Improving the robustness to input errors on touch-based self-service kiosks and transportation apps

acceptedVersio

An image-based visual strategy for working with color contrasts during design

acceptedVersio

Propuesta de implementación de herramientas de Lean Manufacturing para incrementar la productividad en una empresa de proyectos tecnológicos y sistemas de automatización, Trujillo, 2020

El mercado competitivo en el que se desenvuelven las industrias las obliga a evaluar sus procesos y desarrollar estrategias enfocadas en la mejora del producto, proceso productivo y servicio al cliente. El presente trabajo de investigación tuvo por objetivo determinar en qué medida la propuesta de implementación de herramientas de Lean Manufacturing influye en la productividad en una empresa de proyectos tecnológicos y sistemas de automatización, Trujillo, 2020. En tal sentido, se realizó un diagnóstico inicial a la empresa identificando como principales problemas la acumulación de elementos deteriorados en almacén, tiempos improductivos por movimientos innecesarios, pedidos entregados fuera de tiempo al cliente y reprocesos por procedimientos de trabajo inadecuados. La propuesta consistió en el desarrollo de las herramientas de Lean Manufacturing: 5S, Kanban, Systematic Layout Planning y PDCA. Se obtuvo como resultado la mejora de la productividad en un 24.99% y un beneficio económico esperado de S/66,112.52 al año. Asimismo, se realizó el análisis financiero de la propuesta, obteniendo un VAN de S/12,786.22, un TIR de 50%, un PRI de 8 meses y una relación B/C de 2.71, lo que indicó la viabilidad del proyecto.The competitive market in which industries operate forces them to evaluate their processes and develop strategies focused on improving the product, production process and customer service. The objective of this research work was to determine to what extent the proposed implementation of Lean Manufacturing tools increases productivity in a company of technological projects and automation systems, Trujillo, 2020. In this sense, an initial diagnosis of the company was carried out, identifying as main problems the accumulation of deteriorated elements in the warehouse, unproductive times due to unnecessary movements, orders delivered out of time to the client and reprocesses due to inadequate work procedures. The proposal consisted of the development of Lean Manufacturing tools: 5S, Kanban, Systematic Layout Planning and PDCA. As a result, productivity was improved by 24.99% and an expected economic benefit of S/66,112.52 per year was obtained. The financial analysis of the proposal was also carried out, obtaining an NPV of S/12,786.22, an IRR of 50%, an IRR of 8 months and a B/C ratio of 2.71, which indicated the feasibility of the project

Puntos farmacéuticos clave de la terapia antimicrobiana parenteral domiciliaria: revisión narrativa

Introduction: The good results of home intravenous therapy, the greater complexity of patients and the increase in hospital pressure cause that every time the technical requirements on it are more demanding. Method: Of all drugs, a search was carried out in order using MESH terms searching: [“drug” and stability], [“drug” and storage], [“drug” and solvent]. Results: This article details the critical technical aspects when considering a home intravenous antibiotic therapy strategy: antimicrobials (antibiotics, antifungals and antivirals) candidates to be administered at home intravenously in an inpatient in charge of a home hospitalization service are reviewed: the candidate drugs, the concentration to be administered, the minimum infusion times, storage conditions, maximum stability, the most frequent compatible solvents and the vascular access in which we should administer according to the physicochemical properties of the drug, the delivery device and the expected duration of treatment. Conclusions: It is essential when considering a home antibiotic intravenous therapy that the drugs are correctly conditioned and selected.Introducción: Los buenos resultados de la terapia intravenosa domiciliaria, la mayor complejidad de los pacientes y el aumento de presión hospitalaria provocan que cada vez que los requerimientos técnicos sobre la misma sean más exigentes. Método: De todos los principios activos se realizó una búsqueda ordenada mediante términos MESH buscando: [“principio activo” and stability], [“principio activo” and storage], [“principio activo” and solvent]. Resultados: En este artículo se detallan los aspectos técnicos críticos a la hora de plantear una estrategia de antibioterapia intravenosa a domicilio: se revisan los antimicrobianos (antibióticos, antifúngicos y antivirales) candidatos a ser administrados en el domicilio por vía intravenosa en un paciente ingresado cargo de un servicio de hospitalización a domicilio: se revisan los principios activos candidatos, la concentración a la que se debe administrar, los tiempos de infusión mínimos, las condiciones de conservación, las estabilidades máximas, los solventes compatibles más frecuentes tipo de vía en la que deberíamos administrar según las propiedades fisicoquímicas del fármaco, el dispositivo de administración y la duración prevista del tratamiento. Conclusiones: Es fundamental a la hora de plantear una terapia intravenosa antibiótica domiciliaria que los fármacos se encuentren correctamente acondicionados y seleccionados

Virtual Compton Scattering off a Spinless Target in AdS/QCD

We study the doubly virtual Compton scattering off a spinless target $\gamma^*P\to\gamma^*P'$ within the Anti-de Sitter(AdS)/QCD formalism. We find that the general structure allowed by the Lorentz invariance and gauge invariance of the Compton amplitude is not easily reproduced with the standard recipes of the AdS/QCD correspondence. In the soft-photon regime, where the semi-classical approximation is supposed to apply best, we show that the measurements of the electric and magnetic polarizabilities of a target like the charged pion in real Compton scattering, can already serve as stringent tests.Comment: 21 pages, version to be published in JHEP

Differential expression of collectins in human placenta and role in inflammation during spontaneous Labor.

© 2014 Yadav et al. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.Collectins, collagen-containing Ca2+ dependent C-type lectins and a class of secretory proteins including SP-A, SP-D and MBL, are integral to immunomodulation and innate immune defense. In the present study, we aimed to investigate their placental transcript synthesis, labor associated differential expression and localization at feto-maternal interface, and their functional implication in spontaneous labor. The study involved using feto-maternal interface (placental/decidual tissues) from two groups of healthy pregnant women at term (≥37 weeks of gestation), undergoing either elective C-section with no labor ('NLc' group, n = 5), or normal vaginal delivery with spontaneous labor ('SLv' group, n = 5). The immune function of SP-D, on term placental explants, was analyzed for cytokine profile using multiplexed cytokine array. SP-A, SP-D and MBL transcripts were observed in the term placenta. The 'SLv' group showed significant up-regulation of SP-D (p = 0.001), and down-regulation of SP-A (p = 0.005), transcripts and protein compared to the 'NLc' group. Significant increase in 43 kDa and 50 kDa SP-D forms in placental and decidual tissues was associated with the spontaneous labor (p<0.05). In addition, the MMP-9-cleaved form of SP-D (25 kDa) was significantly higher in the placentae of 'SLv' group compared to the 'NLc' group (p = 0.002). Labor associated cytokines IL-1α, IL-1β, IL-6, IL-8, IL-10, TNF-α and MCP-1 showed significant increase (p<0.05) in a dose dependent manner in the placental explants treated with nSP-D and rhSP-D. In conclusion, the study emphasizes that SP-A and SP-D proteins associate with the spontaneous labor and SP-D plausibly contributes to the pro-inflammatory immune milieu of feto-maternal tissues.Funding provided by BT/PR15227/BRB/10/906/2011) Department of Biotechnology (DBT), Government of India http://dbtindia.nic.in/index.asp (TM) and Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) Junior Research Fellowship (JRF)/Senior Research Fellowship (SRF), Government of India, www.icmr.nic.in (AKY)

Baryon Resonances in the Double Pion Channel at Jefferson Lab (CEBAF): Experimental and Physical Analysis Status and Perspectives

Decay of light quark excited baryons in the double pion channel is discussed, as a particular way of investigating poorly know baryon resonances and searching for "missing states" predicted by quark models. A possible approach to the data analysis is discussed and some preliminary data from the CLAS collaboration at Jefferson Laboratory are presented

Assessing the Diversity and Specificity of Two Freshwater Viral Communities through Metagenomics

Transitions between saline and fresh waters have been shown to be infrequent for microorganisms. Based on host-specific interactions, the presence of specific clades among hosts suggests the existence of freshwater-specific viral clades. Yet, little is known about the composition and diversity of the temperate freshwater viral communities, and even if freshwater lakes and marine waters harbor distinct clades for particular viral sub-families, this distinction remains to be demonstrated on a community scale

Neuron to Astrocyte Communication via Cannabinoid Receptors Is Necessary for Sustained Epileptiform Activity in Rat Hippocampus

Astrocytes are integral functional components of synapses, regulating transmission and plasticity. They have also been implicated in the pathogenesis of epilepsy, although their precise roles have not been comprehensively characterized. Astrocytes integrate activity from neighboring synapses by responding to neuronally released neurotransmitters such as glutamate and ATP. Strong activation of astrocytes mediated by these neurotransmitters can promote seizure-like activity by initiating a positive feedback loop that induces excessive neuronal discharge. Recent work has demonstrated that astrocytes express cannabinoid 1 (CB1) receptors, which are sensitive to endocannabinoids released by nearby pyramidal cells. In this study, we tested whether this mechanism also contributes to epileptiform activity. In a model of 4-aminopyridine induced epileptic-like activity in hippocampal slice cultures, we show that pharmacological blockade of astrocyte CB1 receptors did not modify the initiation, but significantly reduced the maintenance of epileptiform discharge. When communication in astrocytic networks was disrupted by chelating astrocytic calcium, this CB1 receptor-mediated modulation of epileptiform activity was no longer observed. Thus, endocannabinoid signaling from neurons to astrocytes represents an additional significant factor in the maintenance of epileptiform activity in the hippocampus