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Harvesting wind energy is promising for extending long-endurance flights, which can be greatly facilitated by a flight technique called dynamic soaring. The presented study is concerned with generating model-based trajectories with smooth control histories for dynamic soaring maneuvers exploiting wind gradients. The desired smoothness is achieved by introducing a trigonometric series parameterization for the controls, which are formulated with respect to the normalized time. Specifically, the periodicity of the trigonometric functions is leveraged to facilitate the connection of cycles and streamline the problem formulation. Without relying on a specified wind profile, a free-final-time quadratic programming-based control strategy is developed for the online correction of the flight trajectory, which requires only the instant wind information. Offline and online numerical studies show the trade-off to achieve the smoothness and demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed method in a varying wind field.

Resume La rencontre avec les patients auteurs d’infractions a caractere sexuel convoque une possible sideration chez le therapeute pouvant engager des mouvements de rejet, de fascination ou de defense intuitivement suscites par le motif de l’incarceration ou de l’obligation de soin. Face a ce constat, et au regard des questionnaires d’investigation clinique specifiquement developpes pour cette population, cet article presente le processus elaboratif et les soubassements theoriques qui ont permis que s’echafaude une nouvelle version d’un entretien clinique destine aux auteurs de violences sexuelles. Le remaniement du canevas d’entretien a ete elabore a l’aune des trois fonctions supposees du questionnaire, a savoir, etre au service a la fois d’une mediation relationnelle, de l’investigation du fonctionnement psychique et de l’identification de leviers therapeutiques. Sur la base de la litterature psychanalytique classique et actuelle, et au regard de la clinique rencontree avec des patients recus au sein du Service de Medecine et de Psychiatrie Penitentiaires (SMPP) du Centre Hospitalier Universitaire Vaudois (Suisse), nous presentons ici les hypotheses constitutives du nouveau canevas d’entretien. Ce dernier fait actuellement l’objet d’une recherche universitaire qui a pour objectif de valider les elements theoriques avances dans cet article.

Wheat is a staple food crop and a major source of both the essential micronutrient zinc (Zn) and the toxic heavy metal cadmium (Cd) for humans. Since Zn and Cd are chemically similar, increasing Zn concentrations in wheat grains (biofortification), while preventing Cd accumulation, is an agronomic challenge. We used two Swiss agricultural long-term field trials, the “Dynamic-Organic-Conventional System Comparison Trial” (DOK) and the “Zurich Organic Fertilization Experiment” (ZOFE), to investigate the impact of long-term organic, mineral and combined fertilizer inputs on total and phytoavailable concentrations of soil Zn and Cd and their accumulation in winter wheat (Triticum aestivum L.). “Diffusive gradients in thin films” (DGT) and diethylene-triamine-pentaacetic acid (DTPA) extraction were used as proxies for plant available soil metals. Compared to unfertilized controls, long-term organic fertilization with composted manure or green waste compost led to higher soil organic carbon, cation exchange capacity and pH, while DGT-available Zn and Cd concentrations were reduced. The DGT method was a strong predictor of shoot and grain Cd, but not Zn concentrations. Shoot and grain Zn concentrations correlated with DTPA-extractable and total soil Zn concentrations in the ZOFE, but not the DOK trial. Long-term compost fertilization led to lower accumulation of Cd in wheat grains, but did not affect grain Zn. Therefore, Zn/Cd ratios in the grains increased. High Zn and Cd inputs with organic fertilizers and high Cd inputs with phosphate fertilizers led to positive Zn and Cd mass balances when taking into account atmospheric deposition and fertilizer inputs. On the other hand, mineral fertilization led to the depletion of soil Zn due to higher yields and thus higher Zn exports than under organic management. The study supports the use of organic fertilizers for reducing Cd concentrations of wheat grains in the long-term, given that the quality of the fertilizers is guaranteed., info:eu-repo/semantics/published

Communication is the foundation of all social systems, and learning is perhaps the most important cognitive tool. But how do these two critical faculties interact? With social insects being some of the best learners of the invertebrate world, and indisputably the most communicative, we examine the role of learning and experience in social insect communication. Learning plays a major role for both senders and receivers. A sender's experience can modulate what information is available for communication, whether communication is effective and whether individuals are motivated to communicate. Signalling about a resource is often modulated relative to the value of that resource and relative to the value of sharing information about it. The receiver's experience and knowledge can affect which parts of a signal's information content it attends to, how this information is acted on and, indeed, whether it attends to communication at all. Ultimately, while innate responses form the basis of social insect communication, learning is often a critical modulator of communication processes.

Objective Dural arteriovenous fistulas (dAVFs) are abnormal direct shunts between the occipital or meningeal artery and a meningeal vein or dural venous sinus. Treatment strategies include endovascular, microsurgical, stereotactic radiosurgical, or combined interventions. With few previous reports focused on dAVF treatment in a hybrid operating room (hOR), the authors reviewed their 6-year experience in this unique setting for these complex fistulas. Methods Patients with complex cerebral dAVFs underwent endovascular and microsurgical treatment in the hOR. In this retrospective review, 8 consecutive patients with cerebral dAVFs (Borden type 2 or higher) underwent endovascular and microsurgical treatment. Demographic characteristics, symptoms related to the dAVF, preoperative angiographic features, preinterventional therapies, intraoperative digital subtraction angiography (iDSA), and postoperative clinical and radiologic findings were reviewed. Results Of these 8 patients, 5 patients underwent multiple embolizations (up to 3) and hybrid procedures, with no procedure-related complications. After microsurgical resection, iDSA revealed remnants of the fistula, which was then immediately re-resected, in 2 patients. At closing of the hybrid procedure, iDSA revealed no fistula remnants in 7 patients (88%). At mean follow-up examination (58 months), 5 patients (62%) had cure of the dAVF, confirmed by noninvasive angiography. Two patients (25%) experienced a recurrence of the dAVF within 5 months. Conclusions Our hybrid techniques achieved high rates of dAVF obliteration, with all 8 patients achieving good or excellent outcomes and symptom relief. Angiographic follow-up within 6 months after the hybrid procedure is recommended for all patients even when intraoperative findings do not show remnants.

Background Neuromyelitis optica spectrum disorders (NMOSD) typically lead to spastic paraparesis and spare the peripheral nervous system (PNS). Case report Here, we describe an anti-aquaporin-4-seropositive NMOSD patient suffering from acute transverse myelitis with painful, flaccid paralysis and incontinence of urine and feces. Due to the involvement of the PNS as indicated by electrodiagnostic examination, we verified the expression of aquaporin-4-channels on the proximal dorsal spinal radix of rats by staining rat tissue with human NMOSD serum. Conclusion This case suggests a manifestation of the proximal PNS in NMOSD. Thus, NMOSD should be considered as a differential diagnosis for patients presenting with signs of spinal cord disease and additional radicular involvement.

Background Radical treatment of brain arteriovenous malformations (AVMs) remains a challenge despite recent advances in endovascular, microsurgical, and stereotactic radiosurgery treatments. The radical removal of AVMs with prevention of hemorrhage can be achieved through either single or combined modalities. Our retrospective study summarizes the safety and efficacy of combined endovascular embolization and microsurgical removal of AVMs in 49 consecutive patients in the hybrid operating room (hOR). Methods Patients underwent nonhybrid (i.e., endovascular, stereotactic radiosurgery, observation, combination) or hybrid (i.e., endovascular with microsurgery in hOR) treatment. The variables analyzed included age, sex, hospitalization time, Spetzler-Martin/Buffalo grades, clinical symptoms, previous treatment, intraoperative digital angiographic (iDSA) findings, postsurgical treatment, operation duration, complications, obliteration rate, and remnants. Results Of 18 patients treated in the hOR, 15 (83%) presented with Spetzler-Martin grades I and II and were younger than those treated with other modalities (mean age, 41 vs. 46 years). Thirteen (87%) patients were admitted with signs of hemorrhage after AVM rupture. The initial surgical plan was modified in 3 (17%) of 18 cases based on iDSA findings. All patients who eventually underwent microsurgical removal of AVMs showed neither postinterventional remnant nor new neurologic signs and symptoms. Complications included 1 postoperative epidural hematoma and 1 vasospasm during endovascular treatment. Conclusions Treatment of AVMs in the hOR offers the possibility to adapt surgical approaches based on iDSA findings after intraoperative embolization, thus achieving better clinical and radiologic results. Radical treatment of AVMs with low Spetzler-Martin grades by combining endovascular and microsurgical techniques in the hOR was technically feasible, effective, and safe.

Introduction. In this study we evaluated the autonomic neural function in Parkinson's disease (PD) by combining the use of clinical scoring, functional evaluation with head-up tilt test (HUTT) and morphological studies of the vagus nerve (VN) with nerve ultrasound (NU). This allowed us to correlate morphological changes of the VN with markers of parasympathetic dysfunction from HUTT. Patients/Methods. In our study we used NU to compare the mean values of the cross-sectional area (CSA) of the VNs of 80 PD patients with those of controls (n=40) and patients with chronic inflammatory demyelinating polyneuropathy (CIDP) (n=76). In 69 cases HUTT data was analyzed concerning the presence of orthostatic hypotension (OH), postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome (POTS) and chronotropic incompetence (CI). Functional haemodynamic parameters in HUTT were used to evaluate parasympathetic functions and correlate them with VN CSA (n=65). Results. In PD, the CSA of right / left VN was significantly smaller compared to the right/left VN of the control and CIDP patients (Table 1). Based on HUTT, 60.5 % of the patients were diagnosed with autonomic dysfunction (OH n=11, CI n=31, POTS n=1). Patients with OH showed significantly higher UPDRS-III values than those with CI (p=0.025). The CSA of the VN correlated inversely with heart rate and positively with parameters representing parasympathetic modulation through vagal activity (Fig. 1). Conclusion. By using NU significant morphological differences of the CSA of the VN were detected in CIDP, PD and a healthy control group. Furthermore, we demonstrated for the first time that anatomical characteristics of the VN correlate with parameters of parasympathetic function from the spectral analysis of cardiovascular parameters in HUTT for PD. This finding enables a new interpretation of the anatomical characteristics of the VN for PD patients and diagnosis of autonomic dysfunction. Fig. 1. Schematic presentation of the inverse correlation of the cross-sectional area of the right vagus nerve with the heart rate. Positive correlation with markers of parasympathetic activity HFnu-RRI. (Spearman Correlation). Abbreviations: HR=heart rate, HFnuRRI = high frequency power of the RR-Interval, bpm= beats per minute, CSA= cross-sectional area Table 1. Demographical and epidemiological characteristics as well as the cross-sectional area (CSA) of the vagus nerve. All values are provided as mean ± standard deviation. Abbreviations: INCAT/ODSS = inflammatory neuropathy cause and treatment/overall disability sum score, MDS-UPDRS III= MDS-Unified Parkinson's Disease Rating Scale, SCOPA-AUT= Scales for Outcomes in Parkinson's Disease- Autonomic Dysfunction, PDQ39 = Parkinson's Disease Questionnaire, CSA = cross sectional area.

The implementation of bowel cancer screening programs has led to a rise in the incidence of early rectal cancer. The combination of increased incidence and the growing interest in organ-sparing treatment options has led to an amplified importance of local excision techniques in treatment strategies for early rectal cancer. In addition, developments in new technologies of single-port surgery have popularized surgical techniques. Although local treatment of early rectal cancer seems promising, a multidisciplinary approach is necessary and awareness of the oncological robustness is warranted to enable shared decision-making. This review illustrates the position of surgical local excision in the treatment of early rectal cancer and reflects on its role in current and future clinical practice.