bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
FliPer: A global measure of power density to estimate surface gravities of main-sequence solar-like stars and red giants
Authors: Bugnet L. , García R. A. , Davies G. R. , Mathur S. , Corsaro E. , Hall O. J. , Rendle B. M.
Published: October 2018

Asteroseismology provides global stellar parameters such as masses, radii, or surface gravities using mean global seismic parameters and effective temperature for thousands of low-mass stars (0.8M⊙<M< 3M⊙). This methodology has been successfully applied to stars in which acoustic modes excited by turbulent convection are measured. Other methods such as the Flicker technique can also be used to determine stellar surface gravities, but only works for loggabove 2.5 dex. In this work, we present a new metric called FliPer (Flicker in spectral power density, in opposition to the standard Flicker measurement which is computed in the time domain); it is able to extend the range for which reliable surface gravities can be obtained (0.1 < logg< 4.6 dex) without performing any seismic analysis for stars brighter thanKp< 14. FliPer takes into account the average variability of a star measured in the power density spectrum in a given range of frequencies. However, FliPer values calculated on several ranges of frequency are required to better characterize a star. Using a large set of asteroseismic targets it is possible to calibrate the behavior of surface gravity with FliPer through machine learning. This calibration made with a random forest regressor covers a wide range of surface gravities from main-sequence stars to subgiants and red giants, with very small uncertainties from 0.04 to 0.1 dex. FliPer values can be inserted in automatic global seismic pipelines to either give an estimation of the stellar surface gravity or to assess the quality of the seismic results by detecting any outliers in the obtainedνmaxvalues. FliPer also constrains the surface gravities of main-sequence dwarfs using only long-cadence data for which the Nyquist frequency is too low to measure the acoustic-mode properties.
Hypervelocity stars in the Gaia era
Authors: Irrgang A. , Kreuzer S. , Heber U.
Published: October 2018

Context. Young massive stars in the halo are assumed to be runaway stars from the Galactic disk. Possible ejection scenarios are binary supernova ejections (BSE) or dynamical ejections from star clusters (DE). Hypervelocity stars (HVSs) are extreme runaway stars that are potentially unbound from the Galaxy. Powerful acceleration mechanisms such as the tidal disruption of a binary system by a supermassive black hole (SMBH) are required to produce them. Therefore, HVSs are believed to originate in the Galactic center (GC), the only place known to host an SMBH.

Aims. The second Gaia data release (DR2) offers the opportunity of studying HVSs in an unprecedented manner. We revisit some of the most interesting high-velocity stars, that is, 15 stars (11 candidate HVSs and 4 radial velocity outliers) for which proper motions with the Hubble Space Telescope. were obtained in the pre-Gaia era, to unravel their origin.

Methods. By carrying out kinematic analyses based on revised spectrophotometric distances and proper motions from Gaia DR2, kinematic properties were obtained that help constrain the spatial origins of these stars.

Results. Stars that were previously considered (un)bound remain (un)bound in Galactic potentials favored by Gaia DR2 astrometry. For nine stars (five candidate HVSs plus all four radial velocity outliers), the GC can be ruled out as spatial origin at least at 2σ confidence level, suggesting that a large portion of the known HVSs are disk runaway stars launched close to or beyond Galactic escape velocities. The fastest star in the sample, HVS 3, is confirmed to originate in the Large Magellanic Cloud.

Conclusions. Because the ejection velocities of five of our non-GC stars are close to or above the upper limits predicted for BSE and DE, another powerful dynamical ejection mechanism (e.g., involving massive perturbers such as intermediate-mass black holes) is likely to operate in addition to the three classical scenarios mentioned above.
Turbulent and wind-driven accretion in dwarf novae threaded by a large-scale magnetic field
Authors: Scepi N. , Lesur G. , Dubus G. , Flock M.
Published: October 2018

Dwarf novae (DNe) are accreting white dwarfs that show eruptions caused by a thermal-viscous instability in the accretion disk. The outburst timescales constrain α, the ratio of the viscous stress to the thermal pressure, which phenomenologically connects to the mechanism of angular momentum transport. The eruptive state has α  ≈  0.1 while the quiescent state has α  ≈  0.03. Turbulent transport that is due to the magneto-rotational instability (MRI) is generally considered to be the source of angular momentum transport in DNe. The presence of a large-scale poloidal field threading the disk is known to enhance MRI-driven transport. Here, we perform 3D local magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) shearing-box simulations including vertical stratification, radiative transfer, and a net constant vertical magnetic flux to investigate how transport changes between the outburst and quiescent states of DNe. We find that a net vertical constant magnetic field, as could be provided by the white dwarf or by its stellar companion, provides a higher α in quiescence than in outburst, in opposition to what is expected. Including resistivity quenches MRI turbulence in quiescence, suppressing transport, unless the magnetic field is high enough, which again leads to α  ≈  0.1. A major difference between simulations with a net poloidal flux and simulations without a net flux is that angular momentum transport in the former is shared between turbulent radial transport and wind-driven vertical transport. We find that wind-driven transport dominates in quiescence even for moderately low magnetic fields ∼1 G. This can have a great impact on observational signatures since wind-driven transport does not heat the disk. Furthermore, wind transport cannot be reduced to an α prescription. We provide fits to the dependence of α with β, the ratio of thermal to magnetic pressure, and Teff, the effective temperature of the disk, as well as a prescription for the wind torque as a function of β that is in agreement with both local and global simulations. We conclude that the evolution of the thermal-viscous instability, and its consequences on the outburst cycles of CVs, needs to be thoroughly revised to take into account that most of the accretion energy may be carried away by a wind instead of being locally dissipated.
Economic Analysis of Waste Heat Utilization for Coal-fired Power Units
Authors: Kai Wang , Kun Lu , Shuai Wang
Published: October 2018

Strict energy conservation policies require power plants to minimize energy consumption as much as possible. Low pressure economizer is an effective method to recycle waste heat from boiler exhaust gas. In this paper, the economic analysis model of coal-fired power plant is established by means of equivalent enthalpy drop method, and the waste heat utilization effect on thermal systems is investigated, including boiler efficiency, steam turbine power output, condensate pump, induced draft fan, electro static precipitator and desulfurization system. Then the economic effect on a 1000 MW ultra super critical unit in Shandong Province is calculated. The results show that waste heat utilization could comprehensively reduce standard coal consumption rate by 1.89 g/(kW·h), and the unit could save about 10.8 thousand tons standard coal and 1.29 billion dollars every year. Besides, the energy saving effect is more significant for lower load condition.
Development of a reconfigurable pallet system for a robotic cell
Authors: Koekemoer Martin , Gorlach Igor
Published: October 2018

Advanced manufacturing systems allow rapid changes of production processes by means of reconfigurability providing mass customisation of products with high productivity, quality and low costs. Reconfigurable Manufacturing Systems (RMS) employ conventional as well as special purpose CNC machines, robots and material handling systems. In customised automated assembly, a number of different workpieces need to be processed simultaneously at various workstations according to their process plans. Therefore, a material handling system is an important part of RMS, whose main task is to provide reliable, accurate and efficient transfer of materials according to the process scheduling, without bottlenecks and stoppages. In this research, a reconfigurable pallet system was developed to facilitate automated robotic assembly for a highly customised production environment. The aim is to design a material handling system for conveying, sorting and processing of parts, which are supplied by robots and part feeders in different configurations. The developed pallet system provides a low-cost solution and it includes four flexible conveyors and part handling devices. All the elements of the system were successfully integrated with an intelligent controller. A user-friendly human machine interface provides easy reconfigurability of the pallet system and interfacing with robots, processing stations and part feeding sub-systems. The main advantages of the developed material handling system are the ease of operation, its reconfigurability and low-cost. The system demonstrates the advantages of reconfigurable material handling systems and it can be employed for training purposes.
Possibilities of using lighting simulation tools to predict the level of illumination on the workplace from electric lights
Authors: Drabek Pavel , Ogunleye Julius Olufemi
Published: October 2018

Lighting is significant built environment design criteria, and architects or designers always keen to expend efforts to deliver optimal lighting solution. Moreover, the lighting energy consumption represents a significant percentage in a building’s energy balance. For these reasons, a suitable way to control the lighting in this field is crucial. The design of control algorithms can be done in various ways, however, in recent years, very useful tools for performing complex lighting assessments are simulation tools. This article deals with a comparison of the results of simulation tools and real measurements and further discusses the possibilities of using these tools to design lighting control algorithms. For the purpose of this paper was used specialized light laboratory where the lighting control is realized via the KNX system. This solution allows the adjustment of luminous intensity and colour temperature for each light separately. Subsequently, the comparison was made for the various configurations of the luminaire settings.
IRMA: a Graphical Tool for Interplanetary Mission Design
Authors: Genta Giancarlo , Maffione P. Federica
Published: October 2018

Designing an interplanetary mission is a complex task and requires the choice of the launch opportunity and of the exact launch and arrival dates. Depending on these choices, the trajectory must be defined and, in case of continuous thrust, also the thrust profile needs to be optimized.. Traditionally, these choices are made using some plots which allow to find a good compromise between the travel duration and the cost of the mission, which is often expressed in terms of initial mass in Earth orbit (IMLEO). IRMA (InterPlanetary Mission Analysis) code, based on the MATLAB®environment, is here described. It allows to deal with both impulsive propulsion (using the patched conics approach) and low continuous thrust (Solar or Nuclear electric or propellantless, like solar sails). A specific solver, based on indirect optimization techniques, has been developed specifically for this program, but IRMA can be used also as an interface for standard solvers, based on direct methods, like the FALCON.m code.
Impact analysis of changing the neutral treatment solution in an MV electrical station on the system performance
Authors: Mircea Paul Mihai , Marin Ion , Mircea Ion , Rusinaru Denisa , Ursu Doru , Buzatu Gabriel Cosmin , Ciontu Marian , Bratu Cristian
Published: October 2018

The actual operation of the power distribution systems asks for high standards concerning the performance of the system in terms of continuity and safety in supplying consumers on the one hand and the quality of the delivered energy on the other hand. Thus, the paper aims to present a complete analysis of the impact that the modification of the neutral treatment system in a 110 kV / MV station belonging to Energy Distribution Oltenia (DEO), has on both the number and the type of unwanted events or phenomena as well as on the network parameters and the transient regime which occurs as a result of some defects with the earth. All of these have been analyzed taking into account the new performance standards that distribution systems have to respect.
Providing IPTV in the IMS network
Authors: Kockovic Ladislav , Szeiff Ladislav
Published: October 2018

Providing IPTV in the IMS network is increasingly a problem solved today. All households are gradually passing through innovation and slowly every equipment becomes the so-called intelligent or smart and can be connected to a private or public network where it can be monitored, configured, diagnosed and then repaired.. This same upgrading takes place in television, and its current output is in the form of IPTV (Internet Protocol Television) provided in the IP Multimedia Subsystem Network, a new generation network that provides both audio and video data. IMS has originated in 1999 for the 3GPP standard in the 5th edition when switching from a 2G network to a 3G network. It has supported the older GSM and GPRS networks, but also a new UMTS network. In the sixth edition, it also has began to work on WLAN networks, more voice-oriented, or speech recognition services. This paper focuses on the provision of IPTV (Internet Protocol Television) in the IMS (IP Multimedia Subsystem) network. The aim of our paper is to design IPTV services in the IMS network, define the IMS architecture and the IMS network components such as HSS (Home Subscriber Server), various types of CSCF (Call State Control Function), describe the functionality and services provided by IMS and IPTV and, finally, compare the quality of the IPTV service provided by our network and by network of selected operator.
Multicriteria methods for identifying patterns in the analysis of the flow of “dangerous financial documents”
Authors: Ameljańczyk Andrzej , Kiedrowicz Maciej
Published: October 2018

The article outlines a concept of applying the methodology for identifying patterns used for detecting documents suggesting the execution of some criminal financial transactions. The analogies of diagnostic processes for disease classification in medicine were used in the method. The idea of the described method consists in defining model patterns of financial documents, suggesting criminal activity in the form of the financial flow and developing mathematical models of actual financial documents which shall be used for the comparisons with the patterns at a later stage of the process. The next step is to develop similarity indicators of documents to appropriate patterns, to define and develop a multicriteria detection area for the documents and to develop a method for dividing the set of monitored documents into similar document classes. The final stage is the development of multicriteria rankings that allow to organize the set of transaction documents according to the degree of similarity to the relevant patterns and to determine the optimal cut-off threshold in the ranking of documents intended for a more detailed analysis. The described method may be used in counteracting financial crimes, and in particular in combating money laundering.
Multi-criteria mathematical model of the pilot training process
Authors: Woch Marta , Żurek Józef , Tomaszewska Justyna
Published: October 2018

In most NATO countries, helicopter pilots are prepared in accordance with a modern system of threestage training: selection, basic and advanced. The training in the air is performed according to the parallelism of the training. The scheduling of pilot training process based on parallel model, which includes the technological relationships between the individual exercises, whereby for each air exercise, the exercises are specified, which must be done beforehand.

The purpose of this contribution is to propose a multi-criteria mathematical model which would enable the selection of exercises for each pilot, the appropriate selection of the aircraft and the moment of beginning of each exercise, so that all required exercises will be carried out in the shortest possible time and the number of trained, in a state of readiness pilots, should be as high as possible. Additionally, in this paper the sketch of a multi-criteria solution is presented. A crucial feature of this work is the model application to optimize pilot training.
Methods of structural analysis of business processes
Authors: Koszela Jarosław
Published: October 2018

The article outlines selected methods for analyzing business processes: their definitions and instances. The methods for analytical processing of processes constitute a component of the Business Intelligence environment - process warehouses, including methods for analytical processing and exploration of the collected process definitions and instances - i.e. process mining. One of the main elements of the analysis of processes is to determine the similarity between them. In systems for analyzing large sets of elements, the method of determining similarity should be efficiency because is the basis for others analysis methods, e.g. clustering, classification, etc. A method for analyzing structural similarity of business processes, based on the similarity of sequences of genetic tags of such processes, was presented using the similarity analysis methods based on the editing distance and the developed methods of structural similarity: GNM, DNM, GCM, DCM. The presented similarity methods were used to clustering processes and to determine the central element of the cluster. The developed methods form the basis for the development of similarity methods extended to aspects of semantic similarity of business processes and methods of analysis and exploration of processes.
Image Fusion Based on Principal Component Analysis and Slicing Image Transformation
Authors: Acho Leonardo , Buenestado Pablo
Published: October 2018

Image fusion deals with the ability to integrate data from image sensors at different instants when the source information is uncertain. Although there exist many techniques on the subject, in this paper, we develop two originative techniques based on principal component analysis and slicing image transformation to efficiently fuse a small set of noisy images. For instance, in neural data fusion, this approach requires a considerable number of corrupted images to efficiently produce the desired outcome and also requiring a considerable computing time because of the dynamics involved in the fusion data process. In our approaches, the computation time is considerably smaller. This results appealing to increasing feasibility, for instance, in remote sensing or wireless sensor network. Moreover, and according to our numerical experiments, when our methods are compared against the neural data fusion algorithm, they present better performance.
The Raspberry Pi as a Computer Substitute at Elementary Schools in Developing Countries: A Pilot Experiment in Ecuador
Authors: Nuñez-Unda Alfredo , Vera Angelo , Haz Lidice , Pinos Viviana , Zurita Roberto , Medina Silvia
Published: October 2018

One of the main challenges of developing countries is to shorten the digital divide that exists with developed countries and countries in transition. The government of Ecuador through its National Plan for Technologies and Telecommunications (Plan Nacional de Telecomunicaciones y Tecnologías), has as a goal to give universal access to Technologies of Information and Communication (TICs) to its entire citizens. One of its projects is to assure connectivity and infrastructure in schools. This paper proposes a low-cost open source solution to improve the access to information technology and communication through computers to children of schools in low income areas. The proposed alternative was set out to using the Raspberry Pi 3 s a substitute of standard computer. Its performance and capabilities were put to test comparing them to standard PC main functions. the pilot experiment was implemented at the "Ciudad de Ariel" elementary school, located on Durán, Ecuador.
The General Data Assimilation Method, its Comparison with the Standard Scheme, and its Application to Dynamical Simulation in the Atlantic
Authors: Belyaev Konstantin , Kuleshov Andrey , Smirnov Ilya , Tanajura Clemente A.S.
Published: October 2018

A new data assimilation scheme developed earlier and based on the theory of diffusion stochastic processes and parabolic differential equations is presented and tested. This scheme is applied to the Hybrid Circulation Ocean Model (HYCOM) and altimetry data base Archiving, Validating and Interpolating Satellite Oceanography Data (AVISO) over the Atlantic. Several numerical experiments are conducted and their results are analyzed. It is shown that the method really assimilates data, makes the output oceanic fields closer to observations and, on the other hand, conserves the model integrals and balance. The tested method is also compared with the Ensemble Optimal Interpolation scheme (EnOI) as a counterpart of the standard Kalman filter method and it is shown that the proposed general method has several advantages, in particular, it provides a better forecast and requires less computational consumptions.
Application of Regularized Hydrodynamic Equations for Direct Numerical Simulation of Micro-Scale Flows in Core Samples
Authors: Chetverushkin Boris , Balashov Vladislav , Kuleshov Andrey , Savenkov Evgeny
Published: October 2018

The paper is devoted to numerical simulation of three-dimensional isothermal two-phase two-component viscous fluid flows with surface effects in the pore space of core samples. The voxel representation of the flow domain is used suitable for digital rock physics applications. The flow is described by viscous compressible Navier-Stokes-Cahn-Hilliard equations. In order to use simple and computationally efficient explicit numerical algorithms with central difference approximations of spatial terms, a quasi-hydrodynamic regularization of equations is used. Simulation results of fluid displacement in pore space of realistic core sample (sandstone) are presented. The results demonstrate the applicability and good prospects of quasi-hydrodynamic regularization technique to solve the problem.
Possibilities of modelling the impact of cyber threats in cyber risk insurance
Authors: Pavlik Lukas
Published: October 2018

In the last few years, we could see that a lot of world organizations are contested by different ways, which we are called as cyber threats or cyber risks. Many of organizations are well secured, but the most of them admitted that they are not able to successfully prevent these attacks and they tried to find other ways to mitigate the risk. This paper describes a possible approach to modeling the impact of selected cyber threats in the field of providing cyber-risk insurance. It compares predefined organizational parameters in relation to cyber threats scenarios. The main results include modeling the impact of selected cyber threats on the organization’s parameters. Based on these results, it is possible to quantify possible financial impacts and, on the basis of this, to propose an optimal amount of insurance cover.
Mathematical modeling of ferrous sulfate oxidation in presence of air
Authors: Beltrán-Prieto Juan Carlos , Kolomazník Karel
Published: October 2018

In the present paper we studied the oxidation of ferrous sulfate salt with oxygen. ferric ammonium sulfate and ferrous sulfate were used to prepare standard solutions of Fe(III) and Fe(II) solutions. Oxidation experiments were carried out by mixing FeSO4·7 H2O in H2O. Air was supplied using a gas washing bottle in which air entered the bottle through the center tube, and exited into the bottom of the bottle. Samples were taken periodically and analyzed in the UV-Vis spectrophotometer. We consider that basic Fe(III) sulfate was one of the main compounds produced during the reaction and proposed a model to describe the process. We found solution to the differential equations that described the profile of FeSO4 and FwOHSO4 concentration in time and observed agreement between the experimental results and data predicted by the model. Moreover, we determined values of rate constants using the model and confirmed the determined values by means of experiments. This suggests that basic ferric sulfate was generated after aeration of ferrous sulfate solution.
Validation of Seasonal ARIMA Models on Road Traffic Noise Measurements
Authors: Guarnaccia Claudio , Quartieri Joseph , Tepedino Carmine
Published: October 2018

The Time Series Analysis (TSA) technique is largely used in economics and related field, to understand the slope of a given univariate dataset and to predict its future behaviour. The Seasonal AutoRegressive Integrated Moving Average (SARIMA) models are a class of TSA models that, based on the periodicity observed in the series, build a predictive function that can extend the forecast to a given number of future periods. In this paper, these techniques are applied to a dataset of equivalent sound levels, measured in an urban environment. The periodic pattern will evidence a strong influence of human activities (in particular road traffic) on the noise observed. All the three models will exploit the seasonality of the series and will be calibrated on a partial dataset of 800 data. Once the parameters of the models will be evaluated, all the forecasting functions will be tested and validated on a dataset not used before. The performances of all the models will be evaluated in terms of errors values and distributions, such as introducing some error indexes that explain the peculiar features of the models results.
GPS-based Tracking over WSNs with Delayed and Missing Data using UFIR Filtering
Authors: Uribe-Murcia Karen , Shmaliy Yuriy S. , Andrade-Lucio Amparo
Published: October 2018

Vehicles tracking is organized to increase safety in smart cities by localizing cars using the Global Positioning System (GPS). The GPS-based system provides accurate tracking, but is also required to be reliable and robust. As a main estimator, we propose using the unbiased finite impulse response (UFIR) filter, which meets these needs as a more robust alternative to the Kalman filter (KF). The UFIR filter is developed for vehicle tracking in discrete-time state-space over wireless sensor networks (WSNs) with time-stamped discretely delayed on k-step-lags and missing data. The state-space model is represented in a way such that the UFIR filter, KF, and H∞ filter can be used universally. Applications are given for measurement data, which are cooperatively transferred from a vehicle to a central station through several nodes with k-step-lags. Better tracking performance of the UFIR filter is shown experimentally.
A new spectrum feature discovered for a category of signals produced by massive and random micro-sources
Authors: Zhuang Xiaodong , Mastorakis Nikos
Published: October 2018

A statistical study is implemented on the short-time spectrum of one main category of random signals. For the signals with massive and random micro-sources, a new statistic feature of the short-time amplitude spectrum is discovered, which reveals the relationship between the amplitude’s average and its standard for each frequency component. Moreover, the association between the amplitude distributions for different frequency components is also studied. A model representing such association is presented, which accords well with the statistic feature discovered. The analysis result has potential application in signal classification, and also in the study of system characteristics underlying the observed signal.
Spitzenverband der Heilmittelverbände – Der große Unbekannte
Authors: Elke Oldenburg
Published: October 2018

Von „Therapeuten am Limit“ dürfte fast jeder schon gehört haben. Den „Spitzenverband der Heilmittelverbände“ kennen hingegen nicht alle, obwohl er seit Jahren dieselben Ziele verfolgt. Zeit, hinter die Kulissen des Dachverbandes zu schauen, der sich auf höchster politischer Ebene starkmacht für die Interessen der Heilmittelerbringer.
Pascale Wendt über Klientenbeteiligung im Unterricht – Klientenzentrierung beginnt in der Ausbildung
Authors: Kroggel Lena
Published: October 2018

Pascale Wendt befragte in ihrer Masterarbeit Lehrende an Ergotherapie-(Hoch)schulen, welche Erfahrungen sie mit der Beteiligung von Klienten insbesondere im psychiatriebezogenen Unterricht gemacht haben. Dadurch fand sie heraus, was für ein solches Angebot spricht, wie es abläuft und worauf man bei der Umsetzung achten muss.
Komplexe Schnittverletzung am Handgelenk – Ein Jahr bis zum Faustschluss
Authors: Schulz Karolin
Published: October 2018

Karolin Schulz befindet sich gerade in der Ausbildung zur zertifizierten Handtherapeutin als sie zum ersten Mal die Nachbehandlung bei einem Patienten mit schwerer Handverletzung übernimmt. Sie nutzt die Gelegenheit, um ihr neu erworbenes Wissen anzuwenden. Eine Erfolgsgeschichte.
Gemeinwesenorientierte Ergotherapie – Ein Garten für Jung und Alt
Authors: Mohr Hannah , Sammet Eva-Maria , Alfeld Freda-Marie , Volkmer Robert , Andres-Rademacher Lea , Reufsteck Elena
Published: October 2018

Sechs Ergotherapeuten gestalteten in Projekt-arbeit mit einem Stadtviertel einen barrierefreien Quartiersgarten für Menschen jeden Alters. Für dieses Vorhaben galt es Jugendliche und Senioren zu begeistern, Hochbeete zu bauen und Obststräucher zu pflanzen. Ein Projekt, das wuchs und gedieh.
Sonnenschutz bei Säuglingen
Authors: Garcia Bartels Natalie
Published: October 2018

Die Haut von Säuglingen und Kleinkindern reagiert besonders empfindlich auf Sonnenexposition. Ein umfassender Sonnenschutz baut auf drei Säulen auf – dem
mechanischen, physikalischen und chemischen Sonnenschutz. Die Autorin fasst aktuelle Studienergebnisse zusammen und gibt Tipps für die praktische Umsetzung im
Familienalltag.
Evaluation of Microleakage in Posterior Nanocomposite Restorations with Adhesive Liners
Authors: Reyal Sandeep , Gupta Ashu , Singh Bhanu
Published: October 2018

Microleakage is the clinically detectable passage of bacteria, fluids, molecules or ions between a cavity wall and the restorative materials applied to it. This study was conducted to evaluate and compare the microleakage in Class II nanocomposite restorations, with resin-modified glass ionomer liner(group I), nanofilled flowable composite liner(group II) & without liner(group III). Thirty six non carious upper premolar teeth extracted for orthodontic purposes were selected. Standard class II cavities were prepared. The teeth were then randomly & equally divided into three groups with 12 teeth in each group. The teeth were subjected to thermocycling. After that apex of each tooth was sealed with acrylic resin and the teeth were painted with two coats of nail varnish, except for the area of 2 mm from the periphery of the restorations. The coated teeth were immersed in buffered (Ph 7) 0.5% methylene blue dye for 48 hours. Teeth were sectioned & observed under stereomicroscope of 10X magnification. At gingival level, Group I exhibited slightly lesser microleakage than group II but was not statistically significant. Group I showed no significant difference between microleakage at occlusal and gingival level (Z=1.732; P=0.083). However, in Group II and Group III, there was significantly greater microleakage at the gingival level (Z= 2.162 and 3.162; P=0.002 and 0.002, respectively). Both resin-modified glass ionomer and flowable composite can be used as liners under nano composite restorations as reduction in microleakage was comparable.
A Life Saving Tooth Extraction
Authors: Chhabra Vandana , Chhabra Ajay , Aggarwal Girish
Published: October 2018

Dentoalveolar surgery is accompanied by a number of complications, one of these is bleeding. The majority of patients who bleed after extractions do not have any underlying haematological disorders and generally have had extractions previously without complications, suggesting a purely local factor in the occurrence of haemorrhage; e.g, local infection, traumatic surgery and noncompliance to postoperative instructions. Here we report a case of 14 year old female patient who reported to our department for ortho extraction and after atraumatic tooth extraction the blood continued to ooze for hours. All the local measures failed to control the oozing. Dengue has become a global problem since the second world war. No antiviral drugs or vaccine has been invented so far. The range of the disease appears to be expanding possibly due to climate change.
Psychological Implications in Parents of Cleft Lip and Palate Children
Authors: Behal Roobal , Khan Asif , Utreja Ashok
Published: October 2018

Objective: To determine quality of life of parents of children with cleft lip and palate and to compare it with parents of non cleft lip and palate children. Method: World Health Organisation Quality of Life (Bref, Field Trial version,1996) for parents of children with cleft lip and palate. Total of 40 parents were questioned, 20 were parents of CLP chidren and the other 20 were parents of non cleft children. Results: The scores of quality of life for parents of the cleft children were significantly lower than the parents of non-cleft children. Conclusion: The parents of children with clefts had a lower Quality of Life score as compared to the parents of children with no clefts.
Free Gingival Autograft for Augmentation of Keratinized Tissue and Stabilization of Gingival Recession - 2 Case Reports
Authors: Gupta Hemant , Aggarwal Sangeeta , Singla Ruby , Kochhar Sumit , Kaur Sukhvinder
Published: October 2018

In the current practice of periodontics, clinicians are faced with the challenge of not only addressing biological and functional problems present in the periodontium, but also providing therapy that results in acceptable aesthetics. The presence of mucogingival problems and gingival recession around anterior, highly visible teeth exemplifies a situation in which a treatment modality that addresses both biological and aesthetic demands is required from the therapist. Periodontal plastic surgery procedures are performed to resolve these mucogingival problems. This paper presents two cases of gingival recession (Miller's class I and class II) successfully treated with complete root coverage by free gingival autografts.
Estimation of Vertical Dimension of Occlusion in Edentuleous Patients Using Cephalometric Analysis
Authors: Batra Ritu , Kalra Sanjay , Bansal Ajay , Nerula Siddharth , Dang Rajat
Published: October 2018

“The best of friends fall out with time and so do teeth.”

Thus, there is a need to replace the lost teeth and the supporting structures for the patient's social demands and functional rehabilitation. Prosthetic treatment with complete dentures is a very common treatment modality; the biggest challenge in its fabrication is to duplicate the normal vertical dimension. Failure can be avoided by completing the treatment without changing the vertical dimension and obtaining an optimal facial proportion. There are many methods to record VD. Radiographic cephalometry has been used as a diagnostic tool in Prosthodontics for over five decades and numerous authors, like Ricketts (1981), McNamara (1984) and Slavicek (1984) developed and computerized these techniques to co-relate and record VD in patients. However cephalometric analysis can help to visualize skeletal and facial proportion relation. The present study was done to use the lateral radiographs with cephalometric analysis, as it could be a simple, non-technique sensitive, non-invasive and atraumatic way to determine VD for complete denture patients and also to compare physiologic methods (swallowing/phonetics) with cephalometric method to record lower facial height.
Treatment of Early-Onset Hip Osteoarthritis in Young Patients
Authors: Brown Timothy , Miniaci Anthony , Westermann Robert , Day Molly
Published: October 2018

Pain and debilitating symptoms due to hip osteoarthritis (OA) can significantly compromise quality of life in young, active patients. The management of the young adult with hip OA presents a unique set of challenges, with symptoms that originate from a variety of underlying hip pathologies, and patient age spanning from youth through middle age. Early options for hip OA include nonoperative treatment with anti-inflammatory medications, physical therapy, and injections. For patients with structural hip abnormalities (femoroacetabular impingement or dysplasia), arthroscopy or reconstructive osteotomy are acceptable treatment options. In advanced disease, joint-preserving techniques are often ineffective, and patients may require joint resurfacing or replacement. The treatment strategies for early hip OA continues to evolve with the development of new and refined surgical techniques, especially in the setting of underlying hip pathology, and a growing popularity of utilizing biologic agents. The purpose of this manuscript is to review current conservative and surgical management and to describe an algorithm for treatment of early-onset hip OA.
The Association between Maternal Height, Body Mass Index, and Perinatal Outcomes
Authors: Marshall Nicole , Biel Frances , Boone-Heinonen Janne , Dukhovny Dmitry , Caughey Aaron , Snowden Jonathan
Published: October 2018

Objective To test the hypothesis that maternal height is associated with adverse perinatal outcomes, controlling for and stratified by maternal body mass index (BMI).

Study Design This was a retrospective cohort study of all births in California between 2007 and 2010 (n = 1,775,984). Maternal height was categorized into quintiles, with lowest quintile (≤20%) representing shorter stature and the uppermost quintile (≥80%) representing taller stature. Outcomes included gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM), preeclampsia, cesarean, preterm birth (PTB), macrosomia, and low birth weight (LBW). We calculated height/outcome associations among BMI categories, and BMI/outcome associations among height categories, using various multivariable logistic regression models.

Results Taller women were less likely to have GDM, nulliparous cesarean, PTB, and LBW; these associations were similar across maternal BMI categories and persisted after multivariable adjustment. In contrast, when stratified by maternal height, the associations between maternal BMI and birth outcomes varied by specific outcomes, for example, the association between morbid obesity (compared with normal or overweight) and the risk of GDM was weaker among shorter women (adjusted odds ratio [aOR], 95% confidence interval [CI]: 3.48, 3.28–3.69) than taller women (aOR, 95% CI: 4.42, 4.19–4.66).

Conclusion Maternal height is strongly associated with altered perinatal risk even after accounting for variations in complications by BMI.
Communication: Optically induced decoupling of the smectic-A and nematic order parameters at the AN phase transition in phototropic liquid crystals
Authors: Paoloni S. , Mercuri F. , Zammit U.
Published: October 2018

In the present work, by means of the photopyroelectric calorimetric investigations in liquid crystal/naphtopyran (NP) molecule mixtures, the effect of the photoisomerization of NP by UV light on the critical behavior of specific heat could be studied over the smectic-nematic phase transition. It is shown that the UV light irradiation of the sample can shift the critical exponent from a non-universal value typical of the non-irradiated mixture to one close to that of the 3D-XY universality class, predicted for such a transition. This witnesses the optically triggered reduction of the coupling between the smectic and nematic order parameters responsible for the deviation from the XY-like behavior. A tentative explanation is provided based on the weakening of the order parameter coupling caused by the NP molecules entering the smectic layers following the UV light illumination.
1/f frequency noise of superconducting resonators in large magnetic fields
Authors: de Graaf S. E. , Tzalenchuk A. Ya. , Lindström T.
Published: October 2018

Recent experiments have indicated surface spins in superconducting devices to be associated with both flux- and charge noise. In particular, for superconducting resonators, where the frequency noise is dominated by the electric field from the resonator coupling to spurious two-level material defects, information on noise in applied magnetic fields is lacking. Here, we present measurements of frequency noise in a superconducting resonator with a centre frequency f0=6.1 GHz in fields exceeding the Zeeman splitting of surface spins (up to 310 mT), showing that the charge-induced noise is unaffected by the applied magnetic field.
Politics and the Popular in British Music Theatre of the Vietnam
Era
Authors: Adlington Robert
Published: October 2018

British music-theatre works of the 1960s and early 1970s largely avoided direct
engagement with contemporary political topics. Intriguing in this light is
Michael Hall’s recent proposition that Brecht’s music theatre set
the terms for younger British composers’ experiments with the genre.
Brecht proved a complicated model, however, because of composers’
anxieties about music’s capability to convey sociopolitical messages, and
their reluctance to accord popular music a progressive function. The
entanglement of Vietnam War activism and rock music forms the backdrop for
analyses of two works that do address Vietnam directly: Anthony Gilbert’s
The Scene-Machine and George Newson’s
Arena (both 1971) – both of which also pass pointed
comment on different popular-music traditions. Both works highlight the
difficulty in emulating Brecht’s model in an era when the concept of
‘the political’ was being significantly redefined, and the
cultural gap between activist cadres and the wider population was
unprecedentedly visible.
Unmixing behaviour in dissimilar laser welds for duplex and austenitic stainless steels
Authors: Chun Eun-Joon , Lee Jung-Hoon , Kang Namhyun
Published: October 2018

Metallurgical characteristics of single-mode laser dissimilar welds between super duplex (UNS S32750) and austenitic (type 316L) stainless steels is the existence of an unmixed zone that originates from each base metal. It was confirmed that the unmixed zone that flowed out from the 316L had the microstructural morphology of primary austenite with secondary δ-ferrite solidification mode, while the morphology of a δ-ferrite single phase solidification mode was observed within the unmixed zone that flowed out from the S32750. Furthermore, it could be speculated that each unmixed zone that flowed out from 316L and S32750 coexisted independently in terms of crystallographic aspect (orientation distribution function and predominant orientation relationship) analysed by electron backscatter diffraction.
Age‐specific response of skeletal muscle extracellular matrix to acute resistance exercise: A pilot study
Authors: Wessner Barbara , Liebensteiner Michael , Nachbauer Werner , Csapo Robert
Published: October 2018

The extracellular matrix (ECM) plays an essential role in the development, growth and repair of skeletal muscles and serves to transmit contractile force. However, its regulation is poorly understood. This study investigates the age‐specificity of the effects of acute resistance exercise on ECM gene expression. To this purpose, five young (YM, 23.8 ± 2.2 yrs.) and 5 elderly (EM, 66.8 ± 4.1 yrs.) men performed one session of unilateral leg press and leg extension exercises. Six hours post‐exercise, biopsies were taken from the vastus lateralis muscles of both legs. A PCR array was used to profile the expression of 84 ECM‐related genes, of which 6 were validated by qPCR. The PCR array found 9 and 4 ECM‐associated genes to be selectively altered (>1.5‐fold change) in YM or EM only. Four further genes were upregulated in YM but downregulated in EM. Of the 6 genes validated on individual samples MMP9 expression increased in YM (9.7‐fold) and decreased (0.2‐fold) in EM. MMP15 was downregulated in EM only (0.6‐fold). A significant correlation between leg extension 1 RM and changes in COL7A1 expression (ρ = 0.71) suggests a potential influence of fitness levels. In conclusion, acute resistance exercise affects ECM gene expression at least partly in an age‐specific manner. The altered expression of genes encoding matrix metalloproteinases (MMP3, MMP9, MMP15) highlights the role of remodelling processes in the response to an acute bout of resistance exercise. Larger studies are required to verify the age‐associated differences in gene expression profiles and establish their functional implications.
sRNAPrimerDB: comprehensive primer design and search web service for small non-coding RNAs
Authors: Xie Shengsong , Zhu Qin , Qu Wubin , Xu Zhong , Liu Xiangdong , Li Xinyun , Li Shijun , Ma Wubin , Miao Yiliang , Zhang Lisheng , Du Xiaoyong , Dong Wuzi , Li Haiwei , Zhao Changzhi , Wang Yunlong , Fang Yaping , Zhao Shuhong
Published: October 2018

Motivation

Small non-coding RNAs (ncRNAs), especially microRNAs (miRNAs) and piwi-interacting RNAs (piRNAs), play key roles in many biological processes. However, only a few tools can be used to develop the optimal primer or probe design for the expression profile of small ncRNAs. Here, we developed sRNAPrimerDB, the first automated primer designing and query web service for small ncRNAs.

Results

The primer online designing module of sRNAPrimerDB is composed of primer design algorithms and quality evaluation of the polymerase chain reaction (PCR) primer. Five types of primers, namely, generic or specific reverse transcription primers, specific PCR primers pairs, TaqMan probe, double-hairpin probe and hybridization probe for different small ncRNA detection methods, can be designed and searched using this service. The quality of PCR primers is further evaluated using melting temperature, primer dimer, hairpin structure and specificity. Moreover, the sequence and size of each amplicon are also provided for the subsequent experiment verification. At present, 531 306 and 2 941 669 primer pairs exist across 223 species for miRNAs and piRNAs, respectively, according to sRNAPrimerDB. Several primers designed by sRNAPrimerDB are further successfully validated by subsequent experiments.

Availability and implementation

sRNAPrimerDB is a valuable platform that can be used to detect small ncRNAs. This module can be publicly accessible at http://www.srnaprimerdb.com or http://123.57.239.141.

Supplementary information

Supplementary data are available at Bioinformatics online.
Sparse relative risk regression models
Authors: Wit Ernst C , Augugliaro Luigi , Pazira Hassan , González Javier , Abegaz Fentaw
Published: October 2018

Clinical studies where patients are routinely screened for many genomic features are becoming more routine. In principle, this holds the promise of being able to find genomic signatures for a particular disease. In particular, cancer survival is thought to be closely linked to the genomic constitution of the tumor. Discovering such signatures will be useful in the diagnosis of the patient, may be used for treatment decisions and, perhaps, even the development of new treatments. However, genomic data are typically noisy and high-dimensional, not rarely outstripping the number of patients included in the study. Regularized survival models have been proposed to deal with such scenarios. These methods typically induce sparsity by means of a coincidental match of the geometry of the convex likelihood and a (near) non-convex regularizer. The disadvantages of such methods are that they are typically non-invariant to scale changes of the covariates, they struggle with highly correlated covariates, and they have a practical problem of determining the amount of regularization. In this article, we propose an extension of the differential geometric least angle regression method for sparse inference in relative risk regression models. A software implementation of our method is available on github (https://github.com/LuigiAugugliaro/dgcox).