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Dosimetric comparison study between intensity modulated radiation therapy and three-dimensional conformal proton therapy for pelvic bone marrow sparing in the treatment of cervical cancer.
The objective was to compare intensity-modulated radiation therapy (IMRT) with 3D conformal proton therapy (3DCPT) in the treatment of cervical cancer. In particular, each technique's ability to spare pelvic bone marrow (PBM) was of primary interest in this study. A total of six cervical cancer patients (3 postoperative and 3 intact) were planned and analyzed. All plans had uniform 1.0 cm CTV-PTV margin and satisfied the 95% PTV with 100% isodose (prescription dose = 45 Gy) coverage. Dose-volume histograms (DVH) were analyzed for comparison. The overall PTV and PBM volumes were 1035.9 ± 192.2 cc and 1151.4 ± 198.3 cc, respectively. In terms of PTV dose conformity index (DCI) and dose homogeneity index (DHI), 3DCPT was slightly superior to IMRT with 1.00 ± 0.001, 1.01 ± 0.02, and 1.10 ± 0.02, 1.13 ± 0.01, respectively. In addition, 3DCPT demonstrated superiority in reducing lower doses (i.e., V30 or less) to PBM, small bowel and bladder. Particularly in PBM, average V10 and V20 reductions of 10.8% and 7.4% (p = 0.001 and 0.04), respectively, were observed. However, in the higher dose range, IMRT provided better sparing (> V30). For example, in small bowel and PBM, average reductions in V45 of 4.9% and 10.0% (p = 0.048 and 0.008), respectively, were observed. Due to its physical characteristics such as low entrance dose, spread-out Bragg peak and finite particle range of protons, 3DCPT illustrated superior target coverage uniformity and sparing of the lower doses in PBM and other organs. Further studies are, however, needed to fully exploit the benefits of protons for general use in cervical cancer
Symplectic embedding and Hamilton-Jacobi analysis of Proca model
Following the symplectic approach we show how to embed the Abelian Proca
model into a first-class system by extending the configuration space to include
an additional pair of scalar fields, and compare it with the improved Dirac
scheme. We obtain in this way the desired Wess-Zumino and gauge fixing terms of
BRST invariant Lagrangian. Furthermore, the integrability properties of the
second-class system described by the Abelian Proca model are investigated using
the Hamilton-Jacobi formalism, where we construct the closed Lie algebra by
introducing operators associated with the generalized Poisson brackets.Comment: 24 page
Automated Rendezvous and Docking Using Tethered Formation Flight
This paper analyzes capture strategies for tether-based autonomous rendezvous and docking. Once both spacecrafts are connected by tethers, docking is achieved through the use of reaction wheels and tether motors without the use of propellant. Autonomous rendezvous and docking is crucial for many upcoming missions including on-orbit servicing and potential Mars missions. The tether-based capture strategies investigated are a spin-up tether deployment and a free-flying child spacecraft attaching the tether. These strategies are compared to a traditional two-agent propulsive docking strategy. The capture strategies are simulated from initial orbit through to completed dock, with the total fuel consumption and dock time compared, along with initial pointing/location requirements. In addition to having lower fuel cost, the tether-based strategies are also more reliable due to redundancy, since tethers can be reeled back in and multiple tethers can be stored for use in case of primary tether failure
Autonomous In-Orbit Satellite Assembly from a Modular Heterogeneous Swarm
This paper presents a decentralized, distributed guidance and control scheme to combine a heterogeneous swarm of component satellites into a large satellite structure. The component satellites for the heterogeneous swarm are chosen to promote flexibility in final shape inspired by crystal structures and Islamic tile art. After the ideal fundamental building blocks are selected, basic nanosatellite-class satellite designs are made to assist in simulations involving attitude control. The Swarm Orbital Construction Algorithm (SOCA) is a guidance and control algorithm to allow for the limited type heterogeneity and docking ability required for in-orbit assembly. The algorithm consists of two parts, a distributed auction which uses barrier functions to ensure the proper agent selection for each target, and a trajectory generation portion which leverages model predictive control and sequential convex programming to achieve optimal collision-free trajectories to the desired target point even with nonlinear system dynamics. The optimization constraints use a boundary layer to determine whether the collision avoidance or the docking constraints should be applied. The algorithm was tested in a simulated perturbed 6-DOF spacecraft dynamic environment for planar and out-of-plane final structures and on two robotic platforms, including a swarm of frictionless spacecraft simulation robots
High-temperature Fluidized Receiver for Concentrated Solar Radiation by a Beam-down Reflector System
AbstractThis study proposes a novel fluidized receiver for absorbing concentrated solar light at high temperatures. Previously, a tubular receiver and a volumetric receiver were developed to make high-temperature air for a solar gas turbine system. The aim was to combine these elements with a tower reflector; however, it was challenging to install these heavy receivers on the top of the tower. Currently, a fluidized receiver prototype is tested by a 3 kWh solar simulator in preparation for a field test at the Miyazaki beam-down reflector system. The fluid dynamics of the prototype receiver is numerically investigated. The currently treated receiver is an inner-circulating fluidized bed spouted by concentric gas streams with high and low velocities in the center and outer annulus, respectively. The draft tube is submerged in the particles to organize particle circulation. Concentrated light irradiates the particles through a quartz window at the top of the receiver container. Such a fluidized bed was first adopted by Kodama et al. for thermochemical reactions; however, it is currently pursued for its potential as a high-temperature receiver aimed at concentrated solar power generation. Experiments of the prototype receiver (inner diameter = 45mm) demonstrated that the inner particles are heated to a temperature greater than 900°C and that an increase of the central gas velocity removes the excess temperature near the particle bed surface. A numerical computation suggests that the large-scale circulation of particles leads to the activation of thermal mixing. The currently proposed receiver is thus expected to attenuate re-radiation losses likely to occur in a conventional volumetric porous receiver. The scale-up of the receiver is being considered by the numerical computation for a field test in the Miyazaki 100 kWh beam-down reflector system
Dissolved heavy metals and water quality in the surface waters of rivers and drainages of the West Peninsular Malaysia
The dissolved concentrations of metals (Cd, Cu, Pb, Ni, Fe and Zn), temperature, total dissolved solids, pH, dissolved oxygen, salinity and conductivity were determined in the surface waters of 24 geographical sampling sites including city and urban drainages and rivers, from the west Peninsular Malaysia, collected in January to April 2005. From these sampling sites, the ranges (min-max) of dissolved metal concentrations (mg/L) were Cd: 0.001-0.055, Cu: 0.001-0.1773, Pb: 0.001-1.523, Ni: 0.001-0.246, Fe: 0.001-35.67 and Zn: 0.0001-0.609 while for the water quality are pH: 4.96-9.81, dissolved oxygen (0.39-7.26 mg/L), total dissolved solids (0.002-10.02 mg/L), salinity (0.00-8.93 ppt), conductivity (3.33-17423 μS/cm) and temperature (27.8-35.3�). Some sites with elevated dissolved concentrations of heavy metals and poor water quality indicated the anthropogenic inputs of industrial and urban wastes. Regular monitoring of water quality in all drainage waters is recommended
Dengue serotyping with a label-free DNA sensor
Dengue virus (DENV) is one of the most important mosquito-borne viruses in tropical and subtropical regions. Development of severe forms of dengue viral infection such as dengue fever (DF) and dengue hemorrhagic fever (DHF) has claimed many lives. The standard methods for detecting dengue virus are time consuming, laborious, and require skilful personnel. In this study, we propose a method whereby DENV RNA extracted from dengue infected mosquitoes was converted into DNA for probe hybridization to generate silver nanocluster strands that could be visualised under UV light. Label-free silver nanocluster based DNA sensors are able to provide strong fluorescence upon DNA hybridization. Highly specific DNA sequence detection is possible by taking advantage of the specificity of DNA hybridization kinetics. The proposed system is capable of detecting all four dengue DNA serotypes (DENV1-4) without any cross-reactivity. A single tube assay format showed better hybridisation efficiency with higher fluorescence intensity generated and a lower detection limit compared to a cocktail probe assay format. The method was able to detect as low as 100 nM of amplified double stranded dengue DNA targets using both single and cocktail probe assays. This provides an interesting alternative approach for multiplex DNA sensing utilizing DNA silver nanoclusters as a reporter system. © 2018 The Royal Society of Chemistry
Constraint structure of O(3) nonlinear sigma model revisited
We study the constraint structure of the O(3) nonlinear sigma model in the
framework of the Lagrangian, symplectic, Hamilton-Jacobi as well as the
Batalin-Fradkin-Tyutin embedding procedure.Comment: 17 page
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