69 research outputs found
IMPLEMENTATION OF GENERAL PROVISIONS ON OCCUPATIONAL HEALTH AND SAFETY IN THE FACTORY ORDINANCE (NO. 45 OF 1942) (A QUALITATIVE STUDY)
In the late 1970s, Free Trade Zones were established in Sri Lanka as an important part of the economic development of the island. These zones were specially designated manufacturing areas which were set up to attract foreign investments to the country. In these places, occupational health and safety are vital features of the Human Resource Management. In the Sri Lankan context, studies regarding occupational health and safety are scarce. The general objective of this study was to explore the implementation of general provisions on occupational health, and safety in the Factory Ordinance (No. 45 of 1942) among workers in Katunayake Export Processing Zone. A qualitative approach was adapted to this study. The study consisted of two phases: in the first phase focus group discussion with workers were done, and in the second phase, ten in-depth interviews were conducted. Purposive sampling method was used to select participants from workers based on the inclusion criteria. Twenty workers (n=20) were selected from different factories in the zone. Saturation method was used as the guiding method of data collection. Data was analyzed using framework analysis. Study found that, implementation of general provisions on occupational health is remaining in a satisfactory level; implementing general provisions of occupational safety in work place is remaining at better status; however implementation of few provisions should be improved. A longitudinal study on occupational health and safety among factory workers and factory managers need to be conducted. In addition to that, improving awareness on Factories’ Ordinance (No. 45 of 1942) is recommended. Employers should also be empowered to intervene with managers for implementing general provisions and special provisions of occupational health and safety in the Factories’ Ordinance
Design of MRI Structured Spiking Neural Networks and Learning Algorithms for Personalized Modelling, Analysis, and Prediction of EEG Signals
Abstract This paper proposes a novel method and algorithms for the design of MRI structured personalized 3D spiking neural network models (MRI-SNN) for a better analysis, modeling, and prediction of EEG signals. It proposes a novel gradient-descent learning algorithm integrated with a spike-time-dependent-plasticity algorithm. The models capture informative personal patterns of interaction between EEG channels, contrary to single EEG signal modeling methods or to spike-based approaches which do not use personal MRI data to pre-structure a model. The proposed models can not only learn and model accurately measured EEG data, but they can also predict signals at 3D model locations that correspond to non-monitored brain areas, e.g. other EEG channels, from where data has not been collected. This is the first study in this respect. As an illustration of the method, personalized MRI-SNN models are created and tested on EEG data from two subjects. The models result in better prediction accuracy and a better understanding of the personalized EEG signals than traditional methods due to the MRI and EEG information integration. The models are interpretable and facilitate a better understanding of related brain processes. This approach can be applied for personalized modeling, analysis, and prediction of EEG signals across brain studies such as the study and prediction of epilepsy, peri-perceptual brain activities, brain-computer interfaces, and others
Gapless spinons and a field-induced soliton gap in the hyper-honeycomb Cu oxalate framework compound [(CH)NH]Cu(CO)
We report a detailed study of the specific heat and magnetic susceptibility
of single crystals of a spin liquid candidate: the hyper-honeycomb Cu oxalate
framework compound [(CH)NH]Cu(CO). The specific
heat shows no anomaly associated with a magnetic transition at low temperatures
down to 180 mK in zero magnetic field. We observe a large linear-in-
contribution to the specific heat , mK/mol K,
at low temperatures, indicative of the presence of fermionic excitations
despite the Mott insulating state. The low- specific heat is strongly
suppressed by applied magnetic fields , which induce an energy gap, , in the spin-excitation spectrum. We use the four-component relativistic
density-functional theory (DFT) to calculate the magnetic interactions,
including the Dzyaloshinskii-Moriya antisymmetric exchange, which causes an
effective staggered field acting on one copper sublattice. The magnitude and
field dependence of the field-induced gap, , are
accurately predicted by the soliton mass calculated from the sine-Gordon model
of weakly coupled antiferromagnetic Heisenberg chains with all parameters
determined by our DFT calculations. Thus our experiment and calculations are
entirely consistent with a model of
[(CH)NH]Cu(CO) in which anisotropic magnetic
exchange interactions due to Jahn-Teller distortion cause one copper sublattice
to dimerize, leaving a second sublattice of weakly coupled antiferromagnetic
chains. We also show that this model quantitatively accounts for the measured
temperature-dependent magnetic susceptibility. Thus
[(CH)NH]Cu(CO) is a canonical example of a
one-dimensional spin-1/2 Heisenberg antiferromagnet and not a
resonating-valence-bond quantum spin liquid, as previously proposed.Comment: 8 pages, 6 figure
Thermoelectric power factor under strain-induced band-alignment in the half-Heuslers NbCoSn and TiCoSb
Band convergence is an effective strategy to improve the thermoelectric
performance of complex bandstructure thermoelectric materials. Half-Heuslers
are good candidates for band convergence studies because they have multiple
bands near the valence bad edge that can be converged through various band
engineering approaches providing power factor improvement opportunities.
Theoretical calculations to identify the outcome of band convergence employ
various approximations for the carrier scattering relaxation times (the most
common being the constant relaxation time approximation) due to the high
computational complexity involved in extracting them accurately. Here, we
compare the outcome of strain-induced band convergence under two such
scattering scenarios: i) the most commonly used constant relaxation time
approximation and ii) energy dependent inter- and intra-valley scattering
considerations for the half-Heuslers NbCoSn and TiCoSb. We show that the
outcome of band convergence on the power factor depends on the carrier
scattering assumptions, as well as the temperature. For both materials
examined, band convergence improves the power factor. For NbCoSn, however, band
convergence becomes more beneficial as temperature increases, under both
scattering relaxation time assumptions. In the case of TiCoSb, on the other
hand, constant relaxation time considerations also indicate that the relative
power factor improvement increases with temperature, but under the energy
dependent scattering time considerations, the relative improvement weakens with
temperature. This indicates that the scattering details need to be accurately
considered in band convergence studies to predict more accurate trends.Comment: 21 pages, 8 figures. arXiv admin note: text overlap with
arXiv:1905.0795
Validation of a physician global assessment tool for vitiligo extent: Results of an international vitiligo expert meeting
Casemix, management, and mortality of patients receiving emergency neurosurgery for traumatic brain injury in the Global Neurotrauma Outcomes Study: a prospective observational cohort study
Effects of hospital facilities on patient outcomes after cancer surgery: an international, prospective, observational study
Background Early death after cancer surgery is higher in low-income and middle-income countries (LMICs) compared with in high-income countries, yet the impact of facility characteristics on early postoperative outcomes is unknown. The aim of this study was to examine the association between hospital infrastructure, resource availability, and processes on early outcomes after cancer surgery worldwide.Methods A multimethods analysis was performed as part of the GlobalSurg 3 study-a multicentre, international, prospective cohort study of patients who had surgery for breast, colorectal, or gastric cancer. The primary outcomes were 30-day mortality and 30-day major complication rates. Potentially beneficial hospital facilities were identified by variable selection to select those associated with 30-day mortality. Adjusted outcomes were determined using generalised estimating equations to account for patient characteristics and country-income group, with population stratification by hospital.Findings Between April 1, 2018, and April 23, 2019, facility-level data were collected for 9685 patients across 238 hospitals in 66 countries (91 hospitals in 20 high-income countries; 57 hospitals in 19 upper-middle-income countries; and 90 hospitals in 27 low-income to lower-middle-income countries). The availability of five hospital facilities was inversely associated with mortality: ultrasound, CT scanner, critical care unit, opioid analgesia, and oncologist. After adjustment for case-mix and country income group, hospitals with three or fewer of these facilities (62 hospitals, 1294 patients) had higher mortality compared with those with four or five (adjusted odds ratio [OR] 3.85 [95% CI 2.58-5.75]; p<0.0001), with excess mortality predominantly explained by a limited capacity to rescue following the development of major complications (63.0% vs 82.7%; OR 0.35 [0.23-0.53]; p<0.0001). Across LMICs, improvements in hospital facilities would prevent one to three deaths for every 100 patients undergoing surgery for cancer.Interpretation Hospitals with higher levels of infrastructure and resources have better outcomes after cancer surgery, independent of country income. Without urgent strengthening of hospital infrastructure and resources, the reductions in cancer-associated mortality associated with improved access will not be realised
Vacuum-assisted biopsy and steroid therapy for granulomatous lobular mastitis: report of three cases.
We report the cases of three patients with granulomatous lobular mastitis (GLM), who were treated successfully with low-dose steroid therapy. Furthermore, the findings of our review of 271 patients reported in the literature suggest that steroid therapy is the treatment of choice for GLM
Role of clinical judgment in the application of a nucleic acid amplification test for the rapid diagnosis of pulmonary tuberculosis
10.1378/chest.124.3.902Chest1243902-908CHET
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