Intraocular pressure elevation after intravitreal triamcinolone acetonide injection: a Meta-analysis

AIM：To report on intraocular pressure（IOP）after intravitreal injections of triamcinolone acetonide.·M ETHODS：Systematic literature review of studies that investigated the effects of an injection of triamcinolone Intravitreal triamcinolone acetonide on IOP was conducted according to the Cochrane Collaboration methodology and the reported effects have been analyzed with Meta-analysis.·RESULTS：We found that the IOP follows an inverted-U shape pattern over time starting with an average value of14.81±1.22 mm Hg before the injection,rising to a maximum of 19.48±2.15 mm Hg after one month of injection and falling down to 16.16±1.92 mm Hg after6mo.Moreover,country of study,age,previous history of glaucoma and gender compositions matter for crossstudy were different in reported IOP changes.·CONCLUSION：Our findings may be helpful in determining pressure elevation risk of intravitreal triamcinolone acetonide therapy as well as comparing it with those of more recent therapies such as the antivascular endothelial growth factor agents.

Precipitate Formation and Evolution in the Superalloy IN738LC

IN738LC is a polycrystalline, nickel-based superalloy, which provides a high performance in aggressive environments at temperatures above 650°C. At this high temperature, the expected properties are good corrosion resistance, optimal thermal properties, and creep and fatigue resistance. These required properties are obtained via solid solution hardening and precipitation hardening of a face-centered cubic (fcc) Ni matrix phase. The size, morphology and distribution of precipitates determine the properties of the material. Thus, microstructure control is very important for effective use of IN738LC. In this study, a number of heat treatments were conducted to observe the evolution of precipitates. The formation of bimodal microstructure at 1140°C is explored. The data shows formation of a duplex size precipitate microstructure after 5 min of the aging. Formation mechanism of the duplex structure is discussed. Coarsening and dissolution mechanisms at 1120°C are discussed. Precipitates are found to grow up to a critical size in coherent and cubical morphology, beyond which dissolution sets in.

Plume diagnostics of BUSTLab microwave electrothermal thruster using Langmuir and Faraday probes

This study presents the Langmuir and Faraday probe measurements conducted to determine the plume characteristics of the BUSTLab microwave electrothermal thruster(MET).The thruster,designed to operate at 2.45 GHz frequency,is run with helium,argon and nitrogen gases as the propellant.For the measurements,the propellant volume flow rate and the delivered microwave power levels are varied.Experiments with nitrogen gas revealed certain operation regimes where a very luminous plume is observed.With the use of in-house-built Langmuir probes and a Faraday probe with guard ring,thruster plume electron temperature,plasma density and ion current density values are measured,and the results are presented.The measurements show that MET thruster plume effects on spacecraft will likely be similar to those of the arcjet plume.It is observed that the measured plume ion flux levels are very low for the high volume flow rates used for the operation of this thruster.

Observed Impacts of Climate Variability on LULC in the Mesopotamia Region

Remote sensing analysis techniques have been investigated extensively,represented by a critical vision,and are used to advance our understanding of the impacts of climate change and variability on the environment.This study aims to find a means of analysis that relies on remote sensing techniques to demonstrate the effects of observed climate variability on Land Use and Land Cover(LULC)of the Mesopotamia region,defined as a historical region located in the Middle East.This study employed the combined analysis of the Normalized Difference Vegetation Index(NDVI),Land Surface Temperature(LST),and two statistical analysis methods(Pearson Correlation Analysis,r;Coefficient of Determination,R^(2)),which were applied using the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer data and observed surface meteorological data from 2000 to 2018.The resulting NDVI images show five LULC classes with NDVI values varying between−0.3 and 0.9.Furthermore,changes in the classified LULC area were compared statistically to those in NDVI values,where a positive relationship was found.Also,when the LST values and temperature are more extreme,the NDVI values were found to be smaller,suggesting a decrease in the density of vegetation cover.A negative correlation was found through Pearson correlation analysis(r=∼−0.64),indicating a direct effect of increased temperatures on LULC.Indeed,this negative relationship between NDVI and LST was proven using R^(2) values,where a two-dimensional scatter plot analysis showed that R^(2) ranges from 0.54 to 0.9.Ultimately,the results obtained from this study reveal changes that may have many prominent effects in the field of LULC classification,accelerating the implications of climate change and variability factors.

Amniotic membrane welded to contact lens by 1470-nm diode laser:a novel method for sutureless amniotic membrane transplantation

AIM: To avoid the side effects of the suture usage by welding amniotic membrane(AM) to contact lens(CL)with laser.METHODS: AM was taken from pregnant women and cleaned from blood clots with sterile phosphate-buffered physiological saline solution which included antibiotics.Stromal side of the AM was spread inside of the CL and it was welded to CL by 1470 nm diode laser. And 600 μm diameter fiber tip of the laser was contacted with the epithelial side of the AM from 4 separate points. After welding excess amniotic membrane around the CL was cut with a scalpel.RESULTS: Stromal side of the AM was spread inside of the CL and then with laser fiber, different power levels and exposure times were applied on the epithelium of AM and 340 m W for seven seconds was found optimal.CL and AM attached with the spot welding effect in 4points by touching fiber tip. CL-AM welded complex did not separated from each other while holding AM that extend beyond the CL with the help of two forceps.CONCLUSION: As a conclusion, it was aimed in this study to achieve the success of the conventional amniotic membrane transplantation(AMT) with the easiness of applying a CL and to avoid risks and side effects of corneal or conjunctival suturing. The results showed that the application of the CL-AM complex will be as easy as the application of a CL and lasts shortly.

Assessing the vulnerability of a forest ecosystem to climate change and variability in the western Mediterranean sub-region of Turkey：future evaluation

This study evaluates the multifactorial spatial modelling used to assess vulnerability of the Du¨ zlerc？am？（Antalya） forest ecosystem to climate change.This was done to produce data,to develop tools to support decisionmaking and the management of vulnerable Mediterranean forest ecosystems affected by climate change,and to increase the ability of these forest ecosystems to adapt to global change.Based on regionally averaged future climate assessments and projected climate indicators,both the study site and the western Mediterranean sub-region of Turkey will probably become associated with a drier,hotter,more continental and more water-deficient climate.This analysis holds true for all future scenarios,with the exception of RCP4.5 for the period from 2015 to 2030.However,the present dry-sub humid climate dominating this sub-region and the study area shows a potential for change towards more dry climatology and for it to become semiarid between 2031 and 2050 according to the RCP8.5 high emission scenario.All the observed and estimated results and assessments summarized in this study show clearly that the densest forest ecosystem in the southern part of the study site,characterized by mainly Mediterranean coniferous and some mixed forest and maquis vegetation,will very likely be influenced by medium and high degrees of vulnerability to future environmental degradation,climate change and variability.

Role of Trust, Privacy Concerns and Data Governance in Managers’ Decision on Adoption of Big Data Systems

This paper investigates the role of trust, privacy concerns, and data governance on managers’ intention to use big data systems. In literature, trusting beliefs, such as functionality, helpfulness, and reliability were found to be antecedent of trust in technological artifacts. Notice, access, choice, and security principles were found to be crucial in eliminating privacy concerns. On the other hand, this paper focuses on data storage and data collection which have been significant criterion for managers in evaluating companies’ data governance policies. A model depicting the relationships amongst all these factors and their relation to users’ intention to adopt big data systems and a scale was proposed in the paper.

Dynamic Analysis of Suspension Bridges and Full Scale Testing

This paper is concerned with the earthquake analysis of suspension bridges, in which the effects of large deflections are taken into account. The first part of the study deals with an iteration scheme for the nonlinear static analysis of suspension bridges by means of tangent stiffness matrices. The concept of tangent stiffness matrix is then introduced in the frequency equation governing the free vibration of the system. At any equilibrium stage, the vibrations are assumed to take place tangent to the curve representing the force-deflection characteristics of the structure. The bridge is idealized as a three dimensional lumped mass system and subjected to three orthogonal components of earthquake ground motion producing horizontal, vertical and torsional oscillations. By this means a realistic appraisal is achieved for torsional response as well as for the other types of vibration. The modal response spectrum technique is applied to evaluate the seismic loading for the combination of these vibrations. Various numerical examples are introduced in order to demonstrate the method of analysis. The procedure described enables the designer to evaluate the nonlinear dynamic response of suspension bridges in a systematic manner.

Intensity measures for seismic liquefaction hazard evaluation of sloping site

This work investigates the correlation between a large number of widely used ground motion intensity measures(IMs) and the corresponding liquefaction potential of a soil deposit during earthquake loading. In order to accomplish this purpose the seismic responses of 32 sloping liquefiable site models consisting of layered cohesionless soil were subjected to 139 earthquake ground motions. Two sets of ground motions, consisting of 80 ordinary records and 59 pulse-like near-fault records are used in the dynamic analyses. The liquefaction potential of the site is expressed in terms of the the mean pore pressure ratio, the maximum ground settlement, the maximum ground horizontal displacement and the maximum ground horizontal acceleration. For each individual accelerogram, the values of the aforementioned liquefaction potential measures are determined. Then, the correlation between the liquefaction potential measures and the IMs is evaluated. The results reveal that the velocity spectrum intensity(VSI) shows the strongest correlation with the liquefaction potential of sloping site. VSI is also proven to be a sufficient intensity measure with respect to earthquake magnitude and source-to-site distance, and has a good predictability, thus making it a prime candidate for the seismic liquefaction hazard evaluation.

Use of fly ash with no water consumption for cold regions transportation infrastructure

The construction period in cold regions is very short due to problems related to excavation and use of frozen soils in embankment construction, which leads to excessive deformations upon thawing. Also, handling of compaction water is critical due to freezing temperatures. Coalburning thermal power plants are very common in cold regions to supply electricity. The inorganic part of the pulverized coal after burning produces fly ash, which is available in large volumes. Due to excavation difficulties and the poor engineering behavior of frozen soils in cold regions, the utilization of fly ash when it is readily available must be promoted. Any construction technique which utilizes alternative materials like fly ash and minimizes water consumption has a potential to extend the short construction season and even allow service and maintenance during extreme weather conditions. This paper presents two potential techniques to solve the moisture affinity of silt-sized materials like fly ash. One technique involves in-plant production of fly ash pellets using cold-bonding pelletization to manufacture aggregates of up to 40,000-~tm diameter from 15- to 60-~tm-diameter fly ash grains. Large disc pelletizers have annual production capacities of up to one million ton at a reasonable cost. The product has adequate strength for embankment construction even when no water is used and no compaction is applied. The second technique is an in situ mixing technique which uses snow instead of compaction water for fly ash. The snow is the main element in this technique to compact the embankment. Water is needed for the hydration reactions to form cementitious minerals in fly ash. The slower the hydration reaction, the greater the crystal growth of cementitious minerals. In the proposed technique, in situ snow is mixed with fly ash and is compacted on-site. The temperature increase due to the hydration reaction of fly ash upon contact with snow crystals provides water for continued long-term hydration, which results in high strength, a high void ratio, light weight, and high thermal insulation capability. The presented techniques have the potential to extend the short construction season in cold regions and will provide fill material, decreasing the need for excavation. Both techniques are well documented under laboratory conditions, the research results have been published, and the techniques are ready for field trials to assess implementability.

Assessing vulnerability of a forest ecosystem to climate change and variability in the western Mediterranean sub-region of Turkey

Climate change is a real, pressing and significant global problem. The concept of ‘climate change vulnerability’ helps us to better comprehend the cause/effect relationships behind climate change and its impact on human societies, socioeconomic sectors, and physiographical and ecological systems. In this study, multifactorial spatial modelling evaluated the vulnerability of a Mediterranean forest ecosystem to climate change and variability with regard to land degradation. This produced data and developed tools to support better decision-making and management. As a result, the geographical distribution of Environmental Vulnerability Areas(EVAs) of the forest ecosystem is the estimated Environmental Vulnerability Index(EVI) values. These revealed that, at current levels of environmental degradation, physical, geographical, policy enforcement, and socioeconomic conditions, the area with a ‘‘very low’’ degree of vulnerability covered mainly the town, its surrounding settlements and agricultural lands found principally over the low, flat travertine plateau and the plains to the east and southeast of the district. The spatial magnitude of the EVAs of the forest ecosystem under current environmental degradation was also determined. This revealed that the EVAs classed as ‘‘very low’’accounted for 21% of the area of the forest ecosystem,those classed as ‘‘low’’ for 36%, those classed as ‘‘medium’’ for 20%, and those classed as ‘‘high’’ for 24%.

Bell’s palsy and choreiform movements during peginterferon α and ribavirin therapy

Neuropsychiatric side effects of long-term recombinant interferon-α therapy consist of a large spectrum of symptoms. In the literature, cranial neuropathy, especially Bell's palsy, and movement disorders, have been reported much less often than other neurotoxic effects. We report a case of Bell's palsy in a patient with chronic hepatitis C during peginterferon-α and ribavirin therapy. The patient subsequently developed clinically inapparent facial nerve involvement on the contralateral side and showed an increase in choreic movements related to Huntington's disease during treatment.

The Dardanelles Campaign and the Contending Strategies for War

The idea that WWI was a global conflict is generally accepted by the scholarly community. The Great War, as it is otherwise called, deserves to be remembered not only by the European nations but also by the rest of the world countries whose destinies were shaped by it or because of it. It would not be wrong to suggest that the WWI, as far as the Ottomans were concerned, was a history of European armies in non-European military stages. The historiography of World War I is often limited to English sources seemingly due to the negligence of Ottoman sources, but most probably caused by the language barrier[s] and/or the Eurocentric approach to history. Or in Erikson＇s words, the ＂resultant historiography tends to tell the story from an overwhelmingly European perspective, which in many ways reflected what the European Powers perceived rather than what actually occurred＂ （Erickson, 2008, p. 10）. It is my opinion that the wider use of Ottoman archives and Turkish narratives would provide a more balanced analysis and that a holistic understanding of the events that unfolded requires special attention to the Ottoman perspective. This paper suggests an analysis of the Dardanelles conflict from a strategic perspective, with special reference to British and Ottoman policies and their part played in the transition from peace to war; the ensuing political turmoil that led to an open conflict between Britain and the Ottoman Empire.

Factors of Acceptance for Mobile Learning in Corporate Settings: An Empirical Investigation in Banking Industry

Due to the proliferation of mobile technology and devices like smartphones and tablet PCs into our daily lives, m-learning attracts also more attention in professional training in enterprises. Derived from these statements, this research paper is focused on the following question: what are acceptance factors for m-learning (mobile learning) in the organizational setting? The paper analyzes a real experience in m-learning for training the banking personnel in an international banking institution in Turkey. For this purpose, a mobile virtual learning environment called as mFOR@ was developed and implemented, which was designed to support the training and development process for employees using Pocket PCs. The participants of the training activity (13 professionals) evaluated the m-learning experience via a semi-structured interview;all the content and interactions within mFOR@ were analyzed via content analysis. As a basis for a successful implementation in professional training in enterprises, the acceptance by decision makers and the learners is critical. That is the reason why I present a qualitative analysis of acceptance and the perceived value of m-learning in a corporate setting.

Analyzing the Factors Affecting the Users＇ Success in Web Based Education： A Data Mining Approach

Corporations focus on web based education to train their employees ever more than before. Unlike traditional learning environments, web based education applications store large amount of data. This growing availability of data stimulated the emergence of a new field called educational data mining. In this study, the classification method is implemented on a data that is obtained from a company which uses web based education to train their employees. The authors＇ aim is to find out the most critical factors that influence the users＇ success. For the classification of the data, two decision tree algorithms, Classification and Regression Tree （CART） and Quick, Unbiased and Efficient Statistical Tree （QUEST） are applied. According to the results, assurance of a certificate at the end of the training is found to be the most critical factor that influences the users＇ success. Position, number of work years and the education level of the user, are also found as important factors.

Behind the Scenes with a Video Training Platform: The Challenges of Researching the Provision of Open Educational Resources

Video training platforms are now being implemented on a large scale in organizations. In this paper, I look at a video training platform including open educational resources available for many employees with varying patterns and motivations for use. This has provided me with a research challenge to find methods that help other practitioners in the field understand and explain such initiatives. I describe ways to model the research and identify where pressures and contradictions can be found, drawing on a reflective view of my own practice in performing the research. Open educational resources are defined as technology-enabled educational resources that are openly available for consultation, use and adaptation by users for non-commercial purposes [1]. The bank subject to this case study has been the first organisation in Turkey that provided open educational resources for all its employees. The video platform (called “For @ Tube”) provides users with over 100 video lectures drawn from reputable universities around the world including Yale and Harvard. Other learning tools such as discussion forums, blogs and traditional e-learning courses have been made available to the users on the e-learning platform called “For @” since 2006. In this paper, I aim to introduce the new video training platform (“For @ Tube”) and outline some of the main research issues surrounding such an initiative. I seek to explore theoretical and practical approaches that can provide suitable tools for analysis. Activity theory is seen as a suitable approach for macroanalysis and its use is illustrated in terms of the complexity of large scale research. Activity theory, besides informing research perspectives, can be turned in upon the research process itself, allowing us to consider the challenges and context of the research. By using activity theory in this way and illustrating from a range of practical approaches, I demonstrate and illustrate a useful research approach.

High Energy Studies on the Non-Thermal Emissions from Cassiopeia A &Tycho

Chandra X-ray Observatory and Fermi Gamma Ray Space Telescope analysis of young supernova remnants (SNRs) Cassiopeia A (Cas A) and Tycho were performed to understand the nature of the high energy emission from SNRs and to observationally test the diffuse shock acceleration (DSA) theory. In this study, we present the highest significances of these shell-like and young SNRs in gamma-ray as a strong evidence for cosmic ray accelerators. Gamma-ray analysis of Cas A and Tycho were performed with Fermi-LAT at significances of 26σ and 8σ, respectively. Chandra analyses were performed on the thin filaments from the shells of Cas A and Tycho. Extracted X-ray spectra have been fitted with power-law model predicting the non-thermal emissions. Best fit chi-squared values for the regions from shells of Cas A and Tycho have been presented in the X-ray analyses which are supporting the DSA theory.

Building Productivity Models for Small Enhancements

Software is in constant evolution and many approaches have been suggested to study software maintenance productivity. This research reports on a process to design and implement a productivity model of legacy software based on the measurement of small functional enhancements using the COSMIC ISO 19761 international standard. Two motivations influence this research: 1) understanding the productivity of the software maintenance process to help manage the cost of maintenance;2) understanding the cost drivers that affect the software maintenance productivity. This research reports on an empirical study of a productivity measurement program implemented in a large banking legacy system.

Social Media’s Perspective on Industry 4.0:A Twitter Analysis

The development and change that has taken place in the industry recently entered a new phase in parallel with the developments in computer technology. This phase is referred as Industry 4.0. With Industry 4.0, companies are working to take advantage of information technology to increase profitability and productivity. Increasing use of social media in recent years has forced companies to show their presence on those platforms. Social media is a major source of meaningful information for companies because it contains large amounts of data. In this study, the top five companies operating in information technology (IT) research/consulting and the top five companies operating in enterprise resource planning (ERP) field were selected. Conclusions have been made based on the analysis of the tweets related to Industry 4.0.

快速静态GPS在koyulhisar滑坡监测中的应用——一种消除垂向速度误差的方法

全球定位系统常用于自然灾害或其他地球物理现象的监测。滑坡监测是一个对各种GPS方法进行测试并解译各种系统误差来源的领域。在以往的研究中，快速静态GPS的系统误差来源的解译受GPS位置高差的显著影响。在这项研究中，我们进一步探讨使用快速静态测量中监测点高差对GPS监测快速测量的影响程度。为了证明其影响，我们在土耳其中部的koyulhisar滑坡中使用了静态GPS测量。快速静态GPS方案与静态GPS方案在BERNESE5．0中的运行结果对比表明，当监测基准点之间高差较大时系统误差主要表现在快速静态GPS变形率的估算值上。其中垂直分量的效果尤为显著，尽管它在水平分量上微不足道。减少地面参考站和流动站之间的高差，15分钟后快速静态方案即显示出与静态定位方案的高度相关性和近似变形率。