423 research outputs found
On the velocity of buckle propagation in a beam on a nonlinear elastic-foundation
No full textThe paper revisits a simple beam model used by Chater et al. (1983, Proc. IUTAM Symp. Collapse, Cambridge University Press) to examine the dynamics of propagating buckles on it. It was found that, if a buckle is initiated at a constant pressure higher than the propagation pressure of the model (P-p), the buckle accelerates and gradually reaches a constant velocity which depends upon the pressure, while if it is initiated at P-p, the buckle propagates at a velocity which depends upon the initial imperfection. The causes for the difference are also investigated
Cost Analysis of Scleral Buckle and Pars Plana Vitrectomy for Retinal Detachment Surgery
No full textÁlvaro J Rallo-López,1 Rafael Martínez-Costa Pérez2 1Department of Ophthalmology, Clínica Baviera, Valencia, Spain; 2Department of Ophthalmology – Retina and Vitreous, Hospital Universitario y Politécnico La Fe, Valencia, SpainCorrespondence: Álvaro J Rallo-López, Email [email protected] and Objective: To compare the cost and utility of scleral buckle (SB) and pars plana vitrectomy (PPV) techniques for repairing moderately complex rhegmatogenous retinal detachment (RRD).Patients, Materials, and Methods: A cost-utility analysis was conducted using data from the Primary Retinal Detachment Outcomes Study (PRO) and a study conducted by the author. Total costs, patient utility over a lifetime, and cost per quality-adjusted life year (QALY) were calculated for each surgical procedure.Results: The cost of scleral buckle surgery was € 287.93, with an estimated lifetime QALY of 7.49. Costs per QALY were € 38.44. According to the PRO study and Belin et al, total costs were $5975, with a lifetime QALY of 5.4 and costs per QALY of $1106. The cost of pars plana vitrectomy (PPV) was € 1468.26, with an estimated lifetime QALY of 6.84 and costs per QALY of € 214.65. Based on the PRO study and Belin et al, total costs were $8125, with a lifetime QALY of 4.7 and costs per QALY of $2196.Conclusion: Repairing moderately complex RRD presents a highly cost-effective profile for both SB and PPV techniques, well below recommended QALY thresholds. SB demonstrated a slightly more favorable profile compared to PPV.Keywords: retinal detachment, pars plana vitrectomy, scleral buckle, cost-utility analysis, QAL
Bell Buckle, Tennessee - Relating to (SC 3565)
No full textFinding aid and scan (Click on Additional Files below) for Manuscripts Small Collection 3565. “Bell Buckle Spring,” a 7 page narrative by an unknown author, recounting a naval lieutenant’s reminiscences of his youth while a student in Bell Buckle, Tennessee. The story is a lyrical account of the natural features of the area and the excitement of witnessing a passing train. The story is inscribed as written in 1945 and “delivered” in May 1947
The Use of Tutoplast as an Adjunct in Scleral Buckle Procedure in Patients with Extremely Thin Sclera
No full textAbstract Extremely thin sclera often necessitates abortion of scleral buckle procedures. In patients in whom a scleral buckle is desired, previous techniques have included the use of cyanoacrylate glue and continuing with surgery or placing donor tissue over the areas of thin sclera, but this can delay surgery. This was a retrospective review of three patients with thin sclera encountered during scleral buckling procedures. All patients had Tutoplast Pericardial Graft placed over the areas of thin sclera which allowed the scleral buckle to be sutured onto the Tutoplast rather than the thin sclera. Tutoplast Pericardial Graft is a useful adjunct in scleral buckle procedures with extremely thin sclera, and a scleral buckle can be safely placed over it and lead to successful retinal reattachment
A structural VAR model of the New Zealand business cycle
No full textThis paper develops a new open economy structural VAR model of the New Zealand economy. The model adopts techniques introduced by Cushman and Zha (1997) and Dungey and Pagan (2000) to identify international and domestic shocks and dynamic responses to these shocks in a small open economy. The international variables are block exogenous and the model includes restrictions on contemporaneous and lagged variables. Novel features include the introduction of an expanded set of domestic financial variables not captured in previous New Zealand VAR models, the use of a forward looking Taylor Rule to identify monetary policy, and the introduction of a climate variable to capture the impact of climatic conditions on the business cycle. Key results to emerge are the significant influence of international variables on the New Zealand business cycle, the importance of separately identifying import price and export price shocks, and the significant influence of climate.Open economy; structural VAR models; business cycles; climate; commodity prices; international linkages; financial conditions.
An Internship at the Buckle and an Analysis of Clothing Consumption
No full text26 p.The author summarizes her experience with the retail store called The Buckle, explaining the history and organization of the store and then details of how the store operates. The image of a team working with its "teammates" "teamleaders" and "guests" is explained to making The Buckle different from other clothing stores. As a "teamleader,” the author learned how to handle delicate situations with other employees, as well as the public. She also learned about merchandising on the sales floor and the importance of product knowledge. The second part of the paper is on the subject of the role of clothing in the consumers’ lives. This paper is directed toward answering the following questions: What is fashion? Who decided what is fashionable? Why do people need clothing? Why people wear the clothes that they do? How do social changes affect clothing consumption
Toward a Model of Firm Productivity Dynamics
No full textA common finding from international research on firm productivity dynamics is that withinfirm productivity dynamics tend to dominate the effects of firm entry and exit on aggregate productivity. The aim of this paper is to explore the suitability of Statistics New Zealand’s Business Demography (BD) and Goods and Services Tax (GST) data as a basis for modelling within-firm productivity dynamics. The paper first analyses and describes the cross-sectional and time-series properties of sales, purchases and a value-added measure of labour productivity. Cross-sectional results reveal a great deal of heterogeneity in average sales, purchases and labour productivity both across and within industries and cohorts. Univariate time-series properties of these variables are remarkably similar and sales and purchases are highly correlated contemporaneously. Transition probabilities are also calculated for movement of firms between quartiles of the labour productivity distribution over varying lengths of time. In order to understand the processes driving the data, a simple statistical model for sales, purchases and value-added per unit of employment is developed to calibrate to the stylised empirical facts. The model does a remarkably good job at mimicking the properties of the BD and GST data.Firm Productivity; Labour Productivity; Firm Dynamics; New Zealand GST Data; New Zealand Business Demography; Firm Value-added.
New routes to crystallographic data publication
No full textA full-day workshop organised by Simon Coles (Chair) and Mike Hursthouse (University of Southampton, UK), John Huffman (Indiana University, USA), Peter Strickland (IUCr), Frank Allen (CCDC) and John Westbrook (PDB).This event is aimed at initiating a wide-ranging debate on new routes for the effective and efficient dissemination of the ever-increasing volume of crystallographic raw and results data, as a complementary approach to the conventional route of publication of scientific journal articles. The workshop is concerned with:
a) raising awareness of innovative procedures under development for data dissemination and the new opportunities they can provide for publication,
b) enabling groups working in the area to compare approaches and develop a unified strategy for data management, including publication and preservation and
c) inviting participation in this topic from interested parties.
The methods and approaches to publishing scientific research output (i.e. making it available to the public domain) are currently undergoing a seed-change. New initiatives include such processes as author self deposition of reprints in Institutional Repositories, author-pays open access journals and open discussion of results in Wiki’s or Blogs, and these are gathering momentum. On one hand this movement has been slow to appear in some disciplines (eg Chemistry), yet is widely accepted and routine in others (eg Physics and Biology). The field of crystallography is a data-rich subject that supports a vast number of conventional journal articles across a very broad range of disciplines, and seeds of change are very much evident here. Recent developments include:
1. The IUCr prepared an extensive report to the Science and Technology Committee in 2004 regarding electronic publishing, data and open access (http://www.iucr.org/iucr/stcttee04.html) and a position paper (http://www.iucr.org/iucr/gicsi/positionpaper.html).
2. IUCr were awarded three rounds of funding to enable the content of their journals provided by UK authors to be made publicly available through Open Access (JISC funded) and examine the culture changes and impact on their business model.
3. From Jan 2008 Acta Cryst Section E will become Open Access (Author pays).
4. Numerous successful projects aimed at authors self-publishing data (eCrystals, ReciprocalNet, Crystallography Open Database) have been created.
The indications are therefore that the time is now right to explore these new routes to publishing, with a particular emphasis on the crystallographic raw and results data, as an alternative to conventional journal articles. This is especially relevant in the light of a recognised data deluge (F.H. Allen, Crystallogr. Reviews, 2004, 10, 3-15), where it is commonly recognised that approximately only 20% of small-molecule crystal structures determined as a result of publicly funded research reach the public domain. This is a direct consequence of the way in which data is traditionally published.
The principal contributions to this workshop would be from those responsible for recent developments and innovations in the area and are outlined below. The primary aims of the workshop will be to:
1. Raise awareness in the crystallographic community of these new innovations and the opportunities they offer for data publication, and invite participation.
2. Enable projects and interested parties working in the area to compare approaches and develop a unified way forward for the future of data publication.
The topics to be covered as sessions of the workshop include:
1. Self publication by an author: Institutional data repositories (eg eCrystals project), Open databases (e.g. COD) and consortia (eg ReciprocalNet)
2. Author pays Open Access (eg Acta Cryst E, Chemistry Central)
3. Interoperability and linking between data sources
4. Interactions between data sources and data centres, publishers & learned societies
5. Data discovery and linking to journal articles and other sources of electronic information openly available
6. Support, training, raising awareness and advocacy for data publication
7. Future sustainability and preservation of openly available data, -policy and finance.
8. Ownership of data
Workshop Program
10:00 - 10:05 Introduction: Housekeeping & Purpose of Workshop
Session 1: Data Archival and Availability * 10:05 - 10:20 Brian McMahon: The IUCr perspective * 10:20 - 10:35 Rick McMullen: The ReciprocalNet consortium * 10:35 - 10:50 Simon Coles: The eCrystals Federation * 10:50 - 11:05 Ashley Buckle : The TARDIS project * 11:05 - 11:20 Rick McMullen & Simon Coles: The outcomes of the CGF2007 workshop
Session 2: Data Publication, Databases and Reuse * 11:45 - 12:00 Bill Clegg: Acta E's Adventures in Journal-land * 12:00 - 12:15 Howard Einspahr: Data Publication in Acta F * 12:15 - 12:30 Frank Allen: Publishing and the CSD * 12:30 - 12:45 John Westbrook: The Protein Databank in an Open Data Community * 12:45 - 13:00 Nick Day: The CrystalEye Open Data aggregator
Session 3: Open Forum * 13:45 - Close: Structured Q&A Debate on Future Direction <br/
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