Temperature evaluation in ex-vivo bovine bones submitted to drilling processes

A necrose óssea induzida durante o processo de furação é um fenómeno frequente que contribui para problemas pós-operatórios. O calor de fricção gerado pelo contato entre a broca e a parede do furo é inevitável. No entanto, a utilização de técnicas avançadas para a obtenção do registo térmico durante a furação óssea é importante para a garantia da qualidade durante a furação. O objetivo deste estudo é apresentar dois métodos experimentais diferentes para analisar as condições de furação que geram as temperaturas mais baixas, evitando a ocorrência da necrose óssea. Foram utilizados ossos de bovino ex-vivo para simular o processo de furação considerando os efeitos do diâmetro da broca, velocidade de rotação e velocidade de avanço. Foram realizados diferentes testes experimentais para avaliar a sua repetibilidade. Os resultados identificaram o diâmetro da broca como o parâmetro mais crítico na indução de temperaturas mais elevadas durante a furação óssea.This research was supported by the Portuguese Foundation of Science and Technology under the research project UID/EMS/50022/2013. The third author acknowledges the funding of Project NORTE-01-0145-FEDER-000022-SciTech -Science and Technology for Competitive and Sustainable Industries, co-financed by Programa Operacional Regional do Norte (NORTE2020), through Fundo Europeu de Desenvolvimento Regional (FEDER).info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Surface tension in the dilute Ising model. The Wulff construction

We study the surface tension and the phenomenon of phase coexistence for the Ising model on \mathbbm{Z}^d ($d \geqslant 2$) with ferromagnetic but random couplings. We prove the convergence in probability (with respect to random couplings) of surface tension and analyze its large deviations : upper deviations occur at volume order while lower deviations occur at surface order. We study the asymptotics of surface tension at low temperatures and relate the quenched value $\tau^q$ of surface tension to maximal flows (first passage times if $d = 2$). For a broad class of distributions of the couplings we show that the inequality $\tau^a \leqslant \tau^q$ -- where $\tau^a$ is the surface tension under the averaged Gibbs measure -- is strict at low temperatures. We also describe the phenomenon of phase coexistence in the dilute Ising model and discuss some of the consequences of the media randomness. All of our results hold as well for the dilute Potts and random cluster models

Expansion of activated cxcr5+icos+ tfh cells and plasmablasts induced by seasonal influenza vaccine is impaired in anti-il-6r treated rheumatoid arthritis patients

Objectives: To investigate the importance of IL-6 for the in vivo differentiation of human Tfh cells, taking advantage of influenza vaccination in patients under anti-IL-6R therapy.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

The “Wine-T1” NMR experiment for novel wine-metabolome fingerprinting with nuclear-spin relaxation

In agreement with the draft resolution OENO-SCMA 17-618 at step 5 “Quantitation of glucose, malic acid, acetic acid, fumaric acid, shikimic acid and sorbic acid in wine using proton nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy (1H NMR)” said technique has been recently accepted within the OIV chair as a primary quantitative analytical technique for beverage analysis such as wine. However, poor chemical shift dispersion in 1H NMR spectra severely penalizes quantification within overlapped or crowded regions. To outflank said penalization and quantify metabolites in signal overcrowding situations, the novel “Wine-T1” experiment is proposed. The novel scheme comprises the addition of a second dimension, wherein the proton spin-lattice relaxation times (T1-{1H}) of each metabolite's spin-system is correlated to a chemical-shift dimension. The new experiment includes a water and ethanol signal pre-saturation module, prior to the T1 saturation-inversion recovery dimension in order to maximize signal-to-noise ratio of wine metabolome NMR spectra. “Wine-T1” pulse sequence can be adapted to all commercial spectrometers (Bruker, Varian/Agilent, Jeol) and with acquisition times in the order of minutes, it should be considered as a fast repetition method to produce a robust metabolome fingerprint that has not been described before, to the best of our knowledge

Regression Error Characteristic Optimisation of Non-Linear Models.

Copyright © 2006 Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg. The final publication is available at link.springer.comBook title: Multi-Objective Machine LearningIn this chapter recent research in the area of multi-objective optimisation of regression models is presented and combined. Evolutionary multi-objective optimisation techniques are described for training a population of regression models to optimise the recently defined Regression Error Characteristic Curves (REC). A method which meaningfully compares across regressors and against benchmark models (i.e. ‘random walk’ and maximum a posteriori approaches) for varying error rates. Through bootstrapping training data, degrees of confident out-performance are also highlighted

Conformally flat spacetimes and Weyl frames

We discuss the concepts of Weyl and Riemann frames in the context of metric theories of gravity and state the fact that they are completely equivalent as far as geodesic motion is concerned. We apply this result to conformally flat spacetimes and show that a new picture arises when a Riemannian spacetime is taken by means of geometrical gauge transformations into a Minkowskian flat spacetime. We find out that in the Weyl frame gravity is described by a scalar field. We give some examples of how conformally flat spacetime configurations look when viewed from the standpoint of a Weyl frame. We show that in the non-relativistic and weak field regime the Weyl scalar field may be identified with the Newtonian gravitational potential. We suggest an equation for the scalar field by varying the Einstein-Hilbert action restricted to the class of conformally-flat spacetimes. We revisit Einstein and Fokker's interpretation of Nordstr\"om scalar gravity theory and draw an analogy between this approach and the Weyl gauge formalism. We briefly take a look at two-dimensional gravity as viewed in the Weyl frame and address the question of quantizing a conformally flat spacetime by going to the Weyl frame.Comment: LATEX - 18 page

Efeitos da aplicação de prostaglandinas intervaladas de 10 dias sobre características reprodutivas de cabras leiteiras nulíparas cíclicas

Relataram-se os efeitos da aplicação de prostaglandina sobre características reprodutivas de cabras leiteiras nulíparas cíclicas. Cabras Alpinas (n=9) e Saanen (n=9) receberam duas doses de 22,5mg PGF2a com 10 dias de intervalo. A progesterona plasmática (ng/mL) foi determinada a partir de amostras de sangue coletadas nos dias 0 (primeira dose), 5, 10 (segunda dose), 15, 20, 25 e 30. Após início do segundo estro, as fêmeas foram monitoradas por ultrassonografia transretal a cada quatro horas até oito horas após a ovulação. A gestação foi verificada por ultrassonografia transretal nos dias 20, 25, 30, 35 e 90 após a segunda dose. As características estudadas foram semelhantes entre as raças (P>0,05). Animais em estro e o intervalo parto-estro de, respectivamente, 78,9% e 50,6±17,2h e 88,9% e 50,0±14,8h após a primeira e segunda administrações de prostaglandina, não diferiram (P>0,05). Todas as cabras ovularam e registraram-se valores do intervalo parto-ovulação após a segunda aplicação de prostaglandina de 64,5±19,5h e após início do estro de 18,0±9,1h, a taxa de ovulação de 1,3±0,5 e diâmetro do folículo ovulatório de 8,1±1,1mm. Perda embrionária ocorreu antes de 30 dias de gestação. O estro pode ser eficientemente sincronizado em cabras leiteiras núliparas com duas doses de prostaglandina intervaladas de 10 dias. _________________________________________________________________________________________ ABSTRACT: This study reported the effects of prostaglandin (PGF2a) administration 10 days apart on reproductive parameters of cyclic artificial inseminated (AI) nulliparous Alpine (n=9) and Saanen (n=9) goats. Animals received two doses of 22.5mg PGF2a 10 days apart. After 1st and 2nd PGF2a administrations, estrus was monitored at 12 h intervals, with a buck teaser. Plasma progesterone concentration (ng/mL) was determined from blood sampled on day 0 (1st PGF2a) and the following 5, 10 (2nd PGF2a), 15, 20, 25 and 30 days. After the onset of the second estrus, females were transrectally (5 MHz probe) scanned at 4 hour intervals until at least 8h after ovulation. Pregnancy was checked through transrectal ultrasound on days 20, 25, 30, 35 and 90 after insemination. All parameters studied did not differ between breeds (P>0.05). Estrous response and interval to estrus, respectively, after 1st (78.9% and 50.6±17.2h) and 2nd PGF2a (88.9% and 50.0±14.8h) administration did not differ (P>0.05). Overall animals ovulating (100.0%), interval to ovulation after 2nd PGF2a (64.5±19.5h) and after estrous onset (18.0±9.1h), ovulation rate (1.3±0.5), diameter of ovulatory follicle (8.1±1.1mm) were recorded. Embryo loss occurred before day 30 of pregnancy. Estrus can be efficiently synchronized in nulliparous Alpine and Saanen goats with two doses of prostaglandin 10 days apart

Entanglement, Bell Inequalities and Decoherence in Particle Physics

We demonstrate the relevance of entanglement, Bell inequalities and decoherence in particle physics. In particular, we study in detail the features of the ``strange'' $K^0 \bar K^0$ system as an example of entangled meson--antimeson systems. The analogies and differences to entangled spin--1/2 or photon systems are worked, the effects of a unitary time evolution of the meson system is demonstrated explicitly. After an introduction we present several types of Bell inequalities and show a remarkable connection to CP violation. We investigate the stability of entangled quantum systems pursuing the question how possible decoherence might arise due to the interaction of the system with its ``environment''. The decoherence is strikingly connected to the entanglement loss of common entanglement measures. Finally, some outlook of the field is presented.Comment: Lectures given at Quantum Coherence in Matter: from Quarks to Solids, 42. Internationale Universit\"atswochen f\"ur Theoretische Physik, Schladming, Austria, Feb. 28 -- March 6, 2004, submitted to Lecture Notes in Physics, Springer Verlag, 45 page