A Case Report of Germline Compound Heterozygous Mutations in the BRCA1 Gene of an Ovarian and Breast Cancer Patient

The germline carrier of the BRCA1 pathogenic mutation has been well proven to confer an increased risk of breast and ovarian cancer. Despite BRCA1 biallelic pathogenic mutations being extremely rare, they have been reported to be embryonically lethal or to cause Fanconi anemia (FA). Here we describe a patient who was a 48-year-old female identified with biallelic pathogenic mutations of the BRCA1 gene, with no or very subtle FA-features. She was diagnosed with ovarian cancer and breast cancer at the ages of 43 and 44 and had a strong family history of breast and gynecological cancers.     

对称角铺层复合材料层板在反平面变形情况下分层问题的解析—广义变分解法

本文采用弹性力学的位移解法研究对称角铺层复合材料层板在反平面变形情况下的分层问题,得到了满足所有基本方程、层间连续条件与裂纹表面静力边界条件的位移场与应力场的本征展开式。再利用分区广义变分原理代替裂纹表面以外的边界条件,确定位移场与应力场表达式中的待定系数,进而确定应力强度因子。由于所有基本方程预先得以满足,变分方程中只有线积分而无面积分。计算表明,本文方法前期准备工作简便,计算节省机时,结果收敛迅速。     

Properties and applications of the large circular resonant dipole array

Large closed-curve antenna arrays have been a subject of research for many years and have been shown to have many interesting properties. The paper investigates some of the properties of such a dipole array when the closed curve is a circle. Recently, because of its unique horizontal field pattern, a 90-element circular array of this type has been proposed as a microwave beacon for the coastal navigation of ships and airplanes. In the design of these arrays, it is suggested that the array be rotated mechanically. The question arises: can the mechanical rotation be replaced by an electronic rotation? We show that electronic rotation is not possible for the 90-element circular array originally described, but is possible for a modified array. The subtle difference between these two arrays is clarified and a simple criterion is given for the general case. Also presented is the derivation of an asymptotic formula for the radiation pattern of a resonant circular array of N equal elements with only one element driven. Since the theory for such an array is complicated and involves numerous numerical difficulties, a simple asymptotic formula for the field pattern has advantages over other methods. The simple formula is shown to produce a vertical field pattern that is indistinguishable from its numerically calculated counterpart. Generalization to noncircular arrays is discussed briefly.     

FPGA realization of a neural-network-based nonlinear channel equalizer

The software simulation as well as the hardware implementation of equalizers for transmissions through nonlinear communication channels based on artificial neural networks structure is presented in this paper. We consider four-quadrature-amplitude-modulation technique as an example and compare the performance of two different structures of equalizer, namely, the linear least-mean-square-based equalizer (LIN) and the functional link artificial neural networks (FLANN). The learning curve and symbol error rate for the two structures are respectively evaluated by computer simulation. Besides, the systems have been implemented using field-programmable-gate-array devices. As FLANN uses functions to expand the dimensionality of the input signals, it has about the same system complexity as LIN. But FLANN can achieve fast processing speed under parallel processing structure. Simulation results have demonstrated that FLANN presents much better error performance than LIN, especially when the communication channel is highly nonlinear.     

Bibliometric and text mining approaches to evaluate landfill design standards

Scientometrics - In 2014, Canadians generated 961 kg of waste per capita. Landfilling is a logical choice for many Canadian communities because of land availability. This paper examines...     

Intergenerational family support for ‘Generation Rent’: the family home for socially disengaged young people

This paper critically discusses the concept of intergenerational family support in housing for young people. Recognizing increased difficulties faced by the younger generation in the housing market, this paper highlights that support from older family members is increasingly important. Nonetheless, it is critiqued that the role of the family home has been largely ignored in the current ‘generation rent’ discourse. By drawing on recent youth studies debates, this paper argues living in the family home could be an important form of support in housing, especially for marginalized youth. This paper presents insights from qualitative studies in Hong Kong and Scotland and analyses interview accounts of socially disengaged young people. It reflects how remaining at the family home could be interpreted as intergenerational support, and further elicits complexities in expectations, negotiations and emotions involved. This analysis offers new evidence and a more nuanced perspective of intergenerational family support in housing research.     

Chemical‐to‐Electricity Carbon: Water Device

The ability to release, as electrical energy, potential energy stored at the water:carbon interface is attractive, since water is abundant and available. However, many previous reports of such energy converters rely on either flowing water or specially designed ionic aqueous solutions. These requirements restrict practical application, particularly in environments with quiescent water. Here, a carbon‐based chemical‐to‐electricity device that transfers the chemical energy to electrical form when coming into contact with quiescent deionized water is reported. The device is built using carbon nanotube yarns, oxygen content of which is modulated using oxygen plasma‐treatment. When immersed in water, the device discharges electricity with a power density that exceeds 700 mW m^?2, one order of magnitude higher than the best previously published result. X‐ray absorption and density functional theory studies support a mechanism of operation that relies on the polarization of sp² hybridized carbon atoms. The devices are incorporated into a flexible fabric for powering personal electronic devices.     

Promoting the Transformation of Li2S2 to Li2S: Significantly Increasing Utilization of Active Materials for High‐Sulfur‐Loading Li–S Batteries

Lithium–sulfur (Li–S) batteries with high sulfur loading are urgently required in order to take advantage of their high theoretical energy density. Ether‐based Li–S batteries involve sophisticated multistep solid–liquid–solid–solid electrochemical reaction mechanisms. Recently, studies on Li–S batteries have widely focused on the initial solid (sulfur)–liquid (soluble polysulfide)–solid (Li₂S₂) conversion reactions, which contribute to the first 50% of the theoretical capacity of the Li–S batteries. Nonetheless, the sluggish kinetics of the solid–solid conversion from solid‐state intermediate product Li₂S₂ to the final discharge product Li₂S (corresponding to the last 50% of the theoretical capacity) leads to the premature end of discharge, resulting in low discharge capacity output and low sulfur utilization. To tackle the aforementioned issue, a catalyst of amorphous cobalt sulfide (CoS₃) is proposed to decrease the dissociation energy of Li₂S₂ and propel the electrochemical transformation of Li₂S₂ to Li₂S. The CoS₃ catalyst plays a critical role in improving the sulfur utilization, especially in high‐loading sulfur cathodes (3–10 mg cm^?2). Accordingly, the Li₂S/Li₂S₂ ratio in the discharge products increased to 5.60/1 from 1/1.63 with CoS₃ catalyst, resulting in a sulfur utilization increase of 20% (335 mAh g^?1) compared to the counterpart sulfur electrode without CoS₃.