Applying MAPP Algorithm for Cooperative Path Finding in Urban Environments

The paper considers the problem of planning a set of non-conflict trajectories for the coalition of intelligent agents (mobile robots). Two divergent approaches, e.g. centralized and decentralized, are surveyed and analyzed. Decentralized planner - MAPP is described and applied to the task of finding trajectories for dozens UAVs performing nap-of-the-earth flight in urban environments. Results of the experimental studies provide an opportunity to claim that MAPP is a highly efficient planner for solving considered types of tasks

Managing the Energy Trilemma in the Philippines

Background The transition to an energy mix with lower carbon emissions is hampered by the existence of the so-called Energy Trilemma. The primary consequence is a trade-off between various objectives of energy policy, e.g., equity and sustainability. This conflict can lead to policy gridlock if policymakers are unable to prioritize the goals. This paper proposes a framework and methodology to manage the trilemma by applying methods related to multi-criteria decision-making in order to assign weights to the various components of the trilemma. Results Following the International Energy Agency (IEA), an expanded concept of energy security is adopted and translates to a version of the trilemma different from that of the World Energy Council. This study takes into account autarky, price, supply, and carbon emissions. The values of these variables are generated by a software called PLEXOS and are incorporated in a welfare function. Trade-offs and complementarities among the four variables are taken into account by the equations in the PLEXOS model. Meanwhile, weights for each of the components of the trilemma are obtained using the Analytical Hierarchy Process. The experts interviewed for this exercise are considered hypothetical heads of the Philippine Department of Energy (DOE). Conclusion Two scenarios were compared: a market-based simulation and one where a carbon-tax was imposed. As expected, the carbon-tax leads to a fall in the level of carbon emissions but a rise in the cost of electricity. Because the demand for electricity has a higher price elasticity among lower income classes, the carbon-tax will worsen equity. Attempting to resolve the conflict among the goals of energy policy is difficult leading to a possible gridlock. Policy options can, however, be ranked using the values generated by the welfare function. The ranking clearly depends on the preference or priorities of the hypothetical head of the DOE but at least a decision could be reached. In this manner, trade-offs are measured and the trilemma can be managed even if it is not resolved

Effect of Stimulus Orientation on Visual Function in Children with Refractive Amblyopia.

Purpose: We investigated and characterized the patterns of meridional anisotropies in newly diagnosed refractive amblyopes using pattern onset–offset visual evoked potentials (POVEPs) and psychophysical grating acuity (GA). Methods: Twenty-five refractive amblyopes were recruited and compared with non-amblyopic controls from our previous study. Monocular POVEPs were recorded in response to sinewave 4 cycles per degree (cpd) grating stimuli oriented along each individual participants' principal astigmatic meridians, which were approximately horizontal (meridian 1) and vertical (meridian 2). Binocular POVEPs in response to the same stimuli, but oriented at 45°, 90°, 135°, and 180°, were recorded. Psychophysical GAs were assessed along the same meridians using a two-alternative non-forced-choice technique. The C3 amplitudes and peak latencies of the POVEPs and GAs were compared across meridians for both groups (refractive amblyopes and controls) using linear mixed models (monocular) and ANOVA (binocular), and post hoc analysis was conducted to determine if meridional anisotropies in this cohort of amblyopes were related to low (≤1.50 diopters [D]), moderate (1.75–2.75 D) and high (≥3.00 D) astigmatism. Results: In the newly diagnosed refractive amblyopes, there were no significant meridional anisotropies across all outcome measures, but the post hoc analysis demonstrated that C3 amplitude was significantly higher in those with low (P = 0.02) and moderate (P = 0.004) astigmatism compared to those with high astigmatism. Refractive amblyopes had poorer GA and C3 amplitudes compared to controls by approximately two lines on the logMAR chart (monocular: P = 0.013; binocular: P = 0.014) and approximately 6 µV (monocular: P = 0.009; binocular: P = 0.027), respectively. Conclusions: Deleterious effects of high astigmatism was evident in newly diagnosed refractive amblyopes, but the neural deficits do not seem to be orientation-specific for the stimulus parameters investigated

Electrophysiological and Psychophysical Studies of Meridional Anisotropies in Children With and Without Astigmatism.

Purpose: We investigated the pattern of meridional anisotropies, if any, for pattern onset-offset visual evoked potential (POVEPs) responses and psychophysical grating acuity (GA) in children with normal letter visual acuity (20/20 or better). Methods: A total of 29 children (aged 3-9 years), nine of whom were astigmatic (AS), were recruited. Orientation-specific monocular POVEPs were recorded in response to sinewave grating stimuli oriented along the subjects' principal AS meridians. Horizontal and vertical gratings were designated Meridians 1 and 2, respectively, for nonastigmatic patients (Non-AS). Binocular POVEPs in response to the same stimuli, but oriented at 45°, 90°, 135°, and 180°, were recorded. Psychophysical GAs were assessed monocularly and binocularly along the same meridians using the same stimuli by a 2-alternative-forced-choice staircase technique. The C3 amplitudes and peak latencies of the POVEP and GAs were compared across meridians using linear mixed models (monocular) and ANOVA (binocular). Results: There were significant meridional anisotropies in monocular C3 amplitudes regardless of astigmatism status (P = 0.001): Meridian 2 (mean ± SE Non-AS, 30.13 ± 2.07 μV; AS, 26.53 ± 2.98 μV) was significantly higher than Meridian 1 (Non-AS, 26.14 ± 1.87 μV; AS, 21.68 ± 2.73 μV; P = 0.019), but no meridional anisotropies were found for GA or C3 latency. Binocular C3 amplitude in response to horizontally oriented stimuli (180°, 29.71 ± 3.06 μV) was significantly lower than the oblique (45°, 36.62 ± 3 .05 μV; P = 0.03 and 135°, 35.95 ± 2.92 μV; P = 0.04) and vertical (90°, 37.82 ± 3.65 μV; P = 0.02) meridians, and binocular C3 latency was significantly shorter in response to vertical than oblique gratings (P ≤ 0.001). Conclusions: Meridional anisotropy was observed in children with normal vision. The findings suggest that horizontal gratings result in a small, but significantly lower POVEP amplitude than for vertical and oblique gratings

Evaluating the Feed-in Tariff Policy in the Philippines

To address the problems of climate change and energy security, the Philippines enacted the Renewable Energy (RE) Act of 2008. The law mandated the Feed-In Tariff (FiT) policy, which was designed to provide a guaranteed fixed price to RE investors for 20 years to develop renewable technology. This paper aims to evaluate the effectiveness of the FiT policy in promoting renewable energy development in the Philippines by assessing its costs and benefits. Data show that while the FiT has led to an increase in RE generating capacity, the share of renewable energy in the country has been declining since 2011. The findings also suggest that the Philippines has incurred a net social cost from its implementation of the FiT.   Keywords: Feed-in Tariff, Electricity, Policy Evaluation, Philippines, Renewable Energy JEL Classifications: Q40, Q48 DOI: https://doi.org/10.32479/ijeep.1132

VE-cadherin and claudin-5: it takes two to tango

Endothelial barrier function requires the adhesive activity of VE-cadherin and claudin-5, which are key components of adherens and tight endothelial junctions, respectively. Emerging evidence suggests that VE-cadherin controls claudin-5 expression by preventing the nuclear accumulation of FoxO1 and -catenin, which repress the claudin-5 promoter. This indicates that a crosstalk mechanism operates between these junctional structures

Association of proinflammatory cytokines and chemotherapy-associated cognitive impairment in breast cancer patients: a multi-centered, prospective, cohort study.

BackgroundExisting evidence suggests that proinflammatory cytokines play an intermediary role in postchemotherapy cognitive impairment. This is one of the largest multicentered, cohort studies conducted in Singapore to evaluate the prevalence and proinflammatory biomarkers associated with cognitive impairment in breast cancer patients.Patients and methodsChemotherapy-receiving breast cancer patients (stages I-III) were recruited. Proinflammatory plasma cytokines concentrations [interleukin (IL)-1β, IL-2, IL-4, IL-6, IL-8, IL-10, granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor, interferon-γ and tumor necrosis factor-α] were evaluated at 3 time points (before chemotherapy, 6 and 12 weeks after chemotherapy initiation). The FACT-Cog (version 3) was utilized to evaluate patients' self-perceived cognitive disturbances and a computerized neuropsychological assessment (Headminder) was administered to evaluate patients' memory, attention, response speed and processing speed. Changes of cognition throughout chemotherapy treatment were compared against the baseline. Linear mixed-effects models were applied to test the relationships of clinical variables and cytokine concentrations on self-perceived cognitive disturbances and each objective cognitive domain.ResultsNinety-nine patients were included (age 50.5 ± 8.4 years; 81.8% Chinese; mean duration of education = 10.8 ± 3.3 years). Higher plasma IL-1β was associated with poorer response speed performance (estimate: -0.78; 95% confidence interval (CI) -1.34 to -0.03; P = 0.023), and a higher concentration of IL-4 was associated with better response speed performance (P = 0.022). Higher concentrations of IL-1β and IL-6 were associated with more severe self-perceived cognitive disturbances (P = 0.018 and 0.001, respectively). Patients with higher concentrations of IL-4 also reported less severe cognitive disturbances (P = 0.022).ConclusionsWhile elevated concentrations of IL-6 and IL-1β were observed in patients with poorer response speed performance and perceived cognitive disturbances, IL-4 may be protective against chemotherapy-associated cognitive impairment. This study is important because cytokines would potentially be mechanistic mediators of chemotherapy-associated cognitive changes

Deposition of copper by plasma-enhanced atomic layer deposition using a novel N-Heterocyclic carbene precursor

Two novel N-heterocyclic carbene (NHC)-containing copper(I) amides are reported as atomic layer deposition (ALD) precursors. 1,3-Diisopropyl-imidazolin-2-ylidene copper hexamethyldisilazide (1) and 4,5-dimethyl-1,3-diisopropyl-imidazol-2-ylidene copper hexamethyldisilazide (2) were synthesized and structurally characterized. The thermal behavior of both compounds was studied by thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), and they were both found to be reasonably volatile compounds. Compound 1 had no residual mass in the TGA and showed long-term stability at temperatures as high as 130 °C, while 2 had a residual mass of 7.4%. Copper metal with good resistivity was deposited using 1 by plasma-enhanced atomic layer deposition. The precursor demonstrated self-limiting behavior indicative of ALD, and gave a growth rate of 0.2 Å/cycle. Compound 2 was unsuccessful as an ALD precursor under similar conditions. Density functional theory calculations showed that both compounds adsorb dissociatively onto a growing copper film as long as there is some atomic roughness, via cleavage of the Cu-carbene bond

Development of a Rapid and High-Throughput Multiplex Real-Time PCR Assay for Mycoplasma hominis and Ureaplasma Species

Bacterial commensals of the human genitourinary tract, Mycoplasma hominis and Ureaplasma species (parvum and urealyticum) can be sexually transmitted, and may cause nongonococcal urethritis, pelvic inflammatory disease, and infertility. Mycoplasma hominis and Ureaplasma species may also cause severe invasive infections in immunocompromised patients. Current culture-based methods for Mycoplasma/Ureaplasma identification are costly and laborious, with a turnaround time between 1 and 2 weeks. We developed a high-throughput, real-time multiplex PCR assay for the rapid detection of M. hominis and Ureaplasma species in urine, genital swab, body fluid, and tissue. In total, 282 specimens were tested by PCR and compared with historic culture results; a molecular reference method was used to moderate discrepancies. Overall result agreement was 99% for M. hominis (97% positive percentage agreement and 100% negative percentage agreement) and 96% for Ureaplasma species (96% positive percentage agreement and 97% negative percentage agreement). Specimen stability was validated for up to 7 days at room temperature. This multiplex molecular assay was designed for implementation in a high-complexity clinical microbiology laboratory. With this method, >90 samples can be tested in one run, with a turnaround time of 4 to 5 hours from specimen extraction to reporting of results. This PCR test is also more labor effective and cheaper than the conventional culture-based test, thus improving laboratory efficiency and alleviating labor shortages

A multi-method approach for the integrative assessment of soil functions: Application on a coastal mountainous site of the Philippines

The projected increase of the world\u27s population and the sustainability challenges the agricultural sector is facing, call for the enhancement of multi-functionality in agriculture in order to simultaneously provide food while meeting environmental targets. Here, we use the Functional Land Management (FLM) framework to assess the supply of and the demand for soil functions to inform agri-environmental policy for Udalo, a mountainous site in the Philippines. As many emerging communities in developing nations, Udalo is on the cusp of rapid development due to the construction of a major road increasing its accessibility and attractiveness for land investment. We assessed the supply of four soil functions in relation to six land-use types and four slope categories. The function “productivity” was assessed by interviews with 128 farmers, “habitat for biodiversity” by a vegetation survey, and “soil conservation” and “water conservation” via a literature review. The demand for functions was first assessed from the “top-down” policy perspective via interviews and reviews of policy targets, then complemented by integrating the local “bottom-up” demands for functions. These were assessed by applying a Q methodology, providing insights in the prioritisation of functions from the perspective of 22 local actors. Maps of supply and demands were generated for each function: supply maps by overlaying land use and slope category, top-down demand maps from administrative zoning/land-use plans, and bottom-up demand maps from local actors designation of geomorphological areas. Our results revealed contrasting demands for functions, as well as a heterogeneous spatial distribution of supply and demands. Discrepancies emerged (i) between supply and demand, (ii) between bottom-up (local) demands and the top-down (policy driven) demand, and (iii) among local actors perspectives. Our study indicates that discrepancies are not necessarily conflicting, but can uncover pathways for defining compromises, representing attainable policy entry points. Not one single development model can meet the needs of every stakeholder; however, a combination of land uses and management strategies can meet divergent interests and allow for optimisation of functions. This integrative approach of FLM provides a socially embedded biophysical analysis and is a valuable tool for the design of customized land-use and agri-environmental policies