Solar photo-Fenton treatment of chip board production waste water

In a joint project the Universidade Federal de Uberlândia and the German Aerospace Center are developing solar water treatment technologies for industrial applications. Wastewater from chip-board production is difficult to detoxify by standard processes. Different advanced oxidation processes using solar light were tested on this effluent. In opposition to TiO₂ treatment, the application of the photo-Fenton process using a compound parabolic collector (CPC) type solar reactor shows excellent results, with a reduction in the COD higher than 70% with the application of about 800 kJ m⁻² of UVA radiation. HPLC analysis shows an efficient degradation of the organic matter present in the effluent (formaldehyde, melamine, urea, wood extractives, lignin and urea/formaldehyde and melamine/formaldehyde resins fragments) prior to their complete disappearance.     

Markov chain Monte Carlo posterior density approximation for a groove-dimensioning purpose

The purpose of this paper is to present a new approach for measurand uncertainty characterization. The Markov chain Monte Carlo (MCMC) is applied to measurand probability density function (pdf) estimation, which is considered as an inverse problem. The measurement characterization is driven by the pdf estimation in a nonlinear Gaussian framework with unknown variance and with limited observed data. These techniques are applied to a realistic measurand problem of groove dimensioning using remote field eddy current (RFEC) inspection. The application of resampling methods such as bootstrap and the perfect sampling for convergence diagnostics purposes gives large improvements in the accuracy of the MCMC estimates.     

A Sequential Algorithm for Joint Parameter Estimation and Multiuser Detection in DS/CDMA Systems with Multipath Propagation

A direct sequence (DS) spread spectrum code division multiple access (CDMA) communication system is considered where several users transmit data symbols over different multipath channels. The main objective of this work is the proposal of a sequential algorithm for joint parameter estimation and multiuser data detection. The computationally prohibitive maximization of the log-likelihood function is replaced by a sequential scheme using the multistage detector for recovering the data symbols and the expectation-maximization algorithm for estimating the channel parameters. The performance of the resulting multiuser receiver is evaluated via Monte Carlo simulations using both synthetic as well as measured channel impulse responses. A comparison of the performance with analytical expressions for the single-user single-path case shows that the proposed system is capable of eliminating the near-far effect existing in conventional DS/CDMA systems.     

Primary and secondary prevention strategies among older postmenopausal women

Women may choose to initiate, reinitiate, or discontinue hormone replacement therapy (HRT) at any time beyond the perimenopausal period. HRT, exercise, and nutrition are reviewed in terms of their potential benefits as primary and secondary preventive therapies against coronary heart disease, osteoporosis, breast and genital cancers, and the maintenance of cognitive function among older postmenopausal women. Lifestyle alternatives involving nutrition and exercise that offer many of the same benefits as HRT are discussed. Since both pharmacologic and lifestyle interventions offer significant benefit for primary and secondary prevention of disease and disability, each should be offered to women for consideration as they enter the perimenopausal period. Additionally, each can be recommended for initiation even at much older ages and subsequent to adverse health occurrences, such as the experience of breast or genital cancer or a cardiac event. Each should be sustained over the long term. The decision whether to discontinue these interventions among the most elderly will be influenced by other quality of life considerations.     

Study of the V3 loop as a target epitope for antibodies involved in the neutralization of primary isolates versus T-cell-line-adapted strains of human immunodeficiency virus type 1

Previous studies characterized the third variable (V3) loop of the envelope gp120 as the principal neutralizing determinant for laboratory T-cell-line-adapted (TCLA) strains of human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1). However, primary viruses isolated from infected individuals are more refractory to neutralization than TCLA strains, suggesting that qualitatively different neutralizing antibodies may be involved. In this study, we investigated whether the V3 loop constitutes a linear target epitope for antibodies neutralizing primary isolates. By using peptides representative of the V3 regions of various primary isolates, an early, relatively specific and persistent antibody response was detected in sera from HIV-infected patients. To assess the relationship between these antibodies and neutralization, the same peptides were used in competition and depletion experiments. Addition of homologous V3 peptides led to a competitive inhibition in the neutralization of the TCLA strain HIVMN/MT-4 but had no effect on the neutralization of the autologous primary isolate. Similarly, the removal of antibodies that bind to linear V3 epitopes resulted in a loss of HIVMN/MT-4 neutralization, whereas no decrease in the autologous neutralization was measured. The different roles of V3-specific antibodies according to the virus considered were thereby brought to light. This confirmed the involvement of V3 antibodies in the neutralization of a TCLA strain but emphasized a more pronounced contribution of either conformational epitopes or epitopes outside the V3 loop as targets for antibodies neutralizing primary HIV-1 isolates. This result underlines the need to focus on new vaccinal immunogens with epitopes able to induce broadly reactive and efficient antibodies that neutralize a wide range of primary HIV-1 isolates.     

Variational Solutions for Externally Induced Sloshing in Horizontal-Cylindrical and Spherical Vessels

A mathematical model is developed for calculating linear sloshing effects in the dynamic response of horizontal-cylindrical and spherical liquid containers under external excitation, with emphasis on earthquake excitation. The velocity potential is expressed in a series form, where each term is the product of a time function and the associated spatial function. Because of the configuration of the containers, the associated spatial functions are nonorthogonal and the problem is not separable, resulting in a system of coupled nonhomogeneous ordinary linear differential equations of motion. The solution can be obtained through either direct integration or modal analysis. Particular emphasis is given on the rate of convergence of the solution. The cases of half-full cylinders and spheres are examined in detail, where explicit expressions for the coefficients of the governing equations are derived. Using the proposed methodology, sloshing frequencies and masses are calculated rigorously for arbitrary liquid height of horizontal-cylindrical or spherical containers, and the response under two characteristic seismic events is obtained. The results describe the linear dynamic response of such containers and can be used for an efficient seismic analysis and design of industrial pressure vessels.     

Target speed alone influences the latency and temporal accuracy of interceptive action.

When intercepting a mobile object or an apparent movement, participants show a temporal bias i.e. they are in advance when dealing with a slow-moving stimulus and late with a fast-moving object. The authors studied 6 participants (aged 22–33 yrs) intercepting an apparent movement by sliding a disk on a table. Using a fast and a slow stimulus speed, 3 factors were varied: duration of presentation of the stimulus, distance covered by the stimulus, and speed context (constant or varied) of stimulus presentation. In addition to temporal bias, spatial accuracy and kinematic measures were collected. The temporal bias created by speed was evident across all 3 factors. Speed, in addition to strongly determining the temporal bias, significantly affected the throwing strategy adopted by the Ss as revealed by latency, movement time, and disk trajectory duration. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

In Vivo Evaluation of a Mechanically Oscillating Dual-Mode Applicator for Ultrasound Imaging and Thermal Ablation

Unresectable liver tumors are often treated with interstitial probes that modify tissue temperature, and efficacious treatment relies on image guidance for tissue targeting and assessment. Here, we report the in vivo evaluation of an interstitial applicator with a mechanically oscillating five-element dual-mode transducer. After thoroughly characterizing the transducer, tissue response to high-intensity ultrasound was numerically calculated to select parameters for experimentation in vivo. Using perfused porcine liver, B-mode sector images were formed before and after a 120-s therapy period, and M-mode imaging monitored the therapy axis during therapy. The time-averaged transducer surface intensity was 21 or 27 W/cm$^2$. Electroacoustic conversion efficiency was maximally 72 $pm$ 3% and impulse response length was 295 $pm$ 1.0 ns at $-$6 dB. The depth of thermal damage measured by gross histology ranged from 10 to 25 mm for 13 insertion sites. For six sites, M-mode data exhibited a reduction in gray-scale intensity that was interpreted as the temporal variation of coagulation necrosis. Contrast ratio analysis indicated that the gray-scale intensity dropped by 7.8 $pm ;$3.3 dB, and estimated the final lesion depth to an accuracy of 2.3 $pm ;$2.4 mm. This paper verified that the applicator could induce coagulation necrosis in perfused liver and demonstrated the feasibility of real-time monitoring.      

UDS: A Distributed RAT Selection Mechanism for Heterogeneous Wireless Networks

The selection of the most suitable radio access technology to serve as the communication means for a service in a heterogeneous wireless access network is a complex task. It considers a number of different parameters and it involves numerous network technologies and entities. Several mechanisms have been proposed that focus on different aspects and follow different strategies. We introduce a policy based scheme that takes into consideration the user preferences, along with network conditions and user moving speed. Its ultimate goal is to support a session through the most desirable radio access technology, from the user perspective, while managing the overall network resources in an optimum way. It comprises a distributed algorithm running at the terminal and the network side. The performance of the proposed mechanism is evaluated against that of a typical load balancing scheme, commonly used in the literature. The results show that the holistic treatment of the diverse parameters fulfils the aforementioned goal.     

Visual context and the control of movements through video display

The aim of this experiment was to test the influence of target context on adaptation to scale perturbations introduced by a video display. Participants performed pointing movements without direct vision of their moving hand, although they could see their movements on a video display. Their perceived movements could be reduced, enlarged. or displayed at their actual size. Three target contexts were compared: dark surround, illuminated frame, and familiar object. Movements were executed with or without vision of hand displacement. Results showed that target context enhanced an allocentric coding of the movement, which improved movement execution. However, the effect of target context changed whether or not the displacement of the hand was available. Overall, the results suggest that target context allowed the extraction of dynamic information about movements, which is used to program and control movements. This suggests that target context could be used efficiently to improve spatial accuracy and speed in teleoperation learning. Potential applications include the reduction of difficulties encountered during teleoperation learning through the introduction of visual context.