2,504 research outputs found
Generational accounting: the case of Italy
An examination of the generational imbalance in current Italian fiscal policy, showing that unless dramatic steps are taken soon, future generations' net tax bill will be four or more times the amount that today's newborns are slated to pay.Italy ; Fiscal policy
Methodological shortcomings of wrist-worn heart rate monitors validations
Wearable sensor technology could have an important role for clinical research and in delivering health care. Accordingly, such technology should undergo rigorous evaluation prior to market launch, and its performance should be supported by evidence-based marketing claims. Many studies have been published attempting to validate wrist-worn photoplethysmography (PPG)-based heart rate monitoring devices, but their contrasting results question the utility of this technology. The reason why many validations did not provide conclusive evidence of the validity of wrist-worn PPG-based heart rate monitoring devices is mostly methodological. The validation strategy should consider the nature of data provided by both the investigational and reference devices. There should be uniformity in the statistical approach to the analyses employed in these validation studies. The investigators should test the technology in the population of interest and in a setting appropriate for intended use. Device industries and the scientific community require robust standards for the validation of new wearable sensor technology
Industry 4.0 and sustainability: Towards conceptualization and theory
Both Industry 4.0 and sustainability have gained momentum in the academic, managerial and policy debate. Despite the relevance of the topics, the relation between Industry 4.0 and sustainability \u2013 revealed by many authors \u2013 is still unclear; literature is fragmented. This paper seeks to overcome this limit by developing a systematic literature review of 117 peer-reviewed journal articles. After descriptive and content analyses, the work presents a conceptualization and theoretical framework. The paper contributes to both theory and practice by advancing current understanding of Industry 4.0 and sustainability, especially the impact of Industry 4.0 technologies on sustainability practices and performance
New grayscale hit-miss operator
The morphological binary hit-miss operator has been used extensively to locate features within a binary image. We propose a grayscale hit-miss operator that detects signal shapes and is applicable to scalar-valued functions on one, two, or more dimensions. The hit and miss structuring elements define the lower and upper bounds of the signal: If a signal lies between the hit and miss templates, then the hit-miss operator will produce a one output; otherwise, it will respond with zero. We incorporate a fuzzy logic element to the hit-miss operator to indicate how strongly the signal matches the hit-miss templates
Isospin splitting of the nucleon mean field
The isospin splitting of the nucleon mean field is derived from the Brueckner
theory extended to asymmetric nuclear matter. The Argonne V18 has been adopted
as bare interaction in combination with a microscopic three body force. The
isospin splitting of the effective mass is determined from the
Brueckner-Hartree-Fock self-energy: It is linear acording to the Lane ansatz
and such that for neutron-rich matter. The symmetry potential
is also determined and a comparison is made with the predictions of the
Dirac-Brueckner approach and the phenomenological interactions. The theoretical
predictions are also compared with the empirical parametrizations of neutron
and proton optical-model potentials based on the experimental nucleon-nucleus
scattering and the phenomenological ones adopted in transport-model simulations
of heavy-ion collisions. The direct contribution of the rearrangement term due
to three-body forces to the single particle potential and symmetry potential is
discussed.Comment: 8 pages, 10 figure
Temperature dependence of single-particle properties in nuclear matter
The single-nucleon potential in hot nuclear matter is investigated in the
framework of the Brueckner theory by adopting the realistic Argonne V18 or
Nijmegen 93 two-body nucleon-nucleon interaction supplemented by a microscopic
three-body force. The rearrangement contribution to the single-particle
potential induced by the ground state correlations is calculated in terms of
the hole-line expansion of the mass operator and provides a significant
repulsive contribution in the low-momentum region around and below the Fermi
surface. Increasing temperature leads to a reduction of the effect, while
increasing density makes it become stronger. The three-body force suppresses
somewhat the ground state correlations due to its strong short-range repulsion,
increasing with density. Inclusion of the three-body force contribution results
in a quite different temperature dependence of the single-particle potential at
high enough densities as compared to that adopting the pure two-body force. The
effects of three-body force and ground state correlations on the nucleon
effective mass are also discussed.Comment: 14 pages, 5 figure
Hemodynamic evaluation of the right portal vein in healthy dogs of different body weights
<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Doppler ultrasonography is an important tool for evaluating hepatic portal hemodynamics. However, no study in dogs of different body weights, in the range encountered in routine clinical veterinary practice, has been reported. It can be difficult to obtain an ideal insonation angle when evaluating the main portal vein, so evaluation of the right portal vein branch has been described in humans as an alternative. The aim of this study was to analyze, through Doppler ultrasonography, the hemodynamics in the right portal vein branch in dogs of different body weights.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Thirty normal dogs were divided in three groups by weight, in order to establish normal values for mean velocity, flow volume and portal congestion index of the right portal vein branch by means of Doppler ultrasonography.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>In all dogs ideal insonation angles were obtained for the right portal vein branch. The average velocity was similar in the three groups, but the portal congestion index and the flow volume differed, showing that the weight of the dog can influence these values.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>Doppler ultrasonography for the evaluation of flow in the right branch of the portal vein could be a viable alternative, or complement, to examining the main vessel segment. This is especially so in those animals in which an ideal insonation angle for examination of the main portal vein is hard to obtain. In addition, the weight of the dog must be considered for the correct evaluation of the portal system hemodynamics, particularly for portal blood flow and the congestion index.</p
First Report of NRG Oncology/Radiation Therapy Oncology Group 0622: A Phase 2 Trial of Samarium-153 Followed by Salvage Prostatic Fossa Irradiation in High-Risk Clinically Nonmetastatic Prostate Cancer After Radical Prostatectomy.
PURPOSE: To investigate the utility of 153Sm lexidronam (Quadramet) in the setting of men with prostate cancer status post radical prostatectomy who develop biochemical failure with no clinical evidence of osseous metastases.
PATIENTS AND METHODS: Trial NRG Oncology RTOG 0622 is a single-arm phase 2 trial that enrolled men with pT2-T4, N0-1, M0 prostate cancer status post radical prostatectomy, who meet at least 1 of these biochemical failure criteria: (1) prostate-specific antigen (PSA) \u3e 1.0 ng/mL; (2) PSA \u3e 0.2 ng/mL if Gleason score 9 to 10; or (3) PSA \u3e 0.2 ng/mL if N1. Patients received 153Sm (2.0 mCi/kg intravenously Ă 1) followed by salvage external beam radiation therapy (EBRT) to the prostatic fossa (64.8-70.2 Gy in 1.8-Gy daily fractions). No androgen deprivation therapy was allowed. The primary objective was PSA response within 12 weeks of receiving 153Sm. The secondary objectives were to: (1) assess the completion rate for the regimen of 153Sm and EBRT; (2) evaluate the hematologic toxicity and other adverse events (AEs) at 12 and 24 weeks; and (3) determine the freedom from progression rate at 2 years.
RESULTS: A total of 60 enrolled eligible patients were included in this analysis. Median follow-up was 3.97 years. A PSA response was achieved in 7 of 52 evaluable patients (13.5%), compared with the 25% hypothesized. The 2-year freedom from progression rate was 25.5% (95% confidence interval 14.4%-36.7%), and the biochemical failure rate was 64.4% (95% CI 50.5%-75.2%). Samarium-153 was well tolerated, with 16 (of 60) grade 3 to 4 hematologic AEs and no grade 5 hematologic AEs. Radiation therapy was also well tolerated, with no grade 3 to 5 acute radiation therapy-related AEs and 1 grade 3 to 4 and no grade 5 late radiation therapy-related AEs.
CONCLUSIONS: Trial NRG Oncology RTOG 0622 did not meet its primary endpoint of PSA response, although the regimen of 153Sm and salvage EBRT was well tolerated. Although the toxicity profile supports study of 153Sm in high-risk disease, it may not be beneficial in men receiving EBRT
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