Pseudoscalar Meson in Two Flavors QCD with the Optimal Domain-Wall Fermion

We perform hybrid Monte Carlo (HMC) simulatons of two flavors QCD with the optimal domain-wall fermion (ODWF) on the 16^3 x 32 lattice (with lattice spacing a ~ 0.1 fm), for eight sea-quark masses corresponding to pion masses in the range 228-565 MeV. We calculate the mass and the decay constant of the pseudoscalar meson, and compare our data with the chiral perturbation theory (ChPT). We find that our data is in good agreement with the sea-quark mass dependence predicted by the next-to-leading order (NLO) ChPT, and provides a determination of the low-energy constants \bar{l}_3 and \bar{l}_4, the pion decay constant, the chiral condensate, and the average up and down quark mass.Comment: 12 pages, v2: updated results with full statistic

Finite production rate model with backlogging, service level constraint, rework, and random breakdown

In most real-life production systems, both random machine breakdown and the production of nonconforming items are inevitable, and adopting a backlogging policy with a predetermined minimum acceptable service level can sometimes be an effective strategy to help the management reduce operating cost or smoothen the production schedule. With the aim of addressing the aforementioned practical situations in production, this study explores the optimal production runtime for the finite production rate (FPR) model with allowable backlogging and service level constraint, rework of defective products, and random machine breakdown. Mathematical modelling is employed along with optimization techniques to derive the optimal production runtime that minimizes the long-run average system costs for the proposed FPR model. The joint effects of the allowable backlogging with a planned service level, rework, and random machine breakdown on optimal runtime decision have been carefully investigated through a numerical example and sensitivity analysis. As a result, important insights regarding various system parameters are revealed in order to enable the management to better understand, plan, and control such a practical production system

Economic lot sizing with imperfect rework derived without derivatives

This paper presents an algebraic method for solving economic production quantity (EPQ) model with imperfect rework. Conventional method for deriving optimal lot size is by using differential calculus on the cost function with the need to prove optimality first. Recent articles proposed algebraic approach to the solution of classic economic order quantity (EOQ) and EPQ model without reference to the use of derivatives. This note extends them to an EPQ model taking into consideration an imperfect rework of defective items. We demonstrate that the optimal lot size and the expected production-inventory cost for such a realistic EPQ model can be derived without derivatives

Economic lot sizing with imperfect rework derived without derivatives

This paper presents an algebraic method for solving economic production quantity (EPQ) model with imperfect rework. Conventional method for deriving optimal lot size is by using differential calculus on the cost function with the need to prove optimality first. Recent articles proposed algebraic approach to the solution of classic economic order quantity (EOQ) and EPQ model without reference to the use of derivatives. This note extends them to an EPQ model taking into consideration an imperfect rework of defective items. We demonstrate that the optimal lot size and the expected production-inventory cost for such a realistic EPQ model can be derived without derivatives

A multi-product FPR model with rework and an improved delivery policy

A multi-item finite production rate (FPR) model with rework and an improved delivery policy is examined in this paper. Unlike the classic FPR model whose purpose is to derive the most economic lot size for a single-product production system with perfect quality and a continuous issuing policy, this paper considers a production of multiple products on a single machine, rework of all nonconforming items produced, and a cost-reduction, multi-delivery policy. We extend the work of Chiu et al. [1] by incorporating an improved n+1 shipment policy into their model. According to such a policy, one extra delivery of finished items is made during vendor’s production uptime to satisfy product demands during the period of vendor’s uptime and rework time. When the rest of the production lot is quality assured and the rework has been finished as well, n fixed-quantity installments of finished items are delivered to customers. The objectives are to determine an optimal, common-production cycle time that minimizes the long-run average system cost per time unit, study the effects of rework and the improved delivery policy on the optimal production. Mathematical modelling and analysis is used to derive a closed-form, optimal, common-cycle time. Finally, practical usages of the obtained results are demonstrated by a numerical example

Gender differences in ankylosing spondylitis-associated cumulative healthcare utilization: a population-based cohort study

BACKGROUND: Ankylosing spondylitis (AS) is one of the most common rheumatic diseases with gender differences in prevalence and clinical presentation. This study aimed to examine whether such gender differences are correlated with cumulative healthcare utilization in Taiwan. METHODS: The National Health Insurance Research Database supplied claim records of one million individuals from 1996 to 2007. Selected cases included patients aged >16 years. Certified rheumatologists diagnosed the patients in three or more visits and gave prescriptions for AS. Multivariate adjusted logistic regression analyses were used to calculate the influence of gender on cumulative healthcare utilization associated with AS. RESULTS: The study included 228 women and 636 men. After adjustment for potential confounding factors, men had more cumulative outpatient visits associated with AS (odds ratio, 1.59; 95% confidence interval, 1.13 -2.23; p = 0.008). Men also exhibited a trend for higher frequency of AS-related hospitalization (p = 0.054). CONCLUSION: Men are more likely to have high cumulative AS-associated healthcare utilization than women. Further investigation of the causal factors is warranted

Association algorithm to mine the rules that govern enzyme definition and to classify protein sequences

BACKGROUND: The number of sequences compiled in many genome projects is growing exponentially, but most of them have not been characterized experimentally. An automatic annotation scheme must be in an urgent need to reduce the gap between the amount of new sequences produced and reliable functional annotation. This work proposes rules for automatically classifying the fungus genes. The approach involves elucidating the enzyme classifying rule that is hidden in UniProt protein knowledgebase and then applying it for classification. The association algorithm, Apriori, is utilized to mine the relationship between the enzyme class and significant InterPro entries. The candidate rules are evaluated for their classificatory capacity. RESULTS: There were five datasets collected from the Swiss-Prot for establishing the annotation rules. These were treated as the training sets. The TrEMBL entries were treated as the testing set. A correct enzyme classification rate of 70% was obtained for the prokaryote datasets and a similar rate of about 80% was obtained for the eukaryote datasets. The fungus training dataset which lacks an enzyme class description was also used to evaluate the fungus candidate rules. A total of 88 out of 5085 test entries were matched with the fungus rule set. These were otherwise poorly annotated using their functional descriptions. CONCLUSION: The feasibility of using the method presented here to classify enzyme classes based on the enzyme domain rules is evident. The rules may be also employed by the protein annotators in manual annotation or implemented in an automatic annotation flowchart

Gallic Acid Induces a Reactive Oxygen Species-Provoked c-Jun NH 2

Idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis is a chronic lung disorder characterized by fibroblasts proliferation and extracellular matrix accumulation. Induction of fibroblast apoptosis therefore plays a crucial role in the resolution of this disease. Gallic acid (3,4,5-trihydroxybenzoic acid), a common botanic phenolic compound, has been reported to induce apoptosis in tumor cell lines and renal fibroblasts. The present study was undertaken to examine the role of mitogen-activated protein kinases (MAPKs) in lung fibroblasts apoptosis induced by gallic acid. We found that treatment with gallic acid resulted in activation of c-Jun NH2-terminal kinase (JNK), extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK), and protein kinase B (PKB, Akt), but not p38MAPK, in mouse lung fibroblasts. Inhibition of JNK using pharmacologic inhibitor (SP600125) and genetic knockdown (JNK specific siRNA) significantly inhibited p53 accumulation, reduced PUMA and Fas expression, and abolished apoptosis induced by gallic acid. Moreover, treatment with antioxidants (vitamin C, N-acetyl cysteine, and catalase) effectively diminished gallic acid-induced hydrogen peroxide production, JNK and p53 activation, and cell death. These observations imply that gallic acid-mediated hydrogen peroxide formation acts as an initiator of JNK signaling pathways, leading to p53 activation and apoptosis in mouse lung fibroblasts

Enhanced acoustic mode coupling resulting from an internal solitary wave approaching the shelfbreak in the South China Sea

Author Posting. © Acoustical Society of America, 2013. This article is posted here by permission of Acoustical Society of America for personal use, not for redistribution. The definitive version was published in Journal of the Acoustical Society of America 133 (2013): 1306-1319, doi:10.1121/1.4789358.Internal waves and bathymetric variation create time- and space-dependent alterations in the ocean acoustic waveguide, and cause subsequent coupling of acoustic energy between propagating normal modes. In this paper, the criterion for adiabatic invariance is extended to the case of an internal solitary wave (ISW) encountering a sloping bathymetry (i.e., continental shelfbreak). Predictions based on the extended criterion for adiabatic invariance are compared to experimental observations from the Asian Seas International Acoustics Experiment. Using a mode 1 starter field, results demonstrate time-dependent coupling of mode 1 energy to higher adjacent modes, followed by abrupt coupling of mode 5–7 energy to nonadjacent modes 8–20, produces enhanced mode coupling and higher received levels downrange of the oceanographic and bathymetric features. Numerical simulations demonstrate that increasing ISW amplitude and seafloor slope enhance the coupling of energy to adjacent and nonadjacent modes. This enhanced coupling is the direct result of the simultaneous influence of the ISW and its proximity to the shelfbreak, and, compared to the individual effect of the ISW or shelfbreak, has the capacity to scatter 2–4 times the amount of acoustic energy from below the thermocline into the upper water column beyond the shelfbreak in realistic environments.The ASIAEX and NLIWI experiments were supported jointly by the National Science Council of Taiwan and the U.S. Office of Naval Research