Energy storage in structural composites by introducing CNT fiber/polymer electrolyte interleaves.

This work presents a method to produce structural composites capable of energy storage. They are produced by integrating thin sandwich structures of CNT fiber veils and an ionic liquid-based polymer electrolyte between carbon fiber plies, followed by infusion and curing of an epoxy resin. The resulting structure behaves simultaneously as an electric double-layer capacitor and a structural composite, with flexural modulus of 60 GPa and flexural strength of 153 MPa, combined with 88 mF/g of specific capacitance and the highest power (30 W/kg) and energy (37.5 mWh/kg) densities reported so far for structural supercapacitors. In-situ electrochemical measurements during 4-point bending show that electrochemical performance is retained up to fracture, with minor changes in equivalent series resistance for interleaves under compressive stress. En route to improving interlaminar properties we produce grid-shaped interleaves that enable mechanical interconnection of plies by the stiff epoxy. Synchrotron 3D X-ray tomography analysis of the resulting hierarchical structure confirms the formation of interlaminar epoxy joints. The manuscript discusses encapsulation role of epoxy, demonstrated by charge-discharge measurements of composites immersed in water, a deleterious agent for ionic liquids. Finally, we show different architectures free of current collector and electrical insulators, in which both CNT fiber and CF act as active electrodes.

Analysis of food advertising to children on Spanish television: probing exposure to television marketing.

INTRODUCTION: We aimed to assess longitudinal changes in television (TV) food advertising during 2013 compared to 2007, measuring children's exposure to healthy and unhealthy advertisements, after the new European and Spanish Public Health laws published in 2011. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Two thematic channels for children (TC), and 2 generalist channels (GC) for all ages were recorded, between April and May 2013, on 2 week and 2 weekend days. Food advertisements were classified as core (CFA) (nutrient dense, low energy), non-core (NCFA) (unbalanced energy profile or high in energy), or others (OFA) (supermarkets and special food). RESULTS: One thousand two hundred sixty-three food advertisements were recorded (TC: 579/GC: 684) in 2013. NCFA were the most shown (54.9%) in the regular full day TV programming (p < 0.001). In 2013, children watching GC had a higher relative risk of being exposed to fast food advertisements than when watching TC (RR = 2.133, 95% CI: 1.398-3.255); CFA were broadcast most frequently in 2013 (GC: 23.7%; and TC: 47.2%) vs. 2007 (TC: 22.9%) (p < 0.001). The proportion of broadcasting between NCFA/CFA and OFA food advertisements in children's peak time slots was higher on TC (203/162) during 2013 than on GC (189/140), and significantly higher than that shown on TC in 2007 (180/36, p < 0.001). CONCLUSIONS: Broadcasting of unhealthy TV food advertising on TC is lower today than six years ago; but, children's exposure to TV advertising of unhealthy food is worrying in Spain, and there is more exposure to unhealthy than healthy food by TV. Watching GC in 2013 had higher risk of being exposed to fast food advertisements than watching TC.

Intracellular bacteria find the right motion.

Benanti et al. report that Burkholderia pseudomallei and Burkholderia mallei bacteria express proteins that mimic Ena/Vasp family proteins to polymerize actin, thereby inducing actin-based motility. Thus, bacteria can use the various cellular actin polymerization mechanisms for intra- and inter-cellular dissemination.

Acerca de lo natural en el hombre: reflexiones a propósito de los conceptos de instinto y pulsión en el psicoanálisis / About the natural in man: reflections on the concepts of instinct and drive in psychoanalysis

Los conceptos de pulsión e instinto son fundamentales para comprender las bases de lo que podría llamarse "naturaleza humana". No obstante, al perseguir tales conceptos, la naturaleza misma del ser humano, se tambalea. A lo largo del presente escrito, procura darse cuenta de la paradoja entre los conceptos de pulsión e instinto, pero al mismo tiempo, de la imposibilidad de prescindir de uno u otro para dar cuenta de aquello que pudiera constituirse como factor diferencial entre el ser humano y las demás especies. Es pues, un recorrido por algunos de los conceptos planteados por Freud y Lacan, a propósito de las pulsiones y los instintos.

The concepts of drive and instinct are fundamental to understanding the bases of what might be called "human nature". However, in pursuing such concepts, the very nature of the human being is reeling. Throughout this paper, seeks to realize the paradox between the concepts of drive and instinct, but at the same time, the impossibility of dispensing with one or the other to account for what could be a differential factor between humans and the other species. It is, therefore, a tour of some of the concepts proposed by Freud and Lacan, with regard to instincts and instincts.

Ungulate vehicle collisions in a peri-urban environment: consequences of transportation infrastructures planned assuming the absence of ungulates.

Ungulate vehicle collisions (UVC) provoke serious damage, including human casualties, and a large number of measures have been developed around the world to avoid collisions. We analyse the main factors involved in UVC in a road network built in the absence of ungulates, where mitigation structures to avoid UVC were not adequately considered. Ungulate population greatly increased during the last two decades and now Roe Deer and Wild Boars are widely distributed over the study area, but even after this increase, the road network was not adapted to avoid UVC. A total of 235 Roe Deer (RDVC) and 153 Wild Boar vehicle collisions (WBVC) were recorded between January 2008 and December 2011. We randomly selected 289 sample points (87 RDVC, 60 WBVC and 142 controls) separated by at least 500 metres from the next closest point and measured 19 variables that could potentially influence the vehicle collisions. We detected variations in the frequency of RDVC on a monthly basis, and WBVC was higher at weekends but no significant differences were detected on a monthly basis. UVC were more likely to occur at locations where sinuosity of the road, velocity, surface of shrub and deciduous forest area were greater, the presence of fences entered with positive relationship and distance to the nearest building was less. RDVC were more likely to occur at locations where timber forest area increased and distance to the nearest building decreased and WBVC was related to open fields cover and also to the presence of fences. Sinuosity and velocity entered in both cases as significant factors. Major roads, in which the traffic volume is greater and faster, caused more accidents with ungulates than secondary roads. Nowadays, the high frequency of ungulate road-kills deserves a new strategy in order to adapt infrastructure and adopt mitigation measures.

Is Al2Cl6 aromatic? Cautions in superficial NICS interpretation.

In this article, we employed the induced magnetic field method to show that the Al2X6 (X = F, Cl, Br, I) clusters cannot be classified as aromatic systems. Interestingly, even nucleus independent chemical shift (NICS) reveals the same conclusion when analyzed in greater detail, showing that a superficial analysis of this index can easily lead to incorrect interpretations. In view of the fact that the NICS index is extensively used by computational and theoretically oriented experimental chemists, this is an important warning against superficial analyses, as it can lead to erroneous chemical interpretation.

Radioterapia paliativa a dosis masiva en cáncer avanzado irresecable de cabeza y cuello / Palliative radiation therapy at massive dose in unresectable advanced head and neck cancer

Se presentan 02 pacientes con cáncer de cabeza y cuello localmente avanzado e irresecable que fueron admitidos en el Instituto Nacional de Enfermedades Neoplásicas; el primero con el diagnóstico histológico de carcinoma epidermoide y el segundo con sarcoma fusocelular. A ambos pacientes se les brindo tratamiento con radioterapia externa en dosis masiva de 10Gy/sesión/mes, obteniendo como resultado una marcada disminución del volumen tumoral y con ello una mejora de la calidad de vida según lo referido por los pacientes. Se optó por este esquema de tratamiento por lo avanzado de la enfermedad, alto riesgo de pérdida de vista e intención paliativa. (AU)

We present 02 patients with head and neck cancer, locally advanced, unresectable who were admitted to the National Institute of Neoplastic Diseases, the first with the histological diagnosis of squamous cell carcinoma and spindle cell sarcoma second. Both patients were provided with external radiotherapy 10Gy/sesión/mes massive doses, resulting in a marked decrease in tumor volume and thereby improving the quality of life as reported by patients. We chose this treatment schedule so advanced disease, high risk of vision loss and palliative intent.(AU)

Is hormone therapy a protective factor for late hematuria after high-dose radiotherapy in prostate cancer?

OBJECTIVES: To identify potential clinical and dosimetric factors predictive of a higher risk of grade 2 or higher late hematuria in patients with prostate cancer treated with high-dose radiotherapy. METHODS: For this purpose, we have analyzed 229 T1c-T3b prostate cancer patients treated with 3-dimensional conformal radiotherapy (3DCRT) in a prospective dose escalation study and with a minimum follow-up of 1 year. The mean radiation dose was 79 Gy (range 72.1 to 84.14 Gy) and the mean follow-up was 47 months (range 14 to 95). One hundred eighteen patients also received androgen deprivation (AD) for high-risk disease. Univariate and multivariate analysis (MVA) were performed to identify variables significantly associated with late hematuria. RESULTS: Of the 31 (14%) patients with grade 2 or higher genitourinary toxicity, hematuria was the main symptom in 24 (10.5%) with only 1 patient (0.5%) experiencing grade 3 hematuria. On statistical analysis, all the dosimetric parameters failed to show a significant correlation with grade 2 or higher hematuria. On MVA, prior transurethral resection of the prostate (TURP) was significantly associated with a higher risk of late hematuria (relative risk [RR] = 2.8; P = 0.026), whereas long-term AD was correlated with a significantly decreased risk (RR = 0.21; P = 0.019). CONCLUSIONS: TURP was a relevant factor increasing 3 times the risk of late hematuria in prostate cancer patients treated with 3DCRT. Conversely, long-term AD resulted in a protective factor decreasing 5 times the risk of late hematuria. To our knowledge, this is the first study reporting a protecting effect of long-term hormones in late toxicity after radiotherapy.

Experimental validation tests of fast Fourier transform convolution and multigrid superposition algorithms for dose calculation in low-density media.

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: Modern conformal radiotherapy treatments require accurate dose calculation in any relevant clinical situation. One of these situations is the treatment of lung tumors, where irradiation has to be planned under challenging conditions for dose calculation. In this study we assess the errors in dose values predicted by fast Fourier transform convolution (FFTC) and multigrid superposition (MGS) algorithms implemented in a commercial treatment planning system (TPS). MATERIALS AND METHODS: FFTC and MGS algorithms were used in a FOCUS 3.0.0 (Computerized Medical Systems, USA) to calculate doses in treatment plans using photon beams of 6 and 25 MV nominal energy from a Saturne 43 linac (GE Medical Systems, USA). A 10x10-cm beam irradiating a mediastinum-lung and a thoracic wall-lung-thoracic wall modeled geometry was assessed. The calculated data were compared with measurements performed with radiographic films and ionization chamber. RESULTS: FFTC algorithm leads to an average deviation from ionometric dose measurements of over 10%. Discrepancies between measured and calculated beam fringe values (distance between 50 and 90% isodose lines) of up to 8 mm were observed. For MGS algorithm, all the points assessed in both geometries fulfilled the 3%-3 mm accuracy criteria and the average deviation of absolute dose was about 1%. A maximum of 3 mm deviation in the beam fringe for any depth was found and was within 2 mm beyond the buildup region. Deviations between ionometric and film measurements were within 3%. CONCLUSIONS: MGS algorithm assesses with reasonable accuracy dose distributions and absolute dose in inhomogeneous regions like the lung region. Therefore, and respecting the inhomogeneity dose calculation, the system could be used in routine clinical practice and in dose-escalation programs. This is not true in the case of FFTC algorithm which leads to errors greater than 10% in the absolute dose calculation and underestimates the beam fringe by up to 8 mm.

La familia del paciente internado en la Unidad de Cuidados Intensivos / Family of patients in Intensive Care Units

Se estableció como objetivo conocer las opiniones, sentimientos y expectativas de las familias de los pacientes internados en una Unidad de Cuidados Intensivos y su incidencia en el relacionamiento con la Unidad. Se realizó un estudio prospectivo, longitudinal, observacional cuanticualitativo. Se recolectó la información a través de un formulario y de entrevistas realizadas por psicólogo. Los datos cuantitativos fueron analizados con métodos estadísticos y los cualitativos fueron analizados por la sicóloga de la Unidad. Se encuestaron 94 familias en el período de un año, vinculadas a pacientes con más de cinco días de internación. Se describieron el perfil del paciente, el de la familia, el informe médico y el médico informante. Los datos mostraron las diferencias entre la realidad objetiva del médico y la subjetiva de la familia, definida por sus miedos y expectativas. Se concluyó que el momento del informe médico a la familia constituye un acto terapéutico y es fundamental para el más adecuado relacionamiento entre la familia y la Unidad. Se realizan sugerencias basadas en la experiencia recabada