Comparison of Alternative Configurations for Dense Warehousing Systems

In heavily constrained environments requiring very high density storage, traditional aisle-based warehousing may not provide viable options. One feasible manifestation of high density storage systems is the ‘puzzle-based’ system, in which unit loads are moved through the system via manipulation of empty (escort) locations to retrieve desired items. Another option would be the use of movable concentric rings, with escorts being utilized to enable lateral movements of unit loads between the rings. In this paper, the authors present analytical results to compare retrieval time performance for these two types of high density storage systems for randomly demanded items under various assumptions regarding the initial placement of escorts. The paper concludes that the use of movable concentric rings results in significant improvement to retrieval time performance in comparison to rectangular, puzzle-based systems, and further concludes that additional research is warranted

Investigating Possible Synergies in Intermodal Operations With Truck and Rail

As the trucking industry continues to examine ways to provide better service at lower cost, many companies are more heavily utilizing intermodal (IM) strategies between truck and rail, especially for those loads that are relatively non-critical in terms of delivery time requirements and that have longer lengths of haul. As IM business grows, supporting dray infrastructure naturally develops around IM rail yards. What is unknown is whether it is best to have a dedicated set of drivers performing dray operations or if efficiency and cost savings can result when utilizing a joint driving fleet to concurrently support IM and traditionally dispatched truckload freight transportation. This paper describes a set of experiments utilizing a comprehensive discrete-event system simulation model and historical data from J.B. Hunt Transport to determine whether or not operating synergies exist when IM dray operations are integrated with local, regional, and long-haul trucking operations. Performance metrics of interest to drivers, customers, and trucking companies are utilized to ensure that the research addresses issues of importance to all constituencies. The results show that there is a trade-off between different performance variables when combining operations, but that generally speaking synergies do exist when considering the needs of professional drivers. Results are more mixed with respect to the needs of carriers and customers, but the authors reach the conclusion that the positive aspects of combining OTR and IM dispatching activities outweigh the negative. Because the evaluative simulation model itself is considered to be a major contribution, it is also described in some detail herein

Reorganize your blogs: Supporting blog re-visitation with natural language processing and visualization

Temporally-connected personal blogs contain voluminous textual content, presenting challenges in re-visiting and reflecting on experiences. Other data repositories have benefited from natural language processing (NLP) and interactive visualizations (VIS) to support exploration, but little is known about how these techniques could be used with blogs to present experiences and support multimodal interaction with blogs, particularly for authors. This paper presents the effect of reorganization—reorganizing the large blog set with NLP and presenting abstract topics with VIS—to support novel re-visitation experiences to blogs. The BlogCloud tool, a blog re-visitation tool that reorganizes blog paragraphs around user-searched keywords, implements reorganization and similarity-based content grouping. Through a public use session with bloggers who wrote about extended hikes, we observed the effect of NLP-based reorganization in delivering novel re-visitation experiences. Findings suggest that the re-presented topics provide new reflection materials and re-visitation paths, enabling interaction with symbolic items in memory

Simulation models predict that school-age children are responsible for most human-to-mosquito Plasmodium falciparum transmission in southern Malawi

Abstract Background Malaria persists in some high-transmission areas despite extensive control efforts. Progress toward elimination may require effective targeting of specific human populations that act as key transmission reservoirs. Methods Parameterized using molecular-based Plasmodium falciparum infection data from cross-sectional community studies in southern Malawi, a simulation model was developed to predict the proportions of human-to-mosquito transmission arising from (a) children under 5 years old (U5s), (b) school-age children (SAC, 5–15 years), (c) young adults (16–30 years), and (d) adults > 30 years. The model incorporates mosquito biting heterogeneity and differential infectivity (i.e. probability that a blood-fed mosquito develops oocysts) by age and gametocyte density. Results The model predicted that SAC were responsible for more than 60% of new mosquito infections in both dry and rainy seasons, even though they comprise only 30% of this southern Malawi population. Young adults were the second largest contributors, while U5s and adults over 30 were each responsible for < 10% of transmission. While the specific predicted values are sensitive to the relative infectiousness of SAC, this group remained the most important contributor to mosquito infections under all realistic estimates. Conclusions These results suggest that U5 children play a small role compared to SAC in maintaining P. falciparum transmission in southern Malawi. Models that assume biting homogeneity overestimate the importance of U5s. To reduce transmission, interventions will need to reach more SAC and young adults. This publicly available model can be used by others to estimate age-specific transmission contributions in epidemiologically similar sites with local parameter estimates of P. falciparum prevalence and bed net use.https://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/143001/1/12936_2018_Article_2295.pd

Bristol and Bath by Design; To understand the economic and cultural value of design in the Bristol and Bath region

The aim of the project was to collect data on designcompanies in the Bristol and Bath region, and to gain abetter understanding of the economic and cultural valueof the design-led sector. To do this, our primary researchwas to develop a range of qualitative and quantitativemethods that could gather and then analyse the data

Insecticide-treated net effectiveness at preventing Plasmodium falciparum infection varies by age and season

Abstract Background After increasing coverage of malaria interventions, malaria prevalence remains high in Malawi. Previous studies focus on the impact of malaria interventions among children under 5 years old. However, in Malawi, the prevalence of infection is highest in school-aged children (SAC), ages 5 to 15 years. This study examined the interaction between age group and insecticide-treated net (ITN) use for preventing individual and community-level infection in Malawi. Methods Six cross-sectional surveys were conducted in the rainy and dry seasons in southern Malawi from 2012 to 2014. Data were collected on household ITN usage and demographics. Blood samples for detection of Plasmodium falciparum infection were obtained from all household members present and over 6 months of age. Generalized linear mixed models were used to account for clustering at the household and community level. Results There were 17,538 observations from six surveys. The association between ITN use and infection varied by season in SAC, but not in other age groups. The adjusted odds ratio (OR) for infection comparing ITN users to non-users among SAC in the rainy season and dry season was 0.78 (95% CI 0.56, 1.10) and 0.51 (0.35, 0.74), respectively. The effect of ITN use did not differ between children under five and adults. Among all non-SACs the OR for infection was 0.78 (0.64, 0.95) in those who used ITNs compared to those that did not. Community net use did not protect against infection. Conclusions Protection against infection with ITN use varies by age group and season. Individual estimates of protection are moderate and a community-level effect was not detected. Additional interventions to decrease malaria prevalence are needed in Malawi.http://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/135726/1/12936_2017_Article_1686.pd

Bed net use among school-aged children after a universal bed net campaign in Malawi

Abstract Background Recent data from Malawi suggest that school-aged children (SAC), aged 5–15 years, have the highest prevalence of Plasmodium falciparum infection among all age groups. They are the least likely group to utilize insecticide-treated nets (ITNs), the most commonly available intervention to prevent malaria in Africa. This study examined the effects of a universal ITN distribution campaign, and their durability over time in SAC in Malawi. This study identified factors that influence net usage among SAC and how these factors changed over time. Methods Cross-sectional surveys using cluster random sampling were conducted at the end of each rainy and dry season in southern Malawi from 2012 to 2014; six surveys were done in total. Mass net distribution occurred between the first and second surveys. Data were collected on household and individual net usage as well as demographic information. Statistical analyses used generalized linear mixed models to account for clustering at the household and neighbourhood level. Results There were 7347 observations from SAC and 14,785 from young children and adults. SAC used nets significantly less frequently than the rest of the population (odds ratio (OR) from 0.14 to 0.38). The most important predictors of net usage among SAC were a lower ratio of people to nets in a household and higher proportion of nets that were hanging at the time of survey. Older SAC (11–15 years) were significantly less likely to use nets than younger SAC (5–10 years) [OR = 0.24 (95 % CI: 0.21, 0.28)]. The universal bed net campaign led to a statistically significant population-wide increase in net use, however net use returned to near baseline within 3 years. Conclusions This study suggests that a single universal net distribution campaign, in combination with routine distribution through health clinics is not sufficient to cause a sustained increase in net usage among SAC. Novel approaches to ITN distribution, such as school-based distribution, may be needed to address the high prevalence of infection in SAC.http://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/134523/1/12936_2016_Article_1178.pd

Exercise and pregnancy in recreational and elite athletes: 2016/17 evidence summary from the IOC Expert Group Meeting, Lausanne. Part 3 - Exercise in the postpartum period

This is Part 3 in the series of reviews from the IOC expert committee on exercise and pregnancy in recreational and elite athletes. Part 1 focused on the effects of training during pregnancy and on the management of common pregnancy-related complaints experienced by athletes1; Part 2 addressed maternal and fetal perinatal outcomes.2 In this part, we review the implications of pregnancy and childbirth on return to exercise and on common illnesses and complaints in the postpartum period. The postpartum period can be divided into hospital-based (during hospital stay), immediate postpartum (hospital discharge to 6 weeks postpartum) and later postpartum (6 weeks to 1 year, corresponding sometimes to cessation of breast feeding).3 In the literature, the postpartum period is usually defined as the first 6 weeks after pregnancy, during which time women have not typically been encouraged to exercise, except for strength training of the pelvic floor muscles. However, 6 weeks is an arbitrary time point and, anecdotally, many elite athletes report starting exercise inside that period. For the purpose of the present review, we consider the postpartum period to be up to 12 months following birth

Fungal Planet description sheets: 1436–1477

Novel species of fungi described in this study include those from various countries as follows: Argentina, Colletotrichum araujiae on leaves, stems and fruits of Araujia hortorum. Australia, Agaricus pateritonsus on soil, Curvularia fraserae on dying leaf of Bothriochloa insculpta, Curvularia millisiae from yellowing leaf tips of Cyperus aromaticus, Marasmius brunneolorobustus on well-rotted wood, Nigrospora cooperae from necrotic leaf of Heteropogon contortus, Penicillium tealii from the body of a dead spider, Pseudocercospora robertsiorum from leaf spots of Senna tora, Talaromyces atkinsoniae from gills of Marasmius crinis-equi and Zasmidium pearceae from leaf spots of Smilax glyciphylla. Brazil, Preussia bezerrensis from air. Chile, Paraconiothyrium kelleni from the rhizosphere of Fragaria chiloensis subsp. chiloensis f. chiloensis. Finland, Inocybe udicola on soil in mixed forest with Betula pendula, Populus tremula, Picea abies and Alnus incana. France, Myrmecridium normannianum on dead culm of unidentified Poaceae. Germany, Vexillomyces fraxinicola from symptomless stem wood of Fraxinus excelsior. India, Diaporthe limoniae on infected fruit of Limonia acidissima, Didymella naikii on leaves of Cajanus cajan, and Fulvifomes mangroviensis on basal trunk of Aegiceras corniculatum. Indonesia, Penicillium ezekielii from Zea mays kernels. Namibia, Neocamarosporium calicoremae and Neocladosporium calicoremae on stems of Calicorema capitata, and Pleiochaeta adenolobi on symptomatic leaves of Adenolobus pechuelii. Netherlands, Chalara pteridii on stems of Pteridium aquilinum, Neomackenziella juncicola (incl. Neomackenziella gen. nov.) and Sporidesmiella junci from dead culms of Juncus effusus. Pakistan, Inocybe longistipitata on soil in a Quercus forest. Poland, Phytophthora viadrina from rhizosphere soil of Quercus robur, and Septoria krystynae on leaf spots of Viscum album. Portugal (Azores), Acrogenospora stellata on dead wood or bark. South Africa, Phyllactinia greyiae on leaves of Greyia sutherlandii and Punctelia anae on bark of Vachellia karroo. Spain, Anteaglonium lusitanicum on decaying wood of Prunus lusitanica subsp. lusitanica, Hawksworthiomyces riparius from fluvial sediments, Lophiostoma carabassense endophytic in roots of Limbarda crithmoides, and Tuber mohedanoi from calcareus soils. Spain (Canary Islands), Mycena laurisilvae on stumps and woody debris. Sweden, Elaphomyces geminus from soil under Quercus robur. Thailand, Lactifluus chiangraiensis on soil under Pinus merkusii, Lactifluus nakhonphanomensis and Xerocomus sisongkhramensis on soil under Dipterocarpus trees. Ukraine, Valsonectria robiniae on dead twigs of Robinia hispida. USA, Spiralomyces americanus (incl. Spiralomyces gen. nov.) from office air. Morphological and culture characteristics are supported by DNA barcodes