Diffusion of passive scalars under stochastic convection

The diffusion of passive scalars convected by turbulent flows is addressed here. A practical procedure to obtain stochastic velocity fields with well¿defined energy spectrum functions is also presented. Analytical results are derived, based on the use of stochastic differential equations, where the basic hypothesis involved refers to a rapidly decaying turbulence. These predictions are favorable compared with direct computer simulations of stochastic differential equations containing multiplicative space¿time correlated noise.

L 'évolution des réserves énergétiques chez les ouvrières et les sexués de la fourmi d 'Argentine (Iridomyrmex humilis) (Mayr): une stratégie en relation avec le mode de fondation

Le poids sec, le rapport corps gras/poids sec et le contenu énergétique ou dernier stade larvaire. de le nymphe et de l'adulte ont été mesurés chez les reines. Les mâles et les ouvrières de la fourmi d'Argentine, une espèce caractérisée par une fondation de type dépendant. Deux principaux résultats ont été obtenus. En ce qui concerne les reines, nous avons montré qu'il existe une accumulation du corps gras entre l'émergence et l'accouplement toutefois cette augmentation du contenu énergétique se révèle moins importante chez cette espèce que chez celles qui possèdent une fondation de type indépendant. L'intérêt adaptatif de cette différence est discuté. En ce qui concerne les ouvrières adultes, c'est au moment de l'émergence que nous avons rencontré le plus de corps gras. En vieillissant les ouvrières perdent de l'énergie. On peut penser que ces variations sont en relation avec les tâches accomplies par les ouvrières, à l'rintéheur et à l'extérieur du nid.

Physiologie des sexués femelles de fourmis (Hymenoptera; Formicidae) en relation avec le mode de fondation

A study was undertaken to determine if there was a relation between the mode of colony founding in ants and the physiology of the new queens produced, in which mature gynes of 24 ant species were examined. Gynes of species utilizing independent colony founding had a far higher relative fat content (X±SD; 54±6%)(g fat/g dry weight) than gynes of species employing dependent colony founding(19±8%). Dimorphism between queens and workers was significantly higher in species employing independent colony founding. Thus independent colony founding not only results in production of queens with a relatively higher fat content and therefore with a higher energy content per g, but also results in the production of larger queens (in comparison with worker size). Of species employing independent colony founding, 80% were monogynous, whereas only 11% of the species employing dependent colony founding were monogynous. These results are discussed with regard to the social structure and life-history of ant species.

Locking knee caused by subluxation of the posterior horn of the lateral meniscus.

The authors report a case of repetitive locking knee caused by a subluxation of the posterior horn of a normal lateral meniscus. The posterior horn was sutured to the posterior knee capsule and the athlete resumed complete sports activity 4 months after the surgery.

Lipophilicity and its relationship with passive drug permeation.

In this review, we first summarize the structure and properties of biological membranes and the routes of passive drug transfer through physiological barriers. Lipophilicity is then introduced in terms of the intermolecular interactions it encodes. Finally, lipophilicity indices from isotropic solvent systems and from anisotropic membrane-like systems are discussed for their capacity to predict passive drug permeation across biological membranes such as the intestinal epithelium, the blood-brain barrier (BBB) or the skin. The broad evidence presented here shows that beyond the predictive power of lipophilicity parameters, the various intermolecular forces they encode allow a mechanistic interpretation of passive drug permeation.

Passive immunization with neutralizing antibodies interrupts the mouse mammary tumor virus life cycle.

Mouse mammary tumor virus (MMTV) infects the host via mucosal surfaces and exploits the host immune system for systemic spread and chronic infection. We have tested a neutralizing rat monoclonal antibody specific for the retroviral envelope glycoprotein gp52 for its efficiency in preventing acute and chronic mucosal and systemic infection. The antibody completely inhibits the superantigen response and chronic viral infection following systemic or nasal infection. Surprisingly however, the antibody only partially inhibits the early infection of antigen-presenting cells in the draining lymph node. Despite this initially inefficient protection from infection, superantigen-specific B- and T-cell responses and systemic viral spread are abolished, leading to complete clearance of the retroviral infection and hence interruption of the viral life cycle. In conclusion, systemic neutralizing monoclonal antibodies can provide an efficient protection against chronic retroviral amplification and persistence.

Distal locking of femoral nails: evaluation of a new radiation-independent targeting system.

OBJECTIVES: The purpose of this study was to assess the effectiveness of a novel radiation-independent aiming device for distal locking of intramedullary nails in a human cadaver model. METHODS: A new targeting system was used in 25 intact human cadaver femora for the distal locking procedure after insertion of an intramedullary nail. The number of successful screw placements and the time needed for this locking procedure were recorded. The accuracy of the aiming process was evaluated by computed tomography. RESULTS: The duration of the distal locking process was 8.0 ± 1.8 minutes (mean ± SD; range, 4-11 minutes). None of the screw placements required fluoroscopic guidance. Computed tomography revealed high accuracy of the locking process. The incidence angle (α) of the locking screws through the distal locking holes of the nail was 86.8° ± 5.0° (mean ± SD; range, 80°-96°). Targeting failed in 1 static locking screw because of a material defect in the drilling sleeve. CONCLUSIONS: This cadaver study indicated that an aiming arm-based targeting device is highly reliable and accurate. The promising results suggest that it will help to decrease radiation exposure compared with the traditional "free-hand technique."

Smith Predictor Sliding Mode Closed-loop Glucose Controller in Type 1 Diabetes

Type 1 diabetic patients depend on external insulin delivery to keep their blood glucose within near-normal ranges. In this work, two robust closed-loop controllers for blood glucose regulation are developed to prevent the life-threatening hypoglycemia, as well as to avoid extended hyperglycemia. The proposed controllers are designed by using the sliding mode control technique in a Smith predictor structure. To improve meal disturbance rejection, a simple feedforward controller is added to inject meal-time insulin bolus. Simulations scenarios were used to test the controllers, and showed the controllers ability to maintain the glucose levels within the safe limits in the presence of errors in measurements, modeling and meal estimation

Le bon vin d’Orleans, le punays lac de Sorbone et la mode de Bretaigne: sociocentrisme lúdic i ambivalència als blasons populars del Pantagruel de Rabelais, amb mostres de versions en diferents llengües

En aquest article es presenta una selecció d’un corpus extret del Pantagruel, en el qual els personatges de Rabelais ataquen o afalaguen, grotescament i hiperbòlica, en el més pur estil pantagruèlic, les altres nacions o viles. Per a aquests epítets ètnics, Rabelais reutilitza el blasó popular (blason populaire), en una fusió total de la lloança i la injúria. En el nostre treball comprovarem si la visió sociocèntrica que el blasonador aplica al blasonat, així com el propòsit lúdic, han aconseguit ser traslladats a les versions catalana (Miquel-Àngel Sánchez Férriz, 1985), espanyola (Alicia Yllera, 2003), italiana (Mario Bonfantini, 1953) i anglesa (Burton Raffel, 1991).

Empirical mode decomposition-based face recognition system

In this work we explore the multivariate empirical mode decomposition combined with a Neural Network classifier as technique for face recognition tasks. Images are simultaneously decomposed by means of EMD and then the distance between the modes of the image and the modes of the representative image of each class is calculated using three different distance measures. Then, a neural network is trained using 10- fold cross validation in order to derive a classifier. Preliminary results (over 98 % of classification rate) are satisfactory and will justify a deep investigation on how to apply mEMD for face recognition.

EEG signal analysis via a cleaning procedure based on multivariate empirical mode decomposition

Artifacts are present in most of the electroencephalography (EEG) recordings, making it difficult to interpret or analyze the data. In this paper a cleaning procedure based on a multivariate extension of empirical mode decomposition is used to improve the quality of the data. This is achieved by applying the cleaning method to raw EEG data. Then, a synchrony measure is applied on the raw and the clean data in order to compare the improvement of the classification rate. Two classifiers are used, linear discriminant analysis and neural networks. For both cases, the classification rate is improved about 20%.