Detecting Semantic Business Process Model Clones

Process modeling with languages like BPMN allows process designers to create the same business process model in various ways. Detecting model clones, i.e., pairs of business process models sharing a certain degree of similarity can be difficult. In this paper, we propose an approach to process model clone detection based upon dominator trees and targeted at detecting semantically though not necessarily syntactically similar process models of business processes

The complete primary structure of the spermadhesin AWN, a zona pellucida-binding protein isolated from boar spermatozoa

AbstractAWN is a boar protein which originates in secretions of the male accessory glands and which becomes sperm surface-associated upon ejaculation. It is one of the components thought to mediate sperm adhesion to the egg's zona pellucida through a carbohydrate-recognition mechanism. AWN may, thus, participate in the initial events of fertilization in the pig. In this report we describe its complete primary structure by combination of protein-chemical and mass spectrometric methods. AWN exists as two isoforms, AWN-1 and AWN-2, which differ in that AWN-2 is N-terminally acetylated. The amino acid sequence of AWN contains 133 amino acid residues and two disulphide bridges between nearest-neighbour cysteine residues. Analysis of the amino acid sequence of the AWN proteins showed significant similarity only to AQN-1 and AQN-3, two other boar spermadhesins

Hepatitis E virus: Efficacy of pasteurization of plasma‐derived VWF/FVIII concentrate determined by pig bioassay

Background Hepatitis E virus (HEV) is the leading cause of acute hepatitis throughout the world. Increasing blood component transfusion-associated HEV infections highlight the need for reliable virus inactivation procedures for plasma derivatives from pooled plasma donations. Study Design and Methods An animal infection study was conducted to evaluate the efficiency of HEV inactivation by pasteurization during the manufacturing process of the von Willebrand Factor/Factor VIII (VWF/FVIII) concentrate Haemate P/Humate-P (CSL Behring, Marburg, Germany). For this purpose, groups of pigs were inoculated with stabilized VWF/FVIII intermediate spiked with HEV-positive liver homogenate and exposed to increasing incubation times of 0, 3, 6, and 10 h at 60 degrees C. Animals were evaluated for virus replication over 27 days and in a subsequent trial over 92 days. Results Virus replication was detected in animals up to the 6-h pasteurization group. In contrast, pasteurization for 10 h did not reveal virus detection when the observation period was 27 days. In an additional experiment using the 10-h pasteurized material, two individuals started virus excretion and seroconverted when the observation period was extended to 92 days. Based on the total infection rate (2 of 12) of the animals inoculated with the sample pasteurized for 10 h, a virus reduction factor of at least 4.7 log(10) is calculated. Conclusion This study demonstrates that pasteurization at 60 degrees C for 10 h of an HEV-positive plasma derivative leads to the effective reduction of infectivity, resulting in a VWF/FVIII product with an appropriate margin of safety for HEV

Early Pliocene Hominid Tooth from Galili, Somali Region, Ethiopia

A fossil hominid tooth was discovered during survey at Galili, Somali region, Ethiopia. The geological and faunal context indicate an Early Pliocene age. The specimen (GLL 33) consists of an almost complete lower right third molar likely representing a male individual of advanced age-at-death. Its comparative metrical, morphological and (micro)structural analysis (supported by a microtomographic record) suggests a tentative taxonomic allocation to Australopithecus cf. A. afarensis

NN interaction in a Goldstone boson exchange model

Adiabatic nucleon-nucleon potentials are calculated in a six-quark nonrelativistic chiral constituent quark model where the Hamiltonian contains a linear confinement and a pseudoscalar meson (Goldstone boson) exchange interaction between quarks. Calculations are performed both in a cluster model and a molecular orbital basis, through coupled channels. In both cases the potentials present an important hard core at short distances, explained through the dominance of the [51]_{FS} configuration, but do not exhibit an attractive pocket. We add a scalar meson exchange interaction and show how it can account for some middle-range attraction.Comment: 32 pages with 12 eps figures incorporated, RevTeX. Final version published in PR

Impact of sweep gas flow on extracorporeal CO2 removal (ECCO2R)

Background Veno-venous extracorporeal carbon dioxide (CO2) removal (vv-ECCO2R) is increasingly being used in the setting of acute respiratory failure. Blood flow rates range in clinical practice from 200 mL/min to more than 1500 mL/min, and sweep gas flow rates range from less than 1 to more than 10 L/min. The present porcine model study was aimed at determining the impact of varying sweep gas flow rates on CO2 removal under different blood flow conditions and membrane lung surface areas. Methods Two different membrane lungs, with surface areas of 0.4 and 0.8m2, were used in nine pigs with experimentally-induced hypercapnia. During each experiment, the blood flow was increased stepwise from 300 to 900 mL/min, with further increases up to 1800 mL/min with the larger membrane lung in steps of 300 mL/min. Sweep gas was titrated under each condition from 2 to 8 L/min in steps of 2 L/min. Extracorporeal CO2 elimination was normalized to a PaCO2 of 45 mmHg before the membrane lung. Results Reversal of hypercapnia was only feasible when blood flow rates above 900 mL/min were used with a membrane lung surface area of at least 0.8m2. The membrane lung with a surface of 0.4m2 allowed a maximum normalized CO2 elimination rate of 41 ± 6 mL/min with 8 L/min sweep gas flow and 900 mL blood flow/min. The increase in sweep gas flow from 2 to 8 L/min increased normalized CO2 elimination from 35 ± 5 to 41 ± 6 with 900 mL blood flow/min, whereas with lower blood flow rates, any increase was less effective, levelling out at 4 L sweep gas flow/min. The membrane lung with a surface area of 0.8m2 allowed a maximum normalized CO2 elimination rate of 101 ± 12 mL/min with increasing influence of sweep gas flow. The delta of normalized CO2 elimination increased from 4 ± 2 to 26 ± 7 mL/min with blood flow rates being increased from 300 to 1800 mL/min, respectively. Conclusions The influence of sweep gas flow on the CO2 removal capacity of ECCO2R systems depends predominantly on blood flow rate and membrane lung surface area. In this model, considerable CO2 removal occurred only with the larger membrane lung surface of 0.8m2 and when blood flow rates of ≥ 900 mL/min were used

Die wirtschaftliche Lage Rußlands: Fortsetzung des Niedergangs ohne hinreichenden Strukturwandel. Fünfter Bericht.

Der Bundesminister für Wirtschaft hat mit Schreiben vom 21. Dezember 1993 das Deutsche Institut für Wirtschaftsforschung Berlin, das Institut für Weltwirtschaft an der Universität Kiel und das Institut für Wirtschaftsforschung Halle damit beauftragt, das 1992 begonnene Forschungsvorhaben mit dem Titel „Die wirtschaftliche Situation Rußlands und Weißrußlands — wirtschaftliches Potential und mögliche Entwicklungslinien" fortzuführen. Die beteiligten Institute haben nunmehr ihren fünften Bericht über die Wirtschaft Rußlands fertiggestellt. Der Bericht ist in zwei Teile gegliedert. Im ersten Teil wird der aktuelle Stand der Wirtschaftsentwicklung und der Reformpolitik dargestellt. Die wirtschaftliche Lage in der Russischen Föderation ließ auch nach Fertigstellung des letzten Berichts kaum Anzeichen einer Wende zum Besseren erkennen, statt dessen hat sich der wirtschaftliche Niedergang fortgesetzt, und es gibt Anzeichen für eine Verschärfung der Krise. Der zweite Teil des Berichts beschäftigt sich schwerpunktmäßig mit der realwirtschaftlichen Anpassung. Die Anpassungsprozesse werden aus sektoraler, regionaler und eigentumsrechtlicher Perspektive analysiert; aus Unternehmersicht werden Anpassungen bei der Beschäftigung, der Finanzierung, der Lagerhaltung und der Preissetzung untersucht. Nach wie vor werden die Analysen durch den institutionellen Umbruch und das unzuverlässige und inkonsistente statistische Berichtssystem, dessen Qualität sich im Zeitablauf abermals verschlechtert hat, erschwert. Vor allem die Arbeitsmarkt- und die Finanzstatistiken sind lückenhaft und zum Teil widersprüchlich. Transaktionen mit dem Ausland und die Aktivitäten des sich neu entwickelnden Privatsektors werden statistisch nur unzureichend erfaßt. Informationslücken konnten nur teilweise durch Befragung staatlicher Stellen und russischer Wissenschaftler vor Ort geschlossen werden, so daß erhebliche Unsicherheiten über den tatsächlichen Verlauf des Transformationsprozesses verbleiben.Wirtschaftliche Anpassung; Russland;