3,548 research outputs found
A study of engagement in casual leisure occupations by individuals who are living with neuropalliative conditions
No full textPurpose. This study explored the following research questions:1. What are the normal and sensory-overloaded behaviours exhibited by adults living with neuropalliative conditions?2. How does engagement in casual leisure alter with different levels of sensory attributes? It did this to determine whether there might be an approximate optimal level of sensory attributes that maximises occupational-engagement while minimising the potential for sensory-overload. The aim therefore was to create an occupational environment that participants could handle competently and enjoyably. This sensory threshold can only be approximate, since each individual has unique sensory preferences, interests and experience.Method. The preliminary study involved a structured interview with a Residence Manager in order explore the normal and sensory-overloaded behaviours exhibited by nine adults living with neuropalliative conditions. The second study built upon this by conducting a multiple, case quasi experimental study involving marginal-participant time-sampled observations of engagement of individuals with neuropalliative conditions, with casual leisure occupations using the Individual Child Engagement Record. This study investigated whether engagement occupations alters with different levels of sensory attributes. Observations were made of 14 participants engaging in eight cases, who experienced profound levels of disability, each case differed (as part of the replication logic) by having different levels of sensory attributes.Results. Analysis suggests that the symptoms of sensory-overload may be experienced by adults living with neuropalliative conditions. The effects of sensory-overload appears similar to definitions of a passive state (of engagement or non-engagement). The thesis therefore presents the linkage between passive engagement/ passive non-engagement and an individual's behaviour when experiencing sensory-overload, hopefully leading to increased vigilance and therefore avoidance. Furthermore, engagement was shown to alter with a combination of different levels of sensory and non sensory attributes, including supporter facilitation and with the potential for active participation. These contextual factors are proposed to pertain to the individual, the occupation itself, and to the physical and social environment; the role offered or level of support available. Therefore, enhancing active leisure engagement requires consideration of the occupation, the individual and their sensory preferences and the occupational environment. Conclusions. Despite the reporting of sensory-overload symptoms by the participant of the preliminary study, the results showed that the anticipated reduction in engagement at the higher levels of sensory attributes (given the effects of sensory-overload) did not occur. In fact, engagement with leisure occupations appeared to increase as the sensory attributes levels increase, with larger differences in engagement level occurring where there are larger differences in the combined level of sensory attributes involved, a range of factors in the occupational context, are suggested to influence engagement, some of which pertain to the individual, the occupation and the environment. Clinical Messages. The role of the leisure supporter was suggested to include adapting leisure to fit the person, including offering the choice of what, when, where, with whom and how to "do" their leisure occupations, including offering active participation and a sense of choice.<br/
SERPent: Automated reduction and RFI-mitigation software for e-MERLIN
No full textThe Scripted E-merlin Rfi-mitigation PipelinE for iNTerferometry (SERPent) is an automated reduction and RFI-mitigation procedure utilising the SumThreshold methodology (Offringa et al., 2010a), originally developed for the LOFAR pipeline. SERPent is written in the Parseltongue language enabling interaction with the Astronomical Image Processing Software (AIPS) program. Moreover, SERPent is a simple ‘out of the box’ Python script, which is easy to set up and is free of compilers. In addition to the flagging of RFI affected visibilities, the script also flags antenna zero-amplitude dropouts and Lovell telescope phase calibrator stationary scans inherent to the e-MERLIN system.
Both the flagging and computational performances of SERPent are presented here, for e-MERLIN commissioning datasets for both L-band (1.3–1.8 GHz) and C-band (4–8 GHz) observations. RFI typically amounts to <20%–25% for the more problematic L-band observations and <5% for the generally RFI quieter C-band. The level of RFI detection and flagging is more accurate and delicate than visual manual flagging, with the output immediately ready for AIPS calibration. SERPent is fully parallelised and has been tested on a range of computing systems. The current flagging rate is at 110 GB day−1 on a ‘high-end’ computer (16 CPUs, 100 GB memory) which amounts to ∼6.9 GB CPU−1 day−1, with an expected increase in performance when e-MERLIN has completed its commissioning.
The refining of automated reduction and calibration procedures is essential for the e-MERLIN legacy projects and future interferometers such as the SKA and the associated pathfinders (MeerKAT and ASKAP), where the vast data sizes (>TB) make traditional astronomer interactions unfeasible
Elements of stereotomy in the essay and the works of the sicilian architect Giovanni Amico
No full textIl contributo si prefigge di indagare sull’uso della stereotomia nell’apporto teorico e nella pratica professionale dell’architetto trapanese Giovanni Amico, attivo in Sicilia nella prima metà del Settecento.
Nel suo trattato L’architetto prattico (pubblicato in due volumi, rispettivamente nel 1726 e nel 1750), si possono riscontrare alcuni principi di stereotomia: a titolo di esempio si cita il capitolo dedicato agli archi e ai ponti, dove l’autore inserisce un ponte in pietra «o sia Capoalzato per comodità di passare Fiumi, o Torrenti», che tramite la successione di due archi rampanti supera il dislivello fra le due sponde. L’intervento mira anche a chiarire i rapporti e gli eventuali debiti nei confronti dell’opera di altri studiosi e teorici, come il matematico siciliano Benedetto Maria Castrone, i cui libri risultano presenti nella biblioteca dell’Amico, assieme a numerosi testi finalizzati alle conoscenze di matematica e geometria (Il vero geodeta siciliano, Roma 1733 e Diversorum miscellanea mathematum ubi videlicet varia exhibentur problemata ex arithmeticis, geometricis et architectonicis..., Palermo 1737).
In parallelo si analizzeranno le opere realizzate dall’architetto, tra cui le facciate delle chiese trapanesi di San Lorenzo e del Purgatorio, o di Sant’Anna a Palermo, dove i temi tipici del linguaggio barocco colto, di derivazione borrominiana, quali le strutture concavo-convesse e il paramento murario ad andamento curvilineo, vengono sviluppati con la tecnica costruttiva della pietra a vista
Entanglement and quantity in quantum space - About quantum measurement (II)
No full textAs a continuation and extension of "quantity in phase space" "quantity in quantum space" is introduced. With that, the disappearing of quantum interference discussed in a previous paper [S. Durr, et al., Nature 395 (1998) 33] is explained in the same spirit as our recent papers [Ren De-Ming, Commun. Theor. Phys. (Beijing, China) 41 (2004) 685, 833].Physics, MultidisciplinarySCI(E)中国科学引文数据库(CSCD)1ARTICLE133-364
Sneutrino DM in the NMSSM with inverse seesaw mechanism
No full textIn supersymmetric theories like the Next-to-Minimal Supersymmetric Standard Model (NMSSM), the lightest neutralino with bino or singlino as its dominant component is customarily taken as dark matter (DM) candidate. Since light Higgsinos favored by naturalness can strength the couplings of the DM and thus enhance the DM-nucleon scattering rate, the tension between naturalness and DM direct detection results becomes more and more acute with the improved experimental sensitivity. In this work, we extend the NMSSM by inverse seesaw mechanism to generate neutrino mass, and show that in certain parameter space the lightest sneutrino may act as a viable DM candidate, i.e. it can annihilate by multi-channels to get correct relic density and meanwhile satisfy all experimental constraints. The most striking feature of the extension is that the DM-nucleon scattering rate can be naturally below its current experimental bounds regardless of the higgsino mass, and hence it alleviates the tension between naturalness and DM experiments. Other interesting features include that the Higgs phenomenology becomes much richer than that of the original NMSSM due to the relaxed constraints from DM physics and also due to the presence of extra neutrinos, and that the signatures of sparticles at colliders are quite different from those with neutralino as DM candidate.National Natural Science Foundation of China (NNSFC) [11575053]SCI(E)ARTICLE1
Classical mechanics and quantum mechanics
No full textThe Newton equation of motion is derived from quantum mechanics.Physics, MultidisciplinarySCI(E)中国科学引文数据库(CSCD)2ARTICLE5685-6884
Policy-driven Data Sharing over Attribute-Based Encryption supporting Dual Membership
No full textAttribute-Based Encryption (ABE) plays an important role in current secure data sharing through fine-grained customizable policies. However, the existing ABE schemes only support simple predicates, = and ≠, but cannot express a more general membership predicates, ∈ and ∉, in policies. The low expressivity of ABE will enlarge the ciphertext storage and reduce the communication efficiency. To overcome this problem, we propose an ABE supporting Dual Membership (DM-ABE). The core problem for implementing this scheme is how to use cryptographic methods to decide the membership between the verified element and the given set. In order to solve this problem, we design a cryptographic algorithm, called Secure Decision of Membership (SDM), based on aggregation functions. In this algorithm, any set can be aggregated into one cryptographic element, and the verified element and the given set can be converted into another cryptographic element in decision process. The membership between them can be decided by the above two cryptographic elements. Furthermore, we construct the DM-ABE by using SDM. Because of the good expressivity of our DM-ABE, we further propose a novel cryptographic data sharing framework by integrating DM-ABE and attribute-based access control to provide fine-grained access control and security protection for private data. In the security proof of DM-ABE, we prove that the DM-ABE satisfies the semantic security against chosen-plaintext attacks under the DBDHE assumption in the standard model through a unified way, considering both two encryption methods for ∈ and ∉ at the same time. Finally, we analyze our scheme in terms of time and space complexity, and compare it with some existing schemes. The results show that our DM-ABE has a better expressive ability on the boolean logic of general membership predicates, ∈ and ∉.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.Cyber Securit
Constraining the Inner Galactic DM Density Profile with H.E.S.S.
No full text© 2024 by the author. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).In this short review, corresponding to a talk given at the conference “Cosmology 2023 in Miramare”, we combine an analysis of five regions observed by H.E.S.S. in the Galactic Center, intending to constrain the Dark Matter (DM) density profile in a WIMP annihilation scenario. For the analysis, we include the state-of-the-art Galactic diffuse emission Gamma-optimized model computed with DRAGON and a wide range of DM density profiles from cored to cuspy profiles, including different kinds of DM spikes. Our results are able to constrain generalized NFW profiles with an inner slope ≳1.3 . When considering DM spikes, the adiabatic spike is completely ruled out. However, smoother spikes given by the interactions with the bulge stars are compatible if ≲0.8 , with an internal slope of sp-stars=1.5.This work has been supported by the grants PID2021-125331NB-I00, PID2022-139841NB-I00, and CEX2020-001007-S, funded by MCIN/AEI/10.13039/501100011033, by “ERDF A way of making Europe”, and the MULTIDARK Project RED2022-134411-T. The author’s contribution to this work has been supported by the FPI Severo Ochoa PRE2021-099137 grant.With funding from the Spanish government through the ‘Severo Ochoa Centre of Excellence’ accreditation (CEX2020-001007-S).Peer reviewe
Diabetes mellitus (DM) related lower extremity amputations (LEA) rate and risk factors.
No full textAuthor: Ieva Vasiliūtė Title: Diabetes mellitus (DM) related lower extremity amputations (LEA) rate and risk factors. Aim: To investigate LEA rate and risk factors in patients with DM. Objectives: To evaluate DM related LEA rate. To determine DM related LEAs levels and patients demographic factors relation. To determine DM related LEAs levels and type of DM relation. To determine DM related LEAs levels and DM duration, body mass index (BMI), glycated hemoglobin (HbA1c) meanings relation. To evaluate expected mathematically based risk factors. Methods: Retrospective medical records study of 153 patients with DM, who underwent LEAs at the Hospital of Lithuanian University of Health Sciences Kaunas clinics was performed during the 2012 01 01 – 2014 12 31 period. Statistical analysis was performed using the standard SPSS 20.0 program. Results: 33,33% of legs amputations occured among people with DM and 66,67% of them were male (p<0,001). Major LEAs were performed mostly in patients with type 2 DM (86,96%) than those with type 1 DM (p<0,001). Male patients LEAs were performed in patients suffering for shorter duration of DM than in women (19,18 m. (±95% PI 16,71-21,65) vs. 23,36 m. (±95% PI 20,07-26,65), p=0,053). Patients with type 2 DM underwent LEAs had DM for shorter durations (16,19 m. (±95% PI 14,32-18,06)) than those with type 1 DM patients (31,43 m. (±95% PI 28,40-34,45)) ( p<0,001). Major LEAs remove patients had BMI (32,86±5,55 kg/m2) than minor LEAs remove patients (29,13±5,91 kg/m2) (p=0,027). No significant relation was found with amputation level and HbA1c average (p=0,246). DM related eye damage increases the risk of minor LEAs 3,10 times (p=0,001). Obesity/overweight the risk of major LEAs increases 5,65 times (p=0,036) and 2,56 times with obliterate atherosclerosis (p=0,006). Patients with type 2 DM have a 3,2 times (p=0,002) higher risk of undergoing major LEA. Conclusions: A third of patients who had undergone LEAs had DM. Amputations were carried out more frequently in men. DKA arose more often in patients with type 2 DM. LEAs were performed a shorter duration male DM patients. Type 2 DM patients suffered LEAs nearly 2 times shorter duration. Major LEAs experienced patients had a higher BMI. The average of HbA1c is not significantly related with amputation levels. DM related eye damage increases the minor LEAs risk by 3,10 times. Obesity/being overweight increases the risk of major LEAs 5,65 times, obliterate atherosclerosis - 2,56 times. Patients with type 2 DM have a 3,2 times higher risk of major LEA
Approaches for Dialog Management in Conversational Agents
No full textDialog agents, like digital assistants and automated chat interfaces (e.g., chatbots), are becoming more and more popular as users adapt to conversing with their devices as they do with humans. In this paper, we present approaches and available tools for dialog management (DM), a component of dialog agents that handles dialog context and decides the next action for the agent to take. In this paper, we establish an overview of the field of DM, compare approaches and state-of-the-art tools in industry and research work on a set of dimensions, and identify directions for further research work.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.Web Information SystemsHuman-Centred Artificial Intelligenc
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