Wavelength locked laser including integrated wavelength selecting total internal reflection (TIR) Structure.

The basic concept of the invention is a wavelength locking device or feedback mechanism fabricated on the epiwafer in which a light emitting semiconductor device has also been fabricated

Aiming at a Moving Target: IT Alignment in Toy Companies

For global companies that compete in high-velocity industries, business strategies and initiatives change rapidly, and thus the CIO struggles to keep the IT organization aligned with a moving target. In this paper we report on research-in-progress that focuses on how the CIO attempts to meet this challenge. Specifically, we are conducting case studies to closely examine how toy industry CIOs develop their IT organizations’ assets, competencies, and dynamic capabilities in alignment with their companies’ evolving strategy and business priorities (which constitute the “moving target”). We have chosen to study toy industry CIOs, because their companies compete in a global, high-velocity environment, yet this industry has been largely overlooked by the information systems research community. Early findings reveal that four IT application areas are seen as holding strong promise: supply chain management, knowledge management, data mining, and eCommerce, and that toy CIO’s are attempting to both cope with and capitalize on the current financial crisis by more aggressively pursuing offshore outsourcing than heretofore. We conclude with a discussion of next steps as the study proceeds

Hybrid MOPA having narrowband oscillator and amplifier with integrated optical coupling.

This invention was disclosed in a FHOENICS Program Meeting on April 4, 2005. This invention utilizes the concepts of internal wavelength locking and gain switching to create high brightness optical pulses that range in pulse width from 20 picoseconds to 100s of picoseconds

Hot Training Conditions Inhibit Adequate Ad Libitum Recovery Fluid Intake of Runners

International Journal of Exercise Science 12(6): 1322-1333, 2019. This study examined voluntary fluid intake, hydration descriptors, and sweat loss estimation accuracy following runs in wet bulb globe temperatures of 18 (TEMP) and 26 ºC (HOT). Twelve male runners completed 1-h runs at 65% of VO2 max with access to water during runs and a variety of beverages for the following 24-h. Urine specific gravity (USG), body mass, fluid intake, and urine output were assessed at 12 and 24-h. Runners lost 1.355 ± 0.263 and 1.943 ± 0.485 L during TEMP and HOT, respectively. Sweat loss volume was underestimated by approximately one-third during both conditions. Cumulative fluid intake from start until 1-h post-run was greater in HOT, but not at 12-h (2.202±0.600 vs 2.265±0.673 L) or 24-h (3.602±0.807 vs 3.742±1.205 L). Runners replaced a lower percentage of sweat losses and displayed higher USG (p \u3c 0.001) for HOT (119±34%; 1.027±0.004) versus TEMP (166±51%; 1.018±0.004) at 12-h while exhibiting repeatable rehydration patterns within runners (ICC = 0.89) between trials. Absolute body mass was unable to differentiate the substantial differences in fluid replacement percentage. Seven runners replace

Evaluation of integrated threshing and drying design concepts for paddy rice using analytical hierarchy process

Threshing and drying are two major postharvest activities that contribute significantly to postharvest losses for small and medium-scale rice farmers, leading to food insecurity and hunger in Sub-Saharan Africa. Developing an appropriate system for threshing and drying needs urgent attention. The objective of the study involved the use of Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP) for evaluation and selection of the best option among four design concepts for development and fabrication. The four design concepts shortlisted were: (1) batch flow biomass-powered manual threshing and drying system, (2) recirculating diesel-powered mobile threshing and drying system, (3) mechanized threshing with solar drying batch system, and (4) tractor-powered recirculating continues flow integrated system. For the MCAHP analysis, 17 attributes were proposed and divided into five main criteria. The evaluation of the main criteria showed that cost had the highest score, followed by performance, safety, ease of installation and operation, and manufacturability, with a global score of 0.560, 0.202, 0.108, 0.083 and 0.048, respectively. It was observed that design concept two received the highest weighted score of 0.35 and was selected as the design concept to proceed with. The consistency ratios of the main criteria and  attributes were all less than 0.1, which is the allowable limit of inconsistency. In conclusion, concept 2 was selected as the best design for developing an integrated threshing and drying system for paddy rice and is recommended for development, fabrication, evaluation and optimisation. Int. J. Agril. Res. Innov. Tech. 14(1): 30-44, June 202

Caffeine Alters RPE-Based Intensity Production

International Journal of Exercise Science 12(6): 412-424, 2019. This study examined effects of caffeine (CAF) on power output (PO) selection and associated physiological responses during cycling at moderate and high intensities prescribed by RPE (0-10 scale). Participants (n = 9) (VO2peak: 55.4 ± 6.32 mL · kg-1 · min-1) cycled for 20 min at RPE4 and 20 min at RPE7 separated by 10 min recovery following caffeine (CAF) (6 mg · kg-1) and placebo (PLA) ingestion. PO, HR, serum lactate [La], VO2, VE, and RER were recorded every 5 min. Session RPE (S-RPE) was recorded following 10 min recovery. Repeated-measures ANOVA’s, 2 (trial) x 4 (time pt), showed significantly greater PO during RPE4 for CAF (130 ± 23 W) vs PLA (112 ± 26 W) and during RPE7 (CAF: 165 ± 37 vs PLA: 143 ± 41 W). Overall HR, VO2, and VE were significantly greater for CAF vs PLA during RPE7. RER for RPE4 and RPE7 were not significantly different (CAF vs PLA). Overall [La] was significantly greater for CAF during RPE4 (CAF: 2.32 ± 0.94 vs PLA: 1.73 ± 1.09) and RPE7 (CAF: 3.22 ± 1.44 vs PLA: 2.22 ± 1.49). Paired T-tests for S-RPE revealed no significant difference for RPE4 (CAF: 4.0 ± 0.5 vs PLA: 3.7 ± 0.5) or RPE7 (CAF: 7.1 ± 0.3 vs PLA: 6.9 ± 0.6) despite greater PO for CAF. Although individual responses varied, the current study indicates caffeine ingestion results in elevated self-selected PO with significant systematic changes in associated physiological responses particularly at a higher intensity (RPE7)

Comparative analysis of mechanical properties of paddy rice for different variety-moisture content interactions

In recent years, postharvest loss has been a serious concern. However, knowledge of the mechanical properties is vital to developing any postharvest technology for rice production better. The objective of this research is to conduct a comparative analysis of the mechanical properties of selected paddy rice at different variety-moisture content interactions. The mechanical properties of AGRA rice, CRI-Amankwatia, CRI-Enapa, and CRI-Dartey, four local varieties developed in Ghana, are compared at 11.5%, 13.0% and 16.5% on wet basis moisture content. Tukey\u27s Honest Significant Difference (HSD) comparisons test was conducted during data analysis to compare all possible pairwise combinations of the various varieties and moisture content interaction. From the results, it was concluded that CRI-Dartey, at 16.5%, recorded the highest Sphericity and Aspect Ratio of 0.391 mm3 and 0.298 mm3, respectively. For grain mass, AGRA rice at 13.0% also recorded 0.0312 g as the highest score. The GM1000, Angle of Repose and Bulk density CRI-Amankwatia at 16.5 % moisture content recorded the highest score of 29.33 g, 47.3o, and 654.0 kg/m3, respectively. AGRA rice at 13.0% observed the highest value of 1685.8 for kg/m3 true density, and the highest value for porosity was 70.83%, which was recorded by CRI-Enapa at 11.5 % moisture content. In all cases, the difference in mean value was less than the Least Square Difference. This indicates that there were no significant statistical differences between their mean values, indicating that technologies developed and adapted for one variety can equally be used for all the other varieties. Int. J. Agril. Res. Innov. Tech. 14(1): 18-29, June 202

Buruli ulcer disease prevalence in Benin, West Africa: associations with land use/cover and the identification of disease clusters

© 2008 Wagner et al; licensee BioMed Central Ltd. This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution Licens

Quality of weight loss advice on internet forums.

BACKGROUND: Adults use the Internet for weight loss information, sometimes by participating in discussion forums. Our purpose was to analyze the quality of advice exchanged on these forums. METHODS: This was a retrospective analysis of messages posted to 18 Internet weight loss forums during 1 month in 2006. Advice was evaluated for congruence with clinical guidelines; potential for causing harm; and subsequent correction when it was contradictory to guidelines (erroneous) or potentially harmful. Message- and forum-specific characteristics were evaluated as predictors of advice quality and self-correction. RESULTS: Of 3368 initial messages, 266 (7.9%) were requests for advice. Of 654 provisions of advice, 56 (8.6%) were erroneous and 19 of these 56 (34%) were subsequently corrected. Forty-three (6.6%) provisions of advice were harmful, and 12 of these 43 (28%) were subsequently corrected. Messages from low-activity forums (fewer messages) were more likely than those from high-activity forums to be erroneous (10.6% vs 2.4%, P \u3c .001) or harmful (8.4% vs 1.2%, P \u3c .001). In high-activity forums, 2 of 4 (50%) erroneous provisions of advice and 2 of 2 (100%) potentially harmful provisions of advice were corrected by subsequent postings. Compared with general weight loss advice, medication-related advice was more likely to be erroneous (P = .02) or harmful (P = .01). CONCLUSIONS: Most advice posted on highly active Internet weight loss forums is not erroneous or harmful. However, clinical and research strategies are needed to address the quality of medication-related advice

Three Week Hypergravity Training Intervention Decreases Ground Contact Time During Repeated Jumping and Improves Sprinting and Shuttle Running Performance

International Journal of Exercise Science 9(2): 149-158, 2016. This study examined the effects of a non-traditional training method, hypergravity training (HT), on anaerobic performance. Highly active men (n = 9) completed a 3 week HT protocol in which weighted vests were worn 8 h/day, 4+ days/week separate from training. Vest loads were 11.2 ± 0.6% of body mass during week one, and increased to 13.2 ± 0.7% (week 2), and 16.1 ± 0.4% (week 3). Performance testing included power clean 1-RM (PC), counter movement jumps, 4 continuous jumps, 36.6 m sprints (SP), a 137.2 m short shuttle run (SSR), and a 274.3 m long shuttle run (LSR). A 3 week non-hypergravity training period (NHT) proceeded HT. Baseline SP improved from 4.69 ± 0.29 s to 4.58 ± 0.22 s post-treatment, and regressed after NHT (4.69 ± 0.24 s) (p = 0.006, ES = 1.80). Improvements in SSR (p = 0.012, ES = 1.71) occurred from baseline (26.7 ± 1.5 s) to post-treatment (26.2 ± 1.4 s), followed by a return to near-baseline values (26.9 ± 1.8 s). Jumping tasks displayed similar trends, but no statistical differences and modest effect sizes (0.51 - 0.62) were found except for improved ground contact time during repeated jumps post-HT (ES = 2.26). PC and LSR performances did not improve. Three weeks of HT significantly enhanced short running task performances and decreased ground contact time between 4 continuous jumps. HT may be incorporated into training programs prior to key points in an athletic season without hindering the quality of regular training session activities