bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Viscoelastic Effects on Lubricant Depletion and Recovery Under Heat-Assisted Magnetic Recording (HAMR) Conditions
Authors: Sarabi Soroush , Bogy David B.
Published: September 2016

Heat Assisted Magnetic Recording (HAMR) is a developing data-storage technology in which a laser delivery system is integrated to the conventional HDD air bearing slider that carries the read and write transducers. The laser beam heats a small spot of around 20nm size on the storage media up to few hundred degrees Celsius [1]. This heating causes several effects on the lubricant such as temperature gradient, thermocapillary shear stress, viscosity drop, and evaporation followed by its depletion. Conventionally [2–8], the disk lubricant is considered as a Newtonian viscous fluid that can be fully described by a viscosity parameter μ. However, in rapid heating and forcing conditions like HAMR, the time dependent nature of the lubricant becomes very important. Measurements [9] show that under some conditions the lubricant behaves like a Maxwell viscoelastic fluid that can be described by two parameters: viscosity μ and Maxwell relaxation time λ. Itoh et al. [10] show that the viscoelastic behavior becomes even more considerable in the case of sub-10nm material confinement. Both the Maxwell relaxation time and viscosity can be functions of temperature and lubricant thickness in case of ultra-thin film lubrication. Karis [9] measured Maxwell relaxation time as a function of temperature for a variety of lubricants, such as Z-dol and Z-tetraol. Fig. 1 shows the results of these measurements for both Z-dol and Z-tetraol. Maxwell relaxation time plays a vital role in determining the behavior of the material under thermal and mechanical loads. In order to have a proper understanding of the effect of Maxwell relaxation time, we non-dimensionalize this parameter by the timescale of the problem to introduce a non-dimensional Deborah number De = λU/L. So, De is a function of HAMR temperature T, disk speed U, laser spot size L, and lubricant type. For purely-viscous materials both the Maxwell relaxation time and De are zero and for purely-elastic materials, both are infinity. So in the case of viscoelasticity, if De ≪ 1 the viscosity mode is dominant, if De ≫ 1 the elasticity is dominant, and if De ≈ 1 the material behaves viscoelastically. Therefore, De is good measure for the viscoelastic behavior of the material. Some attempts have been made to fit the lubrication theory for viscoelastic materials using perturbation methods. However these methods require that the Deborah Number be small enough [11]. Fig. 2 shows the Deborah Number as a function of laser spot size for different lubricant temperatures. Accordingly, at the target of a HAMR laser spot size of L = 20nm, the Deborah number is very large and therefore, the material behaves less viscous and more elastic. Therefore, the traditional methods of lubrication theory cannot describe the lubricant’s behavior in this limit. Consequently, we developed anew direct Finite Element Method (FEM) approach to simulate the behavior of the linear viscoelastic Maxwell fluid lubricants under HAMR conditions.
Analysis of Microwaviness-Excited Vibrations of a Flying Head Slider in Asperity Contact Regime
Authors: Ono Kyosuke
Published: September 2016

The flying height of a head slider in hard disk drives has been decreased close to 1 nm but still must be reduced to ∼0.5 nm in order to increase recording density. At such a narrow spacing, variation in head/disk spacing caused by microwaviness (MW) becomes a significant concern [1]. Some comprehensive numerical simulations of slider dynamics in the near-contact and contact regimes have been conducted [2–5]. However, the real physics behind slider dynamics does not seem to be fully elucidated because the head-disk interfacial force changes with differences in interfacial design conditions such as the air-bearing surface, surface roughness, and lubricant layer. In this study, we evaluated head-disk interfacial forces by asperity adhesive contact theories with measured asperity parameter values. The MW-excited vibrations of a thermal fly-height control (TFC) slider in proximity and asperity contact regimes were simulated by changing the design parameters. It was found that the simulated results allow us to understand typical experimental results reported in previous literature.
Analysis of Pseudo-Rate Incremental Feedback Control With Angular Velocity Feedback for Flexible Space Manipulator
Authors: Zeng Xiangxin , Guan Yingzi , Xu Shijie
Published: September 2016

Flexible space manipulator platform is a combination of rigid platform and flexible manipulator. Its complexity is mainly reflected in two aspects: one is the coupling between rigid platform and flexible manipulator; the other is the parameter uncertainty of the platform system dynamics, which is caused by the flexibility of manipulator. This paper first designs the pseudo-rate increment feedback controller with angular velocity feedback based on the coupling dynamic model, and then simulations were done to analyze the performance of the designed controller.
State Feedback Controller Design for Hypersonic Vehicle With Nested Actuator Saturation and Disturbance
Authors: Guan Yingzi , Zhu Kai , Song Chunlin
Published: September 2016

Concerning with stability control of a hypersonic vehicle in the presence of input amplitude saturation and rate saturation simultaneously, a state feedback controller is designed based on LMI technique. The uncertainties of aircraft model are regarded as a known “total disturbance”. Using the actuator dynamics, the aircraft model is transformed into an extended system with nested saturation. An invariant set condition of a system which subject to nested input saturation and disturbance is derived. Controller design is transformed into the maximization of the domain of attraction using LMI technique. As the actuator amplitude is regarded as an extended state, invariant set condition and state constraint are all considered in the LMI constraints to get a rational domain of attraction. Then the optimization problem is solved by sequence quadratic program method. Simulation results show the stability and good robustness of the proposed method in the presence of aerodynamic dispersion, as well as control input amplitude and rate saturation.
Vibration Reduction of MLCCS Using Vibration-Canceling Effects of Poling Process
Authors: Kim Dongjoon , Ko Byung-Han , Park No-cheol , Park Young-Pil
Published: September 2016

MLCC vibrates due to its piezoelectric characteristics and it makes circuit board vibrate and lead to acoustic noise. In order to reduce vibration, piezoelectric coefficient should be reduced. In this study, poling process was used to decrease piezoelectric coefficient. Due to the electrostriction coefficient, response at fundamental frequency can be cancelled by applying voltage to opposite direction. Through the experiment, vibration-cancelling voltage increases as the poling voltage increases. Also, vibration-cancelling voltage increase inversely proportion to MLCC’s capacitance. By applying proper DC bias after poling process, vibration can be reduced.
Nonlinear Control of a Static Synchronous Compensator
Authors: Kuo Yong-Lin , Huang Chang-Lun
Published: September 2016

With the rise of environmental awareness, many countries pay more attention on energy resources, especially for electricity, because it is already indispensable in the high-tech society. Therefore, it is the most basic policy to effectively provide stable power to the load side. This paper adopts the most popular device, called a static synchronous compensator (STACOM), to obtain the reactive compensation due to the power loss in the electrical system. Since a STATCOM is a nonlinear system, one applies the sliding mode control to a STACOM. The simulation results show that the reactive power compensations in the stable operation can be confirmed.
The Design and Kinematic Analysis of a Moving Bed for a Radiation Therapy System
Authors: Kim Dongwook , Park No-Cheol , Jeong Kyung Min , Kim Seungho
Published: September 2016

In this study, we designed a moving bed for a radiation therapy system in conjunction with multi robot arms. Kinematic analysis is conducted for workspace which does not interfere with multi robot arms. A tensile force distribution method and optimal z-axis length is considered for minimizing the tensile force in rods.
Electrical Control of Magnetic Multi-Domain Transformation in a Specific Geometric-Patterned Ni Nanostructure on a Piezoelectric [Pb(Mg1/3Nb2/3)O3]0.68–[PbTiO3]0.32 Substrate
Authors: Chen Yu-Jen , Chung Tien-Kan , Lin Po-Jung , Hung Chiao-Fang , Chu Hou-Jen , Lin Shin-Hung , Cheng Chih-Cheng
Published: September 2016

In this paper, we report an electrical control of magnetic multi-domain-walls transformation in an N-shape-patterned Ni nanostructures on a piezoelectric [Pb(Mg1/3Nb2/3)O3]0.68–[PbTiO3]0.32 substrate. Based on the converse-magnetoelectric-effect induced domain-wall transformation and the specific N-shape geometry guided domain-wall motion, the domain walls are successfully transformed by an applied electric field of 0.8 MV/m from the transverse domain wall state into the flux closure vortex domain state. These experimental results achieve the electrical control of multi-domain-walls transformation and would create more data storage and memory applications in the future.
A Method to Measure the Media Lubricant Loss After HAMR Recording
Authors: Li Dongbo , Xiong Shaomin , Braunstein David , Guo Xingcai , Canchi Sripathi , Dai Qing
Published: September 2016

Heat assisted magnetic recording (HAMR) is anticipated to increase the areal density in hard disk drives to multiple Tb/in2. During HAMR recording, as a near filed laser light heats the media to the temperature above Curie point to assist magnetic switching, the lubricant that is typically applied to the disk surface will be under an intensive thermal stress, which will lead to the lubricant desorption and/or decomposition, and frequently accompanied with the underneath carbon overcoat (COC) graphitization and oxidation. Due to the optical properties change of the COC at such a high temperature, the traditional optical techniques are not appropriate to measure the lubricant thickness post HAMR recording. In this paper, we introduce a new method based on atomic force microscopy (AFM) in different imaging modes to detect the lubricant and also COC thickness change as a result of laser heating with a vertical resolution at the angstrom scale. Using AFM in a soft tapping mode, we can also characterize the lubricant thickness variation with time after laser exposure, which enables the measurement of the lubricant reflow kinetics on HAMR media.
DSP Implementation of a Direct Adaptive Feedforward Control Algorithm for Rejecting Repeatable Runout in Hard Disk Drives
Authors: Pan Jinwen , Shah Prateek , Horowitz Roberto
Published: September 2016

A direct adaptive feedforward control method for tracking repeatable runout (RRO) in bit patterned media recording (BPMR) hard disk drives (HDD) is proposed. The technique estimates the system parameters and the residual RRO simultaneously and constructs a feedforward signal based on a known regressor. An improved version of the proposed algorithm to avoid matrix inversion and reduce computation complexity is given. Results for both MATLAB simulation and digital signal processor (DSP) implementation are provided to verify the effectiveness of the proposed algorithm.
Effects of Temperature on Particle Trajectory Inside the Helium-Filled Hard Disk Drive
Authors: Zhu Yuwen , Zhang Guoqing , Shen Shengnan , Li Hui , Yang Yun , Chen Yibo , Sun Wenbin
Published: September 2016

The presence of particles, which can intrude into the air bearing, is one of the most common factors in the failure of hard disk drives (HDDs). Previous works investigated the particle trajectory inside air-filled drives without considering the temperature effects on the distribution of particles. Actually, for the submicron particle, particle trajectory and trapping status are affected by the temperature gradient since the thermophoretic force cannot be ignored. In this paper, considering the major heat generation components such as spindle motor and voice coil motor (VCM), the trajectories and trapping status for Al2O3 particles with diameter of 0.3 μm inside a 2.5 inch helium-filled drive are simulated by the commercial computational fluid dynamics solver FLUENT with user-defined functions (UDFs). The trapping criterion for Al2O3 particles are used as the boundary conditions for the different colliding surfaces.
Effect of Slider Bias Voltage and Humidity on Wear and Contact Potential
Authors: Morris Karcher , Matthes Liane , Spada Frederick E. , Ovcharenko Andrey , Knigge Bernhard E. , Talke Frank E.
Published: September 2016

The effect of slider bias voltage and humidity on wear at the head/disk interface is investigated. Wear of thermal flying height control sliders is studied as a function of head/disk bias voltage, relative humidity, and heater power. The electrostatic force and the contact potential at the head/disk interface is monitored before and after head wear using the noncontact Kelvin probe method.
Modeling and Simulation for Head/Disk Electromechanical Systems Interface During Load/Unload Process of a Hard Disk Drive
Authors: Mirnateghi Nasim , Kulkarni Sandip D. , Ding JiangHong , Desai Ashok
Published: September 2016

This paper presents a novel design and reliability assessment simulator focusing on HDD (Hard Disk Drive)’s L/UL (Load and Unload) operations. The model is structured to incorporate theoretical effects of environmental factors, component variations, and temperature effects in addition to empirical dependencies on product operating mode. The simulator includes detailed model of VCM (Voice Coil Motor), spindle motor, PLSI (Power Large Scale Integration), and all other related components and their effects on the load and unload operations. The tool can be used for feasibility assessment of new electromechanical designs and available design margins, and it is also a reliable tool to provide accurate tunings for FW (firmware) Load, Unload, Emergency Unload and EPOR (Emergency Power Off Retract). The simulator is also capable of accurately estimating the potential DPPM (Defective Part Per Million) related to the various potential failures using latest statistical analysis. The predictions and performance reliability of the model have been verified experimentally through comparison with HDD product reliability test data.
Quantitative assessment of biliary stent artifacts on MR images: Potential implications for target delineation in radiotherapy
Authors: Gurney‐Champion Oliver J. , Bruins Slot Thijs , Lens Eelco , van der Horst Astrid , Klaassen Remy , van Laarhoven Hanneke W. M. , van Tienhoven Geertjan , van Hooft Jeanin E. , Nederveen Aart J. , Bel Arjan
Published: September 2016

Purpose

Biliary stents may cause susceptibility artifacts, gradient‐induced artifacts, and radio frequency (RF) induced artifacts on magnetic resonance images, which can hinder accurate target volume delineation in radiotherapy. In this study, the authors investigated and quantified the magnitude of these artifacts for stents of different materials.

Methods

Eight biliary stents made of nitinol, platinum‐cored nitinol, stainless steel, or polyethylene from seven vendors, with different lengths (57–98 mm) and diameters (3.0–11.7 mm), were placed in a phantom. To quantify the susceptibility artifacts sequence‐independently, ΔB0‐maps and T2∗‐maps were acquired at 1.5 and 3 T. To study the effect of the gradient‐induced artifacts at 3 T, signal decay in images obtained with maximum readout gradient‐induced artifacts was compared to signal decay in reference scans. To quantify the RF induced artifacts at 3 T, B1‐maps were acquired. Finally, ΔB0‐maps and T2∗‐maps were acquired at 3 T of two pancreatic cancer patients who had received platinum‐cored nitinol biliary stents.

Results

Outside the stent, susceptibility artifacts dominated the other artifacts. The stainless steel stent produced the largest susceptibility artifacts. The other stents caused decreased T2∗ up to 5.1 mm (1.5 T) and 8.5 mm (3 T) from the edge of the stent. For sequences with a higher bandwidth per voxel (1.5 T: BWvox > 275 Hz/voxel; 3 T: BWvox > 500 Hz/voxel), the B0‐related susceptibility artifacts were negligible (<0.2 voxels). The polyethylene stent showed no artifacts. In vivo, the changes in B0 and T2∗ induced by the stent were larger than typical variations in B0 and T2∗ induced by anatomy when the stent was at an angle of 30° with the main magnetic field.

Conclusions

Susceptibility artifacts were dominating over the other artifacts. The magnitudes of the susceptibility artifacts were determined sequence‐independently. This method allows to include additional safety margins that ensure target irradiation.
Technical Note: Calibrating radiochromic film in beams of uncertain quality
Authors: Peet Samuel C. , Wilks Rachael , Kairn Tanya , Trapp Jamie V. , Crowe Scott B.
Published: September 2016

Purpose

The dose‐response of radiochromic film has been shown to be dependent on the quality of the incident radiation, particularly at low energies. Difficulty therefore arises when a calibration is required for radiation of uncertain energy. This study investigates the ability of a recently published calibration method [see M. Tamponi et al., “A new form of the calibration curve in radiochromic dosimetry. Properties and results,” Med. Phys. 43, 4435–4446 (2016)] to reduce the energy‐dependence of radiochromic film. This allows for corrections to be applied that may improve the accuracy and precision of measurements taken in beams of uncertain energy or where the beam quality is known but calibration doses cannot be delivered.

Methods

Gafchromic EBT3 film was irradiated with a range of superficial, orthovoltage, and high‐energy photon beams. Calibrations were then applied using a typical net optical density approach and compared with the Tamponi et al. method that instead defines the response as a ratio of two net optical densities. To quantify the energy dependence, the response at each beam quality and dose was then normalized to the response at a preselected reference quality. This resulted in a relative measure that could be used to correct the calibration curve at the reference beam quality to any other quality of interest.

Results

The Tamponi et al. calibration method resulted in substantially less energy dependence compared to the standard net optical density approach, without compromising the calibration fit. The maximum deviation from the reference beam calibration curve was 7% across the range of energies and doses analyzed, reducing to <3% for doses greater than 200 cGy. However, the ability of the calibration curve to fit the data deteriorated as the curve was refitted with measurements at higher doses than those originally studied.

Conclusions

The Tamponi et al. calibration method, based on the ratio of two net optical densities, considerably reduces the energy dependence of Gafchromic EBT3 film. Manipulating the calibration data in the fashion presented in this study allows for a readily available calibration curve to be corrected to represent calibration curves at different energies. This may be useful when a calibration is desired for a beam where the delivery of a set of calibration doses is problematic, such as with out‐of‐field measurements, radioactive sources, and imaging applications.
Automated tracking of dolphin whistles using Gaussian mixture probability hypothesis density filters
Authors: Gruden Pina , White Paul R.
Published: September 2016

This work considers automated multi target tracking of odontocete whistle contours. An adaptation of the Gaussian mixture probability hypothesis density (GM-PHD) filter is described and applied to the acoustic recordings from six odontocete species. From the raw data, spectral peaks are first identified and then the GM-PHD filter is used to simultaneously track the whistles' frequency contours. Overall over 9000 whistles are tracked with a precision of 85% and recall of 71.8%. The proposed filter is shown to track whistles precisely (with mean deviation of 104 Hz, about one frequency bin, from the annotated whistle path) and 80% coverage. The filter is computationally efficient, suitable for real-time implementation, and is widely applicable to different odontocete species.
Draft Genome Sequence of Klebsiella pneumoniae Strain AS Isolated from Zhejiang Provincial Hospital of TCM, China
Authors: Yang Xue-Jing , Wang Sai , Cao Jun-Min , Hou Jia-Hui
Published: September 2016

Klebsiella pneumoniae
is a Gram-negative, nonmotile, encapsulated, lactose-fermenting, facultative anaerobic, rod-shaped bacterium. Here we present draft genome assemblies of
Klebsiella pneumoniae
AS, which was isolated in China. The genomic information will provide a better understanding of the physiology, adaptation, and evolution of
K. pneumoniae
.
Draft Genome Sequence of a Cardiobacterium hominis Strain Isolated from Blood Cultures of a Patient with Infective Endocarditis
Authors: Tagini Florian , Pillonel Trestan , Asner Sandra , Prod'hom Guy , Greub Gilbert
Published: September 2016

Cardiobacterium hominis
is a well-known commensal bacterium of the oral cavity and an agent of infective endocarditis in humans. Here, we provide a draft genome sequence of a pathogenic strain isolated from blood cultures of a patient with infectious endocarditis.
Draft Genome Sequences of Histamine- and Non-Histamine-Producing
Photobacterium
Strains
Authors: Bjornsdottir-Butler Kristin , Sanchez Leon Maria , Dunlap Paul V. , Benner Ronald A.
Published: September 2016

Histamine-producing bacteria (HPBs) have recently been identified from the marine environment. The identification and characterization of HPBs is important to developing effective mitigation strategies for scombrotoxin fish poisoning. We report here the draft genomes of seven histamine-producing and two non-histamine-producing marine
Photobacterium
strains.
Economic costs of chronic disease through lost productive life years (PLYs) among Australians aged 45–64 years from 2015 to 2030: results from a microsimulation model
Authors: Schofield Deborah , Shrestha Rupendra N , Cunich Michelle M , Tanton Robert , Veerman Lennert , Kelly Simon J , Passey Megan E
Published: September 2016

Objectives

To project the number of older workers with lost productive life years (PLYs) due to chronic disease and resultant lost income; and lost taxes and increased welfare payments from 2015 to 2030.

Design, setting and participants

Using a microsimulation model, Health&WealthMOD2030, the costs of chronic disease in Australians aged 45–64 were projected to 2030. The model integrates household survey data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics Surveys of Disability, Ageing and Carers (SDACs) 2003 and 2009, output from long-standing microsimulation models (STINMOD (Static Incomes Model) and APPSIM (Australian Population and Policy Simulation Model)) used by various government departments, population and labour force growth data from Treasury, and disease trends data from the Australian Burden of Disease and Injury Study (2003). Respondents aged 45–64 years in the SDACs 2003 and 2009 formed the base population.

Main outcome measures

Lost PLYs due to chronic disease; resultant lost income, lost taxes and increased welfare payments in 2015, 2020, 2025 and 2030.

Results

We projected 380 000 (6.4%) people aged 45–64 years with lost PLYs in 2015, increasing to 462 000 (6.5%) in 2030—a 22% increase in absolute numbers. Those with lost PLYs experience the largest reduction in income than any other group in each year compared to those employed full time without a chronic disease, and this income gap widens over time. The total economic loss due to lost PLYs consisted of lost income modelled at $A12.6 billion in 2015, increasing to $A20.5 billion in 2030—a 62.7% increase. Additional costs to the government consisted of increased welfare payments at $A6.2 billion in 2015, increasing to $A7.3 billion in 2030—a 17.7% increase; and a loss of $A3.1 billion in taxes in 2015, increasing to $A4.7 billion in 2030—a growth of 51.6%.

Conclusions

There is a need for greater investment in effective preventive health interventions which improve workers’ health and work capacity.
Evaluation of ‘I-Preventive’: a digital preventive tool for musculoskeletal disorders in computer workers—a pilot cluster randomised trial
Authors: Lanhers C , Pereira B , Garde G , Maublant C , Dutheil F , Coudeyre E
Published: September 2016

Objectives

I-Preventive is a digital preventive tool for musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs) in computer workers. We sought to determine its impact on pain in computer workers with upper limb MSDs and visual discomfort.

Methods

We conducted a pilot cluster randomised trial in 2 different sites of a tyre factory in France. We randomised 200 employees to either an intervention group (I-Preventive) or control group, each comprising symptomatic and asymptomatic employees. The workers were followed up for 5 months. The main outcome was overall recovery from symptoms following 1 month's intervention based on Nordic-style and eyestrain questionnaires.

Results

We included 185/200 workers: 96 in the intervention group (mean age 41.8±1.4 years; 88.5% males) and 79 in the control group (mean age 42.9±12.0 years; 94.5% males). The most painful areas (numerical scale ≥2) were the neck (40.0%), upper back (18.8%) and shoulders (15.7%). For the most painful anatomical area, the Nordic score significantly decreased after 1 month in the intervention group (p=0.038); no change was observed in the control group (p=0.59). After 1 month's use, the intervention group reported less pain in the painful area and less visual discomfort symptoms (p=0.02). Adherence to the I-Preventive program was 60%.

Conclusions

I-Preventive is effective in the short term on musculoskeletal symptoms and visual discomfort by promoting active breaks and eyestrain treatment. This easy-to-use digital tool allows each worker to focus on areas of their choice via personalised, easy exercises that can be performed in the workplace.

Trial registration number

NCT02350244; Pre-results.
Bluebelle study (phase A): a mixed-methods feasibility study to inform an RCT of surgical wound dressing strategies
Authors:   The Bluebelle Study Group, the Severn and Peninsula Audit and Research Collaborative for Surgeons, and the West Midlands Research Collaborative
Published: September 2016

Objectives

Dressing primary surgical wounds is common, but the implications for surgical site infection (SSI) remain unknown. The Bluebelle study aimed to determine the feasibility of a randomised controlled trial (RCT) comparing ‘simple’, ‘complex’ or ‘no’ dressings on abdominal wounds, as prespecified in a funder's research brief. Bluebelle includes exploratory work (phase A) to inform a pilot version of the proposed RCT (phase B). Phase A aimed to investigate current dressing practices and perspectives on the proposed RCT, with a view to refining the forthcoming pilot.

Design

Mixed methods, including semi-structured interviews and document analysis.

Setting

6 UK hospitals.

Participants

51 patients and 92 clinical professionals from abdominal surgical specialities.

Results

Professionals had variable interpretations of what constitutes a ‘dressing’, particularly with respect to ‘glue’—a product listed under ‘wound-closure products’ in the British National Formulary, which some surgeons reportedly applied as a ‘wound covering’. Areas of ambiguity arising from interviews informed development of pragmatic definitions, including specification of conditions under which glue constituted a ‘dressing’. Professionals reported that ‘simple’ dressings were routinely used in practice, whereas ‘complex’ dressings were not. This raised questions about the relevance of comparison groups, prompting the design of a survey to determine the types/frequency of dressing use in abdominal surgery (reported elsewhere). This confirmed that complex dressings were rarely used, while ‘glue as a dressing’ was used relatively frequently. ‘Complex dressings’ were therefore substituted for ‘glue as a dressing’ (following an updated Cochrane review, which found insufficient evidence to determine the effectiveness of ‘glue as a dressing’). Patients and professionals acknowledged uncertainty around dressing use and SSI prevention, but felt dressings may serve practical and/or psychological benefits. This steered development of additional outcome measures for the pilot.

Conclusions

Pre-trial qualitative research can highlight areas of ambiguity and inform new lines of enquiry in relation to prespecified research briefs, enabling adjustments to RCT design that enhance relevance to practice.
Crystal structural and diffusion property in titanium carbides: A molecular dynamics study
Authors: Lv Yanan , Gao Weimin
Published: September 2016

Titanium carbides were studied via molecular dynamics simulation to characterize TiC[Formula: see text] structures with respect to the carbon diffusion properties in this study. The effect of carbon concentration on atomic structures of titanium carbides was investigated through discussing the structure variation and the radial distribution functions of carbon atoms in titanium carbides. The carbon diffusion in titanium carbides was also analyzed, focusing on the dependence on carbon concentration and carbide structure. Carbon diffusivity with different carbon concentrations was determined by molecular dynamics (MD) calculations and compared with the available experimental data. The simulation results showed an atomic exchange mechanism for carbon diffusion in titanium carbide.
Redundancy Reduction Algorithms in Rule-Based Knowledge Bases
Authors: Zhang Yongjie , Deng Ansheng
Published: September 2016

Redundancy rules in knowledge bases will affect the reasoning process of knowledge bases. And they will take up a lot of unnecessary memory space. So the notions of redundancy rules are briefly introduced. Meanwhile they are classified into four types. This paper studies the redundancy rules based on propositional logic and presents the reduction algorithms of four kinds of redundancy rules. They are equivalent redundancy rules, implication redundancy rules and cycle redundancy rules in explicit redundancy rules and condition redundancy rules in implicit redundancy rules. The reduction in this paper optimizes the structure of rule-based knowledge bases. And it also improves the efficiency of time and space of the reasoning on knowledge bases.
Mathematical Modeling of Human Behaviors During Catastrophic Events: Stability and Bifurcations
Authors: Cantin Guillaume , Verdiére Nathalie , Lanza Valentina , Aziz-Alaoui M. A. , Charrier Rodolphe , Bertelle Cyrille , Provitolo Damienne , Dubos-Paillard Edwige
Published: September 2016

The aim of this paper is to present some mathematical results concerning the PCR system (Panic-Control-Reflex), which is a model for human behaviors during catastrophic events. This model has been proposed to better understand and predict human reactions of individuals facing a brutal catastrophe, in a context of an established increase of natural and industrial disasters. After stating some basic properties, that is positiveness, boundedness, and stability of the solutions, we analyze the transitional dynamic. We then focus on the bifurcation that occurs in the system, when one behavioral evolution parameter passes through a critical value. We exhibit a degeneracy case of a saddle-node bifurcation, in a larger context of classical saddle-node bifurcations and saddle-node bifurcations at infinity, and we study the inhibition effect of higher order terms.
Experimental Observation of Chaotic Beats in Oscillators Sharing Nonlinearity
Authors: Paul Asir M. , Jeevarekha A. , Philominathan P.
Published: September 2016

This paper deals with the generation of chaotic beats in a system of two forced dissipative LCR oscillators sharing a nonlinear element. The presence of two external periodic excitations and a common nonlinear element in the chosen system enables the facile generation of chaotic beats. Thus rendered chaotic beats were characterized in both time domain and phase space. Lyapunov exponents and envelope of the beats were computed to diagnose the chaotic nature of the signals. The role of common nonlinearity on the complexity of the generated beats is discussed. Real-time experimental hardware implementation has also been done to confirm the subsistence of the phenomenon, for the first time. Extensive Multisim simulations were carried out to understand, a bit more about the shrinkage and revivals of state variables in phase space.
A New Chaotic Electro-Mechanical Oscillator
Authors: Buscarino Arturo , Famoso Carlo , Fortuna Luigi , Frasca Mattia
Published: September 2016

In this paper, a new electro-mechanical chaotic oscillator is presented. The system is based on the motion of the metal tip of a beam in a double-well potential generated by two magnets, and works thanks to the vibrations generated in the flexible mechanical structure by two rotating coils that produce noise-like signals. As the source of vibration is internal, the system may be considered an autonomous oscillator. Chaotic motion is experimentally observed and verified with a mathematical model of the phenomenon.
Bursting Transition Dynamics Within the Pre-Bötzinger Complex
Authors: Duan Lixia , Chen Xi , Tang Xuhui , Su Jianzhong
Published: September 2016

The pre-Bötzinger complex of the mammalian brain stem plays a crucial role in the respiratory rhythms generation. Neurons within the pre-Bötzinger complex have been found experimentally to yield different firing activities. In this paper, we study the spiking and bursting activities related to the respiratory rhythms in the pre-Bötzinger complex based on a mathematical model proposed by Butera. Using the one-dimensional first recurrence map induced by dynamics, we investigate the different bursting patterns and their transition of the pre-Bötzinger complex neurons based on the Butera model, after we derived a one-dimensional map from the dynamical characters of the differential equations, and we obtained conditions for the transition of different bursting patterns. These analytical results were verified through numerical simulations. We conclude that the one-dimensional map contains similar rhythmic patterns as the Butera model and can be used as a simpler modeling tool to study fast–slow models like pre-Bötzinger complex neural circuit.
Stability and Hopf Bifurcation of a Delayed Density-Dependent Predator–Prey System with Beddington–DeAngelis Functional Response
Authors: Li Haiyin , Meng Gang , She Zhikun
Published: September 2016

In this paper, we investigate the stability and Hopf bifurcation of a delayed density-dependent predator–prey system with Beddington–DeAngelis functional response, where not only the prey density dependence but also the predator density dependence are considered such that the studied predator–prey system conforms to the realistically biological environment. We start with the geometric criterion introduced by Beretta and Kuang [2002] and then investigate the stability of the positive equilibrium and the stability switches of the system with respect to the delay parameter [Formula: see text]. Especially, we generalize the geometric criterion in [Beretta & Kuang, 2002] by introducing the condition [Formula: see text] which can be assured by the condition [Formula: see text], and adopting the technique of lifting to define the function [Formula: see text] for alternatively determining stability switches at the zeroes of [Formula: see text]s. Afterwards, by the Poincaré normal form for Hopf bifurcation in [Kuznetsov, 1998] and the bifurcation formulae in [Hassard et al., 1981], we qualitatively analyze the properties for the occurring Hopf bifurcations of the system (3). Finally, an example with numerical simulations is given to illustrate the obtained results.
Business Intelligence Versus Competitive Intelligence in the Case of North African SMEs
Authors: Tarek Bel Hadj , Adel Ghodbane , Sami Aouadi
Published: September 2016

This paper aims to develop a complete model of competitive intelligence (CI) in the case of North African SMEs. Specifically, the objective of this paper is to analyse the mediating and moderating effects of innovation and the protection of information assets in the relationship between business intelligence (BI) and international competitiveness of SMEs based on export intensity. To do this, we rely on the approach of Baron and Kenny (1986). The Moderator–Mediator variable distinction in social psychological research: Conceptual, strategic, and statistical considerations. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 51(6), 1173–1182 and Ping (1995). A parsimonious estimating techinque for interaction and quadratic latent variables. The Journal of Marketing Research, 32, 336–347 to identify respectively, the mediating and moderating roles of innovation and protection of information assets, and we focus on a sample of 180 North African companies. The results of this paper show that the relationship between BI and international competitiveness is both mediated by innovation and moderated by the protection of information assets. The originality of this research lies in the design of a CI model that integrates BI, mediation of innovation, moderation of the protection of information assets and the international competitiveness.
Mapping and Bibliometric Analysis ofAmerican Historical ReviewCitations and Its Contribution to the Field of History
Authors: Taşkın Zehra , Akça Sümeyye
Published: September 2016

This paper aims to represent the bibliometric characteristics of the American Historical Review (AHR) in an attempt to highlight the journal's contribution to the field of History as one of the leading journals in Journal Citation Reports (JCR). AHR has the highest impact factor among the other journals in its field, and has been bringing together scholars from all over the world since 1895. Although the field of History is known as localized and non-interdisciplinarity, the present study's findings reveal that AHR has different characteristics compared to traditional contributions to the field of History by other journals. In addition, the results show that approximately three quarters of AHR citations, from 67 different categories, are gathered by articles. This indicates that AHR has an increased degree of convergence with other disciplines. These findings may be interpreted as an indication that traditional historical scholarly communication is increasingly changing toward interdisciplinarity. However, it would be problematic to generalize these findings for all history literature, based on a single journal evaluation. This study suggests that AHR has become increasingly diversified and consequently no longer reflects the main characteristics of the field of History. Future studies of more History journals are needed to validate the results and reveal possible changes in the field.
Efficient Energy Management System Based on GA and Classical Boolean Approach
Authors: Abdulgader Musbah , Yang Cheng , Kaur Devinder
Published: September 2016

In this paper, two intelligent strategies for energy management unit for a home integrated with smart grid are proposed. The strategies are based on classical Boolean and genetic algorithm (GA). The objective is to optimize the cost saving for the end consumer. The price of energy varies by the hour depending on the load on the grid. The two strategies predict when and by how much the storage unit installed in the house should charge and release for 24 h of the day, satisfying the constraint that the load demand of the house at any particular hour should always be met. The strategies were tested by real time data collected by the Department of Energy for a typical house in the Chicago, Illinois region for the year 2013. Both the strategies achieve cost savings; however, it has been found that GA-based strategy results in higher cost saving. The impact of the capacity of the energy storage unit (ESU) on the cost saving has been analyzed for a GA strategy and cost saving obtained when the capacity of ESU is 1.5 times and 2 times the house hold load at any given hour is presented.
Bone Tissue Engineering Incorporating Poly(Propylene Fumarate) Composites: A Mini Review
Authors: Westbrook Emily G.
Published: September 2016

Tissue engineering is intended to manipulate living cells to help develop substitutes for native tissues or remodel tissue. Bioartificial tissues are commonly explored in various tissue engineering ventures to overcome the disadvantages of working with native tissue. Poly(propylene fumarate) is a potential biomaterial for bioartificial bone grafts. The polymer’s many desirable physical and chemical properties have drawn significant research interest. This miniature review is intended to cover a small portion of the investigations of poly(propylene fumarate) as a bone tissue engineering biomaterial.
Cathepsin G Controls Arterial But Not Venular Myeloid Cell Recruitment
Authors: Ortega-Gomez Almudena , Salvermoser Melanie , Rossaint Jan , Pick Robert , Brauner Janine , Lemnitzer Patricia , Tilgner Jessica , de Jong Renske J. , Megens Remco T. A. , Jamasbi Janina , Döring Yvonne , Pham Christine T. , Scheiermann Christoph , Siess Wolfgang , Drechsler Maik , Weber Christian , Grommes Jochen , Zarbock Alexander , Walzog Barbara , Soehnlein Oliver
Published: September 2016

Background:

Therapeutic targeting of arterial leukocyte recruitment in the context of atherosclerosis has been disappointing in clinical studies. Reasons for such failures include the lack of knowledge of arterial-specific recruitment patterns. Here we establish the importance of the cathepsin G (CatG) in the context of arterial myeloid cell recruitment.

Methods:

Intravital microscopy of the carotid artery, the jugular vein, and cremasteric arterioles and venules in
Apoe

–/–

and CatG-deficient mice (
Apoe

–/–

Ctsg

–/–

) was used to study site-specific myeloid cell behavior after high-fat diet feeding or tumor necrosis factor stimulation. Atherosclerosis development was assessed in aortic root sections after 4 weeks of high-fat diet, whereas lung inflammation was assessed after inhalation of lipopolysaccharide. Endothelial deposition of CatG and CCL5 was quantified in whole-mount preparations using 2-photon and confocal microscopy.

Results:

Our observations elucidated a crucial role for CatG during arterial leukocyte adhesion, an effect not found during venular adhesion. Consequently, CatG deficiency attenuates atherosclerosis but not acute lung inflammation. Mechanistically, CatG is immobilized on arterial endothelium where it activates leukocytes to firmly adhere engaging integrin clustering, a process of crucial importance to achieve effective adherence under high-shear flow. Therapeutic neutralization of CatG specifically abrogated arterial leukocyte adhesion without affecting myeloid cell adhesion in the microcirculation. Repetitive application of CatG-neutralizing antibodies permitted inhibition of atherogenesis in mice.

Conclusions:

Taken together, these findings present evidence of an arterial-specific recruitment pattern centered on CatG-instructed adhesion strengthening. The inhibition of this process could provide a novel strategy for treatment of arterial inflammation with limited side effects.
Metus Gallicus, tumultus Cimbricus?
Authors: Kerremans Bernt
Published: September 2016

This article aims to contribute to an ongoing scholarly debate about crises in the Roman world. It presents a case study of Roman crisis management, the so-calledtumultus. The main question it sets out to answer is whether the wars of the Romans against the Germanic Cimbri and Teutones (113-101)1—the Roman defeat at the Battle of Arausio (Orange) in 105 in particular—led to the promulgation of such a military emergency, which opened the possibility to facilitate the draft of extra troops by the Roman Senate. A prerequisite for this state of emergency was that the enemy had crossed the Alps and had set foot on Italian soil (tumultus Italicus), or at least entered the area north of the river Po, Cisalpine Gaul (tumultus Gallicus). Contrary to recent views on crisis management during the Roman Republic, it is stated here that the scattered literary sources related to the Cimbrian War all seem to suggest that on two occasions during this war atumultusdeclaration may have been proclaimed in Rome; either directly after the news of Arausio reaching the city of Rome, or else after the Cimbrian invasion of Italy in 102.
Contracted Semivowels in Old Khotanese
Authors: Hitch Doug
Published: September 2016

This completes a study begun with ‘Contracted Diphthongs in Old Khotanese’ (2015b) of the contractions seen in the secondary declensions. Here are examined the phenomena of diphthong resolution, semivocalization and glide resolution. Metrical patterns in the great Buddhist poem known as The Book of Zambasta are used to reveal word structure not shown by the orthography. The diphthongs revealed in the earlier study, written CyV or CvV may resolve into CiyV (CäyV) or CuvV but keep the same metrical count. Oblique plural is recognized as a distinct grammatical category and it is shown how the oblique plural suffixes induce semivocalization rather than diphthongization. The orthographic sequences containing a semi-vowel, CyV or CvV, are identical to those containing a diphthong. They may also resolve orthographically to CiyV (CäyV) or CuvV, but with these resolved glides an extra mora is added to the metrical count. An explanation is offered for the unusual morphophonological behavior and metrical distribution of the IAP morpheme -yau. Many of the contraction processes may also be seen with verb stems ending in /i/ and /u/.
The Semenchuk Case of 1936: Storytelling and Propaganda above the Law in the Soviet Criminal Trial
Authors: Lukina Anna
Published: September 2016

This article applies the concept of legal narrative to one of the Soviet show trials of the 1930s, the Semenchuk Case (1936), and examines its interlink with the refetishization of law initiated by Andrei Vyshinskii. While distinguishing Soviet legal narrative as a special type of storytelling in criminal cases, this analysis describes the substantive and formal patterns that arose within this narrative type as a direct consequence of the ideological goals of Soviet courts. Within Soviet legal narrative, the accounts of the defence, prosecution, and the judgment, all relate closely to historical context, and the broader political and ideological agendas of decision-makers, which extend beyond the facts of the case.
Epicureans on Marriage as Sexual Therapy
Authors: Arenson Kelly E.
Published: September 2016

This paper argues that although Epicureans will never marry for love, they may find it therapeutic to marry for sex: Epicureans may marry in order to limit anxiety about securing a sexual partner if they are prone to such anxiety and if they believe their prospective partner will satisfy them sexually. The paper shows that Epicureans believe that the process of obtaining sex can be a major source of anxiety, that it is acceptable for the sage to marry under certain circumstances, and that the desire for sex alone is free of the groundless assumptions that fuel love. Epicureans would therefore approve of marrying to alleviate sexual anxiety.