Computing the Region Areas of Euler Diagrams Drawn with Three Ellipses

Ellipses generate accurate area-proportional Euler diagrams for more data than is possible with circles. However, computing the region areas is difficult as ellipses have various degrees of freedom. Numerical methods could be used, but approximation errors are introduced. Current analytic methods are limited to computing the area of only two overlapping ellipses, but area-proportional Euler diagrams in diverse application areas often have three curves. This paper provides an overview of different methods that could be used to compute the region areas of Euler diagrams drawn with ellipses. We also detail two novel analytic algorithms to instantaneously compute the exact region areas of three general overlapping ellipses. One of the algorithms decomposes the region of interest into ellipse segments, while the other uses integral calculus. Both methods perform equally well with respect to accuracy and time

Drivers and drawbacks of an external auditing career

With this study the authors shed light on Maltese auditors’ perceptions about a professional career in auditing. They examine the motivational factors that steer individuals towards a career in auditing. In addition, an analysis of the drawbacks encountered in the auditing profession from the perspective of the Maltese auditors is also carried out. An explanatory sequential mixed method design was employed. A questionnaire was first distributed to audit practitioners working within Maltese audit firms, and 205 responses were received. This was followed by ten semi-structured interviews with auditors. Findings highlight job security as the most significant career driver and that if Maltese auditors had to look for another job, the majority would not opt for an audit-related post but would instead move towards other accountancy-related jobs. Moreover, it was concluded that factors such as heavy workload, stress and problems with managing work-life balance are associated with the auditing profession, especially by respondents working within Big Four audit firms in Malta.peer-reviewe

eulerForce: Force-directed Layout for Euler Diagrams

Euler diagrams use closed curves to represent sets and their relationships. They facilitate set analysis, as humans tend to perceive distinct regions when closed curves are drawn on a plane. However, current automatic methods often produce diagrams with irregular, non-smooth curves that are not easily distinguishable. Other methods restrict the shape of the curve to for instance a circle, but such methods cannot draw an Euler diagram with exactly the required curve intersections for any set relations. In this paper, we present eulerForce, as the first method to adopt a force-directed approach to improve the layout and the curves of Euler diagrams generated by current methods. The layouts are improved in quick time. Our evaluation of eulerForce indicates the benefits of a force-directed approach to generate comprehensible Euler diagrams for any set relations in relatively fast time

Combination interventions to prevent HCV transmission among people who inject drugs: modelling the impact of antiviral treatment, needle and syringe programs, and opiate substitution therapy

BackgroundInterventions such as opiate substitution therapy (OST) and high-coverage needle and syringe programs (HCNSP) cannot substantially reduce hepatitis C virus (HCV) prevalence among people who inject drugs (PWID). HCV antiviral treatment may prevent onward transmission. We project the impact of combining OST, HCNSP, and antiviral treatment on HCV prevalence/incidence among PWID.MethodsAn HCV transmission model among PWID was used to project the combinations of OST, HCNSP, and antiviral treatment required to achieve different prevalence and incidence reductions within 10 years for 3 chronic prevalence scenarios and the impact of HCV treatment if only delivered through OST programs. Multivariate and univariate sensitivity analyses were performed.ResultsLarge reductions (>45%) in HCV chronic prevalence over 10 years require HCV antiviral treatment. Scaling up OST and HCNSP substantially reduces the treatment rate required to achieve specific HCV prevalence reductions. If OST and HCNSP coverage were increased to 40% each (no coverage at baseline), then annually treating 10, 23, or 42 per 1000 PWID over 10 years would halve prevalence for 20%, 40%, or 60% baseline chronic HCV prevalences, respectively. Approximately 30% fewer treatments are necessary with new direct-acting antivirals. If coverage of OST and HCNSP is 50% at baseline, similar prevalence reductions require higher treatment rates for the same OST and HCNSP coverage.ConclusionsCombining antiviral treatment with OST with HCNSP is critical for achieving substantial reductions (>50%) in HCV chronic prevalence over 10 years. Empirical studies are required on how best to scale up antiviral treatment and combine treatment with other interventions

Prevalence, correlates and clinical usefulness of antibodies to RNA polymerase III in systemic sclerosis: a cross-sectional analysis of data from an Australian cohort

Extent: 13p.INTRODUCTION: The prevalence of antibodies to RNA polymerase III (anti-RNAP) differs among systemic sclerosis (SSc) cohorts worldwide. Previously reported associations of anti-RNAP include diffuse cutaneous disease, tendon friction rubs and renal crisis, with recent reports suggesting a close temporal association between malignancy and SSc disease onset among patients with anti-RNAP. METHODS: Patients with SSc were tested for the presence of anti-RNAP at recruitment into the Australian Scleroderma Cohort Study. We used univariate and multivariable methods to identify and quantify clinical and laboratory correlates of anti-RNAP in SSc. Diagnostic testing procedures were used to determine the usefulness of these antibodies in estimating the likelihood of clinically important outcomes. RESULTS: There were 451 patients with mean ± standard deviation age and disease duration at recruitment of 58.1 ± 12.4 and 11.6 ± 10.0 years, respectively; 151 (33.5%) patients were recruited within 5 years of diagnosis of SSc. Overall, 69 (15.3%) patients had anti-RNAP. Univariate associations of anti-RNAP were diffuse disease (75.4% vs. 20.9%, P < 0.0001), joint contractures (73.9% vs. 30.1%, P < 0.0001), greater highest-recorded modified Rodnan skin score (20.6 ± 12.4 vs. 10.1 ± 7.9, P < 0.0001), synovitis (31.9% vs. 19.9%, P = 0.03), myositis (2.9% vs. 0.5%, P = 0.05), systemic hypertension (59.4% vs. 39.7%, P = 0.002), renal crisis (24.6% vs. 1.8%, P < 0.0001) and malignancy diagnosed within 5 years of onset of SSc skin disease (13.3% vs. 3.9%, P = 0.01). In multiple regression analysis, after adjustment for other covariates, anti-RNAP were independently associated with renal crisis (odds ratio (OR) 3.8, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.2 to 11.5, P = 0.02; positive predictive value (PPV) 24.6%, negative predictive value (NPV) 98.2%), diffuse disease (OR 6.4, 95% CI 2.9 to 13.8, P < 0.0001; PPV 75.4%, NPV 20.9%), joint contractures (OR 2.5, 95% CI 1.2 to 5.3, P = 0.02; PPV 73.9%, NPV 69.9%) and malignancy diagnosed within 5 years of onset of SSc skin disease (OR 4.2, 95% CI 1.3 to 13.4, P = 0.01; PPV 13.3%, NPV 96.1%). CONCLUSIONS: Anti-RNAP status is a clinically useful prognostic marker in SSc and enables clinicians to identify patients at high risk of developing renal crisis, synovitis, myositis and joint contractures. Patients with anti-RNAP also have an increased risk of malignancy within a 5-year timeframe before or after onset of SSc skin changes.Mandana Nikpour, Pravin Hissaria, Jillian Byron, Joanne Sahhar, Maree Micallef, William Paspaliaris, Janet Roddy, Peter Nash, Alan Sturgess, Susanna Proudman and Wendy Steven

Voyage Report RV Tangaroa Voyage TAN1703, 5 April – 1 May 2017

Meteoric recharge and topographically-driven flow are the most important sources of groundwater recharge in terrestrial settings. In passive continental margins, topographically driven meteoric (TDM) groundwater is only one of a range of drivers of offshore groundwater flow. Other drivers include seawater recirculation, sediment loading, geothermal convection, and diagenesis. Sea level has been much lower than today for 80% of the Quaternary, resulting in the emergence of extensive sections of continental shelf, a reduction of pressure exerted by the sea water column, as well as steepening of the hydraulic gradient and an increase in hydraulic head. The potential of TDM recharge to establish extensive water tables, create massive groundwater fluxes, and generate pore overpressures and discharges across the continental shelf and upper continental slope must have been significantly higher during the majority of the last 2.6 Ma than it is today. Considering that geothermal convection is strongest beneath the continental slope and tends to be dominated by TDM flow during sea level lowstands, whereas sediment loading is most important during rapid deglaciations in high sedimentation zones, TDM recharge is a likely very important driver of offshore groundwater systems in continental shelves and upper slopes globally.peer-reviewe

A hall plate based instrument to measure the snapback in the Large Hadron Collider superconducting dipole magnets

The decay and snapback of the magnetic field multipoles in superconducting particle accelerators like the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) could result in a significant particle beam loss unless adequately compensated. Whilst standard instrumentation used to measure the field quality of the superconducting magnets is good enough to measure the harmonic decay, it is not fast enough to measure the snapback. Therefore, a state of the art instrument was recently developed at CERN to measure the most important harmonics with a high measurement frequency and hence improve the understanding of the snapback phenomenon. In this paper we describe the instrument's principle of operation, its mechanical arrangement, its compensation system and its digital acquisition system. We also compare the performance of two different techniques implemented to achieve the necessary measurement resolution of 6 orders of magnitude lower than the main superimposed dipole field.peer-reviewe

Computational fluid dynamics modelling of an entire synchronous generator for improved thermal management

This study is the first in a series dedicated to investigating the airflow and thermal management of electrical machines. Owing to the temperature dependent resistive losses in the machine's windings, any improvement in cooling provides a direct reduction in losses and an increase in efficiency. This study focuses on the airflow which is intrinsically linked to the thermal behaviour of the machine as well as the windage power consumed to drive the air through the machine. A full computational fluid dynamics (CFD) model has been used to analyse the airflow around all major components of the machine. Results have been experimentally validated and investigated. At synchronous speed the experimentally tested mass flow rate and windage torque were under predicted by 4% and 7%, respectively, by the CFD. A break-down of torque by component shows that the fan consumes approximately 87% of the windage torque

Parabrachial Interleukin-6 reduces body weight and food intake and increases thermogenesis to regulate energy metabolism

Chronic low-grade inflammation and increased serum levels of the cytokine IL-6 accompany obesity. For brain-produced IL-6, the mechanisms by which it controls energy balance and its role in obesity remain unclear. Here, we show that brain-produced IL-6 is decreased in obese mice and rats in a neuroanatomically and sex-specific manner. Reduced IL-6 mRNA localized to lateral parabrachial nucleus (lPBN) astrocytes, microglia, and neurons, including paraventricular hypothalamus-innervating lPBN neurons. IL-6 microinjection into lPBN reduced food intake and increased brown adipose tissue (BAT) thermogenesis in male lean and obese rats by increasing thyroid and sympathetic outflow to BAT. Parabrachial IL-6 interacted with leptin to reduce feeding. siRNA-mediated reduction of lPBN IL-6 leads to increased weight gain and adiposity, reduced BAT thermogenesis, and increased food intake. Ambient cold exposure partly normalizes the obesity-induced suppression of lPBN IL-6. These results indicate that lPBN-produced IL-6 regulates feeding and metabolism and pinpoints (patho)physiological contexts interacting with lPBN IL-6This research was funded by the Swedish Research Council ( 2014-2945 to K.P.S.; 2017-00792 to I.W.A.; and 2013-7107 to Patrik Rorsman), the Novo Nordisk Foundation Excellence project grant (to K.P.S. and I.W.A.), the Ragnar Söderberg Foundation (to K.P.S.), Harald Jeanssons Stiftelse and Greta Jeanssons Stiftelse (to K.P.S.), Magnus Bergvalls Stiftelse (to K.P.S.), the Wallenberg Foundation and the Center for Molecular and Translational Medicine (to K.P.S.), postdoctoral stipendium from The Swedish Brain Foundation (to D.M.), the ERC ( BFU2015-70664-R and StG-281408 ) (to R.N.), and the NIH ( DK-21397 ) (to H.J.G.)S