ABSTRACT Objectives To characterise the factors, outcomes and infections associated with antibiotic use in COVID-19 patients. Methods Records of patients with RT-PCR-confirmed COVID-19, hospitalized at the CHU Charleroi (Belgium) between 11 March and 3 May 3 2020, were retrospectively reviewed. Factors associated with antibiotic treatment, outcomes and bacterial infections were analysed. Results Among the 164 hospitalized COVID-19 patients (median age 60.5 years [IQR] 46–79), twenty-five (15.2%) were admitted to the ICU. Twenty-six (15.9%) died in the hospital. One hundred (61%) received antibiotic treatment. Combination therapies with macrolides were more common in the early part of the study period (26/67, 38.8%). Twenty-eight patients (17.1%) had a confirmed infection, mostly of the urinary tract (18/28, 64.3%). Only 2 (1.2%) had a documented respiratory coinfection. Six of the 7 ICU infections (85.7%) were superinfections. Gram-negative bacteria were most frequently isolated. In multivariate analysis, six factors were associated with antibiotic use: being hospitalized in the ICU (OR: 4.59; 95% CI 1.07–19.71), age > 65 years (OR: 4.16; 95% CI 1.72–10.05), arrival from a nursing home (OR: 4.59; 95% CI 1.11–19.71), diabetes (OR: 4.35; 95% CI 1.26–14.93), bilateral consolidation on chest CT (OR: 9.92; 95% CI 2.40–41.06) and a C-reactive protein level > 60 mg/L (OR:2.46; 95% CI 1.13–5.37). Antibiotic treatment did not reduce the length of stay or the mortality rate. Conclusion Antibiotics have been overused during the COVID-19 pandemic, despite a low rate of coinfections . Integrating the antimicrobial stewardship (AMS) programme into the COVID-19 response is essential.


The present invention provides a method for settling a communication service to be prepared by the service network, to a method of service user side access to the service network is performed via an access network connected to the service network it is. As such may settle a communication service to be prepared by the service network in a simple and reliable manner, the label is associated with the service desired service desired and indicator is transmitted to the service network from the access network, service providing the desired service corresponding to the service desired by the network is prepared on the basis of using the access network, at least one access payment message including a label to settle the service from the service network is transmitted to the settlement unit, at least one access payment message including a label to settle the use of access network from the access network is transmitted to the settlement unit, service payment messages and access the settlement generated in connection with the service desired on the basis of the label by the settlement unit the message is recognized, it is settled in common.


Abstract Over the past few years, even before the Brexit campaign and the outcome of the 2016 referendum in the United Kingdom, Europe has been haunted by the spectre of an impending split and disintegration of the Union. Self-appointed "kings" and "philosophers" of greater Europe seem to have been competing for the "unity award," with more and more of them failing dramatically. One indicator of the public alarm at the prospect of the Union's split is the exaggerated use of the word "unity" and its cognates. But can the rhetoric of unity act as a cure for the disease? This essay suggests that, ironically, the constant use of organic metaphors and invocations of European unity seems to be paving the way for—rather than preventing—the rise of neo-authoritarian forces.


Inter-simple sequence repeat(ISSR) method was applied to detect the genetic variation and relationship among seven moringa plant samples represented from MS1 to MS7.MS1 and MS3 were Moringa ovalifolia,MS5 was M.oleifera PMK,MS6 and MS7 were M.stenopetala and MS2 and MS4 were unknown.Six effective ISSR primers selected from 18 ISSR primers generated 75 bands,of which 59 were polymorphic,reaching to 78.67 % of all bands.Each primer was able to generate 4 to 14 polymorphic bands and average was 10.2.Genetic similarity values between samples varied from 0.557 0 to 0.836 7.Based on UPGMA cluster analysis,MS6 and MS7 were classified into a group,MS1 and MS3 were other group,MS4 and MS5 untightly clustered with the group of MS6 and MS7 and then with the group of MS1 and MS3.MS2 was classified into a single group due to the farthest genetic distance to others.The result of cluster analysis was identical to expectation,suggesting that ISSR method was able to evaluate genetic variation of moringa effectively and was applied to the idetification and classification of morginga plants.


Objective To investigate the relationship between the changes of serum interleukin-6 (IL-6) and tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α) and left cardiac function in uremic patients and the effect of hemodialysis (HD) on these cytokines. Methods The levels of serum IL-6 and TNF-α were measured in 22 normal controls, 22 non-HD, and 22 maintenance HD uremic patients, before and after dialysis. The left ventricular ejective fraction (LVEF), early mitral inflow peak velocity (E), atrial mitral inflow peak index (A), and ratio of E to A (E/A) were assessed by echocardiogram in 22 non-HD uremic patients and in 22 normal controls. Result The levels of serum IL-6 and TNF-α in 22 non-HD and 22 HD uremic patients before and after hemodialysis were elevated compared to normal controls, there were significant differences (P0.05). There were no significant differences in maintenance HD uremic patients before and after dialysis (P0.05). Compared with control group, 11 cases (50.0%) had cardiac diastolic dysfunction while 8 cases (36.7%) had cardiac systolic dysfunction, and 4 cases (18.2%) had cardiac diastolic and systolic dysfunction at the same time in 22 non-HD uremic patients (P0.05). In non-HD uremic patients, IL-6 and TNF-α correlated negatively with LVEF and E/A (P0.05), IL-6 correlated positively with TNF-α (P0.01). Conclusion IL-6 and TNF-α probably involve in the presence and the progression of uremia and its cardiovascular complications, the synergism of them could deteriorate cardiac function. Immune cells in uremia patients which are in an activated state are responsible for the porduction and release of cytokines rather than the in-flammatory response affected by dialysis membranes.


Introduction Nearly half of neonatal intubations are complicated by severe desaturation (≥20% decline in pulse oximetry saturation (SpO2)). Apnoeic oxygenation prevents or delays desaturation during intubation in adults and older children. Emerging data show mixed results for apnoeic oxygenation using high-flow nasal cannula (NC) during neonatal intubation. The study objective is to determine among infants ≥28 weeks' corrected gestational age (cGA) who undergo intubation in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) whether apnoeic oxygenation with a regular low-flow NC, compared with standard of care (no additional respiratory support), reduces the magnitude of SpO2 decline during intubation. Methods and analysis This is a multicentre, prospective, unblinded, pilot randomised controlled trial in infants ≥28 weeks' cGA who undergo premedicated (including paralytic) intubation in the NICU. The trial will recruit 120 infants, 10 in the run-in phase and 110 in the randomisation phase, at two tertiary care hospitals. Parental consent will be obtained for eligible patients prior to intubation. Patients will be randomised to 6 L NC 100% oxygen versus standard of care (no respiratory support) at time of intubation. The primary outcome is magnitude of oxygen desaturation during intubation. Secondary outcomes include additional efficacy, safety and feasibility outcomes. Ascertainment of the primary outcome is performed blinded to intervention arm. Intention-to-treat analyses will be conducted to compare outcomes between treatment arms. Two planned subgroup analyses will explore the influence of first provider intubation competence and patients' baseline lung disease using pre-intubation respiratory support as a proxy. Ethics and dissemination The Institutional Review Boards at the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia and the University of Pennsylvania have approved the study. Upon completion of the trial, we intend to submit our primary results to a peer review forum after which we plan to publish our results in a peer-reviewed paediatric journal. Trial registration number ClinicalTrials.gov Registry (NCT05451953).


A 3-week-old baby with hydrops fetalis, acute respiratory failure, and shock of unknown etiology developed a diffuse, pustular rash with worsening inflammatory markers and respiratory status despite antimicrobials. Whole exome sequencing revealed a de novo, frameshift mutation in the SAM9DL gene, leading to the diagnosis of SAMD9L-associated autoinflammatory disease.


− There're mainly two different situations for testing PLD (Programmable Logic Device) devices. One is testing of blank chips that haven't been programmed; the other is testing of ASIC (Application Specific Integrated Circuit) devices that have been programmed. This paper presents a test method for programmed ASIC devices, including auto test and ATPG (Auto Test Pattern Generation) method for both known and unknown logics of programmed ASIC devices.


As indicated by John of Damascus (c.676–749) in On the Divine Images, the Mystery of the Incarnation is the theological basis for visual representations of Christ. The history of these images provides valuable information about how the gospel message has been celebrated, interpreted, and represented by various societies and cultures. Throughout the church's evolution, each Christian society has emphasized key theological tenets in pictorial form. These issuesare related not only to Christology, but also to the culture, politics, spirituality, and the tastesof the day. Each of these variables has played a role in the overall gestalt of images of Christ throughout the ages. It is important to note that the term "art" which today is typically associated with ideas of novelty or uniqueness, cannot accurately be applied to these early representations of Christ. Rather, "art," in the modern sense of the term, only began to develop in the 15th century Renaissance, when beauty and ingenuity became essential to the process of representing sacred subjects. This essay concludes with several insights about pictorial developments that arose in that period.

Keywords:

christ in art, and on the divine images;
theological significance of images of christ, reading pictorial programs;
mystery of the incarnation, visual representations of christ;
christian society, tenets in pictorial form;
devotional images of christ;
images of christ, the christian way of life;
neonian baptistery, ravenna, descent of the holy spirit;
ancient roman burial sites;
christ, focal point of the images produced;
Donatello, resurrection of christ


COVID-19 classification using chest Computed Tomography (CT) has been found pragmatically useful by several studies. Due to the lack of annotated samples, these studies recommend transfer learning and explore the choices of pre-trained models and data augmentation. However, it is still unknown if there are better strategies than vanilla transfer learning for more accurate COVID-19 classification with limited CT data. This paper provides an affirmative answer, devising a novel 'model' augmentation technique that allows a considerable performance boost to transfer learning for the task. Our method systematically reduces the distributional shift between the source and target domains and considers augmenting deep learning with complementary representation learning techniques. We establish the efficacy of our method with publicly available datasets and models, along with identifying contrasting observations in the previous studies.


A small number of Sanskrit and Tocharian manuscripts preserve Uighur in Brāhmī in the form of glosses, marginalia and colophons. These give us some idea of which texts were studied or sponsored by Uyghurs. The language material is (re-)edited, analysed and commented on.


The coins issued by the Germanic peoples during late antiquity and the
 early Middle Ages initially shared an iconographic repertoire, borrowed
 from imperial Rome. The evolution these coins underwent, however,
 reveals characteristic features that served as the basis of the coinage of the
 later Germanic kingdoms, and then of the medieval states that followed.
 This work analyses their prominent aspects as symbols of authority and
 power, such as typology – including references to historical events – the
 degree of romanitas claimed by each of these peoples, and religious
 distinctions, as well as the extent to which these features responded to
 matters of political expediency.


PURPOSE: A method for activating a wind screen wiper motor is provided to constantly maintain pulse width modulation values for a predetermined time. CONSTITUTION: A method for activating a wind screen wiper motor(20) is as follows. The wind screen wiper motor moves one or more wiper blades(11,12). The wind screen wiper motor is switched off in a switch off time(ASZ) before reaching each inversion spot. A driving shaft(21) of the wind screen wiper motor continuously rotates to a stop position at a caster angle(α). The actual speed of the wiper blade is compared with a nominal speed at the switch off time. According to the comparison, the wind screen wiper motor is operated for a period of time determined by a control device.


OBJECTIVE
To study prospectively the short-time survival of patients with severe virus hepatitis using model of severe liver diseases (MSLD) established by our previous study.

METHODS
One hundred and three patients with severe hepatitis were included by cohort study. Of them, there were 85 patients with severe chronic hepatitis patients, 10 acute and 8 subacute severe hepatitis patients, respectively. The follow-up endpoint was 6 months. The cutoff score of the MSLD was determined by receiver operating characteristic cure (ROC) statistic analysis, and the survival of severe hepatitis patients in 2 weeks, 4 weeks, 3 months and 6 months were estimated by Kaplan-Meier statistic analysis.

RESULTS
The cutoff MSLD score for predicting survival was 5. The survival curves of group A (total MSLD score< or =4) was significantly better than group B (total MSLD score> or =5, P<0.000). After treatment for 2 weeks, the survival rate in 2 weeks and 4 weeks was 37.9% and 3.5%, respectively, if MSLD score had no change or increased. The survival rate in 2 weeks, 4 weeks and 3 months was respectively 61.5%, 15.4%, 5.8% if the MSLD score decreased 1. Then, the survival in 2 weeks, 4 weeks, 3 months and 6 months was respectively 95.0%, 90.0%, 63.9% and 52.4% if MSLD score decreased 2 or more.

CONCLUSION
It is suggested that MSLD may be valuable in predicting 6-month survival of severe virus hepatitis patients. It may be used to determine the efficacy of medical treatment and to guide clinical decision.


It is against the backdrop of a major transnational financial crisis in our contemporary world, that I was provided with the opportunity of reviewing Colleen Reid's (2004) book entitled The Wounds of Exclusion Poverty, Women's Health, & Social Justice. It is a topic of great interest for me because marginalization and social justice are concepts that underpin my own program of research on immigrant and refugee health. Issues of gendering, racialization, and classism are not without their problems for the discipline of nursing when it comes time to provide culturally-competent nursing care to the culturally different. Therefore, it was with a sharp interest that I started reviewing this book. In the beginning chapters of the text, Reid provided the audience with an overview of the concepts of poverty, exclusion, health, and the congruence among these concepts and the goals of feminist action research. In addition, the author discussed how globalization and ideological capitalism have contributed to destabilize the labor market, while accelerating the demise of the welfare state in some Western democracies like Canada where the study was conducted. In the early chapters Reid presented the building blocks of her argument concerning poverty and health positing that health is a fundamental right of citizenship and she also explained how the ideologies of globalization and financial corporatism increased the social, cultural, and economic vulnerability of women living at or below the poverty line or receiving social assistance. Additionally, Reid described her role as project manager in a research project called Women Organizing Activities for Women (WOAW). She raised interesting points in contrasting dominant and nondominant discourses of poverty and health. She mentioned that despite growing evidence in health and social research that social determinants have a major influence in shaping men's and women's health and well-being, health is still predominantly conceptualized from a mainstream ideology in which it remains an individual responsibility. In other words, Reid argued that health inequities remained almost unchallenged because of persistent social and economic injustices. Reid supported the hypothesis of the social gradient of health where well-off citizens have better health outcomes and more access to quality healthcare than less privileged citizens. In her book, Reid presented compelling evidence to help the reader understand how women of low income make sense of poverty, health, and social exclusion. However, it remained unclear how Reid's project differed from the larger project called WOAW. It was particularly true when the author discussed her methods of data collection and data coding. The question that came to mind was why there were separate narratives according to women's memberships in WOAW subgroups. I agreed that as a group, women of low income may be seen as a vulnerable population and that structural factors shape social inequities that affect women's health. Although, this group of women shared a similar racial background (17 out of 20 were white), they differed according to age, social class, and other issues of marginalization. Heterogeneity spoke to the diversity of the sources of oppression, but added a layer of complexity to data analysis that was not fully captured. Issues of trustworthiness were attended to, but it did not dissipate the fact that the collected data were thin and perhaps there was a need to recruit participants beyond the WOAW group. However, the author illustrated the burden of poverty on women's perceptions of their holistic health. In addition to poverty, data showed the impact of ageism and sexism among this group of women. Excerpts from interview and field notes illustrated that multiple sources of oppression like domestic violence, abusive parents or spouses, mental health problems, or lack of early childhood opportunities have had an impact on women's lives and choices that affected their health. The impact on the children of women in poverty was also obvious and quite alarming when considering the consequences of perpetuating poverty from one generation to another. Because of Reid's feminist standpoint position, the emphasis on gender may have contributed to the underestimation of other social determinants of health and overestimated personal circumstances that lead women of this group into poverty and ill health. In an article on feminist methodology, Thorne and Varcoe (1998) warned researchers about the pitfalls of extreme application of the principles of feminist research. They mentioned that


As the number of electronically-controlled products complying with exhaust gas regulations installed on medium and large-sized motorcycles increases, the total weight of the motorcycles has increased and the balance between discharging and charging has deteriorated. To solve this problem, we developed the Third-Generation Fuel Pump Module which is compact, light weight, and low in power consumption by downsizing the components of the T35 fuel pump and its housing module.


This study examines the mediational role that teachers play in transforming the subject content to engage students in their learning of academic concepts. The study was conducted in secondary schools in Oxfordshire, England, United Kingdom and provides an insight into an interrelation between micro-processes of teaching and learning and macro-regulative discourse in shaping the quality of teaching. Research has captured the notion of quality of teaching by looking into classroom subject pedagogy [3; 46; 68; 72; 74; 83] and into sociocultural contexts of teaching [4; 5; 45; 84]. However, these studies have neglected the framing of institutional contexts and have therefore downplayed a relationship between classroom pedagogy and institutional discourse. Research has also explored the concept of teaching through different practices prevalent in teaching: research in reflective practice is more on beginning teachers and reveal how such practices help them in gaining expertise [41; 51; 52; 61]; research in formative assessment in schools highlights the prominence of teachers' assessment of student learning [11; 12; 71; 81] rather than peeror selfassessment [54; 71]; and lastly, research in daily teaching and learning from sociocultural perspectives shows a sporadic presence in the literature [14; 30; 70] and calls for more evidence. To address these gaps, this study sought to answer the main research question — How do teachers transform the subject content to support student learning in classrooms? The study adopts a Vygotskian view of teachers' role in subject content transformation and looks into texts in the literature that guide a response to this central question.


Using segmented assimilation theory, this study examines whether the children of immigrants' experiences with being disciplined at school are disproportionate. This study draws from the Educational Longitudinal Study of 2002 and utilizes multilevel techniques to analyze the relationships between race, ethnicity, generational status, misbehavior, and school discipline. Findings reveal that Black/African American second- and third-plus generation as well as Latina/o American third-plus generation youth have increased odds of being disciplined despite having similar levels of misbehavior as their White American peers. The implications of the racial and ethnic, as well as generational, disparities in school discipline practices are discussed.


ATAC-seq reveals unique neutrophil chromatin architecture changes in response to different stimuli before transcriptional activation, possibly regulating downstream gene expression. Sepsis, sequela of bloodstream infections and dysregulated host responses, is a leading cause of death globally. Neutrophils tightly regulate responses to pathogens to prevent organ damage. Profiling early host epigenetic responses in neutrophils may aid in disease recognition. We performed assay for transposase-accessible chromatin (ATAC)-seq of human neutrophils challenged with six toll-like receptor ligands and two organisms; and RNA-seq after Escherichia coli exposure for 1 and 4 h along with ATAC-seq. ATAC-seq of neutrophils facilitates detection of pathogen DNA. In addition, despite similarities in genomic distribution of differential chromatin changes across challenges, only a fraction overlaps between the challenges. Ligands depict shared signatures, but majority are unique in position, function, and challenge. Epigenomic changes are plastic, only ∼120 are shared by E. coli challenges over time, resulting in varied differential genes and associated processes. We identify three classes of gene regulation, chromatin access changes in the promoter; changes in the promoter and distal enhancers; and controlling expression through changes solely in distal enhancers. These and transcription factor footprinting reveal timely and challenge specific mechanisms of transcriptional regulation in neutrophils.


Introduction: Reports from the World Health Organization (WHO) show that the prevalence of hepatitis B virus (HBV) infections varies by geographical region a...


The article is devoted to the problem of understanding the place and role of administrative justice in Russia amid the evolution of real power in Russia in relation to the conditions for the development of this institute in foreign countries. It is proposed that the hypothesis of a particular genesis institute of administrative justice in domestic political and legal reality.


The utility model discloses a connecting device of a chain wheel chamber frame and a gear chamber cover on a pump for an automobile. The connecting device comprises the chain wheel chamber frame (4) and the gear chamber cover (1), wherein two ends of an arched overlap part of the chain wheel chamber frame (4) and the gear chamber cover (1) are connected through screws, and a connecting screw (7) is further arranged in the middle of the arched overlap part of the chain wheel chamber frame (4) and the gear chamber cover (1). Through the adoption of the structure, on one hand, connection between the chain wheel chamber frame and the gear chamber cover is firmer, on the other hand, sealing performance of the arched joint is better, and better performance guarantee is provided for the pump for the automobile.


Many applications involving atmospheric pressure plasma-substrate interactions are enabled by the large fluxes of short-lived reactive species such as OH radicals to the substrate, nonetheless, the accurate measurement of radical densities and fluxes at substrates at atmospheric pressure has received little attention to date, particularly for surface ionization waves. We report the measurement of the OH density distribution in a surface discharge on a fused silica (quartz) substrate generated by an impinging atmospheric pressure plasma jet in dry and humid helium. The OH density is measured by microscopic laser induced fluorescence with a spatial resolution of 10 µm in the direction perpendicular to the quartz substrate. The measured OH diffusive flux varied for the investigated experimental conditions by almost three orders of magnitude and had a maximum value of 1.7 × 1015 cm−2 s−1. The corresponding surface loss probability of OH on the quartz surface was determined to be ∼0.01. The high spatial resolution was required to accurately resolve the near surface gradient of OH radicals.


The ways of thunder and light destroying seismostations are summarized.There was a light rod at Changping station, but it did not work well in protecting the station from thunder and light.The principle and advantages of a new device against thunder bolt with capacity earth connection is introduced.The devices were installed at 42 stations in Beijing City and Fujian, Zhejiang, Sichuan, Liaoning, Guangxi, Guangdong, Hainan, Shaanxi, Hebei Provinces.Facts have proved that the devices are satisfactory.


Patients with cancer are at increased risk of painful vertebral compression fractures (VCFs). The Cancer Patient Fracture Evaluation (CAFE) trial was the first randomised controlled study to compare the safety and effectiveness of balloon kyphoplasty (BKP – a minimally invasive procedure) with non-surgical fracture management in the treatment of VCFs in patients with cancer. Data from the CAFE trial demonstrated that BKP is a safe and effective treatment option that quickly reduces pain and improves physical function and vertebral body height in patients with cancer and painful VCFs. Data from peer-reviewed published studies support the CAFE trial findings.


The Tunnel Designer together with his client is deciding about the future success of the project at the very early project stage. He is the manager of the tunnel construction itself, as his choice of contract model and design is a management tool in construction. While keeping this in mind, Contract & Risk Management of Underground Works deals with the choice of tunnel contract model and construction management. It summarizes the state of the art of contracting for both conventional and mechanized tunnelling. Fundamental requirements for design and construction contract of tunnels are:Evaluation/classification of ground conditions and particular project requirementsDesign with subdivisions in stages, following the project and construction developmentFramework for a range of potential applicationsConstruction Methods suitable for standard plant, equipment and materialRisk Management Plan (RMP) in context with Geotechnical Baseline Report (GBR)Flexible Contractual Models for fair remuneration.


To prevent people at risk of type 2 diabetes and people with weight problems, a lifestyle intervention project, called the 'BeweegKuur' has been developed in the Netherlands. The BeweegKuur, geared towards promoting healthy nutrition and sufficient exercise has been developed and implemented through a great number of parties. In different meetings these parties, with different views and interests discuss the nature and the course of the project. This study concerns the nature and effectiveness of communication strategies that participants use in which they support both their own interests and the collective ambitions at the same time. The study shows how in the collaboration relevant contexts are created and become concrete through their conversations. How this new, jointly created reality, is a new common reference point for behavior in the cooperation.


Few studies have focused on the potential impacts of topography on regional crop simulation, which might constrain the development of crop models and lead to inaccurate estimations for food security. In this study, we used remote sensing data to calibrate a regional crop model (MCWLA-Rice) for yield simulation in a double-rice crop rotation system in counties of Hunan province dominated by three landforms (plain, hill, and mountain). The calibration scheme with coarse remote sensing data (Global LAnd Surface Satellite, GLASS) greatly improved model accuracy for the double-rice system and is a promising method for yield estimation in large areas. The average improvement in relative root mean square error (RRMSE) was at most 48.00% for early rice and 41.25% for late rice. The average improvement in coefficient of determination (R2) value was at most 0.54 for early rice and 0.19 for late rice. Estimation of yield in counties dominated by different landform types indicated that: (1) MCWLA-Rice tended to be unstable in areas of complex topography and resulted in unbalanced proportions of overestimations and underestimations. (2) Differences in yield simulation between early rice and late rice varied among counties; yield estimates were highest in predominantly hilly counties, followed by counties dominated by plains, and lowest in predominantly mountainous counties. The results indicated that the topography might harm the accuracy of crop model simulations. Integration of topographic factors into crop models may enable yield estimation with enhanced accuracy to promote social development.


The objective of the present work was to develop an oral Mucoadhesive Metformin hydrochloride tablet for the sustained-release. Metformin hydrochloride (HCl), a biguanide, has a relatively short plasma half-life and low absolute bioavailability. The tablets were prepared by the Wet Granulation method, using biodegradable mucoadhesive polymer Xanthan gum and pectin at different concentrations. All the batches were evaluated for thickness, weight variation, hardness, drug content uniformity, in vitro drug release and mucoadhesion strength. Mean dissolution time is used to characterize the drug release rate from a dosage form, and indicates the drug release-retarding efficiency of the polymer. The in vitro studies the formulations containing Pectin showed less retardation than the formulation with Xanthan gum. The Metformin release effectively controlled for 12 h with Xanthan gum, thus, can be successfully employed for formulating mucoadhesive tablets. Fitting the data to the Zero order and Higuchi equation indicated the mechanism of drug release. The study reveals that Xanthan gum highest mucoadhesive strength compared with pectin.


Abstract Objectives Eating disorders (EDs) are severe psychiatric conditions characterised by malnutrition, dysfunctional behaviours, and hypovitaminosis D. In various psychiatric conditions, including EDs, preliminary evidence has correlated impulsivity to a low level of 25-hydroxyvitamin D [25(OH)D]. This study aims to reinforce this evidence by examining different facets, both behavioural and psychological, of the impulsivity construct in patients with ED. Methods A sample of 119 women was evaluated with a validated questionnaire and computerised neuropsychological tasks: the UPPS-P impulsive behaviour scale, a go/no-go task, and the Balloon Analogue Risk Task (BART). A clinical evaluation for EDs and blood sample collection were also performed to assess specific psychopathology and determine the serum level of 25(OH)D. Results Significant correlations were found between serum levels of 25(OH)D and BART scores (p = 0.012) and lack of perseverance (p = 0.034). Moreover, regression analyses showed that higher BART scores may be explained by hypovitaminosis D and higher levels of lack of perseverance in patients with EDs. Conclusions The specific aspect of impulsivity linked to goal strategy and behaviours may be explained in patients with EDs by hypovitaminosis D. A possible connection to the brain inflammatory system is also discussed, along with possible directions for future research.


This research is the result ofan investigaron exercise on the vvriting pracliccs with studcnts of ihird grades of two public institutions of the city of Bogota, whose purpose is to analyze the practices that are evidenced in a didactic sequence for the creation of fantastic storics. Study that is part of the qualitative research in the modality of systematization ofclassroom practices. through observation. class recordings and ileld journals to collect information. The technique used for the analysis of data wns the A priori cataloging and the Inductive Subcataloging, which was done from three categories established from the theoretical framework and the objcctives raised in the research: Languages in relation to story writing, Uses oi Writing and writing Relations with reading. Ih-en the data wcrc examined in depth to identify the scctions that gavc rise to thc subcatcgorics and other emerging caiegories: Story writing proccss, Relationship between reality and fantasy and Intcraction of Ihc Studcnt with wriling. Among ihe results it is highlighted that students have wrilten fantastic stories to have fun, imagine and identify; relate the drawing to the stories and conceive writing as a process that requires: organization of ideas, appropriation of fantastic structural elements and an extensive review and correction of the writing. The findings have demonstrated the complexity of the writing process and the necessary theoretical foundation of thc tcachcr, showing that it is possible to dcsign proposals that transfonn traditional thinking. develop the capacity to imagine writing and cncouragc in students the flow of ideas to create others Worlds.


Exchange rates and many other financial time series data exhibit structural breaks and volatility. Nonlinearity test and a structural break test were used to detect the nonlinearity and the break date in NGN/EUR. The study revealed that nonlinearity and threshold nonlinearity exist in the exchange rate series. The results showed that the SETAR model can explain abrupt changes in NGN/EUR. The identified structural break date coincides with identifiable economic and political shocks. Given the evidence of structural break in the series, we applied unit root test and find that NGN/EUR is stationary which indicate that the ADF unit root tests are bias towards non-rejection of non-stationarity. In modelling the exchange rates data set, two SETAR models were generated, that is SETAR(2;5,2) model without dummy variable was used as a benchmark, while, dummy variable was added so as to address the identified structural break which generated SETAR(3;5,3). The diagnostic tests revealed that, the SETAR model is adequate for forecasting (i.e. both models are free from serial correlation and heteroscedasticity). The forecast results showed that the SETAR(3;5,3) model with the inclusion of dummy variable performs better than that of the SETAR(2;5,2) model without dummy variable.


We present the novel approach to the Bose–Hubbard model using the U(1) quantum rotor description. We formulate a problem in the phase only action using an effective action formalism and obtain analytical formulae for the critical lines. We show that the nontrivial U(1) phase field configurations have an impact on the phase diagrams. The topological character of the quantum field is governed by terms of the integer charges — winding numbers n. The comparison of the presented results with recently obtained quantum Monte Carlo numerical calculations suggests that the competition between quantum effects in strongly interacting boson systems is correctly captured by our model.


Consider a simple experiment using paper airplanes. A problem could be as simple as "How does the weight of the airplane affect its flight time?" Depending on the materials provided, a logical independent variable could be the weight of the paper airplane as defined by the number of paperclips attached to the airplane, while the dependent variable would be the flight time as measured by a stopwatch, measured to the nearest hundredth of a second.


Very few studies have been performed to evaluate the effect of culture conditions on the production or activity of active metabolites in algae. Previous studies suggest that the synthesis of bioactive compounds is strongly influenced by irradiance level. To investigate whether the antiproliferative activity of Udotea flabellum extracts is modified after cultivation, this green alga was cultured under four photon flux densities (PFD) for 30 days. After 10, 20, and 30 days, algae were extracted with dichloromethane: methanol and screened for antiproliferative activity against four human cancer cell lines (laryngeal—Hep-2, cervix—HeLa, cervix squamous—SiHa and nasopharynx—KB) by SRB assay. Lipid and phenol content were evaluated by standardized methods on algae organic extracts. After 10 days of cultivation, organic U. flabellum extracts showed a significant increase in antiproliferative activity on Hela and SiHa cells when compared to noncultured algae extracts. Extracts obtained after 10 and 20 days of culture were active on KB and Hep-2 cells. Total phenol and polyunsaturated fatty acid content in organic extracts changed with cultivation time but not by irradiance treatment. Extracts from U. flabellum obtained after 10 and 20 days of culture have been selected for fractionation and isolation of active compounds.


With the unique capability of enhancing fluorescence, photonic material is integrated into microfluidic chip for point-of-care testing of multiple targets.


The intangibility of banking services makes the eva luation of service quality and customer convenience difficult to measure. Bankers obviously recognize the importance of intangible factors, but because of pressures placed on operating margins caused by the current economic climate and chronically low margins, the e valuation of factors related to quality service becomes paramount for bank managers. Bankers, by ne cessity, seek to promote improvement initiatives, which will assist banks in improving t heir perceived costumer portfolio quality. This paper aims to construct an integrated evaluation sy stem for retail banking service quality and convenience at the bank branch level. By combining cognitive mapping with measuring attractiveness by a categorical based evaluation te chnique, we strive to introduce transparency in the decision making process and add to the performance literature in retail banking. Strengths, weaknesses and practical applications of our multip le criteria evaluation system are also discussed.


Address for presentation at the 5th Atomic Energy in Industry conference of the National Industrial Conference Board, March 15, 1957, in Philadelphia, PA, United States.


The purpose of this study is to analyze on the change of the urban structure and it's Landscape Paradigm of Kangwon Kamyoung, center of local government in Kangwon Province during the Japanese imperialism ruling period in Korea. Urbanization of Wonju city is greatly influenced by the readjustment unit, change of land use pattern according to its population growth and transportation system, downtown, settlement. To find out the proto-type of urban form of Wonju city, the sequence on the urbanization of Wonju city by the Japanese imperial ruling policy, historyical approach was used with the data which were obtained by the document since 1860-1945 . The standard map being made in 1914, 1946 were used to remake the urban structure of Wonju. The results of this study were as follows ; The landscap of downtown in Wonju and its surrounding countryside changed their form very slowly, influenced each other under Jungang-street constrution. We could find out the real area of kangwon kamyoung and it's attached office area, understand the reason why it's north side destoried.


Business travel is important and yet very few attempts have been made to model it. The aim of this study is to identify those economic variables that are most important in influencing business trips to Australia from four of Australia's most important travel and trade partners. Using a standard demand modelling approach suitably modified to deal with the motivations for business trips, Johansen's Full Information Maximum Likelihood technique is used to estimate the long-run relationship between business travel and its explanators. We find that the importance of the economic variables varies from country to country, although overall openness to trade and origin country real income are important variables explaining business travel.


The presentation of evidence at legal proceedings is an important part of the work of many engineers. It is important that such evidence be presented in a manner which makes it comprehensible to non technical people. Comments are made on evidence preparation and presentation, especially in relation to Resource Management Act consent hearings.


Silviculture alters the pattern of development in a stand so that the characteristics of a mature stand can be reached in less time than through natural development. Forest management is the control, or regulation, of the pattern of stages of stand development, across the area of the forest, and across time. On-the-ground management control is exercised by temporal and spatial regulation of harvesting, product recovery, silviculture, and protection. Good management is anticipation and correction of emerging structural problems in a specific forest so that the desired quantity and quality of benefits are available continuously. Goodness of management can only be judged in specific cases by comparing what is done on-the-ground against what is needed in a particular forest to achieve the desired goals.


The definition problem of critical forces, which provokes wrinkling of composite base layers of triplex sandwich plate with orthotropic core is solved. A new model of elastic core is offered. It considers elastic core rigidity on compression and shear, and also nonlinear character of decaying of normal displacement throughout the thickness.


OBJECTIVE
This study investigated gender-specific interaction between effort-reward imbalance and video display unit (VDU) postural risk factors at work on the incidence of self-reported musculoskeletal symptoms in the shoulder-neck, lower back and upper limbs regions.

PARTICIPANTS
A cohort of 2,431 VDU users - consisting of white-collar workers in three Canadian public service organizations - was assessed on postural risk factors and effort-reward imbalance at work.

METHODS
After a mean follow-up time of three years, the six-month incidence proportion of musculoskeletal symptoms in each body region was measured. Interaction was estimated with the attributable proportion of cases due to interaction.

RESULTS
For women, two significant attributable proportions due to interaction between effort-reward imbalance and postural risk factors were observed in the shoulder-neck (64%) and upper limbs (57%) regions, while an interaction of 25%, although not significant, was observed in the lower back. No interaction was observed for men.

CONCLUSIONS
This interaction means that, among women, when effort-reward imbalance and postural risk factors are simultaneously present, the incidence of musculoskeletal symptoms is greater than the sum of effects of the individual factors. Successful interventions on either one of these exposures would thus have the supplemental benefit of preventing cases due to interaction.


African Americans in executive-level positions in the United States today must deal with extremely complex social dynamics. As blacks they are identified first and foremost as members of a historically stigmatized group; as corporate executives they are identified as members of an elite and powerful class. This ethnographic case study examining their problems and efforts to deal with them will yield insights into the situation not only of black executives but also of marginalized minorities more generally. The affirmative action initiatives and policies had their most direct and immediate effect on blacks who were well prepared and poised to take advantage of any opportunity that arose in the occupational system. In managing the various and sundry issues of the corporate world, members of the periphery like to appear to be color-blind, indicating that race plays a limited role in their understanding of the social world. Keywords:African Americans; black executives; corporate world; social dynamics; United States


ABSTRACT Drinking water contaminated with arsenic poses serious threat to the human health. The present study was aimed for quality assessment of the groundwater of Khairpur Mir's in respect with arsenic and other elemental contamination like Fe, Cu, Co, and Ni. The presence of the trace elements in groundwater from different sources in the study area was measured by using atomic absorption spectroscopy. For arsenic analysis hydride generation technique (MHS-15) was used with detection limit of 0.02 µg l−1. Elevated level of arsenic was observed in most of the samples as compared to recommended value of World Health Organization (WHO) guidelines (10 µg l−1). However, levels of Fe, Cu, Co, and Ni in hand pump (HP) water samples was found in the range of 4–1610 µg l−1, 0–556 µg l−1, 0–230 µg l−1, and 0–700 µg l−1, respectively. Whereas in tube well (TW) water samples the observed values are 5–1620 µg l−1, 0–50 µg l−1, 4–110 µg l−1, and 0–360 µg l−1 for Fe, Cu, Co, and Ni, respectively. Significant difference was observed between TW and HP water samples. It was concluded that the level of arsenic found was very high up to 13 fold more than the WHO recommended limit in study area. While the levels of other elements was noted within the safe limit.


In the analysis of plastic packaging SiP product failure, we should not only consider the plastic material and techniques inherent problems, but also the problem that SiP products have a lot of materials, complex structure, and small surface bonding. A type of plastic packaging SiP module function failure after reflow soldering, through appearance inspection, pin electrical characteristic test, X-ray analysis, Scanning Acoustic Microscope(SAM) examination and longitudinal section inspection and so on. We found that due to the compact structure, the design refers to the bonding finger with a small distance from the bare die, resulting in a small amount of adhesive film and forming a hole. In addition to improper selection of adhesive, the conductive adhesive after curing is relatively brittle and hard. It is not conducive to large chip resistance stress, resulting in plastic devices after moisture absorption during reflow soldering. The internal Vapor thermal expansion leads to delamination and failure.


Stabilized zirconia (ZrO2) is recognized as the major candidate for the electrolyte material of solid oxide fuel cells (SOFCs) owing to its high ionic conductivity and chemical stability. The ionic conductivity originates from the oxygen vacancies introduced by doping 2+ or 3+ valence cations on the Zr4+ site. The conductivity shows the maximum at a certain dopant concentration. Although stabilized zirconia is a dominantly ionic conductor, electronic conductivity is not completely zero. Taking into account both the ionic and the electronic conductivities, the optimum electrolyte thickness is calculated to be 10–100 µm when the current density of 0.1–1 A cm−2 is generated at 1000 °C.

Electrode materials should have high catalytic activity, high electronic conductivity, and high chemical and morphological stability. Currently, (La,Sr)MnO3 and Ni–YSZ cermet are the most popular cathode and anode, respectively. The crystal lattice of (La,Sr)MnO3 has a distorted perovskite type structure. The symmetry varies with oxygen partial pressure and temperature. Electrical conductivity of La1−xSrxMnO3 (x = 0–0.4) ranges from 100 to 300 S cm−1 at 1000 °C in air. Oxygen diffusion coefficient is 10−12 cm2 s−1, which is not enough to supply oxygen via the electrode bulk diffusion. Although catalytic activity is lower than a mixed conductor oxides such as (La,Sr)CoO3, (La,Sr)MnO3 has higher compatibility with YSZ electrolyte. Nickel is a superior catalyst for the electrochemical and chemical reactions when hydrogen or hydrocarbon gases are used as the fuel. The problem with the nickel anode is its morphological instability and thermal expansion mismatch with YSZ. Thus, nickel powders are used in a form of Ni–YSZ cermet. Electrical conductivity of the cermet electrode varies drastically around the percolation threshold. The optimum nickel content is around 40 vol%.

Electrode reaction kinetics has been investigated intensively for the cathode and the anode. The major origin of the electrode overvoltage is assumed to be the shift of oxygen potential at the electrode/electrolyte contact, which is caused by the formation of oxygen potential gap or gradient to promote the rate limiting reactions. The current–voltage relationship and the electrochemical impedances are well explained under the assumption, and the reaction models were developed by the reaction order analyses.

Keywords:

electrolyte;
conductivity;
electronic conductivity;
ionic conductivity;
chemical stability;
mechanical strength;
cost;
stabilized zirconia;
YSZ;
O2− ion conductor;
crystal structure;
fluorite type structure;
phase relationship;
oxygen vacancy;
mobility;
long term operation;
activation energy;
electron;
hole;
electrolytic domain;
electromotive force;
optimum thickness;
open circuit voltage;
oxygen permeation;
efficiency;
electrode material;
catalytic activity;
compatibility;
morphological stability;
thermal expansion;
cathode material;
LaCoO3;
LaFeO3;
LaMnO3;
(La;
Sr)MnO3;
perovskite;
oxygen nonstoichiometry;
cation vacancy;
diffusion coefficient;
isotope diffusion coefficient;
La2Zr2O7;
SrZrO3;
kinetic decomposition (unmixing;
demixing);
anode material;
Ni;
Ni-YSZ cermet;
percolation threshold;
fabrication;
electrode reaction kinetics;
porous electrode;
electrode/electrolyte interface;
gaseous diffusion;
adsorption;
dissociation;
surface diffusion;
charge transfer;
steam reforming reaction;
shift reaction;
origin of the electrode polarization;
local equilibrium;
rate determining step;
triple phase boundary (TPB);
oxygen activity;
Langmuir-type adsorption;
cathode reaction kinetics;
polarization curve;
anode reaction kinetics;
hydrogen oxidation;
patterned nickel electrode;
hydrocarbon oxidation;
methane;
cracking;
steam/carbon ratio;
carbon deposition


Objective To study the changes of N methyl D aspartate(NMDA) receptor in the rat brain during reperfusion after local ischemia. Methods The rat cerebral focal ischemia/reperfusion model after middle cerebral artery occlusion (MCAO) was made by the intraluminal suture method. After ischemia and reperfusion models were completed, the rat brain was removed immediately and dissected under the frozen state. After incubation with 3H MK 801which was used as a radioactive ligand, the samples were exposed on the hypersensitive film at the room temperature. Regions of interest (ROIs) were set bilaterally in each autoradiographic brain image. LEICAQ 550IWL imaging analysis system was used to detect the density of NMDA receptor. The ratios of the receptor density between affected and unaffected side in the same ROI were compared. Before receptor binding assay, the middle section of the ischemic cortex was separated, homogenated and centrifugated. After binding with the radioligand, radioactivity was measured by liquid scintillation counter. Scatchard plot was made from the liquid scintillation counter and affinity ( K d) and maximal binding (B max ) changes of NMDA receptor were calculated. The results of K d and B max were compared between groups. Results NMDA receptor density in the correspon ding ROI increased significantly during 2 h ischemia and 2 h reperfusion in comparison with the result of the sham group, which showed that the NMDA receptor channel was opened abuntantly. The opening of the channel was mainly caused by the increase of the excitatory amino acids. There was significant decrease in the degree of channel opening in the 24 h and 72 h reperfusion groups in corresponding ROIs and no difference was found between two groups. The value of K d in ischemia and reperfusion groups did not change. B max of NMDA receptor increased obviously during 2 h reperfusion and decreased obviously during 24 h and 72 h reperfusion. Conclusions During the ischemia reperfusion, the excitatory amino acids increased greatly and remained high for a few hours. NMDA receptor was activated and its ion channel opened accordingly, which produced the ischemia damage. The best time of the therapy window of brain ischemia should be within 4 h.


The work exposes a journalistic analysis of the mediate reality (Setting Agenda) around the conditions in which the democracy expresses from three categories: quality of life, citizenship and gender. The newspapers which were used were "El Zocalo de Piedras Negras" in Coahuila and "La Cronica de Mexicali" in Baja California. The results are the following ones: only during days of electoral processes the preference to give the voice is well-known to the governmental instances; the condition of gender is not object of attention, agenda and incidence of the problematic referred to it; women are not subject of public voice for political subjects, or spaces granted by sectors or agenda of means. There exists little possibility of performance and insertion of public policies like institutionalized answer for the resolution of the border problematic.


Transient rotor angle stability assessment and oscillatory rotor angle stability assessment subsequent to a contingency are integral components of dynamic security assessment (DSA) in power systems. This study proposes a hybrid algorithm to determine whether the post-fault power system is secure due to both transient rotor angle stability and oscillatory rotor angle stability subsequent to a set of known contingencies. The hybrid algorithm first uses a new security measure developed based on the concept of Lyapunov exponents (LEs) to determine the transient security of the post-fault power system. Later, the transient secure power swing curves are analysed using an improved Prony algorithm which extracts the dominant oscillatory modes and estimates their damping ratios. The damping ratio is a security measure about the oscillatory security of the post-fault power system subsequent to the contingency. The suitability of the proposed hybrid algorithm for DSA in power systems is illustrated using different contingencies of a 16-generator 68-bus test system and a 50-generator 470-bus test system. The accuracy of the stability conclusions and the acceptable computational burden indicate that the proposed hybrid algorithm is suitable for real-time security assessment with respect to both transient rotor angle stability and oscillatory rotor angle stability under multiple contingencies of the power system.


Nearly spherical morphology of solution-grown NaCl particles in the size range of 300−1000 μm was achieved at 55−60 °C employing a suitable crystallizer equipped with a butterfly wing-shaped impeller operated at 250 rpm. Morphology control was equally effective with synthetic and natural brines and required no habit modifier. Sieved spherical salt of 350−500 μm size exhibited superior flow (ca. 20% greater mass flow rate through a funnel; angle of repose ∼16°)—as compared to commercial vacuum evaporated free flow cubic salt of comparable dimension—upon treatment with potassium ferrocyanide anticaking additive. The superior flow characteristic was retained even after 3 months of storage. Scanning electron microscopic studies revealed that the round polycrystalline particles were derived from the stacking of minute NaCl cubes and the average size of the spheres was amenable to reduction through use of ethanol as antisolvent. The process was successfully scaled up to 10 kg level.


Superconducting oxide thin films of the YBa2Cu3Ox system have been prepared on zirconia (YSZ) substrates by sol–gel technique using metal alkoxide solution. Yttrium butoxide, barium methoxide and copper methoxide in a given atomic ratio were dissolved in a triethanolamine–methanol solution. Coating of the resultant solution, heating at 800 °C in air and annealing in an oxygen atmosphere resulted in superconducting oxide thin films. The onset of superconductivity was seen at 98 K and the resistance rapidly decreased with decreasing temperature, reaching substantially zero at 56 K.


The purpose of this study is to determine the effect of financial performance as measured by indicators of current ratio, fixed asset turnover, return on asset and service performance as measured by indicators of bed occupancy ratio, turn over interval, and length of stay on the level of hospital financial independence. Object this research is a public hospital owned by the Ministry of Health of the Republic of Indonesia which has become the Public Service Agency (BLU). This study uses secondary data in 2016-2018.The results of this study indicate that financial performance (current ratio, fixed asset turnover, return on asset) and service performance (bed occupancy ratio, turn over interval, length of stay) together the same have a positive influence and significantly to the independence of the financial hospital measured by the indicator cost recovery rate. Partially, current ratio has a negative effect significant, fixed asset turnover have a positive effect not significant, return on assets have a positive effect of significant, bed occupancy ratio has a positive effect not significant, turn over interval have a positive effect not significant, and the length of stay have a negative effect not significantly to the independence of the financial hospital measured by the indicator cost recovery rate.


The relation between the duration of ischemic ST‐segment depression (1 mm or more 60 ms after the J point) and the clinical awareness of chest pain was studied in 31 patients (aged 39–73 years) undergoing symptom‐limited, graded treadmill exercise testing. The response of these patients to nitrate therapy (spray or sublingual tablet) given immediately on cessation of exercise was also studied. During exercise, angina pectoris appeared at an estimated workload of 4.6±2.2 metabolic equivalents (METS) (mean±SD), and pathological ST‐segment depression at 4.9 ± 1.9 METS (p=NS.) On cessation of exercise, angina disappeared after 3.0±1.9 min, but ST‐segment depression persisted for more than twice as long (6.6 ± 4.1 min) (p < 0.0001). The ratio of time to ST‐segment recovery/time to relief of pain (a quantitative measure of silent ischemia during recovery) increased with age (r = 0.49, p = 0.002), and in 16 patients over 60 years of age was higher than in 15 younger patients (3.6 ± 2.5 vs. 2.1 ± 1.4) (p < 0.04). The silent ischemia ratio after exercise tended to decrease, although not significantly so (p = 0.2), in patients who received oral nitrates; there was no difference in the response to spray or tablet in this regard. We conclude that ST‐segment depression frequently persists after relief of exercise‐induced angina pectoris and more so in elderly patients.


This paper focuses on applying human postures and face tracking technologies to design an autonomous patrol vehicle control system, which contains a wireless video surveillance ability. The entire system includes the following several parts: (1) Obtaining the skeleton joints based on the Kinect skeleton tracking: the angles and distances between each human arm's joint are calculated to be the input of an artificial neural networks. (2) Changing the vehicle's gear box: the dynamic gesture recognition is built by using the artificial neural network and a finite state machine. (3) Controlling the vehicle speed, the speed is controlled by a fuzzy control algorithm. (4) Controlling of a motorized camera: the Kinect face tracking function is applied to detect a human's fact direction, so that, the motorized camera's rotation is controlled by the direction. This project expands the application range of intelligent mobile robots and improves the robotic autonomous ability to deal with complex environments.


With the development of network technology, the use of intelligent equipment, People's Daily life style has also changed accordingly. In recent years, the application scope of big data has been expanding, and the research and development of artificial intelligence has been promoted gradually. Among them, the research of speech recognition technology is an important research direction. If breakthroughs are made in speech recognition technology, it is possible for humans to communicate with machines that can understand human language and respond to it accordingly. The integration of intelligent devices into people's lives has provided great convenience, and the research on speech recognition technology is undoubtedly an important part, which determines whether the communication between people and devices can be realized smoothly.


A release programme of captive bred Milky Storks was initiated to increase population size in the wild. Population size depends on the survival rate and breeding success of individuals in the population. Among factors that affect survival rate and breeding success are population age class and sex ratio. The main objective of this study was to estimate the survival rate of Mycteria cinerea that has been released in Kuala Gula Bird Sanctuary since 2007. The estimation of the survival rate was done across gender and age class. This study was conducted in 2012 at Kuala Gula Bird Sanctuary. The presence of M. cinerea individuals were recorded at the sanctuary and identified to background information, such as date of birth, gender and date of release. Females of M. cinerea were estimated to have a higher survival rate (30.0%) than male (16.7%). Across gender, each individual was assigned into 4 different age classes, namely less than 1 year, between 1 and 2 years, between 2 and 3 years, and more than 3 years. T...


Aspergillosis of the central nerve system is a rare disease, and intracranial fungal epidural abscess has not previously been descri- bed. We had been referred a 63-year old man who had 4 months history of hearing difficulty on his left ear and 3 months history of headache. Effusion of left middle ear was identified by otoscopy and tympanocentesis. Temporal bone CT showed soft tissue densities in middle ear, mastoid antrum and air cells with normal bony contours. T1 and T2-weigted MRI showed low signal inte- nsity and peripheral rim enhancement after administration of gadolinium. Drainage of abscess through transmastoid approach was performed. Biopsy specimen showed septated fungal hyphae with Grocott's methanamine silver (GMS) and Periodic acid-schiff (PAS) stains. The authors hereby report a case of aspergillus epidural abscess of the middle cranial fossa. (Korean J Otolaryngol 2003;46:436-9)


This article describes the cultural collection at the Pieniny National Park, focusing on its history, the ways of acquiring objects and their inventory, methods of storage as well as their restoration. The article also presents the number of items collected by April 2010.


In this paper, we present a successful experimental validation of the velocity optimization for a cable car passing over a support. We apply the theoretical strategy developed in a previous work, refined by taking into account in a simple manner the hauling cable dynamics. The experiments at the ropeway Postal–Verano (South Tirol, Italy) have shown a significant reduction of the pendulum angle amplitude for both the descent and the ascending rides, as predicted from simulations. Furthermore, we measured a smoother progress of the torque at the driving engine during the vehicle support crossings.


Background: HIV-1 persists within cellular reservoirs as a transcriptionally silent provirus, creating a significant roadblock to cure research. Numerous promising therapeutic and pharmacological interventions are currently being evaluated; however to date none have resulted in reservoir eradication. We have designed an activator vaccine (ACT-VEC), using autologous derived VLPs, which target the resting CD4 T cell reservoir, inducing latency reversal. We describe the safeguards incorporated into our VLPs as well as preliminary data from our in vitro latency reversal studies.


Julian Smith, Member of Parliament for Skipton and Ripon, has welcomed the plan by the Chancellor to freeze fuel duty until at least May 2015. George ...


A new technique for reembedding celloidin sections of human temporal bones for transmission electron microscopy is described. It consists of four steps: 1. loosening of celloidin sections from glass slides with use of xylene and dissection of the area of interest, 2. removal of celloidin with use of clove oil, 3. staining with 1% osmium tetroxide and 1% tannic acid, and 4. embedding in epoxy resin.


When students face a computer monitor instead of a chalkboard, creative tools are necessary to be a successful instructor. Tips for achievement in this environment, which have been acquired over ten web-based course offerings, will be discussed. Experiences to be presented have been garnered from offering asynchronous, on-line classes to students without geographic restriction. Important areas of discussion will include the unique interaction of the instructor with students, in the role of coach rather than presenter; methods to foster student interaction and group work; the prevention of "scrolling learning" and ideas to impart information in ways other than black print on a white page. Also, experience with the implementation of classes provided on-line at Indianapolis University – Purdue University at Indianapolis (IUPUI) has shown that faculty and students can be more connected with each other when linked via computer, as opposed to traditional classrooms, when this feature is nurtured and developed. How this has been enabled will be presented. While course content is prepared prior to the beginning of the semester, continual preparation and review is required. Faculty describe the feeling that class is never over. The students are constantly on their minds. Students have a high expectation of accessibility, including weekends. Promoting student satisfaction involves a great many "virtual office hours." Adding to student satisfaction is the use of feedback to help the students feel as if they can "make a difference," that is, direct the course discussion. The general information presented will describe how to get over the "first-time" syndrome for faculty, staff and administrators.


To facilitate the base station planning in high speed railway communication systems, it is necessary to consider the functional relationships between the base station transmit power and space parameters such as train velocity and cell radius. Since these functions are able to present some inherent system properties determined by its spatial topology, they will be referred to as the power-space functions in this paper. In light of the fact that the line-of-sight path persists the most power of the received signal of each passing train, this paper considers the average transmission rate and bounds on power-space functions based on the additive white Gaussian noise channel (AWGN) model. As shown by Monte Carlo simulations, using AWGN channel instead of Rician channel introduces very small approximation errors, but a tractable mathematical framework and insightful results. Particularly, lower bounds and upper bounds on the average transmission rate, as well as transmit power as functions of train velocity and cell radius are presented in this paper. It is also proved that to maintain a fixed amount of service or a fixed average transmission rate, the transmit power of a base station needs to be increased exponentially, if the train velocity or cell radius is increased, respectively.


The research entitled the influence of teaching materials bikin dongeng yuk! towards the learning outcomes of elementary school students. This research is motivated by the low student learning outcomes in Indonesian language learning, especially the material elements of the story and the lack of teaching materials about language learning in elementary schools. The use of existing language teaching materials still cannot maximize learning due to the lack of interesting teaching materials. The purpose of this study was to improve the learning outcomes of elementary students in Anggrawati I Elementary School, Maja Subdistrict, Majalengka District and Sukaraja Elementary School I, Sukaraja District, Sukabumi Regency. The use of the method in this study is pre-experimental with one group pretest-posttest design which aims to determine the effect of teaching materials to make a fairy tale !. The instrument used in this study is the observation sheet in the form of a checklist with the indicators are the intrinsic elements of the story. The results of the study were an increase in the learning outcomes of elementary school students, especially in the material elements of the story.Keywords: Teaching Materials bikin dongeng yuk!, Learning Outcomes


The delocalized exciton on conjugated polymers plays a momentous role in efficient charge generation and transport processes. Because the exciton is delocalized over the conjugated backbone, the ex...


The aim of this paper is to analyse and interpret the importance of the letter in the 18th century epistolary novel and the 17th and 18th century painting. The article presents properties and functions of the letter that made it attractive to the literature and painting of that time. The focus is also on social and cultural context relevant to the discussed matter. Furthermore, the paper examines the form and content of the novel and painting in question, including the specific ways and consequences of the employment of the letter by these disciplines. Finally, the problem of illusionism is considered.


The transport of water through xylems in tree is one of the most efficient transport mechanisms. Porous conventional ceramic is one way to mimic capillary force in xylem, which was operated by mixing pottery clay with volatile natural fiber (coconut coir) and extruded into 30 millimeter in diameter rod. The coconut coir content in the mixtures was varied from 0 to 8 wt% of dried clay. Dried samples were fired at 800 °C and 900 °C for 2 h to burn out the coconut coir. The water transport performance test of samples is performed by immersing 3 cm of the initial parts of samples in water and observe watermark at 1, 2, 4, 8 and 16 h under the humidity and temperature controls at 60% and 30 °C, respectively. The sample with the 8 wt% coconut coir after firing at 900 °C showed the highest watermark level at 45 cm from the initial point and the highest water transpiration rate of 2.275 g/h.


were observed as follows; Three cases of diffuse vascularization, 5 cases of localized vasculaization and 3 cases of small scattered groupings of vascularity were seen. It was assumed that those abnormal vascularizations ensued from the birth trauma or from the inflammatory events. On the base of these investigations of the carotid angiography, surgical treatments were tried on 5 cases with abnomalities of the arteries which might cause mental retardation. Some improvements of inteligence were see in 3 cases of above-mentioned 5 cases. More cases of the mentally retarded children who may be indicated for the neurosurgical procedure would be found, if one would examine the cerebral angiography for them.


Common carp is one that has potential of fisheries resources in the fulfillment of people s nutrition, especially animal protein. However, common carp also have problems  in dealing with disease control  in aquaculture ponds. One of parasitic disease  in  fish  is  ichthyophthiriosis. One alternative  treatment  ichthyophthiriosis  that  do  not  produce  chemicals  residues  is  by  using  the plant bilimbi (Averrhoa bilimbi). Formulation of  the problem  for  this study  is whether bilimbi  juice  leaves can be used as an antiparasitic I.multifilis and what  is the best concentration of bilimbi  juice  leaves to decrease amount  of  I.multifilis  that  infest  on  common  carp.  This  study  aims  to  determine  the  using  of bilimbi  juice  leaves as antiparasitic I. multifilis and know the best concentration of bilimbi  juice leaves  to decrease amount of I. multifilis that  infest on common carp. The method of  this study was experimental by  the experimental design used was Completely Randomized Design with 5 treatments and 4 replications. The concentration of bilimbi juice leaves used is 1%, 2%, 3%, 4% and  0%.  Data  obtained  from  the  treatment  trials  were  analyzed  using  Analysis  of  Varian (ANAVA)  and  if  there  is  a  real  difference  then  proceed  using Duncan s multiple  range  test  to detect a difference between treatment with another treatment. The results showed that bilimbi juice leaves can be used as an antiparasitic I. multifilis in common  carp  and  the  best  concentration  of  bilimbi  juice  leaves  to  decrease  amount  of  I. multifilis  that  infest on common carp contained  in  treatment D with concentration bilimbi  juice leaves as much 4% decrease parasite become 6,125 parasite.


The increasing progress in information and communication technology has an impact on the mode of crime. Online prostitution is one mode of crime that utilizes this technological advancement. The ease of access obtained, the maintenance of the confidentiality of the perpetrators and the lack of law enforcement in this case have caused a moral panic. Moral panic has spread and is a threat to all parties. Qualitative approaches are used in this research methodology with information derived from mass media coverage both in print and online. The conclusion obtained in this study is the occurrence of moral panic because of the increase and spread of prostitution online without adequate legal control. Moral panic is a public reaction to a crime that raises anxiety and fear. A legal control model is needed that can create a sense of security and comfort among the community. Unfortunately, the moral panic associated with the online prostitution phenomenon only lasted two months. The public reaction in the form of law enforcement against perpetrators was the end of the news about online prostitution. There is no integrated and systematic response. The moral panic about online prostitution is only a brief reaction. Keywords— moral panic, online prostitution, social reaction


Despite a patchwork of federal laws intended to ensure equal access to the franchise for all Americans, millions of Americans with disabilities continue to face myriad obstacles to exercising their right to vote. While much has rightly been written about the impact of restrictive voting measures on racial minorities and socioeconomically disadvantaged voters, the suppressive e ff ect of voting restrictions on voters with disabilities is often over-looked. There is a persistent gap in voter participation between those with and without disabilities in the United States that has not been remedied by the Americans with Disabilities Act or other federal protections for voters with disabilities. This Article is the fi rst to frame the failure to ensure equal access to the ballot box for Americans with disabilities as a manifestation of the fear of the disability con: the suspicion that some people fake disabilities to take advantage of special rights and bene fi ts. It argues that the success of the expanded voting measures adopted during the 2020 election shows that the choice between election accessibility and security is a false one. Although barriers to voting for Americans with disabilities are nothing new, states ' diverging responses to the aftermath of the 2020 election and unsubstantiated claims of voter fraud shine a light on the inadequacy of current federal protections to safeguard the right to vote of Americans with disabilities. After analyzing recent court decisions, this Article calls on federal and state leg-islators to embrace a policy of accessibility instead of one based on unfounded fear.


An analytical function describing the limb darkening in the continuum is obtained from analysis of the observational data. The dependence of the temperature on the monochromatic optical depth corresponding to this darkening is compared with similar dependencies for some models of the solar photosphere. A satisfactory agreement is obtained only for the model VAL-M.


Introduction of the GE-PON system has accelerated the use of FTTH in Japan, changing the access network from simply an Internet connection to a social infrastructure that provides services directly related to daily life, such as IP telephone service. Mitsubishi Electric has the largest share of the GE-PON market in Japan and is now working on the next generation GE-PON. The role of the NGN is becoming increasingly important as the communication network is expected to provide rich content such as real-time applications including video communications. Along with this trend, the next generation optical access system requires new features including (1) Links to service-related functions such as QoS for smooth use of different applications and bandwidth control function; (2) Link function for full IP communication and broadcasting that are highly compatible with the NGN; and (3) Measures to prevent the digital divide in local areas. This paper discusses these technological challenges, their solutions, and the technologies required for realizing coexistence with GE-PON for standardization toward second-generation FTTH currently under way. Development efforts for Next Generation optical access system As the GE-PON system is now widely used, the number of FTTH users in Japan is steadily increasing. In the near future, a high-grade QoS function will have to be installed in the access network with an eye toward the NGN. The optical network, which is already part of the social infrastructure, will have to incorporate measures against the digital divide by extending the service range.


Objective
To study the possible molecular mechanism of IL-10 in promoting Chlamydia muridarum infection in mice.

Methods
C57BL/6 wild-type and IL-10 gene knockout (IL-10-/-) mice were infected with Chlamydia muridarum. Indirect immunofluorescence assay was used to detect the growth of Chlamydia muridarum in the intestinal and genital tracts. The severity of genital diseases was assessed by hydrosalpinx scoring. Expression of IFN-γ and IL-2 in blood was measured by ELISA.

Results
Compared with the wild-type group, Chlamydia clearance in the intestinal and genital tracts of IL-10-/- mice was significantly faster, and the expression of IFN-γ and IL-2 increased significantly. In addition, wild-type mice showed more serious hydrosalpinx.

Conclusions
IL-10 delays Chlamydia trachomatis clearance and promotes Chlamydia infection through inhibiting the expression of IFN-γ and IL-2, which aggravates hydrosalpinx.

Key words:
Chlamydia trachomatis; IL-10; Cytokine; Immunity


Trichinellosis (also trichinosis) in animals is caused by nematodes (roundworms) of the family Trichinellidae Ward, 1970. Family characteristics. Parasites with small bud right body. They have not sexual pterygas. The anus is opened at the terminal part of body . The cloaks are opened at the ¼ frontal part of the body. The adult females are larva-productive. They are parasites of intestinal system. Trichinella spiralis (Trichina spiralis) Owen, 1833. Eight species of Trichinella are now recognize, based on host (Kapel, C M O 2000; Krivokapich, S J; Pozio E and D S Zarlenga, 2005; Pozio E et al, 1992), but the most important for animals domestic are: T. spiralis found as parasitic diseases on humans, pigs, rodents, and many carnivorous animals, of Europe, Asia, North America, with specific pathologies in pigs. T. nativae parasite of wild carnivorous of Euro – Asiatic areas norther of parallel 40°. It is specific diseases of carnivorous and omnivorous animals. T.nelsoni found as parasite of wilds carnivorous animals of Asiatic areas southern of parallel 40°. T. pseudospiralis is parasite of cats, rodents and pigs. It is recognized from other species because of the adult forms have smaller dimensions and forms non capsulated cists. T. spiralis is the cause of Trichinellosis, one of most important zoonosis allover the world. It is found worldwide in many carnivorous and omnivorous animals, insectivorous animals, rodents, wilds animals and humans (Pozio E and G Marucci 2003). It was found at 103 mammals. Occasionally may be found as parasite of horses. Developmental traits of T. spiralis is that infested hosts initially are final hosts because of they host adults forms at their intestine, but later on they are presented as intermediate host, because of they host larval forms at their muscles. Today's identification of samples to the species level and genotyping are based primarily upon molecular means (Pozio, E., and G. Marucci. 2003). Keywords: trichinosis, Trichinella larvae, tropism, trichinelloscopic examination, trypsine techniques, xenodiagnostic experiments, etc.


Objective: Surgical interventions and results of femoral arterial injuries due to gunshot injuries were evaluated and presented in Somalia, where civil war continued. Patients and Material and Methods: 18 patients who were operated due to femoral artery injury between November 2015-May 2016 were evaluated retrospectively.14 of the patients were male (77.7%). All patients were evaluated respectively for the age, gender, hospital admission time, femoral artery injury locations, revascularization techniques and graft selection, accompanying injuries, additional surgery procedures, infection rates, amputation and mortality. Results: The mean age was 27,83±8,39 (1652). Additional injuries were as; 14 patients (77.8%) had venous injury, 8 patients (44.4%) had venous injury and nerve damage, 6 patients had bone fracture (33.3%), 2 patients (11.1%) intraabdominal injury and 3 patients (16.6%) had extensive soft tissue defects. The admission time to the hospital was quite delayed and the mean appealing time was 69.55±44.81 (6-144) hours. For revascularization; primary repair was performed in 1 patient (5.5%), end to end vascular repair in 3 patients (16.6%), saphenous vein graft in 10 patients (55.6%) and PTFE graft in 4 patients (22.2%). Fasciotomy was performed in 6 patients (33.3%) who were suspected or had compartment syndrome and amputation was performed in 2 patients (11,1%). Mortality causes were intrabdominal injury and hypotensive shock in one patient and sepsis in two patients. Mortality rate was 16.6%. The mean discharge interval was 12.9±5.11 (6-24) days. Conclusion: Surgical success and mortality of vascular injuries in the war zone is related with the duration of intervention, accompanying injuries, infection and motor loss. Particularly for the infection suspected cases, the usage of saphenous vein grafting is recommended and if the hemodynamic instability is present, bypassing by the PTFE graft may be a useful alternative to shorten the surgical time.


An auction is a very common method of selling assets, especially where the seller is uncertain of the value of the asset to potential buyers. Both private and public sector businesses use auctions to select between alternative suppliers or acquirers. Generally, although there may be unique or exclusive aspects to a particular asset or contract, unsuccessful bidders are not excluded from the market, or at least not for any significant period, and in many instances multiple supply contracts are awarded or further contracts become available within a relatively short period. Generally speaking, a competition assessment of such agreements considers whether parties to the agreement will be sufficiently constrained by the remaining competition in the market. In some cases, however, a contract may be exclusive and co-extensive with the market. When this occurs unsuccessful bidders will be locked out of the market, at least for the duration of the contract. This may confer substantial market power on the single supplier/acquirer and so give rise to competition concerns. Such concerns may be assessed against a counterfactual that assumes the contract is non-exclusive, and so an important consideration will be the likely extent of competition that would exist in the market absent the contract. If the market is a natural monopoly then, irrespective of whether the supply contract is exclusive, there is unlikely to be competition in the market on an ongoing basis. Monopoly may also exist because of a government decision to allow only one supplier; or because switching between alternative suppliers is not possible after the initial contract is let, due to incumbency advantages associated with technological factors and/or underlying intellectual property rights (eg a lack of interoperability). In these circumstances, the counterfactual may not presuppose June 2007 European Competition Journal 163


Conductivity detector is a special detector for ion compound or dissociational compound.Structure,working principle,sorts,combination with other detectors and development of conductivity detector were reviewed in this tissue.Conductivity detector may be widely used for drug research in future.


A key safety concern in a D-T fusion reactor is the tritium inventory. There are three components in a fusion reactor with potentially large inventories, i.e., the blanket, the fuel processing system and the plasma facing components. The ARIES team selected the material combinations, decided the operating conditions and refined the processing systems, with the aiming of minimizing the tritium inventories and leakage. The total tritium inventory for the ARIES-I reactor is only 700 g. This paper discussed the calculations and assumptions we made for the low tritium inventory. We also addressed the uncertainties about the tritium inventory. 13 refs., 2 figs., 3 tabs.


In this paper, off-the-shelf materials such as polyethylene terephthalate films and double-sided tapes are applied to create lab-on-a-foil microfluidic devices via a cutting plotter. Microstructures termed defended oscillating membrane equipped structures (DOMES) are integrated in the microchannels. These dome-shaped pore-containing DOMES are created above a through hole on the films using two-photon polymerization. As the bottom side of the air-liquid interfaces trapped in DOMES' pores is always facing ambient air, bubble instability that compromises acoustofluidic performance in conventional cases is alleviated or avoided. The acoustically induced flow is observed to be stronger with increasing pore size on DOMES. An acoustofluidic micromixer is proposed to further investigate the capabilities of DOMES, and it is the first time active micromixer is achieved on lab-on-afoil devices, with good performance competitive to reported microfluidic mixers.


This study provides recommendations on how health care organizations can enhance organizational learning with marketing analytics to improve their business performance. There is widespread recognition of the importance of organizational learning to organizational performance and innovation. Recent research suggests that the use of analytics can play a critical role in enhancing organizational learning. However, the relationship between marketing analytics and organizational learning has not yet been thoroughly explored. More specifically, research is needed to understand how analytics, marketing analytics in particular, facilitate organizational learning. This phenomenon is studied here in the context of the health care industry. Case study research examines how learning involving intuiting, interpreting, integrating, and institutionalizing can be facilitated by marketing analytics.


Providing personal electronic device for the 2D / 3D acquisition and display. The present invention is a user 2D / 3D (2D / 3D) digital acquisition and display device which allows to capture 3D information using a single device. In an embodiment, the device comprises a single movable lens with a sensor. In another embodiment, the device comprises a single lens with the beam splitter, and a plurality of sensors. In another embodiment, the device comprises a plurality of lenses and a plurality of sensors. In yet another embodiment, the device is a standard digital camera with additional 3D software. In some embodiments, generating 3D information from 2D information using the depth map generated from the 2D information. In some embodiments, obtaining the 3D information by using the hardware configuration of the camera directly. 3D information is then either be displayed on the device, it can be sent to another device to be displayed or printed. .FIELD 1


Emergencies are life-threatening situations which need rapid first treatment, such as in victims of cardiac arrest and respiration stoppage. Handling of emergencies demand sufficient knowledge, and good attitude also plays an important role in handling emergencies. The aim of this study was to determine the correlation between the knowledge level and attitudes towards heart-lung emergency management in emergency nursing team members of UniversitasRespati Yogyakarta. This is an observational quantitative research with a cross sectional. The population of this research are active members of emergency nursing team of UniversitasRespati Yogyakarta. Samples are selected using a total sampling technique, with 31 respondents involved. Data analysis is performed using Somers' D test. The majority of respondents are in semester 8 (67.7%); aged 21 years old (41.9%), females (64.5%), and have more than 21 training experiences (71.0%). The level of knowledge of the emergency nursing team members mostly belong to sufficient category (61.3%). The attitudes of emergency nursing team members belong to good category (48.4%). Results of bivariate analysis using Somers' D test show a p-value of 0.01 < 0.05. There is a correlation between the knowledge level of emergency nursing team of UniversitasRespati Yogyakarta and attitudes towards heartlung emergency handling. Keywords: heart-lung emergency, management, knowledge, attitude


"Indigenous Peoples" refers to groups who have lived in an area since it was first populated, or at least for a very long time, and who generally do not have state-level forms of organization, for example Native Nations in the Americas. This brief definition is sometimes controversial. The most cited and most detailed definition was written in 1986 by Jose Martinez Cobo for the United Nations. Even that definition has been contested. There are about 5000 different indigenous groups, so general statements are difficult to support. Furthermore, any definition carries political ramifications about which peoples are indigenous. Even so, there are 350 million or so indigenous peoples in the world, about the population of the United States in 2010. This definition suffices for our purposes, but it is only a gloss on a complicated subject.

Keywords:

civil disobedience;
conflict;
cultural difference;
empowerment;
identity politics;
indigenous rights;
justice


The article examines the discourses related to gender in interviews with welfare service practitioners and their young, 18- to 29-year-old clients using 'boy discourse' as an analytical framework and J. M. Barrie's story of Peter Pan as a metaphorical framework. Those beyond the reach of the welfare services are referred to by the practitioners as 'lost young people'. Some practitioners see young men in particular as poor creatures, unable to achieve anything without a girlfriend, whose task is to get these Peter Pans 'on the right track' as Wendy does. The 'Lost Girls' are in a similar position to the 'Lost Boys' but the practitioners are more concerned about the boys. Their assumption is that girls can cope but boys need Wendys in order to succeed in life. As a result, the combined efforts of the female staff and nurturing girlfriends are seen as instrumental in steering 'failing boys' towards adulthood.


This paper argues that Turkey is in a position where it would be more beneficial to remain a separate entity from the EU. While EU accession would not severely damage Turkey's economy, entrance is no longer necessary given its present state and the state of the EU. Refraining from membership is more advantageous for Turkey's foreign policy makers because remaining an individual actor would allot Turkey more political freedom within its borders. Turkey's administration would be able to pursue its own strategic interests more easily if it is not tethered to EU objectives. Turkey would be at a strategic advantage in the coming years if it chooses to balance between the Middle East and United States rather than dedicate the majority of efforts towards the EU. Independent from the EU, Turkey can decide its policies in relations with the EU, US, or Middle East depending on its own international ambitions.


Basic concept for reliability theory is described.Maximum likelihood estimation for life parameters of product is computed using scope data for life testing.This is a feasible and efficient estimator for life parameters.


Media representation of the body is divided between two opposing views: 1) the glorious body of advertising and in part of political discourse and, on the other hand, 2) the body abused by being overburdened with information, as in the body as is now experiencing of the limits of postmodern cinema. These representations show a body that is no longer in a defined place, which has no specific assigned place, and constantly oscillates between deficiency and excess. The body moves from one extreme to the other, most likely because the identities are neither stable nor secure within a given place. This paper analyzes to what extent the body functions there as a sign, with a certain autonomy, or refers to the identity previously known of, is the signifier of discomfort, or of an expression of emptiness. These questions are central to such discussion as the body appears as a place of resistance, a body in motion, leaving the norm may be obscene-offstage-breaking down barriers between public and private, between inside and outside, and leads to an ambivalent exaltation of the flesh.


This article studies several new breeds of poplar that have been introduced and bred since 1999,in contrast to Zhonglin-46 mainly planted in North Henan.Through systematical experiments and observations on the growing season,growth quantity and on the prevention of plant diseases and insect pests,theresult reveals that the new breeds of Occidental poplar-2001,poplar-2005,Occidental poplar-107,poplar-108,Zhongyu-317 are suitable to be planted popularly in North Henan for their special and perfect characteristics of growing quickly,fastness,late defoliation and long growth span.


With 1.0×106,2.0×106,4.0×106,and 8.0×106 cells·mL-1 of Scenedesmus obliquus as the food of Brachionus calyciflorus,and by using population accumulative culture method and life table demographic approach,this paper studied the effects of S.obliquus density on the population dynamics of B.calyciflorus collected from the Tunxi section of Xin'an River at 25 ℃.The results showed that food concentration had significant effects on the population growth rate and resting egg production of B.calyciflorus.At lower food concentrations(≤4.0×106 cells·mL-1),the population growth rate and resting egg production of B.calyciflorus were lower and had no differences,while at high food concentration(8.0×106 cells·mL-1),both the population growth rate and the resting egg production were larger.Food concentration had no significant effects on the mixture rate and fertilization rate of B.calyciflorus.At food concentration 4.0×106 cells·mL-1,the net reproductive rate and generation time of B.calyciflorus were the highest and longest,respectively.The intrinsic rate of population increase of B.calyciflorus at food concentration 1.0×106 cells·mL-1 was the smallest,and the average lifespan and life expectancy at food concentration 8.0×106 cells·mL-1 were the longest.


This paper describes an advanced PSpice/sup (R)/ model, which is used to complement the experimental work on explosive flux compression generators. This work is conducted at Texas Tech University in the framework of a MURI program. The results from the model are compared to actual results from generators that have been tested in the authors' laboratory. To achieve better fidelity of the model, the effect of transient current diffusion into the conductors of the generator is modeled by using a ladder network with many concentric layers of each current carrying conductor. For the optimum accuracy, the spacing of the concentric layers is closest at the surface of the conductor. The paper shows results, comparisons with experimental data and applications of the model for the design of power conditioning systems for MFC-generators.