Management of the patient with minor traumatic brain injury

Staff in the accident and emergency department and critical care unit are often confronted with patients who have sustained life-threatening injuries. In such situations the symptoms of a minor traumatic brain injury (MTBI) may be missed. It is important that, when the physical symptoms begin to subside, nurses are aware of the symptoms of MTBI and respond accordingly. A post-concussion syndrome may develop 2 weeks to 2 months after a MTBI. This syndrome can affect the patient's ability to perform the usual activities of living. This article defines MTBI, describes the symptoms encountered in patients with MTBI, and outlines the pathophysiology, clinical findings, treatment and nursing interventions.     

An experimental investigation of triboelectrification in cohesive and non-cohesive pharmaceutical powders

A detailed experimental investigation has been undertaken of the triboelectrification process of the pharmaceutical excipient alpha-lactose monohydrate and selected drugs. Particle charge studies involved the design and construction of an apparatus to incorporate pneumatic powder feed, triboelectric charging via a cyclone separator and simultaneous powder charge (Q) and mass (M) measurements using a modified Faraday well. Preliminary studies showed the charging of the selected materials to be unaffected by relative humidity up to 84%, due to the very low hygroscopicity of the powders. Experiments using lactose size fractions with brass, steel and cellulose contact charging surfaces conducted at different feeder gas pressures, gave net electronegative specific charge values (Q/M) for the metal surfaces, and electropositive values for cellulose. Specific charge increased linearly with gas pressure for the metals, and non-linearly for cellulose. Samples of micronised lactose and beclomethasone dipropionate (BDP) showed more tendency than unmicronised samples to adhere to the contact surface which resulted in more complex charging processes. A novel system to analyse the charge and mass data in further detail was developed, giving relative Q/M values at unit time intervals. It is proposed that this will overcome the limitations of reliance on the final net specific charge value. Preliminary results indicated differences in the charging mechanism for lactose in contact with the two metal surfaces.     

Virtual Models of the Synthesis of Nanosystems

The problem of synthesis of nanosystems reproducible on the microscopic level is analyzed in the framework of the adiabatic approximation. Different methods for describing the structure of polyatomic systems are discussed. Special attention is focused on algorithmic information. The operation of a configurational machine that makes it possible to simulate actually proceeding chemical processes, in particular, synthesis of nanosystems, is considered in detail.     

Adaptive mobile web services facilitate communication and learning Internet technologies

The broad acceptance of mobile technology has undoubtedly created new opportunities in communication. The proposed environment attempts to enhance the information flow among the members of a department and, furthermore, to provide a test-bed mobile Web application for students undertaking Internet technologies courses. The key ideas are to support the educational process to provide auxiliary access to educational information sources, such as announcements, course schedules, grades, and user directory details. As a second system integration step, additional mobile Web services were introduced, such as application forms of the department's administration office, project assignment, and discussion groups. Technological evaluation and students' feedback indicate that the proposed solution is both efficient in communication perspective and effective for student involvement in the mobile Web initiative. Future steps include multimedia messages (MMS) integration and third-generation (3G)-based information delivery.     

Tuning a three-loop steam temperature regulation system using the method of evolutionary simulation

We present the results from tuning a PI controller and two differentiators for a three-loop steam temperature regulation system with two leading speed signals. The calculation was carried out with a numerical method using a simulation model and with the application of the authors’ version of the evolutionary optimization algorithm.     

Dynamical adaptive synchronization

The notions of dynamical synchronization and adaptive dynamical synchronization problems are introduced. The algorithm solving adaptive synchronization problem for a subclass of Lurie systems with exciting input is proposed. The performance and potentialities of proposed solutions are demonstrated by two examples related to formation control and self‐organization of swarm systems. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Optimizing demand-side bids in day-ahead electricity markets

We present a model of a purchaser of electricity in Norway, bidding into a wholesale electricity pool market that operates a day ahead of dispatch. The purchaser must arrange purchase for an uncertain demand that occurs the following day. Deviations from the day-ahead purchase are bought in a secondary market at a price that differs from the day-ahead price by virtue of regulating offers submitted by generators. Under an assumption that arbitrageurs are absent in these markets, we study conditions under which the purchaser should bid their expected demand and examine the two-period game played between a single generator and purchaser in the presence of a competitive fringe. In all our models, it is found that purchasers have an incentive to underbid their expected demand, and so the day-ahead prices will be below expected real-time prices. We also derive conditions on the optimal demand curve that purchasers should bid if the behavior of the other participants is unknown but can be modeled by a market distribution function.     

Probabilistic Wind Farms Generation Model for Reliability Studies Applied to Brazilian Sites

This paper presents a computer model for the probabilistic representation of wind farms generation for reliability studies, which can provide an annual estimation of energy production and calculate several performance indexes. The model combines the stochastic characteristics of wind speed with the operational information of the turbines, such as the failure and repair rates, representing the wind farm by a Markov process. The simulations are made with real time series of wind speed of several Brazilian regions and actual turbine models. The influence of some wind farm and installation site characteristics on the results are evaluated, such as the wind speed statistical clustering technique, the number and type of the turbines, and the failure and repair rates. The results obtained reproduce successfully the behavior of the components considered in the model     

Electric arcing burn hazards

The paper presents recent results in the area of high-power testing aimed at improving the safety of electrical staff working on live equipment. The driver for this work is the American Guide (IEEE 1584) on such exposure hazards, which has the potential for international adoption and, in the authors' opinion, does not provide a suitable methodology for assessing the hazard. A selection of results is presented, obtained in a high-power-system-supplied commercial test laboratory, using the latest charge-coupled device (CCD)-based high-speed video-recording methods. Results are reported for 415-V currents in the range of 1000-70 000 prospective root mean square (rms) amperes and for tests at 5000 V in the range of 1000-27 000 A. The impact of conventional protective devices is included together with some disturbing video results for circuit-breaker-protected systems. The major part of the material in this paper was first presented at the 7th International Conference on Electric Fuses and Their Applications, Jurata, Poland, in 2003.