Objective Domain Boundaries Detection in New Caledonian Nickel Laterite from Spectra Using Quadrant Scan

Modelling of 3D domain boundaries using information from drill holes is a standard procedure in mineral exploration and mining. Manual logging of drill holes can be difficult to exploit as the results may not be comparable between holes due to the subjective nature of geological logging. Exploration and mining companies commonly collect geochemical or mineralogical data from diamond drill core or drill chips; however, manual interpretation of multivariate data can be slow and challenging; therefore, automation of any of the steps in the interpretation process would be valuable. Hyperspectral analysis of drill chips provides a relatively inexpensive method of collecting very detailed information rapidly and consistently. However, the challenge of such data is the high dimensionality of the data’s variables in comparison to the number of samples. Hyperspectral data is usually processed to produce mineral abundances generally involving a range of assumptions. This paper presents the results of testing a new fast and objective methodology to identify the lithological boundaries from high dimensional hyperspectral data. This method applies a quadrant scan analysis to recurrence plots. The results, applied to nickel laterite deposits from New Caledonia, demonstrate that this method can identify transitions in the downhole data. These are interpreted as reflecting mineralogical changes that can be used as an aid in geological logging to improve boundary detection.

A Plausible Proposition of CCL20-Related Mechanism in Fusobacterium nucleatum-Associated Oral Carcinogenesis

Objective: The objective of this prospective observational case–control study is to evaluate the prevalence of Fusobacterium nucleatum in the tissues of oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC). Reconnoitering the CCL20-related mechanism of carcinogenesis in Fusobacterium nucleatum-positive OSCC is another objective. Methodology: Tissues from 50 OSCC patients and 30 healthy oral tissues were collected. The prevalence of Fusobacterium nucleatum was evaluated in both tumour and healthy tissue by polymerase chain reaction. The immunohistochemistry of OSCC tissues was conducted to evaluate the difference in the expression of CCL20 between Fusobacterium nucleatum-positive and -negative OSCC tissues. Results: Fusobacterium nucleatum was significantly (p < 0.001) prevalent in OSCC tissues (74%), compared to healthy tissues (26%). No association of Fusobacterium nucleatum or CCL20 immuno-expression with any clinical or histopathological features of OSCC was observed. While the intensity of CCL20 immuno-expression did not differ (p = 0.053), the CCL20-positive cell population was significantly different (p = 0.034) between Fusobacterium nucleatum-positive and -negative OSCC. Conclusion: Fusobacterium nucleatum is possibly prevalent in oral cancer tissues in the Indian population. By using immunohistochemistry, this is the first study to propose that the carcinogenesis in Fusobacterium nucleatum-positive OSCC may be CCL20-related. The findings enrich the knowledge of mechanisms involved in Fusobacterium nucleatum-mediated oral carcinogenesis.

Reputational Risk for financial institutions: a proposal of quantitative approach

The reputation of an institution refers to its public image in terms of competence, integrity and trustworthiness, which results from the awareness of its stakeholders. The related risk, i.e. “Reputational Risk”, is defined as the current or prospective risk of a decline in profits or capital resulting from a negative perception of the financial institution image by clients, counterparties, shareholders, investors or supervisory authorities. In this scenario, the reputation and the assessment of the associated risk component represent a decisive factor for ensuring long-lasting profitability. In recent years, the importance of managing and monitoring Reputational Risk is growing in importance with supervisory authorities, but nevertheless, there are no specific guidelines yet that the institutions can follow. The lack of a precise orientation means that the risk component is still considered discretionary, subjective and highly prone to interpretation. Considering that in the economic literature there is not a universally accepted approach, the aim of the paper is to provide a quantitative and objective methodology, a Quantitative Model, to assess the Reputational Risk in order to overcome the limits of a qualitative approach, by using exclusively numerical and objective analysis drivers, and to meet the increasing attention of the supervisory authorities on the issue. The Quantitative Model structure allows firms to study and to monitor the phenomenon from a managerial point of view. This approach provides financial institutions, in particular the Risk Management Department, a model to evaluate the reputational risk arising from economic magnitudes that characterise the business model of the financial institution. This means that the quantitative Model enables financial institutions to steering possible negative situations and promptly intervening with any corrective measures or actions deemed appropriate.

Understanding bikeability: a methodology to assess urban networks

A fully separated bicycle network from vehicular traffic is not realistic even for the most bicycle-friendly cities. Thus, all around the world urban cycling entails switching between streets of different safety, convenience, and comfort levels. As a consequence, the quality of bicycle networks should be evaluated not based on one but multiple factors and by considering the different user preferences regarding these factors. More comprehensive methodologies to assess urban bicycle networks are essential to the operation and planning of modern city transportation. This work proposes a multi-objective methodology to assess—what we refer to as—bikeability between origin–destination locations and over the entire network, useful for evaluation and planning of bicycle networks. We do so by introducing the concept of bikeability curves which allows us to assess the quality of cycling in a city network with respect to the heterogeneity of user preferences. The application of the proposed methodology is demonstrated on two cities with different bike cultures: Amsterdam and Melbourne. Our results suggest the effectiveness of bikeability curves in describing the characteristic features and differences in the two networks.

A Study on Smart Healthcare Monitoring Using IoT Based on Blockchain

Background/Motivation. Recently, a lot of interest in health is increasing due to the technology of the 4th industrial revolution. In particular, personal medical information through intelligent self-diagnosis is emerging as very important. However, such personal medical information causes many problems in security and reliability. Problem/Issues. Personal medical information accidents may occur on the server, but most of all, they occur more often in information sharing and data transmission. Therefore, in this paper, blockchain technology is applied to improve the reliability of such personal information management. Research Objective/Methodology. For intelligent healthcare incorporating blockchain technology, this study utilized the blockchain-based Internet of Things. In addition, information was accumulated using a number of measurement sensors to analyze individual ECG information. The measured biosignals were monitored for personalized diagnosis by analyzing the fused threshold. Result. In this paper, we implemented a monitoring system using measurement sensors to analyze individual biometric information. The implemented system information has improved reliability and security by incorporating blockchain technology.

Iterated local search multi-objective methodology for the green vehicle routing problem considering workload equity with a private fleet and a common carrier

A multi-objective methodology was proposed for solving the green vehicle routing problem with a private fleet and common carrier considering workload equity. The iterated local search metaheuristic, which is adapted to the solution of the problem with three objectives, was proposed as a solution method. A solution algorithm was divided into three stages. In the first, initial solutions were identified based on the savings heuristic. The second and third act together using the random variable neighbourhood search algorithm, which allows performing an intensification process and perturbance processes, giving the possibility of exploring new regions in the search space, which are proposed within the framework of optimizing the three objectives. According to the previous review of the state of the art, there is little related literature; through discussions with the productive sector, this problem is frequent due to increases in demand in certain seasons or a part of the maintenance vehicle fleet departing from service. The proposed methodology was verified using case studies from the literature, which were adapted to the problem of three objectives, obtaining consistent solutions. Where cases were not reported in the literature, these could be used as a reference in future research.

The relationship of language and spatial identity in historical geography research: a review of (multi)disciplinary approaches

Language use and spatial identity research are topics of interest in linguistics, geography, anthropology, ethnology, sociology, psychology, and philosophy. Accordingly, there are numerous related terms that originated in one discipline but are also used in other disciplines, making them multi-disciplinary. Research on terminology in the field of language use has shown great diversity (linguistic geography, areal or spatial linguistics, linguistic geography, the geography of language, geolinguistics). The paper analyzes and defines the aforementioned concepts, their connection with individual disciplines, and discusses individual terminological shortcomings. The aim of this paper is to review the field of research regarding the use of language and spatial identity in a broader sense, and especially the position of and approaches to research within historical geography. The paper analyzes a sample of 124 articles (published mainly in Croatian and English) according to author(s), research objective, methodology, and period of publication. Based on this, three characteristic periods during which research developed and changed have been distinguished.

Consensus based framework for digital mobility monitoring

ABSTRACTDigital mobility assessment using wearable sensor systems has the potential to capture walking performance in a patient’s natural environment. It enables the monitoring of health status and disease progression and outcome evaluation of interventions in real-world situations. In contrast to laboratory settings, real-world walking occurs in non-conventional environments and under unconstrained and uncontrolled conditions. Despite the general understanding, there is a lack of agreed definitions about what constitutes real-world walking, impeding the comparison and interpretation of the acquired data across systems and studies. Hence, there is a need for a terminological framework for the guidance of further algorithmic implementation of digital measures for gait assessment. We used an objective methodology based on an adapted Delphi process to obtain consensus on specific terminology related to real-world walking by asking a diverse panel of clinical, scientific, and industrial stakeholders. Six constituents (‘real-world’, ‘walking’, ‘purposeful’, ‘walking bout’, ‘walking speed’, ‘turning’) have successfully been defined in two feedback rounds. The identification of a consented set of real-world walking definitions has important implications for the development of assessment and analysis protocols, as well as for the reporting and comparison of digital mobility outcomes across studies and systems. The definitions will serve as a common framework for implementing digital and mobile technologies for gait assessment.