Impact time control based on time-to-go prediction for sea-skimming antiship missiles

This paper proposes a novel approach for guidance law design to satisfy the impact-time constraints for a certain class of homing missiles. The proposed guidance law provides proper lateral acceleration commands that make the impact time error converge to zero by the time of impact. This scheme can be applied to any existing guidance law for which a formula of predicted time to go is available. Convergence of time-to-go errors is supported by Lyapunov stability. The optimal guidance law and the impact angle control guidance law are extended by the proposed method for impact-time-control guidance and impact-time-and-angle-control guidance, respectively. The performance of the extended guidance laws is demonstrated by numerical simulation

Is poststroke complex regional pain syndrome the combination of shoulder pain and soft tissue injury of the wrist?: A prospective observational study STROBE of ultrasonographic findings in complex regional pain syndrome

Patients with poststroke complex regional pain syndrome (CRPS) show different symptoms compared to other types of CRPS, as they usually complain of shoulder and wrist pain with the elbow relatively spared. It is thus also known by the term “shoulder-hand syndrome.” The aim of this study is to present a possible pathophysiology of poststroke CRPS through ultrasonographic observation of the affected wrist before and after steroid injection at the extensor digitorum communis (EDC) tendon in patients suspected with poststroke CRPS. Prospective evaluation and observation, the STROBE guideline checklist was used. Twenty-three patients diagnosed as poststroke CRPS in accordance to clinical criteria were enrolled. They had a Three Phase Bone Scan (TPBS) done and the cross-sectional area (CSA) of EDC tendon was measured by using ultrasonography. They were then injected with steroid at the EDC tendon. The CSA of EDC tendon, visual analogue scale (VAS), and degree of swelling of the wrist were followed up 1 week after the injection. TPBS was interpreted as normal for 4 patients, suspected CRPS for 10 patients, and CRPS for 9 patients. Ultrasonographic findings of the affected wrist included swelling of the EDC tendon. After the injection of steroid to the wrist, CSA and swelling of the affected wrist compared to that before the treatment was significantly decreased (P < 0.001). The VAS score declined significantly after the injection (P < 0.001). Our results suggest that the pathophysiology of poststroke CRPS might be the combination of frozen shoulder or rotator cuff tear of shoulder and soft tissue injury of the wrist caused by the hemiplegic nature of patients with stroke

Subtle cytotoxicity and genotoxicity differences in superparamagnetic iron oxide nanoparticles coated with various functional groups

Superparamagnetic iron oxide nanoparticles (SPIONs) have been widely utilized for the diagnosis and therapy of specific diseases, as magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) contrast agents and drug-delivery carriers, due to their easy transportation to targeted areas by an external magnetic field. For such biomedical applications, SPIONs must have multifunctional characteristics, including optimized size and modified surface. However, the biofunctionality and biocompatibility of SPIONs with various surface functional groups of different sizes have yet to be elucidated clearly. Therefore, it is important to carefully monitor the cytotoxicity and genotoxicity of SPIONs that are surfaced-modified with various functional groups of different sizes. In this study, we evaluated SPIONs with diameters of approximately 10 nm and 100~150 nm, containing different surface functional groups. SPIONs were covered with −O− groups, so-called bare SPIONs. Following this, they were modified with three different functional groups – hydroxyl (−OH), carboxylic (−COOH), and amine (−NH2) groups – by coating their surfaces with tetraethyl orthosilicate (TEOS), (3-aminopropyl)trimethoxysilane (APTMS), TEOS-APTMS, or citrate, which imparted different surface charges and sizes to the particles. The effects of SPIONs coated with these functional groups on mitochondrial activity, intracellular accumulation of reactive oxygen species, membrane integrity, and DNA stability in L-929 fibroblasts were determined by water-soluble tetrazolium, 2′,7′-dichlorodihydrofluorescein, lactate dehydrogenase, and comet assays, respectively. Our toxicological observations suggest that the functional groups and sizes of SPIONs are critical determinants of cellular responses, degrees of cytotoxicity and genotoxicity, and potential mechanisms of toxicity. Nanoparticles with various surface modifications and of different sizes induced slight, but possibly meaningful, changes in cell cytotoxicity and genotoxicity, which would be significantly valuable in further studies of bioconjugation and cell interaction for drug delivery, cell culture, and cancer-targeting applications

Korean Green Growth: A Paradigm Shift in Sustainability Policy, and its International Implications

This article evaluates Koreas green growth law and policies in order to assess the role of green growth in international environmental law. We provide a short overview of Korean law and policy and contextualize Korean green growth by comparing it to the OECDs green growth vision. We then critically examine green growth from administrative and international law perspectives. Building on this analysis, we consider how the Korean domestic experience, and the initial efforts made to transplant aspects of green growth in other nations, can provide insight into future environmental and economic policies. While proponents of green growth continue to face significant challenges in Korea and abroad, there have been notable initial successes. Koreas forthcoming introduction of an emissions trading system and the collaboration between Korea and Cambodia to develop Cambodias institutional capacity for green growth are two conspicuous examples. Green growth remains a promising framework in Korea and abroad; its ultimate impact will depend upon sustained political and social support for the implementation of the ambitious policies green growth prescribes.This research is supported by the SNU Brain Fusion Program Research Grant in 2010

The Globular Cluster System of M60 (NGC 4649). I. CFHT MOS Spectroscopy and Database

We present the measurement of radial velocities for globular clusters in M60, giant elliptical galaxy in the Virgo cluster. Target globular cluster candidates were selected using the Washington photometry based on the deep 16\arcmin \times 16\arcmin images taken at the KPNO 4m and using the $VI$ photometry derived from the HST/WFPC2 archive images. The spectra of the target objects were obtained using the Multi-Object Spectrograph (MOS) at the Canada-France-Hawaii Telescope (CFHT). We have measured the radial velocity for 111 objects in the field of M60: 93 globular clusters (72 blue globular clusters with $1.0\le(C-T_1)<1.7$ and 21 red globular clusters with $1.7\le(C-T_1)<2.4$), 11 foreground stars, 6 small galaxies, and the nucleus of M60. The measured velocities of the 93 globular clusters range from $\sim 500$ km s$^{-1}$ to $\sim 1600$ km s$^{-1}$, with a mean value of $1070_{-25}^{+27}$ km s$^{-1}$, which is in good agreement with the velocity of the nucleus of M60 ($v_{\rm gal}=1056$ km s$^{-1}$). Combining our results with data in the literature, we present a master catalog of radial velocities for 121 globular clusters in M60. The velocity dispersion of the globular clusters in the master catalog is found to be $234_{-14}^{+13}$ km s$^{-1}$ for the entire sample, $223_{-16}^{+13}$ km s$^{-1}$ for 83 blue globular clusters, and $258_{-31}^{+21}$ km s$^{-1}$ for 38 red globular clusters.Comment: 29 pages, 8 figures. To appear in Ap

The Globular Cluster System of M60 (NGC 4649). II. Kinematics of the Globular Cluster System

We present a kinematic analysis of the globular cluster (GC) system in the giant elliptical galaxy (gE) M60 in the Virgo cluster. Using the photometric and spectroscopic database of 121 GCs (83 blue GCs and 38 red GCs), we have investigated the kinematics of the GC system. We have found that the M60 GC system shows a significant overall rotation. The rotation amplitude of the blue GCs is slightly smaller than or similar to that of the red GCs, and their angles of rotation axes are similar. The velocity dispersions about the mean velocity and about the best fit rotation curve for the red GCs are marginally larger than those for the blue GCs. Comparison of observed stellar and GC velocity dispersion profiles with those calculated from the stellar mass profile shows that the mass-to-light ratio should be increased as the galactocentric distance increases, indicating the existence of an extended dark matter halo. The entire sample of GCs in M60 is found to have a tangentially biased velocity ellipsoid unlike the GC systems in other gEs. Two subsamples appear to have different velocity ellipsoids. The blue GC system has a modest tangentially biased velocity ellipsoid, while the red GC system has a modest radially biased or an isotropic velocity ellipsoid. From the comparison of the kinematic properties of the M60 GC system to those of other gEs (M87, M49, NGC 1399, NGC 5128, and NGC 4636), it is found that the velocity dispersion of the blue GC system is similar to or larger than that of the red GC system except for M60, and the rotation of the GC system is not negligible. The entire sample of each GC system shows an isotropic velocity ellipsoid except for M60, while the subsamples show diverse velocity ellipsoids. We discuss the implication of these results for the formation models of the GC system in gEs.Comment: 48 pages, 16 figures. To appear in Ap

Non-Alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease with Sarcopenia and Carotid Plaque Progression Risk in Patients with Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus

Background We aimed to evaluate whether non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) with or without sarcopenia is associated with progression of carotid atherosclerosis in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). Methods We investigated 852 T2DM patients who underwent abdominal ultrasonography, bioelectrical impedance analysis, and carotid artery ultrasonography at baseline and repeated carotid ultrasonography after 6 to 8 years. NAFLD was confirmed by abdominal ultrasonography, and sarcopenia was defined as a sex-specific skeletal muscle mass index (SMI) value <2 standard deviations below the mean for healthy young adults. SMI was calculated by dividing the sum of appendicular skeletal mass by body weight. We investigated the association between NAFLD with or without sarcopenia and the progression of carotid atherosclerosis. Results Of the 852 patients, 333 (39.1%) were classified as NAFLD without sarcopenia, 66 (7.7%) were classified as sarcopenia without NAFLD, and 123 (14.4%) had NAFLD with sarcopenia at baseline. After 6 to 8 years, patients with both NAFLD and sarcopenia had a higher risk of atherosclerosis progression (adjusted odds ratio, 2.20; P<0.009) than controls without NAFLD and sarcopenia. When a subgroup analysis was performed on only patients with NAFLD, female sex, absence of central obesity, and non-obesity were significant factors related to increased risk of plaque progression risk in sarcopenic patients. Conclusion NAFLD with sarcopenia was significantly associated with the progression of carotid atherosclerosis in T2DM patients