Human resource optimisation through semantically enriched data

The industrial domain is experiencing a so-called fourth industrial revolution in which the evergrowing complexity of manufacturing information, the increasing amount of knowledge and the use of web-oriented techniques, represent three crucial factors that are accelerating the growth of complexity of industrial systems. On the other hand, continuous-evolving requirements in industrial environments, due to technology outbreaks and a new global marketplace, have led to an on-going evolution of human resource management through the creation and adoption of alternative business models. In the past decade, semantic models such as ontologies have been proven to be effective for many knowledge-intensive applications, since they provide formal models of domain knowledge that can be exploited in different ways. For all these reasons, an innovative human resource optimisation (HRO) engine is introduced, which employs semantically enhanced information and conditional random field (CRFs) probabilistic models with knowledge derived from industrial shop floor level, and proposes the right person for the right job in real-time shop floor operations towards optimising decisions on how to implement and schedule either repeatedly or non-occurring tasks. Industrial information data flow and semantic enrichment were ensured through the combined use of a common interface data exchange model (CIDEM) and ontologies, after which a feasibility study at a chemical plant presented interesting preliminary results.     

Conservative approach to inflammatory nasofrontal duct disease

Endoscopic data reveal that mucosal disease frequently recurs following the surgical treatment of chronic diffuse hyperplastic frontal sinus and nasofrontal duct disease. However, this group of patients often remains asymptomatic. We present 40 patients who underwent endoscopic sinus surgery with a 4-year mean follow-up. Postoperative endoscopy revealed mucosal disease within the frontal recess in 39 of the 40 (97.5%) patients; however, only 3 of the 40 (7.5%) were symptomatic. Of these 3 patients, 1 underwent revision surgery. Historical information demonstrates the potential for significant nasofrontal duct stenosis associated with such revision surgery. On the basis of our initial results, endoscopic observation and medical therapy seem to be successful in controlling the symptoms associated with this disease process.     

Melanocortin peptides inhibit production of proinflammatory cytokines and nitric oxide by activated microglia

This brief history of the dental diamond bur is intended to provide both a historical perspective and an evaluation of the current state of bur technology. An understanding of the origins of dental diamonds and the issues facing manufacturers transforms the dentist from a simple user into an informed consumer. The author contends that this can improve dental care and enable the dentist to collaborate with manufacturers in developing improved dental burs.     

Epileptic skew deviation

We describe a 43-year-old neurologically intact patient who reported episodes of diplopia and oscillopsia associated with a right-beating nystagmus and a skew deviation. These symptoms and signs were related to a left posterior epileptic EEG discharge. We suggest that these ocular motor signs derived from an ictal activation of the vestibular cortex, which in turn activated descending projections to the vestibular nuclei, leading to both a dynamic (right-beating nystagmus) and a static (skew deviation) vestibular imbalance.     

Evaluation of Citrus aurantifolia peel and leaves extracts for their chemical composition,antioxidant and anti‐cholinesterase activities

BACKGROUND: The replacement of synthetic antioxidants by safe natural antioxidants fosters research on the screening of vegetables and food as sources of new antioxidants. Moreover, oxidative degeneration of cells is associated with neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer's disease. On the basis of these considerations this work aimed to investigate the antioxidant properties [by using the diphenyl picryl hydrazyl, 2,2′‐azino‐bis(3‐ethylbenzothiazoline‐6‐sulfonic acid) and ferric reducing ability of plasma assays, and the β‐carotene bleaching test] and the anti‐cholinesterase activity of Citrus aurantifolia peel and leaves from different areas of growth. RESULTS: Methanol extracts of the peel and leaves demonstrated the strongest radical scavenging activity. A similar trend was observed with the reducing ability, with values from 112.1 to 146.0 µmol L^?1 Fe(II) g^?1. The relationship between phenol and flavonoid contents and antioxidant activity was statistically investigated. Based on analysis by high‐performance liquid chromatography, the most abundant flavonoids found in C. aurantifolia extracts were apigenin, rutin, quercetin, kaempferol and nobiletin. n‐Hexane fractions of both peel and leaves showed a good acetylcholinesterase inhibitory activity with IC₅₀ values in the range 91.4‐107.4 µg mL^?1. Gas chromatography‐mass spectrometry analysis revealed the presence of monoterpenes and sesquiterpenes as most common components. CONCLUSION: The findings of this study suggest a potential use of C. aurantifolia peel and leaves for supplements for human health. Copyright © 2012 Society of Chemical Industry     

Analytical reconstruction scheme for the coarse-mesh solution generated by the spectral nodal method for neutral particle discrete ordinates transport model in slab geometry

Coarse-mesh numerical methods are very efficient in the sense that they generate accurate results in short computational time, as the number of floating point operations generally decrease, as a result of the reduced number of mesh points. On the other hand, they generate numerical solutions that do not give detailed information on the problem solution profile, as the grid points can be located considerably away from each other. In this paper we describe two steps for the analytical reconstruction of the coarse-mesh solution generated by the spectral nodal method for neutral particle discrete ordinates (S_N) transport model in slab geometry. The first step of the algorithm is based on the analytical reconstruction of the coarse-mesh solution within each discretization cell of the grid set up on the spatial domain. The second step is based on the angular reconstruction of the discrete ordinates solution between two contiguous ordinates of the angular quadrature set used in the S_N model. Numerical results are given so we can illustrate the accuracy of the two reconstruction techniques, as described in this paper.     

Chemical fingerprinting and bioactivity of Amazonian Ecuador Croton lechleri Müll. Arg. (Euphorbiaceae) stem bark essential oil: A new functional food ingredient?

Croton lechleri essential oil has been obtained by steam distillation of fresh stem bark from Amazonian Ecuador adult plants (yield: 0.61 ml/kg [0.061%]; density: 1.01 g/ml), and then chemically characterised by GC (Gas Chromatography) and GC–MS (gas chromatography–mass spectrometry). Seventy-four chemicals were detected and identified; the most abundant in descending order, were the sesquiterpenes sesquicineole (17.29%), α-calacorene (11.29%), 1,10-di-epi-cubenol (4.75%), β-calacorene (4.34%) and epi-cedrol (4.09%). Monoterpenes checked with a relative peak area higher than 2.0% were α-pinene (2.01%), p-cymene (2.61%), limonene (4.20%) and borneol (2.67%). The structure of the main chemicals were confirmed by GC–MS and ¹H NMR analyses. Spectrophotometric 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) and DPPH-(high performance) thin layer chromatography (DPPH-(HP)TLC) bioautographic assays showed a lower radical scavenging capacity (IC₅₀) with respect to commercial thyme essential oil and BHA (butylated hydroxyl anisole), pointing out, however, that the C. lechleri essential oil fraction, characterised by α-calacorene, β-calacorene and δ-cadalene, was the most involved in the bioactivity. Similar results were obtained with β-carotene bleaching assay, where the IC₅₀ values were 0.291 ± 0.024 mg/ml for C. lechleri essential oil, 0.164 ± 0.013 and 1.34 × 10⁻⁴ ± 10⁻⁵ mg/ml for thyme essential oil and BHA, respectively. (HP)TLC-bioautographic assay performed with Gram positive and Gram negative bacteria revealed a minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) values comprised between 0.10 mg/ml (Escherichia coli) and 10.10 mg/ml (for e.g. Pseudomonas aeruginosa), and the fraction mainly characterised by sesquicineole (97.38%) as the most involved in antibacterial capacity. Ames test employing Salmonella typhimurium TA98 and TA100 with and without a metabolic activation mixture (S9 mix) demonstrated the absence of mutagenicity of the C. lechleri essential oil between a concentration range of 10⁻² and 100 mg/plate. The same results were achieved by Saccharomyces cerevisiae D7 strain assay. An interesting mutagen-protective efficacy was evidenced by a 30% and 33% revertants reduction of TA98 strain treated with 2-aminoanthracene and nitrofluorene (2 μg/plate), suggesting, above all, the possibility to employ C. lechleri essential oil as a new flavouring protective ingredient for foods or dietary supplements against potential mutagens formed during cooking and/or processing in general.     

Geothermal contribution to greenhouse heating

Plant freezing and plant-growth inhibition are among the major problems in greenhouse cultivation in the central part of Argentina. The possibility of using a constant temperature underground geothermal water source, which flows naturally, has been studied as an economic option to solve these problems. A system of heating by means of geothermal energy, with energy-conservation measures, was designed and evaluated for typical production greenhouses in the southern part of Córdoba, Argentina. The results of tests carried out during 3 years are presented. These results are really promising, taking into account the high benefit/cost relation of the design and the availability of similar geothermal resources in many farms of this region.     

Mechano‐ and Photochromism from Bulk to Nanoscale: Data Storage on Individual Self‐Assembled Ribbons

A Pt(II) complex, bearing an oligo‐ethyleneoxide pendant, is able to self‐assemble in ultralong ribbons that display mechanochromism upon nanoscale mechanical stimuli, delivered through atomic force microscopy (AFM). Such observation paves the way to fine understanding and manipulation of the mechanochromic properties of such material at the nanoscale. AFM allows quantitative assessment of nanoscale mechanochromism as arising from static pressure (piezochromism) and from shear‐based mechanical stimuli (tribochromism), and to compare them with bulk pressure‐dependent luminescence observed with diamond‐anvil cell (DAC) technique. Confocal spectral imaging reveals that mechanochromism only takes place within short distance from the localized mechanical stimulation, which allows to design high‐density information writing with AFM nanolithography applied on individual self‐assembled ribbons. Each ribbon hence serves as an individual microsystem for data storage. The orange luminescence of written information displays high contrast compared to cyan native luminescence; moreover, it can be selectively excited with visible light. In addition, ribbons show photochromism, i.e., the emission spectrum changes upon exposure to light, in a similar way as upon mechanical stress. Photochromism is here conveniently used to conceal and eventually erase information previously written with nanolithography by irradiation.