Topological Strings on Toric geometries in the presence of Lagrangian branes

We propose expressions for refined open topological string partition function on certain non-compact Calabi Yau 3-folds with topological branes wrapped on the special lagrangian submanifolds. The corresponding web diagrams are partially compact and a lagrangian brane is inserted on one of the external legs. Partial compactification introduces a mass deformation in the corresponding gauge theory. We propose conjectures that equate these open topological string partition functions with the generating function of equivaraint indices on certain quiver moduli spaces. To obtain these conjectures we use the identification of topological string partition functions with equivariant indices on the instanton moduli spaces.Comment: typos corrected,references adde

Topological Strings on XN,MX_{N,M}: Conifold Singularities and Degeneration of Mirror Curves

In this paper we study certain degenerations of the mirror curves, associated with Calabi-Yau threefolds $X_{N,M}$, and the effect of these degenerations on the topological string partition function of $X_{N,M}$. We show that when the mirror curve degenerates and become the union of the lower genus curves the corresponding partition function factorizes into pieces corresponding to the components of the degenerate mirror curve. Moreoever we show that using degeneration of a generalised mirror curve it is possible to obtain the partition function corresponding to $X_{N,M-1}$ from $X_{N,M}$

Partition Function of N=2N=2 Gauge Theories on a Squashed S4S^4 with SU(2)×U(1)SU(2)\times U(1) Isometry

We study $N=2$ supersymmetric gauge theories on a large family of squashed 4-spheres preserving $SU(2)\times U(1)\subset SO(4)$ isometry and determine the conditions under which this background is supersymmetric. We then compute the partition function of the theories by using localization technique. The results indicate that for $N=2$ SUSY, including both vector-multiplets and hypermultiplets, the partition function is independent of the arbitrary squashing functions as well as of the other supergravity background fields.Comment: version to appear in Nuclear Physics

PT-Symmetric potential impact on the scattering of a Bose-Einstein condensate from a Gaussian Obstacle

The scattering of a Bose-Einstein Condensate (BEC) from a Gaussian well and Gaussian barrier is investigated over a wide range of depths and heights, respectively. We compare analytical and numerical results for a BEC scattering from Gaussian Obstacles, both in the presence and in the absence of PT-symmetric potential. And we find out that the Complex Ginzburg-Landau Equation (CGLE) method has limitations due to the limited number of variational parameters of the ansatz. We also find that the presence of the PT-symmetric potential controls the reflection and the transmission flux of the BEC through the Gaussian Obstacle

Mid to Long-term Outcome of Anterior Cervical Discectomy with Fusion

Background: Cervical degenerative conditions such as intervertebral disc prolapse and degenerative cervical spondylosis results in pain and disability, especially in the middle age and elderly. The treatment of choice is surgical decompression once conservative treatment fails. We studied the outcome of anterior cervical decom-pression with instrumented fusion in order to analyse its effectiveness in terms of pain and disability improve-ment. Materials and Methods: This is a retrospective descriptive study. 30 patients were operated during June 2013 and May 2015 (2 years). All patients operated for cervical degenerative conditions were included.Data was collected about neck pain and functional impairment preoperatively using visual analogue scale (VAS) and Japanese Orthopaedic Association (JOA) scores. The same scales were used during the follow-period for 6 months. Favourable outcome was defined as 50% reduction in pain and functional improvement to Grade 1 (12 – 15) or normal scores (16 – 17). Results: Mean age was 59.70 years ±8.12SD.Mean preoperative VAS was 6.70 and it was 1.80 ± 0.85 SD at 6 – month follow-up. Mean JOA score was 11.57 preoperatively while at 6-month follow-up, it was 14.97 ± 1.92 SD. There was a significant difference between mean VAS score preoperatively and mean VAS score postoperatively (mean difference; 4.9, 95% CI; 4.48 to 5.32, p < 0.001, t(29): 23.86). Similarly, there was statistically significant difference between mean JOA score preoperatively and mean JOA scores postoperatively (mean difference; -3.4, 95% CI; -3.95 to -2.85, p < 0.001, t(29): -12.61). Conclusion: Anterior cervical decompression with graft placement and instrumented fusion are safe and effective methods for relieving pain as well functional improvement in patients with cervical radiculopathy and myelopathy.Keywords: , , , , surgical outcome

When Shall Coronavirus Disease-19 Stop? Review of Literature

In December 2019, a new coronavirus, now labeled as severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2, induced an episode of acute atypical respiratory illness started in Wuhan, Province of Hubei, China. The illness triggered by this virus was called coronavirus disease-19 (COVID-19). The infection is spread within humans and has triggered a global pandemic. The amount of death tolls continues to increase and a growing number of countries have been driven to create social barriers and lock-ups. The shortage of tailored counseling remains an issue. Epidemiological researches have shown that elderly patients are more vulnerable to serious diseases, while children tend to have milder symptoms. Here, we checked the latest understanding of this disease and found a possible explanation of the potential sequel and the expectations for the future

A robust control design approach for altitude control and trajectory tracking of a quadrotor

Introduction. Unmanned aerial vehicles as quadcopters, twin rotors, fixed-wing crafts, and helicopters are being used in many applications these days. Control approaches applied on the quadrotor after decoupling the model or separate altitude control and trajectory tracking have been reported in the literature. A robust linear H∞ controller has been designed for both altitude control and circular trajectory tracking at the desired altitude. Problem. The ability of the quadrotor system to hover at a certain height and track any desired trajectory makes their use in many industrial applications in both military and civil applications. Once a controller has been designed, it may not be able to maintain the desired performance in practical scenarios, i.e. in presence of wind gusts. Originality. This work presents the control strategy to ensure both altitude control and trajectory tracking using a single controller. Purpose. However, there is a need for a single controller that ensures both altitude control and trajectory tracking. Novelty. This paper presents a robust H∞ control for altitude control and trajectory tracking for a six degree of freedom of unmanned aerial vehicles quadrotor. Methodology. Multi input multi output robust H∞ controller has been proposed for the quadrotor for altitude control and tracking the desired reference. For the controller validation, a simulation environment is developed in which a 3D trajectory is tracked by the proposed control methodology. Results. Simulation results depict that the controller is efficient enough to achieve the desired objective at minimal control efforts. Practical value. To verify that the proposed approach is able to ensure stability, altitude control, and trajectory tracking under practical situations, the performance of the proposed control is tested in presence of wind gusts. The ability of the controller to cater to the disturbances within fractions of seconds and maintaining both transient and steady-state performance proves the effectiveness of the controller.Вступ. Безпілотні літальні апарати, такі як квадрокоптери, двороторні апарати, апарати з нерухомими крилами та гелікоптери сьогодні використовуються у багатьох сферах застосування. У літературі повідомляється про підходи до керування, застосовані на квадрокоптері після від’єднання моделі або окремого контролю висоти та відстеження траєкторії. Надійний лінійний регулятор H∞ був розроблений як для контролю висоти, так і для відстеження кругової траєкторії на потрібній висоті. Проблема. Здатність квадрокоптерної системи зависати на певній висоті та відстежувати будь-яку бажану траєкторію робить їх застосування можливим у багатьох сферах як у військових, так і в цивільних цілях. Розроблений контролер може не підтримувати бажані характеристики у реальних умовах, тобто за наявності поривів вітру. Оригінальність. У цій роботі представлена стратегія керування, яка забезпечує як контроль висоти, так і відстеження траєкторії за допомогою одного контролера. Мета. Однак існує потреба в єдиному контролері, який забезпечує як контроль висоти, так і відстеження траєкторії. Новизна. У цій статті представлено надійний регулятор H∞ для контролю висоти та відстеження траєкторії для шести ступенів свободи безпілотних літальних апаратів. Методологія. Для квадрокоптера запропоновано багатовхідний багатовихідний надійний контролер H∞ для контролю висоти та відстеження бажаного курсу. Для перевірки контролера розробляється середовище моделювання, в якому тривимірна траєкторія відстежується за запропонованою методологією керування. Результати. Результати моделювання показують, що контролер є досить ефективним для досягнення бажаної мети при мінімальних зусиллях контролю. Практична цінність. Щоб переконатися, що запропонований підхід здатний забезпечити стабільність, контроль висоти та відстеження траєкторії в реальних ситуаціях, параметри запропонованого контролю перевіряються за наявності поривів вітру. Здатність контролера усувати порушення протягом кількох секунд і підтримувати як перехідні, так і стабільні показники доводить ефективність контролера

Enhancing the Mechanical Properties of Concrete and Self-Healing Phenomena by adding Bacteria, Silica fume and Fibres

Concrete which is the most useable material in the world after the water has flaws, it is susceptible to cracking over time. These cracks occur in the form of shear cracks, flexural cracks, tension cracks, shrinkage cracks etc. With these cracks, some hair-like cracks also occur in concrete which are not visible during the visual inspection. The propagation of these cracks in concrete allows the water and many other chemicals to seep inside the concrete and leads to a decrease in its properties. Such properties include decreasing durability, erosion of rebars, and progressive failure in the concrete strength. Therefore, the repair of hair-like cracks is also essential for the long-term safety of structures. In the present study the Silica fume, and Polypropylene fibres are added to a rich concrete along with the bacteria named Bacillus Subtilis and Calcium Lactate for enhancement of its mechanical properties and self-healing phenomena. The effect of bacteria in the healing phenomenon and other properties is compared to normal concrete by casting the cylinders and beams. The slump, compressive strength, tensile strength, and self-healing phenomena are tested and found the increase in mechanical properties of concrete. The self-healing phenomena of cracks is observed by the Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM)

Treatment of pre-school children under 6 years of age for schistosomiasis: safety, efficacy and acceptability of praziquantel

BackgroundThe World Health Organization (WHO) recommends praziquantel for the control and treatment of schistosomiasis, with no real alternative. Pre-school children are excluded from population treatment programs mainly due to paucity of safety data on this age group.Objectives: This study investigated safety, efficacy and acceptability of praziquantel for the treatment of S. haematobium and S. mansoni infections among pre-school children aged <6years. The study also investigated the burden of schistosomiasis in this age group.Methods: Pre-school children (n=188) from Sudan were included in the study. The children were treated with praziquantel tablets at a single dose of 40 mg/kg body weight. Adverse events were assessed at 24 hours and 7 days later, via questionnaire administration to parents and guardians.Efficacy of treatment was assessed at 1, 3 and 6 months by examining stool and urine samples for schistosome eggs. Acceptability was determined by the number of children spitting or vomiting during administration of the drug.Results: The burden of schistosomiasis among pre-school children aged <6 years was high (31.1%), and this was comparable to that observed among school children-aged 6 years (32%). Praziquantel treatment achieved high cure rates (egg negative) for both S. haematobium and S.mansoni infections when assessed at 1 month after treatment (89.6-92.1%) and remained high for S. haematobium (89.6-100%) up to 6 months. However, cure rate dropped from 90.5% at one month to 58.8% and 69.2% at 3 and 6 months among S. mansoni-treated children.  Praziquantel treatment decreased egg counts considerably with  post-treatment geometric mean egg reductions rates ranging from 96.4% to 99.4% at 1 month. Acceptability of praziquantel treatment was high, only for one child the dose had to be repeated after initial spitting. Treatment resolved haematuria and improved weight of the children. There were no drug-related adverse events in all the treated children duringfollow-up at 24 hours and 7 days.Conclusions: Praziquantel is safe, effective and acceptable among children aged <6 years. Preschool children represent a high risk group for schistosomiasis and should be included in population treatment programs.Keywords:Schistosomiasis,Praziquantel, Safety,Young Children

Link between Technically Derived Energy Efficiency and Ecological Footprint: Empirical Evidence from the Asean Region

The sustainable environment has been a desired situation around the world for the last few decades. Environmental contaminations can be a consequence of various economic activities. Different socio-economic factors influence the environment positively or negatively. Many previous studies have resulted in the efficient allocation of inputs as an environment-friendly component. This paper investigates the effects of energy efficiency on ecological footprint in the ASEAN region using balanced panel data from 2001 to 2019. First, this paper technically derives the energy effi-ciency, using the stochastic frontier analysis (SFA) of the translog production type of single output and multiple inputs. Findings of the SFA show that the Philippines and Singapore have the highest energy efficiency (94%) and Laos has the lowest energy efficiency (85%) in the ASEAN region. The estimated average efficiency score of the ASEAN region was around 90%, ranging from 85% to 96%, indicating that there is still 10% room for improvement in energy efficiency. Second, this study employed the panel autoregressive distributed lag (ARDL) model to explore the short run and long run impact of technically derived energy efficiency on ecological footprint in the ASEAN region. Results of the panel ARDL model show that energy efficiency is a reducing factor of ecological footprint in the long run. Moreover, energy efficiency plays a significant role to control the environmental contaminations. In addition, results of this study also explored that urbanization is an increasing factor of ecological footprint, and investment in agriculture is also beneficial for the environment. Moreover, to obtain the directional nature of the associations between the ecological footprint and its independent variables, this paper has employed the paired-panel Granger causality test. The results of the paired wise panel Granger causality test also confirm that the energy efficiency, ur-banization, and investment in agriculture cause ecological footprint. Finally, this study recom-mends that efficient utilization of energy resources as well as investment in agriculture are neces-sary for sustainable environment. © 2021 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland.Funding: Project no. 132805 has been implemented with support provided from the National Research, Development, and Innovation Fund of Hungary, financed under the K_19 funding scheme and supported by the János Bolyai Research Scholarship of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences (BO/00095/18 and BO/8/20)