Twin closeness and co-twin risk for substance use disorders: assessing the impact of the equal environment assumption

Studies were conducted from May, 1993 to April, 1995 to determine the changing patterns of infection by the liver fluke, Clonorchis sinensis, among residents and fish hosts in Kyongbuk Province. The infection rate among residents was 7.7% by stool examination. The rate in males (11.3%) was significantly higher than females (4.1%). Positive rate of intradermal test was 27.6% in the same population. The special type of a simple catalytic model was applied for the analysis of intradermal positive reactors by age and sex, and the equation was y = 0.4776 (1 - e-0.0375t) for males and, y = 0.2085 (1 - e-0.0138t) for females. Analysis of stool examination data by two-stage catalytic model revealed y = 0.025 (e-0.00471 - e-0.0235t). The annual Clonorchis infection rate was 4.7 per 1,000 susceptibles and the annual loss rate was 23.5 per 1,000 infected. The frequency distribution by the eggs per gram (EPG) was calculated as well as the cumulative percentages of positives. The regression equations were y = 0.929 + 1.506 log x for males and, y = 0.473 + 1.767 log x for females. Of the 25 fish species, 7 species were infected with Clonorchis metacercariae. Infection rates varied by the species, and ranged from 2.8% in Puntungia herzi to 30.0% in Pseudorasbora parva. Average number of the matacercariae per gram of flesh was 58.1 in P. parva, followed by 10.2 in Gnathopogon atromaculatus, 7.0 in Saurogobio dabryi, and 3.0 in Paracheilognathus rhombea. The present study indicates that clonorchiasis in Kyongbuk Province is less prevalent than that of several decades ago.     

Particle Swarm Optimisation for Protein Motif Discovery

In this paper, a modified particle swarm optimisation algorithm is proposed for protein sequence motif discovery. Protein sequences are represented as a chain of symbols and a protein sequence motif is a short sequence that exists in most of the protein sequence families. Protein sequence symbols are converted into numbers using a one to one amino acid translation table. The simulation uses EGF protein and C2H2 Zinc Finger protein families obtained from the PROSITE database. Simulation results show that the modified particle swarm optimisation algorithm is effective in obtaining global optimum sequence patterns, achieving 96.9 and 99.5 classification accuracy respectively in EGF and C2H2 Zinc Finger protein families. A better true positive hit result is achieved when compared to the motifs published in PROSITE database.     

Dynamical Screening and Electron-Mediated Superconductivity in Intercalated Layered Metallochloronitrides

Metallochloronitrides are layered conductors that have recently been found to superconduct at critical temperatures up to T _c 26 K. It is known that the electron–phonon interaction is small in these systems, so that the conventional pairing mechanism through exchange of phonons is unable to provide for such high T _cs. We show that the dominant contribution to the pairing interaction in these materials comes from the exchange of low-energy collective modes, specific to layered conductors. The existence of such acoustic plasmons results from the incomplete screening of the Coulomb interaction perpendicular to the conducting planes which expresses itself in the dynamical nature of the screened Coulomb interaction.     

Analysis of sustainable materials used in ecovillages: Review of progress in BedZED and Masdar city

This paper explores reclaimed and recycled material used in ecovillages. The models discussed in this paper include BedZED in the United Kingdom and Masdar City in the Middle East. These two communities contain features characterized by the sustainable principles of the ecovillage concept by using non-traditional building materials. The creations of more ecovillages, along with the growth of current ecovillages, play an important role in positively solvening environmental and social problems. The sustainable materials used in the ecovillages also act as a model for communities wishing to implement sustainable development.     

Enhanced dielectric properties of three phase dielectric MWCNTs/BaTiO3/PVDF nanocomposites for energy storage using fused deposition modeling 3D printing

This research studied the effect of fused deposition modeling (FDM) 3D printing on three phase dielectric nanocomposites using poly(vinylidene) fluoride (PVDF), BaTiO₃ (BT), and multiwall carbon nanotubes (CNTs). PVDF polymer and BT ceramics are piezo-, pyro- and di-electric materials extensively used for sensor and energy storage/harvesting applications due to their unique characteristic of dipole polarization. To increase dielectric property, CNTs have been recently utilized for uniform dispersion of BT nanoparticles, ultrahigh polarization density, and local micro-capacitor among matrix. It was proved that 3D printing process provides homogeneous dispersion of nanoparticles, alleviating agglomeration of nanoparticles and reducing micro-crack/voids in matrix which can potentially enhance their dielectric property than traditional methods. In this research, these three-phase nanocomposites are fabricated through FDM 3D printing process and characterized for dielectric property. Increasing both BT and CNT nanoparticles improves dielectric properties, while CNTs have a percolation threshold near 1.7?wt%. The most desirable combination of dielectric constant and loss properties (118 and 0.11 at 1?kHz) is achieved with nanocomposites containing 1.7?wt%-CNT/45?wt%-BT/PVDF. These results provide not only a technique to 3D print dielectric nanocomposites with improved dielectric property but also large-scale electronic device manufacturing possibility with freedom of design, low cost, and faster process.     

Brainstorming Products for the Long-term Future

Research has recently been completed to determine how innovative organisations manage innovation over an extended period into the future. The purpose of the research was to determine what companies active in this area, were doing and, from the results, write the new standard BS 7000 part 1 ‘Guide to Innovation Management’. This paper considers one of the findings that organisations can extend the use of brainstorming as a means for: developing the organisational structure for planning the long-term, and envisaging the types of products and services that may be developed up to three generations ahead – typically ten years in many organisations.     

The weldability of lithium-containing aluminium alloys

Lithium-containing aluminium alloys have reduced density and increased elastic modulus compared with conventional aluminium alloys. Many such alloys are currently under development for aircraft applications, which usually involve mechanical fastening. Consequently, the weldability of lithium-containing aluminium alloys is currently receiving relatively little attention. The weldability of lithium-containing aluminium alloys is reviewed. The vast majority of the welding studies performed have been on the Soviet Al-5 wt% Mg-2 wt% Li alloy, 01420. Alloy 01420 and other lithium-containing aluminium alloys are indeed fusion weldable, and weldments having high joint efficiencies have been made.     

Precision nutrition: weighing feed ingredients correctly

The ability to mix a quality feed is often equated to the quality of the mixer; the ability to weigh ingredients correctly has received little attention. To assess how accurately feed mills weigh their ingredients, 14 feed mills specialising in swine diets were surveyed, which yielded 8432 data points (for 229 ingredients and 11–44 batch records per ingredient within mills). Amounts actually weighed (according to scale readings) were compared to calls, and differences were analysed statistically. Feed mills overdosed ingredients by 1.5 ± 16.3%: between mills, overdosing ranged from ?0.7 to 13.0%. Within ingredients, weighing variation ranged from 0.6 to 11.1% between mills and averaged 5.2%. Some of the weighing problems observed were attributed to discrepancies between the call size and the scale resolution. For example, weighing 11.3 units (pounds) on a scale with a 2 unit resolution leads to a minimum error of 6%. Such problems occurred for 8.7% of the calls and resulted in a minimum error ranging from 0.01 to 20%, averaging 1.95%. Poor choice of scales was the major source of errors in weighing, and the relationship weighing variation = 10^∧ [1.56 ? 0.50 log (call/scale resolution)] explained 40% of the variation observed (p < 0.05). Weighing ingredients in the right scale would thus not only benefit feed quality but also reduce diet cost, as it would reduce the overdosing of ingredients. © 2001 Society of Chemical Industry