Understanding How Public Perceptions of Road Diets Are Formed

The success or failure of road diets, where a multi-lane road is altered to better accommodate pedestrians and bicyclists in addition to motor vehicles, is often tied to public opinion. A survey was conducted in Davis, California, prior to capacity reallocation being implemented on a major arterial. Results show that support and opposition are correlated with perceived safety and comfort; bike usage; and expectations regarding traffic congestion on side streets. This research provides a starting point for communities planning outreach and evaluation of similar projects

Assessment and management of infection in alcoholic hepatitis

Severe alcoholic hepatitis (SAH) is a condition characterized by jaundice and liver failure that develops after heavy and prolonged alcohol consumption. Infection frequently complicates the natural history of the disease and is independently associated with mortality. Objective recognition and recording of infection are therefore essential in the evaluation of therapeutic interventions and for antibiotic stewardship. This review will evaluate infections that complicate SAH at admission and beyond. Factors that associate with the development of infection will be identified and clinical and laboratory techniques available to identify infection will be discussed. Common pathogens and frequently used antibiotics will be reviewed and recommendations will be made for the management of infection for SAH patients. New techniques to assess infection earlier and more precisely may improve diagnosis and treatment of this important driver of mortality in SAH

Plug-In Electric Vehicles: A Case Study of Seven Markets

At the current stage of plug-in electric vehicle (PEV) market development, sales rates vary dramatically across different countries and regions. For policy-makers and other stakeholders it is useful to understand the major social, economic, and policy drivers of vehicle adoption. This paper provides insights into the developing PEV markets in Norway, Netherlands, California, United States, France, Japan, and Germany. This is accomplished by applying a Technological Innovation System (TIS) approach that systematically identifies the role of different factors in promulgating new markets. Our comparison between markets shows that in all studied regions, sales of PEVs are supported through various types of government incentives, government resources, and other legitimation activities. However, regions with relatively strong PEV markets have a greater focus on market formation activities and relatively higher costs savings associated with operating an electric vehicle as compared to a conventional vehicle. To determine whether these factors are the primary determinants of PEV market shares, further research should be undertaken that also incorporates analysis related to the presence and government support for entrepreneurial activities related to electric vehicle innovation

Carcinoma of the uncinate process of the pancreas presenting with deep vein thrombosis: a case report

The uncinate process is a hook-like projection of the inferior aspect of the head of the pancreas. Carcinoma of the uncinate process of the pancreas is considered to be rare, difficult to diagnose and particularly devastating. The current method of detection is computed tomography. We report a case of carcinoma of the uncinate process of the pancreas in a patient who initially presented with deep vein thrombosis. The diagnosis of carcinoma of the uncinate process of the pancreas should be considered in patients who present with primary thromboembolic disease and other nonspecific signs

Design and Invitro Evaluation of Gastroretentive Tablets of Ezetimibe

INTRODUCTION:The oral route is considered as the most promising route of drug delivery. Conventional drug delivery system achieves as well as maintains the drug concentration within the therapeutically effective range needed for treatment only when taken several times a day. This results in a significant fluctuation in drug levels. Recently several advancements have led to the development of several novel drug delivery systems (NDDS) that could revolutionize method of medication and provide a number of therapeutic benefits.[1] The de novo design of an oral controlled drug delivery system (DDS) must be primarily aimed to achieving more predictable and increased bioavailability of drugs. However, the development process is precluded by several physiological difficulties, such as inability to restrain and localize the DDS within the desired regions of the GIT and the highly variable nature of the gastric emptying process. It can be anticipated that, depending upon the physiological state of the subject and the design of pharmaceutical formulation, the emptying process can last from a few minutes to 12hrs.AIM AND OBJECTIVE:To design, formulate & evaluate floating matrix tablets containing Ezetimibe based on effervescent technology in order to increase gastric retention time. To evaluate the influence of preparative parameter and its effect on drug release and floating ability of the formulation. To evaluate the in-vitro release profile of Ezetimibe and evaluate the release mechanism on the basis of various kinetic models. To evaluate the stability studies for samples which analysed for drug content, characteristics and in-vitro dissolution studieSUMMARY:The present study was aimed at preparing floating matrix tablets containing Ezetimibe based on gas formation technique in order to increase the gastric retention time for enhancing controlled release of the drug for a longer time. Ezetimibe shows pH dependent solubility and stability, it is more soluble and stable in acidic than alkaline pH. Hence, it will be beneficial to increase its gastric residence time. FORMULATION DESIGN: In this study, floating matrix tablets of Ezetimibe were prepared based on effervescent technique using HPMC K4, HPMC K15, HPMC K100 as (matrix forming swellable polymers), sodium bicarbonate (effervescent compound) and PG Starch. A total of 6 formulations were designed by varying the amounts of polymer and sodium bicarbonate at 2 levels (low and high) using cross over design. PRE- COMPRESSION STUDIES: The prepared powder blends of all the 6 formulations were evaluated for precompression parameters like angle of repose, bulk density, tapped density, compressibility index and Hausner’s ratio. The results obtained from these studies showed that the prepared blends were having satisfactory fluidity and compressibility; hence tablets can be prepared by direct compression method. IR spectra matching approach was used for detection of any possible chemical interaction between drug and polymers. This study revealed that there was no major interaction between the drug and excipients used.COMPRESSION OF TABLETS:The floating matrix tablets were prepared by direct compression technique using single punch tablet press at a compression force (1.5 N) in a concave punches (6.5mm). the target weight of the prepared tablet was 60mg. The desired hardness is between 3-5 kg/cm2. All the tablets were found to be uniform in size and shape and no processing problems were encountered during compression process. POST- COMPRESSION STUDIES: The compressed tablets were evaluated for their weight variation, hardness, thickness, friability and content uniformity as per Indian pharmacopoeia and the results were found to be within the prescribed limits. Floating behaviour were carried out in a USP XXIII paddle apparatus 2 at a paddle speed of 100rpm in 900ml HCl and 2% SLS at 37±0.2⁰C. The parameters determined were Floating lag time, Floating duration and Relative matrix integrity). Floating lag time for all formulation were found to be less than 5 minutes. Formulations containing high concentration of polymer showed structural integrity and buoyancy time of more than 12 hrs, while others formulations, while others formulations showed rapid disintegration on contact with dissolution media. Ezetimibe release from different formulations was determined using a USP XXIII paddle apparatus 2 at paddle speed of 100rpm in 900ml HCl buffer (pH 1.2) at 37±0.2⁰C under sink condition for 10hrs. In this study, it was observed that as the concentration of polymer increase, the drug release decreases. The in vitro drug dissolution data obtained for the best formulation were plotted in various kinetic models for establishing kinetics of drug release. Zero order plot suggests that the drug release rate from the prepared tablets were in constant and controlled manner. The data also suggest that the formulation fit into Higuchi’s equation for the release of the drug from the homogeneous polymeric matrix that depends mostly on diffusion characteristics. From the korsmeyers- peppas diffusion model the release mechanism of Ezetimibe from matrix was found to be Case- II Transport or typical zero order release.Conclusion CONCLUSION:In the present study, floating matrix tablets have been formulated with Ezetimibe with the help of polymers such as HPMC K4, HPM C K 100 and HPMC K 15. Effervescent technique was used to keep the tablets floating over the simulated gastric fluid (pH 1.2) for 24 hrs. All the formulations showed floating lag time less than 1 minute. Sodium bicarbonate was found to be good effervescent base. The drug release mechanisms for this formulation was found to be of zero order and diffusion. The formulation F5 was selected as optimized formulations because it gave the best results in terms of the required in-vitro buoyancy as well as drug release in sustained manner and was also found to be stable under stability conditions. Thus, the results of the current studies indicates, a promising potential of ezetimibe floating matrix tablet as an alternative to conventional dosage form. Further, clinical studies are needed to assess the utility of this system for patient suffering from hypercholesterolemia

The interplay of pragmatic inference, face and emotion

The present thesis is concerned with the interplay of pragmatic inference, face and emotion. Pragmatic inference refers to inferences that hearers or observers make when attempting to arrive at speaker meaning, a process during which they presumably operate according to the Maxims postulated by Grice (1975). The empirical phenomena that this thesis takes as a starting point are mock impoliteness, banter and teasing. The literature reveals a rather complicated picture of what speakers intend and how hearers respond when engaging in these types of acts. Sometimes, people seem to achieve solidarity effects without using strong contextual cues (such as flouting the Maxim of Quality) and other times they have hard time comprehending remarks even when contextual cues are very salient (such as when the Maxim of Quality is flouted). This thesis attempts to provide some answers to this communicative paradox. In doing that, it considers two additional important parameters: impolite forms and perspective taking. Four experiments were conducted in order to investigate the effect of these factors. Experiment 1 showed that when the Maxim of Quality is flouted, this, in combination with remarks considered obviously (or less obviously) impolite, leads to solidarity inferences. However, obviously impolite remarks are not necessarily taken to generate more impoliteness effects in context than remarks that do not express impolite meanings. Experiment 2 examined the interaction between the Maxim of Quality and face concerns. Results showed that both factors, the Maxim of Quality and face concerns, contributed to the generation of solidarity inferences. Experiment 3 investigated the interaction between the Maxim of Quality and the speaker’s emotional state. Results showed that flouting the Maxim of Quality contributed the most to the derivation of solidarity inferences. The recognition of the speaker’s emotional state plays a significant role in inferring the speaker’s friendly or hostile attitude towards the hearer but plays a less important role in other dimensions of speaker meaning. Experiment 4 examined the Maxim of Quality and the role of perspective. Results revealed that, as in the previous experiments, flouting the Maxim of Quality results in solidarity inferences. However, under the perspective of the hearer as opposed to the perspective of the speaker, things look grimmer. In conclusion, the results of these four experiments combined suggest that a) inferences derived from flouting the Maxim of Quality are very robust, but also that face and emotion constitute sources of information which interlocutors take into account to draw solidarity inferences, and b) hearers tend to construe speaker meaning in a less affiliative manner than speakers think. These results have important implications for pragmatic theory and open the way for a more thorough investigation of affective factors in pragmatics and communication

Isolation and Identification of Indole Metabolites from Pseudomonas fluorescens NZI7

Pseudomonas fluorescens NZI7 was first isolated from a New Zealand mushroom farm in 2001. This Gram-negative bacteria can cause brown blotch disease in the basidiomycete mushroom Agaricus bisporus. P. fluorescens NZI7 can also repel grazing by the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans, a natural predator of P. fluorescens NZI7. Potentially implicated in both brown blotch disease and the repellence of C. elegans is the highly conserved EDB gene cluster. Our interest is in the function of the EDB cluster and the mechanism by which P. fluorescens NZI7 can repel C. elegans. To discover the function of the EDB cluster, two deletion mutants independently lacking the genes PFL_4450 and PFL_4451 (the first two of 9 genes from PFL_5540-PFL_5548 in P. fluorescens NZI7) were produced. The mutants and wild-type NZI7 were grown in KB liquid medium and the culture broths were analyzed using HPLC and MS. The results showed that the wild-type produced several secondary metabolites which were missing in the mutants, indicating that inactivation of PFL_5540-PFL_5541 affected the production of those metabolites. Isolation of the metabolites from the culture broth of the wild-type strain using column chromatography and HPLC, and characterization of the chemical structures using NMR and MS revealed the identity of the metabolites to be (1H-indol-3-yl)-oxoacetamide and indole-3-aldehyde. These metabolites are known to be the catabolic products of tryptophan. Both compounds showed repellent activity against C. elegans, revealing the mechanism underlying the ability of NZI7 to repel grazing by the nematode.Keywords: EDB cluster, indole, natural products, Pseudomonas fluorescens, Caenorhabditis elegan

Solving the subset-sum problem with a light-based device

We propose a special computational device which uses light rays for solving the subset-sum problem. The device has a graph-like representation and the light is traversing it by following the routes given by the connections between nodes. The nodes are connected by arcs in a special way which lets us to generate all possible subsets of the given set. To each arc we assign either a number from the given set or a predefined constant. When the light is passing through an arc it is delayed by the amount of time indicated by the number placed in that arc. At the destination node we will check if there is a ray whose total delay is equal to the target value of the subset sum problem (plus some constants).Comment: 14 pages, 6 figures, Natural Computing, 200

Exact Cover with light

We suggest a new optical solution for solving the YES/NO version of the Exact Cover problem by using the massive parallelism of light. The idea is to build an optical device which can generate all possible solutions of the problem and then to pick the correct one. In our case the device has a graph-like representation and the light is traversing it by following the routes given by the connections between nodes. The nodes are connected by arcs in a special way which lets us to generate all possible covers (exact or not) of the given set. For selecting the correct solution we assign to each item, from the set to be covered, a special integer number. These numbers will actually represent delays induced to light when it passes through arcs. The solution is represented as a subray arriving at a certain moment in the destination node. This will tell us if an exact cover does exist or not.Comment: 20 pages, 4 figures, New Generation Computing, accepted, 200