Empirical Investigation of Factors influencing Function as a Service Performance in Different Cloud/Edge System Setups

Experimental data can aid in gaining insights about a system operation, as well as determining critical aspects of a modelling or simulation process. In this paper, we analyze the data acquired from an extensive experimentation process in a serverless Function as a Service system (based on the open source Apache Openwhisk) that has been deployed across 3 available cloud/edge locations with different system setups. Thus, they can be used to model distribution of functions through multi-location aware scheduling mechanisms. The experiments include different traffic arrival rates, different setups for the FaaS system, as well as different configurations for the hardware and platform used. We analyse the acquired data for the three FaaS system setups and discuss their differences presenting interesting conclusions with relation to transient effects of the system, such as the effect on wait and execution time. We also demonstrate interesting trade-offs with relation to system setup and indicate a number of factors that can affect system performance and should be taken under consideration in modelling attempts of such systems.Comment: 24 pages, 14 Figures, Journal pape

Primary glomangiosarcoma of the lung: A case report

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Glomus tumor is an uncommon neoplasm derived from cells of the neuromyoarterial glomus or glomus body. Most glomus tumours occur in the dermis and subcutaneous tissues. A case of a primary pulmonary glomus tumour originating in the right upper lobe is presented.</p> <p>Case presentation</p> <p>A 74-yr-old male was admitted with siccus cough, dyspnea and right-sided chest pain. Computed tomography of the thorax revealed a 4 cm growth of the right upper lobe. Fiberoptic bronchoscopy demonstrated an endobronchial hypervascular mass causing obstruction of the apical segmental bronchus. Pathology report was consistent with pulmonary glomus tumor. The patient underwent a typical right upper lobectomy with mediastinal lymph node dissection. Twelve months later he is free of disease.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>Occasionally glomus tumors can occur in extracutaneous sites such as the gastrointestinal tract, bone, genitourinary system and respiratory tract. Primary pulmonary glomus tumors are very rare (our case is the 19^thone presented in the international literature) and are often confused with other solid neoplasms such as carcinoids, hemangiopericytomas and tumors belonging to the family of Ewing's sarcoma/primitive neuroectodermal tumours.</p

Implication of human papillomavirus-66 in vulvar carcinoma: a case report

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Introduction</p> <p>Vulvar cancer in older women is seldom associated with human papillomavirus infection.</p> <p>Case presentation</p> <p>We present the case of an 80-year-old Greek Caucasian woman with an undetermined obstetric and gynecologic history. The patient underwent radical vulvectomy and bilateral inguinal lymphadenectomy for a vulvar carcinoma. A human papillomavirus infection was suggested on the basis of histological and cytological examinations followed by human papillomavirus DNA typing, which revealed the presence of human papillomavirus-66.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>Even though human papillomavirus-16 and human papillomavirus-18 are most frequently implicated in the pathogenesis of vulvar carcinoma, human papillomavirus-66 can also be regarded as a causative factor. Suspicious lesions should be biopsied, and in the presence of carcinoma, vulvectomy with bilateral lymphadenectomy, if necessary, must be performed. Furthermore, polymerase chain reaction assay analysis with clinical arrays in cytological samples is an accurate test for the detection of a wide range of human papillomavirus genotypes and can be used to verify the infection and specify the human papillomavirus type implicated.</p

A bottom-up view of food surplus: using stable carbon and nitrogen isotope analysis to investigate agricultural strategies and diet at Bronze Age Archontiko and Thessaloniki Toumba, northern Greece

We use stable isotope analysis of crop, faunal and human remains to investigate agricultural strategies and diet at EBA-LBA Archontiko and MBA-LBA Thessaloniki Toumba. Crop production strategies varied between settlements, phases and species; flexibility is also apparent within the crop stores of individual houses. Escalating manuring intensity at LBA Thessaloniki Toumba coincides with large co-residential ‘blocks’ geared towards hoarding of agricultural surpluses, spectacularly preserved by fire at nearby LBA Assiros Toumba. Faunal isotope values reflect a range of feeding strategies, including probable herding of cattle on C4-rich coastal salt marshes, evident at Archontiko through to the LBA alongside bulk cockle harvesting. Palaeodietary analysis of LBA humans at Thessaloniki Toumba indicates that C3 crops represent the only plausible staples. Millet was a minor food but may have played a particular role in the sub-adult diet. Meat probably featured in supra-household food sharing and hospitality, associated with Mycenaean-style tableware in the LBA

Έκφραση ογκογονιδίων, ιού της ηπατίτιδας Β και νεοπλασματικών δεικτών (ορού /ιστών) στο ηπατοκυτταρικό καρκίνωμα του ανθρώπου

The aim of the present thesis was to investigate the relationship of the expression of C-MYC, RAS and C-ERBB-2/NEU oncogenes and the genetic alterations of KI-RAS oncogene and P53 tumour-suppressor gege to the presence of markers of hepetitis B virus(HBV) infection and tumour markers in human hepatocellular carcinama(HCC). Increased MYC P62 oncoprotein expression was detected in 48% of well differentiated HCC, while enhanced expression of RAS P21 and ERBB-2P185 was found in 75% and 61% of HCC. Twenty two(53.65%) HCC were shown to contain integrated HBV DNA, while 7(17.1%)and 5(12.2%)HCC were shown to carry codon 249P53 and codon 12KI-RAS gene mutations respectively.Ο σκοπός της διδακτορικής διατριβής ήταν να εκτιμηθεί η σχέση έκφρασης των C-MYC,RAS και C-ERBB-2/NEU ογκογονιδίων και η ανίχνευση του ιού της ηπατίτιδας Β και μεταλλάξεων του γονιδίου KI-RAS και του ογκοκατασταλτικού γονιδίου Ρ53 με την παρουσία δεικτών HBV και νεοπλασματικών δεικτών σε ηπατοκυτταρικά καρκινώματα(ΗΚΚ) ανθρώπου. Αυξημένη έκφραση της MYC P62 πρωτεϊνης βρέθηκε σε 48% ΗΚΚ ανώτερης διαφοροποίησης, ενώ αυξημένη έκφραση της RAS P21 και C-ERBB-2 παρατηρήθηκε σε 75% και 61% ΗΚΚ. 94%, 19% και 15% των ΗΚΚ ήταν θετικά για AFP, CEA και HBSAG αντίστοιχα. Βρέθηκαν 22 περιπτώσεις (53.65%)θετικές για ΗΒV και ανιχνεύθηκαν 7(17.1%) και 5(12.2%) περιπτώσεις με μετάλλαξη στο κωδικόντο 249 του Ρ53 και στο κωδικόντο 12 του KI-RAS αντίστοιχα

Public Transport tendering and contracting arrangements in countries under regulatory transition: The case of Cyprus

Competitive Tendering is perhaps the preferred approach for procuring Public Transport (PT) passenger services in the EU, according to its legislation. Cyprus has initiated a few years ago the second PT reform cycle which will be concluded with the awarding of six new concession contracts for passenger services by bus. This paper presents and discusses the two PT reforms in Cyprus. The aim of the second reform is to significantly increase the PT share by improving service availability and quality through the transition from a monopolistic to a more competitive PT market. According to the roadmap prepared by the Cypriot authorities, specific contracting arrangements have been set to attract both local and international PT operators to the competitive tendering process. These arrangements mostly pertain to the eligibility and selection criteria of the tendering process, the opportunity to lease PT buses from local companies and the contract type and duration. The paper sets five main questions addressing critical issues of the reform effort and provides responses through the in-depth analysis of the selected tender and contractual arrangements. Useful findings and conclusions may be drawn, especially regarding the effect of small size market and the lack of necessary PT infrastructure

Capturing Twitter Negativity Pre- vs. Mid-COVID-19 Pandemic: An LDA Application on London Public Transport System

The coronavirus pandemic has affected everyday life to a significant degree. The transport sector is no exception, with mobility restrictions and social distancing affecting the operation of transport systems. This research attempts to examine the effect of the pandemic on the users of the public transport system of London through analyzing tweets before (2019) and during (2020) the outbreak. For the needs of the research, we initially assess the sentiment expressed by users using the SentiStrength tool. In total, almost 250,000 tweets were collected and analyzed, equally distributed between the two years. Afterward, by examining the word clouds of the tweets expressing negative sentiment and by applying the latent Dirichlet allocation method, we investigate the most prevalent topics in both analysis periods. Results indicate an increase in negative sentiment on dates when stricter restrictions against the pandemic were imposed. Furthermore, topic analysis results highlight that although users focused on the operational conditions of the public transport network during the pre-pandemic period, they tend to refer more to the effect of the pandemic on public transport during the outbreak. Additionally, according to correlations between ridership data and the frequency of pandemic-related terms, we found that during 2020, public transport demand was decreased while tweets with negative sentiment were being increased at the same time

Rituximab as Rescue Therapy for Aggressive Pediatric Multiple Sclerosis

Multiple sclerosis is a chronic, debilitating disease. Almost one in ten patients with MS has a history of disease onset during childhood. Although numerous therapeutic options exist for adult MS, the available treatments for pediatric patients are still limited. One of the emerging therapies is rituximab, a monoclonal anti-CD20 chimeric antibody that can deplete the CD20+ lymphocyte populations. A 12-year-old boy presented with ataxia, paresthesias, and headache while his brain MRI showed numerous T2 contrast-enhancing lesions. Gamma globulin, steroids, and cyclophosphamide failed to intercept his disease, and he progressed to a rapid clinical and radiological deterioration. Treatment with rituximab reversed the disease course in a dramatic fashion, leading to complete remission

Factors affecting public transport performance due to the COVID-19 outbreak: A worldwide analysis

In this paper we investigate the public transport trip frequency variations, as well as the reasons that led to the shift away from public transport means, due to the COVID-19 pandemic. We studied relevant data from the Moovit platform, and we compared operational and trip frequency characteristics of public transport systems before and after the outbreak of the pandemic in 87 cities worldwide. On average, waiting times at public transport stops/stations increased while trip distances decreased, apparently due to the mobility restriction and social distancing measures implemented in 2020. Most of the Moovit users who said that they abandoned public transport in 2020 were found in Italy and Greece. We developed linear regression analysis models to investigate (among the 35 variables examined in the study) the relationship between public transport abandonment rates and socioeconomic factors, quality of service characteristics, and indicators of pandemic\u27s spread. Empirical findings show that public transport dropout rates are positively correlated with the COVID-19 death toll figures, the cleanliness of public transport vehicles and facilities, as well as with the income inequality (GINI) index of the population, and thus reconfirm previous research findings. In addition, the waiting time at stops/stations and the number of transfers required for commute trips appeared to be the most critical public transport trip segments, which significantly determine the discontinuation of public transport use under pandemic circumstances. Our research findings indicate specific aspects of public transport services, which require tailored adjustments in order to recover ridership in the post-pandemic period

Towards Recreation of Food Commodities Based on Ancient Texts; The Case of Avyrtake

The aim of the present study was to attempt the recreation of a highly appreciated food commodity of antiquity, called avyrtake, using information derived from ancient texts. The available information included the raw materials, the texture and the taste of the raw materials. On the contrary, the relative proportion of the raw materials as well as the production procedure had to be inferred on the basis of their modern-day use. For that purpose, and based on the above, a mixture of shredded cabbage and leek, salt, pomegranate seeds, raisins, and shredded garlic, as well as ground green cardamon and mustard seeds were pressed into a fermentation jar in order to form a brine and left at 18 &deg;C for fermentation to take place. The latter was driven by lactic acid bacteria, mostly by Lactiplantibacillus plantarum. The final product had a sour character, which matched the organoleptic description available from the ancient texts, and it received high ranks