Abstract: A vehicle includes: a vehicle body frame; a drive unit, provided in the vehicle body frame and movable on a road surface; a seat, arranged above the vehicle body frame and supporting buttocks of a user; a lifting device, provided between the vehicle body frame and the seat and lifting or lowering the seat between a low position and a high position; a position specifier, provided in the vehicle body frame and detecting a position of the vehicle; and a control device, controlling the drive unit and the lifting device. The control device includes an inclination specifier that specifies a road surface inclination angle at the position of the vehicle based on a detection result of the position specifier. When the seat is at the low position and a lifting prohibition condition is satisfied, the control device prohibits lifting drive of the lifting device.

Abstract: A control device is provided for a human-powered vehicle. The control device includes an electronic controller configured to control a motor assisting in propulsion of the human-powered vehicle. The electronic controller is configured to execute a first operation for changing an output of the motor in a case where at least one of a first transmission device and a second transmission device performs a shifting action for shifting a transmission ratio of the human-powered vehicle. Further, the electronic controller is configured to execute a second operation for changing the transmission ratio through a predetermined shifting sequence involving a combination of the shifting action of the first transmission device and the shifting action of the second transmission device.

Abstract: The object of the present invention is to provide a method of culturing lactic acid bacteria to obtain a lactic acid bacteria culture in which the number of lactic acid bacteria can be stably maintained, and to obtain food and drink products comprising a lactic acid bacteria culture excellent in product stability. In order to accomplish the object, the present invention provides a method of culturing lactic acid bacteria comprising inoculating lactic acid bacteria to a medium comprising a milk ingredient having a free phosphoric acid concentration of less than 0.25 wt %, and a phosphate, and food and drink products comprising the lactic acid bacteria culture obtained by this culturing method.

Abstract: A composition which has high 4?-GL purity and can be used as a reference standard for various analyses can be obtained by a more convenient method than one conventionally used. A method for preparing a high-purity 4?-GL composition includes the steps of: (A) subjecting a 4?-GL-containing galacto-oligosaccharide to activated carbon column chromatography, and performing stepwise elution with plural organic solvent aqueous solutions, wherein the organic solvent aqueous solutions are used such that the concentration of the organic solvent in the organic solvent aqueous solution is higher than the concentration of the organic solvent in the immediately preceding organic solvent aqueous solution with respect to a series of elutions; and (B) adding an organic solvent to the final fraction eluted in step (A), and crystallizing the 4?-GL.

Abstract: A composition which has high 4?-GL purity and can be used as a reference standard for various analyses can be obtained by a more convenient method than one conventionally used. A method for preparing a high-purity 4?-GL composition includes the steps of: (A) subjecting a 4?-GL-containing galacto-oligosaccharide to activated carbon column chromatography, and performing stepwise elution with plural organic solvent aqueous solutions, wherein the organic solvent aqueous solutions are used such that the concentration of the organic solvent in the organic solvent aqueous solution is higher than the concentration of the organic solvent in the immediately preceding organic solvent aqueous solution with respect to a series of elutions; and (B) adding an organic solvent to the final fraction eluted in step (A), and crystallizing the 4?-GL.

Abstract: A method for detecting and quantifying galacto-oligosaccharide in a sample containing galacto-oligosaccharide and dextrin is characterized in that the sample is caused to react with a derivatizing reagent to derivatize the dextrin and galacto-oligosaccharide in the sample, after which the galacto-oligosaccharide component in the sample is separated by high-performance liquid chromatography using a C30 reverse-phase chromatography column, thereby accurately detecting and quantifying galacto-oligosaccharide with ease and at low cost.

Abstract: A method for detecting and quantifying galacto-oligosaccharide in a sample containing galacto-oligosaccharide and dextrin is characterized in that the sample is caused to react with a derivatizing reagent to derivatize the dextrin and galacto-oligosaccharide in the sample, after which the galacto-oligosaccharide component in the sample is separated by high-performance liquid chromatography using a C30 reverse-phase chromatography column, thereby accurately detecting and quantifying galacto-oligosaccharide with ease and at low cost.

Abstract: A microorganism capable of degrading an estrogenic substance contained in wastewater and the like; a method for the simple and effective degradation of an estrogenic substance contained in domestic wastewater, wastewater discharged from a livestock farm, or the like by using the microorganism; and an apparatus for achieving the degradation are provided. An estrogenic substance-degrading microorganism which belongs to the genus Pseudaminobacter, Gordonia, Nocardia, Zoogloea, Pandoraea, Cryptococcus or Trichosporon and has an ability to degrade an estrogenic substance; a method for the degration of an estrogenic substance by using the microorganism; and an apparatus for achieving the degradation are provided.

Abstract: The object of the present invention is to provide a method of culturing lactic acid bacteria to obtain a lactic acid bacteria culture in which the number of lactic acid bacteria can be stably maintained, and to obtain food and drink products comprising a lactic acid bacteria culture excellent in product stability. In order to accomplish the object, the present invention provides a method of culturing lactic acid bacteria comprising inoculating lactic acid bacteria to a medium comprising a milk ingredient having a free phosphoric acid concentration of less than 0.25 wt %, and a phosphate, and food and drink products comprising the lactic acid bacteria culture obtained by this culturing method.

Abstract: A microorganism capable of degrading an estrogenic substance contained in wastewater and the like; a method for the simple and effective degradation of an estrogenic substance contained in domestic wastewater, wastewater discharged from a livestock farm, or the like by using the microorganism; and an apparatus for achieving the degradation are provided. An estrogenic substance-degrading microorganism which belongs to the genus Pseudaminobacter, Gordonia, Nocardia, Zoogloea, Pandoraea, Cryptococcus or Trichosporon and has an ability to degrade an estrogenic substance; a method for the degration of an estrogenic substance by using the microorganism; and an apparatus for achieving the degradation are provided.

Abstract: For facilitating and making more efficient the setting of the operating parameters of a bonding tool that is used to form a wire loop into a desired shape, when an editing handle is dragged, the loop shape of a wire loop line drawing displayed on a display screen is redrawn as a secondary loop line drawing. The values of the operating parameters corresponding to the loop shape of the drawn or redrawn secondary loop line drawing are calculated, and the results are displayed in a parameter list.

Abstract: For facilitating and making more efficient the setting of the operating parameters of a bonding tool that is used to form a wire loop into a desired shape, when an editing handle is dragged, the loop shape of a wire loop line drawing displayed on a display screen is redrawn as a secondary loop line drawing. The values of the operating parameters corresponding to the loop shape of the drawn or redrawn secondary loop line drawing are calculated, and the results are displayed in a parameter list.

Abstract: A method for the production of (D) an absorbent resin excelling in durability, which method comprises polymerizing (A) 30% by weight to saturated concentration of (A) an aqueous water-soluble ethylenically unsaturated monomer solution containing (B) 0.005 to 5 mol % of a cross-linking agent and (C) 0.001 to 1 mol % of a water-soluble chain transfer agent, both based on the amount of said monomer (A), and if necessary, the surface region of the resultant absorbent resin (D) is cross-linked with (E) a hydrophilic cross-linking agent capable of reacting with the functional group of the absorbent resin and an absorbent resin obtained by such method.

Abstract: A process for producing water-absorbent resins having an average particle diameter of 100 to 600 .mu.m and a particle diameter distribution of 0.35 or less by polymerizing an aqueous solution of a water-soluble ethylenically unsaturated monomer, pulverizing and sieving the polymer so obtained, and crosslinking the surface of the polymer powder.

Abstract: A wire bonding method for bonding a first bonding point and then a second bonding point by bonding wire that passes through a capillary including a reverse operation that moves the capillary in a direction opposite from a second bonding point after the bonding is done to the first bonding point, a damper is closed temporarily during the reverse operation so as to apply tension to the wire, thus forming a strong kink at an uppermost point of the neck height portion of a resulting wire loop between the first and second bonding points.

Abstract: A touch panel input apparatus has a touch panel which consists of X- and Y-direction electrode panels. When the apparatus is in a power-off state, one end of the X electrode panel is intermittently connected to a power source and one end of the Y electrode panel is intermittently grounded via an output resistor, in response to control signals outputted from a sampling circuit. In this state, synchronously with a clock signal, the sampling circuit performs sampling of a voltage developed across the output resistor when the two electrode panels are brought into contact. The sampling circuit outputs a power-on instruction signal to make the CPU perform the power-on operation. The sampling circuit stops its sampling operation once power is turned on.

Abstract: A single point bonding method used in individually bonding, for example, the leads of a pad of a chip to a pad of a circuit board, including the steps of forming a pressure scar at the free end of each lead by a bonding tool, catching the irregular portions of the thus made pressure scar by the end of the bonding tool so as to move the free end of the lead towards its fixed end and then bonding the lead to a corresponding pad.

Abstract: An absorbent material produced by mixing 100 parts by weight of an absorbent polymer with 1 to 80 parts by weight of synthetic pulp in the presence of 1 to 40 parts by weight of water, an absorbent body produced by mixing 100 parts by weight of an absorbent polymer with 1 to 80 parts by weight of synthetic pulp in the presence of 1 to 40 parts by weight of water, dry mixing the resultant mixture with 10 to 1,000 parts by weight hydrophilic fibers based on 100 parts by weight of said absorbent polymer, pneumatically molding the resultant mixture in the form of web, and thermally compressing the resultant web to a density in the range of from 0.1 to 1.0 g/cm.sup.3, and a method for production thereof.

Abstract: A process for producing a modified polyaminoamide with markedly increased reactivity as an epoxy resin curing agent is disclosed. The process comprises introducing amino groups and mercapto groups into a polyaminoamide by using an aziridine compound and a thiirane compound. The modified polyaminoamide is capable of curing an epoxy resin at a low temperature and at a high rate to provide a cured epoxy resin excellent in anticorrosion and chemical resistance.

Abstract: A stored data protection apparatus for an electronic device has a CPU (20) and a volatile memory (21) controlled by the CPU for storing data therein. Both of the CPU and the volatile memory ace supplied power voltage from a main battery (22) in normal operation of the device. The volatile memory as supplied power voltage from a back-up battery (23) when the main battery is removed from the device. The apparatus has a switch (29) operable in first and second positions, taking the first position in the normal operation of the device, and being switched from the first position to the second position when the main battery is removed from the device, a circuit (44, 48) for inhibiting the CPU to access the volatile memory when the switch is in the second position, and a circuit (38, 34, 42, 43) for releasing the inhibition of the CPU by the inhibiting circuit when the switch is switched from the second position to the first position.