The 4MOST([1]) instrument is a concept for a wide-field, fibre-fed high multiplex spectroscopic instrument facility on the ESO VISTA telescope designed to perform a massive (initially >25x10(6) spectra in 5 years) combined all-sky public survey. The main science drivers are: Gaia follow up of chemo-dynamical structure of the Milky Way, stellar radial velocities, parameters and abundances, chemical

The arteriovenous anastomoses (AVAs) in the distal parts of the extremities play a significant role in the heat exchange with the environment. The aim of the study was to examine the thermal responses to whole-body cooling in air, and especially the behaviour of finger skin temperature (Tf, rich in AVAs). Eight young men sat in minimal clothing at 32°C air temperature (Ta), which was then lowered

It has been 10 years since the Indian Ocean Tsunami caused serious damage to the coastal areas in South and Southeast Asia. The effects on vegetation and human settlements in the affected areas were enormous. This study presents the results of an analysis estimating the long-term recovery using two longitudinal remotely sensed dataset: 1. Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer enhanced vege

We present a clinical investigation of diffuse reflectance and time-resolved autofluorescence spectra of skin cancer with an emphasis on basal cell carcinoma. A total of 25 patients were measured using a compact steady-state diffuse reflectance/fluorescence spectrometer and a fibre-optic-coupled multispectral time-resolved spectrofluorometer. Measurements were performed in vivo prior to surgical e

BACKGROUND: Female gender is a risk factor for sustaining anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injury. However, little is known about possible sex differences in patients with ACL injury/reconstruction. PURPOSE: To study sex differences in patient-reported outcomes before and at 1 and 2 years after ACL reconstruction and to present reference values. STUDY DESIGN: Cohort study; Level of evidence, 2. ME

To provides an overall framework for thinking about the construction of carbon markets, we adopt James Der Derian's 'virtuous war' theory to develop an argument about carbon as a virtuous commodity. This refers to the close affinity between virtuality and virtue - the technological and the ethical - in the construction of carbon markets. The figure of virtuous carbon draws attention to both the fi

This paper evaluates the hardware aspects of multicarrier faster-than-Nyquist (FTN) signaling transceivers. The choice of time-frequency spacing of the symbols in an FTN system for improved bandwidth efficiency is targeted towards efficient hardware implementation. This work proposes a hardware architecture for the realization of iterative decoding of FTN multicarrier modulated signals. Compatibil

Upon locating a suitable dung pile, ball-rolling dung beetles shape a piece of dung into a ball and roll it away in a straight line. This guarantees that they will not return to the dung pile, where they risk having their ball stolen by other beetles. Dung beetles are known to use celestial compass cues such as the sun, the moon and the pattern of polarised light formed around these light sources

The healing process of ruptured tendons is problematic due to scar tissue formation and deteriorated material properties, and in some cases, it may take nearly a year to complete. Mechanical loading has been shown to positively influence tendon healing; however, the mechanisms remain unclear. Computational mechanobiology methods employed extensively to model bone healing have achieved high fidelit

Data independent acquisition mass spectrometry has emerged as a reproducible and sensitive alternative in quantitative proteomics, where parsing the highly complex tandem mass spectra requires dedicated algorithms. Recently, targeted data extraction was proposed as a novel analysis strategy for this type of data, but it is important to further develop these concepts to provide quality-controlled,

Objective Genetic factors account for an estimated 4558% of the variance in joint destruction in rheumatoid arthritis (RA). The serine proteinase granzyme B induces target cell apoptosis, and several in vitro studies suggest that granzyme B is involved in apoptosis of chondrocytes. Serum levels of granzyme B are increased in RA and are also associated with radiographic erosions. The aim of this st

Adherence of Streptococcus pneumoniae is directly mediated by interactions of adhesins with eukaryotic cellular receptors or indirectly by exploiting matrix and serum proteins as molecular bridges. Pneumococci engage vitronectin, the human adhesive glycoprotein and complement inhibitor, to facilitate attachment to epithelial cells of the mucosal cavity, thereby modulating host cell signaling. In t

Acoustophoresis is a method well suited for cell and microbead separation or concentration for downstream analysis in microfluidic settings. One of the main limitations that acoustophoresis share with other microfluidic techniques is that the separation efficiency is poor for particle-rich suspensions. We report that flow laminated liquids can be relocated in a microchannel when exposed to a reson

The influence of entrepreneurs' career motives is examined on two alternative modes of decision-making logic; causation and effectuation. Based on Sarasvathy's (Acad Manage Rev 26(2):243-288, 2001) seminal study, causation is defined as a decision-making process that focuses on what ought to be done given predetermined goals and possible means, and effectuation as a decision-making process emphasi

The high-risk Alpha-types of human papillomavirus (HPV) are the causative agent of cervical cancer, which is the second major cause of death among women worldwide. Recent investigations have shown that E7 from the Alpha-papillomavirus HPV-16 interacts with IKK alpha and IKK beta of the IKK complex in the NF-kappa B pathway leading to an attenuation of the activity. There is a possible link between

The Au–In–Ga ternary phase diagram is of importance for understanding the involved thermodynamic processes during the growth of Au-seeded III–V heterostructure nanowires containing In and Ga (e.g. Au-seeded InAs/GaAs nanowires). In this work the Au–In–Ga system has been thermodynamically modeled using the CALPHAD technique based on a recent experimental investigation of the phase equilibria in the

The brain response to words with correct and incorrect word accent–suffix combinations in South Swedish was investigated using electroencephalography (EEG). Accent 1 yielded an increased brain response (‘preactivation negativity’) that has previously been interpreted as reflecting preactivation of suffixes. Preactivation is greater for accent 1 due to its association with a limited set of suffixes

Increased vascular smooth muscle cell (VSMC) proliferation is a factor in atherosclerosis and injury-induced arterial (re)stenosis. Inhibition of polyamine synthesis by α-difluoro-methylornithine (DFMO), an irreversible inhibitor of ornithine decarboxylase, attenuates VSMC proliferation with high sensitivity and specificity. However, cells can escape polyamine synthesis blockade by importing polya

Osteoporosis is a widespread problem afflicting millions of people. Drynol Cibotinis is a newly developed proprietary botanical combination of eight botanicals including Angelica sinensis, Glycine max, Wild yam, Ligustrum lucidum, Astragalus membranaceus, Cuscuta chinensis, Psoraleae corylifoliae, and Drynaria fortune. Each of the botanicals has been used in traditional Chinese medicine to treat o