OBJECTIVES Mean and visit-to-visit variability (VVV) of blood pressure (BP) are associated with an increased cardiovascular disease risk. We examined the effect of hormone therapy on mean and VVV of BP in postmenopausal women from the Women's Health Initiative (WHI) randomized controlled trials. METHODS BP was measured at baseline and annually in the two WHI hormone therapy trials, in which 1...

Creep experiments were performed on dispersion-strengthened-cast magnesium (DSC-Mg), consisting of unalloyed magnesium with 1 mm grain size containing 30 vol.% of 0.33 mm yttria particles. Strain rates were measured for temperatures between 573 and 723 K at compressive stresses between 7 and 125 MPa. DSC-Mg exhibits outstanding creep strength as compared with other magnesium materials, but is l...

Seeds from three provenances of Pinus brutia were stratified for 0 or 45 d (days) at 4 +/- 1 degrees C and then germinated at 15 degrees C or 20 degrees C on filter paper saturated with polyethylene glycol solutions to provide water potentials of 0, -0.2 and -0.4 MPa (mega Pascal). Regardless of stratification, germination was lower at 15 degrees C than 20 degrees C for seeds of all provenances...

We experimentally demonstrate a high pressure sensor based on a polarization-maintaining photonic crystal fiber (PMPCF) with Sagnac loop configuration for downhole application. The pressure sensitivity of the proposed sensor is 4.21 nm/MPa and 3.27 nm/MPa at ~1320 nm and ~1550 nm respectively. High pressure measurement up to 20 MPa has been achieved in our experiment. The sensor also shows redu...

We have carried out a series of laboratory experiments on AE monitoring to investigate the fracture behaviour of some dry and water-saturated rock samples of south-east Gujarat and Maharashtra which have been experiencing prolific seismicity in recent years in India. The results obtained from the study of Pavgadh rhyolites and Godhra granites tested to failure under triaxial compression are pre...

The physiological mechanisms responsible for reduced extension growth as trees increase in height remain elusive. We evaluated biophysical constraints on leaf expansion in old-growth Douglas-fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii (Mirb.) Franco) trees. Needle elongation rates, plastic and elastic extensibility, bulk leaf water (Psi(L)) and osmotic (Psi(pi)) potential, bulk tissue yield threshold and final ...

Methods: This randomized clinical study included 150 perimenopausal women with endometrial hyperplasia (EH) without atypia who were randomly assigned into three groups; 50 patients received 15 mg Medroxyprogesterone acetate (MPA), 50 patients received 15 mg Norethisterone acetate (NETA) and 50 patients in whom levonorgestrel-releasing intrauterine system (LNG-IUS) was inserted. Endometrial samp...

water and temperature are determinant factors for seed germination. both factors can, separately or jointly, affect the germination percentage and germination rate. the effect of temperature on germination and water potential on germination can often be described by the thermal time and hydrotime models, respectively. additionally, the thermal time model and the hydrotime model have been combin...

OBJECTIVE The purpose of this study was to determine whether the bond of veneering porcelain to a ceramic core in bilayered ceramics was similar to that of the metal ceramic control of well known behaviour. STUDY DESIGN Six groups of nine specimens each were fabricated, whose dimensions were 15 mm long and 8 mm in diameter at the core, and 2 mm long and 8 mm in diameter for the veneer. The gr...