Ear-clipping Based Algorithms of Generating High-quality Polygon Triangulation

A basic and an improved ear clipping based algorithm for triangulating simple polygons and polygons with holes are presented. In the basic version, the ear with smallest interior angle is always selected to be cut in order to create fewer sliver triangles. To reduce sliver triangles in further, a bound of angle is set to determine whether a newly formed triangle has sharp angles, and edge swapping is accepted when the triangle is sharp. To apply the two algorithms on polygons with holes, "Bridge" edges are created to transform a polygon with holes to a degenerate polygon which can be triangulated by the two algorithms. Applications show that the basic algorithm can avoid creating sliver triangles and obtain better triangulations than the traditional ear clipping algorithm, and the improved algorithm can in further reduce sliver triangles effectively. Both of the algorithms run in O(n2) time and O(n) space.Comment: Proceedings of the 2012 International Conference on Information Technology and Software Engineering Lecture Notes in Electrical Engineering Volume 212, 2013, pp 979-98

Mobility Support in User-Centric Networks

In this paper, an overview of challenges and requirements for mobility management in user-centric networks is given, and a new distributed and dynamic per-application mobility management solution is presented. After a brief summary of generic mobility management concepts, existing approaches from the distributed and peer-to-peer mobility management literature are introduced, along with their applicability or shortcomings in the UCN environment. Possible approaches to deal with the decentralized and highly dynamic nature of UCNs are also provided with a discussion and an introduction to potential future work

May I have your consent? Informed consent in clinical trials- feasibility in emergency situations

Clinical researchers in acute emergency settings are commonly faced with the difficulty of satisfying the conventional ethical requirement of obtaining informed consent, whilst ensuring a representative group of patients is recruited into studies. We discuss our own experience in addressing institutional ethical requirements to obtain informed consent in a multi-centre trial, recruiting highly agitated patients in the emergency setting in Melbourne, Australia. We suggest that, through the application of existing ethical and legal frameworks and pre-emptive communication with the key stakeholders in ethics committees, hospital insurers and legal representatives, a balance can be struck between ethical and legal requirements on the one hand, and the integrity of the research question, on the other.published_or_final_versio

Numerical modelling of the effect of using multi-explosives on the explosive forming of steel cones

Modelling and analysis of underwater explosive forming process by using FEM and SPH formulation is presented in this work. The explosive forming of a steel cone is studied. The model setup includes a low carbon steel plate, plate holder, forming die as well as water and C4 explosive. The effect of multiple explosives on rate of targets deformation has been studied. Four different multi-explosives models have been developed and compared to the single explosive model. The formability of the steel plate based on forming limit failure criteria has been investigated. Aspects such as shape of plates deformation and thickness of the plate during the forming process have been examined. The model results indicate that a multi-explosives model does not always guarantee a faster rate of target deformation without central explosive. On the other hand the model results indicate that the multi-explosives setup is capable of preventing crack failure of the steel plate during the forming process which would occur if a single explosive model was used

Epigenetic regulation of the electrophysiological phenotype of human embryonic stem cell-derived ventricular cardiomyocytes: Insights for driven maturation and hypertrophic growth

Epigenetic regulation is implicated in embryonic development and the control of gene expression in a cell-specific manner. However, little is known about the role of histone methylation changes on human cardiac differentiation and maturation. Using human embryonic stem cells (hESCs) and their derived ventricular (V) cardiomyocytes (CMs) as a model, we examined trimethylation of histone H3 lysine 4 (H3K4me3) and lysine 27 (H3K27me3) on promoters of genes associated with cardiac electrophysiology, contraction, and Ca2+ handling. To avoid ambiguities due to heterogeneous chamber-specific types, hESC-derived ventricular cardiomyocytes (VCMs) were selected by dual zeocin-GFP expression under the transcriptional control of the MLC2v promoter and confirmed electrophysiologically by its signature action potential phenotype. High levels of H3K4me3 are present on pluripotency genes in hESCs with an absence of H3K27me3. Human ESC-VCMS, relative to hESCs, were characterized by a profound loss of H3K27me3 and an enrichment of H3K4me3 marks on cardiac-specific genes, including MYH6, MYH7, MYL2, cTNT, and ANF. Gene transcripts encoding key voltage-gated ion channels and Ca2+-handling proteins in hESC-VCMs were significantly increased, which could be attributed to a distinct pattern of differential H3K4me3 and H3K27me3 profiles. Treatment of hESC-VCMs with the histone deacetylase inhibitor valproic acid increased H3K4me3 on gene promoters, induced hypertrophic growth (as gauged by cell volume and capacitance), and augmented cardiac gene expression, but it did not affect electrophysiological properties of these cells. Hence, cardiac differentiation of hESCs involves a dynamic shift in histone methylation, which differentially affects VCM gene expression and function. We conclude that the epigenetic state of hESC-VCMs is dynamic and primed to promote growth and developmental maturation, but that proper environmental stimuli with chromatin remodeling will be required to synergistically trigger global CM maturation to a more adult-like phenotype. © Mary Ann Liebert, Inc.published_or_final_versio

Midazolam-droperidol, droperidol or olanzapine for acute agitation: a randomised clinical trial

STUDY OBJECTIVE: We aim to determine the most efficacious of 3 common medication regimens for the sedation of acutely agitated emergency department (ED) patients. METHODS: We undertook a randomized, controlled, double-blind, triple-dummy, clinical trial in 2 metropolitan EDs between October 2014 and August 2015. Patients aged 18 to 65 years and requiring intravenous medication sedation for acute agitation were enrolled and randomized to an intravenous bolus of midazolam 5 mg-droperidol 5 mg, droperidol 10 mg, or olanzapine 10 mg. Two additional doses were administered, if required: midazolam 5 mg, droperidol 5 mg, or olanzapine 5 mg. The primary outcome was the proportion of patients adequately sedated at 10 minutes. RESULTS: Three hundred forty-nine patients were randomized to the 3 groups. Baseline characteristics were similar across the groups. Ten minutes after the first dose, significantly more patients in the midazolam-droperidol group were adequately sedated compared with the droperidol and olanzapine groups: differences in proportions 25.0% (95% confidence interval [CI] 12.0% to 38.1%) and 25.4% (95% CI 12.7% to 38.3%), respectively. For times to sedation, the differences in medians between the midazolam-droperidol group and the droperidol and olanzapine groups were 6 (95% CI 3 to 8) and 6 (95% CI 3 to 7) minutes, respectively. Patients in the midazolam-droperidol group required fewer additional doses or alternative drugs to achieve adequate sedation. The 3 groups' adverse event rates and lengths of stay did not differ. CONCLUSION: Midazolam-droperidol combination therapy is superior, in the doses studied, to either droperidol or olanzapine monotherapy for intravenous sedation of the acutely agitated ED patient. Copyright © 2016 American College of Emergency Physicians. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.postprin

Intravenous Midazolam-Droperidol (combination), Droperidol (only) or Olanzapine (only) for the acutely agitated patient: A multi-centred, randomised, double-blind, triple-dummy, clinical trial

AIM: To determine the most efficacious of three currently used drug regimens for the sedation of acutely agitated patients in the emergency department ...postprin

Adolescents’ responses to the promotion and flavouring of e-cigarettes

Objectives The purpose of the study is to examine adolescents’ awareness of e-cigarette marketing and investigate the impact of e-cigarette flavour descriptors on perceptions of product harm and user image. Methods Data come from the 2014 Youth Tobacco Policy Survey, a cross-sectional in-home survey conducted with 11–16 year olds across the UK (n = 1205). Adolescents’ awareness of e-cigarette promotion, brands, and flavours was assessed. Perceptions of product harm, and likely user of four examples of e-cigarette flavours was also examined. Results Some participants had tried e-cigarettes (12 %) but regular use was low (2 %) and confined to adolescents who had also smoked tobacco. Most were aware of at least one promotional channel (82 %) and that e-cigarettes came in different flavours (69 %). Brand awareness was low. E-cigarettes were perceived as harmful (M = 3.54, SD = 1.19) but this was moderated by product flavours. Fruit and sweet flavours were perceived as more likely to be tried by young never smokers than adult smokers trying to quit (p < 0.001). Conclusions There is a need to monitor the impact of future market and regulatory change on youth uptake and perceptions of e-cigarettes

Tuning ultrafast electron thermalization pathways in a van der Waals heterostructure

Ultrafast electron thermalization - the process leading to Auger recombination, carrier multiplication via impact ionization and hot carrier luminescence - occurs when optically excited electrons in a material undergo rapid electron-electron scattering to redistribute excess energy and reach electronic thermal equilibrium. Due to extremely short time and length scales, the measurement and manipulation of electron thermalization in nanoscale devices remains challenging even with the most advanced ultrafast laser techniques. Here, we overcome this challenge by leveraging the atomic thinness of two-dimensional van der Waals (vdW) materials in order to introduce a highly tunable electron transfer pathway that directly competes with electron thermalization. We realize this scheme in a graphene-boron nitride-graphene (G-BN-G) vdW heterostructure, through which optically excited carriers are transported from one graphene layer to the other. By applying an interlayer bias voltage or varying the excitation photon energy, interlayer carrier transport can be controlled to occur faster or slower than the intralayer scattering events, thus effectively tuning the electron thermalization pathways in graphene. Our findings, which demonstrate a novel means to probe and directly modulate electron energy transport in nanoscale materials, represent an important step toward designing and implementing novel optoelectronic and energy-harvesting devices with tailored microscopic properties.Comment: Accepted to Nature Physic