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Cardiometabolic risk factors or their precursors are observed in childhood and may continue into adulthood. We investigated the effects of parental overweight and cardiometabolic diseases and pediatric lifestyle factors on the clustering of cardiovascular risk factors among adolescents, and examined the mediating and modifying effects of pediatric adiposity on these associations. Representative adolescents (n = 2727; age, 12-16 years) were randomly recruited through multistage stratified sampling from 36 schools in Southern Taiwan. Adolescent and parent surveys were conducted in schools and participant homes, respectively. Their demographic factors, diet patterns, and physical, anthropometric, and clinical parameters were collected and analyzed. Adolescents with 1-2 and ≥3 risk components for pediatric metabolic syndrome (MetS) were defined as potential MetS (pot-MetS) and MetS, respectively. Adolescents whose parents were overweight/obese, or with diabetes and hypertension had a higher prevalence ratio of pot-MetS and MetS (1.5-1.6 and 1.9-4.2-fold, respectively). Low physical activity (<952.4 MET⋅min/week), long screen time (≥3 h/day) and high sugar-sweetened beverage intake (>500 mL/day) were associated with a 3.3- (95% confidence intervals (CI) = 1.5-7.3), 2.2- (95% CI = 1.1-4.4), and 26.9-fold (95% CI = 3.2-229.0) odds ratio (OR) of MetS, respectively. Pediatric body mass index (BMI) accounted for 18.8%-95.6% and 16.9%-60.3% increased prevalence ratios of these parental and pediatric risk factors for MetS. The OR of pot-MetS + MetS for sugar-sweetened beverage consumption was multiplicatively enhanced among adolescents with overweight/obesity (combined OR, 8.6-fold (95% CI = 4.3-17.3); p for multiplicative interaction, 0.009). The results suggest that parental overweight and cardiometabolic diseases and pediatric sedentary and high sugar-intake lifestyles correlate with the development of adolescent MetS, and an elevated child BMI explains a part of these associations. Pediatric adiposity might be multiplicatively associated with sugar-sweetened beverage consumption for enhancing the MetS prevalence ratio among adolescents. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A reasonable assessment of the dry storage facilities for the seismic behavior after an earthquake hit is an important issue. This study was aimed to carry out to cast a 1/3 two different scale-down reinforced concrete specimens of the INER-HPS type cask: the vertical cylindrical concrete cask and the vertical concrete cask with an add-on shield, which will be used in Taiwan. A real assessment of the characteristics of the seismic response of the cask was conducted using shaking table tests. Further, the numerical simulations with finite element software LS-DYNA were performed to ensure the actual seismic behaviors of the cask under the design base earthquake. The results indicated that the designed scale-down cask specimen tested in shaking table is a successful case. Comparison of measured and calculated results demonstrated that the suggested numerical model is satisfactory and can thus be further used for numerical shaking table tests and the model can well simulate the experimental records in terms of displacements and accelerations spectral curves. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The degradation of concrete and rebar corrosion are considered a key factor in the durability of reinforced concrete structures and a major concern for civil engineers over the past few years. This study is focus on the variation of natural frequency, dynamic properties and seismic spectral in a deteriorated scale-down reinforced concrete frame specimen with rebar corrosion. The dynamic properties were experimentally studied though shaking table tests and the corrosive behaviors were experimentally studied though accelerated corrosion test. Test results presented that the corroded reinforced concrete specimens presented the changes in the dynamic response especially natural frequencies and response spectrum and rebar corrosion caused significant charges in dynamic responses. In conclusion, the deteriorated scale-down reinforced concrete test is useful for structural assessments and appraisals applied to full-scale structures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In Taiwan, the capacities of spent fuel pools for temporary storage in nuclear power plant will reach depletion soon, and the site of final disposal facility is still to be decided. Therefore, the installation of dry-type interim storage facilities is urgent. The dry storage systems in Taiwan utilize a freestanding cask and design to non-anchored to the foundation pad. It is necessary to establish the simulation techniques for the non-anchored structure, such as the dry storage cask, for the reasonable assessment of its seismic behavior when the earthquake hit. This study is cast a 1/3 scale-down pedestal specimen of the INER-dry storage cask system, which were conducted to acquire the actual friction coefficient at the cask/pad interface as well as the effect of normal stress and sliding rate on it. Based on the results of cyclic loading testing, the cyclic frequency almost had no influence on the friction coefficient but the friction coefficient increased with the normal stress increased. Apparent rocking of the cask was induced at a higher friction coefficient, while sliding dominated the cask motion at a lower one. In addition, the cast motions were almost purely sliding and the range of the friction coefficient was between 0.60 and 0.73 under various compositions of dry storage cask system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study focuses on the effect of the amount of silica fume addition and volume fraction of steel fiber on the engineering properties of cementitious materials. Test variables include dosage of silica fume (5% and 10%), water/cement ratio (0.35 and 0.55) and steel fiber dosage (0.5%, 1.0% and 2.0%). The experimental results included: compressive strength, direct tensile strength, splitting tensile strength, surface abrasion and drop-weight test, which were collected to carry out the analysis of variance to realize the relevancy and significance between material parameters and those mechanical properties. Test results illustrate that the splitting tensile strength, direct tensile strength, strain capacity and ability of crack-arresting increase with increasing steel fiber and silica fume dosages, as well as the optimum mixture of the fiber cementitious materials is 5% replacement silica fume and 2% fiber dosage. In addition, the Pearson correlation coefficient was conducted to evaluate the influence of the material variables and corresponds to the experiment result. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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According to the ASME-359 code, a scaled-down structure of Reinforced Concrete Containment Vessel (RCCV) of Advanced Boiling Water Reactor (ABWR) building is constructed for the seismic test on the shaking table. Several acceleration time history satisfing design response spectrum with different magnitudes are used in the test. Besides, the numerical finite element model of RCCV is built by SAP2000 for calculating the dynamic responses numerically. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this study, the CuIn(Ga)Se2 (CIGS) crystalline quality and MoSe2 thickness of films produced by the rapid thermal selenization process under various selenization pressures were investigated. When the selenization pressure increased from 48 Pa to 1.45 x 104 Pa, the CIGS films were smooth and uniform with large crystals of varying sizes. However, the MoSe2 thicknesses increased from 50 nm to 2,109 nm, which created increased contact resistivity for the CIGS/MoSe2/Mo structures. The efficiency of CIGS solar cells could be increased from 1.43% to 4.62% due to improvement in the CIGS crystalline quality with increasing selenization pressure from 48 Pa to 1.02 x 10³ Pa. In addition, the CIGS crystalline quality and MoSe2 thickness were modified by the pressure released valve (PRV) selenization process method. The crystalline qualities of the CIGS films were similarly affected by the selenization pressure at 1.02 x 10³ Pa in the PRV selenization method and the MoSe2 thicknesses were reduced from 1,219 nm to 703 nm. A higher efficiency of 5.2% was achieved with the thinner MoSe2 obtained by using the PRV selenization method. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Plasma-assisted thermal chemical vapor deposition (CVD) was carried out to synthesize high-quality graphene film at a low temperature of 600°C. Monolayer graphene films were thus synthesized on Cu foil using various ratios of hydrogen and methane in a gaseous mixture. The in situ plasma emission spectrum was measured to elucidate the mechanism of graphene growth in a plasma-assisted thermal CVD system. According to this process, a distance must be maintained between the plasma initial stage and the deposition stage to allow the plasma to diffuse to the substrate. Raman spectra revealed that a higher hydrogen concentration promoted the synthesis of a high-quality graphene film. The results demonstrate that plasma-assisted thermal CVD is a low-cost and effective way to synthesis high-quality graphene films at low temperature for graphene-based applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The use of rock wool waste, an industrial by-product, in cement-based composites has positive effects on the environment because it reduces the problems associated rock wool disposal. The experiments in this study tested cement-based composites using various rock wool waste contents (10, 20, 30 and 40% by weight of cement) as a partial replacement for Portland cement in mortars. The pozzolanic strength activity test, flow test, compressive strength test, dry shrinkage test, absorption test, initial surface absorption test and scanning electron microscope observations were conducted to evaluate the properties of cement-based composites. Test results demonstrate that the pozzolanic strength activity index for rock wool waste specimens is 103% after 91 days. The inclusion of rock wool waste in cement-based composites decreases its dry shrinkage and initial surface absorption, and increases its compressive strength. These improved properties are the result of the dense structure achieved by the filling effect and pozzolanic reactions of the rock wool waste. The addition of 30% and 10% rock wool wastes to cement is the optimal amount based on the results of compressive strength and initial surface absorption for a w/cm of 0.35 and 0.55, respectively. Therefore, it is feasible to utilize rock wool waste as a partial replacement of cement in cement-based composites. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Uniformly distributed graphene domains were synthesized on standing copper foil by a low-pressure chemical vapor deposition system. This method improved the distribution of the graphene domains at different positions on the same piece of copper foil along the forward direction of the gas flow. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) showed the average size of the graphene domains to be about ~20 μm. This results show that the sheet resistance of monolayer graphene on a polyethylene terephthalate (PET) substrate is about ~359Ω/◻ whereas that of the four-layer graphene films is about ~178Ω/◻ , with a transmittance value of 88.86% at the 550 nm wavelength. Furthermore, the sheet resistance can be reduced with the addition of HNO3 resulting in a value of 84Ω/~. These values meet the absolute standard for touch sensor applications, so we believe that this method can be a candidate for some transparent conductive electrode applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Following the nuclear power plant accident in Fukushima Japan, seismic capacity evaluation has become a crucial issue in combination building safety. Condensate storage tanks are designed to supplies water to the condensate transfer pumps, the control rod drive hydraulic system pumps, and the condenser makeup. A separate connection to the condensate storage tank is used to supply water for the high pressure coolant injection system, reactor core isolation cooling system, and core spray system pumps. A condensate storage tank is defined as a seismic class I structure, playing the important role of providing flow to the operational system and the required static head for the suction of the condensate transfer pumps and the normal supply pump. According to the latest nuclear safety requirements, soil structure interaction must be considered in all seismic analyses. This study aims to rebuild the computer model of condensate storage tanks in Taiwan using the SAP 2000 program in conjunction with the lumped mass stick model and to evaluate the soil structure interaction by employing the SASSI 2000 program. The differences between the results with the soil structure interaction and spring model are compared via natural frequency and response spectrum curves. This computer model enables engineers to rapidly evaluate the safety margin of condensate storage tank following the occurrence of earthquakes or tsunamis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study evaluates the permeability of cement-based composites, which are a mix of polyolefin fibers and silica fiber. Test results indicate that permeability increases as the water/cementitious ratio increases. Silica fume in cement,based composites produced hydrated calcium silicate and filled the pores. However, permeability decreased as the addition of silica fume increased. Specimens containing polyolefin fibers also provided higher permeability resistance. The polyolefin fiber length did not have a significant effect on permeability. The decrease in the permeability is mainly due to the addition of silica fume and lower water/cementitious ratio. Addition of fibers marginally decreases the permeability. Incorporating polyolefin fiber and silica fume in composites achieved more significant decreases in permeability. The correlated test results reveal the interrelationship between them. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The morphology of polystyrene- b-poly(2-vinyl pyridine) thin films annealed under various neutral solvents was investigated. The morphological transition depends on the vapor pressure of the solvent, the quantity of the solvent in the film, and annealing time. We introduced the volume fraction of solvent in a film ( Q) to correlate these factors to the morphology. At low Q, the amount of solvent that penetrates into the film is limited and it cannot induce enough chain mobility. Thus, thin film shows short stripes or a worm-like structure. At high Q, the great diffusion of solvent into the film facilitates polymer mobility, leading to an ordered structure. Our results also suggested that the dewetting mechanism of thin film depends on Q. At low Q, dewetting develops via the nucleation and growth. At high Q, the condensation of solvent on the surface removes some polymer and dewetting is dominated by spinodal mechanism. POLYM. ENG. SCI., 2011. © 2011 Society of Plastics Engineers [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

., , . . (2010) Journal of Nursing Management 926-937 The present study examined nurse reports of relational coordination between nurses and other providers and the impact of relational coordination on patient care quality. While communication between providers has been traditionally considered important to improve quality, relational coordination extends this view, emphasising the value of high-quality relationships exemplified by shared goals, shared knowledge and mutual respect; and high-quality communication that is timely, frequent, accurate and problem-solving. Direct care registered nurses (RNs) ( n = 747) completed surveys to assess relational coordination across five provider functions and six types of patient care units. Nurses also reported perceptions about patient care quality. In all analyses, relational coordination between nurses and other providers was significantly related to overall quality, in the expected directions. As relational coordination increased, nurses reported decreases in adverse events such as hospital-acquired infections and medication errors. Enhancing relational coordination between nurses and other providers is central to improving the quality of patient care. The emerging theory of relational coordination provides a useful new research-based framework for managers to use to improve provider relationships, communication and the quality of care. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Motivation: Integrated analysis of single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) and structure variations showed that the extent of linkage disequilibrium is common across different types of genetic variants. A subset of SNPs (called tag SNPs) is sufficient for capturing alleles of bi-allelic and even multi-allelic variants. However, accuracy and power of tag SNPs are affected by several factors, including genotyping failure, errors and tagging bias of certain alleles. In addition, different sets of tag SNPs should be selected for fulfilling requirements of various genotyping platforms and projects. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

The purpose of the present study is to develop a new conductive coating for application on fishing nets that can be used as an anode, while submersed in the sea, to generate free chlorine which will in turn inhibit marine biofouling. To confirm the durability and viability of this coating, long-term field tests were carried out in the Nanao harbor in Taiwan. Electrical resistivity tests showed that polyurethane resin with carbon black and graphite can demonstrate the lowest resistivity: 0.06 Ωm. This sample also generated optimal quantities of free chlorine, which performs excellent antifouling properties. The use of carbon black in conjunction with graphite did prove to yield greater benefits. A 500-day field test showed that the PU-CG conductive coatings reduced the quantity of marine biofouling attached to the cage by approximately 79%. Furthermore, the chlorine produced was within safe levels, and judged not to pollute the sea. However, this antifouling system still shows durable problems which remain to be considered. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Second-hand Smoke (SHS) exposure is a significant public health problem that may be responsible for serious health hazards for child. This study aimed to examine the exposure status of SHS and the factors associated with SHS avoidance behavior among the mothers of pre-school children. Methods: A cross-sectional study was used to obtain a sample of the mothers of pre-school children (n = 1,020) in 30 registered kindergartens in eastern Taiwan. Overall, 919 (a response rate of 90%) completed the questionnaires. Regression models were used to identify factors with respect to the avoidance behavior of SHS. Results: The prevalence of exposure to SHS was 70% and 50% for the mothers and their children, respectively. After adjusting for other variables, mothers who were current smokers (β = -0.260, p < 0.001), had spouses who smoked (β = -0.060, p < 0.05), SHS exposure (β = -0.138, p < 0.001), and/or children with exposure to SHS (β = -0.084, p < 0.05) were found to be less likely to avoid SHS, whereas mothers with a high knowledge score about SHS (β = 0.082, p < 0.01), positive attitudes (β = 0.274, p < 0.001) and a high self-efficacy level in regard to the avoidance of SHS (β = 0.397, p < 0.001) were observed to be more likely to avoid SHS. Regression analyses confirmed that the significantly factors associated with the avoidance behavior of SHS were self-efficacy, being a current smoker, and the attitude toward the avoidance of SHS to be that of 55.5% of the total variance explained (p < 0.001). Conclusions: The high prevalence rate of exposure to SHS for mothers and their children suggests that a well-designed future intervention program should be implemented in regard to pre-school children's mothers in order to prevent these mothers and their children from SHS exposure hazards, more particularly, to strengthen the knowledge base, to enhance self-efficacy and to foster a more positive attitude toward the avoidance of SHS in the mothers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An assembly process including: flip-chip bonding, microelectromechanical (MEMS) structure release, and atomic layer deposition (ALD) is proposed to integrate a surface micromachined optical switch for optical add/drop multiplexer (OADM) applications. In the current optical switch designs, pre-stressed beams were used to pop up the micromirror and an electrode (substrate) under the beams was designed to perform ON/OFF function of the optical switch. In order to achieve desired popped-up angle for precise optical switching, a flip-chip bonding technique is applied to a mechanical stopper with an accurate joint height that can be used to constrain the movement of the micromirror. A conformal thin layer of dielectric material (Al[sub2] O[sub3]) coated on the surfaces of device through an ALD coating process is used to improve vertical actuation force, as well as electrical isolation. Experiments indicate that the micromirrors fabricated by the present assembly process can achieve desired angle that meet the requirements of the proposed OADM configuration. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Helicobacter pylori is a bacterial pathogen that can cause many gastrointestinal diseases, including ulcers and gastric cancer. A unique chemotaxis-mediated motility is critical for H. pylori to colonize in the human stomach and to establish chronic infection, but the underlying molecular mechanisms are not well understood. Here, we employ cryo-electron tomography (cryo-ET) to reveal detailed structures of the H. pylori cell envelope, including the sheathed flagella and chemotaxis arrays. Notably, H. pylori possesses a distinctive periplasmic cage-like structure with 18-fold symmetry. We propose that this structure forms a robust platform for recruiting 18 torque generators, which likely provide the higher torque needed for swimming in high-viscosity environments. We also reveal a series of key flagellar assembly intermediates, providing structural evidence that flagellar assembly is tightly coupled with the biogenesis of the membrane sheath. Finally, we determine the structure of putative chemotaxis arrays at the flagellar pole, which have implications for how the direction of flagellar rotation is regulated. Together, our pilot cryo-ET studies provide novel structural insights into the unipolar flagella of H. pylori and lay a foundation for a better understanding of the unique motility of this organism. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In recent years, the final disposal facility for the long-term storage of high radioactive waste is an important issue and an urgent task for nuclear Industry. This study is focus on the understanding the procedure of dry storage system in a nuclear power plant. The dry storage system is known as transportable storage canister (TSC) packing by using spent fuel placed in vertical concrete cask (VCC) or VCC with add-on-shell (AOS) canister and then those conveyed VCC or AOS will be put on the concrete pad. A numerical simulation for evaluation the behavior of VCC and AOC under the earthquake hits is used the finite element model by LS-DYNA and the real seismic behavior is obtained using shaking table test. Test results indicate that the simulation by numerical model can slightly simulate the dynamic records by shaking table test. This is because that the behavior of shaking table test is the rocking motion but the numerical model is the sliding motion. The surface roughness between the cask and concrete pad is an important variable and it needs more numerical simulation to solve the interface and friction coefficient between the cask and concrete pad. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Mitochondrial physiology and biogenesis play a crucial role in the initiation and progression of cardiovascular disease following oxidative stress-induced damage such as atherosclerosis (AST). Dysfunctional mitochondria caused by an increase in mitochondrial reactive oxygen species (ROS) production, accumulation of mitochondrial DNA damage, and respiratory chain deficiency induces death of endothelial/smooth muscle cells and favors plaque formation/rupture via the regulation of mitochondrial biogenesis-related genes such as peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor γ coactivator (PGC-1), although more detailed mechanisms still need further study. Based on the effect of healthy mitochondria produced by mitochondrial biogenesis on decreasing ROS-mediated cell death and the recent finding that the regulation of PGC-1 involves mitochondrial fusion-related protein (mitofusin), we thus infer the regulatory role of mitochondrial fusion/fission balance in AST pathophysiology. In this review, the first section discusses the possible association between AST-inducing factors and the molecular regulatory mechanisms of mitochondrial biogenesis and dynamics, and explains the role of mitochondria-dependent regulation in cell apoptosis during AST development. Furthermore, nitric oxide has the Janus-faced effect by protecting vascular damage caused by AST while being a reactive nitrogen species (RNS) which act together with ROS to damage cells. Therefore, in the second section we discuss mitochondrial ATP-sensitive K(+) channels, which regulate mitochondrial ion transport to maintain mitochondrial physiology, involved in the regulation of ROS/RNS production and their influence on AST/cardiovascular diseases (CVD). Through this review, we can further appreciate the multi-regulatory functions of the mitochondria involved in AST development. The understanding of these related mechanisms will benefit drug development in treating AST/CVD through targeted biofunctions of mitochondria.