Based on the polarization and shape of the first symmetric Lamb mode at the zero-group velocity point (S1-ZGV), a novel approach for Impact-Echo thickness testing is proposed. In this new approach all three plate parameters (thickness, velocity and Poisson's ratio) are estimated from the same wave mode (S1-ZGV). A traditional approach based on a measurement of the longitudinal-and Rayleigh wave ve

The adsorption of pyridine on monolayers of well-ordered, flat-lying iron phthalocyanine molecules on Au(111) is investigated by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, X-ray absorption spectroscopy, and density functional theory. It is found that pyridine both coordinates to the iron site of iron phthalocyanine and binds weakly to other sites. The iron coordination causes significant changes in the ele

Calmodulin is an essential regulator of intracellular processes in response to extracellular stimuli mediated by a rise in Ca(2+) ion concentration. To profile protein-protein interactions of calmodulin in human brain, we probed a high content human protein array with fluorophore-labelled calmodulin in the presence of Ca(2+). This protein array contains 37,200 redundant proteins, incorporating ove

As the physical consequences of accidental falls in the elderly are well-researched, the long-term associations between falls and quality of life and related concepts are less known. The aim of this study was to prospectively examine the long-term relations between falls and health-related quality of life (HRQoL) and life satisfaction (LS) over six years in the general elderly population. One thou

Objective To determine whether muscle strength, proprioceptive accuracy, and laxity are associated with self-reported knee instability in a large cohort of knee osteoarthritis (OA) patients, and to investigate whether muscle strength may compensate for impairment in proprioceptive accuracy or laxity, in order to maintain knee stability. Methods. Data from 283 knee OA patients from the Amsterdam Os

We study the rotational properties of a dipolar Bose-Einstein condensate confined in a quasi-two-dimensional anisotropic trap for an arbitrary orientation of the dipoles with respect to their plane of motion. Within the mean-field approximation, we find that the lowest-energy state of the system depends strongly on the relative strength between the dipolar and the contact interactions, as well as

A Driver Assistance System for Continuous Support continuously evaluates the status of the host vehicle as well as the surrounding traffic based on information from on-board sensors. When the system detects a hazard, it issues a warning to the driver, depending on the degree of the hazard. The effects of this system on driver behaviour and acceptance were evaluated in a field trial carried out in

Patients treated with clopidogrel who have higher body size exhibit greater platelet reactivity than patients with lower body size. In a retrospective analysis of the FEATHER trial, we examined the relationship between platelet response to thienopyridines clopidogrel 75mg (Clop-75), prasugrel 5mg (Pras-5), and prasugrel 10mg (Pras-10) using 3 body size indices: body weight (BW), body mass index (B

Visceral leishmaniasis (VL) is a potentially fatal vector-borne zoonotic disease, which has become an increasing public health problem in the north-western part of Iran. This work presents an environmental health modelling approach to map the potential of VL outbreaks in this part of the country. Radial basis functional link networks is used as a data-driven method for predictive mapping of VL in

Data concerning the importance of family history of venous thromboembolism (VTE) for the risk of recurrent VTE are sparse. The aim of this nationwide study was to determine whether family history of VTE is a risk factor for recurrent hospitalization for unprovoked VTE (deep venous thrombosis of the lower extremities or pulmonary embolism).

HAMLET (Human Alpha-lactalbumin Made LEthal to Tumor cells) kills tumor cells broadly suggesting that conserved survival pathways are perturbed. We now identify nucleotide-binding proteins as HAMLET binding partners, accounting for about 35% of all HAMLET targets in a protein microarray comprising 8000 human proteins. Target kinases were present in all branches of the Kinome tree, including 26 tyr

Laser-ablated Th atoms react with BF3 during condensation in excess argon at 6 K to form the first actinide borylene (FB=ThF2) and actinide-boron multiple bond. Three new product absorptions in the B-F and Th-F stretching regions of matrix infrared spectra are assigned to FB=ThF2 from comparison to theoretically predicted vibrational frequencies.

Levodopa is the mainstay of Parkinson''s disease (PD) treatment, but is often eventually associated with disabling motor complications in patients with advanced PD. The inability of perorally administered levodopa to provide more physiologic continuous dopaminergic stimulation (CDS) is a leading hypothesis to explain these complications. To investigate the cumulative efficacy and safety, and re-ev

The tendency of bacteria to assemble at oil-water interfaces can be utilized to create microbial recognition sites on the surface of polymer beads. In this work, two different groups of bacteria were first treated with acryloyl-functionalized chitosan and then used to stabilize an oil-in-water emulsion composed of cross-linking monomers that were dispersed in aqueous buffer. Polymerization of the

In the past, ABO incompatibility was considered an absolute contraindication to heart transplantation (HT) in adults. Advances in ABO-incompatible HT in pediatric patients and ABO-incompatible abdominal transplantation in adult patients have led to clinical exploration of intentional ABO-incompatible HT in adults. However, it is not well known how outcomes in ABO-incompatible adult heart transplan