轻松面对初次置业

年仅25岁的雷扎埃险些成为一名年轻的房地产"大腕".2003年春天,他退掉了月租金1,200美元的房子,在加州购置了一套两居室公寓,觉得23万美元的价格"支付得起".几乎在同一时间,他又发现了一套售价只有8万美元的公寓,认为非常适合用来租赁.     

Applications of a two-dimensional hidden-line algorithm to other geometric problems

Recently ElGindy and Avis (EA) presented anO(n) algorithm for solving the two-dimensional hidden-line problem in ann-sided simple polygon. In this paper we show that their algorithm can be used to solve other geometric problems. In particular, triangulating anL-convex polygon and finding the convex hull of a simple polygon can be accomplished inO(n) time, whereas testing a simple polygon forL-convexity can be done inO(n ²) time.     

Base rates can affect individual predictions.

356 college students in 4 experiments learned base-rate information and then participated in a predictive social judgment task. In all experiments, predictive behavior was significantly affected by the relevant base rates. In Exp II, for example, Ss in a high base-rate condition were more likely to predict that a given student planned to enroll for further training than were Ss in a low base-rate condition. The base-rate variable had a greater influence than might have been anticipated from the Ss' confidence ratings or from their replies to a series of postexperimental questions concerning the cues they had relied on in formulating their predictions. Nonetheless, the base-rate data were substantially less influential than a Bayesian model would require. In contrast to D. Kahneman and A. Tversky's (1973) analysis, individuating information that reflected a high (vs low) degree of representativeness did not determine the magnitude of the base-rate effect. (22 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Attitude similarity and therapist credibility as predictors of attitude change and improvement in psychotherapy.

Assessed the effects of therapist credibility and patient-therapist similarity (measured by the Situational Appraisal Inventory) on interpersonal persuasion and the relationship between patient attitude change and psychotherapy outcome. Data from 97 psychiatric patients and their 6 therapists suggest that initial patient-therapist similarity is inversely related to the therapist's persuasive influence, regardless of his perceived credibility. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

富裕的理发师[4]

10月12日晴朗 关于人寿保险 时间飞逝,我已经一个多月没有去Roy的理发店了,趁着今天天气晴朗,我又想起这位老朋友,于是决定去探望一下他,顺道向他请教一些保险的问题.在理发店中,Roy异常热情地欢迎我,我们互相寒暄着彼此的近况.     

Satisfying solutions? A review of some unresolved issues in the measurement of patient satisfaction

The present study was conducted to assess the pattern of body mass index (BMI) prevalence of obesity, and the association between obesity and other health-related problems in a Saudi population. The study was conducted in Queza district of Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. A systematic random sample of Saudi nationals aged 16 years and above were selected (total number 1037; 611 males and 426 females). The study population was clinically examined and a specially-designed questionnaire was administered to obtain the information. Anthropometric measurements, blood pressure and urine analysis were carried out. The collected data were analyzed using simple as well as multivariate statistical methods. It was observed that BMI significantly increased with age. The crude mean BMI was significantly greater in females compared to males. Prevalence of Grade I obesity among different age groups in males ranged from 15.7% to 43.0%, while in females the range was from 22.8% to 45.7%. Similar patterns for both genders were found for Grade II obesity (5.2%-18.9%; and 11.1%-47.8% respectively). Obesity was significantly associated with an increase in both systolic and diastolic blood pressure, where increase in BMI by one unit increased systolic blood pressure by 0.617 mm Hg, and diastolic blood pressure by 0.484 mm Hg. This relationship held true even after allowing for other confounding factors. The present study concluded that obesity is a problem prevalent in the community of Queza district. It is recommended that health education programs be implemented through primary health care services in the community to prevent this problem.     

墨比尔斯投资法则(四)通往海外投资的致富之道

目前为富兰克林基金公司新兴市场最重要操盘人,素有新兴市场教父之称的马克_墨比尔斯(MarkMobius),曾经荣获美国杂志评选的"全球十大投资大师"之一,并于1997年、1998年连续被路透社选为"年度最佳全球基金经理人".他所推出的著作<获利护照--通往海外投资致富之道>提出多项投资法则,值得投资人参考.法则共有三十多条,我们对其进行精选,并连续刊登,为你揭开墨比尔斯投资法则的神秘面纱.     

Use of CACO-2 Cells as an in vitro Intestinal Absorption and Metabolism Model

The Caco-2 cell line, a human colorectal carcinoma cell line, is an established in vitro model for the study of drug transport in the human intestine. We have routinely utilized this in vitro model to 1) elucidate intestinal absorption mechanisms of small drug molecules and peptide-like therapeutic agents (e.g. paracellular/transcellular passive diffusion and carrier-mediated active transport), 2) screen and select orally active therapeutic agents, 3) identify optimum luminal pH's for drug absorptions, 4) address dissolution rate-related absorption problems, 5) assess mucosal toxicity of therapeutic agents, and 6) evaluate prodrug approaches for enhanced drug absorptions. We have also utilized this in vitro model to assess the metabolic stability of therapeutic agents in the intestinal epithelium. Demonstrated in this report are primarily the techniques for the elucidation of absorption mechanisms. Examples of the characterization of paracellular/ transcellular passive diffusion pathways and carrier-mediated active transport will be given. Application of the Caco-2 model to the process of drug development will also be discussed.     

Expression of heterogeneous nuclear ribonucleoprotein A2/B1 changes with critical stages of mammalian lung development

Recent reports have demostrated a link between expression of members of the family of heterogeneous nuclear ribonucleoproteins (hnRNPs) and cancer. Overexpression of hnRNP A2/B1 correlated with the eventual development of lung cancer in three different clinical cohorts. We have studied the expression of hnRNP A2/B1 messenger RNA (mRNA) and protein during mammalian development. The expression of hnRNP A2/B1 mRNA and protein are parallel but change dynamically during critical periods in mouse pulmonary development. hnRNP A2/B1 is first detected in the lung in the early pseudoglandular period, peaks at the beginning of the canalicular period, and remains high during the saccular (alveolar) period. In mouse and rat, hnRNP A2/B1 expression is first evident in the earliest lung buds. As lung development progresses, the cuboidal epithelial cells of the distal primitive alveoli show high levels of the ribonucleoprotein, which is almost undetectable in the proximal conducting airways. The expression of hnRNP A2/ B1 is restricted in mature lung. Similar dynamic pattern of expression through lung development was also found in rat and human lung. Upregulated expression of hnRNP A2/B1 at critical periods of lung development was comparable to the level of expression found in lung cancers and preneoplastic lesions and is consistent with hnRNP A2/B1 overexpression playing an oncodevelopmental role.     

Decentralised energy-based hybrid control for the multi-RTAC system

The concept of decentralised energy-based hybrid control involves hybrid dynamic subcontrollers with discontinuous states that individually control each subsystem of a large interconnected dynamical system. Specifically, each subcontroller accumulates the emulated energy and when the states of the subcontroller coincide with a high emulated energy level, then we can reset these states to remove the emulated energy so that the emulated energy is not returned to the subsystem. The real physical energy of each subsystem in this case is constantly dissipated through the motion of the actuators due to the subcontroller state resettings. In this article, we experimentally implement the decentralised energy-based hybrid control framework on the multi-rotational/translational proof mass actuator (RTAC) system. We discuss the hardware used and the experimental testbed involving three RTAC carts connected by the springs. This testbed presents a unique experimental platform for studying benchmark problems in decentralised nonlinear control design. Finally, we present experimental results using decentralised energy-based hybrid controllers.