Sample records for abnormal operating conditions

  1. 14 CFR 91.144 - Temporary restriction on flight operations during abnormally high barometric pressure conditions.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-01-01

    ... during abnormally high barometric pressure conditions. 91.144 Section 91.144 Aeronautics and Space... flight operations during abnormally high barometric pressure conditions. (a) Special flight restrictions. When any information indicates that barometric pressure on the route of flight currently exceeds or...

  2. Flexible operation strategy for environment control system in abnormal supply power condition

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Liping, Pang; Guoxiang, Li; Hongquan, Qu; Yufeng, Fang

    2017-04-01

    This paper establishes an optimization method that can be applied to the flexible operation of the environment control system in an abnormal supply power condition. A proposed conception of lifespan is used to evaluate the depletion time of the non-regenerative substance. The optimization objective function is to maximize the lifespans. The optimization variables are the allocated powers of subsystems. The improved Non-dominated Sorting Genetic Algorithm is adopted to obtain the pareto optimization frontier with the constraints of the cabin environmental parameters and the adjustable operating parameters of the subsystems. Based on the same importance of objective functions, the preferred power allocation of subsystems can be optimized. Then the corresponding running parameters of subsystems can be determined to ensure the maximum lifespans. A long-duration space station with three astronauts is used to show the implementation of the proposed optimization method. Three different CO2 partial pressure levels are taken into consideration in this study. The optimization results show that the proposed optimization method can obtain the preferred power allocation for the subsystems when the supply power is at a less-than-nominal value. The method can be applied to the autonomous control for the emergency response of the environment control system.

  3. Study on the abnormal data rejection and normal condition evaluation applied in wind turbine farm

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Zhang, Ying; Qian, Zheng; Tian, Shuangshu

    2016-01-01

    The condition detection of wind turbine is always an important issue which attract more and more attentions because of the rapid development of wind farm. And the on-line data analysis is also difficult since a lot of measured data is collected. In this paper, the abnormal data rejection and normal condition evaluation of wind turbine is processed. At first, since there are large amounts of abnormal data in the normal operation of wind turbine, which is probably caused by fault, maintenance downtime, power-limited operation and failure of wind speed sensor, a novel method is proposed to reject abnormal data in order to make more accurate analysis for the wind turbine condition. The core principle of this method is to fit the wind power curves by using the scatter diagram. The data outside the area covered by wind power curves is the abnormal data. The calculation shows that the abnormal data is rejected effectively. After the rejection, the vibration signals of wind turbine bearing which is a critical component are analyzed and the relationship between the vibration characteristic value and the operating condition of wind turbine is discussed. It will provide powerful support for the accurate fault analysis of wind turbine.

  4. Aircraft Abnormal Conditions Detection, Identification, and Evaluation Using Innate and Adaptive Immune Systems Interaction

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Al Azzawi, Dia

    Abnormal flight conditions play a major role in aircraft accidents frequently causing loss of control. To ensure aircraft operation safety in all situations, intelligent system monitoring and adaptation must rely on accurately detecting the presence of abnormal conditions as soon as they take place, identifying their root cause(s), estimating their nature and severity, and predicting their impact on the flight envelope. Due to the complexity and multidimensionality of the aircraft system under abnormal conditions, these requirements are extremely difficult to satisfy using existing analytical and/or statistical approaches. Moreover, current methodologies have addressed only isolated classes of abnormal conditions and a reduced number of aircraft dynamic parameters within a limited region of the flight envelope. This research effort aims at developing an integrated and comprehensive framework for the aircraft abnormal conditions detection, identification, and evaluation based on the artificial immune systems paradigm, which has the capability to address the complexity and multidimensionality issues related to aircraft systems. Within the proposed framework, a novel algorithm was developed for the abnormal conditions detection problem and extended to the abnormal conditions identification and evaluation. The algorithm and its extensions were inspired from the functionality of the biological dendritic cells (an important part of the innate immune system) and their interaction with the different components of the adaptive immune system. Immunity-based methodologies for re-assessing the flight envelope at post-failure and predicting the impact of the abnormal conditions on the performance and handling qualities are also proposed and investigated in this study. The generality of the approach makes it applicable to any system. Data for artificial immune system development were collected from flight tests of a supersonic research aircraft within a motion-based flight

  5. Super-emitters in natural gas infrastructure are caused by abnormal process conditions

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Zavala-Araiza, Daniel; Alvarez, Ramón A.; Lyon, David R.; Allen, David T.; Marchese, Anthony J.; Zimmerle, Daniel J.; Hamburg, Steven P.

    2017-01-01

    Effectively mitigating methane emissions from the natural gas supply chain requires addressing the disproportionate influence of high-emitting sources. Here we use a Monte Carlo simulation to aggregate methane emissions from all components on natural gas production sites in the Barnett Shale production region (Texas). Our total emission estimates are two-thirds of those derived from independent site-based measurements. Although some high-emitting operations occur by design (condensate flashing and liquid unloadings), they occur more than an order of magnitude less frequently than required to explain the reported frequency at which high site-based emissions are observed. We conclude that the occurrence of abnormal process conditions (for example, malfunctions upstream of the point of emissions; equipment issues) cause additional emissions that explain the gap between component-based and site-based emissions. Such abnormal conditions can cause a substantial proportion of a site's gas production to be emitted to the atmosphere and are the defining attribute of super-emitting sites.

  6. POLLUTION EFFECTS OF ABNORMAL OPERATIONS IN IRON AND STEEL MAKING. VOLUME II. SINTERING, MANUAL OF PRACTICE

    EPA Science Inventory

    The report is one in a six-volume series considering abnormal operating conditions (AOCs) in the primary section (sintering, blast furnace ironmaking, open hearth, electric furnace, and basic oxygen steelmaking) of an integrated iron and steel plant. Pollution standards, generall...

  7. Experimental Evaluation of Grid Support Enabled PV Inverter Response to Abnormal Grid Conditions: Preprint

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Nelson, Austin; Martin, Gregory; Hurtt, James

    As revised interconnection standards for grid-tied photovoltaic (PV) inverters address new advanced grid support functions (GSFs), there is increasing interest in inverter performance in the case of abnormal grid conditions. The growth of GSF-enabled inverters has outpaced the industry standards that define their operation, although recently published updates to UL1741 with Supplement SA define test conditions for GSFs such as volt-var control, frequency-watt control, and volt-age/frequency ride-through, among others. A comparative experimental evaluation has been completed on four commercially available, three-phase PV inverters in the 24.0-39.8 kVA power range on their GSF capability and the effect on abnormal grid conditionmore » response. This study examines the impact particular GSF implementations have on run-on times during islanding conditions, peak voltages in load rejection overvoltage scenarios, and peak currents during single-phase and three-phase fault events for individual inverters. This report reviews comparative test data, which shows that GSFs have little impact on the metrics of interest in most tests cases.« less

  8. POLLUTION EFFECTS OF ABNORMAL OPERATIONS IN IRON AND STEEL MAKING. VOLUME V. ELECTRIC ARC FURNACE, MANUAL OF PRACTICE

    EPA Science Inventory

    The report is one in a six-volume series considering abnormal operating conditions (AOCs) in the primary section (sintering, blast furnace ironmaking, open hearth, electric furnace, and basic oxygen steelmaking) of an integrated iron and steel plant. Pollution standards, generall...

  9. POLLUTION EFFECTS OF ABNORMAL OPERATIONS IN IRON AND STEEL MAKING. VOLUME III. BLAST FURNACE IRONMAKING, MANUAL OF PRACTICE

    EPA Science Inventory

    The report is one in a six-volume series considering abnormal operating conditions (AOCs) in the primary section (sintering, blast furnace ironmaking, open hearth, electric furnace, and basic oxygen steelmaking) of an integrated iron and steel plant. Pollution standards, generall...

  10. POLLUTION EFFECTS OF ABNORMAL OPERATIONS IN IRON AND STEEL MAKING. VOLUME IV. OPEN HEARTH FURNACE, MANUAL OF PRACTICE

    EPA Science Inventory

    The report is one in a six-volume series considering abnormal operating conditions (AOCs) in the primary section (sintering, blast furnace ironmaking, open hearth, electric furnace, and basic oxygen steelmaking) of an integrated iron and steel plant. Pollution standards, generall...

  11. POLLUTION EFFECTS OF ABNORMAL OPERATIONS IN IRON AND STEEL MAKING. VOLUME VI. BASIC OXYGEN PROCESS, MANUAL OF PRACTICE

    EPA Science Inventory

    The report is one in a six-volume series considering abnormal operating conditions (AOCs) in the primary section (sintering, blast furnace ironmaking, open hearth, electric furnace, and basic oxygen steelmaking) of an integrated iron and steel plant. Pollution standards, generall...

  12. The incidence and influence of abnormal styloid conditions on the etiology of craniomandibular functional disorders.

    PubMed

    Krennmair, G; Piehslinger, E

    1999-10-01

    This study aimed to examine the incidence and influence of craniomandibular functional disorders caused by abnormal styloid-stylohyoid chains. Seven hundred sixty-five patients with temporomandibular joint (TMJ) disorders were divided into two groups (with and without radiographically visible abnormal styloid conditions). In the group with abnormal stylohyoid conditions, the etiology of TMJ disorders was further subdivided into poly-, oligo- and monoetiological factors, and, after this classification, evaluated regarding a clear, possible or unlikely involvement of abnormal stylohyoid conditions in TMJ disorders. One hundred thirty-six out of 765 patients presented abnormal styloid-stylohyoid chains. One hundred five of the patients (77.2%) demonstrated polyetiological causes of TMJ symptoms with an unlikely involvement of the abnormal styloid-stylohyoid chain. Twenty-nine of the patients (21.3%) showed oligoetiological causes with possible involvement of the abnormal styloid-stylohyoid chain. In two patients (1.5%), the abnormal styloid conditions showed up as the only definite cause of TMJ symptoms (monoetiological). Detailed knowledge of variations and possible effects of suprahyoid structures is important for an accurate diagnosis of TMJ disorders. All in all, the incidence of a stylohyoid involvement in TMJ disorders is very low. However, after an initial subdivision into abnormal and normal stylohyoid conditions, the incidence of pathological stylohyoid chains gains significant importance in the etiology of TMJ disorders.

  13. Experimental Evaluation of Grid Support Enabled PV Inverter Response to Abnormal Grid Conditions

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Nelson, Austin A; Martin, Gregory D; Hurtt, James

    As revised interconnection standards for grid-tied photovoltaic (PV) inverters address new advanced grid support functions (GSFs), there is increasing interest in inverter performance in the case of abnormal grid conditions. The growth of GSF-enabled inverters has outpaced the industry standards that define their operation, although recently published updates to UL1741 Supplement SA define test conditions for GSFs such as volt-var control, frequency-watt control, and voltage/frequency ride-through, among others. This paper describes the results of a comparative experimental evaluation on four commercially available, three-phase PV inverters in the 24.0-39.8 kVA power range on their GSF capability and its effect on abnormalmore » grid condition response. The evaluation examined the impact particular GSF implementations have on run-on times during islanding conditions, peak voltages in load rejection overvoltage scenarios, and peak currents during single-phase and three-phase fault events for individual inverters. Testing results indicated a wide variance in the performance of GSF enabled inverters to various test cases.« less

  14. Eyeblink Conditioning Deficits Indicate Timing and Cerebellar Abnormalities in Schizophrenia

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Brown, S.M.; Kieffaber, P.D.; Carroll, C.A.; Vohs, J.L.; Tracy, J.A.; Shekhar, A.; O'Donnell, B.F.; Steinmetz, J.E.; Hetrick, W.P.

    2005-01-01

    Accumulating evidence indicates that individuals with schizophrenia manifest abnormalities in structures (cerebellum and basal ganglia) and neurotransmitter systems (dopamine) linked to internal-timing processes. A single-cue tone delay eyeblink conditioning paradigm comprised of 100 learning and 50 extinction trials was used to examine cerebellar…

  15. Adaptive neuro-fuzzy and expert systems for power quality analysis and prediction of abnormal operation

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Ibrahim, Wael Refaat Anis

    The present research involves the development of several fuzzy expert systems for power quality analysis and diagnosis. Intelligent systems for the prediction of abnormal system operation were also developed. The performance of all intelligent modules developed was either enhanced or completely produced through adaptive fuzzy learning techniques. Neuro-fuzzy learning is the main adaptive technique utilized. The work presents a novel approach to the interpretation of power quality from the perspective of the continuous operation of a single system. The research includes an extensive literature review pertaining to the applications of intelligent systems to power quality analysis. Basic definitions and signature events related to power quality are introduced. In addition, detailed discussions of various artificial intelligence paradigms as well as wavelet theory are included. A fuzzy-based intelligent system capable of identifying normal from abnormal operation for a given system was developed. Adaptive neuro-fuzzy learning was applied to enhance its performance. A group of fuzzy expert systems that could perform full operational diagnosis were also developed successfully. The developed systems were applied to the operational diagnosis of 3-phase induction motors and rectifier bridges. A novel approach for learning power quality waveforms and trends was developed. The technique, which is adaptive neuro fuzzy-based, learned, compressed, and stored the waveform data. The new technique was successfully tested using a wide variety of power quality signature waveforms, and using real site data. The trend-learning technique was incorporated into a fuzzy expert system that was designed to predict abnormal operation of a monitored system. The intelligent system learns and stores, in compressed format, trends leading to abnormal operation. The system then compares incoming data to the retained trends continuously. If the incoming data matches any of the learned trends, an

  16. Effects of abnormal light-rearing conditions on retinal physiology in larvae zebrafish.

    PubMed

    Saszik, S; Bilotta, J

    1999-11-01

    Anatomic studies have found that zebrafish retinal neurons develop in a sequential fashion. In addition, exposure to abnormal light-rearing conditions produces deficits in visual behavior of larvae zebrafish, even though there appears to be little effect of the light-rearing conditions on the gross morphology of the retina. The purpose of this study was to assess the effects of abnormal light-rearing conditions on larvae zebrafish retinal physiology. Larvae zebrafish (Danio rerio) were exposed to constant light (LL), constant dark (DD), or normal cyclic light (LD) from fertilization to 6 days postfertilization (dpf). After 6 days, the animals were placed into normal cyclic light and tested at 6 to 8, 13 to 15, and 21 to 24 dpf. Electroretinogram (ERG) responses to visual stimuli, consisting of various wavelengths and irradiances, were recorded. Comparisons were made across the three age groups and the three light-rearing conditions. Deficits from the light-rearing conditions were seen immediately after exposure (6 8 dpf). The LL-condition subjects showed the greatest deficit in the UV and short-wavelength areas and the DD-condition subjects showed a slight deficit across the entire spectrum. At 13 to 15 dpf, the LL and DD groups showed an increase in sensitivity and by 21 to 24 dpf, the groups no longer differed from controls. Abnormal lighting environments can adversely influence the physiological development of the larvae zebrafish retina. The pattern of damage that was seen in zebrafish is similar to that found in other vertebrates, including higher vertebrates. However, unlike higher vertebrates, the zebrafish appears to be capable of regeneration. This suggests that the zebrafish would be a viable model for light environment effects and neural regeneration.

  17. The Detection Method of Fire Abnormal Based on Directional Drilling in Complex Conditions of Mine

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Huijun, Duan; Shijun, Hao; Jie, Feng

    2018-06-01

    In the light of more and more urgent hidden fire abnormal detection problem in complex conditions of mine, a method which is used directional drilling technology is put forward. The method can avoid the obstacles in mine, and complete the fire abnormal detection. This paper based on analyzing the trajectory control of directional drilling, measurement while drilling and the characteristic of open branch process, the project of the directional drilling is formulated combination with a complex condition mine, and the detection of fire abnormal is implemented. This method can provide technical support for fire prevention, which also can provide a new way for fire anomaly detection in the similar mine.

  18. Validation of a condition-specific measure for women having an abnormal screening mammography.

    PubMed

    Brodersen, John; Thorsen, Hanne; Kreiner, Svend

    2007-01-01

    The aim of this study is to assess the validity of a new condition-specific instrument measuring psychosocial consequences of abnormal screening mammography (PCQ-DK33). The draft version of the PCQ-DK33 was completed on two occasions by 184 women who had received an abnormal screening mammography and on one occasion by 240 women who had received a normal screening result. Item Response Theories and Classical Test Theories were used to analyze data. Construct validity, concurrent validity, known group validity, objectivity and reliability were established by item analysis examining the fit between item responses and Rasch models. Six dimensions covering anxiety, behavioral impact, sense of dejection, impact on sleep, breast examination, and sexuality were identified. One item belonging to the dejection dimension had uniform differential item functioning. Two items not fitting the Rasch models were retained because of high face validity. A sick leave item added useful information when measuring side effects and socioeconomic consequences of breast cancer screening. Five "poor items" were identified and should be deleted from the final instrument. Preliminary evidence for a valid and reliable condition-specific measure for women having an abnormal screening mammography was established. The measure includes 27 "good" items measuring different attributes of the same overall latent structure-the psychosocial consequences of abnormal screening mammography.

  19. Effect of operating conditions on the exhaust emissions from a gas turbine combustor

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Briehl, D.; Papathakos, L.; Strancar, R. J.

    1972-01-01

    Exhaust concentrations of total unburned hydrocarbons, carbon monoxide, and nitric oxide were measured from a single J-57 combustor liner installed in a 30 diameter test section. Tests were conducted over a range of inlet total pressures from 1 to 20 atmospheres, inlet total temperatures from 310 to 590 K, reference velocities from 8 to m/sec, and fuel-air ratios from 0.004 to 0.015. Most of the data were obtained using ASTM A-1 fuel; however, a limited number of tests was performed with natural gas fuel. Combustion efficiency and emission levels are correlated with operating conditions. Sampling error at operating conditions for which combustion efficiency was below about 90 percent resulted in abnormally low readings for hydrocarbon emissions.

  20. Operant Conditioning for Special Educators.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Pedrini, Bonnie C.; Pedrini, D. T.

    The paper briefly explains operant conditioning as it pertains to special educators. Operant conditioning is thought to be an efficient method for modifying student behavior. Using the B. F. Skinner frame of reference, operant conditioning is said to include behavior modification and therapy, programed instruction, and computer assisted and…

  1. Abnormal Condition Monitoring of Workpieces Based on RFID for Wisdom Manufacturing Workshops.

    PubMed

    Zhang, Cunji; Yao, Xifan; Zhang, Jianming

    2015-12-03

    Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) technology has been widely used in many fields. However, previous studies have mainly focused on product life cycle tracking, and there are few studies on real-time status monitoring of workpieces in manufacturing workshops. In this paper, a wisdom manufacturing model is introduced, a sensing-aware environment for a wisdom manufacturing workshop is constructed, and RFID event models are defined. A synthetic data cleaning method is applied to clean the raw RFID data. The Complex Event Processing (CEP) technology is adopted to monitor abnormal conditions of workpieces in real time. The RFID data cleaning method and data mining technology are examined by simulation and physical experiments. The results show that the synthetic data cleaning method preprocesses data well. The CEP based on the Rifidi(®) Edge Server technology completed abnormal condition monitoring of workpieces in real time. This paper reveals the importance of RFID spatial and temporal data analysis in real-time status monitoring of workpieces in wisdom manufacturing workshops.

  2. Abnormal Condition Monitoring of Workpieces Based on RFID for Wisdom Manufacturing Workshops

    PubMed Central

    Zhang, Cunji; Yao, Xifan; Zhang, Jianming

    2015-01-01

    Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) technology has been widely used in many fields. However, previous studies have mainly focused on product life cycle tracking, and there are few studies on real-time status monitoring of workpieces in manufacturing workshops. In this paper, a wisdom manufacturing model is introduced, a sensing-aware environment for a wisdom manufacturing workshop is constructed, and RFID event models are defined. A synthetic data cleaning method is applied to clean the raw RFID data. The Complex Event Processing (CEP) technology is adopted to monitor abnormal conditions of workpieces in real time. The RFID data cleaning method and data mining technology are examined by simulation and physical experiments. The results show that the synthetic data cleaning method preprocesses data well. The CEP based on the Rifidi® Edge Server technology completed abnormal condition monitoring of workpieces in real time. This paper reveals the importance of RFID spatial and temporal data analysis in real-time status monitoring of workpieces in wisdom manufacturing workshops. PMID:26633418

  3. Restoring walking after spinal cord injury: operant conditioning of spinal reflexes can help.

    PubMed

    Thompson, Aiko K; Wolpaw, Jonathan R

    2015-04-01

    People with incomplete spinal cord injury (SCI) frequently suffer motor disabilities due to spasticity and poor muscle control, even after conventional therapy. Abnormal spinal reflex activity often contributes to these problems. Operant conditioning of spinal reflexes, which can target plasticity to specific reflex pathways, can enhance recovery. In rats in which a right lateral column lesion had weakened right stance and produced an asymmetrical gait, up-conditioning of the right soleus H-reflex, which increased muscle spindle afferent excitation of soleus, strengthened right stance and eliminated the asymmetry. In people with hyperreflexia due to incomplete SCI, down-conditioning of the soleus H-reflex improved walking speed and symmetry. Furthermore, modulation of electromyographic activity during walking improved bilaterally, indicating that a protocol that targets plasticity to a specific pathway can trigger widespread plasticity that improves recovery far beyond that attributable to the change in the targeted pathway. These improvements were apparent to people in their daily lives. They reported walking faster and farther, and noted less spasticity and better balance. Operant conditioning protocols could be developed to modify other spinal reflexes or corticospinal connections; and could be combined with other therapies to enhance recovery in people with SCI or other neuromuscular disorders. © The Author(s) 2014.

  4. Investigation of defect-induced abnormal body current in fin field-effect-transistors

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Liu, Kuan-Ju; Tsai, Jyun-Yu; Lu, Ying-Hsin

    2015-08-24

    This letter investigates the mechanism of abnormal body current at the linear region in n-channel high-k/metal gate stack fin field effect transistors. Unlike body current, which is generated by impact ionization at high drain voltages, abnormal body current was found to increase with decreasing drain voltages. Notably, the unusual body leakage only occurs in three-dimensional structure devices. Based on measurements under different operation conditions, the abnormal body current can be attributed to fin surface defect-induced leakage current, and the mechanism is electron tunneling to the fin via the defects, resulting in holes left at the body terminal.

  5. Teaching Operant Conditioning at the Zoo.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Lukas, Kristen E.; Marr, M. Jackson; Maple, Terry L.

    1998-01-01

    Describes a partnership between Zoo Atlanta and the Georgia Institute of Technology in teaching the principles of operant conditioning to students in an experimental psychology class. Maintains that the positive training techniques used in zoos are models of applied operant conditioning. Includes a discussion of zoo training goals. (MJP)

  6. Exercise-induced Hypoalgesia in People With Knee Osteoarthritis With Normal and Abnormal Conditioned Pain Modulation.

    PubMed

    Fingleton, Caitríona; Smart, Keith M; Doody, Catherine M

    2017-05-01

    Normal efficiency of exercise-induced hypoalgesia (EIH) has been demonstrated in people with knee osteoarthritis (OA), while recent evidence suggests that EIH may be associated with features of pain sensitization such as abnormal conditioned pain modulation (CPM). The aim of this study was to investigate whether people with knee OA with abnormal CPM have dysfunctional EIH compared with those with normal CPM and pain-free controls. Forty peoples with knee OA were subdivided into groups with abnormal and normal CPM, as determined by a decrease/increase in pressure pain thresholds (PPTs) following the cold pressor test. Abnormal CPM (n=19), normal CPM (n=21), and control participants (n=20) underwent PPT testing before, during, and after aerobic and isometric exercise protocols. Between-group differences were analyzed using repeated-measures analysis of variance and within-group differences were analyzed using Wilcoxon signed-rank tests. Significant differences were demonstrated between groups for changes in PPTs postaerobic (F2,55=4.860; P=0.011) and isometric (F2,57=4.727; P=0.013) exercise, with significant decreases in PPTs demonstrated during and postexercise in the abnormal CPM group (P<0.05), and significant increases in PPTs shown during and postexercise in the normal CPM and control groups (P<0.05). Results are suggestive of dysfunctional EIH in response to aerobic and isometric exercise in knee OA patients with abnormal CPM, and normal function of EIH in knee OA patients with an efficient CPM response. Identification of people with knee OA with inefficient endogenous pain modulation may allow for a more individualized and graded approach to exercises in these individuals.

  7. Error quantification of abnormal extreme high waves in Operational Oceanographic System in Korea

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Jeong, Sang-Hun; Kim, Jinah; Heo, Ki-Young; Park, Kwang-Soon

    2017-04-01

    In winter season, large-height swell-like waves have occurred on the East coast of Korea, causing property damages and loss of human life. It is known that those waves are generated by a local strong wind made by temperate cyclone moving to eastward in the East Sea of Korean peninsula. Because the waves are often occurred in the clear weather, in particular, the damages are to be maximized. Therefore, it is necessary to predict and forecast large-height swell-like waves to prevent and correspond to the coastal damages. In Korea, an operational oceanographic system (KOOS) has been developed by the Korea institute of ocean science and technology (KIOST) and KOOS provides daily basis 72-hours' ocean forecasts such as wind, water elevation, sea currents, water temperature, salinity, and waves which are computed from not only meteorological and hydrodynamic model (WRF, ROMS, MOM, and MOHID) but also wave models (WW-III and SWAN). In order to evaluate the model performance and guarantee a certain level of accuracy of ocean forecasts, a Skill Assessment (SA) system was established as a one of module in KOOS. It has been performed through comparison of model results with in-situ observation data and model errors have been quantified with skill scores. Statistics which are used in skill assessment are including a measure of both errors and correlations such as root-mean-square-error (RMSE), root-mean-square-error percentage (RMSE%), mean bias (MB), correlation coefficient (R), scatter index (SI), circular correlation (CC) and central frequency (CF) that is a frequency with which errors lie within acceptable error criteria. It should be utilized simultaneously not only to quantify an error but also to improve an accuracy of forecasts by providing a feedback interactively. However, in an abnormal phenomena such as high-height swell-like waves in the East coast of Korea, it requires more advanced and optimized error quantification method that allows to predict the abnormal

  8. Operant Conditioning and Education.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    de Noronha, Mario

    A case study of a learning disabled 8-year-old with behavior disturbancs is presented to highlight the use of operant conditioning in cutting down educational costs and easing the teacher's class management problems. (CL)

  9. [Working conditions in operating rooms].

    PubMed

    Kułagowska, Ewa

    2007-01-01

    The aim of this study was to get acquainted with the opinions of the nursing staff on working conditions at their workplace. The study was carried out in a group of 398 nurses working in various kinds of operating rooms at 11 public hospitals. A questionnaire was used as a major tool of this study. The questionnaires were filled in by 259 operating room nurses (circulating nurses) and 139 nurse-anesthetists. The collected data show that working conditions in operating rooms do not ensure safety of the nursing staff at work. The main sources of problems are: work organization, technical factors, work equipment, work space, knowledge of hazards and strenuous factors among nurses, ways of preventing and/or limiting them. These elements are serious occupational risk factors influencing the work process and health status of nurses.

  10. Operant conditioning in the ant Myrmica sabuleti.

    PubMed

    Cammaerts, M C

    2004-11-30

    Operant conditioning could be obtained in the ant Myrmica sabuleti by presenting to the workers, during a six-day period, an apparatus containing either sugared water or meat as a reward. The conditioning obtained using sugared water as a reward was short lasting. A reconditioning was more persistent and lasted four hours. The ants' response was very precise, since they exhibited it only in front of an apparatus identical to that used during the training phase. Operant conditioning obtained using meat as a reward was more pronounced than that obtained by using sugared water, probably because meat is more valuable as a reward than sugar for the species studied, which is essentially a carnivorous one. Such a conditioning was rather persistent. Indeed, a first operant conditioning obtained by using meat as a reward could still be detected after seven hours, and a reconditioning was still significant after eight hours. One day after this eight-hour period without rewarding the ants, the response was higher again and a further day later, it was still significant. Since the operant conditioning is easy to perform and quantify and since the ants' response is very precise, such a conditioning can be used for further studying M. sabuleti workers' visual perception.

  11. Abnormal/Emergency Situations. Impact of Unmanned Aircraft Systems Emergency and Abnormal Events on the National Airspace System

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    2006-01-01

    Access 5 analyzed the differences between UAS and manned aircraft operations under five categories of abnormal or emergency situations: Link Failure, Lost Communications, Onboard System Failures, Control Station Failures and Abnormal Weather. These analyses were made from the vantage point of the impact that these operations have on the US air traffic control system, with recommendations for new policies and procedures included where appropriate.

  12. Operant conditioning of autobiographical memory retrieval.

    PubMed

    Debeer, Elise; Raes, Filip; Williams, J Mark G; Craeynest, Miet; Hermans, Dirk

    2014-01-01

    Functional avoidance is considered as one of the key mechanisms underlying overgeneral autobiographical memory (OGM). According to this view OGM is regarded as a learned cognitive avoidance strategy, based on principles of operant conditioning; i.e., individuals learn to avoid the emotionally painful consequences associated with the retrieval of specific negative memories. The aim of the present study was to test one of the basic assumptions of the functional avoidance account, namely that autobiographical memory retrieval can be brought under operant control. Here 41 students were instructed to retrieve personal memories in response to 60 emotional cue words. Depending on the condition, they were punished with an aversive sound for the retrieval of specific or nonspecific memories in an operant conditioning procedure. Analyzes showed that the course of memory specificity significantly differed between conditions. After the procedure participants punished for nonspecific memories retrieved significantly more specific memories compared to participants punished for specific memories. However, whereas memory specificity significantly increased in participants punished for specific memories, it did not significantly decrease in participants punished for nonspecific memories. Thus, while our findings indicate that autobiographical memory retrieval can be brought under operant control, they do not support a functional avoidance view on OGM.

  13. 14 CFR 135.227 - Icing conditions: Operating limitations.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-01-01

    ... 14 Aeronautics and Space 3 2011-01-01 2011-01-01 false Icing conditions: Operating limitations. 135.227 Section 135.227 Aeronautics and Space FEDERAL AVIATION ADMINISTRATION, DEPARTMENT OF... VFR/IFR Operating Limitations and Weather Requirements § 135.227 Icing conditions: Operating...

  14. 14 CFR 135.227 - Icing conditions: Operating limitations.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-01-01

    ... 14 Aeronautics and Space 3 2014-01-01 2014-01-01 false Icing conditions: Operating limitations. 135.227 Section 135.227 Aeronautics and Space FEDERAL AVIATION ADMINISTRATION, DEPARTMENT OF... VFR/IFR Operating Limitations and Weather Requirements § 135.227 Icing conditions: Operating...

  15. 14 CFR 135.227 - Icing conditions: Operating limitations.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-01-01

    ... 14 Aeronautics and Space 3 2013-01-01 2013-01-01 false Icing conditions: Operating limitations. 135.227 Section 135.227 Aeronautics and Space FEDERAL AVIATION ADMINISTRATION, DEPARTMENT OF... VFR/IFR Operating Limitations and Weather Requirements § 135.227 Icing conditions: Operating...

  16. 14 CFR 135.227 - Icing conditions: Operating limitations.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-01-01

    ... 14 Aeronautics and Space 3 2012-01-01 2012-01-01 false Icing conditions: Operating limitations. 135.227 Section 135.227 Aeronautics and Space FEDERAL AVIATION ADMINISTRATION, DEPARTMENT OF... VFR/IFR Operating Limitations and Weather Requirements § 135.227 Icing conditions: Operating...

  17. 47 CFR 15.5 - General conditions of operation.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-10-01

    ... 47 Telecommunication 1 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false General conditions of operation. 15.5 Section 15.5 Telecommunication FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION GENERAL RADIO FREQUENCY DEVICES General § 15.5 General conditions of operation. (a) Persons operating intentional or unintentional radiators...

  18. A Practice-Oriented Bifurcation Analysis for Pulse Energy Converters. Part 2: An Operating Regime

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Kolokolov, Yury; Monovskaya, Anna

    The paper continues the discussion on bifurcation analysis for applications in practice-oriented solutions for pulse energy conversion systems (PEC-systems). Since a PEC-system represents a nonlinear object with a variable structure, then the description of its dynamics evolution involves bifurcation analysis conceptions. This means the necessity to resolve the conflict-of-units between the notions used to describe natural evolution (i.e. evolution of the operating process towards nonoperating processes and vice versa) and the notions used to describe a desirable artificial regime (i.e. an operating regime). We consider cause-effect relations in the following sequence: nonlinear dynamics-output signal-operating characteristics, where these characteristics include stability and performance. Then regularities of nonlinear dynamics should be translated into regularities of the output signal dynamics, and, after, into an evolutional picture of each operating characteristic. In order to make the translation without losses, we first take into account heterogeneous properties within the structures of the operating process in the parametrical (P-) and phase (X-) spaces, and analyze regularities of the operating stability and performance on the common basis by use of the modified bifurcation diagrams built in joint PX-space. Then, the correspondence between causes (degradation of the operating process stability) and effects (changes of the operating characteristics) is decomposed into three groups of abnormalities: conditionally unavoidable abnormalities (CU-abnormalities); conditionally probable abnormalities (CP-abnormalities); conditionally regular abnormalities (CR-abnormalities). Within each of these groups the evolutional homogeneity is retained. After, the resultant evolution of each operating characteristic is naturally aggregated through the superposition of cause-effect relations in accordance with each of the abnormalities. We demonstrate that the practice

  19. 49 CFR 325.35 - Ambient conditions; highway operations.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-10-01

    ... 49 Transportation 5 2014-10-01 2014-10-01 false Ambient conditions; highway operations. 325.35... MOTOR CARRIER NOISE EMISSION STANDARDS Measurement of Noise Emissions; Highway Operations § 325.35 Ambient conditions; highway operations. (a)(1) Sound. The ambient A-weighted sound level at the microphone...

  20. 49 CFR 325.35 - Ambient conditions; highway operations.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-10-01

    ... 49 Transportation 5 2013-10-01 2013-10-01 false Ambient conditions; highway operations. 325.35... MOTOR CARRIER NOISE EMISSION STANDARDS Measurement of Noise Emissions; Highway Operations § 325.35 Ambient conditions; highway operations. (a)(1) Sound. The ambient A-weighted sound level at the microphone...

  1. Children with autism spectrum disorders show abnormal conditioned response timing on delay, but not trace, eyeblink conditioning

    PubMed Central

    Oristaglio, Jeff; West, Susan Hyman; Ghaffari, Manely; Lech, Melissa S.; Verma, Beeta R.; Harvey, John A.; Welsh, John P.; Malone, Richard P.

    2013-01-01

    Children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and age-matched typically-developing (TD) peers were tested on two forms of eyeblink conditioning (EBC), a Pavlovian associative learning paradigm where subjects learn to execute an appropriately-timed eyeblink in response to a previously neutral conditioning stimulus (CS). One version of the task, trace EBC, interposes a stimulus-free interval between the presentation of the CS and the unconditioned stimulus (US), a puff of air to the eye which causes subjects to blink. In delay EBC, the CS overlaps in time with the delivery of the US, usually with both stimuli terminating simultaneously. ASD children performed normally during trace EBC, exhibiting no differences from typically-developing (TD) subjects with regard to learning rate or the timing of the CR. However, when subsequently tested on delay EBC, subjects with ASD displayed abnormally-timed conditioned eye blinks that began earlier and peaked sooner than those of TD subjects, consistent with previous findings. The results suggest an impaired ability of children with ASD to properly time conditioned eye blinks which appears to be specific to delay EBC. We suggest that this deficit may reflect a dysfunction of cerebellar cortex in which increases in the intensity or duration of sensory input can temporarily disrupt the accuracy of motor timing over short temporal intervals. PMID:23769889

  2. Teachers and Operant Conditioning.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Frey, Sherman

    A survey was conducted of 406 elementary, middle, and secondary school teachers to determine their understanding, acceptance, and use of the principle of operant conditioning. The treatment of data was by percent and chi square analysis primarily according to sex, experience, degree, and position. Subjects reported that a) they believed that the…

  3. Operant Conditioning - Token Economy.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Montgomery, Jacqueline; McBurney, Raymond D.

    Described is an Operant Conditioning-Token Economy Program, teaching patients to be responsible for their own behavior, to make choices, and to be motivated to change. The program was instigated with mentally ill patients in a state hospital and was later used with institutionalized mentally handicapped groups. After two years, only four of the…

  4. Enhancement of oscillatory activity in the endopiriform nucleus of rats raised under abnormal oral conditions.

    PubMed

    Yoshimura, Hiroshi; Hasumoto-Honjo, Miho; Sugai, Tokio; Segami, Natsuki; Kato, Nobuo

    2014-02-21

    Endopiriform nucleus (EPN) is located deep to the piriform cortex, and has neural connections with not only neighboring sensory areas but also subcortical areas where emotional and nociceptive information is processed. Well-balanced oral condition might play an important role in stability of brain activities. When the oral condition is impaired, several areas in the brain might be affected. In the present study, we investigated whether abnormal conditions of oral region influence neural activities in the EPN. Orthodontic appliance that generates continuous force and chronic pain-related stress was fixed to maxillary incisors of rats, and raised. Field potential recordings were made from the EPN of brain slices. We previously reported that the EPN has an ability to generate membrane potential oscillation. In the present study, we have applied the same methods to assess activities of neuron clusters in the EPN. In the case of normal rats, stable field potential oscillations were induced in the EPN by application of low-frequency electrical stimulation under the medium with caffeine. In the case of rats with the orthodontic appliance, stable field potential oscillations were also induced, but both duration of oscillatory activities and wavelet number were increased. The enhanced oscillations were depressed by blockade of NMDA receptors. Thus, impairment of oral health under application of continuous orthodontic force and chronic pain-related stress enhanced neural activities in the EPN, in which up-regulation of NMDA receptors may be concerned. These findings suggest that the EPN might be involved in information processing with regard to abnormal conditions of oral region. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

  5. Tooth - abnormal shape

    MedlinePlus

    Hutchinson incisors; Abnormal tooth shape; Peg teeth; Mulberry teeth; Conical teeth ... The appearance of normal teeth varies, especially the molars. ... conditions. Specific diseases can affect tooth shape, tooth ...

  6. Performance evaluation of a dynamic telepathology system (Panoptiq™) in the morphologic assessment of peripheral blood film abnormalities.

    PubMed

    Goswami, R; Pi, D; Pal, J; Cheng, K; Hudoba De Badyn, M

    2015-06-01

    The study evaluated the performance of a dynamic imaging telepathology system (Panoptiq(™) ) as a diagnostic aid to the identification of peripheral blood film (PBF) abnormalities. The study assumed a laboratory personnel working in a clinical laboratory were operating the telepathology system to seek diagnostic opinion from an external consulting hematopathologist. The study examined 100 blood films, encompassing 23 different hematological diseases, reactive or normal cases. The study revealed that with real-time image transmission in live scanning mode of operation, the telepathology system was able to aid reviewers in achieving excellent accuracy, that is correct interpretation of morphologic abnormalities obtained in 83/84 of the hematologic diseases and 12/12 of the reactive/normal conditions (Sensitivity: 0.99; Specificity: 1.00). In contrast, when only saved static images in digital capture mode of operation were reviewed remotely, interpretative omissions occurred in 8/84 of the hematologic diseases and 0/12 of the reactive/normal conditions (Sensitivity: 0.91; Specificity: 1.00). It is hypothesized that real-time operator-reviewer communication during live scanning played an important role in the identification of key morphologic abnormalities for review. Our study showed the Panoptiq system can be adopted reliably as a dynamic telepathology tool in aiding community laboratories in the triage of PBF cases for external diagnostic consultation. © 2014 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

  7. 19 CFR 113.73 - Foreign trade zone operator bond conditions.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-04-01

    ... 19 Customs Duties 1 2012-04-01 2012-04-01 false Foreign trade zone operator bond conditions. 113...; DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY CUSTOMS BONDS Customs Bond Conditions § 113.73 Foreign trade zone operator bond conditions. A bond of a foreign trade zone operator shall contain the conditions listed in this section and...

  8. 19 CFR 113.73 - Foreign trade zone operator bond conditions.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-04-01

    ... 19 Customs Duties 1 2013-04-01 2013-04-01 false Foreign trade zone operator bond conditions. 113...; DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY CUSTOMS BONDS Customs Bond Conditions § 113.73 Foreign trade zone operator bond conditions. A bond of a foreign trade zone operator shall contain the conditions listed in this section and...

  9. 19 CFR 113.73 - Foreign trade zone operator bond conditions.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-04-01

    ... 19 Customs Duties 1 2011-04-01 2011-04-01 false Foreign trade zone operator bond conditions. 113...; DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY CUSTOMS BONDS Customs Bond Conditions § 113.73 Foreign trade zone operator bond conditions. A bond of a foreign trade zone operator shall contain the conditions listed in this section and...

  10. [INDIVIDUAL EVALUATION OF LORETA ABNORMALITIES IN IDIOPATHIC GENERALIZED EPILEPSY].

    PubMed

    Clemens, Béla; Puskás, Szilvia; Besenyei, Mónika; Kondákor, István; Hollódy, Katalin; Fogarasi, Andrós; Bense, Katalin; Emri, Miklós; Opposits Gábor; Kovács, Noémi Zsuzsanna; Fekete, István

    2016-03-30

    Contemporary neuroimaging methods disclosed structural and functional cerebral abnormalities in idiopathic generalized epilepsies (IGEs). However, individual electrical (EEG) abnormalities have not been evaluated yet in IGE patients. IGE patients were investigated in the drug-free condition and after 3-6 month of antiepileptic treatment. To estimate the reproducibility of qEEG variables a retrospective recruited cohort of IGE patients was investigated. 19-channel resting state EEG activity was recorded. For each patient a total of 2 minutes EEG activity was analyzed by LORETA (Low Resolution Electromagnetic Tomography). Raw LORETA values were Z-transformed and projected to a MRI template. Z-values outside within the [+3Z] to [-3Z] range were labelled as statistically abnormal. 1. In drug-free condition, 41-50% of IGE patients showed abnormal LORETA values. 2. Abnormal LORETA findings showed great inter-individual variability. 3. Most abnormal LORETA-findings were symmetrical. 4. Most maximum Z-values were localized to frontal or temporal cortex. 5. Succesfull treatment was mostly coupled with disappearence of LORETA-abnormality, persistent seizures were accompanied by persistent LORETA abnormality. 1. LORETA abnormalities detected in the untreated condition reflect seizure-generating property of the cortex in IGE patients. 2. Maximum LORETA-Z abnormalities were topographically congruent with structural abnormalities reported by other research groups. 3. LORETA might help to investigate drug effects at the whole-brain level.

  11. Abnormal Grain Growth Suppression in Aluminum Alloys

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Hales, Stephen J. (Inventor); Claytor, Harold Dale (Inventor); Alexa, Joel A. (Inventor)

    2015-01-01

    The present invention provides a process for suppressing abnormal grain growth in friction stir welded aluminum alloys by inserting an intermediate annealing treatment ("IAT") after the welding step on the article. The IAT may be followed by a solution heat treatment (SHT) on the article under effectively high solution heat treatment conditions. In at least some embodiments, a deformation step is conducted on the article under effective spin-forming deformation conditions or under effective superplastic deformation conditions. The invention further provides a welded article having suppressed abnormal grain growth, prepared by the process above. Preferably the article is characterized with greater than about 90% reduction in area fraction abnormal grain growth in any friction-stir-welded nugget.

  12. The relevance of sleep abnormalities to chronic inflammatory conditions.

    PubMed

    Ranjbaran, Z; Keefer, L; Stepanski, E; Farhadi, A; Keshavarzian, A

    2007-02-01

    Sleep is vital to health and quality of life while sleep abnormalities are associated with adverse health consequences. Nevertheless, sleep problems are not generally considered by clinicians in the management of chronic inflammatory conditions (CIC) such as asthma, RA, SLE and IBD. To determine whether this practice is justified, we reviewed the literature on sleep and chronic inflammatory diseases, including effects of sleep on immune system and inflammation. We found that a change in the sleep-wake cycle is often one of the first responses to acute inflammation and infection and that the reciprocal effect of sleep on the immune system in acute states is often protective and restorative. For example, slow wave sleep can attenuate proinflammatory immune responses while sleep deprivation can aggravate those responses. The role of sleep in CIC is not well explored. We found a substantial body of published evidence that sleep disturbances can worsen the course of CIC, aggravate disease symptoms such as pain and fatigue, and increase disease activity and lower quality of life. The mechanism underlying these effects probably involves dysregulation of the immune system. All this suggests that managing sleep disturbances should be considered as an important factor in the overall management of CIC.

  13. A novelty detection diagnostic methodology for gearboxes operating under fluctuating operating conditions using probabilistic techniques

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Schmidt, S.; Heyns, P. S.; de Villiers, J. P.

    2018-02-01

    In this paper, a fault diagnostic methodology is developed which is able to detect, locate and trend gear faults under fluctuating operating conditions when only vibration data from a single transducer, measured on a healthy gearbox are available. A two-phase feature extraction and modelling process is proposed to infer the operating condition and based on the operating condition, to detect changes in the machine condition. Information from optimised machine and operating condition hidden Markov models are statistically combined to generate a discrepancy signal which is post-processed to infer the condition of the gearbox. The discrepancy signal is processed and combined with statistical methods for automatic fault detection and localisation and to perform fault trending over time. The proposed methodology is validated on experimental data and a tacholess order tracking methodology is used to enhance the cost-effectiveness of the diagnostic methodology.

  14. Abnormal pressure in hydrocarbon environments

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Law, B.E.; Spencer, C.W.

    1998-01-01

    Abnormal pressures, pressures above or below hydrostatic pressures, occur on all continents in a wide range of geological conditions. According to a survey of published literature on abnormal pressures, compaction disequilibrium and hydrocarbon generation are the two most commonly cited causes of abnormally high pressure in petroleum provinces. In young (Tertiary) deltaic sequences, compaction disequilibrium is the dominant cause of abnormal pressure. In older (pre-Tertiary) lithified rocks, hydrocarbon generation, aquathermal expansion, and tectonics are most often cited as the causes of abnormal pressure. The association of abnormal pressures with hydrocarbon accumulations is statistically significant. Within abnormally pressured reservoirs, empirical evidence indicates that the bulk of economically recoverable oil and gas occurs in reservoirs with pressure gradients less than 0.75 psi/ft (17.4 kPa/m) and there is very little production potential from reservoirs that exceed 0.85 psi/ft (19.6 kPa/m). Abnormally pressured rocks are also commonly associated with unconventional gas accumulations where the pressuring phase is gas of either a thermal or microbial origin. In underpressured, thermally mature rocks, the affected reservoirs have most often experienced a significant cooling history and probably evolved from an originally overpressured system.

  15. Prevalence of Noncardiac and Genetic Abnormalities in Neonates Undergoing Cardiac Operations: Analysis of The Society of Thoracic Surgeons Congenital Heart Surgery Database.

    PubMed

    Patel, Angira; Costello, John M; Backer, Carl L; Pasquali, Sara K; Hill, Kevin D; Wallace, Amelia S; Jacobs, Jeffrey P; Jacobs, Marshall L

    2016-11-01

    Among patients with congenital heart disease (CHD), the coexistence of noncardiac congenital anatomic abnormalities (NC), genetic abnormalities (GA), and syndromes (S) may influence therapeutic strategies and outcomes. The appreciated prevalence of these abnormalities has risen because increased screening and improved diagnostic precision enable identification of these comorbidities in a larger fraction of neonates with CHD. We examined the contemporary prevalence and distribution of NC/GA/S across diagnostic groups among neonates undergoing cardiac operations using a large nationally representative clinical registry. The Society of Thoracic Surgeons Congenital Heart Surgery Database (STS-CHSD) was queried to identify neonates (≤30 days) who underwent index cardiac operations from 2010 to 2013. The fundamental cardiac diagnosis was used to identify 10 diagnostic groups. The prevalence of NC/GA/S was reported across each group. The cohort included 15,376 index neonatal operations from 112 centers. Overall, 18.8% (2,894 of 15,376) of operations were performed in neonates with NC/GA/S. Patients with atrioventricular septal defect (212 of 357 [59.4%]), interrupted aortic arch (248 of 567 [43.7%]), truncus arteriosus (204 of 554 [36.8%]), and tetralogy of Fallot (417 of 1,383 [30.2%]) had the highest prevalence of NC/GA/S abnormalities, whereas those with transposition of the great arteries (111 of 2,778 [4.0%]) had the lowest prevalence. The most commonly identified NC/GA/S included heterotaxy (597 of 15,376 [3.9%]), DiGeorge syndrome or 22q11 deletion (550 of 15,376 [3.6%]), Down syndrome or trisomy 21 (318 of 15, 376 [2.1%]), intestinal malrotation (220 of 15,376 [1.4%]), and Turner syndrome or 45XO (189 of 15,376 [1.2%]). The prevalence of NC/GA/S varies widely across CHD diagnostic groups. This information may be useful for patient counseling, recommendations for screening for anomalies and genetic disorders, and perioperative management. Copyright © 2016 The

  16. Genetics Home Reference: X-linked lissencephaly with abnormal genitalia

    MedlinePlus

    ... Health Conditions X-linked lissencephaly with abnormal genitalia X-linked lissencephaly with abnormal genitalia Printable PDF Open ... Javascript to view the expand/collapse boxes. Description X-linked lissencephaly with abnormal genitalia (XLAG) is a ...

  17. Operational Markov Condition for Quantum Processes

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Pollock, Felix A.; Rodríguez-Rosario, César; Frauenheim, Thomas; Paternostro, Mauro; Modi, Kavan

    2018-01-01

    We derive a necessary and sufficient condition for a quantum process to be Markovian which coincides with the classical one in the relevant limit. Our condition unifies all previously known definitions for quantum Markov processes by accounting for all potentially detectable memory effects. We then derive a family of measures of non-Markovianity with clear operational interpretations, such as the size of the memory required to simulate a process or the experimental falsifiability of a Markovian hypothesis.

  18. Infant Operant Conditioning and Its Implications for Early Intervention.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Lancioni, Giullo E.

    1980-01-01

    In this article infant operant conditioning studies are grouped according to distinct procedures: free operant; discrete trial with one discriminative stimulus; discrete trial with two or more discriminative stimuli; controlled operant with two or more discriminative stimuli; and unrestricted operant with two or more discriminative stimuli.…

  19. Ergonomics for enhancing detection of machine abnormalities.

    PubMed

    Illankoon, Prasanna; Abeysekera, John; Singh, Sarbjeet

    2016-10-17

    Detecting abnormal machine conditions is of great importance in an autonomous maintenance environment. Ergonomic aspects can be invaluable when detection of machine abnormalities using human senses is examined. This research outlines the ergonomic issues involved in detecting machine abnormalities and suggests how ergonomics would improve such detections. Cognitive Task Analysis was performed in a plant in Sri Lanka where Total Productive Maintenance is being implemented to identify sensory types that would be used to detect machine abnormalities and relevant Ergonomic characteristics. As the outcome of this research, a methodology comprising of an Ergonomic Gap Analysis Matrix for machine abnormality detection is presented.

  20. Autoshaping of abnormal children.

    PubMed

    Deckner, C W; Wilcox, L M; Maisto, S A; Blanton, R L

    1980-09-01

    Three experimentally naive abnormal children were exposed to a terminal operant contingency, i.e., reinforcement was delivered only if the children pressed a panel during intervals when it was lighted. Despite the absence of both successive approximation and manual shaping, it was found that each child began to respond discriminatively within a small number of trials. These data replicated previous animal studies concerned with the phenomena of autoshaping and signal-controlled responding. It was also found, however, that one type of autoshaping, the classical conditioning procedure, had a powerful suppressive effect on the discriminative responding. An experimental analysis that consisted procedure, had a powerful suppressive effect on discriminative responding. An experimental analysis that consisted of intrasubject reversal an multiple baseline designs established the internal validity of the findings. The finding of rapid acquisition of signal-controlled responding obtained with the initial procedure is suggessted to have practical significance. The disruptive effects of the classical form of autoshaping are discussed in terms of negative behavioral contrast.

  1. Unsupervised Pattern Classifier for Abnormality-Scaling of Vibration Features for Helicopter Gearbox Fault Diagnosis

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Jammu, Vinay B.; Danai, Kourosh; Lewicki, David G.

    1996-01-01

    A new unsupervised pattern classifier is introduced for on-line detection of abnormality in features of vibration that are used for fault diagnosis of helicopter gearboxes. This classifier compares vibration features with their respective normal values and assigns them a value in (0, 1) to reflect their degree of abnormality. Therefore, the salient feature of this classifier is that it does not require feature values associated with faulty cases to identify abnormality. In order to cope with noise and changes in the operating conditions, an adaptation algorithm is incorporated that continually updates the normal values of the features. The proposed classifier is tested using experimental vibration features obtained from an OH-58A main rotor gearbox. The overall performance of this classifier is then evaluated by integrating the abnormality-scaled features for detection of faults. The fault detection results indicate that the performance of this classifier is comparable to the leading unsupervised neural networks: Kohonen's Feature Mapping and Adaptive Resonance Theory (AR72). This is significant considering that the independence of this classifier from fault-related features makes it uniquely suited to abnormality-scaling of vibration features for fault diagnosis.

  2. Operant conditioning of facial displays of pain.

    PubMed

    Kunz, Miriam; Rainville, Pierre; Lautenbacher, Stefan

    2011-06-01

    The operant model of chronic pain posits that nonverbal pain behavior, such as facial expressions, is sensitive to reinforcement, but experimental evidence supporting this assumption is sparse. The aim of the present study was to investigate in a healthy population a) whether facial pain behavior can indeed be operantly conditioned using a discriminative reinforcement schedule to increase and decrease facial pain behavior and b) to what extent these changes affect pain experience indexed by self-ratings. In the experimental group (n = 29), the participants were reinforced every time that they showed pain-indicative facial behavior (up-conditioning) or a neutral expression (down-conditioning) in response to painful heat stimulation. Once facial pain behavior was successfully up- or down-conditioned, respectively (which occurred in 72% of participants), facial pain displays and self-report ratings were assessed. In addition, a control group (n = 11) was used that was yoked to the reinforcement plans of the experimental group. During the conditioning phases, reinforcement led to significant changes in facial pain behavior in the majority of the experimental group (p < .001) but not in the yoked control group (p > .136). Fine-grained analyses of facial muscle movements revealed a similar picture. Furthermore, the decline in facial pain displays (as observed during down-conditioning) strongly predicted changes in pain ratings (R(2) = 0.329). These results suggest that a) facial pain displays are sensitive to reinforcement and b) that changes in facial pain displays can affect self-report ratings.

  3. Prediction of heart abnormality using MLP network

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Hashim, Fakroul Ridzuan; Januar, Yulni; Mat, Muhammad Hadzren; Rizman, Zairi Ismael; Awang, Mat Kamil

    2018-02-01

    Heart abnormality does not choose gender, age and races when it strikes. With no warning signs or symptoms, it can result to a sudden death of the patient. Generally, heart's irregular electrical activity is defined as heart abnormality. Via implementation of Multilayer Perceptron (MLP) network, this paper tries to develop a program that allows the detection of heart abnormality activity. Utilizing several training algorithms with Purelin activation function, an amount of heartbeat signals received through the electrocardiogram (ECG) will be employed to condition the MLP network.

  4. System and method of vehicle operating condition management

    DOEpatents

    Sujan, Vivek A.; Vajapeyazula, Phani; Follen, Kenneth; Wu, An; Moffett, Barty L.

    2015-10-20

    A vehicle operating condition profile can be determined over a given route while also considering imposed constraints such as deviation from time targets, deviation from maximum governed speed limits, etc. Given current vehicle speed, engine state and transmission state, the present disclosure optimally manages the engine map and transmission to provide a recommended vehicle operating condition that optimizes fuel consumption in transitioning from one vehicle state to a target state. Exemplary embodiments provide for offline and online optimizations relative to fuel consumption. The benefit is increased freight efficiency in transporting cargo from source to destination by minimizing fuel consumption and maintaining drivability.

  5. Operant Conditioning in Older Adults with Alzheimer's Disease

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Spira, Adam P.; Edelstein, Barry A.

    2007-01-01

    Behavioral interventions based on operant principles are commonly attempted to manage agitation in older adults with dementia. The extent to which operant conditioning can occur in persons with particular dementias, however, is unclear. The present study involved use of a button-pressing task to evaluate the sensitivity of the responding of older…

  6. The knowledge-based framework for a nuclear power plant operator advisor

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Miller, D.W.; Hajek, B.K.

    1989-01-01

    An important facet in the design, development, and evaluation of aids for complex systems is the identification of the tasks performed by the operator. Operator aids utilizing artificial intelligence, or more specifically knowledge-based systems, require identification of these tasks in the context of a knowledge-based framework. In this context, the operator responses to the plant behavior are to monitor and comprehend the state of the plant, identify normal and abnormal plant conditions, diagnose abnormal plant conditions, predict plant response to specific control actions, and select the best available control action, implement a feasible control action, monitor system response to themore » control action, and correct for any inappropriate responses. These tasks have been identified to formulate a knowledge-based framework for an operator advisor under development at Ohio State University that utilizes the generic task methodology proposed by Chandrasekaran. The paper lays the foundation to identify the responses as a knowledge-based set of tasks in accordance with the expected human operator responses during an event. Initial evaluation of the expert system indicates the potential for an operator aid that will improve the operator's ability to respond to both anticipated and unanticipated events.« less

  7. Automated Operant Conditioning in the Mouse Home Cage.

    PubMed

    Francis, Nikolas A; Kanold, Patrick O

    2017-01-01

    Recent advances in neuroimaging and genetics have made mice an advantageous animal model for studying the neurophysiology of sensation, cognition, and locomotion. A key benefit of mice is that they provide a large population of test subjects for behavioral screening. Reflex-based assays of hearing in mice, such as the widely used acoustic startle response, are less accurate than operant conditioning in measuring auditory processing. To date, however, there are few cost-effective options for scalable operant conditioning systems. Here, we describe a new system for automated operant conditioning, the Psibox. It is assembled from low cost parts, designed to fit within typical commercial wire-top cages, and allows large numbers of mice to train independently in their home cages on positive reinforcement tasks. We found that groups of mice trained together learned to accurately detect sounds within 2 weeks of training. In addition, individual mice isolated from groups also showed good task performance. The Psibox facilitates high-throughput testing of sensory, motor, and cognitive skills in mice, and provides a readily available animal population for studies ranging from experience-dependent neural plasticity to rodent models of mental disorders.

  8. Pre-operative endoscopic ultrasonography can optimise the management of patients undergoing laparoscopic cholecystectomy with abnormal liver function tests as the sole risk factor for choledocholithiasis: a prospective study.

    PubMed

    Meroni, E; Bisagni, P; Bona, S; Fumagalli, U; Zago, M; Rosati, R; Malesci, A

    2004-01-01

    Pre-operative endosonography has been proposed as a cost-effective procedure in the management of patients who undergo laparoscopic cholecystectomy having an intermediate risk of common bile duct stones. We prospectively evaluated the impact of pre-operative endosonography on the management of patients facing laparoscopic cholecystectomy with abnormal liver function tests as the sole risk factor for choledocolithiasis. Among 587 consecutive patients scheduled for laparoscopic cholecystectomy, 47 (8%) patients having one or more abnormal liver function tests but a normal appearance of common bile duct at abdominal ultrasound, underwent pre-operative endosonography. In patients with endosonography-detected common bile duct stones, a pre-operative endoscopic retrograde cholangiography was performed, or an intra-operative endoscopic retrograde cholangiography was scheduled. In all endosonography-negative patients, an intra-operative trans-cystic cholangiography was performed. Endosonography detected common bile duct stones in nine patients (19%) but only in five of them stones were radiologically confirmed (PPV 0.55). Endosonography-detected stones were confirmed in four of four (100%) patients in whom cholangiography was performed within 1 week, but only in one of five (20%) patients in whom radiology was further delayed (P < 0.05). In three of four cases (75%), stones detected at endosonography but not confirmed at X-rays, were smaller than 2.0 mm. Among 38 patients with negative endosonography, common bile duct stones were found in two patients (NPV 0.95), whereas unplanned endoscopic stone extraction was needed only in one patient (NPV 0.97). Pre-operative endosonography can spare unnecessary pre-operative endoscopic retrograde cholangiography as well as inappropriate scheduling of intra-operative endoscopic retrograde cholangiography in patients undergoing laparoscopic cholecystectomy with abnormal liver function tests. To maximise the impact of endosonography on

  9. Analysis of light emitting diode array lighting system based on human vision: normal and abnormal uniformity condition.

    PubMed

    Qin, Zong; Ji, Chuangang; Wang, Kai; Liu, Sheng

    2012-10-08

    In this paper, condition for uniform lighting generated by light emitting diode (LED) array was systematically studied. To take human vision effect into consideration, contrast sensitivity function (CSF) was novelly adopted as critical criterion for uniform lighting instead of conventionally used Sparrow's Criterion (SC). Through CSF method, design parameters including system thickness, LED pitch, LED's spatial radiation distribution and viewing condition can be analytically combined. In a specific LED array lighting system (LALS) with foursquare LED arrangement, different types of LEDs (Lambertian and Batwing type) and given viewing condition, optimum system thicknesses and LED pitches were calculated and compared with those got through SC method. Results show that CSF method can achieve more appropriate optimum parameters than SC method. Additionally, an abnormal phenomenon that uniformity varies with structural parameters non-monotonically in LALS with non-Lambertian LEDs was found and analyzed. Based on the analysis, a design method of LALS that can bring about better practicability, lower cost and more attractive appearance was summarized.

  10. PV systems photoelectric parameters determining for field conditions and real operation conditions

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Shepovalova, Olga V.

    2018-05-01

    In this work, research experience and reference documentation have been generalized related to PV systems photoelectric parameters (PV array output parameters) determining. The basic method has been presented that makes it possible to determine photoelectric parameters with the state-of-the-art reliability and repeatability. This method provides an effective tool for PV systems comparison and evaluation of PV system parameters that the end-user will have in the course of its real operation for compliance with those stipulated in reference documentation. The method takes in consideration all parameters that may possibly affect photoelectric performance and that are supported by sufficiently valid procedures for their values testing. Test conditions, requirements for equipment subject to tests and test preparations have been established and the test procedure for fully equipped PV system in field tests and in real operation conditions has been described.

  11. Operational forecasting of human-biometeorological conditions

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Giannaros, T. M.; Lagouvardos, K.; Kotroni, V.; Matzarakis, A.

    2018-03-01

    This paper presents the development of an operational forecasting service focusing on human-biometeorological conditions. The service is based on the coupling of numerical weather prediction models with an advanced human-biometeorological model. Human thermal perception and stress forecasts are issued on a daily basis for Greece, in both point and gridded format. A user-friendly presentation approach is adopted for communicating the forecasts to the public via the worldwide web. The development of the presented service highlights the feasibility of replacing standard meteorological parameters and/or indices used in operational weather forecasting activities for assessing the thermal environment. This is of particular significance for providing effective, human-biometeorology-oriented, warnings for both heat waves and cold outbreaks.

  12. Sleep Physiology, Abnormal States, and Therapeutic Interventions

    PubMed Central

    Wickboldt, Alvah T.; Bowen, Alex F.; Kaye, Aaron J.; Kaye, Adam M.; Rivera Bueno, Franklin; Kaye, Alan D.

    2012-01-01

    Sleep is essential. Unfortunately, a significant portion of the population experiences altered sleep states that often result in a multitude of health-related issues. The regulation of sleep and sleep-wake cycles is an area of intense research, and many options for treatment are available. The following review summarizes the current understanding of normal and abnormal sleep-related conditions and the available treatment options. All clinicians managing patients must recommend appropriate therapeutic interventions for abnormal sleep states. Clinicians' solid understanding of sleep physiology, abnormal sleep states, and treatments will greatly benefit patients regardless of their disease process. PMID:22778676

  13. Display conditions and lesion detectability: effect of background light

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Razavi, Mahmood; Hall, Theodore R.; Aberle, Denise R.; Hayrapetian, Alek S.; Loloyan, Mansur; Eldredge, Sandra L.

    1990-08-01

    We assessed the effect of high background light on observer performance for the detection of a variety of chest radiographic abnormalities. Five observers reviewed 66 digital hard copy chest images formatted to 1 1 x 14 inch size under two display conditions: 1) on a specially prepared 1 1 x 14 inch illuminated panel with no peripheral light and 2) on a standard viewing panel designed for 14 x 17 inch radiographs. The images contained one - or more of the following conditions: pneumothorax, interstitial disease, nodules, alveolar process, or no abnormality. The results of receiver operator characteristic analysis show that extraneous light does reduce observer performance and the detectability of nodules, interstitial disease.

  14. Classification of breast abnormalities using artificial neural network

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Zaman, Nur Atiqah Kamarul; Rahman, Wan Eny Zarina Wan Abdul; Jumaat, Abdul Kadir; Yasiran, Siti Salmah

    2015-05-01

    Classification is the process of recognition, differentiation and categorizing objects into groups. Breast abnormalities are calcifications which are tumor markers that indicate the presence of cancer in the breast. The aims of this research are to classify the types of breast abnormalities using artificial neural network (ANN) classifier and to evaluate the accuracy performance using receiver operating characteristics (ROC) curve. The methods used in this research are ANN for breast abnormalities classifications and Canny edge detector as a feature extraction method. Previously the ANN classifier provides only the number of benign and malignant cases without providing information for specific cases. However in this research, the type of abnormality for each image can be obtained. The existing MIAS MiniMammographic database classified the mammogram images into three features only namely characteristic of background tissues, class of abnormality and radius of abnormality. However, in this research three other features are added-in. These three features are number of spots, area and shape of abnormalities. Lastly the performance of the ANN classifier is evaluated using ROC curve. It is found that ANN has an accuracy of 97.9% which is considered acceptable.

  15. Store operation with conditional push of a tag value to a queue

    DOEpatents

    Heidelberger, Philip; Steinmacher-Burow, Burkhard

    2015-07-28

    According to one embodiment, a method for a store operation with a conditional push of a tag value to a queue is provided. The method includes configuring a queue that is accessible by an application, setting a value at an address in a memory device including a memory and a controller, receiving a request for an operation using the value at the address and performing the operation. The method also includes the controller writing a result of the operation to the address, thus changing the value at the address, the controller determining if the result of the operation meets a condition and the controller pushing a tag value to the queue based on the condition being met, where the tag value in the queue indicates to the application that the condition is met.

  16. US Navy Women's Experience of an Abnormal Cervical Cancer Screening.

    PubMed

    Braun, Lisa A; Kennedy, Holly Powell; Sadler, Lois S; Dixon, Jane; Womack, Julie; Wilson, Candy

    2016-01-01

    Recent policy revisions allow greater inclusion of military women in operational and/or deployable positions (ie, shipboard, overseas, and war zone duty assignments), but these positions can create unique health care challenges. Military members are often transient due to deployments and change of duty stations, impacting timely follow-up care for treatable health conditions. There has been minimal research on challenges or strategies in preventive health screening and follow-up for US military women. The purpose of this qualitative research study was to describe US Navy women's experiences with abnormal cervical cancer screenings requiring colposcopic follow-up care. Ship- and shored-based women receiving care at a military colposcopy clinic completed interviews about their experience. Two forms of narrative analysis, Labov's sociolinguistic structural analysis and Braun and Clarke's thematic analysis, were employed to gain a more robust understanding of the women's experiences. The sample was comprised of 26 women (16 ship-based, 10 shore-based). Five themes were identified: 1) It's like this bombshell (initial abnormal results notification); 2) I didn't understand (self-discovery process); 3) Freaked (emotional toll); 4) It's kind of like this back and forth (scheduling and navigating care); and 5) It really opened my eyes (lessons learned). The women's stories highlighted some issues unique to military health care, such as operational demands and follow-up care; other issues are likely common for most women learning about an abnormal cervical cancer screening result. Areas important for practice and future research include improving notification practices, providing information, understanding women's fear, and continuity of care. Research exploring educational initiatives and self-management practices are critical within military populations. © 2016 by the American College of Nurse-Midwives.

  17. 15 CFR 960.11 - Conditions for operation.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-01-01

    ... ENVIRONMENTAL DATA SERVICE LICENSING OF PRIVATE REMOTE SENSING SYSTEMS Licenses § 960.11 Conditions for... performance, including, but not limited to, limitations on data collection and dissemination, as appropriate... Administrator records of system tasking, operations and other data as specified in the license for the purposes...

  18. 15 CFR 960.11 - Conditions for operation.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-01-01

    ... ENVIRONMENTAL DATA SERVICE LICENSING OF PRIVATE REMOTE SENSING SYSTEMS Licenses § 960.11 Conditions for... performance, including, but not limited to, limitations on data collection and dissemination, as appropriate... Administrator records of system tasking, operations and other data as specified in the license for the purposes...

  19. 15 CFR 960.11 - Conditions for operation.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-01-01

    ... ENVIRONMENTAL DATA SERVICE LICENSING OF PRIVATE REMOTE SENSING SYSTEMS Licenses § 960.11 Conditions for... performance, including, but not limited to, limitations on data collection and dissemination, as appropriate... Administrator records of system tasking, operations and other data as specified in the license for the purposes...

  20. Operant Conditioning: A Tool for Special Physical Educators in the 1980s.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Dunn, John M.; French, Ron

    1982-01-01

    The usefulness of operant conditioning for the special physical educator in managing behavior problems is pointed out, and steps to follow in applying operant conditioning techniques are outlined. (SB)

  1. Problems and Delays Overshadow NRC's Initial Success in Improving Reactor Operators' Capabilities.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    General Accounting Office, Washington, DC.

    The nuclear power plant accident at Three Mile Island raised many questions concerning the safety of nuclear power plant operations and the ability of nuclear plant reactor operators to respond to abnormal or accident conditions. In response, the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) developed a plan, which included short- and long-term actions to…

  2. Experimental study on the regenerator under actual operating conditions

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Nam, Kwanwoo; Jeong, Sangkwon

    2002-05-01

    An experimental apparatus was prepared to investigate thermal and hydrodynamic characteristics of the regenerator under its actual operating conditions. The apparatus included a compressor to pressurize and depressurize regenerator with various operating frequencies. Cold end of the regenerator was maintained around 100 K by means of liquid nitrogen container and heat exchanger. Instantaneous gas temperature and mass flow rate were measured at both ends of the regenerator during the whole pressure cycle. Pulsating pressure and pressure drop across the regenerator were also measured. The operating frequency of the pressure cycle was varied between 3 and 60 Hz, which are typical operating frequencies of Gifford-McMahon, pulse tube, and Stirling cryocoolers. First, friction factor for the wire screen mesh was directly determined from room temperature experiments. When the operating frequency was less than 9 Hz, the oscillating flow friction factor was nearly same as the steady flow friction factor for Reynolds number up to 100. For 60 Hz operations, the ratio of oscillating flow friction factor to steady flow one was increased as hydraulic Reynolds number became high. When the Reynolds number was 100, this ratio was about 1.6. Second, ineffectiveness of the regenerator was obtained when the cold-end was maintained around 100 K and the warm-end at 300 K to simulate the actual operating condition of the regenerator in cryocooler. Effect of the operating frequency on ineffectiveness of regenerator was discussed at low frequency range.

  3. Operant Conditioning and Learning: Examples, Sources, Technology.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Pedrini, Bonnie C.; Pedrini, D. T.

    The purpose of this paper is to relate psychology to teaching generally, and to relate behavior shaping to curriculum, specifically. Focusing on operant conditioning and learning, many studies are cited which illustrate some of the work being done toward effectively shaping or modifying student behavior whether in terms of subject matter or…

  4. Intelligent Process Abnormal Patterns Recognition and Diagnosis Based on Fuzzy Logic.

    PubMed

    Hou, Shi-Wang; Feng, Shunxiao; Wang, Hui

    2016-01-01

    Locating the assignable causes by use of the abnormal patterns of control chart is a widely used technology for manufacturing quality control. If there are uncertainties about the occurrence degree of abnormal patterns, the diagnosis process is impossible to be carried out. Considering four common abnormal control chart patterns, this paper proposed a characteristic numbers based recognition method point by point to quantify the occurrence degree of abnormal patterns under uncertain conditions and a fuzzy inference system based on fuzzy logic to calculate the contribution degree of assignable causes with fuzzy abnormal patterns. Application case results show that the proposed approach can give a ranked causes list under fuzzy control chart abnormal patterns and support the abnormity eliminating.

  5. Impact of air conditioning system operation on increasing gases emissions from automobile

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Burciu, S. M.; Coman, G.

    2016-08-01

    The paper presents a study concerning the influence of air conditioning system operation on the increase of gases emissions from cars. The study focuses on urban operating regimes of the automobile, regimes when the engines have low loads or are operating at idling. Are presented graphically the variations of pollution emissions (CO, CO2, HC) depending of engine speed and the load on air conditioning system. Additionally are presented, injection duration, throttle position, the mechanical power required by the compressor of air conditioning system and the refrigerant pressure variation on the discharge path, according to the stage of charging of the air conditioning system.

  6. Diverticular Disease of the Colon: Neuromuscular Function Abnormalities.

    PubMed

    Bassotti, Gabrio; Villanacci, Vincenzo; Bernardini, Nunzia; Dore, Maria P

    2016-10-01

    Colonic diverticular disease is a frequent finding in daily clinical practice. However, its pathophysiological mechanisms are largely unknown. This condition is likely the result of several concomitant factors occurring together to cause anatomic and functional abnormalities, leading as a result to the outpouching of the colonic mucosa. A pivotal role seems to be played by an abnormal colonic neuromuscular function, as shown repeatedly in these patients, and by an altered visceral perception. There is recent evidence that these abnormalities might be related to the derangement of the enteric innervation, to an abnormal distribution of mucosal neuropeptides, and to low-grade mucosal inflammation. The latter might be responsible for the development of visceral hypersensitivity, often causing abdominal pain in a subset of these patients.

  7. Operational limit conditions of the spur gears in lubricated modes

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Benilha, S.; Belarifi, F.

    2018-01-01

    The calculation of the gear teeth resistance, shows the using of a certain number of coefficients determined experimentally and which are accepted by the various international standards. However, this kind of calculation determines the gears by excess material and does not support the tribological parameters of operation. We propose in this work the support of these parameters, to determine the limit operation conditions of the spur gears, using the equivalent geometry. This is represented by two cylinders, which geometrically models of the contact between two teeth of a gear and whose lubrication is generally in mixed lubrication mode. The concept of Mc cool is used to determine the distribution of the load and the friction force, which are distributed in liquid (elastohydrodynamic) and solid domains and interact with each other. The phenomenon of interaction between the two domains is used, to predict the tribological limit conditions of operation. The proposed model is based on the resolution of elastohydrodynamic equations for the determination of load and friction as well as the deduction of mixed friction by tracing the Stribeck curve. This is calculated by the model of the decomposition of the patterns profile of rough surfaces in contacts. The results of non-dimensional calculations allow us to deduce the boundary conditions and can be adapted for any type of gear pair defined according to pre-established operating conditions.

  8. Abnormal uterine bleeding in reproductive-aged women.

    PubMed

    Matthews, Michelle L

    2015-03-01

    Abnormal uterine bleeding is a common medical condition with several causes. The International Federation of Gynecology and Obstetrics published guidelines in 2011 to develop universally accepted nomenclature and a classification system. In addition, the American College of Obstetrics and Gynecology recently updated recommendations on evaluation of abnormal uterine bleeding and indications for endometrial biopsies. This article reviews both medical and surgical treatments, including meta-analysis reviews of the most effective treatment options. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  9. A Problem-Solving Approach to Teaching Operant Conditioning

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Shields, Carolyn; Gredler, Margaret

    2003-01-01

    Psychology students frequently have misconceptions of basic concepts in operant conditioning. Prior classroom observations revealed that most students defined positive reinforcement as reward and equated negative reinforcement and punishment. Students also labeled positive reinforcement as rewarding good behavior and negative reinforcement as…

  10. Making Optic Flow Robust to Dynamic Lighting Conditions for Real-Time Operation

    DTIC Science & Technology

    2016-03-17

    ARL-TR-7629 ● MAR 2016 US Army Research Laboratory Making Optic Flow Robust to Dynamic Lighting Conditions for Real-Time...ARL-TR-7629 ● MAR 2016 US Army Research Laboratory Making Optic Flow Robust to Dynamic Lighting Conditions for Real-Time Operation...SUBTITLE Making Optic Flow Robust to Dynamic Lighting Conditions for Real-Time Operation 5a. CONTRACT NUMBER 5b. GRANT NUMBER 5c. PROGRAM ELEMENT

  11. The Operant and the Classical in Conditioned Orientation of Drosophila melanogaster at the Flight Simulator

    PubMed Central

    Brembs, Björn; Heisenberg, Martin

    2000-01-01

    Ever since learning and memory have been studied experimentally, the relationship between operant and classical conditioning has been controversial. Operant conditioning is any form of conditioning that essentially depends on the animal's behavior. It relies on operant behavior. A motor output is called operant if it controls a sensory variable. The Drosophila flight simulator, in which the relevant behavior is a single motor variable (yaw torque), fully separates the operant and classical components of a complex conditioning task. In this paradigm a tethered fly learns, operantly or classically, to prefer and avoid certain flight orientations in relation to the surrounding panorama. Yaw torque is recorded and, in the operant mode, controls the panorama. Using a yoked control, we show that classical pattern learning necessitates more extensive training than operant pattern learning. We compare in detail the microstructure of yaw torque after classical and operant training but find no evidence for acquired behavioral traits after operant conditioning that might explain this difference. We therefore conclude that the operant behavior has a facilitating effect on the classical training. In addition, we show that an operantly learned stimulus is successfully transferred from the behavior of the training to a different behavior. This result unequivocally demonstrates that during operant conditioning classical associations can be formed. PMID:10753977

  12. The operant and the classical in conditioned orientation of Drosophila melanogaster at the flight simulator.

    PubMed

    Brembs, B; Heisenberg, M

    2000-01-01

    Ever since learning and memory have been studied experimentally, the relationship between operant and classical conditioning has been controversial. Operant conditioning is any form of conditioning that essentially depends on the animal's behavior. It relies on operant behavior. A motor output is called operant if it controls a sensory variable. The Drosophila flight simulator, in which the relevant behavior is a single motor variable (yaw torque), fully separates the operant and classical components of a complex conditioning task. In this paradigm a tethered fly learns, operantly or classically, to prefer and avoid certain flight orientations in relation to the surrounding panorama. Yaw torque is recorded and, in the operant mode, controls the panorama. Using a yoked control, we show that classical pattern learning necessitates more extensive training than operant pattern learning. We compare in detail the microstructure of yaw torque after classical and operant training but find no evidence for acquired behavioral traits after operant conditioning that might explain this difference. We therefore conclude that the operant behavior has a facilitating effect on the classical training. In addition, we show that an operantly learned stimulus is successfully transferred from the behavior of the training to a different behavior. This result unequivocally demonstrates that during operant conditioning classical associations can be formed.

  13. 49 CFR 37.163 - Keeping vehicle lifts in operative condition: Public entities.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-10-01

    ... 49 Transportation 1 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false Keeping vehicle lifts in operative condition... lifts in operative condition: Public entities. (a) This section applies only to public entities with respect to lifts in non-rail vehicles. (b) The entity shall establish a system of regular and frequent...

  14. 49 CFR 37.163 - Keeping vehicle lifts in operative condition: Public entities.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-10-01

    ... 49 Transportation 1 2011-10-01 2011-10-01 false Keeping vehicle lifts in operative condition... lifts in operative condition: Public entities. (a) This section applies only to public entities with respect to lifts in non-rail vehicles. (b) The entity shall establish a system of regular and frequent...

  15. Self-adjoint elliptic operators with boundary conditions on not closed hypersurfaces

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Mantile, Andrea; Posilicano, Andrea; Sini, Mourad

    2016-07-01

    The theory of self-adjoint extensions of symmetric operators is used to construct self-adjoint realizations of a second-order elliptic differential operator on Rn with linear boundary conditions on (a relatively open part of) a compact hypersurface. Our approach allows to obtain Kreĭn-like resolvent formulae where the reference operator coincides with the ;free; operator with domain H2 (Rn); this provides an useful tool for the scattering problem from a hypersurface. Concrete examples of this construction are developed in connection with the standard boundary conditions, Dirichlet, Neumann, Robin, δ and δ‧-type, assigned either on a (n - 1) dimensional compact boundary Γ = ∂ Ω or on a relatively open part Σ ⊂ Γ. Schatten-von Neumann estimates for the difference of the powers of resolvents of the free and the perturbed operators are also proven; these give existence and completeness of the wave operators of the associated scattering systems.

  16. Operant Conditioning Concepts in Introductory Psychology Textbooks and Their Companion Web Sites

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Sheldon, Jane P.

    2002-01-01

    Psychology instructors and textbook authors rate operant conditioning as one of the most essential concepts for students to learn, yet textbook writers, as well as students, can fall prey to misconceptions. This study is a content analysis of the presentation of operant conditioning in introductory psychology textbooks and their companion Web…

  17. 49 CFR 37.163 - Keeping vehicle lifts in operative condition: Public entities.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-10-01

    ... 49 Transportation 1 2014-10-01 2014-10-01 false Keeping vehicle lifts in operative condition: Public entities. 37.163 Section 37.163 Transportation Office of the Secretary of Transportation TRANSPORTATION SERVICES FOR INDIVIDUALS WITH DISABILITIES (ADA) Provision of Service § 37.163 Keeping vehicle lifts in operative condition: Public entities. ...

  18. 49 CFR 37.163 - Keeping vehicle lifts in operative condition: Public entities.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-10-01

    ... 49 Transportation 1 2013-10-01 2013-10-01 false Keeping vehicle lifts in operative condition: Public entities. 37.163 Section 37.163 Transportation Office of the Secretary of Transportation TRANSPORTATION SERVICES FOR INDIVIDUALS WITH DISABILITIES (ADA) Provision of Service § 37.163 Keeping vehicle lifts in operative condition: Public entities. ...

  19. Abnormal Uterine Bleeding: American College of Nurse-Midwives.

    PubMed

    2016-07-01

    Variations in uterine bleeding, termed abnormal uterine bleeding, occur commonly among women and often are physiologic in nature with no significant consequences. However, abnormal uterine bleeding can cause significant distress to women or may signify an underlying pathologic condition. Most women experience variations in menstrual and perimenstrual bleeding in their lifetimes; therefore, the ability of the midwife to differentiate between normal and abnormal bleeding is a key diagnostic skill. A comprehensive history and use of the PALM-COEIN classification system will provide clear guidelines for clinical management, evidence-based treatment, and an individualized plan of care. The purpose of this Clinical Bulletin is to define and describe classifications of abnormal uterine bleeding, review updated terminology, and identify methods of assessment and treatment using a woman-centered approach. © 2016 by the American College of Nurse-Midwives.

  20. Gender classification from video under challenging operating conditions

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Mendoza-Schrock, Olga; Dong, Guozhu

    2014-06-01

    The literature is abundant with papers on gender classification research. However the majority of such research is based on the assumption that there is enough resolution so that the subject's face can be resolved. Hence the majority of the research is actually in the face recognition and facial feature area. A gap exists for gender classification under challenging operating conditions—different seasonal conditions, different clothing, etc.—and when the subject's face cannot be resolved due to lack of resolution. The Seasonal Weather and Gender (SWAG) Database is a novel database that contains subjects walking through a scene under operating conditions that span a calendar year. This paper exploits a subset of that database—the SWAG One dataset—using data mining techniques, traditional classifiers (ex. Naïve Bayes, Support Vector Machine, etc.) and traditional (canny edge detection, etc.) and non-traditional (height/width ratios, etc.) feature extractors to achieve high correct gender classification rates (greater than 85%). Another novelty includes exploiting frame differentials.

  1. 14 CFR 203.5 - Compliance as condition on operations in air transportation.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-01-01

    ... air transportation. 203.5 Section 203.5 Aeronautics and Space OFFICE OF THE SECRETARY, DEPARTMENT OF... DEFENSES § 203.5 Compliance as condition on operations in air transportation. It shall be a condition on the authority of all direct U.S. and foreign carriers to operate in air transportation that they have...

  2. Operational problems experienced by single pilots in instrument meteorological conditions

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Weislogel, S.

    1981-01-01

    The development and implementation of a search strategy to extract pertinent reports from the Aviation Safety Reporting System-2 (ASRS-2) database are described. For any particular occurence to be pertinent to the study, it must have satisfied the following conditions: the aircraft must be of the type usually flown by a single pilot; operation on an IFR flight plan in instrument meteorological conditions; pilot experienced an operational problem. The occurances consist of reports by the pilot about his own performance, by the pilot about the system performance, or by an air traffic controller about a pilot's performance.

  3. Influence of operating conditions on the optimum design of electric vehicle battery cooling plates

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Jarrett, Anthony; Kim, Il Yong

    2014-01-01

    The efficiency of cooling plates for electric vehicle batteries can be improved by optimizing the geometry of internal fluid channels. In practical operation, a cooling plate is exposed to a range of operating conditions dictated by the battery, environment, and driving behaviour. To formulate an efficient cooling plate design process, the optimum design sensitivity with respect to each boundary condition is desired. This determines which operating conditions must be represented in the design process, and therefore the complexity of designing for multiple operating conditions. The objective of this study is to determine the influence of different operating conditions on the optimum cooling plate design. Three important performance measures were considered: temperature uniformity, mean temperature, and pressure drop. It was found that of these three, temperature uniformity was most sensitive to the operating conditions, especially with respect to the distribution of the input heat flux, and also to the coolant flow rate. An additional focus of the study was the distribution of heat generated by the battery cell: while it is easier to assume that heat is generated uniformly, by using an accurate distribution for design optimization, this study found that cooling plate performance could be significantly improved.

  4. Endocrine Abnormalities in Patients with Chronic Kidney Disease.

    PubMed

    Kuczera, Piotr; Adamczak, Marcin; Wiecek, Andrzej

    2015-01-01

    In patients with chronic kidney disease the alterations of the endocrine system may arise from several causes. The kidney is the site of degradation as well as synthesis of many different hormones. Moreover, a number of concomitant pathological conditions such as inflammation, metabolic acidosis and malnutrition may participate in the pathogenesis of endocrine abnormalities in this group of patients. The most pronounced endocrine abnormalities in patients with chronic kidney disease are the deficiencies of: calcitriol, testosterone, insulin-like growth factor and, erythropoietin (EPO). Additionally accumulation of several hormones, such as: prolactin, growth hormone and insulin frequently also occur. The clinical consequences of the abovementioned endocrine abnormalities are among others: anemia, infertility and bone diseases.

  5. Topiramate for Abnormal Eating Behaviour in Frontotemporal Dementia

    PubMed Central

    Singam, Colin; Walterfang, Mark; Mocellin, Ramon; Evans, Andrew; Velakoulis, Dennis

    2013-01-01

    Topiramate is a sulfamate-substituted monosaccharide anticonvulsant that is associated with anorexia and weight loss and has been used to treat binge eating disorder and bulimia nervosa. This report describes a man with frontotemporal dementia, behavioural variant, associated with abnormal eating behaviour which appeared to respond to topiramate. We review the physiological basis of abnormal eating behaviour in frontotemporal dementia and explore possible mechanisms of action by which topiramate may modify eating behaviour in this condition. PMID:23548883

  6. A Case of ADHD and a Major Y Chromosome Abnormality

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Mulligan, Aisling; Gill, Michael; Fitzgerald, Michael

    2008-01-01

    Background: ADHD is a common, heritable disorder of childhood. Sex chromosome abnormalities are relatively rare conditions that are sometimes associated with behavioral disorders. Method: The authors present a male child with ADHD and a major de-novo Y chromosome abnormality consisting of deletion of the long arm and duplication of the short arm.…

  7. Altitude Performance of Modified J71 Afterburner with Revised Engine Operating Conditions

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Useller, James W.; Russey, Robert E.

    1955-01-01

    An investigation was conducted in an altitude test chamber at the NACA Lewis laboratory to determine the effect of a revision of the rated engine operating conditions and modifications to the afterburner fue1 system, flameholder, and shell cooling on the augmented performance of the J71-A-2 (x-29) turbo jet engine operating at altitude . The afterburner modifications were made by the manufacturer to improve the endurance at sea-level, high-pressure conditions and to reduce the afterburner shell temperatures. The engine operating conditions of rated rotational speed and turbine-outlet gas temperature were increased. Data were obtained at conditions simulating flight at a Mach number of 0.9 and at altitudes from 40,000 to 60,000 feet. The afterburner modifications caused a reduction in afterburner combustion efficiency. The increase in rated engine speed and turbine-outlet temperature coupled with the afterburner modifications resulted in the over-all thrust of the engine and afterburner being unchanged at a given afterburner equivalence ratio, while the specific fuel consumption was increased slightly. A moderate shift in the range of equivalence ratios over which the afterburner would operate was encountered, but the maximum operable altitude remained unaltered. The afterburner-shell temperatures were also slightly reduced because of the modifications to the afterburner.

  8. Effect of circadian phase on memory acquisition and recall: operant conditioning vs. classical conditioning.

    PubMed

    Garren, Madeleine V; Sexauer, Stephen B; Page, Terry L

    2013-01-01

    There have been several studies on the role of circadian clocks in the regulation of associative learning and memory processes in both vertebrate and invertebrate species. The results have been quite variable and at present it is unclear to what extent the variability observed reflects species differences or differences in methodology. Previous results have shown that following differential classical conditioning in the cockroach, Rhyparobia maderae, in an olfactory discrimination task, formation of the short-term and long-term memory is under strict circadian control. In contrast, there appeared to be no circadian regulation of the ability to recall established memories. In the present study, we show that following operant conditioning of the same species in a very similar olfactory discrimination task, there is no impact of the circadian system on either short-term or long-term memory formation. On the other hand, ability to recall established memories is strongly tied to the circadian phase of training. On the basis of these data and those previously reported for phylogenetically diverse species, it is suggested that there may be fundamental differences in the way the circadian system regulates learning and memory in classical and operant conditioning.

  9. Effect of Circadian Phase on Memory Acquisition and Recall: Operant Conditioning vs. Classical Conditioning

    PubMed Central

    Garren, Madeleine V.; Sexauer, Stephen B.; Page, Terry L.

    2013-01-01

    There have been several studies on the role of circadian clocks in the regulation of associative learning and memory processes in both vertebrate and invertebrate species. The results have been quite variable and at present it is unclear to what extent the variability observed reflects species differences or differences in methodology. Previous results have shown that following differential classical conditioning in the cockroach, Rhyparobia maderae, in an olfactory discrimination task, formation of the short-term and long-term memory is under strict circadian control. In contrast, there appeared to be no circadian regulation of the ability to recall established memories. In the present study, we show that following operant conditioning of the same species in a very similar olfactory discrimination task, there is no impact of the circadian system on either short-term or long-term memory formation. On the other hand, ability to recall established memories is strongly tied to the circadian phase of training. On the basis of these data and those previously reported for phylogenetically diverse species, it is suggested that there may be fundamental differences in the way the circadian system regulates learning and memory in classical and operant conditioning. PMID:23533587

  10. Updating Coverage of Operant Conditioning in Introductory Psychology.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Buskist, William; Miller, Erin; Ecott, Cheryl; Critchfield, Thomas S.

    1999-01-01

    Offers an example of determining what the experts of psychology deem as essential concepts in their subfield by investigating the current principles in operant conditioning through surveys of the board of editors of the "Journal of the Experimental Analysis of Behavior." Recommends concepts that are appropriate for up-to-date coverage of operant…

  11. Sex differences in learning processes of classical and operant conditioning

    PubMed Central

    Dalla, Christina; Shors, Tracey J.

    2009-01-01

    Males and females learn and remember differently at different times in their lives. These differences occur in most species, from invertebrates to humans. We review here sex differences as they occur in laboratory rodent species. We focus on classical and operant conditioning paradigms, including classical eyeblink conditioning, fear conditioning, active avoidance and conditioned taste aversion. Sex differences have been reported during acquisition, retention and extinction in most of these paradigms. In general, females perform better than males in the classical eyeblink conditioning, in fear-potentiated startle and in most operant conditioning tasks, such as the active avoidance test. However, in the classical fear conditioning paradigm, in certain lever-pressing paradigms and in the conditioned taste aversion males outperform females or are more resistant to extinction. Most sex differences in conditioning are dependent on organizational effects of gonadal hormones during early development of the brain, in addition to modulation by activational effects during puberty and adulthood. Critically, sex differences in performance account for some of the reported effects on learning and these are discussed throughout the review. Because so many mental disorders are more prevalent on one sex than the other, it is important to consider sex differences in learning when applying animal models of learning for these disorders. Finally, we discuss how sex differences in learning continue to alter the brain throughout the lifespan. Thus, sex differences in learning are not only mediated by sex differences in the brain, but also contribute to them. PMID:19272397

  12. Sex differences in learning processes of classical and operant conditioning.

    PubMed

    Dalla, Christina; Shors, Tracey J

    2009-05-25

    Males and females learn and remember differently at different times in their lives. These differences occur in most species, from invertebrates to humans. We review here sex differences as they occur in laboratory rodent species. We focus on classical and operant conditioning paradigms, including classical eyeblink conditioning, fear-conditioning, active avoidance and conditioned taste aversion. Sex differences have been reported during acquisition, retention and extinction in most of these paradigms. In general, females perform better than males in the classical eyeblink conditioning, in fear-potentiated startle and in most operant conditioning tasks, such as the active avoidance test. However, in the classical fear-conditioning paradigm, in certain lever-pressing paradigms and in the conditioned taste aversion, males outperform females or are more resistant to extinction. Most sex differences in conditioning are dependent on organizational effects of gonadal hormones during early development of the brain, in addition to modulation by activational effects during puberty and adulthood. Critically, sex differences in performance account for some of the reported effects on learning and these are discussed throughout the review. Because so many mental disorders are more prevalent in one sex than the other, it is important to consider sex differences in learning when applying animal models of learning for these disorders. Finally, we discuss how sex differences in learning continue to alter the brain throughout the lifespan. Thus, sex differences in learning are not only mediated by sex differences in the brain, but also contribute to them.

  13. [Application of TB type thermal balloon endometrial ablation for the treatment of abnormal uterine bleeding].

    PubMed

    Wang, W; Zhai, Y; Zhang, Z H; Li, Y; Zhang, Z Y

    2016-11-08

    Objective: To investigate the clinical efficacy, safety and promotion value of TB type thermal balloon endometrial ablation in the treatment of abnormal uterine bleeding. Methods: Fourty three patients who had received TB type endometrial ablation system for treatment of abnormal uterine bleeding from January, 2015 to January, 2016 in theDepartment of gynecology, Beijing Chaoyang Hospital were enrolled in this study. The intra-operative and post-operative complications and improvement of abnormal uterine bleeding and dysmenorrhea were observed. Results: There were nointra-operative complication occurred, such as uterine perforation, massive hemorrhage or surrounding organ damage. At 6 months after operation, 32 patients developed amenorrhea, 6 developed menstrual spotting, 3 developed menstruation with a small volume and 1 had a normal menstruation. No menstruation with an increased volume occurred. The occurrence of amenorrhea was 76.19% and the response rate was 97.62%.At 6 months after operation, 1 case had no response, 2 cases had partial response and 11 cases had complete response among the 14 cases of pre-operative dysmenorrhea; only 3 cases still had anemia among the 23 cases of pre-operative anemia. Compared with before treatment, patients with dysmenorrhea and anemia both significantly reduced with a statistically significant difference( P <0.01). Conclusion: TB type thermal balloon endometrial ablation has a significant efficacy with high safety for the treatment of abnormal uterine bleeding, which could have clinical promotion practice.

  14. Determination of Pressure Fluctuations in Rotor Bundle of Centrifugal Compressor at Critical Conditions of Operation

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Levashov, V. A.; Lyubchenko, K. Yu

    2017-08-01

    This article describes the physical processes that occur in the stage flow part of the compressor while it is operating and can create conditions for the occurrence of forced vibrations, which in turn can lead to the destruction of the impellers. Critical conditions of compressor operation are determined. To understand that critical condition of operation is cause of the destruction of the impellers, transient CFD analysis was carried for test stage of compressor. The obtained pressure fluctuation amplitudes allow to evaluate the critical conditions of compressor operation.

  15. Abnormal findings in peers during skills learning.

    PubMed

    Wearn, Andy; Nakatsuji, Miriam; Bhoopatkar, Harsh

    2017-02-01

    Peer physical examination (PPE), where students examine each other, is common in contemporary clinical skills learning. A range of benefits and risks have been explored in the literature. One persistent concern has been the identification and management of abnormal physical findings. Two previous studies have attempted to quantify the risk, one through the discussion of two exemplar cases and the other with a retrospective student survey. Here, we report the first prospective study of the number and type of abnormalities encountered as part of early clinical skills learning in a medical programme. We have a formal written consent process for PPE, which includes the management of abnormal findings through the completion of an event form. Our data come from cohorts undertaking years 2 and 3 of the programme between 2003 and 2014. One persistent concern (of PPE) has been the identification and management of abnormal physical findings RESULTS: Nineteen event forms were completed over this period. The incidence rates per year ranged from 0.23 to 1.05 per cent. Abnormal findings included raised blood pressure, heart murmur, abnormal bedside test values, and eye and skin conditions. The low event rate, along with a feasible process for dealing with this issue, goes some way to reassuring those with concerns. We acknowledge that some abnormalities may have been missed, and that some data may have been lost as a result of incorrect process; however, even the highest annual rate is low in absolute terms. We recommend a formal process for managing abnormalities. Ideally this would be part of an overall PPE written policy, communicated to students, enacted by tutors and approved by the local ethics committee. © 2016 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

  16. How Much of Language Acquisition Does Operant Conditioning Explain?

    PubMed

    Sturdy, Christopher B; Nicoladis, Elena

    2017-01-01

    Since the 1950s, when Chomsky argued that Skinner's arguments could not explain syntactic acquisition, psychologists have generally avoided explicitly invoking operant or instrumental conditioning as a learning mechanism for language among human children. In this article, we argue that this is a mistake. We focus on research that has been done on language learning in human infants and toddlers in order to illustrate our points. Researchers have ended up inventing learning mechanisms that, in actual practice, not only resemble but also in fact are examples of operant conditioning (OC) by any other name they select. We argue that language acquisition researchers should proceed by first ruling out OC before invoking alternative learning mechanisms. While it is possible that OC cannot explain all of the language acquisition, simple learning mechanisms that work across species may have some explanatory power in children's language learning.

  17. Detection of Abnormal Operation Noise Using CHLAC of Sound Spectrograph and Continuous DP Matching

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Hattori, Koosuke; Ohmi, Taishi; Taguchi, Ryo; Umezaki, Taizo

    It is a general way that the industrial product is tested by individual inspector. If the product involves sound factors, each inspector will evaluate the test product to sort out a strange engine noise from the natural sound. However, it is hard to cover the consistency in evaluation criteria due to the personal equation referred to the idea that every individual had an inherent bias, plus a physical and mental conditions can be a negative effect on his/her evaluation criteria. It would be ideal if the criteria would not be affected by anyone, anywhere, circumstances; accordingly the quality of products must be equated. In this paper, we propose a noise detection method based on Cubic Higher-order Local Auto-Correlation (CHLAC) scheme and DP Matching provided by Cepstrum Analysis to extract the correct solution. This technique is practically used for detecting any human abnormal movements out of a monitored video clip and identifying individual persons by voice. The study results are shown to be highly effective in our proposed method.

  18. Feeling Abnormal: Simulation of Deviancy in Abnormal and Exceptionality Courses.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Fernald, Charles D.

    1980-01-01

    Describes activity in which student in abnormal psychology and psychology of exceptional children classes personally experience being judged abnormal. The experience allows the students to remember relevant research, become sensitized to the feelings of individuals classified as deviant, and use caution in classifying individuals as abnormal.…

  19. Abnormal Uterine Bleeding

    MedlinePlus

    ... abnormal uterine bleeding? Abnormal uterine bleeding is any heavy or unusual bleeding from the uterus (through your ... one symptom of abnormal uterine bleeding. Having extremely heavy bleeding during your period can also be considered ...

  20. Motor current signature analysis method for diagnosing motor operated devices

    DOEpatents

    Haynes, Howard D.; Eissenberg, David M.

    1990-01-01

    A motor current noise signature analysis method and apparatus for remotely monitoring the operating characteristics of an electric motor-operated device such as a motor-operated valve. Frequency domain signal analysis techniques are applied to a conditioned motor current signal to distinctly identify various operating parameters of the motor driven device from the motor current signature. The signature may be recorded and compared with subsequent signatures to detect operating abnormalities and degradation of the device. This diagnostic method does not require special equipment to be installed on the motor-operated device, and the current sensing may be performed at remote control locations, e.g., where the motor-operated devices are used in accessible or hostile environments.

  1. [Hysteroscopy clinic: diagnostic and therapeutic method in abnormal uterine bleeding].

    PubMed

    Alanis Fuentes, José; Obregón Zegarra, Eva Haydee

    2012-12-01

    Abnormal uterine bleeding is a public health problem prevalence exceeded only by abnormal vaginal discharge as a reason for medical consultation. To describe the findings reported by the Hysteroscopy clinic of the Hospital GEA Gonzalez on patients with Abnormal Uterine bleeding diagnosis. Retrospective, transversal, descriptive study. The total 2546 records of those patient that were evaluated by Office Hysteroscopic between January 2007 and December 2008 on the Hysteroscopy Clinic of Hospital Manuel GEA Gonzalez, then we selected the 1482 records of those patients that were sended because of an Abnormal Uterine bleeding condition. We descrive the frequencies of the diagnosis and its interrelation with the age of the patients. We also report the therapeutical interventions during office hysteroscopy. The mean age of the patients was 42.15 +/- 9.30 years (from 12 a 92 years); the age groups of patients that belonged to 40-44 years and 45-49 years are the most frequent patient and they represent the 25% y el 23.3% of the records. The abnormal findings occurred on the 66% de of the patients. Those patients of 65 years old and older do not have any report of normal cavities, all of then have abnormal findings. The leiomyoma (26.9%) and the endometrial polyps (27.3%) were the most frequent findings. The postmenopausal bleeding had a rate of 90.9% abnormal findings and in this group of patients the most frequent diagnosis was atrophic endometrium (32.2%) and polyps (24.3%). Besides that the office hysteroscopy show its therapeutical usefulness because of the 67% and 77.5% of polipectomy perform for endometrial and cervical polyps respectively The office Hysteroscopy is a well tolerated diagnosis and therapeutic method that is useful for any women with abnormal uterine bleeding condition and it is the ideal technique for the examination of abnormal uterine bleeding in postmenopausal women... The office hysteroscopy is a efficient cost-effective and cost-benefic method for

  2. Volume estimation of brain abnormalities in MRI data

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Suprijadi, Pratama, S. H.; Haryanto, F.

    2014-02-01

    The abnormality of brain tissue always becomes a crucial issue in medical field. This medical condition can be recognized through segmentation of certain region from medical images obtained from MRI dataset. Image processing is one of computational methods which very helpful to analyze the MRI data. In this study, combination of segmentation and rendering image were used to isolate tumor and stroke. Two methods of thresholding were employed to segment the abnormality occurrence, followed by filtering to reduce non-abnormality area. Each MRI image is labeled and then used for volume estimations of tumor and stroke-attacked area. The algorithms are shown to be successful in isolating tumor and stroke in MRI images, based on thresholding parameter and stated detection accuracy.

  3. A method to identify the main mode of machine tool under operating conditions

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Wang, Daming; Pan, Yabing

    2017-04-01

    The identification of the modal parameters under experimental conditions is the most common procedure when solving the problem of machine tool structure vibration. However, the influence of each mode on the machine tool vibration in real working conditions remains unknown. In fact, the contributions each mode makes to the machine tool vibration during machining process are different. In this article, an active excitation modal analysis is applied to identify the modal parameters in operational condition, and the Operating Deflection Shapes (ODS) in frequencies of high level vibration that affect the quality of machining in real working conditions are obtained. Then, the ODS is decomposed by the mode shapes which are identified in operational conditions. So, the contributions each mode makes to machine tool vibration during machining process are got by decomposition coefficients. From the previous steps, we can find out the main modes which effect the machine tool more significantly in working conditions. This method was also verified to be effective by experiments.

  4. The value of ultrasound and magnetic resonance imaging in diagnostics and prediction of morbidity in cases of placenta previa with abnormal placentation.

    PubMed

    Algebally, Ahmed M; Yousef, Reda Ramadan Hussein; Badr, Sanaa Sayed Hussein; Al Obeidly, Amal; Szmigielski, Wojciech; Al Ibrahim, Abdullah A

    2014-01-01

    The purpose of the study was to evaluate the role of ultrasound (US) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) in the diagnostics and management of abnormal placentation in women with placenta previa and to compare the morbidity associated with that to placenta previa alone. The study includes 100 pregnant women with placenta previa with and without abnormal placentation. The results of MRI and US in abnormal placentation were compared with post-operative data. The patients' files were reviewed for assessment of operative and post-operative morbidity. The results of our statistical analysis were compared with data from the literature. US and MRI showed no significant difference in sensitivity and specificity in diagnosing abnormal placentation (97-100% and 94-100%, respectively). MRI was more sensitive than US for the detection of myometrial invasion and the type of abnormal placentation (73.5% and 47%, respectively). The difference between pre- and post-operative hemoglobin values and estimated blood loss were the most significant risk factors for abnormal placentation, added to risk factors known for placenta previa. Post-partum surgical complications and prolonged hospital stay were more common in the cases of placenta previa with abnormal placentation, however statistically insignificant. US and MRI are accurate imaging modalities for diagnosing abnormal placentation. MRI was more sensitive for the detection of the degree of placental invasion. The patient's morbidity increased in cases with abnormal placentation. There was no significant difference in post operative-complications and hospitalization time due to pre-operative planning when the diagnosis was established with US and MRI.

  5. How do operating conditions affect As(III) removal by iron electrocoagulation?

    PubMed

    Delaire, Caroline; Amrose, Susan; Zhang, Minghui; Hake, James; Gadgil, Ashok

    2017-04-01

    Iron electrocoagulation (Fe-EC) has been shown to effectively remove arsenic from contaminated groundwater at low cost and has the potential to improve access to safe drinking water for millions of people. Understanding how operating conditions, such as the Fe dosage rate and the O 2 recharge rate, affect arsenic removal at different pH values is crucial to maximize the performance of Fe-EC under economic constraints. In this work, we improved upon an existing computational model to investigate the combined effects of pH, Fe dosage rate, and O 2 recharge rate on arsenic removal in Fe-EC. We showed that the impact of the Fe dosage rate strongly depends on pH and on the O 2 recharge rate, which has important practical implications. We identified the process limiting arsenic removal (As(III) oxidation versus As(V) adsorption) at different pH values, which allowed us to interpret the effect of operating conditions on Fe-EC performance. Finally, we assessed the robustness of the trends predicted by the model, which assumes a constant pH, against lab experiments reproducing more realistic conditions where pH is allowed to drift during treatment as a result of equilibration with atmospheric CO 2 . Our results provide a nuanced understanding of how operating conditions impact arsenic removal by Fe-EC and can inform decisions regarding the operation of this technology in a range of groundwaters. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  6. Analysis of critical operating conditions for LV distribution networks with microgrids

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Zehir, M. A.; Batman, A.; Sonmez, M. A.; Font, A.; Tsiamitros, D.; Stimoniaris, D.; Kollatou, T.; Bagriyanik, M.; Ozdemir, A.; Dialynas, E.

    2016-11-01

    Increase in the penetration of Distributed Generation (DG) in distribution networks, raises the risk of voltage limit violations while contributing to line losses. Especially in low voltage (LV) distribution networks (secondary distribution networks), impacts of active power flows on the bus voltages and on the network losses are more dominant. As network operators must meet regulatory limitations, they have to take into account the most critical operating conditions in their systems. In this study, it is aimed to present the impact of the worst operation cases of LV distribution networks comprising microgrids. Simulation studies are performed on a field data-based virtual test-bed. The simulations are repeated for several cases consisting different microgrid points of connection with different network loading and microgrid supply/demand conditions.

  7. A conditioned reinforcer did not help to maintain an operant conditioning in the absence of a primary reinforcer in horses.

    PubMed

    Lansade, Léa; Calandreau, Ludovic

    2018-01-01

    The use of conditioned reinforcers is increasingly promoted in animal training. Surprisingly, the efficiency of their use remains to be demonstrated in horses. This study aimed to determine whether an auditory signal which had previously been associated with a food reward 288 times could be used as a conditioned reinforcer to replace the primary reinforcer in an unrelated operant conditioning procedure. Fourteen horses were divided into two groups of 7: No Reinforcement (NR) and Conditioned Reinforcement (CR). All horses underwent nine sessions of Pavlovian conditioning during which the word "good" was associated with food (32 associations/session). The horses then followed five sessions of operant conditioning (30 trials/session) during which they had to touch a cone signaled by an experimenter to receive a food reward. The last day, horses underwent one test session of the operant response: no reward was given, but the word "good" was said each time a CR horse touched the cone. Nothing was said in the NR group. CR horses did not achieve more correct trials than NR horses during the test. These findings again show that the conditioned reinforcement was ineffective when used instead of the primary reinforcement to maintain conditioning. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  8. How Much of Language Acquisition Does Operant Conditioning Explain?

    PubMed Central

    Sturdy, Christopher B.; Nicoladis, Elena

    2017-01-01

    Since the 1950s, when Chomsky argued that Skinner’s arguments could not explain syntactic acquisition, psychologists have generally avoided explicitly invoking operant or instrumental conditioning as a learning mechanism for language among human children. In this article, we argue that this is a mistake. We focus on research that has been done on language learning in human infants and toddlers in order to illustrate our points. Researchers have ended up inventing learning mechanisms that, in actual practice, not only resemble but also in fact are examples of operant conditioning (OC) by any other name they select. We argue that language acquisition researchers should proceed by first ruling out OC before invoking alternative learning mechanisms. While it is possible that OC cannot explain all of the language acquisition, simple learning mechanisms that work across species may have some explanatory power in children’s language learning. PMID:29163295

  9. Conditioning of the Stable, Discrete-time Lyapunov Operator

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Tippett, Michael K.; Cohn, Stephen E.; Todling, Ricardo; Marchesin, Dan

    2000-01-01

    The Schatten p-norm condition of the discrete-time Lyapunov operator L(sub A) defined on matrices P is identical with R(sup n X n) by L(sub A) P is identical with P - APA(sup T) is studied for stable matrices A is a member of R(sup n X n). Bounds are obtained for the norm of L(sub A) and its inverse that depend on the spectrum, singular values and radius of stability of A. Since the solution P of the the discrete-time algebraic Lyapunov equation (DALE) L(sub A)P = Q can be ill-conditioned only when either L(sub A) or Q is ill-conditioned, these bounds are useful in determining whether P admits a low-rank approximation, which is important in the numerical solution of the DALE for large n.

  10. Morphological abnormalities in elasmobranchs.

    PubMed

    Moore, A B M

    2015-08-01

    A total of 10 abnormal free-swimming (i.e., post-birth) elasmobranchs are reported from The (Persian-Arabian) Gulf, encompassing five species and including deformed heads, snouts, caudal fins and claspers. The complete absence of pelvic fins in a milk shark Rhizoprionodon acutus may be the first record in any elasmobranch. Possible causes, including the extreme environmental conditions and the high level of anthropogenic pollution particular to The Gulf, are briefly discussed. © 2015 The Fisheries Society of the British Isles.

  11. The Value of Ultrasound and Magnetic Resonance Imaging in Diagnostics and Prediction of Morbidity in Cases of Placenta Previa with Abnormal Placentation

    PubMed Central

    Algebally, Ahmed M.; Yousef, Reda Ramadan Hussein; Badr, Sanaa Sayed Hussein; Al Obeidly, Amal; Szmigielski, Wojciech; Al Ibrahim, Abdullah A.

    2014-01-01

    Summary Background The purpose of the study was to evaluate the role of ultrasound (US) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) in the diagnostics and management of abnormal placentation in women with placenta previa and to compare the morbidity associated with that to placenta previa alone. Material/Methods The study includes 100 pregnant women with placenta previa with and without abnormal placentation. The results of MRI and US in abnormal placentation were compared with post-operative data. The patients’ files were reviewed for assessment of operative and post-operative morbidity. The results of our statistical analysis were compared with data from the literature. Results US and MRI showed no significant difference in sensitivity and specificity in diagnosing abnormal placentation (97–100% and 94–100%, respectively). MRI was more sensitive than US for the detection of myometrial invasion and the type of abnormal placentation (73.5% and 47%, respectively). The difference between pre- and post-operative hemoglobin values and estimated blood loss were the most significant risk factors for abnormal placentation, added to risk factors known for placenta previa. Post-partum surgical complications and prolonged hospital stay were more common in the cases of placenta previa with abnormal placentation, however statistically insignificant. Conclusions US and MRI are accurate imaging modalities for diagnosing abnormal placentation. MRI was more sensitive for the detection of the degree of placental invasion. The patient’s morbidity increased in cases with abnormal placentation. There was no significant difference in post operative-complications and hospitalization time due to pre-operative planning when the diagnosis was established with US and MRI. PMID:25411586

  12. Abnormal parietal encephalomalacia associated with schizophrenia: A case report.

    PubMed

    Pan, Fen; Wang, Jun-Yuan; Xu, Yi; Huang, Man-Li

    2017-03-01

    It is widely believed that structural abnormalities of the brain contribute to the pathophysiology of schizophrenia. The parietal lobe is a central hub of multisensory integration, and abnormities in this region might account for the clinical features of schizophrenia. However, few cases of parietal encephalomalacia associated with schizophrenia have been described. In this paper, we present a case of a 25-year-old schizophrenia patient with abnormal parietal encephalomalacia. The patient had poor nutrition and frequently had upper respiratory infections during childhood and adolescence. She showed severe schizophrenic symptoms such as visual hallucinations for 2 years. After examining all her possible medical conditions, we found that the patient had a lesion consistent with the diagnosis of encephalomalacia in her right parietal lobe and slight brain atrophy. The patient was prescribed olanzapine (10 mg per day). Her symptoms significantly improved after antipsychotic treatment and were still well controlled 1 year later. This case suggested that parietal encephalomalacia, which might be caused by inflammatory and infectious conditions in early life and be aggravated by undernutrition, might be implicated in the etiology of schizophrenia.

  13. Abnormal uterine bleeding in perimenopause.

    PubMed

    Goldstein, S R; Lumsden, M A

    2017-10-01

    Abnormal uterine bleeding is one of the commonest presenting complaints encountered in a gynecologist's office or primary-care setting. The wider availability of diagnostic tools has allowed prompt diagnosis and treatment of an increasing number of menstrual disorders in an office setting. This White Paper reviews the advantages and disadvantages of transvaginal ultrasound, blind endometrial sampling and diagnostic hysteroscopy. Once a proper diagnosis has been established, appropriate therapy may be embarked upon. Fortunately, only a minority of such patients will have premalignant or malignant disease. When bleeding is sufficient to cause severe anemia or even hypovolemia, prompt intervention is called for. In most of the cases, however, the abnormal uterine bleeding will be disquieting to the patient and significantly affect her 'quality of life'. Sometimes, reassurance and expectant management will be sufficient in such patients. Overall, however, in cases of benign disease, some intervention will be required. The use of oral contraceptive pills especially those with a short hormone-free interval, the insertion of the levonorgestrel intrauterine system, the incorporation of newer medical therapies including antifibrinolytic drugs and selective progesterone receptor modulators and minimally invasive treatments have made outpatient therapy increasingly effective. For others, operative hysteroscopy and endometrial ablation are proven therapeutic tools to provide both long- and short-term relief of abnormal uterine bleeding, thus avoiding, or deferring, hysterectomy.

  14. The character of abnormalities found in eye development of quail embruos exposed under space flight conditions

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Grigoryan, E.; Dadheva, O.; Polinskaya, V.; Guryeva, T.

    The avian embryonic eye is used as a model system for studies on the environmental effects on central nervous system development. Here we present results of qualitative investigation of the eye development in quail embryos incubated in micro-"g" environment. In this study we used eyes of Japanese quail (Coturnix coturnix Japonica) embryos "flown" onboard biosatellite Kosmos-1129 and on Mir station within the framework of Mir-NASA Program. Eyes obtained from embryos ranging in age from 3-12 days (E3-E12) were prepared histologically and compared with those of the synchronous and laboratory gound controls. Ther most careful consideration was given to finding and analysis of eye developmental abnormalities. Then they were compared with those already described by experimental teratology for birds and mammals. At the stage of the "eye cup" (E3) we found the case of invalid formation of the inner retina. The latter was represented by disorganized neuroblasts occupying whole posterior chamber of the eye. On the 7th day of quail eye development, at the period of cellular growth activation some cases of small eyes with many folds of overgrowing neural and pigmented retinal layers were detected. In retinal folds of these eyes the normal layering was disturbed as well as the formation of aqueous body and pecten oculi. At this time point the changes were also found in the anterior part of the eye. The peculiarities came out of the bigger width of the cornea and separation of its layers, but were found in synchronous control as well. Few embryos of E10 had also eyes with the abnormities described for E7 but this time they were more vivid because of the completion of eye tissue differentiation. At the stage E12 we found the case evaluated as microphthalmia attending by overgrowth of anterior pigmented tissues - iris and ciliary body attached with the cornea. Most, but not all, of abnormalities we found in eye morphogeneses belonged to the birds "flown" aboard Kosmos- 1129 and

  15. Cocaine self-administration in social dyads using custom-built operant conditioning chambers.

    PubMed

    Lacy, Ryan T; Strickland, Justin C; Smith, Mark A

    2014-10-30

    Traditionally, the analysis of intravenous drug self-administration is limited to conditions in which subjects are tested in isolation. This limits the translational appeal of these studies because drug use in humans often occurs in the presence of others. We used custom-built operant conditioning chambers that allowed social dyads visual, olfactory, auditory, and limited tactile contact while concurrently self-administering cocaine. Male rats were trained to respond according to a fixed interval schedule of reinforcement (with a limited hold) in order to determine if patterns of cocaine (0.75mg/kg/infusion) self-administration became more similar over time in social pairs. Cocaine self-administration was tested across five days according to a 10-min fixed interval schedule (with a 5-min limited hold). Quarter-life values (time at which 25% of responses were emitted per interval) were analyzed using intraclass correlations. The total number of reinforcers obtained did not vary across the five days of testing; however, quarter-life values became progressively more similar between individuals within the social dyads. Standard operant conditioning chambers are unable to assess responding in multiple animals due to their small size, the need to prevent subjects from responding on the lever of their partner, and the need to prevent infusion lines from entangling. By using custom-built social operant conditioning chambers, we assessed the effects of social contact on cocaine self-administration. Social operant conditioning chambers can be used as a preclinical method to examine social influences on drug self-administration under conditions that approximate human substance use. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  16. The accuracy of ultrasound in the diagnosis of congenital abnormalities.

    PubMed

    Munim, Shama; Nadeem, Salva; Khuwaja, Nadya Ali

    2006-01-01

    To determine the accuracy of ultrasound in the diagnosis of congenital abnormalities at the Aga Khan University Hospital, Karachi. The data of congenital abnormalities was obtained from the obstetrical database and medical records of all cases complicated by congenital abnormalities, delivering from January 2001 to December 2003 and was reviewed. Antenatal ultrasounds had been performed by operators with different level of experience. In addition this data was retrieved from the termination and Congenital anomaly register. A structured data collection form was used to collect information of different variables of interest. Congenital abnormalities, complicated 2.8% (n=170), of all deliveries, including all cases of termination of pregnancy, stillbirth and live births. Out of the total, 11.6% occurred in women above the age of 35 years. Consanguinity was found in 18.2% cases. Prenatal diagnosis was made in just under half of the cases (48.8%). Central nervous system and renal abnormalities were commonly diagnosed. However, facial defects, heart defects or skeletal defects were more commonly missed. Antenatal ultrasound successfully diagnosed foetal abnormalities in 48.8% of cases, and more than 90% Central Nervous system defects and renal abnormalities. In contrast about a quarter of Cardiac defects and none of the facial defects were detected. Based on these findings we recommend that the Sonologist should incorporate four chamber view of the heart and also look at the face carefully.

  17. Remote Sensing of In-Flight Icing Conditions: Operational, Meteorological, and Technological Considerations

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Ryerson, Charles C.

    2000-01-01

    Remote-sensing systems that map aircraft icing conditions in the flight path from airports or aircraft would allow icing to be avoided and exited. Icing remote-sensing system development requires consideration of the operational environment, the meteorological environment, and the technology available. Operationally, pilots need unambiguous cockpit icing displays for risk management decision-making. Human factors, aircraft integration, integration of remotely sensed icing information into the weather system infrastructures, and avoid-and-exit issues need resolution. Cost, maintenance, power, weight, and space concern manufacturers, operators, and regulators. An icing remote-sensing system detects cloud and precipitation liquid water, drop size, and temperature. An algorithm is needed to convert these conditions into icing potential estimates for cockpit display. Specification development requires that magnitudes of cloud microphysical conditions and their spatial and temporal variability be understood at multiple scales. The core of an icing remote-sensing system is the technology that senses icing microphysical conditions. Radar and microwave radiometers penetrate clouds and can estimate liquid water and drop size. Retrieval development is needed; differential attenuation and neural network assessment of multiple-band radar returns are most promising to date. Airport-based radar or radiometers are the most viable near-term technologies. A radiometer that profiles cloud liquid water, and experimental techniques to use radiometers horizontally, are promising. The most critical operational research needs are to assess cockpit and aircraft system integration, develop avoid-and-exit protocols, assess human factors, and integrate remote-sensing information into weather and air traffic control infrastructures. Improved spatial characterization of cloud and precipitation liquid-water content, drop-size spectra, and temperature are needed, as well as an algorithm to

  18. 20 CFR 662.430 - Under what conditions may One-Stop operators designated to operate in a One-Stop delivery system...

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-04-01

    ... designated to operate in a One-Stop delivery system established prior to the enactment of WIA be designated... (CONTINUED) DESCRIPTION OF THE ONE-STOP SYSTEM UNDER TITLE I OF THE WORKFORCE INVESTMENT ACT One-Stop Operators § 662.430 Under what conditions may One-Stop operators designated to operate in a One-Stop...

  19. 20 CFR 662.430 - Under what conditions may One-Stop operators designated to operate in a One-Stop delivery system...

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-04-01

    ... designated to operate in a One-Stop delivery system established prior to the enactment of WIA be designated... (CONTINUED) DESCRIPTION OF THE ONE-STOP SYSTEM UNDER TITLE I OF THE WORKFORCE INVESTMENT ACT One-Stop Operators § 662.430 Under what conditions may One-Stop operators designated to operate in a One-Stop...

  20. 20 CFR 662.430 - Under what conditions may One-Stop operators designated to operate in a One-Stop delivery system...

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-04-01

    ... designated to operate in a One-Stop delivery system established prior to the enactment of WIA be designated... (CONTINUED) DESCRIPTION OF THE ONE-STOP SYSTEM UNDER TITLE I OF THE WORKFORCE INVESTMENT ACT One-Stop Operators § 662.430 Under what conditions may One-Stop operators designated to operate in a One-Stop...

  1. On conditions for invertibility of difference and differential operators in weight spaces

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Bichegkuev, Mairbek S.

    2011-08-01

    We obtain necessary and sufficient conditions for the invertibility of the difference operator D_E\\colon D(D_E)\\subset l^p_\\alpha \\to l^p_\\alpha, (D_E x)(n)=x(n+1)-Bx(n), n\\in {Z}_+, whose domain D(D_E) is given by the condition x(0)\\in E, where l^p_\\alpha=l^p_\\alpha({Z}_+,X), p\\in \\lbrack 1,\\infty \\rbrack , is the Banach space of sequences (of vectors in a Banach space X) summable with weight \\alpha\\colon{Z}_+\\to (0,\\infty) for p\\in \\lbrack 1,\\infty) and bounded with respect to \\alpha for p=\\infty, B\\colon X\\to X is a bounded linear operator, and E is a closed B-invariant subspace of X. We give applications to the invertibility of differential operators with an unbounded operator coefficient (the generator of a strongly continuous operator semigroup) in weight spaces of functions.

  2. Meiotic abnormalities

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    NONE

    1993-12-31

    Chapter 19, describes meiotic abnormalities. These include nondisjunction of autosomes and sex chromosomes, genetic and environmental causes of nondisjunction, misdivision of the centromere, chromosomally abnormal human sperm, male infertility, parental age, and origin of diploid gametes. 57 refs., 2 figs., 1 tab.

  3. Combination of process and vibration data for improved condition monitoring of industrial systems working under variable operating conditions

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Ruiz-Cárcel, C.; Jaramillo, V. H.; Mba, D.; Ottewill, J. R.; Cao, Y.

    2016-01-01

    The detection and diagnosis of faults in industrial processes is a very active field of research due to the reduction in maintenance costs achieved by the implementation of process monitoring algorithms such as Principal Component Analysis, Partial Least Squares or more recently Canonical Variate Analysis (CVA). Typically the condition of rotating machinery is monitored separately using vibration analysis or other specific techniques. Conventional vibration-based condition monitoring techniques are based on the tracking of key features observed in the measured signal. Typically steady-state loading conditions are required to ensure consistency between measurements. In this paper, a technique based on merging process and vibration data is proposed with the objective of improving the detection of mechanical faults in industrial systems working under variable operating conditions. The capabilities of CVA for detection and diagnosis of faults were tested using experimental data acquired from a compressor test rig where different process faults were introduced. Results suggest that the combination of process and vibration data can effectively improve the detectability of mechanical faults in systems working under variable operating conditions.

  4. 20 CFR 662.430 - Under what conditions may One-Stop operators designated to operate in a One-Stop delivery system...

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-04-01

    ... designated to operate in a One-Stop delivery system established prior to the enactment of WIA be designated... DESCRIPTION OF THE ONE-STOP SYSTEM UNDER TITLE I OF THE WORKFORCE INVESTMENT ACT One-Stop Operators § 662.430 Under what conditions may One-Stop operators designated to operate in a One-Stop delivery system...

  5. 20 CFR 662.430 - Under what conditions may One-Stop operators designated to operate in a One-Stop delivery system...

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-04-01

    ... designated to operate in a One-Stop delivery system established prior to the enactment of WIA be designated... DESCRIPTION OF THE ONE-STOP SYSTEM UNDER TITLE I OF THE WORKFORCE INVESTMENT ACT One-Stop Operators § 662.430 Under what conditions may One-Stop operators designated to operate in a One-Stop delivery system...

  6. Abnormal cerebellar development and Purkinje cell defects in Lgl1-Pax2 conditional knockout mice.

    PubMed

    Hou, Congzhe; Ding, Lingcui; Zhang, Jian; Jin, Yecheng; Sun, Chen; Li, Zhenzu; Sun, Xiaoyang; Zhang, Tingting; Zhang, Aizhen; Li, Huashun; Gao, Jiangang

    2014-11-01

    Lgl1 was initially identified as a tumour suppressor in flies and is characterised as a key regulator of epithelial polarity and asymmetric cell division. A previous study indicated that More-Cre-mediated Lgl1 knockout mice exhibited significant brain dysplasia and died within 24h after birth. To overcome early neonatal lethality, we generated Lgl1 conditional knockout mice mediated by Pax2-Cre, which is expressed in almost all cells in the cerebellum, and we examined the functions of Lgl1 in the cerebellum. Impaired motor coordination was detected in the mutant mice. Consistent with this abnormal behaviour, homozygous mice possessed a smaller cerebellum with fewer lobes, reduced granule precursor cell (GPC) proliferation, decreased Purkinje cell (PC) quantity and dendritic dysplasia. Loss of Lgl1 in the cerebellum led to hyperproliferation and impaired differentiation of neural progenitors in ventricular zone. Based on the TUNEL assay, we observed increased apoptosis in the cerebellum of mutant mice. We proposed that impaired differentiation and increased apoptosis may contribute to decreased PC quantity. To clarify the effect of Lgl1 on cerebellar granule cells, we used Math1-Cre to specifically delete Lgl1 in granule cells. Interestingly, the Lgl1-Math1 conditional knockout mice exhibited normal proliferation of GPCs and cerebellar development. Thus, we speculated that the reduction in the proliferation of GPCs in Lgl1-Pax2 conditional knockout mice may be secondary to the decreased number of PCs, which secrete the mitogenic factor Sonic hedgehog to regulate GPC proliferation. Taken together, these findings suggest that Lgl1 plays a key role in cerebellar development and folia formation by regulating the development of PCs. Copyright © 2014. Published by Elsevier Inc.

  7. Abnormal branching and regression of the notochord and its relationship to foregut abnormalities.

    PubMed

    Vleesch Dubois, V N; Quan Qi, B; Beasley, S W; Williams, A

    2002-04-01

    An abnormally positioned notochord has been reported in embryos that develop foregut abnormalities, vertebral defects and other abnormalities of the VATER association. This study examines the patterns of regression of the abnormal notochord in the rat model of the VATER association and investigates the relationship between developmental abnormalities of the notochord and those of the vertebra and foregut. Timed-pregnant Sprague-Dawley rats were given daily intraperitoneal injections of 1.75 mg/kg adriamycin on gestational days 6 - 9 inclusive. Rats were sacrificed between days 14 and 20 and their embryos harvested, histologically sectioned and stained and examined serially. The location and appearance of the degenerating notochord and its relationship to regional structural defects were analysed. All 26 embryos exposed to adriamycin developed foregut abnormalities and had an abnormal notochord. The notochord disappeared by a process of apoptotic degeneration that lagged behind that of the normal embryo: the notochord persisted in the abnormal embryo beyond day 17, whereas in the normal rat it had already disappeared. Similarly, formation of the nucleus pulposus was delayed. Vertebral abnormalities occurred when the notochord was ventrally-positioned. The notochord disappears during day 16 in the normal embryo whereas abnormal branches of the notochord persist until day 19 in the adriamycin-treated embryo. Degeneration of the notochord is dominated by apoptosis. An excessively ventrally-placed notochord is closely associated with abnormalities of the vertebral column, especially hemivertebrae.

  8. Abdominal musculature abnormalities as a cause of groin pain in athletes. Inguinal hernias and pubalgia.

    PubMed

    Taylor, D C; Meyers, W C; Moylan, J A; Lohnes, J; Bassett, F H; Garrett, W E

    1991-01-01

    There has been increasing interest within the European sports medicine community regarding the etiology and treatment of groin pain in the athlete. Groin pain is most commonly caused by musculotendinous strains of the adductors and other muscles crossing the hip joint, but may also be related to abdominal wall abnormalities. Cases may be termed "pubalgia" if physical examination does not reveal inguinal hernia and there is an absence of other etiology for groin pain. We present nine cases of patients who underwent herniorrhaphies for groin pain. Two patients had groin pain without evidence of a hernia preoperatively (pubalgia). In the remaining seven patients we determined the presence of a hernia by physical examination. At operation, eight patients were found to have inguinal hernias. One patient had no hernia but had partial avulsion of the internal oblique fibers from their insertion at the public tubercle. The average interval from operation to return to full activity was 11 weeks. All patients returned to full activity within 3 months of surgery. One patient had persistent symptoms of mild incisional tenderness, but otherwise there were no recurrences, complications, or persistence of symptoms. Abnormalities of the abdominal wall, including inguinal hernias and microscopic tears or avulsions of the internal oblique muscle, can be an overlooked source of groin pain in the athlete. Operative treatment of this condition with herniorrhaphy can return the athlete to his sport within 3 months.

  9. [The effection of white matter abnormality to auditory and speech rehabilitation after cochlear implantation in prelingual deafness children].

    PubMed

    Zhang, X Y; Liang, M J; Liu, J H; Li, X H; Zhen, Y Q; Weng, Y L

    2017-04-20

    Objective: To investigatethe effection of white matter abnormality to auditory and speech rehabilitation after cochlear implantation in prelingual deafness children. Method: Thirty-five children with white matter abnormality were included in this study. The degree of leukoaraiosis was evaluated by Scheltens scale based on MRI.The hearing and speechrecovery level was rated by auditory behavior grading standards(CAP) and speech intelligibility grading standards(SIR) at 6 months, 12 months, and 24 months post operation. Result: The CAP scores and SIR scores of the children with white matter abnormality were lower than those of the control group at 6 months after operation ( P <0.05).The SIR scores of the children with white matter abnormality at 12 months and 24 months post operation were significantly lower than those of the control group.There was no statistically significant difference between the CAP scores of the two groups at 12 and 24 months after operation( P >0.05).Schelten classification had a greater impact on SIR scores than on CAP scores. Conclusion: The effect of white matter abnormality on auditory and speech rehabilitation after cochlear implantation was related to the degree of leukoencephalopathy. When the lesion of white matter abnormality was larger, the level of hearing and verbal rehabilitation was lower, and the speech rehabilitation was more significantly impacted by white matter lesions degree. Copyright© by the Editorial Department of Journal of Clinical Otorhinolaryngology Head and Neck Surgery.

  10. Triple-phase bone image abnormalities in Lyme arthritis

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Brown, S.J.; Dadparvar, S.; Slizofski, W.J.

    1989-10-01

    Arthritis is a frequent manifestation of Lyme disease. Limited triple-phase Tc-99m MDP bone imaging of the wrists and hands with delayed whole-body images was performed in a patient with Lyme arthritis. This demonstrated abnormal joint uptake in the wrists and hands in all three phases, with increased activity seen in other affected joints on delayed whole-body images. These findings are nonspecific and have been previously described in a variety of rheumatologic conditions, but not in Lyme disease. Lyme disease should be considered in the differential diagnosis of articular and periarticular bone scan abnormalities.

  11. Quantifying Social Motivation in Mice Using Operant Conditioning.

    PubMed

    Martin, Loren; Iceberg, Erica

    2015-08-08

    In this protocol, social motivation is measured in mice through a pair of operant conditioning paradigms. To conduct the experiments, two-chambered shuttle boxes were equipped with two operant levers (left and right) and a food receptacle in one chamber, which was then divided from the second chamber by an automated guillotine door covered by a wire grid. Different stimulus mice, rotated across testing days, served as a social stimulus behind the wire grid, and were only visible following the opening of the guillotine door. Test mice were trained to lever press in order to open the door and gain access to the stimulus partner for 15 sec. The number of lever presses required to obtain the social reward progressively increased on a fixed schedule of 3. Testing sessions ended after test mice stopped lever pressing for 5 consecutive minutes. The last reinforced ratio or breakpoint can be used as a quantitative measure of social motivation. For the second paradigm, test mice were trained to discriminate between left and right lever presses in order to obtain either a food reward or the social reward. Mice were rewarded for every 3 presses of each respective lever. The number of food and social rewards can be compared as a measurement of the value placed upon each reward. The ratio of each reward type can also be compared between mouse strains and the change in this ratio can be monitored within testing sessions to measure satiation with a given reward type. Both of these operant conditioning paradigms are highly useful for the quantification of social motivation in mouse models of autism and other disorders of social behavior.

  12. Exploration of robust operating conditions in inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Tromp, John W.; Pomares, Mario; Alvarez-Prieto, Manuel; Cole, Amanda; Ying, Hai; Salin, Eric D.

    2003-11-01

    'Robust' conditions, as defined by Mermet and co-workers for inductively coupled plasma (ICP)-atomic emission spectrometry, minimize matrix effects on analyte signals, and are obtained by increasing power and reducing nebulizer gas flow. In ICP-mass spectrometry (MS), it is known that reduced nebulizer gas flow usually leads to more robust conditions such that matrix effects are reduced. In this work, robust conditions for ICP-MS have been determined by optimizing for accuracy in the determination of analytes in a multi-element solution with various interferents (Al, Ba, Cs, K, Na), by varying power, nebulizer gas flow, sample introduction rate and ion lens voltage. The goal of the work was to determine which operating parameters were the most important in reducing matrix effects, and whether different interferents yielded the same robust conditions. Reduction in nebulizer gas flow and in sample input rate led to a significantly decreased interference, while an increase in power seemed to have a lesser effect. Once the other parameters had been adjusted to their robust values, there was no additional improvement in accuracy attainable by adjusting the ion lens voltage. The robust conditions were universal, since, for all the interferents and analytes studied, the optimum was found at the same operating conditions. One drawback to the use of robust conditions was the slightly reduced sensitivity; however, in the context of 'intelligent' instruments, the concept of 'robust conditions' is useful in many cases.

  13. Histopathological pattern of abnormal uterine bleeding in endometrial biopsies.

    PubMed

    Vaidya, S; Lakhey, M; Vaidya, S; Sharma, P K; Hirachand, S; Lama, S; KC, S

    2013-03-01

    Abnormal uterine bleeding is a common presenting complaint in gyanecology out patient department. Histopathological evaluation of the endometrial samples plays a significant role in the diagnosis of abnormal uterine bleeding. This study was carried out to determine the histopathological pattern of the endometrium in women of various age groups presenting with abnormal uterine bleeding. Endometrial biopsies and curettings of patients presenting with abnormal uterine bleeding was retrospectively studied. A total of 403 endometrial biopsies and curettings were analyzed. The age of the patients ranged from 18 to 70 years. Normal cyclical endometrium was seen in 165 (40.94%) cases, followed by 54 (13.40%) cases of disordered proliferative endometrium and 44 (10.92%) cases of hyperplasia. Malignancy was seen in 10 (2.48%) cases. Hyperplasia and malignancy were more common in the perimenopausal and postmenopausal age groups. Histopathological examination of endometrial biopsies and curettings in patients presenting with abnormal uterine bleeding showed a wide spectrum of changes ranging from normal endometrium to malignancy. Endometrial evaluation is specially recommended in women of perimenopausal and postmenopausal age groups presenting with AUB, to rule out a possibility of any preneoplastic condition or malignancy.

  14. 49 CFR 236.528 - Restrictive condition resulting from open hand-operated switch; requirement.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-10-01

    ...-operated switch; requirement. 236.528 Section 236.528 Transportation Other Regulations Relating to... Instructions; Roadway § 236.528 Restrictive condition resulting from open hand-operated switch; requirement. When a facing point hand-operated switch is open one-fourth inch or more, a trailing point hand...

  15. 49 CFR 236.528 - Restrictive condition resulting from open hand-operated switch; requirement.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-10-01

    ...-operated switch; requirement. 236.528 Section 236.528 Transportation Other Regulations Relating to... Instructions; Roadway § 236.528 Restrictive condition resulting from open hand-operated switch; requirement. When a facing point hand-operated switch is open one-fourth inch or more, a trailing point hand...

  16. 49 CFR 236.528 - Restrictive condition resulting from open hand-operated switch; requirement.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-10-01

    ...-operated switch; requirement. 236.528 Section 236.528 Transportation Other Regulations Relating to... Instructions; Roadway § 236.528 Restrictive condition resulting from open hand-operated switch; requirement. When a facing point hand-operated switch is open one-fourth inch or more, a trailing point hand...

  17. Context-dependent extinction of an appetitive operant conditioned response in infant rats.

    PubMed

    Orellana Barrera, Estefanía; Arias, Carlos; González, Felisa; Abate, Paula

    2017-04-01

    The present study evaluated context-dependent learning under an operant conditioning procedure in infant rats. Preweanling rats were trained in context A during postnatal days (PDs) 16 and 17 to learn an appetitive operant conditioning task, employing milk chocolate as appetitive reinforcer. On PD18 the operant response was extinguished in context A, or in an alternative context B. The change from context A to B between acquisition and extinction did not affect the number of responses during extinction, but slightly modified the shape of the extinction curve. On PD19, a renewal test conducted in context A clearly showed ABA-renewal of the extinguished operant response. These results add to the body of evidence indicating that infants are able to acquire and retain contextual information, and support the notion that extinction during this ontogenetic period involves new learning. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

  18. Abnormal Uterine Bleeding.

    PubMed

    Benetti-Pinto, Cristina Laguna; Rosa-E-Silva, Ana Carolina Japur de Sá; Yela, Daniela Angerame; Soares Júnior, José Maria

    2017-07-01

    Abnormal uterine bleeding is a frequent condition in Gynecology. It may impact physical, emotional sexual and professional aspects of the lives of women, impairing their quality of life. In cases of acute and severe bleeding, women may need urgent treatment with volumetric replacement and prescription of hemostatic substances. In some specific cases with more intense and prolonged bleeding, surgical treatment may be necessary. The objective of this chapter is to describe the main evidence on the treatment of women with abnormal uterine bleeding, both acute and chronic. Didactically, the treatment options were based on the current International Federation of Gynecology and Obstetrics (FIGO) classification system (PALM-COEIN). The etiologies of PALM-COEIN are: uterine Polyp (P), Adenomyosis (A), Leiomyoma (L), precursor and Malignant lesions of the uterine body (M), Coagulopathies (C), Ovulatory dysfunction (O), Endometrial dysfunction (E), Iatrogenic (I), and Not yet classified (N). The articles were selected according to the recommendation grades of the PubMed, Cochrane and Embase databases, and those in which the main objective was the reduction of uterine menstrual bleeding were included. Only studies written in English were included. All editorial or complete papers that were not consistent with abnormal uterine bleeding, or studies in animal models, were excluded. The main objective of the treatment is the reduction of menstrual flow and morbidity and the improvement of quality of life. It is important to emphasize that the treatment in the acute phase aims to hemodynamically stabilize the patient and stop excessive bleeding, while the treatment in the chronic phase is based on correcting menstrual dysfunction according to its etiology and clinical manifestations. The treatment may be surgical or pharmacological, and the latter is based mainly on hormonal therapy, anti-inflammatory drugs and antifibrinolytics. Thieme Revinter Publicações Ltda Rio de Janeiro

  19. Detachment 101 and North Burma: Historical Conditions for Future Unconventional Warfare Operations

    DTIC Science & Technology

    2016-05-26

    s area of operations and one of the most austere and unforgiving environments, delivers numerous examples of how the physical environment can create...achieve success under challenging conditions, with limited resources.15 As one of the most austere and unforgiving operational environments, north Burma

  20. Boundary conditioning of capacitive MEMS devices through fabrication methods and operating environments

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Muthukumaran, Packirisamy; Stiharu, Ion G.; Bhat, Rama B.

    2003-10-01

    This paper presents and applies the concept of micro-boundary conditioning to the design synthesis of microsystems in order to quantify the influence of inherent limitations of the fabrication process and the operating conditions on both static and dynamic behavior of microsystems. The predicted results on the static and dynamic behavior of a capacitive MEMS device, fabricated through MUMPs process, under the influence of the fabrication limitation and operating environment are presented along with the test results. The comparison between the predicted and experimental results shows a good agreement.

  1. System-state and operating condition sensitive control method and apparatus for electric power delivery systems

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Burns, III, William Wesley (Inventor); Wilson, Thomas George (Inventor)

    1978-01-01

    This invention provides a method and apparatus for determining a precise switching sequence for the power switching elements of electric power delivery systems of the on-off switching type and which enables extremely fast transient response, precise regulation and highly stable operation. The control utilizes the values of the power delivery system power handling network components, a desired output characteristic, a system timing parameter, and the externally imposed operating conditions to determine where steady state operations should be in order to yield desired output characteristics for the given system specifications. The actual state of the power delivery system is continuously monitored and compared to a state-space boundary which is derived from the desired equilibrium condition, and from the information obtained from this comparison, the system is moved to the desired equilibrium condition in one cycle of switching control. Since the controller continuously monitors the power delivery system's externally imposed operating conditions, a change in the conditions is immediately sensed and a new equilibrium condition is determined and achieved, again in a single cycle of switching control.

  2. The Gerbil Jar: A Basic Home Experience in Operant Conditioning.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Plant, L.

    1980-01-01

    Explains how a teaching method such as allowing students to raise gerbils at home can encourage students to gain experience with the fundamental techniques of operant conditioning which are otherwise generally unavailable to students in large introductory psychology courses. (DB)

  3. Impact of operating conditions on the acetylene contamination in the cathode of proton exchange membrane fuel cells

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Zhai, Yunfeng; St-Pierre, Jean

    2017-12-01

    Realistically, proton exchange membrane fuel cells (PEMFCs) are operated under varying operating conditions that potentially impact the acetylene contamination reactions. In this paper, the effects of the cell operating conditions on the acetylene contamination in PEMFCs are investigated under different current densities and temperatures with different acetylene concentrations in the cathode. Electrochemical impedance spectroscopy is applied during the constant-current operation to analyze the impacts of the operating conditions on the acetylene electrochemical reactions. The experimental results indicate that higher acetylene concentrations, higher current densities and lower cell temperatures decrease the cell performance more. In particular, cathode poisoning becomes more severe at medium cell current densities. The cell cathode potentials at such current densities are not sufficient to completely oxidize the intermediate or sufficiently low to completely reduce the adsorbed acetylene. Based on these investigations, the possible condition-dependent limitations of the acetylene concentration and cell operating voltage are proposed for insight into the acetylene contamination mitigation stratagem. Regarding the barrier conditions, the acetylene reactions change abruptly, and adjusting the cell operation parameters to change the acetylene adsorbate and intermediate accumulation conditions to induce complete oxidation or reduction conditions may mitigate the severe acetylene contamination effects on PEMFCs.

  4. Numerical modelling of multi-vane expander operating conditions in ORC system

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Rak, Józef; Błasiak, Przemysław; Kolasiński, Piotr

    2017-11-01

    Multi-vane expanders are positive displacement volumetric machines which are nowadays considered for application in micro-power domestic ORC systems as promising alternative to micro turbines and other volumetric expanders. The multi-vane expander features very simple design, low gas flow capacity, low expansion ratios, an advantageous ratio of the power output to the external dimensions and are insensitive to the negative influence of the gas-liquid mixture expansion. Moreover, the multi-vane expander can be easily hermetically sealed, which is one of the key issues in the ORC system design. A literature review indicates that issues concerning the application of multi-vane expanders in such systems, especially related to operating of multi-vane expander with different low-boiling working fluids, are innovative, not fully scientifically described and have the potential for practical implementation. In this paper the results of numerical investigations on multi-vane expander operating conditions are presented. The analyses were performed on three-dimensional numerical model of the expander in ANSYS CFX software. The numerical model of the expander was validated using the data obtained from the experiment carried out on a lab test-stand. Then a series of computational analysis were performed using expanders' numerical model in order to determine its operating conditions under various flow conditions of different working fluids.

  5. Abnormal glucose levels found in transportation accidents : final report.

    DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

    2000-06-01

    Purpose. The Federal Aviation Administration's Office of Aviation Medicine (OAM) is responsible for the certification of pilots with diabetic conditions. Therefore, it is essential for OAM to monitor pilots involved in fatal accidents for abnormal gl...

  6. Prevalence and consequences of chromosomal abnormalities in Canadian commercial swine herds.

    PubMed

    Quach, Anh T; Revay, Tamas; Villagomez, Daniel A F; Macedo, Mariana P; Sullivan, Alison; Maignel, Laurence; Wyss, Stefanie; Sullivan, Brian; King, W Allan

    2016-09-12

    Structural chromosome abnormalities are well known as factors that reduce fertility rate in domestic pigs. According to large-scale national cytogenetic screening programs that are implemented in France, it is estimated that new chromosome abnormalities occur at a rate of 0.5 % in fertility-unproven boars. This work aimed at estimating the prevalence and consequences of chromosome abnormalities in commercial swine operations in Canada. We found pig carriers at a frequency of 1.64 % (12 out of 732 boars). Carrier pigs consistently showed lower fertility values. The total number of piglets born for litters from carrier boars was between 4 and 46 % lower than the herd average. Similarly, carrier boars produced litters with a total number of piglets born alive that was between 6 and 28 % lower than the herd average. A total of 12 new structural chromosome abnormalities were identified. Reproductive performance is significantly reduced in sires with chromosome abnormalities. The incidence of such abnormal sires appears relatively high in populations without routine cytogenetic screening such as observed for Canada in this study. Systematic cytogenetic screening of potential breeding boars would minimise the risk of carriers of chromosome aberrations entering artificial insemination centres. This would avoid the large negative effects on productivity for the commercial sow herds and reduce the risk of transmitting abnormalities to future generations in nucleus farms.

  7. 42 CFR 417.413 - Qualifying condition: Operating experience and enrollment.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-10-01

    ... HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES (CONTINUED) MEDICARE PROGRAM HEALTH MAINTENANCE ORGANIZATIONS, COMPETITIVE MEDICAL PLANS, AND HEALTH CARE PREPAYMENT PLANS Qualifying Conditions for Medicare Contracts § 417.413..., as appropriate. (b) Standard: Enrollment and operating experience for HMOs or CMPs to contract on a...

  8. Multiple memory stores and operant conditioning: a rationale for memory's complexity.

    PubMed

    Meeter, Martijn; Veldkamp, Rob; Jin, Yaochu

    2009-02-01

    Why does the brain contain more than one memory system? Genetic algorithms can play a role in elucidating this question. Here, model animals were constructed containing a dorsal striatal layer that controlled actions, and a ventral striatal layer that controlled a dopaminergic learning signal. Both layers could gain access to three modeled memory stores, but such access was penalized as energy expenditure. Model animals were then selected on their fitness in simulated operant conditioning tasks. Results suggest that having access to multiple memory stores and their representations is important in learning to regulate dopamine release, as well as in contextual discrimination. For simple operant conditioning, as well as stimulus discrimination, hippocampal compound representations turned out to suffice, a counterintuitive result given findings that hippocampal lesions tend not to affect performance in such tasks. We argue that there is in fact evidence to support a role for compound representations and the hippocampus in even the simplest conditioning tasks.

  9. Abnormal Uterine Bleeding FAQ

    MedlinePlus

    ... Abnormal Uterine Bleeding • What is a normal menstrual cycle? • When is bleeding abnormal? • At what ages is ... abnormal bleeding? •Glossary What is a normal menstrual cycle? The normal length of the menstrual cycle is ...

  10. Cerebellar cortex development in the weaver condition presents regional and age-dependent abnormalities without differences in Purkinje cells neurogenesis.

    PubMed

    Martí, Joaquín; Santa-Cruz, María C; Hervás, José P; Bayer, Shirley A; Villegas, Sandra

    2016-01-01

    Ataxias are neurological disorders associated with the degeneration of Purkinje cells (PCs). Homozygous weaver mice (wv/wv) have been proposed as a model for hereditary cerebellar ataxia because they present motor abnormalities and PC loss. To ascertain the physiopathology of the weaver condition, the development of the cerebellar cortex lobes was examined at postnatal day (P): P8, P20 and P90. Three approaches were used: 1) quantitative determination of several cerebellar features; 2) qualitative evaluation of the developmental changes occurring in the cortical lobes; and 3) autoradiographic analyses of PC generation and placement. Our results revealed a reduction in the size of the wv/wv cerebellum as a whole, confirming previous results. However, as distinguished from these reports, we observed that quantified parameters contribute differently to the abnormal growth of the wv/wv cerebellar lobes. Qualitative analysis showed anomalies in wv/wv cerebellar cytoarchitecture, depending on the age and lobe analyzed. Such abnormalities included the presence of the external granular layer after P20 and, at P90, ectopic cells located in the molecular layer following several placement patterns. Finally, we obtained autoradiographic evidence that wild-type and wv/wv PCs presented similar neurogenetic timetables, as reported. However, the innovative character of this current work lies in the fact that the neurogenetic gradients of wv/wv PCs were not modified from P8 to P90. A tendency for the accumulation of late-formed PCs in the anterior and posterior lobes was found, whereas early-generated PCs were concentrated in the central and inferior lobes. These data suggested that wv/wv PCs may migrate properly to their final destinations. The extrapolation of our results to patients affected with cerebellar ataxias suggests that all cerebellar cortex lobes are affected with several age-dependent alterations in cytoarchitectonics. We also propose that PC loss may be regionally

  11. Haul truck tire dynamics due to tire condition

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Vaghar Anzabi, R.; Nobes, D. S.; Lipsett, M. G.

    2012-05-01

    Pneumatic tires are costly components on large off-road haul trucks used in surface mining operations. Tires are prone to damage during operation, and these events can lead to injuries to personnel, loss of equipment, and reduced productivity. Damage rates have significant variability, due to operating conditions and a range of tire fault modes. Currently, monitoring of tire condition is done by physical inspection; and the mean time between inspections is often longer than the mean time between incipient failure and functional failure of the tire. Options for new condition monitoring methods include off-board thermal imaging and camera-based optical methods for detecting abnormal deformation and surface features, as well as on-board sensors to detect tire faults during vehicle operation. Physics-based modeling of tire dynamics can provide a good understanding of the tire behavior, and give insight into observability requirements for improved monitoring systems. This paper describes a model to simulate the dynamics of haul truck tires when a fault is present to determine the effects of physical parameter changes that relate to faults. To simulate the dynamics, a lumped mass 'quarter-vehicle' model has been used to determine the response of the system to a road profile when a failure changes the original properties of the tire. The result is a model of tire vertical displacement that can be used to detect a fault, which will be tested under field conditions in time-varying conditions.

  12. Hybrid Composite Coatings for Durable and Efficient Solar Hydrogen Generation under Diverse Operating Conditions

    DOE PAGES

    Walczak, Karl A.; Segev, Gideon; Larson, David M.; ...

    2017-02-17

    Safe and practical solar-driven hydrogen generators must be capable of efficient and stable operation under diurnal cycling with full separation of gaseous H 2 and O 2 products. In this paper, a novel architecture that fulfills all of these requirements is presented. The approach is inherently scalable and provides versatility for operation under diverse electrolyte and lighting conditions. The concept is validated using a 1 cm 2 triple-junction photovoltaic cell with its illuminated photocathode protected by a composite coating comprising an organic encapsulant with an embedded catalytic support. The device is compatible with operation under conditions ranging from 1 Mmore » H 2SO 4 to 1 M KOH, enabling flexibility in selection of semiconductor, electrolyte, membrane, and catalyst. Stable operation at a solar-to-hydrogen conversion efficiency of >10% is demonstrated under continuous operation, as well as under diurnal light cycling for at least 4 d, with simulated sunlight. Operational characteristics are validated by extended time outdoor testing. A membrane ensures products are separated, with nonexplosive gas streams generated for both alkaline and acidic systems. Finally, analysis of operational characteristics under different lighting conditions is enabled by comparison of a device model to experimental data.« less

  13. Relative Effectiveness of Operant Conditioning and Play Therapy in Childhood Schizophrenia

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Ney, Philip G.; And Others

    1971-01-01

    An experimental study designed to examine the relative effectiveness of operant conditioning and play therapy in improving the communication and social functioning of psychotic children was presented and discussed. (Author)

  14. Spent fuel behavior under abnormal thermal transients during dry storage

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Stahl, D.; Landow, M.P.; Burian, R.J.

    1986-01-01

    This study was performed to determine the effects of abnormally high temperatures on spent fuel behavior. Prior to testing, calculations using the CIRFI3 code were used to determine the steady-state fuel and cask component temperatures. The TRUMP code was used to determine transient heating rates under postulated abnormal events during which convection cooling of the cask surfaces was obstructed by a debris bed covering the cask. The peak rate of temperature rise during the first 6 h was calculated to be about 15/sup 0/C/h, followed by a rate of about 1/sup 0/C/h. A Turkey Point spent fuel rod segment wasmore » heated to approx. 800/sup 0/C. The segment deformed uniformly with an average strain of 17% at failure and a local strain of 60%. Pretest characterization of the spent fuel consisted of visual examination, profilometry, eddy-current examination, gamma scanning, fission gas collection, void volume measurement, fission gas analysis, hydrogen analysis of the cladding, burnup analysis, cladding metallography, and fuel ceramography. Post-test characterization showed that the failure was a pinhole cladding breach. The results of the tests showed that spent fuel temperatures in excess of 700/sup 0/C are required to produce a cladding breach in fuel rods pressurized to 500 psing (3.45 MPa) under postulated abnormal thermal transient cask conditions. The pinhole cladding breach that developed would be too small to compromise the confinement of spent fuel particles during an abnormal event or after normal cooling conditions are restored. This behavior is similar to that found in other slow ramp tests with irradiated and nonirradiated rod sections and nonirradiated whole rods under conditions that bracketed postulated abnormal heating rates. This similarity is attributed to annealing of the irradiation-strengthened Zircaloy cladding during heating. In both cases, the failure was a benign, ductile pinhole rupture.« less

  15. Adenotonsillar hypertrophy as a risk factor of dentofacial abnormality in Korean children.

    PubMed

    Kim, Dong-Kyu; Rhee, Chae Seo; Yun, Pil-Young; Kim, Jeong-Whun

    2015-11-01

    No studies for the role of adenotonsillar hypertrophy in development of dentofacial abnormalities have been performed in Asian pediatric population. Thus, we aimed to investigate the relationship between adenotonsillar hypertrophy and dentofacial abnormalities in Korean children. The present study included consecutive children who visited a pediatric clinic for sleep-disordered breathing due to habitual mouth breathing, snoring or sleep apnea. Their palatine tonsils and adenoids were graded by oropharyngeal endoscopy and lateral cephalometry. Anterior open bite, posterior crossbite, and Angle's class malocclusions were evaluated for dentofacial abnormality. The receiver-operating characteristic curve analysis was used to identify age cutoffs to predict dentofacial abnormality. A total of 1,083 children were included. The presence of adenotonsillar hypertrophy was significantly correlated with the prevalence of dentofacial abnormality [adjusted odds ratio = 4.587, 95% CI (2.747-7.658)] after adjusting age, sex, body mass index, allergy, and Korean version of obstructive sleep apnea-18 score. The cutoff age associated with dentofacial abnormality was 5.5 years (sensitivity = 75.5%, specificity = 67%) in the children with adenotonsillar hypertrophy and 6.5 years (sensitivity = 70.6%, specificity = 57%) in those without adenotonsillar hypertrophy. In conclusion, adenotonsillar hypertrophy may be a risk factor for dentofacial abnormalities in Korean children and early surgical intervention could be considered with regards to dentofacial abnormality.

  16. Abnormal splenic artery diameter/hepatic artery diameter ratio in cirrhosis-induced portal hypertension

    PubMed Central

    Zeng, Dao-Bing; Dai, Chuan-Zhou; Lu, Shi-Chun; He, Ning; Wang, Wei; Li, Hong-Jun

    2013-01-01

    AIM: To determine an optimal cutoff value for abnormal splenic artery diameter/proper hepatic artery diameter (S/P) ratio in cirrhosis-induced portal hypertension. METHODS: Patients with cirrhosis and portal hypertension (n = 770) and healthy volunteers (n = 31) underwent volumetric computed tomography three-dimensional vascular reconstruction to measure the internal diameters of the splenic artery and proper hepatic artery to calculate the S/P ratio. The cutoff value for abnormal S/P ratio was determined using receiver operating characteristic curve analysis, and the prevalence of abnormal S/P ratio and associations between abnormal S/P ratio and major complications of portal hypertension were studied using logistic regression. RESULTS: The receiver operating characteristic analysis showed that the cutoff points for abnormal splenic artery internal diameter and S/P ratio were > 5.19 mm and > 1.40, respectively. The sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value, and negative predictive value were 74.2%, 45.2%, 97.1%, and 6.6%, respectively. The prevalence of an abnormal S/P ratio in the patients with cirrhosis and portal hypertension was 83.4%. Patients with a higher S/P ratio had a lower risk of developing ascites [odds ratio (OR) = 0.708, 95%CI: 0.508-0.986, P = 0.041] and a higher risk of developing esophageal and gastric varices (OR = 1.483, 95%CI: 1.010-2.175, P = 0.044) and forming collateral circulation (OR = 1.518, 95%CI: 1.033-2.230, P = 0.034). After splenectomy, the portal venous pressure and maximum and mean portal venous flow velocities were reduced, while the flow rate and maximum and minimum flow velocities of the hepatic artery were increased (P < 0.05). CONCLUSION: The prevalence of an abnormal S/P ratio is high in patients with cirrhosis and portal hypertension, and it can be used as an important marker of splanchnic hemodynamic disturbances. PMID:23483462

  17. A quantitative estimate of schema abnormality in socially anxious and non-anxious individuals.

    PubMed

    Wenzel, Amy; Brendle, Jennifer R; Kerr, Patrick L; Purath, Donna; Ferraro, F Richard

    2007-01-01

    Although cognitive theories of anxiety suggest that anxious individuals are characterized by abnormal threat-relevant schemas, few empirical studies have estimated the nature of these cognitive structures using quantitative methods that lend themselves to inferential statistical analysis. In the present study, socially anxious (n = 55) and non-anxious (n = 62) participants completed 3 Q-Sort tasks to assess their knowledge of events that commonly occur in social or evaluative scenarios. Participants either sorted events according to how commonly they personally believe the events occur (i.e. "self" condition), or to how commonly they estimate that most people believe they occur (i.e. "other" condition). Participants' individual Q-Sorts were correlated with mean sorts obtained from a normative sample to obtain an estimate of schema abnormality, with lower correlations representing greater levels of abnormality. Relative to non-anxious participants, socially anxious participants' sorts were less strongly associated with sorts of the normative sample, particularly in the "self" condition, although secondary analyses suggest that some significant results might be explained, in part, by depression and experience with the scenarios. These results provide empirical support for the theoretical notion that threat-relevant self-schemas of anxious individuals are characterized by some degree of abnormality.

  18. Urine - abnormal color

    MedlinePlus

    ... medlineplus.gov/ency/article/003139.htm Urine - abnormal color To use the sharing features on this page, please enable JavaScript. The usual color of urine is straw-yellow. Abnormally colored urine ...

  19. Extending In Vitro Conditioning in "Aplysia" to Analyze Operant and Classical Processes in the Same Preparation

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Brembs, Bjorn; Baxter, Douglas A.; Byrne, John H.

    2004-01-01

    Operant and classical conditioning are major processes shaping behavioral responses in all animals. Although the understanding of the mechanisms of classical conditioning has expanded significantly, the understanding of the mechanisms of operant conditioning is more limited. Recent developments in "Aplysia" are helping to narrow the gap in the…

  20. Studies into abnormal aggression in humans and rodents: Methodological and translational aspects.

    PubMed

    Haller, Jozsef

    2017-05-01

    Here we review the principles based on which aggression is rendered abnormal in humans and laboratory rodents, and comparatively overview the main methodological approaches based on which this behavior is studied in the two categories of subjects. It appears that the discriminating property of abnormal aggression is rule breaking, which renders aggression dysfunctional from the point of view of the perpetrator. We show that rodent models of abnormal aggression were created by the translation of human conditions into rodent equivalents, and discuss how findings obtained with such models may be "translated back" to human conditions when the mechanisms underlying aggression and its possibilities of treatment are investigated. We suggest that the complementary nature of human and rodent research approaches invite a more intense cross-talk between the two sides of aggression research than the one presently observed. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  1. Detection and classification of alarm threshold violations in condition monitoring systems working in highly varying operational conditions

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Strączkiewicz, M.; Barszcz, T.; Jabłoński, A.

    2015-07-01

    All commonly used condition monitoring systems (CMS) enable defining alarm thresholds that enhance efficient surveillance and maintenance of dynamic state of machinery. The thresholds are imposed on the measured values such as vibration-based indicators, temperature, pressure, etc. For complex machinery such as wind turbine (WT) the total number of thresholds might be counted in hundreds multiplied by the number of operational states. All the parameters vary not only due to possible machinery malfunctions, but also due to changes in operating conditions and these changes are typically much stronger than the former ones. Very often, such a behavior may lead to hundreds of false alarms. Therefore, authors propose a novel approach based on parameterized description of the threshold violation. For this purpose the novelty and severity factors are introduced. The first parameter refers to the time of violation occurrence while the second one describes the impact of the indicator-increase to the entire machine. Such approach increases reliability of the CMS by providing the operator with the most useful information of the system events. The idea of the procedure is presented on a simulated data similar to those from a wind turbine.

  2. The Establishment and Administration of Operant Conditioning Programs in a State Hospital for the Retarded.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Ball, Thomas S., Ed.

    Seven articles treat the establishment of operant conditioning programs for the mentally retarded at Pacific State Hospital in California. Emphasis is on the administrative rather than the demonstration of research aspects of operant conditioning programs. Following an introduction and overview, the medical director's point of view on operant…

  3. Mutagenicity of biodiesel or diesel exhaust particles and the effect of engine operating conditions.

    PubMed

    Kisin, Elena R; Shi, X C; Keane, Michael J; Bugarski, Aleksandar B; Shvedova, Anna A

    2013-03-01

    Changing the fuel supply from petroleum based ultra-low sulfur diesel (ULSD) to biodiesel and its blends is considered by many to be a viable option for controlling exposures to particulate material (PM). This is critical in the mining industry where approximately 28,000 underground miners are potentially exposed to relatively high concentrations of diesel particulate matter (DPM). This study was conducted to investigate the mutagenic potential of diesel engine emissions (DEE) from neat (B100) and blended (B50) soy-based fatty acid methyl ester (FAME) biodiesel in comparison with ULSD PM using different engine operating conditions and exhaust aftertreatment configurations. The DPM samples were collected for engine equipped with either a standard muffler or a combination of the muffler and diesel oxidation catalytic converter (DOC) that was operated at four different steady-state modes. Bacterial gene mutation activity of DPM was tested on the organic solvent extracts using the Ames Salmonella assay. The results indicate that mutagenic activity of DPM was strongly affected by fuels, engine operating conditions, and exhaust aftertreatment systems. The mutagenicity was increased with the fraction of biodiesel in the fuel. While the mutagenic activity was observed in B50 and B100 samples collected from both light-and heavy-load operating conditions, the ULSD samples were mutagenic only at light-load conditions. The presence of DOC in the exhaust system resulted in the decreased mutagenicity when engine was fueled with B100 and B50 and operated at light-load conditions. This was not the case when engine was fueled with ULSD. Heavy-load operating condition in the presence of DOC resulted in a decrease of mutagenicity only when engine was fueled with B50, but not B100 or ULSD. Therefore, the results indicate that DPM from neat or blended biodiesel has a higher mutagenic potency than that one of ULSD. Further research is needed to investigate the health effect of biodiesel

  4. Mutagenicity of biodiesel or diesel exhaust particles and the effect of engine operating conditions

    PubMed Central

    Kisin, Elena R; Shi, X.C; Keane, Michael J; Bugarski, Aleksandar B; Shvedova, Anna A

    2015-01-01

    Background Changing the fuel supply from petroleum based ultra-low sulfur diesel (ULSD) to biodiesel and its blends is considered by many to be a viable option for controlling exposures to particulate material (PM). This is critical in the mining industry where approximately 28,000 underground miners are potentially exposed to relatively high concentrations of diesel particulate matter (DPM). This study was conducted to investigate the mutagenic potential of diesel engine emissions (DEE) from neat (B100) and blended (B50) soy-based fatty acid methyl ester (FAME) biodiesel in comparison with ULSD PM using different engine operating conditions and exhaust aftertreatment configurations. Methods The DPM samples were collected for engine equipped with either a standard muffler or a combination of the muffler and diesel oxidation catalytic converter (DOC) that was operated at four different steady-state modes. Bacterial gene mutation activity of DPM was tested on the organic solvent extracts using the Ames Salmonella assay. Results The results indicate that mutagenic activity of DPM was strongly affected by fuels, engine operating conditions, and exhaust aftertreatment systems. The mutagenicity was increased with the fraction of biodiesel in the fuel. While the mutagenic activity was observed in B50 and B100 samples collected from both light-and heavy-load operating conditions, the ULSD samples were mutagenic only at light-load conditions. The presence of DOC in the exhaust system resulted in the decreased mutagenicity when engine was fueled with B100 and B50 and operated at light-load conditions. This was not the case when engine was fueled with ULSD. Heavy-load operating condition in the presence of DOC resulted in a decrease of mutagenicity only when engine was fueled with B50, but not B100 or ULSD. Conclusions Therefore, the results indicate that DPM from neat or blended biodiesel has a higher mutagenic potency than that one of ULSD. Further research is needed to

  5. Operant conditioning of neural activity in freely behaving monkeys with intracranial reinforcement

    PubMed Central

    Eaton, Ryan W.; Libey, Tyler

    2017-01-01

    Operant conditioning of neural activity has typically been performed under controlled behavioral conditions using food reinforcement. This has limited the duration and behavioral context for neural conditioning. To reward cell activity in unconstrained primates, we sought sites in nucleus accumbens (NAc) whose stimulation reinforced operant responding. In three monkeys, NAc stimulation sustained performance of a manual target-tracking task, with response rates that increased monotonically with increasing NAc stimulation. We recorded activity of single motor cortex neurons and documented their modulation with wrist force. We conditioned increased firing rates with the monkey seated in the training booth and during free behavior in the cage using an autonomous head-fixed recording and stimulating system. Spikes occurring above baseline rates triggered single or multiple electrical pulses to the reinforcement site. Such rate-contingent, unit-triggered stimulation was made available for periods of 1–3 min separated by 3–10 min time-out periods. Feedback was presented as event-triggered clicks both in-cage and in-booth, and visual cues were provided in many in-booth sessions. In-booth conditioning produced increases in single neuron firing probability with intracranial reinforcement in 48 of 58 cells. Reinforced cell activity could rise more than five times that of non-reinforced activity. In-cage conditioning produced significant increases in 21 of 33 sessions. In-cage rate changes peaked later and lasted longer than in-booth changes, but were often comparatively smaller, between 13 and 18% above non-reinforced activity. Thus intracranial stimulation reinforced volitional increases in cortical firing rates during both free behavior and a controlled environment, although changes in the latter were more robust. NEW & NOTEWORTHY Closed-loop brain-computer interfaces (BCI) were used to operantly condition increases in muscle and neural activity in monkeys by delivering

  6. Operant conditioning of neural activity in freely behaving monkeys with intracranial reinforcement.

    PubMed

    Eaton, Ryan W; Libey, Tyler; Fetz, Eberhard E

    2017-03-01

    Operant conditioning of neural activity has typically been performed under controlled behavioral conditions using food reinforcement. This has limited the duration and behavioral context for neural conditioning. To reward cell activity in unconstrained primates, we sought sites in nucleus accumbens (NAc) whose stimulation reinforced operant responding. In three monkeys, NAc stimulation sustained performance of a manual target-tracking task, with response rates that increased monotonically with increasing NAc stimulation. We recorded activity of single motor cortex neurons and documented their modulation with wrist force. We conditioned increased firing rates with the monkey seated in the training booth and during free behavior in the cage using an autonomous head-fixed recording and stimulating system. Spikes occurring above baseline rates triggered single or multiple electrical pulses to the reinforcement site. Such rate-contingent, unit-triggered stimulation was made available for periods of 1-3 min separated by 3-10 min time-out periods. Feedback was presented as event-triggered clicks both in-cage and in-booth, and visual cues were provided in many in-booth sessions. In-booth conditioning produced increases in single neuron firing probability with intracranial reinforcement in 48 of 58 cells. Reinforced cell activity could rise more than five times that of non-reinforced activity. In-cage conditioning produced significant increases in 21 of 33 sessions. In-cage rate changes peaked later and lasted longer than in-booth changes, but were often comparatively smaller, between 13 and 18% above non-reinforced activity. Thus intracranial stimulation reinforced volitional increases in cortical firing rates during both free behavior and a controlled environment, although changes in the latter were more robust. NEW & NOTEWORTHY Closed-loop brain-computer interfaces (BCI) were used to operantly condition increases in muscle and neural activity in monkeys by delivering

  7. How study of respiratory physiology aided our understanding of abnormal brain function in panic disorder.

    PubMed

    Sinha, S; Papp, L A; Gorman, J M

    2000-12-01

    There is a substantial body of literature demonstrating that stimulation of respiration (hyperventilation) is a common event in panic disorder patients during panic attack episodes. Further, a number of abnormalities in respiration, such as enhanced CO2 sensitivity, have been detected in panic patients. This led some to posit that there is a fundamental abnormality in the physiological mechanisms that control breathing in panic disorder and that this abnormality is central to illness etiology. More recently, however, evidence has accumulated suggesting that respiratory physiology is normal in panic patients and that their tendency to hyperventilate and to react with panic to respiratory stimulants like CO2 represents the triggering of a hypersensitive fear network. The fear network anatomy is taken from preclinical studies that have identified the brain pathways that subserve the acquisition and maintenance of conditioned fear. Included are the amygdala and its brain stem projections, the hippocampus, and the medial prefrontal cortex. Although attempts to image this system in patients during panic attacks have been difficult, the theory that the fear network is operative and hyperactive in panic patients explains why both medication and psychosocial therapies are clearly effective. Studies of respiration in panic disorder are an excellent example of the way in which peripheral markers have guided researchers in developing a more complete picture of the neural events that occur in psychopathological states.

  8. A phase angle based diagnostic scheme to planetary gear faults diagnostics under non-stationary operational conditions

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Feng, Ke; Wang, Kesheng; Ni, Qing; Zuo, Ming J.; Wei, Dongdong

    2017-11-01

    Planetary gearbox is a critical component for rotating machinery. It is widely used in wind turbines, aerospace and transmission systems in heavy industry. Thus, it is important to monitor planetary gearboxes, especially for fault diagnostics, during its operational conditions. However, in practice, operational conditions of planetary gearbox are often characterized by variations of rotational speeds and loads, which may bring difficulties for fault diagnosis through the measured vibrations. In this paper, phase angle data extracted from measured planetary gearbox vibrations is used for fault detection under non-stationary operational conditions. Together with sample entropy, fault diagnosis on planetary gearbox is implemented. The proposed scheme is explained and demonstrated in both simulation and experimental studies. The scheme proves to be effective and features advantages on fault diagnosis of planetary gearboxes under non-stationary operational conditions.

  9. Abnormal pressures as hydrodynamic phenomena

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Neuzil, C.E.

    1995-01-01

    So-called abnormal pressures, subsurface fluid pressures significantly higher or lower than hydrostatic, have excited speculation about their origin since subsurface exploration first encountered them. Two distinct conceptual models for abnormal pressures have gained currency among earth scientists. The static model sees abnormal pressures generally as relict features preserved by a virtual absence of fluid flow over geologic time. The hydrodynamic model instead envisions abnormal pressures as phenomena in which flow usually plays an important role. This paper develops the theoretical framework for abnormal pressures as hydrodynamic phenomena, shows that it explains the manifold occurrences of abnormal pressures, and examines the implications of this approach. -from Author

  10. How Abnormal Is the Behaviour of Captive, Zoo-Living Chimpanzees?

    PubMed Central

    Birkett, Lucy P.; Newton-Fisher, Nicholas E.

    2011-01-01

    Background Many captive chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes) show a variety of serious behavioural abnormalities, some of which have been considered as possible signs of compromised mental health. The provision of environmental enrichments aimed at reducing the performance of abnormal behaviours is increasing the norm, with the housing of individuals in (semi-)natural social groups thought to be the most successful of these. Only a few quantitative studies of abnormal behaviour have been conducted, however, particularly for the captive population held in zoological collections. Consequently, a clear picture of the level of abnormal behaviour in zoo-living chimpanzees is lacking. Methods We present preliminary findings from a detailed observational study of the behaviour of 40 socially-housed zoo-living chimpanzees from six collections in the United States of America and the United Kingdom. We determined the prevalence, diversity, frequency, and duration of abnormal behaviour from 1200 hours of continuous behavioural data collected by focal animal sampling. Results, Conclusion and Significance Our overall finding was that abnormal behaviour was present in all sampled individuals across six independent groups of zoo-living chimpanzees, despite the differences between these groups in size, composition, housing, etc. We found substantial variation between individuals in the frequency and duration of abnormal behaviour, but all individuals engaged in at least some abnormal behaviour and variation across individuals could not be explained by sex, age, rearing history or background (defined as prior housing conditions). Our data support a conclusion that, while most behaviour of zoo-living chimpanzees is ‘normal’ in that it is typical of their wild counterparts, abnormal behaviour is endemic in this population despite enrichment efforts. We suggest there is an urgent need to understand how the chimpanzee mind copes with captivity, an issue with both scientific and welfare

  11. How abnormal is the behaviour of captive, zoo-living chimpanzees?

    PubMed

    Birkett, Lucy P; Newton-Fisher, Nicholas E

    2011-01-01

    Many captive chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes) show a variety of serious behavioural abnormalities, some of which have been considered as possible signs of compromised mental health. The provision of environmental enrichments aimed at reducing the performance of abnormal behaviours is increasing the norm, with the housing of individuals in (semi-)natural social groups thought to be the most successful of these. Only a few quantitative studies of abnormal behaviour have been conducted, however, particularly for the captive population held in zoological collections. Consequently, a clear picture of the level of abnormal behaviour in zoo-living chimpanzees is lacking. We present preliminary findings from a detailed observational study of the behaviour of 40 socially-housed zoo-living chimpanzees from six collections in the United States of America and the United Kingdom. We determined the prevalence, diversity, frequency, and duration of abnormal behaviour from 1200 hours of continuous behavioural data collected by focal animal sampling. Our overall finding was that abnormal behaviour was present in all sampled individuals across six independent groups of zoo-living chimpanzees, despite the differences between these groups in size, composition, housing, etc. We found substantial variation between individuals in the frequency and duration of abnormal behaviour, but all individuals engaged in at least some abnormal behaviour and variation across individuals could not be explained by sex, age, rearing history or background (defined as prior housing conditions). Our data support a conclusion that, while most behaviour of zoo-living chimpanzees is 'normal' in that it is typical of their wild counterparts, abnormal behaviour is endemic in this population despite enrichment efforts. We suggest there is an urgent need to understand how the chimpanzee mind copes with captivity, an issue with both scientific and welfare implications.

  12. Neurophysiological model of the normal and abnormal human pupil

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Krenz, W.; Robin, M.; Barez, S.; Stark, L.

    1985-01-01

    Anatomical, experimental, and computer simulation studies were used to determine the structure of the neurophysiological model of the pupil size control system. The computer simulation of this model demonstrates the role played by each of the elements in the neurological pathways influencing the size of the pupil. Simulations of the effect of drugs and common abnormalities in the system help to illustrate the workings of the pathways and processes involved. The simulation program allows the user to select pupil condition (normal or an abnormality), specific site along the neurological pathway (retina, hypothalamus, etc.) drug class input (barbiturate, narcotic, etc.), stimulus/response mode, display mode, stimulus type and input waveform, stimulus or background intensity and frequency, the input and output conditions, and the response at the neuroanatomical site. The model can be used as a teaching aid or as a tool for testing hypotheses regarding the system.

  13. A simple infrared-augmented digital photography technique for detection of pupillary abnormalities.

    PubMed

    Shazly, Tarek A; Bonhomme, G R

    2015-03-01

    The purpose of the study was to describe a simple infrared photography technique to aid in the diagnosis and documentation of pupillary abnormalities. An unmodified 12-megapixel "point and shoot" digital camera was used to obtain binocular still photos and videos under different light conditions with near-infrared illuminating frames. The near-infrared light of 850 nm allows the capture of clear pupil images in both dim and bright light conditions. It also allows easy visualization of the pupil despite pigmented irides by augmenting the contrast between the iris and the pupil. The photos and videos obtained illustrated a variety of pupillary abnormalities using the aforementioned technique. This infrared-augmented photography technique supplements medical education, and aids in the more rapid detection, diagnosis, and documentation of a wide spectrum of pupillary abnormalities. Its portability and ease of use with minimal training complements the education of trainees and facilitates the establishment of difficult diagnoses.

  14. Maintaining reduced noise levels in a resource-constrained neonatal intensive care unit by operant conditioning.

    PubMed

    Ramesh, A; Denzil, S B; Linda, R; Josephine, P K; Nagapoornima, M; Suman Rao, P N; Swarna Rekha, A

    2013-03-01

    To evaluate the efficacy of operant conditioning in sustaining reduced noise levels in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU). Quasi-experimental study on quality of care. Level III NICU of a teaching hospital in south India. 26 staff employed in the NICU. (7 Doctors, 13 Nursing staff and 6 Nursing assistants). Operant conditioning of staff activity for 6 months. This method involves positive and negative reinforcement to condition the staff to modify noise generating activities. Comparing noise levels in decibel: A weighted [dB (A)] before conditioning with levels at 18 and 24 months after conditioning. Decibel: A weighted accounts for noise that is audible to human ears. Operant conditioning for 6 months sustains the reduced noise levels to within 62 dB in ventilator room 95% CI: 60.4 - 62.2 and isolation room (95% CI: 55.8 - 61.5). In the preterm room, noise can be maintained within 52 dB (95% CI: 50.8 - 52.6). This effect is statistically significant in all the rooms at 18 months (P = 0.001). At 24 months post conditioning there is a significant rebound of noise levels by 8.6, 6.7 and 9.9 dB in the ventilator, isolation and preterm room, respectively (P =0.001). Operant conditioning for 6 months was effective in sustaining reduced noise levels. At 18 months post conditioning, the noise levels were maintained within 62 dB (A), 60 dB (A) and 52 dB (A) in the ventilator, isolation and pre-term room, respectively. Conditioning needs to be repeated at 12 months in the ventilator room and at 18 months in the other rooms.

  15. Emergency Procedure Training for Reactor Operators at the High Flux Beam Reactor for Brookhaven National Laboratory.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Reyer, Ronald

    A project was conducted to analyze, design, develop, implement, and evaluate an instructional unit intended to improve the diagnostic skills of operating personnel in responding to abnormal and emergency conditions at the High Flux Beam Reactor at Brookhaven National Laboratory. Research was conducted on the occurrence of emergencies at similar…

  16. [Microbial air purity in hospitals. Operating theatres with air conditioning system].

    PubMed

    Krogulski, Adam; Szczotko, Maciej

    2010-01-01

    The aim of this study was to show the influence of air conditioning control for microbial contamination of air inside the operating theatres equipped with correctly working air-conditioning system. This work was based on the results of bacteria and fungi concentration in hospital air obtained since 2001. Assays of microbial air purity conducted on atmospheric air in parallel with indoor air demonstrated that air filters applied in air-conditioning systems worked correctly in every case. To show the problem of fluctuation of bacteria concentration more precisely, every sequences of single results from successive measure series were examined independently.

  17. Assessment of biogas production from MBT waste under different operating conditions

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Pantini, Sara, E-mail: pantini@ing.uniroma2.it; Verginelli, Iason; Lombardi, Francesco

    2015-09-15

    Highlights: • BMP test displayed high gas potential generation capacity of MBT waste. • Strong inhibition effects were observed due to ammonia and VFA accumulation. • Waste water content was found as the key parameter limiting gas generation. • First order k-values were determined for different operating conditions. - Abstract: In this work, the influence of different operating conditions on the biogas production from mechanically–biologically treated (MBT) wastes is investigated. Specifically, different lab-scale anaerobic tests varying the water content (26–43% w/w up to 75% w/w), the temperature (from 20 to 25 °C up to 55 °C) and the amount ofmore » inoculum have been performed on waste samples collected from a full-scale Italian MBT plant. For each test, the gas generation yield and, where applicable, the first-order gas generation rates were determined. Nearly all tests were characterised by a quite long lag-phase. This result was mainly ascribed to the inhibition effects resulting from the high concentrations of volatile fatty acids (VFAs) and ammonia detected in the different stages of the experiments. Furthermore, water content was found as one of the key factor limiting the anaerobic biological process. Indeed, the experimental results showed that when the moisture was lower than 32% w/w, the methanogenic microbial activity was completely inhibited. For the higher water content tested (75% w/w), high values of accumulated gas volume (up to 150 Nl/kgTS) and a relatively short time period to deplete the MBT waste gas generation capacity were observed. At these test conditions, the effect of temperature became evident, leading to gas generation rates of 0.007 d{sup −1} at room temperature that increased to 0.03–0.05 d{sup −1} at 37 °C and to 0.04–0.11 d{sup −1} at 55 °C. Overall, the obtained results highlighted that the operative conditions can drastically affect the gas production from MBT wastes. This suggests that particular

  18. LHCb Conditions database operation assistance systems

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Clemencic, M.; Shapoval, I.; Cattaneo, M.; Degaudenzi, H.; Santinelli, R.

    2012-12-01

    The Conditions Database (CondDB) of the LHCb experiment provides versioned, time dependent geometry and conditions data for all LHCb data processing applications (simulation, high level trigger (HLT), reconstruction, analysis) in a heterogeneous computing environment ranging from user laptops to the HLT farm and the Grid. These different use cases impose front-end support for multiple database technologies (Oracle and SQLite are used). Sophisticated distribution tools are required to ensure timely and robust delivery of updates to all environments. The content of the database has to be managed to ensure that updates are internally consistent and externally compatible with multiple versions of the physics application software. In this paper we describe three systems that we have developed to address these issues. The first system is a CondDB state tracking extension to the Oracle 3D Streams replication technology, to trap cases when the CondDB replication was corrupted. Second, an automated distribution system for the SQLite-based CondDB, providing also smart backup and checkout mechanisms for the CondDB managers and LHCb users respectively. And, finally, a system to verify and monitor the internal (CondDB self-consistency) and external (LHCb physics software vs. CondDB) compatibility. The former two systems are used in production in the LHCb experiment and have achieved the desired goal of higher flexibility and robustness for the management and operation of the CondDB. The latter one has been fully designed and is passing currently to the implementation stage.

  19. 76 FR 36864 - Special Conditions: Gulfstream Model GVI Airplane; Operation Without Normal Electric Power

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2011-06-23

    ... DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION Federal Aviation Administration 14 CFR Part 25 [Docket No. NM444; Special Conditions No. 25-435-SC] Special Conditions: Gulfstream Model GVI Airplane; Operation Without... rules (VFR) conditions for at least five minutes after loss of all normal electrical power. This rule...

  20. Improving the performance of univariate control charts for abnormal detection and classification

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Yiakopoulos, Christos; Koutsoudaki, Maria; Gryllias, Konstantinos; Antoniadis, Ioannis

    2017-03-01

    Bearing failures in rotating machinery can cause machine breakdown and economical loss, if no effective actions are taken on time. Therefore, it is of prime importance to detect accurately the presence of faults, especially at their early stage, to prevent sequent damage and reduce costly downtime. The machinery fault diagnosis follows a roadmap of data acquisition, feature extraction and diagnostic decision making, in which mechanical vibration fault feature extraction is the foundation and the key to obtain an accurate diagnostic result. A challenge in this area is the selection of the most sensitive features for various types of fault, especially when the characteristics of failures are difficult to be extracted. Thus, a plethora of complex data-driven fault diagnosis methods are fed by prominent features, which are extracted and reduced through traditional or modern algorithms. Since most of the available datasets are captured during normal operating conditions, the last decade a number of novelty detection methods, able to work when only normal data are available, have been developed. In this study, a hybrid method combining univariate control charts and a feature extraction scheme is introduced focusing towards an abnormal change detection and classification, under the assumption that measurements under normal operating conditions of the machinery are available. The feature extraction method integrates the morphological operators and the Morlet wavelets. The effectiveness of the proposed methodology is validated on two different experimental cases with bearing faults, demonstrating that the proposed approach can improve the fault detection and classification performance of conventional control charts.

  1. Matrix multiplication operations with data pre-conditioning in a high performance computing architecture

    DOEpatents

    Eichenberger, Alexandre E; Gschwind, Michael K; Gunnels, John A

    2013-11-05

    Mechanisms for performing matrix multiplication operations with data pre-conditioning in a high performance computing architecture are provided. A vector load operation is performed to load a first vector operand of the matrix multiplication operation to a first target vector register. A load and splat operation is performed to load an element of a second vector operand and replicating the element to each of a plurality of elements of a second target vector register. A multiply add operation is performed on elements of the first target vector register and elements of the second target vector register to generate a partial product of the matrix multiplication operation. The partial product of the matrix multiplication operation is accumulated with other partial products of the matrix multiplication operation.

  2. Air-conditioning vs. presence of pathogenic fungi in hospital operating theatre environment.

    PubMed

    Gniadek, Agnieszka; Macura, Anna B

    2011-01-01

    Infections related to modern surgical procedures present a difficult problem for contemporary medicine. Infections acquired during surgery represent a risk factor related to therapeutical interventions. Eradication of microorganisms from hospital operating theatre environment may contribute to reduction of infections as the laminar flow air-conditioning considerably reduces the number of microorganisms in the hospital environment. The objective of the study was to evaluate the occurrence of fungi in air-conditioned operating theatre rooms. The study was carried out in one of the hospitals in Krak6w during December 2009. Indoor air samples and imprints from the walls were collected from five operating theatre rooms. A total of fifty indoor air samples were collected with a MAS-100 device, and twenty five imprints from the walls were collected using a Count Tact method. Fungal growth was observed in 48 air samples; the average numbers of fungi were within the range of 5-100 c.f.u. in one cubic metre of the air. Fungi were detected only in four samples of the wall imprints; the number of fungi was 0.01 c.f.u. per one square centimetre of the surface. The mould genus Aspergillus was most frequently isolated, and the species A. fumigatus and A. versicolor were the dominating ones. To ensure microbiological cleanness of hospital operating theatre, the air-conditioning system should be properly maintained. Domination of the Aspergillus fungi in indoor air as well as increase in the number of moulds in the samples taken in evenings (p < 0.05) may suggest that the room decontamination procedures were neglected.

  3. 78 FR 73112 - Monitoring System Conditions-Transmission Operations Reliability Standards; Interconnection...

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2013-12-05

    ..., RM13-14-000 and RM13-15-000] Monitoring System Conditions--Transmission Operations Reliability...) 502-6817, [email protected] . Robert T. Stroh (Legal Information), Office of the General... Reliability Standards ``address the important reliability goal of ensuring that the transmission system is...

  4. 76 FR 22925 - Assumption Buster Workshop: Abnormal Behavior Detection Finds Malicious Actors

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2011-04-25

    ... Technology Research and Development (NITRD) Program, National Science Foundation. ACTION: Call for... NATIONAL SCIENCE FOUNDATION Assumption Buster Workshop: Abnormal Behavior Detection Finds...: The NCO, on behalf of the Special Cyber Operations Research and Engineering (SCORE) Committee, an...

  5. Ophthalmologic abnormalities in Mowat-Wilson syndrome and a mutation in ZEB2.

    PubMed

    Ariss, Michelle; Natan, Kristina; Friedman, Neil; Traboulsi, Elias I

    2012-09-01

    Mowat-Wilson syndrome is a genetic disorder characterized by a distinct facial appearance, moderate-to-severe mental retardation, microcephaly, agenesis of the corpus callosum, Hirschsprung disease, congenital heart disease, and genital anomalies. Ophthalmological abnormalities have been rarely described in patients with this condition which is caused by mutations in the ZEB2 gene. We report a 9-year-old female with this syndrome who has severe ocular abnormalities including bilateral microphthalmia, cataract, and retinal aplasia.

  6. Transposition of Francis turbine cavitation compliance at partial load to different operating conditions

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Gomes, J.; Favrel, A.; Landry, C.; Nicolet, C.; Avellan, F.

    2017-04-01

    Francis turbines operating in part load conditions experience a swirling flow at the runner outlet leading to the development of a precessing cavitation vortex rope in the draft tube. This cavitation vortex rope changes drastically the velocity of pressure waves traveling in the draft tube and may lead to resonance conditions in the hydraulic circuit. The wave speed being strongly related to the cavitation compliance, this research work presents a simple model to explain how it is affected by variations of operating conditions and proposes a method to transpose its values. Even though the focus of this paper is on transpositions within the same turbine scale, the methodology is also expected to be tested for the model to prototype transposition in the future. Comparisons between measurements and calculations are in good agreement.

  7. Perceived functional impact of abnormal facial appearance.

    PubMed

    Rankin, Marlene; Borah, Gregory L

    2003-06-01

    Functional facial deformities are usually described as those that impair respiration, eating, hearing, or speech. Yet facial scars and cutaneous deformities have a significant negative effect on social functionality that has been poorly documented in the scientific literature. Insurance companies are declining payments for reconstructive surgical procedures for facial deformities caused by congenital disabilities and after cancer or trauma operations that do not affect mechanical facial activity. The purpose of this study was to establish a large, sample-based evaluation of the perceived social functioning, interpersonal characteristics, and employability indices for a range of facial appearances (normal and abnormal). Adult volunteer evaluators (n = 210) provided their subjective perceptions based on facial physical appearance, and an analysis of the consequences of facial deformity on parameters of preferential treatment was performed. A two-group comparative research design rated the differences among 10 examples of digitally altered facial photographs of actual patients among various age and ethnic groups with "normal" and "abnormal" congenital deformities or posttrauma scars. Photographs of adult patients with observable congenital and posttraumatic deformities (abnormal) were digitally retouched to eliminate the stigmatic defects (normal). The normal and abnormal photographs of identical patients were evaluated by the large sample study group on nine parameters of social functioning, such as honesty, employability, attractiveness, and effectiveness, using a visual analogue rating scale. Patients with abnormal facial characteristics were rated as significantly less honest (p = 0.007), less employable (p = 0.001), less trustworthy (p = 0.01), less optimistic (p = 0.001), less effective (p = 0.02), less capable (p = 0.002), less intelligent (p = 0.03), less popular (p = 0.001), and less attractive (p = 0.001) than were the same patients with normal facial

  8. Little Albert from the Viewpoint of Abnormal Psychology Textbook Authors.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    LeUnes, Arnold

    1983-01-01

    Watson and Rayner's study of Little Albert and conditioned emotional reactions is unquestionably a classic in psychology. Observations are made on what authors of 27 college textbooks in abnormal psychology have to say or not to say about Little Albert. (RM)

  9. Different MK-801 administration schedules induce mild to severe learning impairments in an operant conditioning task: role of buspirone and risperidone in ameliorating these cognitive deficits.

    PubMed

    Rapanelli, Maximiliano; Frick, Luciana Romina; Bernardez-Vidal, Micaela; Zanutto, Bonifacio Silvano

    2013-11-15

    Blockade of N-methyl-d-aspartate receptor (NMDA) by the noncompetitive NMDA receptor (NMDAR) antagonist MK-801 produces behavioral abnormalities and alterations in prefrontal cortex (PFC) functioning. Due to the critical role of the PFC in operant conditioning task learning, we evaluated the effects of acute, repeated postnatal injections of MK-801 (0.1mg/kg) on learning performance. We injected Long-Evans rats i.p. with MK-801 (0.1mg/kg) using three different administration schedules: injection 40 min before beginning the task (during) (n=12); injection twice daily for six consecutive days prior to beginning the experimental procedures (prior) (n=12); or twice daily subcutaneous injections from postnatal day 7 to 11 (postnatal) (n=12). Next, we orally administered risperidone (serotonin receptor 2A and dopamine receptor 2 antagonist, 1mg/kg) or buspirone (serotonin receptor 1A partial agonist, 10mg/kg) to animals treated with the MK-801 schedule described above. The postnatal and prior administration schedules produced severe learning deficits, whereas injection of MK-801 just before training sessions had only mild effects on acquisition of an operant conditioning. Risperidone was able to reverse the detrimental effect of MK-801 in the animals that were treated with MK-801 during and prior training sessions. In contrast, buspirone was only effective at mitigating the cognitive deficits induced by MK-801 when administered during the training procedures. The data demonstrates that NMDA antagonism disrupts basic mechanisms of learning in a simple PFC-mediated operant conditioning task, and that buspirone and risperidone failed to attenuate the learning deficits when NMDA neurotransmission was blocked in the early stages of the postnatal period. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  10. Piston Temperatures in an Air-Cooled Engine for Various Operating Conditions

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Manganiello, Eugene J

    1940-01-01

    As part of a program for the study of piston cooling, this report presents the results of tests conducted on a single-cylinder, air-cooled, carburetor engine to determine the effect of engine operating conditions on the temperatures at five locations on the piston.

  11. Optimal line drop compensation parameters under multi-operating conditions

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Wan, Yuan; Li, Hang; Wang, Kai; He, Zhe

    2017-01-01

    Line Drop Compensation (LDC) is a main function of Reactive Current Compensation (RCC) which is developed to improve voltage stability. While LDC has benefit to voltage, it may deteriorate the small-disturbance rotor angle stability of power system. In present paper, an intelligent algorithm which is combined by Genetic Algorithm (GA) and Backpropagation Neural Network (BPNN) is proposed to optimize parameters of LDC. The objective function proposed in present paper takes consideration of voltage deviation and power system oscillation minimal damping ratio under multi-operating conditions. A simulation based on middle area of Jiangxi province power system is used to demonstrate the intelligent algorithm. The optimization result shows that coordinate optimized parameters can meet the multioperating conditions requirement and improve voltage stability as much as possible while guaranteeing enough damping ratio.

  12. Pre-operative labs: Wasted dollars or predictors of post-operative cardiac and septic events in orthopaedic trauma patients?

    PubMed

    Lakomkin, Nikita; Sathiyakumar, Vasanth; Dodd, Ashley C; Jahangir, A Alex; Whiting, Paul S; Obremskey, William T; Sethi, Manish K

    2016-06-01

    As US healthcare expenditures continue to rise, there is significant pressure to reduce the cost of inpatient medical services. Studies have estimated that over 70% of routine labs may not yield clinical benefits while adding over $300 in costs per day for every inpatient. Although orthopaedic trauma patients tend to have longer inpatient stays and hip fractures have been associated with significant morbidity, there is a dearth of data examining pre-operative labs in predicting post-operative adverse events in these populations. The purpose of this study was to assess whether pre-operative labs significantly predict post-operative cardiac and septic complications in orthopaedic trauma and hip fracture patients. Between 2006 and 2013, 56,336 (15.6%) orthopaedic trauma patients were identified and 27,441 patients (7.6%) were diagnosed with hip fractures. Pre-operative labs included sodium, BUN, creatinine, albumin, bilirubin, SGOT, alkaline phosphatase, white count, hematocrit, platelet count, prothrombin time, INR, and partial thromboplastin time. For each of these labs, patients were deemed to have normal or abnormal values. Patients were noted to have developed cardiac or septic complications if they sustained (1) myocardial infarction (MI), (2) cardiac arrest, or (3) septic shock within 30 days after surgery. Separate regressions incorporating over 40 patient characteristics including age, gender, pre-operative comorbidities, and labs were performed for orthopaedic trauma patients in order to determine whether pre-operative labs predicted adverse cardiac or septic outcomes. 749 (1.3%) orthopaedic trauma patients developed cardiac complications and 311 (0.6%) developed septic shock. Multivariate regression demonstrated that abnormal pre-operative platelet values were significantly predictive of post-operative cardiac arrest (OR: 11.107, p=0.036), and abnormal bilirubin levels were predictive (OR: 8.487, p=0.008) of the development of septic shock in trauma

  13. Real-Time Plasma Process Condition Sensing and Abnormal Process Detection

    PubMed Central

    Yang, Ryan; Chen, Rongshun

    2010-01-01

    The plasma process is often used in the fabrication of semiconductor wafers. However, due to the lack of real-time etching control, this may result in some unacceptable process performances and thus leads to significant waste and lower wafer yield. In order to maximize the product wafer yield, a timely and accurately process fault or abnormal detection in a plasma reactor is needed. Optical emission spectroscopy (OES) is one of the most frequently used metrologies in in-situ process monitoring. Even though OES has the advantage of non-invasiveness, it is required to provide a huge amount of information. As a result, the data analysis of OES becomes a big challenge. To accomplish real-time detection, this work employed the sigma matching method technique, which is the time series of OES full spectrum intensity. First, the response model of a healthy plasma spectrum was developed. Then, we defined a matching rate as an indictor for comparing the difference between the tested wafers response and the health sigma model. The experimental results showed that this proposal method can detect process faults in real-time, even in plasma etching tools. PMID:22219683

  14. CFD analysis of a full-scale ceramic kiln module under actual operating conditions

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Milani, Massimo; Montorsi, Luca; Stefani, Matteo; Venturelli, Matteo

    2017-11-01

    The paper focuses on the CFD analysis of a full-scale module of an industrial ceramic kiln under actual operating conditions. The multi-dimensional analysis includes the real geometry of a ceramic kiln module employed in the preheating and firing sections and investigates the heat transfer between the tiles and the burners' flame as well as the many components that comprise the module. Particular attention is devoted to the simulation of the convective flow field in the upper and lower chambers and to the effects of radiation on the different materials is addressed. The assessment of the radiation contribution to the tiles temperature is paramount to the improvement of the performance of the kiln in terms of energy efficiency and fuel consumption. The CFD analysis is combined to a lumped and distributed parameter model of the entire kiln in order to simulate the module behaviour at the boundaries under actual operating conditions. Finally, the CFD simulation is employed to address the effects of the module operating conditions on the tiles' temperature distribution in order to improve the temperature uniformity as well as to enhance the energy efficiency of the system and thus to reduce the fuel consumption.

  15. Conservative management of placenta previa complicated by abnormal placentation.

    PubMed

    Bręborowicz, Grzegorz H; Markwitz, Wiesław; Gaca, Michał; Koziołek, Agnieszka; Ropacka-Lesiak, Mariola; Dera, Anna; Brych, Mariusz; Szymankiewicz-Bręborowicz, Marta; Kruszyński, Grzegorz; Gruca-Stryjak, Karolina; Madejczyk, Mateusz; Szpera-Goździewicz, Agata; Krzyścin, Mariola

    2013-07-01

    Abnormal implantation of placenta previa is life-threatening condition. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the impact of the conservative management of pregnancies with such complication on maternal morbidity rate and the chance for uterine preservation (fertility). Eleven patients with abnormal implantation of placenta previa were analyzed prospectively. This complication was diagnosed antenatally by two-dimensional ultrasound and color flow Doppler. The following outcomes were analyzed: need for blood transfusion, admission and duration of stay in intensive care unit, infections, coagulopathies, time between cesarean section and delivery of placenta, hysterectomy and preservation of uterus. Among the 20 085 women who had a singleton gestation, 11 (0.054%) were identified with placenta previa with abnormal placentation. In five patients (group A), hysterectomy was performed because of hemorrhage or placenta ablation. In six patients (group B), conservative management succeeded and placenta were preserved. In group A, placenta were delivered earlier (2 d-8 weeks) in comparison with group B (6-15 weeks). Estimated blood loss during the delayed delivery of placenta was higher in the group with hysterectomy (respectively, 450-1600 and 300-500 ml). Conservative management of placenta previa with abnormal implantation decreases the risk of severe hemorrhage at the time of delivery and can preserve fertility.

  16. Sensorineural Deafness, Distinctive Facial Features and Abnormal Cranial Bones

    PubMed Central

    Gad, Alona; Laurino, Mercy; Maravilla, Kenneth R.; Matsushita, Mark; Raskind, Wendy H.

    2008-01-01

    The Waardenburg syndromes (WS) account for approximately 2% of congenital sensorineural deafness. This heterogeneous group of diseases currently can be categorized into four major subtypes (WS types 1-4) on the basis of characteristic clinical features. Multiple genes have been implicated in WS, and mutations in some genes can cause more than one WS subtype. In addition to eye, hair and skin pigmentary abnormalities, dystopia canthorum and broad nasal bridge are seen in WS type 1. Mutations in the PAX3 gene are responsible for the condition in the majority of these patients. In addition, mutations in PAX3 have been found in WS type 3 that is distinguished by musculoskeletal abnormalities, and in a family with a rare subtype of WS, craniofacial-deafness-hand syndrome (CDHS), characterized by dysmorphic facial features, hand abnormalities, and absent or hypoplastic nasal and wrist bones. Here we describe a woman who shares some, but not all features of WS type 3 and CDHS, and who also has abnormal cranial bones. All sinuses were hypoplastic, and the cochlea were small. No sequence alteration in PAX3 was found. These observations broaden the clinical range of WS and suggest there may be genetic heterogeneity even within the CDHS subtype. PMID:18553554

  17. Prenatal Diagnosis of Abnormal Invasive Placenta by Ultrasound: Measurement of Highest Peak Systolic Velocity of Subplacental Blood Flow.

    PubMed

    Zhang, Junling; Li, Hezhou; Wang, Fang; Qin, Hongyan; Qin, Qiaohong

    2018-05-07

    The aim of the study described here was to identify an efficient criterion for the prenatal diagnosis of abnormal invasive placenta. We evaluated 129 women with anterior placenta previa who underwent trans-abdominal ultrasound evaluation in the third trimester. Spectral Doppler ultrasonography was performed to assess the subplacental blood flow of the anterior lower uterine segment by measuring the highest peak systolic velocity and resistive index. These patients were prospectively followed until delivery and evaluated for abnormal placental invasion. The peak systolic velocity and resistive index of patients with and without abnormal placental invasion were then compared. Postpartum examination revealed that 55 of the patients had an abnormal invasive placenta, whereas the remaining 74 did not. Patients with abnormal placental invasion had a higher peak systolic velocity of the subplacental blood flow in the lower segment of the anterior aspect of the uterus (area under receiver operating characteristic curve: 0.91; 95% confidence interval: 0.87-0.96) than did those without abnormal placental invasion. Our preliminary investigations suggest that a peak systolic velocity of 41 cm/s can be considered a cutoff point to diagnose abnormal invasive placenta, with both good sensitivity (87%) and good specificity (78%), and the higher the peak systolic velocity, the greater is the chance of abnormal placental invasion. Resistive index had no statistical significance (area under receiver operating characteristic curve, 0.56; 95% confidence interval: 0.46-0.66) in the diagnosis of abnormal invasive placenta. In conclusion, measurement of the highest peak systolic velocity of subplacental blood flow in the anterior lower uterine segment can serve as an additional marker of anterior abnormal invasive placenta. Copyright © 2018 World Federation for Ultrasound in Medicine and Biology. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  18. Post carbon removal nitrifying MBBR operation at high loading and exposure to starvation conditions.

    PubMed

    Young, Bradley; Delatolla, Robert; Kennedy, Kevin; LaFlamme, Edith; Stintzi, Alain

    2017-09-01

    This study investigates the performance of MBBR nitrifying biofilm post carbon removal at high loading and starvation conditions. The nitrifying MBBR, treating carbon removal lagoon effluent, achieved a maximum SARR of 2.13gN/m 2 d with complete conversion of ammonia to nitrate. The results also show the MBBR technology is capable of maintaining a stable biofilm under starvation conditions in systems that nitrify intermittently. The biomass exhibited a higher live fraction of total cells in the high loaded reactors (73-100%) as compared to the reactors operated in starvation condition (26-82%). For both the high loaded and starvation condition, the microbial communities significantly changed with time of operation. The nitrifying community, however, remained steady with the family Nitrosomonadacea as the primary AOBs and Nitrospira as the primary NOB. During starvation conditions, the relative abundance of AOBs decreased and Nitrospira increased corresponding to an NOB/AOB ratio of 5.2-12.1. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  19. Visual perceptual learning by operant conditioning training follows rules of contingency.

    PubMed

    Kim, Dongho; Seitz, Aaron R; Watanabe, Takeo

    2015-01-01

    Visual perceptual learning (VPL) can occur as a result of a repetitive stimulus-reward pairing in the absence of any task. This suggests that rules that guide Conditioning, such as stimulus-reward contingency (e.g. that stimulus predicts the likelihood of reward), may also guide the formation of VPL. To address this question, we trained subjects with an operant conditioning task in which there were contingencies between the response to one of three orientations and the presence of reward. Results showed that VPL only occurred for positive contingencies, but not for neutral or negative contingencies. These results suggest that the formation of VPL is influenced by similar rules that guide the process of Conditioning.

  20. Visual perceptual learning by operant conditioning training follows rules of contingency

    PubMed Central

    Kim, Dongho; Seitz, Aaron R; Watanabe, Takeo

    2015-01-01

    Visual perceptual learning (VPL) can occur as a result of a repetitive stimulus-reward pairing in the absence of any task. This suggests that rules that guide Conditioning, such as stimulus-reward contingency (e.g. that stimulus predicts the likelihood of reward), may also guide the formation of VPL. To address this question, we trained subjects with an operant conditioning task in which there were contingencies between the response to one of three orientations and the presence of reward. Results showed that VPL only occurred for positive contingencies, but not for neutral or negative contingencies. These results suggest that the formation of VPL is influenced by similar rules that guide the process of Conditioning. PMID:26028984

  1. Performance of a catalytic reactor at simulated gas turbine combustor operating conditions

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Anderson, D. N.; Tacina, R. R.; Mroz, T. S.

    1975-01-01

    The performance of a catalytic reactor 12 cm in diameter and 17 cm long was evaluated at simulated gas turbine combustor operating conditions using premixed propane and air. Inlet temperatures of 600 and 800 K, pressures of 3 and 6 atm, and reference velocities of 9 to 30 m/s were tested. Data were taken for equivalence ratios as high as 0.43. The operating range was limited on the low-temperature side by very poor efficiency; the minimum exit temperature for good performance ranged from 1400 to 1600 K depending on inlet conditions. As exit temperatures were raised above this minimum, emissions of unburned hydrocarbons decreased, carbon monoxide emissions became generally less than 1 g CO/kg fuel, and nitrogen oxides were less than about 0.1 g NO2/kg fuel.

  2. Dioxins from medical waste incineration: Normal operation and transient conditions.

    PubMed

    Chen, Tong; Zhan, Ming-xiu; Yan, Mi; Fu, Jian-ying; Lu, Sheng-yong; Li, Xiao-dong; Yan, Jian-hua; Buekens, Alfons

    2015-07-01

    Polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins (PCDDs) and polychlorinated dibenzofurans (PCDFs) are key pollutants in waste incineration. At present, incinerator managers and official supervisors focus only on emissions evolving during steady-state operation. Yet, these emissions may considerably be raised during periods of poor combustion, plant shutdown, and especially when starting-up from cold. Until now there were no data on transient emissions from medical (or hospital) waste incineration (MWI). However, MWI is reputed to engender higher emissions than those from municipal solid waste incineration (MSWI). The emission levels in this study recorded for shutdown and start-up, however, were significantly higher: 483 ± 184 ng Nm(-3) (1.47 ± 0.17 ng I-TEQ Nm(-3)) for shutdown and 735 ng Nm(-3) (7.73 ng I-TEQ Nm(-3)) for start-up conditions, respectively. Thus, the average (I-TEQ) concentration during shutdown is 2.6 (3.8) times higher than the average concentration during normal operation, and the average (I-TEQ) concentration during start-up is 4.0 (almost 20) times higher. So monitoring should cover the entire incineration cycle, including start-up, operation and shutdown, rather than optimised operation only. This suggestion is important for medical waste incinerators, as these facilities frequently start up and shut down, because of their small size, or of lacking waste supply. Forthcoming operation should shift towards much longer operating cycles, i.e., a single weekly start-up and shutdown. © The Author(s) 2015.

  3. White matter abnormalities are associated with overall cognitive status in blast-related mTBI.

    PubMed

    Miller, Danielle R; Hayes, Jasmeet P; Lafleche, Ginette; Salat, David H; Verfaellie, Mieke

    2017-08-01

    Blast-related mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI) is a common injury of the Iraq and Afghanistan Wars. Research has suggested that blast-related mTBI is associated with chronic white matter abnormalities, which in turn are associated with impairment in neurocognitive function. However, findings are inconsistent as to which domains of cognition are affected by TBI-related white matter disruption. Recent evidence that white matter abnormalities associated with blast-related mTBI are spatially variable raises the possibility that the associated cognitive impairment is also heterogeneous. Thus, the goals of this study were to examine (1) whether mTBI-related white matter abnormalities are associated with overall cognitive status and (2) whether white matter abnormalities provide a mechanism by which mTBI influences cognition. Ninety-six Operation Enduring Freedom/Operation Iraqi Freedom (OEF/OEF) veterans were assigned to one of three groups: no-TBI, mTBI without loss of consciousness (LOC) (mTBI-LOC), and mTBI with LOC (mTBI + LOC). Participants were given a battery of neuropsychological tests that were selected for their sensitivity to mTBI. Results showed that number of white matter abnormalities was associated with the odds of having clinically significant cognitive impairment. A mediation analysis revealed that mTBI + LOC was indirectly associated with cognitive impairment through its effect on white matter integrity. These results suggest that cognitive difficulties in blast-related mTBI can be linked to injury-induced neural changes when taking into account the variability of injury as well as the heterogeneity in cognitive deficits across individuals.

  4. ELECTROCARDIOGRAPHIC ABNORMALITIES AMONG MEXICAN AMERICANS: CORRELATIONS WITH DIABETES, OBESITY, AND THE METABOLIC SYNDROME.

    PubMed

    Queen, Saulette R; Smulevitz, Beverly; Rentfro, Anne R; Vatcheva, Kristina P; Kim, Hyunggun; McPherson, David D; Hanis, Craig L; Fisher-Hoch, Susan P; McCormick, Joseph B; Laing, Susan T

    2012-04-01

    Resting ischemic electrocardiographic abnormalities have been associated with cardiovascular mortality. Simple markers of abnormal autonomic tone have also been associated with diabetes, obesity, and the metabolic syndrome in some populations. Data on these electrocardiographic abnormalities and correlations with coronary risk factors are lacking among Mexican Americans wherein these conditions are prevalent. This study aimed to evaluate the prevalent resting electrocardiographic abnormalities among community-dwelling Mexican Americans, and correlate these findings with coronary risk factors, particularly diabetes, obesity, and the metabolic syndrome. Study subjects (n=1280) were drawn from the Cameron County Hispanic Cohort comprised of community-dwelling Mexican Americans living in Brownsville, Texas at the United States-Mexico border. Ischemic electrocardiographic abnormalities were defined as presence of ST/T wave abnormalities suggestive of ischemia, abnormal Q waves, and left bundle branch block. Parameters that reflect autonomic tone, such as heart rate-corrected QT interval and resting heart rate, were also measured. Ischemic electrocardiographic abnormalities were more prevalent among older persons and those with hypertension, diabetes, obesity, and the metabolic syndrome. Subjects in the highest quartiles of QTc interval and resting heart rate were also more likely to be diabetic, hypertensive, obese, or have the metabolic syndrome. Among Mexican Americans, persons with diabetes, obesity, and the metabolic syndrome were more likely to have ischemic electrocardiographic abnormalities, longer QTc intervals, and higher resting heart rates. A resting electrocardiogram can play a complementary role in the comprehensive evaluation of cardiovascular risk in this minority population.

  5. Stability tests at Browns Ferry Unit 1 under single-loop operating conditions

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    March-Leuba, J.; Wood, R.T.; Otaduy, P.J.

    1986-07-01

    The results of neutronic stability tests performed on February 9, 1985, at the Browns Ferry Nuclear Power Plant Unit 1 under single-loop operation (SLO) conditions are documented. The main conclusions of the tests are presented.

  6. Crew factors in flight operations. Part 3: The operational significance of exposure to short-haul air transport operations

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Foushee, H. C.; Lauber, J. K.; Baetge, M. M.; Acomb, D. B.

    1986-01-01

    Excessive flightcrew fatigue has potentially serious safety consequences. Laboratory studies have implicated fatigue as a causal factor associated with varying levels of performance deterioration depending on the amount of fatigue and the type of measure utilized in assessing performance. These studies have been of limited utility because of the difficulty of relating laboratory task performance to the demands associated with the operation of a complex aircraft. The performance of 20 volunteer twin-jet transport crews is examined in a full-mission simulator scenario that included most aspects of an actual line operation. The scenario included both routine flight operations and an unexpected mechanical abnormality which resulted in a high level of crew workload. Half of the crews flew the simulation within two to three hours after completing a three-day, high-density, short-haul duty cycle (Post-Duty condition). The other half flew the scenario after a minimum of three days off duty (Pre-Duty) condition). The results revealed that, not surprisingly, Post-Duty crews were significantly more fatigued than Pre-Duty crews. However, a somewhat counter-intuitive pattern of results emerged on the crew performancemeasures. In general, the performance of Post-Duty crews was significantly better than that of Pre-Duty crews, as rated by an expert observer on a number of dimensions relevant to flight safety. Analyses of the flightcrew communication patterns revealed that Post-Duty crews communicated significantly more overall, suggesting, as has previous research, that communication is a good predictor of overall crew performance.

  7. Breast Changes and Conditions

    Cancer.gov

    Breast changes include benign conditions and those that increase the risk of breast cancer. Symptoms and treatment of breast conditions such as ADH, ALH, cysts, DCIS, and LCIS are explained to women who may have received an abnormal mammogram finding.

  8. 76 FR 8314 - Special Conditions: Gulfstream Model GVI Airplane; Operation Without Normal Electric Power

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2011-02-14

    ... DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION Federal Aviation Administration 14 CFR Part 25 [Docket No. NM444 Special Conditions No. 25-11-03-SC] Special Conditions: Gulfstream Model GVI Airplane; Operation Without... Aviation Administration, Transport Airplane Directorate, Attn: Rules Docket (ANM-113), Docket No. NM444...

  9. Optimum Operating Conditions for PZT Actuators for Vibrotactile Wearables

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Logothetis, Irini; Matsouka, Dimitra; Vassiliadis, Savvas; Vossou, Clio; Siores, Elias

    2018-04-01

    Recently, vibrotactile wearables have received much attention in fields such as medicine, psychology, athletics and video gaming. The electrical components presently used to generate vibration are rigid; hence, the design and creation of ergonomical wearables are limited. Significant advances in piezoelectric components have led to the production of flexible actuators such as piezoceramic lead zirconate titanate (PZT) film. To verify the functionality of PZT actuators for use in vibrotactile wearables, the factors influencing the electromechanical conversion were analysed and tested. This was achieved through theoretical and experimental analyses of a monomorph clamped-free structure for the PZT actuator. The research performed for this article is a three-step process. First, a theoretical analysis presents the equations governing the actuator. In addition, the eigenfrequency of the film was analysed preceding the experimental section. For this stage, by applying an electric voltage and varying the stimulating electrical characteristics (i.e., voltage, electrical waveform and frequency), the optimum operating conditions for a PZT film were determined. The tip displacement was measured referring to the mechanical energy converted from electrical energy. From the results obtained, an equation for the mechanical behaviour of PZT films as actuators was deduced. It was observed that the square waveform generated larger tip displacements. In conjunction with large voltage inputs at the predetermined eigenfrequency, the optimum operating conditions for the actuator were achieved. To conclude, PZT films can be adapted to assist designers in creating comfortable vibrotactile wearables.

  10. Optimum Operating Conditions for PZT Actuators for Vibrotactile Wearables

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Logothetis, Irini; Matsouka, Dimitra; Vassiliadis, Savvas; Vossou, Clio; Siores, Elias

    2018-07-01

    Recently, vibrotactile wearables have received much attention in fields such as medicine, psychology, athletics and video gaming. The electrical components presently used to generate vibration are rigid; hence, the design and creation of ergonomical wearables are limited. Significant advances in piezoelectric components have led to the production of flexible actuators such as piezoceramic lead zirconate titanate (PZT) film. To verify the functionality of PZT actuators for use in vibrotactile wearables, the factors influencing the electromechanical conversion were analysed and tested. This was achieved through theoretical and experimental analyses of a monomorph clamped-free structure for the PZT actuator. The research performed for this article is a three-step process. First, a theoretical analysis presents the equations governing the actuator. In addition, the eigenfrequency of the film was analysed preceding the experimental section. For this stage, by applying an electric voltage and varying the stimulating electrical characteristics (i.e., voltage, electrical waveform and frequency), the optimum operating conditions for a PZT film were determined. The tip displacement was measured referring to the mechanical energy converted from electrical energy. From the results obtained, an equation for the mechanical behaviour of PZT films as actuators was deduced. It was observed that the square waveform generated larger tip displacements. In conjunction with large voltage inputs at the predetermined eigenfrequency, the optimum operating conditions for the actuator were achieved. To conclude, PZT films can be adapted to assist designers in creating comfortable vibrotactile wearables.

  11. Electrocardiographic abnormalities in opiate addicts.

    PubMed

    Wallner, Christina; Stöllberger, Claudia; Hlavin, Anton; Finsterer, Josef; Hager, Isabella; Hermann, Peter

    2008-12-01

    To determine in a cross-sectional study the prevalence of electrocardiographic (ECG) abnormalities in opiate addicts who were therapy-seeking and its association with demographic, clinical and drug-specific parameters. In consecutive therapy-seeking opiate addicts, a 12-lead ECG was registered within 24 hours after admission and evaluated according to a pre-set protocol between October 2004 and August 2006. Additionally, demographic, clinical and drug-specific parameters were recorded. Included were 511 opiate-addicts, 25% female, with a mean age of 29 years (range 17-59 years). One or more ECG abnormalities were found in 314 patients (61%). In the 511 patients we found most commonly ST abnormalities (19%), QTc prolongation (13%), tall R- and/or S-waves (11%) and missing R progression (10%). ECG abnormalities were more common in males than in females (64 versus 54%, P < 0.05), and in patients with positive than negative urine findings for cannabis (68 versus 57%, P < 0.05). Patients with ST abnormalities were more often males than females (21 versus 11%, P < 0.05), had a history of seizures less often (16 versus 27%, P < 0.05), had positive than negative urine findings for cannabis more often (26 versus 15%, P < 0.01) and had negative than positive urine findings for methadone more often (21 versus 11%, P < 0.05). QTc prolongation was more frequent in patients with high dosages of maintenance drugs than in patients with medium or low dosages (27 versus 12 versus 10%, P < 0.05) and in patients whose urine findings were positive than negative for methadone (23 versus 11%, P < 0.001) as well as for benzodiazepines (17 versus 9%, P < 0.05). Limitations of the data are that in most cases other risk factors for the cardiac abnormalities were not known. ECG abnormalities are frequent in opiate addicts. The most frequent ECG abnormalities are ST abnormalities, QTc prolongation and tall R- and/or S-waves. ST abnormalities are associated with cannabis, and QTc prolongation

  12. Optimization of the operating conditions of gas-turbine power stations considering the effect of equipment deterioration

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Aminov, R. Z.; Kozhevnikov, A. I.

    2017-10-01

    In recent years in most power systems all over the world, a trend towards the growing nonuniformity of energy consumption and generation schedules has been observed. The increase in the portion of renewable energy sources is one of the important challenges for many countries. The ill-predictable character of such energy sources necessitates a search for practical solutions. Presently, the most efficient method for compensating for nonuniform generation of the electric power by the renewable energy sources—predominantly by the wind and solar energy—is generation of power at conventional fossil-fuel-fired power stations. In Russia, this problem is caused by the increasing portion in the generating capacity structure of the nuclear power stations, which are most efficient when operating under basic conditions. Introduction of hydropower and pumped storage hydroelectric power plants and other energy-storage technologies does not cover the demand for load-following power capacities. Owing to a simple design, low construction costs, and a sufficiently high economic efficiency, gas turbine plants (GTPs) prove to be the most suitable for covering the nonuniform electric-demand schedules. However, when the gas turbines are operated under varying duty conditions, the lifetime of the primary thermostressed components is considerably reduced and, consequently, the repair costs increase. A method is proposed for determination of the total operating costs considering the deterioration of the gas turbine equipment under varying duty and start-stop conditions. A methodology for optimization of the loading modes for the gas turbine equipment is developed. The consideration of the lifetime component allows varying the optimal operating conditions and, in some cases, rejecting short-time stops of the gas turbine plants. The calculations performed in a wide range of varying fuel prices and capital investments per gas turbine equipment unit show that the economic effectiveness can

  13. Abnormal Fixational Eye Movements in Amblyopia.

    PubMed

    Shaikh, Aasef G; Otero-Millan, Jorge; Kumar, Priyanka; Ghasia, Fatema F

    2016-01-01

    Fixational saccades shift the foveal image to counteract visual fading related to neural adaptation. Drifts are slow eye movements between two adjacent fixational saccades. We quantified fixational saccades and asked whether their changes could be attributed to pathologic drifts seen in amblyopia, one of the most common causes of blindness in childhood. Thirty-six pediatric subjects with varying severity of amblyopia and eleven healthy age-matched controls held their gaze on a visual target. Eye movements were measured with high-resolution video-oculography during fellow eye-viewing and amblyopic eye-viewing conditions. Fixational saccades and drifts were analyzed in the amblyopic and fellow eye and compared with controls. We found an increase in the amplitude with decreased frequency of fixational saccades in children with amblyopia. These alterations in fixational eye movements correlated with the severity of their amblyopia. There was also an increase in eye position variance during drifts in amblyopes. There was no correlation between the eye position variance or the eye velocity during ocular drifts and the amplitude of subsequent fixational saccade. Our findings suggest that abnormalities in fixational saccades in amblyopia are independent of the ocular drift. This investigation of amblyopia in pediatric age group quantitatively characterizes the fixation instability. Impaired properties of fixational saccades could be the consequence of abnormal processing and reorganization of the visual system in amblyopia. Paucity in the visual feedback during amblyopic eye-viewing condition can attribute to the increased eye position variance and drift velocity.

  14. Incidence of abnormal offspring from cloning and other assisted reproductive technologies.

    PubMed

    Hill, Jonathan R

    2014-02-01

    In animals produced by assisted reproductive technologies, two abnormal phenotypes have been characterized. Large offspring syndrome (LOS) occurs in offspring derived from in vitro cultured embryos, and the abnormal clone phenotype includes placental and fetal changes. LOS is readily apparent in ruminants, where a large calf or lamb derived from in vitro embryo production or cloning may weigh up to twice the expected body weight. The incidence of LOS varies widely between species. When similar embryo culture conditions are applied to nonruminant species, LOS either is not as dramatic or may even be unapparent. Coculture with serum and somatic cells was identified in the 1990s as a risk factor for abnormal development of ruminant pregnancies. Animals cloned from somatic cells may display a combination of fetal and placental abnormalities that are manifested at different stages of pregnancy and postnatally. In highly interventional technologies, such as nuclear transfer (cloning), the incidence of abnormal offspring continues to be a limiting factor to broader application of the technique. This review details the breadth of phenotypes found in nonviable pregnancies, together with the phenotypes of animals that survive the transition to extrauterine life. The focus is on animals produced using in vitro embryo culture and nuclear transfer in comparison to naturally occurring phenotypes.

  15. Optimization of operation conditions and configurations for solid-propellant ducted rocket combustors

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Onn, Shing-Chung; Chiang, Hau-Jei; Hwang, Hang-Che; Wei, Jen-Ko; Cherng, Dao-Lien

    1993-06-01

    The dynamic behavior of a 2D turbulent mixing and combustion process has been studied numerically in the main combustion chamber of a solid-propellant ducted rocket (SDR). The mathematical model is based on the Favre-averaged conservation equations developed by Cherng (1990). Combustion efficiency, rather than specific impulse from earlier studies, is applied successfully to optimize the effects of two parameters by a multiple linear regression model. Specifically, the fuel-air equivalence ratio of the operating conditions and the air inlet location of configurations for the SDR combustor have been studied. For a equivalence ratio near the stoichiometric condition, the use of specific impulse or combustion efficiency will show similar trend in characterizing the reacting flow field in the combustor. For the overall fuel lean operating conditions, the change of combustion efficiency is much more sensitive to that of air inlet location than specific impulse does, suggesting combustion efficiency a better property than specific impulse in representing the condition toward flammability limits. In addition, the air inlet for maximum efficiency, in general, appears to be located at downstream of that for highest specific impulse. The optimal case for the effects of two parameters occurs at fuel lean condition, which shows a larger recirculation zone in front, deeper penetration of ram air into the combustor and much larger high temperature zone near the centerline of the combustor exit than those shown in the optimal case for overall equivalence ratio close to stoichiometric.

  16. Operant conditioning of enhanced pain sensitivity by heat-pain titration.

    PubMed

    Becker, Susanne; Kleinböhl, Dieter; Klossika, Iris; Hölzl, Rupert

    2008-11-15

    Operant conditioning mechanisms have been demonstrated to be important in the development of chronic pain. Most experimental studies have investigated the operant modulation of verbal pain reports with extrinsic reinforcement, such as verbal reinforcement. Whether this reflects actual changes in the subjective experience of the nociceptive stimulus remained unclear. This study replicates and extends our previous demonstration that enhanced pain sensitivity to prolonged heat-pain stimulation could be learned in healthy participants through intrinsic reinforcement (contingent changes in nociceptive input) independent of verbal pain reports. In addition, we examine whether different magnitudes of reinforcement differentially enhance pain sensitivity using an operant heat-pain titration paradigm. It is based on the previously developed non-verbal behavioral discrimination task for the assessment of sensitization, which uses discriminative down- or up-regulation of stimulus temperatures in response to changes in subjective intensity. In operant heat-pain titration, this discriminative behavior and not verbal pain report was contingently reinforced or punished by acute decreases or increases in heat-pain intensity. The magnitude of reinforcement was varied between three groups: low (N1=13), medium (N2=11) and high reinforcement (N3=12). Continuous reinforcement was applied to acquire and train the operant behavior, followed by partial reinforcement to analyze the underlying learning mechanisms. Results demonstrated that sensitization to prolonged heat-pain stimulation was enhanced by operant learning within 1h. The extent of sensitization was directly dependent on the received magnitude of reinforcement. Thus, operant learning mechanisms based on intrinsic reinforcement may provide an explanation for the gradual development of sustained hypersensitivity during pain that is becoming chronic.

  17. Biochemical abnormalities in neonatal seizures.

    PubMed

    Sood, Arvind; Grover, Neelam; Sharma, Roshan

    2003-03-01

    The presence of seizure does not constitute a diagnoses but it is a symptom of an underlying central nervous system disorder due to systemic or biochemical disturbances. Biochemical disturbances occur frequently in the neonatal seizures either as an underlying cause or as an associated abnormality. In their presence, it is difficult to control seizure and there is a risk of further brain damage. Early recognition and treatment of biochemical disturbances is essential for optimal management and satisfactory long term outcome. The present study was conducted in the department of pediatrics in IGMC Shimla on 59 neonates. Biochemical abnormalities were detected in 29 (49.15%) of cases. Primary metabolic abnormalities occurred in 10(16.94%) cases of neonatal seizures, most common being hypocalcaemia followed by hypoglycemia, other metabolic abnormalities include hypomagnesaemia and hyponateremia. Biochemical abnormalities were seen in 19(38.77%) cases of non metabolic seizure in neonates. Associated metabolic abnormalities were observed more often with Hypoxic-ischemic-encephalopathy (11 out of 19) cases and hypoglycemia was most common in this group. No infant had hyponateremia, hyperkelemia or low zinc level.

  18. On Operating a Nanofiltration Membrane for Olive Mill Wastewater Purification at Sub- and Super-Boundary Conditions.

    PubMed

    Stoller, Marco; Ochando-Pulido, Javier Miguel; Field, Robert

    2017-07-14

    In the last decades, membrane processes have gained a significant share of the market for wastewater purification. Although the product (i.e., purified water) is not of high added value, these processes are feasible both technically and from an economic point of view, provided the flux is relatively high and that membrane fouling is strongly inhibited. By controlling membrane fouling, the membrane may work for years without service, thus dramatically reducing operating costs and the need for membrane substitution. There is tension between operating at high permeate fluxes, which enhances fouling but reduces capital costs, and operating at lower fluxes which increases capital costs. Operating batch membrane processes leads to increased difficulties, since the feed fed to the membrane changes as a function of the recovery value. This paper is concerned with the operation of such a process. Membrane process designers should therefore avoid membrane fouling by operating membranes away from the permeate flux point where severe fouling is triggered. The design and operation of membrane purification plants is a difficult task, and the precision to properly describe the evolution of the fouling phenomenon as a function of the operating conditions is a key to success. Many reported works have reported on the control of fouling by operating below the boundary flux. On the other hand, only a few works have successfully sought to exploit super-boundary operating conditions; most super-boundary operations are reported to have led to process failures. In this work, both sub- and super-boundary operating conditions for a batch nanofiltration membrane process used for olive mill wastewater treatment were investigated. A model to identify a priori the point of transition from a sub-boundary to a super-boundary operation during a batch operation was developed, and this will provide membrane designers with a helpful tool to carefully avoid process failures.

  19. Abnormal pressure study in the Malay and Penyu Basins: A regional understanding

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Kader, M.S.; Leslie, W.

    1994-07-01

    A majority of wells drilled in the Malay and Penyu basins were terminated due to abnormal pressure. Blowouts and the subsequent loss of technical data have always been a concern during drilling operations. This study employs data from 94 exploratory wells spread throughout the Malay and Penyu basins. The postdrill abnormal pressure predictive method used is pressure vs. depth plots of data obtained from Repeat Formation tester (RFT) readings. The study results indicate that abnormal pressure occurs in a progressively older stratigraphic unit toward the basin margins. The margins of the Malay and the entire Penyu basins tend to bemore » normally pressured. The onset of abnormal pressure appears to be abrupt in the northern portion and more gradual in the southern part of the Malay Basin. Abnormal pressure in the Malay Basin is found to be neither depth dependent nor age related. Many factors can cause the abnormal formation pressures. In some areas, a combination of factors prevails. Rapid deposition of the middle to late Miocene siliciclastic sediments appears to be a dominant cause particularly in the center of the Malay Basin. A low sand:shale ratio coupled with a high geothermal gradient is also found to be a local cause near the axis of the basin. This phenomenon is crucial to the understanding of hydrocarbon migration and will enable the planning of safe and efficient drilling campaigns.« less

  20. Pediatric Patients Discharged from the Emergency Department with Abnormal Vital Signs.

    PubMed

    Winter, Josephine; Waxman, Michael J; Waterman, George; Ata, Ashar; Frisch, Adam; Collins, Kevin P; King, Christopher

    2017-08-01

    Children often present to the emergency department (ED) with minor conditions such as fever and have persistently abnormal vital signs. We hypothesized that a significant portion of children discharged from the ED would have abnormal vital signs and that those discharged with abnormal vital signs would experience very few adverse events. We performed a retrospective chart review encompassing a 44-month period of all pediatric patients (aged two months to 17 years) who were discharged from the ED with an abnormal pulse rate, respiratory rate, temperature, or oxygen saturation. We used a local quality assurance database to identify pre-defined adverse events after discharge in this population. Our primary aim was to determine the proportion of children discharged with abnormal vital signs and the frequency and nature of adverse events. Additionally, we performed a sub-analysis comparing the rate of adverse events in children discharged with normal vs. abnormal vital signs, as well as a standardized review of the nature of each adverse event. Of 33,185 children discharged during the study period, 5,540 (17%) of these patients had at least one abnormal vital sign. There were 24/5,540 (0.43%) adverse events in the children with at least one abnormal vital sign vs. 47/27,645 (0.17%) adverse events in the children with normal vital signs [relative risk = 2.5 (95% confidence interval, 1.6 to 2.4)].However, upon review of each adverse event we found only one case that was related to the index visit, was potentially preventable by a 23-hour hospital observation, and caused permanent disability. In our study population, 17% of the children were discharged with at least one abnormal vital sign, and there were very few adverse (0.43%) events associated with this practice. Heart rate was the most common abnormal vital sign leading to an adverse event. Severe adverse events that were potentially related to the abnormal vital sign(s) were exceedingly rare. Additional research is

  1. Operant Conditioning in Honey Bees (Apis mellifera L.): The Cap Pushing Response.

    PubMed

    Abramson, Charles I; Dinges, Christopher W; Wells, Harrington

    2016-01-01

    The honey bee has been an important model organism for studying learning and memory. More recently, the honey bee has become a valuable model to understand perception and cognition. However, the techniques used to explore psychological phenomena in honey bees have been limited to only a few primary methodologies such as the proboscis extension reflex, sting extension reflex, and free flying target discrimination-tasks. Methods to explore operant conditioning in bees and other invertebrates are not as varied as with vertebrates. This may be due to the availability of a suitable response requirement. In this manuscript we offer a new method to explore operant conditioning in honey bees: the cap pushing response (CPR). We used the CPR to test for difference in learning curves between novel auto-shaping and more traditional explicit-shaping. The CPR protocol requires bees to exhibit a novel behavior by pushing a cap to uncover a food source. Using the CPR protocol we tested the effects of both explicit-shaping and auto-shaping techniques on operant conditioning. The goodness of fit and lack of fit of these data to the Rescorla-Wagner learning-curve model, widely used in classical conditioning studies, was tested. The model fit well to both control and explicit-shaping results, but only for a limited number of trials. Learning ceased rather than continuing to asymptotically approach the physiological most accurate possible. Rate of learning differed between shaped and control bee treatments. Learning rate was about 3 times faster for shaped bees, but for all measures of proficiency control and shaped bees reached the same level. Auto-shaped bees showed one-trial learning rather than the asymptotic approach to a maximal efficiency. However, in terms of return-time, the auto-shaped bees' learning did not carry over to the covered-well test treatments.

  2. Operant Conditioning in Honey Bees (Apis mellifera L.): The Cap Pushing Response

    PubMed Central

    Abramson, Charles I.; Dinges, Christopher W.; Wells, Harrington

    2016-01-01

    The honey bee has been an important model organism for studying learning and memory. More recently, the honey bee has become a valuable model to understand perception and cognition. However, the techniques used to explore psychological phenomena in honey bees have been limited to only a few primary methodologies such as the proboscis extension reflex, sting extension reflex, and free flying target discrimination-tasks. Methods to explore operant conditioning in bees and other invertebrates are not as varied as with vertebrates. This may be due to the availability of a suitable response requirement. In this manuscript we offer a new method to explore operant conditioning in honey bees: the cap pushing response (CPR). We used the CPR to test for difference in learning curves between novel auto-shaping and more traditional explicit-shaping. The CPR protocol requires bees to exhibit a novel behavior by pushing a cap to uncover a food source. Using the CPR protocol we tested the effects of both explicit-shaping and auto-shaping techniques on operant conditioning. The goodness of fit and lack of fit of these data to the Rescorla-Wagner learning-curve model, widely used in classical conditioning studies, was tested. The model fit well to both control and explicit-shaping results, but only for a limited number of trials. Learning ceased rather than continuing to asymptotically approach the physiological most accurate possible. Rate of learning differed between shaped and control bee treatments. Learning rate was about 3 times faster for shaped bees, but for all measures of proficiency control and shaped bees reached the same level. Auto-shaped bees showed one-trial learning rather than the asymptotic approach to a maximal efficiency. However, in terms of return-time, the auto-shaped bees’ learning did not carry over to the covered-well test treatments. PMID:27626797

  3. Lack of Association of ST-T Wave Abnormalities to Congenital Heart Disease in Neonates.

    PubMed

    Gorla, Sudheer R; Hsu, Daphne T; Kulkarni, Aparna

    2016-09-01

    ST-T wave (STTW) abnormalities have been described in 20-40% of normal newborns. We sought to describe the associations of these Electrocardiogram (ECG) abnormalities to perinatal course and congenital heart disease (CHD). A retrospective chart review was performed on all neonatal ECGs between January 2008 and March 2013 identified from electronic medical records. Electronic medical records were reviewed for perinatal course and maternal medical conditions. Neonates <37 weeks gestation, >3 days age, requiring hemodynamic support in the first 3 days, with oxygen saturation <90% on room air, or with arrhythmias and significant abnormalities of axis and voltage were excluded from the analysis. ST segment elevation or depression of >2 mm in at least one lead and flat or inverted T waves in at least one lead except aVR were considered abnormal. Statistical relationships were explored between STTW abnormalities, perinatal variables and CHD. ECGs were performed on 1043 neonates, of which 664 were included. STTW abnormalities were found in 236 (35.5%) neonates. T wave abnormalities were identified in 191 (28.7%), ST segment abnormalities in 77 (11.6%) and both on 32 (4.8%) neonates. No relationship was found between the ECG abnormalities and perinatal variables, except maternal cefazolin administration during labor. Noncritical CHD was diagnosed by echocardiography in 59/84; STTW abnormalities were seen in 17/59 (29%) patients with and 9/25 (34%) without noncritical CHD, P = .6. STTW abnormalities on ECG are commonly found in 35.5% of normal neonates and do not predict noncritical CHD. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

  4. Cerebellar ataxia: abnormal control of interaction torques across multiple joints.

    PubMed

    Bastian, A J; Martin, T A; Keating, J G; Thach, W T

    1996-07-01

    1. We studied seven subjects with cerebellar lesions and seven control subjects as they made reaching movements in the sagittal plane to a target directly in front of them. Reaches were made under three different conditions: 1) "slow-accurate," 2) "fast-accurate," and 3) "fast as possible." All subjects were videotaped moving in a sagittal plane with markers on the index finger, wrist, elbow, and shoulder. Marker positions were digitized and then used to calculate joint angles. For each of the shoulder, elbow and wrist joints, inverse dynamics equations based on a three-segment limb model were used to estimate the net torque (sum of components) and each of the component torques. The component torques consisted of the torque due to gravity, the dynamic interaction torques induced passively by the movement of the adjacent joint, and the torque produced by the muscles and passive tissue elements (sometimes called "residual" torque). 2. A kinematic analysis of the movement trajectory and the change in joint angles showed that the reaches of subjects with cerebellar lesions were abnormal compared with reaches of control subjects. In both the slow-accurate and fast-accurate conditions the cerebellar subjects made abnormally curved wrist paths; the curvature was greater in the slow-accurate condition. During the slow-accurate condition, cerebellar subjects showed target undershoot and tended to move one joint at a time (decomposition). During the fast-accurate reaches, the cerebellar subjects showed target overshoot. Additionally, in the fast-accurate condition, cerebellar subjects moved the joints at abnormal rates relative to one another, but the movements were less decomposed. Only three subjects were tested in the fast as possible condition; this condition was analyzed only to determine maximal reaching speeds of subjects with cerebellar lesions. Cerebellar subjects moved more slowly than controls in all three conditions. 3. A kinetic analysis of torques generated at

  5. Chorionic villus sampling for abnormal screening compared to historical indications: prevalence of abnormal karyotypes.

    PubMed

    Marshall, Nicole E; Fraley, Gwen; Feist, Cori; Burns, Michael J; Pereira, Leonardo

    2012-08-01

    To determine the prevalence of abnormal karyotype results in women undergoing chorionic villus sampling (CVS) for abnormal first trimester screening compared to CVS for historical indications (advanced maternal age (AMA) or prior aneuploidy). Retrospective cohort of all patients undergoing CVS at Oregon Health & Science University from January 2006 to June 2010. Patients were separated based on CVS indication: (1) positive ultrasound (U/S) or serum screening; or (2) AMA or prior aneuploidy with normal or no screening. Prevalence of abnormal karyotype results were compared between groups. Fetal karyotyping was successful in 500 of 506 CVS procedures performed. 203 CVS were performed for positive screening with 69 abnormal karyotypes (34.0%). 264 CVS were performed for historical indications with 11 abnormal karyotypes (4.2%). This difference was statistically significant (χ(2) 71.9, p < 0.001; OR 11.8 [95% CI 5.8, 24.6]). There were two age-related aneuplodies in AMA women without positive screening. 42 out of 44 AMA women diagnosed with aneuploidy (95.5%) had abnormal U/S and/or serum screening (35 U/S, 4 serum, 3 U/S and serum). Combined ultrasound and serum screening should be recommended to all women, including AMA women, prior to undergoing invasive testing to improve risk-based counseling and minimize morbidity.

  6. Coronary artery abnormalities in children with systemic-onset juvenile idiopathic arthritis.

    PubMed

    Lefèvre-Utile, Alain; Galeotti, Caroline; Koné-Paut, Isabelle

    2014-05-01

    Still's disease (Systemic-onset Juvenile Idiopathic Arthritis: SoJIA) is characterised by high-spiking daily fevers, arthritis and evanescent rashes. Diagnosis of Still's disease is often challenging. Infectious diseases and other inflammatory conditions, especially in young children, Kawasaki disease may look similar. Clinicians often rely on echocardiographic evidence of coronary artery abnormalities to differentiate between Kawasaki disease and Still's disease. Coronary artery dilation would typically favour the diagnosis of Kawasaki disease. We present four children with Still's disease and coronary artery abnormalities who were initially misdiagnosed as Kawasaki disease. The first patient had pericarditis and an irregular wall of the left coronary artery, without dilation on echocardiography. The second patient had a left coronary artery dilatation and a pericarditis. The third patient had thickened left coronary artery walls, and the fourth patient had a hyperechogenicity of the left and right coronary arteries. They received IVIG without success. The diagnosis of Still's disease was made secondary with evidence of persistent arthritis. All but one patient finally needed biologic treatments. Coronary abnormalities may be observed during various febrile conditions and do not exclude the diagnosis of Still's disease. Copyright © 2013 Société française de rhumatologie. Published by Elsevier SAS. All rights reserved.

  7. Simulation Evaluation of Controller-Managed Spacing Tools under Realistic Operational Conditions

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Callantine, Todd J.; Hunt, Sarah M.; Prevot, Thomas

    2014-01-01

    Controller-Managed Spacing (CMS) tools have been developed to aid air traffic controllers in managing high volumes of arriving aircraft according to a schedule while enabling them to fly efficient descent profiles. The CMS tools are undergoing refinement in preparation for field demonstration as part of NASA's Air Traffic Management (ATM) Technology Demonstration-1 (ATD-1). System-level ATD-1 simulations have been conducted to quantify expected efficiency and capacity gains under realistic operational conditions. This paper presents simulation results with a focus on CMS-tool human factors. The results suggest experienced controllers new to the tools find them acceptable and can use them effectively in ATD-1 operations.

  8. Volitional enhancement of firing synchrony and oscillation by neuronal operant conditioning: interaction with neurorehabilitation and brain-machine interface

    PubMed Central

    Sakurai, Yoshio; Song, Kichan; Tachibana, Shota; Takahashi, Susumu

    2014-01-01

    In this review, we focus on neuronal operant conditioning in which increments in neuronal activities are directly rewarded without behaviors. We discuss the potential of this approach to elucidate neuronal plasticity for enhancing specific brain functions and its interaction with the progress in neurorehabilitation and brain-machine interfaces. The key to-be-conditioned activities that this paper emphasizes are synchronous and oscillatory firings of multiple neurons that reflect activities of cell assemblies. First, we introduce certain well-known studies on neuronal operant conditioning in which conditioned enhancements of neuronal firing were reported in animals and humans. These studies demonstrated the feasibility of volitional control over neuronal activity. Second, we refer to the recent studies on operant conditioning of synchrony and oscillation of neuronal activities. In particular, we introduce a recent study showing volitional enhancement of oscillatory activity in monkey motor cortex and our study showing selective enhancement of firing synchrony of neighboring neurons in rat hippocampus. Third, we discuss the reasons for emphasizing firing synchrony and oscillation in neuronal operant conditioning, the main reason being that they reflect the activities of cell assemblies, which have been suggested to be basic neuronal codes representing information in the brain. Finally, we discuss the interaction of neuronal operant conditioning with neurorehabilitation and brain-machine interface (BMI). We argue that synchrony and oscillation of neuronal firing are the key activities required for developing both reliable neurorehabilitation and high-performance BMI. Further, we conclude that research of neuronal operant conditioning, neurorehabilitation, BMI, and system neuroscience will produce findings applicable to these interrelated fields, and neuronal synchrony and oscillation can be a common important bridge among all of them. PMID:24567704

  9. Volitional enhancement of firing synchrony and oscillation by neuronal operant conditioning: interaction with neurorehabilitation and brain-machine interface.

    PubMed

    Sakurai, Yoshio; Song, Kichan; Tachibana, Shota; Takahashi, Susumu

    2014-01-01

    In this review, we focus on neuronal operant conditioning in which increments in neuronal activities are directly rewarded without behaviors. We discuss the potential of this approach to elucidate neuronal plasticity for enhancing specific brain functions and its interaction with the progress in neurorehabilitation and brain-machine interfaces. The key to-be-conditioned activities that this paper emphasizes are synchronous and oscillatory firings of multiple neurons that reflect activities of cell assemblies. First, we introduce certain well-known studies on neuronal operant conditioning in which conditioned enhancements of neuronal firing were reported in animals and humans. These studies demonstrated the feasibility of volitional control over neuronal activity. Second, we refer to the recent studies on operant conditioning of synchrony and oscillation of neuronal activities. In particular, we introduce a recent study showing volitional enhancement of oscillatory activity in monkey motor cortex and our study showing selective enhancement of firing synchrony of neighboring neurons in rat hippocampus. Third, we discuss the reasons for emphasizing firing synchrony and oscillation in neuronal operant conditioning, the main reason being that they reflect the activities of cell assemblies, which have been suggested to be basic neuronal codes representing information in the brain. Finally, we discuss the interaction of neuronal operant conditioning with neurorehabilitation and brain-machine interface (BMI). We argue that synchrony and oscillation of neuronal firing are the key activities required for developing both reliable neurorehabilitation and high-performance BMI. Further, we conclude that research of neuronal operant conditioning, neurorehabilitation, BMI, and system neuroscience will produce findings applicable to these interrelated fields, and neuronal synchrony and oscillation can be a common important bridge among all of them.

  10. Studies of planning behavior of aircraft pilots in normal, abnormal, and emergency situations

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Johannsen, G.; Rouse, W. B.; Hillmann, K.

    1981-01-01

    A methodology for the study of human planning behavior in complex dynamic systems is presented and applied to the study of aircraft pilot behavior in normal, abnormal and emergency situations. The method measures the depth of planning, that is the level of detail employed with respect to a specific task, according to responses to a verbal questionnaire, and compares planning depth with variables relating to time, task criticality and the probability of increased task difficulty. In two series of experiments, depth of planning was measured on a five- or ten-point scale during various phases of flight in a HFB-320 simulator under normal flight conditions, abnormal scenarios involving temporary runway closure due to snow removal or temporary CAT-III conditions due to a dense fog, and emergency scenarios involving engine shut-down or hydraulic pressure loss. Results reveal a dichotomy between event-driven and time-driven planning, different effects of automation in abnormal and emergency scenarios and a low correlation between depth of planning and workload or flight performance.

  11. Changes in the activity of a CpG neuron after the reinforcement of an operantly conditioned behavior in Lymnaea.

    PubMed

    Spencer, Gaynor E; Kazmi, Mustapha H; Syed, Naweed I; Lukowiak, Ken

    2002-10-01

    We have previously shown that the aerial respiratory behavior of the mollusk Lymnaea stagnalis can be operantly conditioned, and the central pattern generating (CPG) neurons underlying this behavior have been identified. As neural correlates of operant conditioning remain poorly defined in both vertebrates and invertebrates, we have used the Lymnaea respiratory CPG to investigate neuronal changes associated with the change in behavior after conditioning. After operant conditioning of the intact animals, semi-intact preparations were dissected, so that changes in the respiratory behavior (pneumostome openings) and underlying activity of the identified CPG neuron, right pedal dorsal 1 (RPeD1), could be monitored simultaneously. RPeD1 was studied because it initiates the rhythmic activity of the CPG and receives chemo-sensory input from the pneumostome area. Pneumostome openings and RPeD1 activity were monitored both before and after a reinforcing training stimulus applied to the open pneumostome of operantly conditioned and yoked control preparations. After presentation of the reinforcing stimulus, there was a significant reduction in both breathing behavior and RPeD1 activity in operant preparations but not in yoked and naïve controls. Furthermore these changes were only significant in the subgroup of operantly conditioned animals described as good learners and not in poor learners. These data strongly suggest that changes in RPeD1 activity may underlie the behavioral changes associated with the reinforcement of operant conditioning of the respiratory behavior.

  12. Signs and symptoms of developmental abnormalities of the genitourinary tract.

    PubMed

    Nogueira, Paulo Cesar Koch; Paz, Isabel de Pádua

    2016-01-01

    The abnormalities of the genitourinary tract development are the leading cause of chronic kidney disease (CKD) in children. The diagnosis of this disease in Brazil is late and incomplete, which results in increased morbidity and mortality in this age group. Early diagnosis of this condition is the prerogative of generalist pediatricians, and the aim of this study was to review the clinical signs and symptoms associated with developmental abnormalities of the genitourinary tract. Based on the description of a symbolic clinical case, the authors conducted a non-systematic review of medical literature. The results suggest that the following data should be used as a warning for early diagnosis of affected children: (a) combined urinary tract abnormalities (chromosomal abnormalities; sequence of malformations [VACTERLand Prune-Belly]; and musculoskeletal, digestive tract, heart, and nervous system malformations); (b) previous history (congenital anomalies of the kidney and urinary tract [CAKUT] in the family, low birth weight, and oligoamnios); (c) clinical signs (polyuria/nocturia, urinary tract infection, systemic arterial hypertension, failure to thrive, weak urinary stream, difficulty to start urination, distended bladder, non-monosymptomatic enuresis, urinary/urge incontinence, and bowel and bladder dysfunction); and (d) pre- and postnatal ultrasonographic alterations (increased anteroposterior diameter of the renal pelvis, mainly in the third trimester of pregnancy; single kidney; hydronephrosis associated with other abnormalities; and hydronephrosis with parenchymal involvement in the post-neonatal assessment). The suggestions shown here can help the pediatrician to establish clinical hypotheses for the early diagnosis of developmental abnormalities of the genitourinary tract without resorting to expensive and invasive procedures. Copyright © 2016 Sociedade Brasileira de Pediatria. Published by Elsevier Editora Ltda. All rights reserved.

  13. Numerical simulation of hydrodynamics in a pump-turbine at off-design operating conditions in turbine mode

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Yan, J. P.; Seidel, U.; Koutnik, J.

    2012-11-01

    The hydrodynamics of a reduced-scaled model of a radial pump-turbine is investigated under off-design operating conditions, involving runaway and "S-shape" turbine brake curve at low positive discharge. It is a low specific speed pump-turbine machine of Francis type with 9 impeller blades and 20 stay vanes as well as 20 guide vanes. The computational domain includes the entire water passage from the spiral casing inlet to the draft tube outlet. Completely structured hexahedral meshes generated by the commercial software ANSYS-ICEM are employed. The unsteady incompressible simulations are performed using the commercial code ANSYS-CFX13. For turbulence modeling the standard k-ε model is applied. The numerical results at different operating points are compared to the experimental results. The predicted pressure amplitude is in good agreement with the experimental data and the amplitude of normal force on impeller is in reasonable range. The detailed analysis reveals the onset of the flow instabilities when the machine is brought from a regular operating condition to runaway and turbine break mode. Furthermore, the rotating stall phenomena are well captured at runaway condition as well as low discharge operating condition with one stall cell rotating inside and around the impeller with about 70% of its frequency. Moreover, the rotating stall is found to be the effect of rotating flow separations developed in several consecutive impeller channels which lead to their blockage. The reliable simulation of S-curve characteristics in pump-turbines is a basic requirement for design and optimization at off-design operating conditions.

  14. Operating wind turbines in strong wind conditions by using feedforward-feedback control

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Feng, Ju; Sheng, Wen Zhong

    2014-12-01

    Due to the increasing penetration of wind energy into power systems, it becomes critical to reduce the impact of wind energy on the stability and reliability of the overall power system. In precedent works, Shen and his co-workers developed a re-designed operation schema to run wind turbines in strong wind conditions based on optimization method and standard PI feedback control, which can prevent the typical shutdowns of wind turbines when reaching the cut-out wind speed. In this paper, a new control strategy combing the standard PI feedback control with feedforward controls using the optimization results is investigated for the operation of variable-speed pitch-regulated wind turbines in strong wind conditions. It is shown that the developed control strategy is capable of smoothening the power output of wind turbine and avoiding its sudden showdown at high wind speeds without worsening the loads on rotor and blades.

  15. Abnormal uterine bleeding in pre-menopausal women.

    PubMed

    Singh, Sukhbir; Best, Carolyn; Dunn, Sheila; Leyland, Nicholas; Wolfman, Wendy Lynn

    2013-05-01

    Abnormal uterine bleeding is the direct cause of a significant health care burden for women, their families, and society as a whole. Up to 30% of women will seek medical assistance for this problem during their reproductive years. This guideline replaces previous clinical guidelines on the topic and is aimed to enable health care providers with the tools to provide the latest evidence-based care in the diagnosis and the medical and surgical management of this common problem. To provide current evidence-based guidelines for the diagnosis and management of abnormal uterine bleeding (AUB) among women of reproductive age. Outcomes evaluated include the impact of AUB on quality of life and the results of interventions including medical and surgical management of AUB. Members of the guideline committee were selected on the basis of individual expertise to represent a range of practical and academic experience in terms of location in Canada, type of practice, subspecialty expertise, and general gynaecology background. The committee reviewed relevant evidence in the English medical literature including published guidelines. Recommendations were established as consensus statements. The final document was reviewed and approved by the Executive and Council of the SOGC. This document provides a summary of up-to-date evidence regarding diagnosis, investigations, and medical and surgical management of AUB. The resulting recommendations may be adapted by individual health care workers when serving women with this condition. Abnormal uterine bleeding is a common and sometimes debilitating condition in women of reproductive age. Standardization of related terminology, a systematic approach to diagnosis and investigation, and a step-wise approach to intervention is necessary. Treatment commencing with medical therapeutic modalities followed by the least invasive surgical modalities achieving results satisfactory to the patient is the ultimate goal of all therapeutic interventions

  16. Assessment of biogas production from MBT waste under different operating conditions.

    PubMed

    Pantini, Sara; Verginelli, Iason; Lombardi, Francesco; Scheutz, Charlotte; Kjeldsen, Peter

    2015-09-01

    In this work, the influence of different operating conditions on the biogas production from mechanically-biologically treated (MBT) wastes is investigated. Specifically, different lab-scale anaerobic tests varying the water content (26-43% w/w up to 75% w/w), the temperature (from 20 to 25°C up to 55°C) and the amount of inoculum have been performed on waste samples collected from a full-scale Italian MBT plant. For each test, the gas generation yield and, where applicable, the first-order gas generation rates were determined. Nearly all tests were characterised by a quite long lag-phase. This result was mainly ascribed to the inhibition effects resulting from the high concentrations of volatile fatty acids (VFAs) and ammonia detected in the different stages of the experiments. Furthermore, water content was found as one of the key factor limiting the anaerobic biological process. Indeed, the experimental results showed that when the moisture was lower than 32% w/w, the methanogenic microbial activity was completely inhibited. For the higher water content tested (75% w/w), high values of accumulated gas volume (up to 150Nl/kgTS) and a relatively short time period to deplete the MBT waste gas generation capacity were observed. At these test conditions, the effect of temperature became evident, leading to gas generation rates of 0.007d(-1) at room temperature that increased to 0.03-0.05d(-1) at 37°C and to 0.04-0.11d(-1) at 55°C. Overall, the obtained results highlighted that the operative conditions can drastically affect the gas production from MBT wastes. This suggests that particular caution should be paid when using the results of lab-scale tests for the evaluation of long-term behaviour expected in the field where the boundary conditions change continuously and vary significantly depending on the climate, the landfill operative management strategies in place (e.g. leachate recirculation, waste disposal methods), the hydraulic characteristics of disposed

  17. A Paradigm for Operant Conditioning in Blow Flies ("Phormia Terrae Novae" Robineau-Desvoidy, 1830)

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Sokolowski, Michel B. C.; Disma, Gerald; Abramson, Charles I.

    2010-01-01

    An operant conditioning situation for the blow fly ("Protophormia terrae novae") is described. Individual flies are trained to enter and reenter a hole as the operant response. Only a few sessions of contingent reinforcement are required to increase response rates. When the response is no longer followed by food, the rate of entering the hole…

  18. Chromosomal abnormalities in human sperm

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Martin, R.H.

    1985-01-01

    The ability to analyze human sperm chromosome complements after penetration of zona pellucida-free hamster eggs provides the first opportunity to study the frequency and type of chromosomal abnormalities in human gametes. Two large-scale studies have provided information on normal men. We have studied 1,426 sperm complements from 45 normal men and found an abnormality rate of 8.9%. Brandriff et al. (5) found 8.1% abnormal complements in 909 sperm from 4 men. The distribution of numerical and structural abnormalities was markedly dissimilar in the 2 studies. The frequency of aneuploidy was 5% in our sample and only 1.6% in Brandriff's, perhapsmore » reflecting individual variability among donors. The frequency of 24,YY sperm was low: 0/1,426 and 1/909. This suggests that the estimates of nondisjunction based on fluorescent Y body data (1% to 5%) are not accurate. We have also studied men at increased risk of sperm chromosomal abnormalities. The frequency of chromosomally unbalanced sperm in 6 men heterozygous for structural abnormalities varied dramatically: 77% for t11;22, 32% for t6;14, 19% for t5;18, 13% for t14;21, and 0% for inv 3 and 7. We have also studied 13 cancer patients before and after radiotherapy and demonstrated a significant dose-dependent increase of sperm chromosome abnormalities (numerical and structural) 36 months after radiation treatment.« less

  19. Backdoor pathway for dihydrotestosterone biosynthesis: implications for normal and abnormal human sex development.

    PubMed

    Fukami, Maki; Homma, Keiko; Hasegawa, Tomonobu; Ogata, Tsutomu

    2013-04-01

    We review the current knowledge about the "backdoor" pathway for the biosynthesis of dihydrotestosterone (DHT). While DHT is produced from cholesterol through the conventional "frontdoor" pathway via testosterone, recent studies have provided compelling evidence for the presence of an alternative "backdoor" pathway to DHT without testosterone intermediacy. This backdoor pathway is known to exist in the tammar wallaby pouch young testis and the immature mouse testis, and has been suggested to be present in the human as well. Indeed, molecular analysis has identified pathologic mutations of genes involved in the backdoor pathway in genetic male patients with undermasculinized external genitalia, and urine steroid profile analysis has argued for the relevance of the activated backdoor pathway to abnormal virilization in genetic females with cytochrome P450 oxidoreductase deficiency and 21-hydroxylase deficiency. It is likely that the backdoor pathway is primarily operating in the fetal testis in a physiological condition to produce a sufficient amount of DHT for male sex development, and that the backdoor pathway is driven with a possible interaction between fetal and permanent adrenals in pathologic conditions with increased 17-hydroxyprogesterone levels. These findings provide novel insights into androgen biosynthesis in both physiological and pathological conditions. Copyright © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc., a Wiley company.

  20. Abnormal kinetic behavior of cytochrome oxidase in a case of Leigh disease.

    PubMed Central

    Glerum, M; Robinson, B H; Spratt, C; Wilson, J; Patrick, D

    1987-01-01

    Cultured skin fibroblasts from a child with fatal lacticacidemia displayed an abnormally high lactate:pyruvate ratio of 77:1, compared with control values of 22:1-27:1. When protease-treated isolated mitochondria were used, activity of the respiratory-chain enzymes was found to be approximately 60% of normal, and adenosine triphosphate synthesis was found to be normal with all substrates tested. In mitochondria prepared by means of digitonin treatment, adenosine triphosphate synthesis was depressed with all substrates tested, suggesting a defect in the operation of the cytochrome oxidase complex. In disrupted whole cells from the patient, cytochrome oxidase activity was 56% of the activity in the control cell line with the lowest activity. In the presence of a twofold excess of oxidized cytochrome c, patient cells showed 31% of the activity in controls. Cytochrome oxidase activity in both sonicated whole-cell preparations and in sonicated mitochondria displayed abnormal kinetics with regard to the substrate-reduced cytochrome c, which was particularly evident in the presence of excess oxidized cytochrome c. We believe that kinetically abnormal cytochrome oxidase complex is responsible for the biochemical and clinical abnormalities present in this patient. PMID:2821802

  1. Implications of white striping and spaghetti meat abnormalities on meat quality and histological features in broilers.

    PubMed

    Baldi, G; Soglia, F; Mazzoni, M; Sirri, F; Canonico, L; Babini, E; Laghi, L; Cavani, C; Petracci, M

    2018-01-01

    During the past few years, there has been an increasing prevalence of broiler breast muscle abnormalities, such as white striping (WS) and wooden breast conditions. More recently, a new muscular abnormality termed as spaghetti meat (SM) because of the altered structural integrity of the Pectoralis major muscle often associated with WS has emerged. Thus, this study aimed at evaluating the effects of WS and SM conditions, occurring alone or combined within the same P. major muscle, on meat quality traits and muscle histology. In two replications, 96 P. major muscles were classified into four classes: normal (N), WS, SM and WS/SM. The whole fillet was used for weight assessment and morphometric measurements, then each sample was cut in order to separate the superficial layer from the deep one and used to evaluate proximate composition, histological features, nuclear magnetic resonance relaxation times, functional properties and both myofibrillar and sarcoplasmic proteins profile. Fillets affected by WS and SM abnormalities exhibited higher weights and increased thickness and length. SM condition was associated with a relevant decrease in protein content coupled with a significant increase in moisture level, whereas fat content was affected only by the simultaneous presence of WS. Histological evaluations revealed that abnormal samples were characterized by several degenerative aspects that almost completely concerned the superficial layer of the fillets. White striped fillets exhibited necrosis and lysis of fibers, fibrosis, lipidosis, loss of cross striation and vacuolar degeneration. Moreover, SM samples were characterized by poor fiber uniformity and a progressive rarefaction of the endo- and peri-mysial connective tissue, whereas WS/SM fillets showed intermediate histological features. Nuclear magnetic resonance relaxation analysis revealed a higher proportion of extra-myofibrillar water in the superficial section of all the abnormal fillets, especially in SM

  2. Teaching giant african pouched rats to find landmines: operant conditioning with real consequences.

    PubMed

    Poling, Alan; Weetjens, Bart J; Cox, Christophe; Beyene, Negussie; Bach, Håvard; Sully, Andrew

    2010-01-01

    Giant African pouched rats recently have been used as mine-detection animals in Mozambique. To provide an example of the wide range of problems to which operant conditioning procedures can be applied and to illustrate the common challenges often faced in applying those procedures, this manuscript briefly describes how the rats are trained and used operationally. To date, the rats have performed well and it appears they can play a valuable role in humanitarian demining.

  3. Abnormal Fixational Eye Movements in Amblyopia

    PubMed Central

    Shaikh, Aasef G.; Otero-Millan, Jorge; Kumar, Priyanka; Ghasia, Fatema F.

    2016-01-01

    Purpose Fixational saccades shift the foveal image to counteract visual fading related to neural adaptation. Drifts are slow eye movements between two adjacent fixational saccades. We quantified fixational saccades and asked whether their changes could be attributed to pathologic drifts seen in amblyopia, one of the most common causes of blindness in childhood. Methods Thirty-six pediatric subjects with varying severity of amblyopia and eleven healthy age-matched controls held their gaze on a visual target. Eye movements were measured with high-resolution video-oculography during fellow eye-viewing and amblyopic eye-viewing conditions. Fixational saccades and drifts were analyzed in the amblyopic and fellow eye and compared with controls. Results We found an increase in the amplitude with decreased frequency of fixational saccades in children with amblyopia. These alterations in fixational eye movements correlated with the severity of their amblyopia. There was also an increase in eye position variance during drifts in amblyopes. There was no correlation between the eye position variance or the eye velocity during ocular drifts and the amplitude of subsequent fixational saccade. Our findings suggest that abnormalities in fixational saccades in amblyopia are independent of the ocular drift. Discussion This investigation of amblyopia in pediatric age group quantitatively characterizes the fixation instability. Impaired properties of fixational saccades could be the consequence of abnormal processing and reorganization of the visual system in amblyopia. Paucity in the visual feedback during amblyopic eye-viewing condition can attribute to the increased eye position variance and drift velocity. PMID:26930079

  4. Ear abnormalities in patients with oculo-auriculo-vertebral spectrum (Goldenhar syndrome).

    PubMed

    Rosa, Rafael Fabiano Machado; Silva, Alessandra Pawelec da; Goetze, Thayse Bienert; Bier, Bianca de Almeida; Almeida, Sheila Tamanini de; Paskulin, Giorgio Adriano; Zen, Paulo Ricardo Gazzola

    2011-01-01

    Oculo-auriculo-vertebral spectrum (OAVS) is a rare condition characterized by the involvement of the first branchial arches. To investigate the ear abnormalities of a sample of patients with OAVS. The sample consisted of 12 patients with OAVS seen at the Clinical Genetics Unit, UFCSPA/CHSCPA. The study included only patients who underwent mastoid computed tomography and with normal karyotype. We performed a review of its clinical features, giving emphasis to the ear findings. Nine patients were male, the ages ranged from 1 day to 17 years. Ear abnormalities were observed in all patients and involved the external (n = 12), middle (n = 10) and inner ear (n = 3). Microtia was the most frequent finding (n = 12). The most common abnormalities of the middle ear were: opacification (n = 2), displacement (n = 2) and malformation of the ossicular chain. Agenesis of the internal auditory canal (n = 2) was the most frequent alteration of the inner ear. Ear abnormalities are variable in patients with OAVS and often there is no correlation between findings in the external, middle and inner ear. The evaluation of these structures is important in the management of individuals with OAVS.

  5. Feeding behavior of Aplysia: a model system for comparing cellular mechanisms of classical and operant conditioning.

    PubMed

    Baxter, Douglas A; Byrne, John H

    2006-01-01

    Feeding behavior of Aplysia provides an excellent model system for analyzing and comparing mechanisms underlying appetitive classical conditioning and reward operant conditioning. Behavioral protocols have been developed for both forms of associative learning, both of which increase the occurrence of biting following training. Because the neural circuitry that mediates the behavior is well characterized and amenable to detailed cellular analyses, substantial progress has been made toward a comparative analysis of the cellular mechanisms underlying these two forms of associative learning. Both forms of associative learning use the same reinforcement pathway (the esophageal nerve, En) and the same reinforcement transmitter (dopamine, DA). In addition, at least one cellular locus of plasticity (cell B51) is modified by both forms of associative learning. However, the two forms of associative learning have opposite effects on B51. Classical conditioning decreases the excitability of B51, whereas operant conditioning increases the excitability of B51. Thus, the approach of using two forms of associative learning to modify a single behavior, which is mediated by an analytically tractable neural circuit, is revealing similarities and differences in the mechanisms that underlie classical and operant conditioning.

  6. The Influence of Different Operating Conditions on the Blood Damage of a Pulsatile Ventricular Assist Device.

    PubMed

    Xu, Zihao; Yang, Ming; Wang, Xianghui; Wang, Zhong

    2015-01-01

    Because of pulsatile blood flow's benefit for myocardial recovery, perfusion of coronary arteries and end organs, pulsatile ventricular assist devices (VADs) are still widely used as paracorporeal mechanical circulatory support devices in clinical applications, especially in pediatric heart failure patients. However, severe blood damage limits the VAD's service period. Besides optimizing the VAD geometry to reduce blood damage, the blood damage may also be decreased by changing the operating conditions. In this article, a pulsatile VAD was used to investigate the influence of operating conditions on its blood damage, including hemolysis, platelet activation, and platelet deposition. Three motion profiles of pusher plate (sine, cosine, and polynomial), three stroke volumes (ejection fractions) (56 ml [70%], 42 ml [52.5%], and 28 ml [35%]), three pulsatile rates (75, 100, and 150 bpm), and two assist modes (copulsation and counterpulsation) were implemented respectively in VAD fluid-structure interaction simulations to calculate blood damage. The blood damage indices indicate that cosine motion profile, higher ejection fraction, higher pulsatile rate, and counterpulsation can decrease platelet deposition whereas increase hemolysis and platelet activation, and vice versa. The results suggest that different operating conditions have different effects on pulsatile VAD's blood damage and may be beneficial to choose suitable operating condition to reduce blood damage in clinical applications.

  7. Aerodynamic performance of a vibrating piezoelectric fan under varied operational conditions

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Stafford, J.; Jeffers, N.

    2014-07-01

    This paper experimentally examines the bulk aerodynamic performance of a vibrating fan operating in the first mode of vibration. The influence of operating condition on the local velocity field has also been investigated to understand the flow distribution at the exit region and determine the stalling condition for vibrating fans. Fan motion has been generated and controlled using a piezoelectric ceramic attached to a stainless steel cantilever. The frequency and amplitude at resonance were 109.4 Hz and 12.5 mm, respectively. A test facility has been developed to measure the pressure-flow characteristics of the vibrating fan and simultaneously conduct local velocity field measurements using particle image velocimetry. The results demonstrate the impact of system characteristics on the local velocity field. High momentum regions generated due to the oscillating motion exist with a component direction that is tangent to the blade at maximum displacement. These high velocity zones are significantly affected by increasing impedance while flow reversal is a dominant feature at maximum pressure rise. The findings outlined provide useful information for design of thermal management solutions that may incorporate this air cooling approach.

  8. Application of membrane distillation for the treatment of anaerobic membrane bioreactor effluent: An especial attention to the operating conditions.

    PubMed

    Liu, Chang; Chen, Lin; Zhu, Liang

    2018-06-04

    This study was carried out by applying the direct contact membrane distillation (DCMD) into the treatment of effluent from anaerobic membrane bioreactor. The treatment efficiency of DCMD was highly emphasized, which was expected to be improved through the optimization of operating conditions. Three operating conditions, including temperature difference, cross-flow velocity and membrane pore size, were considered. The relative flux (the ratio of actual flux to initial flux) increased from 0.50 to 0.98 as the operating conditions changed and that was enhanced by the increment of temperature difference and cross-flow velocity. Regarding the wastewater treatment efficiency, except for ammonia nitrogen, the interception ratio was greater than 90.0%, which even reached 99.0% for COD Cr , protein and polysaccharide by optimizing operating conditions. In addition, the interception ratio of PO 4 3- -P almost reached 100.0% under any operating condition. Further study about membrane fouling was carried out, and the crystallization fouling was found to be the main fouling type. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  9. PREVENTION OF CONVERSION TO ABNORMAL TCD WITH HYDROXYUREA IN SICKLE CELL ANEMIA: A PHASE III INTERNATIONAL RANDOMIZED CLINICAL TRIAL

    PubMed Central

    Hankins, Jane S.; McCarville, M. Beth; Rankine-Mullings, Angela; Reid, Marvin E.; Lobo, Clarisse L.C.; Moura, Patricia G.; Ali, Susanna; Soares, Deanne; Aldred, Karen; Jay, Dennis W.; Aygun, Banu; Bennett, John; Kang, Guolian; Goldsmith, Jonathan C.; Smeltzer, Matthew P.; Boyett, James M.; Ware, Russell E.

    2015-01-01

    Children with sickle cell anemia (SCA) and conditional transcranial Doppler (TCD) ultrasound velocities (170-199 cm/sec) may develop stroke. However, with limited available clinical data, the current standard of care for conditional TCD velocities is observation. The efficacy of hydroxyurea in preventing conversion from conditional to abnormal TCD (≥200 cm/sec), which confers a higher stroke risk, has not been studied prospectively in a randomized trial. Sparing Conversion to Abnormal TCD Elevation (SCATE #NCT01531387) was an NHLBI-funded Phase III multicenter international clinical trial comparing alternative therapy (hydroxyurea) to standard care (observation) to prevent conversion from conditional to abnormal TCD velocity in children with SCA. SCATE enrolled 38 children from the United States, Jamaica, and Brazil [HbSS (36), HbSβ0-thalassemia (1), and HbSD (1), median age 5.4 years (range, 2.7-9.8)]. Due to slow patient accrual and administrative delays, SCATE was terminated early. In an intention-to-treat analysis, the cumulative incidence of abnormal conversion was 9% (95% CI 0 to 35%) in the hydroxyurea arm and 47% (95% CI 6 to 81%) in observation arm at 15 months (p=0.16). In post-hoc analysis according to treatment received, significantly fewer children on hydroxyurea converted to abnormal TCD velocities, compared to observation (0% versus 50%, p=0.02). After a mean of 10.1 months, a significant change in mean TCD velocity was observed with hydroxyurea treatment (−15.5 versus +10.2 cm/sec, p=0.02). No stroke events occurred in either arm. Hydroxyurea reduces TCD velocities in children with SCA and conditional velocities. PMID:26414435

  10. Eye-blink conditioning deficits indicate temporal processing abnormalities in schizophrenia.

    PubMed

    Bolbecker, Amanda R; Mehta, Crystal S; Edwards, Chad R; Steinmetz, Joseph E; O'Donnell, Brian F; Hetrick, William P

    2009-06-01

    Theoretical models suggest that symptoms of schizophrenia may be due to a dysfunctional modulatory system associated with the cerebellum. Although it has long been known that the cerebellum plays a critical role in associative learning and motor timing, recent evidence suggests that it also plays a role in nonmotor psychological processes. Indeed, cerebellar anomalies in schizophrenia have been linked to cognitive dysfunction and poor long-term outcome. To test the hypothesis that schizophrenia is associated with cerebellar dysfunction, cerebellar-dependent, delay eye-blink conditioning was examined in 62 individuals with schizophrenia and 62 age-matched non-psychiatric comparison subjects. The conditioned stimulus was a 400 ms tone, which co-terminated with a 50 ms unconditioned stimulus air puff. A subset of participants (25 with schizophrenia and 29 controls) also completed the Wechsler Abbreviated Scale of Intelligence. Participants with schizophrenia exhibited lower rates of eye-blink conditioning, including earlier (less adaptively timed) conditioned response latencies. Cognitive functioning was correlated with the rate of conditioned responsing in the non-psychiatric comparison subjects but not among those with schizophrenia, and the magnitude of these correlations significantly differed between groups. These findings are consistent with models of schizophrenia in which disruptions within the cortico-cerebellar-thalamic-cortical (CCTC) brain circuit are postulated to underlie the cognitive fragmentation that characterizes the disorder.

  11. Eye-Blink Conditioning Deficits Indicate Temporal Processing Abnormalities in Schizophrenia

    PubMed Central

    Bolbecker, Amanda R.; Mehta, Crystal; Edwards, Chad R.; Steinmetz, Joseph E.; O’Donnell, Brian F.; Hetrick, William P.

    2009-01-01

    Theoretical models suggest that symptoms of schizophrenia may be due to a dysfunctional modulatory system associated with the cerebellum. Although it has long been known that the cerebellum plays a critical role in associative learning and motor timing, recent evidence suggests that it also plays a role in nonmotor psychological processes. Indeed, cerebellar anomalies in schizophrenia have been linked to cognitive dysfunction and poor long-term outcome. To test the hypothesis that schizophrenia is associated with cerebellar dysfunction, cerebellar-dependent, delay eye-blink conditioning was examined in 62 individuals with schizophrenia and 62 age-matched non-psychiatric comparison subjects. The conditioned stimulus was a 400 ms tone, which co-terminated with a 50 ms unconditioned stimulus air puff. A subset of participants (25 with schizophrenia and 29 controls) also completed the Wechsler Abbreviated Scale of Intelligence. Participants with schizophrenia exhibited lower rates of eye-blink conditioning, including earlier (less adaptively timed) conditioned response latencies. Cognitive functioning was correlated with the rate of conditioned responsing in the non-psychiatric comparison subjects but not among those with schizophrenia, and the magnitude of these correlations significantly differed between groups. These findings are consistent with models of schizophrenia in which disruptions within the cortico-cerebellar-thalamic-cortical (CCTC) brain circuit are postulated to underlie the cognitive fragmentation that characterizes the disorder. PMID:19351577

  12. Abnormal hippocampal shape in offenders with psychopathy.

    PubMed

    Boccardi, Marina; Ganzola, Rossana; Rossi, Roberta; Sabattoli, Francesca; Laakso, Mikko P; Repo-Tiihonen, Eila; Vaurio, Olli; Könönen, Mervi; Aronen, Hannu J; Thompson, Paul M; Frisoni, Giovanni B; Tiihonen, Jari

    2010-03-01

    Posterior hippocampal volumes correlate negatively with the severity of psychopathy, but local morphological features are unknown. The aim of this study was to investigate hippocampal morphology in habitually violent offenders having psychopathy. Manual tracings of hippocampi from magnetic resonance images of 26 offenders (age: 32.5 +/- 8.4), with different degrees of psychopathy (12 high, 14 medium psychopathy based on the Psychopathy Checklist Revised), and 25 healthy controls (age: 34.6 +/- 10.8) were used for statistical modelling of local changes with a surface-based radial distance mapping method. Both offenders and controls had similar hippocampal volume and asymmetry ratios. Local analysis showed that the high psychopathy group had a significant depression along the longitudinal hippocampal axis, on both the dorsal and ventral aspects, when compared with the healthy controls and the medium psychopathy group. The opposite comparison revealed abnormal enlargement of the lateral borders in both the right and left hippocampi of both high and medium psychopathy groups versus controls, throughout CA1, CA2-3 and the subicular regions. These enlargement and reduction effects survived statistical correction for multiple comparisons in the main contrast (26 offenders vs. 25 controls) and in most subgroup comparisons. A statistical check excluded a possible confounding effect from amphetamine and polysubstance abuse. These results indicate that habitually violent offenders exhibit a specific abnormal hippocampal morphology, in the absence of total gray matter volume changes, that may relate to different autonomic modulation and abnormal fear-conditioning. 2009 Wiley-Liss, Inc.

  13. Human Factors for Situation Assessment in Grid Operations

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Guttromson, Ross T.; Schur, Anne; Greitzer, Frank L.

    2007-08-08

    Executive Summary Despite advances in technology, power system operators must assimilate overwhelming amounts of data to keep the grid operating. Analyses of recent blackouts have clearly demonstrated the need to enhance the operator’s situation awareness (SA). The long-term objective of this research is to integrate valuable technologies into the grid operator environment that support decision making under normal and abnormal operating conditions and remove non-technical barriers to enable the optimum use of these technologies by individuals working alone and as a team. More specifically, the research aims to identify methods and principles to increase SA of grid operators in themore » context of system conditions that are representative or common across many operating entities and develop operationally relevant experimental methods for studying technologies and operational practices which contribute to SA. With increasing complexity and interconnectivity of the grid, the scope and complexity of situation awareness have grown. New paradigms are needed to guide research and tool development aimed to enhance and improve operations. In reviewing related research, operating practices, systems, and tools, the present study established a taxonomy that provides a perspective on research and development surrounding power grid situation awareness and clarifies the field of human factors/SA for grid operations. Information sources that we used to identify critical factors underlying SA included interviews with experienced operational personnel, available historical summaries and transcripts of abnormal conditions and outages (e.g., the August 14, 2003 blackout), scientific literature, and operational policies/procedures and other documentation. Our analysis of August 2003 blackout transcripts and interviews adopted a different perspective than previous analyses of this material, and we complemented this analysis with additional interviews. Based on our analysis and a

  14. Experimental determination of drift and PM10 cooling tower emissions: Influence of components and operating conditions.

    PubMed

    Ruiz, J; Kaiser, A S; Lucas, M

    2017-11-01

    Cooling tower emissions have become an increasingly common hazard to the environment (air polluting, ice formation and salts deposition) and to the health (Legionella disease) in the last decades. Several environmental policies have emerged in recent years limiting cooling tower emissions but they have not prevented an increasing intensity of outbreaks. Since the level of emissions depends mainly on cooling tower component design and the operating conditions, this paper deals with an experimental investigation of the amount of emissions, drift and PM 10 , emitted by a cooling tower with different configurations (drift eliminators and distribution systems) and working under several operating conditions. This objective is met by the measurement of cooling tower source emission parameters by means of the sensitive paper technique. Secondary objectives were to contextualize the observed emission rates according to international regulations. Our measurements showed that the drift rates included in the relevant international standards are significantly higher than the obtained results (an average of 100 times higher) and hence, the environmental problems may occur. Therefore, a revision of the standards is recommended with the aim of reducing the environmental and human health impact. By changing the operating conditions and the distribution system, emissions can be reduced by 52.03% and 82% on average. In the case of drift eliminators, the difference ranges from 18.18% to 98.43% on average. As the emissions level is clearly influenced by operating conditions and components, regulation tests should be referred to default conditions. Finally, guidelines to perform emission tests and a selection criterion of components and conditions for the tested cooling tower are proposed. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  15. A novel attention training paradigm based on operant conditioning of eye gaze: Preliminary findings.

    PubMed

    Price, Rebecca B; Greven, Inez M; Siegle, Greg J; Koster, Ernst H W; De Raedt, Rudi

    2016-02-01

    Inability to engage with positive stimuli is a widespread problem associated with negative mood states across many conditions, from low self-esteem to anhedonic depression. Though attention retraining procedures have shown promise as interventions in some clinical populations, novel procedures may be necessary to reliably attenuate chronic negative mood in refractory clinical populations (e.g., clinical depression) through, for example, more active, adaptive learning processes. In addition, a focus on individual difference variables predicting intervention outcome may improve the ability to provide such targeted interventions efficiently. To provide preliminary proof-of-principle, we tested a novel paradigm using operant conditioning to train eye gaze patterns toward happy faces. Thirty-two healthy undergraduates were randomized to receive operant conditioning of eye gaze toward happy faces (train-happy) or neutral faces (train-neutral). At the group level, the train-happy condition attenuated sad mood increases following a stressful task, in comparison to train-neutral. In individual differences analysis, greater physiological reactivity (pupil dilation) in response to happy faces (during an emotional face-search task at baseline) predicted decreased mood reactivity after stress. These Preliminary results suggest that operant conditioning of eye gaze toward happy faces buffers against stress-induced effects on mood, particularly in individuals who show sufficient baseline neural engagement with happy faces. Eye gaze patterns to emotional face arrays may have a causal relationship with mood reactivity. Personalized medicine research in depression may benefit from novel cognitive training paradigms that shape eye gaze patterns through feedback. Baseline neural function (pupil dilation) may be a key mechanism, aiding in iterative refinement of this approach. (c) 2016 APA, all rights reserved).

  16. Predators in training: operant conditioning of novel behavior in wild Burmese pythons (Python molurus bivitattus).

    PubMed

    Emer, Sherri A; Mora, Cordula V; Harvey, Mark T; Grace, Michael S

    2015-01-01

    Large pythons and boas comprise a group of animals whose anatomy and physiology are very different from traditional mammalian, avian and other reptilian models typically used in operant conditioning. In the current study, investigators used a modified shaping procedure involving successive approximations to train wild Burmese pythons (Python molurus bivitattus) to approach and depress an illuminated push button in order to gain access to a food reward. Results show that these large, wild snakes can be trained to accept extremely small food items, associate a stimulus with such rewards via operant conditioning and perform a contingent operant response to gain access to a food reward. The shaping procedure produced robust responses and provides a mechanism for investigating complex behavioral phenomena in massive snakes that are rarely studied in learning research.

  17. Abnormalities in larvae from the once-largest Pacific herring population in Washington State result primarily from factors independent of spawning location

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Hershberger, P.K.; Elder, N.E.; Wittouck, J.; Stick, K.; Kocan, R.M.

    2005-01-01

    Among larvae from populations of Pacific herring Clupea pallasii in Washington State those from Cherry Point have consistently demonstrated abnormalities indicative of distress, including low weights and lengths at hatch, increased prevalences of skeletal abnormalities, and shorter survival times in food deprivation studies. The biomass of adult, prespawn Pacific herring at Cherry Point declined from 13,606 metric tons in 1973 to a record low 733 metric tons in 2000. However, correlation of larval abnormalities with adult recruitment was weak, indicating that the larval abnormalities did not directly cause the decline. Larval abnormalities originated primarily from factors independent of conditions at the spawning location because they were not reproduced by incubation of foreign zygotes along the Cherry Point shoreline but were reproduced after the development of indigenous zygotes in controlled laboratory conditions. Although the precise cause of the abnormalities was not determined, recent zoographic trends in elevated natural mortality among adult Pacific herring and resulting reduced age structures may be involved. ?? Copyright by the American Fisheries Society 2005.

  18. VITAL SIGNS AND FIRST OCCURRENCES IN NORMAL AND ABNORMAL NEWBORN ASIAN ELEPHANT ( ELEPHAS MAXIMUS) CALVES.

    PubMed

    Wiedner, Ellen; Kiso, Wendy K; Aria, Janice; Isaza, Ramiro; Lindsay, William; Jacobson, Gary; Jacobson, Kathy; Schmitt, Dennis

    2017-12-01

    Sixteen years of medical records documenting 19 births within a herd of Asian elephants ( Elephas maximus) at a private facility in the southeastern United States were reviewed. Of the 19 calves, 11 were normal at birth, requiring no additional veterinary care, and eight were abnormal, requiring veterinary care immediately or within the first week of birth. Descriptive statistics were used to evaluate morphometrics, vital signs, and behavioral milestones in newborn calves both normal and abnormal. Blood work and urinalysis results from all calves were compared to values for adult elephants. Medical management of abnormal calves is described. All calves had faster heart rates and respiratory rates than did adult elephants, but rectal temperatures were the same. Calves were precocious with regard to sitting and standing but could be very slow to nurse. The most-common medical conditions of newborn calves were umbilical abnormalities and problems associated with nursing. Two calves required cardiopulmonary resuscitation after birth but made full recoveries. Some conditions were not apparent at birth but were recognized a few hours or days later. Following veterinary intervention, six of the eight calves made full recoveries, suggesting that early identification and treatment of problems can greatly decrease mortality. This is the first report of multiple veterinary and behavioral parameters in normal and abnormal neonatal Asian elephants from a facility with a calf survival rate above 90%. This information may be helpful to other elephant-holding facilities in providing care to their newborn elephant calves.

  19. The Regularities of Fatigue Crack Growth in Airframes Elements at Real Operation Conditions

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Pavelko, Igors; Pavelko, Vitalijs

    The results of analytical and experimental researches concerning predicting of fatigue crack growth in the operating conditions are presented. First of all the main factors causing a fatigue damage initiation and growth are analyzed and divided to two groups. Common conditions of fatigue damage precise predicting are established. The problem of fatigue crack growth at the stresses of variable amplitude was analyzed and an approach of description of this process is performed. Two examples present the efficiency of this approach. Theory of fatigue crack growth indication and the crack growth indicator (CGI) are developed. There is planned and executed a flight experiment using CGI located on two aircraft An-24 and An-26. Results of crack growth in CGI at operational load allowed to evaluate the parameters of generalized Paris-Erdogan law and statistical properties of crack increment per flight.

  20. Sensitivity Analysis of the Off-Normal Conditions of the SPIDER Accelerator

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Veltri, P.; Agostinetti, P.; Antoni, V.

    2011-09-26

    In the context of the development of the 1 MV neutral beam injector for the ITER tokamak, the study on beam formation and acceleration has considerable importance. This effort includes the ion source and accelerator SPIDER (Source for Production of Ions of Deuterium Extracted from an Rf plasma) ion source, planned to be built in Padova, and designed to extract and accelerate a 355 A/m{sup 2} current of H{sup -}(or 285 A/m{sup 2} D{sup -}) up to 100 kV. Exhaustive simulations were already carried out during the accelerator optimization leading to the present design. However, as it is expected thatmore » the accelerator shall operate also in case of pre-programmed or undesired off-normal conditions, the investigation of a large set of off-normal scenarios is necessary. These analyses will also be useful for the evaluation of the real performances of the machine, and should help in interpreting experimental results, or in identifying dangerous operating conditions.The present contribution offers an overview of the results obtained during the investigation of these off-normal conditions, by means of different modeling tools and codes. The results, showed a good flexibility of the device in different operating conditions. Where the consequences of the abnormalities appeared to be problematic further analysis were addressed.« less

  1. Performance Comparison of Optimized Designs of Francis Turbines Exposed to Sediment Erosion in various Operating Conditions

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Shrestha, K. P.; Chitrakar, S.; Thapa, B.; Dahlhaug, O. G.

    2018-06-01

    Erosion on hydro turbine mostly depends on impingement velocity, angle of impact, concentration, shape, size and distribution of erodent particle and substrate material. In the case of Francis turbines, the sediment particles tend to erode more in the off-designed conditions than at the best efficiency point. Previous studies focused on the optimized runner blade design to reduce erosion at the designed flow. However, the effect of the change in the design on other operating conditions was not studied. This paper demonstrates the performance of optimized Francis turbine exposed to sediment erosion in various operating conditions. Comparative study has been carryout among the five different shapes of runner, different set of guide vane and stay vane angles. The effect of erosion is studied in terms of average erosion density rate on optimized design Francis runner with Lagrangian particle tracking method in CFD analysis. The numerical sensitivity of the results are investigated by comparing two turbulence models. Numerical results are validated from the velocity measurements carried out in the actual turbine. Results show that runner blades are susceptible to more erosion at part load conditions compared to BEP, whereas for the case of guide vanes, more erosion occurs at full load conditions. Out of the five shapes compared, Shape 5 provides an optimum combination of efficiency and erosion on the studied operating conditions.

  2. Using State Estimation Residuals to Detect Abnormal SCADA Data

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Ma, Jian; Chen, Yousu; Huang, Zhenyu

    2010-04-30

    Detection of abnormal supervisory control and data acquisition (SCADA) data is critically important for safe and secure operation of modern power systems. In this paper, a methodology of abnormal SCADA data detection based on state estimation residuals is presented. Preceded with a brief overview of outlier detection methods and bad SCADA data detection for state estimation, the framework of the proposed methodology is described. Instead of using original SCADA measurements as the bad data sources, the residuals calculated based on the results of the state estimator are used as the input for the outlier detection algorithm. The BACON algorithm ismore » applied to the outlier detection task. The IEEE 118-bus system is used as a test base to evaluate the effectiveness of the proposed methodology. The accuracy of the BACON method is compared with that of the 3-σ method for the simulated SCADA measurements and residuals.« less

  3. Installation of PMV Operation Program in DDC Controller and Air Conditioning Control Using PMV Directly as Set Point

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Haramoto, Ken-Ichi

    In general, air conditioning control in a building is operated mainly by indoor air temperature control. Although the operators of the machine in the building accepted a claim for indoor air temperature presented by the building inhabitants, the indoor conditions have been often too cool or warm. Therefore, in an attempt to create better thermal environments, the author paid attention to the PMV that is a thermal comfort index. And then, the possibility of air conditioning control using the PMV directly as the set point was verified by employing actual equipment in an air conditioning testing room and an office building. Prior to the execution of this control, the operation program of the PMV was installed in a DDC controller for the air conditioning control. And information from indoor sensors and so on was inputted to the controller, and the computed PMV was used as the feedback variable.

  4. An investigation of FeCrAl cladding behavior under normal operating and loss of coolant conditions

    DOE PAGES

    Gamble, Kyle A.; Barani, Tommaso; Pizzocri, David; ...

    2017-04-30

    Iron-chromium-aluminum (FeCrAl) alloys are candidates to be used as nuclear fuel cladding for increased accident tolerance. An analysis of the response of FeCrAl under normal operating and loss of coolant conditions has been performed using fuel performance modeling. In particular, recent information on FeCrAl material properties and phenomena from separate effects tests has been implemented in the BISON fuel performance code and analyses of integral fuel rod behavior with FeCrAl cladding have been performed. BISON simulations included both light water reactor normal operation and loss-of-coolant accidental transients. In order to model fuel rod behavior during accidents, a cladding failure criterionmore » is desirable. For FeCrAl alloys, a failure criterion is developed using recent burst experiments under loss of coolant like conditions. The added material models are utilized to perform comparative studies with Zircaloy-4 under normal operating conditions and oxidizing and non-oxidizing out-of-pile loss of coolant conditions. The results indicate that for all conditions studied, FeCrAl behaves similarly to Zircaloy-4 with the exception of improved oxidation performance. Here, further experiments are required to confirm these observations.« less

  5. You make me tired: An experimental test of the role of interpersonal operant conditioning in fatigue.

    PubMed

    Lenaert, Bert; Jansen, Rebecca; van Heugten, Caroline M

    2018-04-01

    Chronic fatigue is highly prevalent in the general population as well as in multiple chronic diseases and psychiatric disorders. Its etiology however remains poorly understood and cannot be explained by biological factors alone. Occurring in a psychosocial context, the experience and communication of fatigue may be shaped by social interactions. In particular, interpersonal operant conditioning may strengthen and perpetuate fatigue complaints. In this experiment, individuals (N = 44) repeatedly rated their currently experienced fatigue while engaging in cognitive effort (working memory task). Subtle social reward was given when fatigue increased relative to the previous rating; or disapproval when fatigue decreased. In the control condition, only neutral feedback was given. Although all participants became more fatigued during cognitive effort, interpersonal operant conditioning led to increased fatigue reporting relative to neutral feedback. This effect occurred independently of conscious awareness. Interestingly, the experimental condition also performed worse on the working memory task. Results suggest that fatigue complaints (and cognitive performance) may become controlled by their consequences such as social reward, and not exclusively by their antecedents such as effort. Results have implications for treatment development and suggest that interpersonal operant conditioning may contribute to fatigue becoming a chronic symptom. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  6. An investigation of FeCrAl cladding behavior under normal operating and loss of coolant conditions

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Gamble, Kyle A.; Barani, Tommaso; Pizzocri, David

    Iron-chromium-aluminum (FeCrAl) alloys are candidates to be used as nuclear fuel cladding for increased accident tolerance. An analysis of the response of FeCrAl under normal operating and loss of coolant conditions has been performed using fuel performance modeling. In particular, recent information on FeCrAl material properties and phenomena from separate effects tests has been implemented in the BISON fuel performance code and analyses of integral fuel rod behavior with FeCrAl cladding have been performed. BISON simulations included both light water reactor normal operation and loss-of-coolant accidental transients. In order to model fuel rod behavior during accidents, a cladding failure criterionmore » is desirable. For FeCrAl alloys, a failure criterion is developed using recent burst experiments under loss of coolant like conditions. The added material models are utilized to perform comparative studies with Zircaloy-4 under normal operating conditions and oxidizing and non-oxidizing out-of-pile loss of coolant conditions. The results indicate that for all conditions studied, FeCrAl behaves similarly to Zircaloy-4 with the exception of improved oxidation performance. Here, further experiments are required to confirm these observations.« less

  7. Network Mechanisms Generating Abnormal and Normal Hippocampal High-Frequency Oscillations: A Computational Analysis1,2,3

    PubMed Central

    Catoni, Nicholas

    2015-01-01

    Abstract High-frequency oscillations (HFOs) are an intriguing potential biomarker for epilepsy, typically categorized according to peak frequency as either ripples (100–250 Hz) or fast ripples (>250 Hz). In the hippocampus, fast ripples were originally thought to be more specific to epileptic tissue, but it is still very difficult to distinguish which HFOs are caused by normal versus pathological brain activity. In this study, we use a computational model of hippocampus to investigate possible network mechanisms underpinning normal ripples, pathological ripples, and fast ripples. Our results unify several prior findings regarding HFO mechanisms, and also make several new predictions regarding abnormal HFOs. We show that HFOs are generic, emergent phenomena whose characteristics reflect a wide range of connectivity and network input. Although produced by different mechanisms, both normal and abnormal HFOs generate similar ripple frequencies, underscoring that peak frequency is unable to distinguish the two. Abnormal ripples are generic phenomena that arise when input to pyramidal cells overcomes network inhibition, resulting in high-frequency, uncoordinated firing. In addition, fast ripples transiently and sporadically arise from the precise conditions that produce abnormal ripples. Lastly, we show that such abnormal conditions do not require any specific network structure to produce coherent HFOs, as even completely asynchronous activity is capable of producing abnormal ripples and fast ripples in this manner. These results provide a generic, network-based explanation for the link between pathological ripples and fast ripples, and a unifying description for the entire spectrum from normal ripples to pathological fast ripples. PMID:26146658

  8. Relationship between container ship underwater noise levels and ship design, operational and oceanographic conditions

    PubMed Central

    McKenna, Megan F.; Wiggins, Sean M.; Hildebrand, John A.

    2013-01-01

    Low-frequency ocean ambient noise is dominated by noise from commercial ships, yet understanding how individual ships contribute deserves further investigation. This study develops and evaluates statistical models of container ship noise in relation to design characteristics, operational conditions, and oceanographic settings. Five-hundred ship passages and nineteen covariates were used to build generalized additive models. Opportunistic acoustic measurements of ships transiting offshore California were collected using seafloor acoustic recorders. A 5–10 dB range in broadband source level was found for ships depending on the transit conditions. For a ship recorded multiple times traveling at different speeds, cumulative noise was lowest at 8 knots, 65% reduction in operational speed. Models with highest predictive power, in order of selection, included ship speed, size, and time of year. Uncertainty in source depth and propagation affected model fit. These results provide insight on the conditions that produce higher levels of underwater noise from container ships.

  9. Application of distributed optical fiber sensing technologies to the monitoring of leakage and abnormal disturbance of oil pipeline

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Yang, Xiaojun; Zhu, Xiaofei; Deng, Chi; Li, Junyi; Liu, Cheng; Yu, Wenpeng; Luo, Hui

    2017-10-01

    To improve the level of management and monitoring of leakage and abnormal disturbance of long distance oil pipeline, the distributed optical fiber temperature and vibration sensing system is employed to test the feasibility for the healthy monitoring of a domestic oil pipeline. The simulating leakage and abnormal disturbance affairs of oil pipeline are performed in the experiment. It is demonstrated that the leakage and abnormal disturbance affairs of oil pipeline can be monitored and located accurately with the distributed optical fiber sensing system, which exhibits good performance in the sensitivity, reliability, operation and maintenance etc., and shows good market application prospect.

  10. A Volunteer Program for Abnormal Psychology Students: Eighteen Years and Still Going Strong.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Scogin, Forrest; Rickard, Henry C.

    1987-01-01

    A volunteer experience in abnormal psychology is described. The program has been operating for 18 years, and student reactions have been quite positive. The program augments the traditional course offerings and provides reciprocal service for the University of Alabama and mental health facilities. Guidelines for implementing a volunteer program…

  11. Neurologic abnormalities in murderers.

    PubMed

    Blake, P Y; Pincus, J H; Buckner, C

    1995-09-01

    Thirty-one individuals awaiting trial or sentencing for murder or undergoing an appeal process requested a neurologic examination through legal counsel. We attempted in each instance to obtain EEG, MRI or CT, and neuropsychological testing. Neurologic examination revealed evidence of "frontal" dysfunction in 20 (64.5%). There were symptoms or some other evidence of temporal lobe abnormality in nine (29%). We made a specific neurologic diagnosis in 20 individuals (64.5%), including borderline or full mental retardation (9) and cerebral palsy (2), among others. Neuropsychological testing revealed abnormalities in all subjects tested. There were EEG abnormalities in eight of the 20 subjects tested, consisting mainly of bilateral sharp waves with slowing. There were MRI or CT abnormalities in nine of the 19 subjects tested, consisting primarily of atrophy and white matter changes. Psychiatric diagnoses included paranoid schizophrenia (8), dissociative disorder (4), and depression (9). Virtually all subjects had paranoid ideas and misunderstood social situations. There was a documented history of profound, protracted physical abuse in 26 (83.8%) and of sexual abuse in 10 (32.3%). It is likely that prolonged, severe physical abuse, paranoia, and neurologic brain dysfunction interact to form the matrix of violent behavior.

  12. Pilots' Information Needs and Strategies for Operating in Icing Conditions

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Vigeant-Langlois, Laurence N.; Hansman, R. John

    2003-01-01

    Pilot current use of icing information, pilot encounters and strategies for dealing with in-flight aircraft structural icing situations, and desired attributes of new icing information systems were investigated through a survey of pilots of several operational categories. The survey identified important information elements and fiequently used information paths for obtaining icing-related information. Free- response questions solicited descriptions of significant , icing encounters, and probed key icing-related decision and information criteria. Results indicated the information needs for the horizontal and vertical location of icing conditions and the identification of icing-free zones.

  13. Role of ultrasonography in percutaneous renal access in patients with renal anatomic abnormalities.

    PubMed

    Penbegul, Necmettin; Hatipoglu, Namik Kemal; Bodakci, Mehmet Nuri; Atar, Murat; Bozkurt, Yasar; Sancaktutar, Ahmet Ali; Tepeler, Abdulkadir

    2013-05-01

    To present our experience regarding the feasibility, safety, and efficacy of ultrasound (US)-guided percutaneous nephrolithotomy in anatomically abnormal kidneys. We performed US-guided percutaneous nephrolithotomy in 15 patients with anatomically abnormal kidneys and renal calculi. Of the 15 patients, 5 had horseshoe kidneys, 5 had rotation anomalies, 2 had kyphoscoliosis, and 3 had scoliosis. The stone size, number of access tracts, operative time, hospitalization duration, rate of stone clearance, and complication rate were recorded. Percutaneous access was achieved with US guidance in the operating room by the urologist. Successful renal access was obtained by the surgeon using US guidance in all patients, and a single access was obtained in all cases. Of the 15 patients, 8 were females, and 7 were males; 8 patients had solitary stones, and 7 had multiple calculi. The renal calculi were on the right in 7 patients and on the left in 8. Three patients had previously undergone unsuccessful shock wave lithotripsy. Complete stone clearance was achieved in 13 patients. The mean operative time was 54.2 minutes. No patient required a blood transfusion because of bleeding. Urinary tract infections occurred in 2 patients, who were treated with antibiotics. A double-J catheter was not inserted in any patient; however, a ureteral catheter was used in 3 patients for 1 day. None of the patients had any major complications during the postoperative period. The stone-free rate was 87%, and 2 patients had clinically insignificant residual fragments. Our results have demonstrated that US-guided percutaneous nephrolithotomy can be performed feasibly, safely, and effectively in anatomically abnormal kidneys. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  14. Potential asphyxia and brainstem abnormalities in sudden and unexpected death in infants.

    PubMed

    Randall, Bradley B; Paterson, David S; Haas, Elisabeth A; Broadbelt, Kevin G; Duncan, Jhodie R; Mena, Othon J; Krous, Henry F; Trachtenberg, Felicia L; Kinney, Hannah C

    2013-12-01

    Sudden and unexplained death is a leading cause of infant mortality. Certain characteristics of the sleep environment increase the risk for sleep-related sudden and unexplained infant death. These characteristics have the potential to generate asphyxial conditions. We tested the hypothesis that infants may be exposed to differing degrees of asphyxia in sleep environments, such that vulnerable infants with a severe underlying brainstem deficiency in serotonergic, γ-aminobutyric acid-ergic, or 14-3-3 transduction proteins succumb even without asphyxial triggers (e.g., supine), whereas infants with intermediate or borderline brainstem deficiencies require asphyxial stressors to precipitate death. We classified cases of sudden infant death into categories relative to a "potential asphyxia" schema in a cohort autopsied at the San Diego County Medical Examiner's Office. Controls were infants who died with known causes of death established at autopsy. Analysis of covariance tested for differences between groups. Medullary neurochemical abnormalities were present in both infants dying suddenly in circumstances consistent with asphyxia and infants dying suddenly without obvious asphyxia-generating circumstances. There were no differences in the mean neurochemical measures between these 2 groups, although mean measures were both significantly lower (P < .05) than those of controls dying of known causes. We found no direct relationship between the presence of potentially asphyxia conditions in the sleep environment and brainstem abnormalities in infants dying suddenly and unexpectedly. Brainstem abnormalities were associated with both asphyxia-generating and non-asphyxia generating conditions. Heeding safe sleep messages is essential for all infants, especially given our current inability to detect underlying vulnerabilities.

  15. Potential Asphyxia and Brainstem Abnormalities in Sudden and Unexpected Death in Infants

    PubMed Central

    Randall, Bradley B.; Paterson, David S.; Haas, Elisabeth A.; Broadbelt, Kevin G.; Duncan, Jhodie R.; Mena, Othon J.; Krous, Henry F.; Trachtenberg, Felicia L.

    2013-01-01

    OBJECTIVE: Sudden and unexplained death is a leading cause of infant mortality. Certain characteristics of the sleep environment increase the risk for sleep-related sudden and unexplained infant death. These characteristics have the potential to generate asphyxial conditions. We tested the hypothesis that infants may be exposed to differing degrees of asphyxia in sleep environments, such that vulnerable infants with a severe underlying brainstem deficiency in serotonergic, γ-aminobutyric acid-ergic, or 14-3-3 transduction proteins succumb even without asphyxial triggers (eg, supine), whereas infants with intermediate or borderline brainstem deficiencies require asphyxial stressors to precipitate death. METHODS: We classified cases of sudden infant death into categories relative to a “potential asphyxia” schema in a cohort autopsied at the San Diego County Medical Examiner’s Office. Controls were infants who died with known causes of death established at autopsy. Analysis of covariance tested for differences between groups. RESULTS: Medullary neurochemical abnormalities were present in both infants dying suddenly in circumstances consistent with asphyxia and infants dying suddenly without obvious asphyxia-generating circumstances. There were no differences in the mean neurochemical measures between these 2 groups, although mean measures were both significantly lower (P < .05) than those of controls dying of known causes. CONCLUSIONS: We found no direct relationship between the presence of potentially asphyxia conditions in the sleep environment and brainstem abnormalities in infants dying suddenly and unexpectedly. Brainstem abnormalities were associated with both asphyxia-generating and non–asphyxia generating conditions. Heeding safe sleep messages is essential for all infants, especially given our current inability to detect underlying vulnerabilities. PMID:24218471

  16. Tuning the heat transfer medium and operating conditions in magnetic refrigeration

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Ghahremani, Mohammadreza, E-mail: mghahrem@shepherd.edu; Dept. of Electrical and Computer Engineering, The George Washington University, Washington DC 20052; Aslani, Amir

    A new experimental test bed has been designed, built, and tested to evaluate the effect of the system’s parameters on a reciprocating Active Magnetic Regenerator (AMR) near room temperature. Bulk gadolinium was used as the refrigerant, silicon oil as the heat transfer medium, and a magnetic field of 1.3 T was cycled. This study focuses on the methodology of single stage AMR operation conditions to get a high temperature span near room temperature. Herein, the main objective is not to report the absolute maximum attainable temperature span seen in an AMR system, but rather to find the system’s optimal operatingmore » conditions to reach that maximum span. The results of this research show that there is a optimal operating frequency, heat transfer fluid flow rate, flow duration, and displaced volume ratio in any AMR system. By optimizing these parameters in our AMR apparatus the temperature span between the hot and cold ends increased by 24%. The optimized values are system dependent and need to be determined and measured for any AMR system by following the procedures that are introduced in this research. It is expected that such optimization will permit the design of a more efficient magnetic refrigeration system.« less

  17. Habitat quality affects the incidence of morphological abnormalities in the endangered salamander Ambystoma ordinarium

    PubMed Central

    2017-01-01

    Identification of early warning signals previous to the occurrence of population decline or extinction is a major challenge for the conservation of animal species. Prevalence of morphological abnormalities in a population can be one of these signals. We registered morphological abnormalities in the salamander Ambystoma ordinarium. We also evaluated the relation between habitat quality and the prevalence of abnormalities in this species. We used scores from rapid bioassessment protocols (RBPs) to assess the habitat quality of streams inhabited by A. ordinarium. A preliminary survey indicated that of 29 streams where this species has been historically registered, 13 might have few or no A. ordinarium. The association between habitat quality and the incidence of morphological abnormalities was evaluated in these 16 streams. Of 502 sampled individuals, 224 (44.62%) had at least one body abnormality. Of the 224 individuals with body abnormalities, 84 (37.5%) presented more than one abnormality. Of a total of 5,522 evaluated morphological characters, 344 (6.74%) were abnormal. Partial loss of gills and missing digits were the most frequent abnormalities. Results of a binomial logistic regression indicated that the probability of a character of an individual to be abnormal was significantly associated with habitat quality; as the levels of the quality of the habitat increased, the prevalence of morphological abnormalities decreased. These results suggest that RBPs are a quick and useful method for assessing the habitat quality of streams inhabited by A. ordinarium. Given that RBPs provide rapid and cost-effective assessments of the ecological health of aquatic ecosystems, it will be important to test if the RBPs protocols can be used to rapidly assess habitat quality for other species of stream amphibians. The negative association between habitat quality and the prevalence of morpohological abnormalities that we found indicates that habitat condition plays an important

  18. Dandy-Walker syndrome and chromosomal abnormalities.

    PubMed

    Imataka, George; Yamanouchi, Hideo; Arisaka, Osamu

    2007-12-01

    Dandy-Walker syndrome (DWS) is a brain malformation of unknown etiology, but several reports have been published indicating that there is a causal relationship to various types of chromosomal abnormalities and malformation syndromes. In the present article, we present a bibliographical survey of several previously issued reports on chromosomal abnormalities associated with DWS, including our case of DWS found in trisomy 18. There are various types of chromosomal abnormalities associated with DWS; most of them are reported in chromosome 3, 9, 13 and 18. We also summarize some other chromosomal abnormalities and various congenital malformation syndromes.

  19. Effect of Operating and Sampling Conditions on the Exhaust Gas Composition of Small-Scale Power Generators

    PubMed Central

    Smits, Marianne; Vanpachtenbeke, Floris; Horemans, Benjamin; De Wael, Karolien; Hauchecorne, Birger; Van Langenhove, Herman; Demeestere, Kristof; Lenaerts, Silvia

    2012-01-01

    Small stationary diesel engines, like in generator sets, have limited emission control measures and are therefore responsible for 44% of the particulate matter (PM) emissions in the United States. The diesel exhaust composition depends on operating conditions of the combustion engine. Furthermore, the measurements are influenced by the used sampling method. This study examines the effect of engine loading and exhaust gas dilution on the composition of small-scale power generators. These generators are used in different operating conditions than road-transport vehicles, resulting in different emission characteristics. Experimental data were obtained for gaseous volatile organic compounds (VOC) and PM mass concentration, elemental composition and nitrate content. The exhaust composition depends on load condition because of its effect on fuel consumption, engine wear and combustion temperature. Higher load conditions result in lower PM concentration and sharper edged particles with larger aerodynamic diameters. A positive correlation with load condition was found for K, Ca, Sr, Mn, Cu, Zn and Pb adsorbed on PM, elements that originate from lubricating oil or engine corrosion. The nitrate concentration decreases at higher load conditions, due to enhanced nitrate dissociation to gaseous NO at higher engine temperatures. Dilution on the other hand decreases PM and nitrate concentration and increases gaseous VOC and adsorbed metal content. In conclusion, these data show that operating and sampling conditions have a major effect on the exhaust gas composition of small-scale diesel generators. Therefore, care must be taken when designing new experiments or comparing literature results. PMID:22442670

  20. Integration of Thermal Indoor Conditions into Operational Heat Health Warning Systems

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Koppe, C.; Becker, P.; Pfafferott, J.

    2009-09-01

    The 2003 heat wave in Western Europe with altogether 35,000 to 50,000 deaths in Europe, several thousands of which occurred in Germany, has clearly pointed out the danger arising from long periods with high heat load. As a consequence, Germany, as many other European countries, has started to implement a Heat Health Warning System (HHWS). The German HHWS is based on the ‘Perceived Temperature'. The 'Perceived Temperature' is determined through a heat budget model of the human organism which includes the main thermophysiologically relevant mechanisms of heat exchange with the atmosphere. The most important meteorological ambience parameters included in the model are air temperature, humidity, wind speed and radiation fluxes in the short-wave and long-wave ranges. In addition to using a heat budget model for the assessment of the thermal load, the German HHWS also takes into account that the human body reacts in different ways to its thermal environment due to physiological adaptation (short-term acclimatisation) and short-term behavioural adaptation. The restriction of such an approach, like the majority of approaches used to issue heat warnings, is that the threshold for a warning is generally derived from meteorological observations and that warnings are issued on the basis of weather forecasts. Both, the observed data and the weather forecasts are only available for outside conditions. The group of people who are most at risk of suffering from a heat wave, however, are the elderly and frail who mainly stay inside. The indoor situation, which varies largely from the conditions outside, is not taken into account by most of the warning systems. To overcome this limitation the DWD, in co-operation with the Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy Systems, has developed a model which simulates the thermal conditions in the indoor environment. As air-conditioning in private housing in Germany is not very common, the thermal indoor conditions depend on the outside

  1. Assessment of neutron skyshine near unmodified Accumulator Debuncher storage rings under Mu2e operational conditions

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Cossairt, J.Donald; /Fermilab

    2010-12-01

    Preliminary plans for providing the proton beam needed by the proposed Mu2e experiment at Fermilab will require the transport of 8 GeV protons to the Accumulator/Debuncher where they be processed into an intensity and time structure useful for the experiment. The intensities involved are far greater that those encountered with antiprotons of the same kinetic energy in the same beam enclosures under Tevatron Collider operational conditions, the operating parameters for which the physical facilities of the Antiproton Source were designed. This note explores some important ramifications of the proposed operation for radiation safety and demonstrates the need for extensive modificationsmore » of significant portions of the shielding of the Accumulator Debuncher storage rings; notably that underneath the AP Service Buildings AP10, AP30, and AP50. While existing shielding is adequate for the current operating mode of the Accumulator/Debuncher as part of the Antiproton Source used in the Tevatron Collider program, without significant modifications of the shielding configuration in the Accumulator/Debuncher region and/or beam loss control systems far more effective than seen in most applications at Fermilab, the proposed operational mode for Mu2e is not viable for the following reasons: 1. Due to skyshine alone, under normal operational conditions large areas of the Fermilab site would be exposed to unacceptable levels of radiation where most of the Laboratory workforce and some members of the general public who regularly visit Fermilab would receive measurable doses annually, contrary to workforce, public, and DOE expectations concerning the As Low as Reasonably Achievable (ALARA) principle. 2. Under normal operational conditions, a sizeable region of the Fermilab site would also require fencing due to skyshine. The size of the areas involved would likely invite public inquiry about the significant and visible enlargement of Fermilab's posted radiological areas. 3

  2. Infrared thermography for condition monitoring - A review

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Bagavathiappan, S.; Lahiri, B. B.; Saravanan, T.; Philip, John; Jayakumar, T.

    2013-09-01

    Temperature is one of the most common indicators of the structural health of equipment and components. Faulty machineries, corroded electrical connections, damaged material components, etc., can cause abnormal temperature distribution. By now, infrared thermography (IRT) has become a matured and widely accepted condition monitoring tool where the temperature is measured in real time in a non-contact manner. IRT enables early detection of equipment flaws and faulty industrial processes under operating condition thereby, reducing system down time, catastrophic breakdown and maintenance cost. Last three decades witnessed a steady growth in the use of IRT as a condition monitoring technique in civil structures, electrical installations, machineries and equipment, material deformation under various loading conditions, corrosion damages and welding processes. IRT has also found its application in nuclear, aerospace, food, paper, wood and plastic industries. With the advent of newer generations of infrared camera, IRT is becoming a more accurate, reliable and cost effective technique. This review focuses on the advances of IRT as a non-contact and non-invasive condition monitoring tool for machineries, equipment and processes. Various conditions monitoring applications are discussed in details, along with some basics of IRT, experimental procedures and data analysis techniques. Sufficient background information is also provided for the beginners and non-experts for easy understanding of the subject.

  3. Regional homogeneity of resting-state brain abnormalities in bipolar and unipolar depression.

    PubMed

    Liu, Chun-Hong; Ma, Xin; Wu, Xia; Zhang, Yu; Zhou, Fu-Chun; Li, Feng; Tie, Chang-Le; Dong, Jie; Wang, Yong-Jun; Yang, Zhi; Wang, Chuan-Yue

    2013-03-05

    Bipolar disorder patients experiencing a depressive episode (BD-dep) without an observed history of mania are often misdiagnosed and are consequently treated as having unipolar depression (UD), leading to inadequate treatment and poor outcomes. An essential solution to this problem is to identify objective biological markers that distinguish BD-dep and UD patients at an early stage. However, studies directly comparing the brain dysfunctions associated with BD-dep and UD are rare. More importantly, the specificity of the differences in brain activity between these mental disorders has not been examined. With whole-brain regional homogeneity analysis and region-of-interest (ROI) based receiver operating characteristic (ROC) analysis, we aimed to compare the resting-state brain activity of BD-dep and UD patients. Furthermore, we examined the specific differences and whether these differences were attributed to the brain abnormality caused by BD-dep, UD, or both. Twenty-one bipolar and 21 unipolar depressed patients, as well as 26 healthy subjects matched for gender, age, and educational levels, participated in the study. We compared the differences in the regional homogeneity (ReHo) of the BD-dep and UD groups and further identified their pathophysiological abnormality. In the brain regions showing a difference between the BD-dep and UD groups, we further conducted receptive operation characteristic (ROC) analyses to confirm the effectiveness of the identified difference in classifying the patients. We observed ReHo differences between the BD-dep and UD groups in the right ventrolateral middle frontal gyrus, right dorsal anterior insular, right ventral anterior insular, right cerebellum posterior gyrus, right posterior cingulate cortex, right parahippocampal gyrus, and left cerebellum anterior gyrus. Further ROI comparisons and ROC analysis on these ROIs showed that the right parahippocampal gyrus reflected abnormality specific to the BD-dep group, while the right

  4. DENTAL ABNORMALITIES OF EIGHT WILD QINLING GIANT PANDAS (AILUROPODA MELANOLEUCA QINLINGENSIS), SHAANXI PROVINCE, CHINA.

    PubMed

    Jin, Yipeng; Chen, Si; Chao, Yanqiao; Pu, Tianchun; Xu, Hongqian; Liu, Xiaobin; Zhao, Kaihui; Nie, Yonggang; Wei, Wei; Lin, Degui

    2015-10-01

    Eight adult (six male and two female) wild Qinling giant pandas (Ailuropoda melanoleuca qinlingensis) from China National Foping Nature Reserve were tracked, and their dental data collected and recorded from October 2010 to April 2014. Each panda had dental abnormalities of varying severity. Dental wear and fracture were the most common conditions. Absent teeth were common, with premolars missing most often. Mild caries were present in five molar teeth between two animals. Different degrees of dental plaque and calculus occurred in all animals but without severe periodontal disease. Two animals with severe dental abnormalities died due to intestinal problems. Large segments of bamboo were found in their intestinal tracts, and intestinal perforation and ulcers were evident, indicating dental abnormalities can be an important factor in the health of wild giant pandas and may lead to death. Further research with larger sample sizes of wild and captive giant pandas will be required to substantiate the relationship between dental abnormalities and mortality in giant pandas.

  5. Modeling of the Human - Operator in a Complex System Functioning Under Extreme Conditions

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Getzov, Peter; Hubenova, Zoia; Yordanov, Dimitar; Popov, Wiliam

    2013-12-01

    Problems, related to the explication of sophisticated control systems of objects, operating under extreme conditions, have been examined and the impact of the effectiveness of the operator's activity on the systems as a whole. The necessity of creation of complex simulation models, reflecting operator's activity, is discussed. Organizational and technical system of an unmanned aviation complex is described as a sophisticated ergatic system. Computer realization of main subsystems of algorithmic system of the man as a controlling system is implemented and specialized software for data processing and analysis is developed. An original computer model of a Man as a tracking system has been implemented. Model of unmanned complex for operators training and formation of a mental model in emergency situation, implemented in "matlab-simulink" environment, has been synthesized. As a unit of the control loop, the pilot (operator) is simplified viewed as an autocontrol system consisting of three main interconnected subsystems: sensitive organs (perception sensors); central nervous system; executive organs (muscles of the arms, legs, back). Theoretical-data model of prediction the level of operator's information load in ergatic systems is proposed. It allows the assessment and prediction of the effectiveness of a real working operator. Simulation model of operator's activity in takeoff based on the Petri nets has been synthesized.

  6. Investigation of the operating conditions to morphology evolution of β-L-glutamic acid during seeded cooling crystallization

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Zhang, Fangkun; Liu, Tao; Huo, Yan; Guan, Runduo; Wang, Xue Z.

    2017-07-01

    In this paper the effects of operating conditions including cooling rate, initial supersaturation, and seeding temperature were investigated on the morphology evolution of β-L-glutamic acid (β-LGA) during seeded cooling crystallization. Based on the results of in-situ image acquisition of the crystal morphology evolution during the crystallization process, it was found that the crystal products tend to be plate-like or short rod-like under a slow cooling rate, low initial supersaturation, and low seeding temperature. In the opposite, the operating conditions of a faster cooling rate, higher initial supersaturation, and higher seeding temperature tend to produce long rod-like or needle-like crystals, and meanwhile, the length and width of crystal products will be increased together with a wider crystal size distribution (CSD). The aspect ratio of crystals, defined by the crystal length over width measured from in-situ or sample images, was taken as a shape index to analyze the crystal morphologies. Based on comparative analysis of the experimental results, guidelines on these operating conditions were given for obtaining the desired crystal shapes, along with the strategies for obtaining a narrower CSD for better product quality. Experimental verifications were performed to illustrate the proposed guidelines on the operating conditions for seeded cooling crystallization of LGA solution.

  7. Operation condition for continuous anti-solvent crystallization of CBZ-SAC cocrystal considering deposition risk of undesired crystals

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Nishimaru, Momoko; Nakasa, Miku; Kudo, Shoji; Takiyama, Hiroshi

    2017-07-01

    Crystallization operation of cocrystal production has deposition risk of undesired crystals. Simultaneously, continuous manufacturing processes are focused on. In this study, conditions for continuous cocrystallization considering risk reduction of undesired crystals deposition were investigated on the view point of thermodynamics and kinetics. The anti-solvent cocrystallization was carried out in four-component system of carbamazepine, saccharin, methanol and water. From the preliminary batch experiment, the relationships among undesired crystal deposition, solution composition decided by mixing ratio of solutions, and residence time for the crystals were considered, and then the conditions of continuous experiment were decided. Under these conditions, the continuous experiment was carried out. The XRD patterns of obtained crystals in the continuous experiment showed that desired cocrystals were obtained without undesired crystals. This experimental result was evaluated by using multi-component phase diagrams from the view point of the operation point's movement. From the evaluation, it was found that there is a certain operation condition which the operation point is fixed with time in the specific domain without the deposition risk of undesired single component crystals. It means the possibility of continuous production of cocrystals without deposition risk of undesired crystals was confirmed by using multi-component phase diagrams.

  8. When viewing natural scenes, do abnormal colors impact on spatial or temporal parameters of eye movements?

    PubMed

    Ho-Phuoc, Tien; Guyader, Nathalie; Landragin, Frédéric; Guérin-Dugué, Anne

    2012-02-03

    Since Treisman's theory, it has been generally accepted that color is an elementary feature that guides eye movements when looking at natural scenes. Hence, most computational models of visual attention predict eye movements using color as an important visual feature. In this paper, using experimental data, we show that color does not affect where observers look when viewing natural scene images. Neither colors nor abnormal colors modify observers' fixation locations when compared to the same scenes in grayscale. In the same way, we did not find any significant difference between the scanpaths under grayscale, color, or abnormal color viewing conditions. However, we observed a decrease in fixation duration for color and abnormal color, and this was particularly true at the beginning of scene exploration. Finally, we found that abnormal color modifies saccade amplitude distribution.

  9. Evaluation of operational numerical weather predictions in relation to the prevailing synoptic conditions

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Pytharoulis, Ioannis; Tegoulias, Ioannis; Karacostas, Theodore; Kotsopoulos, Stylianos; Kartsios, Stergios; Bampzelis, Dimitrios

    2015-04-01

    The Thessaly plain, which is located in central Greece, has a vital role in the financial life of the country, because of its significant agricultural production. The aim of DAPHNE project (http://www.daphne-meteo.gr) is to tackle the problem of drought in this area by means of Weather Modification in convective clouds. This problem is reinforced by the increase of population and the water demand for irrigation, especially during the warm period of the year. The nonhydrostatic Weather Research and Forecasting model (WRF), is utilized for research and operational purposes of DAPHNE project. The WRF output fields are employed by the partners in order to provide high-resolution meteorological guidance and plan the project's operations. The model domains cover: i) Europe, the Mediterranean sea and northern Africa, ii) Greece and iii) the wider region of Thessaly (at selected periods), at horizontal grid-spacings of 15km, 5km and 1km, respectively, using 2-way telescoping nesting. The aim of this research work is to investigate the model performance in relation to the prevailing upper-air synoptic circulation. The statistical evaluation of the high-resolution operational forecasts of near-surface and upper air fields is performed at a selected period of the operational phase of the project using surface observations, gridded fields and weather radar data. The verification is based on gridded, point and object oriented techniques. The 10 upper-air circulation types, which describe the prevailing conditions over Greece, are employed in the synoptic classification. This methodology allows the identification of model errors that occur and/or are maximized at specific synoptic conditions and may otherwise be obscured in aggregate statistics. Preliminary analysis indicates that the largest errors are associated with cyclonic conditions. Acknowledgments This research work of Daphne project (11SYN_8_1088) is co-funded by the European Union (European Regional Development Fund

  10. Operant Conditioning Principles in the Treatment of Learning and Behavior Problems with Delinquent Boys

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Bednar, Richard L.; And Others

    1970-01-01

    This study on operant conditioning showed that both groups showed significant improvement in reading skills from pretest to posttest, but that the reinforced group showed significantly more improvement than the nonreinforced group. (Author)

  11. Ambulatory hysteroscopy and its role in the management of abnormal uterine bleeding.

    PubMed

    Cooper, Natalie A M; Robinson, Lynne L L; Clark, T Justin

    2015-10-01

    Hysteroscopy is now an ambulatory procedure, having moved from a conventional day-case operating theatre environment to the outpatient clinic setting. Outpatient hysteroscopy can be used as a diagnostic test and as a therapeutic modality for women presenting with abnormal uterine bleeding. In many cases women can be diagnosed and treated efficiently during a single hospital appointment. This article reviews the development of ambulatory hysteroscopy and how it should optimally be performed and implemented. The contemporary role of this technology for investigating and treating women with abnormal uterine bleeding is then discussed. Published by the BMJ Publishing Group Limited. For permission to use (where not already granted under a licence) please go to http://group.bmj.com/group/rights-licensing/permissions.

  12. Abnormal placental invasion--a novel approach to treatment case report and review.

    PubMed

    Ophir, Ella; Singer-Jordan, Jonathan; Odeh, Marwan; Hirch, Yael; Maksimovsky, Olga; Shaider, Oleg; Yvry, Simon; Solt, Ido; Bornstein, Jacob

    2009-12-01

    The incidence of abnormal placental invasion has increased 10-fold in the past 50 years, reflecting the increased number of cesarean sections performed. Management relies on accurate early diagnosis with appropriate perioperative multidisciplinary planning to anticipate and avoid massive obstetric hemorrhage at delivery. Women at risk should plan to deliver at an institution with appropriate expertise and resources for managing this condition. We report a case of placenta increta management comprising preoperative placement of a pelvic artery balloon catheter, prophylactic balloon occlusion after delivery of the fetus, and embolization-assisted resection of the invaded uterine wall. We review incidence, methods of prenatal diagnosis, risk factors, and management of abnormally invasive placenta.

  13. [Pre-operation evaluation and intra-operation management of cochlear implantation].

    PubMed

    Zhang, Dao-xing; Hu, Bao-hua; Xiao, Yu-li; Shi, Bo-ning

    2004-10-01

    To summarize pre-operation evaluation experiences in cochlear implantation. Performing auditory evaluation and image analysis seriously in 158 severe hearing loss or total deaf cases before cochlear implantation, comparing their performance with the findings during and post operation. Among the total 158 cases, 116 cases with normal structure, 42 cases with the abnormal findings of the inner or middle ear. Stapedial gusher happened in 6 cases, 1 case was not predicted before operation. Except 1 case with serious malformation, the findings of other 157 cases in operation were consistent with the pre-operation evaluation. We helped all patients reconstruct auditory conduction with cochlear implantation, and the average hearing level up to 37.6 dB SPL. Performing image analysis seriously before operation and planning for operation according to HRCT can do great help to cochlear implantation. The operation under the HRCT instruction has less complications.

  14. Analysis of winter weather conditions and their potential impact on wind farm operations

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Novakovskaia, E.; Treinish, L. A.; Praino, A.

    2009-12-01

    Severe weather conditions have two primary impacts on wind farm operations. The first relates to understanding potential damage to the turbines themselves and what actions are required to mitigate the effects. The second is recognizing what conditions may lead to a full or partial shutdown of the wind farm with sufficient lead time to determine the likely inability to meet energy generation committments. Ideally, wind forecasting suitable for wind farm operations should be of sufficient fidelity to resolve features within the boundary layer that lead to either damaging conditions or useful power generation. Given the complexity of the site-specific factors that effect the boundary layer at the scale of typical land-based wind farm locations such as topography, vegetation, land use, soil conditions, etc., which may vary with turbine design and layout within the farm, enabling reliable forecasts of too little or too much wind is challenging. A potential solution should involve continuous updates of alert triggering criteria through analysis of local wind patterns and probabilistic risk assessment for each location. To evaluate this idea, we utilize our operational mesoscale prediction system, dubbed “Deep Thunder”, developed at the IBM Thomas J. Watson Research Center. In particular, we analyze winter-time near-surface winds in upstate New York, where four similar winds farms are located. Each of these farms were built at roughly the same time and utilize similar turbines. Given the relative uncertainty associated with numerical weather prediction at this scale, and the difference in risk assessment due to the two primary impacts of severe weather, probabilistic forecasts are a prerequisite. Hence, we have employed ensembles of weather scenarios, which are based on the NCAR WRF-ARW modelling system. The set of ensemble members was composed with variations in the choices of physics and parameterization schemes, and source of background fields for initial

  15. Office Operative Hysteroscopy: An Update.

    PubMed

    Salazar, Christina Alicia; Isaacson, Keith B

    2018-02-01

    Hysteroscopy is considered the gold standard for the evaluation of intracavitary pathology in both premenopausal and postmenopausal patients associated with abnormal uterine bleeding, as well as for the evaluation of infertile patients with suspected cavity abnormalities. Office-based operative hysteroscopy allows patients to resume activities immediately and successfully integrates clinical practice into a "see and treat" modality, avoiding the added risks of anesthesia and the inconvenience of the operating room. For 2017, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services has provided a substantial increase in reimbursement for a select number of office-based hysteroscopic procedures. This review provides an update on the indications, equipment, and procedures for office hysteroscopy, as well as the management of complications that may arise within an office-based practice. Copyright © 2018. Published by Elsevier Inc.

  16. Morphological Abnormalities in True Bugs (Heteroptera) near Swiss Nuclear Power Stations.

    PubMed

    Körblein, Alfred; Hesse-Honegger, Cornelia

    2018-05-24

    After the nuclear accidents of Chernobyl and Fukushima, several studies reported adverse health effects on wildlife animals. Epidemiological studies in humans found significant increases of leukaemia rates in young children residing within 5 km from nuclear power plants. This study investigates morphological abnormalities in true bugs (Heteroptera), collected in the environs of three Swiss nuclear power stations (NPS). The objective of the study is to test whether there is an increased frequency of abnormalities in the vicinity of NPS. We found a frequency of abnormalities of 14.1% at distances r<5km and a frequency of 6.8% for distances r>5km, a rate ratio of 2.1 (P<0.0001). The corresponding odds ratio was 2.26 (95% CI: 1.59, 3.18). We also conducted logistic regression of abnormality rates on reciprocal distance for each NPS site. The trend was significant for NPS Beznau (regression coefficient β=1.5 ± 0.3, P<0.0001) but not significant for NPS Gösgen und NPS Leibstadt with little samples within 5 km. To our knowledge, this study is the first to find adverse health effects on insects near operating nuclear power plants. Due to its ecological design, however, it cannot answer the question whether the effect is caused by radiation from nuclear power plants. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.

  17. Conditions associated with canine hypothyroidism.

    PubMed

    Panciera, D L

    2001-09-01

    Careful review of the literature regarding clinical signs caused by hypothyroidism in dogs has shown that some assumptions regarding the relation of hypothyroidism to other conditions are based on anecdotal evidence. Cutaneous manifestations are present in most hypothyroid dogs, but the specific abnormalities and breed variations remain to be clearly defined. Decreased metabolic rate manifested by obesity and lethargy is also common. Neurologic manifestations, although uncommon, clearly occur in hypothyroid dogs. Cardiac abnormalities seem to be common, but their clinical significance is questionable. The only consistent hematologic abnormality that occurs in hypothyroid dogs is anemia; evidence for acquired von Willebrand's disease or other bleeding disorders is negligible. Reproductive dysfunction secondary to hypothyroidism is unlikely to occur in male dogs, and there is no evidence to support abnormalities in female dogs. The relation of megaesophagus, laryngeal paralysis, ocular abnormalities, and gastrointestinal disorders with hypothyroidism remains to be established. Future research into canine hypothyroidism may serve to convert dogma into a more clear understanding of the manifestations and pathophysiologic findings of this common endocrinopathy.

  18. Safe operating conditions for NSLS-II Storage Ring Frontends commissioning

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Seletskiy, S.; Amundsen, C.; Ha, K.

    2015-04-02

    The NSLS-II Storage Ring Frontends are designed to safely accept the synchrotron radiation fan produced by respective insertion device when the electron beam orbit through the ID is locked inside the predefined Active Interlock Envelope. The Active Interlock is getting enabled at a particular beam current known as AI safe current limit. Below such current the beam orbit can be anywhere within the limits of the SR beam acceptance. During the FE commissioning the beam orbit is getting intentionally disturbed in the particular ID. In this paper we explore safe operating conditions for the Frontends commissioning.

  19. The Other Shoe: An Early Operant Conditioning Chamber for Pigeons.

    PubMed

    Sakagami, Takayuki; Lattal, Kennon A

    2016-05-01

    We describe an early operant conditioning chamber fabricated by Harvard University instrument maker Ralph Gerbrands and shipped to Japan in 1952 in response to a request of Professor B. F. Skinner by Japanese psychologists. It is a rare example, perhaps the earliest still physically existing, of such a chamber for use with pigeons. Although the overall structure and many of the components are similar to contemporary pigeon chambers, several differences are noted and contrasted to evolutionary changes in this most important laboratory tool in the experimental analysis of behavior. The chamber also is testimony to the early internationalization of behavior analysis.

  20. OMA analysis of a launcher under operational conditions with time-varying properties

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Eugeni, M.; Coppotelli, G.; Mastroddi, F.; Gaudenzi, P.; Muller, S.; Troclet, B.

    2018-05-01

    The objective of this paper is the investigation of the capability of operational modal analysis approaches to deal with time-varying system in the low-frequency domain. Specifically, the problem of the identification of the dynamic properties of a launch vehicle, working under actual operative conditions, is studied. Two OMA methods are considered: the frequency-domain decomposition and the Hilbert transform method. It is demonstrated that both OMA approaches allow the time-tracking of modal parameters, namely, natural frequencies, damping ratios, and mode shapes, from the response accelerations only recorded during actual flight tests of a launcher characterized by a large mass variation due to fuel burning typical of the first phase of the flight.

  1. Syndromes and constitutional chromosomal abnormalities associated with Wilms tumour

    PubMed Central

    Scott, R H; Stiller, C A; Walker, L; Rahman, N

    2006-01-01

    Wilms tumour has been reported in association with over 50 different clinical conditions and several abnormal constitutional karyotypes. Conclusive evidence of an increased risk of Wilms tumour exists for only a minority of these conditions, including WT1 associated syndromes, familial Wilms tumour, and certain overgrowth conditions such as Beckwith‐Wiedemann syndrome. In many reported conditions the rare co‐occurrence of Wilms tumour is probably due to chance. However, for several conditions the available evidence cannot either confirm or exclude an increased risk, usually because of the rarity of the syndrome. In addition, emerging evidence suggests that an increased risk of Wilms tumour occurs only in a subset of individuals for some syndromes. The complex clinical and molecular heterogeneity of disorders associated with Wilms tumour, together with the apparent absence of functional links between most of the known predisposition genes, suggests that abrogation of a variety of pathways can promote Wilms tumorigenesis. PMID:16690728

  2. Prevention of conversion to abnormal transcranial Doppler with hydroxyurea in sickle cell anemia: A Phase III international randomized clinical trial.

    PubMed

    Hankins, Jane S; McCarville, Mary Beth; Rankine-Mullings, Angela; Reid, Marvin E; Lobo, Clarisse L C; Moura, Patricia G; Ali, Susanna; Soares, Deanne P; Aldred, Karen; Jay, Dennis W; Aygun, Banu; Bennett, John; Kang, Guolian; Goldsmith, Jonathan C; Smeltzer, Matthew P; Boyett, James M; Ware, Russell E

    2015-12-01

    Children with sickle cell anemia (SCA) and conditional transcranial Doppler (TCD) ultrasound velocities (170-199 cm/sec) may develop stroke. However, with limited available clinical data, the current standard of care for conditional TCD velocities is observation. The efficacy of hydroxyurea in preventing conversion from conditional to abnormal TCD (≥200 cm/sec), which confers a higher stroke risk, has not been studied prospectively in a randomized trial. Sparing Conversion to Abnormal TCD Elevation (SCATE #NCT01531387) was a National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute-funded Phase III multicenter international clinical trial comparing alternative therapy (hydroxyurea) to standard care (observation) to prevent conversion from conditional to abnormal TCD velocity in children with SCA. SCATE enrolled 38 children from the United States, Jamaica, and Brazil [HbSS (36), HbSβ(0) -thalassemia (1), and HbSD (1), median age = 5.4 years (range, 2.7-9.8)]. Because of the slow patient accrual and administrative delays, SCATE was terminated early. In an intention-to-treat analysis, the cumulative incidence of abnormal conversion was 9% (95% CI = 0-35%) in the hydroxyurea arm and 47% (95% CI = 6-81%) in observation arm at 15 months (P = 0.16). In post hoc analysis according to treatment received, significantly fewer children on hydroxyurea converted to abnormal TCD velocities when compared with observation (0% vs. 50%, P = 0.02). After a mean of 10.1 months, a significant change in mean TCD velocity was observed with hydroxyurea treatment (-15.5 vs. +10.2 cm/sec, P = 0.02). No stroke events occurred in either arm. Hydroxyurea reduces TCD velocities in children with SCA and conditional velocities. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

  3. [Measurement and analysis of micropore aeration system's oxygenating ability under operation condition in waste water treatment plant].

    PubMed

    Wu, Yuan-Yuan; Zhou, Xiao-Hong; Shi, Han-Chang; Qiu, Yong

    2013-01-01

    Using the aeration pool in the fourth-stage at Wuxi Lucun Waste Water Treatment Plant (WWTP) as experimental setup, off-gas method was selected to measure the oxygenating ability parameters of micropore aerators in a real WWTP operating condition and these values were compared with those in fresh water to evaluate the performance of the micropore aerators. Results showed that the micropore aerators which were distributed in different galleries of the aeration pool had significantly different oxygenating abilities under operation condition. The oxygenating ability of the micropore aerators distributed in the same gallery changed slightly during one day. Comparing with the oxygenating ability in fresh water, it decreased a lot in the real aeration pool, in more details, under the real WWTP operating condition, the values of oxygen transfer coefficient K(La) oxygenation capacity OC and oxygen utilization E(a) decreased by 43%, 57% and 76%, respectively.

  4. Characterizing abnormal behavior in a large population of zoo-housed chimpanzees: prevalence and potential influencing factors

    PubMed Central

    Jacobson, Sarah L.; Bloomsmith, Mollie A.

    2016-01-01

    Abnormal behaviors in captive animals are generally defined as behaviors that are atypical for the species and are often considered to be indicators of poor welfare. Although some abnormal behaviors have been empirically linked to conditions related to elevated stress and compromised welfare in primates, others have little or no evidence on which to base such a relationship. The objective of this study was to investigate a recent claim that abnormal behavior is endemic in the captive population by surveying a broad sample of chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes), while also considering factors associated with the origins of these behaviors. We surveyed animal care staff from 26 accredited zoos to assess the prevalence of abnormal behavior in a large sample of chimpanzees in the United States for which we had information on origin and rearing history. Our results demonstrated that 64% of this sample was reported to engage in some form of abnormal behavior in the past two years and 48% of chimpanzees engaged in abnormal behavior other than coprophagy. Logistic regression models were used to analyze the historical variables that best predicted the occurrence of all abnormal behavior, any abnormal behavior that was not coprophagy, and coprophagy. Rearing had opposing effects on the occurrence of coprophagy and the other abnormal behaviors such that mother-reared individuals were more likely to perform coprophagy, whereas non-mother-reared individuals were more likely to perform other abnormal behaviors. These results support the assertion that coprophagy may be classified separately when assessing abnormal behavior and the welfare of captive chimpanzees. This robust evaluation of the prevalence of abnormal behavior in our sample from the U.S. zoo population also demonstrates the importance of considering the contribution of historical variables to present behavior, in order to better understand the causes of these behaviors and any potential relationship to psychological

  5. The study of operating an air conditioning system using Maisotsenko-Cycle

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Khan, Mohammad S.; Tahan, Sami; Toufic El-Achkar, Mohamad; Abou Jamus, Saleh

    2018-03-01

    The project aims to design and build an air conditioning system that runs on the Maisotsenko cycle. The system is required to condition and cool down ambient air for a small residential space with the reduction in the use of electricity and eliminating the use of commercial refrigerants. This project can operate at its optimum performance in remote areas like oil diggers and other projects that run in the desert or any site that would not have a very high relative humidity level. The Maisotsenko cycle is known as the thermodynamic concept that captures energy from the air by using the psychometric renewable energy available in the latent heat in water evaporating in air. The heat and mass exchanger design was based on choosing a material that would-be water resistant and breathable, which was found to be layers of cardboard placed on top of each other and thus creating channels for air to pass through. Aiming for this design eliminates any high power electrical equipment such as compressors, condensers and evaporators that would be used in an AC system with the exception of a 600 W blower and a 10 W fan, thus making it a more environmentally friendly project. Moreover, the project is limited by the ambient temperature and humidity, as the model operates at an optimum when the relative humidity is lower.

  6. "Idiopathic" mental retardation and new chromosomal abnormalities

    PubMed Central

    2010-01-01

    Mental retardation is a heterogeneous condition, affecting 1-3% of general population. In the last few years, several emerging clinical entities have been described, due to the advent of newest genetic techniques, such as array Comparative Genomic Hybridization. The detection of cryptic microdeletion/microduplication abnormalities has allowed genotype-phenotype correlations, delineating recognizable syndromic conditions that are herein reviewed. With the aim to provide to Paediatricians a combined clinical and genetic approach to the child with cognitive impairment, a practical diagnostic algorithm is also illustrated. The use of microarray platforms has further reduced the percentage of "idiopathic" forms of mental retardation, previously accounted for about half of total cases. We discussed the putative pathways at the basis of remaining "pure idiopathic" forms of mental retardation, highlighting possible environmental and epigenetic mechanisms as causes of altered cognition. PMID:20152051

  7. Contriving Transitive Conditioned Establishing Operations to Establish Derived Manding Skills in Adults with Severe Developmental Disabilities

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Rosales, Rocio; Rehfeldt, Ruth Anne

    2007-01-01

    The purpose of this study was to demonstrate derived manding skills in 2 adults with severe developmental disabilities and language deficits by contriving transitive conditioned establishing operations. Specifically, we evaluated whether a history of reinforced conditional discrimination learning would ultimately result in a derived mand…

  8. Pinna abnormalities and low-set ears

    MedlinePlus

    ... Pinna abnormalities; Genetic defect - pinna; Congenital defect - pinna Images Ear abnormalities Pinna of the newborn ear References Haddad J, Keesecker S. Congenital malformations. In: Kliegman RM, Stanton BF, ...

  9. Early electrocardiographic abnormalities in Trypanosoma cruzi-seropositive children.

    PubMed

    de Andrade, A L; Zicker, F; Rassi, A; Rassi, A G; Oliveira, R M; Silva, S A; de Andrade, S S; Martelli, C M

    1998-10-01

    As part of a major epidemiologic study on Chagas' disease, we compared the prevalence of electrocardiographic (ECG) abnormalities among 141 school children 7-12 years of age and seropositive for Trypanosoma cruzi, and 282 age-, sex-, and school-matched seronegative children in an endemic area in Brazil. The prevalence of ECG abnormalities was 11.3% among seropositive children and 3.5% among seronegative children (odds ratio = 3.5, 95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.5-8.4). The prevalence rate of ECG alterations was 10.7% for seropositive males versus 8.9% for seropositive females. Complete right bundle branch block (CRBBB), which is highly suggestive of Chagas' disease cardiopathy, was diagnosed in nine (6.4%) seropositive children and in only one (0.3%) seronegative child (odds ratio = 18.5, 95% CI = 2.3-146.5, attributable fraction = 58.3%). Five incident new cases of CRBBB were diagnosed after a 36-month follow-up of seropositive children who were enrolled in an independent clinical field trial. No case of frequent and/or multifocal ventricular premature beats was found in the cohort of children. The surprisingly high frequency of early ECG abnormalities, which indicates a rapid evolution from infection to disease, suggests the existence of endemic areas with a particular accelerated disease progression that was not described before. Under such conditions, a public health chemotherapy program focusing on the treatment of young seropositive children would be recommended.

  10. Surgical management of urinary stones with abnormal kidney anatomy.

    PubMed

    Ergin, Giray; Kirac, Mustafa; Unsal, Ali; Kopru, Burak; Yordam, Mustafa; Biri, Hasan

    2017-04-01

    In spite of the fact that urologic surgical techniques used by urologists are becoming more and more minimally invasive and easier because of developing technologies, surgical approaches for the urinary stones in kidneys with abnormal anatomy are still confusing. The objective of this article is to determine the treatment options in these kidneys. For this purpose, between 2005 and 2015, we retrospectively evaluated patients operated for urolithiasis with various congenital renal anomalies in five referral urology clinics in our country. Of the 178 patients (110 male, 60 female), 96 had horseshoe kidneys, 42 had pelvic ectopic kidneys (PEKs), and 40 had isolated rotation anomalies (IRAs) of the kidney. We evaluated the patients for stone-free rate (SFR), mean operation time, mean hospitalization time, and complication rate. In horseshoe kidney, SFRs for retrograde intrarenal surgery (RIRS) and percutaneous nephrolithotomy (PNL) groups were 72.2% and 90%, respectively. In PEKs, these rates were 83.6% and 100% for RIRS and laparoscopic pyelolithotomy, respectively. SFRs in kidneys with IRA were 75% for RIRS and 83.3% for PNL. The mean operation time for RIRS and PNL groups in horseshoe kidney was 40.5±11.2 minutes and 74.5±19.3 minutes, respectively. In PEKs, these times were 52.1±19.3 minutes and 53.1±24.3 minutes for RIRS and laparoscopic pyelolithotomy, respectively. Mean operation time in kidneys with IRA was 48.7±14.4 minutes for RIRS and 53.2±11.3 minutes for PNL. Mean hospitalization times for RIRS and PNL groups in horseshoe kidneys were 1.4±0.7 days and 2.2±1.4 days, respectively. In PEKs, these times were 2.7±1.8 days and 1.9±0.4 days for RIRS and laparoscopic pyelolithotomy, respectively. Mean operation time in kidneys with IRA was 1.5±0.9 days for RIRS and 1.8±0.6 days for PNL. The results of our study showed that RIRS could be used in all of types of abnormal kidneys with small- and medium-sized renal calculi safely and satisfactorily

  11. Associations of emotional arousal, dissociation and symptom severity with operant conditioning in borderline personality disorder.

    PubMed

    Paret, Christian; Hoesterey, Steffen; Kleindienst, Nikolaus; Schmahl, Christian

    2016-10-30

    Those with borderline personality disorder (BPD) display altered evaluations regarding reward and punishment compared to others. The processing of rewards is basal for operant conditioning. However, studies addressing operant conditioning in BPD patients are rare. In the current study, an operant conditioning task combining learning acquisition and reversal was used. BPD patients and matched healthy controls (HCs) were exposed to aversive and neutral stimuli to assess the influence of emotion on learning. Picture content, dissociation, aversive tension and symptom severity were rated. Error rates were measured. Results showed no group interactions between aversive versus neutral scenes. The higher emotional arousal, dissociation and tension, the worse the acquisition, but not reversal, scores were for BPD patients. Scores from the Borderline Symptom List were associated with more errors in the reversal, but not the acquisition phase. The results are preliminary evidence for impaired acquisition learning due to increased emotional arousal, dissociation and tension in BPD patients. A failure to process punishment in the reversal phase was associated with symptom severity and may be related to neuropsychological dysfunctioning involving the ventromedial prefrontal cortex. Conclusions are limited due to the correlational study design and the small sample size. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

  12. Effect of operating conditions on performance of silica gel-water air-fluidised desiccant cooler

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Rogala, Zbigniew; Kolasiński, Piotr; Gnutek, Zbigniew

    2017-11-01

    Fluidised desiccant cooling is reported in the literature as an efficient way to provide cooling for air-conditioning purposes. The performance of this technology can be described by electric and thermal Coefficients of Performance (COP) and Specific Cooling Power (SCP). In this paper comprehensive theoretical study was carried out in order to assess the effect of operating conditions such as: superficial air velocity, desiccant particle diameter, bed switching time and desiccant filling height on the performance of fluidised desiccant cooler (FDC). It was concluded that FDC should be filled with as small as possible desiccant particles featuring diameters and should not be operated with shorter switching times than optimum. Moreover in order to efficiently run such systems superficial air velocities during adsorption and desorption should be similar. At last substantial effect of desiccant filling height on performance of FDC was presented.

  13. Feeding Behavior of Aplysia: A Model System for Comparing Cellular Mechanisms of Classical and Operant Conditioning

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Baxter, Douglas A.; Byrne, John H.

    2006-01-01

    Feeding behavior of Aplysia provides an excellent model system for analyzing and comparing mechanisms underlying appetitive classical conditioning and reward operant conditioning. Behavioral protocols have been developed for both forms of associative learning, both of which increase the occurrence of biting following training. Because the neural…

  14. Do abnormal responses show utilitarian bias?

    PubMed

    Kahane, Guy; Shackel, Nicholas

    2008-03-20

    Neuroscience has recently turned to the study of utilitarian and non-utilitarian moral judgement. Koenigs et al. examine the responses of normal subjects and those with ventromedial-prefrontal-cortex (VMPC) damage to moral scenarios drawn from functional magnetic resonance imaging studies by Greene et al., and claim that patients with VMPC damage have an abnormally "utilitarian" pattern of moral judgement. It is crucial to the claims of Koenigs et al. that the scenarios of Greene et al. pose a conflict between utilitarian consequence and duty: however, many of them do not meet this condition. Because of this methodological problem, it is too early to claim that VMPC patients have a utilitarian bias.

  15. Pyrosequencing reveals the microbial communities in the Red Sea sponge Carteriospongia foliascens and their impressive shifts in abnormal tissues.

    PubMed

    Gao, Zhao-Ming; Wang, Yong; Lee, On On; Tian, Ren-Mao; Wong, Yue Him; Bougouffa, Salim; Batang, Zenon; Al-Suwailem, Abdulaziz; Lafi, Feras F; Bajic, Vladimir B; Qian, Pei-Yuan

    2014-10-01

    Abnormality and disease in sponges have been widely reported, yet how sponge-associated microbes respond correspondingly remains inconclusive. Here, individuals of the sponge Carteriospongia foliascens under abnormal status were collected from the Rabigh Bay along the Red Sea coast. Microbial communities in both healthy and abnormal sponge tissues and adjacent seawater were compared to check the influences of these abnormalities on sponge-associated microbes. In healthy tissues, we revealed low microbial diversity with less than 100 operational taxonomic units (OTUs) per sample. Cyanobacteria, affiliated mainly with the sponge-specific species "Candidatus Synechococcus spongiarum," were the dominant bacteria, followed by Bacteroidetes and Proteobacteria. Intraspecies dynamics of microbial communities in healthy tissues were observed among sponge individuals, and potential anoxygenic phototrophic bacteria were found. In comparison with healthy tissues and the adjacent seawater, abnormal tissues showed dramatic increase in microbial diversity and decrease in the abundance of sponge-specific microbial clusters. The dominated cyanobacterial species Candidatus Synechococcus spongiarum decreased and shifted to unspecific cyanobacterial clades. OTUs that showed high similarity to sequences derived from diseased corals, such as Leptolyngbya sp., were found to be abundant in abnormal tissues. Heterotrophic Planctomycetes were also specifically enriched in abnormal tissues. Overall, we revealed the microbial communities of the cyanobacteria-rich sponge, C. foliascens, and their impressive shifts under abnormality.

  16. Dysmorphometrics: the modelling of morphological abnormalities.

    PubMed

    Claes, Peter; Daniels, Katleen; Walters, Mark; Clement, John; Vandermeulen, Dirk; Suetens, Paul

    2012-02-06

    The study of typical morphological variations using quantitative, morphometric descriptors has always interested biologists in general. However, unusual examples of form, such as abnormalities are often encountered in biomedical sciences. Despite the long history of morphometrics, the means to identify and quantify such unusual form differences remains limited. A theoretical concept, called dysmorphometrics, is introduced augmenting current geometric morphometrics with a focus on identifying and modelling form abnormalities. Dysmorphometrics applies the paradigm of detecting form differences as outliers compared to an appropriate norm. To achieve this, the likelihood formulation of landmark superimpositions is extended with outlier processes explicitly introducing a latent variable coding for abnormalities. A tractable solution to this augmented superimposition problem is obtained using Expectation-Maximization. The topography of detected abnormalities is encoded in a dysmorphogram. We demonstrate the use of dysmorphometrics to measure abrupt changes in time, asymmetry and discordancy in a set of human faces presenting with facial abnormalities. The results clearly illustrate the unique power to reveal unusual form differences given only normative data with clear applications in both biomedical practice & research.

  17. Abnormal proactive and reactive cognitive control during conflict processing in major depression.

    PubMed

    Vanderhasselt, Marie-Anne; De Raedt, Rudi; De Paepe, Annick; Aarts, Kristien; Otte, Georges; Van Dorpe, Jan; Pourtois, Gilles

    2014-02-01

    According to the Dual Mechanisms of Control framework, cognitive control consists of two complementary components: proactive control refers to anticipatory maintenance of goal-relevant information, whereas reactive control acts as a correction mechanism that is activated when a conflict occurs. Possibly, the well-known diminished inhibitory control in response to negative stimuli in Major Depressive Disorder (MDD) patients stems from a breakdown in proactive control, and/or anomalies in reactive cognitive control. In our study, MDD patients specifically showed increased response latencies when actively inhibiting a dominant response to a sad compared with a happy face. This condition was associated with a longer duration of a dominant ERP topography (800-900 ms poststimulus onset) and a stronger activity in the bilateral dorsal anterior cingulate cortex, reflecting abnormal reactive control when inhibiting attention to a negative stimulus. Moreover, MDD patients showed abnormalities in proactive cognitive control when preparing for the upcoming imperative stimulus (abnormal modulation of the contingent negative variation component), accompanied by more activity in brain regions belonging to the default mode network. All together, deficits to inhibit attention to negative information in MDD might originate from an abnormal use of both proactive resources and reactive control processes. PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2014 APA, all rights reserved.

  18. An explorative, cross-sectional study into abnormal muscular coupling during reach in chronic stroke patients

    PubMed Central

    2010-01-01

    Background In many stroke patients arm function is limited, which can be related to an abnormal coupling between shoulder and elbow joints. The extent to which this can be translated to activities of daily life (ADL), in terms of muscle activation during ADL-like movements, is rather unknown. Therefore, the present study examined the occurrence of abnormal coupling on functional, ADL-like reaching movements of chronic stroke patients by comparison with healthy persons. Methods Upward multi-joint reaching movements (20 repetitions at a self-selected speed to resemble ADL) were compared in two conditions: once facilitated by arm weight compensation and once resisted to provoke a potential abnormal coupling. Changes in movement performance (joint angles) and muscle activation (amplitude of activity and co-activation) between conditions were compared between healthy persons and stroke patients using a repeated measures ANOVA. Results The present study showed slight changes in joint excursion and muscle activation of stroke patients due to shoulder elevation resistance during functional reach. Remarkably, in healthy persons similar changes were observed. Even the results of a sub-group of the more impaired stroke patients did not point to an abnormal coupling between shoulder elevation and elbow flexion during functional reach. Conclusions The present findings suggest that in mildly and moderately affected chronic stroke patients ADL-like arm movements are not substantially affected by abnormal synergistic coupling. In this case, it is implied that other major contributors to limitations in functional use of the arm should be identified and targeted individually in rehabilitation, to improve use of the arm in activities of daily living. PMID:20233402

  19. Characterizing (rating) the performance of large photovoltaic arrays for all operating conditions

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    King, D.L.; Eckert, P.E.

    1996-06-01

    A new method has been developed for characterizing the electrical performance of photovoltaic arrays. The method provides both a ``rating`` at standard reporting conditions and a rigorous yet straightforward model for predicting array performance at all operating conditions. For the first time, the performance model handles the influences of irradiance, module temperature, solar spectrum, solar angle-of-incidence, and temperature coefficients, in a practical way. Validity of the procedure was confirmed during field testing of a 25-kW array recently installed by Arizona Public Service Co. on Carol Spring Mountain (which powers microwave, ceullular phone, and TV communictions equipment). This paper describes themore » characterization procedure, measured array performance, and the predictive model.« less

  20. A library of programmable DNAzymes that operate in a cellular environment.

    PubMed

    Kahan-Hanum, Maya; Douek, Yehonatan; Adar, Rivka; Shapiro, Ehud

    2013-01-01

    DNAzymes were used as inhibitory agents in a variety of experimental disease settings, such as cancer, viral infections and even HIV. Drugs that become active only upon the presence of preprogrammed abnormal environmental conditions may enable selective molecular therapy by targeting abnormal cells without injuring normal cells. Here we show a novel programmable DNAzyme library composed of variety of Boolean logic gates, including YES, AND, NOT, OR, NAND, ANDNOT, XOR, NOR and 3-input-AND gate, that uses both miRNAs and mRNAs as inputs. Each gate is based on the c-jun cleaving Dz13 DNAzyme and active only in the presence of specific input combinations. The library is modular, supports arbitrary inputs and outputs, cascadable, highly specific and robust. We demonstrate the library's potential diagnostic abilities on miRNA and mRNA combinations in cell lysate and its ability to operate in a cellular environment by using beacon-like c-jun mimicking substrate in living mammalian cells.

  1. A library of programmable DNAzymes that operate in a cellular environment

    PubMed Central

    Kahan-Hanum, Maya; Douek, Yehonatan; Adar, Rivka; Shapiro, Ehud

    2013-01-01

    DNAzymes were used as inhibitory agents in a variety of experimental disease settings, such as cancer, viral infections and even HIV. Drugs that become active only upon the presence of preprogrammed abnormal environmental conditions may enable selective molecular therapy by targeting abnormal cells without injuring normal cells. Here we show a novel programmable DNAzyme library composed of variety of Boolean logic gates, including YES, AND, NOT, OR, NAND, ANDNOT, XOR, NOR and 3-input-AND gate, that uses both miRNAs and mRNAs as inputs. Each gate is based on the c-jun cleaving Dz13 DNAzyme and active only in the presence of specific input combinations. The library is modular, supports arbitrary inputs and outputs, cascadable, highly specific and robust. We demonstrate the library's potential diagnostic abilities on miRNA and mRNA combinations in cell lysate and its ability to operate in a cellular environment by using beacon-like c-jun mimicking substrate in living mammalian cells. PMID:23525068

  2. Congenital Abnormalities

    MedlinePlus

    ... tube defects. However, there is also a genetic influence to this type of congenital anomaly. Unknown Causes The vast majority of congenital abnormalities have no known cause. This is particularly troubling for parents who plan to have more children, because there is no way to predict if ...

  3. Application-ready expedited MODIS data for operational land surface monitoring of vegetation condition

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Brown, Jesslyn; Howard, Daniel M.; Wylie, Bruce K.; Friesz, Aaron M.; Ji, Lei; Gacke, Carolyn

    2015-01-01

    Monitoring systems benefit from high temporal frequency image data collected from the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) system. Because of near-daily global coverage, MODIS data are beneficial to applications that require timely information about vegetation condition related to drought, flooding, or fire danger. Rapid satellite data streams in operational applications have clear benefits for monitoring vegetation, especially when information can be delivered as fast as changing surface conditions. An “expedited” processing system called “eMODIS” operated by the U.S. Geological Survey provides rapid MODIS surface reflectance data to operational applications in less than 24 h offering tailored, consistently-processed information products that complement standard MODIS products. We assessed eMODIS quality and consistency by comparing to standard MODIS data. Only land data with known high quality were analyzed in a central U.S. study area. When compared to standard MODIS (MOD/MYD09Q1), the eMODIS Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) maintained a strong, significant relationship to standard MODIS NDVI, whether from morning (Terra) or afternoon (Aqua) orbits. The Aqua eMODIS data were more prone to noise than the Terra data, likely due to differences in the internal cloud mask used in MOD/MYD09Q1 or compositing rules. Post-processing temporal smoothing decreased noise in eMODIS data.

  4. Effect of operational conditions on the degradation of organic matter and development of microalgae-bacteria consortia when treating swine slurry.

    PubMed

    González-Fernández, Cristina; Riaño-Irazábal, Berta; Molinuevo-Salces, Beatriz; Blanco, Saúl; García-González, Maria Cruz

    2011-05-01

    There is great controversy regarding the best substrate (fresh or anaerobically digested swine slurry) for the development of microalgae-bacteria consortia. This study aims to elucidate the best substrate by assessing biomass productivity, microorganism predominance, and their ability for organic matter removal. In addition to the different substrates, different operational conditions and influent strengths were evaluated. Increasing organic matter content when favourable temperature and illumination conditions were present improved biomass production. However, these conditions were not favourable for microalgal growth, but they were favourable for bacteria. Regardless of the operational conditions, reactors fed with fresh slurry not only resulted in the highest biomass productivity, but also the greatest removal of total and soluble chemical oxygen demand (COD). On the other hand, reactors fed with digested slurry showed biomass productivity and COD removal values lower than those obtained for reactors fed with fresh slurry, most probably due to the recalcitrant nature of the former. Nevertheless, digested slurry was the substrate more appropriate for microalgae growth under harsh operational conditions (16 °C and 9-h illumination) at low influent strength and optimum operational conditions (30 °C and 24-h illumination) at higher influent strength.

  5. Prevalence of preoperative penile abnormalities among voluntary male medical circumcision patients in Swaziland.

    PubMed

    Oddo, Anthony R; Ruedrich, Elizabeth; Zust, Christopher; Marugg, Lindsey; VanderWal, Echo; VanderWal, Harry; Sartori, Rebekah; Markert, Ronald; McCarthy, Mary C

    2017-08-01

    Circumcision has been found to be an effective strategy for lowering the transmission of HIV in Africa. The Luke Commission, a mobile hospital outreach program, has used this information to decrease the rate of HIV in Swaziland by performing voluntary male medical circumcisions throughout the country. During many of these circumcisions, genital medical conditions and penile abnormalities are simultaneously discovered and corrected. The goal of our study was to evaluate the prevalence of penile abnormalities discovered and treated during voluntary male medical circumcisions performed by The Luke Commission (TLC) throughout rural Swaziland. We completed a retrospective analysis of all male patients who underwent voluntary male medical circumcision performed by TLC during a period from June-August, 2014. The penile abnormalities included: phimosis, paraphimosis, epispadias, hypospadias, ulcers, balanitis, torsion, and foreskin adherent to the glans. Of 929 total circumcisions, 771 (83%) patients had at least one pre-existing penile abnormality identified during their examinations and procedures, totaling 1110 abnormalities. Three specific abnormalities were detected - phimosis, adherent foreskin, and hypospadias. The 6-12 and 13-19 age groups had adequate sample sizes to yield precise estimates of prevalence (age group 6-12: 87% (95% confidence interval [CI]=84-90%; age group 13-19: 79% (95% CI=74-84%). The Luke Commission is improving the lives of children and adults with limited access to healthcare through regular preoperative evaluations during male circumcision, and the organization is setting an example for other international healthcare groups. Type of Study: Prognostic Study, Level II. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  6. Frequency of metabolic abnormalities in urinary stones patients.

    PubMed

    Ahmad, Iftikhar; Pansota, Mudassar Saeed; Tariq, Muhammad; Tabassum, Shafqat Ali

    2013-11-01

    To determine the frequency of metabolic abnormalities in the serum and urine of patients with urinary stones disease. Two hundred patients with either multiple or recurrent urolithiasis diagnosed on ultrasonography and intravenous urography were included in this study. 24 hour urine sample were collected from each patient and sent for PH, specific gravity, Creatinine, uric acid, calcium, phosphate, oxalate, citrate and magnesium. In addition, blood sample of each patient was also sent for serum levels of urea, creatinine, uric acid, phosphate and calcium. Mean age of patients was 38 ± 7.75 years with male to female ratio of 2:1. The main presenting complaint was lumber pain and 82.5% patients were found to have calcium oxalate stones on chemical analysis. Metabolic abnormalities were found in 90.5% patients, whereas there were no metabolic abnormalities in 19 (9.5%) patients. Forty patients (21.5%) only had one metabolic abnormality and 157 (78.5%) patients had multiple metabolic abnormalities. Hyperoxaluria was the most commonly observed metabolic abnormality and was found in 64.5% patients. Other significant metabolic abnormalities were hypercalciuria, Hypercalcemia, hypocitraturia and hyperuricemia. This study concludes that frequency of metabolic abnormalities is very high in patients with urolithiasis and hyperoxaluria, hypercalciuria and hypocitraturia are the most important metabolic abnormalities observed in these patients.

  7. Abnormal Cervical Cancer Screening Test Results

    MedlinePlus

    ... FAQ187 GYNECOLOGIC PROBLEMS Abnormal Cervical Cancer Screening Test Results • What is cervical cancer screening? • What causes abnormal cervical cancer screening test results? • What is the difference between the terms cervical ...

  8. Influence of operating conditions on the air gasification of dry refinery sludge in updraft gasifier

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Ahmed, R.; Sinnathambi, C. M.

    2013-06-01

    In the present work, details of the equilibrium modeling of dry refinery sludge (DRS) are presented using ASPEN PLUS Simulator in updraft gasifier. Due to lack of available information in the open journal on refinery sludge gasification using updraft gasifier, an evaluate for its optimum conditions on gasification is presented in this paper. For this purpose a Taguchi Orthogonal array design, statistical software is applied to find optimum conditions for DRS gasification. The goal is to identify the most significant process variable in DRS gasification conditions. The process variables include; oxidation zone temperature, equivalent ratio, operating pressure will be simulated and examined. Attention was focused on the effect of optimum operating conditions on the gas composition of H2 and CO (desirable) and CO2 (undesirable) in terms of mass fraction. From our results and finding it can be concluded that the syngas (H2 & CO) yield in term of mass fraction favors high oxidation zone temperature and at atmospheric pressure while CO2 acid gas favor at a high level of equivalent ratio as well as air flow rate favoring towards complete combustion.

  9. Relationship between Prevailing Oceanographic conditions on the fishing operations in the Northern Indian Ocean

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Moazzam Khan, Muhammad

    2014-05-01

    Marked seasonality in fishing operation and catch composition was observed in the Northern Indian Ocean. These variations are more pronounced and noticeable in case of trawling for fish and shrimp as well as in the surface gillnetting for tuna and large pelagics. Although oceanographic conditions of the Northern Indian Ocean has been studied comprehensively, some facets of these are not well understood especially their relation with the fish distribution and abundance. Important oceanographic factors especially migration of oxygen minimum layer towards coastal areas after the cessation of South-West Monsoon seems to the most important factor responsible for the seasonal variation in the fishing intensity and species composition. Distribution and abundance of some of the commercially important marine animals especially billfishes was observed to be associated with the physical features of the area especially their abundance was noticed along continental margin and on the ridges in the Arabian Sea. The paper describes seasonal variation in abundance and catch composition of various fishing operations in the Indian Ocean and relates its to prevailing oceanographic conditions. Fishermen traditional knowledge about the seasonality of these conditions is also documented in the paper.

  10. Operation Reliability Assessment for Cutting Tools by Applying a Proportional Covariate Model to Condition Monitoring Information

    PubMed Central

    Cai, Gaigai; Chen, Xuefeng; Li, Bing; Chen, Baojia; He, Zhengjia

    2012-01-01

    The reliability of cutting tools is critical to machining precision and production efficiency. The conventional statistic-based reliability assessment method aims at providing a general and overall estimation of reliability for a large population of identical units under given and fixed conditions. However, it has limited effectiveness in depicting the operational characteristics of a cutting tool. To overcome this limitation, this paper proposes an approach to assess the operation reliability of cutting tools. A proportional covariate model is introduced to construct the relationship between operation reliability and condition monitoring information. The wavelet packet transform and an improved distance evaluation technique are used to extract sensitive features from vibration signals, and a covariate function is constructed based on the proportional covariate model. Ultimately, the failure rate function of the cutting tool being assessed is calculated using the baseline covariate function obtained from a small sample of historical data. Experimental results and a comparative study show that the proposed method is effective for assessing the operation reliability of cutting tools. PMID:23201980

  11. The elusive abnormal CO2 insertion enabled by metal-ligand cooperative photochemical selectivity inversion.

    PubMed

    Schneck, Felix; Ahrens, Jennifer; Finger, Markus; Stückl, A Claudia; Würtele, Christian; Schwarzer, Dirk; Schneider, Sven

    2018-03-21

    Direct hydrogenation of CO 2 to CO, the reverse water-gas shift reaction, is an attractive route to CO 2 utilization. However, the use of molecular catalysts is impeded by the general reactivity of metal hydrides with CO 2 . Insertion into M-H bonds results in formates (MO(O)CH), whereas the abnormal insertion to the hydroxycarbonyl isomer (MC(O)OH), which is the key intermediate for CO-selective catalysis, has never been directly observed. We here report that the selectivity of CO 2 insertion into a Ni-H bond can be inverted from normal to abnormal insertion upon switching from thermal to photochemical conditions. Mechanistic examination for abnormal insertion indicates photochemical N-H reductive elimination as the pivotal step that leads to an umpolung of the hydride ligand. This study conceptually introduces metal-ligand cooperation for selectivity control in photochemical transformations.

  12. Presearch data conditioning in the Kepler Science Operations Center pipeline

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Twicken, Joseph D.; Chandrasekaran, Hema; Jenkins, Jon M.; Gunter, Jay P.; Girouard, Forrest; Klaus, Todd C.

    2010-07-01

    We describe the Presearch Data Conditioning (PDC) software component and its context in the Kepler Science Operations Center (SOC) Science Processing Pipeline. The primary tasks of this component are to correct systematic and other errors, remove excess flux due to aperture crowding, and condition the raw flux light curves for over 160,000 long cadence (~thirty minute) and 512 short cadence (~one minute) stellar targets. Long cadence corrected flux light curves are subjected to a transiting planet search in a subsequent pipeline module. We discuss science algorithms for long and short cadence PDC: identification and correction of unexplained (i.e., unrelated to known anomalies) discontinuities; systematic error correction; and removal of excess flux due to aperture crowding. We discuss the propagation of uncertainties from raw to corrected flux. Finally, we present examples from Kepler flight data to illustrate PDC performance. Corrected flux light curves produced by PDC are exported to the Multi-mission Archive at Space Telescope [Science Institute] (MAST) and are made available to the general public in accordance with the NASA/Kepler data release policy.

  13. Presearch Data Conditioning in the Kepler Science Operations Center Pipeline

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Twicken, Joseph D.; Chandrasekaran, Hema; Jenkins, Jon M.; Gunter, Jay P.; Girouard, Forrest; Klaus, Todd C.

    2010-01-01

    We describe the Presearch Data Conditioning (PDC) software component and its context in the Kepler Science Operations Center (SOC) pipeline. The primary tasks of this component are to correct systematic and other errors, remove excess flux due to aperture crowding, and condition the raw flux light curves for over 160,000 long cadence (thirty minute) and 512 short cadence (one minute) targets across the focal plane array. Long cadence corrected flux light curves are subjected to a transiting planet search in a subsequent pipeline module. We discuss the science algorithms for long and short cadence PDC: identification and correction of unexplained (i.e., unrelated to known anomalies) discontinuities; systematic error correction; and excess flux removal. We discuss the propagation of uncertainties from raw to corrected flux. Finally, we present examples of raw and corrected flux time series for flight data to illustrate PDC performance. Corrected flux light curves produced by PDC are exported to the Multi-mission Archive at Space Telescope [Science Institute] (MAST) and will be made available to the general public in accordance with the NASA/Kepler data release policy.

  14. Operational Medical Issues in Hypo-and Hyperbaric Conditions (les Questions medicales a caractere oprationel liees aux conditions hypobares ou hyperbares)

    DTIC Science & Technology

    2001-06-01

    If something goes wrong during operations outside normal environmental conditions, causing disease or injury, effective treatment must be available...embolism. Current evidence suggests that a substantial portion of HBO’s benefit for these diseases is mediated through containment of reperfusion...approach to these diseases utilizing surgery, antibiotics, and HBO. Where HBO is available, the surgical debridements are fewer, as there is a

  15. Abnormal nuclear envelopes in the striatum and motor deficits in DYT11 myoclonus-dystonia mouse models.

    PubMed

    Yokoi, Fumiaki; Dang, Mai T; Zhou, Tong; Li, Yuqing

    2012-02-15

    DYT11 myoclonus-dystonia (M-D) is a movement disorder characterized by myoclonic jerks with dystonic symptoms and caused by mutations in paternally expressed SGCE, which codes for ε-sarcoglycan. Paternally inherited Sgce heterozygous knock-out (KO) mice exhibit motor deficits and spontaneous myoclonus. Abnormal nuclear envelopes have been reported in cellular and mouse models of early-onset DYT1 generalized torsion dystonia; however, the relationship between the abnormal nuclear envelopes and motor symptoms are not clear. Furthermore, it is not known whether abnormal nuclear envelope exists in non-DYT1 dystonia. In the present study, abnormal nuclear envelopes in the striatal medium spiny neurons (MSNs) were found in Sgce KO mice. To analyze whether the loss of ε-sarcoglycan in the striatum alone causes abnormal nuclear envelopes, motor deficits or myoclonus, we produced paternally inherited striatum-specific Sgce conditional KO (Sgce sKO) mice and analyzed their phenotypes. Sgce sKO mice exhibited motor deficits in both beam-walking and accelerated rotarod tests, while they did not exhibit abnormal nuclear envelopes, alteration in locomotion, or myoclonus. The results suggest that the loss of ε-sarcoglycan in the striatum contributes to motor deficits, while it alone does not produce abnormal nuclear envelopes or myoclonus. Development of therapies targeting the striatum to compensate for the loss of ε-sarcoglycan function may rescue the motor deficits in DYT11 M-D patients.

  16. Towards energy efficient operation of Heating, Ventilation and Air Conditioning systems via advanced supervisory control design

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Oswiecinska, A.; Hibbs, J.; Zajic, I.; Burnham, K. J.

    2015-11-01

    This paper presents conceptual control solution for reliable and energy efficient operation of heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) systems used in large volume building applications, e.g. warehouse facilities or exhibition centres. Advanced two-level scalable control solution, designed to extend capabilities of the existing low-level control strategies via remote internet connection, is presented. The high-level, supervisory controller is based on Model Predictive Control (MPC) architecture, which is the state-of-the-art for indoor climate control systems. The innovative approach benefits from using passive heating and cooling control strategies for reducing the HVAC system operational costs, while ensuring that required environmental conditions are met.

  17. What proportion of congenital abnormalities can be prevented?

    PubMed Central

    Czeizel, A E; Intôdy, Z; Modell, B

    1993-01-01

    OBJECTIVE--To estimate the proportion of preventable congenital abnormalities in Hungary. DESIGN--Analysis of available Hungarian data-bases and of the effectiveness of primary, secondary, and tertiary preventive methods. SETTING--Databases of ad hoc epidemiological studies and of the Hungarian congenital abnormality registry. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES--Prevalence at birth and prevalence after prevention in 73 congenital abnormality types or groups. RESULTS--Preventive methods are available for 51 (70%) of the 73 congenital abnormality types or groups evaluated. The birth prevalence of all congenital abnormalities could be reduced from 65 to 26 per 1000; thus 39 per 1000 (60%) are preventable. Without congenital dislocation of the hip, which is unusually common in Hungary, the preventable proportion of congenital abnormalities is 52%. CONCLUSION--Many congenital abnormalities can be prevented, but as they do not represent a single pathological category there is no single strategy for their prevention. Images p502-a p503-a PMID:8448464

  18. Sparse coding can predict primary visual cortex receptive field changes induced by abnormal visual input.

    PubMed

    Hunt, Jonathan J; Dayan, Peter; Goodhill, Geoffrey J

    2013-01-01

    Receptive fields acquired through unsupervised learning of sparse representations of natural scenes have similar properties to primary visual cortex (V1) simple cell receptive fields. However, what drives in vivo development of receptive fields remains controversial. The strongest evidence for the importance of sensory experience in visual development comes from receptive field changes in animals reared with abnormal visual input. However, most sparse coding accounts have considered only normal visual input and the development of monocular receptive fields. Here, we applied three sparse coding models to binocular receptive field development across six abnormal rearing conditions. In every condition, the changes in receptive field properties previously observed experimentally were matched to a similar and highly faithful degree by all the models, suggesting that early sensory development can indeed be understood in terms of an impetus towards sparsity. As previously predicted in the literature, we found that asymmetries in inter-ocular correlation across orientations lead to orientation-specific binocular receptive fields. Finally we used our models to design a novel stimulus that, if present during rearing, is predicted by the sparsity principle to lead robustly to radically abnormal receptive fields.

  19. Sparse Coding Can Predict Primary Visual Cortex Receptive Field Changes Induced by Abnormal Visual Input

    PubMed Central

    Hunt, Jonathan J.; Dayan, Peter; Goodhill, Geoffrey J.

    2013-01-01

    Receptive fields acquired through unsupervised learning of sparse representations of natural scenes have similar properties to primary visual cortex (V1) simple cell receptive fields. However, what drives in vivo development of receptive fields remains controversial. The strongest evidence for the importance of sensory experience in visual development comes from receptive field changes in animals reared with abnormal visual input. However, most sparse coding accounts have considered only normal visual input and the development of monocular receptive fields. Here, we applied three sparse coding models to binocular receptive field development across six abnormal rearing conditions. In every condition, the changes in receptive field properties previously observed experimentally were matched to a similar and highly faithful degree by all the models, suggesting that early sensory development can indeed be understood in terms of an impetus towards sparsity. As previously predicted in the literature, we found that asymmetries in inter-ocular correlation across orientations lead to orientation-specific binocular receptive fields. Finally we used our models to design a novel stimulus that, if present during rearing, is predicted by the sparsity principle to lead robustly to radically abnormal receptive fields. PMID:23675290

  20. Neural conduction abnormality in the brain stem and prevalence of the abnormality in late preterm infants with perinatal problems.

    PubMed

    Jiang, Ze Dong

    2013-08-01

    Neurodevelopment in late preterm infants has recently attracted considerable interest. The prevalence of brain stem conduction abnormality remains unknown. We examined maximum length sequence brain stem auditory evoked response in 163 infants, born at 33-36 weeks gestation, who had various perinatal problems. Compared with 49 normal term infants without problems, the late preterm infants showed a significant increase in III-V and I-V interpeak intervals at all 91-910/s clicks, particularly at 455 and 910/s (p < 0.01-0.001). The I-III interval was slightly increased, without statistically significant difference from the controls at any click rates. These results suggest that neural conduction along the, mainly more central or rostral part of, auditory brain stem is abnormal in late preterm infants with perinatal problems. Of the 163 late preterm infant, the number (and percentage rate) of infants with abnormal I-V interval at 91, 227, 455, and 910/s clicks was, respectively, 11 (6.5%), 17 (10.2%), 37 (22.3%), and 31 (18.7%). The number (and percentage rate) of infants with abnormal III-V interval at these rates was, respectively, 10 (6.0%), 17 (10.2%), 28 (16.9), and 36 (21.2%). Apparently, the abnormal rates were much higher at 455 and 910/s clicks than at lower rates 91 and 227/s. In total, 42 (25.8%) infants showed abnormal I-V and/or III-V intervals. Conduction in, mainly in the more central part, the brain stem is abnormal in late preterm infants with perinatal problems. The abnormality is more detectable at high- than at low-rate sensory stimulation. A quarter of late preterm infants with perinatal problems have brain stem conduction abnormality.

  1. [Factors associated with abnormal cervical cytology in pregnant women].

    PubMed

    Fan, Ling; Zou, Li-ying; Wu, Yu-mei; Zhang, Wei-yuan

    2010-02-01

    To investigate the risk factors associated with abnormal cervical cytology findings in pregnant women. From Sep. 2007 to Sep. 2008, 12,112 pregnant women who underwent their antenatal examinations at 12-36 gestational weeks in Beijing Obstetrics and Gynecology Hospital were enrolled in this study. They were all excluded from the following pathologic obstetrics factors including threatened abortion, premature rupture of membranes or placental previa. Thinprep cytology test (TCT) were given at their first examination, meanwhile, a personal clinic file was established to record her occupation, education, address, family income, nationality, age of first intercourse, number of sex partners, contraception, marriage and pregnancy, current gynecologic diseases, family history of gynecologic tumors, history of gynecologic diseases and smoking and result of pelvic examination. Those risk factors leading to abnormal cervical cytology were analyzed. The complete clinical data were collected from 11 906 cases (98.30%, 11,906/12,112). It was found that 10,354 women were shown with normal TCT result, however, 1134 women (9.52%, 1134/11,906) with atypical squamous cells of undetermined significance (ASCUS), 112 women (0.94%, 112/11,906) with atypical glandular cells of undetermined significance (AGUS), 229 women (1.92%, 229/11,906) with low grade squamous intraepithelial (LSIL), 74 women (0.62%, 74/11,906) with high grade squamous intraepithelial (HSIL). Multiple factorial non-conditioned logistic regression analysis showed that age of first sexual intercourse (OR(ASCUS) = 2.90, OR(AGUS) = 7.32), number of sex partners (OR(ASCUS) = 1.49, OR(AGUS) = 2.02), number of abortion (OR(ASCUS) = 1.68, OR(AGUS) = 3.50) were correlated with ASCUS and AGUS. In LSIL group and HSIL group, age of first sexual intercourse (OR(LSIL) = 6.34, OR(HSIL) = 9.26), number of sex partners (OR(LSIL) = 1.69, OR(HSIL) = 1.65), number of abortion (OR(LSIL) = 1.53, OR(HSIL) = 5.33), smoking (OR(LSIL) = 1

  2. Frequency of metabolic abnormalities in urinary stones patients

    PubMed Central

    Ahmad, Iftikhar; Pansota, Mudassar Saeed; Tariq, Muhammad; Tabassum, Shafqat Ali

    2013-01-01

    Objective: To determine the frequency of metabolic abnormalities in the serum and urine of patients with urinary stones disease. Methods: Two hundred patients with either multiple or recurrent urolithiasis diagnosed on ultrasonography and intravenous urography were included in this study. 24 hour urine sample were collected from each patient and sent for PH, specific gravity, Creatinine, uric acid, calcium, phosphate, oxalate, citrate and magnesium. In addition, blood sample of each patient was also sent for serum levels of urea, creatinine, uric acid, phosphate and calcium. Results: Mean age of patients was 38 ± 7.75 years with male to female ratio of 2:1. The main presenting complaint was lumber pain and 82.5% patients were found to have calcium oxalate stones on chemical analysis. Metabolic abnormalities were found in 90.5% patients, whereas there were no metabolic abnormalities in 19 (9.5%) patients. Forty patients (21.5%) only had one metabolic abnormality and 157 (78.5%) patients had multiple metabolic abnormalities. Hyperoxaluria was the most commonly observed metabolic abnormality and was found in 64.5% patients. Other significant metabolic abnormalities were hypercalciuria, Hypercalcemia, hypocitraturia and hyperuricemia. Conclusion: This study concludes that frequency of metabolic abnormalities is very high in patients with urolithiasis and hyperoxaluria, hypercalciuria and hypocitraturia are the most important metabolic abnormalities observed in these patients. PMID:24550954

  3. Natural history of echocardiographic abnormalities in mucopolysaccharidosis III.

    PubMed

    Wilhelm, Carolyn M; Truxal, Kristen V; McBride, Kim L; Kovalchin, John P; Flanigan, Kevin M

    2018-06-01

    Mucopolysaccharidosis (MPS) type III, Sanfilippo Syndrome, is an autosomal recessive lysosomal storage disorder. MPS I and II patients often develop cardiac involvement leading to early mortality, however there are limited data in MPS III. The objective of this study is to describe cardiac abnormalities in a large group of MPS III patients followed in a longitudinal natural history study designed to determine outcome measures for gene transfer trials. A single center study of MPS III patients who were enrolled in the Nationwide Children's Hospital natural history study in 2014. Two cardiologists reviewed all patient echocardiograms for anatomic, valvular, and functional abnormalities. Valve abnormalities were defined as abnormal morphology, trivial mitral regurgitation (MR) with abnormal morphology or at least mild MR, and any aortic regurgitation (AR). Abnormal left ventricular (LV) function was defined as ejection fraction < 50%. Group comparisons were assessed using two-sample t-tests or Wilcoxon rank sum tests for continuous variables and chi-square or Fisher's exact tests for categorical variables. Twenty-five patients, 15 Type A and 10 Type B MPS III, underwent 45 echocardiograms. Fifteen patients (60%) demonstrated an abnormal echocardiographic finding with age at first abnormal echocardiogram within the study being 6.8 ± 2.8 years. Left-sided valve abnormalities were common over time: 7 mitral valve thickening, 2 mitral valve prolapse, 16 MR (8 mild, 8 trivial), 3 aortic valve thickening, and 9 AR (7 mild, 2 trivial). Two patients had asymmetric LV septal hypertrophy. No valvular stenosis or ventricular function abnormalities were noted. Incidental findings included: mild aortic root dilation (2), bicommissural aortic valve (1), and mild tricuspid regurgitation (3). Individuals with Sanfilippo A and B demonstrate a natural history of cardiac involvement with valvular abnormalities most common. In short-term follow up, patients demonstrated only

  4. Sex chromosome abnormalities and psychiatric diseases

    PubMed Central

    Zhang, Xinzhu; Yang, Jian; Li, Yuhong; Ma, Xin; Li, Rena

    2017-01-01

    Excesses of sex chromosome abnormalities in patients with psychiatric diseases have recently been observed. It remains unclear whether sex chromosome abnormalities are related to sex differences in some psychiatric diseases. While studies showed evidence of susceptibility loci over many sex chromosomal regions related to various mental diseases, others demonstrated that the sex chromosome aneuploidies may be the key to exploring the pathogenesis of psychiatric disease. In this review, we will outline the current evidence on the interaction of sex chromosome abnormalities with schizophrenia, autism, ADHD and mood disorders. PMID:27992373

  5. Impact of fouling on the decline of aeration efficiency under different operational conditions at WRRFs.

    PubMed

    Garrido-Baserba, Manel; Asvapathanagul, Pitiporn; Park, Hee-Deung; Kim, Taek-Seung; Baquero-Rodriguez, G Andres; Olson, Betty H; Rosso, Diego

    2018-10-15

    Biofilm formation influences the most energy-demanding process in the waste water treatment cycle. Biofilm growth on the surface of wastewater aeration diffusers in water resource recovery facilities (WRRFs) can increase the energy requirements up to 50% in less than 2 years. The impact of biofilms in aeration diffusers was quantified and assessed for first time using molecular tools (i.e., Energy-dispersive X-ray, Ra and RMS and Pyrosequencing) and state-of-the-art techniques (i.e., EPS quantification, Hydrophobicity and DNA quantification). To provide a better understanding and quantitative connections between biological activity and aeration energy efficiency, two replicates of the most common diffusers were installed and tested in two different operational conditions (higher and lower organic loading rate processes) during 15 months. Different scenarios and conditions provided for first time comprehensive understanding of the major factors contributing to diffuser fouling. The array of analysis suggested that higher loading conditions can promote specialized microbial populations to halve aeration efficiency parameters (i.e., αF) in comparison to lower loading conditions. Biofilms adapted to certain operational conditions can trigger changes in diffuser membrane properties (i.e., biological enhanced roughness and hydrophobicity) and enhance EPS growth rates. Improved understanding of the effects of scaling, biofouling, aging and microbial population shifts on the decrease in aeration efficiency is provided. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  6. A thermodynamic approach for selecting operating conditions in the design of reversible solid oxide cell energy systems

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Wendel, Christopher H.; Kazempoor, Pejman; Braun, Robert J.

    2016-01-01

    Reversible solid oxide cell (ReSOC) systems are being increasingly considered for electrical energy storage, although much work remains before they can be realized, including cell materials development and system design optimization. These systems store electricity by generating a synthetic fuel in electrolysis mode and subsequently recover electricity by electrochemically oxidizing the stored fuel in fuel cell mode. System thermal management is improved by promoting methane synthesis internal to the ReSOC stack. Within this strategy, the cell-stack operating conditions are highly impactful on system performance and optimizing these parameters to suit both operating modes is critical to achieving high roundtrip efficiency. Preliminary analysis shows the thermoneutral voltage to be a useful parameter for analyzing ReSOC systems and the focus of this study is to quantitatively examine how it is affected by ReSOC operating conditions. The results reveal that the thermoneutral voltage is generally reduced by increased pressure, and reductions in temperature, fuel utilization, and hydrogen-to-carbon ratio. Based on the thermodynamic analysis, many different combinations of these operating conditions are expected to promote efficient energy storage. Pressurized systems can achieve high efficiency at higher temperature and fuel utilization, while non-pressurized systems may require lower stack temperature and suffer from reduced energy density.

  7. [Working conditions in the operating room: surgeons surveyed during the annual meeting of the German society of surgery 2004].

    PubMed

    Matern, U; Koneczny, S

    2006-10-01

    For the evaluation of working place conditions in the operating room a survey was conducted among the surgeons working in German hospitals. Questions regarded the personal profile, the architectural situation, the devices and instruments as well as the working posture. The answers to the 60 questions display a high potential for improvement within all fields. Every single group working in the operating room, as well as their professional organizations are asked to work on the optimization of the working place conditions in the operating room in terms of improvement of quality and efficiency.

  8. Numerical simulations of the first operational conditions of the negative ion test facility SPIDER

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Serianni, G., E-mail: gianluigi.serianni@igi.cnr.it; Agostinetti, P.; Antoni, V.

    2016-02-15

    In view of the realization of the negative ion beam injectors for ITER, a test facility, named SPIDER, is under construction in Padova (Italy) to study and optimize production and extraction of negative ions. The present paper is devoted to the analysis of the expected first operations of SPIDER in terms of single-beamlet and multiple-beamlet simulations of the hydrogen beam optics in various operational conditions. The effectiveness of the methods adopted to compensate for the magnetic deflection of the particles is also assessed. Indications for a sequence of the experimental activities are obtained.

  9. A paradigm for operant conditioning in blow flies (Phormia terrae novae Robineau-Desvoidy, 1830).

    PubMed

    Sokolowski, Michel B C; Disma, Gérald; Abramson, Charles I

    2010-01-01

    An operant conditioning situation for the blow fly (Protophormia terrae novae) is described. Individual flies are trained to enter and reenter a hole as the operant response. Only a few sessions of contingent reinforcement are required to increase response rates. When the response is no longer followed by food, the rate of entering the hole decreases. Control procedures revealed that rate of responding is not a simple overall result of feeding or of aging. The flies entered into the hole only if the response was required to obtain the food.

  10. Numerical simulations of the first operational conditions of the negative ion test facility SPIDER

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Serianni, G.; Agostinetti, P.; Antoni, V.; Baltador, C.; Cavenago, M.; Chitarin, G.; Marconato, N.; Pasqualotto, R.; Sartori, E.; Toigo, V.; Veltri, P.

    2016-02-01

    In view of the realization of the negative ion beam injectors for ITER, a test facility, named SPIDER, is under construction in Padova (Italy) to study and optimize production and extraction of negative ions. The present paper is devoted to the analysis of the expected first operations of SPIDER in terms of single-beamlet and multiple-beamlet simulations of the hydrogen beam optics in various operational conditions. The effectiveness of the methods adopted to compensate for the magnetic deflection of the particles is also assessed. Indications for a sequence of the experimental activities are obtained.

  11. Operant Conditioning of Primate Prefrontal Neurons

    PubMed Central

    Schultz, Wolfram; Sakagami, Masamichi

    2010-01-01

    An operant is a behavioral act that has an impact on the environment to produce an outcome, constituting an important component of voluntary behavior. Because the environment can be volatile, the same action may cause different consequences. Thus to obtain an optimal outcome, it is crucial to detect action–outcome relationships and adapt the behavior accordingly. Although prefrontal neurons are known to change activity depending on expected reward, it remains unknown whether prefrontal activity contributes to obtaining reward. We investigated this issue by setting variable relationships between levels of single-neuron activity and rewarding outcomes. Lateral prefrontal neurons changed their spiking activity according to the specific requirements for gaining reward, without the animals making a motor response. Thus spiking activity constituted an operant response. Data from a control task suggested that these changes were unlikely to reflect simple reward predictions. These data demonstrate a remarkable capacity of prefrontal neurons to adapt to specific operant requirements at the single-neuron level. PMID:20107129

  12. Transient abnormal Q waves during exercise electrocardiography

    PubMed Central

    Alameddine, F F; Zafari, A M

    2004-01-01

    Myocardial ischaemia during exercise electrocardiography is usually manifested by ST segment depression or elevation. Transient abnormal Q waves are rare, as Q waves indicate an old myocardial infarction. The case of a patient with exercise induced transient abnormal Q waves is reported. The potential mechanisms involved in the development of such an abnormality and its clinical implications are discussed. PMID:14676264

  13. 14 CFR 135.181 - Performance requirements: Aircraft operated over-the-top or in IFR conditions.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-01-01

    ... restrictions in paragraph (a)(2) of this section, multiengine helicopters carrying passengers offshore may conduct such operations in over-the-top or in IFR conditions at a weight that will allow the helicopter to...

  14. Abnormalities of the Coronary Arteries in Children: Looking beyond the Origins.

    PubMed

    Saling, Lauren J; Raptis, Demetrios A; Parekh, Keyur; Rockefeller, Toby A; Sheybani, Elizabeth F; Bhalla, Sanjeev

    2017-10-01

    Coronary arterial abnormalities are uncommon findings in children that have profound clinical implications. Although anomalies of the coronary origins are well described, there are many other disease processes that affect the coronary arteries. Immune system-mediated diseases (eg, Kawasaki disease, polyarteritis nodosa, and other vasculiditides) can result in coronary arterial aneurysms, strictures, and abnormal tapering of the vessels. Because findings at imaging are an important component of diagnosis in these diseases, the radiologist's understanding of them is essential. Congenital anomalies may present at varying ages, and findings in hemodynamically significant anomalies, such as fistulas, are key for both diagnosis and preoperative planning. Pediatric heart surgery can result in wide-ranging postoperative imaging appearances of the coronary arteries and also predisposes patients to a multitude of complications affecting the heart and coronary arteries. In addition, although rare, accidental trauma can lead to injury of the coronary arteries, and awareness and detection of these conditions are important for diagnosis in the acute setting. Patients with coronary arterial conditions at presentation may range from being asymptomatic to having findings of myocardial infarction. Recognition of the imaging findings is essential to direct appropriate treatment. © RSNA, 2017.

  15. Slow Breathing Can Be Operantly Conditioned in the Rat and May Reduce Sensitivity to Experimental Stressors

    PubMed Central

    Noble, Donald J.; Goolsby, William N.; Garraway, Sandra M.; Martin, Karmarcha K.; Hochman, Shawn

    2017-01-01

    In humans, exercises involving slowed respiratory rate (SRR) counter autonomic sympathetic bias and reduce responses to stressors, including in individuals with various degrees of autonomic dysfunction. In the rat, we examined whether operant conditioning could lead to reductions in respiratory rate (RR) and performed preliminary studies to assess whether conditioned SRR was sufficient to decrease physiological and behavioral responsiveness to stressors. RR was continuously monitored during 20 2-h sessions using whole body plethysmography. SRR conditioned, but not yoked control rats, were able to turn off aversive visual stimulation (intermittent bright light) by slowing their breathing below a preset target of 80 breaths/min. SRR conditioned rats greatly increased the incidence of breaths below the target RR over training, with average resting RR decreasing from 92 to 81 breaths/min. These effects were significant as a group and vs. yoked controls. Preliminary studies in a subset of conditioned rats revealed behavioral changes suggestive of reduced reactivity to stressful and nociceptive stimuli. In these same rats, intermittent sessions without visual reinforcement and a post-training priming stressor (acute restraint) demonstrated that conditioned rats retained reduced RR vs. controls in the absence of conditioning. In conclusion, we present the first successful attempt to operantly condition reduced RR in an animal model. Although further studies are needed to clarify the physio-behavioral concomitants of slowed breathing, the developed model may aid subsequent neurophysiological inquiries on the role of slow breathing in stress reduction. PMID:29163199

  16. [Hysteroscopic polypectomy, treatment of abnormal uterine bleeding].

    PubMed

    de Los Rios, P José F; López, R Claudia; Cifuentes, P Carolina; Angulo, C Mónica; Palacios-Barahona, Arlex U

    2015-07-01

    To evaluate the effectiveness of the hysteroscopic polypectomy in terms of the decrease of the abnormal uterine bleeding. A cross-sectional and analytical study was done with patients to whom a hysteroscopic polypectomy was done for treating the abnormal uterine bleeding, between January 2009 and December 2013. The response to the treatment was evaluated via a survey given to the patients about the behavior of the abnormal uterine bleeding after the procedure and about overall satisfaction. The results were obtained after a hysteroscopic polypectomy done to 128 patients and were as follows. The average time from the polypectomy applied until the survey was 30.5 months, with a standard deviation of 18 months. 67.2% of the patients reported decreased abnormal uterine bleeding and the 32.8% reported a persistence of symptoms. On average 82.8% of the. patients were satisfied with the treatment. Bivariate and multivariate analysis showed no association between the variables studied and no improvement of abnormal uterine bleeding after surgery (polypectomy). There were no complications. Hysteroscopic polypectomy is a safe surgical treatment, which decreases on two of three patients the abnormal uterine bleeding in the presence of endometrial polyps, with an acceptable level of satisfaction.

  17. Conditional Monthly Weather Resampling Procedure for Operational Seasonal Water Resources Forecasting

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Beckers, J.; Weerts, A.; Tijdeman, E.; Welles, E.; McManamon, A.

    2013-12-01

    To provide reliable and accurate seasonal streamflow forecasts for water resources management several operational hydrologic agencies and hydropower companies around the world use the Extended Streamflow Prediction (ESP) procedure. The ESP in its original implementation does not accommodate for any additional information that the forecaster may have about expected deviations from climatology in the near future. Several attempts have been conducted to improve the skill of the ESP forecast, especially for areas which are affected by teleconnetions (e,g. ENSO, PDO) via selection (Hamlet and Lettenmaier, 1999) or weighting schemes (Werner et al., 2004; Wood and Lettenmaier, 2006; Najafi et al., 2012). A disadvantage of such schemes is that they lead to a reduction of the signal to noise ratio of the probabilistic forecast. To overcome this, we propose a resampling method conditional on climate indices to generate meteorological time series to be used in the ESP. The method can be used to generate a large number of meteorological ensemble members in order to improve the statistical properties of the ensemble. The effectiveness of the method was demonstrated in a real-time operational hydrologic seasonal forecasts system for the Columbia River basin operated by the Bonneville Power Administration. The forecast skill of the k-nn resampler was tested against the original ESP for three basins at the long-range seasonal time scale. The BSS and CRPSS were used to compare the results to those of the original ESP method. Positive forecast skill scores were found for the resampler method conditioned on different indices for the prediction of spring peak flows in the Dworshak and Hungry Horse basin. For the Libby Dam basin however, no improvement of skill was found. The proposed resampling method is a promising practical approach that can add skill to ESP forecasts at the seasonal time scale. Further improvement is possible by fine tuning the method and selecting the most

  18. Evaluation of corrosion inhibitor simulating conditions of operation

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Gómez, O.; Aponte, H.; Vera, E.; Pineda, Y.

    2017-12-01

    Operating conditions at the head of oil wells are critical, in addition to injecting water to increase the pressure while maintaining production cause deterioration in the metallic structures that transport fluids. One way to maintain integrity is the injection of inhibitors which plays an important role in protecting the pipes. In this study a molecule N-PHENYL NITRONE was obtained, which was evaluated by electrochemical tests (LPR) and Tafel Polarization Curves in a reactor controlling environments containing different dosages, pressure values, temperatures and flow velocity using working electrodes tubing API N 80, the reactor was connected to a potentiostat to determine corrosion rates, allowing the analysis of the influence of each variable on the protective behaviour of the inhibitor, and its efficiency against the decrease of the deterioration of the pipes. Corrosion products are analysed by X-Ray Diffraction (XRD). Photographic records of the surface verify the formation of iron carbonate (FeCO3). In addition, a mathematical analysis of the independent variables is performed to evaluate the effect that it has on the efficiency of corrosion inhibition.

  19. Standardization of the energy performance of photovoltaic modules in real operating conditions

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Viganó, Davide; Kenny, Robert P.; Müllejans, Harald; Alimonti, Gianluca

    2014-12-01

    The performance of a PV module at STC [1] is a useful indicator for comparing the peak performance of different module types, but on its own is not sufficient to accurately predict how much energy a module will deliver in the field when subjected to a wide range of real operating conditions [2]. An Energy Rating approach has to be preferred for that aim. It is currently under development the standard series IEC 61853 on Energy Rating, for which only part 1 [3] has been issued. It describes methods to characterize the module performance as a function of irradiance and temperature. The reproducibility of the power matrix measurements obtained by the three different methods specified in the standard, namely: under natural sunlight using a tracking system; under natural sunlight without tracker; and a large area pulsed solar simulator of Class AAA were evaluated and discussed [4,5]. The work here presented is focused on the second method listed above, which explores the real working conditions for a PV device and therefore it represents the situation where Energy Rating procedures are expected to give the largest deviations from the STC predictions. The system for continuous monitoring of module performances, already implemented at ESTI, has been recently replaced with a new system having a number of improvements described in the following. The two system results have been compared showing a discrete compatibility. The two power matrices are then merged together using a weighted average and compared to those acquired with the other two remaining "ideal" systems. An interesting tendency seems to come up from this comparison, making the power rating under real operating conditions an essential procedure for energy rating purposes.

  20. Differentiation between inflammatory and neoplastic orbital conditions based on computed tomographic signs.

    PubMed

    Lederer, Kristina; Ludewig, Eberhard; Hechinger, Harald; Parry, Andrew T; Lamb, Christopher R; Kneissl, Sibylle

    2015-07-01

    To identify computed tomographic (CT) signs that could be used to differentiate inflammatory from neoplastic orbital conditions in small animals. Fifty-two animals (25 cats, 21 dogs, 4 rabbits, and 2 rodents). Case-control study in which CT images of animals with histopathologic diagnosis of inflammatory (n = 11), neoplastic orbital conditions (n = 31), or normal control animals (n = 10) were reviewed independently by five observers without the knowledge of the history or diagnosis. Observers recorded their observations regarding specific anatomical structures within the orbit using an itemized form containing the following characteristics: definitely normal; probably normal; equivocal; probably abnormal; and definitely abnormal. Results were statistically analyzed using Fleiss' kappa and logistic regression analyses. The overall level of agreement between observers about the presence or absence of abnormal CT signs in animals with orbital disease was poor to moderate, but was highest for observations concerning orbital bones (κ = 0.62) and involvement of the posterior segment (κ = 0.52). Significant associations between abnormalities and diagnosis were found for four structures: Abnormalities affecting orbital bones (odds ratio [OR], 1.7) and anterior ocular structures (OR, 1.5) were predictive of neoplasia, while abnormalities affecting extraconal fat (OR, 1.7) and skin (OR, 1.4) were predictive of inflammatory conditions. Orbital CT is an imaging test with high specificity. Fat stranding, a CT sign not previously emphasized in veterinary medicine, was significantly associated with inflammatory conditions. Low observer agreement probably reflects the limited resolution of CT for small orbital structures. © 2014 American College of Veterinary Ophthalmologists.

  1. Clozapine-induced EEG abnormalities and clinical response to clozapine.

    PubMed

    Risby, E D; Epstein, C M; Jewart, R D; Nguyen, B V; Morgan, W N; Risch, S C; Thrivikraman, K V; Lewine, R L

    1995-01-01

    The authors hypothesized that patients who develop gross EEG abnormalities during clozapine treatment would have a less favorable outcome than patients who did not develop abnormal EEGs. The clinical EEGs and the Brief Psychiatric Rating Scale (BPRS) scores of 12 patients with schizophrenia and 4 patients with schizoaffective disorder were compared before and during treatment with clozapine. Eight patients developed significant EEG abnormalities on clozapine; 1 showed worsening of an abnormal pre-clozapine EEG; none of these subjects had clinical seizures. BPRS scores improved significantly in the group of patients who developed abnormal EEGs but not in the group who did not. Findings are consistent with previous reports of a high incidence of clozapine-induced EEG abnormalities and a positive association between these abnormalities and clinical improvement.

  2. Performance analysis of air conditioning system and airflow simulation in an operating theater

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Alhamid, Muhammad Idrus; Budihardjo, Rahmat

    2018-02-01

    The importance of maintaining performance of a hospital operating theater is to establish an adequate circulation of clean air within the room. The parameter of air distribution in a space should be based on Air Changes per Hour (ACH) to maintain a positive room pressure. The dispersion of airborne particles in the operating theater was governed by regulating the air distribution so that the operating theater meets clean room standards ie ISO 14664 and ASHRAE 170. Here, we introduced several input parameters in a simulation environment to observe the pressure distribution in the room. Input parameters were air temperature, air velocity and volumetric flow rate entering and leaving room for existing and designed condition. In the existing operating theatre, several observations were found. It was found that the outlet air velocity at the HEPA filter above the operating table was too high thus causing a turbulent airflow pattern. Moreover, the setting temperature at 19°C was found to be too low. The supply of air into the room was observed at lower than 20 ACH which is under the standard requirement. Our simulation using FloVent 8.2™ program showed that not only airflow turbulence could be reduced but also the amount of particle contamination could also be minimized.

  3. Numerically abnormal chromosome constitutions in humans

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    NONE

    1993-12-31

    Chapter 24, discusses numerically abnormal chromosome constitutions in humans. This involves abnormalities of human chromosome number, including polyploidy (when the number of sets of chromosomes increases) and aneuploidy (when the number of individual normal chromosomes changes). Chapter sections discuss the following chromosomal abnormalities: human triploids, imprinting and uniparental disomy, human tetraploids, hydatidiform moles, anomalies caused by chromosomal imbalance, 13 trisomy (D{sub 1} trisomy, Patau syndrome), 21 trisomy (Down syndrome), 18 trisomy syndrome (Edwards syndrome), other autosomal aneuploidy syndromes, and spontaneous abortions. The chapter concludes with remarks on the nonrandom participation of chromosomes in trisomy. 69 refs., 3 figs., 4 tabs.

  4. Vehicle operation characteristic under different ramp entrance conditions in underground road: Analysis, simulation and modelling

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Yao, Qiming; Liu, Shuo; Liu, Yang

    2018-05-01

    An experimental design was used to study the vehicle operation characteristics of different ramp entrance conditions in underground road. With driving simulator, the experimental scenarios include left or right ramp with first, second and third service level, respectively, to collect vehicle speed, acceleration, lateral displacement and location information at the ramp entrance section. By using paired t-test and ANOVA, the influence factors of vehicle operating characteristics are studied. The result shows that effects of ramp layout and mainline traffic environment on vehicle operation characteristics are significant. The regression model of vehicle traveling distance on acceleration lane is established. Suggestions are made for ramp entrance design of underground road.

  5. Abnormal nuclear envelopes in the striatum and motor deficits in DYT11 myoclonus-dystonia mouse models

    PubMed Central

    Yokoi, Fumiaki; Dang, Mai T.; Zhou, Tong; Li, Yuqing

    2012-01-01

    DYT11 myoclonus-dystonia (M-D) is a movement disorder characterized by myoclonic jerks with dystonic symptoms and caused by mutations in paternally expressed SGCE, which codes for ɛ-sarcoglycan. Paternally inherited Sgce heterozygous knock-out (KO) mice exhibit motor deficits and spontaneous myoclonus. Abnormal nuclear envelopes have been reported in cellular and mouse models of early-onset DYT1 generalized torsion dystonia; however, the relationship between the abnormal nuclear envelopes and motor symptoms are not clear. Furthermore, it is not known whether abnormal nuclear envelope exists in non-DYT1 dystonia. In the present study, abnormal nuclear envelopes in the striatal medium spiny neurons (MSNs) were found in Sgce KO mice. To analyze whether the loss of ɛ-sarcoglycan in the striatum alone causes abnormal nuclear envelopes, motor deficits or myoclonus, we produced paternally inherited striatum-specific Sgce conditional KO (Sgce sKO) mice and analyzed their phenotypes. Sgce sKO mice exhibited motor deficits in both beam-walking and accelerated rotarod tests, while they did not exhibit abnormal nuclear envelopes, alteration in locomotion, or myoclonus. The results suggest that the loss of ɛ-sarcoglycan in the striatum contributes to motor deficits, while it alone does not produce abnormal nuclear envelopes or myoclonus. Development of therapies targeting the striatum to compensate for the loss of ɛ-sarcoglycan function may rescue the motor deficits in DYT11 M-D patients. PMID:22080833

  6. Electrocardiogram abnormalities and coronary calcification in postmenopausal women.

    PubMed

    Sabour, Siamak; Grobbee, Diederick; Rutten, Annemarieke; Prokop, Mathias; Bartelink, Marie-Louise; van der Schouw, Yvonne; Bots, Michiel

    2010-01-01

    An electrocardiogram (ECG) can provide information on subclinical myocardial damage. The presence, and more importantly, the quantity of coronary artery calcification (CAC), relates well with the overall severity of the atherosclerotic process. A strong relation has been demonstrated between coronary calcium burden and the incidence of myocardial infarction, a relation independent of age. The aim of this study was to assess the relation of left ventricular hypertrophy (LVH) and ECG abnormalities with CAC. The study population comprised 566 postmenopausal women selected from a population-based cohort study. Information on LVH and repolarization abnormalities (T-axis and QRS-T angle) was obtained using electrocardiography. Modular ECG Analysis System (MEANS) was used to assess ECG abnormalities. The women underwent a multi detector-row computed tomography (MDCT) scan (Philips Mx 8000 IDT 16) to assess CAC. The Agatston score was used to quantify CAC; scores greater than zero were considered as the presence of coronary calcium. Logistic regression was used to assess the relation of ECG abnormality with coronary calcification. LVH was found in 2.7% (n = 15) of the women. The prevalence of T-axis abnormality was 6% (n = 34), whereas 8.5% (n = 48) had a QRS-T angle abnormality. CAC was found in 62% of the women. Compared to women with a normal T-axis, women with borderline or abnormal T-axes were 3.8 fold more likely to have CAC (95% CI: 1.4-10.2). Similarly, compared to women with a normal QRS-T angle, in women with borderline or abnormal QRS-T angle, CAC was 2.0 fold more likely to be present (95% CI: 1.0-4.1). Among women with ECG abnormalities reflecting subclinical ischemia, CAC is commonly found and may in part explain the increased coronary heart disease risk associated with these ECG abnormalities.

  7. Electrocardiogram Abnormalities and Coronary Calcification in Postmenopausal Women

    PubMed Central

    Sabour, Siamak; Grobbee, Diederick; Rutten, Annemarieke; Prokop, Mathias; Bartelink, Marie-Louise; van der Schouw, Yvonne; Bots, Michiel

    2010-01-01

    Background: An electrocardiogram (ECG) can provide information on subclinical myocardial damage. The presence, and more importantly, the quantity of coronary artery calcification (CAC), relates well with the overall severity of the atherosclerotic process. A strong relation has been demonstrated between coronary calcium burden and the incidence of myocardial infarction, a relation independent of age. The aim of this study was to assess the relation of left ventricular hypertrophy (LVH) and ECG abnormalities with CAC. Methods: The study population comprised 566 postmenopausal women selected from a population-based cohort study. Information on LVH and repolarization abnormalities (T-axis and QRS-T angle) was obtained using electrocardiography. Modular ECG Analysis System (MEANS) was used to assess ECG abnormalities. The women underwent a multi detector-row computed tomography (MDCT) scan (Philips Mx 8000 IDT 16) to assess CAC. The Agatston score was used to quantify CAC; scores greater than zero were considered as the presence of coronary calcium. Logistic regression was used to assess the relation of ECG abnormality with coronary calcification. Results: LVH was found in 2.7% (n = 15) of the women. The prevalence of T-axis abnormality was 6% (n = 34), whereas 8.5% (n = 48) had a QRS-T angle abnormality. CAC was found in 62% of the women. Compared to women with a normal T-axis, women with borderline or abnormal T-axes were 3.8 fold more likely to have CAC (95% CI: 1.4–10.2). Similarly, compared to women with a normal QRS-T angle, in women with borderline or abnormal QRS-T angle, CAC was 2.0 fold more likely to be present (95% CI: 1.0–4.1). Conclusion: Among women with ECG abnormalities reflecting subclinical ischemia, CAC is commonly found and may in part explain the increased coronary heart disease risk associated with these ECG abnormalities. PMID:23074563

  8. Effects of operational conditions on sludge degradation and organic acids formation in low-critical wet air oxidation.

    PubMed

    Chung, Jinwook; Lee, Mikyung; Ahn, Jaehwan; Bae, Wookeun; Lee, Yong-Woo; Shim, Hojae

    2009-02-15

    Wet air oxidation processes are to treat highly concentrated organic compounds including refractory materials, sludge, and night soil, and usually operated at supercritical water conditions of high temperature and pressure. In this study, the effects of operational conditions including temperature, pressure, and oxidant dose on sludge degradation and conversion into subsequent intermediates such as organic acids were investigated at low critical wet oxidation conditions. The reaction time and temperature in the wet air oxidation process was shown an important factor affecting the liquefaction of volatile solids, with more significant effect on the thermal hydrolysis reaction rather than the oxidation reaction. The degradation efficiency of sludge and the formation of organic acids were improved with longer reaction time and higher reaction temperature. For the sludge reduction and the organic acids formation under the wet air oxidation, the optimal conditions for reaction temperature, time, pressure, and oxidant dose were shown approximately 240 degrees C, 30min, 60atm, and 2.0L/min, respectively.

  9. Exposure to histone deacetylase inhibitors during Pavlovian conditioning enhances subsequent cue-induced reinstatement of operant behavior.

    PubMed

    Ploense, Kyle L; Kerstetter, Kerry A; Wade, Matthew A; Woodward, Nicholas C; Maliniak, Dan; Reyes, Michael; Uchizono, Russell S; Bredy, Timothy W; Kippin, Tod E

    2013-06-01

    Histone deacetylase inhibitors (HDACIs) strengthen memory following fear conditioning and cocaine-induced conditioned place preference. Here, we examined the effects of two nonspecific HDACIs, valproic acid (VPA) and sodium butyrate (NaB), on appetitive learning measured by conditioned stimulus (CS)-induced reinstatement of operant responding. Rats were trained to lever press for food reinforcement and then injected with VPA (50-200 mg/kg, i.p.), NaB (250-1000 mg/kg, i.p.), or saline vehicle (1.0 ml/kg), 2 h before receiving pairings of noncontingent presentation of food pellets preceded by a tone+light cue CS. Rats next underwent extinction of operant responding followed by response-contingent re-exposure to the CS. Rats receiving VPA (100 mg/kg) or NaB (1000 mg/kg) before conditioning displayed significantly higher cue-induced reinstatement than did saline controls. Rats that received either vehicle or VPA (100 mg/kg) before a conditioning session with a randomized relation between presentation of food pellets and the CS failed to show subsequent cue-induced reinstatement with no difference between the two groups. These findings indicate that, under certain contexts, HDACIs strengthen memory formation by specifically increasing the associative strength of the CS, not through an increasing motivation to seek reinforcement. © 2013 Wolters Kluwer Health | Lippincott Williams & Wilkins.

  10. Exposure to histone deacetylase inhibitors during Pavlovian conditioning enhances subsequent cue-induced reinstatement of operant behavior

    PubMed Central

    Ploense, Kyle L.; Kerstetter, Kerry A.; Wade, Matthew A.; Woodward, Nicholas C.; Maliniak, Dan; Reyes, Michael; Uchizono, Russell S.; Bredy, Timothy W.; Kippin, Tod E.

    2014-01-01

    Histone deacetylase inhibitors (HDACIs) strengthen memory following fear conditioning and cocaine-induced conditioned place preference. Here, we examined the effects of two non-specific HDACIs, valproic acid (VPA) and sodium butyrate (NaB), on appetitive learning measured via conditioned stimulus (CS)-induced reinstatement of operant responding. Rats were trained to lever press for food reinforcement and then injected with VPA (50–200 mg/kg, i.p.), NaB (250–1000 mg/kg, i.p.), or saline vehicle (1.0 ml/kg), 2h before receiving pairings of noncontingent presentation of food pellets preceded by a tone+light cue CS. Rats next underwent extinction of operant responding followed by response-contingent re-exposure to the CS. Rats receiving VPA (100 mg/kg) or NaB (1000 mg/kg) prior to conditioning displayed significantly higher cue-induced reinstatement than did saline controls. Rats that receiving either vehicle or VPA (100 mg/kg) prior to a conditioning session with a randomized relation between presentation of food pellets and the CS failed to show subsequent cue-induced reinstatement with no difference between the two groups. These findings indicate that, under certain contexts, HDACIs strengthen memory formation by specifically increasing the associative strength of the CS, not through an increasing motivation to seek reinforcement. PMID:23604166

  11. 47 CFR 18.111 - General operating conditions.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-10-01

    ....111 Telecommunication FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION GENERAL INDUSTRIAL, SCIENTIFIC, AND MEDICAL... interference to an authorized radio station or a radiocommunication device operating in an ISM frequency band... emissions of ISM equipment operating in an ISM frequency band and otherwise complying with the requirements...

  12. Noise behavior of microwave amplifiers operating under nonlinear conditions

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Escotte, L.; Gonneau, E.; Chambon, C.; Graffeuil, J.

    2005-12-01

    B The noise behavior of microwave amplifiers operating under a large-signal condition has been studied in this paper. A Gaussian noise is added to a microwave signal and they are applied at the input of several amplifying devices. Experimental data show a decrease of the output noise spectral density when the power of the microwave signal at the input of the devices increases due to the compression of the amplifiers. A distortion component due to the interaction of the signal and its harmonics with the noise is also demonstrated from a simplified theoretical model. The statistical properties of the signal and the noise have also been investigated in order to verify the Gaussianity of the noise at the output of the nonlinear circuits. We have also observed that the majority of the measured devices show some variations of their additive noise versus the input power level.

  13. Identifying a "default" visual search mode with operant conditioning.

    PubMed

    Kawahara, Jun-ichiro

    2010-09-01

    The presence of a singleton in a task-irrelevant domain can impair visual search. This impairment, known as the attentional capture depends on the set of participants. When narrowly searching for a specific feature (the feature search mode), only matching stimuli capture attention. When searching broadly (the singleton detection mode), any oddball captures attention. The present study examined which strategy represents the "default" mode using an operant conditioning approach in which participants were trained, in the absence of explicit instructions, to search for a target in an ambiguous context in which one of two modes was available. The results revealed that participants behaviorally adopted the singleton detection as the default mode but reported using the feature search mode. Conscious strategies did not eliminate capture. These results challenge the view that a conscious set always modulates capture, suggesting that the visual system tends to rely on stimulus salience to deploy attention.

  14. Abnormal Selective Attention Normalizes P3 Amplitudes in PDD

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Hoeksma, Marco R.; Kemner, Chantal; Kenemans, J. Leon; van Engeland, Herman

    2006-01-01

    This paper studied whether abnormal P3 amplitudes in PDD are a corollary of abnormalities in ERP components related to selective attention in visual and auditory tasks. Furthermore, this study sought to clarify possible age differences in such abnormalities. Children with PDD showed smaller P3 amplitudes than controls, but no abnormalities in…

  15. Determining the microwave coupling and operational efficiencies of a microwave plasma assisted chemical vapor deposition reactor under high pressure diamond synthesis operating conditions

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Nad, Shreya; Department of Physics and Astronomy, Michigan State University, East Lansing, Michigan 48824; Gu, Yajun

    2015-07-15

    The microwave coupling efficiency of the 2.45 GHz, microwave plasma assisted diamond synthesis process is investigated by experimentally measuring the performance of a specific single mode excited, internally tuned microwave plasma reactor. Plasma reactor coupling efficiencies (η) > 90% are achieved over the entire 100–260 Torr pressure range and 1.5–2.4 kW input power diamond synthesis regime. When operating at a specific experimental operating condition, small additional internal tuning adjustments can be made to achieve η > 98%. When the plasma reactor has low empty cavity losses, i.e., the empty cavity quality factor is >1500, then overall microwave discharge coupling efficienciesmore » (η{sub coup}) of >94% can be achieved. A large, safe, and efficient experimental operating regime is identified. Both substrate hot spots and the formation of microwave plasmoids are eliminated when operating within this regime. This investigation suggests that both the reactor design and the reactor process operation must be considered when attempting to lower diamond synthesis electrical energy costs while still enabling a very versatile and flexible operation performance.« less

  16. Incubation of conditioned fear in the conditioned suppression model in rats: role of food-restriction conditions, length of conditioned stimulus, and generality to conditioned freezing

    PubMed Central

    Pickens, Charles L.; Navarre, Brittany M.; Nair, Sunila G.

    2010-01-01

    We recently adapted the conditioned suppression of operant responding method to study fear incubation. We found that food-restricted rats show low fear 2 days after extended (10 d; 100 30-sec tone-shock pairings) fear training and high fear after 1–2 months. Here, we studied a potential mechanism of fear incubation: extended food-restriction stress. We also studied whether fear incubation is observed after fear training with a prolonged-duration (6-min) tone conditioned stimulus (CS), and whether conditioned freezing incubates after extended training in rats with or without a concurrent operant task. Conditioned fear was assessed 2 days and 1 month after training. In the conditioned suppression method, fear incubation was reliably observed in rats under moderate food-restriction conditions (18–20 g food/day) that allowed for weight gain, and after extended (10 d), but not limited (1 d), fear training with the 6-min CS. Incubation of conditioned freezing was observed after extended fear training in rats lever-pressing for food and, to a lesser degree, in rats not performing an operant task. Results indicate that prolonged hunger-related stress does not account for fear incubation in the conditioned suppression method, and that fear incubation occurs to a longer-duration (6-min) fear CS. Extended training also leads to robust fear incubation of conditioned freezing in rats performing an operant task and weaker fear incubation in rats not performing an operant task. PMID:20600654

  17. Incubation of conditioned fear in the conditioned suppression model in rats: role of food-restriction conditions, length of conditioned stimulus, and generality to conditioned freezing.

    PubMed

    Pickens, C L; Navarre, B M; Nair, S G

    2010-09-15

    We recently adapted the conditioned suppression of operant responding method to study fear incubation. We found that food-restricted rats show low fear 2 days after extended (10 d; 100 30-s tone-shock pairings) fear training and high fear after 1-2 months. Here, we studied a potential mechanism of fear incubation: extended food-restriction stress. We also studied whether fear incubation is observed after fear training with a prolonged-duration (6-min) tone conditioned stimulus (CS), and whether conditioned freezing incubates after extended training in rats with or without a concurrent operant task. Conditioned fear was assessed 2 days and 1 month after training. In the conditioned suppression method, fear incubation was reliably observed in rats under moderate food-restriction conditions (18-20 g food/day) that allowed for weight gain, and after extended (10 d), but not limited (1 d), fear training with the 6-min CS. Incubation of conditioned freezing was observed after extended fear training in rats lever-pressing for food and, to a lesser degree, in rats not performing an operant task. Results indicate that prolonged hunger-related stress does not account for fear incubation in the conditioned suppression method, and that fear incubation occurs to a longer-duration (6-min) fear CS. Extended training also leads to robust fear incubation of conditioned freezing in rats performing an operant task and weaker fear incubation in rats not performing an operant task. (c) 2010 IBRO. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  18. Histopathological Findings of Endometrial Samples and its Correlation Between the Premenopausal and Postmenopausal Women in Abnormal Uterine Bleeding.

    PubMed

    Sharma, S; Makaju, R; Shrestha, S; Shrestha, A

    2014-01-01

    Abnormal uterine bleeding is considered as one of the most common problems among women. The therapy is incomplete without knowing the underlying pathology. To determine the types and frequency of endometrial pathologies in patients presenting with abnormal uterine bleeding at Dhulikhel Hospital Kathmandu university Hospital. This is retrospective study total 100 cases were included over a period of one year of Abnormal Uterine bleeding. Out of 100 cases of Abnormal uterine bleeding, 61% were due to non-organic cause with a commonest histopathological findings proliferative endometrium. 27% cases were due to organic cause with pregnancy related condition as most common finding. 12% were reported as inadequate. The rate of postmenopausal bleeding declined with increasing age in the postmenopausal period and endometritis was the predominant finding. There is an age specific association of Abnormal uterine bleeding with increased incidence in perimenopausal age group. Postmenopausal bleeding declined with increasing with endometritis the most common finding. Dilation and curettage is helpful to exclude other organic pathology. It is useful for diagnosis and to know pathological incidence of organic lesions in cases of Abnormal uterine bleeding prior to surgery.

  19. Tinnitus Perception and Distress Is Related to Abnormal Spontaneous Brain Activity as Measured by Magnetoencephalography

    PubMed Central

    Weisz, Nathan; Moratti, Stephan; Meinzer, Marcus; Dohrmann, Katalin; Elbert, Thomas

    2005-01-01

    Background The neurophysiological mechanisms underlying tinnitus perception are not well understood. Surprisingly, there have been no group studies comparing abnormalities in ongoing, spontaneous neuronal activity in individuals with and without tinnitus perception. Methods and Findings Here, we show that the spontaneous neuronal activity of a group of individuals with tinnitus (n = 17) is characterised by a marked reduction in alpha (8–12 Hz) power together with an enhancement in delta (1.5–4 Hz) as compared to a normal hearing control group (n = 16). This pattern was especially pronounced for temporal regions. Moreover, correlations with tinnitus-related distress revealed strong associations with this abnormal spontaneous activity pattern, particularly in right temporal and left frontal areas. Overall, effects were stronger for the alpha than for the delta frequency band. A data stream of 5 min, recorded with a whole-head neuromagnetometer under a resting condition, was sufficient to extract the marked differences. Conclusions Despite some limitations, there are arguments that the regional pattern of abnormal spontaneous activity we found could reflect a tinnitus-related cortical network. This finding, which suggests that a neurofeedback approach could reduce the adverse effects of this disturbing condition, could have important implications for the treatment of tinnitus. PMID:15971936

  20. Changes in food intake and abnormal behavior using a puzzle feeder in newly acquired sub-adult rhesus monkeys (Macaca mulatta): a short term study.

    PubMed

    Lee, Jae-Il; Lee, Chi-Woo; Kwon, Hyouk-Sang; Kim, Young-Tae; Park, Chung-Gyu; Kim, Sang-Joon; Kang, Byeong-Cheol

    2008-10-01

    The majority of newly acquired nonhuman primates encounter serious problems adapting themselves to new environments or facilities. In particular, loss of appetite and abnormal behavior can occur in response to environmental stresses. These adaptation abnormalities can ultimately have an affect on the animal's growth and well-being. In this study, we evaluated the affects of a puzzle feeder on the food intake and abnormal behavior of newly acquired rhesus monkeys for a short period. The puzzle feeder was applied to 47- to 58-month-old animals that had never previously encountered one. We found that there was no difference in the change of food intake between the bucket condition and the puzzle feeder condition. In contrast, the time spent for consumption of food was three times longer in the puzzle feeder condition than in the bucket condition. Two monkeys initially exhibited stereotypic behavior. One showed a decreasing, and the other an increasing pattern of abnormal behavior after introduction of the puzzle feeder. In conclusion, this result suggests that over a short period, the puzzle feeder can only affect the time for food consumption since it failed to affect the food intake and did not consistently influence stereotypic behaviors in newly acquired rhesus monkeys.

  1. Infantile Nystagmus and Abnormalities of Conjugate Eye Movements in Down Syndrome.

    PubMed

    Weiss, Avery H; Kelly, John P; Phillips, James O

    2016-03-01

    Subjects with Down syndrome (DS) have an anatomical defect within the cerebellum that may impact downstream oculomotor areas. This study characterized gaze holding and gains for smooth pursuit, saccades, and optokinetic nystagmus (OKN) in DS children with infantile nystagmus (IN). Clinical data of 18 DS children with IN were reviewed retrospectively. Subjects with constant strabismus were excluded to remove any contribution of latent nystagmus. Gaze-holding, horizontal and vertical saccades to target steps, horizontal smooth pursuit of drifting targets, OKN in response to vertically or horizontally-oriented square wave gratings drifted at 15°/s, 30°/s, and 45°/s were recorded using binocular video-oculography. Seven subjects had additional optical coherence tomography imaging. Infantile nystagmus was associated with one or more gaze-holding instabilities (GHI) in each subject. The majority of subjects had a combination of conjugate horizontal jerk with constant or exponential slow-phase velocity, asymmetric or symmetric, and either monocular or binocular pendular nystagmus. Six of seven subjects had mild (Grade 0-1) persistence of retinal layers overlying the fovea, similar to that reported in DS children without nystagmus. All subjects had abnormal gains across one or more stimulus conditions (horizontal smooth pursuit, saccades, or OKN). Saccade velocities followed the main sequence. Down syndrome subjects with IN show a wide range of GHI and abnormalities of conjugate eye movements. We propose that these ocular motor abnormalities result from functional abnormalities of the cerebellum and/or downstream oculomotor circuits, perhaps due to extensive miswiring.

  2. 42 CFR 37.54 - Notification of abnormal radiographic findings.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-10-01

    ..., abnormality of cardiac shape or size, tuberculosis, lung cancer, or any other significant abnormal findings... shape or size, tuberculosis, cancer, complicated pneumoconiosis, and any other significant abnormal...

  3. No. 292-Abnormal Uterine Bleeding in Pre-Menopausal Women.

    PubMed

    Singh, Sukhbir; Best, Carolyn; Dunn, Sheila; Leyland, Nicholas; Wolfman, Wendy Lynn

    2018-05-01

    Abnormal uterine bleeding is the direct cause of a significant health care burden for women, their families, and society as a whole. Up to 30% of women will seek medical assistance for this problem during their reproductive years. This guideline replaces previous clinical guidelines on the topic and is aimed to enable health care providers with the tools to provide the latest evidence-based care in the diagnosis and the medical and surgical management of this common problem. To provide current evidence-based guidelines for the diagnosis and management of abnormal uterine bleeding (AUB) among women of reproductive age. Outcomes evaluated include the impact of AUB on quality of life and the results of interventions including medical and surgical management of AUB. Members of the guideline committee were selected on the basis of individual expertise to represent a range of practical and academic experience in terms of location in Canada, type of practice, subspecialty expertise, and general gynaecology background. The committee reviewed relevant evidence in the English medical literature including published guidelines. Recommendations were established as consensus statements. The final document was reviewed and approved by the Executive and Council of the SOGC. This document provides a summary of up-to-date evidence regarding diagnosis, investigations, and medical and surgical management of AUB. The resulting recommendations may be adapted by individual health care workers when serving women with this condition. Abnormal uterine bleeding is a common and sometimes debilitating condition in women of reproductive age. Standardization of related terminology, a systematic approach to diagnosis and investigation, and a step-wise approach to intervention is necessary. Treatment commencing with medical therapeutic modalities followed by the least invasive surgical modalities achieving results satisfactory to the patient is the ultimate goal of all therapeutic interventions

  4. Temporary prophylactic intravascular balloon occlusion of the common iliac arteries before cesarean hysterectomy for controlling operative blood loss in abnormal placentation.

    PubMed

    Chou, Min Min; Kung, Hsiao Fan; Hwang, Jen I; Chen, Wei Chi; Tseng, Jenn Jhy

    2015-10-01

    The purpose of this study was to investigate the efficacy and safety of temporary prophylactic intravascular balloon occlusion of the common iliac arteries (CIA) before planned cesarean hysterectomy for controlling operative blood loss in abnormal placentation. A retrospective study of 13 pregnant women at risk for placenta accreta identified using sequential obstetric ultrasonography and magnetic resonance imaging from January 2007 to December 2009 was performed. Temporary prophylactic intravascular balloon catheterization of the bilateral CIA before cesarean hysterectomy was performed by interventional radiologists. The maximum duration of occlusion time of CIA must not exceed 60 minutes. The primary outcome for this study included estimated blood loss and secondary outcomes included the development of thromboembolism, disseminated intravascular coagulation and surgical complications. Among these 13 patients, the mean age of the patients was 32.8 ± 0.7 years (range 29-37 years). The mean gestational age at cesarean hysterectomy was 32.2 ± 0.9 weeks (range 28-36 weeks), and the mean intraoperative blood loss was 1902.3 ± 578.8 mL (range 500-8000 mL). Operative bleeding was controlled by conservative treatment without additional surgery in two cases. Importantly, two patients (15.8%) had severe complications possibly related to the interventional procedure. One patient was noted to have a popliteal artery thrombosis. A second patient had an external iliac artery thrombosis with 80-90% occlusion. Both patients required antithrombotic treatment without sequelae. With limited experience in this small series, we observed a statistically significant reduction in operative blood loss after the use of temporary prophylactic balloon occlusion of the CIA technique compared with historical controls of similar demographic characteristics previously published (1902.3 ± 578.8 mL, range 500-8000 mL vs. 4445.7 ± 996.48 mL, range 1040-15,000 mL, p = 0.0402). Additionally, two

  5. Lenticular abnormalities in children.

    PubMed

    Khokhar, Sudarshan; Agarwal, Tushar; Kumar, Gaurav; Kushmesh, Rakhi; Tejwani, Lalit Kumar

    2012-01-01

    To study the lenticular problems in children presenting at an apex institute. Retrospective analysis of records (< 14 years) of new lens clinic cases was done. Of 1,047 children, 687 were males. Mean age at presentation was 6.35 ± 4.13 years. Developmental cataract was seen in 45.6% and posttraumatic cataract in 29.7% of patients. Other abnormalities were cataract with retinal detachment, persistent hyperplastic primary vitreous, subluxated lens, micro/spherophakia, cataract secondary to uveitis, intraocular lens complications, cataract with choroidal coloboma, and visual axis opacification. Developmental and posttraumatic cataracts were the most common abnormalities. Delayed presentation is of concern. Copyright 2012, SLACK Incorporated.

  6. Genetic and teratological considerations in the analysis of concordant and discordant abnormalities in twins.

    PubMed

    Gericke, G S

    1986-01-18

    Results from monozygotic (MZ) and dizygotic (DZ) twin research are often used in an attempt to gain a clearer understanding of the 'nature v. nurture' dilemma. Discordance between MZ twins has been considered to be environmental, and greater concordance in MZ compared with DZ pairs to be genetic. Current genetic and teratological theories considerably complicate the interpretation of concordance and discordance of abnormalities. The high rate of discordant intra-uterine death recently demonstrated in twins may profoundly influence the value of epidemiological studies usually performed in later life. Furthermore, indirect zygosity estimations based on sex ratios in DZ twins may be flawed because it is now recognized that increasing numbers of conditions are genetically heterogeneous. Emphasis is laid on problems of interpretation of discordance and concordance for developmental abnormalities in twins, and some possible mechanisms for their induction are discussed. Basic genetic concepts relevant to the expression of abnormalities in twins are outlined.

  7. Method for Prediction of the Power Output from Photovoltaic Power Plant under Actual Operating Conditions

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Obukhov, S. G.; Plotnikov, I. A.; Surzhikova, O. A.; Savkin, K. D.

    2017-04-01

    Solar photovoltaic technology is one of the most rapidly growing renewable sources of electricity that has practical application in various fields of human activity due to its high availability, huge potential and environmental compatibility. The original simulation model of the photovoltaic power plant has been developed to simulate and investigate the plant operating modes under actual operating conditions. The proposed model considers the impact of the external climatic factors on the solar panel energy characteristics that improves accuracy in the power output prediction. The data obtained through the photovoltaic power plant operation simulation enable a well-reasoned choice of the required capacity for storage devices and determination of the rational algorithms to control the energy complex.

  8. Evaluation of coronal shift as an indicator of neuroaxial abnormalities in adolescent idiopathic scoliosis: a prospective study

    PubMed Central

    2014-01-01

    Background In previous studies, many indicator factors have been proposed to select patients who need an MRI screening of the spinal canal. In current study, the clinical and radiologic factors including coronal parameters of the curve were evaluated to find out which indicator is more important. Methods A prospective study included 143 consecutive patients with the diagnosis of adolescent idiopathic scoliosis who were treated between 2010 and 2013 at our spinal clinics. Only patients with normal or subtle neurologic findings were included. All patients were evaluated by a total spine MRI protocol for examination of neuroaxial abnormalities. Known indicators and also coronal shift were analysed in all patients with or without abnormal MRI. Results The incidence of neuroaxial abnormalities was 11.9% (17 of 143); only 5 patients (3.5%) were operated to treat their neuroaxial problem. The significant indicators of the abnormalities in our patients were: younger age at onset, asymmetric superficial abdominal reflex and, coronal shift more than 15 mm (P = 0.03). Some previously known indicators like atypical curves, male gender, double curves and absence of thoracic lordosis were not different between two groups of the patients. Conclusions A total spine MRI is recommended at presentation in patients with younger age, abnormal neurologic findings and severe coronal shift. PMID:25071863

  9. Immune Abnormalities in Patients with Autism.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Warren, Reed P.; And Others

    1986-01-01

    A study of 31 autistic patients (3-28 years old) has revealed several immune-system abnormalities, including decreased numbers of T lymphocytes and an altered ratio of helper-to-suppressor T cells. Immune-system abnormalities may be directly related to underlying biologic processes of autism or an indirect reflection of the actual pathologic…

  10. Abnormal placentation.

    PubMed

    Bauer, Samuel T; Bonanno, Clarissa

    2009-04-01

    Abnormal placentation poses a diagnostic and treatment challenge for all providers caring for pregnant women. As one of the leading causes of postpartum hemorrhage, abnormal placentation involves the attachment of placental villi directly to the myometrium with potentially deeper invasion into the uterine wall or surrounding organs. Surgical procedures that disrupt the integrity of uterus, including cesarean section, dilatation and curettage, and myomectomy, have been implicated as key risk factors for placenta accreta. The diagnosis is typically made by gray-scale ultrasound and confirmed with magnetic resonance imaging, which may better delineate the extent of placental invasion. It is critical to make the diagnosis before delivery because preoperative planning can significantly decrease blood loss and avoid substantial morbidity associated with placenta accreta. Aggressive management of hemorrhage through the use of uterotonics, fluid resuscitation, blood products, planned hysterectomy, and surgical hemostatic agents can be life-saving for these patients. Conservative management, including the use of uterine and placental preservation and subsequent methotrexate therapy or pelvic artery embolization, may be considered when a focal accreta is suspected; however, surgical management remains the current standard of care.

  11. Fully Electrical Modeling of Thermoelectric Generators with Contact Thermal Resistance Under Different Operating Conditions

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Siouane, Saima; Jovanović, Slaviša; Poure, Philippe

    2017-01-01

    The Seebeck effect is used in thermoelectric generators (TEGs) to supply electronic circuits by converting the waste thermal into electrical energy. This generated electrical power is directly proportional to the temperature difference between the TEG module's hot and cold sides. Depending on the applications, TEGs can be used either under constant temperature gradient between heat reservoirs or constant heat flow conditions. Moreover, the generated electrical power of a TEG depends not only on these operating conditions, but also on the contact thermal resistance. The influence of the contact thermal resistance on the generated electrical power have already been extensively reported in the literature. However, as reported in Park et al. (Energy Convers Manag 86:233, 2014) and Montecucco and Knox (IEEE Trans Power Electron 30:828, 2015), while designing TEG-powered circuit and systems, a TEG module is mostly modeled with a Thévenin equivalent circuit whose resistance is constant and voltage proportional to the temperature gradient applied to the TEG's terminals. This widely used simplified electrical TEG model is inaccurate and not suitable under constant heat flow conditions or when the contact thermal resistance is considered. Moreover, it does not provide realistic behaviour corresponding to the physical phenomena taking place in a TEG. Therefore, from the circuit designer's point of view, faithful and fully electrical TEG models under different operating conditions are needed. Such models are mainly necessary to design and evaluate the power conditioning electronic stages and the maximum power point tracking algorithms of a TEG power supply. In this study, these fully electrical models with the contact thermal resistance taken into account are presented and the analytical expressions of the Thévenin equivalent circuit parameters are provided.

  12. Validation and Verification of Future Integrated Safety-Critical Systems Operating under Off-Nominal Conditions

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Belcastro, Christine M.

    2010-01-01

    Loss of control remains one of the largest contributors to aircraft fatal accidents worldwide. Aircraft loss-of-control accidents are highly complex in that they can result from numerous causal and contributing factors acting alone or (more often) in combination. Hence, there is no single intervention strategy to prevent these accidents and reducing them will require a holistic integrated intervention capability. Future onboard integrated system technologies developed for preventing loss of vehicle control accidents must be able to assure safe operation under the associated off-nominal conditions. The transition of these technologies into the commercial fleet will require their extensive validation and verification (V and V) and ultimate certification. The V and V of complex integrated systems poses major nontrivial technical challenges particularly for safety-critical operation under highly off-nominal conditions associated with aircraft loss-of-control events. This paper summarizes the V and V problem and presents a proposed process that could be applied to complex integrated safety-critical systems developed for preventing aircraft loss-of-control accidents. A summary of recent research accomplishments in this effort is also provided.

  13. Impact resistance of composite fan blades. [fiber reinforced graphite and boron epoxy blades for STOL operating conditions

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Premont, E. J.; Stubenrauch, K. R.

    1973-01-01

    The resistance of current-design Pratt and Whitney Aircraft low aspect ratio advanced fiber reinforced epoxy matrix composite fan blades to foreign object damage (FOD) at STOL operating conditions was investigated. Five graphite/epoxy and five boron/epoxy wide chord fan blades with nickel plated stainless steel leading edge sheath protection were fabricated and impact tested. The fan blades were individually tested in a vacuum whirlpit under FOD environments. The FOD environments were typical of those encountered in service operations. The impact objects were ice balls, gravel, stralings and gelatin simulated birds. Results of the damage sustained from each FOD impact are presented for both the graphite boron reinforced blades. Tests showed that the present design composite fan blades, with wrap around leading edge protection have inadequate FOD impact resistance at 244 m/sec (800 ft/sec) tip speed, a possible STOL operating condition.

  14. Electrocardiographic abnormalities in amateur male marathon runners.

    PubMed

    Kaleta, Anna M; Lewicka, Ewa; Dąbrowska-Kugacka, Alicja; Lewicka-Potocka, Zuzanna; Wabich, Elżbieta; Szerszyńska, Anna; Dyda, Julia; Sobolewski, Jakub; Koenner, Jakub; Raczak, Grzegorz

    2018-06-18

    Sports activity has become extremely popular among amateurs. Electrocardiography is a useful tool in screening for cardiac pathologies in athletes; however, there is little data on electrocardiographic abnormalities in the group of amateur athletes. The aim of this study was to analyze the abnormalities in resting and exercise electrocardiograms (ECGs) in a group of amateur athletes, and try to determine whether the criteria applied for the general population or for athletes' ECGs should be implemented in this group. In 40 amateur male marathon runners, 3 consecutive 12-lead ECGs were performed: 2-3 weeks before (stage 1), just after the run (stage 2) and 2-3 weeks after the marathon (stage 3). Resting (stage 1) and exercise (stage 2) ECGs were analyzed following the refined criteria for the assessment of athlete's ECG (changes classified as training-related, borderline or training-unrelated). In resting ECGs, at least 1 abnormality was found in 92.5% of the subjects and the most common was sinus bradycardia (62.5%). In post-exercise ECGs, at least 1 abnormality was present in 77.5% of the subjects and the most common was right atrium enlargement (RAE) (42.5%). Training-related ECG variants were more frequent at rest (82.5% vs 42.5%; p = 0.0008), while borderline variants - after the run (22.5% vs 57.5%; p = 0.0004). Training-unrelated abnormalities were found in 15% and 10% of the subjects, respectively (p-value - nonsignificant), and the most common was T-wave inversion. Even if the refined criteria rather than the criteria used for normal sedentary population were applied, the vast majority of amateur runners showed at least 1 abnormality in resting ECGs, which were mainly training-related variants. However, at rest, in 15% of the subjects, pathologic training-unrelated abnormalities were found. The most frequent post-exercise abnormality was right atrial enlargement. General electrocardiographic screening in amateur athletes should be taken into consideration.

  15. Apparatus and method for non-invasive diagnosis and control of motor operated valve condition

    DOEpatents

    Lyon, R.H.; Chai, J.; Lang, J.H.; Hagman, W.H.; Umans, S.D.; Saarela, O.J.

    1997-01-14

    An apparatus compares the torque from an MOV motor with the valve displacement, and from the comparison assesses MOV operating condition. A transducer measures the vibration of the housing of an MOV. The vibrations are due to the motions of the rotating elements within the housing, which motions are directly related to the motion of the valve relative to its seat. Signal processing apparatus analyzes the vibrations to recover the rotations of the rotating elements and thus the motion of the valve plug. Lost motion can also be determined (if a lost motion connection exists) by demodulating the vibration signal and thus taking into account also the lost motion. Simultaneously, the forces applied to the valve are estimated by estimating the torque between the stator and the rotor of the motor. Such torque can be estimated from measuring the input current and voltage alone, using a forgetting factor and a correction for the forgetting factor. A signature derived from relating the torque to the valve position can be used to assess the condition of the MOV, by comparing the signature to signatures for MOVs of known conditions. The vibration analysis components generate signals that relate to the position of elements in the operator. Similarly, the torque estimator estimates the torque output by any type of electric motor, whether or not part of an MOV analysis unit. 28 figs.

  16. Apparatus and method for non-invasive diagnosis and control of motor operated valve condition

    DOEpatents

    Lyon, Richard H.; Chai, Jangbom; Lang, Jeffrey H.; Hagman, Wayne H.; Umans, Stephen D.; Saarela, Olli J.

    1997-01-01

    An apparatus compares the torque from an MOV motor with the valve displacement, and from the comparison assesses MOV operating condition. A transducer measures the vibration of the housing of an MOV. The vibrations are due to the motions of the rotating elements within the housing, which motions are directly related to the motion of the valve relative to its seat. Signal processing apparatus analyzes the vibrations to recover the rotations of the rotating elements and thus the motion of the valve plug. Lost motion can also be determined (if a lost motion connection exists) by demodulating the vibration signal and thus taking into account also the lost motion. Simultaneously, the forces applied to the valve are estimated by estimating the torque between the stator and the rotor of the motor. Such torque can be estimated from measuring the input current and voltage alone, using a forgetting factor and a correction for the forgetting factor. A signature derived from relating the torque to the valve position can be used to assess the condition of the MOV, by comparing the signature to signatures for MOVs of known conditions. The vibration analysis components generate signals that relate to the position of elements in the operator. Similarly, the torque estimator estimates the torque output by any type of electric motor, whether or not part of an MOV analysis unit.

  17. Health hazards in areas of military operations conducted in different climatic and sanitary conditions.

    PubMed

    Korzeniewski, Krzysztof

    2011-01-01

    This paper reviews the most common health hazards occurring among personnel of peacekeeping and stabilization missions functioning within armed conflicts in the contemporary world. Military operations have been executed in diverse climatic and sanitary conditions, which are frequently unfamiliar for their participants. Some of them, e.g. the UN peacekeeping missions in the Middle East (Lebanon, the Golan Heights), have been carried out in a relatively stable geopolitical environment; whereas, stabilization missions in Iraq and Afghanistan, which are actually combat activities, undoubtedly fall into the group of the most perilous military operations in the world. Hot or cold climate, poor sanitary and hygienic conditions along with warfare facilitate the occurrence of numerous diseases and body injuries not only among the local people but also among peacekeepers, who represent the population of immigrants. Health hazards which pose major epidemiological threats in combat zones are arthropod-borne, food and water-borne, respiratory tract diseases, sexually transmitted diseases, enzootic diseases, battle injuries, and non- -battle injuries, e.g. traffic accidents. Another considerable health problem are psychiatric disorders, which can either appear directly after the occurrence of a traumatic event in a combat zone or indirectly, after some time had elapsed. In addition to the health hazards listed above, environmental factors such as changeable weather conditions and local fauna may also be life threatening.

  18. Cardiac abnormality prediction using HMLP network

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Adnan, Ja'afar; Ahmad, K. A.; Mat, Muhamad Hadzren; Rizman, Zairi Ismael; Ahmad, Shahril

    2018-02-01

    Cardiac abnormality often occurs regardless of gender, age and races but depends on the lifestyle. This problem sometimes does not show any symptoms and usually detected once it already critical which lead to a sudden death to the patient. Basically, cardiac abnormality is the irregular electrical signal that generate by the pacemaker of the heart. This paper attempts to develop a program that can detect cardiac abnormality activity through implementation of Hybrid Multilayer Perceptron (HMLP) network. A certain amount of data of the heartbeat signals from the electrocardiogram (ECG) will be used in this project to train the MLP and HMLP network by using Modified Recursive Prediction Error (MRPE) algorithm and to test the network performance.

  19. Four families with immunodeficiency and chromosome abnormalities.

    PubMed Central

    Candy, D C; Hayward, A R; Hughes, D T; Layward, L; Soothill, J F

    1979-01-01

    Six children, with severe deficiency of some or all of the immunoglobulins and minor somatic abnormalities, had chromosomal abnormalities: (1) 45,XY,t(13q/18q), (2) 46,XY,21ps +, (3) two brothers 46,XY (inv. 7) (4) 45,X,t(11p/10p)/46X,iXq,t(11p/10p) and, (5) in addendum, 45,XX,-18;46,XX, r18. The chromosome abnormalities were detected in B- as well as T-lymphocytes (as evidenced by using both PHA- and PWM-stimulated cultures) in all probands, but one was mosaic in PHA culture, although all his PWM-stimulated cells were abnormal. Chromosomal variants were also detected in relatives of three and immunodeficiency in relatives of two. Images Fig. 1 Fig. 3 PMID:314782

  20. Association of abnormal morphology and altered gene expression in human preimplantation embryos.

    PubMed

    Wells, Dagan; Bermúdez, Mercedes G; Steuerwald, Nury; Malter, Henry E; Thornhill, Alan R; Cohen, Jacques

    2005-08-01

    We set out to characterize the expression of nine genes in human preimplantation embryos and determine whether abnormal morphology is associated with altered gene activity. Reverse transcription and real-time polymerase chain reaction were used to quantify the expression of multiple genes in each embryo. The genes studied have various important cellular roles (e.g., cell cycle regulation, DNA repair, and apoptosis). Research laboratory working closely with a clinical IVF practice. Over 50 embryos were donated by infertile patients (various etiologies). Among these, all major stages of preimplantation development and a variety of common morphologic abnormalities were represented. None. Quantification of mRNA transcripts. We detected an association between certain forms of abnormal morphology and disturbances of gene activity. Cellular fragmentation was associated with altered expression of several genes, including TP53, suggesting that fragmenting blastomeres are suffering stress of a type monitored by p53, possibly as a consequence of suboptimal culture conditions. Appropriate gene expression is vital for the regulation of metabolic pathways and key developmental events. Our data indicates a possible causal relationship between changes in gene expression and the formation of clinically relevant abnormal embryo morphologies. We hypothesize that embryos with expression profiles characteristic of good morphology and appropriate for their developmental stage have the greatest potential for implantation. If confirmed, this could lead to a new generation of preimplantation genetic diagnosis (PGD) tests for assessing embryo viability and predicting implantation potential.

  1. Identification of abnormal accident patterns at intersections

    DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

    1999-08-01

    This report presents the findings and recommendations based on the Identification of Abnormal Accident Patterns at Intersections. This project used a statistically valid sampling method to determine whether a specific intersection has an abnormally h...

  2. Managing the equipment service life in rendering engineering support to NPP operation

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Ryasnyy, S. I.

    2015-05-01

    Apart from subjecting metal to nondestructive testing and determining its actual state, which are the traditional methods used for managing the service life of NPP equipment during its operation, other approaches closely linked with rendering engineering support to NPP operation have emerged in recent decades, which, however, have been covered in publications to a lesser extent. Service life management matters occupy the central place in the structure of engineering support measures. Application of the concept of repairing NPP equipment based on assessing its technical state and the risk of its failure makes it possible to achieve significantly smaller costs for maintenance and repairs and produce a larger amount of electricity due to shorter planned outages. Decreasing the occurrence probability of a process-related abnormality through its prediction is a further development of techniques for monitoring the technical state of equipment and systems. The proposed and implemented procedure for predicting the occurrence of process-related deviations from normal NPP operation opens the possibility to record in the online mode the trends in changes of process parameters that are likely to lead to malfunctions in equipment operation and to reduce the probability of power unit unloading when an abnormal technical state of equipment occurs and develops by recording changes in the state at an early stage and taking timely corrective measures. The article presents the structure of interconnections between the objectives and conditions of adjustment and commissioning tests, in which the management of equipment service life (saving and optimizing the service life) occupies the central place. Special attention is paid to differences in resource saving and optimization measures.

  3. Complex patterns of abnormal heartbeats

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Schulte-Frohlinde, Verena; Ashkenazy, Yosef; Goldberger, Ary L.; Ivanov, Plamen Ch; Costa, Madalena; Morley-Davies, Adrian; Stanley, H. Eugene; Glass, Leon

    2002-01-01

    Individuals having frequent abnormal heartbeats interspersed with normal heartbeats may be at an increased risk of sudden cardiac death. However, mechanistic understanding of such cardiac arrhythmias is limited. We present a visual and qualitative method to display statistical properties of abnormal heartbeats. We introduce dynamical "heartprints" which reveal characteristic patterns in long clinical records encompassing approximately 10(5) heartbeats and may provide information about underlying mechanisms. We test if these dynamics can be reproduced by model simulations in which abnormal heartbeats are generated (i) randomly, (ii) at a fixed time interval following a preceding normal heartbeat, or (iii) by an independent oscillator that may or may not interact with the normal heartbeat. We compare the results of these three models and test their limitations to comprehensively simulate the statistical features of selected clinical records. This work introduces methods that can be used to test mathematical models of arrhythmogenesis and to develop a new understanding of underlying electrophysiologic mechanisms of cardiac arrhythmia.

  4. Numerical Simulations of Evaporating Sprays in High Pressure and Temperature Operating Conditions (Engine Combustion Network [ECN])

    DTIC Science & Technology

    2014-05-01

    temperature effect in nonreacting and reacting diesel sprays using a novel injector , and imaging diagnostics for liquid phase penetration, light-off...ambient conditions. A single hole, modern common rail injector with an injector diameter of 90 µ (Bosch CRIN 2.4) is used at typical diesel injection... diesel engine operating conditions. The objective of this report is to demonstrate the modeling capability of a recently adopted 3D-Computational Fluid

  5. The effect of engine operating conditions on exhaust gas recirculation cooler fouling

    DOE PAGES

    Lance, Michael J.; Mills, Zachary G.; Seylar, Joshua C.; ...

    2018-05-17

    Exhaust gas recirculation (EGR) cooler fouling occurs when particulate matter (PM) and hydrocarbons (HC) in diesel exhaust form a deposit on the walls of the EGR cooler through thermophoresis and condensation. To better understand the mechanisms controlling deposit formation and removal and how operating conditions can affect cooler performance, 20 identical tube-in-shell EGR coolers with sinusoidal fins were fouled using a 5-factor, 3-level experimental design. The deposit thickness was measured using two methods: (1) epoxy-mounting and polishing cooler cross-sections and comparing deposit thicknesses on the primary (outer tube) to the secondary (fins) heat transfer surfaces, and (2) milling tube sectionsmore » such that the surface of a fin could be observed and measuring the deposit thickness across the fin using a 3D profilometer. Near the cooler inlet, high inlet gas temperatures reduced deposit thickness by promoting mud-cracking and spallation. Near the middle of the cooler, the flow rate had the largest impact on the deposit thickness through the effect on residence time of the PM. The HC concentration along with flow rate had the largest effects near the cooler outlet where the lower temperatures allows for more HC condensation. Furthermore, these insights into how engine operating conditions influence the development of fouling layers in EGR coolers learned through this study will aid in the development of more fouling resistant coolers in the future.« less

  6. The effect of engine operating conditions on exhaust gas recirculation cooler fouling

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Lance, Michael J.; Mills, Zachary G.; Seylar, Joshua C.

    Exhaust gas recirculation (EGR) cooler fouling occurs when particulate matter (PM) and hydrocarbons (HC) in diesel exhaust form a deposit on the walls of the EGR cooler through thermophoresis and condensation. To better understand the mechanisms controlling deposit formation and removal and how operating conditions can affect cooler performance, 20 identical tube-in-shell EGR coolers with sinusoidal fins were fouled using a 5-factor, 3-level experimental design. The deposit thickness was measured using two methods: (1) epoxy-mounting and polishing cooler cross-sections and comparing deposit thicknesses on the primary (outer tube) to the secondary (fins) heat transfer surfaces, and (2) milling tube sectionsmore » such that the surface of a fin could be observed and measuring the deposit thickness across the fin using a 3D profilometer. Near the cooler inlet, high inlet gas temperatures reduced deposit thickness by promoting mud-cracking and spallation. Near the middle of the cooler, the flow rate had the largest impact on the deposit thickness through the effect on residence time of the PM. The HC concentration along with flow rate had the largest effects near the cooler outlet where the lower temperatures allows for more HC condensation. Furthermore, these insights into how engine operating conditions influence the development of fouling layers in EGR coolers learned through this study will aid in the development of more fouling resistant coolers in the future.« less

  7. Early Reticulocytosis and Anemia Are Associated with Abnormal and Conditional Transcranial Doppler Velocities in Children with Sickle Cell Anemia.

    PubMed

    Meier, Emily Riehm; Fasano, Ross M; Estrada, Monica; He, Jianping; Luban, Naomi L C; McCarter, Robert

    2016-02-01

    To improve prediction of sickle cell anemia severity at an early age, we evaluated whether absolute reticulocyte count (ARC) or hemoglobin (Hb) levels during early infancy (2-6 months of age) in patients with sickle cell anemia predict the risk of later developing an abnormal (abTCD) or conditional (cdTCD) Transcranial Doppler (TCD). We used chart review to identify 121 consecutive patients who underwent TCD screening and had steady state ARC and Hb levels recorded between 2 and 6 months of age. Cox regression analysis was used to determine the relationship between ARC, Hb levels, and risk of developing cdTCD/abTCD over time. Mean ARC in early infancy was highest and mean Hb lowest in those children with abTCDs and cdTCDs. Cox regression analysis revealed that those subjects with an ARC ≥200 K/μL in early infancy had nearly 3 times the risk of having an abTCD/cdTCD than the group with an ARC <200 K/μL, and patients with a Hb <8.5 g/dL had 2.7 times the risk of having an abTCD/cdTCD. These data suggest that both elevated ARC and low baseline Hb during early infancy are associated with an increased risk of developing a cdTCD or abTCD later in childhood. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  8. High Performance Double-null Plasma Operation Under Radiating Divertor Conditions

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Petrie, T. W.; Osborne, T.; Leonard, A. W.; Luce, T. C.; Petty, C. C.; Fenstermacher, M. E.; Lasnier, C. J.; Turco, F.; Watkins, J. G.

    2017-10-01

    We report on heat flux reduction experiments in which deuterium/neon- or deuterium/argon-based radiating mantle/divertor approaches were applied to high performance double-null (DN) plasmas (H98 1.4-1.7,βN 4 , q 95 6) with a combined neutral beam and ECH power input PIN 15 MW. When the radial location of the ECH deposition is close to the magnetic axis (e.g., ρ <=0.20), the radial profiles of both injected and intrinsic impurities are flat to somewhat hollow. For deposition farther out (e.g., ρ=0.45), the impurity profiles are highly peaked on axis, which would make high performance DN operation with impurity injection more problematical. Comparison of neon with argon `seeding' with respect to core dilution, energy confinement, and heat flux reduction under these conditions favors argon. Conditions that lead to an improved τE as predicted previously from ELITE code analysis, i.e., very high PIN, proximity to magnetic balance, and higher q95, are largely consistent with this data. Work was supported by the US DOE under DE-FC02-04ER54698, DE-AC52-07NA27344, DE-FG02-04ER54761, and DE-AC04-94AL85000.

  9. High lifetime probability of screen-detected cervical abnormalities.

    PubMed

    Pankakoski, Maiju; Heinävaara, Sirpa; Sarkeala, Tytti; Anttila, Ahti

    2017-12-01

    Objective Regular screening and follow-up is an important key to cervical cancer prevention; however, screening inevitably detects mild or borderline abnormalities that would never progress to a more severe stage. We analysed the cumulative probability and recurrence of cervical abnormalities in the Finnish organized screening programme during a 22-year follow-up. Methods Screening histories were collected for 364,487 women born between 1950 and 1965. Data consisted of 1 207,017 routine screens and 88,143 follow-up screens between 1991 and 2012. Probabilities of cervical abnormalities by age were estimated using logistic regression and generalized estimating equations methodology. Results The probability of experiencing any abnormality at least once at ages 30-64 was 34.0% (95% confidence interval [CI]: 33.3-34.6%) . Probability was 5.4% (95% CI: 5.0-5.8%) for results warranting referral and 2.2% (95% CI: 2.0-2.4%) for results with histologically confirmed findings. Previous occurrences were associated with an increased risk of detecting new ones, specifically in older women. Conclusion A considerable proportion of women experience at least one abnormal screening result during their lifetime, and yet very few eventually develop an actual precancerous lesion. Re-evaluation of diagnostic criteria concerning mild abnormalities might improve the balance of harms and benefits of screening. Special monitoring of women with recurrent abnormalities especially at older ages may also be needed.

  10. [Abnormal cervicovaginal cytology in women with rheumatoid arthritis].

    PubMed

    Mercado, Ulises

    2010-02-01

    Patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) are at increased risk of infections and cancer. A link between RA and abnormal cervicovaginal cytology has rarely been reported. The aim of this study was to review cervicovaginal cytology results in women with RA and compare them with a control population. Sexual behavior also was investigated. Cervicovaginal cytology results of 95 women with RA were compared to those of a control population of 1,719 women attending at the same hospital and followed until June 2009. Records of RA patients were reviewed to obtain clinical data, particularly sexual behavior. Of 95 RA patients, 13/95 had an abnormal cervicovaginal cytology result, compared with 120/1,719 controls. Twelve/13 had squamous intraepithelial lesions (SIL), compared with 27/120 controls. There was no significant difference in sexual partners between women with RA and controls. Women with RA without abnormal cervicovaginal cytology had less sexual partners than those with RA and abnormal cytology. Two women with RA and abnormal cervicovaginal cytology had a history of condylomata and herpes genital. Three/13 women with RA developed abnormal cervicovaginal cytology after 12 to 36 months initiating their illness. None from them had ever received immunosuppressants. Women with RA have an increased prevalence of abnormal cervical cytology, compared with a control population. It may be related to chronic inflammatory disease and sexual behavior.

  11. Segmentation and Image Analysis of Abnormal Lungs at CT: Current Approaches, Challenges, and Future Trends

    PubMed Central

    Mansoor, Awais; Foster, Brent; Xu, Ziyue; Papadakis, Georgios Z.; Folio, Les R.; Udupa, Jayaram K.; Mollura, Daniel J.

    2015-01-01

    The computer-based process of identifying the boundaries of lung from surrounding thoracic tissue on computed tomographic (CT) images, which is called segmentation, is a vital first step in radiologic pulmonary image analysis. Many algorithms and software platforms provide image segmentation routines for quantification of lung abnormalities; however, nearly all of the current image segmentation approaches apply well only if the lungs exhibit minimal or no pathologic conditions. When moderate to high amounts of disease or abnormalities with a challenging shape or appearance exist in the lungs, computer-aided detection systems may be highly likely to fail to depict those abnormal regions because of inaccurate segmentation methods. In particular, abnormalities such as pleural effusions, consolidations, and masses often cause inaccurate lung segmentation, which greatly limits the use of image processing methods in clinical and research contexts. In this review, a critical summary of the current methods for lung segmentation on CT images is provided, with special emphasis on the accuracy and performance of the methods in cases with abnormalities and cases with exemplary pathologic findings. The currently available segmentation methods can be divided into five major classes: (a) thresholding-based, (b) region-based, (c) shape-based, (d) neighboring anatomy–guided, and (e) machine learning–based methods. The feasibility of each class and its shortcomings are explained and illustrated with the most common lung abnormalities observed on CT images. In an overview, practical applications and evolving technologies combining the presented approaches for the practicing radiologist are detailed. ©RSNA, 2015 PMID:26172351

  12. Key Parameters for Operator Diagnosis of BWR Plant Condition during a Severe Accident

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Clayton, Dwight A.; Poore, III, Willis P.

    2015-01-01

    The objective of this research is to examine the key information needed from nuclear power plant instrumentation to guide severe accident management and mitigation for boiling water reactor (BWR) designs (specifically, a BWR/4-Mark I), estimate environmental conditions that the instrumentation will experience during a severe accident, and identify potential gaps in existing instrumentation that may require further research and development. This report notes the key parameters that instrumentation needs to measure to help operators respond to severe accidents. A follow-up report will assess severe accident environmental conditions as estimated by severe accident simulation model analysis for a specific US BWR/4-Markmore » I plant for those instrumentation systems considered most important for accident management purposes.« less

  13. Abnormalities of High Density Lipoproteins in Abetalipoproteinemia*

    PubMed Central

    Jones, John W.; Ways, Peter

    1967-01-01

    Detailed studies of the high density lipoproteins from three patients with abetalipoproteinemia have revealed the following principal abnormalities: 1) High density lipoprotein 3 (HDL3) is reduced in both absolute and relative concentration, although HDL2 is present in normal amounts. 2) The phospholipid distribution of both HDL fractions is abnormal, with low concentrations of lecithin and an increased percentage (though normal absolute quantity) of sphingomyelin. 3) In both HDL fractions, lecithin contains less linoleate and more oleate than normal. The cholesteryl esters are also low in linoleic acid, and the sphingomyelin is high in nervonic acid. Dietary intake influences the linoleic acid concentration within 2 weeks, and perhaps sooner, but the elevated sphingomyelin nervonic acid is little affected by up to 6 months of corn oil supplementation. Qualitatively similar changes in fatty acid composition, but not phospholipid distribution, are also found in other malabsorption states. The available evidence suggests that the abnormally low levels of HDL3 and the deranged phospholipid distribution are more specific for abetalipoproteinemia than the fatty acid abnormalities. However, the absence of these abnormalities in obligate heterozygous subjects makes their relationship to the primary defect of abetalipoproteinemia difficult to assess. Images PMID:6027078

  14. Endocrine abnormalities in lithium toxicity.

    PubMed

    Shanks, Gabriella; Mishra, Vinita; Nikolova, Stanka

    2017-10-01

    Lithium toxicity can manifest as a variety of biochemical -abnormalities. This case report describes a patient -presenting to the emergency department with neuropsychiatric -symptoms on a background of bipolar disorder, for which she was prescribed lithium for 26 years previously. Cases of lithium toxicity are rare but can be severe and this case report -demonstrates to clinicians that they must be thorough in investigating patients with lithium toxicity, as there are many potential abnormalities that can manifest concurrently. © Royal College of Physicians 2017. All rights reserved.

  15. Instability study for LOFT for L2-1, L2-2, and L2-3 pretest steady-state operating conditions

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Eide, S.A.

    The results are presented of a thermal-hydrodynamic flow instability study of the LOFT reactor for the L2-1, L2-2, and L2-3 pretest steady-state operating conditions. Comparison is made between the LOFT reactor and a typical PWR, and the effects on stability of differences in operating parameters and geometry are discussed. Results indicate that the LOFT reactor will be thermal-hydrodynamically stable for nominal and worst case operating conditions. The study supports the LOFT Experimental Safety Analyses for the L2-1, L2-2, and L2-3 tests.

  16. Brain and bone abnormalities of thanatophoric dwarfism.

    PubMed

    Miller, Elka; Blaser, Susan; Shannon, Patrick; Widjaja, Elysa

    2009-01-01

    The purpose of this article is to present the imaging findings of skeletal and brain abnormalities in thanatophoric dwarfism, a lethal form of dysplastic dwarfism. The bony abnormalities associated with thanatophoric dwarfism include marked shortening of the tubular bones and ribs. Abnormal temporal lobe development is a common associated feature and can be visualized as early as the second trimester. It is important to assess the brains of fetuses with suspected thanatophoric dwarfism because the presence of associated brain malformations can assist in the antenatal diagnosis of thanatophoric dwarfism.

  17. Chromosomal abnormalities as a cause of recurrent abortions in Egypt

    PubMed Central

    El-Dahtory, Faeza Abdel Mogib

    2011-01-01

    BACKGROUND: In 4%-8% of couples with recurrent abortion, at least one of the partners has chromosomal abnormality. Most spontaneous miscarriages which happen in the first and second trimesters are caused by chromosomal abnormalities. These chromosomal abnormalities may be either numerical or structural. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Cytogenetic study was done for 73 Egyptian couples who presented with recurrent abortion at Genetic Unit of Children Hospital, Mansoura University. RESULTS: We found that the frequency of chromosomal abnormalities was not significantly different from that reported worldwide. Chromosomal abnormalities were detected in 9 (6.1%) of 73 couples. Seven of chromosomal abnormalities were structural and two of them were numerical. CONCLUSION: Our results showed that 6.1% of the couples with recurrent abortion had chromosomal abnormalities, with no other abnormalities. We suggest that it is necessary to perform cytogenetic in vestigation for couples who have recurrent abortion. PMID:22090718

  18. Adaptive strategies of remote systems operators exposed to perturbed camera-viewing conditions

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Stuart, Mark A.; Manahan, Meera K.; Bierschwale, John M.; Sampaio, Carlos E.; Legendre, A. J.

    1991-01-01

    This report describes a preliminary investigation of the use of perturbed visual feedback during the performance of simulated space-based remote manipulation tasks. The primary objective of this NASA evaluation was to determine to what extent operators exhibit adaptive strategies which allow them to perform these specific types of remote manipulation tasks more efficiently while exposed to perturbed visual feedback. A secondary objective of this evaluation was to establish a set of preliminary guidelines for enhancing remote manipulation performance and reducing the adverse effects. These objectives were accomplished by studying the remote manipulator performance of test subjects exposed to various perturbed camera-viewing conditions while performing a simulated space-based remote manipulation task. Statistical analysis of performance and subjective data revealed that remote manipulation performance was adversely affected by the use of perturbed visual feedback and performance tended to improve with successive trials in most perturbed viewing conditions.

  19. Optimization of the operating conditions of fuel oil combustion in the furnaces of large-capacity boilers

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Zroichikov, N. A.; Lyskov, M. G.; Prokhorov, V. B.; Morozova, E. A.

    2007-06-01

    We describe a proposed small-size cavitator having an adjustable flow cross-section, which allows the dispersion of water-fuel oil emulsion to be varied during the operation of large-capacity boilers. It is shown that the operating conditions of the boiler must be synchronized with those of the cavitator if we wish the problem of reducing the amount of harmful substances emitted into the atmosphere during the combustion of fuel oil to be solved in a comprehensive manner.

  20. Expression of human PQBP-1 in Drosophila impairs long-term memory and induces abnormal courtship.

    PubMed

    Yoshimura, Natsue; Horiuchi, Daisuke; Shibata, Masao; Saitoe, Minoru; Qi, Mei-Ling; Okazawa, Hitoshi

    2006-04-17

    Frame shift mutations of the polyglutamine binding protein-1 (PQBP1) gene lead to total or partial truncation of the C-terminal domain (CTD) and cause mental retardation in human patients. Interestingly, normal Drosophila homologue of PQBP-1 lacks CTD. As a model to analyze the molecular network of PQBP-1 affecting intelligence, we generated transgenic flies expressing human PQBP-1 with CTD. Pavlovian olfactory conditioning revealed that the transgenic flies showed disturbance of long-term memory. In addition, they showed abnormal courtship that male flies follow male flies. Abnormal functions of PQBP-1 or its binding partner might be linked to these symptoms.

  1. Self-Injurious Behavior in Rett Syndrome: Interactions between Features of Rett Syndrome and Operant Conditioning.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Oliver, Chris; And Others

    1993-01-01

    In this case study, interactions were examined between features of Rett syndrome and operant conditioning as determinants of self-injurious behavior (SIB). Analysis suggested different functions for two forms of SIB: automatic reinforcement by sensory stimulation and escape from social interactions. Features of Rett syndrome tended to maximize the…

  2. Hemostatic Abnormalities in Multiple Myeloma Patients

    PubMed Central

    Gogia, Aarti; Sikka, Meera; Sharma, Satender; Rusia, Usha

    2018-01-01

    Background: Multiple myeloma (MM) is a neoplastic plasma cell disorder characterized by clonal proliferation of plasma cells in the bone marrow. Diverse hemostatic abnormalities have been reported in patients with myeloma which predispose to bleeding and also thrombosis. Methods: Complete blood count, biochemical parameters and parameters of hemostasis i.e. platelet count, prothrombin time (PT), activated partial thromboplastin time (APTT), thrombin time (TT), factor VIII assay results, plasma fibrinogen, D-dimer and lupus anticoagulant, were assessed in 29 MM patients and 30 age matched controls. Results: The most frequent abnormal screening parameter was APTT. Of the six indicative of a bleeding tendency i.e. thrombocytopenia, prolonged PT, APTT, TT, reduced plasma fibrinogen and factor VIII, at least one was abnormal in 8 (27.6%) patients. Of the four prothrombotic markers, lupus anticoagulant, D-dimer, elevated factor VIII and plasma fibrinogen, one or more marker was present in 24 (82.7%). D-dimer was the most common prothrombotic marker, being elevated in 22 (75.9%) patients. One or more laboratory parameter of hemostasis was abnormal in all 29 (100%) patients. Though thrombotic complications are reported to be less frequent as compared to hemorrhagic manifestations, one or more marker of thrombosis was present in 24 (82.7%) patients. Conclusion: This study provided laboratory evidence of hemostatic dysfunction which may be associated with thrombotic or bleeding complications at diagnosis in all MM patients. Hence, screening for these abnormalities at the time of diagnosis should help improved prognosis in such cases. PMID:29373903

  3. Tip clearance noise of axial flow fans operating at design and off-design condition

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Fukano, T.; Jang, C.-M.

    2004-08-01

    The noise due to tip clearance (TC) flow in axial flow fans operating at a design and off-design conditions is analyzed by an experimental measurement using two hot-wire probes rotating with the fan blades. The unsteady nature of the spectra of the real-time velocities measured by two hot-wire sensors in a vortical flow region is investigated by using cross-correlation coefficient and retarded time of the two fluctuating velocities. The results show that the noise due to TC flow consists of a discrete frequency noise due to periodic velocity fluctuation and a broadband noise due to velocity fluctuation in the blade passage. The peak frequencies in a vortical flow are mainly observed below at four harmonic blade passing frequency. The discrete frequency component of velocity fluctuation at the off-design operating conditions is generated in vortical flow region as well as in reverse flow region. The peak frequency can be an important noise source when the fans are rotated with a high rotational speed. The authors propose a spiral pattern of velocity fluctuation in the vortical flow to describe the generation mechanism of the peak frequency in the vortical flow. In addition, noise increase due to TC flow at low flow rate condition is analyzed with relation to the distribution of velocity fluctuation due to the interference between the tip leakage vortex and the adjacent pressure surface of the blade.

  4. Apparatus and method for non-invasive diagnosis and control of motor operated valve condition

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Lyon, R.H.; Chai, J.; Lang, J.H.

    1997-01-14

    An apparatus compares the torque from an MOV motor with the valve displacement, and from the comparison assesses MOV operating condition. A transducer measures the vibration of the housing of an MOV. The vibrations are due to the motions of the rotating elements within the housing, which motions are directly related to the motion of the valve relative to its seat. Signal processing apparatus analyzes the vibrations to recover the rotations of the rotating elements and thus the motion of the valve plug. Lost motion can also be determined (if a lost motion connection exists) by demodulating the vibration signalmore » and thus taking into account also the lost motion. Simultaneously, the forces applied to the valve are estimated by estimating the torque between the stator and the rotor of the motor. Such torque can be estimated from measuring the input current and voltage alone, using a forgetting factor and a correction for the forgetting factor. A signature derived from relating the torque to the valve position can be used to assess the condition of the MOV, by comparing the signature to signatures for MOVs of known conditions. The vibration analysis components generate signals that relate to the position of elements in the operator. Similarly, the torque estimator estimates the torque output by any type of electric motor, whether or not part of an MOV analysis unit. 28 figs.« less

  5. Detector for flow abnormalities in gaseous diffusion plant compressors

    DOEpatents

    Smith, Stephen F.; Castleberry, Kim N.

    1998-01-01

    A detector detects a flow abnormality in a plant compressor which outputs a motor current signal. The detector includes a demodulator/lowpass filter demodulating and filtering the motor current signal producing a demodulated signal, and first, second, third and fourth bandpass filters connected to the demodulator/lowpass filter, and filtering the demodulated signal in accordance with first, second, third and fourth bandpass frequencies generating first, second, third and fourth filtered signals having first, second, third and fourth amplitudes. The detector also includes first, second, third and fourth amplitude detectors connected to the first, second, third and fourth bandpass filters respectively, and detecting the first, second, third and fourth amplitudes, and first and second adders connected to the first and fourth amplitude detectors and the second and third amplitude detectors respectively, and adding the first and fourth amplitudes and the second and third amplitudes respectively generating first and second added signals. Finally, the detector includes a comparator, connected to the first and second adders, and comparing the first and second added signals and detecting the abnormal condition in the plant compressor when the second added signal exceeds the first added signal by a predetermined value.

  6. Detector for flow abnormalities in gaseous diffusion plant compressors

    DOEpatents

    Smith, S.F.; Castleberry, K.N.

    1998-06-16

    A detector detects a flow abnormality in a plant compressor which outputs a motor current signal. The detector includes a demodulator/lowpass filter demodulating and filtering the motor current signal producing a demodulated signal, and first, second, third and fourth bandpass filters connected to the demodulator/lowpass filter, and filtering the demodulated signal in accordance with first, second, third and fourth bandpass frequencies generating first, second, third and fourth filtered signals having first, second, third and fourth amplitudes. The detector also includes first, second, third and fourth amplitude detectors connected to the first, second, third and fourth bandpass filters respectively, and detecting the first, second, third and fourth amplitudes, and first and second adders connected to the first and fourth amplitude detectors and the second and third amplitude detectors respectively, and adding the first and fourth amplitudes and the second and third amplitudes respectively generating first and second added signals. Finally, the detector includes a comparator, connected to the first and second adders, and comparing the first and second added signals and detecting the abnormal condition in the plant compressor when the second added signal exceeds the first added signal by a predetermined value. 6 figs.

  7. Social anhedonia is associated with neural abnormalities during face emotion processing.

    PubMed

    Germine, Laura T; Garrido, Lucia; Bruce, Lori; Hooker, Christine

    2011-10-01

    Human beings are social organisms with an intrinsic desire to seek and participate in social interactions. Social anhedonia is a personality trait characterized by a reduced desire for social affiliation and reduced pleasure derived from interpersonal interactions. Abnormally high levels of social anhedonia prospectively predict the development of schizophrenia and contribute to poorer outcomes for schizophrenia patients. Despite the strong association between social anhedonia and schizophrenia, the neural mechanisms that underlie individual differences in social anhedonia have not been studied and are thus poorly understood. Deficits in face emotion recognition are related to poorer social outcomes in schizophrenia, and it has been suggested that face emotion recognition deficits may be a behavioral marker for schizophrenia liability. In the current study, we used functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) to see whether there are differences in the brain networks underlying basic face emotion processing in a community sample of individuals low vs. high in social anhedonia. We isolated the neural mechanisms related to face emotion processing by comparing face emotion discrimination with four other baseline conditions (identity discrimination of emotional faces, identity discrimination of neutral faces, object discrimination, and pattern discrimination). Results showed a group (high/low social anhedonia) × condition (emotion discrimination/control condition) interaction in the anterior portion of the rostral medial prefrontal cortex, right superior temporal gyrus, and left somatosensory cortex. As predicted, high (relative to low) social anhedonia participants showed less neural activity in face emotion processing regions during emotion discrimination as compared to each control condition. The findings suggest that social anhedonia is associated with abnormalities in networks responsible for basic processes associated with social cognition, and provide a

  8. Prevention of congenital abnormalities by periconceptional multivitamin supplementation.

    PubMed Central

    Czeizel, A E

    1993-01-01

    OBJECTIVE--To study the effect of periconceptional multivitamin supplementation on neural tube defects and other congenital abnormality entities. DESIGN--Randomised controlled trial of supplementation with multivitamins and trace elements. SETTING--Hungarian family planning programme. SUBJECTS--4156 pregnancies with known outcome and 3713 infants evaluated in the eighth month of life. INTERVENTIONS--A single tablet of a multivitamin including 0.8 mg of folic acid or trace elements supplement daily for at least one month before conception and at least two months after conception. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES--Number of major and mild congenital abnormalities. RESULTS--The rate of all major congenital abnormalities was significantly lower in the group given vitamins than in the group given trace elements and this difference cannot be explained totally by the significant reduction of neural tube defects. The rate of major congenital abnormalities other than neural tube defects and genetic syndromes was 9.0/1000 in pregnancies with known outcome in the vitamin group and 16.6/1000 in the trace element group; relative risk 1.85 (95% confidence interval 1.02 to 3.38); difference, 7.6/1000. The rate of all major congenital abnormalities other than neural tube defects and genetic syndromes diagnosed up to the eighth month of life was 14.7/1000 informative pregnancies in the vitamin group and 28.3/1000 in the trace element group; relative risk 1.95 (1.23 to 3.09); difference, 13.6/1000. The rate of some congenital abnormalities was lower in the vitamin group than in the trace element group but the differences for each group of abnormalities were not significant. CONCLUSIONS--Periconceptional multivitamin supplementation can reduce not only the rate of neural tube defects but also the rate of other major non-genetic syndromatic congenital abnormalities. Further studies are needed to differentiate the chance effect and vitamin dependent effect. PMID:8324432

  9. Review of Operational Challenges and Changing Conditions associated with Offshore Submerged Vertical Pumping Station

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Samsudin, M. L.; Munisamy, K. M.; Thangaraju, S. K.

    2015-09-01

    Cooling water system is one of the essential auxiliary systems for a power generating plant. The decision to have an offshore pumping station, instead of onshore station, may have been driven by the scarcity in land area or for direct water supply access. However, the design has several disadvantages such as tendency for sediment intakes, limited condition monitoring activities and inaccessible sump for maintenance and modification. The paper reviews and lists several potential operational challenges and difficulties experienced with the offshore station. The influences of changing conditions such as varying seawater tide level, clogged intake screen, intake sedimentation issues and marine fouling on the sump walls and structures, are discussed and mitigating solutions are identified. While it is impractical to conduct physical model test for studying flow pattern, the CFD method can be an attractive assessment tools. In addition to this, a review of plant operating parameters can assist in identifying flow anomalies to anticipate potential deterioration. Finally the difficulty in incorporating the solutions to vortex and sediment problems within the sump is highlighted with preference for those which can be managed by limited access or those which are moveable with the vertical pump.

  10. Retinal abnormalities in β-thalassemia major

    PubMed Central

    Bhoiwala, Devang L.; Dunaief, Joshua L.

    2015-01-01

    Patients with beta (β)-thalassemia (β-TM: thalassemia major, β-TI: thalassemia intermedia) have a variety of complications that may affect all organs, including the eye. Ocular abnormalities include retinal pigment epithelium degeneration, angioid streaks, venous tortuosity, night blindness, visual field defects, decreased visual acuity, color vision abnormalities, and acute visual loss. Patients with β-TM are transfusion dependent and require iron chelation therapy (ICT) in order to survive. Retinal degeneration may result from either retinal iron accumulation from transfusion-induced iron overload or retinal toxicity induced by ICT. Some who were never treated with ICT exhibited retinopathy, and others receiving ICT had chelator-induced retinopathy. We will focus on retinal abnormalities present in individuals with β-TM viewed in light of new findings on the mechanisms and manifestations of retinal iron toxicity. PMID:26325202

  11. Neurological abnormalities associated with CDMA exposure.

    PubMed

    Hocking, B; Westerman, R

    2001-09-01

    Dysaesthesiae of the scalp and neurological abnormality after mobile phone use have been reported previously, but the roles of the phone per se or the radiations in causing these findings have been questioned. We report finding a neurological abnormality in a patient after accidental exposure of the left side of the face to mobile phone radiation [code division multiple access (CDMA)] from a down-powered mobile phone base station antenna. He had headaches, unilateral left blurred vision and pupil constriction, unilateral altered sensation on the forehead, and abnormalities of current perception thresholds on testing the left trigeminal ophthalmic nerve. His nerve function recovered during 6 months follow-up. His exposure was 0.015-0.06 mW/cm(2) over 1-2 h. The implications regarding health effects of radiofrequency radiation are discussed.

  12. [Liver enzyme abnormalities among oil refinery workers].

    PubMed

    Carvalho, Fernando Martins; Silvany Neto, Annibal Muniz; Mendes, João Luiz Barberino; Cotrim, Helma Pinchemel; Nascimento, Ana Lísia Cunha; Lima Júnior, Alberto Soares; Cunha, Tatiana Oliveira Bernardo da

    2006-02-01

    Occupational exposure typical of an oil refinery may alter liver function among the workers. Thus, the objective of the study was to identify risk factors for liver enzyme abnormalities among oil refinery workers. The workers at an oil refinery in Northeastern Brazil underwent routine annual medical examination from 1982 to 1998. This case-control study investigated all the 150 cases of individuals with simultaneous gamma-glutamyltransferase and alanine aminotransferase abnormalities of at least 10% above reference levels. As controls, 150 workers without any liver enzyme or bilirubin abnormalities since starting to work there were selected. Odds ratios and the respective 95% confidence intervals were calculated from logistic regression models. In all the production sectors, the risk of liver enzyme abnormalities was significantly higher than in the administrative sector (OR=5.7; 95% CI: 1.7-18.4), even when the effects of alcohol, obesity and medical history of hepatitis were controlled for. During the period from 1992 to 1994, 88 out of the 89 cases occurred among workers from the various production sectors. Occupational exposure plays an important role in causing liver enzyme abnormalities among oil refinery workers. This is in addition to the specifically biological and/or behavioral risk factors such as obesity and alcohol consumption.

  13. Three-dimensional numerical investigation of the separation process in a vortex tube at different operating conditions

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Rafiee, Seyed Ehsan; Sadeghiazad, M. M.

    2016-06-01

    Air separators provide safe, clean, and appropriate air flow to engines and are widely used in vehicles with large engines such as ships and submarines. In this operational study, the separation process inside a Ranque-Hilsch vortex tube cleaning (cooling) system is investigated to analyze the impact of the operating gas type on the vortex tube performance; the operating gases used are air, nitrogen, oxygen, carbon dioxide and nitrogen dioxide. The computational fluid dynamic model used is equipped with a three-dimensional structure, and the steady-state condition is applied during computations. The standard k-ɛ turbulence model is employed to resolve nonlinear flow equations, and various key parameters, such as hot and cold exhaust thermal drops, and power separation rates, are described numerically. The results show that nitrogen dioxide creates the greatest separation power out of all gases tested, and the numerical results are validated by good agreement with available experimental data. In addition, a comparison is made between the use of two different boundary conditions, the pressure-far-field and the pressure-outlet, when analyzing complex turbulent flows inside the air separators. Results present a comprehensive and practical solution for use in future numerical studies.

  14. Treatment of Combined Spinal Deformity in Patient with Ollier Disease and Abnormal Vertebrae

    PubMed Central

    Ryabykh, S. О.; Gubin, A. V.; Prudnikova, О. G.; Kobyzev, А. Е.

    2012-01-01

    We report staged treatment of severe combined spinal deformity in an 11-year-old patient with Ollier disease and abnormal cervical vertebra. Combined scoliosis with systemic pathology and abnormal vertebrae is a rare condition and features atypical deformity location and rapid progression rate and frequently involves the rib cage and pelvis, disturbing the function of chest organs and skeleton. Progressive deformity resulted in cachexia and acute respiratory failure. A halo-pelvic distraction device assembled of Ilizarov components was employed for a staged surgical treatment performed for lifesaving indications. After vital functions stabilized, the scoliosis curve of the cervical spine was corrected and fixed with a hybrid system of transpedicular supporting points, connecting rods, and connectors that provided staged distraction during growth. The treatment showed good functional and cosmetic result. PMID:24436859

  15. The prevalence of chromosomal abnormalities in subgroups of infertile men.

    PubMed

    Dul, E C; Groen, H; van Ravenswaaij-Arts, C M A; Dijkhuizen, T; van Echten-Arends, J; Land, J A

    2012-01-01

    The prevalence of chromosomal abnormalities is assumed to be higher in infertile men and inversely correlated with sperm concentration. Although guidelines advise karyotyping infertile men, karyotyping is costly, therefore it would be of benefit to identify men with the highest risk of chromosomal abnormalities, possibly by using parameters other than sperm concentration. The aim of this study was to evaluate several clinical parameters in azoospermic and non-azoospermic men, in order to assess the prevalence of chromosomal abnormalities in different subgroups of infertile men. In a retrospective cohort of 1223 azoospermic men and men eligible for ICSI treatment, we studied sperm parameters, hormone levels and medical history for an association with chromosomal abnormalities. The prevalence of chromosomal abnormalities in the cohort was 3.1%. No association was found between chromosomal abnormalities and sperm volume, concentration, progressive motility or total motile sperm count. Azoospermia was significantly associated with the presence of a chromosomal abnormality [15.2%, odds ratio (OR) 7.70, P < 0.001]. High gonadotrophin levels were also associated with an increased prevalence of chromosomal abnormalities (OR 2.96, P = 0.013). Azoospermic men with a positive andrologic history had a lower prevalence of chromosomal abnormalities than azoospermic men with an uneventful history (OR 0.28, P = 0.047). In non-azoospermic men, we found that none of the studied variables were associated with the prevalence of chromosomal abnormalities. We show that the highest prevalence of chromosomal abnormalities is found in hypergonadotrophic azoospermic men with an uneventful andrologic history.

  16. The Frequency and Severity of Magnetic Resonance Imaging Abnormalities in Infants with Mild Neonatal Encephalopathy.

    PubMed

    Walsh, Brian H; Neil, Jeffrey; Morey, JoAnn; Yang, Edward; Silvera, Michelle V; Inder, Terrie E; Ortinau, Cynthia

    2017-08-01

    To assess and contrast the incidence and severity of abnormalities on cerebral magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) between infants with mild, moderate, and severe neonatal encephalopathy who received therapeutic hypothermia. This retrospective cohort studied infants with mild, moderate, and severe neonatal encephalopathy who received therapeutic hypothermia at a single tertiary neonatal intensive care unit between 2013 and 2015. Two neuroradiologists masked to the clinical condition evaluated brain MRIs for cerebral injury after therapeutic hypothermia using the Barkovich classification system. Additional abnormalities not included in this classification system were also noted. The rate, pattern, and severity of abnormalities/injury were compared across the grades of neonatal encephalopathy. Eighty-nine infants received therapeutic hypothermia and met study criteria, 48 with mild neonatal encephalopathy, 35 with moderate neonatal encephalopathy, and 6 with severe neonatal encephalopathy. Forty-eight infants (54%) had an abnormality on MRI. There was no difference in the rate of overall MRI abnormalities by grade of neonatal encephalopathy (mild neonatal encephalopathy 54%, moderate neonatal encephalopathy 54%, and severe neonatal encephalopathy 50%; P= .89). Basal ganglia/thalamic injury was more common in those with severe neonatal encephalopathy (mild neonatal encephalopathy 4%, moderate neonatal encephalopathy 9%, severe neonatal encephalopathy 34%; P = .03). In contrast, watershed injury did not differ between neonatal encephalopathy grades (mild neonatal encephalopathy 36%, moderate neonatal encephalopathy 32%, severe neonatal encephalopathy 50%; P = .3). Mild neonatal encephalopathy is commonly associated with MRI abnormalities after therapeutic hypothermia. The grade of neonatal encephalopathy during the first hours of life may not discriminate adequately between infants with and without cerebral injury noted on MRI after therapeutic hypothermia

  17. "Jeopardy" in Abnormal Psychology.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Keutzer, Carolin S.

    1993-01-01

    Describes the use of the board game, Jeopardy, in a college level abnormal psychology course. Finds increased student interaction and improved application of information. Reports generally favorable student evaluation of the technique. (CFR)

  18. 21 CFR 864.7415 - Abnormal hemoglobin assay.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-04-01

    ... 21 Food and Drugs 8 2011-04-01 2011-04-01 false Abnormal hemoglobin assay. 864.7415 Section 864... hemoglobin assay. (a) Identification. An abnormal hemoglobin assay is a device consisting of the reagents... hemoglobin types. (b) Classification. Class II (performance standards). [45 FR 60618, Sept. 12, 1980] ...

  19. 21 CFR 864.7415 - Abnormal hemoglobin assay.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-04-01

    ... 21 Food and Drugs 8 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Abnormal hemoglobin assay. 864.7415 Section 864... hemoglobin assay. (a) Identification. An abnormal hemoglobin assay is a device consisting of the reagents... hemoglobin types. (b) Classification. Class II (performance standards). [45 FR 60618, Sept. 12, 1980] ...

  20. 21 CFR 864.7415 - Abnormal hemoglobin assay.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-04-01

    ... 21 Food and Drugs 8 2014-04-01 2014-04-01 false Abnormal hemoglobin assay. 864.7415 Section 864.7415 Food and Drugs FOOD AND DRUG ADMINISTRATION, DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES (CONTINUED) MEDICAL DEVICES HEMATOLOGY AND PATHOLOGY DEVICES Hematology Kits and Packages § 864.7415 Abnormal...

  1. 21 CFR 864.7415 - Abnormal hemoglobin assay.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-04-01

    ... 21 Food and Drugs 8 2012-04-01 2012-04-01 false Abnormal hemoglobin assay. 864.7415 Section 864.7415 Food and Drugs FOOD AND DRUG ADMINISTRATION, DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES (CONTINUED) MEDICAL DEVICES HEMATOLOGY AND PATHOLOGY DEVICES Hematology Kits and Packages § 864.7415 Abnormal...

  2. 21 CFR 864.7415 - Abnormal hemoglobin assay.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-04-01

    ... 21 Food and Drugs 8 2013-04-01 2013-04-01 false Abnormal hemoglobin assay. 864.7415 Section 864.7415 Food and Drugs FOOD AND DRUG ADMINISTRATION, DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES (CONTINUED) MEDICAL DEVICES HEMATOLOGY AND PATHOLOGY DEVICES Hematology Kits and Packages § 864.7415 Abnormal...

  3. Rapid Integration of Artificial Sensory Feedback during Operant Conditioning of Motor Cortex Neurons.

    PubMed

    Prsa, Mario; Galiñanes, Gregorio L; Huber, Daniel

    2017-02-22

    Neuronal motor commands, whether generating real or neuroprosthetic movements, are shaped by ongoing sensory feedback from the displacement being produced. Here we asked if cortical stimulation could provide artificial feedback during operant conditioning of cortical neurons. Simultaneous two-photon imaging and real-time optogenetic stimulation were used to train mice to activate a single neuron in motor cortex (M1), while continuous feedback of its activity level was provided by proportionally stimulating somatosensory cortex. This artificial signal was necessary to rapidly learn to increase the conditioned activity, detect correct performance, and maintain the learned behavior. Population imaging in M1 revealed that learning-related activity changes are observed in the conditioned cell only, which highlights the functional potential of individual neurons in the neocortex. Our findings demonstrate the capacity of animals to use an artificially induced cortical channel in a behaviorally relevant way and reveal the remarkable speed and specificity at which this can occur. Copyright © 2017 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  4. Space shuttle orbit maneuvering engine reusable thrust chamber: Adverse operating conditions test report

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Tobin, R. D.

    1974-01-01

    Test hardware, facilities, and procedures are described along with results of electrically heated tube and channel tests conducted to determine adverse operating condition limits for convectively cooled chambers typical of Space Shuttle Orbit Manuevering Engine designs. Hot-start tests were conducted with corrosion resistant steel and nickel tubes with both monomethylhydrazine and 50-50 coolants. Helium ingestion, in both bubble and froth form, was studied in tubular test sections. Helium bubble ingestion and burn-out limits in rectangular channels were also investigated.

  5. Abnormal carbene-silicon halide complexes.

    PubMed

    Wang, Yuzhong; Xie, Yaoming; Wei, Pingrong; Schaefer, Henry F; Robinson, Gregory H

    2016-04-14

    Reaction of the anionic N-heterocyclic dicarbene (NHDC), [:C{[N(2,6-Pr(i)2C6H3)]2CHCLi}]n (1), with SiCl4 gives the trichlorosilyl-substituted (at the C4 carbon) N-heterocyclic carbene complex (7). Abnormal carbene-SiCl4 complex (8) may be conveniently synthesized by combining 7 with HCl·NEt3. In addition, 7 may react with CH2Cl2 in warm hexane, giving the abnormal carbene-complexed SiCl3(+) cation (9). The nature of the bonding in 9 was probed with complementary DFT computations.

  6. Learning-dependent plasticity in human auditory cortex during appetitive operant conditioning.

    PubMed

    Puschmann, Sebastian; Brechmann, André; Thiel, Christiane M

    2013-11-01

    Animal experiments provide evidence that learning to associate an auditory stimulus with a reward causes representational changes in auditory cortex. However, most studies did not investigate the temporal formation of learning-dependent plasticity during the task but rather compared auditory cortex receptive fields before and after conditioning. We here present a functional magnetic resonance imaging study on learning-related plasticity in the human auditory cortex during operant appetitive conditioning. Participants had to learn to associate a specific category of frequency-modulated tones with a reward. Only participants who learned this association developed learning-dependent plasticity in left auditory cortex over the course of the experiment. No differential responses to reward predicting and nonreward predicting tones were found in auditory cortex in nonlearners. In addition, learners showed similar learning-induced differential responses to reward-predicting and nonreward-predicting tones in the ventral tegmental area and the nucleus accumbens, two core regions of the dopaminergic neurotransmitter system. This may indicate a dopaminergic influence on the formation of learning-dependent plasticity in auditory cortex, as it has been suggested by previous animal studies. Copyright © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

  7. [Mechanism Causing Abnormal Laboratory Data--Significance of Electrophoresis and Information Transmission--Chairmen's Introductory Remarks].

    PubMed

    Maekawa, Masato; Fujita, Kiyotaka

    2014-11-01

    Abnormal laboratory data are observed due to some kinds of modification as well as pathological conditions of patients. Elucidation of the causal mechanism is very important for clinical laboratories. This symposium was planned to highlight the significance of electrophoresis. Electrophoresis is one of the most important tools to provide clinicians with information for medical diagnosis and care.

  8. Musculoskeletal and overgrowth syndromes associated with cutaneous abnormalities

    PubMed Central

    Morris, Michael A; Ring, Christina M; Mehregan, Darius; Mulligan, Michael E

    2016-01-01

    There are cutaneous abnormalities that are characteristic to certain peculiar musculoskeletal conditions. The understanding of associated imaging and clinical skin findings together in this context can play an important role for the dermatologist and radiologist in establishing the correct diagnoses. The scope of dermatological manifestations of many acquired diseases of the soft tissues, muscles or bone is broad. Therefore, the intent of this article is to review those entities that are genetic and/or inherited. The goal of this review is to develop a better understanding of the cases presented. In these cases, collaboration between dermatologists and radiologists may be paramount to generating a diagnosis and monitoring at-risk patients. PMID:27537080

  9. Changes in microbial community structures due to varying operational conditions in the anaerobic digestion of oxytetracycline-medicated cow manure.

    PubMed

    Turker, Gokhan; Aydin, Sevcan; Akyol, Çağrı; Yenigun, Orhan; Ince, Orhan; Ince, Bahar

    2016-07-01

    Management of manure containing veterinary antibiotics is a major concern in anaerobic treatment systems because of their possible adverse effects on microbial communities. Therefore, the aim of study was to investigate how oxytetracycline (OTC) influences bacteria and acetoclastic and hydrogenotrophic methanogens under varying operational conditions in OTC-medicated and non-medicated anaerobic cow manure digesters. Concentrations of OTC and its metabolites throughout the anaerobic digestion were determined using ultraviolet-high-performance liquid chromatography (UV-HPLC) and tandem liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (LC/MS/MS), respectively. Fluorescent in situ hybridization, denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis, cloning, and sequencing analyses were used to monitor changes in microbial community structures. According to the results of analytical and molecular approaches, operating conditions highly influence active microbial community dynamics and associate with biogas production and elimination of OTC and its metabolites during anaerobic digestion of cow manure in the presence of an average initial concentration of 2.2 mg OTC/L. The impact of operating conditions has a drastic effect on acetoclastic methanogens than hydrogenotrophic methanogens and bacteria.

  10. Versatile Oxide Films Protect FeCrAl Alloys Under Normal Operation and Accident Conditions in Light Water Power Reactors

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Rebak, Raul B.

    2018-02-01

    The US has currently a fleet of 99 nuclear power light water reactors which generate approximately 20% of the electricity consumed in the country. Near 90% of the reactors are at least 30 years old. There are incentives to make the existing reactors safer by using accident tolerant fuels (ATF). Compared to the standard UO2-zirconium-based system, ATF need to tolerate loss of active cooling in the core for a considerably longer time while maintaining or improving the fuel performance during normal operation conditions. Ferritic iron-chromium-aluminum (FeCrAl) alloys have been identified as an alternative to replace current zirconium alloys. They contain Fe (base) + 10-22 Cr + 4-6 Al and may contain smaller amounts of other elements such as molybdenum and traces of others. FeCrAl alloys offer outstanding resistance to attack by superheated steam by developing an alumina oxide on the surface in case of a loss of coolant accident like at Fukushima. FeCrAl alloys also perform well under normal operation conditions both in boiling water reactors and pressurized water reactors because they are protected by a thin oxide rich in chromium. Under normal operation condition, the key element is Cr and under accident conditions it is Al.

  11. Sensorineural deafness, distinctive facial features, and abnormal cranial bones: a new variant of Waardenburg syndrome?

    PubMed

    Gad, Alona; Laurino, Mercy; Maravilla, Kenneth R; Matsushita, Mark; Raskind, Wendy H

    2008-07-15

    The Waardenburg syndromes (WS) account for approximately 2% of congenital sensorineural deafness. This heterogeneous group of diseases currently can be categorized into four major subtypes (WS types 1-4) on the basis of characteristic clinical features. Multiple genes have been implicated in WS, and mutations in some genes can cause more than one WS subtype. In addition to eye, hair, and skin pigmentary abnormalities, dystopia canthorum and broad nasal bridge are seen in WS type 1. Mutations in the PAX3 gene are responsible for the condition in the majority of these patients. In addition, mutations in PAX3 have been found in WS type 3 that is distinguished by musculoskeletal abnormalities, and in a family with a rare subtype of WS, craniofacial-deafness-hand syndrome (CDHS), characterized by dysmorphic facial features, hand abnormalities, and absent or hypoplastic nasal and wrist bones. Here we describe a woman who shares some, but not all features of WS type 3 and CDHS, and who also has abnormal cranial bones. All sinuses were hypoplastic, and the cochlea were small. No sequence alteration in PAX3 was found. These observations broaden the clinical range of WS and suggest there may be genetic heterogeneity even within the CDHS subtype. 2008 Wiley-Liss, Inc.

  12. Abnormal global and local event detection in compressive sensing domain

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Wang, Tian; Qiao, Meina; Chen, Jie; Wang, Chuanyun; Zhang, Wenjia; Snoussi, Hichem

    2018-05-01

    Abnormal event detection, also known as anomaly detection, is one challenging task in security video surveillance. It is important to develop effective and robust movement representation models for global and local abnormal event detection to fight against factors such as occlusion and illumination change. In this paper, a new algorithm is proposed. It can locate the abnormal events on one frame, and detect the global abnormal frame. The proposed algorithm employs a sparse measurement matrix designed to represent the movement feature based on optical flow efficiently. Then, the abnormal detection mission is constructed as a one-class classification task via merely learning from the training normal samples. Experiments demonstrate that our algorithm performs well on the benchmark abnormal detection datasets against state-of-the-art methods.

  13. Abnormal Magnetic Field Effects on Electrogenerated Chemiluminescence

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Pan, Haiping; Shen, Yan; Wang, Hongfeng; He, Lei; Hu, Bin

    2015-03-01

    We report abnormal magnetic field effects on electrogenerated chemiluminescence (MFEECL) based on triplet emission from the Ru(bpy)3Cl2-TPrA electrochemical system: the appearance of MFEECL after magnetic field ceases. In early studies the normal MFEECL have been observed from electrochemical systems during the application of magnetic field. Here, the abnormal MFEECL suggest that the activated charge-transfer [Ru(bpy)33+ … TPrA•] complexes may become magnetized in magnetic field and experience a long magnetic relaxation after removing magnetic field. Our analysis indicates that the magnetic relaxation can gradually increase the density of charge-transfer complexes within reaction region due to decayed magnetic interactions, leading to a positive component in the abnormal MFEECL. On the other hand, the magnetic relaxation facilitates an inverse conversion from triplets to singlets within charge-transfer complexes. The inverse triplet --> singlet conversion reduces the density of triplet light-emitting states through charge-transfer complexes and gives rise to a negative component in the abnormal MFEECL. The combination of positive and negative components can essentially lead to a non-monotonic profile in the abnormal MFEECL after ceasing magnetic field. Nevertheless, our experimental studies may reveal un-usual magnetic behaviors with long magnetic relaxation from the activated charge-transfer [Ru(bpy)33+ … TPrA•] complexes in solution at room temperature.

  14. Salivary glands abnormalities in oculo-auriculo-vertebral spectrum.

    PubMed

    Brotto, Davide; Manara, Renzo; Vio, Stefania; Ghiselli, Sara; Cantone, Elena; Mardari, Rodica; Toldo, Irene; Stritoni, Valentina; Castiglione, Alessandro; Lovo, Elisa; Trevisi, Patrizia; Bovo, Roberto; Martini, Alessandro

    2018-01-01

    Feeding and swallowing impairment are present in up to 80% of oculo-auriculo-vertebral spectrum (OAVS) patients. Salivary gland abnormalities have been reported in OAVS patients but their rate, features, and relationship with phenotype severity have yet to be defined. Parotid and submandibular salivary gland hypo/aplasia was evaluated on head MRI of 25 OAVS patients (16 with severe phenotype, Goldenhar syndrome) and 11 controls. All controls disclosed normal salivary glands. Abnormal parotid glands were found exclusively ipsilateral to facial microsomia in 21/25 OAVS patients (84%, aplasia in six patients) and showed no association with phenotype severity (14/16 patients with Goldenhar phenotype vs 7/9 patients with milder phenotype, p = 0.6). Submandibular salivary gland hypoplasia was detected in six OAVS patients, all with concomitant ipsilateral severe involvement of the parotid gland (p < 0.001). Submandibular salivary gland hypoplasia was associated to Goldenhar phenotype (p < 0.05). Parotid gland abnormalities were associated with ipsilateral fifth (p < 0.001) and seventh cranial nerve (p = 0.001) abnormalities. No association was found between parotid gland anomaly and ipsilateral internal carotid artery, inner ear, brain, eye, or spine abnormalities (p > 0.6). Salivary gland abnormalities are strikingly common in OAVS. Their detection might help the management of OAVS-associated swallowing and feeding impairment.

  15. Detection of Structural Abnormalities Using Neural Nets

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Zak, M.; Maccalla, A.; Daggumati, V.; Gulati, S.; Toomarian, N.

    1996-01-01

    This paper describes a feed-forward neural net approach for detection of abnormal system behavior based upon sensor data analyses. A new dynamical invariant representing structural parameters of the system is introduced in such a way that any structural abnormalities in the system behavior are detected from the corresponding changes to the invariant.

  16. An Abnormal Psychology Community Based Interview Assignment

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    White, Geoffry D.

    1977-01-01

    A course option in abnormal psychology involves students in interviewing and observing the activities of individuals in the off-campus community who are concerned with some aspect of abnormal psychology. The technique generates student interest in the field when they interview people about topics such as drug abuse, transsexualism, and abuse of…

  17. Incidence of abnormal liver biochemical tests in hyperthyroidism.

    PubMed

    Lin, Tiffany Y; Shekar, Anshula O; Li, Ning; Yeh, Michael W; Saab, Sammy; Wilson, Mark; Leung, Angela M

    2017-05-01

    Abnormal serum liver function tests are common in patients with untreated thyrotoxicosis, even prior to the initiation of antithyroidal medications that may worsen the severity of the abnormal serum liver biochemistries. There is a wide range of the incidence of these abnormalities in the published literature. The aim of this study was to assess the risks factors and threshold of thyrotoxicosis severity for developing an abnormal liver biochemical test upon the diagnosis of new thyrotoxicosis. Single-institution retrospective cohort study. Patients of ≥18 years old receiving medical care at a large, academic, urban US medical centre between 2002-2016. Inclusion criteria were a serum thyroid stimulating hormone (TSH) concentration of <0·3 mIU/l or ICD-9 code for thyrotoxicosis, with thyrotoxicosis confirmed by either a concurrent elevated serum triiodothyronine (T3) or thyroxine (T4) concentration ([total or free] within 3 months), and an available liver biochemical test(s) within 6 months of thyrotoxicosis. The biochemical liver tests assessed were serum aspartate transaminotransferase (AST), alanine aminotransferase (ALT), alkaline phosphatase (AP), gamma-glutamyltransferase (GGT), total bilirubin, and conjugated bilirubin concentrations. In this cohort of 1514 subjects, the overall incidence of any biochemical liver test abnormality within 6 months of thyrotoxicosis was 39%. An initial serum TSH concentration <0·02 mIU/l, male gender, and African-American race were significant predictors of an abnormal serum liver biochemical test within 6 months of the diagnosis of new-onset untreated thyrotoxicosis. This study identifies risk factors for patients who develop an abnormal serum liver biochemical test result within 6 months of a diagnosis of untreated thyrotoxicosis. © 2017 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

  18. On the sensitivity of 4 different CPV module technologies to relevant ambient and operation conditions

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Domínguez, César; Besson, Pierre

    2014-09-01

    The sensitivity of four different CPV module technologies to most operating conditions relevant to CPV systems has been studied, namely DNI, spectrum, cell and lens temperature and clearness of the sky. In order to isolate the influence of a single operation parameter, the analysis of long-term outdoor monitoring data is required. The effect of lens temperature on cell current has been found to vary greatly between modules due to the different optical architectures studied. Maximum sensitivity is found for silicone-on-glass primary lenses. The VOC thermal coefficient was found to vary between module technologies, probably due to differences in maximum local effective concentration.

  19. 14 CFR 91.527 - Operating in icing conditions.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-01-01

    ... (CONTINUED) AIR TRAFFIC AND GENERAL OPERATING RULES GENERAL OPERATING AND FLIGHT RULES Large and Turbine..., windshield, stabilizing or control surface; to a powerplant installation; or to an airspeed, altimeter, rate... each rotor blade, propeller, windshield, wing, stabilizing or control surface, and each airspeed...

  20. Evaluation of the behavioral characteristics of the mdx mouse model of duchenne muscular dystrophy through operant conditioning procedures.

    PubMed

    Lewon, Matthew; Peters, Christina M; Van Ry, Pam M; Burkin, Dean J; Hunter, Kenneth W; Hayes, Linda J

    2017-09-01

    The mdx mouse is an important nonhuman model for Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD) research. Characterizing the behavioral traits of the strain relative to congenic wild-type (WT) mice may enhance our understanding of the cognitive deficits observed in some humans with DMD and contribute to treatment development and evaluation. In this paper we report the results of a number of experiments comparing the behavior of mdx to WT mice in operant conditioning procedures designed to assess learning and memory. We found that mdx outperformed WT in all learning and memory tasks involving food reinforcement, and this appeared to be related to the differential effects of the food deprivation motivating operation on mdx mice. Conversely, WT outperformed mdx in an escape/avoidance learning task. These results suggest motivational differences between the strains and demonstrate the potential utility of operant conditioning procedures in the assessment of the behavioral characteristics of the mdx mouse. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  1. [Normal and abnormal skin color].

    PubMed

    Ortonne, J-P

    2012-11-01

    The varieties of normal skin color in humans range from people of "no color" (pale white) to "people of color" (light brown, dark brown, and black). Skin color is a blend resulting from the skin chromophores red (oxyhaemoglobin), blue (deoxygenated haemoglobin), yellow-orange (carotene, an exogenous pigment), and brown (melanin). Melanin, however, is the major component of skin color ; it is the presence or absence of melanin in the melanosomes in melanocytes and melanin in keratinocytes that is responsible for epidermal pigmentation, and the presence of melanin in macrophages or melanocytes in the dermis that is responsible for dermal pigmentation. Two groups of pigmentary disorders are commonly distinguished: the disorders of the quantitative and qualitative distribution of normal pigment and the abnormal presence of exogenous or endogenous pigments in the skin. The first group includes hyperpigmentations, which clinically manifest by darkening of the skin color, and leukodermia, which is characterized by lightening of the skin. Hypermelanosis corresponds to an overload of melanin or an abnormal distribution of melanin in the skin. Depending on the color, melanodermia (brown/black) and ceruloderma (blue/grey) are distinguished. Melanodermia correspond to epidermal hypermelanocytosis (an increased number of melanocytes) or epidermal hypermelanosis (an increase in the quantity of melanin in the epidermis with no modification of the number of melanocytes). Ceruloderma correspond to dermal hypermelanocytosis (abnormal presence in the dermis of cells synthesizing melanins) ; leakage in the dermis of epidermal melanin also exists, a form of dermal hypermelanosis called pigmentary incontinence. Finally, dyschromia can be related to the abnormal presence in the skin of a pigment of exogenous or endogenous origin. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.

  2. Hemostatic abnormalities in Noonan syndrome.

    PubMed

    Artoni, Andrea; Selicorni, Angelo; Passamonti, Serena M; Lecchi, Anna; Bucciarelli, Paolo; Cerutti, Marta; Cianci, Paola; Gianniello, Francesca; Martinelli, Ida

    2014-05-01

    A bleeding diathesis is a common feature of Noonan syndrome, and various coagulation abnormalities have been reported. Platelet function has never been carefully investigated. The degree of bleeding diathesis in a cohort of patients with Noonan syndrome was evaluated by a validated bleeding score and investigated with coagulation and platelet function tests. If ratios of prothrombin time and/or activated partial thromboplastin time were prolonged, the activity of clotting factors was measured. Individuals with no history of bleeding formed the control group. The study population included 39 patients and 28 controls. Bleeding score was ≥2 (ie, suggestive of a moderate bleeding diathesis) in 15 patients (38.5%) and ≥4 (ie, suggestive of a severe bleeding diathesis) in 7 (17.9%). Abnormal coagulation and/or platelet function tests were found in 14 patients with bleeding score ≥2 (93.3%) but also in 21 (87.5%) of those with bleeding score <2. The prothrombin time and activated partial thromboplastin time were prolonged in 18 patients (46%) and partial deficiency of factor VII, alone or in combination with the deficiency of other vitamin K-dependent factors, was the most frequent coagulation abnormality. Moreover, platelet aggregation and secretion were reduced in 29 of 35 patients (82.9%, P < .01 for all aggregating agents). Nearly 40% of patients with the Noonan syndrome had a bleeding diathesis and >90% of them had platelet function and/or coagulation abnormalities. Results of these tests should be taken into account in the management of bleeding or invasive procedures in these patients. Copyright © 2014 by the American Academy of Pediatrics.

  3. Retinal abnormalities in β-thalassemia major.

    PubMed

    Bhoiwala, Devang L; Dunaief, Joshua L

    2016-01-01

    Patients with beta (β)-thalassemia (β-TM: β-thalassemia major, β-TI: β-thalassemia intermedia) have a variety of complications that may affect all organs, including the eye. Ocular abnormalities include retinal pigment epithelial degeneration, angioid streaks, venous tortuosity, night blindness, visual field defects, decreased visual acuity, color vision abnormalities, and acute visual loss. Patients with β-thalassemia major are transfusion dependent and require iron chelation therapy to survive. Retinal degeneration may result from either retinal iron accumulation from transfusion-induced iron overload or retinal toxicity induced by iron chelation therapy. Some who were never treated with iron chelation therapy exhibited retinopathy, and others receiving iron chelation therapy had chelator-induced retinopathy. We will focus on retinal abnormalities present in individuals with β-thalassemia major viewed in light of new findings on the mechanisms and manifestations of retinal iron toxicity. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  4. [Electrocardiographic abnormalities in acute olanzapine poisonings].

    PubMed

    Ciszowski, Krzysztof; Sein Anand, Jacek

    2011-01-01

    Olanzapine is an atypical antipsychotic used for many years in the treatment of schizophrenia and bipolar disorder. Poisonings with this medicine can results with cardiotoxic effects in the form of ECG abnormalities. To evaluate the nature and incidence of electrocardiographic abnormalities in patients with acute olanzapine poisoning. 23 adult (mean age 38.4 +/- 15.5 years) patients with acute olanzapine poisoning, including 10 men (30.4 +/- 8.1 years) and 11 women (45.7 +/- 17.2 years), where 1 man and 1 woman were poisoned twice. The toxic serum level of olanzapine (above 100 ng/mL) was confirmed in each patient. Evaluation of electrocardiograms performed in patients in the first day of hospitalization with automatic measurement of durations of PQ, QRS and QTc and the identification of arrhythmias and conduction disorders on the basis of visual analysis of the ECG waveforms. Statistical analysis of the results using the methods of descriptive statistics. The mean durations of PQ, QRS and QTc in the study group were as follows: 135 +/- 23 ms, 91 +/- 12 ms, and 453 +/- 48 ms, respectively. The most common ECG abnormalities were prolonged QTc and supraventricular tachycardia (including sinus tachycardia) - each 22%; less common were ST-T changes (17%) and supraventricular premature complexes (9%), and only in individual cases (4%) ventricular premature complexes, bundle branch block, sinus bradycardia and atrial fibrillation were present. In the course of acute olanzapine poisonings: (1) prolonged QTc interval is quite common, but rarely leads to torsade de pointes tachycardia; (2) fast supraventricular rhythms are also common, but rarely cause irregular tachyarrhythmias, eg. atrial fibrillation; (3) conduction disorders (atrioventricular blocks, bundle branch blocks) are not typical abnormalities; (4) the observed ECG abnormalities emphasize the need of continuous ECG monitoring in these patients.

  5. Modular expert system for the diagnosis of operating conditions of industrial anaerobic digestion plants.

    PubMed

    Lardon, L; Puñal, A; Martinez, J A; Steyer, J P

    2005-01-01

    Anaerobic digestion (AD) plants are highly efficient wastewater treatment processes with possible energetic valorisation. Despite these advantages, many industries are still reluctant to use them because of their instability in the face of changes in operating conditions. To the face this drawback and to enhance the industrial use of anaerobic digestion, one solution is to develop and to implement knowledge base (KB) systems that are able to detect and to assess in real-time the quality of operating conditions of the processes. Case-based techniques and heuristic approaches have been already tested and validated on AD processes but two major properties were lacking: modularity of the system (the knowledge base system should be easily tuned on a new process and should still work if one or more sensors are added or removed) and uncertainty management (the assessment of the KB system should remain relevant even in the case of too poor or conflicting information sources). This paper addresses these two points and presents a modular KB system where an uncertain reasoning formalism is used to combine partial and complementary fuzzy diagnosis modules. Demonstration of the interest of the approach is provided from real-life experiments performed on an industrial 2,000 m3 CSTR anaerobic digester.

  6. What Conditions Limit Sports Participation? Experience with 10,540 Athletes.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Magnes, Scott A.; And Others

    1992-01-01

    Researchers evaluated results from five years of preseason examinations on student athletes to determine which conditions limited sports participation. Hypertension, ophthalmologic and genitourinary abnormalities, and musculoskeletal problems were the most common limiting conditions. Preseason examinations need to follow guidelines based on…

  7. Gastric emptying abnormal in duodenal ulcer

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Holt, S.; Heading, R.C.; Taylor, T.V.

    1986-07-01

    To investigate the possibility that an abnormality of gastric emptying exists in duodenal ulcer and to determine if such an abnormality persists after ulcer healing, scintigraphic gastric emptying measurements were undertaken in 16 duodenal ulcer patients before, during, and after therapy with cimetidine; in 12 patients with pernicious anemia, and in 12 control subjects. No difference was detected in the rate or pattern of gastric emptying in duodenal ulcer patients before and after ulcer healing with cimetidine compared with controls, but emptying of the solid component of the test meal was more rapid during treatment with the drug. Comparison ofmore » emptying patterns obtained in duodenal ulcer subjects during and after cimetidine treatment with those obtained in pernicious anemia patients and controls revealed a similar relationship that was characterized by a tendency for reduction in the normal differentiation between the emptying of solid and liquid from the stomach. The similarity in emptying patterns in these groups of subjects suggests that gastric emptying of solids may be influenced by changes in the volume of gastric secretion. The failure to detect an abnormality of gastric emptying in duodenal ulcer subjects before and after ulcer healing calls into question the widespread belief that abnormally rapid gastric emptying is a feature with pathogenetic significance in duodenal ulcer disease.« less

  8. Risk of specific congenital abnormalities in offspring of women with diabetes.

    PubMed

    Nielsen, G L; Nørgard, B; Puho, E; Rothman, K J; Sørensen, H T; Czeizel, A E

    2005-06-01

    To assess the extent to which the increased risk of congenital abnormalities seen in women with pre-gestational insulin-treated diabetes mellitus is unspecific or related to the embryology of specific organs. Cases with congenital abnormalities were identified in the population-based Hungarian Congenital Abnormality Registry from 1980 to 1996 with two newborn children without congenital abnormality selected from the National Birth Registry as controls. We adjusted for parity, maternal age, and use of antipsychotic drugs. Among cases we found 63/22,843 babies with maternal diabetes compared with 50/38,151 in the control group [adjusted prevalence odds ratio (POR) 2.1; 95% CI 1.5-3.1]. The association was strongest for the following congenital abnormalities: renal agenesis (POR: 14.8; 95% CI, 3.5-62.1), obstructive congenital abnormalities of the urinary tract (POR: 4.3; 95% CI, 1.3-13.9), cardiovascular congenital abnormalities (POR: 3.4; 95% CI, 2.0-5.7), and multiple congenital abnormalities (POR: 5.0; 95% CI, 2.4-10.2). These data indicate that pre-gestational maternal diabetes is associated with strong teratogenic effects on the kidney, urinary tract, and heart, and strongly associated with multiple congenital abnormalities. We found no material association between diabetes and spinal congenital abnormalities and limb deficiencies.

  9. Using operant conditioning and desensitization to facilitate veterinary care with captive reptiles.

    PubMed

    Hellmuth, Heidi; Augustine, Lauren; Watkins, Barbara; Hope, Katharine

    2012-09-01

    In addition to being a large component of most zoological collections, reptile species are becoming more popular as family pets. Reptiles have the cognitive ability to be trained to facilitate daily husbandry and veterinary care. Desensitization and operant conditioning can alleviate some of the behavioral and physiological challenges of treating these species. A survey of reptile training programs at zoos in the United States and worldwide reveals that there are many successful training programs to facilitate veterinary care and minimize stress to the animal. Many of the techniques being used to train reptiles in zoological settings are transferable to the exotic pet clinician. Published by Elsevier Inc.

  10. Functional brain abnormalities in major depressive disorder using the Hilbert-Huang transform.

    PubMed

    Yu, Haibin; Li, Feng; Wu, Tong; Li, Rui; Yao, Li; Wang, Chuanyue; Wu, Xia

    2018-02-09

    Major depressive disorder is a common disease worldwide, which is characterized by significant and persistent depression. Non-invasive accessory diagnosis of depression can be performed by resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging (rs-fMRI). However, the fMRI signal may not satisfy linearity and stationarity. The Hilbert-Huang transform (HHT) is an adaptive time-frequency localization analysis method suitable for nonlinear and non-stationary signals. The objective of this study was to apply the HHT to rs-fMRI to find the abnormal brain areas of patients with depression. A total of 35 patients with depression and 37 healthy controls were subjected to rs-fMRI. The HHT was performed to extract the Hilbert-weighted mean frequency of the rs-fMRI signals, and multivariate receiver operating characteristic analysis was applied to find the abnormal brain regions with high sensitivity and specificity. We observed differences in Hilbert-weighted mean frequency between the patients and healthy controls mainly in the right hippocampus, right parahippocampal gyrus, left amygdala, and left and right caudate nucleus. Subsequently, the above-mentioned regions were included in the results obtained from the compared region homogeneity and the fractional amplitude of low frequency fluctuation method. We found brain regions with differences in the Hilbert-weighted mean frequency, and examined their sensitivity and specificity, which suggested a potential neuroimaging biomarker to distinguish between patients with depression and healthy controls. We further clarified the pathophysiological abnormality of these regions for the population with major depressive disorder.

  11. Statistical Measurements of Contact Conditions of 478 Transport-airplane Landings During Routine Daytime Operations

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Silsby, Norman S

    1955-01-01

    Statistical measurements of contact conditions have been obtained, by means of a special photographic technique, of 478 landings of present-day transport airplanes made during routine daylight operations in clear air at the Washington National Airport. From the measurements, sinking speeds, rolling velocities, bank angles, and horizontal speeds at the instant before contact have been evaluated and a limited statistical analysis of the results has been made and is reported in this report.

  12. Chromosome and molecular abnormalities in myelodysplastic syndromes.

    PubMed

    Fenaux, Pierre

    2001-06-01

    Cytogenetic abnormalities are seen in approximately 50% of cases of myelodysplastic syndrome (MDS) and 80% of cases of secondary MDS (following chemotherapy or radiotherapy). These abnormalities generally consist of partial or complete chromosome deletion or addition (del5q, -7, +8, -Y, del20q), whereas balanced or unbalanced translocations are rarely found in MDS. Fluorescence hybridization techniques (fluorescence in situ hybridization [FISH], multiplex FISH, and spectral karyotyping) are useful in detecting chromosomal anomalies in cases in which few mitoses are obtained or rearrangements are complex. Ras mutations are the molecular abnormalities most frequently found in MDS, followed by p15 gene hypermethylation, FLT3 duplications, and p53 mutations, but none of these abnormalities are specific for MDS. The rare cases of balanced translocations in MDS have allowed the identification of genes whose rearrangements appear to play a role in the pathogenesis of some cases of MDS. These genes include MDS1-EVI1 in t(3;3) or t(3;21) translocations, TEL in t(5;12), HIP1 in t(5;7), MLF1 in t(3;5), and MEL1 in t(1;3). Genes more frequently implicated in the pathogenesis of MDS cases, such as those involving del5q, remain unknown, although some candidate genes are currently being studied. Cytogenetic and known molecular abnormalities generally carry a poor prognosis in MDS and can be incorporated into prognostic scoring systems such as the International Prognostic Scoring System.

  13. Mechanisms and consequences of paternally transmitted chromosomal abnormalities

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Marchetti, F; Wyrobek, A J

    Paternally transmitted chromosomal damage has been associated with pregnancy loss, developmental and morphological defects, infant mortality, infertility, and genetic diseases in the offspring including cancer. There is epidemiological evidence linking paternal exposure to occupational or environmental agents with an increased risk of abnormal reproductive outcomes. There is also a large body of literature on germ cell mutagenesis in rodents showing that treatment of male germ cells with mutagens has dramatic consequences on reproduction producing effects such as those observed in human epidemiological studies. However, we know very little about the etiology, transmission and early embryonic consequences of paternally-derived chromosomal abnormalities.more » The available evidence suggests that: (1) there are distinct patterns of germ cell-stage differences in the sensitivity of induction of transmissible genetic damage with male postmeiotic cells being the most sensitive; (2) cytogenetic abnormalities at first metaphase after fertilization are critical intermediates between paternal exposure and abnormal reproductive outcomes; and, (3) there are maternally susceptibility factors that may have profound effects on the amount of sperm DNA damage that is converted into chromosomal aberrations in the zygote and directly affect the risk for abnormal reproductive outcomes.« less

  14. Grey matter volume and thickness abnormalities in young people with a history of childhood abuse.

    PubMed

    Lim, L; Hart, H; Mehta, M; Worker, A; Simmons, A; Mirza, K; Rubia, K

    2018-04-01

    Childhood abuse is associated with abnormalities in brain structure and function. Few studies have investigated abuse-related brain abnormalities in medication-naïve, drug-free youth that also controlled for psychiatric comorbidities by inclusion of a psychiatric control group, which is crucial to disentangle the effects of abuse from those associated with the psychiatric conditions. Cortical volume (CV), cortical thickness (CT) and surface area (SA) were measured in 22 age- and gender-matched medication-naïve youth (aged 13-20) exposed to childhood abuse, 19 psychiatric controls matched for psychiatric diagnoses and 27 healthy controls. Both region-of-interest (ROI) and whole-brain analyses were conducted. For the ROI analysis, the childhood abuse group compared with healthy controls only, had significantly reduced CV in bilateral cerebellum and reduced CT in left insula and right lateral orbitofrontal cortex (OFC). At the whole-brain level, relative to healthy controls, the childhood abuse group showed significantly reduced CV in left lingual, pericalcarine, precuneus and superior parietal gyri, and reduced CT in left pre-/postcentral and paracentral regions, which furthermore correlated with greater abuse severity. They also had increased CV in left inferior and middle temporal gyri relative to healthy controls. Abnormalities in the precuneus, temporal and precentral regions were abuse-specific relative to psychiatric controls, albeit at a more lenient level. Groups did not differ in SA. Childhood abuse is associated with widespread structural abnormalities in OFC-insular, cerebellar, occipital, parietal and temporal regions, which likely underlie the abnormal affective, motivational and cognitive functions typically observed in this population.

  15. An empirical/theoretical model with dimensionless numbers to predict the performance of electrodialysis systems on the basis of operating conditions.

    PubMed

    Karimi, Leila; Ghassemi, Abbas

    2016-07-01

    Among the different technologies developed for desalination, the electrodialysis/electrodialysis reversal (ED/EDR) process is one of the most promising for treating brackish water with low salinity when there is high risk of scaling. Multiple researchers have investigated ED/EDR to optimize the process, determine the effects of operating parameters, and develop theoretical/empirical models. Previously published empirical/theoretical models have evaluated the effect of the hydraulic conditions of the ED/EDR on the limiting current density using dimensionless numbers. The reason for previous studies' emphasis on limiting current density is twofold: 1) to maximize ion removal, most ED/EDR systems are operated close to limiting current conditions if there is not a scaling potential in the concentrate chamber due to a high concentration of less-soluble salts; and 2) for modeling the ED/EDR system with dimensionless numbers, it is more accurate and convenient to use limiting current density, where the boundary layer's characteristics are known at constant electrical conditions. To improve knowledge of ED/EDR systems, ED/EDR models should be also developed for the Ohmic region, where operation reduces energy consumption, facilitates targeted ion removal, and prolongs membrane life compared to limiting current conditions. In this paper, theoretical/empirical models were developed for ED/EDR performance in a wide range of operating conditions. The presented ion removal and selectivity models were developed for the removal of monovalent ions and divalent ions utilizing the dominant dimensionless numbers obtained from laboratory scale electrodialysis experiments. At any system scale, these models can predict ED/EDR performance in terms of monovalent and divalent ion removal. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  16. Crumbs 2 prevents cortical abnormalities in mouse dorsal telencephalon.

    PubMed

    Dudok, Jacobus J; Murtaza, Mariyam; Henrique Alves, C; Rashbass, Pen; Wijnholds, Jan

    2016-07-01

    The formation of a functionally integrated nervous system is dependent on a highly organized sequence of events that includes timely division and differentiation of progenitors. Several apical polarity proteins have been shown to play crucial roles during neurogenesis, however, the role of Crumbs 2 (CRB2) in cortical development has not previously been reported. Here, we show that conditional ablation of Crb2 in the murine dorsal telencephalon leads to defects in the maintenance of the apical complex. Furthermore, within the mutant dorsal telencephalon there is premature expression of differentiation proteins. We examined the physiological function of Crb2 on wild type genetic background as well as on background lacking Crb1. Telencephalon lacking CRB2 resulted in reduced levels of PALS1 and CRB3 from the apical complex, an increased number of mitotic cells and expanded neuronal domain. These defects are transient and therefore only result in rather mild cortical abnormalities. We show that CRB2 is required for maintenance of the apical polarity complex during development of the cortex and regulation of cell division, and that loss of CRB2 results in cortical abnormalities. Copyright © 2016 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ireland Ltd.. All rights reserved.

  17. A comparison of procedures for unpairing conditioned reflexive motivating operations.

    PubMed

    Kettering, Tracy L; Neef, Nancy A; Kelley, Michael E; Heward, William L

    2018-03-01

    This study compared the effectiveness of two procedures to reduce behavior evoked by a reflexive conditioned motivating operation (CMO-R). Task demands were shown to evoke escape-maintained problem behavior for 4 students with disabilities. Alternative communication responses were taught as an appropriate method to request escape and this treatment combined with extinction for problem behavior led to decreases in problem behavior for all students. A beeping timer was then arranged to temporally precede the task demand to create a CMO-R that evoked communication responses. When data showed that the sound of the timer was functioning as a CMO-R, two methods to reduce behavior evoked by a CMO-R-extinction unpairing and noncontingent unpairing-were evaluated. Results indicated that noncontingent unpairing was an effective method to reduce the evocative effects of the CMO-R. Extinction produced unsystematic effects across participants. Results are discussed in terms of abolishing CMOs and the implications of CMOs. © 2018 Society for the Experimental Analysis of Behavior.

  18. Large-eddy simulation of propeller wake at design operating conditions

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Kumar, Praveen; Mahesh, Krishnan

    2016-11-01

    Understanding the propeller wake is crucial for efficient design and optimized performance. The dynamics of the propeller wake are also central to physical phenomena such as cavitation and acoustics. Large-eddy simulation is used to study the evolution of the wake of a five-bladed marine propeller from near to far field at design operating condition. The computed mean loads and phase-averaged flow field show good agreement with experiments. The propeller wake consisting of tip and hub vortices undergoes streamtube contraction, which is followed by the onset of instabilities as evident from the oscillations of the tip vortices. Simulation results reveal a mutual induction mechanism of instability where instead of the tip vortices interacting among themselves, they interact with the smaller vortices generated by the roll-up of the blade trailing edge wake in the near wake. Phase-averaged and ensemble-averaged flow fields are analyzed to explain the flow physics. This work is supported by ONR.

  19. High incidence of cervical ribs indicates vulnerable condition in Late Pleistocene woolly rhinoceroses

    PubMed Central

    2017-01-01

    Mammals as a rule have seven cervical vertebrae, a number that remains remarkably constant. Changes of this number are associated with major congenital abnormalities (pleiotropic effects) that are, at least in humans, strongly selected against. Recently, it was found that Late Pleistocene mammoths (Mammuthus primigenius) from the North Sea have an unusually high incidence of abnormal cervical vertebral numbers, approximately ten times higher than that of extant elephants. Abnormal numbers were due to the presence of large cervical ribs on the seventh vertebra, indicating a homeotic change from a cervical rib-less vertebra into a thoracic rib-bearing vertebra. The high incidence of cervical ribs indicates a vulnerable condition and is thought to be due to inbreeding and adverse conditions that may have impacted early pregnancies in declining populations. In this study we investigated the incidence of cervical ribs in another extinct Late Pleistocene megaherbivore from the North Sea and the Netherlands, the woolly rhinoceros (Coelodonta antiquitatis). We show that the incidence of abnormal cervical vertebral numbers in the woolly rhinoceros is unusually high for mammals (15,6%, n = 32) and much higher than in extant Rhinoceratidae (0%, n = 56). This indicates that woolly rhinoceros lived under vulnerable conditions, just like woolly mammoths. The vulnerable condition may well have contributed to their eventual extinction. PMID:28875067

  20. Measurement of ECG abnormalities and cardiovascular risk classification: a cohort study of primary care patients in the Netherlands

    PubMed Central

    Groot, Anne; Bots, Michiel L; Rutten, Frans H; den Ruijter, Hester M; Numans, Mattijs E; Vaartjes, Ilonca

    2015-01-01

    Background GPs need accurate tools for cardiovascular (CV) risk assessment. Abnormalities in resting electrocardiograms (ECGs) relate to increased CV risk. Aim To determine whether measurement of ECG abnormalities on top of established risk estimation (SCORE) improves CV risk classification in a primary care population. Design and setting A cohort study of patients enlisted with academic general practices in the Netherlands (the Utrecht Health Project [UHP]). Method Incident CV events were extracted from the GP records. MEANS algorithm was used to assess ECG abnormalities. Cox proportional hazards modelling was applied to relate ECG abnormalities to CV events. For a prediction model only with SCORE variables, and a model with SCORE+ECG abnormalities, the discriminative value (area under the receiver operator curve [AUC]) and the net reclassification improvement (NRI) were estimated. Results A total of 2370 participants aged 38–74 years were included, all eligible for CV risk assessment. During a mean follow-up of 7.8 years, 172 CV events occurred. In 19% of the participants at least one ECG abnormality was found (Lausanne criteria). Presence of atrial fibrillation/flutter (AF) and myocardial infarction (MI) were significantly related to CV events. The AUC of the SCORE risk factors was 0.75 (95% CI = 0.71 to 0.79). Addition of MI or AF resulted in an AUC of 0.76 (95% CI = 0.72 to 0.79) and 0.75 (95% CI = 0.72 to 0.79), respectively. The NRI with the addition of ECG abnormalities was small (MI 1.0%; 95% CI = −3.2% to 6.9%; AF 0.5%; 95% CI = −3.5% to 3.3%). Conclusion Performing a resting ECG in a primary care population does not seem to improve risk classification when SCORE information — age, sex, smoking, systolic blood pressure, and total cholesterol/HDL ratio — is already available. PMID:25548311