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Bitcoinhas emerged as a successful digital currency since its inception in 2009. Now it is more likely becoming as a digital asset. The private keyprovides the complete control on bitcoins, which makes it an attractive honeypotfor hackers. These security threats have raised the concern to enhance the safety measure of the private key. To minimize the complete key loss, we propose a private key safety model for safely keeping the sub elements of the private key under different spans that introduce syntactic, semantic and cognitive safety control. A proof of concept is demonstrated using key disintegration and salt introduction. The private key safety is enhanced by safely keeping the spans across different possessions, which are required to club when user needs to regenerate the private key for executing a bitcoin transaction.

Aims The purpose of this systematic review was to assess the safety and effectiveness of beta antagonists for improving clinical care in burn patients, compared to placebo.Methods Articles from randomized-controlled trials were identified by a literature search on PubMed and Cochrane. We included relevant trials involving patients with burn. Trials were eligible if they evaluated propranolol and compared to usual care or placebo. We conducted a meta-analysis using a random-effects model.Results A total of 2114 patients were included from 14 RCTs. Beta-blocker-treated patients had decreased heart rates (WMD = −14.73, 95% CIs = [−19.14, −10.32]), mean arterial pressure (WMD = −2.76, 95% CIs = [−3.81, −1.70]), rate pressure product (WMD = −1.13, 95% CIs = [−1.56, −0.71]), reduced time for wound healing (WMD = −5.08, 95% CIs [−8.97, −1.18]), and lower resting energy expenditure (WMD = −168.83, 95% CIs [−232.03, −105.63]). However, use of beta-blockers did not reduce mortality rate (WMD = 0.98, 95% CIs [0.68, 1.41]), incidence of sepsis (RR = 0.82, 95% CIs = [0.50, 1.35]), or length of stay in hospital (WMD = −1.50, 95% CIs [−4.76, 1.77]) compared with placebo.Conclusion Our findings indicate that the administration of propranolol to burned patients does not contribute to increased mortality rates, reduced length of hospital stays, or heightened sepsis occurrence. It demonstrates a protective effect on heart function by reducing heart rate, resting energy expenditure, rate pressure product, and wound healing. More randomized-controlled and multi-center studies are needed to effectively establish the use of beta antagonists in burn patients.

The main objective of this paper is to introduce two new proximal-like methods to solve the equilibrium problem in a real Hilbert space. The equilibrium problem is a general mathematical problem that unites several useful mathematical problems, including optimization problems, variational inequalities, fixed-point problems, saddle point problems, complementary problems, and Nash equilibrium problems. Both new methods are analogous to the well-known extragradient method, which has been used in the literature to solve variational inequality problems. The proposed methods make use of a non-monotone variable step size rule that is revised for each iteration and is determined mainly by previous iterations. The advantage of these methods is that they can be used without prior knowledge of Lipschitz-type constants or any line-search method. By allowing for some mild condition, the strong convergence of both methods is established. Numerical studies are presented to demonstrate the computational behavior of new methods and to compare them to other existing methods. • Two extragradient methods are proposedfor solving an equilibrium problem involving pseudomonotone bifunction • Strong convergence is obtained by using Mann and Viscosity type iterative schemes • Applications to solve variational inequality problems and fixed point problems are presented • A comprehensive numerical analysis is considered to show competitive advantage of proposed methods [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this article, we propose a self-adaptive inertial subgradient extragradient algorithm for solving variational inequality problems involving pseudomonotone operator. The scheme uses a variable step sizes and inertial extrapolation step. The step size is self-adaptive, which does not require the prior knowledge of the Lipschitz constant of the underlying operator. Furthermore, under mild assumptions, we prove the weak convergence of the sequence generated by the proposed algorithm to a solution of the considered problem. We give numerical experiments to illustrate the inertial-effect and the computational performance of our proposed algorithm in comparison with the existing state of the art algorithms.

The aim of this paper is to propose two new modified extragradient methods to solve the pseudo-monotone equilibrium problem in a real Hilbert space with the Lipschitz-type condition. The iterative schemes use a new step size rule that is updated on each iteration based on the value of previous iterations. By using mild conditions on a bi-function, two strong convergence theorems are established. The applications of proposed results are studied to solve variational inequalities and fixed point problems in the setting of real Hilbert spaces. Many numerical experiments have been provided in order to show the algorithmic performance of the proposed methods and compare them with the existing ones.

Oxygen evolution reaction (OER) is a bottleneck process in the water-splitting module for sustainable and clean energy production. Transition metal-based electrocatalysts can be effective as water-splitting catalytic materials because of their appropriate redox properties and natural abundance, but the slow kinetics because of strong adsorption and consequently slow desorption of intermediates on the active sites of catalysts severely hamper the dynamics of the released molecular oxygen and thus remains a formidable challenge. Herein, we report the development of structurally and surface-modified PA-Gd-Ni(OH)2Cl (partially alkylated gadolinium-doped nickel oxychloride) nanoclusters (NCs, size ≤ 3 nm) for enhanced and stable OER catalysis at low overpotential and high turnover frequency. The ameliorated catalytic performance was achieved by controlling the surface coverage of these NCs with hydrophobic ligands and through the incorporation of electronegative atoms to facilitate easy adsorption/desorption of intermediates on the catalyst surface, thus improving the liberation of O2. Such a surface and structural modification and uniform distribution at the nanoscale length are indeed worth considering to selectively tune the catalytic potential and further modernize the electrode materials for the challenging OER process.

In this paper, we study two methods exhibiting strong convergence for solving classical variational inequality problems with Lipschitz-continuous and pseudomonotone operators in a real Hilbert space. These methods are inspired by Tseng’s extragradient method, as well as the viscosity and Mann-type methods, both incorporating a straightforward step-size rule. These methods use variable step sizes that are modified at each iteration and dependent on prior iterations. These methods also have the additional advantage of not requiring prior knowledge of the Lipschitz constant or a linesearch process. The convergence for both methods is established under mild conditions. A series of numerical experiments is performed to validate the efficacy and superiority of the presented iterative methods over existing state-of-the-art methods. These experiments serve to affirm the effectiveness of the proposed methods in solving variational inequality problems in Hilbert spaces.

In this paper, we provide some generalizations of the Darbo’s fixed point theorem associated with the measure of noncompactness and present some results on the existence of the coupled fixed point theorems for a special class of operators in a Banach space. To acquire this result, we define α- ψand β- ψcondensing operators and using them we propose new fixed point results. Our results generalize and extend some comparable results from the literature. Additionally, as an application, we apply the obtained fixed point theorems to study the nonlinear functional integral equations.

Summary points * Severe methemoglobinemia is a medical emergency, requiring prompt recognition and appropriate treatment * A good history and high level of suspicion are required to make the diagnosis [...]

The primary goal of this research is to investigate the approximate numerical solution of variational inequalities using quasimonotone operators in infinite-dimensional real Hilbert spaces. In this study, the sequence obtained by the proposed iterative technique for solving quasimonotone variational inequalities converges strongly toward a solution due to the viscosity-type iterative scheme. Furthermore, a new technique is proposed that uses an inertial mechanism to obtain strong convergence iteratively without the requirement for a hybrid version. The fundamental benefit of the suggested iterative strategy is that it substitutes a monotone and non-monotone step size rule based on mapping (operator) information for its Lipschitz constant or another line search method. This article also provides a numerical example to demonstrate how each method works.

ABSTRACTThe aim of this research is to appraise a newly patented method for control of chicken coccidiosis in comparison to a classical approach. The new method implements an invented Disinfectant (WSD) for decontamination of rearing surfaces, and a developed drinking water-herbal coccidiostat (EOBWE) supplement. The experimental design has 8 treatments (TRTs), with four pens/TRT, and 25 broiler chicks/pen. The floors of TRT1 to TRT7 are contaminated with 4.0 × 105 sporulated oocysts/m2of each of E. acervulina, E. maxima, and E. tenella, while TRT8-floor is left uncontaminated. The floors of TRTs 1 and 2 are disinfected with chlorine, while that of TRTs 3–6 are disinfected by WSD. Floors of TRTs 7 and 8 are deprived of disinfection. Birds in TRTs 1, 6, 7, and 8 are deprived of coccidiostat, while birds in TRTs 2 and 3 are fed salinomycin in their feed; birds of TRT 4 are administered EOBWE in drinking water, while birds of TRT 5 are administered simultameously both, the salinomycin and EOBWE. Birds in TRT 4 (WSD/EOBWE treated) and TRT 5 (WSD/salinomycin + EOBWE) had improved protection (lowest oocyst output and intestinal lesions) and enhanced production (lowest mortality, lowest feed conversion ratio, and highest live body weight) compared to the other five challenged treatments, associated with significant improvements compared to positive controls (TRT 7) (P < 0.05).

Abstract: A patient was noted to have 2 different eye colours and miosis in her left eye. She ultimately received a diagnosis of congenital Horner syndrome. Determinants of eye colour [...]

AbstractUsing the fixed cost and specified precision, a study of generalized ratio in regression type estimator for population mean using auxiliary variable in the presence of non-response. The optimum value of α, the study estimator is found to be more efficient than the relevant estimators in the case of fixed cost and also is less cost in the case of fixed specified precision than the relevant estimators which is supported by the empirical study.

The Punjab urial (Ovis vignei punjabiensis) is endemic to Northern Punjab, Pakistan, and is categorized as vulnerable by the International Union for Conservation of Nature Red List of Threatened Species. The urial population has declined by 30% over the last 3 generations. We used non‐invasive fecal samples to identify individuals and estimate population size of Punjab urial in the Kalabagh Game Reserve, Pakistan. We genotyped samples using 12 microsatellite markers to assess genetic variation, population structure, and demographic changes. Microsatellite analysis revealed high levels of genetic variation in urials in terms of expected and observed heterozygosity and allelic diversity. The population structure of the Punjab urial in the Kalabagh Game Reserve, based solely on microsatellite variation using Bayesian clustering, indicated 3 different clusters in the reserve. Results revealed that the urial population may be facing inbreeding pressure because its ancestral effective population size has declined from between 20,000 and 50,000 to ≤1,000 animals today. This reduction has partly occurred because of a bottleneck that occurred about 10,000 years ago. Results also indicate that 1 urial population cluster has the signature of a bottleneck, which may be due to population isolation. The 3 urial clusters are small and broadly dispersed in a large territory, meaning they could be extirpated without any opportunity for natural re‐population through dispersion. The results of our study support a management strategy that encourages maintaining connectivity between urial localities within the Kalabagh Game Reserve, increased diversity so the effective population size may recover from the historical decline, and the use of data generated here as a baseline of urial genetic diversity in the reserve for monitoring diversity over the long term. The Punjab urial inhabiting the Kalabagh Game Reserve in Pakistan is presenting a population decline due to illegal hunting. This population experienced drastic bottlenecks during its history. Future viability of this population will strongly depend on it remaining open to the influx of reproducing animals from outside of the reserve so that genetic variation can be maintained.

AbstractClimate changes, such as global warming, changes in precipitation patterns, shrinkage of glaciers, and increases in mean sea levels, are occurring worldwide. Mean sea level rises caused by the thermal expansion of oceanic water and the melting of glaciers at high rates are a potential source of flooding in coastal cities. This paper describes the extent and depth of flooding in a region of Karachi City, Pakistan that lies within the catchment area of the Hub River. Flooding scenarios under present conditions and future scenarios of mean sea level rises expected from global warming were simulated. The Institute of Industrial Sciences Distributed Hydrological Model was employed to calculate flood flow and depth. The model was calibrated and validated for the 2007 and 1977 rainstorms that occurred at Hub Bridge and Bund Murad Khan, respectively. The simulated results agree well with the observed river stages. Flood inundation maps for 1977, 2007, 2025, 2050, 2075, and 2100 were prepared. The results on future scenarios reveal that mean sea level rise in the next hundred years will not increase flood inundation depths within the simulated watershed boundary of the Hub River. Nevertheless, these findings should be interpreted with caution given that coastal flooding due to changes in future precipitation patterns and tsunamis were not included in the simulations.

The production of green hydrogen through water electrolysis is a crucial component of sustainable energy systems. One key challenge is the development of cost-effective electrocatalysts with high performance. Here, we report on the fabrication of a multilayered electrode by coating a nickel foam with nickel–cobalt–iron (Ni–Co–Fe) oxide layers (NiCoFe@NF/SD). The detailed physical and electrochemical characterizations demonstrated that the topmost layer is rich in Fe active sites. The electronic shuffling between the different layers creates an optimal environment for intermediate adsorption–desorption during the oxygen and hydrogen evolution reactions. The NiCoFe@NF/SD electrode exhibits high catalytic performance due to the presence of intrinsically reactive active sites, as well as high structural, chemical, and mechanical durability with a low overpotential of 210 and 166 mV for the oxygen and hydrogen evolution reactions, respectively, to deliver a geometric activity of 20 mA cm–2. In a two-electrode configuration, NiCoFe@NF/SD as cathode and anode requires a relatively small input voltage of 1.56 V to deliver a current density of 10 mA cm–2and sustained a current density of 100 mA cm–2for over 90 h with no noticeable degradation. This work offers a simple approach for the rational design of electrodes to produce green hydrogen through water electrolysis.

In a communication network with a source node, a multicast tree is defined as a tree rooted at the source node and all its leaves being recipients of the multicast originating at the source. The tree or bandwidth cost is normally measured by its utilization of tree links along with the quality of service (QoS) measures such as delay constraint and end-to-end delay. However, if nodes are allowed to join or leave the multicast group at any time during the lifetime of the multicast connection, then the problem is known as dynamic multicast routing problem. In this article, we combine a greedy approach with static multicast routing using Tabu Search to find a low-cost dynamic multicast tree with desirable QoS parameters. The proposed algorithm is then compared with several static multicast routing algorithms. The simulation results show that, on a large number of events, i.e., where nodes are leaving or joining, the proposed algorithm is able to find multicast trees of lower cost and more desirable QoS properties.

Constipation is a common problem in the older population. Among other treatment modalities, Epsom salt enema has been used in emergency rooms. Since Epsom salts are 100% magnesium sulfate and excreted wholly through the kidneys, hypermagnesemia may result from their use, particularly in patients with impaired renal function. A case of fatal iatrogenic hypermagnesemia resulting from the administration of an Epsom salt enema is presented here. We suggest that magnesium-containing enemas should be avoided in patients with impaired renal function.

AbstractHeavy metals are toxic to aquatic flora and fauna even in relatively low concentrations. Chromium is a commonly occurring toxic metal in ecosystems. This study aims the adsorption of Cr(VI) on a novel low-cost carbonaceous material under different experimental conditions such as contact time, initial concentration of metal ions, pH, and temperature. The adsorbent was characterized by using scanning electron microscopy and energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy. The equilibrium data were fitted well with Langmuir and Freundlich isotherms. Adsorption kinetics of Cr(VI) ions onto chimney waste adsorbent were analyzed by pseudo-first-order and pseudo-second-order models. The adsorption process is favored by acidic pH and followed the second-order kinetics. Various thermodynamic parameters like activation energy (Ea), Gibbs free energy change (ΔGo), enthalpy change (ΔHo), and entropy change (ΔSo) were calculated. The results showed that the carbonaceous material obtains from bricks kiln chimneys can be efficiently used for Cr(VI) removal from wastewater.

The objective of this study was to determine the effects of formic acid on egg production, egg weight, feed conversion ratio, egg quality and immunity in commercial layer reared during the hot season. In this study, 360 Hy-Line W-98 commercial White Leghorn, 68-week old hens were randomly assigned into four groups. The first group (control) continued receiving normal drinking water and other three groups consumed drinking water containing formic acid at levels of 0.5, 1.0 and 1.5 mL L−1. The results showed that the laying hens that consumed drinking water with formic acid had greater egg production, egg weight and egg mass than the control. Similarly, feed conversion improved with the administration of formic acid in water. Haugh units, egg shell thickness and egg grading from hens consuming acidified water containing 1.0 or 1.5 mL L−1were significantly greater than those from the control group. Formic acid had no effect on yolk colour. In addition, the geometric means HI titres against Newcastle disease of birds consuming water containing formic acid were higher on all sampling days than those consuming water without acid. This study showed that formic acid at levels of 1.0 or 1.5 mL L−1positively influences egg production, egg weight, shell quality, egg grading and enhances the immunity in older commercial layers during the hot season.

l-lysine is a limiting amino acid in cereal grains and a certain amount is essentially required to supplement the feed for optimum growth of poultry and pigs. The study was conducted to test performance of commercial broiler chicks fed on a feed supplemented with indigenously produced crude form of l-lysine (fermentation broth). A mutant of local strain of Corynebacterium glutamicumwas used as source bacterium for lysine production on cane molasses based production medium. A total of 2500 one-day-old broiler chicks (mixed sex) were allocated at random to five dietary treatments (500 chicks/treatment). Basal diet provided 8 g total lysine/kg feed (group A). Groups B and C (positive control) were supplemented with 2 and 3 g crystalline lysine-HCl/kg feed respectively, whereas groups D and E were supplemented with lysine enriched fermentation supernatant to provide similar amount of lysine to that of groups B and C. Least significant difference test revealed highly significant (P<0.001) effect of two levels of fermentation product or crystalline lysine (HCl) on broiler performance. Significant improvement (P<0.05) in feed conversion ratio (FCR) was observed in treatment groups. Linear regression analysis (R2values) revealed linear response of increasing lysine levels on growth and FCR from both lysine sources. Comparative analysis of antibody titres and histology of viscera revealed no toxic effect of the treatment. The results are suggestive of equal bioavailability, safety and efficacy of the test product in comparison to purified crystalline l-lysine (HCl).

The objective of this study is to introduce two new extragradient methods to solve equilibrium problems involving two distinct classes of bifunction. Based on the pseudomonotonicity hypothesis and the specific Lipschitz-type cost bifunction condition, we have shown a weak convergence theorem for the first proposed method. The bifunction is strongly pseudomonotone in the second method, but the step-size rule does not depend on the strongly pseudomonotone constant and Lipschitz-type constants. In contrast, the first convergence result, we prove a strong convergence theorem with the use of a particular class of variable step-size rule sequences. To confirm the validity of the proposed convergence results, we examine two well-known Nash–Cournot equilibrium models for the numerical experiment and show that the competitive advantage of our proposed methods is based on time of execution and number of iterations.

Background: The red flour beetle, Tribolium castaneum(Herbst) (Coleoptera: Tenebrionidae), is a serious pest of stored grain commodities worldwide which results in considerable losses to stored wheat, Triticum aestivum(Linn.). Main body: The present laboratory bioassay was carried out to examine the efficiency of the fungus, Beauveria bassiana(Bals.) formulation (Racer TM), and Neem extract (NE), Eucalyptus extract (EE), and Tobacco extract (TE) against 3rd instar larvae of T. castaneum. The fungal formulation was applied at 0.3 × 108, 0.6 × 108, and 0.9 × 108conidia kg−1of the crushed wheat grains; as well, it was mixed separately with 5% concentrations of each plant extract under the laboratory conditions of 30 ± 2 °C and 65 ± 5% RH. Mortality rate of the tested larvae was enumerated after regular intervals of times. Mortality of the larvae increased at the highest combined concentrations of the fungal conidial formulation and the plant extracts rather than their single treatments. The highest mortality rate of the larvae (71.32%) was recorded at the highest concentration binary mixture of (Racer TM+NE), whereas relatively the lowest mortality rate (15.54%) was enumerated in the combined treatments of (Racer TM+NE). Furthermore, the highest separate concentration of B. bassiana(0.9 × 108conidia/ml) persistently resulted in more larval mortality (32.68%) of 3rd instar larvae of T. castaneumthan the plant extracts (7.52, 9.89, and 14.61%), respectively. A noticeably greater rate of mycosis and sporulation was counted in the larvae of the insect in separate treatments of B. bassianathan in its combined applications with the plant extracts. The highest mycosis (85.13%) and sporulation (160.12 conidia/ml) was detected in the treatment, where the lowest concentration of B. bassiana(0.3 × 108conidia/ml) was used, alone. Conclusion: Hence, it was concluded that integrated use of these two bio-pesticides plus the fungus can be helpful in the integrated pest management program of T. castaneum.

In this paper, two algorithms are proposed for a class of pseudomonotone and strongly pseudomonotone equilibrium problems. These algorithms can be viewed as a extension of the paper title, the extragradient algorithm with inertial effects for solving the variational inequality proposed by Dong et al. (Optimization 65:2217–2226, 2016. 10.1080/02331934.2016.1239266). The weak convergence of the first algorithm is well established based on the standard assumption imposed on the cost bifunction. We provide a strong convergence for the second algorithm without knowing the strongly pseudomonoton and the Lipschitz-type constants of cost bifunction. The practical interpretation of a second algorithm is that the algorithm uses a sequence of step sizes that is converging to zero and non-summable. Numerical examples are used to assist the well-established convergence result, and we see that the suggested algorithm has a competitive advantage over time of execution and the number of iterations.

A case of primary hyperparathyroidism masked by coexistent vitamin D deficiency is described. The case illustrates the difficulties in the diagnosis and treatment of such patients.

A case of disordered calcium metabolism is presented in which the patient had several presentations with hyper- or hypocalcemia.

For Abstract see ChemInform Abstract in Full Text.