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A knee brace alters patella position in patellofemoral osteoarthritis: A study using weight bearing magnetic resonance imaging.
No full textOBJECTIVE: To assess using weight bearing MRIs, whether a patellar brace altered patellar position and alignment in patellofemoral joint (PFJ) osteoarthritis (OA). DESIGN: Subjects age 40-70 years old with symptomatic and a radiographic K-L evidence of PFJOA. Weight bearing knee MRIs with and without a patellar brace were obtained using an upright open 0.25 Tesla scanner (G-Scan, Easote Biomedica, Italy). Five aspects of patellar position were measured: mediolateral alignment by the bisect offset index, angulation by patellar tilt, patellar height by patellar height ratio (patellar length/patellar tendon length), lateral patellofemoral contact area and finally a measurement of patellofemoral bony separation of the lateral patellar facet and the adjacent surface on the femoral trochlea (Figure 1). RESULTS: Thirty participants were recruited (mean age 57 SD 27.8; BMI 27.8 SD 4.2); 17 were females. Four patients had non-usable data. Main analysis used paired t tests comparing within subject patellar position with and without brace. For bisect offset index, patellar tilt and patellar height ratio there were no significant differences between the brace and no brace conditions. However, the brace increased lateral facet contact area (p =.04) and decreased lateral patellofemoral separation (p = .03). CONCLUSION: A patellar brace alters patellar position and increases contact area between the patella and femoral trochlea. These changes would lower contact stress at the PFJ. Such changes in patella position in weight bearing provide a possible biomechanical explanation for the success of the PFJ brace in clinical trials on PFJOA
Evaluation of biodegradable polyester-co-lactone microparticles for protein delivery.
No full textAbstract Poly(glycerol adipate-co-ω-pentadecalactone) (PGA-co-PDL) was previously evaluated for the colloidal delivery of α-chymotrypsin. In this article, the effect of varying polymer molecular weight (MW) and chemistry on particle size and morphology; encapsulation efficiency; in vitro release; and the biological activity of α-chymotrypsin (α-CH) and lysozyme (LS) were investigated. Microparticles were prepared using emulsion solvent evaporation and evaluated by various methods. Altering the MW or monomer ratio of PGA-co-PDL did not significantly affect the encapsulation efficiency and overall poly(1,3-propanediol adipate-co-ω-pentadecalactone) (PPA-co-PDL) demonstrated the highest encapsulation efficiency. In vitro release varied between polymers, and the burst release for α-CH-loaded microparticles was lower when a higher MW PGA-co-PDL or more hydrophobic PPA-co-PDL was used. The results suggest that, although these co-polyesters could be useful for protein delivery, little difference was observed between the different PGA-co-PDL polymers and PPA-co-PDL generally provided a higher encapsulation and slower release of enzyme than the other polymers tested
Paradigm shift towards whole life analysis in adaptable buildings
No full textEconomic evaluation is a significant consideration in the initiation of a facility. This evaluation process should take into account all costs, benefits and performance associated with a facility in its through life cycle. There are a number of techniques available for economic valuation, however, the practical application is poor in most of the techniques. Whole Life Analysis (WLA) is identified as a comprehensive approach for economic
evaluation. At present there is a growing trend towards designing buildings to be more adaptable within the UK property market. Hence, economic evaluation of adaptable
buildings needs to be undertaken as early as possible for appropriate long term decisions. This paper examines the paradigm shift required for a WLA approach for adaptable
buildings while identifying the benefits and barriers of its practical application. A comprehensive literature review was undertaken to analyse how WLA could be used as a
decision support technique for adaptable buildings. Literature reveals WLA as one of the best decision support techniques for use in the building industry, and it seems logical to adopt it for adaptable buildings. However, detailed economic evaluation remains an untapped area
within adaptable buildings. Being involved in the ‘Adaptable Futures’ research project at
Loughborough University, the authors have blended their thoughts with available literature and attempt to identify how important in undertaking WLA is for an adaptable facility while identifying the barriers of current applications. Stakeholder input is crucial towards the
betterment of WLA particularly concerning its understanding and application in adaptable buildings.
Key words: economic evaluation, whole life analysis, adaptable buildings, barriers, benefits, stakeholders’ rol
Manipulation of visual biofeedback during gait with a time delayed adaptive Virtual Mirror Box.
No full textA mirror placed in the mid-sagittal plane of the body has been used to reduce phantom limb pain and improve movement function in medical conditions characterised by asymmetrical movement control. The mirrored illusion of unimpaired limb movement during gait might enhance the effect, but a physical mirror is only capable of showing parallel movement of limbs in real time typically while sitting. We aimed to overcome the limitations of physical mirrors by developing and evaluating a Virtual Mirror Box which delays the mirrored image of limbs during gait to ensure temporal congruency with the impaired physical limb
State-of-the-Art Model Driven Game Development: A Survey of Technological Solutions for Game-Based Learning
Get PDFGame-based learning harnesses the advantages of computer games technology to create a fun, motivating and interactive virtual learning environment that promotes problem-based experiential learning. Such an approach is advocated by many commentators to provide an enhanced
learning experience than those based on traditional didactic methods. However, the adoption of such a seductive learning method engenders a range of technical, educational and pedagogical challenges, including: (i) how to enable domain experts - with little computer games development skills – to plan, develop and update their teaching material without going through endless and laborious iterative cycles of software and content development
and/or adaptation; (ii) how to choose the right mix of entertainment and game playing to deliver the required educational and pedagogical lesson/teaching material; and (iii) how to reuse existing games software frameworks and associated editing environments for game-based learning.
Much research is already underway at addressing the stated challenges; however, these approaches do not address the key challenge of facilitating the planning and development of teaching material with the right mix of pedagogical elements, educational components and fun. Thus, this study aims to investigate the use of model-driven software engineering approaches to facilitate non-technical domain experts (teachers) to plan, develop and maintain game-based learning resources regardless of the intricacies of the game engine/environment (platform) used. This article investigates the state-of-the-art in model-driven game development to provide a summary of developments in game design languages, game software modelling languages, game models, game software models, model-driven game frameworks, game software frameworks, model-driven engineering tools and
assistive user interfaces. The findings from this survey will prove a useful guide for future development of high-level educational game creation tools for game-based learning
The effect of spatial resolution on optical and near-IR studies of stellar clusters: implications for the origin of the red excess
No full textRecent ground-based near-IR (NIR) studies of stellar clusters in nearby galaxies have suggested that young clusters remain embedded for 7–10 Myr in their progenitor molecular cloud, in conflict with optical-based studies which find that clusters are exposed after 1–3 Myr. Here, we investigate the role that spatial resolution plays in this apparent conflict. We use a recent catalogue of young (5000 M⊙) clusters in the nearby spiral galaxy, M83, along with Hubble Space Telescope (HST) imaging in the optical and NIR, and ground-based NIR imaging, to see how the colours (and hence estimated properties such as age and extinction) are affected by the aperture size employed, in order to simulate studies of differing resolution. We find that the NIR is heavily affected by the resolution, and when aperture sizes >40 pc are used, all young/blue clusters move redwards in colour space, which results in their appearance as heavily extincted clusters. However, this is due to contamination from nearby sources and nebular emission, and is not an extinction effect. Optical colours are much less affected by resolution. Due to the larger effect of contamination in the NIR, we find that, in some cases, clusters will appear to show NIR excess when large (>20 pc) apertures are used. Our results explain why few young (<6 Myr), low-extinction (A V <1 mag) clusters have been found in recent ground-based NIR studies of cluster populations, while many such clusters have been found in higher resolution HST-based studies. Additionally, resolution effects appear to (at least partially) explain the origin of the NIR excess that has been found in a number of extragalactic young massive clusters
Public ICT Procurement - Maximising Quality Whilst Minimising Risk
No full textThe authors have liaised with the UK Government over time to highlight the risks associated with the procurement of ICT systems in the public sector and how they should best be addressed, given its unfortunate history of failed projects and the current systems security agenda. Their focus has been the integral issue of the assurance of software quality. This resulted in their being invited to submit independent “Third Party Guidance” which covers both the available procurement process options and the technical issues and opportunities (drawing on lessons from Industry). The guidance was submitted in February 2013, and after due consideration, it has now been circulated to Government teams that have an interest in this area, including the Government Procurement Service itself. There were two main components to the guidance: Technical aspects and Procurement processes. Technical aspects: There are industrial standards to ensure process quality for both hardware and software. The software component of any system is usually the most problematic, in part because there are a number of different, existing standards. These vary from the largely arbitrary and advisory (e.g. Carnegie Mellon Software Institute’s Capability Maturity Model, Level Five (CMM5)) to the prescriptive (e.g. Avionics’ DO-178b). In addition, the Motor Industry Software Reliability Association (MISRA) has a range of programming standards, which are adopted worldwide. CMM5 has been used in the procurement of public sector systems, but this falls short of what is required, and so greater emphasis should be placed on the level of criticality involved in systems. There are many causes for problems. Some of these are perceived (e.g. avaricious ICT suppliers fool the naïve civil servants and Government ministers), some are root causes (e.g. changing requirements impacting on bolt-on protective and corrective actions) and some are faulty assumptions (e.g. using tried and trusted systems as the basis for new systems will lead to more reliability). There are potential solutions to the problems facing Government Acquired Software, which have different merits. They include: contractual mechanisms; requirements freeze; wrappers; and agile techniques. Lessons should be learned from industries with consistent, successful records of implementing software systems: Nuclear, Avionics and Telecommunications. Specific ways in which the risks inherent in public sector software-based systems can be reduced were then recommended. Procurement processes: Whilst public procurement processes usually place responsibility for the efficacy of software squarely with the providers, failures still occur. A basic premise in the purchase of any artefact is the balance between price and quality, with the general rule (assumed) that the higher the quality the higher the price. Yet the particular problem for information systems is that there is usually no discernable quality assessment visible to either the purchaser or even the provider. Three options were presented for improving procurement processes to minimise the risks associated with poor-quality software: Accreditation Approach; Consortia Approach; and, Contract Requirement. The latter was recommended as the most practical way forward, which can be quickly acted upon. The ongoing collection and collation of results from related audits can then strengthen Government intelligence
Can Internal Shocks Produce the Variability in Gamma-Ray Bursts?
Get PDFWe discuss the possibility that gamma-ray bursts result from internal shocks in an ultra-relativistic matter. Using a simple model we calculate the temporal structure and we estimate the efficiency of this process. In this model the ultra-relativistic matter flow is represented by a succession of shells with random values of the Lorentz factor. We calculate the shocks that take place between those shells and we estimate the resulting emission. Internal shocks can produce the highly variable temporal structure observed in most of the bursts provided that the source emitting the relativistic flow is highly variable. The observed peaks are in almost one to one correlation to the activity of the emitting source. A large fraction of the kinetic energy is converted to radiation. The most efficient case is when an inner engine produces shells with comparable energy but very different Lorentz factors. It
also gives the most preferable temporal structure
DPWSim: A Devices Profile for Web Services (DPWS) Simulator
No full textThe Devices Profile for Web Services (DPWS) standard enables the use of Web services for resource-constrained devices, main components of the Internet of Things (IoT). DPWS can power the next generation of IoT applications connecting millions of networked devices and services on the Web. This article presents a simulator, called DPWSim, to support the use of this technology. DPWSim featuring secure messaging, dynamic discovery, service description, service invocation, and publishsubscribe eventing can be used to prototype, develop, and test products in terms of DPWS communication protocols. It can also support the collaboration between manufacturers, developers, and designers during the new product development process
Highly evolvable malaria vectors: The genomes of 16 Anopheles mosquitoes
Get PDFVariation in vectorial capacity for human malaria among Anopheles mosquito species is determined by many factors, including behavior, immunity, and life history. To investigate the genomic basis of vectorial capacity and explore new avenues for vector control, we sequenced the genomes of 16 anopheline mosquito species from diverse locations spanning ~100 million years of evolution. Comparative analyses show faster rates of gene gain and loss, elevated gene shuffling on the X chromosome, and more intron losses, relative to Drosophila. Some determinants of vectorial capacity, such as chemosensory genes, do not show elevated turnover, but instead diversify through protein-sequence changes. This dynamism of anopheline genes and genomes may contribute to their flexible capacity to take advantage of new ecological niches, including adapting to humans as primary hosts
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