GRASS UTILIZATION IN GROWING FINISHING BÍSARO PIGS (85-107 KG). PERFORMANCE AND CARCASS COMPOSITION

The use of different quantities of vegetables, forages or fresh grass as fodder for growing-finishing pigs is an important factor of the northern Portugal traditional system. The increasing development of swine production in outdoor systems, extensive and organic production, turns to upcoming natural diets, in which grass performs a significant part. With regard to this, some investigation has been made concerning the use of fibre-rich feed ingredients in pig nutrition. Metabolic effects of its ingestion are analysed concerning different sights (economical, social, environmental and physiological ones). The aim of this work was to study the effects of grass utilization in the diets on performances of finishing Bísaro pigs. A total of 22 pigs (16 castrated males and 6 females) was housed outdoor and fed ad libitum (37 – 85 kg live weight) with a growing diet and then transferred to an indoor system (with free access to an outdoor area) for 49 days, according to 3 different treatments: 100% concentrate (C), 75% concentrate + ad libitum grass (CE75), 50% concentrate + ad libitum grass (CE50). The grass was supplied and its intake registered on a daily basis. Every 14 days, the pigs were weighted and their back fat (P2 in vivo) measured. After slaughter (average weight of 107 kg LW), yield and ½ left carcass characteristics were controlled. During the outdoor growing phase, the ADG was 513 g/day. During the indoor finishing phase, the increase grass intake was proportional to the reduction of concentrate in the diet. The ADG (g) and the fat deposition (P2 cm) were significantly different (P<0,05) in the 3 treatments (ADG: C=641, CE75=467, CE50=356 and: C=11,4, CE75=+9,5, CE50=+6,2). The empty body weight (kg) was also proportional to the intake of concentrate (C=116,2; CE75=107,7; CE50=102,2). Comparatively to the weight of the body parts, pigs that had higher intake of grass and lower of concentrate showed a higher % of shoulder (P<0,05; C=20,4, CE75=21,7, CE50=22,2) and the pH45min of CE carcasses was significantly higher (P<0,05). As a conclusion, concentrate substitution for grass showed a slower growing rate, thinner carcasses and a high technological quality. Neverthelles variability (CV %) of the productive parameters at the end of this study were higher in the treatments that included grass: live weight (C= 10,5%; C75=10,7%; C50=14,3%), finishing ADG (C=24%; C75=37%, C50=42%), and final fat (C=37%; C75=32%, C50=52%). These values suggest that the utilization of fibrous feeds in growing-finishing swine may be one of the possible explanations of the more heterogeneous products and carcasses found in the traditional or extensive systems, common users of fibrous feeds in the carcass finishing phase

Practical evaluation of the Lasp programming model at large scale

Programming models for building large-scale distributed applications assist the developer in reasoning about consistency and distribution. However, many of the programming models for weak consistency, which promise the largest scalability gains, have little in the way of evaluation to demonstrate the promised scalability. We present an experience report on the implementation and largescale evaluation of one of these models, Lasp, originally presented at PPDP '15, which provides a declarative, functional programming style for distributed applications. We demonstrate the scalability of Lasp's prototype runtime implementation up to 1024 nodes in the Amazon cloud computing environment. It achieves high scalability by uniquely combining hybrid gossip with a programming model based on convergent computation. We report on the engineering challenges of this implementation and its evaluation, specifically related to operating research prototypes in a production cloud environment.H2020 - Horizon 2020 Framework Programme(609551)This work was partially funded by the SyncFree Project in the European Union Seventh Framework Programme (FP7/2007-2013) under grant agreement nº 609551, by the LightKone Project in the European Union Horizon 2020 Framework Programme for Research and Innovation (H2020/2014-2020), under grant agreement no 732505, by SMILES within project “TEC4Growth – Pervasive Intelligence, Enhancers and Proofs of Concept with Industrial Impact/NORTE-01- 0145-FEDER-000020” - nanced by the North Portugal Regional Operational Programme (NORTE 2020), under the PORTUGAL 2020 Partnership Agreement, and through the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF). Chris is funded by the Erasmus Mundus Doctorate Programme under grant agreement no 2012-0030.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

500 KW Rüzgar Türbini İçin Ana Şaft Tasarımı Ve Analizi

Konferans Bildirisi -- Teorik ve Uygulamalı Mekanik Türk Milli Komitesi, 2013Conference Paper -- Theoretical and Applied Mechanical Turkish National Committee, 2013Bu çalışmada, 500 kW güç üreten bir rüzgar türbinin ana şaftının tasarımı ve yapısal analizleri yapılmıştır. Ana şaftın boyutlandırılmasında yorulma kriterlerinin esas alınması gerekmektedir. Ana şaftın yorulmaya ait yük durumu ise literatürde bulunan ampirik formüller kullanılarak hesaplanmıştır. Yorulma analizlerinde şaftı çevrimsel yüklerle zorlayan rotor ağırlığının yanında rüzgar kesmesi ve kule blokaj etkisi vb. sebeplerle ortaya çıkan değişken eğilme momenti ve tork değerleri de hesaba katılmıştır. Ana şaftın kritik kesitlerindeki çap hesabı, ASME Eliptik yorulma kriteri kullanılarak sonsuz ömre göre yapılmıştır. Ana şaftın tasarımındaki kritik bölgeler şaftın yataklandığı bölge ve şaftın dişli kutusuna bağlandığı bölgedir. Ayrıca, kontrol amaçlı olarak Uluslararası Elektroteknik Komisyonu’nun (International Electrotechnical Commision) yayınlamış olduğu IEC 64100-1 standardında belirtilen yükleme şartları için ana şaftın statik analizleri ANSYS 14.5 sonlu elemanlar yazılımı kullanılarak gerçekleştirilmiştir. Şaftın sonlu eleman modeli SOLID185 elemanlar kullanılarak oluşturulmuştur. Ayrıca, ana şaft - göbek bağlantı elemanlarının analizi de bu çalışma kapsamında yapılmıştır. Sayısal ve analitik yöntemler kullanılarak elde edilen deformasyon ve gerilme sonuçları karşılaştırılmış ve iyi bir uyum olduğu görülmüştür.In this paper, the main shaft which is one of the important structural parts for a 500 kW wind turbine has been designed. The fatigue criteria has been based on sizing the main shaft. The main shafts critic desing loads have been calculated by empirical formulas which are on the literatures. Oscillation moments of the torque and the flexural moments which is created by wind share, and effect of tower, etc. have been envisaged for analytical and numerical studies. In this study, the main shaft has been designed for infinite life using with ASME Elliptic criteria. There are two critic areas which are supported and connected to the gear box. In addition Iternational Electrotechnical Commision (IEC) 64100-1 standards have been based on the critic design load cases. The main shaft and the fasteners are modeled using the finite element method. The finite element model of the shaft is designed using with SOLID185 elements. Its static analysis have been achieved with using ANSYS 14.5 software. Also a comparison of two different approximations have been mentioned in this paper. The values of analitic and numerical of deplacement and stress are compared each

Reactor para síntese química com aquecimento óhmico, método e suas aplicações

O presente invento refere-se a um reactor com aquecimento óhmico para síntese química. Este método de aquecimento tem aplicação desde a síntese orgânica à inorgânica, preparação de materiais organo-metálicos, síntese de nanopartículas e de polímeros. a presente invenção diminui o consumo de energia e aumenta o rendimento das reacções de síntese química, por meio de um reactor para síntese química, e respectivo método, o qual compreende: - um depósito para os reagentes (1), o qual contém pelo menos uma tubuladura lateral (1a); - uma tampa (3), esta tampa deverá ser de preferência resistente a ataques químicos e a solventes orgânicos; - dois eléctrodos (3a,3b) para produzir aquecimento óhmico do meio reaccional, configurados para produzir uma corrente eléctrica com frequência superior a 15 khz. O presente invento é aplicável, na indústria química e na indústria farmacêutica em particular em processos de síntese química

Gravitational-wave detectors cooled with superfluid helium – GRAVITHELIUM

The Einstein Telescope (ET) is a third generation gravitational-wave detector planned in Europe, combining a low-frequency (LF) and a high-frequency (HF) laser interferometer. Cryogenic operation of ET-LF in the temperature range of 10 K to 20 K is essential to suppress the fundamental suspension thermal noise (STN) that dominates the detection sensitivity at frequencies below 10 Hz down to the limitations of Newtonian noise. This requires a new key technology development in ultra-low noise cryogenic cooling. Motivated by both the quietness and the heat conductivity of superfluid helium, a promising solution relies on a thin-wall titanium tube in the super-attenuator suspension chain of the core optics, filled with static He-II. The theoretical feasibility regarding the ET total noise curve has been demonstrated already. Open questions remain, however, regarding the noise of the thermal transport and the dissipation of vibrational energy at the liquid-tube interface or in the bulk phase of the superfluid. The ERC project GRAVITHELIUM addresses these questions experimentally, using mechanical Q-factor measurements to analyze the dissipative mechanisms. Q-factors are measured by the ring-down method, exciting suspension samples to resonant vibrations and analyzing the decay time. The new test facility enables full-size studies with various suspension materials and geometries, including silicon and sapphire suspensions as well as empty and He-II-filled titanium suspension tubes. The test facility also includes the development of a lab-scale low-noise He-II supply unit that includes an attenuation system and provides 400 mW of cooling capacity at 1.8 K. Starting from the application requirements in the Einstein Telescope, the presentation describes the objectives, the methods and the status of the ERC project GRAVITHELIUM

The effect of mesoporous silica impregnation on tribo-electrification characteristics of flurbiprofen

Tribo-electrification is a common occurrence within the pharmaceutical industry where solid dosage forms constitute majority of pharmaceutical formulations. Tribo-electrification of powders leads to a range of complications such as adhesion of particulate material to the processing equipment resulting in segregation, affecting the content uniformity. Flurbiprofen, a highly charging material, was used as a model drug to investigate the tribo-electrification and adhesion characteristics by impregnating the model drug inside a mesoporous silica matrix. The model drug was impregnated using i) solvent loading, and ii) physical mixing methods, at varying degree of silica to drug ratio (5-20% w/w). The resulting mixtures were tribo-charged using a custom built device based on a shaking concept inside a stainless steel capsule, consisting of a Faraday cup and connected to electrometer. The electrostatic charge and the percentage adhesion of Flurbiprofen were reduced in both drug loading methods. The solvent impregnation method using acetone was more successful at reducing the electrostatic charge build up on flurbiprofen than physical powder mixing. The percentage adhesion to the shaking capsule was reduced notably as a result of loading the drug in the SBA-15 porous network. The results illustrate that the incorporation of highly charged model drug inside a low-charging pharmaceutical carrier system to be an effective approach in control the induction of tribo-electrification phenomena during powder processing

Coronary arcade: a rare anomaly of the coronary circulation.

Intercoronary communication or 'coronary arcade' is a rare congenital coronary anomaly. We present the case of a 65-year-old man with atypical chest pain for four months. The 12-lead ECG and echocardiogram were normal. Treadmill exercise testing was interrupted at peak exercise due to consecutive salvos of ventricular premature beats, without significant ST-T changes. Coronary angiography showed no significant coronary stenosis, but a connection between the right coronary and circumflex arteries was observed, consistent with coronary arcade. The functional importance of this variant is not clear, but it may cause myocardial ischemia by coronary steal or function as a natural bypass, in which case it may play a protective role in the myocardium if significant atherosclerosis develops

Critical quantum thermometry and its feasibility in spin systems

In this work, we study temperature sensing with finite-sized strongly correlated systems exhibiting quantum phase transitions. We use the quantum Fisher information (QFI) approach to quantify the sensitivity in the temperature estimation, and apply a finite-size scaling framework to link this sensitivity to critical exponents of the system around critical points. We numerically calculate the QFI around the critical points for two experimentally-realizable systems: the spin-1 Bose-Einstein condensate and the spin-chain Heisenberg XX model in the presence of an external magnetic field. Our results confirm finite-size scaling properties of the QFI. Furthermore, we discuss experimentally-accessible observables that (nearly) saturate the QFI at the critical points for these two systems

The Kynurenine Pathway in Major Depressive Disorder, Bipolar Disorder, and Schizophrenia: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Cerebrospinal Fluid Studies

INTRODUCTION: The kynurenine pathway has been attracting attention as a relevant pathway in schizophrenia (SZ), bipolar disorder (BD), and major depressive disorder (MDD). We conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis of the kynurenine pathway metabolites from cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) samples in SZ, BD, and MDD. METHODS: PubMed and Scopus databases were systematically searched to identify peer-reviewed case-control studies until April 2022 that assessed kynurenine metabolites, namely, tryptophan (TRP), kynurenine (KYN), kynurenic acid (KA), quinolinic acid (QA), and 3- hydroxykynurenine (3-HK) in SZ, BD, or MDD subjects compared with healthy controls (HC). The Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines were followed. The random effects model method was selected when comparing the standardized mean differences (SMD) between two groups. RESULTS: There were 23 articles that met the inclusion criteria (k=8, k=8, k=11, for SZ, BD, and MDD, respectively). In SZ, KA levels were increased [SMD=2.64, confidence interval (CI) =1.16 to 4.13, p=0.0005, I2=96%, k=6, n=384 subjects]. TRP (k=5) and KYN (k=4) did not differ significantly. In BD, TRP levels (k=7) did not differ significantly. The level of KA was increased in MDD (k=2), but the small number of studies made not possible for statistical significance evaluation. Finally, in MDD, although some studies tended to have an increased level of KYN in those with remission versus decreased levels in those with current depression, no significant difference was found in any of the kynurenine metabolite levels. Similarly, there was an increased level of QA (k=2) but the number of studies (k= 2) was small. CONCLUSION: KA, which has possibly neuroprotective effects, is increased in SZ. QA, which has neurotoxic effects, may be increased in MDD. There were no alterations in BD. There may be alterations in this pathway based on population characteristics and mood states. Future studies should explore the utility of these metabolites as biomarkers

Effect of simulated gastric acid on aesthetical restorative CAD-CAM materials' microhardness and flexural strength

Background: Gastric acid, which is among erosive substances, gradually rises to the mouth in individuals with reflux and bulimia nervosa disorders, and this causes various effects on dental restorations. Aim: The objective of this study is in vitro investigation of gastric acid's effect on flexural strength and hardness on aesthetic restorative computer-aided design and computer-aided manufacturing (CAD-CAM) materials. Materials and Methods: For this study, four materials have been used, namely Enamic (Vita), Superfect Zir (Aidite) Zirconia, IPS e.max CAD (Ivoclar Vivadent), and Mark II (Vita). From these four different materials, 24 samples with 14 × 4 × 1 dimensions in rectangular prism form are used, which makes a total of 96 samples. One group was separated as the control group, while the rest was allowed to wait at 37°C, 5 ml gastric acid for 96 hours. Hardness value and flexural strengths were measured as pre-exposure and post-exposure to gastric acid. Results: There is a statistically significant difference between the groups in terms of the amount of decrease in the mean hardness after exposure to gastric acid compared to pre-exposure values (p: 0,000; P 0.05). There is a statistically significant difference between the groups in terms of the average flexural strength after exposure to the acid. Conclusions: According to the data obtained, it was concluded that exposure to gastric acid affects the hardness and flexural strength properties of dental restorative ceramic materials