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Microscopic lasers represent a promising tool for the development of cutting-edge photonic devices thanks to their ability to enhance light–matter interaction at the microscale. In this work, we realize liquid microlasers with tunable emission by exploiting the self-formation of three-dimensional liquid droplets into a polymeric matrix driven by viscoelastic dewetting. We design a flexible device to be used as a smart photonic label which is detachable and reusable on various types of substrates such as paper or fabric. The innovative lasing emission mechanism proposed here is based on whispering gallery mode emission coupled to random lasing, the latter prompted by the inclusion of dielectric compounds into the active gain medium. The wide possibility of modulating the emission wavelength of the microlasers by acting on different parameters, such as the cavity size, type and volume fraction of the dielectrics, and gain medium, offers a multitude of spectroscopic encoding schemes for the realization of photonic barcodes and labels to be employed in anticounterfeiting applications and multiplexed bioassays.

Neurosurgery is considered a technically demanding specialty; nonetheless, it also requires non-technical skills (NTSs) to reach mastery.

Light propagating through random media produces characteristic speckle patterns, directly related to the large multitude of scattering events. These complex dynamics remarkably display robustness to perturbation of the incoming light parameters, maintaining correlation in the scattered wavefront. This behavior is known as the optical memory effect. Here we unveil the properties of the nonlinear optical memory effect, which occurs when an optothermal nonlinearity perturbs the random material. The effect is characterized through a series of pump and probe experiments in silica aerogel, in the visible range. This additional degree of freedom further generalizes the memory effect, opening the road to applications based on the nonlinear response of random media.

Chronic Pericarditis is inflammation that begins gradually, is long lasting and results in fluid accumulation in the pericardial space or thickening of the pericardium. The etiology is unknown but may be cancer, TB or hypothyroidism. Arrhythmias are common and seen in almost half the patients. The commonest arrhythmia is atrial fibrillation. Symptoms and signs are related to increased right atrial pressure and physical findings include elevated JVP and pericardial knock. Non surgical therapy consists mainly of no salt. Surgery cures about 85% of patients, however 5‐15% of patients will die. Chronic effusive pericarditis occurs when there is persistent restriction of the visceral pericardium after pericardiocentesis.

A terracotta Dancing Horse sculpture dating to the Tang Dynasty (China) and owned by the Cincinnati Art Museum (US) is the topic of the present investigation. Besides its intrinsic artistic and historical values, the peculiarity of this horse concerns its conservation history; it shows extensive breakage signs and restoration and above all, the presence of an odd tassel on the frontal part of the head. Nine tassels are present on the two sides of the body, which is very common for these kinds of sculptures. Here, a scientific survey of this masterpiece is proposed aimed at looking into its conservation history, shedding light into the condition of the body and the tassels and the presence of residual conservation products applied during its troubled history. A comparative molecular, chemical and mineralogical study of the tassels is carried out focused on the identification of original and non-original materials, eventually added during restoration works. The multi-analytical protocol has been optimized for achieving as much information as possible from the available samples, a few mg of powders. X-ray powder diffraction and Raman Spectroscopy techniques have been followed by Fourier Transformed Infrared Spectroscopy and Ionic Chromatography, using the same small aliquot of powders. Scientific investigations highlighted that the odd tassel on the head and other two tassels on the body are not original, but replaced or added in subsequent time. Their composition includes both organic (polyester resin and/or phthalate) and inorganic compounds (sulphates and carbonates). Further data on original terracotta composition, decay substances and applied conservation products, provided new knowledge on past restoration treatments and cultural value. Importantly, the outcomes achieved with X-ray powder diffraction to identify the tassels authenticity were matched by Raman Spectroscopy, a technique that can be also used in situ with portable instruments, paving the way to non-invasive in situ authenticity studies as future perspective.

Background: Silent myocardial ischemia is a recognized but suboptimally studied condition in patients with and without known coronary artery disease. Limited work has focused on the association between silent myocardial ischemia and future prognosis however the majority of these analyses have focused mostly on male cohorts. As signs and symptoms of myocardial ischemia are known to be different in women, it is important to discuss and highlight any differences in association between silent myocardial ischemia and adverse cardiovascular outcomes based on gender. Methods: The aim of this review is to summarize the current literature available discussing silent myocardial ischemia and potential gender differences. We searched English language studies on PUBMED and the Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews from the database start dates to November 2015. Conclusion: As data on the presence of silent myocardial ischemia in women is limited, whether a differential association based on gender between this condition and cardiovascular prognosis remains unknown. Future studies should target women especially those without epicardial coronary disease and suspected coronary microvascular dysfunction.

We propose an interpretation of the pronounced “M” spectral shape that is a recurrent feature in all-normal-dispersion mode-locked fiber laser dynamics. Our interpretation involves shock wave formation regularized by dissipation, modeled by a modified Burgers equation. The large fringes appearing at the edges of the spectrum result from discontinuities in the spectral phase.

We report on a transition in random lasers that is induced by the geometrical confinement of the emitting material. Different dye doped paper devices with controlled geometry are fabricated by soft lithography and show two distinguished behaviors in the stimulated emission: in the absence of boundary constraints, the energy threshold decreases for larger laser volumes showing the typical trend of diffusive nonresonant random lasers, while when the same material is lithographed into channels, the walls act as cavity and the resonant behavior typical of standard lasers is observed. The experimental results are consistent with the general theories of random and standard lasers and a clear phase diagram of the transition is reported.

Recent decades have been fertile in terms of development of vehicle dynamics simulations. But the usual applications dedicated to the train design rarely take into account ground vibrations. In order to assess the influence of vehicle dynamics on track deflection and therefore on ground wave propagation, the vehicle/track system must be studied globally. The track/soil coupling is first investigated, through various track/soil models. From there, a decoupled approach is proposed, which proves valid as far as the soil is sufficiently rigid with respect to the ballast. It works in two stages: the simulation of the vehicle/track subsystem provides in a first step the ground forces, considering the irregularities of the rail as the excitation mechanism. The resulting forces are then applied, in a second step, to the soil subsystem model. Two applications are presented, consisting of the passing of a tram over a local discontinuity and the passing of a high-speed train over a rough track. The results obtained show a good agreement with experimental measurements as well as the importance of the whole vehicle/track/soil dynamics on the level of ground vibration.

Valutare le complicazioni emorragiche postestrattive in pazienti in terapia con gli antagonisti della vitamina K (dicumarolici).

We present the development and testing of a semi-automated tool to support the diagnosis of left ventricle (LV) dysfunctions from cardiac magnetic resonance (CMR). CMR short-axis images of the LVs were obtained in 15 patients and processed to detect endocardial and epicardial contours and compute volume, mass and regional wall motion (WM). Results were compared with those obtained from manual tracing by an expert cardiologist. Nearest neighbour tracking and finite-element theory were merged to calculate local myocardial strains and torsion. The method was tested on a virtual phantom, on a healthy LV and on two ischaemic LVs with different severity of the pathology. Automated analysis of CMR data was feasible in 13/15 patients: computed LV volumes and wall mass correlated well with manually extracted data. The detection of regional WM abnormalities showed good sensitivity (77.8%), specificity (85.1%) and accuracy (82%). On the virtual phantom, computed local strains differed by less than 14 per cent from the results of commercial finite-element solver. Strain calculation on the healthy LV showed uniform and synchronized circumferential strains, with peak shortening of about 20 per cent at end systole, progressively higher systolic wall thickening going from base to apex, and a 10° torsion. In the two pathological LVs, synchronicity and homogeneity were partially lost, anomalies being more evident for the more severely injured LV. Moreover, LV torsion was dramatically reduced. Preliminary testing confirmed the validity of our approach, which allowed for the fast analysis of LV function, even though future improvements are possible.

Pharmacokinetic (PK) interactions between protease inhibitors (PIs) and immunosuppressive agents (IS) are critical elements in the management of HIV-infected patients who undergo liver transplantation (LTx). The primary objective of this study was to evaluate the decreases in IS dosages necessary to maintain an appropriate therapeutic window (TW) after initiating PI-based antiretroviral therapy regimens post-LTx. Single-center, PK cross-sectional study of consecutive HIV-infected adult patients who underwent LTxwas done. Blood trough concentrations (Ct) of IS were obtained using a commercial MEIA test; plasma Ctof PIswere measured using HPLC. Twelve consecutive HIV-infected adult patients (11 males, 1 female) were enrolled. More rapid increases in IS plasma Ctwere observed 48 h after initiating ritonavir (RTV)-boosted PI therapy post-LTxthan when using unboosted PIs. Seven patients developed acute renal failure. The median fold decrease in IS dosages required to regain IS concentrations that were in the TW was 7.5 (range 6–14) after resuming boosted PIsand 2.9 (range 2–4) after unboosted PIs. The overall median time necessary to reach IS TW after dose adjustment was 3.5 days (range 0–15). Unboosted PIsexhibited lesser PK interactions with IS than did RTV-boosted PIsand were thus more amenable to use in the post-LTxsetting.

Pharmacokinetic (PK) interactions between protease inhibitors (PIs) and immunosuppressive agents (IS) are critical elements in the management of HIV-infected patients who undergo liver transplantation (LTx). The primary objective of this study was to evaluate the decreases in IS dosages necessary to maintain an appropriate therapeutic window (TW) after initiating PI-based antiretroviral therapy regimens post-LTx. Single-center, PK cross-sectional study of consecutive HIV-infected adult patients who underwent LTxwas done. Blood trough concentrations (Ct) of IS were obtained using a commercial MEIA test; plasma Ctof PIswere measured using HPLC. Twelve consecutive HIV-infected adult patients (11 males, 1 female) were enrolled. More rapid increases in IS plasma Ctwere observed 48 h after initiating ritonavir (RTV)-boosted PI therapy post-LTxthan when using unboosted PIs. Seven patients developed acute renal failure. The median fold decrease in IS dosages required to regain IS concentrations that were in the TW was 7.5 (range 6-14) after resuming boosted PIsand 2.9 (range 2-4) after unboosted PIs. The overall median time necessary to reach IS TW after dose adjustment was 3.5 days (range 0-15). Unboosted PIsexhibited lesser PK interactions with IS than did RTV-boosted PIsand were thus more amenable to use in the post-LTxsetting.

The purpose of this study is to investigate the generation and propagation of ground vibrations induced by railway traffic, more specifically in the case of urban vehicles. The complete vehicle—track—soil model is developed according to an uncoupled approach: the vehicle—track subsystem is first simulated so as to provide the ground forces which, in turn, are applied to the model of the soil. The vehicle—track model is built with the help of the home-made C++library

Abstract: We investigate full rank interpolatory vector subdivision schemes whose masks are positive definite on the unit circle except the point z=1. Such masks are known to give rise to convergent schemes with a cardinal limit function in the scalar case. In the full rank vector case, we show that there also exists a cardinal refinable function based on this mask, however, with respect to a different notion of refinability which nevertheless also leads to an iterative scheme for the computation of vector fields. Moreover, we show the existence of orthogonal scaling functions for multichannel wavelets and give a constructive method to obtain these scaling functions.

AbstractThe prismatic variety of fluoro-edenite, a new amphibole found in lavas from Mt Etna in Biancavilla (Catania Province, Sicily, Italy), has been characterized by µ-Raman and µ-FTIR spectroscopy. The wavenumbers at which the bands are detected in the µ-Raman and µ-FTIR spectra are compared with tremolite, asbestos the chemical and crystallographic characteristics of which are very similar to those of fluoro-edenite.

In this work TF values for 90Sr and 137Cs were measured for reference plants grown in lysimeters containing soils representative of large agricultural areas in Brazil: Ferralsol, Nitisol and Acrisol. These results were discussed in the light of pedological analyses and results from the follow sequential chemical extraction protocol: 1) slightly acidic phase containing readily bioavailable elements; 2) easily reducible phase containing elements bound to Mn oxides; 3) oxidizable phase containing elements bound to labile organic matter; 4) alkaline phase containing mainly elements bound to Fe compounds; 5) resistant phase not potentially available to crops. These results showed that the main soil factors influencing the 137Cs transfer to these soils were: exchangeable K, organic matter and iron oxides content. These results showed that 90Sr plant uptake was influenced by exchangeable Ca. All these finds are in accord with previous studies and seems confirm the vulnerability of Ferralsol and Acrisol to 137Cs contamination

We discuss order of convergence for subdivision algorithms, in the scalar-valued and the vector-valued case. In order to find the generic order, the usual definition of convergence order is extended, refering to a proper quasi interpolant operator whose representation on polynomial spaces can be constructively determined with recourse to properties of the subdivision mask. Assuming stability and smoothness of the limit functions, the approximation order of the quasi interpolant operator determines the order of convergence of subdivision.

Between the extremes of those who have no coronary disease and those limited by it are those with documented ischemia but no symptoms. Treating these patients in the “murky middle” generates some important questions. Should we treat patients with no symptoms solely on the basis of test abnormalities? Can we make the asymptomatic person better? What interventions would we use to treat such a disorder? How do we justify the risk, inconvenience, and cost of these interventions? How do we measure the efficacy of our intervention? Treating the asymptomatic person can only be justified if we prevent future events through our intervention. The management of silent ischemia can serve as a model for handling other preventative measures. The following article describes the issues around silent cardiac ischemia and some of the insights obtained in the Asymptomatic Cardiac Ischemia Pilot (ACIP) Study.

We show that, in the high wave-vector-mismatch (cascading) limit, the well-known paraxial description of parametric frequency conversion in quadratic media entails effective lensing effects, which can have a self-focusing or a self-defocusing nature, critically depending on the mismatch sign, the selected wave, and the launching condition (second-harmonic generation or downconversion). Numerical and experimental evidence of this behavior is reported.

This paper presents a data reduction method for functional data. Starting with noisy or not noisy data, we first define a function f, called the “reference function”, as a cubic smoothing spline which is supposed to have the global form of the data. This reference function is then used to locate the knots of the final approximating spline by using a criterion based on the third derivative of f. Then, the least-squares spline approximating all the data is derived with these knots. Numerical results show the effectiveness of the method.

This paper presents a data reduction method for functional data. Starting with noisy or not noisy data, we first define a function f, called the “reference function”, as a cubic smoothing spline which is supposed to have the global form of the data. This reference function is then used to locate the knots of the final approximating spline by using a criterion based on the third derivative of f. Then, the least-squares spline approximating all the data is derived with these knots. Numerical results show the effectiveness of the method.