Software inspections, which were originally developed by Michael Fagan in 1976, are an important means to verify and achieve sufficient quality in many software projects today. Since Fagan's initial work, the importance of software inspections has been long recognized by software developers and many organizations. Various proposals have been made by researchers in the hope of improving Fagan's ins

A prospective longitudinal investigation of spontaneous cephalic version from breech presentation in the last trimester is reported. All pregnancies were assessed with ultrasound in the 32nd week of gestation, and were thereafter checked weekly. Of the 310 singleton breech presentations identified at 32 weeks, spontaneous cephalic version occurred in 177 (57%) while breech presentation persisted i

We have investigated the acid-unfolded state of acyl-coenzyme A binding protein (ACBP) using N-15 laboratory frame nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) relaxation experiments at three magnetic field strengths. The data have been analyzed using standard model-free fitting and models involving distribution of correlation times. In particular, a model-independent method of analysis that does not assume a

We studied the influence of added compost, consisting of Acacia cyanophylla leaves, on the production of extra-radical mycelia of arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) fungi in natural stands of Acacia tortilis, which forms a desert savanna. Four different plots with different soil characteristics in terms of nutrient level and water-holding capacity were included in the study. The production of AM fungi wa

Objective: To study a controversy that has been discussed for more than two decades: whether or not children with autism have abnormalities affecting the cochlear nerve or the auditory pathway in the brain stem and, if so, to describe these abnormalities. Design: A group of 153 children and adolescents with autistic disorder were included in an investigation of auditory brain stem responses (ABR).

In order to simplify computational methods based on dynamic programming, a relaxed procedure based on upper and lower bounds of the optimal cost was recently introduced. The convergence properties of this procedure are analysed here. In particular, it is shown that the computational effort in finding an approximately optimal control law by relaxed value iteration is related to the polynomial degre

In this article, we describe the integration of logistics after Mergers and Acquisitions (M&As) of firms within the same industry and, same industry level (i.e. horizontal M&As). First, we present a review of the literature on M&As and conclude that operational issues, in general, and logistics issues, in particular, have received little attention. In parallel with the literature revie

Gelatinized starch/water dispersions with a water content of 70% w/w were studied in order to evaluate the influence of the incubation time at two fixed temperatures (6 and 37 degrees C) on the recrystallization behavior. The starch material was produced from waxy maize starch by acid hydrolysis followed by a mechanical treatment, i.e. a high pressure homogenization. Empirical models for the recry

Recently, at least six types of hepatitis C viruses (HCV) have been identified. Different types of HCV appear to possess different pathogenic properties and a different sensitivity to interferon treatment. Typing of HCV isolates may therefore be an important diagnostic procedure. We report on a new method for identification of HCV types 1a, 1b, 2a, 2b and 3a which are most prevalent in Europe, Nor

IdeS, a recently discovered cysteine proteinase secreted by the important human pathogen Streptococcus pyogenes, interferes with phagocytic killing by specifically cleaving the heavy chain of immunoglobulin G. The fact that the enzyme targets one of the key molecules of the adapted immune response raised the question of whether an antibody response against IdeS could inhibit, i.e., neutralize, enz

Contact allergy to and allergic contact dermatitis from methyldibromo glutaronitrile (MDBGN) have frequently been reported. As there has been no agreement on which MDBGN test preparation to use, a study was initiated to help determine the optimal patch test preparation for MDBGN. 2661 consecutively patch tested patients at 11 test clinics representing 9 European countries participated. Petrolatum

The low specificity of screening ELISAs for antibodies to hepatitis C virus in blood donors has called for confirmatory tests. Two types of supplementary antibody assays are available, recombinant immunoblot assays (RIBA-1 and RIBA-2) and an antibody consumption test referred to as a neutralization assay. Amplification of viral nucleic acid by the polymerase chain reaction (PCR) provides an antibo

The chemical activity of organic chemicals directs their diffusion and partitioning and is consequently crucial for their transport, distribution, and toxic effects. A silicone membrane equilibrator is introduced for measuring the chemical activity of nonpolar organic chemicals in lipid-rich samples: (I) A 6 m poly(dimethylsiloxane) (PDMS) microtube (300 mum i.d., 640 mum o.d.) was placed in a sam

We have cloned a cDNA for a myocardial cGMP-inhibited cAMP phosphodiesterase (cGI PDE) from a human heart cDNA library in lambda Zap II. The open reading frame [3.5 kilobases (kb)] of cDNA clone n.13.2 (7.7 kb) encodes a protein of 125 kDa. In Northern blots of total human ventricle RNA, a single mRNA species (8.3 kb) hybridized with a 4-kb EcoRI restriction fragment of clone n.13.2 cDNA (containi