Initiating and designing an emerging multi-platform ecosystem for the circular economy in the built environment: An empirical case study

With the increasing importance of platform ecosystems for value creation and capture in the emerging economies, the platform ecosystems have also proliferated across the circular economy in the built environment. Platform ecosystems are a useful medium that connects and enables seemingly geographically dispersed and diverse businesses to exchange products and services. Initiating and designing a new platform ecosystem for the circular economy in the built environment is challenging. Thus, our case study explores the challenges of initiating and designing an emerging platform ecosystem for the recirculation of the construction waste materials and industrial production side streams across the built environment. This study presents the challenges of an initiative by the several platform owners that combined their capabilities and resources in one efficient network to support circular economy growth in the built environment. Specifically, we offer insights into how several platform owners initiative and design multi-platform ecosystems. A specific challenge identified in this study is the design of the multi-platform ecosystem for equal value creation and capture by the platform owners. This study further draws recommendations for the policymakers while contributing to the literature on the platformization for the circular economy in the built environment

Particle filter-based estimation of instantaneous frequency for the diagnosis of electrical asymmetries in induction machines

"© 2014 IEEE. Personal use of this material is permitted. Permission from IEEE must be obtained for all other uses, in any current or future media, including reprinting/republishing this material for advertising or promotional purposes, creating new collective works, for resale or redistribution to servers or lists, or reuse of any copyrighted component of this work in other works.” Upon publication, authors are asked to include either a link to the abstract of the published article in IEEE Xplore®, or the article’s Digital Object Identifier (DOI).Fault diagnosis of induction machines operating under variable load conditions is still an unsolved matter. Under those regimes, the application of conventional diagnostic techniques is not suitable, since they are adapted to the analysis of stationary quantities. In this context, modern transient-based methodologies become very appropriate. This paper improves a technique, based on the application of Wigner Ville distribution as time frequency decomposition tool, using a particle filtering method as feature extraction procedure, to diagnose and quantify electrical asymmetries in induction machines, such as wound- rotor induction generators used in wind farms. The combination of both tools allows tracking several variable frequency harmon- ics simultaneously and computing their energy with high accu- racy, yielding magnitudes and values similar to those obtained by the application of the fast Fourier transform in stationary operation. The experimental results show the validity of the approach for rapid speed variations, independently of any speed sensor.Climente Alarcon, V.; Antonino Daviu, JA.; Haavisto, A.; Arkkio, A. (2014). Particle Filter-Based Estimation of Instantaneous Frequency for the Diagnosis of Electrical Asymmetries in Induction Machines. IEEE Transactions on Instrumentation and Measurement. 63(10):2454-2463. doi:10.1109/TIM.2014.231011324542463631

Syysrypsin talvituhosienien torjuntakokeita käsittelemällä kasvustot fungisiideilla

Talvehtimiskaudella 1955—56, jolloin esiintyi runsaasti talvituhosienten (Typhula sp. ja Sclerotinia sclerotiorum) vaurioita, saatiin kasvustojen käsittelyllä syystalvella PCNB-valmisteilla useimmissa kokeissa (yhteensä 21 koetta) siemensadon lisäyksiä käytettäessä 20 %:sta PCNB- (pentakloorinitrobentseeni-) valmistetta 25 tai 50 kg/halle. Kolmessa kokeessa oli siemensadon lisäys yli 100 % (1060—550 kg/ha), viidessä 100 % — yli 50 % (1350—370 kg/ha), kahdeksassa 50% — yli 20 % (430—220 kg/ha) ja viidessä alle 20 % (230—0 kg/ha). Lukuisissa v. 1956—57 etelä-osissa maata suoritetuissa vastaavissa kokeissa ei esiintynyt talvituhosieniä; silloin olivat abioottiset tekijät syynä syysrypsin huonoon talvehtimiseen. V. 1957—58 suoritetuissa kokeissa ei esiintynyt paljoa talvituhosienivaurioita. Yhdessä kokeessa 100 kg/ha 20 %:sta PCNB-valmistetta marraskuussa annettuna tehosi talvituhosieniin samoin kuin 8.5 kg halle PMA-valmistetta (fenyylimerkuriasetaattia 425 g/halle) annettuna loka- tai marraskuussa. Myöhäisempi, etelä-Suomessa marraskuussa tapahtuva kasvustojen käsittely PCNB:lla antoi varmemman torjuntatuloksen kuin aikaisempi, lokakuussa suoritettu

Diagnosis of Induction Motors Under Varying Speed Operation by Principal Slot Harmonic Tracking

© 1972-2012 IEEE. A detailed study on the energy content of a principal slot harmonic (PSH) in an induction motor operating at variable slip is carried out. The machine is tested under different faulty conditions, namely, broken rotor bar, mixed eccentricity, and interturn short circuit. The use of a combined time-frequency analysis and particle filtering feature extraction procedure allows tracking the evolution of a PSH under different load profiles and integrating its energy. The proposed fault indicator provides values that are equivalent with the traditional one for stationary operation even in the case of pulsating load. The results show that the energy in the PSH reflects the overall state of the machine under these conditions. Furthermore, procedures to discern the different faults in real applications are proposed

Nurses' required end-of-life care competence in health centres inpatient ward - a qualitative descriptive study

Background Studies of nurses' required competence in EOL care in health centres are rare. It is important to produce information about experienced nurses' perceptions of the competence they consider important in their practical work.Aim The aim of this study was to describe nurses' required competence in EOL care in health centre inpatient wards as experienced by nurses.Method A descriptive qualitative study using four semi-structured group interviews (20 nurses) and inductive descriptive content analysis.Results Five categories describing nurses' required competence in EOL care in a health centre inpatient ward were identified: (1) ethics and courage in action, (2) support for the patient, (3) support for the family, (4) care planning and (5) physical care. Factors promoting nurses' competence in EOL care comprised two categories: (1) professional development in EOL care and (2) an organisation that supports EOL care.Conclusions End-of-life care in health centre inpatient wards requires wide and complex competence from nurses. Nurses' experiences of required competence are associated with holistic care of the patient, encountering the family and multiprofessional cooperation. Nurses' competence in EOL care could be enhanced with postgraduate education, and educational planning should be given more attention in the future

Local treatment of pressure ulcers in long-term care: a correlational cross-sectional study

Objective:To analyse the treatment of pressure ulcers (PU) in long-term care.Method:In this correlational cross-sectional study, data was collected between November 2015 and January 2016 from older people with PUs in private and public long-term care facilities in Finland. Data collection was conducted by trained nurses using the Pressure Ulcer Patient Instrument (PUP-Ins). Outcomes measured were: prevalence and localisation of PU, local PU treatment, frequency (how often/week/day) and duration (minutes/week or day) of PU treatment.Results:In total, 112 patients with 158 PUs were identified (a prevalence rate of 5%). PUs were located most often on the heel (38%), hip (13%), buttocks (10%) and lateral malleolus (9.5%). The most frequently used PU treatment was skin protecting agents and local wound care products. The most typical treatment in category I, II and III PUs were foam dressings. In category III PUs, ribbon gauze dressings were also used. The most typical products for category IV PUs were complex dressings. Category I PUs received more treatment per day or week than other categories of PUs.Conclusion:PU treatment is inconsistent and often conducted with varying methods and products. Holistic patient care must be the focus. Nurses in long-term care settings might benefit from in-depth in-service education focusing on the treatment of PUs. More research is needed about nurses' competence in PU treatment.</p

Natural history and biomarkers of retinal dystrophy caused by the biallelic TULP1 variant c.148delG

Purpose To report clinical features and potential disease markers of inherited retinal dystrophy (IRD) caused by the biallelic c.148delG variant in the tubby-like protein 1 (TULP1) gene. Methods A retrospective observational study of 16 IRD patients carrying a homozygous pathogenic TULP1 c.148delG variant. Clinical data including fundus spectral-domain optical coherence tomography (SD-OCT) were assessed. A meta-analysis of visual acuity of previously reported other pathogenic TULP1 variants was performed for reference. Results The biallelic TULP1 variant c.148delG was associated with infantile and early childhood onset IRD. Retinal ophthalmoscopy was primarily normal converting to peripheral pigmentary retinopathy and maculopathy characterized by progressive extra-foveal loss of the ellipsoid zone (EZ), the outer plexiform layer (OPL), and the outer nuclear layer (ONL) bands in the SD-OCT images. The horizontal width of the foveal EZ showed significant regression with the best-corrected visual acuity (BCVA) of the eye (p < 0.0001, R-2 = 0.541, F = 26.0), the age of the patient (p < 0.0001, R-2 = 0.433, F = 16.8), and mild correlation with the foveal OPL-ONL thickness (p = 0.014, R-2 = 0.245, F = 7.2). Modelling of the BCVA data suggested a mean annual loss of logMAR 0.027. The level of visual loss was similar to that previously reported in patients carrying other truncating TULP1 variants. Conclusions This study describes the progression of TULP1 IRD suggesting a potential time window for therapeutic interventions. The width of the foveal EZ and the thickness of the foveal OPL-ONL layers could serve as biomarkers of the disease stage.Peer reviewe

Development of otology specific outcome measure : Ear Outcome Survey-16 (EOS-16)

Purpose: An important outcome measure of patient care is the impact on the patient's health-related quality of life (HRQoL). Current ear-specific HRQoL instruments are designed for one diagnosis and emphasize different subdivisions such as symptoms, hearing problems, psychosocial impact, and the need for care. The optimal length of the recall period has not been studied. For these reasons, a new survey is needed that would cover most chronic ear diseases. Methods: A preliminary 24-item survey (EOS-24) was created. Untreated adult patients (included n = 186) with one of seven different chronic otologic conditions from all university hospitals in Finland were recruited to respond to EOS-24 and the 15D general HRQoL instrument. The recruiting otologists evaluated the severity of the disease and the disability caused by it. A control group was recruited. Based on the patients' responses in different diagnosis groups, the items were reduced according to pre-defined criteria. The resulting survey was validated using a thorough statistical analysis. Results: The relevance and necessity of the original 24 items were thoroughly investigated, leading to the exclusion of 8 items and the modification of 1. The remaining 16 items were well-balanced between subdivisions and were useful in all seven diagnosis groups, thus constituting the final instrument, EOS-16. The most suitable recall period was three months. Conclusions: EOS-16 has been created according to the HRQoL survey guidelines with a versatile nationwide patient population. The survey has been validated and can be used for a wide range of chronic ear diseases as a HRQoL instrument. (C) 2021 PLA General Hospital Department of Otolaryngology Head and Neck Surgery. Production and hosting by Elsevier (Singapore) Pte Ltd.Peer reviewe

Spermatogenesis and sertoli cell activity in mice lacking Sertoli cell receptors for follicle stimulating hormone and androgen

Spermatogenesis in the adult male depends on the action of FSH and androgen. Ablation of either hormone has deleterious effects on Sertoli cell function and the progression of germ cells through spermatogenesis. In this study we generated mice lacking both FSH receptors (FSHRKO) and androgen receptors on the Sertoli cell (SCARKO) to examine how FSH and androgen combine to regulate Sertoli cell function and spermatogenesis. Sertoli cell number in FSHRKO-SCARKO mice was reduced by about 50% but was not significantly different from FSHRKO mice. In contrast, total germ cell number in FSHRKO-SCARKO mice was reduced to 2% of control mice (and 20% of SCARKO mice) due to a failure to progress beyond early meiosis. Measurement of Sertoli cell-specific transcript levels showed that about a third were independent of hormonal action on the Sertoli cell, whereas others were predominantly androgen dependent or showed redundant control by FSH and androgen. Results show that FSH and androgen act through redundant, additive, and synergistic regulation of spermatogenesis and Sertoli cell activity. In addition, the Sertoli cell retains a significant capacity for activity, which is independent of direct hormonal regulation

Detecting parent of origin and dominant QTL in a two-generation commercial poultry pedigree using variance component methodology

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Introduction</p> <p>Variance component QTL methodology was used to analyse three candidate regions on chicken chromosomes 1, 4 and 5 for dominant and parent-of-origin QTL effects. Data were available for bodyweight and conformation score measured at 40 days from a two-generation commercial broiler dam line. One hundred dams were nested in 46 sires with phenotypes and genotypes on 2708 offspring. Linear models were constructed to simultaneously estimate fixed, polygenic and QTL effects. Different genetic models were compared using likelihood ratio test statistics derived from the comparison of full with reduced or null models. Empirical thresholds were derived by permutation analysis.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Dominant QTL were found for bodyweight on chicken chromosome 4 and for bodyweight and conformation score on chicken chromosome 5. Suggestive evidence for a maternally expressed QTL for bodyweight and conformation score was found on chromosome 1 in a region corresponding to orthologous imprinted regions in the human and mouse.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>Initial results suggest that variance component analysis can be applied within commercial populations for the direct detection of segregating dominant and parent of origin effects.</p