Two‐dimensional gel electrophoresis of apolipoprotein C‐III and other serum glycoproteins for the combined screening of human congenital disorders of O‐ and N‐glycosylation

Congenital disorders of glycosylation (CDG) are inherited diseases that can affect not only the N‐glycan (e.g. CDG type I and II) but also the O‐glycan biosynthesis pathway. In the absence of specific clinical symptoms, there is a need for a reliable biological screening of these two groups of CDG. Using a few microlitres of human serum, 2‐DE and immunoblotting were applied to the separation and simultaneous detection of the isoforms of the O‐glycosylated protein apolipoprotein C‐III (apoC‐III) and of four N‐glycosylated proteins, namely alpha‐antitrypsin, alpha‐1 acid glycoprotein, haptoglobin and transferrin. For the study of O‐glycosylation, this technique allowed the reliable separation of the three fractions of apoC‐III and the determination of normal percentage values in an adult population. Concerning N‐glycosylation, the study of serum samples from patients with CDG type Ia revealed marked abnormalities systematically affecting the four 2‐DE separated N‐linked glycoproteins. 2‐DE coupled to immunoblotting using a mixture of specific antibodies could be easily and reliably employed for the combined screening of both N‐ and O‐glycosylation disorders in humans.     

Cost‐effectiveness of ergonomic interventions in production

Early cost–benefit analysis of ergonomic interventions in manufacturing is in the interest of the production management and the ergonomics specialist. Because of the variety of factors and the complexity to quantify these factors, this task is not an easy one. In this article we present a case study that illustrates that the economic benefits of ergonomics may easily overwhelm the costs because of the gain in productivity and quality, not to the economic gain associated with improved health. Finally, we propose a decision tool that addresses the relevant factors in the cost–benefit analysis of ergonomics. It gives Internet support to company managers and human factor specialists to make an economic analysis prior to the start of an ergonomic intervention project. © 2010 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

Evaluation of liquid‐crystal‐display motion blur with moving‐picture response time and human perception

Abstract— The moving‐picture response time (MPRT) for measuring liquid‐crystal‐display (LCD) motion blur was studied by several organizations in 2001. To determine the LCD motion blur that humans perceive, subjective evaluation experiments using the method of adjustment was conducted to find a strong correlation between perceived motion blur and extended blurred edge time (EBET) of the MPRT measurements. MPRT thus clearly indicates the degree of which humans perceive motion blur.     

A two‐level detector of short‐term unique changes in time series based on a similarity method

In the paper, a novel two‐level algorithm of time‐series change detection is presented. In the first level, to identify non‐stationary sequences in a processed signal, preliminary detection of events is performed with a short‐term prediction comparison. In the second stage, to confirm the changes detected in the first level, a similarity method aimed at identification of unique changes is employed. The detection of changes in a non‐stationary time series is discussed, implemented algorithms are described and the results produced on a sample four financial time series are shown. General conditions for implementing the proposed algorithm as an immune‐like event detector are discussed.     

Prevalence and associated risk factors of low‐back pain in textile fishing net manufacturing

This study examined the 7‐day prevalence of low‐back pain (LBP; i.e., pain within the preceding week of the survey) and identified associated factors, including working posture, for a population of fishing net assembly workers. LBP is a serious problem in manual work with high prevalence and affects worker absenteeism. A cross‐sectional survey study was conducted among textile fish net industrial workers using a structured questionnaire (hand delivered by researchers and independently completed by workers). The 7‐day prevalence of LBP in this study was 68.6% (95% confidence interval [CI]: 65 to 72%). Work factors significantly related to LBP included prolonged standing and walking. Workers 35 years old or greater were significantly more likely to experience LBP within the past 7 days preceding the survey than were those 34 years old or less (adjusted odds ratio [ORadj] = 4.9; 95% CI: 2.4 to 10.3; p = .0001). Other significant factors associated with LBP included posture position, specifically stooping (ORadj = 1.6; 95% CI: 1.0 to 2.3; p = .033), lifting (ORadj = 1.6; 95% CI: 1.1 to 2.4; p = .025), and high concentration jobs (ORadj = 1.9; 95% CI: 1.3 to 2.7; p = .001), respectively. LBP among textile fish net workers is a serious problem meriting ergonomic evaluation and design of control measures for reducing worker exposure to risk factors. Work characteristics were more significantly associated with LBP than were individual characteristics. Factories need to consider adjusting work conditions to prevent worker low‐back injuries. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

Evaluation of single‐, pre‐emphasis,and dual‐driving methods in large‐sized TFT‐LCDs

Abstract— As the panel size and the frame frequency of TFT‐LCDs increases, driving issues become much more important for larger‐sized and higher‐resolution TFT‐LCDs. In our previous paper, the pre‐emphasis driving method was proposed to shorten the driving time of the data line with heavy loads of the large‐sized TFT‐LCDs. This paper proposes a simulation model based on the evaluation results of the developed pre‐emphasis source driver, and the issues of driving the data line with heavy loads are reviewed. The single‐, pre‐emphasis, and dual‐driving methods are compared in terms of their driving time and power consumption for large‐sized TFT‐LCDs with various resistances and capacitances of the data lines. At a panel load of 250‐pF capacitance and 15‐kΩ resistance in full‐HD resolution, the pre‐emphasis driving can reduce the pixel driving time to 66% with a 54% increase in the analog power consumption.     

Development of 100‐in. TFT‐LCDs for HDTV and public‐information‐display applications

Abstract— LCDs have achieved a full‐high‐definition resolution of 1920 × 1080 (16:9), 600‐nit brightness, 3000:1 dynamic contrast ratio, 92% color gamut, 178° viewing angle, and 5‐msec response time at all gray levels and are targeted for HDTV and public‐information‐display applications. Some unique technologies, such as Cu bus line, advanced wide view polarizer, and wide‐color‐gamut lamp, were applied. A new stitching‐free technology was developed to overcome the size limitation of the photomask in both the TFT and color‐filter processes. The size of the panel (100 in.), based on the wide format (16:9), is determined by the maximum efficiency of the world's first seventh‐generation line (glass size, 1950 × 2250 mm) in LG.Philips LCD's (LPL) Paju display cluster. The issues facing 100‐in. TFT‐LCDs will be discussed.     

Color management of reflective‐type LCDs in terms of adaptation of the human visual system to light‐source variation

We have investigated the color management, in terms of the color adoption property of the human visual system, of a reflective‐type TFT‐LCD (R‐LCD). Since the R‐LCD depends on ambient light as the light source, it is expected that the colorimetric color on the R‐LCD must be changed if the source of the ambient light is changed. However, due to the adaptation property of the human visual system, the eye does not perceive colorimetrically corrected colors as the same color even for an R‐LCD. In this research, first, we conducted a subjective experiment to obtain the RGB code value that is required in order to display a corresponding color on the R‐LCD under varying ambient‐light conditions. The result of the experiment shows that the corresponding color of the experimental results was reasonably approximated by the color obtained by using the von Kries model. Secondly, we proposed a color‐compensating mechanism that is described as a cascaded simple 3 × 3 linear matrix. Actual colors displayed are adjusted according to the ambient light. The evaluation of the picture quality of the R‐LCD showed that the proposed model is effective.     

Distance‐based undirected formations of single‐integrator and double‐integrator modeled agents in n‐dimensional space

We study the local asymptotic stability of undirected formations of single‐integrator and double‐integrator modeled agents based on interagent distance control. First, we show that n‐dimensional undirected formations of single‐integrator modeled agents are locally asymptotically stable under a gradient control law. The stability analysis in this paper reveals that the local asymptotic stability does not require the infinitesimal rigidity of the formations. Second, on the basis of the topological equivalence of a dissipative Hamiltonian system and a gradient system, we show that the local asymptotic stability of undirected formations of double‐integrator modeled agents in n‐dimensional space is achieved under a gradient‐like control law. Simulation results support the validity of the stability analysis. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Investigation of an albumin‐enriched fraction of human serum and its albuminome

The removal of albumin and other high abundance proteins is a routine first step in the analysis of serum and plasma proteomes. However, as albumin can bind proteins and peptides, there is a universal concern as to how the serum proteome is changed by the removal of albumin. To address this concern, the current study was designed to identify proteins and peptides removed from the serum during albumin depletion; to determine which of these are bound to albumin (rather than copurified) and whether the bound proteins are intact proteins or peptide fragments. Sequential, independent analyses including both anti‐albumin antibody (anti‐HSA) affinity chromatography and SEC were used to isolate albumin‐bound proteins. RP‐HPLC and 1‐D SDS‐PAGE were then used to further separate the proteins prior to identification by MS/MS. Finally, whole protein molecular weight (MW) MS measurements coupled with protein coverage obtained by MS were combined to assess whether the bound proteins were intact or peptide fragments. Combining the results from multiple approaches, 35 proteins, of which 24 are intact, were found to be associated with albumin, and they include both known high and low abundance proteins.     

Prototyping and optical evaluation of 9‐in. OCB time‐division‐multiplexing 18‐view 3‐D display

Abstract— An integral imaging time‐division‐multiplexing 18‐view 3‐D display based on the one‐dimensional integral‐imaging (1‐D‐II) technique using a 9‐in. OCB‐LCD, lenticular sheet, and active shutter has been developed. By simulating a lens shape and a shutter structure and analyzing the light‐beam profile of the increasing‐parallax‐number region to find the best conditions, depth range, and viewing angle were an enhanced and a brighter and flicker‐less 3‐D image with smooth motion parallax was obtained.     

Effects of localized warpage and stress on chip‐on‐glass packaging: Induced light‐leakage phenomenon in mid‐sized TFT‐LCD

Abstract— Mura defects become visible in a 13.3‐in. TFT‐LCD using chip‐on‐glass (COG) packaging when the thickness of the glass substrate is decreased from 0.5 to 0.3 mm. Mura, the non‐uniform brightness in LCDs, is caused by COG packaging due to the mismatch of the coefficient of thermal expansion (CTE) and Young's modulus between the glass substrate and the IC‐driver Si chips. In this paper, a 3‐D finite‐element‐analysis (FEA) model, coupled with transient thermal analysis is first established to examine the warpage and stress behavior in the upper‐glass‐plate post‐COG‐package processing for identifying the root causes of the light‐leakage phenomenon. Prior to that, the simulated warpage results are validated by surface‐contour measurement. Data and modeling results show that a low bonding temperature together with a low modulus in novel ACF materials can effectively eliminate Mura. Besides, thinner silicon or a shorter length of Si chips as drivers offers enhanced reduction in the localized warpage, and thus can be a practical and low‐cost solution for eliminating mura defects.     

Influence of 3‐D cross‐talk on qualified viewing spaces in two‐ and multi‐view autostereoscopic displays

Abstract— To estimate the qualified viewing spaces for two‐ and multi‐view autostereoscopic displays, the relationship between image quality (image comfort, annoying ghost image, depth perception) and various pairings between 3‐D cross‐talk in the left and right views are studied subjectively using a two‐view autostereoscopic display and test charts for the left and right views with ghost images due to artificial 3‐D cross‐talk. The artificial 3‐D cross‐talk was tuned to simulate the view in the intermediate zone of the viewing spaces. It was shown that the stereoscopic images on a two‐view autostereoscopic display cause discomfort when they are observed by the eye in the intermediate zone between the viewing spaces. This is because the ghost image due to large 3‐D cross‐talk in the intermediate zone elicits different depth perception from the depth induced by the original images for the left and right views, so the observer's depth perception is confused. Image comfort is also shown to be better for multi‐views, especially the width of the viewing space, which is narrower than the interpupillary distance, where the parallax of the cross‐talking image is small.     

Control of near‐grazing dynamics and discontinuity‐induced bifurcations in piecewise‐smooth dynamical systems

This paper develops a rigorous control paradigm for regulating the near‐grazing bifurcation behavior of limit cycles in piecewise‐smooth dynamical systems. In particular, it is shown that a discrete‐in‐time linear feedback correction to a parameter governing a state‐space discontinuity surface can suppress discontinuity‐induced fold bifurcations of limit cycles that achieve near‐tangential intersections with the discontinuity surface. The methodology ensures a persistent branch of limit cycles over an interval of parameter values near the critical condition of tangential contact that is an order of magnitude larger than that in the absence of control. The theoretical treatment is illustrated with a harmonically excited damped harmonic oscillator with a piecewise‐linear spring stiffness as well as with a piecewise‐nonlinear model of a capacitively excited mechanical oscillator. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.