial labeling of switching of any vertex in cycle Cn, switching of a pendent vertex in path Pn and S′(K1,n).


Over the past decade universities all over the world have realized the value of providing educational information and services electronically. With this growing interest in e-learning, the question of how to increase learner's adoption and usage of e-learning services including recommender systems has been raised. In order to facilitate students' adoption and use the e-learning service channel, educational institutions and e-learning researchers need to understand factors that influence students' adoption and usage of e-learning recommender systems. Grounded in the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) framework, this paper develops a unique conceptual model by integrating the TAM with a set of new factors identified in the literature: user experience and service quality. The revised TAM model developed in this paper is to study, at a later stage, the impact of these factors on students' adoption of e-learning recommender systems in developing countries. As part of a larger research project, this paper reports the survey instrument development and validation in the field. We administered a survey instrument to a sample of 75 students randomly chosen from university students in Saudi Arabia. Although the sample was small, it indicates that the reliability of the scales is within an acceptable range and it can be used to test the main study hypotheses.


The invention discloses a microcomputer controlled electro-hydraulic servo multi-functional pressure-shear test machine which belongs to the field of material test machines, and mainly solves the precision, speed and stress value problems of basic material performance test in the bridge construction. The machine comprises a main machine part, a hydraulic system, a control system and a specimen transportation car. The frame of the main machine comprises a stand, a screw rod, a movable cross beam, the frame and the like; the main machine is provided with a box-shaped pressure plate, a vertical servo loading oil cylinder, a horizontal shear servo loading oil cylinder, an angle servo loading oil cylinder, a synchronous floating servo oil cylinder, a cross beam lifting mechanism and a test device. The hydraulic system comprises a servo oil source, a hydraulic oil distributor and a remote pressure control system; the control system comprises an industrial personal computer, a conversion board, an electro-hydraulic servo control cabinet and a measuring instrument. The microcomputer controlled electro-hydraulic servo multi-functional pressure-shear test machine is used for the mechanical performance test to the middle plate-type and pot-type rubber brackets and spherical brackets in the bridge construction, such as single-pressure, pressure-shear and angle tests, and can take single-pressure test to metal and other non-metal and concrete components.


The aim of this study is to prove that reconstruction policy has more effect on reconstruction projects than
market by analysing the characteristics of reconstruced projects in Seoul from 1987 to 2002. The average of the
expected life span of reconstructed housing is only 20.5 year. 296,637 housing unit was newly constructed where
163,485 housing unit was demolished in the case of Seoul. According to the change of reconstruction policy of
housing, the number of reconstruction union and cases has been changed, The less regulated, the number of them
increased while the more regulated, the number of them decreased.


A nanocrystalline surface layer of about 25 μm thickness was fabricated on a quenched and tempered 38CrSi alloy steel by using supersonic fine particles bombarding(SFPB) technique.The grain size is about 16nm in the top surface layer,and increases with increasing depth from the treated surface.The microstructure of the treated layer was characterized by using SEM,XRD and TEM.The mechanical properties of the surface layer in the SFPBed and original 38CrSi steel samples were measured by means of nanoindentation test.Experiment results show that mechanical properties of the surface layer in the SFPBed sample are improved along with grain refined to nanoscale.The hardness of the top nanocrystalline layer is about 2 times of that of the matrix,and hardness increases almost linearly with d~(-1/2)(d is diameter of grain) and the result conform to Hall-Petch relation.The elastic recovery parameter in the nanostructured layer is increased evidently.The elastic modulus of the surface layers on the SFPBed sample varies slightly compared with original sample.Low-temperature annealing the structure and property of nanostructured surface layer uniform and stable.The improvement of mechanical properties of the SFPBed layer is primarily attributed to the grain refinement.


Motivated by EEG recordings of normal brain activity, we construct arbitrarily large McCulloch-Pitts neural networks that, without any external input, make every subset of their neurons fire in some iteration (and therefore in infinitely many iterations).


Background: Physiological functions are often assessed by standardizing for body surface area (BSA) to avoid excessive variation in calculations in pediatric practice. Aim: To explore the suitability of existing formulae for estimating the BSA of Nigerian children. Subjects and Methods: This cross-sectional study involved healthy children in a Local Government Area, Oyo State, Nigeria. The BSAs of 2745 children were calculated using the formulae by Boyd, Mosteller, Gehan and George, Haycock, and Dubois-DuBois, and the sixth arithmetic mean of these five formulae (mean-BSA) was performed. The outcome of interest was agreement between estimated BSA and mean-BSA for each method. The performance of each BSA estimation method was compared using bias, root mean square error and Bland-Altman plots of agreement. Results: The study participants comprised of 1229 males and 1246 females with mean (standard deviation) ages of 6.3 (3.0) years and 6.6 (3.1) years respectively (P = 0.01). Reference values for BSA estimates by gender were proposed each age group. Furthermore, BSA estimates from Boyd′s and Mosteller′s formulae were most similar to the mean-BSA with mathematically perfect correlations. The degree of deviation of BSA estimates from DuBois was largest with a remarkable increase at ages <6 years. Conclusion: Formulae by Boyd and Mosteller are the best BSA estimate for Nigerian children among the existing formulae.


Introduction^l Imagery in the History of Shakespeare Criticism Part I - The Development of Imagery in the Plays of Shakespeare's Early and Middle Period Part II - The Development of Imagery in Shakespeare's Great Tragedies Part III - The Imagery in the 'Romances' Part IV - Summary and Conclusion


Ba(Zr0.2Ti0.8)O3(BZT) film is prepared by sol-gel processing on Pt/Ti/SiO2/Si substrate. XRD pattern shows that the film belongs to the perovskite phase, and there are no other phases. The microstructure of BZT thin film is observed by the optical microscope. It shows that the surface of BZT thin film is smooth with no cracks when the annealing temperature is 900℃.


This paper describes how, individuals, when faced with choices amongst a number of alternatives often adopt a variety of processing rules, ranging from simple linear to complex non-linear treatment of each attribute defining the offer of each alternative. In recent years, there has been a growing interest in the choice process as a basis of understanding how best to represent attributes in choice outcome models. In this paper, in the context of choice amongst tolled and non-tolled routes, the paper will investigate the presence of asymmetry in preferences, drawing on ideas from prospect theory to test for framing effects and differential willingness to pay according to whether we are valuing gains or losses. The findings offer clear evidence of an asymmetrical response to increases and decreases in attributes when compared to the corresponding values for a reference alternative. The degree of asymmetry varies across attributes and population segments, but crucially is independent of the inclusion or otherwise of an additional (inertia) constant for the reference alternative, contrary to earlier findings.


Field experiment was carried out to reduce the risk of oriental wasp (Vespa orientalis L.) attacks by placed honeybee colonies under wire cages with holes in different diameters (7, 5.3, 4.2 and 2 mm) in comparing with queen excluder placed at the entrance of honey bee hives during September to December 2015 at the Beekeeping Research Department. Honeybee colony strength were measured (brood area, number of combs covered with bees and stored pollen area) in relation with captured oriental wasps number. Wire screen traps were used for catching wasps in the apiary, using fermented sugar syrup solution and honey as bait. Results showed that cage with holes 4.2 mm gave the highest brood area (68.30cm /colony), number of combs covered with adult bees (4.63 comb/colony) and stored pollen area (22.01cm/colony). The maximum weekly number of captured wasps during the experimental period was 5761.33wasp in first November. Also, results revealed that the highest monthly number of captured wasps were 2514.92 and 2459.42 wasp in October and November, respectively.


This study investigated the role of knowledge building in fostering conceptual and epistemological changes in the context of Grade 10 chemistry students collaborating on Knowledge Forum in a Hong Kong classroom. Participants were 40 experimental and 39 comparison students experiencing knowledge building and traditional instruction respectively. Students engaging in knowledge building posed questions, generated theories and hypothesis, constructed explanations, and revised their theories mediated by Knowledge Forum. Various measures were collected at pre and posttests including epistemological beliefs, conceptual-change questions and online discourse and reflection. Results indicated that experimental students made more gains than comparison students on both conceptual and epistemological measures. Epistemological beliefs and knowledge-building reflection were correlated with science learning; regression analyses indicated that knowledge-building reflection and inquiry contributed to conceptual change over and above prior knowledge and epistemological beliefs. Implications of knowledge building for developing epistemological beliefs and metaconceptual awareness for conceptual change are discussed.


In recent years, the availability of too much information has become a fact of life for anybody connected with the Internet. The same is true for music: because of the penetration of portable devices and the availability of millions of tracks on the web, individual music collections have become unwieldy. Users need tools to help search their own song collections, and to recommend songs they may be interested in. Whereas recommendation systems have been developed for a variety of products, a music recommendation system presents special challenges, including the ability to recommend individual songs, as opposed to entire albums, even if only full album reviews are available on-line. SongRecommend, our music recommendation system, combines information extraction and generation techniques to produce summaries of reviews of individual songs from album reviews. We present a number of evaluations for SongRecommend: intrinsic evaluations of the extraction components, and of the informativeness of the summaries; and a user study of the impact of the song review summaries on users' decision-making processes. When presented with the summary, users were able to make quicker decisions, and their choices were more varied. Whereas the smaller size of the summary has an impact on time-on-task, users do not appear to choose a specific recommendation only based on number of words. Our work demonstrates that state-of-the-art techniques in Natural Language Processing can be integrated into an effective end-to-end system.


The reaction between iron oxides and carbon was experimentally studied at temperatures higher than 1473 K employing solid carbon or carbon dissolved in liquid iron as a reducing agent. Iron oxides-carbon composite pellets were submitted to thermogravimetric analysis under inert gas in the range 1473-1623 K; the carbon was in the form of graphite, coke fines and charcoal. It has been determined that the type of carbonaceous material has little effect in the reaction rate at high temperatures. The activation energies obtained varied from 46 to 120 kJ/mol, well below the ones obtained at lower temperature ranges, and it is proposed that at high temperatures the controlling mechanism of the reaction is heat transfer. Composite pellets and fired or cold bonded iron oxide pellets were also added to iron-carbon baths in the temperature range 1573-1912 K. It has been found that up to 1711 K the composite pellets present reaction times significantly shorter than the pure oxide pellets, whereas at higher temperatures the reaction times of both pellets are similar.


SINCE 1945 there has been a great growth in the number of special classes for the educable mentally retarded in Ohio public schools. This can be attributed at least in part to the influence of a state subsidy authorized by legislation passed that year. As the program has grown and the needs and nature of these children have become more apparent to school people, the question of whether provision should be made for them at the secondary level has taken on considerable importance. Quite generally, previous practice had been to keep the mentally retarded in school only as long as the law required. In many schools it has been the policy to drop them from school when they are 16, at which age work certificates may be obtained. Prior to 1950 some cities had initiated secondary school programs for mentally retarded young people based on the assumption, it is hoped, that a program geared to their abilities should be provided when they have reached a level of potential whe.n


The attempt of compiling Civil Code had been carried on for three times after the establishment of the People's Republic of China .The adopt of Civil Law General Principles in 1986, whose systems and institutions have laid a solid foundation for the construction of the system of our future Civil Code, is a milestone in the history of our civil legislation. The issue for enforcement of our Real Right law and the Constituting of Tort Liability Law is a important step of Civil Code compilation. Civil Code draft should be based on China's realities, summarize the experience of our legislation and judicature, reflect the objective needs of the socialist market economy and social life. It should not only use the overseas advanced experience and outstanding legal culture for reference but create it new. The construction of our future Civil Code content and system ought to take legal relation as the hub, so the general part should comprise the facts of legal relation, such as subject, object, legal act, and responsibility, and the legal relation content be the core of the specific provisions, which contains volumes like as Personality Right, Domestic Relation Law, Inheritance Law, Real Right, General Debt Law, Contract Law, Liability Law and so on.


An analytical procedure has been developed for the gas chromatographic determination of norephedrine, ephedrine and pseudoephedrine using ethyl chloroformate as derivatizing reagent. Each of the compounds indicated single peak with mass spectrum corresponding to the derivative. The elution and separation was carried out from the column HP-5 (30 m × 0.32 mm i.d.) with film thickness 0.25 μm and detection was by flame ionization detector. The linear calibration curves were obtained with 47.5 to 475 μg/mL norephedrine, 50-500 μg/mL ephedrine and pseudoephedrine with detection limits of 11.2, 12.5 and 10 μg/mL, respectively. The method was applied for the determination of norephedrine, ephedrine and pseudoephedrine from pharmaceutical preparations and relative standard deviation (RSD) for the analysis of pharmaceutical preparation was obtained within 0.1 to 0.8 %. A number of additives present in the pharmaceutical preparations did not affect the determination. The % recovery of the norephedrine from pharmaceutical preparations was within 96.6-98.5 % with RSD 0.1-0.3%.


We propose a resonant leptogenesis scenario in a U(1) B-L gauge extension of the standard model to generate large lepton asymmetries for cosmological baryon asymmetry and dark matter. After the B — L number is spontaneously broken, the inflaton can pick up a small vacuum expectation value for the mass splits of three pairs of quasidegenerately heavy Majorana neutrinos and the masses of three sterile neutrinos. With thermal mass effects of sphalerons, the observed small baryon asymmetry can be converted from large lepton asymmetries of individual flavors, although total lepton asymmetry is assumed zero. The mixing between sterile and active neutrinos is elegantly suppressed by the heavy Majorana neutrinos. Before the active neutrinos start their strong flavor conversions, the sterile neutrinos as warm dark matter can be produced by resonant active-sterile neutrino oscillations to reconcile x-ray and Lyman-α bounds. Small neutrino masses are naturally realized by seesaw contributions from the heavy Majorana neutrinos and the sterile neutrinos.


A repair method of a catalytic reactor system while preserving the catalyst activity contained therein, repair methods comprising at least one hazardous substance is reduced from catalytic reactor system. A repair method of a catalytic reactor system, to oxidize the catalytic reactor system at a temperature of about 350 ° F. to about 500 ° F, to reduce at least one hazardous substance from the catalytic reactor system, complete regeneration oxidation catalyst reactor system repair methods comprising reduced by about 50% the time required for. A repair method of a catalytic reactor system, the reduction of at least one hazardous substance from the catalytic reactor system, thereby involves contamination of the catalyst contained therein is substantially identical before and after repair repair method. A method for controlling the oxidation in the catalytic reactor system, to oxidize the catalytic reactor system at a temperature of about 350 ° F. to about 500 ° F, to monitor the reduction of at least one hazardous substance within the catalytic reactor system to control the oxidation in response to the monitoring, so that the control method comprises preserving the activity of the catalyst contained in the internal system, to oxidize at least one hazardous substance to a safe exposure level.


Ethnographic studies in their many forms have played a major role in informing the design and development of a multitude of systems, from pervasive games to ubiquitous systems that support market traders. This paper presents an alternative response to the understanding of the practices of procurement and usage of wild food, and the way that one might technologically intervene within these group practices in order to support an environmentally aware approach to such activities. The initial findings of this study not only suggest that there are multiple points where technological intervention is possible, but also demonstrate both the complexity and range of technological possibilities in regard to the act of foraging, the culture of wild food and biodiversity.


[1] The influence of second phases (e.g., pyroxenes) on olivine grain size was studied by quantitative microfabric analyses of samples of the Hilti massif mantle shear zone (Semail ophiolite, Oman). The microstructures range from porphyroclastic tectonites to ultramylonites, from outside to the center of the shear zone. Starting at conditions of ridge-related flow, they formed under continuous cooling leading to progressive strain localization. The dependence of the average olivine grain size on the second-phase content can be split into a second-phase controlled and a dynamic recrystallization–controlled field. In the former, the olivine grain size is related to the ratio between the second-phase grain size and volume fraction (Zener parameter). In the latter, dynamic recrystallization manifested by a balance between grain growth and grain size reduction processes yields a stable olivine grain size. In both fields the average olivine and second-phase grain size decreases with decreasing temperature. Combining the microstructural information with deformation mechanism maps suggests that the porphyroclastic tectonites (∼1100°C) and mylonites (∼800°C) formed under the predominance of dislocation creep. Since olivine-rich layers are intercalated with layer parallel, polymineralic bands in the mylonites, nearly equiviscous conditions can be assumed. In the ultramylonites, diffusion creep represents the major deformation mechanism in the polymineralic layers. It is this switch in deformation mechanism from dislocation creep to diffusion creep that forces strain to localize in the fine-grained polymineralic domains at low temperatures (<∼700°C), underlining the role of the second phases on strain localization in cooling mantle rocks.


Recent years,the research on food nano-materials focusing on nanodispersions,nanolaminates,nanofibers had become a hotspot in food science field,theses materials had shown great potential application in food industry. However,due to the safety issues,different countries made corresponding regulations on utilization of nanotechnology in foods.


The study investigated why drunk driving in the United States has not decreased recently and offers recommendations on what can be done to make further gains. Analyses of traffic crash and roadside survey data, a review of drunk driving research, and interviews with experts from many disciplines all revealed that drunk drivers are not consistently arrested, regularly convicted, or appropriately punished. The study identified problems at each stage of the drunk driving control system. It recommends both specific actions to address these problems and overall strategies to provide the information, management, and resources needed to implement these actions. (A) For the covering abstract of the conference, see ITRD Abstract No. E201067


The Huanggangliang deposit is a super-large Sn-Fe deposit in the Huanggangliang–Ganzhuermiao metallogenic belt in the southern section of the Great Hinggan Range. The Sn-Fe deposits mainly occur in the skarn contact zone and were formed via the interaction of biotite-bearing alkali feldspar granite with limestone strata of the Permian Dashizhai and Zhesi Formations. Based on the intersecting relations among the ore-bearing veins and the different types of mineral assemblages within these veins, the Sn-Fe mineralization could be divided into two periods and four stages: the skarn period, which includes the garnet–diopside–magnetite (T1) stage (stage 1) and epidote–idocrase–cassiterite–magnetite (T2) stage (stage 2); and the quartz–magnetite period, which can be divided into the quartz–cassiterite–magnetite (T3) stage (stage 3) and quartz–magnetite (T4) stage (stage 4). In this paper, we discuss the genesis of magnetite, controlling factors for magnetite compositions, and type of ore genesis based on petrographic studies and LA-ICP-MS analyses of trace elements in these four types of magnetite from the Huanggangliang Sn-Fe deposit. The results demonstrate that the four types of magnetite are generally depleted in Ti (0.002–3.030 wt %), Al (0.008–1.731 wt %), and Zr (<1.610 ppm). In addition, the low Ni and Cr contents and relatively high and stable Fe contents in the four types of magnetite are indicative of hydrothermal genetic features. Compositions of the ore fluids and host rocks, formation of coexisting minerals, and other physical and chemical parameters (such as fO2) may have influenced the variable magnetite geochemistry in the different Huanggangliang ore types, with fluid compositions and fO2 probably playing the most important roles. The geological, petrographic, and geochemical characteristics of magnetite of the Huanggangliang Sn-Fe deposit lead us to conclude that the deposit is a skarn-type Sn-Fe deposit associated with Yanshanian medium-acidic magmatic activities.


The engineering design methodology of Pahl and Beitz is good in the detailed stages, but needs enhancement in the early stages of conceptualizing and embodiment-in-principle. The concept of 'functions' has been enhanced by Hubka and colleagues. A 'functional basis' (Hirtz et al) has improved the definitions of 'flows' and 'functions', their work does not go far enough to provide a basis for conceptualizing. 'Affordances' (Maier and Fadel) are covered by full use of systematic conceptualizing of design engineering solutions. The Pahl-Beitz model and method of 'decomposition of functions', 'physics', and components is contrasted with the Hubka models of a transformation system, TrfS, its constituents, structures, properties life cycle, etc., and their use as method for design engineering by searching for alternative embodiments at each of these levels of abstraction. These steps are illustrated in (to date) 21 case examples published between 1976 and 2012, several of them in the CEEA conferences and their predecessors.


This paper mainly introduced the influence of unit blank holder force on sheet metal forming capability in drawing process.With applications of numerical simulation technology,the research showed that in drawing process if sheet metals were formed with the number of unit blank holder force(BHF)which had been decided at the beginning,the value of unit BHF would increase step by step which greatly effected the forming limiting of sheet metals.If we adopted the way of coutrolling the number of unit BHF under the binder in sheet metal forming process,the sheet metal forming limiting would be improved obviously.So the conclusion is that it is a realizable way for practical producing to mend sheet metal forming capacity and surface quality.


Future Portrait looks at the future. Using portraiture as a window it will examine the aesthetics, the technologies and the people of the future. Portraiture is an ideal vehicle for this exploration because it allows us an individual an


Furia is a product of plant origin, easily assimilated by cultivated plants. It is composed of organic nitrogen, organic carbon of plant origin, potassium oxide and fulvic acid. The experiment performed in a cold solarium had as objective the influence of this product on the main morphological characteristics of long pepper plants and fruits. The results obtained showed a positive influence of the product on the growth in height of pepper plants, the increase in fruit length and diameter and the increase in the average number of fruits per plant. The biofertilizer is accredited for use in organic horticulture.


Social work emerged as a ' profession' in the 20th century and today is the profession motivated with fulfilling the social welfare mandate of promoting wellbeing and quality of life especially for the disadvantaged which is also highlighted in the recent definition of social work (2014) i.e. "Social work is a practice-based profession and an academic discipline that promotes social change and development, social cohesion and the empowerment and liberation of people. Principles of social justice, human rights, collective responsibility and respect for diversities are central to social work. Underpinned by theories of social work, social sciences, humanities and indigenous knowledge, social work engages people and structures to address life challenges and enhance wellbeing''. Operationally in India, the Correctional setting under Criminal Justice System is a combination of four major sub-systems i.e. police, prosecution, judiciary and the correctional services. Each sub-system is expected not only to play its own statutory role to contribute towards the achievement of the main objectives of the Criminal Justice system as a whole, but also to strengthen each other's role in a strenuous manner. But the ground reality shows that each of these sub-systems usually tend to function as a system of its own and, many a time, works at cross purposes with the other segments of the Criminal Justice System. India's criminal justice system has not been able to deliver on what is anticipated of it and is, in fact, under mammoth sprain because of the problems in all the components law enforcement, adjudication and correction and, therefore, the need for reforms is the question of the hour. Therefore, social workers play prominent roles in administrative and practice positions in correctional setting with all the law enforcing agencies to prevent this kind of social problem so that it does not have future implication in the society and also to provide and secure social justice. The article will focus on the correctional setting under criminal justice system in India, its objectives, components, loopholes and probable social work's roles to perform today.


Objective To evaluate the effectiveness of two kinds of down regulation protocols used in vitrofertilization embryo transfer(IVF-ET) in infertile patients with endometriosis(EMs).Methods CBM disc,Wan fang,CNKI,VIP,Pubmed,PML,FMJS were searched for randomized controlled trails(RCTs) on the comparison between prolonged protocol and long protocol in IVF-ET in infertility patients with EMs.The bibliography of the included studies were searched,too.The duration of search was form January 2000 to June 2012.The quality of the included was evaluated by three evaluators.For the homogeneous studies we performed Metaanalysis.The extracted data were analyzed by RenMan 5.1.Results Seven literatures with 593participants were selected for Metaanalysis based on our including standards.Which involving 219cases with prolonged protocol and 374cases with long protocol of gonadotrophins(Gn).Meta analyses showed that prolonged protocol compared with long protocol cancellation rates were no significant difference in two groups at WMD=0.69 and 95%CI : 0.32-1.51;gonadotrophin releasing hormone analogue(GnRHa)stimulation durations were no significant difference in two groups at WMD=0.12and 95% CI :-0.040.28;doses of GnRHa in prolonged protocol group were higher at the WMD=-311.25and 95%CI : 6.43616.08,the differences were statistically significant;the number of oocytes retrieved was no significant difference between two group at the WMD=-0.65and 95%CI :-1.76-0.47(P0.05);the differences were statistically significant serum E2 levels on the day of human chorionic gonadotrophin(hCG) administration was no significant difference in two groups at the WMD=-499.71and 95%CI :-1171.02171.60(P0.05);clinical pregnancy rates in prolonged protocol group were slightly higher at the WMD= 2.23and 95%CI : 1.49-3.33,the differences were statistically significant(P0.05);spontaneous abortion rates were no significant difference in two groups at the WMD=1.31and 95% CI : 0.37-4.64(P0.05).Conclusions In EMs patients with infertility IVF-ET treatment,compared with long protocol,the prolonged protocol can obviously increase the clinical pregnancy rate,so the IVF-ET may be an ideal choice for EMs patients with infertility.Because the including trails exist insufficiency on quality and quantity as well as the methodology difference,suggested that this research conclusion only serve as the reference of the clinical analysis,need reevaluation and renew unceasingly.


Web is a specific interactive system which is in a wide range of application areas, but there are with different degrees of usability problems. Therefore, it is necessary to provide a design method for Web usability. Based on the theory of user centered design (UCD) and usability engineering principles, Web usability design includes three aspects: user research, Web design, and Web evaluation. User research focuses on target users, and researches user's goal, behavior and views by user modeling based on personas. Web design focuses on information architecture design, readability design, search design and page design to design the self-described Web user interface with high-usability. Web evaluation is a measuring means for iterative process of Web usability design. The method will be a guideline to design and improve Web usability for designers.


Order, beauty, richness, restraint and sensuousness describe the essence of the Indian metalwork reproduced in this volume. It was produced for sultans and rajahs during the fabulous Mughal age and derives from the mingling of Hindu and Muslim sensibilities at the heart of Indo-Islamic culture.


Rivers are important components of animal habitats worldwide. The area near riparian edge (⩽100 m from the river) has different abiotic characteristics and vegetation than both forest interior and areas bordering human development, which may lead to differences in animal feeding behaviour. To better contextualize the impact of human-caused habitat destruction on animal feeding ecology, it is important to study both natural riparian and anthropogenic forest edges within the same habitat. We compared howler monkey (Alouatta palliata) feeding behaviour and tree use across four forest zones (riparian edge, anthropogenic edge, forest interior, and combined riparian and anthropogenic edge) in a fragmented riparian rainforest in Costa Rica, La Suerte Biological Research Station (LSBRS). We predicted that monkey feeding behaviour and tree use would differ across forest zones, and especially between riparian and anthropogenic edges due to higher vegetation quality near the river. We observed individual focal monkeys for 30-minute periods, collecting data on monkey feeding behaviour and tree use every 2 minutes. We recorded plant parts eaten and feeding tree taxonomy, and measured feeding trees. Monkeys ate more leaves in riparian edge than in other forest zones, and fed from fewer tree families in riparian edge and forest interior compared to anthropogenic edge. Monkeys also fed from trees with smaller DBH in riparian edge compared to other forest zones, but trees of similar height to forest interior and taller than anthropogenic edge. Our results indicate that riparian zones are rich habitats for howler monkeys and conservation efforts should prioritize their preservation.


Introduction: Muscle strength, endurance and proprioceptive input are important for stability of the wrist and to perform powerful and precise movements of the hand. Common exercises for handgrip i ...


The aim of this study is to develop learning media based on discovery learning and problem based learning to improve learning outcomes of instructional design, to find out the feasibility of collaborative discovery learning and problem based learning media on learning outcomes of instructional design, and to find out the effectiveness of learning media based on discovery learning collaboration and problem based learning on student learning outcomes of instructional design. The methods of this research is Research and development methods using R & D Borg and Gall, with odd semester 2019/2020 students who take instructional design courses in mechanical engineering education and automotive engineering education courses. The results of the study show that: the learning media developed are appropriate to be used in learning design learning, effective learning media can improve learning outcomes of instructional designs, and there are differences in learning outcomes of student instructional designs, and superior learning outcomes of student instructional designs using developed learning media.


Inspired by the idea of Bernoulli decomposition, we give a simple proof for a generalization of Hal\'asz anti--concentration result about random sum of vectores in $\mathbb{R}^d$. From our results, we can give one upper bound for the probability of a random circulant matrix $\mathcal{C}_n$ with independent positive (or negative) random variables is singular, in fact, we prove $\mathbb{P}\ (\mathcal{C}_n \mathrm{\ is\ singular}) \leq C_{1,F} n(\phi(n))^{-3}$, where the constant $C_{1,F}>0$ depends on the distribution of the entries and $\phi(\cdot)$ is the Euler totient function. Also, if $\mathcal{SC}_n$ is a random symmetric circulant matrix with independent positive (or negative) integer random variable entries, we show $\mathbb{P}\ (\mathcal{SC}_n \mathrm{\ is\ singular})\leq C_{2,F} n(\phi(n))^{-3/2}$, where the constant $C_{2,F}>0$ depends on the distribution of the entries. It is possible to assume that the entries of a random circulant matrix are not identically distributed.


In this study, the spray pyrolysis method is used to generate an indium tin oxide (ITO) thin film on a glass substrate. In 2O3 layers were deposited and doped with tin at different doping concentration ranging from 2% to 6%. ITO thin films for application in thin-film silicon solar cells with superior structure and optical properties (grain size ranging from 44 to 84 nm; transparency of > 87%) have been investigated. This investigation elucidates the properties of ITO thin films used as antireflection front electrodes in p-n junction Si solar cells. Microstructure, surface morphology, optoelectrical and optical properties of these films were then characterized and analyzed. Next, the effects of doping concentration of ITO film growth were discussed. The ITO thickness was optimized considering that the refractive index of Si emitter layer optimizes its optical characteristics and p-n junction solar cell spectral response. The best increasing in p-n junction solar cell conversion efficiency was 4% with an open circuit voltage ( Voc ) of 0.425 V, fill factor ( FF ) of 0.47, and short circuit current density ( Jsc ) of 0.91 mA/cm 2 .


Hurricanes have greatly impacted the Gulf of Mexico (GOM) and their likelihood are well documented. However, the impact that a tsunami might have on GOM's coastal communities needs to be investigated. Potential tsunami sources for the GOM are local submarine landslides and earthquakes along the Caribbean plate boundary faults. Preliminary modeling results of potential tsunami sources outside the GOM indicated a very low threat and may not pose a tsunami hazard to the GOM's coasts. However, ancient submarine landslides within the GOM may have generated tsunamis as examined by the Atlantic and Gulf of Mexico Tsunami Hazard Assessment Group (THAG), ten Brink et al., (2009). In their findings, they stated that although the likehood is extremely low, submarine landslides in the GOM are considered a potential tsunami hazard for the following reasons:


ABSTRACT Modern coal preparation plants are designed to achieve maximum overall clean coal yield with an acceptable amount of impurities to meet end-user requirements. LIMN is commonly used to design and simulate coal processing circuits based on size and density distribution data of coal. In this study, particle distribution data for size, density, and floatability were established for Punjab coal after crushing it to 38 mm. Punjab coal contains high amounts of ash (34.70%) and sulfur (8.34%). Float-sink tests conducted on several size fractions disclosed that 16% target ash could be achieved at an overall yield of 63% with ash and sulfur rejection values in the range of 72.63–94.18% and 73.01–88.45%, respectively. However, the sulfur limit of 1.0% would be difficult to meet. Dell release analysis performed on – 0.25 mm fraction revealed poor flotation response of Punjab coal. Several process flowsheets were designed and simulated using LIMN to generate data for yield, ash and sulfur. End-User Beneficiation Number (EBN) was introduced and utilized for determining the best processing option that can provide maximum yield while meeting the quality requirements of the end-user. Economic analysis involving CAPEX, OPEX, and payback period validated the merit of EBN.


We study the thermal effect with the use of Lipkin model. We define the density and entropy operator associated with the mixed state representation of Lipkin model, which has been developed with the aid of auxiliary fermion field. We investigate the thermal equilibrium state and its phase transition. In super phase, the thermal effect breaks the particle-hole pairs with coupled angular momentum 0 and does not lift up nucleons from the lower level to upper one, contrary to the case of normal phase. > In this paper, we further develop this approach for the aim of introducing a density operator associated with the mixed state representation, 3 > which has been proposed as another formulation of that given in Ref. 2). This representation has been successfully applied to Lipkin model. 4 > In the mixed state representation, we can treat the mixing of seniority. In this paper, we study this seniority mixing as a result of thermal effect. we briefly recapitulate, in § 2, Lipkin model and its mixed state representation for later discussions. In§ 3, we define a density operator associated with the mixed state representation, following the conventional manner where the auxiliary field is eliminated. We will show that this density operator satisfies the properties demand ed in the conventional treatment. In§ 4, we introduce the entropy operator and study the thermal equilibrium state. Section 5 is devoted to discussion about the thermal effect on the phase transition. We give the critical temperature in a simple form for a special case, where the lower level is completely occupied and the upper level vacant for the interaction switched off. § 2. Mixed state representation of Lipkin model


With the deepening of digital transformation and upgrading of power grid enterprises, the digital system evaluation method of power grid enterprises based on experts' subjective experience has been unable to meet the management needs of modern enterprises. In this paper, a method based on fuzzy information axiom for dynamic design quality evaluation of digital system in electric power enterprises is proposed. Firstly, the electric power enterprise digital system dynamic design quality comprehensive evaluation index system is set up from three aspects, which are achievement degree of target business function, logical relation rationality, and technical economy of physical model. Secondly, the quantitative and qualitative index values are processed by using the information calculation formula of minimum information axiom and fuzzy membership function. And then best-worst method and antientropy weight method are used to form the comprehensive evaluation model. Finally, the feasibility and effectiveness of the design scheme are verified by an example of dynamic design of digital system in power enterprise.


Cavitation in vortical flows is a significant problem. An important aspect is the need for a better understanding of the physics of cavitation in the vortices tailing from lifting surfaces such as propellers and hydrofoils. This is a review of experimental and numerical research that has been recently carried out with a series of hydrofoils. This is a review of experimental and numerical research that has been recently carried out with a series of hydrofoils. This research was aimed at investigating the interrelated effects of vortex structure, including the details of the vortex roll-up process close to the tip, dissolved gas content, and water quality as it related to the amount of tension that can be sustained in the vortex before cavitation occurs. The experimental phase includes lift and drag measurements, oil flow visualization of the boundary layer flow on the lifting surfaces, and observation of both cavitation inception and desinence in strong and weak water. An improved photographic technique has been developed to study the complex bubble dynamics inherent in the inception process. Preliminary results indicate that the bubble growth process is strongly dependent on the size and number of nuclei in the free stream. Numerical simulations indicate thatmore » the minimum pressure in the vortex is very close to the tip of the lifting surface, in agreement with the observation that the inception process also occurs very close to the tip under most conditions.« less


Can whole genome profiling of sperm DNA be used to identify aspects of ART failure and predict embryo developmental competence?

 Whole genome profiling of sperm DNA identifies germline gene mutations associated with reproductive failure and helps characterize subtle male factor infertility.

 A routine semen analysis provides limited information on the characteristics of the male gamete and is unable to predict spermatozoa performance in ART. Therefore, ancillary tests may be used to further assess the male gamete's reproductive potential. Whole exome sequencing (WES) of the male genome carried out on somatic cells has proven to be a powerful technique capable of identifying the genetic roots of infertility. Here, we aim to preferentially detect germline mutations by exclusively sequencing spermatozoal DNA to identify genes related to the different underlying etiologies of reproductive failure.

 Over a 6-year period, 31 consenting couples with negative female infertility workups and normal semen parameters were included in this study. These couples were divided according to whether they reported a successful pregnancy with ART (fertile; n = 10) or not (infertile; n = 21). Sperm aneuploidy assessment by copy number variant (CNV) analysis with WES were carried out on ejaculated spermatozoa. Gene mutation profiles were enlisted and compared between the two patient cohorts to identify genes involved.

 DNA was extracted and amplified from at least 500 spermatozoa (DNA concentration, 760±486 ng/ul; quality, 1.7±0.1 nm) for CNV analyses by WES. Mutations corresponding to the CNV were then annotated and assessed using the CLC Genomic Server 9.0. Genes were considered duplicated or deleted when their read depth was >1.5 or < 0.5 times the median read depth in the control, respectively.

 All couples (n = 31) (maternal age, 37.6±3yrs; paternal age, 39.7±5yrs) had adequate semen parameters (concentration, 59.2±30x106/mL, 44.8±18% motility, normal morphology) and normal peripheral karyotypes.
 The fertile cohort (n = 10) underwent 12 ICSI cycles, achieving an 82.6% (57/69) fertilization rate with 10/12 (83.3%) cycles resulting in live births. The infertile cohort (n = 21) underwent 25 ICSI cycles, achieving a 68.4% (91/133) fertilization rate and 6/14 (42.9%) clinical pregnancies, all resulting in pregnancy loss. CNV analysis indicated lower sperm aneuploidy in the fertile (4.0% vs. 8.4%) cohort (P < 0.00001). In both cohorts, mutations associated with sperm–egg fusion (ADAM3A) and acrosomal development (SPACA1, SPATA16) were identified, justifying ICSI utilization.
 The infertile cohort included complete fertilization failure, poor early embryo development, implantation failure, or pregnancy loss. Couples with complete fertilization failure (n = 4) had gene deletions (PLCZ1, PIWIL1, ADAM15) indicating sperm-related oocyte-activating deficiency. Those with poor early embryo development (n = 5) had mutations essential for centrosome integrity (HAUS1) and spindle/microtubular stabilization (KIF4A, XRN1). Couples who failed to achieve pregnancy (n = 7) had mutations commonly implicated in embryonic implantation (IL9R) and microtubule/centrosomal integrity (MAP1S). Those with pregnancy losses (n = 5) displayed mutations related to trophoblast development (NLRP7), cell cycle regulation (MARK4, TRIP13, DAB2IP, KIF1C), and a gene linked to recurrent miscarriage (TP53).

 Using WES, we were able to identify germline mutations that appear to be involved in various aspects of human reproduction. These findings are new and should be validated in a larger study population. Moreover, although we attempted to control for maternal age, we still cannot exclude confounding female factors.

 Evaluating the sperm genome can help identify elusive genetic factors associated with reproductive competence and help guide treatment options for couples unable to conceive who undergo ART. Therefore, screening spermatozoal DNA may serve as an additional tool in precision medicine to identify and treat subtle male factor infertility.

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In this paper, we analyze the performance of a detection-and-forward (DF) relay system in slow and quasi-slow Rayleigh fading channels. In the first part of the paper, we assume perfect decoding at the relay. While in the second part, the relay node no longer decodes the signal from the source but demodulates it. We analyze the performance of this relay system by taking into consideration the imperfect demodulations made by the relay. We propose a detection metric to address the effect of demodulation errors. The upper bounds of the pairwise error probability (PEP) are derived for both cases in slow and quasi-slow Rayleigh fading channels, and the design criteria for the distributed space-time trellis codes (DSTTCs) are formulated accordingly. Based on the proposed design criteria, the new QPSK DSTTCs are constructed. Simulation has shown that the codes we designed based on the performance analysis can improve the system performance.


While today's schools in several countries, like Canada, are about to bring back programming to their curricula, a new conceptual angle, namely one of computational thinking, draws attention of researchers. In order to understand the articulation between computational thinking tasks in one side, student's targeted skills, and the types of problems they aim to solve, we conducted a small-scale pilot case-study with two groups of students for the elementary (grade 6) and middle (grade 9) grades. While the students were working on 5-week-long curricular units in technology using robotics-based and computer-programming environments, we assessed their computational thinking abilities with 23 tasks given as preand post-test. Aiming to validate the tasks, namely, to see in what way it allows measuring computational things, we found a disparity between the types of the skills assessed, the easiness of the tasks, and the age groups, which makes difficult to arrive to some stable conclusion. We stated then a need for a longer and more sophisticated assessment as a subsequent research perspective to establish a stronger empirical evidence of possible relationships between related variables.


At present, most of the ranking algorithms for the importance degree of nodes in complex networks consider the local or global attributes of nodes unilaterally, which affects the accuracy of the ranking of the importance degree of nodes. Therefore, in this paper, based on the node degree, node position in the social network and other multiattribute comprehensive considerations, we proposed a node importance ranking algorithm for node degree, KS value and KS center iteration times(KSCIT), using the entropy value method to determine the weights of the node degree, KS value and KSCIT and using real social network experiments. Experimental results show that this algorithm is more accurate than other sorting algorithms that consider the unilateral attributes of nodes.


of Michel STAVROU, "Sketch of an Orthodox Theology of Conciliarity". Any theological approach to the idea of "conciliarity" must relate to the theology of the Church. Russian Slavophiles in the 19 t h century took inspiration from the theme of the Church as the "People of God". A. Khomiakov coined the expression "sobornost"' (from "sobor", meaning "gathering"), to emphasise the Church's conciliar nature and the interaction of her members. In the early 20 t h century, Russian emigre theologians such as Serge Boulgakov, stressed that "sobornost"' represents the reconciliation of unity and diversity. Other Russian thinkers such as V. Lossky and G. Florovsky, as well as non-Russian Orthodox theologians, reacted against what they saw as the unfortunate philosophical consequences of the concept. A second theme connected with conciliarity in Orthodox ecclesiology is that of the cohesiveness of the Body of Christ. Nicholas Afanassiev developed a eucharistic ecclesiology, centred around the Eucharist which is constitutive of the Church, with the bishop as both head and celebrant of the local eucharistic community. Metropolitan John Zizioulas took up the theme and developed it, emphasising the Eucharist as the source of unity among the local churches. The author examines the implications of eucharistic ecclesiology for the conciliarity and unity of the Church on the provincial and regional levels as well. He then raises a number of questions concerning the universal Church, and regrets that the communional dimension of Orthodox unity world-wide is not sufficiently manifested in the present situation. A third approach to ecclesiology is that of the Church as the "Temple of God in the Holy Spirit". It is the Holy Spirit who makes Christ the head of the body, and it is he who, in the Eucharist, reveals the Kingdom of God, in its eschatological force, as the true identity of each local church throughout the world and of the Church as a whole.


Contemporary companies find themselves in a volatile environment. Therefore, apart from internal strengths and weaknesses, top managers are required to address the elements of the external environment in defining the corporate strategy. Beside commonly required knowledge, skills and experience, continuous personal improvement aimed at achievement of strategic objectives of the company, adaptation to changes, mastering of innovation and humanisation of personal relations is required from the top managers, in order to make them able to adequately react to changes in business environment. Consequently, a specific type of top managers is required, in order for companies to develop according to the defined strategic framework. First, an initial overview of the interdependence of the corporate strategy and top managers' profiles (defined through their demographic characteristics and professional record) is being presented. Then, the interdependence of corporate strategy and top management profile in large Croatian companies will be statistically tested by using the primary data, collected by means of a questionnaire.


Sengon (Paraserianthes falcataria (L.) Nielsen) is a tree species commonly planted in community forests and managed using an agroforestry system. In order to grow a high-quality sengon tree, high-quality seeds are essentials. In addition, providing biofertilizers and organic fertilizers during the nursery phase is necessary. This study aimed to determine the effect of Trichoderma spp., endomycorrhizae, and compost fertilizer combination on the growth of sengon (Paraserianthes falcataria (L.) Nielsen) seeds and to determine the optimum ratio to increase the growth of sengon seeds. The research was performed in the Plant Taxonomy Laboratory (Mycology) and Unda Anyar Watershed and Protected Forest Management Office in Bali. The research was performed with six treatments, namely: A (sterile or untreated soil), B (sterile soil and 10 g of compost), C (10 ml Trichoderma spp.), D (10 ml Trichoderma spp., 100 endomycorrhizal spores, and 10 g compost), E (10 ml Trichoderma spp., 150 endomycorrhizal spores, and 10 g compost), and F (10 ml Trichoderma spp., 200 endomycorrhizal spores, and 10 g compost). This study consisted of five groups with three sub-unit plants. The results showed that the combination of Trichoderma spp., endomycorrhizae, and compost fertilizer significantly increased plant height, amount of stem branches, fresh weight and dry weight of plant, and dry weight of root compared to control. However, the effect on the root fresh weight was not significant. A combination of 10 ml Trichoderma spp., 150 endomycorrhizal spores, and 10 g of compost fertilizer was the most optimal and effective in increasing the growth of sengon seeds. Keywords: mycorrhiza, sengon seedlings, woody plants


In this work, we have identified key parameters for controlling the surface density of ferritin on metal oxides and observed a conformational change of the protein shell of ferritin occurring exclusively at pH 4. The quartz crystal microbalance with dissipation (QCM-D) monitoring technique was used to examine protein adsorption on gold and Ti-, Si-, Ta-, Al-, and Nb-oxide surfaces. A comparative study of the adsorption to Ti-oxide was made using atomic force microscopy (AFM). The surface density of ferritin was controlled by a variation in the solution pH (from 2 to 8) and the isoelectric point (Ip) of the surface. On the basis of these findings, clear trends in the effect of electrostatic interactions between the ferritin proteins and between ferritin and the surface were found, making it possible to tune the surface density of ferritin through the choice of solution pH and the Ip of the surface. Furthermore, the influence of the pH on the viscoelastic properties of the adsorbed ferritin layer was examin...


This thesis focuses on a model of affect regulation; Gilbert's (2005) three systems model, to explore emotional reactions to mental imagery. Compassion focussed imagery (CFIm) is the focus of the literature review as this is a specific type of mental imagery which is grounded in a coherent model of affect regulation. The empirical paper then aims to explore individuals' emotional reactions to the mental imagery of a positive social memory. The three systems model, along with findings from the literature review are drawn upon to inform the hypotheses for the empirical paper. A concluding chapter, which includes a lay summary and a future research proposal then follows.


Reactor coolant pressure boundary leakage in pressurized water reactors leaves a white boric acid residue that is corrosive to reactor components. However, not every white deposit found in a PWR is boric acid, and identification of unknown deposits can be crucial in determining if an active leak exists. Current methods for identifying the source of unidentified deposits require a sample to be removed and analyzed using radiometric techniques. This approach is time-consuming, requires potential exposure of personnel to radiation, suffers from false positives, and may not be possible in locations that are inaccessible or where only small amounts of deposits exist. A new technique based on Raman spectroscopy allows in-situ analysis and positive identification of boric acid residue. This technique can also determine the state of hydration of the boric acid which will help understand the nature of the source of the residue. The spectroscopic analyses of other common materials that may be mistaken for boric acid are also presented


This invention relates to a method of producing an austenitic steel sheet excellent in resistance to delayed cracking and a steel produced thereby.


CONTEXT: Project ECHO is a guided practice model that increases workforce capacity to provide best-practice specialty care and reduce health disparities. It is well-suited to rheumatology care delivery in Ontario, as the number of rheumatologists in the province has remained static despite the growing prevalence and burden of rheumatic disease. Consequently, there remain striking disparities in access to care, particularly in rural and remote areas across the p rovince. ECHO Rheumatology ('ECHO') began in Ontario, Canada in 2017. ECHO fosters and supports rheumatic disease care champions within a Family Health Team (FHT), a type of primary care group practice in Ontario, Canada. OBJECTIVES: To present experiences of ECHO PCPs from FHTs that demonstrate how ECHO supports complex rheumatic disease management; to present metrics regarding impact of the program. STUDY DESIGN: We conducted a multi-method study including PCP questionnaires and focus groups. Focus groups were conducted to explore PCP experiences participating in ECHO, practice change, and interprofessional collaboration. ANALYSIS: Paired samples t-tests were calculated to examine pre-post changes. Focus group transcripts were analyzed using thematic content analysis. SETTING: Ontario, Canada STUDY POPULATION: ECHO PCPs OUTCOME MEASURES: Self-efficacy, knowledge, satisfaction, practice change. RESULTS: PCPs are increasing their interest and collaboration between other health professionals as a result of participating in ECHO. ECHO was also noted to foster Virtual Communities of Practice (VCoP) through weekly sessions and ongoing mentorship regarding rheumatic patient cases. PCPs were also highly satisfied with the program. One focus group participant said "" A fantastic program for us rural providers because of limited access to specialists." In terms of questionnaire outcomes, all 16 items of self -efficacy questionnaire increased significantly (p<0.005). Participants' knowledge scores increased from 59% (SD 15%) pre-ECHO to 66% (SD 19%) post-ECHO (p=0.045). CONCLUSION: The prevalence and burden of rheumatic disease is rising. ECHO is a program in Ontario, Canada that has promise to build capacity within primary care, especially those practicing in group practices like Family Health Teams. In addition to increasing PCP self-efficacy and knowledge, ECHO has the potential to develop virtual communities of practice and increase interprofessional collaboration.


The electrons in capacitively coupled plasmas (CCPs) absorb energy via ohmic heating due to electron-neutral collisions and stochastic heating due to momentum transfer from high voltage moving sheaths. We use Particle-in-Cell (PIC) simulations to explore these heating mechanisms and to compare the PIC results with available theories on ohmic and stochastic heating. The PIC results for ohmic heating show good agreement with the ohmic heating calculation of Lafleur et al. [Phys. Plasmas 20, 124503 (2013)]. The PIC results for stochastic heating in low pressure CCPs with collisionless sheaths show good agreement with the stochastic heating model of Kaganovich et al. [IEEE Trans. Plasma Sci. 34, 696 (2006)], which revises the hard wall asymptotic model of Lieberman [IEEE Trans. Plasma Sci. 16, 638 (1988)] by taking current continuity and bulk oscillation into account.


Through comparitive study on different hormone combinations,a better hormone combination on the callus induction and adventitious buds of tomato cotyledons is got as MS+ZT 2.0 mg/L+IAA 0.1 mg/L;which will provide technical support for tomato cotyledons tissue culture.


The paper presents evidence of the existence of stick-slip oscillations, usually found in mechanical systems with friction, in a class of resonant power converters. It is shown that these converters can exhibit periodic solutions characterized by segments of sliding motion (associated to theoretically infinitely many switchings). Also, numerical and analytical evidence of the occurrence of sliding bifurcations is given. These phenomena have recently been presented in the literature and the paper reports their occurrence in power electronics for the first time.


In order to satisfy the separation of the on-top remote control system and the operation control system without reducing the ability of the environmental perception and system control response, under the overall constraint of wide and narrow high-definition video for both occupants switching observation, this paper proposed a exchanging transmission architecture of dual-channel wavelength division multiplexing(WDM) Fiber Optic video based on HDMI, which puts integrated video data processing on the front end. It shortens the length of high-definition video transmission link, improves the reliability and real-time performance of video transmission, and has the characteristics of simple structure, modular combination, and interchangeable crew task identity. It is a beneficial to the information transmission architecture of the future on-top remote control system.


When Legionnaires' disease burst on the clinical scene in mid-1976, the question was: What kind of infection is this? Today, the question is more likely to be: Is this particular pneumonia Legionnnaires' disease? Help in answering that question is coming from several sources. At the American Society for Microbiology's recent conference on diagnostic immunology in Atlanta, for example, Gary L. Lattimer, MD, and Luther V. Rhodes III, MD, of Allentown, Pa, and R. A. Ormsbee, PhD, and M. G. Peacock, PhD, of the Rocky Mountain Laboratory (National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases) underlined the problem by emphasizing that Legionnaires' disease and psittacosis can be confused. "This consideration is significant," Dr Lattimer emphasized, "because of the mortality associated with inappropriate therapy for either of these two disease entities." At the same time, the Pennsylvania and (Hamilton) Montana investigators suggested a diagnostic aid: IgM rather than IgG. Their conclusion is based


The dual function of the Environmental Design Assistant which we have developed is to act firstly as a teaching aid and secondly as a design aid. In terms of it's role as a design assistant it is similar in nature to the application described by Papamichael, K, in Novitski, B. J. (1993). However, the work described here forms part of an overall strategy to develop a user friendly design assistant across the spectrum of Architectural design disciplines: this is one particular strand of the project. One aim embodied in the development of the environmental design assistant has been the pragmatic one of the production and refining of a tool to perform environmental assessments of buildings in accordance with the British recommendations made in BREEAM (Building Research Establishment Energy Assessment Method). In this respect the assistant allows for the consequences of design decisions to be readily assessed and then for those decisions to be modified. The Assistant has undergone a series of refinements to make it more user-friendly, efficient and appropriate as an Architectural design aid; and this has been the second aim of the project. The project has acted as a vehicle for the application of design principles applied to the presentation, information structuring and navigation associated with Hypermedia and Multimedia products. We are applying the kind of good design principles which have been summarised well by Schulmeister, R. (1994). These principles include Ariadne's Thread (paths for navigation), Lost in Hyperspace (backward navigation), More-than-browsing (interaction) and Tutoring (providing feedback to the user). Adoption of such principles is, we believe, essential in order to realise the potential of Hypermedia tools. The principal development tool for the work has been SuperCard. This has been used in conjunction with a range of other software including ArchiCad and Intellidraw and a range of image grabbing devices.


Rainfall is one of the main triggering factors for landslide.Based on the theory of unsaturated soil mechanics,the impact of rainfall in filtration on an accumulation slope is studied in detail as a typical example in Southwest China.The dynamic changes of the seepage field of the accumulation slope and its deformation mechanism and stability under continual intense rainfall are computed using the finite element method.The results show that the reduction of matric suction is one of the main factors causing a considerable reduction in the stability of the accumulation slope under rainfall infiltration.Furthermore,the plastic zone of the accumulation slope will further extend as the rain continues.As the stability gradually decreases,the risk of slope failure will increase.


Purpose: The purpose of the study was to determine the effect of leaders integrity and ethics training on performance of state corporations in Kenya.
Methodology: The study adopted a descriptive survey. Target population was composed of 320 employees of Kenya Revenue Authority. The sample size consisted of 175 respondents who were drawn from the senior level management, middle level management and non-management staff all of whom are members of Kenya Revenue Authority. Stratified random sampling was employed in constituting the sample since it enables inclusion of all divisions in the sample. Data was obtained using questionnaires, containing both open ended and closed ended questions. The questionnaires were self-administered and they were first pilot tested for reliability and validity. Statistical package for social sciences was used for data analysis and generation of tables, figures and relationships. Data was analysed by use of descriptive statistics and inferential statistics. Findings: The study found that leader's integrity and ethics training have a positive and significant relationship with performance of state corporations.
Policy Recommendations: Organizations should ensure all their leaders are competent so as to boost their performance. Scholarships and sponsorships should be made available to all staffs


The biologically active far-red-absorbing form of the plant photoreceptor phytochrome, Pfr, was studied by femtosecond spectroscopy. The transient absorption changes that occurred upon excitation of Pfr at 730 nm with laser pulses of 150 fs were measured as a function of time at selected probe wavelengths. Immediately after excitation, bleaching of the ground-state absorption bands in the red and blue spectral region was observed. Bleaching was accompanied by an absorption increase at wavelengths between 775 and 825 nm as well as at around 400 nm. The kinetic analysis of the absorption changes ΔOD(t) at different probe wavelengths yielded two decay components, one with a lifetime of about 700 fs and another with about 4.5 ps. A model that explains the relaxation processes following the excitation of Pfr is suggested. It assumes that the initially excited state decays within about 700 fs toward a secondary excited one which is depopulated with a rate constant of (4.5 ps)-1.


This research is backed by the low creativity of elementary school students in the subjects of arts culture and Skills (SBK). The material taken is related to the batik curriculum in Banten in accordance with the PERGUB BANTEN 2014 that requires the entire school to integrate the local content curriculum of batik Banten. This research aims to increase the creativity of students in the local content curriculum in SBK subjects. This research uses class action research (PTK) with the number of students from 100 Grade 5 students elementary school who come from 4 (four) elementary schools in Panimbang, Pandeglang District by joining field trip activities. The results of the study were obtained through 2 (two) cycles, each cycle consists of 2 (two) meetings with a time allocation of 2 x 30 minutes. Based on the analysis of the research results obtained that there is no increase between the filed trip with the increase of student creativity on the field trips in integrating the curriculum batik. At the instructor's activity only increased by 0.5%, while in student activity only increased by 13.5%. Although the percentages are increasing, they remain in the "less" category, as they are below 70. Likewise on the results of creativity, there is no increase in cycles 1 and 2, because it remains in the category of "less".


Coal dust is a hidden danger of coal mine safety production,coal dust prevention and control is a complicated and hi-tech issue.This article mainly introduces coal dust production and its harm,and the current situation of coal dust prevention and control technology at home and abroad.Moreover,suggestions for coal dust treatment issues are offered.