Directivity and spacing for the antenna elements

The optimum design choice for the MST radar antenna was considered. The following factors are required: directivity and gain; beam width and its symmetry; sidelobe levels, near and wide angle; impedance matching; feeder network losses; polarization diversity; steerability; cost effectiveness; and maintainability. The directivity and related beam forming aspects of various antenna elements and directivity aspects when such elements are formed into an array are discussed. Array performance for important variables, in particular, the spacing of the elements is considered

How to apply to a summer undergraduate research program

Want to get more experience in research, but find it difficult as an undergraduate? A summer research project may be the answer and there are many ways to organize this. Various universities around the world offer summer undergraduate research programs. These tend to be very competitive; hundreds, even thousands of students can apply for only a handful of positions. However, with some proactivity and strong planning, diligent undergraduate students can get accepted onto these prestigious programs. In this article, we outline the steps involved in selecting and successfully applying to a summer undergraduate research program

A late, infrared flash from the afterglow of GRB 050319

We report the detection of a bright, near-infrared flash from the afterglow of GRB 050319, 6.15 hours after the burst. The IR flash faded rapidly from J=13.12 mag. to J > 15.5 mag. in about 4 minutes. There are no reported simultaneous observations at other wavelengths making it an unique event. We study the implications of its late timing in the context of current theoretical models for GRB afterglows.Comment: Accepted in ApJ (Letters

Independent Complementary Distance Pattern Uniform Graphs

AgraphG =(V,E) is called to be Smarandachely uniform k-graph for an integer k ≥ 1ifthereexistsM1,M2, ·· ·,Mk ⊂ V (G) such that fMi (u) ={d(u, v):v ∈ Mi} for ∀u ∈ V (G)−Mi is independent of the choice of u ∈ V (G)−Mi and integer i, 1 ≤ i ≤ k. Each such set Mi, 1 ≤ i ≤ k is called a CDPU set [6, 7]. Particularly, for k = 1, a Smarandachely uniform 1-graph is abbreviated to a complementary distance pattern uniform graph, i.e., CDPU graphs. This paper studies independent CDPU graphs

A Matter of Opinion: Deciphering Dilution under the Federal Trademark Dilution Act

Symposium: The New World of Intellectual Propert

Nurturing the young shoots of talent: Using action research for exploration and theory building

This is an Author's Accepted Manuscript of an article published in European Early Childhood Education Research Journal, 19(4), 433-450, 2011, copyright Taylor & Francis, available online at: http://www.tandfonline.com/10.1080/1350293X.2011.623515.This paper reports the outcomes of a set of action research projects carried out by teacher researchers in 14 local education authorities in England, working collaboratively with university tutors, over a period of three years. The common aim of all the projects was to explore practical ways of nurturing the gifts and talents of children aged four–seven years. The project was funded by the Department of Education and Skills in England as part of the government's gifted and talented programme. The project teachers felt that their understanding of issues relating to nurturing the gifts and talents of younger children was enhanced through their engagement in the project. It was possible to map the findings of the projects to the English government's National Quality Standards for gifted and talented education which include: (1) identification; (2) effective provision in the classroom; (3) enabling curriculum entitlement and choice; (4) assessment for learning; (5) engaging with community, families and beyond. The findings are also analysed within the framework of good practice in educating children in the first years of schooling. Participating practitioners felt that action research offered them a suitable methodology to explore the complexity of the topic of giftedness through cycles of planning, action and reflection and personal theory building

Interventions to improve ergonomics in the operating theatre: A systematic review of ergonomics training and intra-operative microbreaks

Musculoskeletal occupational injury is prevalent within the surgical community. This is a multi-factorial issue, but is contributed to by physical posture, environmental hazards and administrative deficiency. There is growing awareness of this issue, with several behavioural, educational and administrative techniques being employed. The literature on this topic is, however, sporadic and difficult to access by healthcare practitioners. The aim of this systematic review was to evaluate the literature on the current interventions used to minimise musculoskeletal occupational injury in surgeons and interventionalists. This review will focus on administrative and human factor interventions, such as intra-operative microbreaks and ergonomics training

Anti-Nuclear Antibody Expression and Its relationship to severity of Illness, Organ Dysfunction and outcomes in Scrub Typhus

OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY: !1. To estimate the prevalence of anti-nuclear antibody expression in Scrub typhus, in comparison to patients with other acute infective febrile illnesses. 2. To study the patterns of anti-nuclear antibodies expressed in Scrub typhus. 3. To study the influence of antinuclear auto-antibodies on organ dysfunction, hospitalisation and outcomes in Scrub typhus. 4. To study the predictive value of ANA in Scrub typhus. METHODS: This prospective, observational cohort study was conducted in the Department of General Medicine of a tertiary care hospital between January, 2013 and January, 2014. Adult patients hospitalised in the medical wards with an acute febrile illness(AFI), fulfilling the diagnostic criteria for Scrub typhus infection[89 cases] and other acute infective febrile illnesses[60 controls] were included in the study. After obtaining a written consent from patients fulfilling the inclusion criteria, the necessary demographic data and the data regarding the current illness and investigations were collected. Patients and controls were tested for the presence of antinuclear antibodies immediately after admission. Severity of the illness was measured using scoring systems such as APACHE III and SOFA and its correlation with ANA positivity was studied. Patients were also assessed for complications of scrub typhus along with need for ventilation and use of vasoactive agents. Duration of hospital stay, duration of ICU stay and hospital outcomes were assessed along with their correlation to ANA positivity. Patients with antinuclear antibodies were followed up after a period of 6 weeks and repeat ANA testing was done. Descriptive and bivariate analysis was done. RESULTS: 89 cases of scrub typhus and 60 controls with other acute infective febrile illnesses were included in the study. The prevalence of antinuclear antibodies was 53.93% in scrub typhus patients and 15% in patients with other acute febrile illnesses(p <0.01). On testing after a period of 6 weeks, antinuclear antibodies persisted to be present in 15.6% patients with scrub typhus. The speckled pattern of antinuclear antibodies was most commonly seen(93.75%). On bivariate analysis, the APACHE III scores and antinuclear antibody positivity showed correlation which was tending towards statistical significance. [OR-1.01, p-0.07]. There was also a positive correlation with antinuclear antibodies in scrub typhus and the development of acute respiratory distress syndrome [OR-2.44, p-0.04], central nervous system manifestations[OR-6.65, p-0.08] and liver dysfunction [OR-2.25, p-0.06]. However, no correlation was found between the presence of antinuclear antibodies and SOFA scores, duration of hospital stay, duration of ICU stay and mortality in scrub typhus. CONCLUSIONS: Antinuclear antibodies were found in a significant proportion of patients with scrub typhus and the speckled pattern was commonly expressed. This appears to be related to the acute phase of illness and these antibodies showed a positive correlation with severity of illness as assessed by the APACHE III scoring system, respiratory, neurological and hepatic manifestations. Presence of these antibodies showed no correlation with duration of hospital stay and ICU stay. Further studies are needed for better understanding of this phenomenon