Cyber Collaboratory-based Sustainable Design Education: A Pedagogical Framework

Educators from across the educational spectrum are faced with challenges in delivering curricula that address sustainability issues. This article introduces a cyber-based interactive e-learning platform, entitled the Sustainable Product Development Collaboratory, which is focused on addressing this need. This collaboratory aims to educate a wide spectrum of learners in the concepts of sustainable design and manufacturing by demonstrating the effects of product design on supply chain costs and environmental impacts. In this paper, we discuss the overall conceptual framework of this collaboratory along with pedagogical and instructional methodologies related to collaboratory-based sustainable design education. Finally, a sample learning module is presented along with methods for assessment of student learning and experiences with the collaboratory

Identification of molecular markers associated with fruit traits in olive and assessment of olive core collection with AFLP markers and fruit traits

The purpose of this study was to characterize olive core collection with amplified fragment length polymorphism (AFLP) markers and fruit traits and to determine AFLP markers significantly associated with these fruit characters in olive. A total of 168 polymorphic AFLP markers generated by five primer combinations and nine fruit traits were used to characterize relationships between 18 olive cultivars. Although all olive cultivars were discriminated from each other by either AFLP markers (<0.75 similarity level) or fruit traits, clustering based on the AFLP markers and fruit traits was not significantly correlated (r = 0.13). Partial clustering of olive cultivars by AFLP markers according to their geographical origin was observed. Associations of AFLP markers with fruits were determined using a multiple-regression analysis with stepwise addition of AFLP markers. Significant associations between eight AFLP markers and fruit traits were identified. While five AFLP markers demonstrated significant negative correlation with fruit and stone weight, width and length and total polyphenols (P < 0.05), three AFLP markers displayed significant positive correlation with a-tocopherol and.-tocopherol (P < 0.01). This is the first report on the association of molecular markers with fruit traits in olive. Molecular markers associated with morphological and agronomic traits could be utilized for the breeding of olive cultivars. However, the association power of these markers needs to be confirmed in larger populations, and highly correlated markers should then be converted to PCR-based DNA markers such as sequence-characterized amplified region markers for better utilization.Tarım ve Orman Bakanlığ

Cardiac Safety Implications of hNav1.5 Blockade and a Framework for Pre-Clinical Evaluation

The human cardiac sodium channel (hNav1.5, encoded by the SCN5A gene) is critical for action potential generation and propagation in the heart. Drug-induced sodium channel inhibition decreases the rate of cardiomyocyte depolarization and consequently conduction velocity and can have serious implications for cardiac safety. Genetic mutations in hNav1.5 have also been linked to a number of cardiac diseases. Therefore, off-target hNav1.5 inhibition may be considered a risk marker for a drug candidate. Given the potential safety implications for patients and the costs of late stage drug development, detection, and mitigation of hNav1.5 liabilities early in drug discovery and development becomes important. In this review, we describe a pre-clinical strategy to identify hNav1.5 liabilities that incorporates in vitro, in vivo, and in silico techniques and the application of this information in the integrated risk assessment at different stages of drug discovery and development

Developing a TRIZ-based Design for Flexibility Tool for Manufacturing Facilities

As manufacturers evaluate assets and long-term production plans, they struggle with how best to meet complex building requirements that maximize building flexibility and minimize costs. Research shows that manufacturers highly prioritize facility flexibility. However, infusing flexibility into facility design can be complex and achieving it can be costly. These issues could be mitigated with a dedicated tool for addressing flexibility in facility design. TRIZ (Theory of Inventive Problem Solving) is a problem-solving method that exploits information contained in millions of patents to identify solution genres and standard contradictions to drive inventive design principles. This userfriendly, decision support tool can efficiently reduce the complexity of incorporating flexibility into manufacturing facility design. Using this tool as a platform and incorporating information from fifteen case studies, constructionspecific terms were mapped to TRIZ parameters and principles to create a construction industry specific TRIZ contradiction matrix. This paper describes basic TRIZ theory and previous uses in the construction industry. It then discusses industry input and case studies that helped make it construction-specific. Finally, it addresses the modified TRIZ tool’s potential benefits to the construction industry regarding flexibility considerations

Evaluating functional capacity, and mortality effects in the presence of atrial electromechanical conduction delay in patients with systolic heart failure

Objective: Atrial functions are relatively suppressed in heart failure (HF). We aimed to investigate the associations of intra- and inter-atrial electromechanical conduction delay (EMCD) with functional class and mortality over a 12-month follow-up period. Methods: The prospective study included 65 patients with systolic HF and 65 healthy subjects with normal sinus rhythm. Left ventricular (LV) systolic functions and left atrial (LA) dimensions and volumes were evaluated by transthoracic echocardiography. Tissue Doppler imaging (TDI) signals at the lateral border of the mitral annulus (lateral PA’), septal mitral annulus (septal PA’), and tricuspid annulus (tricuspid PA’) were measured. Intra- and inter-atrial EMCD were calculated. Results: Mitral inflow velocities were studied using pulsed-wave Doppler after placing the sample volume at the leaflets’ tips. The peak early (E wave) and late (A wave) velocities were measured. The septal annular E/E’ ratio was relatively higher and lateral, septal, and right ventricular S, E’, and A’ waves were significantly lower in the HF group than in the control group (12.49±6.03 - 7.16±1.75, pE/E’ <0.0001). Intra-atrial EMCD was detected as 117.5 ms and inter-atrial EMCD as 127.5 ms in patients with prolonged atrial EMCD. A significant increase was found in prolonged intra- and inter-atrial EMCD according to functional capacity increase (p=0.012 and p=0.031, respectively). The incidence of mortality was significantly higher in patients with prolonged atrial EMCD (p=0.025), and 5 patients in the HF group died during the study over the 12-month follow-up period. Conclusions: In this study, we found a relationship between prolonged atrial conduction time and increased functional class and mortality in patients with systolic HF. © 2016 by Turkish Society of Cardiology

Critical Binder cumulant and universality: Fortuin-Kasteleyn clusters and order-parameter fluctuations

We investigate the dependence of the critical Binder cumulant of the magnetization and the largest Fortuin-Kasteleyn cluster on the boundary conditions and aspect ratio of the underlying square Ising lattices. By means of the Swendsen-Wang algorithm, we generate numerical data for large system sizes and we perform a detailed finite-size scaling analysis for several values of the aspect ratio $r$, for both periodic and free boundary conditions. We estimate the universal probability density functions of the largest Fortuin-Kasteleyn cluster and we compare it to those of the magnetization at criticality. It is shown that these probability density functions follow similar scaling laws, and it is found that the values of the critical Binder cumulant of the largest Fortuin-Kasteleyn cluster are upper bounds to the values of the respective order-parameter's cumulant, with a splitting behavior for large values of the aspect ratio. We also investigate the dependence of the amplitudes of the magnetization and the largest Fortuin-Kasteleyn cluster on the aspect ratio and boundary conditions. We find that the associated exponents, describing the aspect ratio dependencies, are different for the magnetization and the largest Fortuin-Kasteleyn cluster, but in each case are independent of boundary conditions.Comment: 8 pages, 8 figures, 2 tables, version as published in Phys Rev