Classification of 3-dimensional integrable scalar discrete equations

We classify all integrable 3-dimensional scalar discrete quasilinear equations Q=0 on an elementary cubic cell of the 3-dimensional lattice. An equation Q=0 is called integrable if it may be consistently imposed on all 3-dimensional elementary faces of the 4-dimensional lattice. Under the natural requirement of invariance of the equation under the action of the complete group of symmetries of the cube we prove that the only nontrivial (non-linearizable) integrable equation from this class is the well-known dBKP-system. (Version 2: A small correction in Table 1 (p.7) for n=2 has been made.) (Version 3: A few small corrections: one more reference added, the main statement stated more explicitly.)Comment: 20 p. LaTeX + 1 EPS figur

How to do meta-analysis of open datasets: comment

The amount of open data in ecology and evolution is increasing rapidly, yet this resource remains underused. Here, we introduce a new framework and case study for conducting meta-analyses of open datasets, and discuss its benefits and current limitations

Uncertainties and challenges in surgical and transcatheter tricuspid valve therapy: A state-of-the-art expert review

Tricuspid regurgitation (TR) is a frequent and complex problem, commonly combined with left-sided heart disease, such as mitral regurgitation. Significant TR is associated with increased mortality if left untreated or recurrent after therapy. Tricuspid regurgitation was historically often disregarded and remained undertreated. Surgery is currently the only Class I Guideline recommended therapy for TR, in the form of annuloplasty, leaflet repair, or valve replacement. As growing experience of transcatheter therapy in structural heart disease, many dedicated transcatheter tricuspid repair or replacement devices, which mimic well-established surgical techniques, are currently under development. Nevertheless, many aspects of TR are little understood, including the disease process, surgical or interventional risk stratification, and predictors of successful therapy. The optimal treatment timing and the choice of proper surgical or interventional technique for significant TR remain to be elucidated. In this context, we aim to highlight the current evidence, underline major controversial issues in this field and present a future roadmap for TR therapy

A Software Tool for Legal Drafting

Although many attempts at automated aids for legal drafting have been made, they were based on the construction of a new tool, completely from scratch. This is at least curious, considering that a strong parallelism can be established between a normative document and a software specification: both describe what an entity should or should not do, can or cannot do. In this article we compare normative documents and software specifications to find out their similarities and differences. The comparison shows that there are distinctive particularities, but they are restricted to a very specific subclass of normative propositions. The rest, we postulate, can be dealt with software tools. For such an enterprise the FormaLex tool set was devised: an LTL-based language and companion tools that utilize model checking to find out normative incoherences in regulations, contracts and other legal documents. A feature-rich case study is analyzed with the presented tools

Cardiac Resynchronization Therapy for Adult Patients With a Failing Systemic Right Ventricle: A Multicenter Study

BACKGROUND: The objective of this international multicenter study was to investigate both early and late outcomes of cardiac resynchronization therapy (CRT) in patients with a systemic right ventricle (SRV) and to identify predictors for congestive heart failure readmissions and mortality. METHODS AND RESULTS: This retrospective international multicenter study included 13 centers. The study population comprised 80 adult patients with SRV (48.9% women) with a mean age of 45±14 (range, 18–77) years at initiation of CRT. Median follow-up time was 4.1 (25th–75th percentile, 1.3– 8.3) years. Underlying congenital heart disease consisted of congenitally corrected transposition of the great arteries and dextro-transposition of the great arteries in 63 (78.8%) and 17 (21.3%) patients, respectively. CRT resulted in significant improvement in functional class (before CRT: III, 25th–75th percentile, II– III; after CRT: II, 25th–75th percentile, II– III; P=0.005) and QRS duration (before CRT: 176±27; after CRT: 150±24 milliseconds; P=0.003) in patients with pre-CRT ventricular pacing who underwent an upgrade to a CRT device (n=49). These improvements persisted during long-term follow-up with a marginal but significant increase in SRV function (before CRT; 30%, 25th–75th percentile, 25– 35; after CRT: 31%, 25th–75th percentile, 21– 38; P=0.049). In contrast, no beneficial change in the above-mentioned vari-ables was observed in patients who underwent de novo CRT (n=31). A quarter of all patients were readmitted for heart failure during follow-up, and mortality at latest follow-up was 21.3%. CONCLUSIONS: This international experience with CRT in patients with an SRV demonstrated that CRT in selected patients with SRV dysfunction and pacing-induced dyssynchrony yielded consistent improvement in QRS duration and New York Heart Association functional status, with a marginal increase in SRV function