Meningoencephalitis and brain abscessation due to Escherichia coli in a 2 week old alpaca cria

An alpaca cria which received insufficient colostrum, presented with lethargy, anorexia, no passage of faeces and neurological signs. Differential diagnosis included neonatal septicaemia, meningitis and gastrointestinal obstruction. The cria died despite treatment. Necropsy revealed brain abscesses with Escherichia Coli in pure culture. The importance of the amount and timing of colostrum intake is discussed.     

A wrinkle in time: a case study in DNS poisoning

International Journal of Information Security - The domain name system (DNS) provides a translation between readable domain names and IP addresses. The DNS is a key infrastructure component of the...     

Online scheduling of two job types on a set of multipurpose machines with unit processing times

We study a problem of scheduling a set of n jobs with unit processing times on a set of m multipurpose machines in which the objective is to minimize the makespan. It is assumed that there are two different job types, where each job type can be processed on a unique subset of machines. We provide an optimal offline algorithm to solve the problem in constant time and an online algorithm with a competitive ratio that equals the lower bound. We show that the worst competitive ratio is obtained for an inclusive job-machine structure in which the first job type can be processed on any of the m machines while the second job type can be processed only on a subset of m/2 machines. Moreover, we show that our online algorithm is 1-competitive if the machines are not flexible, i.e., each machine can process only a single job type.     

Optimal due date assignment and resource allocation in a group technology scheduling environment

We study a single machine scheduling problem in which the scheduler determines due dates for different jobs in a group technology environment. In group technology (GT) environment, a partition of the jobs into groups (families) is given and jobs of the same family are required to be processed consecutively. The partition of the jobs into families is done in order to achieve efficiency of high-volume production by exploiting similarities of different products and activities in their production. Since customers of similar jobs may expect that all jobs within the same group will be assigned with the same due date, we suggest an original due date assignment method in which all jobs within a family are restricted to be assigned the same due date, while each family can be assigned a due date without any restriction. The proposed method provides an extension of two earlier methods that appear in the literature, one which includes a single family and the other in which the number of families is identical to the number of jobs. Our objective is to find the job schedule and the due date for each group that minimizes an objective function which includes earliness, tardiness and due date assignment penalties. We also extend the analysis to address the case in which the job processing times are resource dependent. For this case we include the total weighted resource consumption and the makespan penalties to the objective function.     

A note: Minmax due-date assignment problem with lead-time cost

All three major classes of due-date assignment models (CON, SLK and DIF) have been solved in the literature for a minsum setting, and only two of them (CON and SLK) have been solved for a minmax setting. In this note we introduce a solution for the missing minmax model of DIF. Specifically, we study a single-machine scheduling and due-date assignment problem, in which job-dependent lead-times   are considered. Three cost components for each job are assumed: earliness cost, tardiness cost, and the cost for delaying the due-date (beyond its lead-time). The goal is to schedule the jobs and to assign due-dates, such that the maximum cost among all the jobs is minimized. We introduce an O(nlog²n)$O(n{\log }^{2}n)$ solution algorithm (where n is the number of jobs).     

Sensation Seeking and the Aversive Motivational System.

Sensation seeking (SS) has traditionally been viewed as a phenomenon of the appetitive motivational system. The limited SS research exploring contributions from the aversive motivational system reveals greater anxious reactivity to dangerous activities among low sensation seekers. The present study extends this line of work by comparing levels of fear and anxiety during anticipation of predictable and unpredictable aversive stimuli across high- and low-SS groups. Low sensation seekers displayed greater fear-potentiated startle (FPS) to predictable aversive stimuli, and only those low on SS showed FPS and skin conductance response effects during experimental contexts in which aversive stimuli were delivered unpredictably. Findings implicate enhanced apprehensive anticipation among those low on SS as a potential deterrent for their participation in intense and threatening stimulus events. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

A fair server adaptation algorithm for HTTP adaptive streaming using video complexity

Multimedia Tools and Applications - The increasing popularity of online video content and adaptive video streaming services, especially those based on HTTP Adaptive Streaming (HAS) highlights the...     

Stress Analysis of Monolithic Circular Arches Strengthened with Composite Materials

This paper presents an analytical approach for the elastic stress analysis of monolithic circular arches strengthened with externally bonded fiber-reinforced polymer (FRP) strips. Emphasis is placed on the interfacial stresses between the existing structure and the supplemental reinforcement layers. Two analytical models are presented: The first model formulates the governing equations in terms of the displacements in the arch and the FRP strip and the tangential distribution of the shear stresses in the adhesive layer as unknowns without involving any assumptions on the stress and displacement fields in the adhesive layer. The second model uses the functional form of the displacement field derived in the first model yielding a formulation in terms of displacement unknowns only. Two numerical examples that examine the capabilities of the analytical approach are discussed. The first example focuses on the stress analysis of a strengthened arch under a localized load. The second example studies the elastic response of a partially strengthened arch to a symmetric load and a horizontal support settlement. The numerical study quantifies the interfacial shear and peeling stresses between the old and the new components underlining the stress concentrations. Finally, conclusions are presented and directions for future research on the application of the theory to masonry arches are outlined.     

An optimizing compiler for an SPAP architecture using AI tools

A methodology that allows users to efficiently bridge the gap between high-level language and low-level microcode when implementing intensive mathematical operations and manipulations algorithms is discussed. The use of an optimized special-purpose array processor (SPAP) architecture for numerical computation and a host microprocessor for nonnumerical computation operations is described. The advantages of the optimizing compiler, the target architecture, and the compiler's implementation using AI tools are examined     

Nanotechnological strategies for engineering complex tissues

Tissue engineering aims at developing functional substitutes for damaged tissues and organs. Before transplantation, cells are generally seeded on biomaterial scaffolds that recapitulate the extracellular matrix and provide cells with information that is important for tissue development. Here we review the nanocomposite nature of the extracellular matrix, describe the design considerations for different tissues and discuss the impact of nanostructures on the properties of scaffolds and their uses in monitoring the behaviour of engineered tissues. We also examine the different nanodevices used to trigger certain processes for tissue development, and offer our view on the principal challenges and prospects of applying nanotechnology in tissue engineering.