bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Sorptive Uptake Studies of an Aryl-Arsenical with Iron Oxide Composites on an Activated Carbon Support
Authors: Kwon Jae , Wilson Lee , Sammynaiken Ramaswami
Published: March 2014

Sorption uptake kinetics and equilibrium studies for 4-hydroxy-3-nitrobenzene arsonic acid (roxarsone) was evaluated with synthetic magnetite (Mag-P), commercial magnetite (Mag-C), magnetite 10%, 19%, and 32% composite material (CM-10, -19, -32) that contains granular activated carbon (GAC), and synthetic goethite at pH 7.00 in water at 21 °C for 24 h. GAC showed the highest sorptive removal of roxarsone and the relative uptake for each sorbent material with roxarsone are listed in descending order as follows: GAC (471 mg/g) > goethite (418 mg/g) > CM-10 (377 mg/g) CM-19 (254 mg/g) > CM-32 (227 mg/g) > Mag-P (132 mg/g) > Mag-C (29.5 mg/g). The As (V) moiety of roxarsone is adsorbed onto the surface of the iron oxide/oxyhydrate and is inferred as inner-sphere surface complexes; monodentate-mononuclear, bidentate-mononuclear, and bidentate-binuclear depending on the protolytic speciation of roxarsone. The phenyl ring of roxarsone provides the primary driving force for the sorptive interaction with the graphene surface of GAC and its composites. Thus, magnetite composites are proposed as multi-purpose adsorbents for the co-removal of inorganic and organic arsenicals due to the presence of graphenic and iron oxide active adsorption sites.
3D-QSAR/CoMFA-Based Structure-Affinity/Selectivity Relationships of Aminoalkylindoles in the Cannabinoid CB1 and CB2 Receptors
Authors: Mella-Raipán Jaime , Hernández-Pino Santiago , Morales-Verdejo César , Pessoa-Mahana David
Published: March 2014

A 3D-QSAR (CoMFA) study was performed in an extensive series of aminoalkylindoles derivatives with affinity for the cannabinoid receptors CB1 and CB2. The aim of the present work was to obtain structure-activity relationships of the aminoalkylindole family in order to explain the affinity and selectivity of the molecules for these receptors. Major differences in both, steric and electrostatic fields were found in the CB1 and CB2 CoMFA models. The steric field accounts for the principal contribution to biological activity. These results provide a foundation for the future development of new heterocyclic compounds with high affinity and selectivity for the cannabinoid receptors with applications in several pathological conditions such as pain treatment, cancer, obesity and immune disorders, among others.
RC Beams Strengthened with Mechanically Fastened Composites: Experimental Results and Numerical Modeling
Authors: Martinelli Enzo , Napoli Annalisa , Nunziata Bruno , Realfonzo Roberto
Published: March 2014

The use of mechanically-fastened fiber-reinforced polymer (MF-FRP) systems has recently emerged as a competitive solution for the flexural strengthening of reinforced concrete (RC) beams and slabs. An overview of the experimental research has proven the effectiveness and the potentiality of the MF-FRP technique which is particularly suitable for emergency repairs or when the speed of installation and immediacy of use are imperative. A finite-element (FE) model has been recently developed by the authors with the aim to simulate the behavior of RC beams strengthened in bending by MF-FRP laminates; such a model has also been validated by using a wide experimental database collected from the literature. By following the previous study, the FE model and the assembled database are considered herein with the aim of better exploring the influence of some specific aspects on the structural response of MF-FRP strengthened members, such as the bearing stress-slip relationship assumed for the FRP-concrete interface, the stress-strain law considered for reinforcing steel rebars and the cracking process in RC members resulting in the well-known tension stiffening effect. The considerations drawn from this study will be useful to researchers for the calibration of criteria and design rules for strengthening RC beams through MF-FRP laminates.
A Miniature Robot for Retraction Tasks under Vision Assistance in Minimally Invasive Surgery
Authors: Tortora Giuseppe , Ranzani Tommaso , De Falco Iris , Dario Paolo , Menciassi Arianna
Published: March 2014

Minimally Invasive Surgery (MIS) is one of the main aims of modern medicine. It enables surgery to be performed with a lower number and severity of incisions. Medical robots have been developed worldwide to offer a robotic alternative to traditional medical procedures. New approaches aimed at a substantial decrease of visible scars have been explored, such as Natural Orifice Transluminal Endoscopic Surgery (NOTES). Simple surgical tasks such as the retraction of an organ can be a challenge when performed from narrow access ports. For this reason, there is a continuous need to develop new robotic tools for performing dedicated tasks. This article illustrates the design and testing of a new robotic tool for retraction tasks under vision assistance for NOTES. The retraction robots integrate brushless motors to enable additional degrees of freedom to that provided by magnetic anchoring, thus improving the dexterity of the overall platform. The retraction robot can be easily controlled to reach the target organ and apply a retraction force of up to 1.53 N. Additional degrees of freedom can be used for smooth manipulation and grasping of the organ.
Identification of Soil Freezing and Thawing States Using SAR Polarimetry at C-Band
Authors: Jagdhuber Thomas , Stockamp Julia , Hajnsek Irena , Ludwig Ralf
Published: March 2014

The monitoring of soil freezing and thawing states over large areas is very challenging on ground. In order to investigate the potential and the limitations of space-borne SAR polarimetry at C-band for soil state survey, analyses were conducted on an entire winter time series of fully polarimetric RADARSAT-2 data from 2011/2012 to identify freezing as well as thawing states within the soil. The polarimetric data were acquired over the Sodankylä test site in Finland together with in situ measurements of the soil and the snow cover. The analyses indicate clearly that the dynamics of the polarimetric entropy and mean scattering alpha angle are directly correlated to soil freezing and thawing states, even under distinct dry snow cover. First modeling attempts using the Extended Bragg soil scattering model justify the observed trends, which indicate surface-like scattering during frozen soil conditions and multiple/volume scattering for thawed soils. Hence, these first investigations at C-band foster motivation to work towards a robust polarimetric detection of soil freezing and thawing states as well as their transition phase.
The Venom of the Spider Selenocosmia Jiafu Contains Various Neurotoxins Acting on Voltage-Gated Ion Channels in Rat Dorsal Root Ganglion Neurons
Authors: Hu Zhaotun , Zhou Xi , Chen Jia , Tang Cheng , Xiao Zhen , Ying Dazhong , Liu Zhonghua , Liang Songping
Published: March 2014

Selenocosmia jiafu is a medium-sized theraphosid spider and an attractive source of venom, because it can be bred in captivity and it produces large amounts of venom. We performed reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatography (RP-HPLC) and matrix-assisted laser-desorption/ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry (MALDI-TOF-MS) analyses and showed that S. jiafu venom contains hundreds of peptides with a predominant mass of 3000–4500 Da. Patch clamp analyses indicated that the venom could inhibit voltage-gated Na+, K+ and Ca2+ channels in rat dorsal root ganglion (DRG) neurons. The venom exhibited inhibitory effects on tetrodotoxin-resistant (TTX-R) Na+ currents and T-type Ca2+ currents, suggesting the presence of antagonists to both channel types and providing a valuable tool for the investigation of these channels and for drug development. Intra-abdominal injection of the venom had severe toxic effects on cockroaches and caused death at higher concentrations. The LD50 was 84.24 μg/g of body weight in the cockroach. However, no visible symptoms or behavioral changes were detected after intraperitoneal injection of the venom into mice even at doses up to 10 mg/kg body weight. Our results provide a basis for further case-by-case investigations of peptide toxins from this venom.
L'architecture bouddhique dans la vallée du Haut Indus : un essai de typologie des représentations rupestres de stūpa
Authors: Bruneau Laurianne
Published: March 2014

The rock carvings of the Upper Indus valley have now been published by the Academy of Heidelberg for more than 20 years (Forschungsstelle für Felsbilder und Inschriften am Karakorum Highway der Heidelberger Akademie der Wissenschaften). Among those are about 1,300 petroglyphs representing stūpas.

The stūpa and its image are widespread in space and time, thus the engravings of the Upper Indus valley can be compared to actual buildings (monumental or votive), sculptures (reliquary or reliefs) and paintings.

A typology as well as a proposed chronology of the carvings is introduced here.

The study shows that the stūpa engravings of the Upper Indus valley illustrate the morphology of the stūpa in not only North India (Gandhāra, Kashmir and the Western Himalayas) but also Central Asia from the 1st century B.C. to the 13th century A.D.
Documentary record versus decorative representation: a queen's birthday celebration at the Korean court
Authors: Jungmann Burglind
Published: March 2014

A la fin de l'époque du Chosŏn, de grands paravents ont été produits en nombre significatif à la cour du roi pour commémorer des événements importants. Ils suivent une tradition de peinture documentaire sur des rouleaux verticaux ou horizontaux et des albums, genre généralement considéré de moindre valeur esthétique et représentative. Cependant, l'usage du format en paravent à partir de la fin du XVIIe siècle implique que ces peintures documentaires étaient dorénavant produites pour être montrées, en conséquence, à des fins décoratives et esthétiques. Un paravent dans la collection du Los Angeles County Museum of Art est un exemple de la fonction hybride de ce genre. Il correspond au Mujin chinch'an ŭigwe, rapport illustré de gravures sur bois, d'une cérémonie commémorant le 60e anniversaire de la reine douairière Sinjŏng en 1868. La reine Sinjŏng assura la régence de son fils le roi Hŏnjong (r. 1834-49) et est considérée comme la femme la plus puissante à la cour, durant le XIXe siècle. La comparaison des première et deuxième scènes du paravent avec les gravures sur bois correspondantes révèle de grandes ressemblances entre les compositions. Spécifiquement, dans toutes les représentations, un «Paravent aux cinq pics» est placé derrière un trône vide. Bien qu'encres et couleurs soient appliquées de manière à évoquer espace et volume, sa grande dimension, la disposition en diagramme des personnages et les petits détails lui donne une apparence statique et surpeuplée. Cependant, lue comme un diagramme des hiérarchies sociales à la cour de Corée, cette peinture transmet un message aisément compréhensible. Coussins «vides», paravents et tentes figurent des places occupées par le roi, le régent, la reine douairière et autres femmes de haut rang. Alors que le « Paravent aux cinq pics » symbolise le rôle du roi comme gardien du royaume et médiateur entre Ciel et Terre, l'absence visuelle de femmes de haut rang est la conséquence du concept confucianiste de la chasteté féminine. Ainsi, les représentations aniconiques dans le « Banquet du 60e anniversaire de la reine Sinjŏng » et dans d'autres paravents documentaires de l'époque du Chosŏn sont basés sur divers concepts de divinité et de mystères comprenant à la fois des acteurs hommes et femmes, royaux et non royaux, en dépit des véritables différences de leur position sociale.
Modeling and optimization of atomic layer deposition processes on vertically aligned carbon nanotubes
Authors: Yazdani Nuri , Chawla Vipin , Edwards Eve , Wood Vanessa , Park Hyung Gyu , Utke Ivo
Published: March 2014

Many energy conversion and storage devices exploit structured ceramics with large interfacial surface areas. Vertically aligned carbon nanotube (VACNT) arrays have emerged as possible scaffolds to support large surface area ceramic layers. However, obtaining conformal and uniform coatings of ceramics on structures with high aspect ratio morphologies is non-trivial, even with atomic layer deposition (ALD). Here we implement a diffusion model to investigate the effect of the ALD parameters on coating kinetics and use it to develop a guideline for achieving conformal and uniform thickness coatings throughout the depth of ultra-high aspect ratio structures. We validate the model predictions with experimental data from ALD coatings of VACNT arrays. However, the approach can be applied to predict film conformality as a function of depth for any porous topology, including nanopores and nanowire arrays.
EyApp & AndrEyA – Free Apps for the Automated Recording of Lessons by Students
Authors: Canessa E , Fonda Carlo , Tenze Livio , Zennaro Marco
Published: March 2014

EyA-inspired applications (to "Enhance Your Audience") allow for easy automated recordings in the classroom. They also allow for a fast sharing of large amount of educational contents. We discuss on our two prototype apps: AndrEyA and EyApp for mobile devices running Android OS and iOS, with the ultimate goal of facilitating the recoding of academic lectures by individual students themselves. We show the strong differences in video size outputs with respect to video recordings using iPads and our app, without losing sources of information.
A NOVEL R-PEAK DETECTION METHOD COMBINING ENERGY AND WAVELET TRANSFORM IN ELECTROCARDIOGRAM SIGNAL
Authors: Liu Xiuling , Yang Jianli , Zhu Xiaoyu , Zhou Suiping , Wang Hongrui , Zhang Hong
Published: March 2014

QRS complex is the most important part in electrocardiogram (ECG) as it contains the most important information of heart activities. R-peak detection is the first, yet crucial, step in most ECG automatic diagnose methods. Due to the existence of noise in ECG signals and changes in QRS morphology, most existing methods are not robust in different conditions. In the field of intelligent remote health caring, in addition to the detection accuracy, timeliness is also an important research issue. In this paper, wavelet transform and energy window transform are introduced, which form the basis of a novel R-peak detection method. Wavelet transform is used to efficiently reduce noise and highlight useful ECG signal for it has good time-frequency resolution characters, and energy window transform converts time domain signal to energy domain, which makes it easier to isolate QRS complex from other signals. As a result, influence from QRS morphology changes can be effectively alleviated. To validate the effectiveness of this new method, ECG records of MIT-BIH arrhythmia database are used in the experiments. The experiment results show that the proposed method is efficient and robust to noise and QRS morphology changes. The computational cost of the proposed method has also been evaluated.
RESOLVING SINGLE-LEAD ECG FROM EMG INTERFERENCE IN HOLTER RECORDING BASED ON EEMD
Authors: Huang Jian-Jia , Chang Chung-Yu , Lee Jen-Kuang , Tsao Hen-Wai
Published: March 2014

The aim of this study was to propose an electrocardiogram (ECG) de-noising framework based on ensemble empirical mode decomposition (EEMD) to eliminate electromyography (EMG) interference without signal distortion. ECG signals are easily corrupted by EMG, especially in Holter monitor recordings. The frequency component overlapping between EMG and ECG is a challenge in signal processing that remains to be solved. The aim of the present study, therefore, was to resolve ECG signals from recorded segments with EMG noise. Two units were put into our proposed framework; first, modified moving average filter for signal preprocessing to cancel baseline wandering, and second, EEMD to cancel EMG. In order to enhance the de-noising capability (such as signal distortion in traditional EEMD), we developed a novel EEMD signal reconstruction algorithm using a statistical ECG model. We tested the proposed framework using MIT-BIH database, artificial and single-lead recorded real-world noisy signals. Correlation coefficients and ECG morphological features were used to evaluate the performance of the proposed algorithm. Our results showed that the proposed de-noising algorithm successfully resolved ECG signals from baseline wandering and EMG interference without distorting the signal waveform.
Systematics and biology of the African genus Ferraria (Iridaceae: Irideae)
Authors: Goldblatt P. , Manning J. C.
Published: March 2014

Following field and herbarium investigation of the subequatorial African and mainly western southern African Ferraria Burm. ex Mill. (Iridaceae: Iridoideae), a genus of cormous geophytes, we recognize 18 species, eight more than were included in the 1979 account of the genus by M.P. de Vos. One of these, F. ovata, based on Moraea ovata Thunb. (1800), was only discovered to be a species of Ferraria in 2001, and three more are the result of our different view of De Vos’s taxonomy. In tropical Africa, F. glutinosa is recircumscribed to include only mid- to late summer-flowering plants, usually with a single basal leaf and with purple to brown flowers often marked with yellow. A second summer-flowering species, F. candelabrum, includes taller plants with several basal leaves. Spring and early summer-flowering plants lacking foliage leaves and with yellow flowers from central Africa are referred to F. spithamea or F. welwitschii respectively.
Maireana brevifolia (Chenopodiaceae: Camphorosmeae), a new naturalized alien plant species in South Africa
Authors: Mucina L. , Snijman D. A.
Published: March 2014

We describe and discuss the distribution of a new, naturalized alien species, Maireana brevifolia (R.Br.) Paul G.Wilson (Chenopodiaceae), a native of Australia, in the western regions of South Africa. First discovered near Worcester, Western Cape in 1976, the species is now established in disturbed karoo shrubby rangelands, along dirt roads and on saline alluvia, from northern Namaqualand to the western Little Karoo. In the South African flora, M. brevifolia is most easily confused with the indigenous Bassia salsoloides (Fenzl) A.J.Scott, from which it is distinguished by the flat to cup-shaped and almost glabrous perianth with woolly-ciliate lobes, and the hardened and winged fruiting perianth.
Aizoaceae
Authors: Klak C.
Published: March 2014

New combinations in Antimima and Octopoma (Ruschioideae).
Apocynaceae (Asclepiadoideae–Ceropegieae)
Authors: Bester S. P. , Berruti S. M.
Published: March 2014

First records of Orbea cooperi in Gauteng and Mpumalanga Provinces, FSA region.
Cyperaceae
Authors: Archer C. , Goetghebeur P.
Published: March 2014

New names and new combinations in Cyperus for southern Africa.
Hyacinthaceae
Authors: Manning J. C. , Goldblatt P.
Published: March 2014

Albuca gariepensis (Ornithogaloideae), a new species of A. subgen. Namibiogalum from Gordonia, South Africa, and A. prasina transferred to Ornithogalum.
Floristic analysis of domestic gardens in the Tlokwe City Municipality, South Africa
Authors: Lubbe C. S. , Siebert S. J. , Cilliers S. S.
Published: March 2014

This paper is a first attempt to describe the flora of domestic gardens from an urban environment in South Africa. A total of 835 plant species of 501 genera in 145 families was recorded from 100 gardens in a 54.9 km2 area of the Tlokwe City Municipality [Potchefstroom], North-West Province. A substantial number of alien species (580) were recorded, but also many indigenous species (255) that included South African endemics (61) and protected species on the National Red Data List (18). A number of the alien species that were commonly cultivated are declared invasive plants in South Africa (88). Most of the cultivated indigenous taxa originated from the southeastern provinces of South Africa. This study provides new knowledge on the often overlooked biodiversity of urban areas in a developing, mega-diverse country. Most studies of a similar nature were conducted in the developed countries of Europe and are of limited use in the development of management plans of urban ecosystems in southern Africa.
Hyacinthaceae
Authors: Eggli U. , Crouch N. R.
Published: March 2014

Drimia echinostachya, correcting a nomenclatural oversight.
Monimiaceae
Authors: Jordaan M. , Lötter M.
Published: March 2014

Taxonomic and nomenclatural notes on the monotypic genus Xymalos and general information on the family Monimiaceae.
Asteraceae
Authors: Manning J. C. , Goldblatt P. , Helme N. A.
Published: March 2014

Osteospermum norlindhianum and O. nordenstamii, two new species of Osteospermum sect. Trefenestratae (Calenduleae) from the Greater Cape Floristic Region.
Systematics of the hypervariable Moraea tripetala complex (Iridaceae: Iridoideae) of the southern African winter rainfall zone
Authors: Goldblatt P. , Manning J. C.
Published: March 2014

Field and laboratory research has shown that the Moraea tripetala complex of western South Africa, traditionally treated as a single species, sometimes with two additional varieties, has a pattern of morphological and cytological variation too complex to be accommodated in a single species. Variation in floral structure, especially the shape of the inner tepals, degree of union of the filaments, anther length and pollen colour form coherent patterns closely correlated with morphology of the corm tunics, mode of vegetative reproduction, and in some instances capsule and seed shape and size. The morphological patterns also correlate with geography, flowering time and sometimes habitat. It is especially significant that different variants of the complex may co-occur, each with overlapping or separate flowering times, a situation that conflicts with a single species taxonomy. We propose recognizing nine species and three additional subspecies for plants currently assigned to M. tripetala. M. grandis, from the western Karoo, has virtually free filaments and leaves often ± plane distally; closely allied M. amabilis, also with ± free filaments and often hairy leaves, is centred in the western Karoo and Olifants River Valley. Its range overlaps that of M. cuspidata, which has narrowly channelled, smooth leaves, linear inner tepals spreading distally and filaments united for up to 1.5 mm. M. decipiens from the Piketberg, M. hainebachiana, a local endemic of coastal limestone fynbos in the Saldanha District, M. ogamana from seasonally wet lowlands, and early flowering M. mutila constitute the remaining species of the complex in the southwestern Western Cape. M. helmei, a local endemic of middle elevations in the Kamiesberg, Namaqualand, has small flowers with short, tricuspidate inner tepals. All but M. amabilis and M. mutila are new species. We divide M. tripetala sensu stricto into three subspecies: widespread subsp. tripetala, subsp. violacea from the interior Cape flora region, and late-flowering subsp. jacquiniana from the Cape Peninsula and surrounding mountains.
New species and subspecies of Babiana, Hesperantha, and Ixia (Iridaceae: Crocoideae) from southern Africa; range extensions and morphological and nomenclatural notes on Babiana and Geissorhiza
Authors: Goldblatt P. , Manning J. C.
Published: March 2014

Babiana rivulicola from stream banks in the Kamiesberg in Namaqualand and terete-leaved Ixia teretifolia from the Roggeveld, both in Northern Cape, are new species of these two largely winter-rainfall region genera. Late-flowering populations of Hesperantha radiata with crowded spikes of smaller flowers are segregated from the typical form as subsp. caricina. We also document the first record of B. gariepensis from Namibia, correct the authority for B. purpurea Ker Gawl., discuss morphologically aberrant populations of B. tubiflora from Saldanha, provide an expanded description for B. lapeirousiodes based on the second and only precisely localized collection of this rare Namaqualand species, and expand the circumscription of Geissorhiza demissa to accommodate a new record from the Kamiesberg, including revised couplets to the existing key to the species.
Poaceae
Authors: Victor J. E. , Mashau A. C. , Ngobeni V. J.
Published: March 2014

The taxonomic and conservation status of Agrostis eriantha var. planifolia.
Poaceae
Authors: Mashau A. C. , Fish L. , Van Wyk A. E.
Published: March 2014

Taxonomic significance of epidermal structure in southern African members of Helictotrichon.
Sapindaceae
Authors: Swanepoel W.
Published: March 2014

Zanha africana, a new distribution record for Namibia.
Asteraceae
Authors: Manning J. C.
Published: March 2014

Two new combinations in Caputia and Curio (Senecioneae).
A taxonomic review of the dry-fruited species of Anemone (Ranunculaceae) in southern Africa
Authors: Manning J. C. , Goldblatt P.
Published: March 2014

The three dry-fruited species of Anemone sect. Pulsatilloides subsect. Alchemillifoliae (Ranunculaceae) from southern Africa are reviewed, with full descriptions and nomenclature, including complete synonomy, taxonomic history with nomenclatural corrections, ecological notes, and distribution. A. tenuifolia (L.f.) DC. from the Cape Floristic Region is segregated as ser. Pinnatifoliae from the two summer rainfall species, A. caffra (Eckl. Zeyh.) Harv. and A. fanninnii Harv. ex Masters, which remain in ser. Alchemillifoliae, emphasising the strong vegetative differences between the two series.
Isoëtaceae
Authors: Roux J. P.
Published: March 2014

Isoëtes aemulans, a new species from South Africa.
Polygalaceae
Authors: Figueiredo E. , Paiva J. , Smith G. F.
Published: March 2014

The reinstatement of Polygala affinis and the identity of Polygala scabra.
Mediastinal Mass Causing Spinal Cord Compression
Authors: Merali Hasan S. , Sing Heng
Published: March 2014

A 4-year-old Cambodian male presented to the emergency room with 2 weeks of gradually increasing leg weakness until he could no longer stand. He was also reported to have a deformity on his back, intermittent fevers and cough. His physical exam was notable for a 2 cm × 1 cm bony protrusion at his T4 vertebrae, and 2/5 strength and positive Babinski reflexes in his lower extremities. A chest x-ray showed a 3.2 cm × 2.9 cm mass in the middle mediastinum extending to the posterior mediastinum. A purified protein derivative test was positive. A computed tomography scan showed findings consistent with pulmonary tuberculosis and a paravertebral mass with amorphous calcifications, which involved destruction of the T4-T5 vertebrae and evidence of cord compression. These findings were all consistent with tuberculous spondylitis (Pott's disease).
An information retrieval system for computerized patient records in the context of a daily hospital practice: the example of the Léon Bérard Cancer Center (France)
Authors: Biron P. , Pezet C. , Sebban C. , Barthuet E. , Durand T. , Metzger M.H.
Published: March 2014

Background: A full-text search tool was introduced into the daily practice of Léon Bérard Center (France), a health care facility devoted to treatment of cancer. This tool was integrated into the hospital information system by the IT department having been granted full autonomy to improve the system.

Objectives: To describe the development and various uses of a tool for full-text search of computerized patient records.

Methods: The technology is based on Solr, an open-source search engine. It is a web-based application that processes HTTP requests and returns HTTP responses. A data processing pipeline that retrieves data from different repositories, normalizes, cleans and publishes it to Solr, was integrated in the information system of the Leon Bérard center. The IT department developed also user interfaces to allow users to access the search engine within the computerized medical record of the patient.

Results: From January to May 2013, 500 queries were launched per month by an average of 140 different users. Several usages of the tool were described, as follows: medical management of patients, medical research, and improving the traceability of medical care in medical records. The sensitivity of the tool for detecting the medical records of patients diagnosed with both breast cancer and diabetes was 83.0%, and its positive predictive value was 48.7% (gold standard: manual screening by a clinical research assistant).

Conclusion: The project demonstrates that the introduction of full-text-search tools allowed practitioners to use unstructured medical information for various purposes.

Citation: Biron P; Metzger MH; Pezet C; Sebban C; Barthuet E; Durand T. An information retrieval system for computerized patient records in the context of a daily hospital practice: the example of the Léon Bérard Cancer Center (France)Appl Clin Inf 2014; 5: 191–205

http://dx.doi.org/10.4338/ACI-2013-08-CR-0065
Influence of surface morphology on the immersion mode ice nucleation efficiency of hematite particles
Authors: Hiranuma N. , Hoffmann N. , Kiselev A. , Dreyer A. , Zhang K. , Kulkarni G. , Koop T. , Möhler O.
Published: March 2014

Abstract. In this paper, the effect of the morphological modification of aerosol particles with respect to heterogeneous ice nucleation is comprehensively investigated for laboratory-generated hematite particles as a model substrate for atmospheric dust particles. The surface-area-scaled ice nucleation efficiencies of monodisperse cubic hematite particles and milled hematite particles were measured with a series of expansion cooling experiments using the Aerosol Interaction and Dynamics in the Atmosphere (AIDA) cloud simulation chamber. Complementary offline characterization of physico-chemical properties of both hematite subsets were also carried out with scanning electron microscopy (SEM), energy dispersive X-ray (EDX) spectroscopy, dynamic light scattering (DLS), and an electro-kinetic particle charge detector to further constrain droplet-freezing measurements of hematite particles. Additionally, an empirical parameterization derived from our laboratory measurements was implemented in the single-column version of the Community Atmospheric Model version 5 (CAM5) to investigate the model sensitivity in simulated ice crystal number concentration on different ice nucleation efficiencies. From an experimental perspective, our results show that the immersion mode ice nucleation efficiency of milled hematite particles is almost an order of magnitude higher at −35.2 °C < T < −33.5 °C than that of the cubic hematite particles, indicating a substantial effect of morphological irregularities on immersion mode freezing. Our modeling results similarly show that the increased droplet-freezing rates of milled hematite particles lead to about one order magnitude higher ice crystal number in the upper troposphere than cubic hematite particles. Overall, our results suggest that the surface irregularities and associated active sites lead to greater ice activation through droplet freezing.
The Sofia University Atmospheric Data Archive (SUADA)
Authors: Guerova G. , Simeonov Tzv. , Yordanova N.
Published: March 2014

Abstract. Atmospheric sounding using the Global Navigation Satellite Systems (GNSS) is a well established research field in Europe. At present, GNSS data from 1800 stations are available for model validation and assimilation in state-of-the-art models used for operational numerical weather prediction Centers in Europe. Advances in GNSS data processing is making possible to also use the GNSS data for climatic trend analysis, an emerging new application. In Bulgaria and Southeast Europe the use of GNSS for atmospheric sounding is currently under development. As a first step the Sofia University Atmospheric Data Archive (SUADA) is developed. SUADA is user friendly database and includes GNSS tropospheric products like Zenith Total Delay (ZTD) and derivatives like vertically Integrated Water Vapour (IWV) as well as observations from Radiosonde and surface atmospheric data. Archived in SUADA are: (1) GNSS tropospheric products (over 12 000 000 individual observations) and derivatives (over 55 000) from five GNSS processing strategies and 37 stations for the period 1997–2013 with temporal resolution from 5 min to 6 h and (2) Radiosonde IWV data (over 6000 observations) for station Sofia (1999–2012). Presented are two applications of the SUADA data for study of long and short term variation of IWV over Bulgaria during the 2007 heat wave and intense precipitation events in 2012.
HESS Opinions: A perspective on different approaches to determine the contribution of transpiration to the surface moisture fluxes
Authors: Sutanto S. J. , van den Hurk B. , Hoffmann G. , Wenninger J. , Dirmeyer P. A. , Seneviratne S. I. , Röckmann T. , Trenberth K. E. , Blyth E. M.
Published: March 2014

Abstract. Current techniques to disentangle the total evaporative flux from the continental surface into a contribution evaporated from soils and canopy, or transpired by plants are under debate. Many isotope-based studies show that transpiration contributes generally more than 70% to the total moisture fluxes, while other isotope-independent techniques lead to considerably smaller transpiration fractions. This paper provides a perspective on isotope-based vs. non isotope-based partitioning studies. Some partitioning results from isotope-based methods, hydrometric measurements, and modeling are presented for comparison. Moreover, the methodological aspects of the analysis of partitioning are discussed including their limitations, and explanations of possible discrepancies between the methods are briefly discussed. We conclude that every method has its own uncertainties and these may lead to a high bias in the results, e.g. instruments inaccuracy and error, some assumptions used in analyses, parameters calibration. A number of comparison studies using isotope-based methods and hydrometric measurements in the same plants and climatic conditions are consistent within the errors, however, models tend to produce lower transpiration fractions. The relatively low transpiration fractions in current state of the art land surface models calls for a reassessment of the skill of the underlying model parameterizations. The scarcity of global evaporation data makes calibration and validation of global isotope-independent and isotope-based results difficult. However, isotope enabled land-surface and global climate modeling studies allow the evaluation of the parameterization of land surface models by comparing the computed water isotopologue signals in the atmosphere with the available remote sensing and flux-based data sets. Future studies that allow this evaluation could provide a better understanding of the hydrological cycle in vegetated regions.
MULTI-GNSS RECEIVER FOR AEROSPACE NAVIGATION AND POSITIONING APPLICATIONS
Authors: Peres T. R. , Silva J. S. , Silva P. F. , Carona D. , Serrador A. , Palhinha F. , Pereira R. , Véstias M.
Published: March 2014

Abstract. The upcoming Galileo system opens a wide range of new opportunities in the Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) market. However, the characteristics of the future GNSS signals require the development of new GNSS receivers. In the frame of the REAGE project, DEIMOS and ISEL have developed a GNSS receiver targeted for aerospace applications, supporting current and future GPS L1 and Galileo E1 signals, based on commercial (or, in the furthest extent, industrial) grade components. Although the REAGE project aimed at space applications, the REAGE receiver is also applicable to many terrestrial applications (ground or airborne), such as Georeferencing and Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) navigation. This paper presents the architecture and features of the REAGE receiver, as well as some results of the validation campaign with GPS L1 and Galileo E1 signals.
Thermal characterization of the active layer at the Limnopolar Lake CALM-S site on Byers Peninsula (Livingston Island), Antarctica
Authors: de Pablo M. A. , Ramos M. , Molina A.
Published: March 2014

Abstract. The Limnopolar Lake CALM-S site (A25) is the unique location on Byers peninsula where the active layer thickness is systematically monitorized (by mechanical probing during the thaw season and by temperature devices continuously since 2009). An air, surface, snow and ground temperature monitoring devices have been installed to monitor ground thermal behavior. We analyzed these data to present there the active layer thermal characterization. We use the air and ground mean daily temperature data to define the following parameters: maximum, minimum and mean temperatures at the air and at different depths, the zero annual thermal amplitude depths and position of the top of the permafrost table. The freezing and thawing seasons (defining their starting dates as well as their length), and the existence of zero curtain periods has been also established. We also derive apparent thermal diffusivity and plot thermograms to study the thermal behavior of the ground at different depths. After this complete thermal characterization of the active layer, we propose the potential existence of a~permafrost table at about 130 cm in depth as well as the transitional zone above it, and discuss the role of water in connection with the thermal behavior of the ground during the study period.
Canadian Academy of Geriatric Psychiatry 2013 Annual Scientific Meeting Abstracts
Authors: Fischer Corinne Eleanor
Published: March 2014

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Assisted Living or Facility?
Authors: Madden Ken
Published: March 2014

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Risk Route Choice Analysis and the Equilibrium Model under Anticipated Regret Theory
Authors: Yuan Pengcheng , Juan Zhicai
Published: March 2014

The assumption about travellers’ route choice behaviour has major influence on the traffic flow equilibrium analysis. Previous studies about the travellers’ route choice were mainly based on the expected utility maximization theory. However, with the gradually increasing knowledge about the uncertainty of the transportation system, the researchers have realized that there is much constraint in expected util­ity maximization theory, because expected utility maximiza­tion requires travellers to be ‘absolutely rational’; but in fact, travellers are not truly ‘absolutely rational’. The anticipated regret theory proposes an alternative framework to the tra­ditional risk-taking in route choice behaviour which might be more scientific and reasonable. We have applied the antici­pated regret theory to the analysis of the risk route choosing process, and constructed an anticipated regret utility func­tion. By a simple case which includes two parallel routes, the route choosing results influenced by the risk aversion degree, regret degree and the environment risk degree have been analyzed. Moreover, the user equilibrium model based on the anticipated regret theory has been established. The equivalence and the uniqueness of the model are proved; an efficacious algorithm is also proposed to solve the model. Both the model and the algorithm are demonstrated in a real network. By an experiment, the model results and the real data have been compared. It was found that the model re­sults can be similar to the real data if a proper regret degree parameter is selected. This illustrates that the model can better explain the risk route choosing behaviour. Moreover, it was also found that the traveller’ regret degree increases when the environment becomes more and more risky.
Effects of System Characteristics on Adopting Web-Based Advanced Traveller Information System: Evidence from Taiwan
Authors: Lin Ting-Wei , Lin Chia-Yen , Hsu Wen-Ho
Published: March 2014

This study proposes a behavioural intention model that integrates information quality, response time, and system accessibility into the original technology acceptance model (TAM) to investigate whether system characteristics affect the adoption of Web-based advanced traveller information systems (ATIS). This study empirically tests the proposed model using data collected from an online survey of Web-based advanced traveller information system users. Con­firmatory factor analysis (CFA) was performed to examine the reliability and validity of the measurement model, and structural equation modelling (SEM) was used to evaluate the structural model. The results indicate that three system characteristics had indirect effects on the intention to use through perceived usefulness, perceived ease of use, and attitude toward using. Information quality was the most im­portant system characteristic factor, followed by response time and system accessibility. This study presents implica­tions for practitioners and researchers, and suggests direc­tions for future research.
Automatic Pavement Crack Recognition Based on BP Neural Network
Authors: Li Li , Sun Lijun , Ning Guobao , Tan Shengguang
Published: March 2014

A feasible pavement crack detection system plays an important role in evaluating the road condition and providing the necessary road maintenance. In this paper, a back propagation neural network (BPNN) is used to recognize pavement cracks from images. To improve the recognition accuracy of the BPNN, a complete framework of image processing is proposed including image preprocessing and crack information extraction. In this framework, the redundant image information is reduced as much as possible and two sets of feature parameters are constructed to classify the crack images. Then a BPNN is adopted to distinguish pavement images between linear and alligator cracks to acquire high recognition accuracy. Besides, the linear cracks can be further classified into transversal and longitudinal cracks according to the direction angle. Finally, the proposed method is evaluated on the data of 400 pavement images obtained by the Automatic Road Analyzer (ARAN) in Northern China and the results show that the proposed method seems to be a powerful tool for pavement crack recognition. The rates of correct classification for alligator, transversal and longitudinal cracks are 97.5%, 100% and 88.0%, respectively. Compared to some previous studies, the method proposed in this paper is effective for all three kinds of cracks and the results are also acceptable for engineering application.
Efficiency Loss of Mixed Equilibrium Associated with Altruistic Users and Logit-based Stochastic Users in Transportation Network
Authors: Yu Xiao-Jun , Fang Chun-Hua
Published: March 2014

The efficiency loss of mixed equilibrium associated with two categories of users is investigated in this paper. The first category of users are altruistic users (AU) who have the same altruism coefficient and try to minimize their own perceived cost that assumed to be a linear combination of selfish com­ponent and altruistic component. The second category of us­ers are Logit-based stochastic users (LSU) who choose the route according to the Logit-based stochastic user equilib­rium (SUE) principle. The variational inequality (VI) model is used to formulate the mixed route choice behaviours associ­ated with AU and LSU. The efficiency loss caused by the two categories of users is analytically derived and the relations to some network parameters are discussed. The numerical tests validate our analytical results. Our result takes the re­sults in the existing literature as its special cases.
Structural, mechanical, and electrical properties of cubic boron nitride thin films deposited by magnetically enhanced plasma ion plating method
Authors: Noma Masao , Eriguchi Koji , Takao Yoshinori , Terayama Nobuyuki , Ono Kouichi
Published: March 2014

We proposed a novel process for improving cubic boron nitride (c-BN) film properties coated on Si substrates, using a magnetically enhanced plasma ion plating (MEP-IP) method. The method has two features: 1) To realize a stable anode current, the deposition of an insulating BN film on the anode electrode was controlled by adjusting the anode electrode temperature, and 2) a stable substrate current was generated by high-density Ar/N2 plasma with a stable anodic current to promote the reaction between N radicals and B atoms evaporated onto the substrate. To prevent the delamination of the c-BN film from the substrate, a structure of the c-BN/t-BN/a-BN/B/Ti/TiN/Ti/substrate was designed. It was found that the hardness defined by the Knoop indenter increased with an increase in the substrate voltage, and simultaneously the friction coefficient decreases. The electrical capacitance measurement revealed superior interface property for the BN/TiN/Si stack structure after air exposure (the permittivity of the stack structure is ∼13.8). We also confirmed the long-term stability of the c-BN film hardness to be 3000 to 4000 HK after a five-year exposure. These results confirmed that no delamination occurred in the c-BN structure fabricated by the present MEP-IP method.
Analysis of the production of the CH(A2Δ) state from the dissociative excitation of tetramethylsilane in the electron-cyclotron resonance plasma of Ar: The H2O-addition method
Authors: Ito Haruhiko , Gappa Rie
Published: March 2014

The dissociative excitation reaction of Si(CH3)4 with the electron-cyclotron resonance plasma of Ar was investigated by the optical emission spectroscopy of CH(A2Δ–X2Π) transition and electrostatic-probe measurements. The density n
e and the temperature T
e of free electrons were controlled by adding a trace amount of H2O vapor externally into the reaction region, and the dependence of the CH(A2Δ–X2Π) emission intensity on the addition of H2O was observed for comparison with the dependences evaluated on the basis of n
e and T
e. The mechanism of the production of CH(A2Δ) was found, predominantly, to be electron impact processes for producing CH(A2Δ) + Si(CH3)3 + H2 and CH(A2Δ) + Si(CH3)2 + CH4 + H. In the H2O-adddition method employed in this study, the dominant processes can be distinguished from others if the differences in their threshold energies from those of other processes are larger than 3 eV.
Highly selective and precisely controlled aluminum etching by Ar/HBr/CH3F/O2 gas chemistry
Authors: Suzuki Eiji , Ohtake Hiroto , Ohsawa Yusuke , Kumar Kaushik , Sasaki Masaru
Published: March 2014

Highly selective and precisely controlled aluminum etching was investigated by using plasma with a new Ar/HBr/CH3F/O2 gas chemistry. Generally, an aluminum surface is oxidized, leading to difficulties in the precise control of nm/min-level aluminum etching with a high selectivity to SiO2 of more than 10. The new gas chemistry enabled precise aluminum etching with a high selectivity to oxide of 10 and a low etching rate of 10 nm/min. In this gas chemistry, the aluminum surface remained oxidized by oxygen during etching and the oxidized surface was reduced by CH3F. The oxidized aluminum surface was etched by radicals from CH3F and the etching rate was decreased by HBr.
Annealing performance improvement of elongated inductively coupled plasma torch and its application to recovery of plasma-induced Si substrate damage
Authors: Okumura Tomohiro , Eriguchi Koji , Saitoh Mitsuo , Kawaura Hiroshi
Published: March 2014

The annealing performance of an elongated inductively coupled plasma (ICP) torch that enables instantaneous thermal processing over a large area has been improved by using a ceramic chamber that ensures better mechanical and thermal properties than a quartz chamber, realizing a substrate temperature higher than 1,600 K. Si wafers damaged by the bombardment of ions from Ar plasma were irradiated by the ICP torch for recovery. The thickness of the damaged layer was monitored by spectroscopic ellipsometry (SE), and the changes in Si crystal structure were examined by transmission electron microscopy (TEM). Significant decreases in damaged layer thickness and TEM contrast, which corresponds to the degree of damage, were observed after the ICP torch irradiation.