Experimental Vibration Analysis of Inflatable Beams for an AFIT Space Shuttle Experiment

This study investigated the use of MEMS based devices to control the boundary layer separation from a circular cylinder in cross flow. Velocity profiles were measured experimentally in a low speed wind tunnel. Momentum thickness was measured as the primary way to determine a change in the flow field. The goal was to determine the angular location and frequency of operation that would provide an effect on the boundary layer of the cylinder. A 25% reduction of momentum loss in the cylinder wake was detected with an optimal angle of 69 degrees and an optimal frequency of operation equal to that of the shedding frequency of the cylinder

Conceptual design of a two stage to orbit spacecraft

This project, undertaken through the Advanced Space Design Program, developed a 'Conceptual Design of a Two Stage To Orbit Spacecraft (TSTO).' The design developed utilizes a combination of air breathing and rocket propulsion systems and is fully reusable, with horizontal takeoff and landing capability. The orbiter is carried in an aerodynamically designed bay in the aft section of the booster vehicle to the staging altitude. This TSTO Spacecraft design meets the requirements of replacing the aging Space Shuttle system with a more easily maintained vehicle with more flexible mission capability

Management of infections pre- and post-liver transplantation: Report of an AISF consensus conference

The burden of infectious diseases both before and after liver transplantation is clearly attributable to the dysfunction of defensive mechanisms of the host, both as a result of cirrhosis, as well as the use of immunosuppressive agents. The present document represents the recommendations of an expert panel commended by the Italian Association for the Study of the Liver (AISF), on the prevention and management of infectious complications excluding hepatitis B, D, C, and HIV in the setting of liver transplantation. Due to a decreased response to vaccinations in cirrhosis as well as within the first six months after transplantation, the best timing for immunization is likely before transplant and early in the course of disease. Before transplantation, a vaccination panel including inactivated as well as live attenuated vaccines is recommended, while oral polio vaccine, Calmette-Guerin's bacillus, and Smallpox are contraindicated, whereas after transplantation, live attenuated vaccines are contraindicated. Before transplant, screening protocols should be divided into different levels according to the likelihood of infection, in order to reduce costs for the National Health Service. Recommended preoperative and postoperative prophylaxis varies according to the pathologic agent to which it is directed (bacterial vs. viral vs. fungal). Timing after transplantation greatly determines the most likely agent involved in post-transplant infections, and specific high-risk categories of patients have been identified that warrant closer surveillance. Clearly, specifically targeted treatment protocols are needed upon diagnosis of infections in both the pre- as well as the post-transplant scenarios, not without considering local microbiology and resistance patterns

Teaching strategies and gender in higher education instrumental studios

This study investigates instrumental music teaching strategies in higher education settings, in order to identify those employed and their frequency and context of use. An instrument- and gender-balanced sample of 24 lessons from five institutions was analysed using a researcher-designed observational instrument. The results reveal the predominance of teacher demonstration, general directives and praise as most frequent teaching strategies employed in lessons. Gender differences emerged in the teaching approaches: the male teachers gave more general directives and explanations and the female teachers offered more answers and practice discussions; the male students received the most specific teacher criticism despite uniform use of praise. The findings provide new evidence of teaching practices in advanced instrumental studios and raise questions regarding gender issues in music teaching

Injuries in Aleppo, Syria; first population-based estimates and characterization of predominant types

BACKGROUND: Despite the growing burden of injuries worldwide, Syria and many other Arab countries still lack population-based estimates of different types of injuries. This study aims toprovide first population-based estimates of major injuries in Syria and characterize groups at increased risk. METHODS: An interviewer-administered population-based survey of adults 18–65 years residing in Aleppo, Syria was conducted in 2004. The study sample involved 2038 household representatives in Aleppo (45.2% men, mean age 35.3 ± 12.1, response rate 86%). We inquired about participants self-reported injuries in the past year that required medical attention as well as injuries among their household members. When reported, injuries were further assessed according to type, place, and outcome. RESULTS: Overall, there was 153 self-reported injuries in the past year (77.3 per 1000 adult respondents, 93.1 per 1000 in men and 64.4 per 1000 in women, p = 0.02). Other than gender, injuries differed by age (the older age group being least affected), and place of occurrence, as men were more likely to sustain traffic injuries and be injured outside the home. Injuries were reported among 236 household members (21.0 per 1000), and were slightly more frequent in children than adults (22.0 per 1000 for children, and 19.7 per 1000 for adults, p = 0.2). Traffic injuries, falls, and poisoning (food) were by far the most common types of injury experienced by participants as well as their household members. Falls and traffic injuries seem to have caused most morbidity for the injured, while burns, although not frequently reported, were associated with an unfavorable outcome in the majority of cases. CONCLUSION: This information provides baseline information about the burden of different injuries in Syria, and the sociodemographic factors related to them

The economic costs of alcohol consumption in Thailand, 2006

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>There is evidence that the adverse consequences of alcohol impose a substantial economic burden on societies worldwide. Given the lack of generalizability of study results across different settings, many attempts have been made to estimate the economic costs of alcohol for various settings; however, these have mostly been confined to industrialized countries. To our knowledge, there are a very limited number of well-designed studies which estimate the economic costs of alcohol consumption in developing countries, including Thailand. Therefore, this study aims to estimate these economic costs, in Thailand, 2006.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>This is a prevalence-based, cost-of-illness study. The estimated costs in this study included both direct and indirect costs. Direct costs included health care costs, costs of law enforcement, and costs of property damage due to road-traffic accidents. Indirect costs included costs of productivity loss due to premature mortality, and costs of reduced productivity due to absenteeism and presenteeism (reduced on-the-job productivity).</p> <p>Results</p> <p>The total economic cost of alcohol consumption in Thailand in 2006 was estimated at 156,105.4 million baht (9,627 million US$PPP) or about 1.99$ PPP), followed by cost of productivity loss due to reduced productivity (45,464.6 million baht/2,804 million US$PPP), health care cost (5,491.2 million baht/339 million US$ PPP), cost of property damage as a result of road traffic accidents (779.4 million baht/48 million US$PPP), and cost of law enforcement (242.4 million baht/15 million US$ PPP), respectively. The results from the sensitivity analysis revealed that the cost ranges from 115,160.4 million baht to 214,053.0 million baht (7,102.1 - 13,201 million US$ PPP) depending on the methods and assumptions employed.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>Alcohol imposes a substantial economic burden on Thai society, and according to these findings, the Thai government needs to pay significantly more attention to implementing more effective alcohol policies/interventions in order to reduce the negative consequences associated with alcohol.</p

Relating a calcium indicator signal to the unperturbed calcium concentration time-course

BACKGROUND: Optical indicators of cytosolic calcium levels have become important experimental tools in systems and cellular neuroscience. Indicators are known to interfere with intracellular calcium levels by acting as additional buffers, and this may strongly alter the time-course of various dynamical variables to be measured. RESULTS: By investigating the underlying reaction kinetics, we show that in some ranges of kinetic parameters one can explicitly link the time dependent indicator signal to the time-course of the calcium influx, and thus, to the unperturbed calcium level had there been no indicator in the cell

Economic costs of chemotherapy-induced febrile neutropenia among patients with non-Hodgkin's lymphoma in European and Australian clinical practice

Background: Economic implications of chemotherapy-induced febrile neutropenia (FN) in European and Australian clinical practice are largely unknown. Methods: Data were obtained from a European (97%) and Australian (3%) observational study of patients with non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma (NHL) receiving CHOP (±rituximab) chemotherapy. For each patient, each cycle of chemotherapy within the course, and each occurrence of FN within cycles, was identified. Patients developing FN in a given cycle (“FN patients”), starting with the first, were matched to those who did not develop FN in that cycle (“comparison patients”), irrespective of subsequent FN events. FN-related healthcare costs (£2010) were tallied for the initial FN event as well as follow-on care and FN events in subsequent cycles. Results: Mean total cost was £5776 (95%CI £4928-£6713) higher for FN patients (n = 295) versus comparison patients, comprising £4051 (£3633-£4485) for the initial event and a difference of £1725 (£978-£2498) in subsequent cycles. Among FN patients requiring inpatient care (76% of all FN patients), mean total cost was higher by £7259 (£6327-£8205), comprising £5281 (£4810-£5774) for the initial hospitalization and a difference of £1978 (£1262-£2801) in subsequent cycles. Conclusions: Cost of chemotherapy-induced FN among NHL patients in European and Australian clinical practice is substantial; a sizable percentage is attributable to follow-on care and subsequent FN events

Distributed Dendritic Processing Facilitates Object Detection: A Computational Analysis on the Visual System of the Fly

Hennig P, Möller R, Egelhaaf M. Distributed Dendritic Processing Facilitates Object Detection: A Computational Analysis on the Visual System of the Fly. PLoS ONE. 2008;3(8): e3092.Background: Detecting objects is an important task when moving through a natural environment. Flies, for example, may land on salient objects or may avoid collisions with them. The neuronal ensemble of Figure Detection cells (FD-cells) in the visual system of the fly is likely to be involved in controlling these behaviours, as these cells are more sensitive to objects than to extended background structures. Until now the computations in the presynaptic neuronal network of FD-cells and, in particular, the functional significance of the experimentally established distributed dendritic processing of excitatory and inhibitory inputs is not understood. Methodology/Principal Findings: We use model simulations to analyse the neuronal computations responsible for the preference of FD-cells for small objects. We employed a new modelling approach which allowed us to account for the spatial spread of electrical signals in the dendrites while avoiding detailed compartmental modelling. The models are based on available physiological and anatomical data. Three models were tested each implementing an inhibitory neural circuit, but differing by the spatial arrangement of the inhibitory interaction. Parameter optimisation with an evolutionary algorithm revealed that only distributed dendritic processing satisfies the constraints arising from electrophysiological experiments. In contrast to a direct dendro-dendritic inhibition of the FD-cell (Direct Distributed Inhibition model), an inhibition of its presynaptic retinotopic elements (Indirect Distributed Inhibition model) requires smaller changes in input resistance in the inhibited neurons during visual stimulation. Conclusions/Significance: Distributed dendritic inhibition of retinotopic elements as implemented in our Indirect Distributed Inhibition model is the most plausible wiring scheme for the neuronal circuit of FD-cells. This microcircuit is computationally similar to lateral inhibition between the retinotopic elements. Hence, distributed inhibition might be an alternative explanation of perceptual phenomena currently explained by lateral inhibition networks