100,396 research outputs found
Local stimulation of cell signals in single cells
No full textEbrahimian H. Local stimulation of cell signals in single cells. Bielefeld: University of Bielefeld; 2012
Assessment of offshore platforms under extreme waves by probabilistic incremental wave analysis
No full textIn this study, a novel probabilistic framework named Probabilistic Incremental Wave Analysis (PIWA) is established in order to assess the performance of jacket offshore platforms under extreme waves. The PIWA can take into account the uncertainties in three main elements consisting of sea state parameters, structural response and collapse capacity. The main advantage of the PIWA approach is reflected in decoupling of the wave hazard and structural analyses via an intermediate variable known as the wave height intensity measure. Despite the fact that most of the uncertainties associated with structural response are concentrated in wave hazard, this will enable the PIWA to estimate the probability of failure accurately. Moreover, both static and dynamic wave analyses can be utilized in the PIWA procedure. In this approach, multiple incremental wave analyses are employed to estimate the distribution of structural demand for a wide range of wave height intensities. Subsequently, the mean annual frequency of exceeding a structural limit state is calculated for which this research addresses two different methodologies including demand-based and wave height-based approaches. Furthermore, a new probabilistic-based Reserve Strength Ratio (RSR) is proposed and the probability of exceeding various levels of RSR is provided. To reduce the large number of simulations and hence improving the computational effort in the PIWA procedure, a combination of Latin Hypercube Sampling and Simulated Annealing optimization technique is utilized as an efficient sampling scheme. The PIWA procedure is employed in probabilistic assessment of an existing jacket offshore platform located in the Persian Gulf as well
Letter, [Author unclear] to Paulina T. Merritt
No full textHandwritten letter to Paulina Merritt from an unknown author, October 1, 1876.
Incremental wave analysis and its application to performance-based assessment of jacket platforms
No full textIn this paper, a relatively novel approach is established to estimate different limit states and accurate behavior of jacket platforms against environmental wave loading. This novel approach which is called Incremental Wave Analysis (IWA) can be an appropriate substitute to current pushover practice. The IWA can take into account the effects of variation in wave height and wave-in-deck loading in the estimating of platforms' behavior. This paper aims to introduce the applications of this approach in deterministic assessment of offshore platforms, comprehensively. The IWA can estimate the collapse-prevention limit state of jacket platforms properly. In addition, an appropriate parameter for ultimate capacity of offshore platforms is introduced which is called Collapse Wave Height (CWH). It is illustrated that the CWH can be utilized as a substitute to RSR parameter in the design and assessment of jacket platforms. Moreover, this novel indicator is able to exceptionally estimate the collapse probability of offshore platforms utilizing a deterministic practice. This is a unique feature that can never be achieved by current pushover method utilizing RSR parameter. The IWA can be carried out using either nonlinear static or dynamic wave analyses. Therefore, in this paper, both Static and Dynamic Incremental Wave Analyses (SIWA and DIWA) will be systematically explained. Before conducting DIWA, some fundamental questions such as importance of dynamic analysis and also proper methodology for conducting dynamic analysis, will be investigated. Comparison between SIWA and DIWA will also bring about worthwhile results which will be discussed thoroughly
COUNTERVAILING VASCULAR EFFECTS OF ROSIGLITAZONE IN HIGH CARDIOVASCULAR RISK MICE: ROLE OF OXIDATIVE STRESS AND PRMT-1.
No full textIn the present study, we tested the hypothesis that the PPARgamma (peroxisome-proliferator-activated receptor gamma) activator rosiglitazone improves vascular structure and function in aged hyperhomocysteinaemic MTHFR (methylene tetrahydrofolate reductase) gene heterozygous knockout (mthfr+/-) mice fed a HCD (high-cholesterol diet), a model of high cardiovascular risk. One-year-old mthfr+/- mice were fed or not HCD (6 mg x kg-1 of body weight x day-1) and treated or not with rosiglitazone (20 mg x kg-1 of body weight x day-1) for 90 days and compared with wild-type mice. Endothelium-dependent relaxation of carotid arteries was significantly impaired (-40%) only in rosiglitazone-treated HCD-fed mthfr+/- mice. Carotid M/L (media-to-lumen ratio) and CSA (cross-sectional area) were increased (2-fold) in mthfr+/- mice fed or not HCD compared with wild-type mice (P<0.05). Rosiglitazone reduced M/L and CSA only in mthfr+/- mice fed a normal diet. Superoxide production was increased in mthfr+/- mice fed HCD treated or not with rosiglitazone, whereas plasma nitrite was decreased by rosiglitazone in mice fed or not HCD. PRMT-1 (protein arginine methyltransferase-1), involved in synthesis of the NO (nitric oxide) synthase inhibitor ADMA (asymmetric omega-NG,NG-dimethylarginine), and ADMA were increased only in rosiglitazone-treated HCD-fed mthfr+/- mice. Rosiglitazone had both beneficial and deleterious vascular effects in this animal model of high cardiovascular risk: it prevented carotid remodelling, but impaired endothelial function in part through enhanced oxidative stress and increased ADMA production in mice at high cardiovascular risk
Handwritten biographical information on Paulina T. McClung Merritt
No full textA handwritten biography of Paulina T. McClung Merritt by an unknown author, 1892.
Heterogeneous and tissue-specific regulation of effector T cell responses by IFN-gamma during Plasmodium berghei ANKA infection.
No full textIFN-γ and T cells are both required for the development of experimental cerebral malaria during Plasmodium berghei ANKA infection. Surprisingly, however, the role of IFN-γ in shaping the effector CD4(+) and CD8(+) T cell response during this infection has not been examined in detail. To address this, we have compared the effector T cell responses in wild-type and IFN-γ(-/-) mice during P. berghei ANKA infection. The expansion of splenic CD4(+) and CD8(+) T cells during P. berghei ANKA infection was unaffected by the absence of IFN-γ, but the contraction phase of the T cell response was significantly attenuated. Splenic T cell activation and effector function were essentially normal in IFN-γ(-/-) mice; however, the migration to, and accumulation of, effector CD4(+) and CD8(+) T cells in the lung, liver, and brain was altered in IFN-γ(-/-) mice. Interestingly, activation and accumulation of T cells in various nonlymphoid organs was differently affected by lack of IFN-γ, suggesting that IFN-γ influences T cell effector function to varying levels in different anatomical locations. Importantly, control of splenic T cell numbers during P. berghei ANKA infection depended on active IFN-γ-dependent environmental signals--leading to T cell apoptosis--rather than upon intrinsic alterations in T cell programming. To our knowledge, this is the first study to fully investigate the role of IFN-γ in modulating T cell function during P. berghei ANKA infection and reveals that IFN-γ is required for efficient contraction of the pool of activated T cells
Dispelling the Myths Behind First-author Citation Counts
No full textWe conducted a full-scale evaluative citation analysis study of scholars in the XML research field to explore just how different from each other author rankings resulting from different citation counting methods actually are, and to demonstrate the capability of emerging data and tools on the Web in supporting more realistic citation counting methods. Our results contest some common arguments for the continued
use of first-author citation counts in the evaluation of scholars, such as high correlations between author rankings by first-author citation counts and other citation
counting methods, and high costs of using more realistic citation counting methods that are not well-supported by the ISI databases. It is argued that increasingly available digital full text research papers make it possible for citation analysis studies to go beyond what the ISI databases have directly supported and to employ more
sophisticated methods
Pelevin’s Trinity in the novel “t”: author – protagonist – reader
No full textThe article attempts to interpret Pelevin's artistic strategy in the novel "T" by exploring its subject organization and addressing the key problems of the author, the protagonist, and the reader as they are seen by the researcher. The article analyzes the peculiarities of constructing the narrative reality in the novel "T", and goes on to discuss Pelevin's philosophic models of the development of the humankind, and the emergence of his new anthropology
Measuring industry-science links through inventor-author relations: A profiling method
No full textIn this pilot study we examine the performance of text-based profiling in recovering a set of validated inventor-author links. In a first step we match patents and publications solely based on their similarity in content. Next, we compare inventor and author names on the highest ranked matches for the occurrence of name matches. Finally, we compare these candidate matches with the names listed in a validated set of inventor-author names. Our text-based profile methodology performs significantly better than a random matching of patents and publications, suggesting that text-based profiling is a valuable complementary tool to the name searches used in previous studies.innovation; industry-science links; text-based profiling;
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