Gymnastics is one of the original Olympic sports, subjectively judged by humans. Judging errors and bias can occur, resulting in medals being incorrectly awarded. The International Gymnastics Federation (FIG) with Fujitsu are introducing a computerised gymnastics judging support system (CGJSS), a technology aimed to enhance fairness and accuracy but there is very little literature evaluating this technology and perceptions. This project aimed to explore stakeholders' reactions at this critical time. Therefore, interviews were conducted with coaches, judges, media, former and current international gymnasts. The findings concurred with the literature review of judging problems with the current system, including bias and subjectivity. New findings show, among other things, that gymnasts' scores can differ depending on which round they compete in. The findings also suggest that the CGJSS would be a great innovation for gymnastics to improve credibility by removing bias and helping to make the sport more objective. However, the majority of the participants believed it could not judge the artistry element of the sport. Close monitoring of the effectiveness of the CGJSS is therefore required to identify enhancement and to ensure the investment produces fairer, more reliable and credible results. Successful implementation of the CGJSS could also allow it to be introduced into other subjectively judged sports.


With production woes and high operating costs now just a distant memory for West African miner Resolute Mining Ltd, chief executive Peter Sullivan signalled things were on the up for the company as it loosened its purse strings to double exploration expenditure for the current financial year.


The combuslion behavior of metal-oxygenreactions in a weakly buoyant environment is studiedto understa_ the rate-controlling mechanisms in thehomogeneous and L_e_o_neous comb_ of bulkmetals. CylJ_Iric_l titanium and magnesiumspecimens are ignited in p_en at pressuresranging fi'om 0.l to 4.0 atm. Reduced gravity is_tained from an airca_t flying parabolic trajectories.A weakiy buoyant environment is generated at lowpresmrm under normal gravity and also at 1 aim enderreduced gravity (0.01 g). The similarity between _es¢two _tal condilions comes flora the p2gbuoyancy scale extracted fzom the Gmsl_ number.Lower propagation rates of the molten interface ontitanium r_mplm are found at progressively lowerpressures at I g. In the reduced-gravity experiments at1 atm, the propagation velocity is almost half the valueobtained at 1 g. These rates are compa_ totheoretical results flora heat conduction analys_ with adiffu_on/convoction coutzullcd reaction. The closeagreement found between experimental and theoreticalvalues indicate the importance of mtural _-enhanced oxygen u'auspon on combus_on rates. Formagnesium, progressively longer burning times areexped_ccdat lowerpxmsmcsaud lg. Undermiuccdgravity condiu'om at I aim, a burning time twice aslong_ in Igi_ exh_ited. However, in this case, thevalidityofthep2gbuoyancymale remai= unte_ dueto the inability to obtmn steady gas-phase bundng ofthe magnesium sample at 0.1 aim. Nevertheless,longe_ burning times and larger flame standoff"distances at low premmes and at low gravity points to adiffusion/convection conu_Ued reaction.* _ Associate, Member AIAAt Gradmte Student_: Professor, Member A/AA§ Professor, Associate Fellow AIAACopyright © 1998 by the American Institute ofAeronautics and A.mmautics, Inc. All rights reserved.Reactions between metals and gaseous speciesare important in a nmnbcr of pracqical systems. Theseinclude: rocket propellants with metal particles addedfor increaseA thrust and suppression of combustion_smbility, the self-propagsdng high-temperaturesynthesis processes (SHS) to produce new hightemperature material& the combustion of metal fuelsfor plan¢m7 mission_, and vapor-depo_tion processes.In spi_ of the many pmc_:al appficafions, thecombustion of metals remains an incomp_yun_ phenomenon due to the in_mction of thecomplex proces_ involved, indudJ.ug low-_e =Lrface oxidation, oxidizer diffusion,he,_ogcn¢ous reactions,product condensation,high-emissivity of produc_s, natural convection, and multi-phase thermodynamics and reaction kinetics.As has been the case _O.th many othercombustion phenomena, conducting metal combustion_t_ in the absence of gravity may providefurther unders_tnd_ng of the complex physical andOmmical mechanisms involve_ A miaoOavi_environment reduces the dism,-'bing buoyant effectsthatfrequently obscure weaker forces inch as molecular_on. At the mine time thi_ type of eavironmentpermits detailed, longer-duration observatlom in larse-scale cx-pcrm_ which aze usually inaccessible duc tothe rapid development of buoyancy.4_ivendisturbances. The useof mbatmospheric pressur_ canalso reduce the effect of natural couvect_ aod allowlarger spatial and temporal scales for flame mxfie_.Gravity and pressure effects on buoyancyinduced convection ar_ linked through thenumber (Gr) which evalnates the rdative importanceof molecularand buoyant transport.The Grashofnumber is defined as:


The heart has fascinated scientists for centuries, from the days of Leonardo da Vinci to the modern scientist. As tools have developed over the years, we have begun to create a different perspective of how the heart develops and functions from original ideas. Genetics, molecular biology, and microscopes have allowed us to examine the heart with a level of detail that could not have been imagined by da Vinci. The heart is a complex organ to study due to its innate nature of contracting and relaxing for the entire life of an organism. The motions of systole and diastole complicate any measurements and analysis that can be done. In general, most research has been done in either fixed tissue or dead organisms, neither being ideal for studying a live heart. But current research aims to change our knowledge of cardiogenesis through dynamic imaging of live tissue. With the progress made in the last few years, we have had to revise many of our assumptions about heart development and pumping mechanics. Now, we are at a new stage of research that requires the quantification of cardiogenesis to understand the requirements of heart development to prevent future diseases from occurring. The following work divides the heart into three areas: 1-dimensional dynamic imaging and analysis of contractions and relaxation to achieve temporal resolution, 4-dimensional modeling of a beating heart during tube formation and early looping to observe individual cellular motion, and 4-dimensional fate mapping of the developing heart tube to visualize development with cellular resolution. With these three perspectives, we are able to quantify the movements of the myocardium and endocardium during development while the heart is beating. This novel approach will give us a wealth of information never seen before. We use transgenic Japanese quail to highlight the nuclei of individual endothelial cells in the vasculature to analyze the inner tube of the heart, and another transgenic with a ubiquitous marker that fluoresces in every cell of the embryo. The quail heart is comparable to the human heart in that both have 4-chambered hearts, yet the quail is a much easier organism to study. The embryo is transparent and develops outside the mother. The quail embryo can be imaged ex ovo on inverted microscopes, allowing for ease of setup in a controlled environment. With the use of dynamic imaging and innovative computer software, we were able to reconstruct the live heart while it is beating and developing. By dynamically imaging the endocardium and myocardium, we were able to study the interactions between the two layers by offering unsurpassed visual access to the morphogenetic events of cardiogenesis. Questions that have remained elusive are now being answered with extensive analysis from the data collected. Quantification of cardiogenesis is possible and a detailed fate-map has been produced from this research.


Maximum likelihood estimation in case of a Poisson or Gamma distribution with loglinear parametrization for the mean is quite akin. The asymptotic variance-covariance matrix for the maximum likelihood estimator is derived as well as a linear estimator, which can serve as a starting value for the nonlinear search procedure.


With growing popularity of online services, the amount of information on web increases dramatically, which has resulted in increasingly concerns on web application security. Subject knowledge is in desperate need to guide security testing against advanced attacks. Unlike common software security weakness study pattern, a combination analysis method based on Colored Petri Net is presented in this paper. An Attack Pattern is modeled to describe a single weakness's specific exploiting process. Then attack nets are constructed as a result of their relational analysis. The method is verified by a case study.


The utility model relates to a full-automatic material mixing and proportioning machine. The full-automatic material mixing and proportioning machine comprises a left stander, a right stander, a left driving motor, a right driving motor and a control device, wherein the left stander and the right stander are oppositely arranged, a left feeding cabin and a right feeding cabin are respectively mounted on the left stander and the right stander, a left driving wheel and a left driven wheel which are mounted on the left stander are arranged below the left feeding cabin, a left material conveying belt is sleeved on the left driving wheel and the left driven wheel, a right driving wheel and a right driven wheel which are mounted on the right stander are arranged below the right feeding cabin, a right material conveying belt is sleeved on the right driving wheel and the right driven wheel, gravity sensors are mounted on the inner surfaces of both the left material conveying belt and the right material conveying belt, rotation speed sensors are mounted on both the left driven wheel and the right driven wheel, and the gravity sensors, the rotation speed sensors, the left driving motor and the right driving motor are respectively connected with the control device. Due to the design of the full-automatic material mixing and proportioning machine, the rotation speeds of the driving motors are effectively controlled, so that the purpose of precise proportioning is realized.


The purpose of this study was to search for personality and family predictors of adolescents' strategy for aggressive coping with a social conflict situation. The empirical research was carried out on 893 adolescents (468 girls and 425 boys) aged 13 to 15. The research results show that the evaluation of a conflict as a threat, a higher evaluation of physical properties in a young person, a strong belief in the influence of others on positive and negative effects of events, and responding with anger in interpersonal situations posing a threat to "I" coincide with the aggressive strategy for adolescents' coping with a social conflict situation. Moreover, the analysis of the research results shows that the adolescents' aggressive way of reacting to emotional tension, which occurs in a social conflict situation, results from an inappropriate attitude in their upbringing that is characterized by a parent's emotional distance toward an adolescent child and the aggressive model of parents' reacting to a conflict.


The reaction allows the preparation of various functionalized target compounds with good yields and enantioselectivities, albeit in many cases with moderate diastereoselectivities.


Algorithms for voice activity detection in the presence of vehicular noise and babble noise are presented. The voice activity detector (VAD) designed for vehicular noise is an improvement upon the VAD adopted for the discontinuous transmission (DTX) mode of the GSM standard, and performs significantly better at low SNR levels. Work on a VAD that is suited for the babble noise environment is also briefly mentioned, and a scheme for combining the two VADs is proposed.


Umm el-Jimal, located 20 kilometers east of Mafraq in the semi-arid lava region of the southern Hauran (fig. 1), ranks behind Petra and Jerash in size and state of preservation among Jordan's archaeological monuments. However, it differs dramatically from those two monuments because it is built entirely of somber-colored steel gray basalt, which gives it the appearance of a bombed out and burned modern city from a distance. The great strength of the basalt stone lent itself to an unusual style of architecture: corbeling. The ancient builders were able to construct ceilings and roofs by laying stone beams two to three meters long on cantilevered supports protruding froin the walls (fig. 2). The application of cantilevering to the construction of stairways eliminated the need for cumbersome and costly support structures and increased useable living space on the lower floors (figs. 3, 4). The success of this building method impresses itself on the visitor by the fact that numerous buildings are still standing two to three stories high with some of their ceilings intact after 1500 years. The city was founded in the Early Roman period when it enjoyed considerable Nabataean influence, flourished as a frontier city of the Roman and Byzantine Empires, and continued to prosper in the Umayyad period, perhaps because of its proximity to the Desert Castles and the Pilgrim Route. Umm el-Jimal was destroyed by earthquake at the end of this period and not rebuilt because the region of the Hauran lost its preeminence when the seat of government shifted to Baghdad under the Abbasid Caliphs. Most visitors to Umm el-Jimal are surprised to learn that its ancient citizens were not Roman or Greek, but Arab. Numerous gravestones, although written in the Latin and Greek scripts, have given us a catalogue of names of the inhabitants. The names indicate that the residents were local Arabic nomads who settled in this region and built Umm el-Jimal under the security provided by the Roman Empire-a process that has been repeated by their modern descendents under the security of the Jordanian Government.


The purpose of this study was to determine the effect of the weakness of the internal control system on the quality of financial statements of local government in Indonesia. The results this study indicate that the weakness of the control system of accounting and reporting and weaknesses of the internal control structure a negative effect, which means that the level of susceptibility decreases the quality of the financial reports of local governments will be better and reliable. In contrast to the weakness of the control system implementation of the budget revenues and expenditures that affect positively on the quality of financial statements. Which means that the higher the weakness of the system is the better quality local government financial reports. For the overall results prove that any weaknesses in the internal control system simultaneously has influence on the quality of financial reports of local governments in Indonesia. So the results of this study prove that the weakness of internal control system is important to note that more and produce financial statements qualified local government.


This paper presents the results from the EU FP 7 project BATS aimed at integrated BB access across
the EU for 2020 and beyond. The BB access is integrated between DSL, LTE and the satellite and
features a broadband intelligent user terminal. The satellite component is a cluster of two multibeam
HTS satellites providing lower cost per bit than today's satellites. The system architecture embedding
the gateways and user terminals is presented as well as the design for the advanced satellites. The
detailed design concepts of the intelligent router are also provided. We present the results of
controlled lab tests on an emulated test bed as well as initial results from a field trial in which the
intelligent routers were placed in households in Spain and Germany and connected to local; DSL and
LTE as well as the Hylas satellite.


Local remodeling of chromatin is a key step in the transcriptional activation of genes. The studies have shown that the proteins that regulate the modification of chromatin are themselves disrupted in many leukemic chromosomal rearrangements. Pharmacological manipulation of chromatin remodeling might develop into a potent and specific strategy for the treatment of these leukemias


The formula of seismic intensity attenuation for Shangdong and its adjacent areas is fitted by using 70 isoseismal lines from 34 earthquakes in this region.Meanwhile based on the difference of landform and geological structure characteristic,the region is divided into soil covered area and bedrock exposed area,the individual formula of seismic intensity attenuation for both areas are fitted also.


The comparison trials of 33 introduced sugarbeet varieties were conducted.The results showed that the yield of kuhn1016,CN07,hx905,ST21916,kuhn1011,MA096 and ST21015 were over 5506kg/ha,increased by 4.36%;the sugar content of cofco8010,hx820,kuhn1001,kuhn1003,kuhn1010 and ST21016 were over 18.04%,increased by 1.75%;the sugar yield of cofco9016,cofco8010,hx905,kuhn1010,SD13806,ST21916,ST21015 and ST21016 increased by over 11.18% in comparison with the control variety.The integrated results of economic characteristics and disease resistance suggested that cofco8010,hx905,kuhn1010,ST21916,ST21015 and ST21016 are suitable for planting in the TA-ER basin region.


The Ch'in dynasty was the first unified centralized feudal state in Chinese history. At the time, the newly rising landlord class which ruled this state was still a revolutionary class, full of vigor and vitality, which manifested its progressive role in historical development. However, the Ch'in dynasty was exceptionally short-lived, for it fell after only fifteen years.


Thank you for downloading radiological imaging of endocrine diseases. As you may know, people have search hundreds times for their favorite readings like this radiological imaging of endocrine diseases, but end up in malicious downloads. Rather than enjoying a good book with a cup of coffee in the afternoon, instead they juggled with some harmful bugs inside their desktop computer. radiological imaging of endocrine diseases is available in our book collection an online access to it is set as public so you can get it instantly. Our digital library spans in multiple locations, allowing you to get the most less latency time to download any of our books like this one. Kindly say, the radiological imaging of endocrine diseases is universally compatible with any devices to read.


The gastric acid secretion inhibitor, omeprazole, has been shown to inhibit the gastric H+K+ATPase isolated from hog stomach (1). The inhibitory action on the proton pump seems to be based on the fact that omeprazole, which is a weak base, accumulates in the acid compartments of the parietal cell. Here it is protonated and subsequently converted into an active form that exerts the inhibitory effect on the enzyme. In the present study, both the rate of gastric acid secretion and the activity of the H+K+ATPase isolated from the gastric corpus mucosa of rats during inhibition by omeprazole have been studied, in order to establish the relationship between gastric acid secretion and activity of the gastric H+K+ATPase.


This paper is concerned with the process used in locating and removing inefficiency in the construction materials purchasing process. In the first part, a case study is presented showing the build-up of costs involved in purchasing materials. Potential for substantial savings is revealed. The second part of the paper gives a status report on a rationalisation pilot project currently being undertaken by the Construction Information Technology Alliance (CITA). This project aims to show how greater effectiveness and efficiency can be applied to the administration of the construction materials purchasing process by the application of information technology already used widely in other industries. The status report outlines the approach applied to-date to the project, the difficulties encountered, the solutions adopted, the current status of the project and the steps yet to be taken to bring the project to a successful conclusion.


The aim of this paper is to address English "fear"-derived lexemes of emotion language from the perspective of grammaticalization. The "fear"-derived lexemes that concern us are adverbs such as awfully, dreadfully, fearfully, frightfully, hideously, horribly, panically, terribly, and adjectives such as afraid, awesome, dreadful, fearful, frightful, hideous, horrible, panic, scary, terrible, terrific, tremendous. The "fear"-derived lexemes evolve into RL (Respect Lexeme), EM (Epistemic Modality), and DM (Discourse Marker). In the stage of RL, the "fear"-derived lexemes are contentful. The stage of EM includes the emphatic marker (intensifier) and the evidential marker. The "fear"-lexemes also function as the DM such as the exclamative marker, the politeness marker, the mitigator, and the pragmatic hedger. The grammatical development of "fear"-derived lexemes in English verifies that English "fear"-expressions provide theoretical implications of human emotion into linguistic conceptualization.


─ Modal analysis of frequency selective surface (FSS) containing ring loops arranged periodically along any two skewed coordinates, will be calculated. In proposed modal analysis, a compatible set of orthonormal mode functions used for ring loops in addition to Floquet modes which are used in every infinite two dimensional arrays. This set of modes provides faster convergence in solving integral equation in accordance with this boundary condition problem. Calculations are compared with results of CST (Finite Integration Technique) and HFSS (Finite Element Method) full-wave simulators and they are in good agreement with each other. Index Terms ─ Frequency Selective Surface (FSS), ring loop, Substrate Integrated Waveguide (SIW), TE and TM polarizations.


This paper aims to study the biodegradability of a mixture of high molecular weight PAHs, namely benzo[b]-fluoranthene, benzo [k]-fluoranthene, benazo[a]-pyrene, so as to determine the factors influencing their biodegradation through their optimization.As is known, bio-slurry reactor technology is one of the highly effective and eco-friendly ex-situ treatments for remediating PAH-contaminated soil.However, the biodegradation of PAHs can be affected by their physical, chemical and biological factors, such as pollution concentration, nutrition, microbial activities, bioavailability, dissolved oxygen and so on.Therefore, it is of great significance to isolate the affective bacteria from their ability to degrade PAHs and optimize the environmental parameters affecting the biodegradation.In proceeding with our study, we have successfully screened off and enriched the mixed bacteria from PAHs contaminated soil from Beijing Coke Plant for our case study.Furthermore, we have set up orthogonal experimental design (L-9(3~4)) to investigate the degradation process in the bio-slurry reactor with inoculation of the mixed bacteria and the effects of multi-factors on biodegradation, including the aeration rate, soil water ratio, pH value and salinity.Analysis of variance (ANOVA) was also adopted to make secure the experimental data so as to prove the significance of each factor and determine the optimal levels of the chosen factors for the biodegradation.The results of our investigation indicate that the above said PAHs could be degraded effectively in bio-slurry reactors with the inoculation of mixed bacteria.The highest degradation efficiency of the PAHs was found to be 54.72% , 54.01% and 63.13% respectively 12 days later.Among the factors to be taken into account, three of which, that is, aeration, rate water soil ratio, and pH, serve as significant ones (p0.05), whereas salinity can be thought of as insignificant (p0.05).Taking both F values and p values into account, aeration rate shows the strongest influence on the degradation process followed by water soil ratio, pH and salinity.The optimal operating condition for the bio-slurry reactor in the experiment is as follows: 200 L·h~(-1) of aeration rate, 2:1 of water soil mass ratio, pH = 7.0, 1.5% of salinity.


ties. Several had adopted Eastern dress, some had vowed silence for certain periods of time. Ordinary worldly ambitions fell by the wayside; only one maintained a full-time job. Most devotees were vegetarians. Use of hallucinogens was very rare in the Family. There were some curious magical rumours about the ~aba®that he had precognition and was a bit of an alchemist-but nothing very fundamental.


Man inhabits two realms, that of reality and that of the imagination. The progress of science is a complex negotiation between these two realms, a dialectic in which fact-oriented observations and probability-oriented imagination are inseparably intertwined. But there are many signs that, recently, the natural equilibrium between these two has become destabilized and artifice and imagination have gained the upper hand to a distinctly unhealthy extent. In both science and scholarship we seem to be involved in an increasing and deeply problematic shift from pre-occupation with virtual rather than actual reality.


While arguably the most mature site for IMRT use, prostate treatments still require great care in order to achieve the intended results. The prostate is a mobile structure compared to the surrounding bony anatomy. Daily setup, immobilization and localization uncertainties can be addressed by increasing the PTV but this results in additional dose to surrounding normal structures. We attempt to reduce the uncertainty by employing active localization using BAT ultrasound and currently use a 8mm PTV in all directions except posteriorly where a 5mm margin is typical. Patients being irradiated in the post-prostatectomy setting undergo localization via an in-room CT scanner. These methods allow for minimal expansion of the PTV by moving the prostate or prostate bed into the appropriate dose region on a daily basis. All patients are simulated and treated supine without a thermoplastic immobilizer to facilitate the use of ultrasound and to minimize respiratory related prostatic motion. Patients undergo CT followed immediately by MR simulations with the rectum empty. These data are fused and all soft tissue structures contoured based on the MR scan. We believe the apex of the prostate is more accurately visualized with MR without the potential prostate distortion associated with a retrograde urethrogram. Dose limiting structures primarily include the rectum, bladder, and femoral heads, but may also include bowel and erectile tissues. It should be noted that the 3D dose distribution itself plays an important role in IMRT delivery and DVH analysis alone may not be sufficient. The delivery of modern doses (70–80+Gy) using 3D CRT invariably includes rectal shielding to some degree in order to avoid unwanted complications. Rectal shielding also creates a dose gradient across the posterior prostate. Our initial comparisons at 78Gy between 3D CRT and IMRT resulted in an increase in 95% PTV coverage from approximately 76Gy to 78Gy, respectively and a reduction of approximately 6Gy to the "hottest" 20% of the rectum. We have developed "plan acceptance criteria" based on published data with respect to rectal complications. DVH analysis is used to ensure that the volumes of rectum receiving 65Gy and 40Gy are less than 17% and 35%, respectively. Additionally, the volumes of bladder receiving 65Gy and 40Gy are less than 25% and 50%, respectively. The volume of either femoral head receiving 50Gy should be less than 10%. The isodose distribution should be such that the 50% and 90% lines do not traverse the full or half width of the rectum on any CT slice, respectively. PTV coverage should result in at least 95% of the volume receiving the prescription dose. Quality assurance includes verification of absolute dose as well as the resultant spatial distribution and our plan acceptance is based on ±3% and 3mm DTA, respectively. We have been able to meet the absolute dose criteria in approximately 94% of cases.

Educational Objectives:

1. To understand the practical steps associated with IMRT of the prostate

2. To understand the planning methods utilized resulting in the safe use of the numerical values presented for plan acceptance


In this paper, modified simple equation method has been applied to ob-tain generalized solutions of Burgers, Huxley equations and combined forms of these equations. The new exact solutions of these equations have been obtained. It has been shown that the proposed method provides a very effective, and powerful mathematical tool for solving nonlinear partial differential
equations.


Van Fraassen's constructive empiricism is presently the most influential and well-developed alternative to scientific realism. In this paper I argue that a reasonable condition on the distinction between belief and agnosticism prevents van Fraassen from claiming that we can be agnostic about what a theory says about unobservable entities while simultaneously accepting that theory. The upshot is that we must find some other way to do justice both to the argument for constructive empiricism and to van Fraassen's cogent criticisms of scientific realism. I suggest that a highly attractive alternative is founded upon semantic anti-realism, and that empiricists should develop this alternative.


ABSTRACT The aim of this study was to explore preschool teachers' evaluation standards and searching strategies during their online searching process, focusing on the difference between pre-service and in-service teachers. A total of 408 pre-service and in-service preschool teachers in Taiwan participated in the survey research. The validity and reliability of the instruments were confirmed through factor analysis and Cronbach's alpha. The results showed that the in-service teachers adopted Deep Strategiesand all four kinds of evaluation standards (Multiple, Authority, Content, and Technical) more often than the pre-service teachers did.The results also showed that Internet experience may affect both pre-service and in-service teachers' use of searching strategies. The findings of this study suggest that more education on online searching strategies as well as evaluation standards should be provided for both in-service and pre-service teachers.


A hydraulic control system for a machine is disclosed. The hydraulic control system may include a tank, a pump configured to draw fluid from the tank and to put the fluid under pressure, a swing motor, which is configured to receive the fluid pressurized, and a body of the machine at relatively to pivot a sub-chassis, and a tool actuation device which is configured to receive the fluid pressurized and a tool to move relative to the body. The hydraulic control system may also have a energy recovery device, which is configured to convert hydraulic energy into mechanical energy, further comprising a first accumulator which is configured to store derived fluid which has been absorbed by the swing motor, and a second accumulator which is configured to store derived fluid which has been absorbed by the tool actuator. Stored derived fluid from the first accumulator and / or the second accumulator may be selectively discharged to the energy recovery device.


Knowing the weather and atmospheric conditions from the past can help weather researchers to generate models like the ones used to predict how weather conditions are likely to change as global temperatures continue to rise. Many historical weather records are available from the past registered on a systemic basis. Historical weather logs were registered in ships, when they were on the high seas, recording daily weather conditions such as: wind speed, temperature, coordinates, etc. These historical documents represent an important source of knowledge with valuable information to extract climatic information of several centuries ago. This paper presents a database for researching about the capability of state-of-the-art handwritten text recognition systems to extract relevant information from this source of knowledge. This database is composed mainly by handwritten tables that contain mostly numerical information. The problems on these documents are explained and baseline experiments are introduced on them.


Quantum processors with sizes in the 10-100 qubit range are now increasingly common. However, with increased size comes increased complexity for benchmarking. The effectiveness of a given device may vary greatly between different tasks, and will not always be easy to predict from single and two qubit gate fidelities. For this reason, it is important to assess processor quality for a range of important tasks. In this work we propose and implement tests based on random quantum circuits. These are used to evaluate multiple different superconducting qubit devices, with sizes from 5 to 19 qubits, from two hardware manufacturers: IBM Research and Rigetti. The data is analyzed to give a quantitive description of how the devices perform. We also describe how it can be used for a qualititive description accessible to the layperson, by being played as a game.


A low-temperature powder aluminizing technology was developed by applying direct current field(DCF) between the treated sample and the powder agents.The microstructures of the aluminized layer was studied.The thickness and micro-hardness distribution of the aluminized layer was measured and its high temperature oxidation resistance was investigated.The results show that DCF can significantly reduce the treating temperature and heating duration compared with the conventional powder aluminizing process,providing a practical approach with great energy and time saving.When the treating temperature is 700℃~750℃,the aluminizing layer with thickness no less than 180μm is produced by applying appropriate intensity of DCF.It is also found that DCF can not only heat the sample,but also form temperature gradient between the two electrodes.The aluminizing layer rapidly formed at lower temperature exhibits good oxidation resistance below 850℃.


challenges facing the Iraqi economy, so the Iraqi authorities were forced to turn to the International Monetary Fund, which helps countries face their crises and implements corrective policies aimed at stabilizing the economy and its growth and providing preventive financing for the impacts and challenges facing developing countries, especially Iraq. funding for the reconstruction, which is estimated at (88) billion dollars, and the international community has pledged to contribute (30) billion dollars, and this funding is still limited due to the economic and social problems that affected the activity. variables, where there is a large fiscal deficit, an increase in public debt levels and political instability, which led to the creation of successive economic crises that forced the country to resort to financial institutions to improve its economic situation despite the pros and cons of these financial institutions.


Aim: Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) are among the most commonly used drugs and are among the drug-related hypersensitivity reactions after antibiotics. There are limited studies evaluating nonsteroidal drug reactions in children. In this study, we aimed to evaluate the concomitant atopic diseases, admission clinic, laboratory findings and drug provocation test results of children with a pre-diagnosis of nonsteroidal drug reaction and who underwent allergy tests, retrospectively .
Methods: In this study, patients who applied to the pediatric allergy outpatient clinic due to nonsteroidal drug reaction were included. In this group of patients, age, gender, fx5 (nutrient mix specific IgE), phadiatop (inhalant allergen mix specific IgE), skin prick tests and drug provocation tests were recorded from their files. Demographic and clinical features of the cases were compared.
Results: 61 patients with suspected NSAIDs allergy were included in the study. When the admission clinics of the patients were evaluated, 54% (n:33) had urticaria, 22.9% (n:14) had isolated angioedema, 6.5% (n:4) had urticaria angioedema, 14.7% (n:9) had maculopapular eruption . Only 1 patient presented with anaphylaxis. NSAIDs allergy was confirmed in 16.3% (n:10) of the patients.. Single ibuprofen sensitivity was detected in 13.1% of patients (n:8), both paracetamol and ibuprofen sensitivity were detected in 1 patient (1.6%), and single paracetamol sensitivity was detected in 1 patient (1.6%).
Conclusions: It is usually not easy to detect drug allergies in patients. These patients may usually misdiagnosed as NSAIDs allergy. In our study, it was revealed that drug provocation tests should be performed to confirm the diagnosis in case of suspected NSAIDs allergy.


Purpose: The purpose of this study was to determine the relationship among infertility stress, depression and Resilience of infertile women during infertility treatment. Methods: As a descriptive study, we surveyed 129 infertile women in 1 fertility center from November 2014 to January 2015. The dat...


The purpose of this research is to display and reveal the recent trends in narrative discourse and how both of Genette's narrative discourse and Jauss's reception theories are integrated to form a narratological approach for narrative discourse.  The research started with illustrating the definitions of narrative in general and narrative discourse in specific; identifying narrative from other discourse genres and explaining the elements of narrative discourse as well. The features of the narrative discourse's perspectives, which are social interactional perspective, conceptual structural knowledge and narrative coherence (macrostructures), and linguistic knowledge and narrative cohesion (microstructure) have also been mentioned, clarified and supported with various studies conducted on different samples of language learners. Finally, an integration between Genette's and Jauss's theories has been illustrated and pedagogical implications in teaching narrative and literature have been recommended.


The high resolution seismic data show that gas chimneys exist around Quaternary gas reservoirs in Sanhu area of Qaidam basin. The Quaternary system is characterized by high geothermal gradient, with low scope of overpressure in its deep and shale caprock saturated with formation water of high salinity. The Gansenquan-Xiaochaidan basement faults affect the integrality of gas reservoir structures. These interacted factors result in the formation of gas chimney. The existence of gas chimney can explain the mixed source characters of Quaternary gas composition and ethane carbon isotope, thus resolving the contradictions between source rock hydrocarbon-generating potentials and gas reserves of each sequence. In conclusion, the gas chimney as a vertical path of natural gas migration plays an important role in Quaternary gas accumulation in this area.


Intensity contour maps of the outer radiation zone for omnidirectional intensities of electrons with energies greater than 40keV, 230 keV, and 1.6 MeV are presented for the time period October, 1962, through January, 1963. The manipulations applied to the Explorer 14 data are discussed along with the salient features and advantages of this presentation. Analysis of the data accumulated by the satellites Explorers 1, 3, and 4 and Pioneers 3 and 4 enabled the mapping of the gross features of the earth's trapped radiation zones. What was shown was that there are large intensities of electrons and protons in the vicinity of the earth. Any reasonably large volume contains approximately the same number of electrons as protons, but a study of the distribution of these particles as a function of their energy permits identification of two regions or zones (see Figure I). The inner zone contains energetic protons (E > 30 MeV), and is centered at a distance of about 1.8 earth radii. The outer zone is populated with energetic electrons ( E > 1 MeV), and is centered at about 4 earth radii. These zones are more popularly referred to as the Van Allen belts. ( 1) Later satellites with more sophisticated instrumentation and longer lifetimes provided comprehensive information concerning time variations of charged particle intensities and spectra in the zones. Outer zone data from one of these satellites, Explorer 14, is presented here in a way which facilitates study of the temporal variations of the omnidirectional electron intensities. A discussion of the method by which this presentation is developed forms the substance of this paper. The Explorer 14 satellite was launched October 2, 1962, and b·ansmitted data to August 8, 1963. Temporary interruption of the data transmission occurred during January. The apogee and perigee altitudes of its orbit on October 4 were approximately 100,000 and 300 kilometers, respectively; the orbital period w:as 36.4 hours. ( 2) Omnidirectional intensity is defined as the number of particles passing through a sphere of cross-section one square centimeter in one second. 1 University of Iowa, Department of Physics and Astronomy, Iowa City, Iowa 52240.


Abstract The way to analyze data in spectroscopy has changed substantially. At the same time, data science has evolved to the point where spectroscopy can find space to be housed, adapted and be functional. The integration of the two sciences has introduced a knowledge gap between data scientists who know about advanced machine learning techniques and spectroscopists who have a solid background in chemometrics. To reach a symbiosis, the knowledge gap requires bridging. This review article focuses on introducing data science subjects to non-specialist spectroscopists, or those unfamiliar with the subject. The article will explain concepts that are covered in machine learning, such as supervised learning, unsupervised learning, deep learning, and most importantly, the difference between machine learning and artificial intelligence. This article also includes examples of published spectroscopy research, in which some of the concepts explained here are applied. Machine learning together with spectroscopy can provide a useful, fast, and efficient tool to analyze samples of interest both for industrial and research purposes.


Excerpt To the Editor:Methotrexate, a commonly used antimetabolite in cancer chemotherapy, has also been used to treat various nonmalignant diseases including rheumatoid arthritis, inflammatory bow...


Bt maize is the only genetically modified (GM) crop grown in the EU for commercial purposes and so far adopted mainly in Spain. Its cultivation can have a number of socio-economic consequences for farmers, upstream and downstream industries, as well as consumers. The European GMO Socio-Economics Bureau (ESEB) has compiled topics, indicators, methodological guidelines and potential data sources to carry out analyses of these socio-economic effects. This document provides a framework applicable to EU Member States currently growing Bt maize and those potentially cultivating it in the future. Over 30 topics and 100 indicators, which range from farm adoption rates to consumer surplus, have been identified by the ESEB Technical Working Group, which is composed of representatives of Member States and assisted by the European Commission's Joint Research Centre. Evidence of impacts in the EU already exists for some topics both ex post and ex ante, but for most topics it is very limited. Methodologies have been developed by the scientific community for many of the topics and indicators, from simple partial budget analysis to complex aggregated models. It is concluded that while methodologies are available for many of the topics and indicators, the main constraint is a lack of data.


This study examines the importance of market segmentation and consumer characteristics, such as product knowledge, purchase confidence, and generational differences during the purchase decision. By segmenting consumers in this manner, it is possible to better understand their concerns and motivations aiding wine producers and retailers in directing their marketing and advertising efforts. The results of this study indicate that they are differences in how the younger generations view information sources and that marketing to the Generation X would require direct and to the point advertisements that create a product image closest to this group's views and for Millennial, reflecting on images of friends sharing wine.


Expansion of banking sector in Serbia, the result of regulatory reforms in financial system, has been followed by increased growth of capacities, productivity and profitability. Reduction in the number of banks, strengthening of the capital base and more efficient methods of management are the main characteristics of domestic banking during the past few years. Banking sector in Serbia encountered effects of the world economic crisis which was followed by the increase in bank interest rates, all increasing difference among interest rates at which banks launched their resources and referential interest rates of the European central banks, as well as crisis in trust of the citizens in the banking sector. Reduction of domestic savings on one hand and limited and expensive sources of financing in the world on the other resulted in narrower scope of business activities and increase in prices of banking services in Serbia. In order to bring about stabilization in banking sector in Serbia, the National Bank of Serbia and the Government took over a set of measures directed mainly towards perseverance of the level of the loan activities, increase in savings and attracting foreign investments.


A magnetic quadrupole quadruplet projector system has been designed, built, and studied, which has excellent characteristics for high‐resolution and high‐energy electron microscopes. The focal length is continuously variable from 0.7 mm to 3.6 mm by adjusting two current supplies. The third‐order distortion aberrations and first‐order chromatic aberration were calculated using measured field distributions. These aberrations change very little over the whole range of focal lengths and are always lower than these aberrations in the best set of rotationally symmetric lenses designed to cover this range of focal lengths.


The question whether the fusion of the musical traditions of different cultures is a good thing or not is irrelevant in practical terms, since there is no realistic possibility of preventing it, but the advantages and disadvantages that the process brings are worth considering nevertheless. The loss of diversity that results when one tradition is overwhelmed by its contact with a more influential one is not redressed by the increased variety that comes about within the dominant tradition, since the latter are variations within a tradition rather than traditions of distinct origins. But the common denominator that allows different traditions to interact meaningfully with one another points to the ability of music to bring us in touch with our common humanity.


It is known that nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NADH/NAD + ) serves as a cofactor for many enzymes involved in the cell metabolism, redox control, signaling, biodegradation and other processes. Thereby determination of NADH/NAD + production is commonly used for the measurement of NADH/NAD + -dependent enzymes activities. However, NADH may be oxidized spontaneously to NAD + form, so the aim of this study was to develop new approach for spectrometric determination of real NADH content in a sample. used optical absorbance intensities at wavelengths 234, 260, to original the The proposed calculation method could be applied for quick and routine NADH content determination at any laboratory equipped with spectrometer. Proposed method may be used for quick and routine determination of NADH content in any laboratory equipped with spectrometer.


Typologies of 234 battered women were identified through cluster analysis to determine if a broader sample would appear similar to Snyder and Fruchtman's (1981) cluster analysis of battered women at a shelter. In addition, other variables related to wife abuse were included and new clusters were identified. Data was collected via a structured interview. Similarities with Snyder and Fruchtman's typologies suggested that certain factors may affect all battered women and are more important for investigation than the source by which the women are identified. However, the new clusters revealed a more complex picture with implications for treatment and identification.


5% Mn-doped BiFeO3(BFMO) film had been deposited on Pt(111)/Ti/ SiO2/Si(001) substrate by sol-gel method,and a capacitor with a structure of Pt/BFMO/Pt was constructed.Effect of purple light on ferroelectric and J-V properties were surveyed.Conductance of BFMO film increases when illuminated with purple light,which is accounted for the existence of photo-induced carries due to illumination.The leakage current density alters from 9.1mA/cm2 to 16.3 mA/cm2 at 5V.Analysis of dark current density suggests that Ohmic conduction behavior is the dominated leakage mechanism and illumination do not change the conductive mechanism.Additionally,hysteresis loop changed under illumination of purple light,and illumination enhances the remanent polarization of BFMO film,from 91.7μC/cm2 in dark to 99.9μC/cm2 in light.


To examine the effect of recent healthcare service changes (including significant resource constraint and a greater role for the non‐medical manager) in the United Kingdom, Australia and New Zealand on medical specialists' perceptions of their healthcare organisation goals and service delivery, and their enthusiasm for their work.


The growth of Internet-connected IoT devices brings many security issues, such as DDoS, weak password and embedded malware. The vulnerability analysis is a critical strategy to prevent security issues. Due to technical exclusivity of diverse manufacturers, their firmware is hard to patch timely and respectively. Therefore, the vulnerability of the device is closely related to the device firmware version. The identification of the firmware version is an essential prerequisite for protecting these devices from attack. With the increasing of IoT devices, device firmware identification is still a critical challenge. In this paper, we propose a new firmware identification method by analyzing webpages content directly based on a weak password. We extract the characteristics of the login page to identify the device type and brand, and then use classification and page segmentation to identify the model and firmware version of the device. We evaluated 74,307 devices to verify the effectiveness of our proposed method. Experimental results show that our method achieves an accuracy of 95.97%, superior to the other methods.


ABSTRACT Bacterial heat shockproteins havebeen implicated in the pathogenesis ofseveral diseases, and the immunological relationship between rheumatoidarthritis (RA) and Escherichia coli DnaJhas beenreported. Since there are similarities in the tissuedestruction process ofRAand periodontitis, weexamined the reactivities ofantibodies in serafrom RApatients to the DnaJ protein fromActinobacillus actinomycetemcomitans. An enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay showed thatIgGtiters to the N-terminal conservative region ofthe DnaJ are significantly higher in RA patients compared with the healthy controls (p < 0.05). Furthermore, we examined IgG titers ofdiseasecontrols to determine the specificity oftheimmune responses to this region in RA patients. Thedifference betweenRAandinfectious disease patients was also significant (p < 0.05). Theseresults suggest that the N-terminal region ofDnaJfromA. actinomycetemcomitans maycontribute tothe etiologic analysis ofRA. KEY WORDS: Actinobacillus actinomycetemcomitans,DnaJ,


It is shown that an embedded Lagrangian Klein bottle realises a non-zero mod 2 homology class in a compact symplectic four-manifold such that 0$ SRC=http://ej.iop.org/images/1064-5632/73/4/A03/tex_im_2462_img2.gif/>.


The invention discloses a PCB carbon film production technology with a low resistance value linear change rate, relating to a production technology of PCB carbon films. The technology comprises the following steps: when materials are prepared, high resistance carbon slurry BTU-1000 and low resistance carbon slurry BTU-100-7 are mixed and blended; the requirements of carbon film square resistance of 1000 omega+/-20% with the thickness being 10+/-3 mu m are satisfied; when the carbon slurry are printed, the well mixed carbon slurry is printed on a base plate through a screen printing plate; a stainless steel wire with 320 meshes is adopted to be pulled 20-25 degrees obliquely, and other auxiliary technologies are adopted; the numerical value of the resistance value linear change rate of thecarbon film on the base plate is controlled to be less than +/-1%, thus the requirements of circuit boards for air conditioning control switches of automobiles are achieved.


1. Qp is the field of p-adic numbers, К a finite extension of Qp, OK the ring of integers of K, q the order of the residue field, and Я a fixed uniformization of O K . We denote by UK " the units = 1 (mod я") in OK and by Δ e OK the group of (q l)-th roots of 1. If L is a finite extension of Qp, we denote the norm residue homomorphism by 6L: L* -> Gal(L /L). If Μ э L, then TiM/L and NM/L denote the trace and norm. Information on class field theory and formal products can be found in [1 ] . 2. Fj,. is the set of Lyubin-Tate formal power series corresponding to Я, and F^ the subset of Fn consisting of the polynomials of degree q. We denote by mj[ f the maximal ideal of the algebraic closure of К with the structure of a formal Ox-module, corresponding to / e Fn. We denote by [ 1 ] f g(X) the series = X (mod deg 2) that gives an isomorphism of the Ojf-modules m^g and mj[j. For a e OK we denote by [a] f(X) the formal power series that defines the action of a on rnjij. We write fn = ["•"] f (Ι1 f ~ /)• Let κ η , / be the ff"-th order torsion in m^j, that is, the kernel of/". The field Kn=K (κ η , j). κη > /, as an O^-module, is isomorphic to Οχ /π 0κ· We denote by Я" j the generators of κ η > / they are uniformizing elements for Kn. By the Lyubin-Tate theory, Kn is the class field for the norm subgroup я 2 X UK<n, and it^ki") = [u~ ] f(nnj). We denote by mnj the maximal ideal of Kn, regarded as a submodule of ηϊχ f, and we use Trn, Tr n / m > Nn, and Nn/m, respectively, to abbreviate TK /к> Τΐχ /κ ' a n d so on. Sometimes we write y or wjj ^ instead of/n(y) or fn(mnj). 3. We can construct Abelian extensions of Kn by adjoining the π -\\ι roots of elements of mn ρ thus generalizing the classical method of Kummer's theory. Correspondingly, we have a generalization of the


This paper presents the optimal design of a hybrid liquid desiccant-regenerative evaporative air conditioner. A hybrid air conditioner was proposed which comprises a liquid-to-air membrane energy exchanger (LAMEE) as a desiccant dehumidifier and a regenerative heat and mass exchanger (RHMX) as an evaporative cooler. The air conditions across the LAMEE and the RHMX were achieved by two heat and mass transfer sub-models, and validation of the sub-models was conducted by comparison of the simulation results against the published experimental measurements. Intake air flow rate, LAMEE-toptimal design iquid desiccant dehumidification egenerative evaporative cooling total length ratio and working-to-intake air flow ratio are regarded as design variables. The simplified conjugate gradient method (SCGM) was employed as an optimization scheme to find the optimum set of design variables, which maximizes the room cooling capacity (RCC) of the proposed hybrid air conditioner. The influences of different design and operating conditions on the optimal RCC and the optimum re st set of design variables we


The invention relates to a method for manufacturing a wear-resistant antiskid dry-particle ceramic tile, which comprises the following steps: (1) forming a ceramic tile plane matrix and carrying out pattern decoration; (2) preparing dry particles with wear-resistant and antiskid properties; (3) mixing the wear-resistant antiskid dry particles, flashing dry particles and transparent dry particles according to a certain proportion for distribution; (4) applying the mixed dry particles to the surface of a decorative glazed body and spraying a temperature-resistant fixing agent; (5) conveying the obtained product to a roller kiln for firing and preparing the finished product of the ceramic tile through subsequent processes. According to the method for manufacturing the wear-resistant antiskid dry particle ceramic tile, the dry particles with good wear resistance are mixed with the transparent dry particles and the flashing dry particles, a dry powder distribution mode is adopted and the wear-resistant antiskid dry particles are bulged due to different melting performance of various dry particles in the firing process, so that the problems of wear resistance of the surface and thickness of a wear-resistant layer are solved; by distributing the transparent dry particles, a decorative pattern has a stereoscopic decorating effect under the covering of a glass layer, so that unification of wear-resistant and antiskid properties and decoration of the ceramic tile is achieved.


JAMES MURRAY POWERS: Population-averaged models for diagnostic accuracy studies and meta-analysis (Under the direction of Dr. John S. Preisser and Dr. Haitao Chu) Modern medical decision making often involves one or more diagnostic tools (such as laboratory tests and/or radiographic images) that must be evaluated for their discriminatory ability to detect presence (or absence) of current health state. The first paper of this dissertation extends regression model diagnostics to the Receiver Operating Characteristic (ROC) curve generalized linear model (ROC-GLM) in the setting of individual-level data from a single study through application of generalized estimating equations (GEE) within a correlated binary data framework (Alonzo and Pepe, 2002). Motivated by the need for model diagnostics for the ROC-GLM model (Krzanowski and Hand, 2009), GEE cluster-deletion diagnostics (Preisser and Qaqish, 1996) are applied in an example data set to identify cases that have undue influence on the model parameters describing the ROC curve. In addition, deletion diagnostics are applied in an earlier stage in the estimation of the ROC-GLM, when a linear model is chosen to represent the relationship between the test measurement and covariates in the control subjects. The second paper presents a new model for diagnostic test accuracy metaanalysis. The common analysis framework for the meta-analysis of diagnostic studies is the generalized linear mixed model, in particular, the bivariate logistic-normal random effects model. Considering that such cluster-specific models are most appropriately used if the model for a given cluster (i.e. study) is of interest, a population-average (PA) model may be appropriate in diagnostic test meta-analysis settings where mean estimates of sensitivity and specificity are desired. A PA model for correlated binomial


In 1983 the Fourth Australian Family Therapy Conference had the theme 'Merging the Streams - Integrating Trends in Family Therapy'. In his keynote address Brian Stagoll outlined concerns regarding the nature of family therapy as it was then developing in Australia. This article revisits some of these themes to see where we have come from, where we are heading and which topics continue to be ignored. Evidence is drawn from articles that stood out for me in the Australian Journal of Family Therapy (later the Australian and New Zealand Journal of Family Therapy) and selected relevant papers from the 1983 conference itself. Finally, I speculate upon possible reasons for the absence of discussion on certain issues, most strikingly: systemic influences upon indigenous Australians, farm families, working with children in families, certain aspects of gender, the systemic implications of addiction; and environmental impacts on families now and for the future. The danger for family therapy is becoming stuck in a closed system that ignores the wider system.


Traumatic Perforation of the Right Frontal Sinus with Pneumocephalus and Brain Abscess: Report of a Case.Dr. Philip A. Marden. M. W., a 10 year old white boy, was admitted to the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania on Feb. 16, 1941. Two days previously, while he was coasting, an iron runner on the preceding sled had been driven into his skull at the superior inner angle of his right orbit. He extricated himself and was able to walk home unaided. A local physician closed the wound with clips. The boy was never unconscious. During the next few hours fever and vomiting developed. The wound was reopened, revealing a cerebrospinal fluid leak and traumatized brain tissue. Tetanus antitoxin (1,500 units) was given intramuscularly, and the administration of sulfanilamide by mouth was begun. He was brought to Philadelphia forty-eight hours after the accident. Examination on admission revealed a pale frightened querulous boy,


Technological advancements have changed the way we construct psychological assessment tools. Scale construction algorithms are automated item selection procedures that were developed to refine large numbers of items into valid scales to assess psychological constructs. So far, this technology has mostly been used to shorten established scales – for example, in order to meet time and monetary restrictions in large-scale assessments (Rammstedt & Beierlein, 2014). However, the principle of algorithms can be transferred to other scenarios, such as refining newly developed item pools into scales when constructing a new assessment tool from scratch. As with all new technologies, the question arises whether algorithm-based item selection is just a fancy gimmick or in fact a powerful alternative to traditional approaches for improving psychological assessment tools. In this editorial, we would like to shed some light on the pros and cons of using algorithms in (short) scale construction.


To couple accuracy to efficiency, it is intended in the current contribution to represent the propagation of a crack not only segment-wise through the entire shell elements (edge to edge) [1] but also inside the elements with the possibility to include kinks. The basic concept relies on the fact that the crack tip element is treated on a subscale, where, in addition to the macroscopic displacement fields, a fluctuation field is introduced to allow for proper representation of the discontinuous kinematics, cf. Figure 1.


Abstract Tristable switching and two distinct relaxation processes in the pretransitional regime in homogeneously aligned antiferroelectric liquid crystals were examined in a coupled double helix model which includes double helices and nearest neighbor interactions of molecular dipole moments. It is suggested that the pretransitional effect can be suppressed by a large negative dielectric anisotropy.


Abstract The use of molecular beam epitaxy has allowed growth of CdZnTe/ZnTe quantum wells with optical properties that match those of well-established infrared III-V quantum well systems. The sharp room temperature exciton absorption peaks that these II to VI quantum wells exhibit have been used in image processing devices and electroabsorption modulators operating at visible wavelengths. The large exciton-binding energy, very large saturation intensity, and strong exciton-LO phonon coupling exert a major influence on both the device characteristics and the basic physical properties of these films. The progress in these quantum wells has been achieved despite complications in the growth that result from the large lattice mismatches and the proximity, for many CdZnTe compositions, to a miscibility gap.


This paper proposes a new method for detecting plagiarized pairs of source codes among a large set of source codes. The typical algorithms for detecting code plagiarism, which are largely exploited up to now, are based on Greedy-String Tiling or on local alignments of the two strings. This paper introduces a variant of the local alignment, namely, the adaptive local alignment, which exploits an adaptive similarity matrix. Each entry of the adaptive similarity matrix is the logarithm of the probabilities of the keywords based on the frequencies in a given set of programs. We experimented with this method using a set of programs submitted to more than 10 real programming contests. According to the experimental results, the distribution of the adaptive local alignment is more sensitive than that of the previous local alignments that used a fixed similarity matrix (+1 for match, −1 for mismatch, and −2 for gap), and the performance of the adaptive local alignment is superior to Greedy-String Tiling for detecting various plagiarism cases.


This study was designed to determine effects on retention and shrink levels of Eucalyptus (Eucalyptus camaldulensis Dehn.) which treated with some commercial preservative types, borates, polyethylene glycol, and water repellents. In this study, four type impregnation chemicals were chosen: 1. Commercial preservative types, [Ammonium sulphate, Vacsol-WR WR and Immersol-WR (WR)], 2. Borates chemicals, [Boric acid, Borax, Boric acid+ Borax] 3. Polyethylene glycol such as Polyethylene glycol (PEG-400) 4. Water repellents [Styrene, Methylmetacrylate.]. As a result, retention % and shrink levels of Eucalyptus wood was lower treated with commercial preservative types and borates preservatives compare to other treatment chemicals. However, retention % levels of Eucalyptus wood treated with WR chemicals were highly significant levels. According to their leachability period although PEG 400 showed antishrink effectiveness other treatments didnt showed antishrink efficiency.


The future null infinity for all non-contracting Robertson-Walker spacetimes is studied systematically. A theorem is proved which establishes the expected relation between the nature of g + and the appearance or absence of cosmic event horizons.


To judge taper-taper intersection and to calculate the position they intersect is common in many engineering applications. The traditional method to solve the inequalities of the two tapers is very complex. This article brings forward a new method which turns the taper-taper intersection problem into the sphere-sphere intersection one that makes it much easier.


Sand blasting process can produce fine random concave and convex surfaces on the surface of the workpiece, which make the collected image background of the workpiece complex and the defects difficult to detect. Especially for the detection of low-contrast scratches, scratch depth is less than the depth of sand blasting surface. Common edge detection methods and threshold segmentation methods are difficult to effectively extract the scratch defect. According to the vertical characteristics of scratches direction in the spatial domain and the spatial-frequency domain, a method based on Gabor filter is proposed for the detection of scratch defect. Firstly, 36 Gabor filters with different directions are used to extract the directional feature of the image. Then, using the gray threshold method to segment the scratch regions in 36 different directions and merge the scratch regions. Finally, the morphological processing is used to remove the noise interference and connect the scratch regions which are not continuous. The experimental results show that the method is feasible and robust. Compared with the hysteresis threshold algorithm, the algorithm extracts the edge of the scratch without burr and has high precision.


Purpose - This paper aims to evaluate the effect of risk on the financial policy of emerging market firms. Design/methodology/approach - Using data from 34 emerging markets during a 17-year period, 1990-2006, a panel data model is employed for the analysis. Findings - The results of this study indicate that firms with high probability of survival are likely to employ more debt. The level of risk exposure, particularly business risk is important in influencing the financial decisions of firms in emerging market economies. It is argued that since the use of debt increases firms' exposure to financial risk, firms with high business risk would shy away from using more debt. Also, finance providers in the financial market may not be interested in lending to firms with high business risk. This study also identified profitability, dividend, asset tangibility, growth opportunities, and GDP per capita as important determinants of the financial policy of emerging market firms. Originality/value - This study contributes to the extant literature by providing empirical evidence regarding the effect of risk on the financial policy of emerging market firms.


We analyze trends and sources of support for European unification on the basis of Eurobarometer data gathered from individuals in member states of the European Union over the past two decades. Results indicate that unification of Europe generally receives overwhelming support. However, further analysis reveals important country differences in levels of support. Citizens of most countries of Europe favor unification: support for the EU has over the years been relatively high in most countries and only in a minority of countries (Great Britain, Denmark, and Norway) do citizens reveal substantial anti-European sentiments. Beyond the country differences, in addition, there are socio-demographic and political influences on popular support, but these do not account for country differences. In other words, it is the identification of citizens with estimated advantages or disadvantages of united Europe for their own country which determines their respective sentiments on the EU.


The paper analyses how to do business magazine "fine" and "big".It should be determined in a good place close to the pace of development the companies.From the selection,election,and the content of the program set up,layout and make strict checks can be completed within the enterprise by enterprise leaders and staff favorite reading materials.


Soil, plants and river near an iron mine is pollute d by tailing, mine waste and agrochemicals in Itakpe, Okehi Local Gove rnment Area of Kogi State, Nigeria which poses a threat to the agricult ural land. In this study, heavy metals Cd, Cu, Mg, Ni, Pb and Zn concentrations in river water, soil and crop plants in mining site were determined using Flame A tomic Absorption Spectroscopy. Water samples from River Pompom were digested with HNO 3, plants were digested with a mixture of HNO 3 and HClO 4 (4:1) and soil with HF-HClO 4 acid mixture (5:1). The results showed that heavy metals mean concentration in Pompom River is 0.03±0.003,0.05±0. 002,0.04±0.002, 0.01±0.001,0.01 ±0.001 and 0.04±0.002 μg/ml, in plants 0.02±0.01, 0.11±0.03, 0.04±0.01, 0.10±0.02, 0.04±0.001, 0.03±0.01 μg/g and in agricultural soils 0.16±0.02, 0.15±0.03, 0.04±0.03, 0.1±0.02, 0.07±0.0 1 and Zn 0.04±0.04 μg/g for Cd, Cu, Mg, Ni, Pb and Zn respectively. Seasonal variation showed metallic levels in water to be higher during the ra iny season than dry season. The concentration of Cu, Mg, Ni, Pb and Zn in water were within the FEPA and WHO permissible guidelines for drinking water aconcentrations of heavy metals in the studied plants were below the F AO/WHO limit guideline for heavy metal levels in food. The soil metallic lwere lower than the normal soil content intervals and maximum allowable limits of heavy metals in soils. These results could have potential impacts o n the mining environment if not monitored.


X-{A} INDOR spectra greatly simplify the analysis of tetrahedral [AX]4 systems. The method is illustrated by the determination of the magnitudes and relative signs of 1J(PF), 3J(PF), 2J(PP), and 4J(FF) in complexes [ML4][M = Ni or Pt; L = F[graphic omitted] or PF(OPh)2].


Mycobacterium tuberculosis (M.tb.) replicates in host macrophages to cause tuberculosis. We have investigated the role of miRNAs in M.tb.‐infected murine RAW264.7 cells and bone marrow‐derived macrophages (BMDMs), focusing on miR‐155, the most highly upregulated miRNA. We observed that miR‐155 upregulation is directly linked to the attenuation of expression of BTB and CNC homology 1 (Bach1) and SH2‐containing inositol 5′‐phosphatase (SHIP1). Bach1 is a transcriptional repressor of haem oxygenase‐1 (HO‐1), whereas SHIP1 inhibits the activation of the serine/threonine kinase AKT. We hypothesize that M.tb.‐induced miR‐155 induction leads to repression of Bach1, which augments the expression of HO‐1, a documented activator of the M.tb. dormancyregulon. SHIP1 repression facilitates AKT activation, which is required for M.tb. survival. In addition, M.tb.‐induced miR‐155 inhibits expression of cyclooxygenase‐2 (Cox‐2) and interleukin‐6 (Il‐6), two modulators of the innate immune response. Importantly, we observed that the virulence‐associated secreted protein ESAT‐6 plays a key role in miR‐155 induction and its subsequent effects on Bach1 and SHIP1 repression. Inhibition of miR‐155 hindered survival of M.tb. in RAW264.7 and in murine BMDMs. Thus, our results offer new insights into the role of miRNAs in modulation of the host innate immune response by M.tb. for its own benefit.


Determining moisture content correctly in different materials or grains is the need of various industries today. Various techniques are suggested in the literature for sensing moisture contents of different materials. Horn antenna and microstrip antenna are the most commonly used antennas for finding moisture content, because of the noncontact type of measurement of moisture present in the sample. The microwave measuring technique offers a very exact and reliable measurement of the concentration of moisture. In the proposed system microstrip patch antenna at 900 MHz resonant frequency is designed and different materials like sodium carbonate, borax, potassium chloride, and lactose are tested for moisture content. For the fixed quantity of the sample, water content is gradually increased and return loss is measured. It is observed that with the increase in moisture content, return loss decreases.


The structure and optical properties of nickel and palladium-films on crystalline lithium niobate were studied with the help of an electron microscope, an infrared spectrometer, and an ellipsometer. The optical properties of two-layer systems: ion-implanted metal film (10 - 50 nm thick) pyroelectric (crystalline lithium niobate 0.2 mm thick with the spontaneous polarization vector perpendicular to the surface) were studied by measuring the reflectivity in the wavelength region of 0.7 - 15 micrometers. The systems were argon-ion-implanted with ion energies from 50 to 500 keV. The absorbed irradiation dose varied from 1015 to 5 (DOT) 1017 ion/cm2. After bombarding the surfaces of the nickel-film-systems, the reflectivity almost has not changed over the entire wavelength range, although certain selectivity disappeared, which was due to agitation of the film-pyroelectric interface. We found a striking implantation effect on palladium films, which consisted in abrupt decrease in the reflectivity and in disappearance of the selectivity in a rather wide spectral region of 1 - 15.1 micrometers. The described effect depends considerably on the energy, absorbed dose, and the film thickness. Electron microscopic and elipsometric studies show that the cause of the described effects lay in different changes in both the structure of the near-surface layers and the state of the palladium and nickel film surfaces.


Palmar hyperhidrosis is characterized by excessive sweating in hand,it has a significant impact on the social and profession al relationships of affected individuals.The aim of this study was to assess effect of botulinum toxin type A(BTX-A) to patients with palmar hyperhidrosis.The study included 26 patients(17 women and 9 men) with a diagnosis of Palmar hyperhidrosis treated with BTX-A.severity of hyperhidrosis qualitative measured by The Hyperhidrosis Disease Severity Scale(HDSS).All patients completed a questionnaire included the following information:time to effect of BTX-A;local or systemic side effects;and severity of hyperhidrosis before and after BTX-A treatment.There was a highly significant reduction in the severity of hyperhidrosis 3 months after performing the treatment with BTX-A.The side effects of treatment were sligtht and short.Treatment of Palmar hyperhidrosis with BTX-A was well tolerated and effective.


We have previously shown that conformational change in the β2-integrin is a very early activation marker that can be detected with fluorescent multimers of its ligand intercellular adhesion molecule (ICAM)-1 for rapid assessment of antigen-specific CD8+ T cells. In this study, we describe a modified protocol of this assay for sensitive detection of functional antigen-specific CD4+ T cells using a monoclonal antibody (clone m24 Ab) specific for the open, high-affinity conformation of the β2-integrin. The kinetics of β2-integrin activation was different on CD4+ and CD8+ T cells (several hours vs. few minutes, respectively); however, m24 Ab readily stained both cell types 4–6 h after antigen stimulation. With this protocol, we were able to monitor ex vivo effector and memory CD4+ and CD8+ T cells specific for severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), cytomegalovirus (CMV), Epstein–Barr virus (EBV), and hepatitis B virus (HBV) in whole blood or cryopreserved peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) of infected or vaccinated individuals. By costaining β2-integrin with m24 and CD154 Abs, we assessed extremely low frequencies of polyfunctional CD4+ T cell responses. The novel assay used in this study allows very sensitive and simultaneous screening of both CD4+ and CD8+ T cell reactivities, with versatile applicability in clinical and vaccination studies.


The present study was carried out to investigate the effect of 5 cleaning agents(dettol soap, whitening tooth paste, sodium bicarbonate powder, and ethanol handsanitizer gel and siwak powder) on color alteration of heat-polymerized acrylic resinand to compare it with that of distilled water. 60 specimen strips of heat-polymerizedacrylic resin material were prepared measuring 5mm width, 40mm length and 2mmthickness; five specimens were used for each group. After two weeks of immersion intea solution, the light transmission percent value for each specimen was determined at400nm and 700nm wave lengths by a spectrophotometer device.Then the half of the stained specimens were cleaned by the cleaning agents bybrushing with a hand brush , and rest specimens were cleaned by the same cleaningagents by an electrical dental brush and again measure the light transmission percentvalue for each specimen by the spectrophotometer device.The result obtained in this study showed that ethanol gel specimen group has thehighest mean value for light transmission among all the specimen groups of hand andmotor brush at the two wave lengths, followed by tooth paste, siwak powder, sodiumbicarbonate powder & dettol soap groups but distal water group has the lowest one.Furthermore, there were no measurable differences between the hand brush and theelectric tooth brush with respect to staining removal from the acrylic resin specimensfor all cleaning agents groups used in this study.


The potentials for various SU(3) representations are calculated by means of an analytical model for thick center vortices. We discuss the influence of fluctuations of non-quantized, closed magnetic flux lines of short range on the potential. We fit the model parameters to lattice data by G.S.Bali [1]. We will show that the Casimir scaling of this data can only be fitted, if the vortices are never fully contained in the Wilson loop in time-direction. Therefore, we conclude that Casimir scaling for large R is an effect due to the finite range of the Wilson loop in time-direction. If we include this effect in our model by a change of the vortex profile, we obtain the fit, which is illustrated in the following picture. G.S.Bali's data are connected with full lines and are shown with the modified error bars. In dashed lines, one can see the fitted data.


One of the characteristics of spin glasses (SG) below the glass temperature T g is aging. It is a direct consequence of the ''rugged'' and highly degenerate nature of the free‐energy landscape in configuration space. We have determined the temperature dependence of the height of a given barrier Δ(T) in the ''canonical'' spin glass AgMn2.6%. Our results show that the rate of change, ‖δΔ/δT‖, increases linearly with increasing Δ in the range of Δ we explore experimentally.


A set ofdensity-dependent growth and survivorship equations is derived from evidence that the instantaneous death rate in the sea is inversely proportional to particle size. The survivorship equation reproduces several well-known phenomena observed in fish populations. It predicts: 1) that winter and spring spawning species ought to produce larger eggs than summer spawners, 2) that it is advantageous for species that spawn in batches to produce progressively smaller eggs in spring and summer, and 3) that the death rate ofa cohort offish should decrease continuously as the survivors grow and approach the critical size. The biological basis for the observed variation in the size ofpelagic fish eggs and larvae is thought to be due primarily to trophic relations within the pelagic community. It is suggested from what is known ofthe relative abundance and foraging capabilities ofdifferent sized particles, that the survival rates oflarval andjuvenile fish should increase as they grow and occupy a progressively higher position in the food chain.


We elucidate a new technique for estimating the production of multiple (at least two) hard jets in Higgs production via gluon-gluon fusion. The approach is based upon high energy factorisation, with the region of applicability extended by constraints on the analytic behaviour of the scattering amplitudes stemming from known all-order results. The method approximates both real and virtual corrections, and allows for the resummation in an n-parton inclusive event sample of the terms dominant in the high energy limit. The resulting approximation is matched to the known tree level matrix elements for the production of a Higgs boson in association with 2 and 3 jets, and implemented in a Monte Carlo generator. Example results are presented and characteristic radiation patterns discussed.


A method of mass screening for breast cancer by ultrasound transmission technique is proposed. The method uses pulsed ultrasound waves that pass through the pressed breast. Distribution of mean velocity of transmission subtracted by a constant, e.g., velocity of ultrasound in water, should be displayed in an image. The feasibility of the method is theoretically discussed with the affirmative results. In this discussion, the thickness of the pressed breast is assumed to be 5×10-2 m, that of a malignant tumour to be 5×10-3 m. The velocity of ultrasound in normal tissue is assumed to be 1430 m/s, that in a tumour to be 1471 m/s.


Abstract Background: Better understanding of the clinical characteristics of ABO haemolytic disease in neonates helps optimise care. Objective: To assess the morbidity associated with maternal–neonatal ABO incompatibility. Methods: Neonates with blood groups A or B born to mothers with blood group O with simultaneous rhesus blood factor compatibility were studied prospectively. Maternal and neonatal details, direct Coomb's test (DCT) on the cord blood, onset and progression of jaundice, and requirement and duration of phototherapy were studied. Neonates requiring phototherapy were considered to have significant hyperbilirubinaemia, and peripheral smear, reticulocyte count and haematocrit values were obtained. ABO haemolytic disease of the newborn (ABO HDN) is defined as a newborn with a positive DCT and/or laboratory evidence of haemolysis such as reticulocytosis and spherocytes on blood smear. Results: Of 878 deliveries, 151 (17·3%) neonates were ABO incompatible with their mothers. The proportions who were O–A and O–B incompatible were 50·4% and 49·6%, respectively. Forty-six (30·4%) had significant hyperbilirubinaemia (119·7–256·5 mmol/L) and required phototherapy, 26 (34·2%) of them in the O–A group and 20 (26·6%) in the O–B group. None required exchange transfusion. Jaundice was detected within the first 24 hours in 47·8%. Of 46 newborns who required phototherapy, 25 (54·3%) had laboratory evidence of haemolysis. DCT was positive in 1·9% of ABO-incompatible newborns. There was no significant difference in the incidence and severity of haemolysis between the O–A and O–B-incompatible neonates. Neonates with haemolysis required phototherapy significantly earlier and for longer than neonates without haemolysis (P<0·001). Conclusions: ABO incompatibility was observed in 17·3% of pregnancies with almost equal O–A and O–B frequency. About a third of infants had significant hyperbilirubinaemia. There was no difference in severity between those with O–A and O–B HDN.


Ligand exchange reactions at nanoparticle surfaces are critical to the formation and function of nanomaterials. The kinetics of surface ligand exchange derive from a combination of factors related ...


This study aims to analyze the relationship between secondary school seventh grade students' perception of mathematical self-efficacy, mistake-handling learning awareness, and mathematical anxiety; and to define the power of mistake-handling learning and self-efficacy in predicting mathematical anxiety. In this study, relational model was used and the research group consisted of 323 seventh grade students whose ages range from 12 to 14. According to the findings of the study, when the relationship between mathematical anxiety, self-efficacy, and mistake-handling learning is analyzed, it is observed that there are significant relationships between mathematical anxieties, self-efficacy, and mistake-handling learning. Furthermore, mathematical self-efficacy and mistake-handling learning explain 51% of the total variance of the mathematical anxiety.


ASDEX Upgrade is an ITER shaped divertor tokamak with versatile heating, fueling, exhaust and control systems. All plasma facing components are coated with tungsten layers. Plasma scenarios have been adopted to avoid central tungsten accumulation, which can lead to an H-L transition due to excessive central radiative losses. Compared to a carbon-PFC tokamak, the AUG operation space is slightly more weighted towards higher densities and collisionalities. Actual and future planned extensions aim towards reducing the core collisionality while maintaining good power and particle exhaust. These extensions include a solid tungsten outer divertor target, improved pumping, a higher ECRH power and modified ICRF antennas for reduced tungsten sources. The newest element for advanced plasma control is the first set of 8 magnetic perturbation coils, which already achieved type-I ELM mitigation in various plasma scenarios. Another 8 coils will be installed in autumn 2011 allowing to produce mode spectra with n > 2. In parallel to the improved actuator set, an increasing number of diagnostics is brought into real-time state, allowing versatile profile and stability control.


This research aims to investigate the effects of albasia wood filler as alternative reinforcement for extravagant and non-renewable filler being used in epoxy composites. The filler size used was 30 mesh and various filler volume fractions were 10, 20, 30 and 40 percent. Composites were manufactured using hand lay-up method. Properties such as tensile strength, elongation, modulus elasticity and strain energy absorption were determined based on ASTM standard. The results show that filler volume content significantly affects the tensile properties and impact strength of albasia wood-epoxy composites. The optimum tensile properties are achieved when 10 percent filler is added into epoxy matrix. The impact test also shows the same results. Further addition of filler decreases the mechanical properties of composites due to the existence of weak interfacial interaction between the albasia wood filler and polymer matrix for higher filler volume concentration beyond 10 vol. %. The scanning electron micrograph reveals that there are voids and pull-out mechanism on tensile fracture surface which are the cause of the composites failure.


This paper presents a 3 V, 1.21μW subthreshold log‐domain circuit which mimics the oscillations observed during the biochemical process of glycolysis due to the phosphofructokinase enzyme. The proposed electronic circuit is able to simulate the dynamics of the glycolytic oscillator and represent the time‐dependent concentration changes of the reactants and the products of the chemical process based on nonlinear differential equations which describe the biological system. By modifying specific circuit parameters, which correspond to certain chemical parameters, good agreement between the biochemical and electrical model results has been reached. The paper details the similarities between the equations that describe the biochemical process and the equations derived from the circuit analysis of a transistor and a source‐connected linear capacitor, a topology also known as the Bernoulli Cell. With the use of the Bernoulli Cell formalism, the chemical equations which describe the biochemical system have been transformed into their electrical equivalents. The analog circuit, which implements the whole process, has been synthesised, and simulation results including Monte Carlo analysis are provided, in order to verify the robustness of the proposed circuit and to compare its dynamics with prototype biological behaviour. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.


A great deal of data of the real stock market involves the portfolio selection.This paper introduces the Particle Swarm Optimization(PSO) in the application of the portfolio selection using VaR.And the algorithm is simulated on the computer with the real data from the Exchange of Shanghai Security.The computing result shows that PSO is effective and practicable in the decision of the portfolio selection.


In order to identify the key elements which affect attracting investment of different types and numerous elements in the regional investment environment(RIE) system,the RIE system is divided into economy development subsystem,social-culture subsystem,infrastructure subsystem,political and legal subsystem,and physical geography subsystem,and then the structure of systematic analysis is built to fully reflect the degree of superiority and inferiority of the RIE in attracting investment by analyzing the possible existence elements in each subsystem.After that,the group fuzzy DEMATEL method,which can help overcome the defects such as the limited knowledge and the subjective judgment,is applied to provide an identification method of the key elements in the RIE system,and finally an empirical study of Xi-shan District of Kunming is conducted to verify the application feasibility of the proposed method.


Background Liver biopsy is the gold standard for establishing cirrhosis, but may provide inadequate tissue for interpretation in some patients. Goals The aim of this study was to determine whether the hepatic venous pressure gradient predicts the presence of cirrhosis. Study Patients with liver disease who had undergone hepatic venous pressure gradient measurements were identified. Clinical, laboratory, and hepatic venous pressure gradient data were collected and biopsies were staged for fibrosis. Univariable logistic regression was used to identify potential predictors of cirrhosis. Multivariable logistic regression was applied to determine adjusted odds ratios. Results Thirty-two patients were included. The hepatic venous pressure gradient was an independent predictor of cirrhosis. On multivariable analysis, the hepatic venous pressure gradient predicted cirrhosis, with an odds ratio of 1.46 (95% confidence interval 1.05-2.02, P=0.023). Using a cutoff of ≥6.5 mm Hg, the hepatic venous pressure gradient was 86% sensitive and 80% specific for diagnosing cirrhosis. Conclusions The hepatic venous pressure gradient measurement predicts the presence of cirrhosis in patients with liver disease. Therefore, when the diagnosis of cirrhosis is in question, an elevated hepatic venous pressure gradient can support the diagnosis.


Considering that the simulation effect of fabrics mostly depends on the one of yarns,a method based on Poisson's equation was proposed to extract the edge outlining of yarns in order to improve the three dimensional simulation effect of yarns.The bitmap of a yarn was divided into three areas,foreground,background and unsure area.The five-point formula and Gauss-Seidel iteration method were applied to calculate α,the opaque coefficient of the pixels in the unsure area.According to each pixel's value of α,whether the pixel belongs to the foreground or the background was judged.Through repeated calculation,the unsure area was reduced gradually and the exact outline of the yarn was finally obtained.Taking the big-belly yarn and toothbrush yarn for example,the edge curves were exquisite,and good outlining effects were obtained.


To determine whether gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH) neurons in culture without the hypothalamus secrete GnRH in a pulsatile fashion, the nasal placode (NAP) was obtained at day 13.5 of gestation and cultured by a roller tube method. If the GnRH release occurs in a pulsatile fashion, it can be said that the pulse generator of GnRH exists inherently in each cell or community of cells in the culture. The concentration of GnRH in the NAP culture medium collected at 8-min intervals for 160 min after 2- to 4-week cultures showed that GnRH release occurred in a pulsatile fashion with a mean interpulse interval of 29.8 ± 2.3 min (n = 9). When the NAP was cultured with tissues of the forebrain vesicle (n = 3) or the hypothalamus (n = 4), GnRH was also released in a pulsatile fashion with similar intervals (27.3 ± 1.0 min for the NAP+forebrain vesicle culture and 36.0 ± 6.3 min for the NAP+hypothalamus culture) as those in cultures without brain tissues. It is concluded that pulsatile GnRH release is an inherent function of GnRH neurons.


Because they are relatively strong acids, the reactivity of carboxylic acids is dominated by acid-base chemistry. Therefore, reactions with most strong nucleophiles, which are also generally strong bases, occurs by proton-transfer, and not by nucleophilic addition, as would occur with aldehydes, ketones and carboxylic acid derivatives. The types of nucleophiles that react by carbonyl addition with aldehydes/ketones but deprotonate carboxylic acids includes organometallic reagents (Grignard and organolithium reagents), acetylides, nitriles and amines. The most important thing to remember is that "Carboxylic Acids are Acids."


A mother of a 12‐year‐old boy, 2 years ago, noticed that he showed patchy loss of hair on the vertex of the scalp. It was asymptomatic and progressive. Subsequently, similar patches appeared elsewhere on the scalp. Some of these patches joined to form a large bald patch. This was accompanied by dusky blue eruptions over the left upper lip and eyebrows. Later, there was localized loss of hair. A family history of a similar ailment was absent.


Objective:To investigate the Hath1 expression in colon non-mucinous adenocarcinomas.Methods:Sections of paraffinembedded tissues were used to investigate the goblet cell population of normal colon mucosa,mucosa adjacent colon cancer and colon cancer samples which came from 48 patients with colon non-mucinous adenocarcinoma.Hath1 and Muc2 expression in these samples were tested by immunohistochemistry,quantitative real-time reverse transcription-PCR and Western blot.Results:There were not any goblet cell to be found in colon cancr.The levels of Hath1 mRNA and Hath1,Muc2 mRNA and Muc2 were significantly down-regulated in colon cancer.Conclusion:The down-regulation of Hath1 expression may correlate with colon carcinogenesis.


This paper proposes a novel standing assistance scheme that guides a subject to adopt a suitable posture using intended movements and voice messages. In much previous research, an assistive robot requires the patient to understand the standing reference beforehand and generally, the subject learns the standing motion used by the robot. However, for practical use, a patient should be able to use an assistive robot without special prior knowledge. Nursing specialists also guide their patients with an intended movement and a voice message. For example, when they incline a patient's upper body before lifting it up, they notify the patient of a motion start with simpler words and guide the patient's body with a special moving pattern. Therefore, in this paper, we develop a standing assistance scheme that guides the patient to stand in the intended way based on skills of these nursing specialists. The effectiveness of the proposed method is verified by experiments with our prototype.