Latest data suggest that placental growth factor (PLGF), growth differentiation factor-15 (GDF-15) and hepatic growth factor (HGF) are involved in hepatic fibrogenesis. Diagnostic performance of these markers for non-invasive liver fibrosis prediction was evaluated based on liver histology and stiffness. In total 834 patients were recruited. Receiver-operating-characteristics were used to defin...

BACKGROUND Finite element analysis (FEA) of the proximal femur has been previously validated with large mesh size, but these were insufficient to simulate the model with small implants in recent studies. This study aimed to validate the proximal femoral computed tomography (CT)-based specimen-specific FEA model with smaller mesh size using fresh frozen cadavers. METHODS Twenty proximal femora...

This study aims to facilitate damage detection in concrete bridge girders without the need for visual inspection while minimizing field measurements. Beams with different material parameters and cracking patterns are modeled using mechanics-based ABAQUS finite element analysis software program in order to obtain stiffness values at specified nodes. The resulting database is then used to train a...

A theoretical investigation into the prediction and measurement of squeeze film stiffness and damping for double hole entry hybrid journal bearings has been undertaken together with a review of previous work to identify critical bearing parameters. The analysis used a partial differentiation of the Poiseuille and Hagen-Poiseuille flow equations to develop a mathematical model for the bearing sq...

This paper provides the background to the 50th Rankine Lecture. It considers the growth in emphasis of the prediction of ground displacements during design in the past two decades of the 20th century, as a result of the lessons learnt from field observations. The historical development of the theory of elasticity is then described, as are the constitutive frameworks within which it has been pro...

We investigate the relation between grip force and grip stiffness for the human hand with and without voluntary cocontraction. Apart from gaining biomechanical insight, this issue is particularly relevant for variable-stiffness robotic systems, which can independently control the two parameters, but for which no clear methods exist to design or efficiently exploit them. Subjects were asked in o...

The relationships between ankle plantar flexor musculotendinous stiffness (MTS) and performance in a countermovement vertical jump (CMJ) and maximal rate of torque development (MRTD) were studied in 27 active men. MTS was studied by means of quick releases at 20 (S0.2), 40 (S0.4), 60 (S0.6), and 80% (S0.8) of maximal voluntary torque (T(MVC)). CMJ was not correlated with strength indices but wa...

original article   introduction: a practical solution which is sometimes efficient for noise control in the receiver locations is to enclose workers in an acoustic cabin. accordingly, prediction of the noise insulation performance is regarded as an important aspect of the design a personnel cabin. this study empirically aims to design an acoustic cabin using sandwich panels in a typical metal i...