9,451 research outputs found

    The Effect of Cooling Rate on the Ductile- Brittle Bend-transition Temperature of Chromium Wire

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    Effect of cooling rate on ductile-brittle bend-transition temperature of chromium wir

    Optimal picking policies in e-commerce warehouses

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    In e-commerce warehouses, online retailers increase their efficiency by using a mixed-shelves (or scattered storage) concept, where unit loads are purposefully broken down into single items, which are individually stored in multiple locations. Irrespective of the stock keeping units a customer jointly orders, this storage strategy increases the likelihood that somewhere in the warehouse the items of the requested stock keeping units will be in close vicinity, which may significantly reduce an order picker’s unproductive walking time. This paper optimizes picker routing through such mixed-shelves warehouses. Specifically, we introduce a generic exact algorithmic framework that covers a multitude of picking policies, independently of the underlying picking zone layout, and is suitable for real-time applications. This framework embeds a bidirectional layered graph algorithm that provides the best known performance for the simple picking problem with a single depot and no further attributes. We compare three different real-world e-commerce warehouse settings that differ slightly in their application of scattered storage and in their picking policies. Based on these, we derive additional layouts and settings that yield further managerial insights. Our results reveal that the right combination of drop-off points, dynamic batching, the utilization of picking carts, and the picking zone layout can greatly improve the picking performance. In particular, some combinations of policies yield efficiency increases of more than 30% compared with standard policies currently used in practice

    Superconducting Gravimeter Data from Walferdange - Level 1

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    The International Geodynamics and Earth Tide Service (IGETS) was established in 2015 by the International Association of Geodesy (IAG). IGETS continues the activities of the Global Geodynamics Project (GGP, 1997-2015) to provide support to geodetic and geophysical research activities using superconducting gravimeter (SG) data within the context of an international network. The Walferdange Underground Laboratory for Geodynamics (WULG) is located at the middle of a long labyrinth of galleries which originally have been established for the commercial extraction of gypsum. Exceptional temperature and humidity stability, the absence of water and human perturbations, distance from the ocean and easy access, were some of the motivations for initially choosing this site for instrumentation and Earth tide research. Instruments to measure the micro deformations produced by the tidal forces have been developed and tested in the Laboratory for more than 30 years. Ground deformations and earthquakes are or have been recorded continuously by means of spring gravimeters, vertical and horizontal pendulums, long base water tube tiltmeters, vertical and horizontal strain meters, short period and broad band seismometers. Meteorological parameters (temperature, humidity and atmospheric pressure), as well as radon gas emissions, are also continuously monitored in various locations within the mine. In 2000, the Minister of Research of the Grand-Duchy of Luxembourg decided to establish a new International Reference Station for Intercomparisons of Absolute Gravimeters (ISIAG). The instrumentation to support the project includes a superconducting gravimeter OSG-CT040, an absolute gravimeter FG5X-216, and other ancillary equipment necessary to support research. In January 2002, a first superconducting gravimeter was installed. The instrument was then stopped in March 2003 due to an abnormally large instrumental drift. In December 2003, it was replaced by a brand-new gravimeter with the same name and which continuously operates since that date. Absolute gravity measurements have been performed on a regular time base to calibrate the superconducting gravimeter and to estimate its instrumental drift. Since 2003, the WULG hosted three European Comparisons and one International Comparison of Absolute Gravimeters. It was the first international comparison outside the walls of the BIPM (Bureau International des Poids et Mesures) in Sèvres (France) where it had traditionally been organized for 30 years

    Factors associated with the decision to investigate child protective services referrals: a systematic review

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    Background: Limited resources for child protection create challenging decision situations for child protective services (CPS) workers at the point of intake. A body of research has examined the factors associated with worker decisions and processes using a variety of methodological approaches to gain knowledge on decision-making. However, few attempts have been made to systematically review this literature. Objective: As part of a larger project on decision-making at intake, this systematic review addressed the question of the factors associated with worker decisions to investigate alleged maltreatment referrals. Methods: Quantitative studies that examined factors associated with screening decisions in CPS practice settings were included in the review. Database and other search methods were used to identify research published in English over a 35-year period (1980-2015). Findings: Of 1,147 identified sources, 18 studies were selected for full data extraction. The studies were conducted in the U.S., Canada, and Sweden and varied in methodological quality. Most studies examined case factors with few studies examining other domains. Conclusions: To inform CPS policy and practice, additional research is needed to examine the relationships between decision-making factors and case outcomes. Greater attention needs to be given to the organizational and external factors that influence decision-making

    Die Entwicklung und Bedeutung des seriellen Betonformsteinsystems anhand der Unterlagen aus dem Nachlass des KĂĽnstlers Friedrich Kracht unter BerĂĽcksichtigung der Doppelautorenschaft mit Karl-Heinz-Adler

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    Die Arbeit befasst sich mit der Entwicklung und Bedeutung des 1973 zum Patent angemeldeten Seriellen Betonformsteinprogramms als wichtiges und bekanntes Element der sogenannten Ost- und Nachkriegsmoderne. Anhand der gestalterischen Entstehung dieses speziellen seriellen Systems wird auch die Differenz zu anderen Formsteinen deutlich gemacht. Der im Aufbau enthaltene künstlerische Schaffensprozess eröffnet so den Diskurs um die Grenze zwischen Dekor und Kunst, die sich in der DDR gemäß dem Gebot des Sozialistischen Realismus' von der hier vorgeschlagenen Position unterschied.:1. Einleitung 2. Forschungsstand 3. Formsteinelemente im Kontext der Architektur 4. Formsteinwände im Kontext der Produktionsgenossenschaft Bildender Künstler Kunst am Bau in Dresden 5. Die Zusammenarbeit Friedrich Krachts und Karl-Hienz Adlers 5.1 Von der Grafik und der Malerei 5.2 Bis zum Formstein 5.3 Karl-Heinz Adler im Gespräch 6. So funktioniert der serielle Formstein: Optik, Geometrie und Wandelbarkeit des seriellen Betonformsteinprogramms 7. Aufträge, Katalog und Muster, Arbeitsablauf 7.1 Ausblick auf die Rechtslage der Doppelautorenschaft und der Bewertung des Werkes 8. Missing Link: der Baustein zwischen anerkannter Grafik/Malerei und Baugebundener Kunst 9. Fazit 10. Anhang (Interviews, Quellen, Literatur, Internetquellen, Abbildungsnachweise) Selbstständigkeitserklärun

    Long-term safety, efficacy, and quality of life during adjunctive brivaracetam treatment in patients with uncontrolled epilepsy: An open-label follow-up trial.

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    Abstract Objectives The primary objective of this long-term follow-up (LTFU) trial was to evaluate the long-term safety and tolerability of brivaracetam (BRV). The secondary objective was to evaluate the maintenance of efficacy of BRV (including quality of life) over time. Methods This open-label, multicenter, flexible-dose trial (N01379 [NCT01339559]) was conducted in adults (≥16 years) with focal or generalized-onset seizures, who had participated in a placebo (PBO)-controlled trial of adjunctive BRV (N01258: NCT01405508 or N01358: NCT01261325). Results Seven hundred and sixty-six patients received BRV in this LTFU trial (753 had focal seizures and 13 had generalized-onset seizures). Kaplan–Meier-estimated retention was 71.9% at 12 months, and 53.7% at 36 months. Treatment-emergent adverse events (TEAEs) were reported by 643 (83.9%) patients, most commonly headache (104 [13.6%] patients) and dizziness (100 [13.1%] patients). Two hundred and fifty-seven (33.6%) patients had drug-related TEAEs, most commonly somnolence (49 [6.4%] patients) and dizziness (41 [5.4%] patients). Permanent discontinuation of BRV due to TEAEs occurred in 91 (11.9%) patients. Patients with focal seizures had a median percentage reduction in focal seizure frequency of 52.0% and 51.7% were 50% responders (sustained over time); 26.0% were seizurefree for 6 months, and 17.9% were seizurefree for 12 months. 42.4% of patients at 12 months and 46.8% at 24 months had clinically meaningful improvements in Patient Weighted Quality of Life in Epilepsy Questionnaire 31 total score. Conclusions In this select group of patients who entered the LTFU trial, BRV was generally safe and well tolerated. Results indicate the long-term efficacy of BRV in patients with focal seizures

    Hypoxia-inducible factor-1 (HIF-1) pathway activation by quercetin in human lens epithelial cells

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    Quercetin is a dietary bioflavonoid which has been shown to inhibit lens opacification in a number of models of cataract. The objectives of this study were to determine gene expression changes in human lens epithelial cells in response to quercetin and to investigate in detail the mechanisms underlying the responses. FHL-124 cells were treated with quercetin (10 µM) and changes in gene expression were measured by microarray. It was found that 65% of the genes with increased expression were regulated by the hypoxia-inducible factor-1 (HIF-1) pathway. Quercetin (10 and 30 µM) induced a time-dependent increase in HIF-1a protein levels. Quercetin (30 µM) was also responsible for a rapid and long-lasting translocation of HIF-1a from the cytoplasm to the nucleus. Activation of HIF-1 signaling by quercetin was confirmed by qRT–PCR which showed upregulation of the HIF-1 regulated genes EPO, VEGF, PGK1 and BNIP3. Analysis of medium taken from FHL-124 cells showed a sustained dose-dependent increase in VEGF secretion following quercetin treatment. The quercetin-induced increase and nuclear translocation of HIF-1a was reversed by addition of excess iron (100 µM). These results demonstrate that quercetin activates the HIF-1 signaling pathway in human lens epithelial cells

    Similar self-organizing scale-invariant properties characterize early cancer invasion and long range species spread

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    Occupancy of new habitats through dispersion is a central process in nature. In particular, long range dispersal is involved in the spread of species and epidemics, although it has not been previously related with cancer invasion, a process that involves spread to new tissues. We show that the early spread of cancer cells is similar to the species individuals spread and that both processes are represented by a common spatio-temporal signature, characterized by a particular fractal geometry of the boundaries of patches generated, and a power law-scaled, disrupted patch size distribution. We show that both properties are a direct result of long-distance dispersal, and that they reflect homologous ecological processes of population self-organization. Our results are significant for processes involving long-range dispersal like biological invasions, epidemics and cancer metastasis.Comment: 21 pages, 2 figure
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