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Journal articles on the topic 'FAQ RETRIEVAL SYSTEM'
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Thuma, Edwin, Moemedi Lefoane, and Gontlafetse Mosweunyane. "A review on the Detection of Missing Content Queries in FAQ Retrieval Systems." INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF COMPUTERS & TECHNOLOGY 16, no. 2 (April 7, 2017): 6203–6. http://dx.doi.org/10.24297/ijct.v16i2.5996.
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When developing an automated FAQ retrieval system, the information supplier constructs question candidates in advance using their own knowledge. Then they answer these question candidates to create question-answer pairs to use in the FAQ retrieval system. However, these question-answer pairs will not always satisfy the users’ information needs. When there is no relevant question–answer pair to a users’ query, such a user may submit various query reformulations browsing over the long results list and may abandon the search before their information need has been satisfied. Such users many never return to use the system again because of the inability of the system to return relevant question-answer pairs to their query. In order to alleviate this, modern automated FAQ retrieval systems use a Missing Content Query (MCQ) detection subsystem to detect those queries that do not have the relevant question–answer pair. In this article we conduct a review of the different approaches proposed in the literature for detecting these MCQs. In particular, we provide a comprehensive review of the different systems that deployed the binary classification approach, the thresholding approach and the hybrid approach in the detection of MCQs. Moreover, we describe the strength and weaknesses of each approach.
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Romero, M., A. Moreo, and J. L. Castro. "A cloud of FAQ: A highly-precise FAQ retrieval system for the Web 2.0." Knowledge-Based Systems 49 (September 2013): 81–96. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.knosys.2013.04.019.
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Ahn, Hyeokju, and Harksoo Kim. "Enhanced Spoken Sentence Retrieval Using a Conventional Automatic Speech Recognizer in Smart Home." International Journal on Artificial Intelligence Tools 25, no. 03 (June 2016): 1650017. http://dx.doi.org/10.1142/s0218213016500172.
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With the rapid evolution of smart home environment, the demand for spoken information retrieval (e.g., voice-activated FAQ retrieval) on information appliances is increasing. In spoken information retrieval, users’ spoken queries are converted into text queries using automatic speech recognition (ASR) engines. If top-1 results of the ASR engines are incorrect, the errors are propagated to information retrieval systems. If a document collection is a small set of sentences such as frequently asked questions (FAQs), the errors have additional effect on the performance of information retrieval systems. To improve the performance of such a sentence retrieval system, we propose a post-processing model of an ASR engine. The post-processing model consists of a re-ranking and a query term generation model. The re-ranking model rearranges top-n outputs of the ASR engines using the ranking support vector machine (Ranking SVM). The query term generation model extracts meaningful content words from the re-ranked queries based on term frequencies and query rankings. In the experiments, the re-ranking model improved the top-1 performance results of an underlying ASR engine with 4.4% higher precision and 6.4% higher recall rate. The query term generation model improved the performance results of an underlying information retrieval system with an accuracy 2.4% to 2.6% higher. Based on the experimental result, the proposed model revealed that it could improve the performance of a spoken sentence retrieval system in a restricted domain.
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Seo, Jaehyung, Taemin Lee, Hyeonseok Moon, Chanjun Park, Sugyeong Eo, Imatitikua D. Aiyanyo, Kinam Park, Aram So, Sungmin Ahn, and Jeongbae Park. "Dense-to-Question and Sparse-to-Answer: Hybrid Retriever System for Industrial Frequently Asked Questions." Mathematics 10, no. 8 (April 18, 2022): 1335. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/math10081335.
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The term “Frequently asked questions” (FAQ) refers to a query that is asked repeatedly and produces a manually constructed response. It is one of the most important factors influencing customer repurchase and brand loyalty; thus, most industry domains invest heavily in it. This has led to deep-learning-based retrieval models being studied. However, training a model and creating a database specializing in each industry domain comes at a high cost, especially when using a chatbot-based conversation system, as a large amount of resources must be continuously input for the FAQ system’s maintenance. It is also difficult for small- and medium-sized companies and national institutions to build individualized training data and databases and obtain satisfactory results. As a result, based on the deep learning information retrieval module, we propose a method of returning responses to customer inquiries using only data that can be easily obtained from companies. We hybridize dense embedding and sparse embedding in this work to make it more robust in professional terms, and we propose new functions to adjust the weight ratio and scale the results returned by the two modules.
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Kim, Harksoo, Hyunjung Lee, and Jungyun Seo. "A reliable FAQ retrieval system using a query log classification technique based on latent semantic analysis." Information Processing & Management 43, no. 2 (March 2007): 420–30. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.ipm.2006.07.018.
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He, Daqing, Zhendong Wang, Khushboo Thaker, and Ning Zou. "Translation and Expansion: Enabling Laypeople Access to the COVID-19 Academic Collection." Data and Information Management 4, no. 3 (July 9, 2020): 177–90. http://dx.doi.org/10.2478/dim-2020-0011.
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AbstractAcademic collections, such as COVID-19 Open Research Dataset (CORD-19), contain a large number of scholarly articles regarding COVID-19 and other related viruses. These articles represent the latest development in combating COVID-19 pandemic in various disciplines. However, it is difficult for laypeople to access these articles due to the term mismatch problem caused by their limited medical knowledge. In this article, we present an effort of helping laypeople to access the CORD-19 collection by translating and expanding laypeople's keywords to their corresponding medical terminology using the National Library of Medicine's Consumer Health Vocabulary. We then developed a retrieval system called Search engine for Laypeople to access the COVID-19 literature (SLAC) using open-source software. Utilizing Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's FAQ questions as the basis for developing common questions that laypeople could be interested in, we performed a set of experiments for testing the SLAC system and the translation and expansion (T&E) process. Our experiment results demonstrate that the T&E process indeed helped to overcome the term mismatch problem and mapped laypeople terms to the medical terms in the academic articles. But we also found that not all laypeople's search topics are meaningful to search on the CORD-19 collection. This indicates the scope and the limitation of enabling laypeople to search on academic article collection for obtaining high-quality information.
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Vaupel, Zachary, Erin A. Baker, Kevin C. Baker, Michael D. Kurdziel, and Paul T. Fortin. "Analysis of Retrieved Agility™ Total Ankle Arthroplasty Systems." Foot & Ankle International 30, no. 9 (September 2009): 815–23. http://dx.doi.org/10.3113/fai.2009.0815.
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Background: First generation total ankle arthroplasty (TAA) systems showed high rates of failure. The Agility™ (DePuy, Warsaw, IN) TAA system, a second generation design, had improved outcomes; however, implant failure due to loosening of the metallic components persisted. The purpose of this study was to analyze the damage modes and radiographic mode(s) of failure observed in retrieved Agility™ TAA. Materials and Methods: Ten devices were collected and each component was analyzed for common damage modes using microscopy. Clinical damage was analyzed with postoperative implant and preoperative revision procedure radiographs. Results: Analyses revealed damage/wear to retrieved components, including abrasion, dishing, and pitting. These third-body wear particles may be a precursor to wear debris induced osteolysis which could cause component loosening. Seven TAA systems were removed due to loosening or subsidence, suggesting component damage/wear may lead to clinically observed component loosening. Retrieval analysis indicated the polyethylene experiences edge loading, resulting in increased contact stresses to polyethylene in the primary articulation region and wear. Conclusion: Since poor clinical outcomes have been associated with component instability and osteolysis, analyzing retrieved components wear and damage may be an important step toward improving implant design, thereby decreasing wear debris induced osteolysis and improving clinical outcomes. Level of Evidence: IV, Case Series
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Moreo, A., E. M. Eisman, J. L. Castro, and J. M. Zurita. "Learning regular expressions to template-based FAQ retrieval systems." Knowledge-Based Systems 53 (November 2013): 108–28. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.knosys.2013.08.018.
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Moreo, A., M. Romero, J. L. Castro, and J. M. Zurita. "FAQtory: A framework to provide high-quality FAQ retrieval systems." Expert Systems with Applications 39, no. 14 (October 2012): 11525–34. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.eswa.2012.02.130.
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Belotti, Claudio, Flavio Barbara, Marco Barucci, Giovanni Bianchini, Francesco D'Amato, Samuele Del Bianco, Gianluca Di Natale, et al. "The Far-Infrared Radiation Mobile Observation System (FIRMOS) for spectral characterization of the atmospheric emission." Atmospheric Measurement Techniques 16, no. 10 (May 25, 2023): 2511–29. http://dx.doi.org/10.5194/amt-16-2511-2023.
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Abstract. The Far-Infrared Radiation Mobile Observation System (FIRMOS) is a Fourier transform spectroradiometer developed to support the Far-infrared Outgoing Radiation Understanding and Monitoring (FORUM) satellite mission by validating measurement methods and instrument design concepts, both in the laboratory and in field campaigns. FIRMOS is capable of measuring the downwelling spectral radiance emitted by the atmosphere in the spectral band from 100 to 1000 cm−1 (10–100 µm in wavelength), with a maximum spectral resolution of 0.25 cm−1. We describe the instrument design and its characterization and discuss the geophysical products obtained by inverting the atmospheric spectral radiance measured during a campaign from the high-altitude location of Mount Zugspitze in Germany, beside the Extended-range Atmospheric Emitted Radiance Interferometer (E-AERI), which is permanently installed at the site. Following the selection of clear-sky scenes, using a specific algorithm, the water vapour and temperature profiles were retrieved from the FIRMOS spectra by applying the Kyoto protocol and Informed Management of the Adaptation (KLIMA) code. The profiles were found in very good agreement with those provided by radiosondes and by the Raman lidar operating from the Zugspitze Schneefernerhaus station. In addition, the retrieval products were validated by comparing the retrieved integrated water vapour values with those obtained from the E-AERI spectra.
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Chung-Hsien Wu, Jui-Feng Yeh, and Yu-Sheng Lai. "Semantic segment extraction and matching for Internet FAQ retrieval." IEEE Transactions on Knowledge and Data Engineering 18, no. 7 (July 2006): 930–40. http://dx.doi.org/10.1109/tkde.2006.115.
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Wu, X., X. Zhang, and H. Lin. "RETRIEVAL OF MINERAL ABUNDANCES OF THE DELTA REGION IN EBERSWALDE, MARS." ISPRS - International Archives of the Photogrammetry, Remote Sensing and Spatial Information Sciences XLII-3/W1 (July 25, 2017): 171–76. http://dx.doi.org/10.5194/isprs-archives-xlii-3-w1-171-2017.
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Eberswalde Crater, a hotspot of Mars exploration, possesses an unambiguous hydrological system. However, little research has been performed on the large-scale mineral abundances retrieval in this region. Hence, we employed hyperspectral unmixing technology to quantitatively retrieve mineral abundances of the delta region in Eberswalde. In this paper, the single-scattering albedos were calculated by the Hapke bidirectional reflectance function from Compact Reconnaissance Imaging Spectrometer for Mars (CRISM) data (FRT000060DD) and CRISM spectral library respectively, and a sparse unmixing algorithm was adopted to quantitatively retrieve mineral abundances. The abundance maps show that there are six kinds of minerals (pyroxene, olivine, plagioclase, siderite, diaspore, and tremolite). By comparing minerals spectra obtained from images with corresponding spectra in spectral library, we found the similar trend in both curves. Besides, the mineral abundance maps derived in this study agree well spatially with CRISM parameter maps. From the perspective of mineralogy, the instability of pyroxene and olivine indicates the area in which they distribute is close to provenance, and the original provenance is ultrabasic rock (e.g. peridotite) and basic rock (e.g. gabbro), respectively. And minerals, existing in the area of alluvial fan, also distribute in the outside of alluvial fan, which might be caused by fluid transportation.
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K., Anitha, Radhika S., Kavitha C., Wen-Chen Lai, S. R. Srividhya, and Naresh K. "A Modified LBP Operator-Based Optimized Fuzzy Art Map Medical Image Retrieval System for Disease Diagnosis and Prediction." Biomedicines 10, no. 10 (September 29, 2022): 2438. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/biomedicines10102438.
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Medical records generated in hospitals are treasures for academic research and future references. Medical Image Retrieval (MIR) Systems contribute significantly to locating the relevant records required for a particular diagnosis, analysis, and treatment. An efficient classifier and effective indexing technique are required for the storage and retrieval of medical images. In this paper, a retrieval framework is formulated by adopting a modified Local Binary Pattern feature (AvN-LBP) for indexing and an optimized Fuzzy Art Map (FAM) for classifying and searching medical images. The proposed indexing method extracts LBP considering information from neighborhood pixels and is robust to background noise. The FAM network is optimized using the Differential Evaluation (DE) algorithm (DEFAMNet) with a modified mutation operation to minimize the size of the network without compromising the classification accuracy. The performance of the proposed DEFAMNet is compared with that of other classifiers and descriptors; the classification accuracy of the proposed AvN-LBP operator with DEFAMNet is higher. The experimental results on three benchmark medical image datasets provide evidence that the proposed framework classifies the medical images faster and more efficiently with lesser computational cost.
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Gursoy, Ayse, Karen Wickett, and Melanie Feinberg. "Understanding tag functions in a moderated, user-generated metadata ecosystem." Journal of Documentation 74, no. 3 (May 14, 2018): 490–508. http://dx.doi.org/10.1108/jd-09-2017-0134.
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Purpose The purpose of this paper is to investigate tag use in a metadata ecosystem that supports a fan work repository to identify functions of tags and explore the system as a co-constructed communicative context. Design/methodology/approach Using modified techniques from grounded theory (Charmaz, 2007), this paper integrates humanistic and social science methods to identify kinds of tag use in a rich setting. Findings Three primary roles of tags emerge out of detailed study of the metadata ecosystem: tags can identify elements in the fan work, tags can reflect on how those elements are used or adapted in the fan work, and finally, tags can express the fan author’s sense of her role in the discursive context of the fan work repository. Attending to each of the tag roles shifts focus away from just what tags say to include how they say it. Practical implications Instead of building metadata systems designed solely for retrieval or description, this research suggests that it may be fruitful to build systems that recognize various metadata functions and allow for expressivity. This research also suggests that attending to metadata previously considered unusable in systems may reflect the participants’ sense of the system and their role within it. Originality/value In addition to accommodating a wider range of tag functions, this research implies consideration of metadata ecosystems, where different kinds of tags do different things and work together to create a multifaceted artifact.
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Peng, Huaiyue, Maria Pilar Cendrero-Mateo, Juliane Bendig, Bastian Siegmann, Kelvin Acebron, Caspar Kneer, Kari Kataja, Onno Muller, and Uwe Rascher. "HyScreen: A Ground-Based Imaging System for High-Resolution Red and Far-Red Solar-Induced Chlorophyll Fluorescence." Sensors 22, no. 23 (December 2, 2022): 9443. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/s22239443.
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Solar-induced chlorophyll fluorescence (SIF) is used as a proxy of photosynthetic efficiency. However, interpreting top-of-canopy (TOC) SIF in relation to photosynthesis remains challenging due to the distortion introduced by the canopy’s structural effects (i.e., fluorescence re-absorption, sunlit-shaded leaves, etc.) and sun–canopy–sensor geometry (i.e., direct radiation infilling). Therefore, ground-based, high-spatial-resolution data sets are needed to characterize the described effects and to be able to downscale TOC SIF to the leafs where the photosynthetic processes are taking place. We herein introduce HyScreen, a ground-based push-broom hyperspectral imaging system designed to measure red (F687) and far-red (F760) SIF and vegetation indices from TOC with single-leaf spatial resolution. This paper presents measurement protocols, the data processing chain and a case study of SIF retrieval. Raw data from two imaging sensors were processed to top-of-canopy radiance by dark-current correction, radiometric calibration, and empirical line correction. In the next step, the improved Fraunhofer line descrimination (iFLD) and spectral-fitting method (SFM) were used for SIF retrieval, and vegetation indices were calculated. With the developed protocol and data processing chain, we estimated a signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) between 50 and 200 from reference panels with reflectance from 5% to 95% and noise equivalent radiance (NER) of 0.04 (5%) to 0.18 (95%) mW m−2 sr−1 nm−1. The results from the case study showed that non-vegetation targets had SIF values close to 0 mW m−2 sr−1 nm−1, whereas vegetation targets had a mean F687 of 1.13 and F760 of 1.96 mW m−2 sr−1 nm−1 from the SFM method. HyScreen showed good performance for SIF retrievals at both F687 and F760; nevertheless, we recommend further adaptations to correct for the effects of noise, varying illumination and sensor optics. In conclusion, due to its high spatial resolution, Hyscreen is a promising tool for investigating the relationship between leafs and TOC SIF as well as their relationship with plants’ photosynthetic capacity.
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Huh, Soon-Young, Kae-Hyun Moon, and Jinsoo Park. "An Integrated Query Relaxation Approach Adopting Data Abstraction and Fuzzy Relation." Journal of Database Management 21, no. 4 (October 2010): 35–59. http://dx.doi.org/10.4018/jdm.2010100103.
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This paper proposes a cooperative query answering approach that relaxes query conditions to provide approximate answers by utilizing similarity relationships between data values. The proposed fuzzy abstraction hierarchy (FAH) represents a similarity relationship based on the integrated notion of data abstraction and fuzzy relations. Based on FAH, the authors develop query relaxation operators like query generalization, approximation, and specialization of a value. Compared with existing approaches, FAH supports more effective information retrieval by processing various kinds of cooperative queries through elaborate relaxation control and providing ranked query results according to fitness scores. Moreover, FAH reduces maintenance cost by decreasing the number of similarity relationships to be managed.
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Kim, Harksoo, and Jungyun Seo. "High-performance FAQ retrieval using an automatic clustering method of query logs." Information Processing & Management 42, no. 3 (May 2006): 650–61. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.ipm.2005.04.002.
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Bazhenov, Sergey R., Natalya A. Balutkina, Vera P. Korzh, and Natalya Y. Lomega. "Sustainable development of Siberian and Far Eastern nature and society: analysis of document flow based on electronic collection of SPSTL SB RAS." Vestnik Tomskogo gosudarstvennogo universiteta. Kul'turologiya i iskusstvovedenie, no. 47 (2022): 5–17. http://dx.doi.org/10.17223/22220836/47/1.
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“Living substance is biosphere's driving force whom main activity type is biogeochemical work in biosphere”. Biosphere development problems came up in twentieth century. Conception of sustainable development as translational headway which provides with society rational needs and conservation of environment state for future generations was accepted in 1922 at UN international conference, Rio de Janeiro. In Russia in 1992 were issued presidential decree № 236 and government decree № 217-r. In SPSTL SB RAS creation of bibliographical database of society and nature sustainable development started in 1997 due to theme actuality and large amount of scientific researches in Russia and in the world entirely. Since 2011 it is introduced in “Scientific Sibirica” database as a topic section. Deposit copies and public access scientific publications are the main database information sources. To cover all theme aspects literature selection and systematization methods and documents analytical processing structure were set up. State Classifier of Scientific and Technical information, not normative key words and thematic classifier are used as language support. Thematic classifier reflects main civilization problems represented in SB RAS research establishments priority areas of activity: general issues (historical, philosophical, law, informational), social and ecological issues, economical issues of sustainable development. Analysis of database information since 1998 to 2017 showed up next points: • reflection of social processes in data store by focus on particular sustainable development directions. • topic actuality. Annual large stock of publications (8700 documents averagely) which are highly dissipated (1236 periodicals (39%) and 5899 scientific events materials (35%) are represented by only one publication). • prevalence of scientific publications for: 13623 symposiums, seminars, conferences (81%); 605 productive Russian journals included in scientometrical systems; 448 (43%) productive Russian journals included in State Commission for Academic Degrees and Titles list. • various access levels of articles full texts: on electronic scientific library (E-library.ru) 531 (68%) productive Russian journals are at free access, the others may be viewed only directly from library or by subscription; on E-library and in Open Access systems materials of symposiums, conferences and seminars are partly accessible and temporarily published on the Internet. In the interest of specialists' and scientists' time economy they receive information by selective dissemination of information system since 1997. Since 1998 information is available by WEB-oriented information retrieval system of SPSTL SB RAS which includes optimized set of retrieval parameters; retrieval by all resources or by some certain resources; various retrieval modes; retrieval result improvement by retrieval vocabulary or hyperlinks in publications description; retrieval result saving in common formats; retrieval request saving and edition; subscription on new arrivals by e-mail; access to information by retrieval result (publications full texts browsing, print media order). From 2019 new WEB-oriented IRS will be supplemented by: full-text retrieval, retrieval by natural language phrase; faceted navigation; various access rights and full texts references registration and other options. Bibliographical resources in-formational opportunities will extend as 22655 documents (17%) from “Sustainable development of society and nature” section of “Scientific Siberica” database already have links on their full text (publications having DOI, publications on CD-ROM; publications in the public domain; published scientific events materials which arrive at libraries in printed format). For Internet-oriented customers on the web-site there are: topic sector description allowing switch to WEB IRS; virtual literature collections are represented (in xml-format) allowing full texts browsing and switch to WEB IRS. There is another advanced research direction -semantic WEB projects based on authority files of authors, personalities, organizations, subject and geographical headings. Update of “Scientific Siberica” bibliographical database and specially “Sustainable development of society and nature” section is directed at next points: documents analytic processing extension; functional files of authors, personalities, organizations, subject and geographical headings authority setting up; links on opened fulltext Internet resources addition; user interface development in WEB IRS and on the SPSTL SB RAS web-site.
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Ramos, Zaqueu, and Aron Simis. "Homaloidal nets and ideals of fat points II: Subhomaloidal nets." International Journal of Algebra and Computation 27, no. 06 (September 2017): 677–715. http://dx.doi.org/10.1142/s0218196717500333.
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This work is a natural sequel to a previous paper by the authors in that it tackles problems of the same nature. Here, one aims at the ideal theoretic and homological properties of an ideal of general plane fat points for which the corresponding second symbolic power has virtual multiplicities of a proper homaloidal type. For this purpose, one carries a detailed examination of the underlying linear system at the initial degree, where a good deal of the results depends on the method of the classical arithmetic quadratic transformations of Hudson–Nagata. A subsidiary guide to understand these ideals through their initial linear systems has been supplied by questions of birationality with source [Formula: see text] and target higher dimensional spaces. This leads, in particular, to the retrieval of birational maps studied by Geramita–Gimigliano–Pitteloud, including a few of the celebrated Bordiga–White parameterizations.
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Santos, José, Luís Duarte, João Ferreira, Ana Alves, and Hugo Gonçalo Oliveira. "Developing Amaia: A Conversational Agent for Helping Portuguese Entrepreneurs—An Extensive Exploration of Question-Matching Approaches for Portuguese." Information 11, no. 9 (September 1, 2020): 428. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/info11090428.
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This paper describes how we tackled the development of Amaia, a conversational agent for Portuguese entrepreneurs. After introducing the domain corpus used as Amaia’s Knowledge Base (KB), we make an extensive comparison of approaches for automatically matching user requests with Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) in the KB, covering Information Retrieval (IR), approaches based on static and contextual word embeddings, and a model of Semantic Textual Similarity (STS) trained for Portuguese, which achieved the best performance. We further describe how we decreased the model’s complexity and improved scalability, with minimal impact on performance. In the end, Amaia combines an IR library and an STS model with reduced features. Towards a more human-like behavior, Amaia can also answer out-of-domain questions, based on a second corpus integrated in the KB. Such interactions are identified with a text classifier, also described in the paper.
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Trappey, Amy J. C., Charles V. Trappey, Min-Hua Chao, Nan-Jun Hong, and Chun-Ting Wu. "A VR-Enabled Chatbot Supporting Design and Manufacturing of Large and Complex Power Transformers." Electronics 11, no. 1 (December 28, 2021): 87. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/electronics11010087.
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Virtual reality (VR) immersive technology allows users to experience enhanced reality using human–computer interfaces (HCI). Many systems have implemented VR with improved HCI to provide strategic market advantages for industry and engineering applications. An intelligent chatbot is a conversational system capable of natural language communication allowing users to ask questions and receive answers online to enhance customer services. This research develops and implements a system framework for a VR-enabled large industrial power transformer mass-customization chatbot. The research collected 1272 frequently asked questions (FAQs) from a power transformer manufacturers’ knowledge base that is used for question matching and answer retrieval. More than 1.2 million Wikipedia engineering pages were used to train a word-embedding model for natural language understanding of question intent. The complex engineering questions and answers are integrated with an immersive VR computer human interface. The system enables users to ask questions and receive explicit and detailed answers combined with 3D immersive images of industrial sized power transformer assemblies. The user interfaces can be projected into the VR headwear or computer screen and manipulated with a controller. The unique immersive VR consultation chatbot system is to support real-time design consultation for the design and manufacturing of complex power transformers.
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Kim, T. E., W. M. Chung, and B. S. Lim. "Design parameters of high rate algal ponds using filamentous algae matrix for treating rural stream water." Water Science and Technology 46, no. 11-12 (December 1, 2002): 159–64. http://dx.doi.org/10.2166/wst.2002.0732.
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High rate algal ponds (HRAP) with a filamentous algae matrix (FAM) as the predominant species, were operated to evaluate the characteristics of FAM and the basic design parameters for treating polluted rural stream water. The porous and gelatinous FAM was formed like a sponge, which functions to prevent excessive loss of the algae in the effluent and can easily be retrieved from the ponds. The organic fraction of harvested FAM was about 88%, which is suitable for use as fertilizer. The HRAP system using FAM was found to be an effective nutrient removal process not requiring any artificial carbon sources for nitrification. At HRT 4 days, the T-N and T-P removal efficiencies were 85.9% and 65.8%, respectively. When the pH and water temperature were maintained above 9 and 15°C, HRT required for achieving a 70% T-N removal efficiency could be reduced by about 3 days. The oxygen production rate by FAM was calculated as 1.45 mgO2/L/m2. The design surface area of HRAP needed per rural inhabitant was about 2.72 m2.
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Colbourne, Frederick, Dale Corbett, Zonghang Zhao, Jing Yang, and Alastair M. Buchan. "Prolonged but Delayed Postischemic Hypothermia: A Long-term Outcome Study in the Rat Middle Cerebral Artery Occlusion Model." Journal of Cerebral Blood Flow & Metabolism 20, no. 12 (December 2000): 1702–8. http://dx.doi.org/10.1097/00004647-200012000-00009.
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Delayed but prolonged hypothermia persistently decreases cell death and functional deficits after global cerebral ischemia in rodents. Postischemic hypothermia also reduces infarction after middle cerebral artery occlusion (MCAO) in rat. Because initial neuroprotection is sometimes transient and may not subserve functional recovery, especially on demanding tasks, the authors examined whether postischemic cooling would persistently reduce infarction and forelimb reaching deficits after MCAO. Male spontaneously hypertensive rats were trained to retrieve food pellets in a staircase test that measures independent forelimb reaching ability. Later, rats underwent 90 minutes of normothermic MCAO, through a microclip, or sham operation. In some rats, prolonged cooling (33°C for 24 hours and then 35°C for 24 hours) began 2.5 hours after the onset of ischemia (60 minutes after the start of reperfusion; n = 17 with subsequently 1 death) or sham procedures (n = 4), whereas untreated sham (n = 4) and ischemic (n = 16 with subsequently 1 death) rats maintained normothermia. An indwelling abdominal probe continually measured core temperature, and an automated fan and water spray system was used to produce hypothermia. One month later rats were reassessed in the staircase test over five days and then killed. The contralateral limb impairment in food pellet retrieval was completely prevented by hypothermia ( P = 0.0001). Hypothermia reduced an infarct volume of 67.5 mm3 after untreated ischemia to 35.8 mm3 ( P < 0.0001). These findings of persistent benefit encourage the clinical assessment of hypothermia.
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Rasmussen Pennington, Diane. "“The most passionate cover I’ve seen”: emotional information in fan-created U2 music videos." Journal of Documentation 72, no. 3 (May 9, 2016): 569–90. http://dx.doi.org/10.1108/jd-07-2015-0086.
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Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to explore how both producers and consumers of user-created music videos on YouTube communicate emotional information. Design/methodology/approach – In total, 150 filmic documents containing fan-generated versions of U2’s “Song for Someone” were purposively collected. The author used discourse analysis to understand the types of videos created, the communication of emotional information from both the producers and the consumers, the social construction of emotion in the filmic documents, and elements of intertextuality that represented emotion. Findings – Fans created videos containing cover versions, original versions of the song with new visual content, and tutorials about how to play the song. Producers of cover versions communicated emotional information, especially tenderness, through facial expression, their surroundings, and corresponding musical elements. Producers’ visual content expressed emotion through meaningful photographs and sad stories. Producers’ descriptions revealed emotion as well. Emotions were individually experienced and socially constructed. Consumers conveyed emotion through likes, dislikes, and expressive positive comments. Intertextuality communicated passion for U2 through tour references, paraphernalia displays, band photographs, imitating the band, and musical mashups. Practical implications – Information science can work towards a new generation of multimedia information retrieval systems that incorporate emotion in order to help users discover documents in meaningful ways that move beyond keyword and bibliographic searches. Originality/value – This is one of the earliest research papers in the area of emotional information retrieval (EmIR).
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Kumar V, Hemanth, and Padma Priya D. "An IoT based Automatic Room Temperature and Health Monitoring System." International Journal of Engineering and Advanced Technology 11, no. 6 (August 30, 2022): 1–4. http://dx.doi.org/10.35940/ijeat.f3649.0811622.
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There are so many tasks being automated nowadays. Likewise, the automatic room temperature and health monitoring system is a process to monitor heart beats using pulse sensor and the body temperature of patient. [3] There is also an automated operation to control the room temperature by closing and opening of windows in old age homes, hospitals, factories, etc. [5] Using IoT the heart beat of patent is monitored, room temperature and patient's body temperature is continuously monitored. [6] The temperature can also be adjusted accordingly. These features can also be manually controlled through a mobile application from anywhere. As the data's are gathered and uploaded to a server the temperature of a closed environment can be easily retrieved. The appliances that are connected like fan and air conditioner will automatically adjust to the temperature [1] in and out of the room according to the patient's body. Thus, this project helps us to control the room (closed environment) temperature without manpower. [1]
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Corker, Kevin M. "Cognitive Performance for Multiple Operators in Complex Dynamic Airspace Systems: Computational Representation and Empirical Analyses." Proceedings of the Human Factors and Ergonomics Society Annual Meeting 42, no. 3 (October 1998): 341–45. http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/154193129804200334.
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This paper presents a set of studies in full mission simulation and the development of a predictive computational model of human performance in control of complex airspace operations. NASA and the FAA have initiated programs of research and development to provide flight crew, airline operations and air traffic managers with automation aids to increase capacity in enroute and terminal area to support the goals of safe, flexible, predictable and efficient operations. In support of these developments, we present a computational model to aid design that includes representation of multiple cognitive agents (both human operators and intelligent aiding systems). The demands of air traffic management require representation of many intelligent agents sharing world-models, coordinating action/intention, and scheduling goals and actions in a potentially unpredictable world of operations. The operator-model structure includes attention functions, action priority, and situation assessment. The cognitive model has been expanded to include working memory operations including retrieval from long-term store, and interference. The operator's activity structures have been developed to provide for anticipation through knowledge of the intention and action of remote operators. System stability and operator actions can be predicted by using the model. The model's predictive accuracy was verified using the full-mission simulation data of commercial flight deck operations with advanced air traffic management techniques.
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Tulving, Endel. "Episodic memory and common sense: how far apart?" Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society of London. Series B: Biological Sciences 356, no. 1413 (September 29, 2001): 1505–15. http://dx.doi.org/10.1098/rstb.2001.0937.
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Research has revealed facts about human memory in general and episodic memory in particular that deviate from both common sense and previously accepted ideas. This paper discusses some of these deviations in light of the proceedings of The Royal Society's Discussion Meeting on episodic memory. Retrieval processes play a more critical role in memory than commonly assumed; people can remember events that never happened; and conscious thoughts about one's personal past can take two distinct forms—‘autonoetic’ remembering and ‘noetic’ knowing. The serial—dependent—independent (SPI) model of the relations among episodic, semantic and perceptual memory systems accounts for a number of puzzling phenomena, such as some amnesic patients' preserved recognition memory and their ability to learn new semantic facts, and holds that episodic remembering of perceptual information can occur only by virtue of its mediation through semantic memory. Although common sense endows many animals with the ability to remember their past experiences, as yet there is no evidence that humanlike episodic memory—defined in terms of subjective time, self, and autonoetic awareness—is present in any other species.
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Kim, Jongmin, Youngryel Ryu, and Benjamin Dechant. "Development of a filter-based near-surface remote sensing system to retrieve far-red sun-induced chlorophyll fluorescence." Remote Sensing of Environment 283 (December 2022): 113311. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.rse.2022.113311.
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Driesen, P. M. "Quantified land evaluation (QLE) procedures, a new tool for land-use planning." Netherlands Journal of Agricultural Science 34, no. 3 (August 1, 1986): 295–300. http://dx.doi.org/10.18174/njas.v34i3.16783.
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Qantified Land Evaluation (QLE) procedures have been developed by the Centre for World Food Studies in Amsterdam to assist planners to devise better development strategies which aim at sustainable agricultural production. They use concepts as defined in the FAO Framework on Land Evaluation (1976). Land evaluation is shown to concern not only the technical aspects of agricultural production but also the socioeconomic, political and other conditions under which production takes place in existing or projected land use systems. The QLE approach presented is part of a much wider analytical framework that supports the development of national food policies. The paper discusses the following factors as related to the new procedure: the production situation, the simulation procedure, regional analysis, and application of quantified land evaluation procedures. (Abstract retrieved from CAB Abstracts by CABI’s permission)
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SMITZ, Johan E. J. "IVM: What are the RCTs Telling Us So Far?" Fertility & Reproduction 04, no. 03n04 (September 2022): 118. http://dx.doi.org/10.1142/s2661318222740309.
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Background: In Vitro Maturation (IVM) is a Assisted Reproduction Technology (ART) widely applied in livestock breeding, first attempted in human in the early nineties. While very successful in animals, the IVM technology has so-far not been widely adopted in human ART. The variation in IVM applications are mainly based on the use of gonadotrophins (FSH and/or HCG-trigger before oocyte collection) by the patient. The choice of the laboratory IVM protocols is dictated by the clinical preparation of the patient for oocyte pick-up. In this lecture the use of GV oocytes from fully stimulated cycles (“rescue IVM”) will not be considered. Aim: Summarize the learning from published clinical IVM studies in human from recent years, with a focus on the few randomized control trials (RCT). Method: Review by Pubmed search. Results: So far, the use of HCG administration before oocyte retrieval has been used by most ART centers, which adopted IVM (often in combination with few days of FSH, which makes it a ‘truncated IVF’). The largest series of latter kind (in 921 PCOS patients was reported by Ho et al. 2018) and yielded a 33.4% cumulative live birth rate over 12 months after 1 cycle. However available Cochrane review found no conclusive evidence for a positive role of HCG on number of retrieved or matured oocytes, nor on clinical outcome results. The role of FSH priming is proven in animal IVM studies, but clinically yet unproven in human IVM. The latest studies from Vuong L et al. (2020) applied as low as 150 IU HP-HMG for 2 days to aspirate a sufficient number of cumulus oocyte complexes (COC; 42 hours after the last FSH dose) to vitrify sufficient embryos of excellent quality for deferred transfer. A next RCTs in 351 PCOS patients was announced to evaluate the clinical requirement of FSH (Zheng X et al., 2020), however those results are still not published. Recent clinical data focused on the use of biphasic IVM culture systems in order to be capable of maturing COC from follicles smaller than 6 mm. After minimal FSH (300 IU total dose) and omission of HCG the large majority (>80%) of compacted COC are aspirated from smaller than 6 mm follicles (Sanchez et al., 2019). Using the biphasic IVM culture principle (called ‘capacitation IVM’) several RCTs have been conducted to prove its superiority over ‘standard IVM’ in PCOS and ovarian tissue COC onco-fertility practice (Vuong L et al., 2020; Kirilova A et al., 2021). The CAPA-IVM culture method showed its potential compared to classical IVF standard of care in PCOM patients in a large non-inferiority RCT (546 patients): live birth rate after the first deferred transfer after Capa-IVM was 35% and conventional IVF 43%. After having observed low clinical pregnancies after non-HCG IVM (DeVos et al., 2011; Walls et al., 2015), additional small RCTs have confirmed the advantage of frozen vs fresh embryo transfer after CAPA-IVM (Vuong et al., 2021). Conclusion: Recent developments of IVM have been validated in few RCTs and IVM has been recently declared non-experimental after an extensive analysis of currently available data (ASRM Opinion paper published in 2021). The development of adequate culture media improves developmental capacity prior to meiotic maturation and brings the clinical results very close to the level of conventional IVF. The improved safety, the hugely simplified clinical approach and reduced cost structure could enhance access to ART across the globe for economically defavorised infertile couples.
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Putri, Arum Sekar Purwono, and Fattah Hanurawan. "Hubungan Antara Sikap Terhadap Sistem Zonasi PPDB fan Motivasi Berprestasi Siswa SMPN 2 Wagir." Flourishing Journal 1, no. 1 (June 17, 2021): 47–54. http://dx.doi.org/10.17977/um070v1i12021p47-54.
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Abstract: The objectives of this study include: (1) to describe the attitudes of SMP 2 Wagir students towards the PPDB zoning system (2) to determine the description of the achievement motivation of SMPN 2 Wagir students regarding the implementation of the PPDB zoning system (3) to determine the relationship between attitudes towards the PPDB zoning system and achievement motivation in students of SMP 2 Wagir. This research uses a quantitative approach with descriptive correlational research. The population of this research is 546 students. The sampling technique used was random sampling so that the research subjects were 82 students at SMPN 2 Wagir. Subject data retrieval is done through the distribution of google forms. The instrument used was a scale of attitudes and a scale of achievement motivation with reliability of 0.849 and 0.910, respectively. The results showed that (a) students of SMPN 2 Wagir have a positive attitude towards the PPDB zoning system by 67 percent (b) SMP 2 Wagir students have high achievement motivation by 73 percent (c) there is a relationship between attitudes towards the PPDB zoning system and achievement motivation students of SMP 2 Wagir. The value obtained from the hypothesis test analysis is 0.644 with a significant level of 0.000.
Keywords: Attitudes towards the zoning system, achievement motivation, students of SMP 2 Wagir
Abstrak: Tujuan dari penelitian ini meliputi: (1) untuk mengetahui gambaran sikap siswa SMPN 2 Wagir terhadap sistem zonasi PPDB (2) untuk mengetahui gambaran motivasi berprestasi siswa SMPN 2 Wagir terkait penerapan sistem zonasi PPDB (3) untuk mengetahui hubungan antara sikap terhadap sistem zonasi PPDB dan motivasi berprestasi pada siswa SMPN 2 Wagir. Penelitian ini menggunakan pendekatan kuantitatif dengan jenis penelitian deskriptif korelasional. Populasi penelitian ini berjumlah 546 siswa. Teknik sampling yang digunakan yaitu random sampling sehingga didapatkan subjek penelitian sebanyak 82 siswa di SMPN 2 Wagir. Pengambilan data subjek dilakukan melalui penyebaran google form. Instrumen yang digunakan berupa skala sikap dan skala motivasi berprestasi dengan masing-masing reliabilitas 0,849 serta 0,910. Hasil penelitian menunjukkan bahwa (a) siswa SMPN 2 Wagir secara memiliki sikap terhadap sistem zonasi PPDB positif sebesar 67 persen (b) siswa SMPN 2 Wagir memiliki motivasi berprestasi tinggi sebesar 73 persen (c) terdapat hubungan antara sikap terhadap sistem zonasi PPDB dan motivasi berprestasi siswa SMPN 2 Wagir. Nilai yang didapatkan dari analisis uji hipotesis sebesar 0,644 dengan taraf signifikan sebesar 0,000.
Kata kunci: Sikap terhadap sistem zonasi, motivasi berprestasi, siswa SMPN 2 Wagir
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Maulana, Tajri, Teuku Azuar Rizal, and Nazaruddin. "Rancang Bangun dan Evaluasi Kinerja Kotak Pendingin Berbasis Termoelektrik." JURUTERA - Jurnal Umum Teknik Terapan 8, no. 01 (June 30, 2021): 1–10. http://dx.doi.org/10.55377/jurutera.v8i01.4473.
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The cooler is one of the necessities for humans to store food, drinks, vegetables, fruit, meat and so on. Refrigeration systems that are commonly used today use refrigerants or freon/CFC (Chlor Fluoro Carbon) which are less environmentally friendly and expensive. To meet the need for cheap and environmentally friendly refrigerators, an alternative cooler is needed. One alternative refrigerant that has been widely used today is thermoelectric. The power source is from an adapter with an output voltage of 12V – 36V DC6A. Peltier Is a Thermo-Electric Module. This component is coated by a thin ceramic that contains Bismuth Telluride rods in it. When the DC supply voltage is 12volt-15volt and current is 2-5A. The cooling room material is Styrofoam, with a heat sink in the form of a heat sink fan. Variations are made on the amount of thermoelectric used. Data retrieval is done by installing a voltmeter, ammeter and thermocouple in a predetermined position then each measuring instrument will display the data. The data is then processed using the Microsoft Excel program which can produce graphs. With a graphic form, discussion and conclusion can be done easily.
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Papadavid, G., D. Hadjimitsis, S. Michaelides, and A. Nisantzi. "Crop evapotranspiration estimation using remote sensing and the existing network of meteorological stations in Cyprus." Advances in Geosciences 30 (May 9, 2011): 39–44. http://dx.doi.org/10.5194/adgeo-30-39-2011.
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Abstract. Cyprus is frequently confronted with severe droughts and the need for accurate and systematic data on crop evapotranspiration (ETc) is essential for decision making, regarding water irrigation management and scheduling. The aim of this paper is to highlight how data from meteorological stations in Cyprus can be used for monitoring and determining the country's irrigation demands. This paper shows how daily ETc can be estimated using FAO Penman-Monteith method adapted to satellite data and auxiliary meteorological parameters. This method is widely used in many countries for estimating crop evapotranspiration using auxiliary meteorological data (maximum and minimum temperatures, relative humidity, wind speed) as inputs. Two case studies were selected in order to determine evapotranspiration using meteorological and low resolution satellite data (MODIS – TERRA) and to compare it with the results of the reference method (FAO-56) which estimates the reference evapotranspiration (ETo) by using only meteorological data. The first approach corresponds to the FAO Penman-Monteith method adapted for using both meteorological and remotely sensed data. Furthermore, main automatic meteorological stations in Cyprus were mapped using Geographical Information System (GIS). All the agricultural areas of the island were categorized according to the nearest meteorological station which is considered as "representative" of the area. Thiessen polygons methodology was used for this purpose. The intended goal was to illustrate what can happen to a crop, in terms of water requirements, if meteorological data are retrieved from other than the representative stations. The use of inaccurate data can result in low yields or excessive irrigation which both lead to profit reduction. The results have shown that if inappropriate meteorological data are utilized, then deviations from correct ETc might be obtained, leading to water losses or crop water stress.
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Yang, Mingyang, Xuewu Fan, Yuming Wang, and Hui Zhao. "Experimental Study on the Exploration of Camera Scanning Reflective Fourier Ptychography Technology for Far-Field Imaging." Remote Sensing 14, no. 9 (May 8, 2022): 2264. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/rs14092264.
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Fourier ptychography imaging is a powerful phase retrieval method that can be used to realize super-resolution. In this study, we establish a mathematical model of long-distance camera scanning based on reflective Fourier ptychography imaging. In order to guarantee the effective recovery of a high-resolution image in the experiment, we analyze the influence of laser coherence in different modes and the surface properties of diverse materials for diffused targets. For the analysis, we choose a single-mode fiber laser as the illumination source and metal materials with high diffused reflectivity as the experimental targets to ensure the validity of the experimental results. Based on the above, we emulate camera scanning with a single camera attached to an X-Y translation stage, and an experimental system with a working distance of 3310 mm is used as an example to image a fifty-cent coin. We also perform speckle analysis for rough targets and calculate the average speckle size using a normalized autocorrelation function in different positions. The method of calculating the average speckle size for everyday objects provides the premise for subsequent research on image quality evaluation; meanwhile, the coherence of the light field and the targets with high reflectivity under this experiment provide an application direction for the further development of the technique, such as computer vision, surveillance and remote sensing.
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Furgiuele, Alessia, Marco Cosentino, Marco Ferrari, and Franca Marino. "Immunomodulatory Potential of Cannabidiol in Multiple Sclerosis: a Systematic Review." Journal of Neuroimmune Pharmacology 16, no. 2 (January 25, 2021): 251–69. http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s11481-021-09982-7.
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AbstractMultiple sclerosis (MS) is the most common chronic autoimmune disease of the central nervous system. Efficacy of treatments for MS is associated with risk of adverse effects, and effective and well-tolerated drugs remain a major unmet need. Cannabis (Cannabis sativa L., fam. Cannabaceae) and cannabinoids are popular among MS patients to treat spasticity and pain. Cannabinoids are endowed with remarkable immunomodulating properties, and in particular the non-psychotropic cannabinoid cannabidiol (CBD) is increasingly recognized as anti-inflammatory and immunosuppressive, nevertheless with excellent tolerability even at high doses. In this systematic review, we retrieved and critically evaluated available evidence regarding the immune and disease-modifying effects of CBD in experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis (EAE) and in MS. Evidence in rodent models of EAE strongly supports CBD as effective, while clinical evidence is still limited and usually negative, due to paucity of studies and possibly to the use of suboptimal dosing regimens. Better characterization of targets acted upon by CBD in MS should be obtained in ex vivo/in vitro studies in human immune cells, and higher doses should be tested in well-designed clinical trials with clinically relevant efficacy endpoints.
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Batista, A., C. Loureiro, J. Domingues, J. S. Silva, and A. M. Morgado. "Corneal Metabolic State Assessment by Fluorescence Lifetime Imaging Microscopy." Microscopy and Microanalysis 19, S4 (August 2013): 7–8. http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/s1431927613000652.
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A long time objective of ophthalmologists is to diagnose corneal cells dysfunction prior to its pathologic expression. With this motivation, we are currently developing a new instrument for in vivo metabolic imaging of corneal tissues.Metabolic alterations are known to be the first sign of several corneal pathologies and can be assessed through non-invasive monitoring of metabolic co-factors flavin adenine dinucleotide (FAD) and nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NADH). The quantification of the relative proportions between free and protein-bound NADH and FAD can be achieved using fluorescence lifetime-resolved methods. This approach has already been applied in age-related macular degeneration, diabetic retinopathy and epithelial cancer.FAD and NADH imaging can be performed by one-photon excitation (1PE) and two-photon excitation (2PE) techniques. The latest has the advantage of allowing simultaneous excitation of both metabolic co-factors. However, there are still safety concerns when considering in vivo ocular studies in humans using 2PE.Due to these concerns we used, as a first approach, a 1PE system for evaluating the feasibility of corneal FAD imaging. The use of FAD has advantages over NADH. It can be excited over longer excitation wavelengths, is more resistant to photo-bleaching and is located exclusively in the mitochondrial space.A PicoQuant MicroTime 100 (PicoQuant GmbH, Berlin, Germany) coupled to an Olympus BX51 Microscope (Olympus Corporation, Tokyo, Japan) was used to monitor FAD autofluorescence. The instrument uses a 440 nm pulsed diode laser (330 ps) running at a pulse rate of 40 MHz. The instrument was modified by us to allow the acquisition of both fluorescence lifetime and reflectance images and to enhance scattered light rejection.Intensity decay curves were processed with SymPhoTime v5.3 Software (PicoQuant GmbH, Berlin, Germany). The fluorescence decay times were obtained after applying a non-linear least square fit to the decay data and the goodness of fit was evaluated by the analysis of the residuals and the chi-squared (χ2).We have acquired fluorescence lifetime images of ex vivo healthy Wistar rat corneas (Fig.1) using two different instrument setups: 1- using the emission filters provided by the manufacturer; 2- placing extra emission filters to fully reject the scattered excitation light. In both setups, FAD fluorescence data presented a bi-exponential decay with a short (protein-bound FAD) and a longer (free FAD) lifetime component.While both setups provide FAD fluorescence decays, only the second retrieves valid metabolic information. We obtained two lifetime components, one of 0.118 (0.028) ns and another of 2.11 (0.16) ns, with a relative contributions of 39.4 (2.2) and 60.6 (2.2), respectively. These values are in accordance with the literature.Corneal layer discrimination is possible based on morphologic characteristics. However, the fluorescence lifetime images do not provide morphological detail (Fig.1), possibly because FAD is only present in the mitochondria. These organelles are small and tend to accumulate around the nuclei.So, we modified the instrument’s optical setup to allow the acquisition of both fluorescence lifetime images and reflectance images. Figure 2 shows an example of the corneal epithelial layer.The image resolution and depth penetration are still not ideal. Since the assessment of corneal endothelial layer metabolic function is also within our goals, we are currently implementing further modifications to improve both the instrument’s resolution and depth penetration.The characterization of FAD fluorescence lifetime in unhealthy corneas is important to detect corneal dysfunctions prior to its pathologic expression. Therefore, we intend to study metabolic altered Wistar rat corneas. The alterations will be induced by potassium cyanide, which is a reversible inhibitor of the fourth complex of the mitochondrial electron transport chain.Financial support received from the Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia under the research projects PTDC/SAU-BEB/104183/2008 and PTDC/SAU-ENB/122128/2010.
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Karamanos, Theodosios, Stamatis A. Amanatiadis, Theodoros Zygiridis, and Nikolaos V. Kantartzis. "Quadrupolarisability extraction for planar metamaterial scatterers via far-field response." COMPEL - The international journal for computation and mathematics in electrical and electronic engineering 39, no. 3 (January 29, 2020): 647–57. http://dx.doi.org/10.1108/compel-10-2019-0385.
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Purpose The majority of first-principle, homogenisation techniques makes use of the dipole terms of a small particle radiation, and, consequently, the respective dipole polarisabilities. This paper aims to take the next step and propose a new systematic technique for extracting the quadrupolarisability of planar metamaterial scatterers. Design/methodology/approach Firstly, it is assumed that the particle, under study, can be modelled as a set of dipole and quadrupole moments, and by utilising the respective polarisabilities, the far-field response of the scatterer is calculated. Then, the far-field scattering field of the particle is constructed in terms of the dipole and quadrupole moments, which, in turn, are expressed as a function of the unknown polarisabilities. Finally, the desired polarisabilities are retrieved by a system of equations, which involves numerically derived electric field values at specific positions around the scatterer. Findings The quadrupolarisability of planar metamaterial particles is extracted, through an easy to use, yet very accurate and efficient methodology. Moreover, the proposed technique is verified via comprehensive comparisons of consequently computed and simulated total radiated power values, which reveal its advantages and applicability limits. Finally, the total radiation power contribution of each calculated, individual multipole is provided, to further investigate the radiation mechanism of all nano-particles under study. Originality/value The initial and most important step of extracting a single quadrupolarisability of a planar realistic nano-particle has been performed, herein, for the first time. The addition of the respective quadrupole in the scattering model, shifts the multipole approximation limit upwards in terms of frequency, and, therefore, nano-particles with quadrupole resonances can, now, be precisely represented via polarisabilities for various metamaterial or metasurface applications.
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Kiomourtzi, P., N. Pasadakis, and A. Zelilidis. "GEOCHEMICAL CHARACTERIZATION OF SATELLITE HYDROCARBON FORMATIONS IN PRINOS-KAVALA BASIN (NORTH GREECE)." Bulletin of the Geological Society of Greece 40, no. 2 (January 1, 2007): 839. http://dx.doi.org/10.12681/bgsg.16728.
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Conditions favoring generation, migration and trapping of hydrocarbons generated economically significant reservoirs in Prinos-Kavala Basin. Prinos oil field and South Kavala gas field are characteristic examples. The submarine fan packed the basin during Upper Miocene. The hydrocarbons were accumulated in turbidites, deposited in a strongly reducing environment, with high sulfur concentration. Evaporates are also deposited before and after the turbidite system. In this study, which is part of a doctorate thesis, extracts retrieved from cored samples of two satellite formations in Prinos-Kavala Basin, Epsilon and Kalirahi, selected at the "Prinos equivalent" formations, have been analyzed, using geochemical methods, and found to exhibit common compositional characteristics. The analysis of biomarkers indicates that the bitumens are immature and non-biodegraded, while their origin is considered mainly algal, with minor terrestrial contribution. Variations on characteristic geochemical ratios between formations, such as Pr/Ph, Ts/Tm, oleanane/hopane and steranes index, are attributed to differences on the type of organic mater input, or the depositional setting of sediments. The identification of the organic matter type, the hydrocarbons generation, migration paths and traps of each structure within the basin is vital for the evaluation of a reliable model of the basin and further hydrocarbon exploration in North Aegean basins
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de Assis, Gilmara Gomes, and Eugenia Murawska-Ciałowicz. "Leptin—A Potential Bridge between Fat Metabolism and the Brain’s Vulnerability to Neuropsychiatric Disorders: A Systematic Review." Journal of Clinical Medicine 10, no. 23 (December 6, 2021): 5714. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/jcm10235714.
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Background: Obesity and being overweight have been described as potential causes of neurological disorders. Leptin, a peptide expressed in fat tissue, importantly participates in energy homeostasis and storage and has recently been identified for its signaling receptors in neuronal circuits of the brain. Aim: To elucidate whether the endogenous modulation of leptin can be a protection against neuropsychiatric disorders. Method: A systematic review was performed in accordance with the PRISMA-P method, and reports of studies containing data of leptin concentrations in healthy individuals with or without obesity were retrieved from the PubMed database, using the combinations of Mesh terms for “Leptin” and “Metabolism”. Results: Forty-seven randomized and non-randomized controlled trials, dating from 2000 to 2021, were included in the qualitative synthesis. Discussion and conclusions: Leptin secretion displays a stabilizing pattern that is more sensitive to a negative energy intake imbalance. Leptin levels influence body weight and fat mass as a pro-homeostasis factor. However, long-term exposure to elevated leptin levels may lead to mental/behavioral disorders related to the feeding and reward systems.
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Benahmed Daho, A. "CRYPTO-SPATIAL: AN OPEN STANDARDS SMART CONTRACTS LIBRARY FOR BUILDING GEOSPATIALLY ENABLED DECENTRALIZED APPLICATIONS ON THE ETHEREUM BLOCKCHAIN." ISPRS - International Archives of the Photogrammetry, Remote Sensing and Spatial Information Sciences XLIII-B4-2020 (August 25, 2020): 421–26. http://dx.doi.org/10.5194/isprs-archives-xliii-b4-2020-421-2020.
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Abstract. Blockchain is an emerging immature technology that disrupt many well established industries nowadays, like finance, supply chain, transportation, energy, official registries (identity, vehicles, …). In this contribution we present a smart contracts library, named Crypto-Spatial, written for the Ethereum Blockchain and designed to serve as a framework for geospatially enabled decentralized applications (dApps) development. The main goal of this work is to investigate the suitability of Blockchain technology for the storage, retrieval and processing of vector geospatial data. The design and the proof-of-concept implementation presented are both based on the Open Geospatial Consortium standards: Simple Feature Access, Discrete Global Grid Systems (DGGS) and Well Known Binary (WKB). Also, the FOAM protocol concept of Crypto-Spatial Coordinate (CSC) was used to uniquely identify spatial features on the Blockchain immutable ledger. The design of the Crypto-Spatial framework was implemented as a set of smart contracts using the Solidity object oriented programming language. The implemented library was assessed toward Etheruem’s best practices design patterns and known security issues (common attacks). Also, a generic architecture for geospatially enabled decentralized applications, combining blockchain and IPFS technologies, was proposed. Finally, a proof-of-concept was developed using the proposed approach which main purpose is to port the UN/FAO-SOLA to Blockchain techspace allowing more transparency and simplifying access to users communities. The smart contracts of this prototype are live on the Rinkeby testnet and the frontend is hosted on Github pages. The source code of the work presented here is available on Github under Apache 2.0 license.
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Magrini, Marie-Benoît, Guillaume Cabanac, Matteo Lascialfari, Gael Plumecocq, Marie-Josephe Amiot, Marc Anton, Gaelle Arvisenet, et al. "Peer-Reviewed Literature on Grain Legume Species in the WoS (1980–2018): A Comparative Analysis of Soybean and Pulses." Sustainability 11, no. 23 (December 2, 2019): 6833. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/su11236833.
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Grain-legume crops are important for ensuring the sustainability of agrofood systems. Among them, pulse production is subject to strong lock-in compared to soya, the leading worldwide crop. To unlock the situation and foster more grain-legume crop diversity, scientific research is essential for providing new knowledge that may lead to new development. Our study aimed to evaluate whether research activity on grain-legumes is also locked in favor of soya. Considering more than 80 names grouped into 19 main grain-legume species, we built a dataset of 107,823 scholarly publications (articles, book, and book chapters) between 1980 and 2018 retrieved from the Web of Science (Clarivate Analytics) reflecting the research activity on grain-legumes. We delineated 10 scientific themes of interest running the gamut of agrofood research (e.g., genetics, agronomy, and nutrition). We indexed grain-legume species, calculated the percentage of records for each one, and conducted several analyses longitudinally and by country. Globally, we found an unbalanced research output: soya remains the main crop studied, even in the promising field of food sciences advanced by FAO as the “future of pulses”. Our results raise questions about how to align research priorities with societal demand for more crop diversity.
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Whipkey, Anna, James E. Simon, and Jules Janick. "154 Indiana CropMAP and New Crop Compendium: New Developments from Purdue's Center for New Crops and Plant Products." HortScience 34, no. 3 (June 1999): 468D—468. http://dx.doi.org/10.21273/hortsci.34.3.468d.
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NewCROP (http://www.hort.purdue.edu/newcrop) is a crop resource online program that serves Indiana, the United States, and the world. This crop information system provides useful resources to encourage and assist new rural-based industries and to enhance agricultural sustainability and competitiveness. The NewCROP site currently averages 150,000 hits per month. Indiana CropMAP is the first module in a proposed nationwide, site-specific, retrievable system that will serve the crop information needs of individual growers, marketers, processors, government agencies, cooperative extension personnel, and industry. For each county in Indiana, users can access the most recent US agriculture statistics, county extension offices, lists of crops that are currently grown, recommended alternate crops, and experimental crops. Detailed crop information, much of it specific to Indiana, can be accessed directly or through a crop search. The New Crop Compendium CD-ROM was produced by the Purdue University Center for New Crops and Plant Products in cooperation with the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO). The New Crop Compendium CD-ROM, a searchable resource of new crop information, was edited by Jules Janick and Anna Whipkey and contains the entire text and figures from the proceedings of the three National New Crop Symposia: J. Janick and J.E. Simon (eds.). 1990. Advances in New Crops. Timber Press, Portland, Ore.; J. Janick and J.E. Simon (eds.). 1993. New Crops. Wiley, New York; and J. Janick (ed.). 1996. Progress in New Crops. ASHS Press, Alexandria, Va. The New Crop Compendium provides a valuable source of information on new, specialty, neglected, and underutilized crops for scientists, growers, marketers, processors, and extension personnel. It employs an intuitive, easy to use interface. Purchase information can be found at the following url: http://www.hort.purdue.edu/newcrop/compendium/order.html.
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Padilla, F. L. M., M. P. González-Dugo, P. Gavilán, and J. Domínguez. "Integration of vegetation indices into a water balance model to estimate evapotranspiration of wheat and corn." Hydrology and Earth System Sciences 15, no. 4 (April 12, 2011): 1213–25. http://dx.doi.org/10.5194/hess-15-1213-2011.
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Abstract. Vegetation indices (VIs) have been traditionally used for quantitative monitoring of vegetation. Remotely sensed radiometric measurements of visible and infrared solar energy, which is reflected or emitted by plant canopies, can be used to obtain rapid, non-destructive estimates of certain canopy attributes and parameters. One parameter of special interest for water management applications, is the crop coefficient employed by the FAO-56 model to derive actual crop evapotranspiration (ET). The aim of this study was to evaluate a methodology that combines the basal crop coefficient derived from VIs with a daily soil water balance in the root zone to estimate daily evapotranspiration rates for corn and wheat crops at field scale. The ability of the model to trace water stress in these crops was also assessed. Vegetation indices were first retrieved from field hand-held radiometer measurements and then from Landsat 5 and 7 satellite images. The results of the model were validated using two independent measurement systems for ET and regular soil moisture monitoring, in order to evaluate the behavior of the soil and atmosphere components of the model. ET estimates were compared with latent heat flux measured by an eddy covariance system and with weighing lysimeter measurements. Average overestimates of daily ET of 8 and 11% were obtained for corn and wheat, respectively, with good agreement between the estimated and measured root-zone water deficit for both crops when field radiometry was employed. When the satellite sensor data replaced the field radiometry data the overestimation figures slightly changed to 9 and 6% for the same two crops. The model was also used to monitor the water stress during the 2009 growing season, detecting several periods of water stress in both crops. Some of these stresses occurred during stages like grain filling, when the water stress is know to have a negative effect on yield. This fact could explain the lower yield reached compared to local yield statistics for wheat and corn. The results showed that the model can be used to calculate the water requirements of these crops in irrigated areas and that its ability to monitor water stress deserves further research.
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Padilla, F. L. M., M. P. González-Dugo, P. Gavilán, and J. Domínguez. "Integration of vegetation indices into a water balance model to estimate evapotranspiration of wheat and corn." Hydrology and Earth System Sciences Discussions 7, no. 5 (October 29, 2010): 8631–59. http://dx.doi.org/10.5194/hessd-7-8631-2010.
Full textAbstract:
Abstract. Vegetation indices (VIs) have been traditionally used for quantitative monitoring of vegetation. Remotely sensed radiometric measurements of visible and infrared solar energy, which is reflected or emitted by plant canopies, can be used to obtain rapid, non-destructive estimates of certain canopy attributes and parameters. One parameter of special interest for water management applications, is the crop coefficient employed by the FAO-56 model to derive actual crop evapotranspiration (ET). The aim of this study was to evaluate a methodology that combines the basal crop coefficient derived from VIs with a daily soil water balance in the root zone to estimate daily evapotranspiration rates for corn and wheat crops at field scale. The ability of the model to trace water stress in these crops was also assessed. Vegetation indices were first retrieved from field hand-held radiometer measurements and then from Landsat 5 and 7 satellite images. The results of the model were validated using two independent measurement systems for ET and regular soil moisture monitoring, in order to evaluate the behavior of the soil and atmosphere components of the model. ET estimates were compared with latent heat flux measured by an eddy covariance system and with weighing lysimeter measurements. Average overestimates of daily ET of 8 and 11% were obtained for corn and wheat, respectively, with good agreement between the estimated and measured root-zone water deficit for both crops when field radiometry was employed. Satellite remote-sensing inputs overestimated ET by 4 to 9%, showing a non-significant lost of accuracy when the satellite sensor data replaced the field radiometry data. The model was also used to monitor the water stress during the 2009 growing season, detecting several periods of water stress in both crops. Some of these stresses occurred during stages like grain filling, when the water stress is know to have a negative effect on yield. This fact could explain the lower yield reached compared to local yield statistics for wheat and corn. The results showed that the model can be used to calculate the water requirements of these crops in irrigated areas and that its ability to monitor water stress deserves further research.
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Pachiadaki, M. G., and K. A. Kormas. "Interconnectivity vs. isolation of prokaryotic communities in European deep-sea mud volcanoes." Biogeosciences 10, no. 5 (May 2, 2013): 2821–31. http://dx.doi.org/10.5194/bg-10-2821-2013.
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Abstract. During the past two decades, European cold seep ecosystems have attracted the scientific interest and to date there are several studies which have investigated the community structure and biodiversity of individual sites. In order to gain a better insight into the biology, biodiversity, and biogeography of seep-associated microbial communities along Europe's continental margins, a comparative approach was applied in the present work. By exploiting the publicly available data on 16S rRNA gene sequences retrieved from sediments of the Håkon Mosby mud volcano, Gulf of Cádiz and the eastern Mediterranean mud volcanoes/pockmarks (Anaximander area and Nile Fan), we investigated the prokaryotic biological components connecting these geographically isolated systems. The construction of interaction networks for both archaeal and bacterial shared operational taxonomic units (OTUs) among the different sites, revealed the presence of persistent OTUs, which can be considered as "key-players". One archaeal OTU (HQ588641) belonging to the ANME-3 group and one δ-Proteobacteria (HQ588562) were found in all five investigated areas. Other Archaea OTUs shared between four sites or less, belonged to the ANME-2c, -2a, MBG-D, -B and Thaumarchaeota. All other shared Bacteria belonged to the δ- and γ-Proteobacteria, with the exception of one JS1 affiliate OTU. The distribution of the majority of the shared OTUs seems to be restricted in cold seeps, mud volcanoes and other marine methane-rich environments. Although the investigated sites were connected through a small number of OTUs, these microorganisms hold central ecophysiological roles in these sediments, namely methane- and sulfur-mediated mineralization.
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Biskaborn, Boris K., Amy Forster, Gregor Pfalz, Lyudmila A. Pestryakova, Kathleen Stoof-Leichsenring, Jens Strauss, Tim Kröger, and Ulrike Herzschuh. "Diatom responses and geochemical feedbacks to environmental changes at Lake Rauchuagytgyn (Far East Russian Arctic)." Biogeosciences 20, no. 9 (May 4, 2023): 1691–712. http://dx.doi.org/10.5194/bg-20-1691-2023.
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Abstract. This study is based on multiproxy data gained from a 14C-dated 6.5 m long sediment core and a 210Pb-dated 23 cm short core retrieved from Lake Rauchuagytgyn in Chukotka, Arctic Russia. Our main objectives are to reconstruct the environmental history and ecological development of the lake during the last 29 kyr and to investigate the main drivers behind bioproduction shifts. The methods comprise age-modeling, accumulation rate estimation, and light microscope diatom species analysis of 74 samples, as well as organic carbon, nitrogen, and mercury analysis. Diatoms have appeared in the lake since 21.8 ka cal BP and are dominated by planktonic Lindavia ocellata and L. cyclopuncta. Around the Pleistocene–Holocene boundary, other taxa including planktonic Aulacoseira, benthic fragilarioid (Staurosira), and achnanthoid species increase in their abundance. There is strong correlation between variations of diatom valve accumulation rates (DARs; mean 176.1×109 valves m2 a1), organic carbon accumulation rates (OCARs; mean 4.6 g m−2 a−1), and mercury accumulation rates (HgARs; mean 63.4 µg m−2 a−1). We discuss the environmental forcings behind shifts in diatom species and find moderate responses of key taxa to the cold glacial period, postglacial warming, the Younger Dryas, and the Holocene Thermal Maximum. The short-core data likely suggest recent change of the diatom community at the beginning of the 20th century related to human-induced warming but only little evidence of atmospheric deposition of contaminants. Significant correlation between DAR and OCAR in the Holocene interglacial indicates within-lake bioproduction represents bulk organic carbon deposited in the lake sediment. During both glacial and interglacial episodes HgAR is mainly bound to organic matter in the lake associated with biochemical substrate conditions. There were only ambiguous signs of increased HgAR during the industrialization period. We conclude that if increased short-term emissions are neglected, pristine Arctic lake systems can potentially serve as long-term CO2 and Hg sinks during warm climate episodes driven by insolation-enhanced within-lake primary productivity. Maintaining intact natural lake ecosystems should therefore be of interest to future environmental policy.
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Kulichevskaya, Irina S., Olga V. Danilova, Vera M. Tereshina, Vadim V. Kevbrin, and Svetlana N. Dedysh. "Descriptions of Roseiarcus fermentans gen. nov., sp. nov., a bacteriochlorophyll a-containing fermentative bacterium related phylogenetically to alphaproteobacterial methanotrophs, and of the family Roseiarcaceae fam. nov." International Journal of Systematic and Evolutionary Microbiology 64, Pt_8 (August 1, 2014): 2558–65. http://dx.doi.org/10.1099/ijs.0.064576-0.
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A light-pink-pigmented, microaerophilic bacterium was obtained from a methanotrophic consortium enriched from acidic Sphagnum peat and designated strain Pf56T. Cells of this bacterium were Gram-negative, non-motile, thick curved rods that contained a vesicular intracytoplasmic membrane system characteristic of some purple non-sulfur alphaproteobacteria. The absorption spectrum of acetone/methanol extracts of cells grown in the light showed maxima at 363, 475, 505, 601 and 770 nm; the peaks at 363 and 770 nm are characteristic of bacteriochlorophyll a. However, in contrast to purple non-sulfur bacteria, strain Pf56T was unable to grow phototrophically under anoxic conditions in the light. Best growth occurred on some sugars and organic acids under micro-oxic conditions by means of fermentation. The fermentation products were propionate, acetate and hydrogen. Slow chemo-organotrophic growth was also observed under fully oxic conditions. Light stimulated growth. C1 substrates were not utilized. Strain Pf56T grew at pH 4.0–7.0 (optimum pH 5.5–6.5) and at 15–30 °C (optimum 22–28 °C). The major cellular fatty acids were 19 : 0 cyclo ω8c and 18 : 1ω7c; quinones were represented by ubiquinone Q-10. The G+C content of the DNA was 70.0 mol%. Strain Pf56 displays 93.6–94.7 and 92.7–93.7 % 16S rRNA gene sequence similarity to members of the families Methylocystaceae and Beijerinckiaceae , respectively, and belongs to a large cluster of environmental sequences retrieved from various wetlands and forest soils in cultivation-independent studies. Phenotypic, genotypic and chemotaxonomic characteristics of strain Pf56T suggest that it represents a novel genus and species of bacteriochlorophyll a-containing fermentative bacteria, for which the name Roseiarcus fermentans gen. nov., sp. nov. is proposed. Strain Pf56T ( = DSM 24875T = VKM B-2876T) is the type strain of Roseiarcus fermentans, and is also the first characterized member of a novel family within the class Alphaproteobacteria , Roseiarcaceae fam. nov.
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McGann, Patrick T., Margaret G. Ferris, Paulino Macosso, Vysolela de Oliveira, Uma Ramamurthy, Ana Ruth Luis, Luis Bernardino, and Russell E. Ware. "A Prospective Pilot Newborn Screening and Treatment Program for Sickle Cell Anemia in the Republic of Angola." Blood 120, no. 21 (November 16, 2012): 480. http://dx.doi.org/10.1182/blood.v120.21.480.480.
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Abstract Abstract 480 Background: Sickle cell anemia (SCA) is a significant global health problem with >300,000 affected infants born each year in sub-Saharan Africa. Up to 80–90% of all children with SCA in Africa die before five years of age, due to infection or anemia, and usually without the proper diagnosis of SCA. Early identification by newborn screening (NBS), followed by interventions such as pneumococcal immunization and prophylactic penicillin, have dramatically reduced the mortality of children with SCA in the US, but this strategy not yet been established in Africa. A novel public-private partnership involving the Republic of Angola, Chevron Corporation, and Baylor College of Medicine/Texas Children's Hospital was created to develop a pilot NBS and treatment program for SCA, focusing on capacity building and local ownership. Methods: Two large maternity hospitals in the capital city of Luanda, Angola were initially selected for dried blood spot (DBS) collection and analysis, and a third local health center was soon added. Maternity nurses were taught DBS collection and laboratory technicians learned isoelectric focusing (IEF) and capillary electrophoresis (CE) techniques. Identifiers including cell phone numbers are collected onto the Whatman NBS card to facilitate retrieval of affected babies. After collection, DBS were transported to the central NBS laboratory at Hospital Pediátrico David Bernardino (HPDB) for hemoglobin identification by IEF and CE. Demographic data and test results were entered into a unique internet-based electronic data capture system designed with secure password-protection and servers located in Houston, Texas. Results: Since initiation of NBS in July 2011, 17,055 babies have DBS collection and laboratory results: 3,588 (21%) with FAS pattern (sickle cell trait), and 264 (1.55%) with FS (consistent with SCA). Twenty-one samples produced a result other than FA, FAS, or FS, including 10 FAC and 1 FSC. Families of infants with an FS screening result are notified by phone to initiate care and treatment, ideally by age 8 weeks. In the new infant SCA clinic at HPDB, infants receive penicillin prophylaxis and PCV-13 pneumococcal immunization, while parents receive sickle cell education and insecticide-treated bed nets for malaria protection. In the first 6 months, 67.8% of DBS cards had phone numbers documented, but with education and reinforcement, 81.4% of cards had phone numbers in the past 6 months. To date, 220 FS babies are age-eligible for contact and 110 (50%) families have been reached: 104 (47%) have come to the infant SCA clinic, 6 (2.7%) had already died within the first month of life, and 0 refused care. A total of 201 doses of PCV-13 have been provided as per routine vaccination scheduling. After initial visit, the return rate for second immunization is 94% with only 3 babies lost to follow-up including 2 deaths. The calculated first-year mortality rate for all contacted FS babies (6.9%) compares favorably to the national infant mortality rate (9.8%). Conclusions: This prospective pilot study documents that newborn screening for SCA is feasible in a developing country such as Angola. Capacity building and teaching provide local healthcare workers with skills necessary to have a functional NBS program and infant SCA clinic. The sickle cell burden is extremely high in Angola, and contact and retrieval of all affected FS infants remains an ongoing challenge, but families are compliant with clinic appointments and treatment. Early mortality data suggest comprehensive SCA care can save lives, suggesting that expansion of the pilot program is warranted with an eventual national strategy for the diagnosis, care, and treatment of children with SCA in Angola. Disclosures: No relevant conflicts of interest to declare.
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Bhati, Divya K. "Stillbirths: A high magnitude public health issue in India." South East Asia Journal of Public Health 3, no. 1 (January 18, 2014): 3–9. http://dx.doi.org/10.3329/seajph.v3i1.17704.
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A stillbirth is a baby born with no signs of life at or after 28 weeks gestation, while preterm births are those which occur between 28 weeks to 32 weeks of gestation. Approximately 3.2 million stillbirths occur annually in low- and middle-income countries. The aim of this paper is to review the present status of the stillbirths and identify the un-derlying factors of stillbirths in India. A search of PubMed and other search engines were conducted to retrieve the literature pertaining to neonatal and perinatal health in India. Four priority areas were used to select the studies: overview (prevalence of the stillbirths), challenges in mapping the potential causes of stillbirths, socio-cultural fac-tors associated with stillbirths, and government response towards stillbirths. It was found that women face many difficulties due to accessibility, availability, affordability and quality issues when utilizing healthcare facilities dur-ing pregnancy. Several studies based on stillbirths also revealed the social aspects of perinatal grief. Stillbirths are bounded by high family pressures and social stigma. A review also revealed that half of all stillbirths occur in India, Pakistan, Nigeria, China and Bangladesh alone. These countries also account for a high number of maternal and newborn deaths. India has highest number of stillbirths in the world the rates range from 20 to 66 per 1000 births in different states. It was also found that healthcare and socio-cultural factors contribute to the increase in the num-ber of stillbirths in India. These issues highlight the need for urgent action and interventions to be taken by the gov-ernment and other organization to improve the situation of stillbirths in India. Early neonatal deaths and stillbirths usually have obstetric causes, and are largely preventable if good quality obstetric care is made available at the right time. Initiatives for strengthening the information management system at the grassroots level to report stillbirths on a regular basis are necessary to improve the neonatal health indicators in India. South East Asia Journal of Public Health 2013; 3(1): 3-9 DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.3329/seajph.v3i1.17704
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Bagg, Adam, Philipp Raess, Deborah Rund, Darrin Jengehino, Joanna Wiszniewska, Michelle Huynh, Abdoulaye Sanogo, et al. "Performance Evaluation Study of a Novel Digital Microscopy System for the Quantitative Analysis of Bone Marrow Aspirates." Blood 138, Supplement 1 (November 5, 2021): 4000. http://dx.doi.org/10.1182/blood-2021-148501.
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Abstract Background. We report here a trial in progress for the evaluation of a novel system aimed to provide an all-digital standardized bone marrow aspirate (BMA) analysis, Scopio Labs X100, empowered by artificial intelligence (AI) based cell pre-classification. Current methods for the analysis and reporting of BMA specimens are based on analog microscopy, as whole slide imaging at x100 magnification is not practically available. The lack of uniformity between experts in the field, originating from a subjective manual review, can lead to inconsistencies in disease diagnosis and classification, and thereby affect treatment and clinical outcomes. For example, ICSH and WHO guidelines require that at least 500 cells should be counted in at least two smears when a precise percentage of an abnormal cell type is required for diagnosis and classification. It is also recommended that in order reduce imprecision from sampling error, the total number of cells counted in the differential should be increased, specifically if the abnormal cell count is very close to a critical threshold for disease stratification or response assessment. For the general evaluation of hematopoiesis, Myeloid to Erythroid (M:E) ratio is reported. Considering the complexity of the manual BMA analysis, even more so in routine laboratory settings with competitive turnaround times, a digital transformation can sustain the desired standardization, and increase sensitivity and efficiency in routine workflow. Study Design and Methods. This multisite study is taking place at: Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania (HUP), Oregon Health and Science University (OHSU), and Tel Aviv Sourasky Medical Center (TASMC). BMA analysis is performed with a manual microscope as the reference arm and in Scopio Labs X100 Full Field BMA application as the test arm (Figure 1A). Two hematopathologists at each site independently review 265 BMA specimens, including 205 with a Romanowsky stain and 60 with a Prussian Blue stain, in both the test and the reference arms. There is a 3 week washout period between arms (Figure 1B, right). ICSH guidelines were rigorously translated into a comprehensive report format used in both study arms. The report presents 27 primary and 13 secondary characteristics for the morphological assessment of BMA (Figure 1C). These include evaluation of specimen quality, evaluation of count, maturation and morphology of trilineage hematopoietic elements (myeloid, erythroid and megakaryocytic), as well as lymphocytes and plasma cells. For a repeatability study, 8 representative samples are analyzed through 20 days, 2 daily runs and 2 replicas in one site. For reproducibility study, 8 representative samples are analyzed in all sites for 5 days with 5 replicas (Figure 1B, left). The collected BMA samples hold a distribution of 55.61% males, with 2.02%, 9.46%, 16.39%, 54.73% and 17.40% of ages 13-21, 22-39, 40-55, 56-75 and >75 respectively. All samples were diagnosed by WHO criteria. Diagnoses include AML, ALL, MPN, MDS, PCN, lymphoid neoplasms, aplastic anemia, ITP and normal morphology marrow and hemodiluted samples. All samples were retrieved from the sites' bone marrow sample storage. For the method comparison study, the primary and secondary characteristics are aggregated into three primary and secondary evaluation categories of specimen quality, count, and morphology and maturation assessments (Figure 1B, left, 1C). For the primary groups, confusion matrix will be produced. For the secondary groups, contingency tables will be generated (Figure 1B, left). For the repeatability and reproducibility (R&R) studies, two-way nested ANOVA tables will be created (Figure 1, right). Primary groups will be measured for accuracy in the form of efficiency, sensitivity and specificity. Secondary groups will be measured for overall agreement. R&R will be measured for SD and CV. The introduction of Scopio's full field morphological evaluation of BMA smears, promotes an accurate diagnosis of hematological disorders including hematological malignancies, and enables a remote evaluation of BMA smears. By reviewing the entire BMA smear, and by counting a very large number of cells, this novel approach provides a new and highly accurate tool for early detection of pathological conditions, including residual disease following therapy. Figure 1 Figure 1. Disclosures Bagg: Scopio Labs: Research Funding. Raess: Scopio Labs: Research Funding. Jengehino: Scorpio Labs: Other: Partial Salary Support. Wiszniewska: Scopio Labs: Research Funding. Huynh: Scorpio Labs: Other: Salary Support. Fan: Scopio Labs: Research Funding. Bhattacharyya: Scorpio Labs: Other: Partial Salary Support. Avivi: Novartis: Speakers Bureau; Kite, a Gilead Company: Speakers Bureau. Katz: Scopio Labs: Consultancy.