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98093250 | s2ag/train | v2 | 2019-04-06T13:04:35.260Z | 2007-12-06T00:00:00.000Z | Amination and Oxidation Reactions on Polyethylene Surfaces by Ammonia Plasma Treatment
The effects of primary amino groups' introduction treated by ammonia plasma on linear low-density polyethylene (L-LDPE) were investigated. The introduction of the primary amino groups on the L-LDPE surface was carried out by three kinds of approaches. These approaches were the use of conventional ammonia plasma, plasma treatment of hydrogen gas blended into ammonia gas, and ammonia plasma treatment under hydrogen. Primary amino groups could be introduced with three kinds of ammonia plasma. Amide groups were also introduced simultaneously, which suggested the oxidation of polyethylene surfaces. The ammonia plasma treatment under a hydrogen gas atmosphere is the most effective to introduce primary amino groups into a polyethylene surface selectively. |
46554600 | s2ag/train | v2 | 2018-04-03T06:23:22.792Z | 1991-01-01T00:00:00.000Z | Morphogenesis of retinoic acid-induced postaxial polydactyly in mice.
Previous experiments have demonstrated that oral administration of retinoic acid to ICR mice on day 10 of gestation results in an enhanced expression of postaxial polydactyly of the forelimbs. In the present investigations, the development of the limbs from the time of treatment until the appearance of the defect on day 14 were studied at 12- to 24-hr intervals with histological and vital staining technics. A diffuse cytotoxicity in the central proximal mesoderm was noted with a safranin-toluidine blue stain 12 h after treatment which then peaked 24 hr after treatment. Treated limbs stained with Nile blue sulfate showed a significant increase of necrotic mesodermal cells in the foyer preaxial primaire, foyer marginal I and foyer marginal V when compared to the respective control group. The treated postaxial ectoderm was more hyperplastic than was the control ectoderm on day 12. The treated group developed a squarish bulge on the postaxial boundary of the fifth digital ray on day 14 that was larger than those of the controls. Most of the controls had bulges that were completely necrotic. The treated group also had some completely necrotic bulges but a large number of the treated fetuses had bulges characterized as being less than 60% necrotic. |
120523850 | s2ag/train | v2 | 2019-04-18T13:04:44.033Z | 2008-04-01T00:00:00.000Z | Dynamic modeling and nonlinear control strategy for an underactuated quad rotor rotorcraft
In this paper, a nonlinear dynamic MIMO model of a 6-DOF underactuated quad rotor rotorcraft is derived based on Newton-Euler formalism. The derivation comprises determining equations of motion of the quad rotor in three dimensions and seeking to approximate the actuation forces through modeling of the aerodynamic coefficients and electric motor dynamics. The derived model is dynamically unstable, so a sequential nonlinear control strategy is implemented for the quad rotor. The control strategy includes exact feedback linearization technique, using the geometric methods of nonlinear control. The performance of the nonlinear control algorithm is evaluated using simulation and the results show the effectiveness of the proposed control strategy for the quad rotor rotorcraft near quasi-stationary flight. |
249765700 | s2ag/train | v2 | 2022-06-18T13:06:38.026Z | 2013-04-01T00:00:00.000Z | Lovastatin attenuates cyclosporine inhibition of potassium channels in cortical collecting duct cells
Statins may benefit patients receiving cyclosporine A (CsA) treatment after organ transplantation. However, there is little in vitro data to support the use of statins to reduce the harmful effects of CsA such as hyperkalemia. Our cell‐attached patch‐clamp data showed that CsA inhibited an inwardly rectifying potassium channel in the apical membrane of mouse cortical collecting duct principal cells (mpkCCDc14 line) and that lovastatin attenuated the inhibition. Phosphatidylinositol‐3,4,5‐trisphosphate (PIP3) is a lipid which is known to stimulate inward rectifier potassium channels. Under normal conditions, PIP3 is synthesized in the basolateral membrane and can pass tight junctions to diffuse to the apical membrane. It appears that this diffusion is blocked by CsA because confocal microscopy showed that CsA reduced PIP3 in the apical membrane, but increased PIP3 in the basolateral membrane. Lovastatin reversed the effects of CsA on PIP3 levels. We also found that CsA increased, but lovastatin decreased, the transepithelial resistance by altering the levels of zonula occludens‐1 (ZO‐1) and cholesterol in tight junctions. Using scanning ion conductance microscopy, we showed that the apical membrane of mpkCCDc14 cells contains cellular protrusions in the area near tight junctions. CsA significantly increased the height of the protrusions. In contrast, lovastatin eliminated the protrusions and even caused a modest depression between the cells. These data suggest that lovastatin can abolish CsA inhibition of potassium channels in the apical membrane of CCD cells by altering the lateral diffusion of PIP3 which possibly controlled by both ZO‐1 and cholesterol levels in tight junctions. The present study provides one molecular mechanism for the previous suggestion that statins benefit CsA treatment of patients with organ transplantation. |
12873800 | s2ag/train | v2 | 2017-04-10T00:35:38.718Z | 2007-08-01T00:00:00.000Z | Current status of the infrastructure and characteristics of radiation oncology in Korea.
BACKGROUND
An analysis of radiotherapy infrastructure in Korea was performed in 2006 to collect data on treatment devices, the work force and new patients for future development plans.
METHODS
The survey included radiotherapy centers, their major equipment and personnel. The centers were categorized into four levels: level 0 (stand-alone teletherapy units); level 1 (teletherapy, brachytherapy, treatment planning system, and at least the part-time service of a medical physicist); level 2 (level 1 plus individual customized radiotherapy block and full-time medical physicist); and level 3 [level 2 plus intensity-modulated radiation therapy (IMRT), intra-operative radiation therapy or stereotactic radiotherapy].
RESULTS
A total of 61 facilities delivered radiation therapy with 104 megavoltage devices, which included 96 linear accelerators, two cobalt 60 units, three Tomotherapy, two CyberKnife units and one proton accelerator. There were 28,789 new radiotherapy patients in 2004. Personnel included 132 radiation oncologists, 50 radiation oncology residents, 64 physicists, 130 nurses and 369 radiation therapy technologists. Thirty-two percent (20 facilities) used a CT-simulator, 66% (40) used a PET or PET-CT scanner, and 35% (22) had the capacity to implement IMRT. Centers were also divided into four levels: 41% were included in level 3, 31% in level 2, 25% in level 1 and 3% in level 0.
CONCLUSIONS
There is a shortage of human resources. The distribution of megavoltage units per million inhabitants over the country was inadequate; geographic disparities were noted. Furthermore, the necessity of quality assurance for recent high-technology radiation therapy is increasing. |
234185450 | s2ag/train | v2 | 2021-05-11T00:07:18.860Z | 2021-08-01T00:00:00.000Z | Bilateral Privacy-Utility Tradeoff in Spectrum Sharing Systems: A Game-Theoretic Approach
In spectrum sharing systems based on spectrum trading, user locations are vital for the efficiency of dynamic channel reuse. However, both primary users (PUs) and secondary users (SUs) undertake the risk of location information leakage: a malicious PU may illegally collect SUs’ location information to manipulate market decisions; a malicious SU would threat a PU’s operational privacy by inferring the PU’s location through seemingly inoffensive queries. To protect both PUs’ and SUs’ location information in spectrum trading, a bilateral privacy preservation framework is introduced in this paper. A game-theoretic approach based on the Stackelberg model is proposed to achieve the tradeoff between the privacy-preserving level and user utility. With the proposed approach, both PUs and SUs can maximize their utilities while maintaining their location privacy to desired levels. Simulation results demonstrate that the proposed approach can effectively enhance user utility gain and strengthen user privacy guarantee by flexibly adjusting their privacy levels in practice. |
22211800 | s2ag/train | v2 | 2018-04-03T04:19:10.949Z | 1972-12-30T00:00:00.000Z | Working with the Family Doctor: A Programme for Mental Health
A new type of assessment for mental health in four Scottish counties has been based on multidisciplinary teams comprising psychiatrists, psychiatric social worker, nursing administrator, and a secretary. Each team collaborated with 15 to 20 family doctors and they established four main patterns of contact: around an outpatient clinic; by informal availability; by administrative and teaching seminars; or by regular consultation sessions. This improved contact was found to help both the team and the family doctors and reduced the number of patients admitted to hospital and the length of their stay and the number of urgent referrals. It emphasizes the need for team work in mental health care and that the hospital needs to remain in touch with the outside community. |
3922150 | s2ag/train | v2 | 2018-03-17T13:07:01.361Z | 2012-02-17T00:00:00.000Z | 3D catheter reconstruction using non-rigid structure-from-motion and robotics modeling
Surgical guidance during minimally invasive intervention could be greatly enhanced if the 3D location and orientation of instruments, especially catheters, is available. In this paper, we present a new method for the 3D reconstruction of deforming curvilinear objects such as catheters, using the framework of Non-Rigid Structurefrom- Motion (NRSfM). We combine NRSfM with a kinematics model from the field of Robotics, which provides a low-dimensional parametrization of the object deformation. This is used in the context of an X-ray imaging system where multiple views are acquired with a small view separation. We show that using such a kinematics model, a non-linear optimization scheme succeeds in retrieving the deformable 3D pose from the 2D projections. Experiments on synthetic and real X-ray data show promising results of the proposed method as compared to state-of-the-art NRSfM. |
213530550 | s2ag/train | v2 | 2020-01-16T09:08:33.683Z | 2019-11-29T00:00:00.000Z | Preliminary Study on Making Arc Characteristics of AgSnO2 Contact
In order to analyze the making arc characteristics of AgSnO2 contact, experiments were carried out with a self-developed experimental equipment. It was found that contact resistance had no obvious change with the increase of the number of experiments.In the later stage of the experiment, the contact bounces occurred during the contact closing process, which not only prolonged the making arc duration, but also increased making arc energy. When the contact was eroded to a certain extent by arc, making welding occurs. |
102950 | s2ag/train | v2 | 2015-07-14T19:54:51.000Z | 2010-07-25T00:00:00.000Z | Polarimetric and structural properties of forest scenarios as imaged by longer wavelength SARS
SAR data gathered from forested areas collect contributions coming from the vegetation layer, from the ground below and from other scattering mechanisms (SMs). Multi-baseline data allow a tomographic analysis thus retrieving information about the vertical structure of the target. Multi-polarimetric acquisitions enrich the data, providing ways to identify the targets basing on their electromagnetic properties. The joint exploitation of multi-polarimetric and multi-baseline data suggests the possibility of linking the estimation of the vertical structure of different SMs with their polarimetric signature. A formal framework in which this task can be accomplished is provided by the Algebraic Synthesis (AS) technique, which extends the concepts within PolInSAR through the assumption of the Sum of Kronecker Products (SKP) structure. By assuming the presence of two SMs (for example ground and volume scattering), the SKP assumption leads to a cross dependence between the polarimetric and interferometric coherences, in that ground structure is shown to be related to volume polarimetry, and dually volume structure is shown to be related to ground polarimetry. The aim of this paper is to investigate the implications of this cross relation. Experimental results will be shown basing on a data-set of multi-polarimetric and multi-baseline SAR images at P-band acquired by DLR's E-SAR over the Krycklan catchment, in northern Sweden, in the framework of the ESA campaign BioSAR 2008. |
27875350 | s2ag/train | v2 | 2018-04-03T01:02:00.278Z | 1987-11-01T00:00:00.000Z | Dipole-allowed and dipole-forbidden l change in slow collisions of Na+ with Na(28d) Rydberg atoms.
Both dipole-allowed and dipole-forbidden transitions occur in slow l-change collisions of Na/sup +/ with Na(28d) Rydberg atoms, despite the validity of the dipole approximation. Measurements of the velocity dependence of the final-state distribution under single-collision conditions are reported. Effects of strong coupling were found, in partial agreement with recent coupled-channel calculations. Microwave-resonance techniques were used to identify the selective-field-ionization signatures of 28f, g, and h states. |
119541250 | s2ag/train | v2 | 2019-04-14T03:11:40.406Z | 1999-10-05T00:00:00.000Z | Monopole, quadrupole and pairing: a shell model view
The three main contributions to the nuclear Hamiltonian–monopole, quadrupole and pairing–are analyzed in a shell model context. The first has to be treated phenomenologically, while the other two can be reliably extracted from the realistic interactions. Due to simple scaling properties, the realistic quadrupole and pairing interactions eliminate the tendency to collapse of their conventional counterparts, while retaining their basic simplicity. |
208883800 | s2ag/train | v2 | 2019-12-09T14:35:46.496Z | 2019-10-01T00:00:00.000Z | Passive, active and hybrid filters as a part of the energy efficient electrical drives curriculum
Power quality problems such as voltage, current or frequency deviation of the supply system, are more and more recognized as the source of failures or mal-function of electrical equipment. Electronically controlled, energy efficient modern industrial and commercial electrical consumers, due to enclosed power electronics devices act as non-linear loads and generate power quality problems. Also, they present the most sensitive equipment to deviations in the supply system. Different filtering solutions and techniques have been analyzed, tested and implemented throughout the recent years. This paper analyzes performance of series and parallel passive filters, active filter with open-loop and closed-loop control and selected hybrid power filter topology using computer simulation. As a consequence of variable speed drives application with a diode bridge as an input rectifier unit, grid current harmonics are introduced. The aim of this paper is to present how students can get familiar with the basic harmonics mitigation techniques trough simulation models. Hence, the responsible application of modern controlled electrical drives is promoted, considering the power quality requirements, thus comprising the entirety called energy efficient electrical drives. |
132680500 | s2ag/train | v2 | 2019-04-26T13:49:43.246Z | 2019-08-01T00:00:00.000Z | Florivory by a floriphilic katydid, Phaneroptera brevis, induces changes in a leaf trait in Lantana camara
1. Plants can induce a response when they are attacked by herbivores. Although the induction of responses by herbivory in both flowers and leaves is relatively well studied, whether florivory (feeding of flowers) can also induce responses in flowers and leaves is less well explored and there are still unanswered questions. These include whether plants exhibit different levels of induced responses depending on the length of exposure to the florivores. |
45507350 | s2ag/train | v2 | 2018-04-03T06:04:41.078Z | 1971-07-01T00:00:00.000Z | Solute transport across polyelectrolyte complex membranes.
The transport of glucose and urea under electro-osmosis across two polyelectrolyte complex membrances and two othermembranns, for comparison, was analyzed in detail, both experimentallyand theoretically.
The membranes were characterized by measurements of water content, concentration of coion and countrion in the membrane, and distribution coefficient of glucose and urea in the absence of electric current, as a function of external solution composition. In addition, fluxes of those solutes and solvent were measured as a function fo external solution composition and of electric current
The observed phenomena were modelled by use of Fick's law of of diffusion, with electro-osmosis treated simply as bulk flow. the effect of stirring was accounted for in terms of a boundars layer mass transfer coefficient.
The results indicate a good fit of the model to the data for glucose. For urea, the results indicate substantial binding of urea to the membrane matrix and anomalous behavior in he boundary layer adjacent to the membrane. |
45097000 | s2ag/train | v2 | 2018-01-23T22:40:00.649Z | 2004-12-01T00:00:00.000Z | A neurofuzzy-evolutionary approach for product design
This study investigates a systematic approach to product design based on artificial intelligence. This investigation proposes the use of artificial intelligence techniques, including fuzzy theory, back propagation neural networks (BPN), and genetic algorithms (GA), along with morphological analysis to synthesize, evaluate and optimize product design. This study focuses on (1) how to model imprecise market information by applying fuzzy theory; (2) mapping relationships between design parameters and customer requirements using BPN; (3) synthesizing design alternatives by morphological analysis, and (4) realizing the synthesis in GA, using its searching capacity to obtain the optimal solution. Two case studies illustrate the practical value of the proposed methodology. |
62734760 | s2ag/train | v2 | 2019-02-14T14:16:03.326Z | 2013-09-20T00:00:00.000Z | Secondary Marketing Research Certificate: Library Collaboration With the College of Business and Marketing Faculty
The Secondary Marketing Research Certificate (SMRC) is a collaboration among the University of Texas at San Antonio Libraries, College of Business Administration, and marketing faculty inspired by the Business Research Essentials program at Goizueta Business Library. Students in junior-level marketing research courses earn the SMRC to enhance resumes and receive 5% of their course grade. The SMRC is a four-module online tutorial in Blackboard, covering company and industry research, market research databases, and consumer data. Each module includes videos, extended transcripts, “Guide-on-the-Side” hands-on activities, and a quiz. Certificates are signed by Business and Libraries deans. The article discusses the SMRC design, creation, and management through collaborative process. |
155970060 | s2ag/train | v2 | 2019-05-17T14:40:12.389Z | 2002-06-01T00:00:00.000Z | The 1949 POW Convention: A Pioneering Charter of Human Rights
War is human, but the conduct of war has to be made humane. This is one major purpose of the Law of War. The idea of 'tempera', as propounded by Grotius, is about attempts at mitigating the plights of human beings during wars. jus ad bellum may hav~ become, at least at the level of formulation of law, a thing of the past. But that does not mean that bellum jusmm, while being prosecuted, does not cause suffering to man. To mitigate such suffering during wars (which may or may not be bellum iustum) there have been developed rules of warfare and humanitarian rules. Such rules constitute jus in hello. A distinction has "traditionally been made between the right to wa~e war and the rights and duties which operate once a war has started." Law of war has sought to tackle the age-old problem of war by seeking to restrict the unlimited right to wage war (jus ad bellum) and by introducing rules applicable during prosecution of war. The latter in particular, having humanitarianism as their foremost goal, are reflected in attempts at prohibiting the use of certain categories of weapons which are patently inhumane as well as in the development of rules purporting to create, and make effective, certain protective measures for the victims of war including prisoners of war. |
38747610 | s2ag/train | v2 | 2018-01-23T22:45:08.023Z | 1998-05-27T00:00:00.000Z | On partial clones containing all idempotent partial operations
Let k>2 and k be a k-element set. We show that though the partial clone I:=/spl cap//sub a/spl isin/k/pPol {a} of all idempotent partial operations on k is contained in finitely many partial clones on k, it is quite hard to determine the number of all partial clones on k containing the partial clone I on k. Indeed this question is related to a hard problem in the area of extremal set theory. |
17358410 | s2ag/train | v2 | 2014-10-01T00:00:00.000Z | 1998-11-01T00:00:00.000Z | Chirp parameter estimation using rank reduction
This paper considers the problem of estimating the bandwidth and the center frequency of a linear chirp signal from discrete-time noisy observations. The non-stationarity property of chirp signals implies that the signal has high rank and reduces the applicability of subspace based algorithms significantly. However, the special structure of the sample covariance matrix invites to use regular frequency estimation algorithms. We show how subspace type algorithms may be modified to provide accurate signal parameter estimates for linear chirp signals. The root-MUSIC algorithm is used as an example. Simulations compare the algorithm with a rank reduction method proposed by DiMonte and Arun (1990). |
232218860 | s2ag/train | v2 | 2021-03-14T06:16:14.941Z | 2021-03-12T00:00:00.000Z | Detection of Rotavirus Vaccine Strains in Oysters and Sewage and Their Relationship with the Gastroenteritis Epidemic
We quantified rotavirus A (RVA), Rotarix, and RotaTeq strains in oyster and sewage samples during two gastroenteritis seasons and revealed the exact contamination of wild-type RVA by subtracting the quantitative value of rotavirus vaccine strains from that of RVA. The concentration of wild-type RVA was significantly correlated between oysters and sewage, although no significant correlation was seen between wild-type RVA concentration in sewage and the number of rotaviruses detected in patients with gastroenteritis. ABSTRACT Rotavirus is one of the major causes of infectious gastroenteritis among infants and children, and live attenuated vaccines for rotavirus A (RVA), namely, Rotarix and RotaTeq, have recently become available in Japan. Rotavirus is known to be excreted from patients and accumulated in oysters similar to norovirus; however, the vaccine strains in aquatic environments or oysters have not yet been analyzed. In this study, we focused on wild-type RVA, which is highly important in considering the risk of infectious diseases. We quantified total RVA, Rotarix, and RotaTeq strains in oyster and sewage samples collected between September 2014 and July 2016 to assess the contamination levels of wild-type RVA by subtracting the quantitative value of rotavirus vaccine strains from that of total RVA. The positive rates of wild-type RVA, Rotarix, and RotaTeq in oysters were 54, 14, and 31%, respectively. These rates were comparable to those of wild-type RVA (57%) and RotaTeq (35%) in sewage; however, Rotarix was not detected in any sewage samples. The comparison of viral concentrations in oysters and sewage suggested more efficient accumulation of the vaccine strains in oysters than the wild-type RVA. The concentration of wild-type RVA in oysters was significantly correlated with that in sewage with a lag time of −6 to 0 weeks which is required for viral transportation from wastewater treatment plants to oysters. On the other hand, no significant correlation was observed between wild-type RVA concentration in sewage and the number of rotavirus-associated gastroenteritis cases, implying the existence of asymptomatic RVA-infected individuals. IMPORTANCE We quantified rotavirus A (RVA), Rotarix, and RotaTeq strains in oyster and sewage samples during two gastroenteritis seasons and revealed the exact contamination of wild-type RVA by subtracting the quantitative value of rotavirus vaccine strains from that of RVA. The concentration of wild-type RVA was significantly correlated between oysters and sewage, although no significant correlation was seen between wild-type RVA concentration in sewage and the number of rotavirus-associated gastroenteritis cases. This finding suggested the existence of asymptomatic patients and that monitoring of rotavirus vaccine strain could be useful to understand the trend of wild-type RVA and rotavirus outbreak in detail. We believe that our study makes a significant contribution to the literature because it reports the detection of rotavirus vaccine strains in oysters. |
84603950 | s2ag/train | v2 | 2019-01-09T22:02:46.995Z | 2009-05-19T00:00:00.000Z | The cattle TB crisis – a hidden problem?
Amidst the current cattle tuberculosis (TB) crisis, there is seemingly one pivotal misunderstanding that is responsible for prolonged chronic herd TB breakdowns, this is the inadequacy of current tests in use. In the current cattle TB crisis, attention has focused so much on badgers as the supposed main reservoir of TB that some basic facts about how eradication schemes work have been forgotten: the two key elements being annual testing plus movement restrictions (Hancox 2006). It has long been known that early and late cattle TB cases are the usual cause of recrudescence in herds supposedly tested as clear of the disease. A study some 20 years ago claimed that some 0.30 of cows go temporarily anergic or nonreactor after parturition. Pregnancy certainly modifies the immune response, allowing a proliferation of lesions, followed by their regression post-partum. Young heifers may carry latent TB until their first pregnancy activates the disease (Francis 1947). And so seemingly, a significant minority become permanently anergic yet active TB spreaders (Blood 1989). In fact three such anergic cases caused some 18-herd breakdowns in one parish in the West Penwith or Lands End area of Cornwall (Richards 1972). After selective herd depopulation, this area apparently went clear of TB briefly in the early 1980s without any significant badger culling, which had been focused more in areas where the ‘first ’ TB badger had been found (Gloucestershire in 1971). Local badgers with TB did NOT immediately re-infect the cattle, but local cattle restocking reintroduced TB (Richards 1972; MAFF 1977). Great Britain could have eradicated TB then if the approach had been persevered with. TB eradication was difficult enough in the 1980s when most UK herds were 50 cows or fewer. Now the average UK herd size is often nearer 150 with accompanying 100 replacement young stock (Defra 2007a) and with some herds 250, 500 or 1000 strong. Obviously a test with 0.80 (0.77–0.95) sensitivity will miss some positives every time (Defra 2007b). Many big dairy herds under restriction since the explosion of cattle TB caused by the lack of testing due to foot and mouth disease (FMD) in 2001 will have anergic cases, so tests repeated at short intervals merely remove the latest new cases. It is perhaps not surprising that there are few studies identifying anergic active spreader cases since these must entail detailed autopsy of depopulated herds (Costello et al. 1997). Clearly with such big herds, herd depopulation is a drastic measure. However, it ought to be possible to try and validate two ‘new’ tests. Gamma interferon will not find late TB cases, but an antibody test would. Ironically, the badger BROCK (TB) Stat-pak (Veterinary Laboratories Agency 2008) would target these late cases as would the similar anamnestic ELISA tried on depopulated herds (Yearsley 1998). Cows can shed 38 million bacilli/day in faeces and so another simple procedure would be to identify TB bacilli using DNA/PCR tests on faecal swabs. PCR will revolutionize rapid confirmation of TB in tissue samples. It is being trialled for persistently infected (PI) bovine viral diarrhoea (BVD) and also for TB (Thomas-Everard 2006; Defra 2007b). Incidentally, the end result of the £50 million ‘Krebs’ trial involving culling of c. 11 000 badgers identified only 1500 with TB and only 166 with advanced lesions. Although these individual badgers might have been an infection risk to cattle, no one has realistically shown how badgers might give cows a respiratory lung disease! It is astonishing that many commentators still claim that TB transmission in cattle is not understood – it was crystal clear half a century ago that some 0.90 of cattle TB is a respiratory ‘consumption’ as in man, a bronchopneumonia acquired during over-wintering in barns just like other ‘pneumonias’ be they viral, bacterial or mycoplasmal (Defra 2007a). Some 0.10 is via ingested food or water e.g. in slurry runoff in ponds or slow moving streams that may take TB into ‘closed’ herds downstream, again as in man, a dietary ‘scrofula’ (Blood 1989; Francis 1947; Hancox 2006). Because of FMD the incidence of cattle TB doubled and so there was twice the spillover to badgers (Bourne et al. 2007). * To whom all correspondence should be addressed. Email : [email protected] Journal of Agricultural Science (2009), 147, 505–506. f Cambridge University Press 2009 505 doi:10.1017/S0021859609008818 Printed in the United Kingdom |
245357100 | s2ag/train | v2 | 2021-12-22T16:48:22.571Z | 2021-12-01T00:00:00.000Z | Hygienic Characteristics of the Digital Information and Educational
Environment and the Risk of Its Mental Health Impacts in Students with Different Degrees of Myopia
Introduction: Today, educational conditions and the lifestyle of students of medical universities, coupled with active introduction of electronic educational resources, information and communication technologies and development of a digital
environment, pose a challenge of maintaining psycho-emotional wellbeing of students. This problem is especially relevant among students with myopia since, inter alia, the increasing visual load has a potential adverse effect on their mental and emotional health.
Objective: to give a hygienic characteristic of electronic information and educational environment and to assess its risk on students’ mental health with myopia of varying degrees.
Materials and methods: We assessed intensity of the educational process of 1,100 first to third-year students (aged 17 to 25 years) of the Orenburg State Medical University and analyzed data on the type, frequency and purpose of their using information and communication tools for study and leisure. We also conducted a questionnaire-based survey of 168 healthy students and 138 students with myopia to assess their mental health and determine the type of character accentuation, the anxiety level, and negative emotional experiences in educational and everyday life.
Results: We observed very intensive educational activities of the medical students against the background of the use of electronic gadgets by every second student for educational purposes lasting up to 4.8 hours a day and additional visual load
due to the use of a mobile phone by 93.6 % of students to visit social network sites more than five times a day with the total duration for every third person ranging from 25 to 50 minutes a day. We established that the presence and degree of myopia determined the anxious-pedantic type of character accentuation and a 1.3-fold increase in the anxiety level in everyday activities. In educational activities, it resulted in a 1.7-fold decrease in the level of anxiety and a 1.3-fold increase in the level of negative emotional experiences.
Conclusion: We established mental health risk factors of intense educational activities and an extensive use of information and communication tools by the students, including those with myopia, for study and leisure. Our findings prove the necessity of a differentiated approach to hygienic examination and regulation of various types of activities of the educational process in order to prevent the development and progression of myopia in medical university students. |
220731010 | s2ag/train | v2 | 2020-07-25T13:08:03.789Z | 2020-07-23T00:00:00.000Z | Kinetics and Mechanism of the NH (X3Σ-) + SO (X3Σ-) Reaction, a Theoretical Approach.
The reaction mechanism, product branching ratios, and relevant rate constants for the reaction of imidogen (NH) with sulfur monoxide (SO) over singlet and triplet potential energy surfaces is theoretically investigated. Various quantum chemical methods at the single-reference methods (PBE, M06-2X, MP2, GBS-QB3, G3MP2B3, and CCSD(T)) and the multi-reference methods of CASPT2 are carried out to examine the characteristics of the title reaction's PES. Eighteen chemically activated intermediates and more than 35 different reaction channels are predicted over the singlet surface, while less species and channels are distinguished over the triplet surface. The entrance channel for both surfaces are appeared to be barrier-less association reactions to form pre-reaction energized intermediates of singlet or triplet HNSO or HNOS. OH and NS radicals are indicated as the major products for the title reaction on both surfaces in consistence with the reported experimental observations. RRKM-steady state approximation method is used to calculate the rate constants and branching ratios of the main products. The obtained overall rate constant is in agreement with the available reported experimental data over the wide range of temperature from 300 K to 3000 K. By considering single-reference calculations, the singlet and triplet total rate constants were found to be as; k(T) = 5.04×1010 and 2.47×1012 T-0.83 exp (-1.56 kJ mol-1/T), respectively. Also, the total rate constant for the consumption of reactants by inclusion of multi-reference calculations was found to be in the range of 3.86×1010 to 4.18×1010, depends on the level of calculations. In addition, our results revealed that the total rate constant for the NH+SO reaction is pressure independent in the range of 0.1 to 2000 Torr. |
41319650 | s2ag/train | v2 | 2018-04-03T05:01:43.232Z | 2008-06-15T00:00:00.000Z | Influence of recent vegetation on labile and recalcitrant carbon soil pools in central Queensland, Australia: evidence from thermal analysis-quadrupole mass spectrometry-isotope ratio mass spectrometry.
The effect of a recent vegetation change (<100 years) from C(4) grassland to C(3) woodland in central Queensland, Australia, on soil organic matter (SOM) composition and SOM dynamics has been investigated using a novel coupled thermogravimetry-differential scanning calorimetry-quadrupole.mass spectrometry-isotope ratio mass spectrometry (TG-DSC-QMS-IRMS) system. TG-DSC-QMS-IRMS distinguishes the C isotope composition of discrete SOM pools, showing changes in labile, recalcitrant and refractory carbon in the bulk soil and particle size fractions which track the vegetation changes. Analysis of evolved gases (by QMS) from thermal decomposition, rather than observed weight loss, proved essential in determining the temperature at which SOM decomposes, because smectite and kaolinite clays contribute to observed weight losses. The delta(13)C analyses of the CO(2) evolved at different temperatures for bulk soil and particle size-separates showed that most of the labile SOM under the more recent woody vegetation was C(3)-derived carbon whereas the delta(13)C values in the recalcitrant SOM showed greater C(4) contributions. This indicated a shift from grass (C(4))- to tree (C(3))-derived carbon in the woodland, which was also supported by the two-phase (13)C enrichment with depth, i.e. C(3) vegetation dominated the top soil (0-10 cm), but the C(4) contribution increased with depth (more gradual). This is perturbed by the inclusion of charcoal from forest fires ((14)C age incursions) and by the deep incorporation of C(3) carbon due to root penetration. |
26366850 | s2ag/train | v2 | 2018-04-03T00:41:57.434Z | 2013-10-17T00:00:00.000Z | Methylparaben isolated in solid argon: structural characterization and UV-induced conversion into methylparaben radical and isomeric ketenes.
Methylparaben (methyl p-hydroxybenzoic acid; MP) is a widely used antimicrobial preservative, being the most frequently used antimicrobial preservative in cosmetics. The generalized use of MP has become controversial, with several recent reports of dangerous side effects. For example, the presence of MP in human breast tumors and its harmful effects on human skin exposed to the sunlight have been demonstrated. In spite of the important practical relevance of the compound and of the controversy about its practical use, its structural and photochemical characterization had not been undertaken hitherto. To fill this gap, in the present study, MP was isolated in solid argon (T = 15 K) and structurally characterized by a combined infrared spectroscopy/quantum chemistry approach. The potential energy surface (PES) of the molecule was investigated in detail, revealing the existence of two almost isoenergetic (ΔE(0) = 0.37 kJ mol(-1)) s-cis carboxylic ester low-energy conformers, with an estimated population ratio in the gas phase at room temperature (∼298 K) of ca. 0.83. The calculations also predicted the existence of two high-energy (ΔE(0) = ∼50 kJ mol(-1)) s-trans carboxylic ester conformers of MP. Upon isolation of the compound in an argon matrix, only the lowest energy conformer was found to survive, due to occurrence of extensive conformational cooling during matrix deposition. The infrared spectrum of this conformer was obtained and interpreted. In addition, the chemical processes resulting from in situ irradiation of the matrix-isolated MP with a broadband UV source (λ > 234 nm) were investigated, revealing extensive conversion of MP into highly reactive methylparaben radical and isomeric ketenes. These observations support the recent concerns regarding uses of MP, in particular when the compound has to be exposed to UV light. |
30857150 | s2ag/train | v2 | 2018-04-03T01:44:25.587Z | 1995-09-01T00:00:00.000Z | Subcutaneous sarcoidosis with dactylitis
Subcutaneous sarcoidosis appears to be rare and is usually associated with hiliar adenopathy. Finger swelling is well recognized in patients with sarcoidosis and usually results from bony involvement or tenosynovitis. 1 We report a patient with subcutaneous sarcoidosis and dactylitis. Biopsy of a finger and of subcutaneous nodules showed similar features with a granulomatous infiltrate. There were no osseus or tendinous lesions. |
2723350 | s2ag/train | v2 | 2018-04-03T03:21:27.231Z | 1990-10-01T00:00:00.000Z | Atypical presentation of Pneumocystis carinii pneumonia.
Pneumocystis carinii is a common cause of pneumonia in the immunosuppressed patient. Its radiological findings are usually homogeneous, diffuse and bilateral. We present a 27-year-old woman with non-Hodgkin's lymphoma presenting with unilateral right lung parenchymal infiltrates due to Pneumocystis carinii. In the immunosuppressed host, pneumonia limited to one lung should not preclude the diagnostic possibility of Pneumocystis carinii infection. |
38985850 | s2ag/train | v2 | 2018-04-03T04:26:00.090Z | 1994-09-01T00:00:00.000Z | Diagnosis of cutaneous leishmaniasis and species discrimination of parasites by PCR and hybridization
The aim of this study was to assess the efficacy of PCR methodology in establishing the diagnosis of cutaneous leishmaniasis in patients from areas of endemicity in Venezuela. Biopsies from 233 patients with cutaneous ulcers suggestive of leishmaniasis were analyzed by PCR, employing oligonucleotides directed against conserved regions of kinetoplast DNA (kDNA), and the PCR products were then hybridized to nonradioactively labeled, species-specific, cloned kDNA fragments. The ability of PCR to detect Leishmania cells was compared with those of the conventional methodologies: skin testing with killed promastigotes (Montenegro test), examination of Giemsa-stained biopsy smears, and in vitro culture of biopsy tissue. The PCR-hybridization technique detected the presence of Leishmania cells in 98% of patients clinically diagnosed as having leishmaniasis and also positive by the Montenegro skin test. In comparison, leishmania positivity was found in only 42% of cultures and 64% of biopsy smears. By hybridizing the PCR product to new kDNA probes specific for either Leishmania mexicana or Leishmania braziliensis, we found that both species are major causes of cutaneous leishmaniasis in Venezuela, and the species identification was confirmed by restriction enzyme analysis of kDNA from biopsy cultures. This work demonstrates that PCR coupled with hybridization is useful not only for the diagnosis of cutaneous leishmaniasis but also for the taxonomic discrimination essential for both epidemiology and therapy. This technique can be used to diagnose leishmaniasis in a country in which the disease is endemic and can perhaps be adapted for use in a rural clinic. |
239629450 | s2ag/train | v2 | 2021-10-21T16:00:54.349Z | 2021-09-07T00:00:00.000Z | Investigating the Climate-Related Risk of Forest Fires for Mediterranean Islands’ Blue Economy
The Mediterranean islands’ blue economy and, more specifically, the tourism sector, largely regulate Europe’s gross product. Climate change threatens the ecological, societal, and economic sustainability of the islands in many ways, with increasing wildfires making up one of the most critical components of the climate change impacts on tourism. Here, we aim to identify and assess forest fire vulnerability and risk due to climate change for seven Mediterranean islands through the application of the “impact chain” conceptual framework. The backbone of this approach requires the integration of quantitative and qualitative data according to the three main risk components sensu the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), i.e., hazard, exposure, and vulnerability, with a structured participatory approach involving stakeholders and experts. Our results illustrate the islands with high potential for improvement in terms of adapting capacity and, by indicating the contribution of the different risk components, highlight the main environmental and socio-economic elements that affect the islands’ vulnerability and risk under climate change. The approach’s potentials and constraints are discussed, suggesting that the method can be handily used to point out the priorities that must be addressed by mitigation and adaptation policies and measures at the island level. |
170404200 | s2ag/train | v2 | 2019-05-31T13:10:33.235Z | 1987-12-01T00:00:00.000Z | What does Death have to do with the Meaning of Life?
Philosophers often distinguish in some way between two (or more) senses of life's meaning. Paul Edwards terms these a ‘cosmic’ and ‘terrestrial’ sense. The cosmic sense is that of an overall purpose of which our lives are a part and in terms of which our lives must be understood and our purposes and interests arranged. This overall purpose is often identified with God's divine scheme, but the two need not necessarily be equated. The terrestrial sense of meaning is the meaning people find (subjectively) in their own lives apart from the place of their lives in any ultimate end or context. |
2962350 | s2ag/train | v2 | 2017-02-11T03:38:58.879Z | 2006-05-07T00:00:00.000Z | Sequential Search Method with Different Thresholds for Clipped Power for OFDM Signal
To address the problem of a large peak-to-average power ratio (PAPR) in orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) signaling, which mitigates the detrimental effects caused by a multi-path environment, we propose a sequential search method that employs different thresholds for clipped power for a partial transmit sequence (PTS) algorithm and/or cyclically shifting PTS algorithm. The proposed method can effectively select the weighting factors for the phase rotation and/or cyclically shifting point with a lower level of complexity, and can mitigate the degradation in the error rate performance due to the non-linearity of the transmitter amplifier by applying different threshold values for the clipped power. In addition, we present a method that can mitigate the performance degradation especially for spatial division multiplexing (SDM)-OFDM. Furthermore, we introduce a transmission method of the weighting factor for the phase rotation or the cyclically shifting point by using channel-estimation pilot symbols. Subsequently, there is no need for extra control channels, which result in a loss in the transmission efficiency |
10861650 | s2ag/train | v2 | 2018-04-03T00:19:23.688Z | 1981-11-01T00:00:00.000Z | Painful neuroma: changes produced in peripheral nerve after fascicle ligation.
Sixteen months after resection of a painful neuroma and fascicle ligation of the proximal nerve segments, the fascicle ligated neural tissue was examined by light and electron microscopy. No significant neuroma formation was found in the fascicle-ligated regions. The distal portion consisted mainly of connective tissue fibroblasts with an absence of neural elements. Maintaining the perineurium intact by fascicle ligation seems to alter significantly axonal regeneration in humans, as is indicated by minimal neuroma formation. Similar findings after fascicle ligation in animals have also been reported. This lack of neuroma formation after resection of a painful neuroma and fascicle ligation may play a significant role in relieving pain in patients with painful neuromas. |
29658700 | s2ag/train | v2 | 2018-04-03T01:28:05.433Z | 1999-02-01T00:00:00.000Z | Linking lost voices: reading 'The Dead'.
The author presents an individual reading of James Joyce's short story. 'The Dead' from 'Dubliners'. Language evokes subjective responses and associations that become part of the depth of experience one finds in a book. The author describes how uses of language give the reader a sense of sharing the main character's experience. She focuses on nodal moments in the story, in which external and internal worlds intersect. Images focused on include those of seeing and touching, inside and outside, crossing gaps between worlds and the way in which these sensory events shift the character's knowledge of his internal objects. The metaphor of lost voices highlights the presence of the dead throughout the story. The main character's evolution from being in a constricted state to one of expanded self-awareness is discussed. Britton's concept of triangular space is used to describe the character's transformation at the story's conclusion. |
52918000 | s2ag/train | v2 | 2018-10-21T21:47:41.166Z | 2018-10-03T00:00:00.000Z | Use of traditional and alternative healers by psychiatric patients: A descriptive study in urban South Africa
This study investigates the pattern of use of traditional and alternative healers among psychiatric patients in Nelson Mandela Metropole. An interview schedule was applied to 254 subjects at six sites, enquiring about consultations with traditional and alternative healers in the past year. Multivariate analysis was performed to determine predictors of consultation. Overall, 78 (31%) of respondents had consulted a healer in the past year. The ethnic distribution was: 156 (61%) Black, 53 (21%) Coloured (Mixed Race), 42 (17%) White and three (1%) Indian. The male to female ratio was 119 (46.85%):135 (53.14%). The healers gave no advice about psychiatric medication to 48 (61.5%) of consulters, 23 (29.5%) were told to continue their medication, four (5.1%) told to stop, and one (1.3%) told to stop and restart later. In multivariate models, predictors of consultation were being Black and of lower education. Although 45 (58%) of the consulters indicated that medical treatment was more helpful than the healer’s, 45 (58%) intended to consult again. Overall, 22% of consulters reported abuse by the healer. |
126984500 | s2ag/train | v2 | 2019-04-23T13:22:09.246Z | 2019-02-01T00:00:00.000Z | Advanced Dielectrics and Related Devices
SiO2 and related dielectrics are basic constituents of many optical and electronic devices with applications in frontier optoelectronics as well as in many radiation and harsh environments. The ongoing activity of researchers ranges from fundamentals of the electron processes, including defects formation and radiation-matter interaction; to growth mechanisms, spanning from bulk to fibers, nanostructures and composites; to characterization techniques and to modeling, simulation, and devices. This issue contains 24 articles selected from the contributions to the International Symposium SiO2, Advanced Dielectrics and Related Devices, held on June 11–13, 2018 in Bari, Italy. It was the XII edition of a symposium with French-Italian organizing committees which brought together more than 60 researchers from all around the world. The collected contributions cover the different research activities of the symposium community highlighting the recent advancements and perspectives together with the forefront topics. The four feature articles span from SiO2 optical fibers where radiation, temperature and doping are shown to be critical for applications, to graphene transferred to SiO2, evidencing the relevant role of the dielectric substrate in affecting the electronic properties of the 2D material. The other frontier topics concern attractive applications of photonic and plasmonic integrated cavities in the field of biosensing and trapping of biological matter at the nanoscale as well as novel computational models for simulating electromagnetic pulse propagation into dielectrics enabling the prediction in applicative tasks. The original papers can be grouped in hot topics of defects characterization and formation in crystalline and amorphous SiO2 with reference also to F, Bi, Al, P, Gd and other dopants of |
31749750 | s2ag/train | v2 | 2018-04-03T02:00:07.310Z | 2011-06-01T00:00:00.000Z | A Literature Review of Studies Using Qualitative Research to Explore Chronic Neuromuscular Disease
ABSTRACT Although most neuromuscular disease research articles reflect traditional quantitative approaches, qualitative methods are becoming more prevalent in the neuromuscular literature. Arguably, qualitative research provides rich data that may be used to generate patient-centered outcome measures or influence current standards of care. The purpose of this article is to explore the qualitative literature pertaining to individuals and families living with chronic neuromuscular disease in order to suggest implications for practice. Fifty-six qualitative articles addressing seven research themes including Illness Experience; Work, Recreation, and Services; Assisted Ventilation; Caregiving; Genetics; Communication and Information Seeking; and Palliative Care were identified. |
32792060 | s2ag/train | v2 | 2017-02-14T04:47:50.391Z | 2011-10-20T00:00:00.000Z | Source monitor in quantum key distribution
The core value of a quantum-key-distribution (QKD) system is the unconditional security. In the standard security analysis, the characteristics of QKD source are assumed to be known and fixed. In a real QKD experiment, this assumption may be deviated. Especially, in commercial Plug&Play QKD system, the source is untrusted. Source monitor can close this security loophole. This paper analyzes passive source-monitor scheme, and shows that this scheme can be well implemented in practice. |
46634410 | s2ag/train | v2 | 2018-04-03T06:24:14.349Z | 2000-05-01T00:00:00.000Z | Effects of ZK-807834, a novel inhibitor of factor Xa, on arterial and venous thrombosis in rabbits.
Inhibition of factor Xa (FXa) may interrupt thrombus progression. This study compared the antithrombotic activity of a novel FXa inhibitor, ZK-807834 [MW, 527 D; Ki (human FXa), 0.11 nM], with recombinant tick anticoagulant peptide [rTAP; MW, 6,685 D; Ki, (human FXa) = 0.28 nM], and DX-9065a [MW 445 D, Ki (human FXa), 40 nM] in rabbits with arterial thrombosis induced by electrical vascular injury. ZK-807834 also was compared with low molecular weight heparin (LMWH; MW, 5,500 D) during venous thrombosis induced by placing a copper wire and threads in the vena cava. Inhibitors were administered as an i.v. bolus and 2-h infusion. Total dosages of ZK-807834, > or =0.7 micromol/kg (n = 18); rTAP, > or =1 micromol/kg (n = 18); or DX-9065a, > or =11 micromol/kg (n = 18) decreased the incidence of arterial thrombotic occlusion compared with control animals (p < 0.05). However, five of six animals given the lowest effective dosage of rTAP and four of six animals given DX-9065a bled from a surgical incision >5 min, but only two of six animals given ZK-807834 bled >5 min. Venous clot weights were reduced compared with controls for dosages of ZK-807834 > or =0.007 micromol/kg (n = 36) or LMWH > or =0.2 micromol/kg (n = 18). Prothrombin time (PT) and activated partial thromboplastin time (aPTT) were unchanged from baseline at the minimally effective dose of ZK-807834, whereas aPTT was increased twofold at the effective dose of LMWH. Thus ZK-807834 may be useful to attenuate thrombosis at lower dosages and with less perturbation of systemic hemostasis compared with available agents. |
55243210 | s2ag/train | v2 | 2018-12-05T08:06:24.427Z | 2012-08-01T00:00:00.000Z | Effects of variable magma supply on mid‐ocean ridge eruptions: Constraints from mapped lava flow fields along the Galápagos Spreading Center
Mapping and sampling of 18 eruptive units in two study areas along the Galápagos Spreading Center (GSC) provide insight into how magma supply affects mid‐ocean ridge (MOR) volcanic eruptions. The two study areas have similar spreading rates (53 versus 55 mm/yr), but differ by 30% in the time‐averaged rate of magma supply (0.3 × 106 versus 0.4 × 106 m3/yr/km). Detailed geologic maps of each study area incorporate observations of flow contacts and sediment thickness, in addition to sample petrology, geomagnetic paleointensity, and inferences from high‐resolution bathymetry data. At the lower‐magma‐supply study area, eruptions typically produce irregularly shaped clusters of pillow mounds with total eruptive volumes ranging from 0.09 to 1.3 km3. At the higher‐magma‐supply study area, lava morphologies characteristic of higher effusion rates are more common, eruptions typically occur along elongated fissures, and eruptive volumes are an order of magnitude smaller (0.002–0.13 km3). At this site, glass MgO contents (2.7–8.4 wt. %) and corresponding liquidus temperatures are lower on average, and more variable, than those at the lower‐magma‐supply study area (6.2–9.1 wt. % MgO). The differences in eruptive volume, lava temperature, morphology, and inferred eruption rates observed between the two areas along the GSC are similar to those that have previously been related to variable spreading rates on the global MOR system. Importantly, the documentation of multiple sequences of eruptions at each study area, representing hundreds to thousands of years, provides constraints on the variability in eruptive style at a given magma supply and spreading rate. |
3830460 | s2ag/train | v2 | 2018-03-15T13:32:08.810Z | 2017-03-01T00:00:00.000Z | Morphological and histomorphometric evaluation of the ventral rectus sheath of the rectus abdominis muscle, fascia lata and pectoral fascia. The beginning of a morphological information bank of human fascias.
The aim of this study was to characterize and compare the morphological and histomorphometric characteristics of the pectoral fascia, fascia lata and ventral rectus sheath. Twenty cadaveric samples of these fascias were analyzed and stained with hematoxylin and eosin, orcein, Van Gieson, Masson's trichrome and Verhoeff¨s stain (1200 slides in total). Morphological evaluation, semiquantitative, morphometric and microdensitometric analysis of elastic fibers present in each of the tissues and a morphometrical analysis of tissue thickness were performed. The mean value of the pectoral fascia thickness was 612±68.13 μm; 84±246 μm for the fascia lata and 584±92 μm for the ventral rectus sheath. The area occupied by the elastic fibers in the pectoral fascia was 12.24±5.84%; 6,54±3.85% for the fascia lata and 11.11±5.26% for the ventral rectus sheath. There were no statistically significant differences when comparing the mean values between the pectoral fascia and the ventral rectus sheath (p=0.07). There were statistically significant differences when comparing the fascia lata to the pectoral fascia and the ventral rectus sheath (p≤0.001). This study reports other morphological characteristics not described in previous histological studies of the analyzed tissues. The results of the morphometric and densitometric analysis in this study reveal that the fascia lata has the fewest elastic fibers of all the tissues analyzed, and the pectoral fascia has the most. These results will be useful for the beginning of a morphological information bank of human fascias. |
252946710 | s2ag/train | v2 | 2022-10-18T17:14:11.797Z | 2022-01-01T00:00:00.000Z | Predictors of readmission after pulmonary resection in patients with lung cancer
Review question / Objective: At present, risk factors for readmission after pulmonary resection in patients with lung cancer are still not fully elucidated, and related studies have shown inconclusive results. We conducted a meta-analysis of the existing literature with the aim of clarifying the risk factors for readmission and providing evidence for the prevention of readmission after surgical resection in patients with lung cancer. Eligibility criteria: Included articles needed to meet the following criteria: (I) the full article could be retrieved and had sufficient data for extraction; (II) the study focused on risk factors for readmission after pulmonary resection for lung cancer; and (III) patients were readmitted to the same institution. Studies were excluded if: (I) they were abstracts, letters, reviews, or case reports; (II) patients were readmitted to the emergency department or there was early return to the clinic; and (III) study contained repeated data or did not report the outcomes of interest. |
248653010 | s2ag/train | v2 | 2022-05-10T15:32:17.391Z | 2022-05-06T00:00:00.000Z | Oil-Immersed Power Transformer Condition Monitoring Methodologies: A Review
A power transformer is one of the most critical and expensive assets in electric power systems. Failure of a power transformer would not only result in a downtime to the entire transmission and distribution networks but may also cause personnel and environmental hazards due to oil leak and fire. Hence, to enhance a transformer’s reliability and extend its lifespan, a cost-effective and reliable condition monitoring technique should be adopted from day one of its installation. This will help detect incipient faults, extend a transformer’s operational life, and avoid potential consequences. With the global trend to establish digital substation automation systems, transformer online condition monitoring has been given much attention by utilities and researchers alike. Several online and offline condition monitoring techniques have been recently proposed for oil-immersed power transformers. This paper is aimed at providing a state-of-the-art review for the various condition monitoring technologies used for oil-immersed power transformers. Concept of measurements and analysis of the results along with the future trend of condition monitoring techniques are presented. |
31910060 | s2ag/train | v2 | 2018-04-03T02:01:44.220Z | 2005-02-09T00:00:00.000Z | 1H and 13C NMR characterization of pyridinium-type isoniazid-NAD adducts as possible inhibitors of InhA reductase of Mycobacterium tuberculosis.
Oxidative activation of the antituberculous drug isoniazid (INH) in the presence of the NADH cofactor gives a pool of INH-NAD adducts proposed to be involved in the mechanism of action of this drug through inhibition of the reductase InhA. Among these adducts and besides dihydropyridine derivatives, two pyridinium-type isoniazid-NAD adducts were shown to be formed in solution and have been fully characterized by 1H/13C NMR and MS. One of them results from the oxidation of dihydropyridine-type INH-NAD adducts. The spectral data strongly support its existence under two epimeric structures. These epimers arise from a cyclization process between the carboxamide group and the ketone function with the creation of a new chiral center at C-7. The second pyridinium-type adduct was formed in acidic solution by dehydration of the cyclized dihydropyridine-type INH-NAD adducts and also exists as a cyclized structure. Both of these pyridinium-type compounds were inactive as inhibitors of InhA activity and can be considered as deactivated species. |
21867500 | s2ag/train | v2 | 2018-04-03T02:12:05.459Z | 1999-06-01T00:00:00.000Z | [Determination of beta-adrenergic binding sites in the myocardium of young female chickens of various strains--a study for the clarification of frequent occurrence of sudden death and ascites in male broilers].
The present investigations should contribute to clarify the importance of beta-adrenergic system in myocard for the triggering of sudden death syndrome and ascites in male broiler chickens. Therefore it should be verified if differences in density of beta-adrenergic receptors in myocard exist in several strains and sexes of chickens. We showed in both male and female broilers that the receptor density was significantly higher as in chickens of the laying strain. There were no significant differences in receptor density between sexes in both investigated strains as well as in KD-values between all groups. The latter finding is referred to the absence of differences in receptor affinity for 3H-dihydroalprenolol between the groups. Clarification of the question if chronic heart failure is in contrast to myocard hypertrophy accompanied with reduction of beta-adrenergic receptor density or receptor affinity in broilers too, as could be shown in other species, has to carried out in further investigations. |
16414250 | s2ag/train | v2 | 2015-12-07T19:30:58.999Z | 2011-09-30T00:00:00.000Z | Using the ant colony optimization algorithm in the network inference and parameter estimation of biochemical systems
Developing models that can represent biochemical systems is one of the hallmarks of systems biology. Scientists have been gathering data from actual experiments, but there is a lack in computer models that can be used by scientists in analysing the various biochemical systems more effectively. In this research, we propose to use an ant colony optimization (ACO) algorithm for the network inference and parameter estimation of biochemical systems, particularly S-systems. The ACO has been used for various problems, and with several improvements, it can also be used to solve the problems that we are considering. Since the ACO has discrete and continuous forms, we plan to use each form for the network inference and parameter estimation problems respectively. The results of our work show that the ACO can be effectively used in the formation of model for biochemical systems.
Key words: Biochemical systems, S-systems, ant colony optimization. |
6747600 | s2ag/train | v2 | 2018-04-03T03:33:51.750Z | 2006-03-01T00:00:00.000Z | Traumatic Inferior Hip Dislocation in an Adult With Ipsilateral Trochanteric Fracture
Traumatic Inferior dislocation of hip in adult is an extremely rare occurrence. We report a case of an inferior hip dislocation associated with an intertrochanteric fracture. Treatment consisted of an initial closed manipulative reduction of the dislocation with the aid of a Schanz screw inserted in a T handle universal chuck and using C-arm imaging. A dynamic hip screw was then used to fix the intertrochanteric fracture. At 2.5 years after the injury, the patient has symmetrical range of motion versus his contra lateral normal hip. Radiographs of the hip show normal anatomy without signs of avascular necrosis of the femoral head. To our knowledge, this is the first reported case of an adult with an inferior hip dislocation with a trochanteric fracture. |
22590350 | s2ag/train | v2 | 2017-10-10T22:12:53.036Z | 1994-01-01T00:00:00.000Z | The effect of hypertrophic adenoids and tonsils on the development of posterior crossbite and oral habits.
There are a number of studies in the literature, that associate nasopharyngeal airway obstruction, as a result of adenoid enlargement, to the development of skeletal and dental abnormalities. However, the etiologic role of hypertrophied adenoids and tonsils in developing an aberrant dentofacial growth is not clear, yet. The present investigation attempted to study the incidence of maxillary posterior crossbite and oral habits, in a sample of 120 children, that displayed hypertrophied adenoids with or without enlarged tonsils, and underwent adenoidectomy. An attempt was also made to relate the presence of crossbite to the severity of upper respiratory airway obstruction. The severity of airway obstruction was assessed using radiographic and surgical criteria. A lateral cephalometric radiograph was obtained and studied for each patient. Results indicated, that 47% of the children examined, had developed a posterior crossbite. The presence of crossbite was high in children with severe airway obstruction, particularly in those with hypertrophied adenoids and tonsils. On the contrary, most of the children with a posterior crossbite did not have a history of pacifier or finger sucking. It was also concluded, that the study of a lateral cephalometric radiograph can be a valuable diagnostic method in the evaluation of children with upper airway obstruction. |
225412900 | s2ag/train | v2 | 2020-10-30T07:11:23.300Z | 2021-04-15T00:00:00.000Z | Presuming religious congruence? The nonreligious and Catholicism in Poland
This article contributes to the understanding of the symbiotic relationship between the nonreligious and the religious in religiously homogeneous cultures. Specifically, it examines the centrality of the religious congruence fallacy in the narratives of nonreligious people. Based on 60 qualitative interviews with Polish nones, I chart the ways in which they make sense of the dominant model of Polish-Catholic religiosity, commonly referred to as the ‘Polak-Katolik’. The findings demonstrate that nonreligious Poles equate Polish Catholicism with hypocrisy, conformity, and an implicit fear of ostracism. In conclusion, I suggest that it is vital that scholars of nonreligion flesh out the complexities of the relationship between the nones and the religiously homogeneous cultures within which they exist. |
5582750 | s2ag/train | v2 | 2018-01-21T09:48:14.739Z | 2010-05-01T00:00:00.000Z | Separation of macrovascular signal in multi‐inversion time arterial spin labelling MRI
Arterial spin labeling (ASL) provides a noninvasive method to measure brain perfusion and is becoming an increasingly viable alternative to more invasive MR methods due to improvements in acquisition, such as the use of a three‐dimensional GRASE readout. A potential source of error in ASL measurements is signal arising from intravascular blood that is destined for more distal tissue. This is typically suppressed using diffusion gradients in many ASL sequences. However, several problems exist with this approach, such as the choice of cutoff velocity and gradient direction and incompatibility with certain readout modules. An alternative approach is to explicitly model the intravascular signal. This study exploits this approach by using multi‐inversion time ASL data with a recently developed model‐fitting method. The method employed permits the intravascular contribution to be discarded in voxels where there is no support in the data for its inclusion, thereby addressing the issue of overfitting. It is shown by comparing data with and without flow suppression, and by comparing the intravascular contribution in GRASE ASL data to MR angiographic images, that the model‐fitting approach can provide a viable alternative to flow suppression in ASL where suppression is either not feasible or not desirable. Magn Reson Med 63:1357–1365, 2010. © 2010 Wiley‐Liss, Inc. |
7155120 | s2ag/train | v2 | 2014-10-01T00:00:00.000Z | 2013-08-27T00:00:00.000Z | Context-Aware Computing: Opportunities and Open Issues
A 2011 Gartner report [3] describes context-aware computing as a game-changing opportunity for enterprises to improve both productivity and profits. Context-aware computing is about making applications and content more relevant to a user's context, e.g., when and where the user is, thereby improving user experience. For instance, a coupon delivered to a user at a wrong time or at a wrong location is considered a nuisance. On the contrary, receiving a timely, usable coupon before purchasing a merchandise is a treat. Context-aware computing is not a new concept, but the ongoing mobile revolution makes it both necessary and feasible. • Necessary because the mobile phone display is small and information must be delivered with much higher relevance and precision to meet user needs. • Feasible because small, light-weight mobile devices allow users to almost always carry them around, and much can be learned via a phone about its user's habits and states.
Context-aware computing involves first acquiring context and then taking context-dependent actions. For instance, a phone can sense a user's location and turn off its GPS unit to conserve power when the user enters a building, or it can collect EKG signals of a user and trigger an alert if the user's heart beats irregularly. Similarly, a restaurant can send a coupon to a user when that user is queued up in front of a nearby restaurant. The useful context can be divided into three categories: information on the user (knowledge of habits, emotional state, biophysiological conditions), the user's environment (time, location, co-location of others, social interaction), and the user's tasks (transportation mode, engaged tasks, general goals) [4]. Context-aware computing can be applied to benefit applications in many areas including but not limited to information retrieval, facility management, productivity enhancement, in addition to the aforementioned three examples representing power management, health care, and commerce, respectively. |
214454070 | s2ag/train | v2 | 2020-01-16T09:04:22.017Z | 2020-01-10T00:00:00.000Z | Synthesis of novel copolymer based on N-Vinyl caprolactam and acrylamide monomers for high temperature drilling applications
Drilling fluids are considered as blood of drilling industry for the extraction of oil and gas. Many chemical additives are employed to formulate drilling fluids, but water-soluble polymers play vital role to adjust rheological and filtration properties. Natural and conventionally used polymers in drilling fluids show degradation at high temperature drilling applications. For this purpose, a novel copolymer based on N-Vinyl caprolactam and acrylamide monomers was synthesized for high temperature application of drilling fluids. The chemical structure and composition of copolymer was analyzed using Fourier transform spectroscopy. The suitability of copolymer for drilling fluid formulation was determined by performing rheological properties with different concentrations at temperature ranging from 75°F to 150°F. The steady shear rheology experiments showed that increasing the concentration copolymer in the base drilling fluid resulted in significant increase in viscosity, shear stress and gel strength of modified drilling fluid. While increasing the temperature of modified drilling fluid up to 150°F with increasing copolymer concentration, the rheological properties (shear stress and viscosity) shows no prominent change compared to the modified drilling fluid (B). The synthesized novel copolymer with N-Vinyl caprolactam and acrylamide monomers can be used to formulate drilling fluid for high temperature applications.Drilling fluids are considered as blood of drilling industry for the extraction of oil and gas. Many chemical additives are employed to formulate drilling fluids, but water-soluble polymers play vital role to adjust rheological and filtration properties. Natural and conventionally used polymers in drilling fluids show degradation at high temperature drilling applications. For this purpose, a novel copolymer based on N-Vinyl caprolactam and acrylamide monomers was synthesized for high temperature application of drilling fluids. The chemical structure and composition of copolymer was analyzed using Fourier transform spectroscopy. The suitability of copolymer for drilling fluid formulation was determined by performing rheological properties with different concentrations at temperature ranging from 75°F to 150°F. The steady shear rheology experiments showed that increasing the concentration copolymer in the base drilling fluid resulted in significant increase in viscosity, shear stress and gel strength of mod... |
1778120 | s2ag/train | v2 | 2009-03-25T14:15:50.000Z | 2009-03-25T00:00:00.000Z | Divisibility of characteristic numbers
We use homotopy theory to define certain rational coefficients characteristic numbers with integral values, depending on a given prime number q and positive integer t. We prove the first nontrivial degree formula and use it to show that existence of morphisms between algebraic varieties for which these numbers are not divisible by q give information on the degree of such morphisms or on zero cycles of the target variety. |
213469270 | s2ag/train | v2 | 2020-01-02T21:48:33.400Z | 2019-12-22T00:00:00.000Z | The role of Gender in Participation and Health Among Slovenian Youth: A Regional Comparison
Abstract:
The main purpose of our study was 1) to test for gender differences in subjective health and well-being, political and cultural participation; 2) to examine whether gender moderates the link between health and participation; and 3) to test for regional variation in this link. A representative survey sample of Slovenian Youth 2010 study was analysed. At the total sample levels, men reported better health, there were no gender differences in voter turnout, while cultural participation was higher among women. In addition, gender did not moderate cultural participation-health link (no significant link in either gender), but it did moderate voter turnout-health link, with turnout being significantly negatively related to health among men (but not among women). Regional variations were not detected, as associations within regions were largely insignificant.
Key words:
cultural participation, political participation, health inequalities, regional differences, gender inequalities, democracy, youth
Language: Original in English (Abstract in English and Slovene, Summary in Slovene) |
130467270 | s2ag/train | v2 | 2016-02-02T08:36:57.578Z | 2013-01-01T00:00:00.000Z | The Status of a PA Endangered Bird- the Upland Sandpiper
The upland sandpiper (Bartramia Longuardia) has experienced a steep population decline in the northeastern U.S. since the mid-20th Century. In Pennsylvania it was found in less than 0.5% of atlas blocks during the Second Atlas of Breeding Birds in Pennsylvania project (2nd PBBA; 2004-09) and breeding was confirmed at only two locations. Due to continued declines and a small population size, the upland sandpiper was listed as PA endangered in 2012. During May 2012 the areas around 15 2nd PBBA upland sandpiper sightings were resurveyed by Gettysburg College students and volunteer birdwatchers. The aim was to establish whether the atlas records related to persisting populations. We used five-minute audio playback at up to 10 locations within 4km of the atlas sightings. A maximum of 19 pairs/calling male upland sandpipers were found across the state in 2012, most of them on or close to reclaimed surface mines. However, locating such a scarce species can be problematic, and it is still not known to what extent the species is under-reported. To help direct future surveys we analyzed data from the 2nd PBBA and the 2012 survey to produce a habitat suitability model for the upland sandpiper in Pennsylvania. We used a GIS framework to determine areas of suitable habitat and then stratified these by proximity to recent (2004-2012) upland sandpiper sightings. We recommend that our suitability model be used to establish a sampling protocol for more thorough statewide upland sandpiper survey every five years, in order that the species’ precarious status can be closely monitored. |
46076320 | s2ag/train | v2 | 2018-01-23T22:42:07.017Z | 2008-10-01T00:00:00.000Z | Shape optimization of body located in incompressible viscous flow
This paper presents a numerical determination of the optimal shape of body located in the incompressible viscous flow. The optimal shape is defined by the shape which has the minimum fluid force acting on the body. The shape optimization problem is based on an optimal control theory and can be formulated to find out geometrical coordinates of the body to minimize the performance function defined by the force subjected to the body. The performance function should be minimized satisfying the state equation. This problem can be transformed into the minimization problem without constraint condition by the Lagrange multiplier method. As a minimization technique, the gradient-based method is applied. The approximate solution to the flow problem is obtained by the finite element method based on the mixed interpolation with bubble function. In this research, the determination of the minimum fluid force shape in the incompressible Navier–Stokes flow is carried out. |
6121570 | s2ag/train | v2 | 2014-10-01T00:00:00.000Z | 2008-01-01T00:00:00.000Z | CLOSE RANGE DIGITAL PHOTOGRAMMETRY TECHNIQUES APPLIED TO LANDSLIDES MONITORING
This paper deals about the use of non metric reflex digital cameras in landslide monitoring and the analysis of landscape evolution from comparison of present digital photographs and old digitized analogue metric terrestrial photographs. The methodology has been improved in a test area (a slope along a road with instability processes in southern Spain) where terrain failures have been documented in the last ten years. Several photogrammetric techniques were checked as well as combination of both convergent (for calibration and densification) and stereoscopic (for DTM generation) networks. Considerations about the use of terrestrial LIDAR and a comparative example are also made. This paper is included in a wider research project carried out in Northern and Southern Spain for study landslides. This research project (MAPMUT: The improvement of susceptibility analysis by means of useful digital models of the terrain geometry), aims with an improvement of susceptibility maps using high quality input information. |
34087110 | s2ag/train | v2 | 2018-04-03T02:32:00.233Z | 2017-01-30T00:00:00.000Z | Subcutaneous calcifications and hypothyroidism: Is there a missing link?
A 5-year-old boy was referred with a history of multiple subcutaneous nodules since infancy. He was born at 42 weeks gestation with a birth weight of 3.2 kg. At 8 months of age, he was noted to have an excessive weight gain by the health visitor and was subsequently diagnosed with primary hypothyroidism and commenced on levothyroxine 50 μg once daily. He had a normal newborn congenital hypothyroidism screen. The thyroid autoimmune antibodies were normal.
By the age of 5 years, he had delayed walking, speech and learning difficulties. Mother gave a history of surgically removed calcified lesions on her back. His weight and height at presentation were 35.5 kg (+3.8 SDS) and 121.4 cm (1.6 SDS), respectively. On examination, he had multiple subcutaneous nodules over and behind the left knee, left forearm, right ankle, chest and abdomen (figures 1 and 2). Investigations revealed a … |
11990660 | s2ag/train | v2 | 2015-03-20T15:25:33.000Z | 2014-05-05T00:00:00.000Z | Exploiting separability in multiagent planning with continuous-state MDPs
Recent years have seen significant advances in techniques for optimally solving multiagent problems represented as decentralized partially observable Markov decision processes (Dec-POMDPs). A new method achieves scalability gains by converting Dec-POMDPs into continuous state MDPs. This method relies on the assumption of a centralized planning phase that generates a set of decentralized policies for the agents to execute. However, scalability remains limited when the number of agents or problem variables becomes large. In this paper, we show that, under certain separability conditions of the optimal value function, the scalability of this approach can increase considerably. This separability is present when there is locality of interaction, which --- as other approaches (such as those based on the ND-POMDP subclass) have already shown --- can be exploited to improve performance. Unlike most previous methods, the novel continuous-state MDP algorithm retains optimality and convergence guarantees. Results show that the extension using separability can scale to a large number of agents and domain variables while maintaining optimality. |
34062360 | s2ag/train | v2 | 2018-04-03T02:31:59.702Z | 2011-12-01T00:00:00.000Z | Prevalence of season-specific Escherichia coli strains in the Yeongsan River Basin of South Korea.
Seasonal and spatial variation in the genotypic richness of 3480 Escherichia coli isolates obtained from the Yeongsan River basin in South Korea was investigated by using the horizontal fluorophore-enhanced rep-PCR (HFERP) DNA fingerprinting technique. The relationship between 60 E. coli isolates from each of 58 freshwater samples was determined by using multidimensional scaling (MDS) analysis and self-organized maps (SOMs). The MDS analysis, done based on HFERP DNA fingerprints, showed that E. coli isolates obtained in October through December clustered tightly, while those obtained in other sampling periods were more genetically diverse. However, site-specific E. coli genotypes were not observed. SOMs analysis, done using the 10 most frequently isolated E. coli genotypes, showed the occurrence of season-specific E. coli genotypes and the main SOMs clusters were most influenced by temperature, strain diversity and biochemical oxygen demand. Diversity among E. coli genotypes tended to decrease as water temperature decreased, and the numbers of E. coli genotypes observed in urban area were greater, more diverse and less dependent on water temperature than those obtained from agricultural areas. Taken together, our findings indicate that that an ecological approach needs to be considered in order to obtain a better understanding of E. coli community dynamics in the environment and that SOMs analysis is useful to visualize the multidimensional dependent variables that are influencing the types and dynamics of specific E. coli genotypes in the environment. |
4897910 | s2ag/train | v2 | 2018-04-27T03:28:06.281Z | 2018-07-01T00:00:00.000Z | Persistence of Zika Virus After Birth.
To the Editor: We read with interest the article, “Persistence of Zika Virus After Birth: Clinical, Virological, Neuroimaging, and Neuropathological Documentation in a 5-Month Infant with Congenital Zika Syndrome” (1). A case of congenital Zika virus-infected infant with progressive neurological problems was presented by Chimelli et al. The authors stated that, “The etiology of progressive disease after in utero infection is not clear and requires investigation (1).” In fact, the existence of prolonged Zika virus after birth is well known and the delayed manifestation of neurological problems after birth has been sporadically reported. Kolikonda et al recently noted that, “Even infants with normal head circumference at birth might develop microcephaly in early infancy because of deceleration in head growth (2).” We would like to share our ideas and experience on this issue. Zika virus can induce neurological defects in infants but there is a wide clinical spectrum of disease (3). In Indochina, there is a high rate of asymptomatic Zika virus infection among local people (4) and usually there are no neurological problems in infected infants, either at birth or later. There might be a possible genetic factor that results in the difference in the clinical spectrum between our setting and tropical South America (3). In fact, in both Indo-China and South America, there is a post-infection persistence of Zika virus in blood and other body fluids. Similar to the infection in adults, the persistence of Zika virus after birth might not cause any clinical problems in infants (5). In the case report by Chimelli et al (1), other confounding conditions (such as co-infection or congenital metabolic defect) might be possible causes of neurological problems or there might be a new repeated Zika virus after birth. In addition, the persistence of Zika virus in breast milk of Zika virus-infected mothers has been reported (6). It is questionable whether the neurological problems in this infant were the result of a new Zika virus infection transmitted by breastfeeding. |
164859210 | s2ag/train | v2 | 2019-05-26T13:46:52.160Z | 2019-05-10T00:00:00.000Z | Assessing nasal obstruction with the nasal acoustic device: a pilot study on distinguishing between subjects with and without chronic rhinosinusitis
This article aims to demonstrate the concept and potential of a novel diagnostic device – the nasal acoustic device (NAD), which captures the nasal breathing sounds over the ala on both sides of the nose. Using the newly defined inspiratory nasal acoustic score (INA score), the unique characteristics of the nasal breathing sounds can be quantified and used for diagnostic purposes. In this pilot study, the NAD was compared with the well-established nasal inspiratory peak flow meter (NIPF) to try to distinguish between subjects with and without chronic rhinosinusitis (CRS). Measurements were made before and after nasal decongestants, which were applied to eliminate the nasal cycle. Patients were divided into two groups based on the presence or absence of CRS, irrespective of other pathological conditions being present. Based on the post-decongestant measurements, the sensitivity/specificity in distinguishing subjects who have CRS (n=11) from subjects who do not (n=29; of whom 13 were controls) were 70%/66% for the NIPF and 82%/79% for the NAD. The non-CRS groups showed statistically significant changes after decongestant for both methods, but the CRS group did not. The results firstly demonstrated that the CRS subjects in this cohort tended to be less responsive to decongestant and therefore the post-decongestant NIPF measurements provided a certain degree of diagnostic value in identifying CRS subjects, but it would appear the NAD better captured the unique sounds associated with CRS, providing a superior diagnostic capability. This study also demonstrates that the NAD can measure the improvement in the nasal airway following treatment effect. |
253265960 | s2ag/train | v2 | 2022-11-04T06:18:02.052Z | 2022-11-02T00:00:00.000Z | Double-atom dealloying-derived Frank partial dislocations in cobalt nanocatalysts boost metal-air batteries and fuel cells.
Oxygen reduction reaction (ORR), an essential reaction in metal-air batteries and fuel cells, still faces many challenges, such as exploiting cost-effective nonprecious metal electrocatalysts and identifying their surface catalytic sites. Here we introduce bulk defects, Frank partial dislocations (FPDs), into metallic cobalt to construct a highly active and stable catalyst and demonstrate an atomic-level insight into its surface terminal catalysis. Through thermally dealloying bimetallic carbide (Co3ZnC), FPDs were in situ generated in the final dealloyed metallic cobalt. Both theoretical calculations and atomic characterizations uncovered that FPD-driven surface terminations create a distinctive type of surface catalytic site that combines concave geometry and compressive strain, and this two-in-one site intensively weakens oxygen binding. When being evaluated for the ORR, the catalyst exhibits onset and half-wave potentials of 1.02 and 0.90 V (versus the reversible hydrogen electrode), respectively, and negligible activity decay after 30,000 cycles. Furthermore, zinc-air batteries and H2-O2/air fuel cells built with this catalyst also achieve remarkable performance, making it a promising alternative to state-of-the-art Pt-based catalysts. Our findings pave the way for the use of bulk defects to upgrade the catalytic properties of nonprecious electrocatalysts. |
6051270 | s2ag/train | v2 | 2015-07-20T22:48:03.000Z | 2001-02-01T00:00:00.000Z | A new image flux conduction model and its application to selective image smoothing
A discrete image flux conduction equation which is completely new in this field is proposed. The new approach starts with formulating a discrete image flux conduction equation based on the concept of heat conduction theory. Based on this discrete equation, the status change at a time point can be directly computed from its spatial neighborhood. To more accurately estimate an image flux, we have used an orthogonal wavelet basis to approximate the gradient of the intensity at each point. Since the proposed approach is discrete by nature, it is not necessary to formulate a continuous PDE to fit the discrete image data set. Furthermore, introduction of different numerical methods to solve the PDE can also be avoided. Since the proposed approach does not require that a PDE be solved, it is therefore more efficient and accurate than the conventional methods. Experimental results obtained using both synthetic signals and real images have demonstrated that the proposed model could effectively handle the selective image smoothing problem. |
24922070 | s2ag/train | v2 | 2018-04-03T02:43:03.859Z | 1985-01-01T00:00:00.000Z | Pharmacokinetics of gentamicin at steady-state in ponies: serum, urine, and endometrial concentrations.
Gentamicin (GT) was administered IM to 6 healthy mature mare ponies at a dosage of 5 mg/kg of body weight every 8 hours for 7 consecutive days (total, 21 doses). Two venous blood samples were collected before (trough) and at 1 hour (peak) after the 5th, 10th, 14th, and 19th doses. An endometrial biopsy was done of each mare on days 4 and 7. On the 7th day, just before the 21st administration of GT, base-line blood samples were collected, and 22 blood samples were collected over a period of 48 hours after GT was given. The mares were catheterized on the 7th day, and urine was collected for 24 hours. Serum, urine, and endometrial GT concentrations were determined by a radioimmunoassay technique (sensitivity of 0.3 micrograms/ml of serum). Serum GT concentration data obtained from the terminal phase were best fitted by a 1-compartment open model with a biological half-life of 2.13 +/- 0.43 hours. Total body clearance and renal clearance were 1.69 +/- 0.41 and 1.40 +/- 0.26 ml/min/kg, respectively. Mean endometrial concentrations on day 4 and day 7 were 5.02 +/- 3.3 and 12.75 +/- 1.6 micrograms/g. To achieve mean serum GT concentrations (micrograms/ml) at steady state of 6.47 +/- 1.51, a maximum steady-state concentration of 12.74 +/- 1.60, and a minimum steady-state concentration of 1.43 +/- 0.57, a dosage of 5 mg/kg every 8 hours is recommended. Serum urea nitrogen, serum creatinine, and the fractional clearance of sodium sulfanilate were determined before and after GT treatment. Renal function remained within the base-line range during 7 days of GT administration. |
20803720 | s2ag/train | v2 | 2017-09-18T17:09:48.266Z | 2017-07-17T00:00:00.000Z | Power Aware High Performance Computing: Challenges and Opportunities for Application and System Developers — Survey & Tutorial
Power and energy consumption are seen of one of the most critical design factor for any next generation large-scale HPC system. The price centers have to pay for energy is shifting the budgets from investment to operating costs, leading to scenarios in which the sizes of systems will be determined by their power needs, rather by the initial hardware cost. As a consequence, virtually all funding agencies for HPC projects around the world have set aggressive goals for peak power requirements in future machines. Yet, with today's HPC architectures and systems, these goals are still far out of reach: they will only be achievable through a complex set of mechanisms at all levels of hardware and software, from buildings and infrastructure to software control and all the way to microarchitectural solutions. All of these mechanisms will ultimately impact the application developer. On future HPC systems, running a code efficiently (as opposed to purely with high performance) will be a major requirement for every user. This work accompanies the tutorial “Power Aware High Performance Computing: Challenges and Opportunities for Application and system Developers” and captures the key aspects discussed. We will review existing literature to discuss the challenges caused by power and energy constraints, present available approaches in hardware and software, highlight impacts on HPC center and infrastructure design as well as operations, and ultimately show how this shift in paradigm from “cycle awareness” to “power awareness” will impact application development. |
244420470 | s2ag/train | v2 | 2021-11-20T16:22:22.610Z | 2021-11-19T00:00:00.000Z | Determining response time factors of emergency medical services during the COVID-19 pandemic
PurposeThe lack of studies about the response time of emergency medical service during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic in a dense city of a developing country has triggered this study to explore the factors contributing to a high response time of ambulance service to reach patients in need. An evaluation of contributing factors to the response time is necessary to guide decision-makers in keeping a high service level of emergency medical service.Design/methodology/approachThis research employed an agent-based modeling approach with input parameters from interviews with emergency medical service staff in Bandung city, Indonesia. The agent-based model is established to evaluate the relevant contribution of the factors to response time reduction using several scenarios.FindingsAccording to agent-based simulation, four factors contribute to the response time: the process of preparing crew and ambulance during the pandemic, coverage area, traffic density and crew responsiveness. Among these factors, the preparation process during the pandemic and coverage area significantly contributed to the response time, while the traffic density and crew responsiveness were less significant. The preparation process is closely related to the safety procedure in handling patients during the COVID-19 pandemic and normal time. The recommended coverage area for maintaining a low response time is 5 km, equivalent to six local subdistricts.Research limitations/implicationsThis study has explored the factors contributing to emergency medical response time. The insignificant contribution of the traffic density showed that citizens, in general, have high awareness and compliance to traffic priority regulation, so crew responsiveness in handling ambulances is an irrelevant factor. This study might have different contributing factors for less dense population areas and focuses on public emergency medical services provided by the local government.Practical implicationsThe local government must provide additional funding to cover additional investment for ambulance, crew and administration for the new emergency service deployment point. Exercising an efficient process in ambulance and crew preparation is mandatory for each emergency deployment point.Originality/valueThis study evaluates the contributing factors of emergency medical response time in the pandemic and normal situation by qualitative analysis and agent-based simulation. The performance comparison in terms of medical response time before and after COVID-19 through agent-based simulation is valuable for decision-makers to reduce the impact of COVID-19. |
124658620 | s2ag/train | v2 | 2019-04-21T13:04:33.141Z | 2009-01-01T00:00:00.000Z | "COMPUTATIONAL FLUID DYNAMICS ANALYSIS ON DRAG REDUCTION FOR GRID-FIN CONFIGURATIONS" By
A lattice grid fin (LGF) consists of an outer frame supporting an inner grid of intersecting planar surfaces of small chord. By performing visco us computational fluid dynamic (CFD) simulations, the aerodynamic characteristics of a L GF configuration and the flow fields for a vehicle with LGFs were investigated numerically. The present CFD simulations start from validations by comparing the computed drag coefficients against the CFD benchmarks provided by Hughson et al. (2006), under the condition of transonic flows with Mach number 0.8-1.2 and zero angle of attack. Very good agreement with the given data was observed for all the Mach numbers investigated, within the error of 3%. Consistent with the previous results (Hughson et al . 2006), it was found that at a critical transonic Mach number, a normal choke forms at the back of the lattice grid cells, causing the flow to choke with a significant increase in ov erall drag. In order to reduce the transonic choking, an improved configuration, swept back (SWBK) grid fin, is proposed in the present study. The aerodynamic characteristics of a SWBK LGF configuration and the flow fields for a vehicle with SWBK LGFs were also numerically predicted under the same Mach numbers and zero angle of attack. The comparison of the CFD results shows that the SWBK LGF configurations are favourable in the drag reduction, especially that on the fin part. It is observed approximately 5% reduction for the drag over the whole body, and 12% reduction for the drag on the fin part, for all the Mach numbers investigated in the present study. |
21223220 | s2ag/train | v2 | 2017-02-18T08:14:11.517Z | 2009-12-01T00:00:00.000Z | Efficient cascaded VLSI FFT architecture for OFDM systems
This paper presents a throughput efficient cascaded FFT architecture suitable for OFDM telecommunication applications. The design exploits a technique parallelizing the radix-2 butterfly computations to increase the throughput by 2, while it keeps the complexity of the VLSI area equal to the single path delay feedback architectures. A 2048 complex point radix-2 implementation with .13 TSMC validates the results. |
39668220 | s2ag/train | v2 | 2018-04-03T04:37:22.191Z | 1991-05-01T00:00:00.000Z | Incidence and management of secondary malignancies in patients with retinoblastoma and Ewing's sarcoma.
Childhood cancer survivors at highest risk of developing a secondary malignancy are those with hereditary retinoblastoma. The majority of such secondary cancers will be sarcomas, most commonly of bone. One-third of these occur outside a typical radiation field, commonly in an extremity. Bone sarcoma is also the most commonly reported secondary cancer to develop among survivors of Ewing's sarcoma. In this group, radiation doses greater than 60 Gy as well as alkylating agent chemotherapy have been identified as contributors to the increased risk. The prognosis for patients with a secondary sarcoma has been poor, with few cures reported to date. However, an aggressive, combined modality approach, including radical resection, postoperative radiation, and adjuvant chemotherapy, may improve the survival rate. |
8779650 | s2ag/train | v2 | 2018-04-03T00:00:38.021Z | 1979-09-15T00:00:00.000Z | Corticotropin regulation of the synthesis of a specific rat adrenal cytosolic protein. Effects of hypophysectomy and actinomycin D.
The mechanism of corticotropin stimulation of the synthesis of a specific rat adrenal cytosolic protein was investigated. This protein (protein E) has a mol.wt. of approx. 30000. It is detected by polyacrylamide-gel electrophoresis of cytosol prepared from adrenal slices from rats treated with corticotropin in vivo and control rats, the slices being incubated with [(3)H]- and [(14)C]-leucine respectively. In rats 1-15 days after hypophysectomy, corticotropin, like dibutyryl cyclic AMP, induces an increase in protein E similar to that induced in control rats, even though both compounds no longer stimulate total protein synthesis. Corticotropin stimulation of protein E synthesis is mediated by cyclic AMP but not by corticosterone, since aminoglutethimide, a steroidogenic inhibitor, does not affect corticotropin stimulation, and dexamethasone alone has no effect. Actinomycin D, when injected in vivo 1h before or after corticotropin injection, prevents the effect of corticotropin on protein E synthesis, which is interpreted as evidence that mRNA synthesis is necessary for the stimulation of protein E synthesis. When injected more than 2h after corticotropin, actinomycin D does not prevent corticotropin stimulation of protein E synthesis, but completely blocks corticotropin stimulation of total protein synthesis. This is interpreted as meaning that, after stimulation of mRNA coding for protein E, corticotropin has no effect on the synthesis of protein E. On the other hand, corticotropin stimulation of protein E synthesis persists after hypophysectomy even though it no longer stimulates total protein synthesis. These data suggest that the factor(s) involved in the synthesis of protein E are more stable than those involved in total protein synthesis. |
31969350 | s2ag/train | v2 | 2017-10-03T20:35:31.709Z | 2012-10-29T00:00:00.000Z | Structural mechanism of RuBisCO activation by carbamylation of the active site lysine
Ribulose 1,5-bisphosphate carboxylase/oxygenase (RuBisCO) is a crucial enzyme in carbon fixation and the most abundant protein on earth. It has been studied extensively by biochemical and structural methods; however, the most essential activation step has not yet been described. Here, we describe the mechanistic details of Lys carbamylation that leads to RuBisCO activation by atmospheric CO2. We report two crystal structures of nitrosylated RuBisCO from the red algae Galdieria sulphuraria with O2 and CO2 bound at the active site. G. sulphuraria RuBisCO is inhibited by cysteine nitrosylation that results in trapping of these gaseous ligands. The structure with CO2 defines an elusive, preactivation complex that contains a metal cation Mg2+ surrounded by three H2O/OH molecules. Both structures suggest the mechanism for discriminating gaseous ligands by their quadrupole electric moments. We describe conformational changes that allow for intermittent binding of the metal ion required for activation. On the basis of these structures we propose the individual steps of the activation mechanism. Knowledge of all these elements is indispensable for engineering RuBisCO into a more efficient enzyme for crop enhancement or as a remedy to global warming. |
35367100 | s2ag/train | v2 | 2018-04-03T02:53:18.185Z | 2015-05-08T00:00:00.000Z | Molecular targets in glioblastoma.
Glioblastoma is the most lethal brain tumor. The poor prognosis results from lack of defined tumor margins, critical location of the tumor mass and presence of chemo- and radio-resistant tumor stem cells. The current treatment for glioblastoma consists of neurosurgery, followed by radiotherapy and temozolomide chemotherapy. A better understanding of the role of molecular and genetic heterogeneity in glioblastoma pathogenesis allowed the design of novel targeted therapies. New targets include different key-role signaling molecules and specifically altered pathways. The new approaches include interference through small molecules or monoclonal antibodies and RNA-based strategies mediated by siRNA, antisense oligonucleotides and ribozymes. Most of these treatments are still being tested yet they stay as solid promises for a clinically relevant success. |
7942900 | s2ag/train | v2 | 2015-07-15T00:15:54.000Z | 2008-05-16T00:00:00.000Z | Impact Analysis of Directional Antennas and Multiantenna Beamformers on Radio Transmission
The impact of directional antennas and multiantenna beamformers on radio transmission is formulated in terms of the gain of the Rician -factor, the reduction of the root-mean-squared delay spread, and the gain of the signal-to-noise ratio at the receiver for Rician fading channels in multipath environments. The analysis is based on a double-directional channel model. For the analytical formulation, the joint channel spectrum is assumed to be decomposable into separate spectra in time and angular domains. By way of illustration, closed-form expressions for the impact of hypothetical cosine-shaped antenna patternsand conventional beamformers are derived for channels with uniform angular spectra and an exponential decaying delay spectrum. The impact factors are explicitly related to the antenna beamwidth and the number of antenna elements. In addition, the effect of misalignment between the antenna main beam and the direct path is included in the analysis. The quantitative analysis given in this paper is important for radio system design, particularly for the design of antennas and multiantenna beamformer configurations. |
1364900 | s2ag/train | v2 | 2017-02-24T21:09:36.545Z | 2012-11-11T00:00:00.000Z | A configurable system for role-specific video imaging during laparoscopic surgery
In minimally invasive surgery, the surgeon and the assistant rely on a single laparoscopic video view for performing different clinical roles. The assistant is tasked with manipulating the camera view so as to maintain a global, panoramic view of the operation. The surgeon needs to remain focused on the operation, requiring a detailed close-up view. We use the term role-specific video imaging to describe the need to provide separate views for the assistant and the surgeon. In this paper we introduce role-specific video imaging for laparosopic surgery. The system is designed to be configurable in the sense that imaging parameters and algorithms can be adjusted in real-time so as to meet the specific needs that arise. The system was evaluated on 4 cases by two surgeons on a Linux-based 3.2.0 Kernel, with 4GB RAM, and Intel 3.4GHz I7 (2nd generation) microprocessor. Clinical evaluation of the different configuration modes has helped us determine that high-quality role-specific imaging can be achieved for zooming factors that are larger or equal to 2×2 with bilinear interpolation, while maintaining 30 frame per seconds for the panoramic and close-up views. In future work, in order to minimize interaction with the surgical team, the system will be upgraded to incorporate tracking of the operating instrument during surgery. |
122816800 | s2ag/train | v2 | 2019-04-20T13:13:20.532Z | 1988-04-01T00:00:00.000Z | Theory of Bernstein wave coupling with loop antennas
Coupling to ion Bernstein waves near the first harmonic of the ion cyclotron resonance with coil antennas is investigated by using a plane layered model of a tokamak plasma. The boundary conditions in vacuum are solved analytically for arbitrary orientation of the antenna and Faraday screen conductors, in terms of the surface impedance matrix of the plasma for plane waves. The latter is evaluated by solving the wave equations in the plasma by taking into account finite Larmor radius and finite electron inertia effects, cyclotron and harmonic damping by the ions, and Landau and collisional damping by the electrons. – Applications to the Alcator C tokamak give reasonable agreement between the calculated and measured radiation resistance when the first ion cyclotron harmonic is just behind the antenna; outside this range, the calculated resistance is lower than the experimental one. In general, the coupling efficiency is found to be very sensitive to the edge plasma density, good coupling requiring a low density plasma layer in the vicinity of the Faraday screen. Coupling also improves with increasing ion temperature in the scrape-off layer and is appreciably better for antennas with antisymmetric than with symmetric current distribution in the toroidal direction. |
4548870 | s2ag/train | v2 | 2017-08-11T05:53:25.968Z | 2017-06-20T00:00:00.000Z | Capturing polynomial time using Modular Decomposition
The question of whether there is a logic that captures polynomial time is one of the main open problems in descriptive complexity theory and database theory. In 2010 Grohe showed that fixed point logic with counting captures polynomial time on all classes of graphs with excluded minors. We now consider classes of graphs with excluded induced subgraphs. For such graph classes, an effective graph decomposition, called modular decomposition, was introduced by Gallai in 1976. The graphs that are non-decomposable with respect to modular decomposition are called prime. We present a tool, the Modular Decomposition Theorem, that reduces (definable) canonization of a graph class C to (definable) canonization of the class of prime graphs of C that are colored with binary relations on a linearly ordered set. By an application of the Modular Decomposition Theorem, we show that fixed point logic with counting also captures polynomial time on the class of permutation graphs. As a side effect of the Modular Decomposition Theorem, we further obtain that the modular decomposition tree is computable in logarithmic space. It follows that cograph recognition and cograph canonization is computable in logarithmic space. |
252626020 | s2ag/train | v2 | 2022-10-01T13:26:33.480Z | 2022-08-29T00:00:00.000Z | Privacy Expectations for Human-Autonomous Vehicle Interactions
Robots operating in public spaces, such as autonomous vehicles, will necessarily collect images and other data concerning the people and vehicles in their vicinity, raising privacy concerns. Common conceptions of privacy in robotics do not include the challenges of many-to-many surveillance where fleets of many individual robots collect data on many people during operation. Technologists, legal scholars, and privacy researchers recommend such technologies fulfill the reasonable privacy expectations of society, but there is no standard method for measuring privacy expectations. We propose a method informed by Contextual Integrity Theory for identifying societal privacy expectations for autonomous vehicle-collected data and codifying the contextual expectations as norms. We present a study (n = 600) that identifies twelve distinct norms, which are made up of contextual factors such as the subject of data collection and the data use. In a model for tolerance of autonomous vehicle data collection, we find that both contextual factors related to the data processing and factors related to the individual are significant predictors. |
24128370 | s2ag/train | v2 | 2018-04-03T06:02:45.546Z | 1994-07-01T00:00:00.000Z | The resampling cross-validation technique in exercise science: modelling rowing power.
The past 10-15 yr have witnessed a rapid increase in the development of new (and not so new) statistical methods that capitalize on recent advances in high-speed computing. These computer-intensive methods are often broadly referred to as resampling techniques and take several forms depending on the specific details of the procedure and the information of interest. Resampling techniques can be used both for inferential hypothesis testing as well as exploratory data description. Regardless of which method is employed, the central unifying theme is based upon the computer's power to rapidly resample many pseudosamples from a known (in-hand) data set (e.g., randomization tests, jackknife, boot-strap, cross-validation) or to randomly generate many pseudosamples from a theoretical probability distribution (e.g., normal, binomial, Poisson) with some known parameters (Monte Carlo method). This paper is not intended as a detailed description of computer-intensive methods, but only as an introduction to the resampling approach in cross-validation. A brief discussion of the motivation and an example in an exercise science context will be presented. |
46338000 | s2ag/train | v2 | 2018-04-03T06:19:00.558Z | 1999-08-01T00:00:00.000Z | Prevalence of Maternal Cytomegalovirus (CMV) Antibody and Detection of CMV DNA in Amniotic Fluid
The prevalence of cytomegalovirus (CMV) IgG antibody was determined in 573 pregnant women in the first trimester. The overall prevalence of CMV IgG antibody was 77.5%. The rate of seropositivity was 67.7% in women < 25 yr, and increased with age to 85.7% in women ≧40 yr. These results imply that young women in Japan are at increased risk for primary CMV infection during pregnancy and that congenital CMV infection rates might increase in the future. We conducted a prospective study of 75 pregnant women who underwent amniocentesis for various indications to determine if CMV DNA could be detected in the amniotic fluid. None had symptoms associated with CMV infection, CMV IgM antibody, or seroconversion to CMV IgG antibody during pregnancy. CMV DNA was not detected in the amniotic fluid using a polymerase chain reaction assay. The 65 fetuses, including 3 sets of twins, were followed through birth. CMV DNA was not detected in urine samples obtained within the first 2 weeks of life. In conclusion, CMV DNA was not detected in the amniotic fluid of women who did not have CMV infection. These results, however, suggest that the negative predictive value of prenatal amniotic fluid analysis is high and that the presence of CMV DNA in the amniotic fluid has clinical significance for the diagnosis of congenital CMV infection if detected in pregnant women. |
16731350 | s2ag/train | v2 | 2015-12-23T19:26:37.933Z | 2006-08-01T00:00:00.000Z | Via-Programmable Structured ASIC Fabric Based on MCML Cells: Design Flow and Implementation
This paper presents a regular layout fabric made of via-programmable MCML universal logic cells for structured ASIC applications and the associated design flow. The proposed structured ASIC fabric offers very high noise immunity due to the differential operation, as well as low production cost due to the via-programmable properties of the universal logic cell. Implementations of a number of circuits are presented and the area/speed performances are compared with classical CMOS implementation using a commercial standard cell library in 0.18 mum CMOS technology. |
231741800 | s2ag/train | v2 | 2021-02-02T21:02:04.548Z | 2019-09-02T00:00:00.000Z | Steampunk without steam: The Book of Devices as Neo-Ottoman experimentation
ABSTRACT Turkish author Ihsan Oktay Anar’s The Book of Devices (2017, Kitab-ı Hiyel) employs pseudo-steampunk characteristics in a pre-modern Ottoman context. The novel experiments with the possibility of steampunk’s expansion as a translated/adopted cultural element within the larger concept of world literature. I argue that The Book of Devices distorts the Anglo-American attitude of Neo-Victorianism as exemplified in steampunk. Anar’s (in)competence in depicting actual course of events in history, in portraying an imaginable technology that might work, and in forming a non-colonialist cultural background create a distorted example of an application of the steampunk genre in the Turkish setting. The book then comes to be an attempt to create a Neo-Ottoman mindset against Neo-Victorian expansion as reflected through steampunk. This way, though steampunk presents itself as “inhospitable” in that it resists outside intrusion from non-European experiments, Anar successfully merges it with modern Turkish literature to establish a local genre. |
34502000 | s2ag/train | v2 | 2018-04-03T02:42:05.675Z | 1986-01-01T00:00:00.000Z | Structure of the gene for Xenopus transcription factor TFIIIA.
The eucaryotic transcription factor TFIIIA is required for 5S RNA transcription in Xenopus, and changes in the level of TFIIIA have been implicated in the differential expression of 5S RNA genes. In this paper, we report the isolation and sequencing of the X. laevis TFIIIA gene. The gene is approximately 11 kb in length and consists of 9 coding segments separated by 8 introns. A sequence of 30 amino acid residues is known to repeat imperfectly 9 times in tandem within the TFIIIA protein, and Miller et al. (EMBO J. 4, 1609-1614, 1985) proposed that TFIIIA evolved by duplication of a primordial 30 amino acid residue unit. Our results from DNA sequence analysis support their proposal by showing that some of the exon-intron boundaries correspond closely to the repeating unit. We also found that the 5' flanking sequence of the TFIIIA gene contains a TATA box (TATATAA) at position -32 and a CAAT box (GCCAATCC) at position -96 and that the site of polyadenylation is 255 residues 3' of the stop codon. Finally, we have shown that the coding sequence of the TFIIIA gene is significantly polymorphic. |
250905300 | s2ag/train | v2 | 2022-07-22T00:51:29.461Z | 1996-01-01T00:00:00.000Z | Fluoridation of GaAs Surface in a Remote SF 6 Plasma
Gallium fluoride films were directly grown on gallium arsenide (GaAs) at temperatures below 300°C using a radio frequency (RF) remote SF6 plasma.The growth kinetics are exhibited a rapid initial increase for 60 minutes, with no significant increase thereafter. Rutherford backscattering spectrometry (RBS) and secondary ion mass spectrometry (SIMS) showed that the GaF3 films had almost stoichiometric composition. The as-grown films exhibit a current density of less than 1 µA/cm2 at a breakdown field of 1 MV/cm and a refractive index of 2.0–2.3 at a wavelength of 632.8 nm. A typical value of the dielectric constant is about 5.5 as derived from 1 MHz capacitance-voltage ( C-V) measurements. The minimum interface state density is estimated to be around 1 × 1012 cm-2·eV. |
254969550 | s2ag/train | v2 | 2022-12-22T05:47:21.151Z | 2022-11-01T00:00:00.000Z | INFORMATION SEEKING IN OLDER ADULT RURAL CANCER SURVIVORS: UNMET NEEDS AND SEARCH EXPERIENCES
Cancer survivors over the age of sixty-five have specialized supportive care needs related to maintaining their health and quality of life after treatment. However, cancer survivors living in rural areas may experience barriers like limited digital infrastructure and/or low health literacy when attempting to access necessary informational resources. This project sought to identify older adult rural cancer survivors’ domains of unmet informational support and experiences searching for supportive informational resources. Data from a survey administered to cancer survivors (N=292 with complete age data) in rural areas of Western New York (RUCA codes 7-10) were analyzed using descriptive statistics. Variables of interest included Internet access, information-seeking activities, cancer-related topics of interest, and information search experiences. Fifty-four percent of participants in the sample self-identified as over the age of 65. Among older adult cancer survivors, 62% reported using the Internet. The following topics were identified as unmet cancer survivorship information needs: (1) decreasing the risk of cancer recurrence, (2) new symptoms that warrant contacting one’s doctor, and (3) medical advances in treatment. Most older adult respondents (70%) were confident in their ability to find needed health information but 40% were concerned about the quality of the information they found and 31% found their search experience frustrating. While rural cancer survivors have access to digital resources and report confidence in their ability to find survivorship information, our findings highlight the need for tailored information on cancer survivorship and interventions to support information appraisal and selecting high quality informational sources. |
15096400 | s2ag/train | v2 | 2017-02-11T17:57:39.613Z | 2008-12-11T00:00:00.000Z | Adaptively Evolving Probabilities of Genetic Operators
This work is concerned with proposing an adaptive method to dynamically adjust genetic operator probabilities throughout the evolutionary process. The proposed method relies on the individual preferences of each chromosome, rather than the global behavior of the whole population. Hence, each individual carries its own set of parameters, including the probabilities of the genetic operators. The carried parameters undergo the same evolutionary process as the carriers--the chromosomes - do. We call this method Evolved Evolutionary Algorithm (E2A) as it has an additional evolutionary process to evolve control parameters. Furthermore, E2A employs a supplementary mutation operator (DE-mutation) which utilizes the previously overlooked numerical optimization model known as the Differential Evolution to expedite the optimization rate of the genetic parameters. To leverage our previous work, we used Gene Expression Programming (GEP) as a benchmark to determine the performance of our proposed method. Nevertheless, E2A can be easily extended to other genetic programming variants. As the experimental results on a wide array of regression problems demonstrate, the E2A method reveals a faster rate of convergence and provides fitter ultimate solutions. However, to further expose the power of the E2A method, we compared it to related methods using self-adaptation previously applied to Genetic Algorithms. Our benchmarking on the same set of regression problems proves the supremacy of our proposed method both in the accuracy and simplicity of the final solutions. |
49642850 | s2ag/train | v2 | 2018-07-12T07:11:44.149Z | 2018-06-01T00:00:00.000Z | Distributed compressed sensing based channel estimation for underwater acoustic multiband transmissions.
Distributed compressed sensing techniques are applied to enhance sparse channel estimation performance in underwater acoustic multiband systems. The core idea is to use receptions from multiple sub-bands to enhance the detection of channel tap positions. A known variant of the orthogonal matching pursuit (OMP) algorithm based on the distributed compressed sensing principle is simultaneous orthogonal matching pursuit (SOMP). However, the impulse responses across multiple sub-bands may have different arrival structures, although they often show a certain level of similarity. To address such differences at the sub-bands, a multiple selection strategy is applied to select multiple candidates at individual sub-bands at each iteration. This is different from the conventional OMP and SOMP algorithms that select only one candidate at each iteration. When the multiple selection strategy is combined with the SOMP algorithm, the proposed algorithm is referred to as JB-MSSOMP algorithm. To take advantage of channel coherence between adjacent data blocks from different sub-bands, the multiple selection strategy is further used over time. This leads to JBT-MSSOMP algorithm. Computer simulations show improved channel estimation performance of the proposed JB-MSSOMP and JBT-MSSOMP algorithms over the OMP or SOMP algorithms. Communication data from a recent acoustic experiment demonstrates improved receiver performance with the proposed channel estimators. |
26106300 | s2ag/train | v2 | 2018-04-03T04:12:08.239Z | 1988-08-01T00:00:00.000Z | Clinical comparison of the threshold-related and single-intensity strategies of the Humphrey Field Analyzer.
The threshold-related, eccentricity-compensated strategy was compared to the single-intensity strategy using a minimal test point distribution. Forty-two eyes known to be free of any visual field defect and 44 eyes with documented defects were tested with each screening strategy. The threshold-related, eccentricity-compensated strategy yielded a slightly poorer sensitivity (84.4%) and specificity (97.6%) than the single-intensity sensitivity (90.9%) and specificity (100%). An explanation for this decreased sensitivity is offered. The 40-point test was useful for some general screening. Recommendations are made for appropriate utilization and interpretation. |
31338300 | s2ag/train | v2 | 2018-04-03T01:54:47.796Z | 2013-04-01T00:00:00.000Z | An exploratory study of contrast agents for soft tissue visualization by means of high resolution X‐ray computed tomography imaging
High resolution X‐ray computed tomography (CT), or microCT, is a promising and already widely used technique in various scientific fields. Also for histological purposes it has great potential. Although microCT has proven to be a valuable technique for the imaging of bone structures, the visualization of soft tissue structures is still an important challenge due to their low inherent X‐ray contrast. One way to achieve contrast enhancement is to make use of contrast agents. However, contrary to light and electron microscopy, knowledge about contrast agents and staining procedures is limited for X‐ray CT. The purpose of this paper is to identify useful X‐ray contrast agents for soft tissue visualization, which can be applied in a simple way and are also suited for samples larger than (1 cm)3. And 28 chemical substances have been investigated. All chemicals were applied in the form of concentrated aqueous solutions in which the samples were immersed. First, strips of green Bacon were stained to evaluate contrast enhancement between muscle and adipose tissue. Furthermore it was also tested whether the contrast agents remained fixed in the tissue after staining by re‐immersing them in water. Based on the results, 12 contrast agents were selected for further testing on postmortem mice hind legs, containing a variety of different tissues, including muscle, fat, bone, cartilage and tendons. It was evaluated whether the contrast agents allowed a clearer distinction between the different soft tissue structures present. Finally also penetration depth was measured. And 26 chemicals resulted in contrast enhancement between muscle and adipose tissue in the Bacon strips. Mercury(II)chloride (HgCl2), phosphotungstic acid (PTA), phosphomolybdic acid (PMA) and ammonium orthomolybdate ((NH4)2MoO4) remained fixed after re‐immersion in water. The penetration tests showed that potassium iodide (KI) and sodium tungstate can be most efficiently used for large samples of the order of several tens of cm3. PMA, PTA, HgCl2 and also to a lesser extent Na2WO4 and (NH4)2MoO4 allowed a clearer distinction between the different soft tissue structures present. |
62642950 | s2ag/train | v2 | 2019-02-14T14:18:56.539Z | 2015-06-01T00:00:00.000Z | Peers and Sources as Social Capital in the Production of News
In a very short time span, Twitter has become a major force in modern societies and also in the production of news by journalists. How journalists use Twitter is studied extensively, particularly on a small scale (i.e., qualitative research, specific events, mostly descriptive). However, studies on how Twitter has impacted journalism as a whole are relatively scarce. This study focuses on the adoption of Twitter and its emerging community network structure in the Netherlands. Using the social network data of 2,152 journalists as retrieved from Twitter, analysis shows that the social network among journalists is well connected. The journalists who are extremely popular are also able to influence the flow of information through the network more than others (cf. gatekeeper role). Still, even though gatekeeping positions in the network are present due to the absence of specific relations, and the network consists of eight tightly knit network communities, the entire network is very well connected. The adoption of Twitter as a microblogging and networking service over time indicated that adoption increased particularly in early 2009. The possible consequences of these tightly knit communities for the production of news are discussed in terms of pack journalism, echo chambers, and information cascades. |
250358050 | s2ag/train | v2 | 2022-07-09T06:17:24.332Z | 2022-07-06T00:00:00.000Z | Agreement of infrared ear temperature with nasopharyngeal temperature and diagnostic performance on hypothermia in general anesthetized patients
Background: Infrared ear thermometry is widely used in clinical practice due to its noninvasive, convenient, and quick sampling. However, its accuracy and feasibility in anesthetized patients have not yet been established. Methods: We conducted this cross-sectional study to evaluate the agreement between infrared ear temperature and nasopharyngeal temperature in general anesthetized patients and its performance in intraoperative hypothermia, defined as nasopharyngeal temperature <36°C. Adult female patients who underwent gynecological surgery under general anesthesia were enrolled in this study. Infrared ear temperature by Braun ThermoScan PRO 4000 (Braun GmbH, Kronberg, Germany) and nasopharyngeal temperature were measured simultaneously before, during, and after surgery. The agreement between the two temperatures was assessed using the intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC) and Bland-Altman analysis. The diagnostic performance of the infrared ear thermometer for hypothermia was evaluated using receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis. Results: Fifty-six patients with 168 pairs of simultaneous infrared ear and nasopharyngeal temperatures were included in this analysis. The mean infrared ear temperature was consistently higher than the nasopharyngeal temperature throughout surgery, but the differences were small (0.22, 0.13, and 0.06°C before, during, and after surgery, respectively). The ICC between the two temperatures before, during, and after surgery was 0.70, 0.75, and 0.80, respectively, and 93.5% of the differences fell within the 95% limits of agreement of ±0.5°C. An infrared ear thermometer had high diagnostic accuracy for hypothermia, with an area under the ROC curve of 0.95 (95% confidence interval [CI], 0.92-0.98). The cutoff of infrared ear temperature for hypothermia was 36.2°C with a sensitivity of 0.89 (95% CI, 0.71-0.98) and a specificity of 0.87 (95% CI, 0.81-0.92). Conclusion: The infrared ear temperature is in good agreement with the nasopharyngeal temperature in general anesthetized patients without hyperthermia and has high performance for detecting hypothermia. An infrared ear thermometer can be a diagnostic tool for intraoperative hypothermia. |
158755500 | s2ag/train | v2 | 2019-05-20T13:03:24.157Z | 2004-03-01T00:00:00.000Z | Process System Modelling of Production Technology Alternatives using Input–Output Tables with Sector Specific Units
Input–output analysis is usually based on tables of accounts expressed in uniform monetary or physical units. However, from a process system modelling perspective, tables of accounts in sector specific units may be more useful for evaluating the effectiveness of new production technologies on reducing pollutant emissions. Using the sector specific unit conceptualization of an IO table, one can consider the effect of changes in direct input coefficients for a particular sector on the complete set of total input coefficients independently from the other direct input coefficients. A process system modelling based method for calculating the total industrial outputs from a new technology matrix together with the new relative prices for each sector output is presented. The method is then used to study the effect of technology changes in the steel making industry in Liaoning Province, China on prices and pollutant emissions. |
234861750 | s2ag/train | v2 | 2021-05-21T16:56:18.812Z | 2021-05-01T00:00:00.000Z | Live and Let Evolve: The James Bond Titles
The titles of the James Bond books and films are well-established in the cultural milieu. In some cases, they have become as much a part of popular idiom as the phrases from which they themselves have derived (e.g. Live and Let Die). Such is their appeal and familiarity that the titles are commonly employed in contexts away from the world of James Bond. This article examines the use of the Bond titles in four spheres: company names, newspaper headlines, books, and children’s television series. Analysing data collected from these categories using statistical methods, the article identifies which titles are the most popular and which are least used. It reveals that the selection of titles varies depending on context; titles that are suitable as company names may be less suitable as newspaper headlines. The article assesses why and how the titles have been chosen, placing the selection of titles within the theoretical framework of evolution. The article demonstrates that the titles and other Bond-related phrases are products of “descent with modification” and that their fitness within the prevailing cultural environment is critical to their chances of being selected and replicated. |
44080620 | s2ag/train | v2 | 2018-05-29T13:10:27.210Z | 2018-01-01T00:00:00.000Z | Foundations, Inference, and Deconvolution in Image Restoration
Image restoration is a critical preprocessing step in computer vision,
producing images with reduced noise, blur, and pixel defects.
This enables precise higher-level reasoning as to the scene content in
later stages of the vision pipeline (e.g., object segmentation,
detection, recognition, and tracking).
Restoration techniques have found extensive usage in a broad range of
applications from industry, medicine, astronomy, biology, and
photography.
The recovery of high-grade results requires models of the image
degradation process, giving rise to a class of often heavily
underconstrained, inverse problems.
A further challenge specific to the problem of blur removal is noise
amplification, which may cause strong distortion by ringing artifacts.
This dissertation presents new insights and problem solving procedures
for three areas of image restoration, namely (1) model
foundations, (2) Bayesian inference for high-order Markov
random fields (MRFs), and (3) blind image deblurring
(deconvolution).
As basic research on model foundations, we contribute to reconciling
the perceived differences between probabilistic MRFs on the one hand,
and deterministic variational models on the other.
To do so, we restrict the variational functional to locally supported finite
elements (FE) and integrate over the domain.
This yields a sum of terms depending locally on FE basis coefficients,
and by identifying the latter with pixels, the terms resolve to MRF
potential functions.
In contrast with previous literature, we place special emphasis on robust
regularizers used commonly in contemporary computer vision.
Moreover, we draw samples from the derived models to further
demonstrate the probabilistic connection.
Another focal issue is a class of high-order Field of Experts MRFs
which are learned generatively from natural image data and yield
best quantitative results under Bayesian estimation.
This involves minimizing an integral expression, which has no closed
form solution in general.
However, the MRF class under study has Gaussian mixture potentials,
permitting expansion by indicator variables as a technical measure.
As approximate inference method, we study Gibbs sampling in the
context of non-blind deblurring and obtain excellent results, yet
at the cost of high computing effort.
In reaction to this, we turn to the mean field algorithm, and show
that it scales quadratically in the clique size for a standard
restoration setting with linear degradation model.
An empirical study of mean field over several restoration scenarios
confirms advantageous properties with regard to both image quality and
computational runtime.
This dissertation further examines the problem of blind deconvolution,
beginning with localized blur from fast moving objects in the
scene, or from camera defocus.
Forgoing dedicated hardware or user labels, we rely only on the image
as input and introduce a latent variable model to explain the
non-uniform blur.
The inference procedure estimates freely varying kernels and we
demonstrate its generality by extensive experiments.
We further present a discriminative method for blind removal of camera
shake.
In particular, we interleave discriminative non-blind deconvolution
steps with kernel estimation and leverage the error cancellation
effects of the Regression Tree Field model to attain a deblurring
process with tightly linked sequential stages. |
40198270 | s2ag/train | v2 | 2018-04-03T04:45:03.305Z | 1998-09-01T00:00:00.000Z | Collaborative bioinformatics: data warehouses for targeted experimental results.
Current functional bioinformatics approaches are handicapped by the inability to store functional data at all or by a scattering of data across heterogeneous databases that are difficult to link and query. The Cellular Response Database (CRD) (http://LHI5.umbc.edu/crd) is designed to store and retrieve data concerning changes in in vitro cellular functions associated with stimuli, such as cytokines and drugs. The database can store a broad range of data, including protein or mRNA expression, as well as functional cellular data, such as apoptosis or adherence. This unique ability to store heterogeneous data using a single data model will minimize difficulties associated with searching multiple databases. Authors with articles accepted by participating journals are invited to submit data to the CRD. Submission instructions are outlined, along with a review of the CRD's development. |
36946620 | s2ag/train | v2 | 2018-04-03T03:54:01.301Z | 1994-08-01T00:00:00.000Z | Central monitoring deficiency and schizophrenic symptoms
Synopsis Twenty-five schizophrenic patients currently experiencing Schneiderian symptoms performed a series of tasks in which drawings had to be made in the absence of immediate visual feedback. In comparison to 10 normal controls and to 30 patients not experiencing Schneiderian symptoms, the target group had great difficulty in keeping track of their performance and remembering what actions they had made. These results are consistent with the hypothesis that Schneiderian symptoms (such as delusions of alien control) are associated with impairments in the central monitoring of action. |
253459620 | s2ag/train | v2 | 2022-11-12T14:14:26.434Z | 2022-11-10T00:00:00.000Z | Thermo-mechanical design of fuel blankets for Tokamak
One of the main challenges in Tokomak fusion reactor is the design of the breeding blanket since it is the first wall to the plasma. It can be seriously damaged due to the high heat flux and particle impact. However, liquid blankets could be a perfect solution to resist structural damage on the breeding blankets. On this basis, we designed a preliminary liquid blanket structure, using porous tungsten as frames and producing liquid film on frames’ surface, and investigated the thermo-mechanical properties of a porous medium unit based on COMSOL Multiphysics. According to the analysis, under compressive pressure load, the unit structure was stable mechanically. Besides, as for thermal analysis, the porous medium was great for injecting slow fuels and temperature can drop dramatically through the width. Hence, it verifies the stability and feasibility of such a structure. Nevertheless, both simulations could be further improved by revising the model and updating the initial conditions. Overall, these results shed light on future breeding blanket design. |
160013020 | s2ag/train | v2 | 2019-05-22T13:31:57.034Z | 2019-05-04T00:00:00.000Z | Discriminating schizophrenia disease progression using a P50 sensory gating task with dense-array EEG, clinical assessments, and cognitive tests
ABSTRACT Background: Schizophrenia affects approximately 10% of the world’s population. Early detection of schizophrenia may significantly delay its progression. Although sensory gating deficits are reported in schizophrenia, it remains challenging how sensory gating deficits can be used with other metrics for risk detection and early diagnosis. Research design and methods: Using EEG, the authors examined effects of sensory gating on the performance of 136 participants in a P50 sensory gating task, including patients with first-episode schizophrenia (FESZ), ultra-high risk (UHR) individuals, high-risk (HR) individuals, and age- and sex-matched healthy controls (HCs). The authors also explored the differences among all groups using clinical assessments and cognitive tests. Results: Compared with HCs, HR, UHR and FESZ groups showed significant P50 suppression impairment. Furthermore, EEG source localization analyses identified successively stronger activation in prefrontal and anterior temporal regions in the HR, UHR and FESZ groups than in the HC group. Moreover, brain connectivity (HC < HR < UHR < FESZ) in the gamma band of P50 components was increasingly enhanced in accordance with the level of psychosis risks. Conclusions: These findings suggest that EEG source imaging techniques, brain network dynamics, and behavioral tests, can help clearly distinguish different stages of schizophrenia, and may assist in the early diagnosis of schizophrenia. |
233332360 | s2ag/train | v2 | 2021-04-22T13:08:02.848Z | 2020-12-01T00:00:00.000Z | An Analysis of the Current Situation and Teaching Ideas of Art law Education in China
Based on the development trend of Chinese art and culture in the new era, this paper, by analyzing and tracing the origin of the concept of art law, sorts out the theoretical framework of art law, shortcomings of legislative research and popularization of law, infringements of all kinds of art works and the development status of education and teaching system, and makes an in-depth discussion from the aspects of improvement of art law education and teaching, protection of artistic creation and communication, and improvement of dimensions of art management and cultural governance. Front-line teaching units and relevant departments expand the research group of art law, and from the two aspects of curriculum setting and textbook compilation, promote the awareness of safeguarding rights, industrial norms and regulations in the dissemination of art works, so as to promote the art rule of law system with multiple policies, multi-dimensional cooperation and multiple co-governance, and promote the benign development of China’s art law and culture. |
220353260 | s2ag/train | v2 | 2020-07-06T13:58:15.831Z | 2015-12-01T00:00:00.000Z | Book Review: Paradise Transplanted: Migration and the Making of California Gardens
Throughout southern California, lush, water-thirsty gardens are found in a number of contexts: private residential homes, poor, densely populated neighborhoods, and elite botanical gardens. The making of these gardens has been shaped by waves of successive migration flows and migrants’ interactions with these small plots of land. In Paradise Transplanted, Pierrette Hondagneu-Sotelo relies on participant observation, in-depth interviews, and historical analysis to explore the social processes linking migration and gardens. The book includes three empirical chapters that cover different, but interrelated, themes: labor, community, and status. In addition, it discusses a range of topics including urban planning, economic inequality, social mobility, gender dynamics, history, and geography. Gardens in southern California, the book argues, are inextricably linked to migration processes. Paradise Transplanted begins with an interesting take on southern California’s history. Waves of internal and international migrants brought with them seeds, as well as ideals of Edenic beauty, that have shaped the esthetics and practices of gardening today. These waves of migration, Hondagneu-Sotelo argues, are visible in the types of trees and plants that grow currently, and these plants in turn reflect the hierarchies of pleasure and power associated with each historical period. Since the Spanish conquest of southern California, gardening has involved the labor exploitation of racialized immigrants. But gardens have also been used by immigrants for subsistence and to create spaces of autonomy and economic livelihood. Hondagneu-Sotelo tracks the invention of residential maintenance gardening by Japanese immigrants due to both the 1913 California Alien Land Law and the demand for cheap labor by estate gardens and the later succession of these jobs by Mexican immigrants. The next chapter focuses on (mostly) Mexican men that work in the gardens of single-family houses. Using indepth interviews, it provides unique insight into the interrelationships between homeowners and the men trimming and watering their gardens. While some homeowners want workers to “mow, blow, and go,” others take a more hands-on approach and place specific requests on these workers. Hondagneu-Sotelo uncovers how homeowners communicate their demands and how informal contracts are made. Mexican landscapers often use homeowners’ gardens as advertisement for their services, and friends and neighbors of homeowners often inquire directly with migrants about their services. Immigrants, in turn, rely on enforceable trust of kin to expand their services to other houses. While this proves to be a useful business model, Hondagneu-Sotelo notes that Mexican gardeners may not experience the same upward mobility that their Japanese predecessors did because of occupational crowding. Indeed, homeowners often fire gardeners whom they have relied on for years in order to hire someone cheaper. Researchers interested in labor dynamics and social mobility will find this chapter of particular interest. Residential maintenance gardening is performed by men, but community gardens are often enjoyed by women. In the next chapter, Hondagneu-Sotelo immersed herself in two inner-city community gardens in Los Angeles. Here, women have transformed urban plots to grow homeland vegetables, cultivate plants for |