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Alpha thalassemia major (ATM) is a hemoglobinopathy that usually results in perinatal demise if in utero transfusions (IUTs) are not performed. We established an international registry (NCT04872179) to evaluate the impact of IUTs on survival to discharge (primary outcome) as well as perinatal and neurodevelopmental secondary outcomes. Forty-nine patients were diagnosed prenatally, 11 were diagnosed postnatally, and all 11 spontaneous survivor genotypes had preserved embryonic zeta-globin levels. We compared 3 groups of patients; group 1, prenatally diagnosed and alive at hospital discharge (n = 14), group 2, prenatally diagnosed and deceased perinatally (n = 5), and group 3, postnatally diagnosed and alive at hospital discharge (n = 11). Group 1 had better outcomes than groups 2 and 3 in terms of the resolution of hydrops, delivery closer to term, shorter hospitalizations, and more frequent average or greater neurodevelopmental outcomes. Earlier IUT initiation was correlated with higher neurodevelopmental (Vineland-3) scores (r = -0.72, P = .02). Preterm delivery after IUT was seen in 3/16 (19%) patients who continued their pregnancy. When we combined our data with those from 2 published series, patients who received ≥2 IUTs had better outcomes than those with 0 to 1 IUT, including resolution of hydrops, delivery at ≥34 weeks gestation, and 5-minute appearance, pulse, grimace, activity, and respiration scores ≥7. Neurodevelopmental assessments were normal in 17/18 of the ≥2 IUT vs 5/13 of the 0 to 1 IUT group (OR 2.74; P = .01). Thus, fetal transfusions enable the survival of patients with ATM and normal neurodevelopment, even in those patients presenting with hydrops. Nondirective prenatal counseling for expectant parents should include the option of IUTs.

As an improvement of the two-layer cover with capillary barrier effect (CCBE) (i.e. fine-grained soil overlying a coarse-grained soil), a new three-layer landfill cover system is proposed and investigated for humid climate. This new system is to add a fine-grained soil (i.e., clay) underneath a two-layer CCBE (i.e., a silt overlying a gravelly sand layer). The feasibility of this proposed cover system was investigated by conducting a one-dimensional water infiltration test. In addition, transient seepage simulations were carried out to back-analyse the test results and investigate the importance of hydraulic properties of the CCBE on the proposed cover. Based on the infiltration experiment and numerical back-analysis, it is found that no percolation was observed after 48 hours of ponding, which is equivalent to a rainfall return period of greater than 1000 years. However, the upper two-layer CCBE is only effective for a rainfall return period of about 35 years. This implies that the proposed bottom clay layer is needed for humid climate. Numerical parametric simulations reveal that increasing the saturated permeability of the upper fine-grained soil by two orders of magnitude (1.4x10-6 m/s to 2.1x10-4 m/s), the wetting front is still within the clay layer after 12 hours of constant water ponding (>1000 year rainfall) and no percolation occurred.

The COVID-19 pandemic has created immense challenges for governments in their management of the public health response and tested the limits of public law. This article undertakes a comparative analysis of the common law jurisdictions of the United Kingdom, New Zealand, and Australia. It discusses the imposition of 'stay at home' restrictions pursuant to public health legislative frameworks, focusing on judicial scrutiny in the context of statutory interpretation. It examines the appellate cases of R (Dolan) v Secretary of State for Health and Social Care [2021] 1 WLR 2326, Borrowdale v Director-General of Health [2022] 2 NZLR 356, and Kassam v Hazzard (2021) 106 NSWLR 520. Using these case studies, this article seeks to reveal key themes and implications for public law. What approaches have the courts adopted to construe public health emergency powers? How have the courts treated 'rights-based' principles of statutory interpretation? Have the courts approached interpretation in the usual manner or displayed an unorthodox level of deference to other branches of government? The article concludes on what implications the judicial approaches have for the interpretation of emergency powers in the future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper has developed a direct power control (DPC) structure to improve the performance of an active filter. A control algorithm directly uses the instantaneous power terms as control variables to replace the current and voltage variables that are commonly used in proportional-integral (PI) control systems. Compared to the other DPC schemes that have been reported so far, the proposed algorithm is oriented to harmonic current compensation, for which the switching functions are redefined, the bandwidths of the two hysteresis comparators are dynamically adjusted, and consequently, the pulsewidth modulation (PWM) switching frequencies are regulated to eliminate the unnecessary short switching pulses, and the control system can be used directly and effectively for various types of nonlinear load compensation. With the proposed control scheme, full control of the active filter, including the line current and the dc bus voltage, can be realized within an integrated power control loop. The advantages of the proposed control strategy have been verified by simulation and experimental results on a 2-kVA laboratory prototype. Index Terms--Active filter, direct power control (DPC), predictive control, pulsewidth modulation (PWM), switching frequency, voltage source converter.

Parliament frequently enacts legislation which confers broad discretionary powers on decision-makers. Such statutory discretions are not at large -- they are confi ned by principles of statutory interpretation. In Victoria, the Charter of Human Rights and Responsibilities Act 2006 (Vic) ('Charter') has a role to play in interpreting statutes. Section 32(1) of the Charter provides that so far as it is possible consistently with their purpose, all statutory provisions must be interpreted in a way that is compatible with human rights. A question therefore arises as to whether discretions conferred by Victorian statutory provisions must be interpreted so that they may only be exercised compatibly with the human rights protected by the Charter. This article explores the issue. The answer is not as straightforward as it might fi rst seem. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With the integration into the International System, the relationship between domestic and international laws in China is becoming a big issue. In 1997, China amended the criminal law broadly and one of the revisions was to rescind the offence of Counterrevolution and replaced it by the Suspicion of Incitement to Subvert State Power. The reform, however, was still heavily questioned. Although China signed the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) to try to comply with the norms of international human rights, it still can't ratify the ICCPR internally. After the implementation of the new criminal law, the Chinese government imposed very strict control over press and citizen's rights, evoking the laws against the endangering state security and subverting state government. This paper argues that in the foreseeable future there will be little possibility to ratify the ICCPR. Furthermore, the government sees no reason to abolish the Suspicion of Incitement to Subvert State Power at time soon. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]