Conceptual design of an e-marketplace for small and medium enterprises in the Turkish machinery industry

This paper reports on the results of a study carried out in the Turkish machinery industry. The purpose of the study was to identify the benefits the sector can seize from e-business and to develop a conceptual framework for potential e-business applications. We analysed the current state of e-business use in the machinery industry in order to understand the future requirements and application opportunities and to come up with a conceptual e-business design that would suit both the needs and the characteristics of the sector. The study included those companies, which are members of the Machine Manufacturers’ Association (MMA) in Turkey. Information about the existing applications and future requirements was obtained from the results of a survey conducted among the member companies. Statistically adequate number of responses was obtained to make the results representative of the machine industry. Web sites of the member companies were also reviewed for further information gathering. Results indicated that most of the companies are Small and Medium Enterprises(SME) and it would be better for them to carry out certain operations through an e-market specifically designed for the sector. The proposed conceptual e-market design is based on the characteristics of the industry emerging from the survey

The Genetic Basis of the Polycystic Ovary Syndrome: A Literature Review Including Discussion of PPAR-γ

Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is the most common endocrine disorder of the women of reproductive age. Familial clustering of PCOS has been consistently reported suggesting that genetic factors play a role in the development of the syndrome although PCOS cases do not exhibit a clear pattern of Mendelian inheritance. It is now well established that PCOS represents a complex trait similar to type-2 diabetes and obesity, and that both inherited and environmental factors contribute to the PCOS pathogenesis. A large number of functional candidate genes have been tested for association or linkage with PCOS phenotypes with more negative than positive findings. Lack of universally accepted diagnostic criteria, difficulties in the assignment of male phenotype, obscurity in the mode of inheritance, and particularly small sample size of the study populations appear to be major limitations for the genetic studies of PCOS. In the near future, utilizing the genome-wide scan approach and the HapMap project will provide a stronger potential for the genetic analysis of the syndrome

Structure-preserving reduced-order modelling of Korteweg de Vries equation

Computationally efficient, structure-preserving reduced-order methods are developed for the Korteweg de Vries (KdV) equations in Hamiltonian form. The KdV equation is discretized in space by finite differences. The resulting skew-gradient system of ordinary differential equations (ODEs) is integrated with the linearly implicit Kahan's method, which preserves the Hamiltonian approximately. We have shown, using proper orthogonal decomposition (POD), the Hamiltonian structure of the full-order model (FOM) is preserved by the reduced-order model (ROM). The quadratic nonlinear terms of the KdV equation are evaluated efficiently by the use of tensorial methods, clearly separating the offline-online cost of the FOMs and ROMs. The accuracy of the reduced solutions, preservation of the Hamiltonian, momentum and mass, and computational speed-up gained by ROMs are demonstrated for the one-dimensional KdV equation, coupled KdV equations and two-dimensional Zakharov-Kuznetzov equation with soliton solutionsComment: 20 pages, 10 figures, 1 tabl

Left Atrial Myxoma With Pleural Effusion

Cardiac myxomas are histologically benign tumors but they may be lethal because of their strategic position. They have variable presentations and excellent prognosis after surgical excision. Left atrial myxomas may mimic mitral stenosis and is very rarely associated with pleural effusion. We presented a case of left atrial myxoma blocking mitral orifice and causing recurrent pulmonary edema and pleural effusions in this report

Assessment of the P Wave Dispersion and Duration in Elite Women Basketball Players

Background: P wave dispersion is an independent predictor of atrial fibrillation. P wave dispersion is associated with inhomogeneous and discontinuous propagation of sinus impulses. The purpose of this study was to investigate P wave dispersion and transthoracic echocardiographic findings in elite women basketball players.Methods: We recruited 27 well-trained woman athletes with a training history of many years (11.9 ± 3.6 years). All of the athletes were elite women basketball players and they were regularly maintaining sportive activities and training programs. Twenty-six age and sex matched healthy sedentary subjects consisted of control group. The difference between P maximum and P minimum durations was defined as P wave dispersion. The echocardiographic parameters were assessed in detail in the standard left lateral decubitus position. Results: The body height, body weight, body surface area, metabolic equivalent, maximum P wave duration and P wave dispersion were increased in the elite basketball athletes as compared with healthy sedentary subjects. On the contrary; the heart rate, ejection fraction and interventricular septum thickness in diastole were decreased in athletes. The body height (p=0.006, r=0.37), body weight (p=0.04, r=0.28), body surface area (p=0.01, r=0.33) and heart rate (p=0.01, r=-0.32) were correlated with P wave dispersion.Conclusions: P wave dispersion was increased in elite woman basketball players as compared with healthy sedentary subjects. P wave dispersion was correlated with heart rate, body height, body weight and body surface area

Doxycycline plus streptomycin versus ciprofloxacin plus rifampicin in spinal brucellosis [ISRCTN31053647]

Background: The optimal treatment regimen and duration of the therapy is still controversial in spinal brucellosis. The aim of this study is to compare the efficacy, adverse drug reactions, complications and cost of ciprofloxacin plus rifampicin versus doxycycline plus streptomycin in the treatment of spinal brucellosis