A novel demountable shear connector for precast steel‐concrete composite bridges is presented. The connector uses high‐strength steel bolts, which are fastened to the top flange of the steel beam with the aid of a special locking nut configuration that prevents slip of bolts within their holes. Moreover, the connector promotes accelerated construction and overcomes typical construction tolerances issues of precast structures. Most importantly, the connector allows bridge disassembly, and therefore, can address different bridge deterioration scenarios with minimum disturbance to traffic flow, i.e. (i) precast deck panels can be rapidly uplifted and replaced; (ii) connectors can be rapidly removed and replaced; and (iii) steel beams can b

Objectives: Small field of view gamma detection and imaging technologies for monitoring in vivo tracer uptake are rapidly expanding and being introduced for bed-side imaging and image guided surgical procedures. The Hybrid Gamma Camera (HGC) has been developed to enhance the localization of targeted radiopharmaceuticals during surgical procedures; for example in sentinel lymph node (SLN) biopsies and for bed-side imaging in procedures such as lacrimal drainage imaging and thyroid scanning. In this study, a prototype anthropomorphic head and neck phantom has been designed, constructed, and evaluated using representative modelled medical scenarios to study the capability of the HGC to detect SLNs and image small organs. Methods: An anthropom

In this study, a novel application of lab-scale dual chambered air-cathode microbial fuel cell (MFC) has been developed for simultaneous bio-treatment of real pharmaceutical wastewater and renewable electricity generation. The microbial fuel cell (MFC) was provided with zeolite-packed anodic compartment and a cation exchange membrane (CEM) to separate the anode and cathode. The performance of the proposed MFC was evaluated in terms of COD removal and power generation based on the activity of the bacterial consortium in the biofilm mobilized on zeolite bearer. The MFC was fueled with real pharmaceutical wastewater having an initial COD concentration equal to 800 mg/L and inoculated with anaerobic aged sludge. Results demo

This is the first record of a new species of cyanobacteria Westiellopsis akinetica in the Iraqi environment, Samples were collected on June 2013 and the existence of it was not documented before. We isolated and purified this species ten years ago in Iraq, but we couldn't identify accurately based on all taxonomic handbooks. This is due to the species features being different from the other documented species in the available taxonomic lectures. It resembled many species by morphological characteristics such as Fischerella muscicola, Fischerella thermalis, Westiellopsis biateralis SA16. Westiellopsis interrupta, Westiellopsis persica SA33, Westiellopsis prolifica and Symphyonema bifilamentata. Describing a new species of the Westiellops

Epithelial ovarian cancer is the leading cause of cancer deaths from gynecological malignancies. Angiogenesis is considered essential for tumor growth and the development of metastases. VEGF and IL?8 are potent angiostimulatory molecules and their expression has been demonstrated in many solid tumors, including ovarian cancer.VEGF and IL-8 concentrations were measured by ELISA test (HumanVEGF,IL-8). Bioassay ELISA/ US Biological / USA).The median VEGF and IL-8 levels were significantly higher in the sera of ovarian cancer patients than in those with benign tumors and in healthy controls.Pretreatment VEGF and IL-8 serum levels might be regarded as an additional tool in the differentiation of ovarian tumors.

 Abstract 

The vegetative filter strips (VFS) are a useful tool used for reducing the movement of sediment and pesticide in therivers. The filter strip’s soil can help in reducing the runoff volume by infiltration. However, the characteristics of VFS (i.e., length) are not recently identified depending on the estimation of VFS modeling performance. The aim of this research is to study these characteristics and determine acorrelation between filter strip length and percent reduction (trapping efficiency) for sediment, water, and pesticide. Two proposed pesticides(one has organic carbon sorption coefficient, K_oc, of 147 L/kg which is more moveable than XXXX, and another one

A bolted–welded hybrid demountable shear connector for use in deconstructable steel–concrete composite buildings and bridges was proposed. The hybrid connector consisted of a partially threaded stud, which was welded on the flange of a steel section, and a machined steel tube with compatible geometry, which was bolted on the stud. Four standard pushout tests according to Eurocode 4 were carried out to assess the shear performance of the hybrid connector. The experimental results show that the initial stiffness, shear resistance, and slip capacity of the proposed connector were higher than those of traditional welded studs. The hybrid connector was a ductile connector, according to Eurocode 4, with slip capacity higher than 6 mm. A nonli

The significant addition of immersive technologies, Virtual Reality (VR), Augmented Reality(AR) and Mixed Reality(MR) are transforming the domain of design education. Still, finding an equilibrium between these new tools alongside with traditional methods of teaching is a menace which educational institutes needs to solve. This paper proposes a structure that would help the ease with which to include immersive technologies within design education, keeping in mind the solid points of more conventional pedagogical methods. Based on a survey of interior design programs, this research highlights the potential for VR, AR and MR in student engagement, creativity skills and professional practices. The results suggest that adoption of an im

Digital forensics has become a fundamental requirement for law enforcement due to the growing volume of cyber and computer-assisted crime. Whilst existing commercial tools have traditionally focused upon string-based analyses (e.g., regular expressions, keywords), less effort has been placed towards the development of multimedia-based analyses. Within the research community, more focus has been attributed to the analysis of multimedia content; they tend to focus upon highly specialised specific scenarios such as tattoo identification, number plate recognition, suspect face recognition and manual annotation of images. Given the ever-increasing volume of multimedia content, it is essential that a holistic Multimedia-Forensic Analysis Tool (M-