Laparoscopy Pneumoperitoneum Fuzzy Modeling

Abstract: Gas volume to intra-peritoneal pressure fuzzy modeling for evaluating pneumoperitoneum in videolaparoscopic surgery is proposed in this paper. The proposed approach innovates in using fuzzy logic and fuzzy set theory for evaluating the accuracy of the prognosis value in order to minimize or avoid iatrogenic injuries due to the blind needle puncture. In so doing, it demonstrates the feasibility of fuzzy analysis to contribute to medicine and health care. Fuzzy systems is employed here in synergy with artificial neural network based on backpropaga tion, multilayer perceptron architecture for building up numerical functions. Experimental data employed for analysis were collected in the accomplishment of the pneumoperitoneum in a random population of patients submitted to videolaparoscopic surgeries. Numerical results indicate that the proposed fuzzy mapping for describing the relation from the intra peritoneal pressure measures as function injected gas volumes succeeded in determinining a fuzzy model for this nonlinear system when compared to the statistical model

A Note on Flux Induced Superpotentials in String Theory

Non-vanishing fluxes in M-theory and string theory compactifications induce a superpotential in the lower dimensional theory. Gukov has conjectured the explicit form of this superpotential. We check this conjecture for the heterotic string compactified on a Calabi-Yau three-fold as well as for warped M-theory compactifications on Spin(7) holonomy manifolds, by performing a Kaluza-Klein reduction.Comment: 19 pages, no figure

Compactifications of Heterotic Theory on Non-Kahler Complex Manifolds: I

We study new compactifications of the SO(32) heterotic string theory on compact complex non-Kahler manifolds. These manifolds have many interesting features like fewer moduli, torsional constraints, vanishing Euler character and vanishing first Chern class, which make the four-dimensional theory phenomenologically attractive. We take a particular compact example studied earlier and determine various geometrical properties of it. In particular we calculate the warp factor and study the sigma model description of strings propagating on these backgrounds. The anomaly cancellation condition and enhanced gauge symmetry are shown to arise naturally in this framework, if one considers the effect of singularities carefully. We then give a detailed mathematical analysis of these manifolds and construct a large class of them. The existence of a holomorphic (3,0) form is important for the construction. We clarify some of the topological properties of these manifolds and evaluate the Betti numbers. We also determine the superpotential and argue that the radial modulus of these manifolds can actually be stabilized.Comment: 75 pages, Harvmac, no figures; v2: Some new results added, typos corrected and references updated. Final version to appear in JHE

Compactification with Flux on K3 and Tori

We study compactifications of Type IIB string theory on a K3 \times T^2/Z_2 orientifold in the presence of RR and NS flux. We find the most general supersymmetry preserving, Poincare invariant, vacua in this model. All the complex structure moduli and some of the Kahler moduli are stabilised in these vacua. We obtain in an explicit fashion the restrictions imposed by supersymmetry on the flux, and the values of the fixed moduli. Some T-duals and Heterotic duals are also discussed, these are non-Calabi-Yau spaces. A superpotential is constructed describing these duals.Comment: Discussion of susy breaking vacua significantly altere

Handling qualities of a wide-body transport airplane utilizing Pitch Active Control Systems (PACS) for relaxed static stability application

Piloted simulation studies have been conducted to evaluate the effectiveness of two pitch active control systems (PACS) on the flying qualities of a wide-body transport airplane when operating at negative static margins. These two pitch active control systems consisted of a simple 'near-term' PACS and a more complex 'advanced' PACS. Eight different flight conditions, representing the entire flight envelope, were evaluated with emphasis on the cruise flight conditions. These studies were made utilizing the Langley Visual/Motion Simulator (VMS) which has six degrees of freedom. The simulation tests indicated that (1) the flying qualities of the baseline aircraft (PACS off) for the cruise and other high-speed flight conditions were unacceptable at center-of-gravity positions aft of the neutral static stability point; (2) within the linear static stability flight envelope, the near-term PACS provided acceptable flying qualities for static stabilty margins to -3 percent; and (3) with the advanced PACS operative, the flying qualities were demonstrated to be good (satisfactory to very acceptable) for static stabilty margins to -20 percent

What a difference a term makes:the effect of educational attainment on marital outcomes in the UK

Abstract In the past, students in England and Wales born within the first 5 monthsof the academic year could leave school one term earlier than those born later inthe year. Focusing on women, those who were required to stay on an extra termmore frequently hold some academic qualification. Using having been required tostay on as an exogenous factor affecting academic attainment, we find that holding alow-level academic qualification has no effect on the probability of being currentlymarried for women aged 25 or above, but increases the probability of the husbandholding some academic qualification and being economically active.33 Halama

D-brane anomaly inflow revisited

Axial and gravitational anomaly of field theories, when embedded in string theory, must be accompanied by canceling inflow. We give a self-contained overview for various world-volume theories, and clarify the role of smeared magnetic sources in I-brane/D-brane cases. The proper anomaly descent of the source, as demanded by regularity of RR field strengths H's, turns out to be an essential ingredient. We show how this allows correct inflow to be generated for all such theories, including self-dual cases, and also that the mechanism is now insensitive to the choice between the two related but inequivalent forms of D-brane Chern-Simons couplings. In particular, SO(6)_R axial anomaly of d=4 maximal SYM is canceled by the inflow onto D3-branes via the standard minimal coupling to C_4. We also propose how, for the anomaly cancelation, the four types of Orientifold planes should be coupled to the spacetime curvatures, of which conflicting claims existed previously.Comment: 41 pages, references updated; version to appear in JHE

Super Weyl invariance: BPS equations from heterotic worldsheets

It is well-known that the beta functions on a string worldsheet correspond to the target space equations of motion, e.g. the Einstein equations. We show that the BPS equations, i.e. the conditions of vanishing supersymmetry variations of the space-time fermions, can be directly derived from the worldsheet. To this end we consider the RNS-formulation of the heterotic string with (2,0) supersymmetry, which describes a complex torsion target space that supports a holomorphic vector bundle. After a detailed account of its quantization and renormalization, we establish that the cancellation of the Weyl anomaly combined with (2,0) finiteness implies the heterotic BPS conditions: At the one loop level the geometry is required to be conformally balanced and the gauge background has to satisfy the Hermitean Yang-Mills equations.Comment: 1+31 pages LaTeX, 5 figures; final version, discussion relation Weyl invariance and (2,0) finiteness extended, typos correcte

Can racial disparities in optimal gout treatment be reduced? evidence from a randomized trial

There is a disproportionate burden of gout in African-Americans in the U.S. due to a higher disease prevalence and lower likelihood of receiving urate-lowering therapy (ULT), compared to Caucasians. There is an absence of strong data as to whether the response to ULT differs by race/ethnicity. BMC Musculoskeletal Disorders recently published a secondary analyses of the CONFIRMS trial, a large randomized controlled, double-blind trial of 2,269 gout patients. The authors reported that the likelihood of achieving the primary study efficacy end-point of achieving serum urate < 6 mg/dl was similar between African-Americans and Caucasians, for all three treatment arms (Febuxostat 40 mg and 80 mg and allopurinol 300/200 mg). More importantly, rates were similar in subgroups of patients with mild or moderate renal insufficiency. Adverse event rates were similar, as were the rates of gout flares. These findings constitute a convincing evidence to pursue aggressive ULT in gout patients, regardless of race/ethnicity. This approach will likely help to narrow the documented racial disparities in gout care

Higher Education as modulator of gender inequalities: Evidence of the Spanish case

Raising educational levels may help to reduce inequalities between men and women in certain social and economic aspects. Using statistics for Spain, we analyse labour market behaviours such as the rates of activity and unemployment by sex according to the educational level. The results reveal that the differences between men and women decrease as the educational level increases. In particular, the modulator effect of education is very important at the higher level, where differences in labour market behaviour between men and women with an university education almost disappear, except in terms of salaries. Nevertheless, it can be seen that the current economic crisis has reduced the modulator role of education in gender differences in Spain