Therefore storing acquired knowledge is important. Knowledge storage activities involve the structuring and organization of knowledge, in order to maintain an organizational memory, by storing the knowledge in different forms such as written documentation of knowledge, information storage in electronic database, codified human knowledge stored in expert systems, and documented standard operational procedures (Alavi & Tiwana, 2003; Zack, 1999) . KM transfer activities allow members of the organization to share and disseminate information and knowledge. It refers to availability of task information and to know how to help other members in collaboration and problem solving, or generation of new ideas (Cummings, 2004) . It also involves exchange of employee knowledge, skills and experience through whole organization (Lin, 2007) . For sharing of knowledge a company should develop communication channels, either formal or informal in nature, and personal or impersonal (Alavi & Leidner, 2001) . KM application activities include integrating and applying the knowledge to solve the problems, and finding easier and effective solutions for the organization (Grant, 1996; Zack et al., 2009) . It involves applications of knowledge to enhance the capabilities of organization and its members, through the development of mechanisms such as routines, norms, or decision making (Grant, 1996) .

Knowledge storage activities involve the structuring and organization of knowledge, in order to maintain an organizational memory, by storing the knowledge in different forms such as written documentation of knowledge, information storage in electronic database, codified human knowledge stored in expert systems, and documented standard operational procedures.

It refers to availability of task information and to know how to help other members in collaboration and problem solving, or generation of new ideas.

It also involves exchange of employee knowledge, skills and experience through whole organization.

For sharing of knowledge a company should develop communication channels, either formal or informal in nature, and personal or impersonal.

KM application activities include integrating and applying the knowledge to solve the problems, and finding easier and effective solutions for the organization.

It involves applications of knowledge to enhance the capabilities of organization and its members, through the development of mechanisms such as routines, norms, or decision making.


The typical microstructure at a fracture surface of the shells is revealed in the low-magnification SEM image of Figure 3 . A plate-like structure can be attributed largely to aragonite crystals. The direction of the plates is perpendicular to the outer (upper part in the image) and the inner surfaces of the shell. The outer surface apparently has a less dense structure. Calcite is expected to be concentrated in the outer layer of the shell. The inner layer (lower part in the image) has apparently a denser structure. Usually, the inner part of the Journal of Nanomaterials shells is largely made of aragonite. Therefore, the raw powder that was subjected afterwards to transformation into calcium phosphates should involve both the phases of aragonite and calcite, which is observed in all regular shells. But the influence of aragonite-calcite sea conditions on the evolution of biocalcification remained up to now poorly understood [34] .

But the influence of aragonite-calcite sea conditions on the evolution of biocalcification remained up to now poorly understood.


It is also pertinent to note that isolate AQ07 was neither isolated from cyanide-laden environment nor was it taken from any chemically polluted environment, but it possesses excellent cyanide-degrading potential (Karamba et al. 2015) . Though cyanide can be found naturally in the environment, perhaps by secretions from surrounding plants, it may not be up to the level of high contamination. Several cyanide-degrading bacteria have been identified in recent years, but few were able to stand cyanide toxicity up to 700 mg/L. In this study, a locally isolated cyanide-degrading bacterium Serratia marcescens strain AQ07 was subjected to the optimisation process via both one factor at a time (OFAT) and response surface methodology (RSM) to determine the optimal condition for manipulating it in biotechnological practices.

It is also pertinent to note that isolate AQ07 was neither isolated from cyanide-laden environment nor was it taken from any chemically polluted environment, but it possesses excellent cyanide-degrading potential.


To avoid this predicament, the optimisation of the analytical process has been conducted by the utilisation of multivariate statistical procedures, among which is response surface methodology (RSM). It is a collection of mathematical and statistical procedures based on the fit of a polynomial equation to the experimental data, which ought to explain the performance of a data set with the objective of making statistical previsions. It is usually applied when a response or a set of responses of interest are influenced by a number of variables (Bezerra et al. 2008) . RSM is very significant in biotechnological processes.

It is usually applied when a response or a set of responses of interest are influenced by a number of variables.


Optimisation literarily means discovering the best solution, the most excellent compromise amongst numerous inconsistent demands subject to predefined requirements called constraints (Arif et al. 2012; Halmi et al. 2013) . Optimisation is very important in biotechnological processes. Optimum condition for better growth and proliferation of a microorganism must be obtained to subject it into its best biotechnological manipulations. Optimising parameters necessary for biological techniques is very essential in solving the problems that are identified in the process (Suhaila et al. 2013; Zahaba et al. 2015) . Use of optimisation in a biotechnological system tends to make it as efficient and achievable as possible .

Optimisation literarily means discovering the best solution, the most excellent compromise amongst numerous inconsistent demands subject to predefined requirements called constraints.

Optimising parameters necessary for biological techniques is very essential in solving the problems that are identified in the process.


Much higher prevalences have been reported in the UK where 93% of patients used statins metabolised by the CYP3A4 enzyme, and every third patient concomitantly took medicines that inhibited the metabolism of statins [21] . Previous studies showed that a combination of simvastatin with fibrates, cyclosporine, digoxin, macrolide antibiotics, warfarin or azoles increased the risk of statin-mediated rhabdomyolysis [9, 22, 23] . Therefore, in our study, 10% of simvastatin users (4.3% of all statin users) are at a risk of developing rhabdomyolysis. Furthermore, if warfarin and simvastatin are used concomitantly (729 patients in our study), an increased risk of haemorrhage should also be highlighted alongside the increased risk of rhabdomyolysis [23, 24] .

Much higher prevalences have been reported in the UK where 93% of patients used statins metabolised by the CYP3A4 enzyme, and every third patient concomitantly took medicines that inhibited the metabolism of statins.

Previous studies showed that a combination of simvastatin with fibrates, cyclosporine, digoxin, macrolide antibiotics, warfarin or azoles increased the risk of statin-mediated rhabdomyolysis.

Furthermore, if warfarin and simvastatin are used concomitantly (729 patients in our study), an increased risk of haemorrhage should also be highlighted alongside the increased risk of rhabdomyolysis.


Three-way analyses of variance were used to compare densities of both early and late plantigrades with respect to sample date, site and type of substratum. To meet the assumptions of constant variance across groups the data were log-transformed prior to the analysis of variance (Sokal & Rohlf 1981) . Cornpansons of the size composition of recruits found on filamentous algae and mussel clumps were based on Mann-Whitney U-tests and Kolmogorov-Smirnov 2-sample tests performed for separate sampling dates (Conover 1980) .

To meet the assumptions of constant variance across groups the data were log-transformed prior to the analysis of variance.

Cornpansons of the size composition of recruits found on filamentous algae and mussel clumps were based on Mann-Whitney U-tests and Kolmogorov-Smirnov 2-sample tests performed for separate sampling dates.


The Oxford Nanopore MinION is new mobile sequencing machine. The size of an office stapler, the device is powered by the USB port of a laptop computer. The MinION measures changes in the electronic current as single molecules of DNA are passed through a biological nanopore. By using a hairpin adapter, each molecule is read twice and the resulting 2D reads are long (usually 5-6 kb, but there is no theoretical limit) [11] [12] [13] . The first nanopore-only bacterial genome assembly has been published [14] . However the assembly process was complex and the resulting assembly has a high error rate (1,202 mismatches and 17,241 indels). Others have reported using MinION data to successfully arrange Illumina contigs into a single scaffold [15] .

By using a hairpin adapter, each molecule is read twice and the resulting 2D reads are long (usually 5-6 kb, but there is no theoretical limit).

The first nanopore-only bacterial genome assembly has been published.

Others have reported using MinION data to successfully arrange Illumina contigs into a single scaffold.


Significant intra-strain antigenic variation has been observed, suggested to be an adaptation to its survival in the human host [2] . The first B. fragilis genomes (NCTC 9343 and YCH46) were sequenced in 2004-2005 [3, 4] . These projects identified dynamic rearrangement in B. fragilis, including several invertible promoters associated with LPS biosynthesis gene clusters and four "shufflons" that had the potential to alter gene expression of specific genes. Together, these inversions regulate cell surface adaptation and bacterial phage resistances and are the source of the observed antigenic variation [4] .

Significant intra-strain antigenic variation has been observed, suggested to be an adaptation to its survival in the human host.

The first B. fragilis genomes (NCTC 9343 and YCH46) were sequenced in 2004-2005.

Together, these inversions regulate cell surface adaptation and bacterial phage resistances and are the source of the observed antigenic variation.


In Einstein's theory of General Relativity parity is conserved. On the other hand, extensions to gravity, motivated by high energy physics, require the addition of parity violating terms to the Einstein-Hilbert action [1] . These corrections create a difference in the intensities of the left and right gravitational wave polarizations resulting to a net circular polarization in the gravitational wave background.

On the other hand, extensions to gravity, motivated by high energy physics, require the addition of parity violating terms to the Einstein-Hilbert action.


In both models, the excitation of the azobenzene chromophore causes a significant disturbance of the aggregated peptide which decays within a few nanoseconds. Finally the isomerized cis azobenzene molecules act as local defects which induce the slow disassembly of the aggregated structures. This disassembly process leads to the broad absorption decrease found in the 10 min time range in the band of aggregated peptides. The time dependence of the absorption clearly shows that the isomerization of the azobenzene switch does not directly disrupt the aggregates. The isomerization leads to distortions of the structures which induce disassembly via thermally driven steps on much longer time scales. The use of azobenzene as a switching element for aggregated structures has also been demonstrated very recently in the context of the Alzheimer related Amyloid β peptide [10] . Apparently the azobenzene switch is well suited for the manipulation of amyloidlike aggregates.

The use of azobenzene as a switching element for aggregated structures has also been demonstrated very recently in the context of the Alzheimer related Amyloid β peptide.


Figure 1(a) shows the amide I' band of a peptide preparation after seven days of incubation. There is a strong absorption in the 1610-1630 cm −1 range and only weaker absorption at higher frequencies (the peak at 1678 cm −1 originates from residual TFA from the synthesis). Amide I absorption between 1640 and 1700 cm −1 is well known for free amide groups or random coil peptides and for secondary structures like α-helix or β-sheet [6] . Absorption in the 1610-1630 cm −1 range is characteristic for aggregated amyloid-like peptides [7] [8] [9] . For the AcAzoTrpZip, an absorption at about 1625 cm −1 was found for weakly aggregated or oligomeric peptides, whereas an absorption at about 1615 cm −1 was found for strongly aggregated extended fibrils [4] . The sample after seven days in solution is composed of monomeric, weakly aggregated peptides and to a large extent of strongly aggregated amyloid-like fibrils [4] . Figure 1(b) shows the light-induced absorbance changes of a strongly aggregated sample (17 days of incubation) on the nano-to microsecond time scale. At the beginning of the observation period (1 ns after the UV excitation), a dispersive absorption change with a decreased peaking around 1612 cm −1 and an increased intensity at about 1622 cm −1 is observed. It points to changes of strongly aggregated into weakly aggregated structures. This spectral signature decays on the 5 ns time scale (Figures 1(b)  and 2(a) ). Later on until the end of the observation period (80 μs), no significant absorption changes were detected.

Amide I absorption between 1640 and 1700 cm −1 is well known for free amide groups or random coil peptides and for secondary structures like α-helix or β-sheet.

Absorption in the 1610-1630 cm −1 range is characteristic for aggregated amyloid-like peptides.

For the AcAzoTrpZip, an absorption at about 1625 cm −1 was found for weakly aggregated or oligomeric peptides, whereas an absorption at about 1615 cm −1 was found for strongly aggregated extended fibrils.

The sample after seven days in solution is composed of monomeric, weakly aggregated peptides and to a large extent of strongly aggregated amyloid-like fibrils.


While this strategies, and process, proved useful in the example above, some cautionary notes should be considered regarding the validity of the results. First, to gain confidence on the adequacy of the strategies proposed, more and more extensive case studies need to be carried out. It is particularly relevant that these cover different application domains. Indeed, the strategies were developed in the specific domain of interactive cockpits, so there is a risk that the approach is biased to this domain. We feel they are reasonably generic, but whether other domains' tasks might have characteristics that require additional of different strategies is still to be determined. Second, these further case studies need to take data input into consideration. At this point of the study, this aspect has not been addressed, and its effect on the process needs to be assessed. Finally, the strategies were developed using the HAMSTERS task modeling notation. It should be possible to adapt them to other hierarchical task modeling notations, for example CTT [29] . However, particularly for the strategies that have a structural impact on the models or exploit detailed data models, the effect of the difference in approaches to represent operators between the two task modeling notations must be analyzed.

It should be possible to adapt them to other hierarchical task modeling notations, for example CTT.


It is therefore necessary to introduce more effective MDR-TB treatment regimens that lead to improved patient outcomes and reduced disease transmission, while also demonstrating a manageable adverse event (AE) profile. Recently, three promising treatment options have emerged as add-on therapies to a BR: bedaquiline, linezolid, and delamanid. These are novel or Group 5 interventions that have been shown to improve efficacy outcomes in patients with MDR-TB over BR alone [12] [13] [14] .

These are novel or Group 5 interventions that have been shown to improve efficacy outcomes in patients with MDR-TB over BR alone.


If the metric is an ultrametric, then ultrametric balls can serve well in the proofs of fixed point theorems, such as the Ultrametric Banach's Fixed Point Theorem [11] . This is due to their special property that if two ultrametric balls have nonempty intersection, then they are already comparable by inclusion. In contrast, metric balls in general metric spaces are not usually employed in fixed point theorems.

If the metric is an ultrametric, then ultrametric balls can serve well in the proofs of fixed point theorems, such as the Ultrametric Banach's Fixed Point Theorem.


We believe that focussing on the Coleman-Weinberg corrections, as we have done here, is enough to understand how new physics breaks the connection between low and high field values of the theory, and the effect it has on the robustness of NHI's inflationary predictions. This picture can be made more quantitative by explicitly deriving the full set of RG equations in both asymptotic regimes, which we leave for further work. Another interesting question would be to study the possibility of a "critical new Higgs inflation" regime, analogous to conventional critical Higgs inflation [36, 37, 38] .

Another interesting question would be to study the possibility of a "critical new Higgs inflation" regime, analogous to conventional critical Higgs inflation.


The bionic airway model used in this study was a unique and ideal platform to investigate the cell-cell interactions involved in the malignant transformation of bronchial epithelial cells because this model vividly simulates the real structure and microenvironment of the airways in humans. Currently, the challenge of the organon-chip model is to recapitulate the healthy and diseased physiology of multiple tissues or organs to mimic the in vivo conditions in order to supplement animal studies for preclinical drug development [30, 31] . Developing such platforms could allow us to robustly mimic reliable tissue or organ-level structural and functional outputs while maintaining the simplicity required for high-throughput systems. In this study, we designed, built, and tested an in vitro model of healthy and carcinogenic human airway structures. Using this human bionic airway chip culture system, we demonstrated that we could recapitulate the whole course of lung tumorigenesis. Compared to other in vitro models, this novel platform has the following advantages: its minute structure, high-oxygen permeable PDMS materials, and a continuous flow of air and medium that can mimic an in vivo microenvironment and meet the requirements for human bronchial epithelial cell culture. Therefore, compared to conventional platforms, the research results from the microfluidic chip may be more meaningful. Furthermore, this microfluidic chip can be suitable for high-throughput screening for potential signaling pathways, therapeutic targets, and time-lapse imaging. More importantly, the microfluidic chip allowed both morphological analysis and fluorescence marker detection to fulfill the dynamic observation of cultured cells and their signaling during the long-term exposure of a carcinogen. Thus, this designed microfluidic chip is a unique platform to study cell-cell interactions in the malignant transformation of bronchial epithelial cells.

Currently, the challenge of the organon-chip model is to recapitulate the healthy and diseased physiology of multiple tissues or organs to mimic the in vivo conditions in order to supplement animal studies for preclinical drug development.


Putting more emphasis on the skills related to instructional uses of technology rather than skills related to hardware and software operations, the most comprehensive approach to determining educational technology competencies may be seen in the NETS-T (National Education Technology Standards for Teachers) Project of the ISTE (International Society for Technology in Education). This project classified technology competencies under six categories: (a) technology operations and concepts, (b) planning and designing learning environments and experiences, (c) teaching, learning and curriculum, (d) assessment and evaluation, (e) productivity and professional practice and (f) social, ethical, legal and human issues (Gooler, Kautzer, & Knuth, 2000) . This comprehensive approach can also be seen in cross-cultural/international settings (Schiller, 2002; Laanpere, 2001) .

This project classified technology competencies under six categories: (a) technology operations and concepts, (b) planning and designing learning environments and experiences, (c) teaching, learning and curriculum, (d) assessment and evaluation, (e) productivity and professional practice and (f) social, ethical, legal and human issues.

This comprehensive approach can also be seen in cross-cultural/international settings.


Considering that different teaching programs use different curricula to train pre-service teachers for different student age groups, these results appear to be logical. According to Piaget, until 11 years of age, children are in the concrete operations stage where they have difficulties in understanding abstract concepts (Driscoll, 1994) . To know or understand a concept, children in this stage have to act on it, modify it or transform it, but looking at it or copying it will not be enough to learn it. On the other hand, children between 11 and 15 years of age are in the formal operations stage where they can use reasoning and understand abstract concepts without utilizing concrete objects.

According to Piaget, until 11 years of age, children are in the concrete operations stage where they have difficulties in understanding abstract concepts.


For several reasons companies are developing a growing interest in improving the efficiency and quality of their internal business processes and in optimizing their interactions with customers and business partners [1] . During the last years we have seen an increasing adoption of business process management (BPM) tools by enterprises as well as emerging standards for business process specification and execution (e.g., BPMN, WS-BPEL) in order to meet these goals. Corresponding technologies (e.g., workflow systems, case handling tools) enable the definition, execution, and monitoring of the operational processes of an enterprise.

For several reasons companies are developing a growing interest in improving the efficiency and quality of their internal business processes and in optimizing their interactions with customers and business partners.


Genres can come and go, or change, being cultural constructs which vary with the times, with fashion, and with ideological movements within society. Thus, some sub-genres of "official documents" in English have been observed to have changed in recent times, becoming more conversational, personal, and familiar, sometimes in a deliberate way, with manipulative purposes in mind (Fairclough 1992) . The genres have thus changed in terms of the registers invoked (an aspect of intertextuality), among other changes, but the genre labels stay the same, since they are descriptors of socially constituted, functional categories of text.

Thus, some sub-genres of "official documents" in English have been observed to have changed in recent times, becoming more conversational, personal, and familiar, sometimes in a deliberate way, with manipulative purposes in mind.


Mushroom cultivation is a lucrative agribusiness. Total mushroom production worldwide has increased more than 6-folds in the last three decades, from about 1.2 million metric tons in 1980 to about 7.3 million metric tons in 2010 [1] . Worldwide, mushrooms are produced on natural materials obtained from agriculture, woodlands, animal husbandry, and manufacturing industries [2] . Some of these wastes include saw dust, banana leaves, peanut hull, corn leaves and husks, sugarcane leaves, rice and wheat straw, cotton wastes, paper wastes, cocoa shells, wheat, bedded horse manure, and various other wastes [3, 4] . The widely used substrate for cultivation of mushroom in Asia is rice straw base, while in the South East Asian countries sawdust is more common nowadays [5] .

Total mushroom production worldwide has increased more than 6-folds in the last three decades, from about 1.2 million metric tons in 1980 to about 7.3 million metric tons in 2010.

Worldwide, mushrooms are produced on natural materials obtained from agriculture, woodlands, animal husbandry, and manufacturing industries.

Some of these wastes include saw dust, banana leaves, peanut hull, corn leaves and husks, sugarcane leaves, rice and wheat straw, cotton wastes, paper wastes, cocoa shells, wheat, bedded horse manure, and various other wastes.

The widely used substrate for cultivation of mushroom in Asia is rice straw base, while in the South East Asian countries sawdust is more common nowadays.


Model testing provides valuable information which can be used to predict how a prototype would behave under similar conditions. Scaled modeling should ensure that the model correctly represents the prototype [8] . A pilot device is a scaled down model of the final proposed device. Pilot device testing confirms the operational parameters that are predicted in scaled model testing. The results from pilot tests can be used to make changes if required in the final device.

Scaled modeling should ensure that the model correctly represents the prototype.


Point absorbers are floating wave energy converters (WEC's) whose dimensions are much smaller than the wavelength. They oscillate with the ocean waves with one or more degrees of freedom. A point absorber is capable of absorbing wave energy from a wave front greater than the physical dimensions of the device itself [3] . A feasibility study of the ocean wave energy resource in a given location is essential for design of WEC's [4] . The designs of offshore marine structures require a thorough understanding of the ocean characteristics and behavior [5] . A study of the ocean wave characteristics allows the engineer to assess the energy available in the waves at a particular site and to design an appropriate WEC to get optimum performance. Wave energy converter devices could be located offshore or inshore. The important parameters to describe waves are the wavelength, wave height, period, and the water depth over which they are propagating [6] . There are some well researched theories which are able to predict the wave characteristics at different water depths. However, these theories are approximations and the real ocean wave characteristics can vary largely [2] .

A point absorber is capable of absorbing wave energy from a wave front greater than the physical dimensions of the device itself.

A feasibility study of the ocean wave energy resource in a given location is essential for design of WEC's.

The designs of offshore marine structures require a thorough understanding of the ocean characteristics and behavior.

The important parameters to describe waves are the wavelength, wave height, period, and the water depth over which they are propagating.

However, these theories are approximations and the real ocean wave characteristics can vary largely.


The women smokers appeared to have an increased susceptibility to COPD after the age of 45 to 50 years compared with younger women, which is consistent with a meta-analysis indicating that women are more vulnerable to COPD after the menopause [35] . It is well-known that sex-steroids interact with the immune system, with estrogen enhancing immune function [36, 37] . After the menopause lower estrogen levels may make women more vulnerable to the inflammatory processes involved in COPD. This would be consistent with the observed up turn for this age group.

The women smokers appeared to have an increased susceptibility to COPD after the age of 45 to 50 years compared with younger women, which is consistent with a meta-analysis indicating that women are more vulnerable to COPD after the menopause.

It is well-known that sex-steroids interact with the immune system, with estrogen enhancing immune function.


All of these models have proven useful tools in scientific research of estuarine ecosystems and for site-specific scenario studies of management strategies (Moll & Radach, 2003) . Most were, however, developed for a specific region, focussed on a specific area of expertise, differed markedly in model complexity and level of temporal and spatial resolution, and served different objectives. Typically, such individual process-oriented ecological models perform well for the particular water system for which they were developed, but when applied to other systems, their performance tends to be poor even after reparameterization (Fitz et al., 1996) . Therefore, the Dutch National Institute for Coastal and Marine Management (RIKZ) initiated the development of a Generic Ecological Model for estuaries (GEM), an integrated model that includes physical, chemical and ecological processes at a sufficient level of detail and in a consistent way. The goal of the generic ecological model was to integrate the best aspects of the existing (Dutch) models and expertise that are dedicated to one ecosystem or only a subset of relevant processes into an integrated coherent model that allows for general application to different coastal and estuarine systems.

All of these models have proven useful tools in scientific research of estuarine ecosystems and for site-specific scenario studies of management strategies.

Typically, such individual process-oriented ecological models perform well for the particular water system for which they were developed, but when applied to other systems, their performance tends to be poor even after reparameterization.


The rest of the paper is structured as follows. We start by introducing background concepts on DW-MRI, the ball & stick model and GPU programming. Then, we describe the sequential algorithm that is used by the bedpostX application. We present in detail the parallel version implemented in CUDA. The sequential and parallel implementations are compared using a set of tests. Discussion of results and conclusions are presented in the last section. Preliminary results of this work have been presented before in a short conference paper [28] .

Preliminary results of this work have been presented before in a short conference paper.


The natural history of T2D describes the process of the development from normal glucose tolerance (NGT) via so-called pre-diabetic states, which are characterized by higher insulin resistance and/or reduced insulin secretion, to T2D. The pre-diabetic or worsened glucose states are impaired fasting glucose (IFG), impaired glucose tolerance (IGT) and a combination of both (IFG&IGT). Subjects in any of the three states have moderate to severe insulin resistance and impaired insulin secretion, each state having distinct pathophysiologic etiologies. For a description of the states see DeFronzo and colleagues [8] . Assuming relatively short intervals, for example one year, the direct development of T2D from NGT is not likely. At some point of time, the individual will develop IGT, IFG or a combination of both before a possible transition to T2D. It is therefore intriguing and necessary to specifically look at pre-diabetic states and factors that influence their development. Prediabetes is an increasingly common condition [9] . It has been reported that subjects with IFG differ from those with IGT or with a combination of both. We need studies that estimate the specific impact of glycemic states on the development of T2D and that determined which factors are driving forces for this development.

For a description of the states see DeFronzo and colleagues.

Prediabetes is an increasingly common condition.


This is the first systematic review to explore the level of and factors affecting adherence to prescribed exercise in people with SpA. Of the nine papers included, adherence rates to the exercise programmes ranged from 51 to 95%. Inclusion of education programmes and supervision, disease severity and delays in diagnosis were factors identified which may influence adherence in SpA; however, these factors were only identified in single studies, with no consensus across studies [30] [31] [32] [33] 35] . Adherence appeared to decline over time. The exercise interventions differed in terms of frequency, type, intensity, and length and in the measurement of adherence, making direct comparison difficult.

Inclusion of education programmes and supervision, disease severity and delays in diagnosis were factors identified which may influence adherence in SpA; however, these factors were only identified in single studies, with no consensus across studies.


In nasopharyngeal carcinoma, tumor volume is not included in the UICC TNM staging system, Ho's staging system or the Chinese 1992 staging system [1, 9, 10] . The T stagings of these classification systems are mainly based on local anatomic invasion, and the cranial nerve involved, and lack indicators that can objectively and quantitively reflect tumor burden. Several studies have demonstrated that the prognosis prediction for patients undergoing conventional radiotherapy or IMRT for nasopharyngeal carcinoma using tumor volume is superior than with the T staging system, and suggested that tumor volume should be included in the TNM staging of nasopharyngeal carcinoma [2, 11, 12] . However, the inclusion of tumor volume into the existing TNM staging framework requires further study, and the correlation between tumor volume and TNM staging also needs to be clarified. Although the correlation between tumor volume and the T classification has been investigated, few studies have addressed the correlation between the N classification and distant metastasis after radiotherapy. Therefore, the aim of the present study was to explore the correlation between tumor volume and the T and N classifications and distant metastasis after radiotherapy, and to provide further evidence for the inclusion of tumor volume into the TNM staging system.

In nasopharyngeal carcinoma, tumor volume is not included in the UICC TNM staging system, Ho's staging system or the Chinese 1992 staging system.

Several studies have demonstrated that the prognosis prediction for patients undergoing conventional radiotherapy or IMRT for nasopharyngeal carcinoma using tumor volume is superior than with the T staging system, and suggested that tumor volume should be included in the TNM staging of nasopharyngeal carcinoma.


Of utmost interest is the correlation seen between pAkt expression and the BC molecular subtypes, where the luminal-like subtype displayed a higher frequency of pAkt positivity than the basal-like and TN subtypes. This association might mirror the positive association between pAkt with ER, luminal CK18, 19 and the negative association with basal CK14 found in our series; and on the other hand supports other reports attributing the resistance to adjuvant hormonal therapy to the activation of Akt in hormone receptor positive cases [40] . Despite the strong correlation with histologic grade, hormonal receptor status and BC molecular subtypes, the association of pAkt expression with patients' BCSS or MFS during the period of follow-up did not reach statistical significance. These findings might not be surprising, firstly because of the dependency of pAkt status in our series on ER expression whose its prognostic significance is reported to be dependent on age, lymph node status and length of follow-up time [41] . Secondly, it may be due to the high proportion of tumours showing pAkt expression implying an early activation of Akt pathway in these cases, rather than a feature of tumour progression [29] .

This association might mirror the positive association between pAkt with ER, luminal CK18, 19 and the negative association with basal CK14 found in our series; and on the other hand supports other reports attributing the resistance to adjuvant hormonal therapy to the activation of Akt in hormone receptor positive cases.

These findings might not be surprising, firstly because of the dependency of pAkt status in our series on ER expression whose its prognostic significance is reported to be dependent on age, lymph node status and length of follow-up time.

Secondly, it may be due to the high proportion of tumours showing pAkt expression implying an early activation of Akt pathway in these cases, rather than a feature of tumour progression.


This study addresses the safety issue of hydrogen gas leakage within a building, as from a hydrogen-powered vehicle parked in a residential garage. Any leakage of unignited hydrogen will mix with indoor air and may form a flammable mixture. The most widely accepted flammability range is 4.1% to 75% hydrogen by volume [1] . To provide a safety margin, many standards [e.g., 2,3] specify a safe limit of 25% of the lower flammability limit (LFL), which for hydrogen amounts to 1% by volume. Passive (buoyancy-driven) and active (mechanical) ventilation strategies may be used to prevent the accumulation of hydrogen at flammable concentrations; both approaches have limitations. Researchers need to understand the relationship between leakage scenario, ventilation design, and hydrogen concentration to develop safety standards and codes to address this risk.

The most widely accepted flammability range is 4.1% to 75% hydrogen by volume.


Therefore, further investigations of secondary structures of antigens when adsorbed to aluminium hydroxide are needed in order to elucidate, if modification of protein structure occurs. Stability of adsorption-modified protein structure is of major importance, since modifications may induce degradation of the antigens during storage. Antigen degradation could potentially pose risk to patients. The term stability, when it relates to proteins, is often used in a variety of ways, including chemical and/or physical degradation [5] . In the present study we are primarily concerned with the secondary structure of proteins. Two model antigens bound to adjuvant were investigated during heating and storage in comparison to the antigens in solutions using FTIR-ATR spectroscopy. For the storage experiments, apart from normal storage temperature, i.e. 4 • C, an accelerated degradation test (ADT) was also employed, which subjected the samples to an elevated temperature, i.e. 37 • C, at which denaturation should occur more rapidly than at normal temperature. It is well known that some vaccines are temperature sensitive [6] . Both high and low (freezing) temperatures can cause inactivation of vaccines. In this work, structural stability of the model antigens was in addition investigated at different heating temperatures, since temperature alterations are an important problem during the transportation and storage of vaccines, especially in developing countries where the quality of the 'cold chain' is not always optimal [7] .

The term stability, when it relates to proteins, is often used in a variety of ways, including chemical and/or physical degradation.

It is well known that some vaccines are temperature sensitive.

In this work, structural stability of the model antigens was in addition investigated at different heating temperatures, since temperature alterations are an important problem during the transportation and storage of vaccines, especially in developing countries where the quality of the 'cold chain' is not always optimal.


To determine if racial disparities were evident for trastuzumab-associated cardiac safety events in registHER, reported cardiac safety events were compared in white and black patients treated with trastuzumab. Because the number of events in the analysis was small, results should be interpreted with caution. The incidence of cardiac safety events (collected via predefined checkboxes and physician subjective opinion) was slightly greater in black patients than white patients (10.9 vs. 7.9 %, respectively), as was the incidence of congestive heart failure (4.2 vs. 1.6 %, respectively). The contributing factors to this modest difference are unknown, but they are likely to include a higher incidence of hypertension that requires treatment in black vs. white patients, as it is known to be a risk factor for trastuzumab-induced cardiac toxicity [28] . Additional research is needed to investigate risk factors for cardiac toxicity by race among patients receiving trastuzumab.

The contributing factors to this modest difference are unknown, but they are likely to include a higher incidence of hypertension that requires treatment in black vs. white patients, as it is known to be a risk factor for trastuzumab-induced cardiac toxicity.


On the other hand, the off-shell scaling transformation in the reduced action formalism is successfully utilized to obtain the Smarr relation in a rather uniform fashion [20] [21] [22] [23] . When this off-shell scaling transformation is a symmetry of the reduced action, one can obtain the conventional Smarr relation for planar black holes. Though planar black holes are invoked for this scaling transformation, it is anticipated that the scaling transformation method could reproduce or extend the incorporation of the cosmological constant as a thermodynamic variable.

On the other hand, the off-shell scaling transformation in the reduced action formalism is successfully utilized to obtain the Smarr relation in a rather uniform fashion.


As concrete examples, we have provided several black hole solutions, which could admit scalar hairs. As anticipated from the non-linear behavior of the scalar field, the final results for the extended Smarr relation with the non-trivial scalar hair seem to be consistent with the Euler's scaling, and the extended first law is retained in its form even with the scalar hairy contribution, as is presented in Eq. (10) . Therefore, it would be very interesting to explore further the Euler's scaling behavior of scalar hairs. For instance, we may ask that the Euler's scaling argument could be extended in some ways to give us some information about scalar hairs. More specifically, it would be very interesting to see scaling behavior of scalar hairs in some analytic hairy solutions or to check the extended Smarr relation with the scalar hairy contributions. Another interesting direction is to investigate the interpretation of the extended first law and the Smarr relation in the context of the AdS/CFT correspondence. It would be very interesting to see how our off-shell scaling or the quasi-local ADT approach are realized in the dual field theory side. In this paper, we have focused on planar black holes for scalar hairy cases, since the existence of scalar hairs in the non-planar black holes is somewhat subtle. Since our approach could be used in these non-planar black holes at least formally, it would also be interesting to explore the relation between the formal derivation of the extended Smarr relation and the existence of scalar hairs in these black holes.

As anticipated from the non-linear behavior of the scalar field, the final results for the extended Smarr relation with the non-trivial scalar hair seem to be consistent with the Euler's scaling, and the extended first law is retained in its form even with the scalar hairy contribution, as is presented in Eq..


Our results illustrated in the Figure 2 adds complexity to this picture since instead of having one crossover temperature it presents two distinct transitions for the hydrophobic and for the hydrophilic sites. In order to explore the differences between the two mechanisms the mean square displacement of the TS-Kappa's hydrogen atoms was computed. The hydrogen are the lightest and most mobile atoms over the protein surface, therefore a useful probe of the mobility of the TS-Kappa as a whole. In order to com- pletely remove the translational motions of the protein during the simulation, and access just the fluctuations in its structure, we compute the MSD at each time step by comparing the protein structure at time t with respect to the reference initial configuration of the protein trough a least-squares fitting of the two compared structures. The time dependent hydrogen's MSD is then averaged over 1 ns, as shown in Figure 3 . There are two main contributions to the a protein's MSD: a vibrational component predominant at low temperatures and a conformational component activated by temperature and absent in dry proteins [48] . The Figure 3 illustrates the protein MSD dynamic crossover around T = 240 K. This is the same temperature in which the dynamic crossover in the water diffusion at the hydrophilic sites is shown in the Figure 2 . At low temperatures the protein exhibits a very slow dynamics also observed in other studies [7, 49] . The transition at 240 K might be due to the coupling between water and protein kinetics [5, 11, 14, 17, 47] .

There are two main contributions to the a protein's MSD: a vibrational component predominant at low temperatures and a conformational component activated by temperature and absent in dry proteins.

At low temperatures the protein exhibits a very slow dynamics also observed in other studies.

The transition at 240 K might be due to the coupling between water and protein kinetics.


In order to investigate if the transition at 240 K could be related to this kinetic coupling effect, the number of HBs (n HB ) is evaluated. The Figure 4 shows the number of water-water (n w−wHB ) and water-protein (n w−pHB ) hy- drogen bonds as a function of the temperature. The number of water-water hydrogen bonds is lower than the number of water-protein bonds in the vicinity of the hydrophilic sites which indicates that the hydrophilic patches of the protein attract water molecules to its surface breaking water-water HBs, as suggested in our previous work [50] . The water-water and water-protein hydrogen bonds show a very similar behavior converging to the same value around 300 K.

The number of water-water hydrogen bonds is lower than the number of water-protein bonds in the vicinity of the hydrophilic sites which indicates that the hydrophilic patches of the protein attract water molecules to its surface breaking water-water HBs, as suggested in our previous work.


The present data of lower density of GS-IR (and GFAP-IR) astrocytes in the PLC of alcohol-naïve P rats as compared with NP rats are also in line with our previous study showing a significantly lower number of GFAP-IR astrocytes in P rats as compared with NP and Wistar rats (Miguel Hidalgo, 2005) . In addition, the withdrawal-related increase in the packing density of GS-and GFAP-immunoreactive astrocytes appears to occur concomitantly with a significant ADE (observed in the two first periods of withdrawal in animals with 6-month alcohol-drinking and three withdrawal periods). This coincidence may link the ADE to the increased GS immunoreactivity. Clearly, experiments with longer periods of ethanol deprivation (at times when the alcohol deprivation can still be detected) are needed to determine whether the number of GS-IR astrocytes remains elevated or returns to lower values beyond 3 days of abstinence.

The present data of lower density of GS-IR (and GFAP-IR) astrocytes in the PLC of alcohol-naïve P rats as compared with NP rats are also in line with our previous study showing a significantly lower number of GFAP-IR astrocytes in P rats as compared with NP and Wistar rats.


Fibre mat can be produced from bio-phenolic resin using electrospinning device (Ahn et al. 2012) . Before and during the process, various parameters such as such as viscosity, concentration and molecular weight of the polymeric solution need to be optimised (Reneker & Yarin 2008) . In this study, bio-novolac resin derived from oil palm EFB were electrospun to form novolac fibre. The goal of this study was to determine the effect of resinification temperature of the bio-novolac resin and the addition of PVB on the formation of electrospun novolac fibre.

Fibre mat can be produced from bio-phenolic resin using electrospinning device.

Before and during the process, various parameters such as such as viscosity, concentration and molecular weight of the polymeric solution need to be optimised.


Wireless sensor networks (WSNs) are a particular type of ad hoc network, in which the nodes are autonomous. These nodes are tiny devices equipped with communication component, data computation, and sensing capability [1] [2] [3] . In this type of network, each node collects information from the target area and sends this information to a sink, through a multihop communication network. A wireless network consists of hundreds to thousands nodes, which are deployed either inside the target area or very close to the target area. Upon an event happening or during monitoring sessions, the wireless nodes will collect and report this information to the sink node for further analysis.

These nodes are tiny devices equipped with communication component, data computation, and sensing capability.


In wireless network, nodes act selfishly and conflict with each other in pursuit for energy efficiency and connectivity [19] [20] [21] . If the nodes select lower transmission range, the constructed topology will be disconnected. In reverse, if nodes select high transmission power level, the interference among nodes will raise, leading to high energy consumption. The main problem is how to establish a tradeoff between connectivity and energy efficiency for each node. Game theory is used to solve the conflicting objectives of nodes seeking to achieve connectivity and energy efficiency.

In wireless network, nodes act selfishly and conflict with each other in pursuit for energy efficiency and connectivity.


Energy efficiency is one of the main requirements in sensor networks [7] . Nodes in wireless sensor network are powered with limited energy resource for variety of applications and thus have limited lifetime. Therefore, the energy resource of sensor nodes must be managed efficiently to improve the network lifetime. Moreover, sensor nodes are equipped with storage device, communication radio, and computation device, all of which are powered with limited battery provision. Thus, it is mandatory that every node be energy efficient; this not only maximizes the node's lifetime but also maximizes the network performance. Designing an energy efficient algorithm for the desirable network performance is necessary.

Energy efficiency is one of the main requirements in sensor networks.


There are limitations to the amount of information that such a small study of retrieved components can provide with respect to the material loss mechanism but it allows for the identification and quantification of such material loss. The main advantage of the method compared to those used previously is in the accuracy of the measuring equipment and the measurement resolution allowing for imprinted texture to be identified and mapped. It is noteworthy that this work has already contributed towards the development of a standard guide for measurement of orthopaedic tapers [30] .

It is noteworthy that this work has already contributed towards the development of a standard guide for measurement of orthopaedic tapers.


The exposure of fish to chemical contaminants is likely to induce a number of lesions in different organs [18] . Histology is an important tool to investigate changes at cellular level like the endocrine disrupting effects of diazinon on fish. It is believed that diazinon is one of the most harmful organophosphate that could be as Endocrine Disrupting Chemicals (EDCs) and suppress reproductive activities with endogenous hormonal disruption [19] - [21] . It also could have direct effects on gonads, disrupting sexual behaviours, gemates quality and spawning process.

The exposure of fish to chemical contaminants is likely to induce a number of lesions in different organs.

It is believed that diazinon is one of the most harmful organophosphate that could be as Endocrine Disrupting Chemicals (EDCs) and suppress reproductive activities with endogenous hormonal disruption.


The global annual production of REEs is typically expressed in tons of rare-earth oxides (REOs). At present, the estimated annual total for the production of REOs is about 130,000-140,000 tons, but accurate numbers are very difficult, if not impossible, to find [1] [2] [3] . China's share is presently around 95% of the total production. However, these total production numbers do not provide us with information about the availability of the individual REEs. It is important to notice that the REEs are not present in equal amounts in the various REE ores, due to the differences in the natural abundance of these elements. The general trend in the natural abundance of the REEs is that the elements become scarcer with increasing atomic number Z [4, 5] . A consequence of the decreasing abundance across the lanthanide series is that the HREEs are much less abundant than the LREEs. An additional trend is that elements with an even Z are more abundant than elements with an odd Z. For example, cerium (Z = 58) is more abundant than its neighbors lanthanum (Z = 57) and praseodymium (Z = 59). This is the so-called Oddo-Harkins rule, and it reflects the relative stability of the atomic nuclei [6, 7] . All the REEs occur together in REE deposits, but some deposits are richer in LREEs, while other deposits are richer in HREEs. It is not possible to operate a mine to extract one single REE; there exists no ''neodymium mine'' to extract solely neodymium. Cerium is the dominant REE in LREE-rich ores (bastnäsite and monazite), while yttrium is the main REE in HREE-rich ores (xenotime and ionadsorption ores). However, the available amounts of yttrium are much smaller than those of cerium. Promethium does not occur in nature, because all of its isotopes have a very short half-life.

At present, the estimated annual total for the production of REOs is about 130,000-140,000 tons, but accurate numbers are very difficult, if not impossible, to find.

The general trend in the natural abundance of the REEs is that the elements become scarcer with increasing atomic number Z.

This is the so-called Oddo-Harkins rule, and it reflects the relative stability of the atomic nuclei.


In the 2011 report on CRMs by the European Commission, all REEs were grouped together ( Fig. 1 ) [15] . However, this did not reflect the availability of the individual REEs, nor did it reflect the fact that some REEs are more critical than others. In contrast, the 2014 update of the criticality report differentiated between HREEs (the most critical) and the LREEs (somewhat less critical, but still with a very high supply risk) (Fig. 2) [16] . This figure showed that the HREEs are more critical than the LREEs because a higher supply risk resulted from their limited availability. However, this figure still suffered from an oversimplification, as not all HREEs should be considered as CRMs. Indeed, as the HREEs holmium, erbium, thulium, and ytterbium do not have high-volume applications, they should not be considered as critical elements.

In the 2011 report on CRMs by the European Commission, all REEs were grouped together ( Fig. 1 ).

In contrast, the 2014 update of the criticality report differentiated between HREEs (the most critical) and the LREEs (somewhat less critical, but still with a very high supply risk) (Fig. 2).


Within this context, the objective of this paper is to describe a new methodology for estimating the effect of increasing CO 2 concentrations and global warming induced changes in temperature and humidity on the durability and structural safety of RC structures. The first part of the paper presents models of chloride ingress and carbonation that could be used towards this aim. The following section focuses on modelling of effects of global warming on the environmental actions that affect the rates of chloride penetration and carbonation and RC corrosion. This section also includes the projected changes in temperature and humidity in relation to global warming scenarios. The paper then illustrates the effects of global warming on the structural reliability (collapse limit state) of a RC bridge girder under chloride penetration. The final part of the study outlines some adaptation strategies for design and repair of RC structures accounting for climate change. The results presented in this study are based on the projections of global warming found in the literature [2, [10] [11] [12] . In the regard, the conclusions outlined herein are not general. Instead, they should be interpreted as overall tendencies for given climate change scenarios.

The results presented in this study are based on the projections of global warming found in the literature.


A HIL simulator is used in the development and testing of embedded controllers in the Electronic Control Units (ECUs) [1] [2] . Performing validation and verification of the functional specification of the ECUs in a traditional vehicle electrical development platform such as the yellowboard (a breadboard type of platform for testing electrical functionality) or in a prototype vehicle is costly both in time and money as static test benches having the actual wiring harness, loads and sensors are required. In the automotive industry, vehicle manufacturers commonly utilize HIL simulation systems to carry out automated testing to make an initial evaluation of the controllers and assessment of the performance of the full functionality of the prototype parts in the car prior to the building of whole vehicle [3] [4] . The use of a HIL simulator to test and analyse automotive electronic control systems has been well documented by many researchers [5] [6] [7] [8] [9] . This paper presents a software reconfigurable simulator based on the latest HIL technologies. The discussed HIL simulator differs from the above mentioned HIL simulation platforms in that it is flexible and has signal conditioning which is reconfigurable by software. The need for such a flexible HIL simulator in the context of the research problem is first discussed. The flexible and software reconfigurable HIL simulator is then introduced and its system design is presented in detail.

A HIL simulator is used in the development and testing of embedded controllers in the Electronic Control Units (ECUs).

In the automotive industry, vehicle manufacturers commonly utilize HIL simulation systems to carry out automated testing to make an initial evaluation of the controllers and assessment of the performance of the full functionality of the prototype parts in the car prior to the building of whole vehicle.

The use of a HIL simulator to test and analyse automotive electronic control systems has been well documented by many researchers.


The nationally determined contributions (NDCs) of all South Asian countries proposed their contribution to climate change mitigation efforts and local adaptation actions with individual country's national priorities. According to the recent report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), the current level of emissions of greenhouse gases (GHG) needs to be reduced considerably to limit the temperature rise to below 2 °C (UNFCCC 2015) . Although contribution from the agriculture sector to global emissions is lower than industrial, energy, and other sectors, it has substantial potential to contribute to global emission mitigation supplemented by appropriate adaptation options.

According to the recent report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), the current level of emissions of greenhouse gases (GHG) needs to be reduced considerably to limit the temperature rise to below 2 °C.


A wide range of mitigation options in agriculture have been proposed based on the evaluation of practices and technologies in different agricultural production systems in South Asia. Changes in soil, water, and nutrient management practices and adoption of climatesmart technologies can significantly reduce GHG emissions from croplands (Ahmad et al. 2013; Aryal et al. 2015a, b; Sapkota et al. 2015a, b; Singh et al. 2010) . Similarly, feed inputs and manure management have enormous potential to reduce emissions from the livestock sector (Gerber et al. 2013a, b; Vetter et al. 2017) . Despite substantial potential for GHG mitigation from the agriculture sector, national and subnational governments in the region do not prioritize agricultural mitigation options in their NDCs. Nevertheless, their priorities on adaptation initiatives such as water and crop, crop management, value chain interventions, and landscape-level actions have substantial potential for generating mitigation co-benefits.

Changes in soil, water, and nutrient management practices and adoption of climatesmart technologies can significantly reduce GHG emissions from croplands.

Similarly, feed inputs and manure management have enormous potential to reduce emissions from the livestock sector.


Of these, however, it is still a challenge to find a simple fabrication process to prepare ZnO NPs with a large active surface area. In addition, the use in agricultural and environmental aspect requires a simple, cost-effective fabrication process to synthesize ZnO NPs, which can provide a high yield with reasonable purities. Solution-combustion process is simple and cost-effective, expected to provide extremely porous structure of ZnO NPs [13] . With this advantage, the solution-combustion method has been employed to fabricate ZnO NPs, with a mixture of ethanol and ethyleneglycol (V/V = 60/40) as the solvent and zinc acetate as the zinc source, and explore its photocatalytic degradation effects on organic dye Rhodamine B.

Solution-combustion process is simple and cost-effective, expected to provide extremely porous structure of ZnO NPs.


Water pollution has been a serious threat to the environment. The major sources of pollutants are from manufacturing processing industries, particularly chemical and textile industries in which organic dyes are widely used. Presently, the perilous effects of organic dyes to the environment are a particular concern. Conventional treatment methods, adsorptions for instance, are not always adequate and/or appropriate to remove organic dyes from wastewater streams in a large scale. Adsorption is a nondestructive method, which simply transfers dyes from one medium to another. In recent years, many researchers are interested in applying the 'photocatalytic decomposition process' to degrade the hard-to-biodegrade organic pollutants in industrial wastewater before discharge into mainstream water bodies [1] .

In recent years, many researchers are interested in applying the 'photocatalytic decomposition process' to degrade the hard-to-biodegrade organic pollutants in industrial wastewater before discharge into mainstream water bodies.


However, examining factors that contributed to weight gain in the current study revealed that lack of nutritional awareness and lifestyle were the major reasons for gaining weight on the insulin pump. Many participants in the current study were incompetent in counting carbohydrate. Lacking awareness of carbohydrate counting or not counting carbohydrate at all could contribute to excessive consumption of carbohydrate, and consequently weight gain (Johnson, 2000) . In addition, non-adherence to diet and exercise as a consequence of pump-related factors was reported in this study. Based on the participants' views, the effectiveness of the pump in reducing blood glucose levels, even if they ate large portions and a variety of food at any time without exercising, made them feel more flexible about eating without blaming themselves. The consumption of more calories than are burned increases bodyweight, while regular and moderate physical activity helps in losing weight (Lee et al., 2010) .

Lacking awareness of carbohydrate counting or not counting carbohydrate at all could contribute to excessive consumption of carbohydrate, and consequently weight gain.

The consumption of more calories than are burned increases bodyweight, while regular and moderate physical activity helps in losing weight.


A new Isolator System was developed for multiple laparoscopic and other minimally invasive procedures. This Isolator System protects exposed tissue against potentially harmful particles without restricting the surgeon performing the procedure. Not only can the patient benefit from the Isolator System, in case of contagious diseases, such as hepatitis or HIV, the Isolator System could protect the operating room and personnel against contaminating tissue and migrating cells coming from the patient [27] . In developing countries, this Isolator System could be used in operating rooms, intensive care units, or day care centers with limited resources. The question remains whether minimally invasive surgery in underdeveloped countries is realistic. Many studies indicate that, despite the under-resourced settings, it is possible and sometimes even cost efficient, to perform minimally invasive surgery in underdeveloped countries [28] [29] [30] [31] . Already in India, in larger hospitals, day care centers, and camp settings, and wherever trained surgeons and gynecologists are available, the laparoscopic cholecystectomy and sterilization approach is frequently used because of its simplicity, safety, speed, and shorter postoperative hospital stay [29] [30] [31] [32] . To investigate whether the Isolator System is useful for laparoscopic procedures in under-resourced settings, an additional study needs to be performed. This study also should indicate how many, and under which circumstances, procedures are performed in underdeveloped countries. Developed counties also can benefit from the new Isolator System. If the Isolator Systems is used in well-equipped hospitals or in combination with the use of a robotic surgical system, sealing of the cables, technical equipment, or robotic arms may no longer be necessary.

Not only can the patient benefit from the Isolator System, in case of contagious diseases, such as hepatitis or HIV, the Isolator System could protect the operating room and personnel against contaminating tissue and migrating cells coming from the patient.

Many studies indicate that, despite the under-resourced settings, it is possible and sometimes even cost efficient, to perform minimally invasive surgery in underdeveloped countries.

Already in India, in larger hospitals, day care centers, and camp settings, and wherever trained surgeons and gynecologists are available, the laparoscopic cholecystectomy and sterilization approach is frequently used because of its simplicity, safety, speed, and shorter postoperative hospital stay.


Fundamental results show that there are ZK-PoK for all languages in N P [2] . Yet, the respective protocols are of theoretical interest only, because executing This work was in part funded by the European Community's Seventh Framework Programme (FP7) under grant agreements no. 216499 and 216483. We also refer to the full version of this paper [1] .

Fundamental results show that there are ZK-PoK for all languages in N P.

We also refer to the full version of this paper.


Introduction of precision agriculture systems in farms requires farmers to know the subject, to update their knowledge and to systemically extend it, to rationally evaluate their own actions and to learn by mistakes; also their implementation without suitable knowledge and qualifications in their application will not bring expected results. The condition for the success is mainly a skill to learn by mistakes, critical evaluation of own activities, intellectual effort and being involved (Gaultney, 2008; Stafford, 2007; Zalewski, 2000) . Regardless the scale on which precision agriculture technologies are presently used in practice, further research and popularization of information related thereto are necessary because this field of knowledge develops dynamically and in many directions (McBratney et al., 2005) .

The condition for the success is mainly a skill to learn by mistakes, critical evaluation of own activities, intellectual effort and being involved.

Regardless the scale on which precision agriculture technologies are presently used in practice, further research and popularization of information related thereto are necessary because this field of knowledge develops dynamically and in many directions.


In recent years a significant progress took place in the satellite navigation field, variable dosing of fertilizers and yield mapping. In order to face the challenge of introducing the precise farming system one should reach for GIS Technologies -efficient tool for integration of agricultural research. Information concerning agricultural production combined with a specific spatial situation gives unlimited analytical possibilities which serve for optimization of a production cycle. Thanks to this we obtain a tool, which affects the improvement of the quality and efficiency of work (Zbytek and Młodanowicz, 2001; Bobola and Sztampke, 2008) .

Thanks to this we obtain a tool, which affects the improvement of the quality and efficiency of work.


Presently, distribution of farms is a great impediment for introduction of modern technologies which is related to economic aspects. Purchase of machines and devices is possible in many cases only in large-area farms. These farms have great acreage and the eco-nomic and quality effect of these farms is visible on account of the production scale (Gozdowski, 2007) .

These farms have great acreage and the eco-nomic and quality effect of these farms is visible on account of the production scale.


Molecular Dynamics (MD) is a powerful technique used to obtain static or dynamic properties of liquids and solids. It can more formally be defined as a computer simulation technique where the time evolution of a set of interacting atoms is followed by integrating their equations of motion [2] . There are numerous applications for MD simulations in diverse fields of science and technology such as chemistry, astronomy, biophysics, solid-state physics, material science and fluid dynamics to mention a few.

It can more formally be defined as a computer simulation technique where the time evolution of a set of interacting atoms is followed by integrating their equations of motion.


Mobile Ad Hoc networks (MANETs) are rapidly evolving as an important research area of wireless mobility. MANET is a dynamically self-organizing network without supported infrastructure or central administrator. The main characteristic of MANET is that the network topology changes very fast and unpredictably in which mobile nodes moves to and from other wireless networks without any fixed access point where routers and hosts move constantly, so the topology dynamically changed [1] .

The main characteristic of MANET is that the network topology changes very fast and unpredictably in which mobile nodes moves to and from other wireless networks without any fixed access point where routers and hosts move constantly, so the topology dynamically changed.


Therefore, frequent change of the network topology is rough challenge for many important issues, such as increasing overhead, limited bandwidth and energy loss. In order to reduce the power consumption on the AODV protocol we suggest a heuristic method that reduces the routing messages and therefore we get low routing load and low energy consumption. By this way we propose to change dynamically the probability of route message forwarding and therefore to reduce the average consumed energy of all nodes, the number of dropped packets of all the nodes, the total amount of data received/transmitted from the nodes over time [1] [4] .

By this way we propose to change dynamically the probability of route message forwarding and therefore to reduce the average consumed energy of all nodes, the number of dropped packets of all the nodes, the total amount of data received/transmitted from the nodes over time.


A history of major surgery after bleomycin was not predictive of increased risk of BPT. This may be because major surgery is a poor surrogate for supplemental oxygen exposure, or because the effect is not great. Clearly, a history of previous bleomycin exposure is a major consideration when a patient is being considered for general anaesthesia, particularly with regard to the concentrations of oxygen used [36] . Pretreatment haemoglobin levels were also not associated with altered risk of BPT.

Clearly, a history of previous bleomycin exposure is a major consideration when a patient is being considered for general anaesthesia, particularly with regard to the concentrations of oxygen used.


We showed that age >40 years increased the risk of BPT (HR 2.2; 95% CI 1.1-4.4). This is consistent with findings from other studies that show increasing risk of lung toxicity with increasing age [3, 27] . This may be due to reduced GFR or decreased ability to repair pulmonary tissue damage, with increasing age. In the GCT population, most patients are young adults. The oldest patient to receive bleomycin in our study was aged 64 years; the median age at chemotherapy was 29 years. It is therefore important to consider the possible effects of aging on a patient's ability to tolerate bleomycin.

This is consistent with findings from other studies that show increasing risk of lung toxicity with increasing age.


Today, information technology advancement has transformed the world into a global village. In recent years, the use of mobile phones and mobile technology has increased manifold. This overwhelming increase in the adoption of mobile phones is due to the numerous useful applications and services available on mobile phones which bring convenience to the mobile phone users (Arif, Aslam & Ali, 2016) . The convenience that mobile phones off er is unmatchable by any other technology; hence, they have become an integral part of daily life (Hwang, Shiau & Jan, 2007) .

This overwhelming increase in the adoption of mobile phones is due to the numerous useful applications and services available on mobile phones which bring convenience to the mobile phone users.

The convenience that mobile phones off er is unmatchable by any other technology; hence, they have become an integral part of daily life.


All of the above data show that mobile payment services are becoming important for consumers as well as for the economy and also indicate the existence of some diffi culty in introducing these technologies at a faster rate. Therefore, there is a need to examine which factors bring about positive attitudes of consumers towards mobile payment services. Previous studies have provided the limited understanding of the key drivers towards increased use of mobile payment services (Schierz et al., 2010) . Hence, the intent of this study is to identify the dynamics contributing to a positive attitude and intention to use a mobile payment service. Attitudes of consumers towards mobile payment services are assessed through perceived security, perceived compatibility, perceived usefulness, perceived ease of use, and subjective norms. This study empirically tests the signifi cance of newly suggested TAM extensions (subjective norm and perceived security) and provides a complete and tested measurement instrument as a basis for future research. In addition, it may be helpful for managers in advancing and improving their current capability to gain greater acceptance by customers. This paper is organized into six sections. The next section discusses the literature related to consumer behavior towards mobile payment services and the hypotheses of the study. Methodology, including the sampling, data collection techniques, and measurement methods, is discussed in Section 3. Research fi ndings are then presented in the results section, which is followed by implications, and recommendations.

Previous studies have provided the limited understanding of the key drivers towards increased use of mobile payment services.


In general, the NPTII gene, GUS gene, or HPT gene are used for YAC constructed in selection (Adam et al. 1997) . In this study, the GFP gene combined with the NPTII gene were used to construct a YAC for transformation confirmation. One or 2 days after transformation, transient GFP expression was observed. Such a detection method of transient expression offers an easy and quick way to confirm the YAC transformation process.

In general, the NPTII gene, GUS gene, or HPT gene are used for YAC constructed in selection.


Our main result, Theorem 5, reveals the following surprising phenomenon. For different E ′ , the limiting random field may not be the same. However, in the special case with E ′ = cE for some c > 0, the dependence structure of the limiting random field is determined by the measure ν. This case is referred to as the critical regime. For the non-critical regime, one can still obtain invariance principles under different normalizations depending on both E and E ′ , although the limiting random field has degenerate dependence structure (either invariant, i.e. completely dependent, or independent increments) along at least one direction. Below we briefly summarize the phenomenon of critical regime. To the best of our knowledge, the existence of such a critical regime has been rarely seen in the literature, except for the recent results by Puplinskaitė and Surgailis [33, 34] . They investigated invariance principles for a different random field model in dimension 2, and referred to the same phenomenon as the scaling-transition phenomenon.

To the best of our knowledge, the existence of such a critical regime has been rarely seen in the literature, except for the recent results by Puplinskaitė and Surgailis.


The profile of long-chain fatty acids (FA) deposited on the body ruminative fat is variable and different from those consumed by the animal, depending mainly on the rate and extension of the ruminative biohydrogenation (Harfoot, 1981) . The ruminative biohydrogenation, which results in the disappearance of linoleic and linolenic acids, is usually extensive. In average, 80% of linoleic acid and 92% of linolenic acid present in the ingested food undergo saturation process (Fellner et al.,1995; Ferlay et al.,1993) .

The profile of long-chain fatty acids (FA) deposited on the body ruminative fat is variable and different from those consumed by the animal, depending mainly on the rate and extension of the ruminative biohydrogenation.

In average, 80% of linoleic acid and 92% of linolenic acid present in the ingested food undergo saturation process.


Integrated harvesting is defined as a single pass harvesting operation so that an energy component is produced in conjunction with conventional sawlog assortments [5] . Research has shown that integrated harvesting systems can be effectively used to harvest and supply woody biomass for energy from conventional forestry plantations [6] . Integration of biomass harvesting into an active logging operation could also reduce the cost of producing biomass by utilizing the equipment on site for multiple products and minimizing the amount of tree handling [7] . Since integrated harvesting removes biomass with sawlogs in a single pass, there is no need for a second operation to clean up harvesting residues. Integrated harvesting systems have been applied to fuel reduction thinning treatments to reduce the threat of forest fires. To reduce fuel loads in high density stands, whole trees are felled and removed to landings or roadsides where they are processed into sawlogs and biomass. This approach facilitates slash disposal without prescribed burning and increases opportunities for the utilization of biomass for energy production. Costs of integrated fuel reduction thinning operations have also been shown to be economically feasible at $25.79/m 3 for sawlogs and $34.94/BDT for biomass [8] .

Integrated harvesting is defined as a single pass harvesting operation so that an energy component is produced in conjunction with conventional sawlog assortments.

Research has shown that integrated harvesting systems can be effectively used to harvest and supply woody biomass for energy from conventional forestry plantations.

Integration of biomass harvesting into an active logging operation could also reduce the cost of producing biomass by utilizing the equipment on site for multiple products and minimizing the amount of tree handling.

Costs of integrated fuel reduction thinning operations have also been shown to be economically feasible at $25.79/m 3 for sawlogs and $34.94/BDT for biomass.


Despite its distinct positives, the PMA shows extremely nonlinear features [9] . This nonlinearity is caused by the elastic-viscous properties of the inner rubber tube, the compressibility of air, and the structure of the complex behaviour of the PMA outer covering [7] . Furthermore, the hysteresis performance is due to the inner rubber tube, which results in different performances of the PMA during different pressurizing conditions [6] . This behaviour increases the complexity of the system model and its control [4] .

Despite its distinct positives, the PMA shows extremely nonlinear features.

This nonlinearity is caused by the elastic-viscous properties of the inner rubber tube, the compressibility of air, and the structure of the complex behaviour of the PMA outer covering.

Furthermore, the hysteresis performance is due to the inner rubber tube, which results in different performances of the PMA during different pressurizing conditions.

This behaviour increases the complexity of the system model and its control.


Several mechanisms of resistance have been discovered for glyphosate, which can inluence the level of resistance. Target-site resistance involving alteration of the binding site within the plant for the glyphosate molecule can give 2 to 15-fold resistance (Preston et al. 2009) . A non-target site mechanism causing reduced translocation of glyphosate can give similar or higher levels of resistance (Wakelin & Preston 2006) .

Target-site resistance involving alteration of the binding site within the plant for the glyphosate molecule can give 2 to 15-fold resistance.

A non-target site mechanism causing reduced translocation of glyphosate can give similar or higher levels of resistance.


On the other side, the more the debt grows in relation to output, the more fiscal effort is needed to reverse its trajectory, since both risk premia and interest expenses also rise, feeding back into debt and its charges. Thus, the primary balance needed to stabilize it tends to become increasingly higher (Cysne and Gomes, 2017) . This leads to the concept of debt sustainability.

Thus, the primary balance needed to stabilize it tends to become increasingly higher.


A condition established in a common definition of debt sustainability is that the sum of the anticipated future primary surpluses, duly discounted to present value, be sufficient to offset the debt amount and interest payments at the present time (Blanchard et al., 1990) . Furthermore, it is important to point out that, for the size and evolution of the country's economy to be considered, both public debt and primary surplus should be expressed proportionally to output. This definition, albeit simple, involves uncertainty not only in relation to future surpluses, but also regarding the appropriate discount factor, since -among other sources of uncertainty -future interest rate and product growth rate are both unknown, thus motivating a statistical treatment.

A condition established in a common definition of debt sustainability is that the sum of the anticipated future primary surpluses, duly discounted to present value, be sufficient to offset the debt amount and interest payments at the present time.


The failure analysis of pipe joints are still a matter of controversy with respect to a unified design approach, despite the fact that many exact and finite element solutions have been presented in the literature (Hosseinzadeh et al., 2006) . The significantly increased fracture mechanics based models offered a promising alternative to predict the debonding and failure of bonded joints in a more accurate but relatively simpler approach (Hutchinson and Evans, 2000; Rizzi et al., 2000) . Fracture studies were usually carried out under several idealized conditions, such as in the case of linear elastic fracture mechanics or the case of small scale yielding. In such cases, the details of the stress-strain around the crack tip are uniquely characterized by a single macroscopic parameter such as the stress intensity factor. These global parameters are related to the corresponding material properties typically the fracture toughness that determines the critical conditions of crack initiation and growth. When the crack tip experiences inelastic damage, the concepts based purely on the theory of elasticity are not valid. Further, for cracks along bimaterial interfaces, the crack tip will no longer be embedded in a square-root singular stress field; leading to a condition that stress intensity factor may either be zero or infinity (Atkinson, 1979) .

The failure analysis of pipe joints are still a matter of controversy with respect to a unified design approach, despite the fact that many exact and finite element solutions have been presented in the literature.

The significantly increased fracture mechanics based models offered a promising alternative to predict the debonding and failure of bonded joints in a more accurate but relatively simpler approach.

Further, for cracks along bimaterial interfaces, the crack tip will no longer be embedded in a square-root singular stress field; leading to a condition that stress intensity factor may either be zero or infinity.


In general computational engineering research, there have been attempts to integrate computer-aided design (CAD) by taking spline-based CAD geometries and using them directly in numerical analysis; this approach is known as isogeometric analysis (IGA) [12] . The primary advantage of using boundary elements for IGA (a combination referred to as IGABEM) is that the functions used in CAD describe only the boundary. It appears that BEM and CAD could be fully integrated. Finite element meshes can be also formed from CAD descriptions but it is a considerably more complex process.

In general computational engineering research, there have been attempts to integrate computer-aided design (CAD) by taking spline-based CAD geometries and using them directly in numerical analysis; this approach is known as isogeometric analysis (IGA).


Serum albumin is a major soluble protein constituent of the circulatory system and has many physiological functions such as acting as a plasma carrier by nonspecifically binding to several hydrophobic steroid hormones and as a transport protein for hemin and fatty acids [2] . Albumins are characterized by a low content of tryptophan and methionine and a high content of cystine and charged amino acids [3] [4] [5] . Bovine serum albumin (BSA), an example of a mammalian albumin, has been studied extensively because of its stability, neutrality in many biochemical reactions, and low cost [6, 7] . Brown elucidated the 607 amino acid residue, primary structure of BSA in 1975, twenty one of which are tyrosine (Tyr) residues and two of which are tryptophan (Trp) residues located at positions 134 and 212, respectively [3, 6] . These two Trp residues cause BSA to have intrinsic fluorescence.

Serum albumin is a major soluble protein constituent of the circulatory system and has many physiological functions such as acting as a plasma carrier by nonspecifically binding to several hydrophobic steroid hormones and as a transport protein for hemin and fatty acids.

Albumins are characterized by a low content of tryptophan and methionine and a high content of cystine and charged amino acids.

Bovine serum albumin (BSA), an example of a mammalian albumin, has been studied extensively because of its stability, neutrality in many biochemical reactions, and low cost.

Brown elucidated the 607 amino acid residue, primary structure of BSA in 1975, twenty one of which are tyrosine (Tyr) residues and two of which are tryptophan (Trp) residues located at positions 134 and 212, respectively.


Local state-space explosion was identified by Emerson and Wahl as the major obstacle to using generic representatives with non-trivial symmetric programs [19] . The paper ameliorates this problem using a static live-variable analysis, and using an approximate but inexpensive local state reachability test. Being heuristic in nature, this work cannot guarantee a reduced complexity of the abstract program.

Local state-space explosion was identified by Emerson and Wahl as the major obstacle to using generic representatives with non-trivial symmetric programs.


In this paper, we combine the ideas of long-range SPP waveguide and hybrid plasmonic waveguide to form a long-range hybrid plasmonic slot (LRHPS) waveguide. Actually, two nanoslot waveguides sustaining quasi-TE polarization mode have been extensively investigated, which offer a broaden freedom for structure design and hold great potentials for light guiding as well as signal processing applications [24] - [26] . For our proposed LRHPS waveguide with two nanoslots, the mode guiding mechanism relies on the hybrid effects of long-range SPPs and enhanced electric field due to its discontinuity at the high-index-contrast dielectric interface. We comprehensively characterize the mode properties, propagation length, normalized power and intensity, nonlinearity, and dispersion. The designed LRHPS waveguide shows two important features for potential highdensity nanophotonic integration and efficient nonlinear signal processing applications: 1) it offers a long propagation range on the scale of millimeter length together with a subwavelength mode confinement; 2) a high nonlinearity and a low dispersion are achievable at the telecommunication wavelength through the tailoring of the waveguide geometry.

Actually, two nanoslot waveguides sustaining quasi-TE polarization mode have been extensively investigated, which offer a broaden freedom for structure design and hold great potentials for light guiding as well as signal processing applications.


Data partitioning indices usually decompose the space based on Minimum Bounding Rectangles (MBRs). A primary example is the R-tree that splits space with hierarchically nested, and possibly overlapping Minimum Bounding Rectangles (MBRs) [13] . However, for the application at hand, data partitioning schemes are not well suited for several reasons. They often use a non-disjoint decomposition of space. Consequently, a naïve partitioning based on MBRs could either assign requests to several partitions, and hence later to several shares, or could assign requests from a region where several MBRs overlap to several partitions, thereby potentially eliminating the chance for good matches. While a disjoint partitioning of space could be derived based on the MBRs, computation to derive such a partitioning would be complex and potentially expensive, and the derived partitions will most likely not be balanced.

A primary example is the R-tree that splits space with hierarchically nested, and possibly overlapping Minimum Bounding Rectangles (MBRs).


Yet another form of CT, namely cab-sharing, was recently proposed [12] . The key idea of cab-sharing is to use unoccupied cab space to reduce the cost of transportation, ultimately resulting in direct savings to the individual. The described Cab-Sharing System (CSS) overcomes most of the above limitations of existing ride-sharing systems. In particular, at the heart of the system is a trip grouping algorithm that is able to find subsets of closeby trip requests, which can be grouped into collective cab fares to minimize the transportation cost, or equivalently maximize the savings to the user. Using a simple implementation in standard SQL, assuming a reasonable number (high spatio-temporal density) of trip requests, the trip grouping algorithm was demonstrated to be able to group trip requests effectively. The trip grouping algorithm can be generalized to facilitate other CT systems, e.g., a ride-sharing system. However, as it is demonstrated in the present paper, due to its algorithmic complexity, the grouping algorithm scales poorly as the volume of trip requests increases. This limits its applicability to facilitate large-scale CT systems, such as a metropolitan or nation-wide ride-sharing system.

Yet another form of CT, namely cab-sharing, was recently proposed.


Acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) is the most common leukemia in pediatrics. About 80% ALL cases occur in children. It's a hematologic malignancy arising from the hematopoietic precursors of lymphoid. T-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia (T-ALL) is the ALL transformed from the developing thymocytes. It's the result of cooperative genetic lesions. These genetic aberrations affect various biological processes, e.g. self-renewal, proliferation and survival, as well as the differentiation of precursor T cells [1] .

About 80% ALL cases occur in children.

These genetic aberrations affect various biological processes, e.g. self-renewal, proliferation and survival, as well as the differentiation of precursor T cells.


Caution must be exercised, however, in interpreting comparisons across scales (e.g., competence and warmth) that do not possess ratio properties. It may be particularly problematic to compare across subjectively positive and negative scales given the people's general reluctance to assign negative characteristics to other people and groups (Matlin & Stang, 1978) . In light of this bias, however, the willingness of respondents to assign overtly negative characteristics (e.g., arrogance) to the United States (including its citizens) is especially troubling. Moreover, the Pew polls suggest that anti-American sentiment has only increased since 2002 when our data were obtained.

It may be particularly problematic to compare across subjectively positive and negative scales given the people's general reluctance to assign negative characteristics to other people and groups.


For the assessment of cough severity we did not use a complete parent-compiled quality of life quality (PC-QoL) questionnaire but instead we adopted a subjective verbal category-descriptive (VCD) scale [18] . Although this scale was validated against an objective cough meter measure in children slightly older (6-17 year-old) than our population (4-15 year-old), it can be considered reliable also for our study since it is a parent-assisted card. The VCD was found to be easier to use than the PC-QoL and so assures better compliance; in fact, we have made a preliminary test on the correct compilation of the VCD scale and the PC-QoL questionnaire, conducted on 20 patients for 28 consecutive days, and we obtained a compliance of 95 % for VCD but just 35 % for PC-QoL. It should also be pointed out that VCD has been proven to have a high correlation with domain variations of the PC-QoL questionnaire in children [21, 22] . Furthermore, since the VCD scale was used in our previous study on the same homeopathic syrup in adults, applying the same validated assessment tool in this study on a child population enabled us to obtain standardized and comparable data between children and adults [17] .

For the assessment of cough severity we did not use a complete parent-compiled quality of life quality (PC-QoL) questionnaire but instead we adopted a subjective verbal category-descriptive (VCD) scale.

The VCD was found to be easier to use than the PC-QoL and so assures better compliance; in fact, we have made a preliminary test on the correct compilation of the VCD scale and the PC-QoL questionnaire, conducted on 20 patients for 28 consecutive days, and we obtained a compliance of 95 % for VCD but just 35 % for PC-QoL. It should also be pointed out that VCD has been proven to have a high correlation with domain variations of the PC-QoL questionnaire in children.

Furthermore, since the VCD scale was used in our previous study on the same homeopathic syrup in adults, applying the same validated assessment tool in this study on a child population enabled us to obtain standardized and comparable data between children and adults.


Overall, students reported that they felt the simulation experiences were beneficial, valuable, and relevant, and that they would recommend the simulation to other students (Sewell, 1996; Hedaya, 1998; Tompson, 2000; Sibbald, 2003 Sibbald, , 2004 Boje, 2005; Kiegaldie, 2006; Orr, 2007; Tsai, 2008; Bambini, 2009; Brands, 2009; Kameg, 2010) . However, the user-friendliness of the simulation is a factor in how the students perceive simulations. In a study that used a simulation game that was not very user-friendly, students did not respond as favorably to this experience as did students in other studies (Kinkade, 1995) .

Overall, students reported that they felt the simulation experiences were beneficial, valuable, and relevant, and that they would recommend the simulation to other students.

In a study that used a simulation game that was not very user-friendly, students did not respond as favorably to this experience as did students in other studies.