bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Chloride circulation in a lowland catchment and the formulation of transport by travel time distributions
Authors: Benettin Paolo , van der Velde Ype , van der Zee Sjoerd E. A. T. M. , Rinaldo Andrea , Botter Gianluca
Published: May 2013

Travel times are fundamental catchment descriptors that blend key information about storage, geochemistry, flow pathways and sources of water into a coherent mathematical framework. Here we analyze travel time distributions (TTDs) (and related attributes) estimated on the basis of the extensive hydrochemical information available for the Hupsel Brook lowland catchment in the Netherlands. The relevance of the work is perceived to lie in the general importance of characterizing nonstationary TTDs to capture catchment transport properties, here chloride flux concentrations at the basin outlet. The relative roles of evapotranspiration, water storage dynamics, hydrologic pathways and mass sources/sinks are discussed. Different hydrochemical models are tested and ranked, providing compelling examples of the improved process understanding achieved through coupled calibration of flow and transport processes. The ability of the model to reproduce measured flux concentrations is shown to lie mostly in the description of nonstationarities of TTDs at multiple time scales, including short‐term fluctuations induced by soil moisture dynamics in the root zone and long‐term seasonal dynamics. Our results prove reliable and suggest, for instance, that drastically reducing fertilization loads for one or more years would not result in significant permanent decreases in average solute concentrations in the Hupsel runoff because of the long memory shown by the system. Through comparison of field and theoretical evidence, our results highlight, unambiguously, the basic transport mechanisms operating in the catchment at hand, with a view to general applications.
Targeted inhibition of Hsp90 by ganetespib is effective across a broad spectrum of breast cancer subtypes
Authors: Friedland Julie C. , Smith Donald L. , Sang Jim , Acquaviva Jaime , He Suqin , Zhang Chaohua , Proia David A.
Published: May 2013

Heat shock protein 90 (Hsp90) is a molecular chaperone essential for the stability and function of multiple cellular client proteins, a number of which have been implicated in the pathogenesis of breast cancer. Here we undertook a comprehensive evaluation of the activity of ganetespib, a selective Hsp90 inhibitor, in this malignancy. With low nanomolar potency, ganetespib reduced cell viability in a panel of hormone receptor-positive, HER2-overexpressing, triple-negative and inflammatory breast cancer cell lines in vitro. Ganetespib treatment induced a rapid and sustained destabilization of multiple client proteins and oncogenic signaling pathways and even brief exposure was sufficient to induce and maintain suppression of HER2 levels in cells driven by this receptor. Indeed, HER2-overexpressing BT-474 cells were comparatively more sensitive to ganetespib than the dual HER2/EGFR tyrosine kinase inhibitor lapatinib in three-dimensional culture. Ganetespib exposure caused pleiotropic effects in the inflammatory breast cancer line SUM149, including receptor tyrosine kinases, MAPK, AKT and mTOR signaling, transcription factors and proteins involved in cell cycle, stress and apoptotic regulation, as well as providing combinatorial benefit with lapatinib in these cells. This multimodal activity translated to potent antitumor efficacy in vivo, suppressing tumor growth in MCF-7 and MDA-MB-231 xenografts and inducing tumor regression in the BT-474 model. Thus, ganetespib potently inhibits Hsp90 leading to the degradation of multiple clinically-validated oncogenic client proteins in breast cancer cells, encompassing the broad spectrum of molecularly-defined subtypes. This preclinical activity profile suggests that ganetespib may offer considerable promise as a new therapeutic candidate for patients with advanced breast cancers.
Fungus-mediated synthesis of silver nanoparticles and evaluation of antitumor activity
Authors: El-Sonbaty S. M.
Published: May 2013

Silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) were biologically synthesized using aqueous extract of Agaricus bisporus fungi. Physicochemical analysis of silver nanoparticles revealed that they are of spherical shape ranged size of 8–20 nm, and their zeta potential equal −7.23 mV. Silver nanoparticles showed a dose-dependent cytotoxic effect on MCF-7 breast cancer cells with LD50 (50 μg/ml). Mice bearing Ehrlich solid tumor treated with AgNPs and exposed to gamma radiation significantly ameliorated superoxide dismutase and catalase activity and reduced glutathione with an increase in malondialdehyde and nitric oxide levels compared to tumor group. Gamma radiation with AgNPs induced apoptotic cell count in Ehrlich solid tumor cells from 68.3 (treated with AgNPs) to 98.1 % (treated with AgNPs with gamma radiation) via a mechanism involved caspase-3. Histological sections of tumor tissue of mice treated with AgNPs showed antiangiogenesis effect of AgNPs. The overall result indicates that AgNPs synergize with gamma radiation, promising a potential combined therapy of cancer.
Current status of cardiac resynchronization therapy with defibrillators and factors influencing its prognosis in Japan
Authors: Shimizu Akihiko , Mihashi Takeshi , Furushima Hiroshi , Sekiguchi Yukio , Manaka Tetsuyuki , Nishii Nobuhiro , Ueyama Takeshi , Yokoshiki Hisashi , Morita Norishige , Nitta Takashi , Okumura Ken
Published: May 2013

Purpose

The purpose of this study was to clarify the prognosis of cardiac resynchronization therapy with defibrillators (CRT‐Ds) in Japan.

Methods

We selected 384 patients implanted with a CRT‐D device from the observation database (n=1482) of the Japanese Cardiac Device Therapy Registry. We investigated the CRT criteria, including the presence of New York Heart Association (NYHA) class III/IV symptoms, left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) ≤35%, and QRS duration ≥120 ms. The patients were divided into 2 groups: the group fulfilling all of the 3 criteria (Group A, n=229) and the group not fulfilling the criteria (Group B, n=155). We compared mortality and appropriate shock rates between the 2 groups.

Results

There was no significant difference in mortality (17.9% vs. 13.5%) or appropriate shock rates (32.5% vs. 31.6%) during the observation period of 29.0±15.7 months between the 2 groups. A logistic multivariate analysis showed that appropriate shocks (hazard ratio [HR]=1.85) and class III antiarrhythmic agents (HR=2.33) were independently associated with all‐cause death, and that age ≥70 years (HR=0.55), male gender (HR=2.07), and presence of a single‐chamber device (HR=1.78) were associated with appropriate shocks. The prognosis of Group A was better than that of the COMPANION trial.

Conclusions

Japanese patients with CRT‐D devices had a better prognosis than did those in the COMPANION trial, but no significant differences were observed between patients fulfilling and those not fulfilling the above mentioned criteria.
Globalised rebellion: the Darfur insurgents and the world
Authors: Jumbert Maria Gabrielsen , Lanz David
Published: May 2013

This article is concerned with the rebellion in Darfur as a way to illustrate the politics of insurgency in the era of globalisation. We first show how the Darfur rebels have projected their struggle onto the world stage, before examining the effects that this has engendered. On the one hand, Darfur's global profile solidified the rebels' cause and co-opted international actors in support of it. This translated into real leverage for the rebels, and it constrained the Sudanese government by reducing its ability to use brute force. At the same time, internationalisation encouraged the Darfur rebels to make maximalist demands at the expense of articulating a broader political vision addressing the root causes of conflict. Moreover, the substitution of local legitimacy for international connections lowered the barriers of entry for new groups and thus promoted fragmentation. The combination of these effects makes for intractable conflict scenarios, the current situation in Darfur being a case in point.
An upper bound for the Lusternik–Schnirelmann category of the symplectic group
Authors: MACÍAS–VIRGÓS E. , PEREIRA–SÁEZ M. J.
Published: May 2013

We prove that the LS category of the symplectic group Sp(n) is bounded above by $(n+1 \choose 2)$. This is achieved by computing the number of critical levels of a height function.
Gender Equality in Yefet Ben ʿElī’s Commentary and Karaite Halakhah
Authors: Sasson Ilana
Published: May 2013

Researching the translation and commentary of the tenth century Karaite scholar and exegete Yefet ben ʿElī on the Book of Proverbs, numerous statements that seemed to ring with egalitarianism were found. Some of these statements found in Yefet's commentary on wisdom literature and biblical narrative will be examined in this article. One case in which he speculates on biblical Hebrew syntax will also be examined. Gender equality in Yefet's work is anchored in the principle of logical inference, also known as analogy,qiyās, which served as one of the three major sources for the determination of Karaite halakhah. This article includes also a brief discussion of the role ofqiyāsin Karaite halakhah on marriage, divorce, and inheritance laws.
הוראת מדעים בחינוך הקראי: פרקים בלימוד הקראי של ׳רוח חן׳
Authors: אליאור עפר
Published: May 2013

מטרתי במאמר זה היא לשפוך אור חדש על סוגיית הלימוד של המדעים במערכת החינוך הקראית המסורתית. לשם כך, אבחן את מקומו של חיבור מדעי עברי, ׳רוח חן׳, במסגרת הוראת המדעים בשלוש סביבות תרבותיות קראיות: ביזנטיון במאות השלוש עשרה – השש עשרה, מזרח אירופה וחצי האי קרים במאות השש עשרה – השמונה עשרה, וקהילות קרים בשליש השני של המאה התשע עשרה. בדיוני אבקש להראות כי במערכת החינוך הקראית באזורים ובתקופות אלה נהגה מסורת של קריאה ב׳רוח חן׳ כחלק מן ההוראה של המדעים. ראשיתה של מסורת זו במרכז הקראי הביזנטי. למדנים קראיים שפעלו במרכז זה במאות החמש עשרה והשש עשרה, לימדו מדעים, בפרט כהכנה לעיון בחיבורים בהגות פילוסופית-דתית, ובחרו לאמץ את ׳רוח חן׳ כספר לימוד. הקראים במזרח אירופה ובקרים המשיכו ללמד חיבורים אשר חייבו אותם להקנות לתלמידיהם לפחות ידע בסיסי במדעים. ׳רוח חן׳ שימש עבורם ככלי מרכזי, ולעיתים בלעדי, למימושו של יעד פדגוגי זה, בייחוד בכל הנוגע להוראת מדעי הטבע. להוראה של יסודות הלוגיקה נסתייעו לעיתים גם ב׳מלות ההגיון׳ המיוחס לרמב״ם, או בחיבורים אחרים במלאכת ההגיון. גישות ושיטות אלו בהוראת המדעים, ובכללן השימוש ב׳רוח חן׳, התמידו במערכת החינוך המסורתית בקהילות הקראיות שבקרים לפחות עד לשליש השני של המאה התשע עשרה.
Potential benefits of satiety to the consumer: scientific considerations
Authors: Hetherington M. M. , Cunningham K. , Dye L. , Gibson E. L. , Gregersen N. T. , Halford J. C. G. , Lawton C. L. , Lluch A. , Mela D. J. , Van Trijp H. C. M.
Published: May 2013

Foods and dietary patterns that enhance satiety may provide benefit to consumers. The aim of the present review was to describe, consider and evaluate research on potential benefits of enhanced satiety. The proposal that enhanced satiety could only benefit consumers by a direct effect on food intake should be rejected. Instead, it is proposed that there is a variety of routes through which enhanced satiety could (indirectly) benefit dietary control or weight-management goals. The review highlights specific potential benefits of satiety, including: providing appetite control strategies for consumers generally and for those who are highly responsive to food cues; offering pleasure and satisfaction associated with low-energy/healthier versions of foods without feeling ‘deprived’; reducing dysphoric mood associated with hunger especially during energy restriction; and improved compliance with healthy eating or weight-management efforts. There is convincing evidence of short-term satiety benefits, but only probable evidence for longer-term benefits to hunger management, possible evidence of benefits to mood and cognition, inadequate evidence that satiety enhancement can promote weight loss, and no evidence on which consumers would benefit most from satiety enhancement. The appetite-reducing effects of specific foods or diets will be much more subtle than those of pharmaceutical compounds in managing hunger; nevertheless, the experience of pharmacology in producing weight loss via effects on appetite suggests that there is potential benefit of satiety enhancement from foods incorporated into the diet to the consumer.
A certified lightweight non-interference Java bytecode verifier
Authors: BARTHE GILLES , PICHARDIE DAVID , REZK TAMARA
Published: May 2013

Non-interference guarantees the absence of illicit information flow throughout program execution. It can be enforced by appropriate information flow type systems. Much of the previous work on type systems for non-interference has focused on calculi or high-level programming languages, and existing type systems for low-level languages typically omit objects, exceptions and method calls. We define an information flow type system for a sequential JVM-like language that includes all these programming features, and we prove, in the Coq proof assistant, that it guarantees non-interference. An additional benefit of the formalisation is that we have extracted from our proof a certified lightweight bytecode verifier for information flow. Our work provides, to the best of our knowledge, the first sound and certified information flow type system for such an expressive fragment of the JVM.
Non-invasive cardiac output monitoring during catheter interventions in patients with cavopulmonary circulations
Authors: Noonan Patrick Michael Emmet , Viswanathan Sangeetha , Chambers Amy , Stumper Oliver
Published: May 2013

Introduction: Functionally univentricular hearts palliated with superior or total cavopulmonary connection result in circulations in series. The absence of a pre-pulmonary pump means that cardiac output is more difficult to adjust and control. Continuous monitoring of cardiac output is crucial during cardiac catheter interventions and can provide new insights into the complex physiology of these lesions. Materials and methods: The Icon® cardiac output monitor was used to study the changes in cardiac output during catheter interventions in 15 patients (median age: 6.1 years, range: 4.8–15.3 years; median weight: 18.5 kg, range: 15–63 kg) with cavopulmonary circulations. A total of 19 interventions were undertaken in these patients and the observed changes in cardiac output were recorded and analysed. Results: Cardiac output was increased with creation of stent fenestrations after total cavopulmonary connection (median increase of 22.2, range: 6.7%–28.6%) and also with drainage of significant pleural effusions (16.7% increase). Cardiac output was decreased with complete or partial occlusion of fenestrations (median decrease of 10.6, range: 7.1%–13.4%). There was a consistent increase in cardiac output with stenting of obstructive left pulmonary artery lesions (median increase of 7.7, range: 5%–14.3%, p = 0.007). Conclusions: Icon® provides a novel technique for the continuous, non-invasive monitoring of cardiac output. It provides a further adjunct for monitoring of physiologically complex patients during catheter interventions. These results are consistent with previously reported series involving manipulation of fenestrations. This is the first report identifying an increase in cardiac output with stenting of obstructive pulmonary arterial lesions.
Developing a Compassionate Mind to Enhance Trauma-Focused CBT with an Adolescent Female: A Case Study
Authors: Bowyer Laura , Wallis Jennifer , Lee Deborah
Published: May 2013

Background:Shame and disgust are often associated with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) following interpersonal traumas such as sexual assault. It has been suggested that individuals with high levels of shame might do less well in standard cognitive behavioural (CBT) interventions.Aims:To see whether applying compassion-focused therapy and developing a compassionate mind can enhance trauma-focused CBT in an adolescent with high levels of shame and disgust the way it has been shown to within the adult population.Method:This single case study describes how trauma-focused CBT was enhanced by compassionate mind training. It details work using this approach with an adolescent female experiencing shame and disgust-based flashbacks. Treatment was provided for 20 sessions over 8 months. Symptoms of PTSD, depression and self-criticism, as well as the ability to self-soothe/reassure, were measured at assessment/start of treatment, mid- and end of treatment.Results:Clinically significant reductions in PTSD, depressive, shame and self-attacking symptoms were found between assessment and completion of treatment. Clinically significant increases in self-reassurance were also reported. Following treatment, symptoms of PTSD and depression were sub-clinical.Conclusion:This case study suggests that developing a compassionate mind alongside trauma-focused CBT may be beneficial to adolescents experiencing shame and disgust with consideration for the young person's level of development and personal circumstances.
Mortality and smoking prevalence: An empirical investigation in ten developed countries
Authors: Kleinow Torsten , Cairns Andrew J.G.
Published: May 2013

We investigate the link between death rates and smoking prevalence in ten developed countries with the aim of using smoking prevalence data to explain differences in country-specific death rates. A particular problem in building a stochastic mortality model based on smoking prevalence is that there are in general no separate mortality data for smokers and non-smokers available. We show how we can estimate mortality rates for smokers and non-smokers using information about the smoking prevalence in a number of developed countries, and making an additional assumption about the death rates of smokers. We consider this empirical investigation to be the first step towards a consistent mortality model for multiple populations, which will require modelling of country specific differences in mortality, as well as non-smokers’ and smokers’ mortality rates.
Nutritional status and childhood wheezing in rural Bangladesh
Authors: Hawlader Mohammad Delwer Hossain , Noguchi Emiko , El Arifeen Shams , Persson Lars Åke , Moore Sophie E , Raqib Rubhana , Wagatsuma Yukiko
Published: May 2013

Objective

To investigate the association between current childhood nutritional status and current wheezing among pre-school children in rural Bangladesh.

Design

Cross-sectional study.

Setting

Matlab region, rural Bangladesh.

Subjects

Children (n 912) aged 4·5 years. Anthropometric measurements of the mothers and their children were taken during a 1-year period from December 2007 to November 2008. Current wheezing was identified using the International Study of Asthma and Allergies in Childhood questionnaire. Serum total IgE was measured by human IgE quantitative ELISA. IgE specific antibody to dust mites (Dermatophagoides pteronyssinus) was measured by the CAP-FEIA system (Phadia AB, Uppsala, Sweden).

Results

Wheezing at 4·5 years old was significantly associated with stunting (OR = 1·58; 95 % CI 1·13, 2·22) and underweight (OR = 1·39; 95 % CI 1·00, 1·94). The association with stunting remained significant after adjustment for sex, birth weight, birth length, gestational age at birth, mother's parity, maternal BMI, family history of asthma, socio-economic status, season of birth and intervention trial arm (OR = 1·74; 95 % CI 1·19, 2·56).

Conclusions

Stunting was a significant risk factor for wheezing among rural Bangladeshi children. Further studies will be required to confirm the relationship between nutritional status and allergic illnesses in developing countries.
Quantifying daily variation in volume and dose to the prostate, rectum and bladder using cone-beam computerised tomography
Authors: McParland Neil , Pearson Moira , Wong Joanna , Sigur Ivana , Stenger Coral , Tyldesley Scott
Published: May 2013

Introduction

In the era of dose escalation for localised prostate cancer, the dose–volume histogram (DVH) is integral to the assessment of rectum and bladder dose constraints. However, reliance on a single planning computerised tomography-based (P-CT) dose distribution may not account for variations in delivered dose that results from deformation of the prostate, bladder and rectum. This study uses cone-beam CT (CBCT) datasets from five patients to investigate the concordance between the dose prediction from the initial treatment plan and the dose delivered during treatment.

Methods

The intensity-modulated radiation therapy distribution used for treatment was superimposed on alternate day CBCT images for each patient. Dose metrics and absolute volumes for the prostate, rectum and bladder were extracted from the CBCT-based DVH. Differences in dose and volumes were compared with the P-CT values, and significance was tested using the Wilcoxon signed-rank test.

Results

For all five case studies, the prostate dose coverage on CBCT plans was lower than predicted with an average reduction of 3% in mean dose. Significant differences in rectal volumes and dose were observed in two out of five and four out of five patients, respectively. Reductions in bladder volume and subsequent increases in dose were observed for three out of five patients.

Conclusion

The DVH from P-CT was unable to consistently predict the dose delivered to the bladder and rectum. The current bowel and bladder preparation protocols used at our institution did not eliminate variation in bladder and rectum volumes for the five patients included in this study.
The functional coding variant Asn107Ile of the neuropeptide S receptor gene (NPSR1) influences age at onset of obsessive–compulsive disorder
Authors: Lennertz Leonhard , Franke Petra E. , Grabe Hans Jörgen , Rampacher Friederike , Schulze-Rauschenbach Svenja , Guttenthaler Vera , Ruhrmann Stephan , Pukrop Ralf , Klosterkötter Joachim , Falkai Peter , Maier Wolfgang , Wagner Michael , Mössner Rainald
Published: May 2013

Neuropeptide S (NPS) is a novel central acting neuropeptide that modulates several brain functions. NPS has shown strong anxiolytic-like effects and interactions with other central transmitter systems, including serotonin and glutamate. A coding variation (Asn107Ile) of the NPS receptor gene (NPSR1) was associated with panic disorder and schizophrenia. Based on these encouraging findings, the present study aimed at exploring a potential role of NPSR1 in obsessive–compulsive disorder (OCD). A sample of 232 OCD patients was successfully genotyped for the NPSR1 Asn107Ile variant (rs324981). Age at onset was taken into account to address the heterogeneity of the OCD phenotype. The NPSR1 genotype significantly affected age at onset of the OCD patients, with a mean age at onset approximately 4 yr earlier in homozygous carriers of the low-functioning Asn107 variant compared to patients with at least one Ile107 variant (p = 0.032). Case–control analyses with 308 healthy control subjects reveal a highly significant association of the Asn107 variant with early onset OCD (odds ratio = 2.36, p = 0.0004) while late onset OCD or the OCD group as a whole were unrelated to the NPSR1 genotype. Based on our association finding relating NPSR1 genotype to early onset OCD, we suggest a differential role of the NPS system in OCD. In particular, the early onset OCD subtype seems to be characterized by a genetically driven low NPS tone, which might affect other OCD-related transmitter systems, including the serotonin and glutamate systems. In agreement with preclinical research, we suggest that NPS may be a promising pharmacological candidate with anti-obsessional properties.
The Psychological Type Profile of Readers in the Church of England: Clones of the Clergy or Distinctive Voices?
Authors: Francis Leslie J. , Jones Susan H. , Robbins Mandy
Published: May 2013

The present study employs Jungian psychological type theory to examine the profile of 236 Readers serving in the Church of England (108 males and 128 females) alongside previously published data providing the psychological type profile of clergy serving within the Church of England (626 men and 237 women). The analysis was interpreted to test two competing accounts of Reader ministry: that Reader ministry expresses similar qualities to those reflected in ordained ministry, and that Reader ministry represents a pioneer ministry on the boundaries of the church. Overall the findings demonstrate significant psychological similarities between those exercising Reader ministry and those exercising ordained ministry, suggesting that, in the current generation, Readers tend to present themselves as clones of the clergy rather than as distinctive voices equipped for pioneer ministry or for fresh expressions of church.
One world, one health
Authors: van Helden Paul D , van Helden Lesley S , Hoal Eileen G
Published: May 2013

From the point of view that all organisms and the environment share one health, expending effort to address the needs of animals and ecosystems might pay better dividends for human health in the longer term.
The DLK signalling pathway—a double‐edged sword in neural development and regeneration
Authors: Tedeschi Andrea , Bradke Frank
Published: May 2013

Dual leucine zipper kinase (DLK), a mitogen‐activated protein kinase kinase kinase, controls axon growth, apoptosis and neuron degeneration during neural development, as well as neurodegeneration after various insults to the adult nervous system. Interestingly, recent studies have also highlighted a role of DLK in promoting axon regeneration in diverse model systems. Invertebrates and vertebrates, cold‐ and warm‐blooded animals, as well as central and peripheral mammalian nervous systems all differ in their ability to regenerate injured axons. Here, we discuss how DLK‐dependent signalling regulates apparently contradictory functions during neural development and regeneration in different species. In addition, we outline strategies to fine‐tune DLK function, either alone or together with other approaches, to promote axon regeneration in the adult mammalian central nervous system.
MicroRNA and autophagy—C. elegans joins the crew
Authors: Voinnet Olivier
Published: May 2013

In this issue of EMBO reports, Zhang and Zhang reveal an inhibitory role of autophagy in miRNA function in C. elegans and show that autophagy selectively degrades the miRISC component AIN‐1/GW182.
Your decisions are what you eat
Authors: Hunter Philip
Published: May 2013

Does being hungry affect your judgment? Is a good meal a precursor to a good mood? New research is discovering how metabolic state and the nutritional quality of food influence risk‐taking and decision‐making behaviours in animals and humans.
Design of an energy‐efficient cross‐layer protocol for mobile ad hoc networks
Authors: Weng Chuan‐Chi , Chen Ching‐Wen , Chen Po‐Yueh , Chang Kuei‐Chung
Published: May 2013

Reducing energy consumption for data transmissions and prolonging network lifetime are crucial in the design of energy‐efficient routing protocols. The proportion of successful data transmissions is significant for the reduction of data transmission and traffic load energy consumption, although the energy remaining in node is important for prolonging network lifetime. In this study, the authors propose an energy‐efficient cross‐layer design for the network layer and medium access control (MAC) layer that reduces energy consumption and prolongs network lifetime. In the network layer, a minimum transmission energy consumption (MTEC) routing protocol is proposed for selecting the MTEC path for data transmission, based on the proportion of successful data transmissions, the number of channel events, the remaining node energy of nodes and the traffic load of nodes. The authors design an adaptive contention window (ACW) for the MAC layer that provides nodes with high successful transmission rates with greater opportunity for contending for a channel to save energy. They used simulations to compare the proposed cross‐layer design (MTEC with ACW) with related protocols, including dynamic source routing, traffic‐size aware and the Varaprasad routing protocol. The simulation results showed that the proposed cross‐layer design (MTEC with ACW) provided better packet delivery rate and throughput than existing protocols. MTEC with ACW also exhibited lower‐energy consumption during data transmission and a higher network lifetime than existing protocols.
Some new codes from binary Goppa codes and a method of shortening linear codes
Authors: Jibril Mubarak , Tomlinson Martin , Tjhai Cen Jung , Ahmed Mohammed Zaki , Bezzateev Sergey
Published: May 2013

Goppa codes have some of the largest minimum distances possible for linear codes. The authors use some binary Goppa codes in which four new binary codes are obtained with parameters better than any codes known to date. The authors also present the necessary conditions for a code obtained by shortening a longer code which will have a greater minimum distance than the original code.
Low‐complexity symbol timing error detection for quasi‐orthogonal space–time block codes
Authors: Dmochowski Pawel A.
Published: May 2013

The author presents the design and analysis of low‐complexity symbol timing error detectors (TEDs) for timing synchronisation in quasi‐orthogonal space–time block code (QOSTBC) receivers. The estimators operate on data symbols and approximate decision variables, producing timing error measurements which are shown to be robust to channel fading. In evaluating the detector S‐curve for the general form of the estimator, the author shows that the result is independent of the constellation rotation angle employed by the code. The expressions for the estimation error variance and TED signal‐to‐noise ratio are also obtained, with the analysis carried out under the assumptions of perfect data and channel knowledge at the receiver. Through system simulations, the effects of decision errors on the detector characteristics are examined, and the overall system performance is evaluated, where the proposed TEDs are incorporated into the receiver timing loop. Receivers with perfect channel knowledge and pilot‐based channel estimation are considered. Symbol error rate results show timing synchronisation loss of less than 0.5 dB for a receiver with perfect channel information. In addition, it is shown that the receiver is able to track the timing variations two orders of magnitude faster than required by the present‐day hardware oscillators.
Window‐based approach for fast stereo correspondence
Authors: Gupta Raj Kumar , Cho Siu‐Yeung
Published: May 2013

In this study, the authors present a new area‐based stereo matching algorithm that computes dense disparity maps for a real‐time vision system. Although many stereo matching algorithms have been proposed in recent years, correlation‐based algorithms still have an edge because of speed and less memory requirements. The selection of appropriate shape and size of the matching window is a difficult problem for correlation‐based algorithms. In the proposed approach, two correlation windows are used to improve the performance of the algorithm while maintaining its real‐time suitability. The CPU implementation of the proposed algorithm computes more than 10 frame/s. Unlike other area‐based stereo matching algorithms, this method works very well at disparity boundaries as well as in low textured image areas and computes a dense and sharp disparity map. Evaluations on the benchmark Middlebury stereo datasets have been performed to demonstrate the qualitative and quantitative performance of the proposed algorithm.
Description of shape patterns using circular arcs for object detection
Authors: Chang Wonil , Lee Soo‐Young
Published: May 2013

The authors propose a novel object detection algorithm based on shape matching using a single sketch of an object. The proposed algorithm uses circular arc segments to describe image edges; this approach is advantageous for shape description, shape expression and reconstruction. Circular arcs are initially segmented from the image contour using the split‐and‐merge method, and they are extended, being partially overlapped with neighbouring circular arcs. The extracted circular arcs of the object sketch constitute an attributed relational graph as a structured object model. Circular arcs in the test image are refined by the bottom‐up process of circular arc extension, and matched with circular arcs in the object model by the top‐down process of end‐point adjustment. The authors design end‐point‐based shape descriptors to encode local shape information. Hough voting aggregates the detection of circular arcs to localise the object. Probabilistic relaxation verifies the detection candidates and delineate the object boundaries. The proposed object detection system benefits from reliable extraction of contour segments, efficient and discriminative shape encoding, and flexible and robust shape matching. It exhibits competitive object detection performance in experiments using real images.
Real‐time dynamic vehicle detection on resource‐limited mobile platform
Authors: Chen Duan‐Yu , Chen Guo‐Ruei , Wang Yu‐Wen
Published: May 2013

Given the rapid expansion of car ownership worldwide, vehicle safety is an increasingly critical issue in the automobile industry. The reduced cost of cameras and optical devices has made it economically feasible to deploy front‐mounted intelligent systems for visual‐based event detection. Prior to vehicle event detection, detecting vehicles robustly in real time is challenging, especially conducting detection process in images captured by a dynamic camera. Therefore in this study, a robust vehicle detector is developed. The proposed contribution is three‐fold. Road modelling is first proposed to confine detection area for maintaining low computation complexity and reducing false alarms as well. Haar‐like features and eigencolours are then employed for the vehicle detector. To tackle the occlusion problem, chamfer distance is used to estimate the probability of each individual vehicle. Consequently, to find the bounding box of vehicle candidate, the authors take the configuration of a normalised chamfer distance map that corresponds to the maximum score as the target using exponential entropy. Experiments on an extensive dataset show that the proposed system can effectively detect vehicles under different lighting and traffic conditions, and thus demonstrates its feasibility in real‐world environments.
Adaptive shadow detection using global texture and sampling deduction
Authors: Jiang Ke , Li Ai‐hua , Cui Zhi‐gao , Wang Tao , Su Yan‐zhao
Published: May 2013

An adaptive shadow detection algorithm is proposed to eliminate interference on object detection from the shadow. The algorithm uses three components in YUV colour space to identify shadow pixels from the candidate foreground. An adaptive threshold estimator is designed to improve shadow detection accuracy and adaptive capacity in various lighting conditions. This estimator uses edge detection method to obtain global texture, as well statistical calculations to obtain the thresholds. Algorithm has the characteristic of low complexity and little restraint; hence it is suitable for real time‐moving shadow detection in various lighting conditions. Experiment results show that this algorithm can obtain a high detection accuracy and the time‐assume is greatly shortened compared with other algorithms with similar accuracy.
Sensorless control of a dual‐airgap axial flux permanent magnet machine for flywheel energy storage system
Authors: Nguyen Trong Duy , Foo Gilbert
Published: May 2013

This study presents the sensorless vector control of a dual‐airgap axial flux permanent magnet (AFPM) machine optimised for use in flywheel energy storage system (FESS) applications. The proposed AFPM machine has two sets of three‐phase stator windings but only requires a single power converter to control both electromagnetic torque and axial levitation force. The proper controllability of the latter is crucial as it can be utilised to minimise the vertical bearing stress to improve the efficiency of the FESS. The method for controlling the speed and axial displacement of the machine is discussed. An inherent speed sensorless observer is also proposed for speed estimation. The proposed observer eliminates the rotary encoder, which in turn reduces the overall weight and cost of the system while improving its reliability. The effectiveness of the proposed control scheme has been verified by simulations and experiments on a prototype machine.
Characteristic analysis and design of a novel permanent magnetic actuator for a vacuum circuit breaker
Authors: Ro Jong‐Suk , Hong Seung‐Ki , Jung Hyun‐Kyo
Published: May 2013

In this study, a novel permanent magnetic actuator (PMA) termed a separated permanent magnetic actuator (SPMA) is proposed. The efficiency of the proposed SPMA is significantly higher than a conventional PMA because of its innovative structure, with which the magnetic flux path is efficient and the holding forces can be designed independently taking the unique values of each load into consideration. Hence, the SPMA is smaller in size and lower in cost than the conventional PMA. For the SPMA, a characteristic analysis and design method using a two‐dimensional finite element method, an equivalent circuit, an equation of motion and a time difference method is suggested in this study to save time and reduce the costs incurred because of the experimental trial and error deign. The SPMA was designed and prototyped such that the usefulness of the SPMA for application to a vacuum circuit breaker and the reasonableness of the suggested characteristic analysis and design method were confirmed by the experimental data.
Experimental determination and numerical evaluation of core losses in a 150‐kVA wound‐field synchronous machine
Authors: Rasilo Paavo , Belahcen Anouar , Arkkio Antero
Published: May 2013

The losses in the laminated core of a 150‐kVA wound‐field synchronous machine are investigated with calorimetric measurements and a numerical iron‐loss model for steel laminations. Both grid supply and pulse‐width modulated inverter supply with 1 kHz and 6 kHz switching frequencies are studied. The effect of rotor lamination material on total core losses is studied by measuring and simulating the machine with three prototype rotors, the first one being stacked of insulated 0.5‐mm Fe–Si sheets and the last two of uninsulated 1‐mm and 2‐mm steel sheets, respectively. At no load, the losses in the frame of the machine are shown to be extremely significant with voltages above the rated one. The results on load operation show that the additional inverter‐induced core losses are significantly larger with the thicker sheets. The rotor eddy‐current loss is the most affected component because of loading and the distorted supply voltage. However, unlike expected and predicted by the model, the differences in the losses between the 1‐mm and 2‐mm rotors are negligible in no‐load operation and relatively small also at load operation.
Corrections to ‘Analytical closed‐form solutions for different configurations of parallel‐coupled microstrip lines’
Authors: Abbosh Amin M.
Published: May 2013

The author noticed that three of the equations that are published in the paper [1] include typos that cause significant confusion to the researchers and engineers who try to use the derived closed‐form model. This letter includes the corrected equations. All the results included in the published paper are correct as they are based on the correct form of the equations.
Miniaturised asymmetric E‐shaped microstrip patch antenna with folded‐patch feed
Authors: Malekpoor Hossein , Jam Shahrokh
Published: May 2013

A design of probe‐fed compact wideband microstrip patch antenna which is configured of an asymmetric E‐shaped patch, a folded‐patch feed and shorting pins, is presented in this study. In this design, unequal resonance arms fed by a folded patch produce three resonances to broaden the impedance bandwidth. Shorting pins are applied to miniaturise the size of the patch. The performance of broadening the impedance bandwidth is explored by investigating the behaviour of the surface currents on the patch. The antenna presents resonance tuning ability within the impedance bandwidth by varying the length of unequal arms. The measured −10 dB impedance bandwidth of the fabricated antenna is 76.18% from 3.34 to 7.45 GHz for ultra‐wideband applications. The size of this antenna is 0.379λL × 0.145λL × 0.078λL, where λL is wavelength at the lower frequency of the measured operating bandwidth in the free space. Fabrication of this antenna is less complex than similar wideband antennas with folded‐patch feed. In addition, parametric studies are performed by investigating the effects of different key parameters on obtaining an optimal design of the proposed antenna design.
Rigorous derivation of lossy equivalent circuit for narrowband waveguide direct‐coupled‐cavity filters
Authors: Antonio Lorente Jose , Ernst Christoph , Alvarez Melcon Alejandro
Published: May 2013

This study presents a technique to rigorously derive a complete lossy equivalent circuit of narrowband direct‐coupled‐cavity filters with arbitrary cross‐section and arbitrary coupling geometries. Traditionally, only dissipation loss and stored energy because of closed unperturbed cavities have been taken into account in the design of complete filters and the contribution because of coupling structures has been neglected. An additional challenge is the non‐trivial discrimination of cavities and couplings in a direct‐coupled‐cavity filter. With the proposed circuit, the contribution of the coupling structures to the total dissipated power and total stored energy of the filter can be derived and a clear separation between resonators and couplings is established. The technique developed uses the even and odd mode theory to successfully derive lossy equivalent circuits for inter‐cavity couplings. The lossy circuit of external (input/output) couplings is also derived. A fifth degree direct‐coupled‐cavity filter has been designed, simulated and manufactured. Its lossy equivalent circuit has been extracted and comparisons with simulations and measurements show excellent agreement. Applications of the novel equivalent circuit in the prediction of losses in waveguide filters and in yield analyses are also illustrated.
Direct solution of electromagnetic scattering from perfect electric conducting targets using multilevel characteristic basis function method with adaptive cross approximation algorithm
Authors: Chen Xinlei , Gu Changqing , Ding Ji , Li Zhuo , Niu Zhenyi
Published: May 2013

The adaptive cross approximation (ACA) enhanced multilevel characteristic basis function method (MLCBFM) is studied in this article. It is well known that the impedance submatrices containing the reaction terms of low‐level basis functions such as Rao–Wilton–Glisson basis functions have low‐rank property. However, the authors find that the high‐level impedance matrices between nonoverlapping high‐level blocks are also low rank and can be compressed efficiently. This property is used to efficiently calculate the high‐level reduced matrix of the MLCBFM through the ACA algorithm in this study. Furthermore an efficient scheme for the high‐level characteristic basis functions (CBFs) generation is given, which reduces the redundant operations in the high‐level CBFs generation step without loss of accuracy. Numerical results are given to demonstrate the accuracy and efficiency of the presented method.
Wideband folded mushroom zeroth‐order resonance antenna
Authors: Ko Seung‐Tae , Lee Jeong‐Hae
Published: May 2013

In this study, a wideband folded mushroom zeroth‐order resonance (ZOR) antenna is presented. To obtain a wide bandwidth, the frequency of the TM010 (λ0/2) mode is down‐shifted to the frequency of the ZOR mode by folding a mushroom structure without any additional structure. Thus, the folded mushroom antenna operates over two modes, resulting in a wide bandwidth. The antenna has a dimension of 0.365λ0 × 0.247λ0 × 0.182λ0 at the centre frequency. Its 10 dB fractional bandwidth is measured as 68.3%. The maximum gains of 3.32 and 3.41 dBi are measured at the ZOR mode and the TM010 mode, respectively. Finally, the measured results show good agreements with the simulated results.
Electromagnetic sub‐bands in an axisymmetric doubly rippled wall metallic slow wave structure
Authors: Amin Md. Ruhul
Published: May 2013

Slow wave structure (SWS) is the vital component of slow wave type high‐power microwave (HPM) devices where the kinetic energy of an axially streaming electron beam is resonantly extracted to produce microwave radiation. The frequency of the generated microwave predominantly depends on the beam energy and the dispersion characteristics of the SWS. Many types of SWSs have been investigated and implemented in real experiments. Among them, cylindrical metallic structures with sinusoidally rippled inner wall have gained popularity in backward wave oscillators. To enhance the efficiency of the devices, prolonged and stable interaction of the EM wave with electron beam is important. One of the possible techniques to improve the performance of the devices could be the use of non‐uniform SWS. In this study, a doubly rippled inner wall SWS is considered. The radius of the structure is varied sinusoidally with two periods. Using linear theory, the dispersion relation of the EM wave inside the structure in the absence of electron beam has been analysed numerically. It has been observed that a single band of the conventional sinusoidally rippled SWS is decomposed into several sub‐bands depending on the ratio of the length of two periods. Some of the sub‐bands are so flat that the frequency of the microwave radiation can be made insensitive to the beam energy fluctuation.
Antenna design exploiting adjoint sensitivity‐based geometry evolution
Authors: Ghassemi Massoud , Bakr Mohamed , Sangary Nagula
Published: May 2013

The authors present a new approach for evolutionary antenna design. Through exploiting efficient adjoint sensitivity analysis techniques, the antenna structure evolves to better satisfy the design constraints. The coordinates of a selected number of control vertices are chosen as optimisation parameters thus enabling evolution to arbitrary shapes. The authors approach is illustrated through the design of a number of microstrip structures.
Wideband, low profile P‐ and Ku‐band shared aperture antenna with high isolation and low cross‐polarisation
Authors: Zhou Shi‐Gang , Tan Peng‐Khiang , Chio Tan‐Huat
Published: May 2013

This study describes the design of a wideband, low‐profile shared aperture antenna operating at P‐band and Ku‐band. This antenna operates with dual‐linear polarisation in P‐band and single‐linear polarisation in Ku‐band. In this antenna design, it consists of one P‐band microstrip patch antenna and an 8 × 8 Ku‐band aperture‐coupled patch array. The antenna covers from 330 to 420 MHz in the P‐band and from 14.27 to 16.20 GHz in Ku‐band with |S11| better than − 10 dB, which translates to 24 and 13% bandwidth in P‐ and Ku‐band, respectively. The overall height of the antenna is about 80 mm, approximately 0.09λ at the lowest frequency. The cross polarisation is better than − 20 dB in the P‐band and − 26 dB in the Ku‐band. There is virtually no coupling between the P‐ and Ku‐band. The measured gain varies from 6.5 to 7.5 dBi in the P‐band and from 22.5 to 23.4 dBi in Ku‐band.
Compact dual‐wideband bandstop filters based on open‐coupled lines and transversal signal‐interaction concepts
Authors: Feng Wenjie J. , Che Wenquan Q. , Shi Suyang Y. , Xue Quan
Published: May 2013

Two compact dual‐wideband bandstop filters based on open‐coupled lines and transversal signal‐interaction concepts are proposed in this study. Two transmission paths with a half‐wavelength open stub and two open‐coupled lines are used to realise two wide stopbands for WLAN bands. Second/third‐order stopbands with transmission poles near each stopband can be easily achieved by the two transmission paths. Two planar dual‐wideband bandstop filters with 10 dB fractional bandwidths of 40 and 18.2, 61 and 26.8% are designed and fabricated. The theoretical and measured results are in good agreement and show good in‐band filtering performance and high selectivity.