289 research outputs found
A Bayesian Updating Framework for Simulating Marine Energy Converter Drive Train Reliability
No full textThis is the author accepted manuscript. The final version is available from METSINTRODUCTION: Accurately quantifying and assessing the reliability of Marine Energy Converters (MEC’s) is critical for the successful commercialization of the industry. Without improvements in reliability and hence reductions in operation & maintenance (O&M) costs, the industry will struggle to reach competitive Levelised Cost of Energy (LCoE). At present, due to the nascent stage of the industry and commercial sensitivities there is very little reliability field data available. This presents an issue: how can the reliability of MEC devices be accurately assessed and predicted with a lack of specific reliability data? [...]The support of the ETI and RCUK Energy Program funding for IDCORE (EP/J500847/1) is gratefully acknowledged
Tuberculosis control and occupational health services
No full textThe W.H.O. (1982) estimates that the annual risk of infection with tuberculosis in most developing countries is in the order of 3 to 5%. Every year 4-million to 5-million highly infectious cases of tuberculosis occur in those countries, according to the WHO Technical Report No. 671. This report also states that case finding and chemotherapy, combined as one entity, must be considered to be the most powerful weapon in tuberculosis control. Since case finding in those countries depends principally on the examination of patients presenting with relevant symptoms to a health facility, it is recommended that all staff at such facilities should be properly trained and motivated to identify potential tuberculosis patients
Hearing Impairment Caused by Occupational Noise
No full textOccupational noise-induced hearing impairment is an insidiously developing injury which only becomes apparent when it affects the hearing of conversational speech. As no remedy is possible, prevention is the only answer. In view of the impending legislation in South Africa a review of the literature is presented. This is confined to the auditory effects of potentially hazardous occupational noise in industry. Two principal properties of soundintensity and frequency-are briefly discussed. In the study of exposure to noise important factors are: (a) over-all noise level, (b) exposure duration in a working day, and (c) exposure duration over a working lifetime. The data derived from studies of hearing loss and of temporary threshold shift make it possible to predict the risk-percentage (incidence) and to some extent the amount of hearing loss resulting from exposure to a certain noise environment in the exposed population of workers. This enables appropriate authorities to set acceptable limits as criteria. If these are exceeded hearing conservation programmes, aimed at reducing the hazard, are indicated. Some features of these are mentioned and the value of audiometry is pointed out, especially for attempts to establish high susceptibility to suffer hearing loss in individuals. An outline of regulations regarding hearing impairment compensation in other countries is given. A few remarks are made on the role of the medical practitioner in industrial hearing conservation programmes
Social Media as a Sports Marketing Strategy: An Analysis of the New York Mets Social Media
No full textabstract: Social media has grown into one of the most popular tools in the marketing industry. As social media continues to evolve, it allows for even greater transparency, communication, and relationships among users and businesses. There is no doubting that social media is an effective way to foster brand loyalty and a community of brand advocates, however successful social media marketing requires a depth of knowledge, understanding of the market, and an established strategy. Social media has been extremely effective in sports business as it allows organizations to create a community for their fans where they can find real-time news, promotions, content, and information about their favorite teams. As an intern for the New York Mets tasked with covering the Arizona Fall League, my experience provided first-hand insight into the use of social media in the MLB. Through an analysis of the New York Mets social media strategy, this thesis discusses the effectiveness of social media as a marketing strategy, best practices, and current trends to provide a well-rounded analysis of the successful implementation of this tool
A Systematic Review of Gender Differences in METs After Cardiac Rehabilitation
No full textBackground: Cardiac rehabilitation programs employ a multipronged approach of exercise and lifestyle modifications to reduce cardiometabolic risk factors, improve physical function, and improving quality of life for patients with a wide range of cardiac pathologies. Prior research has demonstrated that cardiac rehabilitation can benefit both men and women\u27s exercise capacity. However, while systemic reviews have been conducted comparing compliance and referral rates between men and women to cardiac rehabilitation, none have assessed potential differences in functional capacity. Purpose: The purpose of this systemic review is to investigate the differences in outcomes between men and women after an intensive cardiac rehabilitation program as measured by metabolic equivalents (METs). Methods: Search strategies were developed using MeSH heading and free-text terms for four databases: PubMed, SCOPUS, and CINAHL, and Cochrane. One author then eliminated any article duplicates and screened the remaining titles and abstracts. Papers were considered relevant if they compared outcomes in cardiac rehabilitation between men and women. For each study, two coauthors collected data using a standardized form. Data included answering if the study related to the PICO question, whether the study is observational or randomized, the population in the study, the cardiac rehabilitation intervention, any comparison intervention, the time points at which the outcomes were measured, and the functional exercise outcome measures metabolic equivalents (METs). Selection Criteria: Randomized or observational studies, published in English, full text article available. Papers were considered relevant if they compared outcomes in cardiac rehabilitation between men and women. Results: A Total of 9986 records identified from the search and 15 studies included in the final review. No eligible high level (RCT) study identified. All studies reported that both men and women benefit from cardiac rehabilitation as demonstrated by a universal increase in peak METs. Of the 15 studies included in the review, 13 showed a greater increase in peak METs in men and 2 showed a greater increase in peak METs in women. These differences tended to be small and not all of these differences were statistically significant. Conclusion: The majority of studies reported that there were, on average, more male subjects participating in cardiac rehabilitation programs than females. Given the significant underrepresentation of women in these studies, it is difficult to speculate if differences in MET levels reported in these studies are a true representation of gender differences with respect to peak MET levels
Delivery, Management and Access Model for E-prints and Open Access Journals within Further and Higher Education
No full textThis study identified three models for open access provision in the UK: (a) the centralised model, where e-prints of articles are first deposited directly into a national archive and then made accessible to users and service providers; (b) the distributed model, where e-prints are deposited in any one of a distributed network of OAI-compliant institutional, subject-based and open-access journal archives, whose metadata are then harvested and made accessible to users and service providers; and (c) the model we have termed the ‘harvesting’ model, a variant of the distributed model in which the harvested metadata are first improved, standardised or enhanced before being made accessible to users and service providers. In considering the relative merits of these models, we addressed not only technical concerns but also how e-print provision (by authors) can be achieved, since without this content provision there can be no effective e-print delivery service (for users). For technical and cultural reasons, this study recommends that the centralised model should not be adopted for the proposed UK service. This would have been the costliest option and it would have omitted the growing body of content in distributed institutional, subject-based, and open-access journal archives. Moreover, the central archiving approach is the ‘wrong way round’ with respect to e-print provision since for reasons of academic and institutional culture and so long as effective measures are implemented, individual institution-based e-print archives are far more likely to fill (and fill quickly) than centralised archives, because institutions and researchers share a vested interested in the impact of their research output, and because institutions are in a position to mandate and monitor compliance, a position not enjoyed by centralised archives. The study therefore recommends the ‘harvesting’ model [(c) above], constituting a UK national service founded upon creating an interoperable network of OAI-compliant, distributed, institution-based e-print archives. Such a service, based on harvesting metadata (and, later, full-text) from distributed, institution-based e-print archives and open access journals would be cheaper to implement and would more effectively garner the nation’s scholarly research output. The model also permits further enhancement of the metadata to provide improved features and functionality
Inflammation increases plasma angiopoietin-like protein 4 in patients with the metabolic syndrome and type 2 diabetes
No full textContains fulltext :
138901.pdf (Publisher’s version ) (Open Access)BACKGROUND: Angiopoietin-like protein 4 (ANGPTL4) inhibits lipoprotein lipase and associates with dyslipidemia. The expression of ANGPTL4 is regulated by free fatty acids (FFA) that activate lipid-sensing peroxisome proliferator-activated receptors (PPARs), but FFA can also activate pattern recognition receptors including Toll-like receptor 4 (TLR4) in macrophages. OBJECTIVE: To assess whether systemic low-grade inflammation is a determinant for plasma ANGPTL4 levels in patients with the metabolic syndrome (MetS) and type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). DESIGN: We studied 335 male participants: healthy controls (Controls), patients with the MetS without inflammation (MetS-I) and with low-grade inflammation (MetS+I), and patients with T2DM. All patients without diabetes included in the present study were initially matched for waist circumference. In plasma, ANGPTL4, C reactive protein (CRP) and metabolic parameters were determined. Underlying mechanisms were examined using human macrophages in vitro. RESULTS: As compared with Controls, plasma ANGPTL4 levels were increased in patients with MetS-I, MetS+I, and T2DM. Furthermore, ANGPTL4 was increased in T2DM compared with MetS-I. In fact, plasma CRP correlated positively with plasma ANGPTL4. In vitro studies showed that TLR 3/4 activation largely increased the expression and release of ANGPTL4 by macrophages. CONCLUSIONS: Plasma ANGPTL4 levels in humans are predicted by CRP, a marker of inflammation, and ANGPTL4 expression by macrophages is increased by inflammatory stimuli
Analysis of harvester working time for example Ponsse Ergo
No full textTöö koosneb kolmest petaükist. Esimeses peatükis kirjeldatakse harvesteri ehituslikku poolt ning raietehnoloogiat. Teine peatükk materjalist ja metoodikast annab ülevaate uuritud harvesterist, masina operaatorist, töös uuritud raielankidest ning sellest, kuidas kogu uurimus läbi viidi. Töö kolmandas peatükis kajastatakse uurimuse käigus saadud tulemusi ning võrreldakse neid mõningate varasemalt läbi viidud uurimuste tulemustega.
Antud töö on valminud põhiliselt autori vaatluse ja analüüsi põhjal. Vaatlused toimusid raielankidel, videokaamerat kasutades ning hiljem filmitut arvutis analüüsides. Materjali filmiti kokku ca. 17 tundi. Lisaks filmimisele pani autor kirja märkmeid harvesteri tööd raskendavatest teguritest ning operaatori tähelepanekuid.
Autori arvates saavad antud tööst kasu nii harvesteri operaatorid kui ka harvestere omavad ettevõtted. Tööst saab teadmisi tulevikus metsamasinatel töötamisel või nende töö organiseerimisel ka autor.The work cosists of three parts, the first chapter describes the constructional side of the harvester, and short overview of the harvester harvesting technology. The second chapter material and methods, describes studied harvester, harvester operator, cutting areas and how all research was conducted. The thrid chapter gives overview working time in clear cutting and thinning areas and a reference to previous similar studies.
Work is based on the author´s observation and analysis. Observations were in the forest by using videocamera and later data was analyzed in computer. The material was filmed about 17 hours. Author wrote notes about hindrances of harvester work and operator comments.
Author think´s that work gives benefits for harvester operators and harvester holding companies. Work gives author knowledge about future working on harvester or organizing harvester work
Trustworthy 100-Year Digital Objects: Durable Encoding for When It's Too Late to Ask
No full textHow can an author store digital information so that it will be reliably intelligible, even years later when he is no longer available to answer questions? Methods that might work are not good enough; what is preserved today should be reliably intelligible whenever someone wants it. Prior proposals fail because they generally confound saved data with irrelevant details of today’s information technology—details that are difficult to define, extract, and save completely and accurately.
We use a virtual machine to represent and eventually to render any data whatsoever. We focus on a case of intermediate difficulty—an executable procedure—and identify a variant for every other data type.
This solution might be more elaborate than needed to render some text, image, audio, or video data. Simple data can be preserved as representations using well-known standards. We sketch practical methods for files ranging from simple structures to those containing computer programs, treating simple cases here and deferring complex cases for future work. Enough of the complete solution is known to enable practical aggressive preservation programs today.
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