Micro-mechanical study of sand fabric during earthquake

The seismically induced interface friction capacity of piled foundations is a function of the soil-pile interface friction, the relative stiffness of the pile and the soil and the volume changes in the soil adjacent to the pile which affect the strength and stiffness of the soil. In order to fully understand this interface it is necessary to study the behaviour at the micro level which is possible with Discrete Element Modelling. A 2D DEM model was developed that simulated a section of an inflexible pile in a coarse grained soil that was subject to cyclic shear load. The model had to be representative of typical soil behaviour so it was necessary to carry out a sensitivity analysis to investigate the effect the micro behaviour had upon the macro properties, properties that are typically interpreted from laboratory tests such as triaxial tests. It was necessary to develop appropriate boundary conditions that allowed shear to be applied and dynamic deformable boundary particles to absorb some of the energy. In order to appreciate the stability of the particles, a new fabric quantity called the “symmetric geometric deviation index” was developed to show the deviation of the contact points from a symmetric, stable distribution. The results of the sensitivity analysis showed that the macro stress strain response and dilation behaviour with deformable boundary particles is more representative of actual behaviour than that with rigid boundaries. Further, the symmetric geometric deviation index was constant post peak for deformable boundaries, suggesting critical state conditions whereas it continued to change with rigid boundaries. A study of the impact of size of the element and the boundary conditions led to the development of DEM model which could be used to simulate the effect of a horizontal cyclic shear load applied to the base of the element. A comparison between a soil element with deformable boundaries and a soil element adjacent to a pile showed that the pile increased the shear stress in the soil which would lead to greater deformation consistent with observations in practice

New modalities for treatment of diabetic nephropathy: a mini review

Background and aims: Diabetic nephropathy (DN) is the most common cause of end-stage renal failure which could increase the risk of cardiovascular disease and morbidity and mortality in patients. The aim of this study was to investigate new modalities for treatment of diabetic nephropathy. Methods:This study was a mini-review research to investigate drugs that are used for DN treatment. Results: Angiotensin converting enzyme inhibitors (ACEi) and angiotensin receptors blocker (ARB) are the bases of DN treatment during recent decades. Due to some of adverse reactions of these drugs like hyperkalemia and chronic cough, other drugs such as non dihydropridin Ca channel blockers, uric acid lowering drugs, renin antagonists, lipid lowering agents, oral hypoglycemic agents such as Thiazolidinediones, Vitamin D and selective endothelin receptor antagonists have been used in some studies for decreasing proteinuria and slowing progression of DN. The results of these studies are different and controversial in some cases. Conclusion: The cornerstone of diabetic nephropathy is prescription of angiotensin receptor antagonists or angiotensin converting enzyme inhibitors or combination of two classes of drugs. For increasing the antiproteinuric effect of treatment or occurring the adverse effects of these drugs, (especially hyperkalemia), other agents such as Ca channel blockers, direct renin inhibitors, thioglithazons, uric acid lowering drugs or vitamin D may be added or replaced

Holographic Complexity in Gauge/String Superconductors

Following a methodology similar to \cite{Alishahiha:2015rta}, we derive a holographic complexity for two dimensional holographic superconductors (gauge/string superconductors) with backreactions. Applying a perturbation method proposed by Kanno in Ref. \cite{kanno}, we study behaviors of the complexity for a dual quantum system near critical points. We show that when a system moves from the normal phase ($T>T_c$) to the superconductor phase ($T<T_c$), the holographic complexity will be divergent.Comment: 6 page

Research, Development, Production and Performance of heavy duty CNG fleets in Iran

In recent years, along with the trend toward clean air and less dependency to imported oil products, there has been increasing willing to use substitute fuels in transport industry. Automobile industry is an exhaustive industry bringing development for any country. The industrial capabilities needed for development rest in this branch of industry. The Iranian automobile making companies move in line with this aim. But in recent decades, in addition to development of automobile industry, the pollution too has occupied the minds of the authorities of these companies. Some measures, investments, researches, and exhaustive studies related to the pollution problem have been made to produce an automobile of higher technology and lower pollution.Natural gas,Substitutes fuels

Wave-based extreme deep learning based on non-linear time-Floquet entanglement

Wave-based analog signal processing holds the promise of extremely fast, on-the-fly, power-efficient data processing, occurring as a wave propagates through an artificially engineered medium. Yet, due to the fundamentally weak non-linearities of traditional wave materials, such analog processors have been so far largely confined to simple linear projections such as image edge detection or matrix multiplications. Complex neuromorphic computing tasks, which inherently require strong non-linearities, have so far remained out-of-reach of wave-based solutions, with a few attempts that implemented non-linearities on the digital front, or used weak and inflexible non-linear sensors, restraining the learning performance. Here, we tackle this issue by demonstrating the relevance of Time-Floquet physics to induce a strong non-linear entanglement between signal inputs at different frequencies, enabling a power-efficient and versatile wave platform for analog extreme deep learning involving a single, uniformly modulated dielectric layer and a scattering medium. We prove the efficiency of the method for extreme learning machines and reservoir computing to solve a range of challenging learning tasks, from forecasting chaotic time series to the simultaneous classification of distinct datasets. Our results open the way for wave-based machine learning with high energy efficiency, speed, and scalability.Comment: 23 pages, 9 figure

Cephalometric Comparison of Position of the Hyoid Bone in Class I and Class II Patients

Background: According to the close proximity of hyoid bone with dentofacial structures and its muscular attachments, a probable relationship between it and different types of skeletal patterns is suspected. Objectives: The aim of this study is compare the position of hyoid bone in skeletal class I and class II patients. Methods: In this study 50 cephalograms were divided into two groups, skeletal class I (1 ≤ ANB ≤ 4) and skeletal class II (ANB > 4), with 24 and 26 patients in each group, respectively. Horizontal and vertical position of hyoid bone were evaluated. SPSS software and student t-test were used to analyze the data. Results: According to the results of our study, there is no statistically significant difference between the hyoid bone position in skeletal class I and skeletal class II patients. Conclusions: Since the hyoid bone position is similar in skeletal class I and class II patients, the skeletal pattern is not the only determinant of the position of hyoid bon

Kartagener Syndrome With Focal Segmental Glomerulosclerosis

Primary ciliary dyskinesia is characterized by congenital impairment of mucociliary clearance. Kartagener syndrome (KS) is a clinical variant of primary ciliary dyskinesia which is involved in situs inversus associated with chronic respiratory infections. In addition, glomerular disease in KS syndrome is rare and reported cases are limited. We had a 27-year-old female patient with KS who presented with proteinuria, hematuria, normal kidney function, and a family history of systemic lupus erythematosus. Kidney biopsy showed segmental scar with adhesion to Bowman capsule, which was indicative of focal segmental glomerulosclerosis

Correlation of serum uric acid and proteinuria in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus

Background: Diabetes mellitus is one of the most common and important metabolic diseases worldwide. Hperuricemia is associated with kidney damage manifested by glomerular hypertrophy and sclerosis. The aim of this study was evaluation of association between serum uric acid level and proteinuria in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus. Methods: A total of 140 patients (48 men and 92 women) with type 2 diabetes mellitus were enrolled in the study. Demographic criteria as age, body mass index, serum uric acid level and 24 hours urine protein were measured in these patients. Finding: Mean of patients age was 59.8 ± 10 years. Uric acid level in patients with significant proteinuria (≥ 500 mg/24 h) and mild proteinuria (< 500 mg/24 h) were 6.70 ± 1.82 and 5.06 ± 1.46 mg/dl respectively (P < 0.001). Serum uric acid level had positive correlation with 24 hours urine protein, duration of diabetes and insulin treatment. Conclusion: In type 2 diabetes mellitus, serum uric acid level has positive correlation with proteinuria; so uric acid maybe has a role in progression of diabetic nephropathy