THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN SHOULDER PAIN AND SCAPULAR MOBILITY IN TEENAGE BASEBALL PLAYERS

The purpose of this study was to identify the relationship between shoulder pain and scapular mobility for teenage baseball players. Thirty-five teenage baseball players (shoulder pain, n=11; healthy, n=24) were recruited in this study. The lateral scapula slide test (LSST), which represented as scapular mobility, was used to measure the scapular position and symmetry under varying loads. The result of this study showed that there was a difference in distance from the superior angle of the scapula to the spinous process of T2 between the two groups at shoulder 90?abduction

Inverse Problem of Cosmic-Ray Electron/Positron from Dark Matter

We discuss the possibility of solving the inverse problem of the cosmic-ray electron/positron from decaying/annihilating dark matter, and show simple analytic formulae to reconstruct the source spectrum of the electron/positron from the observed flux. We also illustrate our approach by applying the obtained formula to the just released Fermi data as well as the new HESS data.Comment: 16 pages, 6 figure

A machine vision based automatic optical inspection system for measuring drilling quality of printed circuit boards

In this paper, we develop and put into practice an automatic optical inspection (AOI) system based on machine vision to check the holes on a printed circuit board (PCB). We incorporate the hardware and software. For the hardware part, we combine a PC, the three-axis positioning system, a lighting device, and charge-coupled device cameras. For the software part, we utilize image registration, image segmentation, drill numbering, drill contrast, and defect displays to achieve this system. Results indicated that an accuracy of 5 mu m could be achieved in errors of the PCB holes allowing comparisons to be made. This is significant in inspecting the missing, the multi-hole, and the incorrect location of the holes. However, previous work only focuses on one or other feature of the holes. Our research is able to assess multiple features: missing holes, incorrectly located holes, and excessive holes. Equally, our results could be displayed as a bar chart and target plot. This has not been achieved before. These displays help users to analyze the causes of errors and immediately correct the problems. In addition, this AOI system is valuable for checking a large number of holes and finding out the defective ones on a PCB. Meanwhile, we apply a 0.1-mm image resolution, which is better than others used in industry. We set a detecting standard based on 2-mm diameter of circles to diagnose the quality of the holes within 10 s

A Game Theory-Based Obstacle Avoidance Routing Protocol for Wireless Sensor Networks

The obstacle avoidance problem in geographic forwarding is an important issue for location-based routing in wireless sensor networks. The presence of an obstacle leads to several geographic routing problems such as excessive energy consumption and data congestion. Obstacles are hard to avoid in realistic environments. To bypass obstacles, most routing protocols tend to forward packets along the obstacle boundaries. This leads to a situation where the nodes at the boundaries exhaust their energy rapidly and the obstacle area is diffused. In this paper, we introduce a novel routing algorithm to solve the obstacle problem in wireless sensor networks based on a game-theory model. Our algorithm forms a concave region that cannot forward packets to achieve the aim of improving the transmission success rate and decreasing packet transmission delays. We consider the residual energy, out-degree and forwarding angle to determine the forwarding probability and payoff function of forwarding candidates. This achieves the aim of load balance and reduces network energy consumption. Simulation results show that based on the average delivery delay, energy consumption and packet delivery ratio performances our protocol is superior to other traditional schemes

A plasma membrane template for macropinocytic cups

Macropinocytosis is a fundamental mechanism that allows cells to take up extracellular liquid into large vesicles. It critically depends on the formation of a ring of protrusive actin beneath the plasma membrane, which develops into the macropinocytic cup. We show that macropinocytic cups in Dictyostelium are organised around coincident intense patches of PIP3, active Ras and active Rac. These signalling patches are invariably associated with a ring of active SCAR/WAVE at their periphery, as are all examined structures based on PIP3 patches, including phagocytic cups and basal waves. Patch formation does not depend on the enclosing F-actin ring, and patches become enlarged when the RasGAP NF1 is mutated, showing that Ras plays an instructive role. New macropinocytic cups predominantly form by splitting from existing ones. We propose that cup-shaped plasma membrane structures form from self-organizing patches of active Ras/PIP3, which recruit a ring of actin nucleators to their periphery

Application of Scutellariae radix

Salmonella enterica serovar Choleraesuis, a host-adapted pathogen of swine, usually causes septicemia. Lactic acid bacteria (LAB) strains have been widely studied in recent years for their probiotic properties. In this study, a mouse infection model first screened for potential agents against infection, then a pig infection model evaluated effects of LAB strains and herbal plants against infection. Scutellariae radix (SR) and Gardeniae fructus (GF) showed abilities to reduce bacteria shedding and suppressing serum level of TNF-α induced by infection in swine. Bioactivities of SR and GF were enhanced by combining with LAB strains, which alone could speed up the bacteria elimination time in feces and boost immunity of infected pigs. Baicalein and genipin exhibited stronger cytotoxicity than baicalin and geniposide did, as well as prevent Salmonella from invading macrophages. Our study suggests LAB strains as exhibiting multiple functions: preventing infection, enhancing immunity to prepare host defenses against further infection, and adjusting intestinal microbes’ enzymatic activity in order to convert herbal compounds to active compounds. The SR/GF-LAB strain mixture holds potential infection-prevention agents supplied as feed additives

Parameters in a Class of Leptophilic Dark Matter Models from PAMELA, ATIC and FERMI

In this work we study a class of leptophilic dark matter models, where the dark matter interacts with the standard model particles via the $U(1)_{L_i-L_j}$ gauge boson, to explain the $e^{\pm}$ excess in cosmic rays observed by ATIC and PAMELA experiments, and more recently by Fermi experiment. There are three types of $U(1)_{L_i-L_j}$ models: a) $U(1)_{L_e - L_\mu}$, b) $U(1)_{L_e - L_{\tau}}$, and c) $U(1)_ {L_e-L_\tau}$. Although ATIC or Fermi data is consistent with PAMELA data separately, ATIC and Fermi data do not agree with each other. We therefore aim to identify which of the three models can explain which data set better. We find that models a) and b) can give correct dark matter relic density and explain the ATIC and PAMELA data simultaneously recur to the Breit-Wigner enhancement. Whereas model c) with a larger $Z^\prime$ mass can explain Fermi and PAMELA data simultaneously. In all cases the model parameters are restricted to narrow regions. Future improved data will decide which set of data are correct and also help to decide the correct dark matter model.Comment: Latex 15 pages with 5 figures. Modified to include discussions of recent Fermi data on the leptophilic models studied in this paper. Title also modifie