Computational Intelligence In Digital Forensics: Forensic Investigation And Applications

The Series "Studies in Computational Intelligence" publishes new development and advances in the various areas of computational intelligence - quickly and with a high quality. The intent is to cover the theory, applications, and design methods of computational intelligence, as embedded in the fields of engineering, computer science, physics and life science, as well as the methodologies behind them. The series contains monographs, lecture notes and edited volumes in computational intelligence spanning the areas of neural networks, connectionist systems, genetic algorithms, evolutionary computation, artificial intelligence, cellular automata, self-organizing systems, soft computing, fuzzy systems, and hybrid intelligent systems. Of particular value to both the contributors and the readership are the short publication timeframe and the world-wide distribution, which enable both wide and rapid dissemination of research output

Qualite des eaux du Bandama-Blanc (Cote D’ivoire) et de ses affluents soumis a de fortes activites

La qualité écologique des eaux des localités soumises à l’exploitation artisanale et clandestine de l’or au niveau du Bandama-Blanc et de ses affluents a été étudiée entre le 01 et le 15 Avril 2015. Le prélèvement du phytoplancton a été réalisé à l’aide de la bouteille hydrologique et du filet à plancton, tandis que le périphyton a été récolté par les méthodes de grattage et d’expression respectivement sur cailloux, bois et feuilles immergés. Cent soixante (160) taxons composés de 84 taxons de Chlorophyta, 42 taxons d’Euglenophyta, 25 taxons de Cyanobacteria, 5 taxons de Dinophyta, 2 taxons de Chrysophyta, 1 taxon de Rhodophyta et 1 taxon de Xanthophyta ont été identifiés au niveau des sites d’échantillonnage. La densité des Cyanobacteria est élevée dans les sites soumis aux activités d’orpaillage, de pêche et d’élevage au niveau des eaux du barrage et de la carrière avec une contribution élevée de Microcystis aeruginosa. Les valeurs des indices de diversité ont montré que les eaux de la zone d’étude sont diversifiées avec un peuplement dominé par les espèces Microcystis aeruginosa et Peridinium cinctum. Une mésotrophie des sites d’échantillonnage de la zone d’étude a été révélée par les valeurs de l’indice B proposé par Nygaard (1949).Mots clés : Phytoplancton, périphyton, diversité, barrage, Côte d’IvoireEnglish Abstrarct Water quality of the Bandama-Blanc (Cote D'ivoire) and its tributaries subject to strong anthropogenic activities from the algal microfloraEcological waters quality of the localities subjected to artisanal and clandestine gold mining at the level of Bandama-Blanc and its tributaries was studied between 01 and 15 April 2015. Phytoplankton sampling was performed using the hydrologic bottle and plankton net, while periphyton was harvested by scraping and expression methods respectively on rocks, wood and floating leaves. The microalgae comprised 160 taxa, mainly Chlorophyta (84 taxa), Euglenophyta (42 taxa), Cyanobacteria (25 taxa), Dinophyta (5 taxa), Chrysophyta (2 taxa), Rhodophyta (1 taxa) and Xanthophyta (1 taxa). Highest Cyanobacteria densities was observed in the localities subjected to gold mining, fishing and rearing activities at the level of the Kossou dam and the quarry with a high contribution of the species Microcystis aeruginosa. Values of the diversity indices showed that the waters of the study area are diversified with a stand dominated by the species of Microcystis aeruginosa and Peridinium cinctum. Mesotrophy of the sampling sites in the study area was revealed by the Nygaard B index values (1949).Keys words : Phytoplankton, periphyton, diversity, dam, Côte d’Ivoir

Effects of pre-operative isolation on postoperative pulmonary complications after elective surgery: an international prospective cohort study an international prospective cohort study

We aimed to determine the impact of pre-operative isolation on postoperative pulmonary complications after elective surgery during the global SARS-CoV-2 pandemic. We performed an international prospective cohort study including patients undergoing elective surgery in October 2020. Isolation was defined as the period before surgery during which patients did not leave their house or receive visitors from outside their household. The primary outcome was postoperative pulmonary complications, adjusted in multivariable models for measured confounders. Pre-defined sub-group analyses were performed for the primary outcome. A total of 96,454 patients from 114 countries were included and overall, 26,948 (27.9%) patients isolated before surgery. Postoperative pulmonary complications were recorded in 1947 (2.0%) patients of which 227 (11.7%) were associated with SARS-CoV-2 infection. Patients who isolated pre-operatively were older, had more respiratory comorbidities and were more commonly from areas of high SARS-CoV-2 incidence and high-income countries. Although the overall rates of postoperative pulmonary complications were similar in those that isolated and those that did not (2.1% vs 2.0%, respectively), isolation was associated with higher rates of postoperative pulmonary complications after adjustment (adjusted OR 1.20, 95%CI 1.05–1.36, p = 0.005). Sensitivity analyses revealed no further differences when patients were categorised by: pre-operative testing; use of COVID-19-free pathways; or community SARS-CoV-2 prevalence. The rate of postoperative pulmonary complications increased with periods of isolation longer than 3 days, with an OR (95%CI) at 4–7 days or ≥ 8 days of 1.25 (1.04–1.48), p = 0.015 and 1.31 (1.11–1.55), p = 0.001, respectively. Isolation before elective surgery might be associated with a small but clinically important increased risk of postoperative pulmonary complications. Longer periods of isolation showed no reduction in the risk of postoperative pulmonary complications. These findings have significant implications for global provision of elective surgical care. We aimed to determine the impact of pre-operative isolation on postoperative pulmonary complications after elective surgery during the global SARS-CoV-2 pandemic. We performed an international prospective cohort study including patients undergoing elective surgery in October 2020. Isolation was defined as the period before surgery during which patients did not leave their house or receive visitors from outside their household. The primary outcome was postoperative pulmonary complications, adjusted in multivariable models for measured confounders. Pre-defined sub-group analyses were performed for the primary outcome. A total of 96,454 patients from 114 countries were included and overall, 26,948 (27.9%) patients isolated before surgery. Postoperative pulmonary complications were recorded in 1947 (2.0%) patients of which 227 (11.7%) were associated with SARS-CoV-2 infection. Patients who isolated pre-operatively were older, had more respiratory comorbidities and were more commonly from areas of high SARS-CoV-2 incidence and high-income countries. Although the overall rates of postoperative pulmonary complications were similar in those that isolated and those that did not (2.1% vs 2.0%, respectively), isolation was associated with higher rates of postoperative pulmonary complications after adjustment (adjusted OR 1.20, 95%CI 1.05–1.36, p = 0.005). Sensitivity analyses revealed no further differences when patients were categorised by: pre-operative testing; use of COVID-19-free pathways; or community SARS-CoV-2 prevalence. The rate of postoperative pulmonary complications increased with periods of isolation longer than 3 days, with an OR (95%CI) at 4–7 days or ≥ 8 days of 1.25 (1.04–1.48), p = 0.015 and 1.31 (1.11–1.55), p = 0.001, respectively. Isolation before elective surgery might be associated with a small but clinically important increased risk of postoperative pulmonary complications. Longer periods of isolation showed no reduction in the risk of postoperative pulmonary complications. These findings have significant implications for global provision of elective surgical care