Estimating Fully Probabilistic Seismic Sliding Displacements of Slopes from a Pseudoprobabilistic Approach

Permanent sliding displacements are used to evaluate the seismic stability of earth slopes, and current practice utilizes a pseudoprobabilistic approach to predict the expected sliding displacement. The pseudoprobabilistic approach specifies a design ground-motion level based on a probabilistic seismic hazard analysis and a specified hazard level (e.g., 2% probability of exceedance in 50?years), but the displacement is predicted deterministically based on the design ground-motion level. The fully probabilistic approach develops a hazard curve for sliding displacement, and it is used to assess the displacement of the slope for a given hazard level. Comparisons of the fully probabilistic and pseudoprobabilistic approaches indicate that the pseudoprobabilistic analysis provides nonconservative estimates of sliding displacement in most cases. This paper presents a modification to the pseudoprobabilistic approach that provides displacement values more consistent with the fully probabilistic approach. This modification involves specifying a displacement greater than the median, in order to take into account the uncertainty in the displacement prediction. The appropriate value of displacement above the median is a function of the ky/PGA value and the model used to predict the displacement.     

Benchmarking road safety of U.S. states: A DEA-based Malmquist productivity index approach

In this study, a DEA based Malmquist index model was developed to assess the relative efficiency and productivity of U.S. states in decreasing the number of road fatalities. Even though the national trend in fatal crashes has reached to the lowest level since 1949 (Traffic Safety Annual Assessment Highlights, 2010), a state-by-state analysis and comparison has not been studied considering other characteristics of the holistic national road safety assessment problem in any work in the literature or organizational reports. In this study, a DEA based Malmquist index model was developed to assess the relative efficiency and productivity of 50 U.S. states in reducing the number of fatal crashes. The single output, fatal crashes, and five inputs were aggregated into single road safety score and utilized in the DEA-based Malmquist index mathematical model. The period of 2002–2008 was considered due to data availability for the inputs and the output considered. According to the results, there is a slight negative productivity (an average of −0.2 percent productivity) observed in the U.S. on minimizing the number of fatal crashes along with an average of 2.1 percent efficiency decline and 1.8 percent technological improvement. The productivity in reducing the fatal crashes can only be attributed to the technological growth since there is a negative efficiency growth is occurred. It can be concluded that even though there is a declining trend observed in the fatality rates, the efficiency of states in utilizing societal and economical resources towards the goal of zero fatality is not still efficient. More effective policy making towards increasing safety belt usage and better utilization of safety expenditures to improve road condition are derived as the key areas to focus on for state highway safety agencies from the scope of current research.     

Antibacterial Activities of the Extracts of Some Herbs Used in Turkish Herby Cheese Against Listeria Monocytogenes Serovars

In this study, antimicrobial activities of the four different extracts (in methanol, ethanol, n‐hexane and water) of some herbs including Allium vineale, Chaerophyllum macropodum , and Prangos ferulacea were investigated against Listeria monocytogenes serovars 1/2b, 4b, and 4ab. For many centuries, these herbs were used in food production in Turkey. While water extracts of all the plants did not show any antibacterial activity, the other extracts of these plants showed variable degrees of antibacterial activity against L. monocytogenes serovars tested. The extracts of Allium vineale showed higher antibacterial activity than the other plants. The methanol extracts of all the plants exhibited higher activity than the ethanol and n-hexane extracts. L. monocytogenes 4ab was the most sensitive serovar to extracts of these plants. The results indicated that the methanol and ethanol extracts of these plants displayed remarkable activity against L. monocytogenes serovars and therefore, they could be used as natural anti-Listeria monocytogenes additives in herby cheese.     

Characterisation of Pomegranate Juices from Ten Cultivars Grown in Turkey

Pomegranate juices obtained from ten pomegranate cultivars of Turkey were analysed for their sugars, organic acids and the other quality parameters including pH, total soluble solids, and titratable acidity. Statistically significant differences were determined among the cultivars for parameters analysed. Citric acid was the predominant acid of all the cultivars studied. Cultivar “Zivzik,” one of the most popular cultivar in Turkey, showed best scores for total soluble solids (16.9 ± 0.06 °Brix), glucose (84.18 ± 0.42 g/l) and fructose (83.34 ± 0.81 g/l). Pomegranate juices were classified into three groups according to principal component analysis and cluster analysis.     

Film formation of poly (methyl methacrylate) latex with pyrene functional poly (divinylbenzene) microspheres prepared by click chemistry

This work reports on the application of steady state fluorescence (SSF) technique for studying film formation from poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) latex and poly(divinylbenzene) (PDVB) microsphere composites. Pyrene (P) functionalized PDVB cross‐linked spherical microspheres with diameters of 2.5 μm were synthesized by using precipitation polymerization technique followed by click coupling reaction. The diameter of the PMMA particles prepared by emulsion polymerization were in the range of 0.5–0.7 μm. PMMA/PDVB composite films were then prepared by physically blending of PMMA latex with PDVB microspheres at various composition (0, 1, 3, 5, 10, 20, 40, and 60 wt%). After drying, films were annealed at elevated temperatures above T_g of PMMA ranging from 100 to 270°C for 10 min time intervals. Evolution of transparency of the composite films was monitored by using photon transmission intensity, I_tr. Monomer (I_P) and excimer (I_E) fluorescence intensities from P were measured after each annealing step. The possibility of using the excimer‐to‐monomer intensity ratio (I_E/I_P) from PDVB microparticles as a measure of PMMA latex coalescence was demonstrated. Diffusion of the PMMA chains across the particle–particle interfaces dilutes the dyes, increasing their separation. The film formation stages of PMMA latexes were modeled by monitoring the I_E/I_P ratios and related activation energies were determined. There was no observable change in activation energies confirming that film formation behavior is not affected by varying the PDVB composition in the studied range. SEM images of PMMA/PDVB composites confirmed that the PMMA particles undergo complete coalescence forming a continuous phase in where PDVB microspheres are dispersed. POLYM. COMPOS., 2011. © 2011 Society of Plastics Engineers     

Impacts of roasting oily seeds and nuts on their extracted oils

During industrial processing of seeds and nuts to produce edible oils, roasting is often applied before oil extraction. Moreover, seeds and nuts are generally consumed as snack food after appropriate roasting. These processes affect both the seeds and their extracted oils in many ways. Beside changes in macronutrients such as protein denaturation/degradation, oil oxidation, sugar pyrolysis and Maillard reactions, minor constituents such as fatty acids, sterols, phenolic compounds and tocols are also affected by roasting. On the other hand, studies have shown that antioxidant capacity of the roasted seeds and oxidative stability of the extracted oil could be greater than that of the unroasted counterpart. These improvements are attributed to the formation of Maillard reaction products, inactivation of oil degrading enzymes and facilitation of phytochemical extraction as a result of roasting.     

Cancer Cell Cytotoxicities of 1-(4-Substitutedbenzoyl)-4-(4-chlorobenzhydryl)piperazine Derivatives

A series of novel 1-(4-substitutedbenzoyl)-4-(4-chlorobenzhydryl)piperazine derivatives 5a-g was designed by a nucleophilic substitution reaction of 1-(4-chlorobenzhydryl)piperazine with various benzoyl chlorides and characterized by elemental analyses, IR and (1)H nuclear magnetic resonance spectra. Cytotoxicity of the compounds was demonstrated on cancer cell lines from liver (HUH7, FOCUS, MAHLAVU, HEPG2, HEP3B), breast (MCF7, BT20, T47D, CAMA-1), colon (HCT-116), gastric (KATO-3) and endometrial (MFE-296) cancer cell lines. Time-dependent cytotoxicity analysis of compound 5a indicated the long-term in situ stability of this compound. All compounds showed significant cell growth inhibitory activity on the selected cancer cell lines.     

Current Trends in Neurodegeneration: Cross Talks between Oxidative Stress,Cell Death,and Inflammation

The human body is highly complex and comprises a variety of living cells and extracellular material, which forms tissues, organs, and organ systems. Human cells tend to turn over readily to maintain homeostasis in tissues. However, postmitotic nerve cells exceptionally have an ability to regenerate and be sustained for the entire life of an individual, to safeguard the physiological functioning of the central nervous system. For efficient functioning of the CNS, neuronal death is essential, but extreme loss of neurons diminishes the functioning of the nervous system and leads to the onset of neurodegenerative diseases. Neurodegenerative diseases range from acute to chronic severe life-altering conditions like Parkinson’s disease and Alzheimer’s disease. Millions of individuals worldwide are suffering from neurodegenerative disorders with little or negligible treatment available, thereby leading to a decline in their quality of life. Neuropathological studies have identified a series of factors that explain the etiology of neuronal degradation and its progression in neurodegenerative disease. The onset of neurological diseases depends on a combination of factors that causes a disruption of neurons, such as environmental, biological, physiological, and genetic factors. The current review highlights some of the major pathological factors responsible for neuronal degradation, such as oxidative stress, cell death, and neuroinflammation. All these factors have been described in detail to enhance the understanding of their mechanisms and target them for disease management.