Movement sequencing disorders in Parkinson's disease

Ten PD patients and ten age-matched normal controls learned a sequence of 3 or 4 different hand movements to a criterion of 5 consecutive correct trials. They also performed a control sequence of 3 or 4 movements which involved the repetition of the same hand posture. Trials to reach criterion, errors, total response time and its components, response time for each movement and inter-response time were examined. There were no group differences in trials to criterion or errors. Total movement time as well as response and inter-response times were significantly longer for the PD patients, however, but only for sequences involving different hand movements not for the repetitive sequences. The relative timing of the responses was also different with the PD patients spending proportionately more time on each response and the controls spending more time between responses. The implications of these findings for understanding the movement sequencing impairments in PD are discussed.     

Life quality index for the estimation of societal willingness-to-pay for safety

The engineering and management of human safety is an important societal objective that includes extensive efforts by governments, both legislative and administrative, to enhance the health and safety of the public. Although the achievement of safety goals depend primarily on individuals and organizations responsible for safety, much support is drawn from expertise in diverse scientific and engineering disciplines. The activities range from structural safety (dams, tunnels, bridges to tall buildings) to safe operation of hazardous industrial installations (energy generation facilities, LNG terminals, petrochemical plants) to transportation systems (airline, rail, car safety) to technologies designed to minimize adverse impacts on the environment. All these activities are crucially concerned with risk: with the likelihood and the probable effects of various measures on life and health. We have developed a unified rationale and a clear basis for effective strategic management of risk across diverse sectors. Safety is an important objective in society but it is not the only one. The allocation of society's resources devoted to safety must be continually appraised in light of competing needs, because there is a limit on the resources that can be expended to extend life. The paper presents the Life Quality Index (LQI) as a tool for the assessment of risk reduction initiatives that would support the public interest and enhance safety and quality of life. The paper provides an intuitive reformulation of the LQI as equivalent to a valid utility function that is consistent with the principles of rational decision analysis. The LQI is further refined to consider the issues of discounting of life years, competing background risks, and population age and mortality distribution. The LQI is applied to quantify the societal willingness-to-pay, which is an acceptable level of public expenditure in exchange for a reduction in the risk of death that results in improved life-quality.     

NOTCHED FATIGUE BEHAVIOUR OF TWO COLD ROLLED STEELS

Abstract— A SAE1010 plain carbon steel and a SAE945X HSLA steel were cold rolled to various thickness reductions. Centre notched specimens were tested under stress control at a stress ratio of—1. The effect of loading direction on the fatigue strength was examined. The notched specimen fatigue strength was only slightly increased by cold rolling, since two opposing factors: the smooth specimen fatigue strength and the notch sensitivity, were increased by cold rolling. The notched specimen fatigue strength in the transverse direction was approximately the same as that in the longitudinal direction. An empirical equation and equations derived from fracture mechanics and Neuber's rule were applied to predict the fatigue notch factor for the sharp and blunt notch geometries examined. A reasonable agreement between the predictions and the experimental results was observed for the sharp notches. For the blunt notches, the predicted fatigue notch factors were conservative.     

The Effect of Initial Inventories in a Two-Echelon System

A model in which jointly optimal stocks of material and finished products are to be chosen is reexamined. While it costs less to hold material, a certain percentage of the random demand not immediately satisfied by previously finished products is lost. We pay particular attention to the dependence of the optimal stocks on the initial ones, which assumes an interesting form. For example, if the stock of finished products is high but the combined stock is low, die quantity of material ordered depends on the stock of finished products.     

Insight into the chemical reaction of CH2OH with NO: Formation of N-hydroxy formamide as an isocyanic acid precursor

This study has explored the potential energy surface on the chemical reaction of CH₂OH with NO by using ab initio calculation. We have found the new reaction pathway producing N-hydroxy formamide, which can further decompose to generate isocyanic acid as a reducing agent of hydrocarbons selective catalytic reduction.     

Using knowledge-based technology to integrate CIM databases

The authors propose a framework for using knowledge-based systems to integrate the heterogeneous multidatabases of computer integrated manufacturing (CIM). For each database, a corresponding knowledge-based system is designed for directing knowledge-processing of shared information. This one-to-one method reduces the complexity of the problem. Specifically, the structure, features, and knowledge representation for a knowledge-based system are presented. Then, a prototype of an interface between manufacturing planning and computer-aided design is described. Due to the potential for rapid changes in the manufacturing environment, the linkages among CIM databases are designed to be dynamic, flexible, and adaptive to a wide variety of situations     

A simple and accurate method of probability of bit error analysisfor asynchronous band-limited DS-CDMA systems

This paper considers probability of bit error (P_e) analysis in asynchronous band-limited direct-sequence code-division multiple-access (DS-CDMA) systems. It presents a simple and accurate method of P_e analysis. The proposed method can serve as an attractive alternative to the only two techniques currently available for band-limited systems: the standard Gaussian approximation (SGA) and the characteristic function method. The former is prone to inaccuracy while the latter, large computational complexity. The method generalizes the simplified improved Gaussian approximation (SIGA) derived previously for rectangular pulses. This paper also outlines a generalization of another method referred to as the improved Gaussian approximation (IGA). Numerical examples demonstrate the far greater accuracy of the generalized SIGA with respect to the SGA. The examples consider the IS-95 and square-root raised cosine (Sqrt-RC) pulses as well as uniform and nonuniform received power conditions     

A note on the Consecutive Ones Submatrix problem

A binary matrix has the Consecutive Ones Property (C1P) for columns if there exists a permutation of its rows that leaves the 1's consecutive in every column. The problem of Consecutive Ones Property for a matrix is a special variant of Consecutive Ones Submatrix problem in which a positive integer K is given and we want to know if there exists a submatrix B of A consisting of K columns of A with C1P property. This paper presents an error in the proof of NP-completeness for this problem in the reference cited in text by Garey and Johnson [Computers and Intractability, A Guide to the Theory of NP-Completeness, 1979].     

A derivation of the diffuse fraction's dependence on the clearness index

When averaged over many events having the same k_t, the average diffuse fraction carries an important quasi-universal functional dependence on the clearness index k_t. This paper presents a theoretical derivation of k(k_t). The atmosphere is modeled as having two homogeneous, nonselectively absorbing layers: an upper layer (roughly, the ozonosphere) with zero scattering and beam transmittance τ_u, and a lower layer with isotropic, nonselective scattering characterized by an albedo ω_l. After an analysis which traces generations of scattered photons, this model predicts a function which, upon adjusting ω_l and τ_u, fits the measured data closely.     

Influence of weld misalignment and weld metal overmatch on the prediction of fracture in pipeline girth welds

$\text{J-}\text{integral}$ estimates using elastic-plastic finite element calculations, are shown to compare well with experimental results from single edge-notch bend (SENB) specimens made of X483 grade line pipe steel.The influence of weld misalignment and weld metal overmatch on fracture of cracked girth welds is predicted, also using elastic-plastic finite element calculations. Weld metal overmatch reduces plastic strain levels in the weld and appears beneficial in reducing $\text{J-}\text{integral}$ magnitudes. Predicted values of $\text{J-}\text{integral}$ are shown to increase with weld misalignment. However, $\text{J-}\text{integral}$ magnitudes near the critical value for crack growth initiation were only attained after considerable plastic straining at or near limit load. This result suggests that limit load calculations may be more appropriate for prediction of failure of cracked girth welds than conventional fracture techniques.