Ubiquitous robust communications for emergency response using multi-operator heterogeneous networks

A number of disasters in various places of the planet have caused an extensive loss of lives, severe damages to properties and the environment, as well as a tremendous shock to the survivors. For relief and mitigation operations, emergency responders are immediately dispatched to the disaster areas. Ubiquitous and robust communications during the emergency response operations are of paramount importance. Nevertheless, various reports have highlighted that after many devastating events, the current technologies used, failed to support the mission critical communications, resulting in further loss of lives. Inefficiencies of the current communications used for emergency response include lack of technology inter-operability between different jurisdictions, and high vulnerability due to their centralized infrastructure. In this article, we propose a flexible network architecture that provides a common networking platform for heterogeneous multi-operator networks, for interoperation in case of emergencies. A wireless mesh network is the main part of the proposed architecture and this provides a back-up network in case of emergencies. We first describe the shortcomings and limitations of the current technologies, and then we address issues related to the applications and functionalities a future emergency response network should support. Furthermore, we describe the necessary requirements for a flexible, secure, robust, and QoS-aware emergency response multi-operator architecture, and then we suggest several schemes that can be adopted by our proposed architecture to meet those requirements. In addition, we suggest several methods for the re-tasking of communication means owned by independent individuals to provide support during emergencies. In order to investigate the feasibility of multimedia transmission over a wireless mesh network, we measured the performance of a video streaming application in a real wireless metropolitan multi-radio mesh network, showing that the mesh network can meet the requirements for high quality video transmissions

Hemoglobin E syndromes in Pakistani population

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Hemoglobin E is an important hemoglobin variant with a worldwide distribution. A number of hemoglobinopathies have been reported from Pakistan. However a comprehensive description of hemoglobin E syndromes for the country was never made. This study aimed to describe various hemoglobin E disorders based on hematological parameters and chromatography. The sub-aim was to characterize hemoglobin E at molecular level.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>This was a hospital based study conducted prospectively for a period of one year extending from January 1 to December 31, 2008. EDTA blood samples were analyzed for completed blood counts and hemoglobin variants through automated hematology analyzer and Bio-Rad beta thalassaemia short program respectively. Six samples were randomly selected to characterize HbE at molecular level through RFLP-PCR utilizing <it>Mnl</it>I restriction enzyme.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>During the study period, 11403 chromatograms were analyzed and Hb E was detected in 41 (or 0.36%) samples. Different hemoglobin E syndromes identified were HbEA (n = 20 or 49%), HbE/β-thalassemia (n = 14 or 34%), HbEE (n = 6 or 15%) and HbE/HbS (n = 1 or 2%). Compound heterozygosity for HbE and beta thalassaemia was found to be the most severely affected phenotype. RFLP-PCR utilizing <it>Mnl</it>I successfully characterized HbE at molecular level in six randomly selected samples.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>Various HbE phenotypes are prevalent in Pakistan with HbEA and HbE/β thalassaemia representing the most common syndromes. Chromatography cannot only successfully identify hemoglobin E but also assist in further characterization into its phenotype including compound heterozygosity. Definitive diagnosis of HbE can easily be achieved through RFLP-PCR.</p

Full-thickness resection device (FTRD) for treatment of upper gastrointestinal tract lesions: the first international experience.

Background and study aims The Full-Thickness Resection Device (FTRD) provides a novel treatment option for lesions not amenable to conventional endoscopic resection techniques. There are limited data on the efficacy and safety of FTRD for resection of upper gastrointestinal tract (GIT) lesions. Patients and methods This was an international multicenter retrospective study, including patients who had an endoscopic resection of an upper GIT lesion using the FTRD between January 2017 and February 2019. Results Fifty-six patients from 13 centers were included. The most common lesions were mesenchymal neoplasms (n = 23, 41 %), adenomas (n = 7, 13 %), and hamartomas (n = 6, 11 %). Eighty-four percent of lesions were located in the stomach, and 14 % in the duodenum. The average size of lesions was 14 mm (range 3 to 33 mm). Deployment of the FTRD was technically successful in 93 % of patients (n = 52) leading to complete and partial resection in 43 (77 %) and 9 (16 %) patients, respectively. Overall, the FTRD led to negative histological margins (R0 resection) in 38 (68 %) of patients. A total of 12 (21 %) mild or moderate adverse events (AEs) were reported. Follow-up endoscopy was performed in 31 patients (55 %), on average 88 days after the procedure (IQR 68-138 days). Of these, 30 patients (97 %) did not have any residual or recurrent lesion on endoscopic examination and biopsy, with residual adenoma in one patient (3 %). Conclusions Our results suggest a high technical success rate and an acceptable histologically complete resection rate, with a low risk of AEs and early recurrence for FTRD resection of upper GIT lesions

Impact of opioid-free analgesia on pain severity and patient satisfaction after discharge from surgery: multispecialty, prospective cohort study in 25 countries

Background: Balancing opioid stewardship and the need for adequate analgesia following discharge after surgery is challenging. This study aimed to compare the outcomes for patients discharged with opioid versus opioid-free analgesia after common surgical procedures.Methods: This international, multicentre, prospective cohort study collected data from patients undergoing common acute and elective general surgical, urological, gynaecological, and orthopaedic procedures. The primary outcomes were patient-reported time in severe pain measured on a numerical analogue scale from 0 to 100% and patient-reported satisfaction with pain relief during the first week following discharge. Data were collected by in-hospital chart review and patient telephone interview 1 week after discharge.Results: The study recruited 4273 patients from 144 centres in 25 countries; 1311 patients (30.7%) were prescribed opioid analgesia at discharge. Patients reported being in severe pain for 10 (i.q.r. 1-30)% of the first week after discharge and rated satisfaction with analgesia as 90 (i.q.r. 80-100) of 100. After adjustment for confounders, opioid analgesia on discharge was independently associated with increased pain severity (risk ratio 1.52, 95% c.i. 1.31 to 1.76; P &lt; 0.001) and re-presentation to healthcare providers owing to side-effects of medication (OR 2.38, 95% c.i. 1.36 to 4.17; P = 0.004), but not with satisfaction with analgesia (beta coefficient 0.92, 95% c.i. -1.52 to 3.36; P = 0.468) compared with opioid-free analgesia. Although opioid prescribing varied greatly between high-income and low- and middle-income countries, patient-reported outcomes did not.Conclusion: Opioid analgesia prescription on surgical discharge is associated with a higher risk of re-presentation owing to side-effects of medication and increased patient-reported pain, but not with changes in patient-reported satisfaction. Opioid-free discharge analgesia should be adopted routinely

Performance of a five-storey benchmark model using an active tuned mass damper and a fuzzy controller

This paper focusses on the performance of a five-storey benchmark model using an active tuned mass damper (ATMD), where the control action is achieved by a Fuzzy logic controller (FLC) under earthquake excitations. The advantage of the Fuzzy controller is its inherent robustness and ability to handle any non-linear behaviour of the structure. The simulation analysis of the five-storey benchmark building for the uncontrolled building, the building with tuned mass damper (TMD), and the building with ATMD with Fuzzy and linear quadratic regulator (LQR) controllers is reported, and comparison between Fuzzy and LQR controllers is made. In addition, the simulation analysis of the benchmark building with different values of frequency ratio, β (β = dominant earthquake frequency/fundamental building frequency) using a Fuzzy controller is conducted and the effect of mass ratio, μ (μ = mass of the TMD/total mass of the model) on the five-storey benchmark model using the Fuzzy controller is studied. © 2003 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved

Soft Generalized αii-Closed Sets in Soft Topological Spaces

This work presented a novel kind of soft generalized closed sets and soft generalized open sets, which we will call soft generalized αii-closed sets and soft generalized αii-open sets in right now paper. The relationships between these two families and several other forms of soft sets, like soft generalized closed, soft generalized ii-closed, soft generalized α-closed, and soft semi-generalized closed sets, are studied and clarified through proofs and evidences such as such as, Theorem8 (If (T,Z) ⊆ (W,Z) ⊆ (X,η,Z) is such that (T,Z) is a sGαICs in (X,η,Z), then (T,Z) is sGαIICs in relation to (W,ηW,Z)), Theorem9 (If (T1,Z),(T2,Z) are sGαIICs, then so is their intersection) and Theorem10 (Each sGαIICs is a sGIICs)

Model Selection and Post Selection to Improve the Estimation of the ARCH Model

The Autoregressive Conditionally Heteroscedastic (ARCH) model is useful for handling volatilities in economical time series phenomena that ARIMA models are unable to handle. The ARCH model has been adopted in many applications that contain time series data such as financial market prices, options, commodity prices and the oil industry. In this paper, we propose an improved post-selection estimation strategy. We investigated and developed some asymptotic properties of the suggested strategies and compared with a benchmark estimator. Furthermore, we conducted a Monte Carlo simulation study to reappraise the relative characteristics of the listed estimators. Our numerical results corroborate with the analytical work of the study. We applied the proposed methods on the S&amp;P500 stock market daily closing prices index to illustrate the usefulness of the developed methodologies

Experimental verification of an active mass driver system on a five-storey model using a fuzzy controller

This paper reports experimental tests conducted on a five-storey model using an active mass driver (AMD) system, where the control action was achieved by using a fuzzy logic controller (FLC) and the UTS state-of-the-art shake table facility. The performance of the fuzzy controller was checked against El Centro 1940, Hachinohe 1968, Northridge 1994, and Kobe 1995 earthquakes to verify the potential of using the fuzzy controller in real applications for active control of structures. Fuzzy logic is one of few mathematical model-free approaches to system identification and control. Other advantages of fuzzy logic controllers are that they can be nonlinear, adaptive, admit a high degree of parallel implementation, and tolerate uncertainty in the system. The building model under consideration is a large-scale five-storey, 3.6-m-tall, steel frame designed and manufactured at the University of Technology, Sydney. The paper details the experimental set up of the five-storey model with AMD system and the instrumentation used to measure the response, the design process of the Fuzzy Controller, and the earthquake excitations used in the experimental tests. The results of the experimental tests confirm the potential of using the adopted fuzzy controller for the active structural control using, an active mass driver (AMD) system. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd