Dielectric characteristics of spin-coated dielectric films using on-wafer parallel-plate capacitors at microwave frequencies

Includes bibliographical references.Dielectric properties of spin-coated dielectric insulators suitable for high-speed device fabrication are investigated. Complex dielectric permittivities and tangential losses of two polyimides, bisbenzocyclobutene (BCB), and a spin-on-glass (SOG) were extracted from the measured microwave reflection coefficient, S11, of parallel-plate capacitors over a frequency range of 50 MHz to 40 GHz. A model for the dielectric permittivity as a function of frequency is developed based on measured data with a minimum square error of less than 10-4 between measured and modeled microwave reflection coefficients. A circuit model for the pad capacitance is obtained based on geometrical and physical considerations. The relationship between the dielectric loss and its thickness is considered. Experimental results are fitted to Debye and Cole-Cole models.This work has been supported in part by the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency under contract number DAAD19-03-1-0059 and by Yarmouk University in Irbid, Jordan

Outcomes of SARS-CoV-2-positive youths tested in emergency departments: The global PERN-COVID-19 study

Importance: Severe outcomes among youths with SARS-CoV-2 infections are poorly characterized. Objective: To estimate the proportion of children with severe outcomes within 14 days of testing positive for SARS-CoV-2 in an emergency department (ED). Design, Setting, and Participants: This prospective cohort study with 14-day follow-up enrolled participants between March 2020 and June 2021. Participants were youths aged younger than 18 years who were tested for SARS-CoV-2 infection at one of 41 EDs across 10 countries including Argentina, Australia, Canada, Costa Rica, Italy, New Zealand, Paraguay, Singapore, Spain, and the United States. Statistical analysis was performed from September to October 2021. Exposures: Acute SARS-CoV-2 infection was determined by nucleic acid (eg, polymerase chain reaction) testing. Main Outcomes and Measures: Severe outcomes, a composite measure defined as intensive interventions during hospitalization (eg, inotropic support, positive pressure ventilation), diagnoses indicating severe organ impairment, or death. Results: Among 3222 enrolled youths who tested positive for SARS-CoV-2 infection, 3221 (\u3e99.9%) had index visit outcome data available, 2007 (62.3%) were from the United States, 1694 (52.6%) were male, and 484 (15.0%) had a self-reported chronic illness; the median (IQR) age was 3 (0-10) years. After 14 days of follow-up, 735 children (22.8% [95% CI, 21.4%-24.3%]) were hospitalized, 107 (3.3% [95% CI, 2.7%-4.0%]) had severe outcomes, and 4 children (0.12% [95% CI, 0.03%-0.32%]) died. Characteristics associated with severe outcomes included being aged 5 to 18 years (age 5 to \u3c10 years vs \u3c1 year: odds ratio [OR], 1.60 [95% CI, 1.09-2.34]; age 10 to \u3c18 years vs \u3c1 year: OR, 2.39 [95% CI 1.38-4.14]), having a self-reported chronic illness (OR, 2.34 [95% CI, 1.59-3.44]), prior episode of pneumonia (OR, 3.15 [95% CI, 1.83-5.42]), symptoms starting 4 to 7 days prior to seeking ED care (vs starting 0-3 days before seeking care: OR, 2.22 [95% CI, 1.29-3.82]), and country (eg, Canada vs US: OR, 0.11 [95% CI, 0.05-0.23]; Costa Rica vs US: OR, 1.76 [95% CI, 1.05-2.96]; Spain vs US: OR, 0.51 [95% CI, 0.27-0.98]). Among a subgroup of 2510 participants discharged home from the ED after initial testing and who had complete follow-up, 50 (2.0%; 95% CI, 1.5%-2.6%) were eventually hospitalized and 12 (0.5%; 95% CI, 0.3%-0.8%) had severe outcomes. Compared with hospitalized SARS-CoV-2-negative youths, the risk of severe outcomes was higher among hospitalized SARS-CoV-2-positive youths (risk difference, 3.9%; 95% CI, 1.1%-6.9%). Conclusions and Relevance: In this study, approximately 3% of SARS-CoV-2-positive youths tested in EDs experienced severe outcomes within 2 weeks of their ED visit. Among children discharged home from the ED, the risk was much lower. Risk factors such as age, underlying chronic illness, and symptom duration may be useful to consider when making clinical care decisions

Modelling reinforced concrete beams for structural strengthening of buildings

Iraq has many damaged and vandalized building since it is located in the Middle East, in southwestern Asia. Reinforced concrete beams of normal weight and lightweight's beams were conducted. The study is also done on normal strength and high strength beams in each category. The reinforced concrete used were 0% and 0.75% in each category. The lengths of the concrete beams used were 35 mm and 60 mm in each category. The longitudinal reinforcement ratio in all the beams is kept at 1.46%. The effect of types of aggregates, length of concrete beams, and concrete compressive strength were studied and results were presented with regard to the shear and flexure strengths, beam load-deflection responses, mode of failure, stiffness, energy absorption, and ductility. Shear and flexural crack widths and cracking patterns of the beams were also presented. Reinforced concrete content of the beams was also discussed. The possibility of replacement of minimum concrete reinforcement for lightweight beams with reinforced concrete is discussed. The most efficient length of beams for this purpose was presented. The modeling of buildings were designed in ANSYS and the strengthening as well as reinforcement was being shown using the software tool for the buildings in Iraq

A modified cohesive zone model for fatigue delamination in adhesive joints:Numerical and experimental investigations

A modified cohesive zone model (CZM) has been developed to simulate damage initiation and evolution in Fibre-Metal Laminates (FMLs) manufactured in-house but based on the Glare® material specifications. Specimens containing both splice and doubler features were analysed under high cycle fatigue loading. The model uses a novel trapezoidal traction-separation law to describe the elastic-plastic behaviour of this material under monotonic and high-cycle fatigue loading. The model is implemented in the software Abaqus/Explicit via an user-defined cohesive material subroutine. Several models of increasing complexity were investigated to validate the proposed approach. A two-stage experimental testing programme was then conducted to validate the numerical analyses. Firstly, quasi-static tests were used to determine the ultimate tensile strength (UTS) of a series of specimens with and without internal features. Secondly, high-cycle fatigue tests were conducted on both laminate types with variable load amplitude so that S-N curves could be built. Tests were monitored using digital image correlation (DIC) for full-field strain mapping and acoustic emission (AE) sensing to detect the initiation and propagation of damage during quasi-static and fatigue tests. Good correlation was observed between predicted onset and growth of delaminations and the history of cumulative AE energy during the tests, which supports the validity of the cohesive modelling approach for FMLs

Awareness and knowledge on modern biotechnology

Biotechnology has been considered as a very important industry in helping Malaysia to achieve its goal of becoming a highly industrialized nation by 2020. Thus, assessment of people’s knowledge and awareness on biotechnology is very important and according to a theory on decision making, people only form attitudes about technologies when they have acquired relevant information. The purpose of this paper is to study the awareness and knowledge level of the Malaysia public in the Klang Valley region and to compare their awareness and knowledge level across stakeholder groups. A survey was carried out in the Klang Valley region from August 2009 till February 2010 using self constructed  multidimensional instrument measuring ethical perception of transgenic banana. The respondents (n = 434) were stratified according to stakeholder groups which consisted of eleven groups: Producers, scientists, policy makers, NGOs, media, religious scholars, university students and consumers. Results of the survey showed that overall mean score for awareness and knowledge on modern biotechnology were moderate. ANOVAs showed significant differences in awareness on modern biotechnology across several background variables such as stakeholders’ group and educational level. Knowledge level differed significantly across stakeholder groups, educational level, religion, races, age groups and gender. The research findings serve as a useful database for understanding the level of awareness among the public in developing country.Key words: Awareness, knowledge, engagement, modern biotechnology, Malaysia

Total Asam, Total Yeast, Dan Profil Protein Kefir Susu Kambing Dengan Penambahan Jenis Dan Konsentrasi Gula Yang Berbeda

Research goat milk kefir with the addition of the type and concentration of sugar in different level have been conducted in order to analyze the effect and interaction of the two treatments on total acid, total yeast and protein profile of goat milk kefir. The experimental design was used the completely randomized design (CRD) factorial pattern consisting of 2 (two) factors, the first factor (A) is a type of sugar consists of 3 (three) types of treatment (white sugar, brown sugar and D-Psicose) and The second factor (B) is the concentration of sugar consists of 3 (three) standard treatment (4%, 6%, and 8%), each treatment performed repetitions for 3 (three) times. Data results of total acid and total yeast were analyzed using analysis of variance to determine the effect and treatment interaction, while data from the protein profiles was used descriptive analysis. If there is a significant effect of treatment, therefore, continued by Duncan's test Dual region to determine differences among treatments. The results showed that the treatment of sugar (granulated sugar, brown sugar, and D-Psicose), concentration (4%, 6%, and 8%) and the interaction between the two treatments has the affect significantly (p <0.05) to total acid and total goat milk kefir yeast. Types of proteins and the molecular weight of goat milk kefir with the addition of different types and concentrations of the lactoferrin (80kDa), Laktoferoksidase (70kDa), α-Casein (65kDa), and β-casein (45kDa)

Baseline characteristics and treatment pattern of type 2 diabetes patients in Jordan: analysis from the DISCOVER patient population

Introduction: Jordan has limited published data on T2DM and its treatment patterns. This analysis of the DISCOVER study, focusing on Jordan, is aimed at describing the characteristics of patients and treatment patterns according to the real-world setting in T2DM patients initiating a second-line antidiabetic treatment Methods: The DISCOVER study is an ongoing, multi-country, multicenter, observational, prospective, and longitudinal cohort study. The baseline data of patients’ characteristics, clinical and laboratory variables, micro- and macro-complications, and treatment choices were captured on a standardized case report form. Results: Two hundred and seventy-one patients were enrolled from 13 different clinical sites in Jordan. Sixty percent of the patients were male. The participants overall mean age was 53.8 ± 11.3 years with a mean BMI 30.8 ± 5.0 kg/m 2. The mean duration of T2DM was almost 6 years and the mean documented HbA1c and fasting plasma glucose were e 8.4% ± 1.6 and 180.9 ± 63.7 mg/dL, respectively, at the initiation of second-line antidiabetic treatment. Almost 25% of the participants were reported to be either current smokers or ex-smokers. More than 40% of patients had comorbidities such as hypertension or dyslipidemia. Diabetes related microvascular and macrovascular complications were documented in 10.3% and 12.5% of patients, respectively. Metformin (MET) alone was used as a first-line therapy in almost one-half of the patients and in combination with sulfonylurea (SU) in approximately one-third of the patients. The most commonly used second-line therapy was the combination of MET and dipeptidyl peptidase-4 inhibitors (DPP-4i) with 29.9% followed by the triple therapy of MET, SU, and DPP-4i with 28%. Conclusion: A substantial number of patients were young with uncontrolled diabetes and at high risk for micro- and macrovascular complications. Therefore, a comprehensive management with early treatment intensification and risk factors modifications are required to achieve target goals