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Background: Sonographers' perceptions of ergonomic and work-related pain problems at work have so far mostly been researched in quantitative studies by questionnaires. There is a need of experience-based research to deepen the knowledge about how sonographers perceive ergonomic problems at work. Therefore, the aim of this qualitative study was to describe sonographers' perceptions of ergonomic pro

We analyze femtosecond supercontinuum generation in a distribution of thin solid plates to show that the distributed scheme inhibits processes leading to pulse breakup while allowing spectral expansion to proceed as desired. We introduce basic criteria for setting the plate thickness or initial laser intensity and the location of each plate in the laser beam path and confirm that under these condi

Surface water is vital for Swedish drinking water supply. In the past decades, a trend of increased total organic carbon (TOC) concentrations has led to higher consumption of coagulants in drinking water treatment, and has pushed the levels in the outgoing water closer to the allowed levels of TOC. Also, two occasions of cryptosporidium outbreaks in northern Sweden have stressed the importance of

Aims/hypothesis: Low birthweight (LBW) is associated with dysfunctions of adipose tissue and metabolic disease in adult life. We hypothesised that altered epigenetic and transcriptional regulation of adipose-derived stem cells (ADSCs) could play a role in programming adipose tissue dysfunction in LBW individuals. Methods: ADSCs were isolated from the subcutaneous adipose tissue of 13 normal birthw

Background: In 2014 the Swedish government assigned to The Public Health Agency of Sweden to conduct studies to evaluate optimal use of existing antibiotic agents. The aim is to optimize drug use and dosing regimens to improve the clinical efficacy. The present study was selected following a structured prioritizing process by independent experts. Methods: This phase IV study is a randomized, open-

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE—: Patient selection in clinical trials on intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH) affects overall applicability of results. We estimated eligibility for completed, ongoing, and planned clinical trials in an unselected cohort of patients with ICH. METHODS—: Large clinical ICH trials were identified using trial registration databases. Each trial’s inclusion criteria were applied to a c

This intervention briefly goes through two schemes that allocate asylum-related responsibilities between states: the Dublin mechanism within the EU and the EU-Turkey statement. By identifying their flaws, the paper suggests that although solidarity has been invoked as a response to the so-called “refugee crisis”, the way it has been conceptualised makes it part of the problem.

This paper is about line search for the generalized alternating projections (GAP) method. This method is a generalization of the von Neumann alternating projections method, where instead of performing alternating projections, relaxed projections are alternated. The method can be interpreted as an averaged iteration of a nonexpansive mapping. Therefore, a recently proposed line search method for su

Synthesis of doubly 3-O-coumarylmethyl-substituted thiodigalactosides from bis-3-O-propargyl-thiodigalactoside resulted in highly selective and high affinity galectin-3 inhibitors. Mutant studies, structural analysis, and molecular modeling revealed that the coumaryl substituents stack onto arginine side chains. One inhibitor displayed efficacy in a murine model of bleomycin-induced lung fibrosis

Synaptic dysfunction may represent an early and crucial pathophysiology in Alzheimer's disease (AD). Recent studies implicate a connection between synaptic plasticity deficits and compromised capacity of de novo protein synthesis in AD. The mRNA translational factor eukaryotic elongation factor 1A (eEF1A) is critically involved in several forms of long-lasting synaptic plasticity. By examining pos

A mean field feedback artificial neural network (ANN) algorithm is developed and explored for the set covering problem. A convenient encoding of the inequality constraints is achieved by means of a multilinear penalty function. An approximate energy minimum is obtained by iterating a set of mean field equations, in combination with annealing. The approach is numerically tested against a set of pub

A novel artificial neural network approach to constraint satisfaction problems is presented. Based on information-theoretical considerations, it differs from a conventional mean-field approach in the form of the resulting free energy. The method, implemented as an annealing algorithm, is numerically explored on a testbed of K-SAT problems. The performance shows a dramatic improvement over that of

The fusion of secretory vesicles and granules with the cell membrane prior to the release of their content into the extracellular space requires a transient increase of free Ca2+ concentration in the vicinity of the fusion site. Usually there is a short temporal delay in the onset of the actual fusion of membranes with reference to the rising free Ca2+ levels. This delay is described as a latency

A novel method is presented and explored within the framework of Potts neural networks for solving optimization problems with a non-trivial topology, with the airline crew scheduling problem as a target application. The key ingredient to handle the topological complications is a propagator defined in terms of Potts neurons. The approach is tested on artificial problems generated with two real-worl

Monte Carlo simulations and variational calculations using a Gaussian ansatz are applied to a model consisting of a flexible linear polyelectrolyte chain as well as to an intrinsically stiff chain with up to 1000 charged monomers. Addition of salt is treated implicitly through a screened Coulomb potential for the electrostatic interactions. For the flexible model the electrostatic persistence leng

A Potts feedback neural network approach for finding good solutions to resource allocation problems with a nonfixed topology is presented. As a target application, the airline crew scheduling problem is chosen. The topological complication is handled by means of a propagator defined in terms of Potts neurons. The approach is tested on artificial random problems tuned to resemble real-world conditi

Variational methods are used to calculate structural and thermodynamical properties of a titrating polyelectrolyte in a discrete representation. In the variational treatment, the Coulomb potentials are emulated by harmonic repulsive forces between all monomers; the force constants are used as variational parameters. The accuracy of the variational approach is tested against Monte Carlo data. Excel