Comparison and Evaluation of Displacement-based Methods and Modeling Assumptions for Design of Ordinary Bridges in High Seismic Regions Using Various Computer Software

The main objective of this research is to evaluate the effectiveness of three different displacement-based methods for seismic design of ordinary standard bridges. Two bridges previously designed by the Tennessee Department of Transportation (TDOT) engineersfollowing the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO) Guide Specifications for LRFD Seismic Bridge Design are selected and investigated in this study. Two different support conditions are considered, one employing seat-type abutments with rigid bent foundations; and the second employing stub wallabutment with flexible bent foundations (Nonlinear Spring Support Configuration). In addition to the AASHTO Specifications, the analysis methods include the capacity-demand-diagram method, as an inelastic demand Capacity Demand Method (CSM), andFederal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) 440 Procedure C as an equivalent linearization CSM. Pushover analysis methods are used to construct the capacity diagram of the system. Furthermore, the usability of the three most widely used software programs(SAP2000, ADINA, and OpenSees) for performing the displacement-based seismic analysis is studied.This research will provide TDOT engineers with the necessary information on which procedure is the best approach to use for design of highway bridges. Also, it provides information on how well previously designed bridges response when analyzed with the new displacement-based procedures. And finally, it will provide the TDOT engineers with information on capabilities and limitations of various software packages

The effect of video games on teenagers’ behavior and performance: A cross-sectional study in Tehran

Background: The novelty of the present study was to interpret the relation of the videogame usage in teenagers’ behaviors and their performance in schools and distinctive environments.Methods: A total of 508 male and female teenage students were randomly selected from secondary schools of Tehran, the Capital of Iran. The designed questionnaire was completed by student’s parents at the end of school year. School performance and students’ behavior and pattern of using videogames were asked. Descriptive statistics, Contingency coefficient and chi-squared tests were used for data analysis.Results: According to the results, almost all the teenagers were interested in video games and 76.8% of students played video games once in a while. Female students whose mothers were older used video games more often than teenagers whose mothers were younger. Also, male students, whose mothers were housewives and had handheld devices in their rooms, were observed to spend more time playing games. The male students who spent more time playing video games showed more aggression than the others. In addition, female students who played video games quite often, showed abnormal behavior and strange mental status. Both genders showed high percentage of shouting and overeating, when they spent more time playing video games. Conclusion: Playing videogames has a significant effect on teenagers’ behaviors but not on their school performance. Social determinants of health also have significant effect on playing videogames.Keywords: Adolescent; Educational Status; Students; Video Game

Classification of Heart Sounds Using Chaogram Transform and Deep Convolutional Neural Network Transfer Learning

Heart sounds convey important information regarding potential heart diseases. Currently, heart sound classification attracts many researchers from the fields of telemedicine, digital signal processing, and machine learning—among others—mainly to identify cardiac pathology as quickly as possible. This article proposes chaogram as a new transform to convert heart sound signals to colour images. In the proposed approach, the output image is, therefore, the projection of the reconstructed phase space representation of the phonocardiogram (PCG) signal on three coordinate planes. This has two major benefits: (1) it makes possible to apply deep convolutional neural networks to heart sounds and (2) it is also possible to employ a transfer learning scheme by converting a heart sound signal to an image. The performance of the proposed approach was verified on the PhysioNet dataset. Due to the imbalanced data on this dataset, it is common to assess the results quality using the average of sensitivity and specificity, which is known as score, instead of accuracy. In this study, the best results were achieved using the [Formula: see text] model, which achieved a score of 88.06%

Comparison of nonlinear static procedures and modeling assumptions for the seismic design of ordinary bridges

The three most common nonlinear displacement-based methods were applied in the seismic design of two bridges in western Tennessee, and their results in terms of maximum seismic displacement demand and displacement ductility were compared. In addition, two different support-modeling configurations were evaluated. The results indicate that use of the simplified LRFD procedure results in a displacement demand higher than that of the other procedures. The support configuration with simplified seat-type abutments with rigid bent foundations provides results not significantly different than those achieved from the more detailed configuration with stub-wall abutment with flexible bent foundations, but it required fewer modeling efforts

Tectal plate cyst-associated hydrocephalus in an adult: Case report of a rare clinical entity

Obstructive hydrocephalus in adults can result from various etiologies, including rare cystic lesions such as tectal plate cysts. To depict a unique case of a tectal plate cyst causing hydrocephalus in an adult accompanied by persistent headaches, visual disturbances, and balance problems. In a clinical context, a 43-year-old female patient presented with a 2-week history of persistent headaches, accompanied by symptoms of dizziness, visual disturbances, and impaired balance. These headaches had exhibited a daily aggravation pattern over a year and were associated with concurrent manifestations of nausea, vomiting, and diplopia. Subsequent neuroimaging through a brain computed tomography (CT) scan disclosed the presence of hydrocephalus. Consultation with a neurologist and brain magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) yielded a diagnosis implicating a tectal plate cyst as the causative agent behind the obstructive hydrocephalus. The patient subsequently underwent surgical excision of the cyst. A follow-up assessment postoperation unveiled a marked improvement in the patient's clinical condition, characterized by the resolution of visual and gait impairments, as well as a notable reduction in the frequency and severity of headaches. This case highlights the importance of considering tectal plate cysts as an uncommon cause of hydrocephalus in the differential diagnosis of patients with persistent headaches and neurological symptoms. Early diagnosis and treatment with surgical removal of the cyst can significantly improve the patient's symptoms and prevent further complications such as hydrocephalus

The effects of CoenzymeQ10 on gentamicin induced nephrotoxicity

Abstract Background: Gentamicin (GM) is one the aminoglycoside antibiotics which isroutinelyused to treatinfections gram-negative, either alone or insynergistic withbeta-lactamantibioticsused. However, frequent useleads toserious side effectssuch asrenal toxicity, ototoxicity. Coenzyme Q10 has antioxidant, anti-inflammatory and vasodilatory properties. According to these properties of Coenzyme Q10 and tissue damage mechanism in GM induced-nephrotoxicity, in this study, the effects of these two substances for the co-treatment and post -treatment on renal injury induced by gentamicin were investigated. Materials and Methods: Experiments has been done on 77 male Wistar rats in weight range of 200 to 250 g. Animals were divided randomly into 5 groups of 7 numbers. Renal nephrotoxicity induced by i.p injection of gentamicin (100mg/kg) Therapeutic effect of coenzyme Q10 (10mg/kg)in the two protocols co-treatment and post-treatmentwas investigated.The animals after the last injectionon the ninth day of co-treatment andthe seventeenth day of post-treatmentwere placed into individual metabolic cages so as to collection urine and urine volume was measured gravimetrically. Afteranesthesia, systolic blood pressure and renal blood flow was measured. Then blood sampling was done. Amount of urea, creatinin, sodium, potassium and osmolarity was measured in plasma and urine samples. Left kidney, for doing histological experiments in 10% buffered formaldehyde and right kidney for biochemical experiments in fluid nitrogen was preserved. Results: Co-treatment with Coenzyme Q10 significantly decreased fractional excretion of sodium (6.37±1.33 %; p<0.001) and decreased fractional excretion of potassium(219.14±83.8 %; p<0.001) MDA levels (2.13 ±0.24µmol/gkw; p<0.001), and significantly increased renal blood flow (6.38 ±0.1ml/min: p<0.01) and FRAP levels (24.44±0.42mmol/gkw; p<0.001). Post-treatment with coenzyme Q10 significantly decreased fractional excretion of sodium (3.58 ±0.57 %; p<0.001), potassium (111.77±29.4%; p<0.001) and MDA levels (3.08 ±0.12µmol/gkw; p<0.001) and significantly increased renal blood flow (6.74±0.15ml/min: p<0.001) and FRAP levels (24.34±0.75mmol/gkw; p<0.001) that is reduced by gentamicin. Conclusion: According to the results, this study showed thatpost- treatment with coenzyme Q10more protective effect on the kidney tissue andAnda greater increase inantioxidant defensecreated

Pediatric Autoimmune Hepatitis in a Patient Who Presented With Erythema Nodosum: A Case Report

Un commentaire apporté à l'un des billets antérieurs posait une question importante sur laquelle (après une pause estivale, nécessaire, profitable et pourtant... trop courte), il me semble nécessaire de revenir : y avait-t-il une bibliographie récente et exhaustive sur le parlement de Paris ? Excellente et stimulante question. 1 Une bibliographie récente : oui. À l'occasion de la publication de l'ouvrage collectif issu des travaux de notre laboratoire (IHD-C.E.H.J.) : Le Parlement en exil ou ..

Effect of Aloe Vera and Pantoprazole on Gastroesophageal Reflux Symptoms in Mustard Gas Victims: A Randomized Controlled Trial

Background: Gastro-esophageal reflux disease (GERD) is a common complaint of sulphur mustard (SM)-exposed subjects. Routine treatments such as proton-pump inhibitors (PPIs), H2-blockers and anti-acids cannot control GERD symptoms completely. Aloe vera is a medicinal plant that has been shown to reduce gastric acid secretion. The efficacy of pantoprazole with or without A. Vera juice in alleviating GERD symptoms was investigated in SM-exposed subjects. Methods: Male patients with a history of SM exposure and diagnosed GERD were enrolled and assigned to treatment with pantoprazole (40 mg before breakfast) plus A. vera syrup (5 mL bid before breakfast and at bedtime) (n=44), or pantoprazole alone (40 mg before breakfast) (n=41) for a period of 6 weeks. GERD symptoms were assessed at baseline and weeks 3 and 6 of study using the Reflux Symptom Index (RSI) questionnaire. Results: Seventy-five patients (n=38 and 37 in the A. vera + pantoprazloe and pantoprazole group, respectively) completed the study. No significant difference was found between the groups regarding demographic characteristics and baseline RSI score (p>0.05). A decreasing trend in RSI score was observed in both groups by the 3rd and 6th week of study (p<0.001). There was a greater reduction of RSI score in the A. vera + pantoprazloe versus pantoprazole group (p<0.001). There was no report of any side effects from A. vera during the course of trial. Conclusion: Findings of the present study suggested a significant improvement in the severity of GERD symptoms in SM-exposed subjects following addition of A. Vera to pantoprazole