Recent Advances in Graph Partitioning

We survey recent trends in practical algorithms for balanced graph partitioning together with applications and future research directions

The severity of pandemic H1N1 influenza in the United States, from April to July 2009: A Bayesian analysis

Background: Accurate measures of the severity of pandemic (H1N1) 2009 influenza (pH1N1) are needed to assess the likely impact of an anticipated resurgence in the autumn in the Northern Hemisphere. Severity has been difficult to measure because jurisdictions with large numbers of deaths and other severe outcomes have had too many cases to assess the total number with confidence. Also, detection of severe cases may be more likely, resulting in overestimation of the severity of an average case. We sought to estimate the probabilities that symptomatic infection would lead to hospitalization, ICU admission, and death by combining data from multiple sources. Methods and Findings: We used complementary data from two US cities: Milwaukee attempted to identify cases of medically attended infection whether or not they required hospitalization, while New York City focused on the identification of hospitalizations, intensive care admission or mechanical ventilation (hereafter, ICU), and deaths. New York data were used to estimate numerators for ICU and death, and two sources of data - medically attended cases in Milwaukee or self-reported influenza-like illness (ILI) in New York - were used to estimate ratios of symptomatic cases to hospitalizations. Combining these data with estimates of the fraction detected for each level of severity, we estimated the proportion of symptomatic patients who died (symptomatic case-fatality ratio, sCFR), required ICU (sCIR), and required hospitalization (sCHR), overall and by age category. Evidence, prior information, and associated uncertainty were analyzed in a Bayesian evidence synthesis framework. Using medically attended cases and estimates of the proportion of symptomatic cases medically attended, we estimated an sCFR of 0.048% (95% credible interval [CI] 0.026%-0.096%), sCIR of 0.239% (0.134%-0.458%), and sCHR of 1.44% (0.83%-2.64%). Using self-reported ILI, we obtained estimates approximately 7-96lower. sCFR and sCIR appear to be highest in persons aged 18 y and older, and lowest in children aged 5-17 y. sCHR appears to be lowest in persons aged 5-17; our data were too sparse to allow us to determine the group in which it was the highest. Conclusions: These estimates suggest that an autumn-winter pandemic wave of pH1N1 with comparable severity per case could lead to a number of deaths in the range from considerably below that associated with seasonal influenza to slightly higher, but with the greatest impact in children aged 0-4 and adults 18-64. These estimates of impact depend on assumptions about total incidence of infection and would be larger if incidence of symptomatic infection were higher or shifted toward adults, if viral virulence increased, or if suboptimal treatment resulted from stress on the health care system; numbers would decrease if the total proportion of the population symptomatically infected were lower than assumed.published_or_final_versio

Surveillance programs for detection and characterization of emergent pathogens and antimicrobial resistance: results from the Division of Infectious Diseases, UNIFESP

Several epidemiological changes have occurred in the pattern of nosocomial and community acquired infectious diseases during the past 25 years. Social and demographic changes possibly related to this phenomenon include a rapid population growth, the increase in urban migration and movement across international borders by tourists and immigrants, alterations in the habitats of animals and arthropods that transmit disease, as well as the raise of patients with impaired host defense abilities. Continuous surveillance programs of emergent pathogens and antimicrobial resistance are warranted for detecting in real time new pathogens, as well as to characterize molecular mechanisms of resistance. In order to become more effective, surveillance programs of emergent pathogens should be organized as a multicenter laboratory network connected to the main public and private infection control centers. Microbiological data should be integrated to guide therapy, adapting therapy to local ecology and resistance patterns. This paper presents an overview of data generated by the Division of Infectious Diseases, Federal University of São Paulo, along with its participation in different surveillance programs of nosocomial and community acquired infectious diseases.Várias alterações epidemiológicas ocorreram no perfil das doenças infecciosas hospitalares e comunitárias nos últimos 25 anos. Mudanças sociais e demográficas possivelmente relacionadas com esse fenômeno incluem o rápido crescimento populacional, o aumento da migração urbana e deslocamento através de fronteiras internacionais por turistas e imigrantes, alterações nos habitats de animais e artrópodes que transmitem doença assim como o aumento no número de pacientes com deficiências nas respostas de defesa. Os programas contínuos de vigilância de patógenos emergentes e resistência antimicrobiana são necessários para a detecção em tempo real de novos patógenos assim como para caracterizar mecanismos moleculares de resistência. Para serem mais efetivos, os programasde vigilância dos patógenos emergentes devem ser organizados em uma rede de laboratórios multicêntricos ligados aos principais centros de controle de infecções, públicos e privados. Os dados microbiológicos devem ser integrados a guias terapêuticos adaptando práticas terapêuticas à ecologia local eaos padrões de resistência. O artigo apresenta uma revisão dos dados gerados pela Disciplina de Infectologia, Universidade Federal de São Paulo (UNIFESP), contemplando sua participação nos diferentes programas de vigilância de doenças infecciosas hospitalares e adquiridas na comunidade.Universidade Federal de São Paulo (UNIFESP) Departamento de Medicina Divisão de Doenças InfecciosasUniversidade Federal de São Paulo (UNIFESP) Departamento de Microbiologia, Imunologia e ParasitologiaUNIFESP, Depto. de Medicina Divisão de Doenças InfecciosasUNIFESP, Depto. de Microbiologia, Imunologia e ParasitologiaSciEL

Meta-omics approaches to understand and improve wastewater treatment systems

Biological treatment of wastewaters depends on microbial processes, usually carried out by mixed microbial communities. Environmental and operational factors can affect microorganisms and/or impact microbial community function, and this has repercussion in bioreactor performance. Novel high-throughput molecular methods (metagenomics, metatranscriptomics, metaproteomics, metabolomics) are providing detailed knowledge on the microorganisms governing wastewater treatment systems and on their metabolic capabilities. The genomes of uncultured microbes with key roles in wastewater treatment plants (WWTP), such as the polyphosphate-accumulating microorganism Candidatus Accumulibacter phosphatis, the nitrite oxidizer Candidatus Nitrospira defluvii or the anammox bacterium Candidatus Kuenenia stuttgartiensis are now available through metagenomic studies. Metagenomics allows to genetically characterize full-scale WWTP and provides information on the lifestyles and physiology of key microorganisms for wastewater treatment. Integrating metagenomic data of microorganisms with metatranscriptomic, metaproteomic and metabolomic information provides a better understanding of the microbial responses to perturbations or environmental variations. Data integration may allow the creation of predictive behavior models of wastewater ecosystems, which could help in an improved exploitation of microbial processes. This review discusses the impact of meta-omic approaches on the understanding of wastewater treatment processes, and the implications of these methods for the optimization and design of wastewater treatment bioreactors.Research was supported by the Spanish Ministry of Education and Science (Contract Project CTQ2007-64324 and CONSOLIDER-CSD 2007-00055) and the Regional Government of Castilla y Leon (Ref. VA038A07). Research of AJMS is supported by the European Research Council (Grant 323009

The Development and Application of Massively Parallel Solid Mechanics Codes

Computational physicists at Sandia National Laboratories have moved the Eulerian CTH code, and the arbitrary-Lagrangian-Eulerian ALEGRA code to distributed memory parallel computers. CTH is a three-dimensional solid mechanics code used for large-deformation, shock wave analysis. ALEGRA is a three-dimensional arbitrary Lagrangian-Eulerian solid-mechanics code used for coupled large-deformation, shock and structural mechanics problems. This paper discusses our experiences moving the codes to parallel computers, the algorithms we used and our experiences running the codes

Molecular complexity determines the number of olfactory notes and the pleasantness of smells

One major unresolved problem in olfaction research is to relate the percept to the molecular structure of stimuli. The present study examined this issue and showed for the first time a quantitative structure-odor relationship in which the more structurally complex a monomolecular odorant, the more numerous the olfactory notes it evokes. Low-complexity odorants were also rated as more aversive, reflecting the fact that low molecular complexity may serve as a warning cue for the olfactory system. Taken together, these findings suggest that molecular complexity provides a framework to explain the subjective experience of smells

Exploring earned value management in the Spanish construction industry as a pathway to competitive advantage

[EN] As a well established discipline and profession, project management has its distinctive tools and techniques. One of them that has been considered the embodiment of the core principles of project management is the Earned Value Management (EVM). In managing construction projects, the EVM has been considered as a suitable tool and hence, has been implemented in various construction industry but absent in some others. Taking into account the dynamic environment where construction companies have to operate, particularly in turbulence environments as the direct result of recent global economic downturn, this paper explores the potential implementation of EVM in one of the construction industry, the Spanish construction industry. The outcomes confirm the needs for and feasibility of implementing EVM as a structured approach in the industry to reposition the Spanish construction industry with the long term view to increase its project management maturity level as a pathway to gaining competitive advantage.Universitat Politecnica de Valencia [grant number 19701344]Sutrisna, M.; Pellicer, E.; Torres-Machí, C.; Picornell, M. (2018). Exploring earned value management in the Spanish construction industry as a pathway to competitive advantage. International Journal of Construction Management. 20(1):1-12. https://doi.org/10.1080/15623599.2018.1459155S112201Anbari, F. T. (2004). Earned value project management method and extensions. IEEE Engineering Management Review, 32(3), 97-97. doi:10.1109/emr.2004.25113Aram, J. D., & Walochik, K. (1996). Improvisation and the Spanish Manager. International Studies of Management & Organization, 26(4), 73-89. doi:10.1080/00208825.1996.11656695Brandon, D. M. (1998). Implementing Earned Value Easily and Effectively. Project Management Journal, 29(2), 11-18. doi:10.1177/875697289802900204Brown, A., & Adams, J. (2000). Measuring the effect of project management on construction outputs: a new approach. International Journal of Project Management, 18(5), 327-335. doi:10.1016/s0263-7863(99)00026-5Bryde, D. J. (2003). Modelling project management performance. International Journal of Quality & Reliability Management, 20(2), 229-254. doi:10.1108/02656710310456635Chen, H. L., Chen, W. T., & Lin, Y. L. (2016). Earned value project management: Improving the predictive power of planned value. International Journal of Project Management, 34(1), 22-29. doi:10.1016/j.ijproman.2015.09.008De la Cruz, M. P., del Caño, A., & de la Cruz, E. (2006). Downside Risks in Construction Projects Developed by the Civil Service: The Case of Spain. Journal of Construction Engineering and Management, 132(8), 844-852. doi:10.1061/(asce)0733-9364(2006)132:8(844)Din, S., Abd-Hamid, Z., & Bryde, D. J. (2011). ISO 9000 certification and construction project performance: The Malaysian experience. International Journal of Project Management, 29(8), 1044-1056. doi:10.1016/j.ijproman.2010.11.001Eldin, N. N. (1989). Measurement of Work Progress: Quantitative Technique. Journal of Construction Engineering and Management, 115(3), 462-474. doi:10.1061/(asce)0733-9364(1989)115:3(462)Gidado, K. I. (1996). Project complexity: The focal point of construction production planning. Construction Management and Economics, 14(3), 213-225. doi:10.1080/014461996373476Hastak, M., Halpin, D. W., & Vanegas, J. (1996). COMPASS—New Paradigm for Project Cost Control Strategy and Planning. Journal of Construction Engineering and Management, 122(3), 254-264. doi:10.1061/(asce)0733-9364(1996)122:3(254)D. Holt, G., & S. Goulding, J. (2014). Conceptualisation of ambiguous-mixed-methods within building and construction research. Journal of Engineering, Design and Technology, 12(2), 244-262. doi:10.1108/jedt-02-2013-0020Ibbs, C. W., & Kwak, Y. H. (2000). Assessing Project Management Maturity. Project Management Journal, 31(1), 32-43. doi:10.1177/875697280003100106Jugdev, K., & Thomas, J. (2002). 2002 Student Paper Award Winner: Project Management Maturity Models: The Silver Bullets of Competitive Advantage? Project Management Journal, 33(4), 4-14. doi:10.1177/875697280203300402Kim, E., Wells, W. G., & Duffey, M. R. (2003). A model for effective implementation of Earned Value Management methodology. International Journal of Project Management, 21(5), 375-382. doi:10.1016/s0263-7863(02)00049-2Kim, T., Kim, Y.-W., & Cho, H. (2016). Customer Earned Value: Performance Indicator from Flow and Value Generation View. Journal of Management in Engineering, 32(1), 04015017. doi:10.1061/(asce)me.1943-5479.0000377Laufer, A., & Tucker, R. L. (1987). Is construction project planning really doing its job? A critical examination of focus, role and process. Construction Management and Economics, 5(3), 243-266. doi:10.1080/01446198700000023Liberatore, M. J., Pollack-Johnson, B., & Smith, C. A. (2001). Project Management in Construction: Software Use and Research Directions. Journal of Construction Engineering and Management, 127(2), 101-107. doi:10.1061/(asce)0733-9364(2001)127:2(101)Mir, F. A., & Pinnington, A. H. (2014). Exploring the value of project management: Linking Project Management Performance and Project Success. International Journal of Project Management, 32(2), 202-217. doi:10.1016/j.ijproman.2013.05.012Navon, R., & Haskaya, I. (2006). Is detailed progress monitoring possible without designated manual data collection? Construction Management and Economics, 24(12), 1225-1229. doi:10.1080/01446190600999097Onwuegbuzie, A. J., & Leech, N. L. (2005). Taking the «Q» Out of Research: Teaching Research Methodology Courses Without the Divide Between Quantitative and Qualitative Paradigms. Quality & Quantity, 39(3), 267-295. doi:10.1007/s11135-004-1670-0Oviedo-Haito, R. J., Jiménez, J., Cardoso, F. F., & Pellicer, E. (2014). Survival Factors for Subcontractors in Economic Downturns. Journal of Construction Engineering and Management, 140(3), 04013056. doi:10.1061/(asce)co.1943-7862.0000811Pellicer, E., Sanz, M. A., Esmaeili, B., & Molenaar, K. R. (2016). Exploration of Team Integration in Spanish Multifamily Residential Building Construction. Journal of Management in Engineering, 32(5), 05016012. doi:10.1061/(asce)me.1943-5479.0000438Potts, K., & Ankrah, N. (2008). Construction Cost Management. doi:10.4324/9780203933015Vanhoucke, M. (2012). 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The vicious layering of multi-level governance in Southern Europe: the case of elderly care in Italy and Spain

Aging and changes in family arrangements and female employment have brought about important policy developments in long-term care. Southern European countries have relied for long on family care and residual social care for the dependent elderly. Two paradigmatic cases, Italy and Spain, have shown two apparently different trends during the last 15 years: while in Italy reforms seem to have been persistently blocked, in Spain, an ambitious reform has fallen short of expectations. Based on data on services and institutional arrangements, the article shows that a complex and inconsistent allocation of responsibilities across government levels, a sort of 'vicious layering' of multi-level governance, may be playing a key role in this situation. The article discusses the dysfunctional effects of such arrangements, namely territorial inequalities, cost-shifting between government levels and towards users and misallocation of resources. We suggest that the development and reform of LTC in Southern European countries must address these problems if they want to avoid getting marooned by a complex network of vetoes and resource allocation problems

Augmentation of osteochondral repair with hyperbaric oxygenation: a rabbit study

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Current treatments for osteochondral injuries often result in suboptimal healing. We hypothesized that the combination of hyperbaric oxygen (HBO) and fibrin would be superior to either method alone in treating full-thickness osteochondral defects.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Osteochondral repair was evaluated in 4 treatment groups (control, fibrin, HBO, and HBO+fibrin groups) at 2-12 weeks after surgical injury. Forty adult male New Zealand white rabbits underwent arthrotomy and osteochondral surgery on both knees. Two osteochondral defects were created in each femoral condyle, one in a weight-bearing area and the other in a non-weight-bearing area. An exogenous fibrin clot was placed in each defect in the right knee. Left knee defects were left empty. Half of the rabbits then underwent hyperbaric oxygen therapy. The defects in the 4 treatment groups were then examined histologically at 2, 4, 6, 8, and 12 weeks after surgery.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>The HBO+fibrin group showed more rapid and more uniform repair than the control and fibrin only groups, but was not significantly different from the group receiving HBO alone. In the 2 HBO groups, organized repair and good integration with adjacent cartilage were seen at 8 weeks; complete regeneration was observed at 12 weeks.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>HBO significantly accelerated the repair of osteochondral defects in this rabbit model; however, the addition of fibrin produced no further improvement.</p