Singularities and stable homotopy groups of spheres I

We establish an interesting connection between Morin singularities and stable homotopy groups of spheres. We apply this connection to computations of cobordism groups of certain singular maps. The differentials of the spectral sequence computing these cobordism groups are given by the composition multiplication in the stable homotopy groups of spheres.Comment: 39 pages, 1 figure, revised again for Journal of Singularitie

Speciális fizikai módszerek kidolgozása és alkalmazása interdiszciplináris kutatási problémákra = Development and application of special physical methods for interdisciplinary research problems

A KFKI RMKI 5 MV-os Van de Graff gyorsítójánál újra felépítettük, működésbe hoztuk és több ponton továbbfejlesztettük a Hamburg proton mikroszondát, lényegében elérve a korábbi térbeli felbontást (1.2 x 2.4 micro m2 nyalábméret, 500 pA proton áram), de a hamburgi 2 MeV proton energia helyett a nagyobb hatékonyságot biztosító 2.5 MeV proton energián működtetve is. Első alkalmazásokként előzetes mikroPIXE méréseket végeztünk savas esőnek kitett beton korróziós profiljának, valamint éves növekményt mutató hal hallócsont (otolit) metszetek elemeloszlásának meghatározására. Sikeresen adaptáltuk a mikroszondára a korábban milli-nyalábra kidolgozott PIXE-PAGE módszerünket, melytől további fontos eredményeket várunk a fémtartalmú fehérjemolekulák kutatásában. A kulturális örökség megóvását elősegítendő hordozható radioizotóp gerjesztésű XRF berendezést építettünk, mellyel a műtárgyak roncsolásmentes analízise akár in situ is elvégezhető. Módszereket dolgoztunk ki a festékrétegekben kis emnnyiségben jelenlévő Ti kimutatására, melynek fontosságá az adja meg,hogy a titánfehér előfordulása fontos érv vitatott festmények eredetiségének eldöntésében. Hatékony számítási módszert dolgoztunk ki a vastag XRF és PIXE mintákban fellépő belső gerjesztés hatásának figyelembevételére. Hiánypótló méresekkel abszolút gamma sugárzás hozamokat határoztunk meg 10 és 15 MeV energiájú alfa részecskékkel bombázva vastag Ti, Cr, Mn, Fe, Co, Ni, Cu és Zn céltárgyakat. | The gifted former Hamburg proton microprobe was successfully reinstalled at the 5 MV accelerator of the KFKI RMKI and several improvements were also made. Practically the same spatial resolution was achieved (1.2 x 2.4 micro m2 beam spot, 500 pA proton current), as they did in Hamburg, but using more effective 2.5 MeV energy protons. As first application, microPIXE elemental mappings were carried out to determine the corrosion profile of concrete pieces exposed to acidic rains. Fish otolith sections revealing annual growth was also mapped. Our PIXE-PAGE method developed by using millimeter sized proton beams was succesfully adapted to the microprobe. Further important results in the study metalloproteins are expected from this adaptation. In connection with the preservation of the cultural heritage a small portable XRF spectrometer of radioisotope excitation was built. This instrument is well suited to perform non-destructive in situ analysis of art and archaeological objects Methods were also developed for XRF detection of small amounts of Ti in paint layers. The importance of this effort is given by the fact that the presence of titanium white in a debated paintig could provide important arguments against its originality. A fast computing method was developed to take into account the internal excitation effect in the quantitative evaluation of thick sample XRF and PIXE measurements. Alpha particle induced thick target gamma yields of potential analytical use were measured for Ti, Cr, Mn, Fe, Co, Ni, Cu és Zn targets. At the 10 and 15 MeV alpha energies we used no reilable data were available in the literature

Late cardiac effect of anthracycline therapy in physically active breast cancer survivors - a prospective study

The late-onset cardiotoxic effect of anthracycline is known, however the early detection and prevention of subclinical myocardial damage has not been fully understood yet. Besides medical therapy regular physical activities may also play a role in the prevention and reduction of side effects of chemotherapy. The aim of our present study was to detect the effect of regular physical activities on the diastolic function and on the symptoms of late heart failure in case of anthracycline chemotherapy. The prospective study included 55 female patients (age 31-65 year, average 49.5 years) with breast cancer and no cardiovascular risk factors. Proper cardiologic checkup included physical examination (blood pressure, pulse, etc.), ECG, standard echocardiography parameters (EF, LV dimensions etc.) and specific tissue Doppler (TDI) measurements. Symptoms of heart failure were also recorded. After five years of follow-up, symptoms of heart failure were evaluated again. Patients were assigned into two groups depending on their physical activity: 36 patients did perform regular physical activities (mean age 49.2 years) and 19 patients did not (average age 50.1 years). There was no significant difference between the two groups in basic physiological or standard echocardiography parameters neither at the baseline nor at the later time points. Diastolic dysfunction (decreased E/A) was detected 6 months after the beginning of the treatment (T2 time point) in both groups. In the inactive group this value fell below one however there was no significant difference (1.1+/-0.25 vs. 0.95+/-0.22). One year after the beginning of the treatment (T3) a significant difference could be detected between the two groups (1.05+/-0.28 vs. 0.86+/-0.25. P=0.038). Consistent change in diastolic function (Ea/Aa) could be detected with the more sensitive TDI (Tissue Doppler Imaging) measurements after treatments in both groups, especially in the septal segment (in the non active group the Ea/Aa decreased markedly but not significantly at T2 - 1.1+/-0.55 vs. 0.81+/-0.44, and this difference became significant at T3 and 2 years after treatment (T4), p=0.007 and p=0.065). The filling pressure (E/Ea) rose above 10 (p=0.09) in the non active group at T2; and it kept rising in both groups and became significant at T3 (p=0.012). Five years after the onset of the treatment symptoms of heart failure were less frequently reported in the physically active group than in the inactive one (19.45% vs. 68.42%). The data of our study show that the diastolic dysfunction of the left ventricle related to the anthracycline therapy became evident in the physically active group later and the symptoms of heart failure were less frequent than in the non active group after five years period. Enrollment in sport activities could be a good means for partial prevention in this group of patients. Cardiologic checkup at proper intervals plays a pivotal role in detection of possible cardiotoxicity. This is a strong indication for changes in the lifestyle of the patient and the treatment protocol alike

A mezőgazdaság versenyképességének összetevői. = Components of competitiveness of the agriculture.

A kutatás ötödik évében a kutatási folyamat logikai modellje teljes egészében kiépült. A logikai modell adja meg a zárójelentés struktúráját is. Ezek mentén, öt területen értünk el jelentős eredményeket. 1. Sikerült a versenyképesség és hatékonyság közötti kapcsolat elméleti megalapozása, amelyet kiterjesztettünk az innovációra és a műszaki fejlesztésre is. 2. A versenyképesség vállalati fogalmát kiterjesztettük társadalmi és környezeti elemekkel. A kérdőív segítségével definiáltuk a mezőgazdasági családi gazdaságok érdekeltségi rendszerét, amely a sikeresség, az életképesség ismérveihez kapcsolódik. 3. Ugyancsak kérdőív segítségével modulokba foglaltuk a mezőgazdaság versenyképességének összetevőit és a súlyszámok alapján meghatároztuk azok fontosságát. 4. A nemzetközi kereskedelem intenzitására épülő Balassa mutatók továbbfejlesztett változatai mellett a DRC három mutatójával és a CMS mutatóval egészítettük ki a módszertani bázist. 2008. évben frissítettük a számításokat 5. Megfogalmaztunk néhány tanulságot, számítási eredményeinket összehasonlítottuk a hagyományos módon számított eredményekkel. | In the fifth year of research, the logic model of the research process has totally been built. Theory - methodological arsenal - competitiveness calculations - creation of empirical background - drawn up conclusions. These five stages also give the structure of the final report. According to them, we have reached results in five main areas. 1. We have managed to support theoretically the relationship between competitiveness and efficiency, which we have extended to innovation and technological development as well. 2. We have completed the entrepreneurial aspect of the notion of competitiveness with social and environmental elements. We have defined - with the help of the survey - the interest system of agricultural family farms, which relates to criteria of success and viability. 3. With the help of the survey, we have created modules to classify the components of agricultural competitiveness and we have determined their significance by weight-numbers. 4. The methodological base was supplemented by three indices of DRC method, the CMS method and improved versions of Balassa indices built on intensity of international trade. We have actualised our calculations for 2008. 5. We have formulated some lessons and compared our results of calculations with traditional results of calculations

Scale-up of Aflatoxin Purification by Centrifugal Partition Chromatography

Aflatoxins (AFs) are a group of secondary metabolites that cause several diseases in both animals and humans. Since the discovery of this group of toxins, several effects were revealed, such as hepatic changes, carcinoma, failure, and cancer of the liver. In the European Union, there are concentration limits for this group of mycotoxins in food and feed products; thus, these substances are required in their pure forms to prepare reference standards or certified reference materials. In our present work, a liquid–liquid chromatographic method utilizing a toluene/acetic acid/water ternary system was improved. In order to enhance the purification and gain a higher amount of pure AFs in one separation run, a scale-up of the previous separation was carried out. In several scale-up steps—including the determination of the maximum concentration and volume to load on a 250 mL rotor via a loop and via a pump as well, and the quadruplication of the entire separation procedure to a 1000 mL rotor—an efficient scale-up was achieved. Utilizing a 250 mL rotor in an 8-hour workday, altogether approximately 2.2 g of total AFs could be purified with 8.2 liters of solvent, while on a 1000 mL column, approximately 7.8 g AFs could be prepared, utilizing around 31 liters of solvents