Chronic consumer states influencing compulsive consumption

Consumer behaviour analysis represents an important field of study in marketing. Particularly strategy development for marketing and communications will be more focused and effective when marketers have an understanding of the motivations, behaviour and psychology of consumers. While materialism has been found to be one of the important elements in consumer behaviour, compulsive consumption represents another aspect that has recently attracted more attention. This is because of the growing prevalence of dysfunctional buying that has raised concern in consumer societies. Present studies and analyses on origins and motivations of compulsive buying have mainly focused on either individual factors or groups of related factors and hence a need for a holistic view exists. This paper provides a comprehensive perspective on compulsive consumption and establishes relevant propositions keeping the family life cycle stages as a reference for the incidence of chronic consumer states and their influence on compulsive consumption. Keywords—Chronic consumer states, complusive consumption, family life cycl

Finite Element Analysis of Steel Quenching Process

The finite element method (FEM) is employed to investigate the residual stress state and the variation of internal stresses in the St5O cylinder bar quenched from 600 to O°C. Thermal analysis is first performed to obtain the cooling curves for the core and surface of the bar, this is followed by a full structural analysis. The results obtained from the computer simulation are compared with those experimentally determined values that are available in the literature and there appears to be a good measure of agreement. The study found that at the initial stages of the quenching process, the residual stresses were tensile at the surface and compressive in the core, however, towards the end of the quenching process, the tensile residual stresses switched to the core and compressive residual stresses at the surface

Energy absorption capability of thin-walled aluminium tubes under crash loading

This paper investigates the interaction of design factors such as tube thickness, tube length, and tube cross-sectional aspect ratio, along with friction and impacting mass on crashworthiness parameters such as specific energy absorption contact time, peak force and crush distance. The impact velocity is assumed to be constant at 15 m/s. The focus is on rectangular aluminium tubes and the analysis was carried out by using a validated finite element model. The analysis shows that the factors are not independent of each other and there is some degree of interaction between them. It was found that the trigger mechanism is a very important design factor to be included in the design of thin-walled tubes for energy absorption applications. The effect of the friction coefficient was found to be insignificant and finally, based on the interactions, it can be concluded that the most effective design would be a larger tube with small wall thickness, and a larger aspect ratio to avoid buckling.Universiti Tenaga Nasional, Malaysi

Osteolytic clear cell meningioma of the petrous bone occurring 36 years after posterior cranial fossa irradiation: Case report

Objective and importance While bone invasion and hyperostosis are frequent phenomena in meningiomas, primary intraosseous meningiomas are rare and their occurrence in the skull base is an extraordinary exception. Moreover, radiation-induced meningiomas represent a unique clinical dilemma given the fact that patients with these tumors had often received a prior full course of radiotherapy. Clinical presentation A 42-year-old man presented with a 3-month history of progressively worsening facial asymmetry. His medical history was consistent for a posterior cranial fossa irradiation at the age of 6 years for a non-confirmed brain stem tumor. On admission his Karnofsky performance status was graded as 50% and his neurological examination showed a complete right facial nerve paralysis and hearing impairment. Computed tomography and magnetic resonance imaging demonstrated an osteolytic tumor invading the whole right petrous bone without intracranial involvement. Intervention As the tumor reached the external auditory canal, a tissue sample was obtained locally. Pathological examination of the lesion identified a grade II clear cell meningioma and the patient was consequently addressed for an intensity modulated radiation therapy. His condition remained unchanged till the most recent follow-up examination, 8 months later. Conclusions To the best of our knowledge, a radiation induced osteolytic clear cell meningioma of the petrous bone has not been previously reported. As little literature exists regarding the use of adjuvant therapies for these tumors, intensity modulated radiation therapy remains an attractive treatment option in case of pervious irradiation and general status alteration

Phlegmon peri-amygdalien aspects diagnostiques et thérapeutiques

Introduction: The Peritonsillar abscesse (PTA) is a suppurated complication of the face and the neck often met as a matter of urgency ENT. He can raise diagnostic and therapeutic problems and be life-threatening. The objective of this study is to specify the epidemiological and clinical particularities of this affection and to revise the therapeutic possibilities from a review of the literature.PATIENTS AND METHODS: This retrospective study concerning 75 patients hospitalized for PTA in the Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery of the Hospital of Nabeul over a period of 7 years (in January 2001 to December 2007). The study of files allowed us to find all the clinical and therapeutic data. Our drop is of two years.RESULTS : The average age of our patients was of 26 years with a sex ratio of 1. The classic set of three of the PTA was complete only in 49 % of the cases. All the patients were the object of a needle aspiration, it was positive in 74 % among which 92 % benefited from a drainage under local anesthetic. A germ was identified in 16 cases with a Streptococcus â-hemolytic group A in 13 cases. The clinical and biological cure was noticed on average in the tenth day. Forty-seven patients underwent tonsillectomy at a later date after an interval from 2 to 6 months. No emergency tonsillectomy was realized.CONCLUSION : The Peritonsillar abscesses is a frequent urgency in ENT. The diagnostic is clinical. The practicable of needle aspiration in every case allows to confirm the diagnosis in the incomplete forms. The treatment is medical and surgical.KEYWORDS : Peritonsillar abscesses, diagnostic, treatmen

Le Traitement Chirurgical Des Poches De Retraction Tympaniques De L\'enfant

Objectifs : Préciser les principes du traitement chirurgical et les particularités des poches de rétraction tympaniques (PDR) chez l\'enfant. Matériel et méthodes : Nous rapportons une étude rétrospective à propos de 37 PDR (28 enfants) opérés entre 1995 et 2006. Tous les patients avaient bénéficié d\'un examen clinique et un bilan audiométrique. Le traitement consistait en un renforcement tympanique par un greffon cartilagineux éventuellement associé à une attico-mastoïdectomie. Les résultats anatomiques et fonctionnels post opératoires ont été évalués avec un recul moyen de 29 mois. Résultats : L\'âge moyen des patients était de 10,5 ans et le sex-ratio de 1,33. Sept enfants avaient des antécédents d\'otite séromuqueuse bilatérale, avec pose d\'ATT. L\'hypoacousie était le signe fonctionnel le plus fréquent (67,8%). Les PDR étaient classées stade III, II et I (Charachon) respectivement dans 56,8%, 29,7% et 13,5% des cas. L\'audiométrie trouvait une surdité de transmission moyenne à 25 ± 15 dB. Une chirurgie de renforcement a été pratiquée dans tous les cas, associée à une mastoïdectomie chez 12 patients. Aucune récidive de rétraction n\'a été notée en post opératoire. Par ailleurs, l\'analyse des résultats fonctionnels a montré un gain auditif moyen de 10 dB et un Rinne résiduel < 15 dB dans 75,6% des cas. Conclusion : La chirurgie de renforcement tympanique par du cartilage, prend une place importante dans la prise en charge des PDR de l\'enfant et donne d\'excellents résultats anatomiques et fonctionnels.Objective: To precise the bases of surgical treatment and the particularities of tympanic retraction pockets (RP) in children. Materials and methods: We report a retrospective study about 37 RP (28 children) operated between 1995 and 2006. All patients had otological examination, nasal endoscopy and audiometric explorations. Treatment consists in reinforcement of the tympanic membrane with cartilage graft in all cases. After treatment, anatomical and functional results were evaluated with a mean follow-up of 29 months. Results: Mean-age was 10,5 years and sex-ratio 1,33. Seven children had bilateral seromucous otitis with ventilation tube insertion. Hearing-loss was the most frequent sign (67,8%). RP were classified (Charachon) stage III, II and I in 56,8%, 29,7% et 13,5%, respectively. Audiometery showed an average air conduction threshold of 25± 10 dB. Reinforcement tympanoplasty was performed in all cases, associated with canal wall-up mastoidectomy in 12 ears. No recurrence of retraction of the graft has been noted after treatment. Furthermore, analysis of functional results showed an average air conduction gain of 10 dB and air conduction gap < 15 dB in 75,6 % of cases. Conclusion: Reinforcement tympanoplasty with cartilage, takes a large place in the management of RP in children and achieves good anatomical and functional results. Keywords: Tympanic retraction – Surgery – Cartilage – Supervision Journal Tunisien d\'ORL et de chirurgie cervico-faciale Vol. 18 2007: pp. 12-1

Photoaffinity Labeling the Agonist Binding Sites of Torpedo and α4β2 Nicotinic Acetylcholine Receptors and Acetylcholine Binding Proteins (AChBPs) with [3H]Cytisine

Fitxes dels barri

Les cancers de l’orbite etude retrospective à propos de 31 cas

locorégionale rendant le traitement difficile et mutilant. Dans ce travail, nous rapportons notre expérience dans la prise en charge diagnostique et thérapeutique de ces tumeurs. Matériels et méthodes : Notre étude rétrospective a concerné 31 cas de cancers de l’orbite colligés sur 13 ans (1993- 2005). Tous les patients ont bénéficié d’un examen clinique complet, d’une imagerie du massif facial (TDM et/ou IRM) et d’une biopsie de la tumeur. Le traitement a été basé sur la chirurgie, la radiothérapie et/ou la chimiothérapie. Résultats : La symptomatologie clinique était dominée par les signes ophtalmologiques et les algies faciales. L’imagerie a montré dans tous les cas un processus expansif tissulaire à point de départ orbitaire, avec lyse osseuse orbitaire chez 16 patients (51,6%), une extension au massif facial chez 7 patients (22,6%), endocrâniennes chez 6 patients (19,4%) et des formes bilatérales atteignant les deux orbites dans 3 cas (9,7%) l’anatomopathologie montrait une prédominance des lymphomes malins non hodgkiniens (32,3%) et des carcinomes épidermoïdes (32,3%), suivis des rhabdomyosarcomes embryonnaires (19,4 %). Douze patients ont été traités par chirurgie et radiothérapie postopératoire, dix patients par une association radio-chimiothérapie, et neuf autres par une chimiothérapie néo-adjuvante. La survie globale était de 67,8% à 3 ans, 48,4% à 5 ans et 22,6% à 10 ans. Conclusion : Les cancers de l’orbite sont de mauvais pronostic. Un diagnostic précoce et un traitement radical et adapté au type histologique permet d’améliorer la survie et la qualité de vie chez les patients atteints de ces tumeurs.Mots-clés : Orbite, cancer, lymphome, carcinome épidermoïde, rhabdomyosarcom

A grid synchronization PLL with accurate extraction technique of positive/negative sequences and DC-offset under frequency drift

This article proposes a delayed signal-based demodulation algorithm that enables a fast and accurate extraction of the positive/negative sequences and DC-offset in the grid voltage under a frequency drift. Moreover, a simplified mathematical formalism is proposed to reduce the computational burden for real-time implementation. The algorithm is incorporated with a third-order quasi-type-1 phase-locked loop (TQT1-PLL) to estimate the grid voltage instantaneous phase-angle and frequency. The performance of the proposed PLL referred to as delayed signal demodulation based TQT1-PLL (DSD-TQT1-PLL) is evaluated under highly disturbed grid voltage conditions including DC-offset, fundamental frequency negative sequence (FFNS), characteristic harmonics, and frequency variation. The obtained simulation and experimental results show that the proposed PLL can precisely estimate the frequency and the instantaneous phase-angle of the fundamental frequency positive sequence (FFPS) without any ripple. The results showed also its superiority over the conventional and adaptive QT1-PLLs, where a better dynamic response is obtained

A survey of localization in wireless sensor network

Localization is one of the key techniques in wireless sensor network. The location estimation methods can be classified into target/source localization and node self-localization. In target localization, we mainly introduce the energy-based method. Then we investigate the node self-localization methods. Since the widespread adoption of the wireless sensor network, the localization methods are different in various applications. And there are several challenges in some special scenarios. In this paper, we present a comprehensive survey of these challenges: localization in non-line-of-sight, node selection criteria for localization in energy-constrained network, scheduling the sensor node to optimize the tradeoff between localization performance and energy consumption, cooperative node localization, and localization algorithm in heterogeneous network. Finally, we introduce the evaluation criteria for localization in wireless sensor network