Rapid turnaround multiplex sequencing of SARS-CoV-2: comparing tiling amplicon protocol performance

Genome sequencing is pivotal to SARS-CoV-2 surveillance, elucidating the emergence and global dissemination of acquired genetic mutations. Amplicon sequencing has proven very effective for sequencing SARS-CoV-2, but prevalent mutations disrupting primer binding sites have necessitated the revision of sequencing protocols in order to maintain performance for emerging virus lineages. We compared the performance of Oxford Nanopore Technologies (ONT) Midnight and ARTIC tiling amplicon protocols using 196 Delta lineage SARS-CoV-2 clinical specimens, and 71 mostly Omicron lineage samples with S gene target failure (SGTF), reflecting circulating lineages in the United Kingdom during December 2021. 96-plexed nanopore sequencing was used. For Delta lineage samples, ARTIC v4 recovered the greatest proportion of >=90% complete genomes (81.1%; 159/193), followed by Midnight (71.5%; 138/193) and ARTIC v3 (34.1%; 14/41). Midnight protocol however yielded higher average genome recovery (mean 98.8%) than ARTIC v4 (98.1%) and ARTIC v3 (75.4%), resulting in less ambiguous final consensus assemblies overall. Explaining these observations were ARTIC v4's superior genome recovery in low viral titre/high cycle threshold (Ct) samples and inferior performance in high titre/low Ct samples, where Midnight excelled. We evaluated Omicron sequencing performance using a revised Midnight primer mix alongside the latest ARTIC v4.1 primers, head-to-head with the existing commercially available Midnight and ARTIC v4 protocols. The revised protocols both improved considerably the recovery of Omicron genomes and exhibited similar overall performance to one another. Revised Midnight protocol recovered >=90% complete genomes for 85.9% (61/71) of Omicron samples vs. 88.7% (63/71) for ARTIC v4.1. Approximate cost per sample for Midnight (12GBP) is lower than ARTIC (16GBP) while hands-on time is considerably lower for Midnight (~7 hours) than ARTIC protocols (~9.5 hours).

ASSESSMENT METHODS

The article is devoted to the research analysis of the current patterns of development of evaluation activities. Three systemic approaches used in modern evaluation activities are considered. Their analysis and criticism is carried out. Conclusions are drawn about their effective symbiosis. Definitions of cost and price are given. An approximate method of market analysis on the example of movable property is disclosed. Each of the stages is revealed. In conclusion, it was concluded that modern valuation methods require improvement, since any valuation method gives only an approximate cost. The main problem of all evaluation methods is also formulated: irrationality of the market: sellers and buyers

Petri Net Model Of Supply Vessel Consumption As Function Of The Nature Of The Business And The State Of The Wind And Sea

The state of prices and the development of a given economy depends largely on the gas and oil industry. Every day the gas and oil industry is growing and there is a growing need for platforms. In order for the platforms to pump gas and oil from the seabed unhindered, it is necessary to supply the platform which is done by supply vessels. In this paper, with the help of Petri nets and the tool “Yasper”, the dynamic process of supply and operation of supply vessels is simulated. Simulation is depending on the wind and wave conditions and the type of work that the supply vessel performs in cooperation with the platform. Input data are: Sea state, wind state, fuel consumption, type of vessel operation, distance from the mainland and the number of daily departures of the vessels from the port. The paper presents a model with discrete events in the process of supplying the platform, starting from the port and going out to sea until the work around the platform is completed and returning to the port. The report can provide information on the usability of the vessels and the approximate cost of the supply vessels on a voyage from port to the platform and back.

Efficient verification of anticoncentrated quantum states

I present a method for estimating the fidelity F(μ, τ) between a preparable quantum state μ and a classically specified pure target state $$\tau =\left|\tau \right\rangle \left\langle \tau \right|$$ τ = τ τ , using simple quantum circuits and on-the-fly classical calculation (or lookup) of selected amplitudes of $$\left|\tau \right\rangle$$ τ . The method is sample efficient for anticoncentrated states (including many states that are hard to simulate classically), with approximate cost 4ϵ−2(1 − F)dpcoll where ϵ is the desired precision of the estimate, d is the dimension of the Hilbert space, and pcoll is the collision probability of the target distribution. This scaling is exponentially better than that of any method based on classical sampling. I also present a more sophisticated version of the method that uses any efficiently preparable and well-characterized quantum state as an importance sampler to further reduce the number of copies of μ needed. Though some challenges remain, this work takes a significant step toward scalable verification of complex states produced by quantum processors.

Floorball Injuries Presenting to a Swiss Adult Emergency Department: A Retrospective Study (2013–2019)

Background: The popularity of floorball has surged throughout Switzerland in the last 20 years. However, epidemiological studies are still scarce. Objective: To collect information on floorball-related injuries, their severity and approximate cost in adults who presented to our emergency department from 2013–2019. Moreover, to use this information to suggest possible strategies to prevent injuries. Materials and Methods: The study population includes all patients who suffered injuries related to floorball and were then seen at the University Hospital in Bern during a 7-year period. Bern University Hospital, Switzerland, has a comprehensive management system (Ecare) that was used to generate the data for this study. The data were then used to create an injury profile of all cases presented during the said period. Results: A total of 263 injures were recorded from 2013 to 2019. The most common locations for injuries were to the eyes (43.73%), followed by the lower extremities (25.48%). The mean cost per case was CHF 1191.43. However, the vast majority of admissions could be sent home (93.16%) and did not cost more than 500 CHF/case (57.41%). Of the 22 cases that cost more than CHF 2000, 10 were located around the torso and 6 affected one or both eyes. Significant differences were observed between the age groups and treatment area (p = 0.008), costs (p = 0.008), route of discharge (p = 0.023) and type of trauma (p = 0.020). Conclusion: Although floorball is still a relatively minor sport, its impact on sport-related injuries must not be underestimated. Injuries to the eyes are particularly common. In our opinion, our findings provide strong evidence that all floorball players (not only children and adolescents) should wear protective eyewear. We conclude that the Swiss Floorball Association (Swiss Unihockey) should mandate the use of protective eyewear.

Societal Digital Platforms for Sustainability: Agriculture

During the last several decades, international and national agricultural research infrastructures have rapidly expanded, bringing the outputs of agricultural research to the world’s farmers. However, despite huge investments in agricultural research, there have been few systematic efforts to create digital platforms to meet the information requirements of farmers in a changing world. We describe an interactive information system in real time to provide agricultural information to farmers. The goals were to increase yields, reduce or optimize farm inputs, inform farmers about markets and government policies, and enable digital literacy among farmers, which (in the long run) would enhance rural incomes. Farmer clubs were created at the village level to increase engagement in the program and to access information. A call-in help center enabled farmers to get information in real time. In addition, a digital platform named eKisaan delivered relevant and contextual information in the local language, mostly in the video format via mobile and cloud technologies. The platform provided information about crop management and a variety of other parameters. The combined incremental savings and incremental earnings resulted in an estimated increase of 15% in income after 18 months, totaling INR₹26,250,000 (US$365,000), followed by an additional increase of 7% in the third year. The approximate cost of the information technology program and help center was INR₹15,000,000 (US$208,000). Over time, costs can decrease by spreading fixed costs over several years, with benefits reaching more farmers. Thus, the digital systems focused on information alone can be cost-effective, reduce inputs, increase productivity and income, and foster sustainability.

How to factor 2048 bit RSA integers in 8 hours using 20 million noisy qubits

We significantly reduce the cost of factoring integers and computing discrete logarithms in finite fields on a quantum computer by combining techniques from Shor 1994, Griffiths-Niu 1996, Zalka 2006, Fowler 2012, Ekerå-Håstad 2017, Ekerå 2017, Ekerå 2018, Gidney-Fowler 2019, Gidney 2019. We estimate the approximate cost of our construction using plausible physical assumptions for large-scale superconducting qubit platforms: a planar grid of qubits with nearest-neighbor connectivity, a characteristic physical gate error rate of 10−3, a surface code cycle time of 1 microsecond, and a reaction time of 10 microseconds. We account for factors that are normally ignored such as noise, the need to make repeated attempts, and the spacetime layout of the computation. When factoring 2048 bit RSA integers, our construction's spacetime volume is a hundredfold less than comparable estimates from earlier works (Van Meter et al. 2009, Jones et al. 2010, Fowler et al. 2012, Gheorghiu et al. 2019). In the abstract circuit model (which ignores overheads from distillation, routing, and error correction) our construction uses 3n+0.002nlg⁡n logical qubits, 0.3n3+0.0005n3lg⁡n Toffolis, and 500n2+n2lg⁡n measurement depth to factor n-bit RSA integers. We quantify the cryptographic implications of our work, both for RSA and for schemes based on the DLP in finite fields.

Justification of rockfall-and-rockslide protection screen design for open pit mines

The article discusses the general operation principle and design features of structural elements of a standard rockfill-and-rockslide protection screen. The main problems connected with operation of such structure and their causes are described. The recommendations on aspects to focus on during the analysis of a situation and selection of a proper solution are given. The list of initial data required for calculating the screen design variables and approximate cost at the project design stage is presented. By way of illustration, it is proposed to analyze the engineering protection systems manufactured by Geobrugg AG, Switzerland. The main advantages of these products include: – strength higher than the conventional analogs have; – design capable to uniformly distribute load; – approval by large-scale trials in association with independent institutions. Rockfall-and-rockslide protection screens are widely applied, including protection of benches and pit walls. The screens can be constructed and installed on the fly, need no constant attendance, are inexpensive and, above all, ensure safety and efficiency of mining. Adherence to the recommendations during planning of screen construction activities, namely, acquisition of specific information and engineering approach to the screen design and material can greatly enhance reliability of the structure and to extend its operating life.

Why should the automated guided vehicles’ batteries be used in the manufacturing plants as an energy storage?

This paper examines to what extent automated guided vehicles’ (AGV) batteries can be used as a mobile electrical energy storage to increase energy flexibility and reduce peak loads in manufacturing plants. First, it is indicated, what demand response and peak shaving in manufacturing mean. Then, existing battery applications for peak shaving are presented. Finally, the benefits and potential of using AGVs as energy storage to reduce peak loads in the company are illustrated, after an approximate cost calculation for peak shaving of a company with AGV batteries are performed in a use case scenario considering AGV availability during manufacturing. The results of the approximate cost calculation show that it can be beneficial for companies to use AGV batteries as an energy storage in manufacturing plants to reduce their peak loads.

From the First Satellite to Human Space Flights: the Space Project in the System of the Khrushchev Economy (Second Half of the 1950s – First Half of the 1960s)

The development of the space industry became one of the priority areas of Soviet science and engineering in the second half of the 20th century. At the same time, the question of the cost of the Soviet space program remains open. The lack of direct data led to various kinds of speculation. The article analyzes the approximate cost of the Soviet space project in the first decade of its existence based on the declassified documents from the former archive of the Politburo of the Central Committee of the CPSU. The article shows from which budget items the Soviet space program was financed. The author demonstrates that the financing of the Soviet space program was organized not as an annual budget expenditure, but as expenses for the implementation of individual programs. Every year, the budget of the USSR was adjusted depending on the volume of work performed. In addition to direct financing, the necessary material and technical resources were allocated for the space projects. An approximate calculation shows that the USSR spent about 20.19 billion rubles in old prices in 1955–1960 and 98.8 million rubles in new prices in 1961–1964. In total, during in the first space decade, the USSR spent about 2 billion rubles in new prices and almost 20 billion rubles in old ones. Comparing with other items of expenditure during the same years, the author shows that the total expenditure on Soviet space program did not exceed 0.30%.