NGA-West2 research project Bozorgnia, Yousef; Abrahamson, Norman A; Al Atik, Linda ...
Earthquake spectra,
08/2014, Letnik:
30, Številka:
3
Journal Article
Recenzirano
The NGA-West2 project is a large multidisciplinary, multi-year research program on the Next Generation Attenuation (NGA) models for shallow crustal earthquakes in active tectonic regions. The ...research project has been coordinated by the Pacific Earthquake Engineering Research Center (PEER), with extensive technical interactions among many individuals and organizations. NGA-West2 addresses several key issues in ground-motion seismic hazard, including updating the NGA database for a magnitude range of 3.0-7.9; updating NGA ground-motion prediction equations (GMPEs) for the "average" horizontal component; scaling response spectra for damping values other than 5%; quantifying the effects of directivity and directionality for horizontal ground motion; resolving discrepancies between the NGA and the National Earthquake Hazards Reduction Program (NEHRP) site amplification factors; analysis of epistemic uncertainty for NGA GMPEs; and developing GMPEs for vertical ground motion. This paper presents an overview of the NGA-West2 research program and its subprojects.
Summary
What is already known about this subject
Overweight and obesity prevalence estimates among children based on International Obesity Task Force definitions are substantially lower than ...estimates based on World Health Organization definitions.
Presence of a north–south gradient with the highest level of overweight found in southern European countries.
Intercountry comparisons of overweight and obesity in primary‐school children in Europe based on measured data lack a similar data collection protocol.
What this study adds
Unique dataset on overweight and obesity based on measured weights and heights in 6–9‐year‐old children from 12 European countries using a harmonized surveillance methodology.
Because of the use of a consistent data collection protocol, it is possible to perform valid multiple comparisons between countries.
It demonstrates wide variations in overweight and obesity prevalence estimates among primary‐school children between European countries and regions.
Background
Nutritional surveillance in school‐age children, using measured weight and height, is not common in the European Region of the World Health Organization (WHO). The WHO Regional Office for Europe has therefore initiated the WHO European Childhood Obesity Surveillance Initiative.
Objective
To present the anthropometric results of data collected in 2007/2008 and to investigate whether there exist differences across countries and between the sexes.
Methods
Weight and height were measured in 6–9‐year‐old children in 12 countries. Prevalence of overweight, obesity, stunting, thinness and underweight as well as mean Z‐scores of anthropometric indices of height, weight and body mass index were calculated.
Results
A total of 168 832 children were included in the analyses and a school participation rate of more than 95% was obtained in 8 out of 12 countries. Stunting, underweight and thinness were rarely prevalent. However, 19.3−49.0% of boys and 18.4−42.5% of girls were overweight (including obesity and based on the 2007 WHO growth reference).The prevalence of obesity ranged from 6.0 to 26.6% among boys and from 4.6 to 17.3% among girls. Multi‐country comparisons suggest the presence of a north–south gradient with the highest level of overweight found in southern European countries.
Conclusions
Overweight among 6–9‐year‐old children is a serious public health concern and its variation across the European Region highly depends on the country. Comparable monitoring of child growth is possible across Europe and should be emphasized in national policies and implemented as part of action plans.
Comparison of NGA-West2 GMPEs Gregor, Nick; Abrahamson, Norman A; Atkinson, Gail M ...
Earthquake spectra,
08/2014, Letnik:
30, Številka:
3
Journal Article
Recenzirano
A presentation of the model parameters and comparison of the median ground-motion values from the NGA-West2 GMPEs is presented for a suite of deterministic cases. In general, the median ground ...motions are similar, within a factor of about 1.5-2.0 for 5 < M < 7 and distances between 10-100 km. Differences increase (on the order of 2-3) for large-magnitude (M > 8) earthquakes at large distances (R > 100-200 km) and for close distances (R < 10 km). A similar increase is observed for hanging-wall sites, and slightly larger differences are observed for soil sites as opposed to rock sites. Regionalization of four of the GMPEs yields similar attenuation rate adjustments based on the different regional data sets. All five GMPE aleatory variability models are a function of magnitude with higher overall standard deviations values for the smaller magnitudes when compared to the large-magnitude events.
Sentinel node (SN) status is the most important prognostic factor for overall survival (OS) for patients with stage I/II melanoma, and the role of the SN procedure as a staging procedure has long ...been established. However, a less invasive procedure, such as ultrasound (US) -guided fine-needle aspiration cytology (FNAC), would be preferred. The aim of this study was to evaluate the accuracy of US-guided FNAC and compare the results with histology after SN surgery was performed in all patients.
Four hundred consecutive patients who underwent lymphoscintigraphy subsequently underwent a US examination before the SN procedure. When the US examination showed a suspicious or malignant pattern, patients underwent an FNAC. Median Breslow thickness was 1.8 mm; mean follow-up was 42 months (range, 4 to 82 months). We considered the US-guided FNAC positive if either US and/or FNAC were positive. If US was suggestive of abnormality, but FNAC was negative, the US-guided FNAC was considered negative.
US-guided FNAC identified 51 (65%) of 79 SN metastases. Specificity was 99% (317 of 321), with a positive predictive value of 93% and negative predictive value of 92%. SN-positive identification rate by US-guided FNAC increased from 40% in stage pT1a/b disease to 79% in stage pT4a/b disease. US-guided FNAC detected SN tumors more than 1.0 mm in 86% of cases, SN tumors of 0.1 to 1.0 mm in 46% of cases, and SN tumors less than 0.1 mm in 23% of cases. Estimated 5-year OS rates were 92% for patients with negative US-guided FNAC results and 51% for patients with positive results.
US-guided FNAC of SNs is highly accurate. Up to 65% of the patients with SN-positive results in our institution could have been spared an SN procedure.
Vaccination against cancer by using dendritic cells has for more than a decade been based on dendritic cells generated ex vivo from monocytes or CD34(+) progenitors. Here, we report on the first ...clinical study of therapeutic vaccination against cancer using naturally occurring plasmacytoid dendritic cells (pDC). Fifteen patients with metastatic melanoma received intranodal injections of pDCs activated and loaded with tumor antigen-associated peptides ex vivo. In vivo imaging showed that administered pDCs migrated and distributed over multiple lymph nodes. Several patients mounted antivaccine CD4(+) and CD8(+) T-cell responses. Despite the limited number of administered pDCs, an IFN signature was observed after each vaccination. These results indicate that vaccination with naturally occurring pDC is feasible with minimal toxicity and that in patients with metastatic melanoma, it induces favorable immune responses.
Charge collection in irradiated HV-CMOS detectors Hiti, B.; Affolder, A.; Arndt, K. ...
Nuclear instruments & methods in physics research. Section A, Accelerators, spectrometers, detectors and associated equipment,
04/2019, Letnik:
924, Številka:
C
Journal Article
Recenzirano
Odprti dostop
Active silicon detectors built on p-type substrate are a promising technological solution for large area silicon trackers such as those at the High Luminosity LHC, but the radiation hardness of this ...novel approach has to be evaluated. Active n-in-p strip detector prototypes CHESS2 for ATLAS with different substrate resistivities in the range of 20–1000 Ωcm were irradiated with neutrons and protons up to a fluence of 2×1015neqcm−2 and 3.6×1015neqcm−2. Charge collection in passive test structures on the chip was evaluated using Edge-TCT and minimum ionising electrons from 90Sr. Results were used to assess radiation hardness of the detector in the given fluence range and to determine parameters of initial acceptor removal in different substrates.
•Irradiated samples of different initial resistivity between 20 and a few 1000 Ω cm.•Characterisation with edge transient current technique and 90Sr beta electrons.•Sensitive region increases after irradiation due to acceptor removal.•Parameters of acceptor removal estimated for neutron irradiation.•After proton irradiation larger sensitive region than after neutron irradiation.
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