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The high level of accumulated expertise by ULIS and CEA/LETI on uncooled microbolometers made from amorphous silicon enables ULIS to develop uncooled infrared focal plane array (IRFPA) with 17 µm pixel-pitch to enable the development of small power, small weight and power and high performance IR systems. Key characteristics of amorphous silicon based uncooled IR detector is described to highlight the advantage of this technology for system operation. A full range of products from 160 x 120 to 1024 x 768 has been developed and we will focus the paper on the 1/4 VGA with 17 µm pixel pitch. Readout integrated circuit (ROIC) architecture is described highlighting innovations that are widely on-chip implemented to enable an easier operation by the user. The detector configuration (integration time, windowing, gain, scanning direction), is driven by a standard I²C link. Like most of the visible arrays, the detector adopts the HSYNC/VSYNC free-run mode of operation driven with only one master clock (MC) supplied to the ROIC which feeds back pixel, line and frame synchronisation. On-chip PROM memory for customer operational condition storage is available for detector characteristics. Low power consumption has been taken into account and less than 60 mW is possible in analogue mode at 60 Hz. A wide electrical dynamic range (2.4V) is maintained despite the use of advanced CMOS node. The specific appeal of this unit lies in the high uniformity and easy operation it provides. The reduction of the pixel-pitch turns this TEC-less 1/4 VGA array into a product well adapted for high resolution and compact systems. Noise equivalent temperature difference (NETD) of 35 mK and thermal time constant of 10 ms have been measured leading to 350 mK.ms figure of merit. We insist on NETD tradeoff with wide thermal dynamic range, as well as the high characteristics uniformity and pixel operability, achieved thanks to the mastering of the amorphous silicon technology coupled with the ROIC design. This technology node associated with advanced packaging technique, paves the way to compact low power system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Blood donation is an act of solidarity. Most often, this act is done on a volunteer basis and, depending on countries and circumstances, is not remunerated. The increase in need, the always-greater number of deferral criteria, the safety issues and the changes in the structures of our societies are among the many subjects for ethical debates. Taking these into account, the actors of the transfusion must analyze certain parameters: the value of a donation, the meaning of volunteering, the appropriateness of remunerating the act of giving a part of one's self, no longer as a donation or an expression of altruism and solidarity, but as a commercial act regimented by economic laws., (Copyright © 2013. Published by Elsevier SAS.)

Objectives: The objectives of this study are, first, to describe the incidence of primary liver cancer (PLC) and, second, to highlight its epidemiological characteristics from a geographical point of view., Methods: The nine French administrative areas, which are covered by population-based cancer registries, diagnosed a total of 1100 new cases of PLC (of which 898 occurred in males), between 1997 and 1998; 91.5% of these were identified as hepatocellular carcinoma, and 6.2% corresponded to intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma. The incidence rates of these new cases were studied as a function of their clinico-pathological features and geographical location., Results: The age-adjusted incidence was 9.5 per 100,000 persons amongst males, and 3.1 per 100,000 persons amongst females. The origin of cirrhosis was found to be alcohol consumption (69%), followed by viral contamination, and lastly 4.9% for both. A north-south gradient was found for the age-standardized incidence rates in men (10.1 per 100,000 in the north vs. 6.5 per 100,000 in the south; P=0.029). Amongst men in the north, the most frequent etiological type was cirrhosis (79.8 vs. 72.5%; P=0.0018). The alcoholic origin of cirrhosis was more frequent in the north than in the south (66 vs. 27.5%; P<10). Viral cirrhosis was more frequent in the south than in the north (42.9 vs. 13.6%; P<10)., Conclusion: In France, excessive alcohol consumption remains the main risk factor for PLC, although the viral etiology of this disease is growing. An opposition was found between the two groups. North-men-alcoholic cirrhosis and south-women-viral cirrhosis.