BUCKLED LAYER STRUCTURE FOR ATOMIC ADSORPTION ON W(100) - THE (ROOT-2X-ROOT-2)R45-DEGREES NITROGEN STRUCTURE FROM ATLEED

Adsorption of 0.5 monolayer of N adatoms on W{100} results in a sharp (root 2 X root 2)R45 degrees LEED pattern. The only previous quantitative LEED study of this system gave a simple overlayer model with a Pendry R-factor of 0.55. An exhaustive search has been made of possible structures, including a novel vacancy reconstruction, displacive reconstructions and underlayer adsorption. From this work a new overlayer structure is derived with an R(p) value of 0.22, displaying a considerable buckling of 0.27 +/- 0.05 Angstrom within the second W layer and consequently involving large changes in the interlayer spacings of the surface. The N adatom is pseudo-five-fold coordinated to the W surface, bonding to a second-layer W atom with a nearest-neighbour bond length of 2.13 Angstrom and with the four next-nearest-neighbour W atoms in the surface plane at 2.27 Angstrom. The structure does not resolve the work function anomaly observed on this surface.

Current treatments for renal cell carcinoma

Renal cell carcinoma (RCC), also known as kidney cancer, renal adenocarcinoma or hypernephroma, and metastatic renal cell carcinoma is a global burden. This article aims to provide a brief overview of RCC. It outlines epidemiology and presentation; invesitgation and staging; treatments and prognosis. The article also includes a focus on currently available drug treatments, and serves as an introduction to the topic.

Innate immunity in the deep sea hydrothermal vent mussel Bathymodiolus azoricus

The interaction between microorganisms and host defense mechanisms is a decisive factor for the survival of marine bivalves. They rely on cell-mediated and humoral reactions to overcome the pathogens that naturally occur in the marine environment. In order to understand host defense reactions in animals inhabiting extreme environments we investigated some of the components from the immune system of the deep sea hydrothermal vent mussel Bathymodiolus azoricus. Cellular constituents in the hemolymph and extrapallial fluid were examined and led to the identification of three types of hemocytes revealing the granulocytes as the most abundant type of cell. To further characterize hemocyte types, the presence of cell surface carbohydrate epitopes was demonstrated with fluorescent WGA lectin, which was mostly ascribed to the granulocytes. Cellular reactions were then investigated by means of phagocytosis and by the activation of putative MAPKs using the microbial compounds zymosan, glucan, peptidoglycan and lipopolysaccharide. Two bacterial agents, Bacillus subtilis and Vibrio parahaemolyticus, were also used to stimulate hemocytes. The results showed that granulocytes were the main phagocytic cells in both hemolymph and extrapallial fluid of B. azoricus. Western blotting analyses using commercially available antibodies against ERK, p38 and JNK, suggested that these putative kinases are involved in signal transduction pathways during experimental stimulation of B. azoricus hemocytes. The fluorescent Ca²⁺ indicator Fura-2 AM was also insightful in demonstrating hemocyte stimulation in the presence of laminarin or live V. parahaemolyticus. Finally, the expression of the antibacterial gene mytilin was analyzed in gill tissues by means of RT-PCR and whole-mount in situ hybridization. Mytilin transcripts were localized in hemocytes underlying gill epithelium. Moreover, mytilin was induced by exposure of live animals to V. parahaemolyticus. These findings support the premise of a conserved innate immune system in B. azoricus. Such system is comparable to other Bivalves and involves the participation of cellular and humoral components. © 2008 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Visual outcomes of cataract surgery performed by supervised novice surgeons during training in rural China

To assess the outcomes of cataract surgery performed by novice surgeons during training in a rural programme. Design: Retrospective study. Participants: Three hundred thirty-four patients operated by two trainees under supervision at rural Chinese county hospitals. Methods: Two trainees performed surgeries under supervision. Visual acuity, refraction and examinations were carried out 3 months postoperatively. Main Outcome Measures: Postoperative uncorrected visual acuity, pinhole visual acuity, causes of visual impairment (postoperative uncorrected visual acuity<6/18) Results: Among 518 operated patients, 426 (82.2%) could be contacted and 334 (64.4% of operated patients) completed the examinations. The mean age was 74.1±8.8 years and 62.9% were women. Postoperative uncorrected visual acuity was available in 372 eyes. Among them, uncorrected visual acuity was ≥6/18 in 278 eyes (74.7%) and <6/60 in 60 eyes (16.1%), and 323 eyes (86.8%) had pinhole visual acuity≥6/18 and 38 eyes (10.2%) had pinhole visual acuity<6/60. Main causes of visual impairment were uncorrected refractive error (63.9%) and comorbid eye disease (24.5%). Comorbid eye diseases associated with pinhole visual acuity<6/60 (n=23, 6.2%) included glaucoma, other optic nerve atrophy, vitreous haemorrhage and retinal detachment. Conclusions: The findings suggest that hands-on training remains safe and effective even when not implemented in centralized training centres. Further refinement of the training protocol, providing postoperative refractive services and more accurate preoperative intraocular lens calculations, can help optimize outcomes. © 2012 The Authors Clinical and Experimental Ophthalmology © 2012 Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Ophthalmologists.

Diabetes Distress: Understanding the Hidden Struggles of Living with Diabetes and Exploring Intervention Strategies

Diabetes Distress is a rational emotional response to the threat of a life-changing illness. Distinct from depression, it is rooted in the demands of diabetes management and is a product of psychological adjustment. Diabetes distress has been found to be significantly associated with HbA1c and self-care, which demonstrates its clinical use in treatment outcomes. Interpersonal factors such as perceived support and protectiveness of partners significantly contribute to elevated distress, suggesting that these are valued areas of focus for interventions. Pioneering large-scale research, DAWN2, gives voices to the families of those with diabetes and reaffirms the need to consider psychosocial factors in routine diabetes care. Structured diabetes education programmes are the most widely used in helping individuals cope with diabetes, but they fail to consider the psychological or interpersonal aspects of diabetes management. Psycho-educational approaches are found to be effective in reducing diabetes distress while also improving HbA1c. Certain limitations in the current literature are discussed, along with future directions. Of utmost importance is the need for health practitioners, irrespective of background, to demonstrate an understanding of diabetes distress and actively engage in discussion with individuals struggling to cope with diabetes; to normalize this and integrate it into routine diabetes practice.

Sexual Abuse in Malawi: Patterns of Disclosure

Potential human immunodeficiency virus transmission makes prompt disclosure of child sexual abuse in Africa critical. The pattern of disclosure of 133 children presenting to the largest hospital in Malawi were analyzed. Eighty percent presented early enough for effective use of HIV postexposure prophylaxis. Seventy-five percent of children made a disclosure of child sexual abuse; 29% spontaneously and 47% after prompting. Disclosures were most commonly made to a parent, and age did not affect the pattern of disclosure. The number of children reporting child sexual abuse is increasing, possibly because of increasing awareness, availability of services, and fear of HIV. Although prompt disclosure rates were relatively high, facilitating easier disclosure of child sexual abuse by a free telephone help-line and better training of teachers may be helpful. 

Long-term changes in oxygen depletion in a small temperate lake: effects of climate change and eutrophication

1. We analysed 41 years of data (1968–2008) from Blelham Tarn, U.K., to determine the consequences of eutrophication and climate warming on hypolimnetic dissolved oxygen (DO).
2. The establishment of thermal stratification was strongly related to the onset of DO depletion in the lower hypolimnion. As a result of a progressively earlier onset of stratification and later overturn, the duration of stratification increased by 38 ± 8 days over the 41 years.
3. The observed rate of volumetric hypolimnetic oxygen depletion (VHODobs) ranged from 0.131 to 0.252 g O2 m−3 per day and decreased significantly over the study period, despite the increase in the mean chlorophyll a (Chl a) concentration in the growing season. The vertical transport of DO represented from 0 to 30% of VHODobs, while adjustments for interannual differences in hypolimnetic temperature were less important, ranging from −11 to 9% of VHODobs.
4. The mean wind speed during May made the strongest significant contribution to the variation in VHODobs. VHODobs adjusted for the vertical transport of DO and hypolimnetic temperature differences, VHODadj, was significantly related to the upper mixed layer Chl a concentration during spring.
5. Hypolimnetic anoxia (HA) ranged from 27 to 168 days per year and increased significantly over time, which undoubtedly had negative ecological consequences for the lake.
6. In similar small temperate lakes, the negative effects of eutrophication on hypolimnetic DO are likely to be exacerbated by changes in lake thermal structure brought about by a warming climate, which may undermine management efforts to alleviate the effects of anthropogenic eutrophication.

Fibre laser joining of highly dissimilar materials: Commercially pure Ti and PET hybrid joint for medical device applications

Laser transmission joining (LTJ) is growing in importance, and has the potential to become a niche technique for the fabrication of hybrid plastic-metal joints for medical device applications. The possibility of directly joining plastics to metals by LTJ has been demonstrated by a number of recent studies. However, a reliable and quantitative method for defining the contact area between the plastic and metal, facilitating calculation of the mechanical shear stress of the hybrid joints, is still lacking. A new method, based on image analysis using ImageJ, is proposed here to quantify the contact area at the joint interface. The effect of discolouration on the mechanical performance of the hybrid joints is also reported for the first time. Biocompatible polyethylene terephthalate (PET) and commercially pure titanium (Ti) were selected as materials for laser joining using a 200 W CW fibre laser system. The effect of laser power, scanning speed and stand-off distance between the nozzle tip and top surface of the plastic were studied and analysed by Taguchi L9 orthogonal array and ANOVA respectively. The surface morphology, structure and elemental composition on the PET and Ti surfaces after shearing/peeling apart were characterized by SEM, EDX, XRD and XPS.

Power Spectral Density Side-Channel Attack Overlapping Window Method

Cryptographic algorithms have been designed to be computationally secure, however it has been shown that when they are implemented in hardware, that these devices leak side channel information that can be used to mount an attack that recovers the secret encryption key. In this paper an overlapping window power spectral density (PSD) side channel attack, targeting an FPGA device running the Advanced Encryption Standard is proposed. This improves upon previous research into PSD attacks by reducing the amount of pre-processing (effort) required. It is shown that the proposed overlapping window method requires less processing effort than that of using a sliding window approach, whilst overcoming the issues of sampling boundaries. The method is shown to be effective for both aligned and misaligned data sets and is therefore recommended as an improved approach in comparison with existing time domain based correlation attacks.

Estudo da aplicação de um sistema frigorífico de absorção movido a energia solar na Ilha do Príncipe

Dissertação de mest., Energias Renováveis e Gestão de Energia (Tecnológica), Faculdade de Ciências e Tecnologia, Univ. do Algarve, 2012

Krankenhausmarketing in der Praxis - Ergebnisse einer empirischen Befragung

Bericht des Studienprojekts "Krankenhausmarketing" am Fachbereich Wirtschaft der Fachhochschule Hannover, im Schwerpunkt Handel- und Dienstleistungen. Projektzielsetzungen waren eine Ist-Analyse der Marketing-Aktivitäten von Krankenhäusern und das Feedback an alle Befragungsteilnehmer, als Anregung für die Verbesserung der Marketingarbeit im eigenen Hause.

Incidência da soja louca II nos sistemas plantio direto e convencional.

2016

A IAS 32 e os novos critérios de contabilização das entradas para o capital social das cooperativas: uma análise contabílistica e jurídica

Jornadas de Contabilidade e Fiscalidade promovidas pelo Instituto Superior de Contabilidade e Administração do Porto, em Abril de 2009

A visualização espacial e a aprendizagem da matemática: um estudo no 1º ciclo do ensino básico

Dissertação de mestrado em Ciências da Educação: área de Educação e Desenvolvimento