Minute Changes Research Articles

Effectiveness of Structured Teaching Program on Knowledge Regarding Breast Self Examination among Adolescent Girls at Selected College, Chengal Pattu District

Background: Women and men share many similar health problems, but women also have their own health issues, which deserve special consideration in developed and developing countries, breast cancer is shown as a major health problem. Breast cancer is the leading malignant tumour and it consists 30% of cancers among women. Breast cancer is the second leading cause of cancer deaths. In India, the incidence of breast cancer is increasing, with an estimated 80,000 new cases were diagnosed annually it is reported that one in 22 women in India is likely to suffer from breast cancer during her lifetime. At present a simple, inexpensive and early implant for the detection of breast cancer is breast self- examination. It is one of the simplest and most important health programmes no promote early detection. Materials and Methodology: The researcher had used a quantitative research approach by employing quasi experimental pretest post test only group research design and Random sampling technique was adopted to selected 100 Adolescent girls with the age group of 17 to 23 years who met inclusion criteria at selected College, Chennai (2021).The investigator collected the demographic data such as age, marital status, type of family, residence, weight from the respondents by using the self-structured questionnaire after obtaining informed consent. Self structured multiple-choice questionnaire was used as a Research Tool to assess the Knowledge and practice on Self breast examination, knowledge on Breast cancer and use of Mammography. The conceptual framework used for the study was based on “Becker’s health belief model.” Result: The frequency and percentage of pre-test and post-test level knowledge regarding breast self- examination shows majority of female students in pre-test 65 of them(65%) had inadequate knowledge remaining 35 of them (35%) had moderate knowledge and none of them adequate knowledge regarding breast self-examination but in post-test majority 88 of them (88%) had adequate knowledge remaining 12 of them(12%) had moderately adequate knowledge and none of them inadequate knowledge regarding breast self-examination. Over all comparison of mean values between pre-test 11.32 and post-test 26.3 of knowledge regarding breast self-examination and ‘t’ value 17.57 obtained was found to be significant at 0.05 level. So that the structured teaching programme has a significant effect in increasing the knowledge regarding breast self examination among adolescent girls. It shows the effectiveness in improving awareness regarding breast self-examination. Conclusion: Regular breast self-examination can identify any abnormal changes in breast to establish good prognosis it the young groups of women are targeted with accurate information and encouragement they will learn accurate information and encouragement they will learn to examine themselves and detect every Minute changes early in their later life.

Dynamic behavior of mixed convection heat transfer among horizontal co-axial fixed pipes at varying temperatures: Efficiency of cylindrical heat sink

The aim of the current research is to highlight the time-dependent properties of laminar convective thermal transmission inside a semi-infinite pipe, with an emphasis on flow frequencies that impact inter-fluid momentum and energy. The implicit finite difference approach is used to solve two-dimensional mathematical model composed of nonlinear partial differential equations. The research includes forecasting thermal performance of time-dependent flow in a pipe over several parameter ranges relevant to the flow model. The obtained forecasts were emphasized graphically. The numerical solutions were separated into steady and unsteady components, with the steady component yielding findings that were then used to determine the time dependent surface shearness and energy shearness in the time dependent phase. The stable component of the investigation revealed that raising the buoyancy force parameter and the impact of viscous dissipation significantly improved the flow velocity pattern and heat distributions throughout the flow domain. While the amplitude of time dependent surface shearness varied somewhat across various buoyancy force parameter values, the amplitude of time dependent heat transmission rates varied significantly. This study sheds light on the interaction of several characteristics, such as buoyancy force effects and internal energy loss, on time-dependent thermal energy flow inside a semi-infinite pipe subjected to laminar convective flow. It is worth noting that the amplitude of the time dependent rate of heat transmission shows more noticeable variations with different values of the buoyancy force parameter, in contrast to the minute change in the amplitude of the time dependent surface sheerness.

Friction Performance of Rubber Sealing Disc Inside Pipe Robots for the Production of High-Paraffin Oil

The in-pipe robot is the most commonly used technique in offshore pipelines. The use of rubber sealing discs is important for in-pipe robots to ensure that the robots are moved by fluid pressures inside offshore pipelines. This paper focuses on the measuring and modeling of the wax–oil gel-breaking process at the soft frictional area between sealing discs and the pipe wall. In this study, a detailed characterization of the gel-scraping process and in situ probing portable microscopy are performed. Two contributions are made in this study. First, a direct observation of wax–oil deposition breaking is employed to detect the minute changes at the in-pipe robot. Second, we find that a simple function is possible to describe the relationship between the wax contents and dewaxing efficiency, in which the debris material removal ratio (DRR) is discussed. Thus, the gel deposition-breaking phenomena are quite different under the influence of rubber sealing discs. This result is further confirmed by the real contact ratio measurements. It is important to research the sealing disc further and apply it more in the petroleum industry, especially in in-pipe robots for deepwater pipeline systems.

Abstract 14: Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder Symptoms and Physical Activity Behavior After Hospitalization for Suspected Acute Coronary Syndromes

Background: An acute coronary syndrome (ACS) related event can induce post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), and post-ACS PTSD is associated with a greater risk for secondary clinical outcomes among ACS survivors. While moderate-vigorous physical activity (MVPA) has been shown to reduce the risk of adverse outcomes after ACS, its impact on PTSD symptoms remains largely unknown. There is a notable absence of empirical evidence, especially from large-scale observational cohort studies with device-based measures of physical activity, on this topic. Aim: To investigate the relationship between physical activity behaviors over the first month post-discharge with PTSD symptoms at one month among patients with suspected ACS. Methods: Patients (n = 434, 48.6% female, 62.6±12.4yrs) evaluated for ACS in the emergency department were fitted with a GENEActiv wrist accelerometer in-hospital and wore the device on their non-dominant wrist for 30 days post-discharge to measure MVPA. Presence and severity of PTSD symptoms were assessed at 1-month follow-up using the PCL-5. Multilevel structural equation modeling was used to simultaneously 1) fit a linear growth curve (GC) model to patients’ 30-day trajectories of MVPA and 2) predict total PTSD symptoms from a) mean daily MVPA, b) average daily change in MVPA (GC slope), and c) covariates (age, biological sex, education, and Charlson Comorbidity Index). Results: Patients engaged in an average of 20.8 (95% CI: 18.4, 23.3, p < 0.001) minutes of MVPA per day. MVPA levels increased at an average rate of 0.11 mins/day (95% CI: 0.05, 0.16, p < 0.001) over the 30 days post-discharge. There was substantial between-patient variability in both average MVPA minutes (SD = 26.0) and daily rate of change in MVPA minutes (SD = 0.38). The daily rate of change in MVPA was significantly associated with 1-month PTSD symptoms (β per 0.5 mins/day difference in daily rate of change in MVPA minutes = -4.5 points on the PCL-5; 95% CI: -6.5, -2.5, p < 0.001), controlling for the above-mentioned covariates. The association between average MVPA minutes and PCL-5 score was small and not statistically significant (β = 0.02; 95% CI: -0.04, 0.07, p = 0.60). Conclusion: PTSD symptoms appear to be mitigated in patients whose MVPA minutes increased over the 30 days post-discharge, whereas no evident association was observed between PTSD symptoms and average daily MVPA minutes. These findings suggest that progressively increasing MVPA by as little as .5 mins/day (i.e., ~1 SD above the mean rate of increase) within the immediate first month post-discharge, as opposed to maintaining a consistent daily average of MVPA, may impede the development of PTSD symptoms in ACS survivors.

Exploring the Efficacy of LightGBM, AdaBoost, and CatBoost in Alzheimer’s Disease Classification

Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is a major public health concern that requires prompt and accurate diagnosis to intervene effectively. We present a comprehensive machine learning system in our work that is specifically designed to classify AD. It incorporates various neuroimaging and clinical features, including air time1, disp index1, gmrt in air1, max x extension1, and max y extension1. We can decipher complex data correlations suggesting AD pathology using rigorous preprocessing and visualization methods, such as correlation heatmaps and 3D scatter plots. We can distinguish minute changes between AD, moderate cognitive impairment, and healthy controls using CatBoost, LightGBM, and AdaBoost classifiers. A thorough assessment of the model’s performance is provided by the rigorous evaluation metrics of accuracy, precision, recall, and F1-score, which are supplemented by detailed classification reports and confusion matrices. Learning curves also provide information about the generalization and flexibility of models. Our findings support integrated analysis approaches across many data modalities and highlight the revolutionary potential of machine learning in AD diagnosis. Developing customized treatment plans and cutting-edge clinical decision support systems is expected to improve patient outcomes and the standard of care for neurodegenerative diseases.

Iterative Patient Testing of a Stimuli-Responsive Swallowing Activity Sensor to Promote Extended User Engagement During the First Year After Radiation: Multiphase Remote and In-Person Observational Cohort Study.

Frequent sensor-assisted monitoring of changes in swallowing function may help improve detection of radiation-associated dysphagia before it becomes permanent. While our group has prototyped an epidermal strain/surface electromyography sensor that can detect minute changes in swallowing muscle movement, it is unknown whether patients with head and neck cancer would be willing to wear such a device at home after radiation for several months. We iteratively assessed patients' design preferences and perceived barriers to long-term use of the prototype sensor. In study 1 (questionnaire only), survivors of pharyngeal cancer who were 3-5 years post treatment and part of a larger prospective study were asked their design preferences for a hypothetical throat sensor and rated their willingness to use the sensor at home during the first year after radiation. In studies 2 and 3 (iterative user testing), patients with and survivors of head and neck cancer attending visits at MD Anderson's Head and Neck Cancer Center were recruited for two rounds of on-throat testing with prototype sensors while completing a series of swallowing tasks. Afterward, participants were asked about their willingness to use the sensor during the first year post radiation. In study 2, patients also rated the sensor's ease of use and comfort, whereas in study 3, preferences were elicited regarding haptic feedback. The majority of respondents in study 1 (116/138, 84%) were willing to wear the sensor 9 months after radiation, and participant willingness rates were similar in studies 2 (10/14, 71.4%) and 3 (12/14, 85.7%). The most prevalent reasons for participants' unwillingness to wear the sensor were 9 months being excessive, unwanted increase in responsibility, and feeling self-conscious. Across all three studies, the sensor's ability to detect developing dysphagia increased willingness the most compared to its appearance and ability to increase adherence to preventive speech pathology exercises. Direct haptic signaling was also rated highly, especially to indicate correct sensor placement and swallowing exercise performance. Patients and survivors were receptive to the idea of wearing a personalized risk sensor for an extended period during the first year after radiation, although this may have been limited to well-educated non-Hispanic participants. A significant minority of patients expressed concern with various aspects of the sensor's burden and its appearance. ClinicalTrials.gov NCT03010150; https://clinicaltrials.gov/study/NCT03010150.

Structural stability and proton beam irradiation effects on simulated metal fluoride waste–loaded iron phosphate glass

AbstractNext‐generation nuclear reactor technologies such as the molten salt reactor utilize alkali metal fluoride salts as both fuel and coolant. In the present study, the suitability of iron phosphate glass (IPG) as a vitrification matrix for alkali metal fluoride (NaF, CaF2) and simulated fission product loaded fluoride (NdF3, CeF3, SmF3) waste has been explored. The structural change in the metal fluoride–loaded IPG has been analyzed thoroughly using Raman and fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy. Thermal analysis showed that the stability and glass forming ability of IPG improved upon loading the same with various mixed metal fluorides. Mössbauer data and X‐ray absorption spectroscopy at Fe K‐edge explored the minute changes in the local structure. The effect of radiation emanating from radioactive wastes in the fluoride‐loaded IPG has been scrutinized via 4.5 MeV proton beam irradiation. Our study firmly establishes the applicability of IPG as suitable vitrification matrix for radioactive metal fluoride–loaded nuclear wastes.

In-situ observation of magnetic domain reversal during magnetic viscosity of permanent magnets

Magnetic viscosity analysis is a widely studied topic in understanding the stability and magnetization mechanisms of magnets. However, observing the minute changes in magnetic domains during the magnetic viscosity process poses a challenge in research. To address this issue, a self-made in-situ magnetized sample holder was used in this study to observe the dynamic evolution of domain structures in alnico alloy during magnetic viscosity. The findings indicate that the domain reversal during magnetic viscosity is largely irreversible, with only minor reversible changes observed in the inhomogeneous region. The magnetization reversal in alnico alloy occurs through the reversal of α1 phases, which follows a single domain particle reversal mode. The zero-field activation energy (E0) of alnico alloy is determined as 3.30 × 10−17 J, and the coercivity field without thermal disturbance (H0) is measured at 1779.19 Oe. This research method proves to be a valuable tool in the study of magnetic materials.

Microviscosity-Assisted Disaggregation of a Model Ophthalmic Drug and FRET-Controlled Singlet Oxygen Generation in Lyotropic Liquid Crystals.

Different phases of lyotropic liquid crystals (LLCs), made up of mesogen-like sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS), mainly bestow different bulk viscosities. Along with this, the role of microviscosities of the individual LLC phases is of immense interest because a minute change in it due to guest incorporation can cause significant alteration in their property as a potential energy transfer scaffold. Recently, LLCs have been identified as plausible drug delivery agents for ocular treatments. In this direction, the present work illustrates photophysical modulations of an important laser dye as well as an ophthalmic medicine, coumarin 6 (C6), inside different LLC phases in an aqueous medium. C6 molecules spontaneously accumulate in water, leading to aggregation-caused quenching (ACQ) of fluorescence. However, the different phases of the LLCs prepared from SDS and water helped in disintegrating the C6 colonies to various extents depending upon the microviscosity. The heterogeneity in the LLC phases, in turn, could modulate the Förster resonance energy transfer (FRET) between C6 and the LLC incorporated with N-doped carbon nanoparticles (N-CNPs). The N-CNPs act as potential photosensitizers and generate singlet oxygen (1O2), a reactive oxygen species (ROS), to different extents. Microviscosities of the prepared LLCs were calculated by using fluorescence correlation spectroscopy (FCS). The different phases of the LLCs, viz., lamellar and hexagonal, with different microviscosities controlled the extent of C6 disaggregation and hence the FRET and the ROS generation. The results are encouraging since ROS generation has a significant role in the vision mechanism and PDT-based applications. LLC-based drug administration with potential FRET to control ROS generation may become handy in ophthalmology. The LLC phases used in this experiment not only served the purpose of drug delivery but also the photophysical events therein are compatible with the ocular environment.

Rapid and Direct Detection of Trimethylamine N-oxide Using an Off-Chip Capacitance Biosensor with Readout SoC for Early-Stage Thrombosis and Cardiovascular Disease.

A demonstration of an off-chip capacitance array sensor with a limit of detection of 1 μM trimethylamine N-oxide (TMAO) to diagnose a chronic metabolism disease in urine is presented. The improved Cole-Cole model is employed to determine the parameters of R_catalyzed, C_catalyzed, and Rp_catalyzed, enabling the prediction of the catalytic resistance of enzyme, reduction effects of the analyte, and characterize the small signal alternating current properties of ionic strength caused by catalysis. Based on the standard solutions, we investigate the effects of pixel geometry parameters, driving electrode width, and sensing electrode width on the electrical field change of the off-chip capacitance sensor; the proposed off-chip sensor with readout system-on-chip exhibits a high sensitivity of 21 analog-to-digital converter counts/μM TMAO (or 2.5 mV/μM TMAO), response time of 1 s, repetition of 98.9%, and drift over time of 0.5 mV. The proposed off-chip sensor effectively discriminates TMAO in a phosphate-buffered saline solution based on minute changes in capacitance induced by the TorA enzyme, resulting in a discernible 2.15% distinction. These measurements have been successfully corroborated using the conventional cyclic voltammetry method, demonstrating a mere 0.024% variance. The off-chip sensor is crafted with a specific focus on detecting TMAO, achieved by excluding any reduction reactions between the TMAO-specific enzyme TorA and the compounds creatine and creatinine present in urine. This deliberate omission ensures that the sensor's attention remains solely on TMAO, thereby enhancing its precision in achieving accurate and reliable TMAO detection.

Cost-effectiveness of reducing children’s sedentary time and increasing physical activity at school: the Transform-Us! intervention

BackgroundImproving physical activity and reducing sedentary behavior represent important areas for intervention in childhood in order to reduce the burden of chronic disease related to obesity and physical inactivity in later life. This paper aims to determine the cost-effectiveness of a multi-arm primary school-based intervention to increase physical activity and/or reduce sedentary time in 8–9 year old children (Transform-Us!).MethodsModelled cost-utility analysis, using costs and effects from a cluster randomized controlled trial of a 30-month intervention that used pedagogical and environmental strategies to reduce and break up sedentary behaviour (SB-I), promote physical activity (PA-I), or a combined approach (PA + SB-I), compared to current practice. A validated multiple-cohort lifetable model (ACE-Obesity Policy model) estimated the obesity and physical activity-related health outcomes (measured as change in body mass index and change in metabolic equivalent task minutes respectively) and healthcare cost-savings over the cohort’s lifetime from the public-payer perspective, assuming the intervention was delivered to all 8–9 year old children attending Australian Government primary schools. Sensitivity analyses tested the impact on cost-effectiveness of varying key input parameters, including maintenance of intervention effect assumptions.ResultsCost-effectiveness results demonstrated that, when compared to control schools, the PA-I and SB-I intervention arms were “dominant”, meaning that they resulted in net health benefits and healthcare cost-savings if the intervention effects were maintained. When the costs and effects of these intervention arms were extrapolated to the Australian population, results suggested significant potential as obesity prevention measures (PA-I: 60,780 HALYs saved (95% UI 15,007-109,413), healthcare cost-savings AUD641M (95% UI AUD165M-$1.1B); SB-I: 61,126 HALYs saved (95% UI 11,770 − 111,249), healthcare cost-savings AUD654M (95% UI AUD126M-1.2B)). The PA-I and SB-I interventions remained cost-effective in sensitivity analysis, assuming the full decay of intervention effect after 10 years.ConclusionsThe PA-I and SB-I Transform-Us! intervention arms represent good value for money and could lead to health benefits and healthcare cost-savings arising from the prevention of chronic disease in later life if intervention effects are sustained.Trial registrationInternational Standard Randomized Controlled Trial Number (ISRCTN83725066). Australia and New Zealand Clinical Trials Registry Number (ACTRN12609000715279).

Application of spring energy accumulators in forging and pressing equipment

The development of forging and stamping production requires automation of various pressure treatment equipment. An important feature of the pressure treatment mechanisms is their inherent unsteady mode of operation, consisting of often alternating acceleration and deceleration, so the proportion of inertial loads is quite large. Such mechanisms are considered to be among the least efficient in terms of energy consumption parameters The low efficiency of the known designs is caused by the inability to exclude the influence of inertial forces on energy consumption and the speed of the equipment. The use of damping devices is not able to solve this problem, since they are designed to absorb a certain amount of energy and when the number of strokes per minute changes, they can cause an increase in dynamic loads.

A rapid freezing method to determine tissue layer thickness in drought-stressed leaves.

Plants have been affected by water stress ever since they settled on dry land. In severe and persisting drought, plant leaves are wilting. However, a documentation at the anatomical level of the minute changes that occur before wilting is challenging. On the other hand, understanding the anatomical alteration in plant leaves with respect to water stress provides a stronger basis to study molecular and submolecular processes through which plants enhance drought tolerance. In this work, we applied an affordable method to visualise mesophyll layers of Arabidopsis thaliana cell lines without preparation steps that would alter the volume of the cells. We rapidly plunge-froze the leaves in liquid nitrogen, cut them while in the N2 bath, and immediately imaged the mesophyll cross sections in a scanning electron microscope. We applied a reduction of watering from 60 to 40 to 20mL per day and investigated two time points, 7 and 12 days, respectively. Interestingly, the overall thickness of leaves increased in water stress conditions. Our results showed that the palisade and spongy layers behaved differently under varying watering regimes. Moreover, the results showed that this method can be used to image leaf sections after drought stress without the risk of artefacts or swelling caused by contact to liquids as during chemical fixation.

Nanomaterials Based Micro/Nanoelectromechanical System (MEMS and NEMS) Devices.

The micro- and nanoelectromechanical system (MEMS and NEMS) devices based on two-dimensional (2D) materials reveal novel functionalities and higher sensitivity compared to their silicon-base counterparts. Unique properties of 2D materials boost the demand for 2D material-based nanoelectromechanical devices and sensing. During the last decades, using suspended 2D membranes integrated with MEMS and NEMS emerged high-performance sensitivities in mass and gas sensors, accelerometers, pressure sensors, and microphones. Actively sensing minute changes in the surrounding environment is provided by means of MEMS/NEMS sensors, such as sensing in passive modes of small changes in momentum, temperature, and strain. In this review, we discuss the materials preparation methods, electronic, optical, and mechanical properties of 2D materials used in NEMS and MEMS devices, fabrication routes besides device operation principles.

Stimulus response of mechanoluminescence of SrAl2O4:Eu,Dy mixed with epoxy resin using uniaxial load

This paper reports the mechanoluminescence (ML) stimuli by a uniaxial load on rectangular-shaped molded SrAl2O4:Eu,Dy phosphor mixed with epoxy resin. The Sr0.97Al2O4: Eu0.01, Dy0.02 phosphor has been prepared through a solid-state reaction technique in the reducing atmosphere created through activated charcoal. The XRD pattern of this phosphor confirms its monoclinic structure. When a load is applied on the rectangular-shaped (RS) molded ML sample, the stimuli ML intensity initially increases with time, attains a peak value, and then decreases with time. It has also been found that the peak ML intensity of the phosphor is linearly proportional to the increasing applied loads. A minute change in tm of the phosphor sample with increasing loads has been recorded. The ML intensity increases with the thickness of the RS molded phosphor samples. The peak of photoluminescence (PL) spectrum of the prepared phosphor excited with 345nm wavelength of light is found at 518 nm.

On the difficulties of obtaining absolute transit depths with HST WFC3: KELT-11 b, an example

ABSTRACT The study of exoplanetary atmospheres with low-resolution transmission spectroscopy relies on measuring minute changes in the transit depth with wavelength and a number of ground- and space-based instruments have been used to characterize exoplanets in different spectral bands. For the last decade, these instruments have each only probed a narrow spectral region, which has motivated the community to combine observations from different instruments in order to achieve a broader wavelength coverage. By analysing Hubble Space Telescope (HST) Wide Field Camera 3 (WFC3) data of KELT-11 b, we once again show the risks of following this now conventional approach. We demonstrate that changes in the reduction or analysis method can lead to drastic differences in the mean transit depth and that combining this with additional data can lead to discrepant interpretations of the atmospheric composition. With the launch of JWST, and its many available instruments and modes, observers may be tempted to combine data sets at longer wavelengths (e.g. NIRSpec – Near Infrared Spectrometer) with those from HST STIS (Space Telescope Imaging Spectrograph) or WFC3 without the consideration of offsets or other incompatibilities. Given the obvious potential issues, we caution against such an approach and encourage the community to thoroughly address the issue of data incompatibility instead of adhering to a de facto assumption of compatibility.

Active-parameter polydispersity in the 2d ABP Yukawa model

In experiments and simulations of passive as well as active matter the most commonly studied kind of parameter polydispersity is that of varying particles size. This paper investigates by simulations the effects of introducing polydispersity in other parameters for two-dimensional active Brownian particles with Yukawa pair interactions. Polydispersity is studied separately in the translational and rotational diffusion coefficients, as well as in the swim velocity v 0. Uniform and binary parameter distributions are considered in the homogeneous and the motility-induced phase-separation (MIPS) phases. We find only minute changes in structure and dynamics upon the introduction of parameter polydispersity, even for situations involving 50% polydispersity. The reason for this is not clear. An exception is the case of v 0 polydispersity for which the average radial distribution function with changing polydispersity shows significant variations in the MIPS phase. Even in this case, however, the dynamics is only modestly affected. As a possible application of our findings, we suggest that a temporary introduction of polydispersity into a single-component active-matter model characterized by a very long equilibration time, i.e. a glass-forming active system, may be used to equilibrate the system efficiently by particle swaps.

Laboratory evaluation of the effectiveness and safety of the Chairside Light Whitening System fläsh

Optimization of methods for treating dental discoloration using whitening systems based on hydrogen peroxide by laboratory studying their chemical properties. The effectiveness of the bleaching system was assessed by quantitatively assessing the color change of model samples of hydroxyapatite (HAP) in the CIE L*a*b* system on a Spectron-M color analyzer after exposure to coloring food media. Safety assessment was carried out on samples made from teeth removed according to indications. The results of laboratory tests allow us to conclude that the Chairside Light Whitening System professional teeth whitening system fläsh. (WHITEsmile GmbH, Germany) has high whitening efficiency with a whitening degree of ~84%, which significantly exceeds the norm of GOST R 702.3.004-2021. the microhardness of the enamel of samples exposed to the whitening gel for 15 minutes changes extremely little. After exposure of the studied samples to the Chairside Light Whitening System fläsh whitening system for 45 minutes, an increase in digital microhardness indicators is observed, which indicates the dynamics of processes demineralizing the hard tooth structure. Chairside Light Whitening System fläsh professional teeth whitening system has high whitening efficiency with minimal impact on the teeth structure and high safety.

Possibilities and limitations of convolutional neural network machine learning architectures in the characterisation of achiral orthogonal smectic liquid crystals.

Machine learning is becoming a valuable tool in the characterisation and property prediction of liquid crystals. It is thus worthwhile to be aware of the possibilities but also the limitations of current machine learning algorithms. In this study we investigated a phase sequence of isotropic - fluid smecticA - hexatic smectic B - soft crystal CrE - crystalline. This is a sequence of transitions between orthogonal phases, which are expected to be difficult to distinguish, because of only minute changes in order. As expected, strong first order transitions such as the liquid to liquid crystal transition and the crystallisation can be distinguished with high accuracy. It is shown that also the hexatic SmB to soft crystal CrE transition is clearly characterised, which represents the transition from short- to long-range order. Limitations of convolutional neural networks can be observed for the fluid to hexatic SmA to SmB transition, where both phases exhibit short-range ordering.

Dynamic Sleep Architecture Revealed: Sleep Auditory Evoked Potentials from N100 to P900

Background: The research landscape in sleep is currently shifting toward minute changes in brain functioning during different stages. This fine approach necessitates a dynamic assessment as in the case of electrophysiology. The present study aimed to investigate brain responsiveness during different stages and times of nocturnal sleep using auditory evoked potentials (AEPs). Materials and Methods: Sleep recordings of 18 volunteer subjects were analyzed. During sleep recordings, auditory stimuli were presented in the ear channels. Sleep stages were scored according to the American Academy of Sleep Medicine system. AEPs were analyzed in nonrapid eye movement sleep stages. Alterations of N100, P200, N300, P450, N550, and P900 waveforms were investigated in the first and second halves of sleep duration. Results: N100 amplitude was higher in light sleep, both in the first and the second halves of the night (sleep duration). The amplitude of P900 was higher in the deep sleep stage in both halves. Significant amplitude reductions were found in N100, P200, P450, and P900 in the second half of the sleep. Conclusions: The changes found suggest that they are related to the dynamics of sensory processing to maintain functional sleep. The findings of the present study emphasize that in the course of sleep, both the proportions of sleep stages and the microarchitecture within the stages alter between the first and second halves of sleep.