The Lipogenic Effect of High-Fructose Consumption on NAFLD During Weight Loss

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A fine grained heuristic to capture web navigation patterns

In previous work we have proposed a statistical model to capture the user behaviour when browsing the web. The user navigation information obtained from web logs is modelled as a hypertext probabilistic grammar (HPG) which is within the class of regular probabilistic grammars. The set of highest probability strings generated by the grammar corresponds to the user preferred navigation trails. We have previously conducted experiments with a Breadth-First Search algorithm (BFS) to perform the exhaustive computation of all the strings with probability above a specified cut-point, which we call the rules. Although the algorithm’s running time varies linearly with the number of grammar states, it has the drawbacks of returning a large number of rules when the cut-point is small and a small set of very short rules when the cut-point is high. In this work, we present a new heuristic that implements an iterative deepening search wherein the set of rules is incrementally augmented by first exploring trails with high probability. A stopping parameter is provided which measures the distance between the current rule-set and its corresponding maximal set obtained by the BFS algorithm. When the stopping parameter takes the value zero the heuristic corresponds to the BFS algorithm and as the parameter takes values closer to one the number of rules obtained decreases accordingly. Experiments were conducted with both real and synthetic data and the results show that for a given cut-point the number of rules induced increases smoothly with the decrease of the stopping criterion. Therefore, by setting the value of the stopping criterion the analyst can determine the number and quality of rules to be induced; the quality of a rule is measured by both its length and probability

Spectral analysis of three-dimensional photonic jets

International audienceThe spatial and spectral properties of three-dimensional photonic jets are studied in a framework employing rigorous Lorentz-Mie theory. The contributions to the field from each spectral component are studied quantitatively and highlight the distinctive features of photonic jets. In particular, the presence of secondary lobes in the propagative frequency distribution are singled out as a fundamental distinctive property between photonic jets and classical Gaussian beams. It is shown that these differences can lead to divergences of photonic jets at least twice as small as those in corresponding ‘Gaussian' beams

Multipole methods for nanoantennas design: applications to Yagi-Uda configurations

International audienceWe present a detailed formalism allowing analytical calculations of the radiative properties of nanoantennas. This formalism does not rely on dipole approximations and utilizes multipolar multiple-scattering theory. The improvement in both accuracy and calculation speeds offered by this formulation provides significant advantages that are used in this work to study Yagi-Uda-type nanoantennas. We provide a study that questions the necessity of the reflector particle in nanoantennas

Associations between Loneliness and Cancer Patients’ Pain and Fatigue

poster abstractIntroduction: Pain and fatigue occur at higher rates in cancer patients than in the general population. One study found that loneliness predicted both pain and fatigue in cancer patients; however, the study only focused on patients with breast or colon cancer. The goal of the current study is to examine whether loneliness is associated with pain and fatigue in a sample of patients with various cancer types, including more rare diagnoses. We hypothesized that loneliness would be positively correlated with pain and fatigue, controlling for demographic and medical characteristics. Methods: Participants (N=44) were 60 years old (SD=12) on average, 68% Caucasian, and 59% female. All participants had received treatment for cancer at the Indiana University Simon Cancer Center or another Indiana University Hospital since 2013. Participants were recruited from the Indiana Tumor Registry, and after consenting, they were mailed a survey to complete at home that included measures of loneliness, pain, and fatigue. To test our hypothesis, we computed correlations between loneliness and each symptom (i.e., pain and fatigue), controlling for age, gender, and time since diagnosis. Results: As hypothesized, we found a large, positive correlation between loneliness and fatigue (r =0.51, p=0.001), controlling for demographic and medical characteristics. In addition, loneliness was positively correlated with pain, but this result fell just short of statistical significance (r=0.28, p=0.09). Conclusions: Results from this study suggest that greater loneliness is associated with greater fatigue in cancer patients, consistent with the results of one prior study. Although the association between loneliness and pain was more modest, it may reach statistical significance as the study sample size increases. If future longitudinal research shows that greater loneliness predicts cancer patients’ pain and fatigue, it would suggest that interventions to reduce loneliness may also reduce their physical symptoms

Ultracompact and unidirectional metallic antennas

International audienceWe investigate the angular redistribution of light radiated by a single emitter located in the vicinity of dipolar silver nanoparticles. We point out the fundamental role of the phase differences introduced by the optical path difference between the emitter and the particle and demonstrate that the polarizability of the metallic nanoparticle alone cannot predict the emission directionality. In particular, we show that collective or reflective properties of single nanoparticles can be controlled by tuning the distance of a single emitter at a λ/30 scale. These results enable us to design unidirectional and ultracompact nanoantennas composed of just two coupled nanoparticles separated by a distance achievable with biological linkers

Lack of Mutual Respect in Relationship The Endangered Partner

Violence in a relationship and in a family setting has been an issue of concern to various interest groups and professional organizations. Of particular interest in this article is violence against women in a relationship. While there is an abundance of knowledge on violence against women in general, intimate or partner femicide seems to have received less attention. Unfortunately, the incidence of violence against women, and intimate femicide in particular, has been an issue of concern in the African setting. This article examines the trends of intimate femicide in an African setting in general, and in Botswana in particular. The increase in intimate femicide is an issue of concern, which calls for collective effort to address. This article also examines trends offemicide in Botswana, and the antecedents and the precipitating factors. Some studies have implicated societal and cultural dynamics as playing significant roles in intimate femicide in the African setting. It is believed that the patriarchal nature of most African settings and the ideology of male supremacy have relegated women to a subordinate role. Consequently, respect for women in any relationship with men is lopsided in favor of men and has led to abuse of women, including intimate femicide. Other militating factors in intimate femicide ,are examined and the implications for counseling to assist the endangered female partner are discussed

Phytoprotective influence of bacteria on growth and cadmium accumulation in the aquatic plant Lemna minor

Certain plants are known to accumulate heavy metals, and can be used in remediation ofpolluted soil or water. Plant-associated bacteria, especially those that are metal tolerant,may enhance the total amount of metal accumulated by the plant, but this process is stillunclear. In this study, we investigated metal enhancement vs. exclusion by plants, and thephytoprotective role plant-associated bacteria might provide to plants exposed to heavymetal. We isolated cadmium-tolerant bacteria from the roots of the aquatic plant Lemnaminor grown in heavy metal-polluted waters, and tested these isolates for tolerance tocadmium. The efficiency of plants to accumulate heavy metal from their surroundingenvironment was then tested by comparing L. minor plants grown with added metaltolerant bacteria to plants grown axenically to determine, whether bacteria associated withthese plants increase metal accumulation in the plant.Unexpectedly, cadmium tolerance was not seen in all bacterial isolates that had beenexposed to cadmium. Axenic plants accumulated slightly more cadmium than plantsinoculated with bacterial isolates. Certain isolates promoted root growth, but overall,addition of bacterial strains did not enhance plant cadmium uptake, and in some cases,inhibited cadmium accumulation by plants. This suggests that bacteria serve a phytoprotectiverole in their relationship with Lemna minor, preventing toxic cadmium from enteringplants

2000 statistics and analysis: Oklahoma Dairy Herd Improvement Association records

The Oklahoma Cooperative Extension Service periodically issues revisions to its publications. The most current edition is made available. For access to an earlier edition, if available for this title, please contact the Oklahoma State University Library Archives by email at [email protected] or by phone at 405-744-6311