This paper proposes a framework to automate the generation of traceable and protected documentation of complex assembly processes. The final assembly in aviation, automotive, and appliances ...industries is a rigorous process that has limited capabilities of full traceability associated with: (1) the parts installed, (2) their fabrication processes, and (3) the assembly work. This is also the case for each of its sub-assemblies. The thousands of parts forming a hierarchy of sub-assemblies that are dynamically accumulated to compose the final assembly make full traceability a challenging feat that is almost unsurmountable. Such full traceability along the entire supply chain requires considerable cost and effort since it must be based on documentation of most assembled parts, assembly tasks, and inspection tasks that compose the full assembled product. In addition, security measures are needed to prevent hostile hacking and unauthorized approach to the assembly documentation throughout the entire supply chain. The related documentation and repeated verifications require considerable effort and have many chances for human errors. So, automating these processes has great value. This article expounds a framework that harnesses blockchain and smart-contract technology to offer automated traceable and protected documentation of the assembly process. For this purpose, we expand the concept of a Bill-Of-Assembly (BOA) to incorporate data from the bill of materials (BOM), the associated assembly activities, the associated activities’ specification parameters and materials, and the associated assembly resources (machines and/or operators). The paper defines the operation of the BOA with blockchain and smart-contract technology, for attaining full traceability, safety, and security, for the entire assembled product. Future research could extend the proposed approach to facilitate the usage of the BOA data structure in constructing a digital twin of the entire simulated system.
The importance of this paper is its discovery of the unused synergetic potential of integration between several AI techniques into an orchestrated effort to improve service. Special emphasis is given ...to the conversational capabilities of AI systems. The paper shows that the literature related to the use of AI in service is divided into independent knowledge domains (silos) that are either related to the technology under consideration, or to a small group of technologies related to a certain application; it then discusses the reasons for the isolation of these silos, and reveals the barriers and the traps for their integration. Two case studies of service systems are presented to illustrate the importance of synergy. A special focus is given to the conversation part of these service systems: the first case presents an application with high potential for integrating new AI technologies into its AI portfolio, while the second case illustrates the advantages of a mature application that has already integrated many technologies into its AI portfolio. Finally, the paper discusses the two case studies and presents inclusion relationships between AI capabilities to facilitate generating a roadmap for extending AI capabilities with synergetic opportunities.
Form deprivation and low illuminance of ambient light are known to induce myopia in chicks. Low concentrations of retinal dopamine, a light-driven neurohormone, was previously shown to be associated ...with form deprivation myopia. In the present study we examined the dependence of retinal dopamine release in chicks on illuminance during light–dark cycles and in continuous light, and the role of retinal dopamine release in illuminance dependent refractive development. Newly hatched chicks (n = 166) were divided into two experimental groups, a dopamine (n = 88) and a refraction group (n = 78). Both groups were further divided into six illumination groups for exposure of chicks to illuminances of 50, 500 or 10,000 lux of incandescent illumination (referred to throughout as low, medium, and high illuminance, respectively), either under a light–dark cycle with lights on between 7 AM and 7 PM or under continuous illumination. For the dopamine experiment, chicks were euthanized and vitreous was extracted on day 14 post-hatching at 7, 8 AM and 1 PM. Vitreal dihydroxyphenylacetic acid (DOPAC) and dopamine concentrations were quantified by high-performance liquid chromatography coupled to electrochemical detection. For the refraction experiment, chicks underwent refraction, keratometry and A-scan ultrasonography on days 30, 60 and 90 post-hatching, and each of those measurements was correlated with vitreal DOPAC concentration measured at 1 PM (representing the index of retinal dopamine release). The results showed that under light–dark cycles, vitreal DOPAC concentration was strongly correlated with log illuminance, and was significantly correlated with the developing refraction, corneal radius of curvature, and axial length values. On day 90, low vitreal DOPAC concentrations were associated with myopia (−2.41 ± 1.23 D), flat cornea, deep anterior and vitreous chambers, and thin lens. Under continuous light, vitreal DOPAC concentrations measured at 1 PM in the low, medium, and high illuminance groups did not differ from the concentrations measured at 8 AM. On day 90, low DOPAC concentrations were associated with emmetropia (+0.63 ± 3.61), steep cornea, and shallow vitreous chamber. We concluded that ambient light over a log illuminance range of 1.69–4 is linearly related to vitreal DOPAC concentration. Under both light–dark cycles and continuous light, the intensity of ambient light regulates the release of retinal dopamine. Refractive development is associated with illuminance dependent dopamine release.
► Retinal dopamine release is linearly dependent on illuminance (50–10,000 lux). ► Refractive development is associated with illuminance dependent dopamine release. ► Low illuminance myopia is associated with low retinal dopamine release.
The process of project portfolio selection is crucial in many organizations, especially R&D organizations. There is a need to make informed decisions on the investment in various projects or lack ...thereof. As the projects may continue over more than 1 year, and as there are connections between various projects, there is a need to not only decide which project to invest in but also when to invest. Since future benefits from projects are to be depreciated in comparison with near-future ones, and due to the interdependency among projects, the question of allocating the limited resources becomes quite complex. This research provides a novel heuristic method for allocating the limited resources over multi-annual planning horizons and examines its results in comparison with an exact branch and bound solution and various heuristic ones. This paper culminates with an efficient tool that can provide both practical and academic benefits.
Conducting numerous, rapid, and reliable PCR tests for SARS-CoV-2 is essential for our ability to monitor and control the current COVID-19 pandemic. Here, we tested the sensitivity and efficiency of ...SARS-CoV-2 detection in clinical samples collected directly into a mix of lysis buffer and RNA preservative, thus inactivating the virus immediately after sampling. We tested 79 COVID-19 patients and 20 healthy controls. We collected two samples (nasopharyngeal swabs) from each participant: one swab was inserted into a test tube with Viral Transport Medium (VTM), following the standard guideline used as the recommended method for sample collection; the other swab was inserted into a lysis buffer supplemented with nucleic acid stabilization mix (coined NSLB). We found that RT-qPCR tests of patients were significantly more sensitive with NSLB sampling, reaching detection threshold 2.1±0.6 (Mean±SE) PCR cycles earlier then VTM samples from the same patient. We show that this improvement is most likely since NSLB samples are not diluted in lysis buffer before RNA extraction. Re-extracting RNA from NSLB samples after 72 hours at room temperature did not affect the sensitivity of detection, demonstrating that NSLB allows for long periods of sample preservation without special cooling equipment. We also show that swirling the swab in NSLB and discarding it did not reduce sensitivity compared to retaining the swab in the tube, thus allowing improved automation of COVID-19 tests. Overall, we show that using NSLB instead of VTM can improve the sensitivity, safety, and rapidity of COVID-19 tests at a time most needed.
Mango, Mangifera indica L., an important tropical fruit crop, is grown for its sweet and aromatic fruits. Past improvement of this species has predominantly relied on chance seedlings derived from ...over 1000 cultivars in the Indian sub-continent with a large variation for fruit size, yield, biotic and abiotic stress resistance, and fruit quality among other traits. Historically, mango has been an orphan crop with very limited molecular information. Only recently have molecular and genomics-based analyses enabled the creation of linkage maps, transcriptomes, and diversity analysis of large collections. Additionally, the combined analysis of genomic and phenotypic information is poised to improve mango breeding efficiency.
This study sequenced, de novo assembled, analyzed, and annotated the genome of the monoembryonic mango cultivar 'Tommy Atkins'. The draft genome sequence was generated using NRGene de-novo Magic on high molecular weight DNA of 'Tommy Atkins', supplemented by 10X Genomics long read sequencing to improve the initial assembly. A hybrid population between 'Tommy Atkins' x 'Kensington Pride' was used to generate phased haplotype chromosomes and a highly resolved phased SNP map. The final 'Tommy Atkins' genome assembly was a consensus sequence that included 20 pseudomolecules representing the 20 chromosomes of mango and included ~ 86% of the ~ 439 Mb haploid mango genome. Skim sequencing identified ~ 3.3 M SNPs using the 'Tommy Atkins' x 'Kensington Pride' mapping population. Repeat masking identified 26,616 genes with a median length of 3348 bp. A whole genome duplication analysis revealed an ancestral 65 MYA polyploidization event shared with Anacardium occidentale. Two regions, one on LG4 and one on LG7 containing 28 candidate genes, were associated with the commercially important fruit size characteristic in the mapping population.
The availability of the complete 'Tommy Atkins' mango genome will aid global initiatives to study mango genetics.
An Israeli national taskforce performed a multi-center clinical and analytical validation of seven serology assays to determine their utility and limitations for SARS-CoV-2 diagnosis.
Serology assays ...from Roche, Abbott, Diasorin, BioMerieux, Beckman-Coulter, Siemens, and an in-house RBD ELISA were included. Negative samples from 2391 individuals representative of the Israeli population, and 698 SARS-CoV-2 PCR positive patients, collected between March and May 2020, were analyzed
Immunoassays sensitivities between 81.5%-89.4% and specificities between 97.7%-100% resulted in a profound impact on the expected Positive Predictive Value (PPV) in low (<15%) prevalence scenarios. No meaningful increase was detected in the false positive rate in children compared to adults. A positive correlation between disease severity and antibody titers, and no decrease in antibody titers in the first 8 weeks after PCR positivity was observed. We identified a subgroup of symptomatic SARS-CoV-2 positive patients (~5% of patients), who remained seronegative across a wide range of antigens, isotypes, and technologies.
The commercially available automated immunoassays exhibit significant differences in performance and expected PPV in low prevalence scenarios. The low false-positivity rate in under 20′s suggests that cross-reactive immunity from previous CoV strains is unlikely to explain the milder disease course in children. Finding no decrease in antibody titers in the first 8 weeks is in contrast to some reports of short half-life for SARS-CoV-2 antibodies. The ~5% who were seronegative non-responders, using multiple assays in a population-wide manner, represents the proportion of patients that may be at risk for re-infection.
Israel Ministry of Health.
This paper describes a detailed, discrete-event, micro-simulation study of an inner-city personal rapid transit (PRT) system, for the purpose of evaluating the capacity of such a system and the ...effect of various parameters on this capacity. While former studies considered various parameters, most considered only a partial set of the overall set of parameters considered by this paper. In many cases these parameters were treated differently from the model proposed here, which thus provides valuable insights for future research. This evaluation is crucial for justifying construction of such a system, and for judging its feasibility and may provide an initial step towards creating a PRT manual, similar to the Transit Capacity and Quality of Service Manual (TCQSM). The complex operation and structure of the problem suggests micro-simulation as a viable tool for this study. This necessitates tailoring a solution using general simulation software rather than a transportation-oriented tool. The simulation evaluated the capacity under three major scenarios related to passenger arrival characteristics. The results show that the capacity is not sensitive to pod velocity, nor to acceleration/deceleration rates, but is sensitive to the number of pods and suggests an optimal pod quantity.
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