Catch Crops in Organic Farming Systems without Livestock Husbandry - Model Simulations

During the last years, an increasing number of stockless farms in Europe converted to organic farming practice without re-establishing a livestock. Due to the lack of animal manure as a nutrient input, the relocation and the external input of nutrients is limited in those organic cropping systems. The introduction of a one-year green manure fallow in a 4-year crop rotation, including clover-grass mixtures as a green manure crop is the classical strategy to solve at least some of the problems related to the missing livestock. The development of new crop rotations, including an extended use of catch crops and annual green manure (legumes) may be another possibility avoiding the economical loss during the fallow year. Modelling of the C and N turnover in the soil-plant-atmosphere system using the soil-plant-atmosphere model DAISY is one of the tools used for the development of new organic crop rotations. In this paper, we will present simulations based on a field experiment with incorporation of different catch crops. An important factor for the development of new crop rotations for stockless organic farming systems is the expected N mineralisation and immobilisation after incorporation of the plant materials. Therefore, special emphasise will be put on the simulation of N-mineralisation/-immobilisation and of soil microbial biomass N. Furthermore, particulate organic matter C and N as an indicator of remaining plant material under decomposition will be investigated

Exploration the extrudability of aluminum matrix composite (LM6/TIC) through modeling, simulation and experimental process

Aluminum matrix composites (LM6/TiC) is a mix of excellent properties of aluminum casting alloy (LM6), and particles of (TiC) which make it the first choice in many applications like airplane and marine industries. During this research the extrudability and mechanical specifications of this composite (LM6/TiC) are investigated before and after extrusion theoretically and experimentally. In this research; ABAQUS/CAE software has been successfully employed for Modeling and simulation the extrusion process before experiments in order to predict any error before fabrication. The experimental works includes design and fabrication the extrusion mold. The extruded parts are test by (SEM) to show the microstructure properties. Simulation results indicate the positions of stresses concentration (Mises stresses), and also the velocity of dislocation elements during extrusion. Experimental results show that, many mechanical properties are improved and enhanced after extrusion like stiffness and wear resistance. The microstructure test show that, the addition of (5%) wt. of (TiC) particulate with (T6) heat treatment (treating the solution in (525°C) and then ageing for (8) h at 180 °C) to the master alloy (LM6) will improve the strength about more than (15%) comparing with original matrix (LM6). Comparison between theoretical and practical results before and after extrusion indicates significant improvements after adding (TiC) particulates. This improvement is due to the high interference and bonding forces between the master alloy and composite particulates, which result in a fine grain size after the process. Keywords: Aluminum, Extrusion, Composite, TiC, LM6

Reduced neural selectivity for mental states in deaf children with delayed exposure to sign language

Early linguistic experience directly facilitates social development in childhood. Here, the authors reveal that children with delayed access to language show delayed development of selective responses in cortical regions involved in thinking about others’ thoughts

Emotional social robot "Emotico"

This work presents high level design and preliminary results of the implementation of an psycho-emotional system based on DA and 5-HT subsystems implementing 4 basic emotions

Comparison of Inappropriate Shocks and Other Health Outcomes Between Single- and Dual-Chamber Implantable Cardioverter-Defibrillators for Primary Prevention of Sudden Cardiac Death: Results from the Cardiovascular Research Network Longitudinal Study of Implantable Cardioverter-Defibrillators

Background In US clinical practice, many patients who undergo placement of an implantable cardioverter‐defibrillator (ICD) for primary prevention of sudden cardiac death receive dual‐chamber devices. The superiority of dual‐chamber over single‐chamber devices in reducing the risk of inappropriate ICD shocks in clinical practice has not been established. The objective of this study was to compare risk of adverse outcomes, including inappropriate shocks, between single‐ and dual‐chamber ICDs for primary prevention. Methods and Results We identified patients receiving a single‐ or dual‐chamber ICD for primary prevention who did not have an indication for pacing from 15 hospitals within 7 integrated health delivery systems in the Longitudinal Study of Implantable Cardioverter‐Defibrillators from 2006 to 2009. The primary outcome was time to first inappropriate shock. ICD shocks were adjudicated for appropriateness. Other outcomes included all‐cause hospitalization, heart failure hospitalization, and death. Patient, clinician, and hospital‐level factors were accounted for using propensity score weighting methods. Among 1042 patients without pacing indications, 54.0% (n=563) received a single‐chamber device and 46.0% (n=479) received a dual‐chamber device. In a propensity‐weighted analysis, device type was not significantly associated with inappropriate shock (hazard ratio, 0.91; 95% confidence interval, 0.59–1.38 [P=0.65]), all‐cause hospitalization (hazard ratio, 1.03; 95% confidence interval, 0.87–1.21 [P=0.76]), heart failure hospitalization (hazard ratio, 0.93; 95% confidence interval, 0.72–1.21 [P=0.59]), or death (hazard ratio, 1.19; 95% confidence interval, 0.93–1.53 [P=0.17]). Conclusions Among patients who received an ICD for primary prevention without indications for pacing, dual‐chamber devices were not associated with lower risk of inappropriate shock or differences in hospitalization or death compared with single‐chamber devices. This study does not justify the use of dual‐chamber devices to minimize inappropriate shocks

Reduction of Maternal Mortality with Highly Active Antiretroviral Therapy in a Large Cohort of HIV-Infected Pregnant Women in Malawi and Mozambique

Background: HIV infection is a major contributor to maternal mortality in resource-limited settings. The Drug Resource Enhancement Against AIDS and Malnutrition Programme has been promoting HAART use during pregnancy and postpartum for Prevention-of-mother-to-child-HIV transmission (PMTCT) irrespective of maternal CD4 cell counts since 2002. Methods: Records for all HIV+ pregnancies followed in Mozambique and Malawi from 6/2002 to 6/2010 were reviewed. The cohort was comprised by pregnancies where women were referred for PMTCT and started HAART during prenatal care (n = 8172, group 1) and pregnancies where women were referred on established HAART (n = 1978, group 2). Results: 10,150 pregnancies were followed. Median (IQR) baseline values were age 26 years (IQR:23-30), CD4 count 392 cells/mm(3) (IQR:258-563), Viral Load log(10) 3.9 (IQR:3.2-4.4), BMI 23.4 (IQR:21.5-25.7), Hemoglobin 10.0 (IQR:9.0-11.0). 101 maternal deaths (0.99%) occurred during pregnancy to 6 weeks postpartum: 87 (1.1%) in group 1 and 14 (0.7%) in group 2. Mortality was 1.3% in women with <than 350 CD4 cells/mm(3) and 0.7% in women with greater than 350 CD4s cells/mm(3) [OR = 1.9 (CL 1.3-2.9) p = 0.001]. Mortality was higher in patients with shorter antenatal HAART: 22/991 (2.2%) if less than 30 days and 79/9159 (0.9%) if 31 days or greater [OR = 2.6 (CL 1.6-4.2) p<0.001]. By multivariate analysis, shorter antenatal HAART (p, 0.001), baseline values for CD4 cell count (p = 0.012), hemoglobin (p = 0.02), and BMI (p<0.001) were associated with mortality. Four years later, survival was 92% for women with shorter antenatal HAART and 98% for women on established therapy prior to pregnancy, p = 0.001. Conclusions: Antiretrovirals for PMTCT purposes have significant impact on maternal mortality as do CD4 counts and nutritional status. In resource-limited settings, PMTCT programs should provide universal HAART to all HIV+ pregnant women given its impact in prevention of maternal death

Fluorophotometry as a diagnostic tool for the evaluation of dry eye disease

BACKGROUND: Dry eye disease is a common debilitating ocular disease. Current diagnostic tests used in dry eye disease are often neither sensitive nor reproducible, making it difficult to accurately diagnose and determine end points for clinical trials, or evaluate the usefulness of different medications in the treatment of dry eye disease. The recently developed fluorophotometer can objectively detect changes in the corneal epithelium by quantitatively measuring its barrier function or permeability. The purpose of the study is to investigate the use of corneal fluorescein penetration measured by the fluorophotometer as a diagnostic tool in the evaluation of dry eye patients. METHODS: Dry eye patients (16 eyes), who presented with a chief complaint of ocular irritation corresponding with dry eye, low Schirmer's one test (<10 mm after 5 minutes) and corneal fluorescein staining score of more than two, were included in the study. Normal subjects (16 eyes), who came for refraction error evaluation, served as controls. Institutional Review Board (IRB) approved consent was obtained before enrolling the subjects in the study and all questions were answered while explaining the risks, benefits and alternatives. All Fluorophotometry of the central corneal epithelium was done utilizing the Fluorotron Master (TradeMark). Each eye had a baseline fluorescein scan performed, after which 50 l of 1% sodium fluorescein dye was instilled. Three minutes later, the fluorescein was washed with 50 ml of normal saline. Fluorescein scans were then started immediately after washing and were recorded at 10, 20, 40, and 60 minutes thereafter. The corneal peak values of fluorescein concentration were recorded within the central cornea in both dry eyes and in controls. RESULTS: Ten minutes after fluorescein installition, patients with dry eye disease averaged a five-fold increase in corneal tissue fluorescein concentration (mean = 375.26 ± 202.67 ng/ml) compared with that of normal subjects (mean = 128.19 ± 85.84 ng/ml). Sixty minutes after dye installation, patients with dry eye disease still revealed higher corneal tissue fluorescein concentration (mean = 112.87 ± 52.83 ng/ml) compared with that of controls (mean = 40.64 ± 7.96 ng/ml), averaging a three-fold increase. CONCLUSION: Patients with dry eye disease demonstrated an increased corneal permeability and a slower rate of elimination to topically administered fluorescein when measured by the fluorophotometer. This suggests that fluorophotometry may serve as a valuable quantitative and objective tool for the diagnosis of dry eye disease, and in following patients' response to new treatment modalities. Fluorophotometry may serve as an objective non-invasive tool for end-point analysis in clinical trials of new treatments for dry eye disease

Risk of Heart Failure in Breast Cancer Patients After Anthracycline and Trastuzumab Treatment: A Retrospective Cohort Study

Background: Clinical trials demonstrated that women treated for breast cancer with anthracycline or trastuzumab are at increased risk for heart failure and/or cardiomyopathy (HF/CM), but the generalizability of these findings is unknown. We estimated real-world adjuvant anthracycline and trastuzumab use and their associations with incident HF/CM. Methods We conducted a population-based, retrospective cohort study of 12 500 women diagnosed with incident, invasive breast cancer from January 1, 1999 through December 31, 2007, at eight integrated Cancer Research Network health systems. Using administrative procedure and pharmacy codes, we identified anthracycline, trastuzumab, and other chemotherapy use. We identified incident HF/CM following chemotherapy initiation and assessed risk of HF/CM with time-varying chemotherapy exposures vs no chemotherapy. Multivariable Cox proportional hazards regression models were used to estimate hazard ratios (HRs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) with adjustment for age at diagnosis, stage, Cancer Research Network site, year of diagnosis, radiation therapy, and comorbidities. Results: Among 12 500 women (mean age &#x003D; 60 years, range &#x003D; 22–99 years), 29.6% received anthracycline alone, 0.9% received trastuzumab alone, 3.5% received anthracycline plus trastuzumab, 19.5% received other chemotherapy, and 46.5% received no chemotherapy. Anthracycline and trastuzumab recipients were younger, with fewer comorbidities than recipients of other chemotherapy or none. Compared with no chemotherapy, the risk of HF/CM was higher in patients treated with anthracycline alone (adjusted HR &#x003D; 1.40, 95% CI &#x003D; 1.11 to 1.76), although the increased risk was similar to other chemotherapy (adjusted HR &#x003D; 1.49, 95% CI &#x003D; 1.25 to 1.77); the risk was highly increased in patients treated with trastuzumab alone (adjusted HR &#x003D; 4.12, 95% CI &#x003D; 2.30 to 7.42) or anthracycline plus trastuzumab (adjusted HR &#x003D; 7.19, 95% CI &#x003D; 5.00 to 10.35). Conclusions: Anthracycline and trastuzumab were primarily used in younger, healthier women and associated with increased HF/CM risk compared with no chemotherapy. This population-based observational study complements findings from clinical trials on cancer treatment safety

X-ray Microdiffraction Characterization of Deformation Heterogeneities in BCC Crystals

The deformation behavior of BCC metals is being investigated by x-ray microdiffraction measurements (mu XRD) for the purpose of characterizing the dislocation structure that results from uniaxial compression experiments. The high brilliance synchrotron source at the Advanced Light Source (Lawrence Berkeley National Lab) and the micron resolution of the focusing optics allow for the mapping of Laue diffraction patterns across a sample. These measurements are then analyzed in order to map the distribution of residual stresses in the crystal. An important finding is the observation of Laue spot ''streaking'', which indicates localized rotations in the lattice. These may represent an accumulation of same-sign dislocations. Theoretical modeling of the diffraction response for various slip systems is presented, and compared to experimental data. Preliminary results include orientation maps from a highly strained Ta bicrystal and a less highly strained Mo single crystal. The orientation maps of the bicrystal indicate a cell-like structure of dense dislocation walls. This deformation structure is consistent with previous OIM studies of the same crystal. The results suggest that mu XRD may be a particularly useful tool for microscale studies of deformation patterns in a multi-scale investigation of the mechanisms of deformation that ranges from macroscopic deformation tests to high resolution TEM studies of dislocation structures