Assessment of shear capacity of adhesive anchors for structures using neural network based model

In this study, an artificial neural network (NN) based explicit formulation for predicting the edge breakout shear capacity of single adhesive anchors post-installed into concrete member was proposed. To this aim, a comprehensive experimental database of 98 specimens tested in shear was used to train and test NN model as well as to assess the accuracy of the existing equations given by American Concrete Institute and prestressed/precast concrete Institute. Moreover, the proposed NN model was compared with another existing model which had been derived from gene expression programming by the authors in a previous study. The prediction parameters utilized for derivation of the model were anchor diameter, type of anchor, edge distance, embedment depth, clear clearance of the anchor, type of chemical adhesive, method of injection of the chemical, and compressive strength of the concrete. The proposed model yielded correlation coefficients of 0.983 and 0.984 for training and testing data sets, respectively. It was found that the predictions obtained from NN agreed well with experimental observations, yielding approximately 5 % mean absolute percent error. Moreover, in comparison to the existing models, the proposed NN model had all of the predicted values in ±20 % error bands while the others estimated up to %160 error.     

Sparse-then-dense alignment-based 3D map reconstruction method for endoscopic capsule robots

Despite significant progress achieved in the last decade to convert passive capsule endoscopes to actively controllable robots, robotic capsule endoscopy still has some challenges. In particular, a fully dense three-dimensional (3D) map reconstruction of the explored organ remains an unsolved problem. Such a dense map would help doctors detect the locations and sizes of the diseased areas more reliably, resulting in more accurate diagnoses. In this study, we propose a comprehensive medical 3D reconstruction method for endoscopic capsule robots, which is built in a modular fashion including preprocessing, keyframe selection, sparse-then-dense alignment-based pose estimation, bundle fusion, and shading-based 3D reconstruction. A detailed quantitative analysis is performed using a non-rigid esophagus gastroduodenoscopy simulator, four different endoscopic cameras, a magnetically activated soft capsule robot, a sub-millimeter precise optical motion tracker, and a fine-scale 3D optical scanner, whereas qualitative ex-vivo experiments are performed on a porcine pig stomach. To the best of our knowledge, this study is the first complete endoscopic 3D map reconstruction approach containing all of the necessary functionalities for a therapeutically relevant 3D map reconstruction.     

The impact of anthropogenic and biogenic emissions on surface ozone concentrations in Istanbul

Surface ozone concentrations at Istanbul during a summer episode in June 2008 were simulated using a high resolution and urban scale modeling system coupling MM5 and CMAQ models with a recently developed anthropogenic emission inventory for the region. Two sets of base runs were performed in order to investigate for the first time the impact of biogenic emissions on ozone concentrations in the Greater Istanbul Area (GIA). The first simulation was performed using only the anthropogenic emissions whereas the second simulation was performed using both anthropogenic and biogenic emissions. Biogenic NMVOC emissions were comparable with anthropogenic NMVOC emissions in terms of magnitude. The inclusion of biogenic emissions significantly improved the performance of the model, particularly in reproducing the low night time values as well as the temporal variation of ozone concentrations. Terpene emissions contributed significantly to the destruction of the ozone during nighttime. Biogenic NMVOCs emissions enhanced ozone concentrations in the downwind regions of GIA up to 25 ppb. The VOC/NO_x ratio almost doubled due to the addition of biogenic NMVOCs. Anthropogenic NO_x and NMVOCs were perturbed by ± 30% in another set of simulations to quantify the sensitivity of ozone concentrations to the precursor emissions in the region. The sensitivity runs, as along with the model-calculated ozone-to-reactive nitrogen ratios, pointed NO_x-sensitive chemistry, particularly in the downwind areas. On the other hand, urban parts of the city responded more to changes in NO_x due to very high anthropogenic emissions.     

The effect of experimental stress on sarcoplasmic reticulum Ca transport and meat quality in pig muscle

Stress before slaughter affects the meat quality of pigs and a disorder in the Ca²⁺ transport of the sarcoplasmic reticulum (SR) results in inferior meat quality. The object of this work was to determine the impact of stress on SR Ca²⁺ transport in pig muscle in animals with no mutation in the Ca²⁺ release channel. At about 80 kg live weight, pigs were stressed either by running for 4 min (n=9) or by a 5 min application of a nose snare (n=7). Immediately before and after the application of the stress, as well as 4 h after the stress, biopsy samples of the longissimus muscle were taken and the Ca²⁺ uptake of the homogenised muscle samples determined. The nose snare stress reduced the rate of Ca²⁺ uptake by 9% (P=0.02) and running by 18% (P=0.06). Uptake in samples taken 4 h after the stress was at initial levels. The pigs were slaughtered at an average live weight of 109 kg. Half the pigs were stressed just before slaughter for 5 min by the use of a nose snare. Immediately after exsanguination longissimus muscle samples were taken, Ca²⁺ uptake measured, and later standard meat quality parameters were determined. Although the stress reduced the Ca²⁺ uptake rate (61.3 vs. 46.4 nM/min per mg protein for control and stressed pigs; P=0.04), the meat quality was not significantly affected.     

沙发产业的物流管理

随着更多的流向亚洲的产业外包，美国沙发企业的供应链变得越来越长。然而，美国的消费者希望在有更多的产品选择的同时，交货时间能够缩短。由于这些因素，希望成功的沙发企业，处于正在发生引人注目变化的行业，即需要有效的物流管理来增强竞争优势。为了让其物流网络更加有效，企业需要选择适合自己的供应链模式，增强与供应链伙伴的合作关系，并采用新技术来更好地制定决策与管理。     

Skeletal muscle cellularity and histochemistry in response to porcine somatotropin in finishing pigs

The effects of long-term application of recombinant porcine somatotropin (pST) on the development of muscle structure characteristics were examined in finishing pigs from about 120 to 200 days of age. Shot biopsy samples from the longissimus dorsi (longissimus) muscle of 60 Landrace barrows were taken at the initiation of treatment and again after 5 to 10 weeks treatment. The injection of 2 mg pST/d and 4 mg pST/d caused an intense hypertrophy of muscle fibres and resulted in 11% thicker muscle fibres at the end of treatment. In the course of fibre growth, dose-dependent differences occurred. The total muscle fibre number, calculated by muscle cross sectional area and fibre number per unit area of carcass samples, was not influenced. There was a tendency for more nuclei per fibre, whereas the nucleus-cytoplasm ratio seemed to be unchanged, Generally the composition of muscle fibre types (white, intermediate, red or αW, αR, βR) was not affected. In pST treatment groups, no more animals with giant fibres were found, nor were higher percentages of this structural anomaly in carcass muscle sections discovered.     

Street milk and urban consumers in Turkey: a descriptive study

Milk is important because of its composition, its consumption prevalence, and its use as a raw material for many food products. The milk’s shelf life, reliability during processing, and quality conservation should be considered by the consumer. However, in Turkey, raw milk is sold unpackaged and untreated (by physical processes or heat treatment) by street suppliers without the use of any of the required food conservation techniques. This type of milk is generally called ‘street milk’ (SM). This study was conducted to analyse the Turkish urban consumers’ (UCs) attitudes, behaviours, and perceptions with respect to SM. To achieve a 2.83 % sampling tolerance, 1222 consumers were interviewed in person, and the data were collected. Although 23.6 % of UCs prefer SM, the potential customer rate is 43.1–48.9 %. These UCs tend to choose SM because the product is perceived to be ‘organic’, ‘pure’, and ‘natural’ and because they are suspicious of packaged/processed milk. In this study, the socio-economic statuses (SES) and age differences were identified (P < 0.05), and it was found that the 45+ age group and the low SES group have more positive views about SM. Thus, these groups must be made aware of the differences between ‘raw milk’ and ‘SM’, as well as the safety risks of SM and the importance of the processing and storing of dairy products, including milk.     

The impact of growth, energy and financial development on the environment in China: A cointegration analysis

This article aims to investigate the impact of financial development, economic growth and energy consumption on environmental pollution in China from 1953 to 2006 using the Autoregressive Distributed Lag (ARDL) bounds testing procedure. The main objective is to examine the long run equilibrium relationship between financial development and environmental pollution. The results of the analysis reveal a negative sign for the coefficient of financial development, suggesting that financial development in China has not taken place at the expense of environmental pollution. On the contrary, it is found that financial development has led to a decrease in environmental pollution. It is concluded that carbon emissions are mainly determined by income, energy consumption and trade openness in the long run. Moreover, the findings confirm the existence of an Environmental Kuznets Curve in the case of China.