Cross-platform validation of notional baseline architecture models of naval electric ship power systems

To support efforts in assessing the relative merit of alternative power system architectures for future naval combatants, the Electric Ship Research and Development Consortium (ESRDC) has developed notional baseline models for each of the primary candidate architectures currently considered, medium-voltage DC (MVDC), conventional 60 Hz medium-voltage (MVAC), and high-frequency medium-voltage (HFAC). Initial efforts have focused on the development of a consistent set of component models, of which the system models can be comprised, and the basic definition of the system models. The broader objectives of the consortium, however, go beyond the definition of the baseline models. The focus is on the process by which the models are implemented in software and validated, the process by which the performance of the disparate system models are objectively and quantitatively assessed and compared, and, ultimately, the process by which the relative merits of the architectures may be assessed. This paper focuses specifically on cross-platform component validation.Center for Electromechanic

Quality and Safety Aspects of Infant Nutrition

Quality and safety aspects of infant nutrition are of key importance for child health, but oftentimes they do not get much attention by health care professionals whose interest tends to focus on functional benefits of early nutrition. Unbalanced diets and harmful food components induce particularly high risks for untoward effects in infants because of their rapid growth, high nutrient needs, and their typical dependence on only one or few foods during the first months of life. The concepts, standards and practices that relate to infant food quality and safety were discussed at a scientific workshop organized by the Child Health Foundation and the Early Nutrition Academy jointly with the European Society for Paediatric Gastroenterology, Hepatology and Nutrition, and a summary is provided here. The participants reviewed past and current issues on quality and safety, the role of different stakeholders, and recommendations to avert future issues. It was concluded that a high level of quality and safety is currently achieved, but this is no reason for complacency. The food industry carries the primary responsibility for the safety and suitability of their products, including the quality of composition, raw materials and production processes. Introduction of new or modified products should be preceded by a thorough science based review of suitability and safety by an independent authority. Food safety events should be managed on an international basis. Global collaboration of food producers, food-safety authorities, paediatricians and scientists is needed to efficiently exchange information and to best protect public health. Copyright (C) 2012 S. Karger AG, Base

Arcanobacterium phocae infection in mink (Neovison vison), seals (Phoca vitulina, Halichoerus grypus) and otters (Lutra lutra)

Abstract Background Infectious skin disorders are not uncommon in mink. Such disorders are important as they have a negative impact on animal health and welfare as well as on the quality and value of the fur. This study presents the isolation of Arcanobacterium phocae from mink with severe skin lesions and other pathological conditions, and from wild seals and otters. Results In 2015, A. phocae was isolated for the first time in Denmark from outbreaks of dermatitis in mink farms. The outbreaks affected at least 12 farms. Originating from these 12 farms, 23 animals cultured positive for A. phocae. The main clinical findings were necrotizing pododermatitis or dermatitis located to other body sites, such as the lumbar and cervical regions. A. phocae could be isolated from skin lesions and in nine animals also from liver, spleen and lung, indicating a systemic spread. The bacterium was also, for the first time in Denmark, detected in dead seals (n = 9) (lungs, throat or wounds) and otters (n = 2) (throat and foot). Conclusions An infectious skin disorder in mink associated with A. phocae has started to occur in Danish farmed mink. The origin of the infection has not been identified and it is still not clear what the pathogenesis or the port of entry for A. phocae infections are

Digital Work Design

Erworben im Rahmen der Schweizer Nationallizenzen (http://www.nationallizenzen.ch)More and more academic studies and practitioner reports claim that human work is increasingly disrupted or even determined by information and communication technology (ICT) (Cascio and Montealegre 2016). This will make a considerable share of jobs currently performed by humans susceptible to automation (e.g., Frey and Osborne 2017; Manyika et al. 2017). These reports often sketch a picture of ‘machines taking over’ traditional domains like manufacturing, while ICT advances and capabilities seem to decide companies’ fate. Consequently, ICT is often put at the core of innovative efforts. While this applies to nearly all areas of workplace design, a recent popular example of increasing technology centricity is ‘Industry 4.0’, which is often delineated as ‘machines talking to computers’

Competitive Benchmarking: An IS Research Approach to Address Wicked Problems with Big Data and Analytics

Wicked problems like sustainable energy and financial market stability are societal challenges that arise from complex socio-technical systems in which numerous social, economic, political, and technical factors interact. Understanding and mitigating them requires research methods that scale beyond the traditional areas of inquiry of Information Systems (IS) “individuals, organizations, and markets” and that deliver solutions in addition to insights. We describe an approach to address these challenges through Competitive Benchmarking (CB), a novel research method that helps interdisciplinary research communities to tackle complex challenges of societal scale by using different types of data from a variety of sources such as usage data from customers, production patterns from producers, public policy and regulatory constraints, etc. for a given instantiation. Further, the CB platform generates data that can be used to improve operational strategies and judge the effectiveness of regulatory regimes and policies. We describe our experience applying CB to the sustainable energy challenge in the Power Trading Agent Competition (Power TAC) in which more than a dozen research groups from around the world jointly devise, benchmark, and improve IS-based solutions

Listeria monocytogenes in Milk Products

peer-reviewedMilk and milk products are frequently identified as vectors for transmission of Listeria monocytogenes. Milk can be contaminated at farm level either by indirect external contamination from the farm environment or less frequently by direct contamination of the milk from infection in the animal. Pasteurisation of milk will kill L. monocytogenes, but post-pasteurisation contamination, consumption of unpasteurised milk and manufacture of unpasteurised milk products can lead to milk being the cause of outbreaks of listeriosis. Therefore, there is a concern that L. monocytogenes in milk could lead to a public health risk. To protect against this risk, there is a need for awareness surrounding the issues, hygienic practices to reduce the risk and adequate sampling and analysis to verify that the risk is controlled. This review will highlight the issues surrounding L. monocytogenes in milk and milk products, including possible control measures. It will therefore create awareness about L. monocytogenes, contributing to protection of public health

FDG PET-CT demonstration of metastatic neuroendocrine tumor of prostate

which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. Background: FDG PET-CT is generally not suitable for diagnosing prostate cancer because of low glycolysis of the tumor cells. Neuroendocrine differentiation of the prostate cancer is often associated with early visceral metastasis and dismal prognosis, which is resulted from changed metabolic and regulatory pathways. Case presentation: A case is reported in this paper that FDG PET-CT demonstrates intense uptake of neuroendocrine tumor of the prostate and multiple metastases. Conclusion: There is high glycolysis and strong FDG-avidity of neuroendocrine tumor of the prostate, which is similar to that of high grade of neuroendocrine tumor in other tissue and organs. In some selected cases of prostate neuroendocrine cancer, whole body FDG PET-CT may be helpful for detection of metastatic disease. Background Positron emission tomography (PET) is a new imaging modality which has been widely used for detection o

Osteonecrosis of the Maxilla and Mandible in Patients with Advanced Cancer Treated with Bisphosphonate Therapy

Peer Reviewedhttps://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/139939/1/onco0911.pd

The fundamentals of sovereign debt sustainability: evidence from 15 OECD countries

We study the sustainability of sovereign debt accumulation in 15 OECD countries using quarterly data from 1980 to 2010 with a focus on how and in what countries debt sustainability changed after the commencement of the Euro Convergence Criteria in 1997 as well as after the financial meltdown in 2007. We define sustainability as the validity of the inter-temporal budget constraint of the government and test a sufficient condition motivated by Bohn (1998) using single-country and pooled regressions. We find evidence that the Euro Convergence Criteria contributed to the sustainability of debt accumulation. Further, while the yield spreads suggest the debt crisis is a problem of the southern Euro countries, we find a lack of debt sustainability for Greece, Portugal and France but not for Italy and Spain. In terms of debt sustainability, the crisis adversely affected primarily stand-alone countries rather than members of the European Monetary Union. Nevertheless, yield spreads increased more in the southern countries of the monetary union than in stand-alone countries. Our results support the view that countries within a monetary union are more prone to investors' sentiments than stand-alone countries