Some notes on the paper "The mean value of a new arithmetical function"

In reference [2], we used the elementary method to study the mean value prop- erties of a new arithmetical function, and obtained two mean value formulae for it, but there exist some errors in that paper. The main purpose of this paper is to correct the errors in reference [2], and give two correct conclusions

Compliments and compliment responses in Philippine English

Compliment is a speech act that frequently occurs in everyday conversations. It is often used to start a conversation or to ‘lubricate’ the conversational interaction by reinforcing the rapport between the interlocutors. One line of academic research on compliments is to investigate similarities and differences across varieties of English (Jucker, 2009). So far, many varieties of English, such as American English, New Zealand English, and African English have been explored and it was found that compliments are formulaic in terms of both the meaning and the syntactic forms (e.g. Manes & Wolfson, 1981; Holmes, 1986; Herbert & Straight, 1989). However, only few studies have been done on Philippine English. This paper aims to fill the gap. A Discourse Completion Test (Henceforth DCT) was used to elicit data of giving and receiving compliments from 30 college students in a Philippine University. An analysis is provided of the compliment strategies, the syntactic and lexical patterns characterizing compliments, and the compliment response strategies. It was found that Philippine English speakers tend to use explicit compliments plus a bound semantic formula most frequently. The compliments in Philippine English are as formulaic at syntactic and lexical levels as other varieties of English. Filipinos are more likely to accept the compliment, rather than reject it, when they receive one

Synchrotron Radiation from Electrons with a Pitch-angle Distribution

In most astrophysical processes involving synchrotron radiation, the pitch-angle distribution of the electrons is assumed to be isotropic. However, if electrons are accelerated anisotropically, e.g., in a relativistic shock wave with an ordered magnetic field or in magnetic reconnection regions, the electron pitch angles might be anisotropic. In this Letter, we study synchrotron radiation from electrons with a pitch-angle distribution with respect to a large-scale uniform magnetic field. Assuming that the pitch-angle distribution is normal with a scatter of σ p and that the viewing direction is where the pitch-angle direction peaks, we find that for electrons with a Lorentz factor γ, the observed flux satisfies F ν ∝ ν 2/3 for ν ν cr (ν cr is the critical frequency of synchrotron), if σ p 1/γ is satisfied. On the other hand, if σ p 1/γ, the spectrum below ν cr is a broken power law with a break frequency , e.g., for ν ν br and for . Thus, the ultimate synchrotron line of death is F ν ∝ ν 2/3. We discuss the application of this theory to blazars and gamma-ray bursts

Examining Long-Haul Chinese Outbound Tourists\u27 Shopping Intentions

This study examines long-haul Chinese outbound tourists\u27 shopping intentions using the planned behavior approach. Attitude of product and store attributes, subjective norms of co-workers are found to significantly predict shopping intentions of respondents during their overseas trips. Further, behavioral beliefs and the corresponding outcome evaluation of product and store attributes lead to the formation of attitude. Normative beliefs of co-workers, motivation to comply with co-workers, and the interaction between them significantly influence respondents\u27 subjective norms on overseas tourism shopping. Control beliefs, power of control beliefs, and the interaction between them predict respondents\u27 perceived behavioral control on overseas tourism shopping. Both academic and practical implications are made based on the results

Development of Peptide and Protein Microparticles for Diabetes Therapy : From Fabrication to In Vivo Evaluation

Carrier encapsulation of the active ingredient is an efficient strategy to improve the pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic properties of peptide and protein therapeutics, for example, by prolonging the half-life of the drug. However, because of the poor miscibility of peptide and protein therapeutics with the hydrophobic carrier materials, it is difficult to realize high loading degree and encapsulation efficiency during the encapsulation process. The poor loading degree may result in carrier materials -related side effects, decreased treatment efficiency and low patient compliance. Due to the low encapsulation efficiency of single peptide and protein therapeutics, it is difficult to reach precise ratiometric control of co-encapsulated peptide and protein molecules. Moreover, as the loading degree of the therapeutics is increased, burst release may occur when in contact with release medium (body fluids), which is economically inefficient and potentially pharmacologically dangerous. Herein, the aim of this dissertation was to develop a strategy to efficiently encapsulate both peptide and protein therapeutics. Based on the efficient encapsulation, microparticles simultaneously featured with ultra-high loading degree and precise ratiometric control or zero-order release of the loaded therapeutics were further prepared. First, a surface adsorption strategy was developed to realize efficient encapsulation of peptide and protein therapeutics. The therapeutic molecules were formulated into nanoparticles and adsorbed with carrier polymers through electrostatic attraction. This adsorbed polymer layer efficiently inhibited the oil-to-water phase transfer of therapeutics nanoparticles, which led to a ultra-high loading degree and encapsulation efficiency of the peptide and protein therapeutics. This strategy was confirmed by efficient encapsulation of insulin, bovine serum albumin, β-lactoglobulin and ovalbumin. Second, as the surface adsorption strategy realized almost 100% encapsulation efficiency of peptide and protein therapeutics, a ratiometric control over the co-encapsulated peptides by simply adjusting their initial weight ratio in the formulation was studied. The fabricated microparticles co-encapsulated with insulin and exenatide effectively reduced the weight gain and glycosylated hemoglobin level of type 2 diabetic rats. Third, based on the results of the surface adsorption strategy, an enhanced interfacial adsorption strategy was further developed. In addition to the adsorption of the carrier polymer to the nanoparticle’s surface, the adsorption of carrier polymer at the oil/water interface was increased to form a thicker interfacial polymer layer. The fabricated microparticles showed not only ultra-high loading degree, but also zero-order release profiles of the encapsulated therapeutics in vitro and in vivo. After encapsulation, the therapeutics’ release profiles were prolonged and the pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic properties of the therapeutics were efficiently improved in animal models. In conclusion, this dissertation provides new insights of efficient encapsulation of peptide and protein therapeutics and may facilitate the highly anticipated clinical transition of peptide/protein-loaded microparticles.