Mollusca Contagiosa

Mollusca contagiosa (MC) definiramo kao čestu virusnu infekciju kože uzrokovanu Molluscipox virusom (MCV) koja se viđa u djece i odraslih. Klinički se manifestira u obliku malih, umbiliciranih papula voštana sjaja. Dok su MC relativno česta u djece od 1. do 5. godine i mogu biti smještene bilo gdje na tijelu, njihova pojavnost u odraslih uglavnom se smatra spolno prenosivom infekcijom (engl. sexually transmitted infection, STI). MCV se može prenositi direktno s osobe na osobu ili autoinokulacijom. MCV u odraslih karakteristično zahvaća genitalnu regiju. Međutim, ekstragenitalni smještaj kod odraslih tipično se viđa u imunosuprimiranih bolesnika, osobito u bolesnika s HIV-om/AIDS-om. Prema novijim literaturnim podacima, pojava MC u HIV-pozitivnih bolesnika, smatra se dijelom sindroma imunosnog oporavka (engl. immune reconstitution inflammatory syndrome, IRIS). MC, stoga, u djece zahvaća podjednako oba spola, no, čini se da je incidencija u odrasloj populaciji veća kod muškaraca. Liječenje, koje nije uvijek nužno, može biti korisno u prevenciji daljnjeg prijenosa infekcije ili autoinokulacije. Nažalost, ne postoji etiološko liječenje MC, a većina postupaka koji se primjenjuju mehanička je, što katkad uzrokuje određeni stupanj nelagode ili boli. Osobitu pažnju treba posvetiti ekstragenitalno smještenim MC kod odraslih, kada bi svakako trebalo preporučiti obradu na HIV. I djecu i odrasle s MC trebalo bi podučiti da izbjegavaju češanje kože, kao i kontakte s drugom osobom (uglavnom spolni kontakti kod odraslih), kako bi se spriječio daljnji prijenos infekcije i/ili autoinokulacija. Osim toga, kod odraslih bolesnika s MC treba učiniti pažljiv probirna ostale STI te ih savjetovati o eventualnom liječenju i daljim postupcima.Mollusca contagiosa (MC) are defi ned as a common cutaneous viral infection caused by the Molluscipox virus (MCV) and affecting both children and adults. MC are clinically characterized by small, waxy, dome-shaped umbilicated papules. Whereas mollusca contagiosa are rather frequent in 1-5 year-old children and can be localized almost anywhere on the body, their appearance in adults is mostly regarded as a sexually transmitted infection (STI). MCV might be transmitted directly from person to person or by autoinoculation. MC in adults characteristically involve the genital area. However, the extragenital appearance of MC in adults is more typically seen in patients with immunosuppressive conditions, especially in HIV/AIDS patients. The onset of MC in HIV-positive individuals can be, according to the current literature data, regarded as a part of the immune reconstitution inflammatory syndrome (IRIS). It is most probable that MC affect both sexes equally in children’s age, whereas in adults they seem to be more frequent in men. Therapy may be beneficial in preventing transmission or autoinoculation. Unfortunately, there has been no etiological treatment of MC so far, and the majority of treatment options are mechanical, causing sometimes a certain degree of discomfort, or are not enough "evidence-based". Special attention should be given to the extragenital site of MC involvement in adults, and HIV serology testing should certainly be recommended in such patients. Both children and adults with MC should be educated to avoid scratching and skin contact with others to prevent transmission and autoinoculation. Besides, adult patients with MC should be carefully screened for other STIs and counseled appropriately

Load profile effect on durability of proton exchange membrane fuel cells

Proton Exchange Membrane Fuel Cells (PEMFC) are a promising technology for substitution of hydrocarbon powerdrives and battery based electrical supply systems. However, below-required durability is still an important factor that hinders its widespread use, thus, novel operating approaches are required to surpass this shortcoming. The present abstract presents a line of research directed towards the of analysis and definition of load profile characteristics in order to design controllers and operation strategies that optimize cell efficiency and durability. Degradation of the catalyst layer, commonly composed of platinum supported on carbon (Pt/C), mainly due to platinum loss by oxidation/dissolution and the resulting reduction of Electrochemical Active Surface Area (ECSA), is the main issue reducing the durability of PEMFC.Peer ReviewedPostprint (author's final draft

Measurement of vibration in machine tools

Tato bakalářská práce je zaměřena na měření kmitání obráběcích strojů. Popisuje základní druhy kmitání, které se vyskytují během obráběcího procesu. Blíže seznamuje s přístroji, jež slouží k získávání a analýze vibrací.This bachelor thesis is focused on measurement of vibrations in machnine tools. It describes basic types of oscillation, which can be found during machining process. Inform about devices which are used for acquisition and analyzation vibration.

In the Spirit of Dada Man Ray, The Ridgefield Gazook, and TNT

This thesis focuses on understanding two Dada Publications printed by artist Man Ray: The Ridgefield Gazook (1915) and TNT (1919). While the word Dada was not formally attached to the New York artists’ movements at the beginning of the twentieth century, it was clear that some New York avant-garde poetry and art functioned in a “Dada Spirit”. Here I will examine one publication issued before the word Dada was used to designate an artistic network and one after, to see how one artist (later proclaimed Dadaist) treated Dada in New York. Overall, these printed Dada periodicals help one see aesthetic, political, and social concerns that bred New York Dada. Since understanding what exactly Dada is no easy feat, I will use Johanna Drucker’s The Visible Word to glimpse how the physical and typographical elements of these New York periodicals relate to those in Europe. Second, Francis Naumann’s scholarship on the life and works of Man Ray in New York offer a comprehensive understanding of the social and historical implications in Man Ray’s specific works. These in combination with several other scholars whose works range from Dada’s history to the history of mass media offer this thesis a more comprehensive picture of New York Dada periodicals and their implications. Thinking about the periodical as principal medium to share Dada with the world, I attempt to see how typographic innovation and strategic production of each periodical was influenced by the cultural and political happenings surrounding them. Though Dada publications are largely an assemblage of contradictory works, Man Ray who would later launch the official “New York Dada” periodical in 1921, shows in these two how the proto-Dada sentiments were, like in Zürich, driven by a critique of the social and political climate than mere irreverence

The Design of Enlargement of Sensor and Control Module of Mobile Robots Named Brontes

Tato bakalářská práce pojednává o navržení rozšíření senzorického a řídicího modulu mobilních robotů Brontes. K tomuto účelu byla vytvořena deska plošného spoje MX05, která svým připojením na řídicí desku LTR001.2 rozšiřuje její funkce. Konstrukce desky probíhala na základě požadavků a potřeb vycházejících z periferií robotu. Byl vytvořen její návrh obsahující kontrolní, ochranné a filtrační prvky. Dále byla deska realizována a osazena. Použitím MX05 vzniká značné zjednodušení zapojení a jsou rozšířeny původní funkce, které jsou využitelné nejen v robotech Brontes.This bachelor's thesis deals with the proposal of the sensory module and the control of mobile robots named Brontes enlargement. For this purpose a printed circuit board named MX05 was created, which extends its functionality via connection to the control board named LTR001.2. Construction of the board was conducted on the bases of the needs and requirements coming from robot peripherals. The proposal was created containing the control, protection and filtering features. Further, the board was realized and inhabited. Using MX05 creates a great simplification of wiring and there is implied the extension of the original features that are useful not only in robots Brontes.

Design of the user-friendly touch screen GUI and a physical connection to an existing simulation hardware device

Práce uvádí základní informace o průmyslové sběrnici AS-Interface a popisuje její funkce. Dále se zabývá rozšířením stávajícího FTZ AS-Interface Slave Simulátoru o dotykový display, který značně usnadní ovládání tohoto simulačního nástroje. Je zde nastíněn návrh a řešení uživatelského dotykového rozhraní k tomuto simulátoru s použitím Amulet LCD modulu STK 480272C. Vývoj tohoto rozhraní je proveden pomocí GEMstudia, softwaru firmy Amulet Technologies a grafických programů. Dále tato studie pojednává o softwarové úpravě FTZ AS-i Slave Smilulátoru. Jedná se o úpravu řídícího FPGA v jazyce VHDL zajišťující komunikaci s dotykovým displejem. Poslední kapitola se týká problematiky spojené s návrhem uživatelsky přívětivé aplikace.This master’s thesis deals with fundamental principles of the industrial bus AS- Interface as well as with an extension of the FTZ AS-Interface Slave Simulator by touch panel which makes it incomparably easy to control this device. Progress and solution of the touch communication interface for this Slave Simulator have been sketched out by using Amulet LCD module STK-480272C. The design of this communication interface has been created by GEMstudio, software of Amulet Technologies and graphics programs. Further this study deals with software adjustment of FTZ AS-i Slave Simulator. The modification of controlling FPGA in VHDL programming language has been described which ensures the communication with the touch screen. Last chapter deals with questions concerning a user-friendly design of the application.

LOVE IN POSTCOLONIAL TIMES: EXPLORING ECHOES OF C.S. LEWIS’ FOUR LOVES IN SELECTED WORKS OF DEREK WALCOTT, V.S. NAIPAUL, TONI MORRISON, AND PABLO NERUDA

This thesis explores the universal theme of love, as analyzed by C.S. Lewis in his classical essay The Four Loves. In the course of this literary quest, selected literary works of four laureates of Nobel Prize in literature - Half a Life and Magic Seeds by V.S. Naipaul, Beloved by Toni Morrison, and representative poems from the poetic creations of Derek Walcott and Pablo Neruda- will be discussed in the multicultural context of a postcolonial era. C.S. Lewis lamented the poverty and limitations of the English language in expressing the polysemantic nuances of the word "love". Consequently, he used the Greek lexicon to define and explain this profound concept and, in the process, the author classified love as being synonymous with four different English words: Affection, Friendship, Eros (with a Greek variant named Venus), and Charity. All four are rich in their applications to the relationships between human beings, and the spiritual, religious nature of the relationship between man and the Divinity. In the argumentation of this thesis, concepts such as colonialism, postcolonialism, orientalism, imperialism, modernity, the Other, Eurocentrism, Carribean, slavery and African American will be discussed in relationship to the manifestation of love, the lack of it, or the misinterpretation of love, as it was the case of the colonial powers in their conquest and subjugation of the indigenous people

Investigation into the Formation of Nanoparticles of Tetravalent Neptunium in Slightly Alkaline Aqueous Solution

Considering the worldwide growing discharge of minor actinides and the current need for geological disposal facilities for radioactive waste, this work provides a contribution to the safety case concerning Np transport if it would be released from deep repository sites and moving from alkaline cement conditions (near-field) to more neutral environmental conditions (far-field). The reducing conditions in a nuclear waste repository render neptunium tetravalent, which is assumed to be immobile in aqueous environment due to the low solubility solution of Np(IV). For tetravalent actinide nuclides, the most significant transport should occur via colloidal particles. This work demonstrates the formation of intrinsic neptunium dioxide nanocrystals and amorphous Np(IV) silica colloids under environmentally relevant conditions. The dissociation of the initial soluble Np(IV) complex (i.e. [Np(IV)(CO3)5]6-) induces the intrinsic formation of nanocrystalline NpO2 in the solution phase. The resulting irregularly shaped nanocrystals with an average size of 4 nm exhibit a face-centered cubic (fcc), fluorite-type structure (space group ). The NCs tend to agglomerate under ambient conditions due to the weakly charged hydrodynamic surface at neutral pH (zetapotential ~0 mV). The formation of micron-sized agglomerates, composed of nanocrystals of 2-5 nm in size, and the subsequent precipitation cause immobilization of the major amount of Np(IV) in the Np carbonate system. Agglomeration of NpO2 nanocrystals in dependence on time was indicated by PCS and UV-vis absorption spectroscopy with the changes of baseline characteristics and absorption maximum at 742 nm. Hitherto, unknown polynuclear species as intermediate species of NpO2 nanocrystal formation were isolated from solution and observed by HR-TEM. These polynuclear Np species appear as dimers, trimers and hexanuclear compounds in analogy with those reported for other actinides. Intrinsic formation of NpO2 (fcc) nanocrystals under ambient environmental conditions is prevented by admixing silicic acid: amorphous Np(IV) silica colloids are formed when silicate is present in carbonate solution. Herein, the initial molar ratio of Si to Np in solution lead to the formation of Np(IV) silica particles of different composition and size where Si content determines the structure and stability of resulting colloids. Implications for different electronic structures of Np(IV) in dependence on Si content in the solid phase are given by the shift of the absorption maximum at 742 nm characteristic for Np(IV) colloids, silica excess of 5 times the magnitude of Si to Np reveal a redshift up to 6 nm in the colloidal UV-vis spectrum. Precipitation of Np(IV) particles in the ternary system results in a different coordination sphere of Np(IV) compared to the binary system, and the incorporation of Si into internal structure of Np(IV) silica colloids in coffinite-like structure is confirmed by EXAFS. TEM confirms different kinds of particle morphologies in dependence on the silica content. Silica-poor systems reveal porous particles in the micron-range which consist of irregular cross-linked hydrolyzed Np(IV) silica compartments with pores <15 nm. In contrast, long-term stabilized and silica-enriched systems are characterized by isolated particles with an average particle size of 45 nm. Agglomerates of such isolated Np(IV) silica particles appear as consolidated amorphous solids with a densely closed surface and exhibit no internal fractures. The latter mentioned morphology of Np(IV) silica particles might facilitate the migration behavior of Np(IV) in a stabilized colloidal form under environmental conditions. The silica-enriched particles with densely closed surface are long-term stabilized as colloidal dispersion (>1 year) due to repulsion effects caused by significant surface charge. Particles synthesized from Si/Np = 9/1 carry exclusively negative surface charge in nearly the whole pH range from pH 3 to pH 10 with zetapotential = (-) 5 to (-) 30 mV. The zeta potentials of all particle systems containing silica are significantly shifted to more negative values below pH 7 where the isoelectrical point shifts from pH = 8.0 to 2.6 effecting negative charge under ambient conditions which supports electrostatic stabilization of Np(IV) particles. Particle surface charge at the slipping plane, particle size and shape necessarily depend on the initial magnitude of Si content in solution during particle formation. Particular changes of the morphology and internal structure of different Np(IV) silica colloids by aging are indicated by TEM and XPS. The composition and the crystallinity state of the initially formed amorphous phases partially changed into well-ordered nanocrystalline units characterized with fcc structure. The presence of silicate under conditions expected in a nuclear waste repository significantly influences the solubility of Np(IV) and provoke the stabilization of waterborne Np(IV) up to concentrations of 10-3 M, exceeding Np´s solubility limit by a factor of up 10.000. Neptunium and silicate significantly interact with each other, and thereby changing their individual hydrolysis and polymerization behavior. Silicate prevents the intrinsic formation of NpO2 NCs in fcc-structure, and at the same time, Np(IV) prevents the polymerization of silicate. Both processes result in the formation of Np(IV) silica colloids which possibly influence the migration behavior and fate of Np in the waste repositories and surrounding environments. For tetravalent actinides in general, the most significant transport in the environment would occur by colloidal particles. Therefore, Np(IV) silica colloids could have a significant implication in the migration of Np, the important minor actinide in the waste repositories, via colloidal transport

RURAL COMMUNITY VITALITY; THE CASES OF FORT BENTON, MONTANA AND WATFORD CITY, NORTH DAKOTA

There are many rural towns in the United States that are struggling economically. While many suffer population loss through out-migration, others continue to thrive. This project focuses on two rural communities: Fort Benton in central Montana and Watford City in western North Dakota. The research sets out to provide an understanding of how these towns prosper while maintaining their rural lifestyle. The purpose of this study is to explore and identify the efforts carried out by these rural communities to secure the power to live and grow; in other words to remain vital as a rural places. Both communities are geographically isolated areas with modest levels of amenities, but with noted population losses in the early 2000s. The literature recognizes that there are many factors that have an impact on the social and economic dynamics of rural places, suggesting that some rural areas seem to be more vital and vibrant than others. This project utilizes both quantitative data from the U.S. Bureau of the Census and Regional Economic Information System databanks to shed light on demographics and local economies as well as qualitative data from interviews conducted with community leaders. The point is to identify the specific efforts designed to contribute to rural vitality that are undertaken in both communities. The research renders that rural community vitality depends on a comprehensive investigation of the dimensions of economy, population, amenities, and social capital. In addition, it is noted that if communities want to be vital, they will be, and if they do not, they will not. What is learned from the two rural towns could then be considered by other communities and offer examples on how to preserve and promote rural livelihood