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A new methodology incorporating retiming techniques, wire fragmentation and pipeline clocking helps enhance the speed of monolithic wafer-scale systems and enables decoupling of the size and frequency of large integrated systems. This methodology makes possible the usage of frequencies up to 1 GHz and can be used in a distributed-queue, dual-bias communication network.

Focuses on a study which examined the effects of magnetic field orientation on a liquid-metal free surface in a sliding electrical contact. Background to the study; Results; Discussion.

Presents the results for the shape of the free surface and for the liquid-metal velocity and pressure adjacent to the free surface. Illustration of the liquid-metal region in the axial gap between the stator and rotor sides; Expression for the secondary flow; Variations with the magnetic-field strength and surface tension; Variations with electric potential difference; Information on the rotor with an insulating coating.

The requirement of long-term accommodation space for preservation in the geological record is particularly acute in the case of thick wind-blown deposits that accumulate to heights well above the regional elevation. The Mesozoic of the western United States contains a number of well-developed erg systems. The clue to their formation and preservation is the combination of a positive sand budget and the generation of shortening events in the early Mesozoic continental margin arc of the U.S. Cordillera, which flexed the continental interior downward. The combination of the creation of a wide topographic depression representing a retro-foreland basin, sheltered behind a mountain belt exerting a rain shadow effect, and a background dynamic subsidence, produced optimum conditions for the preservation of thick eolian deposits during the Jurassic. The onset of flexural subsidence in Utah is thought to have been as early as Early Jurassic on the basis of the characteristic signature of the subsidence profiles, which is in agreement with the recent documentation of Early Jurassic igneous and structural activity west of the Luning-Fencemaker thrust belt in Nevada. Keywords: flexure, Utah, eolian, Cordilleran shortening, retro-foreland, subsidence.

Abstract Background Vaccine coverage (VC) at a given age is a widely-used indicator for measuring the performance of vaccination programs. However, there is increasing data suggesting that measuring delays in administering vaccines complements the measure of VC. Providing feedback to vaccinators is recognized as an effective strategy for improving vaccine coverage, but its implementation has not been widely documented in Canada. The objective of this study was to evaluate the feasibility of providing personalized feedback to vaccinators and its impact on vaccination delays (VD). Methods In April and May 2008, a one-hour personalized feedback session was provided to health professionals in vaccinating medical clinics in the Quebec City region. VD for vaccines administered at two and twelve months of age were presented. Data from the regional vaccination registry were analysed for participating clinics. Two 12-month periods before and after the intervention were compared, namely from April 1st, 2007 to March 31st, 2008 and from June 1st, 2008 to May 31st, 2009. Results Ten medical clinics out of the twelve approached (83%), representing more than 2500 vaccinated children, participated in the project. Preparing and conducting the feedback involved 20 hours of work and expenses of $1000 per clinic. Based on a delay of one month, 94% of first doses of DTaP-Polio-Hib and 77% of meningococcal vaccine doses respected the vaccination schedule both before and after the intervention. Following the feedback, respect of the vaccination schedule increased for vaccines planned at 12 months for the four clinics that had modified their vaccination practices related to multiple injections (depending on the clinic, VD decreased by 24.4%, 32.0%, 40.2% and 44.6% respectively, p < 0.001 for all comparisons). Conclusions The present study shows that it is feasible to provide personalized feedback to vaccinating clinics. While it may have encouraged positive changes in practice concerning multiple injections, this intervention on its own did not impact vaccination delays of the clinics visited. It is possible that feedback integrated into other types of effective interventions and sustained over time may have more impact on VD.

Blood collected from song sparrows (Melospiza melodia) and American robins (Turdus migratorius) captured with mist nets in a lead-contaminated (assessment) area and nearby uncontaminated (reference) areas within the Coeur d'Alene Basin in northern Idaho was analyzed for b-aminolevulinic acid dehydratase activity (ALAD) and hematocrit levels, and livers were analyzed for lead. Mean ALAD inhibition in the assessment area was 51% in song sparrows and 75% in American robins. The proportion of the sampled population with ALAD inhibition >50% was calculated to be 43% for song sparrows and 93% for American robins. Assessment area hematocrit values for song sparrows (mean = 39.9) and American robins (mean = 39.5) were lower than in reference areas (mean = 42.4 for song sparrows and 40.2 for American robins); however, differences were not statistically significant (P > 0.05). Significantly higher levels of lead (wet weight) were found in livers from song sparrows captured on the assessment area (mean = 1.93 ppm) than on reference areas (mean = 0.10 ppm) (p =0.0079). Study results indicate that 43% (95% confidence interval [CI] = 12.9-77.5%) of the song sparrows and 83% (95% CI = 41.8-99.2%) of the American robins inhabiting the floodplain along the Coeur d'Alene River in the assessment area are being exposed to lead at levels sufficient to inhibit ALAD by > 50%. Variability in lead exposure indicators was attributed to high variability in environmental lead concentrations in the Coeur d'Alene River Basin. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Regular exercise protects against overweight/obesity as well as numerous chronic diseases. Yet, less than half of Americans exercise sufficiently. Elevated levels of depressive symptoms have been identified as an important correlate of physical inactivity as well as poor adherence to exercise programs. Individuals with depression are less sensitive to rewards and demonstrate an attentional bias toward negative stimuli. These, and other features of depression, may place them at increased risk for effectively managing the affective experience of exercise. Lower baseline levels of activation of the left (vs right) frontal cortex, an area implicated in affect regulation, have also been found in depression, potentially pointing to this region as a potential target for intervening on affect regulation during exercise. Transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) has shown promise in impacting a variety of cognitive and affective processes in a large number of individuals, including people with depression. Some findings have suggested that tDCS targeting the left dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC), specifically, may improve emotion regulation. Transcranial direct current stimulation could theoretically be a novel and potentially promising approach to improving the affective experience of exercise, thereby increasing exercise adherence among individuals with depressive symptoms. Here we present the rationale, design, and baseline characteristics of a pilot randomized controlled trial of tDCS versus sham delivered 3x/week for 8 weeks in the context of supervised aerobic exercise (AE) program among 51 low-active individuals with elevated depressive symptoms (86.3% female; mean age = 49.5). Follow-up assessments were conducted at end of treatment, and three and six months after enrollment to examine changes in levels of objectively-measured moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA). If effective, this approach could have high public health impact on preventing obesity and chronic diseases among these at-risk individuals., Competing Interests: The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (© 2022 The Authors.)