ImageMech: From Image to Particle Spring Network for Mechanical Characterization

The emerging demand for advanced structural and biological materials calls for novel modeling tools that can rapidly yield high-fidelity estimation on materials properties in design cycles. Lattice spring model , a coarse-grained particle spring network, has gained attention in recent years for predicting the mechanical properties and giving insights into the fracture mechanism with high reproducibility and generalizability. However, to simulate the materials in sufficient detail for guaranteed numerical stability and convergence, most of the time a large number of particles are needed, greatly diminishing the potential for high-throughput computation and therewith data generation for machine learning frameworks. Here, we implement CuLSM, a GPU-accelerated compute unified device architecture C++ code realizing parallelism over the spring list instead of the commonly used spatial decomposition, which requires intermittent updates on the particle neighbor list. Along with the image-to-particle conversion tool Img2Particle, our toolkit offers a fast and flexible platform to characterize the elastic and fracture behaviors of materials, expediting the design process between additive manufacturing and computer-aided design. With the growing demand for new lightweight, adaptable, and multi-functional materials and structures, such tailored and optimized modeling platform has profound impacts, enabling faster exploration in design spaces, better quality control for 3D printing by digital twin techniques, and larger data generation pipelines for image-based generative machine learning models.

The Fekete-Szego problem by a variational method

The article is devoted to the well-known Fekete and Szego problem. The paper investigate the problem in sufficient detail using some new observations by the classical method of internal variations, developed at the Tomsk School of Complex Analysis. One particular case is considered. We carried out complete qualitative analysis of the functional-differential equation relative boundary mapping. We completely solved the problem for the real parameter.

Challenges for assessing replicability in preclinical cancer biology

We conducted the Reproducibility Project: Cancer Biology to investigate the replicability of preclinical research in cancer biology. The initial aim of the project was to repeat 193 experiments from 53 high-impact papers, using an approach in which the experimental protocols and plans for data analysis had to be peer reviewed and accepted for publication before experimental work could begin. However, the various barriers and challenges we encountered while designing and conducting the experiments meant that we were only able to repeat 50 experiments from 23 papers. Here we report these barriers and challenges. First, many original papers failed to report key descriptive and inferential statistics: the data needed to compute effect sizes and conduct power analyses was publicly accessible for just 4 of 193 experiments. Moreover, despite contacting the authors of the original papers, we were unable to obtain these data for 68% of the experiments. Second, none of the 193 experiments were described in sufficient detail in the original paper to enable us to design protocols to repeat the experiments, so we had to seek clarifications from the original authors. While authors were extremely or very helpful for 41% of experiments, they were minimally helpful for 9% of experiments, and not at all helpful (or did not respond to us) for 32% of experiments. Third, once experimental work started, 67% of the peer-reviewed protocols required modifications to complete the research and just 41% of those modifications could be implemented. Cumulatively, these three factors limited the number of experiments that could be repeated. This experience draws attention to a basic and fundamental concern about replication – it is hard to assess whether reported findings are credible.

Evaluasi Kualitas Website Mitratel dengan Pendekatan Webqual Dan Importance Performance Analysis

PT. Dayamitra Telekomunikasi or Mitratel is a subsidiary of PT Telkom Indonesia (Persero) Tbk which is engaged in providing telecommunications infrastructure. Mitratel has been in the telecommunications tower business since 2008. To date, Mitratel has managed more than 13,700 telecommunication towers spread throughout Indonesia. The choice of a website as a company's communication medium with the public is the right decision considering that the website can provide information or messages to anyone who wants that information even though they are in different parts of the world. The website built by the company can provide information related to the company's activities that are considered worthy to be known by the public. Through the website, the public can also find out the company in sufficient detail, starting from the profile, vision and mission, history, contacts, and activities carried out by the company. So far, the Mitratel website has never been evaluated, so the authors evaluate using the Webqual method and Importance Performance Analysis. The results obtained indicate that there are still many parts of the Mitratel website that must be improved.

MARKET ANALYSIS AND DETERMINATION OF STATUS CRYPT IN UKRAINE

Modern Ukraine is not an active participant in the global cryptocurrency market. The estimated factor was the volume of transactions for this type of currency, as well as the degree of infrastructure development for this currency, assessed as very specific. At the same time, according to experts in this industry, Ukraine is more likely at a development stage than an outsider in the cryptocurrency industry. We also analyzed the positive and negative aspects of working with cryptocurrency. The protocol for working with this currency is considered in sufficient detail in order to identify opportunities, shortcomings, and features of a new position in the currency sphere. Ukraine will give an explanation to the fiscal policy in this matter.

PRISMA 2020 and PRISMA-S: Common Questions on Tracking Records and the Flow Diagram

PRISMA 2020 and PRISMA-S are newly released guidelines to help systematic review teams report their reviews clearly, transparently, and with sufficient detail to enable reproducibility. PRISMA 2020, the updated version of the PRISMA (Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic reviews and Meta-Analyses) statement, is complemented by PRISMA-S, an extension to PRISMA focusing on reporting the search components of systematic reviews. Several significant changes were implemented in PRISMA 2020 and PRISMA-S when compared with the original version of PRISMA in 2009, including the recommendation to report search strategies for all databases, registries, and websites that were searched. PRISMA-S also recommends reporting the number of records identified from each information source. One of the most challenging aspects of the new guidance from both documents has been changes to the flow diagram. In this article, we review some of the common questions about using the PRISMA 2020 flow diagram and tracking records through the systematic review process.

In foro solitudo: Roman Elections and the Time of Cinna

<p>The aim of this thesis is to provide a constitutional history of the mysterious years in the 80s B.C. when L. Cornelius Cinna was re-elected to the consulship on four consecutive occasions. Further irregularities abounded in this period, raising the question of how Rome’s annual elections were conducted in this period. A large amount of the surviving literature is either biased or uninformed on such matters. As a direct result, few have attempted to interpret the role of Rome’s comitia, its voting assemblies, in this period in any sufficient detail. This survey aims to fill this lacuna. From close inspection of the scattered evidence, it may be argued that Rome’s comitia did indeed play a role in the so-called Cinnae dominatio, despite the hoarding of high magistracy by just a handful of individuals. There were laws designed to prevent this domination: men were theoretically allowed to hold the consulship once (at least within a ten-year period); continuatio was forbidden. This study sets out to investigate how Cinna’s continuatio came to be tolerated. Some scholars have attempted to explain away this irregularity as a simple product of the turbulent times. After all, electoral irregularities did indeed increase in frequency during times of existential crisis. But Cinna’s elections do not adequately harmonize with any precedent in Rome’s history. This study begins with a survey of the Roman constitution in the years leading up to the Cinnae dominatio. The years 91 to 87 were marred by almost continuous warfare in Italy and abroad. However, despite attempts at attaining the consulship by a couple of theoretically ineligible candidates, Rome’s electoral restrictions remained robustly in place. All of this changed in late 87 when Cinna marched on Rome with a large army: many political opponents were murdered or exiled; Cinna assumed the consulship soon after. The process by which he became consul has been the subject of great controversy. Although it would seem that comitia were called, the process was irregular. These irregularities would continue even after Cinna died in 84, coming to an end in the years following Sulla’s restoration of the traditional republic after 81.</p>

In foro solitudo: Roman Elections and the Time of Cinna

<p>The aim of this thesis is to provide a constitutional history of the mysterious years in the 80s B.C. when L. Cornelius Cinna was re-elected to the consulship on four consecutive occasions. Further irregularities abounded in this period, raising the question of how Rome’s annual elections were conducted in this period. A large amount of the surviving literature is either biased or uninformed on such matters. As a direct result, few have attempted to interpret the role of Rome’s comitia, its voting assemblies, in this period in any sufficient detail. This survey aims to fill this lacuna. From close inspection of the scattered evidence, it may be argued that Rome’s comitia did indeed play a role in the so-called Cinnae dominatio, despite the hoarding of high magistracy by just a handful of individuals. There were laws designed to prevent this domination: men were theoretically allowed to hold the consulship once (at least within a ten-year period); continuatio was forbidden. This study sets out to investigate how Cinna’s continuatio came to be tolerated. Some scholars have attempted to explain away this irregularity as a simple product of the turbulent times. After all, electoral irregularities did indeed increase in frequency during times of existential crisis. But Cinna’s elections do not adequately harmonize with any precedent in Rome’s history. This study begins with a survey of the Roman constitution in the years leading up to the Cinnae dominatio. The years 91 to 87 were marred by almost continuous warfare in Italy and abroad. However, despite attempts at attaining the consulship by a couple of theoretically ineligible candidates, Rome’s electoral restrictions remained robustly in place. All of this changed in late 87 when Cinna marched on Rome with a large army: many political opponents were murdered or exiled; Cinna assumed the consulship soon after. The process by which he became consul has been the subject of great controversy. Although it would seem that comitia were called, the process was irregular. These irregularities would continue even after Cinna died in 84, coming to an end in the years following Sulla’s restoration of the traditional republic after 81.</p>

Time-Consuming, but Necessary: A Wide Range of Measures Should Be Included in Welfare Assessments for Dairy Herds

Animal welfare assessments that measure welfare outcomes, including behavior and health, can be highly valid. However, the time and skill required are major barriers to their use. We explored whether feasibility of welfare outcome assessment for dairy herds may be improved by rationalizing the number of measures included. We compared two approaches: analyzing whether strong pairwise associations between measures existed, enabling the subsequent exclusion of associated measures; and identifying possible summary measures—“iceberg indicators”—of dairy herd welfare that could predict herd welfare status. A cross-sectional study of dairy herd welfare was undertaken by a single assessor on 51 English farms, in which 96 welfare outcome measures were assessed. All measures showed at least one pairwise association; percentage of lame cows showed the most (33 correlations). However, most correlations were weak–moderate, suggesting limited scope for excluding measures from protocols based on pairwise relationships. A composite measure of the largest portion of herd welfare status was then identified via Principal Component Analysis (Principal Component 1, accounting for 16.9% of variance), and linear regression revealed that 22 measures correlated with this. Of these 22, agreement statistics indicated that percentage of lame cows and qualitative descriptors of “calmness” and “happiness” best predicted Principal Component 1. However, even these correctly classified only ~50% of farms according to which quartile of the Principal Component 1 they occupied. Further research is recommended, but results suggest that welfare assessments incorporating many diverse measures remain necessary to provide sufficient detail about dairy herd welfare.

Evaluation of photography using head-mounted display technology (ICAPS) for district Trachoma surveys

Background As the prevalence of trachoma declines worldwide, it is becoming increasingly expensive and challenging to standardize graders in the field for surveys to document elimination. Photography of the tarsal conjunctiva and remote interpretation may help alleviate these challenges. The purpose of this study was to develop, and field test an Image Capture and Processing System (ICAPS) to acquire hands-free images of the tarsal conjunctiva for upload to a virtual reading center for remote grading. Methodology/Principal findings This observational study was conducted during a district-level prevalence survey for trachomatous inflammation—follicular (TF) in Chamwino, Tanzania. The ICAPS was developed using a Samsung Galaxy S8 smartphone, a Samsung Gear VR headset, a foot pedal trigger and customized software allowing for hands-free photography. After a one-day training course, three trachoma graders used the ICAPS to collect images from 1305 children ages 1–9 years, which were expert-graded remotely for comparison with field grades. In our experience, the ICAPS was successful at scanning and assigning barcodes to images, focusing on the everted eyelid with adequate examiner hand visualization, and capturing images with sufficient detail to grade TF. The percentage of children with TF by photos and by field grade was 5%. Agreement between grading of the images compared to the field grades at the child level was kappa = 0.53 (95%CI = 0.40–0.66). There were ungradable images for at least one eye in 199 children (9.1%), with more occurring in children ages 1–3 (18.5%) than older children ages 4–9 (4.2%) (χ2 = 145.3, p<0.001). Conclusions/Significance The prototype ICAPS device was robust, able to image 1305 children in a district level survey and transmit images from rural Tanzania to an online grading platform. More work is needed to improve the percentage of ungradable images and to better understand the causes of disagreement between field and photo grading.