Credibility improves topical blog post retrieval

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Weerkamp, W.; de Rijke, M.

2008-01-01

Topical blog post retrieval is the task of ranking blog posts with respect to their relevance for a given topic. To improve topical blog post retrieval we incorporate textual credibility indicators in the retrieval process. We consider two groups of indicators: post level (determined using

National Bioenergy Center - Biochemical Platform Integration Project: Quarterly Update, Winter 2010

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Schell, D.

2011-02-01

Winter 2011 edition of the National Bioenergy Center's Biochemical Platform Integration Project quarterly newsletter. Issue topics: 33rd Symposium on Biotechnology for Fuels and Chemicals program topic areas; results from reactive membrane extraction of inhibitors from dilute-acid pretreated corn stover; list of 2010 task publications.

Topic models for conference session assignment: organising PRASA 2014(5)

CSIR Research Space (South Africa)

Burke, Michael G

2015-11-01

Full Text Available Conference scheduling and organising is a particularly laborious task and can be exteremely time consuming. While many online conference platforms allow manual topic selection, these can be expensive and typically still require that individual...

Mobile Platforms and Development Environments

CERN Document Server

Helal, Sumi; Li, Wengdong

2012-01-01

Mobile platform development has lately become a technological war zone with extremely dynamic and fluid movement, especially in the smart phone and tablet market space. This Synthesis lecture is a guide to the latest developments of the key mobile platforms that are shaping the mobile platform industry. The book covers the three currently dominant native platforms -- iOS, Android and Windows Phone -- along with the device-agnostic HTML5 mobile web platform. The lecture also covers location-based services (LBS) which can be considered as a platform in its own right. The lecture utilizes a sampl

Experiment Based Teaching of Solar Cell Operation and Characterization Using the SolarLab Platform

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Spataru, Sergiu; Sera, Dezso; Kerekes, Tamas

2014-01-01

interfaces for exploring different solar cell principles and topics. The exercises presented in the current paper have been adapted from the original exercises developed for the SolarLab platform and are currently included in the Photovoltaic Power Systems courses (MSc and PhD level) taught at the Department...... which is a laboratory teaching tool developed at Transylvania University of Brasov. Using this platform, solar cells can be characterized under various illumination, temperature and angle of light incidence. Additionally, the SolarLab platform includes guided exercises and intuitive graphical user......Experiment based teaching methods are a great way to get students involved and interested in almost any topic. This paper presents such a hands-on approach for teaching solar cell operation principles along with characterization and modelling methods. This is achieved with the SolarLab platform...

Considering Student Coaching

Science.gov (United States)

Keen, James P.

2014-01-01

What does student coaching involve and what considerations make sense in deciding to engage an outside contractor to provide personal coaching? The author explores coaching in light of his own professional experience and uses this reflection as a platform from which to consider the pros and cons of student coaching when deciding whether to choose…

Topics in quantum field theory

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Dams, C.J.F.

2006-01-01

In this PhD-thesis some topics in quantum field theory are considered. The first chapter gives a background to these topics. The second chapter discusses renormalization. In particular it is shown how loop calculations can be performed when using the axial gauge fixing. Fermion creation and

The Moodle platform in atypical mathematics university courses

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Luciana Zuccheri

2011-12-01

Full Text Available Report on experiences using the Moodle e-learning platform for university courses in mathematics history, mathematics education and teacher education. The objective was to stimulate students’ interest, develop their capacity to analyse topics in-depth, and foster their cooperation.

Topical Medical Cannabis: A New Treatment for Wound Pain-Three Cases of Pyoderma Gangrenosum.

Science.gov (United States)

Maida, Vincent; Corban, Jason

2017-11-01

Pain associated with integumentary wounds is highly prevalent, yet it remains an area of significant unmet need within health care. Currently, systemically administered opioids are the mainstay of treatment. However, recent publications are casting opioids in a negative light given their high side effect profile, inhibition of wound healing, and association with accidental overdose, incidents that are frequently fatal. Thus, novel analgesic strategies for wound-related pain need to be investigated. The ideal methods of pain relief for wound patients are modalities that are topical, lack systemic side effects, noninvasive, self-administered, and display rapid onset of analgesia. Extracts derived from the cannabis plant have been applied to wounds for thousands of years. The discovery of the human endocannabinoid system and its dominant presence throughout the integumentary system provides a valid and logical scientific platform to consider the use of topical cannabinoids for wounds. We are reporting a prospective case series of three patients with pyoderma gangrenosum that were treated with topical medical cannabis compounded in nongenetically modified organic sunflower oil. Clinically significant analgesia that was associated with reduced opioid utilization was noted in all three cases. Topical medical cannabis has the potential to improve pain management in patients suffering from wounds of all classes. Copyright © 2017 American Academy of Hospice and Palliative Medicine. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

How Digital Are the Digital Humanities? An Analysis of Two Scholarly Blogging Platforms

Science.gov (United States)

Puschmann, Cornelius; Bastos, Marco

2015-01-01

In this paper we compare two academic networking platforms, HASTAC and Hypotheses, to show the distinct ways in which they serve specific communities in the Digital Humanities (DH) in different national and disciplinary contexts. After providing background information on both platforms, we apply co-word analysis and topic modeling to show thematic similarities and differences between the two sites, focusing particularly on how they frame DH as a new paradigm in humanities research. We encounter a much higher ratio of posts using humanities-related terms compared to their digital counterparts, suggesting a one-way dependency of digital humanities-related terms on the corresponding unprefixed labels. The results also show that the terms digital archive, digital literacy, and digital pedagogy are relatively independent from the respective unprefixed terms, and that digital publishing, digital libraries, and digital media show considerable cross-pollination between the specialization and the general noun. The topic modeling reproduces these findings and reveals further differences between the two platforms. Our findings also indicate local differences in how the emerging field of DH is conceptualized and show dynamic topical shifts inside these respective contexts. PMID:25675441

Hierarchical DSE for multi-ASIP platforms

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Micconi, Laura; Corvino, Rosilde; Gangadharan, Deepak

2013-01-01

This work proposes a hierarchical Design Space Exploration (DSE) for the design of multi-processor platforms targeted to specific applications with strict timing and area constraints. In particular, it considers platforms integrating multiple Application Specific Instruction Set Processors (ASIPs...

Developing a New Wireless Sensor Network Platform and Its Application in Precision Agriculture

Science.gov (United States)

Aquino-Santos, Raúl; González-Potes, Apolinar; Edwards-Block, Arthur; Virgen-Ortiz, Raúl Alejandro

2011-01-01

Wireless sensor networks are gaining greater attention from the research community and industrial professionals because these small pieces of “smart dust” offer great advantages due to their small size, low power consumption, easy integration and support for “green” applications. Green applications are considered a hot topic in intelligent environments, ubiquitous and pervasive computing. This work evaluates a new wireless sensor network platform and its application in precision agriculture, including its embedded operating system and its routing algorithm. To validate the technological platform and the embedded operating system, two different routing strategies were compared: hierarchical and flat. Both of these routing algorithms were tested in a small-scale network applied to a watermelon field. However, we strongly believe that this technological platform can be also applied to precision agriculture because it incorporates a modified version of LORA-CBF, a wireless location-based routing algorithm that uses cluster-based flooding. Cluster-based flooding addresses the scalability concerns of wireless sensor networks, while the modified LORA-CBF routing algorithm includes a metric to monitor residual battery energy. Furthermore, results show that the modified version of LORA-CBF functions well with both the flat and hierarchical algorithms, although it functions better with the flat algorithm in a small-scale agricultural network. PMID:22346622

Developing a new wireless sensor network platform and its application in precision agriculture.

Science.gov (United States)

Aquino-Santos, Raúl; González-Potes, Apolinar; Edwards-Block, Arthur; Virgen-Ortiz, Raúl Alejandro

2011-01-01

Wireless sensor networks are gaining greater attention from the research community and industrial professionals because these small pieces of "smart dust" offer great advantages due to their small size, low power consumption, easy integration and support for "green" applications. Green applications are considered a hot topic in intelligent environments, ubiquitous and pervasive computing. This work evaluates a new wireless sensor network platform and its application in precision agriculture, including its embedded operating system and its routing algorithm. To validate the technological platform and the embedded operating system, two different routing strategies were compared: hierarchical and flat. Both of these routing algorithms were tested in a small-scale network applied to a watermelon field. However, we strongly believe that this technological platform can be also applied to precision agriculture because it incorporates a modified version of LORA-CBF, a wireless location-based routing algorithm that uses cluster-based flooding. Cluster-based flooding addresses the scalability concerns of wireless sensor networks, while the modified LORA-CBF routing algorithm includes a metric to monitor residual battery energy. Furthermore, results show that the modified version of LORA-CBF functions well with both the flat and hierarchical algorithms, although it functions better with the flat algorithm in a small-scale agricultural network.

Research on University Network Teaching Platform (Blackboard in Teaching Management

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Gou Zhao Xia

2016-01-01

Full Text Available With rapid development of online education; teaching platform based on the network, as a new instructional mode has become a hot topic in online teaching. In this paper, the he teaching situation and existing problems on online was analyzed by comparing the difference between network teaching platform and traditional classroom teaching. Then the strategies of network teaching management and the case, which is focusing on the characteristics of Blackboard with the application of network teaching management was presents.

A new e-learning platform for radiology education (RadEd).

Science.gov (United States)

Xiberta, Pau; Boada, Imma

2016-04-01

One of the key elements of e-learning platforms is the content provided to the students. Content creation is a time demanding task that requires teachers to prepare material taking into account that it will be accessed on-line. Moreover, the teacher is restricted by the functionalities provided by the e-learning platforms. In contexts such as radiology where images have a key role, the required functionalities are still more specific and difficult to be provided by these platforms. Our purpose is to create a framework to make teacher's tasks easier, specially when he has to deal with contents where images have a main role. In this paper, we present RadEd, a new web-based teaching framework that integrates a smart editor to create case-based exercises that support image interaction such as changing the window width and the grey scale used to render the image, taking measurements on the image, attaching labels to images and selecting parts of the images, amongst others. It also provides functionalities to prepare courses with different topics, exercises and theory material, and also functionalities to control students' work. Different experts have used RadEd and all of them have considered it a very useful and valuable tool to prepare courses where radiological images are the main component. RadEd provides teachers functionalities to prepare more realistic cases and students the ability to make a more specific diagnosis. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

Deep Belief Nets for Topic Modeling

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Maaløe, Lars; Arngren, Morten; Winther, Ole

2015-01-01

-formative. In this paper we describe large-scale content based collaborative filtering for digital publishing. To solve the digital publishing recommender problem we compare two approaches: latent Dirichlet allocation (LDA) and deep be-lief nets (DBN) that both find low-dimensional latent representations for documents....... Efficient retrieval can be carried out in the latent representation. We work both on public benchmarks and digital media content provided by Issuu, an on-line publishing platform. This article also comes with a newly developed deep belief nets toolbox for topic modeling tailored towards performance...

Investigating Online Destination Images Using a Topic-Based Sentiment Analysis Approach

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Gang Ren

2017-09-01

Full Text Available With the development of Web 2.0, many studies have tried to analyze tourist behavior utilizing user-generated contents. The primary purpose of this study is to propose a topic-based sentiment analysis approach, including a polarity classification and an emotion classification. We use the Latent Dirichlet Allocation model to extract topics from online travel review data and analyze the sentiments and emotions for each topic with our proposed approach. The top frequent words are extracted for each topic from online reviews on Ctrip.com. By comparing the relative importance of each topic, we conclude that many tourists prefer to provide “suggestion” reviews. In particular, we propose a new approach to classify the emotions of online reviews at the topic level utilizing an emotion lexicon, focusing on specific emotions to analyze customer complaints. The results reveal that attraction “management” obtains most complaints. These findings may provide useful insights for the development of attractions and the measurement of online destination image. Our proposed method can be used to analyze reviews from many online platforms and domains.

Benchmarking computer platforms for lattice QCD applications

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hasenbusch, M.; Jansen, K.; Pleiter, D.; Stueben, H.; Wegner, P.; Wettig, T.; Wittig, H.

2004-01-01

We define a benchmark suite for lattice QCD and report on benchmark results from several computer platforms. The platforms considered are apeNEXT, CRAY T3E; Hitachi SR8000, IBM p690, PC-Clusters, and QCDOC

Benchmarking computer platforms for lattice QCD applications

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hasenbusch, M.; Jansen, K.; Pleiter, D.; Wegner, P.; Wettig, T.

2003-09-01

We define a benchmark suite for lattice QCD and report on benchmark results from several computer platforms. The platforms considered are apeNEXT, CRAY T3E, Hitachi SR8000, IBM p690, PC-Clusters, and QCDOC. (orig.)

The Creative Platform

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Byrge, Christian; Hansen, Søren

whether you consider thirdgrade teaching, human-resource development, or radical new thinking in product development in a company. The Creative Platform was developed at Aalborg University through a series of research-and-development activities in collaboration with educational institutions and private...

e-Citizens’ Perspectives about Education on the ‘Debating Europe’ Platform

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mihaela Păun

2017-07-01

Full Text Available In order to have a stronger relation with the citizens, the governments, in this case the institutions of European Union, created media platforms. In the context of the European (digitalized global village (Ciastellardi, Patti, 2011, p. 15, all public institutions, especially the European Union’s agencies, directorates and units needed to enhance their online visibility through a complex array of communication platforms – websites, webcast portals, social media pages or any other type of virtual platforms - websites, webcast portals, social media pages or any other type of virtual platforms -, thus converting the offline motto “United in diversity” in a virtual unity in diversity. Responding to the evolution of information and communication technologies (ICTs, the platform www.debatingeurope.eu was launched in September 2011 by the Brussels-based think tank Friends of Europe and Europe’s World, the only Europe-wide policy journal, in partnership with the European Parliament, Microsoft and Gallup, “to encourage a genuine conversation between Europe’s politicians and the citizens they serve – and that means taking YOUR questions, comments and ideas directly to policy makers for them to respond” . Starting from the objective of the platform, I focused this research on one of the six channels of ‘Debating Europe’, namely “Smarter Europe” to find the specific frames that e-citizens – the public, PR specialists, officials or analysts - may present, interpret and assign to the specific topics, policies, and directives of the European Union. My study will examine the most relevant frames and issues associated with education in Europe, the most commented topics and their relevance in accordance with the political and social problems of European Union.

Neutron spectroscopy, nuclear structure, related topics. Abstracts

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sukhovoj, A.M.

1996-01-01

Neutron spectroscopy, nuclear structure and related topics are considered. P, T-breaking, neutron beta decay, neutron radiative capture and neutron polarizability are discussed. Reaction with fast neutrons, methodical aspect low-energy fission are considered too

Rebalancing interests and power structures on crowdworking platforms

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ayad Al-Ani

2016-06-01

Full Text Available Crowdwork on virtual platforms is developing into a recognisable employment and business model on the internet. Despite their many differences, the platforms that have emerged over the last few years have one thing in common: a crowd of individual producers and capabilities is mobilised – in the form of labour, accommodation or durable goods – onto the market in cooperation and competition with firms from traditional industries. This study analyses the factors crowdworkers consider relevant in their work and the measures they view as helpful in improving their working relationship with platforms. It is apparent that, in the best tradition of the peer economy, this new type of worker still considers learning and fun important factors for his or her engagement. Despite these effectively intrinsic factors, workers are quite aware of their situation, which does not put them on equal terms with the platform’s algorithms and customer focus. This awareness of power disparities does not lead them, however, to reconsider their effectiveness when it comes to renegotiating terms with the platform: when specifically asked about the role of unions, the majority of crowdworkers did not expect help in self-organisation from these institutions. Considering the difficulties in regulating the market for platforms, (self- organisation of crowdworkers, however, is an important prerequisite in rebalancing the power structure dominated by platform owners and their customers. Self-organisation is something digital natives are quite familiar with and we have to assume that crowdworkers are perhaps overconfident in their abilities. And due to the novelty of this industry, this confidence has not been shaken yet by labour disputes or even by growing dissatisfaction with platforms.

Radiographic inspection on offshore platforms

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Soares, Sergio Damasceno; Sperandio, Augusto Gasparoni

1994-01-01

One of the great challenges for non-destructive inspection is on offshore platforms, where safety is a critical issue. Inspection by gammagraphy is practically forbidden on the platform deck due to problems to personnel safety and radiological protection. Ir-192 sources are used and the risk of an accident with loss of radioisotope must be considered. It is unfeasible to use gammagraphy, because in case of an accident the rapid evacuation from the platform would be impossible. This problem does not occur when X-ray equipment is used as the radiation source. The limited practicality and portability of the X-ray equipment have prevented its use as a replacement for the gammagraphy. This paper presents the preliminary tests to see the viable use of radiographic tests with constant potential on offshore platforms. (author). 2 refs., 1 fig., 2 tabs, 3 photos

Long Read Alignment with Parallel MapReduce Cloud Platform

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ahmed Abdulhakim Al-Absi

2015-01-01

Full Text Available Genomic sequence alignment is an important technique to decode genome sequences in bioinformatics. Next-Generation Sequencing technologies produce genomic data of longer reads. Cloud platforms are adopted to address the problems arising from storage and analysis of large genomic data. Existing genes sequencing tools for cloud platforms predominantly consider short read gene sequences and adopt the Hadoop MapReduce framework for computation. However, serial execution of map and reduce phases is a problem in such systems. Therefore, in this paper, we introduce Burrows-Wheeler Aligner’s Smith-Waterman Alignment on Parallel MapReduce (BWASW-PMR cloud platform for long sequence alignment. The proposed cloud platform adopts a widely accepted and accurate BWA-SW algorithm for long sequence alignment. A custom MapReduce platform is developed to overcome the drawbacks of the Hadoop framework. A parallel execution strategy of the MapReduce phases and optimization of Smith-Waterman algorithm are considered. Performance evaluation results exhibit an average speed-up of 6.7 considering BWASW-PMR compared with the state-of-the-art Bwasw-Cloud. An average reduction of 30% in the map phase makespan is reported across all experiments comparing BWASW-PMR with Bwasw-Cloud. Optimization of Smith-Waterman results in reducing the execution time by 91.8%. The experimental study proves the efficiency of BWASW-PMR for aligning long genomic sequences on cloud platforms.

Long Read Alignment with Parallel MapReduce Cloud Platform

Science.gov (United States)

Al-Absi, Ahmed Abdulhakim; Kang, Dae-Ki

2015-01-01

Genomic sequence alignment is an important technique to decode genome sequences in bioinformatics. Next-Generation Sequencing technologies produce genomic data of longer reads. Cloud platforms are adopted to address the problems arising from storage and analysis of large genomic data. Existing genes sequencing tools for cloud platforms predominantly consider short read gene sequences and adopt the Hadoop MapReduce framework for computation. However, serial execution of map and reduce phases is a problem in such systems. Therefore, in this paper, we introduce Burrows-Wheeler Aligner's Smith-Waterman Alignment on Parallel MapReduce (BWASW-PMR) cloud platform for long sequence alignment. The proposed cloud platform adopts a widely accepted and accurate BWA-SW algorithm for long sequence alignment. A custom MapReduce platform is developed to overcome the drawbacks of the Hadoop framework. A parallel execution strategy of the MapReduce phases and optimization of Smith-Waterman algorithm are considered. Performance evaluation results exhibit an average speed-up of 6.7 considering BWASW-PMR compared with the state-of-the-art Bwasw-Cloud. An average reduction of 30% in the map phase makespan is reported across all experiments comparing BWASW-PMR with Bwasw-Cloud. Optimization of Smith-Waterman results in reducing the execution time by 91.8%. The experimental study proves the efficiency of BWASW-PMR for aligning long genomic sequences on cloud platforms. PMID:26839887

The use of platform dampers to reduce turbine blade vibrations

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Jareland, Martin H.

2001-07-01

Friction damping is commonly used in jet engines to reduce the vibration level of the blades and thereby increase the reliability of the engine. This thesis deals with a specific type of friction damper denoted platform damper, which is frequently used in turbine stages. A platform damper is a piece of metal located in a cavity underneath two adjacent blade platforms. It is pressed against the platforms by centrifugal force and friction forces arise in the contacts when a relative motion between the platforms occurs. In this thesis, a number of phenomena regarding platform dampers are investigated and discussed. This is performed both experimentally and theoretically. In the simulations, friction interface models valid for both macroslip and microslip are used. Macroslip means that slipping occurs in the whole contact interface and microslip means that slipping occurs in only part of the interface. The latter is most likely in the contacts between the platform damper and the blade platforms due to the high normal force and the small motions. The first paper deals with mistuning of bladed disks due to variations in the properties of the platform dampers and the closely related topic wear of the dampers. This study indicates that damper mistuning can greatly affect the blade vibrations and that damper and blade mistuning constitutes a more severe case than blade mistuning alone. It is also found that wear of the contact areas can lead either to an increase or decrease in the resonance amplitude of the blades in the studied configuration. In the second paper, so-called cottage-roof dampers are studied. Cottage-roof dampers are a type of platform damper with inclined contact surfaces. The inclination leads to a varying normal load, which complicates the analysis. A model including this effect is presented and simulations are performed both in the time and frequency domain. A parametric study is performed with the aim of finding the optimal damper design with respect to

Trust Levels Definition On Virtual Learning Platforms Through Semantic Languages

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Carlos E. Montenegro-Marin

2010-12-01

Full Text Available Trust level concept is a topic that has opened a knowledge area about the profile evaluation and the people participation in Social Networks. These have presented a high knowledge profit, but at the same time it is necessary to analyze a group of variables to determine the trust participants’ degree.In addition, this is a topic that from some years ago has been presenting a big expectation to settle some alternatives to generate confidence in an activer community on internet. To establish these parameters it is important to define a model to abstract some variables that are involved in this process. For this, it is relevant to take into account the semantic languages as one of the alternatives that allow these kinds of activities. The purpose of this article is to analyze the Trust Levels definition in the contents that are shared on Open Source Virtual learning Platforms through the use of a model of representation of semantic languages. The last ones allow determining the trust in the use of learning objects that are shared in this kind of platforms

Secure smart embedded devices, platforms and applications

CERN Document Server

Markantonakis, Konstantinos

2013-01-01

New generations of IT users are increasingly abstracted from the underlying devices and platforms that provide and safeguard their services. As a result they may have little awareness that they are critically dependent on the embedded security devices that are becoming pervasive in daily modern life. Secure Smart Embedded Devices, Platforms and Applications provides a broad overview of the many security and practical issues of embedded devices, tokens, and their operation systems, platforms and main applications. It also addresses a diverse range of industry/government initiatives and consider

A Model Collaborative Platform for Geoscience Education

Science.gov (United States)

Fox, S.; Manduca, C. A.; Iverson, E. A.

2012-12-01

Over the last decade SERC at Carleton College has developed a collaborative platform for geoscience education that has served dozens of projects, thousands of community authors and millions of visitors. The platform combines a custom technical infrastructure: the SERC Content Management system (CMS), and a set of strategies for building web-resources that can be disseminated through a project site, reused by other projects (with attribution) or accessed via an integrated geoscience education resource drawing from all projects using the platform. The core tools of the CMS support geoscience education projects in building project-specific websites. Each project uses the CMS to engage their specific community in collecting, authoring and disseminating the materials of interest to them. At the same time the use of a shared central infrastructure allows cross-fertilization among these project websites. Projects are encouraged to use common templates and common controlled vocabularies for organizing and displaying their resources. This standardization is then leveraged through cross-project search indexing which allow projects to easily incorporate materials from other projects within their own collection in ways that are relevant and automated. A number of tools are also in place to help visitors move among project websites based on their personal interests. Related links help visitors discover content related topically to their current location that is in a 'separate' project. A 'best bets' feature in search helps guide visitors to pages that are good starting places to explore resources on a given topic across the entire range of hosted projects. In many cases these are 'site guide' pages created specifically to promote a cross-project view of the available resources. In addition to supporting the cross-project exploration of specific themes the CMS also allows visitors to view the combined suite of resources authored by any particular community member. Automatically

[Dental education for college students based on WeChat public platform].

Science.gov (United States)

Chen, Chuan-Jun; Sun, Tan

2016-06-01

The authors proposed a model for dental education based on WeChat public platform. In this model, teachers send various kinds of digital teaching information such as PPT，word and video to the WeChat public platform and students share the information for preview before class and differentiate the key-point knowledge from those information for in-depth learning in class. Teachers also send reference materials for expansive learning after class. Questionaire through the WeChat public platform is used to evaluate teaching effect of teachers and improvement may be taken based on the feedback questionnaire. A discussion and interaction based on WeCchat between students and teacher can be aroused on a specific topic to reach a proper solution. With technique development of mobile terminal, mobile class will come true in near future.

Task-Driven Comparison of Topic Models.

Science.gov (United States)

Alexander, Eric; Gleicher, Michael

2016-01-01

Topic modeling, a method of statistically extracting thematic content from a large collection of texts, is used for a wide variety of tasks within text analysis. Though there are a growing number of tools and techniques for exploring single models, comparisons between models are generally reduced to a small set of numerical metrics. These metrics may or may not reflect a model's performance on the analyst's intended task, and can therefore be insufficient to diagnose what causes differences between models. In this paper, we explore task-centric topic model comparison, considering how we can both provide detail for a more nuanced understanding of differences and address the wealth of tasks for which topic models are used. We derive comparison tasks from single-model uses of topic models, which predominantly fall into the categories of understanding topics, understanding similarity, and understanding change. Finally, we provide several visualization techniques that facilitate these tasks, including buddy plots, which combine color and position encodings to allow analysts to readily view changes in document similarity.

REVEAL: Software Documentation and Platform Migration

Science.gov (United States)

Wilson, Michael A.; Veibell, Victoir T.; Freudinger, Lawrence C.

2008-01-01

The Research Environment for Vehicle Embedded Analysis on Linux (REVEAL) is reconfigurable data acquisition software designed for network-distributed test and measurement applications. In development since 2001, it has been successfully demonstrated in support of a number of actual missions within NASA s Suborbital Science Program. Improvements to software configuration control were needed to properly support both an ongoing transition to operational status and continued evolution of REVEAL capabilities. For this reason the project described in this report targets REVEAL software source documentation and deployment of the software on a small set of hardware platforms different from what is currently used in the baseline system implementation. This report specifically describes the actions taken over a ten week period by two undergraduate student interns and serves as a final report for that internship. The topics discussed include: the documentation of REVEAL source code; the migration of REVEAL to other platforms; and an end-to-end field test that successfully validates the efforts.

OnCampus: a mobile platform towards a smart campus.

Science.gov (United States)

Dong, Xin; Kong, Xiangjie; Zhang, Fulin; Chen, Zhen; Kang, Jialiang

2016-01-01

An increasing number of researchers and practitioners are working to develop smart cities. Considerable attention has been paid to the college campus as it is an important component of smart cities. Consequently, the question of how to construct a smart campus has become a topical one. Here, we propose a scheme that can facilitate the construction of a smart and friendly campus. We primarily focus on three aspects of smart campuses. These are: the formation of social circles based on interests mining, the provision of educational guidance based on emotion analysis of information posted on a platform, and development of a secondary trading platform aimed at optimizing the allocation of campus resources. Based on these objectives, we designed and implemented a mobile platform called OnCampus as the first step towards the development of a smart campus that has been introduced in some colleges. We found that OnCampus could successfully accomplish the three above mentioned functions of a smart campus.

Topics in elementary particle physics

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Dugan, M.J.

1985-01-01

Topics in elementary particle physics are discussed. Models with N = 2 supersymmetry are constructed. The CP violation properties of a class of N = 1 supergravity models are analyzed. The structure of a composite Higgs model is investigated. The implications of a 17 keV neutrino are considered

Designing algorithm visualization on mobile platform: The proposed guidelines

Science.gov (United States)

Supli, A. A.; Shiratuddin, N.

2017-09-01

This paper entails an ongoing study about the design guidelines of algorithm visualization (AV) on mobile platform, helping students learning data structures and algorithm (DSA) subject effectively. Our previous review indicated that design guidelines of AV on mobile platform are still few. Mostly, previous guidelines of AV are developed for AV on desktop and website platform. In fact, mobile learning has been proved to enhance engagement in learning circumstances, and thus effect student's performance. In addition, the researchers highly recommend including UI design and Interactivity in designing effective AV system. However, the discussions of these two aspects in previous AV design guidelines are not comprehensive. The UI design in this paper describes the arrangement of AV features in mobile environment, whereas interactivity is about the active learning strategy features based on learning experiences (how to engage learners). Thus, this study main objective is to propose design guidelines of AV on mobile platform (AVOMP) that entails comprehensively UI design and interactivity aspects. These guidelines are developed through content analysis and comparative analysis from various related studies. These guidelines are useful for AV designers to help them constructing AVOMP for various topics on DSA.

An Investigation of Digital Payment Platform Designs

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Kazan, Erol; Damsgaard, Jan

2014-01-01

This paper focuses on the triumph march of mobile phones that currently are annexing music players, navigation devices, and cameras as separate physical objects. The next target is set on payment. Through synthesizing available literature, we construct a framework for studying digital payment...... platforms that combines platform, technology and business design aspects. The framework is applied to conduct a comparative case study of digital payment platforms. Four types of market actors are considered: banks, mobile network operators, merchants, and startups, which are incumbents and disrupters....... By hosting third-party services, payment instruments are evolving from single-purpose to multi-functional ones. Our research extends existing payment literature from the MSP perspective to emphasize certain digital payment platform components, which impact strategies and complementary products....

Platform driven development of product families : linking theory with practice

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Vuuren, van W.; Halman, J.I.M.

2001-01-01

Firms in most industries increasingly are considering platform-based approaches to reduce complexity and better leverage investments in product design, manufacturing and marketing. Literature addresses a variety of concepts related to platform thinking: component standardization, product

Intelligent Tools for Building a Scientific Information Platform

CERN Document Server

Skonieczny, Lukasz; Rybiński, Henryk; Niezgodka, Marek

2012-01-01

This book is a selection of results obtained within one year of research performed under SYNAT - a nation-wide scientific project aiming to create an infrastructure for scientific content storage and sharing for academia, education and open knowledge society in Poland. The selection refers to the research in artificial intelligence, knowledge discovery and data mining, information retrieval and natural language processing, addressing the problems of implementing intelligent tools for building a scientific information platform. The idea of this book is based on the very successful SYNAT Project Conference and the SYNAT Workshop accompanying the 19th International Symposium on Methodologies for Intelligent Systems (ISMIS 2011). The papers included in this book present an overview and insight into such topics as architecture of scientific information platforms, semantic clustering, ontology-based systems, as well as, multimedia data processing.

Towards A Framework of Digital Payment Platform Design

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Kazan, Erol; Damsgaard, Jan

This paper focuses on the triumph march of mobile phones that currently are annexing music players, navigation devices, and cameras as separate physical objects. The next target is set on payment. Through synthesizing available literature, we construct a framework for studying digital payment...... platforms that combines platform, technology and business design aspects. The framework is applied to conduct a comparative case study of digital payment platforms. Four types of market actors are considered: banks, mobile network operators, merchants, and startups, which are incumbents and disrupters....... By hosting third-party services, payment instruments are evolving from single-purpose to multi-functional ones. Our research extends existing payment literature from the MSP perspective to emphasize certain digital payment platform components, which impact strategies and complementary products....

Development and Application of POSAFE-Q PLC Platform

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lee, MyeongKyun; Song, SeungWhan; Yun, DongHwa

2012-01-01

The Safety-grade Programmable Logic Controller (PLC) Platform named POSAFE-Q was developed so that it meets the requirements of the Safety Class 1E, Quality Class 1, and Seismic Category I. Development process of the POSAFE-Q software developed in accordance with software life cycles. The POSAFE-Q meets safety and suitability for design are based on digital I and C laws, guidelines and technical standards. The POSAFE-Q PLC obtained approval for Topical Report from the Nuclear Safety and Security Commission in Korea. (author)

Topical melatonin for treatment of androgenetic alopecia.

Science.gov (United States)

Fischer, Tobias W; Trüeb, Ralph M; Hänggi, Gabriella; Innocenti, Marcello; Elsner, Peter

2012-10-01

In the search for alternative agents to oral finasteride and topical minoxidil for the treatment of androgenetic alopecia (AGA), melatonin, a potent antioxidant and growth modulator, was identified as a promising candidate based on in vitro and in vivo studies. One pharmacodynamic study on topical application of melatonin and four clinical pre-post studies were performed in patients with androgenetic alopecia or general hair loss and evaluated by standardised questionnaires, TrichoScan, 60-second hair count test and hair pull test. FIVE CLINICAL STUDIES SHOWED POSITIVE EFFECTS OF A TOPICAL MELATONIN SOLUTION IN THE TREATMENT OF AGA IN MEN AND WOMEN WHILE SHOWING GOOD TOLERABILITY: (1) Pharmacodynamics under once-daily topical application in the evening showed no significant influence on endogenous serum melatonin levels. (2) An observational study involving 30 men and women showed a significant reduction in the degree of severity of alopecia after 30 and 90 days (P melatonin solution can be considered as a treatment option in androgenetic alopecia.

Central Vehicle Dynamics Control of the Robotic Research Platform ROboMObil

OpenAIRE

Bünte, Tilman; Ho, Lok Man; Satzger, Clemens; Brembeck, Jonathan

2014-01-01

The ROboMObil is DLR’s space-robotics driven by-wire electro-mobile research platform for mechatronic actuators, vehicle dynamics control, human machine interfaces, and autonomous driving (DLR = German Aerospace Center). Due to its four highly integrated identical Wheel Robots it exhibits an extraordinary manoeuvrability even allowing for driving sideward or rotating on the spot. Topics related to vehicle dynamics control are addressed in this article.

Usability of an internet-based platform (Next.Step for adolescent weight management

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Pedro Sousa

2015-02-01

Full Text Available OBJECTIVE: The current study evaluates the usability perception of an e-therapeutic platform (supported by electronic processes and communication, aiming to promote the behavior change and to improve the adolescent health status through increased and interactive contact between the adolescent and the clinical staff. METHODS: This was a correlational study with a sample of 48 adolescents (12-18 years who attended a Pediatric Obesity Clinic between January and August of 2012. Participants were invited to access, during 24 weeks, the e-therapeutic multidisciplinary platform (Next.Step in addition to the standard treatment program. A usability questionnaire was administered and the platform performance and utilization indicators were analyzed. RESULTS: The users' perception of satisfaction, efficiency, and effectiveness regarding the Next.Step platform was clearly positive. However, only 54.17% of the enrolled adolescents accessed the platform, with a mean task-completion rate of 14.55% (SD = 18.853. The higher the number of the platform consulted resources, the greater the tendency to enjoy the platform, to consider it exciting and quick, to consider that the time spent in it was useful, to consider the access to information easy, and to login easier. Post-intervention assessment revealed a significant reduction in anthropometric and behavioral variables, including body mass index z-score, waist circumference percentile, hip circumference, and weekly screen time. CONCLUSION: These results highlight the importance of information and communication technologies in the health information access and the healthcare provision. Despite the limited adherence rate, platform users expressed a positive overall perception of its usability and presented a positive anthropometric and behavioral progress.

PREDIRCAM eHealth platform for individualized telemedical assistance for lifestyle modification in the treatment of obesity, diabetes, and cardiometabolic risk prevention: a pilot study (PREDIRCAM 1).

Science.gov (United States)

González, Cintia; Herrero, Pau; Cubero, José M; Iniesta, José M; Hernando, M Elena; García-Sáez, Gema; Serrano, Alvaro J; Martinez-Sarriegui, Iñaki; Perez-Gandia, Carmen; Gómez, Enrique J; Rubinat, Esther; Alcantara, Valeria; Brugués, Eulalia; Chico, Ana; Mato, Eugenia; Bell, Olga; Corcoy, Rosa; de Leiva, Alberto

2013-07-01

Healthy diet and regular physical activity are powerful tools in reducing diabetes and cardiometabolic risk. Various international scientific and health organizations have advocated the use of new technologies to solve these problems. The PREDIRCAM project explores the contribution that a technological system could offer for the continuous monitoring of lifestyle habits and individualized treatment of obesity as well as cardiometabolic risk prevention. PREDIRCAM is a technological platform for patients and professionals designed to improve the effectiveness of lifestyle behavior modifications through the intensive use of the latest information and communication technologies. The platform consists of a web-based application providing communication interface with monitoring devices of physiological variables, application for monitoring dietary intake, ad hoc electronic medical records, different communication channels, and an intelligent notification system. A 2-week feasibility study was conducted in 15 volunteers to assess the viability of the platform. The website received 244 visits (average time/session: 17 min 45 s). A total of 435 dietary intakes were recorded (average time for each intake registration, 4 min 42 s ± 2 min 30 s), 59 exercises were recorded in 20 heart rate monitor downloads, 43 topics were discussed through a forum, and 11 of the 15 volunteers expressed a favorable opinion toward the platform. Food intake recording was reported as the most laborious task. Ten of the volunteers considered long-term use of the platform to be feasible. The PREDIRCAM platform is technically ready for clinical evaluation. Training is required to use the platform and, in particular, for registration of dietary food intake. © 2013 Diabetes Technology Society.

A Topic Space Oriented User Group Discovering Scheme in Social Network: A Trust Chain Based Interest Measuring Perspective

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Wang Dong

2016-01-01

Full Text Available Currently, user group has become an effective platform for information sharing and communicating among users in social network sites. In present work, we propose a single topic user group discovering scheme, which includes three phases: topic impact evaluation, interest degree measurement, and trust chain based discovering, to enable selecting influential topic and discovering users into a topic oriented group. Our main works include (1 an overview of proposed scheme and its related definitions; (2 topic space construction method based on topic relatedness clustering and its impact (influence degree and popularity degree evaluation; (3 a trust chain model to take user relation network topological information into account with a strength classification perspective; (4 an interest degree (user explicit and implicit interest degree evaluation method based on trust chain among users; and (5 a topic space oriented user group discovering method to group core users according to their explicit interest degrees and to predict ordinary users under implicit interest and user trust chain. Finally, experimental results are given to explain effectiveness and feasibility of our scheme.

Open soundcard as a platform for practical, laboratory study of digital audio

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Dimitrov, Smilen; Serafin, Stefania

2014-01-01

This article investigates how lacking suitable platforms for laboratory exercises becomes a learning problem, limiting the practical experience students gain. In engineering education, laboratory demonstration difficulty of issues like real-time streaming in digital signal and audio processing...... afforded by such laboratories, and their open nature, could testably improve the diversity of demonstrated practical topics, while maintaining engineering students' motivation....

Using decommissioned offshore oil/gas platforms for nuclear/RO desalination: the ONDP (Offshore Nuclear Desalination Platform)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nagar, Ankesh

2010-01-01

Oil platforms are manmade concrete and steel giant structures standing high on ocean floor weighing anywhere between 10,000 tonnes and 150,000 tonnes or more and designed to withstand cruel forces of nature, having an average life of 70 years. With the declining petrol reserves within next 30 years, hundreds of platforms will be scheduled for decommissioning. This issue is a hot topic as oil companies tussle with environmentalists and state lawmakers over the future. The cash strapped oil companies have a legal obligation to remove each rig entirely, returning the ocean floor to its original condition. Lean times in oil industry mean a tight cash flow. Safely removing massive structures from deep waters and shipping the pile to the shores for reuse and recycling presents a technological challenge for operators. Some conceptual applications investigated to reuse them are the conversion of offshore structures into fish farms, prisons, military outposts, hotels, for Search and Rescue operations or Centers for Waste Processing and Disposal. Decommissioning oil and gas installation is exorbitantly expensive. On an average, removing a complete platform with or without pipeline in sea waters with 'clean sea approach' costs $15 million to $ 6 billion depending on location. Global warming has adversely affected world climate. Water levels in ground and reservoirs have shown drastic decrement. In future there will be need for more and more water all over the world. Fossil fuel energy based desalination is expensive and not eco-friendly so is dismantling of oil platform with its pipeline. The oil platforms are far located from population, have sufficient tank capacity and pipeline structure to store and pump water to shore. When found economically unviable these mammoth structures with modifications can be installed with 02 or more small or medium sized nuclear reactors such as KLT 40S with required module to desalinate water and co generate electricity which can be sent to

Wolfram technologies as an integrated scalable platform for interactive learning

Science.gov (United States)

Kaurov, Vitaliy

2012-02-01

We rely on technology profoundly with the prospect of even greater integration in the future. Well known challenges in education are a technology-inadequate curriculum and many software platforms that are difficult to scale or interconnect. We'll review an integrated technology, much of it free, that addresses these issues for individuals and small schools as well as for universities. Topics include: Mathematica, a programming environment that offers a diverse range of functionality; natural language programming for getting started quickly and accessing data from Wolfram|Alpha; quick and easy construction of interactive courseware and scientific applications; partnering with publishers to create interactive e-textbooks; course assistant apps for mobile platforms; the computable document format (CDF); teacher-student and student-student collaboration on interactive projects and web publishing at the Wolfram Demonstrations site.

Topical cyclosporine for atopic keratoconjunctivitis.

Science.gov (United States)

González-López, Julio J; López-Alcalde, Jesús; Morcillo Laiz, Rafael; Fernández Buenaga, Roberto; Rebolleda Fernández, Gema

2012-09-12

Atopic keratoconjunctivitis (AKC) is a chronic ocular surface non-infectious inflammatory condition that atopic dermatitis patients may suffer at any time point in the course of their dermatologic disease and is independent of its degree of severity. AKC is usually not self resolving and it poses a higher risk of corneal injuries and severe sequelae. Management of AKC should prevent or treat corneal damage. Although topical corticosteroids remain the standard treatment for patients with AKC, prolonged use may lead to complications. Topical cyclosporine A (CsA) may improve AKC signs and symptoms, and be used as a corticosteroid sparing agent. To determine the efficacy and gather evidence on safety from randomised controlled trials (RCTs) of topical CsA in patients with AKC. We searched CENTRAL (which contains the Cochrane Eyes and Vision Group Trials Register) (The Cochrane Library 2012, Issue 6), MEDLINE (January 1946 to July 2012), EMBASE (January 1980 to July 2012), Latin American and Caribbean Literature on Health Sciences (LILACS) (January 1982 to July 2012), Cumulative Index to Nursing and Allied Health Literature (CINAHL) (January 1937 to July 2012), OpenGrey (System for Information on Grey Literature in Europe) (www.opengrey.eu/), the metaRegister of Controlled Trials (mRCT) (www.controlled-trials.com), ClinicalTrials.gov (www.clinicaltrials.gov), the WHO International Clinical Trials Registry Platform (ICTRP) (www.who.int/ictrp/search/en), the IFPMA Clinical Trials Portal (http://clinicaltrials.ifpma.org/no_cache/en/myportal/index.htm) and Web of Science Conference Proceedings Citation Index- Science (CPCI-S). We did not use any date or language restrictions in the electronic searches for trials. The electronic databases were last searched on 9 July 2012. We also handsearched the following conference proceedings: American Academy of Ophthalmology, Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology, International Council of Opthalmology and Societas

The Common Data Acquisition Platform in the Helmholtz Association

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kaever, P.; Balzer, M.; Kopmann, A.; Zimmer, M.; Rongen, H.

2017-01-01

Various centres of the German Helmholtz Association (HGF) started in 2012 to develop a modular data acquisition (DAQ) platform, covering the entire range from detector readout to data transfer into parallel computing environments. This platform integrates generic hardware components like the multi-purpose HGF-Advanced Mezzanine Card or a smart scientific camera framework, adding user value with Linux drivers and board support packages. Technically the scope comprises the DAQ-chain from FPGA-modules to computing servers, notably frontend-electronics-interfaces, microcontrollers and GPUs with their software plus high-performance data transmission links. The core idea is a generic and component-based approach, enabling the implementation of specific experiment requirements with low effort. This so called DTS-platform will support standards like MTCA.4 in hard- and software to ensure compatibility with commercial components. Its capability to deploy on other crate standards or FPGA-boards with PCI express or Ethernet interfaces remains an essential feature. Competences of the participating centres are coordinated in order to provide a solid technological basis for both research topics in the Helmholtz Programme ''Matter and Technology'': ''Detector Technology and Systems'' and ''Accelerator Research and Development''. The DTS-platform aims at reducing costs and development time and will ensure access to latest technologies for the collaboration. Due to its flexible approach, it has the potential to be applied in other scientific programs.

The Common Data Acquisition Platform in the Helmholtz Association

Science.gov (United States)

Kaever, P.; Balzer, M.; Kopmann, A.; Zimmer, M.; Rongen, H.

2017-04-01

Various centres of the German Helmholtz Association (HGF) started in 2012 to develop a modular data acquisition (DAQ) platform, covering the entire range from detector readout to data transfer into parallel computing environments. This platform integrates generic hardware components like the multi-purpose HGF-Advanced Mezzanine Card or a smart scientific camera framework, adding user value with Linux drivers and board support packages. Technically the scope comprises the DAQ-chain from FPGA-modules to computing servers, notably frontend-electronics-interfaces, microcontrollers and GPUs with their software plus high-performance data transmission links. The core idea is a generic and component-based approach, enabling the implementation of specific experiment requirements with low effort. This so called DTS-platform will support standards like MTCA.4 in hard- and software to ensure compatibility with commercial components. Its capability to deploy on other crate standards or FPGA-boards with PCI express or Ethernet interfaces remains an essential feature. Competences of the participating centres are coordinated in order to provide a solid technological basis for both research topics in the Helmholtz Programme ``Matter and Technology'': ``Detector Technology and Systems'' and ``Accelerator Research and Development''. The DTS-platform aims at reducing costs and development time and will ensure access to latest technologies for the collaboration. Due to its flexible approach, it has the potential to be applied in other scientific programs.

European research platform IPANEMA at the SOLEIL synchrotron for ancient and historical materials

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bertrand, L.; Languille, M.A.; Cohen, S.X.; Robinet, L.; Josse, W.; Gervais, C.; Leroy, S.; Bernard, D.; Le Pennec, E.; Doucet, J.; Schoder, S.

2011-01-01

IPANEMA, a research platform devoted to ancient and historical materials (archaeology, cultural heritage, palaeontology and past environments), is currently being set up at the synchrotron facility SOLEIL (Saint-Aubin, France; SOLEIL opened to users in January 2008). The new platform is open to French, European and international users. The activities of the platform are centred on two main fields: increased support to synchrotron projects on ancient materials and methodological research. The IPANEMA team currently occupies temporary premises at SOLEIL, but the platform comprises construction of a new building that will comply with conservation and environmental standards and of a hard X-ray imaging beamline today in its conceptual design phase, named PUMA. Since 2008, the team has supported synchrotron works at SOLEIL and at European synchrotron facilities on a range of topics including pigment degradation in paintings, composition of musical instrument varnishes, and provenancing of medieval archaeological ferrous artefacts. Once the platform is fully operational, user support will primarily take place within medium-term research projects for 'hosted' scientists, PhDs and post-docs. IPANEMA methodological research is focused on advanced two-dimensional/ three-dimensional imaging and spectroscopy and statistical image analysis, both optimized for ancient materials. (authors)

IoT Platforms: Analysis for Building Projects

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Rusu Liviu DUMITRU

2017-01-01

Full Text Available This paper presents a general survey of IoT platforms in terms of features for IoT project de-velopers. I will briefly summarize the state of knowledge in terms of technology regarding “In-ternet of Things” first steps in developing this technology, history, trends, sensors and micro-controllers used. I have evaluated a number of 5 IoT platforms in terms of the features needed to develop a IoT project. I have listed those components that are most appreciated by IoT pro-ject developers and the results have been highlighted in a comparative analysis of these plat-forms from the point of view of IoT project developers and which are strictly necessary as a de-velopment environment for an IoT project based. I’ve also considered the users' views of such platforms in terms of functionality, advantages, disadvantages and dangers presented by this technology.

Usability studies on e-learning platforms: Preliminary study in USM

Science.gov (United States)

Emang, Devinna Win Anak Boniface; Lukman, Raja Nurul Izzati Raja; Kamarulzaman, Muhammad Izzat Syafiq; Zaaba, Zarul Fitri

2017-10-01

This paper explores the end-users' experienced in regards to the usability issues in E-learning platform. An online survey utilising 116 participants were conducted to investigate the end-users understanding and satisfaction on E-learning platform in the Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM). The results indicates that mainly students still experiencing significant challenges in E-learning platform in regards to accessibility, technical terminologies and functionality. On the other hand, the 10 heuristic guideline is chosen to be a referral point to compare five E-learning platforms in order to assess each performance on regards to the usability criteria. Overall, USM E-learning platform can be considered in a good shape. However, there are more works to be done to improve the delivery system of the E-learning if it would like to sustain for a long period of time. Although the result is at the preliminary stage, it provides useful insights to improve the E-learning platform as one of the most popular education platform in Malaysia.

2011 annual meeting on nuclear technology. Pt. 4. Topical sessions

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Schoenfelder, Christian; Dams, Wolfgang

2011-01-01

Summary report on the Topical Session of the Annual Conference on Nuclear Technology held in Berlin, 17 to 19 May 2011: - Nuclear Competence in Germany and Europe. The Topical Session: - Sodium Cooled Fast Reactors -- will be covered in a report in a further issue of atw. The reports on the Topical Sessions: - CFD-Simulations for Safety Relevant Tasks; and - Final Disposal: From Scientific Basis to Application; - Characteristics of a High Reliability Organization (HRO) Considering Experience Gained from Events at Nuclear Power Stations -- have been covered in atw 7, 8/9, and 10 (2011). (orig.)

Meatotomy using topical anesthesia: A painless option

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Vinod Priyadarshi

2015-01-01

Conclusion: Use of topical anesthesia in form of Prilox (EMLA cream for meatotomy is safe and effective method that avoids painful injections and anxiety related to it and should be considered in most of such patients as an alternative of conventional penile blocks or general anesthesia.

Topics in Nonlinear Dynamics

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Mosekilde, Erik

Through a significant number of detailed and realistic examples this book illustrates how the insights gained over the past couple of decades in the fields of nonlinear dynamics and chaos theory can be applied in practice. Aomng the topics considered are microbiological reaction systems, ecological...... food-web systems, nephron pressure and flow regulation, pulsatile secretion of hormones, thermostatically controlled radiator systems, post-stall maneuvering of aircrafts, transfer electron devices for microwave generation, economic long waves, human decision making behavior, and pattern formation...... in chemical reaction-diffusion systems....

Experimental Platform for Usability Testing of Secure Medical Sensor Network Protocols

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Andersen, Jacob; Lo, Benny P.; Yang, Guang-Zhong

2008-01-01

designed security mechanisms are essential. Several experimental sensor network platforms have emerged in recent years targeted for clinical use. However, few of them consider the importance of security issues such as privacy and access control, and how these can impact the usability of the platform, while......Implementing security mechanisms such as access control for clinical use is a challenging research issue in BSN due to its required heterogeneous operating responses ranging from chronic diseases management to emergency care. To ensure the clinical uptake of the BSN technology, appropriately...... others develop BSN security without considering how a prototype implementation would be received by clinicians in real-life situations. The purpose of this paper is to present our initial effort in building a flexible experimental platform for providing a basic infrastructure with symmetric AES...

Popular Topics Spread Faster: New Dimension for Influence Propagation in Online Social Networks

OpenAIRE

Pan, Tianyi; Kuhnle, Alan; Li, Xiang; Thai, My T.

2017-01-01

Information can propagate among Online Social Network (OSN) users at a high speed, which makes the OSNs become important platforms for viral marketing. Although the viral marketing related problems in OSNs have been extensively studied in the past decade, the existing works all assume known propagation rates and are not able to solve the scenario when the rates may dynamically increase for popular topics. In this paper, we propose a novel model, Dynamic Influence Propagation (DIP), which allo...

Payment Platform

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Hjelholt, Morten; Damsgaard, Jan

2012-01-01

thoroughly and substitute current payment standards in the decades to come. This paper portrays how digital payment platforms evolve in socio-technical niches and how various technological platforms aim for institutional attention in their attempt to challenge earlier platforms and standards. The paper...... applies a co-evolutionary multilevel perspective to model the interplay and processes between technology and society wherein digital payment platforms potentially will substitute other payment platforms just like the credit card negated the check. On this basis this paper formulate a multilevel conceptual...

A gimbal platform stabilization for topographic applications

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Michele, Mangiameli, E-mail: michele.mangiameli@dica.unict.it; Giuseppe, Mussumeci [Dept. of Civil Engineering and Architecture, University of Catania, Catania (Italy)

2015-03-10

The aim of this work is the stabilization of a Gimbal platform for optical sensors acquisitions in topographic applications using mobile vehicles. The stabilization of the line of sight (LOS) consists in tracking the command velocity in presence of nonlinear noise due to the external environment. The hardware architecture is characterized by an Ardupilot platform that allows the control of both the mobile device and the Gimbal. Here we developed a new approach to stabilize the Gimbal platform, which is based on neural network. For the control system, we considered a plant that represents the transfer function of the servo system control model for an inertial stabilized Gimbal platform. The transductor used in the feed-back line control is characterized by the Rate Gyro transfer function installed onboard of Ardupilot. For the simulation and investigation of the system performance, we used the Simulink tool of Matlab. Results show that the hardware/software approach is efficient, reliable and cheap for direct photogrammetry, as well as for general purpose applications using mobile vehicles.

Using and Designing Platforms for In Vivo Education Experiments

OpenAIRE

Williams, Joseph Jay; Ostrow, Korinn; Xiong, Xiaolu; Glassman, Elena; Kim, Juho; Maldonado, Samuel G.; Li, Na; Reich, Justin; Hefferman, Neil

2015-01-01

In contrast to typical laboratory experiments, the everyday use of online educational resources by large populations and the prevalence of software infrastructure for A/B testing leads us to consider how platforms can embed in vivo experiments that do not merely support research, but ensure practical improvements to their educational components. Examples are presented of randomized experimental comparisons conducted by subsets of the authors in three widely used online educational platforms K...

Link-topic model for biomedical abbreviation disambiguation.

Science.gov (United States)

Kim, Seonho; Yoon, Juntae

2015-02-01

The ambiguity of biomedical abbreviations is one of the challenges in biomedical text mining systems. In particular, the handling of term variants and abbreviations without nearby definitions is a critical issue. In this study, we adopt the concepts of topic of document and word link to disambiguate biomedical abbreviations. We newly suggest the link topic model inspired by the latent Dirichlet allocation model, in which each document is perceived as a random mixture of topics, where each topic is characterized by a distribution over words. Thus, the most probable expansions with respect to abbreviations of a given abstract are determined by word-topic, document-topic, and word-link distributions estimated from a document collection through the link topic model. The model allows two distinct modes of word generation to incorporate semantic dependencies among words, particularly long form words of abbreviations and their sentential co-occurring words; a word can be generated either dependently on the long form of the abbreviation or independently. The semantic dependency between two words is defined as a link and a new random parameter for the link is assigned to each word as well as a topic parameter. Because the link status indicates whether the word constitutes a link with a given specific long form, it has the effect of determining whether a word forms a unigram or a skipping/consecutive bigram with respect to the long form. Furthermore, we place a constraint on the model so that a word has the same topic as a specific long form if it is generated in reference to the long form. Consequently, documents are generated from the two hidden parameters, i.e. topic and link, and the most probable expansion of a specific abbreviation is estimated from the parameters. Our model relaxes the bag-of-words assumption of the standard topic model in which the word order is neglected, and it captures a richer structure of text than does the standard topic model by considering

Topical tags vs non-topical tags : Towards a bipartite classification?

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Basile, Valerio; Peroni, Silvio; Tamburini, Fabio; Vitali, Fabio

2015-01-01

In this paper we investigate whether it is possible to create a computational approach that allows us to distinguish topical tags (i.e. talking about the topic of a resource) and non-topical tags (i.e. describing aspects of a resource that are not related to its topic) in folksonomies, in a way that

Analyzing research trends on drug safety using topic modeling.

Science.gov (United States)

Zou, Chen

2018-04-06

Published drug safety data has evolved in the past decade due to scientific and technological advances in the relevant research fields. Considering that a vast amount of scientific literature has been published in this area, it is not easy to identify the key information. Topic modeling has emerged as a powerful tool to extract meaningful information from a large volume of unstructured texts. Areas covered: We analyzed the titles and abstracts of 4347 articles in four journals dedicated to drug safety from 2007 to 2016. We applied Latent Dirichlet allocation (LDA) model to extract 50 main topics, and conducted trend analysis to explore the temporal popularity of these topics over years. Expert Opinion/Commentary: We found that 'benefit-risk assessment and communication', 'diabetes' and 'biologic therapy for autoimmune diseases' are the top 3 most published topics. The topics relevant to the use of electronic health records/observational data for safety surveillance are becoming increasingly popular over time. Meanwhile, there is a slight decrease in research on signal detection based on spontaneous reporting, although spontaneous reporting still plays an important role in benefit-risk assessment. The topics related to medical conditions and treatment showed highly dynamic patterns over time.

Privacy-Preserving Discovery of Topic-Based Events from Social Sensor Signals: An Experimental Study on Twitter

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Duc T. Nguyen

2014-01-01

Full Text Available Social network services (e.g., Twitter and Facebook can be regarded as social sensors which can capture a number of events in the society. Particularly, in terms of time and space, various smart devices have improved the accessibility to the social network services. In this paper, we present a social software platform to detect a number of meaningful events from information diffusion patterns on such social network services. The most important feature is to process the social sensor signal for understanding social events and to support users to share relevant information along the social links. The platform has been applied to fetch and cluster tweets from Twitter into relevant categories to reveal hot topics.

Privacy-preserving discovery of topic-based events from social sensor signals: an experimental study on Twitter.

Science.gov (United States)

Nguyen, Duc T; Jung, Jai E

2014-01-01

Social network services (e.g., Twitter and Facebook) can be regarded as social sensors which can capture a number of events in the society. Particularly, in terms of time and space, various smart devices have improved the accessibility to the social network services. In this paper, we present a social software platform to detect a number of meaningful events from information diffusion patterns on such social network services. The most important feature is to process the social sensor signal for understanding social events and to support users to share relevant information along the social links. The platform has been applied to fetch and cluster tweets from Twitter into relevant categories to reveal hot topics.

Topics in the Foundations of General Relativity and Newtonian Gravitation Theory

CERN Document Server

Malament, David B

2012-01-01

In Topics in the Foundations of General Relativity and Newtonian Gravitation Theory, David B. Malament presents the basic logical-mathematical structure of general relativity and considers a number of special topics concerning the foundations of general relativity and its relation to Newtonian gravitation theory. These special topics include the geometrized formulation of Newtonian theory (also known as Newton-Cartan theory), the concept of rotation in general relativity, and Gödel spacetime. One of the highlights of the book is a no-go theorem that can be understood to show that there is

Oral Versus Topical Diclofenac Sodium in the Treatment of Osteoarthritis.

Science.gov (United States)

Tieppo Francio, Vinicius; Davani, Saeid; Towery, Chris; Brown, Tony L

2017-06-01

Osteoarthritis (OA) is one of the most common causes of joint pain in the United States and non-steroidal anti-inflammatories (NSAIDs), such as Diclofenac sodium, which is currently available in two main routes of administration; oral and topical distribution have been established as one of the standard treatments for OA. Generally, oral NSAIDs are well tolerated; however our narrative review suggests that the topical solution had a better tolerability property than oral Diclofenac sodium, especially due to side effects of gastrointestinal bleeding with the utilization of the oral format. In addition, the topical route may be considered a reasonable selection by clinicians for management of musculoskeletal pain in those patients with a history of potential risk and adverse side effects. Most studies reviewed comparing oral versus topical solution of Diclofenac sodium revealed comparable efficacy, with minimal side effects utilizing the topical route. The key point of this narrative review is to help clinicians that currently must decide between very inexpensive diclofenac oral presentations and expensive topical presentations especially in the elderly population and the pros and cons of such decision-making process.

An online app platform enhances collaborative medical student group learning and classroom management.

Science.gov (United States)

Peacock, Justin G; Grande, Joseph P

2016-01-01

The authors presented their results in effectively using a free and widely-accessible online app platform to manage and teach a first-year pathology course at Mayo Medical School. The authors utilized the Google "Blogger", "Forms", "Flubaroo", "Sheets", "Docs", and "Slides" apps to effectively build a collaborative classroom teaching and management system. Students were surveyed on the use of the app platform in the classroom, and 44 (94%) students responded. Thirty-two (73%) of the students reported that "Blogger" was an effective place for online discussion of pathology topics and questions. 43 (98%) of the students reported that the "Forms/Flubaroo" grade-reporting system was helpful. 40 (91%) of the students used the remote, collaborative features of "Slides" to create team-based learning presentations, and 39 (89%) of the students found those collaborative features helpful. "Docs" helped teaching assistants to collaboratively create study guides or grading rubrics. Overall, 41 (93%) of the students found that the app platform was helpful in establishing a collaborative, online classroom environment. The online app platform allowed faculty to build an efficient and effective classroom teaching and management system. The ease of accessibility and opportunity for collaboration allowed for collaborative learning, grading, and teaching.

Siting study for small platform-mounted industrial energy reactors

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1975-07-01

Utilizing an existing 313 MW(t) ship propulsion reactor design, a concept has been formulated for a floating platform-mounted nuclear plant and an evaluation has been made to determine reductions in construction time and cost achievable by repetitive platform construction in a shipyard. Concepts and estimates are presented for siting platform-mounted nuclear plants at the location of industrial facilities where the nuclear plants would furnish industrial process heat and/or electrical power. The representative industrial site designated for this study is considered typical of sites that might be used along the extensive network of navigable canals adjacent to the ocean and is similar to potential sites along the inland waterways of the United States

Product Platform Performance

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Munk, Lone

The aim of this research is to improve understanding of platform-based product development by studying platform performance in relation to internal effects in companies. Platform-based product development makes it possible to deliver product variety and at the same time reduce the needed resources...... engaging in platform-based product development. Similarly platform assessment criteria lack empirical verification regarding relevance and sufficiency. The thesis focuses on • the process of identifying and estimating internal effects, • verification of performance of product platforms, (i...... experienced representatives from the different life systems phase systems of the platform products. The effects are estimated and modeled within different scenarios, taking into account financial and real option aspects. The model illustrates and supports estimation and quantification of internal platform...

Biosensors-on-chip: a topical review

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Chen, Sensen; Shamsi, Mohtashim H

2017-01-01

This review will examine the integration of two fields that are currently at the forefront of science, i.e. biosensors and microfluidics. As a lab-on-a-chip (LOC) technology, microfluidics has been enriched by the integration of various detection tools for analyte detection and quantitation. The application of such microfluidic platforms is greatly increased in the area of biosensors geared towards point-of-care diagnostics. Together, the merger of microfluidics and biosensors has generated miniaturized devices for sample processing and sensitive detection with quantitation. We believe that microfluidic biosensors (biosensors-on-chip) are essential for developing robust and cost effective point-of-care diagnostics. This review is relevant to a variety of disciplines, such as medical science, clinical diagnostics, LOC technologies including MEMs/NEMs, and analytical science. Specifically, this review will appeal to scientists working in the two overlapping fields of biosensors and microfluidics, and will also help new scientists to find their directions in developing point-of-care devices. (topical review)

A Platform of Constructivist Learning in Practice: Computer Literacy Integrated into Elementary School

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ivan Garcia

2010-06-01

Full Text Available In Mexico, the conventional teaching approach, when applied specifically to elementary school, seems to fall short of attaining the overall quality objective. The main consequence of this problem is when teachers are not sure that their students really understand the dynamic nature of concepts and mechanism since an early age, particularly in elementary school. This paper presents a pedagogical/technological platform, based on constructivism ideas, as a means of making the learning process in elementary school more efficient and interesting. The constructivist platform presented here uses graphical simulators developed for Web 2.0 as a support tool, creating a teaching and learning environment in which practical experiments can be undertaken as each topic is introduced and explained.

The Typhoon Disaster Analysis Based on Weibo Topic Heat

Science.gov (United States)

Yuan, J.; Gong, A.; Wang, J.; Li, J.

2018-04-01

Could social media data be utilized in hazard evaluation? Typhoon disaster as one of the costly disaster has become devastating threats for human. Moreover, social media change the communication way of human and citizens can turn to this platform to express disasterrelated information at real time. Therefore, social media improves situational awareness and widens the method of hazard information acquiring. With more and more studies investigating in relationship between social media response and degree of damage, the strong correlation has been proved. Weibo as one of the most popular social media in China can provide data with posted text, location, user identification and other additional information. Combining with 10 tropical cyclones and Weibo data in 2013, We perform a quantitative analysis between the grade of hazard situation and Weibo related topic heat in province scale. We provide a new model of Weibo topic heat to evaluate the Weibo activity in study area. Also we demonstrate the hazard assessing formula is H = 1.8845 ln(α) + 15.636 in tropical cyclone disaster. High level goodness of curve fitting also suggest that this equation can be used for rapid assessment of hazard caused by tropical cyclones.

The Platformization of the Web: Making Web Data Platform Ready

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Helmond, A.

2015-01-01

In this article, I inquire into Facebook’s development as a platform by situating it within the transformation of social network sites into social media platforms. I explore this shift with a historical perspective on, what I refer to as, platformization, or the rise of the platform as the dominant

77 FR 76588 - Request for Proposal Platform Pilot

Science.gov (United States)

2012-12-28

... businesses, including start-up small businesses considering the federal marketplace (new entrants), and those... easier for small businesses, including ``new entrant'' small businesses that have historically not done... SMALL BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION [Docket Number SBA 2012-0019] Request for Proposal Platform Pilot...

Changing the Topic. Topic Position in Ancient Greek Word Order

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Allan, R.J.

2014-01-01

Ancient Greek, topics can be expressed as intra-clausal constituents but they can also precede or follow the main clause as extra-clausal constituents. Together, these various topic expressions constitute a coherent system of complementary pragmatic functions. For a comprehensive account of topic

Play a Starring Role in Your Textbook: A Digital Web Platform with an Embedded Role-Playing Game

Science.gov (United States)

Spielvogel, Laura; Spielvogel, Christian

2014-01-01

In this report, we introduce our digital e-textbook web platform with an integrated role-playing game, which has been created for "introduction to anthropology" courses. We believe that textbooks have the potential to do more to motivate students' pursuit of learning if their material (topically organised chapters supported by…

A Platform for Mobile Service Provisioning Based on SOA-Integration

Science.gov (United States)

Decker, Michael; Bulander, Rebecca

A middleware platform designed for the provisioning of data services for mobile computers using wireless data communication (e.g. smartphones or PDAs) has to offer a variety of different features. Some of these features have to be provided by external parties, e.g. billing or content syndication. The integration of all these features while considering mobile-specific challenges is a demanding task. In the article at hand we thus describe a middleware platform for mobile services which follows the idea of a so called Enterprise Service Bus (ESB). We explain the concept of ESB and argue why an ESB is an appropriate fundament for a platform for mobile service provisioning.

New guidelines for topical NSAIDs in the osteoarthritis treatment paradigm.

Science.gov (United States)

Altman, Roy D

2010-12-01

Osteoarthritis (OA), the most common form of arthritis, often affects hands, hips, and knees and involves an estimated 26.9 million US adults. Women have a higher prevalence of OA, and the risk of developing OA increases with age, obesity, and joint malalignment. OA typically presents with pain and reduced function. Therapeutic programs are often multimodal and must take into account pharmaceutical toxicities and patient comorbidities. For example, nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) are associated with cardiovascular, gastrointestinal, and renal adverse events. Topical NSAIDs offer efficacy with reduced systemic drug exposure. This is a review of current guideline recommendations regarding the use of topical NSAIDs in OA of the hand and knee. Articles were identified by PubMed search (January 1, 2000 to May 21, 2010). Several current guidelines for management of OA recommend topical NSAIDs, indicating them as a safe and effective treatment. One guideline recommends that topical NSAIDs be considered as first-line pharmacologic therapy. A US guideline for knee OA recommends topical NSAIDs in older patients and in patients with increased gastrointestinal risk. The consensus across US and European OA guidelines is that topical NSAIDs are a safe and effective treatment for OA. Because the research base on topical NSAIDs for OA is small, guidelines will continue to evolve.

Copper-free click-chemistry platform to functionalize cisplatin prodrugs.

Science.gov (United States)

Pathak, Rakesh K; McNitt, Christopher D; Popik, Vladimir V; Dhar, Shanta

2014-06-02

The ability to rationally design and construct a platform technology to develop new platinum(IV) [Pt(IV)] prodrugs with functionalities for installation of targeting moieties, delivery systems, fluorescent reporters from a single precursor with the ability to release biologically active cisplatin by using well-defined chemistry is critical for discovering new platinum-based therapeutics. With limited numbers of possibilities considering the sensitivity of Pt(IV) centers, we used a strain-promoted azide-alkyne cycloaddition approach to provide a platform, in which new functionalities can easily be installed on cisplatin prodrugs from a single Pt(IV) precursor. The ability of this platform to be incorporated in nanodelivery vehicle and conjugation to fluorescent reporters were also investigated. © 2014 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

Exploiting the functional and taxonomic structure of genomic data by probabilistic topic modeling.

Science.gov (United States)

Chen, Xin; Hu, Xiaohua; Lim, Tze Y; Shen, Xiajiong; Park, E K; Rosen, Gail L

2012-01-01

In this paper, we present a method that enable both homology-based approach and composition-based approach to further study the functional core (i.e., microbial core and gene core, correspondingly). In the proposed method, the identification of major functionality groups is achieved by generative topic modeling, which is able to extract useful information from unlabeled data. We first show that generative topic model can be used to model the taxon abundance information obtained by homology-based approach and study the microbial core. The model considers each sample as a “document,” which has a mixture of functional groups, while each functional group (also known as a “latent topic”) is a weight mixture of species. Therefore, estimating the generative topic model for taxon abundance data will uncover the distribution over latent functions (latent topic) in each sample. Second, we show that, generative topic model can also be used to study the genome-level composition of “N-mer” features (DNA subreads obtained by composition-based approaches). The model consider each genome as a mixture of latten genetic patterns (latent topics), while each functional pattern is a weighted mixture of the “N-mer” features, thus the existence of core genomes can be indicated by a set of common N-mer features. After studying the mutual information between latent topics and gene regions, we provide an explanation of the functional roles of uncovered latten genetic patterns. The experimental results demonstrate the effectiveness of proposed method.

Multi-ASIP Platform Synthesis for Real-Time Applications

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Micconi, Laura; Gangadharan, Deepak; Pop, Paul

2013-01-01

In this paper we are interested in deriving a distributed platform, composed of heterogeneous processing elements, targeted to applications that have strict timing constraints. We consider that the platform may use multiple Application Specific Instruction Set Processors (ASIPs). An ASIP...... is synthesized and tuned for a specific set of tasks (i.e., a task cluster). During design space exploration (DSE), we evaluate each platform solution visited in terms of its cost and performance, i.e., its ability to execute the applications such that they meet their timing constraints. To determine...... if the applications are schedulable, we have to know the worst-case execution time (WCET) of each task. However, we can determine the WCETs only after the ASIPs are synthesized, which is time consuming and therefore cannot be done during DSE. To address this circular dependency (the ASIPs depend on the task...

Analysis of motion of the three wheeled mobile platform

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jaskot Anna

2018-01-01

Full Text Available The work is dedicated to the designing motion of the three wheeled mobile platform under the unsteady conditions. In this paper the results of the analysis based on the dynamics model of the three wheeled mobile robot, with two rear wheels and one front wheel has been included The prototype has been developed by the author's construction assumptions that is useful to realize the motion of the platform in a various configurations of wheel drives, including control of the active forces and the direction of their settings while driving. Friction forces, in longitudinal and in the transverse directions, are considered in the proposed model. Relation between friction and active forces are also included. The motion parameters of the mobile platform has been determined by adopting classical approach of mechanics. The formulated initial problem of platform motion has been solved numerically using the Runge-Kutta method of the fourth order. Results of motion analysis with motion parameters values are determined and sample results are presented.

Optical systems for synchrotron radiation. Lecture 1. Introductory topics. Revision

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Howells, M.R.

1986-02-01

Various fundamental topics are considered which underlie the design and use of optical systems for synchrotron radiation. The point of view of linear system theory is chosen which acts as a unifying concept throughout the series. In this context the important optical quantities usually appear as either impulse response functions (Green's functions) or frequency transfer functions (Fourier Transforms of the Green's functions). Topics include the damped harmonic oscillator, free-space optical field propagation, optical properties of materials, dispersion, and the Kramers-Kronig relations

Recent advances and perspectives in topical oral anesthesia.

Science.gov (United States)

Franz-Montan, Michelle; Ribeiro, Lígia Nunes de Morais; Volpato, Maria Cristina; Cereda, Cintia Maria Saia; Groppo, Francisco Carlos; Tofoli, Giovana Randomille; de Araújo, Daniele Ribeiro; Santi, Patrizia; Padula, Cristina; de Paula, Eneida

2017-05-01

Topical anesthesia is widely used in dentistry to reduce pain caused by needle insertion and injection of the anesthetic. However, successful anesthesia is not always achieved using the formulations that are currently commercially available. As a result, local anesthesia is still one of the procedures that is most feared by dental patients. Drug delivery systems (DDSs) provide ways of improving the efficacy of topical agents. Areas covered: An overview of the structure and permeability of oral mucosa is given, followed by a review of DDSs designed for dental topical anesthesia and their related clinical trials. Chemical approaches to enhance permeation and anesthesia efficacy, or to promote superficial anesthesia, include nanostructured carriers (liposomes, cyclodextrins, polymeric nanoparticle systems, solid lipid nanoparticles, and nanostructured lipid carriers) and different pharmaceutical dosage forms (patches, bio- and mucoadhesive systems, and hydrogels). Physical methods include pre-cooling, vibration, iontophoresis, and microneedle arrays. Expert opinion: The combination of different chemical and physical methods is an attractive option for effective topical anesthesia in oral mucosa. This comprehensive review should provide the readers with the most relevant options currently available to assist pain-free dental anesthesia. The findings should be considered for future clinical trials.

SNETP – Sustainable Nuclear Energy Technology Platform

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Aït Abderrahim, Hamid

2016-07-01

SNETP is one of the EU’s official European Technology & Innovation Platforms established to implement the SET-Plan. SNETP and its pillars gather more than 120 European stakeholders involved in the research and innovation, deployment and operation of nuclear fission reactors and fuel cycle facilities: industry, research centres, universities, technical safety organisations, small and medium enterprises, service providers, non-governmental organisations. Despite industrial competition, SNETP has achieved efficient collaboration between its stakeholders. It has developed a common vision on the future contribution of nuclear fission energy in Europe, with the publication of a Vision Report, a Strategic Research & Innovation Agenda (two editions) and a Deployment Strategy report. It issued also a dedicated report on the R&D topics related to safety issues triggered by the Fukushima accident.

Cross-Platform Technologies

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Maria Cristina ENACHE

2017-04-01

Full Text Available Cross-platform - a concept becoming increasingly used in recent years especially in the development of mobile apps, but this consistently over time and in the development of conventional desktop applications. The notion of cross-platform software (multi-platform or platform-independent refers to a software application that can run on more than one operating system or computing architecture. Thus, a cross-platform application can operate independent of software or hardware platform on which it is execute. As a generic definition presents a wide range of meanings for purposes of this paper we individualize this definition as follows: we will reduce the horizon of meaning and we use functionally following definition: a cross-platform application is a software application that can run on more than one operating system (desktop or mobile identical or in a similar way.

Platform Performance and Challenges - using Platforms in Lego Company

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Munk, Lone; Mortensen, Niels Henrik

2009-01-01

needs focus on the incentive of using the platform. This problem lacks attention in literature, as well as industry, where assessment criteria do not cover this aspect. Therefore, we recommend including user incentive in platform assessment criteria to these challenges. Concrete solution elements...... ensuring user incentive in platforms is an object for future research...

A systematic review and meta-analysis on the use of prophylactic topical antibiotics for the prevention of uncomplicated wound infections

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Tong Q

2018-03-01

Full Text Available Qiao-Jing Tong,1 Kimberly DP Hammer,2,3 Erika M Johnson,4 Milagros Zegarra,2,3 Michihiko Goto,5,6 Tze Shien Lo3,7 1Department of Infection Control, Sir Run Run Shaw Hospital, School of Medicine, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China; 2Research Service, Fargo VA Health Care System; 3Department of Internal Medicine, University of North Dakota, School of Medicine and Health Sciences, Fargo, ND, USA; 4Library Resources, University of North Dakota, School of Medicine and Health Sciences, Fargo, ND, USA; 5Center for Comprehensive Access & Delivery Research & Evaluation (CADRE, Iowa City VA Health Care System, West Iowa City, IA, USA; 6Department of Internal Medicine, University of Iowa, Carver College of Medicine, Iowa City, IA, USA; 7Infectious Disease Service, Fargo VA Health Care System, Fargo, ND, USA Background: The prescription of topical antibiotics for the prevention of infections in uncomplicated wounds is common. However, the efficacy is not well reported. Therefore, the objective of the study was to conduct a systematic review and meta-analysis of the available evidence on prevention of uncomplicated wound infections by prophylactic topical antibiotics. Materials and methods: The search included Pubmed, Google Scholar, SCOPUS, Embase, Cochrane, ClinicalTrials.gov, International Clinical Trials Registry Platform, National Technical Information Service, and the National Guidelines Clearinghouse. Results: We identified eight randomized controlled trials and four quasi-randomized trials that met the criteria for the systematic review. Of these trials, 11 studies were pooled for meta-analysis to compare the effects of topical antibiotics versus placebo and 4 studies were pooled for comparison of effects of topical antibiotics versus topical antiseptics on uncomplicated wounds. Fewer wound infections occurred in the topical antibiotic arms compared to placebo (pooled risk ratio: 0.57 [95% CI: 0.37 to 0.86]; p=0.01 and pooled risk

RESGen: Renewable Energy Scenario Generation Platform

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Iversen, Jan Emil Banning; Pinson, Pierre

2016-01-01

studies remains. Consequently, our aim here is to propose an open-source platform for space-time probabilistic forecasting of renewable energy generation (wind and solar power). This document covers both methodological and implementation aspects, to be seen as a companion document for the open......-source scenario generation platform. It can generate predictive densities, trajectories and space-time interdependencies for renewable energy generation. The underlying model works as a post-processing of point forecasts. For illustration, two setups are considered: the case of day-ahead forecasts to be issued......Space-time scenarios of renewable power generation are increasingly used as input to decision-making in operational problems. They may also be used in planning studies to account for the inherent uncertainty in operations. Similarly using scenarios to derive chance-constraints or robust...

Platform Constellations

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Staykova, Kalina Stefanova; Damsgaard, Jan

2016-01-01

This research paper presents an initial attempt to introduce and explain the emergence of new phenomenon, which we refer to as platform constellations. Functioning as highly modular systems, the platform constellations are collections of highly connected platforms which co-exist in parallel and a......’ acquisition and users’ engagement rates as well as unlock new sources of value creation and diversify revenue streams....

Topical phenytoin for treating pressure ulcers.

Science.gov (United States)

Hao, Xiang Yong; Li, Hong Ling; Su, He; Cai, Hui; Guo, Tian Kang; Liu, Ruifeng; Jiang, Lei; Shen, Yan Fei

2017-02-22

reduced healing. We therefore considered it to be insufficient to determine the effect of topical phenytoin on ulcer healing. One study compared topical phenytoin with triple antibiotic ointment, however, none of the outcomes of interest to this review were reported. No adverse drug reactions or interactions were detected in any of the three RCTs. Minimal pain was reported in all groups in one trial that compared topical phenytoin with hydrocolloid dressings and triple antibiotic ointment. This review has considered the available evidence and the result shows that it is uncertain whether topical phenytoin improves ulcer healing for patients with grade I and II pressure ulcers. No adverse events were reported from three small trials and minimal pain was reported in one trial. Therefore, further rigorous, adequately powered RCTs examining the effects of topical phenytoin for treating pressure ulcers, and to report on adverse events, quality of life and costs are necessary.

Topics in supersymmetric theories

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nemeschansky, D.D.

1984-01-01

This thesis discusses four different topics in supersymmetric theories. In the first part models in which supersymmetry is broken by the Fayet-Iliopoulos mechanism are considered. The possibility that scalar quark and lepton masses might arise radiatively in such theories is explored. In the second part supersymmetric grand unified models with a sliding singlet are considered. The author reviews the argument that the sliding singlet does not work in models with large supersymmetry breaking. Then he considers the possibility of using a sliding singlet with low energy supersymmetry breaking. The third part of the thesis deals with the entropy problem of supersymmetric theories. Most supersymmetric models possess a decoupled particle with mass of order 100 GeV which is copiously produced in the early universe and whose decay produces huge amounts of entropy. The author shows how this problem can be avoided in theories in which the hidden sector contains several light fields. In the fourth part effective Lagrangians for supersymmetric theories are studied. The anomalous pion interaction for supersymmetric theories is written down. General properties of this term are studied both on compact and non-compact manifolds

Center for Nuclear Safety in Central and Eastern Europe: a platform for co-operation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tomik, L.; Kichev, E.

2003-01-01

The paper presents a summary of the current status and the activities of the Centre of Nuclear Safety in Central and Eastern Europe (CENS). The CENS is a non-profit and independent association supported by the Swiss and Slovak Governments. The main mission of the CENS is to provide an independent platform for technical co-operation between the regulatory authorities of the Western and Eastern countries. The key partners of the CENS are the Swiss Federal Nuclear Safety Inspectorate (HSK), the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), the US Department of Energy (US DOE), the Nuclear Regulatory Authority of the Slovak Republic (UJD), the Gesellschaft fuer Anlagen-und Reaktorsicherheit mbH (GRS), Germany and the Institute of Radiation Protection and Nuclear Safety (IRSN), France. The CENS programs for 2003-2004 are presented. It can be considered as a complement to the IAEA activities in the area of short-term and event urgent planning. CENS projects as an example are presented. CENS proposals for co-operation with the Bulgarian institutions are made in connection with the topics of the forum round table discussions

Continuous Platform Development

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Nielsen, Ole Fiil

low risks and investments but also with relatively fuzzy results. When looking for new platform projects, it is important to make sure that the company and market is ready for the introduction of platforms, and to make sure that people from marketing and sales, product development, and downstream......, but continuous product family evolution challenges this strategy. The concept of continuous platform development is based on the fact that platform development should not be a one-time experience but rather an ongoing process of developing new platforms and updating existing ones, so that product family...

Freshman Health Topics

Science.gov (United States)

Hovde, Karen

2011-01-01

This article examines a cluster of health topics that are frequently selected by students in lower division classes. Topics address issues relating to addictive substances, including alcohol and tobacco, eating disorders, obesity, and dieting. Analysis of the topics examines their interrelationships and organization in the reference literature.…

Topical anti-infective sinonasal irrigations: update and literature review.

Science.gov (United States)

Lee, Jivianne T; Chiu, Alexander G

2014-01-01

Sinonasal anti-infective irrigations have emerged as a promising therapeutic modality in the comprehensive management of chronic rhinosinusitis (CRS), particularly in the context of recalcitrant disease. The purpose of this article was to delineate the current spectrum of topical anti-infective therapies available and evaluate their role in the treatment of CRS. A systematic literature review was performed on all studies investigating the use of topical antimicrobial solutions in the medical therapy of CRS. Anti-infective irrigations were stratified into topical antibacterial, antifungal, and additive preparations according to their composition and respective microbicidal properties. The use of topical antibiotic irrigations has been supported by low-level studies in the treatment of refractory CRS, with optimal results achieved in patients who have undergone prior functional endoscopic sinus surgery and received culture-directed therapy. Multiple evidence-based reviews have not established any clinical benefit with the administration of topical antifungals, and their use is not currently recommended in the management of routine CRS. Topical additives including surfactants may be beneficial as adjunctive treatment for recalcitrant CRS, but additional research is needed to investigate their efficacy in comparison with other agents and establish safety profiles. Topical anti-infective solutions are not recommended as first-line therapy for routine CRS but may be considered as a potential option for patients with refractory CRS who have failed traditional medical and surgical intervention. Additional research is necessary to determine which patient populations would derive the most benefit from each respective irrigation regimen and identify potential toxicities associated with prolonged use.

Footprints of Fascination: Digital Traces of Public Engagement with Particle Physics on CERN's Social Media Platforms

Science.gov (United States)

Baram-Tsabari, Ayelet

2016-01-01

Although the scientific community increasingly recognizes that its communication with the public may shape civic engagement with science, few studies have characterized how this communication occurs online. Social media plays a growing role in this engagement, yet it is not known if or how different platforms support different types of engagement. This study sets out to explore how users engage with science communication items on different platforms of social media, and what are the characteristics of the items that tend to attract large numbers of user interactions. Here, user interactions with almost identical items on five of CERN's social media platforms were quantitatively compared over an eight-week period, including likes, comments, shares, click-throughs, and time spent on CERN's site. The most popular items were qualitatively analyzed for content features. Findings indicate that as audience size of a social media platform grows, the total rate of engagement with content tends to grow as well. However, per user, engagement tends to decline with audience size. Across all platforms, similar topics tend to consistently receive high engagement. In particular, awe-inspiring imagery tends to frequently attract high engagement across platforms, independent of newsworthiness. To our knowledge, this study provides the first cross-platform characterization of public engagement with science on social media. Findings, although focused on particle physics, have a multidisciplinary nature; they may serve to benchmark social media analytics for assessing science communication activities in various domains. Evidence-based suggestions for practitioners are also offered. PMID:27232498

Footprints of Fascination: Digital Traces of Public Engagement with Particle Physics on CERN's Social Media Platforms.

Science.gov (United States)

Kahle, Kate; Sharon, Aviv J; Baram-Tsabari, Ayelet

2016-01-01

Although the scientific community increasingly recognizes that its communication with the public may shape civic engagement with science, few studies have characterized how this communication occurs online. Social media plays a growing role in this engagement, yet it is not known if or how different platforms support different types of engagement. This study sets out to explore how users engage with science communication items on different platforms of social media, and what are the characteristics of the items that tend to attract large numbers of user interactions. Here, user interactions with almost identical items on five of CERN's social media platforms were quantitatively compared over an eight-week period, including likes, comments, shares, click-throughs, and time spent on CERN's site. The most popular items were qualitatively analyzed for content features. Findings indicate that as audience size of a social media platform grows, the total rate of engagement with content tends to grow as well. However, per user, engagement tends to decline with audience size. Across all platforms, similar topics tend to consistently receive high engagement. In particular, awe-inspiring imagery tends to frequently attract high engagement across platforms, independent of newsworthiness. To our knowledge, this study provides the first cross-platform characterization of public engagement with science on social media. Findings, although focused on particle physics, have a multidisciplinary nature; they may serve to benchmark social media analytics for assessing science communication activities in various domains. Evidence-based suggestions for practitioners are also offered.

Systemic and Topical Use of Tranexamic Acid in Spinal Surgery: A Systematic Review

Science.gov (United States)

Winter, Sebastian F.; Santaguida, Carlo; Wong, Jean; Fehlings, Michael G.

2015-01-01

Study Design Combination of narrative and systematic literature reviews. Objectives Massive perioperative blood loss in complex spinal surgery often requires blood transfusions and can negatively affect patient outcome. Systemic use of the antifibrinolytic agent tranexamic acid (TXA) has become widely used in the management of surgical bleeding. We review the clinical evidence for the use of intravenous TXA as a hemostatic agent in spinal surgery and discuss the emerging role for its complementary use as a topical agent to reduce perioperative blood loss from the surgical site. Through a systematic review of published and ongoing investigations on topical TXA for spinal surgery, we wish to make spine practitioners aware of this option and to suggest opportunities for further investigation in the field. Methods A narrative review of systemic TXA in spinal surgery and topical TXA in surgery was conducted. Furthermore, a systematic search (using PRISMA guidelines) of PubMed (MEDLINE), EMBASE, and Cochrane CENTRAL databases as well as World Health Organization International Clinical Trials Registry Platform, ClinicalTrials.gov (National Institutes of Health), and International Standard Randomized Controlled Trial Number registries was conducted to identify both published literature and ongoing clinical trials on topical TXA in spinal surgery. Results Of 1,631 preliminary search results, 2 published studies were included in the systematic review. Out of 285 ongoing clinical trials matching the search criteria, a total of 4 relevant studies were included and reviewed. Conclusion Intravenous TXA is established as an efficacious hemostatic agent in spinal surgery. Use of topical TXA in surgery suggests similar hemostatic efficacy and potentially improved safety as compared with intravenous TXA. For spinal surgery, the literature on topical TXA is sparse but promising, warranting further clinical investigation and consideration as a clinical option in cases with

Abundance of Corals on Offshore Oil and Gas Platforms in the Gulf of Mexico

Science.gov (United States)

Kolian, Stephan R.; Sammarco, Paul W.; Porter, Scott A.

2017-08-01

Scleractinian, octocoral, and antipatharian corals have colonized many of the offshore oil and gas platforms in the northern Gulf of Mexico. We surveyed 25 offshore oil and gas platforms for these cnidarians. Few to no corals were detected on inshore, shallow-water structures at data suggest that the offshore platforms located in waters of >25-30 m in the study area are often colonized by these corals. We recommend that structures located in deeper waters should be surveyed for coral and, if the populations are substantial, consider alternate uses for the retired platforms, and leaving them in place, when feasible.

Crowdfunding as an Alternative in Tourism: Analysis of Modus Operandi of Brazilian Platforms

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Larissa Martins

2017-04-01

Full Text Available The crowdfunding system is a collective financing form in which people can contribute with money to projects they consider relevant, receiving or not compensation for this contribution. This paper aimed to analyze Brazilian situated crowdfunding platforms as an alternative to projects in tourism area. The research shows itself actual, faced to the recent growth of these platforms in the country. Also, it is relevant in a lack of resources scenario, once the method could interest by favoring credit access at the same time it promotes the targeted public involvement. By means of a descriptive, the existing platforms were verified: sixteen were found, twelve of which were analyzed, due to errors in the sites during the research period. Then, they were analyzed according to their modus operandi (existence of taxes, commission, “all-or-nothing system”, reward to the contributors, etc. and classified according to which enable the insertion of tourism projects. Half of the platforms contemplate several projects and, of these six, four consider Tourism. The most used model is “all-or-nothing” and the costs of this type of financing can reach more than thirty percent of the contributions, as they are charged management fees, transaction fees and even percentage for sales of the resulting product from crowdfunding. Thus, the system may be interesting to the entrepreneur, although it is necessary to consider operating costs.

Evaluating topic models with stability

CSIR Research Space (South Africa)

De Waal, A

2008-11-01

Full Text Available Topic models are unsupervised techniques that extract likely topics from text corpora, by creating probabilistic word-topic and topic-document associations. Evaluation of topic models is a challenge because (a) topic models are often employed...

Topical report review status

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1997-08-01

This report provides industry with procedures for submitting topical reports, guidance on how the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) processes and responds to topical report submittals, and an accounting, with review schedules, of all topical reports currently accepted for review schedules, of all topical reports currently accepted for review by the NRC. This report will be published annually. Each sponsoring organization with one or more topical reports accepted for review copies

Investigating the Users’ Approach to ICT Platforms in the City Management

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Francesco Caputo

2017-01-01

Full Text Available The increasing relevance of technology and its impact on our everyday life requires multi- and trans-disciplinary studies in order to investigate the ways in which the Information and Communication Technology (ICT tools are affected by users’ features and by the external environment. In order to enrich existing contributions on this topic, the paper focuses its attention on the city as example of service systems, in order to investigate dimensions and dynamics that influence the city employees’ evaluation and satisfaction in the use of ICT platforms. By adopting the interpretative lens offered by Service Science and Systems Thinking, the domain of city as a service system is analysed and some hypotheses are formulated with reference to the relationships between environment, users, and ICT platform. The hypotheses are investigated through a questionnaire survey on a sample of 1032 municipalities in the Czech Republic and the results are tested using Structural Equation Modelling. The research shows that users’ features and external environment affect the evaluation and the satisfaction of city stakeholders about the use of ICT platforms by underlining the need for enlarging the study on informatics tools, in order to also include subjective variables. The findings are discussed from both theoretical and practical points of view.

Unsupervised detection of salt marsh platforms: a topographic method

Science.gov (United States)

Goodwin, Guillaume C. H.; Mudd, Simon M.; Clubb, Fiona J.

2018-03-01

perimeter. This suggests our method may benefit from combination with existing creek detection algorithms. Fallen blocks and high tidal flat portions, associated with potential pioneer zones, can also lead to differences between our method and supervised mapping. Although pioneer zones prove difficult to classify using a topographic method, we suggest that these transition areas should be considered when analysing erosion and accretion processes, particularly in the case of incipient marsh platforms. Ultimately, we have shown that unsupervised classification of marsh platforms from high-resolution topography is possible and sufficient to monitor and analyse topographic evolution.

Unsupervised detection of salt marsh platforms: a topographic method

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

G. C. H. Goodwin

2018-03-01

and overall platform perimeter. This suggests our method may benefit from combination with existing creek detection algorithms. Fallen blocks and high tidal flat portions, associated with potential pioneer zones, can also lead to differences between our method and supervised mapping. Although pioneer zones prove difficult to classify using a topographic method, we suggest that these transition areas should be considered when analysing erosion and accretion processes, particularly in the case of incipient marsh platforms. Ultimately, we have shown that unsupervised classification of marsh platforms from high-resolution topography is possible and sufficient to monitor and analyse topographic evolution.

Syntacticized topics in Kurmuk

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Andersen, Torben

2015-01-01

This article argues that Kurmuk, a little-described Western Nilotic language, is characterized by a syntacticized topic whose grammatical relation is variable. In this language, declarative clauses have as topic an obligatory preverbal NP which is either a subject, an object or an adjunct....... The grammatical relation of the topic is expressed by a voice-like inflection of the verb, here called orientation. While subject-orientation is morphologically unmarked, object-oriented and adjunct-oriented verbs are marked by a subject suffix or by a suffix indicating that the topic is not subject, and adjunct......-orientation differs from object-orientation by a marked tone pattern. Topic choice largely reflects information structure by indicating topic continuity. The topic also plays a crucial role in relative clauses and in clauses with contrastive constituent focus, in that objects and adjuncts can only be relativized...

Complex products and Systems: Potential from using layout platforms

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Hofer, A.P.; Halman, J.I.M.

2004-01-01

In their quest to manage the complexity of offering greater product variety, firms in many industries are considering platform-based development of product families. Key in this approach is the sharing of components, modules, and other assets across a family of products. Current research indicates

NEST – A platform for the acceleration of innovation in buildings

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

P. Richner

2018-01-01

Full Text Available The speed and quality of innovation in the construction sector has to be substantially increased in order to meet the pressing challenges associated with the building stock. For this purpose, the NEST project was started in Switzerland. NEST is a flexible and open research and technology transfer platform for partners from academia and industry where new solutions can be implemented and validated in a real life environment. NEST consists of a backbone, the static part, and research units which serve as office or living space where people live and work. Each unit is addressing specific research topics such as timber construction or digital fabrication and bears numerous innovation objects which are subject to continuous development and evaluation. NEST is a vertical neighbourhood of units, which are connected to a water hub and an energy hub. Once the research questions in a unit are answered and new products have been developed, the unit is deconstructed and replaced by a new unit addressing new topics.

Mobile platform security

CERN Document Server

Asokan, N; Dmitrienko, Alexandra

2013-01-01

Recently, mobile security has garnered considerable interest in both the research community and industry due to the popularity of smartphones. The current smartphone platforms are open systems that allow application development, also for malicious parties. To protect the mobile device, its user, and other mobile ecosystem stakeholders such as network operators, application execution is controlled by a platform security architecture. This book explores how such mobile platform security architectures work. We present a generic model for mobile platform security architectures: the model illustrat

Cloud computing platform for real-time measurement and verification of energy performance

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ke, Ming-Tsun; Yeh, Chia-Hung; Su, Cheng-Jie

2017-01-01

Highlights: • Application of PSO algorithm can improve the accuracy of the baseline model. • M&V cloud platform automatically calculates energy performance. • M&V cloud platform can be applied in all energy conservation measures. • Real-time operational performance can be monitored through the proposed platform. • M&V cloud platform facilitates the development of EE programs and ESCO industries. - Abstract: Nations worldwide are vigorously promoting policies to improve energy efficiency. The use of measurement and verification (M&V) procedures to quantify energy performance is an essential topic in this field. Currently, energy performance M&V is accomplished via a combination of short-term on-site measurements and engineering calculations. This requires extensive amounts of time and labor and can result in a discrepancy between actual energy savings and calculated results. In addition, the M&V period typically lasts for periods as long as several months or up to a year, the failure to immediately detect abnormal energy performance not only decreases energy performance, results in the inability to make timely correction, and misses the best opportunity to adjust or repair equipment and systems. In this study, a cloud computing platform for the real-time M&V of energy performance is developed. On this platform, particle swarm optimization and multivariate regression analysis are used to construct accurate baseline models. Instantaneous and automatic calculations of the energy performance and access to long-term, cumulative information about the energy performance are provided via a feature that allows direct uploads of the energy consumption data. Finally, the feasibility of this real-time M&V cloud platform is tested for a case study involving improvements to a cold storage system in a hypermarket. Cloud computing platform for real-time energy performance M&V is applicable to any industry and energy conservation measure. With the M&V cloud platform, real

Topical Drugs for Pain Relief

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Anjali Srinivasan

2015-03-01

Full Text Available Topical therapy helps patients with oral and perioral pain problems such as ulcers, burning mouth syndrome, temporomandibular disorders, neuromas, neuropathies and neuralgias. Topical drugs used in the field of dentistry are topical anaesthetics, topical analgesics, topical antibiotics and topical corticosteroids. It provides symptomatic/curative effect. Topical drugs are easy to apply, avoids hepatic first pass metabolism and more sites specific. But it can only be used for medications that require low plasma concentrations to achieve a therapeutic effect.

Platform-based production development

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Bossen, Jacob; Brunoe, Thomas Ditlev; Nielsen, Kjeld

2015-01-01

Platforms as a means for applying modular thinking in product development is relatively well studied, but platforms in the production system has until now not been given much attention. With the emerging concept of platform-based co-development the importance of production platforms is though...

Development of integrated platform for computational material design

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kiyoshi, Matsubara; Kumi, Itai; Nobutaka, Nishikawa; Akifumi, Kato [Center for Computational Science and Engineering, Fuji Research Institute Corporation (Japan); Hideaki, Koike [Advance Soft Corporation (Japan)

2003-07-01

The goal of our project is to design and develop a problem-solving environment (PSE) that will help computational scientists and engineers develop large complicated application software and simulate complex phenomena by using networking and parallel computing. The integrated platform, which is designed for PSE in the Japanese national project of Frontier Simulation Software for Industrial Science, is defined by supporting the entire range of problem solving activity from program formulation and data setup to numerical simulation, data management, and visualization. A special feature of our integrated platform is based on a new architecture called TASK FLOW. It integrates the computational resources such as hardware and software on the network and supports complex and large-scale simulation. This concept is applied to computational material design and the project 'comprehensive research for modeling, analysis, control, and design of large-scale complex system considering properties of human being'. Moreover this system will provide the best solution for developing large and complicated software and simulating complex and large-scaled phenomena in computational science and engineering. A prototype has already been developed and the validation and verification of an integrated platform will be scheduled by using the prototype in 2003. In the validation and verification, fluid-structure coupling analysis system for designing an industrial machine will be developed on the integrated platform. As other examples of validation and verification, integrated platform for quantum chemistry and bio-mechanical system are planned.

Development of integrated platform for computational material design

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kiyoshi, Matsubara; Kumi, Itai; Nobutaka, Nishikawa; Akifumi, Kato; Hideaki, Koike

2003-01-01

The goal of our project is to design and develop a problem-solving environment (PSE) that will help computational scientists and engineers develop large complicated application software and simulate complex phenomena by using networking and parallel computing. The integrated platform, which is designed for PSE in the Japanese national project of Frontier Simulation Software for Industrial Science, is defined by supporting the entire range of problem solving activity from program formulation and data setup to numerical simulation, data management, and visualization. A special feature of our integrated platform is based on a new architecture called TASK FLOW. It integrates the computational resources such as hardware and software on the network and supports complex and large-scale simulation. This concept is applied to computational material design and the project 'comprehensive research for modeling, analysis, control, and design of large-scale complex system considering properties of human being'. Moreover this system will provide the best solution for developing large and complicated software and simulating complex and large-scaled phenomena in computational science and engineering. A prototype has already been developed and the validation and verification of an integrated platform will be scheduled by using the prototype in 2003. In the validation and verification, fluid-structure coupling analysis system for designing an industrial machine will be developed on the integrated platform. As other examples of validation and verification, integrated platform for quantum chemistry and bio-mechanical system are planned

Omnidirectional holonomic platforms

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Pin, F.G.; Killough, S.M.

1994-01-01

This paper presents the concepts for a new family of wheeled platforms which feature full omnidirectionality with simultaneous and independently controlled rotational and translational motion capabilities. The authors first present the orthogonal-wheels concept and the two major wheel assemblies on which these platforms are based. They then describe how a combination of these assemblies with appropriate control can be used to generate an omnidirectional capability for mobile robot platforms. The design and control of two prototype platforms are then presented and their respective characteristics with respect to rotational and translational motion control are discussed

Towards a Complete Model for Software Component Deployment on Heterogeneous Platform

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Švogor Ivan

2014-12-01

Full Text Available This report briefly describes an ongoing research related to optimization of allocating software components to heterogeneous computing platform (which includes CPU, GPU and FPGA. Research goal is also presented, along with current hot topics of the research area, related research teams, and finally results and contribution of my research. It involves mathematical modelling which results in goal function, optimization method which finds a suboptimal solution to the goal function and a software modeling tool which enables graphical representation of the problem at hand and help developers determine component placement in the system design phase.

Product Platform Replacements

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Sköld, Martin; Karlsson, Christer

2012-01-01

. To shed light on this unexplored and growing managerial concern, the purpose of this explorative study is to identify operational challenges to management when product platforms are replaced. Design/methodology/approach – The study uses a longitudinal field-study approach. Two companies, Gamma and Omega...... replacement was chosen in each company. Findings – The study shows that platform replacements primarily challenge managers' existing knowledge about platform architectures. A distinction can be made between “width” and “height” in platform replacements, and it is crucial that managers observe this in order...... to challenge their existing knowledge about platform architectures. Issues on technologies, architectures, components and processes as well as on segments, applications and functions are identified. Practical implications – Practical implications are summarized and discussed in relation to a framework...

Topical medication instillation techniques for glaucoma.

Science.gov (United States)

Xu, Li; Wang, Xuemei; Wu, Meijing

2017-02-20

Glaucoma is a leading cause of irreversible blindness worldwide and the second most common cause of blindness after cataracts. The primary treatment for glaucoma aims to lower intraocular pressure (IOP) with the use of topical medicines. Topical medication instillation techniques, such as eyelid closure and nasolacrimal occlusion when instilling drops, have been proposed as potential methods to increase ocular absorption and decrease systemic absorption of the drops. To investigate the effectiveness of topical medication instillation techniques compared with usual care or another method of instillation of topical medication in the management of glaucoma or ocular hypertension. We searched the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (CENTRAL) (which contains the Cochrane Eyes and Vision Trials Register) (2016, Issue 12), MEDLINE Ovid (1946 to 8 December 2016), Embase Ovid (1947 to 8 December 2016), PubMed (1948 to 8 December 2016), LILACS (Latin American and Caribbean Health Sciences Literature Database) (1982 to 8 December 2016), International Pharmaceutical Abstracts Database (1970 to 8 December 2016), the metaRegister of Controlled Trials (mRCT) (www.controlled-trials.com) (last searched 13 May 2013), ClinicalTrials.gov (www.clinicaltrials.gov) (searched 8 December 2016) and the WHO International Clinical Trials Registry Platform (ICTRP) (www.who.int/ictrp/search/en) (searched 8 December 2016). We did not use any date or language restrictions in the electronic searches for trials. We included randomized controlled trials which had compared any topical medication instillation technique with usual care or a different method of instillation of topical medication. Two review authors independently screened records from the searches for eligibility, assessed the risk of bias, and extracted data. We followed methods recommended by Cochrane. We identified two trials (122 eyes of 61 participants) that had evaluated a topical medication instillation technique. We

Automated Detection of Salt Marsh Platforms : a Topographic Method

Science.gov (United States)

Goodwin, G.; Mudd, S. M.; Clubb, F. J.

2017-12-01

: this also suggests that these areas must be carefully considered when analysing erosion and accretion processes. Ultimately, we have shown that automatic detection of marsh platforms from high-resolution topography is possible and sufficient to monitor and analyse topographic evolution.

Topical report review status

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1982-08-01

A Topical Report Review Status is scheduled to be published semi-annually. The primary purpose of this document is to provide periodic progress reports of on-going topical report reviews, to identify those topical reports for which the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) staff review has been completed and, to the extent practicable, to provide NRC management with sufficient information regarding the conduct of the topical report program to permit taking whatever actions deemed necessary or appropriate. This document is also intended to be a source of information to NRC Licensing Project Managers and other NRC personnel regarding the status of topical reports which may be referenced in applications for which they have responsibility. This status report is published primarily for internal NRC use in managing the topical report program, but is also used by NRC to advise the industry of report review status

Topical report review status

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1983-01-01

A Topical Report Review Status is scheduled to be published semi-annually. The primary purpose of this document is to provide periodic progress reports of on-going topical report reviews, to identify those topical reports for which the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) staff review has been completed and, to the extent practicable, to provide NRC management with sufficient information regarding the conduct of the topical report program to permit taking whatever actions deemed necessary or appropriate. This document is also intended to be a source of information to NRC Licensing Project Managers and other NRC personnel regarding the status of topical reports which may be referenced in applications for which they have responsibility. This status report is published primarily for internal NRC use in managing the topical report program, but is also used by NRC to advise the industry of report review status

Potential scenarios for broadening stakeholder involvement in the implementing geological disposal technology platform

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Martell, Meritxell [Merience Strategic Thinking, Barcelona (Spain); Bergmans, Anne [University of Antwerp, Antwerp (Belgium)

2013-07-01

This paper analyses the potential for the involvement of different types of stakeholders in the Implementing Geological Disposal Technology Platform (IGD-TP). This analysis was conducted as part of the InSOTEC project, a three-year (2011- 2014) collaborative research project funded under the 7. Euratom Framework Programme (Grant Agreement nr. 269906). In our analysis, we consider the extent to which the IGDTP's practice as regards to stakeholder involvement matches its discourse, and what potential for improvement exists given its structural organisation as a European Technology Platform (ETPs). Technology Platforms (TPs) can be understood as knowledge networks, deliberately set up to influence (research) policy in a specific domain. We therefore use knowledge networks as a conceptual approach and look at the IGD-TP as a complex network which includes actors, knowledge and practices across different countries, focusing on a very specific topic (i.e. implementing geological disposal). We compare the way different stakeholders are involved in the IGD-TP to the practice of other ETPs, and explore how the IGD-TP is viewed by its members and by outsiders to the platform Applying Callon's framework of knowledge co-production (1999) we come to define different degrees of interaction between science, society and policy in view of defining research and development (R and D) priorities [1]. Subsequently we describe how these interactions could be conceptualised and interpreted for the IGD-TP. The current approach of the IGDTP can be mainly understood as classical model involving mainly expert stakeholders and scientists. Where there seems to be a good representation among IGD-TP members of industry, research institutes, and some members of the academic community this is not the case for other types of stakeholders, such as public authorities or civil society. At this stage, the overall approach of the IGD-TP would seem to restrict the scope of stakeholder

Potential scenarios for broadening stakeholder involvement in the implementing geological disposal technology platform

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Martell, Meritxell; Bergmans, Anne

2013-01-01

This paper analyses the potential for the involvement of different types of stakeholders in the Implementing Geological Disposal Technology Platform (IGD-TP). This analysis was conducted as part of the InSOTEC project, a three-year (2011- 2014) collaborative research project funded under the 7. Euratom Framework Programme (Grant Agreement nr. 269906). In our analysis, we consider the extent to which the IGDTP's practice as regards to stakeholder involvement matches its discourse, and what potential for improvement exists given its structural organisation as a European Technology Platform (ETPs). Technology Platforms (TPs) can be understood as knowledge networks, deliberately set up to influence (research) policy in a specific domain. We therefore use knowledge networks as a conceptual approach and look at the IGD-TP as a complex network which includes actors, knowledge and practices across different countries, focusing on a very specific topic (i.e. implementing geological disposal). We compare the way different stakeholders are involved in the IGD-TP to the practice of other ETPs, and explore how the IGD-TP is viewed by its members and by outsiders to the platform Applying Callon's framework of knowledge co-production (1999) we come to define different degrees of interaction between science, society and policy in view of defining research and development (R and D) priorities [1]. Subsequently we describe how these interactions could be conceptualised and interpreted for the IGD-TP. The current approach of the IGDTP can be mainly understood as classical model involving mainly expert stakeholders and scientists. Where there seems to be a good representation among IGD-TP members of industry, research institutes, and some members of the academic community this is not the case for other types of stakeholders, such as public authorities or civil society. At this stage, the overall approach of the IGD-TP would seem to restrict the scope of stakeholder

75 FR 26647 - Ophthalmic and Topical Dosage Form New Animal Drugs; Ivermectin Topical Solution

Science.gov (United States)

2010-05-12

.... FDA-2010-N-0002] Ophthalmic and Topical Dosage Form New Animal Drugs; Ivermectin Topical Solution... are treated with a topical solution of ivermectin. DATES: This rule is effective May 12, 2010. FOR... ANADA 200-340 for PRIVERMECTIN (ivermectin), a topical solution used on cattle to control infestations...

Optimal Kinematic Design of a 6-UCU Kind Gough-Stewart Platform with a Guaranteed Given Accuracy

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Guojun Liu

2018-06-01

Full Text Available The 6-UCU (U-universal joint; C-cylinder joint kind Gough-Stewart platform is extensively employed in motion simulators due to its high accuracy, large payload, and high-speed capability. However, because of the manufacturing and assembling errors, the real geometry may be different from the nominal one. In the design process of the high-accuracy Gough-Stewart platform, one needs to consider these errors. The purpose of this paper is to propose an optimal design method for the 6-UCU kind Gough-Stewart platform with a guaranteed given accuracy. Accuracy analysis of the 6-UCU kind Gough-Stewart platform is presented by considering the limb length errors and joint position errors. An optimal design method is proposed by using a multi-objective evolutionary algorithm, the non-dominated sorting genetic algorithm II (NSGA-II. A set of Pareto-optimal parameters was found by applying the proposed optimal design method. An engineering design case was studied to verify the effectiveness of the proposed method.

Small animal radiotherapy research platforms

Science.gov (United States)

Verhaegen, Frank; Granton, Patrick; Tryggestad, Erik

2011-06-01

Advances in conformal radiation therapy and advancements in pre-clinical radiotherapy research have recently stimulated the development of precise micro-irradiators for small animals such as mice and rats. These devices are often kilovolt x-ray radiation sources combined with high-resolution CT imaging equipment for image guidance, as the latter allows precise and accurate beam positioning. This is similar to modern human radiotherapy practice. These devices are considered a major step forward compared to the current standard of animal experimentation in cancer radiobiology research. The availability of this novel equipment enables a wide variety of pre-clinical experiments on the synergy of radiation with other therapies, complex radiation schemes, sub-target boost studies, hypofractionated radiotherapy, contrast-enhanced radiotherapy and studies of relative biological effectiveness, to name just a few examples. In this review we discuss the required irradiation and imaging capabilities of small animal radiation research platforms. We describe the need for improved small animal radiotherapy research and highlight pioneering efforts, some of which led recently to commercially available prototypes. From this, it will be clear that much further development is still needed, on both the irradiation side and imaging side. We discuss at length the need for improved treatment planning tools for small animal platforms, and the current lack of a standard therein. Finally, we mention some recent experimental work using the early animal radiation research platforms, and the potential they offer for advancing radiobiology research.

Product Platform Modeling

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Pedersen, Rasmus

for customisation of products. In many companies these changes in the business environment have created a controversy between the need for a wide variety of products offered to the marketplace and a desire to reduce variation within the company in order to increase efficiency. Many companies use the concept...... other. These groups can be varied and combined to form different product variants without increasing the internal variety in the company. Based on the Theory of Domains, the concept of encapsulation in the organ domain is introduced, and organs are formulated as platform elements. Included......This PhD thesis has the title Product Platform Modelling. The thesis is about product platforms and visual product platform modelling. Product platforms have gained an increasing attention in industry and academia in the past decade. The reasons are many, yet the increasing globalisation...

Women's Health Topics

Science.gov (United States)

... Information by Audience For Women Women's Health Topics Women's Health Topics Share Tweet Linkedin Pin it More sharing options Linkedin Pin it Email Print National Women's Health Week May 13 - 19, 2018 Join us ...

Introducing Platform Interactions Model for Studying Multi-Sided Platforms

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Staykova, Kalina; Damsgaard, Jan

2018-01-01

Multi-Sided Platforms (MSPs) function as socio-technical entities that facilitate direct interactions between various affiliated to them constituencies through developing and managing IT architecture. In this paper, we aim to explain the nature of the platform interactions as key characteristic o...

ATLAS Analytics and Machine Learning Platforms

CERN Document Server

Vukotic, Ilija; The ATLAS collaboration; Legger, Federica; Gardner, Robert

2018-01-01

In 2015 ATLAS Distributed Computing started to migrate its monitoring systems away from Oracle DB and decided to adopt new big data platforms that are open source, horizontally scalable, and offer the flexibility of NoSQL systems. Three years later, the full software stack is in place, the system is considered in production and operating at near maximum capacity (in terms of storage capacity and tightly coupled analysis capability). The new model provides several tools for fast and easy to deploy monitoring and accounting. The main advantages are: ample ways to do complex analytics studies (using technologies such as java, pig, spark, python, jupyter), flexibility in reorganization of data flows, near real time and inline processing. The analytics studies improve our understanding of different computing systems and their interplay, thus enabling whole-system debugging and optimization. In addition, the platform provides services to alarm or warn on anomalous conditions, and several services closing feedback l...

Film forming systems for topical and transdermal drug delivery

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Kashmira Kathe

2017-11-01

Full Text Available Skin is considered as an important route of administration of drugs for both local and systemic effects. The effectiveness of topical therapy depends on the physicochemical properties of the drug and adherence of the patient to the treatment regimen as well as the system's ability to adhere to skin during the therapy so as to promote drug penetration through the skin barrier. Conventional formulations for topical and dermatological administration of drugs have certain limitations like poor adherence to skin, poor permeability and compromised patient compliance. For the treatment of diseases of body tissues and wounds, the drug has to be maintained at the site of treatment for an effective period of time. Topical film forming systems are such developing drug delivery systems meant for topical application to the skin, which adhere to the body, forming a thin transparent film and provide delivery of the active ingredients to the body tissue. These are intended for skin application as emollient or protective and for local action or transdermal penetration of medicament for systemic action. The transparency is an appreciable feature of this polymeric system which greatly influences the patient acceptance. In the current discussion, the film forming systems are described as a promising choice for topical and transdermal drug delivery. Further the various types of film forming systems (sprays/solutions, gels and emulsions along with their evaluation parameters have also been reviewed.

Complex products and systems: potential from using lay out platforms

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Halman, Johannes I.M.; Hofer, Adrian P.

2004-01-01

In their quest to manage the complexity of offering greater product variety, firms in many industries are considering platform-based development of product families. Key in this approach is the sharing of components, modules, and other assets across a family of products. Current research indicates

Privacy-by-Design Framework for Assessing Internet of Things Applications and Platforms

OpenAIRE

Perera , Charith; Mccormick , Ciaran; Bandara , Arosha K.; Price , Blaine A.; Nuseibeh , Bashar

2016-01-01

International audience; The Internet of Things (IoT) systems are designed and developed either as standalone applications from the ground-up or with the help of IoT middleware platforms. They are designed to support different kinds of scenarios, such as smart homes and smart cities. Thus far, privacy concerns have not been explicitly considered by IoT applications and middleware platforms. This is partly due to the lack of systematic methods for designing privacy that can guide the software d...

Topics of internal medicine for undergraduate dental education: a qualitative study.

Science.gov (United States)

Kunde, A; Harendza, S

2015-08-01

Due to the ageing population, internal medicine has become increasingly important for dental education. Although several studies have reported dentists' dissatisfaction with their internal medicine training, no guidelines exist for internal medicine learning objectives in dental education. The aim of this study was to identify topics of internal medicine considered to be relevant for dental education by dentists and internists. Eight dentists from private dental practices in Hamburg and eight experienced internal medicine consultants from Hamburg University Hospital were recruited for semi-structured interviews about internal medicine topics relevant for dentists. Internal diseases were clustered into representative subspecialties. Dentists and internists were also asked to rate medical diseases or emergencies compiled from the literature by their relevance to dental education. Coagulopathy and endocarditis were rated highest by dentists, whilst anaphylaxis was rated highest by internists. Dentists rated hepatitis, HIV, organ transplantation and head/neck neoplasm significantly higher than internists. The largest number of different internal diseases mentioned by dentists or internists could be clustered under cardiovascular diseases. The number of specific diseases dentists considered to be relevant for dental education was higher in the subspecialties cardiovascular diseases, haematology/oncology and infectiology. We identified the internal medicine topics most relevant for dental education by surveying practising dentists and internists. The relevance of these topics should be confirmed by larger quantitative studies to develop guidelines how to design specific learning objectives for internal medicine in the dental curriculum. © 2014 John Wiley & Sons A/S. Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Human-competitive automatic topic indexing

CERN Document Server

Medelyan, Olena

2009-01-01

Topic indexing is the task of identifying the main topics covered by a document. These are useful for many purposes: as subject headings in libraries, as keywords in academic publications and as tags on the web. Knowing a document’s topics helps people judge its relevance quickly. However, assigning topics manually is labor intensive. This thesis shows how to generate them automatically in a way that competes with human performance. Three kinds of indexing are investigated: term assignment, a task commonly performed by librarians, who select topics from a controlled vocabulary; tagging, a popular activity of web users, who choose topics freely; and a new method of keyphrase extraction, where topics are equated to Wikipedia article names. A general two-stage algorithm is introduced that first selects candidate topics and then ranks them by significance based on their properties. These properties draw on statistical, semantic, domain-specific and encyclopedic knowledge. They are combined using a machine learn...

Performance simulation in high altitude platforms (HAPs) communications systems

Science.gov (United States)

Ulloa-Vásquez, Fernando; Delgado-Penin, J. A.

2002-07-01

This paper considers the analysis by simulation of a digital narrowband communication system for an scenario which consists of a High-Altitude aeronautical Platform (HAP) and fixed/mobile terrestrial transceivers. The aeronautical channel is modelled considering geometrical (angle of elevation vs. horizontal distance of the terrestrial reflectors) and statistical arguments and under these circumstances a serial concatenated coded digital transmission is analysed for several hypothesis related to radio-electric coverage areas. The results indicate a good feasibility for the communication system proposed and analysed.

Topic Visualization and Survival Analysis

OpenAIRE

Wang, Ping Jr

2017-01-01

Latent semantic structure in a text collection is called a topic. In this thesis, we aim to visualize topics in the scientific literature and detect active or inactive research areas based on their lifetime. Topics were extracted from over 1 million abstracts from the arXiv.org database using Latent Dirichlet Allocation (LDA). Hellinger distance measures similarity between two topics. Topics are determined to be relevant if their pairwise distances are smaller than the threshold of Hellinger ...

ADMS Evaluation Platform

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

2018-01-23

Deploying an ADMS or looking to optimize its value? NREL offers a low-cost, low-risk evaluation platform for assessing ADMS performance. The National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) has developed a vendor-neutral advanced distribution management system (ADMS) evaluation platform and is expanding its capabilities. The platform uses actual grid-scale hardware, large-scale distribution system models, and advanced visualization to simulate realworld conditions for the most accurate ADMS evaluation and experimentation.

GeneTopics - interpretation of gene sets via literature-driven topic models

Science.gov (United States)

2013-01-01

Background Annotation of a set of genes is often accomplished through comparison to a library of labelled gene sets such as biological processes or canonical pathways. However, this approach might fail if the employed libraries are not up to date with the latest research, don't capture relevant biological themes or are curated at a different level of granularity than is required to appropriately analyze the input gene set. At the same time, the vast biomedical literature offers an unstructured repository of the latest research findings that can be tapped to provide thematic sub-groupings for any input gene set. Methods Our proposed method relies on a gene-specific text corpus and extracts commonalities between documents in an unsupervised manner using a topic model approach. We automatically determine the number of topics summarizing the corpus and calculate a gene relevancy score for each topic allowing us to eliminate non-specific topics. As a result we obtain a set of literature topics in which each topic is associated with a subset of the input genes providing directly interpretable keywords and corresponding documents for literature research. Results We validate our method based on labelled gene sets from the KEGG metabolic pathway collection and the genetic association database (GAD) and show that the approach is able to detect topics consistent with the labelled annotation. Furthermore, we discuss the results on three different types of experimentally derived gene sets, (1) differentially expressed genes from a cardiac hypertrophy experiment in mice, (2) altered transcript abundance in human pancreatic beta cells, and (3) genes implicated by GWA studies to be associated with metabolite levels in a healthy population. In all three cases, we are able to replicate findings from the original papers in a quick and semi-automated manner. Conclusions Our approach provides a novel way of automatically generating meaningful annotations for gene sets that are directly

Evaluation of contact sensitivity to topical drugs in patients with contact dermatitis

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Bilge Bülbül Şen

2013-03-01

Full Text Available Background and Design: Topical drugs are an important group of contact allergens. The present study aimed to evaluate contact sensitivity to topical drugs in patients with contact dermatitis. Materials and Methods: Between 2003 and 2008, 129 patients were followed up at the Department of Dermatology at Ankara University School of Medicine with clinically suspected contact sensitivity to topical drugs. In this study, the patch test reactions to the European Standard Battery and topical drugs used by the patients and medicament patch test results were evaluated. Results: Positive patch test reaction to one or more allergens was found in 80 (62.0% of 129 patients included in the study. Sixty-one of the 80 patients (61/129, 47.3% had positive patch test reaction to medicaments. Medicament sensitivity was detected in 37.9% (49/129 of subjects. Nitrofurazone was found to be the most common allergen (18.6%. Discussion: The present study showed that topical drugs are a frequent cause of allergic contact dermatitis. Therefore, the probability of contact sensitivity to topical drugs should also be considered in patients with the clinical diagnosis of allergic contact dermatitis and, suspected cases should be evaluated further with patch testing in order to find the responsible allergens.

A Caregiver Support Platform within the Scope of an Ambient Assisted Living Ecosystem

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Angelo Costa

2014-03-01

Full Text Available The Ambient Assisted Living (AAL area is in constant evolution, providing new technologies to users and enhancing the level of security and comfort that is ensured by house platforms. The Ambient Assisted Living for All (AAL4ALL project aims to develop a new AAL concept, supported on a unified ecosystem and certification process that enables a heterogeneous environment. The concepts of Intelligent Environments, Ambient Intelligence, and the foundations of the Ambient Assisted Living are all presented in the framework of this project. In this work, we consider a specific platform developed in the scope of AAL4ALL, called UserAccess. The architecture of the platform and its role within the overall AAL4ALL concept, the implementation of the platform, and the available interfaces are presented. In addition, its feasibility is validated through a series of tests.

Topics in Bayesian statistics and maximum entropy

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mutihac, R.; Cicuttin, A.; Cerdeira, A.; Stanciulescu, C.

1998-12-01

Notions of Bayesian decision theory and maximum entropy methods are reviewed with particular emphasis on probabilistic inference and Bayesian modeling. The axiomatic approach is considered as the best justification of Bayesian analysis and maximum entropy principle applied in natural sciences. Particular emphasis is put on solving the inverse problem in digital image restoration and Bayesian modeling of neural networks. Further topics addressed briefly include language modeling, neutron scattering, multiuser detection and channel equalization in digital communications, genetic information, and Bayesian court decision-making. (author)

Essential Means for Urban Computing: Specification of Web-Based Computing Platforms for Urban Planning, a Hitchhiker’s Guide

OpenAIRE

Pirouz Nourian; Carlos Martinez-Ortiz; Ken Arroyo Ohori

2018-01-01

This article provides an overview of the specifications of web-based computing platforms for urban data analytics and computational urban planning practice. There are currently a variety of tools and platforms that can be used in urban computing practices, including scientific computing languages, interactive web languages, data sharing platforms and still many desktop computing environments, e.g., GIS software applications. We have reviewed a list of technologies considering their potential ...

Assessment of the real-time PCR and different digital PCR platforms for DNA quantification.

Science.gov (United States)

Pavšič, Jernej; Žel, Jana; Milavec, Mojca

2016-01-01

Digital PCR (dPCR) is beginning to supersede real-time PCR (qPCR) for quantification of nucleic acids in many different applications. Several analytical properties of the two most commonly used dPCR platforms, namely the QX100 system (Bio-Rad) and the 12.765 array of the Biomark system (Fluidigm), have already been evaluated and compared with those of qPCR. However, to the best of our knowledge, direct comparison between the three of these platforms using the same DNA material has not been done, and the 37 K array on the Biomark system has also not been evaluated in terms of linearity, analytical sensitivity and limit of quantification. Here, a first assessment of qPCR, the QX100 system and both arrays of the Biomark system was performed with plasmid and genomic DNA from human cytomegalovirus. With use of PCR components that alter the efficiency of qPCR, each dPCR platform demonstrated consistent copy-number estimations, which indicates the high resilience of dPCR. Two approaches, one considering the total reaction volume and the other considering the effective reaction size, were used to assess linearity, analytical sensitivity and variability. When the total reaction volume was considered, the best performance was observed with qPCR, followed by the QX100 system and the Biomark system. In contrast, when the effective reaction size was considered, all three platforms showed almost equal limits of detection and variability. Although dPCR might not always be more appropriate than qPCR for quantification of low copy numbers, dPCR is a suitable method for robust and reproducible quantification of viral DNA, and a promising technology for the higher-order reference measurement method.

Data Platforms and Cities

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Blok, Anders; Courmont, Antoine; Hoyng, Rolien

2017-01-01

This section offers a series of joint reflections on (open) data platform from a variety of cases, from cycling, traffic and mapping to activism, environment and data brokering. Data platforms play a key role in contemporary urban governance. Linked to open data initiatives, such platforms are of...

Face-masks for facial atopic eczema: consider a hydrocolloid dressing.

Science.gov (United States)

Rademaker, Marius

2013-08-01

Facial involvement of atopic eczema in young children can be difficult to manage. Chronic scratching and rubbing, combined with parental reluctance to use topical corticosteroids on the face, often results in recalcitrant facial eczema. While wet wraps are a useful management option for moderate/severe atopic eczema involving the trunk and limbs they are difficult to use on the face. We describe the use of a face-mask using a widely available adhesive hydrocolloid dressing (DuoDerm extra thin) in three children with recalcitrant facial atopic eczema. Symptomatic control of itch or soreness was obtained within hours and the facial atopic eczema was markedly improved by 7 days. The face-masks were easy to apply, each lasting 1-4 days. One patient had a single adjuvant application of a potent topical corticosteroid under the hydrocolloid dressing. All three patients had long remissions (greater than 3 months) of their facial eczema, although all continued to have significant eczema involving their trunk and limbs. Face-masks made from hydrocolloid dressings, with or without topical corticosteroids, are worth considering in children with recalcitrant facial eczema. © 2012 The Author. Australasian Journal of Dermatology © 2012 The Australasian College of Dermatologists.

A comparison of evaluation metrics for biomedical journals, articles, and websites in terms of sensitivity to topic.

Science.gov (United States)

Fu, Lawrence D; Aphinyanaphongs, Yindalon; Wang, Lily; Aliferis, Constantin F

2011-08-01

Evaluating the biomedical literature and health-related websites for quality are challenging information retrieval tasks. Current commonly used methods include impact factor for journals, PubMed's clinical query filters and machine learning-based filter models for articles, and PageRank for websites. Previous work has focused on the average performance of these methods without considering the topic, and it is unknown how performance varies for specific topics or focused searches. Clinicians, researchers, and users should be aware when expected performance is not achieved for specific topics. The present work analyzes the behavior of these methods for a variety of topics. Impact factor, clinical query filters, and PageRank vary widely across different topics while a topic-specific impact factor and machine learning-based filter models are more stable. The results demonstrate that a method may perform excellently on average but struggle when used on a number of narrower topics. Topic-adjusted metrics and other topic robust methods have an advantage in such situations. Users of traditional topic-sensitive metrics should be aware of their limitations. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

A Comparison of Evaluation Metrics for Biomedical Journals, Articles, and Websites in Terms of Sensitivity to Topic

Science.gov (United States)

Fu, Lawrence D.; Aphinyanaphongs, Yindalon; Wang, Lily; Aliferis, Constantin F.

2011-01-01

Evaluating the biomedical literature and health-related websites for quality are challenging information retrieval tasks. Current commonly used methods include impact factor for journals, PubMed’s clinical query filters and machine learning-based filter models for articles, and PageRank for websites. Previous work has focused on the average performance of these methods without considering the topic, and it is unknown how performance varies for specific topics or focused searches. Clinicians, researchers, and users should be aware when expected performance is not achieved for specific topics. The present work analyzes the behavior of these methods for a variety of topics. Impact factor, clinical query filters, and PageRank vary widely across different topics while a topic-specific impact factor and machine learning-based filter models are more stable. The results demonstrate that a method may perform excellently on average but struggle when used on a number of narrower topics. Topic adjusted metrics and other topic robust methods have an advantage in such situations. Users of traditional topic-sensitive metrics should be aware of their limitations. PMID:21419864

ITS Platform North Denmark

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Lahrmann, Harry; Agerholm, Niels; Juhl, Jens

2012-01-01

This paper presents the project entitled “ITS Platform North Denmark” which is used as a test platform for Intelligent Transportation System (ITS) solutions. The platform consists of a newly developed GNSS/GPRS On Board Unit (OBU) to be installed in 500 cars, a backend server and a specially...

Platform development supportedby gaming

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Mikkola, Juliana Hsuan; Hansen, Poul H. Kyvsgård

2007-01-01

The challenge of implementing industrial platforms in practice can be described as a configuration problem caused by high number of variables, which often have contradictory influences on the total performance of the firm. Consequently, the specific platform decisions become extremely complex......, possibly increasing the strategic risks for the firm. This paper reports preliminary findings on platform management process at LEGO, a Danish toy company.  Specifically, we report the process of applying games combined with simulations and workshops in the platform development. We also propose a framework...

Incorporating Topic Assignment Constraint and Topic Correlation Limitation into Clinical Goal Discovering for Clinical Pathway Mining

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Xiao Xu

2017-01-01

Full Text Available Clinical pathways are widely used around the world for providing quality medical treatment and controlling healthcare cost. However, the expert-designed clinical pathways can hardly deal with the variances among hospitals and patients. It calls for more dynamic and adaptive process, which is derived from various clinical data. Topic-based clinical pathway mining is an effective approach to discover a concise process model. Through this approach, the latent topics found by latent Dirichlet allocation (LDA represent the clinical goals. And process mining methods are used to extract the temporal relations between these topics. However, the topic quality is usually not desirable due to the low performance of the LDA in clinical data. In this paper, we incorporate topic assignment constraint and topic correlation limitation into the LDA to enhance the ability of discovering high-quality topics. Two real-world datasets are used to evaluate the proposed method. The results show that the topics discovered by our method are with higher coherence, informativeness, and coverage than the original LDA. These quality topics are suitable to represent the clinical goals. Also, we illustrate that our method is effective in generating a comprehensive topic-based clinical pathway model.

Scientific Foundation of the Engineering Platform

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Falster, Peter; Franksen, Ole Immanuel

1996-01-01

of array theory developed by dr. Trenchard More. In order to check the definition sequence we made a comparison to APL2, Iverson's J language, functional programming languages and Backus' FP. The establishment of the set of primitives is considered as an engineering design project. The result......The primary aim of the definition sequence is to establish the mathematical platform for software development in particular with a view towards array-based logic. The secondary aim is to establish an approach for teaching array theory. The definition sequence has been developed in the spirit...

Health Topic XML File Description

Science.gov (United States)

... this page: https://medlineplus.gov/xmldescription.html Health Topic XML File Description: MedlinePlus To use the sharing ... information categories assigned. Example of a Full Health Topic Record A record for a MedlinePlus health topic ...

Osmolarity as a contributing factor in topical drug delivery

Science.gov (United States)

Funke, Claire; Szeri, Andrew J.

2017-11-01

Gels and dissolvable solids are drug delivery platforms being evaluated for application of active pharmaceutical ingredients, termed microbicides, which act topically against infection by sexually transmitted HIV. In previous work, we have investigated how dilution by naturally produced fluid from the vaginal mucosa affects drug transport into the vaginal wall. We expand on this work by no longer assuming a constant flux and instead developing a relation for fluid transport based on osmolarity - thus allowing fluid to pass both into and out of epithelial cells. This relation shows that varying the osmolarity of the applied solution can have a significant effect on the amount of drug delivered to its target while holding the applied amount constant. This effect is modulated by a dimensionless group that relates the rates of solute and solvent transport. Ultimately, our goal is to develop a tool to understand better how to manipulate solution osmolarity in order to improve drug delivery within safety parameters for mucosal tissue.

Design of e-Science platform for biomedical imaging research cross multiple academic institutions and hospitals

Science.gov (United States)

Zhang, Jianguo; Zhang, Kai; Yang, Yuanyuan; Ling, Tonghui; Wang, Tusheng; Wang, Mingqing; Hu, Haibo; Xu, Xuemin

2012-02-01

More and more image informatics researchers and engineers are considering to re-construct imaging and informatics infrastructure or to build new framework to enable multiple disciplines of medical researchers, clinical physicians and biomedical engineers working together in a secured, efficient, and transparent cooperative environment. In this presentation, we show an outline and our preliminary design work of building an e-Science platform for biomedical imaging and informatics research and application in Shanghai. We will present our consideration and strategy on designing this platform, and preliminary results. We also will discuss some challenges and solutions in building this platform.

Impact E-Learning Platform Moodle on the Physic's Learning Process in the High School's Students

Science.gov (United States)

Torres-Montealban, Jonas; Ruiz-Chavarria, Gregorio; Gomez-Lozoya, Enrique Armando

2011-03-01

As a didactic proposal, moodle e-learning platform was implemented in one of two Physics High School's group at UACH, in order to show how the use of new technologies can improve the learning progress linked to physics concepts. As a result, the first group worked at the same time with inside class activities as well as outside resources from the moodle e-platform. The second group only worked with inside class activities. This teaching application was developed in six sections. Section I defines the educational framework. Section II identifies the key physic's concepts to be studied in each proposed activity. Section III describes the didactic model. Section IV displays the compared results between similarities and differences in both groups. Section VI shows the gathered information in order to be discussed as a topic related on how new technologies improve the Physic's learning process in the high school' students.

Platform Expansion Design as Strategic Choice

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Staykova, Kalina S.; Damsgaard, Jan

2016-01-01

In this paper, we address how the strategic choice of platform expansion design impacts the subse-quent platform strategy. We identify two distinct approaches to platform expansion – platform bun-dling and platform constellations, which currently co-exist. The purpose of this paper is to outline...

A Typology of Multi-sided Platforms

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Staykova, Kalina Stefanova; Damsgaard, Jan

2015-01-01

In this paper we address how the composition of a platform impacts the platform’s business model. By platform’s business model we mean platform features, platform architecture and platform governance. To this end, we construct the Platform Business Model Framework. We apply the framework to three...

Should Euthanasia Be Considered Iatrogenic?

Science.gov (United States)

Barone, Silvana; Unguru, Yoram

2017-08-01

As more countries adopt laws and regulations concerning euthanasia, pediatric euthanasia has become an important topic of discussion. Conceptions of what constitutes harm to patients are fluid and highly dependent on a myriad of factors including, but not limited to, health care ethics, family values, and cultural context. Euthanasia could be viewed as iatrogenic insofar as it results in an outcome (death) that some might consider inherently negative. However, this perspective fails to acknowledge that death, the outcome of euthanasia, is not an inadvertent or preventable complication but rather the goal of the medical intervention. Conversely, the refusal to engage in the practice of euthanasia might be conceived as iatrogenic insofar as it might inadvertently prolong patient suffering. This article will explore cultural and social factors informing families', health care professionals', and society's views on pediatric euthanasia in selected countries. © 2017 American Medical Association. All Rights Reserved.

Regulatory Information By Topic

Science.gov (United States)

EPA develops and enforces regulations that span many environmental topics, from acid rain reduction to wetlands restoration. Each topic listed below may include related laws and regulations, compliance enforcement information, policies guidance

The cutting-edge training modalities and educational platforms for accredited surgical training: A systematic review

OpenAIRE

Forgione, Antonello; Guraya, Salman Y.

2017-01-01

Background: Historically, operating room (OR) has always been considered as a stand-alone trusted platform for surgical education and training. However, concerns about financial constraints, quality control, and patient safety have urged the surgical educators to develop more cost-effective, surgical educational platforms that can be employed outside the OR. Furthermore, trained surgeons need to regularly update their surgical skills to keep abreast with the emerging surgical technologies. Th...

Validation of the iPhone app using the force platform to estimate vertical jump height.

Science.gov (United States)

Carlos-Vivas, Jorge; Martin-Martinez, Juan P; Hernandez-Mocholi, Miguel A; Perez-Gomez, Jorge

2018-03-01

Vertical jump performance has been evaluated with several devices: force platforms, contact mats, Vertec, accelerometers, infrared cameras and high-velocity cameras; however, the force platform is considered the gold standard for measuring vertical jump height. The purpose of this study was to validate an iPhone app called My Jump, that measures vertical jump height by comparing it with other methods that use the force platform to estimate vertical jump height, namely, vertical velocity at take-off and time in the air. A total of 40 sport sciences students (age 21.4±1.9 years) completed five countermovement jumps (CMJs) over a force platform. Thus, 200 CMJ heights were evaluated from the vertical velocity at take-off and the time in the air using the force platform, and from the time in the air with the My Jump mobile application. The height obtained was compared using the intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC). Correlation between APP and force platform using the time in the air was perfect (ICC=1.000, PJump, is an appropriate method to evaluate the vertical jump performance; however, vertical jump height is slightly overestimated compared with that of the force platform.

Automatic topic identification of health-related messages in online health community using text classification.

Science.gov (United States)

Lu, Yingjie

2013-01-01

To facilitate patient involvement in online health community and obtain informative support and emotional support they need, a topic identification approach was proposed in this paper for identifying automatically topics of the health-related messages in online health community, thus assisting patients in reaching the most relevant messages for their queries efficiently. Feature-based classification framework was presented for automatic topic identification in our study. We first collected the messages related to some predefined topics in a online health community. Then we combined three different types of features, n-gram-based features, domain-specific features and sentiment features to build four feature sets for health-related text representation. Finally, three different text classification techniques, C4.5, Naïve Bayes and SVM were adopted to evaluate our topic classification model. By comparing different feature sets and different classification techniques, we found that n-gram-based features, domain-specific features and sentiment features were all considered to be effective in distinguishing different types of health-related topics. In addition, feature reduction technique based on information gain was also effective to improve the topic classification performance. In terms of classification techniques, SVM outperformed C4.5 and Naïve Bayes significantly. The experimental results demonstrated that the proposed approach could identify the topics of online health-related messages efficiently.

Dynamic Gaming Platform (DGP)

Science.gov (United States)

2009-04-01

GAMING PLATFORM (DGP) Lockheed Martin Corporation...YYYY) APR 09 2. REPORT TYPE Final 3. DATES COVERED (From - To) Jul 07 – Mar 09 4. TITLE AND SUBTITLE DYNAMIC GAMING PLATFORM (DGP) 5a...CMU Carnegie Mellon University DGP Dynamic Gaming Platform GA Genetic Algorithm IARPA Intelligence Advanced Research Projects Activity LM ATL Lockheed Martin Advanced Technology Laboratories PAINT ProActive INTelligence

Labour Market Effects of Employment Protection. IAB Labour Market Research Topics.

Science.gov (United States)

Walwei, Ulrich

The labor market effects of employment protection were examined in a study of Germany's employment protection regulations and their impact on employment practices and patterns. The following topics were considered: (1) the question of whether Germany's labor market problems are a result of regulations; (2) employment security as a subject of labor…

Brine migrations in the Athabasca Basin platform, alteration and associated fluid-rock exchanges

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mercadier, J.; Cathelineau, M.; Richard, A.; Boiron, M.Ch.; Cuney, M.; Milesi, J.P.

2009-01-01

Uranium deposits of Athabasca Basin (Saskatchewan, Canada) are considered as the richest in the world. They result from massive percolation of basin brines in the underlying platform. The authors describe the brine movements and how structures and micro-fractures promoted this percolation until very important depths (hundreds of meters under the discordance), and their chemical modifications as they interacted with platform rocks, thus promoting the transformation of an initially sodic brine into a uranium-enriched calcic brine which is essential to the formation of discordance-type deposit

EURESCOM Services Platform

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Nieuwenhuis, Lambertus Johannes Maria; van Halteren, Aart

1999-01-01

This paper presents the results of the EURESCOM Project 715. In February 1999, a large team of researchers from six European public network operators completed a two year period of cooperative experiments on a TINA-based environment, called the EURESCOM Services Platform (ESP). This platform

Differential Topic Models.

Science.gov (United States)

Chen, Changyou; Buntine, Wray; Ding, Nan; Xie, Lexing; Du, Lan

2015-02-01

In applications we may want to compare different document collections: they could have shared content but also different and unique aspects in particular collections. This task has been called comparative text mining or cross-collection modeling. We present a differential topic model for this application that models both topic differences and similarities. For this we use hierarchical Bayesian nonparametric models. Moreover, we found it was important to properly model power-law phenomena in topic-word distributions and thus we used the full Pitman-Yor process rather than just a Dirichlet process. Furthermore, we propose the transformed Pitman-Yor process (TPYP) to incorporate prior knowledge such as vocabulary variations in different collections into the model. To deal with the non-conjugate issue between model prior and likelihood in the TPYP, we thus propose an efficient sampling algorithm using a data augmentation technique based on the multinomial theorem. Experimental results show the model discovers interesting aspects of different collections. We also show the proposed MCMC based algorithm achieves a dramatically reduced test perplexity compared to some existing topic models. Finally, we show our model outperforms the state-of-the-art for document classification/ideology prediction on a number of text collections.

Topic Model for Graph Mining.

Science.gov (United States)

Xuan, Junyu; Lu, Jie; Zhang, Guangquan; Luo, Xiangfeng

2015-12-01

Graph mining has been a popular research area because of its numerous application scenarios. Many unstructured and structured data can be represented as graphs, such as, documents, chemical molecular structures, and images. However, an issue in relation to current research on graphs is that they cannot adequately discover the topics hidden in graph-structured data which can be beneficial for both the unsupervised learning and supervised learning of the graphs. Although topic models have proved to be very successful in discovering latent topics, the standard topic models cannot be directly applied to graph-structured data due to the "bag-of-word" assumption. In this paper, an innovative graph topic model (GTM) is proposed to address this issue, which uses Bernoulli distributions to model the edges between nodes in a graph. It can, therefore, make the edges in a graph contribute to latent topic discovery and further improve the accuracy of the supervised and unsupervised learning of graphs. The experimental results on two different types of graph datasets show that the proposed GTM outperforms the latent Dirichlet allocation on classification by using the unveiled topics of these two models to represent graphs.

Analyses of Research Topics in the Field of Informetrics Based on the Method of Topic Modeling

OpenAIRE

Sung-Chien Lin

2014-01-01

In this study, we used the approach of topic modeling to uncover the possible structure of research topics in the field of Informetrics, to explore the distribution of the topics over years, and to compare the core journals. In order to infer the structure of the topics in the field, the data of the papers published in the Journal of Informetricsand Scientometrics during 2007 to 2013 are retrieved from the database of the Web of Science as input of the approach of topic modeling. The results ...

Analyses of Research Topics in the Field of Informetrics Based on the Method of Topic Modeling

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Sung-Chien Lin

2014-07-01

Full Text Available In this study, we used the approach of topic modeling to uncover the possible structure of research topics in the field of Informetrics, to explore the distribution of the topics over years, and to compare the core journals. In order to infer the structure of the topics in the field, the data of the papers published in the Journal of Informetricsand Scientometrics during 2007 to 2013 are retrieved from the database of the Web of Science as input of the approach of topic modeling. The results of this study show that when the number of topics was set to 10, the topic model has the smallest perplexity. Although data scopes and analysis methodsare different to previous studies, the generating topics of this study are consistent with those results produced by analyses of experts. Empirical case studies and measurements of bibliometric indicators were concerned important in every year during the whole analytic period, and the field was increasing stability. Both the two core journals broadly paid more attention to all of the topics in the field of Informetrics. The Journal of Informetricsput particular emphasis on construction and applications ofbibliometric indicators and Scientometrics focused on the evaluation and the factors of productivity of countries, institutions, domains, and journals.

Towards a Disruptive Digital Platform Model

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Kazan, Erol

that digital platforms leverage on three strategic design elements (i.e., business, architecture, and technology design) to create supportive conditions for facilitating disruption. To shed light on disruptive digital platforms, I opted for payment platforms as my empirical context and unit of analysis......Digital platforms are layered modular information technology architectures that support disruption. Digital platforms are particularly disruptive, as they facilitate the quick release of digital innovations that may replace established innovations. Yet, despite their support for disruption, we have...... not fully understood how such digital platforms can be strategically designed and configured to facilitate disruption. To that end, this thesis endeavors to unravel disruptive digital platforms from the supply perspective that are grounded on strategic digital platform design elements. I suggest...

Topical treatments of skin pain: a general review with a focus on hidradenitis suppurativa with topical agents.

Science.gov (United States)

Scheinfeld, Noah

2014-07-15

Hidradenitis Supprurativa (HS) is a painful chronic follicular disease. Few papers have addressed pain control for this debilitating condition. Possible topical agents include tricyclic antidepressants, opioids, anticonvulsants, NSAIDs, NMDA receptor antagonists, local anesthetics and other agents. The first line agents for the topical treatment of the cutaneous pain of HS are diclonefac gel 1% and liposomal xylocaine 4% and 5% cream or 5% ointment. The chief advantage of topical xylocaine is that is quick acting i.e. immediate however with a limited duration of effect 1-2 hours. The use of topical ketamine, which blocks n-methyl-D-aspartate receptors in a non-competitive fashion, might be a useful tool for the treatment of HS pain. Topical doxepin, which available in a 5% commercially preparation (Zonalon®) , makes patients drowsy and is not useful for controlling the pain of HS . Doxepin is available in a 3% or 3.3% concentration (which causes less drowsiness) from compounding pharmacies and can be used in compounded analgesic preparations with positive effect. Topical doxepin is preferred over use of topical amitriptyline because topical doxepin is more effective. Nevertheless, topical amitriptyline increase of the tactile and mechanical nociceptive thresholds and can be used for topical pain control in compound mixture of analgesics . Gabapentin and pregablin can also be used compounded with other agents in topical analgesic preparations with positive topical anesthetic effect. Capsaicin is not useful for topical treatment of the pain of HS. Sometimes compounded of anesthetics medications such as ketamine 10%, bupivacaine 1%, diclofenac 3%, doxepin 3% or 3.3%, and gabapentin 6% can extend the duration of effect so that medication only needs to be used 2 or 3 times a day. Still in my experience the easiest to get and most patient requested agent is topical diclonefac 1% gel.

Groundwater Assessment Platform

OpenAIRE

Podgorski, Joel; Berg, Michael

2018-01-01

The Groundwater Assessment Platform is a free, interactive online GIS platform for the mapping, sharing and statistical modeling of groundwater quality data. The modeling allows users to take advantage of publicly available global datasets of various environmental parameters to produce prediction maps of their contaminant of interest.

Preparing for a Product Platform

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Fiil-Nielsen, Ole; Munk, Lone; Mortensen, Niels Henrik

2005-01-01

on commonalities and similarities in the product family, and variance should be based on customer demands. To relate these terms and to improve the basis on which decisions are made, we need a way of visualizing the hierarchy of the product family as well as the commonality and variance. This visualization method...... of the platform or ensuring that the platform can meet future demands will be very useful in the preparation process of a platform synthesis as well as in the updating or reengineering of an existing product development platform.......Experience in the industry as well as recent related scientific publications show the benefits of product development platforms. Companies use platforms to develop not a single but multiple products (i.e. a product family) simultaneously. When these product development projects are coordinated...

Development of a Cloud Computing-Based Pier Type Port Structure Stability Evaluation Platform Using Fiber Bragg Grating Sensors.

Science.gov (United States)

Jo, Byung Wan; Jo, Jun Ho; Khan, Rana Muhammad Asad; Kim, Jung Hoon; Lee, Yun Sung

2018-05-23

Structure Health Monitoring is a topic of great interest in port structures due to the ageing of structures and the limitations of evaluating structures. This paper presents a cloud computing-based stability evaluation platform for a pier type port structure using Fiber Bragg Grating (FBG) sensors in a system consisting of a FBG strain sensor, FBG displacement gauge, FBG angle meter, gateway, and cloud computing-based web server. The sensors were installed on core components of the structure and measurements were taken to evaluate the structures. The measurement values were transmitted to the web server via the gateway to analyze and visualize them. All data were analyzed and visualized in the web server to evaluate the structure based on the safety evaluation index (SEI). The stability evaluation platform for pier type port structures involves the efficient monitoring of the structures which can be carried out easily anytime and anywhere by converging new technologies such as cloud computing and FBG sensors. In addition, the platform has been successfully implemented at “Maryang Harbor” situated in Maryang-Meyon of Korea to test its durability.

Considering a possible future for Digital Journalism

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mark DEUZE

2017-01-01

Full Text Available Developments shaping digital journalism seem to speeding up at the start of the 21st century. Social media enable radical new ways to gather and verify sources and information. Hardware and software power innovative storytelling formats, combining platforms and channels, adding interactivity to the news experience. And the global news industry is quickly becoming a networked industry, with startups and other forms of entrepreneurial journalism springing up all over the world. In this essay, I consider a possible future for digital journalism by briefly reviewing first findings from a series of case studies of 21 new small-sized journalism enterprises operating in 11 countries (spread across 5 continents. The overarching research question: seen through their eyes, what does the future of (digital journalism look like? The answers are hopeful.

Investigation of the effects of platform motion on the aerodynamics of a floating offshore wind turbine

Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

万德成

2016-01-01

Along with the flourishing of the wind energy industry, floating offshore wind turbines have aroused much interest among the academia as well as enterprises. In this paper, the effects of the supporting platform motion on the aerodynamics of a floating wind turbine are studied using the open source CFD framework OpenFOAM. The platform motion responses, including surge, heave and pitch, are superimposed onto the rotation of the wind turbine. Thrust and torque on the wind turbine are compared and analysed for the cases of different platform motion patterns together with the flow field. It is shown that the movement of the supporting platform can have large influences on a floating offshore wind turbine and thus needs to be considered carefully during the design process.

The Logic of Digital Platform Disruption

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Kazan, Erol; Tan, Chee-Wee; Lim, Eric T. K.

Digital platforms are disruptive IT artifacts, because they facilitate the quick release of innovative platform derivatives from third parties (e.g., apps). This study endeavours to unravel the disruptive potential, caused by distinct designs and configurations of digital platforms on market...... environments. We postulate that the disruptive potential of digital platforms is determined by the degree of alignment among the business, technology and platform profiles. Furthermore, we argue that the design and configuration of the aforementioned three elements dictates the extent to which open innovation...... is permitted. To shed light on the disruptive potential of digital platforms, we opted for payment platforms as our unit of analysis. Through interviews with experts and payment providers, we seek to gain an in-depth appreciation of how contemporary digital payment platforms are designed and configured...

Using Epistemic Network Analysis to understand core topics as planned learning objectives

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Allsopp, Benjamin Brink; Dreyøe, Jonas; Misfeldt, Morten

Epistemic Network Analysis is a tool developed by the epistemic games group at the University of Wisconsin Madison for tracking the relations between concepts in students discourse (Shaffer 2017). In our current work we are applying this tool to learning objectives in teachers digital preparation....... The danish mathematics curriculum is organised in six competencies and three topics. In the recently implemented learning platforms teacher choose which of the mathematical competencies that serves as objective for a specific lesson or teaching sequence. Hence learning objectives for lessons and teaching...... sequences are defining a network of competencies, where two competencies are closely related of they often are part of the same learning objective or teaching sequence. We are currently using Epistemic Network Analysis to study these networks. In the poster we will include examples of different networks...

Transactional Network Platform: Applications

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Katipamula, Srinivas; Lutes, Robert G.; Ngo, Hung; Underhill, Ronald M.

2013-10-31

In FY13, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) with funding from the Department of Energy’s (DOE’s) Building Technologies Office (BTO) designed, prototyped and tested a transactional network platform to support energy, operational and financial transactions between any networked entities (equipment, organizations, buildings, grid, etc.). Initially, in FY13, the concept demonstrated transactions between packaged rooftop air conditioners and heat pump units (RTUs) and the electric grid using applications or "agents" that reside on the platform, on the equipment, on a local building controller or in the Cloud. The transactional network project is a multi-lab effort with Oakridge National Laboratory (ORNL) and Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL) also contributing to the effort. PNNL coordinated the project and also was responsible for the development of the transactional network (TN) platform and three different applications associated with RTUs. This document describes two applications or "agents" in details, and also summarizes the platform. The TN platform details are described in another companion document.

Topical steroid-damaged skin

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Anil Abraham

2014-01-01

Full Text Available Topical steroids, commonly used for a wide range of skin disorders, are associated with side effects both systemic and cutaneous. This article aims at bringing awareness among practitioners, about the cutaneous side effects of easily available, over the counter, topical steroids. This makes it important for us as dermatologists to weigh the usefulness of topical steroids versus their side effects, and to make an informed decision regarding their use in each individual based on other factors such as age, site involved and type of skin disorder.

Mental Mechanisms for Topics Identification

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Louis Massey

2014-01-01

Full Text Available Topics identification (TI is the process that consists in determining the main themes present in natural language documents. The current TI modeling paradigm aims at acquiring semantic information from statistic properties of large text datasets. We investigate the mental mechanisms responsible for the identification of topics in a single document given existing knowledge. Our main hypothesis is that topics are the result of accumulated neural activation of loosely organized information stored in long-term memory (LTM. We experimentally tested our hypothesis with a computational model that simulates LTM activation. The model assumes activation decay as an unavoidable phenomenon originating from the bioelectric nature of neural systems. Since decay should negatively affect the quality of topics, the model predicts the presence of short-term memory (STM to keep the focus of attention on a few words, with the expected outcome of restoring quality to a baseline level. Our experiments measured topics quality of over 300 documents with various decay rates and STM capacity. Our results showed that accumulated activation of loosely organized information was an effective mental computational commodity to identify topics. It was furthermore confirmed that rapid decay is detrimental to topics quality but that limited capacity STM restores quality to a baseline level, even exceeding it slightly.

Vertical Relationships within Platform Marketplaces

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mark J. Tremblay

2016-07-01

Full Text Available In two-sided markets a platform allows consumers and sellers to interact by creating sub-markets within the platform marketplace. For example, Amazon has sub-markets for all of the different product categories available on its site, and smartphones have sub-markets for different types of applications (gaming apps, weather apps, map apps, ridesharing apps, etc.. The network benefits between consumers and sellers depend on the mode of competition within the sub-markets: more competition between sellers lowers product prices, increases the surplus consumers receive from a sub-market, and makes platform membership more desirable for consumers. However, more competition also lowers profits for a seller which makes platform membership less desirable for a seller and reduces seller entry and the number of sub-markets available on the platform marketplace. This dynamic between seller competition within a sub-market and agents’ network benefits leads to platform pricing strategies, participation decisions by consumers and sellers, and welfare results that depend on the mode of competition. Thus, the sub-market structure is important when investigating platform marketplaces.

The vacuum platform

Science.gov (United States)

McNab, A.

2017-10-01

This paper describes GridPP’s Vacuum Platform for managing virtual machines (VMs), which has been used to run production workloads for WLCG and other HEP experiments. The platform provides a uniform interface between VMs and the sites they run at, whether the site is organised as an Infrastructure-as-a-Service cloud system such as OpenStack, or an Infrastructure-as-a-Client system such as Vac. The paper describes our experience in using this platform, in developing and operating VM lifecycle managers Vac and Vcycle, and in interacting with VMs provided by LHCb, ATLAS, ALICE, CMS, and the GridPP DIRAC service to run production workloads.

Selected Topics in Nuclear Theory. Lectures Given at the International Summer School on Selected Topics in Nuclear Theory

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Janouch, F. [ed.

1963-01-15

An International Summer School on Selected Topics in Nuclear Theory was held during the period 20 August to 9 September 1962 in the Low Tatra Mountains, Czechoslovakia, under the auspices of the Nuclear Research Institute of the Czechoslovak Academy of Sciences, with financial support from the International Atomic Energy Agency. In view of the wide interest of the seven topics considered there and of the speed with which the field of theoretical physics is developing, the Agency decided to make available its facilities for rapid publication and to publish the lectures under its own imprint; however, all editorial and composition work has been performed under the supervision of the general editor. Dr. F. Janouch of the Nuclear Research Institute of the Czechoslovak Academy of Sciences. The problem of keeping in touch with the rapidly changing but fundamental field of theoretical physics is a difficult one, particularly for scientists in the developing countries. It is hoped that such publications as the present one and the companion volume containing the lectures presented at the Agency's Seminar on Theoretical Physics at Trieste w ill help, at least in a modest fashion, to overcome these difficulties.

The business impact of an integrated continuous biomanufacturing platform for recombinant protein production.

Science.gov (United States)

Walther, Jason; Godawat, Rahul; Hwang, Chris; Abe, Yuki; Sinclair, Andrew; Konstantinov, Konstantin

2015-11-10

The biotechnology industry primarily uses batch technologies to manufacture recombinant proteins. The natural evolution of other industries has shown that transitioning from batch to continuous processing can yield significant benefits. A quantitative understanding of these benefits is critical to guide the implementation of continuous processing. In this manuscript, we use process economic modeling and Monte Carlo simulations to evaluate an integrated continuous biomanufacturing (ICB) platform and conduct risk-based valuation to generate a probabilistic range of net-present values (NPVs). For a specific ten-year product portfolio, the ICB platform reduces average cost by 55% compared to conventional batch processing, considering both capital and operating expenses. The model predicts that these savings can further increase by an additional 25% in situations with higher-than-expected product demand showing the upward potential of the ICB platform. The ICB platform achieves these savings and corresponding flexibility mainly due to process intensification in both upstream and downstream unit operations. This study demonstrates the promise of continuous bioprocessing while also establishing a novel framework to quantify financial benefits of other platform process technologies. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Improved Collaborative Filtering Algorithm using Topic Model

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Liu Na

2016-01-01

Full Text Available Collaborative filtering algorithms make use of interactions rates between users and items for generating recommendations. Similarity among users or items is calculated based on rating mostly, without considering explicit properties of users or items involved. In this paper, we proposed collaborative filtering algorithm using topic model. We describe user-item matrix as document-word matrix and user are represented as random mixtures over item, each item is characterized by a distribution over users. The experiments showed that the proposed algorithm achieved better performance compared the other state-of-the-art algorithms on Movie Lens data sets.

Satisfaction level with topical versus peribulbar anesthesia experienced by same patient for phacoemulsification

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Nauman Ahmad

2012-01-01

Full Text Available Background: Various studies have assessed patient satisfaction with topical versus peribulbar anesthesia with conflicting results. Aim of study was to determine satisfaction level in same patient who gets topical anesthesia in one eye and peribulbar block in another eye. We propose that evaluation of various indicators of patient satisfaction will enable better selection of cases for topical anesthesia in the future. Methods: Eighty patients scheduled for phacoemulsification were enrolled in prospective, randomized, double-blind study. Each patient scheduled twice for one eye under topical anesthesia and other in peribulbar block. Pain, discomfort and pressure during application of local anesthetic, during phacoemulsification and at 2 hours after procedure were assessed on standard scales. Before discharge patient satisfaction level was checked with Iowa satisfaction with anesthesia scale (ISAS. The Student′s t-test was used to determine the significance of IOWA score in both groups. P<0.05 was considered significant. Results: Feeling of pain, pressure and discomfort scores during administration of topical anesthesia were all significantly lower compared to peribulbar anesthesia (P=0.004, 0.000, 0.002, respectively. In contrast, intraoperative scores were significantly higher in the topical anesthesia group compared to peribulbar anesthesia (P=0.022, 0.000, 0.000, respectively. Patient satisfaction measured with ISAS shows that peribulbar anesthesia with P=0.000 is strongly significant. Conclusion: Peribulbar anesthesia provided significantly better patient satisfaction in comparison with topical anesthesia when used for cataract surgery.

Treatment with silver nitrate versus topical steroid treatment for umbilical granuloma: A non-inferiority randomized control trial.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Chikako Ogawa

Full Text Available The aim of this prospective multicenter randomized controlled trial was to compare the efficacy of silver nitrate cauterization against that of topical steroid ointment in the treatment of neonatal umbilical granuloma.An open-label, non-inferiority randomized controlled trial was conducted from January 2013 to January 2016. The primary endpoint for the silver nitrate cauterization and topical steroid ointment groups was the healing rate after 2 weeks of treatment, applying a non-inferiority margin of 10%. The healing rate was evaluated until completion of 3 weeks of treatment.Participants comprised 207 neonates with newly diagnosed umbilical granuloma, randomized to receive silver nitrate cauterization (n = 104 or topical steroid ointment (n = 103. Healing rates after 2 weeks of treatment were 87.5% (91/104 in the silver nitrate cauterization and 82% (82/100 in the topical steroid ointment group group. The difference between groups was -5.5% (95% confidence interval, -19.1%, 8.4%, indicating that the non-inferiority criterion was not met. After 3 weeks of treatment, the healing rate with topical steroid ointment treatment was almost identical to that of silver nitrate cauterization (94/104 [90.4%] vs. 91/100 [91.0%]; 0.6% [-13.2 to 14.3]. No major complications occurred in either group.This study did not establish non-inferiority of topical steroid ointment treatment relative to silver nitrate cauterization, presumably due to lower healing rates than expected leading to an underpowered trial. However, considering that silver nitrate cauterization carries a distinct risk of chemical burns and that the overall efficacy of topical steroid ointment treatment is similar to that of silver nitrate cauterization, topical steroid ointment might be considered as a good alternative in the treatment of neonatal umbilical granuloma due to its safety and simplicity. To clarify non-inferiority, a larger study is needed.

Effect of Topical Tacrolimus on Vitiligo in Children

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mohammed Ziaur Rahman Bhuiyan

2016-01-01

Full Text Available Background: Considering safe treatment modalities for children with vitiligo, search for newer therapeutic agents continues. Hence, new immunomodulatory agents such as calcineurinantagonists, frequently referred to as topical immunomodulators (TIMs have recently been introduced as new promising tools to treat acquired hypopigmentary disorders. Tacrolimus is safe in treating children due to lack of skin atrophy and less data are available on effect of topical tacrolimus on vitiligo. Objective: To see the effect of topical tacrolimus on vitiligo in children. Materials and Methods: This prospective study was done in outpatient department of Dermatology and Venereology, Chittagong Medical College Hospital (CMCH, Bangladesh. Clinically diagnosed vitiligo patients of up to 12 years age visiting Skin & VD OPD, CMCH during study period were the study population (total 30. The study was carried out from November 2007 to April 2008. Results: A total of 30 patients, 13 (43.33% males and 17 (56.66% females with focal, segmental or generalized vitiligo were studied. Seventy percent of study subjects were from 7–12 years of age. Topical tacrolimus 0.03% ointment was administered twice daily for 12 weeks to each patient. Repigmentation was complete (>75% in 43.33% cases (13/30, was moderate (50–75% in 33.33% (10/30, mild (<50% in 13.33% (4/30. Clinical adverse effects were noted in 6.67% (2/30 of cases where pruritus was in 3.33% (1/30 and burning in 3.33% (1/30. None of the reactions was severe, all were mild and well-tolerated and most occurred within the first month of initiation of treatment and resolved with continued use of drug and completely cured after the treatment completed. Nobody had to discontinue the therapy for side effects. Conclusion: In conclusion, tacrolimus ointment may be a rapidly efficacious and safe option for the treatment of vitiligo in children. The ease of topical self-administration with minimal side effects makes this novel

Tectonic resemblance of the Indian Platform, Pakistan with the Moesian Platform, Romania and strategy for exploration of hydrocarbons

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Memon, A.D.

1994-01-01

There is a remarkable tectonic resemblance between the indian Platform (Pakistan) and the Moesian Platform (Romania). As viewed in global tectonic perspective Moeslan and Indian Plates have played important role in Alpine Himalayan Orogeny; Moesian and Indian Platforms are extension of these respective plates. Characteristics features of both the platforms are block faulting which has effected not only the general tectonic framework but has also played important role in oil accumulation. Main producing rocks in the Moesian platform are Jurassic sandstones and cretaceous limestones while in the indian platform cretaceous sandstones are important reservoirs. The average geothermal gradient in the indian platform is 2.45 C/100m with the higher gradients in the central gas producing region. Geothermal gradients in the Moesian platform have an average value of 3 C/100m with higher gradients in the northern in the northern part. Some of the producing structures in both the platforms are remarkably similar, traps associated with normal faults are very important. Extensive exploration carried in the Moesian Platform makes it very important oil producing region of Romania. After the discovery of oil lower Sindh, serious exploration is being carried in the Indian platform. The paper deals with the similarities between these two important platforms. In the light of the studies of the Moesian platform, strategies or exploration of oil and gas in the Indian Platform are suggested. (author)

Utilizing platforms in industrialized construction

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Bonev, Martin; Wörösch, Michael; Hvam, Lars

2015-01-01

platform strategies, this researchhighlights key aspects of adapting platform-based developed theory to industrialised construction.Building projects use different layers of product, process and logistics platforms to form the right cost– value ratio for the target market application, while modelling...

Evaluating the E-Learning Platform from the Perspective of Knowledge Management: The AHP Approach

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

I-Chin Wu

2013-06-01

Full Text Available A growing number of higher education institutions have adopted asynchronous and synchronous Web-based learning platforms to improve students’ learning efficiency and increase learning satisfaction in the past decade. Unlike traditional face-to-face learning methods, e-learning platforms allow teachers to communicate with students and discuss course content anytime or anywhere. In addition, the teaching material can be reused via the e-learning platforms. To understand how students use e-learning platforms and what the implications are, we conducted an empirical study of the iCAN e-learning platform, which has been widely used in Fu-Jen Catholic University since 2005. We use the Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP, a well-known multi-criteria evaluation approach, to compare five practices, i.e. the functions of the iCAN teaching platform. We adopted a brainstorming approach to design a questionnaire to measure learners’ perception of the e-learning platform based on the theory of knowledge transforming process in knowledge management. Accordingly, the model considers functioning and objectivity in terms of the following three attributes of learning effectiveness: individual learning, group sharing and learning performance. Twelve criteria with twelve evaluation items were used to investigate the effectiveness of the five practices. We also evaluated the strengths and weaknesses of the functions based on the types of courses in the iCan platform. We expect that the empirical evaluation results will provide teachers with suggestions and guidelines for using the e-learning platform effectively to facilitate their teaching activities and promote students’ learning efficiency and satisfaction.

Open Platform for Limit Protection with Carefree Maneuver Applications

Science.gov (United States)

Jeram, Geoffrey J.

2004-01-01

This Open Platform for Limit Protection guides the open design of maneuver limit protection systems in general, and manned, rotorcraft, aerospace applications in particular. The platform uses three stages of limit protection modules: limit cue creation, limit cue arbitration, and control system interface. A common set of limit cue modules provides commands that can include constraints, alerts, transfer functions, and friction. An arbitration module selects the "best" limit protection cues and distributes them to the most appropriate control path interface. This platform adopts a holistic approach to limit protection whereby it considers all potential interface points, including the pilot's visual, aural, and tactile displays; and automatic command restraint shaping for autonomous limit protection. For each functional module, this thesis guides the control system designer through the design choices and information interfaces among the modules. Limit cue module design choices include type of prediction, prediction mechanism, method of critical control calculation, and type of limit cue. Special consideration is given to the nature of the limit, particularly the level of knowledge about it, and the ramifications for limit protection design, especially with respect to intelligent control methods such as fuzzy inference systems and neural networks.

The breaking point of modern processor and platform technology

CERN Document Server

Nowak, A; Lazzaro, A; Leduc, J

2011-01-01

This work is an overview of state of the art processors used in High Energy Physics, their architecture and an extensive outline of the forthcoming technologies. Silicon process science and hardware design are making constant and rapid progress, and a solid grasp of these developments is imperative to the understanding of their possible future applications, which might include software strategy, optimizations, computing center operations and hardware acquisitions. In particular, the current issue of software and platform scalability is becoming more and more noticeable, and will develop in the near future with the growing core count of single chips and the approach of certain x86 architectural limits. Other topics brought forward include the hard, physical limits of innovation, the applicability of tried and tested computing formulas to modern technologies, as well as an analysis of viable alternate choices for continued development.

Stratospheric Platforms for Monitoring Purposes

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Konigorski, D.; Gratzel, U.; Obersteiner, M.; Schneidereit, M.

2010-01-01

Stratospheric platforms are emerging systems based on challenging technology. Goal is to create a platform, payload, and mission design which is able to complement satellite services on a local scale. Applications are close to traditional satellite business in telecommunication, navigation, science, and earth observation and include for example mobile telecommunications, navigation augmentation, atmospheric research, or border control. Stratospheric platforms could potentially support monitoring activities related to safeguards, e.g. by imagery of surfaces, operational conditions of nuclear facilities, and search for undeclared nuclear activities. Stratospheric platforms are intended to be flown in an altitude band between 16 and 30 km, above 16-20 km to take advantage of usually lower winds facilitating station keeping, below 30 km to limit the challenges to achieve a reasonable payload at acceptable platform sizes. Stratospheric platforms could substitute satellites which are expensive and lack upgrade capabilities for new equipment. Furthermore they have practically an unlimited time over an area of interest. It is intended to keep the platforms operational and maintenance free on a 24/7 basis with an average deployment time of 3 years. Geostationary satellites lack resolution. Potential customers like Armed Forces, National Agencies and commercial customers have indicated interest in the use of stratospheric platforms. Governmental entities are looking for cheaper alternatives to communications and surveillance satellites and stratospheric platforms could offer the following potential advantages: Lower operational cost than satellite or UAV (Unmanned Aerial Vehicles) constellation (fleet required); Faster deployment than satellite constellation; Repositioning capability and ability to loiter as required; Persistent long-term real-time services over a fairly large regional spot; Surge capability: Able to extend capability (either monitoring or communications

REopt: A Platform for Energy System Integration and Optimization: Preprint

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Simpkins, T.; Cutler, D.; Anderson, K.; Olis, D.; Elgqvist, E.; Callahan, M.; Walker, A.

2014-08-01

REopt is NREL's energy planning platform offering concurrent, multi-technology integration and optimization capabilities to help clients meet their cost savings and energy performance goals. The REopt platform provides techno-economic decision-support analysis throughout the energy planning process, from agency-level screening and macro planning to project development to energy asset operation. REopt employs an integrated approach to optimizing a site?s energy costs by considering electricity and thermal consumption, resource availability, complex tariff structures including time-of-use, demand and sell-back rates, incentives, net-metering, and interconnection limits. Formulated as a mixed integer linear program, REopt recommends an optimally-sized mix of conventional and renewable energy, and energy storage technologies; estimates the net present value associated with implementing those technologies; and provides the cost-optimal dispatch strategy for operating them at maximum economic efficiency. The REopt platform can be customized to address a variety of energy optimization scenarios including policy, microgrid, and operational energy applications. This paper presents the REopt techno-economic model along with two examples of recently completed analysis projects.

Topical Treatment of Degenerative Knee Osteoarthritis.

Science.gov (United States)

Meng, Zengdong; Huang, Rongzhong

2018-01-01

This article reviews topical management strategies for degenerative osteoarthritis (OA) of the knee. A search of Pubmed, Embase and the Cochrane library using MeSH terms including "topical," "treatment," "knee" and "osteoarthritis" was carried out. Original research and review articles on the effectiveness and safety, recommendations from international published guidelines and acceptability studies of topical preparations were included. Current topical treatments included for the management of knee OA include topical nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, capsaicin, salicylates and physical treatments such as hot or cold therapy. Current treatment guidelines recommend topical nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs as an alternative and even first-line therapy for OA management, especially among elderly patients. Guidelines on other topical treatments vary, from recommendations against their use, to in favor as alternative or simultaneous therapy, especially for patients with contraindications to other analgesics. Although often well-tolerated and preferred by many patients, clinical care still lags in the adoption of topical treatments. Aspects of efficacy, safety and patient quality of life data require further research. Copyright © 2018 Southern Society for Clinical Investigation. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Adoption of Mobile Payment Platforms

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Staykova, Kalina Stefanova; Damsgaard, Jan

2016-01-01

Numerous mobile payment solutions, which rely on new disruptive technologies, have been launched on the payment market in recent years. But despite the growing number of mobile payment apps, very few solutions have turned to be successful as the majority of them fail to gain a critical mass...... of users. In this paper, we investigate successful platform adoption strategies by using the Reach and Range Framework for Multi-Sided Platforms as a strategic tool to which mobile payment providers can adhere in order to tackle some of the main challenges they face throughout the evolution...... of their platforms. The analysis indicates that successful mobile payment solutions tend to be launched as one-sided platforms and then gradually be expanded into being two-sided. Our study showcases that the success of mobile payment platforms lies with the ability of the platform to balance the reach (number...

The Dynamics of Digital Platform Innovation

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Eaton, Ben

2016-01-01

Curated platforms provide an architectural basis for third parties to develop platform complements and for platform owners to control their implementation as a form of open innovation. The refusal to implement complements as innovations can cause tension between platform owners and developers. Th...

Cross-platform learning: on the nature of children's learning from multiple media platforms.

Science.gov (United States)

Fisch, Shalom M

2013-01-01

It is increasingly common for an educational media project to span several media platforms (e.g., TV, Web, hands-on materials), assuming that the benefits of learning from multiple media extend beyond those gained from one medium alone. Yet research typically has investigated learning from a single medium in isolation. This paper reviews several recent studies to explore cross-platform learning (i.e., learning from combined use of multiple media platforms) and how such learning compares to learning from one medium. The paper discusses unique benefits of cross-platform learning, a theoretical mechanism to explain how these benefits might arise, and questions for future research in this emerging field. Copyright © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc., A Wiley Company.

Topical treatment of psoriasis: questionnaire results on topical therapy accessibility and influence of body surface area on usage.

Science.gov (United States)

Iversen, L; Lange, M M; Bissonette, R; Carvalho, A V E; van de Kerkhof, P C; Kirby, B; Kleyn, C E; Lynde, C W; van der Walt, J M; Wu, J J

2017-07-01

Topical treatment of mild to moderate psoriasis is first-line treatment and exhibits varying degrees of success across patient groups. Key factors influencing treatment success are physician topical treatment choice (high efficacy, low adverse events) and strict patient adherence. Currently, no formalized, international consensus guidelines exist to direct optimal topical treatment, although many countries have national guidelines. To describe and analyse cross-regional variations in the use and access of psoriasis topical therapies. The study was conducted as an observational cross-sectional study. A survey was distributed to dermatologists from the International Psoriasis Council (IPC) to assess topical therapy accessibility in 26 countries and to understand how body surface area (BSA) categories guide clinical decisions on topical use. Variation in the availability of tars, topical retinoids, dithranol and balneotherapy was reported. The vast majority of respondents (100% and 88.4%) used topical therapy as first-line monotherapy in situations with BSA 10%, the number of respondents who prescribe topical therapy decreased considerably. In addition, combination therapy of a topical drug and a systemic drug was frequently reported when BSA measured >10%. This physician survey provides new evidence on topical access and the influence of disease severity on topical usage in an effort to improve treatment strategies on a global level. © 2017 European Academy of Dermatology and Venereology.

IMPROVEMENT OF THE SUPPORTING STRUCTURE OF PLATFORM CAR FOR HIGHER EFFICIENCY OF CONTAINER TRANSPORTATIONS

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

A. O. Lovska

2017-02-01

Full Text Available Purpose. The article is aimed to improve supporting structures of the platform car to increase the efficiency of container transportations. Methodology. In order to achieve the objective, the strength investigations of the universal platform car of the model 13-401 were conducted, strength reserves of the supporting elements were defined, and more optimal profiles of basic longitudinal beams of the frame in terms of the minimum material capacity were proposed. Decision correctness was confirmed by the strength calculation of the platform car supporting structure at basic loading operational modes and fatigue taking into account the research database of 107 cycles. It has been proposed to equip a platform car with swing fitting stops for fastening containers on the frame, which allows transportation of 20ft and 40ft containers. In order to improve container transportation efficiency along international transport corridors running through Ukraine, a platform car of articulated type has been designed on the base of the improved platform car structure. The mathematical simulation of dynamic loads of the platform car with containers (two 1CC containers at operational loading modes has been carried out, the maximum accelerations influencing the support structure have been defined, and their multiple values have been considered in computer simulation of the strength of the platform car of articulated type. Findings. The support structure of the platform car of articulated type on the basis of the standard platform car has been developed. Refined values of dynamic loads influencing supporting structure the platform car of articulated type with containers at operational loading modes have been obtained; the maximum equivalent stresses in the platform car support structure have been defined. Originality and practical value. A mathematical model of displacements for a platform car of articulated type with containers at operational loading modes of

AHRQ series paper 3: identifying, selecting, and refining topics for comparative effectiveness systematic reviews: AHRQ and the effective health-care program.

Science.gov (United States)

Whitlock, Evelyn P; Lopez, Sarah A; Chang, Stephanie; Helfand, Mark; Eder, Michelle; Floyd, Nicole

2010-05-01

This article discusses the identification, selection, and refinement of topics for comparative effectiveness systematic reviews within the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality's Effective Health Care (EHC) program. The EHC program seeks to align its research topic selection with the overall goals of the program, impartially and consistently apply predefined criteria to potential topics, involve stakeholders to identify high-priority topics, be transparent and accountable, and continually evaluate and improve processes. A topic prioritization group representing stakeholder and scientific perspectives evaluates topic nominations that fit within the EHC program (are "appropriate") to determine how "important" topics are as considered against seven criteria. The group then judges whether a new comparative effectiveness systematic review would be a duplication of existing research syntheses, and if not duplicative, if there is adequate type and volume of research to conduct a new systematic review. Finally, the group considers the "potential value and impact" of a comparative effectiveness systematic review. As the EHC program develops, ongoing challenges include ensuring the program addresses truly unmet needs for synthesized research because national and international efforts in this arena are uncoordinated, as well as engaging a range of stakeholders in program decisions while also achieving efficiency and timeliness.

Effectiveness of a digital platform for sharing knowledge on headache management: a two-year experience.

Science.gov (United States)

Raieli, Vincenzo; Correnti, E; Sandullo, A; Romano, M; Marchese, F; Loiacono, C; Brighina, Filippo

It is crucial that all headache specialists receive adequate training. Considering the unsatisfactory results obtained with standard updating courses and the growing need for continuing professional education, a digital platform was developed as a training tool. The platform has been active since 1 October 2014. It is readily accessible to doctors by free registration. Users have access to all the material available on the platform, which includes scientific articles, e-books, presentations and images. Users can share their own material and clinical cases directly. At the time of this study, the platform had 37 users. In the second year following its launch 316 files were downloaded and five discussions were started. These saw 22 contributions. Fifteen of the 37 members did not perform any action on the platform. In total, 74 files were uploaded in the second year of activity, but 90% of the contributions came from a very small group of users. There were no significant differences in use of the platform between members of the Italian Society for the Study of Headache and other specialists. Even though the platform appears to be an easily accessible, interactive and inexpensive instrument, the higher number of downloads than uploads suggests that it is used passively.

Keyword extraction, ranking, and organization for the neuroinformatics platform.

Science.gov (United States)

Usui, S; Palmes, P; Nagata, K; Taniguchi, T; Ueda, N

2007-04-01

Brain-related researches encompass many fields of studies and usually involve worldwide collaborations. Recognizing the value of these international collaborations for efficient use of resources and improving the quality of brain research, the International Neuroinformatics Coordinating Facility (INCF) started to coordinate the effort of establishing neuroinformatics (NI) centers and portal sites among the different participating countries. These NI centers and portal sites will serve as the conduit for the interchange of information and brain-related resources among different countries. In Japan, several NI platforms under the support of NIJC (NI Japan Center) are being developed with one platform called, Visiome, already operating and publicly accessible at "http://www.platform.visiome.org". Each of these platforms requires their own set of keywords that represent important terms covering their respective fields of study. One important function of this predefined keyword list is to help contributors classify the contents of their contributions and group related resources. It is vital, therefore, that this predefined list should be properly chosen to cover the necessary areas. Currently, the process of identifying these appropriate keywords relies on the availability of human experts which does not scale well considering that different areas are rapidly evolving. This problem prompted us to develop a tool to automatically filter the most likely terms preferred by human experts. We tested the effectiveness of the proposed approach using the abstracts of the Vision Research Journal (VR) and Investigative Ophthalmology and Visual Science Journal (IOVS) as source files.

Comparison of Resource Platform Selection Approaches for Scientific Workflows

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Simmhan, Yogesh; Ramakrishnan, Lavanya

2010-03-05

Cloud computing is increasingly considered as an additional computational resource platform for scientific workflows. The cloud offers opportunity to scale-out applications from desktops and local cluster resources. At the same time, it can eliminate the challenges of restricted software environments and queue delays in shared high performance computing environments. Choosing from these diverse resource platforms for a workflow execution poses a challenge for many scientists. Scientists are often faced with deciding resource platform selection trade-offs with limited information on the actual workflows. While many workflow planning methods have explored task scheduling onto different resources, these methods often require fine-scale characterization of the workflow that is onerous for a scientist. In this position paper, we describe our early exploratory work into using blackbox characteristics to do a cost-benefit analysis across of using cloud platforms. We use only very limited high-level information on the workflow length, width, and data sizes. The length and width are indicative of the workflow duration and parallelism. The data size characterizes the IO requirements. We compare the effectiveness of this approach to other resource selection models using two exemplar scientific workflows scheduled on desktops, local clusters, HPC centers, and clouds. Early results suggest that the blackbox model often makes the same resource selections as a more fine-grained whitebox model. We believe the simplicity of the blackbox model can help inform a scientist on the applicability of cloud computing resources even before porting an existing workflow.

The Effect of Topical Structure Analysis Instruction on University Students' Writing Quality

Science.gov (United States)

Liangprayoon, Somlak; Chaya, Walaiporn; Thep-ackraphong, Tipa

2013-01-01

Coherence is considered one of the characteristics of effective writing. Topical structure analysis (TSA) has been taught to students as a revision strategy to raise their awareness of importance of textual coherence and helps them clearly understand its concept. This study aimed to investigate the effectiveness of TSA instruction in improving…

The European Photovoltaic Technology Platform

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nowak, S.; Aulich, H.; Bal, J.L.; Dimmler, B.; Garnier, A.; Jongerden, G.; Luther, J.; Luque, A.; Milner, A.; Nelson, D.; Pataki, I.; Pearsall, N.; Perezagua, E.; Pietruszko, S.; Rehak, J.; Schellekens, E.; Shanker, A.; Silvestrini, G.; Sinke, W.; Willemsen, H.

2006-05-01

The European Photovoltaic Technology Platform is one of the European Technology Platforms, a new instrument proposed by the European Commission. European Technology Platforms (ETPs) are a mechanism to bring together all interested stakeholders to develop a long-term vision to address a specific challenge, create a coherent, dynamic strategy to achieve that vision and steer the implementation of an action plan to deliver agreed programmes of activities and optimise the benefits for all parties. The European Photovoltaic Technology Platform has recently been established to define, support and accompany the implementation of a coherent and comprehensive strategic plan for photovoltaics. The platform will mobilise all stakeholders sharing a long-term European vision for PV, helping to ensure that Europe maintains and improves its industrial position. The platform will realise a European Strategic Research Agenda for PV for the next decade(s). Guided by a Steering Committee of 20 high level decision-makers representing all relevant European PV Stakeholders, the European PV Technology Platform comprises 4 Working Groups dealing with the subjects policy and instruments; market deployment; science, technology and applications as well as developing countries and is supported by a secretariat

Dental Implant Surrounding Marginal Bone Level Evaluation: Platform Switching versus Platform Matching—One-Year Retrospective Study

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Eisner Salamanca

2017-01-01

Full Text Available The benefits and feasibility of platform switching have been discussed in several studies, reporting lesser crestal bone loss in platform-switched implants than in platform-matched implants. Objective. The aim of the present study was to observe the changes in vertical and horizontal marginal bone levels in platform-switched and platform-matched dental implants. Materials and Methods. 51 patients received 60 dental implants in the present study over a 1-year period. Measurement was performed between the implant shoulder and the most apical and horizontal marginal defect by periapical radiographs to examine the changes of peri-implant alveolar bone before and 12 months after prosthodontic restoration delivery. Results. These marginal bone measurements showed a bone gain of 0.23±0.58 mm in the vertical gap and 0.22±0.53 mm in the horizontal gap of platform matching, while in platform switching a bone gain of 0.93±1 mm (P<0.05 in the vertical gap and 0.50±0.56 mm in the horizontal gap was found. The average vertical gap reduction from the baseline until 12 months was 0.92±1.11 mm in platform switching and 0.29±0.85 mm in platform matching (P<0.05. Conclusions. Within the limitations of the present study, platform switching seemed to be more effective for a better peri-implant alveolar bone vertical and horizontal gap reduction at 1 year.

The Educational Platform: Constructing Conceptual Frameworks.

Science.gov (United States)

Peca, Kathy; Isham, Mark

2001-01-01

The education faculty at Eastern New Mexico University used educational platforms as a means of developing the unit's conceptual framework. Faculty members developed personal platforms, then synthesized them into one curricular area platform. The resultant unit educational platform became the basis for the unit's conceptual framework, which…

Topical botulinum toxin.

Science.gov (United States)

Collins, Ashley; Nasir, Adnan

2010-03-01

Nanotechnology is a rapidly growing discipline that capitalizes on the unique properties of matter engineered on the nanoscale. Vehicles incorporating nanotechnology have led to great strides in drug delivery, allowing for increased active ingredient stability, bioavailability, and site-specific targeting. Botulinum toxin has historically been used for the correction of neurological and neuromuscular disorders, such as torticollis, blepharospasm, and strabismus. Recent dermatological indications have been for the management of axillary hyperhydrosis and facial rhytides. Traditional methods of botulinum toxin delivery have been needle-based. These have been associated with increased pain and cost. Newer methods of botulinum toxin formulation have yielded topical preparations that are bioactive in small pilot clinical studies. While there are some risks associated with topical delivery, the refinement and standardization of delivery systems and techniques for the topical administration of botulinum toxin using nanotechnology is anticipated in the near future.

Uncovering the Topic Landscape of Product-Service System Research: from Sustainability to Value Creation

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Hakyeon Lee

2018-03-01

Full Text Available As the product-service system (PSS is considered a promising business model that can create more value for customers, PSS research has enjoyed remarkable growth in its volume and coverage over the last decade. This study aims to delineate the thematic landscape of PSS research by identifying latent topics from a large amount of scholarly data. Ten topics of PSS research are identified by applying the Latent Dirichlet Allocation (LDA model to 1229 PSS publications published between 2000 and 2016. The ten PSS topics are briefly reviewed to provide an overview of what has previously been studied in PSS research. We also investigate which topics rise or fall in popularity by identifying hot and cold topics of PSS research. It is observed that the focus of discussions on the benefits of PSS has shifted from sustainability to value creation. Also, increasing attention has been paid to more practical topics such as PSS implementation. The areas of subspecialty of the top ten PSS journals are also examined to explore the interdisciplinary nature of PSS research and thematic differences across disciplines. The findings of this study can provide rich implications for both academia and practice in the field of PSS.

Topical methotrexate pretreatment enhances the therapeutic effect of topical 5-aminolevulinic acid-mediated photodynamic therapy on hamster buccal pouch precancers.

Science.gov (United States)

Yang, Deng-Fu; Lee, Jeng-Woei; Chen, Hsin-Ming; Hsu, Yih-Chih

2014-09-01

Topical 5-aminolevulinic acid-mediated photodynamic therapy (ALA-PDT) is effective for treatment of human oral precancerous lesions. This animal study aimed to assess whether topical methotrexate (MTX) pretreatment could enhance the therapeutic effect of topical ALA-PDT on hamster buccal pouch precancerous lesions. Twenty hamster buccal pouch precancerous lesions were treated with either topical ALA-PDT with topical MTX pretreatment (topical MTX-ALA-PDT group, n = 10) or topical ALA-PDT alone (topical ALA-PDT group, n = 10). The intracellular protoporphyrin IX (PpIX) level in another 12 precancerous lesions (n = 6 for either the topical MTX-ALA or topical ALA group) was monitored by fluorescence spectroscopy. The intracellular PpIX reached its peak level in precancerous lesions 6.5 hours and 2.5 hours after topical ALA application for the topical MTX-ALA group (5.63-fold higher in the lesion than in the normal mucosa) and topical ALA group (2.42-fold higher in the lesion than in the normal mucosa), respectively. The complete response rate of precancerous lesions was 80% for the topical MTX-ALA-PDT group and 70% for the topical ALA-PDT group. In addition, the topical MTX-ALA-PDT group required a significantly lower mean treatment number (2.1 ± 0.6) to achieve complete response than the topical ALA-PDT group (4.4 ± 1.3, p topical MTX-ALA-PDT group had a lower recurrence rate (12.5%) than the topical ALA-PDT group (28.6%). We conclude that topical MTX-pretreatment can increase intracellular PpIX production in hamster buccal pouch precancerous lesions and significantly improves the outcomes of the precancerous lesions treated with topical ALA-PDT. Copyright © 2014. Published by Elsevier B.V.

National Community Solar Platform

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Rupert, Bart [Clean Energy Collective, Louisville, CO (United States)

2016-06-30

This project was created to provide a National Community Solar Platform (NCSP) portal known as Community Solar Hub, that is available to any entity or individual who wants to develop community solar. This has been done by providing a comprehensive portal to make CEC’s solutions, and other proven community solar solutions, externally available for everyone to access – making the process easy through proven platforms to protect subscribers, developers and utilities. The successful completion of this project provides these tools via a web platform and integration APIs, a wide spectrum of community solar projects included in the platform, multiple groups of customers (utilities, EPCs, and advocates) using the platform to develop community solar, and open access to anyone interested in community solar. CEC’s Incubator project includes web-based informational resources, integrated systems for project information and billing systems, and engagement with customers and users by community solar experts. The combined effort externalizes much of Clean Energy Collective’s industry-leading expertise, allowing third parties to develop community solar without duplicating expensive start-up efforts. The availability of this platform creates community solar projects that are cheaper to build and cheaper to participate in, furthering the goals of DOE’s SunShot Initiative. Final SF 425 Final SF 428 Final DOE F 2050.11 Final Report Narrative

Effect of Antenna Pointing Errors on SAR Imaging Considering the Change of the Point Target Location

Science.gov (United States)

Zhang, Xin; Liu, Shijie; Yu, Haifeng; Tong, Xiaohua; Huang, Guoman

2018-04-01

Towards spaceborne spotlight SAR, the antenna is regulated by the SAR system with specific regularity, so the shaking of the internal mechanism is inevitable. Moreover, external environment also has an effect on the stability of SAR platform. Both of them will cause the jitter of the SAR platform attitude. The platform attitude instability will introduce antenna pointing error on both the azimuth and range directions, and influence the acquisition of SAR original data and ultimate imaging quality. In this paper, the relations between the antenna pointing errors and the three-axis attitude errors are deduced, then the relations between spaceborne spotlight SAR imaging of the point target and antenna pointing errors are analysed based on the paired echo theory, meanwhile, the change of the azimuth antenna gain is considered as the spotlight SAR platform moves ahead. The simulation experiments manifest the effects on spotlight SAR imaging caused by antenna pointing errors are related to the target location, that is, the pointing errors of the antenna beam will severely influence the area far away from the scene centre of azimuth direction in the illuminated scene.

Validation of the three web quality dimensions of a minimally invasive surgery e-learning platform.

Science.gov (United States)

Ortega-Morán, Juan Francisco; Pagador, J Blas; Sánchez-Peralta, Luisa Fernanda; Sánchez-González, Patricia; Noguera, José; Burgos, Daniel; Gómez, Enrique J; Sánchez-Margallo, Francisco M

2017-11-01

E-learning web environments, including the new TELMA platform, are increasingly being used to provide cognitive training in minimally invasive surgery (MIS) to surgeons. A complete validation of this MIS e-learning platform has been performed to determine whether it complies with the three web quality dimensions: usability, content and functionality. 21 Surgeons participated in the validation trials. They performed a set of tasks in the TELMA platform, where an e-MIS validity approach was followed. Subjective (questionnaires and checklists) and objective (web analytics) metrics were analysed to achieve the complete validation of usability, content and functionality. The TELMA platform allowed access to didactic content with easy and intuitive navigation. Surgeons performed all tasks with a close-to-ideal number of clicks and amount of time. They considered the design of the website to be consistent (95.24%), organised (90.48%) and attractive (85.71%). Moreover, they gave the content a high score (4.06 out of 5) and considered it adequate for teaching purposes. The surgeons scored the professional language and content (4.35), logo (4.24) and recommendations (4.20) the highest. Regarding functionality, the TELMA platform received an acceptance of 95.24% for navigation and 90.48% for interactivity. According to the study, it seems that TELMA had an attractive design, innovative content and interactive navigation, which are three key features of an e-learning platform. TELMA successfully met the three criteria necessary for consideration as a website of quality by achieving more than 70% of agreements regarding all usability, content and functionality items validated; this constitutes a preliminary requirement for an effective e-learning platform. However, the content completeness, authoring tool and registration process required improvement. Finally, the e-MIS validity methodology used to measure the three dimensions of web quality in this work can be applied to other

Flexible experimental FPGA based platform

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Andersen, Karsten Holm; Nymand, Morten

2016-01-01

This paper presents an experimental flexible Field Programmable Gate Array (FPGA) based platform for testing and verifying digital controlled dc-dc converters. The platform supports different types of control strategies, dc-dc converter topologies and switching frequencies. The controller platform...... interface supporting configuration and reading of setup parameters, controller status and the acquisition memory in a simple way. The FPGA based platform, provides an easy way within education or research to use different digital control strategies and different converter topologies controlled by an FPGA...

Systemic vs. Topical Therapy for the Treatment of Vulvovaginal Candidiasis

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Sebastian Faro

1994-01-01

Full Text Available It is estimated that 75% of all women will experience at least 1 episode of vulvovaginal candidiasis (VVC during their lifetimes. Most patients with acute VVC can be treated with short-term regimens that optimize compliance. Since current topical and oral antifungals have shown comparably high efficacy rates, other issues should be considered in determining the most appropriate therapy. It is possible that the use of short-duration narrow-spectrum agents may increase selection of more resistant organisms which will result in an increase of recurrent VVC (RVVC. Women who are known or suspected to be pregnant and women of childbearing age who are not using a reliable means of contraception should receive topical therapy, as should those who are breast-feeding or receiving drugs that can interact with an oral azole and those who have previously experienced adverse effects during azole therapy. Because of the potential risks associated with systemic treatment, topical therapy with a broad-spectrum agent should be the method of choice for VVC, whereas systemic therapy should be reserved for either RVVC or cases where the benefits outweigh any possible adverse reactions.

Product Platform Screening at LEGO

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Mortensen, Niels Henrik; Steen Jensen, Thomas; Nielsen, Ole Fiil

2012-01-01

Product platforms offer great benefits to companies developing new products in highly competitive markets. Literature describes how a single platform can be designed from a technical point of view, but rarely mentions how the process begins. How do companies identify possible platform candidates...... after a few changes had been applied to the initial process layout. This case study shows how companies must focus on a limited selection of simultaneous projects in order to keep focus. Primary stakeholders must be involved from the very beginning, and short presentations of the platform concepts...

Reusable platform concepts

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Gudmestad, O.T.; Sparby, B.K.; Stead, B.L.

1993-01-01

There is an increasing need to reduce costs of offshore production facilities in order to make development of offshore fields profitable. For small fields with short production time there is in particular a need to investigate ways to reduce costs. The idea of platform reuse is for such fields particularly attractive. This paper will review reusable platform concepts and will discuss their range of application. Particular emphasis will be placed on technical limitations. Traditional concepts as jackups and floating production facilities will be discussed by major attention will be given to newly developed ideas for reuse of steel jackets and concrete structures. It will be shown how the operator for several fields can obtain considerable savings by applying such reusable platform concepts

Disentangling Competition Among Platform Driven Strategic Groups

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Kazan, Erol; Tan, Chee-Wee; Lim, Eric

2015-01-01

In platform-driven markets, competitive advantage is derived from superior platform design and configurations. For this reason, platform owners strive to create unique and inimitable platform configurals to maintain and extend their competitiveness within network economies. To disentangle firm...... competition within platform-driven markets, we opted for the UK mobile payment market as our empirical setting. By embracing the theoretical lens of strategic groups and digital platforms, this study supplements prior research by deriving a taxonomy of platform-driven strategic groups that is grounded...

Science teacher orientations and PCK across science topics in grade 9 earth science

Science.gov (United States)

Campbell, Todd; Melville, Wayne; Goodwin, Dawne

2017-07-01

While the literature is replete with studies examining teacher knowledge and pedagogical content knowledge (PCK), few studies have investigated how science teacher orientations (STOs) shape classroom instruction. Therefore, this research explores the interplay between a STOs and the topic specificity of PCK across two science topics within a grade 9 earth science course. Through interviews and observations of one teacher's classroom across two sequentially taught, this research contests the notion that teachers hold a single way of conceptualising science teaching and learning. In this, we consider if multiple ontologies can provide potential explanatory power for characterising instructional enactments. In earlier work with the teacher in this study, using generic interview prompts and general discussions about science teaching and learning, we accepted the existence of a unitary STO and its promise of consistent reformed instruction in the classroom. However, upon close examination of instruction focused on different science topics, evidence was found to demonstrate the explanatory power of multiple ontologies for shaping characteristically different epistemological constructions across science topics. This research points to the need for care in generalising about teacher practice, as it reveals that a teacher's practice, and orientation, can vary, dependent on the context and science topics taught.

Recent advances in topical anesthesia

Science.gov (United States)

2016-01-01

Topical anesthetics act on the peripheral nerves and reduce the sensation of pain at the site of application. In dentistry, they are used to control local pain caused by needling, placement of orthodontic bands, the vomiting reflex, oral mucositis, and rubber-dam clamp placement. Traditional topical anesthetics contain lidocaine or benzocaine as active ingredients and are used in the form of solutions, creams, gels, and sprays. Eutectic mixtures of local anesthesia cream, a mixture of various topical anesthetics, has been reported to be more potent than other anesthetics. Recently, new products with modified ingredients and application methods have been introduced into the market. These products may be used for mild pain during periodontal treatment, such as scaling. Dentists should be aware that topical anesthetics, although rare, might induce allergic reactions or side effects as a result of an overdose. Topical anesthetics are useful aids during dental treatment, as they reduce dental phobia, especially in children, by mitigating discomfort and pain. PMID:28879311

An Integrated Web-Based 3d Modeling and Visualization Platform to Support Sustainable Cities

Science.gov (United States)

Amirebrahimi, S.; Rajabifard, A.

2012-07-01

Sustainable Development is found as the key solution to preserve the sustainability of cities in oppose to ongoing population growth and its negative impacts. This is complex and requires a holistic and multidisciplinary decision making. Variety of stakeholders with different backgrounds also needs to be considered and involved. Numerous web-based modeling and visualization tools have been designed and developed to support this process. There have been some success stories; however, majority failed to bring a comprehensive platform to support different aspects of sustainable development. In this work, in the context of SDI and Land Administration, CSDILA Platform - a 3D visualization and modeling platform -was proposed which can be used to model and visualize different dimensions to facilitate the achievement of sustainability, in particular, in urban context. The methodology involved the design of a generic framework for development of an analytical and visualization tool over the web. CSDILA Platform was then implemented via number of technologies based on the guidelines provided by the framework. The platform has a modular structure and uses Service-Oriented Architecture (SOA). It is capable of managing spatial objects in a 4D data store and can flexibly incorporate a variety of developed models using the platform's API. Development scenarios can be modeled and tested using the analysis and modeling component in the platform and the results are visualized in seamless 3D environment. The platform was further tested using number of scenarios and showed promising results and potentials to serve a wider need. In this paper, the design process of the generic framework, the implementation of CSDILA Platform and technologies used, and also findings and future research directions will be presented and discussed.

Dynamic Model of Platform Manipulator with Six Degrees of Freedom

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

A. L. Lapikov

2015-01-01

Full Text Available The paper considers a solution of the relevant tasks related to deriving dynamic equations for the platform manipulators with 6 degrees of freedom. It presents a detailed analysis of the subject area, describes key problems arising in the course of research, and suggests their solution methods. The equations describing dynamics of the mechanical system under discussion were derived using Lagrange equation of the second kind. For this purpose Cartesian coordinates and three Euler angles (angles of precession, nutation and intrinsic rotation describing the orientation of moving frame of reference connected with the platform towards the base were chosen as generalized coordinates of the model. Such choice allowed us to simplify the derivation of the model considerably, because it was possible to represent a dependence of kinetic energy of the mechanical system on the generalized coordinates in an explicit form. In addition, formulation of kinetic energy was supplemented with correlations describing kinetic energy of the mechanism legs. During the derivation of equations for the legs velocities the part of the component defining a rotation movement of the leg against the joint of the base was ignored because of it was small in comparison with the component of linear separation. Besides, during the derivation of equations for kinetic energy of the legs, modified correlations for kinematics of platform manipulators with 6 degrees of freedom suggested in the previous papers of the authors were used.he paper examines a numerical example to solve a reverse dynamic problem in the case of equal harmonic changes of controlling forces. It was found out that under controlling forces described above the platform carries out harmonic advancing movements along the vertical axis.Further planning research concerns the extended capabilities of the model to consider the influence of the working load and to create algorithms for deriving dynamic models of a

Discriminative Relational Topic Models.

Science.gov (United States)

Chen, Ning; Zhu, Jun; Xia, Fei; Zhang, Bo

2015-05-01

Relational topic models (RTMs) provide a probabilistic generative process to describe both the link structure and document contents for document networks, and they have shown promise on predicting network structures and discovering latent topic representations. However, existing RTMs have limitations in both the restricted model expressiveness and incapability of dealing with imbalanced network data. To expand the scope and improve the inference accuracy of RTMs, this paper presents three extensions: 1) unlike the common link likelihood with a diagonal weight matrix that allows the-same-topic interactions only, we generalize it to use a full weight matrix that captures all pairwise topic interactions and is applicable to asymmetric networks; 2) instead of doing standard Bayesian inference, we perform regularized Bayesian inference (RegBayes) with a regularization parameter to deal with the imbalanced link structure issue in real networks and improve the discriminative ability of learned latent representations; and 3) instead of doing variational approximation with strict mean-field assumptions, we present collapsed Gibbs sampling algorithms for the generalized relational topic models by exploring data augmentation without making restricting assumptions. Under the generic RegBayes framework, we carefully investigate two popular discriminative loss functions, namely, the logistic log-loss and the max-margin hinge loss. Experimental results on several real network datasets demonstrate the significance of these extensions on improving prediction performance.

Blood glucose level prediction based on support vector regression using mobile platforms.

Science.gov (United States)

Reymann, Maximilian P; Dorschky, Eva; Groh, Benjamin H; Martindale, Christine; Blank, Peter; Eskofier, Bjoern M

2016-08-01

The correct treatment of diabetes is vital to a patient's health: Staying within defined blood glucose levels prevents dangerous short- and long-term effects on the body. Mobile devices informing patients about their future blood glucose levels could enable them to take counter-measures to prevent hypo or hyper periods. Previous work addressed this challenge by predicting the blood glucose levels using regression models. However, these approaches required a physiological model, representing the human body's response to insulin and glucose intake, or are not directly applicable to mobile platforms (smart phones, tablets). In this paper, we propose an algorithm for mobile platforms to predict blood glucose levels without the need for a physiological model. Using an online software simulator program, we trained a Support Vector Regression (SVR) model and exported the parameter settings to our mobile platform. The prediction accuracy of our mobile platform was evaluated with pre-recorded data of a type 1 diabetes patient. The blood glucose level was predicted with an error of 19 % compared to the true value. Considering the permitted error of commercially used devices of 15 %, our algorithm is the basis for further development of mobile prediction algorithms.

Topical anesthesia

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mritunjay Kumar

2015-01-01

Full Text Available Topical anesthetics are being widely used in numerous medical and surgical sub-specialties such as anesthesia, ophthalmology, otorhinolaryngology, dentistry, urology, and aesthetic surgery. They cause superficial loss of pain sensation after direct application. Their delivery and effectiveness can be enhanced by using free bases; by increasing the drug concentration, lowering the melting point; by using physical and chemical permeation enhancers and lipid delivery vesicles. Various topical anesthetic agents available for use are eutectic mixture of local anesthetics, ELA-max, lidocaine, epinephrine, tetracaine, bupivanor, 4% tetracaine, benzocaine, proparacaine, Betacaine-LA, topicaine, lidoderm, S-caine patch™ and local anesthetic peel. While using them, careful attention must be paid to their pharmacology, area and duration of application, age and weight of the patients and possible side-effects.

Platform development: implications for portfolio management

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Hsuan, Juliana; Hansen, Poul H. Kyvsgård

2007-01-01

" The challenge of implementing industrial platforms in practice can be described as a configuration problem caused by a considerable number of variables, which often have contradictory influences on the total performance of the firm. Consequently, the specific platform decisions become extremely...... complex, possibly increasing the strategic risks for the firm. This paper reports preliminary findings on platform management process at LEGO, a Danish toy company. Specifically, we report the process of applying games combined with simulations and workshops in the platform development. We also propose...... a framework, based on the portfolio management thinking to evaluate the degree of modularity embedded in a given platform and to which extent it is aligned with other platforms."...

Using Technology to Support Discussions on Sensitive Topics in the Study of Business Ethics

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Michelle WL Fong

2015-06-01

Full Text Available There is a dearth of research into teaching strategies and learning approaches for units involving sensitive topics that can provoke an emotional response in students. In a business ethics unit, attempts to strike a balance between conceptual knowledge and theory and skills training can be challenging because the unit can involve personal, sensitive or controversial topics. When engaging in deep and meaningful face-to-face discussion, students may unknowingly divulge personal opinions that they later regret or become identified with by other students over time. Value-laden topics may also lead to clashes between students if face-to-face discussions are not managed properly. This paper considers the use of technology in blended learning to provide an optimal learning environment for student discussion on sensitive topics via role-play and simulation in a first-year business ethics unit. The Audience Response System (ARS, online discussion boards and blogs, and wikis are assessed for their suitability in supporting online role-play and simulation. Among these online tools, asynchronous online discussion boards and blogs are the ideal tools for supporting student discussion on sensitive topics in online role-play and simulation.

Stratifying the Develoment of Product Platforms

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Sköld, Martin; Karlsson, Christer

2013-01-01

companies develop platforms for different aims, purposes, and product scopes. Following on from this, the requirements for platform development resources, the ways of organizing platform development, and the implications for management styles have not been explored and are presumably varying. To start...... influencing the project length, requirements for platform development resources, principles for organizing, and implications for management styles....

Problematic topic transitions in dysarthric conversation.

Science.gov (United States)

Bloch, Steven; Saldert, Charlotta; Ferm, Ulrika

2015-01-01

This study examined the nature of topic transition problems associated with acquired progressive dysarthric speech in the everyday conversation of people with motor neurone disease. Using conversation analytic methods, a video collection of five naturally occurring problematic topic transitions was identified, transcribed and analysed. These were extracted from a main collection of over 200 other-initiated repair sequences and a sub-set of 15 problematic topic transition sequences. The sequences were analysed with reference to how the participants both identified and resolved the problems. Analysis revealed that topic transition by people with dysarthria can prove problematic. Conversation partners may find transitions problematic not only because of speech intelligibility but also because of a sequential disjuncture between the dysarthric speech turn and whatever topic has come prior. In addition the treatment of problematic topic transition as a complaint reveals the potential vulnerability of people with dysarthria to judgements of competence. These findings have implications for how dysarthria is conceptualized and how specific actions in conversation, such as topic transition, might be suitable targets for clinical intervention.

76 FR 81806 - Ophthalmic and Topical Dosage Form New Animal Drugs; Ivermectin Topical Solution

Science.gov (United States)

2011-12-29

.... FDA-2011-N-0003] Ophthalmic and Topical Dosage Form New Animal Drugs; Ivermectin Topical Solution... solution of ivermectin. DATES: This rule is effective December 29, 2011. FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT... ANADA 200-318 for [[Page 81807

The COMET Sleep Research Platform.

Science.gov (United States)

Nichols, Deborah A; DeSalvo, Steven; Miller, Richard A; Jónsson, Darrell; Griffin, Kara S; Hyde, Pamela R; Walsh, James K; Kushida, Clete A

2014-01-01

The Comparative Outcomes Management with Electronic Data Technology (COMET) platform is extensible and designed for facilitating multicenter electronic clinical research. Our research goals were the following: (1) to conduct a comparative effectiveness trial (CET) for two obstructive sleep apnea treatments-positive airway pressure versus oral appliance therapy; and (2) to establish a new electronic network infrastructure that would support this study and other clinical research studies. The COMET platform was created to satisfy the needs of CET with a focus on creating a platform that provides comprehensive toolsets, multisite collaboration, and end-to-end data management. The platform also provides medical researchers the ability to visualize and interpret data using business intelligence (BI) tools. COMET is a research platform that is scalable and extensible, and which, in a future version, can accommodate big data sets and enable efficient and effective research across multiple studies and medical specialties. The COMET platform components were designed for an eventual move to a cloud computing infrastructure that enhances sustainability, overall cost effectiveness, and return on investment.

Topical Session on the Decommissioning and Dismantling Safety Case

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

2002-01-01

Set up by the Radioactive Waste Management Committee (RWMC), the WPDD brings together senior representatives of national organisations who have a broad overview of Decommissioning and Dismantling (D and D) issues through their work as regulators, implementers, R and D experts or policy makers. These include representatives from regulatory authorities, industrial decommissioners from the NEA Cooperative Programme on Exchange of Scientific and Technical Information on Nuclear Installation Decommissioning Projects (CPD), and cross-representation from the NEA Committee on Nuclear Regulatory Activities, the Committee on Radiation Protection and Public Health, and the RWMC. The EC is a member of the WPDD and the IAEA also participates. This ensures co-ordination amongst activities in these international programmes. Participation from civil society organisations is considered on a case by case basis, and has already taken place through the active involvement of the Group of Municipalities with Nuclear Installations at the first meeting of the WPDD At its second meeting, in Paris, 5-7 December 2001, the WPDD held two topical sessions on the D and D Safety Case and on the Management of Materials from D and D, respectively. This report documents the topical session on the safety case. The topical session was meant to provide an exchange of information and experience on the following issues: What topics should be included in a safety case? Of what should it consist? Is there sufficient and complete guidance nationally and internationally? How do practices differ internationally? Main boundary condition to this session was that it would deal with plants where spent fuel has been removed. Also the topical sessions was kept at a level that makes the most of the varied constituency of the WPDD. Namely, interface issues are important, and issue-identification and discussion was the immediate goal. There was less interest in examining areas where variability amongst national

Dressings and topical agents for preventing pressure ulcers.

Science.gov (United States)

Moore, Zena E H; Webster, Joan

2013-08-18

Pressure ulcers, which are localised injury to the skin, or underlying tissue or both, occur when people are unable to reposition themselves to relieve pressure on bony prominences. Pressure ulcers are often difficult to heal, painful and impact negatively on the individual's quality of life. The cost implications of pressure ulcer treatment are considerable, compounding the challenges in providing cost effective, efficient health services. Efforts to prevent the development of pressure ulcers have focused on nutritional support, pressure redistributing devices, turning regimes and the application of various topical agents and dressings designed to maintain healthy skin, relieve pressure and prevent shearing forces. Although products aimed at preventing pressure ulcers are widely used, it remains unclear which, if any, of these approaches are effective in preventing the development of pressure ulcers. To evaluate the effects of dressings and topical agents on the prevention of pressure ulcers, in people of any age without existing pressure ulcers, but considered to be at risk of developing a pressure ulcer, in any healthcare setting. In February 2013 we searched the following electronic databases to identify reports of relevant randomised clinical trials (RCTs): the Cochrane Wounds Group Specialised Register; the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (CENTRAL) (The Cochrane Library); Database of Abstracts of Reviews of Effects (The Cochrane Library); Ovid MEDLINE; Ovid MEDLINE (In-Process & Other Non-Indexed Citations); Ovid EMBASE; and EBSCO CINAHL. We included RCTs evaluating the use of dressings, topical agents, or topical agents with dressings, compared with a different dressing, topical agent, or combined topical agent and dressing, or no intervention or standard care, with the aim of preventing the development of a pressure ulcer. We assessed trials for their appropriateness for inclusion and for their risk of bias. This was done by two review

Identification of platform levels

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Mortensen, Niels Henrik

2005-01-01

reduction, ability to launch a wider product portfolio without increasing resources and reduction of complexity within the whole company. To support the multiple product development process, platform based product development has in many companies such as Philips, VW, Ford etc. proven to be a very effective...... product development in one step and therefore the objective of this paper is to identify levels of platform based product development. The structure of this paper is as follows. First the applied terminology for platforms will be briefly explained and then characteristics between single and multi product...... development will be examined. Based on the identification of the above characteristics five platform levels are described. The research presented in this paper is a result of MSc, Ph.D projects at the Technical University of Denmark and consultancy projects within the organisation of Institute of Product...

Topical methotrexate pretreatment enhances the therapeutic effect of topical 5-aminolevulinic acid-mediated photodynamic therapy on hamster buccal pouch precancers

OpenAIRE

Deng-Fu Yang; Jeng-Woei Lee; Hsin-Ming Chen; Yih-Chih Hsu

2014-01-01

Topical 5-aminolevulinic acid-mediated photodynamic therapy (ALA-PDT) is effective for treatment of human oral precancerous lesions. This animal study aimed to assess whether topical methotrexate (MTX) pretreatment could enhance the therapeutic effect of topical ALA-PDT on hamster buccal pouch precancerous lesions. Methods: Twenty hamster buccal pouch precancerous lesions were treated with either topical ALA-PDT with topical MTX pretreatment (topical MTX-ALA-PDT group, n = 10) or topical A...

Principles and Best Practices Emerging from Data Basin: A Data Platform Supporting Scientific Research and Landscape Conservation Planning

Science.gov (United States)

Comendant, T.; Strittholt, J. R.; Ward, B. C.; Bachelet, D. M.; Grossman, D.; Stevenson-Molnar, N.; Henifin, K.; Lundin, M.; Marvin, T. S.; Peterman, W. L.; Corrigan, G. N.; O'Connor, K.

2013-12-01

A multi-disciplinary team of scientists, software engineers, and outreach staff at the Conservation Biology Institute launched an open-access, web-based spatial data platform called Data Basin (www.databasin.org) in 2010. Primarily built to support research and environmental resource planning, Data Basin provides the capability for individuals and organizations to explore, create, interpret, and collaborate around their priority topics and geographies. We used a stakeholder analysis to assess the needs of data consumers/produces and help prioritize primary and secondary audiences. Data Basin's simple and user-friendly interface makes mapping and geo-processing tools more accessible to less technical audiences. Input from users is considered in system planning, testing, and implementation. The team continually develops using an agile software development approach, which allows new features, improvements, and bug fixes to be deployed to the live system on a frequent basis. The data import process is handled through administrative approval and Data Basin requires spatial data (biological, physical, and socio-economic) to be well-documented. Outreach and training is used to convey the scope and appropriate use of the scientific information and available resources.

Topical immunomodulators in dermatology

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Khandpur Sujay

2004-04-01

Full Text Available Topical immunomodulators are agents that regulate the local immune response of the skin. They are now emerging as the therapy of choice for several immune-mediated dermatoses such as atopic dermatitis, contact allergic dermatitis, alopecia areata, psoriasis, vitiligo, connective tissue disorders such as morphea and lupus erythematosus, disorders of keratinization and several benign and malignant skin tumours, because of their comparable efficacy, ease of application and greater safety than their systemic counterparts. They can be used on a domiciliary basis for longer periods without aggressive monitoring. In this article, we have discussed the mechanism of action, common indications and side-effects of the commonly used topical immunomodulators, excluding topical steroids. Moreover, newer agents, which are still in the experimental stages, have also been described. A MEDLINE search was undertaken using the key words "topical immunomodulators, dermatology" and related articles were also searched. In addition, a manual search for many Indian articles, which are not indexed, was also carried out. Wherever possible, the full article was reviewed. If the full article could not be traced, the abstract was used.

Doctoral Dissertation Topics in Education: Do They Align with Critical Issues?

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ethan J Allen

2016-11-01

Full Text Available American society faces complex educational issues which impact many facets of its national interests. Institutions of higher education are granting doctoral degrees to educational leaders, but it is not known to what extent their dissertation topics are aligned with both longstanding and critical issues in education. Using a theoretical framework synthesizing Paul and Elder’s critical thinking model and Kuhlthau’s information seeking process, this study examines a set of education doctoral dissertation topical selections and categorizes them by general themes in relationship to many of the recognized educational issues in the United States. Investigators categorized dissertations from four departments within the College of Education of their home institution. The dataset, retrieved from ProQuest Dissertations and Theses Global, consisted of 231 documents published between 2005 and 2014. Through an inter-rater process examining dissertation titles, abstracts, and keywords, the dissertations were assigned critical issue themes culled from nine editions of a college text, and then categorized under a broader topical scheme situated within a well-used educational research website. Findings indicated that most dissertations concentrated in studies that researched problems and issues within schools. Further, some of the issues considered longstanding were not studied by dissertation authors within the sample. For example, privatization of schools and classroom discipline and justice were not selected for study. Findings also suggest new directions for those responsible for dissertation supervision and topic selection. The study adds to the literature on dissertation topic selection that addresses existing educational issues.

Recent Advances In Topical Therapy In Dermatology

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mohan Thappa Devinder

2003-01-01

Full Text Available With changing times various newer topical agents are introduced in the field of dermatology. Tacrolimus and pimecrolimus are immunisuppressants, which are effective topically and are tried in the management of atopic dermatitis as well as other disorders including allergic contact dermatitis, atrophic lichen planus, pyoderma gangrenosum. Imiquimod, an immune response modifier, is presently in use for genital warts but has potentials as anti- tumour agent and in various other dermatological conditions when used topically. Tazarotene is a newer addition to the list of topical reginoids, which is effective in psoriasis and has better effect in combination with calcipotriene, phototherapy and topical costicosteroids. Tazarotene and adapelene are also effective in inflammatory acne. Calcipotriol, a vitamin D analogue has been introduced as a topical agent in the treatment of psoriasis. Steroid components are also developed recently which will be devoid of the side effects but having adequate anti-inflammatory effect. Topical photodynamic therapy has also a wide range of use in dermatology. Newer topical agents including cidofovir, capsaicin, topical sensitizers, topical antifungal agents for onychomycosis are also of use in clinical practice. Other promising developments include skin substitutes and growth factors for wound care.

Turbine engine airfoil and platform assembly

Science.gov (United States)

Campbell, Christian X [Oviedo, FL; James, Allister W [Chuluota, FL; Morrison, Jay A [Oviedo, FL

2012-07-31

A turbine airfoil (22A) is formed by a first process using a first material. A platform (30A) is formed by a second process using a second material that may be different from the first material. The platform (30A) is assembled around a shank (23A) of the airfoil. One or more pins (36A) extend from the platform into holes (28) in the shank (23A). The platform may be formed in two portions (32A, 34A) and placed around the shank, enclosing it. The two platform portions may be bonded to each other. Alternately, the platform (30B) may be cast around the shank (23B) using a metal alloy with better castability than that of the blade and shank, which may be specialized for thermal tolerance. The pins (36A-36D) or holes for them do not extend to an outer surface (31) of the platform, avoiding stress concentrations.

The Innovative Capabilities Of Digital Payment Platforms

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Kazan, Erol

2015-01-01

This study presents a model for studying the innovative capabilities of digital payment platforms in regards to open innovation integration and commercialization. We perceive digital platforms as layered modular IT artifacts, where platform governance and the configuration of platform layers impact...... the support for open innovation. The proposed model has been employed in a comparative case study between two digital payment platforms: Apple Pay and Google Wallet. The findings suggest that digital payment platforms make use of boundary resources to be highly integrative or integratable, which supports...... the intended conjoint commercialization efforts. Furthermore, the architectural design of digital platforms impacts the access to commercialization, resulting to an exclusion or inclusion strategy in accessing value opportunities. Our findings contribute to the open innovation and digital platform literature...

A Lack of Systemic Absorption Following the Repeated Application of Topical Quetiapine in Healthy Adults.

Science.gov (United States)

Kayhart, Bryce; Lapid, Maria I; Nelson, Sarah; Cunningham, Julie L; Thompson, Virginia H; Leung, Jonathan G

2018-01-01

In the absence of suitable oral or intravenous access for medication administration and when the intramuscular medications are undesirable, alternative routes for drug delivery may be considered. Antipsychotics administered via an inhaled, intranasal, rectal, or topical route have been described in the literature. Topically administered antipsychotics have been previously reported to produce negligible systemic absorption despite being used in clinical practice for nausea and behavioral symptoms associated with dementia. Additionally, the American Academy of Hospice and Palliative Medicine recommends against the use of topical medications that lack supporting literature. Three studies have assessed the systemic absorption of different antipsychotics after administration of only a single, topically applied dose. To evaluate whether the repeated administration of a topically applied antipsychotic may result in detectable serum levels in an accumulating fashion, a pharmacokinetic study was conducted. Five healthy, adult participants consented to receive extemporaneously prepared topical quetiapine in Lipoderm every 4 hours for a total of 5 doses. Blood samples were drawn at baseline and hours 2, 4, 8, 12, 16, and 24, and serum quetiapine concentrations were measured using high-performance liquid chromatography. Quetiapine was undetectable in every sample from 3 participants. Two participants had minimally detectable serum quetiapine levels no sooner than hour 12 of the study period. Extemporaneously prepared quetiapine in Lipoderm resulted in nonexistent or minimal serum level following repeated topical administration. The use of topically applied quetiapine should still be questioned.

Strategies for comparing gene expression profiles from different microarray platforms: application to a case-control experiment.

Science.gov (United States)

Severgnini, Marco; Bicciato, Silvio; Mangano, Eleonora; Scarlatti, Francesca; Mezzelani, Alessandra; Mattioli, Michela; Ghidoni, Riccardo; Peano, Clelia; Bonnal, Raoul; Viti, Federica; Milanesi, Luciano; De Bellis, Gianluca; Battaglia, Cristina

2006-06-01

Meta-analysis of microarray data is increasingly important, considering both the availability of multiple platforms using disparate technologies and the accumulation in public repositories of data sets from different laboratories. We addressed the issue of comparing gene expression profiles from two microarray platforms by devising a standardized investigative strategy. We tested this procedure by studying MDA-MB-231 cells, which undergo apoptosis on treatment with resveratrol. Gene expression profiles were obtained using high-density, short-oligonucleotide, single-color microarray platforms: GeneChip (Affymetrix) and CodeLink (Amersham). Interplatform analyses were carried out on 8414 common transcripts represented on both platforms, as identified by LocusLink ID, representing 70.8% and 88.6% of annotated GeneChip and CodeLink features, respectively. We identified 105 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) on CodeLink and 42 DEGs on GeneChip. Among them, only 9 DEGs were commonly identified by both platforms. Multiple analyses (BLAST alignment of probes with target sequences, gene ontology, literature mining, and quantitative real-time PCR) permitted us to investigate the factors contributing to the generation of platform-dependent results in single-color microarray experiments. An effective approach to cross-platform comparison involves microarrays of similar technologies, samples prepared by identical methods, and a standardized battery of bioinformatic and statistical analyses.

PR-PR: cross-platform laboratory automation system.

Science.gov (United States)

Linshiz, Gregory; Stawski, Nina; Goyal, Garima; Bi, Changhao; Poust, Sean; Sharma, Monica; Mutalik, Vivek; Keasling, Jay D; Hillson, Nathan J

2014-08-15

To enable protocol standardization, sharing, and efficient implementation across laboratory automation platforms, we have further developed the PR-PR open-source high-level biology-friendly robot programming language as a cross-platform laboratory automation system. Beyond liquid-handling robotics, PR-PR now supports microfluidic and microscopy platforms, as well as protocol translation into human languages, such as English. While the same set of basic PR-PR commands and features are available for each supported platform, the underlying optimization and translation modules vary from platform to platform. Here, we describe these further developments to PR-PR, and demonstrate the experimental implementation and validation of PR-PR protocols for combinatorial modified Golden Gate DNA assembly across liquid-handling robotic, microfluidic, and manual platforms. To further test PR-PR cross-platform performance, we then implement and assess PR-PR protocols for Kunkel DNA mutagenesis and hierarchical Gibson DNA assembly for microfluidic and manual platforms.

Performance Measurement of Complex Event Platforms

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Eva Zámečníková

2016-12-01

Full Text Available The aim of this paper is to find and compare existing solutions of complex event processing platforms (CEP. CEP platforms generally serve for processing and/or predicting of high frequency data. We intend to use CEP platform for processing of complex time series and integrate a solution for newly proposed method of decision making. The decision making process will be described by formal grammar. As there are lots of CEP solutions we will take the following characteristics under consideration - the processing in real time, possibility of processing of high volume data from multiple sources, platform independence, platform allowing integration with user solution and open license. At first we will talk about existing CEP tools and their specific way of use in praxis. Then we will mention the design of method for formalization of business rules used for decision making. Afterwards, we focus on two platforms which seem to be the best fit for integration of our solution and we will list the main pros and cons of each approach. Next part is devoted to benchmark platforms for CEP. Final part is devoted to experimental measurements of platform with integrated method for decision support.

Topic Modeling of Hierarchical Corpora /

OpenAIRE

Kim, Do-kyum

2014-01-01

The sizes of modern digital libraries have grown beyond our capacity to comprehend manually. Thus we need new tools to help us in organizing and browsing large corpora of text that do not require manually examining each document. To this end, machine learning researchers have developed topic models, statistical learning algorithms for automatic comprehension of large collections of text. Topic models provide both global and local views of a corpus; they discover topics that run through the co...

Testosterone Topical

Science.gov (United States)

... not apply any testosterone topical products to your penis or scrotum or to skin that has sores, ... are severe or do not go away: breast enlargement and/or pain decreased sexual desire acne depression ...

Cretaceous tropical carbonate platform changes used as paleoclimatic and paleoceanic indicators: the three lower Cretaceous platform crises

Science.gov (United States)

Arnaud-Vanneau, A.; Vrielynck, B.

2009-04-01

Carbonate platform sediments are of biogenic origin. More commonly the bioclasts are fragments of shells and skeletons. The bioclastic composition of a limestone may reflect the nature of biota inhabiting the area and a carbonate platform can be estimated as a living factory, which reflects the prevailing ecological factors. The rate of carbonate production is highest in the tropics, in oligotrophic environments, and in the photic zone. The rate of carbonate production varies greatly with temperature and nutrient input. Three types of biotic carbonate platform can be distinguished. The highest carbonate production is linked to oligotrophic carbonate platform characterized by the presence of assemblages with hermatypic corals. This type of platform is developed in shallow marine environment, nutrient poor water and warm tropical sea. A less efficient production of carbonate platform is related to mesotrophic environments in cooler and/or deeper water and associated to nutrient flux with, sometime, detrital input. The biota includes red algae, solitary coral and branching ahermatypic corals, common bryozoans, crinoids and echinoids. The less productive carbonate platform is the eutrophic muddy platform where the mud is due to the intense bacterial activity, probably related to strong nutrient flux. All changes of type of carbonate platform can be related to climatic and oceanic changes. Three platform crises occurred during lower Cretaceous time. They are followed by important turnover of microfauna (large benthic foraminifers) and microflora (marine algae). They start with the demise of the previous oligotrophic platform, they continue with oceanic perturbations, expression of which was the widespread deposition of organic-rich sediments, well expressed during Late Aptian/Albian and Cenomanian Turonian boundary and the replacement of previous oligotrophic platforms by mesotrophic to eutrophic platforms. The first crisis occurred during Valanginian and Hauterivian

Helicopter flight simulation motion platform requirements

Science.gov (United States)

Schroeder, Jeffery Allyn

Flight simulators attempt to reproduce in-flight pilot-vehicle behavior on the ground. This reproduction is challenging for helicopter simulators, as the pilot is often inextricably dependent on external cues for pilot-vehicle stabilization. One important simulator cue is platform motion; however, its required fidelity is unknown. To determine the required motion fidelity, several unique experiments were performed. A large displacement motion platform was used that allowed pilots to fly tasks with matched motion and visual cues. Then, the platform motion was modified to give cues varying from full motion to no motion. Several key results were found. First, lateral and vertical translational platform cues had significant effects on fidelity. Their presence improved performance and reduced pilot workload. Second, yaw and roll rotational platform cues were not as important as the translational platform cues. In particular, the yaw rotational motion platform cue did not appear at all useful in improving performance or reducing workload. Third, when the lateral translational platform cue was combined with visual yaw rotational cues, pilots believed the platform was rotating when it was not. Thus, simulator systems can be made more efficient by proper combination of platform and visual cues. Fourth, motion fidelity specifications were revised that now provide simulator users with a better prediction of motion fidelity based upon the frequency responses of their motion control laws. Fifth, vertical platform motion affected pilot estimates of steady-state altitude during altitude repositionings. This refutes the view that pilots estimate altitude and altitude rate in simulation solely from visual cues. Finally, the combined results led to a general method for configuring helicopter motion systems and for developing simulator tasks that more likely represent actual flight. The overall results can serve as a guide to future simulator designers and to today's operators.

Topic prominence in Chinese EFL learners’ interlanguage

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Shaopeng Li

2014-01-01

Full Text Available The present study aims to investigate the general characteristics of topicprominent typological interlanguage development of Chinese learners of English in terms of acquiring subject-prominent English structures from a discourse perspective. Topic structures mainly appear in Chinese discourse in the form of topic chains (Wang, 2002; 2004. The research target are the topic chain, which is the main topic-prominent structure in Chinese discourse, and zero anaphora, which is the most common topic anaphora in the topic chain. Two important findings emerged from the present study. First, the characteristics of Chinese topic chains are transferrable to the interlanguage of Chinese EFL learners, thus resulting in overgeneralization of the zero anaphora. Second, the interlanguage discourse of Chinese EFL learners reflects a change of the second language acquisition process from topic-prominence to subject-prominence, thus lending support to the discourse transfer hypothesis.

Systemic component of protoporphyrin IX production in nude mouse skin upon topical application of aminolevulinic acid depends on the application conditions

NARCIS (Netherlands)

van den Akker, Johanna T. H. M.; Iani, Vladimir; Star, Willem M.; Sterenborg, Henricus J. C. M.; Moan, Johan

2002-01-01

Topical application of 5-aminolevulinic acid (ALA) for protoporphyrin IX (PpIX)-based photodynamic therapy of skin cancer is generally considered not to induce systemic side effects because PpIX is supposed to be formed locally. However, earlier studies with topically applied ALA have revealed that

Analytical investigations of the earthquake resistance of the support base of an oil-gas platform

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Glagovskii, V. B.; Kassirova, N. A.; Turchina, O. A.; Finagenov, O. M.; Tsirukhin, N. A. [JSC ' VNIIG im. B. E. Vedeneeva' (Russian Federation)

2012-01-15

In designing stationary oil-gas recovery platforms on the continental shelf, the need arises to compute the estimated strength of their support base during seismic events. This paper is devoted to this estimation. The paper examines a structure consisting of the superstructure of an oil-gas platform and its gravity-type base. It is possible to install earthquake-insulating supports between them. Calculations performed for the design earthquake indicated that the design of the gravity base can resist a seismic effect without special additional measures. During the maximum design earthquake, moreover, significant stresses may develop in the zone of base where the columns are connected to the upper slab of the caisson. In that case, the earthquake insulation considered for the top of the platform becomes critical.

Analytical investigations of the earthquake resistance of the support base of an oil-gas platform

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Glagovskii, V. B.; Kassirova, N. A.; Turchina, O. A.; Finagenov, O. M.; Tsirukhin, N. A.

2012-01-01

In designing stationary oil-gas recovery platforms on the continental shelf, the need arises to compute the estimated strength of their support base during seismic events. This paper is devoted to this estimation. The paper examines a structure consisting of the superstructure of an oil-gas platform and its gravity-type base. It is possible to install earthquake-insulating supports between them. Calculations performed for the design earthquake indicated that the design of the gravity base can resist a seismic effect without special additional measures. During the maximum design earthquake, moreover, significant stresses may develop in the zone of base where the columns are connected to the upper slab of the caisson. In that case, the earthquake insulation considered for the top of the platform becomes critical.

Understanding Trail Runners' Activity on Online Community Forums: An Inductive Analysis of Discussion Topics.

Science.gov (United States)

Rochat, Nadège; Hauw, Denis; Gür, Gaëlle; Seifert, Ludovic

2018-03-01

Recreational trail runners often participate in online community forums where they can freely read posted messages, join discussions and/or introduce new discussion topics. This tool can enhance learning as runners connect with other trail runners and reflect on how they can better organize their own practice. Studying forum activity would provide greater insight into the relationship between field practice and dedicated forums. The aim of this study was therefore to detect the topics discussed online by trail runners in order to understand how they collectively look for solutions that help them adapt to issues that emerge during actual practice. The discussion topics (n = 171) on the forum hosted by the Raidlight brand were examined using inductive content analysis, which distinguished two general dimensions. The first dimension was training and had four first-order themes (i.e., "specific trail running sessions", "complementary trail running sessions". "training plans" and "specific questions about races") grouped into two second-order themes (i.e., "training session contents" and "structure and schedule"). The second dimension was health and had seven first-order themes (i.e., "tendinitis", "muscle issues", "foot issues", "sprains and fractures", "pain", "physiology" and "substances and practitioners") grouped into two second-order themes (i.e., "pain and injury" and "prevention"). The results indicate that the issues that trail runners discuss on forums are significant and that the successions of questions and solutions are a fruitful means for building, enriching and adjusting their activity as they cope with constraints. As a practical consequence, suggestions for improving such online platforms are made.

Market implementation of the MVA platform for pre-pandemic and pandemic influenza vaccines: A quantitative key opinion leader analysis.

Science.gov (United States)

Ramezanpour, Bahar; Pronker, Esther S; Kreijtz, Joost H C M; Osterhaus, Albert D M E; Claassen, E

2015-08-20

A quantitative method is presented to rank strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats (SWOT) of modified vaccinia virus Ankara (MVA) as a platform for pre-pandemic and pandemic influenza vaccines. Analytic hierarchy process (AHP) was applied to achieve pairwise comparisons among SWOT factors in order to prioritize them. Key opinion leaders (KOLs) in the influenza vaccine field were interviewed to collect a unique dataset to evaluate the market potential of this platform. The purpose of this study, to evaluate commercial potential of the MVA platform for the development of novel generation pandemic influenza vaccines, is accomplished by using a SWOT and AHP combined analytic method. Application of the SWOT-AHP model indicates that its strengths are considered more important by KOLs than its weaknesses, opportunities, and threats. Particularly, the inherent immunogenicity capability of MVA without the requirement of an adjuvant is the most important factor to increase commercial attractiveness of this platform. Concerns regarding vector vaccines and anti-vector immunity are considered its most important weakness, which might lower public health value of this platform. Furthermore, evaluation of the results of this study emphasizes equally important role that threats and opportunities of this platform play. This study further highlights unmet needs in the influenza vaccine market, which could be addressed by the implementation of the MVA platform. Broad use of MVA in clinical trials shows great promise for this vector as vaccine platform for pre-pandemic and pandemic influenza and threats by other respiratory viruses. Moreover, from the results of the clinical trials seem that MVA is particularly attractive for development of vaccines against pathogens for which no, or only insufficiently effective vaccines, are available. Copyright © 2015 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.

Distributed Fracturing Affecting the Isolated Carbonate Platforms, the Latemar Platform (Dolomites, North Italy).

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Boro, H.; Bertotti, G.V.; Hardebol, N.J.

2012-01-01

Isolated carbonate platforms are highly heterogeneous bodies and are typically composed of laterally juxtaposed first order domains with different sedimentological composition and organization, i.e. a well-stratified platform interior, a massive margin and a slope with steeply dipping and poorly

Analysis of human plasma metabolites across different liquid chromatography/mass spectrometry platforms: Cross-platform transferable chemical signatures.

Science.gov (United States)

Telu, Kelly H; Yan, Xinjian; Wallace, William E; Stein, Stephen E; Simón-Manso, Yamil

2016-03-15

The metabolite profiling of a NIST plasma Standard Reference Material (SRM 1950) on different liquid chromatography/mass spectrometry (LC/MS) platforms showed significant differences. Although these findings suggest caution when interpreting metabolomics results, the degree of overlap of both profiles allowed us to use tandem mass spectral libraries of recurrent spectra to evaluate to what extent these results are transferable across platforms and to develop cross-platform chemical signatures. Non-targeted global metabolite profiles of SRM 1950 were obtained on different LC/MS platforms using reversed-phase chromatography and different chromatographic scales (conventional HPLC, UHPLC and nanoLC). The data processing and the metabolite differential analysis were carried out using publically available (XCMS), proprietary (Mass Profiler Professional) and in-house software (NIST pipeline). Repeatability and intermediate precision showed that the non-targeted SRM 1950 profiling was highly reproducible when working on the same platform (relative standard deviation (RSD) HPLC, UHPLC and nanoLC) on the same platform. A substantial degree of overlap (common molecular features) was also found. A procedure to generate consistent chemical signatures using tandem mass spectral libraries of recurrent spectra is proposed. Different platforms rendered significantly different metabolite profiles, but the results were highly reproducible when working within one platform. Tandem mass spectral libraries of recurrent spectra are proposed to evaluate the degree of transferability of chemical signatures generated on different platforms. Chemical signatures based on our procedure are most likely cross-platform transferable. Published in 2016. This article is a U.S. Government work and is in the public domain in the USA.

Topical report review status: Volume 10

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1996-03-01

This report provides industry with procedures for submitting topical reports, guidance on how the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) processes and responds to topical report submittals, and an accounting, with review schedules, of all topical reports currently accepted for review by the NRC. This report is published annually

Morphological indicators of growth stages in carbonates platform evolution: comparison between present-day and Miocene platforms of Northern Borneo, Malaysia.

Science.gov (United States)

Pierson, B.; Menier, D.; Ting, K. K.; Chalabi, A.

2012-04-01

Satellite images of present-day reefs and carbonate platforms of the Celebes Sea, east of Sabah, Malaysia, exhibit large-scale features indicative of the recent evolution of the platforms. These include: (1) multiple, sub-parallel reef rims at the windward margin, suggestive of back-stepping of the platform margin; (2) contraction of the platform, possibly as a result of recent sea level fluctuations; (3) colonization of the internal lagoons by polygonal reef structures and (4) fragmentation of the platforms and creation of deep channels separating platforms that used to be part of a single entity. These features are analogue to what has been observed on seismic attribute maps of Miocene carbonate platforms of Sarawak. An analysis of several growth stages of a large Miocene platform, referred to as the Megaplatform, shows that the platform evolves in function of syn-depositional tectonic movements and sea level fluctuations that result in back-stepping of the margin, illustrated by multiple reef rims, contraction of the platform, the development of polygonal structures currently interpreted as karstic in origin and fragmentation of the megaplatform in 3 sub-entities separated by deep channels that precedes the final demise of the whole platform. Comparing similar features on present-day to platforms and Miocene platforms leads to a better understanding of the growth history of Miocene platforms and to a refined predictability of reservoir and non-reservoir facies distribution.

Elektrisk Design og Styring. Simulation Platform to Model, Optimize and Design Wind Turbines

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Iov, Florin; Hansen, A. D.; Soerensen, P.

This report is a general overview of the results obtained in the project ?Electrical Design and Control. Simulation Platform to Model, Optimize and Design Wind Turbines?. The report is structured in six chapters. First, the background of this project and the main goals as well as the structure...... of the simulation platform is given. The main topologies for wind turbines, which have been taken into account during the project, are briefly presented. Then, the considered simulation tools namely: HAWC, DIgSILENT, Saber and Matlab/Simulink have been used in this simulation platform are described. The focus here...... is on the modelling and simulation time scale aspects. The abilities of these tools are complementary and they can together cover all the modelling aspects of the wind turbines e.g. mechanical loads, power quality, switching, control and grid faults. New models and new control algorithms for wind turbine systems have...

COMPARATIVE STUDY OF TOPICAL MOMETASONE FUROATE 0.1%, TOPICAL 0.03% TACROLIMUS, TOPICAL BASIC FIBROBLAST GROWTH FACTOR (bFGF IN CHILDHOOD VITILIGO

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Kavitha S. B

2017-08-01

Full Text Available BACKGROUND Vitiligo, the commonest of all pigmentary disorders, is an idiopathic, acquired cutaneous achromia, characterised by circumscribed, chalky white macules. It may also involve the pigment epithelium of the eyes, the inner ear and the leptomeninges. Although, vitiligo can begin at any age, it develops before the age of 20 years in 50% of the patients and before the age of 10 years in 25% of patients. MATERIALS AND METHODS The study was conducted for a period of one year with 6 months active intervention. A group of 60 consecutive children attending the outpatient Department of Dermatology were included in this study. The same patients were acting as controls. RESULTS Grade 4 response was seen in 12 cases (60% who were on mometasone (VV-20%, focal-30%, segmental-10%, in 10 cases (50% on tacrolimus (VV-20%, focal-30% and in 4 cases (20% on bFGF (focal. Lesions on the face and neck showed grade 4 response in 16 cases (mometasone-8, tacrolimus-6 and bFGF-2, extremities in 6 cases. On the whole grade, 4 response was observed more with mometasone (60% followed by tacrolimus (50%. Grade 3 response was observed with bFGF (30%. CONCLUSION Topical mometasone was very effective among the 3 drugs used in childhood vitiligo showing grade 4 repigmentation in all types of vitiligo except mucosal vitiligo. Tacrolimus proved almost as effective as mometasone to restore skin colour in lesions of vitiligo in children. Because it does not produce atrophy or other adverse effects, tacrolimus may be very useful for younger patients, and for sensitive areas of the skin such as eyelids, it should be considered in other skin disorders currently treated with topical steroids for prolonged periods. Topical basic fibroblast growth factor though less effective than mometasone and tacrolimus, but can be tried as initial therapy in resistant cases such as segmental vitiligo as initial therapy of small vitiligo patches when physicians may not like to initiate high risk

Chiropractic: MedlinePlus Health Topic

Science.gov (United States)

... for back pain (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish Topic Image MedlinePlus Email Updates Get Chiropractic updates by ... ENCYCLOPEDIA Chiropractic care for back pain Related Health Topics Back Pain Complementary and Integrative Medicine National Institutes ...

Diets: MedlinePlus Health Topic

Science.gov (United States)

... Spanish Mediterranean diet (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish Topic Image MedlinePlus Email Updates Get Diets updates by ... foods Diet-busting foods Mediterranean diet Related Health Topics Child Nutrition DASH Eating Plan Diabetic Diet Nutrition ...

Colonoscopy: MedlinePlus Health Topic

Science.gov (United States)

... Spanish Virtual colonoscopy (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish Topic Image MedlinePlus Email Updates Get Colonoscopy updates by ... Colonoscopy Colonoscopy discharge Sigmoidoscopy Virtual colonoscopy Related Health Topics Colonic Diseases Colonic Polyps Colorectal Cancer National Institutes ...

Dialysis: MedlinePlus Health Topic

Science.gov (United States)

... access for hemodialysis (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish Topic Image MedlinePlus Email Updates Get Dialysis updates by ... for hemodialysis Show More Show Less Related Health Topics Creatinine Kidney Cysts Kidney Failure Peritoneal Disorders National ...

Menopause: MedlinePlus Health Topic

Science.gov (United States)

... Spanish What is Menopause? (National Institute on Aging) Topic Image MedlinePlus Email Updates Get Menopause updates by ... test Menopause Types of hormone therapy Related Health Topics Hormone Replacement Therapy Menstruation Premature Ovarian Failure National ...

Vaginitis: MedlinePlus Health Topic

Science.gov (United States)

... Spanish Vulvovaginitis - overview (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish Topic Image MedlinePlus Email Updates Get Vaginitis updates by ... Vaginitis test - wet mount Vulvovaginitis - overview Related Health Topics Trichomoniasis Vaginal Diseases Yeast Infections Other Languages Find ...

Exploring the Design Space of Longitudinal Censorship Measurement Platforms

OpenAIRE

Razaghpanah, Abbas; Li, Anke; Filastò, Arturo; Nithyanand, Rishab; Ververis, Vasilis; Scott, Will; Gill, Phillipa

2016-01-01

Despite the high perceived value and increasing severity of online information controls, a data-driven understanding of the phenomenon has remained elusive. In this paper, we consider two design points in the space of Internet censorship measurement with particular emphasis on how they address the challenges of locating vantage points, choosing content to test, and analyzing results. We discuss the trade offs of decisions made by each platform and show how the resulting data provides compleme...

Artificial and Computational Intelligence for Games on Mobile Platforms

OpenAIRE

Congdon, Clare Bates; Hingston, Philip; Kendall, Graham

2013-01-01

In this chapter, we consider the possibilities of creating new and innovative games that are targeted for mobile devices, such as smart phones and tablets, and that showcase AI (Artificial Intelligence) and CI (Computational Intelligence) approaches. Such games might take advantage of the sensors and facilities that are not available on other platforms, or might simply rely on the "app culture" to facilitate getting the games into users' hands. While these games might be profitable in themsel...

Towards a Framework of Digital Platform Disruption

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Kazan, Erol; Tan, Chee-Wee; Lim, Eric T. K.

2014-01-01

Digital platforms are disruptive information technology (IT) artifacts that erode conventional business logic associated with traditional market structures. This paper presents a framework for examining the disruptive potential of digital platforms whereby we postulate that the strategic interplay...... digital platforms purposely decouple platform layers, to foster open innovation and accelerate market disruption. This paper therefore represents a first concrete step aimed at unravelling the disruptive potential of digital platforms....... of governance regimes and platform layers is deterministic of whether disruptive derivatives are permitted to flourish. This framework has been employed in a comparative case study between centralized (i.e., PayPal) and decentralized (i.e., Coinkite) digital payment platforms to illustrate its applicability...

Topical Acne Treatments and Pregnancy

Science.gov (United States)

Topical Acne Treatments In every pregnancy, a woman starts out with a 3-5% chance of having a baby ... This sheet talks about whether exposure to topical acne treatments may increase the risk for birth defects ...

Symbiosis: Rich, Exciting, Neglected Topic

Science.gov (United States)

Rowland, Jane Thomas

1974-01-01

Argues that the topic of symbiosis has been greatly neglected and underemphasized in general-biology textbooks. Discusses many types and examples of symbiosis, and provides an extensive bibliography of the literature related to this topic. (JR)

Product Platform Development in Industrial Networks

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Karlsson, Christer; Skold, Martin

2011-01-01

The article examines the strategic issues involved in the deployment of product platform development in an industrial network. The move entails identifying the types and characteristics of generically different product platform strategies and clarifying strategic motives and differences. Number o...... of platforms and product brands serve as the key dimensions when distinguishing the different strategies. Each strategy has its own challenges and raises various issues to deal with.......The article examines the strategic issues involved in the deployment of product platform development in an industrial network. The move entails identifying the types and characteristics of generically different product platform strategies and clarifying strategic motives and differences. Number...

The universal modular platform

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

North, R.B.

1995-01-01

A new and patented design for offshore wellhead platforms has been developed to meet a 'fast track' requirement for increased offshore production, from field locations not yet identified. The new design uses modular construction to allow for radical changes in the water depth of the final location and assembly line efficiency in fabrication. By utilizing high strength steels and structural support from the well conductors the new design accommodates all planned production requirements on a support structure significantly lighter and less expensive than the conventional design it replaces. Twenty two platforms based on the new design were ready for installation within 18 months of the project start. Installation of the new platforms began in 1992 for drilling support and 1993 for production support. The new design has become the Company standard for all future production platforms. Large saving and construction costs have been realized through its light weight, flexibility in both positioning and water depth, and its modular construction

Possilibity of estimating payoff matrix from model for hit phenomena

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ishii, Akira; Sakaidani, Shota; Iwanaga, Saori

2016-01-01

The conflicts of topics on social media is considered using an extended mathematical model based on the mathematical model for hit phenomena that has been used to analyze entertainment hits. The social media platform used in this study was blog. The calculation results shows examples of strong conflict, weak conflict, and no conflict cases. Since the conflict of two topics can be considered in the framework of game theory, the results can be used to determine each matrix element of the payoff matrix of game theory.

Prediabetes:MedlinePlus Health Topic

Science.gov (United States)

... in Spanish Prediabetes (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish Topic Image MedlinePlus Email Updates Get Prediabetes updates by ... Glucose tolerance test - non-pregnant Prediabetes Related Health Topics A1C Diabetes Diabetes in Children and Teens Diabetes ...

Diabetes: MedlinePlus Health Topic

Science.gov (United States)

... High blood sugar (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish Topic Image MedlinePlus Email Updates Get Diabetes updates by ... ketones test Show More Show Less Related Health Topics A1C Blood Sugar Diabetes and Pregnancy Diabetes Complications ...

A Serious Games Platform for Cognitive Rehabilitation with Preliminary Evaluation.

Science.gov (United States)

Rego, Paula Alexandra; Rocha, Rui; Faria, Brígida Mónica; Reis, Luís Paulo; Moreira, Pedro Miguel

2017-01-01

In recent years Serious Games have evolved substantially, solving problems in diverse areas. In particular, in Cognitive Rehabilitation, Serious Games assume a relevant role. Traditional cognitive therapies are often considered repetitive and discouraging for patients and Serious Games can be used to create more dynamic rehabilitation processes, holding patients' attention throughout the process and motivating them during their road to recovery. This paper reviews Serious Games and user interfaces in rehabilitation area and details a Serious Games platform for Cognitive Rehabilitation that includes a set of features such as: natural and multimodal user interfaces and social features (competition, collaboration, and handicapping) which can contribute to augment the motivation of patients during the rehabilitation process. The web platform was tested with healthy subjects. Results of this preliminary evaluation show the motivation and the interest of the participants by playing the games.

Method and platform standardization in MRM-based quantitative plasma proteomics.

Science.gov (United States)

Percy, Andrew J; Chambers, Andrew G; Yang, Juncong; Jackson, Angela M; Domanski, Dominik; Burkhart, Julia; Sickmann, Albert; Borchers, Christoph H

2013-12-16

There exists a growing demand in the proteomics community to standardize experimental methods and liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (LC/MS) platforms in order to enable the acquisition of more precise and accurate quantitative data. This necessity is heightened by the evolving trend of verifying and validating candidate disease biomarkers in complex biofluids, such as blood plasma, through targeted multiple reaction monitoring (MRM)-based approaches with stable isotope-labeled standards (SIS). Considering the lack of performance standards for quantitative plasma proteomics, we previously developed two reference kits to evaluate the MRM with SIS peptide approach using undepleted and non-enriched human plasma. The first kit tests the effectiveness of the LC/MRM-MS platform (kit #1), while the second evaluates the performance of an entire analytical workflow (kit #2). Here, these kits have been refined for practical use and then evaluated through intra- and inter-laboratory testing on 6 common LC/MS platforms. For an identical panel of 22 plasma proteins, similar concentrations were determined, regardless of the kit, instrument platform, and laboratory of analysis. These results demonstrate the value of the kit and reinforce the utility of standardized methods and protocols. The proteomics community needs standardized experimental protocols and quality control methods in order to improve the reproducibility of MS-based quantitative data. This need is heightened by the evolving trend for MRM-based validation of proposed disease biomarkers in complex biofluids such as blood plasma. We have developed two kits to assist in the inter- and intra-laboratory quality control of MRM experiments: the first kit tests the effectiveness of the LC/MRM-MS platform (kit #1), while the second evaluates the performance of an entire analytical workflow (kit #2). In this paper, we report the use of these kits in intra- and inter-laboratory testing on 6 common LC/MS platforms. This

Link between Research, Development and Demonstration (RD and D) and Stakeholder Confidence: the Specific Aspect of Long-term Safety. Proceedings of a Topical Session, Issy-les-Moulineaux, France 6-8 June 2007

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

2008-01-01

The Forum on Stakeholder Confidence (FSC) was created under a mandate from the OECD Nuclear Energy Agency's Radioactive Waste Management Committee (RWMC) to facilitate the sharing of international experience in addressing the societal dimension of radioactive waste management. It explores means of ensuring an effective dialogue with the public, and considers ways to strengthen confidence in decision-making processes. NEA member countries nominate participants. The FSC today includes representatives of national regulators, implementing agencies, policy makers, and R and D scientists from 16 OECD countries and two international organisations. Each has experience in and/or responsibility for stakeholder interaction. The Forum was launched in August 2000, in Paris, and convenes a series of alternating regular meetings and workshops. The FSC is expected to identify specific issues of interest on which stakeholders can learn from one another and provide a platform for discussing and exchanging those issues. This topical session's emphasis on long-term safety is meant to complement the Programme of Work of the RWMC in this area and to create a bridge between the FSC and the more technically oriented groups of the RWMC, e.g., the Integration Group for the Safety Case (IGSC) and the Regulators' Forum. These Proceedings are meant to provide a record that can be used by a wide spectrum of stakeholders and decision-makers. They include: a) An executive summary of the topical presentations, and of the discussion they sparked within the FSC; b) Texts and Power Point presentations provided by the speakers at the Topical Session

Tracking topic birth and death in LDA.

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Wilson, Andrew T.; Robinson, David Gerald

2011-09-01

Most topic modeling algorithms that address the evolution of documents over time use the same number of topics at all times. This obscures the common occurrence in the data where new subjects arise and old ones diminish or disappear entirely. We propose an algorithm to model the birth and death of topics within an LDA-like framework. The user selects an initial number of topics, after which new topics are created and retired without further supervision. Our approach also accommodates many of the acceleration and parallelization schemes developed in recent years for standard LDA. In recent years, topic modeling algorithms such as latent semantic analysis (LSA)[17], latent Dirichlet allocation (LDA)[10] and their descendants have offered a powerful way to explore and interrogate corpora far too large for any human to grasp without assistance. Using such algorithms we are able to search for similar documents, model and track the volume of topics over time, search for correlated topics or model them with a hierarchy. Most of these algorithms are intended for use with static corpora where the number of documents and the size of the vocabulary are known in advance. Moreover, almost all current topic modeling algorithms fix the number of topics as one of the input parameters and keep it fixed across the entire corpus. While this is appropriate for static corpora, it becomes a serious handicap when analyzing time-varying data sets where topics come and go as a matter of course. This is doubly true for online algorithms that may not have the option of revising earlier results in light of new data. To be sure, these algorithms will account for changing data one way or another, but without the ability to adapt to structural changes such as entirely new topics they may do so in counterintuitive ways.

Topics in lightwave transmission systems

CERN Document Server

Li, Tingye

1991-01-01

Topics in Lightwave Transmission Systems is a second volume of a treatise on optical fiber communications that is devoted to the science, engineering, and application of information transmission via optical fibers. The first volume, published in 1985, dealt exclusively with fiber fabrication. The present volume contains topics that pertain to subsystems and systems. The book contains five chapters and begins with discussions of transmitters and receivers, which are basic to systems now operating in the field. Subsequent chapters cover topics relating to coherent systems: frequency and phase m

Online platforms to teach Nutrition Education to children: a non-systematic review.

Science.gov (United States)

Domínguez Rodríguez, Alejandro; Cebolla Marti, Ausiàs Josep; Oliver-Gasch, Elia; Baños-Rivera, Rosa María

2016-11-29

Childhood obesity is now considered a worldwide problem. Nutrition Education (NE) has been identified as a key factor in preventing overweight and obesity in children. In recent years, there has been an increase in the interest in innovative ways to teach this knowledge to children, mainly through the use of the Internet. Review and analyze the available evidence about programs focused on NE for children through the use of the Internet. Three different ways were found to deliver NE over the Internet to children: platforms designed to communicate with other peers or professionals; platforms designed to provide NE through the contents included in the web tool; and platforms designed to provide NE through the contents included in the web tool and automated feedback. Most of these programs were effective in achieving the objectives established. Although the use of Internet platforms to teach NE to children has been shown to be effective, the amount of evidence is still scarce. Some of the main advantages the Internet provides are: the opportunity to put the children in contact with education and health professionals; children can keep a record of the food consumed; and it is a more attractive and interesting way for children to learn NE, compared to traditional methods.

Osteoarthritis guidelines: a progressive role for topical nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Stanos SP

2013-04-01

Full Text Available Steven P Stanos Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago, Center for Pain Management, Chicago, IL, USA Abstract: Current treatment guidelines for the treatment of chronic pain associated with osteoarthritis reflect the collective clinical knowledge of international experts in weighing the benefits of pharmacologic therapy options while striving to minimize the negative effects associated with them. Consideration of disease progression, pattern of flares, level of functional impairment or disability, response to treatment, coexisting conditions such as cardiovascular disease or gastrointestinal disorders, and concomitant prescription medication use should be considered when creating a therapeutic plan for a patient with osteoarthritis. Although topical nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs historically have not been prevalent in many of the guidelines for osteoarthritis treatment, recent evidence-based medicine and new guidelines now support their use as a viable option for the clinician seeking alternatives to typical oral formulations. This article provides a qualitative review of these treatment guidelines and the emerging role of topical nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs as a therapy option for patients with localized symptoms of osteoarthritis who may be at risk for oral nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug-related serious adverse events. Keywords: osteoarthritis, nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, guidelines, topical analgesics, diclofenac

New offshore platform in the Mexican Gulf

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Beisel, T.

1982-04-01

After a construction period of only 10 months, the second steel Offshore platform was recently completed in the Mexican Gulf. The pattern for this structure was the Cognac platform. The erection of the new platform, called the 'Cerveza' platform, is described in the article.

Sinking offshore platform. Nedsenkbar fralandsplatform

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Einstabland, T.B.; Olsen, O.

1988-12-19

The invention deals with a sinking offshore platform of the gravitational type designed for being installed on the sea bed on great depths. The platform consists of at least three inclining pillars placed on a foundation unit. The pillars are at the upper end connected to a tower structure by means of a rigid construction. The tower supports the platform deck. The rigid construction comprises a centre-positioned cylinder connected to the foundation. 11 figs.

Understanding Platform-Based Digital Currencies

OpenAIRE

Ben Fung; Hanna Halaburda

2014-01-01

Given technological advances and the widespread use of the Internet, various digital currencies have emerged. In most cases, Internet platforms such as Facebook and Amazon restrict the functionality of their digital currencies to enhance the business model and maximize their profits. While platform-based digital currencies could increase the efficiency of retail payments, they could also raise some important policy issues if they were to become widely used outside of the platform. Thus, it is...

A computational platform for modeling and simulation of pipeline georeferencing systems

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Guimaraes, A.G.; Pellanda, P.C.; Gois, J.A. [Instituto Militar de Engenharia (IME), Rio de Janeiro, RJ (Brazil); Roquette, P.; Pinto, M.; Durao, R. [Instituto de Pesquisas da Marinha (IPqM), Rio de Janeiro, RJ (Brazil); Silva, M.S.V.; Martins, W.F.; Camillo, L.M.; Sacsa, R.P.; Madeira, B. [Ministerio de Ciencia e Tecnologia (CT-PETRO2006MCT), Brasilia, DF (Brazil). Financiadora de Estudos e Projetos (FINEP). Plano Nacional de Ciencia e Tecnologia do Setor Petroleo e Gas Natural

2009-07-01

This work presents a computational platform for modeling and simulation of pipeline geo referencing systems, which was developed based on typical pipeline characteristics, on the dynamical modeling of Pipeline Inspection Gauge (PIG) and on the analysis and implementation of an inertial navigation algorithm. The software environment of PIG trajectory simulation and navigation allows the user, through a friendly interface, to carry-out evaluation tests of the inertial navigation system under different scenarios. Therefore, it is possible to define the required specifications of the pipeline geo referencing system components, such as: required precision of inertial sensors, characteristics of the navigation auxiliary system (GPS surveyed control points, odometers etc.), pipeline construction information to be considered in order to improve the trajectory estimation precision, and the signal processing techniques more suitable for the treatment of inertial sensors data. The simulation results are analyzed through the evaluation of several performance metrics usually considered in inertial navigation applications, and 2D and 3D plots of trajectory estimation error and of recovered trajectory in the three coordinates are made available to the user. This paper presents the simulation platform and its constituting modules and defines their functional characteristics and interrelationships.(author)

Prevalence of Topical Corticosteroids Related Adverse Drug Events and Associated Factors in Selected Community Pharmacies and Cosmetic Shops of Addis Ababa, Ethiopia

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mahlet Tsegaye

2018-03-01

Conclusion: Majority of the topical corticosteroids were obtained without prescription for the purpose of beautification rather than treatment. A higher proportion of cosmetic users reported to have experienced at least one adverse event. There needs to consider safety concerns related to topical corticosteroids use in the city.

Evolutionary space platform concept study. Volume 2, part B: Manned space platform concepts

Science.gov (United States)

1982-01-01

Logical, cost-effective steps in the evolution of manned space platforms are investigated and assessed. Tasks included the analysis of requirements for a manned space platform, identifying alternative concepts, performing system analysis and definition of the concepts, comparing the concepts and performing programmatic analysis for a reference concept.

3D FEM Analysis of a Pile-Supported Riverine Platform under Environmental Loads Incorporating Soil-Pile Interaction

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Denise-Penelope N. Kontoni

2018-01-01

Full Text Available An existing riverine platform in Egypt, together with its pile group foundation, is analyzed under environmental loads using 3D FEM structural analysis software incorporating soil-pile interaction. The interaction between the transfer plate and the piles supporting the platform is investigated. Two connection conditions were studied assuming fixed or hinged connection between the piles and the reinforced concrete platform for the purpose of comparison of the structural behavior. The analysis showed that the fixed or hinged connection condition between the piles and the platform altered the values and distribution of displacements, normal force, bending moments, and shear forces along the length of each pile. The distribution of piles in the pile group affects the stress distribution on both the soil and platform. The piles were found to suffer from displacement failure rather than force failure. Moreover, the resulting bending stresses on the reinforced concrete plate in the case of a fixed connection between the piles and the platform were almost doubled and much higher than the allowable reinforced concrete stress and even exceeded the ultimate design strength and thus the environmental loads acting on a pile-supported riverine offshore platform may cause collapse if they are not properly considered in the structural analysis and design.

Polymer-based platform for microfluidic systems

Science.gov (United States)

Benett, William [Livermore, CA; Krulevitch, Peter [Pleasanton, CA; Maghribi, Mariam [Livermore, CA; Hamilton, Julie [Tracy, CA; Rose, Klint [Boston, MA; Wang, Amy W [Oakland, CA

2009-10-13

A method of forming a polymer-based microfluidic system platform using network building blocks selected from a set of interconnectable network building blocks, such as wire, pins, blocks, and interconnects. The selected building blocks are interconnectably assembled and fixedly positioned in precise positions in a mold cavity of a mold frame to construct a three-dimensional model construction of a microfluidic flow path network preferably having meso-scale dimensions. A hardenable liquid, such as poly (dimethylsiloxane) is then introduced into the mold cavity and hardened to form a platform structure as well as to mold the microfluidic flow path network having channels, reservoirs and ports. Pre-fabricated elbows, T's and other joints are used to interconnect various building block elements together. After hardening the liquid the building blocks are removed from the platform structure to make available the channels, cavities and ports within the platform structure. Microdevices may be embedded within the cast polymer-based platform, or bonded to the platform structure subsequent to molding, to create an integrated microfluidic system. In this manner, the new microfluidic platform is versatile and capable of quickly generating prototype systems, and could easily be adapted to a manufacturing setting.

Porous-Hybrid Polymers as Platforms for Heterogeneous Photochemical Catalysis

KAUST Repository

Haikal, Rana R.

2016-07-18

A number of permanently porous polymers containing Ru(bpy)n photosensitizer or a cobaloxime complex, as a proton-reduction catalyst, were constructed via one-pot Sonogashira-Hagihara (SH) cross-coupling reactions. This process required minimal workup to access porous platforms with control over the apparent surface area, pore volume, and chemical functionality from suitable molecular building blocks (MBBs) containing the Ru or Co complexes, as rigid and multi-topic nodes. The cobaloxime molecular building block, generated through in situ metalation, afforded a microporous solid that demonstrated noticeable catalytic activity towards hydrogen-evolution reaction (HER) with remarkable recyclability. We further demonstrated, in two cases, the ability to affect the excited state lifetime of the covalently-immobilized Ru(bpy)3 complex attained through deliberate utilization of the organic linkers of variable dimensions. Overall, this approach facilitates construction of tunable porous solids, with hybrid composition and pronounced chemical and physical stability, based on the well-known Ru(bpy)nor the cobaloxime complexes.

Porous-Hybrid Polymers as Platforms for Heterogeneous Photochemical Catalysis

KAUST Repository

Haikal, Rana R.; Wang, Xia; Hassan, Youssef S.; Parida, Manas R.; Banavoth, Murali; Mohammed, Omar F.; Pellechia, Perry J.; Fontecave, Marc; Alkordi, Mohamed H.

2016-01-01

A number of permanently porous polymers containing Ru(bpy)n photosensitizer or a cobaloxime complex, as a proton-reduction catalyst, were constructed via one-pot Sonogashira-Hagihara (SH) cross-coupling reactions. This process required minimal workup to access porous platforms with control over the apparent surface area, pore volume, and chemical functionality from suitable molecular building blocks (MBBs) containing the Ru or Co complexes, as rigid and multi-topic nodes. The cobaloxime molecular building block, generated through in situ metalation, afforded a microporous solid that demonstrated noticeable catalytic activity towards hydrogen-evolution reaction (HER) with remarkable recyclability. We further demonstrated, in two cases, the ability to affect the excited state lifetime of the covalently-immobilized Ru(bpy)3 complex attained through deliberate utilization of the organic linkers of variable dimensions. Overall, this approach facilitates construction of tunable porous solids, with hybrid composition and pronounced chemical and physical stability, based on the well-known Ru(bpy)nor the cobaloxime complexes.

Offshore Minerals Management Platforms for the Gulf of Mexico (GOM), Geographic NAD83, MMS (2006) [platforms_mms_2006

Data.gov (United States)

Louisiana Geographic Information Center — Offshore Minerals Management Platforms for the Gulf of Mexico (GOM). Identifies the location of platforms in GOM. All platforms existing in the database are included.

Minoxidil topical solution: an unsafe product for children.

Science.gov (United States)

Claudet, Isabelle; Cortey, Caroline; Honorat, Raphaele; Franchitto, Nicolas

2015-01-01

Minoxidil hair formulation is commonly used for the treatment of male or female androgenic alopecia. This over-the-counter product is wrongly considered safe. The ingestion of a few milliliters by a child can lead to significant intoxication. We report a case of significant intoxication after the ingestion of topical minoxidil (Alopexy; Pierre Fabre Laboratoires, SA, Switzerland). A 7-year-old girl, who accidentally ingested a teaspoon of minoxidil hair solution, presented to the pediatric emergency department for emesis. At admission, she had a blood pressure of 86/56 mm Hg and a pulse of 149 beats per minute. Hypotension lasted 40 hours with the lowest value 24 hours after ingestion (79/33 mm Hg). She presented electrocardiogram changes (sinus tachycardia and flattening T-waves) but normal cardiac enzymes. Infusion of 20 mL/kg of normal saline fluid had no hemodynamic effect. Her blood pressure normalized on day 2. Minoxidil topical solution is an unsafe product for children. This formulation should be strictly kept out of reach of children and manufacturers should enhance child-resistance security of packaging. The over-the-counter availability must be questioned.

Mobile@Old: A Smart Home Platform for Enhancing the Elderly Mobility

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

MOCANU, I.

2017-11-01

Full Text Available Regular physical exercises are widely considered to be a key factor for living a healthy life. In this paper we present Mobile@Old, an integrated platform for assisting elderly people to maintain a healthy lifestyle in their homes. Our aim is to highlight the main concepts, technologies, and findings this system rests on. To this end we integrate Mobile@Old in the general conceptual framework of serious games. We provide details about the designing and implementation of Vital Signs Monitoring (VSM and Physical Activity Trainer (PAT components of Mobile@Old. Relevant exercises and utilization scenarios are also presented in order to emphases the practical applicability of our approach. We evaluate the usability of platform using the System Usability Scale (SUS. Experimental data regarding the accuracy of whole body movements are also presented

Analytical simulation platform describing projections in computed tomography systems

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Youn, Hanbean; Kim, Ho Kyung

2013-01-01

To reduce the patient dose, several approaches such as spectral imaging using photon counting detectors and statistical image reconstruction, are being considered. Although image-reconstruction algorithms may significantly enhance image quality in reconstructed images with low dose, true signal-to-noise properties are mainly determined by image quality in projections. We are developing an analytical simulation platform describing projections to investigate how quantum-interaction physics in each component configuring CT systems affect image quality in projections. This simulator will be very useful for an improved design or optimization of CT systems in economy as well as the development of novel image-reconstruction algorithms. In this study, we present the progress of development of the simulation platform with an emphasis on the theoretical framework describing the generation of projection data. We have prepared the analytical simulation platform describing projections in computed tomography systems. The remained further study before the meeting includes the following: Each stage in the cascaded signal-transfer model for obtaining projections will be validated by the Monte Carlo simulations. We will build up energy-dependent scatter and pixel-crosstalk kernels, and show their effects on image quality in projections and reconstructed images. We will investigate the effects of projections obtained from various imaging conditions and system (or detector) operation parameters on reconstructed images. It is challenging to include the interaction physics due to photon-counting detectors into the simulation platform. Detailed descriptions of the simulator will be presented with discussions on its performance and limitation as well as Monte Carlo validations. Computational cost will also be addressed in detail. The proposed method in this study is simple and can be used conveniently in lab environment

Platforms.

Science.gov (United States)

Josko, Deborah

2014-01-01

The advent of DNA sequencing technologies and the various applications that can be performed will have a dramatic effect on medicine and healthcare in the near future. There are several DNA sequencing platforms available on the market for research and clinical use. Based on the medical laboratory scientist or researcher's needs and taking into consideration laboratory space and budget, one can chose which platform will be beneficial to their institution and their patient population. Although some of the instrument costs seem high, diagnosing a patient quickly and accurately will save hospitals money with fewer hospital stays and targeted treatment based on an individual's genetic make-up. By determining the type of disease an individual has, based on the mutations present or having the ability to prescribe the appropriate antimicrobials based on the knowledge of the organism's resistance patterns, the clinician will be better able to treat and diagnose a patient which ultimately will improve patient outcomes and prognosis.

Preliminary stop of the TOPical Imiquimod treatment of high-grade Cervical intraepithelial neoplasia (TOPIC) trial

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Koeneman, M. M.; Kruse, Arnold-Jan; Kooreman, L. F. S.; zur Hausen, Axel; Hopman, Anton H N; Sep, S. J. S.; Van Gorp, T.; Slangen, B. F. M.; van Beekhuizen, H. J.; de Sande, Michiel A. J. van; Gerestein, Cornelis G.; Nijman, H. W.; Kruitwagen, R. F. M. P.

2017-01-01

The "TOPical Imiquimod treatment of high-grade Cervical intraepithelial neoplasia" (TOPIC) trial was stopped preliminary, due to lagging inclusions. This study aimed to evaluate the treatment efficacy and clinical applicability of imiquimod 5% cream in high-grade cervical intraepithelial neoplasia

Towards a Framework of Digital Platform Competition

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Kazan, Erol; Tan, Chee-Wee; Lim, Eric T. K.

2016-01-01

between monopolistic (i.e., Pingit) and federated (i.e., Paym) mobile payment platforms to illustrate its applicability and yield principles on the nature and impact of competition among platform-driven ubiquitous systems. Preliminary findings indicate that monopolistic mobile digital platforms attempt...... to create unique configurals to obtain monopolistic power by tightly coupling platform layers, which are difficult to replicate. Conversely, federated digital platforms compete by dispersing the service layer to harness the collective resources from individual firms. Furthermore, the interaction...

How do disease perception, treatment features, and dermatologist–patient relationship impact on patients assuming topical treatment? An Italian survey

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Burroni AG

2015-02-01

Full Text Available Anna Graziella Burroni,1 Mariella Fassino,2 Antonio Torti,3 Elena Visentin4 1IRCCS University Hospital San Martino, IST National Institute for Cancer Research, Genoa, Italy; 2Department of Psychology, Specialization School in Clinical Psychology, University of Turin, Turin, Italy; 3Dermatology practice, Milan, Italy; 4HTA and Scientific Support, CSD Medical Research Srl, Milan, Italy Background: Psoriasis largely affects daily activities and social interactions and has a strong impact on patients’ quality of life. Psoriatic patients have different attitudes toward their condition. Topical medications are essential for the treatment of psoriasis, but the majority of patients do not adhere to these therapies. Objective: The history of treatment success or failure seems to influence patient attitude toward topical therapy. Therefore, it is important to understand the psychological, experiential, and motivational aspects that could be critical for treatment adherence, and to describe the different attitudes toward topical treatment. Furthermore, the physician–patient relationship and the willingness to trust the dermatologist may have a substantial role in encouraging or discouraging patients’ attitudes toward topical therapy. Methods: A survey was designed to collect aspects that could be relevant to understanding different patient attitudes toward psoriasis and its treatments. A total of 495 self-administered questionnaires compiled by psoriatic patients were analyzed from 20 Italian specialized hospital centers in order to provide a nationwide picture. Results: Psoriatic patients have different perceptions and experiences in relation to their condition: half of them consider psoriasis as a disease, while the other half consider psoriasis as a disorder or a nuisance. Topical therapy is the most widely used treatment, even though it is not considered the most effective one and often perceived to be cosmetic. The main findings are: 1

Deep Unfolding for Topic Models.

Science.gov (United States)

Chien, Jen-Tzung; Lee, Chao-Hsi

2018-02-01

Deep unfolding provides an approach to integrate the probabilistic generative models and the deterministic neural networks. Such an approach is benefited by deep representation, easy interpretation, flexible learning and stochastic modeling. This study develops the unsupervised and supervised learning of deep unfolded topic models for document representation and classification. Conventionally, the unsupervised and supervised topic models are inferred via the variational inference algorithm where the model parameters are estimated by maximizing the lower bound of logarithm of marginal likelihood using input documents without and with class labels, respectively. The representation capability or classification accuracy is constrained by the variational lower bound and the tied model parameters across inference procedure. This paper aims to relax these constraints by directly maximizing the end performance criterion and continuously untying the parameters in learning process via deep unfolding inference (DUI). The inference procedure is treated as the layer-wise learning in a deep neural network. The end performance is iteratively improved by using the estimated topic parameters according to the exponentiated updates. Deep learning of topic models is therefore implemented through a back-propagation procedure. Experimental results show the merits of DUI with increasing number of layers compared with variational inference in unsupervised as well as supervised topic models.

Bimatoprost Topical

Science.gov (United States)

... not use a cotton swab or any other brush or applicator to apply topical bimatoprost.To use the solution, follow these steps: Wash your hands and face thoroughly with soap and water. Be sure that all makeup is removed. Do not let the tip of ...

Assembly procedure for Shot Loading Platform

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Routh, R.D.

1995-01-01

This supporting document describes the assembly procedure for the Shot Loading Platform. The Shot Loading Platform is used by multiple equipment removal projects to load shielding shot in the annular spaces of the equipment storage containers. The platform height is adjustable to accommodate different sizes of storage containers and transport assemblies

Efficacy and tolerability of topical sertaconazole versus topical terbinafine in localized dermatophytosis: A randomized, observer-blind, parallel group study.

Science.gov (United States)

Chatterjee, Dattatreyo; Ghosh, Sudip Kumar; Sen, Sukanta; Sarkar, Saswati; Hazra, Avijit; De, Radharaman

2016-01-01

Epidermal dermatophyte infections most commonly manifest as tinea corporis or tinea cruris. Topical azole antifungals are commonly used in their treatment but literature suggests that most require twice-daily application and provide lower cure rates than the allylamine antifungal terbinafine. We conducted a head-to-head comparison of the effectiveness of the once-daily topical azole, sertaconazole, with terbinafine in these infections. We conducted a randomized, observer-blind, parallel group study (Clinical Trial Registry India [CTRI]/2014/09/005029) with adult patients of either sex presenting with localized lesions. The clinical diagnosis was confirmed by potassium hydroxide smear microscopy of skin scrapings. After baseline assessment of erythema, scaling, and pruritus, patients applied either of the two study drugs once daily for 2 weeks. If clinical cure was not seen at 2 weeks, but improvement was noted, application was continued for further 2 weeks. Patients deemed to be clinical failure at 2 weeks were switched to oral antifungals. Overall 88 patients on sertaconazole and 91 on terbinafine were analyzed. At 2 weeks, the clinical cure rates were comparable at 77.27% (95% confidence interval [CI]: 68.52%-86.03%) for sertaconazole and 73.63% (95% CI 64.57%-82.68%) for terbinafine ( P = 0.606). Fourteen patients in either group improved and on further treatment showed complete healing by another 2 weeks. The final cure rate at 4 weeks was also comparable at 93.18% (95% CI 88.75%-97.62%) and 89.01% (95% CI 82.59%-95.44%), respectively ( P = 0.914). At 2 weeks, 6 (6.82%) sertaconazole and 10 (10.99%) terbinafine recipients were considered as "clinical failure." Tolerability of both preparations was excellent. Despite the limitations of an observer-blind study without microbiological support, the results suggest that once-daily topical sertaconazole is as effective as terbinafine in localized tinea infections.

A web search on environmental topics: what is the role of ranking?

Science.gov (United States)

Covolo, Loredana; Filisetti, Barbara; Mascaretti, Silvia; Limina, Rosa Maria; Gelatti, Umberto

2013-12-01

Although the Internet is easy to use, the mechanisms and logic behind a Web search are often unknown. Reliable information can be obtained, but it may not be visible as the Web site is not located in the first positions of search results. The possible risks of adverse health effects arising from environmental hazards are issues of increasing public interest, and therefore the information about these risks, particularly on topics for which there is no scientific evidence, is very crucial. The aim of this study was to investigate whether the presentation of information on some environmental health topics differed among various search engines, assuming that the most reliable information should come from institutional Web sites. Five search engines were used: Google, Yahoo!, Bing, Ask, and AOL. The following topics were searched in combination with the word "health": "nuclear energy," "electromagnetic waves," "air pollution," "waste," and "radon." For each topic three key words were used. The first 30 search results for each query were considered. The ranking variability among the search engines and the type of search results were analyzed for each topic and for each key word. The ranking of institutional Web sites was given particular consideration. Variable results were obtained when surfing the Internet on different environmental health topics. Multivariate logistic regression analysis showed that, when searching for radon and air pollution topics, it is more likely to find institutional Web sites in the first 10 positions compared with nuclear power (odds ratio=3.4, 95% confidence interval 2.1-5.4 and odds ratio=2.9, 95% confidence interval 1.8-4.7, respectively) and also when using Google compared with Bing (odds ratio=3.1, 95% confidence interval 1.9-5.1). The increasing use of online information could play an important role in forming opinions. Web users should become more aware of the importance of finding reliable information, and health institutions should be

PREFACE: CEWQO Topical Issue CEWQO Topical Issue

Science.gov (United States)

Bozic, Mirjana; Man'ko, Margarita

2009-09-01

This topical issue of Physica Scripta collects selected peer-reviewed contributions based on invited and contributed talks and posters presented at the 15th Central European Workshop on Quantum Optics (CEWQO) which took place in Belgrade 29 May-3 June 2008 (http://cewqo08.phy.bg.ac.yu). On behalf of the whole community took place in Belgrade 29 May-3 June 2008 (http://cewqo08.phy.bg.ac.yu, cewqo08.phy.bg.ac.yu). On behalf of the whole community of the workshop, we thank the referees for their careful reading and useful suggestions which helped to improve all of the submitted papers. A brief description of CEWQO The Central European Workshop on Quantum Optics is a series of conferences started informally in Budapest in 1992. Sometimes small events transform into important conferences, as in the case of CEWQO. Professor Jozsef Janszky, from the Research Institute of Solid State Physics and Optics, is the founder of this series. Margarita Man'ko obtained the following information from Jozsef Janszky during her visit to Budapest, within the framework of cooperation between the Russian and Hungarian Academies of Sciences in 2005. He organized a small workshop on quantum optics in Budapest in 1992 with John Klauder as a main speaker. Then, bearing in mind that a year before Janszky himself was invited by Vladimir Buzek to give a seminar on the same topic in Bratislava, he decided to assign the name 'Central European Workshop on Quantum Optics', considering the seminar in Bratislava to be the first workshop and the one in Budapest the second. The third formal workshop took place in Bratislava in 1993 organized by Vladimir Buzek, then in 1994 (Budapest, by Jozsef Janszky), 1995 and 1996 (Budmerice, Slovakia, by Vladimir Buzek), 1997 (Prague, by Igor Jex), 1999 (Olomouc, Czech Republic, by Zdenek Hradil), 2000 (Balatonfüred, Hungary, by Jozsef Janszky ), 2001 (Prague, by Igor Jex), 2002 (Szeged, Hungary, by Mihaly Benedict), 2003 (Rostock,Germany, by Werner Vogel and

Understanding Trail Runners’ Activity on Online Community Forums: An Inductive Analysis of Discussion Topics

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Rochat Nadège

2018-03-01

Full Text Available Recreational trail runners often participate in online community forums where they can freely read posted messages, join discussions and/or introduce new discussion topics. This tool can enhance learning as runners connect with other trail runners and reflect on how they can better organize their own practice. Studying forum activity would provide greater insight into the relationship between field practice and dedicated forums. The aim of this study was therefore to detect the topics discussed online by trail runners in order to understand how they collectively look for solutions that help them adapt to issues that emerge during actual practice. The discussion topics (n = 171 on the forum hosted by the Raidlight brand were examined using inductive content analysis, which distinguished two general dimensions. The first dimension was training and had four first-order themes (i.e., “specific trail running sessions”, “complementary trail running sessions”. “training plans” and “specific questions about races” grouped into two second-order themes (i.e., “training session contents” and “structure and schedule”. The second dimension was health and had seven first-order themes (i.e., “tendinitis”, “muscle issues”, “foot issues”, “sprains and fractures”, “pain”, “physiology” and “substances and practitioners” grouped into two second-order themes (i.e., “pain and injury” and “prevention”. The results indicate that the issues that trail runners discuss on forums are significant and that the successions of questions and solutions are a fruitful means for building, enriching and adjusting their activity as they cope with constraints. As a practical consequence, suggestions for improving such online platforms are made.

Understanding the Correlations between Social Attention and Topic Trends of Scientific Publications

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Xianlei Dong

2016-03-01

variable selection models, because the stepwise regression method is time consuming, especially for a large number of variables. Practical implications: This paper analyzes publication topic trends from three perspectives: tendency, seasonality, and correlation with social media attention, providing a new perspective for identifying and understanding topical themes in academic publications. Originality/value: To the best of our knowledge, we are the first to apply the state-space model to examine the relationships between healthcare-related publications and social media to investigate the relationships between a topic's evolvement and people's search behavior in social media. This paper thus provides a new viewpoint in the correlation analysis area, and demonstrates the value of considering social media attention in the analysis of publication topic trends.

A supply sided analysis of leading MOOC platforms and universities

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Georg Peters

2016-03-01

Full Text Available Investing in education is generally considered as a promising strategy to fight poverty and increase prosperity. This applies to all levels of an economy reaching from individuals to local communities and countries and has a global perspective as well. However, high-quality education is often costly and not available anytime anywhere. Therefore, any promising concept that might help to democratize education is worth pursuing, in a sense that it makes education accessible for everybody without any restrictions. The characteristics attributed to MOOC – Massive Open Online Courses are promising to contribute to this objective. Hence, our objective is to analyse MOOC as it currently operates. Obviously, there is a huge demand for free high-quality education anytime anywhere but a shortage on the supply side. So, we will concentrate on supply-sided effects and study MOOC platforms as well as content providers, particularly universities. We focus our research on some of the leading platforms and universities worldwide. Relative to their size Australia and the Netherlands are very active players in the MOOC sector. Germany is lagging behind and leading universities in the UK seem to virtually refrain from offering MOOC. Our research also shows the leading role of US universities and platform providers.

Simulation platform to model, optimize and design wind turbines

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Iov, F.; Hansen, A.D.; Soerensen, P.; Blaabjerg, F.

2004-03-01

This report is a general overview of the results obtained in the project 'Electrical Design and Control. Simulation Platform to Model, Optimize and Design Wind Turbines'. The motivation for this research project is the ever-increasing wind energy penetration into the power network. Therefore, the project has the main goal to create a model database in different simulation tools for a system optimization of the wind turbine systems. Using this model database a simultaneous optimization of the aerodynamic, mechanical, electrical and control systems over the whole range of wind speeds and grid characteristics can be achieved. The report is structured in six chapters. First, the background of this project and the main goals as well as the structure of the simulation platform is given. The main topologies for wind turbines, which have been taken into account during the project, are briefly presented. Then, the considered simulation tools namely: HAWC, DIgSILENT, Saber and Matlab/Simulink have been used in this simulation platform are described. The focus here is on the modelling and simulation time scale aspects. The abilities of these tools are complementary and they can together cover all the modelling aspects of the wind turbines e.g. mechanical loads, power quality, switching, control and grid faults. However, other simulation packages e.g PSCAD/EMTDC can easily be added in the simulation platform. New models and new control algorithms for wind turbine systems have been developed and tested in these tools. All these models are collected in dedicated libraries in Matlab/Simulink as well as in Saber. Some simulation results from the considered tools are presented for MW wind turbines. These simulation results focuses on fixed-speed and variable speed/pitch wind turbines. A good agreement with the real behaviour of these systems is obtained for each simulation tool. These models can easily be extended to model different kinds of wind turbines or large wind

Learning topic models by belief propagation.

Science.gov (United States)

Zeng, Jia; Cheung, William K; Liu, Jiming

2013-05-01

Latent Dirichlet allocation (LDA) is an important hierarchical Bayesian model for probabilistic topic modeling, which attracts worldwide interest and touches on many important applications in text mining, computer vision and computational biology. This paper represents the collapsed LDA as a factor graph, which enables the classic loopy belief propagation (BP) algorithm for approximate inference and parameter estimation. Although two commonly used approximate inference methods, such as variational Bayes (VB) and collapsed Gibbs sampling (GS), have gained great success in learning LDA, the proposed BP is competitive in both speed and accuracy, as validated by encouraging experimental results on four large-scale document datasets. Furthermore, the BP algorithm has the potential to become a generic scheme for learning variants of LDA-based topic models in the collapsed space. To this end, we show how to learn two typical variants of LDA-based topic models, such as author-topic models (ATM) and relational topic models (RTM), using BP based on the factor graph representations.

Bare quantifier fronting as contrastive topicalization

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ion Giurgea

2015-11-01

Full Text Available I argue that indefinites (in particular bare quantifiers such as ‘something’, ‘somebody’, etc. which are neither existentially presupposed nor in the restriction of a quantifier over situations, can undergo topicalization in a number of Romance languages (Catalan, Italian, Romanian, Spanish, but only if the sentence contains “verum” focus, i.e. focus on a high degree of certainty of the sentence. I analyze these indefinites as contrastive topics, using Büring’s (1999 theory (where the term ‘S-topic’ is used for what I call ‘contrastive topic’. I propose that the topic is evaluated in relation to a scalar set including generalized quantifiers such as {lP $x P(x, lP MANYx P(x, lP MOSTx P(x, lP “xP(x} or {lP $xP(x, lP P(a, lP P(b …}, and that the contrastive topic is the weakest generalized quantifier in this set. The verum focus, which is part of the “comment” that co-occurs with the “Topic”, introduces a set of alternatives including degrees of certainty of the assertion. The speaker asserts that his claim is certainly true or highly probable, contrasting it with stronger claims for which the degree of probability is unknown. This explains the observation that in downward entailing contexts, the fronted quantified DPs are headed by ‘all’ or ‘many’, whereas ‘some’, small numbers or ‘at least n’ appear in upward entailing contexts. Unlike other cases of non-specific topics, which are property topics, these are quantifier topics: the topic part is a generalized quantifier, the comment is a property of generalized quantifiers. This explains the narrow scope of the fronted quantified DP.

Secondary School Students' Knowledge and Opinions on Astrobiology Topics and Related Social Issues

Science.gov (United States)

Oreiro, Raquel; Solbes, Jordi

2017-01-01

Astrobiology is the study of the origin of life on Earth and the distribution of life in the Universe. Its multidisciplinary approach, social and philosophical implications, and appeal within the discipline and beyond make astrobiology a uniquely qualified subject for general science education. In this study, student knowledge and opinions on astrobiology topics were investigated. Eighty-nine students in their last year of compulsory education (age 15) completed a written questionnaire that consisted of 10 open questions on the topic of astrobiology. The results indicate that students have significant difficulties understanding the origin of life on Earth, despite exposure to the topic by way of the assigned textbooks. The students were often unaware of past or present achievements in the search for life within the Solar System and beyond, topics that are far less commonly seen in textbooks. Student questionnaire answers also indicated that students had problems in reasoning and critical thinking when asked for their opinions on issues such as the potential for life beyond Earth, the question of whether UFOs exist, or what our place is in the Universe. Astrobiology might help initiate student awareness as to current thinking on these matters and should be considered for general science education.

Secondary School Students' Knowledge and Opinions on Astrobiology Topics and Related Social Issues.

Science.gov (United States)

Oreiro, Raquel; Solbes, Jordi

2017-01-01

Astrobiology is the study of the origin of life on Earth and the distribution of life in the Universe. Its multidisciplinary approach, social and philosophical implications, and appeal within the discipline and beyond make astrobiology a uniquely qualified subject for general science education. In this study, student knowledge and opinions on astrobiology topics were investigated. Eighty-nine students in their last year of compulsory education (age 15) completed a written questionnaire that consisted of 10 open questions on the topic of astrobiology. The results indicate that students have significant difficulties understanding the origin of life on Earth, despite exposure to the topic by way of the assigned textbooks. The students were often unaware of past or present achievements in the search for life within the Solar System and beyond, topics that are far less commonly seen in textbooks. Student questionnaire answers also indicated that students had problems in reasoning and critical thinking when asked for their opinions on issues such as the potential for life beyond Earth, the question of whether UFOs exist, or what our place is in the Universe. Astrobiology might help initiate student awareness as to current thinking on these matters and should be considered for general science education. Key Words: Astrobiology-Students' views-Science education. Astrobiology 17, 91-99.

Platform decisions supported by gaming

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Hansen, Poul H. Kyvsgård; Mikkola, Juliana Hsuan

2007-01-01

Platform is an ambiguous multidisciplinary concept. The philosophy behind it is easy to communicate and makes intuitively sense. However, the ease in communication does overshadow the high complexity when the concept is implemented. The practical industrial platform implementation challenge can...... be described as being a configuration problem with a high number of variables. These variables are different in nature; they have contradictory influence on the total performance, and, their importance change over time. Consequently, the specific platform decisions become highly complex and the consequences...

Digital platforms as enablers for digital transformation

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Hossain, Mokter; Lassen, Astrid Heidemann

transformation is crucial. This study aims at exploring how organizations are driven towards transformation in various ways to embrace digital platforms for ideas, technologies, and knowledge. It shows the opportunities and challenges digital platforms bring in organizations. It also highlights underlying......Digital platforms offer new ways for organizations to collaborate with the external environment for ideas, technologies, and knowledge. They provide new possibilities and competence but they also bring new challenges for organizations. Understanding the role of these platforms in digital...... mechanisms and potential outcomes of various digital platforms. The contribution of the submission is valuable for scholars to understand and further explore this area. It provides insight for practitioners to capture value through digital platforms and accelerate the pace of organizations’ digital...

[Orange Platform].

Science.gov (United States)

Toba, Kenji

2017-07-01

The Organized Registration for the Assessment of dementia on Nationwide General consortium toward Effective treatment in Japan (ORANGE platform) is a recently established nationwide clinical registry for dementia. This platform consists of multiple registries of patients with dementia stratified by the following clinical stages: preclinical, mild cognitive impairment, early-stage, and advanced-stage dementia. Patients will be examined in a super-longitudinal fashion, and their lifestyle, social background, genetic risk factors, and required care process will be assessed. This project is also notable because the care registry includes information on the successful, comprehensive management of patients with dementia. Therefore, this multicenter prospective cohort study will contribute participants to all clinical trials for Alzheimer's disease as well as improve the understanding of individuals with dementia.

Template-based education toolkit for mobile platforms

Science.gov (United States)

Golagani, Santosh Chandana; Esfahanian, Moosa; Akopian, David

2012-02-01

Nowadays mobile phones are the most widely used portable devices which evolve very fast adding new features and improving user experiences. The latest generation of hand-held devices called smartphones is equipped with superior memory, cameras and rich multimedia features, empowering people to use their mobile phones not only as a communication tool but also for entertainment purposes. With many young students showing interest in learning mobile application development one should introduce novel learning methods which may adapt to fast technology changes and introduce students to application development. Mobile phones become a common device, and engineering community incorporates phones in various solutions. Overcoming the limitations of conventional undergraduate electrical engineering (EE) education this paper explores the concept of template-based based education in mobile phone programming. The concept is based on developing small exercise templates which students can manipulate and revise for quick hands-on introduction to the application development and integration. Android platform is used as a popular open source environment for application development. The exercises relate to image processing topics typically studied by many students. The goal is to enable conventional course enhancements by incorporating in them short hands-on learning modules.

Resources for Topics in Architecture.

Science.gov (United States)

Van Noate, Judith, Comp.

This guide for conducting library research on topics in architecture or on the work of a particular architect presents suggestions for utilizing four categories of resources: books, dictionaries and encyclopedias, indexes, and a periodicals and series list (PASL). Two topics are researched as examples: the contemporary architect Richard Meier, and…

Web directories as topical context

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Kaptein, R.; Kamps, J.; Aly, R.; Hauff, C.; den Hamer, I.; Hiemstra, D.; Huibers, T.; de Jong, F.

2009-01-01

In this paper we explore whether the Open Directory (or DMOZ) can be used to classify queries into topical categories on different levels and whether we can use this topical context to improve retrieval performance. We have set up a user study to let test persons explicitly classify queries into

Basic anatomic aspects of the lung (segmental, lobular and sublobular) considering radiological point of view (Part 1)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Santos, Itazil Benicio dos

1994-01-01

A basic anatomic study of the lung considering radiological aspects is presented. After a short introduction, some topics are emphasized, such as the structures which originate the lungs and lung segment details. Some histological elements are also briefly presented. Several illustrations complement the presentation

Windows Azure Platform

CERN Document Server

Redkar, Tejaswi

2011-01-01

The Windows Azure Platform has rapidly established itself as one of the most sophisticated cloud computing platforms available. With Microsoft working to continually update their product and keep it at the cutting edge, the future looks bright - if you have the skills to harness it. In particular, new features such as remote desktop access, dynamic content caching and secure content delivery using SSL make the latest version of Azure a more powerful solution than ever before. It's widely agreed that cloud computing has produced a paradigm shift in traditional architectural concepts by providin

PaTAVTT: A Hardware-in-the-Loop Scaled Platform for Testing Autonomous Vehicle Trajectory Tracking

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Zhigang Xu

2017-01-01

Full Text Available With the advent of autonomous vehicles, in particular its adaptability to harsh conditions, the research and development of autonomous vehicles attract significant attention by not only academia but also practitioners. Due to the high risk, high cost, and difficulty to test autonomous vehicles under harsh conditions, the hardware-in-the-loop (HIL scaled platform has been proposed as it is a safe, inexpensive, and effective test method. This platform system consists of scaled autonomous vehicle, scaled roadway, monitoring center, transmission device, positioning device, and computers. This paper uses a case of the development process of tracking control for high-speed U-turn to build the tracking control function. Further, a simplified vehicle dynamics model and a trajectory tracking algorithm have been considered to build the simulation test. The experiment results demonstrate the effectiveness of the HIL scaled platform.

Migrating C/C++ Software to Mobile Platforms in the ADM Context

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Liliana Martinez

2017-03-01

Full Text Available Software technology is constantly evolving and therefore the development of applications requires adapting software components and applications in order to be aligned to new paradigms such as Pervasive Computing, Cloud Computing and Internet of Things. In particular, many desktop software components need to be migrated to mobile technologies. This migration faces many challenges due to the proliferation of different mobile platforms. Developers usually make applications tailored for each type of device expending time and effort. As a result, new programming languages are emerging to integrate the native behaviors of the different platforms targeted in development projects. In this direction, the Haxe language allows writing mobile applications that target all major mobile platforms. Novel technical frameworks for information integration and tool interoperability such as Architecture-Driven Modernization (ADM proposed by the Object Management Group (OMG can help to manage a huge diversity of mobile technologies. The Architecture-Driven Modernization Task Force (ADMTF was formed to create specifications and promote industry consensus on the modernization of existing applications. In this work, we propose a migration process from C/C++ software to different mobile platforms that integrates ADM standards with Haxe. We exemplify the different steps of the process with a simple case study, the migration of “the Set of Mandelbrot” C++ application. The proposal was validated in Eclipse Modeling Framework considering that some of its tools and run-time environments are aligned with ADM standards.

Peer-to-Peer Service Sharing Platforms

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Andersson, Magnus; Hjalmarsson, Anders; Avital, Michel

2013-01-01

The sharing economy has been growing continuously in the last decade thanks to the proliferation of internet-based platforms that allow people to disintermediate the traditional commercial channels and to share excess resources and trade with one another effectively at a reasonably low transaction...... cost. Whereas early peer-to-peer platforms were designed to enable file sharing and goods trading, we recently witness the emergence of a new breed of peer-to-peer platforms that are designed for ordinary service sharing. Ordinary services entail intangible provisions and are defined as an economic...... activity that generates immaterial benefits and does not result in ownership of material goods. Based on a structured analysis of 41 internet-based rideshare platforms, we explore and layout the unique characteristics of peer-to-peer service sharing platforms based on three distinct temporal patterns...

Towards A Research Agenda on Digital Platform Disruption

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Kazan, Erol; Tan, Chee-Wee; Lim, Eric T. K.

Digital platforms are disruptive IT artifacts, because they facilitate the quick release of innovative platform derivatives from third parties. This study endeavors to unravel the disruptive potential, caused by distinct designs and configurations of digital platforms on market environments. We...... postulate that the disruptive potential of digital platforms is determined by the degree of alignment among the business, technology and platform profiles. Furthermore, we argue that the design and configuration of the aforementioned three elements dictates the extent to which open innovation is permitted....... To shed light on the disruptive potential of digital platforms, we opted for digital payment platforms as our unit of analysis. Through interviews with experts and payment providers, we seek to gain an in-depth appreciation of how contemporary digital payment platforms are designed and configured...

Unsupervised topic discovery by anomaly detection

OpenAIRE

Cheng, Leon

2013-01-01

Approved for public release; distribution is unlimited With the vast amount of information and public comment available online, it is of increasing interest to understand what is being said and what topics are trending online. Government agencies, for example, want to know what policies concern the public without having to look through thousands of comments manually. Topic detection provides automatic identification of topics in documents based on the information content and enhances many ...

EXPERIENCE OF USING BLACKBOARD E-LEARNING SYSTEM PLATFORM IN BACHELORS TRAINING

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Alexey I. Nazarov

2014-01-01

Full Text Available The approaches to organization and tracking of educative process by means of distant learning technologies are considered. The article provides description and approbation results of network educational module «Mechanics and Molecular Physics», carried out on Blackboard e-learning system. The article describes the overall results of teaching process. The authors present the platform advantages in organizing and tracking of students self-directed learning. 

21 CFR 868.5170 - Laryngotracheal topical anesthesia applicator.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-04-01

... 21 Food and Drugs 8 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Laryngotracheal topical anesthesia applicator. 868... topical anesthesia applicator. (a) Identification. A laryngotracheal topical anesthesia applicator is a device used to apply topical anesthetics to a patient's laryngotracheal area. (b) Classification. Class...

Topical minoxidil fortified with finasteride: An account of maintenance of hair density after replacing oral finasteride

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

B S Chandrashekar

2015-01-01

Full Text Available Background: Finasteride acts by reducing dihydrotestosterone levels, thereby inhibiting miniaturization of hair follicles in patients with androgenetic alopecia (AGA. Oral finasteride is associated with side effects such as decreased libido, sexual dysfunction, and gynecomastia. Aim: The aim of the following study is to assess the efficacy of maintaining hair growth with 5% topical minoxidil fortified with 0.1% finasteride in patients with AGA after initial treatment with 5% topical minoxidil and oral finasteride for two years. Materials and Methods: A retrospective assessment was done in 50 male patients aged 20-40 years with AGA. All the patients had been initially treated with topical minoxidil and oral finasteride for a period of two years, after which the oral finasteride was replaced with topical minoxidil fortified with finasteride. Five of 50 patients had discontinued the treatment for a period of 8-12 months and were then resumed with only topical minoxidil fortified with finasteride. The patients′ case sheets and photographs were reviewed by independent observers and the efficacy of minoxidil-finasteride combination was assessed. Results: Of the 45 patients who underwent a continuous treatment for AGA, 84.44% maintained a good hair density with topical minoxidil-finasteride combinatio. Of the five patients who discontinued oral finasteride for 8-12 months, four demonstrated good improvement in hair density when treatment was resumed with topical minoxidil-finasteride combination. Conclusion: Topical finasteride can be considered for hair density maintenance after initial improvement with oral finasteride, thereby obviating the indefinite use of oral finasteride.

Waste to bioproduct conversion with undefined mixed cultures: the carboxylate platform.

Science.gov (United States)

Agler, Matthew T; Wrenn, Brian A; Zinder, Stephen H; Angenent, Largus T

2011-02-01

Our societies generate increasing volumes of organic wastes. Considering that we also need alternatives to oil, an opportunity exists to extract liquid fuels or even industrial solvents from these abundant wastes. Anaerobic undefined mixed cultures can handle the complexity and variability of organic wastes, which produces carboxylates that can be efficiently converted to useful bioproducts. However, to date, barriers, such as inefficient liquid product separation and persistence of methanogens, have prevented the production of bioproducts other than methane. Here, we discuss combinations of biological and chemical pathways that comprise the 'carboxylate platform', which is used to convert waste to bioproducts. To develop the carboxylate platform into an important system within biorefineries, we must understand the kinetic and thermodynamic possibilities of anaerobic pathways, understand the ecological principles underlying pathway alternatives, and develop superior separation technologies. Copyright © 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Effects of Second-Order Sum- and Difference-Frequency Wave Forces on the Motion Response of a Tension-Leg Platform Considering the Set-down Motion

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Bin; Tang, Yougang; Li, Yan; Cai, Runbo

2018-04-01

This paper presents a study on the motion response of a tension-leg platform (TLP) under first- and second-order wave forces, including the mean-drift force, difference and sum-frequency forces. The second-order wave force is calculated using the full-field quadratic transfer function (QTF). The coupled effect of the horizontal motions, such as surge, sway and yaw motions, and the set-down motion are taken into consideration by the nonlinear restoring matrix. The time-domain analysis with 50-yr random sea state is performed. A comparison of the results of different case studies is made to assess the influence of second-order wave force on the motions of the platform. The analysis shows that the second-order wave force has a major impact on motions of the TLP. The second-order difference-frequency wave force has an obvious influence on the low-frequency motions of surge and sway, and also will induce a large set-down motion which is an important part of heave motion. Besides, the second-order sum-frequency force will induce a set of high-frequency motions of roll and pitch. However, little influence of second-order wave force is found on the yaw motion.

Essential Means for Urban Computing: Specification of Web-Based Computing Platforms for Urban Planning, a Hitchhiker’s Guide

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Pirouz Nourian

2018-03-01

Full Text Available This article provides an overview of the specifications of web-based computing platforms for urban data analytics and computational urban planning practice. There are currently a variety of tools and platforms that can be used in urban computing practices, including scientific computing languages, interactive web languages, data sharing platforms and still many desktop computing environments, e.g., GIS software applications. We have reviewed a list of technologies considering their potential and applicability in urban planning and urban data analytics. This review is not only based on the technical factors such as capabilities of the programming languages but also the ease of developing and sharing complex data processing workflows. The arena of web-based computing platforms is currently under rapid development and is too volatile to be predictable; therefore, in this article we focus on the specification of the requirements and potentials from an urban planning point of view rather than speculating about the fate of computing platforms or programming languages. The article presents a list of promising computing technologies, a technical specification of the essential data models and operators for geo-spatial data processing, and mathematical models for an ideal urban computing platform.

Topical therapy of atopic dermatitis: controversies from Hippocrates to topical immunomodulators.

Science.gov (United States)

Tilles, Gérard; Wallach, Daniel; Taïeb, Alain

2007-02-01

Although atopic dermatitis can be treated efficiently, there is still much controversy about the risk/benefit ratio of both topical corticosteroids and topical immunomodulators. Conflicting data may be found about the usefulness of bathing, diet regulation, and other therapeutic interventions. These controversies result in part from the persistence of Hippocratic doctrines in modern medical thinking. Humoralist and diathetic doctrines, as they pertain to eczema, are reviewed. The paradoxical worsening of oozing and the deadly hazards of hospitalization before the era of antibiotics are brought to mind. We hope that this historical review will improve the understanding of current controversies and help dermatologists to manage patients with atopic dermatitis and other chronic skin diseases.

Strategic mistakes (AVOIDABLE) The topicality of Michel Porter’s generic strategies

OpenAIRE

Viltard, Leandro Adolfo

2017-01-01

This article explores the topicality of Porter’s generic strategies, assessing about their applicability on two specific automotive industry projects: The Smart and the New Beetle.   After performing a documentation analysis on these two projects, it was concluded that both of them may be considered avoidable strategic mistakes as they show the risks of higher differentiation that is not being paid by the customer, no matter how if it is about recognized brands or icon products. Hazards a...

Topic Time Series Analysis of Microblogs

Science.gov (United States)

2014-10-01

may be distributed more globally. Tweets on a specific topic that cluster spatially, temporally or both might be of interest to analysts, marketers ...of $ and @, with the latter only in the case that it is the only character in the token (the @ symbol is significant in its usage by Instagram in...is generated by Instagram . Topic 80, Distance: 143.2101 Top words: 1. rawr 2. ˆ0ˆ 3. kill 4. jurassic 5. dinosaur Analysis: This topic is quite

Topic modelling in the information warfare domain

CSIR Research Space (South Africa)

De Waal, A

2013-11-01

Full Text Available for interesting and relevant topics. The objectives of this paper is to describe topic modelling, put it in context as a useful IW technique and illustrate its use with two examples. They discuss several applications of topic modelling in the safety and security...

Topical corticosteroids as adjunctive therapy for bacterial keratitis

Science.gov (United States)

Herretes, Samantha; Wang, Xue; Reyes, Johann MG

2014-01-01

Background Bacterial keratitis is a serious ocular infectious disease that can lead to severe visual disability. Risk factors for bacterial corneal infection include contact lens wear, ocular surface disease, corneal trauma, and previous ocular or eyelid surgery. Topical antibiotics constitute the mainstay of treatment in cases of bacterial keratitis, whereas the use of topical corticosteroids as an adjunctive therapy to antibiotics remains controversial. Topical corticosteroids are usually used to control inflammation using the smallest amount of the drug. Their use requires optimal timing, concomitant antibiotics, and careful follow-up. Objectives The objective of the review was to assess the effectiveness and safety of corticosteroids as adjunctive therapy for bacterial keratitis. Secondary objectives included evaluation of health economic outcomes and quality of life outcomes. Search methods We searched CENTRAL (which contains the Cochrane Eyes and Vision Group Trials Register) (2014, Issue 6), Ovid MEDLINE, Ovid MEDLINE In-Process and Other Non-Indexed Citations, Ovid MEDLINE Daily, Ovid OLDMEDLINE (January 1946 to July 2014), EMBASE (January 1980 to July 2014), Latin American and Caribbean Health Sciences Literature Database (LILACS) (January 1982 to July 2014), the metaRegister of Controlled Trials (mRCT) (www.controlled-trials.com), ClinicalTrials.gov (www.clinicaltrials.gov) and the World Health Organization (WHO) International Clinical Trials Registry Platform (ICTRP) (www.who.int/ictrp/search/en). We did not use any date or language restrictions in the electronic searches for trials. We last searched the electronic databases on 14 July 2014. We also searched the Science Citation Index to identify additional studies that had cited the only trial included in the original version of this review, reference lists of included trials, earlier reviews, and the American Academy of Ophthalmology guidelines. We also contacted experts to identify any unpublished and

PAC++: Object-oriented platform for accelerator codes

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Malitsky, N.; Reshetov, A.; Bourianoff, G.

1994-06-01

Software packages in accelerator physics have relatively long life cycles. They had been developed and used for a wide range of accelerators in the past as well as for the current projects. For example, the basic algorithms written in the first accelerator Program TRANSPORT are actual for design of most magnet systems. Most of these packages had been implemented on Fortran. But this language is rather inconvenient as a basic language for large integrated projects that possibly could include real-time data acquisition, data base access, graphic riser interface modules (GUI), arid other features. Some later accelerator programs had been based on object-oriented tools (primarily, C++ language). These range from systems for advanced theoretical studies to control system software. For the new generations of accelerators it would be desirable to have an integrated platform in which all simulation and control tasks will be considered with one point of view. In this report the basic principles of an object-oriented platform for accelerator research software (PAC++) are suggested and analyzed. Primary objectives of this work are to enable efficient self-explaining realization of the accelerator concepts and to provide an integrated environment for the updating and the developing of the code

Australasian emergency physicians: a learning and educational needs analysis. Part Four: CPD topics desired by emergency physicians.

Science.gov (United States)

Dent, Andrew W; Weiland, Tracey J; Paltridge, Debbie

2008-06-01

To report the preferences of Fellows of the Australasian College for Emergency Medicine for topics they would desire for their continuing professional development (CPD). A mailed survey of Fellows of the Australasian College for Emergency Medicine asked for Likert type responses on the desirability of CPD on 15 procedural skills, 13 management skills, 11 clinical emergency topics, 9 topics related to teaching, 7 related to diagnostics and 5 evidence based practice topics. CPD in procedural skills of advanced and surgical airways, ED ultrasound, ventilation, skills, plastic procedures and regional anaesthesia were nominated as desirable by 85% of emergency physicians (EP). More than 90% desired CPD in ophthalmological, otorhinolaryngeal, neonatal and paediatric emergencies. Of diagnostic skills, more than 80% considered CPD on computerized tomography, electrocardiography and plain X-ray interpretation as desirable, well as CPD about teaching in general, simulation and preparing candidates for fellowship exams. Of the 12 management skills, 11 were seen as desirable topics by more than 70%, with counter disaster planning, giving feedback and dealing with complaints the most popular. All evidence based practice related skills, including interpreting statistics and undertaking literature searches were seen as desirable topics by more than 80% of EP. This information may assist in the planning of future educational interventions for emergency physicians. EP seek CPD on management, educational and other non clinical skills, as well as topics relating directly to patient care.

A practice scaffolding interactive platform

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Bundsgaard, Jeppe

2009-01-01

A Practice Scaffolding Interactive Platform (PracSIP) is a social learning platform which supports students in collaborative project based learning by simulating a professional practice. A PracSIP puts the core tools of the simulated practice at the students' disposal, it organizes collaboration...

Alkemio: association of chemicals with biomedical topics by text and data mining.

Science.gov (United States)

Gijón-Correas, José A; Andrade-Navarro, Miguel A; Fontaine, Jean F

2014-07-01

The PubMed® database of biomedical citations allows the retrieval of scientific articles studying the function of chemicals in biology and medicine. Mining millions of available citations to search reported associations between chemicals and topics of interest would require substantial human time. We have implemented the Alkemio text mining web tool and SOAP web service to help in this task. The tool uses biomedical articles discussing chemicals (including drugs), predicts their relatedness to the query topic with a naïve Bayesian classifier and ranks all chemicals by P-values computed from random simulations. Benchmarks on seven human pathways showed good retrieval performance (areas under the receiver operating characteristic curves ranged from 73.6 to 94.5%). Comparison with existing tools to retrieve chemicals associated to eight diseases showed the higher precision and recall of Alkemio when considering the top 10 candidate chemicals. Alkemio is a high performing web tool ranking chemicals for any biomedical topics and it is free to non-commercial users. http://cbdm.mdc-berlin.de/∼medlineranker/cms/alkemio. © The Author(s) 2014. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of Nucleic Acids Research.

Development of a Modular Robotic Platform

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Claudiu Ioan Cirebea

2014-12-01

Full Text Available In this paper a modular robotic platform is presented, for students and researchers laboratory work based on the Matlab-Simulink and dSpace real time control platform. The goal of this combination is to stimulate and to experiment with real time hardware and software in courses where mobile robotics is adopted as a motivating platform to introduce mechatronics competencies. Its many possibilities for modifications and extensions make experiments very easy. We used, for example, an omnidirectional mobile robot configuration with three Swedish wheels, whose kinematic model was simulated using Simulink. For real-time control, of the robot, the developed model has been implemented using DSpace platform DS1103.

Topical Session on Materials Management

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

2002-01-01

At its second meeting, in Paris, 5-7 December 2001, the WPDD held two topical sessions on the D and D Safety Case and on the Management of Materials from D and D, respectively. This report documents the topical session on the management of materials. Presentations during the topical session covered key aspects of the management of materials and meant to provide an exchange of information and experience, including: Experience and lessons learnt from VLLW and non-radioactive material management in Spain and Germany with special attention to recycling (How specific solutions came about? Are there 'generic' examples for wider adoption?); Risk assessment of recycling and non-recycling: a CPD study; Waste acceptance issues within different national contexts (What constraints are there on the waste receiving body and what flexibility can the latter have? What constraints does this impose on D and D implementers? What about wastes are without current solution? What needs to be done? What about large items and 'difficult' waste in general?); Radiological characterisation of materials during decommissioning, particularly difficult situations - large volumes, large items,.. wastes, heterogeneous streams (What examples of established practice? What are the approaches or aspects that set the regulatory requirements? How can the flow rates be large but the answers acceptable? How much is needed to be known for later action, e. g., disposal, release, protection of worker, etc.); Radiological characterisation of buildings as they stand, in order to allow conventional demolition (What are strategies for optimisation of characterisation? How much needs to be known to take action later? e.g. for storage, disposal, release, cost estimation and ALARA? What needs to be done in advance and after decommissioning/dismantling?). At the end of each presentation time was allotted for discussion of the paper. Integral to the Topical Session was a facilitated plenary discussion on the topical

Topical steroid addiction in atopic dermatitis

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Fukaya M

2014-10-01

Full Text Available Mototsugu Fukaya,1 Kenji Sato,2 Mitsuko Sato,3 Hajime Kimata,4 Shigeki Fujisawa,5 Haruhiko Dozono,6 Jun Yoshizawa,7 Satoko Minaguchi8 1Tsurumai Kouen Clinic, Nagoya, 2Department of Dermatology, Hannan Chuo Hospital, Osaka, 3Sato Pediatric Clinic, Osaka, 4Kimata Hajime Clinic, Osaka, 5Fujisawa Dermatology Clinic, Tokyo, 6Dozono Medical House, Kagoshima, 7Yoshizawa Dermatology Clinic, Yokohama, 8Department of Dermatology, Kounosu Kyousei Hospital, Saitama, Japan Abstract: The American Academy of Dermatology published a new guideline regarding topical therapy in atopic dermatitis in May 2014. Although topical steroid addiction or red burning skin syndrome had been mentioned as possible side effects of topical steroids in a 2006 review article in the Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology, no statement was made regarding this illness in the new guidelines. This suggests that there are still controversies regarding this illness. Here, we describe the clinical features of topical steroid addiction or red burning skin syndrome, based on the treatment of many cases of the illness. Because there have been few articles in the medical literature regarding this illness, the description in this article will be of some benefit to better understand the illness and to spur discussion regarding topical steroid addiction or red burning skin syndrome. Keywords: topical steroid addiction, atopic dermatitis, red burning skin syndrome, rebound, corticosteroid, eczema

Platform economy in Denmark – precarious employment?

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Rasmussen, Stine; Madsen, Per Kongshøj

limited. Nevertheless the labour offered through the platforms has a precarious character for instance in terms of lower wages and poorer rights and protection compared to the labour at the traditional, offline labour market. One important issue here is also the confusion as to whether the worker......This paper takes a labour market perspective on the emerging concept of the 'sharing economy' or 'platform economy', which we use as a more appropriate term for the phenomenon. Platform economy is in the article understood as those business models that have emerged since the millennium, where...... digital platforms serve as the link between persons wanting to make use of certain activities, services etc. and those owning them and we only have an interest in the work-related platforms. That means platforms, where paid work is offered and demanded. International examples of this new phenomenon...

The Models of Market Economy on the Modern Technological Platforms

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Sokolovska Zoia M.

2017-11-01

Full Text Available The article is aimed at analyzing the status of software provision of simulation modeling of economic systems and disclosing the possibilities of application of the integrated software-technological platforms in the building of market models. Problems in the field of applied introduction of the method of simulation modeling have been defined; the status of the software-technological provision of the simulation modeling of economic systems has been analyzed. It has been suggested to use the integrated system of multi-approach simulation modeling AnyLogic as one of the most powerful modern software platforms. The variant of the model of competitive multi-product market adapted to the specifics of pharmaceutical industry enterprises has been considered. The work of the model can be illustrated by results of the situational simulation experiments on the example of the pharmaceutical company «Farmak». The possibilities of parametric adjustment of imitation experiments together with the spectrum of their application in practical activity of pharmaceutical enterprises have been demonstrated.

Considering resistance in systematic reviews of antibiotic treatment.

Science.gov (United States)

Leibovici, Leonard; Soares-Weiser, Karla; Paul, Mical; Goldberg, Elad; Herxheimer, Andrew; Garner, Paul

2003-10-01

Microorganisms resistant to antibiotic drugs are a threat to the health and chances of survival of patients. Systematic reviews on antibiotic drugs that ignore the topic of resistance present readers with a skewed view, emphasizing short-term efficacy or effectiveness while ignoring long-term consequences. To examine whether systematic reviews of antibiotic treatment consider resistance; if not, to find out whether data on resistance were reported in the original trials; and based on that, to offer a framework for taking resistance into account in systematic reviews. The Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews (the Cochrane Library, 2001, issue 2); and MEDLINE, 1996-2000. (i) Systematic reviews or meta-analyses of antimicrobial therapy, published during 1996-2000. (ii) Randomized, controlled trials abstracted in systematic reviews that addressed a topic highly relevant to antibiotic resistance. We examined each systematic review, and each article, to see whether the implications of resistance were discussed; and whether data on resistance were collected. Out of 111 systematic reviews, only 44 (40%) discussed resistance. Ten reviews (9%) planned or performed collection of data on the response of patients with susceptible or resistant isolates. In 22 systematic reviews (20%), collection of data on induction of resistance was planned or performed. The topic of 41 reviews was judged highly relevant to resistance, and these reviews extracted data from 337 articles, out of which we retrieved 279 articles (83%). In 201 (72%) articles, resistance was discussed or data pertaining to it were collected. Ninety-seven articles (35%) gave actual data on resistance of pathogens to the study drugs, 71 articles (25%) data on efficacy of antibiotic drugs in patients with susceptible and resistant pathogens, and 55 articles (20%) provided data on infection or colonization with resistant strains during treatment. Most systematic reviews on antibiotic treatment ignored the issue of

Software Development Process Improvement in Datacom Platform

OpenAIRE

Trabelsi, Walid

2008-01-01

Masteroppgave i Informasjons- og Kommunikasjonsteknologi 2008, Universitetet i Agder, Grimstad Ericsson Mobile Platform (EMP) is responsible of the development of a software platform and also to some extend responsible for related hardware parts. EMP is developing the data communication parts of the platform which is used by EMP customers. The platform development is done in large development programs and each program span over a quite a long time period. However, as we see eve...

Experimental characterization and analysis of the BITalino platforms against a reference device.

Science.gov (United States)

Batista, Diana; Silva, Hugo; Fred, Ana

2017-07-01

Low-cost hardware platforms for biomedical engineering are becoming increasingly available, which empower the research community in the development of new projects in a wide range of areas related with physiological data acquisition. Building upon previous work by our group, this work compares the quality of the data acquired by means of two different versions of the multimodal physiological computing platform BITalino, with a device that can be considered a reference. We acquired data from 5 sensors, namely Accelerometry (ACC), Electrocardiography (ECG), Electroencephalography (EEG), Electrodermal Activity (EDA) and Electromyography (EMG). Experimental evaluation shows that ACC, ECG and EDA data are highly correlated with the reference in what concerns the raw waveforms. When compared by means of their commonly used features, EEG and EMG data are also quite similar across the different devices.

Eye Wear: MedlinePlus Health Topic

Science.gov (United States)

... When You Exercise (National Institute on Aging) - PDF Topic Image MedlinePlus Email Updates Get Eye Wear updates by email What's this? GO Related Health Topics Refractive Errors National Institutes of Health The primary ...

Wireless sensor platform

Science.gov (United States)

Joshi, Pooran C.; Killough, Stephen M.; Kuruganti, Phani Teja

2017-08-08

A wireless sensor platform and methods of manufacture are provided. The platform involves providing a plurality of wireless sensors, where each of the sensors is fabricated on flexible substrates using printing techniques and low temperature curing. Each of the sensors can include planar sensor elements and planar antennas defined using the printing and curing. Further, each of the sensors can include a communications system configured to encode the data from the sensors into a spread spectrum code sequence that is transmitted to a central computer(s) for use in monitoring an area associated with the sensors.

Windows Azure Platform

CERN Document Server

Redkar, Tejaswi

2010-01-01

The Azure Services Platform is a brand-new cloud-computing technology from Microsoft. It is composed of four core components-Windows Azure, .NET Services, SQL Services, and Live Services-each with a unique role in the functioning of your cloud service. It is the goal of this book to show you how to use these components, both separately and together, to build flawless cloud services. At its heart Windows Azure Platform is a down-to-earth, code-centric book. This book aims to show you precisely how the components are employed and to demonstrate the techniques and best practices you need to know

21 CFR 524.1193 - Ivermectin topical solution.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-04-01

... 21 Food and Drugs 6 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Ivermectin topical solution. 524.1193 Section 524...) ANIMAL DRUGS, FEEDS, AND RELATED PRODUCTS OPHTHALMIC AND TOPICAL DOSAGE FORM NEW ANIMAL DRUGS § 524.1193 Ivermectin topical solution. (a) Specifications. Each milliliter (mL) of solution contains 5 milligrams of...

Demand Heterogeneity and the Adoption of Platform Complements

NARCIS (Netherlands)

G.J. Rietveld (Joost); J.P. Eggers

2016-01-01

textabstractThis paper offers a demand-based theory of how platform maturity affects the adoption of platform complements. We argue that differences between early and late adopters of the platform include willingness to pay for the platform-and-complement bundle, risk preferences, preference for

Integrated method to optimize well connection and platform placement on a multi-reservoir scenario

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Sousa, Sergio Henrique Guerra de; Madeira, Marcelo Gomes; Franca, Martha Salles [Halliburton, Rio de Janeiro, RJ (Brazil); Mota, Rosane Oliveira; Silva, Edilon Ribeiro da; King, Vanessa Pereira Spear [Petroleo Brasileiro S.A. (PETROBRAS), Rio de Janeiro, RJ (Brazil)

2012-07-01

This paper describes a workflow created to optimize the platform placement and well-platform connections on a multi reservoir scenario using an integrated reservoir simulator paired with an optimization engine. The proposed methodology describes how a new platform, being incorporated into a pre-existing asset, can be better used to develop newly-discovered fields, while helping increase the production of existing fields by sharing their production load. The sharing of production facilities is highly important in Brazilian offshore assets because of their high price (a few billion dollars per facility) and the fact that total production is usually limited to the installed capacity of liquid processing, which is an important constraint on high water-cut well production rates typical to this region. The case study asset used to present the workflow consists of two deep water oil fields, each one developed by its own production platform, and a newly-discovered field with strong aquifer support that will be entirely developed with a new production platform. Because this new field should not include injector wells owing to the strong aquifer presence, the idea is to consider reconnecting existing wells from the two pre-existing fields to better use the production resources. In this scenario, the platform location is an important optimization issue, as a balance between supporting the production of the planned wells on the new field and the production of re-routed wells from the existing fields must be reached to achieve improved overall asset production. If the new platform is too far away from any interconnected production well, pressure-drop issues along the pipeline might actually decrease production from the existing fields rather than augment it. The main contribution of this work is giving the reader insights on how to model and optimize these complex decisions to generate high-quality scenarios. (author)

MASHUP SCHEME DESIGN OF MAP TILES USING LIGHTWEIGHT OPEN SOURCE WEBGIS PLATFORM

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

T. Hu

2018-04-01

Full Text Available To address the difficulty involved when using existing commercial Geographic Information System platforms to integrate multi-source image data fusion, this research proposes the loading of multi-source local tile data based on CesiumJS and examines the tile data organization mechanisms and spatial reference differences of the CesiumJS platform, as well as various tile data sources, such as Google maps, Map World, and Bing maps. Two types of tile data loading schemes have been designed for the mashup of tiles, the single data source loading scheme and the multi-data source loading scheme. The multi-sources of digital map tiles used in this paper cover two different but mainstream spatial references, the WGS84 coordinate system and the Web Mercator coordinate system. According to the experimental results, the single data source loading scheme and the multi-data source loading scheme with the same spatial coordinate system showed favorable visualization effects; however, the multi-data source loading scheme was prone to lead to tile image deformation when loading multi-source tile data with different spatial references. The resulting method provides a low cost and highly flexible solution for small and medium-scale GIS programs and has a certain potential for practical application values. The problem of deformation during the transition of different spatial references is an important topic for further research.

Not normally manned compression platforms for the North Sea

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kumaran, K.S.

1994-01-01

Gas turbine driven gas compressors have been widely used on manned offshore facilities. Similarly unmanned gas turbine driven compressor stations have been in operation onshore with major gas transmission companies in Europe, North America and elsewhere. This paper summarizes a recent joint industry study to investigate the technical and economic feasibility of Not Normally Manned (NNM) Offshore Compression Facilities in terms of reliability, availability and maintainability. Classification of not normally manned (or unmanned) offshore facilities in the UK North Sea is in accordance with HSE Operations Notice 8. ON8 specifies criteria for offshore visits, visit hours and number of personnel on board for the operation of NNM platforms. This paper describes a typical Southern North Sea gas platform being considered for NNM compressor application. The conclusions from the study was that NNM compression is technically feasible with the facilities being able to provide an availability in excess of 98%. Life cycle costs were of the order of 70% of manned facilities thus significantly improving field development economics

Eosinophilic Esophagitis: MedlinePlus Health Topic

Science.gov (United States)

... Esophagitis (EoE) (American Academy of Allergy, Asthma, and Immunology) Also in Spanish Latest News Eosinophilic Esophagitis May ... Pediatric and Adolescent Patients (American College of Gastroenterology) Topic Image Related Health Topics Eosinophilic Disorders Esophagus Disorders ...

Female Infertility: MedlinePlus Health Topic

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... Prolactin blood test (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish Topic Image MedlinePlus Email Updates Get Female Infertility updates ... Serum progesterone Show More Show Less Related Health Topics Assisted Reproductive Technology Infertility Male Infertility National Institutes ...

Mobility Aids: MedlinePlus Health Topic

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... Mobility Problems (AGS Foundation for Health in Aging) Topic Image MedlinePlus Email Updates Get Mobility Aids updates ... standing and walking Using a cane Related Health Topics Assistive Devices Other Languages Find health information in ...

Genetic Testing: MedlinePlus Health Topic

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... Your Family's Health (National Institutes of Health) - PDF Topic Image MedlinePlus Email Updates Get Genetic Testing updates ... testing and your cancer risk Karyotyping Related Health Topics Birth Defects Genetic Counseling Genetic Disorders Newborn Screening ...

Folic Acid: MedlinePlus Health Topic

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... acid in diet (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish Topic Image MedlinePlus Email Updates Get Folic Acid updates ... acid - test Folic acid in diet Related Health Topics Vitamins National Institutes of Health The primary NIH ...

Pneumococcal Infections: MedlinePlus Health Topic

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... Prevention, Immunization Action Coalition) - PDF Also in Spanish Topic Image MedlinePlus Email Updates Get Pneumococcal Infections updates ... ray Meningitis - pneumococcal Sputum gram stain Related Health Topics Meningitis Pneumonia Sepsis Sinusitis Streptococcal Infections National Institutes ...

Wilms' Tumor: MedlinePlus Health Topic

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... Spanish Wilms tumor (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish Topic Image MedlinePlus Email Updates Get Wilms Tumor updates ... ENCYCLOPEDIA After chemotherapy - discharge Wilms tumor Related Health Topics Kidney Cancer National Institutes of Health The primary ...

Child Safety: MedlinePlus Health Topic

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... injuries in children (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish Topic Image MedlinePlus Email Updates Get Child Safety updates ... safety Preventing head injuries in children Related Health Topics Infant and Newborn Care Internet Safety Motor Vehicle ...

Pneumocystis Infections: MedlinePlus Health Topic

Science.gov (United States)

... Pneumocystis jiroveci pneumonia (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish Topic Image MedlinePlus Email Updates Get Pneumocystis Infections updates ... GO MEDICAL ENCYCLOPEDIA Pneumocystis jiroveci pneumonia Related Health Topics HIV/AIDS HIV/AIDS and Infections Pneumonia National ...

Collapsed Lung: MedlinePlus Health Topic

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... Spanish Pneumothorax - infants (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish Topic Image MedlinePlus Email Updates Get Collapsed Lung updates ... Lung surgery Pneumothorax - slideshow Pneumothorax - infants Related Health Topics Chest Injuries and Disorders Lung Diseases Pleural Disorders ...

Male Infertility: MedlinePlus Health Topic

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... Spanish Testicular biopsy (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish Topic Image MedlinePlus Email Updates Get Male Infertility updates ... analysis Sperm release pathway Testicular biopsy Related Health Topics Assisted Reproductive Technology Female Infertility Infertility National Institutes ...

Healthy Aging: MedlinePlus Health Topic

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... Aging National Institute on Aging Also in Spanish Topic Image MedlinePlus Email Updates Get Healthy Aging updates ... 65 Health screening - women - over 65 Related Health Topics Exercise for Seniors Nutrition for Seniors Seniors' Health ...

Psoriatic Arthritis: MedlinePlus Health Topic

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Hip Replacement: MedlinePlus Health Topic

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Platelet Disorders: MedlinePlus Health Topic

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... Thromobocytopenia - drug-induced (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish Topic Image MedlinePlus Email Updates Get Platelet Disorders updates ... Willebrand disease Show More Show Less Related Health Topics Bleeding Disorders Blood Clots Blood Count Tests Blood ...

Cardiac Rehabilitation: MedlinePlus Health Topic

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... in Spanish Electrocardiogram (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish Topic Image MedlinePlus Email Updates Get Cardiac Rehabilitation updates ... How to take your pulse Pulse Related Health Topics Heart Attack Heart Diseases How to Prevent Heart ...

Cardiac Arrest: MedlinePlus Health Topic

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Kawasaki Disease: MedlinePlus Health Topic

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Diabetic Diet: MedlinePlus Health Topic

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... Sweeteners - sugar substitutes (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish Topic Image MedlinePlus Email Updates Get Diabetic Diet updates ... you have diabetes Sweeteners - sugar substitutes Related Health Topics Blood Sugar Diabetes Diabetes in Children and Teens ...

Infection Control: MedlinePlus Health Topic

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... Staph infections - hospital (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish Topic Image MedlinePlus Email Updates Get Infection Control updates ... infections when visiting Staph infections - hospital Related Health Topics Hepatitis HIV/AIDS MRSA National Institutes of Health ...

Hearing Aids: MedlinePlus Health Topic

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... for hearing loss (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish Topic Image MedlinePlus Email Updates Get Hearing Aids updates ... MEDICAL ENCYCLOPEDIA Devices for hearing loss Related Health Topics Cochlear Implants Hearing Disorders and Deafness National Institutes ...

Kidney Tests: MedlinePlus Health Topic

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Ischemic Stroke: MedlinePlus Health Topic

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Pulmonary Rehabilitation: MedlinePlus Health Topic

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KEY TOPICS IN SPORTS MEDICINE

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Amir Ali Narvani

2006-12-01

Full Text Available Key Topics in Sports Medicine is a single quick reference source for sports and exercise medicine. It presents the essential information from across relevant topic areas, and includes both the core and emerging issues in this rapidly developing field. It covers: 1 Sports injuries, rehabilitation and injury prevention, 2 Exercise physiology, fitness testing and training, 3 Drugs in sport, 4 Exercise and health promotion, 5 Sport and exercise for special and clinical populations, 6 The psychology of performance and injury. PURPOSE The Key Topics format provides extensive, concise information in an accessible, easy-to-follow manner. AUDIENCE The book is targeted the students and specialists in sports medicine and rehabilitation, athletic training, physiotherapy and orthopaedic surgery. The editors are authorities in their respective fields and this handbook depends on their extensive experience and knowledge accumulated over the years. FEATURES The book contains the information for clinical guidance, rapid access to concise details and facts. It is composed of 99 topics which present the information in an order that is considered logical and progressive as in most texts. Chapter headings are: 1. Functional Anatomy, 2. Training Principles / Development of Strength and Power, 3. Biomechanical Principles, 4. Biomechanical Analysis, 5. Physiology of Training, 6. Monitoring of Training Progress, 7. Nutrition, 8. Hot and Cold Climates, 9. Altitude, 10. Sport and Travelling, 11. Principles of Sport Injury Diagnosis, 12. Principles of Sport and Soft Tissue Management, 13. Principles of Physical Therapy and Rehabilitation, 14. Principles of Sport Injury Prevention, 15. Sports Psychology, 16. Team Sports, 17. Psychological Aspects of Injury in Sport, 18. Injury Repair Process, 19. Basic Biomechanics of Tissue Injury, 20. Plain Film Radiography in Sport, 21. Nuclear Medicine, 22. Diagnostic Ultrasound, 23. MRI Scan, 24. Other Imaging, 5. Head Injury, 26. Eye

Enabling IoT ecosystems through platform interoperability

OpenAIRE

Bröring, Arne; Schmid, Stefan; Schindhelm, Corina-Kim; Khelil, Abdelmajid; Kabisch, Sebastian; Kramer, Denis; Le Phuoc, Danh; Mitic, Jelena; Anicic, Darko; Teniente López, Ernest

2017-01-01

Today, the Internet of Things (IoT) comprises vertically oriented platforms for things. Developers who want to use them need to negotiate access individually and adapt to the platform-specific API and information models. Having to perform these actions for each platform often outweighs the possible gains from adapting applications to multiple platforms. This fragmentation of the IoT and the missing interoperability result in high entry barriers for developers and prevent the emergence of broa...

Preservice Teachers' Perspectives on 'Appropriate' K-8 Climate Change and Environmental Science Topics

Science.gov (United States)

Ford, D. J.

2013-12-01

With the release of the Next Generation Science Standards (NRC, 2013), climate change and related environmental sciences will now receive greater emphasis within science curricula at all grade levels. In grades K-8, preparation in foundational content (e.g., weather and climate, natural resources, and human impacts on the environment) and the nature of scientific inquiry will set the groundwork for later learning of climate change in upper middle and high school. These rigorous standards increase pressure on elementary and middle school teachers to possess strong science content knowledge, as well as experience supporting children to develop scientific ideas through the practices of science. It also requires a set of beliefs - about children and the science that is appropriate for them - that is compatible with the goals set out in the standards. Elementary teachers in particular, who often have minimal preparation in the earth sciences (NSF, 2007), and entrenched beliefs about how particular topics ought to be taught (Holt- Reynolds, 1992; Pajares, 1992), including climate change (Bryce & Day, 2013; Lambert & Bleicher, 2013), may face unique challenges in adjusting to the new standards. If teachers hold beliefs about climate change as controversial, for example, they may not consider it an appropriate topic for children, despite its inclusion in the standards. On the other hand, those who see a role for children in efforts to mitigate human impacts on the environment may be more enthusiastic about the new standards. We report on a survey of preservice K-8 teachers' beliefs about the earth and environmental science topics that they consider to be appropriate and inappropriate for children in grades K-3, 4-5, and 6-8. Participants were surveyed on a variety of standards-based topics using terminology that signals publicly and scientifically neutral (e.g. weather, ecosystems) to overtly controversial (evolution, global warming) science. Results from pilot data

Evaluation of secure capability-based access control in the M2M local cloud platform

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Anggorojati, Bayu; Prasad, Neeli R.; Prasad, Ramjee

2016-01-01

delegation. Recently, the capability based access control has been considered as method to manage access in the Internet of Things (IoT) or M2M domain. In this paper, the implementation and evaluation of a proposed secure capability based access control in the M2M local cloud platform is presented......Managing access to and protecting resources is one of the important aspect in managing security, especially in a distributed computing system such as Machine-to-Machine (M2M). One such platform known as the M2M local cloud platform, referring to BETaaS architecture [1], which conceptually consists...... of multiple distributed M2M gateways, creating new challenges in the access control. Some existing access control systems lack in scalability and flexibility to manage access from users or entity that belong to different authorization domains, or fails to provide fine grained and flexible access right...

Demand forecasting and information platform in tourism

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Li Yue

2017-05-01

Full Text Available Information asymmetry and the bullwhip effect have been serious problems in the tourism supply chain. Based on platform theory, this paper established a mathematical model to explore the inner mechanism of a platform’s influence on stakeholders’ ability to forecast demand in tourism. Results showed that the variance of stakeholders’ demand predictions with a platform was smaller than the variance without a platform, which meant that a platform would improve predictions of demand for stakeholders. The higher information-processing ability of the platform also had other effects on demand forecasting. Research on the inner logic of the platform’s influence on stakeholders has important theoretical and realistic value. This area is worthy of further study.

Topical tar: Back to the future

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Paghdal, K.V.; Schwartz, R.A. [University of Medicine & Dentistry of New Jersey, Newark, NJ (United States)

2009-08-15

The use of medicinal tar for dermatologic disorders dates back to the ancient times. Although coal tar is utilized more frequently in modern dermatology, wood tars have also been widely employed. Tar is used mainly in the treatment of chronic stable plaque psoriasis, scalp psoriasis, atopic dermatitis, and seborrheic dermatitis, either alone or in combination therapy with other medications, phototherapy, or both. Many modifications have been made to tar preparations to increase their acceptability, as some dislike its odor, messy application, and staining of clothing. One should consider a tried and true treatment with tar that has led to clearing of lesions and prolonged remission times. Occupational studies have demonstrated the carcinogenicity of tar; however, epidemiologic studies do not confirm similar outcomes when used topically. This article will review the pharmacology, formulations, efficacy, and adverse effects of crude coal tar and other tars in the treatment of selected dermatologic conditions.

Antibiotic Resistance: MedlinePlus Health Topic

Science.gov (United States)

... GO GO About MedlinePlus Site Map FAQs Customer Support Health Topics Drugs & Supplements Videos & Tools Español You Are Here: Home → Health Topics → Antibiotic Resistance URL of this page: https://medlineplus.gov/antibioticresistance. ...

Comparative efficacy and patient preference of topical anaesthetics in dermatological laser treatments and skin microneedling

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Yi Zhen Chiang

2015-01-01

Full Text Available Background: Topical anaesthetics are effective for patients undergoing superficial dermatological and laser procedures. Our objective was to compare the efficacy and patient preference of three commonly used topical anaesthetics: (2.5% lidocaine/2.5% prilocaine cream (EMLA ® , 4% tetracaine gel (Ametop TM and 4% liposomal lidocaine gel (LMX4 ® in patients undergoing laser procedures and skin microneedling. Settings and Design: This was a prospective, double-blind study of patients undergoing laser and skin microneedling procedures at a laser unit in a tertiary referral dermatology centre. Materials and Methods: All 29 patients had three topical anaesthetics applied under occlusion for 1 hour prior to the procedure, at different treatment sites within the same anatomical zone. A self-assessment numerical pain rating scale was given to each patient to rate the pain during the procedure and each patient was asked to specify their preferred choice of topical anaesthetic at the end of the procedure. Statistical Analysis: Parametric data (mean pain scores and frequency of topical anaesthetic agent of choice were compared using the paired samples t-test. A P-value of ≤0.05 was considered as statistically significant. Results and Conclusions: Patients reported a mean (±SD; 95% confidence interval pain score of 5 (±2.58; 3.66-6.46 with Ametop TM , 4.38 (±2.53; 2.64-4.89 with EMLA ® and 3.91 (±1.95; 2.65-4.76 with LMX4 ® . There was no statistically significant difference in pain scores between the different topical anaesthetics. The majority of patients preferred LMX4 ® as their choice of topical anaesthetic for dermatological laser and skin microneedling procedures.

The VISPA Internet Platform for Students

Science.gov (United States)

Asseldonk, D. v.; Erdmann, M.; Fischer, R.; Glaser, C.; Müller, G.; Quast, T.; Rieger, M.; Urban, M.

2016-04-01

The VISPA internet platform enables users to remotely run Python scripts and view resulting plots or inspect their output data. With a standard web browser as the only user requirement on the client-side, the system becomes suitable for blended learning approaches for university physics students. VISPA was used in two consecutive years each by approx. 100 third year physics students at the RWTH Aachen University for their homework assignments. For example, in one exercise students gained a deeper understanding of Einsteins mass-energy relation by analyzing experimental data of electron-positron pairs revealing J / Ψ and Z particles. Because the students were free to choose their working hours, only few users accessed the platform simultaneously. The positive feedback from students and the stability of the platform lead to further development of the concept. This year, students accessed the platform in parallel while they analyzed the data recorded by demonstrated experiments live in the lecture hall. The platform is based on experience in the development of professional analysis tools. It combines core technologies from previous projects: an object-oriented C++ library, a modular data-driven analysis flow, and visual analysis steering. We present the platform and discuss its benefits in the context of teaching based on surveys that are conducted each semester.

A Web Search on Environmental Topics: What Is the Role of Ranking?

Science.gov (United States)

Filisetti, Barbara; Mascaretti, Silvia; Limina, Rosa Maria; Gelatti, Umberto

2013-01-01

Abstract Background: Although the Internet is easy to use, the mechanisms and logic behind a Web search are often unknown. Reliable information can be obtained, but it may not be visible as the Web site is not located in the first positions of search results. The possible risks of adverse health effects arising from environmental hazards are issues of increasing public interest, and therefore the information about these risks, particularly on topics for which there is no scientific evidence, is very crucial. The aim of this study was to investigate whether the presentation of information on some environmental health topics differed among various search engines, assuming that the most reliable information should come from institutional Web sites. Materials and Methods: Five search engines were used: Google, Yahoo!, Bing, Ask, and AOL. The following topics were searched in combination with the word “health”: “nuclear energy,” “electromagnetic waves,” “air pollution,” “waste,” and “radon.” For each topic three key words were used. The first 30 search results for each query were considered. The ranking variability among the search engines and the type of search results were analyzed for each topic and for each key word. The ranking of institutional Web sites was given particular consideration. Results: Variable results were obtained when surfing the Internet on different environmental health topics. Multivariate logistic regression analysis showed that, when searching for radon and air pollution topics, it is more likely to find institutional Web sites in the first 10 positions compared with nuclear power (odds ratio=3.4, 95% confidence interval 2.1–5.4 and odds ratio=2.9, 95% confidence interval 1.8–4.7, respectively) and also when using Google compared with Bing (odds ratio=3.1, 95% confidence interval 1.9–5.1). Conclusions: The increasing use of online information could play an important role in forming opinions. Web users should become

Towards a Market Entry Framework for Digital Payment Platforms

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Kazan, Erol; Damsgaard, Jan

2016-01-01

This study presents a framework to understand and explain the design and configuration of digital payment platforms and how these platforms create conditions for market entries. By embracing the theoretical lens of platform envelopment, we employed a multiple and comparative-case study...... in a European setting by using our framework as an analytical lens to assess market-entry conditions. We found that digital payment platforms have acquired market entry capabilities, which is achieved through strategic platform design (i.e., platform development and service distribution) and technology design...... (i.e., issuing evolutionary and revolutionary payment instruments). The studied cases reveal that digital platforms leverage payment services as a mean to bridge and converge core and adjacent platform markets. In so doing, platform envelopment strengthens firms’ market position in their respective...

Proceedings of the FSC Topical Session on Experience with Electronic, Web and Internet Platforms for Communicating on Radioactive Waste Management

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

2006-01-01

The Forum on Stakeholder Confidence (FSC) was created to facilitate the sharing of international experience in addressing the societal dimension of radioactive waste management. Particularly it explores means of ensuring an effective dialogue with the public. This forum deals with the use of the web and internet platforms as ways of informing stakeholders and the public on radioactive waste management, and improving their knowledge in this area. The responses of various FSC members to a questionnaire dedicated to the use of electronic communication are synthesised and commented. Moreover various organisations like the Scottish Executive, Andra (National Agency for the Management of Radioactive Wastes, France), NDA (Nuclear Decommissioning Authority, United Kingdom), and NucNet (a news agency on nuclear issues, Switzerland) have shared their own experience on electronic communication

Launching platforms for user-generated content

OpenAIRE

Batista, Guilherme Luís Caroço

2015-01-01

Field lab: Entrepreneurial and innovative ventures This paper intends to discuss and absorb the Best Practices employed by successful User- Generated Content (UGC)1 platforms and constitute a guide on how to launch a platform without having a cyclical lack of content and users. Research shows that companies have resorted to integration with mature UGC platforms, and providing content by themselves, in an initial state. I conclude that integration possibilities should be explore...

Integrated Spintronic Platforms for Biomolecular Recognition Detection

Science.gov (United States)

Martins, V. C.; Cardoso, F. A.; Loureiro, J.; Mercier, M.; Germano, J.; Cardoso, S.; Ferreira, R.; Fonseca, L. P.; Sousa, L.; Piedade, M. S.; Freitas, P. P.

2008-06-01

This paper covers recent developments in magnetoresistive based biochip platforms fabricated at INESC-MN, and their application to the detection and quantification of pathogenic waterborn microorganisms in water samples for human consumption. Such platforms are intended to give response to the increasing concern related to microbial contaminated water sources. The presented results concern the development of biological active DNA chips and protein chips and the demonstration of the detection capability of the present platforms. Two platforms are described, one including spintronic sensors only (spin-valve based or magnetic tunnel junction based), and the other, a fully scalable platform where each probe site consists of a MTJ in series with a thin film diode (TFD). Two microfluidic systems are described, for cell separation and concentration, and finally, the read out and control integrated electronics are described, allowing the realization of bioassays with a portable point of care unit. The present platforms already allow the detection of complementary biomolecular target recognition with 1 pM concentration.

A Social Environmental Sensor Network Integrated within a Web GIS Platform

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Yorghos Voutos

2017-11-01

Full Text Available We live in an era where typical measures towards the mitigation of environmental degradation follow the identification and recording of natural parameters closely associated with it. In addition, current scientific knowledge on the one hand may be applied to minimize the environmental impact of anthropogenic activities, whereas informatics on the other, playing a key role in this ecosystem, do offer new ways of implementing complex scientific processes regarding the collection, aggregation and analysis of data concerning environmental parameters. Furthermore, another related aspect to consider is the fact that almost all relevant data recordings are influenced by their given spatial characteristics. Taking all aforementioned inputs into account, managing such a great amount of complex and remote data requires specific digital structures; these structures are typically deployed over the Web on an attempt to capitalize existing open software platforms and modern developments of hardware technology. In this paper we present an effort to provide a technical solution based on sensing devices that are based on the well-known Arduino platform and operate continuously for gathering and transmitting of environmental state information. Controls, user interface and extensions of the proposed project rely on the Android mobile device platform (both from the software and hardware side. Finally, a crucial novel aspect of our work is the fact that all herein gathered data carry spatial information, which is rather fundamental for the successful correlation between pollutants and their place of origin. The latter is implemented by an interactive Web GIS platform operating oversight in situ and on a timeline basis.

Securing a Home Energy Managing Platform

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Mikkelsen, Søren Aagaard; Jacobsen, Rune Hylsberg

2016-01-01

Energy management in households gets increasingly more attention in the struggle to integrate more sustainable energy sources. Especially in the electrical system, smart grid towards a better utilisation of the energy production and distribution infrastructure. The Home Energy Management System...... (HEMS) is a critical infrastructure component in this endeavour. Its main goal is to enable energy services utilising smart devices in the households based on the interest of the residential consumers and external actors. With the role of being both an essential link in the communication infrastructure...... for balancing the electrical grid and a surveillance unit in private homes, security and privacy become essential to address. In this chapter, we identify and address potential threats Home Energy Management Platform (HEMP) developers should consider in the progress of designing architecture, selecting hardware...

Microneedle Platforms for Cell Analysis

KAUST Repository

Kavaldzhiev, Mincho

2017-11-01

Micro-needle platforms are the core components of many recent drug delivery and gene-editing techniques, which allow for intracellular access, controlled cell membrane stress or mechanical trapping of the nucleus. This dissertation work is devoted to the development of micro-needle platforms that offer customized fabrication and new capabilities for enhanced cell analyses. The highest degree of geometrical flexibility is achieved with 3D printed micro-needles, which enable optimizing the topographical stress environment for cells and cell populations of any size. A fabrication process for 3D-printed micro-needles has been developed as well as a metal coating technique based on standard sputter deposition. This extends the functionalities of the platforms by electrical as well as magnetic features. The micro-needles have been tested on human colon cancer cells (HCT116), showing a high degree of biocompatibility of the platform. Moreover, the capabilities of the 3D-printed micro-needles have been explored for drug delivery via the well-established electroporation technique, by coating the micro-needles with gold. Antibodies and fluorescent dyes have been delivered to HCT116 cells and human embryonic kidney cells with a very high transfection rate up to 90%. In addition, the 3D-printed electroporation platform enables delivery of molecules to suspended cells or adherent cells, with or without electroporation buffer solution, and at ultra-low voltages of 2V. In order to provide a micro-needle platform that exploits existing methods for mass fabrication a custom designed template-based process has been developed. It has been used for the production of gold, iron, nickel and poly-pyrrole micro-needles on silicon and glass substrates. A novel delivery method is introduced that activates the micro-needles by electromagnetic induction, which enables to wirelessly gain intracellular access. The method has been successfully tested on HCT116 cells in culture, where a time

Epidemic spread in bipartite network by considering risk awareness

Science.gov (United States)

Han, She; Sun, Mei; Ampimah, Benjamin Chris; Han, Dun

2018-02-01

Human awareness plays an important role in the spread of infectious diseases and the control of propagation patterns. Exploring the interplay between human awareness and epidemic spreading is a topic that has been receiving increasing attention. Considering the fact, some well-known diseases only spread between different species we propose a theoretical analysis of the Susceptible-Infected-Susceptible (SIS) epidemic spread from the perspective of bipartite network and risk aversion. Using mean field theory, the epidemic threshold is calculated theoretically. Simulation results are consistent with the proposed analytic model. The results show that, the final infection density is negative linear with the value of individuals' risk awareness. Therefore, the epidemic spread could be effectively suppressed by improving individuals' risk awareness.

Disentangling Competition Among Platform Driven Strategic Groups

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Kazan, Erol; Tan, Chee-Wee; Lim, Eric T. K.

2018-01-01

for the mobile payment market in the United Kingdom as our empirical setting. By conceptualizing digital platforms as layered modular architectures and embracing the theoretical lens of strategic groups, this study supplements prior research by deriving a taxonomy of platform profiles that is grounded...... delivery architecture. The preceding attributes of value creation architecture and value delivery architecture aided us in identifying six profiles associated with mobile payment platforms, which in turn led us to advance three competitive strategies that could be pursued by digital platforms in network...

Mapping the Infoscape of LIS Courses for Intersections of Health-Gender and Health-Sexual Orientation Topics

Science.gov (United States)

Mehra, Bharat; Tidwell, William Travis

2014-01-01

The article explores the information landscape (i.e., infoscape) of library and information science (LIS) courses for intersections of health-gender and health-sexual orientation topics, concerns, and issues. This research was considered important because health information support services essential in today's society must include marginalized…

Large-Scale Topic Detection and Language Model Adaptation

National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

Seymore, Kristie

1997-01-01

.... We have developed a language model adaptation scheme that takes apiece of text, chooses the most similar topic clusters from a set of over 5000 elemental topics, and uses topic specific language...

Platform computing

CERN Multimedia

2002-01-01

"Platform Computing releases first grid-enabled workload management solution for IBM eServer Intel and UNIX high performance computing clusters. This Out-of-the-box solution maximizes the performance and capability of applications on IBM HPC clusters" (1/2 page) .

Quantum mechanics II advanced topics

CERN Document Server

Rajasekar, S

2015-01-01

Quantum Mechanics II: Advanced Topics uses more than a decade of research and the authors’ own teaching experience to expound on some of the more advanced topics and current research in quantum mechanics. A follow-up to the authors introductory book Quantum Mechanics I: The Fundamentals, this book begins with a chapter on quantum field theory, and goes on to present basic principles, key features, and applications. It outlines recent quantum technologies and phenomena, and introduces growing topics of interest in quantum mechanics. The authors describe promising applications that include ghost imaging, detection of weak amplitude objects, entangled two-photon microscopy, detection of small displacements, lithography, metrology, and teleportation of optical images. They also present worked-out examples and provide numerous problems at the end of each chapter.

Topical application of hemostatic paste

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mohammad Mizanur Rahman

2017-02-01

Full Text Available As a measure to control minor surgical bleeding, surgeons usually depend on a number of hemostatic aids. Topical use of bovine thrombin is a widely used procedure to arrest such minor bleeding. A 35 year old male sergeant of Bangladesh Air Force presented with repeated development of hematoma in his left thigh without any history of trauma or previous history of bleeding. Critical analysis of the patient’s history, routine and sophisticated hematological investigations revealed that the patient developed anti-thrombin antibody following the application of hemostatic paste in the tooth socket five years back during minor dental procedure to stop ignorable bleeding episodes. Therefore, topical use of hemostatic glue/paste or bovine thrombin should be avoided to desist minor bleeding as recombinant human thrombin is now available for topical use.

Analysis of offshore platforms lifting with fixed pile structure type (fixed platform) based on ASD89

Science.gov (United States)

Sugianto, Agus; Indriani, Andi Marini

2017-11-01

Platform construction GTS (Gathering Testing Sattelite) is offshore construction platform with fix pile structure type/fixed platform functioning to support the mining of petroleum exploitation. After construction fabrication process platform was moved to barges, then shipped to the installation site. Moving process is generally done by pull or push based on construction design determined when planning. But at the time of lifting equipment/cranes available in the work area then the moving process can be done by lifting so that moving activity can be implemented more quickly of work. This analysis moving process of GTS platform in a different way that is generally done to GTS platform types by lifting using problem is construction reinforcement required, so the construction can be moved by lifting with analyzing and checking structure working stress that occurs due to construction moving process by lifting AISC code standard and analysis using the SAP2000 structure analysis program. The analysis result showed that existing condition cannot be moved by lifting because stress ratio is above maximum allowable value that is 0.950 (AISC-ASD89). Overstress occurs on the member 295 and 324 with stress ratio value 0.97 and 0.95 so that it is required structural reinforcement. Box plate aplication at both members so that it produces stress ratio values 0.78 at the member 295 and stress ratio of 0.77 at the member 324. These results indicate that the construction have qualified structural reinforcement for being moved by lifting.

What do parents want to know when considering autopsy for their child with cancer?

Science.gov (United States)

Wiener, Lori; Sweeney, Corinne; Baird, Kristin; Merchant, Melinda S; Warren, Katherine E; Corner, Geoffrey W; Roberts, Kailey E; Lichtenthal, Wendy G

2014-08-01

Research has suggested that autopsy in pediatrics is a valued way for parents to better understand and process their child's death, yet physicians often express hesitancy in discussing this topic with parents. To better assist clinicians with initiating discussion about this often sensitive topic, the current study examined bereaved parents' preferences about the timing and content of the autopsy discussion as well as reasons for considering autopsy. This study explored the views of 30 parents who lost a child to a variety of malignancies between 6 months and 6 years ago. Results showed that 36.7% of parents recalled having a discussion about autopsy, and the vast majority of those who did not recall a discussion (89.5%) would have considered an autopsy if it had been discussed. The majority of participants in this study indicated their preference to have the first conversation about autopsy when it becomes clear that cure is no longer possible. Findings suggest that educating parents about the clinical, emotional, and potential research benefits of autopsy and tissue procurement will ultimately help them make informed decisions and understand the importance of autopsy in medical progress. The future research and clinical implications of these findings are discussed.

21 CFR 890.3940 - Wheelchair platform scale.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-04-01

... 21 Food and Drugs 8 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Wheelchair platform scale. 890.3940 Section 890.3940 Food and Drugs FOOD AND DRUG ADMINISTRATION, DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES (CONTINUED... platform scale. (a) Identification. A wheelchair platform scale is a device with a base designed to...

Assessments of high-consequence platforms: Issues and applications

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Digre, K.A.; Craig, M.J.K.

1994-01-01

An API task group has developed a process for the assessment of existing platforms to determine their fitness for purpose. This has been released as a draft supplement to API RP 2A-WSD, 20th edition. Details and the background of this work are described in a companion paper. The assessment of a platform's fitness for purpose involves firstly a definition of the platform's exposure; and secondly, an evaluation of the platform's predicted performance relative to the assessment criteria associated with that exposure. This paper deals with platforms in the high exposure category. That is, platforms whose potential failure consequences, in terms of potential life loss and environmental damage, are significant. The criteria for placement of a platform in a high exposure category are explained, as are the performance criteria demanded of these high exposure platforms. In the companion paper, the metocean assessment process and associated API-developed acceptance criteria are highlighted. This paper addresses primarily ice and seismic loading assessments and associated API-developed criteria, which are based on over thirty years of successful offshore operation and field experience, as well as extrapolation of land-based performance criteria. Three West Coast, USA production platforms are used for illustration

Aerodynamics of wind turbines emerging topics

CERN Document Server

Amano, R S

2014-01-01

Focusing on Aerodynamics of Wind Turbines with topics ranging from Fundamental to Application of horizontal axis wind turbines, this book presents advanced topics including: Basic Theory for Wind turbine Blade Aerodynamics, Computational Methods, and Special Structural Reinforcement Technique for Wind Turbine Blades.

Experience using EPICS on PC platforms

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hill, J.O.; Kasemire, K.U.

1997-03-01

The Experimental Physics and Industrial Control System (EPICS) has been widely adopted in the accelerator community. Although EPICS is available on many platforms, the majority of implementations have used UNIX workstations as clients, and VME- or VXI-based processors for distributed input output controllers. Recently, a significant portion of EPICS has been ported to personal computer (PC) hardware platforms running Microsoft's operating systems, and also Wind River System's real time vxWorks operating system. This development should significantly reduce the cost of deploying EPICS systems, and the prospect of using EPICS together with the many high quality commercial components available for PC platforms is also encouraging. A hybrid system using both PC and traditional platforms is currently being implemented at LANL for LEDA, the low energy demonstration accelerator under construction as part of the Accelerator Production of Tritium (APT) project. To illustrate these developments the authors compare their recent experience deploying a PC-based EPICS system with experience deploying similar systems based on traditional (UNIX-hosted) EPICS hardware and software platforms

SETI: A good introductory physics topic

Science.gov (United States)

Hobson, Art

1997-04-01

If America is to achieve the science literacy that is essential to industrialized democracy, all students must study such topics as scientific methodology, pseudoscience, ozone depletion, and global warming. My large-enrollment liberal-arts physics course covers the great principles of physics along with several such philosophical and societal topics. It is easy to include the interdisciplinary context of physics in courses for non-scientists, because these courses are flexible, conceptual, and taught to students whose interests span a broad range. Students find these topics relevant and fascinating, leading to large enrollments by non-scientists even in courses labeled ''physics.'' I will discuss my approach to teaching the search for extra-terrestrial intelligence (SETI), a topic with lots of good physics and with connections to scientific methodology and pseudoscience. A textbook for this kind of course has been published, Physics: Concepts and Connections (Prentice-Hall, 1995).

Affinity between information retrieval system and search topic

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ebinuma, Yukio

1979-01-01

Ten search profiles are tested on the INIS system at the Japan Atomic Energy Research Institute. The results are plotted on recall-precision chart ranging from 100% recall to 100% precision. The curves are not purely systems-dependent nor search-dependent, and are determined substantially by the ''affinity'' between the system and the search topic. The curves are named ''Affinity curves of search topics with information retrieval systems'', and hence retrieval affinity factors are derived. They are obtained not only for individual search topics but also for averages in the system. By such a quantitative examination, the difference of affinity among search topics in a given system, that of the same search topic among various systems, and that of systems to the same group of search topics can be compared reasonably. (author)

Analyzing the history of Cognition using Topic Models.

Science.gov (United States)

Cohen Priva, Uriel; Austerweil, Joseph L

2015-02-01

Very few articles have analyzed how cognitive science as a field has changed over the last six decades. We explore how Cognition changed over the last four decades using Topic Models. Topic Models assume that every word in every document is generated by one of a limited number of topics. Words that are likely to co-occur are likely to be generated by a single topic. We find a number of significant historical trends: the rise of moral cognition, eyetracking methods, and action, the fall of sentence processing, and the stability of development. We introduce the notion of framing topics, which frame content, rather than present the content itself. These framing topics suggest that over time Cognition turned from abstract theorizing to more experimental approaches. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

ANALYSIS OF FACTORS INFLUENCING TRAVEL CONSUMER SATISFACTION AS REVEALED BY ONLINE COMMUNICATION PLATFORMS

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Olimpia I. BAN

2016-08-01

Full Text Available The objective of the present empirical study is to determine the factors influencing the tourism consumer satisfaction, as it results from the evaluations posted on virtual platforms. The communication platform chosen as study is the Romanian website Amfostacolo.ro. In this case, the travel consumer satisfaction is expressed by the score of the ratings posted on the virtual platform Amfostacolo.ro and the decision to recommend or not the unit / destination. Considering the peculiarities of the communication platform studied, the elements influencing the score indicating satisfaction there can be identified as components of tourism supply and the characteristics of the reviewer. Data processing has been carried out with ordinary least squares (OLS, structural equation modeling (confirmatory factor analysis, path analysis, cluster analisys and polytomous logistic regression. The results broadly confirm the hypotheses, namely that: the type of stay and the age of the reviewer influence the satisfaction of the consumer more than the destination and number of stars of the accommodation, the age group of the reviewer influences the destination yet it is uncertain about the influence of the variables related to the holiday (the type of stay and the number of stars of the accommodation, the meal service influences more than other attributes the consumer satisfaction and the recommendation of the reviewer is influenced by the characteristics related to his person and the holiday consumed.

Feasibility of a low-cost sounding rockoon platform

Science.gov (United States)

Okninski, Adam; Raurell, Daniel Sors; Mitre, Alberto Rodriguez

2016-10-01

This paper presents the results of analyses and simulations for the design of a small sounding platform, dedicated to conducting scientific atmospheric research and capable of reaching the von Kármán line by means of a rocket launched from it. While recent private initiatives have opted for the air launch concept to send small payloads to Low Earth Orbit, several historical projects considered the use of balloons as the first stage of orbital and suborbital platforms, known as rockoons. Both of these approaches enable the minimization of drag losses. This paper addresses the issue of utilizing stratospheric balloons as launch platforms to conduct sub-orbital rocket flights. Research and simulations have been conducted to demonstrate these capabilities and feasibility. A small sounding solid propulsion rocket using commercially-off-the-shelf hardware is proposed. Its configuration and design are analyzed with special attention given to the propulsion system and its possible mission-orientated optimization. The cost effectiveness of this approach is discussed. Performance calculation outcomes are shown. Additionally, sensitivity study results for different design parameters are given. Minimum mass rocket configurations for various payload requirements are presented. The ultimate aim is to enhance low-cost experimentation maintaining high mobility of the system and simplicity of operations. An easier and more affordable access to a space-like environment can be achieved with this system, thus allowing for widespread outreach of space science and technology knowledge. This project is based on earlier experience of the authors in LEEM Association of the Technical University of Madrid and the Polish Small Sounding Rocket Program developed at the Institute of Aviation and Warsaw University of Technology in Poland.

Topics of Bioengineering in Wikipedia

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Vassia Atanassova

2009-10-01

Full Text Available The present report aims to give a snapshot of how topics from the field of bioengineering (bioinformatics, bioprocess systems, biomedical engineering, biotechnology, etc. are currently covered in the free electronic encyclopedia Wikipedia. It also offers insights and information about what Wikipedia is, how it functions, how and when to cite Wikipedian articles, if necessary. Several external wikis, devoted to topics of bioengineering, are also listed and reviewed.

Updates of Topical and Local Anesthesia Agents.

Science.gov (United States)

Boyce, Ricardo A; Kirpalani, Tarun; Mohan, Naveen

2016-04-01

As described in this article, there are many advances in topical and local anesthesia. Topical and local anesthetics have played a great role in dentistry in alleviating the fears of patients, eliminating pain, and providing pain control. Many invasive procedures would not be performed without the use and advances of topical/local anesthetics. The modern-day dentist has the responsibility of knowing the variety of products on the market and should have at least references to access before, during, and after treatment. This practice ensures proper care with topical and local anesthetics for the masses of patients entering dental offices worldwide. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Anesthesia: A Topic for Interdisciplinary Study.

Science.gov (United States)

Labianca, Dominick A.; Reeves, William J.

1977-01-01

Describes an interdisciplinary approach for teaching the topic of anesthesia as one aspect of a chemistry-oriented course for nonscience majors which focuses on timely topics such as the energy crisis and drugs. Historical treatment with the examination of literature is emphasized in teaching. (HM)

FINDING POTENTIALLY UNSAFE NUTRITIONAL SUPPLEMENTS FROM USER REVIEWS WITH TOPIC MODELING.

Science.gov (United States)

Sullivan, Ryan; Sarker, Abeed; O'Connor, Karen; Goodin, Amanda; Karlsrud, Mark; Gonzalez, Graciela

2016-01-01

Although dietary supplements are widely used and generally are considered safe, some supplements have been identified as causative agents for adverse reactions, some of which may even be fatal. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is responsible for monitoring supplements and ensuring that supplements are safe. However, current surveillance protocols are not always effective. Leveraging user-generated textual data, in the form of Amazon.com reviews for nutritional supplements, we use natural language processing techniques to develop a system for the monitoring of dietary supplements. We use topic modeling techniques, specifically a variation of Latent Dirichlet Allocation (LDA), and background knowledge in the form of an adverse reaction dictionary to score products based on their potential danger to the public. Our approach generates topics that semantically capture adverse reactions from a document set consisting of reviews posted by users of specific products, and based on these topics, we propose a scoring mechanism to categorize products as "high potential danger", "average potential danger" and "low potential danger." We evaluate our system by comparing the system categorization with human annotators, and we find that the our system agrees with the annotators 69.4% of the time. With these results, we demonstrate that our methods show promise and that our system represents a proof of concept as a viable low-cost, active approach for dietary supplement monitoring.

Genesis and Evolution of Digital Payment Platforms

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Hjelholt, Morten; Damsgaard, Jan

2012-01-01

Payment transactions through the use of physical coins, bank notes or credit cards have for centuries been the standard formats of exchanging money. Recently online and mobile digital payment platforms has entered the stage as contenders to this position and possibly could penetrate societies...... thoroughly and substitute current payment standards in the decades to come. This paper portrays how digital payment paltforms evolve in socio-technical niches and how various technological platforms aim for institutional attention in their attempt to challenge earlier platforms and standards. The paper...... applies a co-evolutionary multilevel perspective to model the interplay and processes between technology and society wherein digital payment platforms potentially will substitute other payment platforms just like the credit card negated the check. On this basis this paper formulate a multilevel conceptual...

Efficacy, tolerability and consumer acceptability of terbinafine topical spray versus terbinafine topical solution: a phase IIa, randomised, observer-blind, comparative study.

Science.gov (United States)

Brown, Marc; Evans, Charles; Muddle, Andrew; Turner, Rob; Lim, Sian; Reed, Jessica; Traynor, Matt

2013-10-01

Tinea pedis is one of the world's most prevalent dermatophyte infections. MedSpray™ tinea pedis 1 % w/w (topical spray) is a novel, easy-to-use propellant-based spray formulation containing 1 % w/w terbinafine, requiring no manipulation at the site of infection. This is in contrast to the only formulation currently approved in Europe for single application (none are approved in the USA for single use), which is Lamisil(®) Once 1 % w/w (topical solution), containing 1 % w/w terbinafine hydrochloride, which requires manipulation on the affected area. The aim of this study was to evaluate the efficacy, tolerability and consumer acceptability of a topical spray versus a topical solution in the treatment of tinea pedis. This study is a phase IIa, randomised, observer-blind, non-inferiority comparative study of the topical spray compared with the topical solution over a 12-week study period. The study was conducted at Bioskin GmbH, Hamburg and Berlin. Patients (n = 120) who presented with the presence of interdigital tinea pedis caused by dermatophytes on one or both feet were enrolled in the study. Patients were randomly assigned between the two treatment groups. Either the topical spray or the topical solution was administered by the study nurse and consisted of a single application (equivalent to 20 mg of terbinafine per foot) on day 1 of the study. No further applications were made for the duration of the study. The hypothesis formulated before commencement of the study was that the topical spray would prove to be non-inferior to the topical solution. Efficacy assessments, including clinical signs and symptoms, mycology and microscopy were performed at baseline and 1, 6 and 12 weeks after treatment. The rate of mycological cure at week 1 was statistically equivalent for both treatments. There was a significant reduction in the overall clinical score as assessed by the Physician's Global Assessment of signs and symptoms for both treatment groups. The topical

Computing platforms for software-defined radio

CERN Document Server

Nurmi, Jari; Isoaho, Jouni; Garzia, Fabio

2017-01-01

This book addresses Software-Defined Radio (SDR) baseband processing from the computer architecture point of view, providing a detailed exploration of different computing platforms by classifying different approaches, highlighting the common features related to SDR requirements and by showing pros and cons of the proposed solutions. Coverage includes architectures exploiting parallelism by extending single-processor environment (such as VLIW, SIMD, TTA approaches), multi-core platforms distributing the computation to either a homogeneous array or a set of specialized heterogeneous processors, and architectures exploiting fine-grained, coarse-grained, or hybrid reconfigurability. Describes a computer engineering approach to SDR baseband processing hardware; Discusses implementation of numerous compute-intensive signal processing algorithms on single and multicore platforms; Enables deep understanding of optimization techniques related to power and energy consumption of multicore platforms using several basic a...

Topical thrombin-related corneal calcification.

Science.gov (United States)

Kiratli, Hayyam; Irkeç, Murat; Alaçal, Sibel; Söylemezoğlu, Figen

2006-09-01

To report a highly unusual case of corneal calcification after brief intraoperative use of topical thrombin. A 44-year-old man underwent sclerouvectomy for ciliochoroidal leiomyoma, during which 35 UNIH/mL lyophilized bovine thrombin mixed with 9 mL of diluent containing 1500 mmol/mL calcium chloride was used. From the first postoperative day, corneal and anterior lenticular capsule calcifications developed, and corneal involvement slightly enlarged thereafter. A year later, 2 corneal punch biopsies confirmed calcification mainly in the Bowman layer. Topical treatment with 1.5% ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid significantly restored corneal clarity. Six months later, a standard extracapsular cataract extraction with intraocular lens placement improved visual acuity to 20/60. This case suggests that topical thrombin drops with elevated calcium concentrations may cause acute corneal calcification in Bowman layer and on the anterior lens capsule.

Advances in the development of the Mexican platform for analysis and design of nuclear reactors: AZTLAN Platform

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Gomez T, A. M.; Puente E, F.; Del Valle G, E.; Francois L, J. L.; Espinosa P, G.

2017-09-01

The AZTLAN platform project: development of a Mexican platform for the analysis and design of nuclear reactors, financed by the SENER-CONACYT Energy Sustain ability Fund, was approved in early 2014 and formally began at the end of that year. It is a national project led by the Instituto Nacional de Investigaciones Nucleares (ININ) and with the collaboration of Instituto Politecnico Nacional (IPN), the Universidad Autonoma Metropolitana (UAM) and Universidad Nacional Autonoma de Mexico (UNAM) as part of the development team and with the participation of the Laguna Verde Nuclear Power Plant, the National Commission of Nuclear Safety and Safeguards, the Ministry of Energy and the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (Kit, Germany) as part of the user group. The general objective of the project is to modernize, improve and integrate the neutronic, thermo-hydraulic and thermo-mechanical codes, developed in Mexican institutions, in an integrated platform, developed and maintained by Mexican experts for the benefit of Mexican institutions. Two years into the process, important steps have been taken that have consolidated the platform. The main results of these first two years have been presented in different national and international forums. In this congress, some of the most recent results that have been implemented in the platform codes are shown in more detail. The current status of the platform from a more executive view point is summarized in this paper. (Author)

A survey on platforms for big data analytics.

Science.gov (United States)

Singh, Dilpreet; Reddy, Chandan K

The primary purpose of this paper is to provide an in-depth analysis of different platforms available for performing big data analytics. This paper surveys different hardware platforms available for big data analytics and assesses the advantages and drawbacks of each of these platforms based on various metrics such as scalability, data I/O rate, fault tolerance, real-time processing, data size supported and iterative task support. In addition to the hardware, a detailed description of the software frameworks used within each of these platforms is also discussed along with their strengths and drawbacks. Some of the critical characteristics described here can potentially aid the readers in making an informed decision about the right choice of platforms depending on their computational needs. Using a star ratings table, a rigorous qualitative comparison between different platforms is also discussed for each of the six characteristics that are critical for the algorithms of big data analytics. In order to provide more insights into the effectiveness of each of the platform in the context of big data analytics, specific implementation level details of the widely used k-means clustering algorithm on various platforms are also described in the form pseudocode.

Considering IIOT and security for the DoD

Science.gov (United States)

Klawon, Kevin; Gold, Josh; Bachman, Kristen; Landoll, Darren

2016-05-01

The Internet of Things (IoT) has come of age and domestic and industrial devices are all "smart". But how can they be universally classified and queried? How do we know that the underlying architecture is secure enough to deploy on a defense network? By leverage existing platforms designed for interoperability, extensibility, and security that can manage data across multiple domains and runs on any platform.

Reverse engineering of the robot base platform

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Anwar A Rahman; Azizul Rahman A Aziz; Mohd Arif Hamzah; Muhd Nor Atan; Fadil Ismail; Rosli Darmawan

2009-01-01

The robot base platform used to place the robotic arm version 2 was imported through a local company. The robot base platform is used as a reference for reverse egineering development for a smaller size robot. The paper will discuss the reverse engineering design process and parameters involved in the development of the robot base platform. (Author)

A Platform for the Implementation of Adaptive On-line Courses: Description and Teachers’ Point of View

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Julián Moreno Cadavid

2014-10-01

Full Text Available Adaptation is a desirable feature in on-line courses which allows for the consideration of students particular characteristics and needs. However, it is not common for teachers to embrace technologies related to this feature. This phenomenon may be mainly attributed to: a unawareness of appropriate authoring tools, and/or b resistance to their use. Regarding this panorama, this research has two purposes. The first purpose is to present a web platform to create adaptive on-line courses that considers three adaptive functionalities: curriculum sequencing, content presentation and assessment. The second purpose is to present a validation for such platform with real users, more specifically, 51 teachers of K-12. The obtained results show that even if there was general distrust while using the platform, there was also a overall interest in rely on a tool that grants teachers in providing an individualized learning experience.

'Good' platform-political reasons for 'bad' platform-data. Zur sozio-technischen Geschichte der Plattformaktivitäten Fav, Retweet und Like

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Paßmann, J.; Gerlitz, C.

2014-01-01

In this article, we explore the relation between platform activities and their usage practices. Taking departure from predefined activities offered by social media platforms, this paper inquires into what may happen if platform features cater to opposing user practices. The paper investigates

Topics in the Journal of Counseling Psychology, 1963-2015.

Science.gov (United States)

Oh, JungSu; Stewart, Alan E; Phelps, Rosemary E

2017-11-01

Historical trends in a scientific field should be apparent in the changing content of journal articles over time. Using a topic modeling approach, a statistical method for quantifying the thematic content of text, 70 topics were extracted from the abstracts of 3,603 articles published in the Journal of Counseling Psychology from 1963 to 2015. After examining interpretability of 70 topics derived from the model, 64 meaningful topics and their trends were named. In addition, the authors also classified some of the related topics into 4 categories-counseling process and outcome, multiculturalism, research methodology, and vocational psychology. Counseling process and outcome related topics have decreased recently, while topics relating to multiculturalism and diversity have shown increasing trends. The authors also discussed trends that were observed and tried to account for the changing frequencies of some important research topics within these categories. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2017 APA, all rights reserved).

Influence of number of topics, topic duration, and curricular focus on biology achievement of Population 3 TIMSS countries

Science.gov (United States)

Hodges, Eddie Louis

The purposes of this study were to determine if a relationship exists between biology achievement and (1) number of topics, (2) topic duration, (3) curricular focus, and (4) science achievement using TIMSS data from Population 3---the final year of secondary school. Students included in this study were subsets of the 55,675 students from 22 countries who participated in the science literacy portion of TIMSS at the Population 3 level (IEA, 1997). The sample included in this study for the four research questions were comprised of between (1) 17,769 and 37,794 students from 15 countries, (2) 17,769 and 37,794 students from 15 countries, (3) 21,715 and 46,458 students from 18 countries, and (4) 19,518 and 46,458 students from 18 countries, respectively. A Pearson's product moment correlation was used to determine whether a relationship exists between the number of biology topics addressed by intended national science curricula and mean student achievement on selected items by country. No statistically significant correlation was found by country between biology achievement and number of topics. To determine whether a relationship exists between the topic duration of biology topics addressed by released, biology-oriented, Population 3 Science Literacy items and student achievement on those items, a Pearson's product moment correlation was also used. A statistically significant correlation between biology achievement and topic duration for only one topic (Interdependence of Life) was found at the .05 level of significance. A possible relationship between the degree of curricular focus of Population 3 TIMSS countries and student achievement on selected items by country was evaluated using a Pearson's product moment correlation. No statistically significant correlation by country between biology achievement and degree of curricular focus was found. A Pearson's product moment correlation was used to determine whether a relationship exists between science literacy

An Effective Interval-Valued Intuitionistic Fuzzy Entropy to Evaluate Entrepreneurship Orientation of Online P2P Lending Platforms

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Xiaohong Chen

2013-01-01

Full Text Available This paper describes an approach to measure the entrepreneurship orientation of online P2P lending platforms. The limitations of existing methods for calculating entropy of interval-valued intuitionistic fuzzy sets (IVIFSs are significantly improved by a new entropy measure of IVIFS considered in this paper, and then the essential properties of the proposed entropy are introduced. Moreover, an evaluation procedure is proposed to measure entrepreneurship orientation of online P2P lending platforms. Finally, a case is used to demonstrate the effectiveness of this method.

Most common dermatologic topics published in five high-impact general medical journals, 1970-2012: melanoma, psoriasis, herpes simplex, herpes zoster, and acne.

Science.gov (United States)

Choi, Young M; Namavar, Aram A; Wu, Jashin J

2014-01-01

General practitioners frequently encounter skin diseases and are accustomed to diagnosing the most common dermatologic conditions. We sought to determine the most common dermatologic topics published in five high-impact general medical journals (New England Journal of Medicine, The Lancet, the Journal of the American Medical Association, British Medical Journal (now The BMJ), and Annals of Internal Medicine). We conducted an independent search of the Thomson Reuters’ Science Citation Index for common dermatologic topics, limited to the period 1970 to 2012. Total number of publications dealing with each dermatologic topic considered. The five most common dermatologic topics published were melanoma, psoriasis, herpes simplex, herpes zoster, and acne. Melanoma and psoriasis were the top two dermatologic topics published in each journal except for Annals of Internal Medicine. Internists frequently diagnose herpes simplex, herpes zoster, and acne, which are also common dermatologic topics published. Although internists infrequently diagnose melanoma and psoriasis, they are major topics for general medical journals because of their increased community awareness, major advancements in therapeutic research, and their nondermatologic manifestations.

Associations of Topics of Discussion on Twitter With Survey Measures of Attitudes, Knowledge, and Behaviors Related to Zika: Probabilistic Study in the United States

Science.gov (United States)

Winneg, Kenneth; Chan, Man-Pui Sally; Hall Jamieson, Kathleen; Albarracin, Dolores

2018-01-01

Background Recent outbreaks of Zika virus around the world led to increased discussions about this issue on social media platforms such as Twitter. These discussions may provide useful information about attitudes, knowledge, and behaviors of the population regarding issues that are important for public policy. Objective We sought to identify the associations of the topics of discussions on Twitter and survey measures of Zika-related attitudes, knowledge, and behaviors, not solely based upon the volume of such discussions but by analyzing the content of conversations using probabilistic techniques. Methods Using probabilistic topic modeling with US county and week as the unit of analysis, we analyzed the content of Twitter online communications to identify topics related to the reported attitudes, knowledge, and behaviors captured in a national representative survey (N=33,193) of the US adult population over 33 weeks. Results Our analyses revealed topics related to “congress funding for Zika,” “microcephaly,” “Zika-related travel discussions,” “insect repellent,” “blood transfusion technology,” and “Zika in Miami” were associated with our survey measures of attitudes, knowledge, and behaviors observed over the period of the study. Conclusions Our results demonstrated that it is possible to uncover topics of discussions from Twitter communications that are associated with the Zika-related attitudes, knowledge, and behaviors of populations over time. Social media data can be used as a complementary source of information alongside traditional data sources to gauge the patterns of attitudes, knowledge, and behaviors in a population. PMID:29426815

Extracting Hot spots of Topics from Time Stamped Documents

Science.gov (United States)

Chen, Wei; Chundi, Parvathi

2011-01-01

Identifying time periods with a burst of activities related to a topic has been an important problem in analyzing time-stamped documents. In this paper, we propose an approach to extract a hot spot of a given topic in a time-stamped document set. Topics can be basic, containing a simple list of keywords, or complex. Logical relationships such as and, or, and not are used to build complex topics from basic topics. A concept of presence measure of a topic based on fuzzy set theory is introduced to compute the amount of information related to the topic in the document set. Each interval in the time period of the document set is associated with a numeric value which we call the discrepancy score. A high discrepancy score indicates that the documents in the time interval are more focused on the topic than those outside of the time interval. A hot spot of a given topic is defined as a time interval with the highest discrepancy score. We first describe a naive implementation for extracting hot spots. We then construct an algorithm called EHE (Efficient Hot Spot Extraction) using several efficient strategies to improve performance. We also introduce the notion of a topic DAG to facilitate an efficient computation of presence measures of complex topics. The proposed approach is illustrated by several experiments on a subset of the TDT-Pilot Corpus and DBLP conference data set. The experiments show that the proposed EHE algorithm significantly outperforms the naive one, and the extracted hot spots of given topics are meaningful. PMID:21765568

VOLTTRON Lite: Integration Platform for the Transactional Network

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Haack, Jereme N.; Katipamula, Srinivas; Akyol, Bora A.; Lutes, Robert G.

2013-10-31

In FY13, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) with funding from the Department of Energy’s (DOE’s) Building Technologies Office (BTO) designed, prototyped and tested a transactional network platform. The platform is intended to support energy, operational and financial transactions between any networked entities (equipment, organizations, buildings, grid, etc.). Initially, in FY13, the concept demonstrated transactions between packaged rooftop units (RTUs) and the electric grid using applications or “agents” that reside on the platform, on the equipment, on local building controller or in the Cloud. This document describes the core of the transactional network platform, the Volttron Lite™ software and associated services hosted on the platform. Future enhancements are also discussed. The appendix of the document provides examples of how to use the various services hosted on the platform.

Business and IT Capabilities for Cloud Platform Success

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Hahn, Christopher; Huntgeburth, Jan; Winkler, Till J.

2016-01-01

The growing proliferation of cloud platform ecosystems demands a deeper understanding of the capabilities that help existing and emerging platform providers to be successful by creating and appropriating value. This multiple case study of four cloud platform providers (three large, one SME......) instantiates Rai and Tang’s (2014) framework of dyadic IT and network IT capabilities for a cloud platform context and extends it by exploring previously undertheorized cloud platform business capabilities. We further build on this extended framework by employing a configurational perspective to elucidate...... the complementary role of the three proposed business capabilities (incentives and rules, ecosystem marketing and sales, partner development and support) for relevant value creation and appropriation mechanisms. In addition to providing a capability framework catered to the cloud platform context, our findings...

The Survival of Morse Cone-Connection Implants with Platform Switch.

Science.gov (United States)

Cassetta, Michele; Di Mambro, Alfonso; Giansanti, Matteo; Brandetti, Giulia

2016-01-01

The aim of this prospective clinical study was to evaluate the survival up to 5 years of Morse cone-connection implants with platform switch considering the influence of biologically relevant, anatomical, and stress-related variables. STROBE guidelines were followed. Seven hundred forty-eight implants were inserted in 350 patients. Follow-up visits were scheduled at the time of stagetwo surgery (2 months later) and at 6, 12, 24, 36, and 60 months. All implants were initially loaded with a cemented provisional acrylic restoration. The definitive metal-ceramic restorations were cemented at the 6-month follow-up. Implant cumulative survival rates (CSRs) were calculated using life table actuarial method. Survival data were also analyzed by the log-rank test and Cox regression. The statistical analysis was conducted at the patient level. P ≤ .05 was considered as an indicator of statistical significance. During the follow-up (mean: 40 months; SD: 20.27), 28 patients were considered failed (8%). The CSR and its standard error (SE) was 92% ± 2.17%. Patients with implant-supported single crowns had a CSR of 90%, whereas those with implant-supported fixed dental prostheses had a CSR of 93%. The implant diameter (P = .0399) and implant length (P = .0441) were statistically significant. The probability of failure was almost 75% lower for patients with wide rather than standard implants, 91% lower for patients with long implants, and 69% lower for patients with standard implants compared with short implants. The use of Morse cone-connection implants with platform switch is a safe and reliable treatment method. Stress-related variables influence the risk of failure confirming the importance of biomechanical factors in the longevity of osseointegrated implants; thus, the clinician may obtain better results if attention is paid to these factors.

Tracer transport modeling with the Alliances platform in the presence of evapotranspiration

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Constantin, A.; Diaconu, D.; Bucur, C. [Institute for Nuclear Research, Pitesti (Romania); Genty, A. [CEA Saclay, Gif-sur-Yvette (France)

2013-11-15

The knowledge and understanding of water flow and solute transport in the unsaturated zone is becoming increasingly important especially in mitigation of groundwater pollution. Fate of radionuclide in the geological environment is a topic to address in performance and safety assessment studies for nuclear waste disposal and may be modeled considering flow and transport in porous media. However, often, due to the heterogeneity and anisotropy of the real systems, the computer simulations may be difficult to render the real behavior. This paper addresses the simulation of a tracer transport in the unsaturated zone of the Saligny site, the potential location for the Romanian low and intermediate level waste (LILW) disposal. Computation was based on experimental data and was performed with the Alliances platform, a numerical tool developed by French organizations CEA, ANDRA and EDF. In order to obtain information regarding the solute migration in depth and the solute lateral dispersion, the dispersivity coefficients of iodine were investigated in order to match the experimental concentration determined on samples from different locations of the site. A close fit of the simulation over experimental data for the water saturation profile at a depth of 0.5 m in transient state was targeted by taking into account evapotranspiration in order to obtain a realistic estimation of the water infiltration in the porous media. Dispersivity coefficients obtained from the simulation of the tracer transport are in good order of magnitude for the unsaturated area and allow to have a good preview of the tracer plume. However, further investigations are recommended on new samples in order to validate the migration of the tracer plume as expected. (orig.)

Comparing the ocular surface effects of topical vancomycin and linezolid for treating bacterial keratitis.

Science.gov (United States)

Akova Budak, Berna; Baykara, Mehmet; Kıvanç, Sertaç Argun; Yilmaz, Hakan; Cicek, Serhat

2016-01-01

Vancomycin is the gold standard in combination therapy for severe and resistant gram-positive keratitis and in particular for Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) infections. The aim of this study was to report the ocular surface toxicity and scoring in patients whose treatment shifted to topical linezolid/ceftazidime from topical vancomycin/ceftazidime due to their vancomycin intolerance. A retrospective, interventional case series of bacterial keratitis was treated with topical linezolid (one drop of 0.2% solution per eye), administered hourly until epithelization and then gradually decreased. The number and extent of punctate epithelial erosions were noted across the entire surface of the cornea. Ocular discomfort was assessed by means of (a) patient-reported pain upon instillation of the medication (vancomycin/linezolid), (b) reported burning sensation between doses and (c) reported foreign-body sensation. No ocular surface toxicity related to linezolid use was noted. Patients were followed for at least 2 months after treatment between April and December 2013. Of the seven patients included in the study (age range: 2-88 years; five females, two males), complete epithelization and resolution was achieved in five patients. One patient was treated with linezolid after penetrating keratoplasty. The second culture of another patient with impending perforation despite linezolid/ceftazidime therapy yielded Fusarium spp., so he underwent tectonic keratoplasty. The mean ocular surface score was 9.4 ± 1.6 during vancomycin treatment and 5.9 ± 1.3 during linezolid treatment after discontinuation of vancomycin. The topical linezolid score was significantly lower (p = 0.027). Topical linezolid may be better tolerated, according to the mean ocular surface score, than topical vancomycin by some patients and can be considered an alternative for patients who do not well tolerate vancomycin.

Simplified Methods Applied to Nonlinear Motion of Spar Platforms

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Haslum, Herbjoern Alf

2000-07-01

Simplified methods for prediction of motion response of spar platforms are presented. The methods are based on first and second order potential theory. Nonlinear drag loads and the effect of the pumping motion in a moon-pool are also considered. Large amplitude pitch motions coupled to extreme amplitude heave motions may arise when spar platforms are exposed to long period swell. The phenomenon is investigated theoretically and explained as a Mathieu instability. It is caused by nonlinear coupling effects between heave, surge, and pitch. It is shown that for a critical wave period, the envelope of the heave motion makes the pitch motion unstable. For the same wave period, a higher order pitch/heave coupling excites resonant heave response. This mutual interaction largely amplifies both the pitch and the heave response. As a result, the pitch/heave instability revealed in this work is more critical than the previously well known Mathieu's instability in pitch which occurs if the wave period (or the natural heave period) is half the natural pitch period. The Mathieu instability is demonstrated both by numerical simulations with a newly developed calculation tool and in model experiments. In order to learn more about the conditions for this instability to occur and also how it may be controlled, different damping configurations (heave damping disks and pitch/surge damping fins) are evaluated both in model experiments and by numerical simulations. With increased drag damping, larger wave amplitudes and more time are needed to trigger the instability. The pitch/heave instability is a low probability of occurrence phenomenon. Extreme wave periods are needed for the instability to be triggered, about 20 seconds for a typical 200m draft spar. However, it may be important to consider the phenomenon in design since the pitch/heave instability is very critical. It is also seen that when classical spar platforms (constant cylindrical cross section and about 200m draft

Selected topical agents used in Traditional Chinese Medicine in the treatment of minor injuries- a review

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Ping Chung eLEUNG

2016-02-01

Full Text Available Topical medicinal patches have been popular for the treatment of minor injuries like sprains and avulsions. Other inflammatory conditions like chronic musculo-tendinous pain and or fasciitis are also taken care of by local ointments or rubs. In the oriental communities, medicinal herbs frequently form the major components of the patches.In spite of the lack of scientific evidence of efficacy, the popularity of such traditional application persists for centuries.In this era of evidence-based clinical treatment, there is an urgent need to look into this traditional practice. The purpose should include a scientific verification of the efficacy of the practice, and once proven, further explorations would be indicated to bring the practice to a higher level.A system of comprehensive exploration was proposed and practiced in the past years to fulfill the aspiration. The research consisted of four areas:(1Identification of the suitable medicinal herbs for the topical study;(2Study of the biological activities of the selected herbs, concentrating on the areas of anti-inflammation, anti-oxidation, angiogenesis and cellular proliferation;(3Study on the transcutaneous transport of the chemicals of the selected herbs to deeper tissues; and(4Pilot clinical studies on common superficial inflammatory musculo-skeletal conditions to give objective clinical evidences to the topical applications.Five herbs were identified as suitable candidates of study. They were put into relevant laboratory platforms and were proven to be anti-oxidant, anti-inflammatory and pro-angiogenic. Three of the herbs were prepared as topical patches with an enhancer and used to treat three common ailments in pilot clinical trials, viz., plantar fasciitis, undisplaced metatarsal fracture and tendonitis of the wrist (de-Quervain’s disease and the elbow (Tennis elbow. The clinical results of the pilot studies were very positive.It is therefore concluded that further explorations are