Wave-piercing catamaran transom stern ventilation process

The new class of highly fuel-efficient medium-speed catamarans operate at speeds where the transom is partially or fully ventilated, hence it is important to understand the characteristics of the wake for resistance prediction. Unsteady Reynolds-Averaged Navier Stokes simulations were used to simulate the flow around a 98 m catamaran, at both model and full scale, and compared to model test results for a 1:22 scale model. A non-shedding squashed horseshoe vortex was found to build up in the stagnant zone past the vessel, with the transom running dry at transom draft Froude numbers of 2.5 in model test experiments and at transom draft Froude numbers of 2.4 in numerical simulations. For full-scale Reynolds numbers, ventilation occurred at transom draft Froude numbers of 2.2. Finally, unsteady Reynolds-Averaged Navier Stokes simulations are capable of accurately predicting the recirculating flow in the wake of the vessel and the state of transom ventilation

Epidemiology and Prevention of Prostate Cancer in Vietnam

Prostate cancer is the second most common cancer in men worldwide and a leading cause of mortality. Incidences continues to rise and vary substantially between populations. Although the prevalence of prostate cancer is relatively low in Vietnam, some hospital-based reports have shown an upward trend in recent years. While certain non-modifiable factors such as age, race and genetics are known to be mainly responsible, the literature has also suggested that environmental exposures can delay the onset of this disease. The present study provides a review of the epidemiology of prostate cancer in Vietnam by systematically searching several electronic databases. The results confirm an increasing trend of prostate cancer over the past decade, with age-standardised rate more than doubled from 2.2 per 100,000 men in 2000 to 4.7 per 100,000 men in 2010. However, no study has been found on modifiable risk factors, with the exception of one in vitro experiment that showed the inhibitory effect of garlic on the growth of prostate cancer cells. The lack of epidemiological information poses a difficulty to develop public health interventions to prevent this emerging malignant disease in Vietnam

The Need for Sensemaking in Networked Privacy and Algorithmic Responsibility

This paper proposes that two significant and emerging problems facing our connected, data-driven society may be more effectively solved by being framed as sensemaking challenges. The first is in empowering individuals to take control of their privacy, in device-rich information environments where personal information is fed transparently to complex networks of information brokers. Although sensemaking is often framed as an analytical activity undertaken by experts, due to the fact that non-specialist end-users are now being forced to make expert-like decisions in complex information environments, we argue that it is both appropriate and important to consider sensemaking challenges in this context. The second is in supporting human-in-the-loop algorithmic decision-making, in which important decisions bringing direct consequences for individuals, or indirect consequences for groups, are made with the support of data-driven algorithmic systems. In both privacy and algorithmic decision-making, framing the problems as sensemaking challenges acknowledges complex and illdefined problem structures, and affords the opportunity to view these activities as both building up relevant expertise schemas over time, and being driven potentially by recognition-primed decision making

Predictive Model for Strawberry Bud Weevil (Coleoptera: Curculionidae) Adults in Strawberry Fields

Three different sampling methods (sweep net, D-Vac, tapping into a carton container) were evaluated for Anthonomus signatus Say in strawberry fields. The results suggest that sampling with a sweep net reflects population numbers best. A predictive model for adult abundance was developed to describe and predict population build-up. The strawberry fields used in the study were in their 2nd yr of production. Overwintering adults generally begin to appear in a strawberry field ≈300 cumulatitive degree-days (DD) calculated from 1 April at temperatures above 0°C. These weevils attain maximum abundance anywhere from 500 to 670 DD. Within that interval, a treatment with cypermethrin or chlorpyriphos was effective against this pest. The summer generation attained maximum abundance anywhere from 1,250 to 1,650 DD. A treatment with chlorpyriphos at 1,679 DD reduced the summer generation of weevils and decreased clipped buds in the field the following yea

Prevalence of gestational diabetes mellitus in eastern and southeastern Asia: A systematic review and meta-analysis

This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. Aim. To review the prevalence of gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) in Eastern and Southeastern Asia. Methods. We systematically searched for observational studies on GDM prevalence from January 2000 to December 2016. Inclusion criteria were original English papers, with full texts published in peer-reviewed journals. The quality of included studies was evaluated using the guidelines of the National Health and Medical Research Council, Australia. Fixed effects and random effects models were used to estimate the summary prevalence of GDM and the corresponding 95% confidence intervals (CI). Results. A total of 4415 papers were screened, and 48 studies with 63 GDM prevalence observations were included in the final review. The pooled prevalence of GDM was 10.1% (95% CI: 6.5%–15.7%), despite substantial variations across nations. The prevalence of GDM in lower- or upper-middle income countries was about 64% higher than in their high-income counterparts. Moreover, the one-step screening method was twice more likely to be used in diagnosing GDM when compared to the two-step screening procedure. Conclusions. The prevalence of GDM in Eastern and Southeastern Asia was high and varied among and within countries. There is a need for international uniformity in screening strategies and diagnostic criteria for GDM

The effect of non-neovascular age-related macular degeneration on face recognition performance

PURPOSE: There is a well-established research base surrounding face recognition in patients with age-related macular degeneration (AMD). However, much of this existing research does not differentiate between results obtained for 'wet' AMD and 'dry' AMD. Here, we test the hypothesis that face recognition performance is worse in patients with dry AMD compared with visually healthy peers. METHODS: Patients (>60 years of age, logMAR binocular visual acuity 0.7 or better) with dry AMD of varying severity and visually healthy age-related peers (controls) completed a modified version of the Cambridge Face Memory Test (CFMT). Percentage of correctly identified faces was used as an outcome measure for performance for each participant. A 90% normative reference limit was generated from the distribution of CFMT scores recorded in the visually healthy controls. Scores for AMD participants were then specifically compared to this limit, and comparisons between average scores in the AMD severity groups were investigated. RESULTS: Thirty patients (median [interquartile range] age of 76 [70, 79] years) and 34 controls (median age of 70 [64, 75] years) were examined. Four, seventeen and nine patients were classified as having early, intermediate and late AMD (geographic atrophy) respectively. Five (17%) patients recorded a face recognition performance worse than the 90% limit (Fisher's exact test, p = 0.46) set by controls; four of these had geographic atrophy. Patients with geographic atrophy identified fewer faces on average (±SD) (61% ± 22%) than those with early and intermediate AMD (75 ± 11%) and controls (74% ± 11%). CONCLUSIONS: People with dry AMD may not suffer from problems with face recognition until the disease is in its later stages; those with late AMD (geographic atrophy) are likely to have difficulty recognising faces. The results from this study should influence the management and expectations of patients with dry AMD in both community practice and hospital clinics

'It's Reducing a Human Being to a Percentage'; Perceptions of Procedural Justice in Algorithmic Decisions

Data-driven decision-making consequential to individuals raises important questions of accountability and justice. Indeed, European law provides individuals limited rights to ‘meaningful information about the logic’ behind significant, autonomous decisions such as loan approvals, insurance quotes, and CV filtering. We undertake three studies examining people's perceptions of justice in algorithmic decision-making under different scenarios and explanation styles. Dimensions of justice previously observed in response to human decision-making appear similarly engaged in response to algorithmic decisions. Qualitative analysis identified several concerns and heuristics involved in justice perceptions including arbitrariness, generalisation, and (in)dignity. Quantitative analysis indicates that explanation styles primarily matter to justice perceptions only when subjects are exposed to multiple different styles—under repeated exposure of one style, scenario effects obscure any explanation effects. Our results suggests there may be no 'best’ approach to explaining algorithmic decisions, and that reflection on their automated nature both implicates and mitigates justice dimensions

Current methods of evaluating speech-language outcomes for preschoolers with communication disorders: A scoping review using the ICF-CY

Purpose: The purpose of this scoping review was to identify current measures used to evaluate speech-language outcomes for preschoolers with communication disorders within the framework of the International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health – Children and Youth (ICF-CY) (World Health Organization, 2007). Method: The review included five phases outlined by Arksey and O’Malley (2005) and further developed by Levac et al. 2010: (a) articulating the research question, (b) identifying relevant studies, (c) study selection, (d) charting the data, and (e) collating, summarizing and reporting the results. The WHO ICF-CY was used to frame the measures included. Results: A total of 214 relevant peer-reviewed publications were included in the review. Most publications used measures to evaluate changes in outcomes for Activities (65%), followed by measures evaluating changes in Body Functions (20%), and finally measures evaluating changes at the level of Participation (15%). There has been a slight increase in the evaluation of Participation-level outcomes in the past four years (2012-2015). Conclusion: The review revealed a dearth of measures in the pediatric speech-language literature that address Participation-level outcomes. The authors strongly advocate for use of Participation-level outcome measures to detect meaningful change in the lives of children and families

Breastfeeding duration in mothers who express breast milk: a cohort study

BACKGROUND: The expression of breast milk allows a mother to be away intermittently from her infant while continuing to breastfeed. The aim of this study was to investigate the association between expression of breast milk and breastfeeding duration METHODS: A cohort study of 12 months duration. The mothers were recruited from two public maternity hospitals in Perth, Australia between mid-September 2002 and mid-July 2003. While in hospital, participating mothers completed a questionnaire that included questions on how they were feeding their newborn. Telephone interviews conducted at regular periods monitored changes in infant feeding practices, including expression of breast milk. Multivariate Cox regression analysis was used to explore the association between breast milk expression and the duration of any breastfeeding. RESULTS: A total of 587 mothers, or 55% of those eligible, participated in the study. Of these 93.5% were breastfeeding at discharge from hospital. Mothers who expressed breast milk (at one or more time periods) were less likely to discontinue any breastfeeding before six months (Relative Risk 0.71, 95% CI 0.52, 0.98) than those who had never expressed milk. CONCLUSION: This study found that mothers who express breast milk are more likely to breastfeed to six months (any breastfeeding). While further research is required in different cultures to confirm these results, the appropriate use of expressed breast milk may be a means to help mothers to achieve six months of full breastfeeding while giving more lifestyle options

Switching Casimir forces with Phase Change Materials

We demonstrate here a controllable variation in the Casimir force. Changes in the force of up to 20% at separations of ~100 nm between Au and AgInSbTe (AIST) surfaces were achieved upon crystallization of an amorphous sample of AIST. This material is well known for its structural transformation, which produces a significant change in the optical properties and is exploited in optical data storage systems. The finding paves the way to the control of forces in nanosystems, such as micro- or nanoswitches by stimulating the phase change transition via localized heat sources.Comment: 7 pages, 3 figures The AFM images for the inset in Fig.2 were replaced with new ones as obtained with tips having high aspect rati