bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
German Cranial Reconstruction Registry (GCRR): protocol for a prospective, multicentre, open registry
Authors: Giese Henrik , Sauvigny Thomas , Sakowitz Oliver W , Bierschneider Michael , Güresir Erdem , Henker Christian , Höhne Julius , Lindner Dirk , Mielke Dorothee , Pannewitz Robert , Rohde Veit , Scholz Martin , Schuss Patrick , Regelsberger Jan
Published: October 2015

Introduction

Owing to increasing numbers of decompressive craniectomies in patients with malignant middle cerebral artery infarction, cranioplastic surgery becomes more relevant. However, the current literature mainly consists of retrospective single-centre (evidence class III) studies. This leads to a wide variability of technical approaches and clinical outcomes. To improve our knowledge about the key elements of cranioplasty, which may help optimising clinical treatment and long-term outcome, a prospective multicentre registry across Germany, Austria and Switzerland will be established.

Methods

All patients undergoing cranioplastic surgery in participating centres will be invited to join the registry. Technical methods, materials, medical history, adverse events and clinical outcome measures, including modified Rankin scale and EQ-5D, will be assessed at several time points. Patients will be accessible to inclusion either at initial decompressive surgery or when cranioplasty is planned. Scheduled monitoring will be carried out at time of inclusion and subsequently at time of discharge, if any readmission is necessary, and at follow-up presentation. Cosmetic results and patient satisfaction will also be assessed. Collected data will be managed and statistically analysed by an independent biometric institute. The primary endpoint will be mortality, need for operative revision and neurological status at 3 months following cranioplasty.

Ethics and dissemination

Ethics approval was obtained at all participating centres. The registry will provide reliable prospective evidence on surgical techniques, used materials, adverse events and functional outcome, to optimise patient treatment. We expect this study to give new insights in the treatment of skull defects and to provide a basis for future evidence-based therapy regarding cranioplastic surgery.

Trial registration number

This trial is indexed in the German Clinical Trials Register (DRKS-ID: DRKS00007931). The Universal Trial Number (UTN) is U1111-1168-7425.
Equine back disorders 1. Clinical presentation, investigation and diagnosis
Authors: Findley Judith , Singer Ellen
Published: October 2015

Potential back pain is frequently investigated as a cause of poor performance or behavioural problems in horses. The term ‘back pain’ encompasses a range of osseous, muscular and ligamentous pathologies and it is often challenging for the equine veterinarian to determine whether a horse has primary back pain, back pain secondary to lameness and an alteration in gait pattern, or has a training or behavioural issue. Careful examination and analysis is essential to reach an accurate diagnosis in these cases. This article, the first in a two‐part series, will discuss the approach to investigating suspected back pain, including the appropriate choice of diagnostic tests and imaging modalities to aid decision making in these potentially difficult cases. The second article, to be published in a subsequent issue of In Practice, will describe the conservative and surgical treatment options for the management of thoracolumbar and sacroiliac region pain.
Common gastrointestinal parasites in reptiles
Authors: Machin Ross Ashley
Published: October 2015

Reptiles are becoming more frequent visitors to veterinary practices across the UK and it is therefore important that general practitioners are able to identify common diseases in these animals. This article describes tests that can be performed on a day‐to‐day basis to identify a parasitic infection and gives a brief overview of the frequently encountered gastrointestinal parasites found in reptiles that are kept as pets or in collections and may be seen in practice in the UK.
Antiphospholipid syndrome presenting as cerebral venous sinus thrombosis: a case series and a review
Authors: Shlebak Abdul
Published: October 2015

The cerebral venous sinus system is a rare site for venous thrombosis except in patients with antiphospholipid syndrome. We describe three patients presenting with cerebral venous thrombosis in association with other thrombotic sites in two patients and as an only site in one patient. Antiphospholipid syndrome has varied clinical manifestations but the defining feature is the persistent presence of antiphospholipid antibodies. In this report we will review the clinical and laboratory diagnostic criteria and the management of patients with antiphospholipid syndrome.
Half-metallic properties of the new Ti2YPb(Y = Co, Fe) Heusler alloys
Authors: Hussain Moaid K. , Gao G. Y. , Yao Kai-Lun
Published: October 2015

The half-metallic properties of Ti2YPb(Y = Co, Fe) Heusler alloys with a CuHg2Ti-type structure were examined within the frame of the density functional theory and the Perdew–Burke–Ernzerh of generalized gradient approximation (GGA). Analysis of the electronic band structures and density of states for Ti2YPb(Y = Co, Fe) revealed that the spin-up bands are metallic, whereas the spin-down bands exhibit gaps of 0.73 and 0.70 eV, respectively. The magnetic moments calculated for the Ti2YPb(Y = Co, Fe) alloys were found to be equal to 3 [Formula: see text]/f.u. and 2 [Formula: see text]/f.u., values which both follows the Slater–Pauling rule of [Formula: see text]. The compounds’ negative enthalpy values should encourage their experimental realization in the future. The bandgap was elucidated to be mainly determined by the bonding and antibonding states created from the hybridizations of the d states between the Ti(1)–Ti(2) coupling and the Y = Co, Fe atom. The half-metallic properties of the Ti2YPb(Y = Co, Fe) compounds were found to be insensitive to lattice distortion, with full spin polarization achievable within a large range of lattice parameter values, making the alloys suitable for use in practical applications.
Study of microstructure and augmentation of DC electrical resistivity due to Al3+ substitution in Ni–Zn nano ferrite system synthesized via auto combustion
Authors: Babu B. Rajesh , Ramesh K. V. , Prasad M. Sivaram , Purushotham Y.
Published: October 2015

Nanocrystalline Ni–Zn–Al spinel ferrite was synthesized via citrate-gel auto combustion method. The as-prepared powders have been separated into two batches in which one batch of powders were sintered at 1000[Formula: see text]C for 4 h and the other batch were pressed into pellets and were sintered at the same temperature. Sintering of the samples was done in air atmosphere followed by natural cooling to room temperature. The heat treated powders have then been characterized using TG–DTA, XRD, SEM and TEM for thermal, structural and microstructural aspects while the DC electrical resistivity measurements were carried out on the sintered pellets. The X-ray diffraction patterns displayed the formation of the spinel phase for all powders and the lattice parameter was obtained using Bragg’s law. The crystallite size for all compositions were found to be in nano dimensions and obtained from the Williamson–Hall method. TG–DTA analysis of the undoped [Formula: see text] indicated the formation of the spinel phase is around 400[Formula: see text]C while almost uniform microstructure with a more or less spherical grains has been noticed in the SEM micrograph. An enhancement in the DC electrical resistivity ([Formula: see text]-cm) has been observed in [Formula: see text] synthesized using this technique in comparison with that processed through conventional ceramic technique and a modification in the resistivity has been observed on substituting [Formula: see text] in place of [Formula: see text]. High electrical resistivity makes these ferrites suitable for high-frequency applications due to possible reduction of the eddy current losses. The observed variation in resistivity has been discussed on amendments in structure, microstructure and unavailability of [Formula: see text] ions with increasing [Formula: see text] ions in the light of existing understanding. The decrease in resistivity with increasing temperature confirms the semiconducting behavior of all samples. Activation energies for conduction were obtained from the slope of the log [Formula: see text] versus [Formula: see text] plots and observed to be in the range of 0.6–0.45 eV. The variation in the activation energy for conduction followed a similar trend as the DC resistivity. The drift mobility decreases with increasing [Formula: see text] ions concentration and increases with increasing temperature.
The driver’s anticipation effect with passing in lattice model for two-lane freeway
Authors: Peng Guanghan
Published: October 2015

In this paper, a new lattice model is proposed with the consideration of the driver’s anticipation effect with passing for two-lane traffic system. The linear stability condition and the mKdV equation which are correlative to the driver’s anticipation effect with passing are derived from linear stability analysis and nonlinear analysis, respectively. Numerical simulation shows that the driver’s anticipation effects with passing can efficiently enhance the stability of traffic flow under lane changing on two-lane highway.
Hyperspectral Data Feature Extraction Using Rational Function Curve Fitting
Authors: Hosseini S. Abolfazl , Ghassemian Hassan
Published: October 2015

A feature reduction technique is proposed for the hyperspectral (HS) data classification problem. The new features have been developed through a curve fitting step which fits specific rational function approximations to every spectral response curve (SRC) of HS image pixels. Then, the coefficients of the numerator and denominator polynomials of these fitted functions are considered as new extracted features. The method concentrates on the geometrical nature of SRCs and is utilizing the information that exists in sequence discipline — ordinance of reflectance coefficients in SRC — which has not been addressed by many other statistical analysis based methods. Maximum likelihood (ML) classification results show that the proposed method provides better classification accuracies compared to some basic and state-of-the-art feature extraction methods. Moreover, the proposed algorithm has the capability of being applied individually and simultaneously to all pixels of image.
On the probability distribution associated to commutator word map in finite groups
Authors: Nath Rajat Kanti , Yadav Manoj Kumar
Published: October 2015

In this paper, we study the probability distribution associated to the commutator word map. In other words, we study the probability of a given element of a group to be equal to a commutator of two randomly chosen group elements. We compute explicit formulas for calculating this probability for some interesting classes of groups having only two different conjugacy class sizes.
TOWARDS A MORE GENERAL TYPE OF UNIVARIATE CONSTRAINED INTERPOLATION WITH FRACTAL SPLINES
Authors: CHAND A. K. B. , VISWANATHAN P. , REDDY K. M.
Published: October 2015

Recently, in [Electron. Trans. Numer. Anal. 41 (2014) 420–442] authors introduced a new class of rational cubic fractal interpolation functions with linear denominators via fractal perturbation of traditional nonrecursive rational cubic splines and investigated their basic shape preserving properties. The main goal of the current paper is to embark on univariate constrained fractal interpolation that is more general than what was considered so far. To this end, we propose some strategies for selecting the parameters of the rational fractal spline so that the interpolating curves lie strictly above or below a prescribed linear or a quadratic spline function. Approximation property of the proposed rational cubic fractal spine is broached by using the Peano kernel theorem as an interlude. The paper also provides an illustration of background theory, veined by examples.
Modeling Tag-Aware Recommendations Based on User Preferences
Authors: Hunag Jiajin , Yuan Xi , Zhong Ning , Yao Yiyu
Published: October 2015

A recommender system aims at recommending items that users might be interested in. With an increasing popularity of social tagging systems, it becomes urgent to model recommendations on users, items, and tags in a unified way. In this paper, we propose a framework for studying recommender systems by modeling user preferences as a relation on (user, item, tag) triples. We discuss tag-aware recommender systems from two aspects. On the one hand, we compute associations between users and items related to tags by using an adaptive method and recommend tags to users or predict item properties for users. On the other hand, by taking the similarity-based recommendation as a case study, we discuss similarity measures from both qualitative and quantitative perspectives and k-nearest neighbors and reverse k-nearest neighbors for recommendations.
Dynamics of glucose-induced insulin secretion in normal human islets
Authors: Henquin Jean-Claude , Dufrane Denis , Kerr-Conte Julie , Nenquin Myriam
Published: October 2015

The biphasic pattern of glucose-induced insulin secretion is altered in type 2 diabetes. Impairment of the first phase is an early sign of β-cell dysfunction, but the underlying mechanisms are still unknown. Their identification through in vitro comparisons of islets from diabetic and control subjects requires characterization and quantification of the dynamics of insulin secretion by normal islets. When perifused normal human islets were stimulated with 15 mmol/l glucose (G15), the proinsulin/insulin ratio in secretory products rapidly and reversibly decreased (∼50%) and did not reaugment with time. Switching from prestimulatory G3 to G6–G30 induced biphasic insulin secretion with flat but sustained (2 h) second phases. Stimulation index reached 6.7- and 3.6-fold for the first and second phases induced by G10. Concentration dependency was similar for both phases, with half-maximal and maximal responses at G6.5 and G15, respectively. First-phase response to G15–G30 was diminished by short (30–60 min) prestimulation in G6 (vs. G3) and abolished by prestimulation in G8, whereas the second phase was unaffected. After 1–2 days of culture in G8 (instead of G5), islets were virtually unresponsive to G15. In both settings, a brief return to G3–G5 or transient omission of CaCl2restored biphasic insulin secretion. Strikingly, tolbutamide and arginine evoked immediate insulin secretion in islets refractory to glucose. In conclusion, we quantitatively characterized the dynamics of glucose-induced insulin secretion in normal human islets and showed that slight elevation of prestimulatory glucose reversibly impairs the first phase, which supports the view that the similar impairment in type 2 diabetic patients might partially be a secondary phenomenon.
Induction of chronic pancreatitis by pancreatic duct ligation activates BMP2, apelin, and PTHrP expression in mice
Authors: Rastellini Cristiana , Han Song , Bhatia Vandanajay , Cao Yanna , Liu Ka , Gao Xuxia , Ko Tien C. , Greeley George H. , Falzon Miriam
Published: October 2015

Chronic pancreatitis (CP) is a devastating disease with no treatments. Experimental models have been developed to reproduce the parenchyma and inflammatory responses typical of human CP. For the present study, one objective was to assess and compare the effects of pancreatic duct ligation (PDL) to those of repetitive cerulein (Cer)-induced CP in mice on pancreatic production of bone morphogenetic protein-2 (BMP2), apelin, and parathyroid hormone-related protein (PTHrP). A second objective was to determine the extent of cross talk among pancreatic BMP2, apelin, and PTHrP signaling systems. We focused on BMP2, apelin, and PTHrP since these factors regulate the inflammation-fibrosis cascade during pancreatitis. Findings showed that PDL- and Cer-induced CP resulted in significant elevations in expression and peptide/protein levels of pancreatic BMP2, apelin, and PTHrP. In vivo mouse and in vitro pancreatic cell culture experiments demonstrated that BMP2 stimulated pancreatic apelin expression whereas apelin expression was inhibited by PTHrP exposure. Apelin or BMP2 exposure inhibited PTHrP expression, and PTHrP stimulated upregulation of gremlin, an endogenous inhibitor of BMP2 activity. Transforming growth factor-β (TGF-β) stimulated PTHrP expression. Together, findings demonstrated that PDL- and Cer-induced CP resulted in increased production of the pancreatic BMP2, apelin, and PTHrP signaling systems and that significant cross talk occurred among pancreatic BMP2, apelin, and PTHrP. These results together with previous findings imply that these factors interact via a pancreatic network to regulate the inflammation-fibrosis cascade during CP. More importantly, this network communicated with TGF-β, a key effector of pancreatic pathophysiology. This novel network may be amenable to pharmacologic manipulations during CP in humans.
Changes in sensory reweighting of proprioceptive information during standing balance with age and disease
Authors: Pasma J. H. , Engelhart D. , Maier A. B. , Schouten A. C. , van der Kooij H. , Meskers C. G. M.
Published: October 2015

With sensory reweighting, reliable sensory information is selected over unreliable information during balance by dynamically combining this information. We used system identification techniques to show the weight and the adaptive process of weight change of proprioceptive information during standing balance with age and specific diseases. Ten healthy young subjects (aged between 20 and 30 yr) and 44 elderly subjects (aged above 65 yr) encompassing 10 healthy elderly, 10 with cataract, 10 with polyneuropathy, and 14 with impaired balance, participated in the study. During stance, proprioceptive information of the ankles was disturbed by rotation of the support surface with specific frequency content where disturbance amplitude increased over trials. Body sway and reactive ankle torque were measured to determine sensitivity functions of these responses to the disturbance amplitude. Model fits resulted in a proprioceptive weight (changing over trials), time delay, force feedback, reflexive stiffness, and damping. The proprioceptive weight was higher in healthy elderly compared with young subjects and higher in elderly subjects with cataract and with impaired balance compared with healthy elderly subjects. Proprioceptive weight decreased with increasing disturbance amplitude; decrease was similar in all groups. In all groups, the time delay was higher and the reflexive stiffness was lower compared with young or healthy elderly subjects. In conclusion, proprioceptive information is weighted more with age and in patients with cataract and impaired balance. With age and specific diseases the time delay was higher and reflexive stiffness was lower. These results illustrate the opportunity to detect the underlying cause of impaired balance in the elderly with system identification.
Brittle Creep Failure, Critical Behavior, and Time-to-Failure Prediction of Concrete under Uniaxial Compression
Authors: Wang Yingchong , Zhou Na , Chang Fuqing , Hao Shengwang
Published: October 2015

Understanding the time-dependent brittle deformation behavior of concrete as a main building material is fundamental for the lifetime prediction and engineering design. Herein, we present the experimental measures of brittle creep failure, critical behavior, and the dependence of time-to-failure, on the secondary creep rate of concrete under sustained uniaxial compression. A complete evolution process of creep failure is achieved. Three typical creep stages are observed, including the primary (decelerating), secondary (steady state creep regime), and tertiary creep (accelerating creep) stages. The time-to-failure shows sample-specificity although all samples exhibit a similar creep process. All specimens exhibit a critical power-law behavior with an exponent of −0.51 ± 0.06, approximately equal to the theoretical value of −1/2. All samples have a long-term secondary stage characterized by a constant strain rate that dominates the lifetime of a sample. The average creep rate expressed by the total creep strain over the lifetime (tf-t0) for each specimen shows a power-law dependence on the secondary creep rate with an exponent of −1. This could provide a clue to the prediction of the time-to-failure of concrete, based on the monitoring of the creep behavior at the steady stage.
A Retrospective Analysis of Patients’ Conditions Using Acupuncture in a Traditional Korean Medicine Hospital
Authors: Yun Kyung-Jin , Lee Ju Ah , Choi Jiae , Ko Mi Mi , Lee Cham-kyul , Lee Myeong Soo , Lee Eun-Yong
Published: October 2015

Objective.The aim of this study was to identify the patient demographics, health issues, and type of acupuncture treatments who visited a traditional Korean medical hospital for acupuncture treatment.Methods.We retrospectively analysed the data using the electronic medical records (EMRs) of patients treated with at least one treatment of acupuncture from 1 January 2010 to December 2012 in the Chung-Ju Korean hospital at Semyung University.Results.The total number of identified patients was 1189 inpatients and 10138 outpatients. The 50–59 age group received acupuncture treatment in the hospital the most, followed by the 40–49 age group. Among the patients undergoing acupuncture treatment because of a diagnosis of pain, 82.74% were outpatients and 72.85% were inpatients. Additionally, all patients with a spine condition received acupuncture treatment. The most common musculoskeletal conditions of patients at the traditional Korean medicine (TKM) hospital were associated with spine conditions, such as low back pain and neck pain. Various treatments have been performed at the hospital in conjunction with acupuncture. The study results show a high prevalence of acupuncture treatment for diagnosed diseases.Conclusion.Our study suggests the need to investigate additional TKM hospitals to analyse characteristics of patients who received specific treatments. Analysis of the characteristics of patients treated with Korean acupuncture at the TKM hospital in this study will help future researchers who want to implement strong clinical evidence. However, we cannot completely discount all symptoms because of the retrospective nature of this study, and only one hospital was used, which limits the generalisation of our findings.
Analysis of Secret Key Randomness Exploiting the Radio Channel Variability
Authors: Mazloum Taghrid , Sibille Alain
Published: October 2015

A few years ago, physical layer based techniques have started to be considered as a way to improve security in wireless communications. A well known problem is the management of ciphering keys, both regarding the generation and distribution of these keys. A way to alleviate such difficulties is to use a common source of randomness for the legitimate terminals, not accessible to an eavesdropper. This is the case of the fading propagation channel, when exact or approximate reciprocity applies. Although this principle has been known for long, not so many works have evaluated the effect of radio channel properties in practical environments on the degree of randomness of the generated keys. To this end, we here investigate indoor radio channel measurements in different environments and settings at either 2.4625 GHz or 5.4 GHz band, of particular interest for WIFI related standards. Key bits are extracted by quantizing the complex channel coefficients and their randomness is evaluated using the NIST test suite. We then look at the impact of the carrier frequency, the channel variability in the space, time, and frequency degrees of freedom used to construct a long secret key, in relation to the nature of the radio environment such as the LOS/NLOS character.
Syndrome Differentiation Analysis on Mars500 Data of Traditional Chinese Medicine
Authors: Li Yong-Zhi , Li Guo-Zheng , Gao Jian-Yi , Zhang Zhi-Feng , Fan Quan-Chun , Xu Jia-Tuo , Bai Gui-E , Chen Kai-Xian , Shi Hong-Zhi , Sun Sheng , Liu Yu , Shao Feng-Feng , Mi Tao , Jia Xin-Hong , Zhao Shuang , Chen Jia-Chang , Liu Jun-Lian , Guo Yu-Meng , Tu Li Ping
Published: October 2015

Mars500 study was a psychological and physiological isolation experiment conducted by Russia, the European Space Agency, and China, in preparation for an unspecified future manned spaceflight to the planet Mars. Its intention was to yield valuable psychological and medical data on the effects of the planned long‐term deep space mission. In this paper, we present data mining methods to mine medical data collected from the crew consisting of six spaceman volunteers. The synthesis of the four diagnostic methods of TCM, inspection, listening, inquiry, and palpation, is used in our syndrome differentiation. We adopt statistics method to describe the syndrome factor regular pattern of spaceman volunteers. Hybrid optimization based multilabel (HOML) is used as feature selection method and multilabel k‐nearest neighbors (ML‐KNN) is applied. According to the syndrome factor statistical result, we find that qi deficiency is a base syndrome pattern throughout the entire experiment process and, at the same time, there are different associated syndromes such as liver depression, spleen deficiency, dampness stagnancy, and yin deficiency, due to differences of individual situation. With feature selection, we screen out ten key factors which are essential to syndrome differentiation in TCM. The average precision of multilabel classification model reaches 80%.
Safety and Efficacy of Adding Fixed-Combination Brinzolamide/Timolol Maleate to Prostaglandin Therapy for Treatment of Ocular Hypertension or Glaucoma
Authors: Hommer Anton , Hubatsch Douglas A. , Cano-Parra Juan
Published: October 2015

Purpose. To evaluate the safety and efficacy of adding brinzolamide 1%/timolol maleate 0.5% fixed combination (BTFC) to a prostaglandin analog (PGA).Methods. This was a 12-week, open-label, single-arm study of patients with open-angle glaucoma or ocular hypertension with intraocular pressure (IOP) not sufficiently controlled after ≥4 weeks of PGA monotherapy. The primary outcome was mean IOP change from baseline at week 12. Other outcomes included IOP change from baseline at week 4, percentage of patients achieving IOP ≤18 mmHg at week 12, and patient experience survey responses at week 12.Results. Forty-seven patients were enrolled and received treatment. The most commonly used PGAs were latanoprost (47%) and travoprost (32%). Mean ± SD IOP was decreased at week 12 (17.2 ± 4.1 mmHg) compared with baseline (23.1 ± 3.0 mmHg;P<0.001, pairedt-test); IOP at week 4 was 17.2 ± 3.3 mmHg. At week 12, 70% of patients achieved IOP ≤18 mmHg. Patient-reported symptoms (e.g., pain and redness) were mostly unchanged from baseline. Twenty-eight adverse events (AEs) were reported; the most frequently reported AE was headache (3 events in 2 patients).Conclusion. Adjunctive BTFC + PGA therapy was effective and well tolerated. IOP decreased by 6 mmHg at weeks 4 and 12.
Seismic Performances of Replaceable Steel Connection with Low Yield Point Metal
Authors: He Haoxiang , Chen Kui , Li Ruifeng
Published: October 2015

Compared with the traditional steel rigid connection, the beam-column connections with weakened beam end have better ductility, but the local buckling in the weakened zone and the overall lateral deformation may occur in strong earthquake. The replaceable steel connection with low yield point metal is proposed based on the concept of earthquake resilient structure. In this connection, the weakened parts in the flange slab and web plate are filled with low yield point metal, and the metal firstly yields and dissipates energy sufficiently in earthquake; hence, the main parts are intact and the yield point metal can be replaced. The seismic performances of the three types of connections which include traditional connection, beam end weakened connection, and replaceable connection with low yield point steel under low cycle reciprocating load are studied. In addition, the energy dissipation capacity and damage characteristics of different connections are compared. The multiscale finite element models for the steel frames with different connections are analyzed by time-history method; both the computational efficiency and the accuracy are assured. The analysis results approve that the replaceable connection can confine the major damage in the replacement material and have better energy dissipation ability, safety reserves, and resilient ability.
Channel Parameters Identification Based on IMM Algorithm for Variant Correlation Channel
Authors: Yang Zhuo , Inoue Yiru , Wan Jian , Chen Lei
Published: October 2015

In wireless communication systems, correct knowledge of the correlation of a fading channel is essential for channel estimation. Both the reliability of the estimated channel impulse response (CIR) and the adjustment of an adaptive communication system need the accurate correlation information, which is difficult to identify especially when changing. By modeling the fading channel as a hybrid dynamic system, a channel estimation algorithm based on Interacting Multiple Model (IMM) is presented with the consideration of time-variant channel correlation. Applying the IMM algorithm, the proposed channel estimator can identify the channel correlation. With the accurate information of channel correlation, the proposed algorithm is capable of performing accurate estimation on the fading wireless channel with time-variant or time-invariant correlation. Our simulations demonstrate that the IMM based channel estimation algorithm has good performance in estimating CIR as well as in identifying the channel correlation.
Development and Mining of a Volatile Organic Compound Database
Authors: Abdullah Azian Azamimi , Altaf-Ul-Amin Md. , Ono Naoaki , Sato Tetsuo , Sugiura Tadao , Morita Aki Hirai , Katsuragi Tetsuo , Muto Ai , Nishioka Takaaki , Kanaya Shigehiko
Published: October 2015

Volatile organic compounds (VOCs) are small molecules that exhibit high vapor pressure under ambient conditions and have low boiling points. Although VOCs contribute only a small proportion of the total metabolites produced by living organisms, they play an important role in chemical ecology specifically in the biological interactions between organisms and ecosystems. VOCs are also important in the health care field as they are presently used as a biomarker to detect various human diseases. Information on VOCs is scattered in the literature until now; however, there is still no available database describing VOCs and their biological activities. To attain this purpose, we have developed KNApSAcK Metabolite Ecology Database, which contains the information on the relationships between VOCs and their emitting organisms. The KNApSAcK Metabolite Ecology is also linked with the KNApSAcK Core and KNApSAcK Metabolite Activity Database to provide further information on the metabolites and their biological activities. The VOC database can be accessed online.
Robust DistributedH∞Filtering for Nonlinear Systems with Sensor Saturations and Fractional Uncertainties with Digital Simulation
Authors: Liu Dong , Tang Guangfu , He Zhiyuan , Zhao Yan , Pang Hui
Published: October 2015

This paper is concerned with the robust distributedH∞filtering problem for nonlinear systems subject to sensor saturations and fractional parameter uncertainties. A sufficient condition is derived for the filtering error system to reach the requiredH∞performance in terms of recursive linear matrix inequality method. An iterative algorithm is then proposed to obtain the filter parameters recursively by solving the corresponding linear matrix inequality. A numerical example is presented to show the effectiveness of the proposed method.
Mechanical and Durability Properties of Concrete Made with Used Foundry Sand as Fine Aggregate
Authors: Ganesh Prabhu G. , Bang Jin Wook , Lee Byung Jae , Hyun Jung Hwan , Kim Yun Yong
Published: October 2015

In recent years, the construction industry has been faced with a decline in the availability of natural sand due to the growth of the industry. On the other hand, the metal casting industries are being forced to find ways to safely dispose of waste foundry sand (FS). With the aim of resolving both of these issues, an investigation was carried out on the reuse of waste FS as an alternative material to natural sand in concrete production, satisfied with relevant international standards. The physical and chemical properties of the FS were addressed. The influence of FS on the behaviour of concrete was evaluated through strength and durability properties. The test results revealed that compared to the concrete mixtures with a substitution rate of 30%, the control mixture had a strength value that was only 6.3% higher, and this enhancement is not particularly high. In a similar manner, the durability properties of the concrete mixtures containing FS up to 30% were relatively close to those of control mixture. From the test results, it is suggested that FS with a substitution rate of up to 30% can be effectively used in concrete production without affecting the strength and durability properties of the concrete.
Second Order Sliding Mode Control of the Coupled Tanks System
Authors: Abu Khadra Fayiz , Abu Qudeiri Jaber
Published: October 2015

Four classes of second order sliding mode controllers (2-SMC) have been successfully applied to regulate the liquid level in the second tank of a coupled tanks system. The robustness of these classes of 2-SMC is investigated and their performances are compared with a first order controller to show the merits of these controllers. The effectiveness of these controllers is verified through computer simulations. Comparison between the controllers is based on the time domain performance measures such as rise time, settling time, and the integral absolute error. Results showed that controllers are able to regulate the liquid level with small differences in their performance.
3D Imaging of Dielectric Objects Buried under a Rough Surface by Using CSI
Authors: Tetik Evrim , Akduman Ibrahim
Published: October 2015

A 3D scalar electromagnetic imaging of dielectric objects buried under a rough surface is presented. The problem has been treated as a 3D scalar problem for computational simplicity as a first step to the 3D vector problem. The complexity of the background in which the object is buried is simplified by obtaining Green’s function of its background, which consists of two homogeneous half-spaces, and a rough interface between them, by using Buried Object Approach (BOA). Green’s function of the two-part space with planar interface is obtained to be used in the process. Reconstruction of the location, shape, and constitutive parameters of the objects is achieved by Contrast Source Inversion (CSI) method with conjugate gradient. The scattered field data that is used in the inverse problem is obtained via both Method of Moments (MoM) and Comsol Multiphysics pressure acoustics model.
Energy Efficient Cluster Based Scheduling Scheme for Wireless Sensor Networks
Authors: Srie Vidhya Janani E. , Ganesh Kumar P.
Published: October 2015

The energy utilization of sensor nodes in large scale wireless sensor network points out the crucial need for scalable and energy efficient clustering protocols. Since sensor nodes usually operate on batteries, the maximum utility of network is greatly dependent on ideal usage of energy leftover in these sensor nodes. In this paper, we propose an Energy Efficient Cluster Based Scheduling Scheme for wireless sensor networks that balances the sensor network lifetime and energy efficiency. In the first phase of our proposed scheme, cluster topology is discovered and cluster head is chosen based on remaining energy level. The cluster head monitors the network energy threshold value to identify the energy drain rate of all its cluster members. In the second phase, scheduling algorithm is presented to allocate time slots to cluster member data packets. Here congestion occurrence is totally avoided. In the third phase, energy consumption model is proposed to maintain maximum residual energy level across the network. Moreover, we also propose a new packet format which is given to all cluster member nodes. The simulation results prove that the proposed scheme greatly contributes to maximum network lifetime, high energy, reduced overhead, and maximum delivery ratio.
Using Multicriteria Decision Analysis to Support Research Priority Setting in Biomedical Translational Research Projects
Authors: de Graaf Gimon , Postmus Douwe , Buskens Erik
Published: October 2015

Translational research is conducted to achieve a predefined set of economic or societal goals. As a result, investment decisions on where available resources have the highest potential in achieving these goals have to be made. In this paper, we first describe how multicriteria decision analysis can assist in defining the decision context and in ensuring that all relevant aspects of the decision problem are incorporated in the decision making process. We then present the results of a case study to support priority setting in a translational research consortium aimed at reducing the burden of disease of type 2 diabetes. During problem structuring, we identified four research alternatives (primary, secondary, tertiary microvascular, and tertiary macrovascular prevention) and a set of six decision criteria. Scoring of these alternatives against the criteria was done using a combination of expert judgement and previously published data. Lastly, decision analysis was performed using stochastic multicriteria acceptability analysis, which allows for the combined use of numerical and ordinal data. We found that the development of novel techniques applied in secondary prevention would be a poor investment of research funds. The ranking of the remaining alternatives was however strongly dependent on the decision maker’s preferences for certain criteria.
Decolorization of Distillery Spent Wash Using Biopolymer Synthesized byPseudomonas aeruginosaIsolated from Tannery Effluent
Authors: David Charles , Arivazhagan M. , Balamurali M. N. , Shanmugarajan Dhivya
Published: October 2015

A bacterial strain was isolated from tannery effluent which can tolerate high concentrations of potassium dichromate up to 1000 ppm. The isolated microorganism was identified asPseudomonas aeruginosaby performing biochemical tests and molecular characterization. In the presence of excess of carbohydrate source, which is a physiological stress, this strain produces Polyhydroxybutyrate (PHB). This intracellular polymer, which is synthesized, is primarily a product of carbon assimilation and is employed by microorganisms as an energy storage molecule to be metabolized when other common energy sources are limitedly available. Efforts were taken to check whether the PHB has any positive effect on spent wash decolorization. When a combination of PHB and the isolated bacterial culture was added to spent wash, a maximum color removal of 92.77% was found which was comparatively higher than the color removed when the spent wash was treated individually with the PHB andPseudomonas aeruginosa. PHB behaved as a support material for the bacteria to bind to it and thus develops biofilm, which is one of the natural physiological growth forms of microorganisms. The bacterial growth in the biofilm and the polymer together acted in synergy, adsorbing and coagulating the pollutants in the form of color pigments.
Living with Parkinson’s and the Emerging Role of Occupational Therapy
Authors: Jansa Jelka , Aragon Ana
Published: October 2015

Parkinson’s disease is a chronic and increasingly complex condition, demanding multidisciplinary management. Over the last twenty years or so, alongside the growth of specialist services and healthcare teams specifically developed for people with Parkinson’s, occupational therapy has grown in recognition as a treatment option, especially since evidence of its efficacy is now slowly emerging. The purpose of this work is to outline the role of occupational therapy clinical practice in the management of people living with Parkinson’s disease and its emergent evidence base, combined with details of current occupational therapy philosophy and process, as applicable to occupational therapy practice for people with Parkinson’s. The Canadian Practice Process Framework is used to structure this overview and was selected because it is a well-recognized, evidence-based tool used by occupational therapists and encompasses the core concepts of human occupation and person-centred practice. The framework employed allows the flexibility to reflect the pragmatic occupational therapy intervention process and so enables the illustration of the individually tailored approach required to accommodate to the complex pathology and personal, domestic, and social impacts, affecting the functioning of Parkinson’s disease patients on a daily basis.
TiO2Nanocatalysts Supported on a Hybrid Carbon-Covered Alumina Support: Comparison between Visible Light and UV Light Degradation of Rhodamine B
Authors: Mahlambi Mphilisi M. , Mishra Ajay K. , Mishra Shivani B. , Krause Rui W. , Mamba Bhekie B. , Raichur Ashok M.
Published: October 2015

Titania nanoparticles were successfully supported on carbon-covered alumina (CCA) supports via the impregnation method to form carbon-covered alumna titania (CCA/TiO2). The CCA supports were synthesised through an equilibrium adsorption of toluene 2,4-diisocyante where the N=C=O irreversibly adsorbs on the alumina and pyrolysis at 700°C affords CCA supports. These CCA/TiO2nanocatalysts were tested for their photocatalytic activity both under UV and visible light using Rhodamine B as a model pollutant. The reaction rate constant of the CCA/TiO2was found to be higher than that of unsupported titania and the reaction kinetics were found to follow an apparent first-order rate law. The CCA/TiO2nanocatalysts had a much larger surface area than the unsupported titania and they exhibited overall higher photodegradation efficiency under both UV and visible light than unsupported TiO2.
Comparison of Five 2nd-Generation Supraglottic Airway Devices for Airway Management Performed by Novice Military Operators
Authors: Henlin Tomas , Sotak Michal , Kovaricek Petr , Tyll Tomas , Balcarek Lukas , Michalek Pavel
Published: October 2015

Objectives. Five different second-generation supraglottic airway devices, ProSeal LMA, Supreme LMA, i-gel, SLIPA, and Laryngeal Tube Suction-D, were studied. Operators were inexperienced users with a military background, combat lifesavers, nurses, and physicians.Methods. This was a prospective, randomized, single-blinded study. Devices were inserted in the operating room in low light conditions after induction of general anesthesia. Primary outcome was successful insertion on the first attempt while secondary aims were insertion time, number of attempts, oropharyngeal seal pressure, ease of insertion, fibre optic position of device, efficacy of ventilation, and intraoperative trauma or regurgitation of gastric contents.Results. In total, 505 patients were studied. First-attempt insertion success rate was higher in the Supreme LMA (96%), i-gel (87.9%), and ProSeal LMA (85.9%) groups than in the Laryngeal Tube Suction-D (80.6%) and SLIPA (69.4%) groups. Insertion time was shortest in the Supreme LMA (70.4 ± 32.5 s) and i-gel (74.4 ± 41.1 s) groups (p<0.001). Oropharyngeal seal pressures were higher in the Laryngeal Tube Suction-D and ProSeal LMA groups than in other three devices.Conclusions. Most study parameters for the Supreme LMA and i-gel were found to be superior to the other three tested supraglottic airway devices when inserted by novice military operators.
GPs’ Perceptions of Cardiovascular Risk and Views on Patient Compliance: A Qualitative Interview Study
Authors: Barfoed Benedicte Lind , Jarbøl Dorte Ejg , Paulsen Maja Skov , Christensen Palle Mark , Halvorsen Peder Andreas , Nielsen Jesper Bo , Søndergaard Jens
Published: October 2015

Objective. General practitioners’ (GPs’) perception of risk is a cornerstone of preventive care. The aims of this interview study were to explore GPs’ professional and personal attitudes and experiences regarding treatment with lipid-lowering drugs and their views on patient compliance. Methods. The material was drawn from semistructured qualitative interviews. We sampled GPs purposively from ten selected practices, ensuring diversity of demographic, professional, and personal characteristics. The GPs were encouraged to describe examples from their own practices and reflect on them and were informed that the focus was their personal attitudes and experiences. Systematic text condensation was applied for analysis in order to uncover the concepts and themes. Results. The analysis revealed the following 3 main themes: (1) use of cardiovascular guidelines and risk assessment tools, (2) strategies for managing patient compliance, and (3) GPs’ own risk management. There were substantial differences in the attitudes concerning all three themes. Conclusions. The substantial differences in the GPs’ personal and professional risk perceptions may be a key to understanding why GPs do not always follow cardiovascular guidelines. The impact on daily clinical practice, personal consultation style, and patient behaviour with regard to prevention is worth studying further.
Cylindrical Three-Dimensional Millimeter-Wave Imaging via Compressive Sensing
Authors: Zhao Guoqiang , Li Shiyong , Ren Bailing , Qiu Qingwei , Sun Houjun
Published: October 2015

Millimeter-wave (MMW) imaging techniques have been used for the detection of concealed weapons and contraband carried by personnel. However, the future application of the new technology may be limited by its large number of antennas. In order to reduce the complexity of the hardware, a novel MMW imaging method based on compressive sensing (CS) is proposed in this paper. The MMW images can be reconstructed from the significantly undersampled backscattered data via the CS approach. Thus the number of antennas and the cost of system can be further reduced than those based on the traditional imaging methods that obey the Nyquist sampling theorem. The effectiveness of the proposed method is validated by numerical simulations as well as by real measured data of objects.
A Review of the Intrinsic Heavy Quark Content of the Nucleon
Authors: Brodsky S. J. , Kusina A. , Lyonnet F. , Schienbein I. , Spiesberger H. , Vogt R.
Published: October 2015

We present a review of the state of the art of our understanding of the intrinsic charm and bottom content of the nucleon. We discuss theoretical calculations, constraints from global analyses, and collider observables sensitive to the intrinsic heavy quark distributions. A particular emphasis is put on the potential of a high energy and high luminosity fixed target experiment using the LHC beams (AFTER@LHC) to search for intrinsic charm.