Impedance Characterization of a Model Au/Yttria-Stabilized Zirconia/Au Electrochemical Cell in Varying Oxygen and NO\u3csub\u3e\u3cem\u3ex\u3c/em\u3e\u3c/sub\u3e Concentrations

An electrochemical cell [Au/yttria-stabilized zirconia (YSZ)/Au] serves as a model system to investigate the effect of O2 and NOx. Possible mechanisms responsible for the response are presented. Two dense Au electrodes are co-located on the same side of a dense YSZ electrolyte and are separated from the electrolyte by a porous YSZ layer, present only under the electrodes. While not completely understood, the porous layer appears to result in enhanced NOx response. Impedance data were obtained over a range of frequencies 0.1 Hz to 1 MHz, temperatures 600–700°C, and oxygen 2–18.9% and NOx 10–100 ppm concentrations. Spectra were fit with an equivalent circuit, and values of the circuit elements were evaluated. In the absence of NOx, the effect of O2 on the low-frequency arc resistance could be described by a power law, and the temperature dependence by a single apparent activation energy at all O2 concentrations. When both O2 and NOx were present, however, the power-law exponent varied as a function of both temperature and concentration, and the apparent activation energy also showed dual dependence. Adsorption mechanisms are discussed as possibilities for the rate-limiting steps. Implications for impedancemetric NOx sensing are also discussed

A general framework to support cost-efficient survey design choices for the control of soil-transmitted helminths when deploying Kato-Katz thick smear

Background To monitor and evaluate soil-transmitted helminth (STH) control programs, the World Health Organization (WHO) recommends screening stools from 250 children, deploying Kato-Katz thick smear (KK). However, it remains unclear whether these recommendations are suffi-cient to make adequate decisions about stopping preventive chemotherapy (PC) (preva-lence of infection &lt;2%) or declaring elimination of STHs as a public health problem (prevalence of moderate-to-heavy intensity (MHI) infections &lt;2%). Methodology We developed a simulation framework to determine the effectiveness and cost of survey designs for decision-making in STH control programs, capturing the operational resources to perform surveys, the variation in egg counts across STH species, across schools, between and within individuals, and between repeated smears. Using this framework and a lot quality assurance sampling approach, we determined the most cost-efficient survey designs (number of schools, subjects, stool samples per subject, and smears per stool sam-ple) for decision-making. Principal findings For all species, employing duplicate KK (sampling 4 to 6 schools and 64 to 70 subjects per school) was the most cost-efficient survey design to assess whether prevalence of any infection intensity was above or under 2%. For prevalence of MHI infections, single KK was the most cost-efficient (sampling 11 to 25 schools and 52 to 84 children per school). Conclusions/Significance KK is valuable for monitoring and evaluation of STH control programs, though we recom-mend deploying a duplicate KK on a single stool sample to stop PC, and a single KK to declare the elimination of STHs as a public health problem.</p

Análise de Envoltória de Dados para alocação de recursos: uma proposta de algoritmo sequencial.

Este trabalho apresenta um modelo sequencial de atribuição de recursos em modelos DEA, inspirado no modelo de votação de Hondt, considerando-se que o excesso de recursos a ser distribuído tem soma constante. Caso fosse de interesse realocal os recursos já existentes, mantendo-se constante o total dos recursos (soma dos recursos constante) poderia ser usado o modelo DEA com Ganhos de Soma Zero - GSZ-DEA, orientado a inputs. O algoritmo sequencial de alocação de recursos em DEA proposto neste artigo é aplicado à distribuição de vagas docentes aos departamentos de ensino do Centro Tecnológico da UFF. O modelo considera o número de professores de cada departamento, o envolvimento com atividades de ensino e pesquisa e a existência de projetos de expansão aprovados

Analisis Curahan Tenaga Kerja Wanita Tani Pada Usahatani Bawang Merah Tuk-Tuk Di Desa Fatuketi Kecamatan Kakuluk Mesak Kabupaten Belu

This research was conducted to know: 1) the amount of farmer women labor alocation on Tuk-Tuk shallot farming 2) the revenues of Tuk-Tuk shallot farming and 3) the contribution of farmer women revenues on Tuk-Tuk shallot farming toward farmer household revenues at Fatuketi Village, KakulukMesakSub-District,Belu Regency. Fatuketi Village was selected as research location using purposive sampling technique. Data collection was conducted in February 2019 and data analysis was performed using descriptive analysis.The variables measured were the alocation of women labor (MD), the revenues from tuk-tuk shallot farming (Rp), and the contribution of farmer women revenues on tuk-tuk shallot farming toward farmer household revenues(%). The results showed that (1) the average alocation of females farmer's work time on Tuk-Tuk shallot farming was 17.1 MDcomprised land preparation and processing 1.7 MD, nursery 3,1 MD, planting 1,1 MD, Fertilizing 0.9 MD, maintenance 8,4 MD, harvesting 0.9 MD, and post-harvest 0.9 MD. (2) the total revenues obtained from tuk-tuk shallot farming was Rp. 10.897.500, - (3) the revenues of farmer women on tuk-tuk shallot farming wasRp. 3.149.973, and (4) contribution of farmer women revenues to thefarmer household revenueswas 28,90%.This value indicated that the farmer women revenues contribution was small Penelitian ini bertujuan untuk mengetahui; 1) besarnya curahan tenaga kerja wanita pada usahatani bawang merah tuk-tuk, 2) penerimaan usahatani bawang merah tuk-tuk dan 3) kontribusi penerimaanwanitatanipadausahatanibawang merah tuk-tuk terhadap penerimaanrumahtanggapetanidi Desa Fatuketi Kecamatan Kakuluk Mesak Kabupaten Belu. Desa Fatuketi dipilih sebagai lokasi penelitian menggunakan teknik purposive sampling. Pengumpulan data dilakukan pada bulan februari 2019 dan analisis data dilakukan menggunakan analisis deskriptif. Variabel yang diukur adalah besar curahan tenaga kerja wanita (HKO), penerimaan usahatani bawang merah tuk-tuk (Rp), dan Kontribusi penerimaan wanita pada usahatani bawang merah tuk-tuk terhadap pendapatan rumah tangga (%). Hasil penelitian menunjukan bahwa (1) rerata curahan waktu kerja wanita tani pada usahatani bawang merah tuk-tuk sebesar 17,1 HKO dengan rincian pengolahan lahan 1,7 HKO, persemaian 3,1 HKO, penanaman 1,1 HKO, Pemupukan 0,9 HKO, perawatan 8,4 HKO, pemanenan 0,9 HKO, dan pasca panen 0,9 HKO.(2) penerimaan usahatani bawang merah tuk-tuk sebesar Rp. 10.897.500, (3) penerimaan wanita tani dalam usahatani bawang merah tuk-tuk adalah sebesar Rp. 3.149.973, dan (4) kontribusi penerimaan wanita tani terhadap penerimaan usahatani adalah sebesar 28,90%. Nilai tersebut menunjukan kontribusi penerimaan wanita tani tergolong kecil

Zebrafish orthologs of human muscular dystrophy genes

BACKGROUND: Human muscular dystrophies are a heterogeneous group of genetic disorders which cause decreased muscle strength and often result in premature death. There is no known cure for muscular dystrophy, nor have all causative genes been identified. Recent work in the small vertebrate zebrafish Danio rerio suggests that mutation or misregulation of zebrafish dystrophy orthologs can also cause muscular degeneration phenotypes in fish. To aid in the identification of new causative genes, this study identifies and maps zebrafish orthologs for all known human muscular dystrophy genes. RESULTS: Zebrafish sequence databases were queried for transcripts orthologous to human dystrophy-causing genes, identifying transcripts for 28 out of 29 genes of interest. In addition, the genomic locations of all 29 genes have been found, allowing rapid candidate gene discovery during genetic mapping of zebrafish dystrophy mutants. 19 genes show conservation of syntenic relationships with humans and at least two genes appear to be duplicated in zebrafish. Significant sequence coverage on one or more BAC clone(s) was also identified for 24 of the genes to provide better local sequence information and easy updating of genomic locations as the zebrafish genome assembly continues to evolve. CONCLUSION: This resource supports zebrafish as a dystrophy model, suggesting maintenance of all known dystrophy-associated genes in the zebrafish genome. Coupled with the ability to conduct genetic screens and small molecule screens, zebrafish are thus an attractive model organism for isolating new dystrophy-causing genes/pathways and for use in high-throughput therapeutic discovery