Search results for: plate-stiffener combination and hard corner

Authors: Qiuyi Lyu, Bin Gong

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Breadth-First Search(BFS) is a core graph algorithm that is widely used for graph analysis. As it is frequently used in many graph applications, improve the BFS performance is essential. In this paper, we present a graph ordering method that could reorder the graph nodes to achieve better data locality, thus, improving the BFS performance. Our method is based on an observation that the sibling relationships will dominate the cache access pattern during the BFS traversal. Therefore, we propose a frequency-based model to construct the graph order. First, we optimize the graph order according to the nodes’ visit frequency. Nodes with high visit frequency will be processed in priority. Second, we try to maximize the child nodes overlap layer by layer. As it is proved to be NP-hard, we propose a heuristic method that could greatly reduce the preprocessing overheads. We conduct extensive experiments on 16 real-world datasets. The result shows that our method could achieve comparable performance with the state-of-the-art methods while the graph ordering overheads are only about 1/15.

Keywords: breadth-first search, BFS, graph ordering, graph algorithm

Procedia PDF Downloads 117

Authors: Samia Kouki

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Solving NP-hard combinatorial optimization problems by exact search methods, such as Branch-and-Bound, may degenerate to complete enumeration. For that reason, exact approaches limit us to solve only small or moderate size problem instances, due to the exponential increase in CPU time when problem size increases. One of the most promising ways to reduce significantly the computational burden of sequential versions of Branch-and-Bound is to design parallel versions of these algorithms which employ several processors. This paper describes a parallel Branch-and-Bound algorithm called GALB for solving the classical permutation flowshop scheduling problem as well as its implementation on a Grid computing infrastructure. The experimental study of our distributed parallel algorithm gives promising results and shows clearly the benefit of the parallel paradigm to solve large-scale instances in moderate CPU time.

Keywords: grid computing, permutation flow shop problem, branch and bound, load balancing

Procedia PDF Downloads 265

Authors: M. R. Akbari, P. Soleimani, R. Khalili, Sara Akbari

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Analyzing and modeling the vibrational behavior of arched bridges during the earthquake in order to decrease the exerted damages to the structure is a very hard task to do. This item has been done analytically in the present paper for the first time. Due to the importance of building arched bridges as a great structure in the human being civilization and its specifications such as transferring vertical loads to its arcs and the lack of bending moments and shearing forces, this case study is devoted to this special issue. Here, the nonlinear vibration of arched bridges has been modeled and simulated by an arched beam with harmonic vertical loads and its behavior has been investigated by analyzing a nonlinear partial differential equation governing the system. It is notable that the procedure has been done analytically by AGM (Akbari, Ganji Method). Furthermore, comparisons have been made between the obtained results by numerical Method (rkf-45) and AGM in order to assess the scientific validity.

Keywords: new method (AGM), arched beam bridges, angular frequency, harmonic loads

Procedia PDF Downloads 275

Authors: Mehrnaz Mostafavi

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Lung cancer is one of the most harmful forms of cancer. The long-term survival rate of lung cancer patients treated by conventional modalities such as surgical resection, radiation, and chemotherapy remains far from satisfactory. Systemic drug delivery is rarely successful because only a limited amount of the chemotherapeutic drug targets lung tumor sites, even when administered at a high dose. Targeted delivery of drug molecules to organs or special sites is one of the most challenging research areas in pharmaceutical sciences. By developing colloidal delivery systems such as liposomes, micelles and nanoparticles a new frontier was opened for improving drug delivery. Nanoparticles with their special characteristics such as small particle size, large surface area and the capability of changing their surface properties have numerous advantages compared with other delivery systems. Targeted nanoparticle delivery to the lungs is an emerging area of interest.Multimodal or combination therapy represents a promising new method to fight disease. Therefore, a combination of different therapeutic strategies may be the best alternative to improve treatment outcomes for lung cancer. Photothermal therapy was proposed as a novel approach to treatment. In this work, photothermal therapy with gold nanoparticles and near infrared laser (NIR) irradiation was investigated.Four types of small (<100nm), NIR absorbing gold nanoparticles (nanospheres, nanorods) were synthesized using wet chemical methods and characterized by transmission electron microscopy, dynamic light scattering and UV-vis spectroscopy. Their synthesis and properties were evaluated, to determine their feasibility as a photothermal agent for clinical applications. In vitro cellular uptake studies of the nanoparticles into lung cancer cell lines was measured using light scattering microscopy.Small gold nanorods had good photothermal properties and the greatest cellular uptake, and were used in photothermal studies. Under 4W laser irradiation, an increase in temperature of 10°C and decrease in cell viability of up to 80% were obtained.

Keywords: photothermal, therapy, cancer, gold nanorods

Procedia PDF Downloads 229

Authors: Amine Hamdi, Sidi Mohammed Merghache, Brahim Fernini

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During abrasive machining of hard steels by belt grinding, the finished surface texture is influenced by the pressure between the abrasive belt and the workpiece; this pressure is the force applied by the contact roller on the workpiece. Therefore, the contact roller has an important role and has a direct impact on process efficiency. The objective of this article is to study and compare the influence of different contact rollers on the belt ground surface texture. The quality of the surface texture is characterized by eight roughness parameters (Ra, Rz, Rp, Rv, Rsk, Rku, Rsm, and Rdq) and five parameters of the bearing area curve (Rpk, Rk, Rvk, Mr1, and Mr2). The results of the experimental tests indicate a better surface texture obtained by the PA 6 polyamide roller (hardness 60 Shore D) compared to that obtained with other rollers of the same hardness or of different hardness. Simultaneously, optimum medium pressure between the belt and the workpiece allows chip removal without fracturing the abrasive grains. This generates a good surface texture.

Keywords: belt grinding, contact roller, pressure, abrasive belt, surface texture

Procedia PDF Downloads 160

Authors: Rasha Ali Dheyab

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In today's increasingly interconnected and technologically-driven world, communication has evolved beyond traditional verbal exchanges. This paper delves into the fascinating realm of multimodal communication, a dynamic field at the intersection of linguistics, gesture studies, and technology. The study of how humans convey meaning through a combination of spoken language, gestures, facial expressions, and digital platforms has gained prominence as our modes of interaction continue to diversify. This exploration begins by examining the foundational theories in linguistics and gesture studies, tracing their historical development and mutual influences. It further investigates the role of nonverbal cues, such as gestures and facial expressions, in augmenting and sometimes even altering the meanings conveyed by spoken language. Additionally, the paper delves into the modern technological landscape, where emojis, GIFs, and other digital symbols have emerged as new linguistic tools, reshaping the ways in which we communicate and express emotions. The interaction between traditional and digital modes of communication is a central focus of this study. The paper investigates how technology has not only introduced new modes of expression but has also influenced the adaptation of existing linguistic and gestural patterns in online discourse. The emergence of virtual reality and augmented reality environments introduces yet another layer of complexity to multimodal communication, offering new avenues for studying how humans navigate and negotiate meaning in immersive digital spaces. Through a combination of literature review, case studies, and theoretical analysis, this paper seeks to shed light on the intricate interplay between language, gesture, and technology in the realm of multimodal communication. By understanding how these diverse modes of expression intersect and interact, we gain valuable insights into the ever-evolving nature of human communication and its implications for fields ranging from linguistics and psychology to human-computer interaction and digital anthropology.

Keywords: multimodal communication, linguistics ., gesture studies., emojis., verbal communication., digital

Procedia PDF Downloads 57

Authors: Alluru Gopala Krishna, Thella Babu Rao

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In machining, there is always a problem with heat generation and friction produced during the process as they consequently affect tool wear and surface finish. An instant heat transfer mechanism could protect the cutting tool edge and enhance the tool life by cooling the cutting edge of the tool. In the present work, carbon nanotube (CNT) based nano-cutting fluid is proposed for machining a hard-to-cut material. Tool wear and surface roughness are considered for the evaluation of the nano-cutting fluid in turning process. The performance of nanocoolant is assessed against the conventional coolant and dry machining conditions and it is observed that the proposed nanocoolant has produced better performance than the conventional coolant.

Keywords: CNT based nano cutting fluid, tool wear, turning, surface roughness

Procedia PDF Downloads 244

Authors: A. Abdullah, S. Abushalmat, A. Bakshwain, A. Basuhail, A. Aslam

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GIS (Geographic Information System) applications require geo-referenced data, this data could be available as databases or in the form of digital or hard-copy agro-meteorological maps. These parameter maps are color-coded with different regions corresponding to different parameter values, converting these maps into a database is not very difficult. However, text and different planimetric elements overlaid on these maps makes an accurate image to database conversion a challenging problem. The reason being, it is almost impossible to exactly replace what was underneath the text or icons; thus, pointing to the need for inpainting. In this paper, we propose a probabilistic inpainting approach that uses the probability of spatial locality of colors in the map for replacing overlaid elements with underlying color. We tested the limits of our proposed technique using non-textual simulated data and compared text removing results with a popular image editing tool using public domain data with promising results.

Keywords: noise, image, GIS, digital map, inpainting

Procedia PDF Downloads 329

Authors: Fitih Ademe, Kibebew Kibret, Sheleme Beyene, Mezgebu Getnet, Gashaw Meteke

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Changes in precipitation, temperature and atmospheric CO2 concentration are expected to alter agricultural productivity patterns worldwide. The interactive effects of soil moisture and nutrient availability are the two key edaphic factors that determine crop yield and are sensitive to climatic changes. The study assessed the potential impacts of climate change on maize yield and corresponding water productivity and nutrient use efficiency under climate change scenarios for the Central Rift Valley of Ethiopia by mid (2041-2070) and end century (2071-2100). Projected impacts were evaluated using climate scenarios generated from four General Circulation Models (GCMs) dynamically downscaled by the Swedish RCA4 Regional Climate Model (RCM) in combination with two Representative Concentration Pathways (RCP 4.5 and RCP8.5). Decision Support System for Agro-technology Transfer cropping system model (DSSAT-CSM) was used to simulate yield, water and nutrient use for the study periods. Results indicate that rainfed maize yield might decrease on average by 16.5 and 23% by the 2050s and 2080s, respectively, due to climate change. Water productivity is expected to decline on average by 2.2 and 12% in the CRV by mid and end centuries with respect to the baseline. Nutrient uptake and corresponding nutrient use efficiency (NUE) might also be negatively affected by climate change. Phosphorus uptake probably will decrease in the CRV on average by 14.5 to 18% by 2050s, while N uptake may not change significantly at Melkassa. Nitrogen and P use efficiency indicators showed decreases in the range between 8.5 to 10.5% and between 9.3 to 10.5%, respectively, by 2050s relative to the baseline average. The simulation results further indicated that a combination of increased water availability and optimum nutrient application might increase both water productivity and nutrient use efficiency in the changed climate, which can ensure modest production in the future. Potential options that can improve water availability and nutrient uptake should be identified for the study locations using a crop modeling approach.

Keywords: crop model, climate change scenario, nutrient uptake, nutrient use efficiency, water productivity

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Authors: Gül Fatma Türker, Hatice Akman

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Portable muscle stimulators for real-time applications has first introduced by Liberson in 1961. Now these systems has been advanced. In this study, FES (Functional Electrical Stimulator) and NMES (Neuromuscular Electrostimulator) systems are analyzed through their hardware and their quality of life improvements for foot drop patients. FES and NMES systems are used for people whose leg muscles and leg neural connections are healty but not able to walk properly because of their injured central nervous system like spinal cord injuries. These systems are used to stimulate neurons or muscles by getting information from other movements and programming these stimulations to get natural walk and it is accepted as a rehabilitation method for the correction of drop foot. This systems support person to approach natural form of walking. Foot drop is characterized by steppage gait. It is a gait abnormality. This systems helps to person for plantar and dorse reflection movements which are hard to done for foot drop patients.

Keywords: FES, foot drop, NMES, stimulator

Procedia PDF Downloads 371

Authors: Bing Shi, Raymond A. Conley, Jun Qian, Xianbo Shi, Steve Heald, Lahsen Assoufid

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A pair of Kirkpatrick-Baez (KB) mirrors were designed and fabricated for experiments within a hard x-ray energy range lower than 20 kev at beamline 20-ID in a synchrotron radiation facility, Advanced Photon Source (APS). The KB mirrors were deposited with Rhodium thin films using a customized designed and self-built magnetron sputtering system. The purpose of these mirrors is to focus the x-ray beam down to 1 micron. This is the first pair of Rhodium-coated KB mirrors with elliptical shape that was fabricated using the profile coating technique. The profile coating technique is to coat the substrate with designed shape using masks during the deposition. The mirrors were equipped at the beamline and achieved the designed focusing requirement. The details of the mirror design, the fabrication process, and the customized magnetron sputtering deposition system will be discussed.

Keywords: magnetron-sputtering deposition, focusing optics, x-ray, rhodium thin film

Procedia PDF Downloads 348

Authors: Sarah Gounden, Mukesh Dheda, Boikhutso Tlou, Elizabeth Ojewole, Frasia Oosthuizen

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Background: Antiretroviral therapy (ART) has been effective in the reduction of mortality and resulted in an improvement in the prognosis of HIV-infected patients. However, treatment with antiretrovirals (ARVs) has led to the development of many adverse drug reactions (ADRs). It is, therefore, necessary to determine the safety profile of these medicines in a South African population in order to ensure safe and optimal medicine use. Objectives: The aim of this study was to quantify ADRs experienced with the different ARVs currently used in South Africa, to determine the safety profile of ARV medicine in South Africa based on reported ADRs, and to determine the ARVs with the lowest risk profile based on specific patient populations. Methodology: This was a quantitative study. Individual case safety reports for the period January 2010 – December 2013 were obtained from the National Pharmacovigilance Center; these reports contained information on ADRs, ARV medicine, and patient demographics. Data was analysed to find associations that may exist between ADRs experienced, ARV medicines used and patient demographics. Results: A total of 1916 patient reports were received of which 1534 met the inclusion criteria for the study. The ARV with the lowest risk of ADRs were found to be lamivudine (0.51%, n=12), followed by lopinavir/ritonavir combination (0.8%, n=19) and abacavir (0.64%, n=15). A higher incidence of ADRs was observed in females compared to males. The age group 31–50 years and the weight group 61–80 kg had the highest incidence of ADRs reported. Conclusion: This study found that the safest ARVs to be used in a South African population are lamivudine, abacavir, and the lopinavir/ritonavir combination. Gender differences play a significant role in the occurrence of ADRs and both anatomical and physiological differences account for this. An increased BMI (body mass index) in both men and women showed an increase in the incidence of ADRs associated with ARV therapy.

Keywords: adverse drug reaction, antiretrovirals, HIV/AIDS, pharmacovigilance, South Africa

Procedia PDF Downloads 332

Authors: Surapol Raadnui

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This paper describes an experimental investigation on a pair of gears in which wear and pitting were intentionally allowed to occur, namely, moisture corrosion pitting, acid-induced corrosion pitting, hard contaminant-related pitting and mechanical induced wear. A back-to-back spur gear test rig was used. The test samples of wear debris were collected and assessed through the utilization of an optical microscope in order to correlate and compare the debris morphology to pitting and wear degradation of the worn gears. In addition, weight loss from all test gear pairs was assessed with the utilization of the statistical design of the experiment. It can be deduced that wear debris characteristics exhibited a direct relationship with different pitting and wear modes. Thus, it should be possible to detect and diagnose gear pitting and wear utilization of worn surfaces, generated wear debris and quantitative measurement such as weight loss.

Keywords: tribology, spur gear wear, predictive maintenance, wear particle analysis

Procedia PDF Downloads 225

Authors: Rania Hanafi Mahmoud Said, Rasha Mohamed Taha

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Background: A recent study has explored the potential of an approach to treating infected root canals using a combination of Mineral Trioxide Aggregate (MTA) and Tetracycline-loaded Nanochitosan. Material and methods: Forty dogs were included in the study, with infected periapical areas induced by leaving access openings in their teeth for four months. Bacteriological samples from the infected root canals were collected and managed anaerobically to identify and count the different microorganisms present. The most common microorganisms detected were Prevotella oris, Fusobacterium nucleatum, Streptococcus viridans, Enterococcus faecalis, Clostridium subterminale, Porphyromonas gingivalis, and Peptostreptococcus anaerobius. The dogs were divided into four groups based on the sealant used to treat the infected periapical areas: Group I: Negative control (no treatment) Group II: Positive control (MTA only) Group III: MTA + tetracycline Group IV: MTA + tetracycline loaded on nanochitosan Results: Periapical areas in Group IV showed significantly more bone healing than those in Groups I, II, and III. The newly formed bone was evaluated radiographically, histologically, and immunohistochemically using Osteopontin (OSP) antibodies. Data collected was statistically analysed using SPSS software at a 0.05 significance level. Conclusion: The study concluded that the combined use of Tetracycline-loaded Nanochitosan and MTA presents a promising approach for the treatment of infected root canals. The potent antimicrobial activity of Tetracycline-loaded Nanochitosan, along with the biocompatibility and desirable properties of MTA, may synergistically contribute to improved clinical outcomes in endodontic therapy. This study has important implications for the clinical management of infected root canals. The combination of Tetracycline-loaded Nanochitosan and MTA could provide a more effective and efficient means of treating these challenging cases. Further research is needed to confirm these findings in humans and to optimize the treatment protocol.

Keywords: mineral trioxide aggregate, tetracycline-loaded nanochitosan, periapical infection, osteopontine

Procedia PDF Downloads 35

Authors: Karima Maazouz, Habib Benlahmer, Naceur Achtaich

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The realization of mobile payments will make possible new and unforeseen ways of convenience and m-commerce. Mobile payment today benefit from technology and trends. NFC technology is creating a new era of contactless mobile payment. the “M-check” is a mobile payment system provides a new way facilitating transaction with high valued payment and enable new m-commerce. The objective of the paper is to propose a new solution for m-payment. The proposed combination of m-check system and NFC offers acceptable security for payment mobile, client’s satisfaction, and simplifies the process payment between clients and merchants.

Keywords: M-payment, NFC, M-check, M-commerce, security

Procedia PDF Downloads 575

Authors: Nurbanu Guzey, S. Jagannathan

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Locating radio controlled (RC) devices using their unintended emissions has a great interest considering security concerns. Weak nature of these emissions requires near field localization approach since it is hard to detect these signals in far field region of array. Instead of only angle estimation, near field localization also requires range estimation of the source which makes this method more complicated than far field models. Challenges of locating such devices in a near field region and real time environment are analyzed in this paper. An ESPRIT like near field localization scheme is utilized for both angle and range estimation. 1-D search with symmetric subarrays is provided. Two 7 element uniform linear antenna arrays (ULA) are employed for locating RC source. Experiment results of location estimation for one unintended emitting walkie-talkie for different positions are given.

Keywords: localization, angle of arrival (AoA), range estimation, array signal processing, ESPRIT, Uniform Linear Array (ULA)

Procedia PDF Downloads 507

Authors: Radheshyam Yadav, Ramakrishna Wusirika

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Plant Growth Promoting Bacteria (PGPB) and Arbuscular Mycorrhizal (AM) Fungi are ubiquitous in soil and often very critical for crop yield and agriculture sustainability, and this has motivated the agricultural practices to support and promote PGPB and AM Fungi in agriculture. PGPB can be involved in a range of processes that affect Nitrogen (N) and Phosphorus (P) transformations in soil and thus influence nutrient availability and uptake to the plants. A field study with two wheat cultivars, HD-3086, and HD-2967 was performed in Malwa region, Bathinda of Punjab, India, to evaluate the effect of native and non-native PGPB alone and in combination with AM fungi as an inoculant on wheat grain yield, nutrient uptake and soil health parameters (dehydrogenase, urease, β‐glucosidase). Our results showed that despite an early insignificant increase in shoot length, plants treated with PGPB (Bacillus sp.) and AM Fungi led to a significant increase in shoot growth at maturity, aboveground biomass, nitrogen (45% - 40%) and phosphorus (40% - 34%) content in wheat grains relative to untreated control plants. Similarly, enhanced grain yield and nutrients uptake i.e. copper (27.15% - 36.25%) iron (43% - 53%) and zinc (44% - 47%) was recorded in PGPB and AM Fungi treated plants relative to untreated control. Overall, inoculation with native PGPB alone and in combination with AM Fungi provided benefits to enhance grain yield, wheat biofortification, and improved soil fertility, despite this effect varied depending on different PGPB isolates and wheat cultivars. These field study results provide evidence of the benefits of agricultural practices involving native PGPB and AM Fungi to the plants. These native strains and AM Fungi increased accumulations of copper, iron, and zinc in wheat grains, enhanced grain yield, and soil fertility.

Keywords: AM Fungi, biofortification, PGPB, soil microbial enzymes

Procedia PDF Downloads 306

Authors: Nazirah Zainul Abidin, Nurul Zahirah Mokhtar Azizi

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Cost has always been the leading concern in green building development. The perception that construction cost for green building is higher than conventional buildings has only made the discussion of green building cost more difficult. Understanding the factors that will influence the cost of green construction is expected to shed light into what makes green construction more or at par with conventional projects, or perhaps, where cost can be optimised. This paper identifies the elements of cost before shifting the attention to the influencing factors. Findings from past studies uncovered various factors related to cost which are grouped into five focal themes i.e. awareness, knowledge, financial, technical, and government support. A conceptual framework is produced in a form of a flower diagram indicating the cost influencing factors of green building development. These factors were found to be both physical and non-physical aspects of a project. The framework provides ground for the next stage of research that is to further explore how these factors influence the project cost and decision making.

Keywords: green project, factors influencing cost, hard cost, soft cost

Procedia PDF Downloads 321

Authors: Tondani Mudau, Sherine B. Van Wyk, Zuhayr Kafaar, Janan Dietrich

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Female adolescents residing in a patriarchal society such as South Africa are more inclined to embrace feminine ideologies. Internalizing these ideologies may expose female adolescents to mental health challenges such as depression and anxiety. This study explored whether the internalisation of adolescent femininity ideologies namely, objectified relationship with own body (ORB) and inauthentic self in relationships (ISR) predicted anxiety and depression in late female adolescents at Stellenbosch University. The sample of the study consisted of 1451 (18-24) female undergraduate and postgraduate students enrolled at Stellenbosch University. The mean age of the participants was 20 (SD=1.46), and most participants (39.7%) were first-year students. The study employed a cross-sectional quantitative research design. Data was collected through an online self-completion survey, the survey consisted of three sections, the first section asked biographical questions regarding age, gender, race and family background. The second section measured the internalisation of feminine ideologies by using the adolescent femininity ideology scale which has two subscales namely inauthentic self in relationship with others (ISR) and objectified relationship with one’s own body (ORB). The ISR scale had the Cronbach Alpha of 0.76, and the ORB scale had the Cronbach Alpha of 0.83. The third section measured mental health (depression and anxiety) by using the Hopkins Symptoms 25-checklist which had the Cronbach Alpha of 0.93. Data were analysed through multiple linear regression from IBM SPSS (Statistical Package for the Social Sciences Version 24). The overall results of the multiple linear regression showed that The AFIS combination accounted for 14% for anxiety as measured by the Hopkins Symptoms Checklist R² = .142, F (2, 682) = 56.431, p < .001. The combination also accounted for 24% for depression as measured by the Hopkins Symptoms Checklist R² = .239, F (2, 682) = 106.971, p < .0. The findings in this study affirm the objectification and feminist theory contentions that internalising femininity ideologies (ISR and ORB) predict negative mental health in female adolescents.

Keywords: adolescents, anxiety, depression, feminine ideologies, inauthentic self, mental health, self-objectification, South Africa

Procedia PDF Downloads 131

Authors: Yifat Koren Carmi, Abed Agbarya, Hazem Khamaisi, Raymond Farah, Yelena Shechtman, Roman Korobochka, Jacob Gopas, Jamal Mahajna

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Ovarian cancer (OC), the second most common form of gynecological malignancy, has a poor prognosis and is frequently identified in its late stages. The recommended treatment for OC typically includes a platinum-based chemotherapy, like carboplatin. Nonetheless, OC treatment has proven challenging due to toxicity and development of acquired resistance to therapy. Chemoresistance is a significant obstacle to a long-lasting response in OC patients, believed to arise from alterations within the cancer cells as well as within the tumor microenvironments (TME). Malignant ascites is a presenting feature in more than one-third of OC patients. It serves as a reservoir for a complex mixture of soluble factors, metabolites, and cellular components, providing a pro-inflammatory and tumor-promoting microenvironment for the OC cells. Malignant ascites is also associated with metastasis and chemoresistance. In an attempt to elucidate the role of TME in chemoresistance of OC, we monitored the ability of soluble factors derived from ascites fluids to affect platinum sensitivity of OC cells. This research, compared ascites fluids from non-malignant cirrhotic patients to those from OC patients in terms of their ability to alter the platinum sensitivity of OC cells. Our findings indicated that exposure to OC ascites induces platinum chemoresistance on OC cells in 11 out of 13 cases (85%). In contrast, 75% of cirrhosis ascites (3 out of 4) failed to confer platinum chemoresistance to OC cells. Cytokine array analysis revealed that IL-6, and to a lesser extent HGF were enriched in OC ascites, whereas IL-22 was enriched in cirrhosis ascites. Pharmaceutical inhibitors that target the IL-6/JAK signaling pathway were mildly effective in overcoming the platinum chemoresistance induced by malignant ascites. In contrast, Crizotinib an HGF/c-MET inhibitor, and 2-hydroxyestradiol (2HE2) were effective in restoring platinum chemoresistance to OC. Our findings demonstrate the importance of OC ascites in supporting platinum chemoresistance as well as the potential of a combination therapy with Crizotinib and the estradiol metabolite 2HE2 to regain OC cells chemosensitivity.

Keywords: ovarian cancer, platinum chemoresistance, malignant ascites, tumor microenvironment, IL-6, 2-hydroxyestradiol, HGF, crizotinib

Procedia PDF Downloads 44

Authors: N. Bouhamou, F. Mostefa, A. Mebrouki, N. Belas

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Every year, millions of cube meters are dredged from dams and restraints as an entertaining and prevention procedure all over the world. These dredged sediments are considered as natural waste leading to an environmental, ecological and even an economical problem in their processing and deposing. Nevertheless, in the context of the sustainable development policy, a way of management is opened aiming to the valorization of sediments as a building material and particularly as a new binder that can be industrially exploited and that improve the physical, chemical and mechanical characteristics of the concrete. This study is a part of the research works realized in the civil engineering department at the university of Mostaganem (Algeria), on the impact of the dredged mud of Fergoug dam on the behaviour of self-consolidating concrete in fresh and hardened state, such as the mechanical performance of SCC and its impact on the differed deformations (shrinkage). The work aims to valorize this mud in SCC and to show eventual interactions between constituents. The results obtained presents a good perspectives in order to perform SCC based in calcined mud.

Keywords: sediment, calcination, reuse, self-consolidating concrete, fresh state, hard state, shrinkage

Procedia PDF Downloads 367

Authors: Mohamed Khalifa Zayet, Salma Belal Eiid, Mushira Mohamed Dahaba

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Introduction: Malignant tumors may not be easily detected by traditional radiographic techniques especially in an anatomically complex area like maxillofacial region. At the same time, the advent of biological functional MRI was a significant footstep in the diagnostic imaging field. Objective: The purpose of this study was to define the malignant metabolic profile of maxillofacial lesions using diffusion MRI and magnetic resonance spectroscopy, as adjunctive aids for diagnosing of such lesions. Subjects and Methods: Twenty-one patients with twenty-two lesions were enrolled in this study. Both morphological and functional MRI scans were performed, where T1, T2 weighted images, diffusion-weighted MRI with four apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) maps were constructed for analysis, and magnetic resonance spectroscopy with qualitative and semi-quantitative analyses of choline and lactate peaks were applied. Then, all patients underwent incisional or excisional biopsies within two weeks from MR scans. Results: Statistical analysis revealed that not all the parameters had the same diagnostic performance, where lactate had the highest areas under the curve (AUC) of 0.9 and choline was the lowest with insignificant diagnostic value. The best cut-off value suggested for lactate was 0.125, where any lesion above this value is supposed to be malignant with 90 % sensitivity and 83.3 % specificity. Despite that ADC maps had comparable AUCs still, the statistical measure that had the final say was the interpretation of likelihood ratio. As expected, lactate again showed the best combination of positive and negative likelihood ratios, whereas for the maps, ADC map with 500 and 1000 b-values showed the best realistic combination of likelihood ratios, however, with lower sensitivity and specificity than lactate. Conclusion: Diffusion weighted imaging and magnetic resonance spectroscopy are state-of-art in the diagnostic arena and they manifested themselves as key players in the differentiation process of orofacial tumors. The complete biological profile of malignancy can be decoded as low ADC values, high choline and/or high lactate, whereas that of benign entities can be translated as high ADC values, low choline and no lactate.

Keywords: diffusion magnetic resonance imaging, magnetic resonance spectroscopy, malignant tumors, maxillofacial

Procedia PDF Downloads 153

Authors: Haslinda Nahazanan, Afshin Asadi, Zainuddin Md. Yusoff, Nik Nor Syahariati Nik Daud

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Mudrocks is considered as a problematic material due to their unexpected behaviour specifically when they are contacting with water or being exposed to the atmosphere. Many instability problems of cutting slopes were found lying on high slaking mudrocks. It has become one of the major concerns to geotechnical engineer as mudrocks cover up to 50% of sedimentary rocks in the geologic records. Mudrocks display properties between soils and rocks which can be very hard to understand. Therefore, this paper aims to review the definition, mineralogy, geo-chemistry, classification and engineering properties of mudrocks. As water has become one of the major factors that will rapidly change the behaviour of mudrocks, a review on the shear strength of mudrocks in Derbyshire has been made using a fully automated hydraulic stress path testing system under three states: dry, short-term inundated and long-term inundated. It can be seen that the strength of mudrocks has deteriorated as it condition changed from dry to short-term inundated and finally to long-term inundated.

Keywords: mudrocks, sedimentary rocks, inundation, shear strength

Procedia PDF Downloads 218

Authors: H. Donya

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Monte Carlo (MC) techniques play a fundamental role in radiotherapy. A two non-water-equivalent of different media were used to evaluate the dose in water. For such purpose, Lu2SiO5 (LSO) and Y2SiO5 (YSO) orthosilicates scintillators are chosen for MC simulation using Penelope code. To get higher efficiency in dose calculation, variance reduction techniques are discussed. Overall results of this investigation ensured that the LSO/YSO bi-media a good combination to tackle over-response issue in dynamic photon radiotherapy.

Keywords: Lu2SiO5 (LSO) and Y2SiO5 (YSO) orthosilicates, Monte Carlo, correlated sampling, radiotherapy

Procedia PDF Downloads 383

Authors: M. Dagim Yoseph, M. K. Savage, A. D. Jolly, C. J. Ebinger

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Whakaari/White Island has been the most active New Zealand volcano in the 21st century, producing small phreatic and phreatomagmatic eruptions, which are hard to predict. The most recent eruption occurred in 2019, tragically claiming the lives of 22 individuals and causing numerous injuries. We employed shear-wave splitting analyses to investigate variations in anisotropy between 2018 and 2020, during quiescence, unrest, and the eruption. We examined spatial and temporal variations in 3499 shear-wave splitting and 2656 V_p/V_s ratio measurements. Comparing shear-wave splitting parameters from similar earthquake paths across different times indicates that the observed temporal changes are unlikely to result from variations in earthquake paths through media with spatial variability. Instead, these changes may stem from variations in anisotropy over time, likely caused by changes in crack alignment due to stress or varying fluid content.

Keywords: background seismic waves, fast orientations, seismic anisotropy, V_p/V_s ratio

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Authors: Robert Pintaric, Joze Matela, Stefan Pintaric, Stanka Vadnjal

Abstract:

Introduction: This work is aimed to represent the use of the OPTI-JET CS MD1 MR prototype for application of neutral electrolyzed oxidizing water (NEOW) in magnetic resonance rooms. Material and Methods: We produced and used OPTI-JET CS MD1 MR aerosolisator whereby was performed aerosolization. The presence of microorganisms before and after the aerosolisation was recorded with the help of cyclone air sampling. Colony formed units (CFU) was counted. Results: The number of microorganisms in magnetic resonance 3T room was low as expected. Nevertheless, a possible CFU reduction of 87% was recorded. Conclusions: The research has shown that the use of EOW for the air and hard surface disinfection can considerably reduce the presence of microorganisms and consequently the possibility of hospital infections. It has also demonstrated that the use of OPTI-JET CS MD1 MR is very good. With this research, we started new guidelines for aerosolization in magnetic resonance rooms. Future work: We predict that presented technique works very good but we must focus also on time capacity sensors, and new appropriate toxicological studies.

Keywords: biocide, electrolyzed oxidizing water (EOW), disinfection, microorganisms, OPTI-JET CS MD1MR

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Authors: Bashiru Olayinka Adisa, Najeem Lateef

Abstract:

The integrated knowledge in the application of mechanical engineering, microprocessor and electronic sensor technologies is becoming the basic skill of a modern engineer in machinery based processes. To meet this objective, we have developed a cross-disciplinary industrial training to teach essential hard technical and soft project skills to the mechanical engineering students in mid-curriculum. Ten groups of students were selected to participate in a 150 hour program. The students were required to design and build a robot with ability to follow tracks and pick/place target blocks in specific locations. The students were trained to integrate the knowledge of computer aid design, electronics, sensor theories and motor technology to fabricate a workable robot as a major outcome of this course. On completion of the project, students competed for top robot honors by demonstrating their robots' movements and performance in pick/place to a panel of judges.

Keywords: electronics, sensor theories and motor, robot, technology

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Authors: Ewa Rak

Abstract:

This paper is part of a broader research project on employee development in small enterprises, financed by Polish National Science Centre. The project results will serve as basis for a doctoral dissertation. The paper utilises literature studies and qualitative research conducted in small enterprises operating in the Lower Silesia region of Poland. This paper aims to identify some of the factors that stimulate employee development in small companies operating in Poland. The great variety of business pursuits and applications represented by this sector makes it hard to determine a universal configuration of factors to offer best possible conditions for employee development. Research results suggest that each of the examined companies had one or two of such factors in focus, and serving as the basis for the entire pro-development system. These include: employment security (both for employee and entrepreneur) and extensive knowledge and experience of entrepreneurs, but only if it is combined with a willingness and ability to share it.

Keywords: employee development, factors that stimulate employee development, human resources development, Poland, small enterprises, training

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Authors: I. Khabbazi, R. Ghasemi

Abstract:

This paper presents a combination of both robust nonlinear controller and nonlinear controller for a class of nonlinear 4Y Octorotor UAV using Back-stepping and sliding mode controller. The robustness against internal and external disturbance and decoupling control are the merits of the proposed paper. The proposed controller decouples the Octorotor dynamical system. The controller is then applied to a 4Y Octorotor UAV and its feature will be shown.

Keywords: sliding mode, backstepping, decoupling, octorotor UAV

Procedia PDF Downloads 423

Authors: Robert Jesiolowski, Monique Jesiolowski

Abstract:

Today more than ever before, we have access to new technologies which provide unforeseen opportunities for educators to pursue in online education. It starts with an idea, but that needs to be coupled with the right team of experts willing to take big risks and put in the hard work to build something different. An instructional design team was empowered to reimagine an Introduction to Sociology university course as a Game-Based Learning (GBL) experience utilizing cutting edge Virtual Reality (VR) technology. The result was a collaborative process that resulted in a type of learning based in Game theory, Method of Loci, and VR Immersion Simulations to promote deeper retention of core concepts. The team deconstructed the way that university courses operated, in order to rebuild the educational process in a whole learner-centric manner. In addition to a review of the build process, this paper will explore the results of in-course surveys completed by student participants.

Keywords: higher education, innovation, virtual reality, game-based learning, loci method

Procedia PDF Downloads 63