Position and Stiffness Control of One DoF Revolute Joint Using a Biphasic Media Variable Stiffness Actuator

At this time, several industrial processes and service tasks need safe interactions between humans and robots. This safety can be achieved using compliance design and control of mechanisms. This paper presents a compliant revolute joint mechanism using a variable stiffness actuator. The method for adapting the stiffness in the actuator includes a member onfigured to transmit motion that is connected to a fluidic circuit, into which a biphasic control fluid circulates. Actuator's stiffness is controlled by changing pressure of control fluid into distribution lines. The used control fluid is biphasic, composed of separated gas and liquid fractions with predefined ratio. A mathematical model of the actuator is presented, a modelbased control method is implemented to track the desired position and stiffness, and equations relating to the dynamics of the mechanism are provided. Results from force loaded and unloaded simulations and experiments with a physical prototype are discussed

Ultrafast all-optical switching enabled by epsilon-near-zero-tailored absorption in metal-insulator nanocavities

Ultrafast control of light-matter interactions is fundamental in view of new technological frontiers of information processing. However, conventional optical elements are either static or feature switching speeds that are extremely low with respect to the time scales at which it is possible to control light. Here, we exploit the artificial epsilon-near-zero (ENZ) modes of a metal-insulator-metal nanocavity to tailor the linear photon absorption of our system and realize a nondegenerate all-optical ultrafast modulation of the reflectance at a specific wavelength. Optical pumping of the system at its high energy ENZ mode leads to a strong redshift of the low energy mode because of the transient increase of the local dielectric function, which leads to a sub-3-ps control of the reflectance at a specific wavelength with a relative modulation depth approaching 120%

A Comparison of Labiomandibular Kinematic Durations, Displacements, Velocities, and Dysmetrias in Apraxic and Normal Adults

TB

Identification of hip fracture patients from radiographs using Fourier analysis of the trabecular structure: a cross-sectional study

Peer reviewedPublisher PD

Outbreak of sars-cov-2 lineage 20i/501y.V1 in a nursing home underlines the crucial role of vaccination in both residents and staff

Elderly residents in nursing homes are at very high risk of life-threatening COVID-19-related outcomes. In this report, an epidemiological and serological investigation of a SARS-CoV-2 outbreak in an Italian nursing home is described. Among the residents, all but one (19/20) were regularly vaccinated against SARS-CoV-2. In mid-February 2021, a non-vaccinated staff member of the nursing home was diagnosed with the SARS-CoV-2 infection. Following the outbreak investigation, a total of 70% (14/20) of residents aged 77–100 years were found positive. The phylogenetic analysis showed that the outbreak was caused by the SARS-CoV-2 variant of concern 202012/01 (the so-called “UK variant”). However, all but one positive subjects (13/14) were fully asymptomatic. The only symptomatic patient was a vaccinated 86-year-old female with a highly compromised health background and deceased approximately two weeks later. The subsequent serological investigation showed that the deceased patient was the only vaccinated subject that did not develop the anti-spike protein antibody response, therefore being likely a vaccine non-responder. Although the available mRNA SARS-CoV-2 vaccine was not able to prevent several asymptomatic infections, it was able to avert most symptomatic disease cases caused by the SARS-CoV-2 variant of concern 202012/01 in nursing home residents

How do MNC R&D laboratory roles affect employee international assignments?

Research and development (R&D) employees are important human resources for multinational corporations (MNCs) as they are the driving force behind the advancement of innovative ideas and products. International assignments of these employees can be a unique way to upgrade their expertise; allowing them to effectively recombine their unique human resources to progress existing knowledge and advance new ones. This study aims to investigate the effect of the roles of R&D laboratories in which these employees work on the international assignments they undertake. We categorise R&D laboratory roles into those of the support laboratory, the locally integrated laboratory and the internationally interdependent laboratory. Based on the theory of resource recombinations, we hypothesise that R&D employees in support laboratories are not likely to assume international assignments, whereas those in locally integrated and internationally interdependent laboratories are likely to assume international assignments. The empirical evidence, which draws from research conducted on 559 professionals in 66 MNC subsidiaries based in Greece, provides support to our hypotheses. The resource recombinations theory that extends the resource based view can effectively illuminate the international assignment field. Also, research may provide more emphasis on the close work context of R&D scientists rather than analyse their demographic characteristics, the latter being the focus of scholarly practice hitherto