Investigation of the speed-up of a dual microcontroller parallel processing system in the execution of a mathematical operation

An investigation of the performance of a two microcontroller parallel processing system is presented. A twomicrocontroller parallel processing is developed using low end microcontrollers (PIC 16F877). An 8x8 bit multiply operation and a 16x16 bit multiply operation are executed on a single microcontroller and on the proposed dual microcontroller parallel processing system in order to assess the performance of the proposed system. Results presented show poor performance for the 8x8 bit multiply with an average speed up factor of 0.82 This is due to the time required to transfer data around the dual microcontroller system being significant in comparison to the time required to complete the multiply operation, thus nullifying the potential advantage that might be expected of a dual microcontroller system. The 16x16 multiplier exhibited good performance, with results showing a maximum average speed up factor of 1.7 and an average speed up factor of 1.5. The 16x16 multiplication requires longer time to compute and the data transfer time between microcontrollers whilst still having an impact on the overall computation time is significantly less than for the 8x8 multiplier A formula has been developed to provide an estimate of the possible speed up within a system in relation to the process execution time and the time required to communicate data around the proposed system. The proposed system was developed and tested using the Proteus simulation software

Autonomous drone control within a Wi-Fi network

Over the past ten years there has been a substantial growth in the expenditure of quadcopter drones. Whilst the greatest expense remains with the military, drones are finding increased use in commercial applications such as construction, agriculture, oil and gas and cinematography. However, a major shortcoming of the quadcopter drone is its limited flight time of 30 minutes. Recharging and replacing batteries, significantly impedes and interrupts the desired drone mission. A possible solution is to deploy a number of drones connected and communicating over a network enabling greater area coverage for the same flight time. This paper describes the development of a multiple drone network constructed from commercially available drones. A single autonomous drone is initially constructed which is able to follow a predefined flight plan. The single autonomous drone is developed to enable the formation of a network with other similarly constructed autonomous drones. Flight command codes are able to be transmitted between drones to instruct the receiving drone to fly a particular flight path. Results presented confirm the performance of the controlled flightpath of the autonomous drone and the ability to pass flight command codes between drones across the network

Integrating radio-over-fiber communication system and BOTDR sensor system

In this paper, we propose and experimentally demonstrate for the first time, the integration of a radio-over-fiber (RoF) communication system and a Brillouin optical time-domain reflectometry (BOTDR) distributed sensor system using a single optical fiber link. In this proof-of-concept integrated system, the communication system is composed of three modulation formats of quadrature phase-shift keying (QPSK), 16-quadrature amplitude modulation (16-QAM) and 64-QAM, which are modulated onto an orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) signal. Whereas, the BOTDR sensor system is used for strain and/or temperature monitoring over the fiber distance with a spatial resolution of 5 m using a 25 km single-mode silica fiber. The error vector magnitude (EVM) is analyzed in three modulation formats in the presence of various BOTDR input pump powers. Using QPSK modulation, optimized 18 dBm sensing and 10 dBm data power, the measured EVM values with and without bandpass filter are 3.5% and 14.5%, respectively. The proposed system demonstrates a low temperature measurement error (±0.49 °C at the end of 25 km) and acceptable EVM values, which were within the 3GPP requirements. The proposed integrated system can be effectively applied for practical applications, which significantly reduces the fiber infrastructure cost by effective usage of a single optical fiber lin

Magnetic Resonance Imaging in Cervical Facet Dislocation: A Third World Perspective

Study Design:Retrospective case series. Purpose: The objective of our study was to determine the change in management brought about by magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) of the cervical spine in alert and awake Patients with facet dislocation and spinal cord injury presenting within 4 hours after injury. Overview Of Literature: Spinal cord injury is a common clinical entity. The role of MRI is well established in evaluating spinal trauma. However, the time at which MRI should be used is still controversial. Methods: Retrospective data from 2002-2010 was evaluated. All of the alert and awake Patients with spinal cord injury, based on clinical examination with facet dislocation diagnosed on lateral cervical spine X-rays, were included. A questionnaire was also conducted, the data of which consisted of demographic details including age and sex, the mechanism of injury, clinical examination, X-ray findings, MRI findings, whether or not surgery was performed and the time elapsed since injury. Data was analyzed using SPSS ver. 17.0. Continuous variables such as age were expressed in terms of mean standard deviation. Categorical variables such as change in management, X-ray/MRI findings and neurological motor level were assessed in terms of percentage. Results: Fifty Patients participated in our study. All these Patients had spinal cord injury with defined motor levels. The mean age was 35.5 8.95 years (range, 20 to 52 years). Fifty percent showed a motor level at C6 level. None of the Patients required any change in management based on the MRI. Conclusions: MRI of the spine in awake Patients within 4 hours after injury does not change the management of Patients. However, we can hypothesize that such Patients can proceed to traction without waiting for the MRI

QED in a Strong External Magnetic Field: Beyond the Constant Mass Approximation

We solve the Schwinger-Dyson equations for QED in 2+1 or 3+1 dimensions in the presence of a strong homogeneous external magnetic field. The magnetic field is assumed strong enough, so that the lowest Landau level approximation holds, but the usual assumption of a momentum-independent self-energy is not made. In 2+1 dimensions, the scaling with logarithm changes to a square root dependence on the magnetic field, but the most spectacular result takes place in 3+1 dimensions, where the constant mass approximation turns out to be unreliable and the (momentum-dependent) dynamical mass is larger by several orders of magnitude compared to what has been found till now using the constant mass approximation.Comment: 21 pages, 8 figures, plain latex, references adde

Results from Ireland North and South’s 2022 report card on physical activity for children and adolescents

BackgroundThe Ireland North and South Report Card on Physical Activity (PA) for Children and Adolescents aims to monitor progress in PA participation across a range of internationally established indicators.MethodsData were collated for 11 indicators and graded following the harmonised Active Healthy Kids Global Alliance report card process. Six representative studies (sample size range n = 898 to n = 15,557) were primarily used in the grading, with many indicators supplemented with additional studies and reports. Data collected since the implementation of COVID-19 public health measures in March 2020 were excluded.ResultsGrades were awarded as follows: ‘Overall physical activity’, C-; ‘Organised Sport and Physical Activity’, C; ‘Active Play’, INC; ‘Sedentary Behaviours’, C-; ‘Physical Fitness’, INC; ‘Family and Peers’, D+; ‘School’, C-; ‘Physical Education’, D; ‘Community and Environment’, B+ and ‘Government’, B. Separate grades were awarded for disability as follows; ‘Overall physical activity’, F; ‘Organised Sport and Physical Activity’, D; ‘Sedentary Behaviours’, C-; ‘Family and Peers’, C; ‘School’, C- and ‘Government’, B. ‘Active Play’, ‘Physical Fitness’, ‘Physical Education’ and ‘Community and Environment’ were all graded INC for disability. Since the last report card in 2016, four grades remained the same, three increased (‘Overall physical activity’, ‘School’ and ‘Physical Education’) and two (‘Family and Peers,’ and ‘Government’) were awarded grades for the first time.ConclusionGrades specific to children and adolescents with disability were generally lower for each indicator. While small improvements have been shown across a few indicators, PA levels remain low across many indicators for children and adolescents

Observational Evidence of For-Profit Delivery and Inferior Nursing Home Care: When Is There Enough Evidence for Policy Change?

This research was financially supported by the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council

Results from Ireland North and South’s 2022 report card on physical activity for children and adolescents

BackgroundThe Ireland North and South Report Card on Physical Activity (PA) for Children and Adolescents aims to monitor progress in PA participation across a range of internationally established indicators.MethodsData were collated for 11 indicators and graded following the harmonised Active Healthy Kids Global Alliance report card process. Six representative studies (sample size range n = 898 to n = 15,557) were primarily used in the grading, with many indicators supplemented with additional studies and reports. Data collected since the implementation of COVID-19 public health measures in March 2020 were excluded.ResultsGrades were awarded as follows: ‘Overall physical activity’, C-; ‘Organised Sport and Physical Activity’, C; ‘Active Play’, INC; ‘Sedentary Behaviours’, C-; ‘Physical Fitness’, INC; ‘Family and Peers’, D+; ‘School’, C-; ‘Physical Education’, D; ‘Community and Environment’, B+ and ‘Government’, B. Separate grades were awarded for disability as follows; ‘Overall physical activity’, F; ‘Organised Sport and Physical Activity’, D; ‘Sedentary Behaviours’, C-; ‘Family and Peers’, C; ‘School’, C- and ‘Government’, B. ‘Active Play’, ‘Physical Fitness’, ‘Physical Education’ and ‘Community and Environment’ were all graded INC for disability. Since the last report card in 2016, four grades remained the same, three increased (‘Overall physical activity’, ‘School’ and ‘Physical Education’) and two (‘Family and Peers,’ and ‘Government’) were awarded grades for the first time.ConclusionGrades specific to children and adolescents with disability were generally lower for each indicator. While small improvements have been shown across a few indicators, PA levels remain low across many indicators for children and adolescents

Retrospective analysis of Schlafen11 (SLFN11) to predict the outcomes to therapies affecting the DNA damage response

BACKGROUND: The absence of the putative DNA/RNA helicase Schlafen11 (SLFN11) is thought to cause resistance to DNAdamaging agents (DDAs) and PARP inhibitors. METHODS: We developed and validated a clinically applicable SLFN11 immunohistochemistry assay and retrospectively correlated SLFN11 tumour levels to patient outcome to the standard of care therapies and olaparib maintenance. RESULTS: High SLFN11 associated with improved prognosis to the first-line treatment with DDAs platinum-plus-etoposide in SCLC patients, but was not strongly linked to paclitaxel–platinum response in ovarian cancer patients. Multivariate analysis of patients with relapsed platinum-sensitive ovarian cancer from the randomised, placebo-controlled Phase II olaparib maintenance Study19 showed SLFN11 tumour levels associated with sensitivity to olaparib. Study19 patients with high SLFN11 had a lower progression-free survival (PFS) hazard ratio compared to patients with low SLFN11, although both groups had the benefit of olaparib over placebo. Whilst caveated by small sample size, this trend was maintained for PFS, but not overall survival, when adjusting for BRCA status across the olaparib and placebo treatment groups, a key driver of PARP inhibitor sensitivity. CONCLUSION: We provide clinical evidence supporting the role of SLFN11 as a DDA therapy selection biomarker in SCLC and highlight the need for further clinical investigation into SLFN11 as a PARP inhibitor predictive biomarker