Simulation of UAV Systems

The study described in this paper deals with the issue of a design tool for the autopilot of an Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) and the selection of the airdata and inertial system sensors. This project was processed in cooperation with VTUL a PVO o.z. [1]. The feature that distinguishes the autopilot requirements of a UAV (Figs. 1, 7, 8) from the flight systems of conventional manned aircraft is the paradox of controlling a high bandwidth dynamical system using sensors that are in harmony with the low cost low weight objectives that UAV designs are often expected to achieve. The principal function of the autopilot is flight stability, which establishes the UAV as a stable airborne platform that can operate at a precisely defined height. The main sensor for providing this height information is a barometric altimeter. The solution to the UAV autopilot design was realised with simulations using the facilities of Matlab® and in particular Simulink®[2].

Somatostatin 2 receptors in the spinal cord tonically restrain thermogenic, cardiac and other sympathetic outflows

The anatomical and functional characterization of somatostatin (SST) and somatostatin receptors (SSTRs) within the spinal cord have been focused in the dorsal horn, specifically in relation to sensory afferent processing. However, SST is also present within the intermediolateral cell column (IML), which contains sympathetic preganglionic neurons (SPN). We investigated the distribution of SSTR2 within the thoracic spinal cord and show that SSTR2A and SSTR2B are expressed in the dorsal horn and on SPN and non-SPN in or near the IML. The effects of activating spinal SSTR and SSTR2 were sympathoinhibition, hypotension, bradycardia, as well as decreases in interscapular brown adipose tissue temperature and expired CO2, in keeping with the well-described inhibitory effects of activating SSTR receptors. These data indicate that spinal SST can decrease sympathetic, cardiovascular and thermogenic activities. Unexpectedly blockade of SSTR2 revealed that SST tonically mantains sympathetic, cardiovascular and thermogenic functions, as activity in all measured parameters increased. In addition, high doses of two antagonists evoked biphasic responses in sympathetic and cardiovascular outflows where the initial excitatory effects were followed by profound but transient falls in sympathetic nerve activity, heart rate and blood pressure. These latter effects, together with our findings that SSTR2A are expressed on GABAergic, presumed interneurons, are consistent with the idea that SST2R tonically influence a diffuse spinal GABAergic network that regulates the sympathetic cardiovascular outflow. As described here and elsewhere the source of tonically released spinal SST may be of intra- and/or supra-spinal origin

Assessing the effects of the first 2 years of industry-led badger culling in England on the incidence of bovine tuberculosis in cattle in 2013–2015

Culling badgers to control the transmission of bovine tuberculosis (TB) between this wildlife reservoir and cattle has been widely debated. Industry-led culling began in Somerset and Gloucestershire between August and November 2013 to reduce local badger populations. Industry-led culling is not designed to be a randomised and controlled trial of the impact of culling on cattle incidence. Nevertheless, it is important to monitor the effects of the culling and, taking the study limitations into account, perform a cautious evaluation of the impacts. A standardised method for selecting areas matched to culling areas in factors found to affect cattle TB risk has been developed to evaluate the impact of badger culling on cattle TB incidence. The association between cattle TB incidence and badger culling in the first two years has been assessed. Descriptive analyses without controlling for confounding showed no association between culling and TB incidence for Somerset, or for either of the buffer areas for the first two years since culling began. A weak association was observed in Gloucestershire for Year 1 only. Multivariable analysis adjusting for confounding factors showed that reductions in TB incidence were associated with culling in the first two years in both the Somerset and Gloucestershire intervention areas when compared to areas with no culling (IRR: 0.79, 95%CI: 0.72-0.87, p<0.001 and IRR: 0.42, 95%CI: 0.34-0.51, p<0.001 respectively). An increase in incidence was associated with culling in the 2 km buffer surrounding the Somerset intervention area (IRR: 1.38, 95%CI: 1.09-1.75, p=0.008), but not in Gloucestershire (IRR: 0.91, 95%CI: 0.77-1.07, p=0.243). As only two intervention areas with two years’ of data are available for analysis, and the biological cause-effect relationship behind the statistical associations is difficult to determine, it would be unwise to use these findings to develop generalisable inferences about the effectiveness of the policy at present

Biliary Strictures and Cholangiocarcinoma - Untangling a Diagnostic Conundrum

Cholangiocarcinoma is an uncommon and highly aggressive biliary tract malignancy with few manifestations until late disease stages. Diagnosis is currently achieved through a combination of clinical, biochemical, radiological and histological techniques. A number of reported cancer biomarkers have the potential to be incorporated into diagnostic pathways, but all lack sufficient sensitivity and specificity limiting their possible use in screening and early diagnosis. The limitations of standard serum markers such as CA19-9, CA125 and CEA have driven researchers to identify multiple novel biomarkers, yet their clinical translation has been slow with a general requirement for further validation in larger patient cohorts. We review recent advances in the diagnostic pathway for suspected CCA as well as emerging diagnostic biomarkers for early detection, with a particular focus on non-invasive approaches

SIG y análisis espacial de datos: perspectivas convergentes

En este artículo se identifican algunos de los desarrollos más importantes experimentados por los SIG y el análisis espacial de datos desde los inicios de los 50. Aunque tanto los SIG como el análisis espacial de datos comenzaron como dos áreas de investigación y aplicación más o menos separadas, han crecido unidos estrechamente a lo largo del tiempo. En el trabajo se mantiene que estas dos disciplinas se unen en el terreno de la Ciencia de la Información Geográfica, proporcionando cada una de ellas apoyo o añadiendo valor a la otra. El artículo comienza proporcionando una visión crítica retrospectiva de los desarrollos que han tenido lugar en los últimos cincuenta años. A continuación, se reflexiona acerca de los desafíos actuales y se especula sobre el futuro. Por último se comenta el potencial de convergencia del desarrollo de los SIG y del análisis espacial de datos bajo la rubrica de la Ciencia de la Información Geográfica (o SIGciencia)

Occurrence and characterization of Salmonella isolated from table egg layer farming environments in Western Australia and insights into biosecurity and egg handling practices

The aim of this study was to investigate the occurrence and distribution of Salmonella in commercial layer farming environments of 26 flocks belonging to seven egg businesses (free-range and barn-laid) in Western Australia (WA). Between November 2017 and June 2018, a total of 265 environmental samples of dust, feed, water, pooled feces, and boot swabs were tested for detection of Salmonella according to standard culture-based methods. Isolates were assayed for serovar and subtyped by multilocus sequence typing (MLST). Salmonella spp. were recovered from 35% (93/265) of all tested samples. Dust (53.8%, 28/52) and pooled fecal (54.5%, 18/33) samples provided the highest Salmonella recovery rates. Nine different Salmonella serovars were characterized across the positive (n = 93) environmental samples, of which S. Typhimurium (60/93, 64.5%) and S. Infantis (21/93, 22.5%) were the most prevalent. MLST revealed that all S. Typhimurium isolates were of sequence type ST-19. Microbiological screening of Salmonella was not routinely practiced in any of the surveyed egg businesses. Some of the egg businesses exhibited variable levels of compliance with basic biosecurity measures as well as high-risk egg handling practices. Egg businesses in WA should be encouraged to adopt a voluntary program of environmental sampling and verification testing for Salmonella. Such voluntary programs will aid in supporting solutions for the management of this pathogen in the human food chain

Discovery and integration of Web 2.0 content into geospatial information infrastructures: a use case in wild fire monitoring

Efficient environment monitoring has become a major concern for society to guarantee sustainable development. For instance, forest fire detection and analysis is important to provide early warning systems and identify impact. In this environmental context, availability of up-to-date information is very important for reducing damages caused. Environmental applications are deployed on top of GeospatialInformation Infrastructures (GIIs) to manage information pertaining to our environment. Suchinfrastructures are traditionally top-down infrastructures that do not consider user participation. This provokes a bottleneck in content publication and therefore a lack of content availability. On the contrary mainstream IT systems and in particular the emerging Web 2.0 Services allow active user participation that is becoming a massive source of dynamic geospatial resources. In this paper, we present a webservice, that implements a standard interface, offers a unique entry point for spatial data discovery, both in GII services and web 2.0 services. We introduce a prototype as proof of concept in a forest fire scenario, where we illustrate how to leverage scientific data and web 2.0 conten

Об устойчивости движения математического маятника, взаимодействующего со струной

В линейной и нелинейной постановках решена задача об устойчивости стационарных движений однозвенного маятника в гибридной модели механической системы, состоящей из горизонтально закрепленной струны, нагруженной колеблющейся сосредоточенной массой.У лінійній і нелінійній постановках розв'язано задачу про стійкість стаціонарних рухів одноланкового маятника в гібридній моделі механічної системи, яка складається з горизонтально розміщеної струни, навантаженої коливною зосередженою масою.The problem of stability of the stationary motions of a single-mass pendulum in the hybrid model of one mechanical system is solved in the linear and nonlinear statements. The mechanical system consists of a string which is horizontally disposed and loaded by an oscillating localized mass