The thesis outlines the present day demands being placed on manufacturers of discrete
goods. The conclusion reached is that economic pressures and changing consumer
demand are increasingly demanding manufacturing to be, among other things, both more
cost effective and 'flexible'.
Traditional ('human-centred') methods of manufacturing and the role of the manual
worker in achieving production flexibility are assessed. The conclusion reached is that
duplicating the physical dexterity and decision capabilities of the human with robotic
type machinery is technically complex and unlikely to provide the most cost effective
route to manufacturing automation.
Production systems built from modular subsystems are investigated as an alternative way
of achieving flexibility, albeit through reconfigurability. The thesis advances the modular
concept and speculates on the possible benefits that could be achieved if a production
systems were built in a totally modular manner.
In particular the requirements of actuator systems for modular production systems are
discussed. Subsequent work focuses on control systems for modular actuators and in
particular the design of a 'generic' motion controller. Methods of achieving profile
control are appraised and a prototype actuator and microprocessor-based controller is
designed and built to test and evaluate a model-based control scheme.
Performance comparisons between the model-based control scheme and a feedback
control scheme are detailed and the wider implications of the model-based approach,
within the context of the modular production systems approach to manufacturing, is
discussed.


Ecotourism is an instrument for protecting the natural landscape along with improving the livelihood of the rural communities. It helps minimise the negative impacts of tourism on bio-diversity of the protected areas .With the increasing prospects of better infrastructure and improved means of communication under the framework of China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), there is huge potential for promoting ecotourism in the ecologically fragile areas like Gilgit-Baltistan (GB). This paper attempts to evaluate the theoretical concept of ecotourism and sustainable development and also analyses how the two issues are intertwined. Furthermore, it explores the prospects for developing ecotourism in GB with the help of a better infrastructure development as planned under the CPEC. While doing so, this study examines the potential benefits of ecotourism for sustainable development of the rural communities of GB.


Abstract Asiatic dayflower has recently become a troublesome weed in eastern Iowa. This weed demonstrates an extended emergence period and there is anecdotal evidence of glyphosate tolerance. Thus, Asiatic dayflower is difficult to manage in glyphosate-resistant (GR) corn and soybean. Greenhouse experiments were conducted to evaluate the response of Asiatic dayflower to glyphosate applied at different rates and growth stages. Field research was conducted in 2005 and 2006 to evaluate different herbicides for Asiatic dayflower control in soybean. PRE herbicides were applied at planting and POST herbicides were applied 21 and 42 d after planting (DAP). In addition, shikimate accumulation in response to glyphosate was compared among Asiatic dayflower and GR and non-GR corn and soybean. Under greenhouse conditions, a single application of glyphosate (0.84 kg ae ha−1) did not control Asiatic dayflower. Only the highest rate evaluated, 13.44 kg ae ha−1 (16X), was lethal to Asiatic dayflower. Even when applied at an early growth stage (two leaves) and using high rates (3.36 kg ae ha−1), glyphosate controlled Asiatic dayflower just 28%. In the field, metribuzin and KIH-485 controlled Asiatic dayflower 80 and 73%, respectively. Early POST applications (21 DAP) of cloransulam or lactofen controlled Asiatic dayflower 80 and 67%, respectively. A single glyphosate application of 0.86 kg ae ha−1 controlled Asiatic dayflower approximately 50%. Glyphosate-treated Asiatic dayflower and non-GR corn and soybeans accumulated shikimate after application. GR corn and soybeans did not accumulate shikimate in response to glyphosate. Twenty-one days after treatment, all the non-GR soybean and corn plants died; however, Asiatic dayflower plants survived. Nomenclature: Cloransulam; glyphosate; KIH-485, 3-[(5-difluoromethoxy-1-methyl-3-trifluormethylpyrazol-4-yl) methylsulfonyl]-4,5-dihydro-5,5-dimethylisoxazole; lactofen; metribuzin; Asiatic dayflower; Commelina communis L.; corn; Zea mays L.; soybean; Glycine max (L.) Merr


Introduction Dietary pattern may influence the risks of cardiovascular disease, atherosclerosis, and type 2 diabetes through its effects on inflammation. We evaluated the association between dietary pattern and serum high-sensitivity C reactive protein (hs-CRP) in a Japanese population. Methods In this cross-sectional analysis, we used baseline data from 3905 men and 5640 women (age 40–69 years) who participated in a population-based cohort study between November 2005 and December 2007. Participants with possible inflammation-related diseases, current analgesic use, high hs-CRP levels (≥3000 ng/ml) or extreme dietary energy intake were excluded. We used 46 items from a validated short food frequency questionnaire and examined major dietary patterns by factor analysis. Results We identified five dietary patterns: healthy (high in vegetables and fruit), Western (high in meat and fried foods), seafood (high in shellfish, squid, fish, etc), bread (high in bread and low in rice), and dessert (high in confections and fruit). After adjustment for age, alcohol use, smoking, physical activity, and body mass index, hs-CRP levels in men were inversely associated with the healthy, bread, and dessert patterns (p-trend: 0.02, 0.06, and 0.001, respectively) and positively associated with the seafood pattern (p-trend=0.03). In women, hs-CRP levels were inversely associated with the healthy pattern (p-trend=0.07) and positively associated with the Western pattern (p-trend=0.06). Conclusions The healthy dietary pattern may be associated with suppressed inflammation in Japanese men and women, independently of body mass index and other factors. The sex-specific associations of hs-CRP with other dietary patterns (eg, the seafood pattern) require further study.


Genomic DNA is generally comprised of two types of chromatin: euchromatin, associated with active gene transcription, and heterochromatin, associated with silenced and often repetitive DNA. Heterochromatin comprises not only DNA and histones, but heterochromatin-associated proteins, as well. Heterochromatin silences the genes to which it is associated, and also displays trans regulatory capabilities. Research in Drosophila has been fundamental in demonstrating the trans effects of heterochromatin and characterizing the ways in which it manifests. The Y chromosome in particular has been well-studied, as the chromosome is completely heterochromatic in Drosophila melanogaster. Evidence of its causal role in modifying heterochromatin expansion into white, an eye-color gene, was documented by Dmitri and Pisano in 1989. More recently, Lemos et al showed that polymorphic Y chromosomes can differentially regulate thousands of genes in both males and in XXY females. This dissertation encompasses these and other Y-chromosome effects.
In Chapter 1, I investigate the phenotypic responses, in males and females, to the addition of a free Y chromosome. I utilized attached sex chromosomes (denoted X^X and X^Y) to manipulate these strains so that a free Y chromosome could be stably maintained. I observed that males exhibited few effects of Y-chromosome aneuploidy, but X^X/Y females exhibited increased fitness and fertility compared to X^X/0 females. The X^X-carrying offspring of X^X/Y females, however, exhibited phenotypes mimicking those of bobbed mutants. bobbed phenotypes occur when the ribosomal DNA (rDNA) locus – a repetitive array of the 45S rDNA operon located on the X and Y chromosomes in D. melanogaster – contains fewer than the necessary number of copies to support development. We found that the X^X chromosome loses rDNA copies when maintained with a free Y chromosome. In Chapter 2, I elaborate on these findings, observing that additional strains of X^X/Y females can also produce bobbed X^X offspring. I identify inversion-carrying attached-X chromosomes as prerequisites for the development of the phenotype, as X^X/Y females whose X^X chromosome did not carry inversions showed no adverse responses in F1 X^X offspring. In Chapter 3, I examine gene expression changes at the rDNA-adjacent whitemottled4 locus in response to environmental chemical exposures. I found that multiple chemicals can act as enhancers or suppressors of heterochromatin at the locus, and I focus particularly on responses to cadmium chloride. Finally, in Chapter 4, I review the role of sex chromosomes as potential causes and mediators of human diseases, focusing principally on the potential for X- and Y-linked heterochromatin to modify gene regulation and downstream phenotypes.


Prolonged exposures to hand-transmitted vibrations from grass-cutting machines
have been associated with increasing occurrences of signs of occupational diseases
related to the hand-arm vibration syndrome (HAVS). However, there are no specific
processes available that cover the objective and subjective health cause-effects of the
hand arm vibration risk factors during onsite operations. Most of the existing
vibration control measures have not extensively integrated administration and
engineering techniques to be utilized as health prediction screening models.
Therefore, the main objectives of this study are to integrate the engineering and
administration control approach for reducing HAVS among hand-held grass-cutting
workers and to determine the significant correlation of the objective and subjective
measurement variables of the Hand Arm Vibration Exposure Risk Assessment
(HAVERA) on hand arm vibration symptoms and disorders. The study was
conducted in two stages: evaluation of the HAVERA variables (Stage 1) and
development of the health prediction cause-effect model of the HAVERA process
using multiple linear regressions and feed forward neural network programming
(Stage 2). For the onsite measurement, the daily vibration value depicted an
exceeded exposure action value of 2.5 m/s2 for both hands; and experiences of any
finger colour change were claimed by 80% of the 204 subjects. This shows that the
HAVERA process provided a good indication of HAVS which are reported as
vascular, neurological and musculoskeletal disorders. In the right and left hand
prediction model development, the results of the neural network model demonstrated
a higher reliability performance as compared to the linear model for hand grip
strength and hand numerical scoring assessment. The prediction of the HAVERA
model using the neural network method has been developed for monitoring health
conditions due to hand-transmitted vibrations among hand-held grass-cutting
workers in Malaysia.


Objectives Nocturnal bruxism can be managed by botulinum toxin (Botox®) in patients who have not responded to conservative treatment. The aim of this study was to evaluate the efficacy of botulinum toxin A (BTXA) in the treatment of nocturnal bruxism. Material and Methods The retrospective study comprised 25 female patients, aged 23–55 years (mean 35.84 ± 8.41 years). All patients received a single injection of BTXA in the right and left masseters. Evaluation was made by Visual Analogue Scale (VAS) values, complaint duration, onset of effect, and duration of effectiveness. Results BTXA produced significant improvements in pain scores. Only 2 adverse events (8%) were recorded. Conclusion BTX-A is effective in the treatment of nocturnal bruxism.


A Bloom filter is a simple space-efficient randomised data structure allowing membership queries over data sets. It is widely utilised in peer-to-peer network, traffic measurement and distributed systems. Aiming at the deficiencies of the naive counting Bloom filters (NCBFs), a novel data structure called balanced counting Bloom filters (BCBFs) is presented. In order to achieve space-efficient storage and effective query, the BCBF adopts the following methods: introducing hash fingerprints, partitioning bucket vectors into equally sized segments and storing elements with the least load bucket. Analytical expressions are deduced in detail based on the theory of differential equations and probability. Besides, simulations are conducted based on the data produced by computer and real network trace. The results demonstrate that the BCBF cannot only serve the same functionality as the NCBF using much less space, but also becomes a valuable tool in hardware to scale the high-speed link.


Most of the models used to analyze international climate policy treat the problem as if it operates on only a single level. This is the result of a reliance on integrated assessment models (IAMs) that, for reasons of analytical tractability, typically employ assumptions that allow the economy to be modeled as if it is managed by a single, utility-maximizing central planner without regard to the influence of either lower-level actors or international pressures. While game theoretic models have been used to study international negotiations, they generally do not consider feedback from domestic actors who have heterogeneous beliefs and vulnerability to climate change. In this paper, we provide an overview of a preliminary policy modeling framework, called ENGAGE, styled after the Putnam two-level game in which interactions among negotiators at the international level are linked with the preferences of constituents at the domestic level. Domestic constituents in our model include firms and households who function as agents within an evolutionary representation of economic growth, energy technology, and climate change, resulting in a two-way dynamic feedback between international agreements and domestic policy outcomes. We present the basic elements of the two levels of the model and discuss plans for future model development.


This article explores a potential socialization effect of unions on member preferences in wage outcomes and bargaining structures. This challenges notions of union wage policies simply reflecting the material self-interest of their constituency. In their formative role, unions can either propagate more redistribution in society, that is, increasing equality, or increasing societal inequalities, arguing instead for equity. However, equity could be measured either individually or collectively, where the latter would mean increasing societal wage inequalities while favouring intra-union equality. By putting perspectives on worker preferences and political economic theories in dialogue with the literature on the role of unions in constructing notions of equality/equity, we discuss on union strategy as it relates to their socialization effects and members' attitudes towards income inequality and bargaining structures. Analysing survey data, we find that socioeconomic status has greater influence on preferred wage outcomes, while union membership has more influence over bargaining structure.


Disk solids are critical in many planet formation processes; however, their effect on planet migration remains largely unexplored. Here we assess this important issue for the first time by building on the systematic measurements of dust torques on an embedded planet by Benitez-Llambay & Pessah. Adopting standard models for the gaseous disk and its solid content, we quantify the impact of the dust torque for a wide range of conditions describing the disk/planet system. We show that the total torque can be positive and reverse inward planet migration for planetary cores with M p ≲ 10 M ⊕. We compute formation tracks for low-mass embryos for conditions usually invoked when modeling planet formation processes. Our most important conclusion is that dust torques can have a significant impact on the migration and formation history of planetary embryos. The most important implications of our findings are as follows. (i) For nominal dust-to-gas mass ratios ϵ ≃ 0.01, low-mass planets migrate outwards beyond the water ice-line if most of the mass in the solids is in particles with Stokes numbers St ≃0.1. (ii) For ϵ ≳ 0.02–0.05, solids with small Stokes numbers, St ≃ 0.01, can play a dominant role if most of the mass is in those particles. (iii) Dust torques have the potential to enable low-mass planetary cores formed in the inner disk to migrate outwards and act as the seed for massive planets at distances of tens of au.


The isolation of measles virus in primary Rhesus monkey kidney cells (PRMK) in patients with documented giant-cell pneumonia who have presented without a rash is limited. The diagnosis usually is made by cytologic examination of nasal or bronchial secretions in which characteristic multinucleated giant cells with intranuclear and intracytoplasmic inclusion bodies are observed. The diagnosis of giant-cell pneumonia has been associated with measles virus but not exclusively. Canine distemper, herpes group viruses, and parainfluenza infections have been associated with these cells. In addition, vitamin A deficiency also has been cytologically associated with multinucleated giant cells. The authors describe the isolation of measles virus from bronchial washing and sputum in PRMK cells at 4 days from an 11-year-old child with acute interstitial pneumonia who was in remission for acute lymphocytic leukemia. Classic cytopathologic effect (CPE) consisting of syncytial and hole formation on the PRMK monolayer was apparent. In addition, a foamy appearance of the monolayer was noted in an otherwise clean lot of monkey cells. Confirmatory testing with measles antibody of the infected areas of the monolayer by indirect immunofluorescence (IFA) was positive for measles antigen and negative for mumps, parainfluenza (types I, II, and III) and influenza A and B virus. Serologic studies for measles antibody revealed an IFA IgG titer of greater than 1:10,240, and an IgM titer of 1:128. Cytologic examination of the same bronchial fluid revealed the typical giant cells with characteristic inclusions associated with measles virus. Because this disease usually is severe, and often fatal, prompt recognition of this virus is essential, not only to the patient, who can be treated with immunoglobulin and/or antiviral therapy, but also to prevent the spread of the virus to other patients and medical personnel. These findings also support direct evidence for the etiologic role of measles virus in giant-cell pneumonia that has been detected either histologically or cytologically and in tissue culture at autopsy.


The importance of user participation in information systems development has received a lot of attention from researchers. While prior research efforts have clarified many issues related to user participation, the reasons behind user's participation in IS projects are still unexplored. The study raises the question of what are the different motives for user participation in IS project. The investigation uses multivariate data analysis techniques to propose a dimensional representation of user participation motives in the context of IS projects. The results identify five user participation motives i.e. nature of association, techno centric activity, user centric activity, user interest, and project importance. The results of the study contribute to both theory and practice by segregating the different dimensions of user participation motives that may serve as cues in designing effective user integration mechanisms.


A scheme for estimating T-CONT bandwidth demand within dynamic bandwidth allocation (DBA) for next-generation passive optical network (NG-PON) is proposed and evaluated. Estimating T-CONT bandwidth demand is considered as a main challenge in gigabit-capable passive optical network (GPON) DBA. The proposed minimum guaranteed T-CONT content (MGTC) scheme allows for a more conservative estimate of bandwidth demand. It is shown that at high load significant improvements in delay, jitter and bandwidth utilization can be achieved with the proposed scheme. For light loads the conventional scheme shows better delay performance. However, this may be overcome by controlled over-granting in the MGTC scheme.


The in vivo disintegration, dissolution, absorption, and disposition processes of ampicillin products are separated by means of moment analysis. This method is model-independent, that is, any specific model is not assumed. The mean residence time (MRT), mean absorption time (MAT), mean dissolution time (MDT), and mean disintegration time (MDIT) are calculated for several dosage forms of ampicillin. The fraction of dose absorbed (F) is also separated into several fractions corresponding to these in vivo processes. Bioavailability and bioequivalence are discussed in terms of the zero and first moments. The flip-flop behavior of ampicillin is proved by the fact that the MRT following intravenous injection is less than the MAT of any oral dosage form. Absorption of released ampicillin is proved by the fact that the MRT following intravenous injection is less than the MAT of any oral dosage form. Absorption of released ampicillin is proved to be a rate-determining step, since the MRT of released ampicillin in the GI tract is the greatest of all MRT corresponding to the in vivo processes. Moment analysis is compared with classical compartment theory, and a new component concept is introduced.


Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-associated pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) is a serious noninfectious disease involving an aberrant increase in pressure in the blood vessels of the lung, which leads to right ventricular (RV) heart failure and can eventually result in death. A lack of viable animal models of HIV-PAH has limited the identification of signaling pathways involved in HIV-mediated onset and progression of PAH. To determine whether the HIV-1 transgenic (HIV Tg) rat displays pathophysiological end points associated with PAH, we evaluated peak RV systolic pressure (RVSP), RV hypertrophy, pulmonary vessel remodeling, and alterations in gene expression by real-time PCR and microarray. RVSP was measured by RV catheterization via the right jugular vein in 3- and 9-mo-old HIV Tg and age-matched Fischer 344 (control) male rats while under 2% isoflurane anesthesia. RVSP was elevated in the HIV Tg rats (34.2 ± 2.5 mmHg) compared with the F344 controls (21.2 ± 2.5 mmHg), with more significant elevations in the 9-mo-old HIV Tg rats (42.5 ± 3.7 mmHg). We observed significant increases in RV wall thickness in HIV Tg rats compared with controls, both histologically and by echocardiograph measurement. HIV Tg rats also show increased thickening of the pulmonary artery and remodeling of small pulmonary arteries, as well as altered expression of gene pathways associated with PAH. These data represent the first analysis of PAH in HIV Tg rats and suggest that this model will be useful for investigating pathways and identifying potential therapies for HIV-PAH.


SARS-CoV-2 related research has increased in importance worldwide since December 2019. Several new variants of SARS-CoV-2 have emerged globally, of which the most notable and concerning currently are the UK variant B.1.1.7, the South African variant B1.351 and the Brazilian variant P.1. Detecting and monitoring novel variants is essential in SARS-CoV-2 surveillance. While there are several tools for assembling virus genomes and performing lineage analyses to investigate SARS-CoV-2, each is limited to performing singular or a few functions separately. Due to the lack of publicly available pipelines, which could perform fast reference-based assemblies on raw SARS-CoV-2 sequences in addition to identifying lineages to detect variants of concern, we have developed an open source bioinformatic pipeline called HAVoC (Helsinki university Analyzer for Variants of Concern). HAVoC can reference assemble raw sequence reads and assign the corresponding lineages to SARS-CoV-2 sequences. HAVoC is a pipeline utilizing several bioinformatic tools to perform multiple necessary analyses for investigating genetic variance among SARS-CoV-2 samples. The pipeline is particularly useful for those who need a more accessible and fast tool to detect and monitor the spread of SARS-CoV-2 variants of concern during local outbreaks. HAVoC is currently being used in Finland for monitoring the spread of SARS-CoV-2 variants. HAVoC user manual and source code are available at https://www.helsinki.fi/en/projects/havoc and https://bitbucket.org/auto_cov_pipeline/havoc, respectively.


Working condition assessment is required by Dutch law to obtain approval for occupying building. Nowadays this is a manual procedure that is executed after the building has been realized. Experts are needed to interpret the legislation regulations and test these against what they observe. If this procedure is integrated in the design process, then the risk of costly building changes can be reduced. In this article we describe a system that supports automated testing before building construction using fuzzy logic for reasoning on the working condition regulations. The intrinsic character of the regulations often makes it very difficult to use classical rule-based systems. Instead of stating hard and unambiguous demands, the law contains many rules that are open for discussion, that allow alternate solutions or that are simply put rather vague. In this article we demonstrate that fuzzy logic provides a methodology to formalize such regulations. For testing working conditions, input data are needed about the building geometry and material use, building physics (e.g. lighting) and space utilisation. We describe which data are required and how they can be generated using state-of-the-art research and technology. In a case study, the process of implementing typical regulations shows the implications of automated working conditions checking in practice. © 2007 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.


Twenty-two Bos indicus type steers were commercially slaughtered, and their carcasses were chilled and processed to determine the effects of injecting calcium chloride (CaCl2) on beef steak palatability and quality traits. Top loin and inside round subprimals were removed from each carcass using industry fabrication procedures. No injection (control) or injection of 200 mM CaCl2 at 5% (wt/wt) was applied at 30 h postmortem to subprimals from alternating right and left sides. After vacuum storage for 7 d postmortem at 2 degrees C, 2.54-cm thick steaks were cut from each subprimal. Eighty-six percent of the control longissimus lumborum (LL) steaks and 78% of the semimembranosus (SM) control steaks had Warner-Bratzler (WBS) values > 4.5 kg, and the injection of CaCl2 reduced this percentage to 43 and 24%, respectively. The injection of CaCl2 improved (P < .05) trained sensory tenderness ratings for both LL and SM, while not affecting (P > .05) flavor intensity or causing any off-flavor problems (P > .05), compared with the controls. Lean color scores for the LL were not affected (P > .05) by the injection of CaCl2, but SM lean color was lighter red (P < .05) than controls. Therefore, a 5% (wt/wt) injection of 200 mM CaCl2 solution can be applied under commercial conditions to improve beef steak tenderness and reduce tenderness variation without detrimental effects on other palatability or quality traits.


Presence of the balanced translocation t(11;14)(q13;q32) and the consequent overexpression of cyclin D1 found in mantle cell lymphoma (MCL) has been shown to be of important diagnostic value. Although many molecular and immunohistochemical approaches have been applied to analyze cyclin D1 status, correlative studies to compare different methods for the diagnosis of MCL are lacking. In this study, we examined 39 archived paraffin specimens from patients diagnosed with a variety of lymphoproliferative diseases including nine cases meeting morphologic and immunophenotypic criteria for MCL by: (1) real-time quantitative RT-PCR to evaluate cyclin D1 mRNA expression; (2) dual fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) to evaluate the t(11;14) translocation in interphase nuclei; and (3) tissue array immunohistochemistry to evaluate the cyclin D1 protein level. Among the nine cases of possible MCL, seven cases showed overexpression of cyclin D1 mRNA (cyclin D1 positive MCL) and two cases showed no cyclin D1 mRNA increase (cyclin D1 negative "MCL-like"). In six of seven cyclin D1 positive cases, the t(11;14) translocation was demonstrated by FISH analysis; in one case FISH was unsuccessful. Six of the seven cyclin D1 mRNA overexpressing cases showed increased cyclin D1 protein on tissue array immunohistochemistry; one was technically suboptimal. Among the two cyclin D1 negative MCL-like cases, FISH confirmed the absence of the t(11;14) translocation in both cases. All other lymphoproliferative diseases studied were found to have low or no cyclin D1 mRNA expression and were easily distinguishable from the cyclin D1 overexpressing MCLs by all three techniques. In addition, to confirming the need to assess cyclin D1 status, as well as, morphology and immunophenotyping to establish the diagnosis of MCL, this study demonstrates good correlation and comparability between measure of cyclin D1 mRNA, the 11;14 translocation and cyclin D1 protein.


Deep learning techniques are growing in popularity within the field of artificial intelligence (AI). These approaches identify patterns in large scale datasets, and make classifications and predictions, which have been celebrated as more accurate than those of humans. But for a number of reasons, including nonlinear path from inputs to outputs, there is a dearth of theory that can explain why deep learning techniques work so well at pattern detection and prediction. Claims about "superhuman" accuracy and insight, paired with the inability to fully explain how these results are produced, form a discourse about AI that we call enchanted determinism . To analyze enchanted determinism, we situate it within a broader epistemological diagnosis of modernity: Max Weber's theory of disenchantment. Deep learning occupies an ambiguous position in this framework. On one hand, it represents a complex form of technological calculation and prediction, phenomena Weber associated with disenchantment. On the other hand, both deep learning experts and observers deploy enchanted, magical discourses to describe these systems' uninterpretable mechanisms and counter-intuitive behavior. The combination of predictive accuracy and mysterious or unexplainable properties results in myth-making about deep learning's transcendent, superhuman capacities, especially when it is applied in social settings. We analyze how discourses of magical deep learning produce techno-optimism, drawing on case studies from game-playing, adversarial examples, and attempts to infer sexual orientation from facial images. Enchantment shields the creators of these systems from accountability while its deterministic, calculative power intensifies social processes of classification and control.


Traditionally clinicians have determined their patients' resuscitation status without consultation. This has been condemned as morally indefensible in cases where not for resuscitation (NFR) orders are based on quality of life considerations and when the patient's true wishes are not known. Such instances would encompass most resuscitation decisions in elderly patients. Having previously involved patients in CPR decision-making, we chose formally to explore the reasons behind the choices made. Although the patients were not upset, and readily decided at the time of initial consultation, on later analysing the decision-making we found poor understanding of the procedure, poor recall of information given and in some cases evidence of harm. This may be attributed to impaired decision-making capacity of elderly hospitalised patients as previously shown, or to the discomfort precipitated by having to contemplate the apparent immediacy of cardiac arrest by these patients. We propose that subscribing to autonomy as a general principle needs to be balanced against particular cases where distress may be caused by, or result in, diminished competence and limited autonomy.


In this paper, we introduce a pair (f, g) of weak generalized (α,ψ)-contractive maps with rational expressions and prove the existence of common fixed points when (f, g) is a pair of weakly compatible maps and the range of g is complete in partially ordered metric spaces where f is a triangular (α, g)-admissible map. Further, we prove the same conclusion by relaxing the condition 'range of g is complete', but by imposing reciprocally continuity of (f, g) and compatibility of (f, g) in partially ordered complete metric spaces. Our results generalize the results of Arshad, Karapinar and Ahmad [1] and Harjani, Lopez and Sadarangani [5].


Video surveillance systems is a powerful tool for public safety and with the increasing need for more security in airports, banks, schools and other critical environments, the demand for video system is growing rapidly. Sides from the intrinsic usefulness of begin able to segment video streams into moving and background components, detecting moving blobs provide a focus of attention for recognition, classification and activity analysis, making these later processes more efficient since only "moving" pixels need to be considered. In this paper an efficient moving object detection method using modified Horprasert model for video surveillance system is present. The modified dynamic thresholds are able to detect a new object with it's shadow through different video stream in terms of light conditions. It consists of background model, distortion of brightness, color calculations and classification. Four regions are segmented depending on the thresholds foreground (moving object), background, highlight background and shadow. The proposed automatic threshold depends on background computations of brightness and is thus expected to achieved better classification performance. Keywords: Horprasert model; background subtraction; background model; Video Surveillance


Objective
To evaluate the accuracy of intraocular lens (IOL) power calculation using IOL-Master in patients underwent phacoemulsification and vitrectomy for idiopathic macular epiretinal membrane (IMEM) concurrent with age-related cataract (ARC).

Methods
A prospective study was designed.A total of 32 patients (32 eyes) with ARC (ARC group) and 30 patients (30 eyes) with ARC and IMEM (ARC+ IMEM group) were enrolled from March 2013 to July 2015 in the Hangzhou District of Eye Hospital of Wenzhou Medical University.All the surgeries were performed by the same experienced surgeon and the same IOL (Adapt-AO) was implanted.IOL power was calculated by both SRK-T and Haigis formulas.The central macular thickness was measured by OCT preoperatively and postoperatively.The mean postoperative refractive prediction error (ME), mean absolute postoperative prediction error (MAE) and percentage of eyes achieved target refraction within ±0.25, ±0.50 and ±1.00 D were compared between the 2 groups.The correlation between the refractive error and macular thickness change was evaluated.

Results
The ME and MAE calculated by Haigis were (-0.47±0.66)D and (0.63±0.44)D in ARC+ IMEM group, and (-0.18±0.74)D and (0.68±0.65)D in ARC group.The ME and MAE calculated by SRK-T were (-0.60±0.59)D and (0.73±0.41)D in ARC+ IMEM group, and (-0.23±0.85)D and (0.75±0.69)D in ARC group.No significant differences were found between the two groups in each formula (all at P>0.05). There was no significant difference of MAE distribution between the two groups in Haigis formula.In SRK-T formula, the percentage of MAE≤0.25 D in the ARC+ IMEM group was significantly higher than that in the ARC group (χ2=7.114, P=0.007). In the ARC+ IMEM group, the change of the macular thickness was (-97.4±115.3)μm, which was statistically correlated with the ME of Haigis and SRK-T formulas (r=0.369, P=0.045; r=0.421, P=0.021).

Conclusions
There is a tendency toward myopia shift in patients underwent phacoemulsification and vitrectomy compared with conventional phacoemulsification.The myopia shift shows a significant correlation with macular thickness changes.Haigis formula performs better than SRK-T formula with the condition of un-optimized parameters.

Key words:
Idiopathic macular epiretinal membrane; Cataract; Refraction; Bio-measurement; Phacoemulsification; Vitrectomy


Abstract Objectives: The aim of this in vitro study was to evaluate the effect of different desensitizers' application on the microleakage of previously restored Class V composite resin restorations. Materials and methods: Class V cavities were prepared on the buccal surfaces of 40 extracted human third molars. Forty box-shaped cavities were divided into four groups, based on the desensitizers used (n = 10). All teeth were restored with the same bonding agent and composite material. No desensitizer was applied in the control group. In the experimental groups, BisBlock, Gluma and Universal bonding agents were the desensitizers. The desensitizers were applied after completion of composite restorations according to manufacturers' instructions. All specimens were then thermocycled at 5–55 °C, with a 10-s dwell time for 500 cycles. The samples were then immersed in 0.5% methylene blue dye for 24 h, sectioned into two equal halves, evaluated for microleakage using a stereomicroscope at 30× magnification and scored on a scale of 0–3. The data were analysed using the Kruskal–Wallis test at the significance level p < 0.05. Results: There were no significant differences in microleakage after desensitizer application (p > 0.05). However, based on the obtained numerical values in our study, while the BisBlock and bonding groups showed lower microleakage at the occlusal margin, BisBlock, Gluma and bonding group showed lower microleakage at the gingival margin compared to the control group. Conclusions: The application of desensitizers as a post-treatment option could be considered an advisable procedure to minimize microleakage.


Image processing is very crucial in today world because of various noises, attacks, and many more problem faced by an image from a transmitter to the receiver side. By applying various algorithms and filters we can remove such type of noises and attacks. Blur detection techniques are very helpful in real life application and are used in image segmentation, image restoration, and image enhancement. Blur detection techniques are used to remove the blur from a blurred region of an image which is due to defocus of a camera or motion of an object. Blurring is a form of bandwidth reduction of an ideal image owing to the imperfect image formation process. It can be caused by relative motion between the camera and the original scene, or by an optical system that is out of focus. Deblurring techniques are basically used to sharp an image using different methods & parameters so that we can the abundant amount of knowledge. As we know there are various types of noises occurred in an image and to remove various techniques are used. Every technique is suitable for a particular noise and we cannot apply randomly to remove a particular noise. With advancement of time old technique are replaced by advanced method and today Fuzzy Logic is much more appreciated due to simple logic function and it is fourth generation technique


This thesis uses relational theology, in conversation with the nonviolent communitarian ethics of Stanley Hauerwas, to construct a new theology of how humans relate to other animals. I argue that at least some other animals should be perceived as relational creatures of God; and that understanding our animal brothers and sisters in this way raises new questions for ethics and ecclesiology. The relationality we share with nonhuman animals – in individual relationships and the interwoven networks of relationship that make up creation – means that Christians can hope for relationships between humans and other animals to be sanctified by God's grace. If we have this hope, and accept that theology is ethics (and eschatology not solely future-oriented), there is a clear impetus for individual Christians and church communities to look with reflective and prayerful eyes at how we relate to other animals. This will include thinking seriously about how our dietary choices impact upon them.
I make two methodological shifts in the course of the thesis: from theology to ethics, and from there into ecclesiology and ethnography. These shifts are justified on the ground that theology is ethics: just as faith without works is dead (Jm. 2:17), so must theology be ethical. The use of ethnography and social-scientific methodology situates my discussion of church casuistry on animal and dietary ethics in the context of real, situated churches and church experiences. A theological ethic of diet which does not examine how churches think about eating, and the eating practices their members are formed in, would be incomplete.
After outlining my aims and methodology in chapter 1, in chapter 2 I critique theological models of 'stewardship' (popular for thinking about human-animal relationality). Chapter 3 provides a short systematic theology
of human-animal relationality which seeks to amend for stewardship's limitations. In chapters 4-5, I consider the dietary implications of chapters 2-3, arguing that vegetarianism (theologically understood as dietary pacifism) is a valid ethical practice for followers of Christ. Chapters 6-8 look at ethical dialogue and discernment in church communities, arguing – partly via conversation with ordinary Christian vegetarians – that there is a theological impetus on individual Christians and the church to engage seriously with all ethical topics, including diet. In chapter 9, I draw the thesis together with a relational framework which emphasises radical inclusivity – the call for the church to be a community of human animals, in and for the wider community of creation.


Pompe disease (OMIM no 232300) is an autosomal recessive inherited metabolic disorder, caused by glycogen accumulation in the lysosome due to deficiency of the lysosomal acid 03B1‐glucosidase enzyme. Here we report the case of an 8‐month‐old girl of consanguineous Turkish parents, who was diagnosed with the infantile form of Pompe disease. Two different uncommon homozygote mutations (c.32‐13 T > G homozygote and c.1856G > A homozygote) were detected. The patient had a more progressive clinical course than expected. We emphasize the rare combination of genetic mutations in this Turkish family with Pompe disease.


Contemporary philosophy of technology is usually characterized as being less dystopic, more pragmatic and more empirical than classical philosophy of technology. This article argues that a deeper, ontological commitment informs this move: a shift from a dualist and essentialist framework of human subjects and technological objects, to an understanding of the human and technology as intricately interwoven. This has important repercussions for human ontology, which takes on a fundamentally relational and material nature. But the identification of this anthropo-ontology raises two concerns: it remains all too implicit in the works of philosophers of technology, and further, it should aim to account for the material relationality of the human as a biological organism within the material matrix of human-technology collectives. This paper suggests that a means of addressing this latter concern is to look at models of biological inter-relationality in recent biological theory, where non-dualist and non-essentialist frameworks for thinking the relationship between organisms and their environments are also being developed. It is argued that such biological models can thus help provide a 'missing link' the claim that the human, qua biological organism, is inextricably interwoven with its material environment - within contemporary philosophy of technology's ontological shift.


Background: Patients diagnosed with melanoma of the foot have been reported to have a poor prognosis. We reviewed our experience at a tertiary-care medical clinic to determine the disease course in patients diagnosed with melanoma of the foot. Methods: A retrospective review was performed of 38 patients with a diagnosis of primary or locally recurrent melanoma of the foot treated between January, 1988, and July, 2004. The main outcome measures included methods of diagnosis, clinical and histopathologic features, and patterns of recurrence. Results: The mean age at diagnosis was 61 years; most were women (58%) and Caucasian (95%). The average time to diagnosis was 17 months. Initial clinical diagnosis had been considered benign in 12 (32%). The median Breslow thickness was 1.75 mm, T1 lesions were the most common, and acral lentiginous melanoma accounted for 42%. Thirteen patients (34%) had ulcerated lesions. Sentinel lymph node biopsy specimens of 25 patients identified four (16%) with metastatic disease. Surgical complications occurred in 12 patients, usually after skin graft or soft-tissue flap reconstruction. Systemic recurrence developed in six patients, four of whom also had regional recurrence. Conclusions: Most patients were elderly Caucasian women and most presented with early-stage disease, but diagnosis can be difficult and a subgroup presented with thick melanomas. Reconstructive surgical procedures had a high rate of complications; however, overall functional outcomes were good. Stage of cancer at diagnosis was associated with systemic metastases.


Focussing on China's health biotech clusters the study explores the anatomy of interaction in as well as
between various clusters. While the literature has identified the existence of a dense network of durable
interactions among firms and between firms and academia at a particular location as one of the most important
prerequisites for well-performing clusters, we show that network ties extending beyond regional
boundaries are equally valuable for the innovative capacity of China's biotech firms. Analysing the
demographic process of cluster emergence we show that there exist different types of biotech clusters in
China, which are closely linked and exchange knowledge and technology amongst each other. It appears
as if further analysis of these cross-cluster links may provide important insights of how learning and innovation
works in China's health biotech industry. Although China's science parks and industrial bases
may on an individual basis appear to be badly structured, the organization of China's health biotech industry
turns out to be substantially enhanced once these external linkages are taken into consideration.


Traditional manual tillage using hand tools is widely used by local farmers in hilly and mountainous regions in China and many South-east Asian countries. Manual tillage could result in severe soil erosion, redistributing slopes from upslope areas (erosion) to lower slopes (deposition). This soil redistribution process may potentially affect the soil carbon cycle, but few studies have quantified soil CO2 emission under different manual tillage practices. In the present study we evaluated the soil redistribution and its effects on in situ CO2 emission as affected by manual tillage of different intensities on three short slopes representing typical cultivated landscapes on the Loess Plateau. Soils were removed at 2, 6 and 10 cm depths by three types of hand tools, namely a hoe, mattock and spade respectively, from the upslope and subsequently accumulated at the downslope to simulate soil erosion and deposition processes by traditional manual tillage. Across the tilled hillslopes, soil CO2 emission was reduced at sites of erosion but enhanced at sites of deposition. Tillage with greater intensity (i.e. hoeing < mattocking < spading) resulted in greater change in CO2 emission. This change in soil CO2 emission was largely associated with the depletion of soil organic carbon (SOC) stocks at erosion sites and the increments of SOC available for decomposition at deposition sites. Moreover, with increasing tillage intensity, soil redistribution by manual tillage shifted the hillslope from a C sink to C neutral or even a C source. Furthermore, manual tillage resulted in substantial changes in soil CO2 emission and redistributed soil in amounts that dwarf animal-powered tillage. The results of the present study imply that manual tillage-induced soil redistribution could have a large effect on the C balance across the local landscape and therefore may have considerable implications for estimates of regional and global C budgets.


The purpose of this study is to develop a social work education strategy for mitigating health inequalities among the socially vulnerable. The limitations of the healthcare approach to health promotion and health inequality, which we examined through the health belief model describing an individual's health behavior, emphasize the prevention of diseases that have not yet occurred or are likely to occur, healthcare management for them, and the functions and role of the community in the process, based on the individual's spontaneity to practice health behaviors. Therefore, to compensate for these limitations, it is deemed necessary to add healthcare curriculum, such as public health, social epidemiology, and etiology, to the existing curriculum of social work based on an in-depth understanding of social vulnerability and social environment as well as the importance of preventing and managing diseases.


The increasing demands for travelling comfort and reduction of carbon dioxide emissions have been considered substantially in the stage of conceptual aircraft design. However, the design of a modern aircraft is a multidisciplinary process, which requires the coordination of information from several specific disciplines, such as structures, aerodynamics, control, etc. To address this problem with adequate accuracy, the multidisciplinary analysis and optimization (MAO) method is usually applied as a systematic and robust approach to solve such complex design issues arising from industries. Since MAO method is tedious and computationally expensive, genetic programming (GP)-based metamodeling techniques incorporating MAO are proposed as an effective approach to minimize the wing stiffness of a large aircraft subject to aerodynamic, aeroelastic and stability constraints in the conceptual design phase. Based on the linear small-disturbance theory, the state-space equation is employed for stability analysis. In the process of multidisciplinary analysis, aeroelastic response simulations are performed using Nastran. To construct metamodels representing the responses of the interests with high accuracy as well as less computational burden, optimal Latin hypercube design of experiments (DoE) is applied to determine the optimized distribution of sampling points. Following that, parametric optimization is carried out on metamodels to obtain the optimal wing geometry shape, elastic axis positions and stiffness distribution, and then the solution is verified by finite element simulations. Finally, the superiority of the GP-based metamodel technique over genetic algorithm is demonstrated by multidisciplinary design optimization of a representative beam-frame wing structure in terms of accuracy and efficiency. The results also show that GP metamodel-based strategy for solving MAO problems can provide valuable insights to tailoring parameters for the effective design of a large aircraft in the conceptual phase.


OBJECTIVES
Through the analysis of a group of type 2 diabetes patients, the aims of this study are: to evaluate through CGMS (continuous glucose monitoring system) the post-prandial subcutaneous glucose excursions; to analyze the correlations between subcutaneous glucose and capillary glycemia with HbA1c and to evaluate the effectiveness, safety and broad-mindedness of the CGMS.

METHODS
Forty type 2 diabetes patients were analyzed, with HbA1c until 7.3%, in use of oral agents and within less than a ten-year diagnosis. They were submitted to CGMS for 72 h, whose data were compared with HbA1c and capillary glycemia.

RESULTS
The average subcutaneous glucose excursion at breakfast was statistically bigger than at dinner (95%CI -24.96 a -1.66). The subcutaneous glucose excursion/meal carbohydrates content ratio was statistically bigger at breakfast than at other meals (p 0.001). There was no correlation between the levels of subcutaneous glucose and capillary glycemia with HbA1c. There were no complications using CGMS.

CONCLUSIONS
The subcutaneous glucose excursions were predominant at breakfast. There were no correlations between HbA1c and glycemic control parameters. CGMS showed itself efficient, secure and well tolerated in this group of patients.


Over the past decade, the use of directional antennas has immensely proliferated in wireless networks. Methodically positioning and orienting directional antennas can help reduce the interference while saving energy. In an infrastructure-based wireless network, wireless devices communicate through base stations. In this setting, directional antennas placed on the base stations form the backbone of the communication network. The wireless devices distributed around the base stations have bandwidth requirements that have to be satisfied by the directional antennas, and antennas constrained by hardware limits can only serve a limited number of devices. This introduces an optimization problem and in this paper, we develop an integer linear program for placing and directing antennas on multiple base stations to minimize the number of antennas required to serve all the wireless bandwidth demands. Through this integer programming formulation, we analyze the performance of directional antennas under various settings. A simulation-based evaluation using Cplex's branch-and-bound algorithm demonstrates the efficacy of our approach and provides us further insights into these problems.


The experience gained during the operation and maintenance stages of the Camisea pipeline transportation system (STD) in Peru, crossing from the Tropical jungle in the Cusco region to the coast, in Lima city, has enabled us to develop and apply techniques in construction and maintenance works focused on controlling of the vertical undermining of riverbeds and the erosion of margins at river crossings and creeks crossed by the pipeline carrying NG and NGL. According to the above, a technical assessment study was conducted of the crosses rivers and creeks that have high priority of the Camisea pipeline path, comprising — among other disciplines — hydraulic and undermining analysis, as well as an hydrologic and geo-morphological evaluation and other issues regarding general geology and geo-techniques at each crossing site.A work program was developed using the information obtained in the three sectors travelled by the (STD) in order to develop and complement works at the crossings of rivers and valleys aiming to protect the integrity of the pipeline from erosion produced by major and extraordinary floods in riverbeds and alluvial slides in narrow valleys, by means of confinement and sedimentation works.The jobs performed in rainforest, mountain and coastal terrain crossed by the pipeline considered different river morphology types — being the most common the straight, gravel braided and curved river travels — and regimes in both flow speed and width of the riverbed.From the topographic follow-up and monitoring stage on — before and after the rain season — at crossings beneath the riverbeds, it was determined that the deterioration process affecting the crossing stripe corresponds to erosion consisting in the alteration of the watercourse banks that affects the piping foundations.The works are completed considering the type of resources available at the site of the river crossing — i. e., the engineering is particular to each sector, and designing is performed upon available materials in the area.The most utilized works at river and creeks crossings on the Camisea piping system are as follows: i) protection of riverbeds and creeks slopes using gabion mesh and pads; ii) sedimentation systems on gabion mesh; iii) Energy dissipation devices at creeks crossings; iv) rip-rap–type armoring of riverbeds; v) confinement check dams; vi) marginal protection dikes; vii) marginal protection rock fill dams; viii) protection and sedimentation breakwaters, among others.© 2013 ASME


This paper presents five abstract characteristics of the mental representation of computer programs hierarchical structure, explicit mapping of code to goals, foundation on recognition of recurring patterns, connection of knowledge, and grounding in the program text. An experiment is reported in which expert and novice programmers studied a Pascal program for comprehension and then answered a series of questions about it designed to show these characteristics if they existed in the mental representations formed. Evidence for all of the abstract characteristics was found in the mental representations of expert programmers. Novices' representations generally lacked the characteristics, but there was evidence that they had the beginnings, although poorly developed, of such characteristics.


We consider the classical 3-state Moore-Greitzer model, which is commonly used for approximating dynamics of deviations of flow and pressure variables in an axial compressor from their nominal steady-state values. The linearization of the nonlinear system is not controllable and, therefore, even local asymptotic stability cannot be achieved using methods of linear control theory. We propose a family of parametrized partial-state feedback control laws and derive sufficient conditions to guarantee global asymptotic stability of the closed-loop system. The stability analysis uses the integral quadratic constraints technique for the case of non-strict frequency condition and novel arguments for characterization of ω-limit sets.


The multiaxial fatigue test under in-phase and out-ofphase load were performed to study what degradation phenomenon affects fatigue life with virgin and 3600 hrs degraded materials. The various kind of fatigue data fur fatigue life prediction were acquired under pure axial and pure torsional load of fully reversal condition. The models which was investigated are: 1) the von Mises equivalent strain range, 2) the critical shear plane approach method of Fatemi-Socie(FS) parameter, 3) the modified Smith-Watson-Topper(SWT) parameter. The result showed that, fatigue life by material degradation are decreased and life prediction which was used the FS parameter is not conservative but the best result.


This guide cover the basics of learning to edit Wikipedia, including creating an account, editing text, creating references, and adding images. It was developed out of a workshop session by Michael Barera, a Wikipedian with over a decade of experience.


Ursodeoxycholic acid (UDCA) is a safe and effective medical therapy for most patients with primary biliary cirrhosis (PBC), but some patients show an incomplete response. Silymarin is a potent antioxidant with immunomodulatory and antifibrotic properties. The aim of this study was to evaluate the safety and assess the efficacy of silymarin in patients with PBC who had shown a suboptimal response to UDCA. Twenty‐seven patients with PBC who had been on UDCA (13‐15 mg/kg/day) therapy for 7 to 221 months and had shown a persistent elevation of alkaline phosphatase activity at least 2 times the upper limit of normal for more than 6 months were enrolled. Oral silymarin, 140 mg 3 times daily was given for 1 year, and patients continued on the same dosage of UDCA. No significant changes in serum alkaline phosphatase activity (897 ± 84 vs. 876 ± 95, P = .5), total bilirubin (0.9 ± 0.1 vs. 1 ± 0.1, P = .07), aspartate transaminase (AST) (58 ± 5 vs. 56 ± 6, P = .4), albumin (4.0 ± .06 vs. 4.1 ± .06, P = .4), or Mayo risk score (3.82 ± 0.2 vs. 3.88 ± 0.2, P = .4) were noted after 1 year of treatment with combination therapy. Transitory gastrointestinal adverse events occurred in 2 patients. In conclusion, although silymarin was well tolerated, this medication did not provide benefit to patients with PBC responding suboptimally to UDCA. The results of this pilot study would seem to discourage further controlled trials of silymarin in patients with PBC.


The impacts of invasive plant control on native animals are rarely evaluated. Using data from an eight-year study in southeastern Australia, we quantified the effects on native bird, mammal, and reptile species of (1) the abundance of the invasive Bitou Bush, Chrysanthemoides monilifera ssp. rotundata, and (2) a Bitou Bush control program, which involved repeated herbicide spraying interspersed with prescribed burning. We found that overall species richness of birds, mammals, and reptiles and the majority of individual vertebrate species were unresponsive to Bitou Bush cover and the number of plants. Two species including the nationally endangered Eastern Bristlebird (Dasyurus brachypterus) responded positively to measures of native vegetation cover following the control of Bitou Bush. Analyses of the effects of different components of the treatment protocol employed to control Bitou Bush revealed (1) no negative effects of spraying on vertebrate species richness; (2) negative effects of spraying on only one individual species (Scarlet Honeyeater); and (3) lower bird species richness but higher reptile species richness after fire. The occupancy of most individual vertebrates species was unaffected by burning; four species responded negatively and one positively to fire. Our study indicated that actions to remove Bitou Bush generally have few negative impacts on native vertebrates. We therefore suggest that controlling this highly invasive exotic plant species has only very limited negative impacts on vertebrate biota.


This essay seeks to trace the relevant national and global contexts from which the bagong bayani discourse of OFWs emerged. It does so by discussing the evolution of labor out-migration in the Philippines from its beginnings in the colonial times, to overseas employment's institutionalization in the Labor Code of 1974, until the administration of President Corazon Cojuangco-Aquino. It specifically presents the political, social, and economic context around which Aquino managed and continued the state-sponsored labor export program initiated by Marcos. Finally, it discusses the factors that made it possible for Aquino to designate migrants as "heroes". The argument is that bagong bayani is a product of the global and national context. It can be best understood by examining transformations in global and political-economic structures, and discursive origins of heroism in the Philippine context. Presenting these contexts will provide a clearer understanding of why it has become commonsensical to regard OFWs as bagong bayani. Keywords: Bagong bayani, "modern-day heroes," labor expert, OFWs discourse, labor out-migration


A portable germanium detector was used to detect gamma-ray emissions from a nuclear warhead aboard the Soviet cruiser Slava. Measurements taken on the missile launch tube indicated the presence of uranium-235 and plutonium-239—the essential ingredients of nuclear weapons. With the use of this equipment, these isotopes probably could have been identified at a distance of 4 meters from the warhead. Such inspections do not reveal detailed information about the design of the warhead.


Abstract Acute myeloid leukemia (AML) therapies are rapidly evolving with novel targeted therapies showing high-level responses in a notoriously difficult to treat group of patients – the elderly and unfit. This review will examine the outcomes of older AML patients (>60 years old) with conventional induction strategies, and published literature on risks of pursuit of induction. Low-intensity combination therapy response rates appear to be approaching that of induction regimens, and with lower toxicity, low-intensity therapy likely represents the future standard approach in this age group. Lastly, allogeneic transplant appears to have a role in increasing durable remissions regardless of age and should be considered in patients with limited comorbidities.


Volume scattering from 200 to 1500 Hz was measured during the Gulf of Alaska surface scatter and air/sea interaction experiment occurring in February 1992. Scattering strength as a function of frequency and depth was measured and layer strength and column strength were calculated using a vertically bistatic measurement technique developed by Stockhausen and Figoli [SACLANT ASW Research Center Technical Report No. 225, 15 May 1973]. These measurements were accompanied by concurrent measurements of size/depth distributions of the fish population present using a dual beam echosounder system. Fish distributions were used to predict layer and column strength by employing the NUWC Interval Column Strength Model developed by Saenger et al. [Naval Underwater Systems Center Technical Report No. 9001 (31 December 1991)]. Comparisons of the measured and predicted results show that low‐frequency scattering resonances may be related to biologics.


TDLAS system is the use of the wavelength tuning characteristics of the laser diode, for detecting the absorption spectrum of the gas absorption line. Detecting the gas space, temperature, pressure and flow rate and concentration. The use of laboratory techniques TDLAS gas detection, experimental simulation engine combustion water vapor and smoke. using an optical lens system receives the signal acquisition and signal interference test analysis. Analog water vapor and smoke in two different environments in the sample pool interference. In both experiments environmental interference gas absorption in the optical signal acquisition, signal amplitude variation analysis, and records related to the signal data. In order to study site conditions in the engine combustion process for signal acquisition provides an ideal experimental data .


Depression and cognitive impairment have been identified as risk factors for cerebrovascular events (CVE), and one of their potential etiological pathways is inflammatory status. This prospective study aims to investigate the association between inflammatory markers and the risk of CVE in a population of 2659 older adults, enrolled in the Progetto Veneto Anziani (Pro.V.A.), with depressive symptoms, cognitive impairment, or both conditions. For each individual, we assessed at baseline the presence of depressive symptoms (defined as a Geriatric Depression Scale ≥11), cognitive impairment (defined as a Mini-Mental State Examination <24), and serum levels of fibrinogen, white blood cells (WBC), and erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR). During a 4.4-year follow-up, 188 (7.1%) participants had CVE. Among the inflammatory markers, high fibrinogen values were associated with a 50% higher risk of CVE in the whole sample, and with a 4-fold higher risk in individuals with both depressive symptoms and cognitive impairment (hazard ratio = 4.04, 95% confidence interval: 1.45-11.23). Elevated WBC were associated with a 5% higher risk of CVE in the whole sample and in those with both conditions. No significant association was observed with the ESR. In conclusion, our study found that high fibrinogen levels may predict the risk of CVE in older people with concomitant depressive symptoms and cognitive impairment. Therefore, fibrinogen could be considered as an easily accessible aging biomarker, which might estimate the chronic inflammatory status and its potential detrimental effects on the most vulnerable older adults.


Swiss society is ageing. At the same time, life expectancy is increasing. With most workers retiring around age 65, time in retirement is growing and the ratio of retirees to employees is set to soar. These developments bring a range of opportunities but will likely weigh on growth in GDP per capita and increase public spending. They may also widen existing inequalities. This paper highlights three key policy challenges to preserve high living standards in coming decades. First, the pension system ensures good retirement incomes despite a lack of reforms. However, reforms are urgently needed as the system is under increasing pressure. Second, a range of disincentives and barriers in the labour market and tax system contribute to early retirement and involuntary retirement. Boosting employability at older ages and broadening older workers' options would dampen the economic impact of ageing. Third, the Swiss health system delivers good outcomes but at a higher cost than other countries, and ageing will only exacerbate the associated pressures. Cost containment and improved co-ordination are vital. Adjusting the financing of long-term care could improve access and the overall quality of long-term care.


In this paper, we will build a roadmap for the growing literature of high order quadraturebased entropy stable discontinuous Galerkin (DG) methods, trying to elucidate the motivations and emphasize the contributions. Compared to the classic DG method which is only provably stable for the square entropy, these DG forms can be tailored to satisfy an arbitrary given entropy inequality, and do not require exact integration. The methodology is within the summation-by-parts (SBP) paradigm, such that the discrete operators collocated at the quadrature points should satisfy the SBP property. The construction is relatively easy for quadrature rules with collocated surface nodes. We use the flux differencing technique to ensure entropy balance within elements, and the simultaneous approximation terms (SATs) to produce entropy dissipation on element interfaces. The further extension to general quadrature rules is achieved through careful modifications of SATs.


Objective: To emphasize the importance of fetal heart sonography in the third trimester by presenting a case of congenital ductus arteriosus aneurysm (DAA) diagnosed by antenatal sonography at 38 weeks of gestation even though level II sonography showed no abnormality in the midtrimester Case: A 30 year-old Korean woman (G1P0), who had normal findings from level II sonography checked at the 23 weeks of gestation, underwent fetal ultrasonographic examination at 38 weeks of gestation. The three-vessel view of heart showed a fusiform dilatation of ductus arteriosus (DA). And the sagital view of ductal arch demonstrated a dilated DA at the distal end. Its diameter was 12 mm. Using color Doppler and pulsed Doppler in DAA, turbulent flow was detected but flow velocity was normal. Any other intracardiac abnormality was not found in subsequent fetal echocardiography. The active male baby was born by spontaneous vaginal delivery at 40 weeks of gestation, weighing 3300 grams. DAA was confirmed by postnatal echocardiography in 24 hours after birth. But, functional closure of the DAA was detected by color Doppler at that time. Finally, the DAA was closed spontaneously without any intervention throughout neonatal period. Conclusion: Congenital DAA is usually developed in the third trimester. The majority of DAA cases shows uncomplicated closure, but it is potentially fatal due to the possible complications such as spontaneous rupture, dissection, and thromboembolism. So, the necessity of fetal heart sonography in the third trimester is considered.


ABSTRACT This article aims to demonstrate that works of art and literature can provide important insights in law and justice that are hard to grasp by one-sidedly rationalist methods of academic analysis. It takes Sophocles' Antigone – perhaps the most classical text of law and literature's familiar catalogue – as a case in point, drawing attention to some important aspects of that play's legal epistemic relevance that are still largely overlooked. Arguing that the widespread view on the confrontation between Antigone and Creon as a clash between 'divine' and 'human' law is mistaken, the article builds on Hegel's view that the positions of both protagonists are likewise incomplete, denying elements of law and justice that are equally essential, the one being no less divine than the other. However, it departs from Hegel's analysis in maintaining that the play does not entail the promise of 'ethical life' (Sittlichkeit) as some synthesis that recognizes the specific value of both Antigone's and Creon's stances on law and justice but takes away their incompatibility. Instead, it is argued that the play teaches us that such harmonization is unattainable – a no less valuable lesson indeed.


Opposition from organized business interests can impede policy reform. Under what conditions are firms incentivized to support reform? We argue that in federal systems state policy and politics can have a home state effect on the national preferences of firms and firms' coalition membership. State policies can force firms to absorb regulatory cost, thus reducing the marginal cost of national policies. In addition, firms heavily regulated at the state level have incentives to strategically align with their state governments. We test our argument by matching original data on the positions of large electric utilities towards the Clean Power Plan and data on ad hoc coalition membership with data measuring state policy stringency and state government positions. Quantitative evidence is consistent with hypotheses: both state policies and state politics influence utilities' national positions. Elite interviews help clarify different mechanisms. Our findings show how sub-national governments shape national interest group politics.


This thesis describes the development and evaluation of new automated Question Answering (QA) methods tailored to clinical comparison questions that give clinicians a rank-ordered list of MEDLINE® abstracts targeted to natural language clinical drug comparison questions (e.g. "Have any studies directly compared the effects of Pioglitazone and Rosiglitazone on the liver?"). Three corpora were created to develop and evaluate a new QA system for clinical comparison questions called RetroRank. RetroRank takes the clinician's plain text question as input, processes it and outputs a rank-ordered list of potential answer candidates, i.e. MEDLINE® abstracts, that is reordered using new post-retrieval ranking strategies to ensure the most topically-relevant abstracts are displayed as high in the result set as possible. RetroRank achieves a significant improvement over the PubMed recency baseline and performs equal to or better than previous approaches to post-retrieval ranking relying on query frames and annotated data such as the approach by Demner-Fushman and Lin (2007). The performance of RetroRank shows that it is possible to successfully use natural language input and a fully automated approach to obtain answers to clinical drug comparison questions. This thesis also introduces two new evaluation corpora of clinical comparison questions with "gold standard" references that are freely available and are a valuable resource for future research in medical QA.


Background Acute care surgery (ACS) encompasses trauma, critical care, and emergency general surgery. Due to high volumes of emergency surgery, an ACS service was developed at a referral hospital in Rwanda. The aim of this study was to evaluate the epidemiology of ACS and understand the impact of an ACS service on patient outcomes. Methods This is a retrospective observational study of ACS patients before and after introduction of an ACS service. χ2 test and Wilcoxon rank-sum test were used to describe the epidemiology and compare outcomes before (pre-ACS)) and after (post-ACS) implementation of the ACS service. Results Data were available for 120 patients before ACS and 102 patients after ACS. Diagnoses included: intestinal obstruction (n=80, 36%), trauma (n=38, 17%), appendicitis (n=31, 14%), and soft tissue infection (n=17, 8%) with no difference between groups. The most common operation was midline laparotomy (n=138, 62%) with no difference between groups (p=0.910). High American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA) score (ASA ≥3) (11% vs. 40%, p<0.001) was more common after ACS. There was no difference in intensive care unit admission (8% vs. 8%, p=0.894), unplanned reoperation (22% vs. 13%, p=0.082), or mortality (10% vs. 11%, p=0.848). The median length of hospital stay was longer (11 days vs. 7 days, p<0.001) before ACS. Conclusions An ACS service can be implemented in a low-resource setting. In Rwanda, ACS patients are young with few comorbidities, but high rates of mortality and morbidity. In spite of more patients who are critically ill in the post-ACS period, implementation of an ACS service resulted in decreased length of hospital stay with no difference in morbidity and mortality. Level of evidence Prognostic and epidemiologic study type, level III.


SCIB1 is a DNA vaccine encoding a human IgG1 antibody, with T cell epitopes from gp100 and TRP-2 antigens engineered into its CDRs. It targets dendritic cells in vivo via the high affinity Fc receptor. A clinical trial in stage III/IV melanoma patients showed that doses of 2-8 mg could induce T cell responses in 7/9 patients with no associated toxicity. Overall median survival was 24 months. In this study SCIB1 is used as an adjuvant therapy. Methods: 16 patients with fully resected stage III (9) or stage IV (7) melanoma, were immunised with SCIB1 by Intramuscular electroporation at 0, 3, 6, 12 and 24 weeks. Patients tolerating treatment were allowed to continue treatment for up to 5 years. Results: Thirteen patients received 4mg doses of SCIB1 on 5 occasions and one received 4 doses of 4mg followed by one dose of 2mg. One patient only tolerated administration of three 2mg doses of SCIB1. One patient received three 2mg doses and then two 4mg doses. Seven patients received additional doses of SCIB1. One patient received 3 doses prior to withdrawal due to disease progression and one patient received 5 doses. The other six patients remain on continuation: three have received 5 doses and two have received 6 doses of SCIB1. Apart from soreness at the injection site, there have been no significant toxicities. All sixteen patients showed an epitope specific proliferation response ex vivo and an IFN Elispot response in-vitroafter T cell expansion. Eleven patients responded to all 4 epitopes, three patients to 3 epitopes, one patients to 2 epitopes and one patients to 1 epitope. All patients with continued treatment showed strong T cell memory responses. Currently patients have a median survival time from trial entry of 29.5 months and from diagnosis of metastases of 34 months. Progression free survival is 78% and 72% for stage III and IV respectively and overall survival is 100% for both groups. Only 4 patients have relapsed at 4, 14, 18 and 18 months, since the last relapse there have been no further recurrences for 23 months. Conclusions: These results suggest that SCIB1 may confer protection from recurrence of melanoma with little associated toxicity. This vaccine deserves further evaluation as an adjuvant therapy. Clinical trial information: 2009-017355-10.


Direct numerical simulation of open-channel flow over a bed of spheres arranged in a regular pattern has been carried out at bulk Reynolds number and roughness Reynolds number (based on sphere diameter) of approximately 6900 and 120, respectively, for which the flow regime is fully rough. The open-channel height was approximately 5.5 times the diameter of the spheres. Extending the results obtained by Chan-Braun et al. (J. Fluid Mech., vol. 684, 2011, pp. 441–474) for an open-channel flow in the transitionally rough regime, the present purpose is to show how the flow structure changes as the fully rough regime is attained and, for the first time, to enable a direct comparison with experimental observations. Different statistical tools were used to investigate the flow field in the roughness sublayer and in the logarithmic region. The results indicate that, in the vicinity of the roughness elements, the average flow field is affected both by Reynolds number effects and by the geometrical features of the roughness, while at larger wall distances this is not the case, and roughness concepts can be applied. Thus, the roughness function is computed which in the present set-up can be expected to depend on the relative submergence. The flow–roughness interaction occurs mostly in the region above the virtual origin of the velocity profile, and the effect of form-induced velocity fluctuations is maximum at the level of sphere crests. In particular, the root mean square of fluctuations about the streamwise component of the average velocity field reflects the geometry of the spheres in the roughness sublayer and attains a maximum value just above the roughness elements. The latter is significantly weakened and shifted towards larger wall distances as compared to the transitionally rough regime or the case of a smooth wall. The spanwise length scale of turbulent velocity fluctuations in the vicinity of the sphere crests shows the same dependence on the distance from the wall as that observed over a smooth wall, and both vary with Reynolds number in a similar fashion. Moreover, the hydrodynamic force and torque experienced by the roughness elements are investigated and the footprint left by vortex structures on the stress acting on the sphere surface is observed. Finally, the possibility either to adopt an analogy between the hydrodynamic forces associated with the interaction of turbulent structures with a flat smooth wall or with the surface of the spheres is also discussed, distinguishing the skin-friction from the form-drag contributions both in the transitionally rough and in the fully rough regimes.


For the disadvantages of the lateral powder feeding and multi-lateral coaxial powder feeding process in laser cladding rapid prototyping process, a new process of hollow focusing laser, powder tube being middle and inside-beam powder feeding is put forward, which can be especially apply in laser cladding. In this paper, the finite element analysis model of temperature of the laser cladding using inside-beam powder feeding is established, temperature distribution of the single-layer in laser cladding is researched, which is theoretically useful for controlling the quality of microstructure and to prevent the cracks. When adopting finite element analysis software, Ansys, the layer unit is acted layer-by-layer, the full simulation of real cladding deposition process will be realized if moving boundary. Finally, some experiments validate the simulation results. Compared with the original mode, it can be found that if adopting the system of the laser cladding rapid manufacturing using inside-beam powder feeding, the temperature distribution is different and it will lead to a denser microstructure.


Infrared and Raman spectra of halogenated and nitrile substituted hydrocarbons have been studied in various phases including temperatures as low as 8 K by isolation in matrices of solid argon or krypton. In the compounds :CH 2 =CH 2 CH 2 =CHD CH 2 =CH(CH 2 ) n -X where n= 0,1,2 and X= CH 3 , Cl, Br and CEN comparisons are made between the spectra in the gas and matrix isolated phases. The alkene out-of-plane vibrations are sensitive to rotation, aggregation and conformational change. The twist and wag modes show consistent differences between the gas and matrix phases which are discussed in terms of different anharmonicities. Using a specially constructed temperature control unit evidence was obtained for rotation of ethene and ethene-d-, in the matrix. The spectra of the larger molecules in the gas phase were measured (using Fourier Transform methods in some cases ) leading to the calculation of rotational constants which corresponded with those calculated for particular structures. Discrimination between various matrix effects is achieved by comparing the rate of conversion from high to low energy forms under careful temperature control. In acrylonitrile the low energy form is the result of an intermolecular effect leading to polymeric aggregate, in chloroprene this is an intramolecular effect. Rate constants are reported in each case at 500:1 and 5000:1 dilution in argon and vibrational assignments are made to various high and low energy forms in matrices. Finally a series of dichloro and dibromohexanes and octanes have been prepared and purified and their Raman and infrared spectra recorded in the liquid state. A modified manipulative method has been developed for introducing these compounds of relatively low volatility into inert gas matrices and recording their infrared spectra. Assignments of bands are made within a limited range in relation to their conformational preference as model compounds for head to head PVC and PVBr.


WikiSilo: A Self-organizing, Crowd Sourcing System for Interdisciplinary Science David Pierre Leibovitz Carleton University, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada Robert L. West Carleton University, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada Mike Belanger Carleton University, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada Abstract: WikiSilo is a tool for theorizing across interdisciplinary fields such as Cognitive Science using a specific vocabulary and structure. It is designed to show if a particular cognitive theory is complete and coherent at multiple levels of discourse, and commensurable with and relevant to a wider domain of cognition. WikiSilo is also a minimalist theory and methodology about effectively doing science, and is therefore a form of epistemizing. WikiSilo theory provides for a disciplined exploration of explanatory space via an axiomatic hierarchy of epistemizing and ontologizing postulates. The WikiSilo tool, via a software version control system, supports the long term goal of working toward coherent and unified theories. More generally, WikiSilo facilitates self-organization leading to academic silos with well-defined conceptual frameworks that are vertically related as compared to poorly related ad-hoc academic fiefdoms.


Athletics, also called trackand -field sports or Track & Field, a variety of competitions in running, walking, jumping, throwing events and combined events. Although these contests are called Track and Field (or simply track), they are generally designated as athletics elsewhere. Track -and -field athletics is the oldest forms of organized sport having developed out of the most basic human activities running, jumping and throwing. Athletics is one of the most popular international sports, in which a large number of countries in the world used to participate in the International level. Athletics Association of various counties sends their athletes to the Olympic Games and to the official world championships of Track and Field.


ABSTRACT Radiocarbon (14C) in dissolved inorganic carbon (DIC) was measured for water samples collected from six deep stations in the Kuroshio Extension (KE) region in the northwestern North Pacific in April–May 2015. Vertical profiles of Δ14C-DIC indicate that bomb-produced 14C was present from the surface to ~1500 m water depth. Large variations in Δ14C-DIC values (300‰) were observed at 500 m water depth among the stations and the differences were likely controlled by transport and mixing dynamics of different water masses in the region. The major Pacific western boundary currents, such as Kuroshio and Oyashio and regional mesoscale eddies, could play important roles affecting the observed Δ14C-DIC variability. The depth profiles of both Δ14C-DIC and DIC concentrations can be predicted by the solution mixing model and can be used as conservative tracers of water mass movement and water parcel homogenization in the ocean.


Film narratives are intrinsically time-dependent designs. This article proposes a model of narrative nowness, based on Husserl's concepts of retention and protention on one hand, and Francisco Varela's neurophenomenological exploration of time consciousness on the other, relating this further to narrative experience and its neural epiphenomena. Only recently has brain research been equipped with the possibility of dealing with temporal frames relevant for time consciousness in the scope of whole narratives. The study of cinema using neuroscientific methods and insights is referred to as neurocinematics. We promote neurocinematics as a complementary method of traditional film research, rather than an approach of brain sciences in general. Neurocinematic methods may provide film studies with new tools for re-evaluating established filmmaking conventions and developing new ways to study, for instance, the film viewer's experience and related aspects of time consciousness.


Motivated by recent experiments on the dustiness of nanoscale powders, this research addresses the modeling of powder aerosolization within the Venturi Dustiness Test (VDT) apparatus. As a first step in such modeling, we investigate the flow over a hemispherical (powder) hill, at the operating Reynolds number Re ∼ 20,000, in the powder holding tube attached to the VDT. The powder holding tube is idealized as a cylindrical tube, obstructed by a hemispherical (powder) hill.
 The upstream flow field is characterized by the presence of a horse-shoe vortex, formed due to the separation of the boundary layer from the wall of the tube. A stagnation point occurs at the lower front surface of the bump. Strong near-wall vorticity is generated midway up the bump, and the flow is separated near the top of the bump. Kelvin-Helmholtz vortices are produced due to the strong shear-layer vorticity, and these then travel downstream with the flow. The upstream near-wall flow is dominated by a horseshoe vortex forming a necklace pushed out into the wake area. The flow detaches from the bump at the separation line, leading to vortex 'roll-up'. These rolled-up vortices merge with the horseshoe vortices to form a large entangled hairpin vortex. The arch-type vortices shed with a frequency consistent with the Strouhal estimate fSt ∼ 6700 Hz.


Over the last few years, cross-sectional imaging became clinically accepted for qualitative and quantitative analysis of left ventricular (LV) function. The results have an impact on diagnosis, therapy and follow-up, and some parameters even proved to be independent predictors of mortality. Besides well established cardiologic techniques, such as ventriculography and echocardiography, more recent radiologic techniques, especially magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and multislice spiral computed tomography (MSCT), became accepted for imaging of LV function. Assessment of LV function with cardiac MRI is based on cine sequences. Over the last years, parallel imaging techniques, fast imaging with steady state free precession and real time sequences were successfully introduced. Further improvements were achieved by stress examinations and MR-tagging. Cardiac MSCT with retrospective ECG-gating allows for reliable determination of LV volumes. Assessment of wall motion is feasible but limited to some degree. Nevertheless, cardiac MSCT is a powerful alternative for patients with contraindications to MRI. Aim of this article is to review theoretical and technical aspects, opportunities and limitations of MRI and MSCT for functional imaging of the heart.


This article provides up-to-date information regarding clinical manifestations, pathophysiology, and evidence-based treatment for tardive dyskinesia (TD). We conducted a comprehensive literature search, including sources such as the Cochrane Library, EMBASE, and Medline; and we manually searched bibliographic references. We also contacted the authors of each included trial. All randomized clinical trials that compared different types of active interventions with placebo or no intervention in patients with neuroleptic-induced TD were included in our data. Two reviewers independently applied the selection criteria to all identified references, appraised the methodological quality of each trial, and extracted the relevant data. Relative risks and 95% confidence intervals were estimated using the fixed effect model. More than 500 randomized trials evaluating over 90 different interventions to treat TD were identified. From those, 45 trials were included in the current reviews. None of the trials pooled on these reviews found a definitive therapy for TD. Clinicians faced with conditions such as TD should carefully weigh the risks and benefits involved with any given intervention.


White matter fiber tractography based on diffusion-weighted magnetic resonance imaging is a promising method for non-invasive investigation of anatomical connectivity in the human brain. Knowledge of the white matter connections linking functional brain areas can inform interpretation of functional imaging results and allow the construction of biologically informed computational and statistical models. However, relatively little attention has been paid to the reproducibility and external validity of tractography results, even as the user base of this technology continues to grow, and as tractography research is applied to cognitive neuroscience research in novel ways. In this investigation, we addressed the reliability and validity of deterministic tractography results based on diffusion spectrum imaging (DSI). Reliability was evaluated both in terms of the presence/absence of fiber connections across sessions and the correlation of fiber density values. Validity was assessed by comparing tractography results to findings from invasive studies of the macaque monkey: we focused on the cortical and subcortical connections of the frontal eye fields (FEF). Results indicated significant variability in tractography: on average, intercortical connections present in one session had only a 75% likelihood of being detected in a second session from the same individual. However, the fiber density of repeatedly-detected connections was highly reliable, with an average between-session correlation coefficient of 0.94. Next, we investigated how global vs. targeted tractography approaches affected reliability and detection power. We found that a targeted approach, involving the use of region-of interest (ROI) constraints, yielded a large advantage in detection power and modest improvements in reliability. Finally, fiber connections of the human FEF were broadly consistent with hypotheses derived from a meta-analysis of macaque findings: we found reliable projections to the supplementary eye fields (SEF), striatum, thalamus, and parietal cortex. In contrast, we found lesser connectivity to a set of foil regions. The combined results of this study validate the use of DSI-based fiber tractography to address hypotheses relating to human brain connectivity. However, widespread noise in tractography results highlights the need for conservative approaches to fiber tracking research. We especially emphasize the benefits of collecting multiple data samples per participant and of addressing targeted hypotheses.


This paper evaluates the suitability of existing parametric peaking EQ interfaces of analogue and digital mixing desks and audio plugins for single channel corrective EQ tasks. It proposes novel alternatives based upon displaying FFT bin maximums for the full audio duration behind the EQ curve, automatically detecting and displaying the top five FFT bin maximum peaks to assist the engineer, an alternative numerical list display of top five FFT bin maximum peaks and an interface that allows direct manipulation of the displayed FFT bin maximums. All interfaces were evaluated based on the time taken to perform a corrective EQ task, preference ranking and qualitative comments. Results indicate that the novel EQ interfaces presented have potential over existing EQ interfaces.


Industry 4.0 will make manufacturing processes smarter but this smartness requires more environmental awareness, which in case of Industrial Internet of Things, is realized by the help of sensors. This article is about industrial pharmaceutical systems and more specifically, water purification systems. Purified water which has certain conductivity is an important ingredient in many pharmaceutical products. Almost every pharmaceutical company has a water purifying unit as a part of its interdependent systems. Early detection of faults right at the edge can significantly decrease maintenance costs and improve safety and output quality, and as a result, lead to the production of better medicines. In this article, with the help of a few sensors and data mining approaches, an anomaly detection system is built for CHRIST Osmotron water purifier. This is a practical research with real-world data collected from SinaDarou Labs Co. Data collection was done by using six sensors over two-week intervals before and after system overhaul. This gave us normal and faulty operation samples. Given the data, we propose two anomaly detection approaches to build up our edge fault detection system. The first approach is based on supervised learning and data mining, e.g., by support vector machines. However, since we cannot collect all possible faults data, an anomaly detection approach is proposed based on normal system identification which models the system components by artificial neural networks. Extensive experiments are conducted with the data set generated in this study to show the accuracy of the data-driven and model-based anomaly detection methods.


Testability is a new and important technology as reliability and maintainability. A lot of literature has discussed the optimal problems of testability in recent years. In Chiu's paper, a new kind of precedence constraints, parallel-chain precedence constraints, was presented, which is a common constraint in many products and systems. He discussed the optimal inspection strategies to determine the states (good/failed) of some typical reliability systems with parallel-chain precedence constraints. But in reality we encounter more problems with fault-testing models, and how to locate all the failed components with minimal cost is our interest. Suppose that a coherent system has n independent components, each of which has a known prior probability of fault. The true state of each component can be obtained by inspecting it with some cost. This paper discusses the optimal inspection strategies of the coherent system with parallel-chain precedence constraints when the system fails, which can minimize the total expected inspection cost. If the system is known to have failed, there are two situations: one is that the number of the failed components in the system is unknown, which is a common phenomenon; another is that the number of the failed components is known. In addition, the coherent systems concerned in this paper are all typical reliability systems, such as series, parallel, parallel-series, series-parallel and k -out-of- n systems, and all of them are subject to parallel-chain precedence constraints.