Effects of flywheel training on strength-related variables in female populations. A systematic review

This study aimed to evaluate the effect of flywheel training on female populations, report practical recommendations for practitioners based on the currently available evidence, underline the limitations of current literature, and establish future research directions. Studies were searched through the electronic databases (PubMed, SPORTDiscus, and Web of Science) following the preferred reporting items for systematic reviews and meta-analysis statement guidelines. The methodological quality of the seven studies included in this review ranged from 10 to 19 points (good to excellent), with an average score of 14-points (good). These studies were carried out between 2004 and 2019 and comprised a total of 100 female participants. The training duration ranged from 5 weeks to 24 weeks, with volume ranging from 1 to 4 sets and 7 to 12 repetitions, and frequency ranged from 1 to 3 times a week. The contemporary literature suggests that flywheel training is a safe and time-effective strategy to enhance physical outcomes with young and elderly females. With this information, practitioners may be inclined to prescribe flywheel training as an effective countermeasure for injuries or falls and as potent stimulus for physical enhancement

Nearly optimal solutions for the Chow Parameters Problem and low-weight approximation of halfspaces

The \emph{Chow parameters} of a Boolean function $f: \{-1,1\}^n \to \{-1,1\}$ are its $n+1$ degree-0 and degree-1 Fourier coefficients. It has been known since 1961 (Chow, Tannenbaum) that the (exact values of the) Chow parameters of any linear threshold function $f$ uniquely specify $f$ within the space of all Boolean functions, but until recently (O'Donnell and Servedio) nothing was known about efficient algorithms for \emph{reconstructing} $f$ (exactly or approximately) from exact or approximate values of its Chow parameters. We refer to this reconstruction problem as the \emph{Chow Parameters Problem.} Our main result is a new algorithm for the Chow Parameters Problem which, given (sufficiently accurate approximations to) the Chow parameters of any linear threshold function $f$, runs in time \tilde{O}(n^2)\cdot (1/\eps)^{O(\log^2(1/\eps))} and with high probability outputs a representation of an LTF $f'$ that is \eps-close to $f$. The only previous algorithm (O'Donnell and Servedio) had running time \poly(n) \cdot 2^{2^{\tilde{O}(1/\eps^2)}}. As a byproduct of our approach, we show that for any linear threshold function $f$ over $\{-1,1\}^n$, there is a linear threshold function $f'$ which is \eps-close to $f$ and has all weights that are integers at most \sqrt{n} \cdot (1/\eps)^{O(\log^2(1/\eps))}. This significantly improves the best previous result of Diakonikolas and Servedio which gave a \poly(n) \cdot 2^{\tilde{O}(1/\eps^{2/3})} weight bound, and is close to the known lower bound of $\max\{\sqrt{n},$ (1/\eps)^{\Omega(\log \log (1/\eps))}\} (Goldberg, Servedio). Our techniques also yield improved algorithms for related problems in learning theory

XIS: A Low-current, High-voltage Back-junction Back-contact Device

AbstractIn this paper we present experimental results of a low-current, high-voltage back-junction back-contact device. The concept is demonstrated by the successful transformation of finished IBC cells into XIS (Crystalline Silicon Interconnected Strips) devices, leading to 8.5V for a series connection of 14 strip cells. Different grooving methods for cell separation were evaluated regarding the effect on the quality of the groove surface. The effect of the groove passivation, which is regarded as a critical parameter to obtain high-efficiency XIS devices, was simulated to gain a better understanding of the processing requirements

An Ordered Approach to Solving Parity Games in Quasi-Polynomial Time and Quasi-Linear Space

Parity games play an important role in model checking and synthesis. In their paper, Calude et al. have recently shown that these games can be solved in quasi-polynomial time. We show that their algorithm can be implemented efficiently: we use their data structure as a progress measure, allowing for a backward implementation instead of a complete unravelling of the game. To achieve this, a number of changes have to be made to their techniques, where the main one is to add power to the antagonistic player that allows for determining her rational move without changing the outcome of the game. We provide a first implementation for a quasi-polynomial algorithm, test it on small examples, and provide a number of side results, including minor algorithmic improvements, a quasi-bi-linear complexity in the number of states and edges for a fixed number of colours, matching lower bounds for the algorithm of Calude et al., and a complexity index associated to our approach, which we compare to the recently proposed register index

Congenital diaphragmatic hernia: To repair on or off extracorporeal membrane oxygenation?

Background: Congenital diaphragmatic hernia (CDH) can be repaired on or off extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO). In many centers, operating off ECMO is advocated to prevent bleeding complications. We aimed to compare surgery-related bleeding complications between repair on or off ECMO. Methods: All patients with CDH repair and ECMO treatment between January 1, 1995, and May 31, 2008, were retrospectively reviewed. Tranexamic acid was routinely given to all patients repaired on ECMO for 24 hours perioperatively after 2003. Extra-fluid expansion, transfusion, or relaparotomy caused by postoperative bleeding were scored as surgery-related bleeding complications and were related to the Extracorporeal Life Support Organization (ELSO) registry. We used χ 2 test and t test for statistics. Results: Demographic data and surgery-related bleeding complications in the on-ECMO group were not significantly different compared with the off-ECMO group (P =.331) in our institute. In contrast, more surgery-related bleeding complications were reported by ELSO in their on-ECMO group (P <.0001). Conclusion: In contrast to the data from the ELSO registry, we did not observe significantly more surgery-related bleeding complications after CDH repair on ECMO. Using a specific perioperative hemostatic treatment enabled us to perform CDH repair on ECMO with a low frequency of bleeding complications, thereby taking advantage of having the physiologic benefits of ECMO available perioperatively

Airway wall extracellular matrix changes induced by bronchial thermoplasty in severe asthma

Background: Airway remodeling is a prominent feature of asthma, which involves increased airway smooth muscle mass and altered extracellular matrix composition. Bronchial thermoplasty (BT), a bronchoscopic treatment for severe asthma, targets airway remodeling.Objective: We sought to investigate the effect of BT on extracellular matrix composition and its association with clinical outcomes.Methods: This is a substudy of the TASMA trial. Thirty patients with severe asthma were BT-treated, of whom 13 patients were treated for 6 months with standard therapy (control group) before BT. Demographic data, clinical data including pulmonary function, and bronchial biopsies were collected. Biopsies at BT-treated and nontreated locations were analyzed by histological and immunohistochemical staining. Associations between histology and clinical outcomes were explored.Results: Six months after treatment, it was found that the reticular basement membrane thickness was reduced from 7.28 μm to 5.74 μm (21% relative reduction) and the percentage area of tissue positive for collagen increased from 26.3% to 29.8% (13% relative increase). Collagen structure analysis revealed a reduction in the curvature frequency of fibers. The percentage area positive for fibulin-1 and fibronectin increased by 2.5% and 5.9%, respectively (relative increase of 124% and 15%). No changes were found for elastin. The changes in collagen and fibulin-1 negatively associated with changes in FEV1 reversibility.Conclusions: Besides reduction of airway smooth muscle mass, BT has an impact on reticular basement membrane thickness and the extracellular matrix arrangement characterized by an increase in tissue area occupied by collagen with a less dense fiber organization. Both collagen and fibulin-1 are negatively associated with the change in FEV1 reversibility.</p

HPLC-DAD and HPLC-ESI-Q-ToF characterisation of early 20th century lake and organic pigments from Lefranc archives

The characterisation of atelier materials and of the historical commercial formulation of paint materials has recently gained new interest in the field of conservation science applied to modern and contemporary art, since modern paint materials are subjected to peculiar and often unpredictable degradation and fading processes. Assessing the composition of the original materials purchased by artists can guide not only their identification in works of art, but also their restoration and conservation. Advances in characterisation methods and models for data interpretation are particularly important in studying organic coloring materials in the transition period corresponding to the late 19th-early 20th century, when many such variants or combinations were hypothetically possible in their formulations. There is thus a need for reliable databases of materials introduced in that period and for gaining chemical knowledge at a molecular level related to modern organic pigments, by state-of-the-art protocols. This paper reports on the results of a study on 44 samples of historical colorants in powder and paint tubes, containing both lake pigments and synthetic organic pigments dating from 1890 to 1926. The samples were collected at the Lefranc Archive in Le Mans (France) as a part of Project Futurahma "From Futurism to Classicism (1910-1922). Research, Art History and Material Analysis", (FIRB2012, Italian Ministry of University and Research), and were investigated using an analytical approach based on chromatographic and mass spectrometric techniques. The focus of the chemical analyses was to reveal the composition of the historical organic lake pigments including minor components, to discriminate between different recipes for the extraction of chromophore-containing molecules from the raw materials, and ultimately to distinguish between different formulations and recipes. High performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) with diode array detector (DAD) or electrospray-Quadrupole-Time of Flight tandem mass spectrometry detector (ESI-Q-ToF) were chosen given their considerable capacity to identify such complex and widespread organic materials. Although the inorganic components of the pigments were not taken into account in this survey, the specific molecular profiles provided invaluable information on the extraction procedures or synthetic strategy followed by the different producers, at different times. For instance, the use of Kopp's purpurin and garancine was highlighted, and synthetic by-products were identified. The results provided evidence that the addition of synthetic organic pigments to paint mixtures started from 1910 onwards, but they also suggest that in the formulation of high quality (surfin) colorants, natural products were still preferred. Moreover, in one of the samples the use of murexide as the colouring material was confirmed. This paper presents the first systematic and comprehensive survey on organic lakes and pigments belonging to an historical archive, by both HPLC-DAD and HPLC-ESI-Q-ToF. Specific by-products of synthetic production of pigments, which can act as specific molecular markers for dating or locating a work of art, were also identified for the first time