Factors Associated with Choking During Meals; a Risk Indicator for Repetitive Fevers in the Elderly Community

Background: Choking during meals is a common symptom in the elderly, however the factors associated with it have not been fully clarified. In this study, we examined the factors associated with choking during meals. Methods: The oral health status and practices that promote oral health conditions was surveyed in 1305 community dwelling elderly using a self-administered questionnaire. Eight items including satisfaction with their oral condition, denture fit, chewing ability, tooth brushing frequency, dental visits, exercises to train muscles for chewing and swallowing, choking during meals, and repetitive fever were selected for analysis. Results: 25.1% of the subjects experienced choking during meals, which was significantly associated with repetitive fever occurrence. Differences in satisfaction levels with their oral condition, denture fit, chewing ability, and tooth brushing frequency were observed between groups with and without choking. Age, satisfaction level, and chewing ability were significantly associated with choking during meals. Conclusions: This study demonstrated that choking during meals is a risk indicator for repetitive fever in the elderly living in community settings. Poor chewing ability and dissatisfaction with their oral condition were risk factors associated with choking. These results suggest that training the elderly to eat efficiently and safely and improving oral conditions is necessary for those who suffer from choking during meals to prevent repetitive fever. &nbsp

Impact of Physical Stress on Salivary Buffering Capacity

Background: Saliva has many properties and the buffering capacity is important for the neutralization of oral fluids. It is unclear whether stressful conditions directly affect salivary buffering capacity, and we investigated the impact of physical stress on salivary buffering capacity. Methods: Twelve participants were subjected to the physical stress of jogging and running. The salivary buffering capacity and flow rate of the participants were measured before and after exposure to stressful conditions. Salivary α-amylase activity was measured as a quantitative index of stress. Results: No change in buffering capacity was detected among each time point during the whole course under physically stressful conditions. Next, we examined the change in buffering capacity after jogging compared to baseline. Six participants showed an increase in buffering capacity (Group A), while the other six participants showed a decrease or no change (Group B) after jogging. Group B showed a decrease in flow rate and increases in α-amylase activity and protein level after jogging, whereas Group A showed no changes in these properties. Conclusions: The results suggest that salivary buffering capacity changes following exposure to physically stressful conditions, and that the changes are dependent on the stress susceptibility of individuals

Metal Rich Plasma at the Center Portion of the Cygnus Loop

We observed the center portion of the Cygnus Loop supernova remnant with the ASCA observatory. The X-ray spectrum of the center portion was significantly different from that obtained at the North-East (NE) limb. The emission lines from Si and S were quite strong while those of O and the continuum emission were similar to those obtained at the NE limb. Based on the spectral analysis, Si and S emission lines originated from a high-kTe and low ionization plasma whereas O and most of the continuum emission arose from a low-kTe and high ionization plasma. We suppose that Si and S emitting gas are present at the interior of the Loop while O lines and continuum emission mainly arise from the shell region. Therefore, we subtracted the spectrum of the NE limb from that of the center. Obtained abundances of Si, S, and Fe were 4 $\pm$ 1, 6 $\pm$ 2, and ${1.3}^{+0.6}_{-0.3}$ times higher than those of the cosmic abundances, respectively, and are $\sim$40 times richer than those obtained at the NE limb. These facts strongly support that some of the crude ejecta must be left at the center portion of the Cygnus Loop. The low abundance of Fe relative to Si and S suggests a type II SN with a massive progenitor star as the origin of the Cygnus Loop.Comment: Accepted for Publications of the Astronomical Society of Japan, 40 pages, 12 Postscript figures, uses PASJ95.sty, PASJadd.sty, and psbox.st

Turn Holding Cues in Multi-participant Conversations in Downton Abbey Te

This study aimed to identify the turn-holding cues in Downton Abbey television series and describe the factors contributing to the effective use of them. This study used a descriptive qualitative method. The data were multi-participant conversations in the television series, specifically the first three episodes of the first season. The procedures for conducting the study were collecting the data, completing them with their context, setting, and then analyzing them. The result shows that to hold a turn, speakers use cues such as filled pause, verbal filler, tactically placed silent pause, new start, grammatical incompleteness, and rush-through. The speakers\u27 attempt to hold the turn are successfully accomplished as they can continue finishing their utterances without any interruption from other participants. The factors contributing to the effective use of turn-holding cues are putting the cues at strategic places, and most importantly, cooperation among participants

Studi Komparasi Hukum Pertanggung Jawaban Pidana Delik Perdagangan Orang Ditinjau dari KUHP dan Undang-Undang Nomor 21 Tahun 2007 Tentang Pemberantasan Tindak Pidana Perdagangan Orang

Pencegahan dan penanganan tindak pidana perdagangan manusia merupakan tanggung jawab Negara, pemerintah daerah beserta seluruh komponen masyarakat. Untuk mewujudkan langkah-langkah yang komprehensif dan terpadu dalam pelaksanaan pencegahan dan penanganan tersebut perlu dibentuk gugus tugas. Diperlukan kajian perbandingan (studi komparasi) antara KUHP dan Undang-Undang RI Nomor 21 Tahun 2007 dapat memberikan gambaran yang lebih jelas mengenai tindak pidana perdagangan manusia menurut kedua perspektif hukum tersebut, sehingga dapat tercapai suatu hasil yang objektif dan sesuai dengan tujuan penelitian. Rumusan masalah dalam penelitian ini adalah bagaimana pertanggung jawaban pidana delik perdagangan orang dalam KUHP dan Undang-Undang Nomor 21 Tahun 2007 tentang Pemberantasan Tindak Pidana Perdagangan Orang serta bagaimana komparasi hokum pertanggung jawaban pidana delik perdagangan orang dalam KUHP dan Undang-Undang Nomor 21 Tahun 2007 tentang Pemberantasan Tindak Pidana Perdagangan Orang. Adapun tujuan penelitian ini adalah untuk menganalisa pertanggung jawaban pidana delik perdagangan orang dalam KUHP dan Undang-Undang Nomor 21 Tahun 2007 tentang Pemberantasan Tindak Pidana Perdagangan Orang serta untuk menganalisa komparasi hukum pertanggung jawaban pidana delik perdagangan orang dalam KUHP dan Undang-Undang RI Nomor 21 Tahun 2007 tentang Pemberantasan Tindak Pidana Perdagangan Orang. Jenis atau tipologi penelitian ini menggunakan jenis penelitian legal research dengan pendekatan perbandingan hukum. Bahan hukum yang digunakan adalah bahan hukum primer yang terdiri dari peraturan Perundang-undangan serta bahan hukum sekunder yang diperoleh dari bahan pustaka tentang tindak pidana perdagangan manusia melalui studi kepustakaan dan studi peraturan Perundang-undangan

Effect of V and N on the microstructure evolution during continuous casting of steel

Low Carbon (LC) steel is not expected to be sensitive to hot tearing and/or cracking while microalloyed steels are known for their high cracking sensitivity during continuous casting. Experience of the Direct Sheet Plant caster at Tata Steel in Ijmuiden (the Netherlands), seems to contradict this statement. It is observed that a LC steel grade has a high risk of cracking alias hot tearing, while a High Strength Low Alloyed (HSLA) steel has a very low cracking occurrence. Another HSLA steel grade, with a similar composition but less N and V is however very sensitive to hot tearing. An extreme crack results in a breakout. A previous statistical analysis of the breakout occurrence reveals a one and a half times higher possibility of a breakout for the HSLA grade compared to the LC grade. HSLA with extra N, V shows a four times smaller possibility of breakout than LC. This study assigns the unexpected effect of the chemical composition on the hot tearing sensitivity to the role of some alloying elements such as V and N as structure refiners.This research was carried out under project number M41.5.08320 within the framework of the Research Program of the Materials innovation institute M2i (www.m2i.nl)

Manfaat Wisata Alam Danau Wisata Sejarah Sebaddang Kecamatan Sebawi Kabupaten Sambas

Danau Wisata Sejarah Sebaddang (DWSS) is one of the tourist attractions located in Sambas district, but most of the environmental services offered do not yet have a market value. Hence the need for an approach to determine the economic value of the benefits obtained in order to estimate the magnitude of demand and consumer surplus. The purpose of this study was to determine the benefits of recreation and makes predictions collecting admission price fixing. To achieve the purpose of the study used the Travel Cost Method. The object of research was the visitors who come to the DWSS. Recreation demand equation Y = 52,906 - 0,001X. At the ticket price Rp.6000,- /person has Rp.4.081,- consumer surplus value, visits to the value of the average willingness to pay Rp.10.081, - /person and the value of the economic benefits of Rp.72.772.392,- /year. This means that if the manager wants to improve tourist facilities it should at least be set ticket prices Rp.10.081,- /person. Key words : Sebaddang lake, benefit, natural recreatio

On the Nature of AX J2049.6+2939 and AX J2050.0+2914

AX J2049.6+2939 is a compact X-ray source in the vicinity of the southern blow-up region of the Cygnus Loop supernova remnant (Miyata et al. 1998a). This source was the brightest X-ray source inside the Cygnus Loop observed during the ASCA survey project. The X-ray spectrum was well fitted by a power-law function with a photon index of $-2.1 \pm 0.1$. Short-term timing analysis was performed and no coherent pulsation was found. Follow-up observations with ASCA have revealed a large variation in X-ray intensity by a factor of $\simeq$ 50, whereas the spectral shape did not change within the statistical uncertainties. In the second ASCA observation, we found another X-ray source, AX J2050.0+2941, at the north east of AX J2049.6+2939. During the three ASCA observations, the X-ray intensity of AX J2050.0+2941 varied by a factor of $\simeq$4. No coherent pulsations could be found for AX J2050.0+2941. We have performed optical photometric and spectroscopic observations in the vicinity of AX J2049.6+2939 at the Kitt Peak National Observatory (KPNO). As a result, all objects brighter than $B$-band magnitude of 22 in the error box can be identified with normal stars. Combined with the X-ray results and the fact that there are no radio counterparts, AX J2049.6+2939 is not likely to be either an ordinary rotation-powered pulsar or an AGN. The nature of AX J2049.6+2939 is still unclear and further observations over a wide energy band are strongly required. As to AX J2050.0+2941, the long-term X-ray variability and the radio counterpart suggests that it is an AGN.Comment: 23 pages, 4 figures, Accepted for publication by Astrophysical Journa

Coastal and Marine Socio-Ecological Systems: A Systematic Review of the Literature

The socio-ecological systems (SESs) framework provides cross-disciplinary insight into complex environmental problems. Numerous studies have applied the SES framework to coastal and marine environments over the last two decades. We review and analyze 98 of those studies to (i) describe how SES concepts were examined and measured, (ii) describe how the studies included feedbacks and thresholds, and (iii) identify and analyze elements unique to coastal and marine SES frameworks. We find that progress has been made in understanding key SES properties in coastal and marine ecosystems, which include resilience, adaptive capacity, vulnerability, and governance. A variety of methods has been developed and applied to analyze these features qualitatively and quantitatively. We also find that recent studies have incorporated land-based stressors in their analyses of coastal issues related to nutrient runoff, bacterial pollution, and management of anadromous species to represent explicit links in land-to-sea continuums. However, the literature has yet to identify methods and data that can be used to provide causal evidence of non-linearities and thresholds within SES. In addition, our findings suggest that greater alignment and consistency are needed in models with regard to metrics and spatial boundaries between ecological and social systems to take full advantage of the SES framework and improve coastal and marine management