Knowing the distribution of the materials in the blast furnace (BF) is believed to be of great interest for BF operation and process optimization. In this paper calibration samples (ferrous pellets ...and coke) and samples from LKAB’s experimental blast furnace (probe samples, excavation samples and core-drilling samples) were measured by the muon scattering tomography detector to explore the capability of using the muon scattering tomography to image the components in the blast furnace. The experimental results show that it is possible to use this technique to discriminate the ferrous pellets from the coke and it is also shown that the measured linear scattering densities (LSD) linearly correlate with the bulk densities of the measured materials. By applying the Stovall’s model a correlation among the LSD values, the bulk densities and the components of the materials in the probe samples and excavation samples was established. The theoretical analysis indicates that it is potential to use the present muon scattering tomography technique to image the components in various zones of the blast furnace.
First CMS results at 13 TeV Ronchese, P.
EPJ Web of Conferences,
01/2016, Letnik:
130
Journal Article, Conference Proceeding
Recenzirano
Odprti dostop
Measurements of b-hadron and quarkonium production cross sections provide essential information to understand QCD. This talk will show new measurements of double-differential production cross ...sections vs. transverse momentum pT and rapidity y, at center-of-mass energy √s = 13 TeV, performed by CMS experiment with data collected in 2015. Comparisons with results obtained at √s = 7 TeV will be shown.
The aim of this study was to investigate the correlation between psychological distress and taste and sense of smell dysfunctions on healthcare workers (HCW) who contracted the COVID-19 infection in ...the midst of the disease outbreak. Reports of sudden loss of taste and smell which persist even after recovery from COVID-19 infection are increasingly recognized as critical symptoms for COVID-19 infections. Therefore, we conducted a cross-sectional study on COVID-19 HCW (
N
= 104) who adhered to respond to a phone semistructured interview addressing the virus symptoms and associated psychological distress. Data were collected from June to September 2020. Findings confirm the association between experienced taste/olfactory loss and emotional distress and suggest that dysfunctions of taste and smell correlate positively with anxiety and depression. Furthermore, their psychological impact tends to persist even after the recovery from the disease, suggesting the need for appropriate psychological interventions to prevent people from developing more serious or long-lasting psychological disorders and, as far as HCW, to reduce the risk of work-related distress.
Background: The research aimed to investigate the incidence of SARS-CoV-2 breakthrough infections and their determinants in a large European cohort of more than 60,000 health workers. Methods: A ...multicentric retrospective cohort study, involving 12 European centers, was carried out within the ORCHESTRA project, collecting data up to 18 November 2021 on fully vaccinated health workers. The cumulative incidence of SARS-CoV-2 breakthrough infections was investigated with its association with occupational and social–demographic characteristics (age, sex, job title, previous SARS-CoV-2 infection, antibody titer levels, and time from the vaccination course completion). Results: Among 64,172 health workers from 12 European health centers, 797 breakthrough infections were observed (cumulative incidence of 1.2%). The primary analysis using individual data on 8 out of 12 centers showed that age and previous infection significantly modified breakthrough infection rates. In the meta-analysis of aggregated data from all centers, previous SARS-CoV-2 infection and the standardized antibody titer were inversely related to the risk of breakthrough infection (p = 0.008 and p = 0.007, respectively). Conclusion: The inverse correlation of antibody titer with the risk of breakthrough infection supports the evidence that vaccination plays a primary role in infection prevention, especially in health workers. Cellular immunity, previous clinical conditions, and vaccination timing should be further investigated.
While it is known that the degeneracy of T-cell antigen recognition is involved in many aspects of T cell-immunology, its importance in the selection of the T cell repertoire remains an aspect to be ...better investigated. Here we examined if an intrathymic degenerate T cell recognition mechanism shapes the myelin basic protein (MBP)-reactive repertoire inducing resistance to experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis (EAE) in some MHC and/or minor histocompatibility antigens (MiHAs) heterozygous F1 mice bearing the H-2
s susceptibility allele. We found a considerable degree of cross-reactivity between MBP and MiHAs encoded in various EAE resistant mouse strains: (1) MBP-specific T cells can be re-stimulated in vitro by cells expressing these MiHAs and maintain their encephalitogenic activity, and (2) lymphoid cells from parental strains that generate EAE resistant F1 hybrids can induce disease relapse when injected into EAE-susceptible hosts. The results suggest that heterozygosity, through the degeneracy of T cell antigen recognition mechanism, may provide further means to constrain the potential autoreactive repertoire.