The use of high performance composite materials provides a substantial performance improvement for microrobotics. Such materials have great benefits over common MEMs materials such as better fracture toughness and fatigue properties than semiconductors, and higher stiffness to weight ratios than most metals. Composite structures yield remarkable improvements in microrobotic links and joints, as...

According to Popescu’s recent analysis [Phys. Rev. Lett. 72, 797 (1994)], nonideal measurements, rather than ideal ones, may be emore sensitive to reveal nonlocal correlations between distant parts of composite quantum systems. The outcome statistics of joint nonideal measurements on local states should by definition admit local hidden variable models. We prove that the density operator of a lo...

Online and offline monitoring of composite bolted joints under tensile load were investigated using piezoelectric transducers. The relationships between Lamb wave signals, pre-tightening force, the applied tensile load, as well as the failure modes were investigated. Results indicated that S0/A0 wave amplitudes decrease with the increasing of load. Relationships between damage features and S0/A...

OBJECTIVES Counting the number of tender and swollen joints is an important aspect of assessing patients with an inflammatory arthritis. We provide a comprehensive overview of joint counts in inflammatory arthritis. This spans how they are undertaken, their use in clinical and research settings, their limitations and standardisation and who can perform them. METHODS We reviewed the literature...

OBJECTIVES This study aimed to assess the acceptability and feasibility of a new tailored intervention for informal caregivers: the Ensemble (Together) program. METHODS An open pre-post within-subject comparison pilot study was conducted. Twenty-one informal caregivers completed the five-session Ensemble program. Two measurement tools were used: The Brief Symptom Inventory (BSI) and the Life ...

A block composite likelihood is developed for estimation and prediction in large spatial datasets. The composite likelihood is constructed from the joint densities of pairs of adjacent spatial blocks. This allows large datasets to be split into many smaller datasets, each of which can be evaluated separately, and combined through a simple summation. Estimates for unknown parameters are obtained...

The requirement for an extracapsular resection is indicated for malignant bone tumors that have disseminated intracapsularly. Extracapsular resections are often performed for malignant tumors arising from the knee joint, but there are relatively few studies that have described an extracapsular resection of a tumor arising from the hip joint. The present study describes a case of extracapsular w...

Sludge dewatering can effectively reduce the volume and mass of sludge for subsequent treatment and disposal. The work validated the potential of Fenton's reagent combined with dodecyl dimethyl benzyl ammonium chloride (DDBAC) in improving sludge dewaterability and proposed the mechanism of joint conditioning. The composite conditioner dosage was optimized using response surface methodology. Re...

BACKGROUND This study sought to determine whether several metatarsophalangeal (MTP) fusion techniques require complete immobilization or if some level of weight-bearing could be recommended after surgery. A comparison of synthetic composite to actual bone was included in order to examine the validity of the testing conditions. METHODS Four MTP fusion modalities were tested in synthetic compos...

OBJECTIVE This randomized double-blind clinical trial compared the performance of posterior composite restorations with or without bevel, after 1-year follow-up. MATERIAL AND METHODS Thirteen volunteers requiring at least two posterior composite restorations were selected. Twenty-nine cavities were performed, comprising 14 without bevel (butt joint) and 15 with bevel preparation of the enamel...