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Depending on the maximum amplitude of externally applied cyclic electric fields, ferroelectric ceramics show minor or major hysteresis. The materials also show asymmetric butterfly hysteresis in a prepoled material. Aiming at capturing these behaviour in a phenomenological constitutive model, a multi-surface modelling approach for ferroelectrics is introduced. In this paper, with the note on the m

Nonparametric efficiency analysis has become a widely applied technique to support industrial benchmarking as well as a variety of incentive-based regulation policies. In practice such exercises are often plagued by incomplete knowledge about the correct specifications of inputs and outputs. Simar and Wilson (Commun Stat Simul Comput 30(1):159–184, 2001) and Schubert and Simar (J Prod Anal 36(1):5

We have previously shown analytically that the biologically effective dose (BED), including effects of repair during irradiation and of incomplete repair between fractions, can be formulated using a convolution between the absorbed dose rate function and the function describing repair. In this work, a discrete formalism is derived along with its implementation via the fast Fourier transform. The i

We have attached quaternary ammonium (QA) groups to poly(phenylene oxide) via flexible and stable heptyl side chains by using a straightforward synthetic route involving bromoalkylation and quaternization. Membranes based on these polymers showed efficient phase separation, significantly enhanced hydroxide ion conductivity and far superior alkaline stability in relation to corresponding polymers w

Aim: The prevalence and severity of urinary incontinence (UI) increase with age and comorbidity. The benefits of pharmacotherapy for UI in the elderly are questionable. The aim of the present study was to systematically review the efficacy of pharmacological treatment for UI in the elderly and frail elderly. Methods: We searched PubMed, EMBASE, Cochrane library and Cinahl databases through October

Atopic dermatitis (AD) is a chronic inflammatory skin disease. Environmental and genetic factors, as well as microbial products from yeasts and bacteria, play a role in triggering the disease. A cohort of 619 adult patients with AD was screened for severity of AD, sensitization to Malassezia sympodialis, Candida albicans, Staphylococcus aureus enterotoxins and Dermatophagoides pteronyssinus. Serum

L-DOPA is currently the standard treatment for alleviating the motor symptoms in Parkinson's disease. The therapeutic efficacy, however, diminishes as the disease progresses. It has been suggested that the beneficial effect of L-DOPA could be reestablished by changing the mode of administration. Indeed, continuous delivery of L-DOPA has been shown to be an effective way to circumvent many of the s

Protein S has an important anticoagulant function by acting as a cofactor for activated protein C (APC). We recently reported that the EGF1 domain residue Asp95 is critical for APC cofactor function. In the present study, we examined whether additional interaction sites within the Gla domain of protein S might contribute to its APC cofactor function. We examined 4 residues, composing the previousl

Simultaneous saccharification and fermentation (SSF) is an interesting option for ethanol production from lignocellulosic materials. To meet desired overall yields during ethanol production from lignocellulosic materials, it is important to use both hexoses and pentoses. This can be achieved by co-fermentation of sugars in SSF, so called SSCF (simultaneous saccharification and co-fermentation), us

We present the observed offsets of short-duration gamma-ray bursts (SGRBs) from their putative host galaxies and compare them with the expected distributions of merging compact object binaries, given the observed properties of the hosts. We find that for all but one burst in our sample the offsets are consistent with this model. For the case of bursts with massive elliptical host galaxies, the cir

The majority of women diagnosed with lymph node-negative breast cancer are unnecessarily treated with damaging chemotherapeutics following surgical resection. This highlights the importance of understanding and more accurately predicting patient prognosis. Here, we define the transcriptional networks regulating well-established prognostic gene expression signatures. We find that the same set of tr

Background To assess the feasibility and psychosocial impact of a hospital-based home care (HBHC) program for children with cancer. Procedure A HBHC program was carried out with 51 children (018 years) with cancer to assess its feasibility in terms of satisfaction, care preferences, safety, and cost. A controlled trial was conducted to assess children's health-related quality of life (HRQOL) using

This article is intended to provide guidelines for the minimum level of safety and operational knowledge that an MR system operator should exhibit in order to safely perform an MR procedure in a human subject in a research setting. This article represents the position of the International Society for Magnetic Resonance in Medicine (ISMRM) regarding this important topic and was developed by members

We report the development of a new database of technology services and products for analysis of biobank samples in biomedical research. BARCdb, the Biobanking Analysis Resource Catalogue (http://www.barcdb.org), is a freely available web resource, listing expertise and molecular resource capabilities of research centres and biotechnology companies. The database is designed for researchers who requ

PurposeTo investigate whether recent Swedish guidelines for Retinopathy of Prematurity (ROP) screening, that is, a gestational age (GA) at birth of <31weeks (w), are applicable in a new national cohort of prematurely born infants. MethodsSWEDROP is a national register for ROP, initiated in 2006. The present paper reports on data from the register on various aspects of screening for ROP in infants

Amorphous surface oxides of III-V semiconductors are harmful in many contexts of device development. Using low-energy electron diffraction and photoelectron spectroscopy, we demonstrate that surface oxides formed at Sn-capped GaAs(100) and InAs(100) surfaces in air are effectively removed by heating. This Sn-mediated oxide desorption procedure results in the initial well-defined Sn-stabilized (1x2

There are conflicting reports as to whether malignant peripheral nerve sheath tumor (MPNST) patients with neurofibromatosis type 1 (NF1) have worse prognosis than non-NF1 MPNST patients. Large clinical studies to address this problem are lacking due to the rareness of MPNST. We have performed meta-analyses testing the effect of NF1 status on MPNST survival based on publications from the last 50 ye