Predicting Structural Health and Inspection Frequencies of Civil Infrastructures using Correlation Network Model

Many recent studies have shown that a large percentage of bridges in many parts of the world have low safety rating. Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) maintains National Bridge Inventory (NBI) database that contains the information of more than 600,000 bridges. Each bridge has 130 parameters including Average Daily Traffic, Structural Condition Rating, Deck Condition Rating, and overall Sufficiency Rating. Current safety inspections require bridge inspectors to manually inspect each bridge every few years. Manpower and budget constraints limit such approach from inspecting the bridges more frequently. Clearly, more efficient approaches need to be developed to improve the process of bridge inspection and increase the overall safety of bridges and civil infrastructures. In this study, we propose a Correlation Network Model to analyze and visualize the big-data associated with more than 600,000 bridges of NBI database. We use Correlation Networks based on various safety parameters, then apply Markov Clustering algorithms to analyze a population of 9,546 “Steel-stringer/multi-beam or girder bridges” across three states, California, Iowa, and Nebraska representing three different climatic regions. We use the produced clusters to propose a different maintenance schedule based on which bridges follow a pattern that leads to a higher chance of deficiencies. Results show that out of top five clusters, three need to be serviced more frequently. Hence, we recommend their Inspection Frequency to be reduced to 12 months instead of 24 months. Our analysis also shows that bridge conditions are sensitive to the Average Daily Traffic and that the traffic needs to be considered as a key parameter in maintenance schedule

A correlation network model for managing safety and performance issues in bridges and civil infrastructures

Many recent studies have shown that a large percentage of bridges in many parts of the world have low safety rating. National Bridge Inventory (NBI) database contains the information of more than 600,000 bridges, where each bridge has 116 parameters. Current safety inspections require bridge inspectors to manually inspect each bridge every few years. Manpower and budget constraints limit such approach from inspecting the bridges more frequently. Clearly, more efficient approaches need to be developed to improve the process of bridge inspection and increase the overall safety of bridges and civil infrastructures. In this study, we propose a Correlation Network Model (CNM) to analyze and visualize the big-data associated with more than 600,000 bridges of NBI database. We use Correlation Networks based on various safety parameters (deck rating in this case), then apply community clustering algorithm such as GLay to analyze a population of 8,712 Nebraska non-culvert bridges. Our results show that out of top5 clusters, two clusters have highly negative correlations with average deck ratings and one cluster have highly negative correlation with the average daily traffic. So these clusters need more attention than other cluster as these clusters are sensitive to the age and average daily traffic

Relationship between dental erosion, food and beverages consumption in athletes

Objetivo: Numerosos estudos à escala internacional demonstraram a influência da alimentação na cavidade oral, levando à erosão dentária. Sabemos que os atletas têm um gasto energético importante, portanto, eles precisam adaptar a alimentação de acordo com as suas necessidades energéticas e nutricionais, recorrendo, por vezes, ao consumo de bebidas energéticas, muitas vezes envolvidas no processo de erosão dentária, devido a composição e ao pH reduzido. Assim, o objetivo deste estudo é relacionar a alimentação, incluindo o consumo de bebidas energéticas com a erosão dentária em atletas. Métodos: Foi utilizado um questionário sobre os hábitos alimentares, incluindo o consumo de bebidas energéticas de um grupo de atletas (n=110: nadadores, fisiculturistas, jogadores de futebol, pugilistas, voleibol, corredores) repartidos em grupos: nadadores que consumem ou não bebidas energéticas, e atletas (exceto nadadores) que consumem ou não bebidas energéticas. O grau de erosão dentária de cada atleta foi avaliado através de um exame oral, utilizando o índice BEWE. Os dados foram tratados estatisticamente usando o programa SPSS, versão 23. Resultados: Dos 110 participantes, 48 (43.6%) indivíduos não apresentaram risco de erosão, 54 (49.1%) indivíduos apresentaram baixo risco de erosão, 7 (6.4%) indivíduos apresentaram um risco médio de erosão, e 1 (0.9%) individuo apresentou alto risco de erosão. Conclusões: Os seguintes fatores foram identificados como risco para erosão dentaria: o consumo elevado de vinho tinto e citrinos, a frequência de escovagem dos dentes aumentada, e a prática desportiva, nomeadamente onde atletas consomem bebidas energéticas, com o maior risco para os nadadores que consumem bebidas energéticas.Objective: Numerous international studies have demonstrated the influence of the alimentation on the oral cavity, leading to tooth erosion. We know that athletes have an important energy expenditure, therefore, they need to adapt a diet according to their energy and nutritional needs, sometimes resorting to the consumption of energy drinks, often involved in the process of dental erosion, due to the composition and at a reduced pH. Thus, the objective of this study is to relate alimentation, including the consumption of energy drinks with dental erosion in athletes. Methods: A questionnaire on dietary habits was used, including the consumption of energy drinks in a group of athletes (n = 110: swimmers, bodybuilders, Footballers, boxers, volleyball players, runners) organized in groups: swimmers who consumed or not energy drinks, and athletes (except swimmers) who consumed or not energetic drinks. The degree of dental erosion of each athlete was evaluated through an oral exam using the BEWE index Data were statistically treated using the SPSS program, version 23. Results: Of the 110 participants, 48 (43.6%) had no erosion risk, 54 (49.1%) had low risk of erosion, 7 (6.4%) had an average risk of erosion, and 1 (0.9%) person presented high risk of erosion. Conclusions: The following factors were identified as a risk for tooth erosion: high consumption of red wine and citrus fruits, increased tooth brushing frequency, and sports practice, especially where athletes consume energy drinks, but with the greatest risk in swimmers who consume energy drinks

Relationship between dental erosion, food and beverages consumption in athletes

Objetivo: Numerosos estudos à escala internacional demonstraram a influência da alimentação na cavidade oral, levando à erosão dentária. Sabemos que os atletas têm um gasto energético importante, portanto, eles precisam adaptar a alimentação de acordo com as suas necessidades energéticas e nutricionais, recorrendo, por vezes, ao consumo de bebidas energéticas, muitas vezes envolvidas no processo de erosão dentária, devido a composição e ao pH reduzido. Assim, o objetivo deste estudo é relacionar a alimentação, incluindo o consumo de bebidas energéticas com a erosão dentária em atletas. Métodos: Foi utilizado um questionário sobre os hábitos alimentares, incluindo o consumo de bebidas energéticas de um grupo de atletas (n=110: nadadores, fisiculturistas, jogadores de futebol, pugilistas, voleibol, corredores) repartidos em grupos: nadadores que consumem ou não bebidas energéticas, e atletas (exceto nadadores) que consumem ou não bebidas energéticas. O grau de erosão dentária de cada atleta foi avaliado através de um exame oral, utilizando o índice BEWE. Os dados foram tratados estatisticamente usando o programa SPSS, versão 23. Resultados: Dos 110 participantes, 48 (43.6%) indivíduos não apresentaram risco de erosão, 54 (49.1%) indivíduos apresentaram baixo risco de erosão, 7 (6.4%) indivíduos apresentaram um risco médio de erosão, e 1 (0.9%) individuo apresentou alto risco de erosão. Conclusões: Os seguintes fatores foram identificados como risco para erosão dentaria: o consumo elevado de vinho tinto e citrinos, a frequência de escovagem dos dentes aumentada, e a prática desportiva, nomeadamente onde atletas consomem bebidas energéticas, com o maior risco para os nadadores que consumem bebidas energéticas.Objective: Numerous international studies have demonstrated the influence of the alimentation on the oral cavity, leading to tooth erosion. We know that athletes have an important energy expenditure, therefore, they need to adapt a diet according to their energy and nutritional needs, sometimes resorting to the consumption of energy drinks, often involved in the process of dental erosion, due to the composition and at a reduced pH. Thus, the objective of this study is to relate alimentation, including the consumption of energy drinks with dental erosion in athletes. Methods: A questionnaire on dietary habits was used, including the consumption of energy drinks in a group of athletes (n = 110: swimmers, bodybuilders, Footballers, boxers, volleyball players, runners) organized in groups: swimmers who consumed or not energy drinks, and athletes (except swimmers) who consumed or not energetic drinks. The degree of dental erosion of each athlete was evaluated through an oral exam using the BEWE index Data were statistically treated using the SPSS program, version 23. Results: Of the 110 participants, 48 (43.6%) had no erosion risk, 54 (49.1%) had low risk of erosion, 7 (6.4%) had an average risk of erosion, and 1 (0.9%) person presented high risk of erosion. Conclusions: The following factors were identified as a risk for tooth erosion: high consumption of red wine and citrus fruits, increased tooth brushing frequency, and sports practice, especially where athletes consume energy drinks, but with the greatest risk in swimmers who consume energy drinks

A Novel Population Analysis Approach for Analyzing Financial Markets under Crises – 2008 Economic crash and Covid-19 pandemic

Stock markets play an important role in shaping an economic portfolio in many countries and are often used as critical ways to measure economic health and financial status in numerous studies. Financial markets are often volatile and can be influenced by a wide range of direct and indirect variables. The current Covid-19 Pandemic has severely impaired the economic markets in many parts of the world and has negatively affected millions of investors. While some financial markets or stocks are expected to recover or partially recover from this crisis, others may not. With recent crises, such as the 2008 economic crash or the economic impact of the 9/11 event, researchers are looking for innovative ways to analyze the behavior of financial markets under crisis. Can we apply traditional analytical approaches to study the behavior of financial markets under crises, or a different new approach is required to conduct such a study? This paper proposes a new network model and employs a population analysis approach to address such an important research question. We present the basic steps that illustrate how to construct correlation networks of financial stocks and how to utilize graph-theoretic properties of the constructed networks to analyze the behavior of stocks over a given period of time. The proposed population analysis approach allows us to compare the behavior of various groups of companies and their relevant economic sectors in the stock market. We apply the correlation network analysis on different financial data and study the financial implications of two major events, the 2008 economic crash, and Covid-19. In particular, we use the networks to compare the behavior of different economic sectors and uncover the similarities and differences between sectors and their reactions or behavior during these two events. We were able to see certain patterns and extract useful information from the correlation networks. For example, we observed that companies in finance sectors behave in a similar way under the effect of both events and identify some similarities between the behavior of the energy sector during the current pandemic and the utility sector during the 2008 crash

Effect of Plant Growth Regulators on Leaf Biochemical Characters and Fruit Yield Components of Bittergourd (Momordica charantia L.) Cvs. MHBI-15 and Chaman Plus

Effect of plant growth regulators on leaf biochemical parameters (chlorophyll pigments, sugars, nitrate reductase activity, total phenols) and fruit yield bitter gourd (Momordica charantia L.) was studied. The experiment consisted of foliar treatment with three plant growth regulators, GA3 (20, 40 and 60ppm), NAA (50ppm) and CCC (100 and 200ppm) in two bittergourd varieties, MHBI-15 and Chaman Plus at 45 days after sowing (DAS). Results revealed significant difference between treatments on chlorophyll, sugar, total phenol content as also on nitrate reductase activity. Foliar application of CCC (200ppm) recorded maximum amount of total sugars (18.03% over Control), total phenol content (10.93%) as also nitrate reductase activity (16.12%). Among the treatments, application of GA3 (20ppm) recorded maximum chlorophyll content (18.03% over Control). Highest increase in mean fruit yield over Control was recorded with application of GA3 (20ppm) (39.88%), followed by CCC (200ppm) (34.15%) in both the cultivars

Gas Chromatographic-Mass Spectrometric Detection of Pesticide Residues in Grapes

GC-MS/MS method has been developed and validated for the determination and quantification of 35 multi-class pesticide residues in grape samples. Pesticides are selected from different families including organochlorines, organophosphorus, carbamates, pyrethroids, triazines, triazoles, pyrazoles, etc. The QuEChERS-dSPE (dispersive solid-phase extraction) method was used for the extraction of residues of pesticide. An extra cleanup step was included with the help of a primary secondary amine (PSA) and graphitized carbon black (GCB). Recoveries ranged from 70 to 100% with 14% relative standard deviation (RSD). Other parameters such as precision, recoveries, limit of detection (LOD), limit of quantification (LOQ), and linearity were also studied. Finally, the proposed analytical method was successfully employed for the determination of residues of pesticide in grape samples

Analysis of Pesticide Residues in Chili (Capsicum annuum L.) using Ultra Performance Liquid Chromatography with UV Detection

The aim of this study was to analyze the pesticide residues in chili samples, collected from farmer’s field. Ultra performance liquid chromatography (UPLC) with BEH C18 column was used for this analysis work. A cheap and fast method for the simultaneous quantification of 12 residue of pesticides in chili has been developed. Samples were prepared according to Quick, Easy, Cheap, Effective, Rugged, Safe (QuEChERS) method and quantification was performed by using tunable ultra violet (TUV) detector. The method was applied for the analysis of the chili samples and results showed that most of the samples have detectable pesticide residues. The residues of acetamiprid and thiodicarb were detected only in three samples, whereas flubendiamide and mancozeb were detected in six samples and arbosulfan and Spinosad were detected in two and five samples, respectively. Out of the 30 chili samples, only 11 samples were found to be contaminated with pesticide residues with more than maximum residue limits (MRLs)

A Simple, reversed-phase Ultra performance liquid chromatographic method for the simultaneous determination of Monocrotophos, Thiram, carbendazim, Carbaryl and imidacloprid pesticides by Quechers method in chilli samples.

A simple, reversed-phase Ultra-performance liquid chromatographic (RP-UPLC) method for the simultaneous determination of five pesticides namely Monocrotophos, Thiram, Carbendazim, Carbaryl and Imidacloprid has been developed. This method involves sample preparation by QueCherS method and quantification by ultra performance liquid chromatography with   tunable dual wavelength detector. The mobile phase composition was varied to improve peak resolution and peak sensitivity. Choosing the match between the stationary phase and mobile phase composition, the developed RP-UPLC method not only can simplify the procedure but also significantly reduce the analysis time. The method presents an average recovery of 87.9% and 96.9%, in repeatability and intermediate precision conditions, respectively, with adequate precision (RSD from 0.8 to 20.7%), for all compounds. The method was applied to determine these pesticide residues in chilli samples