Design for safety: theoretical framework of the safety aspect of BIM system to determine the safety index

Despite the safety improvement drive that has been implemented in the construction industry in Singapore for many years, the industry continues to report the highest number of workplace fatalities, compared to other industries. The purpose of this paper is to discuss the theoretical framework of the safety aspect of a proposed BIM System to determine a Safety Index. An online questionnaire survey was conducted to ascertain the current workplace safety and health situation in the construction industry and explore how BIM can be used to improve safety performance in the industry. A safety hazard library was developed based on the main contributors to fatal accidents in the construction industry, determined from the formal records and existing literature, and a series of discussions with representatives from the Workplace Safety and Health Institute (WSH Institute) in Singapore. The results from the survey suggested that the majority of the firms have implemented the necessary policies, programmes and procedures on Workplace Safety and Health (WSH) practices. However, BIM is still not widely applied or explored beyond the mandatory requirement that building plans should be submitted to the authorities for approval in BIM format. This paper presents a discussion of the safety aspect of the Intelligent Productivity and Safety System (IPASS) developed in the study. IPASS is an intelligent system incorporating the buildable design concept, theory on the detection, prevention and control of hazards, and the Construction Safety Audit Scoring System (ConSASS). The system is based on the premise that safety should be considered at the design stage, and BIM can be an effective tool to facilitate the efforts to enhance safety performance. IPASS allows users to analyse and monitor key aspects of the safety performance of the project before the project starts and as the project progresses

Glycoproteomics-Based Identification of Cancer Biomarkers

Protein glycosylation is one of the most common posttranslational modifications in mammalian cells. It is involved in many biological pathways and molecular functions and is well suited for proteomics-based disease investigations. Aberrant protein glycosylation may be associated with disease processes. Specific glycoforms of glycoproteins may serve as potential biomarkers for the early detection of disease or as biomarkers for the evaluation of therapeutic efficacy for treatment of cancer, diabetes, and other diseases. Recent technological developments, including lectin affinity chromatography and mass spectrometry, have provided researchers the ability to obtain detailed information concerning protein glycosylation. These in-depth investigations, including profiling and quantifying glycoprotein expression, as well as comprehensive glycan structural analyses may provide important information leading to the development of disease-related biomarkers. This paper describes methodologies for the detection of cancer-related glycoprotein and glycan structural alterations and briefly summarizes several current cancer-related findings

A Computer-Assisted Study of Red Coral Population Dynamics

We consider a 13-dimensional age-structured discrete red coral population model varying with respect to a fitness parameter. Our numerical results give a bifurcation diagram of both equilibria and stable invariant curves of orbits. We observe that not only for low levels of fitness, but also for high levels of fitness, populations are extremely vulnerable, in that they spend long time periods near extinction. We then use computer-assisted proofs techniques to rigorously validate the set of regular and bifurcation fixed points that have been found numerically.Comment: 31 pages, 12 figure

Experimental Characterization of Adsorption and Transport Properties for Advanced Thermo-Adsorptive Batteries

Thermal energy storage has received significant interest for delivering both heating and cooling in electric vehicles, to minimize the use of the on-board electric batteries for heating, ventilation and air-conditioning (HVAC). An advanced thermoadsorptive battery (ATB) is currently being developed, to provide both heating and cooling for an electric vehicle. We present a detailed thermophysical and physicochemical characterization of adsorptive materials for the development of the ATB. We discuss the feasibility of using contemporary adsorptive materials, such as zeolite 13X, by carrying out a detailed experimental characterization. In this study, zeolite 13X is combined with aluminum hydroxide (Al(OH)3) as a binder to improve the thermal conductivity. We also investigate the effect of densification on the overall transport characteristics of the adsorbent-binder composite material. Accordingly, the effective thermal conductivity, surface area, adsorption capacity and surface chemistry were characterized using the laser flash technique, surface sorption analyzer, thermogravimetric analyzer, and x-ray scattering technique. Thermal conductivity predictions of both zeolite 13X and its combination with the binder were made with existing conductivity models. Thermal conductivity in excess of 0.4 W/mK was achieved with the addition of 6.4 wt.% of Al(OH)3. However, a 10.6 % decrease in adsorption capacity was also observed. The experimental characterization presented herein is an essential step towards the development of the proposed ATB for next-generation electric vehicles. Topics: Experimental characterizationUnited States. Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energ

Humanities at Large Next Generation Humanities PhD Planning Grant

This summary and assessment of the Humanities at Large project at the University of Rhode Island in fulfillment of the Next Generation PhD Planning Grant describes our exploration of the diversification of Humanities PhD education through cross-disciplinary and experiential learning. Our work focused on ways we could tap our institution’s resources, make connections across and beyond campus, and reimagine Humanities graduate programming at URI

Gender differences in the associations of plasma pyridoxal 5’‐ phosphate with plasma polyunsaturated fatty acids among us young and middle‐aged adults: Nhanes 2003−2004

Vitamin B6‐restricted diets and low plasma pyridoxal 5’‐phosphate (PLP) status altered plasma polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) compositions. Evidence suggests the role of gender in the metabolism of vitamin B6 and PUFA. However, no epidemiologic study examined the impact of gender on the relationship between vitamin B6 and PUFA status in adults. Thus, we investigated whether there were gender differences in the association of vitamin B6 intake and plasma PLP concentration with plasma PUFA concentrations and ratios (eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA), docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), arachidonic acid (AA), EPA + DHA, EPA/AA, (EPA + DHA)/AA) in US young/middle‐aged adults. In total, 864 participants (20−59 years; 484 men, 380 women) from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) 2003−2004 were used for this cross‐sectional study. Nutrient intakes were estimated from two 24 h recalls and supplement questionnaires; plasma PLP and PUFA were measured. Multivariate linear regression was utilized to obtain unstandardized (b) and standardized (β) coefficients. Covariates included demographic, socioeconomic, dietary variables, physical activity level, cigarette smoking status, alcohol consumption, prescription medication use, and BMI. There were significant interactions between gender and PLP on EPA (P‐interaction = 0.004), DHA (P‐interaction = 0.020), EPA + DHA (P‐interaction = 0.010), EPA/AA (P‐interaction = 0.002), (EPA + DHA)/AA (P‐interaction = 0.004), whereas no interaction between gender and B6 intake existed. In gender‐stratified analyses, in men, PLP was positively associated with EPA (β = 0.138, b = 0.104, p = 0.0004), DHA (β = 0.101, b = 0.058, p = 0.036), EPA + DHA (β = 0.125, b = 0.073, p = 0.005), EPA/AA (β = 0.144, b = 0.099, p = 0.0002), (EPA + DHA)/AA (β = 0.123, b = 0.068, p = 0.005). However, no associations between PLP and PUFA existed in women. In conclusion, gender differences were found in the relationships between plasma PLP and plasma EPA, DHA, EPA + DHA, EPA/AA, and (EPA + DHA)/AA, with significant direct associations in men only among US young/middle‐aged adults

Synthese von multivalenten Saccharidmimetika als Liganden für Zellmembran-Lectine und als Inhibitoren der Zelladhäsion und Invasion

Lectin-Kohlenhydrat Interaktionen spielen eine wichtige Rolle in biologischen Prozessen wie Zell-Zell-Erkennung, Zelladhäsion und Migration. Verzweigte Saccharide zeigen eine höhere Bindungsaffinität als lineare. Daher wurde im Rahmen dieser Arbeit zwei Typen von di- und trivalenten Saccharidmimetika, die sich in ihrer Corestruktur unterscheiden, synthetisiert, um ihre biologische Aktivität im Adhäsions- und Invasionsassay zu studieren und fluoreszenzmarkiert Zellmembran-Lectine zu visualisieren. Die sich daraus ergebenden Struktur-Aktivitätsbeziehungen wurden in Molecular Modeling Studien evaluiert. Im synthetisch-chemischen Teil der Arbeit wurden über die Imidat-Methode nach Schmidt divalente Furan-Galactoside und Fucoside dargestellt. Für die Zellfärbung wurden die glycosidierten Furane mit Biotin Maleinimid über die Diels-Alder Reaktion biotinyliert und dann mit Avidin-FITC gelabelt. Als zweiter Saccharidmimetikum-Typ wurden di- und trivalente Galactoside mit Cylcohexan als Core-Struktur synthetisiert. Die Biotinylierung des divalenten Galactosids aus dieser Reihe fand über die Reaktion der Aminogruppe am Linker mit NHS-aktiviertem Biotin statt. Mit Hilfe der biotinylierten Saccharidmimetika konnten diskrete Bereiche auf der Plasmamembran von verschiedenen Tumorzelllinien angefärbt werden. Besondere Merkmale waren zum einen die polarisierte Anfärbung und zum anderen die Anfärbung der Focal Adhesion Points. Verzweigte Galactoside inhibierten abhängig vom Verzweigungsgrad und ihrer Konzentration spezifisch die Adhäsion von stark metastasierenden B16F10 Zellen. Ferner konnte die Migration der B16 Zellen durch extrazelluläre Matrix signifikant durch die synthetischen Galactoside gehemmt werden. Molecular Modeling Studien wiesen zudem strukturelle Ähnlichkeiten zwischen dem Tumorantigen Ley und den DA-Saccharidmimetika auf