According to the literature on the national (but also international) transmission of QE shocks, authors generally pronounce two main transmission channels: the signalling channel and the portfolio-balance channel. Although both channels might explain a certain number of the movements of financial variables in response to QE, we believe that the global comparative evidence is also, and probably even more compatible, with the view that QE did not 'move' interest rates, but appeared to be important because major central banks undertook purchases when they realised that the recession caused by the financial crisis would be longer and more severe than anticipated. In this regard, it is also possible to explain the decline in interest rates before announcements of QE have been made by central banks. This observation might indicate that markets were quicker to revise their expectations and rates had thus come down before central banks started to buy assets. Therefore, market participants and central banks with their announcements of QE reacted to the same driving force; namely stronger adverse effects of the financial crisis than previously expected. In this regard, the prolonged weakness affected most of the developed world. Interest rates thus fell trend-wise in most advanced economies, independently of whether QE was implemented by the national central bank (Gros, Aldici & De Groen, 2015) .

Interest rates thus fell trend-wise in most advanced economies, independently of whether QE was implemented by the national central bank.


As regards the texture features in cold drawn gold bonding wire investigated using electron backscattered diffraction (EBSD) analysis, the <100> and <111> textures are observed with dominant crystal directions along the wire drawing direction [9] [10] [11] [12] . In general, the <100> and <111> textures are located at the center and between the surface and center of the gold wire, respectively. Furthermore, the relative fraction of <100> and <111> textures is known to be controlled by the stacking fault energy of the materials and corresponding processes such as drawing (volume fraction of <100> decreases and <111> increases) and annealing (<100> grains grow into <111> grains during heat treatment) [3, 11, 13, 14] .

As regards the texture features in cold drawn gold bonding wire investigated using electron backscattered diffraction (EBSD) analysis, the <100> and <111> textures are observed with dominant crystal directions along the wire drawing direction.

Furthermore, the relative fraction of <100> and <111> textures is known to be controlled by the stacking fault energy of the materials and corresponding processes such as drawing (volume fraction of <100> decreases and <111> increases) and annealing (<100> grains grow into <111> grains during heat treatment).


As shown in Fig. 3a, b , an EBSD analysis is performed to define the microstructure and differences of the texture distribution in the wires. Two samples of wire, one straight Figure 3a shows an FIB ion image and EBSD rolling direction (RD) map of the corresponding area in the straight wire. It is observed that most of the area in the center of the wire is filled with the RD//<100> texture and that the RD//<111> texture is mainly located on the surface area of the gold wire, as expected. It can also be observed that the gold wire has a symmetric texture distribution, which means that the gold wire has been subjected to symmetric deformation, as the RD//<100> fibers are replaced by RD//<111> ones during cold drawing [3] .

It can also be observed that the gold wire has a symmetric texture distribution, which means that the gold wire has been subjected to symmetric deformation, as the RD//<100> fibers are replaced by RD//<111> ones during cold drawing.


As the bonding wire is formed by continuous cold drawing, its asymmetric deformation caused by the drawing dies is more or less effective depending on how the die and wire contact each other. Even if the wire has an inhomogeneous deformation resulting from the asymmetric dies, the inhomogeneity of the drawn wire can be increased or decreased by the subsequent drawing process. This can explain the locally observed arched bonding wire in Fig. 1 . We should also consider that the asymmetric deformation in the drawn wire can occur not only leftward and rightward, but also forward and backward in the bonding wire. Figure 1a , b show the straight and arched bonding wires and the schematics of the corresponding drawing process with dies. In Fig. 1b , the unexpected connection between the bonding wires causes a short-circuit problem and this leads to IC chip failure, which means the failure of the device. We observed the SEM images of the drawing dies as the bonding wire is drawn through them to find the reason for the straightness problem of the bonding wire. Figure 1c shows the SEM images of the drawing dies. It can be seen that the drawing die is damaged around the hole area during the wire drawing process. However, the drawing wire diameter reduction area does not have the shape of a perfect circle and it is not centered on the hole. This observation tells us that there is a possibility for the asymmetrical deformation of the gold wire to occur. Asymmetric rolling is used to deliver enough sheer strain to the whole volume of the object and reduce the pressure during rolling, however it can also cause an asymmetric texture distribution since the texture evolution in the cold drawn wire is highly related to the sheer deformation [24, 25] .

Asymmetric rolling is used to deliver enough sheer strain to the whole volume of the object and reduce the pressure during rolling, however it can also cause an asymmetric texture distribution since the texture evolution in the cold drawn wire is highly related to the sheer deformation.


When we consider that every single step in the reduction of the wire diameter is related to the shear deformation of the wire, which rotates the crystal directions from <100> to <111>, and that this shear deformation is caused by the contact with the diamond dies, it is clear that the dies play an important role in the symmetric or asymmetric texture evolution of the drawn wires. The inhomogeneity of shear deformation in the drawn wire results not only in a decrease of its draw ability, but also in a decrease of its physical properties, such as its electrical conductivity, current density, and mechanical properties [14] [15] [16] . In this research, the possible inhomogeneous deformation of fine gold drawn wire is analyzed in terms of the texture distribution using EBSD and the bonding stability of the drawn wire is investigated using FEM.

The inhomogeneity of shear deformation in the drawn wire results not only in a decrease of its draw ability, but also in a decrease of its physical properties, such as its electrical conductivity, current density, and mechanical properties.


Whereas, the requirements Specification (where analysis and negotiation of requirements are performed), requirements of users are specify to make them understandable and meaningful for developers. Specifications can be formal as well as non-formal [4] . Formal techniques include the set of tools and techniques based on mathematical models whereas informal techniques are based on modeling the requirements in diagrams or making architecture of system. There are many techniques in both types of specification. Like in formal techniques of specifications, we have different formal specification languages like Z, VDM etc. and in in-formal or non-formal techniques, we have UML diagrams which include use-cases, sequence diagrams, collaboration and interaction diagrams etc.

Specifications can be formal as well as non-formal.


In the last part of the article, we attack the problem of defining noncommutative gravita-tional instantons [13] - [17] . In this sense, our formalism based on the Matrix model approach turns out to be fruitful, since then the finite action solutions of the equations of motion are generated by quasi-unitary operators, as it has been successfully found in the Yang-Mills case [18] - [23] . The ultimate source of our quasi-unitary operator is a projector, with values in U(2) left ⊗ U(2) right . We find that if the projector is restricted to be pure left or pure right, then the corresponding spin connection is self-dual or anti-self-dual, an important property which can make the bridge between our definition of gravitational instantons and the classical standard definition. However our class of solutions is more general than only self-dual ones. We finally outline how to construct examples of quasi-unitary operators giving rise to their sources, the U(2) ⊗ U(2) projectors. An important tool to construct these examples is the use of duality in noncommutative theory [24] - [25] .

In the last part of the article, we attack the problem of defining noncommutative gravita-tional instantons.

In this sense, our formalism based on the Matrix model approach turns out to be fruitful, since then the finite action solutions of the equations of motion are generated by quasi-unitary operators, as it has been successfully found in the Yang-Mills case.

An important tool to construct these examples is the use of duality in noncommutative theory.


Recent cluster evolution research emphasises that sustainable cluster development lies in the ability to maintain an optimal technological distance between actors in clusters (Menzel and Fornahl 2010) . To this regard, this paper argues that pinpointing when technological distances are too narrow or too wide cannot be done without examining the interaction between, on the one hand, the local factors that facilitate and restrain collaboration, and on the other, the demands and goals that a certain technological variety is supposed to be leveraged for. However, in terms of how heterogeneity requirements materialise and interact with local conditions for its exploitation in cluster evolution, extant research offer limited insights. Hence, this paper attends to the research question: How does required local technological heterogeneity emerge, evolve, and influence vertical collaboration in cluster evolution? This question is addressed in this section with the purpose of contributing to existing cluster evolution theory.

Recent cluster evolution research emphasises that sustainable cluster development lies in the ability to maintain an optimal technological distance between actors in clusters.


RQ3: We used the top five metrics to build the third predictor (TOPK) with regard to its largest Coverage value in our experiments. The comparison of different lengths K for Coverage values in three scenarios is presented in Figure 9 . In this figure, we can observe that the Coverage value reaches a peak when K = 5. A proper length is very important to simplify the metric set for defect prediction. The second potential conclusion from this figure is that in general, the simplification of features involved in a defect prediction model is essential. We also find that simple classifier (e.g., Naïve Bayes) tends to perform better when using a simplified metric set for defect prediction in all three scenarios. The result is completely consistent with the conclusions proposed in the literature [22, 28] . Specifically, Naïve Bayes is a robust machine learning algorithm for supervised software defect prediction problems in both WPDP and CPDP.

The result is completely consistent with the conclusions proposed in the literature.


As an alternative to handling several metrics, a simplified approach to predict defectiveness, which is practical and easy, could determine the subset of metrics that are cardinal and determine the correct organization [41] . This approach was validated using the Wilcoxon signed-rank test and Cliff's effect size (d) in both WPDP and CPDP (Table 4 and 5). The implications of using a simplified metric set for defect prediction are effective reduction of the effort-and-cost by sacrificing a little performance. According to our study, the results show that the advantages of this approach outweigh the disadvantages.

As an alternative to handling several metrics, a simplified approach to predict defectiveness, which is practical and easy, could determine the subset of metrics that are cardinal and determine the correct organization.


This works shows that state-of-the-art performance can be obtained for fish and face image classification through a region based, Local ISV modelling technique. This approach allows noise (in the form of session variation) to be modelled locally, while also capturing local identity information. For the first time, we have applied the ISV model [12] . Results for the Dev data are equal error rates, while results for the Eval data are half total error rates. The best performing systems are shown in bold.

For the first time, we have applied the ISV model.


The total yield of EPS produced by LAB depends on the medium composition and conditions in which the organisms grow [12] . Although still preliminary, our results showed that exopolysaccharide production expressed as colony mucoidity of L. rhamnosus BHGV954 depends on the carbon source present in the medium. The results obtained when the strain was cultivated in Mglu and Mfru were in accordance with previous work, where glucose was the most efficient carbon source for EPS production [12] . The absence of mucoidity of this strain when cultivated in Mram may be due to its slower growth.

The total yield of EPS produced by LAB depends on the medium composition and conditions in which the organisms grow.

The results obtained when the strain was cultivated in Mglu and Mfru were in accordance with previous work, where glucose was the most efficient carbon source for EPS production.


In the present study involving neurolosurgical ICU patients the observed EE level ranged from 19 to 31 kcal/ kg/24 h (median 25) during the initial week of the ICU stay. In a general ICU population the values are often lower during the initial week of stay (range 14 to 34 kcal/kg/24 h; median 21) as shown in a recent study [24] . It may be that the patient group in this study had a certain level of hypermetabolism (not severe), but we cannot confirm this as a factor that invalidates our results. Hypermetabolism is repeatedly reported in studies of neurosurgical critically ill patients [25] . The small but statistically significant difference in measured EE between pre-study and 50% PN measurements may be interpreted as a sign of overfeeding before the study period, at least in some cases. The possibility of an insulin effect related to the higher caloric intake during the normocaloric feeding period was also considered. However, no such effect was detected.

In a general ICU population the values are often lower during the initial week of stay (range 14 to 34 kcal/kg/24 h; median 21) as shown in a recent study.

Hypermetabolism is repeatedly reported in studies of neurosurgical critically ill patients.

However, no such effect was detected.


Following the failure in 2010 to pass a comprehensive cap-and-trade bill in the U.S., analysts and policymakers have called for new or more stringent policies to curb greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in the electric power sector. In his 2011 State of the Union address, President Obama announced the goal of producing 80% of electricity from "clean" energy sources by 2035, and the 2011 Economic Report of the President indicates that a Clean Energy Standard (CES) is an important component of meeting the U.S. pledge, as part of the United Nations climate conferences in Copenhagen and Cancun, to reduce total CO 2 emissions. The idea of a federal CES has been garnering bi-partisan support in Washington, D.C., and at latest count, thirty-six states (plus the District of Columbia) already employ renewable energy standards (RES) or CES programs, most of them mandating that 15 to 25% of total electricity production by 2020 has to come from renewable or "clean" sources (DSIRE, 2011) . Energy standards in existing and proposed regulation differ with regard to the list of fuel sources included. Unlike a RES program, most CES proposals would credit not only renewable sources, like wind, solar, bio-power, hydropower and geothermal, but would also credit non-emitting non-renewable sources like nuclear energy, and would give partial crediting to certain other technologies, such as gas and coal technologies with carbon capture and storage (CCS), and natural gas combined cycle plants.

The idea of a federal CES has been garnering bi-partisan support in Washington, D.C., and at latest count, thirty-six states (plus the District of Columbia) already employ renewable energy standards (RES) or CES programs, most of them mandating that 15 to 25% of total electricity production by 2020 has to come from renewable or "clean" sources.


The northeastern lowlands retain some of the largest patches of forest outside protected areas in Costa Rica [43] . Much of this region is now part of the San Juan-La Selva Biological Corridor (SJLSBC), a highly forested area of private land (2466 km 2 ) that connects two large, forested parks (figures 2(A) and (B)). We mapped the SJLSBC and adjacent areas (20 km buffer) within Costa Rica (hereafter, the 'study region'), focusing on the wide coastal plain drained by the San Juan River (<500 m elevation) along the Nicaraguan border. This large region (6617 km 2 ) has low variability in rainfall (3.2 ± 0.8 m yr −1 ) and elevation (108 ± 98 m), with central ranges of low hills cut by broad river valleys giving way to coastal plains to the east. In this focus area, we mapped changes over time in two types of legally protected mature forest (forest >30 years in age: includes mature lowland forest and swamp forest), two types of regrowth (exotic tree plantations, and native reforestation (natural regeneration and native tree plantations)), four crop types (banana, pineapple, sugarcane, heart-of-palm), pasture, urban areas, and bare soil (table S2 and a detailed description of methods are available at stacks.iop.org/ERL/8/034017/mmedia). Native reforestation includes both natural regeneration and native tree plantations because of our inability to separate them due to their spectral similarity. Overall accuracy for the resulting land cover maps for each year ranged between 90% and 96% (table S4), with forest change over time classified with 93% accuracy (table S5) . Using these land cover maps, we first assessed whether deforestation and regrowth rates changed over time in a manner consistent with an effective deforestation ban, and second whether the expansion of croplands and pastures into forest changed following the ban.

The northeastern lowlands retain some of the largest patches of forest outside protected areas in Costa Rica.


The high turnover rate of native reforestation and steady loss of legally protected forest after 1996 imply a continuing decline in biodiverse mature forest and a modest gain in net forest cover through forest regrowth, rather than rapid deforestation. Similarly, in China's Yunnan region, net forest cover stabilized and mature forest declined despite partial land-use restrictions [29] . Our results suggest that forest protection efforts in northern Costa Rica slowed mature forest loss and succeeded in re-directing expansion of export-oriented cropland to areas outside mature forest. Our study parallels recent observations in Brazil, where a soy deforestation moratorium in Mato Grosso was associated with increased soy production and a drop in deforestation [35] . This indicates that it is possible for mandated forest protection outside parks to maintain forest cover without negatively affecting agricultural production. While we could not determine whether the deforestation ban or PES was primarily responsible in northern Costa Rica, their combined potential effect on deforestation over time was large (∼50%). In comparison, a recent study estimated that Costa Rican protected areas reduced deforestation by only 9% between 1960 and 1997 [18] .

Similarly, in China's Yunnan region, net forest cover stabilized and mature forest declined despite partial land-use restrictions.

Our study parallels recent observations in Brazil, where a soy deforestation moratorium in Mato Grosso was associated with increased soy production and a drop in deforestation.

In comparison, a recent study estimated that Costa Rican protected areas reduced deforestation by only 9% between 1960 and 1997.


We also found that absolute and relative haematoma volumes ("S" for size), haematoma growth index, and presence and size of intraventricular haemorrhage are predictors of death within 30 days after ICH. We recommend the use of absolute haematoma volume since it is easier to calculate and its predictive value is similar to relative volume. Haematoma volume is a well-known essential predictor of outcome in patients with ICH [5, 6, [18] [19] [20] [29] [30] [31] [32] [33] .

Haematoma volume is a well-known essential predictor of outcome in patients with ICH.


In recent years, climate change has become the focus of global attention [1] [2] [3] . It is widely recognized that, unless drastic actions are taken to reduce global warming, the world could be heading not only towards reduced growth but also, and more importantly, towards a major environmental disaster [4] [5] [6] [7] . Emissions of greenhouse gases (especially carbon dioxide (CO 2 ) emissions) generated by the burning of fossil fuels, is the primary cause of climate change [8] [9] [10] [11] . The extraction of natural gas from shale rock in the United States (US) is one of the landmark events in the 21st century [12] [13] [14] . This type of natural gas is being heralded as a transition fuel on the path to a low-carbon future [15] . Therefore, searching for effective measures to reduce CO 2 emissions is of critical importance to mitigate climate change.

In recent years, climate change has become the focus of global attention.

It is widely recognized that, unless drastic actions are taken to reduce global warming, the world could be heading not only towards reduced growth but also, and more importantly, towards a major environmental disaster.

Emissions of greenhouse gases (especially carbon dioxide (CO 2 ) emissions) generated by the burning of fossil fuels, is the primary cause of climate change.

The extraction of natural gas from shale rock in the United States (US) is one of the landmark events in the 21st century.

This type of natural gas is being heralded as a transition fuel on the path to a low-carbon future.


More than 80% of survey respondents to ERASS had participated in some PA within the past 12 months, and within the past two weeks. However this does not mean that they are active at 'healthy' or health-enhancing levels. A recent study using the same dataset explored the health-enhancing levels of PA participation. Overall, 94% of the different types of PA were classified as health enhancing, and 18% of these activities were club-based sport [30] . Furthermore, most (78%) of the Health Enhancing Levels of PA sport participation was played regularly [30] . The Australian rates of PA within the past two weeks is higher than those in the European Union, which used a broad sport definition including both sport and recreation. In this study participation ranged considerably across 11 countries from participating at least once a week of 22% in Portugal to 76% in Finland [21] . England reports participation rates of adult (16+) at 40% at least once a week from 2005 to 2006 [21] . As these authors acknowledged, it is difficult to look at international comparisons when there are major differences in definitions and survey designs [21] .

Overall, 94% of the different types of PA were classified as health enhancing, and 18% of these activities were club-based sport.

Furthermore, most (78%) of the Health Enhancing Levels of PA sport participation was played regularly.

In this study participation ranged considerably across 11 countries from participating at least once a week of 22% in Portugal to 76% in Finland.

England reports participation rates of adult (16+) at 40% at least once a week from 2005 to 2006.

As these authors acknowledged, it is difficult to look at international comparisons when there are major differences in definitions and survey designs.


Constructing periodic patterns directly on silicon substrates is attractive for solar cells due to its strong enhanced light trapping and potential low cost [4] . For example, vertically aligned nanowire, nanorod, nanocone, or nanohole arrays have been studied to improve light absorption for solar cells [4] [5] [6] [7] [8] [9] . Theoretical research suggests that nanohole architectures display strong optical absorption ability because of the effective optical coupling between the array and the incident sunlight as well as the large density of waveguide modes [4] . Nanohole arrays also exhibit better mechanical robustness, compared with multilayer antireflection films and free-standing nanowire structures.

Constructing periodic patterns directly on silicon substrates is attractive for solar cells due to its strong enhanced light trapping and potential low cost.

For example, vertically aligned nanowire, nanorod, nanocone, or nanohole arrays have been studied to improve light absorption for solar cells.

Theoretical research suggests that nanohole architectures display strong optical absorption ability because of the effective optical coupling between the array and the incident sunlight as well as the large density of waveguide modes.


The lung is the most common site of metastisation of malignant tumours with the exception of those occurring in organs that drain to the portal venous system [1] . Pulmonary metastases occur in approximately 30% of all malignant tumours and in up to 60% of patients with sarcoma of the limbs treated surgically. The development of pulmonary metastases is a factor of very poor prognosis, the majority of untreated patients dying within 6 months of diagnosis.

The lung is the most common site of metastisation of malignant tumours with the exception of those occurring in organs that drain to the portal venous system.


In the past two decades, solutions for MANETs that offer multihop capabilities have been intensely studied and also applied to tactical networks. However, most of the studies, even including those intended for tactical networks, assume high-bandwidth WiFi radios with a link rate of more than 1 Mbps, for example, 6-12 Mbps, and consequently a short range of only a few hundred meters in flat terrains [5] [6] [7] [8] [9] 13, 14] . The results are thus not very applicable to the tactical environment, where radios have different characteristics leading to different network topologies.

However, most of the studies, even including those intended for tactical networks, assume high-bandwidth WiFi radios with a link rate of more than 1 Mbps, for example, 6-12 Mbps, and consequently a short range of only a few hundred meters in flat terrains.


The discovery of carbon nanotubes by lijima in 1991 [l] has been followed by enormous interest and many studies of properties, structures and synthesis methods. Nanotubes have been suggested for a variety of applications because of unique electronic, mechanical and chemical properties, including: advanced scanning probes,' electron field emission sources: hydrogen storage materials13 and building blocks of molecular ele~tronics.~.~ CNTs have extraordinary mechanical properties and carbon nanotube reinforcements have the potential for production of high-strength composites with properties well-suited for aerospace applications. There are, at this time, well known synthesis procedures for production of both multiwall (MWNT) and singlewall (SWNT) nanotubes [6] .

There are, at this time, well known synthesis procedures for production of both multiwall (MWNT) and singlewall (SWNT) nanotubes.


As stated earlier, building automation has the objectives to ensure thermal and visual comfort, indoor air quality and, more recently, efficient operation with respect to energy and costs. To achieve this, it is important to have continuous energy management complemented by the implementation of energy and cost saving strategies. This can be provided by a Simulation-assisted Building Control (SaBC) service. SaBC is a dynamic system whose main purpose is to support simulation assisted indoor environmental control operations in buildings. In an SaBC, future control steps are projected from available model and building data through simulation. Then, computed values of pertinent performance indicators, are predicted, compared, and ranked [1] .

Then, computed values of pertinent performance indicators, are predicted, compared, and ranked.


As for wood quality, this characteristic and its stability commonly depend on its internal structure (Meerts, 2002) . On a cross-section of wood, there are two layers forming the trunk and vary from each other in size and color. The external wood layers form the sapwood, while the inside part, located in the center of the trunk, represents the heartwood. The presence of heartwood is the main factor that determines wood quality. Heartwood and sapwood differ not only in color, but also in function, degree of humidity, and one of the important heartwood characteristics is the absence of cambial cells (Yang et al., 2004) .

As for wood quality, this characteristic and its stability commonly depend on its internal structure.

Heartwood and sapwood differ not only in color, but also in function, degree of humidity, and one of the important heartwood characteristics is the absence of cambial cells.


Heartwood is defined as the inner layers of wood, which in a growing tree have ceased to contain living cells, and in which the reserve materials have been removed or converted into heartwood substance (Bass, 1985) . In some species, heartwood may be distinguished from sapwood by a darker color, lower permeability and increased decay resistance (Taylor et al., 2002) . Sapwood is defined by the International Association of Wood Anatomists (IAWA) as the portion of wood that in a living tree contains living cells and reserve materials.

Heartwood is defined as the inner layers of wood, which in a growing tree have ceased to contain living cells, and in which the reserve materials have been removed or converted into heartwood substance.

In some species, heartwood may be distinguished from sapwood by a darker color, lower permeability and increased decay resistance.


Fractional calculus is a generalization of ordinary differentiation and integration to arbitrary (noninteger) order [1] . It was found that the description of some dynamic systems in interdisciplinary fields is more accurate when the fractional derivative is used [2, 3] . In the meantime, time-delays are inherent in many dynamic systems [4] . The delay terms may degrade the achievable control performance or even cause instability. In recent years, considerable attention has been paid to fractional-order time-delay systems [5, 6] .

Fractional calculus is a generalization of ordinary differentiation and integration to arbitrary (noninteger) order.

It was found that the description of some dynamic systems in interdisciplinary fields is more accurate when the fractional derivative is used.

In the meantime, time-delays are inherent in many dynamic systems.

In recent years, considerable attention has been paid to fractional-order time-delay systems.


Therefore, the use of field resistance is one of the most promising measures for pest control [60] [61] . QTLs for field resistance identified in this study will be useful for breeding programs aimed to protect rice from diseases and insect pests toward ensuring stable rice production through the MAS. Pyramiding these QTLs may address the problem of resistance breakdown leading to the development of multiple broad-spectrum, durable biotic stress resistant cultivars, particularly in the rainfed lowland areas.

Therefore, the use of field resistance is one of the most promising measures for pest control.


Currently most photocatalytic reactors used for water treatment are suspension reactors with the advantage of high catalytic efficiency [4] . However, the catalyst particles have to be recovered after reaction through means such as ultrafiltration which bring along an additional process step and higher cost. Also, particulate matter may accumulate in the reactor during the concentration of a process effluent. Due to these reasons, a photocatalytically active layer on a support material is of growing interest. The setbacks of immobilized system are the less photonic efficiency values attained compared to suspension reactors because of mass transfer limitation [5] . For a good catalytic efficiency in an immobilized catalytic system, a good fluidic design of the system and extensions using the visible spectrum by catalyst doping can be of great importance. The selection and design of the supporting material influence both the fluidic design 2 International Journal of Photoenergy and the available catalyst surface. The photocatalytic efficiency increases with an increase in active surface. This means the carrier material has to provide a high surface to volume ratio. In this work, the use of coated sintered glass particles is to exploit both the advantages of a heterogeneous system and to obtain an optimal fluidic design by use of porous glass. The reactor design consisting of sintered glass with pore size between 150 and 250 m and glass particle grain size between 200 and 400 m packed in a borosilicate tube placed between two planar dielectric barrier discharge lamps (Osram Planon) is reported for the first time.

Currently most photocatalytic reactors used for water treatment are suspension reactors with the advantage of high catalytic efficiency.

The setbacks of immobilized system are the less photonic efficiency values attained compared to suspension reactors because of mass transfer limitation.


However, one cannot ignore a limitation of this study that is the fact that these hypotheses focus exclusively on the process of career choice while ignoring other variables of social competition with similar levels of importance, such as the need to enter the labor market in one's late teens and poor access to higher education (Munhoz & Melo-Silva, 2011; Rizzo & Chamon, 2010; Souza et al., 2009) . Furthermore, another limitation is related to the use of raw data about schooling and age, without controlling variables such as more specific characteristics of the sample (i.e., public or private institutions, freshmen or veterans, or socioeconomic level os the participants). In further researches these variable, and many others intervenient variables, should be looked with more attention and provide more reliable data about the vocational interest development.

However, one cannot ignore a limitation of this study that is the fact that these hypotheses focus exclusively on the process of career choice while ignoring other variables of social competition with similar levels of importance, such as the need to enter the labor market in one's late teens and poor access to higher education.


The nutritional quality of sweet potato peel meal as determined by growth indices in this study was adequate, and in terms of survival the sweet potato peel can be successfully incorporated in the diets of cultured fish species, as no mortality was recorded in the experimental tanks during the feeding period. Although final body weight and growth rate were higher in fish fed the control diet. However, no deleterious depression in growth was observed in fish fed diet incorporated with 5, 10, 15 and 20%, respectively. However, at higher inclusion level (25%) reduced performance by the fish was observed. Secondly, one of the most common difficulties observed when alternative sources of feedstuffs are used in fish diets is acceptance and palatability by the fish [15] . However, in this present study, the fish avidly consumed the experimental diets.

Secondly, one of the most common difficulties observed when alternative sources of feedstuffs are used in fish diets is acceptance and palatability by the fish.


The population of the world is growing at an exponential rate [1] . This situation calls for quick action and an aggressive approach tailored at food production to feed the already high human population in order to ameliorate inadequate food supplies and the consequential malnutrition. One of the promising solutions to the shortage of animal protein intake in developing countries is the proper development of aquaculture [1] . Fish feed is the most expensive input in aquaculture operations [2] . Much of the high cost of feed arises from extensive reliance on protein sources, such as fishmeal and shrimp meal [3, 4] . The shortage and high cost of pelleted feed severely constrained the development of low cost aquaculture systems suitable for small-scale farmers in the developing countries; hence, the need to assess the potential of non-conventional raw ingredients such as the sweet potato peels. It would therefore be more economical to utilize plant protein in fish feeding than high cost animal protein materials [5] .

The population of the world is growing at an exponential rate.

One of the promising solutions to the shortage of animal protein intake in developing countries is the proper development of aquaculture.

Fish feed is the most expensive input in aquaculture operations.

Much of the high cost of feed arises from extensive reliance on protein sources, such as fishmeal and shrimp meal.

It would therefore be more economical to utilize plant protein in fish feeding than high cost animal protein materials.


Mice FCG mice were used in these studies (Jackson Laboratories, Bar Harbor, ME, USA; B6.Cg-Tg(Sry)2Ei Srydl1Rlb/ ArnoJ). By crossing a C57BL/6 J female with an XY These mice were used in a previous study investigating the effects of UCMS exposure on anxiety-and depressivelike behaviors in FCG mice [13] . All mice used here for gene expression analyses were sacrificed after chronic stress exposure. FCG mice were bilaterally gonadectomized at 15 weeks of age to remove endogenous sources of gonadal hormones and implanted with either a testosterone-filled (5-mm crystalline testosterone; 1.57-mm ID × 2.41-mm OD) or similarly sized blank SILASTIC capsule (Dow Corning Corp., Midland, MI, USA). This size testosterone capsule yields circulating testosterone levels at or slightly above normal male levels (N. Ghahremani, personal communication). At the time of sacrifice, we collected trunk blood for testosterone assay to confirm the efficacy of our adult hormone manipulation. Serum samples were sent to the University of Virginia Center for Research in Reproduction Ligand Assay and Analysis Core (supported by the Eunice Kennedy Shriver NICHD/HIH (SCCPIR) Grant U54-HD28934), and a radio-immuno assay (RIA) was used to determine testosterone concentration. A three-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) revealed that serum testosterone levels did not differ by sex chromosome complement (XX, 1,026.2 ± 405.2; XY − , 886.2 ± 647.2; p > 0.75) or gonadal sex (gonadal females, 471.0 ± 238.9; gonadal males, 1,453.6 ± 690.6; p > 0.15), but did differ by hormone manipulation (blank-treated, 225.8 ± 140.8; testosterone-treated, 1648.9 ± 687.1; p < 0.05).

By crossing a C57BL/6 J female with an XY These mice were used in a previous study investigating the effects of UCMS exposure on anxiety-and depressivelike behaviors in FCG mice.


The clustering of prairie dog towns and plague epizootics complicates statistical analyses of the data. While prairie dog towns have discrete boundaries, the possibility remains that plague risk is not statistically independent among towns. Spatial autocorrelation occurs when closely spaced sampling points are more similar to each other than distantly spaced ones, for example, when towns with small inter-town distances all undergo epizootics in the same year. Similarly, temporal autocorrelation occurs when sampling points in time series are influenced by the state of the same points at previous times, for example, if precipitation in previous years influences current plague risk. Both types of autocorrelation violate standard assumptions in linear models, with overestimates of degrees of freedom and underestimates of error (Burton et al. 1998) . In this study, spatial and temporal autocorrelation were examined by three extensions of logistic regression models. First, yearly spatial and temporal autocorrelation was assessed by spatial logit association models, with observations clustered spatially or temporally assuming that towns close together are alike or are autocorrelated through time. Second, we tested for specific localized hot or cool spots of extinction using spatial logit association models by adding spatial components as independent variables. Third, autoregressive (AR) models predicting the proportion of towns going extinct in a given year were tested for temporal autocorrelation. We analyzed a 25-year data set of black-tailed prairie dog towns that includes town area, location, and die-offs.

Both types of autocorrelation violate standard assumptions in linear models, with overestimates of degrees of freedom and underestimates of error.


The results of this study influenced management of prairie dogs on the Pawnee National Grasslands (PNG). From 1995 to 2005 prairie dog populations expanded steadily. Because diets of prairie dogs and cattle overlap significantly, they have long been viewed as competitors for forage (Derner et al. 2006) . The increase in prairie dog acreage resulted in pressure from the local ranching community to control prairie dog towns on the PNG. However, in 2003, after several years of drought and no plague, epizootics began to occur, and by 2007 many of the large towns on our study area had gone extinct. Results from this study showed that extinctions from plague take place on a regular basis, especially during relatively wet years, and poisoning prairie dogs was avoided for several years on the PNG (S. Curry, personal communication).

Because diets of prairie dogs and cattle overlap significantly, they have long been viewed as competitors for forage.


In addition to climatic and spatial variation, our results suggest that towns on soils that retain moisture under dry conditions are more likely to succumb to plague than towns with drier soils. Soils have the potential to greatly impact flea populations because fleas spend most of their preadult life cycle off hosts in nesting materials. Water content of burrow soils may impact flea populations via the relative humidity of burrows. Flea larvae cannot survive below 40-50% relative humidity, and increasing relative humidity can speed egg and larval development and increase survival (Krasnov 2008) . Soil moisture itself impacts flea survival: even at low ambient relative humidity (12%), increasing soil moisture of sand or sandy clay from zero to 1% increased larval survival from zero to 100%. On silty clay soils, larval survival increased above 5% soil moisture because clay binds water, making it unavailable at low levels (Silverman and Rust 1983) . The dry conditions and clay soils normally found on the shortgrass steppe clearly have an impact, but the relationship between 1.5 mPa soil moisture capacity and plague transmission and persistence requires further exploration.

Flea larvae cannot survive below 40-50% relative humidity, and increasing relative humidity can speed egg and larval development and increase survival.

On silty clay soils, larval survival increased above 5% soil moisture because clay binds water, making it unavailable at low levels.


A previous study of the GPDH of S. cerevisiae specifically expressed in rapeseed (Brassica napus L.) seeds using seedspecific promoters showed that the content of FAs and lipids in seeds increased with no change in the FA composition [13] . Although rapeseed, which is a higher plant, is markedly different from the single-celled phytoplankton P. tricornutum, the current work showed that overexpression of GPDH in P. tricornutum also increased the content of neutral lipids. The overproduced glycerol was not fully used in TAG biosynthesis, as that the content of glycerol increased 6.8-fold, whereas the content of neutral lipids increased 1.9-fold. In higher plants such as oil-seed rape, precursors can be acquired from other tissues to serve as the source materials for neutral lipid biosynthesis and as substances to regulate the activity of ACCase (acetyl-CoA carboxylase) [13, 20] . In this study, P. tricornutum, as a single-celled phytoplankton, was not able to mobilize precursor materials from other cells; however, the synthesis of glycerol-3-phosphate that was promoted in the GPDH-overexpressing diatom cells led to an increase in the lipid content, as in the case of rapeseed. Thus, it suggests that the overexpression of GPDH in P. tricornutum enhanced the synthesis of glycerol and neutral lipids, and that GPDH plays an important role in lipid accumulation in diatoms.

A previous study of the GPDH of S. cerevisiae specifically expressed in rapeseed (Brassica napus L.) seeds using seedspecific promoters showed that the content of FAs and lipids in seeds increased with no change in the FA composition.

In higher plants such as oil-seed rape, precursors can be acquired from other tissues to serve as the source materials for neutral lipid biosynthesis and as substances to regulate the activity of ACCase (acetyl-CoA carboxylase).


TAGs consist of a glycerol backbone and fatty acids (FAs); thus, glycerol is an important raw material for TAG synthesis. Glycerol-3-phosphate dehydrogenase (GPDH) is part of an important pathway in which the reduction of dihydroxyacetone phosphate (DHAP) from the glycolytic pathway is catalyzed into sn-glycerol-3-phosphate (sn, stereospecific numbering) in a reversible manner [8] . In the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae, the isoenzymes of NAD-dependent GPDH are encoded by two homologous genes, GPD1 and GPD2 [9, 10] . GPD1 was found to play a role in osmoadaptation, as its expression was induced by osmotic stress and in osmosensitive gpd1 delta mutants. In cells exposed to increased external osmolarity, expression of GPD1 is elevated and leads to increased production and accumulation of intracellular glycerol [10] [11] [12] . A yeast GPD1 gene was expressed in transgenic oil-seed rape seed driven by a seed-specific napin promoter, resulting in a 40% increase in lipid content, accompanied by a doubling of GPDH activity and a three fold to four-fold increase in glycerol-3-phosphate [13] .

Glycerol-3-phosphate dehydrogenase (GPDH) is part of an important pathway in which the reduction of dihydroxyacetone phosphate (DHAP) from the glycolytic pathway is catalyzed into sn-glycerol-3-phosphate (sn, stereospecific numbering) in a reversible manner.

In the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae, the isoenzymes of NAD-dependent GPDH are encoded by two homologous genes, GPD1 and GPD2.

In cells exposed to increased external osmolarity, expression of GPD1 is elevated and leads to increased production and accumulation of intracellular glycerol.

A yeast GPD1 gene was expressed in transgenic oil-seed rape seed driven by a seed-specific napin promoter, resulting in a 40% increase in lipid content, accompanied by a doubling of GPDH activity and a three fold to four-fold increase in glycerol-3-phosphate.


In many marine microalgae species, lipids are the major storage metabolite and are generally seen in the form of triacylglycerols (TAGs) stored in oil bodies. Microalgae use light more efficiently and have a higher growth rate than terrestrial plants; moreover, they do not compete with agricultural crops for arable land. Therefore, microalgae are considered a promising candidate for renewable biofuel production [6, 7] .

Therefore, microalgae are considered a promising candidate for renewable biofuel production.


Distributed database systems have introduced a number of problems, such as the data fragmentation and data allocation problems, that do not exist in centralized database systems [12] . A good data allocation scheme is always highly desirable, even in single-media distributed database systems, since it can significantly reduce the response time of database queries. Due to the large variations in the sizes of MDOs such a data allocation scheme is even more urgently needed for distributed hypermedia database systems. These systems also cater to high performance applications wherein a set of end users can access multiple hypermedia documents in any order and expect good response time and quality of service. Since the hypermedia documents may not be located at the end users' sites, they need to be transferred across the communication network incurring delays (increasing response time) in presenting the MDOs of the hypermedia documents. Since end users at different sites may access the same hypermedia documents, the problem of hypermedia data allocation gets further complicated. Hence the allocation of the hypermedia documents and their MDOs govern the response time for the end users. Further, since the MDOs in a hypermedia document need to be synchronized, the allocation should also adhere to these synchronization constraints.

Distributed database systems have introduced a number of problems, such as the data fragmentation and data allocation problems, that do not exist in centralized database systems.


In 2012, in Korea, there were 128,274 migrant male workers from Southeast Asia, 47,552 from South Asia, 22,773 from Central Asia, and 6,199 from East Asia. With respect to the country of origin, the largest number of migrant workers (52,084) were from Vietnam, followed by 24,701 from Indonesia, and then, 19,830 from Sri Lanka, 15,116 from Uzbekistan, and 14,619 from Nepal. Similarly, according to the number of migrant workers, our subject groups were from Southeast Asia, South Asia, Central Asia, and East Asia [4] . Pulmonary function of the migrant workers are currently being calculated using the same equation as that is used Table 5 Percentage of normal or abnormal FEV 1 of never smokers calculated using NHANES III versus ethnicity-specific equations for Koreans. Therefore, we should pay attention to their normal lung function predictive values. This study has several limitations and possible confounders. Firstly, all subjects were employees undergoing a routine annual health examinations at a health exam center located in Busan city. This may have caused a selection bias due to the "healthy worker effect". Further, the material hazardous to the pulmonary system by occupational exposure was not considered. However, the migrants' working conditions were almost all similar. Another possible limitation is the fact that the selection of subjects was not representative of all migrant workers in Korea. Nevertheless, we think that the results of this study should be typical of spirometry results from migrant workers throughout Korea.

Similarly, according to the number of migrant workers, our subject groups were from Southeast Asia, South Asia, Central Asia, and East Asia.


We demonstrate oxygen generation inside voids formed in Ge-oxide glass by confined microexplosion triggered by single ultra-short laser pulses. Large mass difference of Ge and O in GeO 2 -glass facilitated ion separation during the plasma stage of the process. Ge and O separation has been evidenced by a simple and accessible Raman scattering and supports earlier findings of elemental separation in the plasma observed in sapphire where characterization was carried out using synchrotron X-ray diffraction [18] .

Ge and O separation has been evidenced by a simple and accessible Raman scattering and supports earlier findings of elemental separation in the plasma observed in sapphire where characterization was carried out using synchrotron X-ray diffraction.


Here we demonstrate formation of molecular oxygen in the voids induced by tightly focused fs-pulses in the bulk of GeO 2 glass. We chose GeO 2 due to favorably large Ge-to-O mass ratio: Ge (72.61 a.u.) is considerably heavier as compared with Si (28.09 a.u.), which is close to Al (26.98 a.u.) already investigated in the sapphire breakdown [18] . Hence, GeO 2 glass is a good material to check the mechanism of spatial separation of ions proposed recently [18] . Detection of O 2 further corroborated the method of synthesis and spatial separation in a strongly nonequilibrium plasma [18] . It is noteworthy that Ge-nanocrystallites expected to be formed are inactive in Raman scattering. Potential of this pathway of material synthesis via plasma state for structuring of materials and its relevance to fundamental problems of matter at high-p, T conditions encountered in planets' interiors and subject to geo-physical sciences are discussed.

We chose GeO 2 due to favorably large Ge-to-O mass ratio: Ge (72.61 a.u.) is considerably heavier as compared with Si (28.09 a.u.), which is close to Al (26.98 a.u.) already investigated in the sapphire breakdown.

Hence, GeO 2 glass is a good material to check the mechanism of spatial separation of ions proposed recently.

Detection of O 2 further corroborated the method of synthesis and spatial separation in a strongly nonequilibrium plasma.


Littoral vegetation biomass is dependent on water level and its dynamics . In most of the Dutch shallow lakes water level is kept constant with a non-natural water regime of higher levels in summer than in winter for economic and safety reasons. This limits the presence of littoral vegetation to relatively narrow zones. A more natural water level regime would imply a gradual decrease in water level during summer due to an increasing evapotranspiration and decreased rainfall. Such a water regime would not only create opportunities for much wider zones with littoral vegetation, it would also create different conditions in the sediment with consequences for nutrient retention. Denitrification, for example, is strongly influenced by water level, organic matter content and presence of vegetation (Saunders and Kalff 2001) . A full evaluation of the consequences of the restoration of a natural water level regime with wide littoral zones requires quantitative knowledge on the effects of water level fluctuations on nutrient cycling and retention in such zones.

Denitrification, for example, is strongly influenced by water level, organic matter content and presence of vegetation.


The systematic extension of the method of supersymmetric localization is an important problem. Non-compact spaces which form the canonical examples to study localization are of the form AdS n ×S m . This is mainly due to the variety of applications of supersymmetric theories on such spaces. For example, localization of N = 2 gravity on AdS 2 × S 2 is important for obtaining the exact entropy of BPS black holes in these theories [9] [10] [11] [12] [13] [14] . Similarly the exact evaluation of the supersymmetric partition function of N = 8 supergravity on AdS 4 serves as an important check of the holographic duality with ABJM theory [15, 16] .

For example, localization of N = 2 gravity on AdS 2 × S 2 is important for obtaining the exact entropy of BPS black holes in these theories.

Similarly the exact evaluation of the supersymmetric partition function of N = 8 supergravity on AdS 4 serves as an important check of the holographic duality with ABJM theory.


Assuming hyperbolically discounting agents, we compare their investment decisions under three different behavioral patterns. Naive agents do not recognize that their preferences are non-stationary. Thus, they do not anticipate that subsequent agents will not stick to their ex ante optimal plan. If agents are aware of the time-inconsistency problem, they are either committed if the first agent can commit all subsequent agents to her ex ante optimal plan, or are called sophisticated if no commitment mechanism is availbale. Then, time-consistent planning is equivalent to a non-cooperative sequential investment game all agents play against each other (Phelps and Pollak, 1968) . We show that, although it is ex ante optimal to do so, neither naive nor sophisticated agents invest in later periods but not in the first period. Without a commitment device society is eventually stuck in a situation where all agents prefer further investments in the long run, yet no agent will invest. As this holds for both naive and sophisticated agents, awareness of the time-inconsistency problem may only pose a short run remedy. Moreover, such an outcome may be Pareto inefficient and may explain why the performance of long-run environmental policies is weak.

Then, time-consistent planning is equivalent to a non-cooperative sequential investment game all agents play against each other.


The deployment of plasma medical procedures will likely require control mechanisms for the plasma source so that the desired or required reactants can be reliably delivered to the tissue, particularly in the case of liquid covered tissue [16] . Depending on the desired method of treatment, there may be different requirements to tailor the reactive oxygen and nitrogen species (RONS) penetrating through the liquid layer to the surface below [17] [18] [19] . The intrinsic variability of APPJs when used in a clinical setting (e.g. location of ground planes, environmental humidity and temperature, different patient-to-patient characteristics) emphasize this need for control.

The deployment of plasma medical procedures will likely require control mechanisms for the plasma source so that the desired or required reactants can be reliably delivered to the tissue, particularly in the case of liquid covered tissue.

Depending on the desired method of treatment, there may be different requirements to tailor the reactive oxygen and nitrogen species (RONS) penetrating through the liquid layer to the surface below.


We analyzed the sensitivity of the main influencing factors to the investment decision model, and concluded that investments into 3 kW DGPV projects are most sensitive to changes in parameters. If GHR, costs, FIT, and electricity prices change slightly, investments in 3 kW DGPV will fluctuate significantly. Investments in 100 kW DGPV are less sensitive to the changes in all factors. Differentiating FIT is recommended for DGPVs with different capacities or investors in different areas. From a long-term viewpoint, the distribution network subsidy can replace 10-20% of the FIT for the integration capacity to reach the same level in a 10-year time period. A rapidly declining FIT can be feasible only when the same proportion of reduction is achieved in the investment costs. . The feeder collection of IEEE-13 system for system upgrade in this study [33] .

The feeder collection of IEEE-13 system for system upgrade in this study.


The macroeconomic outlook for small open economies, in particular, can be strongly influenced by international developments. Canada -a textbook example of a smallopen economy -is a case in point: The Canadian economy has become much more integrated with the rest of the world during the last decades, as international trade has expanded and financial integration with the rest of the world has deepened. There is evidence that existing links, for example, through commodity prices, may have become more important in the last few years (Maier and DePratto, 2008) .

There is evidence that existing links, for example, through commodity prices, may have become more important in the last few years.


Achieving these goals depends on link estimation accuracy and agility. At the packet level, wireless links can have coherence times as small as 500 milliseconds [29] . Being efficient requires using these links when possible, but avoiding them when they fail. The four-bit link estimator, for example, is able to reduce delivery costs by up to 44% by changing its estimates as quickly as every five packets [11] .

At the packet level, wireless links can have coherence times as small as 500 milliseconds.

The four-bit link estimator, for example, is able to reduce delivery costs by up to 44% by changing its estimates as quickly as every five packets.


Our outbreak investigation nevertheless strongly suggested that the flock of sheep and its newborn lambs were the most likely sources of the outbreak, in accord with other studies [5, 8, 18, 20] . During the Q fever outbreak in The Netherlands, which has been ongoing since 2007, MLVA typing of samples from patients, ewes and lambs showed similar relationships between each other. In this study a swab specimen from a newborn lamb showed an identical MLVA genotype to that from a patient who developed severe pneumonia after close cuddling with a lamb in another incident [21] .

Our outbreak investigation nevertheless strongly suggested that the flock of sheep and its newborn lambs were the most likely sources of the outbreak, in accord with other studies.

In this study a swab specimen from a newborn lamb showed an identical MLVA genotype to that from a patient who developed severe pneumonia after close cuddling with a lamb in another incident.


It is possible that other, untested lambs of the small flock, that were born before or after the birth of the abandoned lamb, were carriers of C. burnetii and caused illness. Presuming the abandoned lamb was the main source of this outbreak, the infectious potential of this one lamb was comparable to that of entire flocks in different settings as described in the study of a superspreading ewe [20] . If the abandoned lamb at birth on 14 April 2008 was the main source of this Q fever outbreak, the mean incubation period of the cases was 27 days (range 7-64 days), which is higher than the incubation period of 3 weeks found in comparable studies [9, 20] . This suggests that transmission could have taken place during delivery, but in addition also after delivery. The rejection by the mother offered an opportunity for the psychiatric patients to have frequent and in some instances, intensive contact with the abandoned lamb. In addition, the possibility of infection by inhalation of contaminated dust (from manure or birth products) by inpatients and employees should be considered, taking into account that the first day of illness of some cases exceeds the maximal incubation time of 6 weeks after the birth of the lamb.

Presuming the abandoned lamb was the main source of this outbreak, the infectious potential of this one lamb was comparable to that of entire flocks in different settings as described in the study of a superspreading ewe.

If the abandoned lamb at birth on 14 April 2008 was the main source of this Q fever outbreak, the mean incubation period of the cases was 27 days (range 7-64 days), which is higher than the incubation period of 3 weeks found in comparable studies.


Furthermore, it appears that girls do not enjoy the subject as much as boys, lack confidence in their ability in mathematics, and that ultimately, fewer numbers of girls than boys choose to study mathematics at tertiary level (Spielhofer, O"Donnell, Benton, Schagen and Schagen, 2002) . This may in part, be due to the stereotypical belief that many students, parents and teachers have that mathematics is a masculine subject It might be possible to act positively to counteract this stereotyping in single sex schools. By educating girls in mathematics classes where only girls are present, and by presenting mathematics courses in a way that overtly dismisses the claim that mathematics are for boys, girls may be able to achieve better results in mathematics, and may develop a more positive attitude towards the subject. This view is similar to that of Tully and Jacobs (2010:1) who noted that female students were encouraged to study engineering after secondary school "because of a self belief that they are good at maths". Nurturing this belief in school could result in more girls pursuing more scientific careers and studying mathematics related courses at tertiary level.

Furthermore, it appears that girls do not enjoy the subject as much as boys, lack confidence in their ability in mathematics, and that ultimately, fewer numbers of girls than boys choose to study mathematics at tertiary level.


We have already carried out numerical simulations on homogeneous human phantom models and some elevator models to investigate the EMI impact to implantable cardiac pacemakers in elevators; we have examined the E-field distribution on freespace inside elevator [9] , [10] . However, implantable cardiac pacemaker is put inside human body. Therefore, more practical investigation is required in realistic environment, that is inside of human body.

We have already carried out numerical simulations on homogeneous human phantom models and some elevator models to investigate the EMI impact to implantable cardiac pacemakers in elevators; we have examined the E-field distribution on freespace inside elevator.


As a consequence of friction and high temperature, Ni may be released into the atmosphere [44, 45] . Higher concentrations of Ni in the atmosphere near airfields have been confirmed by the results of studies carried out in Incheon, South Korea [46] . However, the Longyearbyen airport is situated in the vicinity of the coal mining deposits of Mine no. 3 (Gruve 3), so the site here could be influenced by coal mining as well.

As a consequence of friction and high temperature, Ni may be released into the atmosphere.

Higher concentrations of Ni in the atmosphere near airfields have been confirmed by the results of studies carried out in Incheon, South Korea.


Cs-137 is an artificial radioisotope, which was released into the atmosphere mainly after tests of nuclear weapons carried out in the 1950s and 60s, and accidental leakages from nuclear facilities or waste dumps, such as the malfunction at the Chernobyl NPP in 1986 [53] [54] [55] [56] . Its half-life is 30.1 years. Currently this radioisotope circulates between components of the environment and its transport in the atmosphere comprises redeposition processes [57, 58] . Th-231, with a half-life of 25.5 hours, should be regarded as a representative of its long-living ancestor, U-235 (half-life 7·10 8 years). The same relationship between Cs-137 and either Th-231 or U-235 could be expected. However, contrary to Th-231, concentrations of Cs-137 and U-235 were not related in a linear way.

Cs-137 is an artificial radioisotope, which was released into the atmosphere mainly after tests of nuclear weapons carried out in the 1950s and 60s, and accidental leakages from nuclear facilities or waste dumps, such as the malfunction at the Chernobyl NPP in 1986.

Its half-life is 30.1 years.

Currently this radioisotope circulates between components of the environment and its transport in the atmosphere comprises redeposition processes.


We have simulated four magnetosheath intervals measured by the Cluster spacecraft, using the numerical 3-D doubleadiabatic MHD model and taking upper limits of the predicted proton temperature anisotropy from the kinetic thresholds of the proton-cyclotron and mirror instabilities (Samsonov et al., 2001) . The ACE magnetic field and plasma solar wind data have been used as input parameters of the model. We assume that the magnetopause is a fixed and impenetrable boundary, i.e. without magnetic reconnection. Generally the numerical predictions agree with the observations, however, the accuracy of the predictions for these crossings on the magnetosheath flanks is worse than that obtained by similar models in the subsolar region. We think that the problem may be caused by an inaccurate approximation of the magnetopause shape in the local magnetosheath model. Therefore, sometimes the average values of the predicted density and magnetic field differ from the observed ones. Another discrepancy between the predictions and observations is connected with the time of arrival of solar wind discontinuities from the Lagrangian point to the magnetosheath. Since the orientation of the IMF discontinuities, their speed in the plasma frame and the solar wind velocity in a time interval may vary, additional time shifts from one minute to tens minutes are often required.

We have simulated four magnetosheath intervals measured by the Cluster spacecraft, using the numerical 3-D doubleadiabatic MHD model and taking upper limits of the predicted proton temperature anisotropy from the kinetic thresholds of the proton-cyclotron and mirror instabilities.


In patients with more severe kidney failure, a higher Logistic Euroscore and lower ejection fraction were more frequent [10, 29] . Moreover, the incidence of post-procedural renal impairment was also significantly higher in patients with more severe RD, despite using a smaller dose of contrast medium [29] . These results could explain the graded association between the severity of RD and the stepwise increase in mortality after TAVI.

In patients with more severe kidney failure, a higher Logistic Euroscore and lower ejection fraction were more frequent.

Moreover, the incidence of post-procedural renal impairment was also significantly higher in patients with more severe RD, despite using a smaller dose of contrast medium.


The ramifications of the different microstructures for specimen mechanical behavior are also reflected in their tensile strengthsfine secondary γ' resulted in significantly higher strength levels than coarser dendritic secondary γ' (Figure 12 ). Above reasoning should be generally applicable to highly alloyed Ni-base superalloys that exhibit a sufficient variation in γ' volume fraction within the hot working window. Indeed, quite similar debits in hot ductility were reported for UDIMET alloy 700 in the "fast cooling" condition [8] .

Indeed, quite similar debits in hot ductility were reported for UDIMET alloy 700 in the "fast cooling" condition.


To further explore cooling rate effects, another set of specimens was cooled at varying rates to 1010 o C, and pulled. Figure 3 depicts the measured RA values as a function of cooling rate. Superimposed on this graph is the range of cooling rates from center to surface modeled for air cooling of an intermediate size, 0.38 m diameter billet [2] . Apparently, even the billet surface can be expected to exhibit sufficient hot ductility. Hence, from a conversion point of view, hot cracking should be a rare event. However, above reasoning does not account for the fact that the grain structure of the tested material (fully wrought) is certainly not representative of the grain structure during initial ingot break-down. It is speculated that the initially coarse, oriented grain structure in the cast ingot may be much more important in terms of cracking propensity than any lack of traditional Gleeble hot ductility measured on fully wrought, finegrained material. This notion is supported by shop floor observations in that the workability of UDIMET alloy 720 billet generally improves throughout the conversion process [3] .

Superimposed on this graph is the range of cooling rates from center to surface modeled for air cooling of an intermediate size, 0.38 m diameter billet.

This notion is supported by shop floor observations in that the workability of UDIMET alloy 720 billet generally improves throughout the conversion process.


UDIMET alloy 720, a γ'-hardenable Ni-base superalloy, is known to be one of the highest alloyed disk materials that can be processed along the traditional cast & wrought route [1] . Thermomechanical conversion of the cast ingot to billet stock is often accomplished by press forging at temperatures approximately 50 o C below the γ'-solvus temperature (roughly 1160 o C). Owing to the rapid age hardening propensity of this alloy upon cooling while being processed, loss of ductility is a major concern potentially impacting quality and yield.

UDIMET alloy 720, a γ'-hardenable Ni-base superalloy, is known to be one of the highest alloyed disk materials that can be processed along the traditional cast & wrought route.


SEM measurements were performed to characterize the effect of Fe ion concentration on the surface morphology of Fe-Cu films. It is observed that the electrodeposited Fe-Cu films prepared from the electrolytes with low and high Fe ion concentrations have also different morphological features. SEM topographic images of electrodeposited FeCu films grown from the electrolytes with low and high Fe ion concentrations are shown in Figure 3(a) and b, respectively. Figure 3(c) shows the SEM image of Fe-Cu film electrodeposited from the electrolyte with high Fe ion concentration at lower magnification. It is clearly seen that the surfaces of the films exhibit a compact and crack-free morphology. As shown from Figure 3 , there is notable change in the surface morphology of Fe-Cu films with respect to Fe ion concentration in the electrolyte. It is also clearly seen that the film grown from the electrolyte with low Fe ion concentration exhibits a morphology having dendritic structures (Figure 3(a) ). The dendritic growth observed in the electrodeposited Fe-Cu film prepared from the electrolyte with low Fe ion concentration may be attributed to the high Cu content within the film. Dendritic growth of electrodeposited films with high Cu content was ascribed to the diffusive growth mechanism of Cu [14, 26] . On the other hand, on the surface of the film grown from the electrolyte with high Fe ion concentration, the dendritic structures disappear (Figure 3(b) ). Such a disappearance of the dendritic structures for the film deposited from the electrolyte with high Fe ion concentration may be due to the change of major component of the film from Cu to Fe as confirmed by the EDX measurements. It can be clearly seen that the surface of the film prepared from the electrolyte with high Fe ion concentration is smoother and more uniform than that of the film grown from the electrolyte with low Fe ion concentration (Figure 3(b) ); however, the cauliflowerlike structures formed due to the agglomeration of the smaller grains are also observed in some regions on the surface as seen from Figure 3 morphological structure of electrodeposited Fe-Cu films is affected strongly by the change of Fe : Cu ratio within the films caused by the change of Fe ion concentration in the electrolyte. The film morphology changes from a dendritic structure to a cauliflower-like structure by the increase of Fe : Cu ratio within the films. Similar changes in the surface morphology have been also observed in very recent studies performed about electrodeposited Fe-Cu films prepared at different growth conditions and have been also attributed to the compositional differences [12, 13] .

Dendritic growth of electrodeposited films with high Cu content was ascribed to the diffusive growth mechanism of Cu.

Similar changes in the surface morphology have been also observed in very recent studies performed about electrodeposited Fe-Cu films prepared at different growth conditions and have been also attributed to the compositional differences.


It has been shown that the composition of electrolyte is one of the most important growth parameters affecting strongly the properties of the electrodeposited thin film materials deposited onto indium tin oxide (ITO) coated glass substrates [9] [10] [11] . In previous works, we investigated the properties of electrodeposited Fe-Cu films grown onto ITO coated glass substrates at different electrolyte temperatures and current densities [12, 13] . However, the effect of Fe : Cu ratio caused by the change of Fe ion concentration in the electrolyte on the structural and morphological properties of Fe-Cu films prepared onto ITO coated glass substrates has not been reported. The surface morphology of the films produced by electrodeposition technique is critically important and it can be controlled by varying the deposition parameters.Therefore, in this research, electrodeposited FeCu films with low and high Fe : Cu ratio were produced from 2 Advances in Materials Science and Engineering the electrolytes with low and high Fe ion concentrations onto ITO coated glass substrates under potentiostatic conditions. The variations of the microstructures, compositions, and morphologies of the films were analyzed with respect to Fe ion concentration in the electrolyte. In this study, it is shown that the Fe ion concentration in the electrolyte has a significant effect on the microstructural, compositional, and surface morphological properties of electrodeposited Fe-Cu thin films.

It has been shown that the composition of electrolyte is one of the most important growth parameters affecting strongly the properties of the electrodeposited thin film materials deposited onto indium tin oxide (ITO) coated glass substrates.

In previous works, we investigated the properties of electrodeposited Fe-Cu films grown onto ITO coated glass substrates at different electrolyte temperatures and current densities.


The average crystallite size in the direction perpendicular to the plane of the sample was analyzed by application of Scherrer's formula [21] . The increase of Fe ion concentration in the electrolyte induces change in the full width at half maximum (FWHM) of the diffraction peaks. The average crystallite sizes for the bcc Fe (110) peaks are determined to be 35 and 26 nm for the films electrodeposited from the electrolytes with low and high Fe ion concentrations, respectively, indicating a nanocrystalline structure of the films. This result also reveals that the average crystallite size of the films decreases with increasing Fe ion concentration in the electrolyte. As seen in Figure 1 , the current density decreased towards more negative values as the Fe ion concentration within the electrolyte increased. Thus, it is expected that a decrement of the current density towards more negative values observed at high Fe ion concentration increases the nucleation densities and consequently reduces the crystallite size [13, [22] [23] [24] [25] .

The average crystallite size in the direction perpendicular to the plane of the sample was analyzed by application of Scherrer's formula.

Thus, it is expected that a decrement of the current density towards more negative values observed at high Fe ion concentration increases the nucleation densities and consequently reduces the crystallite size.


HIPed samples of alloys A and B had similar density as as-cast samples. Hence, the porosity in alloys A and B was relatively low already in the as-cast condition. This is due to nucleation and growth of the β-particles in alloys A and B at lower temperatures, in comparison to the sludge in alloys C and D [31] . At the lower temperature the hydrogen content is lower and the β-particles do not nucleate porosity to the same extent as the sludge particles in alloys C and D. The analysis of the fracture surfaces from alloys C and D showed that as-cast samples had significantly higher amount of porosity compared to the HIPed; the area of porosity was reduced from 7.4% to 1.5% with HIPing. The higher level of porosity in as-cast samples from alloys C and D made the effect of HIPing more pronounced in those alloys, in terms of density. It is believed that the primary formed sludge may act as nucleation sites for hydrogen porosity and/or hinder pores to escape.

This is due to nucleation and growth of the β-particles in alloys A and B at lower temperatures, in comparison to the sludge in alloys C and D.


Acrylic resins are a known group of thermoplastic or thermosetting plastics, comprising copolymers of functional acrylic monomers and esters of acrylic acid and/ or methacrylic acid, which may also contain monomers with unsaturated vinyl, such as styrene or vinyl toluene [15] . Polymers based on acrylic and methacrylic esters are extensively used in adhesives to consolidate materials such as wood, brick, and stone [16] . The styrene-acrylic copolymer (SAC) is prepared via a batch emulsifier-free emulsion copolymerization of styrene with acrylic acid. The SAC is widely used as the binder in coatings due to its ability to facilitate the improvement of the heat, weathering, and corrosion resistance properties [4, 17, 18] . The SAC has also been used as a modifying agent to treat wood to improve wood quality [19] .

Acrylic resins are a known group of thermoplastic or thermosetting plastics, comprising copolymers of functional acrylic monomers and esters of acrylic acid and/ or methacrylic acid, which may also contain monomers with unsaturated vinyl, such as styrene or vinyl toluene.

Polymers based on acrylic and methacrylic esters are extensively used in adhesives to consolidate materials such as wood, brick, and stone.

The SAC is widely used as the binder in coatings due to its ability to facilitate the improvement of the heat, weathering, and corrosion resistance properties.

The SAC has also been used as a modifying agent to treat wood to improve wood quality.


Most of a living organism's energy is derived from carbohydrate transformation, which increases to meet the energy demands of stressful situations. The blood glucose level is a well-known biomarker for stress in fish (Endo et al., 2006) . Fish in RAS-O 3 had higher blood glucose concentrations, which is in accordance with our previous studies (Li et al., 2014) .

The blood glucose level is a well-known biomarker for stress in fish.

Fish in RAS-O 3 had higher blood glucose concentrations, which is in accordance with our previous studies.


The CP sequence analysis with Hinf I and Rsa I revealed considerable variation in the 34 CTV isolates analyzed. RNA viruses have a great potential for genetic variation due to their error-prone RNA replication, large populations, and short replication times (Rubio et al., 2001) . These enzymes were also effective in detecting polymorphism in CTV isolates in other studies (Gillings et al., 1993; Valle et al., 2000; Roy et al, 2003) . According to these authors the Hinf I enzyme provides better discrimination among the isolates. However, in our study, better discrimination among the isolates was obtained with Rsa I, despite the fact that twelve groups were constituted with this enzyme and fourteen with the Hinf I.

RNA viruses have a great potential for genetic variation due to their error-prone RNA replication, large populations, and short replication times.

These enzymes were also effective in detecting polymorphism in CTV isolates in other studies.


Electrospinning method is a promising technique for the fabrication of scaffold. The advantage of electrospinning method is that it is able to fabricate polymer scaffold fibers' size in a wide range [18] . The morphologies of fibers are affected by the nature of electrospinning and also the translation of polymer solution into nanofibers through electrospinning. There are several parameters such as solution parameters, processing parameter, and ambient parameters that can affect the final morphology of the membranes. We can make electrospun fibers with desired morphologies and diameters by proper control of those parameters [19] .

The advantage of electrospinning method is that it is able to fabricate polymer scaffold fibers' size in a wide range.

We can make electrospun fibers with desired morphologies and diameters by proper control of those parameters.


The benefit of the microfibers is that it is large enough to allow cells migration and this advantage is needed for the nanofibers scaffold. Therefore, in order to overcome the drawback of nanofibers, we need to add the microfibers into the nanofibers scaffold. The solution suggests to solution of the problem by fabricating multilayer scaffold or in other words microfibers/nanofibers layer by layer membranes through the multilayered electrospinning method [21] .

The solution suggests to solution of the problem by fabricating multilayer scaffold or in other words microfibers/nanofibers layer by layer membranes through the multilayered electrospinning method.


The potential energy of a molecule is derived from molecular mechanics, which describes molecular interactions based on the principles of Newtonian physics. An empirically derived set of potential energy contributions is used for approximating these molecular interactions. The minimization of the potential energy function is a difficult problem to solve since the number of the local minima increases exponentially with the molecular size [1] . The minimization of the potential energy function problem can be formulated as a global optimization problem. Finding the steady state (ground) of the molecules in the protein can help to predict the 3D structure of the protein, which helps to know the function of the protein.

The minimization of the potential energy function is a difficult problem to solve since the number of the local minima increases exponentially with the molecular size.


Each subject was asked to make eight successive choices between two-outcome lottery pairs as shown below. The potential outcomes, probabilities, expected values and variances (shown in Table 1 ) were varied across lottery pairs. After the completion of all eight choices, the lottery outcomes were resolved and displayed. We provided this feedback after the choices were made to eliminate the possibility of the outcomes of a subject's earlier choices affecting the subject's subsequent choices (Thaler and Johnson 1990) . Outcomes for particular lotteries were randomized across subjects.

We provided this feedback after the choices were made to eliminate the possibility of the outcomes of a subject's earlier choices affecting the subject's subsequent choices.


For China's centralized political system, environmental policies and regulations made at the national level have a strong mandate at the city level. National appeal also has a strong role in raising public awareness of environmental protection [17] [18] [19] [20] [21] [22] [23] [24] [25] . Studies of AV in typical urban areas can help the public and policy makers better understand how to improve AV in China. Provincial capital cities, the typical urban areas in China, have achieved abundant progress in the past decades and are expected to still undergo rapid urbanization. The explosive boosts in economy and urbanization have resulted in increasingly severe air pollution in these urban areas. Comprehensive understanding of AV trends and characteristics in the provincial capital cities (PCCs)of China are significantly helpful for environmental policy makers. Nevertheless, to date very few studies have analyzed the characteristics of AV and the factors affecting AV in the PCCs of China.

National appeal also has a strong role in raising public awareness of environmental protection.


Mediation analysis has shown that perceived discrimination has not only a direct effect on mental health, but also affects mental health indirectly through diminished sense of control and self-esteem. In other words, sense of control and self-esteem can serve as internal mechanisms through which experience of discrimination manifests its psychological consequences. This intervening role of sense of control has also been found in other studies (Jang, Chiriboga, & Small, 2008; Moradi & Hasan, 2004) . Numerous studies have also found a partial mediation role of self-esteem in relation between perceived discrimination and mental health (Cassidy, O'Connor, Howe, & Warden, 2004) .

This intervening role of sense of control has also been found in other studies.

Numerous studies have also found a partial mediation role of self-esteem in relation between perceived discrimination and mental health.


Analyzing and controlling sounds over large regions of space has become an important problem in practice with a broad range of applications, such as security and surveillance systems, environment monitoring, active noise cancellation, and 3D audio rendering. Existing sound field recording techniques using zeroth order (omni-directional) microphones typically require a large set of spatial sampling points as well as complex 3D sampling schemes in order to cover a large spatial region [1] . Reducing the necessary spatial sampling points as well as simplifying the microphone array geometry can significantly reduce implementation difficulty of large microphone arrays. For this purpose, irregular and distributed microphone arrays have been investigated for sound acquisition and sound field measurement within a region [2] [3] [4] .

Existing sound field recording techniques using zeroth order (omni-directional) microphones typically require a large set of spatial sampling points as well as complex 3D sampling schemes in order to cover a large spatial region.

For this purpose, irregular and distributed microphone arrays have been investigated for sound acquisition and sound field measurement within a region.


Deep neural networks (DNNs) with many hidden layers have shown to outperform Gaussian mixture models (GMMs) at acoustic modeling, and are now widely used in a variety of speech recognition tasks [9] . In this paper, we apply two DNN models trained on datasets of two different languages, Mandarin Chinese and English, to generate two sets of phone posteriorgrams as system inputs, and then combine these systems at the score level. The Chinese model is trained on 700 hours of Chinese speech. It has 5 hidden layers and an output layer with 98 units, which present 96 Chinese monophones and 2 non-speech monophones. The second DNN model is trained on 700 hours of English, with 5 hidden layers and an output layer with 41 units corresponding to English phonemes. The softmax output of the DNN models are used directly as input features of our QBE system.

Deep neural networks (DNNs) with many hidden layers have shown to outperform Gaussian mixture models (GMMs) at acoustic modeling, and are now widely used in a variety of speech recognition tasks.


Content-based information retrieval (CBIR) is a broad topic in information retrieval and data mining [1] . CBIR algorithms are quite different for the tasks of text retrieval and image retrieval. Correspondingly there are two approaches to searching scanned documents, stemming from the two different schools of thought. One approach is to use direct content based image retrieval (word spotting). Another is to convert the document to an electronic textual representation (ASCII for English and UNICODE for Arabic) and search it with text information retrieval methods used routinely with electronic documents. Both of these approaches can be successful under ideal circumstances, but such a situation is difficult to achieve with current technology of handwriting recognition. Image based searches do not always return correct results. Arabic handwriting recognition technology does not come close to allowing full transcriptions of unconstrained documents. However, by combining these two methods together, we achieve better performance than either on its own. The paper describes a framework for versatile search of Arabic handwritten documents. By versatile search, we mean both versatility in the query and versatility in the search strategy-combining content based image retrieval and text-based information retrieval. Versatality in the query refers to to the query being either in textual form or electronic form. Another characteristic of versatile search is that the query can be in multiple languages such as English and Arabic. In the versatile search process both the original scanned image and the (partial) transcription are maintained at all stages. Searches proceed in parallel on both document representations. Any query is also split into both an image and a UNICODE representation which act on the corresponding instance of the document. The results from both parallel searches are combined into a single ranking of candidate documents.

Content-based information retrieval (CBIR) is a broad topic in information retrieval and data mining.


Long radiotherapy waiting times have been a major issue in UK [17] . In our regional cancer centre, radiotherapy waiting times of around 3 months were prevalent at the time of this series, in common with many other UK centres [18] . Delays in commencing radiotherapy have associated with a decrease in local control rates [19] . Locally advanced HNSCC were routinely treated with induction cisplatin/5-FU chemotherapy in order to avoid stage progression of tumours whilst awaiting treatment. Concurrent chemotherapy was additionally administered depending upon tumour factors, patient fitness and comorbidity.

Long radiotherapy waiting times have been a major issue in UK.

In our regional cancer centre, radiotherapy waiting times of around 3 months were prevalent at the time of this series, in common with many other UK centres.

Delays in commencing radiotherapy have associated with a decrease in local control rates.


Usually, the conventional ELISA kits have been used 3,5,3',5'-tetramethylbenzidine (TMB) as the chromogenic dye which is one of substrates of horseradish peroxidase (HRP). As shown in Fig. 2 , the TMB molecule can be oxidized and reduced by amperometry, and the redox current can be correlated to the OD value at a specific wavelength ( max of TMB = 450 nm). For the amperometric analysis, the previously reported gold film electrode was used [5] . In this work, the reduction current was measured at the potential of -50 mV and it was correlated to the OD value.

For the amperometric analysis, the previously reported gold film electrode was used.


We have also reported usefulness of gene transfer of a soluble form of the VEGF receptor-1 (soluble flt-1 (sFlt-1)) for inhibition of VEGF activity (Ohtani et al, 2004) . Soluble flt-1, which is expressed endogenously by vascular endothelial cells, can directly sequester VEGF and function as a dominantnegative inhibitor by heterodimerizing with the extracellular ligand-binding region of the membrane spanning VEGF receptor-1 (Flt-1) and VEGF receptor-2 (KDR/Flk-1) (Kendall and Thomas, 1993; Kendall et al, 1996) . In this study, we delivered the sFlt-1 gene into the cerebral ventricle 90 mins after focal brain ischemia, and examined the effect of sFlt-1 overexpression on vascular permeability and whether sFlt-1 gene therapy would protect against focal brain ischemia.

We have also reported usefulness of gene transfer of a soluble form of the VEGF receptor-1 (soluble flt-1 (sFlt-1)) for inhibition of VEGF activity.

Soluble flt-1, which is expressed endogenously by vascular endothelial cells, can directly sequester VEGF and function as a dominantnegative inhibitor by heterodimerizing with the extracellular ligand-binding region of the membrane spanning VEGF receptor-1 (Flt-1) and VEGF receptor-2 (KDR/Flk-1).


As the lesion in the current case had a granular surface, clear boundary, localized proliferation, and a diameter consistent with previous reports, a clinical diagnosis of gingival papilloma was considered. However, the relatively young age of the patient meant that long-term chronic mechanical stimulation was unlikely. Histopathology of the resected lesion revealed an outer layer of stratified squamous epithelium, papillomatous hyperplasia with prolonged, clubbed, deeply epithelial processes, and accumulations of foam cells and extended capillary vessels in the connective tissue between epithelial processes. Additionally, the connective tissue was highly infiltrated with superficial localized lymphocytes and neutrophils [1] [2] [3] [4] [5] . These typical histopathological findings facilitated a diagnosis of verruciform xanthoma.

Additionally, the connective tissue was highly infiltrated with superficial localized lymphocytes and neutrophils.


In contrast to the above-described markers, the foam cells in this case did not express S-100 protein or CD1a, which are markers of epithelial tissue-resident macrophages or Langerhans cells, which act as antigen presenting cells in the mucosa. This result corresponds to previous reports, wherein many positive cells were detected in the normal epithelial layers [7, [16] [17] [18] . The reason for this result is not clear, although some researchers reported a counter-regulatory mechanism involving a decrease of Langerhans cells and increase in subepithelial macrophages [19] .

This result corresponds to previous reports, wherein many positive cells were detected in the normal epithelial layers.

The reason for this result is not clear, although some researchers reported a counter-regulatory mechanism involving a decrease of Langerhans cells and increase in subepithelial macrophages.


Verruciform xanthoma, a relatively rare condition, most frequently affects the oral mucosa and genital skin. As noted above epithelial papillary hyperplasia and foam cell accumulation between epithelial processes are characteristic of this type of lesion [1] . Many cases of verruciform xanthoma are clinically diagnosed as papilloma, as they appear on the surface of the oral mucosa as papillary or verrucous tumors with a gingival or yellowish-white color [2] [3] [4] [5] [6] [7] [8] . The mucogingival mucosa is relatively frequently affected, and most lesions in this area are smaller than 15 mm in diameter [4, 11, 12] . These lesions commonly affect middle-aged and older people, which suggests that existing gingivitis and periodontitis may be involved in the occurrence of a verruciform xanthoma in the oral region [3, 5] .

As noted above epithelial papillary hyperplasia and foam cell accumulation between epithelial processes are characteristic of this type of lesion.

Many cases of verruciform xanthoma are clinically diagnosed as papilloma, as they appear on the surface of the oral mucosa as papillary or verrucous tumors with a gingival or yellowish-white color.

The mucogingival mucosa is relatively frequently affected, and most lesions in this area are smaller than 15 mm in diameter.

These lesions commonly affect middle-aged and older people, which suggests that existing gingivitis and periodontitis may be involved in the occurrence of a verruciform xanthoma in the oral region.


Functionally graded materials (FGMs) are a type of composite materials that attracted considerable attention in recent years due to their thermomechanical properties. The first idea for producing FGMs was their application in high temperature environment and the improvement of their mechanical properties under complex thermal and mechanical loads. Rotating functionally graded disks find their application in ship propellers, aerospace structures, flywheels, and internal combustion engines. In many of these applications, the structure is under sever mechanical loading and the material can operate under such severe loadings [1] [2] [3] [4] .

In many of these applications, the structure is under sever mechanical loading and the material can operate under such severe loadings.