bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
The relationship between depression and physical symptom burden in advanced cancer
Authors: Fitzgerald Peter , Lo Chris , Li Madeline , Gagliese Lucia , Zimmermann Camilla , Rodin Gary
Published: August 2013

Background

Although an association between depression and physical burden has been demonstrated in advanced cancer, it remains unclear to what extent this is limited to specific physical symptoms, such as pain and fatigue, and is mediated by disease and treatment-related factors. We therefore investigated the relationship between depression and physical burden across a multitude of physical symptoms in this population, while controlling for cancer-related factors including disease severity and proximity to death.

Patients and methods

A secondary analysis was performed on cross-sectional data in 487 patients with advanced cancer. Measures included the Beck Depression Inventory II and the Memorial Symptom Assessment Scale, which measured physical burden across 24 common cancer symptoms. Disease severity was assessed by survival time and by functional status using the Karnofsky Performance Status scale.

Results

Depression severity significantly correlated with number of physical symptoms, symptom distress and symptom severity independent of cancer type, functional status, chemotherapy status and survival time (all p<0.001). Depression was associated with increased incidence, severity and distress across multiple physical symptoms and was an independent predictor of physical burden on multiple regression analysis.

Conclusions

These findings support the view that a synergistic relationship exists between depression and a broad array of physical symptoms in patients with advanced cancer.
A rare non-malignant cause of spinal cord compression in a young patient
Authors: Clerici Joanna , MacLaran Sarah
Published: August 2013

In the context of palliative medicine, spinal cord compression occurs in around 5% of patients with cancer. Ten per cent of patients with spinal metastases are affected; the commonest causes are breast, prostate, lung cancer and multiple myeloma. We describe a rare cause of spinal cord compression in a 29-year-old man resulting from a complication of long-term corticosteroid use. Spinal epidural lipomatosis is a complex disorder caused by hypertrophy of adipose tissue located in the spinal epidural space. Symptoms occur when the adipose tissue enlarges, encroaching on the spinal canal. In this case, the aetiology was long-term exogenous dexamethasone use.
Validating and Improving Injury Burden Estimates Study: the Injury-VIBES study protocol
Authors: Gabbe Belinda J , Lyons Ronan A , Harrison James E , Rivara Frederick P , Ameratunga Shanthi , Jolley Damien , Polinder Suzanne , Derrett Sarah
Published: August 2013

Background

Priority setting, identification of unmet and changing healthcare needs, service and policy planning, and the capacity to evaluate the impact of health interventions requires valid and reliable methods for quantifying disease and injury burden. The methodology developed for the Global Burden of Disease (GBD) studies has been adopted to estimate the burden of disease in national, regional and global projects. However, there has been little validation of the methods for estimating injury burden using empirical data.

Objective

To provide valid estimates of the burden of non-fatal injury using empirical data.

Setting

Data from prospective cohort studies of injury outcomes undertaken in the UK, USA, Australia, New Zealand and The Netherlands.

Design and participants

Meta-analysis of deidentified, patient-level data from over 40 000 injured participants in six prospective cohort studies: Victorian State Trauma Registry, Victorian Orthopaedic Trauma Outcomes Registry, UK Burden of Injury study, Prospective Outcomes of Injury study, National Study on Costs and Outcomes of Trauma and the Dutch Injury Patient Survey.

Analysis

Data will be systematically analysed to evaluate and refine injury classification, development of disability weights, establishing the duration of disability and handling of cases with more than one injury in burden estimates. Developed methods will be applied to incidence data to compare and contrast various methods for estimating non-fatal injury burden.

Contribution to the field

The findings of this international collaboration have the capacity to drive how injury burden is measured for future GBD estimates and for individual country or region-specific studies.
Columnar cell-like changes in the male breast
Authors: Ni Yun-Bi , Mujtaba Shafaq , Shao Mu-Min , Lacambra Maribel , Tsang Julia Y S , Chan Siu-Ki , Tse Gary M
Published: August 2013

Aims

Columnar cell lesions are known as a link between normal breast and low grade neoplastic lesions in female, but have not been established in the male breast. This study evaluated the presence of ducts showing columnar cell-like features in the male breast.

Methods

Seventy-one consecutive surgical resections from men (6 invasive breast carcinoma of grade 3, 1 atypical ductal hyperplasia and 64 other lesions) were reviewed to identify foci of dilated ducts with columnar epithelial cells, and their morphological features including apical snouts, intraluminal secretions and calcifications were assessed. The expression of CK5/6 and estrogen receptor (ER) was evaluated immunohistochemically. Clinicopathological features including patients’ age, histological diagnosis and gynaecomastoid hyperplasia were documented.

Results

Ducts showing columnar cell-like features were identified in 39 cases, morphologically as distended ducts with round or undulating outline. There was an outer layer of myoepithelial cells and an inner layer of columnar luminal cells showing apical snouts, but without intraluminal secretions or calcifications. Immunohistochemically, these columnar epithelial cells were negative for CK5/6 in 38/39 cases and all were ER heterogeneously positive. These changes were associated with older age, but their incidence did not differ whether they were associated with invasive breast carcinoma, atypical ductal hyperplasia and other lesions.

Conclusions

In the male breast, there is an entity sharing morphological features and immunohistochemical profile of columnar cell lesions.
Prognostic implications of anaplastic lymphoma kinase gene aberrations in rhabdomyosarcoma; an immunohistochemical and fluorescence in situ hybridisation study
Authors: Lee Jae Seok , Lim Sun Min , Rha Sun Young , Roh Jae Kyung , Cho Yong Jin , Shin Kyu Ho , Yang Woo Ik , Kim Se Hoon , Kim Hyo Song
Published: August 2013

Background

We investigated the diagnostic and prognostic usefulness of anaplastic lymphoma kinase (ALK) expression in Asian rhabdomyosarcoma (RMS) patients.

Patients and methods

A total of 38 RMS tissue samples were collected over a 14-year period (1998–2012). ALK protein expression and gene copy number were analysed by immunohistochemistry (IHC) and fluorescence in situ hybridisation (FISH).

Results

Ten of the 38 RMS patients (26.3%) showed positive ALK protein expression. ALK protein expression was predominantly positive in alveolar RMS (ARMS) compared with embryonal RMS (ERMS) (80% vs 20%, p=0.03). ALK protein expression was statistically associated with ARMS histology, metastatic disease at diagnosis, and primary trunk site. In FISH analysis, no translocations were detected andALKgene copy number gain was observed more frequently in ARMS than in ERMS (40% vs 17%). The ALK-positive group showed inferior overall survival (OS) compared with ALK-negative group (p=0.014) for both alveolar and embryonal RMS patients. In multivariate analysis, positive ALK expression was an independent prognostic factor for OS (p=0.02; HR, 3.1; 95% CI 1.2 to 8.3). There was a significant strong positive correlation between ALK gene copy number and protein expression (Spearman's r<0.001, r=0.77).

Conclusions

We demonstrated that ALK protein expression is statistically associated with ARMS histology, metastatic disease at diagnosis and primary trunk site. Additionally, ALK expression was an independent prognostic factor for worse survival. There was a strong correlation between IHC and FISH. Further studies are needed to evaluate the potential diagnostic and therapeutic role of ALK expression in RMS.
Patient whiteboards to improve patient-centred care in the hospital
Authors: Tan Marilyn , Hooper Evans Kambria , Braddock Clarence H , Shieh Lisa
Published: August 2013

Background

Patient whiteboards facilitate communication between patients and hospital providers, but little is known about their impact on patient satisfaction and awareness. Our objectives were to: measure the impact in improving patients' understanding of and satisfaction with care; understand barriers for their use by physicians and how these could be overcome; and explore their impact on staff and patients' families.

Methods

In 2012, we conducted a 3-week pilot of multidisciplinary whiteboard use with 104 inpatients on the general medicine service at Stanford University Medical Center. A brief, inperson survey was conducted with two groups: (1) 56 patients on two inpatient units with whiteboards and (2) 48 patients on two inpatient units without whiteboards. Questions included understanding of: physician name, goals of care, discharge date and satisfaction with care. We surveyed 25 internal medicine residents regarding challenges of whiteboard use, along with physical therapists, occupational therapists, case managers, consulting physicians and patients' family members (n=40).

Results

The use of whiteboards significantly increased the proportion of patients who knew: their physician (p≤=0.0001), goals for admission (p≤=0.0016), their estimated discharge date (p≤=0.049) and improved satisfaction with the hospital stay overall (p≤=0.0242). Physicians, ancillary staff and patient families all found the whiteboards to be helpful. In response, residents were also more likely to integrate whiteboard use into their daily work flow.

Conclusions

Inpatient whiteboards help physicians and ancillary staff with communication, improve patients' awareness of their care team, admission plans and duration of admission, and significantly improve patient overall satisfaction.
Predictors of mortality of extremely low birthweight babies in a tertiary care centre of a developing country
Authors: Thakur Neha , Saili Arvind , Kumar Ajay , Kumar Vinay
Published: August 2013

Introduction

Perinatal care has changed dramatically over last decade contributing to improved survival of extremely low birthweight (ELBW) babies.

Objective

We conducted the present study with the objective to identify immediate obstetric causes of preterm delivery; analyse the maternal risk factors and to evaluate the morbidity and mortality of ELBW babies delivered in our hospital. The results were compared with those of 10 years ago from the same hospital to determine whether there has been any significant change in the predictors of mortality

Methods

A retrospective analysis of case records of 283 ELBW babies delivered in our hospital over a period of 24 months from 1 April 2010 to 31 March 2012 was conducted.

Results

The total neonatal mortality rate was 38.7%. 85 babies (30%) were small for gestational age. Mean gestational age and mean birth weight was 28.5 weeks and 883.4 g, respectively. Using multivariate logistic regression analysis, significant risk factors for neonatal mortality in mothers were anaemia (p=0.00001, OR 3.13, CI 1.756 to 5.56), inadequate antenatal care (p=0.00001, OR 4.74, CI 2.59 to 8.69) premature rupture of membrane with antenatal antibiotic usage (p=0.003, OR 3.375, CI 1.512 to 7.53. Risk factors for mortality in babies were male sex (p=0.08, OR 3.48 CI 1.4 to 8.8), lower birth weight (p=0.000005), lower gestational age (p=0.00001) use of respiratory support in the form of continuous positive airway pressure (p=0.03), or mechanical ventilation (p=0.00001) and pulmonary or intraventricular haemorrhage (p=0.0001).

Conclusions

Babies with lower gestational age lower birth weight and those babies whose mothers had not received adequate antenatal care or antenatal steroids had worse prognosis.
Cross-sectional study of hepatitis B immunity in MSM between 2002 and 2012
Authors: Gamagedara Nimal , Weerakoon Ajith P , Zou Huachun , Fehler Glenda , Chen Marcus Y , Read Tim RH , Bradshaw Catriona S , Fairley Christopher K
Published: August 2013

Objectives

Incidence of hepatitis B has not been well studied recently in men who have sex with men (MSM) despite increases in sexual risk practices and other sexually transmitted infections. Our aim was to determine the incidence of hepatitis B infection among MSM and level of immunity to hepatitis B attending a sexual health service over 10 years.

Methods

A cross-sectional analysis of all MSM attending Melbourne Sexual Health Centre (MSHC) from 1 July 2002 and 30 June 2012, and a retrospective cohort study of MSM who had attended MSHC on multiple occasions who had hepatitis serology done more than once.

Results

Of 10 031 MSM attending the clinic, 58.4% (95% CI 57.4% to 59.4%) (5655/9677) had hepatitis B surface antibody (HepBsAb), 10.6% (95% CI 10.0% to 11.4%) (840/7888) had core antibody (HepBcAb), and 3.7% (95% CI 3.0% to 4.5%) (95/2577) had surface antigen (HepBsAg). The proportion with HepBsAb decreased from 72% to 48% (p (trend)<0.001), with HepBcAb decreased from 12% to 8% (p (trend)=0.039) and with either HepBsAb or HepBcAb, decreased from 67% to 50% (p (trend)<0.001) from 2002 to 2012, but did not change for HepBsAg (p (trend)=0.08). Seven cases of hepatitis B occurred in 3540 person-years of observation, giving an incidence of 1.98 (95% CI 0.79 to 4.07) per 1000 person-years.

Conclusions

The data suggest that the current level of immunity of about 50% has been sufficient to prevent any significant hepatitis B infection in the last 10 years. Continued high levels of vaccination are important for prevention.
Genetic diversity and population structure ofVigna exilisandVigna grandiflora(Phaseoleae, Fabaceae) from Thailand based on microsatellite variation
Authors: Kaewwongwal Anochar , Jetsadu Arunee , Somta Prakit , Chankaew Sompong , Srinives Peerasak
Published: August 2013

The objective of this research was to determine the genetic diversity and population structure of natural populations of two rare wild species of Asian Vigna (Phaseoleae, Fabaceae), Vigna exilis Tateishi & Maxted and Vigna grandiflora (Prain) Tateishi & Maxted, from Thailand. Employing 21 simple sequence repeat markers, 107 and 85 individuals from seven and five natural populations of V. exilis and V. grandiflora, respectively, were analyzed. In total, the markers detected 196 alleles for V. exilis and 219 alleles for V. grandiflora. Vigna exilis populations showed lower average values in number of alleles, allelic richness, observed heterozygosity, gene diversity, and outcrossing rate than V. grandiflora populations, namely 58.00% versus 114.60%, 51.96% versus 74.80%, 0.02% versus 0.18%, 0.40% versus 0.66%, and 3.24% versus 17.41%, respectively. Pairwise FSTamong populations demonstrated that V. exilis was much more differentiated than V. grandiflora. Analysis of molecular variance revealed that 41.83% and 15.06% of total variation resided among the populations of V. exilis and V. grandiflora, respectively. Seven and two genetic clusters were detected for V. grandiflora and V. exilis by STRUCTURE analysis. Our findings suggest that different strategies are required for in situ conservation of the two species. All V. exilis populations, or as many as possible, should be conserved to protect genetic resources of this species, while a few V. grandiflora populations can capture the majority of its genetic variation.
Estimation of major stream delays with a limited priority merge
Authors: Ma Dong-fang , Ma Xiao-long , Jin Sheng , Sun Feng , Wang Dian-hai
Published: August 2013

The purpose of this paper is to develop an estimation model for major stream delays at an unsignalized intersection under limited priority conditions. The key idea of this paper is that, when the minor stream drivers accept smaller major stream gaps, some drivers on the major road have to slow down their speeds and adjust their relative positions to avoid traffic accidents, incurring some delays. Assuming that headways in the major stream follow the M3 distribution, the delay for the first major stream vehicle after a limited priority merge is presented using acceptance gap theory and probability theory, and then recursive models are developed for the following major stream vehicles before the next merge. Finally, the precision of the method proposed in this paper is calibrated using field survey data from Changchun city, China, and the results show that the maximum, minimum, and average relative error of the 12 samples are approximately 30.38%, 9.04%, and 18.97%, respectively.
SIMULATION OF FLOW PAST A CIRCULAR CYLINDER USING ENTROPIC LATTICE BOLTZMANN METHOD
Authors: GU CHUAN , CHIKATAMARLA SHYAM S. , KARLIN ILIYA V.
Published: August 2013

The entropic lattice Boltzmann method (ELBM) has been demonstrated to bring unconditional stability and accuracy to sub-gird flow simulations. However, the application of ELBM to engineering flows were restricted so far due to the lack of a matching wall boundary condition that retains the accuracy of the method for both resolved and under-resolved simulations. To this end, we show that the recently proposed wall boundary condition for ELBM is reliable and accurate for both these regimes. Three-dimensional (3D) flow past a circular cylinder is taken as a benchmark to show that ELBM is both stable and accurate for range of Reynolds numbers and grid sizes. Several key parameter of this flow are studied in detail.
NEURAL NETWORK AIDED GLITCH-BURST DISCRIMINATION AND GLITCH CLASSIFICATION
Authors: RAMPONE SALVATORE , PIERRO VINCENZO , TROIANO LUIGI , PINTO INNOCENZO M.
Published: August 2013

We investigate the potential of neural-network based classifiers for discriminating gravitational wave bursts (GWBs) of a given canonical family (e.g. core-collapse supernova waveforms) from typical transient instrumental artifacts (glitches), in the data of a single detector. The further classification of glitches into typical sets is explored. In order to provide a proof of concept, we use the core-collapse supernova waveform catalog produced by H. Dimmelmeier and co-Workers, and the data base of glitches observed in laser interferometer gravitational wave observatory (LIGO) data maintained by P. Saulson and co-Workers to construct datasets of (windowed) transient waveforms (glitches and bursts) in additive (Gaussian and compound-Gaussian) noise with different signal-to-noise ratios (SNR). Principal component analysis (PCA) is next implemented for reducing data dimensionality, yielding results consistent with, and extending those in the literature. Then, a multilayer perceptron is trained by a backpropagation algorithm (MLP-BP) on a data subset, and used to classify the transients as glitch or burst. A Self-Organizing Map (SOM) architecture is finally used to classify the glitches. The glitch/burst discrimination and glitch classification abilities are gauged in terms of the related truth tables. Preliminary results suggest that the approach is effective and robust throughout the SNR range of practical interest. Perspective applications pertain both to distributed (network, multisensor) detection of GWBs, where some intelligence at the single node level can be introduced, and instrument diagnostics/optimization, where spurious transients can be identified, classified and hopefully traced back to their entry points.
COMMON FEATURES IN EAST ASIAN STOCK MARKETS: LONG-TERM AND SHORT-TERM COMOVEMENTS BETWEEN CHINA AND KOREA
Authors: LEE HAHN SHIK , KIM SOO IN
Published: August 2013

As increasing attention has been given in recent literature to the potential of the Chinese financial market, we investigate the strength of shared dynamics among East Asian stock markets, by examining both the long-term and short-term comovements. In doing so, the cointegration analysis is used to assess the long-term relationship, whereas the notions of cofeature as well as contemporaneous correlation are employed to discuss the short-term relationship. The basic finding is that evidence for short-term comovement between the Korean and Chinese stock markets appears to be strong, while evidence for long-term relationship is rather weak. Empirical results from subsamples suggest that both the long-term and short-term relationships have strengthened since the acquisition of QFII qualification by Korean financial firms. These observations indicate that the international linkage between the two countries has strengthened along with increasing opportunities for international investment in the Chinese stock market.
CHOQUET EXTENSION OF COOPERATIVE GAMES
Authors: TAN CHUNQIAO , JIANG ZHONG-ZHONG , CHEN XIAOHONG
Published: August 2013

A multilinear extension of the n-person cooperative game was introduced by Owen in 1972, and a new extension method is proposed in this paper. For n-person cooperative games, any coalition can equivalently be represented by its characteristic vectors. By means of the Choquet integral, a new fuzzy extension, called the Choquet extension, is developed. Furthermore, a Shapley function in this class of fuzzy cooperative games with the Choquet extension form is defined. Axioms of the Shapley function are proposed, and an explicit formula for the Shapley function is given. Finally, an equivalent definition of this Shapley function is discussed.
INTRODUCTION TO QCD SUM RULES
Authors: DOMINGUEZ C. A.
Published: August 2013

A general, and very basic introduction to QCD sum rules is presented, with emphasis on recent issues to be described at length in other papers in this issue. Collectively, these papers constitute the proceedings of the International Workshop on Determination of the Fundamental Parameters of QCD, Singapore, March 2013.
STRONG COUPLING FROM THE TAU HADRONIC WIDTH BY NON-POWER QCD PERTURBATION THEORY
Authors: CAPRINI I.
Published: August 2013

Starting from the divergent character of the perturbative expansions in QCD and using the technique of series acceleration by the conformal mappings of the Borel plane, I define a novel, non-power perturbative expansion for the Adler function, which simultaneously implements renormalisation-group summation and has a tamed large-order behaviour. The new expansion functions, which replace the standard powers of the coupling, are singular at the origin of the coupling plane and have divergent perturbative expansions, resembling the expanded function itself. Confronting the new perturbative expansions with the standard ones on specific models investigated recently in the literature, I show that they approximate in an impressive way the exact Adler function and the spectral function moments. Applied to the τ hadronic width, the contour-improved and the renormalisation-group summed non-power expansions in the [Formula: see text] scheme lead to the prediction [Formula: see text], which translates to [Formula: see text].
ON THE FROZEN QCD COUPLING
Authors: ERMOLAEV B. I. , GRECO M. , TROYAN S. I.
Published: August 2013

The frozen QCD coupling is a parameter often used as an effective fixed coupling. It is supposed to mimic both the running coupling effects and the lack of knowledge of αs in the infrared region. Usually the value of the frozen coupling is fixed from the analysis of the experimental data. A novel way to define such coupling(s) independently of the experiments is presented. We argue that there are different frozen couplings which are used in the double-logarithmic (DL) and single-logarithmic (SL) approximations. They also differ for space- and time-like arguments. Our estimates are in a good agreement with the results available in the literature.
STRONG COUPLING FROM TAU LEPTON DECAYS
Authors: JAMIN MATTHIAS
Published: August 2013

A determination of the strong coupling αs at rather low energies is possible through the analysis of hadronic decays of the τ lepton. In turn, the low energy necessitates sufficient control over perturbative QCD corrections, the nonperturbative condensate contributions in the framework of the operator product expansion (OPE), as well as corrections going beyond the OPE, the duality violations (DVs). Perturbative QCD uncertainties arise from open questions regarding the renormalization group resummation of the series. The fit quantities are moment integrals of the τ spectral function data in a certain energy window and care should be taken to have good perturbative behavior of those moments as well as control over higher-dimensional operator corrections. Furthermore, all parameters occurring in the theoretical description should be extracted from fits to the data in a self-consistent manner.
FUZZY ATTRIBUTE IMPLICATIONS AND THEIR EXPRESSIVE POWER
Authors: VYCHODIL VILEM
Published: August 2013

We deal with the expressive power of if-then rules called fuzzy attribute implications (FAIs) which can be seen as formulas A ⇒ B where both A and B are conjunctions of subformulas containing propositional variables and constants for truth degrees and whose interpretation is parameterized by linguistic hedges. The formulas admit the following model-theoretical property: a system of fuzzy sets [Formula: see text] is a fuzzy closure system satisfying an additional condition of being closed under a*-shifts (so-called L*-closure system) if and only if [Formula: see text] is a system of models of a set of FAIs. In this paper, we point out the importance of constants of truth degrees in the antecedents of formulas by showing that simpler formulas are not sufficient to describe all L*-closure systems. As a practical consequence, the simpler formulas cannot be used as an alternative description of concept lattices with linguistic hedges.
DETERMINING THE COMPOSITION OF A PORTFOLIO MANAGEMENT FROM A GROUPINGS MODEL
Authors: GIL-LAFUENTE ANNA M. , GIL-ALUJA JAIME , DE PAULA LUCIANO BARCELLOS
Published: August 2013

Often, in situations of uncertainty in portfolio management, it is difficult to apply the numerical methods based on the linearity principle. When this happens it is possible to use nonnumeric techniques to assess the situations with a non linear attitude. One of the concepts that can be used in these situations is the concept of grouping. In the last thirty years, several studies have tried to give good solutions to the problems of homogeneous groupings. For example, we could mention the Pichat algorithm, the affinities algorithms and several studies developed by the authors of this work. In this paper, we use some topological axioms in order to develop an algorithm that is able to reduce the number of elements of the power sets of the related sets by connecting them to the sets that form the topologies. We will apply this algorithm in the grouping of titles listed in the Stock Exchange or in its dual perspective.
SOME ICOWA OPERATORS AND THEIR APPLICATIONS TO GROUP DECISION MAKING WITH INTERVAL FUZZY PREFERENCE RELATIONS
Authors: ZHOU LIGANG , TAO ZHIFU , CHEN HUAYOU , LIU JINPEI
Published: August 2013

We develop some new cases of the induced continuous ordered weighted averaging (ICOWA) operator and study their desirable properties, which are very suitable to deal with group decision making (GDM) with interval fuzzy preference relations. First, we present the consensus indicator ICOWA (CI-ICOWA) operator which uses the consensus indicator of the interval fuzzy preference as the order inducing variable in the ICOWA operator. Then the concept of compatibility degree (CD) for two interval fuzzy preference relations is defined based on the continuous ordered weighted averaging (COWA) operator and the compatibility degree ICOWA (CD-ICOWA) operator is proposed which uses the CD as the order inducing variable in the ICOWA operator. Next, we investigate some desirable properties of the CD-ICOWA operator. Additionally, we construct an optimization model to obtain the weights of experts by minimizing the compatibility degree in the GDM. Finally, an illustrative numerical example is used to verify the developed approaches.
PEOPLE WATCH
Authors: Kamis Sulastri
Published: August 2013

Making the Cut.
AUTOMATIC DEFECT CLASSIFICATION OF TFT-LCD PANELS WITH SHAPE, HISTOGRAM AND COLOR FEATURES
Authors: HUANG WEI , LU HONGTAO
Published: August 2013

In this paper, an automatic defect classification algorithm for thin film transistor liquid crystal display (TFT-LCD) manufacturing is proposed. Each sample of defect data contains three images: the original image, the defect shape image and the circuit zone image. A set of features including shape, histogram and color is extracted. Some common classifiers were tested in the experiments and Linear-SVM (Linear Surport Vector Machine) was chosen in practical manufacturing. A novel LBP-E feature considering intensity equality proposed in this paper is compared to other original rotation invariant LBP (Local Binary Pattern) features. The experimental results show that our method can generate a better result with a relatively low dimension number.
WEB-SPLINE PREDICTION OF OCULAR SURFACE TEMPERATURE USING BIOHEAT EQUATION WITH EXTERNAL SOURCE EXPOSURE
Authors: KUNTER FULYA CALLIALP , SEKER SABAN SELIM
Published: August 2013

In this paper, the finite element method (FEM) with web-spline computer modeling were applied to study corneal surface temperature increase during microwave irradiation. The heat conduction model of the microwave-irradiated eye, which assumed to be 3D, was constructed. The mechanism of heat transfer from the eye and the selection of the thermal parameters of the media of the eye are also discussed. The implementation of these parameters in the web-spline solution of heat conduction was then developed. Furthermore, temperature rise calculations were compared with the values found in the literature pertaining to microwave-induced cataract formation.
CAN THE SOCIAL ROBOT PROBO HELP CHILDREN WITH AUTISM TO IDENTIFY SITUATION-BASED EMOTIONS? A SERIES OF SINGLE CASE EXPERIMENTS
Authors: POP CRISTINA ANAMARIA , SIMUT RAMONA , PINTEA SEBASTIAN , SALDIEN JELLE , RUSU ALINA , DAVID DANIEL , VANDERFAEILLIE JOHAN , LEFEBER DIRK , VANDERBORGHT BRAM
Published: August 2013

Children with autism spectrum disorders have difficulties in identifying situation-based emotions, which is a fundamental ability for mind reading. Social robots received increased attention as assisting tools for improving the social and emotional skills of children with autism. This study investigates whether the social robot Probo can help children with autism spectrum disorders to enhance their performance in identifying situation-based emotions. Three participants (age between 5 and 6) diagnozed with autism spectrum disorders were included in a single case AB experimental design, with intersubjects replications. The results show that children's performance improved with moderate to large effect sizes in identifying both sadness and happiness. Based on these results, we intend to perform more extensive investigations regarding the effectiveness of robot assisted therapy in improving social-emotional abilities for children with autism spectrum disorders.
OPTIMIZING FOOT CENTERS OF PRESSURE THROUGH FORCE DISTRIBUTION IN A HUMANOID ROBOT
Authors: WENSING PATRICK M. , BIN HAMMAM GHASSAN , DARIUSH BEHZAD , ORIN DAVID E.
Published: August 2013

The force distribution problem (FDP) in robotics requires the determination of multiple contact forces to match a desired net contact wrench. For the double support case encountered in humanoids, this problem is underspecified, and provides the opportunity to optimize desired foot centers of pressure (CoPs) and forces. In different contexts, we may seek CoPs and contact forces that optimize actuator effort or decrease the tendency for foot roll. In this work, we present two formulations of the FDP for humanoids in double support, and propose objective functions within a general framework to address the variety of competing requirements for the realization of balance. As a key feature, the framework is capable to optimize contact forces for motions on uneven terrain. Solutions for the formulations developed are obtained with a commercial nonlinear optimization package and through analytical approaches on a simplified problem. Results are shown for a highly dynamic whole-body humanoid reaching motion performed on even terrain and on a ramp. A convex formulation of the FDP provides real-time solutions with computation times of a few milliseconds. While the convex formulation does not include CoPs explicitly as optimization variables, a novel objective function is developed which penalizes foot CoP solutions that approach the foot boundaries.
IDENTIFICATION OF GRANULAR SOILS STRENGTH AND STIFFNESS PARAMETERS BY MATCHING FINITE ELEMENT RESULTS TO PMT DATA
Authors: ABED Y. , BAHAR R. , DUPLA J.-C. , AMAR BOUZID DJ.
Published: August 2013

This paper describes an efficient methodology for the identification of soil parameters using the combination of the finite element method and the in situ pressuremeter test (PMT). The objective of the procedure applied here is to identify the parameters of generalized Prager model associated with the Drucker and Prager failure criterion from a pressuremeter expansion curve. The approach consists of minimizing the function representing the difference between the experimental curve and the curve obtained by integrating the model along the loading path in the in situ testing. First, both analytical expressions governing the problem of cavity expansion and those related to the finite element modeling are given in detail. Then, a Fortran computer program called "Press-Sim" along with the solution strategy are described and clearly explained. The influence of some model parameters as well as the probe geometry on the computed pressuremeter curves is examined. The paper finishes by presenting some identification examples drawn from real experimental tests for which the targeted parameters are compared with those of other experimental procedures. Results of comparison show a very good agreement.
ANISOTROPIC DAMAGE MODELS FOR GEOMATERIALS: THEORETICAL AND NUMERICAL CHALLENGES
Authors: XU HAO , ARSON CHLOÉ
Published: August 2013

A new anisotropic damage model for rock is formulated and discussed. Flow rules are derived with the energy release rate conjugate to damage, which is thermodynamically consistent. Drucker–Prager yield function is adapted to make the damage threshold depend on damage energy release rate and to distinguish between tension and compression strength. Positivity of dissipation is ensured by using a nonassociate flow rule for damage, while nonelastic deformation due to damage is computed by an associate flow rule. Simulations show that the model meets thermodynamic requirements, follows a rigorous formulation, and predicts expected trends for damage, deformation and stiffness.
THE GENERALIZED DEHN TWIST ALONG A FIGURE EIGHT
Authors: KUNO YUSUKE
Published: August 2013

For any unoriented loop on a compact connected oriented surface with one boundary component, we introduce a generalized Dehn twist along the loop as a certain automorphism of the completed group ring of the fundamental group of the surface. If the loop is simple, this corresponds to the right-handed Dehn twist, and in particular is realized as a diffeomorphism of the surface. We investigate the case where the loop has a single transverse double point, and show that in this case the generalized Dehn twist is not realized as a diffeomorphism.
Extinction of Guadalupian rugose corals: an example of biotic response to the Kamura event (southern Primorye, Russia)
Authors: Kossovaya Olga L. , Kropatcheva Galina S.
Published: August 2013

Permian Rugosa of southern Primorye (Russian Far East) occur in a series of terranes of different tectonic origin. The taxonomical composition of Guadalupian (Wordian–Capitanian) rugose corals distributed in southern Primorye changed progressively in an ecological succession, starting with primitive persistent cosmopolitan taxa (assemblage I). This was replaced by assemblage II with a marked invasion of Peri-Gondwanian genera such as
Timorphyllum
and
Verbeekiella
, and, in the Late Capitanian, by typical Cathyasian colonial waagenophyllids (assemblage III). Subsequent communities have nearly no transitional forms. The latter assemblage was abruptly replaced by small fasciculate and solitary primitive forms (assemblage IV). Species peculiarities of assemblages of the
Parafusulina stricta
Zone and the specific lithological features of coral-bearing deposits indicate a palaeogeographical differentiation of terrane positions. The terranes are of various origins: oceanic arcs, passive margin and guyot. The extinction of massive colonial Rugosa in southern Primorye (western Palaeo-Pacific) is identified as a biotic event that is recognizable in Japan, and probably in Inner Mongolia. It also coincides with a general reduction in coral diversity at the end of the Capitanian in China. The present study of the taxonomical distribution of corals has enabled the level of massive waagenophyllid extinction to be defined precisely and to correlate it to a similar pattern in adjacent territories of the Palaeo-Pacific below the Lopingian boundary. The diversity decrease coincides with the last phase of the Kamura event, and the effects of the Emeishan volcanism is correlated with a second positive shift in δ
13
C (South China). The assumed cooling impacted on the fauna in the western Palaeo-Pacific. The stepwise elimination of massive colonial waagenophyllids and large fusulinids documented in the southern Primorye at the end of the Capitanian is considered to be the first step in the Permian–Triassic extinction, about 8 Myr prior to the final Permian–Triassic (P–T) global event.
Slow oscillations of KATP conductance in mouse pancreatic islets provide support for electrical bursting driven by metabolic oscillations
Authors: Ren Jianhua , Sherman Arthur , Bertram Richard , Goforth Paulette B. , Nunemaker Craig S. , Waters Christopher D. , Satin Leslie S.
Published: August 2013

We used the patch clamp technique in situ to test the hypothesis that slow oscillations in metabolism mediate slow electrical oscillations in mouse pancreatic islets by causing oscillations in KATP channel activity. Total conductance was measured over the course of slow bursting oscillations in surface β-cells of islets exposed to 11.1 mM glucose by either switching from current clamp to voltage clamp at different phases of the bursting cycle or by clamping the cells to −60 mV and running two-second voltage ramps from −120 to −50 mV every 20 s. The membrane conductance, calculated from the slopes of the ramp current-voltage curves, oscillated and was larger during the silent phase than during the active phase of the burst. The ramp conductance was sensitive to diazoxide, and the oscillatory component was reduced by sulfonylureas or by lowering extracellular glucose to 2.8 mM, suggesting that the oscillatory total conductance is due to oscillatory KATP channel conductance. We demonstrate that these results are consistent with the Dual Oscillator model, in which glycolytic oscillations drive slow electrical bursting, but not with other models in which metabolic oscillations are secondary to calcium oscillations. The simulations also confirm that oscillations in membrane conductance can be well estimated from measurements of slope conductance and distinguished from gap junction conductance. Furthermore, the oscillatory conductance was blocked by tolbutamide in isolated β-cells. The data, combined with insights from mathematical models, support a mechanism of slow (∼5 min) bursting driven by oscillations in metabolism, rather than by oscillations in the intracellular free calcium concentration.
Diet reduction to requirements in obese/overfed ewes from early gestation prevents glucose/insulin dysregulation and returns fetal adiposity and organ development to control levels
Authors: Tuersunjiang Nuermaimaiti , Odhiambo John F. , Long Nathan M. , Shasa Desiree R. , Nathanielsz Peter W. , Ford Stephen P.
Published: August 2013

Obesity at conception and excess gestational weight gain pose significant risks for adverse health consequences in human offspring. This study evaluated the effects of reducing dietary intake of obese/overfed ewes beginning in early gestation on fetal development. Sixty days prior to conception, ewes were assigned to a control diet [CON: 100% of National Research Council (NRC) recommendations], a diet inducing maternal obesity (MO: 150% of NRC recommendations), or a maternal obesity intervention diet (MOI: 150% of NRC recommendations to day 28 of gestation, then 100% NRC) until necropsy at midgestation ( day 75) or late ( day 135) gestation. Fetal size and weight, as well as fetal organ weights, were greater ( P < 0.05) at midgestation in MO ewes than those of CON and MOI ewes. By late gestation, whereas fetal size and weight did not differ among dietary groups, cardiac ventricular weights and wall thicknesses as well as liver and perirenal fat weights remained elevated in fetuses from MO ewes compared with those from CON and MOI ewes. MO ewes and fetuses exhibited elevated ( P < 0.05) plasma concentrations of triglycerides, cholesterol, insulin, glucose, and cortisol at midgestation compared with CON and MOI ewes and fetuses. In late gestation, whereas plasma triglycerides and cholesterol, insulin, and cortisol remained elevated in MO vs. CON and MOI ewes and fetuses, glucose concentrations were elevated in both MO and MOI fetuses compared with CON fetuses, which was associated with elevated placental GLUT3 expression in both groups. These data are consistent with the concept that reducing maternal diet of obese/overfed ewes to requirements from early gestation can prevent subsequent alterations in fetal growth, adiposity, and glucose/insulin dynamics.
Impact of embryo number and periconceptional undernutrition on factors regulating adipogenesis, lipogenesis, and metabolism in adipose tissuein the sheep fetus
Authors: Lie Shervi , Morrison Janna L. , Williams-Wyss Olivia , Ozanne Susan E. , Zhang Song , Walker Simon K. , Kleemann David O. , MacLaughlin Severence M. , Roberts Claire T. , McMillen I. Caroline
Published: August 2013

Maternal undernutrition around the time of conception is associated with an increased risk of insulin resistance in adulthood. We hypothesized that maternal undernutrition during the periconceptional (PCUN: −60 to 7 days) and/or preimplantation (PIUN: 0–7 days) periods would result in a decrease in UCP1 expression and the abundance of insulin signaling molecules and an increase in the abundance of factors that regulate adipogenesis and lipogenesis in fetal perirenal adipose tissue (PAT) and that these effects would be different in singletons and twins. Maternal PCUN and PIUN resulted in a decrease in UCP1 expression in PAT, and PIUN resulted in higher circulating insulin concentrations, an increased abundance of pPKCζ and PDK4, and a decreased abundance of Akt1, phosphorylated mTOR, and PPARγ in PAT in singleton and twin fetuses. In singletons, there was also a decrease in the abundance of p110β in PAT in the PCUN and PIUN groups and an increase in total AMPKα in PAT in the PIUN group. In twins, however, there was an increase in the abundance of mTOR in the PCUN group and an increase in PDK2 and decrease in total AMPKα in the PIUN group. Thus exposure to periconceptional undernutrition programs changes in the thermogenic capacity and the insulin and fatty acid oxidation signaling pathway in visceral fat, and these effects are different in singletons and twins. These findings are important, as the thermogenic capacity of brown fat and the insulin sensitivity of visceral fat are important determinants of the risk of developing obesity and an insulin resistance phenotype in later life.
The permissive role of prolactin as a regulator of luteinizing hormone action in the female mouse ovary and extragonadal tumorigenesis
Authors: Bachelot Anne , Carré Nadège , Mialon Olivier , Matelot Melody , Servel Nathalie , Monget Philippe , Ahtiainen Petteri , Huhtaniemi Ilpo , Binart Nadine
Published: August 2013

Transgenic female mice overexpressing the hCGβ subunit (hCGβ+) and producing elevated levels of luteinizing hormone (LH)/hCG bioactivity present as young adults with enhanced ovarian steroidogenesis, precocious puberty, and infertility. They subsequently develop pituitary prolactinomas, high circulating prolactin (PRL) levels, and marked mammary gland lobuloalveolar development followed by adenocarcinomas. None of these phenotypes appear in gonadectomized mice, indicating that the hCG-induced aberrations of ovarian function are responsible for the extragonadal phenotypes. PRL receptor-deficient (PRLR−/−) female mice are sterile, despite ovulating, due to a failure of embryo implantation, as a consequence of decreased ovarian LH receptor (Lhcgr) expression and inadequate corpus luteum formation and progesterone production. To study further the presumed permissive role of PRL in the maintenance of gonadal responsiveness to LH/hCG stimulation, we crossed the hCGβ+ and PRLR−/− mice. The double-mutant hCGβ+/PRLR−/− females remained sterile with an ovarian phenotype similar to PRLR−/− mice, indicating that LH action, Lhcgr expression, and consequent luteinization are not possible without simultaneous PRL signaling. The high frequency of pituitary prolactinomas in PRLR−/− mice was not affected by transgenic hCGβ expression. In contrast, none of the hCGβ+/PRLR−/− females showed either mammary gland lobuloalveolar development or tumors, and the increased mammary gland Wnt-5b expression, possibly responsible for the tumorigenesis in hCGβ+ mice, was absent in double-mutant mice. Hence, high LH/hCG stimulation is unable to compensate for missing PRL signaling in the maintenance of luteal function. PRL thus appears to be a major permissive regulator of LH action in the ovary and of its secondary extragonadal effects.
Acid sphingomyelinase plays a key role in palmitic acid-amplified inflammatory signaling triggered by lipopolysaccharide at low concentrations in macrophages
Authors: Jin Junfei , Zhang Xiaoming , Lu Zhongyang , Perry David M. , Li Yanchun , Russo Sarah Brice , Cowart L. Ashley , Hannun Yusuf A. , Huang Yan
Published: August 2013

Periodontal disease is more prevalent and severe in patients with diabetes than in nondiabetic patients. In addition to diabetes, a large number of studies have demonstrated an association between obesity and chronic periodontal disease. However, the underlying mechanisms have not been well understood. Since plasma free fatty acids (FAs) are elevated in obese patients and saturated FAs such as palmitic acid (PA) have been shown to increase host inflammatory response, we sought to find out how PA interacts with lipopolysaccharide (LPS), an important pathological factor involved in periodontal disease, to enhance inflammation. We found that whereas low concentration of LPS (1 ng/ml) stimulated interleukin (IL)-6 expression in RAW 264.7 macrophages, PA further augmented it fourfold. Besides IL-6, PA amplified the stimulatory effect of LPS on a large amount of Toll-like receptor (TLR)4-mediated expression of proinflammatory signaling molecules such as IL-1 receptor-associated kinase-like 2 and proinflammatory molecules, including monocyte chemotactic protein-1 and colony-stimulating factor. We also observed that PA augmented TLR4 but not TLR2 signal, and the augmentation was mediated by nuclear factor-κB (NF-κB) pathways. To further elucidate the regulatory mechanism whereby PA amplifies LPS signal, our studies showed that PA and LPS synergistically increased hydrolysis of sphingomyelin by stimulating acid sphingomyelinase (ASMase) activity, which contributed to a marked increase in ceramide production and IL-6 upregulation. Taken together, this study has demonstrated that PA markedly augments TLR4-mediated proinflammatory signaling triggered by low concentration of LPS in macrophages, and ASMase plays a key role in the augmentation.