Socially-Aware Navigation Planner Using Models of Human-Human Interaction

A real-time socially-aware navigation planner helps a mobile robot to navigate alongside humans in a socially acceptable manner. This navigation planner is a modification of nav_core package of Robot Operating System (ROS), based upon earlier work and further modified to use only egocentric sensors. The planner can be utilized to provide safe as well as socially appropriate robot navigation. Primitive features including interpersonal distance between the robot and an interaction partner and features of the environment (such as hallways detected in real-time) are used to reason about the current state of an interaction. Gaussian Mixture Models (GMM) are trained over these features from human-human interaction demonstrations of various interaction scenarios. This model is both used to discriminate different human actions related to their navigation behavior and to help in the trajectory selection process to provide a social-appropriateness score for a potential trajectory. This thesis presents a model based framework for navigation planning, a simulation-based evaluation of the model-based navigation behavior

A “Push–Pull” Stabilized Phosphinidene Supported by a Phosphine‐Functionalized β‐Diketiminato Ligand

The use of a bis(diphenyl)phosphine functionalized β‐diketiminato ligand, [HC{(CH$_{3}$)C}$_{2}${(ortho‐[P(C$_{6}$H$_{5}$)$_{2}$]$_{2}$C$_{6}$H$_{4}$)N}$_{2}$]$^{-}$ (PNac), as a support for germanium(II) and tin(II) chloride and phosphaketene compounds, is described. The conformational flexibility and hemilability of this unique ligand provide a versatile coordination environment that can accommodate the electronic needs of the ligated elements. For example, chloride abstraction from [(PNac)ECl] (E=Ge, Sn) affords the cationic germyliumylidene and stannyliumylidene species [(PNac)E]$^{+}$ in which the pendant phosphine arms associate more strongly with the Lewis acidic main group element centers, providing further electronic stabilization. In a similar fashion, chemical decarbonylation of the germanium phosphaketene [(PNac)Ge(PCO)] with tris(pentafluorophenyl)borane affords a “push–pull” stabilized phosphinidene in which one of the phosphine groups of the ligand backbone associates with the low valent phosphinidene center

Prospective Teachers Level of Communication Apprehension

The purpose of this study was to investigate the oral communication (CA) levels of prospective teachers studying in the Teacher Education Centers of Kerala state in south India. The personal Report of Communication Apprehension-24 (PRCA-24) to measure the level of CA of 215 trainee teachers from three subject streams: Language education, Science education, and social science education. Data were evaluated using percentage analysis, and ANOVA and Sheff

Investigating the utility of combining Φ29 whole genome amplification and highly multiplexed single nucleotide polymorphism BeadArray™ genotyping

BACKGROUND: Sustainable DNA resources and reliable high-throughput genotyping methods are required for large-scale, long-term genetic association studies. In the genetic dissection of common disease it is now recognised that thousands of samples and hundreds of thousands of markers, mostly single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs), will have to be analysed. In order to achieve these aims, both an ability to boost quantities of archived DNA and to genotype at low costs are highly desirable. We have investigated Φ29 polymerase Multiple Displacement Amplification (MDA)-generated DNA product (MDA product), in combination with highly multiplexed BeadArray™ genotyping technology. As part of a large-scale BeadArray genotyping experiment we made a direct comparison of genotyping data generated from MDA product with that from genomic DNA (gDNA) templates. RESULTS: Eighty-six MDA product and the corresponding 86 gDNA samples were genotyped at 345 SNPs and a concordance rate of 98.8% was achieved. The BeadArray sample exclusion rate, blind to sample type, was 10.5% for MDA product compared to 5.8% for gDNA. CONCLUSIONS: We conclude that the BeadArray technology successfully produces high quality genotyping data from MDA product. The combination of these technologies improves the feasibility and efficiency of mapping common disease susceptibility genes despite limited stocks of gDNA samples

Genomic investigations of unexplained acute hepatitis in children

Since its first identification in Scotland, over 1,000 cases of unexplained paediatric hepatitis in children have been reported worldwide, including 278 cases in the UK1. Here we report an investigation of 38 cases, 66 age-matched immunocompetent controls and 21 immunocompromised comparator participants, using a combination of genomic, transcriptomic, proteomic and immunohistochemical methods. We detected high levels of adeno-associated virus 2 (AAV2) DNA in the liver, blood, plasma or stool from 27 of 28 cases. We found low levels of adenovirus (HAdV) and human herpesvirus 6B (HHV-6B) in 23 of 31 and 16 of 23, respectively, of the cases tested. By contrast, AAV2 was infrequently detected and at low titre in the blood or the liver from control children with HAdV, even when profoundly immunosuppressed. AAV2, HAdV and HHV-6 phylogeny excluded the emergence of novel strains in cases. Histological analyses of explanted livers showed enrichment for T cells and B lineage cells. Proteomic comparison of liver tissue from cases and healthy controls identified increased expression of HLA class 2, immunoglobulin variable regions and complement proteins. HAdV and AAV2 proteins were not detected in the livers. Instead, we identified AAV2 DNA complexes reflecting both HAdV-mediated and HHV-6B-mediated replication. We hypothesize that high levels of abnormal AAV2 replication products aided by HAdV and, in severe cases, HHV-6B may have triggered immune-mediated hepatic disease in genetically and immunologically predisposed children

Effect of angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitor and angiotensin receptor blocker initiation on organ support-free days in patients hospitalized with COVID-19

IMPORTANCE Overactivation of the renin-angiotensin system (RAS) may contribute to poor clinical outcomes in patients with COVID-19. Objective To determine whether angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitor or angiotensin receptor blocker (ARB) initiation improves outcomes in patients hospitalized for COVID-19. DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS In an ongoing, adaptive platform randomized clinical trial, 721 critically ill and 58 non–critically ill hospitalized adults were randomized to receive an RAS inhibitor or control between March 16, 2021, and February 25, 2022, at 69 sites in 7 countries (final follow-up on June 1, 2022). INTERVENTIONS Patients were randomized to receive open-label initiation of an ACE inhibitor (n = 257), ARB (n = 248), ARB in combination with DMX-200 (a chemokine receptor-2 inhibitor; n = 10), or no RAS inhibitor (control; n = 264) for up to 10 days. MAIN OUTCOMES AND MEASURES The primary outcome was organ support–free days, a composite of hospital survival and days alive without cardiovascular or respiratory organ support through 21 days. The primary analysis was a bayesian cumulative logistic model. Odds ratios (ORs) greater than 1 represent improved outcomes. RESULTS On February 25, 2022, enrollment was discontinued due to safety concerns. Among 679 critically ill patients with available primary outcome data, the median age was 56 years and 239 participants (35.2%) were women. Median (IQR) organ support–free days among critically ill patients was 10 (–1 to 16) in the ACE inhibitor group (n = 231), 8 (–1 to 17) in the ARB group (n = 217), and 12 (0 to 17) in the control group (n = 231) (median adjusted odds ratios of 0.77 [95% bayesian credible interval, 0.58-1.06] for improvement for ACE inhibitor and 0.76 [95% credible interval, 0.56-1.05] for ARB compared with control). The posterior probabilities that ACE inhibitors and ARBs worsened organ support–free days compared with control were 94.9% and 95.4%, respectively. Hospital survival occurred in 166 of 231 critically ill participants (71.9%) in the ACE inhibitor group, 152 of 217 (70.0%) in the ARB group, and 182 of 231 (78.8%) in the control group (posterior probabilities that ACE inhibitor and ARB worsened hospital survival compared with control were 95.3% and 98.1%, respectively). CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE In this trial, among critically ill adults with COVID-19, initiation of an ACE inhibitor or ARB did not improve, and likely worsened, clinical outcomes. TRIAL REGISTRATION ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT0273570

New Air Cleaning Strategies for Reduced Commercial Building Ventilation Energy ? FY11 Final Report

The research carried out in this project focuses on developing novel volatile organic compounds (VOCs) air cleaning technologies needed to enable energy-saving reductions in ventilation rates. we targeted a VOC air cleaning system that could enable a 50% reduction in ventilation rates. In a typical commercial HVAC system that provides a mixture of recirculated and outdoor air, a VOC air cleaner in the supply airstream must have a 15% to 20% VOC removal efficiency to counteract a 50% reduction in outdoor air supply