Ammonium-perchlorate diffusion flames - A spectrographic investigation

Spectroscopic analyses on ammonium perchlorate diffusion flames with various fuel

What AlpArray tells us about stress and water resources under the Alpine Region

The seismological AlpArray has shed much light on Earth`s structure and earthquakes in the Alpine region. Beside these two classical seismological applications (“events” and “structure”), a dataset of this kind can also be used for other purposes, and the geophysics group at the University of Vienna has been interested in extending the range of applications also into non-classical domains over the last years. The data have helped us understand non-tectonic phenomena that generate seismic waves in the region, both of natural (such as water, wind, rockfalls, etc.), and of human origin (such as explosions, fires, trains, etc.). This has also extended the use of seismic data across the Earth`s surface, using seismic wave coupling with infrasound. In this presentation, we focus on new applications of seismic data that extend the “structural” portfolio of seismological techniques, based on nonlinear elasticity (temporal velocity changes). “Pump-probe” approaches use a known test signal to infer subsurface properties. One such test signal is given by tidal stress, which we use as “pump” and ambient noise as “probe”, to infer the orientation of mechanical stress acting at crustal depth throughout the Alpine region. This complements the World Stress Map in regions, where we have previously not had stress data - allowing us, for example, to understand why certain major faults in the Eastern Alps (the Periadriatic Line and the Giudicarie Fault) do not rupture seismically, different from less mature, but more favorably-oriented faults. A particularly promising new application of seismic waves is the study of water in the shallow subsurface, which affects seismic wave velocities. We show that seismic waves can be used to constrain the hydraulic properties of ground water reservoirs from seismic data. Ground water level is often sensitive to air-pressure variations, and we can use the latter as “pump” to explore ground water reservoir characteristics throughout the Alpine region. The large regional variation in observed admissivity throughout Central Europe indicates the effects of thermally-related and air-pressure-related influences. The study of seismological AlpArray data shows that also changes of soil moisture can be made visible by seismic imaging. Such variations occur periodically, but there are also important long-term trends, which show different characteristics in different regions. Seismic data can fill the observational gap in soil moisture, in a wide range of distances, and importantly, in the depth range that is relevant for plant growth. This shows that seismology can give rather useful constraints for understanding the consequences of climate change

Comparative transcriptomic analysis of plum fruit treated with 1-MCP

Microarray technology has allowed the large scale transcriptomic analysis of fruit ripening. The μPEACH1.0 microarray containing 4,806 probes corresponding to genes expressed in peach fruit tissues has been used in a heterologous fashion in two studies of plums ripening behavior. Gene expression of different cultivars of plums treated with the ethylene antagonist, 1-methylcyclopropene (1-MCP) and stored for short periods at room temperature or for longer periods of cold storage was examined. In the first study, mature fruit of a suppressed ethylene climacteric cultivar 'Shiro' and a cultivar characterized by a typical increase of ethylene production during ripening ('Santa Rosa') were harvested and incubated for 24h in air (control) or 1-MCP and allowed to ripen at room temperature. Different levels of transcripts of genes implicated in cell wall metabolism, hormone (ethylene and auxin) regulation, stress and defense, and in the transcription/translation machinery, as well as others involved with ripening were identified. In the second study, the effects of 1-MCP on gene expression in relation to the development of chilling injury (CI) in the climacteric cultivars 'Ruby Red' (RR) and 'October Sun' (OS) and 'Zee Lady' peaches (ZP) were analyzed. The fruit were treated for 24h at room temperature with 1-MCP prior to storage at 0°C. For RR, there was no significant effect of 1-MCP on the level of CI symptoms, while 1-MCP significantly reduced CI symptoms in OS fruit and an increase of CI in treated ZP fruit. Microarray analysis showed that immediately following treatment, 186, 134 and 56 genes were differentially expressed between the control and 1-MCP-treated fruit of these cultivars, respectively: after 4 weeks cold storage, 311, 52 and 224 genes for RR, OS and ZP, respectively, were differentially expressed between control and treated fruit. Thus, for OS, the number of differentially expressed genes reduced during storage while the number increased in RR and ZP. Comparisons of the data suggest that the transcript profile is altered by 1-MCP more in plums than peaches. These studies, carried out within an international collaborative network, will increase our understanding of the regulation of pathways involved in plum fruit ripening and in metabolic processes related to storage and shelf lif

Serum anti-Müllerian hormone as a predictor of polycystic ovarian syndrome among women of reproductive age

BackgroundPolycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS) affects up to one-fifth of women of reproductive age and causes anovulatory subfertility. Some studies have recommended that an anti-Müllerian hormone (AMH) level greater than 3.8–5 ng/mL can be used for diagnosing PCOS. This study aims to analyse serum AMH levels among PCOS women of reproductive age to use AMH as a biomarker predictor along with other Rotterdam criteria.MethodsIn this cross-sectional study, a total of 98 women visiting the fertility center of a private hospital in Lahore, Pakistan, were screened. Data were obtained from 51 PCOS newly diagnosed women aged 28.24 years (SD ± 4.84 years) meeting at least two of the Rotterdam criteria and specific inclusion criteria. Baseline variables, menstrual cycle length, ovarian morphology on ultrasound, hirsutism, sex hormones, gonadotropin, and serum AMH levels were analysed during the follicular phase (1–5 days) of the menstrual cycle. Serum AMH was measured by an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay.ResultsA high serum AMH level (7.23 ± 4.67 ng/ml) was recorded with normal sex hormone levels. Women with oligo-/amenorrhea had a significant mean difference for luteinizing hormone (p = 0.02) and AMH levels (p = 0.03) when compared with women of normal menstrual cycle length. PCOS women with high AMH levels (≥ 3.9 ng/ml) showed a significant difference in ovarian morphology (p < 0.05) when compared with the normal AMH group.ConclusionsAn elevated serum AMH level can be used as a strong predictor to reflect the certainty of PCOS diagnosis among women of reproductive age when study concurrently with the other Rotterdam criteria

The outcome of antibiotics as surgical prophylaxis in gynecological procedures - a retrospective study in a south Indian hospital

Background: The aim of the study was to evaluate the outcome of antibiotics as surgical prophylactic measure for gynecological procedures in a south Indian Hospital.Methods: A retrospective study was conducted in 150 women who underwent caesarean, hysterectomies, Dilation and Curettage, myomectomy, operative vaginal delivery and were prescribed antibiotics. The data regarding demographic details, presenting complaints, parity, obstetrics history, diagnosis and need for surgery was evaluated.Results: A total of 206 women admitted with surgical procedures performed were taken into consideration of which 150 were prescribed antibiotics alone but 26 patients did not respond to treatment and were given other antibiotics, 30 patients were shifted to other specialist departments or other hospital for better treatment due to economic status, hence 150 patients formed the study population. The mean age was years. Patients above years were mostly seen.Conclusions: In our study, cefuroxime appeared to be effective in prophylaxis against infections. Metronidazole appeared to be ineffective compared to Cefuroxime. Combination of Cefuroxime and metronidazole was less effective compared to Amoxicillin and potassium clavunate. Cefazolin was commonly prescribed for gynecological procedures

Perinatal and infant outcome in prenatally diagnosed hyperechogenic kidneys

Objective: Hyperechogenic kidneys are a relatively rare antenatal finding, which can generate significant parental anxiety due to uncertain prognosis. We report on the perinatal and infant outcomes of a large cohort of fetuses with antenatally diagnosed hyperechogenic kidneys. Methods: This was a retrospective analysis of all cases diagnosed prenatally with hyperechogenic kidneys between 2002 and 2017 in a large tertiary fetal medicine unit. Hyperechogenicity was defined as kidney parenchyma with greater echogenicity than that of the liver. Pregnancy, pathological and postnatal outcomes were collected from hospital and general practitioner records up to 1 year of age. Abnormal renal outcome was defined as elevated creatinine beyond 6 months of age, hypertension requiring medication or major kidney surgery, such as nephrectomy. Severe abnormal renal outcome was defined as the need for dialysis or kidney transplant at any stage. Results: Three-hundred and sixteen fetuses with hyperechogenic kidneys were identified at a mean gestational age of 21 (range, 13–37) weeks. The majority of cases (97%) had bilateral hyperechogenic kidneys. In the 265 cases with available follow-up data, other associated renal tract abnormalities were identified prenatally in 36%, concomitant extrarenal structural abnormalities in 39% and abnormal karyotype in 15% of cases. Of the 316 included cases, 139 did not survive, including 105 terminations of pregnancy, five intrauterine deaths and 29 early neonatal deaths. Only 4.3% (6/139) of these fetuses had isolated hyperechogenic kidneys while 28.1% (39/139) had associated multiple renal tract abnormalities alongside hyperechogenic kidneys and over two-thirds (67.6%; 94/139) had concomitant extrarenal abnormalities. Of the 177 cases that survived beyond 1 month of age, outcome data were available in 126. Of these, based on the antenatal findings, 60 (47.6%) cases had isolated hyperechogenic kidneys, 56 (44.4%) had associated renal structural abnormalities and 10 (7.9%) had additional extrarenal abnormalities. Considering renal outcome alone, kidney function was abnormal in 13 (21.7%), 10 (17.9%) and 0 (0%) infants in these three groups, respectively, although concurrent pathology clearly affected global outcome in the more complex cases. Neonatal mortality of 1.6% was observed in the isolated renal hyperechogenicity group. The presence of oligohydramnios or abnormal renal volume was not associated significantly with abnormal renal function (odds ratio (OR), 2.32 (99% CI, 0.54–10.02) and OR, 0.74 (99% CI, 0.21–2.59), respectively) in this group. Conclusions: Hyperechogenic kidneys are often complicated by associated renal tract and extrarenal abnormalities, aberrant karyotype and genetic disease, and these factors have a greater effect on overall outcome than does kidney echogenicity. The renal outcome of fetuses with isolated hyperechogenic kidneys is good generally, with over 70% of cases having normal renal function postpartum. Importantly, for prognostic counseling, all of the fetuses in this non-selected series with isolated hyperechogenic kidneys and normal amniotic fluid levels had normal renal outcome in infancy. © 2020 The Authors. Ultrasound in Obstetrics & Gynecology published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd on behalf of International Society of Ultrasound in Obstetrics and Gynecology

Point Absorber Method as Wave Energy Convertor Device for Power Generation: Effect of Buoy Arrangements

A point absorber is a floating structure with components that move relative to each other due to wave action. They utilize the up and down movement of the wave height at a single point for energy conversion. The relative up and down which is bobbing motion caused by passing waves used to drive electromechanical energy converters to generate power output. This experiment investigates behaviour of the point absorber device used the pneumatic sensor to take the frequency of the displacement of buoy while testing in the wave maker generator. Then, study the efficiency power output of point absorber WEC device and studies the behaviour of the point absorber in a regular wave. Fabricate the linear generator which as power absorption to estimate the effectiveness power output on different configuration by using the multimeter device. The point absorber at the front position of the configuration has good behaviour because of the high frequency produced. By estimated the behaviour of the device on configuration achieved. Configuration shape design of the point absorber used in this testing is square, diamond and parallelogram shape for an estimate the best power output. The configuration of the parallelogram has the best power output compared to another configuration. The best arrangement of the device for efficiency by measure the output voltage as power output is 68.14 mV and increase 8% in every minute

Pollen morphology and harmomegathic characters of Byttneria Löfl. species (Sterculiaceae S. S: subfam. Byttnerioideae)

A palynological study was conducted on seven species of Byttneria Löfl. The objectives of this study was to understand the variation in micromorphological and harmomegarthic characteristics of pollen in Byttneria species in Malaysia and Singapore. In doing so, more information on the species of Sterculiaceae s.s family can be added. Dried pollen samples of seven Byttneria species were selected in this study, namely B. scabrida Ridl., B. pilosa Roxb., B. elliptica Pohl, B. curtisii Oliv., B. reinwardtii Korth., B. maingayi Mast. and B. jackiana Wall. Methods involved were acetolysis techniques, single-grain technique, and observation under light microscope and scanning electron microscope. Common characters shared by all studied species were porate pollen class, triporate aperture, and triangular outline. Variation in pollen characteristics includes ratio of exine thickness, pollen size, pore width and height, amb; shape and measurements. These characters are valuable in assisting identification of taxa group that can be used to differentiate between species in the genus. This study proved that pollen morphological characteristics of Byttneria have taxonomic values in identification and differentiation of species in subfamily Byttnerioideae and Sterculiaceae s. s

Iterative Heuristics for Multiobjective VLSI Cell Placement

We employ two iterative heuristics for the optimization of VLSI standard cell placement. These heuristics are based on Genetic Algorithms (GA's) and Tabu Search (TS)[1] respectively. We address a multiobjective version of the problem in which, power dissipation, timing performance, and interconnect wire lenghth are optimized while layout width is taken as a constraint. Fuzzy rules are incorporated in order to design a multi-objective cost function that integrates the cost of three objectives in a single overall cost value. A series of experiments is performed to study the effect of important algorithmic parameters of GA and TS. Both the techniques are applied to ISCAS-85/89 benchmark circuits and experimental results are reported and compared