Analysis of recurrent event data with environmental covariates.

Study objectives. The objectives of this study were twofold. First, we used simulation to investigate three statistical methodologies for analyzing recurrent event data in the presence of environmental covariates to determine which procedure performs well under what situation. Secondly, we investigated the association between daily air pollution and hospital admissions of respiratory diseases by analyzing data from Vancouver, British Columbia. Settings and study population. Five air pollutants: carbon monoxide (CO), coefficient of haze (CoH), nitrogen dioxide (NO 2), sulfur dioxide (SO2) and particulate matter 10 microns or less in diameter (PM10) were considered in this study. The event of interest was daily respiratory hospital admissions of residents (65+ years) of Vancouver, B.C. from April 01, 1995 to March 31, 1999. The dates of hospital admission for each individual\u27s repeated visits due to respiratory diseases were recorded. Statistical methodologies. Three statistical methods were studied in this study, namely, Dewanji and Moolgavker\u27s model (2000, 2002) based on a Poisson process assumption (Model I), Nividi\u27s model (1998, 2002) for bidirectional case-crossover designs (Model II), and the usual time series analysis using a generalized linear model with natural splines (ns) to smooth time (Model III). A simulation method was used to evaluate and compare these procedures. The mean square error (MSE) was the criterion used for evaluation. (Abstract shortened by UMI.)Dept. of Mathematics and Statistics. Paper copy at Leddy Library: Theses & Major Papers - Basement, West Bldg. / Call Number: Thesis2005 .K45. Source: Masters Abstracts International, Volume: 44-01, page: 0379. Thesis (M.Sc.)--University of Windsor (Canada), 2005

Role of Heat Transfer on Process Characteristics During Electrical Discharge Machining

This book comprises heat transfer fundamental concepts and modes (specifically conduction, convection and radiation), bioheat, entransy theory development, micro heat transfer, high temperature applications, turbulent shear flows, mass transfer, heat pipes, design optimization, medical therapies, fiber-optics, heat transfer in surfactant solutions, landmine detection, heat exchangers, radiant floor, packed bed thermal storage systems, inverse space marching method, heat transfer in short slot ducts, freezing an drying mechanisms, variable property effects in heat transfer, heat transfer in electronics and process industries, fission-track thermochronology, combustion, heat transfer in liquid metal flows, human comfort in underground mining, heat transfer on electrical discharge machining and mixing convection. The experimental and theoretical investigations, assessment and enhancement techniques illustrated here aspire to be useful for many researchers, scientists, engineers and graduate students

Duloxetine for the treatment of generalized anxiety disorder: a review

Approximately 16 million people in the United States suffer from anxiety disorders alone, while another 12 million experience both anxiety and at least one other psychiatric condition. Generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) has lifetime prevalence rates between 5% and 6%. Treatment of GAD is aimed primarily at symptom reduction. Duloxetine, a serotonin norepinephrine reuptake inhibitor (SNRI), received Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval for the treatment of GAD in 2007. This article reviews the pharmacologic profile and seminal clinical trials associated with the FDA indication of duloxetine for GAD. A literature search performed using PubMed with the keywords “duloxetine”, “gad”, “generalized anxiety disorder”, and “venlafaxine XR” yielded 27 articles. We also focused on papers that pooled data from these seminal studies. Data on file from Eli Lilly were also reviewed, including data from the Eli Lilly website. Based on this search, duloxetine was found to be an FDA-approved treatment option for GAD that has been studied in several double-blind, placebo-controlled clinical trials. This review of duloxetine will help physicians to interpret clinical studies properly and also help them to make an informed decision about which patients are the most appropriate candidates for a trial of duloxetine

Does an Optimal Working Capital Exist? The Role of Financial Constraints

The aim of the present study is to examine the linkage between working capital management, financial constraints, and profitability of the listed textile firms of Pakistan during 2005-2014. The outcomes of panel models reveal that more (less) financially constrained firms to have smaller (longer) net trade cycle. Moreover, the study found an inverted U-shaped relationship between investment in working capital and firm performance. Based on the empirical results of this study it is suggested that financial managers should try to maintain an optimal level of working capital to optimize the profit performance of the firm, as an investment in working capital above that optimal point will negatively affect the corporate profitability. Keywords: Working Capital, Firm Performance, Financial Constraints, Pakistan

Application of Silicon Carbide in Abrasive Water Jet Machining

Silicon carbide (SiC) is a compound consisting of silicon and carbon. It is also known as carborundum. SiC is used as an abrasive material after it was mass produced in 1893. The credit of mass production of SiC goes to Edward Goodrich Acheson. Now SiC is used not only as an abrasive, but it is also extensively used in making cutting tools, structural material, automotive parts, electrical systems, nuclear fuel parts, jewelries, etc. AWJM is a well-established non-traditional machining technique used for cutting difficult-to machine materials. Nowadays, this process is being widely used for machining of hard materials like ceramics, ceramic composites, fiber-reinforced composites and titanium alloys where conventional machining fails to machine economically. The fact is that in AWJM no heat is developed and it has important implications where heat-affected zones are to be avoided. AWJM can cut everything what traditional machining can cut, as well as what traditional machining cannot cut such as too hard material (e.g. carbides), too soft material (e.g. rubber) and brittle material (e.g. glass, ceramics, etc.). The basic cutting tool used in water jet machining is highly pressurized water that is passed through a very small orifice, producing a very powerful tool that can cut almost any material. Depending on the materials, thickness of cut can range up to 25 mm and higher (Kalpakjian & Schmid, 2010). A water jet system consists of three components which are the water preparation system, pressure generation system and the cutting head and motion system

Development of Powder Metallurgy (PM) compacted Cu-TaC electrodes for EDM

The main aim of this paper is to investigate the properties of Cu-TaC electrodes produced by Powder Metallurgy (PM) method. The design of Experiment (DOE) method was used to plan the investigation. Two different compositions of the powders (Cu-TaC with 30 and 55 % wt TaC) were used. The major properties which determine suitability of electrodes for Electro Discharge Machining (EDM) are electrical conductivity, thermal conductivity and to some extent density. These properties were measured for the green compacted electrodes, analyzed and compared with their sintered counterparts. This is the initial stage to determine the suitability or otherwise of the compacted electrodes. The results showed that the compacted electrodes in green form can be suitable for EDM, since the electrical conductivities are very high (94.96-189.92�-1m-1). The thermal conductivity is good (29.70-33.20W/ m K). The density ranges between 6.13 and 9.80 g/cm3. The sintered electrodes were found to be unsuitable at the specified conditions, because they became non-conductive electrically after sintering. Current efforts are geared towards improving these properties for the sintered ones and also determining their optimum levels

Evaluation of serum alkaline phosphatase and calcium in type 2 diabetes mellitus patients at Lucknow, India

There is an increasing demand and requirement to develop new biomarkers for the early diagnosis and detection of diabetes mellitus (DM). The present study is designed to estimate serum alkaline phosphatase (ALP) and serum calcium levels in type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) patients. The serum alkaline phosphatase and calcium levels were estimated using commercially available kits on a semiautoanalyzer. The fasting blood sugar (FBS) of the subjects was measured by the glucose oxidase-peroxidase (GOD-POD) method using a commercially available kit. The level of ALP was found to be statistically significant in T2DM patients when compared with matched healthy individuals (p 0.001), whereas the association of serum calcium level was found to be non-significant (p = 0.07). Although there is a decrease in serum calcium level in T2DM patients when compared with healthy controls. It is concluded that the management of T2DM and its associated complications may require regular estimation of serum ALP and calcium levels. The estimations may also be significant in the management of osteoporosis in T2DM patients. High utilization of calcium and vitamin D especially from supplements may lower the risk of DM