Construction of a Corpus of Rhetorical Devices in Slogans and Structural Analysis of Antitheses

An advertising slogan is a sentence that expresses a product or a work of art in a straightforward manner and is used for advertising and publicity. Moving the consumer's mind and attracting their interest can significantly influence sales. Although rhetorical techniques in a slogan are known to improve the effectiveness of advertising, not much attention has been devoted to analyze or automatically generate sentences with the techniques. Therefore, we constructed a large corpus of slogans and revealed the linguistic characteristics of the basic statistics and rhetorical devices. Another point of focus was antitheses, of which the usage rates are relatively high and which have a specific sentence structure and lexical constraints. The generation of a slogan that contains an antithesis necessitates the structure of sentences, known as templates, to be extracted and also requires knowledge of word pairs with semantic contrast. Thus, the next step involved analysis of the structure to extract the sentence structure and lexical knowledge about the antithesis. Despite its simple architecture, the proposed method exceeds the prediction accuracy and efficiency of a comparable method. Lexical knowledge that is not available in existing dictionaries was also extracted.

Transradial Embolization, an Underused Type of Uterine Artery Embolization Approach: A Systematic Review

Background and Objectives: The most utilized approach for the embolization of uterine arteries is the transfemoral path. However, the transradial approach (TRA) has been gaining popularity among cardiologic interventions in the last years but only few studies have shown its applicability in uterine myoma treatment. The objective of this paper is to assess the feasibility, safety and efficacy of TRA when compared with the transbrachial, transulnar or transfemoral approach (TFA) for uterine arteries embolization (UAE). Materials and methods: A systematic review of the literature that analyzes the TRA for UAE it was carried out, in order to assess its safety and effectiveness. It was systematically searched the literature (Google Scholar, PubMed/MEDLINE, Cochrane Library and Embase) using the words “uterine artery embolization”/“uterine embolization” and “transradial”/“radial”. All the relevant papers published until March 2020 were retrieved and analyzed. Results: Ten studies were considered eligible for this topic. TRA is a comparable method with TFA for uterine artery embolization. Conclusions: These studies allowed us to conclude that TRA is as safe and efficient as TFA. Its advantages include few complications, shorter hospitalization period, and rapid mobilization but a steeper learning curve has the disadvantage of a longer learning curve compared to TFA. Yet, these findings are built on few reports and more research is needed.

Abstract 17201: TEG R-time as a Comparable Method to aPTT and Heparin Levels in Pediatric Patients on Heparin Therapy

Introduction: Hemorrhage post cardiac surgery continues to be a common morbidity despite the advancement in technology in coagulation diagnostics. Although, activated partial thromboplastin time (aPTT) and FXa function (heparin levels) are commonly used methods, there is often discrepancy in results between the methods. Hypothesis: In this study, we analyzed the use of Thromboelastography (TEG) reaction-time (R-time) as an additional diagnostic method for comparison to help guide blood product management. Methods: In a retrospective study of pediatric patients (N=292) who were given heparin, TEG R-time results along with aPTT and heparin levels were collected from the electronic patient records after the approval from our institution review board. Comparisons were made between the three methods using Pearson r correlations. Correlations between the three methods and bleeding events was also analyzed. Results: There were positive moderate correlations between R-time ≥15 min vs. aPTT ≥50s ( r =0.51), R-time ≥15min, vs. heparin levels ≥0.1 IU/ml ( r =0.54); and aPTT ≥50s vs. heparin levels ≥0.1 IU/ml ( r =0.55). When R-time was ≥15min, 74% of the patients had aPTT ≥50s ( p <0.001) and 81% of the patients had heparin levels ≥0.1 IU/ml ( p <0.001). When aPTT was ≥50s, 78% of the patients had heparin levels ≥0.1 IU/ml ( p <0.001). However, no correlation was found between bleeding events vs. R-time ≥15min, aPTT ≥50s and heparin levels ≥0.1 IU/ml. Conclusions: Correlation between TEG R-time versus aPTT or heparin levels was comparable to the correlation between aPTT versus heparin levels. In conclusion, TEG R-time could be used as an additional diagnostic method to help guide blood product management.

Feedback Diagram Application for the Generation and Solution of Linear Differential Equations Solvable by Quadrature

A novel method for generating and providing quadrature solutions to families of linear, second-order, ordinary differential equations is presented in this paper. It is based upon a comparison of control system feedback diagrams—one representing the system and equation under study and a second equalized to it and providing solutions. The resulting Riccati equation connection between them is utilized to generate and solve groups of equations parameterized by arbitrary functions and constants. This method also leads to a formal solution mechanism for all second-order linear differential equations involving an infinite series of integrals of each equation’s Schwarzian derivative. The practicality of this mechanism is strongly dependent on the series rates of and allowed regions for convergence. The feedback diagram method developed is shown to be equivalent to a comparable method based on the differential equation’s normal form and another relying upon the grouping of terms for a reduction of the equation order, but augmenting their results. Applications are also made to the Helmholtz equation.

Benchmarking the PEPOP methods for mimicking discontinuous epitopes

Background Computational methods provide approaches to identify epitopes in protein Ags to help characterizing potential biomarkers identified by high-throughput genomic or proteomic experiments. PEPOP version 1.0 was developed as an antigenic or immunogenic peptide prediction tool. We have now improved this tool by implementing 32 new methods (PEPOP version 2.0) to guide the choice of peptides that mimic discontinuous epitopes and thus potentially able to replace the cognate protein Ag in its interaction with an Ab. In the present work, we describe these new methods and the benchmarking of their performances. Results Benchmarking was carried out by comparing the peptides predicted by the different methods and the corresponding epitopes determined by X-ray crystallography in a dataset of 75 Ag-Ab complexes. The Sensitivity (Se) and Positive Predictive Value (PPV) parameters were used to assess the performance of these methods. The results were compared to that of peptides obtained either by chance or by using the SUPERFICIAL tool, the only available comparable method. Conclusion The PEPOP methods were more efficient than, or as much as chance, and 33 of the 34 PEPOP methods performed better than SUPERFICIAL. Overall, “optimized” methods (tools that use the traveling salesman problem approach to design peptides) can predict peptides that best match true epitopes in most cases.

In situ construction of the BiOCl/Bi2Ti2O7 heterojunction with enhanced visible-light photocatalytic activity

Herein, a BiOCl/Bi2Ti2O7 heterojunction was prepared as an efficient visible light-driven photocatalyst through an in situ hydrothermal method, and its photocatalytic properties were investigated via a comparable method.

Ultrasound for kidney access in percutaneous nephrolithotomy: a contemporary review

Nowadays percutaneous nephrolithotomy (PCNL) is the standard of care for renal staghorn calculus or large (>20 mm) pelvic or caliceal stones, as well as for the failure of other treatment options. This review aims to evaluate the contemporary use of ultrasound imaging in PCNL, by comparing it to conventional fluoroscopy, reviewing data regarding the complication and success rate of nephrostomy tract creation and stone free rate (SFR), as well as data concerning the learning curve for these procedures and cost indicators. The evidence acquired shows that the ultrasound guided access (USGA) is a comparable method with the classic fluoroscopic guided access (FGA), with a similar safety profile, with a significant reduction in radiation exposure, up to radiation free complete PCNL. USGA PCNL seems to lead to decreased bleeding and need for transfusion, especially when the Doppler mode is used, and also to a slightly higher SFR than conventional FGA PCNL. USGA PCNL reduces the overall costs of the procedure by about 30% and can be safely learnt and performed by urologists. For an experienced endourologist, familiar withFGA PCNL, the learning curve for shifting to USGA PCNL is of approximately 20 procedures.

Benchmarking the PEPOP methods for mimicking discontinuous epitopes

Computational methods provide approaches to identify epitopes in protein antigens to help characterizing potential biomarkers identified by high-throughput genomic or proteomic experiments. PEPOP version 1.0 was developed as an antigenic or immunogenic peptide prediction tool. We have now improved this tool by implementing 32 new methods (PEPOP version 2.0) to guide the choice of peptides that mimic discontinuous epitopes and thus potentially able to replace the cognate protein antigen in its interaction with an antibody. In the present work, we describe these new methods and the benchmarking of their performances.Benchmarking was carried out by comparing the peptides predicted by the different methods and the corresponding epitopes determined by X-ray crystallography in a dataset of 75 antigen-antibody complexes. The Sensitivity (Se) and Positive Predictive Value (PPV) parameters were used to assess the performance of these methods. The results were compared to that of peptides obtained either by chance or by using the SUPERFICIAL tool, the only available comparable method.The PEPOP methods were more efficient than, or as much as chance, and 33 of the 34 PEPOP methods performed better than SUPERFICIAL. Overall, “optimized” methods (tools that use the traveling salesman problem approach to design peptides) can predict peptides that best match true epitopes in most cases.