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The author proves a very good knowledge of the most subtle and diverse narrative methods up to the point of suspecting him of affectedness in writing: he seems to enjoy drawing up the most fanciful frameworks of a novel’s design. Each new fragment is being narrated from a certain character’s point of view, the abundant prospects achieving the equivocation of the whole story up to the absurd. Some

Objectives To assess the prevalence of HIV and related risk behaviours among people who inject drugs (PWID) in Iran. Methods We conducted a national cross-sectional bio-behavioural surveillance survey between March and July 2010, interviewing male PWID from a geographically dispersed sample through a facility-based sampling method. Results We recruited 2480, and tested 2290 PWID. The overall preva

To identify previously unknown genetic loci associated with fasting glucose concentrations, we examined the leading association signals in ten genome-wide association scans involving a total of 36,610 individuals of European descent. Variants in the gene encoding melatonin receptor 1B (MTNR1B) were consistently associated with fasting glucose across all ten studies. The strongest signal was observ

Objective. To compare the effects of a restrictive versus a liberal fluid prescription, on quality of life, physical capacity, thirst and hospital admissions, in patients who had improved from NYHA class (III-)IV CHF to a stable condition without clinical signs of significant fluid overload. Design. The present study is a randomised cross-over study. Seventy-four patients (mean age 70 +/- 10 years

From a control design point of view, modern diesel engines are dynamic, nonlinear, MIMO systems. This paper presents a method to find low-complexity black-box dynamic models suitable for model predictive control (MPC) of NOx and soot emissions based on on-line emissions measurements. A four-input-five-output representation of the engine is considered, with fuel injection timing, fuel injection dur

Objective. To assess the clinical utility of repeat sacroiliac joint computed tomography (CT) in sacroiliitis by assessing the proportion of patients changing from normal to pathologic at CT and to which degree there is progression of established sacroiliitis at repeat CT. Methods. In a retrospective analysis of 334 patients (median age 34 years) with symptoms suggestive of inflammatory back pain,

The macrocyclic ketone (MK) group of fragrance ingredients was evaluated for safety following a complete literature search. For high end users, calculated maximum dermal exposures vary from 0.13% to 1.10%; systemic exposures vary from 0.0005 to 0.0441 mg/kg/day. The MKs had low acute toxicity and no significant repeat dose toxicity. Liver weight and blood biochemistry effects were reversible after

Nature is a key component in many kinds of tourism experiences and is commonly perceived as an explicit goal of doing tourism. This is a long-standing feature in the histories of tourism, and presently in many contemporary, service-based economies it coincides with a cultural emphasis on nature in many other commercial representations and manifestations. This can be seen e.g. in how permutations o

Simultaneous OH- and formaldehyde planar-LIF measurements have been performed in an optical engine using two laser sources working on 283 and 355 nm, respectively. The engine used for the measurements was a car diesel engine converted to single-cylinder operation and modified for optical access. The fuel, n-heptane, was injected by a direct injection common-rail system and the engine was also fitt

In the presence of high concentrations of inert macromolecules, the self-association of proteins is strongly enhanced through an entropic, excluded-volume effect variously called macromolecular crowding or depletion attraction. Despite the predicted large magnitude of this universal effect and its far-reaching biological implications, few experimental studies of macromolecular crowding have been r

An early and accurate diagnosis of Alzheimer's disease (AD) is required to initiate symptomatic treatment with currently approved drugs and will be of even greater importance if disease modifying compounds in development display a clinical effect. Protein profiles of human cerebrospinal fluid samples from AD patients (n = 95) and population-based healthy controls (n = 72) were analyzed by SELDI-TO

The effect of protein kinase C (PKC) inhibitors on the induction of endothelin ET(B) receptors during organ culture was examined in isolated segments of the rat mesenteric artery. After 24 h of organ culture, the endothelin ET(B) receptor agonist sarafotoxin 6c (S6c) induced a strong contraction compared to fresh segments. The contractile response after 24-h organ culture to S6c was studied in pre

We have performed a comparison of ten models that predict the temporal behavior of laser-induced incandescence (LII) of soot. In this paper we present a summary of the models and comparisons of calculated temperatures, diameters, signals, and energy-balance terms. The models were run assuming laser heating at 532 nm at fluences of 0.05 and 0.70 J/cm(2) with a laser temporal profile provided. Calcu

BACKGROUND: Ventilator resetting is frequently needed to adjust tidal volume, pressure and gas exchange. The system comprising lungs and ventilator is so complex that a trial and error strategy is often applied. Comprehensive characterization of lung physiology is feasible by monitoring. The hypothesis that the effect of ventilator resetting could be predicted by computer simulation based on a phy