Sandpiles on multiplex networks

We introduce the sandpile model on multiplex networks with more than one type of edge and investigate its scaling and dynamical behaviors. We find that the introduction of multiplexity does not alter the scaling behavior of avalanche dynamics; the system is critical with an asymptotic power-law avalanche size distribution with an exponent $\tau = 3/2$ on duplex random networks. The detailed cascade dynamics, however, is affected by the multiplex coupling. For example, higher-degree nodes such as hubs in scale-free networks fail more often in the multiplex dynamics than in the simplex network counterpart in which different types of edges are simply aggregated. Our results suggest that multiplex modeling would be necessary in order to gain a better understanding of cascading failure phenomena of real-world multiplex complex systems, such as the global economic crisis.Comment: 7 pages, 7 figure

The impact of sexual activity during the third trimester of pregnancy on labor outcome in nulliparous women

Background: In the environment, there’s not enough studies on the effects of sexual activity during pregnancy on labor outcome, especially for nulliparous women. The aim was to assess the effects of sexual activity during the third term of pregnancy on the outcome of labor in nulliparous women.Methods: A prospective cohort study on labor was carried out for 11 months at the labor ward of the Yaoundé gynaeco-obstetric and pediatric Hospital. In this study compared women were exposed to at least one unprotected sexual intercourse with vaginal ejaculation per week during the third trimester of pregnancy (exposed group), to those who had less than one unprotected sexual intercourse per week (non-exposed group).Results: Of the 1123 primiparous women who gave birth within the study period, 426 consented to enroll in the study. Amongst these women, 186 women in the exposed group compared to 240 women in the non-exposed group. Intercourse during pregnancy predisposed on arrival into the labor ward to a Bishop’s score ≥7 (RR = 1.94; CI = 1.63-2.3) and within the course of labor to a spontaneous per vaginal delivery (RR = 1.18; CI = 1.06-1.31) and an active phase duration <6 hours (RR = 1.52; CI = 1.36-1.7). Furthermore, sexual intercourse during pregnancy protected against labor induction (RR = 0.21; CI = 0.12-0.36), dystocia (RR = 0.36; CI =  0.27-0.49), cesarean section (RR = 0.29; CI = 0.15-0.55), episiotomy (RR = 0.56; CI = 0.36-0.87) and an Apgar  score <7 at the first minute of birth (RR = 0.31; CI = 0.14-0.7).Conclusions: Sexual activity during pregnancy improves the prognosis of labor in primiparous women. In the absence of contraindications, consented unprotected heterosexual vaginal intercourse should be promoted in nulliparous women

Optimasi Karakteristik Fungsional Minyak Atsiri Jahe Merah(Zingiber officanalte var. rubrum) pada Brownies Substitusi Tepung Ubi Ungu (Ipomoea batatas L.)sebagai Sumber Antioksidan

Tingginya kesadaran akan pentingnya kesehatan menyebabkan perubahan pola makan masyarakat cenderung lebih memilih makanan alami dan sehat yang sekaligus berfungsi mencegah atau mengobati penyakit yang disebut sebagai pangan fungsional. Salah satu produk fungsional bakery yang paling populer adalah brownies. Brownies komersial yang beredar di pasaran belum ada yang sekaligus berfungsi sebagai pangan fungsional. Salah satu alternatif untuk menjadikan brownies sebagai salah satu pangan fungsional adalah dengan subsitusi menggunakan tepung ubi jalar ungu dan penambahan minyak atsiri jahe merah sebagai sumber antioksidan. Penelitian ini bertujuan untuk mengetahui aktivitas antioksidan dan senyawa aktif, peneriman panelis, serta mengetahui sifat fisik dan kimia terhadap brownies kukus substitusi tepung ubi ungu dengan penambahan minyak atsiri. Desain penelitian yang digunakan Rancangan Acak Lengkap dengan satu faktor yang mempengaruhi variasi penambahan minyak atsiri jahe merah dengan konsentrasi masing masing 0,05%; 0,10%; 0,15%; 0,20%; dan 0,25%. Hasil penelitian menunjukan aktivitas antioksidan IC50 yang diperoleh pada brownies substitusi tepung ubi ungu dengan penambahan minyak atsiri jahe merah berkisar antara 957.74 ppm sampai 450.24 ppm. Komponen senyawa pada brownies substitusi tepung ubi ungu dengan penambahan minyak atsiri jahe merah antara lain adalah Levoglukosan, Asam Palmitat, Asam Oleat, Theobromin, Asam Stearat, Asam Laurat, dan HMF. Berdasarkan uji organoleptik brownies substitusi tepung ubi ungu dengan penambahan minyak atsiri jahe merah terbaik adalah brownis dengan konsentrasi penambahan 0,05%. Kata kunci : Brownies, Minyak atsiri, Antioksidan, Senyawa fungsiona

Negative phenotypic and genetic associations between copulation duration and longevity in male seed beetles

Reproduction can be costly and is predicted to trade-off against other characters. However, while these trade-offs are well documented for females, there has been less focus on aspects of male reproduction. Furthermore, those studies that have looked at males typically only investigate phenotypic associations, with the underlying genetics often ignored. Here, we report on phenotypic and genetic trade-offs in male reproductive effort in the seed beetle, Callosobruchus maculatus. We find that the duration of a male's first copulation is negatively associated with subsequent male survival, phenotypically and genetically. Our results are consistent with life-history theory and suggest that like females, males trade-off reproductive effort against longevity

Social media use and impact during the holiday travel planning process

Through an empirical study among holiday travellers, residing in the Former Soviet Union Republics, this paper presents a comprehensive view of role and impact of social media on the whole holiday travel planning process: Before, during and after the trip, providing insights on usage levels, scope of use, level of influence and trust. Findings suggest that social media are predominantly used after holidays for experience sharing. It is also shown that there is a strong correlation between perceived level of influence from social media and changes made in holiday plans prior to final decisions. Moreover, it is revealed that user-generated content is perceived as more trustworthy when compared to official tourism websites, travel agents and mass media advertising

Expansion of anti-AFP Th1 and Tc1 responses in hepatocellular carcinoma occur in different stages of disease

Copyright @ 2010 Cancer Research UK. This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-Share Alike 3.0 Unported License. To view a copy of this license, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0/.Background: α-Fetoprotein (AFP) is a tumour-associated antigen in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) and is a target for immunotherapy. However, there is little information on the pattern of CD4 (Th1) and CD8 (Tc1) T-cell response to AFP in patients with HCC and their association with the clinical characteristics of patients. Methods: We therefore analysed CD4 and CD8 T-cell responses to a panel of AFP-derived peptides in a total of 31 HCC patients and 14 controls, using an intracellular cytokine assay for IFN-γ. Results: Anti-AFP Tc1 responses were detected in 28.5% of controls, as well as in 25% of HCC patients with Okuda I (early tumour stage) and in 31.6% of HCC patients with stage II or III (late tumour stages). An anti-AFP Th1 response was detected only in HCC patients (58.3% with Okuda stage I tumours and 15.8% with Okuda stage II or III tumours). Anti-AFP Th1 response was mainly detected in HCC patients who had normal or mildly elevated serum AFP concentrations (P=0.00188), whereas there was no significant difference between serum AFP concentrations in these patients and the presence of an anti-AFP Tc1 response. A Th1 response was detected in 44% of HCC patients with a Child–Pugh A score (early stage of cirrhosis), whereas this was detected in only 15% with a B or C score (late-stage cirrhosis). In contrast, a Tc1 response was detected in 17% of HCC patients with a Child–Pugh A score and in 46% with a B or C score. Conclusion: These results suggest that anti-AFP Th1 responses are more likely to be present in patients who are in an early stage of disease (for both tumour stage and liver cirrhosis), whereas anti-AFP Tc1 responses are more likely to be present in patients with late-stage liver cirrhosis. Therefore, these data provide valuable information for the design of vaccination strategies against HCC.Association for International Cancer Research and Polkemmet Fund, London Clinic

Short-term and long-term cost-effectiveness of a pedometer-based exercise intervention in primary care: a within-trial analysis and beyond-trial modelling

Abstract Objectives A short-term and long-term cost-effectiveness analysis (CEA) of two pedometer-based walking interventions compared with usual care. Design (A) Short-term CEA: parallel three-arm cluster randomised trial randomised by household. (B) Long-term CEA: Markov decision model. Setting Seven primary care practices in South London, UK. Participants (A) Short-term CEA: 1023 people (922 households) aged 45–75 years without physical activity (PA) contraindications. (b) Long-term CEA: a cohort of 100 000 people aged 59–88 years. Interventions Pedometers, 12-week walking programmes and PA diaries delivered by post or through three PA consultations with practice nurses. Primary and secondary outcome measures Accelerometer-measured change (baseline to 12 months) in average daily step count and time in 10 min bouts of moderate to vigorous PA (MVPA), and EQ-5D-5L quality-adjusted life-years (QALY). Methods Resource use costs (£2013/2014) from a National Health Service perspective, presented as incremental cost-effectiveness ratios for each outcome over a 1-year and lifetime horizon, with cost-effectiveness acceptability curves and willingness to pay per QALY. Deterministic and probabilistic sensitivity analyses evaluate uncertainty. Results (A) Short-term CEA: At 12 months, incremental cost was £3.61 (£109)/min in ≥10 min MVPA bouts for nurse support compared with control (postal group). At £20 000/QALY, the postal group had a 50% chance of being cost saving compared with control. (B) Long-term CEA: The postal group had more QALYs (+759 QALYs, 95% CI 400 to 1247) and lower costs (−£11 million, 95% CI −12 to −10) than control and nurse groups, resulting in an incremental net monetary benefit of £26 million per 100 000 population. Results were sensitive to reporting serious adverse events, excluding health service use, and including all participant costs. Conclusions Postal delivery of a pedometer intervention in primary care is cost-effective long term and has a 50% chance of being cost-effective, through resource savings, within 1 year. Further research should ascertain maintenance of the higher levels of PA, and its impact on quality of life and health service use.This research was supported by the Health Technology Assessment (HTA) Programme, National Institute for Health Research (project number HTA 10/32/02 ISRCTN42122561)

Squeezed States of the Generalized Minimum Uncertainty State for the Caldirola-Kanai Hamiltonian

We show that the ground state of the well-known pseudo-stationary states for the Caldirola-Kanai Hamiltonian is a generalized minimum uncertainty state, which has the minimum allowed uncertainty $\Delta q \Delta p = \hbar \sigma_0/2$, where $\sigma_0 (\geq 1)$ is a constant depending on the damping factor and natural frequency. The most general symmetric Gaussian states are obtained as the one-parameter squeezed states of the pseudo-stationary ground state. It is further shown that the coherent states of the pseudo-stationary ground state constitute another class of the generalized minimum uncertainty states.Comment: RevTex4, 9 pages, no fingure; to be published in Journal of Physics

Engineering Art Galleries

The Art Gallery Problem is one of the most well-known problems in Computational Geometry, with a rich history in the study of algorithms, complexity, and variants. Recently there has been a surge in experimental work on the problem. In this survey, we describe this work, show the chronology of developments, and compare current algorithms, including two unpublished versions, in an exhaustive experiment. Furthermore, we show what core algorithmic ingredients have led to recent successes

Interpreting population reach of a large, successful physical activity trial delivered through primary care.

Abstract Background Failure to include socio-economically deprived or ethnic minority groups in physical activity (PA) trials may limit representativeness and could lead to implementation of interventions that then increase health inequalities. Randomised intervention trials often have low recruitment rates and rarely assess recruitment bias. A previous trial by the same team using similar methods recruited 30% of the eligible population but was in an affluent setting with few non-white residents and was limited to those over 60 years of age. Methods PACE-UP is a large, effective, population-based walking trial in inactive 45-75 year-olds that recruited through seven London general practices. Anonymised practice demographic data were available for all those invited, enabling investigation of inequalities in trial recruitment. Non-participants were invited to complete a questionnaire. Results From 10,927 postal invitations, 1150 (10.5%) completed baseline assessment. Participation rate ratios (95% CI), adjusted for age and gender as appropriate, were lower in men 0.59 (0.52, 0.67) than women, in those under 55 compared with those ≥65, 0.60 (0.51, 0.71), in the most deprived quintile compared with the least deprived 0.52 (0.39, 0.70) and in Asian individuals compared with whites 0.62 (0.50, 0.76). Black individuals were equally likely to participate as white individuals. Participation was also associated with having a co-morbidity or some degree of health limitation. The most common reasons for non-participation were considering themselves as being too active or lack of time. Conclusions Conducting the trial in this diverse setting reduced overall response, with lower response in socio-economically deprived and Asian sub-groups. Trials with greater reach are likely to be more expensive in terms of recruitment and gains in generalizability need to be balanced with greater costs. Differential uptake of successful trial interventions may increase inequalities in PA levels and should be monitored