Thermally stimulated currents in layered Ga4SeS3 semiconductor

Cataloged from PDF version of article.Thermally stimulated current (TSC) measurements are carried out on nominally undoped Ga4SeS3 layered semiconductor samples with the cur-rent flowing along the c-axis in the temperature range of 10 to 150 K. The results are analyzed according to various methods, such as curve fitting, initial rise and Chen's methods, which seem to be in good agreement with each other. Experimental evidence is found for the presence of three trapping centers in Ga4SeS3 with activation energies of 70, 210 and 357 meV. The calculation yielded 7.9 x 10(-21), 7.0 x 10(-19) and 1.5 x 10(-13) cm(2) for the capture cross section, and 1.6 x 10(10), 6.5 x 10(10) and 1.2 x 10(11) cm(-3) for the concentration of the traps studied. (C) 2004 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim

Effects of Prolonged Intravenous Flunixin Meglumine in Healthy Dogs

This study was designed to evaluate possible side effects on liver and kidney functions and haematological indices, associated with long-term intravenous (IV) administration of flunixin meglumine in healthy dogs. For this purpose, 12 dogs were divided into 2 equal groups. Group 1 was intravenously given flunixin meglumine at the dose of 1.1 mg/kg/day for 5 days and g-roup 11 received 2.2 mg/kg/day IV for 5 days. Blood samples were withdrawn before treatment (day 0), 2 h post injection on each day of treatment and one day after the last injection for biochemical (glucose, sodium-Na, potassium-K, chloride-Cl, creatinine, urea, alkaline phosphatase-AP, alanine amino transferase-ALT and total protein) and haematological (bleeding time, coagulation time, red blood cell, white blood cell, platelet count, differential leukocyte count, haematocrit and haemoglobin) analyses. Faecal and urine samples were collected on the same days as blood samples for the presence of any abnormalities. The results revealed a significant increase in bleeding (P < 0.001) and coagulation time (P < 0.001) and a decrease in platelet count (P < 0.001) in both groups. There was also a significant increase in the concentration of Na and Cl in group 1 and an elevation in AP (P < 0.00 07 ALT (P < 0.001) and glucose (P < 0.001) in group II. Blood in urine and faeces was also evident in both groups. The results may suggest that the dose of 1.1 mg/kg IV for 5 d does not cause any significant side effects provided that no bleeding disorder exists. and the dose of 2.2 mg/kg IV for 5 d should not exceed 3 d as liver enzymes began to increase significantly afterwards

Development of UCAV fleet autonomy by reinforcement learning in a wargame simulation environment

In this study, we develop a machine learning based fleet autonomy for Unmanned Combat Aerial Vehicles (UCAVs) utilizing a synthetic simulation-based wargame environment. Aircraft survivability is modeled as Markov processes. Mission success metrics are developed to introduce collision avoidance and survival probability of the fleet. Flight path planning is performed utilizing the proximal policy optimization (PPO) based reinforcement learning method to obtain attack patterns with a multi-objective mission success criteria corresponding to the mission success metrics. Performance of the proposed system is evaluated by utilizing the Monte Carlo analysis in which a wider initial position interval is used when compared to the defined interval in the training phase. This provides a preliminary insight about the generalization ability of the RL agen

Infrared photoluminescence from TlGaS2 layered single crystals

Photolimuniscence (PL) spectra of TlGaS2 layered crystals were studied in the wavelength region 500-1400 nm and in the temperature range 15-115 K. We observed three broad bands centered at 568 nm (A-band), 718 nm (B-band) and 1102 nm (C-band) in the PL spectrum. The observed bands have half-widths of 0.221, 0.258 and 0.067 eV for A-, B-, and C-bands, respectively. The increase of the emission band half-width, the blue shift of the emission band peak energy and the quenching of the PL with increasing temperature are explained using the configuration coordinate model. We have also studied the variations of emission band intensity versus excitation laser intensity in the range from 0.4 to 19.5 W cm-2. The proposed energy-level diagram allows us to interpret the recombination processes in TlGaS2 crystals. © 2004 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH &amp; Co. KGaA, Weinheim

Antimicrobial resistance among migrants in Europe: a systematic review and meta-analysis

BACKGROUND: Rates of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) are rising globally and there is concern that increased migration is contributing to the burden of antibiotic resistance in Europe. However, the effect of migration on the burden of AMR in Europe has not yet been comprehensively examined. Therefore, we did a systematic review and meta-analysis to identify and synthesise data for AMR carriage or infection in migrants to Europe to examine differences in patterns of AMR across migrant groups and in different settings. METHODS: For this systematic review and meta-analysis, we searched MEDLINE, Embase, PubMed, and Scopus with no language restrictions from Jan 1, 2000, to Jan 18, 2017, for primary data from observational studies reporting antibacterial resistance in common bacterial pathogens among migrants to 21 European Union-15 and European Economic Area countries. To be eligible for inclusion, studies had to report data on carriage or infection with laboratory-confirmed antibiotic-resistant organisms in migrant populations. We extracted data from eligible studies and assessed quality using piloted, standardised forms. We did not examine drug resistance in tuberculosis and excluded articles solely reporting on this parameter. We also excluded articles in which migrant status was determined by ethnicity, country of birth of participants' parents, or was not defined, and articles in which data were not disaggregated by migrant status. Outcomes were carriage of or infection with antibiotic-resistant organisms. We used random-effects models to calculate the pooled prevalence of each outcome. The study protocol is registered with PROSPERO, number CRD42016043681. FINDINGS: We identified 2274 articles, of which 23 observational studies reporting on antibiotic resistance in 2319 migrants were included. The pooled prevalence of any AMR carriage or AMR infection in migrants was 25·4% (95% CI 19·1-31·8; I2 =98%), including meticillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (7·8%, 4·8-10·7; I2 =92%) and antibiotic-resistant Gram-negative bacteria (27·2%, 17·6-36·8; I2 =94%). The pooled prevalence of any AMR carriage or infection was higher in refugees and asylum seekers (33·0%, 18·3-47·6; I2 =98%) than in other migrant groups (6·6%, 1·8-11·3; I2 =92%). The pooled prevalence of antibiotic-resistant organisms was slightly higher in high-migrant community settings (33·1%, 11·1-55·1; I2 =96%) than in migrants in hospitals (24·3%, 16·1-32·6; I2 =98%). We did not find evidence of high rates of transmission of AMR from migrant to host populations. INTERPRETATION: Migrants are exposed to conditions favouring the emergence of drug resistance during transit and in host countries in Europe. Increased antibiotic resistance among refugees and asylum seekers and in high-migrant community settings (such as refugee camps and detention facilities) highlights the need for improved living conditions, access to health care, and initiatives to facilitate detection of and appropriate high-quality treatment for antibiotic-resistant infections during transit and in host countries. Protocols for the prevention and control of infection and for antibiotic surveillance need to be integrated in all aspects of health care, which should be accessible for all migrant groups, and should target determinants of AMR before, during, and after migration. FUNDING: UK National Institute for Health Research Imperial Biomedical Research Centre, Imperial College Healthcare Charity, the Wellcome Trust, and UK National Institute for Health Research Health Protection Research Unit in Healthcare-associated Infections and Antimictobial Resistance at Imperial College London

Global economic burden of unmet surgical need for appendicitis

Background: There is a substantial gap in provision of adequate surgical care in many low-and middle-income countries. This study aimed to identify the economic burden of unmet surgical need for the common condition of appendicitis. Methods: Data on the incidence of appendicitis from 170 countries and two different approaches were used to estimate numbers of patients who do not receive surgery: as a fixed proportion of the total unmet surgical need per country (approach 1); and based on country income status (approach 2). Indirect costs with current levels of access and local quality, and those if quality were at the standards of high-income countries, were estimated. A human capital approach was applied, focusing on the economic burden resulting from premature death and absenteeism. Results: Excess mortality was 4185 per 100 000 cases of appendicitis using approach 1 and 3448 per 100 000 using approach 2. The economic burden of continuing current levels of access and local quality was US $92 492 million using approach 1 and$73 141 million using approach 2. The economic burden of not providing surgical care to the standards of high-income countries was $95 004 million using approach 1 and$75 666 million using approach 2. The largest share of these costs resulted from premature death (97.7 per cent) and lack of access (97.0 per cent) in contrast to lack of quality. Conclusion: For a comparatively non-complex emergency condition such as appendicitis, increasing access to care should be prioritized. Although improving quality of care should not be neglected, increasing provision of care at current standards could reduce societal costs substantially

A MSFD complementary approach for the assessment of pressures, knowledge and data gaps in Southern European Seas : the PERSEUS experience

PERSEUS project aims to identify the most relevant pressures exerted on the ecosystems of the Southern European Seas (SES), highlighting knowledge and data gaps that endanger the achievement of SES Good Environmental Status (GES) as mandated by the Marine Strategy Framework Directive (MSFD). A complementary approach has been adopted, by a meta-analysis of existing literature on pressure/impact/knowledge gaps summarized in tables related to the MSFD descriptors, discriminating open waters from coastal areas. A comparative assessment of the Initial Assessments (IAs) for five SES countries has been also independently performed. The comparison between meta-analysis results and IAs shows similarities for coastal areas only. Major knowledge gaps have been detected for the biodiversity, marine food web, marine litter and underwater noise descriptors. The meta-analysis also allowed the identification of additional research themes targeting research topics that are requested to the achievement of GES. 2015 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd. This is an open access article under the CC BY license.peer-reviewe