Faecal examinations for helminth eggs were performed on 1869 people from two riverside localities, Vientiane Municipality and Saravane Province, along the Mekong River, Laos. To obtain adult flukes, 42 people positive for small trematode eggs (Opisthorchis viverrini, heterophyid, or lecithodendriid eggs) were treated with a 20–30 mg kg−1 single dose of praziquantel and purged. Diarrhoeic stools were then collected from 36 people (18 in each area) and searched for helminth parasites using stereomicroscopes. Faecal examinations revealed positive rates for small trematode eggs of 53.3% and 70.8% (average 65.2%) in Vientiane and Saravane Province, respectively. Infections with O. viverrini and six species of intestinal flukes were found, namely, Haplorchis taichui, H. pumilio, H. yokogawai, Centrocestus caninus, Prosthodendrium molenkampi, and Phaneropsolus bonnei. The total number of flukes collected and the proportion of fluke species recovered were markedly different in the two localities; in Vientiane, 1041 O. viverrini (57.8 per person) and 615 others (34.2 per person), whereas in Saravane, 395 O. viverrini (21.9 per person) and 155207 others (8622.6 per person). Five people from Saravane harboured no O. viverrini but numerous heterophyid and/or lecithodendriid flukes. The results indicate that O. viverrini and several species of heterophyid and lecithodendriid flukes are endemic in these two riverside localities, and suggest that the intensity of infection and the relative proportion of fluke species vary by locality along the Mekong River basin.

Glacier surface mass-balance measurements on Greenland started more than a century ago, but no compilation exists of the observations from the ablation area of the ice sheet and local glaciers. Such data could be used in the evaluation of modelled surface mass balance, or to document changes in glacier melt independently from model output. Here, we present a comprehensive database of Greenland glacier surface mass-balance observations from the ablation area of the ice sheet and local glaciers. The database spans the 123 a from 1892 to 2015, contains a total of ~3000 measurements from 46 sites, and is openly accessible through the PROMICE web portal (http://www.promice.dk). For each measurement we provide X, Y and Z coordinates, starting and ending dates as well as quality flags. We give sources for each entry and for all metadata. Two thirds of the data were collected from grey literature and unpublished archive documents. Roughly 60% of the measurements were performed by the Geological Survey of Denmark and Greenland (GEUS, previously GGU). The data cover all regions of Greenland except for the southernmost part of the east coast, but also emphasize the importance of long-term time series of which there are only two exceeding 20 a. We use the data to analyse uncertainties in point measurements of surface mass balance, as well as to estimate surface mass-balance profiles for most regions of Greenland.

A trend toward greater body size in dizygotic (DZ) than in monozygotic (MZ) twins has been suggested by some but not all studies, and this difference may also vary by age. We analyzed zygosity differences in mean values and variances of height and body mass index (BMI) among male and female twins from infancy to old age. Data were derived from an international database of 54 twin cohorts participating in the COllaborative project of Development of Anthropometrical measures in Twins (CODATwins), and included 842,951 height and BMI measurements from twins aged 1 to 102 years. The results showed that DZ twins were consistently taller than MZ twins, with differences of up to 2.0 cm in childhood and adolescence and up to 0.9 cm in adulthood. Similarly, a greater mean BMI of up to 0.3 kg/m2 in childhood and adolescence and up to 0.2 kg/m2 in adulthood was observed in DZ twins, although the pattern was less consistent. DZ twins presented up to 1.7% greater height and 1.9% greater BMI than MZ twins; these percentage differences were largest in middle and late childhood and decreased with age in both sexes. The variance of height was similar in MZ and DZ twins at most ages. In contrast, the variance of BMI was significantly higher in DZ than in MZ twins, particularly in childhood. In conclusion, DZ twins were generally taller and had greater BMI than MZ twins, but the differences decreased with age in both sexes.

Surveillance is an important component of influenza control. This report describes the establishment and first results of the Korean Influenza Surveillance Scheme (KISS), an integrated clinical and laboratory surveillance network involving 622 public health centres (PHCs) and private clinics. Sentinel physicians reported cases of influenza-like illness (ILI) weekly and forwarded specimens for virus isolation and characterization. Influenza activity during the opening 2000–2001 season was milder and delayed compared with previous years. The ILI consultation rate corresponded well with the number of influenza virus isolates, both peaking in week 10 of 2001. Influenza A(H3N2) was the dominant isolate. The peak ILI consultation rate was higher in private clinics than in PHCs (5·04 vs 1·79 cases/1000 visits). An evaluation questionnaire generated potential enhancements to the scheme. KISS appears to represent the pattern of influenza activity accurately and will have a valuable role in monitoring and preventing epidemics in Korea.

An investigation has been conducted of the three-dimensional flow associated with the inlet-vortex phenomenon. Quantitative measurements were made of inlet– and trailing-vortex circulation and position. Flow visualization was used to obtain information on the overall structure of the vorticity field. It is shown that the inlet vortex and the trailing vortex have essentially equal and opposite circulation. In addition, the production of vorticity, due to vortex stretching, is the mechanism by which both of these are maintained. A limited parametric study was also conducted to define the circulation and position (in the inlet) of the inlet vortex, for parameters of practical engineering interest.

To investigate the causal relationship of blood clotting factors and hepatitis A virus (HAV) infection in haemophilia patients during 1998–1999 in Korea, we performed a 1:3 matched case-control study and molecular detection of HAV from clotting factors and patients. The epidemiological investigation showed that one lot of clotting factor VIII was related epidemiologically to patients with hepatitis A with an odds ratio of 35·0, or 38·4 when adjusted for the interval between injections. We examined 17 sera collected from seven patients and 124 lots of blood clotting factors (factor VIII and factor IV) by HAV reverse transcriptase–polymerase chain reaction (RT–PCR). HAV RNA was detected in five clotting factors and six sera. The HAV sequence of one of the factor VIII samples was identical to the sequences found in three patients' sera. Findings from the laboratory and epidemiological studies suggested that the clotting factor was causally related to HAV infection in three haemophilia patients.

The composition of yeast communities in the rumen of cattle was investigated using comparative DNA sequence analysis of yeast 26S rDNA genes. 26S rDNA libraries were constructed from rumen fluid (FF), rumen solid (FS) and rumen epithelium (FE). A total of 97 clones, containing a partial 26S rDNA sequence of 0·6 kb length, were sequenced and subjected to an on-line similarity search.

The 41 FF clones could be divided into five classes. The largest class was affiliated with Pezizomycotina class (85·4% of clones), and the remaining classes were related with the Urediniomycotina (2·4%), Hymenomycetes (4·9%), Ustilaginomycetes (4·9%) and Saccharomycotina (2·4%) classes. The 26 FE clones could be divided into three classes and the Saccharomycetes class (92·4% of clones) was the largest group. The remaining classes were related with either Pezizomycotina (3·8%) or Ustilaginomycetes (3·8%). The 30 FS clones were all affiliated with Saccharomycotina. Saccharomycotina were predominant in rumen epithelium and rumen solid while Pezizomycotina were predominant in rumen fluid. Yeast belonging to the Saccharomycotina class was predominant in the rumen as a whole (57%). One clone (FF34) had less than 90% similarity to any sequence in the database and was thus apparently unrelated to any previously described yeast.

We have studied the change of the spectral response in a quantum well infrared photodetector (QWIP) by using the impurity-free vacancy disordering (IFVD) to change the bandgap of the GaAs/AlGaAs multiple quantum well absorption layer. IFVD process has been carried out with PECVD-grown SiO2 capping on the MOCVD-grown QWIP structure, whose absorption region consists of 25 periods of 3.6nm thick Si-doped GaAs well and 50nm thick Al0.24Ga0.76As barrier. The PL peak of MQW decreased with the increase of annealing temperature and time from 802 nm to 700 nm at 15 K. The fabricated QWIP whose absorption region was intermixed at 850 °C by IFVD technique showed the maximum change in spectral response from 8 to 10 um when compared to a QWIP without intermixing. This result implies that the intermixing technology can be used to make multicolor QWIP without growing multiple IR absorption regions.

Land resources are scarce in Mauritius and to fulfil the export quota sugarcane (Saccharum hybrids) has to be grown in marginal areas which are not conducive to optimal growth. In order to increase overall productivity there is a need to breed and select sugarcane varieties specifically adapted to the extremely dry and extremely wet areas. In this study, 154 genotypes representing four families were planted in a randomized complete block design at two sites. The genotypes were replicated at the two sites and evaluated in the plant cane and first ratoon crops. Family × environment and genotype × environment interactions were determined using the mixed model analysis of variance. Significant differences between families, genotypes and environments were found in stalk height, stalk diameter, industrial recoverable sucrose % cane (IRSC) and cane yield per hectare in tonnes (TCH). The genotype × environment interaction was significant for stalk height, stalk number, stalk diameter, sucrose content, TCH, tonnes sugar per hectare (TSH) and kilobrix (parameter used for selection in the preliminary phase of the selection programme at the Mauritius Sugar Industry Research Institute) in both plant cane and first ratoon crops indicating that the relative performance of the genotypes is not consistent across the environments for these characters. The family × environment interaction was found to be significant for cane and sugar yields whereas it was not significant for field Brix in either the plant cane or the ratoon crops. This showed that, for the parameter Brix, the relative performance of the families is similar in both environments and there is no need to replicate in more than one environment. The environmental sensitivities measured with respect to sugar yield showed that families and genotypes with nearly equal means over all environments displayed inconsistent performances. Differences in the sensitivities of the different families and genotypes were observed and some of the family × environment and genotype × environment interactions could be ascribed to them. The results also suggest that mass selection could be more effective than family selection and selection for each specific environment is advisable.

Electron-beam propagation from a gas-filled diode is investigated. The beginning portion of the electron beam pulse creates an ion channel not only inside the diode but also in the region beyond the anode. A theoretical model is developed for the space-charge-limited current of a relativistic electron beam propagating through an ion channel. A simple analytical expression for the space-charge-limited current is obtained within the context of a thin-beam approximation, where the conducting-tube radius is much larger than the beam radius. The beam current propagating through an ion channel is measured experimentally for a mildly relativistic electron beam. Whenever the ion density inside the diode is the same as the beam electron density, the diode is short-circuited. The ion-channel density at the short-circuiting time is calculated numerically and is used to estimate the space-charge-limited current. It is shown that the experimental data agree well with the analytical results predicted by the theoretical model.

In an attempt to increase the deposition rate, new Cu (I) compounds, (hfac)Cu(1-pentene)(1) and (hfac)Cu(VTMOS)(2) have been synthesized. These species are chartreuse liquids and exhibit sufficient vapor pressures to allow high transport rates.

In order to avoid the premature decomposition of the copper precursors during CVD processes, the 50% of free 1-pentene, and VTMOS was added to the compounds 1 and 2 respectively. These mixtures 1 and 2 were used in this study. Approximately 2gm of precursor was used for each experiment. No premature decomposition of the precursor in the source reservoir was observed during CVD processes. It is a sufficiently important result to expect the use of these mixtures in copper CVD to achieve the reproducible deposition.

The copper films using these mixtures were deposited in a hot-wall pyrex reactor at a pressure of approximately 10–2 torr under dynamic vacuum. The films deposited at 100°C, 150°C and 200°C from the mixture 1. Pure copper films were deposited from these species. The resistivities 1.8 ∼ 2.1 μΩcm were obtained in the deposition temperature range. SEM revealed that the surface morphology of the films grown in these depositon temperature range was composed of dense film and grains were well connected. The deposition rate at 200°C was 3,500 Å/min.