Dyes are widely used by textile industries to color their final products. With the rapid development of the textile industries, water pollution is becoming more and more serious. It is estimated that more than 10,000 tonnes of dyes are consumed in the worldwide textile industry per year and approximately 100 tonnes/year of dyes are discharged into water streams (Yagub et al., 2014) . Various major problems concerning textile wastewater are high content of a variety of organic compounds and toxic substances, strongly colored, stable and difficult for biodegradation (Ai and Jiang, 2012; Hameed et al., 2007b) . Thus, the treatment of textile wastewater containing various dyes has become an issue of worldwide concern due to its environmental and aesthetic problems. Methylene blue (MB) with hetero-polyaromatic structure, which presents a strong inhibitive function for biologic degradation and is very difficult to be degraded into small inorganic molecules by using common methods, is usually employed as the model dye to study adsorption properties of activated carbon (AC) materials (Ahmed and Dhedan, 2012; Hameed et al., 2007b; Li et al., 2013) . In order to compare with other's work, MB was also used as model dye in this study.

It is estimated that more than 10,000 tonnes of dyes are consumed in the worldwide textile industry per year and approximately 100 tonnes/year of dyes are discharged into water streams.

Various major problems concerning textile wastewater are high content of a variety of organic compounds and toxic substances, strongly colored, stable and difficult for biodegradation.

Methylene blue (MB) with hetero-polyaromatic structure, which presents a strong inhibitive function for biologic degradation and is very difficult to be degraded into small inorganic molecules by using common methods, is usually employed as the model dye to study adsorption properties of activated carbon (AC) materials.


One of the most important challenges that are still facing humanity is weight gain and obesity. This problem is drawing the attention of both the cosmetic and the pharmaceutical industries. In fact, many countries consider a slim body as a factor of beauty. In addition, obesity is currently considered a worrying epidemic disorder. In fact, it touches adults, as well as children and teenagers. It was estimated that about 300,000 people die each year from obesity and related causes, which puts this disorder as the second leading cause of death. In fact, being both overweight and obese increases the risk of several diseases and health conditions such as high triglycerides, cholesterol, diabetes, heart disease, high blood pressure, tumors (breast, colon, and endometrial), sleep disorders, and respiratory problems [7] [8] [9] .

In fact, being both overweight and obese increases the risk of several diseases and health conditions such as high triglycerides, cholesterol, diabetes, heart disease, high blood pressure, tumors (breast, colon, and endometrial), sleep disorders, and respiratory problems.


In the past decades, the major focus of pharmaceutical companies was mainly on synthetic molecules as a source of drug discovery due to their effectiveness, ease of production, and supply. For all these reasons, synthetic medications spread globally, while drug discovery from natural sources was associated with some intrinsic difficulties, and the pharmaceutical industry has shifted its main focus to synthetic molecules [2] [3] [4] . Unfortunately, many side effects and adverse reactions were associated with these synthetic drugs, and the world has witnessed an increase in the use of plants to treat diseases and to promote better health [5, 6] .

For all these reasons, synthetic medications spread globally, while drug discovery from natural sources was associated with some intrinsic difficulties, and the pharmaceutical industry has shifted its main focus to synthetic molecules.

Unfortunately, many side effects and adverse reactions were associated with these synthetic drugs, and the world has witnessed an increase in the use of plants to treat diseases and to promote better health.


A sustainability revolution is now taking place to address the challenges of production and consumption in this century. Continuously published statistics and research capturing the rate of resource consumption and industrial growth has increased public awareness and concern over the environmental and social impact of the failures of industrialization: the environmental disaster is being seen for what it really is (Barber, 2007) . Sustainability is about building a society in which a proper balance is created between economic, social and ecological aims.

Continuously published statistics and research capturing the rate of resource consumption and industrial growth has increased public awareness and concern over the environmental and social impact of the failures of industrialization: the environmental disaster is being seen for what it really is.


Green manufacturing is at the center of this sustainability revolution. The term green manufacturing was coined to reflect the new manufacturing paradigm that implements various green strategies (objectives and principles) and techniques (technology and innovations) to become more eco-efficient (Deif, 2011) . There are strong customer, government and business pressures to embrace green manufacturing. This led to the development of multiple research and practical attempts to explain and guide green manufacturing transformation requirements and approaches. However, and as in most previous manufacturing transformation paradigms (like lean and agile manufacturing), the techniques and the "how" were always the focus of these attempts with far less attention given to the assessment approaches. Green manufacturing is no exception.

The term green manufacturing was coined to reflect the new manufacturing paradigm that implements various green strategies (objectives and principles) and techniques (technology and innovations) to become more eco-efficient.

Green manufacturing is no exception.


Nursing is a form of healing arts with nurses providing care to patients and family with utmost privacy and respect [1] . According to the 2017 Gallup Poll, nurses are the most trusted and ethical professionals, and have been for the last 16 consecutive years [2] . They are the frontline healthcare workers in many healthcare settings. Nurses are expected to provide high quality physical patient care, ranging from relieving pain to helping patients with their recovery process, to obtaining goals in health promotion and providing coping support to patients and families [1] . However, it is commonly known that nurses face many unique ethical challenges that arise during their patient care routines causing moral conflicts or conscience struggles.

Nursing is a form of healing arts with nurses providing care to patients and family with utmost privacy and respect.

According to the 2017 Gallup Poll, nurses are the most trusted and ethical professionals, and have been for the last 16 consecutive years.

Nurses are expected to provide high quality physical patient care, ranging from relieving pain to helping patients with their recovery process, to obtaining goals in health promotion and providing coping support to patients and families.


The results highlighted that ADN prepared nurses were well aware of the importance of healthcare ethics competence. ADN nurses with less clinical experience can be particularly vulnerable when encountering challenging situations because of the lack of healthcare ethics training in their ADN education. These findings underscore the importance of supporting new nurses, because high stress levels experienced by hospital nursing staff has been found contribute to staff burnout and turnover [12] . Hence, ethics education is a very important component in equipping new and professionally inexperienced nurses with the knowledge and skills necessary to cope with challenging ethical situation successfully.

These findings underscore the importance of supporting new nurses, because high stress levels experienced by hospital nursing staff has been found contribute to staff burnout and turnover.


However, Cerit and Dinc have found that ethical decision making has a positive correlation with professional behaviors [16] . Nurses who reported being psychologically engaged with their jobs reported a lower intention to leave their current job [17] . Numminen, Leino-Kilpi, Isoaho, & Meretoja found nurses who were at a higher ethics competence level perceived the ethnical climate significantly more positively and had higher job satisfaction and a lower turnover rate [18] .

However, Cerit and Dinc have found that ethical decision making has a positive correlation with professional behaviors.

Nurses who reported being psychologically engaged with their jobs reported a lower intention to leave their current job.

Numminen, Leino-Kilpi, Isoaho, & Meretoja found nurses who were at a higher ethics competence level perceived the ethnical climate significantly more positively and had higher job satisfaction and a lower turnover rate.


Ethics training concentrates in defining ethical concepts and providing methodologies to assist learners in making moral decisions [19] . Healthcare ethics principally deals with ethical situations that healthcare professionals face while providing patient care. Experts have identified the importance of ethics education in nursing [20] . A lack of ethical preparation in undergraduate students hinders nurses' ability to work collaboratively with other healthcare members and share their concerns when ethical issues confront clinicians and their patients and families [20] . Despite the importance of ethics education in fostering competence and job satisfactions in nursing professionals, there is a widening gap in ethics education and pedagogy in nursing curricula [7] . Very little education focuses on ethics intervention and ethics research in healthcare providers and healthcare students [21] . The associate degree prepared nurses may have even more challenges, because ADN programs often focus on preparatory nursing skills necessary to function at an entry level of nursing. They undergo intensive basic nursing training, enough to provide fundamental nursing care [7] . These nurses are often left to develop the skills of critical thinking, decision making, and conflict resolution and the ability to support the patients, families and healthcare members on their own, after graduation. They are frequently faced with complex situations requiring ethical decisions that demand knowledge on moral reasoning without having adequate education in a welldeveloped ethical model for nursing professionals [3] . Developing an effective ethics course in nursing curriculum is crucial to the successful retention of nurses.

Ethics training concentrates in defining ethical concepts and providing methodologies to assist learners in making moral decisions.

Experts have identified the importance of ethics education in nursing.

A lack of ethical preparation in undergraduate students hinders nurses' ability to work collaboratively with other healthcare members and share their concerns when ethical issues confront clinicians and their patients and families.

Despite the importance of ethics education in fostering competence and job satisfactions in nursing professionals, there is a widening gap in ethics education and pedagogy in nursing curricula.

Very little education focuses on ethics intervention and ethics research in healthcare providers and healthcare students.

They undergo intensive basic nursing training, enough to provide fundamental nursing care.

They are frequently faced with complex situations requiring ethical decisions that demand knowledge on moral reasoning without having adequate education in a welldeveloped ethical model for nursing professionals.


Nursing practice is interwoven with moral complexity. Newly graduated nurses entering the clinical setting must be ready to deliver quality patient care while maneuvering through relationships with patients, family, healthcare workers and adapting to organizations and policies [20] . Eighty percent of our study's participants had five or less years of experience and mainly practiced in hospital settings. More than 90% of study participants have encountered ethically or morally challenging situations in their work and had come across potential distressing situations.

Newly graduated nurses entering the clinical setting must be ready to deliver quality patient care while maneuvering through relationships with patients, family, healthcare workers and adapting to organizations and policies.


In this study, we attempt to reduce the number of parameters used in word embeddings without hurting the model performance. Neural networks are known for the significant redundancy in the connections (Denil et al., 2013) . In this work, we further hypothesize that learning independent embeddings causes more redundancy in the embedding vectors, as the inter-similarity among words is ignored. Some words are very similar regarding the semantics. For example, "dog" and "dogs" have almost the same meaning, except one is plural. To efficiently represent these two words, it is desirable to share information between the two embeddings. However, a small portion in both vectors still has to be trained independently to capture the syntactic difference.

Neural networks are known for the significant redundancy in the connections.


With the implementation of the Affordable Care Act, we hope to see expanded primary care access for the previously uninsured-particularly for those living in poverty, and for Hispanics. Through many encounters over time, improved management of treatable chronic illnesses with high morbidity and mortality, like AIH, can be achieved. Ensuring good follow up will be essential for producing good outcomes, but in safety net settings, where many patients with poor access to health care are treated, this has been challenging [12] . Active changes are being made in our own institution, such as patientcentered medical homes, electronic specialty consultation from primary care clinics, and a new electronic medical record, with the hope that these improvements may improve this problem. This should help primary care physicians and specialists better coordinate care and be more vigilant against losing patients due to systemic issues.

Ensuring good follow up will be essential for producing good outcomes, but in safety net settings, where many patients with poor access to health care are treated, this has been challenging.


We demonstrated that tannin and sucrose, natural substances derived from readily available bio-resources, can be used to manufacture particleboard that meets industrial standards. This study investigated the tannin/sucrose ratio, effect of the drying treatment after spraying and resin content on particleboard properties. The properties were enhanced when the drying treatment was carried out after the spraying, and when the sucrose ratio increased. Based on the results obtained, the optimum proportion of tannin to sucrose was 25/75, and the optimum resin content was between 30 and 40 wt%. When the particleboards were manufactured under the optimum conditions, they showed excellent mechanical properties, higher than those required for JIS A5908 type 18 [16] . Based on the results of FT-IR, 5-HMF was formed from the decomposition of sucrose during the heating treatment. In addition, as one kind of the possible reaction mechanism between tannin and sucrose, the dimethylene ether bridges seems to be formed. Further research should focus on enhancing the water resistance of the particleboard,and it is also necessary to fine-tune the optimum conditions and confirm the detailed mechanism of this adhesion system.

When the particleboards were manufactured under the optimum conditions, they showed excellent mechanical properties, higher than those required for JIS A5908 type 18.


The wind industry faces tough challenges to reduce the cost of wind energy; particularly its high operating cost. The European Wind Energy Agency has a planned target of 230 GW of installed wind power capacity by 2020, representing 20% of total EU electricity consumption [1] . This expansion is being limited due to the expense of a number of maintenance issues, most critically concerning wind turbine gearboxes (WTGs) which are not reaching their anticipated lifespan of 20 years. It is estimated in the UK that operation and maintenance accounts for 20% of the cost of offshore wind energy [2] .

The European Wind Energy Agency has a planned target of 230 GW of installed wind power capacity by 2020, representing 20% of total EU electricity consumption.

It is estimated in the UK that operation and maintenance accounts for 20% of the cost of offshore wind energy.


Compact medical cyclotrons for the production of radioisotopes have an energy in the range of 15-25 MeV and are characterized by a considerable potential for fundamental and applied research, especially if they are equipped with a beam transfer with independent access to the beam area [1] . They are usually installed in hospitals, where space constraints severely limit this possibility. For all activities beyond the production of 18 F-the main radioisotope for Positron Emission Tomography (PET)-accurate knowledge of the beam energy distribution is often crucial.

Compact medical cyclotrons for the production of radioisotopes have an energy in the range of 15-25 MeV and are characterized by a considerable potential for fundamental and applied research, especially if they are equipped with a beam transfer with independent access to the beam area.


The measurements were taken in two different conditions of cyclotron operation. The first mode of operation corresponds to the optimal isochronism condition and is determined by maximizing the transmission of the beam from the ion source to the stripper. This mode of operation is used for radioisotope production and for some experiments requiring a high beam current. For most of the research activities performed with the BTL, the cyclotron is operated in the regime of non-optimal isochronism in order to obtain stable beam currents from the nA to the pA range [6] .

For most of the research activities performed with the BTL, the cyclotron is operated in the regime of non-optimal isochronism in order to obtain stable beam currents from the nA to the pA range.


In the MSSM, the tree-level Higgs potential is real and thus the neutral Higgs bosons have definite CP parities and preserve CP invariance. CPV results from the non-zero CP phases of the higgsino mass parameter µ = |µ| e iφµ in the superpotential, the gaugino mass parameters M i = |M i | e iφ i , i = 1, 2, 3, and the trilinear couplings A f = |A f | e iφ f (f stands for a fermion) in the soft SUSY breaking Lagrangian. In particular, in the MSSM neutral Higgs sector, the presence of these CP violating phases induces mixing between the CP-even and the CP-odd scalars at one-loop level, yielding three mass eigenstates [7] .

In particular, in the MSSM neutral Higgs sector, the presence of these CP violating phases induces mixing between the CP-even and the CP-odd scalars at one-loop level, yielding three mass eigenstates.


The CERN Large Hadron Collider (LHC) has started its operation aiming at a direct verification of one of the different candidates that generalize the Standard Model (SM). The experiments at the LHC have to distinguish between the predictions of the various theoretical models. Having in mind the large number of free parameters that most of these models introduce, this task is highly nontrivial. Powerful software and hardware resources are required so that their analyses lead to definite predictions for experimental searches. An important approach for testing fundamental theories is studying discrete symmetries as model properties. In particular, the CP symmetry is known to be violated in nature [1] [2] [3] . According to Sakharov's theorem, the mechanism of CP violation (CPV) in the SM is not strong enough to explain the baryon asymmetry in the universe -more CPV is needed. For that reason all models beyond the SM suggest additional and different sources of CPV.

In particular, the CP symmetry is known to be violated in nature.


Silicon carbide (SiC) MOSFET power modules are attractive devices for high power electronics enabling high temperature and high frequency operations especially in renewable energy systems, automotive and aerospace applications [1] . The SiC material properties (electrical, thermal and mechanical) enable them to overcome the shortcomings of the silicon (Si)-based power modules, and to develop power electronic systems with more integration, higher efficiency, and higher power density [2] . Nevertheless, despite their inherent material properties compared to the silicon devices, fulfilling the product design specifications is still a challenge with increasing demands for more lifetime requirements and cost constraints. Owing to its higher current density capability together with higher thermal conductivity, much higher temperature variations are observed in SiC devices in comparison to Si devices rated at the same current. So, the reliability prediction of SiC devices becomes a critical issue in the design of emerging power electronic converters.

Silicon carbide (SiC) MOSFET power modules are attractive devices for high power electronics enabling high temperature and high frequency operations especially in renewable energy systems, automotive and aerospace applications.

The SiC material properties (electrical, thermal and mechanical) enable them to overcome the shortcomings of the silicon (Si)-based power modules, and to develop power electronic systems with more integration, higher efficiency, and higher power density.


The new and innovative Vade Mecum concept builds on prior knowledge and experience from a recent innovation project, The Caregivers' Guide, a professional stroke caregiver support program executed from 2012 to 2015 in Aachen, Germany [25] . The Caregivers' Guide concept consists of eight conceptual building blocks: five core building blocks encompassing an individualized caregiver counselling program and three facilitating building blocks safeguarding and interconnecting the program with the practical, real-world, system. The Caregivers' Guide offers a specially trained counsellor who guides the family caregiver through the entire stroke trajectory of the care receiver and provides tailored family caregiver support from as early as possible after a stroke to as long as needed in the home environment. The concept of the Caregivers' Guide was aligned with the real-world system before implementation using participative action research. The program's stakeholders played a crucial role in this process [26, 27] . The new Vade Mecum concept is based on the earlier Caregiver's Guide concept. In the Vade Mecum project, care professionals employed in one of the hospitals joining the project will receive special training to become a specialized Geriatric Family Companion, a new job profile as a hospitalbased family caregiver support specialist. As a group, the Geriatric Family Companions will form a cross-border network of support experts, offering personalized counselling, information provision, empowerment and resource allocation to first-time, informal caregiver-geriatric patient dyads. Family caregiver support will start in the hospital, as early as possible after hospitalization of the care receiver, and will last until at least a secure situation in the home environment is reached. The ultimate objective of the new Vade Mecum concept aims to sustain health and wellbeing, and prevent social exclusion and health inequality of geriatric patient-caregiver dyads. The focus of the primary prevention support program is on the family caregiver.

The new and innovative Vade Mecum concept builds on prior knowledge and experience from a recent innovation project, The Caregivers' Guide, a professional stroke caregiver support program executed from 2012 to 2015 in Aachen, Germany.

The program's stakeholders played a crucial role in this process.


Interestingly, even large noncortisol-producing adrenocortical carcinomas have only a minimal effect on patient's well-being complicating the diagnostic process [3] . On the other hand, the clinical pattern and symptom complex of acute abdomen is an extremely rare presentation of adrenocortical carcinoma. Spontaneous rupture or infarction of a large adrenal mass is the logical prerequisite for such phenomenon. A limited number of cases, less than ten to our knowledge, exhaust the available literature on the subject [4] [5] [6] [7] [8] [9] [10] . In the present study we present the rare case of a young female that underwent emergency laparotomy due to signs of acute abdomen and concomitant cardiovascular collapse caused by a spontaneously ruptured large adrenocortical carcinoma.

Interestingly, even large noncortisol-producing adrenocortical carcinomas have only a minimal effect on patient's well-being complicating the diagnostic process.

A limited number of cases, less than ten to our knowledge, exhaust the available literature on the subject.


No ground truth was available to validate our results. The flood map (Figure 4-d) was therefore compared to the one obtained from the same Sentinel-1 dataset by the United Nations Institute for Training and Research (UNITAR) [10] . The validation dataset is available as a shapefile vector which was therefore rasterized and clipped with the QGIS software to focus only on the area of interest, prior to the pixel to pixel comparison with the resulting flood map. The commission and omission errors for both the water and land classes as well as the overall accuracy of the classification relatively to the latter ground truth, are shown in Table 1 . The flood mapping method utilized allowed to reach a high accuracy in the order of over 90% on the studied Myanmar dataset.

The flood map (Figure 4-d) was therefore compared to the one obtained from the same Sentinel-1 dataset by the United Nations Institute for Training and Research (UNITAR).


This analysis predicts the fuel economy differences among a series hybrid, a parallel hybrid, and an ICEV of similar levels of advancement and performance, using component and vehicle data adapted from current technologies. The methods of analysis and assumptions required are presented. The dependence of the fuel economy of each vehicle upon the assumptions are presented, allowing an understanding of the various projections of hybrid fuel economy made in the literature. Sensitivity coefficients, required for the fuel economy sensitivity analysis and analogous to the "influence coefficients" discussed by Sovran and Bohn are also presented [9] .

Sensitivity coefficients, required for the fuel economy sensitivity analysis and analogous to the "influence coefficients" discussed by Sovran and Bohn are also presented.


The goal of RBAC systems is to provide a model and tools to help manage access control in complex environment with a very large number of users and even larger number of data items [6] . A recent study by National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) demonstrates that RBAC addresses many needs of the commercial and government sectors [3] [7] . Most of the organizations base their access control decisions on the roles that individual users take on as part of the organization. Other evidence of strong interest in RBAC comes from the standards arena. Roles are being considered as part of the emerging technologies. RBAC is also well matched to prevailing business trends. A number of products support some form of RBAC directly, and others support closely related concepts, such as user groups, that can be utilized to implement roles.

The goal of RBAC systems is to provide a model and tools to help manage access control in complex environment with a very large number of users and even larger number of data items.

A recent study by National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) demonstrates that RBAC addresses many needs of the commercial and government sectors.


In the absence of a memory mapping device, a single address space is shared by all processes, and the form of protection enforced by address space separation between processes is lacking. The code and data areas of all applications are exposed to the risk of corruption by an erroneous process that can even crash the system kernel [5] . This problem is exacerbated by the fact that the writing of application software for sensor nodes is an especially challenging activity, owing to the limitations in terms of available memory and processing power, eventdriven concurrency, requirements of real-time response, dynamic application update, and the need to comply with a variety of different sensors. Even worse, programmers may usually rely on very limited support for debugging [2] . These considerations suggest that the presence of protection mechanisms between processes, which is a common feature in general-purpose systems, is highly desirable even in sensor node environments.

The code and data areas of all applications are exposed to the risk of corruption by an erroneous process that can even crash the system kernel.

Even worse, programmers may usually rely on very limited support for debugging.


By the end of the year 2014, one of the primary sources of energy, i.e., crude oil was showing a reduction trend in price which was thought could lead to a reduction of the electricity price [1] . According to the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), this declining trend is likely to continue throughout 2015 [2] . At the moment, energy security is not only evaluated in economic perspective, but becomes more complex as it covers emerging global challenges, such as energy resource depletion, climate change, and geopolitical tension [3, 4] . The limited capacity of the world to cope with the pollution caused by fossil fuels is one of the major considerations that has forced the world to seek alternative energy systems [5] . More than 90% of the energy related greenhouse gases emission is a result of the CO2 emissions from fuel combustion globally [6] . Currently, the increase in the concentration of greenhouse gases emission has caused a notable rise of temperature in the earth's atmosphere (global warming) and thus widespread melting of snow and ice at the polar ice caps [7] . Due to the concerns on environmental issues, the development and application of renewable and clean new energy are certainly expected [8] .

By the end of the year 2014, one of the primary sources of energy, i.e., crude oil was showing a reduction trend in price which was thought could lead to a reduction of the electricity price.

According to the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), this declining trend is likely to continue throughout 2015.

At the moment, energy security is not only evaluated in economic perspective, but becomes more complex as it covers emerging global challenges, such as energy resource depletion, climate change, and geopolitical tension.

The limited capacity of the world to cope with the pollution caused by fossil fuels is one of the major considerations that has forced the world to seek alternative energy systems.

More than 90% of the energy related greenhouse gases emission is a result of the CO2 emissions from fuel combustion globally.

Currently, the increase in the concentration of greenhouse gases emission has caused a notable rise of temperature in the earth's atmosphere (global warming) and thus widespread melting of snow and ice at the polar ice caps.

Due to the concerns on environmental issues, the development and application of renewable and clean new energy are certainly expected.


Another important aspect is the size distribution. Bioaerosols vary considerably in size from approximately 0.02 to 100 µm. Given the potential of airborne bioaerosols to cause disease, the information on the total concentration of bioaerosol particles is insufficient. In practice, information related to particle size distribution is critical [26] . The size distribution of bioaerosols depends upon the type of micro-organism species, the age of the spore and nutrient medium, humidity, differences in the aggregation rates of the spores and the type of particles they are associated with, such as mist or dust. It should be noted that bioaerosol particles could occur in the air as single cells or aggregates of cells, as well as in fragments. They are often transported attached to other particles, such as skin flakes, soil, dust, saliva or water droplets [27] . Generally, the term "bioaerosol" refers to a diverse variety of agents from biological sources found in indoor and outdoor environments. These contaminants include (1) viruses; (2) bacteria, including endotoxins from bacteria; (3) allergens, including house dust mite allergens and allergens from animal dander; and (4) fungi which may contain allergens, toxins, and irritants. Moreover, biological particles suspended in the air can be present in viable (culturable and non-culturable) as well as non-viable forms [28, 29] . In our study, we concentrated on culturable bacterial aerosol. The level of bacteria was not limited to total concentration, but size distribution was performed because the highest health risk is associated with the presence of a respirable fraction in the air pollutants. Small particles, around the size of a bacterium (<5 µm), deposit in the alveoli, while larger particles (>10 µm) deposit in the upper respiratory tract and can develop allergic symptoms. Thus the importance of respirable particles for infection, microbial survival and deposition are clear.

In practice, information related to particle size distribution is critical.

They are often transported attached to other particles, such as skin flakes, soil, dust, saliva or water droplets.

Moreover, biological particles suspended in the air can be present in viable (culturable and non-culturable) as well as non-viable forms.


To undertake an effective assessment of the potential public health risks, the exposure to bioaerosols in educational buildings should be included. Exposure refers to any contact between an airborne contaminant and is expressed quantitatively by a description of the duration of the contact and pollutant concentration. Thus, indoors a concentration is a surrogate measurement of exposure, but is valid only to the degree that it approximates the concentrations actually experienced by each individual in the room. Generally, health effect is linked to exposure, defined as the mathematical product of the concentration of the pollutant and the time during which a person is exposed to this concentration. A better tool to evaluate the amount of the pollutant that actually crosses the body's boundaries and reaches the target tissue (for example, respiratory tract epithelium) is a dose [24, 25] . Differences in the ventilation of humans, particularly younger ones, mean that identical exposure may not result in identical dose.

A better tool to evaluate the amount of the pollutant that actually crosses the body's boundaries and reaches the target tissue (for example, respiratory tract epithelium) is a dose.


In order to measure and assess air hygiene in crucial environments such as educational buildings, a simple and low-cost method was used. Impaction-based methods such as those using the Andersen 6-stage cascade sampler have many benefits. Sampling air directly on to agar, means that no post-sampling plating or dilutions have to be carried out. This saves time and also reduces the contamination risk due to minimal post-sampling manipulation of plates [26] . It is worth underlining that the use of TSA agar is cheap, and the results are rapid. Moreover, combining with an active air sampler that distinguishes particles by size, such as the Andersen six-stage impactor, could be a viable and robust method for sampling bioaerosols in a wide range of environments. Table 2 presents the average concentrations of bacterial aerosol collected in the indoor and the outdoor air of different educational buildings. The average concentration outside of all buildings was 325 CFU/m 3 . The highest concentration was found outside the (P) building (551 CFU/m 3 ), whereas the lowest was outside the (H) building (213 CFU/m 3 ). Thus, the difference between the concentrations of bacterial aerosols found outside of the (P) and (H) buildings is statistically significant (p = 0.004) (see Table S1 for p-values). The outdoor concentration of bacterial aerosol between the (S) and (H) buildings was the most similar (p = 0.76), the concentration outside the (S) building was 13% higher than outside the (H) building. However, the outdoor concentrations between the (P) and (S) buildings were not significantly different (p = 0.07). In the case of indoor air, the differences between buildings were more significant than in the case of outdoor air. The highest average concentration of bacterial aerosol (2205 CFU/m 3 ) was found inside the classroom of the primary school and the lowest value of the total average concentration of bacterial aerosol was found in the high school (391 CFU/m 3 ), whereas the concentration inside the preschool was 1408 CFU/m 3 . The difference between bacterial aerosol concentrations in the classrooms was statistically significant in the case of the (H) building in comparison to both lower educational buildings. The Mann-Whitney U test confirmed significant differences between the bacterial aerosol concentration in the (P) and the (H), as well as in the (S) and (H) classrooms, with p-values <0.05. The concentrations inside the (P) and (S) buildings were not significantly different (p = 0.57).

This saves time and also reduces the contamination risk due to minimal post-sampling manipulation of plates.


In 1913, Ikeda's disciple Shintaro Kodama identified 5′-inosinate (salt of inosine-5′-monophosphate) as the umami substance in dried bonito, which have been also traditionally used for cooking dashi in Japan [6] . In 1957, 5′-guanylate was also shown to elicit an umami taste by Akira Kuninaka and was found to be the major umami substance in dried shiitake mushrooms [7] . Kuninaka was the first to explain that the combination of glutamate with 5′-nucleotides, such as inosinate or guanylate, greatly enhances the effect of glutamate and in turn the intensity of umami taste [8] . Today, the phenomena of synergism is widely recognized and practiced worldwide, such as the combination of konbu with dried bonito in dashi, or by mixing vegetables and meat or fish in various soup stocks.

In 1913, Ikeda's disciple Shintaro Kodama identified 5′-inosinate (salt of inosine-5′-monophosphate) as the umami substance in dried bonito, which have been also traditionally used for cooking dashi in Japan.

In 1957, 5′-guanylate was also shown to elicit an umami taste by Akira Kuninaka and was found to be the major umami substance in dried shiitake mushrooms.

Kuninaka was the first to explain that the combination of glutamate with 5′-nucleotides, such as inosinate or guanylate, greatly enhances the effect of glutamate and in turn the intensity of umami taste.


The initial linkage was optimized applying a probabilistic method in the 670 cases that were not initially located as well as in the 130 matching errors, increasing the proportion of traced subjects from 73.2% to 98.7%. The main limitations to the interpretation of record linkage are duplication of identifiers and errors in creating or transmitting records [26] . So it is necessary the use of probabilistic techniques as well as a later manual revision to maximize its sensitivity and specificity [24] .

The main limitations to the interpretation of record linkage are duplication of identifiers and errors in creating or transmitting records.

So it is necessary the use of probabilistic techniques as well as a later manual revision to maximize its sensitivity and specificity.


The attraction of producing platform chemicals from renewable resources such as biomass has certainly increased with the declining fossil fuel reserves and their increasing price. Cellulose and hemicellulose-derived carbohydrate compounds from biomass can be refined into various value-added products. However, the decomposition/hydrolysis reactions to produce these products are rather challenging due to the high crystallinity of cellulose and the presence of complex lignin polymer networks that formed a sheath of lignin/hemicellulose [1] . Therefore, unravelling the polymer structure of hemicellulose is vital for maximum conversion of the lignocellulosic biomass to platform chemicals.

However, the decomposition/hydrolysis reactions to produce these products are rather challenging due to the high crystallinity of cellulose and the presence of complex lignin polymer networks that formed a sheath of lignin/hemicellulose.


In this work, we iterate the Gilbert construction to obtain a family of random mosaics G k for k ∈ N, where the classical Gilbert mosaic is the case k = 1. Roughly speaking, we allow a line to collide with k other lines before it stops growing. As k increases, the intensity of intersections also increases, leading to shorter line segments and smaller facets. Our main result, Theorem 10, states that appropriately scaled, this sequence of random mosaics converges in the vague topology to a classical Poisson line process with explicit law. The second part of our paper presents an application of the iterated Gilbert model to tropical geometry. We use Theorem 10 to obtain a scaling limit for random tropical plane curves, as well as the asymptotic growth rates of various functionals. Tropical geometry is the study of tropical varieties, which are are limits of classical algebraic varieties under the logarithm map [15] . They are also zeros of polynomials in the tropical (min-plus) semi-ring. As sets, they are piecewiselinear, formed by intersections of affine hyperplanes. Thus, they form natural intermediates between classical algebraic varieties and affine structures, and provide an attractive extensions to classical affine models studied in stochastic geometry.

Tropical geometry is the study of tropical varieties, which are are limits of classical algebraic varieties under the logarithm map.


One of the most prominent cyclic peptide drugs is Cyclosporin (Cs), a potent immunosuppressive agent that has been widely used in organ transplantation to prevent immune rejection and viral infection as it allows selective immunoregulation of T cells. The Cyclosporin family contains a number of cyclic undecapeptide analogs with eleven amino acid residues including an unusual amino acid N-methyl butenyl-methyl-L-threonine (mBMT). Structurally the Cyclosporin analogs differ at the side chain of amino acid residues. Cyclosporin A (CsA) is the most commonly used analog and was first isolated from soil fungus by multi-step extractions [7] . Reversed phase HPLC has been widely used to separate CsA and CsC [8] [9] . Due to structural similarity, separation of multiple Cyclosporin analogs was complicated and involved multiple chromatographic procedures. Lensmeyer reported separation of CsA and its nine metabolites by means of multiple HPLC steps with sequential use of different columns (cyano, octyl and silica) and a mixture of water/acetonitrile/tetrahydrofuran with acetic acid/n-butylamine additives as mobile phases [10] .

Cyclosporin A (CsA) is the most commonly used analog and was first isolated from soil fungus by multi-step extractions.

Reversed phase HPLC has been widely used to separate CsA and CsC.

Lensmeyer reported separation of CsA and its nine metabolites by means of multiple HPLC steps with sequential use of different columns (cyano, octyl and silica) and a mixture of water/acetonitrile/tetrahydrofuran with acetic acid/n-butylamine additives as mobile phases.


Earlier studies showed that TILs have no prognostic value in ER-positive disease [9, 12] . We confirmed these findings in both of our cohorts, showing that the number of CD8-positive TILs on itself had no prognostic value in both ER-positive cohorts. Interestingly, the suggestion that treatment with exemestane could be particularly beneficial for patients with a low number of infiltrating CD8-positive T-cells, as suggested by some of our results, has never been shown before in a trial-based translational study.

Earlier studies showed that TILs have no prognostic value in ER-positive disease.


In reliability engineering, it is often assumed that failures are independent i.e., the failure of a component has little effect on the failure of other components. However, many systems are load sharing (all of the components work together and share the system load) in practice. The assumption of independence is not valid in such a system. If a component fails, the same workload has to be shared by the surviving components, so each surviving component experiences an increased load (Singh and Gupta, 2012) . The increased load often induces a higher failure rate.

If a component fails, the same workload has to be shared by the surviving components, so each surviving component experiences an increased load.


Preventive maintenance strategies for multi-component systems have been extensively studied in the literature (Moghaddam and Usher, 2011; Wang and Pham, 2011; Liu et al., 2014; Wang et al., 2014) . Most maintenance policies currently in vogue for multi-component systems focus on the economic dependence among components. To the best of our knowledge, few studies have addressed the issue of preventive maintenance for load-sharing systems, although this is a very common situation, in which a system does not fail completely after a component failure; rather, the loads on the other components increase.

Preventive maintenance strategies for multi-component systems have been extensively studied in the literature.


The effects of small-molecule protein kinases inhibitors on the immune system and the associated risk for the development of fungal infections are difficult to predict. This probably relates to a constellation of predisposing factors, implicated in the pathogenesis of fungal infections [14••] . Certain malignancies like CLL induce a wide range of immune defects that worsen during progression of the underlying disease. The synergistic effects of other immunosuppressive medications including corticosteroids and chemotherapy increase the risk of fungal infections [14••] . The true incidence of infections is likely higher in clinical practice than reported in trials, which recruit patients with fewer comorbid conditions. At higher dose, kinase inhibitors demonstrate off-target effects. For example, tofacitinib selectively inhibits JAK 1 and 3 at the approved dose but becomes a 'pan-JAK' inhibitor at higher doses [59] . Host-related factors might influence drug serum concentrations as these medications undergo hepatic metabolism and renal clearance and are susceptible to drug-drug interactions [14••] .

For example, tofacitinib selectively inhibits JAK 1 and 3 at the approved dose but becomes a 'pan-JAK' inhibitor at higher doses.


Fungal infections are of interest to physicians prescribing immunosuppressive therapies. Very few fungi are pathogenic in an immunocompetent host, often limited to those that are dimorphic in nature and endemic to certain geographic locations. Opportunistic fungal infections are invasive and can cause considerable morbidity and mortality in the immunocompromised individual. Specific defects in the immune system may provide clues to the risk of an associated opportunistic fungal infection. For example, patients with HIV/AIDS develop infections with pneumocystosis, cryptococcosis, histoplasmosis, and talaromycosis (formerly known as penicilliosis) as CD4 immunity is essential for the long-term control and memory responses to these fungi [1] . Similarly, TNFα inhibitors are associated heightened risk of granulomatous fungi including histoplasmosis and coccidioidomycosis due to the critical role of TNF-α in granuloma formation [2] . Invasive aspergillosis is associated with suppression of innate immunity, for example, with chemotherapy or corticosteroidinduced neutropenia [3] . Both innate resistance and acquired immunity play some role in the host defence against Candida.

For example, patients with HIV/AIDS develop infections with pneumocystosis, cryptococcosis, histoplasmosis, and talaromycosis (formerly known as penicilliosis) as CD4 immunity is essential for the long-term control and memory responses to these fungi.

Similarly, TNFα inhibitors are associated heightened risk of granulomatous fungi including histoplasmosis and coccidioidomycosis due to the critical role of TNF-α in granuloma formation.

Invasive aspergillosis is associated with suppression of innate immunity, for example, with chemotherapy or corticosteroidinduced neutropenia.


There are challenges in reviewing infectious events across a wide spectrum of therapies. With respect to clinical trials, there is a lack of standardisation across studies as well as variability in reporting practices. Very few of the larger studies reported an incidence rate. First generation medications, that have been licenced for several years will have been investigated across a greater number of trials compared to newer second or third generation agents. Medications that have initial safety signals will also have been examined in greater detail, including large safety data analyses. Similarly, therapies that have been used in clinic practice for several years will have more real-world data that newly licenced drugs. The discrepancy in publication numbers may overestimate the infection risk. A similar effect may be driven by publication bias. The inclusion of conference abstracts may also introduce bias as it is recognised that one fifth of toxicities published in peer-reviewed journals are not reported in the abstract form [61] .

The inclusion of conference abstracts may also introduce bias as it is recognised that one fifth of toxicities published in peer-reviewed journals are not reported in the abstract form.


For q ≡ 1 (mod 4), Katz's character sums V (j) are defined in (1.6)-(1.7) below. In the case q ≡ 3 (mod 4), the sums V (j) have a more complex definition, in that they are sums over F q 2 [9, p. 228] . A direct proof of (1.4) for the case q ≡ 3 (mod 4) has been given by Evans and Greene [6] .

A direct proof of (1.4) for the case q ≡ 3 (mod 4) has been given by Evans and Greene.


Biodiesel, a renewable biofuel with similar combustion properties to fossil diesel, is normally produced by transesterification of oils with short-chain alcohols. Biodiesel can significantly decrease the exhaust emission of CO2, SOx alternative to fossil diesel. The most abundant biodiesel is the first generation biofuel created from agricultural edible crop oils. It has an excessive influence on food security and has the potential to increase the cost of food crops such as soybean, thus making biodiesel production more expensive [1] . The second generation biofuels such as jatropha oil, waste cooking oil, and animal fats do not affect food security but are not sustainably resourceful.

It has an excessive influence on food security and has the potential to increase the cost of food crops such as soybean, thus making biodiesel production more expensive.


Yet in terms of achieving the two purposes of wastewater treatment and lipid production simultaneously, no studies have so far demonstrated promising results. Isolating superior algal strains could be an option, but care needs to be taken to ensure their competitiveness against the native microbial species and robustness in surviving against temperature change in a natural setting [4] . One example is to select algal strains that are facultative heterotrophic, adaptable to the northern climate, able to consume organic carbon, nitrogen, and phosphorous in wastewater, and capable of high yield of biomass and lipid [4] .

Isolating superior algal strains could be an option, but care needs to be taken to ensure their competitiveness against the native microbial species and robustness in surviving against temperature change in a natural setting.

One example is to select algal strains that are facultative heterotrophic, adaptable to the northern climate, able to consume organic carbon, nitrogen, and phosphorous in wastewater, and capable of high yield of biomass and lipid.


The situation is significantly more simple if the expressions of Eq. (2) are truncated at NLO. Then, only 4 LECs appear, B and F at O(p 2 ), and¯ 3 and¯ 4 at O(p 4 ). This is the expansion considered in previous N f ≥ 2+1 work [2, 6, 7, [13] [14] [15] [16] [17] [18] [19] [20] . Of those, the only calculation whose simulations reach all the way down to the physical up-down quark mass is [6] . In that work, NNLO effects are also investigated.

This is the expansion considered in previous N f ≥ 2+1 work.

Of those, the only calculation whose simulations reach all the way down to the physical up-down quark mass is.


One of the main challenges has been to mitigate the fast rising cost of these calculations as the average mass of the simulated up and down quarks is lowered towards its very small physical value, corresponding to a pion mass M π 135 MeV. Up until fairly recently, the values of m ud reached were too large to allow a controlled extrapolation of the results to the physical mass point. However, in the last few years, a handful of groups have been able to enter the small mass region, M π < ∼ 200 MeV, with N f ≥ 2 + 1 [1] [2] [3] [4] [5] [6] [7] [8] . In particular, we recently performed N f = 2 + 1 simulations which reach down to M π 120 MeV (i.e. even below the physical point) on lattices with sizes L up to 6 fm and lattice spacings down to a 0.054 fm [4, 5] . This puts us in a very favorable position to probe the low-energy and low-mass domain of QCD, known as the chiral regime.

However, in the last few years, a handful of groups have been able to enter the small mass region, M π < ∼ 200 MeV, with N f ≥ 2 + 1.

In particular, we recently performed N f = 2 + 1 simulations which reach down to M π 120 MeV (i.e. even below the physical point) on lattices with sizes L up to 6 fm and lattice spacings down to a 0.054 fm.


Ships are examples of complex mechanical systems which perform specific tasks under coupled static and dynamic loads in the form of forces and moments generated by the ship motion or enforced externally. To assess the ship total operability it is necessary to generate a total model which includes all ship's subsystems, connected elements and her environment. Today, it is a usual practice to divide such a complex floating system into subsystems and then analyse each of them individually to assess the operability of the ship and its components [14] . An example of overall ship model is presented in Fig. 1 .

Today, it is a usual practice to divide such a complex floating system into subsystems and then analyse each of them individually to assess the operability of the ship and its components.


With sustainable design being a necessity, it is important to not only consider the energy performance of a window frame, but also consider other performance metrics to gain a holistic appreciation. These performance metrics are embodied energy over the product lifecycle, thermal performance, and structural performance. Sustainability forces us to consider holistic approaches, which have previously not been addressed comprehensively [9] . A window frame that performs better than another from an energy standpoint, might have significantly higher embodied energy over its lifecycle-raw material extraction, processing, manufacturing, transportation, and installation. This would therefore make it a bad choice from an environmental standpoint. One of the most important choices that faces anyone installing or replacing windows will be the materials used in the frames. While the shape, size and operation of a window is aesthetically significant, the material from which a frame is constructed is crucial when considering cost and energy efficiency. While the panes themselves are typically constructed of glass, there are three most common types of window frame materials, wood, aluminum, and un-plasticized Polyvinyl Chloride (uPVC). All these materials have their advantages and relative shortcomings. Different homeowners make their decisions based on features and factors that are particular to their lifestyle, tastes, and preferences. The material from which a window frame is constructed can greatly affect overall installation cost and energy efficiency.

Sustainability forces us to consider holistic approaches, which have previously not been addressed comprehensively.


Toughening of thermosetting polymers can also be accomplished by adding a flexibilizer to the thermo set. Adding a flexibilizer will indeed increase the toughness, but it results in adverse effect such as lowering of the glass transition temperature (T g ) and modulus. Another method of toughness is inclusion of rubber particles into the primary phase. The secondary rubber can improve the impact strength without loss in polymer other properties [4] .

The secondary rubber can improve the impact strength without loss in polymer other properties.


That there has been a reduction in the number of small dairy farms and remaining dairy farms have become larger is undeniable. During the decade of the 1990s, the number of dairy farms in the United States decreased by 42%, from 180,640 farms in 1991 to 105,250 farms in 2000. This reduction came almost exclusively from a decline in the number of small dairy farms. Farms with fewer than 100 cows decreased from 159,866 operations in 1991 to 84,410 operations in 2000, while the number of farms with over 100 cows increased slightly over that period, from 20,774 to 20,840 operations (Blayney, 2002) .

Farms with fewer than 100 cows decreased from 159,866 operations in 1991 to 84,410 operations in 2000, while the number of farms with over 100 cows increased slightly over that period, from 20,774 to 20,840 operations.


The partial invariance of the measurement invariance model confirms the findings of factorial validity of the separate samples combined into our composite sample, as shown in recent articles [22] [23] [24] 26] . Both the factorial structure and the individual item loadings are similar across most countries and languages. It took only the removal of one country (i.e., Iceland) to reach generally acceptable values. This encouraging result allows for future testing and interpretation of the relationships between servant leadership and other concepts across countries using the SLS. The lack of fit of the Icelandic sample may have been caused by the sample's specific language and culture, but it is just as likely due to the specific characteristics of the sample, given that our composite sample consisted of convenient subsamples with different occupational backgrounds. Specific for Iceland is the relative high percentage of woman and an on-average older age. Future research will have to determine to what extent the lack of fit for the Icelandic sample is due to cross-cultural factors or due to specific sample characteristics in terms of profession, sector, age and gender.

The partial invariance of the measurement invariance model confirms the findings of factorial validity of the separate samples combined into our composite sample, as shown in recent articles.


The results of the shorter, five-dimensional measure are very encouraging. The fit indices confirmed configural invariance, measurement equivalence and structural equivalence. This version allows us to test servant leadership in different countries with the same measure, knowing that the underlying concept is experienced in a similar way. It also allows for a comparison of mean levels. The latter is very helpful because it means that we can now study the extent to which servant leadership is experienced in different countries. One of the limitations of the present study is that we had to rely on convenient samples for our composite sample. The samples in this paper came from different occupations and sectors, so no mean values are given. As such, we cannot make any claim with regard to generalizability of the average values in the different countries, and we strongly encourage further research to overcome this limitation. It would be very insightful for a future study to measure servant leadership within the same sector(s) in different countries, similar to the setup used in the original study by Hofstede [33] . Another limitation is that we did not have similar outcome variables available across samples to test the similarity in predictive validity. Additionally, in some countries the sample size was relatively small compared with other countries. Nevertheless, by combining the different datasets, our analyses have the unique feature of being able to test the factorial validity across different countries, which has a strong additional value above separately testing the factorial validity in one single country.

It would be very insightful for a future study to measure servant leadership within the same sector(s) in different countries, similar to the setup used in the original study by Hofstede.


Regretfully, for the eight-dimensional model, the fit indices of the structural equivalence model were below recommended values. This may be due to several reasons. One is the broad spectrum measured by the dimensions of the SLS. Although aspects such as empowerment and humility are conceptually defined as part of servant leadership just like forgiveness and courage, it may be clear that their focus is different. For example, empowerment can be seen as a more general approach to encouraging followers to become the best they can be, whereas forgiveness is more conditional in that it is only shown after followers make mistakes. It should also be acknowledged that even for a valid and reliable measure, structural differences between countries are usually real and interpretable given measurement invariance of the constructs, which is the case for the SLS. Another possible explanation is the specific content of the operationalization of the dimensions. With only three or two items, respectively, aspects such as accountability, forgiveness and courage cannot be measured in their full complexity. To acknowledge these aspects more comprehensively, it may be necessary to formulate additional items. Another option is to use already existing measures when one is interested in studying those particular dimensions, instead of the SLS. For example, for leadership forgiveness, researchers may want to review Verdoold and Van Dierendonck [32] .

This may be due to several reasons.

For example, for leadership forgiveness, researchers may want to review Verdoold and Van Dierendonck.


Mplus 7.11 was used for data analysis [30] . As a preliminary step, data from all samples were combined and subjected to confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) to test the eight-dimensional model, allowing all dimensions to intercorrelate. The model fit the data well; that is χ 2 = 6296.351, df = 377, CFI = 0.94, TLI = 0.93, RMSEA = 0.06. With one underlying second order factor, the fit was still good with χ 2 = 8220.788, df = 397, CFI = 0.92, TLI = 0.91, RMSEA = 0.06. This confirms the underlying eight-dimensional model for the sample as a whole. Table 1 depicts the correlations between the eight dimensions for the overall sample. There may, however, still be differences between countries, which we tested subsequently. We evaluated the measurement invariance across the different countries and languages in three steps (Table 2 ). First, we tested the configural invariance where the underlying model is the same in all countries, and all factor loadings were set to be free across the sub-groups (i.e., countries). Our results show that the eight-dimensional configural invariance model, allowing all latent dimensions to correlate, was clearly a better fit for the data than the one-dimensional model where all items load on the same factor. Accordingly, the configural invariance model obtained good relative fit indices with 0.92 for CFI (Bentler Comparative Fit Index), 0.91 for TLI (Tucker Lewis Index), 0.06 for RMSEA (Root Mean Square Error of Approximation) and 0.05 for SRMR (Standardized Root Mean Square Residual). This confirms Hypothesis 1, that the proposed factorial structure can be confirmed in the different samples.

Mplus 7.11 was used for data analysis.


After estimating λ, we propose taking its Legendre-Fenchel transform to form an estimate I n of I. We will call both λ n and I n empirical estimates. The purpose of this note is to consider the large deviations of estimating λ and I when the empirical laws of {Y n , n ≥ 1} satisfy the LDP. A sufficient condition for our theorems to hold is {X n , n ≥ 1} satisfy the mixing condition (S) of Bryc and Dembo [5] .

A sufficient condition for our theorems to hold is {X n , n ≥ 1} satisfy the mixing condition (S) of Bryc and Dembo.


For an empirical law L n define the empirical estimates λ n := λ Ln and I n := I Ln . Note that λ n thus defined agrees with estimator in equation (2) . Paraphrasing the following theorem: the large deviations of observing an empirical sCGF or rate-function is just the large deviations of observing the empirical law that maps to them.

Note that λ n thus defined agrees with estimator in equation.


Incorporation of suitable biocompatible additives can improve the mechanical integrity, biocompatibility and corrosion resistance of silane coatings. Different biocompatible additives (i.e., Ca(NO 3 ) 2 as a source for Ca 2+ , hydroxyapatite, and zinc-incorporated hydroxyapatite) were used as fillers in composites, to fabricate a hybrid scaffold to enhance the biocompatibility and/or to improve the corrosion resistance of implants in simulated body fluid [24, [26] [27] [28] [29] [30] . In the present research, boron nitride (BN) was impregnated into a silane coating.

Different biocompatible additives (i.e., Ca(NO 3 ) 2 as a source for Ca 2+ , hydroxyapatite, and zinc-incorporated hydroxyapatite) were used as fillers in composites, to fabricate a hybrid scaffold to enhance the biocompatibility and/or to improve the corrosion resistance of implants in simulated body fluid.


Guidance and control plays a key role in soft landing missions. To design the guidance and control law, two factors should be taken into consideration to ensure missions success: a low touch-down velocity and a vertical attitude on the planetary surface. Many studies on guidance for soft landing have been reported [1] [2] [3] [4] [5] [6] [7] [8] [9] [10] [11] [12] [13] [14] . These guidance laws can be divided into two catalogues.

Many studies on guidance for soft landing have been reported.


The testing of the relationship of emotion work with work attitudes yielded results that were also largely in line with those on the relationship of emotion work with emotional exhaustion. Although main effects were observed in certain cases, interaction effects were more prevalent and they were present in the relationship of emotion work with all three work attitudes that were employed, namely job satisfaction, organizational commitment and turnover intentions. The intensity of displayed emotion had a consistent role in the relationship of the two primary dimensions of emotion work, surface acting and deep acting, with work attitudes. In particular, the interactions of the intensity of displayed emotion with surface acting or deep acting were related to all three work attitudes in the expected direction: high intensity of displayed emotion combined with strong engagement in surface acting was associated with lower job satisfaction and stronger intentions to leave the organization; and high intensity of displayed emotion combined with strong deep acting was associated with lower organizational commitment. Considering these findings along with the findings on the relationship of emotion work with emotional exhaustion, it appears that the intensity of displayed emotion is a prominent secondary dimension of emotion work, as it emerged as a consistent moderator of the relationship of the two primary dimensions with both emotional exhaustion and work attitudes. This is in line with points made in the theoretical literature on the key role of the intensity of emotional display in the strain imposed by emotion work (Morris & Feldman, 1996) .

This is in line with points made in the theoretical literature on the key role of the intensity of emotional display in the strain imposed by emotion work.


As seen in Table 1 , total phenolic and flavonoid contents of the methanolic extracts vary in different plant species. A. catechu belonging to family mimosaceae has highest total phenolic content that is 810 mg GAE/ dry weight of extract. It is often difficult to decide in a screening for antioxidants from natural sources that plant species studied can be considered the best one, as each of them exhibited different antioxidants and scavenging activities. The antioxidant capacities of the plant extracts largely depend upon the composition of the extracts and condition of test system. The antioxidant activities of 10 plants were measured using an improved DPPH radical decolourization assay, one of the methods most commonly employed to measure antioxidant capacity, which actually measures the ability of compound to donate hydrogen ion. From percent inhibition and IC 50 (Wang et al., 2002; Kumar and Chattopadhyay, 2007; Benherlal and Arumughan, 2008) . Several studies are focused on the relationship between antioxidant activities of phenolic compounds, as hydrogen donating free radical scavengers, and their chemical structures. Although, the interactions between reactive oxygen species and putative antioxidants depend on many biological, physical and chemical parameters, these preliminary results on the in vitro DPPH radical scavenging capacity and protection of plasmid DNA against oxidative stress emphasized the benefit of the phenolic compounds of medicinal plant extracts. In vivo studies are now needed to further confirm the beneficial effect of these plant extracts.

From percent inhibition and IC 50.


Along with the advantages come certain disadvantages or risks, including the one that is the focus of this paper: cyberbullying. We start from our understanding of cyberbullying at the middle school and high school levels and move into a newer area of research, cyberbullying at the university level. Cyberbullying at the university level can be seen as a bridge in the continuum of this behaviour from childhood and youth into adulthood. Cyberbullying scholarship has begun to examine the continuities between the cyberbullying occurring in the K-12 sector, universities, workplaces, and beyond [10] [11] [12] [13] [14] [15] [16] [17] . In this paper, we examine data from an ongoing study of cyberbullying at the university level and consider the gendered differences in 2 Education Research International university students' involvement with ICT and cyberbullying, their perspectives on cyberbullying, and solutions to the problem. Through this examination, we consider three theoretical frameworks that may be used to help explain these differences.

Cyberbullying scholarship has begun to examine the continuities between the cyberbullying occurring in the K-12 sector, universities, workplaces, and beyond.


There are numerous existing methodologies to differentiate lard and other fats and oils. Based on sensing method, lard differentiatioan and adulteration is divided in to two groups. The first detection method is through labeling, for example polymerase chain reaction (PCR). The second method is detection through non-labeling such as Electronic nose (E-Nose) and Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy (Sucipto et al., 2011) .

The second method is detection through non-labeling such as Electronic nose (E-Nose) and Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy.


PCA is an unsupervised pattern recognition technique used in multivariate analysis. PCA projects the original data in reduced dimensions which is defined by the principal components (PCs). This technique is useful when there are correlations present among data (Cserha'ti, 2009) .

This technique is useful when there are correlations present among data.


Holstein Friesian and Jersey breeds were imported to India by state or central government departments to improve milk production of Indian cattle through upgrading/crossbreeding using artificial insemination technology. Khillar is a draught breed reared in northern Karnataka and Maharashtra states in India. The Malnad Gidda cattle are unique dwarf cattle, native to heavy rainfall areas of the Western Ghats and coastal region in Karnataka, India. These cattle are highly resistant to many diseases and have the ability to withstand stressful environmental conditions. They calve regularly and perform under stressful conditions on grazing (Ramesha et al., 2013) . In India, the buffalo plays important roles in milk production and livelihood security of smallholder milk producers. In the Indian context, buffalo are preferred in many states for their adaptability to agro-climatic conditions, higher fat and milk production potential and being a good source of meat. Murrah buffalo is considered one of the best breeds for milk production and is found in Rohtak, Hisar, Jind and Gurgaon districts of Haryana. Murrah buffalo produce around 2000 kg of milk per lactation. This breed is used for upgrading local buffalo in many parts of Asia and other parts of the world. Surti buffalo are medium sized, rusty brown in colour, and are found in the Kheda and Vadodara districts of Gujarat. Surti buffalo produce around 1300 -1500 kg of milk per lactation. Surti animals are smaller in size than Murrah buffalo and are being used for improving local buffalo in certain regions of Rajasthan and Karnataka.

They calve regularly and perform under stressful conditions on grazing.


Earlier researchers identified nine SNPs in exon 2 in the IGFBP-3 gene of Gayal (Bos frontalis), revealing high levels of genetic variability and also found an association between the SNPs and low fat content and rapid growth (Dongmei et al., 2012) . The PCR-SSCP analysis of the 5' flanking region of the goat IGF-1 gene in two breeds of goats reared in Iran revealed a novel SNP variation, which was associated with growth traits and yearling fleece weight (Kurdistani et al., 2013) . Our study confirmed a high degree of genetic variability in GHR and IGF-1 genes in both cattle and buffalo. While genetic variability in IGFBP-3 was high in cattle, polymorphism in the buffalo breeds under study was not observed in the present study.

Earlier researchers identified nine SNPs in exon 2 in the IGFBP-3 gene of Gayal (Bos frontalis), revealing high levels of genetic variability and also found an association between the SNPs and low fat content and rapid growth.

The PCR-SSCP analysis of the 5' flanking region of the goat IGF-1 gene in two breeds of goats reared in Iran revealed a novel SNP variation, which was associated with growth traits and yearling fleece weight.


This organism-centric view is the approach currently most often used in ecosystem models, and if suitably parameterized has been quite successful in reproducing observations (Gentleman 2002) . However, the weakness of this approach is that the model response is usually strongly dependent on the choice of parameter values, and as a result each model is essentially a case study of the site for which it was calibrated. Such models lose predictive power when faced with large-scale perturbations that result in shifts in the dominant organisms beyond the range of calibration. Yet this is precisely the situation for which models are most often needed.

This organism-centric view is the approach currently most often used in ecosystem models, and if suitably parameterized has been quite successful in reproducing observations.


Mean and standard deviation values for the time-averaged acoustic emission levels, based on measured spectra for all 18 experiments analyzed, are shown in Fig. 3 for the three frequency bands considered. Emissions at the subharmonic frequency were found to be vary across experiments, consistent with the large standard deviations shown (comparable to the mean emission level in each case). Broadband emissions were much more consistent, with time-averaged levels that predictably increased with the exposure pressure amplitude, and relatively small deviations between experiments. Lowfrequency emissions were generally small for the 0.83 MPa and 1.10 MPa amplitudes, but larger and more variable for the 1.38 MPa amplitude. This is consistent with the expectation that tissue boiling is more likely to occur at higher acoustic intensities. Representative time series for experiments at each exposure condition are shown in Fig. 4 , for the same experiments illustrated in Fig. 2 . The temperature time history shows a significant rise over the course of each experiment to temperatures > 75°C associated with significant thermal ablation, with higher heating rates at higher acoustic amplitude as expected. The decline in slope about 4 min into the highest-amplitude treatment is consistent with acoustic shadowing caused by tissue vaporization proximal to the thermocouple [10] . Subharmonic emissions occur in each case shown, appearing sporadically at the two lower amplitudes but late in the highest-amplitude treatment, after the apparent tissue vaporization. Broadband emissions are largest in the highest- amplitude case, and increase with temperature to a limited extent. Low-frequency emissions are small except in the highest-amplitude case after the apparent vaporization.

The decline in slope about 4 min into the highest-amplitude treatment is consistent with acoustic shadowing caused by tissue vaporization proximal to the thermocouple.


At BMO Field, wind turbines had been positioned on the surrounding grounds called Exhibition Place. These turbines produced approximately 1 million kilowatt hours per year in 2009 and 2010 that was fed into the local grid. Additionally, recently, these same grounds instituted -a pilot project for a 100 kilowatt photovoltaic power-generation plant and a smaller combination solar photovoltaic/thermal plant‖ [36] . Difficulties arise concerning the specific sport stadium renewable energy activities concerning wind energy and the pilot project in solar energy as the sport facility is encompassed within a larger complex or grounds. In 2010, however, Exhibition Place communicated an aim to utilize 100% renewable energy at its related facilities; this includes BMO Field. This aim was interpreted to mean that BMO Field was involved in a transition to renewable energy with wind energy usage and the pilot study on solar energy. Communications, however, have not been posted that confirm the aim for 100% renewable energy had been met at BMO Field or the adjacent facilities; this is interpreted in this manuscript therefore as not having been met at this time.

Additionally, recently, these same grounds instituted -a pilot project for a 100 kilowatt photovoltaic power-generation plant and a smaller combination solar photovoltaic/thermal plant‖.


Comparisons, however, were possible based on the types of renewable energy strategies being utilized, the age, size and the site of the stadium utilizing renewable energy, along with the architects. It was noted that the age of stadiums utilizing renewable energy included: Air Canada Centre (12 years); BMO Field (4 years); BC Place (28 years) and Rexall Place (37 years). Clearly, age is not a determining factor for renewable energy use as young stadiums, as well as older stadiums, were involved in renewable energy. Interestingly, the Air Canada Centre won the 2011 Sustainability Award given out at The Stadium Business Summit -for meeting the sustainability challenge with practical, cost-effective and community-focused solutions… not easy in a busy building that is more than a decade old‖ [57] . Renewable energy, thus, was not relegated only to new stadium builds in Canada.

Interestingly, the Air Canada Centre won the 2011 Sustainability Award given out at The Stadium Business Summit -for meeting the sustainability challenge with practical, cost-effective and community-focused solutions… not easy in a busy building that is more than a decade old‖.


A biomass energy project at the Air Canada Centre was communicated as involving fryer oil that was converted into biofuel. Additional information, however, was not revealed concerning the process for converting the oil, the amount of biofuel generated and its use. Interestingly, in June 2012, Air Canada, the national airline with the naming rights to the sport facility, utilized recycled cooking oil in an airline test flight from Toronto to Mexico City. This flight was noted as -using 50 percent biofuel… [and] was expected to generate 40 per cent fewer emissions‖ [55] .

This flight was noted as -using 50 percent biofuel… [and] was expected to generate 40 per cent fewer emissions‖.


Compared to these systems, our VR-OOS approach is unique, as it sensibly combines novel sophisticated software and hardware components for visualization, interaction, collision detection, and tactile and force feedback. The technologies provide a high level of immersion to the operator through multi-modal feedback and can be used to verify designs, train astronauts, or teach robotic systems to interact appropriately in space environments. VR-OOS also allows for several use case scenarios with multiple moving objects that are able to interact with each other. An exemplary future mission which may benefit from the VR-OOS system is the German orbital servicing mission DEOS [8] , [9] . The goal of this mission is to demonstrate advanced maintenance tasks on a satellite by using a torque-controlled robot [10] . Such a robot is equipped with torque-sensors that precisely measure the interaction forces between the robot and the satellite [11] . This advantageous property allows for haptically teleoperating the robot in space, which means that a human operator commands the movements of the robots while perceiving and controlling the interaction force that occurs in space.

An exemplary future mission which may benefit from the VR-OOS system is the German orbital servicing mission DEOS.

The goal of this mission is to demonstrate advanced maintenance tasks on a satellite by using a torque-controlled robot.

Such a robot is equipped with torque-sensors that precisely measure the interaction forces between the robot and the satellite.


In engineering education, these objectives have been supported by surveys about desired professional profiles carried out among academics, prospective employers, and practicing engineers (Ning, 1995) . The results of these studies indicate the need for both depth and breadth in engineering education -a curriculum that can promote the acquisition of scientific and technological knowledge, as well as the development of skills and attitudes. However, as the curricula are already overburdened and it is impractical to extend the courses, it is mandatory that these three categories of knowledge, i.e. technical and scientific knowledge, skills and attitudes, are dealt with simultaneously in the curriculum.

In engineering education, these objectives have been supported by surveys about desired professional profiles carried out among academics, prospective employers, and practicing engineers.


Radiation from slots and seams is of greater concern as the speed of the electronic designs increases [9] [10] [11] [12] [13] [14] [15] [16] [17] . Thin-slot formalism permits inclusion of conducting plates with arbitrarily narrow apertures or gaps without requiring any corresponding need to reduce the cell size to the gap width or depth for the FDTD analysis. Several Thin-slot formalisms have been proposed in the literature [18] [19] [20] [21] [22] [23] . However, they are mostly for apertures having zero thickness, and when slots with finite thickness are involved, only the hybrid thin-slot algorithm (HTSA) can be effective [22] . Nevertheless, the HTSA is complicated to implement, sensitive and susceptible to instability [24] .

Radiation from slots and seams is of greater concern as the speed of the electronic designs increases.

Several Thin-slot formalisms have been proposed in the literature.

However, they are mostly for apertures having zero thickness, and when slots with finite thickness are involved, only the hybrid thin-slot algorithm (HTSA) can be effective.

Nevertheless, the HTSA is complicated to implement, sensitive and susceptible to instability.


The finite-difference time-domain (FDTD) method has been widely applied in solving many types of electromagnetic scattering problems [1] [2] [3] [4] [5] [6] [7] [8] . It possesses the advantages of simple and accurate implementation for relatively complex problems. A disadvantage of the FDTD method is that significant computational resources are cost for modeling an electrically small object. Radiation from thin-slots falls into this category because the slot thickness and width can be much smaller than a desirable grid dimension.

The finite-difference time-domain (FDTD) method has been widely applied in solving many types of electromagnetic scattering problems.


The results of electrochemical testing are shown in Figure S3 . Charge/discharge tests of three samples, which were deposited at different gas ratios (Ar:O 2 = 40:0, 30:10, and 20:20), were carried out at a 1.0 C-rate. The sample deposited at Ar:O 2 = 40:0 has the best initial discharge capacity (36 µAh/cm 2 ·µm) among the samples grown at other gas ratios. The optimum gas ratio was determined with the cell results, as shown in Figure S3 . Figure S4 displays the XRD crystal structure patterns of all samples. Aside from a few unknown peaks, the samples seem to be well-defined and somewhat impurity-free single-phase crystals with a hexagonal NaFeO 2 type structure and rhombohedral R3-m; space group [26] [27] [28] . The intensity ratio of the (003) and (104) peaks, which indicates cation mixing between Li + and Ni 2+ in the Li layer, decreases as Mn content increases. Small peaks from cobalt oxide, nickel oxide, and manganese oxide are observed at approximately 18 • , 43 • , and 55 • , respectively, due to oxidation of the thin film surfaces [29] . Table S1 shows the lattice parameters of the samples, where the loss of lithium ions increases when the lattice parameter c is low and a is high [30, 31] . Figure S5a shows SEM images of all samples P1 to P9 for the optimized gas ratios of Ar to O 2 . Figure S5b shows the thickness profile of the binary system deposited with LiMn 0.9 Co 0.1 O 2 and LiNi 0.9 Co 0.1 O 2 targets at a gas ratio of Ar:O 2 = 40:0 by off-axis CCS sputtering and subsequent annealing at 600 • C. The thin films grown at positions near the LiMn 0.9 Co 0.1 O 2 target are Mn-rich and thicker due to the higher deposition rate of the target than that of the Ni-rich thin films grown near the other target. In the SEM images of the samples, the thickness variation was 46 and 20 nm across the length and breadth respectively, which will contribute to an increase in surface area, but the increase will be insignificant (~1 millionth%). Hence, considering an active surface area of 1.0 × 1.0 cm 2 is a good assumption.

Aside from a few unknown peaks, the samples seem to be well-defined and somewhat impurity-free single-phase crystals with a hexagonal NaFeO 2 type structure and rhombohedral R3-m; space group.

Small peaks from cobalt oxide, nickel oxide, and manganese oxide are observed at approximately 18 • , 43 • , and 55 • , respectively, due to oxidation of the thin film surfaces.

Table S1 shows the lattice parameters of the samples, where the loss of lithium ions increases when the lattice parameter c is low and a is high.


Coatings 2019, 9, x FOR PEER REVIEW 6 of 10 Figure 5 compares the EIS spectra of the samples with the highest (P4) and lowest (P9) capacities. The impedance plots show a high-frequency intercept at the Zre-axis and two broad depressed semicircles. The high-frequency intercept occurs due to Ohmic resistance (ohm). The first highfrequency arc has been ascribed to Li + migration through the interface between the surface layer of material particles and electrolyte. The second, medium-frequency arc has been ascribed to the charge transfer process. The total resistance of P9 was much larger than that of P4, which was correlated with the poor electrochemical performance of P9. The depressed semicircles in the high-and low-frequency regions are related to the formation of an active material surface layer and the intercalation/deintercalation of lithium ions into/from the electrodes. An equivalent circuit was used to fit the spectra and is shown in the inset of Figure 5 . The parameter RSEI and constant phase element of the solid electrolyte interface (SEI) film (CPE1) correspond to the surface layer resistance and capacitance, respectively, whereas Rct and the constant phase element of the electrode/electrolyte interface (CPE2) correspond to the lithium ion intercalation/deintercalation process and interfacial capacitance, respectively [35] . The calculated Rct for P4 and P9 are 1.8 and 9.9 kΩ, respectively. The lowest capacity of P9 is attributed to this large charge transfer resistance. RBS measurements show that the P9 sample (LiNi0.6Mn0.3Co0.1O2) has a higher Ni and lower Mn concentration than those of the P4 sample (Ni:Mn:Co = 19:71:10). The higher Ni and lower Mn contents in P9 are likely responsible for its much higher impedance than that of P4.

The parameter RSEI and constant phase element of the solid electrolyte interface (SEI) film (CPE1) correspond to the surface layer resistance and capacitance, respectively, whereas Rct and the constant phase element of the electrode/electrolyte interface (CPE2) correspond to the lithium ion intercalation/deintercalation process and interfacial capacitance, respectively.


Apart from these three major findings for native speakers, the study also provided important information regarding cue acquisition by L2 learners. As predicted, their usage of both the case-marking cue and the honorific agreement cue was more variable than that of native speakers. It is interesting that they overused the honorific agreement cue even when the case-marking cue was available to use. In part, this overuse could have been triggered by the experimental session beginning with a one-screen review of the relevant aspect of the conjugational paradigm, thereby emphasizing the role of honorific agreement. However, in comparison to native speakers, learners did not use the honorific cue as much as they could. This suggests that learners' use of the case-marking cue has not yet stabilized at the level of native speakers after about 3 years of learning Japanese, despite the initial review of the paradigm. Moreover, the overuse of the honorific cue indicates that learners tend to focus on a single cue when it is at the focus of an instructional module or experiment. The tendency to focus on individual cues may prevent them from acquiring the relative strength of each cue among all available cues in the target L2. To counteract this tendency, instructors may need to present learners with input that illustrates competition between the relevant cues. By presenting cues in direct competition, instructors can help learners establish the correct dominance relations between the cues (McDonald & MacWhinney, 1991) .

By presenting cues in direct competition, instructors can help learners establish the correct dominance relations between the cues.


E-learning is one of the new learning platforms for gaining knowledge at universities and other educational institutions. The main purpose of e-learning systems is to utilise knowledge and skills of educators in such a way that educational e-learning services can be provided anywhere and anytime without the limitation of time and space. Additionally, many tools exist for managing courses and learning activities (Islam, 2016) .

Additionally, many tools exist for managing courses and learning activities.


Model-driven engineering (MDE), is a domain-specific modelling language to formalise the application structure, behaviour and the requirements of systems in a specific domain. It also facilitates analysing specific aspects of models and imposes domain performance checking to detect errors before commencing a development life cycle (Schmidt, 2006) . A model is an abstraction of a system that is under study or targeted for application system development in the future (Da Silva, 2015) .

It also facilitates analysing specific aspects of models and imposes domain performance checking to detect errors before commencing a development life cycle.

A model is an abstraction of a system that is under study or targeted for application system development in the future.


To conclude the discussion, the evaluation of e-learning architecture based on NRENs shows that our proposed architecture reduces the limitations that exist in other cloud computing systems. The NREN e-learning architecture provides high performance services and uses national infrastructures. While only academic and research organisations are members of NRENs, their strategies are overlapping because there is less security risk. Educational and academic organisations are using the same types of data because interoperability and data integration exist in the NREN e-learning architecture. At the same time, other cloud-computing solutions have challenges in security, high performance and interoperability (De Carvalho et al., 2017) .

At the same time, other cloud-computing solutions have challenges in security, high performance and interoperability.


Few studies have examined sleep among LGB adults. Of these, several have used convenience samples, including a study of 200 participants in the Staffordshire area of the UK, who recorded daily activities over 16 days [5] . The researchers found that homosexual participants had a shorter sleep duration than heterosexual participants [5] . Other studies have examined sleep among specific LGB populations [3, 6] . Among gay, bisexual, and other men who have sex with men (MSM) in London, about one third (34.6%) rated their sleep quality as poor, and about half (43.6%) reported sleeping less than 7 h on average nightly [3] . Among a sample of MSM in Paris, poor sleep was also common, including 44.7% who reported problems falling asleep [7] .

Of these, several have used convenience samples, including a study of 200 participants in the Staffordshire area of the UK, who recorded daily activities over 16 days.

The researchers found that homosexual participants had a shorter sleep duration than heterosexual participants.

Other studies have examined sleep among specific LGB populations.

Among gay, bisexual, and other men who have sex with men (MSM) in London, about one third (34.6%) rated their sleep quality as poor, and about half (43.6%) reported sleeping less than 7 h on average nightly.

Among a sample of MSM in Paris, poor sleep was also common, including 44.7% who reported problems falling asleep.


Internal consistency across the 10 items is .85. As can be seen from the second-last column, discriminatory power for the 10 items was generally acceptable, with the exception of item 6 (.39). As correlations with openness and expert judgments regarding content validity were positive, and internal consistency would not be enhanced due to removing the item, it was kept for now; however, results from a replication study are needed in order to investigate discriminatory power of this item in a second sample. Regarding the internal structure of the Work Curiosity Scale, results from a principal axis factoring analysis revealed a 1-factor solution, based on interpretation of the screeplot and parallel analyses. Eigenvalues of the first 6 factors were 4.4, 1.1, 0.8, 0.7, 0.6, and 0.6; the first factor explained 44% of the variance. Factor loadings on the first factor can be found in the last column of Table 1 . As Kaiser's criterion suggested extracting an additional factor, a 2-factor solution with oblimin rotation was also applied. Results revealed that items 6, 7, and 9 had highest factor loadings on the second factor, the other 7 items on factor 1. Explained variance increased to 55%, the 2 factors were moderately correlated (.58), and might be interpreted as interest-type (factor 1) and deprivation-type (factor 2) curiosity (Litman, 2008) . However, as item development did not intend to assess these subdimensions, it is necessary to confirm these exploratory results in a second study; therefore, the following results for Study 1 are based on the 1-factor solution. Finally, no gender differences were found (F 1,249 = 0.26, p = .61).

Explained variance increased to 55%, the 2 factors were moderately correlated (.58), and might be interpreted as interest-type (factor 1) and deprivation-type (factor 2) curiosity.


Rock cutting with a Tunnel Boring Machine (TBM) involves the indentation of a rock surface by cutting tools, which are mounted in an array on the front of a cutterhead. A simplistic view of a TBM would be that of a machine which generates thrust to push the cutterhead forward and supplies torque to turn the cutterhead against the tangential forces resisting the cutting tool motion and indentation [1] . During the excavation, TBM disc cutters roll across the tunnel face and continuously expand the crushed zone immediately beneath them. Then, cracks are initiated from the crushed zone and propagated downwards and sideward. One or more cracks under the action of the rolling cutter may reach the free surface or propagate to meet the cracks of the neighboring cuts. In these two cases, chipping occurs [2] . This interaction and subsequent fragmentation process are directly relevant to the design of the TBM cutterhead and the efficiency of TBM excavation. The line spacing of adjacent cutters is the main parameter governing the interaction mechanism. In addition, the presence of joints and discontinuities in rock will make the interaction more complex.

A simplistic view of a TBM would be that of a machine which generates thrust to push the cutterhead forward and supplies torque to turn the cutterhead against the tangential forces resisting the cutting tool motion and indentation.

In these two cases, chipping occurs.