Soil properties are important factors modifying metal bioavailability to ecological receptors. Twenty-one soils with a wide range of soil properties (USA; http://soils.usda.gov/technical/classification/taxonomy/) were amended with a single concentration of Pb (2,000 mg/kg) to determine the effects of soil properties on Pb bioavailability and toxicity to earthworms. Earthworm mortality ranged fr...

BACKGROUND Few studies have differentiated between weekday and weekend day sleep duration in their association with indicators of weight status in children. Therefore, we examined the association of week and weekend day sleep duration with indicators of body composition in 10-12 year old European school children. METHODS AND FINDINGS Multi-level linear regression analysis was performed to exa...

OBJECTIVE To evaluate a killed oral cholera vaccine produced in Viet Nam, and to compare the Vietnamese vaccine with one that is licensed internationally. METHOD Two-dose regimens of a locally produced, bivalent, anti-O1, anti-O139 killed oral whole-cell cholera vaccine (biv-WC) and of a commercially available, monovalent (anti-O1) oral recombinant B subunit-killed whole-cell cholera vaccine ...

A two stage process including a sintering under a cyclic loading is proposed as an alternative fabrication method of dense FeAl intermetallics from elemental powder mixtures. The first stage (pre-sintering) is conducted at two temperature values (620 °C and 670 °C, respectively) under a static and a cyclic loading with a frequency of 20, 40 and 60 Hz. The second one includes a pressureless sint...

Numerous studies have shown the effectiveness of collaborative active-learning pedagogies compared to traditional lectures across STEM fields. However, incorporating active learning in large classes presents unique challenges in stimulating student engagement and developing quality activities. A growing trend at universities is to create collaborative learning spaces (CLSs) that are purposefull...

To achieve a large terahertz (THz) amplitude from spintronic THz emitter (STE), materials with 100\% spin polarisation such as Co-based Heusler compounds the ferromagnetic layer are required. However, these known to loose their half-metallicity in ultrathin film regime, it is difficult L2$_1$ ordering, which has become bottleneck for growth. Here, successful deposition using room temperature DC...

With the recent development of a number of new ciphers, especially block ciphers, there is a need for a set of tools to help analyse them, in order to obtain some comparative measure of their relative security, and to assist in identifying any shortcomings in their design. This project uses a number of tests to provide a better determination of a cipher's capabilities than previous attempts, an...

Previous researches have demonstrated associations between high obesity indices with increased risk of metabolic and cardiovascular disorders. It has also been established that abnormalities lipoprotein metabolism an important role in atherogenesis non-menopausal females are protected from atherosclerotic events relative to menopausal males. This study aimed investigate the relationship such as...

BACKGROUND Swine dysentery (SD), a mucohaemorrhagic diarrhoeal disease of pigs, results from infection of the large intestine with the spirochaete Brachyspira hyodysenteriae. ELISA systems using whole spirochaete cells (WC) and the B. hyodysenteriae outer membrane lipoprotein Bhlp29.7 previously have been established as potential diagnostic tools for SD. However, their true value in identifying...