With an increase in the number of internet users and the need to secure internet traffic, the IPv4 protocol has been replaced by a more secure protocol, namely IPv6. The IPv6 protocol does not allow ...intermediate routers to fragment the on-going packets. Moreover, due to IP tunneling, some extra headers are added to the IPv6 packet, exceeding the packet size, resulting in increased packet drops due to lower path mtu. One probable solution is to use Path MTU Discovery (PMTUD) to know the path mtu using ICMP packets. Due to dependency on ICMP error messages, this method faces security and failure issues. In this paper, we propose a Dynamic MTU (DMTU) scheme, which tries to handle the packet drops in IPv6 network, by dynamically adjusting the MTU of each link depending upon the incoming packet size, thereby reducing the number of packet drops by a significant amount. Unlike PMTUD, the algorithm works on intermediate node level which is further optimised by assigning specific phases for validation and then, for processing. The method has ability to work in standalone and in parallel with PMTUD. Using mathematical and graphical analysis, our scheme proves to be much more efficient than the state-of-the-art PMTUD scheme.
Au nanoclusters (Au NCs) with a unique size effect on the antibacterial performance provide a promising nanoprobe for developing an efficient nanomedicine. However, little progress has been made ...owing to the low quantum yield and poor stability of Au NCs. In this work, protamine (Prot) functionalized Au NCs (Prot/MTU-Au NCs) with high stability were achieved through a simple mixing with 6-methyl-2-thiouracil-capped Au NCs (MTU-Au NCs) due to the hydrogen bonding between 5-methyl-2-thiouracil (MTU) and the guanidine groups from Prot. Interestingly, a distinctly enhanced photoluminescence from Prot/MTU-Au NCs (ca. 28-fold) was observed due to the formation of rigid host–guest assemblies. We inferred that the cross-linked structure and supramolecular hydrogen bonds both contributed to the fluorescence enhancement and stability. The extra small size of the NCs and the efficient antibacterial capability from the capping shell of Prot encouraged us to probe its antibacterial performance systemically. It was found that the Prot/MTU-Au NCs with highly stable loading of positively charged antibacterial reagents were likely to penetrate into the bacteria and thus enhance the ability to kill both Gram-negative bacteria (Escherichia coli) and Gram-positive bacteria (multiple-resistant Staphylococcus aureus). The synergetic effect between the unique size and the capping layers enabled the minimal inhibitory concentration of the as-derived Prot/MTU-Au NCs reduced by ∼100-fold compared to that with individual Au nanoparticle. The antibacterial mechanism further revealed that membrane injury occurred and reactive oxygen species were generated after the incubation of the bacteria with Prot/MTU-Au NCs. Moreover, the highly luminescent fluorescence and positive surface charge of Prot/MTU-Au NCs could image the bacteria easily, which held great potential for imaging-guided antibacterial platform.
In-band network telemetry (INT) allows for fine-grained network monitoring, without requiring communication with the controller at each hop. Existing INT-based network-wide telemetry systems achieve ...low-overhead monitoring with non-overlapping path planning algorithms. However, these systems do not constrain the length of the generated probing paths, which will lead to packet loss when the size of the packet with collected telemetry data exceeds the MTU limit. To address this issue, we propose MTU-adaptive path segmentation algorithms step by step in this paper. Initially, we present two single-path planning algorithms: the INT-optimize algorithm, which produces a single path that covers the entire network with the lowest southbound communication overhead, and the INT-low-cost algorithm, which further accelerates the INT-optimize. Next, to consider the MTU limit, we propose the single-MTU adaptive INT-Segment algorithm to divide the single long path generated in the previous step into multiple path segments. In addition, we generalize the MTU-adaptive network telemetry problem and propose a multi-MTU adaptive INT-Segment solution to achieve high-performance network telemetry in networks with multiple MTU settings. Extensive evaluations demonstrate that our proposed MTU-adaptive solutions can achieve sub-second network-wide telemetry for large-scale networks, with less than 2.9ms to calculate the probing paths for an 18-pod FatTree. Furthermore, our multi-MTU adaptive INT-Segment solution significantly reduces the number of INT Sinks and INT Sources by 13.25%-42.39% when deployed in multi-MTU networks while maintaining stable telemetry data collection time. Compared with the state-of-the-art INT-path, our solution adapts the probing path to the network MTU limit, producing a telemetry data collection efficiency improvement of 10%-94%.
Increasing crop productivity under optimal conditions and mitigating yield losses under stressful conditions is a major challenge in contemporary agriculture. We have recently identified an effective ...anti-senescence compound (MTU, 1-(2-methoxyethyl)-3-(1,2,3-thiadiazol-5yl)urea) in
studies. Here, we show that MTU delayed both age- and stress-induced senescence of wheat plants (
L.) by enhancing the abundance of PSI supercomplex with LHCa antennae (PSI-LHCa) and promoting the cyclic electron flow (CEF) around PSI. We suppose that this rarely-observed phenomenon blocks the disintegration of photosynthetic apparatus and maintains its activity as was reflected by the faster growth rate of wheat in optimal conditions and under drought and heat stress. Our multiyear field trial analysis further shows that the treatment with 0.4 g ha
of MTU enhanced average grain yields of field-grown wheat and barley (
L.) by 5-8%. Interestingly, the analysis of gene expression and hormone profiling confirms that MTU acts without the involvement of cytokinins or other phytohormones. Moreover, MTU appears to be the only chemical reported to date to affect PSI stability and activity. Our results indicate a central role of PSI and CEF in the onset of senescence with implications in yield management at least for cereal species.
If an R.M.U. (Ring Main Unit) cubicle is installed, operated and maintained in accordance with current standards and the manufacturer’s instructions, the likelihood of internal arcing is reduced, but ...should not be completely ignored. This article outlines the experimental situations in which arcing can occur and the catastrophic effects seen if R.M.U. is not properly designed for this type of damage. This type of failure can be caused by a fault, abnormal operating conditions or a malfunction and represents a danger during its installation and to persons present. The situations in which this type of failure can occur are presented and experimentally analysed: bi-phase internal arcing in the connections compartment, three-phase internal arcing in the switching compartment, internal arcing in the fuse compartment and single-phase arcing between a phase and the switchgear enclosure.
To overcome the issues of the existing properties and the non-configurable supervisory control and data acquisition (SCADA) architecture, this paper proposes an IoT-centered open-source SCADA system ...for monitoring photovoltaic (PV) systems. The system consists of three voltage sensors and three current sensors for data accumulation from the PV panel, the battery, and the load. As a part of the system design, a relay is used that controls the load remotely. An ESP32-E microcontroller transmits the collected data to a Banana Pi M4 Berry (BPI-M4 Berry) through the Message Queuing Telemetry Transport (MQTT) protocol over a privately established communication channel using Wi-Fi. The ESP32-E is configured as the MQTT publisher and the BPI-M4 Berry serves as the MQTT broker. Locally installed on the BPI-M4 Berry, the Node-RED platform creates highly customizable dashboards as human–machine interfaces (HMIs) to achieve real-time monitoring of the PV system. The proposed system was successfully tested to collect the PV system voltage/current/power data and to control the load in a supervisory way under a laboratory setup. The complete SCADA architecture details and test results for the PV system data during the total eclipse on 8 April 2024 and another day are presented in this paper.
The objective of this study is to investigate the acute effects of static stretching (SS) on muscle hardness of the gastrocnemius medialis (MG) and gastrocnemius lateralis (LG).
Twenty young men ...participated in this study. MG and LG hardness was measured using shear wave ultrasound elastography before and after three bouts of 2-min SS. The measurement site of muscle hardness was at 30% of the lower leg length from the popliteal crease to the lateral malleolus. Similarly, the passive range of motion (ROM) of dorsiflexion, musculotendinous unit (MTU) stiffness determined by the slope of the portion of the passive torque-angle curve from 15° to 25°, and joint torque developed during isometric maximal voluntary plantarflexion at 0° of ankle joint angle were also measured before and after SS.
SS increased ROM and decreased MTU stiffness significantly but did not change joint torque. The main effects of test time and muscle group on muscle hardness were significant without a significant interaction of these variables. Both differences between the relative changes in the MG and LG hardness and between the muscle hardness ratios before and after SS were not significant. A significant correlation between the muscle hardness ratios before and after SS was found.
The results of this study suggest that three bouts of 2-min SS of the plantar flexors is useful for preventing muscle injury, improving muscle condition, and maintaining muscle strength, and that the acute effects of SS on the muscle hardness of MG and LG are of the same degree.
Smart grids are playing a key role in modern electric power grids, improving load control, assuring safer operations and collecting valuable information of the electrical conditions of the grid. In a ...smart grid, a RTU (Remote Terminal Unit) is a device that is able to measure the electric variables of the grid and sends all the information to a MTU (Master Terminal Unit), which is responsible of controlling the operations of the grid. RMU (Ring Main Unit) devices are used in electric power grids to protect loads and to disconnect them in case of failure to prevent damage. This article presents the design of a special RMU capable of measuring voltage, current and frequency, detecting electric faults, and making automatic self-healing in order to manage the flow of energy in the smart grid to guarantee energy supply to the critical loads (hospitals). The RMU devices were installed on a scaled smart grid in order to show its operation capabilities.
Highlights Substantial mechanical energy will have returned by shoe integrated and that energy could be stored in the Muscle Tendon Units. Heel spring potentially changes energy exchange in the ...triceps surae. Running Economy is related to many factors such as running style and individually properties. Ankle joint kinematics can be altered which potentially affects energy return within the musculoskeletal system. Objective: Running economy (RE) is a performance variable for distance runners. It can be affected by parameters such as equipment, running technique and surface. It has been shown that substantial mechanical energy will return by shoe integrated and that energy could be stored in the Muscle Tendon Units (MTU). The purpose was to investigate the influence of three difference heel positions induced by insoles on lower limb muscular activity and VO2 and RE (performance variable) changes during steady state running. It was hypothesized that with decreasing heel spring a linear increase in RE would be observed. Methods: Fifteen healthy trained male runners were tested on a treadmill submaximal pace while surface electromyography (EMG) from nine muscles of leg and thigh, the VO2 by spirometry and kinematics by 2D video camera was measured. Subjects had to run in three insoles Up Heel (UH) (14 mm heel spring), Flat insole/Heel (FH) and negative spring (DH) (Down Heel) (forefoot 5 mm higher). Data were analyzed with a repeated- measures ANOVA for significant differences between shoe insoles (p<0.05). Results: Ankle kinematics was systematically altered in response to the inserts (expected) by VO2 and running economy was not changed. It was shown that not all subject followed the implied changes so when looking at 10 responders a higher activity for Tibialis Anterior (TA) was shown. Conclusion: It was concluded that heel spring potentially changes energy exchange in the triceps-surae while changes in muscle coordination may compensate for these improvements. RE is related to many factors such as running style and individually properties.
Background
Nutritional issues are common in people with Human Immune Virus (HIV). At some point, almost everyone living with HIV faces challenges in maintaining good nutrition. There is insufficient ...evidence-based information on undernutrition in adults living with HIV on Highly Active Anti-Retroviral Therapy.
Objective
To assess the magnitude of undernutrition and associated factors among patients receiving Highly Active Anti-Retroviral Therapy in health facilities in the Bench Maji Zone, southwest Ethiopia in 2018.
Methods
A facility-based cross-sectional study design was employed from 1 May to 30 June 2018 on 1,007 study subjects and the participants were selected by using a consecutive sampling technique. Five health facilities were selected through a simple random sampling technique. Data were entered into Epi Data Statistical software version 3.1 and analyzed using Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) software version 21.0. Logistic regression analysis was used to identify factors associated with undernutrition in adults receiving ART. Odds ratios with 95 % confidence intervals were used to examine associations between dependent and independent variables.
Result
Of the total 1,007 study subjects, 961 participated in the study. More than half of the participants were female (61.2%), 57.2% were married and 42.9% were in the 30–39 years age group. In this study, the level of undernutrition among patients on antiretroviral therapy was 16%. Age ≥50 AOR 2.5, 95% CI (1.1–5.6), being single AOR 2.2, 95% CI (1.4–3.7), developing gastrointestinal symptoms AOR 2.6, 95% CI (1.5–4.4) and in WHO-defined clinical stages III and IV of HIV/AIDS AOR 2.8, 95% CI (1.3–6.0) were found to have a statistically significant association with undernutrition.
Conclusion
Significant numbers of people on highly active antiretroviral therapy in the study area were undernourished. This demonstrated that HIV/AIDs and its treatment directly or indirectly impacted the nutritional status of the patients, who need a critical follow-up from health workers. Age, marital status, progressing to WHO-defined clinical stage of disease, and development of gastrointestinal symptoms were identified as factors that contribute to undernutrition among patients on highly active antiretroviral therapy. The health care workers and experts working at the ART clinic should focus on patient counseling regarding the early prevention, detection, and treatment of opportunistic infections. Early health-seeking behaviors before the AIDs stage and critical follow-up are the first actions to identify undernutrition.
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