Estimating strength of rubberized concrete using evolutionary multivariate adaptive regression splines

This study proposes an artificial intelligence (AI) model to predict the compressive strength and splitting tensile strength of rubberized concrete. This Evolutionary Multivariate Adaptive Regression Splines (EMARS) model is a hybrid of the Multivariate Adaptive Regression Splines (MARS) and Artificial Bee Colony (ABC) within which MARS addresses learning and curve fitting and ABC implements optimization to determine the fittest parameter settings with minimal prediction error. K-fold cross validation was utilized to compare EMARS performance against four other benchmark data mining techniques including MARS, Back-propagation Neural Network (BPNN), Radial Basis Function Neural Network (RBFNN), and Genetic Programming (GP). Comparison results showed EMARS to be the best model for predicting rubberized concrete strength and study results demonstrated EMARS as a reliable tool for civil engineers in the concrete construction industry

A Novel Time Series Prediction Approach Based on a Hybridization of Least Squares Support Vector Regression and Swarm Intelligence

This research aims at establishing a novel hybrid artificial intelligence (AI) approach, named as firefly-tuned least squares support vector regression for time series prediction (FLSVR TSP ). The proposed model utilizes the least squares support vector regression (LS-SVR) as a supervised learning technique to generalize the mapping function between input and output of time series data. In order to optimize the LS-SVR's tuning parameters, the FLSVR TSP incorporates the firefly algorithm (FA) as the search engine. Consequently, the newly construction model can learn from historical data and carry out prediction autonomously without any prior knowledge in parameter setting. Experimental results and comparison have demonstrated that the FLSVR TSP has achieved a significant improvement in forecasting accuracy when predicting both artificial and real-world time series data. Hence, the proposed hybrid approach is a promising alternative for assisting decision-makers to better cope with time series prediction

Chaotic initialized multiple objective differential evolution with adaptive mutation strategy (CA-MODE) for construction project time-cost-quality trade-off

Time, cost and quality are three factors playing an important role in the planning and controlling of construc­tion. Trade-off optimization among them is significant for the improvement of the overall benefits of construction pro­jects. In this paper, a novel optimization model, named as Chaotic Initialized Multiple Objective Differential Evolution with Adaptive Mutation Strategy (CA-MODE), is developed to deal with the time-cost-quality trade-off problems. The proposed algorithm utilizes the advantages of chaos sequences for generating an initial population and an external elitist archive to store non-dominated solutions found during the evolutionary process. In order to maintain the exploration and exploitation capabilities during various phases of optimization process, an adaptive mutation operation is introduced. A numerical case study of highway construction is used to illustrate the application of CA-MODE. It has been shown that non-dominated solutions generated by CA-MODE assist project managers in choosing appropriate plan which is other­wise hard and time-consuming to obtain. The comparisons with non-dominated sorting genetic algorithm (NSGA-II), multiple objective particle swarm optimization (MOPSO), multiple objective differential evolution (MODE) and previ­ous results verify the efficiency and effectiveness of the proposed algorithm. First published online: 24 Aug 201

Eupolauridine alkaloids of Polyalthia nemoralis

Two eupolauridine alkaloids, eupolauridine (1) and 8-methoxyeupolauridine (2), together with a phenanthrene compound, 2,7-dihydroxy-3,6-dimethoxyphenanthrene (3), were isolated from the ethyl acetate extract of Polyalthia nemoralis barks. Their structures were elucidated on the basis of spectroscopic analysis and comparison with related known compounds. These compounds were evaluated the cytotoxicity on seven human cancer cell lines including KB, MCF7, LU-1, HepG2, LNCap, SW626 and SW480

High prevalence of plasmid-mediated quinolone resistance determinants in commensal members of the Enterobacteriaceae in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam

Antimicrobial-resistant pathogenic members of the Enterobacteriaceae are a well-defined global problem. We hypothesized that one of the main reservoirs of dissemination of antimicrobial resistance genes in Vietnam is non-pathogenic intestinal flora, and sought to isolate antimicrobial-resistant organisms from hospitalized patients and non-hospitalized healthy individuals in Ho Chi Minh City. The results identified substantial faecal carriage of gentamicin-, ceftazidime- and nalidixic acid-resistant members of the Enterobacteriaceae in both hospitalized patients and non-hospitalized healthy individuals. A high prevalence of quinolone resistance determinants was identified, particularly the qnrS gene, in both community- and hospital-associated strains. Furthermore, the results demonstrated that a combination of quinolone resistance determinants can confer resistance to nalidixic acid and ciprofloxacin, even in the apparent absence of additional chromosomal resistance mutations in wild-type strains and laboratory strains with transferred plasmids. These data suggest that intestinal commensal organisms are a significant reservoir for the dissemination of plasmid-mediated quinolone resistance in Ho Chi Minh City

A prospective multi-center observational study of children hospitalized with diarrhea in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam.

We performed a prospective multicenter study to address the lack of data on the etiology, clinical and demographic features of hospitalized pediatric diarrhea in Ho Chi Minh City (HCMC), Vietnam. Over 2,000 (1,419 symptomatic and 609 non-diarrheal control) children were enrolled in three hospitals over a 1-year period in 2009-2010. Aiming to detect a panel of pathogens, we identified a known diarrheal pathogen in stool samples from 1,067/1,419 (75.2%) children with diarrhea and from 81/609 (13.3%) children without diarrhea. Rotavirus predominated in the symptomatic children (664/1,419; 46.8%), followed by norovirus (293/1,419; 20.6%). The bacterial pathogens Salmonella, Campylobacter, and Shigella were cumulatively isolated from 204/1,419 (14.4%) diarrheal children and exhibited extensive antimicrobial resistance, most notably to fluoroquinolones and third-generation cephalosporins. We suggest renewed efforts in generation and implementation of policies to control the sale and prescription of antimicrobials to curb bacterial resistance and advise consideration of a subsidized rotavirus vaccination policy to limit the morbidity due to diarrheal disease in Vietnam

Risk Factors of Streptococcus suis Infection in Vietnam. A Case-Control Study

Background: Streptococcus suis infection, an emerging zoonosis, is an increasing public health problem across South East Asia and the most common cause of acute bacterial meningitis in adults in Vietnam. Little is known of the risk factors underlying the disease. Methods and Findings: A case-control study with appropriate hospital and matched community controls for each patient was conducted between May 2006 and June 2009. Potential risk factors were assessed using a standardized questionnaire and investigation of throat and rectal S. suis carriage in cases, controls and their pigs, using real-time PCR and culture of swab samples. We recruited 101 cases of S. suis meningitis, 303 hospital controls and 300 community controls. By multivariate analysis, risk factors identified for S. suis infection as compared to either control group included eating "high risk" dishes, including such dishes as undercooked pig blood and pig intestine (OR1 = 2.22; 95% CI = [1.15-4.28] and OR2 = 4.44; 95% CI = [2.15-9.15]), occupations related to pigs (OR1 = 3.84; 95% CI = [1.32-11.11] and OR2 = 5.52; 95% CI = [1.49-20.39]), and exposures to pigs or pork in the presence of skin injuries (OR1 = 7.48; 95% CI = [1.97-28.44] and OR2 = 15.96; 95% CI = [2.97-85.72]). S. suis specific DNA was detected in rectal and throat swabs of 6 patients and was cultured from 2 rectal samples, but was not detected in such samples of 1522 healthy individuals or patients without S. suis infection. Conclusions: This case control study, the largest prospective epidemiological assessment of this disease, has identified the most important risk factors associated with S. suis bacterial meningitis to be eating 'high risk' dishes popular in parts of Asia, occupational exposure to pigs and pig products, and preparation of pork in the presence of skin lesions. These risk factors can be addressed in public health campaigns aimed at preventing S. suis infectio

Standardised patient study to assess tuberculosis case detection within the private pharmacy sector in Vietnam.

BACKGROUND: Of the estimated 10 million people affected by (TB) each year, one-third are never diagnosed. Delayed case detection within the private healthcare sector has been identified as a particular problem in some settings, leading to considerable morbidity, mortality and community transmission. Using unannounced standardised patient (SP) visits to the pharmacies, we aimed to evaluate the performance of private pharmacies in the detection and treatment of TB. METHODS: A cross-sectional study was undertaken at randomly selected private pharmacies within 40 districts of Vietnam. Trained actors implemented two standardised clinical scenarios of presumptive TB and presumptive multidrug-resistant TB (MDR-TB). Outcomes were the proportion of SPs referred for medical assessment and the proportion inappropriately receiving broad-spectrum antibiotics. Logistic regression evaluated predictors of SPs' referral. RESULTS: In total, 638 SP encounters were conducted, of which only 155 (24.3%) were referred for medical assessment; 511 (80·1%) were inappropriately offered antibiotics. A higher proportion of SPs were referred without having been given antibiotics if they had presumptive MDR-TB (68/320, 21.3%) versus presumptive TB (17/318, 5.3%; adjusted OR=4.8, 95% CI 2.9 to 7.8). Pharmacies offered antibiotics without a prescription to 89.9% of SPs with presumptive TB and 70.3% with presumptive MDR-TB, with no clear follow-up plan. CONCLUSIONS: Few SPs with presumptive TB were appropriately referred for medical assessment by private pharmacies. Interventions to improve appropriate TB referral within the private pharmacy sector are urgently required to reduce the number of undiagnosed TB cases in Vietnam and similar high-prevalence settings

Finishing the euchromatic sequence of the human genome

The sequence of the human genome encodes the genetic instructions for human physiology, as well as rich information about human evolution. In 2001, the International Human Genome Sequencing Consortium reported a draft sequence of the euchromatic portion of the human genome. Since then, the international collaboration has worked to convert this draft into a genome sequence with high accuracy and nearly complete coverage. Here, we report the result of this finishing process. The current genome sequence (Build 35) contains 2.85 billion nucleotides interrupted by only 341 gaps. It covers ∼99% of the euchromatic genome and is accurate to an error rate of ∼1 event per 100,000 bases. Many of the remaining euchromatic gaps are associated with segmental duplications and will require focused work with new methods. The near-complete sequence, the first for a vertebrate, greatly improves the precision of biological analyses of the human genome including studies of gene number, birth and death. Notably, the human enome seems to encode only 20,000-25,000 protein-coding genes. The genome sequence reported here should serve as a firm foundation for biomedical research in the decades ahead