Influence of birth rates and transmission rates on the global seasonality of rotavirus incidence

Rotavirus is a major cause of mortality in developing countries, and yet the dynamics of rotavirus in such settings are poorly understood. Rotavirus is typically less seasonal in the tropics, although recent observational studies have challenged the universality of this pattern. While numerous studies have examined the association between environmental factors and rotavirus incidence, here we explore the role of intrinsic factors. By fitting a mathematical model of rotavirus transmission dynamics to published age distributions of cases from 15 countries, we obtain estimates of local transmission rates. Model-predicted patterns of seasonal incidence based solely on differences in birth rates and transmission rates are significantly correlated with those observed (Spearman''s ρ = 0.65, p < 0.05). We then examine seasonal patterns of rotavirus predicted across a range of different birth rates and transmission rates and explore how vaccination may impact these patterns. Our results suggest that the relative lack of rotavirus seasonality observed in many tropical countries may be due to the high birth rates and transmission rates typical of developing countries rather than being driven primarily by environmental conditions. While vaccination is expected to decrease the overall burden of disease, it may increase the degree of seasonal variation in the incidence of rotavirus in some settings.     

采用煤矸石为原料合成β-SiAlON晶须及其显微结构研究

以煤矸石和碳黑为主要原料,在1800 K下碳热还原氮化合成了纯度较高、含有大量晶须的β-SiAlON材料.FESEM照片表明β-SiAlON晶须多为细长柱状,直径120～220 nm,长度1.5～5 μm,晶须生长机制由VLS(vapor-liquid-solid)机制和VS(vapor-solid)机制组成.     

惯量和刚度对电动负载模拟器频宽影响的分析

给出了一种电动负载模拟器的系统结构，分析了系统惯量和轴系刚度与系统加载频宽之间的关系并进行了仿真实验研究。结果表明，对于电动负载模拟系统，在选择负载惯量和轴系刚度时，既要考虑使转矩伺服系统有较高的频响，又要考虑系统的稳定性和多余力矩的抑制效果。     

一种真空触发开关控制器的设计建模与仿真研究

为研究真空触发开关(TVS:Triggered Vacuum Switch)控制器的模型参数对其触发精度和输出脉冲电压的影响,设计了一套TVS控制回路原理图.采用面向功能结构图的建模方法,建立了TVS控制器的仿真模型,并通过MATLAB仿真,得到的输出正脉冲电压可达11kV以上,反向电压小于200V,波形振荡小,脉宽250,且上升沿陡峭,波前陡度为10左右,验证了该设计的可行性.通过改变参数对比不同参数下的输出电压仿真波形,可得出模型参数对TVS控制器的触发精度和输出脉冲电压的影响,利于研究和设计最佳模型参数的TVS控制器.     

Cardiovascular responses and mammary substrate uptake in Jersey cows treated with pituitary-derived growth hormone during late lactation

Pituitary-derived bovine growth hormone (bGH) was administered to Jersey cows during late lactation for 7 d. Milk yield increased significantly during treatment and by a maximum of 49.6% on d 7. The magnitude of the increase was similar to that of mammary plasma flow (47.8 +/- 18.3%) over the same period. By 15-21 d after treatment, both variables had returned to pretreatment values. With respect to milk composition, bGH had negligible effect on lactose and fat concentrations but there were significant decreases in protein, sodium and chloride. Arterial plasma concentrations of bGH increased substantially during treatment, but the associated rise in insulin was not statistically significant. Haematocrit decreased significantly, the lowest value being recorded 3 d after bGH treatment ceased. Mammary respiratory quotient fell progressively after the start of bGH treatment and reached the lowest recorded value 3 d after treatment ceased (62.2 +/- 7.3% of pretreatment value). Glucose and acetate uptake by the mammary gland increased significantly during treatment, increase in glucose uptake being due both to a greater arterio-venous difference and to mammary plasma flow. There was strong evidence that the acute response in increased milk yield was associated with multiple effects in terms of mammary plasma flow and metabolism, as well as haematocrit changes indicative of increased plasma volume.     

Long wavelength infrared 128×128 AlxGa1-xAs/GaAs quantum well infrared camera and imaging system

The authors discuss the development of a long-wavelength (8-14-μm) 128×128 Al_xGa_1-xAs/GaAs multiquantum well infrared (MQW IR) imaging system. Highly uniform, high-yield GaAs focal plane arrays, incorporating an integral grating structure for efficient optical coupling, were hybridized to CMOS multiplexers. Excellent imagery, with low noise, a noise equivalent differential temperature (NEΔT) of less than 10 mK, and a high image contrast signal-to-noise ratio, has been achieved. It is shown that figures of merit concerning array uniformity, such as yield, NEΔT, and maximum deliverable charge to the CMOS multiplexer are much more relevant variables that affect image quality than D*     

Reconstruction and quantification of the carotid artery bifurcation from 3-D ultrasound images

Three-dimensional (3-D) ultrasound is a relatively new technique, which is well suited to imaging superficial blood vessels, and potentially provides a useful, noninvasive method for generating anatomically realistic 3-D models of the peripheral vasculature. Such models are essential for accurate simulation of blood flow using computational fluid dynamics (CFD), but may also be used to quantify atherosclerotic plaque more comprehensively than routine clinical methods. In this paper, we present a spline-based method for reconstructing the normal and diseased carotid artery bifurcation from images acquired using a freehand 3-D ultrasound system. The vessel wall (intima-media interface) and lumen surfaces are represented by a geometric model defined using smoothing splines. Using this coupled wall-lumen model, we demonstrate how plaque may be analyzed automatically to provide a comprehensive set of quantitative measures of size and shape, including established clinical measures, such as degree of (diameter) stenosis. The geometric accuracy of 3-D ultrasound reconstruction is assessed using pulsatile phantoms of the carotid bifurcation, and we conclude by demonstrating the in vivo application of the algorithms outlined to 3-D ultrasound scans from a series of patient carotid arteries.     

一种双极性高精度半导体激光器温度控制系统

温度是影响半导体激光器（LD）寿命和输出特性的重要因素之一。为保证LD输出稳定的激光模式和功率,采用以ADC和DAC集成的微处理器芯片C8051F350和具有双极性输出电流的TEC驱动芯片MAX1968为控制核心,以积分分离和变速积分增量式相结合的数字PID算法为运算程序的自动温度控制系统(ATC)控制TEC驱动电流的方向和大小,实现对LD的加热或制冷,使其工作在恒定温度。实验证明,应用该系统,LD在0℃～40℃环境温度范围内能很快稳定在设定温度,且其不确定度为±0.03℃。     

Images of a First‐Order Spin‐Reorientation Phase Transition in a Metallic Kagome Ferromagnet

First‐order phase transitions, where one phase replaces another by virtue of a simple crossing of free energies, are best known between solids, liquids, and vapors, but they also occur in a wide range of other contexts, including even elemental magnets. The key challenges are to establish whether a phase transition is indeed first order, and then to determine how the new phase emerges because this will determine thermodynamic and electronic properties. Here it is shown that both challenges are met for the spin reorientation transition in the topological metallic ferromagnet Fe₃Sn₂. The magnetometry and variable temperature magnetic force microscopy experiments reveal that, analogous to the liquid–gas transition in the temperature–pressure plane, this transition is centered on a first‐order line terminating in a critical end point in the field‐temperature plane. The nucleation and growth associated with the transition is directly imaged, indicating that the new phase emerges at the most convoluted magnetic domain walls for the high temperature phase and then moves to self‐organize at the domain centers of the high temperature phase. The dense domain patterns and phase coexistence imply a complex inhomogenous electronic structure, which can yield anomalous contributions to the electrical conductivity.