bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
How accurate are the wrist-based heart rate monitors during walking and running activities? Are they accurate enough?
Authors: Stahl Sarah E , An Hyun-Sung , Dinkel Danae M , Noble John M , Lee Jung-Min
Published: April 2016

Background

Heart rate (HR) monitors are valuable devices for fitness-orientated individuals. There has been a vast influx of optical sensing blood flow monitors claiming to provide accurate HR during physical activities. These monitors are worn on the arm and wrist to detect HR with photoplethysmography (PPG) techniques. Little is known about the validity of these wearable activity trackers.

Aim

Validate the Scosche Rhythm (SR), Mio Alpha (MA), Fitbit Charge HR (FH), Basis Peak (BP), Microsoft Band (MB), and TomTom Runner Cardio (TT) wireless HR monitors.

Methods

50 volunteers (males: n=32, age 19–43 years; females: n=18, age 19–38 years) participated. All monitors were worn simultaneously in a randomised configuration. The Polar RS400 HR chest strap was the criterion measure. A treadmill protocol of one 30 min bout of continuous walking and running at 3.2, 4.8, 6.4, 8.0, and 9.6 km/h (5 min at each protocol speed) with HR manually recorded every minute was completed.

Results

For group comparisons, the mean absolute percentage error values were: 3.3%, 3.6%, 4.0%, 4.6%, 4.8% and 6.2% for TT, BP, RH, MA, MB and FH, respectively. Pearson product-moment correlation coefficient (r) was observed: r=0.959 (TT), r=0.956 (MB), r=0.954 (BP), r=0.933 (FH), r=0.930 (RH) and r=0.929 (MA). Results from 95% equivalency testing showed monitors were found to be equivalent to those of the criterion HR (±10% equivalence zone: 98.15–119.96).

Conclusions

The results demonstrate that the wearable activity trackers provide an accurate measurement of HR during walking and running activities.
Topographic distribution of cerebral infarct probability in patients with acute ischemic stroke: mapping of intra-arterial treatment effect
Authors: Boers A M M , Berkhemer O A , Slump C H , van Zwam W H , Roos Y B W E M , van der Lugt A , van Oostenbrugge R J , Yoo A J , Dippel D W J , Marquering H A , Majoie C B L M
Published: April 2016

Background

Since proof emerged that IA treatment (IAT) is beneficial for patients with acute ischemic stroke, it has become the standard method of care. Despite these positive results, recovery to functional independence is established in only about one-third of treated patients. The effect of IAT is commonly assessed by functional outcome, whereas its effect on brain tissue salvage is considered a secondary outcome measure (at most). Because patient and treatment selection needs to be improved, understanding the treatment effect on brain tissue salvage is of utmost importance.

Objective

To introduce infarct probability maps to estimate the location and extent of tissue damage based on patient baseline characteristics and treatment type.

Methods

Cerebral infarct probability maps were created by combining automatically segmented infarct distributions using follow-up CT images of 281 patients from the MR CLEAN trial. Comparison of infarct probability maps allows visualization and quantification of probable treatment effects. Treatment impact was calculated for 10 Alberta Stroke Program Early CT Score (ASPECTS) and 27 anatomical regions.

Results

The insular cortex had the highest infarct probability in both control and IAT populations (47.2% and 42.6%, respectively). Comparison showed significant lower infarct probability in 4 ASPECTS and 17 anatomical regions in favor of IAT. Most salvaged tissue was found within the ASPECTS M2 region, which was 8.5% less likely to infarct.

Conclusions

Probability maps intuitively visualize the topographic distribution of infarct probability due to treatment, which makes it a promising tool for estimating the effect of treatment.
Technical innovation changes standard radiographic protocols in veterinary medicine: is it necessary to obtain two dorsoproximal–palmarodistal oblique views of the equine foot when using computerised radiography systems?
Authors: Whitlock J. , Dixon J. , Sherlock C. , Tucker R. , Bolt D. M. , Weller R.
Published: April 2016

Since the 1950s, veterinary practitioners have included two separate dorsoproximal–palmarodistal oblique (DPr–PaDiO) radiographs as part of a standard series of the equine foot. One image is obtained to visualise the distal phalanx and the other to visualise the navicular bone. However, rapid development of computed radiography and digital radiography and their post‐processing capabilities could mean that this practice is no longer required. The aim of this study was to determine differences in perceived image quality between DPr–PaDiO radiographs that were acquired with a computerised radiography system with exposures, centring and collimation recommended for the navicular bone versus images acquired for the distal phalanx but were subsequently manipulated post‐acquisition to highlight the navicular bone. Thirty images were presented to four clinicians for quality assessment and graded using a 1–3 scale (1=textbook quality, 2=diagnostic quality, 3=non‐diagnostic image). No significant difference in diagnostic quality was found between the original navicular bone images and the manipulated distal phalanx images. This finding suggests that a single DPr–PaDiO image of the distal phalanx is sufficient for an equine foot radiographic series, with appropriate post‐processing and manipulation. This change in protocol will result in reduced radiographic study time and decreased patient/personnel radiation exposure.
Meticillin‐resistant Staphylococcus aureus colonisation and infection in Thoroughbred racehorses and veterinarians in Japan
Authors: Kuroda T. , Kinoshita Y. , Niwa H. , Shinzaki Y. , Tamura N. , Hobo S. , Kuwano A.
Published: April 2016

Meticillin‐resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) infections have been confirmed in hospitalised Thoroughbred racehorses at the hospitals of two training centres in Japan since 2009. To investigate the source of infection, the authors examined the rate of nasal MRSA colonisation in 600 healthy Thoroughbred racehorses, 53 veterinarians and 16 office staff at the racehorse hospitals of the two training centres. MRSA was not isolated from healthy Thoroughbred racehorses or hospital office staff. However, MRSA was isolated from 16 veterinarians (30.1 per cent), and the colonisation rate was significantly higher in veterinarians than in the office staff of the same hospitals. Also, 10 of the 16 MRSA strains (62.5 per cent) isolated from veterinarians were classified as type II by staphylococcal cassette chromosome mec (SCCmec) typing and ST5 by multilocus sequence typing. Pulsed‐field gel electrophoresis analysis demonstrated that these 10 MRSA strains of SCCmec type II and ST5 were genetically identical or very similar to 9 MRSA strains isolated from infected horses hospitalised at these hospitals between 2009 and 2013. These results indicate that SCCmec type II and ST5 MRSA strains were probably transmitted between veterinarians and infected horses.
Modelling spatial variability in as-laid embedment for high pressure and high temperature (HPHT) pipeline design
Authors: Westgate Z.J. , Haneberg W. , White D.J.
Published: April 2016

Subsea pipelines are being designed to accommodate higher temperatures and pressures. Current modelling approaches that adopt constant lateral seabed resistance along the pipeline do not capture the high spatial variability in as-laid pipeline embedment from field observations, which strongly affects the lateral resistance. Ignoring spatial variability when designing pipelines with engineered buckles leads to higher predictions of axial force along the pipeline, with reduced likelihood of buckle formation. This can result in excessive mitigation measures being adopted, such as sleepers or counteract structures, which significantly increase project costs. Spatial variability of pipeline embedment is not currently handled rationally in design because an understanding of the physical mechanisms that cause as-laid embedment and methods for accurately predicting it have only recently emerged. This paper illustrates how the influence of these physical mechanisms that drive embedment can be extracted from field survey data and then modelled synthetically in design analyses. The impact of embedment variability and the resulting variation in lateral seabed resistance on the lateral buckling response is illustrated. The framework represents an improvement in the way geotechnical uncertainty and variability is handled in pipeline–seabed interaction analyses for use in pipeline design, and has already begun to be implemented in practice.
Synthesis of a new DTTA- and 5-phenyl-2,2′-bipyridine-based ditopic ligand and its Eu3+ complex
Authors: Kopchuk Dmitry S. , Pavlyuk Dmitry E. , Kovalev Igor S. , Zyryanov Grigory V. , Rusinov Vladimir L. , Chupakhin Oleg N.
Published: April 2016

A new ditopic ligand based on diethylenetriamine-N,N,N″,N″-tetraacetate (DTTA) and 5-phenyl-2,2′-bipyridine has been synthesized. The improved method for the synthesis of DTTA tert-butyl ester has been developed. The water-soluble Eu3+*DTTA complex of this ligand has been prepared, and its photophysical properties have been studied. Due to the presence of an extra chelating unit, 5-phenyl-2,2′-bipyridine, this Eu3+*DTTA complex demonstrated a strong fluorescence response to the Zn2+ cation (fluorescence enhancement) and the simultaneous fluorescent and phosphorescent response (fluorescence and phosphorescence quenching) to the Cu2+ or Ni2+ cations in aqueous solutions.
Experimental investigation of multi-material aluminum-to-steel and glass fiber reinforced polymer-to-steel bonded and bolted–bonded connections
Authors: Tajeuna Thérèse A.D. , Légeron Frédéric , Langlois Sébastien , Labossière Pierre , Demers Marc
Published: April 2016

Through an experimental study, this paper describes the behavior of single-lap bonded and bolted–bonded connections for configurations with minimum geometric parameters proposed in design references. Two types of multi-material connections are considered: glass fiber reinforced polymer (GFRP)–steel and aluminum–steel. At first, the behavior of bonded connections using methacrylate and epoxy adhesives is evaluated. Then, the contribution of adhesive in bolted connections is investigated. Test results show that on bonded joints, failures mostly occur at the substrate to adhesive interface. Sanding the GFRP plate was found to improve the connection strength. Despite their lower elastic modulus, methacrylate adhesives with larger capacity to undergo plastic deformation provide better strength than other methacrylate and epoxy adhesives. For bolted–bonded joints, the adhesive was found to improve the elastic behavior and the strength of GFRP–steel joints while its effect for aluminum–steel joints was not apparent due to reduced bonded surface and the high strength performance of the bolted plates.
Generalized Models for the Classification of Abnormal Movements in Daily Life and its Applicability to Epilepsy Convulsion Recognition
Authors: Villar José R. , Vergara Paula , Menéndez Manuel , de la Cal Enrique , González Víctor M. , Sedano Javier
Published: April 2016

The identification and the modeling of epilepsy convulsions during everyday life using wearable devices would enhance patient anamnesis and monitoring. The psychology of the epilepsy patient penalizes the use of user-driven modeling, which means that the probability of identifying convulsions is driven through generalized models. Focusing on clonic convulsions, this pre-clinical study proposes a method for generating a type of model that can evaluate the generalization capabilities. A realistic experimentation with healthy participants is performed, each with a single 3D accelerometer placed on the most affected wrist. Unlike similar studies reported in the literature, this proposal makes use of [Formula: see text] cross-validation scheme, in order to evaluate the generalization capabilities of the models. Event-based error measurements are proposed instead of classification-error measurements, to evaluate the generalization capabilities of the model, and Fuzzy Systems are proposed as the generalization modeling technique. Using this method, the experimentation compares the most common solutions in the literature, such as Support Vector Machines, [Formula: see text]-Nearest Neighbors, Decision Trees and Fuzzy Systems. The event-based error measurement system records the results, penalizing those models that raise false alarms. The results showed the good generalization capabilities of Fuzzy Systems.
The microbeam system at Tohoku University
Authors: Matsuyama S.
Published: April 2016

A microbeam system called MB-I was developed at the Dynamitron laboratory at Tohoku University in 2002 for use in biological applications. Although the system was designed to achieve a submicron beam spot size, parasitic field contamination from tungsten carbide slit chips and an annular Si surface barrier detector have limited the beam spot size to [Formula: see text]. By replacing these components, parasitic field contamination of the system was reduced and the performance of the microbeam system was remarkably improved. A measured beam spot size of [Formula: see text] at a beam current of several tens of pA has been achieved. MB-I has been used for simultaneous in-air/in-vacuum particle-induced X-ray emission (PIXE), Rutherford backscattering spectroscopy (RBS), secondary electron (SE), scanning transmission ion microscopy (STIM) analyses, and three-dimensional PIXE micron computed tomography (PIXEμCT), with applications in various fields. To obtain a higher spatial resolution of several hundred nm and a higher beam current with a resolution of several μm, a triplet lens system was designed and installed in MB-I. The triplet system has a larger demagnification than the existing system; however, it also has larger chromatic and spherical aberration coefficients. Therefore, stricter requirements are imposed on the accelerator performance, particularly the beam brightness and energy stability. In addition to the microbeam, the Dynamitron accelerator was also upgraded to obtain a higher beam brightness. The beam brightness is [Formula: see text], with a half-divergence of 0.07 mrad. The energy resolution of the accelerator was improved by developing a terminal voltage stabilization system (TVSS), to achieve an energy resolution of [Formula: see text]. Thus, the effects of the increased chromatic and spherical aberration were mitigated by restricting the divergence angle, without reducing the beam current. A beam spot size of [Formula: see text] was obtained with a beam current of 150 pA. While the analysis system of MB-I can be used for simultaneous in-air/vacuum PIXE, RBS and STIM analyses, as well as 3D PIXEμCT, without changing the target chamber, changes are required in the experimental setup for these techniques, which is time-consuming, Thus, a new microbeam system, MB-II, was developed. The MB-II is a doublet system and is not equipped with a high-resolution energy analysis system. It is connected to a switching magnet. The beam brightness is [Formula: see text] at a half-divergence of 0.1 mrad and this does not decrease as the beam divergence increases. This property is matched to obtain a higher beam current using the doublet system. With a current of 300 pA, the MB-II provides a higher beam current for a [Formula: see text] beam spot size than is achievable with the MB-I. At present, both microbeam systems are in routine operation at the Dynamitron laboratory.
Moduli of vector bundles on higher-dimensional base manifolds — Construction and variation
Authors: Greb Daniel , Ross Julius , Toma Matei
Published: April 2016

We survey recent progress in the study of moduli of vector bundles on higher-dimensional base manifolds. In particular, we discuss an algebro-geometric construction of an analogue for the Donaldson–Uhlenbeck compactification and explain how to use moduli spaces of quiver representations to show that Gieseker–Maruyama moduli spaces with respect to two different chosen polarizations are related via Thaddeus-flips through other “multi-Gieseker”-moduli spaces of sheaves. Moreover, as a new result, we show the existence of a natural morphism from a multi-Gieseker moduli space to the corresponding Donaldson–Uhlenbeck moduli space.
Effects of vanadium alloying on the microstructures and mechanical properties of hot-pressed tungsten material
Authors: Guo Wei , Arshad Kameel , Yuan Yue , Zhao Ming-Yue , Shu Xiao-Lin , Zhou Zhang-Jian , Zhang Ying , Lu Guang-Hong
Published: April 2016

Tungsten and vanadium (W–V) alloys (with 1, 5 and 10 wt.% V) are fabricated by hot pressing (HP) at 1800[Formula: see text]C under 20 MPa for 2 h. The effects of V content on the microstructures and mechanical properties of W–V alloy are investigated. The results indicate that with increasing V content, (i) the formation of W–V alloying phase is enhanced and the grain size of W-matrix is significantly refined; (ii) the relative density gradually increases from 92.16% to 97.72% in the case of pure W to W-10 wt.% V; (iii) the hardness rises linearly while the bending strength decreases, which is related to the enhanced alloy phase formation.
Robust predictions for the large-scale cosmological power deficit from primordial quantum nonequilibrium
Authors: Colin Samuel , Valentini Antony
Published: April 2016

The de Broglie–Bohm pilot-wave formulation of quantum theory allows the existence of physical states that violate the Born probability rule. Recent work has shown that in pilot-wave field theory on expanding space relaxation to the Born rule is suppressed for long-wavelength field modes, resulting in a large-scale power deficit [Formula: see text] which for a radiation-dominated expansion is found to have an approximate inverse-tangent dependence on [Formula: see text] (assuming that the width of the initial distribution is smaller than the width of the initial Born-rule distribution and that the initial quantum states are evenly-weighted superpositions of energy states). In this paper, we show that the functional form of [Formula: see text] is robust under changes in the initial nonequilibrium distribution — subject to the limitation of a subquantum width — as well as under the addition of an inflationary era at the end of the radiation-dominated phase. In both cases, the predicted deficit [Formula: see text] remains an inverse-tangent function of [Formula: see text]. Furthermore, with the inflationary phase the dependence of the fitting parameters on the number of superposed pre-inflationary energy states is comparable to that found previously. Our results indicate that, for the assumed broad class of initial conditions, an inverse-tangent power deficit is likely to be a fairly general and robust signature of quantum relaxation in the early universe.
Probing the post-newtonian physics of semi-conservative metric theories through secular tidal effects in satellite gradiometry missions
Authors: Qiang Li-E , Xu Peng
Published: April 2016

The existence of relativistic secular tidal effects along orbit motions will largely improve the measurement accuracies of relativistic gravitational gradients with orbiting gradiometers. With the continuous advances in technologies related to gradiometry and the improvements in their resolutions, it is feasible for future satellite gradiometry missions to carry out precision relativistic experiments and impose constraints on modern theories of gravity. In this work, we study the theoretical principles of measuring directly the secular post-Newtonian (PN) tidal effects in semi-conservative metric theories with satellite gradiometry missions. The isolations of the related PN parameters in the readouts of an orbiting three-axis gradiometer is discussed.
A Special Boundary Integral Method for the Numerical Simulation of Sound Propagation in Flow Ducts Lined with Multi-Cavity Resonators
Authors: Perrey-Debain E. , Maréchal R. , Ville J.-M.
Published: April 2016

In this work, acoustic performances of a liner concept based on perforated screens backed by air cavities are investigated numerically for circular ducts with mean flow. Dimensions of the cavity are chosen to be of the order or bigger than the wavelength so acoustic waves within the liner can propagate parallel to the duct surface. In this case, the liner becomes nonlocally reacting and this gives rise to additional resonance effects which renders the attenuation more effective over a broader frequency range. In order to predict the mufflers’ acoustic performances, a special boundary integral method is presented. Using a tailored Green’s function for hard wall circular ducts containing uniform mean flow, the numerical technique only requires the discretization of the acoustic velocity potential on both sides of the perforated screen separating the central channel from the air cavities. Comparisons with finite element results show that the proposed method allows accurate results for a relatively modest computational cost. Influence of the mean flow in the central airway, the dimensions of the cavity as well as the nature of the incident field on acoustic performances are also shown and discussed.
Reconstruction of Interior Sound Fields of Vibrating Shells with an Open Spherical Microphone Array
Authors: Li Minzong , Lu Huancai
Published: April 2016

Spherical acoustic holography was utilized to reconstruct the interior sound field of an enclosed space with vibrating boundaries using an open spherical microphone array. The interior sound fields of vibrating shells, including a pulsating shell, a [Formula: see text]-axis oriented oscillating shell, a partially vibrating shell and a point-excited vibrating shell, were reconstructed, and numerical simulations were carried out to examine the impact of reconstruction parameters, the radius of the microphone array, the number of microphones, the distribution of microphones on the array surface, the wave number, the number of basis functions used, and the radius of the reconstruction surface on the accuracy of reconstruction. In order to minimize the error of reconstruction caused by a variety of factors and uncertainties, such as the measurement noise, regularization treatments were introduced into the process of reconstructing, to suppress the divergent trends of the reconstruction error along with the increase of the wave number and the increase of the radius of the reconstruction surface. Results showed that a Tikhonov regularization method with generalized cross validation (GCV) could yield the least error of reconstruction among the investigated regularization methods.
Backward doubly SDEs and SPDEs with superlinear growth generators
Authors: Bahlali Khaled , Gatt Rafika , Mansouri Badreddine , Mtiraoui Ahmed
Published: April 2016

We deal with multidimensional backward doubly stochastic differential equations (BDSDEs) with a superlinear growth generator and a square integrable terminal datum. We introduce new local conditions on the generator and then show that they ensure the existence and uniqueness as well as the stability of solutions. Our work goes beyond the previous results on the subject. Although we are focused on multidimensional case, the uniqueness result we establish is new in one-dimensional too. As an application, we establish the existence and uniqueness of probabilistic solutions to some semilinear stochastic partial differential equations (SPDEs) with superlinear growth gernerator. By probabilistic solution, we mean a solution which is representable throughout a BDSDEs.
Characterization of the fullerene end-functionalized ZnO nanotube: A computational study
Authors: Farmanzade Davood , Tabari Leila
Published: April 2016

The electronic and field emission properties of the fullerene end-functionalized zinc oxide nanotube (ZnONT) are investigated by density functional theory (DFT) to search for novel field emitter nano material. The interaction energies of ZnONT/fullerenes complexes gradually increase, with increasing the nanotube lengths which indicate that ZnONTs with higher lengths could improve the stability of the complexes. The band gaps of connected construction of fullerene molecules with ZnONTs gradually reduced by increasing the tube length, but were not sensitive to the tubes diameter. It is found that the ionization potentials of ZnONT/fullerenes complexes mainly decrease compared to that of pristine nanotube in the presence of 0, 0.002, 0.004[Formula: see text]a.u. electric field. The reduction of the ionization potential means the enhancement of the field emission properties of ZnONT/fullerenes complexes compared with simple ZnONT and fullerene molecules. The calculations show that the combination of ZnONT with fullerene molecules indeed improves the field emission by controlling the tube size and electric field strength.
Weighted similarity-based clustering of chemical structures and bioactivity data in early drug discovery
Authors: Perualila-Tan Nolen Joy , Shkedy Ziv , Talloen Willem , Göhlmann Hinrich W. H. ,   Quantitative Structure Transcription Assay Relationships (QSTAR) Consortium, Moerbeke Marijke Van , Kasim Adetayo
Published: April 2016

The modern process of discovering candidate molecules in early drug discovery phase includes a wide range of approaches to extract vital information from the intersection of biology and chemistry. A typical strategy in compound selection involves compound clustering based on chemical similarity to obtain representative chemically diverse compounds (not incorporating potency information). In this paper, we propose an integrative clustering approach that makes use of both biological (compound efficacy) and chemical (structural features) data sources for the purpose of discovering a subset of compounds with aligned structural and biological properties. The datasets are integrated at the similarity level by assigning complementary weights to produce a weighted similarity matrix, serving as a generic input in any clustering algorithm. This new analysis work flow is semi-supervised method since, after the determination of clusters, a secondary analysis is performed wherein it finds differentially expressed genes associated to the derived integrated cluster(s) to further explain the compound-induced biological effects inside the cell. In this paper, datasets from two drug development oncology projects are used to illustrate the usefulness of the weighted similarity-based clustering approach to integrate multi-source high-dimensional information to aid drug discovery. Compounds that are structurally and biologically similar to the reference compounds are discovered using this proposed integrative approach.
Phthalocyanine-chalcone conjugates
Authors: Aribi Fallia , Vey Charlene , Topkaya Derya , Kostakoglu Sinem Tuncel , Fournier-dit-Chabert Jérémie , Büyükekşi Sebile Işık , Taşkın Gökçe Canan , Alpugan Serkan , Albrieux Florian , Gürek Ayşe Gül , Cucca Mélissa , Bennis Khalil , Atilla Devrim , Ahsen Vefa , Ducki Sylvie , Dumoulin Fabienne
Published: April 2016

A phthalocyanine-chalcone conjugate was previously reported to retain the full photodynamic activity of the phthalocyanine and a slightly lowered antivascular effect of the chalcone. Assuming that it was due to an insufficient release of the chalcone, we described here several grafting modes applied to the preparation of phthalocyanine-chalcone conjugates.
Subtle variations of the behavior of a silylated tetraethylene glycol-substituted Zn phthalocyanine towards acids
Authors: Önal Emel , Topal Sevinc Z. , Tarhouni Mohamed , Işci Ümit , Bassem Jamoussi , Ahsen Vefa , Dumoulin Fabienne
Published: April 2016

An organosoluble phthalocyanine substituted by four silylated tetraethyleneglycol chains was designed. This phthalocyanine become water-soluble after acid-promoted removal of the TBDMS moieties (which does not occur in acetonitrile), and is therefore a naked-eye observation system of acid aqueous media. Fluoride anion sensitivity based on the same principle proved unfortunately unsuccessful.
An International Review of Ex-Post Project Evaluation Schemes in the Transport Sector
Authors: Nicolaisen Morten Skou , Driscoll Patrick A.
Published: April 2016

There are a number of ex-post (or post-opening) project evaluation schemes used by national transportation authorities in, among others, England, Scotland, France, Australia, New Zealand, Japan, Norway and the US. Additionally, many of the multilateral and bilateral lending institutions, such as the World Bank, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, the Inter-American Development Bank and the Asian Development Bank conduct ex-post project reviews of transport projects in the rail and road sectors. This paper presents a literature review of the various ex-post evaluation schemes in order to establish a state-of-the-art in ex-post road and rail project evaluation, develops an analytic typology of ex-post evaluation schemes and finally presents an in-depth case study of two ex-post evaluation schemes in Norway and England in order to provide a more detailed analysis of the process, structure and policy learning potential within ex-post project evaluation. In comparison to the extensive focus on ex-ante project appraisal, ex-post evaluations have received significantly less attention from academics and practitioners alike. The main findings are as follows: (1) Despite the widespread use globally of ex-post evaluation schemes in the transport sector, there remain significant differences in quality, coverage and comprehensiveness of the schemes. There is a striking lack of standardised methods of conducting ex-post evaluations at the national level, inhibiting the comparability and learning potential; (2) Even with legal mandates and decades of practice, data archiving and retrieval is a widespread problem for national transport planning agencies and (3) How to handle the counter-factual option (i.e. do-nothing/do-minimum/null option) is still very much an open question, which has significant impacts upon the forecasted and outturn benefit/cost ratios and environmental/social impacts.
Effect of Morphology of ZnCo2O4 Nanostructures on Electrochemical Performance
Authors: Dong J. Y. , Zhang N. , Lin S. Y. , Chen T. T. , Zhang M. Y. , Wu L. L. , Gao H. , Zhang X. T.
Published: April 2016

The ZnCo2O4 nanorods and nanosheets were grown on nickel foam by a facile and effective hydrothermal method, respectively. The effect of the morphologies of the nanostructures on electrochemical performance was investigated. Importantly, ZnCo2O4 nanorod electrodes with a high specific surface area exhibited a higher specific capacitance of 2457.4 F g[Formula: see text] at 2 A g[Formula: see text] and remarkable cycling stability with capacitance retention of 97.7% after 1000 cycles, which are superior to those of ZnCo2O4 nanosheet electrodes. Such a result is well explained. The investigation on the electrochemical properties of these two nanostructures as electrodes confirmed that the morphology of active materials has an important impact on electrochemical properties.
Existence of spatiotemporal patterns in the reaction–diffusion predator–prey model incorporating prey refuge
Authors: Guin Lakshmi Narayan , Mondal Benukar , Chakravarty Santabrata
Published: April 2016

The pattern formation in reaction–diffusion system has long been the subject of interest to the researchers in the domain of mathematical ecology because of its universal existence and importance. The present investigation deals with a spatial dynamics of the Beddington–DeAngelis predator–prey model in the presence of a constant proportion of prey refuge. The model system representing boundary value problem under study is subjected to homogeneous Neumann boundary conditions. The asymptotic stability including the local and the global stability and the bifurcation as well of the unique positive homogeneous steady state of the corresponding temporal model has been analyzed. The Turing instability region in two-parameter space and the condition of diffusion-driven instability of the spatiotemporal model are investigated. Based on the appropriate numerical simulations, the present model dynamics in Turing space appears to get influenced by prey refuge while it exhibits diffusion-controlled pattern formation growth to spots, stripe-spot mixtures, labyrinthine, stripe-hole mixtures and holes replication. The results obtained appear to enrich the findings of the model system under consideration.
The theory of information images: Modeling based on diffusion equations
Authors: Petukhov Alexandr Y. , Polevaya Sofia A. , Yakhno Vladimir G.
Published: April 2016

This work represents a formalized description of information and communicative interactions of individuals on the basis of theory of information images (II). It also demonstrates how important it is to choose the models type adequate to the systems under research. It also introduces an explication of the possibility to create the model of information and communication interactions that can illustrate transmission of information between two and more individuals. Methods and approaches suggested in this paper allow us to compare different levels of the described processes depending on the chosen architecture of the model; the methods and approaches mentioned in the current work can be also used to simulate the processes of distortion and generation of information images while information and communication social interaction. Expansion and addition of information images theory in terms of transmission of information among individuals enables us to speak about the space of individual II. The existence of such a space and creation of correct formalized model help us to explain a number of characteristic phenomena of human thinking processes. As a result of this research, the authors introduce an equation that describes the spatial and structural evolution of individual II. There is also an example of modeling on the basis of this theory taking into account the results of the experiment (bilingual Stroop test).
Assessing low-light cameras with photon transfer curve method
Authors: Li Luchang , Li Mengting , Zhang Zhaoning , Huang Zhen-Li
Published: April 2016

Low-light camera is an indispensable component in various fluorescence microscopy techniques. However, choosing an appropriate low-light camera for a specific technique (for example, single molecule imaging) is always time-consuming and sometimes confusing, especially after the commercialization of a new type of camera called sCMOS camera, which is now receiving heavy demands and high praise from both academic and industrial users. In this tutorial, we try to provide a guide on how to fully access the performance of low-light cameras using a well-developed method called photon transfer curve (PTC). We first present a brief explanation on the key parameters for characterizing low-light cameras, then explain the experimental procedures on how to measure PTC. We also show the application of the PTC method in experimentally quantifying the performance of two representative low-light cameras. Finally, we extend the PTC method to provide offset map, read noise map, and gain map of individual pixels inside a camera.
Review: Condensation and Evaporation Characteristics of Low GWP Refrigerants in Plate Heat Exchangers
Authors: Shon Byung Hoon , Jeon Seung Won , Kim Yongchan , Kang Yong Tae
Published: April 2016

In this paper, condensation and evaporation characteristics of low global warming potential (GWP) refrigerants such as R-1234yf and R-1234ze series are reviewed. This review focuses on heat transfer and pressure drop in plate heat exchangers. Mass flux is considered as an important factor while saturation temperature is not for condensation and evaporation process in plate heat exchangers. The dryout phenomenon occurs occasionally and gives greatly harmful impact on evaporation heat transfer. It is found that R-1234yf and R-1234ze(E) give slightly lower heat transfer performance than R-134a for both condensation and evaporation processes. Generally, low GWP refrigerants presented in this review give lower heat transfer coefficient and higher frictional pressure drop than the conventional refrigerants. Nevertheless, R-1234ze(Z) gives superior heat transfer performance than other refrigerants in condensation. R-32 gives remarkable performance in evaporation, but it gives relatively high GWP compared to other low GWP refrigerants.
Modeling, Simulation and Optimization of a Solar Absorption Air Conditioning System for an Office Block in Zaria, Nigeria
Authors: Ahmadu T. O. , Folayan C. O. , Anafi F. O.
Published: April 2016

In this study, a solar absorption air conditioning system has been modeled simulated and optimized for an office block covering a total floor area of 90[Formula: see text]m2using the TRNSYS 16 software. Meteorological data over a period of a typical year for Zaria in Nigeria where the office block is located was used in the simulation and optimization. The hourly cooling energy demand of the office block for the whole year was simulated using the TRNSYS sub program TRNbuild. The peak cooling energy demand was used to size the components of the solar absorption air conditioning system. Based on the initial sizes, a TRNSYS model of the air conditioning system was developed. The simulation and optimization process was done by employing a monthly average data approach in which the TRNSYS software was combined with Microsoft excel. The simulation was done on an hourly time step, optimization was done by studying effect of varying system component sizes on performance indices: coefficient of performance (COP), solar coefficient of performance (SCOP) and solar fraction (SF). Results indicate that the system is capable of attaining an average annual SF of 0.79 in the given location.
Sustainability in earthen heritage conservation
Authors: Costa C. S. , Rocha F. , Velosa A. L.
Published: April 2016

Earth construction is the oldest building material known, with documented cases of the use of earth bricks since Mesopotamia around 10 000 BC. Earth construction exists throughout most of the world in different cultures, and for some countries it continues to be the main process of construction. Around 30% of the world's population lives in buildings made from earth materials. Earthen construction is an environmentally friendly technique with a social and cultural contribution; this advantage is increased when this type of construction is applied in developing countries where the material costs counterbalance the labour costs, and where other materials and techniques are not available. Studies of material characteristics are required in order to understand the composition and specific properties of earth buildings, their heterogeneity and their degradation mechanisms. Results from two different types of adobes that represent these material characteristics in Aveiro district are shown, owing to the importance of determining and acknowledging the main characteristics of adobe buildings in order to have sufficient information to initiate conservation and rehabilitation actions.
GDNF Enhances Therapeutic Efficiency of Neural Stem Cells‐Based Therapy in Chronic Experimental Allergic Encephalomyelitis in Rat
Authors: Gao Xiaoqing , Deng Li , Wang Yun , Yin Ling , Yang Chaoxian , Du Jie , Yuan Qionglan
Published: April 2016

Multiple sclerosis (MS) is an autoimmune disease in the CNS. The current immunomodulating drugs for MS do not effectively prevent the progressive neurological decline. Neural stem cells (NSCs) transplantation has been proven to promote repair and functional recovery of experimental allergic encephalomyelitis (EAE) animal model for MS, and glial cell line‐derived neurotrophic factor (GDNF) has also been found to have capability of promoting axonal regeneration and remyelination of regenerating axons. In the present study, to assess whether GDNF would enhance therapeutic effect of NSCs for EAE, GDNF gene‐modified NSCs (GDNF/NSCs) and native NSCs were transplanted into each lateral ventricle of rats at 10 days and rats were sacrificed at 60 days after EAE immunization. We found that NSCs significantly reduced the clinical signs, and GDNF gene‐modification further promoted functional recovery. GDNF/NSCs more profoundly suppressed brain inflammation and improved density of myelin compared with NSCs. The survival of GDNF/NSCs was significantly higher than that of transplanted NSCs. Transplanted GDNF/NSCs, in contrast to NSCs, differentiated into more neurons and oligodendrocytes. Moreover, the mRNA expression of oligodendrocyte lineage cells in rats with GDNF/NSCs was significantly increased compared to rats with NSCs. These results suggest that GDNF enhances therapeutic efficiency of NSCs‐based therapy for EAE.
Reliability of Three Disability Scales for Detection of Independence Loss in Parkinson’s Disease
Authors: Bjornestad Anders , Tysnes Ole-Bjorn , Larsen Jan Petter , Alves Guido
Published: April 2016

Background.Loss of independence is considered an important outcome measure in Parkinson’s disease (PD), but tools to assess dependency have not been tested in PD.Methods.In this study of 158 PD patients, we examined the two most widely used scales and cut-offs for dependency evaluation in PD, the Hoehn and Yahr (HY) stage > 3 and the Schwab and England (SE) scale score < 80%, against a standardized clinical interview assessing dependency in activities of daily living (ADL). We also examined the performance of the generic Barthel ADL index. In addition, we determined whether alternative cut-offs improved the utility of these tools.Results.Compared to clinical interview as gold standard, HY stage > 3 had 21% sensitivity and 98% specificity in detecting dependency in ADL. Corresponding figures for SE score < 80% were 55% and 92%, respectively. Using alternative cut-off values improved the overall diagnostic accuracy only slightly. Barthel ADL index had 67% sensitivity and 78% specificity in detecting dependency at its optimal cut-off value.Conclusion.Both the disease-specific HY staging and SE scale and the generic Barthel ADL index are suboptimal tools for assessing independence loss in PD. Clinical interview should be the assessment of choice in studies of dependency.
Fuzzy Controllers for a Gantry Crane System with Experimental Verifications
Authors: Almutairi Naif B. , Zribi Mohamed
Published: April 2016

The control problem of gantry cranes has attracted the attention of many researchers because of the various applications of these cranes in the industry. In this paper we propose two fuzzy controllers to control the position of the cart of a gantry crane while suppressing the swing angle of the payload. Firstly, we propose a dual PD fuzzy controller where the parameters of each PD controller change as the cart moves toward its desired position, while maintaining a small swing angle of the payload. This controller uses two fuzzy subsystems. Then, we propose a fuzzy controller which is based on heuristics. The rules of this controller are obtained taking into account the knowledge of an experienced crane operator. This controller is unique in that it uses only one fuzzy system to achieve the control objective. The validity of the designed controllers is tested through extensive MATLAB simulations as well as experimental results on a laboratory gantry crane apparatus. The simulation results as well as the experimental results indicate that the proposed fuzzy controllers work well. Moreover, the simulation and the experimental results demonstrate the robustness of the proposed control schemes against output disturbances as well as against uncertainty in some of the parameters of the crane.
An Efficient Node Localization Approach with RSSI for Randomly Deployed Wireless Sensor Networks
Authors: Zhang Xihai , Fang Junlong , Meng Fanfeng
Published: April 2016

An efficient path planning approach in mobile beacon localization for the randomly deployed wireless sensor nodes is proposed in this paper. Firstly, in order to improve localization accuracy, the weighting function based on the distance between nodes is constructed. Moreover, an iterative multilateration algorithm is also presented to avoid decreasing the localization accuracy. Furthermore, a path planning algorithm based on grid scan which can traverse entirely in sensor field is described. At the same time, the start conditions of localization algorithm are also proposed to improve localization accuracy. To evaluate the proposed path planning algorithm, the localization results of beacon nodes randomly deployed in sensor field are also provided. The proposed approach can provide the deployment uniformly of virtual beacon nodes among the sensor fields and the lower computational complexity of path planning compared with method which utilizes only mobile beacons on the basis of a random movement. The performance evaluation shows that the proposed approach can reduce the beacon movement distance and the number of virtual mobile beacon nodes by comparison with other methods.
Smoking and Heberden Nodes: Analysis of Data from the Osteoarthritis Initiative
Authors: Wiener R. Constance , Shockey Alcinda K. Trickett
Published: April 2016

Purpose. Dental hygienists, dentists, and other workforce providers who depend upon their hands for employment are acutely aware of the need to protect their hands to ensure a successful career. Recent research has suggested that smoking may be protective of hand osteoarthritis. The purpose of this study is to determine the association between smoking and Heberden’s nodes. Methods. Data from the Osteoarthritis Initiative were used in a cross-sectional, secondary data analysis of self-reported current smoking/never smoking and the presence/absence of Heberden’s nodes, the hard enlargements of the joints nearest the fingertips (distal interphalangeal joints). Analyses included descriptive statistics, Chi-square associations with Heberden’s nodes, and logistic regressions. Results. In adjusted analysis, smoking had an adjusted odds ratio for Heberden’s nodes of 0.832 [95% confidence interval: 0.60, 1.14] which failed to reach significance (P=.2488). In the selected model, females were more likely than males to have Heberden’s nodes; non-Hispanic Blacks were less likely than non-Hispanic Whites to have Heberden’s nodes; and older age groups were more likely than the youngest age group to have Heberden’s nodes. Conclusion. Smoking did not provide protection against Heberden’s nodes in this study of US participants in the Osteoarthritis Initiative.
Usefulness of Discarded Vitreous Samples from Routine Vitrectomy
Authors: Vilà Natàlia , Zoroquiain Pablo , Bravo-Filho Vasco , Antecka Emilia , Dietrich Helena , Chen John C. , Galic I. John , Kapusta Michael A. , Burnier Miguel N.
Published: April 2016

Purpose. To describe the histopathological features of vitreous samples obtained after vitrectomy surgery from diabetic and nondiabetic patients.Methods. Vitreous specimens from 137 patients who underwent vitrectomy for different clinical conditions were analysed. All samples were centrifuged and each resulting pellet was fixed and processed as part of routine paraffin section histopathology. The histopathological features were categorized in a semiquantitative fashion. The samples from diabetic and nondiabetic patients were compared.Results. The 125 included patients (58 diabetic, 60% males) were aged64.2±13.9years. The presence of hemorrhage, inflammatory cells, and histiocytes was significantly higher in the diabetic group (P<0.001,P=0.028, andP=0.016, resp.), showing more vessels (P<0.001) and ghost vessels (P=0.049). The presence of inflammatory cells was the feature with the highest sensitivity for detecting diabetes mellitus (98%) and also the highest negative predictive value (89%). In the multivariate analysis, three variables emerged as independent significant predictors of diabetes in vitrectomy samples: hemorrhage, endothelial-lined vessels, and age (P<0.001,P<0.001, andP=0.019, resp.).Conclusions. Different histopathological features can be found in vitreous samples from diabetic patients. Analysis of vitrectomy samples may serve as a tool for diabetes management.