Optical Absorption Spectra of Ag11 Isomers by First-Principles Theoretical Spectroscopy with Time-dependent Density Functional Theory

The optical absorption spectrum of the three most stable isomers of the Ag11 system was calculated using the time-dependent density functional theory, with the generalized gradient approximation for the exchange and correlation potential, and a relativistic pseudopotential parametrization for the modelling of the ion-electron interaction. The computational scheme is based on a real space code, where the photoabsorption spectrum is calculated by using the formalism developed by Casida. The significantly different spectra of the three isomers permit the identification of the ground-state configuration predominantly present in the laboratory beams in base to a comparison between the calculated photoabsorption spectrum of the most stable configuration of Ag11 and the measured spectra of medium-size silver clusters trapped in noble gas Ar and Ne matrices at different temperatures. This assignment is confirmed by the fact that this isomer has the lowest calculated energy.Comment: 6 pages, 3 color figures, submitted to Chem. Phys. Let

3D high definition video coding on a GPU-based heterogeneous system

H.264/MVC is a standard for supporting the sensation of 3D, based on coding from 2 (stereo) to N views. H.264/MVC adopts many coding options inherited from single view H.264/AVC, and thus its complexity is even higher, mainly because the number of processing views is higher. In this manuscript, we aim at an efficient parallelization of the most computationally intensive video encoding module for stereo sequences. In particular, inter prediction and its collaborative execution on a heterogeneous platform. The proposal is based on an efficient dynamic load balancing algorithm and on breaking encoding dependencies. Experimental results demonstrate the proposed algorithm's ability to reduce the encoding time for different stereo high definition sequences. Speed-up values of up to 90× were obtained when compared with the reference encoder on the same platform. Moreover, the proposed algorithm also provides a more energy-efficient approach and hence requires less energy than the sequential reference algorith

Impacto de la tecnología adaptada en modelos de venta directa recurrente en España

La venta directa como modelo de negocio representa una plataforma que motoriza un sector importante de la economía mundial. En los últimos años ha cobrado fuerza, además, el concepto de la recurrencia, que se alza como elemento diferenciador de las empresas por el alto impacto que supone conseguir nuevos clientes y que motiva al consumidor a mantenerse en el ciclo de la compra. En España, según cifras de la Asociación de Venta Directa (AVD), los negocios de venta directa superan los 630 millones de euros de facturación al año, con más de 120.000 distribuidores. La presente investigación persigue profundizar en torno a estrategias tecnológicas que benefician la posventa y motivan la venta recurrente, delimitar el perfil del vendedor y su entorno laboral, y generar estrategias para los vendedores que les permitan ser sostenibles en el mercado. La metodología de investigación fue cuantitativa, descriptiva y de campo, y el método de recolección que se utilizó fue la encuesta, desarrollada en línea, cuyo universo poblacional fue de 591 personas. Los resultados arrojaron que el impacto de la tecnología incrementa el fortalecimiento de este modelo de negocio

Soroprevalência da infecção pelo T. cruzi em doadores de sangue e cardiomiopatia chagásica em pacientes da região carbonífera de Coahuila, México

Context and Objective: Chagas disease is considered a worldwide emerging disease; it is endemic in Mexico and the state of Coahuila and is considered of little relevance. The objective of this study was to determine the seroprevalence of T. cruzi infection in blood donors and Chagas cardiomyopathy in patients from the coal mining region of Coahuila, Mexico. Design and Setting: Epidemiological, exploratory and prospective study in a general hospital during the period January to June 2011. Methods: We performed laboratory tests ELISA and indirect hemagglutination in three groups of individuals: 1) asymptomatic voluntary blood donors, 2) patients hospitalized in the cardiology department and 3) patients with dilated cardiomyopathy. Results: There were three levels of seroprevalence: 0.31% in asymptomatic individuals, 1.25% in cardiac patients and in patients with dilated cardiomyopathy in 21.14%. Conclusions: In spite of having detected autochthonous cases of Chagas disease, its importance to local public health remains to be established as well as the details of the dynamics of transmission so that the study is still in progress.Contexto e Objetivo: A doença de Chagas é mundialmente considerada uma doença emergente, é endêmica no México e no estado de Coahuila e considerada de pouca relevância. O objetivo do estudo foi determinar a soroprevalência da infecção pelo T. cruzi em doadores de sangue e cardiomiopatia chagásica em pacientes da região carbonífera de Coahuila, México. Desenho e Local: Estudo epidemiológico, exploratório e prospectivo em um hospital geral no período de janeiro a junho de 2011. Métodos: Foram realizados testes de laboratório ELISA e hemoglutinação indireta em três grupos de indivíduos: 1) doadores de sangue voluntários assintomáticos, 2) pacientes internados na área de cardiologia e 3) pacientes com cardiomiopatia dilatada. Resultados: Foram achados três níveis de soroprevalência: 0,31% em indivíduos doadores de sangue assintomáticos, 1,25% em pacientes cardiopatas e, em pacientes com cardiomiopatia dilatada 21,14%. Conclusão: Detectamos casos autóctones de doença de Chagas em área considerada não endêmica. Deve ser determinada sua importância na saúde pública regional e local, para estabelecer os detalhes do mecanismo de transmissão. O estudo ainda está em desenvolvimento

Impact of day/night time land surface temperature in soil moisture disaggregation algorithms

Since its launch in 2009, the ESA’s SMOS mission is providing global soil moisture (SM) maps at ~40 km, using the first L-band microwave radiometer on space. Its spatial resolution meets the needs of global applications, but prevents the use of the data in regional or local applications, which require higher spatial resolutions (~1-10 km). SM disaggregation algorithms based generally on the land surface temperature (LST) and vegetation indices have been developed to bridge this gap. This study analyzes the SM-LST relationship at a variety of LST acquisition times and its influence on SM disaggregation algorithms. Two years of in situ and satellite data over the central part of the river Duero basin and the Iberian Peninsula are used. In situ results show a strong anticorrelation of SM to daily maximum LST (R˜-0.5 to -0.8). This is confirmed with SMOS SM and MODIS LST Terra/Aqua at day time-overpasses (R˜-0.4 to -0.7). Better statistics are obtained when using MODIS LST day (R˜0.55 to 0.85; ubRMSD˜0.04 to 0.06 m3 /m3 ) than LST night (R˜0.45 to 0.80; ubRMSD˜0.04 to 0.07 m3 /m3 ) in the SM disaggregation. An averaged ensemble of day and night MODIS LST Terra/Aqua disaggregated SM estimates also leads to robust statistics (R˜0.55 to 0.85; ubRMSD˜0.04 to 0.07 m3 /m3 ) with a coverage improvement of ~10-20 %.Peer ReviewedPostprint (published version

Rendezvous Technique for the Treatment of Complete Common Bile Duct Transection After Multiple Hepatobiliary Surgeries

Common bile duct (CBD) injury during surgical procedures is a serious complication. Partial injury can usually be managed by a combination of percutaneous and/or endoscopic techniques. However, the management of complete transection of the CBD is very challenging. There are small case series of nonsurgical management of complete CBD transection during laparoscopic cholecystectomy. In this particular case, a 55-year-old female patient had multiple operations because of malignant pheochromocytoma with liver metastases. She developed a complete CBD transection during right hepatectomy. A biloma was managed with image-guided percutaneous drainage. However, both attempts of percutaneous transhepatic cholangiography (PTC) and endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography (ERCP) for CBD stent were unsuccessful, as the native CBD was partially resected during the injury. A rendezvous procedure, in which a guidewire was placed through the distal CBD and into a biloma by ERCP and subsequently snared with PTC, allowed for a biliary-duodenal catheter to be placed successfully and achieve continuity of the patient's biliary tree.Peer Reviewedhttps://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/140151/1/lap.2014.0374.pd