Toward an efficient solution for dynamic ad hoc network interoperability

An ad hoc network is formed by an impromptu grouping of network capable nodes. The nodes forming the network have unconstrained mobility, and so provide a dynamic network topology. Current work in this research area has focused on designing routing protocols capable of efficiently forwarding packets in these dynamic network environments. This has led to several designs for ad hoc routing protocols based on various routing algorithms, each suited to specific usage characteristics. This paper will discuss issues relating to routing in ad hoc networks. We will describe an active networking based solution that provides dynamic routing protocol interoperability and enables migration of nodes between ad hoc groups. Our design is motivated by a squad and base scenario which consists of two groups wishing to communicate. These groups have contrasting deployment characteristics and so use different routing protocols

Cultural Mapping in Northeast Salem: A Civic Engagement Study

33 pagesThis document outlines work done by graduate students in the Art and Sustainable Society course in the University of Oregon Arts and Administration Program during the Fall term 2010 and provides recommendations to the City of Salem for further study. It can and should be used as an example and guide for further community mapping. The project focused on mapping the cultural resources of the Latino population of Northeast Salem over the course of 10 weeks. The City of Salem is interested in facilitating more engagement within this community through identification of existing cultural resources, their patterns of use, and the gaps that exist among them. The report reviews the students’ process of cultural mapping, the information gathered, trends identified within the information, and suggestions for further study and engagement

Applying The Probabilistic Fitness-For-Service Concept For Assessing Reliability Of Weld Repaired Steam Turbine Rotors.

LecturePg. 65-72The cost savings and fast turnaround offered by weld repair of turbomachinery rotors results in significant advantages to the end user when faced with the possibility of having to replace the rotor. However, it also carries a potential risk to reliability. Many rotors have been weld repaired and have been put back in service over the years. The reliability of the repairs have not been quantified, but have usually been proven only through the lack of failure. No standard way of decision making has developed because it is an ever evolving technology. The principal driver for repair is economics, and the technical justification for such repair is "fitness-for-service." A method to quantify the risk for weld repairing a rotor a priori is presented. This couples material properties characterization, fracture mechanics concept, and probabilistic type calculation to determine reliability of the repair. This extends the fitness-for-purpose concept and captures the randomness and uncertainties in controlling variables; thus, it is called the "probabilistic fitness-for-service" concept

Measures of body habitus are associated with lung function in adults with cystic fibrosis: a population-based study

Background Body habitus differences may explain some of the variation in lung function between individuals with cystic fibrosis (CF). We tested the hypothesis that measures of lean muscle mass and obesity are independently associated with lung function in CF. Methods Cross-sectional study design using UK CF registry data from 2096 clinically stable adults. Results Serum creatinine and BMI were positively and independently associated with FEV1 and FVC. One standard deviation increment in serum creatinine was associated with an FEV1 increase of 171 ml (95% confidence intervals CI: + 116 to + 227 ml) in males and 90 ml (95% CI: + 46 to + 133 ml) in females. Compared to the reference group of 20–24.9 kg/m2, those with a BMI < 20 kg/m2 had lower FEV1 with values of − 642 ml (95%CI: − 784 to − 500 ml) for males and − 468 ml (95%CI: − 564 to − 372 ml) for females. Conclusions Prospective studies and controlled trials are required to ascertain if these associations have therapeutic potential in modifying disease progression

Development of Gaze Following Abilities in Wolves (Canis Lupus)

The ability to coordinate with others' head and eye orientation to look in the same direction is considered a key step towards an understanding of others mental states like attention and intention. Here, we investigated the ontogeny and habituation patterns of gaze following into distant space and behind barriers in nine hand-raised wolves. We found that these wolves could use conspecific as well as human gaze cues even in the barrier task, which is thought to be more cognitively advanced than gazing into distant space. Moreover, while gaze following into distant space was already present at the age of 14 weeks and subjects did not habituate to repeated cues, gazing around a barrier developed considerably later and animals quickly habituated, supporting the hypothesis that different cognitive mechanisms may underlie the two gaze following modalities. More importantly, this study demonstrated that following another individuals' gaze around a barrier is not restricted to primates and corvids but is also present in canines, with remarkable between-group similarities in the ontogeny of this behaviour. This sheds new light on the evolutionary origins of and selective pressures on gaze following abilities as well as on the sensitivity of domestic dogs towards human communicative cues

Correlations of EGFR mutations and increases in EGFR and HER2 copy number to gefitinib response in a retrospective analysis of lung cancer patients

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Gefitinib, a small molecule tyrosine kinase inhibitor of the Epidermal Growth Factor Receptor (<it>EGFR</it>), has shown limited efficacy in the treatment of lung cancer. Recognized clinical predictors of response to this drug, specifically female, non-smoker, Asian descent, and adenocarcinoma, together suggest a genetic basis for drug response. Recent studies have addressed the relationship between response and either sequence mutations or increased copy number of specific receptor tyrosine kinases. We set out to examine the relationship between response and the molecular status of two such kinases, <it>EGFR </it>and <it>HER2</it>, in 39 patients treated with gefitinib at the BC Cancer Agency.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Archival patient material was reviewed by a pathologist and malignant cells were selectively isolated by laser microdissection or manual recovery of cells from microscope slides. Genomic DNA was extracted from 37 such patient samples and exons 18–24, coding for the tyrosine kinase domain of <it>EGFR</it>, were amplified by PCR and sequenced. <it>EGFR </it>and <it>HER2 </it>copy number status were also assessed using FISH in 26 samples. Correlations between molecular features and drug response were assessed using the two-sided Fisher's exact test.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Mutations previously correlated with response were detected in five tumours, four with exon 19 deletions and one with an exon 21 missense L858R point mutation. Increased gene copy number was observed in thirteen tumours, seven with <it>EGFR </it>amplification, three with <it>HER2 </it>amplification, and three with amplification of both genes. In our study cohort, a correlation was not observed between response and <it>EGFR </it>mutations (exon 19 deletion p = 0.0889, we observed a single exon 21 mutation in a non-responder) or increases in <it>EGFR </it>or <it>HER2 </it>copy number (p = 0.552 and 0.437, respectively).</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>Neither mutation of <it>EGFR </it>nor increased copy number of <it>EGFR </it>or <it>HER2 </it>was diagnostic of response to gefitinib in this cohort. However, validation of these features in a larger sample set is appropriate. Identification of additional predictive biomarkers beyond <it>EGFR </it>status may be necessary to accurately predict treatment outcome.</p

Consistency and discrepancy in the atmospheric response to Arctic sea-ice loss across climate models

This is the author accepted manuscript. The final version is available from Springer Nature via the DOI in this recordThe decline of Arctic sea ice is an integral part of anthropogenic climate change. Sea-ice loss is already having a significant impact on Arctic communities and ecosystems. Its role as a cause of climate changes outside of the Arctic has also attracted much scientific interest. Evidence is mounting that Arctic sea-ice loss can affect weather and climate throughout the Northern Hemisphere. The remote impacts of Arctic sea-ice loss can only be properly represented using models that simulate interactions among the ocean, sea ice, land and atmosphere. A synthesis of six such experiments with different models shows consistent hemispheric-wide atmospheric warming, strongest in the mid-to-high-latitude lower troposphere; an intensification of the wintertime Aleutian Low and, in most cases, the Siberian High; a weakening of the Icelandic Low; and a reduction in strength and southward shift of the mid-latitude westerly winds in winter. The atmospheric circulation response seems to be sensitive to the magnitude and geographic pattern of sea-ice loss and, in some cases, to the background climate state. However, it is unclear whether current-generation climate models respond too weakly to sea-ice change. We advocate for coordinated experiments that use different models and observational constraints to quantify the climate response to Arctic sea-ice loss.J.A.S. and R.B. were funded by the Natural Environment Research Council (NE/P006760/1). C.D. acknowledges the National Science Foundation (NSF), which sponsors the National Center for Atmospheric Research. D.M.S. was supported by the Met Office Hadley Centre Climate Programme (GA01101) and the APPLICATE project, which is funded by the European Union’s Horizon 2020 programme. X.Z. was supported by the NSF (ARC#1023592). P.J.K. and K.E.M. were supported by the Canadian Sea Ice and Snow Evolution Network, which is funded by the Natural Science and Engineering Research Council of Canada. T.O. was funded by Environment and Climate Change Canada (GCXE17S038). L.S. was supported by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Climate Program Office

Morphometric Characterization of Rat and Human Alveolar Macrophage Cell Models and their Response to Amiodarone using High Content Image Analysis

© The Author(s) 2017. This article is an open access publication. Open Access: This article is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons license, and indicate if changes were made.Purpose. Progress to the clinic may be delayed or prevented when vacuolated or “foamy” alveolar macrophages are observed during non-clinical inhalation toxicology assessment. The first step in developing methods to study this response in vitro is to characterize macrophage cell lines and their response to drug exposures.Methods. Human (U937) and rat (NR8383) cell lines and primary rat alveolar macrophages obtained by bronchoalveolar lavage were characterized using high content fluorescence imaging analysis quantification of cell viability, morphometry, and phospholipid and neutral lipid accumulation. Results. Cell health, morphology and lipid content were comparable (p<0.05) for both cell lines and the primary macrophages in terms of vacuole number, size and lipid content. Responses to amiodarone, a known inducer of phospholipidosis, required analysis of shifts in cell population profiles (the proportion of cells with elevated vacuolation or lipid content) rather than average population data which was insensitive to the changes observed.Conclusions. A high content image analysis assay was developed and used to provide detailed morphological characterization of rat and human alveolar-like macrophages and their response to a phospholipidosis-inducing agent. This provides a basis for development of assays to predict or understand macrophage vacuolation following inhaled drug exposure.Peer reviewedFinal Published versio