National Hospital Management Portal (NHMP): a framework for e-health implementation

Health information represents the main basis for health decisionmaking process and there have been some efforts to increase access to health information in developing countries. However, most of these efforts are based on the internet which has minimal penetration especially in the rural and sub-urban part of developing countries. In this work, a platform for medical record acquisition via the ubiquitous 2.5G/3G wireless communications technologies is presented. The National Hospital Management Portal (NHMP)platform has a central database at each specific country’s national hospita

Differential temporal beta‐diversity patterns of native and non‐native arthropod species in a fragmented native forest landscape

An important factor that hinders the management of non‐native species is a general lack of information regarding the biogeography of non‐natives, and, in particular, their rates of turnover. Here, we address this research gap by analysing differences in temporal beta‐diversity (using both pairwise and multiple‐time dissimilarity metrics) between native and non‐native species, using a novel time‐series dataset of arthropods sampled in native forest fragments in the Azores. We use a null model approach to determine whether temporal beta‐diversity was due to deterministic processes or stochastic colonisation and extinction events, and linear modelling selection to assess the factors driving variation in temporal beta‐diversity between plots. In accordance with our predictions, we found that the temporal beta‐diversity was much greater for non‐native species than for native species, and the null model analyses indicated that the turnover of non‐native species was due to stochastic events. No predictor variables were found to explain the turnover of native or non‐native species. We attribute the greater turnover of non‐native species to source‐sink processes and the close proximity of anthropogenic habitats to the fragmented native forest plots sampled in our study. Thus, our findings point to ways in which the study of turnover can be adapted for future applications in habitat island systems. The implications of this for biodiversity conservation and management are significant. The high rate of stochastic turnover of non‐native species indicates that attempts to simply reduce the populations of non‐native species in situ within native habitats may not be successful. A more efficient management strategy would be to interrupt source‐sink dynamics by improving the harsh boundaries between native and adjacent anthropogenic habitats.Portuguese FCT‐NETBIOME – ISLANDBIODIV grant 0003/2011.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Automatic Electrical Appliances Control Panel Based on Infrared and Wi-Fi: A Framework for Electrical Energy Conservation

-Today, proprietary home automation targets very specific applications which operate mostly on a cable based infrastructure. In contrast to that, our implementation builds on a wireless platform for the automatic control of house hold electrical appliances. The nodes gather sensor readings in a home and transmit them to a central automation server. There, the readings are matched against a list of script statements. When there is a match, a specific action is performed. An important property of the system is that the control of all home appliances is done by means of the ubiquitous Infrared and Wi-Fi wireless technologies. This way, the co-operation between manufacturers is not a necessity in order to connect devices to the home automation network

Bosonic Colored Group Field Theory

Bosonic colored group field theory is considered. Focusing first on dimension four, namely the colored Ooguri group field model, the main properties of Feynman graphs are studied. This leads to a theorem on optimal perturbative bounds of Feynman amplitudes in the "ultraspin" (large spin) limit. The results are generalized in any dimension. Finally integrating out two colors we write a new representation which could be useful for the constructive analysis of this type of models

High-power operation of a K-band second harmonic gyroklystron

Amplification studies of a two-cavity second-harmonic gyroklystron are reported. A magnetron injection gun produces a 440 kV, 200–245 A, 1 μs beam with an average perpendicular-to-parallel velocity ratio slightly less than 1. The TE011 input cavity is driven near 9.88 GHz and the TE021 output cavity resonates near 19.76 GHz. Peak powers exceeding 21 MW are achieved with an efficiency near 21% and a large signal gain above 25 dB. This performance represents the current state of the art for gyroklystrons in terms of the peak power normalized to the output wavelength squared

Pollen and Macrofossil Study of an Interglacial Deposit in Nova Scotia

Overburden removal for quarrying operations at the Milford Gypsum Quarry, East Milford, Nova Scotia, exposed 2 m of compacted and distorted peat and organic clays with abundant plant remains, associated with inorganic and laminated clays and sands. The non-glacial sediments were underlain by a grey till-like deposit and overlain by more than 20 m of red till. Wood (Larix sp.) from the nonglacial sediments produced a radiocarbon date of > 50,000 years BP (GSC-1642). Pollen analysis of the organic sediments shows a basal assemblage characterized by a variety of hardwood pollen genera including Fagus, Ulmus, Acer, Quercus and Tilia. Higher in the sequence Betula pollen increases and becomes the dominant pollen type. Towards the upper part of the organic unit, Picea and Abies balsamea replace the hardwood genera. Alnus is the most abundant pollen type at the top of the sequence. Wood, seeds, moss and Coleoptera remains add to the environmental reconstruction. The evidence as a whole leads to the conclusion that the latter part of an interglacial interval, probably the Sangamon, is represented. Hardwood forests dominated by a variety of thermophilous hardwood genera attest to a climate at least as warm as the present in the area. As the climate deteriorated, Betula became dominant. Continued cooling induced a transition to coniferous forests in which Picea and Abies balsamea predominated.L'enlèvement des formations superficielles, lors d'excavations dans la carrière de gypse d'East Milford en Nouvelle-Ecosse, a mis à jour 2 m de tourbe et d'argile organique compactées et déformées, ainsi que d'abondants restes végétaux, associés à des argiles et sables inorganiques et laminés. Les sédiments non glaciaires reposaient sur un dépôt gris ayant l'apparence de till et étaient recouverts par une couche de plus de 20 m de till rouge. Du bois met de la séquence. Des restes de bois, de graines et de mousses de > 50 000 ans BP (GSC-1642). L'analyse pollinique des sédiments organiques montre à la base un assemblage caractérisé par du pollen provenant de divers genres de feuillus, dont Fagus, Ulmus, Acer, Quercus et Tilia. Le pollen de Betula augmente vers le haut dans la séquence et devient le type dominant. Dans la partie supérieure de la séquence organique, Picea et Abies balsamea remplacent les bois durs. Alnus est le type de pollen le plus abondant au sommet de la séquence. Des restes de bois, de graines, de mousses et de Coléoptères aident à reconstituer l'environnement. Dans l'ensemble, les preuves permettent de conclure que la séquence date de la dernière partie d'un interglaciaire, probablement le Sangamonien. Les forêts de feuillus, dominées par une variété de genres thermophiles, témoignent d'un climat au moins aussi chaud que le climat actuel dans la région. À mesure que le climat s'est détérioré, les Betula ont proliféré. Le refroidissement continu a provoqué une transition vers les forêts de conifères dans lesquelles ont prédominé Picea et Abies balsamea

A Guiding Framework for Process Parameter Optimisation of Thermal Spraying

Currently, most thermal spray coating service providers expect original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) to suggest the coating recipe, comprising of the right coating equipment, starting process parameters, type of inert gases, and robot program. The microstructure and mechanical properties may not comply in the first few runs. Feedback from a competent material testing service provider forms the initial step to adjust the parameters in the development journey, toward identifying the processing parameters required to obtain an acceptable coating. With the surge of interest in sustainable manufacturing, the time spent on trials in the future will shrink, and a more rigorous process needs to be applied to achieve the “right-first-time manufacturing” approach in thermal spraying. However, a framework for the systematic development of thermal spray parameter optimisation is lacking. This article provides a framework, based on a logical acumen, in selecting the right process parameters, using available data and prior knowledge about the thermal spraying process. To that end, the article summarises the extant developmental journey of thermal spray process parameters, by covering the aspects of equipment choice, robot and spray parameters, and how to minimise iterations, using diagnostic tools to get to the end solution most efficiently. This article, in its current form, will serve as a good guide for early career engineers and scientists or workers, to minimise the time processing window, by avoiding endless iterations to deposit a certain type of coating using thermal spraying. Besides, this work is also aimed at transforming academic research innovations to a robust and repeatable industrial manufacturing process

Searching for solar-like oscillations in the delta Scuti star rho Puppis

Despite the shallow convective envelopes of delta Scuti pulsators, solar-like oscillations are theoretically predicted to be excited in those stars as well. To search for such stochastic oscillations we organised a spectroscopic multi-site campaign for the bright, metal-rich delta Sct star rho Puppis. We obtained a total of 2763 high-resolution spectra using four telescopes. We discuss the reduction and analysis with the iodine cell technique, developed for searching for low-amplitude radial velocity variations, in the presence of high-amplitude variability. Furthermore, we have determined the angular diameter of rho Puppis to be 1.68 \pm 0.03 mas, translating into a radius of 3.52 \pm 0.07Rsun. Using this value, the frequency of maximum power of possible solar-like oscillations, is expected at ~43 \pm 2 c/d (498 \pm 23 muHz). The dominant delta Scuti-type pulsation mode of rho Puppis is known to be the radial fundamental mode which allows us to determine the mean density of the star, and therefore an expected large frequency separation of 2.73 c/d (31.6 muHz). We conclude that 1) the radial velocity amplitudes of the delta Scuti pulsations are different for different spectral lines; 2) we can exclude solar-like oscillations to be present in rho Puppis with an amplitude per radial mode larger than 0.5 m/s.Comment: 14 pages, 12 figure, accepted for MNRA