Computer Simulation of Tooth Mobility using Varying Material Properties

Tooth mobility is the major cause of stress on a tooth implant or partial denture and often results in the damage of the device. For many prosthetic devices like dental bridges, a partial denture used for a person who is missing a tooth to give the appearance and function of a tooth, mobility can cause up to double the amount of stress in comparison to a fixed model. Creating a computer simulation of tooth mobility using Finite Element Analysis allows one to understand and predict this movement in order to improve future dental prosthetic devices. The main cause of tooth mobility within the mouth is the periodontal ligament (PDL). This ligament is a soft biological tissue that surrounds the roots of teeth. The tooth moves when a force like mastication, or chewing, causes the ligament to deform. This deformation is due to the small Young’s Modulus of the ligament. The Young’s Modulus determines the stiffness of a material. In the case of the PDL, the Young’s Modulus is sometimes noted to be 30,000 times smaller than that of dentin, this is the material that makes up the majority of the tooth, and of the alveolar bone, this is the bone in which the tooth lies. The deformation of the PDL is also due to the viscoelastic nature of the ligament. The major elastic component of the ligament is collagen, this material allows the PDL to stretch to a certain limit, and the major viscous component of the ligament is the interstitial fluid between the cells, this allows the material to have a fluid-like nature (4)

Creating Humans – Ethics of Scientific Progress: Frankenstein and Heart of a Dog

Technical progress has often led us to ethical considerations, including the situations when technical development can go too far. Literature has long taken the deepest interest in natural sciences, at some points with reference to recent or future inventions, sometimes by far extending the technical possibilities of their time. One of the most popular technical mind plays has been the creation of the artificial human, the so called homunculus - both in science and literature. This work looks at Mary Shelley's Frankenstein and Michail Bulgakov's Heart of a Dog in terms of how each of them, respectively, reflects ethical concerns connected to the process of making a man, questioning motivation and responsibility of the scientist, and consequences for both a creator and a creature. Two literary examples are both mystical and alchemical elements, as well as the inclusion of actual natural science practices. Clear ethical concerns are expressed in both examples, and at different levels. Scientist are individuals who are eager to make scientific progress, transcend their competences and therefore, have to reckon dramatic interventions in the life. The main failure is a lack of responsibility for the creature they create

Программный комплекс для синтеза и исследования систем автоматического управления астатическими объектами

В первом разделе описаны астатические объекты и их классификация, формы представления регуляторов и обзор методов расчета параметров их настройки. Второй раздел посвящен применению методов настройки регуляторов, разработанных для идеальных астатических объектов с запаздыванием, к идеальным астатическим объектам без запаздывания и реальным астатическим объектам первого и второго порядков. В третьем разделе представлены формулы для вычисления прямых показателей качества переходных процессов по возмущающему воздействию. Программный комплекс для синтеза и исследования систем автоматического управления астатическими объектами описан в четвертом разделе. В пятом и шестом разделах представлено обоснование экономической эффективности и социальной ответственности выпускной квалификационной работы.In the first section astatic objects, forms of representation of controllers and the review of methods of calculation of parameters of their control are described. The second section is devoted to application of methods of setup of controllers of ideal astatic objects with delay, to ideal astatic objects without delay and to real astatic objects of the first and second orders. Formulas for calculation of direct indicators of quality of transition processes on the revolting influence are presented in the third section. The software package for synthesis and a research of systems of automatic control of astatic objects is described in the fourth section. Justification of economic efficiency and social responsibility of final qualification work is presented in the fifth and sixth sections

Development and Performance Verification of the GANDALF High-Resolution Transient Recorder System

With present-day detectors in high energy physics one often faces fast analog pulses of a few nanoseconds length which cover large dynamic ranges. In many experiments both amplitude and timing information have to be measured with high accuracy. Additionally, the data rate per readout channel can reach several MHz, which leads to high demands on the separation of pile-up pulses. For an upgrade of the COMPASS experiment at CERN we have designed the GANDALF transient recorder with a resolution of 12bit@1GS/s and an analog bandwidth of 500\:MHz. Signals are digitized with high precision and processed by fast algorithms to extract pulse arrival times and amplitudes in real-time and to generate trigger signals for the experiment. With up to 16 analog channels, deep memories and a high data rate interface, this 6U-VME64x/VXS module is not only a dead-time free digitization unit but also has huge numerical capabilities provided by the implementation of a Virtex5-SXT FPGA. Fast algorithms implemented in the FPGA may be used to disentangle possible pile-up pulses and determine timing information from sampled pulse shapes with a time resolution better than 50 ps.Comment: 5 pages, 9 figure

Nocturnal nitrogen oxides at a rural mountain-site in south-western Germany

A new, two-channel instrument for simultaneous NO3 and N2O5 monitoring was used to make the first comprehensive set of nocturnal NOx measurements (NO, NO2, NO3 and N2O5) at the Taunus Observatory, a rural mountain site (Kleiner Feldberg) in South-western Germany. In May 2008, NO3 and N2O5 mixing ratios were well above the instrumental detection limit (a few ppt) on all nights of the campaign and were characterised by large variability. The concentrations of NO3, N2O5 and NO2 were consistent with the equilibrium constant, K2, defining the rates of formation and thermal dissociation of N2O5. A steady-state lifetime analysis is consistent with the loss of nocturnal NOx being dominated by the reaction of NO3 with volatile organic compounds in this forested region, with N2O5 uptake to aerosols of secondary importance. Analysis of a limited dataset obtained at high relative humidity indicated that the loss of N2O5 by reaction with water vapour is less efficient (>factor 3) than derived using laboratory kinetic data. The fraction of NOx present as NO3 and N2O5 reached ~20% on some nights, with night-time losses of NOx competing with daytime losses

The actual challenges of financial literacy

In our always-evolving world, financial literacy and inclusion are crucial in the development of sustainable welfare and a more transparent and fairer society. We cannot forget that the subprime mortgage crisis of 2008 that has continued across the world to this day has financial illiteracy as one of the most aggravating factors. The main challenge for many consumers worldwide is that the requirements of adequate financial literacy skills have been steadily increasing over time. Individuals have to take a wide range of financial decisions and unfortunately, they sometimes overlook or simply do not know the risk attached with the decisions they are making until it is too late. The main challenges for financial literacy at the micro-level, meso-level, and macro-level are over deference to the financial industry, lack of financial knowledge, overconfidence about financial knowledge, lack of government initiatives, frameworks and regulations, lack of life-cycle planning and interesting and fascinating ways to teach financial literacy skills

Independent Information of Nonspecific Biomarkers in Exhaled Breath Condensate

Background: Exhaled breath condensate (EBC) has been used for diagnosing and monitoring respiratory disorders. For clinical purposes the assessment of easy-to-obtain nonspecific markers seems particularly interesting. Objectives: As these measures are related to each other, our objective was to extract the independent information in global EBC markers across a range of respiratory disorders. Methods: EBC was collected from patients with asthma (n = 18), chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (n = 17), and cystic fibrosis (n = 46), as well as from lung transplant (LTX) recipients (n = 14) and healthy controls (n = 26). Samples were assessed for electrical conductivity, ammonia, pH, and nitrite/nitrate. pH was measured after both deaeration with argon and CO(2) standardization. Additionally, the fraction of exhaled nitric oxide (FE(NO)) was assessed. Factor analysis was applied to identify major factors concerning these measures. Results: Three independent factors were detected; the first comprised conductivity, ammonia, and pH, especially when standardized using CO(2), the second nitrite/nitrate, and the third FE(NO). Conductivity and ammonia were highly correlated (r = 0.968; p < 0.001). FE(NO) provided independent information mainly in asthma. The nonspecific EBC markers showed considerable overlap between patient groups and healthy subjects. However, conductivity, ammonia, pH standardized for CO(2) and nitrite/nitrate were increased in LTX recipients compared to healthy controls (p < 0.05 each). Conclusions: A panel of nonspecific easy-to-obtain exhaled breath markers could be reduced to 3 independent factors. The information content of conductivity, ammonia, and pH after CO(2) equilibration appeared to be similar, while FE(NO) was independent. The increased levels of these biomarkers in LTX might indicate a potential for their use in these patients. Copyright (C) 2010 S. Karger AG, Base