Pythagorean Approximations for LEGO: Merging Educational Robot Construction with Programming and Data Analysis

Abstract. This paper can be used in two ways. It can provide reference information for incorporating diagonal elements (for bracing or gear meshing) in educational robots built from standard LEGO kits. Alternatively, it can be used as the basis for an assignment for high school or college students to recreate this information; in the process, students will exercise skills in both computer programming and data analysis. Using the paper in the second way can be an excellent integrative experience to add to an existing course; for example, the Exploring Computer Science high school curriculum concludes with the units “Introduction to Programming”, “Computing and Data Analysis”, and “Robotics”

A Fuzzy Logic-based Tuning Approach of PID Control for Steam Turbines for Solar Applications

Abstract This work aims at improving the control concept based on PID controller by jointly exploiting experience and knowledge on the system behaviour and artificial intelligence. A Concentrated Solar Power Plant (CSPP) system has been modelled and a stability and performance analysis has been carried out, focusing on power control loop, which is normally based on standard PID. A hybrid fuzzy PID approach is proposed to improve the steam turbine governor action and its performance are compared to the classical PID tuned according to three different approaches. Compared to the classic PID, the PID fuzzy logic controller extends the simplicity of PID and adapts the control action at actual operating condition by providing the system with a sort of "decision-making skill". The possibility to design implementable algorithms on PLC, which have stringent computational speed and memory requirements, has been explicitly taken into account in the developed work

Type and Timing of Rehabilitation Following Acute and Subacute Spinal Cord Injury: A Systematic Review

Objectives: The objective of this study was to conduct a systematic review of the literature to address the following clinical questions: In adult patients with acute and subacute complete or incomplete traumatic SCI, (1) does the time interval between injury and commencing rehabilitation affect outcome?; (2) what is the comparative effectiveness of different rehabilitation strategies, including different intensities and durations of treatment?; (3) are there patient or injury characteristics that affect the efficacy of rehabilitation?; and (4) what is the cost-effectiveness of various rehabilitation strategies? Methods: A systematic search was conducted for literature published through March 31, 2015 that evaluated rehabilitation strategies in adults with acute or subacute traumatic SCI at any level. Studies were critically appraised individually and the overall strength of evidence was evaluated using methods proposed by the GRADE (Grades of Recommendation Assessment, Development and Evaluation) working group. Results: The search strategy yielded 384 articles, 19 of which met our inclusion criteria. Based on our results, there was no difference between body weight–supported treadmill training and conventional rehabilitation with respect to improvements in Functional Independence Measure (FIM) Locomotor score, Lower Extremity Motor Scores, the distance walked in 6 minutes or gait velocity over 15.2 m. Functional electrical therapy resulted in slightly better FIM Motor, FIM Self-Care, and Spinal Cord Independence Measure Self-Care subscores compared with conventional occupational therapy. Comparisons using the Toronto Rehabilitation Institute Hand Function Test demonstrated no differences between groups in 7 of 9 domains. There were no clinically important differences in Maximal Lean Test, Maximal Sidewards Reach Test, T-shirt Test, or the Canadian Occupational Performance Measure between unsupported sitting training and standard in-patient rehabilitation. Conclusion: The current evidence base for rehabilitation following acute and subacute spinal cord injury is limited. Methodological challenges have contributed to this and further research is still needed. © 2017, © The Author(s) 2017

Purification and Characterization of Proteinaceous Thermostable α-Amylase Inhibitor from Sardinian Common Bean Nieddone Cultivar (Phaseolus vulgaris L.)

The increasing need for new treatments for obesity and diabetes has led to the development of new drugs and food supplements that could reduce carbohydrate absorption. Many starch blockers, based on common bean proteinaceous inhibitors against α-amylase (α-AI), are already present on the market. The extraction and purification of α-amylase inhibitor from a promising common bean cultivar from Sardinia (Nieddone) is described, highlighting the unique value of the Nieddone cultivar, particularly for its inhibitory activity on digestive enzymes and its complete lack of a hemagglutination effect on human red blood cells. The purification of α-AI involved two chromatographic steps (IEC and SEC) and was essential for revealing certain properties of the inhibitor. The purified inhibitor has a tetrameric structure (α2β2) and a molecular weight of approximately 42 kDa, as determined by SEC and SDS-PAGE, confirming it as a lectin-like inhibitor. The identification of the α-AI sequence was obtained by bottom-up high-resolution mass spectrometry, which allowed us to identify a unique peptide from the α chain and six unique peptides from the β chains. α-AI exhibited an optimum temperature of around 40 °C and two pH optima at 5 and 6.5, respectively. Its remarkable stability at high temperatures was measured (approximately 25% of activity retained even after 5 h at 100 °C), whereas the raw extract lost its activity entirely after just 10 min at 90 °C. Thus, the purification process significantly enhances the thermal stability of α-AI. The demonstrated effectiveness of the purified α-AI against the α-amylase enzyme in pigs, humans and insects underscores the protein’s potential for treating obesity and diabetes, as well as for managing insect pests

Optimizing detection of RET and PPARg rearrangements in thyroid neoplastic cells using a home-brew tetracolor probe

BACKGROUND Fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) to identify specific DNA target sequences in the nuclei of nondividing cells of numerous solid neoplasms has contributed to the introduction of molecular cytogenetics as a useful adjunct to cytology, leading recently to the "marriage" of the 2 disciplines. Numerous cancer molecular markers can now be investigated using different technical approaches, at both the gene and expression levels, in biopsies of various suspected cancers, including differentiated thyroid carcinoma. The limited amount of bioptic material is often insufficient to carry out multiple tests, and optimizing handling of the biopsy is desirable. METHODS We have developed a home-brew tetracolor break-apart probe able to simultaneously identify the 2 most common genetic alterations in differentiated thyroid carcinoma: RET/PTC variants in papillary thyroid carcinoma and PAX8/PPARg fusion and variants in follicular thyroid carcinoma. RESULTS The probe had 100% specificity, 99.5% sensitivity, and >= 3% cutoff. The probe was tested on RET/PTC and PAX8/PPARg RT-PCR positive controls, and feasibility was assessed in 368 thyroid nodule fine-needle aspirations (FNA). In the latter analysis, 24 FNAs had split RET signal, and 9 had split PPARg signal. FISH analysis of available surgically removed nodules confirmed the sensitivity of FISH in detecting abnormal clones and oligoclones. CONCLUSIONS The home-brew tetracolor probe showed high feasibility, optimizing the use of the biological material in relation to the available molecular tests and maximizing the FISH experimental and slide-scoring times. This probe may be considered an alternative to RT-PCR when recovery and quality of RNA amplification from FNA are insufficient

A Wide Database for a Multicenter Study on Pneumocystis jirovecii Pneumonia in Intensive Care Units

Pneumocystis jirovecii pneumonia (PJP) is an opportunistic fungal infection that may affect patients with immunosuppression. In order to improve the diagnosis accuracy for PJP, facilitating the collection of data across Europe to reliably assess the performance of diagnostic tests for PJP is essential to improve the care of critically ill patients developing this severe condition. Such large data can be collected thanks to the contribution of several European hospitals in the compilation of a dedicated electronic Case Report Form (eCRF). The main focus of this work is to create an interface with high ergonomics both in the compilation and in the subsequent validation of the records

Urban sprawl and health: a review of the scientific literature

Urban sprawl is the development of sparse suburban areas with low population density, limited land use diversity, and poor street connectivity. Numerous studies demonstrated that urban form settings influence indoor and outdoor environments and, consequently, public health in diverse ways. This review aims to assess the association between sprawl and each health outcome evaluated in the literature to better define urban sprawl and its effects on human health. Using the PRISMA statement, this narrative review evaluates the associations between urban sprawl and any health outcome analyzed by researchers seeking to assess a possible relationship. A total of 826 records were identified via PubMed/MEDLINE (227) and Scopus (599) and 36 studies were deemed suitable for inclusion: 21/36 studies (58%) focused on obesity as the primary health outcome, 4/36 (11%) on life expectancy and/or mortality, 7/36 (19%) on accidents or emergency medical service response, and 4/36 (11%) on the self-reported psychological distress and/or physical health conditions associated with urban sprawl. In most studies, there is a general lack of uniformity and urban sprawl is loosely defined, with urban sprawl definitions frequently corresponding to different combinations of items within sprawl indexes. Nonetheless, urban sprawl appeared to be a determinant of health in many of the examined outcomes; therefore, it is necessary to promote alternatives to sprawling patterns when developing urban settings

nonlinear model predictive control strategy for steam turbine rotor stress

Abstract The paper proposes a Nonlinear Model Predictive Control strategy for the control of steam turbines rotor thermal stresses, which exploits the approximation of the turbine rotor as an infinite cylinder subjected to external convection. The Nonlinear Model Predictive Control allows optimizing the control strategy in the long term, by significantly reducing the machine start-up time during the power up ramp. This study proposes two different control strategies: the former one is based on the control of the Heat Transfer Coefficient, correlated to the inlet valve stroke. The latter one is based on the control of Heat Transfer Coefficient and the boiler steam temperature reference. Both strategies achieve good results in shortening the start-up time. The overall approach is validated and currently under development on Programmable Logic Controller platforms to the aim of code optimization

Relationship between milk urea, blood plasma urea and body condition score in primiparous browsing goats with different milk yield level

Abstract. The aim of this study was to investigate the relationships among milk urea, blood plasma urea, milk yield and body condition score (BCS) in primiparous goats fed at pasture. Ninety goats of Sarda breed were used and, on the basis of their yield level, divided in three groups of 30 animals each, low (LY), intermediate (IY) and high milk yield (HY). Daily milk yield, milk protein content, milk urea, plasma total protein and albumin, plasma urea and BCS were measured at monthly intervals from 45 days in milking (45 DIM) to 165 DIM. Milk yield level affected protein concentration of milk and plasma, whereas albumin showed no variation. Plasma and milk urea showed a high correlation (P<0.001) despite of the yield level; plasma urea was always lower than milk urea. BCS decreased on 75 DIM and again after 135 DIM, and it was not affected by the milk yield level. Because milk urea and plasma urea were closely correlated and not influenced by the yield level, the study pointed out that measurement of milk urea could be utilized to evaluate urea metabolism also for browsing goats