Comparing the Performance of Rolled Steel and 3D-Printed 316L Stainless Steel.

Three-dimensional printing is a non-conventional additive manufacturing process. It is different from the conventional subtractive manufacturing process. It offers exceptional rapid prototyping capabilities and results that conventional subtractive manufacturing methods cannot attain, especially in applications involving curved or intricately shaped components.

Measurements and Modelling of Thermally Induced Warpages of DIMM Socket Server PCB Assembly after Solder Reflow Processes.

The thermal warpage of a server-computer-used DIMM socket-PCB assembly after the solder reflow process is studied experimentally, theoretically, and numerically, especially along the socket lines and over the entire assembly. Strain gauge and shadow moiré are used for determining the coefficients of thermal expansion of the PCB and DIMM sockets and for measuring the thermal warpages of the socket-PCB assembly, respectively, while a newly proposed theory and a finite element method (FEM) simulation are used to calculate the thermal warpage of the socket-PCB assembly in order to understand its thermo-mechanical behavior and then further identify some important parameters. The results show that the theoretical solution validated by the FEM simulation provides the mechanics with the critical parameters.

Exposure to ambient air pollution and elevated blood levels of gamma-glutamyl transferase in a large Austrian cohort.

Gamma glutamyl transferase (GGT) is related to oxidative stress and an indicator for liver damage. We investigated the association between air pollution and GGT in a large Austrian cohort (N = 116,109) to better understand how air pollution affects human health. Data come from voluntary prevention visits that were routinely collected within the Vorarlberg Health Monitoring and Prevention Program (VHM&PP).

Treatable Rapid Progressive Dementia: A First Case Report of Anti-dipeptidyl-peptidase-like Protein 6 Encephalitis in Taiwan.

Purpose: Anti-dipeptidyl-peptidase-like protein 6 (DPPX) encephalitis is a rare but treatable autoimmune disorder, characterized by gastrointestinal symptoms, cognitive dysfunction, and central nervous system hyperexcitability.

Case Report: Herein, we report a case of an 80-year-old male patient who presented with unexplained diarrhea, weight loss, rapidly progressive dementia, tremors, and myoclonus. His serum tested positive for anti-DPPX antibodies.

Thermally-Induced Deformations and Warpages of Flip-Chip and 2.5D IC Packages Measured by Strain Gauges.

The thermal warpage problems in integrated circuit (IC) packaging exist in both flip-chip and two-and-a-half dimensional integrated circuits (2.5D IC) packages during manufacturing processes and thermal cycling service. This study proposes a simple and easy-to-use strain gauge measurement associated with a beam model theory to determine the thermally induced deformations and warpages of both packages.

Short-term personal and outdoor exposure to ultrafine and fine particulate air pollution in association with blood pressure and lung function in healthy adults.

Studies reporting on associations between short-term exposure to outdoor fine (PM), and ultrafine particles (UFP) and blood pressure and lung function have been inconsistent. Few studies have characterized exposure by personal monitoring, which especially for UFP may have resulted in substantial exposure measurement error. We investigated the association between 24-h average personal UFP, PM, and soot exposure and dose and the health parameters blood pressure and lung function.

The Role of Socioeconomic Status in the Association of Lung Function and Air Pollution-A Pooled Analysis of Three Adult ESCAPE Cohorts.

Ambient air pollution is a leading environmental risk factor and its broad spectrum of adverse health effects includes a decrease in lung function. Socioeconomic status (SES) is known to be associated with both air pollution exposure and respiratory function. This study assesses the role of SES either as confounder or effect modifier of the association between ambient air pollution and lung function.

ExpoApp: An integrated system to assess multiple personal environmental exposures.

To assess environmental exposures at the individual level, new assessment methods and tools are required. We developed an exposure assessment system (ExpoApp) for smartphones. ExpoApp integrates: (i) geo-location and accelerometry measurements from a waist attached smartphone, (ii) data from portable monitors, (iii) geographic information systems, and (iv) individual's information.

Modelling the vertical gradient of nitrogen dioxide in an urban area.

Introduction: Land use regression models environmental predictors to estimate ground-floor air pollution concentration surfaces of a study area. While many cities are expanding vertically, such models typically ignore the vertical dimension.

Methods: We took integrated measurements of NO at up to three different floors on the facades of 25 buildings in the mid-sized European city of Basel, Switzerland.

Particulate matter air pollution components and incidence of cancers of the stomach and the upper aerodigestive tract in the European Study of Cohorts of Air Pollution Effects (ESCAPE).

Introduction: Previous analysis from the large European multicentre ESCAPE study showed an association of ambient particulate matter <2.5 μm (PM) air pollution exposure at residence with the incidence of gastric cancer. It is unclear which components of PM are most relevant for gastric and also upper aerodigestive tract (UADT) cancer and some of them may not be strongly correlated with PM mass.

Land Use Regression Modelling of Outdoor NO₂ and PM Concentrations in Three Low Income Areas in the Western Cape Province, South Africa.

Air pollution can cause many adverse health outcomes, including cardiovascular and respiratory disorders. Land use regression (LUR) models are frequently used to describe small-scale spatial variation in air pollution levels based on measurements and geographical predictors. They are particularly suitable in resource limited settings and can help to inform communities, industries, and policy makers.

Air pollution and incidence of cancers of the stomach and the upper aerodigestive tract in the European Study of Cohorts for Air Pollution Effects (ESCAPE).

Air pollution has been classified as carcinogenic to humans. However, to date little is known about the relevance for cancers of the stomach and upper aerodigestive tract (UADT). We investigated the association of long-term exposure to ambient air pollution with incidence of gastric and UADT cancer in 11 European cohorts.

Oxidative stress and inflammation mediate the effect of air pollution on cardio- and cerebrovascular disease: A prospective study in nonsmokers.

Air pollution is associated with a broad range of adverse health effects, including mortality and morbidity due to cardio- and cerebrovascular diseases (CCVD), but the molecular mechanisms involved are not entirely understood. This study aims to investigate the involvement of oxidative stress and inflammation in the causal chain, and to identify intermediate biomarkers that are associated retrospectively with the exposure and prospectively with the disease. We designed a case-control study on CCVD nested in a cohort of 18,982 individuals from the EPIC-Italy study.

Long-Term Exposure to Ambient Air Pollution and Incidence of Postmenopausal Breast Cancer in 15 European Cohorts within the ESCAPE Project.

Background: Epidemiological evidence on the association between ambient air pollution and breast cancer risk is inconsistent.

Objective: We examined the association between long-term exposure to ambient air pollution and incidence of postmenopausal breast cancer in European women.

Methods: In 15 cohorts from nine European countries, individual estimates of air pollution levels at the residence were estimated by standardized land-use regression models developed within the European Study of Cohorts for Air Pollution Effects (ESCAPE) and Transport related Air Pollution and Health impacts – Integrated Methodologies for Assessing Particulate Matter (TRANSPHORM) projects: particulate matter (PM) ≤2.

Land use regression models for the oxidative potential of fine particles (PM) in five European areas.

Oxidative potential (OP) of particulate matter (PM) is proposed as a biologically-relevant exposure metric for studies of air pollution and health. We aimed to evaluate the spatial variability of the OP of measured PM using ascorbate (AA) and (reduced) glutathione (GSH), and develop land use regression (LUR) models to explain this spatial variability. We estimated annual average values (m) of OP and OP for five areas (Basel, CH; Catalonia, ES; London-Oxford, UK (no OP); the Netherlands; and Turin, IT) using PM filters.

Long-term exposure to ambient air pollution and incidence of brain tumor: the European Study of Cohorts for Air Pollution Effects (ESCAPE).

Background: Epidemiological evidence on the association between ambient air pollution and brain tumor risk is sparse and inconsistent.

Methods: In 12 cohorts from 6 European countries, individual estimates of annual mean air pollution levels at the baseline residence were estimated by standardized land-use regression models developed within the ESCAPE and TRANSPHORM projects: particulate matter (PM) ≤2.5, ≤10, and 2.

Is There an Association Between Ambient Air Pollution and Bladder Cancer Incidence? Analysis of 15 European Cohorts.

Background: Ambient air pollution contains low concentrations of carcinogens implicated in the etiology of urinary bladder cancer (BC). Little is known about whether exposure to air pollution influences BC in the general population.

Objective: To evaluate the association between long-term exposure to ambient air pollution and BC incidence.

Land Use Regression Models for Ultrafine Particles in Six European Areas.

Long-term ultrafine particle (UFP) exposure estimates at a fine spatial scale are needed for epidemiological studies. Land use regression (LUR) models were developed and evaluated for six European areas based on repeated 30 min monitoring following standardized protocols. In each area; Basel (Switzerland), Heraklion (Greece), Amsterdam, Maastricht, and Utrecht ("The Netherlands"), Norwich (United Kingdom), Sabadell (Spain), and Turin (Italy), 160-240 sites were monitored to develop LUR models by supervised stepwise selection of GIS predictors.

Socioeconomic position and outdoor nitrogen dioxide (NO) exposure in Western Europe: A multi-city analysis.

Background: Inconsistent associations between socioeconomic position (SEP) and outdoor air pollution have been reported in Europe, but methodological differences prevent any direct between-study comparison.

Objectives: Assess and compare the association between SEP and outdoor nitrogen dioxide (NO) exposure as a marker of traffic exhaust, in 16 cities from eight Western European countries.

Methods: Three SEP indicators, two defined at individual-level (education and occupation) and one at neighborhood-level (unemployment rate) were assessed in three European multicenter cohorts.

Ambient air pollution and primary liver cancer incidence in four European cohorts within the ESCAPE project.

Background: Tobacco smoke exposure increases the risk of cancer in the liver, but little is known about the possible risk associated with exposure to ambient air pollution.

Objectives: We evaluated the association between residential exposure to air pollution and primary liver cancer incidence.

Methods: We obtained data from four cohorts with enrolment during 1985-2005 in Denmark, Austria and Italy.

Outdoor air pollution and risk for kidney parenchyma cancer in 14 European cohorts.

Several studies have indicated weakly increased risk for kidney cancer among occupational groups exposed to gasoline vapors, engine exhaust, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons and other air pollutants, although not consistently. It was the aim to investigate possible associations between outdoor air pollution at the residence and the incidence of kidney parenchyma cancer in the general population. We used data from 14 European cohorts from the ESCAPE study.

Particulate Matter and Subclinical Atherosclerosis: Associations between Different Particle Sizes and Sources with Carotid Intima-Media Thickness in the SAPALDIA Study.

Background: Subclinical atherosclerosis has been associated with long-term exposure to particulate matter (PM), but the relevance of particle size and sources of exposure remains unclear.

Objectives: We investigated the association of long-term exposure to PM10 (≤ 10 μm), PM2.5 (≤ 2.

Air pollution modelling for birth cohorts: a time-space regression model.

Background: To investigate air pollution effects during pregnancy or in the first weeks of life, models are needed that capture both the spatial and temporal variability of air pollution exposures.

Methods: We developed a time-space exposure model for ambient NO2 concentrations in Bern, Switzerland. We used NO2 data from passive monitoring conducted between 1998 and 2009: 101 rural sites (24,499 biweekly measurements) and 45 urban sites (4350 monthly measurements).

Development of land use regression models for nitrogen dioxide, ultrafine particles, lung deposited surface area, and four other markers of particulate matter pollution in the Swiss SAPALDIA regions.

Background: Land Use Regression (LUR) is a popular method to explain and predict spatial contrasts in air pollution concentrations, but LUR models for ultrafine particles, such as particle number concentration (PNC) are especially scarce. Moreover, no models have been previously presented for the lung deposited surface area (LDSA) of ultrafine particles. The additional value of ultrafine particle metrics has not been well investigated due to lack of exposure measurements and models.