Tuning the memory dependence of vapour deposited metallic glasses

Peer ReviewedPostprint (published version

Rwandans Studying Chinese A Case Study at the University of Rwanda - Confucius Institute

This paper explores Rwandan students’ reasons for learning Chinese. To date, most research on modern language use and acquisition has focused on European languages. This study in contrast focuses on Chinese as a modern foreign language that is gaining uptake in Rwanda. Based on survey data gathered from 46 students enrolled in Confucius Institute language programs, and on selected classroom observations, this study illustrates that most students surveyed learn Chinese in order to advance their own economic and social prospects. The study adds to current research on modern foreign language instruction in two ways. First, whereas a body of research suggests a decline in learners’ interests in foreign language learning, this study suggests that Rwandan students are highly motivated to learn a foreign language. Second, where many studies propose greater use of the targeted language in order to improve students’ interest in foreign languages, this study illustrates that Chinese language teachers are already actively using the targeted language of Chinese to teach Rwandan students.Keywords: Chinese, Language acquisition, language pedagogy, Rwanda, comparative educatio

Kontrak Kerja Konstruksi Pembangunan Gedung GMB Ditinjau Berdasarkan Red Book FIDIC

This study was aimed to study the construction work contract for the construction of the GM Bookstore building between PT NI and UGM if reviewed based on the Red Book Federation Internationale des Ingenieurs Counsels (FIDIC) because GM Bookstore building that should be finished February 2005 still not handed over until 2022. This research was conducted with the normative legal research type by using the secondary data in the form of primary legal materials and secondary legal materials obtained with literature studies and interviews. The data were then analyzed using qualitative analysis methods. Conclusion is drawn using a deductive thinking process. The results and conclusions of this study are The construction work contract for the construction of the GMB building between PT NI and UGM when reviewed based on the Red Book by the Fédération Internationale des Ingénieurs Counsels (FIDIC) is only 4 clauses out of 21 clauses with 7 subclauses from the 168 subclauses of the General Conditions Red Book FIDIC which are included in the contract for the construction of the GM Bookstore building. The sub-clauses that are included in the work contract for the construction of the GM Bookstore building are also used only partially and is not constitute the entire sentence referred to in the sub-clause

Ultrasonic Evaluation in the Management of Postpartum Infection

To evaluate the effectiveness of ultrasound in the management of postpartum problems, ultrasonographic examination was performed on 98 patients with suspected postpartum infection. The study includes only those patients who did not respond to antibiotic treatment for at least 48 hours and those patients who were readmitted to the hospital with suspected postpartum infection. Echogenic tissue was found in the uterine cavity in 12 patients, and significant fluid collection was found in 24 patients. Gas collection appeared in the uterine cavity in five patients and around the uterine incision in four patients. Fluid collection was found around the uterine incision in five patients, and abscess formation under the abdominal incision was found in 11 patients. Although ultrasound was nondiagnostic in 31 of the 98 patients, information obtained by ultrasound could be used to reduce the duration of the infectious morbidity

Dietary Strategies to Optimize Wound Healing after Periodontal and Dental Implant Surgery: An Evidence-Based Review

Methods to optimize healing through dietary strategies present an attractive option for patients, such that healing from delicate oral surgeries occurs as optimally as possible with minimal patient-meditated complications through improper food choices. This review discusses findings from studies that have investigated the role of diet, either whole foods or individual dietary components, on periodontal health and their potential role in wound healing after periodontal surgery. To date, research in this area has largely focused on foods or individual dietary components that may attenuate inflammation or oxidant stress, or foster de novo bone formation. These studies suggest that a wide variety of dietary components, including macronutrients and micronutrients, are integral for optimal periodontal health and have the potential to accelerate oral wound healing after periodontal procedures. Moreover, this review provides guidance regarding dietary considerations that may help a patient achieve the best possible outcome after a periodontal procedure

Prenatal Diagnosis of Fetal Cystic Hygromas Associated with Generalized Lymphangiectasis

Ultrasonography has made possible the prenatal diagnosis of many congenital fetal abnormalities. This report describes two cases of bilateral cystic hygromas of the neck associated with generalized lymphangiectasis that were diagnosed by ultrasound. Ultrasonic scans revealed moderate polyhydramnios: thick, edematous placenta and edematous fetus with large cystic mass occupying both sides of the neck and extending to the upper chest wall, ascites, and pleural effusion at gestational ages of 21.5 and 24 weeks, respectively. In one case, chromosomal study from amniotic fluid cell culture revealed X chromosome monosomy, often associated with lymphatic anomalies. The prenatal diagnosis was confirmed at birth: both infants delivered prematurely, were stillborn, and showed gross evidence of cystic hygromas of the neck. In this lymphatic defect, chromosomal analysis may be used for the diagnosis and in genetic counseling for subsequent pregnancies

What is a War Crime?

What is a war crime? The question appears to have a simple answer: a war crime is a violation of the law of war. But do all violations of the law of war qualify as war crimes? And are all war crimes violations of the law of war? These questions are not new. In 1942, Hersch Lauterpacht, a leading international lawyer who assisted the prosecution of the Nazis for war crimes at the International Military Tribunal (IMT) in Nuremberg, wrote a memo in which he asked, “Is there a definition of war crimes?” More than seven decades later, the answer to his question remains unsettled

Posttranslational Modifications, Localization, and Protein Interactions of Optineurin, the Product of a Glaucoma Gene

BACKGROUND: Glaucoma is a major blinding disease. The most common form of this disease, primary open angle glaucoma (POAG), is genetically heterogeneous. One of the candidate genes, optineurin, is linked principally to normal tension glaucoma, a subtype of POAG. The present study was undertaken to illustrate the basic characteristics of optineurin. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: Lysates from rat retinal ganglion RGC5 cells were subjected to N- or O-deglycosylation or membrane protein extraction. The phosphorylation status was evaluated after immunoprecipitation. It was found that while phosphorylated, optineurin was neither N- nor O-glycosylated, and was by itself not a membrane protein. RGC5 and human retinal pigment epithelial cells were double stained with anti-optineurin and anti-GM130. The endogenous optineurin exhibited a diffuse, cytoplasmic distribution, but a population of the protein was associated with the Golgi apparatus. Turnover experiments showed that the endogenous optineurin was relatively short-lived, with a half-life of approximately 8 hours. Native blue gel electrophoresis revealed that the endogenous optineurin formed homohexamers. Optineurin also interacted with molecules including Rab8, myosin VI, and transferrin receptor to assemble into supermolecular complexes. When overexpressed, optineurin-green fluorescence protein (GFP) fusion protein formed punctate structures termed "foci" in the perinuclear region. Treatment of nocadazole resulted in dispersion of the optineurin foci. In addition, tetracycline-regulated optineurin-GFPs expressing RGC5 stable cell lines were established for the first time. CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE: The present study provides new information regarding basic characteristics of optineurin that are important for future efforts in defining precisely how optineurin functions normally and how mutations may result in pathology. The inducible optineurin-GFP-expressing cell lines are also anticipated to facilitate in-depth studies of optineurin. Furthermore, the demonstrations that optineurin is an aggregation-prone protein and that the foci formation is microtubule-dependent bear similarities to features documented in neurodegenerative diseases, supporting a neurodegenerative paradigm for glaucoma

Turning an organic semiconductor into a low-resistance material by ion implantation

We report on the effects of low energy ion implantation on thin films of pentacene, carried out to investigate the efficacy of this process in the fabrication of organic electronic devices. Two different ions, Ne and N, have been implanted and compared, to assess the effects of different reactivity within the hydrocarbon matrix. Strong modification of the electrical conductivity, stable in time, is observed following ion implantation. This effect is significantly larger for N implants (up to six orders of magnitude), which are shown to introduce stable charged species within the hydrocarbon matrix, not only damage as is the case for Ne implants. Fully operational pentacene thin film transistors have also been implanted and we show how a controlled N ion implantation process can induce stable modifications in the threshold voltage, without affecting the device performanc

Comparing the atomic and macroscopic aging dynamics in an amorphous and partially crystalline Zr44Ti11Ni10Cu10Be25 bulk metallic glass

This article has been published in a revised form in Journal of Materials Research, https://doi.org/10.1557/jmr.2017.187. This version is free to view and download for private research and study only. Not for re-distribution, re-sale or use in derivative works. © Materials Research Society.Several recent X-ray photon correlation spectroscopy works have reported an anomalous atomic dynamics in hyperquenched metallic glasses. Here, we compare and contrast these microscopic dynamics with that found in a Zr44Ti11Ni10Cu10Be25 bulk metallic glass, prepared with a cooling rate some 6 orders of magnitude lower. In both cases, structural relaxation in the glass is governed by internal stresses, giving rise to highly compressed density correlation functions. Differently from the fast aging reported in previous studies, here the atomic dynamics displays a slow linear atomic-level aging, while not affecting the shape parameter. Traditional macroscopic phenomenological models fail to capture the temperature dependence of the microscopic structural relaxation time, suggesting a length scale dependence of the aging. Interestingly, the dynamics does not seem to be affected by the presence of a low percentage of frozen nanocrystals and displays a temperature dependence similar to that observed in macroscopic viscosity measurements.Peer ReviewedPostprint (author's final draft