Dynamic analysis, design and control of an industrial parallel robot

An investigation into the applicability of the bond-graph methodology, using the so-called Model Transformation Tools software, has been undertaken to model parallel robots. This software is a novel, non-commercial, program developed at the University of Glasgow, and in addition to the standard bond graph, it contains a powerful tool called the Hierarchical Bond Graph for dealing with very large-scale dynamical systems. It is the first time this tool has been applied for the modelling of parallel manipulators. A General Method for modelling parallel robots using the Hierarchical Bond-Graph concept has been developed. The method is based on related work on the modelling of closed chain robots using the Lagrange method. Introduction of a new design concept to be known as the Multi-cell Parallel Planar Manipulator. The methodology allows for an increase in the workspace of the manipulator by increasing the number of cells without affecting the number of DOF. It can also be shown to enhance the manoeuvrability of the system. Application of the multi-cell approach to a specific 2-DOF planar parallel manipulator and recognition of the need for a general model led to the development of a general dynamic model for the multi-cell manipulator using the Lagrange method. The reason for using the Lagrange formulation is that the necessary generalisation cannot be formalised using the Bond Graph technique due to the dependency of a bond graph on the specified structure of the system being modelled. Static balancing of the new general manipulator was addressed and a new method for balancing has been introduced. The method reduces the number of parameters to be adjusted to only one

Impact of opioid-free analgesia on pain severity and patient satisfaction after discharge from surgery: multispecialty, prospective cohort study in 25 countries

Background: Balancing opioid stewardship and the need for adequate analgesia following discharge after surgery is challenging. This study aimed to compare the outcomes for patients discharged with opioid versus opioid-free analgesia after common surgical procedures.Methods: This international, multicentre, prospective cohort study collected data from patients undergoing common acute and elective general surgical, urological, gynaecological, and orthopaedic procedures. The primary outcomes were patient-reported time in severe pain measured on a numerical analogue scale from 0 to 100% and patient-reported satisfaction with pain relief during the first week following discharge. Data were collected by in-hospital chart review and patient telephone interview 1 week after discharge.Results: The study recruited 4273 patients from 144 centres in 25 countries; 1311 patients (30.7%) were prescribed opioid analgesia at discharge. Patients reported being in severe pain for 10 (i.q.r. 1-30)% of the first week after discharge and rated satisfaction with analgesia as 90 (i.q.r. 80-100) of 100. After adjustment for confounders, opioid analgesia on discharge was independently associated with increased pain severity (risk ratio 1.52, 95% c.i. 1.31 to 1.76; P < 0.001) and re-presentation to healthcare providers owing to side-effects of medication (OR 2.38, 95% c.i. 1.36 to 4.17; P = 0.004), but not with satisfaction with analgesia (beta coefficient 0.92, 95% c.i. -1.52 to 3.36; P = 0.468) compared with opioid-free analgesia. Although opioid prescribing varied greatly between high-income and low- and middle-income countries, patient-reported outcomes did not.Conclusion: Opioid analgesia prescription on surgical discharge is associated with a higher risk of re-presentation owing to side-effects of medication and increased patient-reported pain, but not with changes in patient-reported satisfaction. Opioid-free discharge analgesia should be adopted routinely

The evolving SARS-CoV-2 epidemic in Africa: Insights from rapidly expanding genomic surveillance

INTRODUCTION Investment in Africa over the past year with regard to severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) sequencing has led to a massive increase in the number of sequences, which, to date, exceeds 100,000 sequences generated to track the pandemic on the continent. These sequences have profoundly affected how public health officials in Africa have navigated the COVID-19 pandemic. RATIONALE We demonstrate how the first 100,000 SARS-CoV-2 sequences from Africa have helped monitor the epidemic on the continent, how genomic surveillance expanded over the course of the pandemic, and how we adapted our sequencing methods to deal with an evolving virus. Finally, we also examine how viral lineages have spread across the continent in a phylogeographic framework to gain insights into the underlying temporal and spatial transmission dynamics for several variants of concern (VOCs). RESULTS Our results indicate that the number of countries in Africa that can sequence the virus within their own borders is growing and that this is coupled with a shorter turnaround time from the time of sampling to sequence submission. Ongoing evolution necessitated the continual updating of primer sets, and, as a result, eight primer sets were designed in tandem with viral evolution and used to ensure effective sequencing of the virus. The pandemic unfolded through multiple waves of infection that were each driven by distinct genetic lineages, with B.1-like ancestral strains associated with the first pandemic wave of infections in 2020. Successive waves on the continent were fueled by different VOCs, with Alpha and Beta cocirculating in distinct spatial patterns during the second wave and Delta and Omicron affecting the whole continent during the third and fourth waves, respectively. Phylogeographic reconstruction points toward distinct differences in viral importation and exportation patterns associated with the Alpha, Beta, Delta, and Omicron variants and subvariants, when considering both Africa versus the rest of the world and viral dissemination within the continent. Our epidemiological and phylogenetic inferences therefore underscore the heterogeneous nature of the pandemic on the continent and highlight key insights and challenges, for instance, recognizing the limitations of low testing proportions. We also highlight the early warning capacity that genomic surveillance in Africa has had for the rest of the world with the detection of new lineages and variants, the most recent being the characterization of various Omicron subvariants. CONCLUSION Sustained investment for diagnostics and genomic surveillance in Africa is needed as the virus continues to evolve. This is important not only to help combat SARS-CoV-2 on the continent but also because it can be used as a platform to help address the many emerging and reemerging infectious disease threats in Africa. In particular, capacity building for local sequencing within countries or within the continent should be prioritized because this is generally associated with shorter turnaround times, providing the most benefit to local public health authorities tasked with pandemic response and mitigation and allowing for the fastest reaction to localized outbreaks. These investments are crucial for pandemic preparedness and response and will serve the health of the continent well into the 21st century

Body Mass Index and Pregnancy Outcome after Assisted Reproduction Treatment

The present study aimed to evaluate the impact of body mass index (BMI) on pregnancy outcome after intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI). The study analyzed pregnancy outcome of 349 women who underwent ICSI by their BMI: <25, 25–<30, and ≥30 kg/m2. The associations were generated by applying logistic regression models. A significant reduction in positive pregnancy outcome was observed among overweight and obese women (odds ratio (OR) = 0.50; 95% confidence interval (CI) = 0.25–0.99 for overweight women and OR = 0.45; 95% CI = 0.20–0.89 for obese women). These estimates show that the pregnancy rates are reduced with increasing BMI. The effect of obesity on pregnancy outcome was absent when three and more embryos were transferred. Our study contributes to the reports linking overweight and obesity with decreased positive pregnancy outcome after ICSI and suggests women’s age, infertility type, and number of embryos transferred to modify this reducing effect

THE FUNERARY STELA OF PTAHMES FROM THE RAMESSIDE PERIOD IN HELIOPOLIS

The current paper is concerned with the study and publication of a funerary stela of a man named Ptahmes, which was discovered in Heliopolis and specifically in the eastern area of Ain Shams. It is currently preserved in the magazine of cArab al-Hisn at Matariya under registration N°. 235. It is made of limestone without any traces of color. Despite being in a good condition, some missing parts are found in the upper half of the pyramidion, there are also some missing parts in the right lower corner and some abrasions in the upper register. The stela under consideration exhibits average quality of workmanship. It consists of two registers of incised engravings separated by a double horizontal line. The upper register contains a scene of Osiris-the only god in this stela- together with the stela’s owner Ptahmes to whom the stela is dedicated. The second register is occupied by a group of individuals, most of them are descendants of the same family: Ptahmes, his mother iry-r, his father pA-qd, and a woman in a mourning position whose identity has not yet been identified. This woman is the one who dedicated the stela for Ptahmes. The article discusses the stylistic features, hieroglyphic texts, and the religious aspects of the pyramidion, which tops the funerary stela and the symbols represented on it. The analysis of the scenes and texts proves with no doubt that, this stela could be dated to the New Kingdom and more precisely to the Ramesside Period. تتناول الورقة التالية دراسة ونشر لوحة جنائزية لرجل يُدعى بتاح مس، وقد عُثر عليها فى هليوبوليس وعلى وجه التحديد فى المنطقة التي تقع إلى الشرق من منطقة عين شمس، وهذه اللوحة محفوظة حاليًا فى مخزن عرب الحصن الذى يوجد فى منطقة المطرية وذلك تحت رقم تسجيل 235، وهى لوحة مصنوعة من الحجر الجيرى، وتُعتبر خالية تمامًا من أى أثار للألوان بها. على الرغم من كون هذه اللوحة فى حالة جيدة من الحفظ إلا أنه يوجد بها بعض الأجزاء المفقودة، وتتمثل هذه الأجزاء فيما يلى ذكره: النصف العلوى من الشكل الهرمى والركن السفلى الأيمن للوحة، هذا الإضافة إلى أنه توجد بعض الأجزاء الأُخرى المهشرة فى الصف العلوى. تتكون اللوحة قيد الدراسة من صفين من النقوش الغائرة المحززة يفصل بينهما خط أفقى مزدوج، وهى تُمثل مستوى متوسط من حيث جودة الفن. يشمل الصف العلوى من اللوحة منظر للإله أُوزير-وهو الإله الوحيد الذى تم تمثيله فى هذه اللوحة-وكذلك منظر لصاحب اللوحة وهو بتاح مس الذى كُرست له لوحة الدراسة، بينما يتضمن الصف الثانى مجموعة من الأفراد الذين ينحدر معظمهم من نفس العائلة وهم كالتالى: بتاح مس، والدته إيرى-را، ووالده با قد، وكذلك امرأة قد تم تمثيلها في وضع الحزن وهو وضع الحداد، وهذه المرأة لم يتم تحديد هويتها، وقد كرست هذه اللوحة لبتاح مس. تناقش المقالة السمات الفنية والنصوص الهيروغليفية والبعد الدينى للشكل الهرمى الذى قد تم تمثيله أعلى اللوحة الجنائزية وكذلك الرموز الواردة به. تبين بشكل واضح من خلال تحليل المناظر والنصوص الهيروغليفية الواردة بلوحة الدراسة أن هذه اللوحة يمكن أن يعود تأريخها إلى فترة عصر الدولة الحديثة، وعلى وجه الدقة عصر الرعامسة

Surgical techniques and outcomes in patients with oral cavity cancer after induction chemotherapy

Objective: Locally advanced Oral squamous cell carcinoma OSCC has a poor prognosis, surgery is mainline for treatment. The role of induction chemotherapy is still controversial. Methodology: This is a prospective study that included 25 patients with locally advanced OSCC who received induction chemotherapy with cisplatin, docetaxel &amp; 5-FU (TPF) protocol regimen followed by surgical intervention. The epidemiological, surgical, and oncological outcomes of all the included patients were analyzed. Results: one patient showed no response, 18 patients had a partial response while 6 patients showed pathological complete response (pCR). Five out of the six patients who achieved pCR did not need reconstructive surgery and also five out of those 6 patients were operated on through a less destructive transoral approach. Consequently, those patients had less operative time, blood loss, hospital stay, and significantly less time to start oral feeding. The median disease-free survival was 15 (12-18) months in patients who attained pCR and 13 (5-24) months in the non pCR group. Conclusion: Pathological complete response after induction chemotherapy for locally advanced OSCC is associated with improvement in disease-free survival, less destructive surgery, and less need for flap reconstruction

Surgical Management of Adenocarcinoma of the Pancreatic Uncinate Process in a Cancer Hospital in Egypt

Introduction Pancreatic carcinoma affecting the uncinate process is a challenging surgical condition. Several considerations affect the management plan, including the need for vascular resection and the ability to achieve a clear margin. Methods The data of 19 patients who had curative resection for pancreatic adenocarcinoma of the uncinate process were reviewed. Operative mortality and morbidity, and disease-free survival (DFS) were calculated. Results The study population included 13 male and 6 female patients with a mean age of 55 years. Nine patients (47.4%) had stage I disease, seven patients (36.8%) had stage II disease, and three patients (15.8%) had stage III disease. A total of 12 patients had Whipple procedure and 7 patients had total pancreatectomy. In total, there were 9 R0 and 10 R1 resections. Operative mortality rate was 10.5% (2/19), postoperative leakage rate was 21.1% (4/19), and wound sepsis rate was 21.1%. Median DFS was 19.2 months. Survival was superior in the Whipple procedure group than in the total pancreatectomy group (median survival 19 months vs 4 months, respectively). Vascular resection and retroperitoneal safety margin status did not affect disease relapse. Conclusion Non-metastatic pancreatic adenocarcinoma of the uncinate process should be offered R0 or R1 resection whenever technically feasible

KNOCKS Application

Imagine a world without a social media application, well, the universe will not collapse without the social media and people will not die if it has vanished, But the advantage of the social media that would really destroy huge businesses and disassemble the enormous networking connections among people. However,“social media” are defined as any Web sites, portals or applications that allow individuals to post and share content publicly, which allow other individuals to view, respond and share this content further. These media include digital-based applications such as public blogging and micro-blogging; music, image, audio and video sharing; review and opinion sharing; gaming and entertainment; location-based, event-based and occupation-based networks; information and news aggregation; presentation sharing; advocacy and fundraising; creation of virtual worlds; and all-purpose wide-appeal networks geared toward general audiences.[1] Moreover, before 1999 when the social media applications were not well recognized by the majority of people it would not really matter the idea of having a real connection via the internet even theoretical because of the social media complexity which people cannot absorb, and also because of the explosion of mobile phone then that made people think that they are in fantasy world for the reason that they can talk to the someone with a wireless mobile device, But now after the penetration of the social media applications in our lives, we actually cannot give it away under any circumstances; thats why it is a must to develop social media applications that supply their demands and strengthen their networking bonds by allowing them to do mostly everything they want with a single click. For context, as of October 2017, total worldwide population is 7.6 billion and The internet has 3.5 billion users[2], and that emphasizes the importance of the social media applications in our live, as a matter of fact not all of them or even the half of them are individual end users accounts, they can be brands retails and small businesses marketing accounts, There are 3.03 billion active social media users 91% of retail brands use 2 or more social media channels, and 81% of all small and medium businesses use some kind of social platform [2]. Internet users have an average of 7.6 social media accounts Social media users grew by 121 million between Q2 2017 and Q3 2017.Othman , Mahmoud Sami Radwan , TA. Salm

Synthesis of certain 8-quinolyloxy and/or carbocyclic nitrogenous compounds for microbiological testing

Two new series as azosalicylic acid derivatives IVa-l and Va-c in addition to three series containing 8-quinolyloxy moiety Xa-i, XIIa-n and XIVa-e were synthesized for evaluation as antimicrobial compounds. Structures of the newly synthesized compounds have been deduced on the basis of elemental analysis and spectral data. Antimicrobial activity evaluation was carried using agar dilution technique; there was variability in the susceptibilities of the different organisms to the tested compounds. Staphylococcus aureus was the most resistant organism while Candida albicans was the most sensitive. Some compounds showed both antibacterial and antifungal activity, while others showed antibacterial activity with no antifungal activity and vice versa. Compound XIVe was the most active against both bacteria and fungi, while compounds Xe, XIIf, XIVa and XIVd showed a moderate activity