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References are employed in most academic research papers to give credits and to reflect scholarliness. With the upsurge in academic publications in recent decades, we are curious to know how the number of references cited per research article has changed across different disciplines over that time. The results of our study showed significant linear growth in reference density in eight disciplinary categories between 1980 and 2019 indexed in Web of Science. It appears that reference saturation is not yet in sight. Overall, the general increase in the number of publications and the advanced accessibility of the Internet and digitized documents may have promoted the growth in references in certain fields. However, the seemingly runaway tendency should be well appreciated and objectively assessed. We suggest that authors focus on their research itself rather than on political considerations during the process of writing, especially the selection of important references to cite.

The contact is the core element of the vacuum interrupter of the mechanical DC circuit breaker. The electrical conductivity and welding resistance of the material directly affect its stability and reliability. AgSnO2 contact material has low resistivity, welding resistance, and so on. This material occupies an important position of the circuit breaker contact material. This research is based on the first-principles analysis method of density functional theory. The article calculated the lattice constant, enthalpy change, energy band, electronic density of state, charge density distribution, population, and conductivity of Ce, C single-doped, and Ce-C codoped SnO2 systems. The results show that Ce, C single doping, and Ce-C codoping all increase the cell volume and lattice constant. When the elements are codoped, the enthalpy change is the largest, and the thermal stability is the best. It has the smallest bandgap, the most impurity energy levels, and the least energy required for electronic transitions. The 4f orbital electrons of the Ce atom and the 2p orbital electrons of C are the sources of impurity energy near the Fermi level. When the elements are codoped, more impurity energy levels are generated at the bottom of the conduction band and the top of the valence band. Its bandgap is reduced so conductivity is improved. From the charge density and population analysis, the number of free electrons of Ce atoms and C atoms is redistributed after codoping. It forms a Ce-C covalent bond to further increase the degree of commonality of electrons and enhance the metallicity. The conductivity analysis shows that both single-doped and codoped conductivity have been improved. When the elements are codoped, the conductivity is the largest, and the conductivity is the best.

This paper discusses the concept of interactive gestures in instructional contexts whose interactional specificity lends itself to the study of these gestures which typically contribute to the process of meaning-making and interpersonal relationship. Our empirically grounded account is based upon the analysis of video recorded classroom interactions of French as a foreign language in Turkey and French as a second language in France. The results show that the majority of the teaching gestures had interactive functions and that a degree of topicality/interactivity may be considered for some gestures; therefore, a clear categorical distinction may not be possible in some situations. Furthermore, the specificity of classroom interactions leads us to consider some gestures that are not directed towards the addressee as also interactive.

The repetition of a stimulus often produces a shorter subjective duration than does the presentation of a novel item. To test whether familiarity mediates the repetition compression effect, the present study compared the influence of repeated words and pseudowords on apparent duration, using a duration discrimination task. We found a similar magnitude of temporal compression for the repeated-word and repeated-pseudoword conditions. When introducing a further experiment with two new conditions in which the standard–comparison pair shared a character at the first or second constituent position, we observed a shorter subjective duration for whole word (or whole pseudoword) repetition compared with the remaining conditions (i.e., first-character repetition, second-character repetition, and novel baseline). However, temporal compression for the first- and second-character repetitions was observed only for pseudowords but not for words. Our findings indicate that familiarity modulates the perception of duration in constituent character repetition. The results are discussed on the basis of the predictive coding theory.

The optimal utilization of wind power and the application of carbon capture power plants are important measures to achieve a low-carbon power system, but the high-energy consumption of carbon capture power plants and the uncertainty of wind power lead to low-carbon coordination problems during load peaks. To address these problems, firstly, the EEMD-LSTM-SVR algorithm is proposed to forecast wind power in the Belgian grid in order to tackle the uncertainty and strong volatility of wind power. Furthermore, the conventional thermal power plant is transformed into an integrated carbon capture power plant containing split-flow and liquid storage type, and the low-carbon mechanism of the two approaches is adequately discussed to give the low-carbon realization mechanism of the power system. Secondly, the mathematical model of EEMD-LSTM-SVR algorithm and the integrated low-carbon economic dispatch model are constructed. Finally, the simulation is verified in a modified IEEE-39 node system with carbon capture power plant. Compared with conventional thermal power plants, the carbon emissions of integrated carbon capture plants will be reduced by 78.248%; the abandoned wind of split carbon capture plants is reduced by 53.525%; the total cost of wind power for dispatch predicted using the EEMD-LSTM-SVR algorithm will be closer to the actual situation, with a difference of only USD 60. The results demonstrate that the dispatching strategy proposed in this paper can effectively improve the accuracy of wind power prediction and combine with the integrated carbon capture power plant to improve the system wind power absorption capacity and operational efficiency while achieving the goal of low carbon emission.

Due to the voltage drop of the line impedance, power-transfer deviation occurs in the interlinking converter (IC) of hybrid microgrids. In this paper, an IC control strategy in hybrid microgrids is proposed, which can estimate the line resistance precisely. Moreover, the proposed method can easily realize accurate power transmission between sub-grids and maintain the power balance of hybrid microgrid. Firstly, one specified small signal is injected into the IC at the AC bus of the distributed generation so as to estimate the line impedance. The frequency of the injected small signal is highly relevant to the AC bus voltage. As a result, the IC can accurately detect its line impedance by extracting the injected small signal frequency with a filter and phase-lock-loop (PLL) without communication. Secondly, with the line impedance estimation, the voltage drop on the line can be compensated with local information of the IC, and consequently, accurate power transfer can be realized. Finally, the validity of the proposed method is verified by simulation and experiment results.

In-band full duplex (IBFD) is regarded as one of the most significant technologies for addressing the issue of spectrum scarcity in 5G and beyond systems. In the realization of practical IBFD systems, self-interference, i.e., the interference that the transmitter causes to the collocated receiver, poses a major challenge to antenna designers; it is a prerequisite for applying other self-interference cancellation (SIC) techniques in the analog and digital domains. In this paper, a comprehensive survey on SIC techniques in the antenna/propagation (AP) domain is provided and the pros and cons of each technique are studied. Opportunities and challenges of employing IBFD antennas in future wireless communications networks are discussed.

Ultrathin silver films with low loss in the visible and near-infrared spectrum range have been widely used in the fields of metamaterials and optoelectronics. In this study, Al-doped silver films were prepared by the magnetron sputtering method and were characterized by surface morphology, electrical conductivity, and light transmittance analyses. Molecular dynamics simulations and first-principles density functional theory calculations were applied to study the surface morphologies and migration pathway for the formation mechanisms in Al-doped silver films. The results indicate that the migration barrier of silver on a pristine silver surface is commonly lower than that of an Al-doped surface, revealing that the aluminum atoms in the doping site decrease the surface mobility and are conducive to the formation of small islands of silver. When the islands are dense, they coalesce into a single layer, leading to a smoother surface. This might be the reason for the observably lower 3D growth mode of silver on an Al-doped silver surface. Our results with electronic structure insights on the mechanism of the Al dopants on surface morphologies might benefit the quality control of the silver thin films.

Abstract Land use changes around 26 karstic cave–spring systems in Florida were evaluated using geographic information system. Located in the unconfined or semiconfined zones of the Floridan aquifer, some of the cave–spring systems are directly connected to the surficial land use processes by sinking streams, whereas others receiving diffuse recharge are still vulnerable to contamination due to a thin sandy cover overlying the aquifer. Comparison of nitrate-producing land use practices between 2004 and 2013–2014 shows increasing risks of groundwater contamination in the Floridan aquifer. Proliferation of septic systems and wastewater treatment sites due to growing residential areas, increased use of fertilizers for farming and landscaping stand out as major causes of nitrate overload in the both surface and groundwater.

INTRODUCTION[|]On-demand treatment protocols in the maintenance treatment of gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) are cost-efficient and easy-to-use treatments.This study aimed to compare the efficacies of H2 receptor antagonists (H2RA) and proton pump inhibitors (PPI) in on-demand treatment of GERD.[¤]METHODS[|]Patients with persistent GERD symptoms were enrolledbetween January-November 2015 and were randomly separated into two equal groups. The patients in the first group were commenced on ranitidine 300 mg as H2RA and the patients in the second group were commenced on pantoprazole 40 mg. A 4-point Likert-type scale generated by the researchers was applied to evaluate the frequencies of reflux symptoms and their impacts on activities of life and business life.[¤]RESULTS[|]Fifty-two patients were included, of whom 26 (50.0%) were in the PPI group and 26 (50.0%) were in the H2RA group. There were no significant differences between the study groups both before and after treatment in terms of the severity of reflux symptoms. There were significant decreases in the H2RA group in terms of the domains of retrosternal burning sensation, regurgitation, nausea and vomiting, and burping (p=0.036, p=0.027, p=0.020, and p=0.038, respectively).[¤]DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSION[|]PPIs and H2RAs were both effective in maintaining symptom control and improving the limitations in work or activities in on-demand treatment.Nonetheless, the higher amount of the medication use in the H2RA group compared with the PPI group led us to conclude that using PPIs during on-demand treatment might be more appropriate than using H2RA in this setting.[¤]

Mucoepidermoid carcinoma (MEC) is the most common malignant tumor of the salivary glands and is seen most commonly in the parotid gland. Intraosseous MECs can be rarely seen and is mostly detected in the posterior part of the mandible. This condition can be acknowledged as an entity different from salivary gland MECs. In this case series, we delineated three patients of intraosseous MEC, two mandible tumors and one maxillary tumor and discussed the diagnostic characteristics and treatment methods of this rare entity.

We present a novel miniature endoscopic optical coherence tomography (OCT) probe based on an electrothermal microelectromechanical (MEMS) mirror and a C-lens. The MEMS mirror has a relatively large mirror plate of 0.5 mm × 0.5 mm on a small chip size of 1.5 mm × 1.3 mm, leading to the outer diameter of the endoscopic probe down to only 2.5 mm so that the probe is capable of being inserted through the biopsy channel of a conventional endoscope. A long focal length of 12 mm is achieved by properly designing the C-lens. Compared to commonly used GRIN lenses, C-lenses have advantages of much smaller sensitivities of the working distance and spot size to machining variations. The C-lens based probe can scan a large field of view (FOV) of 6 mm × 6 mm at only 5-V drive voltage. A swept source endoscopic OCT system is constructed using this miniature probe. Experiments show that the corresponding lateral and axial resolutions are about 50 and 14 μm, respectively. Various samples including human fingers, onions, and cancerous colon tissue are imaged and the result suggests this large-working-distance, large-FOV endoscopic probe is promising for applications in large tubular organs and large-area lesions.

Pregabalin is a new generation gabapentinoid that exerts its effect by causing a decrease in release of neurotransmitters such as glutamate, noradrenaline, and substance P. It is currently used for neuropathic pain and fibromyalgia treatment and has anticonvulsant, anxiolytic, and analgesic effects in some cases. Several case reports and epidemiological studies have raised concern about pregabalin's abuse potential since its use has increased substantially over the last decade. Drug abusers arousing it for recreational purposes since it has potential euphoric and dissociative effects when taken in excess of therapeutic doses. Despite the abuse potential, the mechanisms behind abuse are not fully known. Furthermore, the age limit has gradually decreased in cases of abuse. In this study, we present three adolescent patients with pregabalin abuse.

The use of synthetic cannabinoids is a major health problem in all over the world as well as in our country. These products are synthetic substances created via mixture of cannabinoids and various plants. They are easy to access, inexpensive and undetectable on routine toxicological screening, leading to common use in the adolescent age group. In addition to physical effects, such as nausea, vomiting, sweating, tachycardia, hypertension, chest pain and altered consciousness, psychoactive effects, such as agitation, anxiety, altered perception, hallucinations and panic attacks, are also seen. Here, we present an adolescent patient with bradycardia and acute altered consciousness after bonzai use.

The true bipolar modular multilevel converter-based multi-terminal direct current (MMC-MTDC) DC transmission line is prone to single-pole grounding fault, which may cause overload and overcurrent of the non-fault DC line with fault poles, resulting in system protection misoperation and system collapse. Therefore, the power transfer control strategy should be adopted to improve system stability. In addition, considering that the commutator stations of true bipolar MMC-MTDC system may have unipolar faults, it is necessary to adopt the control strategy of inter-pole power transfer or inter-station power transfer to improve the transmission capacity of the system under fault conditions. In this paper, a power transfer control strategy is proposed, which is widely applicable to MMC-MTDC system. In the case of line fault, the power transfer takes into account the line power margin and the power margin of converter station. The inter-pole power transfer is better than the inter-station power transfer under the converter station fault condition, and the inter-station power transfer takes into account the priority of the power margin of the converter station. At the same time, based on the Zhangbei four-terminal flexible direct current transmission project, the Zhangbei four-terminal flexible direct current transmission system is built by using PSCAD/EMTDC, and the flexibility and effectiveness of the proposed strategy are verified by simulation.

Amaç: Tip 2 diabetes mellituslu (DM) hastalarda gastrointestinal ve kardiyovasküler diyabetik otonomik nöropatinin değerlendirilmesi amaçlanmaktadır. Materyal ve Metot: DM hastalarından oluşan çalışma grubu Mart-Eylül 2012 tarihleri arasında incelendi. Yaş, vücut kütle indeksi (VKİ), açlık kan glukozu, HbA1c, C-peptid, diyabet süresi, elektrokardiyogram, kan basıncı, kalp hızı kaydedildi. Hastalar kontrol altında olan ve olmayan diyabetikler olarak gruplandırıldı. Kardiyak otonom nöropati (KON) testleri değerlendirildi. Anal manometri ile rekto-anal inhibitör refleks, istirahat ve sıkma basınçları ölçüldü.Bulgular: Toplam 50 DM hastası çalışmaya kaydedildi ve hastaların yaş ortalaması 57,06±8,92 yıl, istirahat anal basıncı ortalaması 55,92±14,84 mmHg ve sıkma anal basıncı ortalaması 83,15±31,00 mmHg idi. Orta ve ağır KON grupları arasında istirahat anal basıncında anlamlı fark saptanmazken (p=0,573), orta ve ağır KON grupları arasında maksimum sıkma basıncında anlamlı fark mevcuttu (p=0,005). Kısa veya uzun süreli diyabeti olan hastalarda anal manometrik basınçlarda fark saptanmadı. KON ile VKİ arasında ilişki bulunmazken yaş ile ilişki saptandı. Kötü glisemik kontrol istirahat basında azalma ile ilişkili iken, maksimum sıkma basıncı ve yetersiz glisemik kontrol grubu arasında ilişki yoktu. KON’un şiddeti maksimum sıkma basıncında azalma ile ilişkiliydi. Sonuç: Kardiyak ve gastrointestinal otonom disfonksiyon, DM’nin önemli komplikasyonlarıdır. Anal manometri testleri ve KON diyabetin bu komplikasyonlarını gösterebilir.

En didactique des langues étrangères, les enseignants recourent à une variété de moyens pédagogiques parmi lesquels se trouvent les gestes manuels dits emblématiques utilisés le plus souvent pour gérer les activités et les interactions ou pour évaluer la performance des apprenants. Au sein de cette étude, tout en partant des données recueillies dans une approche ethnographique par l’intermédiaire des enregistrements vidéo de trois enseignantes assurant des cours de français langue étrangère aux turcophones de niveau A1 dans un établissement secondaire et privé en Turquie, nous nous proposons d’examiner l’usage de cette dimension gestuelle dans le milieu spontané du contexte de classe.

Macrophage activation by interferon-[gamma] (IFN-[gamma]) is important in host resistance to tuberculosis (TB). In this study, the relationships of the +874 T/A polymorphism in the first intron of the IFN-[gamma] gene and intronic (CA)n polymorphic microsatellite marker of the interferon-[gamma] receptor 1 (IFN-[gamma]R1) gene to TB susceptibility were investigated in children. Forty children with TB and 67 age-matched controls were included. There were no significant differences between the allele frequencies and genotype frequencies of patient and control groups for the polymorphism +874 T/A in the IFN-[gamma] gene. Differences that were not statistically significant were found between the group of children with TB and the control group for the allelic markers (170 and 180) in the IFN-[gamma]R1 gene. The incidence of the allele 170 was higher in patients (30.9%) than in controls (17.4%), whereas the allele 180 was found to be more common in controls (9% vs 1.2%). In conclusion, no significant association was observed between the +874 T/A polymorphism found in the first exon of the IFN-[gamma] gene and TB susceptibility in Turkish children. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: Carbon monoxide poisoning is one of the most important causes of morbidity and mortality. There is increasing evidence supporting the important role of mean platelet volume (MPV) as a marker of hypoxia and inflammation. In this study, we aimed to determine changes in MPV values in pediatric patients with carbon monoxide poisoning. Methods: We retrospectively evaluated children who were diagnosed with carbon monoxide poisoning in our hospital between January 2005 and 2014. Results: We included 228 children with carbon monoxide poisoning (49% male) in this retrospective, controlled study. The mean age of the patients was 88±56 months. Control group consisted of 200 age-matched healthy children. There was no statistically significant difference in MPV levels between the study and control groups (8.43±1.1 fL and 8.26±0.7 fL, respectively). No correlation of MPV and platelet count with carboxyhemoglobin (COHb) was found. Conclusion: In our study, it was determined that MPV value was not a helpful parameter for predicting the diagnosis of acute carbon monoxide poisoning in childhood. The difference between the MPV values and the lack of significance and the absence of correlation between MPV value and COHb level led to the fact that MPV was not a guide indicating the clinical severity of the condition.

This paper presents the design procedure, optimization strategy, theoretical analysis, and experimental results of a wideband dual-polarized base station antenna element with superior performance. The proposed antenna element consists of four electric folded dipoles arranged in an octagon shape that are excited simultaneously for each polarization. It provides ±45° slant-polarized radiation that meets all the requirements for base station antenna elements, including stable radiation patterns, low cross polarization level, high port-to-port isolation, and excellent matching across the wide band. The problem of beam squint for beam-tilted arrays is discussed and it is found that the geometry of this element serves to reduce beam squint. Experimental results show that this element has a wide bandwidth of 46.4% from 1.69 to 2.71 GHz with ≥15-dB return loss and 9.8 ± 0.9-dBi gain. Across this wide band, the variations of the half-power-beamwidths of the two polarizations are all within 66.5° ± 5.5°, the port-to-port isolation is >28 dB, the cross-polarization discrimination is >25 dB, and most importantly, the beam squint is

The electromagnetic fundamentals that govern the performance characteristics of dualpolarized tightly coupled cross-dipoles that are widely used in cellular base station applications are investigated. The mutual coupling effects and their impact on standard performance indices are stressed. A model is developed that considers this type of cross-dipole as an array. Links between the physical dimensions of the components of these model and key radiation characteristics, including directivity, half-power-beam width, and cross polarization discrimination levels, are established. The model guides the introduction and optimization of a simplified cross-dipole structure that exhibits excellent performance. A prototype was fabricated, assembled, and tested. The measured results are in good agreement with their simulated values, validating the model, and its governing principles.

Catatonia is a syndrome characterized by symptoms such as perseveration, passive obedience, mutism, immobility, negativism, stereotypes, mannerisms, and echo phenomenon. It is usually seen with psychiatric disorders. A nine-year-old girl was admitted to the emergency unit with symptoms of unresponsiveness and tonic contractions after using an unknown drug. Mutism and rigidity were detected in the conscious state with waxy flexibility. Catatonia symptoms resolved after intravenous midazolamtreatment. In this paper, we aimed to discuss catatonia, which is rarely observed in pediatric practice.

The continued expand of the coronavirus disease 19 (COVID-19) pandemic, confinement measures and an urgent change in the education of nursing students from traditional education to distance learning throughout the country affect the mental health of university students. This study analyzed state-trait anxiety levels of nursing students because of e-Learning during two periods of the COVID-19 confinement. A mixed follow-up study was used, which evaluates the same cohort cross-sectionally but with a longitudinal component. A sample of 460 nursing students of the Nursing Degree at the University of Lorca (Murcia) and University of Almería (Spain) completed an online anxiety level questionnaire using the Spielberger State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI) during the first and fourth weeks of the COVID-19 confinement. Total anxiety levels increased in the fourth week, as compared to the first week (first week: 50.4 ± 20.8 and fourth week: 59.9 ± 10.6 (p < 0.001)). The linear regression model showed that the significant predictors for STAI anxiety in nursing students were being in the last year of the degree program, being female, and spending confinement in a house without a garden. In general, most nursing students were emotionally affected by high levels of anxiety of state-trait during the COVID-19 outbreak.

Ultra-thin and continuous metallic silver films are attracting growing interest due to the applications in flexible transparent conducting electrodes. The surface morphology and structure of silver film are very important for its electrical resistivity and optical loss. Therefore, roughness control is essential for the production of ultra-thin metallic electrode film. We have investigated the effect of aluminum doping on the improvement of surface morphology of ultra-thin silver films using molecular dynamics simulations. Al-doped silver films showed smaller surface roughness than pure silver films at various substrate temperatures. When the temperature of the substrate was 600 K, the roughness of Al-doped silver film first decreased, and then increased with the increase of the incident velocity of silver atoms. Silver atoms were more likely to agglomerate on the surface of the substrate after adding aluminum atoms, as aluminum dopants promoted the immobilization of silver atoms on SiO2 substrate due to the anchoring effect. The smoother surface could be attributable to the reduced mean free path of silver due to the cage effect by the aluminum dopant.

An amendment to this paper has been published and can be accessed via the original article.

This paper presents a novel single-layer dual band-rejection-filter based on Spoof Surface Plasmon Polaritons (SSPPs). The filter consists of an SSPP-based transmission line, as well as six coupled circular ring resonators (CCRRs) etched among ground planes of the center corrugated strip. These resonators are excited by electric-field of the SSPP structure. The added ground on both sides of the strip yields tighter electromagnetic fields and improves the filter performance at lower frequencies. By removing flaring ground in comparison to prevalent SSPP-based constructions, the total size of the filter is significantly decreased, and mode conversion efficiency at the transition from co-planar waveguide (CPW) to the SSPP line is increased. The proposed filter possesses tunable rejection bandwidth, wide stop bands, and a variety of different parameters to adjust the forbidden bands and the filter’s cut-off frequency. To demonstrate the filter tunability, the effect of different elements like number (n), width (WR), radius (RR) of CCRRs, and their distance to the SSPP line (yR) are surveyed. Two forbidden bands, located in the X and K bands, are 8.6–11.2 GHz and 20–21.8 GHz. As the proof-of-concept, the proposed filter was fabricated, and a good agreement between the simulation and experiment results was achieved.

Near-perfect resonant absorption is attained in a single-polarization single-mode photonic crystal fiber (SPSM PCF) within the long-wave infrared (LWIR) range from 10 to 11 μm. The basic PCF design is a triangular lattice-based cladding of circular air holes and a core region augmented with rectangular slots. A particular set of air holes surrounding the core is partially filled with SiC, which exhibits epsilon near-zero (ENZ) and epsilon negative (ENG) properties within the wavelength range of interest. By tuning the configuration to have the fields of the unwanted fundamental and all higher order modes significantly overlap with the very lossy ENG rings, while the wanted fundamental propagating mode is concentrated in the core, the SPSM outcome is realized. Moreover, a strong plasmonic resonance is attained by adjusting the radii of the resulting cylindrical core-shell structures. The cause of the resonance is carefully investigated and confirmed. The resonance wavelength is shown to finely shift, depending on the relative permittivity of any material introduced into the PCF’s air holes, e.g., by flowing a liquid or gas in them. The potential of this plasmonic-based PCF structure as a very sensitive, short length LWIR spectrometer is demonstrated with an environmental monitoring application.

Beam dumps are indispensable components for particle accelerator facilities to absorb or dispose beam kinetic energy in a safe way. However, the design of beam dumps based on conventional technology, i.e., energy deposition via beam–dense matter interaction, makes the beam dump facility complicated and large in size, partly due to the high beam intensities and energies achieved. In addition, specific methods are needed to address the radioactive hazards that these high-power beams generate. On the other hand, the European Plasma Research Accelerator with eXcellence in Application (EuPRAXIA) project can advance the laser–plasma accelerator significantly by achieving a 1–5 GeV high-quality electron beam in a compact layout. Nevertheless, beam dumps based on the conventional technique will still produce radiation hazards and make the overall footprint less compact. Here, a plasma beam dump will be implemented to absorb the kinetic energy from the EuPRAXIA beam. In doing so, the overall compactness of the EuPRAXIA layout could be further improved, and the radioactivity generated by the facility can be mitigated. In this paper, results from particle-in-cell simulations are presented for plasma beam dumps based on EuPRAXIA beam parameters.

Sensors that remotely track the displacement of a moving object have a wide range of applications from robotic control to motion capture. In this paper, we introduce a simple, small silicon integrated circuit sensor that tracks the angular displacement of an object tagged with a small light source, such as a light-emitting diode (LED). This sensor uses a new angular transduction mechanism, differential diffusion of photoelectrons generated from the light spot cast by the light tag onto a Si anode, that is described by a simple physics model using pinhole optics and carrier diffusion. Because the light spot is formed by a pinhole aperture integrated on the sensor chip, no external focusing optics are needed, reducing system complexity, size, and weight. Prototype sensors based on this model were fabricated and their basic characteristics are presented. These sensors transduce angular displacement of an LED across orthogonal latitudinal and longitudinal arcs into normalized differential photocathode currents with signal linearly proportional to LED angular position across a ± 40° field-of-view. These sensors offer potential performance and ease-of-use benefits compared to existing displacement sensor technologies.

Over the last years, polymers have gained great attention as substrate material, because of the possibility to produce low-cost sensors in a high-throughput manner or for rapid prototyping and the wide variety of polymeric materials available with different features (like transparency, flexibility, stretchability, etc.). For almost all biosensing applications, the interaction between biomolecules (for example, antibodies, proteins or enzymes) and the employed substrate surface is highly important. In order to realize an effective biomolecule immobilization on polymers, different surface activation techniques, including chemical and physical methods, exist. Among them, plasma treatment offers an easy, fast and effective activation of the surfaces by micro/nanotexturing and generating functional groups (including carboxylic acids, amines, esters, aldehydes or hydroxyl groups). Hence, here we present a systematic and comprehensive plasma activation study of various polymeric surfaces by optimizing different parameters, including power, time, substrate temperature and gas composition. Thereby, the highest immobilization efficiency along with a homogenous biomolecule distribution is achieved with a 5-min plasma treatment under a gas composition of 50% oxygen and nitrogen, at a power of 1000 W and a substrate temperature of 80 °C. These results are also confirmed by different surface characterization methods, including SEM, XPS and contact angle measurements.

Ecological stoichiometry is a powerful indicator for understanding the adaptation of plants to environment. However, understanding of stoichiometric characteristics of leaf carbon (C%), nitrogen (N%), and phosphorus (P%) for aquatic macrophytes remains limited. In this study, 707 samples from 146 sites were collected to study the variations in leaf C%, N%, and P%, and tried to explore how different environmental conditions affect leaf C, N, and P stoichiometry. Results showed that the mean values of leaf C%, N%, P%, and N:P ratios were 39.95%, 2.12%, 0.14%, and 16.60% of macrophytes across the arid zone of northwestern China, respectively. And the mean values of leaf P% were lower than those from the Tibetan Plateau and eastern China, which maybe due to an adaptation strategy of the plants to the unique conditions in the arid zone in the long-term evolutionary process. The higher N:P ratios suggested that P was established as the limiting factor of the macrophytes communities in the arid zone of northwestern China. There were significant differences in leaf C%, N%, P%, and their ratios among different life forms. Our results also showed strong relationships between leaf N% and N:P ratios and longitude, leaf N%, P%, and N:P ratios and latitude, and leaf N% and P% and altitude, respectively. In addition, the results showed that pH can significantly influence leaf C%. Our results supported the temperature-plant physiology hypothesis owing to a negative relationship between leaf N% and P% of macrophytes and mean annual temperature in the arid zone of northwestern China. The different patterns of leaf stoichiometry between the arid zone of northwestern China and eastern China indicated that there were different physiological and ecological adaptability of macrophytes to environmental gradients in different climatic zones.

In this study, the interactions between H atoms and the (100), (110), and (111) surfaces of platinum have been investigated by using the London-Eyring-Polanyi-Sato (LEPS) potential function. The adsorption zones (sites) and LEPS energy values of these sites have been determined theoretically. In addition, the potential-energy surfaces for each Pt surface have been obtained in detail. Further, the adsorption sites on the surface, scattering from the surface, diffusion paths on the surface, and transition regions to the subsurface, have been determined and the differences have been examined in detail among the surfaces. From these results, it is found that an H atom has the lowest binding energy at the hollow sites on the Pt (100) and Pt (111) surfaces and that it has the lowest binding energy at the long-bridge sites on the Pt (110) surface. It has also been determined that the hollow sites on the three surfaces are the regions through which H atoms can penetrate into the subsurface. In addition, it has also been found that, for each of the three Pt surfaces, the diffusion of an H atom across the surface may follow a bridge-hollow-bridge pathway. These results are in agreement with previous experimental and theoretical results. Besides, the adsorption and diffusion manners of hydrogen atoms on each of the Pt surfaces have been analyzed deeply.

Temple of Augustus and Rome, also referred as Monumentum Ancyranum (Ankara Temple), is located near Haci Bayram Mosque in Ulus, Ankara. The temple which was built on behalf of Phrygian God ‘Men’ in 2nd century BC has been destroyed. The temple whose remains are present, on the other hand, was built for Roman Emperor ‘Augustus’ (Gaius Octavius) in 25 BC in the name of a commitment sign by King Pilamenes, the son of King Amintos, of Galatia. The positions of the 4 columns in the doorways and 2 columns in the rear sides are recognizable. Currently, only the sidewalls and ornamented door part are remaining. The original testament of Augustus in Temple of Rome, which is written in Latin and Greek and is telling the achievements of Augustus, is imitated in the mosque that is neighboring the wall of Monumentum Ancyranum. Some parts of the patina are spilled because of the climatic parameters (wind, heat, precipitation, and frost). As a result of the petrographic analysis made on the spilled parts of patina, it is concluded that the temple, which has a great importance in the world history, has to be restorated. As a result of the analyses (scanning electron microscope (SEM) analysis, EDS, and X-ray diffraction (XRD) analysis), inner and outer sides of Naos are being constructed without mortar. In the parts, which are broken from the main body, calcium carbonate (CaCO3) and magnesium carbonate (MgCO3) are detected. Besides, it is observed that the main body of the temple is mainly consisting of calcium mineral. If this temple will be restored in the future, it is important to watch out for the calcium mineral property of the building.

Katı atıkların yönetimi, günümüzde gelişmiş toplumların en büyük sorunlarından biri haline gelmiştir. Yeşil bina konseptiyle birlikte atik malzemelerin geri dönüştürülerek yeniden kullanılması önem kazanmıştır. Sürdürülebilir hayatta inşaat yıkıntı atıklarının çevreye verdiği zarar geri kazanılmış agreganın kullanılmasını zorunlu kılmaktadır. Bu çalışmada, yaşı 7 gün ve sınıfı C30 olan beton atıklarından elde edilen iri ve ince agreganın geri dönüşüm agregası olarak betonda kullanım olanakları araştırılmıştır. Kırma agrega 0-4 ve 4-22.4 boyutlarında iki grup olarak kullanılmıştır. Kırma agrega grupları % 0, 10, 20, 30, 40, 50 ve 100 oranların da ağırlıkça azaltılarak yerine geri dönüşüm agregası ikame edilmiştir. Beton örneklerinin 28 ve 90 günlük basınç dayanımları, 28 günlük elastisite modülleri belirlenmiştir. Elde edilen deney sonuçlarına göre; geri dönüşüm agregasının beton üretiminde kullanılabileceği ve sürdürülebilir beton üretimine ışık tutacağı görülmüştür.

Epinephrine plays an integral role in the treatment of several life treating diseases. It can be administered at different doses and through different routes of administration. Nebulized L-epinephrine has been described as a safe treatment method. There is a significant difference in doses between nebulization and parenteral administration of epinephrine. Medication errors can result in death due to the use of high-dose epinephrine with parenteral administration. Here we report a child patient who was accidentally exposed to an approximately 30-fold higher dose of intravenous epinephrine. However, the patient did not develop permanent damage. Medication errors are common in pediatric inpatients, and efforts to reduce them are needed.

Aim: This study aims to evaluate the general characteristics of patients with acute carbon monoxide poisoning in childhood.Materials and Methods: Medical reports of 240 patients with carbon monoxide poisoning who were admitted to the Pediatric Emergency Department between January 2005 and 2013 (mean age, 82.5±56 months; 115 boys, 125 girls) were retrospectively analyzed. Demographic features of patients, sources of exposure, clinical signs, blood carboxyhemoglobin levels, laboratory findings, and treatment methods were evaluated.Results: Approximately half of the poisonings were observed in winter (December and January). Among the sources of exposure to carbon monoxide gas, the stove was found to be the most common source. Majority of patients suffered from fainting and headaches, whereas 16% of patients had no active complaints. The average of the initial blood carboxyhemoglobin level was 14.9±10%, and 14.2% of patients had a level of >25%. All patients underwent normobaric oxygen therapy, and 21.7% of them underwent hyperbaric oxygen treatment.Conclusion: Unexpected deaths because of carbon monoxide poisoning gradually increase, particularly in winter. Carbon monoxide poisoning should be considered in the patients presenting with suspicious findings, particularly in winter. Blood carboxyhemoglobin levels are useful for diagnosis.

Katı atıkların yönetimi, günümüzde gelişmiş toplumların en büyük sorunlarından biri haline gelmiştir. Yeşil bina konseptiyle birlikte atik malzemelerin geri dönüştürülerek yeniden kullanılması önem kazanmıştır. Sürdürülebilir hayatta inşaat yıkıntı atıklarının çevreye verdiği zarar geri kazanılmış agreganın kullanılmasını zorunlu kılmaktadır.Bu çalışmada, yaşı 7 gün ve sınıfı C30 olan beton atıklarından elde edilen iri ve ince agreganın geri dönüşüm agregası olarak betonda kullanım olanakları araştırılmıştır. Kırma agrega 0-4 ve 4-22.4 boyutlarında iki grup olarak kullanılmıştır. Kırma agrega grupları % 0, 10, 20, 30, 40, 50 ve 100 oranların da ağırlıkça azaltılarak yerine geri dönüşüm agregası ikame edilmiştir. Beton örneklerinin 28 ve 90 günlük basınç dayanımları, 28 günlük elastisite modülleri belirlenmiştir.Elde edilen deney sonuçlarına göre; geri dönüşüm agregasının beton üretiminde kullanılabileceği ve sürdürülebilir beton üretimine ışık tutacağı görülmüştür.Anahtar Kelimeler: Yeşil bina, Sürdürülebilir beton, Atık beton, Geri dönüşüm agregası, Basınç dayanımı

This paper presents a novel approach to attain a single-polarization-single-mode (SPSM) photonic crystal fiber (PCF) in the terahertz (THz) regime. An initial circular hole PCF design is modified by introducing asymmetry in the first ring of six air holes in the cladding, i.e., epsilon-near-zero (ENZ) material is introduced into only four of those air holes and the other two remain air-filled but have different diameters. The resulting fundamental X-polarized (XP) and Y-polarized (YP) modes have distinctly different electric field distributions. The asymmetry is arranged so that the YP mode has a much larger amount of the field distributed in the ENZ material than the XP mode. Since the ENZ material is very lossy, the YP mode suffers a much higher loss than the XP mode. Consequently, after a short propagation distance, the loss difference (LD) between the XP and YP modes will be large enough that only the XP mode still realistically exists in the PCF. To further enhance the outcome, gain material is introduced into the core area to increase the LDs between the wanted XP mode and any unwanted higher order (HO) modes, as well as to compensate for the XP mode loss without affecting the LD between the XP and YP modes. The optimized PCF exhibits LDs between the desired XP mode and all other modes greater than 8.0 dB/cm across a wide frequency range of 0.312 THz. Consequently, the reported PCF only needs a length of 2.5 cm to attain an SPSM result, with the unwanted modes being more than 20 dB smaller than the wanted mode over the entire operational band.

Background: Fabry disease (FD) is a rare X-linked inherited lysosomal storage disorder caused by α-galactosidase A deficiency leading to intracellular glycosphingolipid accumulation. FD manifestation is multisystem, and can differ depending on disease-related genetic variants. Currently, more than 700 different FD-causing mutations have been identified in the human GLA gene. We identified a novel mutation in a Lithuanian family with classical manifestations of Fabry disease, revealing severe effects to the cardiovascular systems of heterozygous women. Case presentation: A 49-year-old woman underwent echocardiography due to progressive dyspnea that lasted seven years, reduced physical activity, and periodic cardiac arrhythmia. Echocardiography revealed left ventricular hypertrophy with normal diastolic function. The patient had experienced acroparesthesia in her upper limbs and abdominal pain since childhood, and in the last decade had experienced mild proteinuria without renal failure. Her renal biopsy was typical for Fabry disease. The patient’s brain magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) (T2 flair) showed white matter hyperintensities lesions. DNA sequencing of the proband, her mother and one of her sons showed a novel GLA gene exon 2 mutation, c.270C>G (p.Cys90Trp). All three patients had decreased α-galactosidase A activity and specific FD manifestations. Conclusions: A novel GLA mutation, c.270C>G (p.Cys90Trp), was found in a Lithuanian family with a classical form of Fabry disease in heterozygous women with predominant cardiac involvement. However, the exact manifestation of this mutation is still unclear as it is newly reported and further research must be done.

In this paper, the basic structure and design parameters of an oil-immersed air core coupling reactor were given according to the interruption requirement of the 160 kV mechanical direct current circuit breaker, and a field-circuit coupled finite element model was established based on the ANSOFT simulation platform. The prototype test results verified the correctness of the simulation calculation method. The coupling reactor design was optimized to minimize the total volume, taking equal height and heat flux design parameters as the optimization object, and the influence of the insulation distance between the oil tank and encapsulations on the secondary current of the coupling reactor were analyzed. Meanwhile, a combined optimization method about the reactor body and oil tank was proposed, and the optimization contour surface was plotted, which described the relationship between the total volume of the coupling reactor and structure parameters of the reactor body and oil tank. According to the optimization design results, the total volume was only 89% compared with the initial design parameters, and the correctness was verified by the simulation results.