A low-power 8-b 1 3.5-MHz video CMOS ADC for visiophony ISDNapplications

A half-flash, subranging, 8-b, 13.5-MHz, video ADC (analog-to-digital converter) using overlapped architecture that combines the advantages of both flash and half-flash converters is described. Its conversion rate is that of a flash, without any multiplexing and with a low number of comparators. Its low power consumption and the small silicon area required for its implementation enable it to be integrated in mixed digital/analog circuits such as a video acquisition circuit devoted to visiophony applications. It has been manufactured using a CMOS 1-μm technology with two polysilicon and two metallization layers     

A comparison of mail and telephone interview strategies for mental health surveys

The high cost of mental health surveys of the general population has sparked interest in less costly research methods. Two low-cost mental health survey strategies (mail and telephone) were compared in terms of cost, response rate and quality of data obtained. A total of 1,074 persons agreed to participate in the study as a sample, one-half by telephone and the other half by mail. They completed the Diagnostic Interview Schedule Self-Administered, a questionnaire designed to be self-administered, which was used to assess specific mental disorders and to evaluate risk factors. In addition, 239 respondents who were selected according to the presence or absence of specific diagnoses were reinterviewed face-to-face using the Diagnostic Interview Schedule as an external criterion. The telephone method yielded a better response rate (15% higher) and better control over answers (for example, less missing data). The mail strategy was less expensive and appeared to yield data of slightly better quality, particularly for respondents suffering from anxiety disorders.     

Adhesion mechanisms of enamel–varnishes on copper: Adhesion promoter versus corrosion inhibitor

The role of adhesion promoters, copper oxidation, and thermal aging in the adhesion mechanism of enamel on copper winding wires is investigated. Evidence is presented on the predominant role of the copper oxide at the interface in the wire–enamel adhesion phenomena. The oxidation process and the copper oxides stability at the interface are seen to strongly depend upon the thermal aging of the wire and the nature of both the enamel and the promoter. Atomic force and scanning electron microscopy analyses show that so‐called promoters act more efficiently as corrosion inhibitors than as adhesion enhancers. © 2003 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 89: 952–958, 2003     

Knowledge extraction for production management

A procedure and underlying algorithm for extracting knowledge from production and inventory databases to support engineering management activities is described. The process searches for, detects and isolates behaviour patterns inherent in the data. It relates these patterns to production irregularities, suggests connections with specific causes and helps propose possible corrective or preventive actions. The approach is based on a four-phase procedure: (1) the decision-maker focuses on the subject or difficulty at issue, represented by a target concept; (2) the KEDB algorithm, based on a machine learning approach, processes the relevant database and provides knowledge characterizing and classifying the target concept; (3) the output is interpreted in Pareto fashion as a series of possible circumstances explaining the target concept behaviour; and (4) based on these causes, the decision-maker decides on possible corrective actions to improve the situation, or preventive actions to forestall unfavourable conditions. A case study based on an actual quality control database is detailed.     

A Silicon–Silica Nanocomposite Material

The synthesis and characterization of a novel silicon–silica nanocomposite material are reported. A self‐assembly method allows the encapsulation of silicon nanoclusters within the channels of a periodic mesoporous silica thin film. The result is the formation of a silicon–silica nanocomposite film with bright, room‐temperature photoluminescence in the visible range, and a nanosecond luminescence lifetime. The properties of the nanocomposite material have been studied by several analytical techniques, which collectively show the existence within the channels of non‐diamondoid‐structure‐type silicon nanoclusters with various hydrogenated silicon sites. It is estimated that the silicon nanoclusters in the silica mesoporous films occupy up to 39 % of the accessible pore volume. The nanocomposite film shows improved resistance to air oxidation compared to crystalline silicon. The high loading and chemical stability to oxidation under ambient conditions are important advantages in terms of the development of silicon‐based light‐emitting diodes from this class of materials.     

The dependency of calcium set point on basal plasma calcium in dialysis patients: a better explanation for the discrepancies regarding its link with PTH secretion than methodological differences

BACKGROUND: The increase of calcium (Ca) set point in uremic hyperparathyroid patients and its decrease with calcitriol therapy are controversial. Besides methodological differences regarding the experimental protocol for obtaining the sigmoidal curve, mainly differences in definitions of maximal PTH (peak or steady value) and of calcium set point itself have been proposed for the discrepant conclusions. However, two other explanations are possible: the various aluminum load of the patients and the dependency of Ca set point upon the basal plasma ionized calcium (PCa). PATIENTS AND METHODS: Therefore the Ca set point was measured in 2 groups of patients on maintenance dialysis never exposed to aluminum, one of 7 patients with normosecretion of PTH (NPT) and the other of 8 patients with hyperparathyroidism (HPT) before and after 3 intravenous administration of 4 microg of alfacalcidol in a week. The sigmoidal curve was established during a zero Ca dialysis, without Ca replacement for the first 90 minutes and with intravenous infusion of 41 mmoles of Ca during the 150 last minutes. The curvilinear decrease of PCa induced a peak of PTH followed by a decrease while PCa was still decreasing up to the 90th minute. Therefore PTHmax was taken both at the peak and at its lower value observed at the 90th minute (steady PTHmax). Experimental determinations of the Ca set point were made using both definitions of Brown and Felsenfeld and both PTHmax values. In basal conditions, while using any of the values given by the same calculation methodology, Ca set point was not different in NPT and HPT patients. After alfacalcidol, no change in plasma PTH nor in Ca set point was observed in HPT patients. In contrast, in NPT patients alfacalcidol induced a significant decrease of plasma PTH concentrations in association with an increase in basal PCa and in Ca set point, whatever the definitions of the latter and of PTHmax. Calcitriol induced changes in Ca set point and basal PCa were correlated. CONCLUSIONS: 1) In normocalcemic dialysis patients never exposed to aluminium hyperparathyroidism is not explained by an increased Ca set point 2) Calcitriol suppressive effect on PTH secretion is neither explained by a decrease in Ca set point. 3) Ca set point as measured in vivo does not reflect an intrinsic characteristic of the parathyroid glands since it varies with basal PCa. Better than methodological differences, this dependency may explain the discrepant conclusions between the various clinical investigations.     

17O MAS NMR study of 12-molybdophosphoric acid

¹⁷O MAS NMR spectra for¹⁷O enriched solid heteropoly acid H₃PMo₁₂O₄₀ are reported. The oxygen exchange between solid H₃PMo₁₂ ¹⁷O₄₀ and H₂ ¹⁶O vapor at 200–250°C is shown to be accompanied by fast mixing of terminal Mo=O and bridging Mo-O-Mo oxygens in the Keggin unit. The oxygen exchange in H₃PMo₁₂ ¹⁷O₄₀ is much faster than in H₃PW₁₂ ¹⁷O₄₀ in solution as well as in the gas phase.     

Therapeutic strategies in acute myocardial infarction. Results of STIM 93 registry

A registry was set up by the national college of cardiologists practicing in general hospitals in February 1993. The data concerned mode of admission, demographic details, initial clinical and haemodynamic evaluation and hospital outcome. Special attention was given to the electrocardiographic changes before and, in patients receiving thrombolytic therapy, after treatment. An analysis of predictive factors for mortality was performed both in the group of patients "revascularised" and in the group treated conventionally. One thousand and twenty three cases from 327 centres were analysed. There were 1292 men and 531 women, with an average age of 67.9 years. The average time interval from onset of symptoms to hospital admission was 5 h 30 min, 56.8% of patients arriving within 6 hours. 36.4% of the population underwent thrombolysis or angioplasty, 75% of patients under 75 years of age admitted before the 5th hours underwent a procedure of myocardial revascularisation. The hospital mortality was 14%, 8.7% in those revascularised and 17% in patients treated conventionally. Factors predictive of mortality were age, female gender, Killip Classes III or IV, systolic blood pressure of less than 100 mmHg, heart rate of more than 100/min and contraindications of thrombolysis. The maximum ST depression, the sum of ST depression, the sum of ST elevation and depression, were also significant predictive factors of a fatal hospital outcome in the whole population group and in patients treated conventionally. In the reperfused group, only the initial sum of ST elevation and depression was predictive of mortality: 120 minutes after the beginning of thrombolysis, the sum of ST elevations and of elevations and depressions was predictive of twice the mortality when the values exceeded 0.6 mv and 1.4 mv respectively.     

Automatic boosting of cross-product coverage using Bayesian networks

Closing the feedback loop from coverage data to the stimuli generator is one of the main challenges in the verification process. Typically, verification engineers with deep domain knowledge manually prepare a set of stimuli generation directives for that purpose. Bayesian networks based CDG (coverage directed generation) systems have been successfully used to assist the process by automatically closing this feedback loop. However, constructing these CDG systems requires manual effort and a certain amount of domain knowledge from a machine learning specialist. We propose a new method that boosts coverage in the early stages of the verification process with minimal effort, namely a fully automatic construction of a CDG system that requires no domain knowledge. Experimental results on a real-life cross-product coverage model demonstrate the efficiency of the proposed method.