Dynamic stochastic joint expansion planning of power systems, natural gas networks, and electrical and natural gas storage

Over the last decades, electricity generation from natural gas has substantially increased, mostly driven by low natural gas prices due to fracturing and lower extraction costs. The geographic distance between natural gas resources and load centers calls for a holistic tool for joint expansion of power systems and natural gas networks. In this paper, a Dynamic Stochastic Joint Expansion Planning (DSJEP) of power systems and natural gas networks is proposed to minimize the investment and operational costs of power and natural gas systems. Electrical and natural gas storage (ENGS) are considered as an option for decision-makers in the DSJEP problem. The proposed approach takes into account long-term uncertainties in natural gas prices and electric and natural gas demands through scenario realizations. In dynamic planning, more scenario needs more time for computation; therefore, scenario reduction is implemented to eschew unnecessary scenarios. The proposed formulation is implemented on a four-bus electricity system with a five-node natural gas network. To demonstrate the efficiency and scalability of the proposed approach, it is also tested on the IEEE 118-bus system with a 14-node natural gas network. The numerical results demonstrate that ENGS can reduce the total investment cost, up to 52% in the test cases, and operational cost, up to 3%. In this paper, co-planning of power and natural gas systems considering natural gas and electrical storage is represented. Also, electrical and natural gas load growth uncertainties are taken into account to model the real situations. The purpose of the model is to minimize investing and operational costs

Second generation of HIV surveillance system: A pattern for IRAN

Background: For the purpose of minimizing the HIV/AIDS epidemic effects, one of the programs is the promotion of scientific methods and setting of the suitable surveillance systems. The present research was conducted to design the HIV/AIDS surveillance system in Iran applying WHO recommendations and the experience of some countries. Methods: In 2009, based on the country's requirements, the HIV/AIDS surveillance system was proposed and designed for Iran. The Delphi technique was utilized to find the views of experts. Data analysis was conducted based on a comparison of the attributes of the HIV/AIDS surveillance systems in the countries under consideration using a descriptive and theoretical analysis. Results: The model was approved obtaining the final score of 36.3 out of 44, viz 82.5. Conclusion: Designing and performing of the HIV/AIDS surveillance pattern in the direction of "second generation of HIV/AIDS surveillance" can be considered as an important step in the improvement of the patient's control and precaution of HIV/AIDS. © Iranian Red Crescent Medical Journal

Assessing the genetic and pathogenic variability of Pyrenophora teres f. maculata (spot form net blotch of barley) and its ability to overcome currently-used sources of resistance on the Canadian prairies

Non-Peer ReviewedEighty two isolates of the fungus Pyrenophora teres f. maculata, causal agent of spot form net blotch (SFNB) of barley, were collected across the Canadian prairies. Following genetic analysis using 13 microsatellite DNA markers, 27 isolates were selected to assess the degree of pathogenic variation in the fungus. Pathogenic variability was evaluated by inoculating isolates onto 11 barley genotypes as differential hosts at the seedling stage. One week following inoculation, the second and third leaves of each plant were rated on to a 1–9 disease severity scale, and plants with scores of 1–3 and >3 were scored as resistant and susceptible, respectively. The entire experiment was repeated. Cluster analysis revealed 13 distinct pathotype groups (virulence patterns) among the 27 representative isolates. Disease severity ratings ranged from 2.2 to 6.1 with a mean of 4.6. To assess the risk of resistance breakdown, the resistance of four barley cultivars (‘AAC Synergy’, ‘CDC Meredith’, ‘Cerveza’ and ‘Major’), which had been previously identified as resistant to SFNB on the Canadian prairies, was evaluated at the seedling stage against six isolates of P. teres f. maculata representing four different pathotypes. The resistance in ‘CDC Meredith’ was clearly overcome by all isolates tested, while ‘AAC Synergy’, ‘Cerveza’ and ‘Major’ still exhibited resistance against all of the pathotypes. The identification of fungal isolates virulent on ‘CDC Meredith’ suggests that producers should avoid growing the same resistant barley variety in short rotation, and avoid relying on resistance as the sole approach to disease management. Judicious use of fungicides, coupled with rotations of at least two years between barley crops and diversity in the barley varieties grown, will promote effective and sustainable management of spot form net blotch

Nanomaterial integration into the scaffolding materials for nerve tissue engineering: a review

The nervous system, which consists of a complex network of millions of neurons, is one of the most highly intricate systems in the body. This complex network is responsible for the physiological and cognitive functions of the human body. Following injuries or degenerative diseases, damage to the nervous system is overwhelming because of its complexity and its limited regeneration capacity. However, neural tissue engineering currently has some capacities for repairing nerve deficits and promoting neural regeneration, with more developments in the future. Nevertheless, controlling the guidance of stem cell proliferation and differentiation is a challenging step towards this goal. Nanomaterials have the potential for the guidance of the stem cells towards the neural lineage which can overcome the pitfalls of the classical methods since they provide a unique microenvironment that facilitates cell-matrix and cell-cell interaction, and they can manipulate the cell signaling mechanisms to control stem cells' fate. In this article, the suitable cell sources and microenvironment cues for neuronal tissue engineering were examined. Afterward, the nanomaterials that impact stem cell proliferation and differentiation towards neuronal lineage were reviewed. © 2020 Hamidreza Arzaghi et al., published by De Gruyter, Berlin/Boston 2020

Tracing very high energy neutrinos from cosmological distances in ice

Astrophysical sources of ultrahigh energy neutrinos yield tau neutrino fluxes due to neutrino oscillations. We study in detail the contribution of tau neutrinos with energies above PeV relative to the contribution of the other flavors. We consider several different initial neutrino fluxes and include tau neutrino regeneration in transit through the Earth and energy loss of charged leptons. We discuss signals of tau neutrinos in detectors such as IceCube, RICE and ANITA.Comment: 27 pages, 19 figure

Immunization with lytic polysaccharide monooxygenase CbpD induces protective immunity against Pseudomonas aeruginosa pneumonia

publishedVersio

Food safety in hospital: knowledge, attitudes and practices of nursing staff of two hospitals in Sicily, Italy

BACKGROUND: Food hygiene in hospital poses peculiar problems, particularly given the presence of patients who could be more vulnerable than healthy subjects to microbiological and nutritional risks. Moreover, in nosocomial outbreaks of infectious intestinal disease, the mortality risk has been proved to be significantly higher than the community outbreaks and highest for foodborne outbreaks. On the other hand, the common involvement in the role of food handlers of nurses or domestic staff, not specifically trained about food hygiene and HACCP, may represent a further cause of concern. The purpose of this study was to evaluate knowledge, attitudes, and practices concerning food safety of the nursing staff of two hospitals in Palermo, Italy. Association with some demographic and work-related determinants was also investigated. METHODS: The survey was conducted, by using a semi-structured questionnaire, in March-November 2005 in an acute general hospital and a paediatric hospital, where nursing staff is routinely involved in food service functions. RESULTS: Overall, 401 nurses (279, 37.1%, of the General Hospital and 122, 53.5%, of the Paediatric Hospital, respectively) answered. Among the respondents there was a generalized lack of knowledge about etiologic agents and food vehicles associated to foodborne diseases and proper temperatures of storage of hot and cold ready to eat foods. A general positive attitude towards temperature control and using clothing and gloves, when handling food, was shared by the respondents nurses, but questions about cross-contamination, refreezing and handling unwrapped food with cuts or abrasions on hands were frequently answered incorrectly. The practice section performed better, though sharing of utensils for raw and uncooked foods and thawing of frozen foods at room temperatures proved to be widely frequent among the respondents. Age, gender, educational level and length of service were inconsistently associated with the answer pattern. More than 80% of the respondent nurses did not attend any educational course on food hygiene. Those who attended at least one training course fared significantly better about some knowledge issues, but no difference was detected in both the attitude and practice sections. CONCLUSION: Results strongly emphasize the need for a safer management of catering in the hospitals, where non professional food handlers, like nursing or domestic staff, are involved in food service functions

A System Dynamics Approach for Hospital Waste Management in a City in a Developing Country: The Case of Nablus, Palestine

Hospitals and health centers provide a variety of healthcare services and normally generate hazardous waste as well as general waste. General waste has a similar nature to that of municipal solid waste and therefore could be disposed of in municipal landfills. However, hazardous waste poses risks to public health, unless it is properly managed. The hospital waste management system encompasses many factors, i.e., number of beds, number of employees, level of service, population, birth rate, fertility rate, and not in my back yard (NIMBY) syndrome. Therefore, this management system requires a comprehensive analysis to determine the role of each factor and its influence on the whole system. In this research, a hospital waste management simulation model is presented based on the system dynamics technique to determine the interaction among these factors in the system using a software package, ithink. This model is used to estimate waste segregation as this is important in the hospital waste management system to minimize risk to public health. Real data has been obtained from a case study of the city of Nablus, Palestine to validate the model. The model exhibits wastes generated from three types of hospitals (private, charitable, and government) by considering the number of both inpatients and outpatients depending on the population of the city under study. The model also offers the facility to compare the total waste generated among these different types of hospitals and anticipate and predict the future generated waste both infectious and non-infectious and the treatment cost incurred

Probiotic supplementation influences the diversity of the intestinal microbiota during early stages of farmed Senegalese sole (Solea senegalensis, Kaup, 1858)

Ingestion of bacteria at early stages results in establishment of a primary intestinal microbiota which likely undergoes several stages along fish life. The role of this intestinal microbiota regulating body functions is crucial for larval development. Probiotics have been proved to modulate this microbiota and exert antagonistic effects against fish pathogens. In the present study, we aimed to determine bacterial diversity along different developmental stages of farmed Senegalese sole (Solea senegalensis) after feeding probiotic (Shewanella putrefaciens Pdp11) supplemented diet for a short period (10–30 days after hatching, DAH). Intestinal lumen contents of sole larvae fed control and probiotic diets were collected at 23, 56, 87, and 119 DAH and DNA was amplified using 16S rDNA bacterial domain-specific primers. Amplicons obtained were separated by denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis (DGGE), cloned, and resulting sequences compared to sequences in GenBank. Results suggest that Shewanella putrefaciens Pdp11 induces a modulation of the dominant bacterial taxa of the intestinal microbiota from 23 DAH. DGGE patterns of larvae fed the probiotic diet showed a core of bands related to Lactobacillus helveticus, Pseudomonas acephalitica, Vibrio parahaemolyticus,and Shewanella genus, together with increased Vibri o genus presence. In addition, decreased number of clones related to Photobacterium damselae subsp piscicida at 23 and 56 DAH was observed in probiotic-fed larvae. A band corresponding to Shewanella putrefaciens Pdp11 was sequenced as predominant from 23 to 119 DAH samples, confirming the colonization by the probiotics. Microbiota modulation obtained via probiotics addition emerges as an effective tool to improve Solea senegalensis larviculture.En prens