Involving users in the development of a modeling language for customer journeys

Software and Systems Modeling - Although numerous methods for handling the technical aspects of developing domain-specific modeling languages (DSMLs) have been formalized, user needs and usability...     

Removal of cyanobacteria, cyanotoxins, heterotrophic bacteria and endotoxins at an operating surface water treatment plant.

The removal of cyanobacteria, hepatotoxins produced by them (microcystins), phytoplankton, heterotrophic bacteria and endotoxins were monitored at a surface water treatment plant with coagulation, clarification, sand filtration, ozonation, slow sand filtration and chlorination as the treatment process. Coagulation-sand filtration reduced microcystins by 1.2-2.4, and endotoxins by 0.72-2.01 log10 units. Ozonation effectively removed the residual microcystins. The treatment process reduced phytoplankton biomass by 2.2-4.6 and heterotrophic bacteria by 2.0-5.0 log10 units. In treated water, the concentration of microcystins never exceeded the WHO guide value (1 microg/L), but picoplankton and monad cells were often detected in high numbers. The heterotrophic bacterial isolates from the treated waters belonged to genera Sphingomonas, Pseudomonas, Bacillus, Herbaspirillum and Bosea.     

Collagenous colitis and Yersinia enterocolitica infection

Collagenous colitis is a rare clinical and pathological entity characterized by watery diarrhea and deposition of collagen beneath the surface epithelium of the colon. Its etiology is unknown. We present a careful retrospective clinicopathological analysis of six patients with collagenous colitis diagnosed at our hospital during a three-year period. Three of the patients had had a Yersinia enterocolitica infection, detected by stool culture and elevated serum antibody titers, preceding the diagnosis of collagenous colitis. Four patients had duodenal villous atrophy, which in two patients was refractory to a gluten-free diet. We propose that Yersinia enterocolitica infection may be a triggering factor for the development of collagenous colitis in some cases. Duodenal villous atrophy not responding to gluten withdrawal is common in association with collagenous colitis.     

Incorporation of fibres in geothermal well cements

Fibre-reinforced cements are of potential value in geothermal well cementing jobs due to their ability to withstand higher tensile stresses than conventional cements. Screening tests were performed to evaluate different fibre types with the objective of identifying systems offering the greatest improvement in cement tensile strength. The fibres investigated included steel, stainless steel, carbon, basalt and glass. The baseline cement matrix was standard Class G cement/40% silica flour and variations on this were latex-modification and lightweight formulations incorporating either perlite or microspheres. The fibres that showed the best performance at low volume fraction were 13 mm brass-coated round steel fibres. Steel and carbon microfibres also improved the tensile strength provided the volume fraction was high enough. Thermal and hydraulic properties of cements reinforced with steel fibres were measured and compared with unreinforced mixes. Based on the results, selected fibre types will be used in further property characterization studies and engineering analysis of geothermal wells completed with fibre-reinforced materials.     

Optimal nutrition in lactating women and its effect on later health of offspring: A systematic review of current evidence and recommendations (EarlyNutrition project)

Background: EarlyNutrition (www.project-earlynutrition.eu) is an international research consortium investigating the effects of early nutrition on metabolic programming. Objective: To summarize current evidence and standards, recommendations, guidelines, and regulations on nutrition or supplements in lactating women with emphasis placed on long-term health effects in offspring, including cardiovascular disease, hypertension, overweight/obesity, metabolic syndrome, diabetes, or glucose intolerance. Methods: Medline, Embase, selected databases and websites were searched for documents published between 2010 and 2015. Results: Thirteen documents met the inclusion criteria. Effects of maternal long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acid (LC-PUFA) supplementation on overweight/obesity or hypertension in offspring were assessed in 10 studies. One study described the effect of maternal vitamin D supplementation on overweight/obesity, and the remaining 2 studies assessed the effects of maternal probiotic/synbiotic supplementation during lactation on overweight/obesity or metabolic syndrome in their infants. Forty-one documents contained dietary recommendations on various macro- and micronutrients for lactating women, but without consideration of our long-term health outcomes in infants. Conclusion: Literature on nutrition of lactating women and its effect on their infants' later health with respect to metabolic programming outcomes appeared to be scarce, and focused mostly on supplementation of LC-PUFA's. No recent guidelines or recommendations were available, highlighting the significant research gaps regarding this topic.     

Quality Indicators for Crisis Communication to Support Emergency Management by Public Authorities

The purpose of this paper is to develop a framework for performance indicators to measure and improve crisis communication preparedness of public authorities. Such an instrument supporting organizational learning has not yet been developed for crisis communication. Literature is used to create a basis and the framework is derived from a process model with various phases integrating communication activities with crisis management. In the paper, the development of the instrument is explained and justified. Furthermore, an example of its use is provided in which the instrument is used for an auditor evaluation of a water contamination case. A next step for future research could be to analyze and compare a number of measurements.     

Characterisation of the anti-microbial activity of bovine milk ribonuclease4 and ribonuclease5 (angiogenin)

Two members of the ribonucleaseA (RNaseA) family were identified in cows' milk. RNase5, already known to be present, was found at concentrations between 3 and 19 μg mL^?1. RNase4, which was not previously known to be in milk, was found at concentrations between 1 and 4 μg mL^?1. These proteins were purified from milk. Purified RNase5 suppressed the growth of Candida albicans, particularly its hyphal form, but not any other microbes tested. The concentrations required to suppress growth were higher than those found in milk. RNase4 had no growth suppression activity. Both RNases reduced the number of viable C. albicans cells, with RNase5 being the more potent. This activity was abrogated by physiological concentrations of NaCl. Although both RNases bound to C. albicans cell membrane, their mode of action was not through membrane lysis or permeabilization. Together, these results suggest that the bovine milk RNases do not have intrinsic anti-microbial activity in milk.     

Characterization of p‐coumarate accumulation,p‐coumaroyl transferase,and cell wall changes during the development of corn stems

BACKGROUND: Developmental changes occur in corn (Zea mays L.) stems from cell initiation to fully mature cell types. During cell wall maturation the lignin is acylated with p‐coumarates (pCA). This work describes characterization studies of the p‐coumaroylation process in relation to corn stem development. RESULTS: Corn plants from three locations were harvested and tissues were analyzed from all nodes and even‐numbered internodes above soil line. Changes in carbohydrates reflect a shift to lignification at the expense of structural polysaccharide synthesis. Accumulation of pCA paralleled the incorporation of lignin while ferulate (FA) remained relatively constant as a proportion of the cell wall (5–7 g kg^?1 CW). The p‐coumaroyl transferase (pCAT), which is responsible for attaching pCA to lignin monomers, displayed maximum levels of activity in the middle region of the stem (internodes 10–12, 2–3 nmol L^?1 min^?1 mg^?1). The syringyl content as a proportion of the total lignin did not change significantly with cell wall maturation although there was a trend towards increased amounts of syringyl units in the more mature cell walls. CONCLUSIONS: Incorporation of pCA into corn cell walls not only mirrored lignification but the pCAT activity as well. Levels of pCAT activity may be an indicator of rapid lignification specifically for syringyl type lignin. Copyright © 2008 Society of Chemical Industry     

Activation of carbon dioxide on Fe-catalysts

Development and evaluation of novel catalysts capable of activating CO₂ especially in CO₂ hydrogenation have been investigated. Several catalysts have been prepared, and characterized by CO₂ TPD. Their performance has been evaluated at 300 °C and 10 bar. All catalysts were active in CO₂ hydrogenation reaction with conversions of approximately 15–30% at 24 h time on stream. Potassium was found to enhance chain growth and to decrease the formation of methane. Ru promoter did not provide any benefit in activity or selectivity. Zr-promoted catalyst materials exhibited enhanced CO₂ adsorption and improved hydrocarbon yields.