Development of ultrasound to measure deformation of functional spinal units in cervical spine

Neck pain is a pervasive problem in the general population, especially in those working in vibrating environments, e.g. military troops and truck drivers. Previous studies showed neck pain was strongly associated with the degeneration of intervertebral disc, which is commonly caused by repetitive loading in the work place. Currently, there is no existing method to measure the in-vivo displacement and loading condition of cervical spine on the site. Therefore, there is little knowledge about the alternation of cervical spine functionality and biomechanics in dynamic environments. In this thesis, a portable ultrasound system was explored as a tool to measure the vertebral motion and functional spinal unit deformation. It is hypothesized that the time sequences of ultrasound imaging signals can be used to characterize the deformation of cervical spine functional spinal units in response to applied displacements and loading. Specifically, a multi-frame tracking algorithm is developed to measure the dynamic movement of vertebrae, which is validated in ex-vivo models. The planar kinematics of the functional spinal units is derived from a dual ultrasound system, which applies two ultrasound systems to image C-spine anteriorly and posteriorly. The kinematics is reconstructed from the results of the multi-frame movement tracking algorithm and a method to co-register ultrasound vertebrae images to MRI scan. Using the dual ultrasound, it is shown that the dynamic deformation of functional spinal unit is affected by the biomechanics properties of intervertebral disc ex-vivo and different applied loading in activities in-vivo. It is concluded that ultrasound is capable of measuring functional spinal units motion, which allows rapid in-vivo evaluation of C-spine in dynamic environments where X-Ray, CT or MRI cannot be used.2020-02-20T00:00:00

Sorption Properties of Greenwaste Biochar for Two Triazine Pesticides

This work by ISTC’s Wei Zheng and Kishore Rajagopalan and collaborators from Delaware State University provides innovative solutions for producing energy and food in a sustainable environment. Renewable energy can be produced by converting greenwaste such as using highway grass clippings for gasoline or biodiesel through a process called pyrolysis (heating to 450°C with limited oxygen) and then implementing some refining techniques. However, the pyrolysis process produces a byproduct called biochar, which is a carbon-rich substance similar to activated carbon. The biochar byproduct could be landfilled, but the researchers have a better idea.The other aspect of this research is determining how to produce food without contaminating the environment. The researchers considered two common pesticides. Atrazine and simazine are used as broad-spectrum pesticides/herbicides for agricultural, recreational, and residential uses, but the most common use is for field crop applications. These pesticides can inadvertently contaminate water ways and water bodies from rain events and soil erosion. To prevent this contamination, the researchers proposed mixing biochar into the soil to prevent pesticide/herbicide loss from the field. Full results published in Zheng, Wei, et al (2010). "Sorption properties of greenwaste biochar for two triazine pesticides." Journal of Hazardous Materials 181(1-3), 121-126. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jhazmat.2010.04.103Ope

MONAI: An open-source framework for deep learning in healthcare

Artificial Intelligence (AI) is having a tremendous impact across most areas of science. Applications of AI in healthcare have the potential to improve our ability to detect, diagnose, prognose, and intervene on human disease. For AI models to be used clinically, they need to be made safe, reproducible and robust, and the underlying software framework must be aware of the particularities (e.g. geometry, physiology, physics) of medical data being processed. This work introduces MONAI, a freely available, community-supported, and consortium-led PyTorch-based framework for deep learning in healthcare. MONAI extends PyTorch to support medical data, with a particular focus on imaging, and provide purpose-specific AI model architectures, transformations and utilities that streamline the development and deployment of medical AI models. MONAI follows best practices for software-development, providing an easy-to-use, robust, well-documented, and well-tested software framework. MONAI preserves the simple, additive, and compositional approach of its underlying PyTorch libraries. MONAI is being used by and receiving contributions from research, clinical and industrial teams from around the world, who are pursuing applications spanning nearly every aspect of healthcare.Comment: www.monai.i

Posouzení úvěrového rizika vybraných bank

Import 22/07/2015The thesis is devote to analysis the credit risk of China commercial banks, we will focus on describe probability of default of banks by credit scoring models. First, in the theoretical part, we will briefly introduce the financial analysis for banks and two main categories of credit scoring models which are linear discrimination analysis and regression models (linear and logit). Then, in the analysis parts, we through analysis the financial indicators about the largest five banks in China to realize the situation about credit risk in China. The most important part is assessment credit risk, we will work with the 36 sample with complete public information in hundred China commercial banks which will be separated into two groups (non-default and default) by problem indicators compare with mean values based on historical data. Subsequently, we will create model functions and estimate the probability of default through the banks sample, through comparing the result from ROC curve, we will find the model which will get the best result and then, testing the efficient predict period for three models by another group data during past four years since modeling. Last, we will give some suggestion about credit risk and list the unsatisfied points about the models.The thesis is devote to analysis the credit risk of China commercial banks, we will focus on describe probability of default of banks by credit scoring models. First, in the theoretical part, we will briefly introduce the financial analysis for banks and two main categories of credit scoring models which are linear discrimination analysis and regression models (linear and logit). Then, in the analysis parts, we through analysis the financial indicators about the largest five banks in China to realize the situation about credit risk in China. The most important part is assessment credit risk, we will work with the 36 sample with complete public information in hundred China commercial banks which will be separated into two groups (non-default and default) by problem indicators compare with mean values based on historical data. Subsequently, we will create model functions and estimate the probability of default through the banks sample, through comparing the result from ROC curve, we will find the model which will get the best result and then, testing the efficient predict period for three models by another group data during past four years since modeling. Last, we will give some suggestion about credit risk and list the unsatisfied points about the models.154 - Katedra financívelmi dobř

Analýza vybraných IPO na čínském finančním trhu

Import 26/06/2013The objective of this thesis is the comparison of companies issued stocks in SSE and SZSE, one the one hand, which can help us realize the differences between issues in SSE and SZSE and on the other hand, it can show us the growth of economic power of in China in recent years. In this thesis, we can start from the basic situation about IPO in China. In 2nd part, the definition will be given first of all, we also need to know the history and development about IPO in china, the body of the part are introduce main principle of IPO, function of it, the decision to go public, preparation of IPO. In 3rd part, we will start from the little introduction about SSE and SZSE, then we will list conditions and process of two stock exchanges, and after we will work out the analysis of the main problem about IPO. And using the same way to summarize the industry distribution of IPO, in the end of the part we can give a successful company as the example to show the important of IPO. In 4th part, we need to elaborate the comparison of the four selected IPO, to analysis from the companies before IPO and after IPO, and give other evidences such as EPS profitability and price range to analysis the companies and their IPO.The objective of this thesis is the comparison of companies issued stocks in SSE and SZSE, one the one hand, which can help us realize the differences between issues in SSE and SZSE and on the other hand, it can show us the growth of economic power of in China in recent years. In this thesis, we can start from the basic situation about IPO in China. In 2nd part, the definition will be given first of all, we also need to know the history and development about IPO in china, the body of the part are introduce main principle of IPO, function of it, the decision to go public, preparation of IPO. In 3rd part, we will start from the little introduction about SSE and SZSE, then we will list conditions and process of two stock exchanges, and after we will work out the analysis of the main problem about IPO. And using the same way to summarize the industry distribution of IPO, in the end of the part we can give a successful company as the example to show the important of IPO. In 4th part, we need to elaborate the comparison of the four selected IPO, to analysis from the companies before IPO and after IPO, and give other evidences such as EPS profitability and price range to analysis the companies and their IPO.154 - Katedra financívelmi dobř

EMI challenges in modern power electronic-based converters: recent advances and mitigation techniques

The utilization of power electronic-based converters is gaining momentum across a wide spectrum of industries. However, modern power electronic converters operate at higher frequencies compared to conventional power electronic converters, which can lead to higher rates of change in voltage and current during phase switching, and thus potentially produce more severe conducted and radiated electromagnetic interference (EMI). Their electromagnetic compatibility (EMC) has become a critical research topic, and EMI in high-frequency power electronic-based converters is more complex than that in conventional converters. This review presents a comprehensive survey of recent advancements, EMI design, and analysis of modern power electronic-based converters, focusing on the sources and mechanisms of both conducted and radiated EMI, and mitigating techniques. This review also covers the impact of topology optimization, control strategy design, and packaging design on EMC performance. Addressing emerging EMI issues in modern power electronic device-based converters is essential for ensuring safe and reliable operations. Through strategic design optimization and the implementation of EMI mitigation strategies, modern converters can seamlessly be integrated into diverse applications, offering improved EMI performance as a hallmark of their versatility

A new theoretical calculation of the equilibrium constant and temperature for the carbon isotope exchange reaction between CH4 and CO2

The equilibrium isotope fractionations among C–O–H gases in a variety of geological settings are commonly used as isotope geothermometers to evaluate the temperatures of geothermal fluids at depth, subsurface fluid-rock interactions, volcanic-hydrothermal systems and natural gas pools. However, due to limited experimental data and sophisticated theoretical calculations, applications of these geothermometers have been restricted. This study uses the carbon isotope exchange reaction between CH4 and CO2 as a case study to develop theoretical methods that can improve accuracies in calculating harmonic vibrational frequencies for CH4 and CO2, the equilibrium constants and temperatures for the carbon isotope exchange reaction between CH4 and CO2. Results suggest that the Bigeleisen-Mayer equation is sufficient to calculate the equilibrium constants and temperatures associated with the isotope exchange reaction between CH4 and CO2 with an accurate estimation of molecular harmonic vibrational frequencies. Calculations of the harmonic frequencies of CH4 and CO2 are achieved using the B3LYP density functional method with the 6-311+G(d) basis set, and the calculated harmonic frequencies are highly consistent with experimental values. The frequency correction factor is taken as 1.022 which puts the calculated fractionation factors in good agreement with experimental values. The calculated equilibrium constants are comparable to experimental data and a theoretical data set. They are highly consistent. In order to improve the accuracy and efficiency of solving for equilibrium temperatures using the Bigeleisen-Mayer equation, symbol operation and iterative algorithm in the MatLab software have been applied to compute the temperatures instead of using limited theoretical data sets or empirical fit equations. Our calculated results suggest that this algorithm can rapidly and conveniently yield relatively precise equilibrium temperatures. This algorithm can thus provide an important tool to evaluate whether the carbon isotope exchange reaction for CH4 and CO2 has attained equilibrium and estimate the formation temperature of CH4 and CO2 in high temperature geothermal systems