Use of Abstract Formal Elements of Design Combined with Modern Technology and Materials

Artistic Intention and Means of Attainment. The forms of art which I find most satisfying are conceptual or abstract forms as opposed to the forms of literal representation. They are visual ideas derived from a variety of sources interpreting the way the artist conceives relationships of color and form. They are an attempt to embody the essence of an experience or sensation rather than to report an event or represent objective reality in a literal manner. Their interest lies in the expressive force of shape and form and the relationship is between these elements working together in terms of color, mass and movement. Determination of the proper relationship of elements is intuitive and personal. Their inner essence is that of serenity, detachment and clarity arrived at through discipline. It is in these areas of idea and form that I work, embodying both universal elements of form and space which have been of interest to mankind from the earliest civilizations down to the present age, and elements of form derived from modern technology, presented in modern materials through the systems and methods of modern technology. &nbsp;</p

Museum Wave Tank Design

The Santa Maria Discovery Museum would like to add a tsunami wave tank to be one of their demonstrations. The wave tank needs to draw the attention of their young crowd and be educationally informative about the shapes and effects of waves. As this is a museum demonstration for children, the structure, user interface, and wave making mechanism must be durable. We are a senior project team from California Polytechnic State University that worked on this project with Allan Hancock College and Stanford University. We created waves by rapidly moving a plunger vertically in the water column. This project allows a user to select between two wave modes (single wave and continuous) and input a frequency and amplitude. Although the senior project is finished, there is still work that needs to be done before the display is ready. While part of this is further kid proofing and aesthetic improvements, there is still work to be done on the mechanism as well as the control software and hardwar

Ability of the Schatzker classification to predict posteromedial fragmentation in tibial plateau fractures

BACKGROUND : The Schatzker classification is the most widely accepted system used to classify tibial plateau fractures. The presence of posteromedial fragments in the more severe fracture types is known, but the presence of posteromedial fragmentation in the less severe fracture types is unknown. The ability of the Schatzker classification to predict posteromedial fragmentation was evaluated. METHODS : Two hundred patients were reviewed of which only 67 met the inclusion criteria. The X-rays were reviewed by three independent orthopaedic surgeons and classified according to the Schatzker classification. A radiologist reviewed the CT scans and noted the presence or absence of a posteromedial fragment and if present, the largest diameter of the fragment was measured. RESULTS : The mean age of the sample was 44.79 (SD: 14.03) years. Seventy-five per cent of the females (n=33) presented with posteromedial fragmentation compared to 65.20% of the males (n=44) (chi²-test, P=0.399). The incidence of posteromedial fragmentation varied between 15.8 and 26.3% for Schatzker 1 and 2 fractures and 73.7 and 84.2% for Schatzker 3 to 6 (chi2-test, p<0.001) based on the three independent assessments. The mean length of the posteromedial fragmentation ranged from 41.87 to 47.77 mm for Schatzker 1 and 2 fractures, and 44.74 to 46.12 mm for Schatzker 3 to 6 for the three assessors (statistically not significant [T-test, P=0.536, P=0.551 and P=0.652]). CONCLUSION : The Schatzker classification by itself is not adequate to identify all fractures with posteromedial fragmentation. There is a higher association of posteromedial fragmentation with fracture types 3 to 6. There is a high probability of missing a significantly sized posteromedial fragment in Schatzker type 1 and 2 fractures if a CT scan is not performed which might influence and compromise fracture stability, joint congruency and the ability to rehabilitate optimally.http://journal.saoa.org.zaam2019Orthopaedic SurgeryRadiolog

4CaaSt: Comprehensive management of Cloud services through a PaaS

The 4CaaSt project aims at developing a PaaS framework that enables flexible definition, marketing, deployment and management of Cloud-based services and applications. The major innovations proposed by 4CaaSt are the blueprint and its management and lifecycle, a one stop shop for Cloud services and the management of resources in the PaaS level (including elasticity). 4CaaSt also provides a portfolio of ready to use Cloud native services and Cloud- aware immigrant technologies

Involvement of the endocannabinoid system in the physiological response to transient common carotid artery occlusion and reperfusion

Background: The transient global cerebral hypoperfusion/reperfusion achieved by induction of Bilateral Common Carotid Artery Occlusion followed by Reperfusion (BCCAO/R) may trigger a physiological response in an attempt to preserve tissue and function integrity. There are several candidate molecules among which the endocannabinoid system (ECS) and/or peroxisome-proliferator activated receptor-alpha (PPAR-alpha) may play a role in modulating oxidative stress and inflammation. The aims of the present study are to evaluate whether the ECS, the enzyme cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) and PPAR-alpha are involved during BCCAO/R in rat brain, and to identify possible markers of the ongoing BCCAO/R-induced challenge in plasma. Methods: Adult Wistar rats underwent BCCAO/R with 30 min hypoperfusion followed by 60 min reperfusion. The frontal and temporal-occipital cortices and plasma were analyzed by high performance liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (HPLC-MS) to determine concentrations of endocannabinoids (eCBs) and related molecules behaving as ligands of PPAR-alpha, and of oxidative-stress markers such as lipoperoxides, while Western Blot and immunohistochemistry were used to study protein expression of cannabinoid receptors, COX-2 and PPAR-alpha. Unpaired Student's t-test was used to evaluate statistical differences between groups. Results: The acute BCCAO/R procedure is followed by increased brain tissue levels of the eCBs 2-arachidonoylglycerol and anandamide, palmitoylethanolamide, an avid ligand of PPAR-alpha, lipoperoxides, type 1 (CB1) and type 2 (CB2) cannabinoid receptors, and COX-2, and decreased brain tissue concentrations of docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), one of the major targets of lipid peroxidation. In plasma, increased levels of anandamide and lipoperoxides were observed. Conclusions: The BCCAO/R stimulated early molecular changes that can be easily traced in brain tissue and plasma, and that are indicative of the tissue physiological response to the reperfusion-induced oxidative stress and inflammation. The observed variations suggest that the positive modulation of the ECS and the increase of proinflammatory substances are directly correlated events. Increase of plasmatic levels of anandamide and lipoperoxides further suggests that dysregulation of these molecules may be taken as an indicator of an ongoing hypoperfusion/reperfusion challenge

‘European Citizens’ Consultations 2009: Evaluation Report

Contains fulltext : 86763.pdf (publisher's version ) (Open Access)80 p

Netherlands: Political Careers between Central Party Dominance and New Pressures'

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