It refers particularly to women. The age has an influence also on the choice of the form of physical activity. Among 25-year old women only just about 12% take part in organized sports-recreational classes. With the age this percentage is yet smaller [11] .

It refers particularly to women.

With the age this percentage is yet smaller.


Practicing sport (even having practiced it in the past) seems to be an interesting aspect as the element of health education. The diagnosis of health-related behaviours of handicapped sportsmen showed that not only they had better coped with barriers of the everyday life, what is self-evident, but also paid greater attention to the lifestyle -especially within the range of healthy nourishment [26] . Own research proved that even non-sports women which in the past were active competitors were characterized with the higher level of health-related behaviours than active persons who have no sports-past. Similar conclusions were reached by WoitasŚlubowka who compared former sportsmen (n=312) to nonsports persons (n=417) [27] . Physical activity besides the influence on physiological parameters can also bear on the awareness level of exercising people; therefore, its promotion can bring twofold advantages.

The diagnosis of health-related behaviours of handicapped sportsmen showed that not only they had better coped with barriers of the everyday life, what is self-evident, but also paid greater attention to the lifestyle -especially within the range of healthy nourishment.

Similar conclusions were reached by WoitasŚlubowka who compared former sportsmen (n=312) to nonsports persons (n=417).


A well-known general purpose histogram-based global thresholding approach is the Otsu's algorithm (Otsu, 1979) . Briefly, it selects as an optimal threshold the one which minimizes the ratio between the "between-class" and the total variance. The between-class variance is defined as the deviation of the mean values for each considered class (background and object) from the overall mean of the pixels.

A well-known general purpose histogram-based global thresholding approach is the Otsu's algorithm.


Ionic liquids (ILs), whose properties can be adjusted by the design of anion and cation combination for a task-specified purpose, have drawn considerable attention for their potential roles in replacing conventional absorbents used in absorption refrigeration and heat pump cycles in the past years. Researchers recognized the strengths of ILs in applications, such as high boiling point, good affinity with refrigerants, and high chemical and thermal stabilities [9] . Nevertheless, there are also some challenges related to the technical feasibility and costs when introducing them, thus many efforts are still needed before the ILs are accepted in practice.

Researchers recognized the strengths of ILs in applications, such as high boiling point, good affinity with refrigerants, and high chemical and thermal stabilities.


Essentially, our approach allows for the formal modelling of workflows and the verification of security requirements on data and processes at a high level of abstraction. We have verified our results using the interactive theorem prover Isabelle/HOL [24] . To improve practicality, future work will focus on refinement approaches of these specifications towards concrete implementations, while preserving as much as possible of the security properties established on the abstract level. The long-term goal of our work is to facilitate the step-wise development of secure workflow management systems, starting from an abstract specification, derived from a workflow diagram, for example, then performing a series of refinement steps and eventually arriving at a secure implementation.

We have verified our results using the interactive theorem prover Isabelle/HOL.


The targets used in this study were fairly specific. The targets of the screening assay, IS481 and IS1001, do not show cross-reactivity with other respiratory pathogens. However, they do show cross-reactivity with B. holmesii and sometimes with B. bronchiseptica. IS481, IS1001 and IS1002 have all been previously detected in some B. bronchiseptica strains [19] . Therefore the possibility of cross-reactivity should be taken into account when using these targets. This problem is limited by the use of target combinations: both IS481 (screening) and IS1002 (confirmation) need to be positive to identify B. pertussis, both IS1001 and IS1002 need to be positive to identify B. parapertussis.

IS481, IS1001 and IS1002 have all been previously detected in some B. bronchiseptica strains.


The final approach, which is the one taken in this paper, is to mimic production use by running a set of real HPC applications from diverse scientific fields [23] . We execute seven production HPC applications, together with HPL and HPCG, on a production x86 platform, and we reach two main conclusions. Firstly, we find that HPC application performance and CPU/memory system bottlenecks are strongly dependent on the number of application processes. This is typically overlooked in benchmark suites, which seldom define how many processes should be used. We argue that it is essential that HPC application suites specify narrow ranges on the number of processes, so that the results are representative of real world application use, or that they at least provide some guidelines. Secondly, we find that average values of bytes/FLOP, bytes/s and FLOPs/s can be highly misleading. Our results show that the applications under study have low average FLOPs/s utilization and moderate pressure on the memory bandwidth. However, we identified several applications, such as ALYA and GENE, with a moderate average memory bandwidth that spend more than 50% of their computation time in phases where the memory bandwidth bottleneck is severe. We therefore recommend that rather than thinking in terms of average figures, one measures the percentage of time that the utilization of memory bandwidth or FLOPs/s is low (below 40% of sustainable maximum), moderate (40% to 80%) and severe (above 80%). These three figures give a much more precise picture of the application behavior than the average.

The final approach, which is the one taken in this paper, is to mimic production use by running a set of real HPC applications from diverse scientific fields.


The study proves that the presence of noise in the analyzed signal is not so significant. It is possible to test the frequency with given accuracy using already-known methods e.g. ±143.0 μHz [2] . The presented method allows measurements in accordance with valid standards, making it possible at the same time to monitor the components coming e.g. from disturbing loads that are averaged in the analyzed window of modern recorders.

It is possible to test the frequency with given accuracy using already-known methods e.g. ±143.0 μHz.


Discrete BVPs received some attention lately. Let us mention, far from being exhaustive, the following recent papers on discrete BVPs investigated via critical point theory, [1] , [3] , [4] , [11] , [14] , [15] , [18] , [19] , [20] . The tools employed cover the Morse theory, mountain pass methodology, linking arguments, i.e. methods usually applied in continuous problems.

Let us mention, far from being exhaustive, the following recent papers on discrete BVPs investigated via critical point theory.


A metaphor is a figure of speech used to transfer qualities of one concept to another, as in "He is such a sweet person". Here, the qualities of "sweet" (the source) are transferred to a person (the target). Traditionally, linguistics has modeled metaphors as a mapping from one domain to another (Lakoff and Johnson, 1980) .

Traditionally, linguistics has modeled metaphors as a mapping from one domain to another.


The dugong was historically abundant along South-east Asian coasts but reduction in numbers and local extinctions have left small, isolated groups with a high risk of extirpation (Marsh et al., 2002) . Any assessment of conservation issues affecting the dugong, a species with specialized foraging needs that keep it close to the shore, must consider how these requirements create unique vulnerabilities. Rapid development, coupled with a rapidly increasing human population in coastal areas, has resulted in the degradation of the coastal resources that the dugong depends on. There has also been an increase in commercial fishing (Pauly, 2006) . While coastal areas are vital for people's needs and livelihoods, immigration from overcrowded provinces into an open-access artisanal fishery and an often destructive and corrupt commercial fishing industry has created a situation that places the dugong and its habitat at risk (Mathew, 2003; Pomeroy & Viswanathan, 2003) .

The dugong was historically abundant along South-east Asian coasts but reduction in numbers and local extinctions have left small, isolated groups with a high risk of extirpation.

There has also been an increase in commercial fishing.

While coastal areas are vital for people's needs and livelihoods, immigration from overcrowded provinces into an open-access artisanal fishery and an often destructive and corrupt commercial fishing industry has created a situation that places the dugong and its habitat at risk.


Alongside traditional pharmacokinetic measures, that indeed represent the primary endpoint of first-time in man (FTIM) studies, initial evidence of pharmacodynamic (PD) effects is increasingly being sought in early phase trials as a secondary study endpoint [2] . While effects on PD endpoints in healthy volunteers may not accurately predict the true clinical outcomes in patients, they may provide initial indication as to whether novel putative therapies are sufficiently promising to justify the conduct of larger-scale longer-term clinical trials [3] . In addition, the use of PD biomarkers in healthy volunteers can facilitate dose selection in future efficacy trials in patients [4] .

Alongside traditional pharmacokinetic measures, that indeed represent the primary endpoint of first-time in man (FTIM) studies, initial evidence of pharmacodynamic (PD) effects is increasingly being sought in early phase trials as a secondary study endpoint.

While effects on PD endpoints in healthy volunteers may not accurately predict the true clinical outcomes in patients, they may provide initial indication as to whether novel putative therapies are sufficiently promising to justify the conduct of larger-scale longer-term clinical trials.

In addition, the use of PD biomarkers in healthy volunteers can facilitate dose selection in future efficacy trials in patients.


In standard PA therapy protocols, patients wear wedge prism glasses that shift their vision 10-12 degrees to the right, causing objects in their visual field to appear at a displaced position. Thus, when the patient reaches toward a target, he or she must adapt to the difference between the real and displaced positions of that target. During treatment, the patient is instructed to perform numerous ballistic reaching movements to a target. Initially, the patient will exhibit a large pointing error to the right. As the participant adapts, this error will return to zero. When the patient removes the glasses, they display a compensatory over-correction to the left, or after-effect, demonstrating that adaptation has taken place [26, 63] . In the clinical setting typical protocols may have a patient with USN perform PA therapy for 15-20 minutes once per day for 2 weeks (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aj8D4SXeXZs).

When the patient removes the glasses, they display a compensatory over-correction to the left, or after-effect, demonstrating that adaptation has taken place.


Corrosion inhibitors slow down or prevent corrosion of reinforcing steel in concrete. They are meant to supplement the natural ability of the concrete to protect the embedded reinforcement by forming a passivating oxide layer on the steel. The most common inhibitor products contain calcium nitrate. Migrating corrosion inhibitors (MCIs) are also available and are designed to migrate to the embedded reinforcing to protect it against future corrosion (Sohanghpurwala 2006) . Corrosion inhibitors are often used in conjunction with other corrosion protection systems, such as epoxy coated steel. They are generally used as admixtures in concrete for new construction, but can also be used for repairs by being admixed into concrete for patches, sprayed, or painted onto the surface of concrete beam ends.

Migrating corrosion inhibitors (MCIs) are also available and are designed to migrate to the embedded reinforcing to protect it against future corrosion.


The purpose of this study is to estimate source contribution to size-resolved PM mass in an urban mixed site in Korea. PM was collected by a cascade impactor and 20 chemical species were analyzed by ICP-AES and IC. In our present study, PMF and CPF (conditional probability function) were intensively used to classify PM sources by checking their direction. Similar previous studies using TTFA (target transformation factor analysis) and PMF had been performed to obtain contributions to TSP, PM 10 , PM 2.5 at this sampling site (Kim et al., 1993; Hwang, et al., 2002; Hwang, et al., 2003) . However, those apportionment studies were performed by using insufficient numbers of chemical species or applied without size-segregation scheme.

Similar previous studies using TTFA (target transformation factor analysis) and PMF had been performed to obtain contributions to TSP, PM 10 , PM 2.5 at this sampling site.


There are more advance techniques, such as Cluster Analysis (CA), which permit to reduce this heterogeneity, by segmenting the sample of passengers on groups that share some common characteristics, and that have more homogeneous perceptions about the service. This technique has been applied in other fields of transport engineering with satisfactory results (Karlaftis & Tarko, 1998; Ma & Kockelman, 2006; Pardillo-Mayora, 2010; Depaire et al., 2008; de Oña et al., 2013b) . The main purpose of this study will be to apply a cluster analysis technique for stratifying the sample of users of a public transport service in the city of Granada (Spain) , in order to analyze passengers' opinions under more homogeneous conditions. Data from four Customer Satisfaction Surveys developed from 2008 to 2011 in the metropolitan public bus service of Granada are used, and the most important variables affecting service quality are determined using a Pearson Correlation. Furthermore, the differences found among the key factors influencing the service quality evaluation of the identified groups of passengers are displayed and discussed.

This technique has been applied in other fields of transport engineering with satisfactory results.


The techniques presented in this paper are based on the object-oriented modeling language Creol, a language designed to model concurrent and distributed systems. Creol models are high-level as they abstract from, e.g., particular network properties as well as specific local schedulers. However, Creol is an executable language with a formal semantics defined in rewriting logic [19] . Thus, Creol models may be seen as executable designs. Test cases are written in Creol as well, and dynamic symbolic execution (DSE) is applied to calculate a test suite that reaches the desired model coverage. DSE is a combination of concrete and symbolic execution, and therefore, it is also known as concolic execution.

However, Creol is an executable language with a formal semantics defined in rewriting logic.


A key activity in software clustering consists of gathering the entities from source code of software systems into meaningful and independent modules. The process of software clustering usually starts with the selection of entities and their features by parsing the source code of software systems. Then entities are organized into cohesive clusters by employing a particular clustering algorithm (Mitchell and Mancoridis, 2006) .

Then entities are organized into cohesive clusters by employing a particular clustering algorithm.


Hanging models are often used as techniques for experimentally finding the optimal forms of thin-walled structures or shells. While such methods are convenient to use, they can only be applied under certain limited boundary conditions. Meanwhile, progress in research on computer-based numerical shape optimization methods has led to proposals for a variety of shape optimization techniques. Computerbased numerical shape optimization methods can be broadly divided into two categories that are used selectively according to the intended objective. One category comprises parametric methods whereby the design variables for determining the shape are parameterized in advance and a mathematical programming method is applied to determine the values of the parameters. Examples of the proposed techniques of this type include the basis vector method and methods that use parametric surfaces such as Bezier surfaces [1] [2] [3] . Because these methods use few design variables, they are compatible with CAD systems and allow high computational efficiency, but one drawback is that the shape obtained is strongly dependent on the parameters. Since the late 1980s, 2 Shock and Vibration parametric methods have been the central focus of research and many reports have been presented concerning design variable parameterization [4] .

Examples of the proposed techniques of this type include the basis vector method and methods that use parametric surfaces such as Bezier surfaces.

Since the late 1980s, 2 Shock and Vibration parametric methods have been the central focus of research and many reports have been presented concerning design variable parameterization.


In this paper we study the polygonalisation complex P(S) of a surface S with marked points. This is a cube complex encoding the combinatorics of the polygonalisations of S, that is, the multiarcs that decompose S into polygons. The polygonalisation complex contains (the barycentric subdivision of) the flip graph F(S) as a subcomplex. It can also be regarded as the barycentric subdivision of the contractible CW-complex naturally associated to the Ptolemy groupoid of S which appears in quantum Teichmüller theory [8] [19] .

It can also be regarded as the barycentric subdivision of the contractible CW-complex naturally associated to the Ptolemy groupoid of S which appears in quantum Teichmüller theory.


Two approaches have been used to provide scalable multicast routing in ad hoc networks. One approach is to create a hierarchy by partitioning the network into regions, with a group leader elected in each region [7] . Multicast packets are then sent among group leaders, and each leader forwards packets to members within its region. Another approach is to build a peer-to-peer overlay among the nodes, and then construct a tree based on the overlay [8] , [9] , [10] , [11] , [12] . In this case, multicast is provided entirely at the application layer, and packets are sent among overlay nodes using TCP connections.

One approach is to create a hierarchy by partitioning the network into regions, with a group leader elected in each region.

Another approach is to build a peer-to-peer overlay among the nodes, and then construct a tree based on the overlay.


We have previously demonstrated a mechanosensitive reorganization of the keratin network to cadherin mediated cell-cell contacts (Weber et al., 2012) . It is abundantly clear that the keratin network dynamics must be regulated to determine where and when such rearrangement events occur. We propose that 14-3-3 regulates the force triggered reorganization of the widespread keratin network to the cell-cell junction. In this study, we investigate a fundamental role for 14-3-3 interaction with Keratin 19 in modulating intermediate filament dynamic exchange and serving as a recruitment scaffold at cell-cell contacts. This interplay between the keratin network and 14-3-3 proteins may underlie signaling events that occur during collective cell migration, which in turn regulate the migratory behavior itself.

We have previously demonstrated a mechanosensitive reorganization of the keratin network to cadherin mediated cell-cell contacts.


MTC is frequently detected in surface and ground waters in the North of America and in Europe with maximum values occurring during high rain events, after pesticide application (Vallotton et al. 2008) . For instance, in Lake Erie St. Clair Basin (USA), MTC was detected in 90% of 315 samples collected from 10 streams from March of 1996 to February of ) obtained for P. subcapitata, which underline the significance of this algal species in the assessment of MTC ecotoxicity in freshwater environments. The movement of organic pollutants in the aquatic environment can also present a serious threat to marine ecosystems. MTC has been detected in marine environment (Skagerrak, North Sea) at a very low concentration (1.49 ng L −1 ) (Brumovský et al. 2016) . This value of MTC found in coastal waters is several orders of magnitude lower than 96 h-EC 50 values obtained in the present study and in the studies described in the literature (reported above) with marine algae.

MTC is frequently detected in surface and ground waters in the North of America and in Europe with maximum values occurring during high rain events, after pesticide application.

MTC has been detected in marine environment (Skagerrak, North Sea) at a very low concentration (1.49 ng L −1 ).


The large quantity of plant waste produced from greenhouse crops should be considered an opportunity to generate energy or to produce valuable organic products. Given that the vegetable production in greenhouses requires abundant amounts of organic matter to renew the organic layer placed within greenhouse soil, the transformation of greenhouse plant waste into a valuable organicmaterial through low-cost technologies, such as composting or vermicomposting should be the preferred recycling method (Parra et al. 2008) . Furthermore, the production of organic soil amendments through composting or vermicomposting of greenhouse plant waste should be a priority, taking into consideration that most southern European soils are degraded owing to a lack of organic matter (Zdruli et al. 2004) . Nevertheless, greenhouse plant waste is hardly recycled into a stable organic material because this waste has features that hinder proper composting or vermicomposting, therefore producing unusable organic materials for agricultural practices or soil restoration.

Given that the vegetable production in greenhouses requires abundant amounts of organic matter to renew the organic layer placed within greenhouse soil, the transformation of greenhouse plant waste into a valuable organicmaterial through low-cost technologies, such as composting or vermicomposting should be the preferred recycling method.

Furthermore, the production of organic soil amendments through composting or vermicomposting of greenhouse plant waste should be a priority, taking into consideration that most southern European soils are degraded owing to a lack of organic matter.


In order to introduce a new differential-operator representation for the scattered wave as observed in the reference-frame in which the objects are moving, and to provide some background, the problem of the moving cylinder is revisited [9, 10] . The idea is to go beyond the formal steps of applying the relativistic formulas to the fields in question and deriving the correct expressions: it is desired to be able to see how the velocity effects directly modify the rest-state results, and draw new conclusions. As in previous cases analyzed in terms of circular-cylindrical and spherical coordinates, also here the velocity-dependent mode-coupling is pointed out.

In order to introduce a new differential-operator representation for the scattered wave as observed in the reference-frame in which the objects are moving, and to provide some background, the problem of the moving cylinder is revisited.


The overall transport system has been applied to the scenario of Barreiro old town. The application results show that the system has a good performance. In fact, the load factor of LBL boxes is equal to 88 %: this is a good result because the average load factor of vans in European historical city centres, like Barreiro, is about 30 % [3] . Furthermore, as FURBOT vehicles are electrically powered, the degree of pollution related to freight distribution is zero. A future work could be also a sensitivity analysis according to variations in the freight transport demand or in the dimension of packages.

In fact, the load factor of LBL boxes is equal to 88 %: this is a good result because the average load factor of vans in European historical city centres, like Barreiro, is about 30 %.


Regarding freight directed to end consumers, this is the result of on-line shopping. E-commerce enables businesses to sell their products and services directly to consumers without establishing a physical point of sale. While some products can be delivered digitally to households, most products purchased online ultimately must be transported to the end-users in the physical world. The receivers are often single people, especially students and time-poor professionals, who purchase products online but are not normally at home at daytime to accept deliveries. An efficient, rapid and reliable delivery system is essential for gaining customer loyalty online and consequently obtaining profitability [12] .

An efficient, rapid and reliable delivery system is essential for gaining customer loyalty online and consequently obtaining profitability.


The findings of the study were not limited to what the pre-service teachers had noticed about their micro-lessons. As indicated in our findings, in the first phase of the study where pre-service teachers watched their micro-lessons for the first time right after delivering them, they were more concerned about checking their discrete set of behaviors; thus their observations remained at an elementary level pre practicum. We therefore argue that pre-service teachers' reflections depicted a more technicist view of teaching which lacks the systematic reflection that leads to moving beyond intuition or routine (Johnson & Arshavskaya, 2011) . As acknowledged in the literature, noticing is not enough because pre-service teachers need to be able to interpret what they have noticed (van Es & Sherin, 2002) . The findings of the study post practicum showed that pre-service teachers not only noticed things that they had not noticed in their pre-self-evaluations but also had more insightful perspectives on learners and came up with justifications and alternatives in relation to their practices. Post practicum, they expanded their pedagogical knowledge in terms of moving beyond the identification of their discrete behaviors into more of a reflective kind of evaluation. The excerpts we have shared demonstrate that practicum supported the pre-service teachers to critically reflect on their micro-lesson as they became better able to problematize the issues they had noticed in their micro-lessons. Pre-service teachers watched their micro-lessons the second time through a more reflective lens considering the fact that they had provided ample justifications and conceptualized alternative perspectives in their teaching objectives, decisions, and practices. In this vein, our analysis has revealed that practicum supports pre-service teachers concretely, connecting noticing with reflecting. We therefore further argue that pre-service teachers switched from a technicist-view of teaching to a more reflective view of teaching as their post-selfevaluations and reflections had shown a broader and deeper analysis of their own teaching practices and contextual factors, especially about learners.

We therefore argue that pre-service teachers' reflections depicted a more technicist view of teaching which lacks the systematic reflection that leads to moving beyond intuition or routine.

As acknowledged in the literature, noticing is not enough because pre-service teachers need to be able to interpret what they have noticed.


When stratified into patients who have OHE and those who do not, our results show that, in patients assessed for liver transplantation, there is a statistically significant relationship between low 25-OHD levels and OHE. Importantly, a significantly higher incidence of OHE was observed in individuals with low 25-OHD levels at similar levels of disease severity. This association raises the possibility that vitamin D deficiency has an effect on the manifestation of HE or is associated with other unrecognised factors. Importantly, OHE rarely occurred with normal Vitamin D levels but individuals could have low vitamin D and not have OHE. This is a similar relationship to the association of elevated serum ammonia with the development of OHE [45] . Consequently, the presence of moderate to severe 25-OHD deficiency means OHE is more likely in patients with ESLD.

This is a similar relationship to the association of elevated serum ammonia with the development of OHE.


The growth of the x-variants was promoted in the specimens aged at 300°C under a compressive stress of 400-550 MPa in the case of e M \ 0; however, the compressive stress did not significantly affect the growth of the variants when e M [ 0. Hereafter, xvariants I and II in the case of e M \ 0 in specimens aged at 300°C under a compressive stress of 400, 450, 500 and 550 MPa are referred to as 400CL, 450CL, 500CL and 550CL, respectively, and variants in the case of e M [ 0 in specimens aged at 300°C under a compressive stress of 400-550 MPa are referred to as 400-550CS. Similarly, variants I and II in the case of e M [ 0 in specimens aged at 300°C under a tensile stress of 400-550 MPa are referred to as 400-550TL [9] .

Similarly, variants I and II in the case of e M [ 0 in specimens aged at 300°C under a tensile stress of 400-550 MPa are referred to as 400-550TL.


The possible reason for the increased damping ratio is that the MWCNT composite had a much higher damping coefficient, c, since K and M both increased when extra mass was added to the beam with adhesive coating. This new carbon nanotube film composite material showed a 225% increase in damping coefficient compared to the pure adhesive materials. Results in this study were compatible with the results of another research group [19] .

Results in this study were compatible with the results of another research group.


New methodologies based on vibration measurement and analysis can offer better solutions to this problem. Structural health monitoring employing structural dynamic characteristics such as natural frequencies, modal shapes and modal damping ratios as index for detection of damage have been proposed and investigated intensively during the last two decades [2, 3] . It also has been reported that changes in higher modal parameters (usually in the higher frequency range) are more sensitive to small cracks [4, 5] . The most commonly used sensors for vibration measurement are accelerometers and strain gauges. However, their frequency ranges of relevance are usually rather low (up to 100 Hz) [6] . Therefore, a new type of s e n s o r which can provide higher sensitivity in the high frequency range would be better for early crack detection. Our previous research on multiwalled carbon nanotube (MWCNT) film composite sensor indicated that it is better than the foil strain gage for strain sensing in the higher frequency range [7] . In this paper, we continue our Structural seismic vibration control is another important topic in earthquake engineering. Vibration control devices and strategies can be classified into three groups: passive, active and hybrid. Passive vibration control methods usually apply viscoelastic polymer patches to the structure surface for absorbing and dissipating the seismic energy. On the other hand, the active or/and hybrid methods generally employ sensors and actuators for controlling the input to the dynamics system to suppress its vibration [8] . In this work, we also investigate the damping properties of the MWCNT film composite. It is found that beside its sensing capability, the MWCNT can provide good structural damping at the same time; i.e., this new MWCNT film composite is capable of integrating the transducer or sensor and the damping patch into one element for structure strain sensing and passive/active vibration control.

Structural health monitoring employing structural dynamic characteristics such as natural frequencies, modal shapes and modal damping ratios as index for detection of damage have been proposed and investigated intensively during the last two decades.

It also has been reported that changes in higher modal parameters (usually in the higher frequency range) are more sensitive to small cracks.

However, their frequency ranges of relevance are usually rather low (up to 100 Hz).

Our previous research on multiwalled carbon nanotube (MWCNT) film composite sensor indicated that it is better than the foil strain gage for strain sensing in the higher frequency range.

On the other hand, the active or/and hybrid methods generally employ sensors and actuators for controlling the input to the dynamics system to suppress its vibration.


Asking doctors directly in surveys, or linking differences in their actual procedure utilization rates to differences in their risk of liability, are ways to estimate whether and how frequently procedures are used for defensive reasons [2] . It is very difficult to measure defensive medical practice accurately because of the limitations of these measurement techniques. Doctors may be inclined to respond with the answer most likely to elicit a favorable political response that exaggerates their true level of concern about malpractice. They may also justify their choices purely on clinical grounds when other factors are in fact operating [2] .

Asking doctors directly in surveys, or linking differences in their actual procedure utilization rates to differences in their risk of liability, are ways to estimate whether and how frequently procedures are used for defensive reasons.

They may also justify their choices purely on clinical grounds when other factors are in fact operating.


The employees of the organization are influenced by the perceptions of fair treatment in many ways. Firstly, perceptions of fairness are illustrative of the fact that organizational authorities are [11] [12] . Secondly, a perception of fair treatment enhances employees' predictability and controllability for future events, thereby reducing the uncertainties of day to day working life. Lastly, perceptions of fair treatments indicate devotion to moral and ethical standards of the organization on the part of higher authorities.

Firstly, perceptions of fairness are illustrative of the fact that organizational authorities are.


Barriers to the participation of program attenders' partners in the evaluation included refusal to engage with the service, discouragement from the father, or concerns about what information might be passed onto him (McConnell & Taylor, 2016) . Nevertheless, data was provided for two-fifths of partners. Additional barriers to children's participation included lack of parental consent, age (nearly half were preschool age), limited knowledge of the father's participation in the program and the mother and/or the practitioner deciding it was not an appropriate time to involve them.

Barriers to the participation of program attenders' partners in the evaluation included refusal to engage with the service, discouragement from the father, or concerns about what information might be passed onto him.


Two findings echoed those from the Mirabal study (Kelly & Westmarland, 2015) . First, partners did continue to report incidents of denial or minimization and emotional abuse after the program, although to a lesser extent than before. Second, children and partners noticed and welcomed improvements in fathers' communication with children, and described how the father had greater interest and more positive involvement in the children's lives. Case notes also provided examples of fathers who appeared to have learnt more about child development and appropriate parenting behavior. Nevertheless, it should be noted that some fathers' attitudes and behavior were reported not to have changed or to only changed partially or temporarily. This indicates that alongside the direct work with fathers, contacting families and working alongside other agencies is essential to ensure a safe and coordinated response to any ongoing abuse. The case note analysis suggests that CDSC can influence systems and help protect children. Although social workers' decisions in relation to the fathers' children were usually based on information from a number of sources, information that CDSC practitioners shared with referrers often contributed to the decision-making process.

Two findings echoed those from the Mirabal study.


Fathers' self-reports about their behavior were largely confirmed by qualitative and quantitative data provided by partners. Analysis indicated that completing the program can increase awareness of child-centered fathering, reduce perceptions of their child as being difficult and dysfunctional interaction. Statistically and clinically significant reductions in parental stress are encouraging, as they are linked with a decreased risk of child abuse (Abidin, 1995) . Although the comparison group was small and opportunistic, analysis using it supports the hypothesis that improvements could be attributed to the program. Fathers' average pre and post-program scores for the PARQ were less convincing, indicating more accepting behavior than would be found in typically warm and loving families. The authors of the measure caution against accepting very low scores at face value, as they strongly suggest response bias, with the fathers either believing or This document is copyrighted by the American Psychological Association or one of its allied publishers.

Statistically and clinically significant reductions in parental stress are encouraging, as they are linked with a decreased risk of child abuse.


Fathers, their children and partners participated at three time points: before the start of the program (baseline); at the end of the program to observe any changes that had occurred, and 6 months after the program to observe whether these were maintained. High preprogram attrition is typical of programs aimed at domestic abuse perpetrators: in a recent study 76% of those referred either failed to attend appointments or were not assessed as suitable (Donovan & Griffiths, 2015) . Anticipating a similar pattern, only fathers attending the first session of the program were invited to participate in the evaluation. Between October 2010 and October 2014, nearly 350 fathers were asked, and 97% consented. The nine fathers who refused to participate eventually dropped out. Over half of the participating fathers completed the program (53%), attending every group session, or catch up sessions with facilitators if they missed a week. Only one father who completed the program refused to provide data post-program. Fathers who were excluded (13% for non-attendance, 4% for behavior) or had to withdraw (4%) mid-program were not followed up (McConnell, Cotmore, Hunter, and Taylor, 2016b) . Staff shortages at one site led to the postponement of groups, which provided the opportunity to gather and compare data from fathers assessed as suitable but waiting to start the program with data from other fathers who had completed at the same site.

High preprogram attrition is typical of programs aimed at domestic abuse perpetrators: in a recent study 76% of those referred either failed to attend appointments or were not assessed as suitable.

Fathers who were excluded (13% for non-attendance, 4% for behavior) or had to withdraw (4%) mid-program were not followed up.


Among these are peripheral nerve or plexus anesthetic blockade, chemical neurolysis, and spinal cord stimulation (SCS). Each of these has its own risk-benefit profile, and have been variable successful. Recurrence of pain occurs frequently, and is a significant factor in determining surgical candidates for these procedures. Serial attempts have few proponents, as this increases the rate of complication from damage to surrounding tissues, neurologic deficit, and development of new pain. However, they as relatively straightforward and have low associated morbidity, and therefore, continue to be useful adjuncts and worthy of trying before moving to more permanent approaches [45] .

However, they as relatively straightforward and have low associated morbidity, and therefore, continue to be useful adjuncts and worthy of trying before moving to more permanent approaches.


Microhylidae is the fourth largest anuran family containing 487 species distributed through America, Subsaharan Africa, India, and Korea to northern Australia (Frost, 2011) . However, microhylid frogs are not a dominant component of New World anuran fauna, where there are 64 species in 20 genera, including nine monotypic genera. These New World species are terrestrial and exhibit various degrees of fossoriality and their secretive habits may be responsible for the limited knowledge of many species (Wild, 1995) .

Microhylidae is the fourth largest anuran family containing 487 species distributed through America, Subsaharan Africa, India, and Korea to northern Australia.

These New World species are terrestrial and exhibit various degrees of fossoriality and their secretive habits may be responsible for the limited knowledge of many species.


The potential use of the aerial parts of Salicornia and Sarcocornia species as a vegetable source for human consumption is considered promising, given their high nutritional value in terms of natural minerals and trace elements, including magnesium (Mg), sodium (Na), potassium (K), calcium (Ca), manganese (Mn), iron (Fe), zinc (Zn) and chromium (Cr), dietary fiber and bioactive compounds (Bertin et al., 2014; Kim et al., 2011; Ventura et al., 2011) . Salicornia species have been introduced into the European market as a vegetable with leafless shoots resembling green asparagus and in Italy and France they have been used as an ingredient in vinegar. Also, in Korea they are consumed as a seasoned vegetable, salad and fermented food (Kim et al., 2011) . Recently, the dried and milled aerial part of Salicornia brachiate was patented (German patent DE60208082T2) and offered as a herbal salt, because it contains other mineral salts in high amounts in addition to sodium chloride (Buhmann and Papenbrock, 2013) .

The potential use of the aerial parts of Salicornia and Sarcocornia species as a vegetable source for human consumption is considered promising, given their high nutritional value in terms of natural minerals and trace elements, including magnesium (Mg), sodium (Na), potassium (K), calcium (Ca), manganese (Mn), iron (Fe), zinc (Zn) and chromium (Cr), dietary fiber and bioactive compounds.

Also, in Korea they are consumed as a seasoned vegetable, salad and fermented food.

Recently, the dried and milled aerial part of Salicornia brachiate was patented (German patent DE60208082T2) and offered as a herbal salt, because it contains other mineral salts in high amounts in addition to sodium chloride.


Sarcocornia ambigua is a plant that belongs to the family Amaranthaceae. These plants are halophytes (salt-tolerant) and grow in saline areas, usually near the coast and along the shores of salt lakes and marshes (Kadereit et al., 2006) . Salinity is emerging as a major constraint worldwide and halophytes provide a unique opportunity to study the mechanistic basis of the adaptation to a diverse saline ecological niche. Halophytes contain potential antioxidant systems and are known for quenching toxic reactive oxygen species produced under saline conditions (Mishra et al., 2015) .

These plants are halophytes (salt-tolerant) and grow in saline areas, usually near the coast and along the shores of salt lakes and marshes.

Halophytes contain potential antioxidant systems and are known for quenching toxic reactive oxygen species produced under saline conditions.


Numerical models are important tools for groundwater management. Good model development practices include the assessment of model performance but also of model uncertainty and physical realism [1] . This paper focuses on the influence of initial conditions on the calibration and simulation results of two reservoir models for karst spring discharge.

Good model development practices include the assessment of model performance but also of model uncertainty and physical realism.


The choice of the calibration or warm-up period is strongly linked to the sensitivity of the model output to the initial conditions. Indeed, calibration should be performed over periods when the model output is sensitive to the calibration parameter. Conversely, the warm-up period should stop as soon as the model output becomes insensitive to the initial state, in order to preserve as much data as possible for the analysis. The issue of an optimal determination of the warm-up period for reservoir-based models has been little addressed in the literature. So has been the issue of the consequence of an improperly chosen warm-up period on calibration results. This paper investigates the influence of model non-linearity on the sensitivity behaviour based on the local perturbation approach. The perturbation technique provides theoretical insights into the general behaviour of the sensitivity to the initial conditions. The analysis is carried out for two reservoir models that have both been validated on the application site selected for this study by previous authors [10, 7] . The main issues addressed are: (i) does model structure have consequences on the length of the warm-up period, (ii) can guidelines be defined for the choice of the warm-up period, so as to minimize the impact of the initialisation bias on model calibration ?

The analysis is carried out for two reservoir models that have both been validated on the application site selected for this study by previous authors.


The best known upper bounds for the size of D(n)-sets are logarithmic in n [5, 7] . If n is a prime, it is known that there is an absolute bound for the size of a D(n)-set [11] . For an arbitrary n ≡ 2 (mod 4) it is easy to see that that there does not exist a D(n)-quadruple, while if n ≡ 2 (mod 4) and n ∈ S = {−4, −3, −1, 3, 5, 12, 20}, there exists at least one D(n)-quadruple [2] . It is conjectured that for n ∈ S there does not exist a D(n)-quadruple.

The best known upper bounds for the size of D(n)-sets are logarithmic in n.

If n is a prime, it is known that there is an absolute bound for the size of a D(n)-set.

For an arbitrary n ≡ 2 (mod 4) it is easy to see that that there does not exist a D(n)-quadruple, while if n ≡ 2 (mod 4) and n ∈ S = {−4, −3, −1, 3, 5, 12, 20}, there exists at least one D(n)-quadruple.


The following section details the context in which adoption in England and Wales is taking place, before moving on to discuss the research study (REF FIRST AUTHOR) from which examples are drawn. The findings focus on birth parents' experiences of adoption and do not consider adoption from a child's perspective. Research has highlighted the benefits of adoption for children (Quinton and Selwyn 2009; Thomas 2013) . As part of the adoption triangle, however, birth parent voices can add to a wider understanding of adoption, in addition to being worthy of exploration in their own right.

Research has highlighted the benefits of adoption for children.


Pressure on child welfare services has undoubtedly increased under austerity-the difficult economic conditions created by UK government measures in order to reduced public spending. Expenditure on family support services has been reduced, impacting on delivery of appropriate services (Webb and Bywaters 2018) . At a time when child social care services have overspent their budgets by £816 m in the past year, questions should be raised about the level of support available to birth parents prior to their children being removed (Savage 2018) .

Expenditure on family support services has been reduced, impacting on delivery of appropriate services.

At a time when child social care services have overspent their budgets by £816 m in the past year, questions should be raised about the level of support available to birth parents prior to their children being removed.


Any synthesis of fMRI studies of reward must attend to the multiple methodological dimensions on which studies may differ. One advantage of using task-based imaging is that it allows for event-related and blockbased tasks to temporally distinguish between these reward components. Block designs employ blocks of similar trial types which give higher power across many trials; event-related designs can distinguish between trials in a block, and separate out components within a trial [27] . Reward in humans is probably not a unitary process. Event-related designs have the potential to distinguish between reward anticipation and reward consumption [28] . Block designs are less temporally sensitive, but more powerful in detecting effects [27] [28] [29] . A second methodological consideration is that imaging tasks use different stimuli (e.g. money, food, social rewards) to measure neural reward [25] . In the present context, sleep and circadian function may have different interactions with (for example) money and food, making it important to discriminate between studies using one or other of these reward stimuli. A final consideration is reward can be examined outside of the stimuli in resting state fMRI. Resting state fMRI may capture a physiological preparedness to engage with rewarding stimuli in the environment.

Block designs employ blocks of similar trial types which give higher power across many trials; event-related designs can distinguish between trials in a block, and separate out components within a trial.

Event-related designs have the potential to distinguish between reward anticipation and reward consumption.

Block designs are less temporally sensitive, but more powerful in detecting effects.

A second methodological consideration is that imaging tasks use different stimuli (e.g. money, food, social rewards) to measure neural reward.


We can also see such difference in the time evolution of entanglement entropy in local excited states. Consider the excited states that are created by the insertion of local operators on the ground states. If the theory is integrable, we can see the propagation of quasiparticles. At the late time, the change of entanglement entropy saturates and the value is given by the entanglement between the propagating quasiparticles [20, 21, 22, 23] . On the other hand, in the case of holographic CFTs, the excess of entanglement entropy does not saturate and grows logarithmically in time [24, 25, 26] . This growth of entanglement is caused by the chaotic interaction of holographic CFTs and can be seen as a kind of scrambling.

At the late time, the change of entanglement entropy saturates and the value is given by the entanglement between the propagating quasiparticles.

On the other hand, in the case of holographic CFTs, the excess of entanglement entropy does not saturate and grows logarithmically in time.


Despite evidence of efficacy and endorsement from numerous organizations, screening mammography rates in the US declined in the past decade and still fall short of the 70% Healthy People 2010 target [2] . We previously found a positive association between the use of screening mammography and the availability of mammography machines [15] . In the current survey of more than 1,600 facilities in six states, facilities in counties with lower mammography capacity were more likely to report longer times until the next available appointment for a screening mammogram.

Despite evidence of efficacy and endorsement from numerous organizations, screening mammography rates in the US declined in the past decade and still fall short of the 70% Healthy People 2010 target.

We previously found a positive association between the use of screening mammography and the availability of mammography machines.


Of course, mammography capacity is not solely a function of the number of machines. Human resources, specifically the radiologic technologists who operate the machines and the radiologists who interpret the images, influence the overall availability of mammograms. Shortages of qualified radiologists and mammographic technologists have been reported in the past decade [16, 22, 23] . It is not clear whether efforts to increase the number of mammography machines or policies that enhance the supply of radiologists and technologists or facilitate image interpretation by radiologists at geographically remote sites will have the greater impact on screening rates.

Shortages of qualified radiologists and mammographic technologists have been reported in the past decade.


W I L D F I R E 9 is also optimized to model diffracting domains that are large in the ab plane (300 ,~ on a side), making the assumption that the structure factor (F) is constant across the diffraction " r o d s " in reciprocal space (Reynolds 1993) . As shown in Figure 3 , this assumption may not be valid for diffracting domains that are as small as those modeled for this birnessite. For small diffracting domains, the diameter of the diffraction " r o d s " in reciprocal space is proportionately larger, increasing the possibility that F is not constant in the region of the calculation. Additionally, at increasingly higher indices, the diameter (l/d) of the hemisphere over which intensity is integrated becomes larger, so the calculation sweeps through the rod at a lower angle to the axis of the rod and incorporates a larger portion of reciprocal space. Because intensity varies smoothly along the rods, there is a greater chance that the structure factor will change in the calculation region. The 2 higher angle diffraction bands contain diffraction phenomena from the (311) and (401) classes of reflections, respectively, and so may be affected by changes in the structure factor across the (31) and (40) diffraction rods.

W I L D F I R E 9 is also optimized to model diffracting domains that are large in the ab plane (300 ,~ on a side), making the assumption that the structure factor (F) is constant across the diffraction " r o d s " in reciprocal space.


Because sites of vacancies or Mn 3 § in the octahedral layers appear to be disordered, the location of layer Figure 3 . Schematic representation of the upper half of an a'c* reciprocal lattice plane demonstrating the method of calculation used by WILDFIRE 9 for a 2-dimensional crystal (Reynolds 1993) . The vertical columns labeled (lkl), (2kl), etc., are reciprocal lattice rods of a turbostratic crystal. The structure factor varies smoothly along the rods. Vectors (1/dl, l/d2, etc.) are swept through reciprocal space and a diffracted intensity is calculated wherever a vector intersects a rod. If diffracting domains are small, the diameter of the rods is large (lighter pattern) and the structure factor is more likely to change over the portion of the rod included in the calculation. In addition, rods of higher index, such as (3kl) and (4kl), are cut by the vector at a lower angle to their axes relative to rods of lower index, such as (lkl) and (2kl), so the area of the rod included by the calculation is larger, further increasing the chances that the structure factor will vary over the portion of the rod included.

Schematic representation of the upper half of an a'c* reciprocal lattice plane demonstrating the method of calculation used by WILDFIRE 9 for a 2-dimensional crystal.


The clinical formulation is the understanding of a patient's difficulties that is synthesized from a wide array of clinical data [1] . It goes beyond mere diagnosis to a more comprehensive explanation [2] . The formulation helps to organize and summarize a large amount of clinical data and generate empathy for the patient [3] . The formulation explains what is wrong and what needs to be done about it. It generates hypotheses that then guide treatment [4, 5] . The formulation not only synthesizes information from biological, psychological, social (including systemic factors) and spiritual domains, it also synthesizes multiple theoretical perspectives, including biological, cognitive-behavioral, psychodynamic, interpersonal, and psychospiritual domains [1] . Since clinical knowledge about a patient is never complete, the formulation is tentative and evolving over time as clinicians test hypotheses and receive new information [3] .

The clinical formulation is the understanding of a patient's difficulties that is synthesized from a wide array of clinical data.

It goes beyond mere diagnosis to a more comprehensive explanation.

The formulation helps to organize and summarize a large amount of clinical data and generate empathy for the patient.

It generates hypotheses that then guide treatment.

The formulation not only synthesizes information from biological, psychological, social (including systemic factors) and spiritual domains, it also synthesizes multiple theoretical perspectives, including biological, cognitive-behavioral, psychodynamic, interpersonal, and psychospiritual domains.

Since clinical knowledge about a patient is never complete, the formulation is tentative and evolving over time as clinicians test hypotheses and receive new information.


The paper describes an efficient statistical method that enables the identification of process variations which highly impact the circuit parameters that are deemed to be critical by the circuit designer in order to achieve some performance criteria; during the manufacturing process these parameters can be controlled more closely to within required limits hence enhance the overall yield. The technique for parameter identification is described in Section 2 and employs a combination of statistical methods namely Design of Experiments (DoE) and Response Surface Modelling (RSM) which are more computationally efficient than Monte Carlo methods [4] . The integration of DoE/RSM methods to find the impact of process variation on circuit parameters is described in Section 3, followed by the application of the method, in Section 4, to the characterisation of Mutual Exclusion Element (MUTEX) which is widely used circuit block in asynchronous circuit design. A discussion of the results is given in Section 5 followed by conclusions in Section 6.

The technique for parameter identification is described in Section 2 and employs a combination of statistical methods namely Design of Experiments (DoE) and Response Surface Modelling (RSM) which are more computationally efficient than Monte Carlo methods.


Some discrepancies between the QCL-based PTS and FTIR spectra were anticipated. While the FTIR spectra can be background corrected for ambient conditions such as H 2 O and CO 2 , background correction of PTS remains a challenge. In interesting work by DeBellis and Low in 1988, the frequencydependent phase lag in the photothermal signal was used to compensate possible effects of photothermal saturation, which improved the spectral signatures [24] . Possible saturation of the PTS signal was also investigated by analysing the effect of the overall QCL operating power level on the spectral curve. For example on black enamel paint in figure 2(b) , the power level was changed by modifying the QCL current level (800, 900 and 1000 mA). As the operating power level was lowered the thermal response was reduced, however, in this case the peak-to-valley ratio was retained. Further differences between FTIR and PTS spectra in our work were identified to be attributable to wavelength-dependent modal changes of QCL that emerge in the probe response R shown in figure 3(a) . For each wavelength in the acquired spectra, the QCL beam near the focal distance was imaged with a beam profiler (Pyrocam III, Ophir Optronics) at a frame rate of 48 Hz. The beam profile was observed to markedly undergo intensity and shape variations as the wavelength was tuned. Representative profiles of the QCL beam (shown with the probe beam offset for visualization purposes) corresponding to selected wavelengths are displayed as inset images in figure 3(a) . To quantify this effect, the sum of the beam intensity I (λ) in an estimated area (u, w) that would overlap the probe beam is plotted. Another issue is the spatial overlap of the probe and pump beams. The overlap dependence on the probe response has been well documented by Aamodt and Murphy in 1981 [25] . Using the microcantilever sensor as described above, the pump-probe response over the range (current, wavelength, frequency) of the QCL was observed to be stable, thus we concluded that the spatial overlap stablility was sufficient for our work. However, correction for additional variations that might occur from modal changes that could affect the spatial overlap of the two beams as a function of frequency should also be considered. A non-optimal overlap of a probe beam with a shape-invariant excitation source would result in an overall reduction in the probe signal [25] . However, a discernable overlap offset with the QCL beam could produce an unpredictable spectral probe response depending on where the overlap occurs due to modal shape variations.

In interesting work by DeBellis and Low in 1988, the frequencydependent phase lag in the photothermal signal was used to compensate possible effects of photothermal saturation, which improved the spectral signatures.

The overlap dependence on the probe response has been well documented by Aamodt and Murphy in 1981.

A non-optimal overlap of a probe beam with a shape-invariant excitation source would result in an overall reduction in the probe signal.


The effects from the Al and Si substrates were considered for both the QCL and probe laser. The close to unity reflectivity of Al at both the QCL (r ≈ 0.98) and the HeNe (r ≈ 0.9) lines practically poses no spectral variation in the signal whereas in the case of Si with 0.57 r 0.615 but negligible absorption in the QCL range, the significant absorption of about 0.22 at the probe line can constitute a stationary thermal source that can cause low frequency fluctuations in the data. This fluctuation is clearly visible in both Si-based data shown in figure 2(e), (f ). The absorption at the probe wavelength generates heat that propagates through the readout region, which, subject to conductive and convective thermal properties of the system including the surrounding air, can typically result in additional noise. In certain cases, the single wavelength of the low-power probe beam is expected to interact with the various sample-substrate systems. However, any potential minor thermal contribution of the probe is easily accounted for in our measurements. Similar considerations must be made for the reflectivity r of the substances at the probe wavelength. The total signal on the PSD is reduced when the light intensity of the probe is attenuated as a result of low reflectivity of the sample surface. For our samples, the black enamel paint and the purple cosmetic paint had the highest reflectivity, while the α-cellulose and polystyrene had the lowest reflectivity due to surface roughness. The α-cellulose and polystyrene samples were an aggregation of loosely-bound particles that produced high surface roughness, thus contributing to low reflection of the probe beam onto the PSD. The glyphosate pesticide sample was nearly transparent in the visible region, thus the probe response may be largely due to reflection off the underlying thermally expanded aluminium substrate from the IR absorption of the pesticide. This may explain why, although the QCL range encompassed a major absorption differential in the pesticide and should have yielded the highest signal, the probe response was less than that of the higher reflective paints. Furthermore, in our previous studies we have measured a nonlinear probe response from laser reflectometry on localized evolving curved surfaces of liquid [26] . In this PTS study, the confined thermal expansion of the surface also produces a similar volumetric effect, albeit much smaller. The effect of the nonlinearity would be to amplify the probe response as the thermal expansion and associated curvature increase, which may be advantageous.

Furthermore, in our previous studies we have measured a nonlinear probe response from laser reflectometry on localized evolving curved surfaces of liquid.


Another interesting point that we have found is that in all of these theories there was a direct relationship between the rate of complexity growth and the difference between the inner and outer horizons; i.e,Ċ ∝ (r + − r − ). This factor is also present in the relation of temperature of BTZ, Warped BTZ and hairy black holes while this is not the case for the relations of entropies. This could suggest that there is a stronger correlation between the complexity and temperature, rather than the complexity and entropy, which is worth further investigation. This is actually in line with the idea of Lloyd [6] . This fact could help to understand further the similar thermodynamical laws for complexity.

This is actually in line with the idea of Lloyd.


Brazil has a variety of flora, and this variety facilitates the study of the functional properties of the species that compose the flora. L. origanoides (Verbenaceae) is an aromatic bush that is native to Central America and northern South America. It is used in traditional medicine for the treatment of gastrointestinal and respiratory diseases [5] . M. spicata (Lamiaceae) is an aromatic, creeping, rhizomatous plant. It is popularly used as a flavoring agent in tea and as a calming agent [6] . The objective of the present study was the characterization of the essential oils from the fresh leaves of Lippia origanoides and Mentha spicata and the evaluation of the antioxidant and insecticidal activities of these essential oils.

It is used in traditional medicine for the treatment of gastrointestinal and respiratory diseases.

It is popularly used as a flavoring agent in tea and as a calming agent.


Fractional calculus generalizes the concept of ordinary differentiation and integration to noninteger order. Fractional calculus is a fertile field for researchers to study very important real phenomena in many fields like physics, engineering, biology, and so forth [20] [21] [22] [23] [24] [25] [26] [27] [28] [29] [30] . The fractional differential equations are naturally related to systems with memory. Also, they are closely related to fractals which are numerous in biological system. The definition of fractional derivative involves an integration which is nonlocal operator. This means that the fractional derivative is a nonlocal operator. Studies and results of solutions obtained using the fractional differential equations are more general and are as stable as their integer order counterpart.

Fractional calculus is a fertile field for researchers to study very important real phenomena in many fields like physics, engineering, biology, and so forth.


This drosophilid inventory in the Paranã Valley supports the importance of this region as a diversity center. The numbers of species, as well as the new occurrences found during this study, were extremely high when compared to other Cerrado areas at the same sampling period (data not shown). However, the Paranã Valley has not a single reserve area protecting its biological resources, and the creation of such reserves still remains as a high priority for the conservation of this unique biological region of the Cerrado biome (Silva 1997) . Thus, to value the spent public investment, the efforts of several research groups, and mainly the knowledge produced by these studies, the creation of ecological reserves that preserve the richness and singularity of the region is urgent.

However, the Paranã Valley has not a single reserve area protecting its biological resources, and the creation of such reserves still remains as a high priority for the conservation of this unique biological region of the Cerrado biome.


If the type of assistance appeared unaffected by the reci pient's gender, the perceived satisfaction with assistance was affected by the gender of the providers. There was a higher level of satisfaction with assistance from daughters than from sons. A number of reasons may be deduced from the interview data. Some of the older persons perceived their daughters as showing more love in the manner in which they fulfil their filial obligations. One male informant noted: Thus, sons and daughters may be equally economically sup portive of their parents to the best of their means, but it is daughters who appear to do so in manners which, in addition, fulfil the socio-emotional needs of their parents and this may explain the reported higher level of satisfaction with assist ance from daughters. This finding supports earlier studies which affirm the centrality of females in old-age care (Allen & Pickett, 1987; Hess & Waring, 1978) .

This finding supports earlier studies which affirm the centrality of females in old-age care.


The incidence and prevalence of syphilitic hepatitis in HIV-infected patients are unknown but it seems more prevalent in men, mostly MSM [3, 4] . The high incidence and prevalence among HIV coinfected MSM may be the result of the higher rates of syphilis among this group. Although anal sex has been proposed as a potential risk factor for syphilitic hepatitis, more research is needed to confirm this hypothesis as syphilitic hepatitis has also been well reported in heterosexual men [1, [17] [18] [19] [20] .

The incidence and prevalence of syphilitic hepatitis in HIV-infected patients are unknown but it seems more prevalent in men, mostly MSM.

Although anal sex has been proposed as a potential risk factor for syphilitic hepatitis, more research is needed to confirm this hypothesis as syphilitic hepatitis has also been well reported in heterosexual men.


RT to the head and neck, with or without CT, damages adjacent tissues within the radiation field despite continuing efforts to minimize these effects [1] . Furthermore, targeted therapies administered as single agents, and combined with RT or CRT, may generate additional symptoms [4] [5] [6] . Acute complications include oral mucositis (OM), pain, dysphagia, infections, salivary changes, dysgeusia, and dermatitis. Common chronic complications include hyposalivation and xerostomia, mucosal infections, mucosal atrophy, neuropathies including mucosal pain, dysgeusia, tooth demineralization and rampant caries, progression of periodontitis, soft tissue and/or bone necrosis, mucocutaneous and muscular fibrosis, dysphagia, trismus, lymphedema, dermatitis, and voice and speech alterations [7] . These complications are associated with morbidity and mortality, increased use of health care resources and costs, and may compromise patient adherence to cancer therapy protocols resulting in suboptimal outcomes.

RT to the head and neck, with or without CT, damages adjacent tissues within the radiation field despite continuing efforts to minimize these effects.

Furthermore, targeted therapies administered as single agents, and combined with RT or CRT, may generate additional symptoms.

Common chronic complications include hyposalivation and xerostomia, mucosal infections, mucosal atrophy, neuropathies including mucosal pain, dysgeusia, tooth demineralization and rampant caries, progression of periodontitis, soft tissue and/or bone necrosis, mucocutaneous and muscular fibrosis, dysphagia, trismus, lymphedema, dermatitis, and voice and speech alterations.


Middle cerebral artery occlusion leads to the neurological deficit, infarction, and apoptosis which were regarded as important indicators for brain damage after ischemia [13] . Cerebral artery occlusion induces cerebral ischemia with subsequent mitochondrial damage that stimulates ROS production. ROS is a key factor in the underlying pathophysiology of ischemia, trauma, and degenerative disease. ROS induces macromolecular damage, including lipid peroxidation, protein oxidation, and DNA oxidation, all of which lead to cellular https://www.id-press.eu/mjms/index damage and death (necrosis and apoptosis) [14] . Apoptosis occurs both via extrinsic and intrinsic pathway.

Middle cerebral artery occlusion leads to the neurological deficit, infarction, and apoptosis which were regarded as important indicators for brain damage after ischemia.

ROS induces macromolecular damage, including lipid peroxidation, protein oxidation, and DNA oxidation, all of which lead to cellular https://www.id-press.eu/mjms/index damage and death (necrosis and apoptosis).


Immunosensitive analysis based on the polyclonal and monoclonal antibodies plays today an important role as a tool both for research and for routine analytical applications [17, 18] . In particular, changes in the affinity of the antibody can be used to detect modifications of the structure or function in one of the two immunological reactants (antigen or antibody). Obvious applications of this effect are, for instance, characterization of coupled antigens and control of their interfacial properties. For example, when attempts are made to measure the concentration of a protein with the help of adsorption biosensors, the best criterion to assess how closely the adsorbed protein matches the native one is to measure the comparative binding affinity of an antibody capable of reacting both with the free and adsorbed proteins.

Immunosensitive analysis based on the polyclonal and monoclonal antibodies plays today an important role as a tool both for research and for routine analytical applications.


This has led to the definition of a new class of flexible processes [4] . Processes are defined as "flexible" when people/agents carry them out with a fair degree of "uncertainty," where the uncertainty may depend on many factors, such as the high number of tasks to be represented, their unpredictable nature or their dependency on the contextual scenario. In a flexible process, the sequence of tasks depends heavily on the specifics of the context (e.g., which resources are available and what particular options exist at the time), and it is often unpredictable how the process will unfold.

This has led to the definition of a new class of flexible processes.


Concurrent use of THM and antiretroviral drugs may lead to drug interactions that may interfere with the effectiveness of HAART [11] . Previous studies have found that HIV-infected patients who distrust their health care providers are more likely to use CAM as a substitute for conventional HIV therapy [12] . In addition, HIV-infected patients with a greater desire for medical information and a negative attitude toward the effectiveness of antiretrovirals are more likely to use CAM with potential for adverse effects [12] . However, the extent and factors associated with herbal medicine use among HIV/AIDs patients on HAART is not well documented in Uganda. Consequently there are no clear guidelines on herbal medicine use among HAART patients in Uganda. This study was therefore conducted to determine the prevalence and factors associated with THM use among HIV infected patients on HAART attending The AIDS Support Organization (TASo) in Uganda.

Concurrent use of THM and antiretroviral drugs may lead to drug interactions that may interfere with the effectiveness of HAART.

Previous studies have found that HIV-infected patients who distrust their health care providers are more likely to use CAM as a substitute for conventional HIV therapy.

In addition, HIV-infected patients with a greater desire for medical information and a negative attitude toward the effectiveness of antiretrovirals are more likely to use CAM with potential for adverse effects.


Chronic hyperglycemia in ZDSD rats causes vascular and neural dysfunction that is similar to what we have documented in other diabetic rat models and consistent with the development of diabetic neuropathy [5, 6, 16, 21, 22, 26] . The one exception is that chronic hyperglycemia in ZDSD rat did not cause a decrease in intraepidermal nerve fibers in the skin as has been reported for other diabetic rat models but there was a decrease in Langerhans cells. Overall, the ZDSD rat is an easily maintained animal model for type 2 diabetes that spontaneously develops hyperglycemia with dietary manipulation. This is followed by the development of diabetic neuropathy including loss of nerves in the subbasal epithelial layer of the cornea and decrease in corneal function. Since determination of cornea nerve density and function are noninvasive and surrogate markers for diabetic neuropathy, the ZDSD rat with its functional leptin pathway may be a good model for preclinical testing of treatments for diabetic neuropathy [19] .

Chronic hyperglycemia in ZDSD rats causes vascular and neural dysfunction that is similar to what we have documented in other diabetic rat models and consistent with the development of diabetic neuropathy.

Since determination of cornea nerve density and function are noninvasive and surrogate markers for diabetic neuropathy, the ZDSD rat with its functional leptin pathway may be a good model for preclinical testing of treatments for diabetic neuropathy.


Analysis of multi-stable nonlinear systems with coexisting different dynamical regimes is an important issue from both theoretical and practical points of view [1] . One of the classical examples of such systems is an electronic generator with hard excitement [2, 3] . This model demonstrates two different dynamical regimes corresponding to two types of attractors: a stable equilibrium and a stable limit cycle. Depending on the initial state, this dynamical system either exhibits a transition to auto-oscillations or relaxes to an equilibrium. Examples of systems with a similar type of dynamics have been found in mechanics, chemical kinetics, biophysics, and so on.

Analysis of multi-stable nonlinear systems with coexisting different dynamical regimes is an important issue from both theoretical and practical points of view.

One of the classical examples of such systems is an electronic generator with hard excitement.


A general theoretical approach based on the FokkerPlanck-Kolmogorov (FPK) equation gives a most detailed probabilistic description of stochastic dynamics. However, a direct use of this equation is technically difficult, even for two-dimensional nonlinear systems. Therefore, asymptotic methods and approximations are commonly used [14, 15] .

Therefore, asymptotic methods and approximations are commonly used.


In order to increase business R&D expenditure, governments can design policy interventions in two main ways. They can offer public R&D resources directly, through grants or procurement, or they can provide support indirectly, through fiscal incentives, such as R&D tax credits [4] [5] . The main difference is that direct policies support specific projects, having high social potential returns, while fiscal incentives allow private companies to select which projects to fund.

They can offer public R&D resources directly, through grants or procurement, or they can provide support indirectly, through fiscal incentives, such as R&D tax credits.


The positive associations between attention to details/patterns and each of the four humor styles may also have implications for our understanding of humor more generally. Taking the schema theory of humor as a starting point there seem to be at least three different ways in which attention to details and patterns could benefit humor. First, there is the attention itself, i.e., the ability to spot things that are potentially funny (stand-up comedians seem to excel at this). Second, there is the individual's accumulated knowledge from high attention to details and patterns, which could lead to the formation of schemas that are potentially useful for humor processing. Third, attention to details might over time lead to improved ability to mentally organise and access information, potentially enabling easier activation of multiple schemas. There is clearly scope for future experimental research on the exact pathways by which attention to details and patterns enable humor processing. Such research might also explore the significance of the fact that attention to details was found to load on the same factor as openness to experience (Wakabayashi et al. 2006) .

Such research might also explore the significance of the fact that attention to details was found to load on the same factor as openness to experience.


Poor social skills refer to autism-spectrum individuals' characteristic orientation towards objects rather than people, their discomfort with social situations and their great dislike for having their own plans interrupted. This factor is closely related to other constructs (e.g., "initiating relationships" and "sociability") that have been studied previously in the literature on humor styles (Greven et al. 2008; Vernon et al. 2009; Yip and Martin 2006) . These studies have consistently found that lack of social skills in terms of initiating relationships and sociability is associated with lower scores on the positive humor styles; for the negative humor styles the association is weaker and ambiguous. Poor social skills were therefore predicted to be negatively associated with positive humor styles, whereas no particular association with negative humor styles was predicted.

This factor is closely related to other constructs (e.g., "initiating relationships" and "sociability") that have been studied previously in the literature on humor styles.


Physical caractheristic evaluation of solid herbal waste PT. Deltomed produce some instant herbal medicines. According to the catalog of products from PT. Deltomed Laboratories, Tbk. The main components of Antangin® instant herbal medicine composed of ginger extract (Zingiber oficinale), mint (Mentha piperita), sembung (Blumea balsamivera), and panax ginseng, while the minor components were rhizome extract of Curcumae domestika, Myristicae cement and Glycyrrhizae radix (Deltomed, 2015) . The composition of these plants in herbal medicine has been standardized. Samples for physical characteristics analysis was taken from the waste container vessel in five replication with an interval of two weeks. Solid waste constituent parts of these plant herbs were weighed and the percentage was calculated. The percentage of medicinal plant parts constituent of solid waste is presented in Table  1 .

Deltomed Laboratories, Tbk.

The main components of Antangin® instant herbal medicine composed of ginger extract (Zingiber oficinale), mint (Mentha piperita), sembung (Blumea balsamivera), and panax ginseng, while the minor components were rhizome extract of Curcumae domestika, Myristicae cement and Glycyrrhizae radix.


As earlier stated, attention bias makes the individual vulnerable to depression, and it also plays the key role in its onset and development. Thus, both dot-probe tasks used to measure attention bias could predict depression. On the other hand, depressed people have problems in processing sad emotional images and in calling for cognitive control from the higher cortical areas. This is done in a subliminal way, by the sub-cortical and paralimbic regions of the brain within the frontal-limbic nerve network (Japee, 2013) . Subliminal processing that is independent of the cognitive analysis is considered a fast procedure. Thus, depressed people show a faster, more precise attention bias towards emotional faces (more negative attention bias index). On the other hand, the more negative attention bias index towards sad faces could indicate a greater degree of depression.

This is done in a subliminal way, by the sub-cortical and paralimbic regions of the brain within the frontal-limbic nerve network.


Resistance of RA FLS to Fas-mediated apoptosis is of great interest not only from a scientific point of view but also for its practical implications. The synovial hyperplasia characteristic of RA is facilitated by the resistance of FLS to apop- [34, 35] . Therefore, to elucidate the molecular mechanisms of this resistance to apoptosis, and to clarify the steps of the Fas pathway in this specific type of cells is required. Our experiments confirm that RA FLS are type II cells, in which death receptor-induced apoptosis requires activation of the mitochondrial pathway through Bid cleavage. This has already been suggested in a previous work [24] . We have also shown that constitutive Akt phosphorylation mediates the resistance to Fas-induced apoptosis in these cells. Interestingly, the effect is mediated by inhibition of the cleavage of Bid. Further to this finding, we have demonstrated that depletion of Bid by RNA interference leads to a complete resistance to Fas-mediated apoptosis in RA FLS, indicating that apoptosis signalling through Fas occurs exclusively in a Bid-dependent way. Substantiation of the role of Bid in the Fas-induced apoptosis was obtained by transfection of RA FLS with the full-length Bid vector.

The synovial hyperplasia characteristic of RA is facilitated by the resistance of FLS to apop.

This has already been suggested in a previous work.


Upon reviewing the literature extensively, it was found that few articles were published for NTB quantification in rat biological fluids and tissues [7] [8] [9] . Accordingly, this study was devoted for quantification of NTB in spiked human plasma in presence of cyclobenzaprine (CBP; IS, Figure  1 (b)) in a very short run time (2 min), which permits the analysis of a lot of clinical samples containing NTB in a reasonable time. Additionally, the current procedure was fully validated following the EMA guidelines for validation of the bioanalytical method [10] .

Upon reviewing the literature extensively, it was found that few articles were published for NTB quantification in rat biological fluids and tissues.

Additionally, the current procedure was fully validated following the EMA guidelines for validation of the bioanalytical method.


The goal of the present study was to identify possible moderators of the relationship between job insecurity and job performance. Specifically, we looked at occupational selfefficacy, work locus of control and perceived communication as moderators, whose importance was elaborated in the light of COR theory (Hobfoll, 1989) . We proposed that selfefficacy, work locus of control, and perceived communication would each account as resources that buffer the negative relationship between job insecurity (i.e., a threat of resource loss) and job performance and tested these hypotheses for self-and supervisor-rated in-role performance and OCB. The data revealed significant interactions only for work locus of control and perceived communication on self-rated task performance, the direction of which differed from what we had originally supposed: When job insecurity was low, work locus of control and perceived communication were more strongly related to self-rated task performance compared to when job insecurity was high. Apart from this, our regressions revealed virtually no relationships between job insecurity and the performance ratings.

Specifically, we looked at occupational selfefficacy, work locus of control and perceived communication as moderators, whose importance was elaborated in the light of COR theory.


One finding merits further discussion: The strong negative correlation between job insecurity and the three resources self-efficacy, locus of control, and communication. Two interpretations seem plausible at this point. It might be that job insecurity affects a person's personality, meaning that people can also lose their stress resistance characteristics in face of a severe stressor such as job insecurity. Concerning communication, it might be that in the context of economic difficulties, companies try to maintain a low profile in order to prevent rumors and hysteria to spread among the employees. Looking at the relationships the other way round, it seems reasonable to assume that people with low self-efficacy and an external locus of control are likely to perceive high levels of job insecurity. This idea would be in line with the so-called perception mechanism that has been postulated in relation to negative affectivity (Spector, Zapf, Chen, & Frese, 2000) . Spector and colleagues argue that negative affectivity makes people susceptible to experience negative emotions. In our case this would mean that people with an external work locus of control and those with low work-related selfefficacy may experience job insecurity more easily. Concerning organizational communication it might be the case that people who feel insufficiently informed more easily feel job insecure because, for example, they believe the company hides distressing information from them, which in turn gives them the impression their job might be insecure.

This idea would be in line with the so-called perception mechanism that has been postulated in relation to negative affectivity.


However, there is an alternative way of looking at the results that also embeds our findings better into past research on predictors of performance. Testing interaction terms in multiple regression leads to the same statistical result independent from whether variable A is the predictor variable and variable B is the moderator or vice versa (Cohen et al., 2003) . We did not find a significant interaction between occupational self-efficacy and job insecurity on self-rated task performance. It may be that in the context of job insecurity, selfefficacy is not a resource with the potential to compensate for the threat of job loss. If job insecurity is present, self-efficacy as a potential resource seems to play only a minor role.

Testing interaction terms in multiple regression leads to the same statistical result independent from whether variable A is the predictor variable and variable B is the moderator or vice versa.


Here, I propose an automatic iterative procedure for 1D single-sided focusing at a specified time and suggest that this new procedure may be useful for characterizing layered materials. The new procedure, to be called 'single-sided autofocusing', iteratively updates the incident pulse based on the previous reflected pulse. More precisely, the nth incident pulse is updated by setting it equal to a sharp unipolar pulse (in the limit a delta function) minus the time-reversed and truncated (n − 1)th reflected pulse. Single-sided autofocusing requires only measured inputs and outputs. No equations need be solved. This paper outlines one possible engineering application that follows from the mathematical theory of 1D single-sided focusing. It is written in the language of ultrasonic NDE (incident pulses, reflected pulses, impulse response function, etc) to improve the chances that it might result in a usable instrument. The more mathematically inclined may, in addition, want to consult [10] . This paper's structure is as follows. The proposed autofocusing technique is described in section 2. Numerical simulations are used to test the proposed autofocusing technique in section 3. Section 4 shows how autofocusing is connected with previous work on single-sided focusing and inverse scattering. Section 5 summarizes this work and discusses the implications of autofocusing for the characterization of flaws in layered structures.

No equations need be solved.

The more mathematically inclined may, in addition, want to consult.

This paper's structure is as follows.


The most important PCA outcomes are the scatter plots of the component scores, where the samples are assigned to groups based on their differences considering the pre-processed spectra of the samples in the two dimensional space. This strategy significantly reduces the human factor of samples sorting (Oravec et al., 2015; Gál et al., 2014) . Fig. 7 shows the dependence of the explained variance on principal components. As can be seen, more than 95 % of explained variance is expressed by PC-1 and PC-2. To find an appropriate combination of transformation methods and their parameters, feedback is needed; results of the scatter plot and of the explained variance. Variance values for the first two principal components were explained using the PCA model in the range of 1000-1600 nm (Fig. 7) ; this value was higher compared to that obtained in the range of 1600-2300 nm (Fig. 8) . Specifically, differences between the values of variance in the two PCA models were about 16.58 percentage points.

This strategy significantly reduces the human factor of samples sorting.


We also investigated whether waterborne cues from bluegills could modify the habitat use patterns of Hyalella in ways that reduced predation risk and maximized fitness for the amphipod. In the choice assay, significantly higher proportions of Hyalella were recovered from Lyngbya mats when exposed to predator cues than when in freshwater only. We were unable to measure rates of amphipod movement between mats in our experiment, but our results support the hypothesis that Hyalella preferentially forage among mats of the more palatable Rhizoclonium in the absence of predators, but modify their habitat use patterns and restrict their movements in the presence of bluegill cues. Such predator-mediated patterns of patch use may be common among amphipods. For example, the freshwater amphipod Gammarus minus reduced swimming activity when exposed to waterborne cues from Green Sunfish in laboratory manipulations (Holomuzki and Hoyle 1990) . Gammarus minus also exhibited positive geotaxis and reduced movement in response to water containing cues from injured conspecifics (Wisenden et al. 1999) .

For example, the freshwater amphipod Gammarus minus reduced swimming activity when exposed to waterborne cues from Green Sunfish in laboratory manipulations.

Gammarus minus also exhibited positive geotaxis and reduced movement in response to water containing cues from injured conspecifics.


The monetary value of reducing road mortality risk is, together with the monetary value of reduced travel time, one of the dominant components of the benefit side in a benefit cost analysis (BCA) of transport investments and policies. This can explain the substantial literature estimating the value of traffic safety (Andersson and Treich, 2011) . The dominant approach to derive the value of safety is the willingness to pay (WTP) (or willingness to accept) approach, where the tradeoff between risks and wealth is estimated. For mortality risks, this value is usually referred to as the value of a statistical life (VSL).

This can explain the substantial literature estimating the value of traffic safety.


Achievement of the objective is outlined in a three-phase process via the use of a numerical flume model. This paper presents work done in the first phase, and it is recommended that the following phases be conducted in future work. Future phases should use 3-dimensional AdH modeling to solve for wave and surge overtopping using both the shallow water equations and the Navier-Stokes equations. Use of the 2-D model will result in the raw output of depth and velocity magnitudes for surge overtopping at multiple locations on the landward side levee face. This overcomes issues with pressure cell and velocity meter limitations in the physical model study. Shear stresses are estimated from the results of AdH using the same equations implemented by Nadal and Hughes [11] .

Shear stresses are estimated from the results of AdH using the same equations implemented by Nadal and Hughes.


In 2011, Z. Puchala and J. Miszczak distributed a Mathematica package intU which computes integrals of functions over the unitary group. Our implementation of Weingarten calculus is called IntHaar and, in this work, we describe the functions in the package. In contrast to intU, the main functions of IntHaar compute integrals as rational functions in d over all aformentioned compact groups, hence we do not write the argument d in our formulas when there is no confusion. The package IntHaar extensively uses J. Stembridge's package SF2.4v for symmetric functions and partitions [10] . In particular, SF2.4v is useful in manipulations and computations involving the Jack polynomials.

The package IntHaar extensively uses J. Stembridge's package SF2.4v for symmetric functions and partitions.


We expected verbal and non-verbal measures to differently affect the sensation of presence in language containing and language-free environments. The corresponding interaction was significant. However, against our prediction, verbal measures seem to interfere with the sensation of presence only if the stimulus is visual. This could again be an issue of validity (Bradley and Lang 1994) . As the nonlanguage condition generally elicited less sensations of presence than the language condition, we could assume that the verbal measure might have provoked the participants to express their boredom or lack of enjoyment rather than their sense of presence. Another conclusion again in favor of visually anchored measures is that the mental workload to respond to them is small enough, not impairing the allocation of attention toward the mediated environment.

This could again be an issue of validity.


Time series often exhibit systematic changes in the distribution of observed values. These non-stationarities are often known as concept drift [51] . This concept describes the changes in the conditional distribution of the target variable in relation to the input features (i.e. predictors), while the distribution of the latter stays unchanged. This raises the question of how to devise learning approaches capable of coping with this issue. We introduce the concept of temporal bias in resampling strategies associated with forecasting tasks using imbalanced time series. Our motivation is the idea that in an imbalanced time series, where concept drift occurs, it is possible to improve forecasting accuracy by introducing a temporal bias in the case selection process of resampling strategies. This bias favours cases that are within the temporal vicinity of apparent regime changes. In this paper, we propose two alternatives for the resampling strategies used in our work: undersampling, oversampling and SmoteR with (1) temporal bias, and (2) with temporal and relevance bias.

These non-stationarities are often known as concept drift.