The Application of Natural Elements in Interior Landscape Design and its Principal Analysis

The rapid development of the decoration industry creates a good development space for interior decoration, and the public pays more attention to the integration of natural elements in the process of interior decoration. In this regard, this article introduces the ways in which natural elements are embodied in indoor landscapes, and expounds the principles of using natural elements in indoor landscapes, hoping to provide references for relevant personnel.

The image of the Russian Federation on the canvas of social research

The starting point for this article was research conducted from February to April 2017 and in January and February 2020. The purpose of the work is to show the image and position of the Russian Federation in the eyes of respondents who participated (incl. residents of Moscow, Arkhangelsk, Saint Petersburg and Vladivostok) in in-depth interviews conducted by the author. The principal analysis concerns the results obtained in 2017, and the specific changes observed three years after the initial surveys were completed.

GPR Antipersonnel Mine Detection Based on Tensor Robust Principal Analysis

The ground Penetrating Radar (GPR) is a promising remote sensing modality for Antipersonnel Mine (APM) detection. However, detection of the buried APMs are impaired by strong clutter, especially the reflection caused by rough ground surfaces. In this paper, we propose a novel clutter suppression method taking advantage of the low-rank and sparse structure in multidimensional data, based on which an efficient target detection can be accomplished. We firstly created a multidimensional image tensor using sub-band GPR images that are computed from the band-pass filtered GPR signals, such that differences of the target response between sub-bands can be captured. Then, exploiting the low-rank and sparse property of the image tensor, we use the recently proposed Tensor Robust Principal Analysis to remove clutter by decomposing the image tensor into three components: a low-rank component containing clutter, a sparse component capturing target response, and noise. Finally, target detection is accomplished by applying thresholds to the extracted target image. Numerical simulations and experiments with different GPR systems are conducted. The results show that the proposed method effectively improves signal-to-clutter ratio by more than 20 dB and yields satisfactory results with high probability of detection and low false alarm rates.

Risk of Vaccine-Induced Immune Thrombocytopenia in Children. Nationwide Case Cross-over and Self-Controlled Case Series Studies in France

Introduction: The association of measles, mumps and rubella (MMR) vaccination with immune thrombocytopenia (ITP) occurrence has been shown. The risk of ITP with other vaccines is still not known. This study was aimed at assessing the association of recommended vaccinations in children with ITP occurrence. Methods: We conducted a population-based study in France including all children newly diagnosed for primary ITP between July 2009 and June 2015. This cohort was built using a validated algorithm in the nationwide French health insurance database (SNDS). We assessed the risk of ITP with MMR vaccine, all combined vaccines containing diphtheria, tetanus and poliomyelitis (DTP) vaccines, pneumococcal and meningococcal C vaccines. We used two self-controlled designs: a case cross-over and a self-controlled case series. For the case cross-over, we compared the frequency of exposure to vaccines during a 6-week period immediately preceding the event (case period) with the frequency of exposure during a previous time period (control period, having the same duration as the case period). We performed sensitivity analyses using 8- and 12-week periods. Analyses were adjusted for exposure to other drugs known as inducers of ITP and seasonality. Odds ratios (OR) and their 95% confidence intervals (CI) were calculated. For the self-controlled case series, we compared the ITP incidence within periods of risk (following vaccination, named exposure period) with the incidence within the control period of non-exposure. The exposure period was defined by the 6 weeks after the vaccine dispensing in the principal analysis (8 and 12 weeks in sensitivity analyses). We further excluded the 2 weeks prior to vaccine dispensing from the non-exposure period to address selective survival bias (healthy vaccinee effect). The observation period was censored at ITP occurrence, due to variation of vaccination probability after ITP diagnosis and to the impossibility to distinguish ITP relapses from chronic ITP in the database. Analyses were adjusted for seasonality. Incidence rate ratios (IRRs) and their 95% CI were calculated. We assessed the exposure to each vaccine, and conducted subgroup analyses in patients without any concurrent vaccination during case and control periods for the case cross-over study and exposure periods for the self-controlled case series study. We also calculated the number of ITP cases occurring during the 6 weeks after vaccination divided by the number of vaccine doses dispensed in the French children population during the study period. Results: We included 2,549 newly diagnosed primary ITP children. Among them, median age was 5.1 years and 46.5 % were females; 41.4% had been exposed to at least one studied vaccine before ITP onset. The results of the principal analysis are detailed in the Table. There was an increased occurrence of ITP following MMR vaccination (OR: 1.60, 95% CI: 1.09-2.34; IRR: 1.30, 95% CI: 0.95-1.80). Analyses excluding the patients with concurrent vaccination, notably meningococcal vaccination, led to similar results (OR: 1.66, 95% CI: 1.02-2.71; IRR: 1.39, 95% CI: 0.80-2.42). There was also an increased occurrence of ITP with the meningococcal C vaccine (OR: 1.92, 95% CI: 0.95-3.86; IRR: 1.40, 95% CI: 0.86-2.29). Analyses conducted in patients without any concurrent vaccination, notably MMR vaccination, confirmed these results with wide 95% CI because of fewer patients included (OR: 1.64, 95% CI: 0.57-4.71; IRR: 1.64, 95% CI: 0.69-3.86). No association was observed between other vaccines and ITP occurrence. The numbers of ITP cases occurring in the 6 weeks following vaccination per million doses dispensed were 8.2 for pneumococcal, 9.2 for DTP, 9.6 for meningococcal and 11.5 for MMR vaccines. Of note, these numbers overestimate the probability of vaccine-induced ITP. Indeed, they are ITP cases chronologically compatible with vaccine adverse reaction without any individual causality assessment (a worst-case scenario considering that all cases were triggered by vaccines). Conclusion: This study showed an increased occurrence of ITP after MMR and meningococcal C vaccines. It is reassuring for other vaccines. We cannot exclude temporal association with MMR and meningococcal C vaccines due to the peak of ITP incidence at 12 months of age in the general population. However, vaccine-induced ITP is a very rare event, which does not cast doubt on the interest of vaccination. Disclosures No relevant conflicts of interest to declare.

Control Strategy Proposal for Modular Architecture of Power Supply Utilizing LCCT Converter

Following the invention of resonant power converters, lots of new topologies with significant improvements considering increase of efficiency and power density are arising. The main differences are related to the configuration of the resonant tank structure. In this paper, LCCT topology is proposed, while main aim is focused on the application of the modular architecture of power supply (MAPS) systems. Initially, principal analysis is given which describes basic features and components selection of LCCT resonant converter. After principal analysis, the application is oriented for above mentioned modular architecture of power supply, where more than one LCCT converter operated simultaneously is considered. The main asset within the presented system investigation is the proposal for the control strategy of the modular power supply system. Instead of the requirement on the most efficient operation within the whole operational power range of MAPS, the proposal for control strategy is given, while it is expected that each module of MAPS will be loaded evenly. The control strategy is based on the digital control, whereby sequential switching of the individual power stages is autonomous based on the information’s of the actual power load. Presented solution gives improvements of the parameters where extended range of input voltage, extended range of output power, flat characteristic of efficiency, and lower ripple current and/or voltage will be required.