What roles do team climate, roster control, and work life conflict play in shiftworkers’ fatigue longitudinally?

The study aimed to examine shiftworkers fatigue and the longitudinal relationships that impact on fatigue such as team climate, work life conflict, control of shifts and shift type in shift working nurses. We used a quantitative survey methodology and analysed data with a moderated hierarchical multiple regression. After matching across two time periods 18 months apart, the sample consisted of 166 nurses from one Australian hospital. Of these nurses, 61 worked two rotating day shifts (morning & afternoon/evening) and 105 were rotating shiftworkers who worked three shifts (morning afternoon/evening and nights). The findings suggest that control over shift scheduling can have significant effects on fatigue for both two-shift and three-shift workers. A significant negative relationship between positive team climate and fatigue was moderated by shift type. At both Time 1 and Time 2, work life conflict was the strongest predictor of concurrent fatigue, but over time it was not.

Case-control study on risk factors of esophageal cancer

Objective: To explore the influencing factors of esophageal cancer in the trunk basin of Dawen river , Shandong province. Methods: A case- control study was carried out: 195 living cases of diagnosed esophageal cancer and 195 controls were matched by age and sex and surveyed by a unified inventory. Results: T he following items could rises the risk of esophageal cancer : hard dry diet, smoke homemade cigarettes, alcohol consumption> 500 ml/ day, relatives with tumor in history ( OR = 51850, OR = 161 158, OR = 111 513, OR = 11 827, respectively ) . While drinking tea may have protective effect against esophageal cancer ( OR = 01 311). Conclusion: The high incidence of esophageal cancer in the area is relative not only to the environment and dietary factors, but also to the family history of esophageal cancer.

Quality demand in vaccination and how to improve service quality under Total Quality Control [论全面质量管理模式下预防接种工作的质量要求与改进对策]

Under the concept of Total Quality Control, based on their experience, the authors discussed potential demand for quality of immunization services and possible solutions to these demands. Abstract in Chinese 全面质量管理(total quality control,TQC)是在20世纪60年代由美国人V,Feigonbaum和J.unan先后提出的新的质量管理观念,众所周知的ISO9000族标准即建立在TQC理念下的质量管理标准,该标准已成为当今世界全球一致、最具权威的质量管理和质量保证的国际规则[1-2].21世纪是质量世纪,推行TQC,不断改进产品和服务质量,目前已成为我国各行各业在不断激烈的市场竞争下完善自我、保证生存和发展的重要手段.实施预防接种是预防和控制传染病,保护人群健康的重要措施,预防接种工作中,产品即预防接种服务,需方(顾客)为接受预防接种服务的广大人群,是产品的消费者.随社会的迅速发展,人们对健康需求的不断提高,对预防接种工作也提出了更高的质量要求.本文对TQC模式下顾客对预防接种服务的质量要求进行了综合分析,并对如何改进服务质量进行了初步探讨.

Modelling of ellipsoidal nanowires : control and application

The properties of ellipsoidal nanowires are yet to be examined. They have likely applications in sensing, solar cells, microelectronics and cloaking devices. Little is known of the qualities that ellipse nanowires exhibit as we vary the aspect ratio with different dielectric materials and how varying these attributes affects plasmon coupling and propagation. It is known that the distance a plasmon can travel is further if it is supported by a thicker circular nanowire, while thinner nanowires are expected to be able to increase QD coupling. Ellipsoidal nanowires may be a good compromise due to their ability to have both thin and thick dimensions. Furthermore it has been shown that the plasmon resonances along the main axis of an ellipsoidal particle is governed by the relative aspect ratio of the ellipsoid, which may lead to further control of the plasmon. Research was done by the use of COMSOL Multiphysics by looking at the fundamental plasmon mode supported by an ellipsoidal nanowire and then studying this mode for various geometrical parameters, materials and illumination wavelength. Accordingly it was found that ellipsoidal nanowires exhibit a minimum for the wavenumber and a maximum for the propagation distance at roughly the same dimensions - Highlighting that there is an aspect ratio for which there is poor coupling but low loss. Here we investigate these and related attributes.

Exenatide extended-release; clinical trials, patient preference, and economic considerations

Type 2 diabetes remains an escalating world-wide problem, despite a range of treatments. The revelation that insulin secretion is under the control of a gut hormone, glucagon-like peptide 1 (GLP-1) led to a new paradigm in the management of type 2 diabetes, medicines that directly stimulate, or that prolong the actions of the endogenous GLP-1, at its receptors. Exenatide is an agonist at the GLP-1 receptors, and was initially developed as a subcutaneous twice daily medication, ExBID. The clinical trials with ExBID established a role for exenatide in the treatment of type 2 diabetes. Subsequently, once weekly exenatide (ExQW) was shown to have advantages over ExBID, and there is now more emphasis on the development of ExQW. ExQW alone reduces glycosylated haemoglobin (HbA1c) and body weight, and is well tolerated. ExQW has been compared to sitagliptin, pioglitazone and metformin, and shown to have a greater ability to reduce HbA1c than these other medicines. The only preparation of insulin, which ExQW has been compared to, is insulin glargine, and the ExQW has some favourable properties in this comparison, notably causing weight loss, compared to the gain with insulin glargine. ExQW has been compared to another GLP-1 receptor agonist, liraglutide, and ExQW is non-inferior to liraglutide in reducing HbA1c. The small amount of evidence available, shows that subjects with type 2 diabetes, prefer ExQW to ExBID, and that adherence was high to these in the clinical trial setting. Healthcare and economic modelling suggests that ExQW will reduce diabetic complications and be cost-effective, compared to other medications, with long term use. Little is known about whether subjects with type 2 diabetes prefer ExQW to other medicines, and whether adherence is good to ExQW in practice, and these important topics require further study.

Design of physiological control and magnetic levitation systems for a total artificial heart

Total Artificial Hearts are mechanical pumps which can be used to replace the failing natural heart. This novel study developed a means of controlling a new design of pump to reproduce physiological flow bringing closer the realisation of a practical artificial heart. Using a mathematical model of the device, an optimisation algorithm was used to determine the best configuration for the magnetic levitation system of the pump. The prototype device was constructed and tested in a mock circulation loop. A physiological controller was designed to replicate the Frank-Starling like balancing behaviour of the natural heart. The device and controller provided sufficient support for a human patient while also demonstrating good response to various physiological conditions and events. This novel work brings the design of a practical artificial heart closer to realisation.

The RNA world in plants: Post-transcriptional control III

Post-transcriptional control of gene expression has gone from a curiosity involving a few special genes to a highly diverse and widespread set of processes that is truly pervasive in plant gene expression. Thus, Plant Cell readers interested in almost any aspect of plant gene expression in response to any environmental influence, or in development, are advised to read on. In May 2001, what has become the de facto third biennial Symposium on Post-Transcriptional Control of Gene Expression in Plants was held in Ames, Iowa. The meeting was hosted by the new Plant Sciences Institute of Iowa State University with additional funding from the National Science Foundation and the United States Department of Agriculture. In 1997, the annual University of California-Riverside Plant Physiology Symposium was devoted to this topic. This provided a wake-up call to the plant world, summarized in this journal (Gallie and Bailey-Serres, 1997), that not all gene expression is controlled at the level of transcription. This was expanded upon at a European Molecular Biology Organization Workshop in Leysin, Switzerland, in 1999 (Bailey-Serres et al., 1999). The 3-day meeting in Ames brought together a strong and diverse contingent of plant biologists from four continents. The participants represented an unusually heterogeneous group of disciplines ranging from virology to stress response to computational biology. The research approaches and techniques represented were similarly diverse. Here we discuss a sample of the many fascinating aspects of post-transcriptional control that were presented at this meeting; we apologize to those whose work is not described here.

The use of artificial MicroRNA technology to control gene expression in Arabidopsis thaliana

In plants, double-stranded RNA (dsRNA) is an effective trigger of RNA silencing, and several classes of endogenous small RNA (sRNA), processed from dsRNA substrates by DICER-like (DCL) endonucleases, are essential in controlling gene expression. One such sRNA class, the microRNAs (miRNAs) control the expression of closely related genes to regulate all aspects of plant development, including the determination of leaf shape, leaf polarity, flowering time, and floral identity. A single miRNA sRNA silencing signal is processed from a long precursor transcript of nonprotein-coding RNA, termed the primary miRNA (pri-miRNA). A region of the pri-miRNA is partially self-complementary allowing the transcript to fold back onto itself to form a stem-loop structure of imperfectly dsRNA. Artificial miRNA (amiRNA) technology uses endogenous pri-miRNAs, in which the miRNA and miRNA*(passenger strand of the miRNA duplex) sequences have been replaced with corresponding amiRNA/ amiRNA*sequences that direct highly efficient RNA silencing of the targeted gene. Here, we describe the rules for amiRNA design, as well as outline the PCR and bacterial cloning procedures involved in the construction of an amiRNA plant expression vector to control target gene expression in Arabidopsis thaliana. © 2014 Springer Science+Business Media New York.

Intensive versus conventional glycaemic control for treating diabetic foot ulcers (Protocol)

This is the protocol for a review and there is no abstract. The objectives are as follows: To assess the effects of intensive glycaemic control compared to conventional control on the outcome of foot ulcers in patients with type 1 and type 2 diabetes.

The power of hands-on exercises in SCADA cyber security education

For decades Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition (SCADA) and Industrial Control Systems (ICS) have used computers to monitor and control physical processes in many critical industries, including electricity generation, gas pipelines, water distribution, waste treatment, communications and transportation. Increasingly these systems are interconnected with corporate networks via the Internet, making them vulnerable and exposed to the same risks as those experiencing cyber-attacks on a conventional network. Very often SCADA networks services are viewed as a specialty subject, more relevant to engineers than standard IT personnel. Educators from two Australian universities have recognised these cultural issues and highlighted the gap between specialists with SCADA systems engineering skills and the specialists in network security with IT background. This paper describes a learning approach designed to help students to bridge this gap, gain theoretical knowledge of SCADA systems' vulnerabilities to cyber-attacks via experiential learning and acquire practical skills through actively participating in hands-on exercises.

Appetite, satiety, and food reward in obese individuals : a behavioral phenotype approach

Why do some people remain lean while others are susceptible to obesity, and why do obese individuals vary in their successes in losing weight? Despite physiological processes that promote satiety and satiation, some individuals are more susceptible to overeating. While the phenomena of susceptibility to weight gain, resistance to treatment or weight loss, and individual variability are not novel, they have yet to be exploited and systematically examined to better understand how to characterise phenotypes of obesity. The identification and characterisation of distinct phenotypes not only highlight the heterogeneous nature of obesity but may also help to inform the development of more tailored strategies for the treatment and prevention of obesity. This review examines the evidence for different susceptible phenotypes of obesity that are characterised by risk factors associated with the hedonic and homeostatic systems of appetite control.

Array of subarrays using adaptive element patterns

This paper explores the use of subarrays as array elements. Benefits of such a concept include improved gain in any direction without significantly increasing the overall size of the array and enhanced pattern control. The architecture for an array of subarrays will be discussed via a systems approach. Individual system designs are explored in further details and proof of principle is illustrated through a manufactured examples.

Locally weighted learning model predictive control for nonlinear and time varying dynamics

This paper proposes an online learning control system that uses the strategy of Model Predictive Control (MPC) in a model based locally weighted learning framework. The new approach, named Locally Weighted Learning Model Predictive Control (LWL-MPC), is proposed as a solution to learn to control robotic systems with nonlinear and time varying dynamics. This paper demonstrates the capability of LWL-MPC to perform online learning while controlling the joint trajectories of a low cost, three degree of freedom elastic joint robot. The learning performance is investigated in both an initial learning phase, and when the system dynamics change due to a heavy object added to the tool point. The experiment on the real elastic joint robot is presented and LWL-MPC is shown to successfully learn to control the system with and without the object. The results highlight the capability of the learning control system to accommodate the lack of mechanical consistency and linearity in a low cost robot arm.

A coordinated voltage control approach for coordination of OLTC, voltage regulator and DG to regulate voltage in a distribution feeder

Integration of small-scale electricity generators, known as Distributed Generation (DG), into the distribution networks has become increasingly popular at the present. This tendency together with the falling price of synchronous-type generator has potential to give the DG a better chance in participating in the voltage regulation process together with other devices already available in the system. The voltage control issue turns out to be a very challenging problem for the distribution engineers since existing control coordination schemes would need to be reconsidered to take into account the DG operation. In this paper, we propose a control coordination technique, which is able to utilize the ability of the DG as a voltage regulator, and at the same time minimizes interaction with other active devices, such as On-load Tap Changing Transformer (OLTC) and voltage regulator. The technique has been developed based on the concept of control zone, Line Drop Compensation (LDC), as well as the choice of controller's parameters. Simulations carried out on an Australian system show that the technique is suitable and flexible for any system with multiple regulating devices including DG.