Supplementary Functions Research Articles

A general Fourier solution for the vibration analysis of composite laminated structure elements of revolution with general elastic restraints

A unified modified Fourier solution based on the first order shear deformation theory is developed for the vibrations of various composite laminated structure elements of revolution with general elastic restraints including cylindrical, conical, spherical shells and annular plates. Regardless of boundary conditions, each displacement and rotation component of the structures is invariantly expressed as the superposition of a Fourier cosine series and two supplementary functions introduced to remove any potential discontinuous of the original displacements and their derivatives. On the basis of energy functional of structure elements, the exact series solutions are obtained using the Rayleigh–Ritz procedure. The accuracy and convergence of the proposed modified Fourier series solution are demonstrated by the comprehensive numerical examples. A variety of new vibration results including frequencies and mode shapes for composite laminated cylindrical, conical, spherical shells and annular plates with classical and elastic restraints as well as different geometric and material parameters are presented, which may serve as benchmark solution for future researches. The effects of the elastic restraint parameters, layout orientations, number of layers, conical angles and degrees of anisotropic on the vibration frequencies of the structures are illustrated.

Eichler integrals and harmonic weak Maass forms

Recently, K. Bringmann, P. Guerzhoy, Z. Kent and K. Ono studied the connection between Eichler integrals and the holomorphic parts of harmonic weak Maass forms on the full modular group. In this article, we extend their result to more general groups, namely, H-groups by employing the theory of supplementary functions introduced and developed by M.I. Knopp and S.Y. Husseini. In particular, we show that the set of Eichler integrals, which have polynomial period functions, is the same as the set of holomorphic parts of harmonic weak Maass forms of which the non-holomorphic parts are certain period integrals of cusp forms. From this we deduce relations among period functions for harmonic weak Maass forms.

Investigating the biological properties of carbohydrate derived fulvic acid (CHD-FA) as a potential novel therapy for the management of oral biofilm infections

BackgroundA number of oral diseases, including periodontitis, derive from microbial biofilms and are associated with increased antimicrobial resistance. Despite the widespread use of mouthwashes being used as adjunctive measures to control these biofilms, their prolonged use is not recommended due to various side effects. Therefore, alternative broad-spectrum antimicrobials that minimise these effects are highly sought after. Carbohydrate derived fulvic acid (CHD-FA) is an organic acid which has previously demonstrated to be microbiocidal against Candida albicans biofilms, therefore, the aims of this study were to evaluate the antibacterial activity of CHD-FA against orally derived biofilms and to investigate adjunctive biological effects.MethodsMinimum inhibitory concentrations were evaluated for CHD-FA and chlorhexidine (CHX) against a range of oral bacteria using standardised microdilution testing for planktonic and sessile. Scanning electron microscopy was also employed to visualise changes in oral biofilms after antimicrobial treatment. Cytotoxicity of these compounds was assessed against oral epithelial cells, and the effect of CHD-FA on host inflammatory markers was assessed by measuring mRNA and protein expression.ResultsCHD-FA was highly active against all of the oral bacteria tested, including Porphyromonas gingivalis, with a sessile minimum inhibitory concentration of 0.5%. This concentration was shown to kill multi-species biofilms by approximately 90%, levels comparable to that of chlorhexidine (CHX). In a mammalian cell culture model, pretreatment of epithelial cells with buffered CHD-FA was shown to significantly down-regulate key inflammatory mediators, including interleukin-8 (IL-8), after stimulation with a multi-species biofilm.ConclusionsOverall, CHD-FA was shown to possess broad-spectrum antibacterial activity, with a supplementary function of being able to down-regulate inflammation. These properties offer an attractive spectrum of function from a naturally derived compound, which could be used as an alternative topical treatment strategy for oral biofilm diseases. Further studies in vitro and in vivo are required to determine the precise mechanism by which CHD-FA modulates the host immune response.

An Exact Series Solution for the Vibration of Mindlin Rectangular Plates with Elastically Restrained Edges

An analysis method has been proposed for the vibration analysis of the Mindlin rectangular plates with general elastically boundary supports, in which the vibration displacements and the cross-sectional rotations of the mid-plane are sought as the linear combination of a double Fourier cosine series and auxiliary series functions. The use of these supplementary functions is to solve the potential discontinuity associated with the x-derivative and y-derivative of the original function along the four edges, so this method can be applied to get the exact solution. Finally the numerical results are presented to validate the correct of the method.

Construction of a Streptomyces lydicus A01 transformant with a chit42 gene from Trichoderma harzianum P1 and evaluation of its biocontrol activity against Botrytis cinerea

Streptomyces lydicus A01 and Trichoderma harzianum P1 are potential biocontrol agents of fungal diseases in plants. S. lydicus A01 produces natamycin to bind the ergosterol of the fungal cell membrane and inhibits the growth of Botrytis cinerea. T. harzianum P1, on the other hand, features high chitinase activity and decomposes the chitin in the cell wall of B. cinerea. To obtain the synergistic biocontrol effects of chitinase and natamycin on Botrytis cinerea, this study transformed the chit42 gene from T. harzianum P1 to S. lydicus A01. The conjugal transformant (CT) of S. lydicus A01 with the chit42 gene was detected using polymerase chain reaction (PCR). Associated chitinase activity and natamycin production were examined using the 3, 5-dinitrosalicylic acid (DNS) method and ultraviolet spectrophotometry, respectively. The S. lydicus A01-chit42 CT showed substantially higher chitinase activity and natamycin production than its wild type strain (WT). Consequently, the biocontrol effects of S. lydicus A01-chit42 CT on B. cinerea, including inhibition to spore germination and mycelial growth, were highly improved compared with those of the WT. Our research indicates that the biocontrol effect of Streptomyces can be highly improved by transforming the exogenous resistance gene, i.e. chit42 from Trichoderma, which not only enhances the production of antibiotics, but also provides a supplementary function by degrading the cell walls of the pathogens.

Reassessment of the Listeria monocytogenespan-genome reveals dynamic integration hotspots and mobile genetic elements as major components of the accessory genome

BackgroundListeria monocytogenes is an important food-borne pathogen and model organism for host-pathogen interaction, thus representing an invaluable target considering research on the forces governing the evolution of such microbes. The diversity of this species has not been exhaustively explored yet, as previous efforts have focused on analyses of serotypes primarily implicated in human listeriosis. We conducted complete genome sequencing of 11 strains employing 454 GS FLX technology, thereby achieving full coverage of all serotypes including the first complete strains of serotypes 1/2b, 3c, 3b, 4c, 4d, and 4e. These were comparatively analyzed in conjunction with publicly available data and assessed for pathogenicity in the Galleria mellonella insect model.ResultsThe species pan-genome of L. monocytogenes is highly stable but open, suggesting an ability to adapt to new niches by generating or including new genetic information. The majority of gene-scale differences represented by the accessory genome resulted from nine hyper variable hotspots, a similar number of different prophages, three transposons (Tn916, Tn554, IS3-like), and two mobilizable islands. Only a subset of strains showed CRISPR/Cas bacteriophage resistance systems of different subtypes, suggesting a supplementary function in maintenance of chromosomal stability. Multiple phylogenetic branches of the genus Listeria imply long common histories of strains of each lineage as revealed by a SNP-based core genome tree highlighting the impact of small mutations for the evolution of species L. monocytogenes. Frequent loss or truncation of genes described to be vital for virulence or pathogenicity was confirmed as a recurring pattern, especially for strains belonging to lineages III and II. New candidate genes implicated in virulence function were predicted based on functional domains and phylogenetic distribution. A comparative analysis of small regulatory RNA candidates supports observations of a differential distribution of trans-encoded RNA, hinting at a diverse range of adaptations and regulatory impact.ConclusionsThis study determined commonly occurring hyper variable hotspots and mobile elements as primary effectors of quantitative gene-scale evolution of species L. monocytogenes, while gene decay and SNPs seem to represent major factors influencing long-term evolution. The discovery of common and disparately distributed genes considering lineages, serogroups, serotypes and strains of species L. monocytogenes will assist in diagnostic, phylogenetic and functional research, supported by the comparative genomic GECO-LisDB analysis server (http://bioinfo.mikrobio.med.uni-giessen.de/geco2lisdb).

LOTTERY AS A RETAIL PRODUCT

In this study we examine whether the volume of lottery sales is positively related to the volume of other retail product sales. We find that retail sales are more significantly related to lottery sales than to any other macroeconomic variables. This result is consistent with the hypothesis that the lottery is similar to any other retail good. Among the retail products we include in our data, lottery sales are most correlated with the sales of food and beverage products. The results show that there is a unique aspect that distinguishes the lottery from other retail products. The most intriguing result is that lottery sales are inversely related to the level of income, meaning that people with lower income tend to participate in more lotteries, which can be interpreted as the lottery’s income supplementary function. We also find that lottery sales are mainly determined by the residents earning between $10,000 and $50,000 a year, implying that the lottery does not appeal equally to all income groups. Finally, lottery sales are negatively related to the number of African-American residents, positively related to the number of Hispanic residents, and negatively related to the number of White residents. These results suggest that the lottery appeals differently to people of different ethnicities.

국내외 방음벽 관련 연구동향 분석 및 개발 방향

The demand for noise barriers and necessity for the installation are highly growing because residential areas have become diverse and locational priority is changed to consider how to approach highway easily. However, public annoyance to the noise generated from highway is continued despite lots of noise barrier are installed. Moreover, there are growing concerns to maintain noise barriers to be free from losing transparency, dust stack, and shock fracture. To resolve these issues, it is suggested to develop new polymer materials and conceptually new noise barrier. In this study, as a first step to develop a new noise barrier to overcome current technological challenges as well as economic issues, recent research trends have been analyzed and found the direction for the future research in terms of material, supplementary function, and patterning.

Vibration analysis of moderately thick rectangular plates with elastically restrained edges

In this paper, an improved Fourier series method is proposed for the free vibration analysis of moderately thick rectangular plates with uniform elastic restraints along each edge. The effect of shear deformation is considered by using Mindlin plate theory (namely, the first order shear deformation theory). The transverse deflection and rotation displacement functions are invariantly expressed as the superposition of a double Fourier cosine series and four supplementary functions in the form of the product of a polynomial function and a single cosine series expansion introduced to ensure (accelerate) the uniform and absolute convergence (rate) of the series representation on the plate including four edges. The unknown expansion coefficients are determined using the Rayleigh-Ritz procedure in conjunction with the energy formulation of Mindlin plate system. Several numerical examples are presented to demonstrate the effectiveness and reliability of the proposed method for predicting the modal parameters of rectangular Mindlin plates with various thickness-length ratios under different boundary conditions. Although the constraint is considered uniformly distributed over each edge, the current method can be readily extended to the general cases when the spatial variation of the restraining stiffness is of interest.

Some Amendments to “Field-to-Wire Coupling in an Electrically Large Cavity: A Semianalytic Solution”

In this correspondence, we propose a supplementary spatial correlation function used to amend a simplification made in an earlier published paper in which a semianalytic solution of field-to-wire coupling in an electrically large cavity was first proposed. It can be shown that the horizontal and vertical components of the incident field are correlated in most cases. Without neglecting the correlation between the field components, the supplementary function can help to give more accurate results. It is demonstrated by two numerical simulation examples in which the semianalytic results are compared with the Monte Carlo results and/or the analytic solution.

Clinicians satisfaction with CPOE ease of use and effect on clinicians’ workflow, efficiency and medication safety

ObjectivesTo study the satisfaction of end-users of a computerized physician order entry (CPOE) system concerning ease of use and the effect on users’ workflow, efficiency, and medication safety and to seek users’ opinions regarding required improvements of the system. Usability evaluation had shown that this system, which was in use for almost a decade, contained a number of severe usability problems. So another objective of the study was to determine whether there was a direct relation between user satisfaction and the results of a usability evaluation of the system. MethodsTwo survey questionnaires were distributed to CPOE system users (physicians and nurses) working in inpatient departments of a university hospital. Questionnaires included items that were rated using a five point Likert scale. Multiple choice questions with space for free text additions also were used to collect qualitative data concerning the use of the CPOE system and the users’ opinion concerning system requirements for improvement. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and by the use of Mann–Whitney U and Kruskal Wallis tests. ResultsTwo hundred seventeen physicians and 587 nurses were eligible to participate in this study (response rate 49% and 56% respectively). Physicians were satisfied with the CPOE ease of use (median 3.8, interquartile range [IQR] 3.3–4), and the effect on workflow (median 3.7, IQR 3.3–4), medication safety (median 3.75, IQR 3–4), and efficiency (median 4, IQR 3–4). Nurses also had a positive attitude towards CPOE ease of use (median 3.6, IQR 3–4), and its effect on workflow (median 3, IQR 3–3.6), medication safety (median 3, IQR 2.5–3.5), and efficiency (median 3.5, IQR 3–4). Users mainly indicated that the system needs: supplementary functionalities (e.g. alerts for allergies), improvement of current functionalities, integration with other hospital information systems and improvement of information presentation (e.g. a clear medication overview). Users did not use some current functionalities because of lack of awareness of the functionalities or having difficulty in using them. ConclusionsUsers of this CPOE system, which was used for almost a decade, were satisfied with the system's ease of use and its effect on efficiency, workflow and medication safety although the system showed many usability problems and lacked some functionalities. In this case study, therefore, there seems no direct relation between the results of the earlier performed usability evaluation and user satisfaction as determined in the current study.

Reconstruction from truncated projections using mixed extrapolations of exponential and quadratic functions

In computer tomography (CT), truncated projections are produced due to scanning large objects with a detector that is limited in width. Applying filtered back-projection(FBP) method directly to truncated projections, the reconstructed image will contain truncation artifacts - bright rings on the boundary of region of interest (ROI). Extrapolation algorithms can be used to reduce the truncation artifacts; however extrapolations are usually double the length of the projection data; resulting in an increased calculation time. This paper introduces mixed extrapolation, which is a combination of exponential and quadratic extrapolation. It is proven that doubling the length of the projection data for the mixed extrapolation can be avoided. The projections were extrapolated according to the boundary values and their derivatives. The algorithm achieves equivalence to the extrapolation approach with negligible increased calculation time. Supplementary functions are introduced in order to simplify the calculations. These functions can be calculated prior to extrapolation process, hence the calculation time is significantly reduced. The calculation times are compared between fast extrapolation introduced in this paper and normal extrapolation with doubling the length of projection data.

Ultrastructural studies of epidermis keratinization in grass snake embryos Natrix natrix L. (Lepidosauria, Serpentes) during late embryogenesis

The changes and biochemical features of the epidermis that accompany the differentiation and embryonic shedding complex formation in grass snake Natrix natrix L. embryos were studied ultrastructurally and immunocytochemically with two panels of antibodies (AE1, AE3, AE1/AE3; anti-cytokeratin, pan mixture, Lu-5 and PCK-26). All observed changes in the ultrastructure of the cells forming the epidermal layers were associated with the physiological changes that occurred in the embryonic epidermis, such as changing of the manner of nutrition and keratinization leading to the embryonic shedding complex formation. The layers that originated first (basal, outer and inner periderm and clear layer) differentiated very early and rapidly. Rapid differentiation was also observed in the layers that are very important for the functioning of the epidermis in Natrix embryos (oberhäutchen and beta-layers). They started to differentiate at developmental stage IX, and then fused and formed the embryonic shedding complex at developmental stage XI. During the embryonic development of the grass snake the smallest changes appeared in the ultrastructure of the cells in the mesos and alpha-layers because they perform supplementary functions in the process of embryonic molting. They were undifferentiated until the end of embryonic development and started to differentiate just before the first adult molting. AE1/AE3, anti-cytokeratin, pan mixture, Lu-5 and PCK-26 antibodies immunolabeled clear layer, oberhäutchen and beta-layers at the latest phase of developmental stage XI. It should be noted that these antibodies did not immunolabel the alpha-layer until hatching. The presence of alpha-keratin immunolabeling in layers that were keratinized, particularly in the oberhäutchen and beta-layers in embryos, indicated that they were not as hard as in fully mature individuals.

Free vibration of two elastically coupled rectangular plates with uniform elastic boundary restraints

An analytical method is derived for determining the vibrations of two plates which are generally supported along the boundary edges, and elastically coupled together at an arbitrary angle. The interactions of all four wave groups (bending waves, out-of-plane shearing waves, in-plane longitudinal waves, and in-plane shearing waves) have been taken into account at the junction via four types of coupling springs of arbitrary stiffnesses. Each of the transverse and in-plane displacement functions is expressed as the superposition of a two-dimensional (2-D) Fourier cosine series and several supplementary functions which are introduced to ensure and improve the convergence of the series representation by removing the discontinuities that the original displacement and its derivatives will potentially exhibit at the edges when they are periodically expanded onto the entire x– y plane as mathematically implied by a 2-D Fourier series. The unknown expansions coefficients are calculated using the Rayleigh–Ritz procedure which is actually equivalent to solving the governing equation and the boundary and coupling conditions directly when the assumed solutions are sufficiently smooth over the solution domains. Numerical examples are presented for several different coupling configurations. A good comparison is observed between the current results and the FEA models. Although this study is specifically focused on the coupling of two plates, the proposed method can be directly extended to structures consisting of any number of plates.

Integrated vegetation designs for enhancing water retention and recycling in agroecosystems

Long term studies have shown strong links between vegetation clearing and rainfall declines and more intense droughts. Many agroecosystems are exposed to more extreme weather and further declines in rainfall under climate change unless adaptations increase the retention of water in landscapes, and its recycling back to the lower atmosphere. Vegetation systems provide vital feedbacks to mechanisms that underpin water vapour recycling between micro- and meso-scales. Various heterogeneous forms of vegetation can help generate atmospheric conditions conducive to precipitation, and therefore, increase the resilience of agroecosystems to drought and climatic extremes. The aim of this paper is to demonstrate how vegetation can be designed for agroecosystems to enhance recycling of water vapour to the atmosphere through the regulation of surface water and wind, and heat fluxes. The structure of the paper revolves around five functions of integrated vegetation designs that can help underpin the restoration of water recycling through enhanced retention of stormwater, protection from wind, moistening and cooling the landscape, production of plant litter, and contribution toward regional scale climate and catchment functioning. We also present two supplementary functions relevant to land and natural resource managers which may also be integrated using these designs.

휴대전화 설계를 위한 연령대별 사용자 특성

The purpose of this study is to investigate the user characteristics in different age groups by investigating the level of satisfaction and preference of design and function of mobile phone. 160 subjects participated in the experiment. Subjects with different ages were selected and divided into four groups: young age group (20 to less than 45), 1<SUP>st</SUP> middle age group (45 to less than 55), 2<SUP>nd</SUP> middle age group(55 to less than 65), and elderly group(over 65). A questionnaire was developed based on the previous design guideline, and additional questions were made to test newly developed function and design of the mobile phone. In particular, depth interviews were conducted in order to have a proper response from old subjects who have difficulties in completing written questionnaire. In result, it was found that except for price the major criterion to purchase mobile phone was the design, and the function of phone was the next except for elderly group. In the case of elderly group, the screen size is the first. Statistical results indicated that 37.5% of the young age group, 22.5% of 1<SUP>st</SUP> middle age group, 22.5% of 2<SUP>nd</SUP> middle age group and 10.0% of the elderly group preferred the design to function when they purchase mobile phones. Most elderly people were not satisfied with the supplementary function of the mobile phone. The 1<SUP>st</SUP> middle age group did not know exactly how to use the supplementary service although they were willing to use it. Regarding the emotional preference on the type of phone, the sliding type was preferred most. Current results can be used to anticipate the future trend of mobile phone and design a user-friendly product for the aged population.

489 New animal model in colorectal cancer

489 New animal model in colorectal cancer

U-Healthcare 시스템을 위한 RBAC-WS

Information technology is being applied to the development of ubiquitous healthcare system, which provides both efficient patient care and convenient treatment regardless of patient`s location. However, the increasing number of users and medical information give rise to the problem of user management and the infringement of privacy. In order to address this problem we propose a user access scheme based on the RBAC (Role Based Access Control) model. The preceding trust management model for Grid security, FAS(Federation Agent Server), was analyzed and extended to provide supplementary functions for role-based access control in u-Healthcare system. The RBAC model provides efficient user management and access control, but very vulnerable in case when one with valid role tries to leak confidential inner medical information. In order to resolve this problem, a RBAC-WS (Work Status with RBAC) model has been additionally developed which allows only qualified staffs to access the system while on duty. Th proposed RBAC and RBAC-WS model have been merged together and applied to the PACS (Picture Archiving and Communication System).

Density, Viscosity, Refractive Index and Conductivity of 1-Allyl-3-methylimidazolium Chloride + Water Mixture

The concentration dependence of density, viscosity, refractive index, and conductivity of aqueous solution of 1-allyl-3-methyl-imidazolium chloride ([Amim]Cl) at 298.15 K has been measured. It was shown that the density, as well as viscosity and refractive index, increased with increasing concentration of [Amim]Cl, while the conductivity increased sharply in the water-rich region and decreased in the [Amim]Cl-rich region. It was concluded that [Amim]Cl was a surfactant-like solvent, and the critical aggregation concentration of aqueous [Amim]Cl solution was obtained. The data obtained will play an important supplementary function in completion of the ionic liquids database.

A New Design Method—Deep-Layer Synthesized Design Method of Full Functions and Full Performances of Product

In recent one century more than 60 design methods of products have been proposed and most of them can satisfy the one or several requirements of the general qualities only. So it is necessary to develop some synthesized design method, which can satisfy requirements of general synthesized qualities of product. Up to now, several scientists and technologists have done their efforts to study several synthesized design methods in order to satisfy more requirements of users. These methods are comprehensive design method, QFD method, taguchi design method, axiomatic design method, etc. Based on the classification of the design methods, we have proposed a new synthesized design method, named 1+3+X. The present method meet the need of customers for different general synthesized qualities of product including main and supplementary functions, structural performances, working performances and manufacturing performances and the first 1 is functional optimum design, the 3 are the dynamic optimum design, intelligent design and visual design to satisfy structural performances, working performances and manufacturing performances respectively, and the X is the design to satisfy other requirements.