Based on the kinematic approach of the limit analysis and slip-line theories, this paper proposes a new 2D analytical model to evaluate the collapse support pressure to ensure the face stability of a circular tunnel in purely cohesive soils driven by a shield. The normality conditions, the yield criterion and the vertical soil arching effect are considered in the analytical model. Two upper bound solutions corresponding to the ratio of the cover to the diameter (C/D) are derived from considering the mechanisms based on the motion of rigid multi-blocks. Comparisons are made with existing upper and lower bound solutions published in previous articles. The results are close to the solutions of practical engineering. The failure mechanisms proposed in this study provide a better explanation for the failure process in the heading of the tunnel face.

Northeastern margin is a natural experimental field for studying crustal extrusion and expansion mechanism. Accurate crustal deformation pattern is a key point in the analysis of regional deformation mechanism and seismic hazard research and judgment. In this paper, the present-day GPS velocity field on the northeastern margin of the Tibetan Plateau was obtained from encrypted GPS observations around the Haiyuan-Liupanshan fault zone, combined with GPS observations on the northeastern margin of the Tibetan Plateau from 2010 to 2020. Firstly, we divided the study area into three relatively independent blocks: ORDOS block, Alxa block and Lanzhou block; secondly, the accurate fault distribution of the Haiyuan-Liupanshan fault zone was taken into account to obtain the optimal inversion model; finally, using the block and fault back-slip dislocation model, the inversion got the slip rate distribution, locking depth and slip deficit rate of each fault. The results indicate that the Laohushan Fault and Haiyuan Fault are dominated by left-lateral strike-slip, while the Liupanshan Fault is dominated by thrust dip-slip, and the Guguan-Baoji Fault has both left-lateral strike-slip and thrust dip-slip components. The maximum locking depths of the Laohushan Fault, Haiyuan Fault, Liupanshan Fault and Guguan-Baoji Fault are 5 km, 13 km, 15 km and 10 km respectively, and the locking of Haiyuan Fault is strong in the middle section and weak in the eastern and western section. The Haiyuan Fault is still in the post-earthquake stress adjustment stage. The slip deficit rate decays from 3.6 mm/yr to 1.8 mm/yr from west to east along the fault zone. Combined with geological and historical seismic data, the results suggest that the mid-long term seismic risk in the Liupanshan Fault is high.

The occurrence rate of occupational accidents caused by slipping and falling is 50% worldwide. Determining the slip safety risk is necessary to minimize the accidents caused by slipping in pedestrian walking areas. By on-site testing, this study aims to determine the slip risks of floor coverings used in walking areas with many pedestrians in public service buildings (PSB). For this purpose, on-site measurements were performed in two environments and six locations in PSB using portable GMG 200 and pendulum testers operating according to DIN 51131 and TS EN 14231 standards. These tests were performed on four-floor coverings with polished surface treatment in PSB. Since the floor coverings measured have a polished surface, it can be seen that the dynamic friction coefficients (DCOF) values are very low, and the slip risks are high. By statistically analyzing the slip test data using the K-means method, a new safety classification was made according to the usage areas of floor coverings. To minimize the risk of slip safety, especially for students, patients, and employees in PSB, it is recommended to use floor coverings with high DCOF values and low slip risk.

This contribution addresses dry sliding friction of a “Non-Asbestos Organic” friction material (pad) rubbed against a pearlitic grey cast iron disc. This configuration is commonly used in brakes in US, Europe and Asia. The initial stage of friction is of particular interest when addressing “creep-groan” phenomena occurring in passenger and sport utility vehicles with automatic transmissions. The custom built Universal Friction Tester allowing the variation of sliding speed, test temperature, normal load, stiffness and humidity of the system was used in this experiment in combination with surface analysis by polarized light microscopy, scanning electron microscopy and stylus profilometry. The obtained results indicate that the “stick” phase in the so-called “stick-slip” phenomenon does not really exist. The surfaces of pad and disc are in continuous relative movement. The complexity of surfaces does not allow for a definitive description of exact mechanisms responsible for the detected changes of friction forces. The observed friction process can be rather described as a stretching with possible localized relaxations causing the jerky behavior in the stretching phase, followed by slip between two materials in contact. Understanding of factors contributing to the stretching at different scale levels of friction system is necessary for development of proper models. An accurate friction model should also incorporate the vibrational element introduced by phenomena occurring at the friction surfaces. The absence of heterogeneous regions on the friction surface and “evenly distributed friction level” can help when mitigating creep-groan in the investigated brake system. Understanding of factors on different scales of friction is also required when developing the improved brakes.

Expressions for the axial pressure profiles in a cylindrical channel and between parallel plates or a rectangular channel with large aspect ratio, with Maxwell slip gas flow are derived from first principles. The resulting expressions, which only involve the inlet and outlet pressures and the channel dimensions, will be useful in modelling or simulations of channel flows at Knudsen numbers in the range 0.001–0.1, such as in MEMS and NEMS. The expression for a cylindrical channel is validated by deriving from it an expression for the channel mass flow, which is shown to agree with a known expression for the mass flow through cylindrical channels with Maxwell slip flow. The expression for flow between parallel plates is found to agree with the zeroth order relation derived by Arkilic et al. using perturbation analysis. The effect of the accommodation coefficient on the pressure profile in a cylindrical channel is shown.

Fluid mechanics of flow in hydrophobic, rectangular microchannels with finite aspect ratios is of paramount importance. In such microchannels, not only the effect of the side walls should be taken into account, but also the classical assumption of no-slip boundary condition (BC) is no longer valid at the solid-liquid interface. Accordingly, slip flow can occur in microchannels fabricated from surfaces with low wetting conditions, hydrophobic surfaces. Determining the interactions of liquid molecules adjacent to solid surface is still a challenging issue, and it is especially important in small scale domains. Herein, the fluid mechanics of flow through rectangular hydrophobic microchannels has been reconsidered by taking into account the general Navier-slip BCs at the solid-liquid interface. For fully developed incompressible flow in microchannels at low Reynolds number, partial differential equation (PDE) of the momentum equation simplifies to the classical Poisson equation. Accordingly, by analytically solving the Poisson equations with general Navier-slip BCs, the most general forms of velocity distributions, flow rate, friction factor and Poiseuille number have been obtained.

This study is designed to assess and improve apparel sewing section efficiency and productivity throughout line balancing. Apparel industry is one of the oldest and among the most global industry, being primarily concerned with the design and production of cloth and their supply. The central process in apparel manufacturing is the joining together of components which is known as the sewing process , which is the most labour intensive type of manufacturing process .Proper utilization of resources in garment sewing section is more critical to enhance the performance of the apparel industry by reducing production cost and minimizing wastage. For effective utilization of resources in the sewing section, good line balancing is important to increase productivity and production efficiency. This research was a design to analyse and improve the assembling line in the case of Telaje garment manufacturing and sales plc. The study was first conduct observations in the production floor and start work with the selection of sewing line in the garment production process. Among the nine lines of the factory select one on the production floor and one garment ordered product known as five pocket men’s jeans trousers are selected. For this study, both qualitative and quantitative research approaches were employed. Both primary and secondary data sources are used to detail the collected relevant data to understand the current efficiency scenario of the factory. The main challenges to minimizing line efficiency and productivity with the expected performance measurement are improper utilization of resources and improper implementation of line balancing in sewing section, therefore this thesis work shows that the bottleneck process and consequence solution will be searched, and finally significantly improving the productivity by 418 unit products/ day and, hence the efficiency will increase from 28.83% to 50.04% of the line

Terzaghi proposed two-dimensional (2D) arching theory through trapdoor tests based on the assumption of a vertical slip surfaces. However, the original 2D assumption is different from a real three-dimensional (3D) excavation condition and an actual slip surfaces caused by downward movement of a trapdoor is an inclined surface. Therefore, a 3D theoretical model was proposed in this study considering inclined slip surfaces. Horizontal thin layer differential element method was used to obtain the loosening soil pressure. Using the 3D theoretical model, the effects of buried depth ratio of loose area, length of loose area, soil parameters, and lateral earth pressure coefficient were investigated. The loosening earth pressure was highly affected by inclination angle of slip surface, buried depth ratio and length of loose area. Neglecting the inclined slip surface will underestimate the value of the loosening earth pressure, which will lead to the insecurity of the design. Loosening earth pressure calculated by this study was also compared with trapdoor tests. Results from this study was in good agreement with the experimental results. Compared with the traditional 2D solution, results from this study can more accurately analyze the soil arching effect in 3D excavation cases.

One of the most important parameters that characterize the traction-coupling properties of a wheeled tractor is its slip. The more tractor's gross traction, the higher its traction-coupling properties. But, this gross traction should not exceed its maximum possible value, which, in turn out, is to be determined by the maximum permissible slip. This article provides the equation to calculate this crucial parameter and establishes the dependencies between the tractor's slip and soil structure coefficient. It was shown that the value basically depends on such soil characteristics as the bulk deformation coefficient and the coefficient of rolling resistance. Calculations showed that for the average value of the soil bulk deformation coefficient at, the average value of rolling resistance coefficient at 0.16, the ratio value of the maximum permissible soil pressure to the tractor wheel rolling radius at the maximum permitted amount slip of the tractor wheels should not exceed 15%. With more slip, the soil structure deteriorates significantly. In this case, its structure coefficient may be less than critical, equal to 0.4.

A methodology for both accurate and smooth contour line generation from Light Detection and Ranging (LiDAR) point clouds is proposed in this paper. In order to improve the accuracy of contour lines in the area of forests, constrained triangulation networks with break lines are then constructed to generate contour lines. In break line extraction, a bi-threshold method for edge line detection is used to extract both complete and reliable break lines. A point clouds elevation adjustment with constrain of break lines and an interpolator considering a contour interval is proposed to improve the smoothness of contour lines. The proposed interpotator is also can avoid contour line intersection when contour lines are interpolated. Statistical parameters and shape index are then used to evaluate quantitatively the accuracy and smoothness of the resultant contour lines, which fill in the blank of contour lines evaluation in theory. The experiments show that high-quality contours in terms of smoothness and accuracy can be generated from LiDAR point clouds.

The heat generated during the startup process of dry gas seals, such as the friction heat of the asperities, viscous shear heat, and the expansion heat of the gas film, easily leads to seal failure and endangers the stable operation of turbomachinery. This study combines the statistically modified contact model and the average Reynolds equation by considering the adiabatic index and the microscale effects of dry gas seals to explore the heat generation characteristics of dry gas seals formed in series at multiple times. In particular, the change laws and influencing factors among the components, including the friction heat of asperities and the shear heat and expansion heat of the gas film and total heat, are investigated. A comparative analysis indicates that the slip flow effect increases the total heat during the startup process. The friction heat is much greater than expansion heat and shear heat. Despite constant acceleration, exponential acceleration, or Harrision acceleration, the heat changes are uneven during the startup process. In particular, the heat changes sharply in the early stage and gently in the later stage. The Harrision acceleration mode is the most conducive to sealing stability.

The flow field around a straight chain of multiple slip spherical particles rotating steadily in an incompressible Newtonian fluid about their line of centers is analyzed at low Reynolds numbers. The particles may vary in radius, slip coefficient, and angular velocity, and they are permitted to be unevenly spaced. Through the use of a boundary collocation method, the Stokes equation governing the fluid flow is solved semi-analytically. The interaction effects among the particles are found to be noteworthy under appropriate conditions. For the rotation of two spheres, our collocation results for their hydrodynamic torques are in good agreement with the analytical asymptotic solution in the literature obtained by using a method of twin multipole expansions. For the rotation of three spheres, the particle interaction effect indicates that the existence of the third particle can influence the torques exerted on the other two particles noticeably. The interaction effect is stronger on the smaller or less slippery particles than on the larger or more slippery ones. Torque results for the rotation of chains of many particles visibly show the shielding effect among the particles.

With the development of free trade port in Hainan Island, the construction of tourist roads around the island is also in full swing. Under the weather conditions of strong typhoon and rainstorm in Hainan, the highway cutting slope built on the coastal weak sandy terraces has strong sand loss and is easy to be scour by rainfall. MICP green spray irrigation solidification technology is used to strengthen the sandy cutting, and pore water pressure monitoring is carried out on the slope model during MICP solidification and rainfall scour. Combined with the model pore water pressure and flow slip failure pattern, dynamic analysis was carried out. The results show that MICP sprinkler irrigation technology can solidified the surface of the slope model in a short time, and the cementation depth of the model reaches 4cm after three sets of rotation reinforcement. The surface reinforcement effect is good, and the sand samples are closely connected. Under the erosion effect of simulated rainfall intensity, the sand loss of the slope is weakened, and no sand binding damage occurs, and the integrity is enhanced. Due to the cementation between sand grains, most of the rainfall was converted into runoff, and the slope slid after 150s. When the slope began to slip, the leading edge of the slope model lost sand and unloaded, and the failure mode was graded creep slip failure. Finally, the slope was divided into several blocks due to the continuous expansion of cracks after the slope failure. The erosion stability of the sandy slope under heavy rains is optimized and the sand loss is prevented effectively. In this study, a new method of MICP remediation techniques is proposed, which provides a new test basis for the application of MICP technology in practical engineering.

NASA/ESA/CSA joint venture James Webb Space Telescope is about to be launched. It is hypothesized to operate in near-infrared range. It is also hypothesized to unveil early star formation, galaxies, and universe due to its orbit, point in orbit and orbital motion. It has been under manufacturing for over 20 years at a staggering cost of 10 billion US dollars (most expensive scientific experiment in history). Beryllium (Be) is chosen to be element for construction of its main mirrors due to its high stiffness, low density, low linear coefficient of thermal expansion (α) in cryogenics and high thermal conductivity. It is followed by gold (Au) layer deposition on its (Be) surface to enhance its sensitivity towards infrared radiation as later is hypothesized to bear superior properties. However, serious mistakes have been made in selecting this material for this application. Owing to its crystal structure (hexagonal close packed (hcp)), slip planes (basal, prismatic and pyramidal) and mechanisms of their activation, Be necessitates easy fracture at cryogenic temperature. It has anisotropic properties and prone to transverse fracture under tensile loading. Furthermore, its ductile to brittle transition temperature is very low making it entirely unsuitable for such an application. It is one of most expensive metals on planet. This study constitutes revisiting these fundamental properties and mechanisms which were entirely ignored during materials selection thus rendering whole project useless.

This research concerns the virtual reconstruction and technical constructive analysis of the emblematic and disappeared Matriz church of Ambato city, whose structure was demolished after the collapse of its vaults in the 1949 earthquake, about which it was said to have had deficiencies in its construction. Through an exhaustive historical review of documents and images, its constructive hypothesis was achieved, and using photogrammetry technique, its virtual reconstruction was obtained, where, through the interpretation and understanding of the generated plans, the verification of its technical and constructive characteristics associated with its hypothetical mechanical behavior inherent to its stone construction was carried out. For the structural study, the principle of the Limit Analysis of Structures was used, where through a graphic static approach, the technical stability conditions of a masonry structure are established, in this case, to give an interpretation to the possible poor execution of the church's work, and eventual cause that could have contributed to the collapse of its vaults.

In this study, the influence of graphene oxide nanoparticles on the bond-slip behavior of fiber and fly ash based geopolymer paste was examined. Geopolymer paste incorporating graphene oxide nanoparticles solution was cast in half briquetted specimens and embedded with a fiber. Three types of fibers were used: steel, polypropylene, and basalt. The pullout test was performed at two distinct speeds: 1 mm/second and 3 mm/second. Results showed that the addition of graphene oxide increased the compressive strength of geopolymer by about 7%. The bond-slip responses of fibers embedded in geopolymer mixed with graphene oxide exhibited higher peak stress and toughness as compared to those embedded in normal geopolymer. Each fiber type also showed different mode of failure. Both steel and polypropylene fibers showed full bond-slip responses due to their high ductility. Basalt fiber, on the other hand, because of its brittleness, failed by fiber fracture mode which showed no-slip in pull out responses. Both bond strength and toughness were found to be rate sensitive. The sensitivity was higher in graphene oxide/geopolymer than in conventional geopolymer.

In the paper, the author discusses and computes bounds of the sine and cosine along straight lines on the complex plane.

We discuss slip bonds, catch bonds and the tug-of-war mechanism using mathematical arguments. We propose simple 2-dimensional surface models to demonstrate how the potential energy surface of a molecule under an external force behaves. Examples are selectines. Catch bonds in particular are explained in more detail. We demonstrate that Newton trajectories are a powerful tool to describe these phenomena. Newton trajectories form the theoretical background of Mechanochemistry.

Bioconvective flows have attracted attention in recent years due to actual and potential applications. In this paper, we consider a steady and laminar convective MHD flow of a nanofluid with heat, mass and microorganism transfer with a heat source/sink present. In addition, we assume there exists a first order chemical reaction. The governing partial differential equations (PDEs) are reduced to ordinary differential equations (ODEs) using the scaling group transformation and the associated boundary value problem is then solved. The influences of selected governing parameters on the dimensionless velocity, temperature, nanoparticle concentration, density of motile microorganisms, skin friction, heat transfer, mass transfer, and motile microorganism density rates are computed and discussed

For a given set of plasma parameters, along a single series (Lyman, Balmer etc) the lines with higher principal quantum number(n) lines get progressively wider, closer to each other, and start merging for a certain critical n. In the present work four different codes(with further options) are used to calculate the entire Balmer series for moderate and high electron densities. Particular attention is paid to the relevant physics, such as the cutoff criteria, strong and penetrating electron collisions.

The UHPC grouted bellow is an innovative technology for connecting assembled buildings, where the anchorage performance of the rebar and UHPC filled in bellows plays a critical role in determining the overall connection effectiveness. To ascertain a dependable anchorage length and establish a bond-slip relationship between the rebar and UHPC within the bellow, we conducted tests on 8 groups of 16 specimens of metal corrugated pipes filled with UHPC and rebar under tension. The tests considered varying parameters such as the aperture ratio D/d and anchorage length L. By analyzing the failure modes, load versus deflection curves, and steel strain data, we gained valuable insights into the influence of the aperture ratio and anchorage length on the anchorage performance. Furthermore, we calculated the experimental curve of the bond-slip relationship between the rebar and the UHPC interface grouted in the bellows and derived a bond-slip model through fitting. These findings serve as a crucial foundation for the force analysis of assembled structures connected using UHPC grouted bellows.

A closed form solution for the common and differential modal currents induced on a pair of infinitely long parallel conductors by a voltage source was derived. For lossy conductors the current consists of a continuous spectrum of radiation modes and (for the common mode) a modified low loss Sommerfeld-Goubau mode and (for the differential mode) a quasi-TEM mode. This model is used to investigate the influence of a parallel conductor on microwave power line communication systems. For typical parameters, it is shown that the performance of these systems can be enhanced.

Stark widths for 23 transitions in Al IV have been calculated employing modified semiempirical method. The results are obtained for an electron density of 10^17 cm−3 and temperatures from 10,000 K up to 160,000 K. The results obtained in this investigation are used for the examination of the influence of Stark broadening in Al IV stellar spectra, as well as to check Stark width regular behavior and similarites within Al IV spectrum.

Atomic force microscopes are used, beside their principal function as surface imaging tools, in surface manipulation and measurement of interfacial properties. In particular, they can be modified to measure lateral friction forces that occur during the sliding of the tip against the underlying substrate. However, the shape, size, and deformation of the tips profoundly affect the measurements in a manner that is difficult to predict. In this work, we investigate the contribution of these effect to the magnitude of the lateral forces during sliding. The surface substrate is chosen to be few-layer AB-stacked graphene surface whereas the tip is initially constructed from face-centered cubic gold. In order to separate the effect of deformation from shape, rigid tips of three different shapes were considered first, namely a cone, a pyramid and a hemisphere. The shape was seen to dictate all aspects of the interface during sliding, from temperature dependence to stick-slip behavior. Deformation was investigated next by comparing a rigid hemispherical tip to one of identical shape and size but with all but the top three layers of atoms free to move. The deformation, as also verified by an indentation analysis, occurs by means of the lower layers collapsing on the upper ones, thereby increasing the contact area. This collapse mitigates the friction force and decreases it with respect to the rigid tip for the same vertical distance. Finally, the size effect is studied by means of calculating the friction forces for a much larger hemispherical tip whose atoms are free to move. In this case, the deformation is found to be much smaller but the stick-slip behavior is much more clearly seen.

Friction has long been an important issue in multibody dynamics. Static friction models apply appropriate regularization techniques to convert the stick inequality and the non-smooth stick-slip transition of Coulomb’s approach into a continuous and smooth function of the sliding velocity. However, a regularized friction force is not able to maintain long-term stick. That is why, dynamic friction models were developed in the last decades. The friction force depends herein not only on the sliding velocity but also on internal states. The probably best known representative, the LuGre friction model, is based on a fictitious bristle but realizes a too simple approximation. The recently published second order dynamic friction model describes the dynamics of a fictitious bristle more accurately. Its performance is compared here to stick-slip friction models, developed and launched not long ago by commercial multibody software packages.

Homogeneous and heterogeneous chemical reactions in partially ionized magneto-nano-liquid are investigated theoretically using finite element method (FEM). The effects of ions and electrons collisions on the transport of heat and mass are analyzed for both the cases of heterogeneous and homogeneous chemical reactions. The simultaneous effects of dispersion of nanosized particles in partially ionized nano-liquid in the presence of magnetic field are also investigated. Through numerical experiments, it is noted that the temperature of partially ionized nano-liquid increases when electrons collision rate and ion collisions are increased. The transport rate of reacting species decreases when heterogeneous and homogeneous chemical reactions strengths are increased. It is also observed that the effect of electron collisions on the flow in y-direction is the same to that of ion collisions on the flow in y-direction. Homogeneous and heterogeneous chemical reactions have similar effects on concentration of chemically reacting species in qualitative sense. However, in quantitative sense, homogeneous chemical reaction has more significant effect on the concentration reacting species as compared to heterogeneous chemical reaction.

The research in neuroscience links alexithymia, the difficulty of identifying and describing feelings and emotions, with a left hemisphere preference and/or a right hemisphere deficit. To provide a neuropsychological support to this finding, we explored the relationship between alexithymia and the performance in a line bisection task, a standard method to evaluate spatial attention in relation with the functioning of the right hemisphere. 222 healthy participants completed a version of the TAS-20 scale, which measures alexithymia, and were asked to mark (bisect) the center of a 10 cm horizontal segment. The results document a significant rightward shift of the line center in borderline and manifest alexithymic participants, as compared to non-alexithymic individuals. Moreover, the higher the TAS-20 score the greater the rightward shift in the line bisection task. This result supports the right-hemisphere deficit hypothesis in alexithymia and suggests that visuospatial abnormalities may be an inner component of their profile.

Overhead power transmission line icing (PTLI) disasters are one of the most severe dangers to power grid safety. Automatic iced transmission line identification is critical in various fields. However, existing methods primarily focus on the linear characteristics of transmission lines, employing a two-step process involving edge and line detection for PTLI identification. Nonetheless, these traditional methods are often difficult when confronted with challenges such as background noise or variations in illumination, leading to incomplete identification of the target area, missed target regions, or misclassification of background pixels as foreground. We propose a new iced transmission line identification scheme to overcome this limitation. In the initial stage, we integrate the image restoration method with image filter enhancement to restore the image's color information. This combined approach effectively retains valuable information and preserves the original image quality, thereby mitigating noise presented during the image acquisition. Subsequently, in the second stage, we introduce an enhanced multi-threshold algorithm to separate background and target pixels. After image segmentation, we enhance the image and obtain the region of interest (ROI) through connected component labeling modification and mathematical morphology operations, eliminating background regions. Our proposed scheme achieves an accuracy value of 97.72%, a precision value of 96.24%, a recall value of 86.22%, and the specificity value of 99.48% based on the average value of test images. Through object segmentation and location, the proposed method can avoid background interference, effectively solve the problem of transmission line icing identification, and achieve 90% measurement accuracy compared to manual measurement on the collected PTLI dataset.

The paper presents the results of geological interpretation of the set of geophysical data with substantiation of geological-geophysical and structural geological criteria of oil and gas potential of the sedimentary cover deep levels and the upper part of the consolidated basement in the central West Siberian oil and gas basin. Gravity, magnetic and seismic data are used. The character of manifestation of the regional Pai-Khoi–Altai strike-slip zone covering an area up to 200 km wide is shown. The study provides a basis for assuming a spatial genetic relationship between the conditions for localizing hydrocarbon traps and the extensional and strike-slip and thrust structures of the zone that form so-called "flower structures". The substantiated structural geological criteria were applied to solve the problem of pattern recognition with training, highlighting the environments favourable for localization of hydrocarbon fields.

The entry and exit method is a simple and practical method to determine the critical slip surface of slope. However, it has the drawback of sacrificing computational efficiency to improve search accuracy. To solve this problem, this paper proposes an improved entry and exit method to search for the critical slip surface. Based on the random fields generated by using Karhunen–Loève expansion method, the simplified Bishop’s method combined with the improved entry and exit method is used to determine the critical slip surface and its corresponding minimum factor of safety. Then, the failure probability is calculated by conducting Monte Carlo simulation. Two examples are reanalyzed to verify the accuracy and efficiency of the proposed method. Meaningful comparisons are made to demonstrate the calculating accuracy and calculating efficiency of the improved entry and exit method in searching for the minimum safety factor of slope, based on which the effect of the reduced searching range on slope reliability was explored. The results indicate that the proposed method provides a practical tool for evaluating the reliability of slopes in spatially variable soils. It can greatly improve the computational efficiency in relatively high-computational accuracy of slope reliability analysis.

Steady-state Reynolds-Averaged Navier-Stokes (RANS) simulations are performed for a leading-edge inflatable wing for airborne wind energy applications. Expanding on previous work where only the inflatable leading edge tube was considered, eight additional inflatable strut tubes that support the wing canopy are now included. The shape of the wing is considered to be constant. The influence of the strut tubes on the aerodynamic performance of the wing and the local flow field is assessed, considering flow configurations with and without side-slip. The simulations show that the aerodynamic performance of the wing decreases with increasing side-slip component of the inflow. On the other hand, the chordwise struts have little influence on the integral lift and drag of the wing, irrespective of the side-slip component. The overall flow characteristics are in good agreement with previous studies. In particular, it is confirmed that at a low Reynolds number of Re=10^5, a laminar separation bubble exists on the suction side of this hypothetical rigid wing shape with perfectly smooth surface. The destruction of this bubble at low angles of attack impacts negatively on the aerodynamic performance.

This work presents an alternative to harnessing wind energy with an Electromagnetic Frequency Regulator (EFR) coupled to a hydrostatic transmission and associated with a horizontal axis wind turbine, a bidirectional frequency inverter and a secondary energy source, in a hybridized system. The hydrostatic transmision is composed by a fixed displacement axial piston pump and a variable displacement, swash plate, axial piston motor. Feedback linearization was used as a technique to control the motor geometric displacement, and a prediction algorithm for the steady state rotations of the armature and the electromagnetic field has been developed. A 5\,kW project was simulated on a Scilab platform, with combinations of constant or variable load, and constant or variable wind speed. The results indicated that the system was able to supply the generator load, adapting to fluctuations in wind speed. The possibility of storing wind energy through the inverter has also been proven. The system can accumulate energy in batteries during the fastest wind regimes, to use it when the turbine power is lower than the load.

This study compares the action of different handpieces (turbine, high-speed electric handpiece and piezoelectric device) on surface roughness of enamel and dentin when using diamond-coated working tips and burs of the same grit size. Experiment was conducted on 15 extracted first molars from patients aged 45 to 60 years. The occlusal portion was removed using a diamond-coated water wheel and then refined with a 120-130 μm grit bur in order to obtain a flat surface with an adequate exposition of the dentin core. Each surface was divided into three portions and every portion was finished with one of the three tested instruments. Rotary burs and piezoelectric tips had the same grit size (60 μm) and load on handpiece during preparation never exceeded 150 g. Surface roughness parameters (Ra, Rsk, Rku) were recorded with an optical profilometer and SEM analysis of treated surfaces and working tips was conducted. Ra and Rsk differed significantly between enamel and dentin only after using turbine (p=0.004 and p=0.007, respectively). No significant differences were observed in Ra, Rsk, and Rku between enamel and dentin when using high-speed electric handpiece or piezoelectric device. Turbine produced higher Ra and Rsk values on dentin than the other devices, while no significant differences were found between piezoelectric handpiece and high-speed electric contra-angle on both substrates. Summarizing, the findings of the present study demonstrated that turbine generated rougher surfaces on dentin compared to the other handpieces. Moreover, the turbine produced more asymmetrical surface profiles on both enamel and dentin. However, it should be considered that these differences in roughness (Ra) were within the range of 0.25-0.30 μm: it is still unclear if these variations, although statistically significant, will influence final clinical outcomes.

Herbs and Plants have been the most important form of medicine in India since ancient times. the plant kingdom is a goldmine of potential drugs and active molecules. Medicinal plants played a vital role in manufacturing human health and improving the quality of human life for thousands of years. During the last decade, the use of traditional medicine has expanded globally and gained popularity. Medicinal plants have healing properties due to the presence of various complex chemical substances of different compositions. Medicinal plants have served humans well as valuable components of medicines, flavorings, beverages, cosmetics, and dyes. Ficus religiosa is one of the medically important plants belonging to the family of Moraceae. It has been used broadly by Ayurvedic practitioners in India to treat various diseases. The present work is an endeavor to improve the effectiveness of synthetic drugs in combination with plant extracts.

Accordingly, the present study is aimed at investigating quaternary climate changes in Binalod Heights. To identify glacial effects, Morphic indices, field evidence and effects, climatic evidence, and (laboratory) experimental analysis were employed. Determining the permanent snow line in the region was conducted using the Right Method and 65 cirques which are considered as much enriched feeding resources for the formation an ice cover in the region. The expansion of settlements in the region are lower than the permanent snow life is more accumulated than above the border of the permanent snow line. This issue indicates that refrigeration cells do not have the ability to create civil nuclear. Regarding quaternary climate changes and the gradual warming of the climate, the initial core of the City of Mashhad ranges from the center of the Kashf rood River to northeastern heights of Binalod. In addition, the existence of glacial cirques in heights as an important factor in feeding refrigerating conditions has been effective on the expansion of urbanization of Mashhad in the past time. Our new geomorphological mapping and landsystem reconstructions provide an important insight into the response of temperate Binalod glaciers to rapidly-warming climate

Chilli leaf curl virus (ChiLCV) is a severe threat to the successful cultivation of the chilli peppers. Besides, the genetics and heterosis for important traits under the influence of ChiLCV infestation is not well studied. Therefore here, were crossed seven genotypes (lines) with high yield and quality attributes with four highly resistant genotypes (testers) in a line (L) × tester (T) mating design to produce 28 F1 hybrids. Parents and their hybrids were evaluated for yield attributes and ChiLCV resistance. All the four testers were symptomless and among seven lines, two were moderately resistant and five were moderately susceptible to the ChiLCV. Among 28 F1 hybrids, 12 showed a moderate resistant reaction, 11 were moderately susceptible and five susceptible to the ChiLCV disease. Based on per se performance, most promising hybrid combinations were L3 × T2, L6 × T1, and L3 × T1 for yield attributes. Whereas the superior crosses for ChiLCV resistance based on heterobeltosis, standard heterosis and specific combining ability test (SCA) effects were L6 × T1 and L7 × T3. Lines and testers showed significant differences for all the characters except for the plant height. The general combining ability (GCA) effects for testers were significant for all the traits except for days to first harvest. The ratio of σ2GCA/σ2SCA indicated the predominance of non-additive gene effects in the inheritance of traits studied in this experiment. The contribution of lines was more compared to testers for all the characters except for primary branches plant-1. Overall, this study provides valuable information regarding the genetics and heterosis in chilli with respect to ChiLCV infestation

When the distance between an obstacle and a power line is less than the discharge distance, a discharge arc can be generated, resulting in interruption of power supplies. Therefore, regular safety inspections are necessary to ensure safe operations of power grids. Tall vegetation and buildings are the key factors threatening the safe operation of extra high voltage transmission lines within a power line corridor. Manual or LiDAR based-inspections are time consuming and expensive. To make safety inspections more efficient and flexible, a low-altitude unmanned aerial vehicle remote-sensing platform equipped with optical digital camera was used to inspect power line corridors. We propose a semi-patch matching algorithm based on epipolar constraints using both correlation coefficient and the shape of its curve to extract three dimensional (3D) point clouds for a power line corridor. Virtual photography was used to transform the power line direction from approximately parallel to the epipolar line to approximately perpendicular to epipolar line to improve power line measurement accuracy. The distance between the power lines and the 3D point cloud is taken as a criterion for locating obstacles within the power line corridor automatically. Experimental results show that our proposed method is a reliable, cost effective and applicable way for practical power line inspection, and can locate obstacles within the power line corridor with measurement accuracies better than ±0.5 m.

Publically available (own) transcriptomic data were re-analyzed to quantify the alteration of functional pathways in the thyroid cancer, establish the gene hierarchy, identify potential gene targets and predict the effects of their manipulation. The expression data were generated from one case of papillary thyroid carcinoma (PTC) and from genetically manipulated BCPAP (papillary) and 8505C (anaplastic) human thyroid cancer cell lines. The study used the genomic fabric perspective that considers the transcriptome as a multi-dimensional mathematical object based on the three independent characteristics that can be derived for each gene from the expression data. We found remarkable remodeling of the thyroid hormone synthesis, cell cycle, oxidative phosphorylation and apoptosis pathways. Serine peptidase inhibitor, Kunitz type, 2 (SPINT2) was identified as the Gene Master Regulator of the investigated PTC. The substantial increase of the expression synergism of SPINT2 with apoptosis genes in the cancer nodule with respect to the surrounding normal tissue (NOR) suggests that its experimental overexpression may force the PTC cells into apoptosis with negligible effect on the NOR cells. The predictive value of the expression coordination for the expression regulation was validated with data from 8505C and BCPAP cells before and after lentiviral transfection with DDX19B.

To supply stable and high-quality power according to the advancement of industrial growth, electric power companies have performed maintenance of power facilities using various meth-ods. In the case of domestic power distribution facilities, there are limitations in performing di-agnostic management on all facilities owing to the large number of facilities; therefore, old fa-cilities are managed by the health index assessment method. The health index assessment com-prises only facility operation data and external environmental data and is managed only for four types of distribution facilities, including overhead/underground transformers and switchgear. In the case of extra high–voltage overhead wires, there is no standard for old replacement, despite the large number of wires, such as transformers and switchgear, and the large ripple effect of power failure in the event of a power outage. Therefore, in this paper, a health index assessment methodology for extra-high voltage overhead cables was developed. In this paper, we devel-oped an economic health index assessment methodology that additionally considers risk cost, which is different from the existing health index assessment method that uses only operational data and external environmental data to determine facility performance evaluation and aging replacement criteria. Using the health index assessment methodology developed in this paper, it is possible to expect a reduction in facility operating costs and investment costs from the per-spective of electric power companies through the replacement of old extra-high voltage over-head cables. In addition, from the perspective of consumers, it is expected to increase power re-liability and reduce the ripple effect of failure by preferentially replacing equipment with a high probability of failure.

Transposable elements (TEs) ubiquitously exist in the human genome, and some have the ability to copy and paste themselves to other locations, resulting in new insertions. Organisms have evolved with mechanisms and machineries to repress such activity. TEs are also co-opted for beneficial functions by the host and are thus maintained in the genome. During the lifetime of humans, aberrant TE activity might cause or contribute towards diseases including neurological conditions such as Alzheimers Disease (AD) and cancer. While inflammatory pathways linked to TEs may be a part of the disease pathology, on the other hand altered TE activity involving inflammatory pathways could be recognised by disease suppression mechanisms. For this reason, TEs could be targeted for therapeutic applications aiming to prevent TE activity or reduce initial inflammatory pathways as well as to activate disease suppression mechanisms. In this review, we describe the contributory and potential preventative roles of TEs in neurological conditions and cancer from a molecular and evolutionary perspective. Evolutionary paradigms both at the unicellular and organismal level aid understanding the role of TEs in disease. These observations could pave the way for the development of novel therapeutic approaches targeting TEs.

Efficient quality evaluation provides support for the timely and good maintenance of the lane line marking. This paper searches and optimizes the back propagation(BP) network model which referred to the analytic hierarchy process(AHP) model structure, as well as the number of nodes in the middle layer network. Based on this, a comprehensive evaluation method of multi-dimensional lane line quality such as shape, color and contrast is established. The experimental results show that the parameters of the model are more simplified, and the scoring and classification results of lane lines are more accurate.

Background: The front-line treatment of advanced NeuroEndocrine Neoplasms (NENs) depends on clinical and pathological factors but there are no standard second-line therapies. Methods: Metastatic NENs patients were treated at the ENETS (European NeuroEndocrine Tumor Society) center of excellence of Naples (Italy), from 2014 to 2017 with second-line metronomic temozolomide, 75 mg/m2 per os “one week on/one week off”. Toxicity was graded with NCI-CTC criteria v4.0; objective responses with RECIST v1.1 and performance status (PS) according to ECOG. Results: Twenty-six consecutive patients were treated. Median age was 65.5 years. The predominant primary organs were pancreas and lung. Grading was G2 in 11 patients, G3 in 15. Eleven patients presented with PS 1 and 15 with PS 2. The median time-on-temozolomide therapy was 12.2 months (95% CI: 11.4-19.6). No G3/G4 toxicities were registered. Complete response was obtained in 1 patient, partial response in 4, stable disease in 19 (disease control rate: 92.3%), and progressive disease in 2. The median overall survival from temozolomide start was 28.3 months. PS improved in 73% of patients. Conclusions: Metronomic temozolomide is a safe and active treatment for G2 and G3 NENs. Prospective and larger trials are needed to confirm these results.

The key issue in the post-genomic era is how to systematically describe the association between small molecule transcripts or translations inside cells. With the rapid development of high-throughput “omics” technologies, the achieved ability to detect and characterize molecules with other molecule targets opens up the possibility of investigating the relationships between different molecules from a global perspective. In this article, a Molecular Associations Network(MAN) is constructed and comprehensively analyzed by integrating the associations among miRNA, lncRNA, protein, drug, and disease, in which any kind of potential associations can be predicted. More specifically, each node in MAN can be represented as a vector by combining two kinds of information including the attributes of the node itself (e.g. sequences of ncRNAs and proteins, semantics of diseases and molecular fingerprints of drugs) and the manner of the node in the complex network (associations with other nodes). Random Forest classifier is trained to classify and predict new interactions or associations between biomolecules. In the experiment, the proposed method achieves a superb performance with 0.9735 AUC in 5-fold cross-validation, which show that the proposed method can provide new insight for exploration of the molecular mechanisms of disease and valuable clues for disease treatment.

Atomic structure of N-electron atoms is often determined using the Hartree-Fock method, which is an integro-differential equation. The exchange term of the Hartree-Fock equations is usually treated as an inhomogeneous term of a differential equation, or with a local density approximation. This work uses matrix methods to solve for the Hartree-Fock equations, rather than the more commonly-used shooting method to integrate an inhomogeneous differential equation. It is well known that a derivative operator can be expressed as a matrix made of finite-difference coefficients; energy eigenvalues and eigenvectors can be obtained by using computer linear-algebra packages. We extend the same technique to integro-differential equations, where a discretized integral can be written as a sum in matrix form. This method is compared against experiment and standard atomic structure calculations. We also can use this method for free-electron wavefunctions. This technique is important for spectral line broadening in two ways: improving the atomic structure calculations, and improving the motion of the plasma electrons that collide with the atom.

Synthesis of new series of 1-phenyl-3-(4-(pyridin-3-yl) phenyl) urea derivatives and its in vitro antiproliferative activities against NCI-60 human cancer cell lines of nine different cancer types are described. Fourteen compounds 5a-n have been synthesized with three different hydrogen bondable moieties (4-hydroxylmethylpiperidinyl and trimethoxyphenyloxy and 4-hydroxyethylpiperazine) attached to the core structure 1-phenyl-3-(4-(pyridin-3-yl) phenyl) urea. Different substituents with different π and σ values were added on the terminal phenyl group. Compounds with 4-hydroxymethylpiperidine moiety showed higher mean percentage inhibition values over the 60-cell line panel at 10-µM concentration. They showed broad-spectrum antiproliferative activity over many cell lines of different cancer types. For instance, compound 5a elicited some lethal rather than inhibition effects on SK-MEL-5 melanoma cell line, 786-0, A498, RXF 393 renal cancer cell lines, and MDA-MB-468 breast cancer cell line by 146.1, 108.7, 136.2, 134.8, 116.6 % at 10 µM, respectively. Compounds 5a-e exhibited superior antiproliferative activity than Paclitaxel and Gefitinib against the most sensitive cell lines. Two compounds, 5a and 5d showed promising mean growth inhibitions and thus were further tested at five-dose testing mode to determine their IC₅₀ values. The data revealed that 5a and 5d urea compounds are the most active derivatives with significant efficacies and superior potencies than Paclitaxel in 21 different cancer cell lines, belonging particularly to renal cancer and melanoma cell lines. Moreover, 5a and 5d had superior potencies than Gefitinib in 38 and 34 cancer cell lines, respectively; belonging particularly to colon cancer, breast cancer and melanoma cell lines.

Computational fluid dynamics is used to study the impact of the support structure of a tidal turbine on performance and the downstream wake characteristics. A high-fidelity computational model of a dual rotor, contra-rotating tidal turbine in a large channel domain is presented, with turbulence modelled using large eddy simulation. Actuator lines represent the turbine blades, permitting the analysis of transient flow features and turbine diagnostics. The following four cases are considered: the flow in an unexploited, empty channel; flow in a channel containing the rotors; flow in a channel containing the support structure; and flow in a channel with both rotors and support structure. The results indicate that the support structure contributes significantly to the behaviour of the turbine and to turbulence levels downstream, even when the rotors are upstream. This implies that inclusion of the turbine structure, or some parametrisation thereof, is a prerequisite for the realistic prediction of turbine performance and reliability, particularly for array layouts where wake effects become significant.

Cognitive linguistics is founded on the assumption that language is a reflection of universal cognitive principles, implying that all cognitive processes share a common origin. This assumption is known as the 'Cognitive Commitment.' The present article examines the sensory schema hypothesis, which traces all forms of expression back to sensations. This theoretical framework integrates the physicality of the body with sensations that underlie human experiences and their linguistic and non-linguistic expressions. By challenging the traditional dichotomy between mind and body, it provides a more integrated understanding.

Campylobacter jejuni is a zoonotic bacterium, causing intestinal infection in humans. One characteristic feature of the pathogenicity process is the ability of this bacterium invading the epithelial cells. Several factors have been identified to contribute to this process and some recent analyses revealed changes in the bacterium cell on molecular level. However, our knowledge is still limited about responses of the host that accompany the bacterial internalisation and survival process. This study focused on molecular events on transcriptomic level detected between the 1st and the 3rd hour of internalisation in INT407 epithelial cells. From the 41.769 human genes tested, altogether 19,060 genes and 22,734 pseudogenes and introns were shown by whole transcriptome analysis to be affected in different extent. Most affected functions regulate transcription (28%), signal transduction (21%), apoptosis (15%), immune responses (9%), transmembrane transport (6%), cell-cell signaling (3%), cell-cell adhesions (3%) and carbohydrate metabolism (3%) and to a lesser extent other functions. Our results provide insight into a scenario where, the invaded cell focuses on survival, but, at the same time, flashing the possibility of pushing the process toward the death of the invaded and metabolically disrupted cell.

Influence lines are indispensable tools for visualizing and analyzing the dynamic variations in force factors induced by external loads within structural systems. Among these methods, the energetic approach stands as a widely employed technique, rooted in the fundamental principle of work done by changing forces. It enables engineers to transform intricate structural analysis problems into manageable ones by exploring the first derivatives of the radius vector, which represent infinitesimal velocity or displacement. This methodology seamlessly interweaves concepts such as carrier motion, relative motion, and the construction of mechanisms, bringing fresh perspectives to the analysis of influence lines. In this article, we explore the nuances of these novel methods within the domain of mechanism theory. Through comprehensive elaboration and analysis, we elucidate the underlying principles and practical applications of Jacobian contours. Crucially, we introduce a straightforward, rapid, and programmable approach, promising to revolutionize influence line determination in structural engineering. This method bridges the gap between theory and practice, offering the potential to elevate the accuracy, efficiency, and adaptability of influence line analysis. As such, it represents a significant advancement in the field of structural and applied mechanics, with broad-reaching implications for engineering practice.

To avoid the endless accumulation of QTL effects during pyramiding breeding, QTL epistasis plays a role of homeostasis. Four single-segment substitution lines with heading date QTLs were utilized to construct pyramiding materials with dual QTLs and triple QTLs, allowing for the estimation of QTL epistatic effects on heading date in rice. The epistatic components of dual QTL and triple QTL interactions were analyzed using data from three seasons of two years. All four QTLs can be considered as dominant loci, demonstrating superdominance. 75% of dual QTL interactions and 81.25% of triple QTL interactions obtained statistically significant results, reaffirming the prevalence of epistasis. Interactions of four QTLs with three positive effects and one negative effect generated 62.5% negative dual QTL epistatic effects and 57.7% positive triple QTL epistatic effects, forming the balance relationship “positive-negative-positive”. In fact, QTL effects were consistently partially neutralized by mixed QTL epistatic effects so as to control the infinite accumulation of QTL effects. QTL epistasis plays a role of homeostasis on heading date in rice. However, there were two exceptions. The directions of OsMADS50 and Hd3a-2 effects were consistently aligned with those of their mixed epistases, suggesting that the QTL or gene could be employed in pyramiding breeding with different objectives. This study elucidated the mechanism of epistatic interactions among four QTLs and provided valuable genetic resources for improving heading date in rice.

Influenced by the quasi-stationary Mei-yu front and the development of mesoscale low vortices on the Mei-yu front, a torrential rain event occurred in Suzhou on July 6, 2020. The 24-hour rainfall recorded by the automatic station exceeded 200 millimeters, with the highest hourly intensity surpassing 70 millimeters, accompanied by thunderstorms and strong winds. This heavy precipitation process was characterized by suddenness, extremity, long duration, high precipitation efficiency, and backward propagation. Using various data sources such as the European ERA5 reanalysis data, ground-based automatic stations, sounding, Doppler weather radar, and wind profile radar, this paper analyzed in detail the circulation characteristics and radar echo structures of this torrential rain event, and further studied the triggering, feature evolution, and maintenance mechanisms of the heavy precipitation.The results show: (1) The continuously strengthening low-level jet stream propagates downward forming an ultra-low-level jet stream. Heavy precipitation is located on the left front side of the jet exit area, where strong convergence and lifting in the boundary layer overlap with the ascending branch of the secondary circulation above the shear line, resulting in heavy precipitation. (2) A supercell storm with intense precipitation produced this heavy rainfall event, characterized by a low centroid of strong echo; echo-free vault, bounded weak echo region, and other supercell structural features. During this event, the high reflectivity factor areas corresponded to high KDP value areas, indicating a large amount of liquid water content. Vertically, the KDP column can track the rainwater mixing ratio well, and its location corresponds to the vicinity of the short-term heavy precipitation occurrence. The high KDP value area mainly consists of numerous precipitation particles, and the vertical vortex wind field structure causes rapid growth of precipitation particles through continuous rolling. Furthermore, it can be found through correlation coefficients (CC) that there are always high-value areas for CC since they correspond to areas of intense precipitation. (3) Continuous triggering of mesoscale convective cloud clusters on the east-west ground convergence line leads to new development and forms a "train effect." Strong frontogenesis in both horizontal and vertical directions triggers and sustains this heavy precipitation event. The significant increase in liquid water and water vapor density has indicative significance for the occurrence of heavy precipitation.

This paper presents a new algorithm for semi-supervised action recognition using adaptive feature analysis. We model the samples of the same action as the same manifold and those of different actions as different manifolds, and integrate feature correlation mining and visual similarity mining into a joint framework. By maximizing the separability between different classes based on the labeled data, the proposed algorithm learns multiple features from labeled data and utilizes the intrinsic geometric structure of the data distribution between labeled and unlabeled data to boost the recognition. We introduce Projected Barzilai-Borwein (PBB) to train a subspace projection matrix as classifier. Extensive experiments on three benchmark datasets demonstrate that our algorithm outperforms the existing semi-supervised action recognition algorithms when there are a few labeled training samples.

High blood cholesterol levels are one of the main risks for atherosclerotic disease. A purified aqueous extract of Fucus vesiculosus, characterized as rich in phlorotannins and peptides, was described as having the capacity to inhibit cholesterol biosynthesis and intestinal absorption. In this work, the effect of this extract on intestinal cells metabolites and proteins was analysed, aiming to expand the knowledge about its mode of action targeting cholesterol metabolism, in particular exogenous cholesterol absorption and transport. Caco-2 cells differentiated into enterocytes were exposed to the purified aqueous extract of F. vesiculosus and analysed by undirected metabolomics and proteomics. The results of the metabolomic analysis showed only statistically significant differences in glutathione content of the cells exposed to the extract relatively to the control cells, with a decreased glutathione expression in exposed cells. The proteomic analysis showed an increased expression for cells exposed to the extract of NPC1, an important protein known to be involved in cholesterol transport. To extent of our knowledge this is the first study using untargeted metabolomics and proteomic analysis to study the effect of F. vesiculosus on differentiated Caco-2 cells, which aims to provide some insight about the molecular mechanism of extract compounds on intestinal cells.

Ovarian cancers are curable by surgical resection when discovered early enough. Unfortunately, most ovarian cancers are diagnosed in the later stages. One strategy to identify early ovarian tumors is to screen women who have the highest risk scores. This mini review summarizes the accuracy of different methods used to assess the risk of developing ovarian cancer, including family history, BRCA genetic tests, and polygenic risk scores. The accuracy of these is compared to the maximum theoretical accuracy, revealing a substantial gap. We suggest that this gap, or missing heritability, could be caused by epistatic interactions between genes. An alternative approach to computing genetic risk scores, using chromosomal-scale length variation should incorporate epistatic interactions. Future research in this area should focus on this and other alternative methods of characterizing genomes.

The strictness of the result of an excavation, whether mechanical or by means of explosives, is naturally conditioned by the objective, and therefore by the type of technique applied to achieve it. To attain the best results in terms of rock breakage and respect of the final profile, it’s important to evaluate the excavation specific energy and its optimization. This research focuses on evaluating the effects of different techniques on the quality of final walls in open-pit and underground operations. Different geometries and configurations can be applied to both quarrying and tunnelling blasts. The research is aimed to push contour blasts to their limits, and the main aspects are discussed in order to improve the blast parameters in the daily practice.

Shipbreaking research has not been in the forefront until the last decade in which environmental and occupational hazards have been highlighted while economic sustainability and contextual conditions were not equally considered. The adoption of a triple bottom line approach across core business issues (environmental impacts, workplace safety ) as well as peripheral stakeholders expectation (environmental sustainability focus) has been retarded due to the less attention on the latter. Based on the findings of the 128 review papers, the study suggests that organizational learning and economic sustainability needs to prioritize through the formation of strange alliance among the stakeholders. The study argues that the dialogue and discussion on the peripheral stakeholders (NGOs, yard managers, national and international policy organizations) would lead to a more sustainable shipbreaking industry in the south Asian regions.

Sports video analysis is an interesting and emerging field in the domain of computer vision. It has become a very popular subject among scholars all over the world in the last decade due to the need of automated classification of events such as offsides, in/out situations, goals and so on. The most important problem in sports video analysis is detection and tracking of ball and players. Extraction of court lines is also another important problem since it is necessary in the classification of aforementioned events. In this study, considering some of the previous work on the subject, we develop a method for tracking the ball and players in tennis videos where the camera position and orientation is supposed fixed.

Gene electrotransfer is one of the main non-viral methods for intracellular delivery of plasmid DNA, wherein pulsed electric fields are used to transiently permeabilize the cell membrane allowing enhanced transmembrane transport. By localizing the electric field over small portions of the cell membrane using nanostructured substrates, it is possible to increase considerably the gene electrotransfer efficiency while preserving cell viability. In this study, we design an electrotransfer approach based on commercially available cell culture inserts with polyethylene-terephthalate (PET) porous substrate. We first use multiscale numerical modelling to determine the pulse parameters, substrate pore size, and other factors that are expected to result in successful gene electrotransfer. Based on numerical results we design a simple device combining an insert with substrates containing pores with 0.4 um and 1.0 um diameter, a multiwell plate, and a pair of wire electrodes. We test the device in three mammalian cell lines and obtain transfection efficiencies similar to those achieved with bulk electroporation, but with low-voltage pulses that do not require the use of expensive electroporators. Our combined theoretical and experimental analysis calls for further systematic studies that will investigate the influence of substrate pore size and porosity on gene electrotransfer efficiency and cell viability.

Since its introduction, back in the late 1970s, the non-affine or slip parameter, ξ, has been routinely employed by numerous constitutive models as a constant parameter. However, the evidence seems to imply that it should be a function of polymer deformation. In the present work, we phenomenologically modify a constitutive model for the rheology of unentangled polymer melts [P. S. Stephanou et al. J. Rheol. 53, 309 (2009)] to account for a non-constant slip parameter. The revised model predictions are compared against newly accumulated rheological data for a C48 polyethylene melt obtained via direct non-equilibrium molecular dynamics simulations in shear. We find that the conformation tensor data are very well predicted; however, the predictions of the material functions are noted to deviate from the NEMD data, especially at large shear rates.

Purpose: The aim of the study is an approach to a nanocomposite with copper nanoparticles, constituting a bacteriostatic surface for maintaining the human lung cells' function. Methods: The polyelectrolyte layer coating with copper nanoparticles incorporated was designed. As a bacteriostatic factor, copper nanoparticles were applied as a colloidal solution of copper nanoparticles (ColloidCuNPs) and solution of copper nanoparticles (CuNPs). The influence of polyelectrolytes on selected Gram(+) and Gram(-) strains was examined. The function of the human adenocarcinoma A549 cell line of epithelial human lung cells cultured in the presence of nanocomposite layer coatings was analyzed, as well as their morphology using flow cytometry, fluorescence microscopy, and scanning electron microscopy. In addition, the material of layer coating was assessed using AFM and SEM-EDX characterization. Results: It was observed that polyelectrolytes polyethylenimine and poly-L-lysine do not induce proliferation of E.coli strain. On the other hand, it induces the proliferation of S. aureus strain. Due to CuNPs effectiveness against E.coli strain, CuNPs were selected for further research. The designed coatings at proper NPs share sustained the function of human lung cells cultured within 10 days of culture. The AFM and EDX characterization confirmed copper presence in the layer coating nanomaterial. The presence of CuNPs in polyethyleneimine-based nanocomposite deepens the bacteriostatic effect on E. coli compared with PEI alone. Meanwhile, incorporating CuNPs in PLL at share allowed A549 cell maintenance, did not exert a bacteriostatic influence on the examined strain.Conclusion: The platform based on polyelectrolytes incorporated with copper nanoparticles ensuring the growth and morphology of the human lung epithelial cells can be considered an element of the system components for medical devices for maintaining the human lung cells' function.

In this study, we propose an efficient field-free line (FFL) generator for mechanically driven FFL-magnetic particle imaging (MPI) applications. The novel FFL generator comprises pairs of Halbach arrays and bar magnets. The proposed design generates high-gradient FFLs with low-mass permanent magnets, realizing fine spatial resolutions in MPI. We investigate the generated magnetic field using simulations and experiments. Our results show that the FFL generator yields a high gradient of 4.76 T/m at a cylindrical field of view of 30 mm diameter and a 70 mm open bore. A spatial resolution of less than 3.5 mm was obtained in the mechanically driven FFL-MPI.

The short-lived positron-emitter carbon-11 (t1/2 = 20.4 min; b+, 99.8%) is prominent for labeling tracers for use in biomedical research with positron emission tomography (PET). Carbon-11 is produced for this purpose with a cyclotron, nowadays almost exclusively by the 14N(p,a)11C nuclear reaction, either on nitrogen containing a low concentration of oxygen (0.1–0.5%) or hydrogen (~ 5%) to produce [11C]carbon dioxide or [11C]methane, respectively. These primary radioactive products can be produced in high yields and with high molar activities. However, only [11C]carbon dioxide has some utility for directly labeling PET tracers. Primary products are required to be converted rapidly and efficiently into secondary labeling synthons to provide versatile radiochemistry for labeling diverse tracer chemotypes at molecular positions of choice. This review surveys known gas phase transformations of carbon-11 and summarizes the important roles that many of these transformations now play for producing a broad range of labeling synthons in carbon-11 chemistry.

With the global warming and the frequent occurrences of harsh environments, mooring line failures are frequent. Response analysis of the platform structure and its residual mooring system under multiple mooring line failures is needed. Therefore, it is necessary to investigate the change law of platform motion response after mooring line failure to find out the reasons for the change. Studies for different failure combinations of mooring lines show that the variation of the steady-state equilibrium position of the platform is closely related to the stiffness, with a clear functional. The duration and amplitude of the transient response are mainly influenced by the Morison drag force. And it was found that the suspended mooring line reduced the motion responses. It is also found that the mooring line failure increased the effective tension and suspension length of the riser. Based on the improved Dezert-Smarandache theory (DSmT), it is calculated that mooring line failure has little effect on the failure probability in different zones of the riser.

Sustainable Forest Management (SFM) can fully use forest resources and improve the economic, environmental and social sustainability of forest areas. Forestry enterprises play a crucial role in the implementation of SFM. To better play the role of forestry enterprises in implementing SFM, it is necessary to establish a comprehensive and reasonable performance evaluation model for SFM in forestry enterprises. However, the previous literature pays little attention to this research question. Taking the Triple Bottom Line (TBL) as a theoretical framework and the Montreal Process Criteria and Indicators (MP C&I) as a basis, this paper constructs an indicator system to evaluate the performance of SFM of forest enterprises from economic, social and environmental aspects. This paper applies the integrated MCDM method, i.e. the BWM method and the VIKOR method, to construct the methodological system for SFM performance evaluation of forestry enterprises. The effectiveness of this SFM performance evaluation model is then demonstrated through its application to a case study of forestry enterprises in China. Through the application of the model, this paper evaluates the enterprise's SFM performance over the five-year period 2017-2021 and proposes appropriate policy recommendations and improvements.

In the modern world, all manufacturers strive for the optimal design of their products. This general trend is recently also observed in the corrugated board packaging industry. Colorful prints on displays, perforations in shelf-ready-packaging and various types of ventilation holes in trays, although extremely important for ergonomic or functional reasons, weaken the strength of the box. To meet the requirements of customers and recipients, packaging manufacturers outdo each other in new ideas for the construction of their products. Often the aesthetic qualities of the product become more important than the attention to maintaining the standards of the load capacity of the packaging (which, apart from their attention-grabbing functions, are also intended to protect transported products). The particular flaps design (both top and bottom) and their influence on the strength of the box is investigated in this study. The updated analytical-numerical approach is used here to predict the strength of the packaging with various flap’s offsets. Experimental results indicated a significant decrease in the static load-bearing capacity of packaging in the case of shifted flap creases. The simulation model proposed in our previous work has been modified and updated to take into account also this effect. The results obtained by the model presented in the paper are in satisfactory agreement with the experimental data.

Typhonium flagelliforme is an Indonesian herbal plant used and applied traditionally to treat cancer diseases. Gamma rays have irradiated rodent tuber mutant plant at six doses gray to in-crease the chemical compounds of anticancer activity. The effect of isolated compounds from ro-dent tuber mutant plants has never been studied and published yet. Our study unveiled the poten-tial of stigmasterol as a remarkable cytotoxic agent and the significant contribution of NMR spectroscopy, IR, Mass spectra, QTOF MS towards the isolation and identification of this anti-cancer agent. Stigmasterol was isolated from T. flagelliforme mutant plant. Stigmasterol was more effective against MCF-7 cells with an IC50 value of 0.1623 µM than Cisplatin with IC50 value 13.2 µM. It is the most potential and active fraction in the human breast cancer cell line. The mo-lecular docking study analyzed the chemical profile of stigmasterol to confirm the receptor in agonist binding sites. The prediction of the toxicity of stigmasterol compounds using in silico and analysis of its interaction with the receptor can act as a competitive regulator with a high-affinity binding site on FXR. Stigmasterol has potential as a candidate for an anticancer drug that pro-moting further clinical action.

Nowadays, the wasting of resources is one of the fundamental challenges of the industrial sector. The rectangle packing problem can be very effective in this context. Practical applications of this issue in the timing and designing of the industries and businesses are very remarkable. The purpose of this issue is to arrange a set of rectangles with specific dimensions in a rectangular page with a specific width and unlimited height without overlapping. The fundamental challenge in this issue is that this is an NP-complete issue. Therefore, it is difficult to achieve the best arrangement, which has the maximum rate of resource utilization and also has a linear running time. Many algorithms have been presented to estimate a practical solution for this issue. In the past decades, the best fit method has been one of the most useful methods for this purpose. This study presents a combinatorial algorithm based on two algorithms, including the lowest front-line strategy and the best-fit algorithm. The running results indicate that the suggested algorithm performs well, despite its simplicity. The time complexity of the suggested algorithm is O(nm), in which n is the number of input rectangles and m is the number of the created front lines.

Prostate cancer (PCa) has become the most common tumor among males in Europe and the USA. Adoptive immunotherapy appears as a promising strategy to control the advanced stages of the disease by specific targeting the tumor, in particular through chimeric antigen receptor T (CAR-T) cell therapy. Despite the advancements of CAR-T technology in the treatment of hematological malignancies, solid tumors still represent a challenge. To overcome current limits, other cellular effectors than T lymphocytes are under study as possible candidates for CAR-engineered cancer immunotherapy. A novel approach involves the NK-92 cell line, which mediates strong cytotoxic responses against a variety of tumor cells but has no effect on non-malignant healthy counterparts. Here, we report a therapeutic approach against PCa based on engineering of NK-92 cells with a CAR recognizing the human prostate-specific membrane antigen (PSMA), which is overexpressed in prostatic neoplastic cells. Upon CAR transduction, NK-92/CAR cells acquired high and specific lytic activity against PSMA-expressing prostate cancer cells in vitro, and also underwent degranulation and produced high levels of IFN-γ in response to antigen recognition. Lethal irradiation of the effectors, a safety measure requested for the clinical application of retargeted NK-92 cells, fully abrogated replication but did not impact on phenotype and short-term functionality. PSMA-specific recognition and antitumor activity were retained in vivo, as adoptive transfer of irradiated NK-92/CAR cells in prostate cancer-bearing mice restrained tumor growth and improved survival. Anti-PSMA CAR-modified NK-92 cells represent a universal, off-the-shelf, renewable and cost-effective product endowed with relevant potentialities as a therapeutic approach for PCa immunotherapy.

The current study sets out to develop an empirical line method (ELM) radiometric calibration framework for reducing atmospheric contributions in UAS imagery and for producing scaled remote sensing reflectance imagery. Using a MicaSense RedEdge camera flown on a custom-built octocopter, the research reported herein finds that atmospheric contributions have an important impact on UAS imagery. Data collected over the Lower Pearl River Estuary in Mississippi during five week-long missions covering a wide range of environmental conditions was used to develop and test a simplified ELM radiometric calibration framework designed specifically for the reduction of atmospheric contributions to UAS imagery in studies with limited site accessibility or data acquisition time constraints. The framework was effective in reducing atmospheric and other external contributions to UAS imagery. Unique to the proposed radiometric calibration framework is the radiance to reflectance conversion conducted externally from the calibration equations which allows for the normalization of illumination independent from the time of UAS image acquisition and from the time of calibration equations development. This paper presents the simplified ELM radiometric calibration framework that can be used as a time-effective calibration technique to reduce errors in the UAS imagery.

Background: Breast cancer is the leading cause of cancer mortality and morbidity among Indonesian women. Identification of biological pathways leading into therapeutic resistance through in vitro model is an important step to develop alternative effective therapy in breast cancer. Loss of PTEN expression has been associated with resistance to chemotherapy by involving PI3K/PTEN- dependent apoptosis pathway. We conducted in vitro experiment to investigate the association of hsa-miR-21 and PTEN expression in Doxorubicin-resistant MCF-7 cell line. Methods: Parental MCF-7 cells were periodically incubated with Doxorubicin to obtain specific Dox-resistant variant determined by IC50 using MTT assay. PTEN protein expression was analyzed using immunocytochemistry. Expression of mature has-miR-21 was measured using qRT-PCR. Results: The IC50 of Doxorubicin in parental MCF-7 and Doxorubicin-resistant MCF-7 cells (MCF-7/Dox) was 0.68 and 5.78 µg/ml, respectively. Hsa-miR-21 was significantly overexpressed in MCF-7/Dox cells compared to parental MCF cells (7.94 fold changes). Conclusion: PTEN and hsa-miR-21 expression levels were negatively correlated in Doxorubicin resistant-MCF cells. Further study to confirm the causal relationship of miR-21 overexpression and PTEN downregulation in MCF-7/Dox is required.

With the accelerating urbanization process, the population increasingly concentrates in urban areas. In view of the special situation in China and a series of problems in the process of rapid urbanization, there were no reasonable measures for optimizing the population pattern. This study explored the distribution pattern of the Chinese population and proposed an optimization plan for the population distribution using GIS analysis. The main findings were as follows. (1) From 2010 to 2015, the distribution of population density in China presented a pattern of high in the southeast and low in the northwest based on the county-level administrative regions. The population still showed a tendency to migrate to the southeast of the country based on the “Hu Huanyong Line”. (2) There was a great difference in the land use efficiency in terms of population and economic production in China. The economic concentration in China was higher than the population concentration. In the areas where population and economic production were aggregated, GDP per capita and land use efficiency were higher. (3) Based on the land use efficiency in terms of population and economic production, the optimized urbanization plan of “1+4+11” for China’s urbanization was put forward, namely, one national-level aggregated area of population and economic production, 4 regional-level aggregated areas of population and economic production, and 11 local regionally aggregated areas of population and economic production. This optimization plan for urbanization represents an attempt to explore the direction of China’s urbanization, and it can be used to optimize the spatial development pattern and provide scientific guidance for the new urbanization plan.

The notion of the three-phase (line) tension remains one of the most disputable notions in the surface science. A very broad range of its values has been reported. Experts even do not agree on the sign of the line tension. The polymer-chain-like model of the three-phase (triple) line enables the rough estimation of the entropic input into the value of the line tension, estimated as Γ_en≅(k_B T)/d_m ≅〖10〗^(-11) N, where d_m is the diameter of the liquid molecule. The introducing of the polymer-chain-like model of the triple line is justified by the “water string” model of the liquid state, predicting strong orientation effects for liquid molecules located in the vicinity of hydrophobic moieties. The estimated value of the entropic input into the line tension is close to experimental findings, reported by various groups.

This paper proposes a crack recognition method based on high-resolution line array cameras and adaptive lifting algorithm. By defining the crack rate, this algorithm calculates the ratio of the crack area to the area of the entire collected image to characterize the damage extent of the current section. The algorithm first uses image preprocessing to reduce the image noise, then uses histogram equalization to enhance the feature of the crack region, divides the whole image into multiple sub-blocks, and extracts region features in the sub-block. At the same time, this algorithm defines related feature descriptors, and constructs weak classifiers according to each feature descriptor, and converts the weak classifiers into strong classifiers by using an adaptive lifting algorithm. Finally, this algorithm realizes the division of the crack regions. Experimental results show that the proposed algorithm can meet the actual needs and is better than other classical algorithms.

Dislocation is one of the major challenges in unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) image stitching. In this paper, we propose a new dynamic programming for seamlessly stitching UAV images using optical flow. Our solution consists of two steps: Firstly, an image-matching algorithm is used to correct the images so that they are in the same coordinate system. Secondly, a new dynamic programming algorithm is develop based on the concept of a stereo dual-channel energy accumulation using optical flow. A new energy aggregation and traversal strategy is adopted in our solution, which can find a more optimal seam line for adjacent image stitching. Our algorithm overcomes the theoretical limitation of the classical Duplaquet algorithm. Experiments show that the algorithm can effectively solve the dislocation problem in UAV image stitching. Beyond that, our solution is also direction-independent, which has more adaptability and robustness for UAV images.

Modular steel buildings (MSBs) interlocking inter-module connections (IMCs) have piqued researchers’ interest. However, the existing literature has not yet studied the optimisation of its plate thicknesses. This paper, therefore, focuses on optimising interlocking (IMCs) plate thickness in (MSBs), leveraging previous experimental and numerical simulation methodologies. Various numerical models for four MSBs interlocking (IMCs) with plate thicknesses (4 mm, 6 mm, 10 mm, and 12 mm) were developed under compression loading conditions. The study’s novelty lay in its comprehensive parametric analysis, which evaluated the slip phenomenon in (MSBs) connections and introduced a slip prediction model validated against empirical data. Further innovative machine learning approach was utilised to predict slip values based on applied force through a random forest regression model trained using the 'Treebagger' function. Sensitivity analysis and comparisons with alternative methods were utilised to underscore the reliability and applicability of the findings. The results showed that 11.03 mm was the optimal plate thickness for interlocking (IMCs) in modular steel buildings, with up to 8.08% reduced material costs. Increasing plate thickness boosts its deformation resistance by up to 50.75%. ‘TreeBagger’ random forest for anomaly detection and machine learning improves slip prediction up to 7% at higher force levels.

A metastable β-Ti alloy, Ti–10V–3Fe–3Al (wt.%), was subjected to thermos-mechanical processing including the compression test at 725°C, which is below the β transus temperature (780°C), and at strain rate of 10-3s-1. The presence of phases was determined using transmission electron microscopy and X-ray diffraction. Although the dynamic recovery took place together with slip, both deformation-induced α˝ martensite and ω were detected as other operating mechanisms for the first time in metastable-β Ti alloys deformed in α+β region. The volume fraction of stress-induced α˝ was higher than that of the same alloy deformed at room temperature due to higher strain applied. Stress-induced twinning was not operational, which could be related to the priority of slip mechanism at high temperature resulted from thermally-assisted nucleation and lateral migration of kink-pairs.

Typhoons bring great damages to transmission line systems located in coastal areas. Strong wind and extreme precipitation are the main sources of damaging effects. Transmission lines suffered from wind-driven rain exhibit more susceptibility to damage due to the coupled effect of wind and rain water. This paper presents an integrated numerical simulation framework based on mesoscale WRF model, multiphase CFD model and FEM model to analyze the motions of a transmission line subjected to coupled wind and rain loads during typhoon events. A full-scale transmission line in Zhoushan island is employed to demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed framework by simulating typhoon evolution in terms of wind fields and rainfall, solving the coupled wind and rain fields around the conductor and predicting the dynamic responses of the transmission line during Super Typhoon Lekima (2019). The results show that the horizontal displacements of the transmission line under the joint actions of wind and rain increases approximately 17%~18% compared to those of wind loads only. It is important to consider the coupled effects of wind-driven rain on conductors in the design of transmission lines under typhoon conditions.

A novel compressible real gas 1D finite volume thermofluid network modelling methodology is proposed that can be applied in the analysis of supercritical CO₂ (sCO2) power cycles. It is applied to simulate centrifugal compressor performance via a mean line approach that directly solves the mass, energy, and momentum balance equations for the discretized flow channels within the machine along with the associated loss models, component characteristics, and applicable compressible real gas equation of state. This can be integrated seamlessly with the rest of the power cycle components like pipes, valves, heat exchangers, etc., thereby eliminating the need for static performance maps and the associated difficulties to ensure similarity over the whole range of operation. This direct simulation of the internal flows also makes it possible to do integrated cycle design optimization that includes the geometry of the compressors, and to simulate fast transients for dynamic analysis. The methodology was applied to simulate well-documented air and sCO2 centrifugal compressors and compared the generated results with that of conventional thermofluid network incompressible and compressible ideal gas approaches. The results indicate that the proposed compressible real gas approach can capture the stagnation pressure changes and isentropic efficiencies with good accuracy for both cases over the whole range of mass flow rates and shaft rotational speeds. In contrast, the conventional thermofluid network incompressible and compressible ideal gas approaches are only applicable in selected regions of the fluid property regime and suffer from discretization errors and inappropriate treatment of the relationship between stagnation and static pressures. Furthermore, comparative analyses between the newly proposed approach and the traditional mechanical energy balance method are performed, showing that the latter approach needs to be discretized more finely through the compression process to correctly capture the polytropic compression path shape, whereas the former more accurately captures the stagnation pressure changes through the analyzed compressors with only a single increment per compressor component.

Many corporations have now revised their value statements to showcase their commitment to sustainable development and green business due to the pressing issues of climate and environmental damage. Despite the importance of value statements that can direct companies to achieve sustainable goals, what kind of values can be perceived as organizational orientations to sustainability remains unknown. This study explores how the general public views the inclusion of sustainable components in value statements from the listed companies in Hong Kong by using Q-sort methodology (n = 30). Analyzing the final sample of 40 value statements extracted from 27 listed companies, we identified three factors related to sustainability, namely, Empowering business process management, Empowering customer-centric excellence, and Empowering sustainable progress. This study provides an additional component to the traditional triple bottom line by suggesting that internal operation of a company is an emerging idea to understand corporate sustainability.

The extraction of roof feature lines is an important foundation for realizing large-scale and batch 3D modeling. However, the current traditional point cloud segmentation algorithms do not have satisfactory results in extracting roof feature lines of Chinese traditional residential buildings. In this paper, taking Jingping Village in Western Hunan as an example, we propose a method that combines multiple algorithms based on slope segmentation of roof patches to extract feature lines. Firstly, VDVI and CSF algorithms are used to extract the building and roof point cloud based on the MVS point cloud. Secondly, according to roof features, village buildings are classified, and 3D roof point cloud is projected into 2D regular grid data. Finally, the roof slope is segmented via slope direction, and internal and external feature lines are obtained after refinement through Canny edge detection and Hough straight line detection. Results reveal that this method effectively extracts feature lines of low-building roofs in traditional villages, with slope-based roof surface segmentation accuracy surpassing 99.6%. This method significantly outperforms the RANSAC algorithm and region segmentation algorithm.

Colorectal cancer is the third most common disease and the second most common cause of death in the world. The drug for second-line treatment depends on the drugs used in first-line treatment and biomarker status. As biomarkers, the RAS gene, BRAF gene, and dMMR/MSI-H, TMB-H, and HER2 statuses have been established in clinical practice, and the corresponding molecularly targeted therapeutic agents are selected based on biomarker status. Given the frequency of biomarkers, it is assumed that when patients move on to second-line treatment, an angiogenesis inhibitor is selected in many cases. For second-line treatment, three angiogenesis inhibitors, bevacizumab (BEV), ramucirumab (RAM), and aflibercept (AFL), are available, and one of them is combined with cytotoxic agents. These three angiogenesis inhibitors are known to inhibit angiogenesis through different mechanisms of action. Although no useful biomarkers are established for selecting angiogenesis inhibitors, previous biomarker studies have suggested that angiogenesis-related factors such as VEGF-A and VEGF-D might be predictors of therapeutic efficacy of angiogenesis inhibitors. These biomarkers are measured as protein levels in plasma and are considered to be hopeful biomarkers. We consider that the rationale for selecting among these three angiogenesis inhibitors should be clarified to benefit patients.

This work focused on proposing a plan for improvement and control of the customer service process in a customer service center, based on a waiting line analysis where it describes all the elements that interact in the system and a statistical analysis of processes to define the state in which it operates. Subsequently, the simulation of processes is applied to represent the system studied, and with it, to be able to evaluate different strategies for improvement and increase in productivity. The following strategies were evaluated: correction of the instability of customer service processes, establishment of new specification limits according to the promise of value to be fulfilled to customers, human resource management, administrative technical support. Finally, with the results obtained from the simulation of the system, the improvement and productivity increase plan is planned according to the DMAMC (Define, Measure, Analyze, Improve, Control, or DMAIC) continuous improvement cycle established in six sigma

Globally, gastric cancer is a major cause of cancer mortality, with a 5-year survival rate of 32% for locally advanced and metastatic gastric cancer. This systematic literature review summarized the clinical, safety, and humanistic outcomes associated with systemic regimens given as first line therapy for locally advanced and metastatic gastric cancer. The search included articles published in English in PubMed, Embase, Web of Science, Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, and the American Society of Clinical Oncology meeting library, from inception to April 2022. Phase II and III randomized controlled trials conducted among western populations diagnosed with stage III and IV locally advanced and metastatic gastric cancer were included. Two investigators independently reviewed the studies, conducted data extraction, and assessed risk of bias in accordance with PRISMA guidelines. Twenty-four randomized controlled trials totaling 8,705 patients were included. Median overall survival ranged from 5.0-13.1 months, median progression-free survival ranged from 2.0-7.7 months, and objective response ranged from 13.0-64.1%. Two studies reported higher quality of life outcomes. Grade 3 and 4 adverse events were reported in most studies. Improvement in clinical outcomes can be seen in recently published randomized controlled trials for locally advanced and metastatic gastric cancer.

The images captured by UAVs during inspection often contain numerous small targets related to transmission lines, which are critical and vulnerable elements for ensuring the safe operation of these lines. However, due to various factors such as the small size of the targets, low resolution, complex background, and potential line aggregation, achieving accurate and real-time detection becomes challenging. To address these issues, this paper proposes a detection algorithm called P2-ECA-EIOU-YOLOv5 (P2E-YOLOv5). Firstly, in order to address the challenges posed by the complex background and environmental interference that impact small targets, an ECA attention module is integrated into the network. This module effectively enhances the network's focus on small targets while concurrently mitigating the influence of environmental interference. Secondly, considering the characteristics of small target size and low resolution, a new high-resolution detection head is introduced, which is more sensitive to small targets. Lastly, the network utilizes the EIOU-Loss as the regression Loss function to improve the positioning accuracy of small targets, as they tend to aggregate. Experimental results demonstrate that the proposed P2E-YOLOv5 detection algorithm achieves an accuracy P of 96.0% and an average accuracy (mAP) of 97.0% for small target detection in transmission lines.

Interference on Power Line Communication (PLC), which is a wired communication technology that provides communication and data transmission over the existing electrical network, is examined in this paper. Many applications employ PLC technologies, which have the benefit of leveraging existing power connections for both power and data transfer, reducing cost and complexity. These interactions may be observed in contemporary smart grids and automobile power networks, where lengthy cables, switching power supplies, and communication links all work together but exacerbate electromagnetic interference problems. This research examines the effects of Spread Spectrum methods used to reduce EMI from power converters on PLC systems. Spread spectrum modulation and its three variants Sine, Random and Triangle are frequently employed to meet the requirements of electromagnetic compatibility, however there are some repercussions, that might be detrimental to the converter or the rest of the electrical network. These outcomes occur for various modulation algorithm settings and at various frequencies. Measurements are made utilising the Frame Error Rate value provided by the PLC link system to ascertain the interference produced by a SiC-based DC-DC converter in order to investigate these concerns and standardise an assessment approach.

Despite the recent advances in melanoma therapy, the need for new targets and novel approaches to therapy is urgent. We previously reported melanoma actives that work via binding and downregulating spliceosomal proteins hnRNPH1 and H2. In a separate study, we reported that these compounds were non-toxic to Balb/C mice at 50 mg/kg suggesting their utility in in vivo studies. In the present study, we aimed to determine the therapeutic potential of these compounds by testing them in A375 cell-line derived xenograft in nu/nu mice. Animals were randomized into four groups (n=12/group) to receive subcutaneous administration of vehicle, 10 mg/kg vemurafenib, and 25 mg/kg 2155-14 and 2155-18 three times per week for 15 days along with a control group. The results revealed that both 2155-14 and 2155-18 significantly decreased the growth of A375 tumors, which was comparable to vemurafenib. These results were confirmed by tumor volume, weight, and histopathological examination. In conclusion, these results suggest a therapeutic potential of targeting spliceosomal proteins hnRNPH1 and H2.

In this paper, new N-way Wilkinson power dividers (WPDs) are represented by using slow-wave structures such as narrow slits loaded and meandered transmission lines. The slit loaded and meandered lines are used to represent the quarter wavelength transmission lines of a conventional WPD for size reduction. Based on the proposed approaches, 2-, 4- and 8-way power dividers are designed, simulated and fabricated. The fabricated -, 4- and 8-way circuits have been measured at the center frequencies of 2.03, 1.77, and 1.73 GHz in an excellent agreement with the predicted ones. The meandered transmission lines are also used to design new types of WPDs having novel input/output port arrangements. For this purpose, two 3-way WPDs are located at both sides of the same board so as to have different power splitting ratios at different inputs and outputs to provide alternative solutions for antenna arrays. Furthermore, a 5-way dual layer WPD is introduced by locating the meandered transmission lines to two layers. The proposed 3- and 5-way WPDs allow halving the input power at the next output port in the order of P/2, P/4, P/8, P/16, and P/16. All of the designed power halving WPDs have been simulated, fabricated and successfully tested.

A large body of evidence indicates that environmental agents can induce alterations in DNA methylation (DNAm) profiles. Radiofrequency electromagnetic fields (RF-EMFs) are radiations emitted by everyday devices which have been classified as “possibly carcinogenic”, however their biological effects are unclear. As aberrant DNAm of genomic repetitive elements (RE) may promote genomic instability, here we sought to determine whether exposure to RF-EMFs could affect DNAm of different classes of RE, such as long interspersed nuclear element1s (LINE-1), Alu short interspersed nuclear element and ribosomal repeats. To this purpose, we analysed DNAm profiles of cervical cancer and neuroblastoma cell lines (HeLa, BE(2)C and SH-SY5Y) exposed to 900 MHz GSM-modulated RF-EMF through an Illumina-based targeted deep bisulfite sequencing approach. Our findings showed that radiofrequency exposure did not affect DNAm of Alu elements in any of the cell lines analysed. Conversely, it influenced DNAm of LINE1 and ribosomal repeats in terms of both average profiles and organization of methylated and un-methylated CpG sites, in different ways in each of the three cell lines studied.

The extrusion of food for human and animal consumption is a unit operation that includes mixing, shearing and force to the materials related to the rheological properties of the materials in the extruder. The present work aims to study the rheological behavior of an extruded fish diet incorporating hydrolyzed protein flour processed by extrusion. The measurement was carried out online with a slit die rheometer, defining the rheological models and parameters that fit the process. During the extrusion process, the raw materials used were hydrolyzed protein meal, fish meal and cassava starch. For the results, the evaluated treatments were adjusted to the Power Law, where an increase in the shear rate decreases the viscosity of the material, corresponding to a pseudoplastic behavior. The incorporation of hydrolyzed protein flour presented a significant effect on the value of n and Klp, increasing the viscosity with the increase in the percentage of inclusion of HPH. The models obtained for the prediction of the viscosity are adjusted to the changes in shear rate, temperature and humidity of the system.

Wolbachia are intracellular endosymbionts of several invertebrate taxa, including insects and nematodes. Although Wolbachia DNA has been detected in ticks, its presence is generally associated with parasitism by insects. To determine whether or not Wolbachia can infect and grow in tick cells, cell lines from three tick species, Ixodes scapularis, Ixodes ricinus and Rhipicephalus microplus, were inoculated with Wolbachia strains wStri and wAlbB isolated from mosquito cell lines. Homogenates prepared from fleas collected from cats in Malaysia were inoculated into an I. scapularis cell line. Bacterial growth and identity were monitored by microscopy and PCR amplification and sequencing of fragments of Wolbachia genes. The wStri strain infected Ixodes spp. cells and was maintained through 29 passages. The wAlbB strain successfully infected Ixodes spp. and R. microplus cells and was maintained through 2-5 passages. A novel strain of Wolbachia belonging to the supergroup F, designated wCfeF, was isolated in I. scapularis cells from a pool of Ctenocephalides sp. cat fleas and maintained in vitro through two passages over nine months. This is the first confirmed isolation of a Wolbachia strain from a flea and the first isolation of any Wolbachia strain outside the “pandemic” A and B supergroups. The study demonstrates that tick cells can host multiple Wolbachia strains, and can be added to panels of insect cell lines to improve success rates in isolation of field strains of Wolbachia.

Marine mortar was the goal material and its multi-scale physical-chemical-mechanical characteristics were the principal interest in this study. The on-line multi-scale damage detection experiments art was designed to quantify the characteristics mathematically and graphically. The normal cylinder specimen with 70-day age was produced and investigated by dynamically global MSHCT scan and local detection of EDS, SEM and XRD. The experiments results indicated that the marine mortar offered the appreciable strength at the early age at least, although some saline minerals were generated during the preparation. The micro-interfacial behavior and the parental foci controlled the damage development of the marine mortar the performance of which was still the adjustable one by the composition optimization.

Flushing tap water is often promoted as a simple and low cost approach to reducing water lead exposures. This study evaluated lead reduction when prevailing flush guidelines (30 seconds-2 minutes) are implemented in a city compliant with lead-associated water regulations (New Orleans, LA). Water samples (n=1,497) collected from a convenience sample of 376 residential sites (2015-2017) were analyzed for lead in samples collected: at 1) first draw (n=375), and after incremental flushes of 2) 30-45 seconds (n=375), 3) 2.5-3 minutes (n=373), and 4) 5.5-6 minutes (n=218). There was no significant reduction when compared to the first draw lead level, until the 6 minute flush (p<0.05); but most sites (52%) still had detectable lead (≥1 ppb) after 6 minutes. Older homes (pre-1950) and low occupancy sites had significantly higher WLLs (p<0.05).Each sample type had health-based standard exceedances at over 50% of sites sampled (max: 58 ppb). While flushing is an effective short-term approach to remediate high lead, prevailing flush recommendations are an inconsistently effective exposure prevention measure that can often inadvertently increase exposures. Public health messages should be modified to ensure appropriate application of flushing for specific cities, while acknowledging its short-comings and practical limitations.

In this study, a matched-mode autoregressive source depth estimation method (MMAR) based on autoregressive (AR) wavenumber estimation is proposed for a moving source in shallow water waveguides. The signal original frequency and the environmental parameters, namely, the sound speed profile and bottom properties are known as a prior knowledge. The mode wavenumbers are estimated by the AR modal wavenumber spectrum. On the basis of the mode wavenumber estimation, the mode amplitudes can be estimated by the wavenumber spectrum that is obtained by generalized Hankel transform. The source depth estimation is determined by the peak of source depth function wherein the data mode best matches the replica mode that is calculated using a propagation model. Compared with other methods of moving source depth estimation, the proposed method exhibits a better performance in source depth estimation under low signal-to-noise ratio or the small range span. The selection of horizontal line array depth is illustrated by simulation and normal mode theory in details.

Positioning based on wireless signals such as mobile communication networks has become an important means to provide high-precision location services in environments where satellite signals are blocked. In complex environments such as indoor and underground, wireless signal propagation is obstructed and non-line-of-sight (NLOS) phenomena appears due to serious occlusion and reflection. The time delay caused by NLOS effects has little impact on communication system but can significantly increase positioning errors in positioning systems. Therefore, effective suppression of NLOS errors is crucial to improving 5G positioning accuracy. To address the insufficient feature extraction of existing NLOS error suppression methods, the neglect of residual NLOS measurement errors, and poor stability of position estimation results, this paper innovatively proposes a NLOS mitigation and location estimation method for 5G positioning terminals. Simulation and experimental test results demonstrate that the proposed method outperforms the comparative methods both theoretically and practically, achieving an average positioning accuracy of 1.85 meters in complex indoor NLOS environments. The method proposed in this paper provides a new strategy for NLOS error suppression in indoor 5G positioning, which can significantly contribute to high-precision location services based on commercial 5G networks.

κ Draconis is a binary system with a classical Be star as the primary component. Its emission-line spectrum consists of hydrogen lines, notably the Hα line with a peak intensity ratio (V/R) variations phase-locked with the orbital period P = 61.55 days. Among binaries demonstrating the Be phenomenon, κ Dra stands out as one of a few systems with a discernible mass of its secondary component. Based on more than 200 spectra obtained in 2014 − 2023, we verified the physical parameters and constructed the mass function. We used part of these data obtained in 2014 − 2021 to investigate regions in the circumstellar disk of the primary component that emit the Hα line using the Doppler tomography method. The results show that the disk has a non-uniform density distribution with a prominent enhancement at Vy≈ 99 km s−1 and Vx≈−6 km s−1 that corresponds to a cloud-like source of the double-peaked Hα line profile. We argue that this enhancement’s motion is responsible for the periodic variations of the Hα V/R ratio, which is synchronised in orbital phase with the radial velocity (RV) of absorption lines from the atmosphere of the primary component.

Background: Several studies recently confirmed the emergence of resistance to antimalarial drugs in sub-Saharan Africa. Multiple first-line treatment (MFT) is one of the measures envisaged to respond to the emergence and spread of this resistance. The aim of this study was to identify perceived advantages and disadvantages of several MFT deployment strategies and to better understand potential implementation drivers and barriers. Methods: A qualitative survey was conducted in seven sub-Saharan countries amongst key opinion-leaders, national decision-makers, and end users. A total of 200 individual interviews were conducted and findings were analyzed following a thematic inductive approach. Results: From a policy perspective, the new MFT intervention would require endorsement at the global, national, and regional levels to ensure its inclusion in guidelines. Funding of the MFT intervention could be a bottleneck due to costs associated with additional training of healthcare workers, adaptation of drug delivery mechanisms, and higher costs of drugs. Concerning the MFT deployment strategies, a slight preference for the segmentation strategy was expressed over the rotation and geographic approaches, due to the perception that a segmentation approach is already in place at country level. Conclusions: The findings highlighted the need for a collective approach to MFT deployment through the engagement of stakeholders at all levels of malaria management.

In the context of the French tertiary decree, it is crucial to reduce the energy consumption of buildings by first addressing the design of the electrical architecture. Implementing Direct Current (DC) nanogrids in buildings could offers a promising advantage for energy efficiency, significantly impacting overall energy consumption and sustainability goals. For an insulated area with a subtropical climate, such as La Réunion island, DC nanogrids could also facilitate the insertion of local renewable energy sources, especially solar energy. This article presents the deployment and efficiency evaluation of an end-to-end Low Voltage Direct Current (LVDC) nanogrid, from conception to real-world installation within a company. The nanogrid consists of a photovoltaic power plant, a Lithium-Iron-Phosphate (LFP) battery, and DC end-use equipment such as LED lighting and DC fans for two individual offices. An innovation is provided for the power supply and energy management of terminal equipment using the Power Over Ethernet (PoE) standard IEEE 802.3bt. The efficiency of the nanogrid is measured to be 40% higher than the efficiency of an installation powered by PV and distributed at 230 VAC. These results are obtained under certain deployment conditions, which are discussed in this article, in order to enhance the energy efficiency of buildings by using 48VDC. The nanogrid hardware and software infrastructure, the methodology employed for efficiency quantification and the measurement results are described in the paper.

In this paper, we consider a pursuit-evasion game of inertial players, where pursuer’s control is subject to integral constraint, and evader’s control is subject to geometric constraint. In the pursuit problem, the main tool is the strategy of parallel pursuit. Sufficient conditions are obtained for the solvability of pursuit-evasion problems. Also, the main lemma describing the monotonicity of an attainability domain of the evader is proved and an explicit analytical formula for this domain is given. As one of the important results of our paper, the Isaacs Life-line game is solved for a special case.

The SARS–CoV-2 infection has caused both acute and chronic COVID–19 disease during the recent pandemic with emerging more transmissible SARS–CoV–2 Omicron variants (BQ1 and XBB1) that have increased demands for more effective immunogens and therapeutic approaches to protect the lives of numerous SARS–CoV-2 affected individuals and reduce overall disease burden that could be affected by concurrent other pathogens causing diseases. Following a worldwide campaign of mass vaccination, there is still a significant demand to quell the harmful effects of novel SARS–CoV–2 infections due to higher mutation rates within specific areas of the SARS–CoV-2 domain, leading to enhanced viral entry, especially within individuals with one or more significant comorbidities, and there is still a dilemma of how prevention of future pandemics will occur as within host animal mutations and cross species transfer naturally occurs. Concerns intersect at a specific point; a gained evolutionary ability of several viruses over the previous centuries to remain undetected during the first stages of infection by means of capping the 5' end of their DNA and RNA genes respectively. This may occur by reducing the rate of host Type I and Type III Interferons (IFN) cellular synthesis, that would usually occur and affect both apoptotic pathways, that facilitate viral replication and clearance, as well as immune cells, that process and present pathogenic antigen epitopes. Furthermore, although methods of vaccination exist, other methods in clinical development remain that could evoke an immune response in different cellular, serum or mucosal compartments being cellular, serum and mucosal that evoke differential antibody responses. Antibodies are classed as natural and synthetic. Natural antibodies are further classified into neutralizing and non-neutralizing, whilst synthetic antibodies are also further classified into monoclonal and polyclonal. As a result of single cell study transcriptome research, viruses do utilize an array of protein receptors for receptor-mediated cellular entry. This, therefore suggests that potential differential production of antibody immunoglobulins (Ig) within serum and mucosal areas remains affected by cytokines, adhesion molecules and chemokines that can be upregulated or downregulated upon host viral infection. Serum plasma antibodies can be multimeric that may not efficiently cross the nasal epithelium cell layer, therefore offering less protection against mucosal inflammation due to mucin proteins. On the other hand, antibodies produced by mucosal plasma cells at epithelial surfaces are known to provide effective immune responses in some viral infections. The existence of developments that stimulate mucosal immune responses has so far only been seen with influenza nasal immunogens. Nevertheless, scientists developed ways of immunization and early treatment worldwide that generally showed good success rates and fewer risks of adverse events, and the still early present stages of COVID-19 research should also be taken into consideration. For example, the administration of human interferons I and III into the nasal mucosa cellular layer, as key mediators of anti–viral activity, can stimulate cellular activity to train the innate and adaptive immune system cells to develop and appropriately stimulate an adequate immune response through B and T cells. Recently, it was discovered that specific plants secrete proteins that also stimulate the production of Type I Interferons. It might be that focusing on directly offering the immune system the information about the genetics and protein structure of the pathogen, rather than training its first-line mechanisms to develop faster, excessively increases its specificity, making it reach a level that brings the virus the opportunity to evolve and escape previously-developed host immune mechanisms. Naturally-selected polymorphic viruses through genetic recombination pose challenges to traditional concepts of cellular and molecular immune system neutralization of these viruses during the first stages of cellular infection. It is until the scientific community realizes this potentially crucial aspect that we will probably continue to face serious epidemics and pandemics of respiratory diseases over the coming several decades, evidenced with dengue fever and more recently monkeypox. Type I IFNs tend to be produced faster than Type III IFNs, and the first induce slightly more abundant pro-inflammatory signals than the latter, meaning that type III IFNs, if produced early, may further decrease the extent of excessive proinflammatory signals. Hence, we believe that nasal sprays containing a low dosage of Type I and Type III IFNs not only represent a relevant COVID-19 therapeutic, but also a potential unknown modulatory therapy of the future. Of note, it has been indicated that IFN I and / or III display significant immunizing and early therapeutic effects for other viral evoked diseases like Influenza (Influenza (A)H1N1), rabies (Rabies lyssavirus), measles (Measles virus), rubella (Rubivirus rubellae), Hepatitis B, HIV-induced AIDS, Ebola, Marburg, as well as bacterial diseases, such as lower respiratory tract infectious diseases induced by Haemophilus influenzae, Streptococcus pneumoniae and Staphylococcus aureus, and a number of oncological diseases, like hepatic melanoma.

The pulsating flow is one of the techniques which can enhance heat transfer, therefore leading to energy saving in tubular heat exchangers. This paper investigates the heat transfer and flow characteristics in a two-dimensional in-line tube bundle with the pulsating flow by a numerical method using the Ansys Fluent. Numerical simulation is performed for Reynolds number Re = 500 with different frequencies and amplitude of pulsation. Heat transfer enhancement was estimated from the central tube of the tube bundle. Pulsation velocity had an asymmetrical character with a reciprocating flow. The technique developed by the authors to obtain asymmetric pulsations was used. This technique allows simulating an asymmetric flow in heat exchangers equipped with a pulsation generation system. Increase in both the amplitude and the frequency of the pulsations has a significant effect on heat transfer enhancement. Heat transfer enhancement is mainly observed in the front and back of the cylinder. At a steady flow in these areas, heat transfer is minimal due to the weak circulation of the flow. The increase in heat transfer in the front and back of the cylinder is associated with increased velocity and additional flow mixing in these areas.