Ambient Vibration Based Damage Diagnosis Using Statistical Modal Filtering and Genetic Algorithm: A Bridge Case Study

The authors recently developed a damage identification method which combines ambient vibration measurements and a Statistical Modal Filtering approach to predict the location and degree of damage. The method was then validated experimentally via ambient vibration tests conducted on full-scale reinforced concrete laboratory specimens. The main purpose of this paper is to demonstrate the feasibility of the identification method for a real bridge. An important challenge in this case is to overcome the absence of vibration measurements for the structure in its undamaged state which corresponds ideally to the reference state of the structure. The damage identification method is, therefore, modified to adapt it to the present situation where the intact state was not subjected to measurements. An additional refinement of the method consists of using a genetic algorithm to improve the computational efficiency of the damage localization method. This is particularly suited for a real case study where the number of damage parameters becomes significant. The damage diagnosis predictions suggest that the diagnosed bridge is damaged in four elements among a total of 168 elements with degrees of damage varying from 6% to 18%

Genetic characterization of Barbari goats using microsatellite markers

Genetic variation in Barbari goats, a highly prolific breed distributed widely in the northern part of India, known for better milk and meat quality, was studied as a part of genetic characterization and conservation. The genomic DNA from 50 unrelated Barbari goats were amplified via PCR with a panel of 21 microsatellite markers, and resolved through 6 per cent denaturing polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis followed by silver staining. The number of alleles ranged from 4 to 11, with allele sizes ranging from 88 to 220 bp. The distribution of allele frequencies was between 0.0104 and 0.5208. Polymorphism information content varied from 0.5563 to 0.8348. The population was not in Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium for all except two microsatellite loci (ILSTS044 and ILSTS060). The observed heterozygosity ranged from 0.8478 to 1.0000 while the expected heterozygosity ranged from 0.6208 to 0.8509. Based on the results of the present study, there is a good scope for exploiting the genetic variability in the Barbari goats for further improvement of performance

Private and Secure Public-Key Distance Bounding: Application to NFC Payment

Distance-Bounding is used to defeat relay attacks. For wireless payment systems, the payment terminal is not always online. So, the protocol must rely on a public key for the prover (payer). We propose a generic transformation of a (weakly secure) symmetric distance bounding protocol which has no post-verification into wide-strong-private and secure public-key distance bounding

A Forward Privacy Model for RFID Authentication Protocols

Part 3: Smart Cards and Embedded DevicesInternational audienceIn this paper, we propose a new variant of indistinguishability-based security model for the RFID authentication protocol, which allows an adversary to obtain an authentication result and secret key of a target tag. Ng et al. showed that symmetric-key based RFID authentication protocols cannot be resilient to the above information leakage simultaneously in the Paise-Vaudenay security model. We review the existing result and extend the Juels-Weis security model to satisfy these properties by using a suitable restriction. Moreover, we give two example protocols that satisfy the modified security model

Ambient Vibration Based Damage Diagnosis Using Statistical Modal Filtering and Genetic Algorithm: A Bridge Case Study

The authors recently developed a damage identification method which combines ambient vibration measurements and a Statistical Modal Filtering approach to predict the location and degree of damage. The method was then validated experimentally via ambient vibration tests conducted on full-scale reinforced concrete laboratory specimens. The main purpose of this paper is to demonstrate the feasibility of the identification method for a real bridge. An important challenge in this case is to overcome the absence of vibration measurements for the structure in its undamaged state which corresponds ideally to the reference state of the structure. The damage identification method is, therefore, modified to adapt it to the present situation where the intact state was not subjected to measurements. An additional refinement of the method consists of using a genetic algorithm to improve the computational efficiency of the damage localization method. This is particularly suited for a real case study where the number of damage parameters becomes significant. The damage diagnosis predictions suggest that the diagnosed bridge is damaged in four elements among a total of 168 elements with degrees of damage varying from 6% to 18%

Dystrophie Grillagée Type 1 «Lattice Corneal Dystrophy» : En Images A Propos D’un Cas

Introduction : La dystrophie cornéenne grillagée type I (LCDI) est une forme de dystrophie cornéenne stromale caractérisée par un réseau d’opacités filamenteuses délicatement entremêlées dans la cornée, avec une détérioration progressive de la vision sans manifestations systémiques. Les lésions se développent de façon bilatérale. La LCDI est de progression lente. On rapporte un mode de transmission autosomique dominant.Matériels et méthodes : À travers un cas d’une dystrophie grillagée de cornée type I, nous discutons les caractéristiques cliniques, génétiques ainsi que les modalités thérapeutiques de cette entité rare.Observation : Nous rapportons le cas de MR A.B., 32 ans, qui se présente dans notre service pour une baisse progressive de l’acuité visuelle. L’examen ophtalmologique trouve une acuité visuelle à l’oeil droit de 4/10 P2, et de 7/10 P2 à l’oeil gauche, des opacités linéaires entrelacées au niveau du stroma ménageant la périphérie cornéenne en ODG, le reste de l’examen oculaire ainsi que général étant normal. La prise en charge a consisté en la prescription de larmes artificielles et la surveillance semestrielle de notre patient.Discussion : La dystrophie grillagée type 1 survient généralement après l’âge de 10 ans, mais peuvent apparaître vers la cinquantaine, et rarement dans la petite enfance, essentiellement au niveau du centre cornéen. Elle se caractérise cliniquement par des opacités stromales fines entrecroisées. Les études génétiques ont démontré que la mutation survient au niveau du locus 5q22-q32. L’étude histologique a montré que ces zones d’opacités correspondent à un dépôt d’une substance amyloïde typique. La prise en charge ultime consiste en une kératoplastie transfixiante, certaines alternatives sont proposées par certaines équipes, comme la photo ablation au laser excimer pour les lésions superficielles.Conclusion : La dystrophie cornéenne grillagée, est certes une pathologie rare, mais reste de diagnostic facile essentiellement clinique. Du fait du caractère héréditaire de la pathologie, une recherche extensive de cas similaires dans la famille du patient s’impose