CONSTRUCTION OF A NEW HIGHWAY EMBANKMENT ON THE SOFT CLAY SOIL TREATMENT BY STONE COLUMNS IN MALAYSIA

To continue of the second phase of the East Coast Expressway between Kuantan and Kula Terengganu in Malaysia system innovative solution are required. In this new phase there are embankment region has been subjected to extensive soft clay soil. These comprise typically of clayey silts of very high water content and undrained shear strengths in the range of 8 to 11 kPa to depths of up to 8m. To support an embankment height of up to 12 m, were filled and thereafter Vibro Replacement treatment was carried out to treat the very soft soil. Extensive instrumentation using rod settlement gauges, inclinometers and piezometers were installed to monitor the performance of the Vibro Replacement treatment. This paper reports on aspects of design, installation and the measured results from the instrumentation scheme

Universality classes in nonequilibrium lattice systems

This work is designed to overview our present knowledge about universality classes occurring in nonequilibrium systems defined on regular lattices. In the first section I summarize the most important critical exponents, relations and the field theoretical formalism used in the text. In the second section I briefly address the question of scaling behavior at first order phase transitions. In section three I review dynamical extensions of basic static classes, show the effect of mixing dynamics and the percolation behavior. The main body of this work is given in section four where genuine, dynamical universality classes specific to nonequilibrium systems are introduced. In section five I continue overviewing such nonequilibrium classes but in coupled, multi-component systems. Most of the known nonequilibrium transition classes are explored in low dimensions between active and absorbing states of reaction-diffusion type of systems. However by mapping they can be related to universal behavior of interface growth models, which I overview in section six. Finally in section seven I summarize families of absorbing state system classes, mean-field classes and give an outlook for further directions of research.Comment: Updated comprehensive review, 62 pages (two column), 29 figs included. Scheduled for publication in Reviews of Modern Physics in April 200

Efektivitas Penggunaan Aplikasi Wordwall dalam Pembelajaran IPS Secara Daring (Online) di Kelas Tinggi Sekolah Dasar

Situasi pandemi Covid-19 mengubah pembelajaran tatap muka di kelas menjadi pembelajaran daring (online). Media pembelajaran online yang menjamin keutuhan kegiatan pembelajaran serta mengangkat motivasi dan fokus peserta didik adalah aplikasi Wordwall. Masalah penelitian adalah ‘Bagaimana efektivitas penggunaan media wordwall pada kegiatan pembelajaran IPS secara daring di kelas tinggi SD?”, Penelitian bertujuan melihat efektivitas penggunaan media wordwall pada kegiatan pembelajaran IPS secara daring di kelas tinggi SD. Penelitian ini adalah jenis Mixed Method. Analisis data menggunakan analisis kuantitatif pada angket dan tes, analisis kualitatif pada wawancara. Subjek penelitian adalah peserta didik  kelas tinggi SDK Canosa. Hasil penelitian menunjukan rata-rata kelas hasil belajar IPS peserta didik  kelas tinggi adalah sebesar  79.99. Ditinjau dari KKM 70, maka diketahui 55 dari 58 (94.83%) orang peserta didik  tuntas, 3 orang (5.20%) tidak tuntas. Angket menunjukkan tingkat capaian responden (peserta didik ) sebesar 91.90% atau sangat efektif, hasil wawancara kepala sekolah dan guru mengindikasikan peserta didik  terlibat secara aktif dalam pembelajaran dan antusias mengerjakan kuis-kuis, menggabungkan kata, menemukan kata, dan melakukan game

Self-defence against Fulani herders’ aggression: a demand for licenced firearms in Plateau state, Nigeria

Purpose – ThisstudyaimstoinvestigatetheclamourbythepeopleofPlateauState,Nigeria,formore licencestobearfirearmsforself-defencebecauseofthecontinuousfailureoftheNigerianStateto defendthemagainsttheFulaniherders’aggression.Moregunslesscrimedeterrencetheoryservedas theframeworkofanalysis,whichpositsthatbecausecriminalsarerationalbeings,theywillchoosenotto attackwhentheyknowmanypeoplehavelegitimatefirearms. Design/methodology/approach – Datawerecollectedfromfourpurposefullyselectedlocal governmentareasofthestate.Thisstudy’ssamplesizewas400.Therefore,400copiesoftheGoogle Formsquestionnairewereadministered.Inaddition,sevenkeyinformantinterviewsandninefocusgroup discussionswerealsoconducted. Findings – Thisresearchresultsshowedthefollowing:whileself-defenceandissuanceofmorelicenses weresupportedby84.8%and85.0%ofrespondents,respectively,theyalsoarguedthattheinsurgency wouldlikelyendifmorepeoplecarriedlegallyacquiredfirearms.Again,thestudyshowedapositive correlationbetweenthegovernment’sfailureinsecurityandthedemandforself-defenceexercises againsttheFulaniherdsmen’sinsurgency,thisstudyrecommendsmorelicensedfirearmsforthepeople of PlateauState. Originality/value – ThisstudyrecommendsmorelicencedfirearmsforthepeopleofPlateauStat

The Protective Role of MLCP-Mediated ERM Dephosphorylation in Endotoxin-Induced Lung Injury in Vitro and in Vivo

The goal of this study was to investigate the role of MLC phosphatase (MLCP) in a LPS model of acute lung injury (ALI). We demonstrate that ectopic expression of a constitutively-active (C/A) MLCP regulatory subunit (MYPT1) attenuates the ability of LPS to increase endothelial (EC) permeability. Down-regulation of MYPT1 exacerbates LPS-induced expression of ICAM1 suggesting an anti-inflammatory role of MLCP. To determine whether MLCP contributes to LPS-induced ALI in vivo, we utilized a nanoparticle DNA delivery method to specifically target lung EC. Expression of a C/A MYPT1 reduced LPS-induced lung inflammation and vascular permeability. Further, increased expression of the CS1β (MLCP catalytic subunit) also reduced LPS-induced lung inflammation, whereas the inactive CS1β mutant increased vascular leak. We next examined the role of the cytoskeletal targets of MLCP, the ERM proteins (Ezrin/Radixin/Moesin), in mediating barrier dysfunction. LPS-induced increase in EC permeability was accompanied by PKC-mediated increase in ERM phosphorylation, which was more prominent in CS1β depleted cells. Depletion of Moesin and Ezrin, but not Radixin attenuated LPS-induced increases in permeability. Further, delivery of a Moesin phospho-null mutant into murine lung endothelium attenuated LPS-induced lung inflammation and vascular leak suggesting that MLCP opposes LPS-induced ALI by mediating the dephosphorylation of Moesin and Ezrin

Trafficking dynamics of VEGFR1, VEGFR2, and NRP1 in human endothelial cells

The vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) family of cytokines are key drivers of blood vessel growth and remodeling. These ligands act via multiple VEGF receptors (VEGFR) and co-receptors such as Neuropilin (NRP) expressed on endothelial cells. These membrane- associated receptors are not solely expressed on the cell surface, they move between the surface and intracellular locations, where they can function differently. The location of the receptor alters its ability to 'see' (access and bind to) its ligands, which regulates receptor activation; location also alters receptor exposure to subcellularly localized phosphatases, which regulates its deactivation. Thus, receptors in different subcellular locations initiate different signaling, both in terms of quantity and quality. Similarly, the local levels of co-expression of other receptors alters competition for ligands. Subcellular localization is controlled by intracellular trafficking processes, which thus control VEGFR activity; therefore, to understand VEGFR activity, we must understand receptor trafficking. Here, for the first time, we simultaneously quantify the trafficking of VEGFR1, VEGFR2, and NRP1 on the same cells-specifically human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs). We build a computational model describing the expression, interaction, and trafficking of these receptors, and use it to simulate cell culture experiments. We use new quantitative experimental data to parameterize the model, which then provides mechanistic insight into the trafficking and localization of this receptor network. We show that VEGFR2 and NRP1 trafficking is not the same on HUVECs as on non-human ECs; and we show that VEGFR1 trafficking is not the same as VEGFR2 trafficking, but rather is faster in both internalization and recycling. As a consequence, the VEGF receptors are not evenly distributed between the cell surface and intracellular locations, with a very low percentage of VEGFR1 being on the cell surface, and high levels of NRP1 on the cell surface. Our findings have implications both for the sensing of extracellular ligands and for the composition of signaling complexes at the cell surface versus inside the cell

From Farm to Kitchen : How gender affects production diversity and the dietary intake of farm households in Ethiopia

Open Access via the Wiley Jisc Open Access Agreement. We would like to acknowledge the World Bank LSMS-ISA and Central Statistical Authority (CSA) of Ethiopia for making these data available for the public and Macaulay Development Trust (MDT) for the financial support. Euan Phimister also acknowledges support under the ESRC NEXUS programme in project IEAS/POO2501/1, Improving organic resource use in rural Ethiopia (IPORE). Deborah Roberts acknowledges the support of funding from the Scottish Government's Rural and Environment Science and Analytical Services Division(RESAS). Our thanks are also due to anonymous reviewers for their constructive comments on earlier versions of the paper.Peer reviewedPublisher PD

β-Amyloid 25-35 Peptide Reduces the Expression of Glutamine Transporter SAT1 in Cultured Cortical Neurons

β-Amyloid (Aβ) peptides may cause malfunction and death of neurons in Alzheimer’s disease. We investigated the effect of Aβ on key transporters of amino acid neurotransmission in cells cultured from rat cerebral cortex. The cultures were treated with Aβ(25-35) at 3 and 10 μM for 12 and 24 h followed by quantitative analysis of immunofluorescence intensity. In mixed neuronal–glial cell cultures (from P1 rats), Aβ reduced the concentration of system A glutamine transporter 1 (SAT1), by up to 50% expressed relative to the neuronal marker microtubule-associated protein 2 (MAP2) in the same cell. No significant effects were detected on vesicular glutamate transporters VGLUT1 or VGLUT2 in neurons, or on glial system N glutamine transporter 1 (SN1). In neuronal cell cultures (from E18 rats), Aβ(25-35) did not reduce SAT1 immunoreactivity, suggesting that the observed effect depends on the presence of astroglia. The results indicate that Aβ may impair neuronal function and transmitter synthesis, and perhaps reduce excitotoxicity, through a reduction in neuronal glutamine uptake