Objective: To evaluate the consistency of patterns and pattern identification(PI), and the improvement in the diagnosis of blood stasis after the standard operating procedures(SOPs) were enhanced by using a diagn...Objective: To evaluate the consistency of patterns and pattern identification(PI), and the improvement in the diagnosis of blood stasis after the standard operating procedures(SOPs) were enhanced by using a diagnostic flowchart. Methods: A total of 358 subjects who were admitted by the Jaseng Hospital of Korean Medicine between June 2013 and December 2014 were included in the study. Each patient was independently diagnosed by two experts from the same department. In 2014, the SOPs included the use of a diagnostic flowchart for each indicator. Inter-observer consistency was assessed by simple percent agreement and by the kappa and AC1 statistics. Results: The improvements in inter-observer agreement for the indicators(for al patients) and PI were greater in 2014 than in 2013. In 2013, the j-value measure of agreement between the two experts ranged from "poor"(κ=–0.051) to "good"(κ=0.968). The AC1 measure of agreement between the experts was generally high for the indicators and ranged from –0.010 to 0.978. In most cases, agreement was considerably lower when it was assessed by the j-values compared with the AC1 values. In 2014, the j-value measure of agreement on the indicators(for the subjects) general y ranged from poor to good, with the values ranging from –0.007 to 0.994. Moreover, the AC1 measure of agreement between the experts was general y high for al of the indicators and ranged from "moderate"(AC1=0.408) to "excel ent"(AC1=0.996). Conclusions: In four examinations, there was moderate agreement between the clinicians on the PI indicators of blood stasis. To improve clinician consistency(e.g., in the diagnostic criteria used), it is necessary to analyse the reasons for inconsistency and to improve clinician training.(Trial registration No. KCT0000916)展开更多
This paper investigates the reliability of internal marine combustion engines using an integrated approach that combines Fault Tree Analysis(FTA)and Bayesian Networks(BN).FTA provides a structured,top-down method for ...This paper investigates the reliability of internal marine combustion engines using an integrated approach that combines Fault Tree Analysis(FTA)and Bayesian Networks(BN).FTA provides a structured,top-down method for identifying critical failure modes and their root causes,while BN introduces flexibility in probabilistic reasoning,enabling dynamic updates based on new evidence.This dual methodology overcomes the limitations of static FTA models,offering a comprehensive framework for system reliability analysis.Critical failures,including External Leakage(ELU),Failure to Start(FTS),and Overheating(OHE),were identified as key risks.By incorporating redundancy into high-risk components such as pumps and batteries,the likelihood of these failures was significantly reduced.For instance,redundant pumps reduced the probability of ELU by 31.88%,while additional batteries decreased the occurrence of FTS by 36.45%.The results underscore the practical benefits of combining FTA and BN for enhancing system reliability,particularly in maritime applications where operational safety and efficiency are critical.This research provides valuable insights for maintenance planning and highlights the importance of redundancy in critical systems,especially as the industry transitions toward more autonomous vessels.展开更多
To study the durability of concrete in harsh environments in Northwest China,concrete was prepared with various durability-improving materials such as concrete anti-erosion inhibitor(SBT-TIA),acrylate polymer(AP),supe...To study the durability of concrete in harsh environments in Northwest China,concrete was prepared with various durability-improving materials such as concrete anti-erosion inhibitor(SBT-TIA),acrylate polymer(AP),super absorbent resin(SAP).The erosion mode and internal deterioration mechanism under salt freeze-thaw cycle and dry-wet cycle were explored.The results show that the addition of enhancing materials can effectively improve the resistance of concrete to salt freezing and sulfate erosion:the relevant indexes of concrete added with X-AP and T-AP are improved after salt freeze-thaw cycles;concrete added with SBTTIA shows optimal sulfate corrosion resistance;and concrete added with AP displays the best resistance to salt freezing.Microanalysis shows that the increase in the number of cycles decreases the generation of internal hydration products and defects in concrete mixed with enhancing materials and improves the related indexes.Based on the Wiener model analysis,the reliability of concrete with different lithologies and enhancing materials is improved,which may provide a reference for the application of manufactured sand concrete and enhancing materials in Northwest China,especially for the study of the improvement effects and mechanism of enhancing materials on the performance of concrete.展开更多
Reliability-based design optimization (RBDO) is intrinsically a double-loop procedure since it involves an overall optimization and an iterative reliability assessment at each search point. Due to the double-loop pr...Reliability-based design optimization (RBDO) is intrinsically a double-loop procedure since it involves an overall optimization and an iterative reliability assessment at each search point. Due to the double-loop procedure, the computational expense of RBDO is normally very high. Current RBDO research focuses on problems with explicitly expressed performance functions and readily available gradients. This paper addresses a more challenging type of RBDO problem in which the performance functions are computation intensive. These computation intensive functions are often considered as a "black-box" and their gradients are not available or not reliable. On the basis of the reliable design space (RDS) concept proposed earlier by the authors, this paper proposes a Reliable Space Pursuing (RSP) approach, in which RDS is first identified and then gradually refined while optimization is performed. It fundamentally avoids the nested optimization and probabilistic assessment loop. Three well known RBDO problems from the literature are used for testing and demonstrating the effectiveness of the proposed RSP method.展开更多
Purpose: To assess the inter-observer agreement in reading adults chest radiographs (CXR) and determine the effectiveness of observers in radiographic diagnosis of pulmonary tuberculosis (PTB) in a tuberculosis endemi...Purpose: To assess the inter-observer agreement in reading adults chest radiographs (CXR) and determine the effectiveness of observers in radiographic diagnosis of pulmonary tuberculosis (PTB) in a tuberculosis endemic area. Methods: A quasi-observational study was conducted in the Pneumology Department of Yaounde Jamot Hospital (Cameroon) from January to March 2014. This included six observers (two chest physicians, two radiologists, two end-training residents in medical imaging) and 47 frontal CXRs (4 of diffuse interstitial lung disease, 6 normal, 7 of lung cancers, 7 of bacterial pneumonia, 23 of PTB). The sample size was calculated on the basis of an expected 0.47 Kappa with a spread of 0.13 (α = 5%, CI = 95%) for six observers and five diagnostic items. The analysis of concordance was focused on the detection of nodules, cavitary lesions, pleural effusion, adenomegaly and diagnosis of PTB and lung cancer. These intervals of kappa coefficient were considered: discordance (0.81). Results: The average score for the detection of caverns was the highest (58.3%) followed by that of the correct diagnosis of tuberculosis (49.3%). Pneumologists had the highest proportions of correct diagnosis of tuberculosis (69.6% and 73.9%) and better inter-observer agreement (k = 0.71) for PTB diagnosis. Observers were more in agreement for the detection of nodules (0.32 - 0.74), adenomegalies (0.43 - 0.69), and for the diagnosis of cancer (0.22 - 1) than for the diagnosis of tuberculosis (0.19 - 0.71). Disagreements were more frequent for the detection of pleural effusions (-0.08 - 0.73). Conclusion: The inter-observer agreement varies with the type of lesions and diagnosis. Pneumologists were most effective for the diagnosis of pulmonary tuberculosis. Observers were more in agreement for the detection of nodules and the diagnosis of cancer than for the diagnosis of pulmonary tuberculosis.展开更多
AIM: To assess the inter-observer agreement and reliability as well as intra-observer repeatability for lacrimal scintigraphy(LS) reports with and without considering the irrigation test results.METHODS: A prospective...AIM: To assess the inter-observer agreement and reliability as well as intra-observer repeatability for lacrimal scintigraphy(LS) reports with and without considering the irrigation test results.METHODS: A prospective, observational, cross sectional study. Two masked clinicians(lacrimal surgeon and nuclear medicine specialist) independently reported 100 LS images(50 patients of >6 years of age with unilateral anophthalmic socket) in a university hospital. The lacrimal surgeon performed a diagnostic irrigation test and repeated the report of the same LS images 2 y after the first report(intra-observer agreement). A weighted Kappa analysis was performed to determine inter-observer agreement and reliability as well as intra-observer repeatability for the type(normal, partial and complete obstruction) and location(presac, preduct, and intraduct) of the obstruction. Subgroup analysis was also performed with consideration of irrigation test results. RESULTS: A significantly moderate agreement was found between lacrimal surgeon and nuclear medicine specialist for both the type(Kappa=0.55) and location(Kappa=0.48) of obstruction. Agreement values were higher for the type(Kappa=0.61 vs 0.41) and location(Kappa=0.56 vs 0.31) of obstruction in cases with normal than abnormal irrigation test. Strong and significant intraobserver(lacrimal surgeon) repeatability was found for both the type(Kappa=0.66) and location(Kappa=0.69) of obstruction. LS showed no to slight reliability based on irrigation test.CONCLUSION: A moderate agreement is found between lacrimal surgeon and nuclear medicine specialist regarding the interpretation of LS suggesting the importance ofconsensus groups among nuclear medicine specialists and lacrimal surgeons to create a common language for interpretation of LS. Intra-observer repeatability is strong for the lacrimal surgeon.展开更多
Objective To assess inter-observer variations of pulmonary nodule marking in routine clinical chest digital radiograph (DR) softcopy reading by using a lung nodule computer toolkit.Methods A total of 601 chest posteri...Objective To assess inter-observer variations of pulmonary nodule marking in routine clinical chest digital radiograph (DR) softcopy reading by using a lung nodule computer toolkit.Methods A total of 601 chest posterior-anterior DR images were randomly selected from routine outpatient screening in Peking Union Medical College Hospital. Two chest radiologists with experience more than ten years were first asked to read the images and mark all suspicious nodules independently by using computer toolkit IQQA-Chest, and to indicate the likelihood for each nodule detected. They were also asked to draw the boundary of the identified nodule manually on an enlarged region of interest, which was instantly analyzed by IQQA-Chest. Two sets of diagnostic reports, including the marked nodules, likelihood, manually drawn boundaries, quantitative measurements, and radiologists’ names, were automatically generated and stored by the computer system. One week later, the two radiologists read the same images together by using the same computer toolkit without referring to their previous reading results. Marking procedure was the same except that consensus was reached for each suspicious region. Statistical analysis tools provided in the IQQA-Chest were used to compare all the three sets of reading results.Results In the independent readings, Reader 1 detected 409 nodules with a mean diameter of 12.4 mm in 241 patients, and Reader 2 detected 401 nodules with a mean diameter of 12.6 mm in 253 patients. In the consensus reading, a total of 352 nodules with a mean diameter of 12.4 mm were detected in 220 patients. Totally, 42.3% of Reader 1’s and 45.1% of Reader 2’s marks were confirmed by the consensus reading. About 40% of each reader’s marks agreed with the other. There were only 130 (14.4%) out of the total 904 unique nodules were confirmed by both readers and the consensus reading. Moreover, 5.6% (51/904) of the marked regions were rated identical likelihood in all three readings. Statistical analysis showed significant differences between Readers 1 and 2, and between consensus and Reader 2 in determining the likelihood of the marks (P<0.01), but not between consensus and Reader 1. No significant difference in terms of size was observed in nodule segmentation between either two of the three readings. Conclusion Large variations in nodule marking and nodule-likelihood determination but not in nodule size were observed between experts as well as between single-person reading and consensus reading.展开更多
Introduction: To investigate the inter-observer and inter-modality variabilities of two imaging guided equipments—cone-beam computed tomography (CBCT) and ultrasound (US) in kidney stereotactic body radiotherapy. Met...Introduction: To investigate the inter-observer and inter-modality variabilities of two imaging guided equipments—cone-beam computed tomography (CBCT) and ultrasound (US) in kidney stereotactic body radiotherapy. Methods: A renal metastasis case implanted with three gold anchor fiducial markers was firstly scanned by US to acquire a 3-dimension US image and followed by 4-dimension CBCT in every fraction. Seven observers retrospectively registered the pre-treatment images with the corresponding reference images based on the gold markers. Registration uncertainty of the observers between two imaging modalities was evaluated. Results: The uncertainties over whole treatment course in CBCT were 0.88 mm, 1.94 mm and 0.86 mm in lateral, longitudinal and vertical directions respectively;while 0.8 mm, 0.97 mm and 1.36 mm were found in US. Conclusion: The greatest uncertainty was found in longitudinal direction in CBCT due to the fact that the respiration motion is the most rigorous in cranial-caudal direction. In US, since the probe was hold almost in upright position, the strong echo in vertical direction was attributed to the greatest uncertainty for such direction.展开更多
<strong>Purpose:</strong><span style="font-family:;" "=""><span style="font-family:Verdana;"> Radiotherapy is a widely accepted standard of care for early-sta...<strong>Purpose:</strong><span style="font-family:;" "=""><span style="font-family:Verdana;"> Radiotherapy is a widely accepted standard of care for early-stage prostate cancer, and it is believed that the plan quality and treatment outcome are associated with contour accuracy of both the target and organs-at-risk (OAR). The purposes of this study are to 1) assess geometric and dosimetric uncertainties due to inter-observer contour variabilities and 2) evaluate the effectiveness of geometric indicators to predict target dosimetry in prostate radiotherapy. </span><b><span style="font-family:Verdana;">Methods:</span></b><span style="font-family:Verdana;"> Twenty prostate patients were selected for this retrospective study. Five experienced clinicians created unique structure sets containing prostate, seminal vesicles, bladder, and rectum for each patient. A fully automated script and knowledge-based planning routine were utilized to create standardized and unbiased plans that could be used to evaluate changes in isodose distributions due to inter-observer variability in structure segmentation. Plans were created on a “gold-standard” structure set, as well as on each of the user-defined structure sets. </span><b><span style="font-family:Verdana;">Results:</span></b><span style="font-family:Verdana;"> Inter-observer variability of contours during structure segmentation was very low for clearly defined organs such as the bladder but increased for organs without well-defined borders (prostate, seminal vesicles, and rectum). For plans generated with the user-defined structure sets, strong/moderate correlations were observed between the geometric indicators for target structure agreement and target coverage for both low-risk and intermediate-risk patient groups, while OAR indicators showed no correlation to final dosimetry. </span><b><span style="font-family:Verdana;">Conclusions:</span></b><span style="font-family:Verdana;"> Target delineation is crucial in order to maintain adequate dosimetric coverage regardless of the associated inter-observer uncertainties in OAR contours that had a limited impact upon final dosimetry.</span></span>展开更多
Aims & Objectives: Aim of the study was to evaluate inter-observer variability in interpretation of Gallium-68 labeled Prostate Specific Membrane Antigen sub-type 11 (68Ga-PSMA-11) Positron Emission Tomography-Com...Aims & Objectives: Aim of the study was to evaluate inter-observer variability in interpretation of Gallium-68 labeled Prostate Specific Membrane Antigen sub-type 11 (68Ga-PSMA-11) Positron Emission Tomography-Computed Tomography PET_CT scan according to Prostate Cancer Molecular Imaging Standardized Evaluation (PROMISE) criteria. Method and Materials: Forty-four consecutive patients of prostate cancer were prospectively studied between the duration of January 2021 to June 2021 at Institute of Nuclear Medicine and Oncology (INMOL), Lahore. All PET-CT scans were assessed by a researcher and 3 nuclear physicians and divided into two groups, interpreted in two phases. In the first phase, each group independently evaluated the scans while in the second phase, a consensus meeting was held and all the cases with discordance were discussed. Cohen’s Kappa test was used to measure interobserver variability with the cut-off of K’s alpha Results: The study showed 41 out of 44 scans with positive PSMA findings while 03 scans were negative for any PSMA avid disease. In the first phase of image analysis, the level of agreement was slight in T stage (Kappa = 0.068, p = 0.65), moderate in the miN stage (Kappa = 0.46, p = 0.02) and substantial in miM stage (Kappa = 0.77, p ≤ 0.001) was seen. For PSMA score, overall agreement was substantial agreement (Kappa = 0.64, p Conclusion: Remarkable inter-observer agreement was seen in PROMISE criteria.展开更多
Autonomous Underwater Vehicles(AUVs)are pivotal for deep-sea exploration and resource exploitation,yet their reliability in extreme underwater environments remains a critical barrier to widespread deployment.Through s...Autonomous Underwater Vehicles(AUVs)are pivotal for deep-sea exploration and resource exploitation,yet their reliability in extreme underwater environments remains a critical barrier to widespread deployment.Through systematic analysis of 150 peer-reviewed studies employing mixed-methods research,this review yields three principal advancements to the reliability analysis of AUVs.First,based on the hierarchical functional division of AUVs into six subsystems(propulsion system,navigation system,communication system,power system,environmental detection system,and emergency system),this study systematically identifies the primary failure modes and potential failure causes of each subsystem,providing theoretical support for fault diagnosis and reliability optimization.Subsequently,a comprehensive review of AUV reliability analysis methods is conducted from three perspectives:analytical methods,simulated methods,and surrogate model methods.The applicability and limitations of each method are critically analyzed to offer insights into their suitability for engineering applications.Finally,the study highlights key challenges and research hotpots in AUV reliability analysis,including reliability analysis under limited data,AI-driven reliability analysis,and human reliability analysis.Furthermore,the potential of multi-sensor data fusion,edge computing,and advanced materials in enhancing AUV environmental adaptability and reliability is explored.展开更多
BACKGROUND During the gradual decline of physical and social functioning associated with end-stage renal disease,patients might experience a premonition of impending death,resulting in a series of pre-mourning grief r...BACKGROUND During the gradual decline of physical and social functioning associated with end-stage renal disease,patients might experience a premonition of impending death,resulting in a series of pre-mourning grief responses called preparatory grief.The preparatory grief in advanced cancer patients(PGAC)scale is the most widely used preparatory grief scale for patients on hemodialysis in China.AIM To verify the reliability and validity of the PGAC scale in patients on hemodialysis.METHODS In total,327 patients undergoing regular hemodialysis in the blood purification center of three grade-A tertiary hospitals in Guangdong and Guizhou provinces were selected by convenience sampling.The assessment was administered using the general information questionnaire and the Chinese version of PGAC.SPSS 25.0 and Amos 24.0 were used for item analysis,confirmatory factor analysis(CFA),convergent validity,and internal consistency reliability estimation.RESULTS In the modified Chinese version of PGAC,7 dimensions covering 27 total items were retained.CFA revealed a good fit of the factor model(chi-square degree of freedom=2.056,standardized root mean square residual=0.0479,root mean square error of approximation=0.0570,GFI=0.872,AGFI=0.841,IFI=0.931,CFI=0.930,TLI=0.919).The factor loadings of the items ranged 0.503-0.884.The composite reliability ranged 0.664-0.914,and the average variance extracted ranged 0.366-0.747.Cronbach’sαof the scale was 0.945,and Cronbach’sαfor various dimensions ranged 0.662-0.914.CONCLUSION The modified PGAC has good reliability and validity,and it can effectively measure preparatory grief in patients on hemodialysis.展开更多
Antarctic telescopes,especially those located at Dome A,face significant reliability challenges owing to the extremely harsh working environment,among which the reliability of the control system is critical in ensurin...Antarctic telescopes,especially those located at Dome A,face significant reliability challenges owing to the extremely harsh working environment,among which the reliability of the control system is critical in ensuring stable operation.This paper describes various factors affecting the reliability of Antarctic telescopes,as well as the challenges of reliability improvement.Combined with the development of Antarctic telescopes and the experience of Antarctic scientific expeditions,we introduce,in detail,the optimization strategy for reliability enhancement,including the hardware layer,software layer,modular design to facilitate maintenance,and reliability management.The current status of the Antarctic Survey Telescope(AST3)is also briefly introduced,along with future development plans.We aim to provide ideas for the reliability design of Antarctic telescopes and provide technical support for the development of future Antarctic telescopes.展开更多
Reliability analysis of soil slopes under rainfall is an important task for landslide risk assessment.Previous studies rarely contribute to the probabilistic analysis of slope stability under rainfall with reinforceme...Reliability analysis of soil slopes under rainfall is an important task for landslide risk assessment.Previous studies rarely contribute to the probabilistic analysis of slope stability under rainfall with reinforcement.A new method is suggested for reliability analysis of soil slopes stabilized with piles under rainfall.First,an efficient numerical model is exploited for slope stability analysis,where two types of slope failure modes,i.e.,plastic flow and local failure are considered.To address the blocking effect of piles during seepage analysis,the equivalent hydraulic conductivity of the pile area is estimated according to the effective medium theory.The stabilizing force of piles is investigated by an analytical approach.For saving computational effort,the response surface is established based on a multi-class classification model to predict two types of slope failure modes.Finally,uncertainties in soil parameters and rainfall events are both modelled,and the failure probability of soil slopes within a given time period is assessed through Monte Carlo simulation.An illustrative example is used to demonstrate the performance of the suggested method.It is found that the slope is mainly controlled by local failure.As the pile spacing increases,the likelihood of plastic flow significantly increases.As the piles are located near the slope crest,plastic flow is effectively prevented and the slope is better stabilized against rainfall.If rainfall uncertainties are not considered,the slope failure probability is significantly overestimated.Overall,this study can provide a useful guidance for the design of pile-stabilized slopes against rainfall infiltration.展开更多
The published article titled“Comparison of Structural Probabilistic and Non-Probabilistic Reliability Computational Methods under Big Data Condition”[1]has been retracted from Structural Durability&Health Monito...The published article titled“Comparison of Structural Probabilistic and Non-Probabilistic Reliability Computational Methods under Big Data Condition”[1]has been retracted from Structural Durability&Health Monitoring(SDHM),Vol.16,No.2,2022,pp.129–143.展开更多
The dynamic avalanche effect is a critical factor influencing the performance and reliability of the field-stop insulated gate bipolar transistors(FS-IGBT).Unclamped inductive switching(UIS)is the primary method for t...The dynamic avalanche effect is a critical factor influencing the performance and reliability of the field-stop insulated gate bipolar transistors(FS-IGBT).Unclamped inductive switching(UIS)is the primary method for testing the dynamic avalanche capability of FS-IGBTs.Numerous studies have demonstrated that factors such as device structure,avalanche-generating current filaments,and electrical parameters influence the dynamic avalanche effect of the FS-IGBT.However,few studies have focused on enhancing the avalanche reliability of the FS-IGBT by adjusting circuit parameters during operation.In this paper,the dynamic avalanche effect of the FS-IGBT under UIS conditions is comprehensively investigated through a series of comparative experiments with varying circuit parameters,including bus voltage V_(DC),gate voltage V_(G),gate resistance R_(g),load inductance L,and temperature TC.Furthermore,a method to enhance the dynamic avalanche reliability of the FS-IGBT under UIS by optimizing circuit parameters is proposed.In practical applications,reducing gate voltage,increasing load inductance,and lowering temperature can effectively improve the dynamic avalanche capability of the FS-IGBT.展开更多
Continuously increasing inflation is a major challenge in presenting reliable and relevant financial reports,especially in developing countries like Indonesia.This study aims to analyze the role of inflation accountin...Continuously increasing inflation is a major challenge in presenting reliable and relevant financial reports,especially in developing countries like Indonesia.This study aims to analyze the role of inflation accounting in increasing the reliability of financial reports during times of high inflation.With a qualitative-descriptive approach,this research examines two main methods in inflation accounting,namely General Price Level Accounting(GPLA)and Current Cost Accounting(CCA),and their impact on the value of assets,liabilities,income,and costs.The analysis results show that historical cost-based financial reports do not reflect actual economic conditions during inflation,so they can be misleading in decision making.The application of inflation accounting,through adjustments to purchasing power and current prices,has been proven to be able to increase the relevance and reliability of financial information.However,limitations in implementation in Indonesia are due to the lack of regulations and practical understanding regarding this method.Therefore,the application of inflation accounting is important in supporting the quality of financial reports and more accurate decision making amidst economic instability.展开更多
In this paper,an improved error-rate sliding window decoder is proposed for spatially coupled low-density parity-check(SC-LDPC)codes.For the conventional sliding window decoder,the message retention mechanism causes u...In this paper,an improved error-rate sliding window decoder is proposed for spatially coupled low-density parity-check(SC-LDPC)codes.For the conventional sliding window decoder,the message retention mechanism causes unreliable messages along the edges of belief propagation(BP)decoding in the current window to be kept for subsequent window decoding.To improve the reliability of the retained messages during the window transition,a reliable termination method is embedded,where the retained messages undergo more reliable parity checks.Additionally,decoding failure is unavoidable and even causes error propagation when the number of errors exceeds the error-correcting capability of the window.To mitigate this problem,a channel value reuse mechanism is designed,where the received channel values are utilized to reinitialize the window.Furthermore,considering the complexity and performance of decoding,a feasible sliding optimized window decoding(SOWD)scheme is introduced.Finally,simulation results confirm the superior performance of the proposed SOWD scheme in both the waterfall and error floor regions.This work has great potential in the applications of wireless optical communication and fiber optic communication.展开更多
BACKGROUND The Victorian institute of sports assessment for patellar tendons questionnaire(VISA-P),a valid tool for patellar tendinopathy,has been used for patellofemoral pain(PFP).AIM To validate VISA-P in PFP.METHOD...BACKGROUND The Victorian institute of sports assessment for patellar tendons questionnaire(VISA-P),a valid tool for patellar tendinopathy,has been used for patellofemoral pain(PFP).AIM To validate VISA-P in PFP.METHODS Study of validity,responsiveness and feasibility following COSMIN.Inclusion criteria:Subjects with PFP,aged 18 to 55.Agreement among 10 experts on the relevance and clarity of each item using Aiken's V coefficient determined content validity.An exploratory factorial analysis established structural validity.The correlation of VISA-P with knee injury and osteoarthritis outcome score for PFP and Osteoarthritis(KOOS-PF)and Kujala patellofemoral score(KPS;specific for PFP)analyzed the construct validity.Internal consistency was calculated with Cronbach'sαand test-retest reliability with the intraclass correlation coefficient(ICC).Feasibility considered the subjects'self-completion time.RESULTS The sample consisted of 103 knees from 73 subjects(47 female/26 male;aged 34.9±13 SD).The items were relevant and clear,with the exception of item-8,which didn't reach an acceptable level of agreement on clarity.Exploratory factorial analysis found a 2-factor solution,which explained 63.48%of the variance.VISAP achieved a strong and significant correlation with KOOS-PF(Spearman rho=0.826;P<0.001)and KPS(Spearman rho=0.771;P<0.001).The questionnaire showed adequate reliability(Cronbach'sα:0.752;ICC:0.934;P<0.0001;95%CI:0.902-0.955).The mean self-completion time was 232±0.52 SD seconds.CONCLUSION VISA-P proved to be valid and reliable to functionally assess PFP and/or chondromalacia patella.VISA-P is a feasible tool in the clinical and research environment,quick and easy to complete.展开更多
Bonding quality at the interface of solid propellant grains is crucial for the reliability and safety of solid rocket motors.Although bonding reliability is influenced by numerous factors,the lack of quantitative char...Bonding quality at the interface of solid propellant grains is crucial for the reliability and safety of solid rocket motors.Although bonding reliability is influenced by numerous factors,the lack of quantitative characterization of interface debonding mechanisms and the challenge of identifying key factors have made precise control of process variables difficult,resulting in unpredictable failure risks.This paper presents an improved fuzzy failure probability evaluation method that combines fuzzy fault tree analysis with expert knowledge,transforming process data into fuzzy failure probability to accurately assess debonding probabilities.The predictive model is constructed through a general regression neural network and optimized using the particle swarm optimization algorithm.Sensitivity analysis is conducted to identify key decision variables,including normal force,grain rotation speed,and adhesive weight,which are verified experimentally.Compared with classical models,the maximum error margin of the constructed reliability prediction model is only 0.02%,and it has high stability.The experimental results indicate that the main factors affecting debonding are processing roughness and coating uniformity.Controlling the key decision variable as the median resulted in a maximum increase of 200.7%in bonding strength.The feasibility of the improved method has been verified,confirming that identifying key decision variables has the ability to improve bonding reliability.The proposed method simplifies the evaluation of propellant interface bonding reliability under complex conditions by quantifying the relationship between process parameters and failure risk,enabling targeted management of key decision variables.展开更多
基金Supported by the Korea Institute of Oriental Medicine,Republic of Korea(No.K15111)
文摘Objective: To evaluate the consistency of patterns and pattern identification(PI), and the improvement in the diagnosis of blood stasis after the standard operating procedures(SOPs) were enhanced by using a diagnostic flowchart. Methods: A total of 358 subjects who were admitted by the Jaseng Hospital of Korean Medicine between June 2013 and December 2014 were included in the study. Each patient was independently diagnosed by two experts from the same department. In 2014, the SOPs included the use of a diagnostic flowchart for each indicator. Inter-observer consistency was assessed by simple percent agreement and by the kappa and AC1 statistics. Results: The improvements in inter-observer agreement for the indicators(for al patients) and PI were greater in 2014 than in 2013. In 2013, the j-value measure of agreement between the two experts ranged from "poor"(κ=–0.051) to "good"(κ=0.968). The AC1 measure of agreement between the experts was generally high for the indicators and ranged from –0.010 to 0.978. In most cases, agreement was considerably lower when it was assessed by the j-values compared with the AC1 values. In 2014, the j-value measure of agreement on the indicators(for the subjects) general y ranged from poor to good, with the values ranging from –0.007 to 0.994. Moreover, the AC1 measure of agreement between the experts was general y high for al of the indicators and ranged from "moderate"(AC1=0.408) to "excel ent"(AC1=0.996). Conclusions: In four examinations, there was moderate agreement between the clinicians on the PI indicators of blood stasis. To improve clinician consistency(e.g., in the diagnostic criteria used), it is necessary to analyse the reasons for inconsistency and to improve clinician training.(Trial registration No. KCT0000916)
基金supported by Istanbul Technical University(Project No.45698)supported through the“Young Researchers’Career Development Project-training of doctoral students”of the Croatian Science Foundation.
文摘This paper investigates the reliability of internal marine combustion engines using an integrated approach that combines Fault Tree Analysis(FTA)and Bayesian Networks(BN).FTA provides a structured,top-down method for identifying critical failure modes and their root causes,while BN introduces flexibility in probabilistic reasoning,enabling dynamic updates based on new evidence.This dual methodology overcomes the limitations of static FTA models,offering a comprehensive framework for system reliability analysis.Critical failures,including External Leakage(ELU),Failure to Start(FTS),and Overheating(OHE),were identified as key risks.By incorporating redundancy into high-risk components such as pumps and batteries,the likelihood of these failures was significantly reduced.For instance,redundant pumps reduced the probability of ELU by 31.88%,while additional batteries decreased the occurrence of FTS by 36.45%.The results underscore the practical benefits of combining FTA and BN for enhancing system reliability,particularly in maritime applications where operational safety and efficiency are critical.This research provides valuable insights for maintenance planning and highlights the importance of redundancy in critical systems,especially as the industry transitions toward more autonomous vessels.
基金Funded by the National Natural Science Foundation of China(No.52178216)the Research on the Durability and Application of High-performance Concrete for Highway Engineering in the Cold and Arid Salt Areas of Northwest China(No.2022-24)the Construction Project of the Scientific Research Platform of Provincial Enterprises Supported by the Capital Operating Budget of Gansu Province(No.2023GZ018)。
文摘To study the durability of concrete in harsh environments in Northwest China,concrete was prepared with various durability-improving materials such as concrete anti-erosion inhibitor(SBT-TIA),acrylate polymer(AP),super absorbent resin(SAP).The erosion mode and internal deterioration mechanism under salt freeze-thaw cycle and dry-wet cycle were explored.The results show that the addition of enhancing materials can effectively improve the resistance of concrete to salt freezing and sulfate erosion:the relevant indexes of concrete added with X-AP and T-AP are improved after salt freeze-thaw cycles;concrete added with SBTTIA shows optimal sulfate corrosion resistance;and concrete added with AP displays the best resistance to salt freezing.Microanalysis shows that the increase in the number of cycles decreases the generation of internal hydration products and defects in concrete mixed with enhancing materials and improves the related indexes.Based on the Wiener model analysis,the reliability of concrete with different lithologies and enhancing materials is improved,which may provide a reference for the application of manufactured sand concrete and enhancing materials in Northwest China,especially for the study of the improvement effects and mechanism of enhancing materials on the performance of concrete.
基金supported by Natural Science and Engineering Research Council (NSERC) of Canada
文摘Reliability-based design optimization (RBDO) is intrinsically a double-loop procedure since it involves an overall optimization and an iterative reliability assessment at each search point. Due to the double-loop procedure, the computational expense of RBDO is normally very high. Current RBDO research focuses on problems with explicitly expressed performance functions and readily available gradients. This paper addresses a more challenging type of RBDO problem in which the performance functions are computation intensive. These computation intensive functions are often considered as a "black-box" and their gradients are not available or not reliable. On the basis of the reliable design space (RDS) concept proposed earlier by the authors, this paper proposes a Reliable Space Pursuing (RSP) approach, in which RDS is first identified and then gradually refined while optimization is performed. It fundamentally avoids the nested optimization and probabilistic assessment loop. Three well known RBDO problems from the literature are used for testing and demonstrating the effectiveness of the proposed RSP method.
文摘Purpose: To assess the inter-observer agreement in reading adults chest radiographs (CXR) and determine the effectiveness of observers in radiographic diagnosis of pulmonary tuberculosis (PTB) in a tuberculosis endemic area. Methods: A quasi-observational study was conducted in the Pneumology Department of Yaounde Jamot Hospital (Cameroon) from January to March 2014. This included six observers (two chest physicians, two radiologists, two end-training residents in medical imaging) and 47 frontal CXRs (4 of diffuse interstitial lung disease, 6 normal, 7 of lung cancers, 7 of bacterial pneumonia, 23 of PTB). The sample size was calculated on the basis of an expected 0.47 Kappa with a spread of 0.13 (α = 5%, CI = 95%) for six observers and five diagnostic items. The analysis of concordance was focused on the detection of nodules, cavitary lesions, pleural effusion, adenomegaly and diagnosis of PTB and lung cancer. These intervals of kappa coefficient were considered: discordance (0.81). Results: The average score for the detection of caverns was the highest (58.3%) followed by that of the correct diagnosis of tuberculosis (49.3%). Pneumologists had the highest proportions of correct diagnosis of tuberculosis (69.6% and 73.9%) and better inter-observer agreement (k = 0.71) for PTB diagnosis. Observers were more in agreement for the detection of nodules (0.32 - 0.74), adenomegalies (0.43 - 0.69), and for the diagnosis of cancer (0.22 - 1) than for the diagnosis of tuberculosis (0.19 - 0.71). Disagreements were more frequent for the detection of pleural effusions (-0.08 - 0.73). Conclusion: The inter-observer agreement varies with the type of lesions and diagnosis. Pneumologists were most effective for the diagnosis of pulmonary tuberculosis. Observers were more in agreement for the detection of nodules and the diagnosis of cancer than for the diagnosis of pulmonary tuberculosis.
文摘AIM: To assess the inter-observer agreement and reliability as well as intra-observer repeatability for lacrimal scintigraphy(LS) reports with and without considering the irrigation test results.METHODS: A prospective, observational, cross sectional study. Two masked clinicians(lacrimal surgeon and nuclear medicine specialist) independently reported 100 LS images(50 patients of >6 years of age with unilateral anophthalmic socket) in a university hospital. The lacrimal surgeon performed a diagnostic irrigation test and repeated the report of the same LS images 2 y after the first report(intra-observer agreement). A weighted Kappa analysis was performed to determine inter-observer agreement and reliability as well as intra-observer repeatability for the type(normal, partial and complete obstruction) and location(presac, preduct, and intraduct) of the obstruction. Subgroup analysis was also performed with consideration of irrigation test results. RESULTS: A significantly moderate agreement was found between lacrimal surgeon and nuclear medicine specialist for both the type(Kappa=0.55) and location(Kappa=0.48) of obstruction. Agreement values were higher for the type(Kappa=0.61 vs 0.41) and location(Kappa=0.56 vs 0.31) of obstruction in cases with normal than abnormal irrigation test. Strong and significant intraobserver(lacrimal surgeon) repeatability was found for both the type(Kappa=0.66) and location(Kappa=0.69) of obstruction. LS showed no to slight reliability based on irrigation test.CONCLUSION: A moderate agreement is found between lacrimal surgeon and nuclear medicine specialist regarding the interpretation of LS suggesting the importance ofconsensus groups among nuclear medicine specialists and lacrimal surgeons to create a common language for interpretation of LS. Intra-observer repeatability is strong for the lacrimal surgeon.
文摘Objective To assess inter-observer variations of pulmonary nodule marking in routine clinical chest digital radiograph (DR) softcopy reading by using a lung nodule computer toolkit.Methods A total of 601 chest posterior-anterior DR images were randomly selected from routine outpatient screening in Peking Union Medical College Hospital. Two chest radiologists with experience more than ten years were first asked to read the images and mark all suspicious nodules independently by using computer toolkit IQQA-Chest, and to indicate the likelihood for each nodule detected. They were also asked to draw the boundary of the identified nodule manually on an enlarged region of interest, which was instantly analyzed by IQQA-Chest. Two sets of diagnostic reports, including the marked nodules, likelihood, manually drawn boundaries, quantitative measurements, and radiologists’ names, were automatically generated and stored by the computer system. One week later, the two radiologists read the same images together by using the same computer toolkit without referring to their previous reading results. Marking procedure was the same except that consensus was reached for each suspicious region. Statistical analysis tools provided in the IQQA-Chest were used to compare all the three sets of reading results.Results In the independent readings, Reader 1 detected 409 nodules with a mean diameter of 12.4 mm in 241 patients, and Reader 2 detected 401 nodules with a mean diameter of 12.6 mm in 253 patients. In the consensus reading, a total of 352 nodules with a mean diameter of 12.4 mm were detected in 220 patients. Totally, 42.3% of Reader 1’s and 45.1% of Reader 2’s marks were confirmed by the consensus reading. About 40% of each reader’s marks agreed with the other. There were only 130 (14.4%) out of the total 904 unique nodules were confirmed by both readers and the consensus reading. Moreover, 5.6% (51/904) of the marked regions were rated identical likelihood in all three readings. Statistical analysis showed significant differences between Readers 1 and 2, and between consensus and Reader 2 in determining the likelihood of the marks (P<0.01), but not between consensus and Reader 1. No significant difference in terms of size was observed in nodule segmentation between either two of the three readings. Conclusion Large variations in nodule marking and nodule-likelihood determination but not in nodule size were observed between experts as well as between single-person reading and consensus reading.
文摘Introduction: To investigate the inter-observer and inter-modality variabilities of two imaging guided equipments—cone-beam computed tomography (CBCT) and ultrasound (US) in kidney stereotactic body radiotherapy. Methods: A renal metastasis case implanted with three gold anchor fiducial markers was firstly scanned by US to acquire a 3-dimension US image and followed by 4-dimension CBCT in every fraction. Seven observers retrospectively registered the pre-treatment images with the corresponding reference images based on the gold markers. Registration uncertainty of the observers between two imaging modalities was evaluated. Results: The uncertainties over whole treatment course in CBCT were 0.88 mm, 1.94 mm and 0.86 mm in lateral, longitudinal and vertical directions respectively;while 0.8 mm, 0.97 mm and 1.36 mm were found in US. Conclusion: The greatest uncertainty was found in longitudinal direction in CBCT due to the fact that the respiration motion is the most rigorous in cranial-caudal direction. In US, since the probe was hold almost in upright position, the strong echo in vertical direction was attributed to the greatest uncertainty for such direction.
文摘<strong>Purpose:</strong><span style="font-family:;" "=""><span style="font-family:Verdana;"> Radiotherapy is a widely accepted standard of care for early-stage prostate cancer, and it is believed that the plan quality and treatment outcome are associated with contour accuracy of both the target and organs-at-risk (OAR). The purposes of this study are to 1) assess geometric and dosimetric uncertainties due to inter-observer contour variabilities and 2) evaluate the effectiveness of geometric indicators to predict target dosimetry in prostate radiotherapy. </span><b><span style="font-family:Verdana;">Methods:</span></b><span style="font-family:Verdana;"> Twenty prostate patients were selected for this retrospective study. Five experienced clinicians created unique structure sets containing prostate, seminal vesicles, bladder, and rectum for each patient. A fully automated script and knowledge-based planning routine were utilized to create standardized and unbiased plans that could be used to evaluate changes in isodose distributions due to inter-observer variability in structure segmentation. Plans were created on a “gold-standard” structure set, as well as on each of the user-defined structure sets. </span><b><span style="font-family:Verdana;">Results:</span></b><span style="font-family:Verdana;"> Inter-observer variability of contours during structure segmentation was very low for clearly defined organs such as the bladder but increased for organs without well-defined borders (prostate, seminal vesicles, and rectum). For plans generated with the user-defined structure sets, strong/moderate correlations were observed between the geometric indicators for target structure agreement and target coverage for both low-risk and intermediate-risk patient groups, while OAR indicators showed no correlation to final dosimetry. </span><b><span style="font-family:Verdana;">Conclusions:</span></b><span style="font-family:Verdana;"> Target delineation is crucial in order to maintain adequate dosimetric coverage regardless of the associated inter-observer uncertainties in OAR contours that had a limited impact upon final dosimetry.</span></span>
文摘Aims & Objectives: Aim of the study was to evaluate inter-observer variability in interpretation of Gallium-68 labeled Prostate Specific Membrane Antigen sub-type 11 (68Ga-PSMA-11) Positron Emission Tomography-Computed Tomography PET_CT scan according to Prostate Cancer Molecular Imaging Standardized Evaluation (PROMISE) criteria. Method and Materials: Forty-four consecutive patients of prostate cancer were prospectively studied between the duration of January 2021 to June 2021 at Institute of Nuclear Medicine and Oncology (INMOL), Lahore. All PET-CT scans were assessed by a researcher and 3 nuclear physicians and divided into two groups, interpreted in two phases. In the first phase, each group independently evaluated the scans while in the second phase, a consensus meeting was held and all the cases with discordance were discussed. Cohen’s Kappa test was used to measure interobserver variability with the cut-off of K’s alpha Results: The study showed 41 out of 44 scans with positive PSMA findings while 03 scans were negative for any PSMA avid disease. In the first phase of image analysis, the level of agreement was slight in T stage (Kappa = 0.068, p = 0.65), moderate in the miN stage (Kappa = 0.46, p = 0.02) and substantial in miM stage (Kappa = 0.77, p ≤ 0.001) was seen. For PSMA score, overall agreement was substantial agreement (Kappa = 0.64, p Conclusion: Remarkable inter-observer agreement was seen in PROMISE criteria.
基金The National Key R&D Program Projects(Grant No.2022YFC2803601)the Natural Science Foundation of Shandong Province(Grant No.ZR2021YQ29)+1 种基金the Natural Science Foundation of Heilongjiang Province(Grant No.YQ2024E036)the Taishan Scholars Project(Grant No.tsqn202312317).
文摘Autonomous Underwater Vehicles(AUVs)are pivotal for deep-sea exploration and resource exploitation,yet their reliability in extreme underwater environments remains a critical barrier to widespread deployment.Through systematic analysis of 150 peer-reviewed studies employing mixed-methods research,this review yields three principal advancements to the reliability analysis of AUVs.First,based on the hierarchical functional division of AUVs into six subsystems(propulsion system,navigation system,communication system,power system,environmental detection system,and emergency system),this study systematically identifies the primary failure modes and potential failure causes of each subsystem,providing theoretical support for fault diagnosis and reliability optimization.Subsequently,a comprehensive review of AUV reliability analysis methods is conducted from three perspectives:analytical methods,simulated methods,and surrogate model methods.The applicability and limitations of each method are critically analyzed to offer insights into their suitability for engineering applications.Finally,the study highlights key challenges and research hotpots in AUV reliability analysis,including reliability analysis under limited data,AI-driven reliability analysis,and human reliability analysis.Furthermore,the potential of multi-sensor data fusion,edge computing,and advanced materials in enhancing AUV environmental adaptability and reliability is explored.
文摘BACKGROUND During the gradual decline of physical and social functioning associated with end-stage renal disease,patients might experience a premonition of impending death,resulting in a series of pre-mourning grief responses called preparatory grief.The preparatory grief in advanced cancer patients(PGAC)scale is the most widely used preparatory grief scale for patients on hemodialysis in China.AIM To verify the reliability and validity of the PGAC scale in patients on hemodialysis.METHODS In total,327 patients undergoing regular hemodialysis in the blood purification center of three grade-A tertiary hospitals in Guangdong and Guizhou provinces were selected by convenience sampling.The assessment was administered using the general information questionnaire and the Chinese version of PGAC.SPSS 25.0 and Amos 24.0 were used for item analysis,confirmatory factor analysis(CFA),convergent validity,and internal consistency reliability estimation.RESULTS In the modified Chinese version of PGAC,7 dimensions covering 27 total items were retained.CFA revealed a good fit of the factor model(chi-square degree of freedom=2.056,standardized root mean square residual=0.0479,root mean square error of approximation=0.0570,GFI=0.872,AGFI=0.841,IFI=0.931,CFI=0.930,TLI=0.919).The factor loadings of the items ranged 0.503-0.884.The composite reliability ranged 0.664-0.914,and the average variance extracted ranged 0.366-0.747.Cronbach’sαof the scale was 0.945,and Cronbach’sαfor various dimensions ranged 0.662-0.914.CONCLUSION The modified PGAC has good reliability and validity,and it can effectively measure preparatory grief in patients on hemodialysis.
基金supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (12303089, 11973065)the Jiangsu Funding Program for Excellent Postdoctoral Talent (2022ZB449)the Polar Research Institute of China (PRIC) for their support and help with the Antarctic telescope project
文摘Antarctic telescopes,especially those located at Dome A,face significant reliability challenges owing to the extremely harsh working environment,among which the reliability of the control system is critical in ensuring stable operation.This paper describes various factors affecting the reliability of Antarctic telescopes,as well as the challenges of reliability improvement.Combined with the development of Antarctic telescopes and the experience of Antarctic scientific expeditions,we introduce,in detail,the optimization strategy for reliability enhancement,including the hardware layer,software layer,modular design to facilitate maintenance,and reliability management.The current status of the Antarctic Survey Telescope(AST3)is also briefly introduced,along with future development plans.We aim to provide ideas for the reliability design of Antarctic telescopes and provide technical support for the development of future Antarctic telescopes.
基金supported by the National Key Research and Development Program of China(Grant No.2021YFB2600504)the National Natural Science Foundation of China(Grant No.42072302)the Postdoctoral Fellowship Program of CPSF(Grant No.GZB20240533).
文摘Reliability analysis of soil slopes under rainfall is an important task for landslide risk assessment.Previous studies rarely contribute to the probabilistic analysis of slope stability under rainfall with reinforcement.A new method is suggested for reliability analysis of soil slopes stabilized with piles under rainfall.First,an efficient numerical model is exploited for slope stability analysis,where two types of slope failure modes,i.e.,plastic flow and local failure are considered.To address the blocking effect of piles during seepage analysis,the equivalent hydraulic conductivity of the pile area is estimated according to the effective medium theory.The stabilizing force of piles is investigated by an analytical approach.For saving computational effort,the response surface is established based on a multi-class classification model to predict two types of slope failure modes.Finally,uncertainties in soil parameters and rainfall events are both modelled,and the failure probability of soil slopes within a given time period is assessed through Monte Carlo simulation.An illustrative example is used to demonstrate the performance of the suggested method.It is found that the slope is mainly controlled by local failure.As the pile spacing increases,the likelihood of plastic flow significantly increases.As the piles are located near the slope crest,plastic flow is effectively prevented and the slope is better stabilized against rainfall.If rainfall uncertainties are not considered,the slope failure probability is significantly overestimated.Overall,this study can provide a useful guidance for the design of pile-stabilized slopes against rainfall infiltration.
文摘The published article titled“Comparison of Structural Probabilistic and Non-Probabilistic Reliability Computational Methods under Big Data Condition”[1]has been retracted from Structural Durability&Health Monitoring(SDHM),Vol.16,No.2,2022,pp.129–143.
基金supported in part by the National Natural Science Foundation of China under Grant 62071073in part by the Fundamental Research Funds for Central Universities under Grant 2023CDJXY-041in part by the Foundation from Guangxi Key Laboratory of Optoelectronic Information Processing under Grant GD20201.
文摘The dynamic avalanche effect is a critical factor influencing the performance and reliability of the field-stop insulated gate bipolar transistors(FS-IGBT).Unclamped inductive switching(UIS)is the primary method for testing the dynamic avalanche capability of FS-IGBTs.Numerous studies have demonstrated that factors such as device structure,avalanche-generating current filaments,and electrical parameters influence the dynamic avalanche effect of the FS-IGBT.However,few studies have focused on enhancing the avalanche reliability of the FS-IGBT by adjusting circuit parameters during operation.In this paper,the dynamic avalanche effect of the FS-IGBT under UIS conditions is comprehensively investigated through a series of comparative experiments with varying circuit parameters,including bus voltage V_(DC),gate voltage V_(G),gate resistance R_(g),load inductance L,and temperature TC.Furthermore,a method to enhance the dynamic avalanche reliability of the FS-IGBT under UIS by optimizing circuit parameters is proposed.In practical applications,reducing gate voltage,increasing load inductance,and lowering temperature can effectively improve the dynamic avalanche capability of the FS-IGBT.
文摘Continuously increasing inflation is a major challenge in presenting reliable and relevant financial reports,especially in developing countries like Indonesia.This study aims to analyze the role of inflation accounting in increasing the reliability of financial reports during times of high inflation.With a qualitative-descriptive approach,this research examines two main methods in inflation accounting,namely General Price Level Accounting(GPLA)and Current Cost Accounting(CCA),and their impact on the value of assets,liabilities,income,and costs.The analysis results show that historical cost-based financial reports do not reflect actual economic conditions during inflation,so they can be misleading in decision making.The application of inflation accounting,through adjustments to purchasing power and current prices,has been proven to be able to increase the relevance and reliability of financial information.However,limitations in implementation in Indonesia are due to the lack of regulations and practical understanding regarding this method.Therefore,the application of inflation accounting is important in supporting the quality of financial reports and more accurate decision making amidst economic instability.
基金supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (No.62275193)。
文摘In this paper,an improved error-rate sliding window decoder is proposed for spatially coupled low-density parity-check(SC-LDPC)codes.For the conventional sliding window decoder,the message retention mechanism causes unreliable messages along the edges of belief propagation(BP)decoding in the current window to be kept for subsequent window decoding.To improve the reliability of the retained messages during the window transition,a reliable termination method is embedded,where the retained messages undergo more reliable parity checks.Additionally,decoding failure is unavoidable and even causes error propagation when the number of errors exceeds the error-correcting capability of the window.To mitigate this problem,a channel value reuse mechanism is designed,where the received channel values are utilized to reinitialize the window.Furthermore,considering the complexity and performance of decoding,a feasible sliding optimized window decoding(SOWD)scheme is introduced.Finally,simulation results confirm the superior performance of the proposed SOWD scheme in both the waterfall and error floor regions.This work has great potential in the applications of wireless optical communication and fiber optic communication.
文摘BACKGROUND The Victorian institute of sports assessment for patellar tendons questionnaire(VISA-P),a valid tool for patellar tendinopathy,has been used for patellofemoral pain(PFP).AIM To validate VISA-P in PFP.METHODS Study of validity,responsiveness and feasibility following COSMIN.Inclusion criteria:Subjects with PFP,aged 18 to 55.Agreement among 10 experts on the relevance and clarity of each item using Aiken's V coefficient determined content validity.An exploratory factorial analysis established structural validity.The correlation of VISA-P with knee injury and osteoarthritis outcome score for PFP and Osteoarthritis(KOOS-PF)and Kujala patellofemoral score(KPS;specific for PFP)analyzed the construct validity.Internal consistency was calculated with Cronbach'sαand test-retest reliability with the intraclass correlation coefficient(ICC).Feasibility considered the subjects'self-completion time.RESULTS The sample consisted of 103 knees from 73 subjects(47 female/26 male;aged 34.9±13 SD).The items were relevant and clear,with the exception of item-8,which didn't reach an acceptable level of agreement on clarity.Exploratory factorial analysis found a 2-factor solution,which explained 63.48%of the variance.VISAP achieved a strong and significant correlation with KOOS-PF(Spearman rho=0.826;P<0.001)and KPS(Spearman rho=0.771;P<0.001).The questionnaire showed adequate reliability(Cronbach'sα:0.752;ICC:0.934;P<0.0001;95%CI:0.902-0.955).The mean self-completion time was 232±0.52 SD seconds.CONCLUSION VISA-P proved to be valid and reliable to functionally assess PFP and/or chondromalacia patella.VISA-P is a feasible tool in the clinical and research environment,quick and easy to complete.
基金supported in part by the Equipment Development Pre-research Project funded by Equipment Development Department,PRC under Grant No.50923010501Fundamental Research Program of Shenyang Institute of Automation(SIA),Chinese Academy of Sciencess under Grant No.355060201。
文摘Bonding quality at the interface of solid propellant grains is crucial for the reliability and safety of solid rocket motors.Although bonding reliability is influenced by numerous factors,the lack of quantitative characterization of interface debonding mechanisms and the challenge of identifying key factors have made precise control of process variables difficult,resulting in unpredictable failure risks.This paper presents an improved fuzzy failure probability evaluation method that combines fuzzy fault tree analysis with expert knowledge,transforming process data into fuzzy failure probability to accurately assess debonding probabilities.The predictive model is constructed through a general regression neural network and optimized using the particle swarm optimization algorithm.Sensitivity analysis is conducted to identify key decision variables,including normal force,grain rotation speed,and adhesive weight,which are verified experimentally.Compared with classical models,the maximum error margin of the constructed reliability prediction model is only 0.02%,and it has high stability.The experimental results indicate that the main factors affecting debonding are processing roughness and coating uniformity.Controlling the key decision variable as the median resulted in a maximum increase of 200.7%in bonding strength.The feasibility of the improved method has been verified,confirming that identifying key decision variables has the ability to improve bonding reliability.The proposed method simplifies the evaluation of propellant interface bonding reliability under complex conditions by quantifying the relationship between process parameters and failure risk,enabling targeted management of key decision variables.