A systematic transition to flexible manufacturing

The transition from basic automation to flexible manufacturing is an expensive and tedious procedure. It requires meticulous planning and almost clairvoyant forecasting to insure that the initial flexibility obtained is sufficient to allow growth and expansion in the future. This paper will suggest a systematic and methodological approach to achieve optimal flexibility and describe the present results of its application to an ongoing system transformation.

Conclusions based on existing levels of completion are presented along with identification of critical and non critical flexibility requirements. The considerations and steps taken are summarized in a procedural format which may then be applied to a wide variety of system transformations.     

Religious Participation, Interleukin-6, and Mortality in Older Adults.

This study prospectively examined the relationship between religious attendance, interleukin-6 (IL-6) levels, and mortality rates in a community-based sample of 557 older adults. Attending religious services more than once weekly was a significant predictor of lower subsequent 12-year mortality and elevated IL-6 levels (> 3.19 pg/mL), with a mortality ratio of .32 (95% confidence interval [CI] = 0.15,0.72; p     

Determination of optimal feedback terminal controllers for general boundary conditions using generating functions

Given a nonlinear system and a performance index to be minimized, we present a general approach to expressing the finite time optimal feedback control law applicable to different types of boundary conditions. Starting from the necessary conditions for optimality represented by a Hamiltonian system, we solve the Hamilton-Jacobi equation for a generating function for a specific canonical transformation. This enables us to obtain the optimal feedback control for fundamentally different sets of boundary conditions only using a series of algebraic manipulations and partial differentiations. Furthermore, the proposed approach reveals an insight that the optimal cost functions for a given dynamical system can be decomposed into a single generating function that is only a function of the dynamics plus a term representing the boundary conditions. This result is formalized as a theorem. The whole procedure provides an advantage over methods rooted in dynamic programming, which require one to solve the Hamilton-Jacobi-Bellman equation repetitively for each type of boundary condition. The cost of this favorable versatility is doubling the dimension of the partial differential equation to be solved.     

Reducing radiotoxicity in the long run

Stockpiles of spent nuclear fuel and weapons material are growing worldwide. So far, the only long-term strategy seriously considered is geological repository for several hundred thousand years. Transmutation is an option significantly reducing the time during which repositories have to be sealed, simplifying the task of protecting future generations from the radioactive remnants of our civilisation. This paper gives an overview of motives and priorities, and describes the main technique suggested for transmutation of nuclear waste.     

Potential applications of poly(vinyl alcohol)‐congo red aqueous solutions and hydrogels as liquids for hydraulic fracturing

The authors report on the viscoelastic characterization of guar hydrogels obtained through complexation reactions with borax ions. These gels are compared with hydrogels obtained from poly(vinyl alcohol) of different degree of hydrolysis through complexation reactions with congo red. The effect of the degree of hydrolysis and both, the concentration of PVA and the concentration of congo red, on the viscoelastic properties of the hydrogels is analyzed. The potential use of the PVA‐based hydrogels as hydraulic fracturing liquids is discussed in relation to the commonly used fracturing liquid based on the guar–borax system. © 2008 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci, 2008     

The End of Black and White

It's no longer just black hats or white hats in computer security. The more someone has to lose, the less likely they should be to trust the computer. It means that all people, all programs, all transactions are shades of grey. Black and white are just a memory.     

Professionally-led support groups for cancer patients: an intervention in search of a model

OBJECTIVE: The objective of this review was to evaluate the clinical and research literature on professionally-led support groups for cancer patients and to propose an approach that would address patients' needs from diagnosis through survivorship. METHOD: Computerized and manual searches, including Medline and Psychlit searches, were completed for reviews of the literature. Twelve research studies were identified that met our criteria for in-depth review. A clinical model emerged from discussions of an oncology study group based on theoretical formulations and clinical experience with oncology patients. RESULTS: We found that recent research suggests that professionally-led support groups are increasing in number and that participation in such groups seems to enhance patients' quality, and possibly even quantity, of survival. Despite this, little effort has been made to determine what type of group may be appropriate for which patients and when in their course of care. CONCLUSIONS: If psychosocial intervention, in the form of professionally-led support groups for cancer patients, is to be more effective, it should be guided by a model which takes into consideration the changing needs and concerns of patients over the course of illness and, in many cases, recovery. The authors present an outline delineating what such a model might entail.     

Immunolocalization of natriuretic peptide receptor B in the rat kidney

The natriuretic peptide receptor (NPR) family consists of three receptor subtypes: two transmembrane forms that contain a guanylyl cyclase intracellular domain (NPR-A and NPR-B), and one truncated form (NPR-C). Because of the lack of specific agonists and antagonists for each receptor subtype and to the difficulty to detect the presence of small quantities of NPR-B by ligand binding studies, polyclonal antibodies against a peptide whose sequence was chosen from a region of the extracellular domain of rat NPR-B that is not homologous to sequences in NPR-A and NPR-C were developed. Western blotting with affinity-purified anti-NPR-B (413-426)-Tyr revealed a polypeptide of approximately 120 kD on COS-1 cell membranes transfected with rat NPR-B cDNA. The antibody recognized a second polypeptide, approximately 5 to 10 kD smaller, which probably represents the unglycosylated receptor. Anti-NPR-B (413-426)-Tyr did not show crossreactivity to any other NPR. Western blotting analysis with anti-NPR-B (413-426)-Tyr also identified a protein of appropriate size in renal vascular membranes. These results were supported by immunohistochemistry findings that demonstrated staining for NPR-B on papillary and medullary capillaries, glomeruli, and renal arteries. This study concludes that NPR-B is present in the rat kidney, although it was only detected in vascular structures.     

Hindshaker, a novel myelin mutant showing hypomyelination preferentially affecting the spinal cord

Animals with spontaneous mutations affecting myelin formation have provided useful information about the genetic and cellular mechanisms regulating normal and abnormal myelination. In this paper we describe a novel murine mutation termed hindshaker (hsh), which is inherited in an autosomal recessive manner. Affected mice are characterised by a variable tremor of the hind end which commences at about 2 weeks of age and largely disappears in animals older than 6 weeks. There is hypomyelination affecting predominantly the spinal cord, although the optic nerves and brain are involved to a much lesser degree. The defect of thinly myelinated and naked axons is maximal at 20 days of age and largely resolves with time so that in the adult most axons are myelinated. The myelin structure appears normal and immunostains for the major proteins. Although the distribution of oligodendrocytes in the spinal cord is similar to normal during the period of hypomyelination, there are fewer mature cells. The hsh mutation appears to delay the maturation of oligodendrocytes, particularly in the spinal cord. Additionally, there is a considerable variation in phenotypic expression and in penetrance when the mutation is expressed on different genetic backgrounds, suggesting the hsh locus is subject to the influence of modifying gene(s). Identification of the hsh gene should identify a factor important in the development of oligodendrocytes, particularly those in the spinal cord.     

Religion's role in adjustment to a negative life event: Coping with the loss of a child.

Parents (N?=?124) who had lost an infant to sudden infant death syndrome were interviewed 3 wks and 18 mo postloss. Two components of religion (religious participation and religious importance) were assessed, and their relations with 3 coping-process variables (perceived social support, cognitive processing of the loss, and finding meaning in the death) were examined. Greater religious participation was related to increased perception of social support and greater meaning found in the loss. Importance of religion was positively related to cognitive processing and finding meaning in the death. Furthermore, through these coping-process variables, religious participation and importance were indirectly related to greater well-being and less distress among parents 18 mo after their infants' deaths. Results suggest that further study of the social and cognitive aspects of religion would be profitable. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)