Kulturschutz – Arbeitszeitbedarf beim Einsatz von Netzen

The product quality requirements of modern outdoor vegetable cultivation are becoming more stringent and increasing importance is also attached to a defined guarantee of yield. These demands may be satisfied by using protective netting. The working methods employed in practice and the process technology hardly differ. The differences between individual variants - 1 to 7% per net – are therefore relatively low, as is the size degression. An average of 1.3 manpower-minutes per m are required for the complete process. The time requirement per net is about 26.7 min., 13 min. of which are needed for placement and 11.1 min. for removal. The difference is made up by transportation to and from the field and loading the nets. Covering the crop takes up 48 % or almost half the total working time requirement. Removing the nets accounts for 42 %. 10 % is used in driving to and from the field for placement and in loading the rolls or bales of netting before placement and after removal. There is no additional transportation time, as the nets are carried as part of the relevant transport to and from the field. Removal involves no extra journey times if the netting is removed from the crop immediately prior to harvesting, the journey to and from the field then being calculated as part of the working time requirement for harvesting

Barriers to Charitable Nonprofit Access and Advocacy amid a Pandemic: A Case Study of the Louisiana State Legislature

Research has long established nonprofit organizations’ vital role advocating for the needs of vulnerable populations before legislative policymakers. In the best of times, it is difficult for 501(c)(3) charitable nonprofits employing grassroots advocacy to mobilize vulnerable constituencies to compete with 501(c)(4) and 501(c)(6) advocacy and special interest groups. The latter organizations inherently have greater flexibility and resources to lobby lawmakers directly, permitting greater access to influencing the policy agenda. Through a multi-method case study of the 2020 regular session of the Louisiana State Legislature, this article demonstrates how the COVID-19 pandemic’s unique contextual conditions made legislative advocacy more difficult than usual for charitable nonprofits promoting a progressive policy response to the pandemic within a politically conservative state. Conducted through interviews with nonprofit leaders and an analysis of legislative records and committee hearings, the case study reveals specific barriers that hampered charitable nonprofits’ access to the legislative process, including physical capacity restrictions and health concerns, as well as issues with virtual legislative protocols and conservative committee chairs’ discretion to ignore remote testimony. The article analyzes how these barriers negatively impacted charitable nonprofits’ ability to advocate for vulnerable populations and explores potential implications for equitable political participation and response to the pandemic

Origin of the giant magnetic moments of Fe impurities on and in Cs films

To explore the origin of the observed giant magnetic moments ($\sim 7 \mu_B$) of Fe impurities on the surface and in the bulk of Cs films, we have performed the relativistic LSDA + U calculations using the linearized muffin-tin orbital (LMTO) band method. We have found that Fe impurities in Cs behave differently from those in noble metals or in Pd. Whereas the induced spin polarization of Cs atoms is negligible, the Fe ion itself is found to be the source of the giant magnetic moment. The 3d electrons of Fe in Cs are localized as the 4f electrons in rare-earth ions so that the orbital magnetic moment becomes as large as the spin magnetic moment. The calculated total magnetic moment of $M = 6.43 \mu_B$, which comes mainly from Fe ion, is close to the experimentally observed value.Comment: 4 pages including 3 figures and 1 table. Submitted to PR

Predictors of Successful Heart Failure Self-Care Maintenance in the First Three Months after Hospitalization

Objective The objective of this study was to replicate a prior study of predictors of self-care in heart failure (HF). Design A non-experimental, correlational replication study retested a model of 7 variables: social support, symptom severity, comorbidity, education, age, gender, and income; the last variable, income, was tested in the prior study but was excluded in this study because of missing data. The model was tested at baseline and 3 months after hospitalization. Setting Participants were enrolled from 2 hospitals in southern California. Patients A convenience sample of 66 patients with chronic HF were studied. The sample was elderly, primarily female, and educated at the high school level or above. Approximately half of the patients had systolic HF, and most were functionally compromised. Outcome measure Self-care maintenance, a component of self-care, was measured with the maintenance subscale of the Self-Care of Heart Failure Index. Results At baseline, the model was significant (F = 2.61, df = 7,58, P = .02) and explained 14.8% of the variance in HF self-care. Significant predictors of self-care were higher age and male gender. Three months later, when baseline self-care maintenance scores were controlled in the analysis, the model explained 45.3% of the variance in HF self-care. Most of the variance was explained by the baseline self-care score, but male gender and low comorbidity added an additional 6% of the variance (F = 6.9, df = 9,56, P \u3c .0001). Conclusions Elderly men and those with fewer comorbid illnesses were most successful at HF self-care

The AIB1/NCOA3/SRC-3 Oncogene

A member of the NCOA/SRC/p160 co-activator family, AIB1 is amplified and overexpressed in multiple cancer types, notably breast, ovarian, and pancreatic cancer. Common to all members of the NCOA/SRC/p160 family are bHLH-PAS, receptor interaction, and CBP/p300 interacting activation domains. The protein acts as a scaffold to support the transcriptional activity of many DNA binding transcription factors, such as the ER, AP-1, E2F, NFκB, and TEADs. In doing so, the multi-domain protein facilitates chromatin remodeling and oncogenic gene transcription. Further, the AIB1Δ4 isoform promotes tumorigenesis and metastasis through interaction with chromatin in the nucleus or at the periphery of the cell. Pathologically, AIB1 promotes the transformation of normal tissue to cancerous lesions in multiple diseases, and loss delays progression. AIB1 has also been implicated in cancer recurrence and pharmacological resistance. We will discuss the structure and isoforms of AIB1, the physiological consequences of its interaction with transcription factors and hormone receptors, and clinical significance of the protein

Razvojni prospekti bankarstva u novim i budućim zemljama članicama EU

Bank consolidation has substantially decreased the number of banks in European banking, which has had important implications for the banking sectors structure in all EU member countries. The consolidation processes have had a tremendous impact on the developments in banking sectors of new EU member countries, where major structural changes have been initiated mostly by new entrant banks from the old EU member countries. The future banking development in new EU member countries will very likely follow some main patterns known from the old EU members. Rather speculative conjectures, which are based on a comparison with banking sectors in other EU member countries indicate, that the total-asset-to-GDP ratio in new member countries should further improve in the future. The banking sector growth will be based mostly on the growth of the credit to non-banking sector, while banks are not expected anymore to use non-bank deposits as a predominant way of funding. Instead potentials for alternative funding possibilities should be activated. Although the non-bank financial intermediaries in new EU members represent a serious competition to banks, their relative underdevelopment prevents them from impacting the developments in banking sectors as known from old EU member countries.Konsolidacija banaka znatno je smanjila broj banaka u europskom bankarstvu, što ima značajne implikacije na bankarski sektor u svim zemljama članicama EU. Konsolidacija banaka imala je veliki utjecaj na razvoj bankarskog sektora svih novih zemalja članica, gdje su najveće strukturalne promjene inicirane stvaranjem novih banaka uz sudioništvo starih članica EU. Budući bankarski razvoj u novim zemljama članicama EU vjerojatno će se temeljiti na onom starih članica. Više spekulativna nagađanja, koja se temelje na usporedbi s bankarskim sektorima u drugim zemljama članicama, pokazuju da će se odnos kapitala prema BDP u novim zemljama članicama povećavati u budućnosti. Rast bankarskog sektora temeljit će se većim dijelom na rastu zajmova nebankarskim sektorima, a od banaka se očekuje da više ne rabe nebankarske depozite kao glavni oblik financiranja. Umjesto toga, trebaju se aktivirati mogućnosti za alternativnim financiranjem. Nebankarski financijski posrednici u novim zemljama članicama EU bankama predstavljaju ozbiljnu konkurenciju, međutim, njihova relativna nerazvijenost sprečava ih da utječu na razvoj u bankarskom sektoru kao što je to bio slučaj u starim zemljama članicama EU

The Fate of Children with Microdeletion 22q11.2 Syndrome and Congenital Heart Defect: Clinical Course and Cardiac Outcome

Background: This study aimed to evaluate the cardiac outcome for children with microdeletion 22q11.2 and congenital heart defect (CHD). Methods: A total of 49 consecutive children with 22q11.2 and CHD were retrospectively identified. The CHD consisted of tetralogy of Fallot and variances (n = 22), interrupted aortic arch (n = 10), ventricular septal defect (n = 8), truncus arteriosus (n = 6), and double aortic arch (n = 1). Extracardiac anomalies were present in 46 of 47 children. Results: The median follow-up time was 8.5 years (range, 3 months to 23.5 years). Cardiac surgical repair was performed for 35 children, whereas 5 had palliative surgery, and 9 never underwent cardiac surgery. The median age at repair was 7.5 months (range, 2 days to 5 years). The mean hospital stay was 35 days (range, 7-204 days), and the intensive care unit stay was 15 days (range, 3-194 days). Significant postoperative complications occurred for 26 children (74%), and surgery for extracardiac malformations was required for 21 patients (43%). The overall mortality rate was 22% (11/49), with 1-year survival for 86% and 5-year survival for 80% of the patients. A total of 27 cardiac reinterventions were performed for 16 patients (46%) including 15 reoperations and 12 interventional catheterizations. Residual cardiac findings were present in 25 patients (71%) at the end of the follow-up period. Conclusions: Children with microdeletion 22q11.2 and CHD are at high risk for mortality and morbidity, as determined by both the severity of the cardiac lesions and the extracardiac anomalies associated with the microdeletio

Bayesian High-Redshift Quasar Classification from Optical and Mid-IR Photometry

We identify 885,503 type 1 quasar candidates to i<22 using the combination of optical and mid-IR photometry. Optical photometry is taken from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey-III: Baryon Oscillation Spectroscopic Survey (SDSS-III/BOSS), while mid-IR photometry comes from a combination of data from the Wide-Field Infrared Survey Explorer (WISE) "ALLWISE" data release and several large-area Spitzer Space Telescope fields. Selection is based on a Bayesian kernel density algorithm with a training sample of 157,701 spectroscopically-confirmed type-1 quasars with both optical and mid-IR data. Of the quasar candidates, 733,713 lack spectroscopic confirmation (and 305,623 are objects that we have not previously classified as photometric quasar candidates). These candidates include 7874 objects targeted as high probability potential quasars with 3.5<z<5 (of which 6779 are new photometric candidates). Our algorithm is more complete to z>3.5 than the traditional mid-IR selection "wedges" and to 2.2<z<3.5 quasars than the SDSS-III/BOSS project. Number counts and luminosity function analysis suggests that the resulting catalog is relatively complete to known quasars and is identifying new high-z quasars at z>3. This catalog paves the way for luminosity-dependent clustering investigations of large numbers of faint, high-redshift quasars and for further machine learning quasar selection using Spitzer and WISE data combined with other large-area optical imaging surveys.Comment: 54 pages, 17 figures; accepted by ApJS Data for tables 1 and 2 available at http://www.physics.drexel.edu/~gtr/outgoing/optirqsos/data/master_quasar_catalogs.011414.fits.bz2 and http://www.physics.drexel.edu/~gtr/outgoing/optirqsos/data/optical_ir_quasar_candidates.052015.fits.bz

Hepatotoxic substance(s) removed by high-flux membranes enhances the positive acute phase response

Hepatotoxic substance(s) removed by high-flux membranes enhances the positive acute phase response.BackgroundAcute phase proteins (APPs) are enhanced in end-stage renal disease patients (ESRD) requiring dialysis treatment. They are involved in a variety of pathologic processes like muscle proteolysis, cachexia, regulation of appetite, and atherosclerosis. They are predictive for mortality. APPs are not only makers but also active substances. They are mainly produced in liver cells and are primarily, but not exclusively, regulated by proinflammatory cytokines. To what extent hepatic APPs are influenced by uremic toxins is still unclear. Therefore, we investigated the effects of different ultrafiltrates (UFs) on the synthesis of α1-acid glycoprotein (AGP) in HepG2 cells.MethodsA cross-sectional as well as a crossover study with high-/low-flux membranes was conducted to investigate the impact of UFs on bioactivity of liver cell cultures. Metabolic activity (MTT test), cytotoxicity (lactate dehydrogenase release), and the positive APP AGP were measured in HepG2 cells.ResultsCultured hepatocytes treated with UFs from high-flux membranes exhibited a higher cytotoxicity (18.6 ± 0.3% high-flux vs. 13.9 ± 0.2% low-flux, P < 0.001) and a lower metabolic activity (29.3% high-flux vs. 50.3% low-flux, P < 0.001) in comparison with low-flux UFs. In addition, enhanced APP secretion could be observed under costimulatory conditions (high-flux 5.0 ± 0.7 vs. low-flux 3.1 ± 0.6 ng/μg protein, P < 0.05). The effects of high- and low-flux UFs were strongly expressed at the beginning and were still significantly different after 120 minutes of hemodialysis (HD) treatment. The cross-over experiments confirmed that UFs collected during high-flux HD had a higher capacity to stimulate AGP synthesis in liver cells.ConclusionThe effects of UFs from dialysis patients demonstrate that hepatotoxic substances can be removed by dialysis. Stimulating the acute phase response UF collected during high-flux HD had a higher impact on liver cells in comparison with low-flux UF. These substances are putative cofactors involved in cytokine regulation