Splitting Fields and Periods of Fibonacci Sequences Modulo Primes

We consider the period of a Fibonacci sequence modulo a prime and provide an accessible, motivated treatment of this classical topic using only ideas from linear and abstract algebra. Our methods extend to general recurrences with prime moduli and provide some new insights. And our treatment highlights a nice application of the use of splitting fields that might be suitable to present in an undergraduate course in abstract algebra or Galois theory

Catalysed-microwave based Pretreatment of Lignocellulosic Biomass of Camelina Sativa L. for Bio-Fuel Production

Lignocellulosic biomasses are promising alternative resource for bio-fuel production. But due to the recalcitrant nature of lignin and hemicellulose, necessitates an efficient pre-treatment process to improve the yield of reducing sugars and maximising the enzymatic hydrolysis efficiency. Catalysed-microwave pre-treatment may be a good alternative as compared to other methods since it can reduce the time and improve the enzymatic activity during hydrolysis. The aim of this study was to evaluate the efficiency of the catalysed-microwave based pre-treatment of lignocellulosic biomass of Camelina sativa straw (CSS) to overcome the recalcitrant nature of cellulosic biomass. The microwave-alkaline (2 % NaOH) pre-treatment of CSS at 250 W for 10 min yields maximum (~422 mg/g) total soluble sugars (TSS) production during hydrolysis. Likewise, the maximum glucose content (~294 mg/g) was measured in 2 % alkaline-microwave pre-treatment for 10 min at RT. However, slight increase in lignin degradation was observed with the increase in alkaline hydroxide concentration and microwave irradiation exposure time. The maximum degradation in lignin content (~83 %) was measured in 3 % alkaline-microwave pre-treatment for 20 min at RT. Our results suggest that the microwave-alkaline pre-treatment approach may be employed for comprehensive utilisation of CSS biomass of Camelina sativa L. cv. Calena (EC643910) for bio-fuel production

Self-Reported and Actual Beta-Blocker Prescribing for Heart Failure Patients: Physician Predictors

Beta-blockers reduce mortality among patients with systolic heart failure (HF), yet primary care provider prescription rates remain low.To examine the association between primary care physician characteristics and both self-reported and actual prescription of beta-blockers among patients with systolic HF.Cross-sectional survey with supplementary retrospective chart review.Primary care providers at three New York City Veterans Affairs medical centers.Main outcomes were: 1) self-reported prescribing of beta-blockers, and 2) actual prescribing of beta-blockers among HF patients. Physician HF practice patterns and confidence levels, as well as socio-demographic and clinical characteristics, were also assessed.Sixty-nine of 101 physicians (68%) completed the survey examining self-reported prescribing of beta-blockers. Physicians who served as inpatient ward attendings self-reported significantly higher rates of beta-blocker prescribing among their HF patients when compared with physicians who did not attend (78% vs. 58%; p = 0.002), as did physicians who were very confident in managing HF patients when compared with physicians who were not (82% vs. 68%; p = 0.009). Fifty-one of these 69 surveyed physicians (74%) were successfully matched to 287 HF patients for whom beta-blocker prescribing data was available. Physicians with greater self-reported rates of prescribing beta-blockers were significantly more likely to actually prescribe beta-blockers (p = 0.02); however, no other physician characteristics were significantly associated with actual prescribing of beta-blockers among HF patients.Physician teaching responsibilities and confidence levels were associated with self-reported beta-blocker prescribing among their HF patients. Educational efforts focused on improving confidence levels in HF care and increasing exposure to teaching may improve beta-blocker presciption in HF patients managed in primary care

Distributed Constraint Management for Collaborative Engineering Databases

The engineering design process, such as airplane or building design, involves the participation of many independent specialists who need to share information stored in several autonomous design databases. To insure consistency of the final design, high-level constraints need to be defined and enforced on the design objects stored in these preexisting databases. The constraints need to be verified when the participating databases are updated. In this paper, we present an architecture of a distributed constraint management system that checks design constraints on preexisting autonomous databases. The architecture emphasizes independence of constraint management from the underlying databases systems to avoid compromising site autonomy. To provide this independence, we present a declarative constraint language for specifying constraints, which facilitates compile time optimizations such as constraint fragmentation and local validation strategies. We also support set-oriented updates that ..

Constraint Management on Distributed Design Configurations

Architecture, Engineering and Construction (AEC) design processes involve the participation of many designers who may be working independently in geographically distinct locations. Independent designs evolve due to changes made by the designers and discipline-specific CAD applications, and these changes need to be evaluated and configured with respect to a set of project constraints for overall design consistency. In addition, each designer needs to be informed about the relevant changes made by other designers. Most rework orders result from inadequate sharing of the evolving design information between various participants in the design process. The awareness of important changes through automated constraint management can avoid expensive reworks at the later stages of the projects. In this paper, we will present an incremental approach to constraint checking in AEC design configurations. A configuration represents a design state stored in multiple databases: each configuration has a ..

A NEW PROCESS MODEL FOR EMBEDDED SYSTEMS CONTROL FOR TELECOM INDUSTRY

Abstract — This research deals with important issue for the embedded system in telecom industry. The rapid increase of a software and software based functionality brings various challenges for the telecom industry. As we all know for any given software product the most important thing is its cost, reliability, schedule and quality, these all can be achieve by following good software process models. And hence most organization and businesses put more emphasis on software processes by asking their software engineers to follow it. This paper is to present a modified software process model by mapping V-Model wit

Internal fixation and muscle pedicle bone grafting in femoral neck fractures

<b>Background:</b> The treatment of displaced intracapsular femoral neck fracture is still an unsolved problem. Non-union and avascular necrosis are the two main complications of this fracture, especially if patient presents late. Muscle pedicle bone grafting has been advocated to provide additional blood supply. We present analysis of our 32 cases of displaced femoral neck fracture treated by internal fixation and quadratus femoris based muscle pedicle bone grafting. <b> Materials and Methods:</b> Open reduction and internal fixation with muscle pedicle grafting was done in 32 patients. The age of patients varied from 14-62 years (average age 45 years) with male to female ratio of 13:3. Twenty-nine fractures were more than three weeks old. All the cases were treated by Meyers&#x2032; procedure. The fracture was internally fixed after open reduction and then a muscle pedicle graft was applied. It was supplemented by cancellous bone graft in seven cases. Fixation was done by parallel cancellous lag screws (<i> n</i> = 19), crossed Garden&#x2032;s screws (<i> n</i> = 7), parallel Asnis screws (<i> n</i> = 5) and Moore&#x2032;s pin (<i> n</i> = 1).Quadratus femoris muscle pedicle graft was used in 32 cases. In the initial 12 cases the graft was fixed with circumferential proline sutures, but later, to provide a secure fixation, the graft was fixed with a cancellous screw (<i> n</i> = 20). Postoperative full weight bearing was deferred to an average of 10 weeks. <b> Results:</b> Union was achieved in 26/29 (89.65&#x0025;) cases which could be followed for an average period of 3.4 years, (2-8.5 years) with good functional results and had the ability to squat and sit cross-legged. Results were based on hip rating system given by Salvatti and Wilson. The results were excellent in 15 cases, good in four cases, fair in four cases and poor in six cases. Complications were avascular necrosis (<i> n</i> = 2), transient foot drop (<i> n</i> = 2), coxa-vara (<i> n</i> = 1) and temporary loss of scrotal sensation (<i> n</i> = 1). <b> Conclusion:</b> Muscle pedicle bone grafting with internal fixation is a viable treatment option in displaced femoral neck fractures with late presentation

Integrated Data Exchange and Concurrent Design for Engineered Facilities

The architecture-engineering-construction industry is highly fragmented, both vertically (between project phases, e.g., planning, design, and construction) and horizontally (between specialists at a given project phase, e.g., design). We need software that (1) translates and communicates project data dynamically, overcoming both logical barriers (differing views of overlapping data) and physical barriers (data distribution); and (2) detects, analyzes, and manages changes efficiently during concurrent design processes. We have a software prototype, KADBASE, that addresses the distributed query problem. In addition, we are adapting and applying a high-level constraint language to support distributed constraint processing for preliminary design. 1. Introduction The U.S. architecture-engineering-construction (AEC) industry is highly fragmented compared with many of its Asian and European competitors [Howard 89a]. This fragmentation exists both within individual phases of the construction..