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The co-existence of trees and grasses is a defining feature of savannah ecosystems and landscapes. During recent decades, the combined effect of climate change and increased demographic pressure has led to complex vegetation changes in these ecosystems. A number of recent Earth observation (EO)-based studies reported positive changes in biological productivity in the Sahelian region in relation to

Background: Spirometry, the main tool for diagnosis and follow-up of COPD, incompletely describes the disease. Based on volumetric capnography (VCap), an index was developed for the diagnosis and grading of COPD, aimed as a complement or alternative to spirometry. Methods: Nine non-smokers, 10 smokers/former smokers without COPD and 54 smokers/ former smokers with COPD were included in the study.

Background: Depression is among the major causes of disability with a negative impact on both daily life and work performance. Whilst depression is the primary cause of sick-leave and unemployment in today's workplace there is a lack of knowledge of the needs of individuals with depression regarding their return-to-work (RTW) process. Objective: To explore which factors are of critical importance

The synthesis and structural characterization of the hitherto unknown parent Co(bz)2 + (bz=benzene) complex and several of its derivatives are described. Their synthesis starts either from a CoCO5 + salt, or directly from Co2(CO)8 and a Ag+ salt. Stability and solubility of these complexes was achieved by using the weakly coordinating anions

Introduction: Multiple myeloma (MM) is a plasma cell neoplasm with substantial morbidity and mortality. A comprehensive description of the global burden of MM is needed to help direct health policy, resource allocation, research, and patient care.Objective: To describe the burden of MM and the availability of effective therapies for 21 world regions and 195 countries and territories from 1990 to 2

Background: Venous thromboembolism (VTE) is the third most frequent life-threatening cardiovascular disease with an annual incidence rate of 1-2 per 1000 person-years. After the diagnosis for primary VTE, about 20-30% patients develop a recurrence within 5-years. VTE recurrence can be prevented by anticoagulants, albeit at the risk of severe bleeding. Heritability of VTE is high and hereditary fac

Introduction: Cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) biomarkers have the potential to improve the diagnostic accuracy of Alzheimer's disease, yet there is a lack of harmonized preanalytical CSF handling protocols. Methods: This systematic review summarizes the current literature on the influence of preanalytical variables on CSF biomarker concentration. We evaluated the evidence for three core CSF biomarkers:

As shown in a companion paper the geometrical diameter of a hair strand is an important parameter for quantification of its trace element content after PIXE analysis. By analysing Rutherford backscattered protons simultaneously with PIXE analysis a reliable estimate of the hair diameter can be obtained. In this work the hypothesis that there exists a linearity between the geometrical diameter and

The diagnosis of acute otitis media (AOM) is often difficult, depending heavily on the experience and skills of the examiner. However, it is important to identify episodes of AOM that involve the risk of complications and to treat these episodes appropriately. The present study was performed in order to evaluate the use of a rapid antigen assay for Streptococcus pneumoniae, the Binax NOW test, as

Background: The European Molecular Genetics Quality Network (EMQN) was formed in order to improve external quality assessment for molecular genetic testing in Europe. From 1999 to 2002 it received funding from the European Union under the Standards, Measurement and Testing programme (contract no. SMT4-CT98-7515). Since then, its maintenance has been supported through subscription of the participan

We have developed a new reactive force field, ReaxFF, for use in molecular dynamics (MD) simulations to investigate the structures and reactive dynamics of complex metal oxide catalysts. The parameters in ReaxFF are derived directly from QM and have been validated to provide reasonable accuracy for a wide variety of reactions. We report the use of ReaxFF to study the activation and conversion of p

Stationary and mobile field gamma spectrometry is a useful tool for rapid estimation of environmental radioactivity inventories on and in the ground. A weak point however, is that the depth distribution of the activity in the ground must be known in order to calculate the true activity per unit area or unit mass from an observed photon fluence rate. A promising method for converting incoming spect

Background Measuring health-related quality of life (QoL) after surgery is essential for decision making by patients, surgeons, and payers. The aim of this consensus conference was twofold. First, it was to determine for which diseases endoscopic surgery results in better postoperative QoL than open surgery. Second, it was to recommend QoL instruments for clinical research. Methods An expert panel

The population sizes of five perennial vascular plant species confined to old unimproved dry grasslands were assessed, viz. Anthericum ramosum, Filipendula vulgaris, Silene nutans, Thymus pulegioides, and Thymus serpyllum. All populations within the region were included. Only for Filipendula vulgaris and Thymus serpyllum, significant relationships between habitat area and population size were foun

The aim of the study was to examine the effects of wearing an ice-vest (ca 1 kg) on physiological and subjective responses in fire fighters. The experiments were carried out on a treadmill in a hot-dry environment. The physical cooling effect of the ice-vest was measured with a thermal manikin. The ice-vest effectively reduced skin temperatures under the vest. On average, heart rate was 10 beats m

We have measured the oscillator strength of the Ni I line at 6300.34Å, which is known to be blended with the forbidden line [O I]lambda6300 used for the determination of the oxygen abundance in coolstars. We also give wavelengths of the two isotopic line components of⁵⁸Ni and ⁶⁰Ni derived from the asymmetriclaboratory line profile. These two line components of Ni I have to be

We present a model for estimating the final keep/cancel decision point, on a per-feature basis, for scope inclusion in a future release. The Basic Lost Opportunity Estimation Model (BLOEM), based on data from a company that uses an agile-inspired software development model, supports feature selection when the time-dependent business value estimates change as the requirements analysis progresses. T