Interactive computer graphics system for structural sizing and analysis of aircraft structures

A computerized system for preliminary sizing and analysis of aircraft wing and fuselage structures was described. The system is based upon repeated application of analytical program modules, which are interactively interfaced and sequence-controlled during the iterative design process with the aid of design-oriented graphics software modules. The entire process is initiated and controlled via low-cost interactive graphics terminals driven by a remote computer in a time-sharing mode

Developed and Underdeveloped: a radical view of constructive relationships

There is, particularly in the Western world, a growing wave of self-examination reaching deep into the structure of values that for so long have been taken for granted. Basic premises of life in the industrialized countries are being questioned, and some are coming under serious attack. Among them is the desirability of continued economic expansion, with its inevitably attendant environmental deterioration; heightened complexity and anxiety in the conduct of personal affairs; growing welfare disparities; increasing concentration of power in the hands of managers of economic empires; and increasing specialization upon which economic growth feeds but which leads to an alienation from the natural and social environment, and perhaps ultimately from the self

Mortality changes after grants from the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria: An econometric analysis from 1995 to 2010

Background: Since its founding in 2002, the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis, and Malaria (Global Fund) has become the dominant multilateral health financier in low- and middle-income countries. The health impact of the Global Fund remains unknown because existing evaluations measure intermediate outcomes or do not account for preexisting and counterfactual trends. Methods: We conducted an econometric analysis of data from all countries eligible to receive Global Fund grants from 1995 to 2010, prior to and during the Global Fund's activities. We analyzed three outcomes: all-cause adult (15-59 years), all-cause under-five, and malaria-specific under-five mortality. Our main exposure was a continuous longitudinal measure of Global Fund disbursements per capita. We used panel fixed effect regressions, and analyzed mortality trends controlling for health spending, health worker density (a measure of health system capacity), gross domestic product, urbanization, and country fixed-effects. Results and discussion: We find that following Global Fund disbursements, adult mortality rate declined by 1.4 % per year faster with every $10 per capita increase in disbursements (p∈=∈0.005). Similarly, malaria-specific under-five mortality declined by 6.9$10 high per capita Global Fund disbursements. However, we find no association between Global Fund support and all-cause under-five mortality. These findings were consistent after subanalyses by baseline HIV prevalence, adjusting for effects of concurrent health aid from other donors, and varying time lags between funding and mortality changes. Conclusions: Grants from the Global Fund are closely related to accelerated reductions in all-cause adult mortality and malaria-specific under-five mortality. However, up to 2010 the Global Fund has not measurably contributed to reducing all-cause under-five mortality

Minimizing fouling at hydrogenated conical - tip carbon electrodes during Dopamine detection in vivo

In this paper, physically small conical-tip carbon electrodes (∼2−5 μm diameter and ∼4 μm axial length) were hydrogenated to develop a probe capable of withstanding fouling during dopamine detection in vivo. Upon hydrogenation, the resultant hydrophobic sp3 carbon surface deters adsorption of amphiphilic lipids, proteins, and peptides present in extracellular fluid and hence minimizes electrode fouling. These hydrogenated carbon electrodes showed a 35% decrease in sensitivity but little change in the limit of detection for dopamine over a 7-day incubation in a synthetic laboratory solution containing 1.0% (v/v) caproic acid (a lipid), 0.1% (w/v) bovine serum albumin and 0.01% (w/v) cytochrome C (both are proteins), and 0.002% (w/ v) human fibrinopeptide B (a peptide). Subsequently, during dopamine detection in vivo, over 70% of the dopamine oxidation current remained after the first 30 min of a 60-min experiment, and at least 50% remained over the next half-period at the hydrogenated carbon electrodes. On the basis of these results, an initial average electrode surface fouling rate of 1.2% min−1 was estimated, which gradually declined to 0.7% min−1. These results support minimal fouling at hydrogenated carbon electrodes applied to dopamine detection in vivo

Non-invasive on-skin sensors for brain machine interfaces with epitaxial graphene.

Objective. Brain-machine interfaces are key components for the development of hands-free, brain-controlled devices. Electroencephalogram (EEG) electrodes are particularly attractive for harvesting the neural signals in a non-invasive fashion.Approach.Here, we explore the use of epitaxial graphene (EG) grown on silicon carbide on silicon for detecting the EEG signals with high sensitivity.Main results and significance.This dry and non-invasive approach exhibits a markedly improved skin contact impedance when benchmarked to commercial dry electrodes, as well as superior robustness, allowing prolonged and repeated use also in a highly saline environment. In addition, we report the newly observed phenomenon of surface conditioning of the EG electrodes. The prolonged contact of the EG with the skin electrolytes functionalize the grain boundaries of the graphene, leading to the formation of a thin surface film of water through physisorption and consequently reducing its contact impedance more than three-fold. This effect is primed in highly saline environments, and could be also further tailored as pre-conditioning to enhance the performance and reliability of the EG sensors

Beam test evaluation of electromagnetic calorimeter modules made from proton-damaged PbWO_4 crystals

The performance of electromagnetic calorimeter modules made of proton-irradiated PbWO_4 crystals has been studied in beam tests. The modules, similar to those used in the Endcaps of the CMS electromagnetic calorimeter (ECAL), were formed from 5×5 matrices of PbWO_4 crystals, which had previously been exposed to 24 GeV protons up to integrated fluences between 2.1× 10^(13) and 1.3× 10^(14) cm^(−2). These correspond to the predicted charged-hadron fluences in the ECAL Endcaps at pseudorapidity η = 2.6 after about 500 fb^(−1) and 3000 fb^(−1) respectively, corresponding to the end of the LHC and High Luminosity LHC operation periods. The irradiated crystals have a lower light transmission for wavelengths corresponding to the scintillation light, and a correspondingly reduced light output. A comparison with four crystals irradiated in situ in CMS showed no significant rate dependence of hadron-induced damage. A degradation of the energy resolution and a non-linear response to electron showers are observed in damaged crystals. Direct measurements of the light output from the crystals show the amplitude decreasing and pulse becoming faster as the fluence increases. The latter is interpreted, through comparison with simulation, as a side-effect of the degradation in light transmission. The experimental results obtained can be used to estimate the long term performance of the CMS ECAL

Robust, directed assembly of fluorescent nanodiamonds

© 2016 The Royal Society of Chemistry. Arrays of fluorescent nanoparticles are highly sought after for applications in sensing, nanophotonics and quantum communications. Here we present a simple and robust method of assembling fluorescent nanodiamonds into macroscopic arrays. Remarkably, the yield of this directed assembly process is greater than 90% and the assembled patterns withstand ultra-sonication for more than three hours. The assembly process is based on covalent bonding of carboxyl to amine functional carbon seeds and is applicable to any material, and to non-planar surfaces. Our results pave the way to directed assembly of sensors and nanophotonics devices

En reconstruction mammaire : intérêt du dépistage du portage de Staphylococcus aureus dans la prévention de l’infection du site opératoire

National audienceThe incidence of prosthesis infections after breast reconstruction is of the order of 4% to 13% according to the literature. In surgical patients, Staphylococcus aureus (S. aureus) is the bacterial species most often responsible for surgical site infections. In cardiac surgery, screening for carriage of S. aureus and preoperative decontamination are carried out routinely before prosthetic surgery. We retrospectively reviewed data from patients at our institution between January 2011 and December 2013. Our series showed that the prosthesis infection rates were in the range of 5.92% in 2008 with an ISO rate of S. aureus 3.61%. Routine screening for prosthetic reconstructions was performed to assess the impact of preoperative decontamination patients in carriers of S. aureus. This screening was done in 381 patients: 17.8% of patients were carriers of S. aureus ; 11 patients have an ISO (or an incidence rate of 2.88%) ; 5 patients have an ISO S. aureus (an incidence of S. aureus ISO 1.3%). The introduction of the screening process, allowed a drop of 5.92% ISO rate at 1.46% with a passage of S. aureus SSI rates of 3, 60% to 0.72%. In the near future, studies are needed to confirm these encouraging results, to demonstrate the efficacy of preoperative decontamination in carriers of S. aureus patients before laying prosthesis

Charged Particle Induced Etching and Functionalization of Two-Dimensional Materials

Focused electron beam induced deposition and etching (FEBID and FEBIE) are direct-write nanofabrication techniques in which an electron beam is used to achieve nanostructure functionalization, etching or deposition. Either alone or in combination with in situ plasmas, these techniques can also be used to accelerate reactions that occur in ambient environment, with simultaneous high-resolution imaging. Here, we describe our recent work on etching, functionalization and directed assembly of a range of nanoand two-dimensional materials using temperature-dependent FEBIE experiments in an environmental scanning electron microscope (ESEM). As examples of the application of these techniques, we demonstrate processes for assembling arrays of nanodiamonds that can be used as magnetic field sensors, as well as for controlled etching of hexagonal boron nitride (hBN) and black phosphorus (BP)

Measurement of the B^± Meson Nuclear Modification Factor in Pb-Pb Collisions at √S_(NN) = 5.02 TeV

The differential production cross sections of B^± mesons are measured via the exclusive decay channels B^± → J/ψK^ ±→ μ^+μ^−K^± as a function of transverse momentum in pp and Pb-Pb collisions at a center-of-mass energy √S_(NN) = 5.02  TeV per nucleon pair with the CMS detector at the LHC. The pp(Pb-Pb) data set used for this analysis corresponds to an integrated luminosity of 28.0  pb^(-1) (351  μb^(-1)). The measurement is performed in the B^± meson transverse momentum range of 7 to 50  GeV/c, in the rapidity interval |y| < 2.4. In this kinematic range, a strong suppression of the production cross section by about a factor of 2 is observed in the Pb-Pb system in comparison to the expectation from pp reference data. These results are found to be roughly compatible with theoretical calculations incorporating beauty quark diffusion and energy loss in a quark-gluon plasma