Search results for "ITC"

Vulvo-vaginal atrophy: A new treatment modality using thermo-ablative fractional CO2 laser.

2015

a b s t r a c t Objective: To evaluate the efficacy and feasibility of thermo-ablative fractional CO2 laser for the treatment of symptoms related to vulvo-vaginal atrophy (VVA) in post-menopausal women. Methods: From April 2013 to December 2013, post-menopausal patients who complained of one or more VVA-related symptoms and who underwent vaginal treatment with fractional CO2 laser were enrolled in the study. At baseline (T0) and 30 days post-treatment (T1), vaginal status of the women was evaluated using the Vaginal Health Index (VHI), and subjective intensity of VVA symptoms was evaluated using a visual analog scale (VAS). At T1, treatment satisfaction was evaluated using a 5-point Likert …

Roentgenological observations on vocal fold length-changes with special reference to register transition and open/covered voice

1992

This paper examines the length-changes of the vocal folds as a function of voice pitch. Changes in normalized vocal fold elongation (strain) were measured indirectly from calcification points in several laryngeal structures from roentgenological exposures during singing. Changes in vocal fold strain are shown to occur mainly in the register transition area, i.e. the area within which all register changes take place. Changes in vocal fold strain appeared similar in male and female subjects. Evidence for different strain patterns in covered and open singing is presented for female subjects: Strain is higher in non-singers and (“incorrect”) open voice, lower in singers and (“correct”) covered …

Twitch interpolation during equal-intensity voluntary and electrically-evoked isometric contractions of the quadriceps muscle

2005

It has been suggested that, during contractions triggered by electrical stimulation, motor units are recruited in a reversed sequence compared to voluntary contraction. The classic view is that lar...

Adaptive memory representations of musical tempo and pitch

2009

Recent studies showed that the perception of extremely shifted versions of familiar pieces of music affects judgements about the original tempo and pitch. This paper aims to give an overview on musical adaptation effects (MAEs) for musical tempo and pitch. The focus is set on the questions if the recently found MAEs are generally comparable between the tempo and the pitch domain, and if they can be found to the same extent. In a series of eight empirical studies (N = 288, mean age = 26, SD = 8.6, 78 % female participants) the influence of extremely shifted versions (tempo-accelerated or pitch-shifted) of audio signals on memory representations was tested. Within this paper the focus will be…

Memory for absolute tempo

2008

A Multiple Surrogate Assisted Decomposition Based Evolutionary Algorithm for Expensive Multi/Many-Objective Optimization

2019

Many-objective optimization problems (MaOPs) contain four or more conflicting objectives to be optimized. A number of efficient decomposition-based evolutionary algorithms have been developed in the recent years to solve them. However, computationally expensive MaOPs have been scarcely investigated. Typically, surrogate-assisted methods have been used in the literature to tackle computationally expensive problems, but such studies have largely focused on problems with 1–3 objectives. In this paper, we present an approach called hybrid surrogate-assisted many-objective evolutionary algorithm to solve computationally expensive MaOPs. The key features of the approach include: 1) the use of mul…

Effects of high-fat diet and physical activity on pyruvate dehydrogenase kinase-4 in mouse skeletal muscle

2012

Background. The expression of PDK4 is elevated by diabetes, fasting and other conditions associated with the switch from the utilization of glucose to fatty acids as an energy source. It is previously shown that peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor γ coactivator 1α (PGC-1α), a master regulator of energy metabolism, coactivates in cell lines pyruvate dehydrogenase kinase-4 (PDK4) gene expression via the estrogen-related receptor α (ERRα). We investigated the effects of long-term high-fat diet and physical activity on the expression of PDK4, PGC-1α and ERRα and the amount and function of mitochondria in skeletal muscle. Methods. Insulin resistance was induced by a high-fat (HF) diet for…

Design and realization of a DC/DC converter with a partially saturated inductor

2017

DC/DC converters, in some types of applications such as portable equipments, can require more space than it is actually available. The inductor is typically the most bulky element and the possibility to reduce its size can save up to 50% of the converter volume and area [1][2], thus increasing the power density. This reduction, however, comes with nonlinear effects caused by the saturation of the ferromagnetic core. An appropriate modelling of the inductor and of the converter circuit is needed for guaranteeing a good output power quality (Fig. 1). A Boost converter with an inductor in the partially saturated roll-off operating zone was designed and realized to study the behaviour of DC/DC …

Statistical Modelling and Risk Analysis of Bitcoins Exchange Rate

2018

Master's thesis Business Administration BE501 - University of Agder 2018 Bitcoin is a phenomenon that is new and there is little information on how and why it behaves as volatile as it does. This thesis uses existing data on Bitcoin’s exchange rate to estimate a model that describes the pattern and use it in a financial risk analysis. We also aim to contribute as a foundation for further studies in this field. The statistical properties of the log-return of the exchange rate are analysed and it is deemed to be iid. From the eleven distributional candidates we study is the fitted skew generalised t distribution proven to represent the data best after evaluation by criteria and statistics. Th…

Non-Linear Inductor Models Comparison for Switched-Mode Power Supplies Applications

2022

The use of non-linear power inductors, intended as devices exploited up to a current at which the inductance is halved, is of great interest in switched-mode power supplies (SMPSs). Indeed, it allows the use of lighter and cheaper inductors improving the power density. On the other hand, the analysis of SMPSs equipped with non-linear inductors requires appropriate modeling of the inductor reproducing the inductance versus current. This paper compares two main analytical models proposed in the literature: the former is based on a polynomial, and the latter exploits the arctangent function to reproduce the non-linearity of the inductance. Performance is compared by considering the effort of r…