Exploring the application of laparoscopic surgery in removing calcium deposits in the human body

In this work, we will explore the application of laparoscopic surgery in removing calcium deposits, highlighting its benefits and potential challenges

Modelling and optimising of crude oil desalting process

The history of crude oil desalting/dehydration plant (DDP) has been marked in progressive phases-the simple gravity settling phase, the chemical treatment phase, the electrical enhancement phase and the dilution water phase. In recent times, the proper cachet would be the control-optimisation phase marked by terms such as "DDP process control", "desalter optimisation control" or "DDP automating technology". Another less perceptible aspect, but nonetheless important, has been both a punch listing of traditional plant boundaries and a grouping of factors that play the essential roles in a desalting/dehydration plant (DDP). Nowadays, modelling and optimising of a DDP performance has become more apparent in petroleum and chemical engineering, which has been traditionally concerned with production and refinery processing industries. Today's desalting/dehydration technology finds itself as an important factor in such diverse areas as petroleum engineering, environmental concerns, and advanced technology materials. The movement into these areas has created a need not only for sources useful for professionals but also for gathering relevant information essential in improving product quality and its impact on health, safety and environmental (HSE) aspects. All of the foregoing, clearly establishes the need for a comprehensive knowledge of DDP and emulsion theories, process modelling and optimisation techniques. The main objective of this work is to model and qualitatively optimise a desalting/dehydration plant. In due course, the contents of this thesis will cover in depth both the basic areas of emulsion treatment fundamentals, modelling desalting/dehydration processes and optimising the performance of desalting plants. In addition, emphasis is also placed on more advanced topics such as optimisation technology and process modifications. At the results and recommendation stage, the theme of this work-optimising desalting/dehydration plant will practically be furnished in an applicable scheme. Finally, a significant compendium of figures and experimental data are presented. This thesis, therefore, essentially presents the research and important principles of desalting/dehydration systems. It also gives the oil industry a wide breadth of important information presented in a concise and focused manner. In search of data quality and product on-line-improvement, this combination will be a powerful tool for operators and professionals in a decision support environment.EThOS - Electronic Theses Online ServiceGBUnited Kingdo

Estimation and prediction of the vehicle's motion basedon visual odometry and Kalman filter

Proceeding of: 14th International Conference, ACIVS 2012, Brno, Czech Republic, September 4-7, 2012The movement of the vehicle is an useful information for different applications, such as driver assistant systems or autonomous vehicles. This information can be known by different methods, for instance, by using a GPS or by means of the visual odometry. However, there are some situations where both methods do not work correctly. For example, there are areas in urban environments where the signal of the GPS is not available, as tunnels or streets with high buildings. On the other hand, the algorithms of computer vision are affected by outdoor environments, and the main source of difficulties is the variation in the ligthing conditions. A method to estimate and predict the movement of the vehicle based on visual odometry and Kalman filter is explained in this paper. The Kalman filter allows both filtering and prediction of vehicle motion, using the results from the visual odometry estimation.This work was also supported by Spanish Government through the CICYT projects FEDORA (Grant TRA2010-20255-C03-01), Driver Distraction Detector System (Grant TRA2011-29454-C03-02) and by CAM through the projects SEGVAUTO-II.Publicad

Фармацевтическое производство в Йемене: реальности и стремления

The impact of strategic choices made in the Yemeni pharmaceutical industries sector on its competitive advantages is investigated in this paper, as it is regarded as a leading industrial sector and plays an important role in the development of the Yemeni economy, meeting the needs of the local market at a reasonable price, and protecting and promoting society's public health.Исследовано влияние стратегического выбора, сделанного в секторе фармацевтической промышленности Йемена, на его конкурентные преимущества, поскольку он считается ведущим промышленным сектором и играет важную роль в развитии йеменской экономики, удовлетворяя потребности местного рынка в лекарствах по доступной цене, а также в защите и укреплении общественного здоровья йеменских граждан

Stereo visual odometry in urban environments based on detecting ground features

publisher: Elsevier articletitle: Stereo visual odometry in urban environments based on detecting ground features journaltitle: Robotics and Autonomous Systems articlelink: http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.robot.2016.03.004 content_type: article copyright: © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.publisher: Elsevier articletitle: Stereo visual odometry in urban environments based on detecting ground features journaltitle: Robotics and Autonomous Systems articlelink: http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.robot.2016.03.004 content_type: article copyright: © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved

Response Surface Methodology (RSM) implementation in zro particles reinforced aluminium chips by Hot Equal Channel Pressing (ECAP)

In recent years, the interest on solid-state recycling of aluminum chips increases over the years due to the less energy consumption of the process. This research studies the quantitative effects of preheating temperature and volume fraction of Zirconium Dioxide when it is reinforced to the Aluminum alloy AA6061 on its mechanical properties. The parameters of the experiment are preheating temperature and volume fraction of ZrO . Temperature are varied between 450 and 550 ℃ according to the boundary parameters. The volume fraction of ZrO consists of 5, 10 and 15% of the reinforcement. Increasing the volume fraction of ZrO correlates with the increase of mechanical and physical properties. Design of Experimental with factorial design was implemented to analyse the magnitude of response on the mechanical properties from the variable of parameters. The preheating temperature was revealed to be the most significant factor affecting the yield strength and the microhardness of the composite followed by the volume fraction of ZrO . It is revealed that the most optimum temperature is 550 ℃ and the optimum percentage of volume fraction is 9.28%. Both highest microhardness and yield strength were obtained from these optimum temperatures. Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM) revealed on how elongation in Zirconia chips is affected by the amount of ZrO reinforcement. Energy Dispersive Spectroscopy (EDS) analysis performed revealed on the arbitrary weight out of total weight for every element in the composite such as Al, Zr, O and Si

Antimicrobial resistance among migrants in Europe: a systematic review and meta-analysis

BACKGROUND: Rates of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) are rising globally and there is concern that increased migration is contributing to the burden of antibiotic resistance in Europe. However, the effect of migration on the burden of AMR in Europe has not yet been comprehensively examined. Therefore, we did a systematic review and meta-analysis to identify and synthesise data for AMR carriage or infection in migrants to Europe to examine differences in patterns of AMR across migrant groups and in different settings. METHODS: For this systematic review and meta-analysis, we searched MEDLINE, Embase, PubMed, and Scopus with no language restrictions from Jan 1, 2000, to Jan 18, 2017, for primary data from observational studies reporting antibacterial resistance in common bacterial pathogens among migrants to 21 European Union-15 and European Economic Area countries. To be eligible for inclusion, studies had to report data on carriage or infection with laboratory-confirmed antibiotic-resistant organisms in migrant populations. We extracted data from eligible studies and assessed quality using piloted, standardised forms. We did not examine drug resistance in tuberculosis and excluded articles solely reporting on this parameter. We also excluded articles in which migrant status was determined by ethnicity, country of birth of participants' parents, or was not defined, and articles in which data were not disaggregated by migrant status. Outcomes were carriage of or infection with antibiotic-resistant organisms. We used random-effects models to calculate the pooled prevalence of each outcome. The study protocol is registered with PROSPERO, number CRD42016043681. FINDINGS: We identified 2274 articles, of which 23 observational studies reporting on antibiotic resistance in 2319 migrants were included. The pooled prevalence of any AMR carriage or AMR infection in migrants was 25·4% (95% CI 19·1-31·8; I2 =98%), including meticillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (7·8%, 4·8-10·7; I2 =92%) and antibiotic-resistant Gram-negative bacteria (27·2%, 17·6-36·8; I2 =94%). The pooled prevalence of any AMR carriage or infection was higher in refugees and asylum seekers (33·0%, 18·3-47·6; I2 =98%) than in other migrant groups (6·6%, 1·8-11·3; I2 =92%). The pooled prevalence of antibiotic-resistant organisms was slightly higher in high-migrant community settings (33·1%, 11·1-55·1; I2 =96%) than in migrants in hospitals (24·3%, 16·1-32·6; I2 =98%). We did not find evidence of high rates of transmission of AMR from migrant to host populations. INTERPRETATION: Migrants are exposed to conditions favouring the emergence of drug resistance during transit and in host countries in Europe. Increased antibiotic resistance among refugees and asylum seekers and in high-migrant community settings (such as refugee camps and detention facilities) highlights the need for improved living conditions, access to health care, and initiatives to facilitate detection of and appropriate high-quality treatment for antibiotic-resistant infections during transit and in host countries. Protocols for the prevention and control of infection and for antibiotic surveillance need to be integrated in all aspects of health care, which should be accessible for all migrant groups, and should target determinants of AMR before, during, and after migration. FUNDING: UK National Institute for Health Research Imperial Biomedical Research Centre, Imperial College Healthcare Charity, the Wellcome Trust, and UK National Institute for Health Research Health Protection Research Unit in Healthcare-associated Infections and Antimictobial Resistance at Imperial College London

Traditional knowledge of wild edible plants used in Palestine (Northern West Bank): A comparative study

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>A comparative food ethnobotanical study was carried out in fifteen local communities distributed in five districts in the Palestinian Authority, PA (northern West Bank), six of which were located in Nablus, two in Jenin, two in Salfit, three in Qalqilia, and two in Tulkarm. These are among the areas in the PA whose rural inhabitants primarily subsisted on agriculture and therefore still preserve the traditional knowledge on wild edible plants.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Data on the use of wild edible plants were collected for one-year period, through informed consent semi-structured interviews with 190 local informants. A semi-quantitative approach was used to document use diversity, and relative importance of each species.</p> <p>Results and discussion</p> <p>The study recorded 100 wild edible plant species, seventy six of which were mentioned by three informants and above and were distributed across 70 genera and 26 families. The most significant species include <it>Majorana syriaca, Foeniculum vulgare, Malvasylvestris</it>, <it>Salvia fruticosa, Cyclamen persicum, Micromeria fruticosa, Arum palaestinum, Trigonella foenum-graecum</it>, <it>Gundelia tournefortii</it>, and <it>Matricaria aurea</it>. All the ten species with the highest mean cultural importance values (mCI), were cited in all five areas. Moreover, most were important in every region. A common cultural background may explain these similarities. One taxon (<it>Majoranasyriaca</it>) in particular was found to be among the most quoted species in almost all areas surveyed. CI values, as a measure of traditional botanical knowledge, for edible species in relatively remote and isolated areas (Qalqilia, and Salfit) were generally higher than for the same species in other areas. This can be attributed to the fact that local knowledge of wild edible plants and plant gathering are more spread in remote or isolated areas.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>Gathering, processing and consuming wild edible plants are still practiced in all the studied Palestinian areas. About 26 % (26/100) of the recorded wild botanicals including the most quoted and with highest mCI values, are currently gathered and utilized in all the areas, demonstrating that there are ethnobotanical contact points among the various Palestinian regions. The habit of using wild edible plants is still alive in the PA, but is disappearing. Therefore, the recording, preserving, and infusing of this knowledge to future generations is pressing and fundamental.</p

Expertise in surgical neuro-oncology. Results of a survey by the EANS neuro-oncology section

Introduction: Technical advances and the increasing role of interdisciplinary decision-making may warrant formal definitions of expertise in surgical neuro-oncology. Research question: The EANS Neuro-oncology Section felt that a survey detailing the European neurosurgical perspective on the concept of expertise in surgical neuro-oncology might be helpful. Material and methods: The EANS Neuro-oncology Section panel developed an online survey asking questions regarding criteria for expertise in neuro-oncological surgery and sent it to all individual EANS members. Results: Our questionnaire was completed by 251 respondents (consultants: 80.1%) from 42 countries. 67.7% would accept a lifetime caseload of &gt;200 cases and 86.7% an annual caseload of &gt;50 as evidence of neuro-oncological surgical expertise. A majority felt that surgeons who do not treat children (56.2%), do not have experience with spinal fusion (78.1%) or peripheral nerve tumors (71.7%) may still be considered experts. Majorities believed that expertise requires the use of skull-base approaches (85.8%), intraoperative monitoring (83.4%), awake craniotomies (77.3%), and neuro-endoscopy (75.5%) as well as continuing education of at least 1/year (100.0%), a research background (80.0%) and teaching activities (78.7%), and formal interdisciplinary collaborations (e.g., tumor board: 93.0%). Academic vs. non-academic affiliation, career position, years of neurosurgical experience, country of practice, and primary clinical interest had a minor influence on the respondents’ opinions. Discussion and conclusion: Opinions among neurosurgeons regarding the characteristics and features of expertise in neuro-oncology vary surprisingly little. Large majorities favoring certain thresholds and qualitative criteria suggest a consensus definition might be possible