170,005 research outputs found
Rotz – eine alte Pferdekrankheit erlangt wieder Bedeutung!
No full textRotz gehört zu den ältesten Tierseuchen und ist aufgrund weltweit steigender Ausbruchsmeldungen als wiederaufflammende Tierseuche zu betrachten. Die Seuche ist anzeigepflichtig und infizierte Tiere dürfen nicht therapiert werden, sondern sind zu töten und unschädlich zu beseitigen. Umso wichtiger ist es, die unterschiedlichen Krankheitsbilder zu kennen und sich über mögliche Diagnostik- sowie Desinfektionsverfahren zu informieren
Going Beyond Counting First Authors in Author Co-citation Analysis
No full textThe present study examines one of the fundamental aspects of author co-citation analysis (ACA) - the way co-citation
counts are defined. Co-citation counting provides the data on which all subsequent statistical analyses and mappings
are based, and we compare ACA results based on two different types of co-citation counting - the traditional type that
only counts the first one among a cited work's authors on the one hand and a non-traditional type that takes into
account the first 5 authors of a cited work on the other hand. Results indicate that the picture produced through this non-traditional author co-citation counting contains more coherent author groups and is therefore considerably clearer. However, this picture represents fewer specialties in the research field being studied than that produced through the traditional first-author co-citation counting when the same number of top-ranked authors is selected and analyzed. Reasons for these effects are discussed
Mitomycin C in highly myopic eyes - Author reply
No full textOphthalmology. 2005 Feb;112(2):208-18; discussion 219.
Mitomycin C modulation of corneal wound healing after photorefractive keratectomy in highly myopic eyes.
Gambato C, Ghirlando A, Moretto E, Busato F, Midena E.
SourceRefractive Surgery Service and Antimetabolite Therapy Research Unit, Department of Ophthalmology, University of Padova, Padova, Italy.
Abstract
PURPOSE: To evaluate the role of topical mitomycin C in corneal wound healing (CWH) after photorefractive keratectomy (PRK) in highly myopic eyes.
DESIGN: Prospective, double-masked, randomized clinical trial.
PARTICIPANTS: Seventy-two eyes of 36 patients affected by high (>7 diopters) myopia.
METHODS: In each patient, one eye was randomly assigned to PRK with intraoperative topical 0.02% mitomycin C application, and the fellow eye was treated with a placebo. Postoperatively, mitomycin C-treated eyes received artificial tears (3 times daily, tapered in 3 months), whereas the fellow eye was treated with fluorometholone sodium 2% and artificial tears (3 times daily, tapered in 3 months).
MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Uncorrected visual acuity (UCVA) and best-corrected visual acuity (BCVA), contrast sensitivity, manifest refraction, and biomicroscopy. Contrast sensitivity was determined using the Pelli-Robson chart. Corneal confocal microscopy documented CWH.
RESULTS: Mean follow-up was 18 months (range, 12-36). No side effects or toxic effects were documented. At 12-month follow-up examination, UCVAs (logarithm of the minimum angle of resolution) were 0.4+/-0.48 and 0.5+/-0.53 (P = .03) in mitomycin C-treated eyes and corticosteroid-treated eyes, respectively. At 1 year, corneal haze developed in 20% of corticosteroid-treated eyes, versus 0% of mitomycin C-treated eyes. At 12, 24, and 36 months, corneal confocal microscopy showed activated keratocytes and extracellular matrix significantly more evident in untreated eyes (Ps = 0.004, 0.024, and 0.046, respectively).
CONCLUSION: Topical intraoperative application of 0.02% mitomycin C can reduce haze formation in highly myopic eyes undergoing PRK.
Comment in
Ophthalmology. 2006 Feb;113(2):357; author reply 357-8
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
Serologische Diagnostik von Rotz unter Berücksichtigung endemischer und nicht- endemischer Tierseuchensituationen
No full textGlanders is a highly infectious and zoonotic disease of solipeds caused by
Burkholderia mallei. Progressive loss of efficiency and fatal outcome resulted
in massive economic losses which forced veterinary authorities throughout the
world to implement disease control measures; these included mass testing using
the complement fixation test and/or malleinisation, and the culling of
positives. This led to the eradication of glanders from Western Europe and
North America in the 1950s. However, in the last decade, the number of
outbreaks in Asia and South America increased steadily and glanders regained
the status of a re-emerging transboundary disease. Pakistan has been an
endemic country for the past 120 years but concise data on the presence of
disease are not available. A total of 533 serum samples were collected from
draught equines, a suspected risk group for glanders, from various districts
of the Pakistani Punjab. The complement fixation test (CFT) and the highly
sensitive Western blot technique were used for serodiagnosis. No positive
animal (horse, mule, and donkey) was found. Glanders seems to be restricted to
remote, sporadic pockets of endemicity and may cause outbreaks after being
introduced into naive populations by (asymptomatic) shedders. Various
serological tests were used for the diagnosis of glanders in the past but
still complement fixation test (CFT) is the internationally prescribed test
for trading equines. A new immunoblot (IB) technique has recently been
introduced to overcome the well known shortcomings of CFT i. e. a considerable
number of false positive and negative results and anticomplementary effect of
sera. The objective of this study was the comparative evaluation of two
glanders CFT antigens commercially available at Central Veterinary Institute
of Wageningen UR, Lelystad, The Netherland (CIDC) and at c.c.pro GmbH,
Oberdorla, Germany (c.c.pro) in an glanders endemic area regarding specificity
and sensitivity. A total of 1,678 serum samples from the endemic region
(Province Punjab, Pakistan) and a non-endemic area (Germany) were analysed.
All sera tested positive or suspicious with CFT were analysed by the
confirmatory IB to exclude CFT false positive results. Both CFT antigens
showed 100% sensitivity. The use of CIDC or c.c.pro antigen resulted in
specificities of 77.45% or 75.71% for sera from endemic area and 93.75% or
94.79% for sera from non-endemic areas, respectively. The results demonstrate
the different performances of identical tests in different epidemiologically
settings. Based on these results, the combined use of CFT and IB is highly
suggestive for the serodiagnosis of glanders. Good agreement was calculated
between CFT (using either c.c.pro or CIDC antigen) and IB. In response to
third objective of comparatively evaluation of three commercially available
antigens: (c. c. pro, CIDC and USDA) using sera from glanders free (Germany)
and glanderous/immunised animals, the sensitivity and specificity of three
commercially available complement fixation test (CFT) antigens from c.c.pro
(c.c.pro), Central Veterinary Institute of Wageningen UR (CIDC) and the United
States Department of Agriculture (USDA) were comparatively evaluated by
testing 410 sera collected from glanders-endemic and non-endemic areas (200
true negative randomly collected sera and 210 sera collected from
experimentally immunised animals (12 rabbits, 19 horses), clinical-positive
(135) and culture-positive (44) horses, donkeys and mules). Immunoblotting
(IB) was used as gold standard test. Highest sensitivity was shown for the
CIDC antigen (100%) followed by the c.c.pro antigen (99.39%). However, the
USDA antigen showed substantially less (P<0.05) sensitivity (62.19%). Highest
specificity was found for the USDA antigen (100%) followed by the CIDC (97.5%)
and c.c.pro antigen (96.5%). Positive and negative predictive values for each
antigen were calculated to be: 95.88 and 99.48 (c.c.pro), 97.04 and 100
(CIDC), 100 and 76.33% (USDA). Almost perfect agreement (0.96) was found
between CFT using either c.c.pro or CIDC and IB. Due to almost perfect
agreement (0.96), CFT using c.c.pro or CIDC antigen can be combined with IB to
increase the detection rate of glanders among infected animals.Rotz ist eine anzeigepflichtige, hochkontagiöse Infektionskrankheit der
Einhufer und wird durch das Gram-negative, unbewegliche Bakterium Burkholderia
(B.) mallei verursacht. Der Ausbruch und die Anzeige der Erkrankung führen
durch Handelssperren zu erheblichen ökonomischen Verlusten für die betroffenen
Länder. Deshalb forcieren die Veterinärbehörden weltweit
Überwachungsuntersuchungen mittels Komplementbindungsreaktion (KBR) und
Malleintest. Durch eine strikt durchgeführte Ausmerzung positiver Tiere,
konnte Rotz in Westeuropa und Nordamerika in den 50iger Jahren ausgerottet
werden. Durch eine steigende Anzahl von Rotzerkrankungen in den letzten 10
Jahren in Südamerika und in Asien wird Rotz jedoch als „re-emerging“
Tierseuche eingestuft. Für die serologische Diagnostik von Rotz sind
verschiedene Testverfahren beschrieben. Die KBR ist jedoch die für
internationale Handelsuntersuchungen vorgeschriebene Methode. In der
Diagnostik mit der KBR bereiten insbesondere falsch positive Ergebnisse oder
Proben mit antikomplementären Eigenschaften immer wieder Probleme. Deshalb kam
in der vorliegenden Arbeit zusätzlich zur KBR ein Immunoblot-Verfahren (IB)
zur Anwendung. Pakistan gilt seit 120 Jahren als endemisch für Rotz. Präzise
Daten über die gegenwärtige Situation sind jedoch nicht verfügbar. Deshalb
wurden in einer vorläufigen Prävalenzstudie 533 Serumproben von Zugtieren
(Pferde, Esel, Maultiere), einer potentiell verdächtigen Risikogruppe, in
verschiedenen Bezirken der Provinz Punjab in Pakistan gesammelt und mit der
KBR und einem hochsensitiven IB untersucht. Es wurden keine positiven Tiere
nachgewiesen. Es kann geschlussfolgert werden, dass Rotz scheinbar nur in
begrenzten, weiter abgelegenen Gebieten vorkommt und durch asymptomatische
Ausscheider nur sporadisch in erregerfreie Populationen eingebracht wird. In
einer weiteren Studie der vorliegenden Arbeit kamen ebenfalls die KBR und der
IB zur Anwendung wobei insbesondere die Nutzung verschiedener diagnostischer
KBR-Antigene unter Beachtung verschiedener endemischer Situationen bewertet
wurde. Gegenstand dieser Studie war die vergleichende Evaluierung zweier Rotz-
KBR-Antigene, kommerziell erhältlich bei Central Veterinary Institute in
Wageningen UR, Lelystad, Niederlande (CIDC) und c.c.pro GmbH, Oberdorla,
Deutschland (c.c.pro) hinsichtlich ihrer Spezifität und Sensitivität in einer
Rotz-endemischen Region Pakistans. Insgesamt wurden 1678 Serumproben (davon 25
positive Proben von Tieren bei denen die Infektion durch die Isolierung des
Erregers bestätigt wurde) aus der Provinz Punjab (Pakistan) und einer nicht
endemischen Region (Deutschland) getestet. Alle KBR-positiven und -verdächtig
reagierenden Proben wurden mittels IB untersucht, um falsch positive KBR-
Ergebnisse auszuschließen. Beide KBR-Antigene zeigten eine Sensitivität von
100%. Die KBR unter Einsatz des CIDC- oder c.c.cpro-Antigens zeigte
Spezifitäten von 77,45% und 93,75% oder 75,71% und 94,79% bei Anwendung auf
Proben aus der endemischen oder nicht-endemischen Region. Die Ergebnisse
zeigen, dass die Spezifität identischer serologischer diagnostischerverfahren,
angewendet in Regionen mit unterschiedlicher epidemiologischer Lage erheblich
schwanken kann. Für eine dritte Studie wurden drei kommerziell erhältliche
KBR-Antigene zur Rotzdiagnostik, das c.c.pro- und CIDC-KBR-Antigen und das
KBR-Antigen des United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), vergleichend
eingesetzt. Das c.c.pro-Antigen und CIDC-Antigen bestehen aus einer Mischung
dreier B. mallei Isolaten (Bogor, Zagreb und Mukteswar), wohingegen das USDA-
Antigen aus nur einem B. mallei Isolat (Chinese) hergestellt wurde. Insgesamt
wurden 410 Seren, gesammelt von 200 Pferden aus Deutschland (Gruppe I,
negativ) und 210 Serumproben (Gruppe 2, positiv) getestet. Die Seren der
Gruppe I galten als negativ, weil Rotz in Deutschland seit mehr als 50 Jahren
ausgerottet ist. Die positive Gruppe II setzt sich zusammen aus 44 Tieren aus
Pakistan, bei denen die Infektion durch die Isolierung des Erregers bestätigt
wurde, aus 135 klinisch krank beurteilten Tieren aus Pakistan und Brasilien,
12 Seren stammten von einem immunisierten Kaninchen und 19 Seren von einem
immunisierten Pferd. Die Durchführung der KBR erfolgte gemäß den Vorgaben des
OIE - “Manual of Diagnostic Tests and Vaccines for Terrestrial Animals” unter
Nutzung des kommerziell verfügbaren Komplement- und hämolytischen Systems der
Firma Virion/Serion. Das c.c.pro- und CIDC-Antigen wurde mit dem Serum für 18h
bei 4°C (Kältebindung) und das USDA-Antigen für 1h bei 37°C (Wärmebindung)
inkubiert. Alle Proben wurden auch im IB analysiert. Die höchste Sensitivität
erreichte das CIDC-Antigen (100%) gefolgt durch das c.c.pro-Antigen (99,39%).
Das USDA-Antigen zeigte eine deutlich geringere (P<0,05) Sensitivität
(62,19%). Die höchste Spezifität konnte mit dem USDA-Antigen (100%) erzielt
werden, gefolgt vom CIDC-Antigen (97,50%) und c.c.pro-Antigen (96,50%). Dabei
zeigten die KBR mit dem c.c.pro- oder CIDC-Antigen zusammen mit dem IB die
höchste Übereinstimmung (0,96). Ausgehend von diesen Ergebnissen wird für die
serologische Diagnostik von Rotz die Kombination aus KBR mit dem c.c.pro- oder
CIDC-Antigen und dem IB empfohlen
A Multi-Language Comparison of Influences on Author Verification using Character N-Grams
No full textWe create a new multi-language corpus for author verification based on Wikipedia talkpages, and evaluate the influence that differences in topic and time have on character n-gram author profiles. Topic alignment between two texts is found to increase author verification precision, and an authors writing style is found to change over time, but not more significantly after 3 years than after 1 year.Information ArchitectureWISElectrical Engineering, Mathematics and Computer Scienc
A 0.12mm<sup>2</sup> Wien-Bridge Temperature Sensor with 0.1°C (3σ) Inaccuracy from -40°C to 180°C
No full text Resistor-based temperature sensors can achieve much higher resolution and energy efficiency than conventional BJT-based sensors [1], but they typically occupy more area (> 0.25 mm 2 ) and have lower operating temperatures (le 125 {circ} {C}) [2]-[4]. This work describes a 0.12mm 2 resistor-based sensor that uses a Wien-bridge (WB) filter to achieve 0.1 {circ} {C} (3 sigma) inaccuracy from - 40 {circ} {C} to 180 {circ} {C}. Compared to a state-of-the-art WB sensor [4], it occupies 6 × less area and achieves comparable relative accuracy over a 76% wider operating range. Session 10.3 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.Electronic InstrumentationMicroelectronic
A ±25A Versatile Shunt-Based Current Sensor with 10kHz Bandwidth and ±0.25% Gain Error from -40°C to 85°C Using 2-Current Calibration
No full textAccurate current sensing is critical in many industrial applications, such as battery management and motor control. Precise shunt-based current sensors have been reported with gain errors of less than 1% over the industrial temperature range (-40°C to 85°C) [1]–[4]. However, since they are intended for coulomb counting, their bandwidth is limited to a few tens of Hz, making them unsuitable for battery impedance or motor-current sensing. This paper presents a current sensor with a wide (10kHz) bandwidth and a tunable temperature compensation scheme (TCS), which allows it to be flexibly used with different types of shunts while maintaining high accuracy. A low-cost room-temperature calibration scheme is proposed to optimize gain flatness over temperature by exploiting the shunt's self-heating at large currents. Over the industrial temperature range and a ±25A current range, it achieves state-of-the-art gain error (±0.25%) with both low-cost PCB and stable metal-alloy shunts.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.Electronic InstrumentationMicroelectronic
An Article About Albertus C. Van Raalte, Author Unknown, Except for Parts Taken from an Article by Anna C. Post
No full textAn article about Albertus C. Van Raalte, author unknown, except for parts taken from an article by Anna C. Post. The author knew first generation persons in the Holland settlement and therefore, the article has some value.https://digitalcommons.hope.edu/vrp_1890s/1012/thumbnail.jp
Archivist, Archaeologist, Author and the Tactile Window
No full textThe idea that the predominant way of engaging with architecture is through vision is not uncommon but also not always the most appropriate given that buildings are also experienced through tactile interventions. This consequence that emphasises visual aesthetics in order to appreciate and understand architecture probably has much to do with the assumed but rather vaguely defined role of the architect as designer in the practice of architectural design. A resulting misapprehension is that architects designing for visual appreciation think that they are actually designing physical space for embodied tactile engagement.
This prioritisation of vision in the way architects think about and approach design is questioned through the design project of the Tactile Window in which the position of the architect is redefined through inhabiting the roles of archivist, archaeologist and author during the design process.
A 16th century portrait of Queen Elizabeth I known as the Ditchley portrait, currently on display at the National Portrait Gallery is used as the source from which the design of the Tactile Window is derived from and refers back to. Questioning the validity of vision as the sole means of engaging with the work, information about the portrait and working methods gathered from the three carefully chosen positions mentioned above are drawn on and applied to the making of this Tactile Window that becomes an alternative Ditchley portrait. Through exploring the hidden historical and current narratives of and in the existing portrait, the presence of the portrait is alluded to on an alternative physical site. Key to this are the working methods of an invented archival system of design reasoning, the unearthing of archaeological texts and assuming of authorship within the individual frameworks of the roles of archivist, archaeologist and author.
The redefined role of the architect as archaeologist takes onboard the unearthing of associated drawings and writings as well as the methods of organising and applying the recovered information to the system set up by the archivist. This analysis of the graphic and text based information is used to formulate historical narratives that are woven into the design project. Whereas traditional archaeology stresses on the study of a site from a site with quantifiable limits to the physical context, the notion of archaeological sites in this instance refers to the places where the stored information is unearthed. Through the careful process of archiving and analysing this information, a new site that is located within both the physical and historical contexts of interest is discovered. The author then draws upon the elements in the archival system that includes the findings of the archaeologist to construct the alternative Ditchley portrait in this new site of the Echoing Cedar, the result of which bears no visual resemblance to the existing work.
The Tactile Window is a reading of the Ditchley portrait in which information about and in the painting is transformed into a design proposal for an inhabited structure. The intended method of interaction with this alternative portrait is not merely restricted to vision but relies on engagement with the other senses. This experience is enhanced by the interplay with certain site conditions such as wind and rain in order to allude to specific aspects of the Ditchley portrait that are not visually apparent in the existing work.
In the processes of excavating, finding and revealing the hidden information to create this alternative portrait, the effects of the visuals afforded by the existing portrait inadvertently begin to fade as the validity of a single means of visual expression is questioned
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