Multi-focal laser surgery: cutting enhancement by hydrodynamic interactions between cavitation bubbles

Transparent biological tissues can be precisely dissected with ultrafast lasers using optical breakdown in the tight focal zone. Typically, tissues are cut by sequential application of pulses, each of which produces a single cavitation bubble. We investigate the hydrodynamic interactions between simultaneous cavitation bubbles originating from multiple laser foci. Simultaneous expansion and collapse of cavitation bubbles can enhance the cutting efficiency by increasing the resulting deformations in tissue, and the associated rupture zone. An analytical model of the flow induced by the bubbles is presented and experimentally verified. The threshold strain of the material rupture is measured in a model tissue. Using the computational model and the experimental value of the threshold strain one can compute the shape of the rupture zone in tissue resulting from application of multiple bubbles. With the threshold strain of 0.7 two simultaneous bubbles produce a continuous cut when applied at the distance 1.35 times greater than that required in sequential approach. Simultaneous focusing of the laser in multiple spots along the line of intended cut can extend this ratio to 1.7. Counter-propagating jets forming during collapse of two bubbles in materials with low viscosity can further extend the cutting zone - up to a factor of 1.54.Comment: 16 pages, 8 figures. Paper is accepted for publication in Physical Review

Evolution of Fragmentation Cloud in Highly Eccentric Orbit Using Representative Objects

Many historical on-orbit satellite fragmentations occurred in Highly Eccentric Orbits (HEOs) such as the Geostationary Transfer Orbit (GTO). Such fragmentations produce fragment clouds that interfere with the Low Earth Orbit (LEO) environment and pose a threat to operational satellites. Objects in HEO undergo complex dynamics due to the influence of perturbations varying as a function mainly of their altitude and area-to-mass ratio. The evolution of such a cloud, including small objects down to 1 mm, is not well understood. This paper describes a method to model the evolution of a fragmentation cloud in HEO under the influence of atmospheric drag and Earth's oblateness. Semi-analytical techniques are applied to propagate represen- tative objects constituting the cloud; rather than following the evolution of many distinct fragments. The proposed method is applied on a GTO upper stage using the standard NASA break-up model to nd the distribution right after the fragmentation. The evolution of the fragment cloud is analysed statistically and time of closures are calculated for the formation of the torus along the parent orbit and the band around Earth. Assumptions on the evolution of the cloud that are valid in LEO are shown to be invalid for clouds in HEO

Inferring fish escape behaviour in trawls based on catch comparison data: Model development and evaluation based on data from Skagerrak, Denmark

During the fishing process, fish react to a trawl with a series of behaviours that often are species and size specific. Thus, a thorough understanding of fish behaviour in relation to fishing gear and a scientific understanding of the ability of different gear designs to utilize or stimulate various behavioural patterns during the catching process are essential for developing more efficient, selective, and environmentally friendly trawls. Although many behavioural studies using optical and acoustic observation systems have been conducted, harsh observation conditions on the fishing grounds often hamper the ability to directly observe fish behaviour in relation to fishing gear. As an alternative to optical and acoustic methods, we developed and applied a new mathematical model to catch data to extract detailed and quantitative information about species- and size-dependent escape behaviour in towed fishing gear such as trawls. We used catch comparison data collected with a twin trawl setup; the only difference between the two trawls was that a 12 m long upper section was replaced with 800 mm diamond meshes in one of them. We investigated the length-based escape behaviour of cod (Gadus morhua), haddock (Melanogrammus aeglefinus), saithe (Pollachius virens), witch flounder (Glyptocephalus cynoglossus), and lemon sole (Microstomus kitt) and quantified the extent to which behavioural responses set limits for the large mesh panel's selective efficiency. Around 85% of saithe, 80% of haddock, 44% of witch flounder, 55% of lemon sole, and 55% of cod (below 68 cm) contacted the large mesh panel and escaped. We also demonstrated the need to account for potential selectivity in the trawl body, as it can bias the assessment of length-based escape behaviour. Our indirect assessment of fish behaviour was in agreement with the direct observations made for the same species in a similar section of the trawl body reported in the literature

Поликультурное образование как направление деятельности открытого университета

Авторы дают определение понятий "поликультурное образование" и "открытый университет"; обращаются к правовым актам и учебным программам, целью которых является поликультурное просвещение, и приходят к выводу о значимости этого направления в деятельности открытого образования в условиях многокультурного информационного общества

Significant individual variation between pathologists in the evaluation of colon cancer specimens after complete mesocolic excision

Background: After the introduction of complete mesocolic excision, a new pathological evaluation of the resected colon cancer specimen was introduced. This concept has quickly gained acceptance and is often used to compare surgical quality. The grading of colon cancer specimens is likely to depend on both surgical quality and the training of the pathologist. Objective: The purpose of this study was to validate the principles of the pathological evaluation of colon cancer specimens. Design: This was an exploratory study. Settings: The study was conducted in Aarhus, Denmark, and Leeds, United Kingdom. Patients: Colon cancers specimens were used. Main outcome measures: The agreement of gradings between participants was of interest. Four specialist GI pathologists and 2 abdominal surgeons evaluated 2 rounds of colon cancer specimens, each at 2 separate time points. Each round contained 50 specimens. After the first round, a protocol of detailed principles for the grading procedure was agreed on. Results from an experienced pathologist were considered as the reference results. Results: In the first round, the distribution of gradings between participants showed substantial variation. In the second round, the variation was reduced. Intraobserver agreement was mostly fair to good, whereas interobserver agreement was frequently poor. This did not significantly change from round 1 to round 2. Limitations: The small sample size of 100 specimens provided a very small number of specimens resected in the muscularis propria plane, which renders the evaluation of this group potentially unreliable. The evaluations were made on photos and not on fresh specimens. Conclusions: This study demonstrates significant variation in the pathological evaluation of colon cancer specimens. It demonstrates that it cannot be used in clinical studies, and care should be taken when comparing results between different hospitals

Glycoproteomic and glycomic databases

Protein glycosylation serves critical roles in the cellular and biological processes of many organisms. Aberrant glycosylation has been associated with many illnesses such as hereditary and chronic diseases like cancer, cardiovascular diseases, neurological disorders, and immunological disorders. Emerging mass spectrometry (MS) technologies that enable the high-throughput identification of glycoproteins and glycans have accelerated the analysis and made possible the creation of dynamic and expanding databases. Although glycosylation-related databases have been established by many laboratories and institutions, they are not yet widely known in the community. Our study reviews 15 different publicly available databases and identifies their key elements so that users can identify the most applicable platform for their analytical needs. These databases include biological information on the experimentally identified glycans and glycopeptides from various cells and organisms such as human, rat, mouse, fly and zebrafish. The features of these databases - 7 for glycoproteomic data, 6 for glycomic data, and 2 for glycan binding proteins are summarized including the enrichment techniques that are used for glycoproteome and glycan identification. Furthermore databases such as Unipep, GlycoFly, GlycoFish recently established by our group are introduced. The unique features of each database, such as the analytical methods used and bioinformatical tools available are summarized. This information will be a valuable resource for the glycobiology community as it presents the analytical methods and glycosylation related databases together in one compendium. It will also represent a step towards the desired long term goal of integrating the different databases of glycosylation in order to characterize and categorize glycoproteins and glycans better for biomedical research

2018 Beam-park observations of space debris with the EISCAT radars

Source at https://conference.sdo.esoc.esa.int/proceedings/neosst1/paper/480.Monitoring the evolution of the space debris environment requires regular radar observations of the space debris population. This study presents the results from 24 hours of beam-park observations of space objects conducted simultaneously with the EISCAT Svalbard and Tromsø radars on and between January 4th and 5th, 2018. The measurements are processed with a new matched filter bank analysis program, which doubles the coherent integration time, and hence sensitivity, compared with the previous program. We observe 2077 objects with the Tromsø radar and 2400 objects with the Svalbard radar. The detections are correlated with the NORAD catalog. We find that 68% of the Tromsø and 85% of the Svalbard radar detections are from objects in the NORAD catalog, with most of the catalog object detections being in the side lobes of the radar antenna. The beam-park data are compared with a simulated beam-park experiment for catalog objects. The simulation uses a radar detection model that includes the effects of coherent integration and an antenna beam shape with side lobes. We find that the simulation agrees well with the measurements, indicating that the radar sensor response is accurately modeled. Our results highlight the importance of modeling antenna side lobes when analyzing beam-park measurements. Not taking taking into account side lobe detections can lead to an underestimation of radar cross-sections and an overestimation of population density