Hair Dryer Research Articles

The Study on Possible Gene Therapy on Diabetics Type I Using Insulin Gene under Control of Heat Shock Promoter in Laboratory Animals

Background: Gene therapy is one of the treatment method for diabetes mellitus. An insulin gene, under control of heat shock inducer promoter was used in the study.Materials and Methods: Six mice used in this study. Streptozotocin (STZ) induced diabetes mellitus in BALB/C mice and rats. Recombinant plasmid was injected to each animal. Animal’s blood sugar (BS) was measured. Warming was done at injection site with a hair dryer to induced gene expression.Results: Immediately after warming blood sugar was increased in mouse 1 and decreased after one hour. However, blood sugar increased again in mice 2 and 4. Blood sugar increased for two hours after warming in mouse 3. Blood sugar increased to 150 mg/dl after STZ injection and immediately after warming reached to 160 mg/dl, after one hour BS dropped to 116 mg/dl and on the second hour was 126 mg/dl, in mouse 5 BS had an increasing trend, BS in mouse 6 had a similar pattern to mouse 2.Conclusion: With fixing the defects of the project will be used in gene therapy in future.

Product-Service System Business Modelling Methodology Using Morphological Analysis

This study aims to establish a structured business modelling methodology for successful implementation of Product-service system (PSS). The morphological analysis is applied in investigating the possible patterns of the PSS business model. To systematically collect the business model patterns, we have collected a set of predefined building blocks which can be used in business modelling. These building blocks are collected through investigation of actual PSS business model cases. By mixing and matching various building blocks, various innovative business model alternatives can be designed. To demonstrate our morphological chart, real case example of hair dryer company is illustrated. Moreover, we introduce a web-based system, which supports our business model idea generation procedure using morphological chart.

Deaths Due to Electrocution-A Retrospective Study

Retrospective analysis of deaths because of electric shock from the medico-legal death records our college i.e. J.N.M.C., A.M.U., Aligarh, Uttar Pradesh, India. Most of the deaths were of men having the age in between 11–50 years. All deaths were inadvertent and most part of them were during the time of monsoon as compared to the deaths in western countries where, baths, warmers or hair dryers were the source of electric shocks. The death rate reported because of electric shock was 0.34 per lakhs (100000) of the population in the present study as against the figures of 0.94 and 0.14 from Bulgaria and Canada respectively. A large portion of the deaths were either prompt or quick. It implies that individuals living at home did not have basic knowledge of dangers of electric shock. In this way mindfulness about utilization of good quality electric machines is the need of great importance.

Oil/water separation on structure-controllable Cu mesh: Transition of superhydrophilic-superoleophilic to superhydrophobic-superoleophilic without chemical modification

Four different surface morphologies, including needle-like, bamboo leaf-like, pine needle-like, and peony flower-like structures, were prepared on Cu mesh surface, and the existence of these different surface morphologies were due to the formation of Cu(OH)2 or CuO microstructures by controlling the oxidation time and oxidation temperature of the chemical reaction. These freshly prepared Cu meshes all exhibit superhydrophilic-superoleophilic after dried with a hair dryer. They all have excellent separation efficiency, and the separation efficiency for oil-remove (~96%) is higher than that of water-remove (~94%). Interestingly, these meshes with four different surface morphologies can transform from superhydrophilic-superoleophilic to superhydrophobic-superoleophilic just after storage in air for >20 days without any further chemical modification. This is because oxygen adsorption on the mesh surface contributes to air trapped into the microstructures. These superhydrophobic-superoleophilic copper meshes have good durability. According to the investigation of separation efficiency of the superhydrophobic-superoleophilic mesh, we find that the separation efficiency for oil-remove of the superhydrophobic-superoleophilic mesh (~99%) is higher than that of the superhydrophilic-superoleophilic mesh (~96%).

Measurements of ultrasonic deterrents and an acoustically branded hairdryer: Ambiguities in guideline compliance

Acoustic radiation from three commercial pest deterrents and two hair dryers were measured in an anechoic chamber. The deterrents were chosen because the frequency range at which they emit the most energy is either in the very high-frequency sound band (11.2-17.8 kHz) or the ultrasound band (greater than 17.8 kHz). These are sources that may be heard by a subset of the general population, with the young typically having better high frequency sensitivity. A hairdryer reported to increase the frequency of the motor noise above the audible hearing range was compared with a standard hairdryer. The outputs of the deterrents are compared against six international regulations and guidelines for audible and ultrasound exposure. Multiple ambiguities in the application of these guidelines are discussed. These ambiguities could lead to a device being considered as in compliance despite unconventionally high levels. Even if a device measured here meets a guideline, actual exposures can exceed those taken here and may therefore breach guidelines if the listener is closer to the device or reflections increase the exposure level.

Flow visualization using a Sanderson prism

The use of a Sanderson prism for the visualization of density gradients in a compressible flow is shown to be an inexpensive and versatile substitute for Wollaston prisms in the application of shearing interferometry. Experimentation using the Sanderson prism in a schlieren optical setup was performed to examine the effectiveness of the prism’s use for flow visualization. A range of polycarbonate prisms were tested for a range of prism heights and different physical deflections to produce a range of divergence angles. For each prism height and deflection, tests were done using a hair dryer, helium jet, a soldering iron and a moving shock wave interaction to generate flow density gradients. The light which passes through the prism was also focused at different distances to determine the effects that different fringe arrangements have on the visibility of the flow. Tests were also done comparing horizontal and vertical fringe arrangements. It was found that the colour of the infinite fringe selected had an influence on the results because the larger the difference in colour between that of the adjacent fringes, the better the contrast in the final result. It was also found that infinite fringe use showed better results due to flow features such as shocks and vortices being more easily identified against a uniform background. It is shown that the technique produces good visualization of the density gradients that form in the flow.

Early-life hyperthermic seizures upregulate adenosine A2A receptors in the cortex and promote depressive-like behavior in adult rats

Febrile seizures (FS) represent one of the most frequent convulsive disorders in children which can be classified into simple and prolonged depending on the duration. Although simple FS are generally considered as benign, there is controversy about the outcome of prolonged FS. Here, we have used an animal model of prolonged FS to investigate persistent neurochemical and behavioral alterations in adult rats. Hyperthermic seizures were induced in 12-day-old rats using a warmed air stream from a hair dryer. Neonates exhibited arrest of heat-induced hyperkinesis followed by body flexion and rearing and falling over associated with hindlimb clonus seizures (stage 5 on Racine scale criteria) after hyperthermic induction. After 48 days, the animals were assayed on dark–light box and forced swim tests in order to detect if rats will show signs of anxiety or depression. Finally, animals were sacrificed 56 days after hyperthermia-induced seizures (HIS), and their effects on adenosine A2A receptor signaling and 5′-nucleotidase activity were studied in plasma membranes from the cerebral cortex by using radioligand-binding assay and by measuring the activities of adenylate cyclase and 5′-nucleotidase. Results obtained have shown that adult rats submitted to HIS during the neonatal period showed depressive-like behavior. Furthermore, animals exposed to hyperthermic insult showed an increase in A2A receptor level which was also accompanied by an increase in A2A receptor functionality.

In situ loop-mediated isothermal amplification (LAMP) for identification of Plasmodium species in wide-range thin blood smears

BackgroundFive species of Plasmodium are known to infect humans. For proper treatment of malaria, accurate identification of the parasite species is crucial. The current gold standard for malaria diagnosis is microscopic examination of Giemsa-stained blood smears. Since the parasite species are identified by microscopists who manually search for the parasite-infected red blood cells (RBCs), misdiagnosis due to human error tends to occur in case of low parasitaemia or mixed infection. Then, molecular methods, such as polymerase chain reaction or loop-mediated isothermal amplification (LAMP), are required for conclusive identification of the parasite species. However, since molecular methods are highly sensitive, false-positive results tend to occur due to contamination (carry over) or the target gene products may be detected even after clearance of the parasites from the patient’s blood. Therefore, accurate detection of parasites themselves by microscopic examination is essential for the definitive diagnosis. Thus, the method of in situ LAMP for the parasites was developed.ResultsRed blood cell suspensions, including cultured Plasmodium falciparum, strain 3D7, infected-RBCs, were dispersed on cyclic olefin copolymer (COC) plate surfaces rendered hydrophilic by reactive ion-etching treatment using a SAMCO RIE system (hydrophilic-treated), followed by standing for 10 min to allow the RBCs to settle down on the plate surface. By rinsing the plate with RPMI 1640 medium, monolayers of RBCs formed on almost the entire plate surface. The plate was then dried with a hair drier. The RBCs were fixed with formalin, followed by permeabilization with Triton X-100. Then, amplification of the P. falciparum 18S rRNA gene by the LAMP reaction with digoxigenin (DIG)-labelled dUTP and a specific primer set was performed. Infected RBCs as fluorescence-positive cells with anti-DIG antibodies conjugated with fluorescein using fluorescent microscopy could be detected.ConclusionsThe present work shows that the potential of in situ LAMP for the identification of Plasmodium species at the single cell level on hydrophilic-treated COC palates, allowing highly sensitive and accurate malaria diagnosis. The findings will improve the efficacy of the gold standard method for malaria diagnosis.

Solvent-assisted programming of flat polymer sheets into reconfigurable and self-healing 3D structures

It is extremely challenging, yet critically desirable to convert 2D plastic films into 3D structures without any assisting equipment. Taking the advantage of solvent-induced bond-exchange reaction and elastic-plastic transition, shape programming of flat vitrimer polymer sheets offers a new way to obtain 3D structures or topologies, which are hard for traditional molding to achieve. Here we show that such programming can be achieved with a pipette, a hair dryer, and a bottle of solvent. The polymer used here is very similar to the commercial epoxy, except that a small percentage of a specific catalyst is involved to facilitate the bond-exchange reaction. The programmed 3D structures can later be erased, reprogrammed, welded with others, and healed again and again, using the same solvent-assisted technique. The 3D structures can also be recycled by hot-pressing into new sheets, which can still be repeatedly programmed.

Application and effect evaluation of dryer on the patients of urinary diversion napes neostomy of urinary bladder carcinoma

Objective To investigate about the application effect of dryer on the patients of urinary diversion napes neostomy of urinary bladder carcinoma. Methods According to the standardized operation procedure, there were procedures of wearing, removing and checking to replace stoma chassis.120 patients receiving eradicative radical cystectomy combined with urinary diversion napes neostomy in this hospital from January 2015 to June 2016 were divided into intervention group (62 cases) and control group (58 cases) randomly.After routine operation procedures were conducted to control group, and chassis was pasted, dryer was used to blow the stoma chassis at a warm temperature continuously.It would be proper to keep the chassis warm.Routine operation procedures were carried out to control group.DET evaluation scale, chassis replacement time, stoma surrounding skin complication, feeling of patients to stoma, stoma material costs of both groups were applied to compare and observe its effects. Results DET evaluation scale, chassis replacement time, stoma surrounding skin complication, feeling of patients to stoma and stoma material costs of intervention group were superior to control group 1 month after operation, of which the difference had statistical significance (P<0.05). Conclusions The dryer applied to the replacement of stoma chassis to make it soft can make it better cohered with skin, which can reduce the occurrence rate of complications, relieve economic pressures, promote the comfort of patients and improve patients' life quality. Key words: Electric hair drier; Bladder cancer; Urinary abdomina diversion; Application

Correlation between Mechanical and Thermal Properties of Human Hair.

Context:Hair strength depends on integrity of protein structure, aging, and chemical effects and its exposure to mechanical (combing and curling) and thermal (hair drying and straightening) stimuli.Aims:The aim of this study is to correlate the mechanical properties such as tensile yield stress and tensile modulus of single hair fibers with thermal properties such as melting enthalpy and melting point obtained by differential scanning calorimetry.Materials and Methods:Single hair fibers covering seven decades of age were cut 2 cm above the scalp. Tensile specimens were prepared using single fibers with gauge length of 20 mm, and test was carried out with speed of 20 mm/min. For thermal analysis, 2–3 mg of hair samples were cut to 0.5 mm length and loaded in aluminum pan and heated at a rate of 10°C/min from 30°C to 280°C.Data Analysis:Tensile yield stress (determined at the onset of stress constancy at ~3% strain) and tensile modulus were determined using Origin software. The same software was used to plot the thermal data as heat flow (W/g)-temperature diagrams and to determine the peak temperature and peak area (melting enthalpy) by creating a sigmoidal baseline.Results:The typical values of tensile modulus, yield stress, and maximum stress obtained were 5.1 ± 0.5 GPa, 109 ± 9 MPa, and 161 ± 24 MPa, respectively. Further, typical values of melting enthalpy and peak temperature determined were 6.29 ± 0.20 J/g and 235°C ± 0.6°C, respectively.Conclusions:Mechanical yield stress and melting enthalpy were compared, and it was found that a good nonlinear (sigmoidal) correlation was obtained. The nonlinear correlation seems to provide an accurate representation of a composite keratin structure wherein the % crystallinity exhibits a range, and also, crystalline and amorphous regions are intertwined and intricate in nature.

A system for three-dimensional gaze fixation analysis using eye tracking glasses

Abstract Eye tracking is a technology that has quickly become a commonplace tool for evaluating package and webpage design. In such design processes, static two-dimensional images are shown on a computer screen while a subject's gaze where he or she looks is measured via an eye tracking device. The collected gaze fixation data are then visualized and analyzed via gaze plots and heat maps. Such evaluations using two-dimensional images are often too limited to analyze gaze on three-dimensional physical objects such as products because users look at them not from a single point of view but rather from various angles. Therefore in this study we propose methods for collecting gaze fixation data for a three-dimensional model of a given product and visualizing corresponding gaze plots and heat maps also in three dimensions. To achieve our goals, we used a wearable eye-tracking device, i.e., eye-tracking glasses. Further, we implemented a prototype system to demonstrate its advantages in comparison with two-dimensional gaze fixation methods. Highlights Proposing a method for collecting gaze fixation data for a three-dimensional model of a given product. Proposing two visualization methods for three dimensional gaze data; gaze plots and heat maps. Proposed system was applied to two practical examples of hair dryer and car interior.

Faster suction blister formation using 2 hair dryers.

Faster suction blister formation using 2 hair dryers.

Draft of the MEPS and HEPS for hair dryer in Thailand

Each year, about a million new hair dryers has been sold in the Thailand’s market. Only safety standard is applied without the high efficiency performance standard (HEPS). This study is to setup the HEPS and minimum energy performance standard (MEPS) including the test method. First, market survey is done. By applying the Yamane statistic model, the number of sample are chosen and tested by the IEC 61855:2003 Household electrical hair care appliances – Methods of measuring the performance. It is found that for the hair dryer rated power equal or less than 1,300 Watt, 1,301- 1,900 Watt and 1,901 – 2,800 Watt, the MEPS are 5.9, 7.0 and 7.5 respectively. For the HEPS, they are 4.5, 5.4 and 5.7 respectively. If these figures is enforced, yearly potential saving will be 9,111,131 kWh.

Physicochemical characterization of aerosol particles emitted by electrical appliances

Adverse health effects of airborne particulate matter depend on parameters like particle size, particle surface and chemical composition. Major emission of indoor particles is caused by combustion processes like tobacco smoking and cooking. Nevertheless, the use of household electrical appliances, such as vacuum cleaners, flat irons or hair dryers, can produce particles as well.In this study the emissions of different hair dryers and flat irons were investigated using a test chamber. The particle number concentrations, particle volume concentrations, as well as the size distributions were measured. Particles were sampled and analyzed by electron microscopy, inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry and gas chromatography mass spectrometry. Moreover different volatile organic compounds (VOCs) were measured.Each tested appliance, especially flat irons produced small particles with diameters far below 100nm and might be a nonnegligible source for indoor particles. Copper was the main identified element in most of the particles emitted from hair dryers, but in the emission of two hair dryers silver-containing nanoparticles were found as well. Various VOCs were observed in the emission of both flat irons and hair dryers, while cyclic siloxanes were detected only in the emission of flat irons. The use of flat irons or hair dryers may significantly contribute to the personal particle exposure.

Use of multidisciplinary analysis programs in the design process and its importance in terms of design education

Product design is a sophisticated cyclical process involving different stages, beginning from the problem state to the product end, nested in the process. Also, in the process of design education, the form created by the designer is subjected to various criticisms and is undergoing a change with function relation. The multidimensional thinking skills have been gained to the students during design education cause unique changes on the product. Depending on the dynamic developments, the self-renewing product forms deem it necessary for the designer to be prompted from different sources. Although the factors such as areas of expertise, user needs, production techniques, material choice, and form concern are effective in determining the product identity, the designer presents innovative ideas and solutions to create a “magic touch.” This magic touch would contribute identity to the product within this framework. These programs, which contribute to the designers' abilities along with the development of design and analysis programs, are positioned at different intersections in the product design cycle. This situation also has a significant impact on design education. In this study, the effects of these programs, used at different stages of the product design education, on the form were investigated. Moreover, strength examination of the design of the table foot and flow simulation on the hair dryer end apparatus were determined. In two separate multidisciplinary analysis studies, the change in characteristics of the product function with physical interactions was shown. Along with the findings of this research, the contributions of analysis programs on the design process, and the effects to product identity are explained through examples.

RESIDENTIAL EXPOSURE TO EXTREMELY LOW FREQUENCY ELECTRIC AND MAGNETIC FIELDS IN THE CITY OF RAMALLAH-PALESTINE.

This study was focused on the measurement of residential exposure to power frequency (50-Hz) electric and magnetic fields in the city of Ramallah-Palestine. A group of 32 semi-randomly selected residences distributed amongst the city were under investigations of fields variations. Measurements were performed with the Spectrum Analyzer NF-5035 and were carried out at one meter above ground level in the residence's bedroom or living room under both zero and normal-power conditions. Fields' variations were recorded over 6-min and some times over few hours. Electric fields under normal-power use were relatively low; ~59% of residences experienced mean electric fields <10 V/m. The highest mean electric field of 66.9 V/m was found at residence R27. However, electric field values were log-normally distributed with geometric mean and geometric standard deviation of 9.6 and 3.5 V/m, respectively. Background electric fields measured under zero-power use, were very low; ~80% of residences experienced background electric fields <1 V/m. Under normal-power use, the highest mean magnetic field (0.45 μT) was found at residence R26 where an indoor power substation exists. However, ~81% of residences experienced mean magnetic fields <0.1 μT. Magnetic fields measured inside the 32 residences showed also a log-normal distribution with geometric mean and geometric standard deviation of 0.04 and 3.14 μT, respectively. Under zero-power conditions, ~7% of residences experienced average background magnetic field >0.1 μT. Fields from appliances showed a maximum mean electric field of 67.4 V/m from hair dryer, and maximum mean magnetic field of 13.7 μT from microwave oven. However, no single result surpassed the ICNIRP limits for general public exposures to ELF fields, but still, the interval 0.3-0.4 μT for possible non-thermal health impacts of exposure to ELF magnetic fields, was experienced in 13% of the residences.

Fuzzy association rule mining for recognising daily activities using Kinect sensors and a single power meter

The recognition of activities of daily living (ADLs) by home monitoring systems can be helpful in order to objectively assess the health-related living behaviour and functional ability of older adults. Many ADLs involve human interactions with household electrical appliances (HEAs) such as toasters and hair dryers. Advances in sensor technology have prompted the development of intelligent algorithms to recognise ADLs via inferential information provided from the use of HEAs. The use of robust unsupervised machine learning techniques with inexpensive and retrofittable sensors is an ongoing focus in the ADL recognition research. This paper presents a novel unsupervised activity recognition method for elderly people living alone. This approach exploits a fuzzy-based association rule-mining algorithm to identify the home occupant’s interactions with HEAs using a power sensor, retrofitted at the house electricity panel, and a few Kinect sensors deployed at various locations within the home. A set of fuzzy rules is learned automatically from unlabelled sensor data to map the occupant’s locations during ADLs to the power signatures of HEAs. The fuzzy rules are then used to classify ADLs in new sensor data. Evaluations in real-world settings in this study demonstrated the potential of using Kinect sensors in conjunction with a power meter for the recognition of ADLs. This method was found to be significantly more accurate than just using power consumption data. In addition, the evaluation results confirmed that, owing to the use of fuzzy logic, the proposed method tolerates real-life variations in ADLs where the feature values in new sensor data differ slightly from those in the learning patterns.

A Study on Thermal Deformation due to Fan Shape of Hair Dryer

This study investigates thermal deformation due to fan shape of a hair dryer. In this study, thermal analysis showed that the shape of an electric fan results in lower temperature than that of a sieve frame. Among the shapes of electric fans, the temperature change decreases as the number of wings decreases. As a result of thermal deformation, model 4 (sieve frame shape) showed increased change of deformation compared to models 1, 2, and 3 (with electric fan shapes). Thus, the model 1 dryer with the sieve frame shape is shown to have the least durability among models 1, 2, 3, and 4. It is thought that the analysis results of this study can be applied to durability improvement and safer design of hair dryers.

Factors Associated with Internal Phthalate Exposure among Pregnant Women

Objective: To analyze the potential factors related to phthalic acid ester (PAE) exposure in pregnant women using multivariate statistical methods. Methods: The study was conducted from April to June 2013 in Xiamen, China. A total of 1020 pregnant women (gestational age ≤16 weeks) met the criteria for inclusion in the cohort. We selected 100 participants by systematic random sampling. Participant information was collected by questionnaires, and urine samples were collected, detect five PAEs (MEP; MBzP; MBP; MEHP; and MMP) levels in urine samples. Single-factor and multi-factor logistic analysis were used to analyze the association between PAE exposure levels and potential associated factors. Results: After creatinine adjustment, medians of the five PAEs in the 100 urine samples were 54.64 μg/g, 29.25 μg/g, 17.56 μg/g, 3.91 μg/g, and 53.79 μg/g, respectively. Multivariate analysis results indicated that MMP was associated with education level and the use of hair permanents, hair dyes, and hair dryers; ORs were 0.560 and 2.056, respectively. MEP was associated with education level and makeup use during pregnancy; ORs were 0.548 and 1.968, respectively. MBP was associated with education level, the use of makeup, hair permanents, dyes, and dryers; ORs were 0.559, 1.876, and 2.812, respectively. MBZP was associated with level of education; OR was 0.482. Finally, MEHP was associated with education level, drinking water type, and medication use during pregnancy; ORs were 0.560, 1.972, and 2.100, respectively. Conclusion: PAE exposure levels in pregnant women were associated with level of education, type of drinking water, and use of medication, permanent hair waves, hair dyes, hair dryers or makeup during pregnancy.