ESTIMATING THE ECONOMIC GAINS FROM LARGER TOMATO TRANSPLANT CELL SIZES

This paper examines the costs and economic benefits of utilizing larger seedling transplant in commercial vegetable production. Larger transplants have been shown to mature earlier and yield more premium graded fruit. Offsetting these benefits is the increased cost of producing larger transplants, primarily from reducing the capacity of a transplant house.Crop Production/Industries,

Arachnoid cysts: the role of the BLADE technique

Background: This study aims at demonstrating the ability of BLADE sequences to reduce or even eliminate all the image artifacts as well as verifying the significance of using this technique in certain pathological conditions

Effects of Phase Change Material (PCM) concentration in buildings partitions with thermal exchange in both sides

273 σ.Στόχος της παρούσας διπλωματικής εργασίας είναι να παρουσιάσει μία τέτοια εναλλακτική τεχνολογία η οποία είναι η αποθήκευση θερμικής ενέργειας με χρήση των Υλικών Αλλαγής Φάσης (ΥΑΦ). Στα παρακάτω κεφάλαια παρουσιάζονται οι ανάγκες που οδήγησαν στα υλικά αλλαγής φάσης , η ταυτότητα των υλικών αυτών ,η σημαντικότητα της αποθήκευσης ενέργειας, τα βήματα που έχουν γίνει μέχρι σήμερα προς αυτή την τεχνολογική καινοτομία και οι τομείς στους οποίους εκτείνεται. Η αξιοπιστία της χρήσης των ΥΑΦ σε πρακτικές εφαρμογές είναι πολύ σημαντικό να αποδειχθεί. Για αυτόν τον λόγο πραγματοποιείται στο 2ο μέρος της εργασίας μία μελέτη σχετικά με τη χρήση PCM σε μία απλή, αλλά πολύ χρήσιμη εφαρμογή στον κτιριακό τομέα. O στόχος της παρούσας μελέτης είναι να διαπιστωθεί η συμπεριφορά του PCM, όταν χρησιμοποιείται σε ανάμιξη με τον σοβά σε νότιο εσωτερικό τοίχο δωματίου απέναντι από υαλοπίνακα, για την παθητική ηλιακή θέρμανση του στην περιοχή της Αθήνας για τους χειμερινούς μήνες του έτους. Τα συμπεράσματα που προέκυψαν συνοπτικά από τις παραμετρικές μελέτες που πραγματοποιήθηκαν, έδειξαν πολύ μεγάλη διαφορά στις θερμοκρασίες που αναπτύσσονται για ένα 24ωρο όταν στην διαστρωμάτωση του σοβά προστίθεται έστω και μικρό ποσοστό PCM όπως 10%. Πολύ σημαντική διαπίστωση είναι επίσης ότι από το ποσοστό του PCM 40% έως και 100% οι διαφορές που παρατηρούνται στις τιμές της θερμοκρασίας είναι μηδαμινές και το εύρος των θερμοκρασιών μειώνεται στο ελάχιστο. Επιπλέον διαπιστώνεται πως αν μία μέρα με ήλιο όπως αυτή που μελετήσαμε για το πρώτο 24ωρο ακολουθείται από μια νεφοσκεπή μέρα ή ακόμα και από μία μέρα με μηδενική ηλιακή ακτινοβολία το μίγμα PCM-σοβά παραμένει ένα αποδοτικό σύστημα που μπορεί να καλύψει όχι μόνο ένα αλλά και δύο δωμάτια. Τέλος εξετάζουμε περαιτέρω κάποιους παράγοντες όπως την εσωτερική θερμοκρασία του δωματίου και το πάχος της διαστρωμάτωσης του μίγματος προκειμένου να βελτιώσουμε την αποδοτικότητα του συστήματος.The need for renewable sources of energy has become imperative. The rapid increase in energy consumption causes the gradual depletion of fossil fuels and enviromental pollution. Many researchers have to seek alternative technologies to meet the energy needs with renewable resources and without enviromental consequences. The aim of this project is to present such an alternative technology which is thermal energy storage using phase change materials (PCM). The following chapters present the needs which led to the phase change materials, the identity of them, the importance of energy storage, the steps taken so far to this technological innovation and the practical applications of phase change materials to buildings in order to save energy. The reliability of the use of PCM in practical applications is very important to be proved. For this reason, we have made in the second part of this work, a study on the use of PCM in a simple but very useful application in the building sector. The objective of this study is to be established the behavior of PCM when it is mixed with the plaster on the southern interior wall opposite of a glass paned for its passive heating in Athens area only for the winter months of the year The conclusions summarized from the parametric studies performed showed great difference in the temperatures used for 24 hours when we add the stratification of plaster even a small percentage of PCM as 10% . A very important finding is that in the rate of 40% to 100 % of PCM the temperature range is reduced to a minimum. Furthermore it is found that if one sunny day as we studied for the first 24 hours followed by an overcast day or even a day with no sunlight the mixture of PCM- plaster remains an efficient system that can cover not only one but two rooms . Finally, we examine further some factors such as the internal temperature of the room and the thickness of stratification of the mixture in order to improve system’s efficiency .Χρυσαφένια Σ. Ρόκ

DG-RAR for the treatment of symptomatic grade III and grade IV haemorrhoids: a 12-month multi-centre, prospective observational study

BACKGROUND: Ultrasound-guided techniques represent a new treatment option in the treatment of haemorrhoids. Doppler-guided haemorrhoidal artery ligation (DG-HAL) proved efficacious in early haemorrhoidal disease, but lacks efficacy for stages III/IV. For these patients, haemorrhoidal artery ligation (HAL) has been combined with a running suture to reduce prolapsing haemorrhoidal tissue (recto-anal repair (RAR)). METHODS: A prospective observational study was conducted in 184 patients with grade III (58 %) or grade IV (42 %) haemorrhoids in seven coloproctological centres. Primary endpoints were the recurrence of symptoms and need of further treatment (medical or surgical). RESULTS: Post-operative complications were seen in 8 % of patients. After a follow-up of 3 months, 91 % of patients were free of symptoms and 91 % of patients were satisfied with the result. After a follow-up of 12 months, 89 % of patients were free of symptoms and 88 % were satisfied with the result. Nineteen per cent of patients received further medical or surgical treatment. CONCLUSIONS: Doppler-guided recto-anal repair (DG-RAR) proves to be an effective treatment option for the treatment of advanced haemorrhoidal disease that shows equal results to other established treatment options

Diagnosis of Fanconi Anaemia (FA) in dizygotic twins

In this study we report on a case of FA in dizygotic twins with characteristic congenital abnormalities and the same deletions of the FANCA gene

Views and Experiences of Persons with Chronic Diseases about Strategies that Aim to Integrate and Re-Integrate Them into Work: A Systematic Review of Qualitative Studies

The effectiveness of strategies targeting professional integration and reintegration strongly depends on the experiences of participants. The aim of this systematic literature review is to synthesize European qualitative studies exploring views and experiences of persons with chronic conditions regarding strategies for integration and reintegration into work. The systematic search was conducted in Medline, PsycINFO, CDR-HTA, CDR-DARE and Cochrane Systematic Reviews. Overall, 24 studies published in English between January 2011 and April 2016 were included. Most studies were carried out in Nordic countries or in the UK, and most participants were persons with either mental or musculoskeletal disorders. Ten themes emerged: individual and holistic approach, clarity of strategy and processes, timing of rehabilitation processes, experience with professionals, at the workplace and with peer groups, changes in the understanding of health and work, active involvement in the process, competencies development and motivating aspects of work. Findings highlight, among others, the need to actively involve participants in the return to work process and to provide timely and clearly structured processes and interventions. This review provides stakeholders key information to develop, plan, implement and evaluate interventions to integrate and re-integrate persons with chronic conditions into work in Europe