65,089 research outputs found

    Energy-Efficient Train Operation: Conclusions and Future Work

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    This chapter gives the basic conclusions about energy-efficient train operation covering energy-efficient train driving, energy-efficient train timetabling, regenerative braking, energy storage systems and power supply networks. Future work that will develop energy-efficient train operation further include the interaction of connected driver advisory systems (C-DAS) and automatic train operation (ATO) with railway traffic management systems, cooperative train control in platoons of virtually coupled trains, digital twin technology and particularly its application to power supply systems, and the interaction between the railway network with the electrical power grid and renewable energy generation.Green Open Access added to TU Delft Institutional Repository ‘You share, we take care!’ – Taverne project https://www.openaccess.nl/en/you-share-we-take-care Otherwise as indicated in the copyright section: the publisher is the copyright holder of this work and the author uses the Dutch legislation to make this work public.Transport and Plannin

    Cell-free DNA Methylation and Transcriptomic Signature Prediction of Pregnancies with Adverse Outcomes

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    Although analysis of maternal plasma cell-free content has been employed for screening of genetic abnormalities within a pregnancy, limited attention has been paid to its use for the detection of adverse pregnancy outcomes (APOs) based on placental function. Here we investigated cell-free DNA and RNA content of 102 maternal and 25 cord plasma samples. Employing a novel deconvolution methodology, we found that during the first trimester, placenta-specific DNA increased prior to the subsequent development of gestational diabetes with no change in patients with preeclampsia while decreasing with maternal obesity. Moreover, using cell-free RNA sequencing, APOs revealed 71 differentially expressed genes early in pregnancy. We noticed the upregulation of S100A8, MS4A3, and MMP8 that have been already associated with APOs but also the upregulation of BCL2L15 and the downregulation of ALPL that have never been associated with APOs. We constructed a classifier with a positive predictive ability (AUC) of 0.91 for APOs, 0.86 for preeclampsia alone and 0.64 for GDM. We conclude that placenta-specific cell-free nucleic acids during early gestation provide the possibility of predicting APOs prior to the emergence of characteristic clinical features

    Intrauterine calorie restriction affects placental DNA methylation and gene expression

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    Maternal nutrient restriction causes the development of adult onset chronic diseases in the intrauterine growth restricted (IUGR) fetus. Investigations in mice have shown that either protein or calorie restriction during pregnancy leads to glucose intolerance, increased fat mass, and hypercholesterolemia in adult male offspring. Some of these phenotypes are shown to persist in successive generations. The molecular mechanisms underlying IUGR remain unclear. The placenta is a critical organ for mediating changes in the environment and the development of embryos. To shed light on molecular mechanisms that might affect placental responses to differing environments we examined placentas from mice that had been exposed to different diets. We measured gene expression and whole genome DNA methylation in both male and female placentas of mice exposed to either caloric restriction or ad libitum diets. We observed several differentially expressed pathways associated with IUGR phenotypes and, most importantly, a significant decrease in the overall methylation between these groups as well as sex-specific effects that are more pronounced in males. In addition, a set of significantly differentially methylated genes that are enriched for known imprinted genes were identified, suggesting that imprinted loci may be particularly susceptible to diet effects. Lastly, we identified several differentially methylated microRNAs that target genes associated with immunological, metabolic, gastrointestinal, cardiovascular, and neurological chronic diseases, as well as genes responsible for transplacental nutrient transfer and fetal developmen

    Relating Research and Teaching: comparing experiences and beliefs

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    The relationship between research and teaching has possible benefits and inherent tensions. It is a recurrent topic of discussion by faculty including engineering educators. Exploring a potentially beneficial relationship and is of interest and possible value to engineering faculty, our students, and our stakeholders. Institutions and departments have developed a range of approaches including research-led, research informed, or just plain scholarly. This paper examines the relationship between research and teaching in the undergraduate curriculum. It compares and contrasts evidence of the beliefs and experiences of the engineering faculty and the engineering student. It presents and analyses the result of surveys which gathered qualitative and qualitative data to explore the inter-relationship of research and teaching; in the curriculum; and as it is delivered and experienced in the lab, seminar room and lecture hall. This research builds on existing work developed in a preliminary study which examined ways in which synergies between research and teaching could be achieved, particularly in the ‘hard/applied’ areas of the curriculum. It analyses data from the ‘research-intensive’ and the ‘teaching-intensive’ perspective

    Education for Cataloging in Spanish Universities: A Descriptive and Critical Study

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    Objective: This is a critical descriptive study of the situation of cataloging as an academic discipline within Library and Information Science studies in Spain. Material and methods: The descriptive analysis of the sectional contents of the general and specific guidelines of the degrees of Diplomado (three-year degree) and Licenciado (fiveyear degree) in LIS and the curricular programs of the Spanish university schools or departments. Variables analyzed: The denomination and content descriptors of the course offerings and credit hours. The test-retest method was used, with a qualitative processing of data. Results: General data is given about the studies in LIS: their introduction, the universities that offer them, and the degrees awarded. Cataloging is considered an obligatory core subject matter, and is represented by several courses that present important differences insofar as their denominations, their credits, and their character from one curricular program to the next. The average credit requisite for obligatory courses in cataloging in Spain is 14 (1 credit = 10 class hours), and 19.7 if electives are also considered. At present, this discipline is undergoing a reform that will produce important changes as a result of the adaptation of university studies to the common framework of the European Union

    Introduction to Energy-Efficient Train Operation

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    Railway, as one of the most energy-efficient transport, plays an essential role in improving the world’s energy and environmental sustainability. Statistics about rail share of transport activities and the corresponding energy consumption will demonstrate the energy efficiency of railway and indicate the potential of developing railway transport. Therefore, this chapter will provide an overview of the railway's energy consumption and traffic volume shares. Statistics presented in this chapter show that railway energy consumption decreased in these decades while its transport volume kept stable, and the traffic volume share of the railway is extremely large in urban transport. To achieve the goal of carbon neutralization, the European Union and many countries have conducted research projects on railway energy conservation. The technologies developed in these projects include energy-efficient train driving, integrated timetabling, using regenerative braking energy, etc. A summary of these technologies is also given, along with their potential energy savings, which range from 1 to 25%. This book will analyse and illustrate the whole systems processes of train operation with optimisation solutions. The structure of the following chapters will be presented at the end.Green Open Access added to TU Delft Institutional Repository ‘You share, we take care!’ – Taverne project https://www.openaccess.nl/en/you-share-we-take-care Otherwise as indicated in the copyright section: the publisher is the copyright holder of this work and the author uses the Dutch legislation to make this work public.Transport and Plannin

    A Chinese lecturer in an English university: an unfinished journey

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    This chapter portraits a learning journey of an academic. The narrative chapter points a way forward to new modes of inter-cultural understanding of learners. The author of this chapter invites the readers to become fellow travellers to gain from his unique learning journeys an understanding of what is common to all learning. The chapter indicates that learning is often transformative, indeterminate and unfinished. The author invites readers to consider following questions: what do they tell us about learning itself? About what it means to be a learner in the first quarter of the 21st Century? What do we learn about the experience of learning

    El uso del software HistCite para identificar artículos significativos en búsquedas por materias en la Web of Science

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    HistCiteTM is a large-scale computer tool for mapping science. Its power of visualization combines the production of historiographs on the basis of the analysis of co-citations of documents, with the use of bibliometrics specific indicators. The objective of this article is, to present the advantages of the new bibliometrics configuration of HistCiteTM (2004) when identifying articles to analyze the histograms that produces HistCiteTM, in terms of cumulative advantage and aging of the citations to do a comparative study of the results of HistCiteTM, in its indicators of amplitude and recognition. Also is examined its treatment of the sampling problems, by formalizing the question of Kendall

    [[alternative]]Finding a Balance Between Accuracy and Readability in Translation: A Case Study of Su Chi's "On the Brink"

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    [[abstract]]This paper discusses free and literal translation, how the debate between proponents of the two philosophies developed in China, and how my study of both types of translation has influenced my work as a translator. I discuss factors that influence Chinese to English translation and how translators can strike a balance between accuracy and readability in their translations. Finally, I explain my personal approach to translation and why I use this approach. I use Su Chi’s book On the Brink as an example.
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