bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Tentorial dural arteriovenous fistula manifesting as contralateral trigeminal neuralgia: resolution after transarterial Onyx embolization
Authors: Lu Xiaojian , Qin Xuanfeng , Ni Lanchun , Chen Jian , Xu Feng
Published: November 2013

Tentorial dural arteriovenous fistula (DAVF) as a cause of trigeminal neuralgia is extremely rare. Although less than 10 cases have been reported in the literature, all cases presented with ipsilateral trigeminal neuralgia. Here we report a unique case of tentorial DAVF manifesting as contralateral trigeminal neuralgia. A 58-year-old man presented with right-sided trigeminal neuralgia. Cerebral angiography revealed a left tentorial DAVF and the MR imaging demonstrated a variceal venous dilatation occupying the left lateral pontine cistern and multiple venous flow voids adjacent to the right trigeminal nerve root entry zone. Transarterial Onyx embolization resulted in near complete obliteration of the fistula with immediate resolution of facial pain. The patient remains symptom free and without evidence of recurrence during 9 months of follow-up. Transarterial Onyx embolization may be an effective treatment modality for such an usual case.
ProANP plasma measurement predicts all-cause mortality in acutely hospitalised patients: a cohort study
Authors: Lauridsen Bo K , Iversen Kasper , Hunter Ingrid , Bay Morten , Kirk Vibeke , Nielsen Olav W , Nielsen Henrik , Boesgaard Søren , Køber Lars , Goetze Jens P
Published: November 2013

Importance

The association of natriuretic peptide measurement with all-cause mortality in a broad selection of acutely admitted patients has not yet been examined.

Objective

To test the risk association between pro-atrial natriuretic peptide (ANP) and short-term and long-term mortality and its predictive value in acutely hospitalised patients and compare this to N-terminal B-type natriuretic peptide (NT-proBNP).

Design, setting and patients

Participants were selected from the Copenhagen Hospital Heart Failure Study (n=3644). Medical history, satisfactory echocardiography and blood samples were available on 2193 participants in 1998–1999 where NT-proBNP was measured. Vital status after discharge was obtained from national central data registers. A total of 1337 participants with eligible blood samples were selected in 2010–2011 for proANP measurement. Among these, 1255 (94%) were acutely hospitalised in 1998–1999.

Main outcome measure(s)

1-year and long-term mortality.

Results

Median follow-up period was 11.5 years. At the end of follow-up, 926 patients had died, 239 during the first year. ProANP quartiles to 2–4 (median proANP levels 594 pmol/L, 990 pmol/L and 2052 pmol/L, respectively) associated with a stepwise increase in risk of 1-year and long-term mortality compared to the first quartile (336 pmol/L) in multivariable adjusted Cox proportional regression models (HR 1.53 95% CI 1.30 to 1.81 and HR 1.26 95% CI 1.17 to 1.36, respectively). An addition of NT-proBNP attenuated proANP's association with mortality in the models (HR 1.24 95% CI 1.01 to 1.53 and 1.14 95% CI 1.03 to 1.26, respectively). The increased risk was observed in participants with the highest proANP levels (fourth quartile). Similar results were observed in subgroups of participants with no evidence of cardiovascular disease (CVD). ProANP in quartiles improved discrimination when added to traditional risk factors in prediction models for 1-year (integrated discrimination improvement (IDI) 0.141 95% CI 0.085 to 0.197; C-index 0.753 95% CI 0.724 to 0.783, P for improvement 0.003) and long-term mortality (IDI 0.053 95% CI 0.032 to 0.074; C-index 0.736 95% CI 0.720 to 0.752, P for improvement <0.001) with similar results in subgroups. Discrimination was best in a combined model with proANP as well as NT-proBNP included.

Conclusions and relevance

High plasma proANP concentrations are associated with and predict short-term and long-term all-cause mortality in acutely hospitalised patients irrespective of CVD status at admission.
Using ‘nudge’ principles for order set design: a before and after evaluation of an electronic prescribing template in critical care
Authors: Bourdeaux Christopher P , Davies Keith J , Thomas Matthew J C , Bewley Jeremy S , Gould Timothy H
Published: November 2013

Objective

Computerised order sets have the potential to reduce clinical variation and improve patient safety but the effect is variable. We sought to evaluate the impact of changes to the design of an order set on the delivery of chlorhexidine mouthwash and hydroxyethyl starch (HES) to patients in the intensive care unit.

Methods

The study was conducted at University Hospitals Bristol NHS Foundation Trust, UK. Our intensive care unit uses a clinical information system (CIS). All drugs and fluids are prescribed with the CIS and drug and fluid charts are stored within a database. Chlorhexidine mouthwash was added as a default prescription to the prescribing template in January 2010. HES was removed from the prescribing template in April 2009. Both interventions were available to prescribe manually throughout the study period. We conducted a database review of all patients eligible for each intervention before and after changes to the configuration of choices within the prescribing system.

Results

2231 ventilated patients were identified as appropriate for treatment with chlorhexidine, 591 before the intervention and 1640 after. 55.3% were prescribed chlorhexidine before the change and 90.4% after (p<0.001). 6199 patients were considered in the HES intervention, 2177 before the intervention and 4022 after. The mean volume of HES infused per patient fell from 630 mL to 20 mL after the change (p<0.001) and the percentage of patients receiving HES fell from 54.1% to 3.1% (p<0.001). These results were well sustained with time.

Conclusions

The presentation of choices within an electronic prescribing system influenced the delivery of evidence-based interventions in a predictable way and the effect was well sustained. This approach has the potential to enhance the effectiveness of computerised order sets.
Transgenerational effects of anadromy on juvenile growth traits in an introduced population of rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss)
Authors: Liberoff Ana Laura , Miller Jessica Adele , Riva-Rossi Carla Marcela , Hidalgo Fernando José , Fogel Marilyn Louise , Pascual Miguel Alberto
Published: November 2013

We determined whether the propensity for anadromy was related to maternal phenotype in a population of partially anadromous rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss). We identified the maternal phenotype (anadromous versus resident) of wild juveniles from two successive cohorts using stable isotope analysis (δ15N) of muscle tissue and (or) strontium to calcium ratios in the otolith core. We also tested the hypothesis that juvenile size and growth are related to maternal migratory history. For both cohorts, juvenile size at capture and growth, as determined using otolith and scale structural analyses, were strongly related to maternal migratory history. Offspring of anadromous mothers were larger and grew faster than resident offspring. Back-calculated length at age 1 of anadromous and resident adults provided support for a positive association between body size and anadromy, indicating that larger offspring are more prone to displaying anadromy. We conclude that maternal anadromy, which influences adult size and egg quality, affects the propensity of progeny to migrate, thus perpetuating the anadromous tactic across generations and influencing the establishment and persistence of anadromy.
Stimulation of calcium-sensing receptor increases biochemical H+-ATPase activity in mouse cortex and outer medullary regions
Authors: Casare Fernando , Milan Daiane , Fernandez Ricardo
Published: November 2013

The aim of this project was to investigate the interaction between the calcium-sensing receptor (CaSR) and proton extrusion by the V-ATPase and gastric-like isoform of the H+/K+-ATPase in the mouse nephron. Biochemical activity of H+- ATPases was analysed using a partially purified membrane fraction of mouse cortex and outer medullary region. The V-ATPase activity (sensitive to 10−7mol·L−1bafilomycin) from the cortical and outer medullary region was significantly stimulated by increasing the [Formula: see text] (outside Ca2+), in a dose-dependent pattern. Gastric H+/K+-ATPase activity (sensitive to 10−5mol·L−1Schering 28080) was also sensitive to changes in [Formula: see text] levels. A significant increase in V-ATPase activity was also observed when CaSR was stimulated with agonists such as 300 μmol·L−1Gd3+and 200 μmol·L−1neomycin, both in the cortex and outer medulla. The cortical and outer medullary gastric H+/K+-ATPase activity was also stimulated by Gd3+and neomycin. Finally, cortical V-ATPase activity was significantly stimulated by 10−9mol·L−1angiotensin II, and the stimulation of CaSR in the presence of angiotensin significantly enhanced this effect, suggesting that an interaction in the intracellular signaling pathways is involved. In summary, CaSR stimulation enhances the biochemical activity of V-ATPase and gastric H+/K+-ATPase in both the cortical and outer medullary region of mouse kidney.
FROZEN MODE IN PHOTONIC CRYSTAL WAVEGUIDE
Authors: LIU YE , LUO LIN , JIANG CHUN
Published: November 2013

We propose a structure of 2D photonic crystal waveguide composed of hexagonal lattices of air holes in high index materials. Frozen mode regime can be observed within the photonic band gap. Light incident into the waveguide is coupled into two modes. One mode has enhanced amplitude and the other one has slow group velocity. Finite-different time-domain (FDTD) simulation is used to demonstrate the propagation of the slow mode.
DEVELOPMENT OF INTEGRATED MICROFLUIDIC DEVICE FOR OPTICAL FLOW RATE SENSING
Authors: VIPHAVAKIT CHARUSLUK , THEMISTOS CHRISTOS , KOMODROMOS MICHAEL , ATTHI NITHI , BOONRUENG SAKOOLKARN , MOHAMMED WALEED S. , DUTTA JOYDEEP
Published: November 2013

The design, fabrication and characterization of an optics based integrated flow rate sensor is presented where the light-fluid interaction is maximized by allowing the liquid and light to propagate along the same direction. The flow rate sensor consists of a 10 μm deep microchannel placed between two waveguides. The optical waveguides were tapered to fit the channel width, to guide light in and out of the microchannel. A tapering mechanism is proposed to minimize the coupling and propagation losses. The power of the output signal from the designed device was calculate through simulation and it was compared with the actual output signal detected by a fast receiver (higher than 1 MHz). The dynamic change of the light intensity when fluid flows through the channel can also be recorded by this receiver. This scheme allows for a direct measurement of the liquid flow rate with higher interaction length between fluid and light with a dynamic range of up to 0.18. An integrated microfluidic device with high precision and sufficient coupling between the light source and the microfluidic channel is proposed.
Chapter 4 Global distributional dynamics of Cambrian clades as revealed by Burgess Shale-type deposits
Authors: Hendricks Jonathan R.
Published: November 2013

The Cambrian geographical and temporal distributions of many clades remain poorly understood, despite their importance for elucidating the palaeobiogeographical context of the Cambrian radiation. New species and genus level occurrence databases were developed to analyse temporal and geographical distributional patterns in taxa belonging to 14 clades from over 60 globally distributed early and Middle Cambrian Burgess Shale-type lagerstätten. Analyses demonstrate that clades with confirmed Precambrian origins were, on average, more widespread and temporally persistent than clades with first fossil occurrences in the Cambrian. Despite their dominance in diversity, arthropods were less widely distributed and temporally persistent than many other groups. Finally, a significant correlation between geographical range and temporal persistence is demonstrated, supporting the hypothesis that Cambrian taxa with wider geographical ranges were less likely to go extinct than those with narrower ranges.

Supplementary material:

Species and genus data tables are available at:
http://www.geolsoc.org.uk/SUP18665
Why attending conferences is important for your research
Authors: Katic Marija
Published: November 2013

In this paper, a personal perspective on how important for a scientist is to attend conferences is given. The report is influenced by the author's attendance of the 9th joint meeting of the European Software Engineering Conference and the ACM SIGSOFT Symposium on the Foundations of Software Engineering (ESEC/FSE 2013). ESEC/FSE 2013 took place in Saint Petersburg, Russia and gathered researchers, practitioners, and educators from all over the world that presented and discussed the most recent work, trends, and challenges in the field of software engineering. ESEC/FSE joined the main conference, and several co-located events: two conferences, four workshops, doctoral symposium and seven tutorials. While the main conference covered broad topics in software engineering, the two co-located conferences were targeted to the specific software engineering community: multicore software engineering, performance, and tools, and to the search-based software engineering community. Additionally, there were four interesting workshops: on social software engineering, on software evolution, on software ecosystem architectures, and on software development lifecycle for mobile. Keywords Software engineering, discuss, attending conferences.
Information systems in distributed environments
Authors: Mishra Alok , Münch Jürgen , Mishra Deepti
Published: November 2013

This is a report from a one-day fourth international workshop on "Information Systems in Distributed Environments" (ISDE), which was organized in conjunction with the OnTheMove Federated Conferences & Workshops (OTM 2013) at Technical University of Graz, Austria, on September 13, 2013. The main focus of this workshop was to provide a venue for the discussion of challenges related to the development, operation, and maintenance of distributed information systems, and their creation in the context of global development projects. Further dissemination of research results will lead to an improvement of distributed information system development and deployment across the globe.
Selection of good practices for small software development teams
Authors: de Castro Ronney Moreira , Braga José Luis , Soares Liziane Santos
Published: November 2013

The world is increasingly dependent on technology and computing systems. Software organizations are facing a highly competitive market, and thus seeking good practices and processes that help keep them competitive. The quality of their products becomes a differentiating factor and is directly associated with these processes. The software products they deliver play a major role in this competitive scenario, to which small organizations do not have easy access. Our study is directed to those small and micro-organizations that lack the necessary financial assets to hire people, adopt and implement expensive processes, or even implement good development practices. In this paper we present our approach to help those organizations find good practices to enhance their software development processes. The method consisted of obtaining a possible company profile based on technical attributes, given as input to a knowledge-based system that derived a list of possible practices to be adopted according to that profile. Then project managers can select those more suitable to the company's present demands, and implement them in smaller steps according to the organization maturity levels. The approach was currently tested in two organizations that are by now implementing the suggested practices. The proposed system is freely available through the internet.
Developing self managing software systems using agile modeling
Authors: Chauhan Sandeep , Sharma Arun , Grover P. S.
Published: November 2013

Design, development and operation of self managing systems are extremely challenging. Having an appropriate development model is of paramount significance for self managing systems. Various approaches have been studied and used in the past. It has been observed that self managing systems may be very good candidates for agile modelling and development. In this paper, we propose a generic architecture along with a life cycle and an Agile Modelling Approach (AMA) for developing self-managing systems. AMA may be applied to software development projects in an effective, flexible and lightweight manner. Moreover, AMA may be used for requirements, analysis, architecture and design, along with the use-case, object, aspect, data or user-interface models.
Investigating of high and low impact faults in object-oriented projects
Authors: Goel Brij Mohan , Bhatia Pradeep Kumar
Published: November 2013

For optimum utilization of resources and reducing the cost of software, the fault detection and elimination process must be properly planned and for this type of planning prediction of fault-prone module is gaining importance among researchers. It would be valuable to know how object-oriented design metrics and class fault-proneness are related when fault impact is taken into account. In this paper, we use the logistic regression method to empirically investigate the usefulness of object-oriented design metrics in predicting fault-proneness when taking fault impact into account. Our results, based on a public domain NASA Promise data set, indicate that most of these design metrics are statistically related to fault-proneness of classes across fault impact, and the prediction capabilities of the investigated metrics greatly depend on the impact of faults. More specifically, these design metrics are able to predict high/low impact faults in fault-prone classes.
A qualitative analysis of effects of security risks on architecture of an information system
Authors: Kumar Rakesh , Singh Hardeep
Published: November 2013

Information systems are the backbone of almost every business. The rise in the usage and the development of information networks over the years has added to the magnitude and frequent occurrences of threats to these very systems. Therefore, researchers and developers need to fill the gaps between early knowledge about risks and current level of risks and threats posed to information systems. The paper, done qualitatively, explores the various effects on the architecture of the information systems when the systems are exposed to attacks. The conceptual results, presented in the paper explore the relation of security risks to the architectural components of information systems. The findings can help the developer community to design architecturally sound and secure information systems.
Computer security with service degradations
Authors: Levine Gertrude N.
Published: November 2013

Computer systems invest substantial resources in securing their service. Costs of failure prevention are balanced against those of detection and recovery, even though recovery mechanisms can cause greater degradations of services. Most computer users consider degradations of service to be insidious and injurious. Yet, service degradations commonly assist in both the prevention and the curtailment of failures. Their toleration enables service continuation following fault activation, during which degradations are monitored for symptoms of security breaches.
Ada and many-core platforms
Authors: Pinho Luis Miguel , Michell Stephen , Moore Brad
Published: November 2013

The new many-core platforms make it difficult for the programmer to provide efficient mapping of Ada programs onto the underlying non-uniform hardware. This paper discusses how existing Ada concepts such as Dispatching Domains and the Distributed Systems Annex can be extended or changed to better support the hierarchical and heterogeneous nature of these platforms.
Lock-free protected types for real-time ada
Authors: Bosch Geert
Published: November 2013

The Ravenscar profile defined by Ada prevents deadlock and starvation of conforming Ada programs on monoprocessor systems, allowing for better reasoning about real-time behavior. While defined in terms of mutual exclusion, we show Ada's protected types are general enough to allow an enhanced compiler to automatically generate appropriate lock-free synchronization code even on multiprocessors for some basic datastructures. In the context of real-time systems this allows for a more deterministic real-time response and improves the ability to statically analyze generated code.
Execution time timers for interrupt handling
Authors: Gregertsen Kristoffer Nyborg , Skavhaug Amund
Published: November 2013

This paper argues that the addition of interrupt timers follows naturally by execution time measurement for interrupt handling introduced with Ada 2012, and that full execution time control for interrupts allows safety against unexpected interrupt rates that could not be achieved in an efficent and easy manner otherwise. Hence, it is argued that this feature should be considered for the next revision of Ada.
Deferred and atomic setting of scheduling attributes for ada
Authors: Sáez Sergio , Real Jorge , Crespo Alfons
Published: November 2013

Deferred setting of scheduling attributes refers to a single operation that sets a new value for a scheduling attribute of a task at some future time. Although deferred setting of scheduling attributes is possible in Ada 2012, it is in a rather limited way: only deadline or CPU can be changed deferredly, either at a specified time or when the task is released from a suspension object. And only one of those two attributes at a time. Other scheduling attributes such as priority cannot have deferred setting by means of a single operation. This would be a convenient feature to have for schemes such as job partitioning, task splitting, or mode changes. Another issue is the absence of operations for atomically changing several parameters at a time, which would avoid scheduling issues specially on multiprocessor.

In this paper we explore a proposal aimed at correcting these two drawbacks. On one hand, we want to be able to change more attributes, not only deadlines, deferredly or immediately. On the other hand, we want to atomically change (now or later) a set of attributes, thereby avoiding scheduling artifacts that arise from sequentially changing several attributes, specially when the CPU is one of them. Rather than providing a number of library operations for postponing the setting of a variety of scheduling attributes, we propose to encapsulate the scheduling attributes of each task in a single tagged type that can be extended with more attributes for specific applications if needed.
The hour of code is coming!
Authors: Partovi Hadi , Sahami Mehran
Published: November 2013

This year brings a new way for Computer Science educators to get involved with Computer Science Education Week (CS Ed Week) activities. To celebrate CS Ed Week (Dec. 9-15), Code.org (partnering with Microsoft, Google, Apple, Bill Gates, Mark Zuckerberg, the Boys & Girls Clubs of America, and over 100 others) is organizing the largest initiative of its kind: a campaign to get 10 million students of all ages to try computer science for one hour. And you can help!
SIGCSE special project grants
Authors: Sheard Judy , Settle Amber
Published: November 2013

The SIGCSE Board would like to announce that applications for the next round of Special Project Grants are due on November 15. Special Project Grants of up to US$5000 are awarded each year to support projects that will bring some clear benefit to the computing education community in the form of new knowledge, developing or sharing of a resource, or good practice in learning, teaching, or assessment.
ICER 2013 conference report
Authors: Clear Alison , Cutts Quintin , Simon Beth
Published: November 2013

This year ICER was held at the University of California, San Diego in its new 2.5 day format, running from the 12th to the 14th of August with the Doctoral Consortium held on the 11th. Paper submissions were a new record for ICER with 68 submissions. The Program Committee accepted 22 papers, 17 research papers and 5 discussion papers, a 31% acceptance rate. There were also 12 doctoral consortium presentations ably led by Jonas Boudstedt and Allison Elliot Tew and a series of lightning talks organized by Brian Dorn and chaired by Alison Clear. The keynote speaker for this conference was Scott Klemmer from UC San Diego, who spoke about "Design at Large" and how his work on design can be applied to CS education.
A look ahead to ICER 2014
Authors: Cutts Quintin , Dorn Brian , Simon Beth
Published: November 2013

You are warmly invited to the University of Glasgow, Scotland, for ICER 2014 --- the 10th conference in the series! The dates are August 11th-13th, with the doctoral consortium on the 10th.
Reliability aware dynamic voltage and frequency scaling for improved microprocessor lifetime
Authors: Kumar Gorti Naga Pavan , Somani Arun K.
Published: November 2013

Dynamic voltage and frequency scaling (DVFS) is heavily used for power management in real-time environments. Although the schemes leveraging DVFS provide significant power reduction, adverse effects on chip reliability are possible. Alternate increase and decrease in operating voltage and frequency leads to thermal cycling. Increasing transistor packing density leads to a larger range of possible operating temperatures, exacerbating the thermal cycling problem. Also, the chip reliability quantification process does not include and represent the effects of small scale thermal cycles. A good number of in-field chip failures are attributed to the consequences of these. Thus, it is imperative to include their effects into the processor voltage and frequency selection process. Our work develops an integrated processor thermal and performance management technique centered on novel polynomial time scheduling algorithms that lead to lowering of thermal cycles in soft real time environments. Our technique leverages application awareness and runtime monitoring for improving chip lifetime, while achieving considerable energy savings. We show that a significant reduction in thermal cycles and peaks is possible, leading to longer chip life expectations.
Joseph Priestley, oxygen, and the Enlightenment
Authors: West John B.
Published: November 2013

Joseph Priestley (1733–1804) was the first person to report the discovery of oxygen and describe some of its extraordinary properties. As such he merits a special place in the history of respiratory physiology. In addition his descriptions in elegant 18th-century English were particularly arresting, and rereading them never fails to give a special pleasure. The gas was actually first prepared by Scheele (1742–1786) but his report was delayed. Lavoisier (1743–1794) repeated Priestley's initial experiment and went on to describe the true nature of oxygen that had eluded Priestley, who never abandoned the erroneous phlogiston theory. In addition to oxygen, Priestley isolated and characterized seven other gases. However, most of his writings were in theology because he was a conscientious clergyman all his life. Priestley was a product of the Enlightenment and argued that all beliefs should be able to stand the scientific scrutiny of experimental investigations. As a result his extreme liberal views were severely criticized by the established Church of England. In addition he was a supporter of both the French and American Revolutions. Ultimately his political and religious attitudes provoked a riot during which his home and his scientific equipment were destroyed. He therefore emigrated to America in 1794 where his friends included Thomas Jefferson and Benjamin Franklin. He settled in Northumberland, Pennsylvania although his scientific work never recovered from his forced departure. But the descriptions of his experiments with oxygen will always remain a high point in the history of respiratory physiology.
Trigeminal high-frequency stimulation produces short- and long-term modification of reflex blink gain
Authors: Ryan Michael , Kaminer Jaime , Enmore Patricia , Evinger Craig
Published: November 2013

Reflex blinks provide a model system for investigating motor learning in normal and pathological states. We investigated whether high-frequency stimulation (HFS) of the supraorbital branch of the trigeminal nerve before the R2 blink component (HFS-B) decreases reflex blink gain in alert rats. As with humans (Mao JB, Evinger C. J Neurosci 21: RC151, 2001), HFS-B significantly reduced blink size in the first hour after treatment for rats. Repeated days of HFS-B treatment produced long-term depression of blink circuits. Blink gain decreased exponentially across days, indicating a long-term depression of blink circuits. Additionally, the HFS-B protocol became more effective at depressing blink amplitude across days of treatment. This depression was not habituation, because neither long- nor short-term blink changes occurred when HFS was presented after the R2. To investigate whether gain modifications produced by HFS-B involved cerebellar networks, we trained rats in a delay eyelid conditioning paradigm using HFS-B as the unconditioned stimulus and a tone as the conditioned stimulus. As HFS-B depresses blink circuits and delay conditioning enhances blink circuit activity, occlusion should occur if they share neural networks. Rats acquiring robust eyelid conditioning did not exhibit decreases in blink gain, whereas rats developing low levels of eyelid conditioning exhibited weak, short-term reductions in blink gain. These results suggested that delay eyelid conditioning and long-term HFS-B utilize some of the same cerebellar circuits. The ability of repeated HFS-B treatment to depress trigeminal blink circuit activity long term implied that it may be a useful protocol to reduce hyperexcitable blink circuits that underlie diseases like benign essential blepharospasm.
Modeling Analysis of DC Magnetic Bias of Iron Core Reactor of APF
Authors: Ding Zujun , Liu Lutao , Liu Baolian
Published: November 2013

As one of the main power devices of active power filter (APF), iron core reactor DC magnetic bias would affect the performance of APF. Based on the study of DC magnetic bias mechanism of APF iron core reactor, the data model was established in this paper. The performance of APF device impacted by iron core reactor DC magnetic bias was analysed through the simulation in different DC current conditions, and optimization scheme was proposed to reduce DC magnetic bias to improve working performance of APF. To reduce DC magnetic bias, main circuit parameters and control characteristics were uniform, and reluctance of iron core was increased. Results of the simulations and experiments validated that the improved method could restrain reactor DC magnetic bias to reduce even harmonic current in APF output current, which could greatly optimize APF performance.
Experimental and Analytical Studies on Improved Feedforward ML Estimation Based on LS-SVR
Authors: Liu Xueqian , Yu Hongyi
Published: November 2013

Maximum likelihood (ML) algorithm is the most common and effective parameter estimation method. However, when dealing with small sample and low signal-to-noise ratio (SNR), threshold effects are resulted and estimation performance degrades greatly. It is proved that support vector machine (SVM) is suitable for small sample. Consequently, we employ the linear relationship between least squares support vector regression (LS-SVR)’s inputs and outputs and regard LS-SVR process as a time-varying linear filter to increase input SNR of received signals and decrease the threshold value of mean square error (MSE) curve. Furthermore, it is verified that by taking single-tone sinusoidal frequency estimation, for example, and integrating data analysis and experimental validation, if LS-SVR’s parameters are set appropriately, not only can the LS-SVR process ensure the single-tone sinusoid and additive white Gaussian noise (AWGN) channel characteristics of original signals well, but it can also improves the frequency estimation performance. During experimental simulations, LS-SVR process is applied to two common and representative single-tone sinusoidal ML frequency estimation algorithms, the DFT-based frequency-domain periodogram (FDP) and phase-based Kay ones. And the threshold values of their MSE curves are decreased by 0.3 dB and 1.2 dB, respectively, which obviously exhibit the advantage of the proposed algorithm.
Photosystem II Photochemistry and Phycobiliprotein of the Red AlgaeKappaphycus alvareziiand Their Implications for Light Adaptation
Authors: Guan Xiangyu , Wang Jinfeng , Zhu Jianyi , Yao Chunyan , Liu Jianguo , Qin Song , Jiang Peng
Published: November 2013

Photosystem II photochemistry and phycobiliprotein (PBP) genes of red algaeKappaphycus alvarezii, raw material ofκ-carrageenan used in food and pharmaceutical industries, were analyzed in this study. Minimum saturating irradiance (Ik) of this algal species was less than 115 μmol m−2 s−1. Its actual PSII efficiency (yield II) increased when light intensity enhanced and decreased when light intensity reached 200 μmol m−2 s−1. Under dim light, yield II declined at first and then increased on the fourth day. Under high light, yield II retained a stable value. These results indicate thatK. alvareziiis a low-light-adapted species but possesses regulative mechanisms in response to both excessive and deficient light. Based on the PBP gene sequences,K. alvarezii, together with other red algae, assembled faster and showed a closer relationship with LL-Prochlorococcuscompared to HL-Prochlorococcus. Many amino acid loci in PBP sequences ofK. alvareziiwere conserved with those of LL-Prochlorococcus. However, loci conserved with HL-Prochlorococcusbut divergent with LL-Prochlorococcuswere also found. The diversities of PE and PC are proposed to have played some roles during the algal evolution and divergence of light adaption.
The Endocannabinoid System and Sex Steroid Hormone-Dependent Cancers
Authors: Ayakannu Thangesweran , Taylor Anthony H. , Marczylo Timothy H. , Willets Jonathon M. , Konje Justin C.
Published: November 2013

The “endocannabinoid system (ECS)” comprises the endocannabinoids, the enzymes that regulate their synthesis and degradation, the prototypical cannabinoid receptors (CB1 and CB2), some noncannabinoid receptors, and an, as yet, uncharacterised transport system. Recent evidence suggests that both cannabinoid receptors are present in sex steroid hormone-dependent cancer tissues and potentially play an important role in those malignancies. Sex steroid hormones regulate the endocannabinoid system and the endocannabinoids prevent tumour development through putative protective mechanisms that prevent cell growth and migration, suggesting an important role for endocannabinoids in the regulation of sex hormone-dependent tumours and metastasis. Here, the role of the endocannabinoid system in sex steroid hormone-dependent cancers is described and the potential for novel therapies assessed.
Baseline Quality of Life Factors Predict Long Term Survival after Elective Resection for Colorectal Cancer
Authors: Sharma Abhiram , Walker Leslie G. , Monson John R. T.
Published: November 2013

Background. Studies have shown an association between baseline quality of life (Qol) and survival in advanced cancers. The aim of this study was to investigate their predictive value in long term survival after elective colorectal cancer resection.Methods. A consecutive series of patients undergoing elective colorectal cancer surgery for nonmetastatic disease were recruited in 2003/04. Patients completed standardized quality of life questionnaires (HADS, FACTC, MRS, and PANAS) prior to and 6 weeks after surgery. Univariate (log-rank test) and multivariate analyses (Cox proportional hazards) were performed to predict long term survival.Results. Ninety-seven patients met the inclusion criteria. Sixty-five (67%) were male and the median age of the group was 70 years. Forty-six (47.5%) patients had died and the mean survival was 1,741 days (median 2159, range 9–2923 days). Preoperative mood rating scale and functional assessment of cancer therapy-colorectal FACT C emotional well-being and postoperative FACT C additional concerns were independent predictors of long term survival.Conclusion. Incorporating psychosocial measures in preoperative assessment of cancer patients could help to identify patients who require assessment with a view to implementing psychosocial interventions. These active interventions to maximize mood and well-being should form an integral part of multidisciplinary treatment in these patients.
Scenario Analysis on Climate Change Impacts of Urban Land Expansion under Different Urbanization Patterns: A Case Study of Wuhan Metropolitan
Authors: Ke Xinli , Wu Feng , Ma Caixue
Published: November 2013

Urban land expansion plays an important role in climate change. It is significant to select a reasonable urban expansion pattern to mitigate the impact of urban land expansion on the regional climate in the rapid urbanization process. In this paper, taking Wuhan metropolitan as the case study area, and three urbanization patterns scenarios are designed to simulate spatial patterns of urban land expansion in the future using the Partitioned and Asynchronous Cellular Automata Model. Then, simulation results of land use are adjusted and inputted into WRF (Weather Research and Forecast) model to simulate regional climate change. The results show that: (1) warming effect is strongest under centralized urbanization while it is on the opposite under decentralized scenario; (2) the warming effect is stronger and wider in centralized urbanization scenario than in decentralized urbanization scenario; (3) the impact trends of urban land use expansion on precipitation are basically the same under different scenarios; (4) and spatial distribution of rainfall was more concentrated under centralized urbanization scenario, and there is a rainfall center of wider scope, greater intensity. Accordingly, it can be concluded that decentralized urbanization is a reasonable urbanization pattern to mitigate climate change in rapid urbanization period.
Benefit of the NeQuick Galileo Version in GNSS Single-Point Positioning
Authors: Angrisano Antonio , Gaglione Salvatore , Gioia Ciro , Massaro Marco , Troisi Salvatore
Published: November 2013

The GNSS measurements are strongly affected by ionospheric effects, due to the signal propagation through ionosphere; these effects could severely degrade the position; hence, a model to limit or remove the ionospheric error is necessary. The use of several techniques (DGPS, SBAS, and GBAS) reduces the ionospheric effect, but implies the use of expensive devices and/or complex architectures necessary to meet strong requirements in terms of accuracy and reliability for safety critical application. The cheapest and most widespread GNSS devices are single frequency stand-alone receivers able to partially correct this kind of error using suitable models. These algorithms compute the ionospheric delay starting from ionospheric model, which uses parameters broadcast within the navigation messages. NeQuick is a three-dimensional and time-dependent ionospheric model adopted by Galileo, the European GNSS, and developed by International Centre for Theoretical Physics (ICTP) together with Institute for Geophysics, Astrophysics, and Meteorology of the University of Graz. The aim of this paper is the performance assessment in single point positioning of the NeQuick Galileo version provided by ESA and the comparison with respect to the Klobuchar model used for GPS; the analysis is performed in position domain and the errors are examined in terms of RMS and maximum error for the horizontal and vertical components. A deep analysis is also provided for the application of the exanimated model in the first possible Galileo only position fix.
The Effect of Bandgap Graded Absorber on the Performance of a-Si1–xGex:H Single-Junction Cells withμc-SiOx:HN-Type Layer
Authors: Hsu Hung-Jung , Hsu Cheng-Hang , Tsai Chuang-Chuang
Published: November 2013

We reported the effect of bandgap grading of absorbers on the performance of a-Si1−xGex:H cells employingμc-SiOx:Hn-layer. The influence of bandgap grading widths extended from thep-layer (thep/igrading) and then-layer (thei/ngrading) to the absorber on the cell performance which were systematically studied. Thep/igrading reduced the interface defects and thus improved theVOC. The reducedJSCand FF were presumably due to the degraded hole transport by the potential gradient ofp/igrading. Increasing thei/ngrading width improved the carrier collection significantly. The EQE, theJSC, and the FF were improved substantially. Bias-dependent EQE revealed that the carrier collection is efficient in the cell employing optimali/ngrading. On the other hand, increasing thei/ngrading width was accompanied by the decrease in long-wavelength response which potentially constrained thei/ngrading width. Compared to the cell without grading, the a-Si1−xGex:H cells with optimalp/iandi/ngrading width improved the efficiency from 5.5 to 7.5%.
Interleukin 18 as a Marker of Chronic Nephropathy in Children after Anticancer Treatment
Authors: Zubowska Małgorzata , Wyka Krystyna , Fendler Wojciech , Młynarski Wojciech , Zalewska-Szewczyk Beata
Published: November 2013

Novel markers of nephrotoxicity, including kidney injury molecule 1 (KIM-1), interleukin 18 (IL-18), and beta-2 microglobulin, were used in the detection of acute renal injury. The aim of the study was to establish the frequency of postchemotherapy chronic kidney dysfunction in children and to assess the efficacy of IL-18, KIM-1, and beta-2 microglobulin in the detection of chronic nephropathy. We examined eighty-five patients after chemotherapy (median age of twelve years). The median age at the point of diagnosis was 4.2 years, and the median follow-up time was 4.6 years. We performed classic laboratory tests assessing kidney function and compared the results with novel markers (KIM-1, beta-2 microglobulin, and IL-18). Features of subclinical renal injury were identified in forty-eight children (56.3% of the examined group). Nephropathy, especially tubulopathy, appeared more frequently in patients treated with ifosfamide, cisplatin, and/or carboplatin, following nephrectomy or abdominal radiotherapy (P=0.14,P=0.11, andP=0.08, resp.). Concentrations of IL-18 and beta-2 microglobulin were comparable with classic signs of tubulopathy (P=0.0001andP=0.05). Concentrations of IL-18 were also significantly higher in children treated with highly nephrotoxic drugs (P=0.0004) following nephrectomy (P=0.0007) and abdominal radiotherapy (P=0.01). Concentrations of beta-2 microglobulin were higher after highly toxic chemotherapy (P=0.004) and after radiotherapy (P=0.02). ROC curves created utilizing IL-18 data allowed us to distinguish between children with nephropathy (value 28.8 pg/mL) and tubulopathy (37.1 pg/mL). Beta-2 microglobulin and IL-18 seem to be promising markers of chronic renal injury in children after chemotherapy.
Catalyst Design Using Nanoporous Iron for the Chemical Vapor Deposition Synthesis of Single‐Walled Carbon Nanotubes
Authors: Abdel-Fattah Tarek M. , Williams Phillip A. , Wincheski Russell A. , Shams Qamar A.
Published: November 2013

Single‐walled carbon nanotubes (SWNTs) have been synthesized via a novel chemical vapor deposition (CVD) approach utilizing nanoporous, iron‐supported catalysts. Stable aqueous dispersions of the CVD‐grown nanotubes using an anionic surfactant were also obtained. The properties of the as‐produced SWNTs were characterized through atomic force microscopy and Raman spectroscopy and compared with purified SWNTs produced via the high‐pressure CO (HiPCO) method as a reference, and the nanotubes were observed with greater lengths than those of similarly processed HiPCO SWNTs.
Two-Dimensional Direction-of-Arrival Estimation for Trilinear Decomposition-Based Monostatic Cross MIMO Radar
Authors: Wen Fangqing , Zhang Gong
Published: November 2013

A low complexity monostatic cross multiple-in multiple-out (MIMO) radar scheme is proposed in this paper. The minimum-redundancy linear array (MRLA) is introduced in the cross radar to improve the efficiency of the array elements. The two-dimensional direction-of-arrival (DOA) estimation problem links to the trilinear model, which automatically pairs the estimated two-dimensional angles, requiring neither eigenvalue decomposition of received signal covariance matrix nor spectral peak searching. The proposed scheme performs better than the uniform linear arrays (ULA) configuration under the same conditions, and the proposed algorithm has less computational complexity than that of multiple signal classification (MUSIC) algorithm. Simulation results show the effectiveness of our scheme.
Brain Levels of Prostaglandins, Endocannabinoids, and Related Lipids Are Affected by Mating Strategies
Authors: Stuart Jordyn M. , Paris Jason J. , Frye Cheryl , Bradshaw Heather B.
Published: November 2013

Background. Endogenous cannabinoids (eCBs) are involved in the development and regulation of reproductive behaviors. Likewise, prostaglandins (PGs) drive sexual differentiation and initiation of ovulation. Here, we use lipidomics strategies to test the hypotheses that mating immediately activates the biosynthesis and/or metabolism of eCBs and PGs and that specific mating strategies differentially regulate these lipids in the brain.Methods. Lipid extractions and tandem mass spectrometric analysis were performed on brains from proestrous rats that had experienced one of two mating strategies (paced or standard mating) and two nonmated groups (chamber exposed and home cage controls). Levels of PGs (PGE2 and PGF2alpha), eCBs (AEA and 2-AG,N-arachidonoyl glycine), and 4 related lipids (4N-acylethanolamides) were measured in olfactory bulb, hypothalamus, hippocampus, thalamus, striatum, midbrain, cerebellum, and brainstem.Results. Overall, levels of these lipids were significantly lower among paced compared to standard mated rats with the most dramatic decreases observed in brainstem, hippocampus, midbrain, and striatum. However, chamber exposed rats had significantly higher levels of these lipids compared to home cage controls and paced mated wherein the hippocampus showed the largest increases.Conclusions. These data demonstrate that mating strategies and exposure to mating arenas influence lipid signaling in the brain.
A Subanesthetic Dose of Isoflurane during Postconditioning Ameliorates Zymosan-Induced Neutrophil Inflammation Lung Injury and Mortality in Mice
Authors: Wang Hui , Fan Jing , Li Nan-lin , Li Jun-tang , Yuan Shi-fang , Yi Jun , Wang Ling , Chen Jiang-hao , Lv Yong-gang , Yao Qing , Wang Ting , Wang Yu-cai , Ling Rui
Published: November 2013

Anesthetic isoflurane (ISO) has immunomodulatory effects. In the present study, we investigated whether a subanesthetic dose of ISO (0.7%) protected against zymosan (ZY) induced inflammatory responses in the murine lung and isolated neutrophils. At 1 and 6 hrs after ZY administration intraperitoneally, ISO was inhaled for 1 hr, and 24 hrs later, lung inflammation and injury were assessed. We found that ISO improved the survival rate of mice and mitigated lung injury as characterized by the histopathology, wet-to-dry weight ratio, protein leakage, and lung function index. ISO significantly attenuated ZY-induced lung neutrophil recruitment and inflammation. This was suggested by the downregulation of (a) endothelial adhesion molecule expression and myeloperoxidase (MPO) activity in lung tissue and polymorphonuclear neutrophils (b) chemokines, and (c) proinflammatory cytokines in BALF. Furthermore, ZY-induced nuclear translocation and DNA-binding activity of NF-κB p65 were also reduced by ISO. ISO treatment inhibited iNOS expression and activity, as well as subsequent nitric oxide generation. Consistent with thesein vivoobservations,in vitrostudies confirmed that ISO blocked NF-κB and iNOS activation in primary mouse neutrophils challenged by ZY. These results provide evidence that 0.7% ISO ameliorates inflammatory responses in ZY-treated mouse lung and primary neutrophils.