Bayesian recursive algorithm for width estimation of freespace for a power wheelchair using stereoscopic cameras.

This paper is concerned with the estimation of freespace based on a Bayesian recursive (BR) algorithm for an autonomous wheelchair using stereoscopic cameras by severely disabled people. A stereo disparity map processed from both the left and right camera images is constructed to generate a 3D point map through a geometric projection algorithm. This is then converted to a 2D distance map for the purpose of freespace estimation. The width of freespace is estimated using a BR algorithm based on uncertainty information and control data. Given the probabilities of this width computed, a possible movement decision is then made for the mobile wheelchair. Experimental results obtained in an indoor environment show the effectiveness of this estimation algorithm

Processing Youth Adventure Wellness Experiences: Poetic Representations of Youth’s Peace Bus Experiences

This narrative inquiry explored how youth are processing their Peace Bus program experiences two and a half years after program completion. The purpose was to gain an understanding of (1) what program components the participants reflect on, (2) how they conceptualize their program experiences, and (3) what factors contribute to their reflection processes. This research sought to address the gap in literature where little is understood about the ongoing experiences of program participants of adventure wellness programs and the processes that lead to positive changes. As the researcher, I conducted a qualitative study using narrative inquiry and poetic representation methods. For data generation, I used semi-structured one and a half hour interviews with five participants from the Peace Bus, an adventure wellness program that I co-led in 2015. Using the field texts captured from the co-constructed narratives, I crafted poetry to capture the evocative stories told by the participants. How the youth are processing their adventure wellness program experiences can be understood through each distinctive poem alone or through the collection of poems. Adventure wellness program experiences can serve as a platform for continual learning whereby the passage of time and reflection can further enhance self-concept, competencies, emotional and spiritual fulfillment and psychosocial integration. Learning from how the youth process their Peace Bus program experiences, I provide implications for how participants and social work practitioners can better support one’s ongoing growth upon completing an adventure wellness program

A Clinical and Epidemiological Investigation of the First Reported Human Infection With the Zoonotic Parasite Trypanosoma evansi in Southeast Asia

Background. Trypanosoma is a genus of unicellular parasitic flagellate protozoa. Trypanosoma brucei species and Trypanosoma cruzi are the major agents of human trypanosomiasis; other Trypanosoma species can cause human disease, but are rare. In March 2015, a 38-year-old woman presented to a healthcare facility in southern Vietnam with fever, headache, and arthralgia. Microscopic examination of blood revealed infection with Trypanosoma. Methods. Microscopic observation, polymerase chain reaction (PCR) amplification of blood samples, and serological testing were performed to identify the infecting species. The patient's blood was screened for the trypanocidal protein apolipoprotein L1 (APOL1), and a field investigation was performed to identify the zoonotic source. Results. PCR amplification and serological testing identified the infecting species as Trypanosoma evansi. Despite relapsing 6 weeks after completing amphotericin B therapy, the patient made a complete recovery after 5 weeks of suramin. The patient was found to have 2 wild-type APOL1 alleles and a normal serum APOL1 concentration. After responsive animal sampling in the presumed location of exposure, cattle and/or buffalo were determined to be the most likely source of the infection, with 14 of 30 (47%) animal blood samples testing PCR positive for T. evansi. Conclusions. We report the first laboratory-confirmed case of T. evansi in a previously healthy individual without APOL1 deficiency, potentially contracted via a wound while butchering raw beef, and successfully treated with suramin. A linked epidemiological investigation revealed widespread and previously unidentified burden of T. evansi in local cattle, highlighting the need for surveillance of this infection in animals and the possibility of further human cases

Fuzzy sliding mode control of an offshore container crane

© 2017 A fuzzy sliding mode control strategy for offshore container cranes is investigated in this study. The offshore operations of loading and unloading containers are performed between a mega container ship, called the mother ship, and a smaller ship, called the mobile harbor (MH), which is equipped with a container crane. The MH is used to transfer the containers, in the open sea, and deliver them to a conventional stevedoring port, thereby minimizing the port congestion and also eliminating the need of expanding outwards. The control objective during the loading and unloading process is to keep the payload in a desired tolerance in harsh conditions of the MH motion. The proposed control strategy combines a fuzzy sliding mode control law and a prediction algorithm based on Kalman filtering for the MH roll angle. Here, the sliding surface is designed to incorporate the desired trolley trajectory while suppressing the sway motion of the payload. To improve the control performance, the discontinuous gain of the sliding control is adjusted with fuzzy logic tuning schemes with respect to the sliding function and its rate of change. Chattering is further reduced by a saturation function. Simulation and experimental results are provided to verify the effectiveness of the proposed control system for offshore container cranes

Characteristics and mechanisms of cadmium adsorption onto biogenic aragonite shells-derived biosorbent: Batch and column studies

© 2018 Elsevier Ltd Calcium carbonate (CaCO3)-enriched biomaterial derived from freshwater mussel shells (FMS) was used as a non-porous biosorbent to explore the characteristics and mechanisms of cadmium adsorption in aqueous solution. The adsorption mechanism was proposed by comparing the FMS properties before and after adsorption alongside various adsorption studies. The FMS biosorbent was characterized using nitrogen adsorption/desorption isotherm, X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy with energy dispersive spectroscopy, Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy, and point of zero charge. The results of batch experiments indicated that FMS possessed an excellent affinity to Cd(II) ions within solutions pH higher than 4.0. An increase in ionic strength resulted in a significant decrease in the amount of Cd(II) adsorbed onto FMS. Kinetic study demonstrated that the adsorption process quickly reached equilibrium at approximately 60 min. The FMS biosorbent exhibited the Langmuir maximum adsorption capacity as follows: 18.2 mg/g at 10 °C Cd2+ > Cu2+ > Cr3+ > Zn2+. For column experiments, the highest Thomas adsorption capacity (7.86 mg/g) was achieved at a flow rate (9 mL/min), initial Cd(II) concentration (10 mg/L), and bed height (5 cm). The Cd(II) removal by FMS was regarded as non-activated chemisorption that occurred very rapidly (even at a low temperature) with a low magnitude of activation energy. Primary adsorption mechanism was surface precipitation. Cadmium precipitated in the primary (Cd,Ca)CO3 form with a calcite-type structure on the FMS surface. A crust of rhombohedral crystals on the substrate was observed by SEM. Freshwater mussel shells have the potential as a renewable adsorbent to remove cadmium from water

The financial protection effect of Ghana National Health Insurance Scheme: evidence from a study in two rural districts

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>One of the key functions of health insurance is to provide financial protection against high costs of health care, yet evidence of such protection from developing countries has been inconsistent. The current study uses the case of Ghana to contribute to the evidence pool about insurance's financial protection effects. It evaluates the impact of the country's National Health Insurance Scheme on households' out-of-pocket spending and catastrophic health expenditure.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>We use data from a household survey conducted in two rural districts, Nkoranza and Offinso, in 2007, two years after the initiation of the Ghana National Health Insurance Scheme. To address the skewness of health expenditure data, the absolute amount of out-of-pocket spending is estimated using a two-part model. We also conduct a probit estimate of the likelihood of catastrophic health expenditures, defined at different thresholds relative to household income and non-food consumption expenditure. The analysis controls for chronic and self-assessed health conditions, which typically drive adverse selection in insurance.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>At the time of the survey, insurance coverage was 35 percent. Although the benefit package of insurance is generous, insured people still incurred out-of-pocket payment for care from informal sources and for uncovered drugs and tests at health facilities. Nevertheless, they paid significantly less than the uninsured. Insurance has been shown to have a protective effect against the financial burden of health care, reducing significantly the likelihood of incurring catastrophic payment. The effect is particularly remarkable among the poorest quintile of the sample.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>Findings from this study confirm the positive financial protection effect of health insurance in Ghana. The effect is stronger among the poor group than among general population. The results are encouraging for many low income countries who are considering a similar policy to expand social health insurance. Ghana's experience also shows that instituting insurance by itself is not adequate to remove fully the out-of-pocket payment for health. Further works are needed to address the supply side's incentives and quality of care, so that the insured can enjoy the full benefits of insurance.</p

Applicability of zirconium loaded okara in the removal and recovery of phosphorus from municipal wastewater

© 2019 Published under licence by IOP Publishing Ltd. Recently, there is a new trend to consider wastewater as a precious resource. Since phosphorus is a limited non-renewable element, and MAP (Magnesium Ammonium Phosphate - MgNH4PO4.6H2O) is a valuable slow-release fertilizer, the recovery of phosphorous as MAP has received special attention from scientists all over the world. However, the application of this process with municipal wastewater is still a challenge, due to low concentration of phosphorus and high volume of municipal wastewater. This study investigates the potential of reclaiming MAP from municipal wastewater by combination of adsorption and crystallization. Soybean milk residue (okara) was loaded with Zirconium (Zr) to prepare the adsorbent (ZLO). Adsorption and desorption experiments were conducted in a semi-pilot scale ZLO packed colum system. Effects of P: N: Mg molar ratios, chemical sources and temperature on the formation of MAP were examined in an attempt to identify the optimal crystallization conditions. The attained precipitate was characterized using XRD, SEM, FTIR techniques. It was found that the ZLO packed column adsorption-desorption system could pre-concentrate phosphorus from municipal wastewater up to 28.36 times, fitting well the minimum requirement (50 mg P/L) for the economical MAP recovery. Up to 95.19% of dissolved phosphorus in desorption solution was recovered at pH = 9, Mg: N: P molar ratio = 2:2:1, using a combination of MgCl2.6H2O and NH4Cl. The harvested MAP exhibited high purity (92.59%), high P-availability (89% by mass), and extremely low levels of heavy metals. The results prove that it is viable to recover MAP from municipal wastewater by employing ZLO as adsorbent, followed by crystallization. This paves the way for mining phosphorus from municipal wastewater and reducing okara as an agricultural byproduct in a green way

Utilization of by-product of groundnut oil processing for production of prodigiosin by microbial fermentation and its novel potent anti-nematodes effect

[[abstract]]This study aimed to reuse groundnut oil processing by-product, groundnut cake (GNC) for the low-cost production of prodigiosin (PG) via microbial technology and to assess its novel potential application for the management of black pepper nematodes. Serratia marcescens TUN02 was found as the most active PG-producing strain. Various small-scale experiments conducted in flasks indicated that GNC at 1% may be used as the sole carbon/nitrogen source for cost-effective PG production by fermentation. Notably, no further commercial ingredients and salts are required to supplement into the culture medium of this fermentation. PG was further investigated for scale-up production in a 14-L bioreactor system and PG was produced at high yield (6886 mg/L) with large-scale volume (4 L) in a short cultivation time (10 h). PG was then purified and its nematicidal activity was evaluated and showed effective inhibition of juveniles and egg hatching of Meloidogyne incognita species, harmful on black pepper, with low IC50 values of 0.2 and 0.32 mg/mL, respectively. The simple medium containing 1% GNC is the first report of cost-effective biosynthesis of PG, as well as potential in vitro anti-egg hatching activity of PG. These results indicated the potential application of GNC for low-cost bioproduction of PG for promising and novel use in the management of black pepper nematodes.[[sponsorship]]MOST[[notice]]補正完

Novel α-amylase inhibitor hemi-pyocyanin produced by microbial conversion of chitinous discards

[[abstract]]α-Amylase inhibitors (aAIs) have been applied for the efficient management of type 2 diabetes. The aim of this study was to search for potential aAIs produced by microbial fermentation. Among various bacterial strains, Pseudomonas aeruginosa TUN03 was found to be a potential aAI-producing strain, and shrimp heads powder (SHP) was screened as the most suitable C/N source for fermentation. P. aeruginosa TUN03 exhibited the highest aAIs productivity (3100 U/mL) in the medium containing 1.5% SHP with an initial pH of 7–7.5, and fermentation was performed at 27.5 °C for two days. Further, aAI compounds were investigated for scaled-up production in a 14 L-bioreactor system. The results revealed a high yield (4200 U/mL) in a much shorter fermentation time (12 h) compared to fermentation in flasks. Bioactivity-guided purification resulted in the isolation of one major target compound, identified as hemi-pyocyanin (HPC) via gas chromatography-mass spectrometry and nuclear magnetic resonance. Its purity was analyzed by high-performance liquid chromatography. HPC demonstrated potent α-amylase inhibitory activity comparable to that of acarbose, a commercial antidiabetic drug. Notably, HPC was determined as a new aAI. The docking study indicated that HPC inhibits α-amylase by binding to amino acid Arg421 at the biding site on enzyme α-amylase with good binding energy (−9.3 kcal/mol) and creating two linkages of H-acceptors.[[sponsorship]]科技部[[notice]]補正完

Cerebrospinal fluid lactate concentration to distinguish bacterial from aseptic meningitis: a systemic review and meta-analysis

ABSTRACT: INTRODUCTION: Making a differential diagnosis between bacterial meningitis and aseptic meningitis is a critical clinical problem. The utility of a cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) lactate assay for this purpose has been debated and is not yet routinely clinically performed. To adequately evaluate this assay, a systematic review and meta-analysis of studies of the CSF lactate concentration as a marker for both bacterial meningitis and aseptic meningitis was performed. METHODS: Electronic searches in PubMed, Scopus, the MEDION database and Cochrane Library were conducted to identify relevant articles published before March 2009. A manual search of reference lists from selected articles was also conducted. Two reviewers independently selected relevant articles and extracted data on study characteristics, quality and accuracy. RESULTS: Twenty-five articles were identified that met the eligibility criteria. Diagnostic odds ratios were considerably homogenous (Chi-square p = 0.1009, I2 = 27.6%), and the homogeneity was further confirmed by a Galbraith plot and meta-regression analysis using several covariates. The symmetrical summary receiver-operator characteristic curve (SROC), fitted using the Moses-Shapiro-Littenberg method, was positioned near the upper left corner of the SROC curve. The Q value and area under the curve were 0.9451 and 0.9840, respectively, indicating excellent accuracy. The diagnostic accuracy of the CSF lactate concentration was higher than those of other four conventional markers (CSF glucose, CSF/plasma glucose quotient, CSF protein, and CSF total number of leukocytes) using a head to head meta-analysis of the 25 included studies. CONCLUSIONS: To distinguish bacterial meningitis from aseptic meningitis, CSF lactate is a good single indicator and a better marker compared to other conventional markers