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Terrain analysis of skier-triggered avalanche starting zones
No full textABSTRACT: Terrain is one of the main factors contributing to avalanche formation and important for the assessment of avalanche risk. Terrain characteristics of small to medium human triggered avalanches have however been the subject of limited attention. This work focused on analyzing the terrain characteristics of human triggered avalanches and their starting zones. Photos and shapes of avalanches in Switzerland between 1999/2000 and 2009/2010 and a high-quality digital elevation models (ADS-DOM) were used for this study. It was possible to digitalize 142 starting zones and to analyse them at high resolution with the ADS-DOM. Geomorphometric methods were used to extract different terrain features (ridges, slope, aspect, roughness, exposure and curvature) from the DEM. Furthermore a method was developed to estimate starting zones from a complete avalanche perimeter und to divide the starting zones automatically in different districts. The majority of the avalanches were released on planar or concave slopes and the roughness of the terrain corresponded a relatively constant debris covered surface. The slope angle often decreased from the crown to the Stauchwall
Studies of Molecular Interaction in Binary Liquid Mixtures of O-Cresol and Nonanol at Different Temperatures
No full textABSTRACT Various acoustic and thermodyna mic parameters are calculated from the values of velocity, density and viscosity that were experimentally measured. Excess parameters such as excess adiabatic compressibility
Assessing the Gaming Experience using Puppetry
No full textABSTRACT In this paper we address the question: What factors of game experience are measured and have to be measured? by proposing a concept called Puppetry to assess the experience while playing videogames. Puppetry was obtained using qualitative methods on the experiences of players. The main characteristic of Puppetry is that it looks at the common elements of videogames that allow the user to build the experience
Cholecystitis in Pregnancy
No full textABSTRACT Biliary tract disease is a relatively uncommon, heterogenous disease in pregnancy. Specifica
Anti-Inflammatory Effects of 4-Phenyl-3-butenoic Acid and 5- (Acetylamino)-4-oxo-6-phenyl-2-hexenoic Acid Methyl Ester, Potential Inhibitors of Neuropeptide Bioactivation
No full textABSTRACT Substance P (SP) and calcitonin gene-related peptide (CGRP) are well established mediators of inflammation. Therefore, inhibition of the biosynthesis of these neuropeptides is an attractive potential strategy for pharmacological intervention against a number of inflammatory diseases. The final step in the biosynthesis of SP and CGRP is the conversion of their glycineextended precursors to the active amidated peptide, and this process is catalyzed by sequential action of the enzymes peptidylglycine ␣-monooxygenase (PAM) and peptidylamidoglycolate lyase. We have demonstrated previously that 4-phenyl-3-butenoic acid (PBA) is a PAM inhibitor, and we have also shown that in vivo inhibition of serum PAM by PBA correlates with this compound's ability to inhibit carrageenan-induced edema in the rat. Here we demonstrate the ability of PBA to inhibit all three phases of adjuvant-induced polyarthritis (AIP) in rats; this represents the first time that an amidation inhibitor has been shown to be active in a model of chronic inflammation. We recently introduced 5-(acetylamino)-4-oxo-6-phenyl-2-hexenoic acid (AOPHA) as one of a new series of mechanismbased amidation inhibitors. We now report for the first time that AOPHA and its methyl ester (AOPHA-Me) are active inhibitors of serum PAM in vivo, and we show that AOPHA-Me correspondingly inhibits carrageenan-induced edema in rats in a dose-dependent manner. Neither PBA nor AOPHA-Me exhibits significant cyclooxygenase (COX) inhibition in vitro; thus, the anti-inflammatory activities of PBA and AOPHA-Me are apparently not a consequence of COX inhibition. We discuss possible pharmacological mechanisms that may account for the activities of these new antiinflammatory compounds. A number of neuropeptides, such as calcitonin gene-related peptide (CGRP), neuropeptide Y, substance P (SP), and vasoactive intestinal polypeptide, are initially synthesized as glycine-extended precursors, which are then converted to the bioactive C-terminal amidated form. Amidation is a two-step process catalyzed by the sequential actions of peptidylglycine ␣-monooxygenase (PAM; EC 1.14.17.3) and peptidylamidoglycolate lyase (EC 4.3.2.5). The monooxygenase first catalyzes ␣-hydroxylation of the glycine-extended precursor, and the lyase then catalyzes conversion of this ␣-hydroxyglycine derivative to the C-terminally amidated peptide Tissue levels of proinflammatory neuropeptides have been shown to change during the inflammatory process in animal models of acute and chronic inflammation as well as huma
No full textAbstract: The Persian leopard Panthera pardus saxicolor is the largest member of eight felid species surviving today in Iran, after the extinction of the Asiatic lion Panthera leo persica and the Caspian tiger Panthera tigris virgata in the past 70 years. The stronghold of this endangered subspecies is Iran. Over the past 25 years the Persian leopard was exterminated in many areas of its global range and in the others its numbers have plummeted. Bamu National Park (BNP) has long been one of the best habitats for the subspecies in southern Iran, but leopards there face severe threats nowadays. 10 Autum
Contribution of Clinical Biochemistry to Structural Bioinformatics
No full textAbstract Bioinformatics plays an important role in the study of human diseases with genomic data for drug development and gene therapy. Its applicative arm is clinical biochemistry that focuses on the methodology and interpretation of chemical tests performed to support diagnosis and treatment. Clinical biochemistry is one of the most important parts of laboratory diagnostics tests together with laboratory hematology, immunology, clinical serology and microbiology, clinical toxicology. It possesses the largest number of diagnostic tests that help to understand pathogenesis and etiology of different pathological processes. Clinical biochemistry is based on bioinformatics applications that have been used for tumor marker measurements, stem cell tests, gene expression, and DNA damage repair. Bioinformatics field can be derived from biochemistry. It means that biochemistry has emerged from bioinformatics applications. It is not an overstatement to say that bioinformatics is what biochemistry is evolving to become a distinct guide for quality control. This paper focuses on the point of contemporary clinical biochemistry that tends to support bioinformatics researchers. Integration between biochemistry and bioinformatics would lead to an increase in healthcare performance is thus of increasing importance in future research
A Study of the Powerplay in One-Day Cricket
No full textAbstract This paper investigates the powerplay in one-day cricket. The rules concerning the powerplay have been tinkered with over the years, and therefore the primary motivation of the paper occur during the powerplay than had there been no powerplay and (d) there is some effect in run production due to the over where the powerplay is initiated. We also investigate individual batsmen and bowlers and their performances during the powerplay
PERCEPTION OF LIFE INSURANCE POLICIES IN RURAL INDIA
No full textABSTRACT In spite of awareness about insurance in India, rural India still lacks in terms of availability of various financial products especially the risk products like insurance. Rural insurance statistics still indicates a significantly low penetration and poor density even after the privatisation of insurance sector in 1999. Rural India offers a tremendous scope for insurers where the protection of human life and income generating assets is a matter of concern. Regulators have also tried to impose rural insurance obligations for the insurance companies. This paper examines the present state of affairs of rural life insurance in India and attempts to explore the issues and challenges which led to poor penetration of rural life insurance markets. A field survey in Aligarh & Agra Region of the rural customers has been conducted to examine their perception and attitude towards buying life insurance products. This paper also summarize the rural insurance marketing practices by life insurance players in India and offers suggestive remarks for capturing the rural potential and lastly this paper discuss about micro-insurance & its challenges in short details which is an opportunity as well as a responsibility