Das geheimnisvolle schiff. Die fahrt der "Libau" zur irischen revolution.

Mode of access: Internet.

MOLECULAR CHARACTERIZATION OF INFLUENZA B VIRUS OUTBREAK ON A CRUISE SHIP IN BRAZIL 2012

In February 2012, an outbreak of respiratory illness occurred on the cruise ship MSC Armonia in Brazil. A 31-year-old female crew member was hospitalized with respiratory failure and subsequently died. To study the etiology of the respiratory illness, tissue taken at necropsy from the deceased woman and respiratory specimens from thirteen passengers and crew members with respiratory symptoms were analyzed. Influenza real-time RT-PCR assays were performed, and the full-length hemagglutinin (HA) gene of influenza-positive samples was sequenced. Influenza B virus was detected in samples from seven of the individuals, suggesting that it was the cause of this respiratory illness outbreak. The sequence analysis of the HA gene indicated that the virus was closely related to the B/Brisbane/60/2008-like virus, Victoria lineage, a virus contained in the 2011-12 influenza vaccine for the Southern Hemisphere. Since the recommended composition of the influenza vaccine for use during the 2013 season changed, an intensive surveillance of viruses circulating worldwide is crucial. Molecular analysis is an important tool to characterize the pathogen responsible for an outbreak such as this. In addition, laboratory disease surveillance contributes to the control measures for vaccine-preventable influenza.

Genetic algorithm for shipping route estimation with long-range tracking data : automatic reconstruction of shipping routes based on the historical ship positions for maritime safety applications

Ship tracking systems allow Maritime Organizations that are concerned with the Safety at Sea to obtain information on the current location and route of merchant vessels. Thanks to Space technology in recent years the geographical coverage of the ship tracking platforms has increased significantly, from radar based near-shore traffic monitoring towards a worldwide picture of the maritime traffic situation. The long-range tracking systems currently in operations allow the storage of ship position data over many years: a valuable source of knowledge about the shipping routes between different ocean regions. The outcome of this Master project is a software prototype for the estimation of the most operated shipping route between any two geographical locations. The analysis is based on the historical ship positions acquired with long-range tracking systems. The proposed approach makes use of a Genetic Algorithm applied on a training set of relevant ship positions extracted from the long-term storage tracking database of the European Maritime Safety Agency (EMSA). The analysis of some representative shipping routes is presented and the quality of the results and their operational applications are assessed by a Maritime Safety expert.

Farthest north; being the record of a voyage of exploration of the ship "Fram" 1893-96, and of a fifteen months' sleigh journey by Dr. Nansen and Lieut. Johansen,

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Indirect immunofluorescence test in new world Leishmaniasis: serological and clinical relation-ship

The indirect immunofluorescence test (IF) for anti-Leishmania antibodies (IgC and IgM) was performed with sera form the following groups of individuals: 214 cutaneous leishmaniasis patients, 28 healthy subjects with positive Montenegro's skin test (MST), 29 healthy subjects with negativeMST and 16 visceral leishmaniasis patients. The first four groups came from a suburban area of Rio de Janeiro (Jacarepaguá) where cutaneous leishmaniasis caused by Leishmania braziliensis braziliensis is endemic. It was observed that IF-IgM titers were significantly higher amongst the cutaneous leishmaniasis patients with less than four months of disease as compared to those with longer periods and that IF-IgG titers were significantly higher in patients with multiple lesions as compared to those with single lesions. The visceral leishmaniasis patients had IF-IgG titers significantly higher than those from cutaneous leishmaniasis patients. A group of 28 individuals selected amongst the 214 cutaneous leishmaniasis patients had their IF-titers (IgG and IgM) compared to those of the two control groups of healthy subjects from the endemic area, respectively with positive and negative MST. Significantly higher titers of IF-IgG and IF-IgM were found in the group with active disease. The same group of patients showed IF-IgG titers significantly lower at the end of the antimonial therapy than those observed during this tratment.

Molecular and isotopic characterization of organic samples from the wreck of the Saint-Etienne merchant ship (XVIIIth century): Identification of pitch, fat, hair and sulfur

The wreck U Pezzo, excavated within the Saint Florent Gulf in northern Corsica was identified as the pink, Saint Etienne, a merchant ship which sank on January 31, 1769. In order to determine the composition of organic materials used to coat the hull or to waterproof different parts of the pink, a study of several samples, using molecular biomarker and carbon isotopic analysis, was initiated. The results revealed that the remarkable yellow coat, covering the outside planks of the ship's bottom under the water line, is composed of sulfur, tallow (of ox and not of cetacean origin) and black pitch which corresponds to a mixture called ``couroi'' or ``stuff'. Onboard ropes had been submitted to a tarring treatment with pitch. Hairs mixed with pitch were identified in samples collected between the two layers of the hull or under the sheathing planking. The study also provides a key model for weathering of pitch, as different degrees of degradation were found between the surface and the heart of several samples. Accordingly, molecular parameters for alteration were proposed. Furthermore novel mixed esters between terpenic and diterpenic alcohols and the free major fatty acids (C(14:0), C(16:0), C(18:0)) were detected in the yellow coat. (C) 2009 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

2012 Iowa Small Hospital Improvement Program (SHIP) Briefing and Survey Report, January 22, 2013

In August of 2012 the Iowa State Office of Rural Health (SORH) conducted a survey to determine the value of the Small Rural Hospital Improvement Program (SHIP) in Iowa. This survey was distributed to the 84 participating hospitals however, because some hospitals network their SHIP funds we only asked the contract administrators of the contracts to complete the survey. 58 of the 78 SHIP contract administrators completed the survey (74%). Background: SHIP brings in roughly $750,000.00 annually to Iowa to assist small Iowa hospitals. Average distribution of approximately $7,500 per hospital. Seventy three of ninety nine Iowa counties are represented.

Ship Leases under IAS 17, case Fortum Shipping

International accounting standards will be applied from the1st of January 2005 in accounting of member states of the EU with a view of harmonizing the accounting practices in Europe, and on the long term even more widely. The purpose of adopting IAS accounting standards is to make the financial statements and financial information received from companies more comparable and more transparent for investors and other interest groups. IAS 17 introduces the treatment of a lease agreement in the light of the new accounting standards. Finnish companies have used finance leases widely as an alternative, off-balance sheet form of financing capital investments consistently with Finnish GAAP. Along with the appliance of IAS 17 the off-balance-sheet financing possibility of leases classified as finance leases will no longer exist. IAS 17 states that finance leases are going to be recognized in the balance sheet as both assets, in form of fixed assets, and loans in liabilities classified as long and short term loans. IAS 17 will make two major changes to the income statement. Firstly, the lease payments formerly treated as variable costs are moved below the operating profit level to finance costs. Secondly, the depreciations from the leased assets are also introduced. The effects to the case company's, Fortum Shipping's, income statement and balance sheet are remarkable. Along with the appliance of IAS Fortum Shipping's net assets are somewhat going to be doubled, the amount of liabilities increases significantly and the earnings before interests and taxes increases moderately. The preceding factors have a big effect on the case company's financial key figures. So, the IAS originated effects on balance sheet and income statement have essential impacts on a company's key financial indicators. Most significant changes can be found in key ratios measuring profitability, capital structure, and efficiency. This means that when comparing the IAS calculated profits of companies with the profits calculated prior with Finnish GAAP, the analysis should be made with prudence because the figures are not comparable on straight-forward basis.

Pintataistelualusten kehittämisen haasteet 2000-luvun alussa : Yhdysvaltojen laivaston Littoral Combat Ship- ja hävittäjähankkeiden laivatekniikka

Tässä diplomityössä tutkittiin Yhdysvaltojen laivaston DDG-1000-hävittäjä- ja Littoral Combat Ship (LCS) -hankkeissa kehitettävien pintataistelualusten laivateknisten ratkaisujen vaikutusta alusten ominaisuuksiin. Tutkimuksen painopiste oli laivatekniikassa, mutta tarkastelu kiinnitettiin käynnissä oleviin hankkeisiin. Aineiston keräämisen menetelmänä käytettiin kirjallisuustutkimusta. Aineisto analysoitiin aineistolähtöisesti, ja laivatekniikan analysoinnin mallina käytettiin laivan konseptisuunnittelun keskeisiä osa-alueita. Laivatekniikkaa analysoitiin vertailemalla aiempien ja uusien alusten teknisiä ratkaisuja. Tutkimusraportti laadittiin soveltamalla prosessikirjoittamista. DDG-1000- ja LCS-hankkeiden vaatimukset perustuivat varsin tarkasti määriteltyihin tehtäviin osana rannikkomerioperointia. Uusilla hankintatavoilla ei kyetty hallitsemaan hankkeiden kustannuksia. DDG-1000-hankkeen kustannusten kasvu vaikutti johtuvan toimittajien välisen kilpailun puuttumisen lisäksi lukuisista uusista teknisistä järjestelmistä ja LCS-hankkeessa nopean hankintatavan aiheuttamista tekijöistä. DDG-1000-hankkeessa päädyttiin vain kolmen aluksen hankintaan ja vanhemman DDG-51-hävittäjän tuotannon uudelleen aloittamiseen. Toistaiseksi LCS-hankkeen 55 aluksen tavoitteessa ei ole tapahtunut muutoksia. LCS-1:n runkoratkaisu on puoliliukuva teräsrunko ja LCS-2:n alumiininen trimaraanirunko. Suuresta nopeudesta johtuen LCS:ien koneistotehot ovat samaa suuruusluokkaan kuin hävittäjillä, tosin LCS-2:n kulkuvastus on pienempi kuin LCS-1:n suurella nopeudella. Hitaammilla nopeuksilla LCS:ien runkojen ja vesisuihkupropulsion hyötysuhteet arvioitiin heikommiksi kuin uppoumarunkoisella fregatilla. LCS:issä on suuret modulaarisesta taistelujärjestelmästä ja alusten ulkopuolella operoitavista järjestelmistä johtuvat lasti- ja kansitilat. LCS-2:n runkoratkaisu on erittäin vakaa. Nopeat alukset ovat herkkiä painon muutoksille. Painavamman LCS-1:n kantavuus arvioitiin alhaiseksi. LCS-2:n painoa on hallittu kevyellä rakenteella. Sen osalta epävarmuutta on aiheuttanut poikittaisten aaltokuormien kantokyky. LCS:ien taistelunkestävyys on kyseenalaistettu. DDG-1000:n sisäänpäin kallistetuilla kyljillä varustettu runkoratkaisu perustui häivevaatimuksiin. Aluksen suureen kokoon on vaikuttanut keinunnanvaimennustankkien ja kokonaan sähköisen koneiston soveltaminen. Poikkeava runkomuoto ja suuri koko ovat mahdollistaneet uudenlaisen yleisjärjestelyn suunnittelun. Sähköisellä koneistolla on päästy pienempään kaasuturbiinien lukumäärään sekä joustavaan koneistojen käyttöprofiiliin. Runkomuodon vauriovakavuus, riski alavirtausperän paineiskuihin ja epävarmuus dynaamisesta vakavuudesta suuressa aallokossa ovat aiheuttaneet epäilyksiä aluksen merikelpoisuudesta. Suhteellisen alhaisen tehon perusteella aluksen kulkuvastusominaisuudet vaikuttivat hyviltä. Sekä LCS että DDG-1000 ovat tehtäviin optimoinnista johtuen eräänlaisia erikoisaluksia, jotka eivät sellaisenaan sovi yleiskäyttöisten pintataistelualusten esikuviksi. Yleisesti ottaen tutkimuksen aikana syntyi näkemys, jonka mukaan taistelualuksen tehtävät tulisi määritellä riittävän väljästi, ja siten varmistaa, että alus on hyvä, mutta ei välttämättä paras, koko elinjaksonsa ajan.

Model-Based Tracking Initialization in Ship Building Environment

An augmented reality (AR) device must know observer’s location and orientation, i.e. observer’s pose, to be able to correctly register the virtual content to observer’s view. One possible way to determine and continuously follow-up the pose is model-based visual tracking. It supposes that a 3D model of the surroundings is known and that there is a video camera that is fixed to the device. The pose is tracked by comparing the video camera image to the model. Each new pose estimate is usually based on the previous estimate. However, the first estimate must be found out without a prior estimate, i.e. the tracking must be initialized, which in practice means that some model features must be identified from the image and matched to model features. This is known in literature as model-to-image registration problem or simultaneous pose and correspondence problem. This report reviews visual tracking initialization methods that are suitable for visual tracking in ship building environment when the ship CAD model is available. The environment is complex, which makes the initialization non-trivial. The report has been done as part of MARIN project.

The Straits of Seniavine : Behring Straits by the U.S. Ship Vincennes

Kartta kuuluu A. E. Nordenskiöldin kokoelmaan

St. Lawrence Bay showing Lutke's Harbor by the U.S. Ship Vincennes : lieutenant John Rodgers September 1855

Kartta kuuluu A. E. Nordenskiöldin kokoelmaan