Do Size and Insecticide Treatment Matter? Evaluation of Different Nets against Phlebotomus argentipes, the Vector of Visceral Leishmaniasis in Nepal.

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Murari Lal Das

Full Text Available In the Indian subcontinent, Leishmania donovani, the parasite causing visceral leishmaniasis (VL is transmitted by the sand fly vector Phlebotomus argentipes. Long lasting insecticide treated nets (LN have been postulated as alternative or complement to Indoor Residual Spraying but there are few field studies evaluating the entomological efficacy of different nets against this vector. We conducted two crossover trials in a VL endemic area in Nepal to compare the barrier effect of (1 LN with different mesh sizes (156 holes/inch2 vs 625 holes/inch2 and (2 alpha-cypermethrin treated LN and untreated nets having the same mesh size (156 holes/inch2. Each crossover trial had two arms consisting of a sequence of two different nets for 8 nights. We used 10 cattle sheds per trial. A cow placed under the net was used as bait. CDC light traps placed inside the nets were used to evaluate the number of P. argentipes crossing the net barrier. Negative binomial generalized estimating equation (GEE population-averaged models adjusted by night and sequence were used to estimate the barrier effect of the different nets. The crossover trials conducted in a rural village in Morang district (South-eastern Nepal demonstrated that reducing the size of the holes in treated nets (625 holes/inch2 increased the barrier effect of LN by 77% (95% confidence interval (CI: 56%-88% compared with treated nets with larger holes (156 holes/inch2. Treating nets with alpha-cypermethrin reduced the number of P. argentipes captured inside the nets by 77% (95% CI: 27%-93% compared with untreated nets. The effectiveness and acceptability of finer mesh pyrethroid treated LN should be tested for VL prevention in a randomized controlled trial.

Increased proportions of outdoor feeding among residual malaria vector populations following increased use of insecticide-treated nets in rural Tanzania

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Azizi Salum

2011-04-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Insecticide-treated nets (ITNs and indoor residual spraying (IRS represent the front-line tools for malaria vector control globally, but are optimally effective where the majority of baseline transmission occurs indoors. In the surveyed area of rural southern Tanzania, bed net use steadily increased over the last decade, reducing malaria transmission intensity by 94%. Methods Starting before bed nets were introduced (1997, and then after two milestones of net use had been reached-75% community-wide use of untreated nets (2004 and then 47% use of ITNs (2009-hourly biting rates of malaria vectors from the Anopheles gambiae complex and Anopheles funestus group were surveyed. Results In 1997, An. gambiae s.l. and An. funestus mosquitoes exhibited a tendency to bite humans inside houses late at night. For An. gambiae s.l., by 2009, nocturnal activity was less (p = 0.0018. At this time, the sibling species composition of the complex had shifted from predominantly An. gambiae s.s. to predominantly An. arabiensis. For An. funestus, by 2009, nocturnal activity was less (p = 0.0054 as well as the proportion biting indoors (p An. funestus s.s. remained the predominant species within this group. As a consequence of these altered feeding patterns, the proportion (mean ± standard error of human contact with mosquitoes (bites per person per night occurring indoors dropped from 0.99 ± 0.002 in 1997 to 0.82 ± 0.008 in 2009 for the An. gambiae complex (p = 0.0143 and from 1.00 ± An. funestus complex (p = 0.0004 over the same time period. Conclusions High usage of ITNs can dramatically alter African vector populations so that intense, predominantly indoor transmission is replaced by greatly lowered residual transmission, a greater proportion of which occurs outdoors. Regardless of the underlying mechanism, the residual, self-sustaining transmission will respond poorly to further insecticidal measures within houses. Additional vector control

Understanding gastric forces calculated from high-resolution pill tracking.

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Laulicht, Bryan; Tripathi, Anubhav; Schlageter, Vincent; Kucera, Pavel; Mathiowitz, Edith

2010-05-04

Although other methods exist for monitoring gastrointestinal motility and contractility, this study exclusively provides direct and quantitative measurements of the forces experienced by an orally ingested pill. We report motive forces and torques calculated from real-time, in vivo measurements of the movement of a magnetic pill in the stomachs of fasted and fed humans. Three-dimensional net force and two-dimensional net torque vectors as a function of time data during gastric residence are evaluated using instantaneous translational and rotational position data. Additionally, the net force calculations described can be applied to high-resolution pill tracking acquired by any modality. The fraction of time pills experience ranges of forces and torques are analyzed and correlate with the physiological phases of gastric digestion. We also report the maximum forces and torques experienced in vivo by pills as a quantitative measure of the amount of force pills experience during the muscular contractions leading to gastric emptying. Results calculated from human data are compared with small and large animal models with a translational research focus. The reported magnitude and direction of gastric forces experienced by pills in healthy stomachs serves as a baseline for comparison with pathophysiological states. Of clinical significance, the directionality associated with force vector data may be useful in determining the muscle groups associated with gastrointestinal dysmotility. Additionally, the quantitative comparison between human and animal models improves insight into comparative gastric contractility that will aid rational pill design and provide a quantitative framework for interpreting gastroretentive oral formulation test results.

Effect of intrusive and retraction forces in labial and lingual orthodontics: A finite element study

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Rohan Mascarenhas

2014-01-01

Full Text Available Objectives: Lingual orthodontics differs in biomechanics as compared to labial system and has biomechanical advantages. Although theoretical approaches have explained the differences between labial and lingual orthodontics, the finite element method (FEM may be better suited to analyze these differences. This study analyzes the effect of vertical and horizontal forces together on the tooth using FEM. Materials and Methods: An extracted right maxillary central incisor was radiographed and was used to create a solid model using ANSYS. The geometric model was converted into a finite element model with the help of ANSYS software. The model consists of 27,000 elements and 30,000 nodes. Two force vectors (vertical and horizontal were applied labially and lingually at 3 different heights- 4 mm, 5 mm and 6 mm from the incisal edge. Results: In the labial system, the net force vector passes through the center of resistance (CR and brings about intrusion. The net force vector in lingual orthodontics does not pass through the center of resistance and produces lingual tipping of the incisors. Conclusion: Intrusion and retraction forces bring about tipping of incisors in lingual orthodontics. The same amount of intrusion and retraction forces brings about intrusion of incisors in labial orthodontics. Therefore, direction and amount of forces should be carefully and judiciously applied after taking into consideration the resultant biomechanical differences.

The positive net radiative greenhouse gas forcing of increasing methane emissions from a thawing boreal forest-wetland landscape.

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Helbig, Manuel; Chasmer, Laura E; Kljun, NatasCha; Quinton, William L; Treat, Claire C; Sonnentag, Oliver

2017-06-01

At the southern margin of permafrost in North America, climate change causes widespread permafrost thaw. In boreal lowlands, thawing forested permafrost peat plateaus ('forest') lead to expansion of permafrost-free wetlands ('wetland'). Expanding wetland area with saturated and warmer organic soils is expected to increase landscape methane (CH 4 ) emissions. Here, we quantify the thaw-induced increase in CH 4 emissions for a boreal forest-wetland landscape in the southern Taiga Plains, Canada, and evaluate its impact on net radiative forcing relative to potential long-term net carbon dioxide (CO 2 ) exchange. Using nested wetland and landscape eddy covariance net CH 4 flux measurements in combination with flux footprint modeling, we find that landscape CH 4 emissions increase with increasing wetland-to-forest ratio. Landscape CH 4 emissions are most sensitive to this ratio during peak emission periods, when wetland soils are up to 10 °C warmer than forest soils. The cumulative growing season (May-October) wetland CH 4 emission of ~13 g CH 4  m -2 is the dominating contribution to the landscape CH 4 emission of ~7 g CH 4  m -2 . In contrast, forest contributions to landscape CH 4 emissions appear to be negligible. The rapid wetland expansion of 0.26 ± 0.05% yr -1 in this region causes an estimated growing season increase of 0.034 ± 0.007 g CH 4  m -2  yr -1 in landscape CH 4 emissions. A long-term net CO 2 uptake of >200 g CO 2  m -2  yr -1 is required to offset the positive radiative forcing of increasing CH 4 emissions until the end of the 21st century as indicated by an atmospheric CH 4 and CO 2 concentration model. However, long-term apparent carbon accumulation rates in similar boreal forest-wetland landscapes and eddy covariance landscape net CO 2 flux measurements suggest a long-term net CO 2 uptake between 49 and 157 g CO 2  m -2  yr -1 . Thus, thaw-induced CH 4 emission increases likely exert a positive net radiative greenhouse gas

Force, Velocity, and Work: The Effects of Different Contexts on Students' Understanding of Vector Concepts Using Isomorphic Problems

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Barniol, Pablo; Zavala, Genaro

2014-01-01

In this article we compare students' understanding of vector concepts in problems with no physical context, and with three mechanics contexts: force, velocity, and work. Based on our "Test of Understanding of Vectors," a multiple-choice test presented elsewhere, we designed two isomorphic shorter versions of 12 items each: a test with no…

Preliminary Experimental Results for Indirect Vector-Control of Induction Motor Drives with Forced Dynamics

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Jan Vittek

2003-01-01

Full Text Available The contribution presents an extension of indirect vector control of electric drives employing induction motors to 'Forced Dynamic Control'. This method of control offers an accurate realisation of dynamic response profiles, which can be selected by the user. The developed system can be integrated into a drive with a shaft position encoder or a shaft sensoriess drive, in which only the stator currents are measured. The applied stator voltages are determined by a computed inverter switching algorithm. Simulation results and preliminary experimental results for indirect vector control of an idle running induction motor indicate good agreement with the theoretical predictions.

Vector grammars and PN machines

Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

蒋昌俊

1996-01-01

The concept of vector grammars under the string semantic is introduced.The dass of vector grammars is given,which is similar to the dass of Chomsky grammars.The regular vector grammar is divided further.The strong and weak relation between the vector grammar and scalar grammar is discussed,so the spectrum system graph of scalar and vector grammars is made.The equivalent relation between the regular vector grammar and Petri nets (also called PN machine) is pointed.The hybrid PN machine is introduced,and its language is proved equivalent to the language of the context-free vector grammar.So the perfect relation structure between vector grammars and PN machines is formed.

Analysis of vector wind change with respect to time for Vandenberg Air Force Base, California

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Adelfang, S. I.

1978-01-01

A statistical analysis of the temporal variability of wind vectors at 1 km altitude intervals from 0 to 27 km altitude taken from a 10-year data sample of twice-daily rawinsode wind measurements over Vandenberg Air Force Base, California is presented.

Mathematical evaluation of community level impact of combining bed nets and indoor residual spraying upon malaria transmission in areas where the main vectors are Anopheles arabiensis mosquitoes

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Okumu Fredros O

2013-01-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Indoor residual insecticide spraying (IRS and long-lasting insecticide treated nets (LLINs are commonly used together even though evidence that such combinations confer greater protection against malaria than either method alone is inconsistent. Methods A deterministic model of mosquito life cycle processes was adapted to allow parameterization with results from experimental hut trials of various combinations of untreated nets or LLINs (Olyset®, PermaNet 2.0®, Icon Life® nets with IRS (pirimiphos methyl, lambda cyhalothrin, DDT, in a setting where vector populations are dominated by Anopheles arabiensis, so that community level impact upon malaria transmission at high coverage could be predicted. Results Intact untreated nets alone provide equivalent personal protection to all three LLINs. Relative to IRS plus untreated nets, community level protection is slightly higher when Olyset® or PermaNet 2.0® nets are added onto IRS with pirimiphos methyl or lambda cyhalothrin but not DDT, and when Icon Life® nets supplement any of the IRS insecticides. Adding IRS onto any net modestly enhances communal protection when pirimiphos methyl is sprayed, while spraying lambda cyhalothrin enhances protection for untreated nets but not LLINs. Addition of DDT reduces communal protection when added to LLINs. Conclusions Where transmission is mediated primarily by An. arabiensis, adding IRS to high LLIN coverage provides only modest incremental benefit (e.g. when an organophosphate like pirimiphos methyl is used, but can be redundant (e.g. when a pyrethroid like lambda cyhalothin is used or even regressive (e.g. when DDT is used for the IRS. Relative to IRS plus untreated nets, supplementing IRS with LLINs will only modestly improve community protection. Beyond the physical protection that intact nets provide, additional protection against transmission by An. arabiensis conferred by insecticides will be remarkably small, regardless of

Implications of insecticide resistance for malaria vector control with long-lasting insecticidal nets: a WHO-coordinated, prospective, international, observational cohort study.

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Kleinschmidt, Immo; Bradley, John; Knox, Tessa Bellamy; Mnzava, Abraham Peter; Kafy, Hmooda Toto; Mbogo, Charles; Ismail, Bashir Adam; Bigoga, Jude D; Adechoubou, Alioun; Raghavendra, Kamaraju; Cook, Jackie; Malik, Elfatih M; Nkuni, Zinga José; Macdonald, Michael; Bayoh, Nabie; Ochomo, Eric; Fondjo, Etienne; Awono-Ambene, Herman Parfait; Etang, Josiane; Akogbeto, Martin; Bhatt, Rajendra M; Chourasia, Mehul Kumar; Swain, Dipak K; Kinyari, Teresa; Subramaniam, Krishanthi; Massougbodji, Achille; Okê-Sopoh, Mariam; Ogouyemi-Hounto, Aurore; Kouambeng, Celestin; Abdin, Mujahid Sheikhedin; West, Philippa; Elmardi, Khalid; Cornelie, Sylvie; Corbel, Vincent; Valecha, Neena; Mathenge, Evan; Kamau, Luna; Lines, Jonathan; Donnelly, Martin James

2018-04-09

Scale-up of insecticide-based interventions has averted more than 500 million malaria cases since 2000. Increasing insecticide resistance could herald a rebound in disease and mortality. We aimed to investigate whether insecticide resistance was associated with loss of effectiveness of long-lasting insecticidal nets and increased malaria disease burden. This WHO-coordinated, prospective, observational cohort study was done at 279 clusters (villages or groups of villages in which phenotypic resistance was measurable) in Benin, Cameroon, India, Kenya, and Sudan. Pyrethroid long-lasting insecticidal nets were the principal form of malaria vector control in all study areas; in Sudan this approach was supplemented by indoor residual spraying. Cohorts of children from randomly selected households in each cluster were recruited and followed up by community health workers to measure incidence of clinical malaria and prevalence of infection. Mosquitoes were assessed for susceptibility to pyrethroids using the standard WHO bioassay test. Country-specific results were combined using meta-analysis. Between June 2, 2012, and Nov 4, 2016, 40 000 children were enrolled and assessed for clinical incidence during 1·4 million follow-up visits. 80 000 mosquitoes were assessed for insecticide resistance. Long-lasting insecticidal net users had lower infection prevalence (adjusted odds ratio [OR] 0·63, 95% CI 0·51-0·78) and disease incidence (adjusted rate ratio [RR] 0·62, 0·41-0·94) than did non-users across a range of resistance levels. We found no evidence of an association between insecticide resistance and infection prevalence (adjusted OR 0·86, 0·70-1·06) or incidence (adjusted RR 0·89, 0·72-1·10). Users of nets, although significantly better protected than non-users, were nevertheless subject to high malaria infection risk (ranging from an average incidence in net users of 0·023, [95% CI 0·016-0·033] per person-year in India, to 0·80 [0·65-0·97] per person

[Efficacy of permethrin-impregnated Olyset Net mosquito nets in a zone with pyrethroid resistant vectors. I--Entomologic evaluation].

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Doannio, J M; Dossou-Yovo, J; Diarrassouba, S; Chauvancy, G; Darriet, F; Chandre, F; Henry, M C; Nzeyimana, I; Guillet, P; Carnevale, P

1999-01-01

The efficacy of permethrin-treated Olyset Net mosquito nets on malaria transmission and morbidity was studied in Kafine, a village located in the savanna region of the Cote d'Ivoire in Africa. After collecting sociodemographic, entomological, and parasitological data, bednets were distributed first in the southern half of the village and then in the whole village. Throughout the study period, mosquito specimens were captured on the skin of inhabitants at four points in the village between 6 PM and 6 AM both inside (but outside bednets) and outside houses. Prior to distribution of bednets, the mean biting rate (MBR) by Anopheles gambiae was 77.4 bites per man per night (b/m/n). The mean parturity rate (MPR) was 40.6 p. 100, the sporozootic index (SI) was 0.99 p. 100, and the mean entomological inoculation rate (MEIR) was 0.7 infectious bites per man per night (b+/m/n). Six months after distribution of bednets in the southern half of the village, MBR was 80.2 b/m/n, MPR was 32 p. 100, SI was 1.8 p. 100, and MEIR was 0.83 b+/m/n. After extending distribution to the whole village, data from November 1996 to July 1997 were as follows: MBR, 67.8 b/m/n; MPR, 20.1 p. 100; SI, 0.65 p. 100; and MEIR, 0.66 p. 100. From August 1977 to July 1998, data were as follows: MBR, 102.6 b/m/n; MPR, 26.2 p. 100; SI, 1.15 p. 100; and MEIR, 0.74 b+/m/n. Comparative analysis of these data showed that use of bednets had no effect on the bite or entomological inoculation rate. This is in agreement with the documented resistance of vectors in the study zone to permethrin. Despite the known stimulation/repulsion effect of permethrin, use of treated bednets had no real impact on transmission. This inefficacy could be related to the high prevalence (80 p. 100) of the Kdr gene (responsible for resistance) in the savanna form of Anopheles gambiae.

Prediction of Spirometric Forced Expiratory Volume (FEV1) Data Using Support Vector Regression

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Kavitha, A.; Sujatha, C. M.; Ramakrishnan, S.

2010-01-01

In this work, prediction of forced expiratory volume in 1 second (FEV1) in pulmonary function test is carried out using the spirometer and support vector regression analysis. Pulmonary function data are measured with flow volume spirometer from volunteers (N=175) using a standard data acquisition protocol. The acquired data are then used to predict FEV1. Support vector machines with polynomial kernel function with four different orders were employed to predict the values of FEV1. The performance is evaluated by computing the average prediction accuracy for normal and abnormal cases. Results show that support vector machines are capable of predicting FEV1 in both normal and abnormal cases and the average prediction accuracy for normal subjects was higher than that of abnormal subjects. Accuracy in prediction was found to be high for a regularization constant of C=10. Since FEV1 is the most significant parameter in the analysis of spirometric data, it appears that this method of assessment is useful in diagnosing the pulmonary abnormalities with incomplete data and data with poor recording.

The US Air Force Aerial Spray Unit: a history of large area disease vector control operations, WWII through Katrina.

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Breidenbaugh, Mark; Haagsma, Karl

2008-01-01

The US Air Force has had a long history of aerial applications of pesticides to fulfill a variety of missions, the most important being the protection of troops through the minimization of arthropod vectors capable of disease transmission. Beginning in World War II, aerial application of pesticides by the military has effectively controlled vector and nuisance pest populations in a variety of environments. Currently, the military aerial spray capability resides in the US Air Force Reserve (USAFR), which operates and maintains C-130 airplanes capable of a variety of missions, including ultra low volume applications for vector and nuisance pests, as well as higher volume aerial applications of herbicides and oil-spill dispersants. The USAFR aerial spray assets are the only such fixed-wing aerial spray assets within the Department of Defense. In addition to troop protection, the USAFR Aerial Spray Unit has participated in a number of humanitarian/relief missions, most recently in the response to the 2005 Hurricanes Katrina and Rita, which heavily damaged the Gulf Coasts of Louisiana, Mississippi, and Texas. This article provides historical background on the Air Force Aerial Spray Unit and describes the operations in Louisiana in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina.

Elementary vectors

CERN Document Server

Wolstenholme, E Œ

1978-01-01

Elementary Vectors, Third Edition serves as an introductory course in vector analysis and is intended to present the theoretical and application aspects of vectors. The book covers topics that rigorously explain and provide definitions, principles, equations, and methods in vector analysis. Applications of vector methods to simple kinematical and dynamical problems; central forces and orbits; and solutions to geometrical problems are discussed as well. This edition of the text also provides an appendix, intended for students, which the author hopes to bridge the gap between theory and appl

Net radiative forcing and air quality responses to regional CO emission reductions

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M. M. Fry

2013-05-01

Full Text Available Carbon monoxide (CO emissions influence global and regional air quality and global climate change by affecting atmospheric oxidants and secondary species. We simulate the influence of halving anthropogenic CO emissions globally and individually from 10 regions on surface and tropospheric ozone, methane, and aerosol concentrations using a global chemical transport model (MOZART-4 for the year 2005. Net radiative forcing (RF is then estimated using the GFDL (Geophysical Fluid Dynamics Laboratory standalone radiative transfer model. We estimate that halving global CO emissions decreases global annual average concentrations of surface ozone by 0.45 ppbv, tropospheric methane by 73 ppbv, and global annual net RF by 36.1 mW m−2, nearly equal to the sum of changes from the 10 regional reductions. Global annual net RF per unit change in emissions and the 100 yr global warming potential (GWP100 are estimated as −0.124 mW m−2 (Tg CO−1 and 1.34, respectively, for the global CO reduction, and ranging from −0.115 to −0.131 mW m−2 (Tg CO−1 and 1.26 to 1.44 across 10 regions, with the greatest sensitivities for regions in the tropics. The net RF distributions show widespread cooling corresponding to the O3 and CH4 decreases, and localized positive and negative net RFs due to changes in aerosols. The strongest annual net RF impacts occur within the tropics (28° S–28° N followed by the northern midlatitudes (28° N–60° N, independent of reduction region, while the greatest changes in surface CO and ozone concentrations occur within the reduction region. Some regional reductions strongly influence the air quality in other regions, such as East Asia, which has an impact on US surface ozone that is 93% of that from North America. Changes in the transport of CO and downwind ozone production clearly exceed the direct export of ozone from each reduction region. The small variation in CO GWPs among world regions suggests that future international

Field trial on a novel control method for the dengue vector, Aedes aegypti by the systematic use of Olyset® Net and pyriproxyfen in Southern Vietnam

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Tsunoda Takashi

2013-01-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Jars, tanks, and drums provide favorable rearing/breeding sites for Aedes aegypti in Vietnam. However, the use of insecticides to control mosquitoes at such breeding sites has not been approved in Vietnam since they are also often sources of drinking water, making larval vector control difficult. Mosquito nets pre-treated with long-lasting insecticide treated nets (LLITNs form an effective measure for malaria control. We examined changes in the abundance of immature Aedes aegypti to evaluate the efficacy of covering ceramic jars with lids comprising one type of LLITN, Olyset® Net, in inhibiting oviposition by adult females, and to evaluate the effect of treating other breeding containers, such as flower vases, inside and around the outside of houses with a slow-release pyriproxyfen formulation to kill pupae. Methods We selected 313 households for the trial and 363 households for the control in Tan Chanh, Long An province, Vietnam. In the trial area, Olyset® Net lids were used to cover five major types of water container (ceramic jars, cylindrical concrete tanks, other concrete tanks, plastic drums, and plastic buckets, while pyriproxyfen was used to treat flower vases and ant traps. We also monitored dengue virus transmission by measuring anti-dengue IgM and IgG levels in healthy residents in both control and trial areas to estimate the effectiveness of Olyset® Net at controlling the dengue vector, Aedes aegypti. Results The container-index and house-index for immature Ae. aegypti fell steeply one month after treatment in the trial area. Lids with Olyset® Net that fit container openings clearly seemed to reduce the presence of immature Ae. aegypti as the density of pupae decreased 1 month after treatment in the trial area. Pyriproxyfen was also effective at killing pupae in the water containers in the trial area. Although the dengue seroconversion rate was not influenced by Olyset® Net, it was lower in two-five year old

Field trial on a novel control method for the dengue vector, Aedes aegypti by the systematic use of Olyset® Net and pyriproxyfen in Southern Vietnam.

Science.gov (United States)

Tsunoda, Takashi; Kawada, Hitoshi; Huynh, Trang T T; Luu, Loan Le; Le, San Hoang; Tran, Huu Ngoc; Vu, Huong Thi Que; Le, Hieu Minh; Hasebe, Futoshi; Tsuzuki, Ataru; Takagi, Masahiro

2013-01-11

Jars, tanks, and drums provide favorable rearing/breeding sites for Aedes aegypti in Vietnam. However, the use of insecticides to control mosquitoes at such breeding sites has not been approved in Vietnam since they are also often sources of drinking water, making larval vector control difficult. Mosquito nets pre-treated with long-lasting insecticide treated nets (LLITNs) form an effective measure for malaria control. We examined changes in the abundance of immature Aedes aegypti to evaluate the efficacy of covering ceramic jars with lids comprising one type of LLITN, Olyset® Net, in inhibiting oviposition by adult females, and to evaluate the effect of treating other breeding containers, such as flower vases, inside and around the outside of houses with a slow-release pyriproxyfen formulation to kill pupae. We selected 313 households for the trial and 363 households for the control in Tan Chanh, Long An province, Vietnam. In the trial area, Olyset® Net lids were used to cover five major types of water container (ceramic jars, cylindrical concrete tanks, other concrete tanks, plastic drums, and plastic buckets), while pyriproxyfen was used to treat flower vases and ant traps. We also monitored dengue virus transmission by measuring anti-dengue IgM and IgG levels in healthy residents in both control and trial areas to estimate the effectiveness of Olyset® Net at controlling the dengue vector, Aedes aegypti. The container-index and house-index for immature Ae. aegypti fell steeply one month after treatment in the trial area. Lids with Olyset® Net that fit container openings clearly seemed to reduce the presence of immature Ae. aegypti as the density of pupae decreased 1 month after treatment in the trial area. Pyriproxyfen was also effective at killing pupae in the water containers in the trial area. Although the dengue seroconversion rate was not influenced by Olyset® Net, it was lower in two-five year old children when compared to older children and adults in

Electromagnetic forces distribution and mechanical analysis in the first wall structure for INTOR/NET

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Coccorese, E.; Martone, R.; Rubinacci, G.; Biggio, M.; Inzaghi, A.; Turri, M.

1984-01-01

In the context of the studies performed at JRC-Ispra for NET/INTOR, a modular stainless steel first wall, and separated from the blanket which it envelops has been proposed. During plasma disruption the metallic structure of the first wall is inevitably subject to appreciable electromagnetic forces caused by induced eddy current-magnetic field interactions. The deformation and stress distributions in the first wall were quantified at various instants of time by three-dimensional calculations using the ICES-STRUDL code. (author)

Performance of a novel micro force vector sensor and outlook into its biomedical applications

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Meiss, Thorsten; Rossner, Tim; Minamisava Faria, Carlos; Völlmeke, Stefan; Opitz, Thomas; Werthschützky, Roland

2011-05-01

For the HapCath system, which provides haptic feedback of the forces acting on a guide wire's tip during vascular catheterization, very small piezoresistive force sensors of 200•200•640μm3 have been developed. This paper focuses on the characterization of the measurement performance and on possible new applications. Besides the determination of the dynamic measurement performance, special focus is put onto the results of the 3- component force vector calibration. This article addresses special advantageous characteristics of the sensor, but also the limits of applicability will be addressed. As for the special characteristics of the sensor, the second part of the article demonstrates new applications which can be opened up with the novel force sensor, like automatic navigation of medical or biological instruments without impacting surrounding tissue, surface roughness evaluation in biomedical systems, needle insertion with tactile or higher level feedback, or even building tactile hairs for artificial organisms.

Reconstruction of the domain orientation distribution function of polycrystalline PZT ceramics using vector piezoresponse force microscopy.

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Kratzer, Markus; Lasnik, Michael; Röhrig, Sören; Teichert, Christian; Deluca, Marco

2018-01-11

Lead zirconate titanate (PZT) is one of the prominent materials used in polycrystalline piezoelectric devices. Since the ferroelectric domain orientation is the most important parameter affecting the electromechanical performance, analyzing the domain orientation distribution is of great importance for the development and understanding of improved piezoceramic devices. Here, vector piezoresponse force microscopy (vector-PFM) has been applied in order to reconstruct the ferroelectric domain orientation distribution function of polished sections of device-ready polycrystalline lead zirconate titanate (PZT) material. A measurement procedure and a computer program based on the software Mathematica have been developed to automatically evaluate the vector-PFM data for reconstructing the domain orientation function. The method is tested on differently in-plane and out-of-plane poled PZT samples, and the results reveal the expected domain patterns and allow determination of the polarization orientation distribution function at high accuracy.

The effect of deltamethrin-treated net fencing around cattle enclosures on outdoor-biting mosquitoes in Kumasi, Ghana.

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Marta Ferreira Maia

Full Text Available Classic vector control strategies target mosquitoes indoors as the main transmitters of malaria are indoor-biting and -resting mosquitoes. However, the intensive use of insecticide-treated bed-nets (ITNs and indoor residual spraying have put selective pressure on mosquitoes to adapt in order to obtain human blood meals. Thus, early-evening and outdoor vector activity is becoming an increasing concern. This study assessed the effect of a deltamethrin-treated net (100 mg/m(2 attached to a one-meter high fence around outdoor cattle enclosures on the number of mosquitoes landing on humans. Mosquitoes were collected from four cattle enclosures: Pen A - with cattle and no net; B - with cattle and protected by an untreated net; C - with cattle and protected by a deltamethrin-treated net; D - no cattle and no net. A total of 3217 culicines and 1017 anophelines were collected, of which 388 were Anopheles gambiae and 629 An. ziemanni. In the absence of cattle nearly 3 times more An. gambiae (p<0.0001 landed on humans. The deltamethrin-treated net significantly reduced (nearly three-fold, p<0.0001 culicine landings inside enclosures. The sporozoite rate of the zoophilic An. ziemanni, known to be a secondary malaria vector, was as high as that of the most competent vector An. gambiae; raising the potential of zoophilic species as secondary malaria vectors. After deployment of the ITNs a deltamethrin persistence of 9 months was observed despite exposure to African weather conditions. The outdoor use of ITNs resulted in a significant reduction of host-seeking culicines inside enclosures. Further studies investigating the effectiveness and spatial repellence of ITNs around other outdoor sites, such as bars and cooking areas, as well as their direct effect on vector-borne disease transmission are needed to evaluate its potential as an appropriate outdoor vector control tool for rural Africa.

Combined Discrete Space Voltage Vector with Direct Torque Control for Bearingless Brushless DC Motor and Closed-Loop Suspended Force Control

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Weiran Wang

2013-06-01

Full Text Available In order to improve the performance of bearingless brushless DC motor, a closed-loop suspended force controller combining the discrete space voltage vector modulation is applied and the direct torque control is presented in this paper. Firstly, we increase the number of the control vector to reduce the torque ripple. Then, the suspending equation is constructed which is spired by the direct torque control algorithm. As a result, the closed-loop suspended force controller is built. The simulated and experimental results evaluate the performance of the proposed method. The more advantage is that the proposed algorithm can achieve the fast torque response, reduce the torque ripple, and follow ideal stator flux track. Furthermore, the motor which implants the closed-loop suspended force controller cannot onlyobtain the dynamic response rapidly and displacement control accurately, but also has the characteristics of bearingless brushless DC motor (such as simple structure, high energy efficiency, small volume and low failure rate.

First Use of Synoptic Vector Magnetograms for Global Nonlinear, Force-Free Coronal Magnetic Field Models

Science.gov (United States)

Tadesse, T.; Wiegelmann, T.; Gosain, S.; MacNeice, P.; Pevtsov, A. A.

2014-01-01

Context. The magnetic field permeating the solar atmosphere is generally thought to provide the energy for much of the activity seen in the solar corona, such as flares, coronal mass ejections (CMEs), etc. To overcome the unavailability of coronal magnetic field measurements, photospheric magnetic field vector data can be used to reconstruct the coronal field. Currently, there are several modelling techniques being used to calculate three-dimensional field lines into the solar atmosphere. Aims. For the first time, synoptic maps of a photospheric-vector magnetic field synthesized from the vector spectromagnetograph (VSM) on Synoptic Optical Long-term Investigations of the Sun (SOLIS) are used to model the coronal magnetic field and estimate free magnetic energy in the global scale. The free energy (i.e., the energy in excess of the potential field energy) is one of the main indicators used in space weather forecasts to predict the eruptivity of active regions. Methods. We solve the nonlinear force-free field equations using an optimization principle in spherical geometry. The resulting threedimensional magnetic fields are used to estimate the magnetic free energy content E(sub free) = E(sub nlfff) - E(sub pot), which is the difference of the magnetic energies between the nonpotential field and the potential field in the global solar corona. For comparison, we overlay the extrapolated magnetic field lines with the extreme ultraviolet (EUV) observations by the atmospheric imaging assembly (AIA) on board the Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO). Results. For a single Carrington rotation 2121, we find that the global nonlinear force-free field (NLFFF) magnetic energy density is 10.3% higher than the potential one. Most of this free energy is located in active regions.

Use of bed nets and factors that influence bed net use among Jinuo Ethnic Minority in southern China.

Science.gov (United States)

Xu, Jian-wei; Liao, Yuan-mei; Liu, Hui; Nie, Ren-hua; Havumaki, Joshua

2014-01-01

Insecticide-treated nets (ITNs) are an integral part of vector control recommendations for malaria elimination in China. This study investigated the extent to which bed nets were used and which factors influence bed net use among Jinuo Ethnic Minority in China-Myanmar-Laos border areas. This study combined a quantitative household questionnaire survey and qualitative semi-structured in-depth interviews (SDI). Questionnaires were administered to 352 heads of households. SDIs were given to 20 key informants. The bed net to person ratio was 1∶2.1 (i.e., nearly one net for every two people), however only 169 (48.0%) households owned at least one net and 623 (47.2%) residents slept under bed nets the prior night. The percentages of residents who regularly slept under nets (RSUN) and slept under nets the prior night (SUNPN) were similar (48.0% vs. 47.2%, P>0.05), however the percentage correct use of nets (CUN) was significantly lower (34.5%, Pcash income per person (ACIP) was an independent factor that influenced bed net use (PHigh bed net availability does not necessarily mean higher coverage or bed net use. Household income, house type and knowledge of the ability of bed nets to prevent malaria are all independent factors that influence bed net use among Jinuo Ethnic Minority.

Drag of Clean and Fouled Net Panels--Measurements and Parameterization of Fouling.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Lars Christian Gansel

Full Text Available Biofouling is a serious problem in marine aquaculture and it has a number of negative impacts including increased forces on aquaculture structures and reduced water exchange across nets. This in turn affects the behavior of fish cages in waves and currents and has an impact on the water volume and quality inside net pens. Even though these negative effects are acknowledged by the research community and governmental institutions, there is limited knowledge about fouling related effects on the flow past nets, and more detailed investigations distinguishing between different fouling types have been called for. This study evaluates the effect of hydroids, an important fouling organism in Norwegian aquaculture, on the forces acting on net panels. Drag forces on clean and fouled nets were measured in a flume tank, and net solidity including effect of fouling were determined using image analysis. The relationship between net solidity and drag was assessed, and it was found that a solidity increase due to hydroids caused less additional drag than a similar increase caused by change in clean net parameters. For solidities tested in this study, the difference in drag force increase could be as high as 43% between fouled and clean nets with same solidity. The relationship between solidity and drag force is well described by exponential functions for clean as well as for fouled nets. A method is proposed to parameterize the effect of fouling in terms of an increase in net solidity. This allows existing numerical methods developed for clean nets to be used to model the effects of biofouling on nets. Measurements with other types of fouling can be added to build a database on effects of the accumulation of different fouling organisms on aquaculture nets.

Vector electric field measurement via position-modulated Kelvin probe force microscopy

Science.gov (United States)

Dwyer, Ryan P.; Smieska, Louisa M.; Tirmzi, Ali Moeed; Marohn, John A.

2017-10-01

High-quality spatially resolved measurements of electric fields are critical to understanding charge injection, charge transport, and charge trapping in semiconducting materials. Here, we report a variation of frequency-modulated Kelvin probe force microscopy that enables spatially resolved measurements of the electric field. We measure electric field components along multiple directions simultaneously by employing position modulation and lock-in detection in addition to numeric differentiation of the surface potential. We demonstrate the technique by recording linescans of the in-plane electric field vector in the vicinity of a patch of trapped charge in a 2,7-diphenyl[1]benzothieno[3,2-b][1]benzothiophene (DPh-BTBT) organic field-effect transistor. This technique is simple to implement and should be especially useful for studying electric fields in spatially inhomogeneous samples like organic transistors and photovoltaic blends.

Concurrent Validity of a Portable Force Plate Using Vertical Jump Force-Time Characteristics.

Science.gov (United States)

Lake, Jason; Mundy, Peter; Comfort, Paul; McMahon, John J; Suchomel, Timothy J; Carden, Patrick

2018-05-29

This study examined concurrent validity of countermovement vertical jump (CMJ) reactive strength index modified and force-time characteristics recorded using a one dimensional portable and laboratory force plate system. Twenty-eight men performed bilateral CMJs on two portable force plates placed on top of two in-ground force plates, both recording vertical ground reaction force at 1000 Hz. Time to take-off, jump height, reactive strength index modified, braking and propulsion impulse, mean net force, and duration were calculated from the vertical force from both force plate systems. Results from both systems were highly correlated (r≥.99). There were small (dbraking impulse, braking mean net force, propulsion impulse, and propulsion mean net force (psystem (95% CL: .9% to 2.5%), indicating very good agreement across all of the dependent variables. The largest limits of agreement belonged to jump height (2.1%), time to take-off (3.4%), and reactive strength index modified (3.8%). The portable force plate system provides a valid method of obtaining reactive strength measures, and several underpinning force-time variables, from unloaded CMJ and practitioners can use both force plates interchangeably.

A dynamic counterpart of Lamb vector in viscous compressible aerodynamics

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Liu, L Q; Wu, J Z; Shi, Y P; Zhu, J Y

2014-01-01

The Lamb vector is known to play a key role in incompressible fluid dynamics and vortex dynamics. In particular, in low-speed steady aerodynamics it is solely responsible for the total force acting on a moving body, known as the vortex force, with the classic two-dimensional (exact) Kutta–Joukowski theorem and three-dimensional (linearized) lifting-line theory as the most famous special applications. In this paper we identify an innovative dynamic counterpart of the Lamb vector in viscous compressible aerodynamics, which we call the compressible Lamb vector. Mathematically, we present a theorem on the dynamic far-field decay law of the vorticity and dilatation fields, and thereby prove that the generalized Lamb vector enjoys exactly the same integral properties as the Lamb vector does in incompressible flow, and hence the vortex-force theory can be generalized to compressible flow with exactly the same general formulation. Moreover, for steady flow of polytropic gas, we show that physically the force exerted on a moving body by the gas consists of a transverse force produced by the original Lamb vector and a new longitudinal force that reflects the effects of compression and irreversible thermodynamics. (paper)

Turbulent Convection Insights from Small-Scale Thermal Forcing with Zero Net Heat Flux at a Horizontal Boundary.

Science.gov (United States)

Griffiths, Ross W; Gayen, Bishakhdatta

2015-11-13

A large-scale circulation, a turbulent boundary layer, and a turbulent plume are noted features of convection at large Rayleigh numbers under differential heating on a single horizontal boundary. These might be attributed to the forcing, which in all studies has been limited to a unidirectional gradient over the domain scale. We instead apply forcing on a length scale smaller than the domain, and with variation in both horizontal directions. Direct numerical simulations show turbulence throughout the domain, a regime transition to a dominant domain-scale circulation, and a region of logarithmic velocity in the boundary layer, despite zero net heat flux. The results show significant similarities to Rayleigh-Bénard convection, demonstrate the significance of plume merging, support the hypothesis that the key driver of convection is the production of available potential energy without necessarily supplying total potential energy, and imply that contributions to domain-scale circulation in the oceans need not be solely from the large-scale gradients of forcing.

[Conflicts and vector-borne diseases

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Bygbjerg, Ib Christian

2010-01-01

Based on literature and personal experiences, vector-borne diseases and conflicts are reviewed. Simple rapid diagnostic tests for three important parasitoses are available. Resort is often made to case definitions and to presumptive treatment. Resistance is an emerging problem. Vaccines are still...... not available for most diseases. Promising preventive methods, including long-lasting impregnated bed-nets and tents, are available. War has been an impetus for disclosing life-cycles of vector-borne diseases and for control methods; peace, reconciliation and poverty reduction are required to achieve lasting...

Topological vector spaces and distributions

CERN Document Server

Horvath, John

2012-01-01

""The most readable introduction to the theory of vector spaces available in English and possibly any other language.""-J. L. B. Cooper, MathSciNet ReviewMathematically rigorous but user-friendly, this classic treatise discusses major modern contributions to the field of topological vector spaces. The self-contained treatment includes complete proofs for all necessary results from algebra and topology. Suitable for undergraduate mathematics majors with a background in advanced calculus, this volume will also assist professional mathematicians, physicists, and engineers.The precise exposition o

A finite element method for netting application to fish cages and fishing gear

CERN Document Server

Priour, Daniel

2014-01-01

This book describes a finite element method for netting that describes the relation between forces and deformation of the netting and takes into account forces due to the twine elasticity, the hydrodynamic forces, the catch effect, the mesh opening stiffness.

Efficacy of PermaNet® 3.0 and PermaNet® 2.0 nets against laboratory-reared and wild Anopheles gambiae sensu lato populations in northern Tanzania.

Science.gov (United States)

Kweka, Eliningaya J; Lyaruu, Lucile J; Mahande, Aneth M

2017-01-18

Mosquitoes have developed resistance against pyrethroids, the only class of insecticides approved for use on long-lasting insecticidal nets (LLINs). The present study sought to evaluate the efficacy of the pyrethroid synergist PermaNet® 3.0 LLIN versus the pyrethroid-only PermaNet® 2.0 LLIN, in an East African hut design in Lower Moshi, northern Tanzania. In this setting, resistance to pyrethroid insecticides has been identified in Anopheles gambiae mosquitoes. Standard World Health Organization bioefficacy evaluations were conducted in both laboratory and experimental huts. Experimental hut evaluations were conducted in an area where there was presence of a population of highly pyrethroid-resistant An. arabiensis mosquitoes. All nets used were subjected to cone bioassays and then to experimental hut trials. Mosquito mortality, blood-feeding inhibition and personal protection rate were compared between untreated nets, unwashed LLINs and LLINs that were washed 20 times. Both washed and unwashed PermaNet® 2.0 and PermaNet® 3.0 LLINs had knockdown and mortality rates of 100% against a susceptible strain of An. gambiae sensu stricto. The adjusted mortality rate of the wild mosquito population after use of the unwashed PermaNet® 3.0 and PermaNet® 2.0 nets was found to be higher than after use of the washed PermaNet® 2.0 and PermaNet® 3.0 nets. Given the increasing incidence of pyrethroid resistance in An. gambiae mosquitoes in Tanzania, we recommend that consideration is given to its distribution in areas with pyrethroid-resistant malaria vectors within the framework of a national insecticide-resistance management plan.

Numerical study on the hydrodynamic characteristics of biofouled full-scale net cage

Science.gov (United States)

Bi, Chun-wei; Zhao, Yun-peng; Dong, Guo-hai

2015-06-01

The effect of biofouling on the hydrodynamic characteristics of the net cage is of particular interest as biofouled nettings can significantly reduce flow of well-oxygenated water reaching the stocked fish. For computational efficiency, the porous-media fluid model is proposed to simulate flow through the biofouled plane net and full-scale net cage. The porous coefficients of the porous-media fluid model can be determined from the quadratic-function relationship between the hydrodynamic forces on a plane net and the flow velocity using the least squares method. In this study, drag forces on and flow fields around five plane nets with different levels of biofouling are calculated by use of the proposed model. The numerical results are compared with the experimental data of Swift et al. (2006) and the effectiveness of the numerical model is presented. On that basis, flow through full-scale net cages with the same level of biofouling as the tested plane nets are modeled. The flow fields inside and around biofouled net cages are analyzed and the drag force acting on a net cage is estimated by a control volume analysis method. According to the numerical results, empirical formulas of reduction in flow velocity and load on a net cage are derived as function of drag coefficient of the corresponding biofouled netting.

Disruptive technology for vector control: the Innovative Vector Control Consortium and the US Military join forces to explore transformative insecticide application technology for mosquito control programmes.

Science.gov (United States)

Knapp, Jennifer; Macdonald, Michael; Malone, David; Hamon, Nicholas; Richardson, Jason H

2015-09-26

Malaria vector control technology has remained largely static for decades and there is a pressing need for innovative control tools and methodology to radically improve the quality and efficiency of current vector control practices. This report summarizes a workshop jointly organized by the Innovative Vector Control Consortium (IVCC) and the Armed Forces Pest Management Board (AFPMB) focused on public health pesticide application technology. Three main topics were discussed: the limitations with current tools and techniques used for indoor residual spraying (IRS), technology innovation to improve efficacy of IRS programmes, and truly disruptive application technology beyond IRS. The group identified several opportunities to improve application technology to include: insuring all IRS programmes are using constant flow valves and erosion resistant tips; introducing compression sprayer improvements that help minimize pesticide waste and human error; and moving beyond IRS by embracing the potential for new larval source management techniques and next generation technology such as unmanned "smart" spray systems. The meeting served to lay the foundation for broader collaboration between the IVCC and AFPMB and partners in industry, the World Health Organization, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and others.

Musings on Sketches, Artists, and Mosquito Nets

Centers for Disease Control (CDC) Podcasts

2014-09-23

Byron Breedlove reads his essay Musings on Sketches, Artists, and Mosquito Nets about the art of James Whistler and the transmission of vector borne diseases.  Created: 9/23/2014 by National Center for Emerging and Zoonotic Infectious Diseases (NCEZID).   Date Released: 10/20/2014.

Mixture for Controlling Insecticide-Resistant Malaria Vectors

OpenAIRE

Pennetier, Cédric; Costantini, Carlo; Corbel, Vincent; Licciardi, Séverine; Dabire, R. K.; Lapied, B.; Chandre, Fabrice; Hougard, Jean-Marc

2008-01-01

The spread of resistance to pyrethroids in the major Afrotropical malaria vectors Anopheles gambiae s.s. necessitates the development of new strategies to control resistant mosquito populations. To test the efficacy of nets treated with repellent and insecticide against susceptible and insecticide-resistant An. gambiae mosquito populations, we impregnated mosquito bed nets with an insect repellent mixed with a low dose of organophosphorous insecticide and tested them in a rice-growing area ne...

Power deposition profiles and Poynting vector distribution of phased antenna arrays in the ion-cyclotron resonance heating of a NET/INTOR-type tokamak

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bhatnagar, V.P.; Koch, R.

1986-01-01

The heating produced by magnetosonic waves launched from phased antenna arrays in the ion-cyclotron range of frequencies is studied for a large tokamak with NET/INTOR-like parameters. The model used combines a 3-D planar, cold-plasma, antenna-plasma coupling code and a 3-D non-circular, toroidal, hot-plasma/ray-tracing code. First, the fractional power absorption of a ray during a single transit through the absorption layer is studied in a D-T plasma indicating total absorption in all INTOR cases except during the initial state characterized by low plasma temperature and density. However, in this case the single-pass wave absorption can be increased considerably by adding a few per cent of hydrogen. Further, complete power deposition profiles and Poynting vector distributions are presented for 'symmetric' and 'antisymmetric' 2x2 antenna array configurations with ksub(parallel)-shaping. Excitation of coaxial modes has, for the first time, been demonstrated explicitly by analysis of the Poynting vector distribution in real space. An antenna configuration with a π-phasing in the z-direction (such that the radiated power spectrum peaks at ksub(parallel) approx.= 5 m -1 ) and the choice of 3lambda/4 long antenna elements with 'symmetric' excitation in the y-direction, are found to produce central RF power deposition profiles in the second-harmonic and minority heating of INTOR. Finally, from a comparison of results for circular and non-circular NET/INTOR plasmas with elongation kappa=1.6, it is found that in the latter wave focusing is greatly reduced and that the power density figures are lower by approximately a factor of 1.9 for the case treated. (author)

Stokes vector and its relationship to Discrete Wigner Functions of multiqubit states

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Srinivasan, K., E-mail: sriniphysics@gmail.com; Raghavan, G.

2016-07-29

A Stokes vectors and Discrete Wigner Functions (DWF) provide two alternate ways of representing the state of multiqubit systems. A general relationship between the Stokes vector and the DWF is derived for arbitrary n-qubit states for all possible choices of quantum nets. The Stokes vector and the DWF are shown to be related through a Hadamard Matrix. Using these results, a relationship between the Stokes vector of a spin-flipped state and the DWF is derived. Finally, we also present a method to express the Minkowskian squared norm of the Stokes vector, corresponding to n-concurrence in terms of the DWF. - Highlights: • Relationship between Stokes vector (SV) and discrete Wigner function (DWF) for arbitrary multiqubit states is presented. • It is shown that SV and DWF are related to one another through Hadamard matrices. • We show that the Hadamard matrices depend on the choice of the quantum net. • Relationship between SV of the spin flipped state and the DWF is derived. • Expression to compute n-concurrence of the pure n-qubit systems purely in terms of DWF is given.

Stokes vector and its relationship to Discrete Wigner Functions of multiqubit states

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Srinivasan, K.; Raghavan, G.

2016-01-01

A Stokes vectors and Discrete Wigner Functions (DWF) provide two alternate ways of representing the state of multiqubit systems. A general relationship between the Stokes vector and the DWF is derived for arbitrary n-qubit states for all possible choices of quantum nets. The Stokes vector and the DWF are shown to be related through a Hadamard Matrix. Using these results, a relationship between the Stokes vector of a spin-flipped state and the DWF is derived. Finally, we also present a method to express the Minkowskian squared norm of the Stokes vector, corresponding to n-concurrence in terms of the DWF. - Highlights: • Relationship between Stokes vector (SV) and discrete Wigner function (DWF) for arbitrary multiqubit states is presented. • It is shown that SV and DWF are related to one another through Hadamard matrices. • We show that the Hadamard matrices depend on the choice of the quantum net. • Relationship between SV of the spin flipped state and the DWF is derived. • Expression to compute n-concurrence of the pure n-qubit systems purely in terms of DWF is given.

Circular Conditional Autoregressive Modeling of Vector Fields.

Science.gov (United States)

Modlin, Danny; Fuentes, Montse; Reich, Brian

2012-02-01

As hurricanes approach landfall, there are several hazards for which coastal populations must be prepared. Damaging winds, torrential rains, and tornadoes play havoc with both the coast and inland areas; but, the biggest seaside menace to life and property is the storm surge. Wind fields are used as the primary forcing for the numerical forecasts of the coastal ocean response to hurricane force winds, such as the height of the storm surge and the degree of coastal flooding. Unfortunately, developments in deterministic modeling of these forcings have been hindered by computational expenses. In this paper, we present a multivariate spatial model for vector fields, that we apply to hurricane winds. We parameterize the wind vector at each site in polar coordinates and specify a circular conditional autoregressive (CCAR) model for the vector direction, and a spatial CAR model for speed. We apply our framework for vector fields to hurricane surface wind fields for Hurricane Floyd of 1999 and compare our CCAR model to prior methods that decompose wind speed and direction into its N-S and W-E cardinal components.

Search for intermediate vector bosons

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cline, D.B.; Rubbia, C.; van der Meer, S.

1982-01-01

Over the past 15 years a new class of unified theories has been developed to describe the forces acting between elementary particles. The most successful of the new theories establishes a link between electromagnetism and the weak force. A crucial prediction of this unified electroweak theory is the existence of three massive particles called intermediate vector bosons. If these intermediate vector bosons exist and if they have properties attributed to them by electroweak theory, they should soon be detected, as the world's first particle accelerator with enough energy to create such particles has recently been completed at the European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN) in Geneva. The accelerator has been converted to a colliding beam machine in which protons and antiprotons collide head on. According to electroweak theory, intermediate vector bosons can be created in proton-antiproton collisions. (SC)

Predicting the impact of insecticide-treated bed nets on malaria transmission: the devil is in the detail

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Novak Robert J

2009-11-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Insecticide-treated bed nets (ITNs, including long-lasting insecticidal nets (LLINs, play a primary role in global campaigns to roll back malaria in tropical Africa. Effectiveness of treated nets depends on direct impacts on individual mosquitoes including killing and excite-repellency, which vary considerably among vector species due to variations in host-seeking behaviours. While monitoring and evaluation programmes of ITNs have focuses on morbidity and all-cause mortality in humans, local entomological context receives little attention. Without knowing the dynamics of local vector species and their responses to treated nets, it is difficult to predict clinical outcomes when ITN applications are scaled up across African continent. Sound model frameworks incorporating intricate interactions between mosquitoes and treated nets are needed to develop the predictive capacity for scale-up applications of ITNs. Methods An established agent-based model was extended to incorporate the direct outcomes, e.g. killing and avoidance, of individual mosquitoes exposing to ITNs in a hypothetical village setting with 50 houses and 90 aquatic habitats. Individual mosquitoes were tracked throughout the life cycle across the landscape. Four levels of coverage, i.e. 40, 60, 80 and 100%, were applied at the household level with treated houses having only one bed net. By using Latin hypercube sampling scheme, parameters governing killing, diverting and personal protection of net users were evaluated for their relative roles in containing mosquito populations, entomological inoculation rates (EIRs and malaria incidence. Results There were substantial gaps in coverage between households and individual persons, and 100% household coverage resulted in circa 50% coverage of the population. The results show that applications of ITNs could give rise to varying impacts on population-level metrics depending on values of parameters governing interactions of

Predicting the impact of insecticide-treated bed nets on malaria transmission: the devil is in the detail.

Science.gov (United States)

Gu, Weidong; Novak, Robert J

2009-11-16

Insecticide-treated bed nets (ITNs), including long-lasting insecticidal nets (LLINs), play a primary role in global campaigns to roll back malaria in tropical Africa. Effectiveness of treated nets depends on direct impacts on individual mosquitoes including killing and excite-repellency, which vary considerably among vector species due to variations in host-seeking behaviours. While monitoring and evaluation programmes of ITNs have focuses on morbidity and all-cause mortality in humans, local entomological context receives little attention. Without knowing the dynamics of local vector species and their responses to treated nets, it is difficult to predict clinical outcomes when ITN applications are scaled up across African continent. Sound model frameworks incorporating intricate interactions between mosquitoes and treated nets are needed to develop the predictive capacity for scale-up applications of ITNs. An established agent-based model was extended to incorporate the direct outcomes, e.g. killing and avoidance, of individual mosquitoes exposing to ITNs in a hypothetical village setting with 50 houses and 90 aquatic habitats. Individual mosquitoes were tracked throughout the life cycle across the landscape. Four levels of coverage, i.e. 40, 60, 80 and 100%, were applied at the household level with treated houses having only one bed net. By using Latin hypercube sampling scheme, parameters governing killing, diverting and personal protection of net users were evaluated for their relative roles in containing mosquito populations, entomological inoculation rates (EIRs) and malaria incidence. There were substantial gaps in coverage between households and individual persons, and 100% household coverage resulted in circa 50% coverage of the population. The results show that applications of ITNs could give rise to varying impacts on population-level metrics depending on values of parameters governing interactions of mosquitoes and treated nets at the individual level

Modelling of current loads on aquaculture net cages

Science.gov (United States)

Kristiansen, Trygve; Faltinsen, Odd M.

2012-10-01

In this paper we propose and discuss a screen type of force model for the viscous hydrodynamic load on nets. The screen model assumes that the net is divided into a number of flat net panels, or screens. It may thus be applied to any kind of net geometry. In this paper we focus on circular net cages for fish farms. The net structure itself is modelled by an existing truss model. The net shape is solved for in a time-stepping procedure that involves solving a linear system of equations for the unknown tensions at each time step. We present comparisons to experiments with circular net cages in steady current, and discuss the sensitivity of the numerical results to a set of chosen parameters. Satisfactory agreement between experimental and numerical prediction of drag and lift as function of the solidity ratio of the net and the current velocity is documented.

Forced recombination of psi-modified murine leukaemia virus-based vectors with murine leukaemia-like and VL30 murine endogenous retroviruses

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Mikkelsen, J G; Lund, Anders Henrik; Duch, M

1999-01-01

Co-encapsidation of retroviral RNAs into virus particles allows for the generation of recombinant proviruses through events of template switching during reverse transcription. By use of a forced recombination system based on recombinational rescue of replication- defective primer binding site-imp....... We note that recombination-based rescue of primer binding site knock-out retroviral vectors may constitute a sensitive assay to register putative genetic interactions involving endogenous retroviral RNAs present in cells of various species.......-impaired Akv-MLV-derived vectors, we here examine putative genetic interactions between vector RNAs and copackaged endogenous retroviral RNAs of the murine leukaemia virus (MLV) and VL30 retroelement families. We show (i) that MLV recombination is not blocked by nonhomology within the 5' untranslated region...... harbouring the supposed RNA dimer-forming cis -elements and (ii) that copackaged retroviral RNAs can recombine despite pronounced sequence dissimilarity at the cross-over site(s) and within parts of the genome involved in RNA dimerization, encapsidation and strand transferring during reverse transcription...

Matrix vector analysis

CERN Document Server

Eisenman, Richard L

2005-01-01

This outstanding text and reference applies matrix ideas to vector methods, using physical ideas to illustrate and motivate mathematical concepts but employing a mathematical continuity of development rather than a physical approach. The author, who taught at the U.S. Air Force Academy, dispenses with the artificial barrier between vectors and matrices--and more generally, between pure and applied mathematics.Motivated examples introduce each idea, with interpretations of physical, algebraic, and geometric contexts, in addition to generalizations to theorems that reflect the essential structur

Electric nets and sticky materials for analysing oviposition behaviour of gravid malaria vectors

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Dugassa Sisay

2012-11-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Little is known about how malaria mosquitoes locate oviposition sites in nature. Such knowledge is important to help devise monitoring and control measures that could be used to target gravid females. This study set out to develop a suite of tools that can be used to study the attraction of gravid Anopheles gambiae s.s. towards visual or olfactory cues associated with aquatic habitats. Methods Firstly, the study developed and assessed methods for using electrocuting nets to analyse the orientation of gravid females towards an aquatic habitat. Electric nets (1m high × 0.5m wide were powered by a 12V battery via a spark box. High and low energy settings were compared for mosquito electrocution and a collection device developed to retain electrocuted mosquitoes when falling to the ground. Secondly, a range of sticky materials and a detergent were tested to quantify if and where gravid females land to lay their eggs, by treating the edge of the ponds and the water surface. A randomized complete block design was used for all experiments with 200 mosquitoes released each day. Experiments were conducted in screened semi-field systems using insectary-reared An. gambiae s.s. Data were analysed by generalized estimating equations. Results An electric net operated at the highest spark box energy of a 400 volt direct current made the net spark, creating a crackling sound, a burst of light and a burning smell. This setting caught 64% less mosquitoes than a net powered by reduced voltage output that could neither be heard nor seen (odds ratio (OR 0.46; 95% confidence interval (CI 0.40-0.53, p Conclusion A square of four e-nets with yellow sticky boards as a collection device can be used for quantifying the numbers of mosquitoes approaching a small oviposition site. Shiny sticky surfaces attract gravid females possibly because they are visually mistaken as aquatic habitats. These materials might be developed further as gravid traps

Communicating with the Net Generation

Science.gov (United States)

2011-03-11

resource investment is necessary to sustain a high quality all-volunteer force. 9 Leadership Technique for the Net Generation Army Regulation 600...Generations at Work, Millenials at Work, http://www.generationsatwork. com /articles_millennials_at_work.php (accessed November 21, 2010). 31 Thomas

Culminating anti-malaria efforts at long lasting insecticidal net?

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Sunil Dhiman

2014-11-01

Full Text Available Summary: Background: Long-lasting insecticidal nets (LLINs are a primary method in malaria control efforts. However, a decline in the biological efficacy and physical integrity over a period of comparatively lesser time than claimed, waning of naturally acquired immunity among regular users and misuse of LLINs are serious concerns. Search and selection of literature: The literature for the current review was searched in PubMed, SCOPUS Database and Google using combined search strings of related key-words. Literature with sufficient data and information on the current subject was selected to reach a valid conclusion. Findings: The World Health Organization (WHO has emphasized that LLINs should be considered a public good for people inhabiting malaria endemic settings. LLINs exhibited a cumulative effect on the vector density and may force anthropophilic mosquito vectors to find alternative animal hosts for blood meal. However, the physical integrity and biological activity of LLINs declines faster than the anticipated time due to different operational conditions and the spread of insecticide resistance. LLINs have been successful in reducing malaria incidences by either reducing or not allowing human exposure to the vector mosquitoes, but at the same time, LLINs debilitate the natural protective immunity against malaria parasite. Misuse of LLINs for deviant purposes is common and is a serious environmental concern, as people believe that traditional methods of prevention against malaria that have enabled them to survive through a long time are effective and sufficient. Moreover, people are often ill-informed regarding the toxic effects of LLINs. Conclusions: Specific criteria for determining the serviceable life and guidelines on the safe washing and disposal of LLINs need to be developed, kept well-informed and closely monitored. Malaria case management, environment management and community awareness to reduce the misuse of LLINs are crucial

Neuronal nets in robotics

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jimenez Sanchez, Raul

1999-01-01

The paper gives a generic idea of the solutions that the neuronal nets contribute to the robotics. The advantages and the inconveniences are exposed that have regarding the conventional techniques. It also describe the more excellent applications as the pursuit of trajectories, the positioning based on images, the force control or of the mobile robots management, among others

Vectorization and improvement of nuclear codes (MEUDAS4, FORCE, STREAM V2.6, HEATING7-VP, SCDAP/RELAP5/MOD2.5, NBI3DGFN)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nemoto, Toshiyuki; Suzuki, Koichiro; Isobe, Nobuo; Machida, Masahiko; Osanai, Seiji; Yokokawa, Mitsuo

1992-09-01

Eight nuclear codes have been vectorized and modified to improve their performance. These codes are magnetic fluid equilibrium code MEUDAS4 (CR and FFT versions), the magnetic field analysis code FORCE, the three-dimensional heat fluid analysis code STREAM V2.6, the three-dimensional heat analysis code HEATING 7-VP, the severe accident transient analysis code SCDAP/RELAP 5/MOD 2.5 for light water reactors, the ion beam orbital analysis code NBI3DGFN, and a free electron laser analysis code. The speedup ratios of the vectorized versions to the original ones in scalar mode are 2.3-4.9, 1.9-5.4, 2.6-6.2, and 1.9 for the MEUDAS4, STREAM, FORCE, and free electron laser analysis code, respectively. The definition method of the computational regions in the HEATING7-VP is improved. The SCDAP/RELAP5/MOD2.5 is modified to use extended memory regions of the computer. In this report, outlines of the codes, techniques used in the vectorization and reorganization of the codes, verification of computed results, and improvement on the performance are presented. (author)

Malaria, preventive practices and vector infectivity studies in Makurdi ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Three hundred questionnaires were administered for information on the use of preventive practices. Four hundred and twenty-fourmosquitoes were collected from Kanshio (sub-urban) and Old GRA (urban) using Human Landing Catch, aspirator and hand net. Vectors were identified morphologically, sexed and dissected.

Insecticide susceptibility of Phlebotomus argentipes & assessment of vector control in two districts of West Bengal, India.

Science.gov (United States)

Kumar, Vijay; Shankar, Lokesh; Kesari, Shreekant; Bhunia, Gouri Shankar; Dinesh, Diwakar Singh; Mandal, Rakesh; Das, Pradeep

2015-08-01

Kala-azar or visceral leishmanisis (VL) is known to be endemic in several States of India including West Bengal (WB). Only meager information is available on the vector dynamics of its vector species, Phlebotomus argentipes particularly in relation to control measure from this State. Hence, a pilot study was undertaken to assess the control strategy and its impact on vector in two endemic districts of WB, India. Two villages each from the two districts, Maldah and Burdwan, were selected for the study. Seasonal variation of sandflies was observed during pre-monsoon, post-monsoon and winter seasons. Susceptibility test of P. argentipes against DDT and bioassay on DDT sprayed wall and on long lasting insecticide nets (LN) Perma Net [®] 2.0 were conducted as per the WHO standard methods. P. argentipes density was high during March to October. Susceptibility status of P. argentipes ranged from 40 to 61.54 per cent. Bioassay test showed 57.89 per cent mortality against LN PermaNet [®] -2.0. and 50 per cent against DDT on wall within 30 min of exposure. Despite the integrated vector management approach, the sandfly population was high in the study area. The reason could be development of resistance in P. argentipes against DDT and low effectiveness of LN PermaNet [®] -2.0. The more pragmatic step will be to conduct large studies to monitor the susceptibility level in P. argentipes against DDT.

Entomological determinants of insecticide-treated bed net effectiveness in Western Myanmar

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Smithuis, Frank M.; Kyaw, Moe Kyaw; Phe, U. Ohn; van der Broek, Ingrid; Katterman, Nina; Rogers, Colin; Almeida, Patrick; Kager, Piet A.; Stepniewska, Kasia; Lubell, Yoel; Simpson, Julie A.; White, Nicholas J.

2013-01-01

In a large cluster randomized control trial of insecticide-treated bed nets (ITN) in Western Myanmar the malaria protective effect of ITN was found to be highly variable and, in aggregate, the effect was not statistically significant. A coincident entomological investigation measured malaria vector

Relation of the Vector Force Needed to Lift the Upper Eyelids and the Degree of Exophthalmos.

Science.gov (United States)

Hwang, Kun; Kim, Joo Ho; Kim, Hun; Hwang, Se Won

2015-07-01

The aim of this study was to determine the relation of the vector force needed to lift the upper eyelids and the degree of exophthalmos (EX). In the 109 magnetic resonance imaging films, the degree of EX (the shortest distance from the cornea to the line connecting both lateral orbital rims), the anterior angle (θ, an angle formed from the lower margin of the upper eyelid-superior transverse ligament (STL)--with a parallel line connecting the supraorbital rim and the infraorbital rim in the sagittal film), the length from the STL to the upper eyelid margin (levator length [LL]), the thickness of the STL (WT), and the thickness the of levator palpebrae (LT) were measured.The average EX was 14.5 ± 2.35  mm. The average θ was 33.84 ± 2.15 degrees. The vector force needed to lift the upper eyelids (cos θ) was 0.83. The average LL was 21.0 ± 1.54  mm. The average WT was 1.07 ± 0.22  mm. The average LT was 1.69 ± 0.30  mm. There was a significant positive relationship between the EX and age (P = 0.022). The EX in those younger than 20 years (12.8 ± 2.06) was significantly lesser than that of the other age groups. There was no significant relationship between the EX and cos θ. However, there was a significant positive relationship between the EX and the LL. There was a significant positive relationship between LL and LT, and between LL and WT.The farther the eyeball protrudes, the longer the LL is needed. The longer the LL is, the thicker the levator muscle and STL.

Bionomics of the malaria vector Anopheles farauti in Temotu Province, Solomon Islands: issues for malaria elimination

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mackenzie Donna O

2011-05-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background In the Solomon Islands, the Malaria Eradication Programmes of the 1970s virtually eliminated the malaria vectors: Anopheles punctulatus and Anopheles koliensis, both late night biting, endophagic species. However, the vector, Anopheles farauti, changed its behaviour to bite early in the evening outdoors. Thus, An. farauti mosquitoes were able to avoid insecticide exposure and still maintain transmission. Thirty years on and the Solomon Islands are planning for intensified malaria control and localized elimination; but little is currently known about the behaviour of the vectors and how they will respond to intensified control. Methods In the elimination area, Temotu Province, standard entomological collection methods were conducted in typical coastal villages to determine the vector, its ecology, biting density, behaviour, longevity, and vector efficacy. These vector surveys were conducted pre-intervention and post-intervention following indoor residual spraying and distribution of long-lasting insecticidal nets. Results Anopheles farauti was the only anopheline in Temotu Province. In 2008 (pre-intervention, this species occurred in moderate to high densities (19.5-78.5 bites/person/night and expressed a tendency to bite outdoors, early in the night (peak biting time 6-8 pm. Surveys post intervention showed that there was little, if any, reduction in biting densities and no reduction in the longevity of the vector population. After adjusting for human behaviour, indoor biting was reduced from 57% pre-intervention to 40% post-intervention. Conclusion In an effort to learn from historical mistakes and develop successful elimination programmes, there is a need for implementing complimentary vector control tools that can target exophagic and early biting vectors. Intensified indoor residual spraying and long-lasting insecticide net use has further promoted the early, outdoor feeding behaviour of An. farauti in the Solomon Islands

Community based vector control in Malindi, Kenya | Kibe | African ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Results: Nineteen of 34 community groups (56%) registered at social services reported intended malaria vector control activities such as treating ditches, making and selling insecticide-treated mosquito nets, draining stagnant water, organizing clean-ups, making and selling neem soap, and the organization of campaigns ...

Laboratory evaluation of lambda-cyhalothrin a microencapsulated formulation on mosquito nets for control of vector mosquitos.

Science.gov (United States)

Vythilingam, I; Zainal, A R; Hamidah, T

1999-03-01

Two formulations of lambda-cyhalothrin (EC-Emulsion concentrate and MC-Microencapsulated) were impregnated into bednets made of polyethylene and polyester. The nets were treated at a dosage of 15 mg/m2. For bioassay of insecticidal efficacy, female Anopheles maculatus and Aedes aegypti were exposed to the nets for two minutes and mortality was scored 24 hours later. The nets were also tested after repeated washings with water and with soap and water. Microencapsulated (2.5CS) formulation was more effective than emulsion concentrate (2.5EC) formulation on both net materials--polyethylene and polyester. Repeated washing with water and soap reduces the efficacy of all bednet treatment combinations. Microencapsulated formulation on polyethylene gave best results; it could sustain up to five washes with water and two with soap and water.

Comparing Biofouling Control Treatments for Use on Aquaculture Nets

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Geoffrey Swain

2014-12-01

Full Text Available Test panels comprised of uncoated, copper coated and silicone coated 7/8'' (22 mm mesh knitted nylon net were evaluated to compare their properties and the effectiveness to prevent biofouling. This paper describes test procedures that were developed to quantify the performance in terms of antifouling, cleanability, drag and cost. The copper treatment was the most effective at controlling fouling, however, the silicone treated nets were the easiest to clean. The drag forces on the net were a function of twine diameter, twine roughness and fouling. After immersion, the uncoated nets had the most drag followed by the silicone and copper treatments. The cost of applying silicone to nets is high; however, improved formulations may provide a non-toxic alternative to control fouling.

Axial-vector gluons and the fine structure of heavy quark--antiquark systems

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Feinberg, G.; Lynn, B.; Sucher, J.

1979-01-01

We point out that two models of the origin of spin-dependent forces in heavy quark systems make very different predictions about the relative size of these forces in c-barc and b-barb. The model in which these forces are relativistic corrections to vector or scalar gluon exchange predicts smaller spin-dependent effects in b-barb than in c-barc while a model in which these forces are due to exchange of axial-vector gluons predicts a similar size for spin-dependent splittings in the two systems

CellNetVis: a web tool for visualization of biological networks using force-directed layout constrained by cellular components.

Science.gov (United States)

Heberle, Henry; Carazzolle, Marcelo Falsarella; Telles, Guilherme P; Meirelles, Gabriela Vaz; Minghim, Rosane

2017-09-13

The advent of "omics" science has brought new perspectives in contemporary biology through the high-throughput analyses of molecular interactions, providing new clues in protein/gene function and in the organization of biological pathways. Biomolecular interaction networks, or graphs, are simple abstract representations where the components of a cell (e.g. proteins, metabolites etc.) are represented by nodes and their interactions are represented by edges. An appropriate visualization of data is crucial for understanding such networks, since pathways are related to functions that occur in specific regions of the cell. The force-directed layout is an important and widely used technique to draw networks according to their topologies. Placing the networks into cellular compartments helps to quickly identify where network elements are located and, more specifically, concentrated. Currently, only a few tools provide the capability of visually organizing networks by cellular compartments. Most of them cannot handle large and dense networks. Even for small networks with hundreds of nodes the available tools are not able to reposition the network while the user is interacting, limiting the visual exploration capability. Here we propose CellNetVis, a web tool to easily display biological networks in a cell diagram employing a constrained force-directed layout algorithm. The tool is freely available and open-source. It was originally designed for networks generated by the Integrated Interactome System and can be used with networks from others databases, like InnateDB. CellNetVis has demonstrated to be applicable for dynamic investigation of complex networks over a consistent representation of a cell on the Web, with capabilities not matched elsewhere.

[Feeding pattern of Rift Valley Fever virus vectors in Senegal. Implications in the disease epidemiology].

Science.gov (United States)

Ba, Y; Diallo, D; Dia, I; Diallo, M

2006-10-01

During the rainy season 2003, an entomological survey was undertaken in the Sahelian bioclimatic zone of the Ferlo area in northern Senegal, in order to evaluate the degree of interaction between Rift valley fever (RVF) virus vectors and domestic animals and to determine the role of natural vertebrate hosts in the transmission and maintenance cycle. The study of vector-host contact was carried out under bed net traps using man, cow, sheep, chicken as bait whereas the RVFV vectors-vertebrate host interactions were studied through the analysis by an ELISA technique of the origin of the blood meals from naturally engorged females collected by aspiration. Blood meals sources were determined using a set of eight antibodies. Overall, the different known RVFV vectors (Culex poicilipes, Aedes vexans and Aedes ochraceus) were opportunistic although the bovine-baited net was, as far the more effective trap with 53.6% of collected mosquitoes. It was followed by the sheep-baited net (16.7%), man-baited net (12.6%) and chicken-baited net (11.6%). The more effectiveness of the bovine-baited net confirms the degree of implication of this host in RVF epidemiology. The study of vector-hosts interactions in nature showed that among the 1,112 mosquito blood meals tested, 701 were identified of which 693 were from Aedes vexans. The percentage of non-reacting blood meal was 36.7% whereas 16.9 % of the blood meals were taken at least on two vertebrate hosts. Overall, 53.2% of the blood meals from Ae. vexans were taken on equine, 18.6% on bovines, 7.1% on sheep and 0.6% on human. No blood meal was taken on rodent. The greatest diversity was observed in August. These host feedings patterns show that although equine is known to play a minor role in RVF epidemiology a thorough attention should be made to this host with regard to the percentage of blood meals taken in this host. The low percentage of blood meals taken on human could probably explain the low human infection rate observed up

Chameleon vector bosons

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nelson, Ann E.; Walsh, Jonathan

2008-01-01

We show that for a force mediated by a vector particle coupled to a conserved U(1) charge, the apparent range and strength can depend on the size and density of the source, and the proximity to other sources. This chameleon effect is due to screening from a light charged scalar. Such screening can weaken astrophysical constraints on new gauge bosons. As an example we consider the constraints on chameleonic gauged B-L. We show that although Casimir measurements greatly constrain any B-L force much stronger than gravity with range longer than 0.1 μm, there remains an experimental window for a long-range chameleonic B-L force. Such a force could be much stronger than gravity, and long or infinite range in vacuum, but have an effective range near the surface of the earth which is less than a micron.

Dynamics of nonpersistent aphid-borne viruses in lettuce crops covered with UV-absorbing nets.

Science.gov (United States)

Legarrea, S; Betancourt, M; Plaza, M; Fraile, A; García-Arenal, F; Fereres, A

2012-04-01

Aphid-transmitted viruses frequently cause severe epidemics in lettuce grown under Mediterranean climates. Spatio-temporal dynamics of aphid-transmitted viruses and its vector were studied on lettuce (Lactuca sativa L.) grown under tunnels covered by two types of nets: a commercial UV-absorbing net (Bionet) and a Standard net. A group of plants infected by Cucumber mosaic virus (CMV, family Bromoviridae, genus Cucumovirus) and Lettuce mosaic virus (LMV, family Potyviridae, genus Potyvirus) was transplanted in each plot. The same virus-infected source plants were artificially infested by the aphid Macrosiphum euphorbiae (Thomas). Secondary spread of insects was weekly monitored and plants were sampled for the detection of viruses every two weeks. In 2008, the infection rate of both CMV and LMV were lower under the Bionet than under the Standard cover, probably due to the lower population density and lower dispersal rate achieved by M. euphorbiae. However, during spring of 2009, significant differences in the rate of infection between the two covers were only found for LMV six weeks after transplant. The spatial distribution of the viruses analysed by SADIE methodology was "at random", and it was not associated to the spatial pattern of the vector. The results obtained are discussed analyzing the wide range of interactions that occurred among UV-radiation, host plant, viruses, insect vector and environmental conditions. Our results show that UV-absorbing nets can be recommended as a component of an integrated disease management program to reduce secondary spread of lettuce viruses, although not as a control measure on its own. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

The importance of considering community-level effects when selecting insecticidal malaria vector products

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Coosemans Marc

2011-08-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Insecticide treatment of nets, curtains or walls and ceilings of houses represent the primary means for malaria prevention worldwide. Direct personal protection of individuals and households arises from deterrent and insecticidal activities which divert or kill mosquitoes before they can feed. However, at high coverage, community-level reductions of mosquito density and survival prevent more transmission exposure than the personal protection acquired by using a net or living in a sprayed house. Methods A process-explicit simulation of malaria transmission was applied to results of 4 recent Phase II experimental hut trials comparing a new mosaic long-lasting insecticidal net (LLIN which combines deltamethrin and piperonyl butoxide with another LLIN product by the same manufacturer relying on deltamethrin alone. Results Direct estimates of mean personal protection against insecticide-resistant vectors in Vietnam, Cameroon, Burkina Faso and Benin revealed no clear advantage for combination LLINs over deltamethrin-only LLINs (P = 0.973 unless both types of nets were extensively washed (Relative mean entomologic inoculation rate (EIR ± standard error of the mean (SEM for users of combination nets compared to users of deltamethrin only nets = 0.853 ± 0.056, P = 0.008. However, simulations of impact at high coverage (80% use predicted consistently better impact for the combination net across all four sites (Relative mean EIR ± SEM in communities with combination nets, compared with those using deltamethrin only nets = 0.613 ± 0.076, P Conclusion Process-explicit simulations of community-level protection, parameterized using locally-relevant experimental hut studies, should be explicitly considered when choosing vector control products for large-scale epidemiological trials or public health programme procurement, particularly as growing insecticide resistance necessitates the use of multiple active ingredients.

Serological markers of sand fly exposure to evaluate insecticidal nets against visceral leishmaniasis in India and Nepal: a cluster-randomi trial

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Gidwani, K; Picado, A; Rijal, S

2011-01-01

Background: Visceral leishmaniasis is the world’ second largest vector-borne parasitic killer and a neglected tropical disease, prevalent in poor communities. Long-lasting insecticidal nets (LNs) are a low cost proven vector intervention method for malaria control; however, their effectiveness...

Modulated error diffusion CGHs for neural nets

Science.gov (United States)

Vermeulen, Pieter J. E.; Casasent, David P.

1990-05-01

New modulated error diffusion CGHs (computer generated holograms) for optical computing are considered. Specific attention is given to their use in optical matrix-vector, associative processor, neural net and optical interconnection architectures. We consider lensless CGH systems (many CGHs use an external Fourier transform (FT) lens), the Fresnel sampling requirements, the effects of finite CGH apertures (sample and hold inputs), dot size correction (for laser recorders), and new applications for this novel encoding method (that devotes attention to quantization noise effects).

The neuro vector engine : flexibility to improve convolutional net efficiency for wearable vision

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Peemen, M.C.J.; Shi, R.; Lal, S.; Juurlink, B.H.H.; Mesman, B.; Corporaal, H.

2016-01-01

Deep Convolutional Networks (ConvNets) are currently superior in benchmark performance, but the associated demands on computation and data transfer prohibit straightforward mapping on energy constrained wearable platforms. The computational burden can be overcome by dedicated hardware accelerators,

PatterNet: a system to learn compact physical design pattern representations for pattern-based analytics

Science.gov (United States)

Lutich, Andrey

2017-07-01

This research considers the problem of generating compact vector representations of physical design patterns for analytics purposes in semiconductor patterning domain. PatterNet uses a deep artificial neural network to learn mapping of physical design patterns to a compact Euclidean hyperspace. Distances among mapped patterns in this space correspond to dissimilarities among patterns defined at the time of the network training. Once the mapping network has been trained, PatterNet embeddings can be used as feature vectors with standard machine learning algorithms, and pattern search, comparison, and clustering become trivial problems. PatterNet is inspired by the concepts developed within the framework of generative adversarial networks as well as the FaceNet. Our method facilitates a deep neural network (DNN) to learn directly the compact representation by supplying it with pairs of design patterns and dissimilarity among these patterns defined by a user. In the simplest case, the dissimilarity is represented by an area of the XOR of two patterns. Important to realize that our PatterNet approach is very different to the methods developed for deep learning on image data. In contrast to "conventional" pictures, the patterns in the CAD world are the lists of polygon vertex coordinates. The method solely relies on the promise of deep learning to discover internal structure of the incoming data and learn its hierarchical representations. Artificial intelligence arising from the combination of PatterNet and clustering analysis very precisely follows intuition of patterning/optical proximity correction experts paving the way toward human-like and human-friendly engineering tools.

Netting the malaria menace: Distribution and utilization of long-lasting insecticidal net in a malaria endemic area in Bankura, West Bengal

OpenAIRE

D K Mukhopadhyay; S S Basu; D Roy; N Das; F Akbar; GN Sarkar

2016-01-01

Background & objectives: Long-lasting insecticidal net (LLIN) is considered to be a highly effective intervention against malaria under National Vector Borne Disease Control Programme in India. A cross-sectional study was undertaken to assess the coverage and utilization of LLIN and the factors related thereto. Methods: A survey of 1300 households was carried out in Ranibandh block of Bankura district in West Bengal, India, using lot quality assurance sampling (LQAS) method. Coverage/util...

Magnetic concentration of a retroviral vector using magnetite cationic liposomes.

Science.gov (United States)

Ito, Akira; Takahashi, Tetsuya; Kameyama, Yujiro; Kawabe, Yoshinori; Kamihira, Masamichi

2009-03-01

For tissue engineering purposes, retroviral vectors represent an efficient method of delivering exogenous genes such as growth factors to injured tissues because gene-transduced cells can produce stable and constant levels of the gene product. However, retroviral vector technology suffers from low yields. In the present study, we used magnetite nanoparticles and magnetic force to concentrate the retroviral vectors to enhance the transduction efficiency and to enable their magnetic manipulation. Magnetite nanoparticles modified with cationic liposomes were added to a solution containing a retroviral vector pseudotyped with vesicular stomatitis virus glycoprotein. The magnetic particles that captured the viral vectors were collected using a magnetic force and seeded into mouse neuroblastoma Neuro2a cells. The viral titer was up to 55 times greater (up to 3 x 10(8) infectious units/mL). Additionally, the magnetically labeled retroviral vectors can be directed to the desired regions for infection by applying magnetic fields, and micro-patterns of gene-transduced cell regions could be created on a cellular monolayer using micro-patterned magnetic concentrators. These results suggest that this technique provides a promising approach to capturing and concentrating viral vectors, thus achieving high transduction efficiency and the ability to deliver genes to a specific injured site by applying a magnetic field.

Force generation by titin folding.

Science.gov (United States)

Mártonfalvi, Zsolt; Bianco, Pasquale; Naftz, Katalin; Ferenczy, György G; Kellermayer, Miklós

2017-07-01

Titin is a giant protein that provides elasticity to muscle. As the sarcomere is stretched, titin extends hierarchically according to the mechanics of its segments. Whether titin's globular domains unfold during this process and how such unfolded domains might contribute to muscle contractility are strongly debated. To explore the force-dependent folding mechanisms, here we manipulated skeletal-muscle titin molecules with high-resolution optical tweezers. In force-clamp mode, after quenching the force (force trace contained rapid fluctuations and a gradual increase of average force, indicating that titin can develop force via dynamic transitions between its structural states en route to the native conformation. In 4 M urea, which destabilizes H-bonds hence the consolidated native domain structure, the net force increase disappeared but the fluctuations persisted. Thus, whereas net force generation is caused by the ensemble folding of the elastically-coupled domains, force fluctuations arise due to a dynamic equilibrium between unfolded and molten-globule states. Monte-Carlo simulations incorporating a compact molten-globule intermediate in the folding landscape recovered all features of our nanomechanics results. The ensemble molten-globule dynamics delivers significant added contractility that may assist sarcomere mechanics, and it may reduce the dissipative energy loss associated with titin unfolding/refolding during muscle contraction/relaxation cycles. © 2017 The Protein Society.

How small bugs tie down big rocks: Measuring and modeling the forces acting between nets spun by Caddisfly larvae (Hydropsychidae) and gravel particles at the onset of motion

Science.gov (United States)

Mclaughlin, M. K.; Tumolo, B.; Sklar, L. S.; Albertson, L.; Daniels, M.

2017-12-01

The influence of life on geomorphic processes is commonly inferred from correlations between the size and abundance of individual organisms and the change in process thresholds and rates from abiotic conditions. However, to understand and model the underlying mechanisms, it is helpful to make direct measurements of the forces acting between organisms and the earth materials they inhabit. For example, flume studies have found that the presence of net-spinning caddisfly larvae (Trichoptera: Hydropsychidae) can increase the shear stress required to initiate particle motion by more than a factor of two, with potentially significant implications for the timing and magnitude of bedload sediment transport in gravel-bedded rivers. To explore the underlying mechanics we conducted flume experiments at the Stroud Water Research center in Avonadale, Pennsylvania, using strain gages to measure the forces acting between caddisfly nets and sediment particles of various sizes, during the process of initial particle motion. We combine these measurements with high-speed video images to document for the first time, the three dimensional dynamics of net stretching, tearing, and detachment that govern the magnitude of the increase in critical shear stress. We are using these data and insights to substantially improve a previously published theoretical model for the mechanics of sediment stabilization by caddisfly larvae. In particular, we seek to constrain the range of particle sizes potentially stabilized by caddisfly larvae and explain mechanistically why the effect of caddisfly nets varies with particle size. These predictions have implications for understanding feedbacks between bed stabilization by caddisflies, insect density, inter-specific niche partitioning, and the movement of sediment that shapes gravel-bed channels.

Force estimation from OCT volumes using 3D CNNs.

Science.gov (United States)

Gessert, Nils; Beringhoff, Jens; Otte, Christoph; Schlaefer, Alexander

2018-05-04

Estimating the interaction forces of instruments and tissue is of interest, particularly to provide haptic feedback during robot-assisted minimally invasive interventions. Different approaches based on external and integrated force sensors have been proposed. These are hampered by friction, sensor size, and sterilizability. We investigate a novel approach to estimate the force vector directly from optical coherence tomography image volumes. We introduce a novel Siamese 3D CNN architecture. The network takes an undeformed reference volume and a deformed sample volume as an input and outputs the three components of the force vector. We employ a deep residual architecture with bottlenecks for increased efficiency. We compare the Siamese approach to methods using difference volumes and two-dimensional projections. Data were generated using a robotic setup to obtain ground-truth force vectors for silicon tissue phantoms as well as porcine tissue. Our method achieves a mean average error of [Formula: see text] when estimating the force vector. Our novel Siamese 3D CNN architecture outperforms single-path methods that achieve a mean average error of [Formula: see text]. Moreover, the use of volume data leads to significantly higher performance compared to processing only surface information which achieves a mean average error of [Formula: see text]. Based on the tissue dataset, our methods shows good generalization in between different subjects. We propose a novel image-based force estimation method using optical coherence tomography. We illustrate that capturing the deformation of subsurface structures substantially improves force estimation. Our approach can provide accurate force estimates in surgical setups when using intraoperative optical coherence tomography.

Manipulation of dielectric Rayleigh particles using highly focused elliptically polarized vector fields.

Science.gov (United States)

Gu, Bing; Xu, Danfeng; Rui, Guanghao; Lian, Meng; Cui, Yiping; Zhan, Qiwen

2015-09-20

Generation of vectorial optical fields with arbitrary polarization distribution is of great interest in areas where exotic optical fields are desired. In this work, we experimentally demonstrate the versatile generation of linearly polarized vector fields, elliptically polarized vector fields, and circularly polarized vortex beams through introducing attenuators in a common-path interferometer. By means of Richards-Wolf vectorial diffraction method, the characteristics of the highly focused elliptically polarized vector fields are studied. The optical force and torque on a dielectric Rayleigh particle produced by these tightly focused vector fields are calculated and exploited for the stable trapping of dielectric Rayleigh particles. It is shown that the additional degree of freedom provided by the elliptically polarized vector field allows one to control the spatial structure of polarization, to engineer the focusing field, and to tailor the optical force and torque on a dielectric Rayleigh particle.

Localized bound states of fermions interacting via massive vector bosons

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ionescu, D.C.; Reinhardt, J.; Mueller, B.; Greiner, W.; Soff, G.

1988-11-01

A model for composite consisting of fermions with internal degrees of freedom interacting via intermediate vector bosons (IVB) is constructed. We find highly localized, low-mass bound states in the Hartree-Fock approximation. We investigate the dependence of these states as function of the coupling constant and vector boson mass. In the limit of infinite vector boson mass the interaction is described by Fermi-type contact forces. (orig.)

Impact of PermaNet 3.0 on entomological indices in an area of pyrethroid resistant Anopheles gambiae in south-western Nigeria

Science.gov (United States)

2014-01-01

Background PermaNet® 3.0 is an insecticide synergist-combination long-lasting insecticidal net designed to have increased efficacy against malaria vectors with metabolic resistance, even when combined with kdr. The current study reports on the impact of this improved tool on entomological indices in an area with pyrethroid-resistant malaria vectors in Nigeria. Methods Baseline entomological indices across eight villages in Remo North LGA of Ogun State provided the basis for selection of three villages (Ilara, Irolu and Ijesa) for comparing the efficacy of PermaNet® 3.0 (PN3.0), PermaNet® 2.0 (PN2.0) and untreated polyester nets as a control (UTC). In each case, nets were distributed to cover all sleeping spaces and were evaluated for insecticidal activity on a 3-monthly basis. Collection of mosquitoes was conducted monthly via window traps and indoor resting catches. The arithmetic means of mosquito catches per house, entomological inoculation rates before and during the intervention were compared as well as three other outcome parameters: the mean mosquito blood feeding rate, mean mortality and mean parity rates. Results Anopheles gambiae s.l. was the main malaria vector in the three villages, accounting for >98% of the Anopheles population and found in appreciable numbers for 6–7 months. Deltamethrin, permethrin and lambdacyhalothrin resistance were confirmed at Ilara, Irolu and Ijesa. The kdr mutation was the sole resistance mechanism at Ilara, whereas kdr plus P450-based metabolic mechanisms were detected at Irolu and Ijesa. Bioassays repeated on domestically used PN 2.0 and PN 3.0 showed persistent optimal (100%) bio-efficacy for both net types after the 3rd, 6th, 9th and 12th month following net distribution. The use of PN 3.0 significantly reduced mosquito densities with a ‘mass killing’ effect inside houses. Households with PN 3.0 also showed reduced blood feeding as well as lower mosquito parity and sporozoite rates compared to the PN 2.0 and the

Alternative treatments for indoor residual spraying for malaria control in a village with pyrethroid- and DDT-resistant vectors in The Gambia

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Tangena, J.A.A.; Adiamoh, M.; Alessandro, D' U.; Jarju, L.; Jawara, M.; Jeffries, D.; Malik, N.; Nwakanma, D.; Kaur, H.; Takken, W.; Lindsay, S.W.; Pinder, M.

2013-01-01

Background: Malaria vector control is threatened by resistance to pyrethroids, the only class of insecticides used for treating bed nets. The second major vector control method is indoor residual spraying with pyrethroids or the organochloride DDT. However, resistance to pyrethroids frequently

Olyset Duo® (a pyriproxyfen and permethrin mixture net: an experimental hut trial against pyrethroid resistant Anopheles gambiae and Culex quinquefasciatus in Southern Benin.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Corine Ngufor

Full Text Available Alternative compounds which can complement pyrethroids on long-lasting insecticidal nets (LN in the control of pyrethroid resistant malaria vectors are urgently needed. Pyriproxyfen (PPF, an insect growth regulator, reduces the fecundity and fertility of adult female mosquitoes. LNs containing a mixture of pyriproxyfen and pyrethroid could provide personal protection through the pyrethroid component and reduce vector abundance in the next generation through the sterilizing effect of pyriproxyfen.The efficacy of Olyset Duo, a newly developed mixture LN containing pyriproxyfen and permethrin, was evaluated in experimental huts in southern Benin against pyrethroid resistant Anopheles gambiae and Culex quinquefasciatus. Comparison was made with Olyset Net® (permethrin alone and a LN with pyriproxyfen alone (PPF LN. Laboratory tunnel tests were performed to substantiate the findings in the experimental huts.Overall mortality of wild pyrethroid resistant An. gambiae s.s. was significantly higher with Olyset Duo than with Olyset Net (50% vs. 27%, P = 0.01. Olyset DUO was more protective than Olyset Net (71% vs. 3%, P<0.001. The oviposition rate of surviving blood-fed An. gambiae from the control hut was 37% whereas none of those from Olyset Duo and PPF LN huts laid eggs. The tunnel test results were consistent with the experimental hut results. Olyset Duo was more protective than Olyset Net in the huts against wild pyrethroid resistant Cx. quinquefasciatus although mortality rates of this species did not differ significantly between Olyset Net and Olyset Duo. There was no sterilizing effect on surviving blood-fed Cx. quinquefasciatus with the PPF-treated nets.Olyset Duo was superior to Olyset Net in terms of personal protection and killing of pyrethroid resistant An. gambiae, and sterilized surviving blood-fed mosquitoes. Mixing pyrethroid and pyriproxyfen on a LN shows potential for malaria control and management of pyrethroid resistant vectors by

Efficient and Enhanced Diffusion of Vector Field for Active Contour Model

OpenAIRE

Liu, Guoqi; Sun, Lin; Liu, Shangwang

2015-01-01

Gradient vector flow (GVF) is an important external force field for active contour models. Various vector fields based on GVF have been proposed. However, these vector fields are obtained with many iterations and have difficulty in capturing the whole image area. On the other hand, the ability to converge to deep and complex concavity with these vector fields is also needed to improve. In this paper, by analyzing the diffusion equation of GVF, a normalized set is defined and a dynamically nor...

Surface radiative forcing of forest disturbances over northeastern China

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zhang, Yuzhen; Liang, Shunlin

2014-01-01

Forests provide important climate forcing through biogeochemical and biogeophysical processes. In this study, we investigated the climatic effects of forest disturbances due to changes in forest biomass and surface albedo in terms of radiative forcing over northeastern China. Four types of forest disturbances were considered: fires, insect damage, logging, and afforestation and reforestation. The mechanisms of the influence of forest disturbances on climate were different. ‘Instantaneous’ net radiative forcings caused by fires, insect damage, logging, and afforestation and reforestation were estimated at 0.53 ± 0.08 W m −2 , 1.09 ± 0.14 W m −2 , 2.23 ± 0.27 W m −2 , and 0.14 ± 0.04 W m −2 , respectively. Trajectories of CO 2 -driven radiative forcing, albedo-driven radiative forcing, and net forcing were different with time for each type of disturbance. Over a decade, the estimated net forcings were 2.24 ± 0.11 W m −2 , 0.20 ± 0.31 W m −2 , 1.06 ± 0.41 W m −2 , and −0.47 ± 0.07 W m −2 , respectively. These estimated radiative forcings from satellite observations provided evidence for the mechanisms of the influences of forest disturbances on climate. (paper)

Improvement in vehicle agility and stability by G-Vectoring control

Science.gov (United States)

Yamakado, Makoto; Takahashi, Jyunya; Saito, Shinjiro; Yokoyama, Atsushi; Abe, Masato

2010-12-01

We extracted a trade-off strategy between longitudinal traction/braking force and cornering force by using jerk information through observing an expert driver's voluntary braking and turning action. Using the expert driver's strategy, we developed a new control concept, called 'G-Vectoring control', which is an automatic longitudinal acceleration control (No DYC) in accordance with the vehicle's lateral jerk caused by the driver's steering manoeuvres. With the control, the direction of synthetic acceleration (G) changes seamlessly (i.e. vectoring). The improvements in vehicle agility and stability were evaluated by theoretical analysis and through computer simulation. We then introduced a 'G-Vectoring' equipped test vehicle realised by brake-by-wire technology and executed a detailed examination on a test track. We have confirmed that the vehicle motion in view of both handling and ride quality has improved dramatically.

An introduction to vectors, vector operators and vector analysis

CERN Document Server

Joag, Pramod S

2016-01-01

Ideal for undergraduate and graduate students of science and engineering, this book covers fundamental concepts of vectors and their applications in a single volume. The first unit deals with basic formulation, both conceptual and theoretical. It discusses applications of algebraic operations, Levi-Civita notation, and curvilinear coordinate systems like spherical polar and parabolic systems and structures, and analytical geometry of curves and surfaces. The second unit delves into the algebra of operators and their types and also explains the equivalence between the algebra of vector operators and the algebra of matrices. Formulation of eigen vectors and eigen values of a linear vector operator are elaborated using vector algebra. The third unit deals with vector analysis, discussing vector valued functions of a scalar variable and functions of vector argument (both scalar valued and vector valued), thus covering both the scalar vector fields and vector integration.

Integrated vector management for malaria control

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Impoinvil Daniel E

2008-12-01

Full Text Available Abstract Integrated vector management (IVM is defined as "a rational decision-making process for the optimal use of resources for vector control" and includes five key elements: 1 evidence-based decision-making, 2 integrated approaches 3, collaboration within the health sector and with other sectors, 4 advocacy, social mobilization, and legislation, and 5 capacity-building. In 2004, the WHO adopted IVM globally for the control of all vector-borne diseases. Important recent progress has been made in developing and promoting IVM for national malaria control programmes in Africa at a time when successful malaria control programmes are scaling-up with insecticide-treated nets (ITN and/or indoor residual spraying (IRS coverage. While interventions using only ITNs and/or IRS successfully reduce transmission intensity and the burden of malaria in many situations, it is not clear if these interventions alone will achieve those critical low levels that result in malaria elimination. Despite the successful employment of comprehensive integrated malaria control programmes, further strengthening of vector control components through IVM is relevant, especially during the "end-game" where control is successful and further efforts are required to go from low transmission situations to sustained local and country-wide malaria elimination. To meet this need and to ensure sustainability of control efforts, malaria control programmes should strengthen their capacity to use data for decision-making with respect to evaluation of current vector control programmes, employment of additional vector control tools in conjunction with ITN/IRS tactics, case-detection and treatment strategies, and determine how much and what types of vector control and interdisciplinary input are required to achieve malaria elimination. Similarly, on a global scale, there is a need for continued research to identify and evaluate new tools for vector control that can be integrated with

Declining Prevalence of Disease Vectors Under Climate Change

Science.gov (United States)

Escobar, Luis E.; Romero-Alvarez, Daniel; Leon, Renato; Lepe-Lopez, Manuel A.; Craft, Meggan E.; Borbor-Cordova, Mercy J.; Svenning, Jens-Christian

2016-12-01

More than half of the world population is at risk of vector-borne diseases including dengue fever, chikungunya, zika, yellow fever, leishmaniasis, chagas disease, and malaria, with highest incidences in tropical regions. In Ecuador, vector-borne diseases are present from coastal and Amazonian regions to the Andes Mountains; however, a detailed characterization of the distribution of their vectors has never been carried out. We estimate the distribution of 14 vectors of the above vector-borne diseases under present-day and future climates. Our results consistently suggest that climate warming is likely threatening some vector species with extinction, locally or completely. These results suggest that climate change could reduce the burden of specific vector species. Other vector species are likely to shift and constrain their geographic range to the highlands in Ecuador potentially affecting novel areas and populations. These forecasts show the need for development of early prevention strategies for vector species currently absent in areas projected as suitable under future climate conditions. Informed interventions could reduce the risk of human exposure to vector species with distributional shifts, in response to current and future climate changes. Based on the mixed effects of future climate on human exposure to disease vectors, we argue that research on vector-borne diseases should be cross-scale and include climatic, demographic, and landscape factors, as well as forces facilitating disease transmission at fine scales.

Is Declining malaria vector population in Africa a result of intervention Measures or sampling tools inefficiency?

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Eliningaya Kweka

2013-01-01

Full Text Available Recent entomological surveys have shown a declining trend of malaria vector population in sub-Saharan Africa and the observation have beenassociated with the scale-up and intensive use of malaria intervention measures such as insecticides treated nets and insecticide residual sprays.However, little is known on the contribution of the mosquito sampling tools inefficiency on the declining trends of malaria vector population. Inthis commentary paper, we explore the possibility of contribution of mosquito sampling tools’ inefficiency to the observed declining trends ofmalaria vector population in Africa.

Using WordNet to Complement Training Information in Text Categorization

OpenAIRE

Rodriguez, Manuel de Buenaga; Hidalgo, Jose Maria Gomez; Agudo, Belen Diaz

1997-01-01

Automatic Text Categorization (TC) is a complex and useful task for many natural language applications, and is usually performed through the use of a set of manually classified documents, a training collection. We suggest the utilization of additional resources like lexical databases to increase the amount of information that TC systems make use of, and thus, to improve their performance. Our approach integrates WordNet information with two training approaches through the Vector Space Model. ...

Net joint kinetics in the limbs of pigs walking on concrete floor in dry and contaminated conditions

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Thorup, Vivi M.; Laursen, Bjarne; Jensen, Bente Rona

2008-01-01

In pigs (Sus scrofa), joint disorders are frequent leg problems, and inappropriate pigpen floors and slippery floor conditions may contribute to these problems. Therefore, this study first aimed to quantify the net joint kinetics (net joint moments and net joint reaction forces) in the forelimbs...... and hindlimbs of healthy pigs walking on solid concrete floors. Second, this study aimed to examine the effect of floor condition on the net joint kinetics. Kinematic (50-Hz video recordings) and kinetic (1-kHz force plate measurements) data were collected from 30 pigs and combined with body segment parameters...... from a cadaver study. Net joint kinetics was calculated by using a 2-dimensional inverse dynamic solution. Inverse dynamics have, to our knowledge, not been applied in pigs before. Dry, greasy, and wet floor conditions were tested with 10 pigs each. In the forelimbs, peak joint moment was less (P

Efficacy of PermaNet® 2.0 and PermaNet® 3.0 against insecticide-resistant Anopheles gambiae in experimental huts in Côte d'Ivoire

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Koffi Alphonsine A

2011-06-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Pyrethroid resistance in vectors could limit the efficacy of long-lasting insecticidal nets (LLINs because all LLINs are currently treated with pyrethroids. The goal of this study was to evaluate the efficacy and wash resistance of PermaNet® 3.0 compared to PermaNet® 2.0 in an area of high pyrethroid in Côte d'Ivoire. PermaNet® 3.0 is impregnated with deltamethrin at 85 mg/m2 on the sides of the net and with deltamethrin and piperonyl butoxide on the roof. PermaNet® 2.0 is impregnated with deltamethrin at 55 mg/m2 across the entire net. Methods The study was conducted in the station of Yaokoffikro, in central Côte d'Ivoire. The efficacy of intact unwashed and washed LLINs was compared over a 12-week period with a conventionally-treated net (CTN washed to just before exhaustion. WHO cone bioassays were performed on sub-sections of the nets, using wild-resistant An. gambiae and Kisumu strains. Mosquitoes were collected five days per week and were identified to genus and species level and classified as dead or alive, then unfed or blood-fed. Results Mortality rates of over 80% from cone bioassays with wild-caught pyrethroid-resistant An. gambiae s.s were recorded only with unwashed PermaNet® 3.0. Over 12 weeks, a total of 7,291 mosquitoes were collected. There were significantly more An. gambiae s.s. and Culex spp. caught in control huts than with other treatments (P An. gambiae s.s and Culex spp, were lower for the control than for other treatments (P 0.05 except for unwashed PermaNet® 3.0 (P Conclusions This study showed that unwashed PermaNet® 3.0 caused significantly higher mortality against pyrethroid resistant An. gambiae s.s and Culex spp than PermaNet® 2.0 and the CTN. The increased efficacy with unwashed PermaNet® 3.0 over PermaNet® 2.0 and the CTN was also demonstrated by higher KD and mortality rates (KD > 95% and mortality rate > 80% in cone bioassays performed with wild pyrethroid-resistant An. gambiae s

CERN vector boson hunt successful

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Robinson, A.L.

1983-01-01

UA-1 and UA-2 are code names for two groups of physicists at the European Laboratory for Particle Physics (CERN), together comprising almost 200 researchers. From data collected in two 3-month-long runs last fall and spring, the groups have collected 100 intermediate vector bosons (90 W's and 10 Z 0 's) whose properties so far fit the predictions of the unified quantum field theory of the electromagnetic and weak forces. Although the number of events is short of staggering, the discovery is immensely important. Physicists have been looking for the W for about 50 years. The Z 0 is crucial to the success of the method by which the two forces were melded into one - the electro-weak force

Control of thumb force using surface functional electrical stimulation and muscle load sharing

Science.gov (United States)

2013-01-01

Background Stroke survivors often have difficulties in manipulating objects with their affected hand. Thumb control plays an important role in object manipulation. Surface functional electrical stimulation (FES) can assist movement. We aim to control the 2D thumb force by predicting the sum of individual muscle forces, described by a sigmoidal muscle recruitment curve and a single force direction. Methods Five able bodied subjects and five stroke subjects were strapped in a custom built setup. The forces perpendicular to the thumb in response to FES applied to three thumb muscles were measured. We evaluated the feasibility of using recruitment curve based force vector maps in predicting output forces. In addition, we developed a closed loop force controller. Load sharing between the three muscles was used to solve the redundancy problem having three actuators to control forces in two dimensions. The thumb force was controlled towards target forces of 0.5 N and 1.0 N in multiple directions within the individual’s thumb work space. Hereby, the possibilities to use these force vector maps and the load sharing approach in feed forward and feedback force control were explored. Results The force vector prediction of the obtained model had small RMS errors with respect to the actual measured force vectors (0.22±0.17 N for the healthy subjects; 0.17±0.13 N for the stroke subjects). The stroke subjects showed a limited work range due to limited force production of the individual muscles. Performance of feed forward control without feedback, was better in healthy subjects than in stroke subjects. However, when feedback control was added performances were similar between the two groups. Feedback force control lead, especially for the stroke subjects, to a reduction in stationary errors, which improved performance. Conclusions Thumb muscle responses to FES can be described by a single force direction and a sigmoidal recruitment curve. Force in desired direction can be

Novel parallel plate condenser for single particle electrostatic force measurements in atomic force microscope

KAUST Repository

Kwek, Jin Wang

2011-07-01

A combination of small parallel plate condenser with Indium Tin Oxide (ITO) glass slides as electrodes and an atomic force microscope (AFM) is used to characterize the electrostatic behavior of single glass bead microparticles (105-150 μm) glued to the AFM cantilever. This novel setup allows measurements of the electrostatic forces acting on a particle in an applied electrical field to be performed in ambient air conditions. By varying the position of the microparticle between the electrodes and the strength of the applied electric field, the relative contributions of the particle net charge, induced and image charges were investigated. When the microparticle is positioned in the middle of the electrodes, the force acting on the microparticle was linear with the applied electric field and proportional to the microparticle net charge. At distances close to the bottom electrode, the force follows a parabolic relationship with the applied electric field reflecting the contributions of induced and image charges. The method can be used for the rapid evaluation of the charging and polarizability properties of the microparticle as well as an alternative to the conventional Faraday\\'s pail technique. © 2011 Elsevier B.V.

A structural modification of the two dimensional fuel behaviour analysis code FEMAXI-III with high-speed vectorized operation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yanagisawa, Kazuaki; Ishiguro, Misako; Yamazaki, Takashi; Tokunaga, Yasuo.

1985-02-01

Though the two-dimensional fuel behaviour analysis code FEMAXI-III has been developed by JAERI in form of optimized scalar computer code, the call for more efficient code usage generally arized from the recent trends like high burn-up and load follow operation asks the code into further modification stage. A principal aim of the modification is to transform the already implemented scalar type subroutines into vectorized forms to make the programme structure efficiently run on high-speed vector computers. The effort of such structural modification has been finished on a fair way to success. The benchmarking two tests subsequently performed to examine the effect of the modification led us the following concluding remarks: (1) In the first benchmark test, comparatively high-burned three fuel rods that have been irradiated in HBWR, BWR, and PWR condition are prepared. With respect to all cases, a net computing time consumed in the vectorized FEMAXI is approximately 50 % less than that consumed in the original one. (2) In the second benchmark test, a total of 26 PWR fuel rods that have been irradiated in the burn-up ranges of 13-30 MWd/kgU and subsequently power ramped in R2 reactor, Sweden is prepared. In this case the code is purposed to be used for making an envelop of PCI-failure threshold through 26 times code runs. Before coming to the same conclusion, the vectorized FEMAXI-III consumed a net computing time 18 min., while the original FEMAXI-III consumed a computing time 36 min. respectively. (3) The effects obtained from such structural modification are found to be significantly attributed to saving a net computing time in a mechanical calculation in the vectorized FEMAXI-III code. (author)

Neuronal nets in robotics; Redes neuronales en robotica

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Jimenez Sanchez, Raul

1999-06-01

The paper gives a generic idea of the solutions that the neuronal nets contribute to the robotics. The advantages and the inconveniences are exposed that have regarding the conventional techniques. It also describe the more excellent applications as the pursuit of trajectories, the positioning based on images, the force control or of the mobile robots management, among others.

How effective is integrated vector management against malaria and lymphatic filariasis where the diseases are transmitted by the same vector?

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Christopher M Stone

2014-12-01

Full Text Available The opportunity to integrate vector management across multiple vector-borne diseases is particularly plausible for malaria and lymphatic filariasis (LF control where both diseases are transmitted by the same vector. To date most examples of integrated control targeting these diseases have been unanticipated consequences of malaria vector control, rather than planned strategies that aim to maximize the efficacy and take the complex ecological and biological interactions between the two diseases into account.We developed a general model of malaria and LF transmission and derived expressions for the basic reproductive number (R0 for each disease. Transmission of both diseases was most sensitive to vector mortality and biting rate. Simulating different levels of coverage of long lasting-insecticidal nets (LLINs and larval control confirms the effectiveness of these interventions for the control of both diseases. When LF was maintained near the critical density of mosquitoes, minor levels of vector control (8% coverage of LLINs or treatment of 20% of larval sites were sufficient to eliminate the disease. Malaria had a far greater R0 and required a 90% population coverage of LLINs in order to eliminate it. When the mosquito density was doubled, 36% and 58% coverage of LLINs and larval control, respectively, were required for LF elimination; and malaria elimination was possible with a combined coverage of 78% of LLINs and larval control.Despite the low level of vector control required to eliminate LF, simulations suggest that prevalence of LF will decrease at a slower rate than malaria, even at high levels of coverage. If representative of field situations, integrated management should take into account not only how malaria control can facilitate filariasis elimination, but strike a balance between the high levels of coverage of (multiple interventions required for malaria with the long duration predicted to be required for filariasis elimination.

How effective is integrated vector management against malaria and lymphatic filariasis where the diseases are transmitted by the same vector?

Science.gov (United States)

Stone, Christopher M; Lindsay, Steve W; Chitnis, Nakul

2014-12-01

The opportunity to integrate vector management across multiple vector-borne diseases is particularly plausible for malaria and lymphatic filariasis (LF) control where both diseases are transmitted by the same vector. To date most examples of integrated control targeting these diseases have been unanticipated consequences of malaria vector control, rather than planned strategies that aim to maximize the efficacy and take the complex ecological and biological interactions between the two diseases into account. We developed a general model of malaria and LF transmission and derived expressions for the basic reproductive number (R0) for each disease. Transmission of both diseases was most sensitive to vector mortality and biting rate. Simulating different levels of coverage of long lasting-insecticidal nets (LLINs) and larval control confirms the effectiveness of these interventions for the control of both diseases. When LF was maintained near the critical density of mosquitoes, minor levels of vector control (8% coverage of LLINs or treatment of 20% of larval sites) were sufficient to eliminate the disease. Malaria had a far greater R0 and required a 90% population coverage of LLINs in order to eliminate it. When the mosquito density was doubled, 36% and 58% coverage of LLINs and larval control, respectively, were required for LF elimination; and malaria elimination was possible with a combined coverage of 78% of LLINs and larval control. Despite the low level of vector control required to eliminate LF, simulations suggest that prevalence of LF will decrease at a slower rate than malaria, even at high levels of coverage. If representative of field situations, integrated management should take into account not only how malaria control can facilitate filariasis elimination, but strike a balance between the high levels of coverage of (multiple) interventions required for malaria with the long duration predicted to be required for filariasis elimination.

Looking hard at the electroweak force

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Baur, Ulrich; Errede, Steven; Mueller, Thomas

1995-01-01

While recent experiments have beautifully confirmed many of the predictions of the electroweak unification of electromagnetism and the weak nuclear force, some direct consequences of the electroweak symmetry involve special properties of the three force carriers - the electrically charged W and neutral Z carrying the weak force and the photon of electromagnetism. These special properties have yet to be measured accurately. In the electroweak picture these force carriers (vector bosons) can interact with each other. These properties are 'non-abelian' - they are dependent on the order in which they are applied. [Most operations can be applied in any order, for example simple arithmetic: 6x(3+2) = (6x3)+(6x2). These are 'abelian'. An example of a non-abelian operator is the logarithm: log(x+y) does not equal log(x) + log(y).] Summarizing the current theoretical and experimental understanding of these self-interactions, and discussing the prospects of measuring them in future experiments, was the purpose of the ''International Symposium on Vector Boson Self-Interactions'' held earlier this year at UCLA, the first meeting entirely devoted to this topic. Progress in measuring the selfcouplings of vector bosons has been fueled recently by the CDF and DO Collaborations at Fermilab's protonantiproton collider. Using data from vector boson pair production, these studies are extracting information on the WW-photon, WWZ and ZZphoton interactions, as well as the magnetic and electric quadrupole moments of the W boson. At UCLA, Hiro Aihara (Berkeley) and Theresa Fuess (Argonne) summarized the CDF and DO results from the 1992-93 run. Information on potential ZZ-gamma interactions can also be gained from single photon production at CERN's LEP electronpositron collider, as detailed by Peter Maettig (Bonn), and from rare B meson decays, reviewed by Steve Playfer (Syracuse)

Limits on new forces coexisting with electromagnetism

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kloor, H.; Fischbach, E.; Talmadge, C.; Greene, G.L.

1994-01-01

We consider the limits arising from different electromagnetic systems on the existence of a possible new electromagnetic analogue of the fifth force. Although such a force may have no intrinsic connection to electromagnetism (or gravity), its effects could be manifested through various anomalies in electromagnetic systems, for appropriate values of the coupling strength and range. Our work generalizes that of Bartlett and Loegl (who considered the case of a massive vector field coexisting with massless electrodynamics) to encompass a broad class of phenomenological interactions mediated by both scalar and vector exchanges. By combining data from both gravitational and electromagnetic systems, one can eventually set limits on a new force whose range λ extends from the subatomic scale (λ∼10 -15 m) to the astrophysical scale (λ∼10 12 m)

Disease Vector Ecology Profile: Ecuador

Science.gov (United States)

1998-12-01

years occurred in Peru in the northern departments bordering Ecuador in 1992-1994. Sylvatic plague is endemic in the southern provinces of Loja and... Ecuador ) Micrurus bocourti (Pacific lowlands of western Ecuador ) Micrurus catamayensis (Catamayo Valley, Loja Province) Micrurus dumerilii spp...Disease Vector Ecology Profile Ecuador -~· ""’ -.. ~ """ Defense Pest Management Information Analysis Center’ Armed Forces Pest Management

Timing-Constrained FPGA Placement: A Force-Directed Formulation and Its Performance Evaluation

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Srilata Raman

1996-01-01

Full Text Available In this paper we present a simple but efficient timing-driven placement algorithm for FPGAs. The algorithm computes forces acting on a logic block in the FPGA to determine its relative location with respect to other blocks. The forces depend on the criticality of nets shared between the two blocks. Unlike other net-based approaches, timing constraints are incorporated directly into the force equations to guide the placement. Slot assignment is then used to move the blocks into valid slot locations on the FPGA chip. The assignment algorithm also makes use of the delay information of nets so that the final placement is able to meet the timing criteria specified for the circuit. The novelty of the approach lies in the formulation of the force equations and the manner in which weights of the nets are dynamically altered to influence the placement. Experiments conducted on industrial test circuits and MCNC circuits give very promising results and indicate that the algorithm succeeds in significantly reducing the maximum delay in the circuit. In addition, routability is not adversely affected and running time is low.

Horizontal ichthyoplankton tow-net system with unobstructed net opening

Science.gov (United States)

Nester, Robert T.

1987-01-01

The larval fish sampler described here consists of a modified bridle, frame, and net system with an obstruction-free net opening and is small enough for use on boats 10 m or less in length. The tow net features a square net frame attached to a 0.5-m-diameter cylinder-on-cone plankton net with a bridle designed to eliminate all obstructions forward of the net opening, significantly reducing currents and vibrations in the water directly preceding the net. This system was effective in collecting larvae representing more than 25 species of fish at sampling depths ranging from surface to 10 m and could easily be used at greater depths.

Higher-moment measurements of net-kaon, net-charge and net-proton multiplicity distributions at STAR

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sarkar, Amal

2014-01-01

In this paper, we report the measurements of the various moments, such as mean, standard deviation (σ), skewness (S) and kurtosis (κ) of the net-kaon, net-charge and net-proton multiplicity distributions at mid-rapidity in Au + Au collisions from √(s NN )=7.7 to 200 GeV with the STAR experiment at RHIC. This work has been done with the aim to locate the critical point on the QCD phase diagram. These moments and their products are related to the thermodynamic susceptibilities of conserved quantities such as net baryon number, net charge, and net strangeness as well as to the correlation length of the system which diverges in an ideal infinite thermodynamic system at the critical point. For a finite system, existing for a finite time, a non-monotonic behavior of these variables would indicate the presence of the critical point. Furthermore, we also present the moment products Sσ, κσ 2 of net-kaon, net-charge and net-proton multiplicity distributions as a function of collision centrality and energy. The energy and the centrality dependence of higher moments and their products have been compared with different models

Experience with the construction of the cable net cooling tower at Schmehausen

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Erdmann, W.

1977-01-01

The static system of the cooling tower consists of a concrete column 181 metres high from which a 145 meter high cable with a base diameter of 141 metres is suspended and tensioned. The cable net is covered on the inside with aluminium sheeting. Banks of tubes, which constitute the actual coding system, are arranged in the form of rings around the column in a self-supporting structure. Of the very wide range of problems which occurred in the construction of this cooling tower, the following are discussed in the paper: 1) Stressing of the concrete column during the construction period. 2) Stiffening the net using separation rings. 3) Net connection points on the ring foundation. 4) Control of the cable forces and the cable net geometry. 5) Start of sheeting erection. (orig.) [de

Force on an Asymmetric Capacitor

National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

Bahder, Thomas

2003-01-01

.... At present, the physical basis for the Biefeld-Brown effect is not understood. The order of magnitude of the net force on the asymmetric capacitor is estimated assuming two different mechanisms of charge conduction between its electrodes...

Current vector control challenges in the fight against malaria.

Science.gov (United States)

Benelli, Giovanni; Beier, John C

2017-10-01

The effective and eco-friendly control of Anopheles vectors plays a key role in any malaria management program. Integrated Vector Management (IVM) suggests making use of the full range of vector control tools available. The strategies for IVM require novel technologies to control outdoor transmission of malaria. Despite the wide number of promising control tools tested against mosquitoes, current strategies for malaria vector control used in most African countries are not sufficient to achieve successful malaria control. The majority of National Malaria Control Programs in Africa still rely on indoor residual spraying (IRS) and long-lasting insecticidal nets (LLINs). These methods reduce malaria incidence but generally have little impact on malaria prevalence. In addition to outdoor transmission, growing levels of insecticide resistance in targeted vectors threaten the efficacy of LLINs and IRS. Larvicidal treatments can be useful, but are not recommended for rural areas. The research needed to improve the quality and delivery of mosquito vector control should focus on (i) optimization of processes and methods for vector control delivery; (ii) monitoring of vector populations and biting activity with reliable techniques; (iii) the development of effective and eco-friendly tools to reduce the burden or locally eliminate malaria and other mosquito-borne diseases; (iv) the careful evaluation of field suitability and efficacy of new mosquito control tools to prove their epidemiological impact; (v) the continuous monitoring of environmental changes which potentially affect malaria vector populations; (vi) the cooperation among different disciplines, with main emphasis on parasitology, tropical medicine, ecology, entomology, and ecotoxicology. A better understanding of behavioral ecology of malaria vectors is required. Key ecological obstacles that limit the effectiveness of vector control include the variation in mosquito behavior, development of insecticide resistance

Variability of the contrail radiative forcing due to crystal shape

Science.gov (United States)

Markowicz, K. M.; Witek, M. L.

2011-12-01

determined. Two cases are discussed here: a 1% homogeneous contrail cover and the contrail cover provided by Rädel and Shine (2008). In the second distribution case, a more realistic contrail cover is taken into account. This model combines the AERO2K flight inventory with meteorological data and normalizes it with respect to the contrail cover derived from satellite observations. Simulations performed by the Fu-Liou model show significant variability of the shortwave, longwave, and net radiative forcing with crystal shape. The nonspherical crystals have smaller net forcing in contrary to spherical particles. The differences in net radiative forcing between optical models reach up to 50%. The hexagonal column and hexagonal plate particles show the smallest net radiative forcing while the largest forcing is obtained for the spheres. The global and annual mean shortwave, longwave, and net contrail radiative forcing, average over all crystal models and assuming an optical depth of 0.3 at visible wavelengths, is -5.7, 16.8, and 11.1 mW/m2, respectively. A ratio of the radiative forcings' standard deviation to the mean value, derived using 10 different ice particle models, is about 0.2 for the shortwave, 0.14 for the longwave, and 0.23 for the net radiation.

Theoretical modeling of mechanical homeostasis of a mammalian cell under gravity-directed vector.

Science.gov (United States)

Zhou, Lüwen; Zhang, Chen; Zhang, Fan; Lü, Shouqin; Sun, Shujin; Lü, Dongyuan; Long, Mian

2018-02-01

Translocation of dense nucleus along gravity vector initiates mechanical remodeling of a eukaryotic cell. In our previous experiments, we quantified the impact of gravity vector on cell remodeling by placing an MC3T3-E1 cell onto upward (U)-, downward (D)-, or edge-on (E)- orientated substrate. Our experimental data demonstrate that orientation dependence of nucleus longitudinal translocation is positively correlated with cytoskeletal (CSK) remodeling of their expressions and structures and also is associated with rearrangement of focal adhesion complex (FAC). However, the underlying mechanism how CSK network and FACs are reorganized in a mammalian cell remains unclear. In this paper, we developed a theoretical biomechanical model to integrate the mechanosensing of nucleus translocation with CSK remodeling and FAC reorganization induced by a gravity vector. The cell was simplified as a nucleated tensegrity structure in the model. The cell and CSK filaments were considered to be symmetrical. All elements of CSK filaments and cytomembrane that support the nucleus were simplified as springs. FACs were simplified as an adhesion cluster of parallel bonds with shared force. Our model proposed that gravity vector-directed translocation of the cell nucleus is mechanically balanced by CSK remodeling and FAC reorganization induced by a gravitational force. Under gravity, dense nucleus tends to translocate and exert additional compressive or stretching force on the cytoskeleton. Finally, changes of the tension force acting on talin by microfilament alter the size of FACs. Results from our model are in qualitative agreement with those from experiments.

The architecture of neutrophil extracellular traps investigated by atomic force microscopy

Science.gov (United States)

Pires, Ricardo H.; Felix, Stephan B.; Delcea, Mihaela

2016-07-01

Neutrophils are immune cells that engage in a suicidal pathway leading to the release of partially decondensed chromatin, or neutrophil extracellular traps (NETs). NETs behave as a double edged sword; they can bind to pathogens thereby ensnaring them and limiting their spread during infection; however, they may bind to host circulating materials and trigger thrombotic events, and are associated with autoimmune disorders. Despite the fundamental role of NETs as part of an immune system response, there is currently a very poor understanding of how their nanoscale properties are reflected in their macroscopic impact. In this work, using a combination of fluorescence and atomic force microscopy, we show that NETs appear as a branching filament network that results in a substantially organized porous structure with openings with 0.03 +/- 0.04 μm2 on average and thus in the size range of small pathogens. Topological profiles typically up to 3 +/- 1 nm in height are compatible with a ``beads on a string'' model of nucleosome chromatin. Typical branch lengths of 153 +/- 103 nm appearing as rigid rods and height profiles of naked DNA in NETs of 1.2 +/- 0.5 nm are indicative of extensive DNA supercoiling throughout NETs. The presence of DNA duplexes could also be inferred from force spectroscopy and the occurrence of force plateaus that ranged from ~65 pN to 300 pN. Proteolytic digestion of NETs resulted in widespread disassembly of the network structure and considerable loss of mechanical properties. Our results suggest that the underlying structure of NETs is considerably organized and that part of its protein content plays an important role in maintaining its mesh architecture. We anticipate that NETs may work as microscopic mechanical sieves with elastic properties that stem from their DNA-protein composition, which is able to segregate particles also as a result of their size. Such a behavior may explain their participation in capturing pathogens and their association

Comparison of Force Reconstruction Methods for a Lumped Mass Beam

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Vesta I. Bateman

1997-01-01

Full Text Available Two extensions of the force reconstruction method, the sum of weighted accelerations technique (SWAT, are presented in this article. SWAT requires the use of the structure’s elastic mode shapes for reconstruction of the applied force. Although based on the same theory, the two new techniques do not rely on mode shapes to reconstruct the applied force and may be applied to structures whose mode shapes are not available. One technique uses the measured force and acceleration responses with the rigid body mode shapes to calculate the scalar weighting vector, so the technique is called SWAT-CAL (SWAT using a calibrated force input. The second technique uses the free-decay time response of the structure with the rigid body mode shapes to calculate the scalar weighting vector and is called SWAT-TEEM (SWAT using time eliminated elastic modes. All three methods are used to reconstruct forces for a simple structure.

Observationally constrained estimates of carbonaceous aerosol radiative forcing.

Science.gov (United States)

Chung, Chul E; Ramanathan, V; Decremer, Damien

2012-07-17

Carbonaceous aerosols (CA) emitted by fossil and biomass fuels consist of black carbon (BC), a strong absorber of solar radiation, and organic matter (OM). OM scatters as well as absorbs solar radiation. The absorbing component of OM, which is ignored in most climate models, is referred to as brown carbon (BrC). Model estimates of the global CA radiative forcing range from 0 to 0.7 Wm(-2), to be compared with the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change's estimate for the pre-Industrial to the present net radiative forcing of about 1.6 Wm(-2). This study provides a model-independent, observationally based estimate of the CA direct radiative forcing. Ground-based aerosol network data is integrated with field data and satellite-based aerosol observations to provide a decadal (2001 through 2009) global view of the CA optical properties and direct radiative forcing. The estimated global CA direct radiative effect is about 0.75 Wm(-2) (0.5 to 1.0). This study identifies the global importance of BrC, which is shown to contribute about 20% to 550-nm CA solar absorption globally. Because of the inclusion of BrC, the net effect of OM is close to zero and the CA forcing is nearly equal to that of BC. The CA direct radiative forcing is estimated to be about 0.65 (0.5 to about 0.8) Wm(-2), thus comparable to or exceeding that by methane. Caused in part by BrC absorption, CAs have a net warming effect even over open biomass-burning regions in Africa and the Amazon.

Force application during handcycling and handrim wheelchair propulsion: an initial comparison.

Science.gov (United States)

Arnet, Ursina; van Drongelen, Stefan; Veeger, D H; van der Woude L, H V

2013-12-01

The aim of the study was to evaluate the external applied forces, the effectiveness of force application and the net shoulder moments of handcycling in comparison with handrim wheelchair propulsion at different inclines. Ten able-bodied men performed standardized exercises on a treadmill at inclines of 1%, 2.5% and 4% with an instrumented handbike and wheelchair that measured three-dimensional propulsion forces. The results showed that during handcycling significantly lower mean forces were applied at inclines of 2.5% (P propulsion. The force effectiveness did not differ between the devices (P = .757); however, the effectiveness did increase with higher inclines during handcycling whereas it stayed constant over all inclines for wheelchair propulsion. The resulting peak net shoulder moments were lower for handcycling compared with wheelchair propulsion at all inclines (P < .001). These results confirm the assumption that handcycling is physically less straining.

Irrigation as an Historical Climate Forcing

Science.gov (United States)

Cook, Benjamin I.; Shukla, Sonali P.; Puma, Michael J.; Nazarenko, Larissa S.

2014-01-01

Irrigation is the single largest anthropogenic water use, a modification of the land surface that significantly affects surface energy budgets, the water cycle, and climate. Irrigation, however, is typically not included in standard historical general circulation model (GCM) simulations along with other anthropogenic and natural forcings. To investigate the importance of irrigation as an anthropogenic climate forcing, we conduct two 5-member ensemble GCM experiments. Both are setup identical to the historical forced (anthropogenic plus natural) scenario used in version 5 of the Coupled Model Intercomparison Project, but in one experiment we also add water to the land surface using a dataset of historically estimated irrigation rates. Irrigation has a negligible effect on the global average radiative balance at the top of the atmosphere, but causes significant cooling of global average surface air temperatures over land and dampens regional warming trends. This cooling is regionally focused and is especially strong in Western North America, the Mediterranean, the Middle East, and Asia. Irrigation enhances cloud cover and precipitation in these same regions, except for summer in parts of Monsoon Asia, where irrigation causes a reduction in monsoon season precipitation. Irrigation cools the surface, reducing upward fluxes of longwave radiation (increasing net longwave), and increases cloud cover, enhancing shortwave reflection (reducing net shortwave). The relative magnitude of these two processes causes regional increases (northern India) or decreases (Central Asia, China) in energy availability at the surface and top of the atmosphere. Despite these changes in net radiation, however, climate responses are due primarily to larger magnitude shifts in the Bowen ratio from sensible to latent heating. Irrigation impacts on temperature, precipitation, and other climate variables are regionally significant, even while other anthropogenic forcings (anthropogenic aerosols

Prediction model for initial point of net vapor generation for low-flow boiling

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sun Qi; Zhao Hua; Yang Ruichang

2003-01-01

The prediction of the initial point of net vapor generation is significant for the calculation of phase distribution in sub-cooled boiling. However, most of the investigations were developed in high-flow boiling, and there is no common model that could be successfully applied for the low-flow boiling. A predictive model for the initial point of net vapor generation for low-flow forced convection and natural circulation is established here, by the analysis of evaporation and condensation heat transfer. The comparison between experimental data and calculated results shows that this model can predict the net vapor generation point successfully in low-flow sub-cooled boiling

Relativistic bound states: a mass formula for vector mesons

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Richard, J.L.; Sorba, P.

1975-07-01

In the framework of a relativistic description of two particles bound states, a mass formula for vector mesons considered as quark-antiquark systems bound by harmonic oscillator like forces is proposed. Results in good agreement with experimental values are obtained [fr

First report of the infection of insecticide-resistant malaria vector mosquitoes with an entomopathogenic fungus under field conditions

Science.gov (United States)

2011-01-01

Background Insecticide-resistant mosquitoes are compromising the ability of current mosquito control tools to control malaria vectors. A proposed new approach for mosquito control is to use entomopathogenic fungi. These fungi have been shown to be lethal to both insecticide-susceptible and insecticide-resistant mosquitoes under laboratory conditions. The goal of this study was to see whether entomopathogenic fungi could be used to infect insecticide-resistant malaria vectors under field conditions, and to see whether the virulence and viability of the fungal conidia decreased after exposure to ambient African field conditions. Methods This study used the fungus Beauveria bassiana to infect the insecticide-resistant malaria vector Anopheles gambiae s.s (Diptera: Culicidae) VKPER laboratory colony strain. Fungal conidia were applied to polyester netting and kept under West African field conditions for varying periods of time. The virulence of the fungal-treated netting was tested 1, 3 and 5 days after net application by exposing An. gambiae s.s. VKPER mosquitoes in WHO cone bioassays carried out under field conditions. In addition, the viability of B. bassiana conidia was measured after up to 20 days exposure to field conditions. Results The results show that B. bassiana infection caused significantly increased mortality with the daily risk of dying being increased by 2.5× for the fungus-exposed mosquitoes compared to the control mosquitoes. However, the virulence of the B. bassiana conidia decreased with increasing time spent exposed to the field conditions, the older the treatment on the net, the lower the fungus-induced mortality rate. This is likely to be due to the climate because laboratory trials found no such decline within the same trial time period. Conidial viability also decreased with increasing exposure to the net and natural abiotic environmental conditions. After 20 days field exposure the conidial viability was 30%, but the viability of control

The Net Climate Impact of Coal-Fired Power Plant Emissions

Science.gov (United States)

Shindell, D.; Faluvegi, G.

2010-01-01

Coal-fired power plants influence climate via both the emission of long-lived carbon dioxide (CO2) and short-lived ozone and aerosol precursors. Using a climate model, we perform the first study of the spatial and temporal pattern of radiative forcing specifically for coal plant emissions. Without substantial pollution controls, we find that near-term net global mean climate forcing is negative due to the well-known aerosol masking of the effects of CO2. Imposition of pollution controls on sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxides leads to a rapid realization of the full positive forcing from CO2, however. Long-term global mean forcing from stable (constant) emissions is positive regardless of pollution controls. Emissions from coal-fired power plants until 1970, including roughly 1/3 of total anthropogenic CO2 emissions, likely contributed little net global mean climate forcing during that period though they may have induce weak Northern Hemisphere mid-latitude (NHml) cooling. After that time many areas imposed pollution controls or switched to low sulfur coal. Hence forcing due to emissions from 1970 to 2000 and CO2 emitted previously was strongly positive and contributed to rapid global and especially NHml warming. Most recently, new construction in China and India has increased rapidly with minimal application of pollution controls. Continuation of this trend would add negative near-term global mean climate forcing but severely degrade air quality. Conversely, following the Western and Japanese pattern of imposing air quality pollution controls at a later time could accelerate future warming rates, especially at NHmls. More broadly, our results indicate that due to spatial and temporal inhomogeneities in forcing, climate impacts of multi-pollutant emissions can vary strongly from region to region and can include substantial effects on maximum rate-of-change, neither of which are captured by commonly used global metrics. The method we introduce here to estimate

Net-baryon-, net-proton-, and net-charge kurtosis in heavy-ion collisions within a relativistic transport approach

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nahrgang, Marlene; Schuster, Tim; Stock, Reinhard; Mitrovski, Michael; Bleicher, Marcus

2012-01-01

We explore the potential of net-baryon, net-proton and net-charge kurtosis measurements to investigate the properties of hot and dense matter created in relativistic heavy-ion collisions. Contrary to calculations in a grand-canonical ensemble we explicitly take into account exact electric and baryon charge conservation on an event-by-event basis. This drastically limits the width of baryon fluctuations. A simple model to account for this is to assume a grand-canonical distribution with a sharp cut-off at the tails. We present baseline predictions of the energy dependence of the net-baryon, net-proton and net-charge kurtosis for central (b≤2.75 fm) Pb+Pb/Au+Au collisions from E lab =2A GeV to √(s NN )=200 GeV from the UrQMD model. While the net-charge kurtosis is compatible with values around zero, the net-baryon number decreases to large negative values with decreasing beam energy. The net-proton kurtosis becomes only slightly negative for low √(s NN ). (orig.)

Effects of clamping force on the water transport and performance of a PEM (proton electrolyte membrane) fuel cell with relative humidity and current density

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cha, Dowon; Ahn, Jae Hwan; Kim, Hyung Soon; Kim, Yongchan

2015-01-01

The clamping force should be applied to a proton electrolyte membrane (PEM) fuel cell due to its structural characteristics. The clamping force affects the ohmic and mass transport resistances in the PEM fuel cell. In this study, the effects of the clamping force on the water transport and performance characteristics of a PEM fuel cell are experimentally investigated with variations in the relative humidity and current density. The water transport characteristics were analyzed by calculating the net drag coefficient. The ohmic resistance decreased with the increase in the clamping force due to the reduced contact resistance and more even membrane hydration. However, the mass transport resistance increased with the increase in the clamping force due to the gas diffusion layer compression. The net drag coefficient decreased with the increase in the clamping force due to high water back-diffusion. Additionally, the relationship between the total resistance and the net drag coefficient was investigated. - Highlights: • Effects of clamping force on the performance of a PEM fuel cell are investigated. • Water transport characteristics are analyzed using net drag coefficient. • Ohmic resistance decreased with clamping force, but mass transport resistance increased. • Net drag coefficient decreased with the increase in clamping force. • Total resistance was significantly degraded for a net drag coefficient below 0.2.

Lidar-Observed Stress Vectors and Veer in the Atmospheric Boundary Layer

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Berg, Jacob; Mann, Jakob; Patton, Edward G.

2013-01-01

This study demonstrates that a pulsed wind lidar is a reliable instrument for measuring angles between horizontal vectors of significance in the atmospheric boundary layer. Three different angles are considered: the wind turning, the angle between the stress vector and the mean wind direction......, and the angle between the stress vector and the vertical gradient of the mean velocity vector. The latter is assumed to be zero by the often applied turbulent-viscosity hypothesis, so that the stress vector can be described through the vertical gradient of velocity. In the atmospheric surface layer, where...... the Coriolis force is negligible, this is supposedly a good approximation. High-resolution large-eddy simulation data show that this is indeed the case even beyond the surface layer. In contrast, through analysis of WindCube lidar measurements supported by sonic measurements, the study shows that it is only...

Sparse regularization for force identification using dictionaries

Science.gov (United States)

Qiao, Baijie; Zhang, Xingwu; Wang, Chenxi; Zhang, Hang; Chen, Xuefeng

2016-04-01

The classical function expansion method based on minimizing l2-norm of the response residual employs various basis functions to represent the unknown force. Its difficulty lies in determining the optimum number of basis functions. Considering the sparsity of force in the time domain or in other basis space, we develop a general sparse regularization method based on minimizing l1-norm of the coefficient vector of basis functions. The number of basis functions is adaptively determined by minimizing the number of nonzero components in the coefficient vector during the sparse regularization process. First, according to the profile of the unknown force, the dictionary composed of basis functions is determined. Second, a sparsity convex optimization model for force identification is constructed. Third, given the transfer function and the operational response, Sparse reconstruction by separable approximation (SpaRSA) is developed to solve the sparse regularization problem of force identification. Finally, experiments including identification of impact and harmonic forces are conducted on a cantilever thin plate structure to illustrate the effectiveness and applicability of SpaRSA. Besides the Dirac dictionary, other three sparse dictionaries including Db6 wavelets, Sym4 wavelets and cubic B-spline functions can also accurately identify both the single and double impact forces from highly noisy responses in a sparse representation frame. The discrete cosine functions can also successfully reconstruct the harmonic forces including the sinusoidal, square and triangular forces. Conversely, the traditional Tikhonov regularization method with the L-curve criterion fails to identify both the impact and harmonic forces in these cases.

Net Zero Energy Military Installations: A Guide to Assessment and Planning

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Booth, S.; Barnett, J.; Burman, K.; Hambrick, J.; Westby, R.

2010-08-01

The U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) recognizes the strategic importance of energy to its mission, and is working to reduce energy consumption and enhance energy self-sufficiency by drawing on local clean energy sources. A joint initiative formed between DoD and the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) in 2008 to address military energy use led to a task force to examine the potential for net zero energy military installations, which would produce as much energy on site as they consume in buildings, facilities, and fleet vehicles. This report presents an assessment and planning process to examine military installations for net zero energy potential. Net Zero Energy Installation Assessment (NZEIA) presents a systematic framework to analyze energy projects at installations while balancing other site priorities such as mission, cost, and security.

Professional Parallel Programming with C# Master Parallel Extensions with NET 4

CERN Document Server

Hillar, Gastón

2010-01-01

Expert guidance for those programming today's dual-core processors PCs As PC processors explode from one or two to now eight processors, there is an urgent need for programmers to master concurrent programming. This book dives deep into the latest technologies available to programmers for creating professional parallel applications using C#, .NET 4, and Visual Studio 2010. The book covers task-based programming, coordination data structures, PLINQ, thread pools, asynchronous programming model, and more. It also teaches other parallel programming techniques, such as SIMD and vectorization.Teach

Petri Nets

Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

In a computer system, for example, typical discrete events ... This project brought out a series of influential reports on Petri net theory in the mid and late ... Technology became a leading centre for Petri net research and from then on, Petri nets ...

Net accumulation of the Greenland ice sheet

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Kiilsholm, Sissi; Christensen, Jens Hesselbjerg; Dethloff, Klaus

2003-01-01

High-resolution (50 km) climate change simulations for an area covering the entire Arctic have been conducted with the regional climate model (RCM) HIRHAM. The experiments were forced at the lateral boundary by large-scale atmospheric conditions from transient climate change scenario simulations...... with HIRHAM for periods representing present-day (1961-1990) and the future (2071-2100) in the two scenarios. We find that due to a much better representation of the surface topography in the RCM, the geographical distribution of present-day accumulation rates simulated by the RCM represents a substantial...... improvement compared to the driving OAGCM. Estimates of the regional net balance are also better represented by the RCM. In the future climate the net balance for the Greenland Ice Sheet is reduced in all the simulation, but discrepancies between the amounts when based on ECHAM4/OPYC3 and HIRHAM are found...

Net Capital Flows, Macroeconomic Shocks and Reserve Assets. The Case of Argentina (1994-2013

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Luis N. Lanteri

2014-06-01

Full Text Available International reserves have been used as a source of protection against the vulnerability of the balance of payments, or alternatively, as an attempt to keep a competitive real exchange rate and to promote exports. This paper explores the correlation between the net capital flows and reserves. Similarly, the impact of some macroeconomic shocks on that variable is assessed. Estimates are carried out through both, the VEC (Vector Error Correction models and quarterly data of the Argentine economy for the period 1994-2013. Results show a negative correlation between international reserves and net capital flows (reserve accumulation through current account surpluses. At the same time, the expansionary fiscal policies and the continuing and widespread price increases would adversely affect the reserves.

On the population dynamics of the malaria vector

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ngwa, G.A.

2005-10-01

A deterministic differential equation model for the population dynamics of the human malaria vector is derived and studied. Conditions for the existence and stability of a non-zero steady state vector population density are derived. These reveal that a threshold parameter, the vectorial basic reproduction number, exist and the vector can establish itself in the community if and only if this parameter exceeds unity. When a non-zero steady state population density exists, it can be stable but it can also be driven to instability via a Hopf Bifurcation to periodic solutions, as a parameter is varied in parameter space. By considering a special case, an asymptotic perturbation analysis is used to derive the amplitude of the oscillating solutions for the full non-linear system. The present modelling exercise and results show that it is possible to study the population dynamics of disease vectors, and hence oscillatory behaviour as it is often observed in most indirectly transmitted infectious diseases of humans, without recourse to external seasonal forcing. (author)

The equivalency between logic Petri workflow nets and workflow nets.

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Jing; Yu, ShuXia; Du, YuYue

2015-01-01

Logic Petri nets (LPNs) can describe and analyze batch processing functions and passing value indeterminacy in cooperative systems. Logic Petri workflow nets (LPWNs) are proposed based on LPNs in this paper. Process mining is regarded as an important bridge between modeling and analysis of data mining and business process. Workflow nets (WF-nets) are the extension to Petri nets (PNs), and have successfully been used to process mining. Some shortcomings cannot be avoided in process mining, such as duplicate tasks, invisible tasks, and the noise of logs. The online shop in electronic commerce in this paper is modeled to prove the equivalence between LPWNs and WF-nets, and advantages of LPWNs are presented.

The Equivalency between Logic Petri Workflow Nets and Workflow Nets

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Jing; Yu, ShuXia; Du, YuYue

2015-01-01

Logic Petri nets (LPNs) can describe and analyze batch processing functions and passing value indeterminacy in cooperative systems. Logic Petri workflow nets (LPWNs) are proposed based on LPNs in this paper. Process mining is regarded as an important bridge between modeling and analysis of data mining and business process. Workflow nets (WF-nets) are the extension to Petri nets (PNs), and have successfully been used to process mining. Some shortcomings cannot be avoided in process mining, such as duplicate tasks, invisible tasks, and the noise of logs. The online shop in electronic commerce in this paper is modeled to prove the equivalence between LPWNs and WF-nets, and advantages of LPWNs are presented. PMID:25821845

Air pollution radiative forcing from specific emissions sectors at 2030

Science.gov (United States)

Unger, Nadine; Shindell, Drew T.; Koch, Dorothy M.; Streets, David G.

2008-01-01

Reduction of short-lived air pollutants can contribute to mitigate global warming in the near-term with ancillary benefits to human health. However, the radiative forcings of short-lived air pollutants depend on the location and source type of the precursor emissions. We apply the Goddard Institute for Space Studies atmospheric composition-climate model to quantify near-future (2030 A1B) global annual mean radiative forcing by ozone (O3) and sulfate from six emissions sectors in seven geographic regions. At 2030 the net forcings from O3, sulfate, black and organic carbon, and indirect CH4 effects for each emission sector are (in mWm-2) biomass burning, +95; domestic, +68; transportation, +67; industry, -131; and power, -224. Biomass burning emissions in East Asia and central and southern Africa, domestic biofuel emissions in East Asia, south Asia, and central and southern Africa, and transportation emissions in Europe and North America have large net positive forcings and are therefore attractive targets to counter global warming. Power and industry emissions from East Asia, south Asia, and north Africa and the Middle East have large net negative forcings. Therefore air quality control measures that affect these regional sectors require offsetting climate measures to avoid a warming impact. Linear relationships exist between O3 forcing and biomass burning and domestic biofuel CO precursor emissions independent of region with sensitivity of +0.2 mWm-2/TgCO. Similarly, linear relationships exist between sulfate forcing and SO2 precursor emissions that depend upon region but are independent of sector with sensitivities ranging from -3 to -12 mWm-2/TgS.

A revision of thirteen species of Triatominae (Hemiptera: Reduviidae vectors of Chagas disease in Mexico

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Salazar-Schettino Paz Maria

2010-10-01

Full Text Available Vectors of Trypanosoma cruzi, parasite responsible for Chagas disease, are divided in intradomestic, peridomestic and sylvatic. The intradomestic are Triatoma barberi and Triatoma dimidiata, two species that represent the highest health risk among the Mexican population. Triatoma dimidiata is a species found mainly inside human habitats, but in Yucatan, it corresponds to the peridomicile vectors. Also in the peridomicile most of Chagas disease vectors are found: Meccus bassolsae, M. longipennis, M. mazzottii, M pallidipennis, M. phyllosomus, M picturata, Triatoma gerstaeckeri, T mexicana, T rubida, Dipetalogaster máxima (the last two are in the process of becoming adapted to the domicile, Panstrongylus rufotuberculatus which occasionally enters the domicile in its adult stage, and Rhodnius prolixus, which is practically controlled in the country. Peridomestic vectors are of lower risk in the transmission dynamics, as compared to the intradomestic ones. For the control of the intradomestic vectors, health education programs, improvements of housing, and the use of pesticides are essential To control the peridomestic vectors, health education programs are required, as well as the use of mosquito nets on doors and windows and around beds, aside from cementing the stone wall fences.

Impact of permethrin-treated bed nets on entomologic indices in an area of intense year-round malaria transmission

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Gimnig, John E.; Vulule, John M.; Lo, Terrence Q.; Kamau, Luna; Kolczak, Margarette S.; Phillips-Howard, Penelope A.; Mathenge, Evan M.; ter Kuile, Feiko O.; Nahlen, Bernard L.; Hightower, Allen W.; Hawley, William A.

2003-01-01

The effect of permethrin-treated bed nets (ITNs) on malaria vectors was studied as part of a large-scale, randomized, controlled trial in western Kenya. Indoor resting densities of fed Anopheles gambiae s.l. and An. funestus in intervention houses were 58.5% (P = 0.010) and 94.5% (P = 0.001) lower,

Time Extensions of Petri Nets for Modelling and Verification of Hard Real-Time Systems

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Tomasz Szmuc

2002-01-01

Full Text Available The main aim ofthe paper is a presentation of time extensions of Petri nets appropriate for modelling and analysis of hard real-time systems. It is assumed, that the extensions must provide a model of time flow an ability to force a transition to fire within a stated timing constraint (the so-called the strong firing rule, and timing constraints represented by intervals. The presented survey includes extensions of classical Place/Transition Petri nets, as well as the ones applied to high-level Petri nets. An expressiveness of each time extension is illustrated using simple hard real-time system. The paper includes also a brief description of analysis and veryication methods related to the extensions, and a survey of software tools supporting modelling and analysis ofthe considered Petri nets.

Stability control of a flexible maneuverable tethered space net robot

Science.gov (United States)

Zhang, Fan; Huang, Panfeng

2018-04-01

As a promising solution for active space debris capture and removal, a maneuverable Tethered Space Net Robot (TSNR) is proposed as an improved Space Tethered Net (TSN). In addition to the advantages inherit to the TSN, the TSNR's maneuverability expands the capture's potential. However, oscillations caused by the TSNR's flexibility and elasticity of make higher requests of the control scheme. Based on the dynamics model, a modified adaptive super-twisting sliding mode control scheme is proposed in this paper for TSNR stability control. The proposed continuous control force can effectively suppress oscillations. Theoretical verification and numerical simulations demonstrate that the desired trajectory can be tracked steadily and efficiently by employing the proposed control scheme.

DEET microencapsulation: a slow-release formulation enhancing the residual efficacy of bed nets against malaria vectors

NARCIS (Netherlands)

N'Guessan, R.; Knols, B.G.J.; Pennetier, C.; Rowland, M.

2008-01-01

Textile materials treated with synthetic repellents have the potential to provide protection against insect disease vectors but lack the residual activity necessary to achieve a prolonged effect or to be cost-effective. DEET MC is a formulation of DEET (N,N diethyl-m-toluamide) in which the

Coloured Petri Nets

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Jensen, Kurt

1987-01-01

The author describes a Petri net model, called coloured Petri nets (CP-nets), by means of which it is possible to describe large systems without having to cope with unnecessary details. The author introduces CP-nets and provide a first impression of their modeling power and the suitability...

Net one, net two: the primary care network income statement.

Science.gov (United States)

Halley, M D; Little, A W

1999-10-01

Although hospital-owned primary care practices have been unprofitable for most hospitals, some hospitals are achieving competitive advantage and sustainable practice operations. A key to the success of some has been a net income reporting tool that separates practice operating expenses from the costs of creating and operating a network of practices to help healthcare organization managers, physicians, and staff to identify opportunities to improve the network's financial performance. This "Net One, Net Two" reporting allows operations leadership to be held accountable for Net One expenses and strategic leadership to be held accountable for Net Two expenses.

Throughput-Based Traffic Steering in LTE-Advanced HetNet Deployments

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Gimenez, Lucas Chavarria; Kovacs, Istvan Z.; Wigard, Jeroen

2015-01-01

The objective of this paper is to propose traffic steering solutions that aim at optimizing the end-user throughput. Two different implementations of an active mode throughput-based traffic steering algorithm for Heterogeneous Networks (HetNet) are introduced. One that always forces handover of t...... throughput is generally higher, reaching values of 36% and 18% for the medium- and high-load conditions....

Biting behaviour of African malaria vectors: 1. where do the main vector species bite on the human body?

Science.gov (United States)

Braack, Leo; Hunt, Richard; Koekemoer, Lizette L; Gericke, Anton; Munhenga, Givemore; Haddow, Andrew D; Becker, Piet; Okia, Michael; Kimera, Isaac; Coetzee, Maureen

2015-02-04

Malaria control in Africa relies heavily on indoor vector management, primarily indoor residual spraying and insecticide treated bed nets. Little is known about outdoor biting behaviour or even the dynamics of indoor biting and infection risk of sleeping household occupants. In this paper we explore the preferred biting sites on the human body and some of the ramifications regarding infection risk and exposure management. We undertook whole-night human landing catches of Anopheles arabiensis in South Africa and Anopheles gambiae s.s. and Anopheles funestus in Uganda, for seated persons wearing short sleeve shirts, short pants, and bare legs, ankles and feet. Catches were kept separate for different body regions and capture sessions. All An. gambiae s.l. and An. funestus group individuals were identified to species level by PCR. Three of the main vectors of malaria in Africa (An. arabiensis, An. gambiae s.s. and An. funestus) all have a preference for feeding close to ground level, which is manifested as a strong propensity (77.3% - 100%) for biting on lower leg, ankles and feet of people seated either indoors or outdoors, but somewhat randomly along the lower edge of the body in contact with the surface when lying down. If the lower extremities of the legs (below mid-calf level) of seated people are protected and therefore exclude access to this body region, vector mosquitoes do not move higher up the body to feed at alternate body sites, instead resulting in a high (58.5% - 68.8%) reduction in biting intensity by these three species. Protecting the lower limbs of people outdoors at night can achieve a major reduction in biting intensity by malaria vector mosquitoes. Persons sleeping at floor level bear a disproportionate risk of being bitten at night because this is the preferred height for feeding by the primary vector species. Therefore it is critical to protect children sleeping at floor level (bednets; repellent-impregnated blankets or sheets, etc

Organizing seniors to protect the health safety net: the way forward.

Science.gov (United States)

Sharma, Leena; Regan, Carol; Villers, Katherine S

2018-04-12

Over the past century, the organized voice of seniors has been critical in building the U.S. health safety net. Since the 2016 election, that safety net, particularly the Medicaid program, is in jeopardy. As we have seen with the rise of the Tea Party, senior support for health care programs-even programs that they use in large numbers-cannot and should not be taken for granted. This article provides a brief history of senior advocacy and an overview of the current senior organizing landscape. It also identifies opportunities for building the transformational organizing of low-income seniors needed to defend against sustained attacks on critical programs. Several suggestions are made, drawn from years of work in philanthropy, advocacy, and campaigns, for strengthening the ability to organize seniors-particularly low-income seniors-into an effective political force advocating for Medicaid and other safety net programs.

The underlying reasons for very high levels of bed net use, and higher malaria infection prevalence among bed net users than non-users in the Tanzanian city of Dar es Salaam: a qualitative study.

Science.gov (United States)

Msellemu, Daniel; Shemdoe, Aloysia; Makungu, Christina; Mlacha, Yeromini; Kannady, Khadija; Dongus, Stefan; Killeen, Gerry F; Dillip, Angel

2017-10-23

Bed nets reduce malaria-related illness and deaths, by forming a protective barrier around people sleeping under them. When impregnated with long-lasting insecticide formulations they also repel or kill mosquitoes attempting to feed upon sleeping humans, and can even suppress entire populations of malaria vectors that feed predominantly upon humans. Nevertheless, an epidemiological study in 2012 demonstrated higher malaria prevalence among bed net users than non-users in urban Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. Focus group discussions were conducted with women from four selected wards of Dar es Salaam city, focusing on four major themes relating to bed net use behaviours: (1) reasons for bed net use, (2) reasons for not using bed nets, (3) stimuli or reminders for people to use a bed net (4) perceived reasons for catching malaria while using a bed net. An analytical method by framework grouping of relevant themes was used address key issues of relevance to the study objectives. Codes were reviewed and grouped into categories and themes. All groups said the main reason for bed net use was protection against malaria. Houses with well-screened windows, with doors that shut properly, and that use insecticidal sprays against mosquitoes, were said not to use bed nets, while frequent attacks from malaria was the main stimulus for people to use bed nets. Various reasons were mentioned as potential reasons that compromise bed net efficacy, the most common of which were: (1) bed net sharing by two or more people, especially if one occupant tends to come to bed late at night, and does not tuck in the net 71%; (2) one person shares the bed but does not use the net, moving it away from the side on which s/he sleeps 68%; (3) ineffective usage habits, called ulalavi, in which a sprawling sleeper either touches the net while sleeping up against it or leaves a limb hanging outside of it 68%. Less common reasons mentioned included: (1) Small bed nets which become un-tucked at night (31%); (2

Exploiting the behaviour of wild malaria vectors to achieve high infection with fungal biocontrol agents

Science.gov (United States)

2012-01-01

Background Control of mosquitoes that transmit malaria has been the mainstay in the fight against the disease, but alternative methods are required in view of emerging insecticide resistance. Entomopathogenic fungi are candidate alternatives, but to date, few trials have translated the use of these agents to field-based evaluations of their actual impact on mosquito survival and malaria risk. Mineral oil-formulations of the entomopathogenic fungi Metarhizium anisopliae and Beauveria bassiana were applied using five different techniques that each exploited the behaviour of malaria mosquitoes when entering, host-seeking or resting in experimental huts in a malaria endemic area of rural Tanzania. Results Survival of mosquitoes was reduced by 39-57% relative to controls after forcing upward house-entry of mosquitoes through fungus treated baffles attached to the eaves or after application of fungus-treated surfaces around an occupied bed net (bed net strip design). Moreover, 68 to 76% of the treatment mosquitoes showed fungal growth and thus had sufficient contact with fungus treated surfaces. A population dynamic model of malaria-mosquito interactions shows that these infection rates reduce malaria transmission by 75-80% due to the effect of fungal infection on adult mortality alone. The model also demonstrated that even if a high proportion of the mosquitoes exhibits outdoor biting behaviour, malaria transmission was still significantly reduced. Conclusions Entomopathogenic fungi strongly affect mosquito survival and have a high predicted impact on malaria transmission. These entomopathogens represent a viable alternative for malaria control, especially if they are used as part of an integrated vector management strategy. PMID:22449130

An active learning representative subset selection method using net analyte signal

Science.gov (United States)

He, Zhonghai; Ma, Zhenhe; Luan, Jingmin; Cai, Xi

2018-05-01

To guarantee accurate predictions, representative samples are needed when building a calibration model for spectroscopic measurements. However, in general, it is not known whether a sample is representative prior to measuring its concentration, which is both time-consuming and expensive. In this paper, a method to determine whether a sample should be selected into a calibration set is presented. The selection is based on the difference of Euclidean norm of net analyte signal (NAS) vector between the candidate and existing samples. First, the concentrations and spectra of a group of samples are used to compute the projection matrix, NAS vector, and scalar values. Next, the NAS vectors of candidate samples are computed by multiplying projection matrix with spectra of samples. Scalar value of NAS is obtained by norm computation. The distance between the candidate set and the selected set is computed, and samples with the largest distance are added to selected set sequentially. Last, the concentration of the analyte is measured such that the sample can be used as a calibration sample. Using a validation test, it is shown that the presented method is more efficient than random selection. As a result, the amount of time and money spent on reference measurements is greatly reduced.

Effect of village-wide use of long-lasting insecticidal nets on visceral Leishmaniasis vectors in India and Nepal: a cluster randomized trial.

Science.gov (United States)

Picado, Albert; Das, Murari L; Kumar, Vijay; Kesari, Shreekant; Dinesh, Diwakar S; Roy, Lalita; Rijal, Suman; Das, Pradeep; Rowland, Mark; Sundar, Shyam; Coosemans, Marc; Boelaert, Marleen; Davies, Clive R

2010-01-26

Visceral leishmaniasis (VL) control in the Indian subcontinent is currently based on case detection and treatment, and on vector control using indoor residual spraying (IRS). The use of long-lasting insecticidal nets (LN) has been postulated as an alternative or complement to IRS. Here we tested the impact of comprehensive distribution of LN on the density of Phlebotomus argentipes in VL-endemic villages. A cluster-randomized controlled trial with household P. argentipes density as outcome was designed. Twelve clusters from an ongoing LN clinical trial--three intervention and three control clusters in both India and Nepal--were selected on the basis of accessibility and VL incidence. Ten houses per cluster selected on the basis of high pre-intervention P. argentipes density were monitored monthly for 12 months after distribution of LN using CDC light traps (LT) and mouth aspiration methods. Ten cattle sheds per cluster were also monitored by aspiration. A random effect linear regression model showed that the cluster-wide distribution of LNs significantly reduced the P. argentipes density/house by 24.9% (95% CI 1.80%-42.5%) as measured by means of LTs. The ongoing clinical trial, designed to measure the impact of LNs on VL incidence, will confirm whether LNs should be adopted as a control strategy in the regional VL elimination programs. The entomological evidence described here provides some evidence that LNs could be usefully deployed as part of the VL control program. ClinicalTrials.gov CT-2005-015374.

Discovery of omega meson, first neutral vector meson

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Anon.

1976-01-01

A personal account of the discovery of the ω meson is given by researcher B. Maglich. His account includes such topics as early and unsuccessful searches for a neutral vector meson (by himself and others), eventual discovery of the rho meson, the Goldhaber effect, and the observation and characterization of the ω meson. Explanatory physics notes on electromagnetic structure experiments and the determination of the quantum numbers of the ω meson are provided for nonspecialists. Also included are an outline of the relation between vector mesons and nuclear forces, a reprint of the Physical Review Letter on Evidence for a T = 0 three-pion resonance, and a scientific autobiography of the researcher. 14 figures, 1 table

Optical force on a discrete invisibility cloak in time-dependent fields

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Chaumet, Patrick C.; Zolla, Frederic; Nicolet, Andre; Belkebir, Kamal; Rahmani, Adel

2011-01-01

We study, in time domain, the exchange of momentum between an electromagnetic pulse and a three-dimensional, discrete, spherical invisibility cloak. We find that a discrete cloak, initially at rest, would experience an electromagnetic force due to the pulse but would acquire zero net momentum and net displacement. On the other hand, we find that while the cloak may manage to conceal an object and shroud it from the electromagnetic forces associated with the pulse, the cloak itself can experience optomechanical stress on a scale much larger than the object would in the absence of the cloak. We also consider the effects of material dispersion and losses on the electromagnetic forces experienced by the cloak and show that they lead to a transfer of momentum from the pulse to the cloak.

Why must a solar forcing be larger than a CO2 forcing to cause the same global mean surface temperature change?

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Modak, Angshuman; Bala, Govindasamy; Cao, Long; Caldeira, Ken

2016-01-01

Many previous studies have shown that a solar forcing must be greater than a CO 2 forcing to cause the same global mean surface temperature change but a process-based mechanistic explanation is lacking in the literature. In this study, we investigate the physical mechanisms responsible for the lower efficacy of solar forcing compared to an equivalent CO 2 forcing. Radiative forcing is estimated using the Gregory method that regresses top-of-atmosphere (TOA) radiative flux against the change in global mean surface temperature. For a 2.25% increase in solar irradiance that produces the same long term global mean warming as a doubling of CO 2 concentration, we estimate that the efficacy of solar forcing is ∼80% relative to CO 2 forcing in the NCAR CAM5 climate model. We find that the fast tropospheric cloud adjustments especially over land and stratospheric warming in the first four months cause the slope of the regression between the TOA net radiative fluxes and surface temperature to be steeper in the solar forcing case. This steeper slope indicates a stronger net negative feedback and hence correspondingly a larger solar forcing than CO 2 forcing for the same equilibrium surface warming. Evidence is provided that rapid land surface warming in the first four months sets up a land-sea contrast that markedly affects radiative forcing and the climate feedback parameter over this period. We also confirm the robustness of our results using simulations from the Hadley Centre climate model. Our study has important implications for estimating the magnitude of climate change caused by volcanic eruptions, solar geoengineering and past climate changes caused by change in solar irradiance such as Maunder minimum. (letter)

Use of the NetBeans Platform for NASA Robotic Conjunction Assessment Risk Analysis

Science.gov (United States)

Sabey, Nickolas J.

2014-01-01

The latest Java and JavaFX technologies are very attractive software platforms for customers involved in space mission operations such as those of NASA and the US Air Force. For NASA Robotic Conjunction Assessment Risk Analysis (CARA), the NetBeans platform provided an environment in which scalable software solutions could be developed quickly and efficiently. Both Java 8 and the NetBeans platform are in the process of simplifying CARA development in secure environments by providing a significant amount of capability in a single accredited package, where accreditation alone can account for 6-8 months for each library or software application. Capabilities either in use or being investigated by CARA include: 2D and 3D displays with JavaFX, parallelization with the new Streams API, and scalability through the NetBeans plugin architecture.

Nonconservative current-induced forces: A physical interpretation

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Tchavdar N. Todorov

2011-10-01

Full Text Available We give a physical interpretation of the recently demonstrated nonconservative nature of interatomic forces in current-carrying nanostructures. We start from the analytical expression for the curl of these forces, and evaluate it for a point defect in a current-carrying system. We obtain a general definition of the capacity of electrical current flow to exert a nonconservative force, and thus do net work around closed paths, by a formal noninvasive test procedure. Second, we show that the gain in atomic kinetic energy over time, generated by nonconservative current-induced forces, is equivalent to the uncompensated stimulated emission of directional phonons. This connection with electron–phonon interactions quantifies explicitly the intuitive notion that nonconservative forces work by angular momentum transfer.

Predicting malaria vector distribution under climate change scenarios in China: Challenges for malaria elimination

Science.gov (United States)

Ren, Zhoupeng; Wang, Duoquan; Ma, Aimin; Hwang, Jimee; Bennett, Adam; Sturrock, Hugh J. W.; Fan, Junfu; Zhang, Wenjie; Yang, Dian; Feng, Xinyu; Xia, Zhigui; Zhou, Xiao-Nong; Wang, Jinfeng

2016-02-01

Projecting the distribution of malaria vectors under climate change is essential for planning integrated vector control activities for sustaining elimination and preventing reintroduction of malaria. In China, however, little knowledge exists on the possible effects of climate change on malaria vectors. Here we assess the potential impact of climate change on four dominant malaria vectors (An. dirus, An. minimus, An. lesteri and An. sinensis) using species distribution models for two future decades: the 2030 s and the 2050 s. Simulation-based estimates suggest that the environmentally suitable area (ESA) for An. dirus and An. minimus would increase by an average of 49% and 16%, respectively, under all three scenarios for the 2030 s, but decrease by 11% and 16%, respectively in the 2050 s. By contrast, an increase of 36% and 11%, respectively, in ESA of An. lesteri and An. sinensis, was estimated under medium stabilizing (RCP4.5) and very heavy (RCP8.5) emission scenarios. in the 2050 s. In total, we predict a substantial net increase in the population exposed to the four dominant malaria vectors in the decades of the 2030 s and 2050 s, considering land use changes and urbanization simultaneously. Strategies to achieve and sustain malaria elimination in China will need to account for these potential changes in vector distributions and receptivity.

Predicting malaria vector distribution under climate change scenarios in China: Challenges for malaria elimination.

Science.gov (United States)

Ren, Zhoupeng; Wang, Duoquan; Ma, Aimin; Hwang, Jimee; Bennett, Adam; Sturrock, Hugh J W; Fan, Junfu; Zhang, Wenjie; Yang, Dian; Feng, Xinyu; Xia, Zhigui; Zhou, Xiao-Nong; Wang, Jinfeng

2016-02-12

Projecting the distribution of malaria vectors under climate change is essential for planning integrated vector control activities for sustaining elimination and preventing reintroduction of malaria. In China, however, little knowledge exists on the possible effects of climate change on malaria vectors. Here we assess the potential impact of climate change on four dominant malaria vectors (An. dirus, An. minimus, An. lesteri and An. sinensis) using species distribution models for two future decades: the 2030 s and the 2050 s. Simulation-based estimates suggest that the environmentally suitable area (ESA) for An. dirus and An. minimus would increase by an average of 49% and 16%, respectively, under all three scenarios for the 2030 s, but decrease by 11% and 16%, respectively in the 2050 s. By contrast, an increase of 36% and 11%, respectively, in ESA of An. lesteri and An. sinensis, was estimated under medium stabilizing (RCP4.5) and very heavy (RCP8.5) emission scenarios. in the 2050 s. In total, we predict a substantial net increase in the population exposed to the four dominant malaria vectors in the decades of the 2030 s and 2050 s, considering land use changes and urbanization simultaneously. Strategies to achieve and sustain malaria elimination in China will need to account for these potential changes in vector distributions and receptivity.

Improving diabetic foot care in a nurse-managed safety-net clinic.

Science.gov (United States)

Peterson, Joann M; Virden, Mary D

2013-05-01

This article is a description of the development and implementation of a Comprehensive Diabetic Foot Care Program and assessment tool in an academically affiliated nurse-managed, multidisciplinary, safety-net clinic. The assessment tool parallels parameters identified in the Task Force Foot Care Interest Group of the American Diabetes Association's report published in 2008, "Comprehensive Foot Examination and Risk Assessment." Review of literature, Silver City Health Center's (SCHC) 2009 Annual Report, retrospective chart review. Since the full implementation of SCHC's Comprehensive Diabetic Foot Care Program, there have been no hospitalizations of clinic patients for foot-related complications. The development of the Comprehensive Diabetic Foot Assessment tool and the implementation of the Comprehensive Diabetic Foot Care Program have resulted in positive outcomes for the patients in a nurse-managed safety-net clinic. This article demonstrates that quality healthcare services can successfully be developed and implemented in a safety-net clinic setting. ©2012 The Author(s) Journal compilation ©2012 American Association of Nurse Practitioners.

A new method to describe two-phase solvent extraction based on net transport potential derived as linear combinations of forward and reverse constituents

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nabeshima, Masahiro

1998-01-01

With the view to avoiding the difficulties encountered in estimating thermodynamic activities of the multiple chemical species in two-phase liquid system, a set of forward, reverse, net and total transport potentials are defined to represent the chemical state of a transferring solute during transient using bulk concentrations. The net transport potential corresponds to that in the conventional two-film model of diffusion-controlled processes. The overall driving forces of mass transport are redefined as the derivatives of the relevant transport potentials differentiated with respect to a state variable newly defined in terms of the bulk concentrations of the solute contained in both phases. Net and total quantities, i.e. transport potentials, overall driving forces and the molar fluxes are obtained as linear combinations of those for forward and reverse directions. The topical features presented by these quantities and their mutual relations are discussed in detail. The experimental new overall transport coefficient for U(VI) varied in accord with the changes in the theoretical net transport potential and overall driving force. The present method permits describing the extractive mass transport consistently both to forward and reverse directions of transport. (author)

Application of deconvolution interferometry with both Hi-net and KiK-net data

Science.gov (United States)

Nakata, N.

2013-12-01

Application of deconvolution interferometry to wavefields observed by KiK-net, a strong-motion recording network in Japan, is useful for estimating wave velocities and S-wave splitting in the near surface. Using this technique, for example, Nakata and Snieder (2011, 2012) found changed in velocities caused by Tohoku-Oki earthquake in Japan. At the location of the borehole accelerometer of each KiK-net station, a velocity sensor is also installed as a part of a high-sensitivity seismograph network (Hi-net). I present a technique that uses both Hi-net and KiK-net records for computing deconvolution interferometry. The deconvolved waveform obtained from the combination of Hi-net and KiK-net data is similar to the waveform computed from KiK-net data only, which indicates that one can use Hi-net wavefields for deconvolution interferometry. Because Hi-net records have a high signal-to-noise ratio (S/N) and high dynamic resolution, the S/N and the quality of amplitude and phase of deconvolved waveforms can be improved with Hi-net data. These advantages are especially important for short-time moving-window seismic interferometry and deconvolution interferometry using later coda waves.

Simulation of the removal of NET internal components with dynamic modeling software

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Becquet, M.; Crutzen, Y.R.; Farfaletti-Casali, F.

1989-01-01

The replacement of the internal plasma-facing components (first-wall and blanket segments) for maintenance or at the end of their lifetime is an important aspect of the design of the next European torus (NET) and of the remote handling procedures. The first phase of development of the design software tool INVDYN (inverse dynamics) is presented, which will allow optimization of the movements of the internal segments during replacement, taking into account inertial effects and structural deformations. A first analysis of the removal of one NET internal segment provides, for a defined trajectory, the required generalized forces that must be applied on the crane system

Scaffolding vector representations for student learning inside a physics game

Science.gov (United States)

D'Angelo, Cynthia

Vectors and vector addition are difficult concepts for many introductory physics students and traditional instruction does not usually sufficiently address these difficulties. Vectors play a major role in most topics in introductory physics and without a complete understanding of them many students are unable to make sense of the physics topics covered in their classes. Video games present a unique opportunity to help students develop an intuitive understanding of motion, forces, and vectors while immersed in an enjoyable and interactive environment. This study examines two dimensions of design decisions to help students learn while playing a physics-based game. The representational complexity dimension looked at two ways of presenting dynamic information about the velocity of the game object on the screen. The scaffolding context dimension looked at two different contexts for presenting vector addition problems that were related to the game. While all students made significant learning games from the pre to the post test, there were virtually no differences between students along the representational complexity dimension and small differences between students along the scaffolding context dimension. A context that directly connects to students' game playing experience was in most cases more productive to learning than an abstract context.

TSC [Tokamak Simulation Code] disruption scenarios and CIT [Compact Ignition Tokamak] vacuum vessel force evolution

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sayer, R.O.; Peng, Y.K.M.; Strickler, D.J.; Jardin, S.C.

1990-01-01

The Tokamak Simulation Code and the TWIR postprocessor code have been used to develop credible plasma disruption scenarios for the Compact Ignition Tokamak (CIT) in order to predict the evolution of forces on CIT conducting structures and to provide results required for detailed structural design analysis. The extreme values of net radial and vertical vacuum vessel (VV) forces were found to be F R =-12.0 MN/rad and F Z =-3.0 MN/rad, respectively, for the CIT 2.1-m, 11-MA design. Net VV force evolution was found to be altered significantly by two mechanisms not noted previously. The first, due to poloidal VV currents arising from increased plasma paramagnetism during thermal quench, reduces the magnitude of the extreme F R by 15-50% and modifies the distribution of forces substantially. The second effect is that slower plasma current decay rates give more severe net vertical VV loads because the current decay occurs when the plasma has moved farther from midplane than is the case for faster decay rates. 7 refs., 9 figs., 1 tab

Tidal and meteorological forcing of sediment transport in tributary mudflat channels.

Science.gov (United States)

Ralston, David K; Stacey, Mark T

2007-06-01

Field observations of flow and sediment transport in a tributary channel through intertidal mudflats indicate that suspended sediment was closely linked to advection and dispersion of a tidal salinity front. During calm weather when tidal forcing was dominant, high concentrations of suspended sediment advected up the mudflat channel in the narrow region between salty water from San Francisco Bay and much fresher runoff from the small local watershed. Salinity and suspended sediment dispersed at similar rates through each tidal inundation, such that during receding ebbs the sediment pulse had spread spatially and maximum concentrations had decreased. Net sediment transport was moderately onshore during the calm weather, as asymmetries in stratification due to tidal straining of the salinity front enhanced deposition, particularly during weaker neap tidal forcing. Sediment transport by tidal forcing was periodically altered by winter storms. During storms, strong winds from the south generated wind waves and temporarily increased suspended sediment concentrations. Increased discharge down the tributary channels due to precipitation had more lasting impact on sediment transport, supplying both buoyancy and fine sediment to the system. Net sediment transport depended on the balance between calm weather tidal forcing and perturbations by episodic storms. Net transport in the tributary channel was generally off-shore during storms and during calm weather spring tides, and on-shore during calm weather neap tides.

SchNet - A deep learning architecture for molecules and materials

Science.gov (United States)

Schütt, K. T.; Sauceda, H. E.; Kindermans, P.-J.; Tkatchenko, A.; Müller, K.-R.

2018-06-01

Deep learning has led to a paradigm shift in artificial intelligence, including web, text, and image search, speech recognition, as well as bioinformatics, with growing impact in chemical physics. Machine learning, in general, and deep learning, in particular, are ideally suitable for representing quantum-mechanical interactions, enabling us to model nonlinear potential-energy surfaces or enhancing the exploration of chemical compound space. Here we present the deep learning architecture SchNet that is specifically designed to model atomistic systems by making use of continuous-filter convolutional layers. We demonstrate the capabilities of SchNet by accurately predicting a range of properties across chemical space for molecules and materials, where our model learns chemically plausible embeddings of atom types across the periodic table. Finally, we employ SchNet to predict potential-energy surfaces and energy-conserving force fields for molecular dynamics simulations of small molecules and perform an exemplary study on the quantum-mechanical properties of C20-fullerene that would have been infeasible with regular ab initio molecular dynamics.

The constrained control of force and position in multi-joint movements.

Science.gov (United States)

van Ingen Schenau, G J; Boots, P J; de Groot, G; Snackers, R J; van Woensel, W W

1992-01-01

In many arm or leg movements the hand or foot has to exert an external force on the environment. Based on an inverse dynamical analysis of cycling, it is shown that the distribution of net moments in the joints needed to control the direction of the external force is often opposite to the direction of joint displacements associated with this task. Kinetic and kinematic data were obtained from five experienced cyclists during ergometer cycling by means of film analysis and pedal force measurement. An inverse dynamic analysis, based on a linked segments model, yielded net joint moments, joint powers and muscle shortening velocities of eight leg muscles. Activation patterns of the muscles were obtained by means of surface electromyography. The results show that the transfer of rotations in hip, knee and ankle joints into the translation of the pedal is constrained by conflicting requirements. This occurs between the joint moments necessary to contribute to joint power and the moments necessary to establish a direction of the force on the pedal which allows this force to do work on the pedal. Co-activation of mono-articular agonists and their bi-articular antagonists appear to provide a unique solution for these conflicting requirements: bi-articular muscles appear to be able to control the desired direction of the external force on the pedal by adjusting the relative distribution of net moments over the joints while mono-articular muscles appear to be primarily activated when they are in the position to shorten and thus to contribute to positive work. Examples are given to illustrate the universal nature of this constrained control of force (external) and position (joint). Based on this study and published data it is suggested that different processes may underlie the organization of the control of mono- and bi-articular muscles.

Changes in vector species composition and current vector biology and behaviour will favour malaria elimination in Santa Isabel Province, Solomon Islands

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Beebe Nigel W

2011-09-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background In 2009, Santa Isabel Province in the Solomon Islands embarked on a malaria elimination programme. However, very little is known in the Province about the anopheline fauna, which species are vectors, their bionomics and how they may respond to intensified intervention measures. The purpose of this study was to provide baseline data on the malaria vectors and to ascertain the possibility of successfully eliminating malaria using the existing conventional vector control measures, such as indoor residual spraying (IRS and long-lasting insecticidal nets (LLIN. Methods Entomological surveys were undertaken during October 2009. To determine species composition and distribution larval surveys were conducted across on the whole island. For malaria transmission studies, adult anophelines were sampled using human landing catches from two villages - one coastal and one inland. Results Five Anopheles species were found on Santa Isabel: Anopheles farauti, Anopheles hinesorum, Anopheles lungae, Anopheles solomonis, and Anopheles nataliae. Anopheles hinesorum was the most widespread species. Anopheles farauti was abundant, but found only on the coast. Anopheles punctulatus and Anopheles koliensis were not found. Anopheles farauti was the only species found biting in the coastal village, it was incriminated as a vector in this study; it fed early in the night but equally so indoors and outdoors, and had a low survival rate. Anopheles solomonis was the main species biting humans in the inland village, it was extremely exophagic, with low survival rates, and readily fed on pigs. Conclusion The disappearance of the two major vectors, An. punctulatus and An. koliensis, from Santa Isabel and the predominance of An. hinesorum, a non-vector species may facilitate malaria elimination measures. Anopheles farauti was identified as the main coastal vector with An. solomonis as a possible inland vector. The behaviour of An. solomonis is novel as it has

Emerging Vector-Borne Diseases - Incidence through Vectors.

Science.gov (United States)

Savić, Sara; Vidić, Branka; Grgić, Zivoslav; Potkonjak, Aleksandar; Spasojevic, Ljubica

2014-01-01

Vector-borne diseases use to be a major public health concern only in tropical and subtropical areas, but today they are an emerging threat for the continental and developed countries also. Nowadays, in intercontinental countries, there is a struggle with emerging diseases, which have found their way to appear through vectors. Vector-borne zoonotic diseases occur when vectors, animal hosts, climate conditions, pathogens, and susceptible human population exist at the same time, at the same place. Global climate change is predicted to lead to an increase in vector-borne infectious diseases and disease outbreaks. It could affect the range and population of pathogens, host and vectors, transmission season, etc. Reliable surveillance for diseases that are most likely to emerge is required. Canine vector-borne diseases represent a complex group of diseases including anaplasmosis, babesiosis, bartonellosis, borreliosis, dirofilariosis, ehrlichiosis, and leishmaniosis. Some of these diseases cause serious clinical symptoms in dogs and some of them have a zoonotic potential with an effect to public health. It is expected from veterinarians in coordination with medical doctors to play a fundamental role at primarily prevention and then treatment of vector-borne diseases in dogs. The One Health concept has to be integrated into the struggle against emerging diseases. During a 4-year period, from 2009 to 2013, a total number of 551 dog samples were analyzed for vector-borne diseases (borreliosis, babesiosis, ehrlichiosis, anaplasmosis, dirofilariosis, and leishmaniasis) in routine laboratory work. The analysis was done by serological tests - ELISA for borreliosis, dirofilariosis, and leishmaniasis, modified Knott test for dirofilariosis, and blood smear for babesiosis, ehrlichiosis, and anaplasmosis. This number of samples represented 75% of total number of samples that were sent for analysis for different diseases in dogs. Annually, on average more then half of the samples

Vector analysis

CERN Document Server

Newell, Homer E

2006-01-01

When employed with skill and understanding, vector analysis can be a practical and powerful tool. This text develops the algebra and calculus of vectors in a manner useful to physicists and engineers. Numerous exercises (with answers) not only provide practice in manipulation but also help establish students' physical and geometric intuition in regard to vectors and vector concepts.Part I, the basic portion of the text, consists of a thorough treatment of vector algebra and the vector calculus. Part II presents the illustrative matter, demonstrating applications to kinematics, mechanics, and e

Tidal forces in Kiselev black hole

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Shahzad, M.U. [University of Central Punjab, CAMS, UCP Business School, Lahore (Pakistan); Jawad, Abdul [COMSATS Institute of Information Technology, Department of Mathematics, Lahore (Pakistan)

2017-06-15

The aim of this paper is to examine the tidal forces occurring in a Kiselev black hole surrounded by radiation and dust fluids. It is noted that the radial and angular components of the tidal force change the sign between event and Cauchy horizons. We solve the geodesic deviation equation for radially free-falling bodies toward Kiselev black holes. We explain the geodesic deviation vector graphically and point out the location of the event and Cauchy horizons for specific values of the radiation and dust parameters. (orig.)

Visual computed tomographic scoring of emphysema and its correlation with its diagnostic electrocardiographic sign: the frontal P vector.

Science.gov (United States)

Chhabra, Lovely; Sareen, Pooja; Gandagule, Amit; Spodick, David H

2012-03-01

Verticalization of the frontal P vector in patients older than 45 years is virtually diagnostic of pulmonary emphysema (sensitivity, 96%; specificity, 87%). We investigated the correlation of P vector and the computed tomographic visual score of emphysema (VSE) in patients with established diagnosis of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease/emphysema. High-resolution computed tomographic scans of 26 patients with emphysema (age, >45 years) were reviewed to assess the type and extent of emphysema using the subjective visual scoring. Electrocardiograms were independently reviewed to determine the frontal P vector. The P vector and VSE were compared for statistical correlation. Both P vector and VSE were also directly compared with the forced expiratory volume at 1 second. The VSE and the orientation of the P vector (ÂP) had an overall significant positive correlation (r = +0.68; P = .0001) in all patients, but the correlation was very strong in patients with predominant lower-lobe emphysema (r = +0.88; P = .0004). Forced expiratory volume at 1 second and ÂP had almost a linear inverse correlation in predominant lower-lobe emphysema (r = -0.92; P vertical ÂP and predominant lower-lobe emphysema reflects severe obstructive lung dysfunction. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Vector-Tensor and Vector-Vector Decay Amplitude Analysis of B0→φK*0

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Aubert, B.; Bona, M.; Boutigny, D.; Couderc, F.; Karyotakis, Y.; Lees, J. P.; Poireau, V.; Tisserand, V.; Zghiche, A.; Grauges, E.; Palano, A.; Chen, J. C.; Qi, N. D.; Rong, G.; Wang, P.; Zhu, Y. S.; Eigen, G.; Ofte, I.; Stugu, B.; Abrams, G. S.

2007-01-01

We perform an amplitude analysis of the decays B 0 →φK 2 * (1430) 0 , φK * (892) 0 , and φ(Kπ) S-wave 0 with a sample of about 384x10 6 BB pairs recorded with the BABAR detector. The fractions of longitudinal polarization f L of the vector-tensor and vector-vector decay modes are measured to be 0.853 -0.069 +0.061 ±0.036 and 0.506±0.040±0.015, respectively. Overall, twelve parameters are measured for the vector-vector decay and seven parameters for the vector-tensor decay, including the branching fractions and parameters sensitive to CP violation

Net Neutrality

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Savin, Andrej

2017-01-01

Repealing “net neutrality” in the US will have no bearing on Internet freedom or security there or anywhere else.......Repealing “net neutrality” in the US will have no bearing on Internet freedom or security there or anywhere else....

Containment forces in low energy states of plasmoids

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wells, D.R.; Hawkins, L.C.

1987-01-01

The application of Hamilton's principle to the problem of the determination of the structure of low free energy state plasmoids is discussed. It is shown that Clebsch representations of the vector fields and representations involving side conditions on the functional result in the same sets of Euler-Lagrange equations. The relationship of these representations to the problem of containment forces in vortex structures (plasmoids) is considered. It is demonstrated that the lowest free energy state of an incompressible plasma is always Lorentz force and Magnus force free. For a compressible plasma obeying the adiabatic gas laws, the Magnus force is finite. Introduction of conservation of angular momentum as an additional side condition also results in finite containment forces. (author)

Annotating Coloured Petri Nets

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Lindstrøm, Bo; Wells, Lisa Marie

2002-01-01

Coloured Petri nets (CP-nets) can be used for several fundamentally different purposes like functional analysis, performance analysis, and visualisation. To be able to use the corresponding tool extensions and libraries it is sometimes necessary to include extra auxiliary information in the CP......-net. An example of such auxiliary information is a counter which is associated with a token to be able to do performance analysis. Modifying colour sets and arc inscriptions in a CP-net to support a specific use may lead to creation of several slightly different CP-nets – only to support the different uses...... of the same basic CP-net. One solution to this problem is that the auxiliary information is not integrated into colour sets and arc inscriptions of a CP-net, but is kept separately. This makes it easy to disable this auxiliary information if a CP-net is to be used for another purpose. This paper proposes...

Do the weak neutral currents cause parity non-conserving eN and μN forces

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Henley, E.M.

1977-01-01

It is stated that although the evidence for weak neutral currents is now well established its effects have been observed primarily in reactions initiated by muon neutrinos in which the neutrino is also present in the final state. There is, as yet, no comparable evidence for a weak force due to neutral currents, mediated by an uncharged boson, between charged leptons (electrons, muons) and nucleons. Theory predicts such a force, but its detection requires it to be parity non-conserving, since any weak parity conserving force is masked by the much larger electromagnetic interaction between the charged lepton and proton. Although high energy neutrino experiments favor a parity non-conserving interaction, the evidence is not overwhelming, and pure vector current theories cannot be ruled out. The electromagnetic current which is related directly to the weak force in modern gauge theories, behaves, as a pure vector under rotations and reflections, but the charged weak currents, responsible for ordinary β decays, are known to be of a mixed vector-axial vector nature. It is therefore of great interest to learn the spatial characteristics of the neutral weak currents. The search for parity non-conserving (PNC) effects in electron-nucleon scattering, in muonic atoms and in normal electronic atoms, has received much attention, but the experiments require very high precision and great care and ingenuity. The variety of ways for searching for PNC effects are discussed, together with the basic framework for most PNC theories, restricted to vector and axial-vector currents. One method to learn about the e-N weak force is to scatter longitudinally polarized electrons from protons, and the advantages of this are discussed - such tests are being undertaken. Experiments with muonic and normal electronic atoms are referred to, and their advantages and disadvantages are discussed. It is pointed out that a pleasant feature of the weak interaction is that perturbation theory can be used

About vectors

CERN Document Server

Hoffmann, Banesh

1975-01-01

From his unusual beginning in ""Defining a vector"" to his final comments on ""What then is a vector?"" author Banesh Hoffmann has written a book that is provocative and unconventional. In his emphasis on the unresolved issue of defining a vector, Hoffmann mixes pure and applied mathematics without using calculus. The result is a treatment that can serve as a supplement and corrective to textbooks, as well as collateral reading in all courses that deal with vectors. Major topics include vectors and the parallelogram law; algebraic notation and basic ideas; vector algebra; scalars and scalar p

Consolidating strategic planning and operational frameworks for integrated vector management in Eritrea.

Science.gov (United States)

Chanda, Emmanuel; Ameneshewa, Birkinesh; Mihreteab, Selam; Berhane, Araia; Zehaie, Assefash; Ghebrat, Yohannes; Usman, Abdulmumini

2015-12-02

Contemporary malaria vector control relies on the use of insecticide-based, indoor residual spraying (IRS) and long-lasting insecticidal nets (LLINs). However, malaria-endemic countries, including Eritrea, have struggled to effectively deploy these tools due technical and operational challenges, including the selection of insecticide resistance in malaria vectors. This manuscript outlines the processes undertaken in consolidating strategic planning and operational frameworks for vector control to expedite malaria elimination in Eritrea. The effort to strengthen strategic frameworks for vector control in Eritrea was the 'case' for this study. The integrated vector management (IVM) strategy was developed in 2010 but was not well executed, resulting in a rise in malaria transmission, prompting a process to redefine and relaunch the IVM strategy with integration of other vector borne diseases (VBDs) as the focus. The information sources for this study included all available data and accessible archived documentary records on malaria vector control in Eritrea. Structured literature searches of published, peer-reviewed sources using online, scientific, bibliographic databases, Google Scholar, PubMed and WHO, and a combination of search terms were utilized to gather data. The literature was reviewed and adapted to the local context and translated into the consolidated strategic framework. In Eritrea, communities are grappling with the challenge of VBDs posing public health concerns, including malaria. The global fund financed the scale-up of IRS and LLIN programmes in 2014. Eritrea is transitioning towards malaria elimination and strategic frameworks for vector control have been consolidated by: developing an integrated vector management (IVM) strategy (2015-2019); updating IRS and larval source management (LSM) guidelines; developing training manuals for IRS and LSM; training of national staff in malaria entomology and vector control, including insecticide resistance

Effect of fatigue on force production and force application technique during repeated sprints.

Science.gov (United States)

Morin, Jean-Benoit; Samozino, Pierre; Edouard, Pascal; Tomazin, Katja

2011-10-13

We investigated the changes in the technical ability of force application/orientation against the ground vs. the physical capability of total force production after a multiple-set repeated sprints series. Twelve male physical education students familiar with sprint running performed four sets of five 6-s sprints (24s of passive rest between sprints, 3min between sets). Sprints were performed from a standing start on an instrumented treadmill, allowing the computation of vertical (F(V)), net horizontal (F(H)) and total (F(Tot)) ground reaction forces for each step. Furthermore, the ratio of forces was calculated as RF=F(H)F(Tot)(-1), and the index of force application technique (D(RF)) representing the decrement in RF with increase in speed was computed as the slope of the linear RF-speed relationship. Changes between pre- (first two sprints) and post-fatigue (last two sprints) were tested using paired t-tests. Performance decreased significantly (e.g. top speed decreased by 15.7±5.4%; Pmultiple-set repeated sprint series, both the total force production capability and the technical ability to apply force effectively against the ground are altered, the latter to a larger extent than the former. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Elucidating transmission dynamics and host-parasite-vector relationships for rodent-borne Bartonella spp. in Madagascar

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Cara E. Brook

2017-09-01

Full Text Available Bartonella spp. are erythrocytic bacteria transmitted via arthropod vectors, which infect a broad range of vertebrate hosts, including humans. We investigated transmission dynamics and host-parasite-vector relationships for potentially zoonotic Bartonella spp. in invasive Rattus rattus hosts and associated arthropod ectoparasites in Madagascar. We identified five distinct species of Bartonella (B. elizabethae 1, B. elizabethae 2, B. phoceensis 1, B. rattimassiliensis 1, and B. tribocorum 1 infecting R. rattus rodents and their ectoparasites. We fit standard epidemiological models to species-specific age-prevalence data for the four Bartonella spp. with sufficient data, thus quantifying age-structured force of infection. Known zoonotic agents, B. elizabethae 1 and 2, were best described by models exhibiting high forces of infection in early age class individuals and allowing for recovery from infection, while B. phoceensis 1 and B. rattimassiliensis 1 were best fit by models of lifelong infection without recovery and substantially lower forces of infection. Nested sequences of B. elizabethae 1 and 2 were recovered from rodent hosts and their Synopsyllus fonquerniei and Xenopsylla cheopsis fleas, with a particularly high prevalence in the outdoor-dwelling, highland-endemic S. fonquerniei. These findings expand on force of infection analyses to elucidate the ecological niche of the zoonotic Bartonella elizabethae complex in Madagascar, hinting at a potential vector role for S. fonquerniei. Our analyses underscore the uniqueness of such ecologies for Bartonella species, which pose a variable range of potential zoonotic threats.

NetSig

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Horn, Heiko; Lawrence, Michael S; Chouinard, Candace R

2018-01-01

Methods that integrate molecular network information and tumor genome data could complement gene-based statistical tests to identify likely new cancer genes; but such approaches are challenging to validate at scale, and their predictive value remains unclear. We developed a robust statistic (Net......Sig) that integrates protein interaction networks with data from 4,742 tumor exomes. NetSig can accurately classify known driver genes in 60% of tested tumor types and predicts 62 new driver candidates. Using a quantitative experimental framework to determine in vivo tumorigenic potential in mice, we found that Net......Sig candidates induce tumors at rates that are comparable to those of known oncogenes and are ten-fold higher than those of random genes. By reanalyzing nine tumor-inducing NetSig candidates in 242 patients with oncogene-negative lung adenocarcinomas, we find that two (AKT2 and TFDP2) are significantly amplified...

Vectors

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Boeriis, Morten; van Leeuwen, Theo

2017-01-01

should be taken into account in discussing ‘reactions’, which Kress and van Leeuwen link only to eyeline vectors. Finally, the question can be raised as to whether actions are always realized by vectors. Drawing on a re-reading of Rudolf Arnheim’s account of vectors, these issues are outlined......This article revisits the concept of vectors, which, in Kress and van Leeuwen’s Reading Images (2006), plays a crucial role in distinguishing between ‘narrative’, action-oriented processes and ‘conceptual’, state-oriented processes. The use of this concept in image analysis has usually focused...

[Climate change - a pioneer for the expansion of canine vector-borne diseases?].

Science.gov (United States)

Krämer, F; Mencke, N

2011-01-01

Vector-transmitted diseases are one of the major contributors to the global burden of disease in humans and animals. Climate change is consistently held responsible for the spread of parasitic acarid and insect vectors such as ticks, fleas, sand flies and mosquitoes, and their transmitted pathogens (in the case of the dog the so-called canine vector-borne diseases [CVBD]). Currently, there is only insufficient data available to prove whether climate change is a major driving force for vector and disease expansion, but the evidence is growing. Other reasons, such as ecological, demographic and socio-economic factors, e.g. pet travel into and pet import from endemic areas, also play a role in this development. Apart from all the controversial discussion of the factors leading to vector and disease expansion, preventative measures should include dog owners' education as they are responsible for individual parasite protection as well as for the minimisation of adverse risk behaviour, e.g. regarding pet travel. Broad-spectrum vector control should be practised by using parasiticides that repel and kill blood feeders in order to minimize the risk of CVBD-pathogen transmission.

Wavenumber locking and pattern formation in spatially forced systems

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Manor, Rotem; Meron, Ehud; Hagberg, Aric

2009-01-01

We study wavenumber locking and pattern formation resulting from weak spatially periodic one-dimensional forcing of two-dimensional systems. We consider systems that produce stationary or traveling stripe patterns when unforced and apply forcing aligned with the stripes. Forcing at close to twice the pattern wavenumber selects, stabilizes, or creates resonant stripes locked at half the forcing wavenumber. If the mismatch between the forcing and pattern wavenumber is high we find that the pattern still locks but develops a wave vector component perpendicular to the forcing direction and forms rectangular and oblique patterns. When the unforced system supports traveling waves, resonant rectangular patterns remain stationary but oblique patterns travel in a direction orthogonal to the traveling waves.

Learning Visual Basic NET

CERN Document Server

Liberty, Jesse

2009-01-01

Learning Visual Basic .NET is a complete introduction to VB.NET and object-oriented programming. By using hundreds of examples, this book demonstrates how to develop various kinds of applications--including those that work with databases--and web services. Learning Visual Basic .NET will help you build a solid foundation in .NET.

Vector regression introduced

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mok Tik

2014-06-01

Full Text Available This study formulates regression of vector data that will enable statistical analysis of various geodetic phenomena such as, polar motion, ocean currents, typhoon/hurricane tracking, crustal deformations, and precursory earthquake signals. The observed vector variable of an event (dependent vector variable is expressed as a function of a number of hypothesized phenomena realized also as vector variables (independent vector variables and/or scalar variables that are likely to impact the dependent vector variable. The proposed representation has the unique property of solving the coefficients of independent vector variables (explanatory variables also as vectors, hence it supersedes multivariate multiple regression models, in which the unknown coefficients are scalar quantities. For the solution, complex numbers are used to rep- resent vector information, and the method of least squares is deployed to estimate the vector model parameters after transforming the complex vector regression model into a real vector regression model through isomorphism. Various operational statistics for testing the predictive significance of the estimated vector parameter coefficients are also derived. A simple numerical example demonstrates the use of the proposed vector regression analysis in modeling typhoon paths.

Tactical Web Services: Using XML and Java Web Services to Conduct Real-Time Net-Centric Sonar Visualization

National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

Rosetti, Scott

2004-01-01

With the unveiling of ForceNet, the Navy's architectural framework for how naval warfare is to be conducted in the information age, much of the technological focus has been placed on Web technology...

Screening vector field modifications of general relativity

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Beltrán Jiménez, Jose; Delvas Fróes, André Luís; Mota, David F.

2013-01-01

A screening mechanism for conformal vector–tensor modifications of general relativity is proposed. The conformal factor depends on the norm of the vector field and makes the field to vanish in high dense regions, whereas drives it to a non-null value in low density environments. Such process occurs due to a spontaneous symmetry breaking mechanism and gives rise to both the screening of fifth forces as well as Lorentz violations. The cosmology and local constraints are also computed

Decoupled Vector-Fetch Architecture with a Scalarizing Compiler

OpenAIRE

Lee, Yunsup

2016-01-01

As we approach the end of conventional technology scaling, computer architects are forced to incorporate specialized and heterogeneous accelerators into general-purpose processors for greater energy efficiency. Among the prominent accelerators that have recently become more popular are data-parallel processing units, such as classic vector units, SIMD units, and graphics processing units (GPUs). Surveying a wide range of data-parallel architectures and their parallel programming models and ...

Independent Auditors Report on the Air Force Working Capital Fund FY 2015 and FY 2014 Basic Financial Statements for United States Air Force Agency Financial Report 2015

Science.gov (United States)

2015-11-09

and character essential for leadership, and the motivation to serve as Air Force career officers. Each cadet graduates with a Bachelor of Science ...and specific national security requirement. RDT&E Major Programs ($ in millions) FY 15 Expenditure Science and Technology $2,282 Long Range Strike...1,243,894 (Less: Earned Revenue) Net Cost before Losses/(Gains) from Actuarial Assumption Changes for Military Retirement Benefits Net Program Costs

StreamNet, 1999-2000 Annual Report.

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Schmidt, Bruce; Roger, Phil; Butterfield, Bart (Pacific States Marine Fisheries Commission, Gladstone, OR)

2001-09-01

able to utilize data for comparison or analysis over the entire basin from multiple agencies, it is necessary to standardize the data to the degree possible so that like-data are equivalent over jurisdictional lines. Since the data are not collected in a standardized way, StreamNet fulfills that role by acquiring the data sets and converting the data from all agencies into the standardized DEF. Where field methodologies differ to the degree that the data can not be made comparable, the data are presented as different data types. This way, data are converted only once and made available for research, management and administrative purposes instead of forcing each person needing basin wide data to attempt data standardization individually.

Control of Malaria Vector Mosquitoes by Insecticide-Treated Combinations of Window Screens and Eave Baffles.

Science.gov (United States)

Killeen, Gerry F; Masalu, John P; Chinula, Dingani; Fotakis, Emmanouil A; Kavishe, Deogratius R; Malone, David; Okumu, Fredros

2017-05-01

We assessed window screens and eave baffles (WSEBs), which enable mosquitoes to enter but not exit houses, as an alternative to indoor residual spraying (IRS) for malaria vector control. WSEBs treated with water, the pyrethroid lambda-cyhalothrin, or the organophosphate pirimiphos-methyl, with and without a binding agent for increasing insecticide persistence on netting, were compared with IRS in experimental huts. Compared with IRS containing the same insecticide, WSEBs killed similar proportions of Anopheles funestus mosquitoes that were resistant to pyrethroids, carbamates and organochlorines and greater proportions of pyrethroid-resistant, early exiting An. arabiensis mosquitoes. WSEBs with pirimiphos-methyl killed greater proportions of both vectors than lambda-cyhalothrin or lambda-cyhalothrin plus pirimiphos-methyl and were equally efficacious when combined with binding agent. WSEBs required far less insecticide than IRS, and binding agents might enhance durability. WSEBs might enable affordable deployment of insecticide combinations to mitigate against physiologic insecticide resistance and improve control of behaviorally resistant, early exiting vectors.

Kochen-Specker vectors

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Pavicic, Mladen; Merlet, Jean-Pierre; McKay, Brendan; Megill, Norman D

2005-01-01

We give a constructive and exhaustive definition of Kochen-Specker (KS) vectors in a Hilbert space of any dimension as well as of all the remaining vectors of the space. KS vectors are elements of any set of orthonormal states, i.e., vectors in an n-dimensional Hilbert space, H n , n≥3, to which it is impossible to assign 1s and 0s in such a way that no two mutually orthogonal vectors from the set are both assigned 1 and that not all mutually orthogonal vectors are assigned 0. Our constructive definition of such KS vectors is based on algorithms that generate MMP diagrams corresponding to blocks of orthogonal vectors in R n , on algorithms that single out those diagrams on which algebraic (0)-(1) states cannot be defined, and on algorithms that solve nonlinear equations describing the orthogonalities of the vectors by means of statistically polynomially complex interval analysis and self-teaching programs. The algorithms are limited neither by the number of dimensions nor by the number of vectors. To demonstrate the power of the algorithms, all four-dimensional KS vector systems containing up to 24 vectors were generated and described, all three-dimensional vector systems containing up to 30 vectors were scanned, and several general properties of KS vectors were found

Determination of Coronal Magnetic Fields from Vector Magnetograms

Science.gov (United States)

Mikic, Zoran

1997-01-01

During the course of the present contract we developed an 'evolutionary technique' for the determination of force-free coronal magnetic fields from vector magnetograph observations. The method can successfully generate nonlinear force- free fields (with non-constant-a) that match vector magnetograms. We demonstrated that it is possible to determine coronal magnetic fields from photospheric measurements, and we applied it to vector magnetograms of active regions. We have also studied theoretical models of coronal fields that lead to disruptions. Specifically, we have demonstrated that the determination of force-free fields from exact boundary data is a well-posed mathematical problem, by verifying that the computed coronal field agrees with an analytic force-free field when boundary data for the analytic field are used; demonstrated that it is possible to determine active-region coronal magnetic fields from photospheric measurements, by computing the coronal field above active region 5747 on 20 October 1989, AR6919 on 15 November 1991, and AR7260 on 18 August 1992, from data taken with the Stokes Polarimeter at Mees Solar Observatory, University of Hawaii; started to analyze active region 7201 on 19 June 1992 using measurements made with the Advanced Stokes Polarimeter at NSO/Sac Peak; investigated the effects of imperfections in the photospheric data on the computed coronal magnetic field; documented the coronal field structure of AR5747 and compared it to the morphology of footpoint emission in a flare, showing that the 'high- pressure' H-alpha footpoints are connected by coronal field lines; shown that the variation of magnetic field strength along current-carrying field lines is significantly different from the variation in a potential field, and that the resulting near-constant area of elementary flux tubes is consistent with observations; begun to develop realistic models of coronal fields which can be used to study flare trigger mechanisms; demonstrated that

Pro-Nets versus No-Nets: Differences in Urban Older Adults' Predilections for Internet Use

Science.gov (United States)

Cresci, M. Kay; Yarandi, Hossein N.; Morrell, Roger W.

2010-01-01

Enthusiasm for information technology (IT) is growing among older adults. Many older adults enjoy IT and the Internet (Pro-Nets), but others have no desire to use it (No-Nets). This study found that Pro-Nets and No-Nets were different on a number of variables that might predict IT use. No-Nets were older, had less education and income, were…

Experiments and simulation of a net closing mechanism for tether-net capture of space debris

Science.gov (United States)

Sharf, Inna; Thomsen, Benjamin; Botta, Eleonora M.; Misra, Arun K.

2017-10-01

This research addresses the design and testing of a debris containment system for use in a tether-net approach to space debris removal. The tether-net active debris removal involves the ejection of a net from a spacecraft by applying impulses to masses on the net, subsequent expansion of the net, the envelopment and capture of the debris target, and the de-orbiting of the debris via a tether to the chaser spacecraft. To ensure a debris removal mission's success, it is important that the debris be successfully captured and then, secured within the net. To this end, we present a concept for a net closing mechanism, which we believe will permit consistently successful debris capture via a simple and unobtrusive design. This net closing system functions by extending the main tether connecting the chaser spacecraft and the net vertex to the perimeter and around the perimeter of the net, allowing the tether to actuate closure of the net in a manner similar to a cinch cord. A particular embodiment of the design in a laboratory test-bed is described: the test-bed itself is comprised of a scaled-down tether-net, a supporting frame and a mock-up debris. Experiments conducted with the facility demonstrate the practicality of the net closing system. A model of the net closure concept has been integrated into the previously developed dynamics simulator of the chaser/tether-net/debris system. Simulations under tether tensioning conditions demonstrate the effectiveness of the closure concept for debris containment, in the gravity-free environment of space, for a realistic debris target. The on-ground experimental test-bed is also used to showcase its utility for validating the dynamics simulation of the net deployment, and a full-scale automated setup would make possible a range of validation studies of other aspects of a tether-net debris capture mission.

Efficacy of mosquito nets treated with a pyrethroid-organophosphorous mixture against Kdr- and Kdr+ malaria vectors (Anopheles gambiae

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Darriet F.

2003-12-01

Full Text Available In order to prevent the resistance of Anopheles gambiae s.l. to pyrethroids from spreading too quickly and to lengthen the effectiveness of insecticide impregnated mosquito nets, it has recently been suggested to use mixtures of insecticides that have different modes of action. This study presents the results obtained with tulle mosquito nets treated with bifenthrin (a pyrethroid] and chlorpyrifos-methyl (an organophosphorous both separately and in mixture on two strains of An. gambiae, one sensitive to all insecticides, and the other resistant to pyrethroids. The values of KDt50 and KDt95 and the mortality induced with the mixture of bifenthrin (25 mg/m2 and chlorpyrifos-methyl (4.5 mg/m2 show a significant synergistic effect on the strain of An. gambiae susceptible to insecticides. However, the tested combination does not induce any synergistic effect on the VKPR strain selected with permethrin, but only enhances the effectiveness of the two insecticides taken separately.

Impact of permethrin-treated bed nets on entomologic indices in an area of intense year-round malaria transmission.

Science.gov (United States)

Gimnig, John E; Vulule, John M; Lo, Terrence Q; Kamau, Luna; Kolczak, Margarette S; Phillips-Howard, Penelope A; Mathenge, Evan M; ter Kuile, Feiko O; Nahlen, Bernard L; Hightower, Allen W; Hawley, William A

2003-04-01

The effect of permethrin-treated bed nets (ITNs) on malaria vectors was studied as part of a large-scale, randomized, controlled trial in western Kenya. Indoor resting densities of fed Anopheles gambiae s.l. and An. funestus in intervention houses were 58.5% (P = 0.010) and 94.5% (P = 0.001) lower, respectively, compared with control houses. The sporozoite infection rate in An. gambiae s.l. was 0.8% in intervention areas compared with 3.4% (P = 0.026) in control areas, while the sporozoite infection rates in An. funestus were not significantly different between the two areas. We estimated the overall transmission of Plasmodium falciparum in intervention areas to be 90% lower than in control areas. Permethrin resistance was not detected during the study period. As measured by densities of An. gambiae s.l., the efficacy of bed nets decreased if one or more residents did not sleep under a net or if bed nets had not been re-treated within six months. These results indicate that ITNs are optimally effective if used every night and if permethrin is reapplied at least biannually.

Longitudinal Lorentz force on a subwavelength-diameter optical fiber

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yu Huakang; Fang Wei; Gu Fuxing; Yang Zongyin; Tong Limin; Qiu Min

2011-01-01

We analyze the longitudinal Lorentz forces that a propagating continuous-wave light exerts on a subwavelength-diameter optical fiber. Our theoretical results show that, during the propagating process, the guided light exerts no net time-averaged force on the fiber. Via numerical simulation, we find a significant overall pull force of 0.4 pN/mW acting on a 450-nm-diam fiber tip at a wavelength of 980 nm due to the scattering of the end face and a calculated force distribution reveals the feature of a near-field accumulation. Our results may be helpful to the configuration of optomechanical components or devices based on these fibers.

Lienard-Wiechert field as covariant dynamics of electric lines of force

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Arutyunyan, S.G.

1989-01-01

The Lienard-Wiechert field of an arbitrarily moving charge is presented as a system of Lorentz-covariant moving electric lines of force. It is shown that the 4-vector describing these lines is written as a sum of the 4-vector of the charge and the isotropic 4-vector directed to the observation point. The motion of this 4-vector is described by the equation coinciding with the equation of motion for magnetic moment in external fields provided that the intrinsic magnetic moment is zero. By the system of lines that corresponds to the complete equation of magnetic moment in external fields the electromagnetic field is restored. It turned out that the spatial magnetic current proportional to the isotropic 4-vector directed to the observation point corresponds to this field. 8 refs

FDTD approach to optical forces of tightly focused vector beams on metal particles.

Science.gov (United States)

Qin, Jian-Qi; Wang, Xi-Lin; Jia, Ding; Chen, Jing; Fan, Ya-Xian; Ding, Jianping; Wang, Hui-Tian

2009-05-11

We propose an improved FDTD method to calculate the optical forces of tightly focused beams on microscopic metal particles. Comparison study on different kinds of tightly focused beams indicates that trapping efficiency can be altered by adjusting the polarization of the incident field. The results also show the size-dependence of trapping forces exerted on metal particles. Transverse tapping forces produced by different illumination wavelengths are also evaluated. The numeric simulation demonstrates the possibility of trapping moderate-sized metal particles whose radii are comparable to wavelength.

Independent Auditors Report on the Air Force General Fund FY 2015 and FY 2014 Basic Financial Statements for United States Air Force Agency Financial Report 2015

Science.gov (United States)

2015-11-09

for leadership, and the motivation to serve as Air Force career officers. Each cadet graduates with a Bachelor of Science degree and a commission...security requirement. RDT&E Major Programs ($ in millions) FY 15 Expenditure Science and Technology $2,282 Long Range Strike-Bomber $914 KC-46 $786...6,183,517) Net Cost before Losses/(Gains) from Actuarial Assumption Changes 156,816,790 154,945,254 for Military Retirement Benefits Net Program

The influence of health policy and market factors on the hospital safety net.

Science.gov (United States)

Bazzoli, Gloria J; Lindrooth, Richard C; Kang, Ray; Hasnain-Wynia, Romana

2006-08-01

To examine how the financial pressures resulting from the Balanced Budget Act (BBA) of 1997 interacted with private sector pressures to affect indigent care provision. American Hospital Association Annual Survey, Area Resource File, InterStudy Health Maintenance Organization files, Current Population Survey, and Bureau of Primary Health Care data. We distinguished core and voluntary safety net hospitals in our analysis. Core safety net hospitals provide a large share of uncompensated care in their markets and have large indigent care patient mix. Voluntary safety net hospitals provide substantial indigent care but less so than core hospitals. We examined the effect of financial pressure in the initial year of the 1997 BBA on uncompensated care for three hospital groups. Data for 1996-2000 were analyzed using approaches that control for hospital and market heterogeneity. All urban U.S. general acute care hospitals with complete data for at least 2 years between 1996 and 2000, which totaled 1,693 institutions. Core safety net hospitals reduced their uncompensated care in response to Medicaid financial pressure. Voluntary safety net hospitals also responded in this way but only when faced with the combined forces of Medicaid and private sector payment pressures. Nonsafety net hospitals did not exhibit similar responses. Our results are consistent with theories of hospital behavior when institutions face reductions in payment. They raise concern given continuing state budget crises plus the focus of recent federal deficit reduction legislation intended to cut Medicaid expenditures.

ROOT.NET: Using ROOT from .NET languages like C# and F#

Science.gov (United States)

Watts, G.

2012-12-01

ROOT.NET provides an interface between Microsoft's Common Language Runtime (CLR) and .NET technology and the ubiquitous particle physics analysis tool, ROOT. ROOT.NET automatically generates a series of efficient wrappers around the ROOT API. Unlike pyROOT, these wrappers are statically typed and so are highly efficient as compared to the Python wrappers. The connection to .NET means that one gains access to the full series of languages developed for the CLR including functional languages like F# (based on OCaml). Many features that make ROOT objects work well in the .NET world are added (properties, IEnumerable interface, LINQ compatibility, etc.). Dynamic languages based on the CLR can be used as well, of course (Python, for example). Additionally it is now possible to access ROOT objects that are unknown to the translation tool. This poster will describe the techniques used to effect this translation, along with performance comparisons, and examples. All described source code is posted on the open source site CodePlex.

ROOT.NET: Using ROOT from .NET languages like C and F

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Watts, G

2012-01-01

ROOT.NET provides an interface between Microsoft's Common Language Runtime (CLR) and .NET technology and the ubiquitous particle physics analysis tool, ROOT. ROOT.NET automatically generates a series of efficient wrappers around the ROOT API. Unlike pyROOT, these wrappers are statically typed and so are highly efficient as compared to the Python wrappers. The connection to .NET means that one gains access to the full series of languages developed for the CLR including functional languages like F (based on OCaml). Many features that make ROOT objects work well in the .NET world are added (properties, IEnumerable interface, LINQ compatibility, etc.). Dynamic languages based on the CLR can be used as well, of course (Python, for example). Additionally it is now possible to access ROOT objects that are unknown to the translation tool. This poster will describe the techniques used to effect this translation, along with performance comparisons, and examples. All described source code is posted on the open source site CodePlex.

Prediction of the Cabibbo angle in the vector model for electroweak interactions

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Reifler, F.; Morris, R.

1985-01-01

In a recent paper we presented a vector model for the electroweak interactions which is similar to the Weinberg--Salam model but differs in the following features. (1) In the vector model all fermion wave functions are bispinors or equivalently isotropic Yang--Mills triplets (as opposed to a state vector composed of a spinor and bispinors in the Weinberg--Salam model). Particles are distinguished by their Higgs fields. (2) The vector model predicts that sin 2 theta/sub W/ = 1/4 , where theta/sub W/ is the Weinberg angle. (3) The vector model accounts for conservation of lepton number, electric charge, and baryon number. (4) In the vector model an antiparticle is characterized by opposite lepton number, electric charge, and baryon number; yet both particles and antiparticles propagate forward in time with positive energies. In this paper we extend the vector theory to include interactions between fermions and the gauge bosons mediating the electroweak force. We model the bosons as Yang--Mills fields with their own Higgs fields. We further propose a specific configuration of Higgs fields for the u,d,s, and c quarks. With these features, the model accounts for electroweak transitions of quarks and leptons and predicts that cos theta/sub C/ = 0.9744, where theta/sub C/ is the Cabibbo angle. We further show that the vector model accounts for the intrinsic parity of particles and antiparticles, and parity violations and CPT invariance for electroweak interactions

Comparison of the ocean surface vector winds from atmospheric reanalysis and scatterometer-based wind products over the Nordic Seas and the northern North Atlantic and their application for ocean modeling

Science.gov (United States)

Dukhovskoy, Dmitry S.; Bourassa, Mark A.; Petersen, Gudrún Nína; Steffen, John

2017-03-01

Ocean surface vector wind fields from reanalysis data sets and scatterometer-derived gridded products are analyzed over the Nordic Seas and the northern North Atlantic for the time period from 2000 to 2009. The data sets include the National Center for Environmental Prediction Reanalysis 2 (NCEPR2), Climate Forecast System Reanalysis (CFSR), Arctic System Reanalysis (ASR), Cross-Calibrated Multiplatform (CCMP) wind product version 1.1 and recently released version 2.0, and QuikSCAT. The goal of the study is to assess discrepancies across the wind vector fields in the data sets and demonstrate possible implications of these differences for ocean modeling. Large-scale and mesoscale characteristics of winds are compared at interannual, seasonal, and synoptic timescales. A cyclone tracking methodology is developed and applied to the wind fields to compare cyclone characteristics in the data sets. Additionally, the winds are evaluated against observations collected from meteorological buoys deployed in the Iceland and Irminger Seas. The agreement among the wind fields is better for longer time and larger spatial scales. The discrepancies are clearly apparent for synoptic timescales and mesoscales. CCMP, ASR, and CFSR show the closest overall agreement with each other. Substantial biases are found in the NCEPR2 winds. Numerical sensitivity experiments are conducted with a coupled ice-ocean model forced by different wind fields. The experiments demonstrate differences in the net surface heat fluxes during storms. In the experiment forced by NCEPR2 winds, there are discrepancies in the large-scale wind-driven ocean dynamics compared to the other experiments.

Nonlinear nonresonant forces by radio-frequency waves in plasmas

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Gao Zhe; Fisch, Nathaniel J.; Qin, Hong; Myra, J. R.

2007-01-01

Nonresonant forces by applied rf waves in plasmas are analyzed. Along the background dc magnetic field, the force arises from the gradient of the ponderomotive potential. Only when the dc magnetic field is straight, however, is this parallel force completely consistent with that from the single particle picture, where the ponderomotive force depends on the gradients of rf fields only. Across the dc magnetic field, besides the ponderomotive force from the particle picture, additional Reynolds stress and polarization stress contribute to the total force. For waves with frequency much lower than the cyclotron frequency, the perpendicular forces from the particle and fluid pictures can have opposite signs. In plasmas with a symmetry angle (e.g., toroidal systems), nonresonant forces cannot drive net flow or current in the flux surface, but the radial force may influence macroscopic behavior of plasma. Moreover, nonresonant forces may drive flow or current in linear plasmas or in a localized region of toroidal plasmas

Insecticide-treated nets ownership and utilization among under-five children following the 2010 mass distribution in Burkina Faso.

Science.gov (United States)

Diabaté, Souleymane; Druetz, Thomas; Bonnet, Emmanuel; Kouanda, Seni; Ridde, Valéry; Haddad, Slim

2014-09-04

Periodic mass distributions contribute significantly to universal access to insecticide-treated nets (ITNs). However, due to the limited number of nets distributed, needs remain unsatisfied, particularly in large households. This study was conducted in Kaya health district following the 2010 mass distribution of ITNs in Burkina Faso. Data were collected on the socio-economic and geo-spatial characteristics and ITN possession and utilization levels of 2,004 households. The study explored: 1) ITN access, in terms of intra-household saturation with ITNs (households with at least one ITN for every two members) correctly installed and in very good physical condition; and 2) factors influencing the decision to place under-five children under a net. Particular attention was given to vector control activities undertaken by mothers. Of the 2,004 households, 90% possessed at least one ITN. However, intra-household saturation with ITNs was below 60% in small households and below 20% in large ones (>6 members). Crude proportion ratios comparing possession and levels of intra-household saturation with ITNs varied between 1.5 (small households) and 7.8 (large households). The proportions of households with ITNs for every two members that were correctly hung or in very good physical condition ranged from 0% to 6.5% in large households and 27.8% to 40.7% in small ones. ITN use to protect under-five children was lower in large households; it was significantly higher when there was at least one ITN for every two members. In large households, it was significantly higher when a child had experienced an episode of any illness in the previous two weeks and when the mother had taken actions to control vector proliferation. In small households, ITN use was significantly higher in families with agricultural land and children aged 12-23 months. Ownership rates were high, but real access to bed nets remained limited. The allocation process disadvantages large families. Real access to bed

Genetic manipulation of endosymbionts to control vector and vector borne diseases

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jay Prakash Gupta

Full Text Available Vector borne diseases (VBD are on the rise because of failure of the existing methods of control of vector and vector borne diseases and the climate change. A steep rise of VBDs are due to several factors like selection of insecticide resistant vector population, drug resistant parasite population and lack of effective vaccines against the VBDs. Environmental pollution, public health hazard and insecticide resistant vector population indicate that the insecticides are no longer a sustainable control method of vector and vector-borne diseases. Amongst the various alternative control strategies, symbiont based approach utilizing endosymbionts of arthropod vectors could be explored to control the vector and vector borne diseases. The endosymbiont population of arthropod vectors could be exploited in different ways viz., as a chemotherapeutic target, vaccine target for the control of vectors. Expression of molecules with antiparasitic activity by genetically transformed symbiotic bacteria of disease-transmitting arthropods may serve as a powerful approach to control certain arthropod-borne diseases. Genetic transformation of symbiotic bacteria of the arthropod vector to alter the vector’s ability to transmit pathogen is an alternative means of blocking the transmission of VBDs. In Indian scenario, where dengue, chikungunya, malaria and filariosis are prevalent, paratransgenic based approach can be used effectively. [Vet World 2012; 5(9.000: 571-576

Frequent blood feeding enables insecticide-treated nets to reduce transmission by mosquitoes that bite predominately outdoors.

Science.gov (United States)

Russell, Tanya L; Beebe, Nigel W; Bugoro, Hugo; Apairamo, Allan; Chow, Weng K; Cooper, Robert D; Collins, Frank H; Lobo, Neil F; Burkot, Thomas R

2016-03-10

The effectiveness of vector control on malaria transmission by long-lasting insecticidal nets (LLINs) and indoor residual spraying (IRS) depends on the vectors entering houses to blood feed and rest when people are inside houses. In the Solomon Islands, significant reductions in malaria have been achieved in the past 20 years with insecticide-treated bed nets, IRS, improved diagnosis and treatment with artemisinin combination therapies; despite the preference of the primary vector, Anopheles farauti, to feed outdoors and early in the evening and thereby avoid potential exposure to insecticides. Rational development of tools to complement LLINs and IRS by attacking vectors outdoor requires detailed knowledge of the biology and behaviours of the target species. Malaria transmission in Central Province, Solomon Islands was estimated by measuring the components comprising the entomological inoculation rate (EIR) as well as the vectorial capacity of An. farauti. In addition, the daily and seasonal biting behaviour of An. farauti, was examined and the duration of the feeding cycle was estimated with a mark-release-recapture experiment. Anopheles farauti was highly exophagic with 72% captured by human landing catches (HLC) outside of houses. Three-quarters (76%) of blood feeding on humans was estimated to occur before 21.00 h. When the hourly location of humans was considered, the proportion of exposure to mosquito bites on humans occurring indoors (πi) was only 0.130 ± 0.129. Peak densities of host seeking An. farauti occurred between October and January. The annual EIR was estimated to be 2.5 for 2012 and 33.2 for 2013. The length of the feeding cycle was 2.1 days. The short duration of the feeding cycle by this species offers an explanation for the substantial control of malaria that has been achieved in the Solomon Islands by LLINs and IRS. Anopheles farauti is primarily exophagic and early biting, with 13% of mosquitoes entering houses to feed late at night during

Emerging vector borne diseases – incidence through vectors

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Sara eSavic

2014-12-01

Full Text Available Vector borne diseases use to be a major public health concern only in tropical and subtropical areas, but today they are an emerging threat for the continental and developed countries also. Nowdays, in intercontinetal countries, there is a struggle with emerging diseases which have found their way to appear through vectors. Vector borne zoonotic diseases occur when vectors, animal hosts, climate conditions, pathogens and susceptible human population exist at the same time, at the same place. Global climate change is predicted to lead to an increase in vector borne infectious diseases and disease outbreaks. It could affect the range and popultion of pathogens, host and vectors, transmission season, etc. Reliable surveilance for diseases that are most likely to emerge is required. Canine vector borne diseases represent a complex group of diseases including anaplasmosis, babesiosis, bartonellosis, borreliosis, dirofilariosis, erlichiosis, leishmaniosis. Some of these diseases cause serious clinical symptoms in dogs and some of them have a zoonotic potential with an effect to public health. It is expected from veterinarians in coordination with medical doctors to play a fudamental role at primeraly prevention and then treatment of vector borne diseases in dogs. The One Health concept has to be integrated into the struggle against emerging diseases.During a four year period, from 2009-2013, a total number of 551 dog samples were analysed for vector borne diseases (borreliosis, babesiosis, erlichiosis, anaplasmosis, dirofilariosis and leishmaniasis in routine laboratory work. The analysis were done by serological tests – ELISA for borreliosis, dirofilariosis and leishmaniasis, modified Knott test for dirofilariosis and blood smear for babesiosis, erlichiosis and anaplasmosis. This number of samples represented 75% of total number of samples that were sent for analysis for different diseases in dogs. Annually, on avarege more then half of the samples

Seedling protection and field practices for management of insect vectors and viral diseases of hot pepper (Capsicum chinense Jacq.) in Uganda

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Karungi, J.; Obua, T.; Kyamanywa, S.

2013-01-01

The focus of this study was on nursery and field management of seed and insect vectors of viruses on hot pepper. Seedlings raised from hypochlorite-treated seeds under a net tunnel nursery were compared with seedlings raised from untreated seeds in an open nursery. The two groups of seedlings were...

SOLAR SAIL PROPULSION SENSITIVITY TO MEMBRANE SHAPE AND OPTICAL PROPERTIES USING THE SOLAR VECTORING EVALUATION TOOL (SVET)

Science.gov (United States)

Ewing, Anthony

2005-01-01

Solar sail propulsive performance is dependent on sail membrane optical properties and on sail membrane shape. Assumptions of an ideal sail (flat, perfect reflector) can result in errors which can affect spacecraft control, trajectory analyses, and overall evaluation of solar sail performance. A MATLAB(R) program has been developed to generate sail shape point cloud files for two square-architecture solar sail designs. Simple parabolic profiles are assumed for sail shape under solar pressure loading. These files are then input into the Solar Vectoring Evaluation Tool (SVET) software to determine the propulsive force vector, center of pressure, and moments about the sail body axes as a function of sail shape and optical properties. Also, the impact of the center-line angle, due to non-perfect optical properties, is addressed since this constrains sail force vector cone angle and is often overlooked when assuming ideal-reflector membranes. Preliminary sensitivity analysis using these tools aids in determining the key geometric and optical parameters that drive solar sail propulsive performance.

Plasma wake and nuclear forces on fragmented H+ transport

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Barriga-Carrasco, Manuel D; Deutsch, Claude

2006-01-01

The objective of the present work is to study the target electronic and nuclear interactions produced when a H + ion traverses classical plasma matter. Electronic interactions are treated by means of the dielectric formalism while nuclear interactions are dealt within the classical dispersion theory through a Monte Carlo computer code. The interactions through plasma electronic medium among close ions are called wake forces. We checked that these forces screen the Coulomb explosions of the two fragmented protons from the same H + ion decreasing their relative distance in the analysed cases. These forces align the interproton vector along the motion direction. They also tend the two-proton energy loss to the value of two isolated protons when at early times it is rather larger. Nevertheless most parts of these wake effects cannot be corroborated experimentally as they are masked by the projectile collisions with target nuclei in our numerical experiment. These collisions cancel the screening produced by the wake forces, increasing the interproton distance even faster than for bare Coulomb explosion. Also they misalign the interproton vector along the motion direction and contribute moderately to increase the energy loss of the fragmented H + ion. These nuclear collisions effects are more significant in reducing projectile velocity

INMARSAT-C SafetyNET

Science.gov (United States)

Tsunamis 406 EPIRB's National Weather Service Marine Forecasts INMARSAT-C SafetyNET Marine Forecast Offices greater danger near shore or any shallow waters? NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PRODUCTS VIA INMARSAT-C SafetyNET Inmarsat-C SafetyNET is an internationally adopted, automated satellite system for promulgating

Vector-vector production in photon-photon interactions

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ronan, M.T.

1988-01-01

Measurements of exclusive untagged /rho/ 0 /rho/ 0 , /rho//phi/, K/sup *//bar K//sup */, and /rho/ω production and tagged /rho/ 0 /rho/ 0 production in photon-photon interactions by the TPC/Two-Gamma experiment are reviewed. Comparisons to the results of other experiments and to models of vector-vector production are made. Fits to the data following a four quark model prescription for vector meson pair production are also presented. 10 refs., 9 figs

Quantum net dynamics

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Finkelstein, D.

1989-01-01

The quantum net unifies the basic principles of quantum theory and relativity in a quantum spacetime having no ultraviolet infinities, supporting the Dirac equation, and having the usual vacuum as a quantum condensation. A correspondence principle connects nets to Schwinger sources and further unifies the vertical structure of the theory, so that the functions of the many hierarchic levels of quantum field theory (predicate algebra, set theory, topology,hor-ellipsis, quantum dynamics) are served by one in quantum net dynamics

High-level Petri Nets

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

various journals and collections. As a result, much of this knowledge is not readily available to people who may be interested in using high-level nets. Within the Petri net community this problem has been discussed many times, and as an outcome this book has been compiled. The book contains reprints...... of some of the most important papers on the application and theory of high-level Petri nets. In this way it makes the relevant literature more available. It is our hope that the book will be a useful source of information and that, e.g., it can be used in the organization of Petri net courses. To make......High-level Petri nets are now widely used in both theoretical analysis and practical modelling of concurrent systems. The main reason for the success of this class of net models is that they make it possible to obtain much more succinct and manageable descriptions than can be obtained by means...

Forcings and feedbacks by land ecosystem changes on climate change

Science.gov (United States)

Betts, R. A.

2006-12-01

Vegetation change is involved in climate change through both forcing and feedback processes. Emissions of CO{2} from past net deforestation are estimated to have contributed approximately 0.22 0.51 Wm - 2 to the overall 1.46 Wm - 2 radiative forcing by anthropogenic increases in CO{2} up to the year 2000. Deforestation-induced increases in global mean surface albedo are estimated to exert a radiative forcing of 0 to -0.2 Wm - 2, and dust emissions from land use may exert a radiative forcing of between approximately +0.1 and -0.2 Wm - 2. Changes in the fluxes of latent and sensible heat due to tropical deforestation are simulated to have exerted other local warming effects which cannot be quantified in terms of a Wm - 2 radiative forcing, with the potential for remote effects through changes in atmospheric circulation. With tropical deforestation continuing rapidly, radiative forcing by surface albedo change may become less useful as a measure of the forcing of climate change by changes in the physical properties of the land surface. Although net global deforestation is continuing, future scenarios used for climate change prediction suggest that fossil fuel emissions of CO{2} may continue to increase at a greater rate than land use emissions and therefore continue to increase in dominance as the main radiative forcing. The CO{2} rise may be accelerated by up to 66% by feedbacks arising from global soil carbon loss and forest dieback in Amazonia as a consequence of climate change, and Amazon forest dieback may also exert feedbacks through changes in the local water cycle and increases in dust emissions.

Rare Hadronic B Decays to Vector, Axial-Vector and Tensors

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Gao, Y.Y.

2011-01-01

The authors review BABAR measurements of several rare B decays, including vector-axial-vector decays B ± → φK 1 ± (1270), B ± → φ K 1 ± (1400) and B ± → b 1 # -+ρ# ± , vector-vector decays B ± → φK* ± (1410), B 0 → K* 0 (bar K)* 0 , B 0 → K*0K*0 and B 0 → K*+K*-, vector-tensor decays B ± → φK* 2 (1430) ± and φK 2 (1770)/ ± (1820), and vector-scalar decays B ± → φK* 0 (1430) ± . Understanding the observed polarization pattern requires amplitude contributions from an uncertain source.

Residual mosquito barrier treatments on U.S. military camouflage netting in a southern California desert environment

Science.gov (United States)

Treating perimeters of vegetation with residual insecticides for protection from mosquito vectors has potential for U.S. military force health protection. However, for current U.S. military operations in hot-arid environments with little or no vegetation, residual applications on portable artificial...

The impact of livestock on the abundance, resting behaviour and sporozoite rate of malaria vectors in southern Tanzania.

Science.gov (United States)

Mayagaya, Valeriana S; Nkwengulila, Gamba; Lyimo, Issa N; Kihonda, Japheti; Mtambala, Hassan; Ngonyani, Hassan; Russell, Tanya L; Ferguson, Heather M

2015-01-21

Increases in the coverage of long-lasting insecticidal nets (LLINs) have significantly reduced the abundance of Anopheles gambiae sensu stricto in several African settings, leaving its more zoophagic sibling species Anopheles arabiensis as the primary vector. This study investigated the impact of livestock ownership at the household level on the ecology and malaria infection rate of vectors in an area of Tanzania where An. arabiensis accounts for most malaria transmission. Mosquito vectors were collected resting inside houses, animal sheds and in outdoor resting boxes at households with and without livestock over three years in ten villages of the Kilombero Valley, Tanzania. Additionally, the abundance and sporozoite rate of vectors attempting to bite indoors at these households was assessed as an index of malaria exposure. The mean abundance of An. gambiae s.l. biting indoors was similar at houses with and without livestock. In all years but one, the relative proportion of An. arabiensis within the An. gambiae s.l. species complex was higher at households with livestock. Livestock presence had a significant impact on malaria vector feeding and resting behaviour. Anopheles arabiensis were generally found resting in cattle sheds where livestock were present, and inside houses when absent. Correspondingly, the human blood index of An. arabiensis and An. funestus s.l. was significant reduced at households with livestock, whereas that of An. gambiae s.s. was unaffected. Whilst there was some evidence that sporozoite rates within the indoor-biting An. gambiae s.l population was significantly reduced at households with livestock, the significance of this effect varied depending on how background spatial variation was accounted for. These results confirm that the presence of cattle at the household level can significantly alter the local species composition, feeding and resting behaviour of malaria vectors. However, the net impact of this livestock-associated variation in

NON-NEUTRALIZED ELECTRIC CURRENT PATTERNS IN SOLAR ACTIVE REGIONS: ORIGIN OF THE SHEAR-GENERATING LORENTZ FORCE

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Georgoulis, Manolis K.; Titov, Viacheslav S.; Mikić, Zoran

2012-01-01

Using solar vector magnetograms of the highest available spatial resolution and signal-to-noise ratio, we perform a detailed study of electric current patterns in two solar active regions (ARs): a flaring/eruptive and a flare-quiet one. We aim to determine whether ARs inject non-neutralized (net) electric currents in the solar atmosphere, responding to a debate initiated nearly two decades ago that remains inconclusive. We find that well-formed, intense magnetic polarity inversion lines (PILs) within ARs are the only photospheric magnetic structures that support significant net current. More intense PILs seem to imply stronger non-neutralized current patterns per polarity. This finding revises previous works that claim frequent injections of intense non-neutralized currents by most ARs appearing in the solar disk but also works that altogether rule out injection of non-neutralized currents. In agreement with previous studies, we also find that magnetically isolated ARs remain globally current-balanced. In addition, we confirm and quantify the preference of a given magnetic polarity to follow a given sense of electric currents, indicating a dominant sense of twist in ARs. This coherence effect is more pronounced in more compact ARs with stronger PILs and must be of sub-photospheric origin. Our results yield a natural explanation of the Lorentz force, invariably generating velocity and magnetic shear along strong PILs, thus setting a physical context for the observed pre-eruption evolution in solar ARs.

Reptiles and Amphibians of Fairchild Air Force Base, WA

Science.gov (United States)

2013-05-10

Reptiles and Amphibians of Fairchild Air Force Base, WA C on st ru ct io n E n gi n ee ri n g R es ea rc...online library at http://acwc.sdp.sirsi.net/client/default. ERDC/CERL TR-13-5 May 2013 Reptiles and Amphibians of Fairchild Air Force Base, WA...Washington, DC 20314-1000 ERDC/CERL TR-13-5 ii Abstract Many reptile and amphibian (collectively termed “herpetofauna”) populations are declining at

Planning of nets

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Carberry, M

1996-01-01

The paper is about the planning of nets in areas of low density like it is the case of the rural areas. The author includes economic and technological aspects, planning of nets, demands and management among others

Thai Language Sentence Similarity Computation Based on Syntactic Structure and Semantic Vector

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Hongbin; Feng, Yinhan; Cheng, Liang

2018-03-01

Sentence similarity computation plays an increasingly important role in text mining, Web page retrieval, machine translation, speech recognition and question answering systems. Thai language as a kind of resources scarce language, it is not like Chinese language with HowNet and CiLin resources. So the Thai sentence similarity research faces some challenges. In order to solve this problem of the Thai language sentence similarity computation. This paper proposes a novel method to compute the similarity of Thai language sentence based on syntactic structure and semantic vector. This method firstly uses the Part-of-Speech (POS) dependency to calculate two sentences syntactic structure similarity, and then through the word vector to calculate two sentences semantic similarity. Finally, we combine the two methods to calculate two Thai language sentences similarity. The proposed method not only considers semantic, but also considers the sentence syntactic structure. The experiment result shows that this method in Thai language sentence similarity computation is feasible.

Programming NET Web Services

CERN Document Server

Ferrara, Alex

2007-01-01

Web services are poised to become a key technology for a wide range of Internet-enabled applications, spanning everything from straight B2B systems to mobile devices and proprietary in-house software. While there are several tools and platforms that can be used for building web services, developers are finding a powerful tool in Microsoft's .NET Framework and Visual Studio .NET. Designed from scratch to support the development of web services, the .NET Framework simplifies the process--programmers find that tasks that took an hour using the SOAP Toolkit take just minutes. Programming .NET

Vectorial capacity and vector control: reconsidering sensitivity to parameters for malaria elimination.

Science.gov (United States)

Brady, Oliver J; Godfray, H Charles J; Tatem, Andrew J; Gething, Peter W; Cohen, Justin M; McKenzie, F Ellis; Perkins, T Alex; Reiner, Robert C; Tusting, Lucy S; Sinka, Marianne E; Moyes, Catherine L; Eckhoff, Philip A; Scott, Thomas W; Lindsay, Steven W; Hay, Simon I; Smith, David L

2016-02-01

Major gains have been made in reducing malaria transmission in many parts of the world, principally by scaling-up coverage with long-lasting insecticidal nets and indoor residual spraying. Historically, choice of vector control intervention has been largely guided by a parameter sensitivity analysis of George Macdonald's theory of vectorial capacity that suggested prioritizing methods that kill adult mosquitoes. While this advice has been highly successful for transmission suppression, there is a need to revisit these arguments as policymakers in certain areas consider which combinations of interventions are required to eliminate malaria. Using analytical solutions to updated equations for vectorial capacity we build on previous work to show that, while adult killing methods can be highly effective under many circumstances, other vector control methods are frequently required to fill effective coverage gaps. These can arise due to pre-existing or developing mosquito physiological and behavioral refractoriness but also due to additive changes in the relative importance of different vector species for transmission. Furthermore, the optimal combination of interventions will depend on the operational constraints and costs associated with reaching high coverage levels with each intervention. Reaching specific policy goals, such as elimination, in defined contexts requires increasingly non-generic advice from modelling. Our results emphasize the importance of measuring baseline epidemiology, intervention coverage, vector ecology and program operational constraints in predicting expected outcomes with different combinations of interventions. © The Author 2016. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of Royal Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene.

Nonlinear Force-free Field Extrapolation of a Coronal Magnetic Flux Rope Supporting a Large-scale Solar Filament from a Photospheric Vector Magnetogram

Science.gov (United States)

Jiang, Chaowei; Wu, S. T.; Feng, Xueshang; Hu, Qiang

2014-05-01

Solar filaments are commonly thought to be supported in magnetic dips, in particular, in those of magnetic flux ropes (FRs). In this Letter, based on the observed photospheric vector magnetogram, we implement a nonlinear force-free field (NLFFF) extrapolation of a coronal magnetic FR that supports a large-scale intermediate filament between an active region and a weak polarity region. This result is a first, in the sense that current NLFFF extrapolations including the presence of FRs are limited to relatively small-scale filaments that are close to sunspots and along main polarity inversion lines (PILs) with strong transverse field and magnetic shear, and the existence of an FR is usually predictable. In contrast, the present filament lies along the weak-field region (photospheric field strength barbs very well, which strongly supports the FR-dip model for filaments. The filament is stably sustained because the FR is weakly twisted and strongly confined by the overlying closed arcades.

Vector analysis

CERN Document Server

Brand, Louis

2006-01-01

The use of vectors not only simplifies treatments of differential geometry, mechanics, hydrodynamics, and electrodynamics, but also makes mathematical and physical concepts more tangible and easy to grasp. This text for undergraduates was designed as a short introductory course to give students the tools of vector algebra and calculus, as well as a brief glimpse into these subjects' manifold applications. The applications are developed to the extent that the uses of the potential function, both scalar and vector, are fully illustrated. Moreover, the basic postulates of vector analysis are brou

StreamNet, annual report FY 2000; ANNUAL

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Schmidt, Bruce R.

2001-01-01

analysis over the entire basin from multiple agencies, it is necessary to standardize the data to the degree possible so that like-data are equivalent over jurisdictional lines. Since the data are not collected in a standardized way, StreamNet fulfills that role by acquiring the data sets and converting the data from all agencies into the standardized DEF. Where field methodologies differ to the degree that the data can not be made comparable, the data are presented as different data types. This way, data are converted only once and made available for research, management and administrative purposes instead of forcing each person needing basin wide data to attempt data standardization individually

Vectors and Rotations in 3-Dimensions: Vector Algebra for the C++ Programmer

Science.gov (United States)

2016-12-01

release; distribution is unlimited. 1. Introduction This report describes 2 C++ classes: a Vector class for performing vector algebra in 3-dimensional...ARL-TR-7894•DEC 2016 US Army Research Laboratory Vectors and Rotations in 3-Dimensions:Vector Algebra for the C++ Programmer by Richard Saucier...Army Research Laboratory Vectors and Rotations in 3-Dimensions:Vector Algebra for the C++ Programmer by Richard Saucier Survivability/Lethality

Management of arthropod pathogen vectors in North America: Minimizing adverse effects on pollinators

Science.gov (United States)

Ginsberg, Howard; Bargar, Timothy A.; Hladik, Michelle L.; Lubelczyk, Charles

2017-01-01

Tick and mosquito management is important to public health protection. At the same time, growing concerns about declines of pollinator species raise the question of whether vector control practices might affect pollinator populations. We report the results of a task force of the North American Pollinator Protection Campaign (NAPPC) that examined potential effects of vector management practices on pollinators, and how these programs could be adjusted to minimize negative effects on pollinating species. The main types of vector control practices that might affect pollinators are landscape manipulation, biocontrol, and pesticide applications. Some current practices already minimize effects of vector control on pollinators (e.g., short-lived pesticides and application-targeting technologies). Nontarget effects can be further diminished by taking pollinator protection into account in the planning stages of vector management programs. Effects of vector control on pollinator species often depend on specific local conditions (e.g., proximity of locations with abundant vectors to concentrations of floral resources), so planning is most effective when it includes collaborations of local vector management professionals with local experts on pollinators. Interventions can then be designed to avoid pollinators (e.g., targeting applications to avoid blooming times and pollinator nesting habitats), while still optimizing public health protection. Research on efficient targeting of interventions, and on effects on pollinators of emerging technologies, will help mitigate potential deleterious effects on pollinators in future management programs. In particular, models that can predict effects of integrated pest management on vector-borne pathogen transmission, along with effects on pollinator populations, would be useful for collaborative decision-making.

Evaluation of the influence of electric nets on the behaviour of oviposition site seeking Anopheles gambiae s.s

Science.gov (United States)

2014-01-01

Background Electric nets (e-nets) are used to analyse the flight behaviour of insects and have been used extensively to study the host-oriented flight of tsetse flies. Recently we adapted this tool to analyse the oviposition behaviour of gravid malaria vectors, Anopheles gambiae s.s., orienting towards aquatic habitats and traps by surrounding an artificial pond with e-nets and collecting electrocuted mosquitoes on sticky boards on the ground next to the nets. Here we study whether e-nets themselves affect the responses of gravid An. gambiae s.s.. Methods Dual-choice experiments were carried out in 80 m2 screened semi-field systems where 200 gravid An. gambiae s.s. were released each night for 12 nights per experiment. The numbers of mosquito landing on or approaching an oviposition site were studied by adding detergent to the water in an artificial pond or surrounding the pond with a square of e-nets. We also assessed whether the supporting framework of the nets or the sticky boards used to retain electrocuted mosquitoes influenced the catch. Results Two similar detergent treated ponds presented in choice tests caught an equal proportion of the mosquitoes released, whereas a pond surrounded by e-nets caught a higher proportion than an open pond (odds ratio (OR) 1.7, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.1 - 2.7; p electric nets and the yellow boards on the approach of gravid females towards a pond suggests that the tower-like construction of the square of electric nets did not restrict the approach of females but the yellow sticky boards on the ground attract gravid females to a source of water (OR 2.7 95% CI 1.7 – 4.3; p trapping efficiency of the electric nets is increased when large yellow sticky boards are placed on the ground next to the e-nets to collect electrocuted mosquitoes, possibly because of increased visual contrast to the aquatic habitat. It is therefore important when comparing two treatments that the same trapping device is used in both. The

AFM characterization of protein net formation on a fibrous medium

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Assis O.B.G.

2000-01-01

Full Text Available Lysozyme protein net is set on a glass fiber support using the self-assembly technique. Enzymatic film formation is followed by surface imaging via atomic force microscopy (AFM. Change in roughness as a function of deposition time is used as an indirect indicator of film formation. The objective was to form a protein film that would have no effect on the permeability of the medium, aiming at its application as a bioactive membrane or reactor suitable for bacteria and chemical interactions in aqueous media.

Explosive force of primacord grid forms large sheet metal parts

Science.gov (United States)

1966-01-01

Primacord which is woven through fish netting in a grid pattern is used for explosive forming of large sheet metal parts. The explosive force generated by the primacord detonation is uniformly distributed over the entire surface of the sheet metal workpiece.

Game Coloured Petri Nets

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Westergaard, Michael

2006-01-01

This paper introduces the notion of game coloured Petri nets. This allows the modeler to explicitly model what parts of the model comprise the modeled system and what parts are the environment of the modeled system. We give the formal definition of game coloured Petri nets, a means of reachability...... analysis of this net class, and an application of game coloured Petri nets to automatically generate easy-to-understand visualizations of the model by exploiting the knowledge that some parts of the model are not interesting from a visualization perspective (i.e. they are part of the environment...

H(t Vector,t)H scattering at low energies

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Haglund, R.F. Jr.; Fick, D.; Schmelzbach, P.A.; Ohlsen, G.G.; Jarmie, N.; Brown, R.E.

1977-03-01

Angular distributions of the differential cross section and vector analyzing power for H + t approaches elastic scattering, at center-of-mass energies 1.26, 1.68, 2.19, 2.70, 3.21, and 3.71 MeV are presented. A preliminary phase-shift analysis of the data confirms the importance of the odd-parity tensor and even-parity spin-orbit nucleon-nucleon forces in model calculations for the 4 He system in this energy range

Migration of vectorized iterative solvers to distributed memory architectures

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Pommerell, C. [AT& T Bell Labs., Murray Hill, NJ (United States); Ruehl, R. [CSCS-ETH, Manno (Switzerland)

1994-12-31

Both necessity and opportunity motivate the use of high-performance computers for iterative linear solvers. Necessity results from the size of the problems being solved-smaller problems are often better handled by direct methods. Opportunity arises from the formulation of the iterative methods in terms of simple linear algebra operations, even if this {open_quote}natural{close_quotes} parallelism is not easy to exploit in irregularly structured sparse matrices and with good preconditioners. As a result, high-performance implementations of iterative solvers have attracted a lot of interest in recent years. Most efforts are geared to vectorize or parallelize the dominating operation-structured or unstructured sparse matrix-vector multiplication, or to increase locality and parallelism by reformulating the algorithm-reducing global synchronization in inner products or local data exchange in preconditioners. Target architectures for iterative solvers currently include mostly vector supercomputers and architectures with one or few optimized (e.g., super-scalar and/or super-pipelined RISC) processors and hierarchical memory systems. More recently, parallel computers with physically distributed memory and a better price/performance ratio have been offered by vendors as a very interesting alternative to vector supercomputers. However, programming comfort on such distributed memory parallel processors (DMPPs) still lags behind. Here the authors are concerned with iterative solvers and their changing computing environment. In particular, they are considering migration from traditional vector supercomputers to DMPPs. Application requirements force one to use flexible and portable libraries. They want to extend the portability of iterative solvers rather than reimplementing everything for each new machine, or even for each new architecture.

Measurement of Charmless B to Vector-Vector decays at BaBar

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Olaiya, Emmanuel

2011-01-01

The authors present results of B → vector-vector (VV) and B → vector-axial vector (VA) decays B 0 → φX(X = φ,ρ + or ρ 0 ), B + → φK (*)+ , B 0 → K*K*, B 0 → ρ + b 1 - and B + → K* 0 α 1 + . The largest dataset used for these results is based on 465 x 10 6 Υ(4S) → B(bar B) decays, collected with the BABAR detector at the PEP-II B meson factory located at the Stanford Linear Accelerator Center (SLAC). Using larger datasets, the BABAR experiment has provided more precise B → VV measurements, further supporting the smaller than expected longitudinal polarization fraction of B → φK*. Additional B meson to vector-vector and vector-axial vector decays have also been studied with a view to shedding light on the polarization anomaly. Taking into account the available errors, we find no disagreement between theory and experiment for these additional decays.

Coloured Petri Nets

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Jensen, Kurt

1991-01-01

This paper describes how Coloured Petri Nets (CP-nets) have been developed — from being a promising theoretical model to being a full-fledged language for the design, specification, simulation, validation and implementation of large software systems (and other systems in which human beings and...

Net zero water

CSIR Research Space (South Africa)

Lindeque, M

2013-01-01

Full Text Available the national grid. The unfortunate situation with water is that there is no replacement technology for water. Water can be supplied from many different sources. A net zero energy development will move closer to a net zero water development by reducing...

Higher-order force gradient symplectic algorithms

Science.gov (United States)

Chin, Siu A.; Kidwell, Donald W.

2000-12-01

We show that a recently discovered fourth order symplectic algorithm, which requires one evaluation of force gradient in addition to three evaluations of the force, when iterated to higher order, yielded algorithms that are far superior to similarly iterated higher order algorithms based on the standard Forest-Ruth algorithm. We gauge the accuracy of each algorithm by comparing the step-size independent error functions associated with energy conservation and the rotation of the Laplace-Runge-Lenz vector when solving a highly eccentric Kepler problem. For orders 6, 8, 10, and 12, the new algorithms are approximately a factor of 103, 104, 104, and 105 better.

Spatial Orientation and Balance Control Changes Induced by Altered Gravito-Inertial Force Vectors

Science.gov (United States)

Kaufman, Galen D.; Wood, Scott J.; Gianna, Claire C.; Black, F. Owen; Paloski, William H.; Dawson, David L. (Technical Monitor)

1999-01-01

-tilt during 90 minutes of both tilt and centrifugation stimuli. Subjective estimates of head-horizontal, provided by directed saccades, revealed significant errors after approximately 30 minutes that tended to increase only in the group who underwent centrifugation. Immediately after centrifugation, subjects reported feeling tilted on average 10 degrees in the opposite direction, which was in agreement with the direction of their earth-directed saccades. In vestibular deficient (VD) subjects, postural sway was measured using a sway-referenced or earth-fixed support surface, and with or without a head movement sequence. 'Me protocol was selected for each patient during baseline testing, and corresponded to the most challenging condition in which the patient was able to maintain balance with eyes closed. Bilaterally VD subjects showed no postural decrement after centrifugation, while unilateral VD subjects had varying degrees of decrement. Unilateral VD subjects were tested twice; they underwent centrifugation both with right ear out and left ear out. Their post-centrifuation center of sway shifted at right angles depending on the centrifuge GIF orientation. Bilateral VD subjects bad shifts as well, but no consistent directional trend. VD subjects underestimated roll-tilt during centrifugation, These results suggest that orientation of the gravito-inertial vector and its magnitude arc both used by the central nervous system for calibration of multiple orientation systems. A change in the background gravito-inertial force (otolith input) can rapidly initiate postural and perceptual adaptation in several sensorimotor systems, independent of a structured visual surround.

In vivo recording of aerodynamic force with an aerodynamic force platform: from drones to birds.

Science.gov (United States)

Lentink, David; Haselsteiner, Andreas F; Ingersoll, Rivers

2015-03-06

Flapping wings enable flying animals and biomimetic robots to generate elevated aerodynamic forces. Measurements that demonstrate this capability are based on experiments with tethered robots and animals, and indirect force calculations based on measured kinematics or airflow during free flight. Remarkably, there exists no method to measure these forces directly during free flight. Such in vivo recordings in freely behaving animals are essential to better understand the precise aerodynamic function of their flapping wings, in particular during the downstroke versus upstroke. Here, we demonstrate a new aerodynamic force platform (AFP) for non-intrusive aerodynamic force measurement in freely flying animals and robots. The platform encloses the animal or object that generates fluid force with a physical control surface, which mechanically integrates the net aerodynamic force that is transferred to the earth. Using a straightforward analytical solution of the Navier-Stokes equation, we verified that the method is accurate. We subsequently validated the method with a quadcopter that is suspended in the AFP and generates unsteady thrust profiles. These independent measurements confirm that the AFP is indeed accurate. We demonstrate the effectiveness of the AFP by studying aerodynamic weight support of a freely flying bird in vivo. These measurements confirm earlier findings based on kinematics and flow measurements, which suggest that the avian downstroke, not the upstroke, is primarily responsible for body weight support during take-off and landing.

Towards new information resources for public health--from WordNet to MedicalWordNet.

Science.gov (United States)

Fellbaum, Christiane; Hahn, Udo; Smith, Barry

2006-06-01

In the last two decades, WordNet has evolved as the most comprehensive computational lexicon of general English. In this article, we discuss its potential for supporting the creation of an entirely new kind of information resource for public health, viz. MedicalWordNet. This resource is not to be conceived merely as a lexical extension of the original WordNet to medical terminology; indeed, there is already a considerable degree of overlap between WordNet and the vocabulary of medicine. Instead, we propose a new type of repository, consisting of three large collections of (1) medically relevant word forms, structured along the lines of the existing Princeton WordNet; (2) medically validated propositions, referred to here as medical facts, which will constitute what we shall call MedicalFactNet; and (3) propositions reflecting laypersons' medical beliefs, which will constitute what we shall call the MedicalBeliefNet. We introduce a methodology for setting up the MedicalWordNet. We then turn to the discussion of research challenges that have to be met to build this new type of information resource. We build a database of sentences relevant to the medical domain. The sentences are generated from WordNet via its relations as well as from medical statements broken down into elementary propositions. Two subcorpora of sentences are distinguished, MedicalBeliefNet and MedicalFactNet. The former is rated for assent by laypersons; the latter for correctness by medical experts. The sentence corpora will be valuable for a variety of applications in information retrieval as well as in research in linguistics and psychology with respect to the study of expert and non-expert beliefs and their linguistic expressions. Our work has to meet several considerable challenges. These include accounting for the distinction between medical experts and laypersons, the social issues of expert-layperson communication in different media, the linguistic aspects of encoding medical knowledge, and

Multiflavor string-net models

Science.gov (United States)

Lin, Chien-Hung

2017-05-01

We generalize the string-net construction to multiple flavors of strings, each of which is labeled by the elements of an Abelian group Gi. The same flavor of strings can branch, while different flavors of strings can cross one another and thus they form intersecting string nets. We systematically construct the exactly soluble lattice Hamiltonians and the ground-state wave functions for the intersecting string-net condensed phases. We analyze the braiding statistics of the low-energy quasiparticle excitations and find that our model can realize all the topological phases as the string-net model with group G =∏iGi . In this respect, our construction provides various ways of building lattice models which realize topological order G , corresponding to different partitions of G and thus different flavors of string nets. In fact, our construction concretely demonstrates the Künneth formula by constructing various lattice models with the same topological order. As an example, we construct the G =Z2×Z2×Z2 string-net model which realizes a non-Abelian topological phase by properly intersecting three copies of toric codes.

A New Vector for Air Force Development of Joint Leaders

Science.gov (United States)

2010-05-26

All Saying the Same Thing?”. A survey of leadership literature also includes: Richard L. Daft , The Leadership Experience (South-Western, 2002...dividing and specializing labor, to perform a mission or achieve an objective.”13 In The Leadership Experience, Richard Daft defines culture as a...Air Force, policy is also a significant mechanism 14 Richard L. Daft , The Leadership Experience, 2nd ed. (Mason, Ohio: South-Western, 2002), 510. 15

Insecticidal and sterilizing effect of Olyset Duo (R), a permethrin and pyriproxyfen mixture net against pyrethroid-susceptible and -resistant strains of Anopheles gambiae s.s. : a release-recapture assay in experimental huts

OpenAIRE

Djènontin, A.; Alou, L. P. A.; Koffi, A.; Zogo, B.; Duarte, E.; N'Guessan, R.; Moiroux, Nicolas; Pennetier, Cédric

2015-01-01

In the context of the widespread distribution of pyrethroid resistance among malaria vectors, we did a release-recapture trial in experimental huts to investigate the insecticidal and sterilizing effects of a novel long-lasting net (LN), Olyset (R) Duo, incorporating a mixture of permethrin (PER) and the insect growth regulator (IGR), pyriproxyfen (PPF). An LN containing PPF alone and a classic Olyset (R) Net were tested in parallel as positive controls. The effect of progressive number of ho...

Rare, but challenging tumors: NET

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ivanova, D.; Balev, B.

2013-01-01

Full text: Introduction: Gastroenteropancreatic Neuroendocrine Tumors (GEP - NET) are a heterogeneous group of tumors with different locations and many different clinical, histological, and imaging performance. In a part of them a secretion of various organic substances is present. The morbidity of GEP - NET in the EU is growing, and this leads to increase the attention to them. What you will learn: Imaging methods used for localization and staging of GEP - NET, characteristics of the study’s protocols; Classification of GEP - NET; Demonstration of typical and atypical imaging features of GEP - NET in patients registered at the NET Center at University Hospital ‘St. Marina’, Varna; Features of metastatic NET, The role of imaging in the evaluation of treatment response and follow-up of the patients. Discussion: The image semiotics analysis is based on 19 cases of GEP - NET registered NET Center at University Hospital ‘St. Marina’. The main imaging method is multidetector CT (MDCT), and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI ) has advantages in the evaluation of liver lesions and the local prevalence of anorectal tumors. In patients with advanced disease and liver lesions the assessment of skeletal involvement (MRI/ nuclear medical method) is mandatory. The majority of GEP - NET have not any specific imaging findings. Therefore it is extremely important proper planning and conducting of the study (MDCT and MR enterography; accurate assessment phase of scanning, positive and negative contrast). Conclusion: GEP - NET is a major diagnostic challenge due to the absence of typical imaging characteristics and often an overlap with those of the tumors of different origin can be observed. Therefore, a good knowledge of clinical and imaging changes occurring at different locations is needed. MDCT is the basis for the diagnosis, staging and follow-up of these neoplasms

Strategic vectors of transformational shifts in the national tourism system of Ukraine

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Alla OKHRIMENKO

2017-10-01

Full Text Available The article determines transformational factors, which influence a national tourism system (NTS of Ukraine and proposes strategical vectors of its development. Research of the NTS as an economic system is a pre-condition for formation of strategic vectors of development. Transformational driving forces principally change scales, components, and proportions between external and internal factors of development of the NTS. Correspondingly, the mentioned processes objectively encourage modernization of the national tourism system and application of innovative managerial methods. The following Strategical vectors of transformational shifts in the NTS were grounded: 1 Safety of tourists and investors; 2 The normative and legislative framework of the NTS development; 3 Development of infrastructure of the NTS component; 4 Human resources development; 5 A marketing policy of the NTS promotion; 6 Ecological and cultural policies. Their implementation will improve efficiency and competitiveness of the NTS and the national economy.

Vectorization of KENO IV code and an estimate of vector-parallel processing

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Asai, Kiyoshi; Higuchi, Kenji; Katakura, Jun-ichi; Kurita, Yutaka.

1986-10-01

The multi-group criticality safety code KENO IV has been vectorized and tested on FACOM VP-100 vector processor. At first the vectorized KENO IV on a scalar processor became slower than the original one by a factor of 1.4 because of the overhead introduced by the vectorization. Making modifications of algorithms and techniques for vectorization, the vectorized version has become faster than the original one by a factor of 1.4 and 3.0 on the vector processor for sample problems of complex and simple geometries, respectively. For further speedup of the code, some improvements on compiler and hardware, especially on addition of Monte Carlo pipelines to the vector processor, are discussed. Finally a pipelined parallel processor system is proposed and its performance is estimated. (author)

Limitations of shallow nets approximation.

Science.gov (United States)

Lin, Shao-Bo

2017-10-01

In this paper, we aim at analyzing the approximation abilities of shallow networks in reproducing kernel Hilbert spaces (RKHSs). We prove that there is a probability measure such that the achievable lower bound for approximating by shallow nets can be realized for all functions in balls of reproducing kernel Hilbert space with high probability, which is different with the classical minimax approximation error estimates. This result together with the existing approximation results for deep nets shows the limitations for shallow nets and provides a theoretical explanation on why deep nets perform better than shallow nets. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Underpinning sustainable vector control through informed insecticide resistance management.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Edward K Thomsen

Full Text Available There has been rapid scale-up of malaria vector control in the last ten years. Both of the primary control strategies, long-lasting pyrethroid treated nets and indoor residual spraying, rely on the use of a limited number of insecticides. Insecticide resistance, as measured by bioassay, has rapidly increased in prevalence and has come to the forefront as an issue that needs to be addressed to maintain the sustainability of malaria control and the drive to elimination. Zambia's programme reported high levels of resistance to the insecticides it used in 2010, and, as a result, increased its investment in resistance monitoring to support informed resistance management decisions.A country-wide survey on insecticide resistance in Zambian malaria vectors was performed using WHO bioassays to detect resistant phenotypes. Molecular techniques were used to detect target-site mutations and microarray to detect metabolic resistance mechanisms. Anopheles gambiae s.s. was resistant to pyrethroids, DDT and carbamates, with potential organophosphate resistance in one population. The resistant phenotypes were conferred by both target-site and metabolic mechanisms. Anopheles funestus s.s. was largely resistant to pyrethroids and carbamates, with potential resistance to DDT in two locations. The resistant phenotypes were conferred by elevated levels of cytochrome p450s.Currently, the Zambia National Malaria Control Centre is using these results to inform their vector control strategy. The methods employed here can serve as a template to all malaria-endemic countries striving to create a sustainable insecticide resistance management plan.

Strengthening tactical planning and operational frameworks for vector control: the roadmap for malaria elimination in Namibia.

Science.gov (United States)

Chanda, Emmanuel; Ameneshewa, Birkinesh; Angula, Hans A; Iitula, Iitula; Uusiku, Pentrina; Trune, Desta; Islam, Quazi M; Govere, John M

2015-08-05

Namibia has made tremendous gains in malaria control and the epidemiological trend of the disease has changed significantly over the past years. In 2010, the country reoriented from the objective of reducing disease morbidity and mortality to the goal of achieving malaria elimination by 2020. This manuscript outlines the processes undertaken in strengthening tactical planning and operational frameworks for vector control to facilitate expeditious malaria elimination in Namibia. The information sources for this study included all available data and accessible archived documentary records on malaria vector control in Namibia. A methodical assessment of published and unpublished documents was conducted via a literature search of online electronic databases, Google Scholar, PubMed and WHO, using a combination of search terms. To attain the goal of elimination in Namibia, systems are being strengthened to identify and clear all infections, and significantly reduce human-mosquito contact. Particularly, consolidating vector control for reducing transmission at the identified malaria foci will be critical for accelerated malaria elimination. Thus, guarding against potential challenges and the need for evidence-based and sustainable vector control instigated the strengthening of strategic frameworks by: adopting the integrated vector management (IVM) strategy; initiating implementation of the global plan for insecticide resistance management (GPIRM); intensifying malaria vector surveillance; improving data collection and reporting systems on DDT; updating the indoor residual spraying (IRS) data collection and reporting tool; and, improving geographical reconnaissance using geographical information system-based satellite imagery. Universal coverage with IRS and long-lasting insecticidal nets, supplemented by larval source management in the context of IVM and guided by vector surveillance coupled with rational operationalization of the GPIRM, will enable expeditious

The effect of netting solidity ratio and inclined angle on the hydrodynamic characteristics of knotless polyethylene netting

Science.gov (United States)

Tang, Hao; Hu, Fuxiang; Xu, Liuxiong; Dong, Shuchuang; Zhou, Cheng; Wang, Xuefang

2017-10-01

Knotless polyethylene (PE) netting has been widely used in aquaculture cages and fishing gears, especially in Japan. In this study, the hydrodynamic coefficient of six knotless PE netting panels with different solidity ratios were assessed in a flume tank under various attack angles of netting from 0° (parallel to flow) to 90° (perpendicular to flow) and current speeds from 40 cm s-1 to 130 cm s-1. It was found that the drag coefficient was related to Reynolds number, solidity ratio and attack angle of netting. The solidity ratio was positively related with drag coefficient for netting panel perpendicular to flow, whereas when setting the netting panel parallel to the flow the opposite result was obtained. For netting panels placed at an angle to the flow, the lift coefficient reached the maximum at an attack angle of 50° and then decreased as the attack angle further increased. The solidity ratio had a dual influence on drag coefficient of inclined netting panels. Compared to result in the literature, the normal drag coefficient of knotless PE netting measured in this study is larger than that of nylon netting or Dyneema netting.

Codimension-one tangency bifurcations of global Poincare maps of four-dimensional vector fields

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Krauskopf, B.; Lee, C.M.; Osinga, H.M.

2009-01-01

When one considers a Poincarreturn map on a general unbounded (n - 1)-dimensional section for a vector field in R-n there are typically points where the flow is tangent to the section. The only notable exception is when the system is (equivalent to) a periodically forced system. The tangencies can

Fusion through the NET

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Spears, B.

1987-01-01

The paper concerns the next generation of fusion machines which are intended to demonstrate the technical viability of fusion. In Europe, the device that will follow on from JET is known as NET - the Next European Torus. If the design programme for NET proceeds, Europe could start to build the machine in 1994. The present JET programme hopes to achieve breakeven in the early 1990's. NET hopes to reach ignition in the next century, and so lay the foundation for a demonstration reactor. A description is given of the technical specifications of the components of NET, including: the first wall, the divertors to protect the wall, the array of magnets that provide the fields containing the plasma, the superconducting magnets, and the shield of the machine. NET's research programme is briefly outlined, including the testing programme to optimise conditions in the machine to achieve ignition, and its safety work. (U.K.)

NetView technical research

Science.gov (United States)

1993-01-01

This is the Final Technical Report for the NetView Technical Research task. This report is prepared in accordance with Contract Data Requirements List (CDRL) item A002. NetView assistance was provided and details are presented under the following headings: NetView Management Systems (NMS) project tasks; WBAFB IBM 3090; WPAFB AMDAHL; WPAFB IBM 3084; Hill AFB; McClellan AFB AMDAHL; McClellan AFB IBM 3090; and Warner-Robins AFB.

'SOSORT consensus paper on brace action: TLSO biomechanics of correction (investigating the rationale for force vector selection'

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Maruyama T

2006-07-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background The effectiveness of orthotic treatment continues to be controversial in international medical literature due to differences in the reported results and conclusions of various studies. Heterogeneity of the samples has been suggested as a reason for conflicting results. Besides the obvious theoretical differences between the brace concepts, the variability in the technical factors can also explain the contradictory results between same brace types. This paper will investigate the degree of variability among responses of scoliosis specialists from the Brace Study Ground of the International Society on Scoliosis Orthopedic and Rehabilitation Treatment SOSORT. Ultimately, this information could be a foundation for establishing a consensus and framework for future prospective controlled studies. Methods A preliminary questionnaire on the topic of 'brace action' relative to the theory of three-dimensional scoliosis correction and brace treatment was developed and circulated to specialists interested in the conservative treatment of adolescent idiopathic scoliosis. A particular case was presented (main thoracic curve with minor lumbar. Several key points emerged and were used to develop a second questionnaire which was discussed and full filed after the SOSORT consensus meeting (Milano, Italy, January 2005. Results Twenty-one questionnaires were completed. The Chêneau brace was the most frequently recommended. The importance of the three point system mechanism was stressed. Options about proper pad placement on the thoracic convexity were divided 50% for the pad reaching or involving the apical vertebra and 50% for the pad acting caudal to the apical vertebra. There was agreement about the direction of the vector force, 85% selecting a 'dorso lateral to ventro medial' direction but about the shape of the pad to produce such a force. Principles related to three-dimensional correction achieved high consensus (80%–85%, but suggested

Enhanced protection against malaria by indoor residual spraying in addition to insecticide treated nets: is it dependent on transmission intensity or net usage?

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Philippa A West

Full Text Available Insecticide treated nets (ITNs and indoor residual spraying (IRS are effective vector control tools that protect against malaria. There is conflicting evidence regarding whether using ITNs and IRS in combination provides additional benefit over using either of these methods alone. This study investigated factors that may modify the effect of the combined use of IRS and ITNs compared to using ITNs alone on malaria infection prevalence.Secondary analysis was carried out on data from a cluster randomised trial in north-west Tanzania. 50 clusters received ITNs from a universal coverage campaign; of these 25 were randomly allocated to additionally receive two rounds of IRS in 2012. In cross-sectional household surveys children 0.5-14 years old were tested for Plasmodium falciparum infections (PfPR two, six and ten months after the first IRS round.IRS protected those sleeping under nets (OR = 0.38, 95%CI 0.26-0.57 and those who did not (OR = 0.43, 95%CI 0.29-0.63. The protective effect of IRS was not modified by community level ITN use (ITN use = 50%, OR = 0.46, 95%CI 0.28-0.74. The additional protection from IRS was similar in low (<10% PfPR, OR = 0.38, 95%CI 0.19-0.75 and high transmission areas (≥10% PfPR, OR = 0.34, 95%CI 0.18-0.67. ITN use was protective at the individual-level regardless of whether the village had been sprayed (OR = 0.83, 95%CI 0.70-0.98. Living in a sprayed village was protective regardless of whether the individual slept under an ITN last night (OR = 0.41, 95%CI 0.29-0.58.Implementing IRS in addition to ITNs was beneficial for individuals from villages with a wide range of transmission intensities and net utilisation levels. Net users received additional protection from IRS. ITNs were providing some individual protection, even in this area with high levels of pyrethroid insecticide resistance. These results demonstrate that there is a supplementary benefit of IRS even when ITNs are effective.ClinicalTrials.gov NCT01697852.

PODATKOVNE STORITVE ADO.NET IN ADO.NET ENTITY FRAMEWORK

OpenAIRE

Volavc, Franc

2012-01-01

V diplomskem delu smo predstavili Microsoftovi ogrodji ADO.NET in ADO.NET Entity Framework. Preučili in analizirali smo metode za dostop do podatkovnih virov, ki jih ponujata ogrodji, ter nato te ugotovitve preslikati v odločitveno drevo, katero bo programerjem in razvijalcem informacijskih sistemov pomagalo pri odločanju glede pristopa za dostop do podatkovnih virov. Ker bomo v diplomskem delu predstavili Microsoftovi ogrodji, bomo posledično omejeni zgolj na Microsoftovo tehnologijo, se pra...

Blanket testing in NET

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Chazalon, M.; Daenner, W.; Libin, B.

1989-01-01

The testing stages in NET for the performance assessment of the various breeding blanket concepts developed at the present time in Europe for DEMO (LiPb and ceramic blankets) and the requirements upon NET to perform these tests are reviewed. Typical locations available in NET for blanket testing are the central outboard segments and the horizontal ports of in-vessel sectors. These test positions will be connectable with external test loops. The number of test loops (helium, water, liquid metal) will be such that each major class of blankets can be tested in NET. The test positions, the boundary conditions and the external test loops are identified and the requirements for test blankets are summarized (author). 6

Versatile generation of optical vector fields and vector beams using a non-interferometric approach.

Science.gov (United States)

Tripathi, Santosh; Toussaint, Kimani C

2012-05-07

We present a versatile, non-interferometric method for generating vector fields and vector beams which can produce all the states of polarization represented on a higher-order Poincaré sphere. The versatility and non-interferometric nature of this method is expected to enable exploration of various exotic properties of vector fields and vector beams. To illustrate this, we study the propagation properties of some vector fields and find that, in general, propagation alters both their intensity and polarization distribution, and more interestingly, converts some vector fields into vector beams. In the article, we also suggest a modified Jones vector formalism to represent vector fields and vector beams.

Intelligent Torque Vectoring Approach for Electric Vehicles with Per-Wheel Motors

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Alberto Parra

2018-01-01

Full Text Available Transport electrification is currently a priority for authorities, manufacturers, and research centers around the world. The development of electric vehicles and the improvement of their functionalities are key elements in this strategy. As a result, there is a need for further research in emission reduction, efficiency improvement, or dynamic handling approaches. In order to achieve these objectives, the development of suitable Advanced Driver-Assistance Systems (ADAS is required. Although traditional control techniques have been widely used for ADAS implementation, the complexity of electric multimotor powertrains makes intelligent control approaches appropriate for these cases. In this work, a novel intelligent Torque Vectoring (TV system, composed of a neuro-fuzzy vertical tire forces estimator and a fuzzy yaw moment controller, is proposed, which allows enhancing the dynamic behaviour of electric multimotor vehicles. The proposed approach is compared with traditional strategies using the high fidelity vehicle dynamics simulator Dynacar. Results show that the proposed intelligent Torque Vectoring system is able to increase the efficiency of the vehicle by 10%, thanks to the optimal torque distribution and the use of a neuro-fuzzy vertical tire forces estimator which provides 3 times more accurate estimations than analytical approaches.

Socio-economic inequity in demand for insecticide-treated nets, in-door residual house spraying, larviciding and fogging in Sudan

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mustafa Sara

2005-12-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background In order to optimally prioritize and use public and private budgets for equitable malaria vector control, there is a need to determine the level and determinants of consumer demand for different vector control tools. Objectives To determine the demand from people of different socio-economic groups for indoor residual house-spraying (IRHS, insecticide-treated nets (ITNs, larviciding with chemicals (LWC, and space spraying/fogging (SS and the disease control implications of the result. Methods Ratings and levels of willingness-to-pay (WTP for the vector control tools were determined using a random cross-sectional sample of 720 householdes drawn from two states. WTP was elicited using the bidding game. An asset-based socio-economic status (SES index was used to explore whether WTP was related to SES of the respondents. Results IRHS received the highest proportion of highest preferred rating (41.0% followed by ITNs (23.1%. However, ITNs had the highest mean WTP followed by IRHS, while LWC had the least. The regression analysis showed that SES was positively and statistically significantly related to WTP across the four vector control tools and that the respondents' rating of IRHS and ITNs significantly explained their levels of WTP for the two tools. Conclusion People were willing to pay for all the vector-control tools, but the demand for the vector control tools was related to the SES of the respondents. Hence, it is vital that there are public policies and financing mechanisms to ensure equitable provision and utilisation of vector control tools, as well as protecting the poor from cost-sharing arrangements.

Economic comparison of the monitoring programmes for bluetongue vectors in Austria and Switzerland.

Science.gov (United States)

Pinior, B; Brugger, K; Köfer, J; Schwermer, H; Stockreiter, S; Loitsch, A; Rubel, F

2015-05-02

With the bluetongue virus serotype 8 (BTV-8) outbreak in 2006, vector monitoring programmes (according to EU regulation 1266/2007) were implemented by European countries to obtain information on the spatial distribution of vectors and the vector-free period. This study investigates the vector monitoring programmes in Austria and Switzerland by performing a retrospective cost analysis for the period 2006-2010. Two types of costs were distinguished: costs financed directly via the national bluetongue programmes and costs contributed in-kind by the responsible institutions and agricultural holdings. The total net costs of the monitoring programme in Austria amounted to €1,415,000, whereby in Switzerland the costs were valued at €94,000. Both countries followed the legislation complying with requirements, but differed in regard to sampling frequency, number of trap sites and sampling strategy. Furthermore, the surface area of Austria is twice the area of Switzerland although the number of ruminants is almost the same in both countries. Thus, for comparison, the costs were normalised with regard to the sampling frequency and the number of trap sites. Resulting costs per trap sample comprised €164 for Austria and €48 for Switzerland. In both countries, around 50 per cent of the total costs can be attributed to payments in-kind. The benefit of this study is twofold: first, veterinary authorities may use the results to improve the economic efficiency of future vector monitoring programmes. Second, the analysis of the payment in-kind contribution is of great importance to public authorities as it makes the available resources visible and demonstrates how they have been used. British Veterinary Association.

Innovative dengue vector control interventions in Latin America: what do they cost?

Science.gov (United States)

Basso, César; Beltrán-Ayala, Efraín; Mitchell-Foster, Kendra; Cortés, Sebastián; Manrique-Saide, Pablo; Guillermo-May, Guillermo; Carvalho de Lima, Edilmar

2016-01-01

Background Five studies were conducted in Fortaleza (Brazil), Girardot (Colombia), Machala (Ecuador), Acapulco (Mexico), and Salto (Uruguay) to assess dengue vector control interventions tailored to the context. The studies involved the community explicitly in the implementation, and focused on the most productive breeding places for Aedes aegypti. This article reports the cost analysis of these interventions. Methods We conducted the costing from the perspective of the vector control program. We collected data on quantities and unit costs of the resources used to deliver the interventions. Comparable information was requested for the routine activities. Cost items were classified, analyzed descriptively, and aggregated to calculate total costs, costs per house reached, and incremental costs. Results Cost per house of the interventions were $18.89 (Fortaleza), $21.86 (Girardot), $30.61 (Machala), $39.47 (Acapulco), and $6.98 (Salto). Intervention components that focused mainly on changes to the established vector control programs seem affordable; cost savings were identified in Salto (−21%) and the clean patio component in Machala (−12%). An incremental cost of 10% was estimated in Fortaleza. On the other hand, there were also completely new components that would require sizeable financial efforts (installing insecticide-treated nets in Girardot and Acapulco costs $16.97 and $24.96 per house, respectively). Conclusions The interventions are promising, seem affordable and may improve the cost profile of the established vector control programs. The costs of the new components could be considerable, and should be assessed in relation to the benefits in reduced dengue burden. PMID:26924235

Current Status and Future Prospect of K-NET and KiK-net

Science.gov (United States)

Aoi, S.; Kunugi, T.; Suzuki, W.; Nakamura, H.; Fujiwara, H.

2014-12-01

During 18 years since the deployment of K-NET following the Kobe earthquake, our attention has mainly focused on rapidity of the data collection and an unfailing and reliable observation. In this presentation, we review three generations of the instruments employed by K-NET and KiK-net from these two points of view.At beginning of the 2000's, we newly developed the second generation instruments (K-NET02, K-NET02A, KiK-net06) to replace the first generation instruments (K-NET95, SMAC-MDK) employed when the networks were constructed in the 1990's. These instruments have an automatic dial-out function. It takes typically 2-5 s to establish communication and a few seconds to send the pre-trigger data. After that, data is available typically within a 1.5 s delay. Not only waveform data but also strong motion indexes such as real-time intensity, PGA, PGV, PGD, and response spectra are continuously sent once a second.After the 2011 Tohoku earthquake, we have developed the third generation instruments (K-NET11, KiK-net11) and have replaced almost half of the all stations country wide. Main improvement of this instrument is more unfailing and reliable observation. Because we have often experienced very large ground motions (e.g. 45 records exceeding gravity), the maximum measureable range was expanded from 2000 gal to 4000 gal for the second generation instrument, and to 8000 gal for the third. For the third generation instrument, in case of power failure, observation (including transmission of data) works for seven days thanks to the backup battery, while for the second generation instruments it works only for one day. By adding an oblique component to the three-component accelerometers, we could automatically distinguish shaking data from noise such as electric pulses which may cause a false alarm in EEW. Implementation to guarantee the continuity of observation under severe conditions such as during the Tohoku earthquake is very important, as well as a highly efficient

Vector-like quarks and leptons, SU(5) ⊗ SU(5) grand unification, and proton decay

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lee, Chang-Hun; Mohapatra, Rabindra N.

2017-01-01

SU(5) ⊗ SU(5) provides a minimal grand unification scheme for fermions and gauge forces if there are vector-like quarks and leptons in nature. We explore the gauge coupling unification in a non-supersymmetric model of this type, and study its implications for proton decay. The properties of vector-like quarks and intermediate scales that emerge from coupling unification play a central role in suppressing proton decay. We find that in this model, the familiar decay mode p→e + π 0 may have a partial lifetime within the reach of currently planned experiments.

Vectorized Monte Carlo

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Brown, F.B.

1981-01-01

Examination of the global algorithms and local kernels of conventional general-purpose Monte Carlo codes shows that multigroup Monte Carlo methods have sufficient structure to permit efficient vectorization. A structured multigroup Monte Carlo algorithm for vector computers is developed in which many particle events are treated at once on a cell-by-cell basis. Vectorization of kernels for tracking and variance reduction is described, and a new method for discrete sampling is developed to facilitate the vectorization of collision analysis. To demonstrate the potential of the new method, a vectorized Monte Carlo code for multigroup radiation transport analysis was developed. This code incorporates many features of conventional general-purpose production codes, including general geometry, splitting and Russian roulette, survival biasing, variance estimation via batching, a number of cutoffs, and generalized tallies of collision, tracklength, and surface crossing estimators with response functions. Predictions of vectorized performance characteristics for the CYBER-205 were made using emulated coding and a dynamic model of vector instruction timing. Computation rates were examined for a variety of test problems to determine sensitivities to batch size and vector lengths. Significant speedups are predicted for even a few hundred particles per batch, and asymptotic speedups by about 40 over equivalent Amdahl 470V/8 scalar codes arepredicted for a few thousand particles per batch. The principal conclusion is that vectorization of a general-purpose multigroup Monte Carlo code is well worth the significant effort required for stylized coding and major algorithmic changes

Microtubules as mechanical force sensors.

Science.gov (United States)

Karafyllidis, Ioannis G; Lagoudas, Dimitris C

2007-03-01

Microtubules are polymers of tubulin subunits (dimers) arranged on a hexagonal lattice. Each tubulin dimer comprises two monomers, the alpha-tubulin and beta-tubulin, and can be found in two states. In the first state a mobile negative charge is located into the alpha-tubulin monomer and in the second into the beta-tubulin monomer. Each tubulin dimer is modeled as an electrical dipole coupled to its neighbors by electrostatic forces. The location of the mobile charge in each dimer depends on the location of the charges in the dimer's neighborhood. Mechanical forces that act on the microtubule affect the distances between the dimers and alter the electrostatic potential. Changes in this potential affect the mobile negative charge location in each dimer and the charge distribution in the microtubule. The net effect is that mechanical forces affect the charge distribution in microtubules. We propose to exploit this effect and use microtubules as mechanical force sensors. We model each dimer as a two-state quantum system and, following the quantum computation paradigm, we use discrete quantum random walk on the hexagonal microtubule lattice to determine the charge distribution. Different forces applied on the microtubule are modeled as different coin biases leading to different probability distributions of the quantum walker location, which are directly connected to different charge distributions. Simulation results show that there is a strong indication that microtubules can be used as mechanical force sensors and that they can also detect the force directions and magnitudes.

Vector Network Coding

OpenAIRE

Ebrahimi, Javad; Fragouli, Christina

2010-01-01

We develop new algebraic algorithms for scalar and vector network coding. In vector network coding, the source multicasts information by transmitting vectors of length L, while intermediate nodes process and combine their incoming packets by multiplying them with L X L coding matrices that play a similar role as coding coefficients in scalar coding. Our algorithms for scalar network jointly optimize the employed field size while selecting the coding coefficients. Similarly, for vector co...

"We are supposed to take care of it": a qualitative examination of care and repair behaviour of long-lasting, insecticide-treated nets in Nasarawa State, Nigeria.

Science.gov (United States)

Hunter, Gabrielle C; Scandurra, Leah; Acosta, Angela; Koenker, Hannah; Obi, Emmanuel; Weber, Rachel

2014-08-14

The longevity of long-lasting insecticidal nets (LLIN) under field conditions has important implications for malaria vector control. The behaviour of bed net users, including net care and repair, may protect or damage bed nets and impact the physical integrity of nets. However, this behaviour, and the motivating and inhibiting factors, is not well understood. Qualitative research methods were used to examine behaviour, attitudes and norms around damage, care and repair of LLINs. Eighteen in-depth interviews (IDI) and six focus group discussions (FGD) were conducted with LLIN users in two local government areas of Nasarawa State, Nigeria. A brief background questionnaire with the 73 participants prior to IDIs or FGDs collected additional data on demographics, net use, and care and repair behaviour. Respondents cited that the major causes of damage to bed nets are primarily children, followed by rodents, everyday handling that is not gentle, and characteristics of sleeping spaces. Caring for nets was perceived as both preventing damage by careful handling and keeping the net clean, which may lead to over-washing of LLINs. Repairing a damaged net was considered something that net users should do and the responsibility of adults in the household. Despite this, reported frequency of net repair was low (18%). Motivations for taking care of and repairing nets centred around caring for one's family, avoiding mosquito bites, saving money, and maintaining the positive opinion of others by keeping a clean and intact net. Barriers to net care and repair related to time availability and low perceived value of bed nets or of one's health. This study provides novel and valuable insights on the perceptions and attitudes of LLIN users in Nasarawa, Nigeria on the durability of bed nets, how to care for and repair nets, and for what reasons. Communication around net care should stress proper daily storage of nets, regular net inspections, prompt repairs, and clarify misconceptions

Markets, voucher subsidies and free nets combine to achieve high bed net coverage in rural Tanzania

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Gerrets Rene PM

2008-06-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Tanzania has a well-developed network of commercial ITN retailers. In 2004, the government introduced a voucher subsidy for pregnant women and, in mid 2005, helped distribute free nets to under-fives in small number of districts, including Rufiji on the southern coast, during a child health campaign. Contributions of these multiple insecticide-treated net delivery strategies existing at the same time and place to coverage in a poor rural community were assessed. Methods Cross-sectional household survey in 6,331 members of randomly selected 1,752 households of 31 rural villages of Demographic Surveillance System in Rufiji district, Southern Tanzania was conducted in 2006. A questionnaire was administered to every consenting respondent about net use, treatment status and delivery mechanism. Findings Net use was 62.7% overall, 87.2% amongst infants (0 to1 year, 81.8% amongst young children (>1 to 5 years, 54.5% amongst older children (6 to 15 years and 59.6% amongst adults (>15 years. 30.2% of all nets had been treated six months prior to interview. The biggest source of nets used by infants was purchase from the private sector with a voucher subsidy (41.8%. Half of nets used by young children (50.0% and over a third of those used by older children (37.2% were obtained free of charge through the vaccination campaign. The largest source of nets amongst the population overall was commercial purchase (45.1% use and was the primary means for protecting adults (60.2% use. All delivery mechanisms, especially sale of nets at full market price, under-served the poorest but no difference in equity was observed between voucher-subsidized and freely distributed nets. Conclusion All three delivery strategies enabled a poor rural community to achieve net coverage high enough to yield both personal and community level protection for the entire population. Each of them reached their relevant target group and free nets only temporarily

Vector independent transmission of the vector-borne bluetongue virus.

Science.gov (United States)

van der Sluijs, Mirjam Tineke Willemijn; de Smit, Abraham J; Moormann, Rob J M

2016-01-01

Bluetongue is an economically important disease of ruminants. The causative agent, Bluetongue virus (BTV), is mainly transmitted by insect vectors. This review focuses on vector-free BTV transmission, and its epizootic and economic consequences. Vector-free transmission can either be vertical, from dam to fetus, or horizontal via direct contract. For several BTV-serotypes, vertical (transplacental) transmission has been described, resulting in severe congenital malformations. Transplacental transmission had been mainly associated with live vaccine strains. Yet, the European BTV-8 strain demonstrated a high incidence of transplacental transmission in natural circumstances. The relevance of transplacental transmission for the epizootiology is considered limited, especially in enzootic areas. However, transplacental transmission can have a substantial economic impact due to the loss of progeny. Inactivated vaccines have demonstrated to prevent transplacental transmission. Vector-free horizontal transmission has also been demonstrated. Since direct horizontal transmission requires close contact of animals, it is considered only relevant for within-farm spreading of BTV. The genetic determinants which enable vector-free transmission are present in virus strains circulating in the field. More research into the genetic changes which enable vector-free transmission is essential to better evaluate the risks associated with outbreaks of new BTV serotypes and to design more appropriate control measures.

Initial CAD investigations for NET

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Katz, F.; Leinemann, K.; Ludwig, A.; Marek, U.; Olbrich, W.; Schlechtendahl, E.G.

1985-11-01

This report summarizes the work done under contract no. 164/84-7/FU-D-/NET between the Commission of the European Communities and KfK during the period from June 1, 1984, through May 31, 1985. The following topics are covered in this report: Initial modelling of NET version NET2A, CAD system extension for remote handling studies, analysis of the CAD information structure, work related to the transfer of CAD information between KfK and the NET team. (orig.) [de

WaterNet: The NASA water cycle solutions network - Danubian regional applications

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Matthews, Dave; Brilly, Mitja; Kobold, Mira; Zagar, Mark; Houser, Paul

2008-01-01

situ observed forcing data that drive a Land Surface Model to simulate surface hydrologic variables of value to water and emergency managers. It clearly shows the limitations of coarse resolution observations and models especially during flash flood events. Snow water equivalent and soil moisture estimates for water and drought management purposes appear to have some value at the coarser resolutions of 1/4 degree; however, higher resolution information at the 1 to 5 km scale is desirable. In conclusion, this paper invites interested water-cycle researchers and decision-makers to join our WaterNet Community of Practice to exchange information and share the latest emerging technologies of value to decision-makers.

Plasma wake and nuclear forces on fragmented H{sub {sup +}} transport

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Barriga-Carrasco, Manuel D [E.T.S.I. Industriales, Universidad de Castilla-La Mancha, E-13071 Ciudad Real (Spain); Deutsch, Claude [Laboratoire de Physique des Gaz et des Plasmas, UMR-8578, Bat. 210, Universite Paris XI, F-91405 Orsay (France)

2006-12-15

The objective of the present work is to study the target electronic and nuclear interactions produced when a H{sub {sup +}} ion traverses classical plasma matter. Electronic interactions are treated by means of the dielectric formalism while nuclear interactions are dealt within the classical dispersion theory through a Monte Carlo computer code. The interactions through plasma electronic medium among close ions are called wake forces. We checked that these forces screen the Coulomb explosions of the two fragmented protons from the same H{sub {sup +}} ion decreasing their relative distance in the analysed cases. These forces align the interproton vector along the motion direction. They also tend the two-proton energy loss to the value of two isolated protons when at early times it is rather larger. Nevertheless most parts of these wake effects cannot be corroborated experimentally as they are masked by the projectile collisions with target nuclei in our numerical experiment. These collisions cancel the screening produced by the wake forces, increasing the interproton distance even faster than for bare Coulomb explosion. Also they misalign the interproton vector along the motion direction and contribute moderately to increase the energy loss of the fragmented H{sub {sup +}} ion. These nuclear collisions effects are more significant in reducing projectile velocity.

NetBeans IDE 8 cookbook

CERN Document Server

Salter, David

2014-01-01

If you're a Java developer of any level using NetBeans and want to learn how to get the most out of NetBeans, then this book is for you. Learning how to utilize NetBeans will provide a firm foundation for your Java application development.

The Net Advance of Physics

Science.gov (United States)

THE NET ADVANCE OF PHYSICS Review Articles and Tutorials in an Encyclopædic Format Established 1995 [Link to MIT] Computer support for The Net Advance of Physics is furnished by The Massachusetts Newest Additions SPECIAL FEATURES: Net Advance RETRO: Nineteenth Century Physics History of Science

Improved netting

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bramley, A.; Clabburn, R.J.T.

1976-01-01

A method is described for producing netting composed of longitudinal and transverse threads of irradiation cross linked thermoplastic material, the threads being joined together at their crossings by moulded masses of cross linked thermoplastic material. The thread may be formed of polyethylene filaments, subjected to a radiation dose of 15 to 25 MR. The moulding can be conducted at 245 0 to 260 0 C or higher. The product is claimed to be an improved quality of netting, with bonds of increased strength between crossing threads. (U.K.)

How Pressure Became a Scalar, Not a Vector

Science.gov (United States)

Chalmers, Alan

2018-04-01

The gradual emergence of a science of hydrostatics during the course of the seventeenth century is testament to the fact that a technical concept of pressure that was up to the task was far from obvious. The first published version of a theory of hydrostatics containing the essentials of the modern theory appeared in book 2 of Isaac Newton's Principia. Newton derived the propositions of hydrostatics from a definition of a fluid as a medium unable to withstand a distorting force. Newton's reasoning required that pressure be understood as a force per unit area acting on either side of imaginary planes within the body of a fluid. For a fluid in equilibrium, the forces at some location within a fluid are independent of the orientation of such planes. As Newton came to realize, within the body of a liquid, pressure acts equally in all directions so that there is no resultant pressing in any direction. Pressure has an intensity but not a direction. In modern terms, it is a scalar, not a vector. Although earlier scholars such as Simon Stevin, Blaise Pascal, and Robert Boyle helped set the scene for Newton's innovations, they were unable to transcend the common sense of pressure as a directed force acting on the solid surfaces bounding a fluid.

Net exchanges of methane and carbon dioxide on the Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau from 1979 to 2100

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jin, Zhenong; Zhuang, Qianlai; Zhu, Xudong; He, Jin-Sheng; Song, Weimin

2015-01-01

Methane (CH 4 ) is a potent greenhouse gas (GHG) that affects the global climate system. Knowledge about land–atmospheric CH 4 exchanges on the Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau (QTP) is insufficient. Using a coupled biogeochemistry model, this study analyzes the net exchanges of CH 4 and CO 2 over the QTP for the period of 1979–2100. Our simulations show that the region currently acts as a net CH 4 source with 0.95 Tg CH 4 y −1 emissions and 0.19 Tg CH 4 y −1 soil uptake, and a photosynthesis C sink of 14.1 Tg C y −1 . By accounting for the net CH 4 emission and the net CO 2 sequestration since 1979, the region was found to be initially a warming source until the 2010s with a positive instantaneous radiative forcing peak in the 1990s. In response to future climate change projected by multiple global climate models (GCMs) under four representative concentration pathway (RCP) scenarios, the regional source of CH 4 to the atmosphere will increase by 15–77% at the end of this century. Net ecosystem production (NEP) will continually increase from the near neutral state to around 40 Tg C y −1 under all RCPs except RCP8.5. Spatially, CH 4 emission or uptake will be noticeably enhanced under all RCPs over most of the QTP, while statistically significant NEP changes over a large-scale will only appear under RCP4.5 and RCP4.6 scenarios. The cumulative GHG fluxes since 1979 will exert a slight warming effect on the climate system until the 2030s, and will switch to a cooling effect thereafter. Overall, the total radiative forcing at the end of the 21st century is 0.25–0.35 W m −2 , depending on the RCP scenario. Our study highlights the importance of accounting for both CH 4 and CO 2 in quantifying the regional GHG budget. (paper)

Net alkalinity and net acidity 1: Theoretical considerations

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kirby, Carl S.; Cravotta, Charles A.

2005-01-01

Net acidity and net alkalinity are widely used, poorly defined, and commonly misunderstood parameters for the characterization of mine drainage. The authors explain theoretical expressions of 3 types of alkalinity (caustic, phenolphthalein, and total) and acidity (mineral, CO 2 , and total). Except for rarely-invoked negative alkalinity, theoretically defined total alkalinity is closely analogous to measured alkalinity and presents few practical interpretation problems. Theoretically defined 'CO 2 -acidity' is closely related to most standard titration methods with an endpoint pH of 8.3 used for determining acidity in mine drainage, but it is unfortunately named because CO 2 is intentionally driven off during titration of mine-drainage samples. Using the proton condition/mass-action approach and employing graphs to illustrate speciation with changes in pH, the authors explore the concept of principal components and how to assign acidity contributions to aqueous species commonly present in mine drainage. Acidity is defined in mine drainage based on aqueous speciation at the sample pH and on the capacity of these species to undergo hydrolysis to pH 8.3. Application of this definition shows that the computed acidity in mgL -1 as CaCO 3 (based on pH and analytical concentrations of dissolved Fe II , Fe III , Mn, and Al in mgL -1 ):acidity calculated =50{1000(10 -pH )+[2(Fe II )+3(Fe III )]/56+2(Mn) /55+3(Al)/27}underestimates contributions from HSO 4 - and H + , but overestimates the acidity due to Fe 3+ and Al 3+ . However, these errors tend to approximately cancel each other. It is demonstrated that 'net alkalinity' is a valid mathematical construction based on theoretical definitions of alkalinity and acidity. Further, it is shown that, for most mine-drainage solutions, a useful net alkalinity value can be derived from: (1) alkalinity and acidity values based on aqueous speciation (2) measured alkalinity minus calculated acidity, or (3) taking the negative of the

Net alkalinity and net acidity 1: Theoretical considerations

Science.gov (United States)

Kirby, C.S.; Cravotta, C.A.

2005-01-01

Net acidity and net alkalinity are widely used, poorly defined, and commonly misunderstood parameters for the characterization of mine drainage. The authors explain theoretical expressions of 3 types of alkalinity (caustic, phenolphthalein, and total) and acidity (mineral, CO2, and total). Except for rarely-invoked negative alkalinity, theoretically defined total alkalinity is closely analogous to measured alkalinity and presents few practical interpretation problems. Theoretically defined "CO 2-acidity" is closely related to most standard titration methods with an endpoint pH of 8.3 used for determining acidity in mine drainage, but it is unfortunately named because CO2 is intentionally driven off during titration of mine-drainage samples. Using the proton condition/mass- action approach and employing graphs to illustrate speciation with changes in pH, the authors explore the concept of principal components and how to assign acidity contributions to aqueous species commonly present in mine drainage. Acidity is defined in mine drainage based on aqueous speciation at the sample pH and on the capacity of these species to undergo hydrolysis to pH 8.3. Application of this definition shows that the computed acidity in mg L -1 as CaCO3 (based on pH and analytical concentrations of dissolved FeII, FeIII, Mn, and Al in mg L -1):aciditycalculated=50{1000(10-pH)+[2(FeII)+3(FeIII)]/56+2(Mn)/ 55+3(Al)/27}underestimates contributions from HSO4- and H+, but overestimates the acidity due to Fe3+ and Al3+. However, these errors tend to approximately cancel each other. It is demonstrated that "net alkalinity" is a valid mathematical construction based on theoretical definitions of alkalinity and acidity. Further, it is shown that, for most mine-drainage solutions, a useful net alkalinity value can be derived from: (1) alkalinity and acidity values based on aqueous speciation, (2) measured alkalinity minus calculated acidity, or (3) taking the negative of the value obtained in a

Proof Nets for Lambek Calculus

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Roorda, Dirk

1992-01-01

The proof nets of linear logic are adapted to the non-commutative Lambek calculus. A different criterion for soundness of proof nets is given, which gives rise to new algorithms for proof search. The order sensitiveness of the Lambek calculus is reflected by the planarity condition on proof nets;

Current Reversal Due to Coupling Between Asymmetrical Driving Force and Ratchet Potential

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ai Baoquan; Xie Huizhang; Liu Lianggang

2006-01-01

Transport of a Brownian particle moving in a periodic potential is investigated in the presence of an asymmetric unbiased external force. The asymmetry of the external force and the asymmetry of the potential are the two ways of inducing a net current. It is found that the competition of the spatial asymmetry of potential with the temporal asymmetry of the external force leads to the phenomena like current reversal. The competition between the two opposite driving factors is a necessary but not a sufficient condition for current reversals.

Production of isometric forces during sustained acceleration.

Science.gov (United States)

Sand, D P; Girgenrath, M; Bock, O; Pongratz, H

2003-06-01

The operation of high-performance aircraft requires pilots to apply finely graded forces on controls. Since they are often exposed to high levels of acceleration in flight, we investigated to what extent this ability is degraded in such an environment. Twelve healthy non-pilot volunteers were seated in the gondola of a centrifuge and their performance was tested at normal gravity (1 G) and while exposed to sustained forces of 1.5 G and 3 G oriented from head to foot (+Gz). Using an isometric joystick, they attempted to produce force vectors with specific lengths and directions commanded in random order by a visual display. Acceleration had substantial effects on the magnitude of produced force. Compared with 1 G, maximum produced force was about 2 N higher at 1.5 G and about 10 N higher at 3 G. The size of this effect was constant across the different magnitudes, but varied with the direction of the prescribed force. Acceleration degrades control of force production. This finding may indicate that the motor system misinterprets the unusual gravitoinertial environment and/or that proprioceptive feedback is degraded due to increased muscle tone. The production of excessive isometric force could affect the safe operation of high-performance aircraft.

VectorBase

Data.gov (United States)

U.S. Department of Health & Human Services — VectorBase is a Bioinformatics Resource Center for invertebrate vectors. It is one of four Bioinformatics Resource Centers funded by NIAID to provide web-based...

Properties of porous netted materials

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Daragan, V.D.; Drozdov, B.G.; Kotov, A.Yu.; Mel'nikov, G.N.; Pustogarov, A.V.

1987-01-01

Hydraulic and strength characteristics, efficient heat conduction and inner heat exchange coefficient are experimentally studied for porous netted materials on the base of the brass nets as dependent on porosity, cell size and method of net laying. Results of the studies are presented. It is shown that due to anisotropy of the material properties the hydraulic resistance in the direction parallel to the nets plane is 1.3-1.6 times higher than in the perpendicular one. Values of the effective heat conduction in the direction perpendicular to the nets plane at Π>0.45 agree with the data from literature, at Π<0.45 a deviation from the calculated values is marked in the direction of the heat conduction decrease

Custodial vector model

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Becciolini, Diego; Franzosi, Diogo Buarque; Foadi, Roshan

2015-01-01

We analyze the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) phenomenology of heavy vector resonances with a $SU(2)_L\\times SU(2)_R$ spectral global symmetry. This symmetry partially protects the electroweak S-parameter from large contributions of the vector resonances. The resulting custodial vector model spectrum...

SupportNet: a novel incremental learning framework through deep learning and support data

KAUST Repository

Li, Yu; Li, Zhongxiao; Ding, Lizhong; Hu, Yuhui; Chen, Wei; Gao, Xin

2018-01-01

Motivation: In most biological data sets, the amount of data is regularly growing and the number of classes is continuously increasing. To deal with the new data from the new classes, one approach is to train a classification model, e.g., a deep learning model, from scratch based on both old and new data. This approach is highly computationally costly and the extracted features are likely very different from the ones extracted by the model trained on the old data alone, which leads to poor model robustness. Another approach is to fine tune the trained model from the old data on the new data. However, this approach often does not have the ability to learn new knowledge without forgetting the previously learned knowledge, which is known as the catastrophic forgetting problem. To our knowledge, this problem has not been studied in the field of bioinformatics despite its existence in many bioinformatic problems. Results: Here we propose a novel method, SupportNet, to solve the catastrophic forgetting problem efficiently and effectively. SupportNet combines the strength of deep learning and support vector machine (SVM), where SVM is used to identify the support data from the old data, which are fed to the deep learning model together with the new data for further training so that the model can review the essential information of the old data when learning the new information. Two powerful consolidation regularizers are applied to ensure the robustness of the learned model. Comprehensive experiments on various tasks, including enzyme function prediction, subcellular structure classification and breast tumor classification, show that SupportNet drastically outperforms the state-of-the-art incremental learning methods and reaches similar performance as the deep learning model trained from scratch on both old and new data. Availability: Our program is accessible at: \\url{https://github.com/lykaust15/SupportNet}.

SupportNet: a novel incremental learning framework through deep learning and support data

KAUST Repository

Li, Yu

2018-05-08

Motivation: In most biological data sets, the amount of data is regularly growing and the number of classes is continuously increasing. To deal with the new data from the new classes, one approach is to train a classification model, e.g., a deep learning model, from scratch based on both old and new data. This approach is highly computationally costly and the extracted features are likely very different from the ones extracted by the model trained on the old data alone, which leads to poor model robustness. Another approach is to fine tune the trained model from the old data on the new data. However, this approach often does not have the ability to learn new knowledge without forgetting the previously learned knowledge, which is known as the catastrophic forgetting problem. To our knowledge, this problem has not been studied in the field of bioinformatics despite its existence in many bioinformatic problems. Results: Here we propose a novel method, SupportNet, to solve the catastrophic forgetting problem efficiently and effectively. SupportNet combines the strength of deep learning and support vector machine (SVM), where SVM is used to identify the support data from the old data, which are fed to the deep learning model together with the new data for further training so that the model can review the essential information of the old data when learning the new information. Two powerful consolidation regularizers are applied to ensure the robustness of the learned model. Comprehensive experiments on various tasks, including enzyme function prediction, subcellular structure classification and breast tumor classification, show that SupportNet drastically outperforms the state-of-the-art incremental learning methods and reaches similar performance as the deep learning model trained from scratch on both old and new data. Availability: Our program is accessible at: \\\\url{https://github.com/lykaust15/SupportNet}.

Experimental demonstration of vector E x vector B plasma divertor

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Strait, E.J.; Kerst, D.W.; Sprott, J.C.

1977-01-01

The vector E x vector B drift due to an applied radial electric field in a tokamak with poloidal divertor can speed the flow of plasma out of the scrape-off region, and provide a means of externally controlling the flow rate and thus the width of the density fall-off. An experiment in the Wisconsin levitated toroidal octupole, using vector E x vector B drifts alone, demonstrates divertor-like behavior, including 70% reduction of plasma density near the wall and 40% reduction of plasma flux to the wall, with no adverse effects on confinement of the main plasma

Modeling the effects of integrating larval habitat source reduction and insecticide treated nets for malaria control.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Laith Yakob

Full Text Available Integrated vector management for malaria control has received a lot of recent interest. Attacking multiple points in the transmission cycle is hoped to act synergistically and improve upon current single-tool interventions based on the use of insecticide-treated bed nets (ITNs. In the present study, we theoretically examined the application of larval habitat source reduction with ITNs in reducing malaria transmission. We selected this type of environmental management to complement ITNs because of a potential secondary mode of action that both control strategies share. In addition to increasing vector mortality, ITNs reduce the rate at which female mosquitoes locate human hosts for blood feeding, thereby extending their gonotrophic cycle. Similarly, while reducing adult vector emergence and abundance, source reduction of larval habitats may prolong the cycle duration by extending delays in locating oviposition sites. We found, however, that source reduction of larval habitats only operates through this secondary mode of action when habitat density is below a critical threshold. Hence, we illustrate how this strategy becomes increasingly effective when larval habitats are limited. We also demonstrate that habitat source reduction is better suited to human populations of higher density and in the presence of insecticide resistance or when the insecticidal properties of ITNs are depleted.

Dynamic analysis of suspension cable based on vector form intrinsic finite element method

Science.gov (United States)

Qin, Jian; Qiao, Liang; Wan, Jiancheng; Jiang, Ming; Xia, Yongjun

2017-10-01

A vector finite element method is presented for the dynamic analysis of cable structures based on the vector form intrinsic finite element (VFIFE) and mechanical properties of suspension cable. Firstly, the suspension cable is discretized into different elements by space points, the mass and external forces of suspension cable are transformed into space points. The structural form of cable is described by the space points at different time. The equations of motion for the space points are established according to the Newton’s second law. Then, the element internal forces between the space points are derived from the flexible truss structure. Finally, the motion equations of space points are solved by the central difference method with reasonable time integration step. The tangential tension of the bearing rope in a test ropeway with the moving concentrated loads is calculated and compared with the experimental data. The results show that the tangential tension of suspension cable with moving loads is consistent with the experimental data. This method has high calculated precision and meets the requirements of engineering application.

Measurement of recent exposure to Phlebotomus argentipes, the vector of Indian visceral Leishmaniasis, by using human antibody responses to sand fly saliva.

Science.gov (United States)

Clements, Meredith F; Gidwani, Kamlesh; Kumar, Rajiv; Hostomska, Jitka; Dinesh, Diwakar S; Kumar, Vijay; Das, Pradeep; Müller, Ingrid; Hamilton, Gordon; Volfova, Vera; Boelaert, Marleen; Das, Murari; Rijal, Suman; Picado, Albert; Volf, Petr; Sundar, Shyam; Davies, Clive R; Rogers, Matthew E

2010-05-01

Antibody (IgG) responses to the saliva of Phlebotomus argentipes were investigated using serum samples from regions of India endemic and non-endemic for visceral leishmaniasis (VL). By pre-adsorbing the sera against the saliva of the competing human-biting but non-VL vector P. papatasi, we significantly improved the specificity of a P. argentipes saliva enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. Using this method, we observed a statistically significant correlation between antibodies to P. argenitpes saliva and the average indoor density of female sand flies. Additionally, the method was able to detect recent changes in vector exposure when sera from VL patients were assayed before, during, and after hospitalization and protected from sand fly bites under untreated bed nets. Collectively, these results highlight the utility of antibodies to P. argentipes saliva as an important tool to evaluate VL vector control programs.

Dynamics modeling for parallel haptic interfaces with force sensing and control.

Science.gov (United States)

Bernstein, Nicholas; Lawrence, Dale; Pao, Lucy

2013-01-01

Closed-loop force control can be used on haptic interfaces (HIs) to mitigate the effects of mechanism dynamics. A single multidimensional force-torque sensor is often employed to measure the interaction force between the haptic device and the user's hand. The parallel haptic interface at the University of Colorado (CU) instead employs smaller 1D force sensors oriented along each of the five actuating rods to build up a 5D force vector. This paper shows that a particular manipulandum/hand partition in the system dynamics is induced by the placement and type of force sensing, and discusses the implications on force and impedance control for parallel haptic interfaces. The details of a "squaring down" process are also discussed, showing how to obtain reduced degree-of-freedom models from the general six degree-of-freedom dynamics formulation.

Variable Thumb Moment Arm Modeling and Thumb-Tip Force Production of a Human-Like Robotic Hand.

Science.gov (United States)

Niehues, Taylor D; Deshpande, Ashish D

2017-10-01

The anatomically correct testbed (ACT) hand mechanically simulates the musculoskeletal structure of the fingers and thumb of the human hand. In this work, we analyze the muscle moment arms (MAs) and thumb-tip force vectors in the ACT thumb in order to compare the ACT thumb's mechanical structure to the human thumb. Motion data are used to determine joint angle-dependent MA models, and thumb-tip three-dimensional (3D) force vectors are experimentally analyzed when forces are applied to individual muscles. Results are presented for both a nominal ACT thumb model designed to match human MAs and an adjusted model that more closely replicates human-like thumb-tip forces. The results confirm that the ACT thumb is capable of faithfully representing human musculoskeletal structure and muscle functionality. Using the ACT hand as a physical simulation platform allows us to gain a better understanding of the underlying biomechanical and neuromuscular properties of the human hand to ultimately inform the design and control of robotic and prosthetic hands.

Optical tweezers force measurements to study parasites chemotaxis

Science.gov (United States)

de Thomaz, A. A.; Pozzo, L. Y.; Fontes, A.; Almeida, D. B.; Stahl, C. V.; Santos-Mallet, J. R.; Gomes, S. A. O.; Feder, D.; Ayres, D. C.; Giorgio, S.; Cesar, C. L.

2009-07-01

In this work, we propose a methodology to study microorganisms chemotaxis in real time using an Optical Tweezers system. Optical Tweezers allowed real time measurements of the force vectors, strength and direction, of living parasites under chemical or other kinds of gradients. This seems to be the ideal tool to perform observations of taxis response of cells and microorganisms with high sensitivity to capture instantaneous responses to a given stimulus. Forces involved in the movement of unicellular parasites are very small, in the femto-pico-Newton range, about the same order of magnitude of the forces generated in an Optical Tweezers. We applied this methodology to investigate the Leishmania amazonensis (L. amazonensis) and Trypanossoma cruzi (T. cruzi) under distinct situations.

Understanding Net Zero Energy Buildings

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Salom, Jaume; Widén, Joakim; Candanedo, José

2011-01-01

Although several alternative definitions exist, a Net-Zero Energy Building (Net ZEB) can be succinctly described as a grid-connected building that generates as much energy as it uses over a year. The “net-zero” balance is attained by applying energy conservation and efficiency measures...... and by incorporating renewable energy systems. While based on annual balances, a complete description of a Net ZEB requires examining the system at smaller time-scales. This assessment should address: (a) the relationship between power generation and building loads and (b) the resulting interaction with the power grid...

Rotations with Rodrigues' vector

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Pina, E

2011-01-01

The rotational dynamics was studied from the point of view of Rodrigues' vector. This vector is defined here by its connection with other forms of parametrization of the rotation matrix. The rotation matrix was expressed in terms of this vector. The angular velocity was computed using the components of Rodrigues' vector as coordinates. It appears to be a fundamental matrix that is used to express the components of the angular velocity, the rotation matrix and the angular momentum vector. The Hamiltonian formalism of rotational dynamics in terms of this vector uses the same matrix. The quantization of the rotational dynamics is performed with simple rules if one uses Rodrigues' vector and similar formal expressions for the quantum operators that mimic the Hamiltonian classical dynamics.

History-dependent stochastic Petri nets

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Schonenberg, H.; Sidorova, N.; Aalst, van der W.M.P.; Hee, van K.M.; Pnueli, A.; Virbitskaite, I.; Voronkov, A.

2010-01-01

Stochastic Petri Nets are a useful and well-known tool for performance analysis. However, an implicit assumption in the different types of Stochastic Petri Nets is the Markov property. It is assumed that a choice in the Petri net only depends on the current state and not on earlier choices. For many

Computerized tomographic quantification of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease as the principal determinant of frontal P vector.

Science.gov (United States)

Chhabra, Lovely; Sareen, Pooja; Gandagule, Amit; Spodick, David

2012-04-01

Verticalization of the P-wave axis is characteristic of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). We studied the correlation of P-wave axis and computerized tomographically quantified emphysema in patients with COPD/emphysema. Individual correlation of P-wave axis with different structural types of emphysema was also studied. High-resolution computerized tomographic scans of 23 patients >45 years old with known COPD were reviewed to assess the type and extent of emphysema using computerized tomographic densitometric parameters. Electrocardiograms were then independently reviewed and the P-wave axis was calculated in customary fashion. Degree of the P vector (DOPV) and radiographic percent emphysematous area (RPEA) were compared for statistical correlation. The P vector and RPEA were also directly compared to the forced expiratory volume at 1 second. RPEA and the P vector had a significant positive correlation in all patients (r = +0.77, p <0.0001) but correlation was very strong in patients with predominant lower lobe emphysema (r = +0.89, p <0.001). Forced expiratory volume at 1 second and the P vector had almost a linear inverse correlation in predominantly lower lobe emphysema (r = -0.92, p <0.001). DOPV positively correlated with radiographically quantified emphysema. DOPV and RPEA were strong predictors of qualitative lung function in patients with predominantly lower lobe emphysema. In conclusion, a combination of high DOPV and predominantly lower lobe emphysema indicates severe obstructive lung dysfunction in patients with COPD. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Violation of vector dominance in the vector manifestation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sasaki, Chihiro

2003-01-01

The vector manifestation (VM) is a new pattern for realizing the chiral symmetry in QCD. In the VM, the massless vector meson becomes the chiral partner of pion at the critical point, in contrast with the restoration based on the linear sigma model. Including the intrinsic temperature dependences of the parameters of the hidden local symmetry (HLS) Lagrangian determined from the underlying QCD through the Wilsonian matching together with the hadronic thermal corrections, we present a new prediction of the VM on the direct photon-π-π coupling which measures the validity of the vector dominance (VD) of the electromagnetic form factor of the pion. We find that the VD is largely violated at the critical temperature, which indicates that the assumption of the VD made in several analysis on the dilepton spectra in hot matter may need to be weakened for consistently including the effect of the dropping mass of the vector meson. (author)

Acoustic forcing of a liquid drop

Science.gov (United States)

Lyell, M. J.

1992-01-01

The development of systems such as acoustic levitation chambers will allow for the positioning and manipulation of material samples (drops) in a microgravity environment. This provides the capability for fundamental studies in droplet dynamics as well as containerless processing work. Such systems use acoustic radiation pressure forces to position or to further manipulate (e.g., oscillate) the sample. The primary objective was to determine the effect of a viscous acoustic field/tangential radiation pressure forcing on drop oscillations. To this end, the viscous acoustic field is determined. Modified (forced) hydrodynamic field equations which result from a consistent perturbation expansion scheme are solved. This is done in the separate cases of an unmodulated and a modulated acoustic field. The effect of the tangential radiation stress on the hydrodynamic field (drop oscillations) is found to manifest as a correction to the velocity field in a sublayer region near the drop/host interface. Moreover, the forcing due to the radiation pressure vector at the interface is modified by inclusion of tangential stresses.

Pro ASP.NET 4 in VB 2010

CERN Document Server

MacDonald, Matthew; Freeman, Adam; Szpuszta, Mario; Agarwal, Vidya Vrat

2010-01-01

ASP.NET 4 is the latest version of Microsoft's revolutionary ASP.NET technology. It is the principal standard for creating dynamic web pages on the Windows platform. Pro ASP.NET 4 in VB 2010 raises the bar for high-quality, practical advice on learning and deploying Microsoft's dynamic web solution. This new edition is updated with everything you need to come to grips with the latest version of ASP.NET, including coverage of ASP.NET MVC, ASP.NET AJAX 4, ASP.NET Dynamic Data, and Silverlight 3. Seasoned .NET professionals Matthew MacDonald and Mario Szpuszta explain how you can get the most fro

Unsteady force estimation using a Lagrangian drift-volume approach

Science.gov (United States)

McPhaden, Cameron J.; Rival, David E.

2018-04-01

A novel Lagrangian force estimation technique for unsteady fluid flows has been developed, using the concept of a Darwinian drift volume to measure unsteady forces on accelerating bodies. The construct of added mass in viscous flows, calculated from a series of drift volumes, is used to calculate the reaction force on an accelerating circular flat plate, containing highly-separated, vortical flow. The net displacement of fluid contained within the drift volumes is, through Darwin's drift-volume added-mass proposition, equal to the added mass of the plate and provides the reaction force of the fluid on the body. The resultant unsteady force estimates from the proposed technique are shown to align with the measured drag force associated with a rapid acceleration. The critical aspects of understanding unsteady flows, relating to peak and time-resolved forces, often lie within the acceleration phase of the motions, which are well-captured by the drift-volume approach. Therefore, this Lagrangian added-mass estimation technique opens the door to fluid-dynamic analyses in areas that, until now, were inaccessible by conventional means.

NASA Net Zero Energy Buildings Roadmap

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Pless, S.; Scheib, J.; Torcellini, P.; Hendron, B.; Slovensky, M.

2014-10-01

In preparation for the time-phased net zero energy requirement for new federal buildings starting in 2020, set forth in Executive Order 13514, NASA requested that the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) to develop a roadmap for NASA's compliance. NASA detailed a Statement of Work that requested information on strategic, organizational, and tactical aspects of net zero energy buildings. In response, this document presents a high-level approach to net zero energy planning, design, construction, and operations, based on NREL's first-hand experience procuring net zero energy construction, and based on NREL and other industry research on net zero energy feasibility. The strategic approach to net zero energy starts with an interpretation of the executive order language relating to net zero energy. Specifically, this roadmap defines a net zero energy acquisition process as one that sets an aggressive energy use intensity goal for the building in project planning, meets the reduced demand goal through energy efficiency strategies and technologies, then adds renewable energy in a prioritized manner, using building-associated, emission- free sources first, to offset the annual energy use required at the building; the net zero energy process extends through the life of the building, requiring a balance of energy use and production in each calendar year.

A terrestrial lidar-based workflow for determining three-dimensional slip vectors and associated uncertainties

Science.gov (United States)

Gold, Peter O.; Cowgill, Eric; Kreylos, Oliver; Gold, Ryan D.

2012-01-01

Three-dimensional (3D) slip vectors recorded by displaced landforms are difficult to constrain across complex fault zones, and the uncertainties associated with such measurements become increasingly challenging to assess as landforms degrade over time. We approach this problem from a remote sensing perspective by using terrestrial laser scanning (TLS) and 3D structural analysis. We have developed an integrated TLS data collection and point-based analysis workflow that incorporates accurate assessments of aleatoric and epistemic uncertainties using experimental surveys, Monte Carlo simulations, and iterative site reconstructions. Our scanning workflow and equipment requirements are optimized for single-operator surveying, and our data analysis process is largely completed using new point-based computing tools in an immersive 3D virtual reality environment. In a case study, we measured slip vector orientations at two sites along the rupture trace of the 1954 Dixie Valley earthquake (central Nevada, United States), yielding measurements that are the first direct constraints on the 3D slip vector for this event. These observations are consistent with a previous approximation of net extension direction for this event. We find that errors introduced by variables in our survey method result in <2.5 cm of variability in components of displacement, and are eclipsed by the 10–60 cm epistemic errors introduced by reconstructing the field sites to their pre-erosion geometries. Although the higher resolution TLS data sets enabled visualization and data interactivity critical for reconstructing the 3D slip vector and for assessing uncertainties, dense topographic constraints alone were not sufficient to significantly narrow the wide (<26°) range of allowable slip vector orientations that resulted from accounting for epistemic uncertainties.

Long-term acceptability, durability and bio-efficacy of ZeroVector® durable lining for vector control in Papua New Guinea.

Science.gov (United States)

Kuadima, Joseph J; Timinao, Lincoln; Naidi, Laura; Tandrapah, Anthony; Hetzel, Manuel W; Czeher, Cyrille; Pulford, Justin

2017-02-28

This study examined the acceptability, durability and bio-efficacy of pyrethroid-impregnated durable lining (DL) over a three-year period post-installation in residential homes across Papua New Guinea (PNG). ZeroVector ® ITPS had previously been installed in 40 homes across four study sites representing a cross section of malaria transmission risk and housing style. Structured questionnaires, DL visual inspections and group interviews (GIs) were completed with household heads at 12- and 36-months post-installation. Three DL samples were collected from all households in which it remained 36-months post-installation to evaluate the bio-efficacy of DL on Anopheles mosquitoes. Bio-efficacy testing followed WHO guidelines for the evaluation of indoor residual spraying. The DL was still intact in 86 and 39% of study homes at the two time periods, respectively. In homes in which the DL was still intact, 92% of household heads considered the appearance at 12-months post installation to be the same as, or better than, that at installation compared to 59% at 36-months post-installation. GIs at both time points confirmed continuing high acceptance of DL, based in large part of the perceived attractiveness and functionality of the material. However, participants frequently asserted that they, or their family members, had ceased or reduced their use of mosquito nets as a result of the DL installation. A total of 16 houses were sampled for bio-efficacy testing across the 4 study sites at 36-months post-installation. Overall, combining all sites and samples, both knock-down at 30 min and mortality at 24 h were 100%. The ZeroVector ® DL installation remained highly acceptable at 36-months post-installation, the material and fixtures proved durable and the efficacy against malaria vectors did not decrease. However, the DL material had been removed from over 50% of the original study homes 3 years post-installation, largely due to deteriorating housing infrastructure

Plasmon-mediated binding forces on gold or silver homodimer and heterodimer

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Liaw, Jiunn-Woei; Kuo, Ting-Yu; Kuo, Mao-Kuen

2016-01-01

This study theoretically investigates plasmon-mediated optical binding forces, which are exerted on metal homo or heterodimers, induced by the normal illumination of a linearly polarized plane wave or Gaussian beam. Using the multiple multipole method, we analyzed the optical force in terms of Maxwell's stress tensor for various interparticle distance at some specific wavelengths. Numerical results show that for a given wavelength there are several stable equilibrium distances between two nanoparticles (NPs) of a homodimer, which are slightly shorter than some integer multiples of the wavelength in medium, such that metal dimer acts as bonded together. At these specific interparticle distances, the optical force between dimer is null and serves a restoring force, which is repulsive and attractive, respectively, as the two NPs are moving closer to and away from each other. The spring constant of the restoring force at the first stable equilibrium is always the largest, indicating that the first stable equilibrium distance is the most stable one. Moreover, the central line (orientation) of a dimer tends to be perpendicular to the polarization of light. For the cases of heterodimers, the phenomenon of stable equilibrium interparticle distance still exists, except there is an extra net photophoretic force drifting the heterodimer as one. Moreover, gradient force provided by a Gaussian beam may reduce the stability of these equilibriums, so larger NPs are preferred to stabilize a dimer under illumination of Gaussian beam. The finding may pave the way for using optical manipulation on the gold or silver colloidal self-assembly. - Highlights: • Optical binding force on Au/Ag dimer by linearly polarized light is studied. • For a wavelength several stable equilibriums for homodimer bound together exist. • The central line of a dimer tends to be perpendicular to the polarization of light. • For a heterodimer, stable equilibriums still exist with a net photophoretic

High entomological inoculation rate of malaria vectors in area of high coverage of interventions in southwest Ethiopia: Implication for residual malaria transmission

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Misrak Abraham

2017-05-01

Finally, there was an indoor residual malaria transmission in a village of high coverage of bed nets and where the principal malaria vector is susceptibility to propoxur and bendiocarb; insecticides currently in use for indoor residual spraying. The continuing indoor transmission of malaria in such village implies the need for new tools to supplement the existing interventions and to reduce indoor malaria transmission.

RESTful NET

CERN Document Server

Flanders, Jon

2008-01-01

RESTful .NET is the first book that teaches Windows developers to build RESTful web services using the latest Microsoft tools. Written by Windows Communication Foundation (WFC) expert Jon Flanders, this hands-on tutorial demonstrates how you can use WCF and other components of the .NET 3.5 Framework to build, deploy and use REST-based web services in a variety of application scenarios. RESTful architecture offers a simpler approach to building web services than SOAP, SOA, and the cumbersome WS- stack. And WCF has proven to be a flexible technology for building distributed systems not necessa

Getting to Net Zero

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

2016-09-01

The technology necessary to build net zero energy buildings (NZEBs) is ready and available today, however, building to net zero energy performance levels can be challenging. Energy efficiency measures, onsite energy generation resources, load matching and grid interaction, climatic factors, and local policies vary from location to location and require unique methods of constructing NZEBs. It is recommended that Components start looking into how to construct and operate NZEBs now as there is a learning curve to net zero construction and FY 2020 is just around the corner.

Net Zero Energy Buildings

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Marszal, Anna Joanna; Bourrelle, Julien S.; Gustavsen, Arild

2010-01-01

and identify possible renewable energy supply options which may be considered in calculations. Finally, the gap between the methodology proposed by each organisation and their respective national building code is assessed; providing an overview of the possible changes building codes will need to undergo......The international cooperation project IEA SHC Task 40 / ECBCS Annex 52 “Towards Net Zero Energy Solar Buildings”, attempts to develop a common understanding and to set up the basis for an international definition framework of Net Zero Energy Buildings (Net ZEBs). The understanding of such buildings...

Pro NET Best Practices

CERN Document Server

Ritchie, Stephen D

2011-01-01

Pro .NET Best Practices is a practical reference to the best practices that you can apply to your .NET projects today. You will learn standards, techniques, and conventions that are sharply focused, realistic and helpful for achieving results, steering clear of unproven, idealistic, and impractical recommendations. Pro .NET Best Practices covers a broad range of practices and principles that development experts agree are the right ways to develop software, which includes continuous integration, automated testing, automated deployment, and code analysis. Whether the solution is from a free and

Measurement of K/sub NN/, K/sub LL/ in p vector d → n vector X and p vector 9Be → n vector X at 800 MeV

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Riley, P.J.; Hollas, C.L.; Newsom, C.R.

1980-01-01

The spin transfer parameters, K/sub NN/ and K/sub LL/, have been measured in p vector d → n vector X and p vector 9 Be → n vector X at 0 0 and 800 MeV. The rather large values of K/sub LL/ demonstrate that this transfer mechanism will provide a useful source of polarized neutrons at LAMPF energies

Raster images vectorization system

OpenAIRE

Genytė, Jurgita

2006-01-01

The problem of raster images vectorization was analyzed and researched in this work. Existing vectorization systems are quite expensive, the results are inaccurate, and the manual vectorization of a large number of drafts is impossible. That‘s why our goal was to design and develop a new raster images vectorization system using our suggested automatic vectorization algorithm and the way to record results in a new universal vectorial file format. The work consists of these main parts: analysis...

Vectorization of phase space Monte Carlo code in FACOM vector processor VP-200

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Miura, Kenichi

1986-01-01

This paper describes the vectorization techniques for Monte Carlo codes in Fujitsu's Vector Processor System. The phase space Monte Carlo code FOWL is selected as a benchmark, and scalar and vector performances are compared. The vectorized kernel Monte Carlo routine which contains heavily nested IF tests runs up to 7.9 times faster in vector mode than in scalar mode. The overall performance improvement of the vectorized FOWL code over the original scalar code reaches 3.3. The results of this study strongly indicate that supercomputer can be a powerful tool for Monte Carlo simulations in high energy physics. (Auth.)

ASP.NET web API build RESTful web applications and services on the .NET framework

CERN Document Server

Kanjilal, Joydip

2013-01-01

This book is a step-by-step, practical tutorial with a simple approach to help you build RESTful web applications and services on the .NET framework quickly and efficiently.This book is for ASP.NET web developers who want to explore REST-based services with C# 5. This book contains many real-world code examples with explanations whenever necessary. Some experience with C# and ASP.NET 4 is expected.

Unification of all elementary-particle forces including gravity

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Terazawa, Hidezumi; Chikashige, Yuichi; Matsuki, Takayuki; Akama, Keiichi.

1978-07-01

A unified model of the Nambu-Jona-Lasinio type for all elementary-particle forces including gravity is reviewed in some detail. Starting with a nonlinear fermion Lagrangian of the Heisenberg type and imposing the massless conditions of Bjorken on vector auxiliary fields, on effective Lagrangian is constructed, which combines the unified SU (2) x U (1) gauge theory of Weinberg and Salam for the weak and electromagnetic interactions of leptons and quarks and the Yang-Mills gauge theory of color SU (3) for the strong interaction of quarks. The photon, the weak vector bosons, and the physical Higgs scalar appear as collective excitations of lepton-antilepton or quark-antiquark pairs while the color-octet gluons appear as those of quark-antiquark pairs. The most important results of this unified model are presented. The Weinberg angle and the gluon coupling constant are determined, and the masses of the weak vector bosons are predicted. (Yoshimori, M.)

Gamma-point lattice free energy estimates from O(1) force calculations

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Voss, Johannes; Vegge, Tejs

2008-01-01

We present a new method for estimating the vibrational free energy of crystal (and molecular) structures employing only a single force calculation, for a particularly displaced configuration, in addition to the calculation of the ground state configuration. This displacement vector is the sum...

Translating Colored Control Flow Nets into Readable Java via Annotated Java Workflow Nets

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Lassen, Kristian Bisgaard; Tjell, Simon

2007-01-01

In this paper, we present a method for developing Java applications from Colored Control Flow Nets (CCFNs), which is a special kind of Colored Petri Nets (CPNs) that we introduce. CCFN makes an explicit distinction between the representation of: The system, the environment of the system, and the ......In this paper, we present a method for developing Java applications from Colored Control Flow Nets (CCFNs), which is a special kind of Colored Petri Nets (CPNs) that we introduce. CCFN makes an explicit distinction between the representation of: The system, the environment of the system......, and the interface between the system and the environment. Our translation maps CCFNs into Anno- tated Java Workflow Nets (AJWNs) as an intermediate step, and these AJWNs are finally mapped to Java. CCFN is intended to enforce the modeler to describe the system in an imperative manner which makes the subsequent...... translation to Java easier to define. The translation to Java preserves data dependencies and control-flow aspects of the source CCFN. This paper contributes to the model-driven software development paradigm, by showing how to model a system, environment, and their interface, as a CCFN and presenting a fully...

Programming NET 35

CERN Document Server

Liberty, Jesse

2009-01-01

Bestselling author Jesse Liberty and industry expert Alex Horovitz uncover the common threads that unite the .NET 3.5 technologies, so you can benefit from the best practices and architectural patterns baked into the new Microsoft frameworks. The book offers a Grand Tour" of .NET 3.5 that describes how the principal technologies can be used together, with Ajax, to build modern n-tier and service-oriented applications. "

Net metering: zero electricity bill

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mangi, A.; Khan, Z.

2011-01-01

Worldwide move towards renewable energy sources, environmental concerns and decentralization of the power sector have made net metering an attractive option for power generation at small scale. This paper discusses the net metering, economical issues of renewable sources in Pakistan, technical aspects, installation suitability according to varying terrain, existing utility rules and formulation of legislation for net metering making it economically attractive. (author)

Field evaluation of picaridin repellents reveals differences in repellent sensitivity between Southeast Asian vectors of malaria and arboviruses.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Karel Van Roey

2014-12-01

Full Text Available Scaling up of insecticide treated nets has contributed to a substantial malaria decline. However, some malaria vectors, and most arbovirus vectors, bite outdoors and in the early evening. Therefore, topically applied insect repellents may provide crucial additional protection against mosquito-borne pathogens. Among topical repellents, DEET is the most commonly used, followed by others such as picaridin. The protective efficacy of two formulated picaridin repellents against mosquito bites, including arbovirus and malaria vectors, was evaluated in a field study in Cambodia. Over a period of two years, human landing collections were performed on repellent treated persons, with rotation to account for the effect of collection place, time and individual collector. Based on a total of 4996 mosquitoes collected on negative control persons, the overall five hour protection rate was 97.4% [95%CI: 97.1-97.8%], not decreasing over time. Picaridin 20% performed equally well as DEET 20% and better than picaridin 10%. Repellents performed better against Mansonia and Culex spp. as compared to aedines and anophelines. A lower performance was observed against Aedes albopictus as compared to Aedes aegypti, and against Anopheles barbirostris as compared to several vector species. Parity rates were higher in vectors collected on repellent treated person as compared to control persons. As such, field evaluation shows that repellents can provide additional personal protection against early and outdoor biting malaria and arbovirus vectors, with excellent protection up to five hours after application. The heterogeneity in repellent sensitivity between mosquito genera and vector species could however impact the efficacy of repellents in public health programs. Considering its excellent performance and potential to protect against early and outdoor biting vectors, as well as its higher acceptability as compared to DEET, picaridin is an appropriate product to evaluate the

Field evaluation of picaridin repellents reveals differences in repellent sensitivity between Southeast Asian vectors of malaria and arboviruses.

Science.gov (United States)

Van Roey, Karel; Sokny, Mao; Denis, Leen; Van den Broeck, Nick; Heng, Somony; Siv, Sovannaroth; Sluydts, Vincent; Sochantha, Tho; Coosemans, Marc; Durnez, Lies

2014-12-01

Scaling up of insecticide treated nets has contributed to a substantial malaria decline. However, some malaria vectors, and most arbovirus vectors, bite outdoors and in the early evening. Therefore, topically applied insect repellents may provide crucial additional protection against mosquito-borne pathogens. Among topical repellents, DEET is the most commonly used, followed by others such as picaridin. The protective efficacy of two formulated picaridin repellents against mosquito bites, including arbovirus and malaria vectors, was evaluated in a field study in Cambodia. Over a period of two years, human landing collections were performed on repellent treated persons, with rotation to account for the effect of collection place, time and individual collector. Based on a total of 4996 mosquitoes collected on negative control persons, the overall five hour protection rate was 97.4% [95%CI: 97.1-97.8%], not decreasing over time. Picaridin 20% performed equally well as DEET 20% and better than picaridin 10%. Repellents performed better against Mansonia and Culex spp. as compared to aedines and anophelines. A lower performance was observed against Aedes albopictus as compared to Aedes aegypti, and against Anopheles barbirostris as compared to several vector species. Parity rates were higher in vectors collected on repellent treated person as compared to control persons. As such, field evaluation shows that repellents can provide additional personal protection against early and outdoor biting malaria and arbovirus vectors, with excellent protection up to five hours after application. The heterogeneity in repellent sensitivity between mosquito genera and vector species could however impact the efficacy of repellents in public health programs. Considering its excellent performance and potential to protect against early and outdoor biting vectors, as well as its higher acceptability as compared to DEET, picaridin is an appropriate product to evaluate the epidemiological

Net Rotation of the Lithosphere in Mantle Convection Models with Self-consistent Plate Generation

Science.gov (United States)

Gerault, M.; Coltice, N.

2017-12-01

Lateral variations in the viscosity structure of the lithosphere and the mantle give rise to a discordant motion between the two. In a deep mantle reference frame, this motion is called the net rotation of the lithosphere. Plate motion reconstructions, mantle flow computations, and inferences from seismic anisotropy all indicate some amount of net rotation using different mantle reference frames. While the direction of rotation is somewhat consistent across studies, the predicted amplitudes range from 0.1 deg/Myr to 0.3 deg/Myr at the present-day. How net rotation rates could have differed in the past is also a subject of debate and strong geodynamic arguments are missing from the discussion. This study provides the first net rotation calculations in 3-D spherical mantle convection models with self-consistent plate generation. We run the computations for billions of years of numerical integration. We look into how sensitive the net rotation is to major tectonic events, such as subduction initiation, continental breakup and plate reorganisations, and whether some governing principles from the models could guide plate motion reconstructions. The mantle convection problem is solved with the finite volume code StagYY using a visco-pseudo-plastic rheology. Mantle flow velocities are solely driven by buoyancy forces internal to the system, with free slip upper and lower boundary conditions. We investigate how the yield stress, the mantle viscosity structure and the properties of continents affect the net rotation over time. Models with large lateral viscosity variations from continents predict net rotations that are at least threefold faster than those without continents. Models where continents cover a third of the surface produce net rotation rates that vary from nearly zero to over 0.3 deg/Myr with rapide increase during continental breakup. The pole of rotation appears to migrate along no particular path. For all models, regardless of the yield stress and the

Salivary Thromboxane A2-Binding Proteins from Triatomine Vectors of Chagas Disease Inhibit Platelet-Mediated Neutrophil Extracellular Traps (NETs Formation and Arterial Thrombosis.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Daniella M Mizurini

Full Text Available The saliva of blood-feeding arthropods contains a notable diversity of molecules that target the hemostatic and immune systems of the host. Dipetalodipin and triplatin are triatomine salivary proteins that exhibit high affinity binding to prostanoids, such as TXA2, thus resulting in potent inhibitory effect on platelet aggregation in vitro. It was recently demonstrated that platelet-derived TXA2 mediates the formation of neutrophil extracellular traps (NETs, a newly recognized link between inflammation and thrombosis that promote thrombus growth and stability.This study evaluated the ability of dipetalodipin and triplatin to block NETs formation in vitro. We also investigated the in vivo antithrombotic activity of TXA2 binding proteins by employing two murine models of experimental thrombosis. Remarkably, we observed that both inhibitors abolished the platelet-mediated formation of NETs in vitro. Dipetalodipin and triplatin significantly increased carotid artery occlusion time in a FeCl3-induced injury model. Treatment with TXA2-binding proteins also protected mice from lethal pulmonary thromboembolism evoked by the intravenous injection of collagen and epinephrine. Effective antithrombotic doses of dipetalodipin and triplatin did not increase blood loss, which was estimated using the tail transection method.Salivary TXA2-binding proteins, dipetalodipin and triplatin, are capable to prevent platelet-mediated NETs formation in vitro. This ability may contribute to the antithrombotic effects in vivo. Notably, both molecules inhibit arterial thrombosis without promoting excessive bleeding. Our results provide new insight into the antihemostatic effects of TXA2-binding proteins and may have important significance in elucidating the mechanisms of saliva to avoid host's hemostatic responses and innate immune system.

Vector velocimeter

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

2012-01-01

The present invention relates to a compact, reliable and low-cost vector velocimeter for example for determining velocities of particles suspended in a gas or fluid flow, or for determining velocity, displacement, rotation, or vibration of a solid surface, the vector velocimeter comprising a laser...

Deep neural nets as a method for quantitative structure-activity relationships.

Science.gov (United States)

Ma, Junshui; Sheridan, Robert P; Liaw, Andy; Dahl, George E; Svetnik, Vladimir

2015-02-23

Neural networks were widely used for quantitative structure-activity relationships (QSAR) in the 1990s. Because of various practical issues (e.g., slow on large problems, difficult to train, prone to overfitting, etc.), they were superseded by more robust methods like support vector machine (SVM) and random forest (RF), which arose in the early 2000s. The last 10 years has witnessed a revival of neural networks in the machine learning community thanks to new methods for preventing overfitting, more efficient training algorithms, and advancements in computer hardware. In particular, deep neural nets (DNNs), i.e. neural nets with more than one hidden layer, have found great successes in many applications, such as computer vision and natural language processing. Here we show that DNNs can routinely make better prospective predictions than RF on a set of large diverse QSAR data sets that are taken from Merck's drug discovery effort. The number of adjustable parameters needed for DNNs is fairly large, but our results show that it is not necessary to optimize them for individual data sets, and a single set of recommended parameters can achieve better performance than RF for most of the data sets we studied. The usefulness of the parameters is demonstrated on additional data sets not used in the calibration. Although training DNNs is still computationally intensive, using graphical processing units (GPUs) can make this issue manageable.

Cloning vector

Science.gov (United States)

Guilfoyle, Richard A.; Smith, Lloyd M.

1994-01-01

A vector comprising a filamentous phage sequence containing a first copy of filamentous phage gene X and other sequences necessary for the phage to propagate is disclosed. The vector also contains a second copy of filamentous phage gene X downstream from a promoter capable of promoting transcription in a bacterial host. In a preferred form of the present invention, the filamentous phage is M13 and the vector additionally includes a restriction endonuclease site located in such a manner as to substantially inactivate the second gene X when a DNA sequence is inserted into the restriction site.

Cloning vector

Science.gov (United States)

Guilfoyle, R.A.; Smith, L.M.

1994-12-27

A vector comprising a filamentous phage sequence containing a first copy of filamentous phage gene X and other sequences necessary for the phage to propagate is disclosed. The vector also contains a second copy of filamentous phage gene X downstream from a promoter capable of promoting transcription in a bacterial host. In a preferred form of the present invention, the filamentous phage is M13 and the vector additionally includes a restriction endonuclease site located in such a manner as to substantially inactivate the second gene X when a DNA sequence is inserted into the restriction site. 2 figures.

Net Locality

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

de Souza e Silva, Adriana Araujo; Gordon, Eric

Provides an introduction to the new theory of Net Locality and the profound effect on individuals and societies when everything is located or locatable. Describes net locality as an emerging form of location awareness central to all aspects of digital media, from mobile phones, to Google Maps......, to location-based social networks and games, such as Foursquare and facebook. Warns of the threats these technologies, such as data surveillance, present to our sense of privacy, while also outlining the opportunities for pro-social developments. Provides a theory of the web in the context of the history...... of emerging technologies, from GeoCities to GPS, Wi-Fi, Wiki Me, and Google Android....

Applying support vector regression analysis on grip force level-related corticomuscular coherence

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Rong, Yao; Han, Xixuan; Hao, Dongmei

2014-01-01

Voluntary motor performance is the result of cortical commands driving muscle actions. Corticomuscular coherence can be used to examine the functional coupling or communication between human brain and muscles. To investigate the effects of grip force level on corticomuscular coherence in an acces...

Construction of monophase nets

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Suarez A, Jose Antonio

1996-01-01

The paper refers to the use of monophase loads in commercial residential urbanizations and in small industries, for this reason it is considered unnecessary the construction of three-phase nets. The author makes a historical recount of these nets in Bogota, his capacities, uses and energy savings

Host-seeking behavior and dispersal of Triatoma infestans, a vector of Chagas disease, under semi-field conditions.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ricardo Castillo-Neyra

2015-01-01

Full Text Available Chagas disease affects millions of people in Latin America. The control of this vector-borne disease focuses on halting transmission by reducing or eliminating insect vector populations. Most transmission of Trypanosoma cruzi, the causative agent of Chagas disease, involves insects living within or very close to households and feeding mostly on domestic animals. As animal hosts can be intermittently present it is important to understand how host availability can modify transmission risk to humans and to characterize the host-seeking dispersal of triatomine vectors on a very fine scale. We used a semi-field system with motion-detection cameras to characterize the dispersal of Triatoma infestans, and compare the behavior of vector populations in the constant presence of hosts (guinea pigs, and after the removal of the hosts. The emigration rate - net insect population decline in original refuge - following host removal was on average 19.7% of insects per 10 days compared to 10.2% in constant host populations (p = 0.029. However, dispersal of T. infestans occurred in both directions, towards and away from the initial location of the hosts. The majority of insects that moved towards the original location of guinea pigs remained there for 4 weeks. Oviposition and mortality were observed and analyzed in the context of insect dispersal, but only mortality was higher in the group where animal hosts were removed (p-value <0.01. We discuss different survival strategies associated with the observed behavior and its implications for vector control. Removing domestic animals in infested areas increases vector dispersal from the first day of host removal. The implications of these patterns of vector dispersal in a field setting are not yet known but could result in movement towards human rooms.

Relativistic reversal of the ponderomotive force in a standing laser wave

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Pokrovsky, A.L.; Kaplan, A.E.

2005-01-01

Effect of relativistic reversal of the ponderomotive force (PF), reported earlier for a collinear configuration of electron and laser standing wave [A. E. Kaplan and A. L. Pokrovsky, Phys. Rev. Lett., 95, 053601 (2005)], is studied here theoretically for various types of polarizations of the laser beam. We demonstrated that the collinear configuration, in which the laser wave is linearly polarized with electric field E-vector parallel to the initial electron momentum p-vector 0 , is the optimal configuration for the relativistic reversal. In that case, the transverse PF reverses its direction when the incident momentum is p 0 =mc. The reversal effect vanishes in the cases of circular and linear with E-vector perpendicular p-vector 0 polarizations. We have discovered, however, that the counter-rotating circularly polarized standing waves develop attraction and repulsion areas along the axis of laser, in the laser field whose intensity is homogeneous in that axis, i.e., has no field gradient

Automated solid-phase subcloning based on beads brought into proximity by magnetic force.

Science.gov (United States)

Hudson, Elton P; Nikoshkov, Andrej; Uhlen, Mathias; Rockberg, Johan

2012-01-01

In the fields of proteomics, metabolic engineering and synthetic biology there is a need for high-throughput and reliable cloning methods to facilitate construction of expression vectors and genetic pathways. Here, we describe a new approach for solid-phase cloning in which both the vector and the gene are immobilized to separate paramagnetic beads and brought into proximity by magnetic force. Ligation events were directly evaluated using fluorescent-based microscopy and flow cytometry. The highest ligation efficiencies were obtained when gene- and vector-coated beads were brought into close contact by application of a magnet during the ligation step. An automated procedure was developed using a laboratory workstation to transfer genes into various expression vectors and more than 95% correct clones were obtained in a number of various applications. The method presented here is suitable for efficient subcloning in an automated manner to rapidly generate a large number of gene constructs in various vectors intended for high throughput applications.

Caught in the Net: Perineuronal Nets and Addiction

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Megan Slaker

2016-01-01

Full Text Available Exposure to drugs of abuse induces plasticity in the brain and creates persistent drug-related memories. These changes in plasticity and persistent drug memories are believed to produce aberrant motivation and reinforcement contributing to addiction. Most studies have explored the effect drugs of abuse have on pre- and postsynaptic cells and astrocytes; however, more recently, attention has shifted to explore the effect these drugs have on the extracellular matrix (ECM. Within the ECM are unique structures arranged in a net-like manner, surrounding a subset of neurons called perineuronal nets (PNNs. This review focuses on drug-induced changes in PNNs, the molecules that regulate PNNs, and the expression of PNNs within brain circuitry mediating motivation, reward, and reinforcement as it pertains to addiction.

Vector 33: A reduce program for vector algebra and calculus in orthogonal curvilinear coordinates

Science.gov (United States)

Harper, David

1989-06-01

This paper describes a package with enables REDUCE 3.3 to perform algebra and calculus operations upon vectors. Basic algebraic operations between vectors and between scalars and vectors are provided, including scalar (dot) product and vector (cross) product. The vector differential operators curl, divergence, gradient and Laplacian are also defined, and are valid in any orthogonal curvilinear coordinate system. The package is written in RLISP to allow algebra and calculus to be performed using notation identical to that for operations. Scalars and vectors can be mixed quite freely in the same expression. The package will be of interest to mathematicians, engineers and scientists who need to perform vector calculations in orthogonal curvilinear coordinates.

Probing deformed orbitals with vector A( vector e, e' N)B reactions

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Garrido, E.; Caballero, J.A.; Moya de Guerra, E.; Sarriguren, P.; Udias, J.M.

1995-01-01

We present results for response functions and asymmetries in the nuclear reactions 37 vector Ar( vector e, e' n) 36 Ar and 37 vector K( vector e,e' p) 36 Ar at quasifree kinematics. We compare PWIA results obtained using deformed HF wave functions with PWIA and DWIA results obtained assuming a spherical mean field. We show that the complex structure of the deformed orbitals can be probed by coincidence measurements with polarized beam and targets. ((orig.))

A study on forces acting on a flapping wing

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Cetiner O.

2013-04-01

Full Text Available In order to study the forces acting on a flapping wing, an experimental investigation is performed in steady water flow. In this study, a SD7003 airfoil undergoes combined pitching and plunging motion which simulates the forward flight of small birds. The frequency of pitching motion is equal to the frequency of plunging motion and pitch leads the plunge by a phase angle of 90 degrees. The experiments are conducted at Reynolds numbers of 2500 ≤ Re ≤ 13700 and the vortex formation is recorded using the digital particle image velocimetry (DPIV technique. A prediction of thrust force and efficiency is calculated from the average wake deficit of DPIV data, the near-wake vorticity patterns and time dependent velocity vectors are determined to comment on the thrust and drag indication. Direct force measurements are attempted using a Force/Torque sensor which is capable of measuring forces and moments in three axial directions.

Magnetic monopole and vector field of the spin 0

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Pantyushin, A.A.

2001-01-01

The motion of electrically charged particles in uniform magnetic field by time is considered. It is found out that additional force acting on eclectically charged particle from the spin 0 vector field side is proportional to the magnetic field. Proportion coefficient is equal to eg/4π (g - unknown parameter, determining of the rate and character of source non-preservation) - the analogue of constant thin structure α=e 2 /4π. Obtained results give evidence to suppose that for explanation of indicated experiments the monopole introduction is not essential

Implications of bio-efficacy and persistence of insecticides when indoor residual spraying and long-lasting insecticide nets are combined for malaria prevention.

Science.gov (United States)

Okumu, Fredros O; Chipwaza, Beatrice; Madumla, Edith P; Mbeyela, Edgar; Lingamba, Geoffrey; Moore, Jason; Ntamatungro, Alex J; Kavishe, Deo R; Moore, Sarah J

2012-11-19

Bio-efficacy and residual activity of insecticides used for indoor residual spraying (IRS) and long-lasting insecticide nets (LLINs) were assessed against laboratory-reared and wild populations of the malaria vector, Anopheles arabiensis in south eastern Tanzania. Implications of the findings are examined in the context of potential synergies and redundancies where IRS and LLINs are combined. Bioassays were conducted monthly for six months on three LLIN types (Olyset® PermaNet 2.0®,and Icon Life®) and three IRS treatments (2 g/m2 pirimiphos-methyl, 2 g/m2 DDT and 0.03 g/m2 lambda-cyhalothrin, sprayed on mud walls and palm ceilings of experimental huts). Tests used susceptible laboratory-reared An. arabiensis exposed in cones (nets and IRS) or wire balls (nets only). Susceptibility of wild populations was assessed using WHO diagnostic concentrations and PCR for knock-down resistance (kdr) genes. IRS treatments killed ≥ 85% of mosquitoes exposed on palm ceilings and ≥ 90% of those exposed on mud walls, but up to 50% of this toxicity decayed within 1-3 months, except for DDT. By 6th month, only 7.5%, 42.5% and 30.0% of mosquitoes died when exposed to ceilings sprayed with pirimiphos-methyl, DDT or lambda-cyhalothrin respectively, while 12.5%, 36.0% and 27.5% died after exposure to mud walls sprayed with the same insecticides. In wire-ball assays, mortality decreased from 98.1% in 1st month to 92.6% in 6th month in tests on PermaNet 2.0®, from 100% to 61.1% on Icon Life® and from 93.2% to 33.3% on Olyset® nets. In cone bioassays, mortality reduced from 92.8% in 1st month to 83.3% in 6th month on PermaNet 2.0®, from 96.9% to 43.80% on Icon Life® and from 85.6% to 14.6% on Olyset®. Wild An. arabiensis were 100% susceptible to DDT, 95.8% to deltamethrin, 90.2% to lambda cyhalothrin and 95.2% susceptible to permethrin. No kdr gene mutations were detected. In bioassays where sufficient contact with treated surfaces is assured, LLINs and IRS kill high

The K-NET - A year after

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kinoshita, S.; Ohtani, K.; Katayama, T.

2001-01-01

We started to release the K-NET strong-motion data from June 1996 and about one year passed. In this article, we report the development of K-NET and some applications using the K-NET information released on the Internet. (author)

Mars MetNet Mission Status

Science.gov (United States)

Harri, A.-M.; Aleksashkin, S.; Arruego, I.; Schmidt, W.; Genzer, M.; Vazquez, L.; Haukka, H.; Palin, M.; Nikkanen, T.

2015-10-01

New kind of planetary exploration mission for Mars is under development in collaboration between the Finnish Meteorological Institute (FMI), Lavochkin Association (LA), Space Research Institute (IKI) and Institutio Nacional de Tecnica Aerospacial (INTA). The Mars MetNet mission is based on a new semihard landing vehicle called MetNet Lander (MNL). The scientific payload of the Mars MetNet Precursor [1] mission is divided into three categories: Atmospheric instruments, Optical devices and Composition and structure devices. Each of the payload instruments will provide significant insights in to the Martian atmospheric behavior. The key technologies of the MetNet Lander have been qualified and the electrical qualification model (EQM) of the payload bay has been built and successfully tested.

NET SALARY ADJUSTMENT

CERN Multimedia

Finance Division

2001-01-01

On 15 June 2001 the Council approved the correction of the discrepancy identified in the net salary adjustment implemented on 1st January 2001 by retroactively increasing the scale of basic salaries to achieve the 2.8% average net salary adjustment approved in December 2000. We should like to inform you that the corresponding adjustment will be made to your July salary. Full details of the retroactive adjustments will consequently be shown on your pay slip.

Efficient Model Order Reduction for the Dynamics of Nonlinear Multilayer Sheet Structures with Trial Vector Derivatives

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Wolfgang Witteveen

2014-01-01

Full Text Available The mechanical response of multilayer sheet structures, such as leaf springs or car bodies, is largely determined by the nonlinear contact and friction forces between the sheets involved. Conventional computational approaches based on classical reduction techniques or the direct finite element approach have an inefficient balance between computational time and accuracy. In the present contribution, the method of trial vector derivatives is applied and extended in order to obtain a-priori trial vectors for the model reduction which are suitable for determining the nonlinearities in the joints of the reduced system. Findings show that the result quality in terms of displacements and contact forces is comparable to the direct finite element method but the computational effort is extremely low due to the model order reduction. Two numerical studies are presented to underline the method’s accuracy and efficiency. In conclusion, this approach is discussed with respect to the existing body of literature.

Step-to-step spatiotemporal variables and ground reaction forces of intra-individual fastest sprinting in a single session.

Science.gov (United States)

Nagahara, Ryu; Mizutani, Mirai; Matsuo, Akifumi; Kanehisa, Hiroaki; Fukunaga, Tetsuo

2018-06-01

We aimed to investigate the step-to-step spatiotemporal variables and ground reaction forces during the acceleration phase for characterising intra-individual fastest sprinting within a single session. Step-to-step spatiotemporal variables and ground reaction forces produced by 15 male athletes were measured over a 50-m distance during repeated (three to five) 60-m sprints using a long force platform system. Differences in measured variables between the fastest and slowest trials were examined at each step until the 22nd step using a magnitude-based inferences approach. There were possibly-most likely higher running speed and step frequency (2nd to 22nd steps) and shorter support time (all steps) in the fastest trial than in the slowest trial. Moreover, for the fastest trial there were likely-very likely greater mean propulsive force during the initial four steps and possibly-very likely larger mean net anterior-posterior force until the 17th step. The current results demonstrate that better sprinting performance within a single session is probably achieved by 1) a high step frequency (except the initial step) with short support time at all steps, 2) exerting a greater mean propulsive force during initial acceleration, and 3) producing a greater mean net anterior-posterior force during initial and middle acceleration.

The influence of non-CO2 forcings on cumulative carbon emissions budgets

Science.gov (United States)

Tokarska, Katarzyna B.; Gillett, Nathan P.; Arora, Vivek K.; Lee, Warren G.; Zickfeld, Kirsten

2018-03-01

Carbon budgets provide a useful tool for policymakers to help meet the global climate targets, as they specify total allowable carbon emissions consistent with limiting warming to a given temperature threshold. Non-CO2 forcings have a net warming effect in the Representative Concentration Pathways (RCP) scenarios, leading to reductions in remaining carbon budgets based on CO2 forcing alone. Carbon budgets consistent with limiting warming to below 2.0 °C, with and without accounting for the effects of non-CO2 forcings, were assessed in inconsistent ways by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), making the effects of non-CO2 forcings hard to identify. Here we use a consistent approach to compare 1.5 °C and 2.0 °C carbon budgets with and without accounting for the effects of non-CO2 forcings, using CO2-only and RCP8.5 simulations. The median allowable carbon budgets for 1.5 °C and 2.0 °C warming are reduced by 257 PgC and 418 PgC, respectively, and the uncertainty ranges on the budgets are reduced by more than a factor of two when accounting for the net warming effects of non-CO2 forcings. While our overall results are consistent with IPCC, we use a more robust methodology, and explain the narrower uncertainty ranges of carbon budgets when non-CO2 forcings are included. We demonstrate that most of the reduction in carbon budgets is a result of the direct warming effect of the non-CO2 forcings, with a secondary contribution from the influence of the non-CO2 forcings on the carbon cycle. Such carbon budgets are expected to play an increasingly important role in climate change mitigation, thus understanding the influence of non-CO2 forcings on these budgets and their uncertainties is critical.

Multi-perspective views of students’ difficulties with one-dimensional vector and two-dimensional vector

Science.gov (United States)

Fauzi, Ahmad; Ratna Kawuri, Kunthi; Pratiwi, Retno

2017-01-01

Researchers of students’ conceptual change usually collects data from written tests and interviews. Moreover, reports of conceptual change often simply refer to changes in concepts, such as on a test, without any identification of the learning processes that have taken place. Research has shown that students have difficulties with vectors in university introductory physics courses and high school physics courses. In this study, we intended to explore students’ understanding of one-dimensional and two-dimensional vector in multi perspective views. In this research, we explore students’ understanding through test perspective and interviews perspective. Our research study adopted the mixed-methodology design. The participants of this research were sixty students of third semester of physics education department. The data of this research were collected by testand interviews. In this study, we divided the students’ understanding of one-dimensional vector and two-dimensional vector in two categories, namely vector skills of the addition of one-dimensionaland two-dimensional vector and the relation between vector skills and conceptual understanding. From the investigation, only 44% of students provided correct answer for vector skills of the addition of one-dimensional and two-dimensional vector and only 27% students provided correct answer for the relation between vector skills and conceptual understanding.

Custodial vector model

Science.gov (United States)

Becciolini, Diego; Franzosi, Diogo Buarque; Foadi, Roshan; Frandsen, Mads T.; Hapola, Tuomas; Sannino, Francesco

2015-07-01

We analyze the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) phenomenology of heavy vector resonances with a S U (2 )L×S U (2 )R spectral global symmetry. This symmetry partially protects the electroweak S parameter from large contributions of the vector resonances. The resulting custodial vector model spectrum and interactions with the standard model fields lead to distinct signatures at the LHC in the diboson, dilepton, and associated Higgs channels.

Vector Differential Calculus

OpenAIRE

HITZER, Eckhard MS

2002-01-01

This paper treats the fundamentals of the vector differential calculus part of universal geometric calculus. Geometric calculus simplifies and unifies the structure and notation of mathematics for all of science and engineering, and for technological applications. In order to make the treatment self-contained, I first compile all important geometric algebra relationships,which are necesssary for vector differential calculus. Then differentiation by vectors is introduced and a host of major ve...

Net energy gain from DT fusion

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Buende, R.

1985-01-01

The net energy which can be gained from an energy raw material by means of a certain conversion system is deduced as the figure-of-merit which adequately characterizes the net energy balance of utilizing an energy source. This potential net energy gain is determined for DT fusion power plants. It is represented as a function of the degree of exploitation of the energy raw material lithium ore and is compared with the net energy which can be gained with LW and FBR power plants by exploiting uranium ore. The comparison clearly demonstrates the net energetic advantage of DT fusion. A sensitivity study shows that this holds even if the energy expenditure for constructing and operating is drastically increased

Net alkalinity and net acidity 2: Practical considerations

Science.gov (United States)

Kirby, C.S.; Cravotta, C.A.

2005-01-01

The pH, alkalinity, and acidity of mine drainage and associated waters can be misinterpreted because of the chemical instability of samples and possible misunderstandings of standard analytical method results. Synthetic and field samples of mine drainage having various initial pH values and concentrations of dissolved metals and alkalinity were titrated by several methods, and the results were compared to alkalinity and acidity calculated based on dissolved solutes. The pH, alkalinity, and acidity were compared between fresh, unoxidized and aged, oxidized samples. Data for Pennsylvania coal mine drainage indicates that the pH of fresh samples was predominantly acidic (pH 2.5-4) or near neutral (pH 6-7); ??? 25% of the samples had pH values between 5 and 6. Following oxidation, no samples had pH values between 5 and 6. The Standard Method Alkalinity titration is constrained to yield values >0. Most calculated and measured alkalinities for samples with positive alkalinities were in close agreement. However, for low-pH samples, the calculated alkalinity can be negative due to negative contributions by dissolved metals that may oxidize and hydrolyze. The Standard Method hot peroxide treatment titration for acidity determination (Hot Acidity) accurately indicates the potential for pH to decrease to acidic values after complete degassing of CO2 and oxidation of Fe and Mn, and it indicates either the excess alkalinity or that required for neutralization of the sample. The Hot Acidity directly measures net acidity (= -net alkalinity). Samples that had near-neutral pH after oxidation had negative Hot Acidity; samples that had pH mine drainage treatment can lead to systems with insufficient Alkalinity to neutralize metal and H+ acidity and is not recommended. The use of net alkalinity = -Hot Acidity titration is recommended for the planning of mine drainage treatment. The use of net alkalinity = (Alkalinitymeasured - Aciditycalculated) is recommended with some cautions

Vectorization, parallelization and porting of nuclear codes. Vectorization and parallelization. Progress report fiscal 1999

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Adachi, Masaaki; Ogasawara, Shinobu; Kume, Etsuo [Japan Atomic Energy Research Inst., Tokai, Ibaraki (Japan). Tokai Research Establishment; Ishizuki, Shigeru; Nemoto, Toshiyuki; Kawasaki, Nobuo; Kawai, Wataru [Fujitsu Ltd., Tokyo (Japan); Yatake, Yo-ichi [Hitachi Ltd., Tokyo (Japan)

2001-02-01

Several computer codes in the nuclear field have been vectorized, parallelized and trans-ported on the FUJITSU VPP500 system, the AP3000 system, the SX-4 system and the Paragon system at Center for Promotion of Computational Science and Engineering in Japan Atomic Energy Research Institute. We dealt with 18 codes in fiscal 1999. These results are reported in 3 parts, i.e., the vectorization and the parallelization part on vector processors, the parallelization part on scalar processors and the porting part. In this report, we describe the vectorization and parallelization on vector processors. In this vectorization and parallelization on vector processors part, the vectorization of Relativistic Molecular Orbital Calculation code RSCAT, a microscopic transport code for high energy nuclear collisions code JAM, three-dimensional non-steady thermal-fluid analysis code STREAM, Relativistic Density Functional Theory code RDFT and High Speed Three-Dimensional Nodal Diffusion code MOSRA-Light on the VPP500 system and the SX-4 system are described. (author)

The rôle of the complete Coriolis force in cross-equatorial flow of abyssal ocean currents

Science.gov (United States)

Stewart, A. L.; Dellar, P. J.

Ocean currents flowing close to or across the equator are strongly constrained by the change in sign of f, the locally vertical component of the Earth's rotation vector, across the equator. We investigate these currents using a shallow water model that includes both the locally vertical and locally horizontal components of the Earth's rotation vector, thus accounting for the complete Coriolis force. We therefore avoid making the so-called "traditional approximation" that retains only the part of the Coriolis force associated with the locally vertical component of the rotation vector. Including the complete Coriolis force contributes an additional term to the fluid's potential vorticity, which may partially balance the change in sign of f as fluid crosses the equator over suitably shaped bathymetry. We focus on the Antarctic Bottom Water, which crosses the equator northwards in the western Atlantic ocean where the local bathymetry forms an almost-zonal channel. We show that this bathymetry facilitates the current's equatorial crossing via the action of the "non-traditional" component of the Coriolis force. We illustrate this process using both analytical and numerical solutions for flow of an abyssal current over idealised equatorial topography. We also consider the one-dimensional geostrophic adjustment of a body of fluid across the equator, and show that the "non-traditional" contribution to the fluid's angular momentum permits a larger cross-equatorial transport. These results underline the importance of including the complete Coriolis force in studies of the equatorial ocean, particularly in the weakly-stratified abyssal ocean where the non-traditional component is most pronounced.

Elliptic-symmetry vector optical fields.

Science.gov (United States)

Pan, Yue; Li, Yongnan; Li, Si-Min; Ren, Zhi-Cheng; Kong, Ling-Jun; Tu, Chenghou; Wang, Hui-Tian

2014-08-11

We present in principle and demonstrate experimentally a new kind of vector fields: elliptic-symmetry vector optical fields. This is a significant development in vector fields, as this breaks the cylindrical symmetry and enriches the family of vector fields. Due to the presence of an additional degrees of freedom, which is the interval between the foci in the elliptic coordinate system, the elliptic-symmetry vector fields are more flexible than the cylindrical vector fields for controlling the spatial structure of polarization and for engineering the focusing fields. The elliptic-symmetry vector fields can find many specific applications from optical trapping to optical machining and so on.

Chikungunya Virus–Vector Interactions

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Lark L. Coffey

2014-11-01

Full Text Available Chikungunya virus (CHIKV is a mosquito-borne alphavirus that causes chikungunya fever, a severe, debilitating disease that often produces chronic arthralgia. Since 2004, CHIKV has emerged in Africa, Indian Ocean islands, Asia, Europe, and the Americas, causing millions of human infections. Central to understanding CHIKV emergence is knowledge of the natural ecology of transmission and vector infection dynamics. This review presents current understanding of CHIKV infection dynamics in mosquito vectors and its relationship to human disease emergence. The following topics are reviewed: CHIKV infection and vector life history traits including transmission cycles, genetic origins, distribution, emergence and spread, dispersal, vector competence, vector immunity and microbial interactions, and co-infection by CHIKV and other arboviruses. The genetics of vector susceptibility and host range changes, population heterogeneity and selection for the fittest viral genomes, dual host cycling and its impact on CHIKV adaptation, viral bottlenecks and intrahost diversity, and adaptive constraints on CHIKV evolution are also discussed. The potential for CHIKV re-emergence and expansion into new areas and prospects for prevention via vector control are also briefly reviewed.

Bed net ownership in Kenya: the impact of 3.4 million free bed nets

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Vulule John

2010-06-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background In July and September 2006, 3.4 million long-lasting insecticide-treated bed nets (LLINs were distributed free in a campaign targeting children 0-59 months old (CU5s in the 46 districts with malaria in Kenya. A survey was conducted one month after the distribution to evaluate who received campaign LLINs, who owned insecticide-treated bed nets and other bed nets received through other channels, and how these nets were being used. The feasibility of a distribution strategy aimed at a high-risk target group to meet bed net ownership and usage targets is evaluated. Methods A stratified, two-stage cluster survey sampled districts and enumeration areas with probability proportional to size. Handheld computers (PDAs with attached global positioning systems (GPS were used to develop the sampling frame, guide interviewers back to chosen households, and collect survey data. Results In targeted areas, 67.5% (95% CI: 64.6, 70.3% of all households with CU5s received campaign LLINs. Including previously owned nets, 74.4% (95% CI: 71.8, 77.0% of all households with CU5s had an ITN. Over half of CU5s (51.7%, 95% CI: 48.8, 54.7% slept under an ITN during the previous evening. Nearly forty percent (39.1% of all households received a campaign net, elevating overall household ownership of ITNs to 50.7% (95% CI: 48.4, 52.9%. Conclusions The campaign was successful in reaching the target population, families with CU5s, the risk group most vulnerable to malaria. Targeted distribution strategies will help Kenya approach indicator targets, but will need to be combined with other strategies to achieve desired population coverage levels.

Extended vector-tensor theories

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kimura, Rampei; Naruko, Atsushi; Yoshida, Daisuke, E-mail: rampei@th.phys.titech.ac.jp, E-mail: naruko@th.phys.titech.ac.jp, E-mail: yoshida@th.phys.titech.ac.jp [Department of Physics, Tokyo Institute of Technology, 2-12-1 Ookayama, Meguro-ku, Tokyo 152-8551 (Japan)

2017-01-01

Recently, several extensions of massive vector theory in curved space-time have been proposed in many literatures. In this paper, we consider the most general vector-tensor theories that contain up to two derivatives with respect to metric and vector field. By imposing a degeneracy condition of the Lagrangian in the context of ADM decomposition of space-time to eliminate an unwanted mode, we construct a new class of massive vector theories where five degrees of freedom can propagate, corresponding to three for massive vector modes and two for massless tensor modes. We find that the generalized Proca and the beyond generalized Proca theories up to the quartic Lagrangian, which should be included in this formulation, are degenerate theories even in curved space-time. Finally, introducing new metric and vector field transformations, we investigate the properties of thus obtained theories under such transformations.

Hyperbolic-symmetry vector fields.

Science.gov (United States)

Gao, Xu-Zhen; Pan, Yue; Cai, Meng-Qiang; Li, Yongnan; Tu, Chenghou; Wang, Hui-Tian

2015-12-14

We present and construct a new kind of orthogonal coordinate system, hyperbolic coordinate system. We present and design a new kind of local linearly polarized vector fields, which is defined as the hyperbolic-symmetry vector fields because the points with the same polarization form a series of hyperbolae. We experimentally demonstrate the generation of such a kind of hyperbolic-symmetry vector optical fields. In particular, we also study the modified hyperbolic-symmetry vector optical fields with the twofold and fourfold symmetric states of polarization when introducing the mirror symmetry. The tight focusing behaviors of these vector fields are also investigated. In addition, we also fabricate micro-structures on the K9 glass surfaces by several tightly focused (modified) hyperbolic-symmetry vector fields patterns, which demonstrate that the simulated tightly focused fields are in good agreement with the fabricated micro-structures.

Supergravity inspired vector curvaton

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Dimopoulos, Konstantinos

2007-01-01

It is investigated whether a massive Abelian vector field, whose gauge kinetic function is growing during inflation, can be responsible for the generation of the curvature perturbation in the Universe. Particle production is studied and it is shown that the vector field can obtain a scale-invariant superhorizon spectrum of perturbations with a reasonable choice of kinetic function. After inflation the vector field begins coherent oscillations, during which it corresponds to pressureless isotropic matter. When the vector field dominates the Universe, its perturbations give rise to the observed curvature perturbation following the curvaton scenario. It is found that this is possible if, after the end of inflation, the mass of the vector field increases at a phase transition at temperature of order 1 TeV or lower. Inhomogeneous reheating, whereby the vector field modulates the decay rate of the inflaton, is also studied

A standing pressure wave hypothesis of oscillating forces generated during a steam line break

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tinoco, H.

2001-01-01

A rapid glance at the figure depicting the net forces acting on the reactor vessel and internals, as obtained through a CFD simulation of a BWR steam line break, reveals an amazing oscillating regularity of these forces which is in glaring contrast to the chaotic behaviour of the steam pressure field in the steam annulus. Assuming that the decompression process excites and maintains standing pressure waves in the annular cylindrical region constituted by the steam annulus, it is possible to reconstruct the net forces acting on the reactor vessel and internals through the contribution of almost only the first dispersive mode. If a Neumann boundary condition is assumed at the section connecting the steam annulus to the steam dome, the frequency predicted is approximately % 5.9 higher than that of the CFD simulations. However, this connecting section allows wave transmission, and a more appropriate boundary condition should be one of the Robin type. Therefore, this section is modelled as an absorbing wall, and the corresponding normal impedance is calculated using the CFD simulations. Week non-linear effects can also be observed in the calculated forces through the presence of the first subharmonic. By the methodology described above, an estimate of the forces acting on the reactor vessel and internals of unit 3 of Forsmark Nuclear Power Plant has been obtained. (author)

Constraining vectors and axial-vectors in walking technicolour by a holographic principle

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

D. Dietrich, Dennis; Kouvaris, Christoforos

2008-01-01

We use a holographic principle to study the low-energy spectrum of walking technicolour models. In particular, we predict the masses of the axial vectors as well as the decay constants of vectors and axial vectors as functions of the mass of the techni-rho. Given that there are very few...

47 CFR 65.450 - Net income.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-10-01

... 47 Telecommunication 3 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false Net income. 65.450 Section 65.450... OF RETURN PRESCRIPTION PROCEDURES AND METHODOLOGIES Exchange Carriers § 65.450 Net income. (a) Net income shall consist of all revenues derived from the provision of interstate telecommunications services...

Recommendation on vectors and vector-transmitted diseases

OpenAIRE

Netherlands Food and Consumer Product Safety Authority

2009-01-01

In view of their increasing risk of introduction and their possible implications in causing major disease outbreaks, vectors, as well as vector-transmitted diseases like dengue, West Nile disease, Lyme disease and bluetongue need to be recognised as a threat to public and animal health and to the economy, also in the Netherlands. There has been an increase in the incidence of these diseases in the past two to three decades. Climate changes and changes in the use of land, water managemen...

Business Profile of Boat Lift Net and Stationary Lift Net Fishing Gear in Morodemak Waters Central Java

Science.gov (United States)

Hapsari, Trisnani D.; Jayanto, Bogi B.; Fitri, Aristi D. P.; Triarso, I.

2018-02-01

Lift net is one of the fishing gears that is used widely in the Morodemak coastal fishing port (PPP) for catching pelagic fish. The yield of fish captured by these fishing gear has high economic value, such as fish belt (Trichiurus sp), squids (Loligo sp) and anchovies (Stelophorus sp). The aims of this research were to determine the technical aspects of boat lift net and stationary lift net fishing gear in Morodemak Waters Demak Regency; to find out the financial aspect of those fishing gears and to analyze the financial feasibility by counting PP, NPV, IRR, and B/C ratio criteria. This research used case study method with descriptive analysis. The sampling method was purposive sampling with 22 fishermen as respondents. The result of the research showed that the average of boat lift net acceptance was Rp 388,580,000. The financial analysis of fisheries boat lift net with the result of NPV Rp 836,149,272, PP 2.44 years, IRR value 54%, and B/C ratio 1.73. The average of stationary lift net acceptance was Rp 27,750,000. The financial analysis lift net with the result of NPV Rp 37,937,601; PP 1.96 years, IRR value 86%, and B/C ratio 1.32. This research had a positive NPV value, B/C ratio >1, and IRR > discount rate (12 %). This study concluded that the fishery business of boat lift net and stationary lift net in Morodemak coastal fishing port (PPP) was worth running.

Net neutrality and audiovisual services

OpenAIRE

van Eijk, N.; Nikoltchev, S.

2011-01-01

Net neutrality is high on the European agenda. New regulations for the communication sector provide a legal framework for net neutrality and need to be implemented on both a European and a national level. The key element is not just about blocking or slowing down traffic across communication networks: the control over the distribution of audiovisual services constitutes a vital part of the problem. In this contribution, the phenomenon of net neutrality is described first. Next, the European a...

Toward 2D Seismic Wavefield Monitoring: Seismic Gradiometry for Long-Period Seismogram and Short-Period Seismogram Envelope applied to the Hi-net Array

Science.gov (United States)

Maeda, T.; Nishida, K.; Takagi, R.; Obara, K.

2015-12-01

The high-sensitive seismograph network Japan (Hi-net) operated by National Research Institute for Earth Science and Disaster Prevention (NIED) has about 800 stations with average separation of 20 km. We can observe long-period seismic wave propagation as a 2D wavefield with station separations shorter than wavelength. In contrast, short-period waves are quite incoherent at stations, however, their envelope shapes resemble at neighbor stations. Therefore, we may be able to extract seismic wave energy propagation by seismogram envelope analysis. We attempted to characterize seismic waveform at long-period and its envelope at short-period as 2D wavefield by applying seismic gradiometry. We applied the seismic gradiometry to a synthetic long-period (20-50s) dataset prepared by numerical simulation in realistic 3D medium at the Hi-net station layout. Wave amplitude and its spatial derivatives are estimated by using data at nearby stations. The slowness vector, the radiation pattern and the geometrical spreading are extracted from estimated velocity, displacement and its spatial derivatives. For short-periods at shorter than 1 s, seismogram envelope shows temporal and spatial broadening through scattering by medium heterogeneity. It is expected that envelope shape may be coherent among nearby stations. Based on this idea, we applied the same method to the time-integration of seismogram envelope to estimate its spatial derivatives. Together with seismogram envelope, we succeeded in estimating the slowness vector from the seismogram envelope as well as long-period waveforms by synthetic test, without using phase information. Our preliminarily results show that the seismic gradiometry suits the Hi-net to extract wave propagation characteristics both at long and short periods. This method is appealing that it can estimate waves at homogeneous grid to monitor seismic wave as a wavefield. It is promising to obtain phase velocity variation from direct waves, and to grasp wave

Gauge anomaly with vector and axial-vector fields in 6D curved space

Science.gov (United States)

Yajima, Satoshi; Eguchi, Kohei; Fukuda, Makoto; Oka, Tomonori

2018-03-01

Imposing the conservation equation of the vector current for a fermion of spin 1/2 at the quantum level, a gauge anomaly for the fermion coupling with non-Abelian vector and axial-vector fields in 6D curved space is expressed in tensorial form. The anomaly consists of terms that resemble the chiral U(1) anomaly and the commutator terms that disappear if the axial-vector field is Abelian.

Chemical and environmental vector control as a contribution to the elimination of visceral leishmaniasis on the Indian subcontinent: cluster randomized controlled trials in Bangladesh, India and Nepal

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Das Pradeep

2009-10-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Bangladesh, India and Nepal are working towards the elimination of visceral leishmaniasis (VL by 2015. In 2005 the World Health Organization/Training in Tropical Diseases launched an implementation research programme to support integrated vector management for the elimination of VL from Bangladesh, India and Nepal. The programme is conducted in different phases, from proof-of-concept to scaling up intervention. This study was designed in order to evaluate the efficacy of the three different interventions for VL vector management: indoor residual spraying (IRS; long-lasting insecticide treated nets (LLIN; and environmental modification (EVM through plastering of walls with lime or mud. Methods Using a cluster randomized controlled trial we compared three vector control interventions with a control arm in 96 clusters (hamlets or neighbourhoods in each of the 4 study sites: Bangladesh (one, India (one and Nepal (two. In each site four villages with high reported VL incidences were included. In each village six clusters and in each cluster five households were randomly selected for sand fly collection on two consecutive nights. Control and intervention clusters were matched with average pre-intervention vector densities. In each site six clusters were randomly assigned to each of the following interventions: indoor residual spraying (IRS; long-lasting insecticide treated nets (LLIN; environmental management (EVM or control. All the houses (50-100 in each intervention cluster underwent the intervention measures. A reduction of intra-domestic sand fly densities measured in the study households by overnight US Centres for Disease Prevention and Control light trap captures (that is the number of sand flies per trap per night was the main outcome measure. Results IRS, and to a lesser extent EVM and LLINs, significantly reduced sand fly densities for at least 5 months in the study households irrespective of type of walls or whether or

Thrust Vector Control of an Upper-Stage Rocket with Multiple Propellant Slosh Modes

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jaime Rubio Hervas

2012-01-01

Full Text Available The thrust vector control problem for an upper-stage rocket with propellant slosh dynamics is considered. The control inputs are defined by the gimbal deflection angle of a main engine and a pitching moment about the center of mass of the spacecraft. The rocket acceleration due to the main engine thrust is assumed to be large enough so that surface tension forces do not significantly affect the propellant motion during main engine burns. A multi-mass-spring model of the sloshing fuel is introduced to represent the prominent sloshing modes. A nonlinear feedback controller is designed to control the translational velocity vector and the attitude of the spacecraft, while suppressing the sloshing modes. The effectiveness of the controller is illustrated through a simulation example.

47 CFR 65.500 - Net income.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-10-01

... 47 Telecommunication 3 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false Net income. 65.500 Section 65.500... OF RETURN PRESCRIPTION PROCEDURES AND METHODOLOGIES Interexchange Carriers § 65.500 Net income. The net income methodology specified in § 65.450 shall be utilized by all interexchange carriers that are...

Aplicació Microsoft .Net : Hotel Spa

OpenAIRE

Marquès Palmer, Jordi

2010-01-01

Desenvolupament d'una aplicació amb Microsoft .NET, WCF, WPF, Linq2SQL, d'un Hotel Spa. Desarrollo de una aplicación con Microsoft .NET, WCF, WPF, Linq2SQL, de un Hotel Spa. Application development using Microsoft .NET, WCF, WPF, Linq2SQL, for a Spa Hotel.

Vector manifestation and violation of vector dominance in hot matter

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Harada, Masayasu; Sasaki, Chihiro

2004-01-01

We show the details of the calculation of the hadronic thermal corrections to the two-point functions in the effective field theory of QCD for pions and vector mesons based on the hidden local symmetry (HLS) in hot matter using the background field gauge. We study the temperature dependence of the pion velocity in the low-temperature region determined from the hadronic thermal corrections, and show that, due to the presence of the dynamical vector meson, the pion velocity is smaller than the speed of the light already at one-loop level, in contrast to the result obtained in the ordinary chiral perturbation theory including only the pion at one-loop. Including the intrinsic temperature dependences of the parameters of the HLS Lagrangian determined from the underlying QCD through the Wilsonian matching, we show how the vector manifestation (VM), in which the massless vector meson becomes the chiral partner of pion, is realized at the critical temperature. We present a new prediction of the VM on the direct photon-π-π coupling which measures the validity of the vector dominance (VD) of the electromagnetic form factor of the pion: we find that the VD is largely violated at the critical temperature, which indicates that the assumption of the VD made in several analyses on the dilepton spectra in hot matter may need to be weakened for consistently including the effect of the dropping mass of the vector meson

Better Together: Association With 'Candidatus Liberibacter Asiaticus' Increases the Reproductive Fitness of Its Insect Vector, Diaphorina citri (Hemiptera: Liviidae).

Science.gov (United States)

Pelz-Stelinski, K S; Killiny, N

2016-05-01

The duration of the evolutionary association between a pathogen and vector can be inferred based on the strength of their mutualistic interactions. A well-adapted pathogen is likely to confer some benefit or, at a minimum, exhibit low pathogenicity toward its host vector. Coevolution of the two toward a mutually beneficial association appears to have occurred between the citrus greening disease pathogen, Candidatus Liberibacter asiaticus (Las), and its insect vector, the Asian citrus psyllid, Diaphorina citri (Kuwayama). To better understand the dynamics facilitating transmission, we evaluated the effects of Las infection on the fitness of its vector. Diaphorina citri harboring Las were more fecund than their uninfected counterparts; however, their nymphal development rate and adult survival were comparatively reduced. The finite rate of population increase and net reproductive rate were both greater among Las-infected D. citri as compared with uninfected counterparts, indicating that overall population fitness of infected psyllids was improved given the greater number of offspring produced. Previous reports of transovarial transmission, in conjunction with increased fecundity and population growth rates of Las-positive D. citri found in the current investigation, suggest a long evolutionary relationship between pathogen and vector. The survival of Las-infected adult D. citri was lower compared with uninfected D. citri , which suggests that there may be a fitness trade-off in response to Las infection. A beneficial effect of a plant pathogen on vector fitness may indicate that the pathogen developed a relationship with the insect before secondarily moving to plants.

Heavy Scalar, Vector, and Axial-Vector Mesons in Hot and Dense Nuclear Medium

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Arvind Kumar

2014-01-01

Full Text Available In this work we shall investigate the mass modifications of scalar mesons (D0; B0, vector mesons (D*; B*, and axial-vector mesons (D1; B1 at finite density and temperature of the nuclear medium. The above mesons are modified in the nuclear medium through the modification of quark and gluon condensates. We will find the medium modification of quark and gluon condensates within chiral SU(3 model through the medium modification of scalar-isoscalar fields σ and ζ at finite density and temperature. These medium modified quark and gluon condensates will further be used through QCD sum rules for the evaluation of in-medium properties of the above mentioned scalar, vector, and axial vector mesons. We will also discuss the effects of density and temperature of the nuclear medium on the scattering lengths of the above scalar, vector, and axial-vector mesons. The study of the medium modifications of the above mesons may be helpful for understanding their production rates in heavy-ion collision experiments. The results of present investigations of medium modifications of scalar, vector, and axial-vector mesons at finite density and temperature can be verified in the compressed baryonic matter (CBM experiment of FAIR facility at GSI, Germany.

Vector Fields on Product Manifolds

OpenAIRE

Kurz, Stefan

2011-01-01

This short report establishes some basic properties of smooth vector fields on product manifolds. The main results are: (i) On a product manifold there always exists a direct sum decomposition into horizontal and vertical vector fields. (ii) Horizontal and vertical vector fields are naturally isomorphic to smooth families of vector fields defined on the factors. Vector fields are regarded as derivations of the algebra of smooth functions.

Contributions to muscle force and EMG by combined neural excitation and electrical stimulation

Science.gov (United States)

Crago, Patrick E.; Makowski, Nathaniel S.; Cole, Natalie M.

2014-10-01

Objective. Stimulation of muscle for research or clinical interventions is often superimposed on ongoing physiological activity without a quantitative understanding of the impact of the stimulation on the net muscle activity and the physiological response. Experimental studies show that total force during stimulation is less than the sum of the isolated voluntary and stimulated forces, but the occlusion mechanism is not understood. Approach. We develop a model of efferent motor activity elicited by superimposing stimulation during a physiologically activated contraction. The model combines action potential interactions due to collision block, source resetting, and refractory periods with previously published models of physiological motor unit recruitment, rate modulation, force production, and EMG generation in human first dorsal interosseous muscle to investigate the mechanisms and effectiveness of stimulation on the net muscle force and EMG. Main results. Stimulation during a physiological contraction demonstrates partial occlusion of force and the neural component of the EMG, due to action potential interactions in motor units activated by both sources. Depending on neural and stimulation firing rates as well as on force-frequency properties, individual motor unit forces can be greater, smaller, or unchanged by the stimulation. In contrast, voluntary motor unit EMG potentials in simultaneously stimulated motor units show progressive occlusion with increasing stimulus rate. The simulations predict that occlusion would be decreased by a reverse stimulation recruitment order. Significance. The results are consistent with and provide a mechanistic interpretation of previously published experimental evidence of force occlusion. The models also predict two effects that have not been reported previously—voluntary EMG occlusion and the advantages of a proximal stimulation site. This study provides a basis for the rational design of both future experiments and clinical

Light scattering of rectangular slot antennas: parallel magnetic vector vs perpendicular electric vector

Science.gov (United States)

Lee, Dukhyung; Kim, Dai-Sik

2016-01-01

We study light scattering off rectangular slot nano antennas on a metal film varying incident polarization and incident angle, to examine which field vector of light is more important: electric vector perpendicular to, versus magnetic vector parallel to the long axis of the rectangle. While vector Babinet’s principle would prefer magnetic field along the long axis for optimizing slot antenna function, convention and intuition most often refer to the electric field perpendicular to it. Here, we demonstrate experimentally that in accordance with vector Babinet’s principle, the incident magnetic vector parallel to the long axis is the dominant component, with the perpendicular incident electric field making a small contribution of the factor of 1/|ε|, the reciprocal of the absolute value of the dielectric constant of the metal, owing to the non-perfectness of metals at optical frequencies.

Generalization of concurrence vectors

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yu Changshui; Song Heshan

2004-01-01

In this Letter, based on the generalization of concurrence vectors for bipartite pure state with respect to employing tensor product of generators of the corresponding rotation groups, we generalize concurrence vectors to the case of mixed states; a new criterion of separability of multipartite pure states is given out, for which we define a concurrence vector; we generalize the vector to the case of multipartite mixed state and give out a good measure of free entanglement

Vector Network Coding Algorithms

OpenAIRE

Ebrahimi, Javad; Fragouli, Christina

2010-01-01

We develop new algebraic algorithms for scalar and vector network coding. In vector network coding, the source multicasts information by transmitting vectors of length L, while intermediate nodes process and combine their incoming packets by multiplying them with L x L coding matrices that play a similar role as coding c in scalar coding. Our algorithms for scalar network jointly optimize the employed field size while selecting the coding coefficients. Similarly, for vector coding, our algori...

Disruptive Technology for Vector Control: the Innovative Vector Control Consortium and the US Military Join Forces to Explore Transformative Insecticide Application Technology for Mosquito Control Programmes

Science.gov (United States)

2015-09-26

Jennifer Knapp1, Michael Macdonald2, David Malone3, Nicholas Hamon3 and Jason H. Richardson4* Abstract Malaria vector control technology has remained...control of Aedes albopictus in residential neighborhoods: from optimiza- tion to operation. PLoS One. 2014;9:e110035. 22. Lee VJ, Ow S, Heah H, Tan MY

Automatic Prompt System in the Process of Mapping plWordNet on Princeton WordNet

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Paweł Kędzia

2015-06-01

Full Text Available Automatic Prompt System in the Process of Mapping plWordNet on Princeton WordNet The paper offers a critical evaluation of the power and usefulness of an automatic prompt system based on the extended Relaxation Labelling algorithm in the process of (manual mapping plWordNet on Princeton WordNet. To this end the results of manual mapping – that is inter-lingual relations between plWN and PWN synsets – are juxtaposed with the automatic prompts that were generated for the source language synsets to be mapped. We check the number and type of inter-lingual relations introduced on the basis of automatic prompts and the distance of the respective prompt synsets from the actual target language synsets.

Complex Polynomial Vector Fields

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Dias, Kealey

vector fields. Since the class of complex polynomial vector fields in the plane is natural to consider, it is remarkable that its study has only begun very recently. There are numerous fundamental questions that are still open, both in the general classification of these vector fields, the decomposition...... of parameter spaces into structurally stable domains, and a description of the bifurcations. For this reason, the talk will focus on these questions for complex polynomial vector fields.......The two branches of dynamical systems, continuous and discrete, correspond to the study of differential equations (vector fields) and iteration of mappings respectively. In holomorphic dynamics, the systems studied are restricted to those described by holomorphic (complex analytic) functions...

Loss of protection with insecticide-treated nets against pyrethroid-resistant Culex quinquefasciatus mosquitoes once nets become holed: an experimental hut study

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Irish SR

2008-06-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background An important advantage of pyrethroid-treated nets over untreated nets is that once nets become worn or holed a pyrethroid treatment will normally restore protection. The capacity of pyrethroids to kill or irritate any mosquito that comes into contact with the net and prevent penetration of holes or feeding through the sides are the main reasons why treated nets continue to provide protection despite their condition deteriorating over time. Pyrethroid resistance is a growing problem among Anopheline and Culicine mosquitoes in many parts of Africa. When mosquitoes become resistant the capacity of treated nets to provide protection might be diminished, particularly when holed. An experimental hut trial against pyrethroid-resistant Culex quinquefasciatus was therefore undertaken in southern Benin using a series of intact and holed nets, both untreated and treated, to assess any loss of protection as nets deteriorate with use and time. Results There was loss of protection when untreated nets became holed; the proportion of mosquitoes blood feeding increased from 36.2% when nets were intact to between 59.7% and 68.5% when nets were holed to differing extents. The proportion of mosquitoes blood feeding when treated nets were intact was 29.4% which increased to 43.6–57.4% when nets were holed. The greater the number of holes the greater the loss of protection regardless of whether nets were untreated or treated. Mosquito mortality in huts with untreated nets was 12.9–13.6%; treatment induced mortality was less than 12%. The exiting rate of mosquitoes into the verandas was higher in huts with intact nets. Conclusion As nets deteriorate with use and become increasingly holed the capacity of pyrethroid treatments to restore protection is greatly diminished against resistant Culex quinquefasciatus mosquitoes.

Traditional nets interfere with the uptake of long-lasting insecticidal nets in the Peruvian Amazon: the relevance of net preference for achieving high coverage and use.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Koen Peeters Grietens

Full Text Available While coverage of long-lasting insecticide-treated nets (LLIN has steadily increased, a growing number of studies report gaps between net ownership and use. We conducted a mixed-methods social science study assessing the importance of net preference and use after Olyset® LLINs were distributed through a mass campaign in rural communities surrounding Iquitos, the capital city of the Amazonian region of Peru.The study was conducted in the catchment area of the Paujil and Cahuide Health Centres (San Juan district between July 2007 and November 2008. During a first qualitative phase, participant observation and in-depth interviews collected information on key determinants for net preference and use. In a second quantitative phase, a survey among recently confirmed malaria patients evaluated the acceptability and use of both LLINs and traditional nets, and a case control study assessed the association between net preference/use and housing structure (open vs. closed houses.A total of 10 communities were selected for the anthropological fieldwork and 228 households participated in the quantitative studies. In the study area, bed nets are considered part of the housing structure and are therefore required to fulfil specific architectural and social functions, such as providing privacy and shelter, which the newly distributed Olyset® LLINs ultimately did not. The LLINs' failure to meet these criteria could mainly be attributed to their large mesh size, transparency and perceived ineffectiveness to protect against mosquitoes and other insects, resulting in 63.3% of households not using any of the distributed LLINs. Notably, LLIN usage was significantly lower in houses with no interior or exterior walls (35.2% than in those with walls (73.8% (OR = 5.2, 95CI [2.2; 12.3], p<0.001.Net preference can interfere with optimal LLIN use. In order to improve the number of effective days of LLIN protection per dollar spent, appropriate quantitative and qualitative

HANPP Collection: Human Appropriation of Net Primary Productivity as a Percentage of Net Primary Productivity

Data.gov (United States)

National Aeronautics and Space Administration — The Human Appropriation of Net Primary Productivity (HANPP) as a Percentage of Net Primary Product (NPP) portion of the HANPP Collection represents a map identifying...

Validation of SplitVectors Encoding for Quantitative Visualization of Large-Magnitude-Range Vector Fields.

Science.gov (United States)

Henan Zhao; Bryant, Garnett W; Griffin, Wesley; Terrill, Judith E; Jian Chen

2017-06-01

We designed and evaluated SplitVectors, a new vector field display approach to help scientists perform new discrimination tasks on large-magnitude-range scientific data shown in three-dimensional (3D) visualization environments. SplitVectors uses scientific notation to display vector magnitude, thus improving legibility. We present an empirical study comparing the SplitVectors approach with three other approaches - direct linear representation, logarithmic, and text display commonly used in scientific visualizations. Twenty participants performed three domain analysis tasks: reading numerical values (a discrimination task), finding the ratio between values (a discrimination task), and finding the larger of two vectors (a pattern detection task). Participants used both mono and stereo conditions. Our results suggest the following: (1) SplitVectors improve accuracy by about 10 times compared to linear mapping and by four times to logarithmic in discrimination tasks; (2) SplitVectors have no significant differences from the textual display approach, but reduce cluttering in the scene; (3) SplitVectors and textual display are less sensitive to data scale than linear and logarithmic approaches; (4) using logarithmic can be problematic as participants' confidence was as high as directly reading from the textual display, but their accuracy was poor; and (5) Stereoscopy improved performance, especially in more challenging discrimination tasks.

EVOLUTION OF CURRENTS OF OPPOSITE SIGNS IN THE FLARE-PRODUCTIVE SOLAR ACTIVE REGION NOAA 10930

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ravindra, B.; Venkatakrishnan, P.; Tiwari, Sanjiv Kumar; Bhattacharyya, R.

2011-01-01

Analysis of a time series of high spatial resolution vector magnetograms of the active region NOAA 10930 available from the Solar Optical Telescope SpectroPolarimeter on board Hinode revealed that there is a mixture of upward and downward currents in the two footpoints of an emerging flux rope. The flux emergence rate is almost the same in both the polarities. We observe that along with an increase in magnetic flux, the net current in each polarity increases initially for about three days after which it decreases. This net current is characterized by having exactly opposite signs in each polarity while its magnitude remains almost the same most of the time. The decrease of the net current in both the polarities is due to the increase of current having a sign opposite to that of the net current. The dominant current, with the same sign as the net current, is seen to increase first and then decreases during the major X-class flares. Evolution of non-dominant current appears to be a necessary condition for flare initiation. The above observations can be plausibly explained in terms of the superposition of two different force-free states resulting in a non-zero Lorentz force in the corona. This Lorentz force then pushes the coronal plasma and might facilitate the magnetic reconnection required for flares. Also, the evolution of the net current is found to follow the evolution of magnetic shear at the polarity inversion line.

Gravito-Inertial Force Resolution in Perception of Synchronized Tilt and Translation

Science.gov (United States)

Wood, Scott J.; Holly, Jan; Zhang, Guen-Lu

2011-01-01

Natural movements in the sagittal plane involve pitch tilt relative to gravity combined with translation motion. The Gravito-Inertial Force (GIF) resolution hypothesis states that the resultant force on the body is perceptually resolved into tilt and translation consistently with the laws of physics. The purpose of this study was to test this hypothesis for human perception during combined tilt and translation motion. EXPERIMENTAL METHODS: Twelve subjects provided verbal reports during 0.3 Hz motion in the dark with 4 types of tilt and/or translation motion: 1) pitch tilt about an interaural axis at +/-10deg or +/-20deg, 2) fore-aft translation with acceleration equivalent to +/-10deg or +/-20deg, 3) combined "in phase" tilt and translation motion resulting in acceleration equivalent to +/-20deg, and 4) "out of phase" tilt and translation motion that maintained the resultant gravito-inertial force aligned with the longitudinal body axis. The amplitude of perceived pitch tilt and translation at the head were obtained during separate trials. MODELING METHODS: Three-dimensional mathematical modeling was performed to test the GIF-resolution hypothesis using a dynamical model. The model encoded GIF-resolution using the standard vector equation, and used an internal model of motion parameters, including gravity. Differential equations conveyed time-varying predictions. The six motion profiles were tested, resulting in predicted perceived amplitude of tilt and translation for each. RESULTS: The modeling results exhibited the same pattern as the experimental results. Most importantly, both modeling and experimental results showed greater perceived tilt during the "in phase" profile than the "out of phase" profile, and greater perceived tilt during combined "in phase" motion than during pure tilt of the same amplitude. However, the model did not predict as much perceived translation as reported by subjects during pure tilt. CONCLUSION: Human perception is consistent with

Delta Semantics Defined By Petri Nets

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Jensen, Kurt; Kyng, Morten; Madsen, Ole Lehrmann

and the possibility of using predicates to specify state changes. In this paper a formal semantics for Delta is defined and analysed using Petri nets. Petri nets was chosen because the ideas behind Petri nets and Delta concide on several points. A number of proposals for changes in Delta, which resulted from...

ON ESTIMATING FORCE-FREENESS BASED ON OBSERVED MAGNETOGRAMS

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zhang, X. M.; Zhang, M.; Su, J. T.

2017-01-01

It is a common practice in the solar physics community to test whether or not measured photospheric or chromospheric vector magnetograms are force-free, using the Maxwell stress as a measure. Some previous studies have suggested that magnetic fields of active regions in the solar chromosphere are close to being force-free whereas there is no consistency among previous studies on whether magnetic fields of active regions in the solar photosphere are force-free or not. Here we use three kinds of representative magnetic fields (analytical force-free solutions, modeled solar-like force-free fields, and observed non-force-free fields) to discuss how measurement issues such as limited field of view (FOV), instrument sensitivity, and measurement error could affect the estimation of force-freeness based on observed magnetograms. Unlike previous studies that focus on discussing the effect of limited FOV or instrument sensitivity, our calculation shows that just measurement error alone can significantly influence the results of estimates of force-freeness, due to the fact that measurement errors in horizontal magnetic fields are usually ten times larger than those in vertical fields. This property of measurement errors, interacting with the particular form of a formula for estimating force-freeness, would result in wrong judgments of the force-freeness: a truly force-free field may be mistakenly estimated as being non-force-free and a truly non-force-free field may be estimated as being force-free. Our analysis calls for caution when interpreting estimates of force-freeness based on measured magnetograms, and also suggests that the true photospheric magnetic field may be further away from being force-free than it currently appears to be.

Coloured Petri Nets and the Invariant Method

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Jensen, Kurt

1981-01-01

processes to be described by a common subnet, without losing the ability to distinguish between them. Our generalization, called coloured Petri nets, is heavily influenced by predicate transition-nets introduced by H.J. Genrich and K. Lautenbach. Moreover our paper shows how the invariant-method, introduced...... for Petri nets by K. Lautenbach, can be generalized to coloured Petri nets....

Vectorization, parallelization and porting of nuclear codes (vectorization and parallelization). Progress report fiscal 1998

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ishizuki, Shigeru; Kawai, Wataru; Nemoto, Toshiyuki; Ogasawara, Shinobu; Kume, Etsuo; Adachi, Masaaki; Kawasaki, Nobuo; Yatake, Yo-ichi

2000-03-01

Several computer codes in the nuclear field have been vectorized, parallelized and transported on the FUJITSU VPP500 system, the AP3000 system and the Paragon system at Center for Promotion of Computational Science and Engineering in Japan Atomic Energy Research Institute. We dealt with 12 codes in fiscal 1998. These results are reported in 3 parts, i.e., the vectorization and parallelization on vector processors part, the parallelization on scalar processors part and the porting part. In this report, we describe the vectorization and parallelization on vector processors. In this vectorization and parallelization on vector processors part, the vectorization of General Tokamak Circuit Simulation Program code GTCSP, the vectorization and parallelization of Molecular Dynamics NTV (n-particle, Temperature and Velocity) Simulation code MSP2, Eddy Current Analysis code EDDYCAL, Thermal Analysis Code for Test of Passive Cooling System by HENDEL T2 code THANPACST2 and MHD Equilibrium code SELENEJ on the VPP500 are described. In the parallelization on scalar processors part, the parallelization of Monte Carlo N-Particle Transport code MCNP4B2, Plasma Hydrodynamics code using Cubic Interpolated Propagation Method PHCIP and Vectorized Monte Carlo code (continuous energy model / multi-group model) MVP/GMVP on the Paragon are described. In the porting part, the porting of Monte Carlo N-Particle Transport code MCNP4B2 and Reactor Safety Analysis code RELAP5 on the AP3000 are described. (author)

Net metering in British Columbia : white paper

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Berry, T.

2003-01-01

Net metering was described as being the reverse registration of an electricity customer's revenue meter when interconnected with a utility's grid. It is a provincial policy designed to encourage small-distributed renewable power generation such as micro-hydro, solar energy, fuel cells, and larger-scale wind energy. It was noted that interconnection standards for small generation is an important issue that must be addressed. The British Columbia Utilities Commission has asked BC Hydro to prepare a report on the merits of net metering in order to support consultations on a potential net metering tariff application by the utility. This report provides information on net metering with reference to experience in other jurisdictions with net metering, and the possible costs and benefits associated with net metering from both a utility and consumer perspective. Some of the barriers and policy considerations for successful implementation of net metering were also discussed. refs., tabs., figs

Long-lasting insecticidal nets are synergistic with mass drug administration for interruption of lymphatic filariasis transmission in Nigeria.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Abel Eigege

Full Text Available In central Nigeria Anopheles mosquitoes transmit malaria and lymphatic filariasis (LF. The strategy used for interrupting LF transmission in this area is annual mass drug administration (MDA with albendazole and ivermectin, but after 8 years of MDA, entomological evaluations in sentinel villages showed continued low-grade mosquito infection rates of 0.32%. After long-lasting insecticidal net (LLIN distribution by the national malaria program in late 2010, however, we were no longer able to detect infected vectors over a 24-month period. This is evidence that LLINs are synergistic with MDA in interrupting LF transmission.

Numerical Simulation of Plasma Actuator Using OpenFOAM

OpenAIRE

H. Yazdani; K. Ghorbanian

2016-01-01

This paper deals with modeling and simulation of the plasma actuator with OpenFOAM. Plasma actuator is one of the newest devices in flow control techniques which can delay separation by inducing external momentum to the boundary layer of the flow. The effects of the plasma actuators on the external flow are incorporated into Navier-Stokes computations as a body force vector which is obtained as a product of the net charge density and the electric field. In order to compute this body force vec...

A New Approach for Mobile Advertising Click-Through Rate Estimation Based on Deep Belief Nets.

Science.gov (United States)

Chen, Jie-Hao; Zhao, Zi-Qian; Shi, Ji-Yun; Zhao, Chong

2017-01-01

In recent years, with the rapid development of mobile Internet and its business applications, mobile advertising Click-Through Rate (CTR) estimation has become a hot research direction in the field of computational advertising, which is used to achieve accurate advertisement delivery for the best benefits in the three-side game between media, advertisers, and audiences. Current research on the estimation of CTR mainly uses the methods and models of machine learning, such as linear model or recommendation algorithms. However, most of these methods are insufficient to extract the data features and cannot reflect the nonlinear relationship between different features. In order to solve these problems, we propose a new model based on Deep Belief Nets to predict the CTR of mobile advertising, which combines together the powerful data representation and feature extraction capability of Deep Belief Nets, with the advantage of simplicity of traditional Logistic Regression models. Based on the training dataset with the information of over 40 million mobile advertisements during a period of 10 days, our experiments show that our new model has better estimation accuracy than the classic Logistic Regression (LR) model by 5.57% and Support Vector Regression (SVR) model by 5.80%.

A New Approach for Mobile Advertising Click-Through Rate Estimation Based on Deep Belief Nets

Science.gov (United States)

Zhao, Zi-Qian; Shi, Ji-Yun; Zhao, Chong

2017-01-01

In recent years, with the rapid development of mobile Internet and its business applications, mobile advertising Click-Through Rate (CTR) estimation has become a hot research direction in the field of computational advertising, which is used to achieve accurate advertisement delivery for the best benefits in the three-side game between media, advertisers, and audiences. Current research on the estimation of CTR mainly uses the methods and models of machine learning, such as linear model or recommendation algorithms. However, most of these methods are insufficient to extract the data features and cannot reflect the nonlinear relationship between different features. In order to solve these problems, we propose a new model based on Deep Belief Nets to predict the CTR of mobile advertising, which combines together the powerful data representation and feature extraction capability of Deep Belief Nets, with the advantage of simplicity of traditional Logistic Regression models. Based on the training dataset with the information of over 40 million mobile advertisements during a period of 10 days, our experiments show that our new model has better estimation accuracy than the classic Logistic Regression (LR) model by 5.57% and Support Vector Regression (SVR) model by 5.80%. PMID:29209363

Local and integral disruption forces on the tokamak wall

Science.gov (United States)

Pustovitov, V. D.; Kiramov, D. I.

2018-04-01

The disruption-induced forces on the tokamak wall are evaluated analytically within the standard large-aspect-ratio model that implies axisymmetry, circular plasma and wall, and absence of halo currents. Additionally, the ideal-wall reaction is assumed. The disruptions are modelled as rapid changes in the plasma pressure (thermal quench (TQ)) and net current (current quench (CQ)). The force distribution over the poloidal angle is found as a function of these inputs. The derived formulas allow comparison of the TQ- and CQ-produced forces calculated differently, with and without account of the poloidal current induced in the wall. The latter variant represents the inherent property of the codes treating the wall as a set of toroidal filaments. It is proved here that such a simplification leads to unacceptably large errors in the simulated forces for both TQs and CQs. It is also shown that the TQ part of the force must prevail over that due to CQ in the high-β scenarios developed for JT-60SA and ITER.

Biological Petri Nets

CERN Document Server

Wingender, E

2011-01-01

It was suggested some years ago that Petri nets might be well suited to modeling metabolic networks, overcoming some of the limitations encountered by the use of systems employing ODEs (ordinary differential equations). Much work has been done since then which confirms this and demonstrates the usefulness of this concept for systems biology. Petri net technology is not only intuitively understood by scientists trained in the life sciences, it also has a robust mathematical foundation and provides the required degree of flexibility. As a result it appears to be a very promising approach to mode

Contribution of Field Strength Gradients to the Net Vertical Current of Active Regions

Science.gov (United States)

Vemareddy, P.

2017-12-01

We examined the contribution of field strength gradients for the degree of net vertical current (NVC) neutralization in active regions (ARs). We used photospheric vector magnetic field observations of AR 11158 obtained by Helioseismic and Magnetic Imager on board SDO and Hinode. The vertical component of the electric current is decomposed into twist and shear terms. The NVC exhibits systematic evolution owing to the presence of the sheared polarity inversion line between rotating and shearing magnetic regions. We found that the sign of shear current distribution is opposite in dominant pixels (60%–65%) to that of twist current distribution, and its time profile bears no systematic trend. This result indicates that the gradient of magnetic field strength contributes to an opposite signed, though smaller in magnitude, current to that contributed by the magnetic field direction in the vertical component of the current. Consequently, the net value of the shear current is negative in both polarity regions, which when added to the net twist current reduces the direct current value in the north (B z > 0) polarity, resulting in a higher degree of NVC neutralization. We conjecture that the observed opposite signs of shear and twist currents are an indication, according to Parker, that the direct volume currents of flux tubes are canceled by their return currents, which are contributed by field strength gradients. Furthermore, with the increase of spatial resolution, we found higher values of twist, shear current distributions. However, the resolution effect is more useful in resolving the field strength gradients, and therefore suggests more contribution from shear current for the degree of NVC neutralization.

Equivalent Vectors

Science.gov (United States)

Levine, Robert

2004-01-01

The cross-product is a mathematical operation that is performed between two 3-dimensional vectors. The result is a vector that is orthogonal or perpendicular to both of them. Learning about this for the first time while taking Calculus-III, the class was taught that if AxB = AxC, it does not necessarily follow that B = C. This seemed baffling. The…

Speculative dynamic vectorization to assist static vectorization in a HW/SW co-designed environment

OpenAIRE

Kumar, R.; Martinez, A.; Gonzalez, A.

2013-01-01

Compiler based static vectorization is used widely to extract data level parallelism from computation intensive applications. Static vectorization is very effective in vectorizing traditional array based applications. However, compilers inability to reorder ambiguous memory references severely limits vectorization opportunities, especially in pointer rich applications. HW/SW co-designed processors provide an excellent opportunity to optimize the applications at runtime. The availability of dy...

Traction force dynamics predict gap formation in activated endothelium

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Valent, Erik T.; Nieuw Amerongen, Geerten P. van; Hinsbergh, Victor W.M. van; Hordijk, Peter L.

2016-01-01

In many pathological conditions the endothelium becomes activated and dysfunctional, resulting in hyperpermeability and plasma leakage. No specific therapies are available yet to control endothelial barrier function, which is regulated by inter-endothelial junctions and the generation of acto-myosin-based contractile forces in the context of cell-cell and cell-matrix interactions. However, the spatiotemporal distribution and stimulus-induced reorganization of these integral forces remain largely unknown. Traction force microscopy of human endothelial monolayers was used to visualize contractile forces in resting cells and during thrombin-induced hyperpermeability. Simultaneously, information about endothelial monolayer integrity, adherens junctions and cytoskeletal proteins (F-actin) were captured. This revealed a heterogeneous distribution of traction forces, with nuclear areas showing lower and cell-cell junctions higher traction forces than the whole-monolayer average. Moreover, junctional forces were asymmetrically distributed among neighboring cells. Force vector orientation analysis showed a good correlation with the alignment of F-actin and revealed contractile forces in newly formed filopodia and lamellipodia-like protrusions within the monolayer. Finally, unstable areas, showing high force fluctuations within the monolayer were prone to form inter-endothelial gaps upon stimulation with thrombin. To conclude, contractile traction forces are heterogeneously distributed within endothelial monolayers and force instability, rather than force magnitude, predicts the stimulus-induced formation of intercellular gaps. - Highlights: • Endothelial monolayers exert dynamic- and heterogeneous traction forces. • High traction forces correlate with junctional areas and the F-actin cytoskeleton. • Newly formed inter-endothelial gaps are characterized by opposing traction forces. • Force stability is a key feature controlling endothelial permeability.

Traction force dynamics predict gap formation in activated endothelium

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Valent, Erik T.; Nieuw Amerongen, Geerten P. van; Hinsbergh, Victor W.M. van; Hordijk, Peter L., E-mail: p.hordijk@vumc.nl

2016-09-10

In many pathological conditions the endothelium becomes activated and dysfunctional, resulting in hyperpermeability and plasma leakage. No specific therapies are available yet to control endothelial barrier function, which is regulated by inter-endothelial junctions and the generation of acto-myosin-based contractile forces in the context of cell-cell and cell-matrix interactions. However, the spatiotemporal distribution and stimulus-induced reorganization of these integral forces remain largely unknown. Traction force microscopy of human endothelial monolayers was used to visualize contractile forces in resting cells and during thrombin-induced hyperpermeability. Simultaneously, information about endothelial monolayer integrity, adherens junctions and cytoskeletal proteins (F-actin) were captured. This revealed a heterogeneous distribution of traction forces, with nuclear areas showing lower and cell-cell junctions higher traction forces than the whole-monolayer average. Moreover, junctional forces were asymmetrically distributed among neighboring cells. Force vector orientation analysis showed a good correlation with the alignment of F-actin and revealed contractile forces in newly formed filopodia and lamellipodia-like protrusions within the monolayer. Finally, unstable areas, showing high force fluctuations within the monolayer were prone to form inter-endothelial gaps upon stimulation with thrombin. To conclude, contractile traction forces are heterogeneously distributed within endothelial monolayers and force instability, rather than force magnitude, predicts the stimulus-induced formation of intercellular gaps. - Highlights: • Endothelial monolayers exert dynamic- and heterogeneous traction forces. • High traction forces correlate with junctional areas and the F-actin cytoskeleton. • Newly formed inter-endothelial gaps are characterized by opposing traction forces. • Force stability is a key feature controlling endothelial permeability.

Sonic excitation by means of ultrasound; an experimental illustration of acoustic radiation forces

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Roozen, N.B.; Nuij, P.W.J.M.

2011-01-01

Ultrasonic acoustic waves are known to induce a vibration of particles around an equilibrium position. However, for large acoustic amplitudes, due to non-linear acoustic effects, a rectified, net acoustic radiation force can occur. Experimental work is performed in which the non-linear behavior is

A brief report on the statistical study of net electric current in solar active regions with longitudinal fields of opposite polarity

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Gao Yu

2013-01-01

Dynamic processes occurring in solar active regions are dominated by the solar magnetic field. As of now, observations using a solar magnetograph have supplied us with the vector components of a solar photospheric magnetic field. The two transverse components of a photospheric magnetic field allow us to compute the amount of electric current. We found that the electric current in areas with positive (negative) polarity due to the longitudinal magnetic field have both positive and negative signs in an active region, however, the net current is found to be an order-of-magnitude less than the mean absolute magnitude and has a preferred sign. In particular, we have statistically found that there is a systematic net electric current from areas with negative (positive) polarity to areas with positive (negative) polarity in solar active regions in the northern (southern) hemisphere, but during the solar minimum this tendency is reversed over time at some latitudes. The result indicates that there is weak net electric current in areas of solar active regions with opposite polarity, thus providing further details about the hemispheric helicity rule found in a series of previous studies.

PhysioNet

Data.gov (United States)

U.S. Department of Health & Human Services — The PhysioNet Resource is intended to stimulate current research and new investigations in the study of complex biomedical and physiologic signals. It offers free...

Pro Agile NET Development with Scrum

CERN Document Server

Blankenship, Jerrel; Millett, Scott

2011-01-01

Pro Agile .NET Development with SCRUM guides you through a real-world ASP.NET project and shows how agile methodology is put into practice. There is plenty of literature on the theory behind agile methodologies, but no book on the market takes the concepts of agile practices and applies these in a practical manner to an end-to-end ASP.NET project, especially the estimating, requirements and management aspects of a project. Pro Agile .NET Development with SCRUM takes you through the initial stages of a project - gathering requirements and setting up an environment - through to the development a

How wing kinematics affect power requirements and aerodynamic force production in a robotic bat wing

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bahlman, Joseph W; Swartz, Sharon M; Breuer, Kenneth S

2014-01-01

Bats display a wide variety of behaviors that require different amounts of aerodynamic force. To control and modulate aerodynamic force, bats change wing kinematics, which, in turn, may change the power required for wing motion. There are many kinematic mechanisms that bats, and other flapping animals, can use to increase aerodynamic force, e.g. increasing wingbeat frequency or amplitude. However, we do not know if there is a difference in energetic cost between these different kinematic mechanisms. To assess the relationship between mechanical power input and aerodynamic force output across different isolated kinematic parameters, we programmed a robotic bat wing to flap over a range of kinematic parameters and measured aerodynamic force and mechanical power. We systematically varied five kinematic parameters: wingbeat frequency, wingbeat amplitude, stroke plane angle, downstroke ratio, and wing folding. Kinematic values were based on observed values from free flying Cynopterus brachyotis, the species on which the robot was based. We describe how lift, thrust, and power change with increases in each kinematic variable. We compare the power costs associated with generating additional force through the four kinematic mechanisms controlled at the shoulder, and show that all four mechanisms require approximately the same power to generate a given force. This result suggests that no single parameter offers an energetic advantage over the others. Finally, we show that retracting the wing during upstroke reduces power requirements for flapping and increases net lift production, but decreases net thrust production. These results compare well with studies performed on C. brachyotis, offering insight into natural flight kinematics. (paper)

Vectorization at the KENO-IV code

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Asai, K.; Higuchi, K.; Katakura, J.

1986-01-01

The multigroup criticality safety code KENO-IV has been vectorized and tested on the FACOM VP-100 vector processor. At first, the vectorized KENO-IV on a scalar processor was slower than the original one by a factor of 1.4 because of the overhead introduced by vectorization. Making modifications of algorithms and techniques for vectorization, the vectorized version has become faster than the original one by a factor of 1.4 on the vector processor. For further speedup of the code, some improvements on compiler and hardware, especially on addition of Monte Carlo pipelines to the vector processor, are discussed

Automatic Structure-Based Code Generation from Coloured Petri Nets

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Kristensen, Lars Michael; Westergaard, Michael

2010-01-01

Automatic code generation based on Coloured Petri Net (CPN) models is challenging because CPNs allow for the construction of abstract models that intermix control flow and data processing, making translation into conventional programming constructs difficult. We introduce Process-Partitioned CPNs...... (PP-CPNs) which is a subclass of CPNs equipped with an explicit separation of process control flow, message passing, and access to shared and local data. We show how PP-CPNs caters for a four phase structure-based automatic code generation process directed by the control flow of processes....... The viability of our approach is demonstrated by applying it to automatically generate an Erlang implementation of the Dynamic MANET On-demand (DYMO) routing protocol specified by the Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF)....

Reciprocity relationships in vector acoustics and their application to vector field calculations.

Science.gov (United States)

Deal, Thomas J; Smith, Kevin B

2017-08-01

The reciprocity equation commonly stated in underwater acoustics relates pressure fields and monopole sources. It is often used to predict the pressure measured by a hydrophone for multiple source locations by placing a source at the hydrophone location and calculating the field everywhere for that source. A similar equation that governs the orthogonal components of the particle velocity field is needed to enable this computational method to be used for acoustic vector sensors. This paper derives a general reciprocity equation that accounts for both monopole and dipole sources. This vector-scalar reciprocity equation can be used to calculate individual components of the received vector field by altering the source type used in the propagation calculation. This enables a propagation model to calculate the received vector field components for an arbitrary number of source locations with a single model run for each vector field component instead of requiring one model run for each source location. Application of the vector-scalar reciprocity principle is demonstrated with analytic solutions for a range-independent environment and with numerical solutions for a range-dependent environment using a parabolic equation model.

Vectors and their applications

CERN Document Server

Pettofrezzo, Anthony J

2005-01-01

Geared toward undergraduate students, this text illustrates the use of vectors as a mathematical tool in plane synthetic geometry, plane and spherical trigonometry, and analytic geometry of two- and three-dimensional space. Its rigorous development includes a complete treatment of the algebra of vectors in the first two chapters.Among the text's outstanding features are numbered definitions and theorems in the development of vector algebra, which appear in italics for easy reference. Most of the theorems include proofs, and coordinate position vectors receive an in-depth treatment. Key concept

KONVERGENSI DALAM PROGRAM NET CITIZEN JOURNALISM

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Rhafidilla Vebrynda

2017-06-01

Full Text Available Di dalam artikel ini, peneliti ingin melihat perkembangan teknologi di Indonesia sebagai sebuah peluang untuk menjalankan sebuah program berita berbasis video kiriman masyarakat. Perkembangan teknologi tersebut adalah teknologi penyiaran, teknologi sosial media dan teknologi dalam proses produksi sebuah video. Di Indonesia, jumlah televisi semakin banyak. Setiap stasiun televisi harus bersaing untuk dapat bertahan hidup. Net TV merupakan sebuah stasiun televisi baru di Indonesia yang harus memiliki berbagai program unggulan baru agar dapat bersaing dengan televisi lainnya yang sudah ada. Net TV menggunakan berbagai platform media untuk menjalankan program Net Citizen Journalism (Net CJ. Penggunaan berbagai platform media dikenal dengan istilah multiplatform dan secara teoritis dikenal dengan istilah konvergensi. Konvergensi yaitu saat meleburnya domain-domain dalam berbagai media komunikasi. Artikel ini menggunakan metode studi kasus untuk melihat bagaimana konvergensi terjadi dalam proses pengelolaan program Net CJ. Teknik pengumpulan data adalah dengan wawancara mendalam, observasi dan studi dokumen. Wawancara mendalam dilakukan dari tiga sudut pandang yaitu dari pengelola program, pengguna/audience dan pengamat media. Penelitian ini menemukan bahwa dengan menggunakan berbagai platform media yang fungsinya berbeda, memiliki satu tujuan yang sama yaitu untuk menjalankan program Net CJ. Adapun berbagai platform dalam proses produksi program yaitu tayangan TV konvensional, streaming TV, website, aplikasi Net CJ, facebook, twitter, instagram dan path. Konvergensi media dijalankan dalam dua proses, yaitu proses produksi dan proses promosi program berita.

Implications of bio-efficacy and persistence of insecticides when indoor residual spraying and long-lasting insecticide nets are combined for malaria prevention

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)